Following the rollicking and crashing guitar-driven ‘Ballad of the Knucklemen’, The Balladmongrels second single ‘Trouble’ is the title track from their forthcoming debut album. A towering anthem that will have you singing along from the start, it sets the standard for this eagerly anticipated record which is due for release 12th May 2023.
There’s a whole lotta shaking going on down on Neverland Ranch as this three-piece explosion of the blues, Rock n Roll, Experimental Rock, Post Punk and whatever else they decide to throw into the pot.
Guitarist/singer Tex Mosley: one-time alumnus of Philly’s legendary Afro-punks Pure Hell is driving the bus at NRD There’s a healthy dose of minimalist R & B happening on ‘Fat Back’ that reminds me of Vintage Trouble when they weren’t performing ballads mixed with a shade of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. ‘Aqua Velveteen’ carries on this journey with the sparseness growing and getting more trippy. Pat Todd cited Suicide as an influence when describing the band’s sound and I hear that here its certainly not frantic like Jon Spenser but the use of feedback and the blues is all here. It’s like the morning after the night before – you can’t remember much but you sure as hell know you had a good time.
The band can also rock it up, ‘Liquor Store’ has some street-wise attitude that sounds like they’re riding the local bucking bronco with a beer in one hand and the other hitting a snare drum without a care in the world. It’s a simple time-honored formula this Rock and Roll when done right. Knocking out a rhythm and putting some words down before breaking it up with a whacked-out solo that’s trying to tame that fuzz n feedback before it’s too late.
The guys in the band are just rolling with it and kicking out the jams on ‘Solid Monkey Blues’ playing it straight no bullshit I’m sure Iggy would approve.
The band operates without a bass player and figured The Cramps didn’t need one (most of the time) and neither did the Gories so NRD gave it a miss as well.
Side two kicks off with an instrumental jig before ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ brings in layered gang vocals over some big melody and some cool lyrics to reflect the laid-back tempo that is almost horizontal. ‘Hen House’ gets a little funky and loose and has the same vibe early Lenny Kravitz once possessed when he was letting love rule. These cats have got the chops to pull this off you know, the album grows when you let it breathe and drip into your brain.
‘Stigmata’ has the feel that you’ve heard this before laying down some ’80s Keith Richard chops on that riff if he floated down a different path. ‘Knee On My Neck’ is heavy and is one of the highlights of the album that to be fair has plenty of highs. The record signs off with ‘I Believe To My Soul’ which is a brooding number with some excellent vocals and harmonising on top of a really strong arrangement that again doesn’t overcook the instruments and keeps it to a minimum or just enough to deliver the goods something Neverland Ranch Davidians do over and over again on this excellent album. If you’re looking for a pointer then I’d suggest you look no further than the Buy Here button below you won’t regret it.
Fronted by former Role Models leader Rich Ragany, the last few years has seen the Calgary, Canada born and now UK based songsmith build up quite a reputation with his band of rock n ’roll trailblazers, The Digressions. With musicians that include Andy Brook (celebrated producer, SHUSH), Gaff (Glitterati, Dedwardians, Desperate Measures,) Ricky McGuire (UK SUBS, The Men They Couldn’t Hang), Simon Maxwell (Role Models, Yo Yos) and Kit Swing (Mallory Knox, Seven Days And Doesn’t Die), the band won over the hearts of many in 2021 with their critically-acclaimed ‘Beyond Nostalgia & Heartache’ album, gaining considerable airplay on BBC Introducing, and rave reviews and features from the likes of Classic Rock, Vive Le Rock, Louder Than War and Powerplay etc.
Sharing stages with the likes of The Lemonheads, Warrior Soul, The Men They Couldn’t Hang, Whitfield Crane, Ginger Wildheart, The Professionals, Steve Conte (New York Dolls) as well as packing out London venues in their own right, all this deserved attention has led to the band signing a deal with Barrel And Squidger (who have released music by CJ Wildheart, Massive Wagons, members of Status Quo and Sex Pistols) and are set to return March 3rd with a brand new album titled ‘What We Do (To Not Let Go)’.
Today, the band have launched the pre-order for the album and are giving people the first sweet taste of its charms in ‘One Last Thing To Prove’ – a song that lulls the listener into a false sense of security with a beautiful piano and simple chord refrain before out of nowhere the Digressions kick in with a Stooges worthy rock n’ roll riff, complete with ‘Raw Power’ one-note piano stabs. But the vocal harmonies that the band are renowned for lift the song far beyond any low rent garage vibes, and the song soars.
“One night out in Camden I ran into an old friend Pete,” explains Rich, remembering the origins of the song. “We go way back to Canada He’s a sound tech for some pretty amazing acts. Anyways, I see him, and his arm is in a sling. I ask him what he’s doing after. He says he can’t be out late as he leaves in the morning to hit the road. “With a broken arm man??” He replied “We all got one last thing to prove…”
It’s a taster of an album that is crammed full of soaring melodies and the kind of rock n’ roll that can take on many different moods, sounds and styles. For ‘What We Do (To Not Let Go)’ that band went for a different approach to its predecessor…
“As ‘Nostalgia….’ had that wide-screen depth and cinematic feel,” explains Rich. “I decided to lay down a new approach. Gone were layering guitars and keys, in with punchy one takes… everyone getting one shot… everybody gets one job (Gaff is lead guitar, Kit rhythm for example no layers… just the parts), solos are solid takes and not pieced together. This to me would ensure that everyone’s personality would shine right through while making the songs far more immediate and vital. If it’s one thing I’ve learned while being incredibly lucky to work with the Digressions, it’s that they have a ton of personality.
“After writing, recording our ‘Beyond Nostalgia And Heartache’ album through the pandemic I felt we were on an incredible creative roll. So just before the release of Nostalgia I booked time again with Andy at The Brook Studios in Wallington Rock City. I had the songs and the band had grown into something very special. We had to keep going, which felt natural. What you get is a muscular yet melodic, anthemic rock n roll album. A new way of telling our story. One I can say I am so proud to be part of.”
‘What We Do (To Not Let Go)’ is out March 3rd via Barrel and Squidger Records and is available to pre-order HERE.
Album release parties are confirmed for March 3rd at The Parish in Huddersfield and March 4th at The Camden Assembly in London.
Also, the band have just secured the main support slot on The Southall Lawless Stage of The Call Of The Wild Festival on May 27th. More dates across the country are being added.
Rich Ragany And The Digressions are:
Rich Ragany – vocals/guitar/drums Gaff – lead guitar Kit Swing – guitar/vocals Andy Brook – keyboards/vocals/guitar Ricky McGuire – bass Simon Maxwell – drums/percussion
Undisputed kings of the clamshell box set Cherry Red have put together the ultimate CD clam shell box of Dinosaur Jr from 1990-97 or the hits years when they were signed to Sire. On the four CDs, you get all four albums plus a plethora of B-sides and more. Albums, Singles, and rarities are pretty much the Jewson lot.
The booklet has a heap of awesome artwork to accompany the releases as well as extensive sleevenotes from Mojo Magazines Keith Cameron based on his interviews with J Mascis.
Born in the mid-80s post-punk and pre-Grungers Dinosaur Jr was the brainchild of Mascis and his unique guitar style. To be fair the run of sire records are an amazing body of work and a commercial success to boot. ‘Green Mind’ with its cool cover was intriguing at the time (pre-internet) but as soon as the needle dropped it was a sonic scalping. Songs like ‘The Wagon’ and ‘Whatevers Cool With Me’ were and still are fantastic songs.
To follow it up a year later with ‘Where You Been’ with its lead track ‘Start Choppin’ was nothing short of brilliant and deserved its commercial success proving that ‘Green Mind’ wasn’t a one-off or flash in the pan. The beauty here is pulling in all the bonus material onto one disc with its corresponding album with ‘Missing Link’ ending disc two which was the pick of the soundtrack ‘Judgement Night’ which pulled together some amazing collaborations.
Continuing the upward trajectory ‘Without A Sound’ and ‘Hand It Over’ wrapped up a real golden period for the band. They might not have reached the dizzy heights of the first two in the set but I’ve always loved ‘Feel The Pain’ and it still sounds amazing all these years later but again its the bonus tracks that are the main draw here Instrumentals, Acoustic live tracks all filling out this set.
With almost 80 tracks this is a superb box set that’s a fantastic in for new fans or people too young first time around and a great accompaniment for the vinyl reissues that broke the band when they came out a few years ago.
Australia, Australia, Australia! It seems that anything top-notch is coming from afar these days and powering through 2022 “Down under” has delivered time after time and it seems flipping off the year was the MO of Melbourne Rockers The Stripp.
From the great cartoon artwork, it’s obvious these rockers are all about having a good time and rockin’ out. Ten tunes between two and three minutes long keeping it short and sweet. They kick things off in style with a rollicking title track that puts the foot down and goes for it. You don’t need to concentrate to hard just know the title and shout out ‘Aint No Crime To Rock N Roll’ with your thumbs in your bullet belt and your head nodding back and forth. It’s part Scandi rock part old-school hard rock and a heap of Aussie attitude and a little bit of Bosh!
‘The Bitter End’ has a stinking attitude as the riff just cuts through the solid rhythm. Hold on a gawd damn minute it’s the backbeat of Joan Jett meets the bass grunt of Quatro that’s shoved down your ears on Ghost Town. I’m hearing comparisons of Sally Cato and her Smashed Gladys going on here. The songs come thick and fast and sound like they were born out of playing shitty venues left right and center and grinding out a style and sound born out of who they are and all they know.
The fact that Lux Noise are handling the record in Europe makes perfect sense and they should get over here pronto and hit the road with Bitch Queens and slay some audiences around the globe. ‘Witch Hunt’ has got some swing Whilst ‘Back In Action’ tunes into some fine Action Rock.
There’s no reinventing the wheel here and that’s not what The Stripp are about – They’re about picking up the blazing baton and carrying it forward – making a noise and doing it well and hopefully turning some young pups onto some good old loud hard rocking music. There’s no time for a power ballad its just foot-on wedge rockin’ out from the top to the bottom finally signing off with the shuffle of ‘Don’t Feed Me Your Lies’ with its hard n heavy tip of the hat to those who’ve gone before them and blazing a path to oblivion. Rock hard brothers and sisters and turn it fuckin’ up! The Stripp are in da house drink up.
The Hold Steady have announced the release of their ninth studio album, The Price of Progress, arriving everywhere on the band’s Positive Jams label via Thirty Tigers on 31st March 2023. It will be available digitally as well as on CD, standard black vinyl, translucent green-colored vinyl (band store), metallic gold (indie retail), metallic silver (Vinyl Me, Please), and white (Rough Trade). Pre-orders are available now. The Price of Progress is heralded by today’s premiere of the first song, ‘Sideways Skull’, available now at all DSPs and streaming services.
“Sideways Skull is a rocking song about rock and rollers,” says frontman Craig Finn. “In this case, they’ve been taken out of the game for a bit of rest, but still keep their dreams alive as they discuss past glories. We loved the big sound of this when Tad Kubler brought it into the band, and the studio performance of it felt especially joyful. We’re happy to put this forth as a first look at The Price of Progress, and the album’s title even comes from this song.”
Mar 10 – The Weekender at Electric Ballroom, London, UK Mar 11 – The Weekender at Electric Ballroom, London, UK Mar 12 – Colours Hoxton, London, UK (SOLD OUT)
Those Northern herberts The City Kids are back with a new album under their collective studded bullet belts, and you best believe they mean business this time around. With Covid putting the brakes on any promotion and touring of their debut long player ‘Things That Never Were’, the four-piece punk n’ rollers (led by former Main Grains guitar slinger JJ Watt), avoided becoming ‘the band that never were’ by battening down the hatches during lockdown and planning their sophomore album remotely.
Whereas the debut City Kids album was a collection of songs that frontman JJ had already written and arranged himself, the resulting follow up album ‘Filth’ is a collaborative effort and a step up both sonically, creatively and artistically.
Berty Burton’s bass rumble on the opening title track, paired with Dave Sanders urgent beats ensure the listener is paying attention from the off. JJ’s unmistakable growl has the grit of a 40 a day habit and the stench of last night’s rum & coke session still on his breath, while the metallic licks of former Warrior Soul man Dennis Post seal the deal. ‘Filth’ is…. well, it’s downright filthy from the word go!
Next, the upbeat ‘Alone’ rides along on a glorious melody and some killer guitar work, its over before you’ve had time to sink another drink. Things are certainly cooking in the world of The City Kids two tracks deep.
The overall sound is raw and ramshackle, but with the guidance of a certain Dave Draper overseeing JJ and Andy Brook in the production and mixing department, it is also a bit of a monster. The delivery is cool and collected and the songs are as memorable as the heroes the band aim to channel. Their punk n’ roll sound is a mash of Social Distortion and The Yo-Yo’s with hints of JJ’s previous band to the fore. As with the debut, melody is prevalent and the hooks are there for all to savour.
The gritty, high energy single ‘It Should Have Been You’ is as much fun as you can have with your clothes on and the punchy, Wildhearts-esque ‘You Wanna?’ is an early stand out that sinks its teeth into the subconscious and stays there for good. There’s something overly familiar in the pop-tastic melodies of ‘Scars’ that sits well, and the pub rock goodness of ‘Self-Righteous’ will have you coming back for more time and time again.
Is it me, or have JJ’s vocals got rawer over the past few years? Maybe the dude’s been chewing glass over lockdown to get that authentic Lemmy / Mike Ness rasp! Shout out to the backing vocal department on this album, the likes of ‘Something Faster’ and ‘Ghosts’ have a quality you don’t hear every day. Full band vocals and memorable choruses go a long way to elevate the tunes to anthemic sing-a-longs.
Ten tracks of no-frills filth, job done!
If you like your music with dirt under the fingernails and grease in the hair, if you dig no frills rock n’ roll with 3 chords and tons of attitude then The City Kids could be right up your street. ‘Filth’ is a step in the right direction for JJ and the boys and is available now to purchase on a shiny spinning disc with a cool cover. I suggest you click on the link below and add it to your collection. Hell, buy a few for Xmas pressies, RPM Santa insists!
I think it was Lemmy who once said If Motorhead moved in next door your grass would die and if a nuclear war was to happen the only things to survive would be cockroaches and them, well, he was wrong. The Erotics would crawl out of some downtown bar on their hands and knees barely alive but hungover and ready to Rock. Ladies and Gentlemen the Motherfuckin Erotics are back in the room and they’re taking a swing at everyone and everything. they’re plugged in, loud and rockin’ out.
‘Knocking On Deaths Door’ is loud obnoxious and soloing with the best of them. It’s like a time machine has taken me back to the late 80s and I’m on the strip with a headache and a thirst for more loud Rock and Roll and then in the distance, I hear Micky Trash and the boys hauling ass and everything is on ten and there are fireworks exploding all over my speakers.
Sleazy aint the word and that Stooges saxophone on ‘Helltown Boogie’ is dirty, low down and dirty as fuck. The guitars are loud and distorted and there is added harmonica and sax here and there and Micky sings in Spanish just for shits and giggles. It’s like classic Cooper meets some dirty Noo Yawk attitude some sleazy hard rock and punk swirling round a tumbler full of cheap whisky it’s not good for you but you can’t get enough of it. It’s broadway but late at night – it’s razzmatazz but out of step.
‘Diamonds’ is laid back mixing up some Guns n rose when they were fresh and up for it. you might have stumbled upon this late night in the St Moritz club way back in the day and most of those glamourous punks have gone away but thankfully some are still here and some are called The Erotics.
‘Too Hot To Stop’ has got a classic sleazy riff and it’s twirling its mic stand like a punk rock Diamond Dave. For sure The Erotics aren’t gonna change the world or sell a million records but they are honest and clearly love what they do and the world is a better place with them in it and that’s good enough for me as they play their hearts out living the dream lying in the gutter looking at the stars and feeling like a million bucks and if you ain’t wearing a smile when that riff kicks in on ‘Bless Your Heart’ then you might wanna go to the Emergency room to check for a pulse. Power to the Erotics and all who set sail with them it’ll be the best of times I’m sure of that.
As the bell tolls an eerie deathly silence is about to be shattered with some diabolical grunting bass and a shimmering blast of Garage Rock and Roll as it spews forth from the speakers with a creepy crawly menace as ‘Ms. Understanding’ hits the speakers. What a fantastic sounding opener that got an air of controlled chaos about it with the thumping Bass piercing through the guitars to grab the listener as it lurches with menace.
With eleven tracks packed onto this album, you better strap yourself in for a rocket ride of power and controlled aggression but with an overwhelming whiff of Garage rock n roll. ‘Bad Connection’ kicks ass right out of the blocks and I like this a lot already. The thrust and adrenalin continue at pace as ‘Shake You Down’ thunders in. ‘Inbred Respect’ has the beating heart of the Damned era ‘Machine Gun Ettiquete’ on its harder more punchy tunes like ‘Love Song’.
With a spoken intro ‘Action Volume’ turns up a bastardised ‘Iron Man’ on a fuzzed-out distorted electric guitar. The song sounds like a hell of a night out with its rolling rhythm before smashing out on the chorus. ‘Born To Die In 73’ is straight out 77 punk rock. Its the snotty distant cousin of early Damned, UK Subs and SLF and a real fist-pumping thumper. Guitars being rinsed, snare getting a thrashing and full-bodied rhythm – nice!
‘The Revolution Is Dead’ tells the story of Lennon’s assassination and why the future is/was bleak, but pop culture is alive and kicking and The Revolution might well be around the next corner who knows? Signing off with the super fuzz of ‘Lone Astronaut’ this has been a treat on the ears and brain food for the Garage Rock connoisseur.
There has always been great music and this DC Spectres album is a fantastic offering tipping the hat to what’s gone before and picking up that torch and running into the future with it hopefully inspiring others to play Rock n Roll – loud, hard, fast and with this much passion and a love of the fine art of the Garage band and what it means. Play on my friends Vol 4 is a mighty fine album that is worthy of being classed as All Killer no Filler! Buy it!
Today, post-hardcore dream team – Fake Names – announce their second studio album, ‘Expendables’for release on March 3rd, 2023 via Epitaph Records.
The band is comprised of members Brian Baker (Minor Threat, Bad Religion, Dag Nasty), Michael Hampton (S.O.A., Embrace), Dennis Lyxzén (Refused, INVSN, The [International] Noise Conspiracy), Johnny Temple (Girls Against Boys, Soulside) and newest addition Brendan Canty (Fugazi, Rites of Spring). It’s the latest exchange in a musical conversation that spans four decades, but instead of rehashing the past, ‘Expendables’ is a reinvention that sees the band dialing back the distortion and leaning into the melodies.
Today they share lead single “Delete Myself,” a high energy craft cocktail comprised of Punk and Garage, finished with unforgettable riffs.
Forming in 2016, Brian Baker describes Fake Names as a “mutual admiration society,” saying that once the five members got in the same room together, it felt as if they had already been in the band together for years. “There’s this intangible energy, a clairvoyance that comes from our shared experience,” he explains. On ‘Expendables,’ the result pairs their unparalleled pedigree with a pop sensibility that’s slightly unexpected and wholly satisfying.
Melding 70’s U.K. punk with power-pop and classic rock, the Fake Names’ self-titled debut album (2020) was actually a demo that Epitaph founder and Baker’s Bad Religion bandmate, Brett Gurewitz, wanted to release as is. After releasing a three-track EP in 2021, the band enlisted producer Adam “Atom” Greenspan (IDLES, Yeah Yeah Yeahs) who helmed a surprisingly cleaner sound for Expendables. Baker says, “The pop influences are a little more out front on this one and the production really helps it shine. It sounds more direct, more urgent.”
There’s also an economy to these songs that’s rooted in the fact that they were recorded in the span of a week, eliminating the option to add excess instrumentation or arrangements. What ensues is an album that retains the members’ purity of vision in a strikingly refreshing way.
Speaking to lyrical themes, Baker discloses, “In general, Dennis writes about revolution, and Michael and I write pop songs. I’m amazed at how it works, but somehow it strikes the right balance of salty and sweet.” This imagery is paralleled in the album artwork which Baker describes as “70’s dystopian” and features an eerie army of mannequins set against a cold urban backdrop. That dichotomy of lively music and bleak imagery is an important thematic element of Expendables because the album is more than just a collection of catchy songs: it’s an artistic statement about our own impermanence.
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