The Jackets are a garage punk group from Switzerland who’ve been around since 2008 touring Europe and recently, the United States. They were in the US last Fall as support for The Woggles who personally invited them to tour their Northeast routing as openers, later going to the West Coast for their own dates. The group is made of three people: Jackie Brutsche (guitars/vox) – a playwright and artist from Zurich, Chris Rosales (drums) – an expat from Southern California whose lived in Switzerland for 25 + years now, and Sam Schmidiger (bass).
what do they sound like? We’ll opener ‘Dreamer’ is pretty much textbook garage punk. the guitar is dry and overdriven whilst the vocals have the great hall reverb going on and Jackie has a very distinctive vocal style. the opener has some swing to it and you can instantly picture her flailing her arms around and being a very visual singer. Her voice is very dominant over the overall sound. Her biography describes her as a visual artist and a playwright as well as a Rock and Roller.
The songs come thick and fast and have an intensity to them. ‘What About You’ is upbeat and I love the crash bang wallop on the drums and the rumbling bass line as it walks all over the song. This is a really solid garage album and it never gets above its station nor falls below par with the title track being a particular highlight.
‘Floating Alice’ sounds like its been here before as it builds with menace and floats around the speakers and played loudly is quite mystical and haunting. The track taken and put to video ‘Loser Lullaby’ is a bit of a mosh pit body slam as the band kicks off with possibly the album’s highlight right here.
In summery its a strong and consistent ten track slab of Garage punk rock and roll and if that’s your bag then you’re going to love it. There’s some Cramps in here for good measure as well now put this pill under your tongue and let the sounds wash over you ladies and gentlemen The Jackets…
The L.A. underground Rock legend’s 7th studio album
“It’s The Hangmen he wanted to kill… we got run out of Cactusville,” laments Bryan Small on the album’s title track of The Hangmen’s seventh album. Flanked by longtime members Jimmy James (guitar), Angelique Congleton (bass) and newcomer Jorge Disguster (drums), Small recollects the harrowing tale of a gig in Tuscon promoting their major label debut. “It was such a formative trip for us as a young band. There was death, drugs, booze, guns, girls and rock n’ roll… and we met some new friends along the way.”
2019 marks the release of Cactusville and another chapter of The Hangmen legend continues. Small has taken his brand of songwriting to another level, putting him in an artistic class with the likes of Tom Petty and Neil Young as purveyors of honest and simple songwriting.
Side 2 of the LP features the Best Western Players, Bryan Small’s countrified side project. In the same vein as Neil Young’s “American Stars and Bars,” the songs take on a different feel, with vocal harmonies and haunting pedal steel echoing throughout. It’s familiar territory for Small, who grew up in rural Montana before making his way to Los Angeles. “The ‘country’ side of The Hangmen has been there from the start, it stems from the love of Gun Club, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, etc.,” explains Small, “the Best Western Players were brought in to realize the songs as they were conceived.”
The Hangmen will join Acetate Records label mates the Supersuckers on a rare East Coast US tour in September. Additional dates TBA.
THE HANGMEN w/ Supersuckers (unless otherwise denoted *)
08/23 Los Angeles, CA @ Redwood Bar Record Release Party *
A few music-related flicks that have just been released or are about to be released have shown up on our radar. Starting with this banger – We Are The League tells the full uncensored story of how a biker, a skinhead, a grammar school boy and a Persian exile came together, with no musical talent or ambitions and even less respect for anything or anyone, to burst into the UK charts with their debut single.
Next up in time for some spooky Halloween fun (or not)that will excite fans stateside – Glenn Danzig’s directorial debut ‘Verotika’, the horror/thriller anthology that just made its world premiere at Cinepocalypse in Chicago and will follow that up next week (June 25) with a West Coast premiere at the Montalban Theatre in Los Angeles. Today on Deadline an exclusive first look at the project’s new poster (below) which clearly reflects the comic book roots and horror punk sensibilities of the veteran musician.
Written and directed by Danzig, Verotika was produced by James Cullen Bressack and Jarrett Furst for Cleopatra Entertainment. The anthology ensemble includes Alice Haig, Ashley Wisdom, Kayden Kross, Natalia Borowsky, Rachel Alig, Scotch Hopkins, and Sean Kanan.
Danzig is newly minted as a filmmaker but in heavy metal circles the New Jersey-born singer-songwriter has been a mainstay presence since 1977 and has been a founding member of three notable bands: Danzig, the Misfits, and Samhain.
The title of Verotika is a variation on Verotik, which is the name of Danzig’s comic book company and a term he concocted (it’s a mash-up of “violence” and “erotic”). This August marks the 25th anniversary of Verotik, which has published titles such as Grub Girl, Albino Spider of Dajette and Death Dealer while showcasing the work of fan-favorite creators, among them Liam Sharp, the DC Comics star now drawing the monthly Green Lantern series.
Fathom screenings are planned in the weeks ahead for Verotika in New York, San Francisco, Austin, and other markets. A Blu-ray and DVD home video release is planned by year’s end.
Danko Jones play stripped-down rock & roll. A tightly locked rhythm section perfectly placed guitar and a ton of breathing space is all held together with a vocal line that oozes personality.
If you like Danko Jones, you’ll love “A Rock Supreme” and if you’ve never heard the band before, your in for a treat…
“I’m In A Band” is a fist in the air declaration of intent. It had my 9-year-old air guitaring right out of the blocks and is guaranteed to have the same effect on you. Stripped down to perfection, with a chorus that kills.
So let’s make some comparisons – in my humble opinion there’s a bit of Dan Reed Network in there, along with a bit of Kings X, Wolfsbane, Van Halen and a whole chunk of Misfits attitude
“I Love Love” hits Dan Reed Network territory, while “We’re Crazy” pushes it a little harder. Both boast hooks that kill, with enough space for Danko’s personality to rip through the well-placed guitar lines.
“Dance, Dance, Dance” gets way funky in a Dan Reed kind of way, while “Lip Stick City” wouldn’t be out of place on the last Turbonegro album.
“Fists Up High” is pure Wolfsbane, real “Live Fast Die Fast” stuff. “Party” keeps the good time rock & roll theme going, again the Blaize Bailey upper register cutting through to perfection.
“You Got Today” has a naughty “Hot For Teacher” flavour, while “That Girl” is pure Phil Lynott.
“Burn In Hell” takes us full tilt into stripped down Hetfield territory, taking you places Metallica wished they could have taken you in the “Load” era.
The album closes where it began, with another fist in the air anthem. “You Can’t Keep Us Down” is a final reminder of how good “A Rock Supreme” is, imploring you to hit that play button again.
I’ll finish with the wise words of my 9-year old rock chick daughter… “I think I love this band!”
‘What Would I Do If I Were Me’ – Steve Conte NYC – From The Steve Conte NYC Album.
Filmed entirely in Morocco by Jacoba Cornelisse & Salah Ait Oukdim. NYC still photos by Grayson Dantzic. Morocco still photos by Steve Conte. Edited by Toni Tikkanen in Helsinki, Finland.
with an all star band – Steve Conte Vocals/Main Guitar (+ 3rd Solo) – Steve Conte Bass – Keith Christopher, Rhythm Guitar (+ 1st solo) – Dregen Guitar (2nd solo) – Ginger Wildheart Drums – Rich Pagano Accordion – Kenny Margolis Washboard – Boris Kinberg.
The Mission’s Wayne Hussey announces ‘Salad Daze’ UK tour with dark ethereal wonder Evi Vine
The ‘Salad Daze’ Tour with Evi Vine kicks off in Nuneaton on August 26 and runs until November 8 at Stockholm’s Nalen Klubb. His final UK date is November 10, when Wayne appears at the Louder Than Words book festival in Manchester. Hussey will also be embarking on a full European solo tour this year in promotion of this book.
TOUR DATES (all dates with Evi Vine, except where indicated *)
Aug 26 Nuneaton – Queens Hall
Aug 27 Winchester – Discovery Centre
Aug 28 Bristol – Hen & Chicken Club (H & C Club)
Aug 29 Worcester – Marr’s Bar
Aug 30 Cardiff – The Fuel Rock Club
Aug 31 Oxford – The Bullingdon
Sept 1 Hastings – Black Market VIP
Oct 22 Southend-On-Sea – Chinnery’s
Oct 23 Bedford – Esquires
Oct 24 Manchester – Night People
Oct 25 Blackpool – Bootleg Social
Oct 26 Newcastle – Cluny
Oct 27 Glasgow – The Audio
Nov 2 Whitby Pavillion – Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival * (with The Divine)
Nov 5 London – Nambucca
Nov 6 Bath – Komedia
Nov 8 Stockholm – Nalen Klubb
Nov 10 Manchester – Louder Than Words book festival *
Order tour tickets:Here Order ‘Salad Daze’ book:Here Wayne Hussey ‘Wither on the Vine’: Here Wayne Hussey with Evi Vine ‘Black Mountain Mist’:Here Evi Vine ‘Black Light White Dark’ LP:Here Evi Vine ‘My Only Son’:Here Evi Vine ‘Sabbath’ feat. Simon Gallup:Here
Thursday night must witness performances might come in various guises but one we’re excited to see and moving onto the Empress stage is The Barstool Preachers so here’s one they might play…
After threatening to turn up and perform Maybe this year is the year that we get to see Poison Idea and just to wet the appetite here’s PI with ‘Calling All Ghosts’
To finish off this Rebellion Thursday preview why not enjoy this rather rare performance from The Alarm Guitarists classic ‘One Step Closer’. See you down the front
So another record of new(ish) music from Mike Peters and his new version of the Alarm hits the shops this week with a little help from a few of the people in his very impressive address book. The album is connected to last years album that came out in two parts. Confused you will be. If you think you’ve heard some of these before then you’d be right as they’ve been around for a while and avid Alarm disciples will have heard a lot of these over the last few years.
Life isn’t as simple as a band writing enough songs for a record. They can write and record quickly and release music almost straight away through the many available platforms that now exist. The MPO has always (since the original Alarm ceased to exist post Brixton) been ahead of the curve as far as independent cottage industries go. A personal touch that was different and exciting and it certainly helped keep in touch with the fan base, that hardcore that was always loyal to team Peters. Today the MPO is a different beast altogether they’ve certainly grown and become a well-oiled machine and through sheer hard work have grown the Alarm name and managed to keep it relevant in an ever-changing industry.
Influenced by his well documented off-field tribulations Peters is a force of nature and his pursuit of making music is enduring and endearing – his passion for his art is second to none and has evolved as a writer, kept a few musicians close and having such talented players like Smiley and James Stevenson by his side Peters is still able to pen some really impressive Rock and Roll (although I do think the sound lack that punch that Craig Adams always brought to proceedings live and on record).
I’m glad Peters still writes new material but have to admit to not always being keen on his latter work I do own every single release he’s ever put out so I always find it difficult to write a review for an Alarm record, a band I’ve seen in many guises (well into triple numbers over the years). Call me a fanboy (I’m not bothered but can a guy in his 50s be a fanboy?) I can also admit when I find some of his lyric wordy and a bit cliched whilst at other times I find his lyrics uplifting and beautiful – warm and sincere. At the end of the day he’s human and it would be a little odd if I liked everything he ever wrote and he got it right every time.
Well, ‘Sigma’ kicks off in fine fashion with ‘Blood Red Viral Black’ which features fellow coloursound comrade Billy Duffy (of the Cult parish) The song is a good opener and certainly benefits from Duffy’s fretwork (I wish he’d write more song in this vein) I loved Coloursound and it worked really well.
Always dogged by the poundshop U2 tag something that really used to bug me, but, as I’ve got older there are certainly elements of Peters songwriting where their paths do cross. maybe ‘Brighter Than The Sun’ would be one such tune. ‘Time’ is classic modern Alarm and uses the familiar bass line that he got a lot of success with on songs like ‘Rain In The SummerTime’. ‘Psalms’ begins with a simple ‘Stand By Me’ guitar strum on the acoustic and builds gently.
‘Equals’ has a guest spot from original Alarm member Dave Sharp that will please some. Then ‘Love and Understanding’ which sound familiar like ‘Strength’ for the Jet Age. Is self-plagiarism a thing? I do like ‘Prisoners’ and first impressions are it’s a little different.
As far as love songs go ‘Heroine’ is Peters hitting paydirt with some of his better lyrics and the way the song builds is excellent and its a song I’ve always liked. It sounds sincere and is one of the records shining lights.
Before the album signs off with ‘Two Rivers’, ‘Armageddon In The Morning’ is a bit of a throwback to Peters and his Poets days its a seven-minute journey that builds well and the acoustic and harmonica works really well with smileys rhythm. Again Peters touches on moments throughout his history (intentional or not but you can deffo sing ‘Blaze Of Glory’ over parts) and this one works really well and makes for a great song as it passes quickly.
‘Two Rivers’ is stripped back to piano-driven reprise, fans who’ve seen the band live will be familiar with this set closer but not in this form an excellent way to sign off ‘Sigma’.
I’m not sure how many new fans will buy into ‘Sigma’ and being so familiar with a lot of the songs I find it hard to call as a whole new new record (if you know what I mean) I guess ‘Sigma’ is the final part of a several year journey for The Peters family and something they found themselves working through.
I still believe and still wish all the best for The Alarm and would love them to grab some headlines for their music and work their way into a larger audiences heart, they still have the talent and that unwavering belief in what they do and I fully support that they’re not some nostalgia trip – they’re not one of those has been bands who can’t let go. They make new music and by and large deliver time after time after time. Doing things their way against the odds in the face of adversity that would have sunk most mortals.
Buy ‘Sigma’ and start a voyage of discovery and don’t be put off by the size of the back catalogue because there is so much on offer that is right up there with the best of em. Go the Alarm
Floridian Freeloaders like to rock. Make no mistake in that their twin-guitar attack is 70s centric and a celebration of who they are and what it is that made them pick up instruments and rock the fuck out!
They do things old school and have an old school touring schedule that’s had them frequenting the roadhouses, truck stops and Waffle Houses of the South. They’ve earned their stripes and have done it the hard way they pride themselves on their irresistible attraction (allegedly), and can’t pass a woman sitting alone at the bar without trying their luck…(so their biog says)
Sadly, all bullshit. Freeloader is four old-timers from the Boston music scene who have recombined in endless band permutations. Nat Freedberg is the singer, songwriter and guitarist. Jim Janota is the drummer (Nat and Jim played together in the Upper Crust), Charles Hansen is the lead guitar player, and Jim Haggerty plays bass. Damn, they had me sold.
Freedberg released a solo album last February called ‘Better Late Than Never’. It shows how prolific he is and with this coming out hot on its heels he is overflowing with tunes. But this Freeloader is more “Rock” with capital R Nat felt he needed a vehicle for these harder tunes so hence we have this band and this record.
There are two covers on the record, ‘Rag Doll’ A Four Seasons number, and Billy Preston’s funk classic “Will It Go Round In Circles,” which the band took and Rocked the shit out of. That leaves eight originals… Nat only had seven. So its believed he wrote ‘Ten Songs Make an Album’ the day before it was due to be recorded.
Of the Ten songs, its strictly in Bon era DC territory with a clean overdriven guitar played loudly with a melodic tone its sharp and very clean distortion if you know what I mean there’s no way you could say this was swampy muddy sounding rock and roll that’s for sure.
‘Nobody Gives A Fuck’ is melodic in a Thin Lizzy ballpark as it stomps through the verse towards the chorus it’s timeless in a PAt Todd kinda way and I like that. Man, ‘Rag Doll’ sounds good they’ve really taken ownership of this one and given it a real bad boy boogie. It might have the worst title on the record (hell the worst title I’ve seen all year but) ‘Chick A Boom Boom’ has a great riff and the solo would make Angus blush. the only tune I’m not so sure of is the Scottishness of ‘The Highland Fling’ its almost piraty and the lyrics aren’t for me.
Thank God for ‘Round In Circles’ and we’re back on track with a neat groove the band are rocking again which only leaves the Jags or Cars kinda skank on ‘Ten Songs Make An Album’. Now where is the party because I’ve got the tunes. Bloody Freeloaders.
Where do I start? First time I came across Riskee and the Ridicule was when a link to a video appeared in my inbox, interesting Hmm, then an email from a cracking PR company we deal with and a simple do you fancy reviewing the LP? “Absolutely”! Said lp duly arrived in my inbox. But being a stream you lose a little bit. I’m sure most of us that review are a bit old school and streams in fairness have nowhere the power and intensity of a CD let alone the vinyl offering which opens the sound right up.
So after dragging in the different format and putting the CD into the machine the first thing that hits me is the power and intensity of “Accelerate” what a fckin tune, fusing punk, hip hop and just a little bit of a grime edge, at times reminding me of The Dead Formats, listen to the guitar sound wow!!
Next up the rant overlaying” KABOOM” is everything you look for in punk music the message ripping out from the speakers, like Akala on Crystal Meth!!! All the time, that intense guitar noise hitting you full on, you can’t help but smile. You can just see the venues exploding and the temperature rising and rising, this is as hot and sweaty as it gets!!
Nothing can maintain the intensity and we go all Wonk Unit like with Our time before the bars spit out and you’re up and bouncing around again, Christ this is a tasty LP. Then before we have time to breathe we’re into Body Bag your Scene pretty apt because this is crossing genres all over the place, tearing Hip Hop and Punk a new sound, Body bagging the scene indeed, killing it stone fckin dead in reality. This is probably my fave on the LP, there’s a little bit of Ice T’s Body- Count sitting within this one.
Next up Black White and Grey, has a hell of an act to follow and it just doesn’t bother it changes the feel there and then, picking at you, all the time that intensity holding back constantly threatening to explode not as in your face as its predecessor. In the dark we dwell again hints at something just a little bit different, putting drug use into perspective the story ripping out of the speakers, painting an inner city picture we all know too well.
Sellout really belongs on every body’s stereo, again painting a vivid picture of the state of the nation, and by now you need a rest, I can’t wait to catch these guys live promoting this LP.
Millwall Brick/Glasgow Kiss takes you right back in time to a time when proper geezers looked after their own, a terrace anthem in its own right.
Burning through Sex. Cut your teeth (another top tune) and for old times sake there really is no let up this is a blinding lp and before we know it we’re into D.I.Y closing the LP down
This is rapidly growing into one of my favourite new releases of the year!! A top tip for LP of the year, music just doesn’t get better.
The Jackets are a garage punk group from Switzerland who’ve been around since 2008 touring Europe and recently, the United States. They were in the US last Fall as support for The Woggles who personally invited them to tour their Northeast routing as openers, later going to the West Coast for their own dates. The group is made of three people: Jackie Brutsche (guitars/vox) – a playwright and artist from Zurich, Chris Rosales (drums) – an expat from Southern California whose lived in Switzerland for 25 + years now, and Sam Schmidiger (bass).
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