“Rock is in many ways our drug of choice, but that doesn’t mean we’re against traditional drugs though!”
That is what the band answer when we ask them what the new single is about. Razorbats release their brand new single ‘(Maybe It’s TimeTo) Break Up The Band’ on Friday February 3rd, through Voices of Wonder/VME. The track is the first single from their upcoming full-length album ‘HitCrazy’, due out in March. ‘(Maybe It’s Time To) Break Up The Band’ both verychildish and grown up at the same time. Musically it’s somewhere between The Hellacopters, Def Leppard and Kiss, with a classic guitar riff, rad solos (yes, multiple solos) and huge singalong chorus that will make the audiences go wild on their upcoming tour. Lyrically the song is about refusing to conform to a normal nine-to-five lifestyle and following your dreams. Even though it can get difficult when you’re not in your twenties anymore and there’s pressure to keep down and steady job and start a family.
History lesson Norway’s Razorbats are one of the most entertaining Scandinavian bands in “The New Wave of Classic Rock and got international attention when they released their debut album “Camp Rock” in 2015. The word soon spread about this kick ass band from Europe’s cultural backwaters, mixing influences from classic rock bands like KISS and Cheap Trick with 80s sleaze and 90s pop punk so well that they could not possibly be ignored. Their reputation was solidified with their 2020 full length album ‘Mainline Rock ’N’ Roll’ with more than 250 radio stations across Europe and USA playing the singles. The stage is set and Razorbats are poised to go stratospheric with their fourth album ‘Hit Crazy’ which will be out March 3rd.
Razorbats have toured Scandinavia and the UK several times. In addition to headline gigs, the band has shared thestage with bands like The Offspring, Danko Jones, The Wildhearts and Michael Monroe at festivals and clubs both domestically and abroad. Razorbats have developed into a ferocious live band ,who love to entertain audiences with their catchy sing-a-long anthems, lots of casual humour and an energetic rock show that always leaves the audience wanting more.
Razorbats are a band we’ve known about for some time and have had a few false starts from that debut album that blew us away which ended with that lineup playing the legendry Slugfest. three albums down and several line-up changes later the band is like a phoenix out of the flames and with this new album blazing a path for world domination and global success. I caught up with mainstay Kjetil and flung some questions in his general direction and with a flick of his fringe answered them all without flinching as we get down to the nitty-gritty and what’s going on in the world according to Razorbats…
Hi Kjetil, Hope you’re good? The feedback I’ve had from people who’ve heard the new album has been amazing and the songs are going down really well with everyone who’s heard them.Is that what you’re hearing?
Yes, sir! The feedback has been crazy good and I think ‘Mainline Rock ’N’ Roll’ is our best selling album after just a couple of weeks! Almost all the reviews have been 9/10 or 10/10, and as far as we know more than 150 radio stations in Europe and America have played the singles. Also done a bunch of radio IDs all over the place, from Argentina to Poland! The guys in the band are all buzzing, and it feels like we really have a special album on our hands this time around! Great to get some positivity in this mind-numbingly boring Covid world!
When you were writing and recording ‘Mainline’ did you feel you were onto something?
Not really! We tend not to write finished songs before we go in the studio. We just have rough sketches of the songs, with a main guitar riff, a chorus and maybe an idea for what to do in the verse and bridge. But they are not complete songs by any means. You don’t really hear what you’re doing in the rehearsal room, so you often end up with parts that don’t really get the full potential out of the songs. Especially for the singer it is a lot better to write the melodies in a studio setting where you can clearly hear what works. Something might sound amazing with guitars blasting at 115 dBs at rehearsal, but when you do the same in the studio it sounds like Phil Collins on PCP trying to serenade a pissed off pimp at a rave party!
We thought most of the songs showed some promise, but it wasn’t until Paul recorded the main vocals that we started to get an idea of how well the songs worked. And when Last Erik Westby at H10 Productions sent us the finished mixes we were all blown away! I think that was when we knew we had made a great album! It sounded huge, punchy and the songs jump out of the speakers. The songs also work well together as a whole, with enough variation that you can listen to the entire album without getting bored. From the pop rock of ‘Working For The Weekend’ to the cinematic semi-ballad ‘Little Ms. Crazy’ and the Mötley Crüe style album closer ‘Nightcrawlers’. That is something we always try to do, and people seem to think we really succeeded this time.
Was the process any different from previous recordings?
It was very different! On the previous albums we have worked with a producer/engineer called Kai Christoffersen. He is great and a lot of fun to work with, but we wanted a different sound on ‘Mainline Rock ’N’ Roll’. When you work with a producer the sound of the record is often the producer’s interpretation of what you’re going for, and not necessarily the sound you have in your head. So we decided to produce this one ourselves. All of us have recorded a bunch of albums, and we had a pretty clear idea of what we wanted it to sound like. So we felt it was time to take the plunge!
The production side of it was pretty easy since knew what kind of sounds we were going for, but the engineering part was a bit difficult to get right. All that technical stuff, physics, computer geeking, and gadget-noodling is fascinatingly tedious for guys who basically just want to play loud rock music and drink beer! So the album probably took twice as long to record, because there was a lot of trial and error going on. We had to learn all the basics of the craft as we were recording, and of course, re-recording when we fucked up! Which was A LOT!! Three different studios were used in the process. One professional studio and we also built two home studios to record guitars, bass and keys. It took a lot of time, but we are very, very pleased with the results!
How is Covid affecting you guys up there in Norway?Did it alter your plans for recording the record?
I think we have coped well with Covid here, and there haven’t been as many deaths and break downs in the health care system as we’ve heard stories of from other countries. But we have had very strict restrictions. So we didn’t get the chance to be all of us together in the studio at the same time, as we were recording. That was a bit strange for the boys I think, because they didn’t know what the others were doing until it was their turn to lay down parts. And when they were done, they didn’t always hear the songs again until the rough mixes were done. But at the same time I didn’t have the studio full of loud, drunk rockers coming up with seemingly fantastic ideas after the 11th pint and maybe something extra to not pass out. So recording was a bit more efficient, and a little bit less fun. Apart from that, we were more or less able to make the album they way we had planned.
Talk us through the new album.How have line-up changes had a bearing on the sound of the band?Through the changes you’ve still managed to keep the Razorbats sound what have the individuals brought to the record?
We have always had this mantra in Razorbats, that the band should be whatever we want it to be. It’s OK to try something a bit different, and we don’t have to just make the same record over and over again. So line-up changes have had a pretty big impact on the changing sound of the band. The guys who recorded the ‘Bring It On’ EP and ‘Camp Rock’ album were very much into old dirty punk rock and garage rock, and I think you can hear that very clearly on those releases. That line-up collapsed during the record of ‘II’ after alle the basic tracks were done. We actually had done most of the vocals with the old singer, Even Berg, and I think we were just missing some guitar solos and backing vocals. We got Paul in the band to redo the vocals and finished up the album, and because of that we consider ‘Mainline’ the first real album with this line-up.
I don’t think the song writing has changed all that much over the years, and I think that’s the main reason the band still sounds like Razorbats even though the musicians have changed. The guys who are in the band now are more into classic rock, glam and melodic hard rock, and that’s why we sound less like a punk band and more like a modern hard rock band now. I personally love the direction we are heading in, and it will probably influence the song writing as well in the coming years.
What specific input has members brought to the recording process and I guess the songwriting?
All the guys have brought great things to the recording. Even more than before! Most of the songs are still written by me, but this time I didn’t make demos for all of them. That way the others would play what came naturally for them, instead of copying parts I had already written. I think that made a big difference. We did it the same way for the songs we hadn’t play before at rehearsals. The guys had usually prepared their parts at home, and we tried out a bunch of things when tracking. Asle also plays a couple of the guitar solos on this album, and he did a great job!
The song called ‘Rebel Soul’ was an old song Paul had leftover from a band called Hollywood Vampires that he was in 10 years ago, so we recorded that one. I always liked that band, and the song was too good not to use! ‘Nightcrawers’ was a collaboration between all of us. I had the main riff, and we came up with the rest of the song at rehearsals. Martin, the bass player, wrote the words for that one. So all in all the boys were a lot more involved in every aspect of the writing and recording on this one, and that made it a lot better!
What about live.Did you get the chance to road test any of these songs before the various lockdowns around Europe?
Nope! Not a single one of them… But we knew that we needed some more party songs that would work great live, and had that in the back of our minds when deciding what songs to record. Hope it worked!
What about live plans,getting out there and playing shows especially in other territories and of course plague Island (UK) shame there isn’t still a slugfest I bet you guys would love to come back here and play that?
We have one gig booked in Oslo in June, but apart from that, there’s absolutely nothing going on. Extremely disappointing, because playing live is what we live for! I think I am the only one who likes being in the studio, but even I prefer playing live. It’s not just the shows. It’s all the rituals that go with touring. Spending endless hours in a beat-up van from the early 80s with a bunch of smelly guys, drunk or hungover, blasting music on the stereo and laughing at lame jokes. Showing up late to soundcheck so we don’t get one, check-in at the hotel with one room for those who are getting shitfaced that night and one room for those who will drive the van in the morning, so they can get a couple of hours of sleep. And then the reward of playing kick-ass rock ’n’ roll and watch people have a great time and sing along to the songs we have spent so many hours getting just right. Hang out with the fans after the gig and talk about the show, music and life in general. It’s the best feeling ever! Those who have not experienced it are missing out on one of the best things life has to offer! Damn, I miss touring!!! We’ll be back in the UK as soon as humanly possible to make your asses shake!
Anyway back to the album.I’m loving it are there any particular songs you are most proud of on the record?
Thank you! That’s great to hear! It’s difficult to single out just a couple of tracks on this one, because I think it’s a very even record and no real fillers in my mind. We haven’t done a song quite like ‘Little Ms. Crazy’ before, so we are very proud of that one. It’s not really a ballad, but more of a slow, cinematic rocker with a great opening riff that Asle came up with. That one came out great, and people seem to like it a lot! ‘Rock ’N’ Roll Kills’ was a lot of fun to write. We needed an introduction to the theme of the album, and that is what the song is. The album is about rock ’n’ roll lifestyle, and all the dumb shit people like us do. So we wanted a warning to tell people that if you choose this life, you’ll probably go to hell! At least that is what we were told as kids. But it is of course just a load of bollocks, and what will really happen is that you will have a great time! Like this line from the chorus: Cruising like an easy rider. Feel the breeze softly on my skin. All around the road gets wider. The straight and narrow is somewhere I’ve never been». Of course the dudes in the Easy Rider movie got killed by rednecks for being different and part of the counterculture, and there are consequences to choosing that kind of life!
What about the easiest or quickest to write?
All of them took a long time to complete since I didn’t have them finished before we started tracking. So none of them really stand out in that way. The words to ‘Working For The Weekend’ were quick to write! It just tells the story of a guy who works a dead-end job, hates his boss and just wants to get drunk and have a good time with his friends. For some reason, that one came very naturally to me!! Hahahaha…
The flip side of that was there any songs you didn’t think were coming and found difficult to complete?Talk us through your process?
‘Venice’ was a pain in the ass to finish! I had the chords, melody and some of the words to the chorus for months, but could not finish the damn lyrics until the night before Paul was going to sing them. I always need some sort of angle or approach to the story of the songs before I can write them, and I just couldn’t find a good one. That is one of the drawbacks of writing the chorus first, and then figuring out what the hell a song is really about! It is a break-up song, but I wasn’t sure why this guy was breaking up with his girlfriend. I liked Venice as a metaphor because it’s considered a romantic city, but it is also very slowly sinking into the sea and drowning in a sense.
So I did what most people would do when you’re stuck and the singer is gonna track the song the next day. I started drinking! And after five hours, six beers and bottle of wine I came up with the pre-chorus line ‘There’s no fire’. There was nothing big that had happened that made him break up with her. He had just fallen out of love. He still loved her as a friend, but that romantic fire was gone and he felt he was living a lie. He had actually tried to break up with her before, but came back to her. At 4AM in the morning and another bottle of wine it was done, and I could get up in the morning, puke like a sailor on shore leave and go to the studio to record Paul! Good times!!!
What have I missed that Razorbats need to let people know?
We need to let the people know that we now have distribution for the new album in the UK through Glunk Records and that it is a lot cheaper for them to order from them! (drop Glunk an email at glunkrecordstcb@yahoo.co.uk for details)
Who are those bands that have had the biggest influences on the band?Who’s got the most annoying touring habits? Which band member has hidden depths or talent?who would shock us with their record collection out of the band any hidden shame perhaps a Phil collins record or a secret Ed Sheeran fan amongst you? C’mon these are the questions people really want to know.
Ohhhh!!! Tough question! The biggest influences are Cheap Trick, KISS, Hanoi Rocks, Aerosmith, The Ramones, Rancid, The Bouncing Souls, Def Leppard, The Hellacopters, Poison and Joan Jett (just to name a few). Basically all the cool and often popular rock bands from the 70s, 80s and 90s. We like some more obscure stuff as well, but most of us would rather put on ‘High ’N’ Dry’ by Def Leppard over some weird band with one good song that no one has heard of, except a few hipsters with silly beards! We have some guilty pleasures, but they are the normal stuff, like Samantha Fox, ABBA and Scooter! Fun songs to be played at high volume in the van to lighten the mood!
All the guys in the band are pretty easy to get along with, so there are no really, REALLY annoying habits I can share with you. But after a couple of days the van usually smells like a cheap hooker died in there, so maybe showering after the show or in the morning would be a good idea? And the farts can be a bit overwhelming at times. We don’t spend money on proper food on tour and there’s more than enough beer drinking. The natural effect of that combined has a very characteristic odour, that is more of an entity or life-form, that an actual smell! We call him Bob!
Finally, anything else you need to get off your chest?
Yes! Listen to the album, and buy it if you can! We love you all and hope to see you at a concert venue as soon as Armageddon is over!
It’s unbelievably six years since Swedish glam/death punks Razorbats first came into my life via their musical suckerpunch of a debut record ‘Camp Rock’. Word of how insanely catchy that eleven track tour de force was spread like wildfire across the world wide web back in 2015 and if I remember correctly it was actually an avid reader of Uber Rock (who I was writing for at the time) who sent me a message saying “whoa John you really need to check this album out, it’s like Turbonegro jamming previously unreleased Starz and Cheap Trick songs. You will love it….”
And love it I did… as fast forward just a few short months and not only was ‘Camp Rock’ my favourite new album but the band were also booked to play a couple of UK shows, one of them being a headline slot at the legendary Slugfest here in south Wales, at which the band would go on to film the chaotic video for their then still to be released single ‘This High’.
Things were certainly looking good for Razorbats, when news suddenly broke that singer Even Berg was out the band and was being replaced by Paul Vercouteren (from sleaze rockers Virginia Hill) ahead of the release of the band’s 2018 sophomore album ‘II’. With Berg having been an intrinsic part of the Razorbats unique blend of punk and hard rock, I must admit I didn’t initially warm to that second album, and it took a good number of plays before I finally got beneath its skin. So, if the blurb that accompanies the band’s third long player to date is to believed – then things all kind of got on top of the ‘bats too, as this new record is an album they actually never thought they’d get around to writing, never mind recording. The band almost imploding for a second time in the back of their van amidst the hectic touring schedule that followed the release of ‘II’.
Praise be to the rock gods though that they did make it through, as even after just an initial couple of listens ‘Mainline Rock ‘N’ Roll’ is easily one of the best albums I’ve heard so far in 2021. With guitarist and band mainstay Kjetil Wevling along with Vercouteren once again joining up with guitarist Asle Tangen and adding a new powerhouse rhythm section of bassist Martin Korsgaard Hervig and drummer Christian Håpnes Svendsen along the way. Now these guys really do sound like they are ready to take on the world.
Kicking off this all new 10 track album we have ‘Rock N Roll Kills’, and the immediate thing that hits me is the step up this record has in the production department from its predecessor. The main riff to ‘Rock N Roll Kills’ really does sound like more of a mission statement than a song title given the immediate shock it is to the system it generates, and I do have to wonder if the production team of Kjetil Wevling (yup he’s a man of many talents) and Torris Ilievski might also happen to be fans of Michael Beinhorn’s stellar work during the multi-platinum selling grunge days, such is the potential for this tune to immediately be syndicated by rock radio stations worldwide. And it doesn’t stop there either folks, as the immense ‘Working For The Weekend’ and the almost Hanoi (with a decent production) greatness of ‘Rebel Soul’ twist and turn into your psyche like a slinky Axl Rose sideways dancing his way through the late 80s.
It’s when we get to ‘Little Ms. Crazy’ though that ‘Mainline Rock ‘N’ Roll’ really throws me the first musical curveball (not unlike ‘Camp Rock’ excelled at doing), and this really is when Razorbats stand out from the Scandirock pack. Granted this tune might be a step down in pace following the album’s frantic opening trio, but just for the last 30 seconds alone with its vocal refrain just waiting to get stuck going round and round in your head, this is without doubt a true highlight of this record.
For the rest of ‘Mainline Rock ‘N’ Roll’ the pedal is well and truly to the metal with the likes of ‘The City’, ‘White Trash Radio’ and album closer ‘Nightcrawlers’ perhaps being the closest the crue (sic) have ever sauntered into the field of cock rock, whilst the likes of the anthemic ‘Cocaine Karma’ and ‘Big Time’ and the reflective ‘Venice’ simply sound like Razorbats right back at the very top of their game and enjoying every second of it.
Look, buying a copy of ‘Mainline Rock ‘N’ Roll’ should be made compulsory for not just every RPM Online reader but also anyone who owns a record by any of the bands/musicians I’ve namechecked here. Trust me, ‘Mainline Rock ‘N’ Roll’ is guaranteed to drive you (Razor)bat shit crazy folks.
Now, hit the link/s below to get your copy!!!!! (UK fans can pick up a copy by emailing glunkrecordstcb@yahoo.co.uk)
Brand new video for the track ‘Never Forget’, a tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. One Thousand Motels – Rat Scabies & Chris Constantinou feat Sean Wheeler
Our favourite Norweigan Rockers Razorbats have their brand new album ready to go so why not get the brand new video
Another Suzi this time it’s Suzi Moon with her new video for “Special Place In Hell” which is coming out on Pirates Press Records!
Three years after the critically acclaimed album “II”, Razorbats are back with an über-catchy tribute to life as a rocker, “Mainline Rock‘ N ‘Roll “
The road to hell is full of temptations and as prolific rockers, Razorbats never shy away from temptation. Although temperatures above 37 Celsius on Bloody Beach and perpetual sodomy by Beelzebub in a blazing inferno may not be more tempting than watching “The Masked Singer” with the family on a Saturday night, it is still something profound that drives otherwise sane people to spend large parts of their lives in a foul-smelling van from the early 80’s. It is of course the joy of giving people a break from power-hungry bosses, naggy life partners, overwhelming debt and other crap one may have in life. Because maybe it is worth living life a little before Satan gets his eternal cuddle?
The previous album was followed by a rough touring program that culminated in an existential crisis for the band after a concert with mandatory extracurricular activities. As the sun was coming up things were thrown, some words were said and Razorbats were basically finished. It was quiet in the van the next day. The question everyone asked themselves was “what the hell drives us to sacrifice so much for rock ’n’ roll and is it worth it?” In such a situation, most other bands would probably call it a day, but in the Razorbats camp this question ignited a spark again in the rock ’n’ roll engine. They were going to make the ultimate party album about life as rockers!
Mainline Rock ‘N’ Roll tells stories of big dreams, partying, temptations, break ups and social stigma. Universal themes that are part of the life you choose as a rock soldier. The album is a tribute to the rocker lifestyle and life should be a party! So join us for a ride to the dark side! It can quickly get pretty damn hot here, but it is a lot more fun than “The Masked Singer”!
Released on April 9th Razorbats are back with a bang and their third long-player on Rob Mules Records. Visit Here for full details and release bundles.
Norway’s Razorbats are one of the leading bands in The New Wave of Scandirock. The band got international attention with the release of their debut album Camp Rock in 2015 and critics from all over Europe, Australia and the US praised their unique ability to blend classic rock, powerpop and punk in exiting ways. The lead single ‘Kids of the 70s’ got a lot of airplay on rock radio across Europe and college radio in the US, in addition to national radio back home. Camp Rock was named album of the year by Glitter2Gutter in the US and featured on several best-of list for 2015. The hype continued with the album “II” in 2018 and in 2019 Razorbats released the singles “The City” and “White Trash Radio”, as the first tastings from the band’s upcoming full length album Mainline Rock ‘N’ Roll with release in 2021 through Rob Mules Records. This year the band released the singles ‘Working For The Weekend’ and ‘Little Ms. Crazy’. The latter has so far been picked up by more than 100 radio stations in Europe and the USA.
Razorbats has toured Scandinavia and the UK several times. In addition to countless headline shows, they have shared the stage with artists such as The Offspring, Rise Against, The Wildhearts and Michael Monroe at festivals and clubs home and abroad. Over several years of touring, Razorbats have evolved into a hard hitting live band, entertaining audiences with sing along rock anthems.
Another month another visit to the jukebox to see what sevens are spinning round the RPM Jukebox. this month sees a mixed bag with some of our favorites knocking out 45s and some welcome new bands dipping their toes in the water. We love a 45 and this month sees some tasty singles. In no particular order this lot are well worth checking out.
Tyla’s Dogs D’Amour – ‘(Everybody Needs) A Friend’ (King Outlaw Records) What a reet little corker this is. Not expecting a tune this good to come from camp Tyla but hey, here it is, its a gentle rock and roller with all those vital ingredients that were required in the 80s and beyond. It’s got the sloppy rock n roll edge you know you want to hear when Tylas familiar vocal comes in. ruffle your hair (if you can) get out of bed put this on and you’re good to go. It’s backed by live renditions of ‘111’ with the band firing on all cylinders and you also get an exceptional atmospheric live take on the epic ‘Bullet Proof Poet’ part acoustic part electric but it melts into ‘Angel’ to create a pretty epic eight minutes that makes this worth the price of a pint any day of the week. Still got it , still relevant, still rockin’? Absofuckinlutely! don’t ever doubt it! Pick it up Here
Suicide Generation – Prisoner Of Love (Surfin ‘Ki Records/ Family Spree/Spaghetty Town Records/Wanda Records) Another day another absolute killer record from Suicide Generation. This time they’ve got some seriously good labels to share the love around with each label having its own coloured vinyl. Three tracks of classic Suicide Generation it’s wild, loud and a whole lot of fun in the tradition of Garage Punks from The Stooges to the Damneds debut via channeling some Lux interior Suicide Generation are an explosion of the finest noise currently making exciting records that you would be foolish to ignore.
Razorbats – White Trash Radio Another slice of Prime Norweigan Rock and Roll with their usual mix of HArd Rock some classic Rock and a generous slice of power pop a melody and hook to die for Razorbats always deliver and this one is a beauty. An instant hook on the chorus that you can sing along to and a breakdown that sounds like Had the Police been a ’70s inspired glam Rock outfit then they might have penned this bad boy.
Don’t be daft it’s one single do yourself a favour and go discover your new favourite band from Norway – you can thank me later and if this is a taste of what’s to come then I can’t wait for the next album on this form it will be a real contender. Facebook
Paradise Alley/Plastic Tears – Class of ’92 (Self Release) Turning back the clock Paradise Alley look back all (Plastic) teary-eyed at ’92. It’s a romping glam slammer and these two bands have teamed up to make what might just be the best song for both bands to be fair. Call it nostalgia call it some old rockers just not wanting to go quietly into the night but whatever the reason for the regrouping of Paradise Alley songs like this makes it worthwhile. Sounding like 69 Eyes used to sound isn’t a bad place to hitch your wagon and anyone can join in on the chorus.
Available as a CD from the band for the handsome price of £3 so hit em up glamsters and pull on those cowboy boots n backcomb your hair its time to get rockin’
Lauren Tate – What About The Kids (Trash Queen Records) Second single taken off her debut album Lauren Tate heads off in a differnet direction that will have fans purring at her new direction and diversity. Check out the new album details on her website Here
Los Pepes – Automatic / Here Comes The Darkness (Wanda and Beluga Records) Los Pepes have joined Beluga Records for a guest 7inch record, to support there euro tour. Still the loudest powerpop band on earth…the Motörhead of powerpop! No hit wonder 60s and 70s garage pop melodies drowning in a wall of punk rock guitar. With four new tracks on this 7″.
‘Automatic’ is the best song The Hellacopters never wrote. Man has Ben ever written a duff track? Of course he hasn’t and this EP is another blinder Catchy, Melodic, loud and smack bang on the money. They’ve even had time to nip back to the 1960s and nick a Small Faces inspired tune ‘Here Comes The Darkness’ but thats not to say this is Rock and Roll isn’t up to scratch because it isn’t its a splash of fury, 12 bar at breakneck speed wham, bang, thank you, man! and ‘your Justice’ is pure Los Pepes coasting on a wave of everything they’re great at. Another essential single from London’s finest.
Crapsons – Who’ll Babysit The Goths? (Self Release) In the good old spirit of DIY meet these pair of Herberts from The Wirral with their punk rock noise. Enjoy!
Baby Shakes – Cause A Scene (Surfin ‘Ki Records) Features a previously unreleased B side of the Teenage Head track ‘Tearin’ Me Apart’ available in several coloured records this Garage punk rock and roll banger is available Here With a Racey rockin drum beat on the intro its more poppwer than power pop but its sickly sweet and a beautiful thing and well worth checking out. Baby Shakes always do Rock and Roll with a tonne of melody and attitude and the solo is bitchin as they say in some rock and roll quarters.
Fast Eddy – Toofer One (Spaghetty Town Records/Boulevard Trash) You want Rock and Roll with loud guitars then Spaghetty Town have unopened another cracker in the shape of Fast Eddy. Having your EP Produced and endorsed by Tuk from Biters is something to wear on your denim cut off. Coming outta Denver these four (named after their Drug Dealer) they’ve been weaned on the best stuff money can buy no not drugs I mean Rock and Roll. From the power-pop with loud guitars of ‘Hurricane Alley’ its got all the vital ingredients to sustain life from the kickin harmonies on the pre-chorus to the solos and guitar licks that cover the tune its all killer no filler. ‘Milwaukee’ is a distant relative of the Faces if they were born stateside and they saved the best til last as ‘Lost’ is the best tune of the month pure 100% Rock and Roll with energy aplenty its just sunshine on a 45. Awesome
The Gotham Rockets – Blast Off (Rum Bar Records/Murry Sounds) When you name check being past as members of The Devil Dogs, The Fleshtones, Jack Black, The Prissteens, Simon & The Bar Sinisters, The Swingin’ Neckbreakers, The Trash Mavericks, and The Waldos, Of course, RPM is gonna be interested in what you have to offer. From the awesome horn honkin’ on ‘What’s Done Is Done’ via the bad boy boogie of ‘Bad With Girls’ this is the bomb. ‘Rip this Night’ is a slice of classic heads down and jive talk and duck walk as we hand jive through the next three minutes of rock and roll. What a great slice of rock and roll and with added sax appeal its gotta come highly recommended and we endorse it 100%
The Empty Hearts – Coat Tailer (Wicked Cool Records) Just another Cool as tune from these power-pop giants. ‘Coat Tailer’ is a sprightly humdinger with some great harmonies and sharp solos but theres enough bit in that guitar riff and its got Clem Burke on the drum kit. It’s great to have them back making new music and they’ve found the perfect label for their well-rounded sound.
The B Side is a light Beatles esque tune with more great vocals as it just sort of reminds me of walking through a park kicking leaves carefree. The Empty Hearts doing what they do best writing great power pop – Result.
Available on glow in the dark vinyl – Cool. Buy it Here
45 Rally – Bigly (Rum Bar Records) Switzerland’s garage rock sensations 45 RALLY have taken all of their song titles from presidential tweets. But in keeping up with their Swiss heritage, they have decided to remain politically neutral. The music here, a combination of Bubble Gum, Garage Rock, Country and Punk was created for everyone’s listening pleasure. So to all of our Conservative, Liberal and Moderate fans, it’s time to unite! Grab your earbuds, some chocolate and hit the slopes with TWEETS FOR MY SWEET by 45 RALLY! With an equally swing yer pants video this is happy garage for sure.
Screamer – Halo (the Sign Records) Heavy Fuckin’ Metal! make no bones about it folk Screamer aren’t nu metal or Death Metal they just rock like a steam train. Fist pumpin’, Denim, and leather-clad, long-haired, metalheads. think Tank think Motorhead think Tysondog think real metal. Screamer do no frills metal and its Rockin’. with a new album that has a man with wings on a horse al thats missing is some fire and a weapon like a mace or a hammer and they’d be all in. The album is due this month and its called ‘Highway Of Halos’ get on it.
Right Hand Left Hand – Chacabuco (Bubblewrap Collective) clocking in at the most unsingle like length of a couple of seconds under seven minutes and two minutes elapse before former Estrons singer Taliesyn Kallstrom joins the party. Post-Rock duo Right Hand Left Hand are back with a brand new album. Following on from their self-titled, Welsh Music Prize-nominated second album, their third offering, ‘Zone Rouge’, tells the story of humanity’s contempt for the earth beneath us, the air above us and the people around us. Layers of guitars and driving drums are the order of the day married with ambient space in between call it art rock or post-punk indie but one thing it does is build and build.
’Chacabuco’ is available to buy and stream digitally on 27th September. The album will follow on 15th November 2019. It will be available digitally, on CD, and on limited edition double clear vinyl. They launch the album with a show at Clwb Ifor Bach in Cardiff on the 13th of November, more info here: https://www.facebook.com/events/400022130707013/?ti=cl
Alice Cooper – The Breadcrumbs EP (earMUSIC) 12″ six tracks from the Coop singing about Iggy and The MC5 how can this possibly not have RPM salivating at the sight and sound? ‘Detroit City 2020’ sounds good – Sure its modern Alice Cooper but there is more of the old school garage rocker in this and out of all his contemporaries I can’t think of any that are still out there doing it night after night and delivering the good and managing to still churn out new music that is relevant and bloody good. If you were impressed with the opener then hold onto your bobblehead because ‘Go Man Go’ is having it big time. A good tempo with a lotta rhythm and some blazing guitar work. Sure it helps when you can call on yer mates like Wayne Kramer and drag ou tof them such great performances this was always going to be a winner. He gets his funk on on ‘Your Mama won’t Like Me’ and those horns are quality. I’ll admit I’m not so fussed on the lackluster ‘Devil With A Blue Dress On’ but the bar is raised on the finale of ‘Sister Anne’. So all in all a mighty fine way to round off this singles club and with it being a 12″ long ‘un the Coop might just have taken it on the home straight.
One of Norway’s most legendary bands, (that you might be forgiven for never having heard of them, Right? Right) anyway Norway has a good history of knocking out some fantastic bands and a lot of them have been mentioned here on RPM. Backstreet Girls, Turbonegro, Gluecifer, Good Bad the Zugly, Razorbats, and of course Mayhem.
Well, these punk/hardcore veterans are fronted by Billy Cockroach, one of the first vocalists of Mayhem he performed on the 1987 album “Deathcrush” under the moniker of Messiah and they offer us well-aged vintage punk rock full of cheerful aggression and infectious tunes. throwing in Mayhem is a bit of a red herring because its nothing like Deathcrush this is polished positively glistening in the production stakes compared to that Black Metal demo.
‘Songs about Blunt Knives and Deep Love’, has only taken 22 bloody long years to reach our ears kinda puts Axel to shame with his Chinese Democracy. They’re being heralded as one of Norway’s most legendary bands, it basically consists of new recordings of old hits as well as a handful of new tracks and a cover of Mountain Goat’s “Going to Georgia”. It started out as an idea from producer Hugo Alvarstein (The Good the Bad and the Zugly, Raga Rockers, etc…) Who suggested the band go rehearse their best songs from the 1990s then call him up and he’d take em into his studio and get them recorded and give the songs the justice they deserve. To be fair he’s clearly a man of his word and has recorded one hell of an album..
The band started out as far back as 1994, building a loyal fan base and a reputation of being a riotous live band along the way. Compared to the bands two previous offerings this one is the dog’s bollocks and one that should rightly exalt them to the top table of punk rock.
Having honed the tunes by sharing the stage with acts like The Toy Dolls, Discharge, UK Subs, The Exploited, Cock Sparrer, Anti-Nowhere League, Vice Squad and GBH through the years, now it’s about time they put their hat in the ring with a bunch of songs that justified their boast of being up there with the best of them.
The album begins with a cover, ‘Going To Georgia’ and it drops its music bombs right square in the middle of the speakers with it’s spoken/sung verses holding up rather well over a musical backdrop that just crackles along with a joy and sound of a band just killing it doing something they love for the love. ‘You Have A Bun’ is a breath of fresh air as it has plenty of bounce and whilst the vocals are aggressive (often quite shouty) what did you think he was going to sound like? Ian Gillan? that’s the thing its aggressive as fuck but it sounds content and dare I say it – Happy at the same time, oh and the production is great and really lifts the songs.
‘Fantasyland’ has a little bit of Thin Lizzy in those dueling guitars on the intro. I did a little momentary gasp on the intro of the piraty ‘Three Wishes’ as I thought we were getting some h ho ho shanty music but worry not me hearties it was only a false intro. Still, it’s quite piraty its the good end of piraty.
‘On An Island’ is just a banger with its head down its one foot in the Motorhead camp and the other, say, Argy Bargy – Imagine that? To be fair the middle part of the album isn’t fucking about and gets stuck in like The Adicts on a good day. ‘Facts On The Wall’ is Ramones rapid with a dumb yet happy melody and ripping solo this is shaping up to be an excellent record. ‘Necktie Party’ has a bit of a Crass vibe about it. These boys and these songs would go down a storm at somewhere like Rebellion Festival.
A lot of the pace and tempo of the songs remind me of a Norweigan Sham 69 and none more so that ‘Do It Again’ which is one of the highlights of the record on the breakdown it’s like vintage high jinx Damned who always threw in some cool off the wall melodies in fact there are plenty of influences I am feeling here more than ripping off a band they dance to their own tunes and just let their influences just bleed through..
With twelve songs on offer, I would highly recommend you at least give these cats the benefit of doubt and check em out and once you do that I’m sure you’ll be convinced. Great album I’m glad has seen the light of day and hope it’s given the band the energy and drive to do it all again except to say next time don’t leave it so fucking long. – Buy it!
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This month we’ve either reviewed – seen or reported on new music heading our way from some of our favourite artists and this month is no exception beginning with Manchester The Empty Page who has a new track out that we feature this month.
Then Poison Boys have just released their blistering debut album we reviewed here but the album isn’t on Spotify yet so we delved into their back catalogue for this months playlist. But buy the album its a belter (Here).
We also welcome back The Hives with their new single.
The living end were awesome supporting the mighty Stray Cats recently so we included one off their last studio album.
One of my favourite albums this year has been the much-anticipated solo record from Billy Liar. One of my favourite tracks off the album is added to our playlist – simple – beautiful – ‘Independent People’ is awesome and one of the best tunes this month.
Supporting Billy at his album launch is Rich Ragany & The Digressions so why not include the fantastic ‘Your Distance’ from the superb ‘…Like We’ll Never Make It…’
There are also some superb tunes on our playlist from the likes of Duncan Reid, Joey Cape, Razorbats and more. go check us out and spread the word.
As today is Monday RPM likes to send you on your way back to work with three awesome songs and videos. We’ve got three bangers starting with this beaut from Razorbats, ‘This High’ was released a few years ago and with footage taken at Slugfest its as glam as it gets and there are plenty of handsome RPM chaps in the audience.
Second up is the recent Beach Slang track ‘I Hate Alternative Rock’ A new song by a band who’ve never made a bad record.
Finally, a brand new video from Kyle Craft & Showboat Honey with ‘2 Ugly 4 NY’ their forthcoming new album ‘Showboat Honey’ will be available worldwide July 12th, 2019 from Sub Pop. Great video and tune.
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