On the day they begin the WA leg of their I’m Sorry Sir, That Riff’s Been Taken tour, The Hard-Ons have released a new single and video from the album.
The “Needles & Pins” 7″ single will be released on coloured vinyl as a strictly limited edition of 300 – 100 in hot pink, 100 in clear teal and 100 in black. It features the exclusive non-album B-side “Spider Tree” (an out-take from the album) and will be available from the band at the shows as well as on the Cheersquad Records & Tapes Bandcamp page and from select retailers..
Of the new single and video, Hard-Ons co-founder and bassplayer Ray Ahn has said “The Hard-Ons are in love with the music and beauty of pop. We wanted Mike Foxall, the director to capture the sentiment and tenderness of the melody – all the while showing some light-hearted humour… ”
Guitarist and fellow co-founder Blackie adds,“People usually scoff (politely Emoji) when I insist we’re a pop band .. SEE!!”
The WA dates follow the band’s recent AIR Awards ‘Best Independent Rock Album Award’ nomination for I’m Sorry Sir, That Riff’s Been Taken, and the group’s much-viewed surprise APRA Awards performance of “Know Your Product” in tribute to The Saints’ Chris Bailey.
The Hard-Ons’ new album I’m Sorry Sir, That Riff’s Been Taken is out now via Cheersquad Records & Tapes. (Distributed by Magnetic South)
Three years on from the last Rebellion Festival and we are finally back at our spiritual home, and there’s a few things that have changed. The Winter Gardens has opened a new Conference Centre main entrance, and the old backstage area where we’ve done so many great interviews with bands over the years is no more, so sadly bang goes any chance of doing any of those for you this weekend folks…. sorry! Then of course there’s the new outdoor stage going by the name of R Fest that you can attend on its own if you so wish, at £50 a day, or its free to those with Rebellion weekend wristbands and then finally there’s this sense of freedom in the Blackpool air, something that I certainly haven’t felt in quite some time.
What hasn’t changed though is the fact that Rebellion is still the number one punk and alternative festival here in the UK, returning with another knockout bill (that a few cancellations aside) has the RPM team arriving a day earlier than we have done previously, just so we can ensure we don’t miss any of the bands playing early on the first day of the festival. It wasn’t that long ago that I remember Thursday being the kind of “warm up” day for the event, now it’s the surrounding pubs and clubs that provide that, and we find ourselves crammed into an uber sweaty Tache watching Suzi Moon, when really we should have been getting an early night preparing for the weekend ahead, but fuck it, we really are back, and we wouldn’t want it any other way.
THURSDAY
Arriving early doors at the Winter Gardens to catch Janus Stark opening the Empress Stage line up, the first thing that hits me is the size of the queue outside the conference centre waiting for the wristband exchange. We’d followed the festival’s advice online and got ours the night before, so we sailed through, but I can understand some of the anger vented within Facebook groups if you did get caught up in this and missed a band you wanted to see. As it is Gizz Butt and the Stark guys get to play to a smaller crowd than they might have given these circumstances but this doesn’t bother the quartet one iota as they deliver an outstanding performance that proves once again that every little thing does in fact count.
“Alright you English cunts, I bet you wish you’d been stuck in queues too rather than watch us,” is certainly a risky opening gambit from Pizzatramp frontman Jimbob Theodore Logan, but having risen from playing a slot at the festival’s Introducing stage just a few years back to now playing the flagship Empress Ballroom, he’s a man on a mission, and if he can make you laugh, or indeed cry (more of that in a moment) then what the hell? Jimbob’s other half Tia is in the line-up today on bass and backing vocals and that female voice does add a new dynamic to call response element of some of the band’s back catalogue, but then when you have songs as insanely catchy as ‘CCTV’ and ‘Ciggy Butt Brain’ within that canon of work how can the Chepstow pizza crew possibly go wrong? There’s even a touching moment when Jimbob calls his son mid-set just for the crowd to sing “Happy Birthday” to him, something that sees the frontman getting “sweat in his eyes” before the obligatory ‘Bono’s A Cunt’ closes a resoundingly successful set for the trio. You know, when people say you have to be “in the know” to get on the Rebellion bill, I always say “well Pizzatramp did it and they are fucking clueless.” There’s really no come back from that one is there….
I first saw Suzi Moon take to the Rebellion stage twelve years ago, playing one of the two stages they then had over in the Olympia, when she was a member of the Hellcat signed Civet. I have to admit I wasn’t that enamoured with the set I’d witnessed at the Tache the night before, largely due to a muddy sound, but Suzi seemed to love it, and for her set in the Pavilion this afternoon, it’s the almost absolute opposite. Here right from opener ‘Special Place In Hell’ the sound out front is stunning, thus ensuring that tracks like the strutting ‘Sonic Attraction’, the glamtastic ‘I’m Not A Man’ and the sultry set closer ‘Animal’ rip through flesh to get their hooks in you. It’s up on stage where Suzi is having guitar problems, that she doesn’t seem quite as in her special place as she did just twelve short hours earlier, and smashing the offending article into the Pavilion stage, you can feel the frustration she must have had boiling up inside. Rest assured though Suzi (If you are reading this) this was a great performance, and pretty much everyone around me seemed to think so too. I mean a bit of mid-set tension never hurt Texas T at Rebellion now did it?
Heading back to the Empress for some Wonk Unit, it’s now a decade since I first witnessed Alex Wonk live (that being at Slugfest 5 back in my hometown of Abertillery) and boy how things have moved on since those early(ish) part spoken word/part grunge/part punk rock days of the band. Only the main man and bassist Pwoison remain from that gig, but once again within this performance today the spirit of vaudeville is still there for everyone to delight in. I’ve often referred to Alex as the “Ian Dury of his generation” and here in the same hall that so many tortured geniuses have played over the years he seems in his element, conducting his glorious-sounding band through the likes of ’Pathetic Merry Go Round of Existence/Heroin’, ‘Day Job Wanker’ and a furious sounding ‘Nan Is Old’. It takes a pitch-perfect ‘Awful Jeans’ to get the sprung dancefloor bouncing for the first time this weekend, and just as ‘Go Easy’ tears out the PA we have our first band clash of the weekend, as we hop, skip, and jump over to Club Casbah in time for the arrival of Dirt Box Disco.
It’s also a decade since I first witnessed the mighty Dirt Box Disco deliver their slamdunk debut at Rebellion, and today they return to the Olympia, now retitled Club Casbah, playing perhaps their finest set since that jaw dropping debut. Some might argue that this is because the set list draws heavily from the ‘Tragic Roundabout’ EP and ‘Legends’ album, but when you have a song as strong as ‘Burning’ that can immediately get the whole of the packed-out Casbah singing as one, you just need to make sure you don’t lose the audience, and then when you can follow that anthem with the likes of ‘Peepshow’ ‘I Don’t Wanna Go Out With You’ and ‘My Girlfriend’s Best Friend’s Sister’ you really are ‘Unstoppable’ and even when Spunk calls his band “rock ‘n’ roll dinosaurs” towards the end of their set, I’m sure he means it in a “Jurassic Park” Alan Partridge kind of way. “Back Of The Net!!!”
After a quick pitstop for some food (we do have to eat too you know) we move back to the Empress for Anti-Flag, or as they like to pronounce it An-tie-Flag, and I have to admit that I’ve never been a huge fan, thinking them to be a band consisting of more style than substance. Tonight, however even an old cynic like me can’t help but get caught up in the moment and singalong with the likes of ‘You’ve Gotta Die for the Government’ and ‘Fuck Police Brutality’ and whilst these tunes might now be over 26 years old they still sound as relevant today, maybe even more so. I do find it odd that in amongst their strongly politically driven setlist that they still have time to do a ‘Stars on 45’ kind of run through some cover tunes like ‘Should I Stay or Should I Go’, ‘God Save the Queen’ and ‘If the Kids Are United’, but the Empress faithful lap it up and send Anti-Flag off into the night like all conquering heroes. Me, I’m properly distracted by what’s about to follow.
Drawing the largest crowd of the day so far, it’s LA hardcore punk legends Circle Jerks who are up next in the Empress. Originally confirmed for the 2020 Rebellion Festival for what would have been the 40th-anniversary celebration of the band’s seminal debut record ‘Group Sex’, tonight, two years on it’s also the 40th-anniversary celebration of the band’s second album ‘Wild In The Streets’. Guiding us through tonight’s 32 (there may have been more) song battering of the senses that the band like to call a set list there’s the ever-convivial Keith Morris to relay the background story behind each of the blocks of songs the band, made up of bassist Zander Schloss, guitarist Greg Hetson along with guest drummer (the man who makes it all possible according to Morris) the monster that is Joey Castillo, deliver like men a third of their age. From ‘Deny Everything’ through to ‘When the Shit Hits the Fan’ via ‘Red Tape’ there’s even a point towards the end of their set where Castillo has to ask Morris to keep talking just so he can get his breath back, and if you remember that his day job is currently laying down the backbeat for The Bronx then that is surely some feat indeed. With the crowd thinning a little towards the end I do wonder how much of this is down to the relentlessly intense nature of the Circle Jerks set or if it’s just another one of the weekend’s many stage clashes, and as I’d actually forgone a long overdue chance to watch Hawkwind down on the R Fest stage for this Circle Jerks reunion set I for one was certainly glad I made this choice here tonight, as this was something I really would have hated to have missed.
Another potential stage clash was taken out of my hands literally a few days before Rebellion started when Bad Religion were forced to cancel all of their remaining European dates, including their headline slot in the Empress Ballroom, due to a family emergency back in the US. With The Skids stepping in to save the day and me having never been a fan of the band I instead headed over to Club Casbah to catch The Boys once again ploughing through a 19-song set that covered most of the hits from their back catalogue as well as a few deeper cuts to keep the diehards on their Cuban heeled toes. Singer/bassist Kent Norberg may lovingly refer to Boy’s songwriting machine of Matt Dangerfield and Casino Steel as the “Lennon And McCartney of punk rock” but through squinted eyes, Dangerfield would certainly pass more for Keith Richards these days, and not just in his looks either. There’s also the clang of his tight yet loose guitar proving to be the perfect counterpoint to Honest John Plain’s stand in Chips Kiesbye and with Steel closing down the set keyboard-less for ‘Sick On You’ he was giving us perhaps a rare glimpse of his inner Mick Jagger, albeit a slightly reluctant one. Oh, and here’s a footnote to the organisers of Rebellion too regarding this performance, because as The Boys have for some time featured two members of the fantastic Swedish punk rock band Sator. How about asking them over to play as well especially given they’ve just scored a number 1 album back home with their ‘Return Of The Barbie Q Killers’ record?
With just a couple of bands left on my must-see list it’s during the changeover between The Boys and The Bar Stool Preachers that I rechristen my RPM travelling compadres for the weekend, the Goldfish Brothers as everything I seem to tell them they immediately seem to forget. It’s no wind-up either, and never mind how many times I tell them I want to watch Bad Nerves at the ungodly hour of 1 am over in the Arena they instantly forget and ask me “who?” and “where?” time and again. In the end I have to put it down to the cider visors they have both been wearing for most of the day and the fact that one of them left home at 4 am this morning to get here, so instead I just settle in to watch the return of the mighty BSP as their career takes yet another stellar upwards turn.
Having recently announced that they have signed with Pure Noise Records on a two-album deal Brighton’s favourite ska-punk sons can seemingly do no wrong at the moment. Granted, a couple of band members do resemble extras from Nick Love’s The Business as they take to the Rebellion stage with a drum and bass intro tape booming out over the PA, but as soon as ‘Choose My Friends’ kicks in there’s no disputing this is the sound (and look) of The Bar Stool Preachers at the very top of their game. There’s also a smattering of new tunes given a spin around the Club Casbah block tonight and if this is the sound of what is to come then this is probably the last time we’ll be seeing TJ and the lads playing small venues here in the UK. This new stuff is essential listening, and I can’t wait to hear what the third album will sound like when it does finally get released. There’s only one downer tonight and that’s the fact that the band’s signature tune ‘Bar Stool Preacher’ doesn’t get to be played as the lads are on a strict curfew, but that tiny set list blip aside, this is the sound of the future of punk rock, bold, ballsy and most of all, absolutely brilliant. Look out for them across Europe and UK as the support for The Interrupters tour, things are about to go major league for these guys, you just mark my words.
So with that performance still ringing in my ears, it’s at this point I give up on ever getting the Goldfish Brothers to ever hang around to watch Bad Nerves, but as the weekend progresses I actually find myself not regretting missing them quite as much as I was fearing, but more of that to come.
Adios for now I’m off to bed for some much-needed shut eye. “Woking turn that fucking phone off!” Ha!
Back in 1974 when Leo Sayer famously sang “Well I’m a one-man band, nobody knows nor understands” he could very well have been referring to Australian-born but now Brighton-based psych space cadet Dez Dare, albeit he was almost four decades too early.
Not that time really bothers Dez, that’s more of an abstract constraint in his world, where music, art and mind expansion blend into one, and ‘Ulysses Trash’ (his second full album to date) is a melting pot of thirteen tracks that take you on a musical roller coaster ride quite unlike any other.
Totally DIY, with Dare playing/recording everything on the album, the production is shot through with the associated garage rock feel you get with such recordings, and there’s an underlying feeling of early Sub Pop within the acid-soaked grooves of ‘They Scream, My Head Is So Full I Can’t Dream’ and this is something that continues through the likes of the wonderfully titled ‘Bloody Sea, Holy Fuck’ and perhaps my fave track on the record ‘1.9.8.5’ which features a spiraling space rock riff over which Dare riffs his spoken word lyric before wrapping it all up in a Stooges-like chorus to die for.
I actually think if some of this stuff had been released a couple of years earlier you may even have found a track cropping up on ‘A Better Dystopia’ Monster Magnet’s covers album that paid tribute to obscure (yet great) garage rock music through the ages.
In fact, if you discovered fantastic bands like Table Scraps from that record then I highly recommend you check out ‘Ulysses Trash’ when its released on August 19th on CD and download via the Bandcamp link below.
‘Ulysses Trash’ is the soundtrack to the fourth dimension baby! Can you dig it???
Coming across like a down-under Devitto era Buzzcocks meets AC/DC old Skool the Chats do anything other than getting Fucked on this their second offering of Aussie punk rock.
‘GET FUCKED’ opens with ‘6L GTR’, a takedown of a speed-crazed status-symbol driver – a critique piqued when Eamon spotted the titular license plate in an airport carpark. It’s an album that shows the band’s maturity from the off on this here 13 high-velocity punk tracks. To be fair they’ve hardly matured and started writing prog whilst playing a flute one-legged on a toadstool. This bad boy rips from start to finish, as they’d say down under. Lyrically it covers topics from panic attacks, junkies, prison breaks, the price of smokes, surf mafia, and being drunk in every pub in Brisbane amongst other heady big ticket topics.
There’s a rumor that Opener ‘6L GTR’ saw Eamon Sandwith nick a bit of Dave Lee Roth which was taken out of the tune after management got a knockback from Diamond Dave but hey ho them is the breaks they should have just done it and send double D the V sign with a sue us if you want letter. The non-PC album title came from a brainstorming session (imagine that one folks?) where Matt Boggis said imagine how funny it would be if kids go to the record store and ask for Get Fucked from the salesperson. Yeah pretty funny slinging it on yer Christmas list from your nan to pick up. But hey this isn’t Roxy Music or Genesis or some high-brow prog This is working-class Aussie punk rock yer Fuckers!
Anyway, where were we? Oh yeah, thirteen songs. The first single and album opener down The Chats have got sharper and tighter that’s for sure and all that touring has paid off for sure. Most of the album is your usual Australian HC one and a half minutes of rage then boom! but there are a couple of tracks that tickle the four-minute mark which in itself is almost Maiden-esque pro in length rather than Ron Jeremy Length in the puns and goofiness stakes. so good on ’em for that.
‘Struck By Lightening’ is a warning to take cover in storms maybe go inside and put this on the earbuds – thundering along with a rapid verse with sloppy doo wap backing vocals and a cautionary tale. the solo is majestic to be fair as the song hammers along. ‘Boggo Breakout’ is punk as fuck from the vacant riff to the snotty vocals it’s another banger and benefits from volume and multiple plays. ‘Southport Superman’ is just a heads-down race to the finish line in true punk as fuck style. ‘Panic Attack’ is more restrained from the intro with a military slap on the snare and pluck on the bass before Josh joins in with his Shelly meets Diggle meets the Undertones wall of punk rock guitars lifts the song up.
The first of the long songs is the excellent ‘ The Price Of Smokes’ which is about the economic cost of living stuff where the band thrust the cost of living to the forefront. It’s a cool bass and drum intro where they lock in and take this baby to the bridge then drop her off gently. An excellent song that asks the important questions of the day. Sidestep from the heads down crank it up that had preceded it, (See I said The Chats had moved on and matured). Oh hang on ‘Dead On Site’ is a razor-sharp riff delivering exactly what The Chats fans are clamoring for. Punchy, full throttle, punk rock mixed with some fine Angus Young inspired old school solos – magical stuff!
‘Paid Late’ is a fine slice of Smash and Grab punk rock before the let’s go to the pub banger that is ‘I’ve Been Drunk In Every Pub In Brisbane’. If I’m honest this album has added elements of Rock and old-school hard rock, even when they speed up proceedings it’s a great crossover full of energy and street punk rock n roll. Their no longer on Smoko their running the gaff. There’s no acoustic ballad but there’s lots of loud guitars. I think one of my favourite tracks is ‘Emperor Of The Beach’ with its cock sure riff that tips the hat to the daddy of tone Steve Jones and is a thumper of a track. The band signs off this second album with the punky ‘Getting Better’ and so they are. God bless these noisy cunts from down under for they’ve taught this old dog a few tricks on this album and tightened up the loose ends of the debut and thrown in a few curve balls but above all delivered a fantastic record that I’m thoroughly enjoying
The small consolation fans of The Wildhearts can take from their favourite band being such a volatile unit, is I suppose, the amount of fantastic music the resulting side projects have produced every time a member leaves or, as is the case right now, the band goes on an extended hiatus.
Honeycrack, The Yo-Yo’s, The Jellys, Jackdaw4, Mutation, Silver Ginger 5, Sorry & The Sinatras, the list of quality just goes on and on.
There is one band however, that rose from the ashes the first time The Wildhearts crashed and burned that completely passed me by at the time, and that band is Grand Theft Audio.
I’m not exactly sure why this was, as formed around the creative nucleus of Wildhearts drummer Ritch Battersby, producer Ralph Jezzard and Realtv and Vive Finito frontman Jay Butler, the band quickly signed to London Records for their debut album ‘Blame Everyone’ and then found themselves pretty much everywhere, touring the world whilst also featuring on various movie and video game soundtracks. Then, almost as quickly as they burst onto the scene they were gone, as their label dissolved and the band fell apart.
Its two decades on from that implosion with Ritch and Jay now back in the ring with their second album ‘Pass Me The Conch’ that I first get to hear them, and praise the Gods (of Rock) that I’ve finally discovered them.
Effortlessly merging elements of electronica with balls out arena rock Grand Theft Audio sound like a whirlwind of positivity in a world that once again seems to love wallowing in the negative. Inspiring tracks like the gothic ‘Ruin Your Youth’, the anthemic ’Bad Instinct’, and the monstrous ‘Bury The Day’ take the bottom end thrust of The Wildhearts and give it a 21st Century twist, full to bursting point with melody and catchier than Covid-19 in a world that is now seemingly devoid of any conscience for its continued spread.
Elsewhere, there’s the pop-tastic rock/rap lead single ‘The Gods of Rock’ that has me thinking of Manson at his finest (that’s Marilyn not Charlie) and album opener ‘Scrub Up’ could very easily have been a long-lost GUN track written at the height of their 90s MTV fame.
It’s the darker and more reflective electronic tracks like ‘Trevor’ and ‘The Load’ that are the flipside of the Grand Theft Audio dynamic, and for me, this is where they stand apart from being just another rock band. It’s exhilarating and genre smashing stuff!
‘Pass Me The Conch’ is Grand Theft Audio’s statement of intent, its them taking control of their musical destiny and throughout the record’s ten tracks it sounds like they are loving every second of it.
Released on the 2nd of September with a twelve date tour starting a week later to help promote the release of the record, Grand Theft Audio will be sharing stages across the UK with CJ Wildheart and Scott Sorry and some might even be so bold as to say that a world without The Wildhearts is actually a musically much richer place to live in. ‘Pass Me The Conch’ is a leader not a follower- check it out!
There was a moment during ‘Tower Of Strength’ tonight when I took the time to look around the packed room. Confetti stuck to my sweat-drenched skin, flanked by girls on guys shoulders, there was a sea of hands in the air, smiling and singing along to one of their favourite songs. Nobody had a mobile phone out and everyone was lost in the moment, and I thought to myself …this, this is what live music is all about. This is what I have loved my entire adult life. And this sort of energy, this camaraderie at a live gig is what keeps me coming back for more.
This is the first of 3 warm up shows by The Mission in preparation for their European tour, and it will be the last dates the band play in the UK for the foreseeable future. There is no support and The Mission will play 2 sets. To my knowledge, the band have never played York before, they probably won’t again. It has been sold out for months. This could be a night to remember.
It is hot in The Crescent before the band even take to the stage at 8pm, and by the time they finish the first set of deep cuts and curiosities, I can only describe it as being akin to having a sauna, fully clothed with 250 of your best friends!
Engulfed in a cloud of dry ice, the opening ‘Black Cat Bone’ from their 2013 opus ‘The Brightest Light’, is an atmospheric, slow-burner that builds nicely. Dressed head to foot in black, the band skulk the stage as you would expect. The tribal beats of new boy Alex Baum sound powerful and Wayne Hussey’s 12 string sounds loud, way loud! The live mix ain’t the greatest it has to be said, but that’s what you get for standing a few feet from the stage and the PA, I guess! Wayne is certainly struggling with the sound, but it seems to sort itself out after a few songs.
Some great and some may say, unexpected tunes follow. The Beatles ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ sounds ace and that riff to ‘Evangeline’ is pure joy that lights the place up, a set highlight for me. The enigmatic frontman takes center stage, gesticulating to his enraptured fanbase as they sing the chorus back to him.
They mix up the old and new nicely. ‘Tyranny Of Secrets’, ‘Swoon’ and ‘Grotesque’ follow in quick succession, followed by old classics ‘And The Dance Goes On’ and ‘Into The Blue’. ‘Swan Song’ ends an hour set that dare I say it, was a bit mid-paced and lacked any big ‘hits’. But there is more to come.
A half hour break and then the band return for Set 2. This is more of a greatest hits set, consisting of the songs they will be playing on the imminent European tour. Opening with ‘Beyond the Pale’ immediately sets the scene for how a gig should be. The energy levels are off the scale, in complete contrast to the first set, where it seemed the crowd were hesitant to go for it. No such problem now, as fists punch the air in unison to the anthemic chorus and a circle pit of sorts forms sending arms and legs flailing into the unsuspecting masses.
The ebb & flow of this set seems perfect. Classics such as ‘Serpent’s Kiss’, ‘Garden Of Delight’ and a magnificent ‘Severina’ keep the energy levels high, the crowd are in fine voice and the sweat is literally dripping from every pore.
The gentle ballad ‘Butterfly On A Wheel is a welcome respite from the goth-tinged anthems and gives the more energetic amongst us a breather and a chance to get a drink. Wayne sips from a bottle of red and gets us to sing the chorus to him as he surveys the scene and smiles.
And then there’s confetti in the air… boom! ‘Wasteland’, hello my old friend! A heartbeat of a bassline from Craig Adams, effect-ridden guitars from Hussey & Simon Hinkler and that anthemic chorus. The song is jammed out with harmonics and feedback, as the frontman takes us on an extended trip, before bringing the hook back in again for a crescendo. Magnificent stuff.
Reinvigorated with its recent re-recording and release as a charity single, I guess ‘Tower Of Strength’ still stands tall as one of Wayne Hussey’s finest moments. Certainly, in this live setting it has the power to unite and enthrall in equal measures. The message in the lyrics is something we can all relate to during recent events and it stands tall as a testament to that more than anything.
They end the second set with ‘Deliverance’. I mean, c’mon, what a tune! If you aren’t making shapes with your hands through that verse and punching the air for the chorus, then what sort of a music fan are you anyway? Wayne keeps the chorus refrain going as Alex beats that bass drum, the guitarist and bassist exit stage left, leaving all eyes and ears on their band leader ending the song.
Shit, I need a drink of water and a change of t shirt, but they ain’t done yet. An encore is in order, and Wayne removes his 12 string for the first time tonight, takes to the mic and apologises for any mistakes they may make as they haven’t played the quite fitting ‘Heat’ for a long time. ‘Hungry As The Hunter’ follows and sees the band gift one last hurrah for a 2-set treat that no other show will provide on this run.
Combining the energy and bombast of an arena show, the atmosphere and intimacy of a small club show and the heat of a thousand suns, The Mission delivered a one-off performance I will remember for years to come. My ears are ringing, my clothes are drenched and my faith in live music is fully restored. If you are still under the illusion that goth rock is dreary and miserable, go see The Mission live and prepare to get the cobwebs blown away for good.
PRE-ORDER THE OCTOBER 28 COLLECTIONHERE; LISTEN TO MAX HAVOC’S “BOUND FOR HELL”NOW
“The Sunset Strip sang an irresistible siren song to young metalheads, the stretch from Tower Records west to Geffen Records headquarters. The Rainbow and Gazzarri’s were ground zero, both inside and on the sidewalks out front.” – Katherine Turman from Bound For Hell: On The Sunset Strip
Numero Group, the frequently GRAMMY-nominated, Chicago-based label known for crafting expertly-researched collections featuring rarities, out-of-print and often forgotten musical sub-genres and artists, shine a spotlight on the halcyon days of early ‘80s Los Angeles glam metal with Bound For Hell: On The Sunset Strip.
A deep dive into the world of AquaNet and eyeliner, the 21-songs, spread across 2LPs, transport listeners, with music critic and co-author of Louder Than Hell: The Definitive Oral History of Metal, Katherine Turman, providing the road map via a 144-page, full color book. Amidst those pages, the story of how the scene unfurled, and eventually imploded, is told via first-hand testimonials, photos, and show flyers.
Artists featured include scene heavyweights Armored Saint, Black ‘N Blue and Lizzy Borden, alongside long lost tracks from Reddi Killowatt, Angeles, Max Havoc, SIN, and Romeo. Bound For Hell: On The Sunset Strip also pays particular attention to the female musicians who challenged the testosterone-laden world of the Strip, with entries and recollections from Lisa Baker, Jaded Lady, Leather Angel, Hellion, and Bitch. “We were not pop girls, we really loved the aggression and the passion of hard rock music,” explains Leather Angel and Jaded Lady’s Terry O’Leary. “As a band, and especially as an all-girl band, you know, we came to conquer.”
A stream of Max Havoc’s “Bound For Hell”, a local band formed in 1981 by Pat McKeon, and at one time included Quiet Riot’s Carlos Cavazo and W.A.S.P.’s Tony Richards, is streaming now. The track comes from the band’s long out-of-print, self-titled album.
“The infamous Sunset Strip glam metal scene of the ‘80s is one that’s been covered excessively, and for a good reason. But usually, the analysis goes too far past bands like Mötley Crüe, Poison, Quiet Riot, etc.,” explains Adam Luksetich, producer, and researcher behind the collection. “Our goal with Bound For Hell was to narrow in on the equally impressive independent or unsigned bands that thrived in that same scene but in most cases, never benefited from the major label feeding frenzy. With a bounty of unseen photos, pages and pages of flyers, and detailed liner notes, these bands get more time in the spotlight.”
The Numero Group will also be releasing several digital-only bonuses leading up to the physical release, dubbed the Bound For Hell digital series, the label previously released L.A. Rock’s single “Cocaine” and Stormer’s eight-songClaremont Village Demos in upcoming weeks.
Pre-orders, for both Bound For Hell: On The Sunset Strip box set (2LPs and the accompanying book), as well as the Sheer Savage edition featuring a CD wallet with 12-panel, double-sided poster, without the book, are available now:https://numerogroup.com/products/on-the-sunset-strip. The Numero Group website will have an exclusive color vinyl edition of the LP-based set, limited to 500 copies, which will include a bonus cassette featuring five additional tracks from Black ‘N Blue, Lisa Baker, Stormer, Odin and Leather Angel.
One thing that comes from even just the first listen of this eagerly awaited debut album is that you really feel like you are listening to something special.
Hailing from the Rhondda valley, Puzzle Tree are a quintet specialising in a brand of rock that manages to mix a whole host of genres ranging from Prog, Symphonic and Alternative rock and metal that sounds familiar yet fresh all at the same time.
From the opening track ‘Embers’ and its stop start riffage to the angelic vocals of Rachel Thomas, the song opens the album in such a way that you can not help be drawn into the lush melodies followed by the ultimate riff and glorious fluid soloing.
As mentioned above the sound of the album is absolutely crystal clear and fantastic. The second track ‘Oceans’ opens yet again with another killer cutting riff and you honestly feel that you shouldn’t be listening to something great as this easily surpasses anything that each of the band have previously done before.
If you are fans of Welsh heavy rock, then the line-up should be of no surprise to you. Featuring the likes of Matthew Alexander Powell on vocals and guitar, Matt John on guitars, keys and vocals, Jamie Roberts on bass and the powerhouse drummer Rhys Jones.
The collective wealth each member brings to the band is evident from the first note.
For example, in the third song ‘The Burning Lands’, one second the lush vocals of Rachel leads into a glorious guitar solo from the formidable duo of John and Powell.
Every Broken Floor is clearly the work of a band that knows exactly what they are doing and they do so in a fashion that isn’t bragging but confident of how good they really are as a unit.
For me, the stand out songs are ‘Hollow’ and the single ‘Fearless’.
With the album being self recorded and produced by Powell and Lee Howells and mixed by Howells – you know that it will sound the best it ever could be.
This is an album that begs to be played loud and one can only imagine what these songs sound like in a live setting and I for one can not wait to see and hear the full Puzzle Tree experience
Sami Yaffa should be a household name. Some of the bands he’s played with should be household names, and some of the records he’s made should be in every self-respecting music lover’s collection. Sami Yaffa is a Bass guitar-playing Legend.
I know the term legend gets banded about willy nilly and people refer to players who should be nowhere near the word but there are some artists who are the absolute embodiment of Rock and Roll and worthy of the word legend. From his humble beginnings and his love of music from many genres through his time as the bass player in Hanoi Rocks through his dalliances with Joan Jett, Demolition 23, New York Dolls, Jetboy, Hellacopters and most recently old sparring partner Michael Monroe who to be fair have been a going concern for the best part of a decade and most recently his solo album that wiped the floor with everything released last year Sami Yaffa is a Rock and Roll Icon as far as I’m concerned and now the fucker is a published author with magic in his pen and a wonderfully engaging style that shines like his personality from his humble beginnings right up until 2016.
Mysterious yet open. Up for a party yet shy, charming and seemingly always living life with a smile and a jour de Vivre that has seen him through some horrendous challenges yet the guy rolls with the punches and pulls through stronger and more determined. Yaffa must be a fucker to be around with such qualities most mortals can only dream about achieving and boy has he got a story to tell.
The book opens with his humble beginnings as he sets the scene of how his formative years set him in good stead for what was to come. Yaffa’s style is engaging and you feel like you’re in the passenger seat for the ride there’s a flow to his story that’s engaging and throughly captivating, especially for a fan of his work. The stories aren’t bogged down with detail but the sense of adventure and ability to roll with the punches shines through and his unwavering love of music no matter what genre is always about how it affects your heart and soul.
I’m always a bit miffed when I speak to musicians who claim to not listen to music or keep an interest in what’s happening around them nor seemingly give a shit about their own music once it’s been put in the can. Yaffa is like a sponge and his modesty shines like a star when working with others every day is a school day and striving to be better is never a bad thing. I’ve lived my whole youth and adult life with Sami’s music and whatever he gets involved with usually turns out to be something I need to be listening to be it his punk roots, the reincarnation of the Dolls, his roots music through Mad Juana, Jetboy, Joan Jett to Hanoi Rocks (the best band ever) to his debut solo album in 2021 He’s also a documentary maker his skills make you sick if he didn’t have such a warm smile.
As a teenager, Hanoi rocks dished up everything I loved about music and Sami was a vital part of the story and his input was a huge part of the sound. He talks fondly about the band, especially some of the trips they had but he never shys away from being honest and how they fell apart or at least how his time was done and how being in the band was affecting his health physically and mentally. Sure they were flawed and it was their imperfections that were a big part of why people loved them so much even if their story is tragic and a well-trodden path reading Sami’s take is captivating and heartbreaking. Apart from the pretty shambolic Sherrif McCoy book, it’s the first English worded inside track from any member of the band. But seeing it all laid out in front of you as big a part as Hanoi was there is so much more to Sami’s legacy than one band. I particularly loved reading about his chaotic time working with Steve Stevens which then led to the Demolition 23. period and the band that grew for that record.
I love reading biographies and autobiographies and the master of this genre is Alvin Gibbs another bass player whose career overlaps with Yaffa’s on several levels as far as players go, I’d probably have them both at the pinnacle of style in playing and approach to music as well as both playing on some of my favourite records and had Sami not been so loyal he might have had the Iggy gig and Alvin’s legacy would have been a little lighter than it is, sliding doors and all that.
I don’t was to give any spoilers except to say I laughed out loud at some of the stories and drifted off into what could have been with others but throughout the book it is a real page-turner, heartfelt, warm, insightful, honest and engaging – exactly what you’d want from the writer and another excellent addition is that excerpts of the book come on a 12-inch record to accompany where Sami reads excerpts from the book. I love it all and if there’s one book you need to check out this year then it’s this, absolutely fantastic – makes you piggin sick. Hopefully, it won’t be so long before we get the second volume where Sami brings us up to date and spills the beans on what he did from 2016 to right here right now! Brilliant
Liquids recorded this album with the help of Erik Nervous. Then Erik mixed, mastered and released it via his label Nail Biter Records. It is distributed by Drunken Sailor Records (for the UK) and Australia’s finest Computer Human Records. In the United States the record is available from Violent Pest Records and is limited colour pressing. That should be all the background you need when investigating this album.
Ok Ok maybe not all the info you need to make an informed choice but its like the seal of quality. Liquids’ Mat Williams seemed like one of those creative punk rockers who was going to release what he wrote and as often as the weeds grow in my yard. Prolific is another word you could useif you kept your ear to the ground but don’t take your eye off social media or you’ll miss a release. Two albums (one a double) and a whole lot besides were pumped out of Indiana between 2015-18. You know the drill hardcore, Ramones pop, A splash of Devo, and more but that gives you the gist. I guess I’d align with Alex Wonk for quality of output maybe even more prolific Then it went quiet. then after several years of nowt, it was a new album last year this fucker but this has some added junk in the trunk and on vinyl. Twenty-seven tracks to be precise. Sure it’s Lo-Fi it’s not going to be high fidelity half-speed remastering but to be fair most of the songs only last under a minute with a couple barely stretching out over two FFS! Hell, how did I miss this even as a digital release it’s got a cover of Meat Loaf ‘Bat Out Of Hell’ that is almost prog length reaching out over three minutes although I’m sure Meat would have liked this version much better than his bloated anthem. It reminds me of The Briefs goofing around, Genius? Hell Yeah!
Some of the jerking rhythms are like a sped-up Undertones ‘Nobody Likes You’ is like a fucked-up Scooby Doo tune The Briefs meets NomeansNo at times and some of these songs are so rapid that even some speed metal bands would bow down with respect. ‘Life Of Oi’ is a pair of 18-holers moon stomping all about the place. The covers don’t end there as ‘Strutter’ is taken to school and given a proper punk rock makeover even Gene would raise an eyebrow for. The four bonus tracks are also all killer and no filler. A hot mess of an album that I can’t recommend highly enough. It’s punk rock baby but not of this earth what a top top record! Buy it!
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