Richard Davies & the Dissidents – ‘Echo Road’ (Bucketful Of Brains)  Excellent grower from a really impressive album ‘Echo Road’ builds via a really earthy swirling keyboard and great barroom vocals the song is excellent for dusty road trips but the real gem here is the B Side and the bands take of the classic Lords tune penned by Tony James and Tory Crimes and whilst I have the Lords on a pedestal this is a pretty impressive take on a classic song and well worth checking out.  To be fair whilst you’re at it go the full hog and bag yourself the album ‘Human Traffic’. Great band great songs.

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ReMission International – ‘TOS2020′ (SPV Records) Wayne Hussey and friends release classic Mission ‘Tower Of Strength’ anthem with Proceeds to charities personally chosen by each contributor. There’s nothing not to like about a classic song being reinvented for a bunch of great causes and it features a glittering line up with people like Andy Rourke, Billy Duffy, Budgie, Evi Vine, Gary Numan, James Alexander Graham, Jay Aston, Julianne Regan, Kevin Haskins, Kirk Brandon, Lol Tolhurst, Martin Gore, Michael Aston, Michael Ciravolo, Midge Ure, Miles Hunt, Rachel Goswell, Richard Fortus, Robin Finck, Steve Clarke, Tim Palmer, Trentemøller.

With pre-orders already reaching over 40K its a truly outstanding contribution. Spread the word, share, tweet, post it everywhere to tell others about it. Shout it from the rooftops and tell your friends, tell everyone. The digital bundle contains 5 awesome tracks for just £2.99, it all helps those that need it most and the proceeds will be divided and distributed equally among all the beneficiaries. It’s an awesome song always has been and always will be and now its been put to great use.  Keep up with ReMission International  Website | Mission Facebook | Mission Twitter | Mission Instagram |

Fast Eddy – ‘Game Of Love’ (Spaghetty Town Records) A couple of things struck me about this here single.  One, Ted at Spaghetty Town sure does know quality Rock and Roll. Two, Fast Eddy sure do play quality Rock and Roll. The title track is a strut and swagger down the blvd. It’s as confident and cocksure as anything you’ll hear all year these cats know they have a swag bag full of top tunes and from the great vocals to the big singalong piano-driven middle eight it’s fuckin’ huge sounding and I mean grande canyon huge sounding.  The flip side is another great tune but a little something different.  It’s hard to pigeon hole these guys it’s catchy and radio-friendly but there’s an edge and a tension in a sort of Afghan Whigs way.  The B Side gets it for me but by a whisker.  Check em out Fast Eddy will make a dent – trust me.  Facebook / Instagram

Poison Boys – ‘Mean Queen’ (Hobo Wolfman Records)  Don’t be sneaking out no new 7″ singles without consulting the RPM Singles Club with the news cmon boys that’s just not fair especially when it’s one of our favourite bands from the good ole US of A. From the opening engine roar this is a sleazy slice of punk rock n roll. Its got the Stooges fueling the engine and that guitar break sounds like they’re in the room with me it’s so alive.  Awesome tune (not that I would ever doubt it) and it’s backed by a cover of the Jerry Nolan ‘Take A Chance With Me’ so what’s not to like?  Cool cats that just ooze quality and a single you should most definitely have in your collection and hopefully a sign that an LP is on the way!

Buy Here

“Mean Queen” is a celebration of bad ass women, queens, and sex workers everywhere. Make a donation to www.swop-chicago.org to support current and former sex workers, who have been hit extra hard since the start of the covid-19 pandemic.

DEAD DIRTY DINOSAURS – ‘Revenge’ (Riot Records) A restrained, slow burner with a raw, loud, and abrasive guitar riff with a chilled vocal its a smolderer that burrows into your ear.  This Brisbane three-piece might be onto something other than having a great band name they can knock together a pretty good noise between them.  I guess the only thing now is I want to hear more. So, if you’d be so kind send over a few other tunes or the album would be nice. But as far as introductions go this is impressive. Facebook / Twitter / Instagram 

 

 

 

 

The Richmond Sluts – ‘Walkin’ Tall’ (Rock Box Records) Always a good day when The Sluts strut into your life with a new earworm. What a cocksure slab of Rock and Roll this is.  It has swagger and that early ’70s Stones strut that a lot of bands attempt but fall short of but not The Richmond Sluts.  They nail this from the solo on the geetah to the reverb-heavy vocal that sounds like too many late nights and cigarettes n whisky.  A real tonic in these tough times. Three and a half minutes of pure unadulterated Rock and Roll good times.  All hail the Richmond Sluts.

Bandcamp

 

 

Ben Wood & The Bad Ideas – ‘Black’ (Back2Forward Records) With a rapid steady beat this is a little belter.  A right ray of sunshine.  I was expecting something altogether different but this uptempo ditty came banging out of the speakers and I like it, I like it a lot.

Just when you’re waiting for something along comes a bolt out of the blue and whilst its nothing original its quality.

 

 

Wanted Noise – ‘Go Get’ (self release) San Diego what’s up?  Surf/skate punks have a brand new single for your consumption.  It’s upbeat and in keeping with the whole sound you’d expect from a bunch of young guns into skating and surfing.   Bandcamp

 

Heap – ‘EP’ (Rave On Records)  Who needs Westerberg and The Replacements? OH OK, so that’s a lie but in the absence of such an iconic Rock and Roll band the void is ably filled by the likes of Beach Slang and for a brief period Gaslight Anthem well you can throw Heap into that mix.  Coming across like a latterday Westerberg with all the right roots rock and roll moves and refrains Heap have penned three really strong tunes on this here EP. Its dive bar rock and roll from the heart its got dirt under those fingernails and a book of stories in their hearts -Well worth checking out.

 

 

 

The Jailbirds – ‘Dull My Brain’ (Golden Robot Records) This three-piece mix up some cock rock gang vocals with some big bluesy 80s influenced Hard rock chops.  Guns n Roses or more specifically Slash sound like they were a big influence.

A really confident new track from the Canadian trio will no doubt turn some heads in the classic rock circles.  Check em out here

Smarts – ‘Small World’ (Anti fade)  Australia has consistently been churning out some of the best music for quite some time now and we’re constantly turning up bands on our radar that are impressing us with their releases and Anti Fade are constantly pushing the boundaries with a lot of the cassette releases and the ever helpful Bandcamp platform who it has to be said are championing alternative music and not just beating them as a cash cow we find ourselves with another Melbourne band Smarts and their four-track cassette ‘Small World’ which is somewhere between Devo, Tubeway army and a whole host of punk rock band we love.  Don’t hang about though because the four songs run in at just a hairs breath over four minutes from the opening ‘Smart Man’ and its robotic Numan like mood to the frantic head fuck of ‘Smart World’ to their ‘Golden Arches’ and final hurrah of Devo like ‘Don’t Slap The Hand’  Smarts are smart and you should try some. Here

 

The Wake – ‘Hammer Hall’ (Blaylox Records) Get your Goth on kids this is as dark and Goth like as you could possibly get without actually being a member of the Sisters Of Mercy jammin’ with Robert Smith on a couple of Bauhaus tunes.  ME, I love a bit of Goff and this is really well done and is a really decent track.

Keep up with The Wake
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LONDON NOTTINGHAM BRISTOL GLASGOW / LIVERPOOL MANCHESTER CAMBRIDGE

To celebrate the release of The Psychedelic Furs critically acclaimed new album Made Of Rain, released through Cooking Vinyl this Friday (31st July), the band have announced seven UK shows for April and May 2021 and a special intimate Q&A for Banquet Records in Kingston. Tickets for the Albert Hall show are available now, an exclusive presale for the UK tour will be available from this Wednesday for fans who preorder the new album from the band’s Official Store.  Tickets will be on general sale on Friday 31st July.

 

The full dates are:
APRIL 2021
27th     London     Royal Albert Hall *
28th     Nottingham Rock City **
29th     Bristol               O2 Academy **
MAY 2021
1st       Glasgow           Barrowland **
2nd      Liverpool          Academy **
3rd       Manchester      Academy 2 **
5th       Cambridge       Junction **
Supports:
* Jah Wobble & The Invaders of the Heart
** Pauline Murray & The Invisible Girls
The Psychedelic Furs also share a video for their song Come All Ye Faithful, the fourth song to be released from Made Of Rain, alongside No-OneDon’t Believe and You’ll Be Mine. The video, the band’s first Official Music Video in nearly 30 years is shot entirely in black and white and directed by Imogen Harrison. Richard Butler says “‘Come All Ye Faithful’ is a bit about looking for redemption in faith and riches, questioning if either are of any true value and whether redemption is ultimately necessary at all.”

 

On 26th April, the day before the Royal Albert Hall Show, The Psychedelic Furs will be hosting an intimate Q&A session in association with Banquet Records, at St John’s Church, Kingston KT1 2SU. The Q&A will give fans a personal insight into the making of Made Of Rain. Get tickets here:https://psychfurs.lnk.to/banquetQA  Kingston upon Thames has a special resonance to Richard and Tim Butler as they were both born in the local area.

 

From its exhilarating opening bars, Made Of Rain is classic Psychedelic Furs in both its sound and execution. It’s a joy to hear again, fresher than ever. The album was produced by Richard Fortus with The Psychedelic Furs, whilst mixing duties were handled by Tim Palmer (David Bowie, U2, Robert Plant). Made Of Rain is available on CD, Double Gatefold vinyl and digitally as well as exclusive formats and autographed options via the Official Store.

The Psychedelic Furs released seven critically acclaimed studio albums – ‘The Psychedelic Furs” (1980), ‘Talk Talk Talk’ (1981),  ‘Forever Now’ (1982), ‘Mirror Moves’ (1984), Midnight To Midnight’ (1987), ‘Book Of Days’ (1989) and ‘World Outside’ (1991). They released many classic singles throughout the ’80’s and into the 90’s, including: ‘Sister Europe,’ ‘Love My Way,’ ‘The Ghost In You,’ ’ Pretty In Pink,’ ‘Heaven,’ ‘Heartbreak Beat,’ ’All That Money Wants’ and ‘Until She Comes.’

 

In recent years, the band has toured, completing a tour of North America in 2019 and also played acclaimed shows at The Hollywood Bowl, All Points East, Hyde Park, Benicàssim and a celebrated run of UK shows including headlining the prestigious Meltdown at the Royal Festival Hall at Robert Smith of The Cure’s request. Most recently, the band performed a sold-out tour of the UK and Europe which culminated in a triumphant show at the Roundhouse in London.

 

The last few years have seen the band’s legend growing, highlighted by the fact they have scored over 150 million streams of their songs worldwide. Their influence since arriving on the post-punk landscape four decades ago has reverberated and resonated with many bands that have followed. Additionally, artists from The Strokes to The Killers to REM to Foo Fighters to Bob Dylan has have sung their praises.

 

In addition to lead singer Richard Butler, the six-piece line-up features co-founder Tim Butler (Richard’s brother) on bass, Mars Williams on saxophone, Rich Good on guitar, Amanda Kramer on keyboards and Paul Garisto on drums.
Their first album in almost 30 years, since releasing 1991’s World Outside and splitting up soon after. Reuniting early on in the Millenium, existing as a touring entity only, I was genuinely surprised to hear that the band had signed an album deal as I always assumed there was no appetite to record new material. With the bands last commercial peak being 1987s Midnight to Midnight they were seemingly destined to remain a nostalgia act spending a majority of their time on the road in the U.S.
 
A strong opener in “The Boy Who Invented Rock & Roll”, a great layer of brooding synth showing growth in their song output and even having a bit of a Dark Wave element. “Don’t Believe” is the established first single released back in January. It really sits in the foundations of classic non-pop Furs, which makes recent single “You’ll Be Mine” even more of a disappointment. It’s a limp number at best.
“Wrong Train” kicks off like a New Order football jingle though quickly detours into a bitter-sweet, epic confessional. Speaking of pills, car crashes and turmoil amid filthy guitar and sax duels. An absolute stand out track. The only low here being when it finally ends, though “This’ll Never Be Like Love” drags you into a somewhat beautiful pit of despair. The track really does hark back to the sound of their last two (criminally overlooked) albums.
“Ash Wednesday” has the same level of brood, but at over 5 minutes it never really goes anywhere and it’s a bit much to take. It’s the same case for “Come All Ye Faithful”, trying to be direct and edgy but coming across very much like filler material. “No-One” thankfully grabs us by the scruff of the neck and puts us back on course, giving us Richards Butler’s dark cacophony of lamenting croons.
“Tiny Hands” is very American rock radio commerciality straight out of the gates. It’s not terribly unpleasant, just very questionable production. The production here is provided by former member Richard Fortus (G’N’R fame). Not slighting Fortus’s role here, though I am disappointed the band didn’t go with someone who potentially could of put them to work. Someone with a similar background such as Flood or Alan Moulder?
“Hide The Medicine”, a very dreamy number that builds and builds but ends very abruptly almost as if it had never even begun? “Turn Your Back On Me” has really grown on me after several listens, revealing itself as a subtle but epic number. Album finisher “Stars” rolls in. Another dreamy composition, building in parts, taking us to a collage of sounds, distorted guitars and synths melding together only to disappear bluntly. A surprising track to place at the end, not really giving much as a send off.
Overall the album is a bit of a mixed bag. Not a classic but certainly not disappointing. My lingering thoughts only that I hope they try their hand at another release sooner rather than later. Definitely seek out this new album but be prepared to take the rough with the smooth.
Buy ‘Made Of Rain’ Here
Author: Dan Kasm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ncz9b2dIHkU&feature=emb_logo

THE DEAD DAISIES ARE LOCKED, LOADED AND READY TO FIRE!! on  AUGUST 23RD.

 

The Dead Daisies pride themselves on being an ass-kicking Rock band very much of today who love to celebrate the history of amazing music. In short, the band are fans of Rock and always will be.

Every one of the bands albums to date has had at least one cover song on it drawn from great songs from all eras, from the early blues greats to the classic rockers and heavy-hitters of later times. So many terrific players, so many immortal words, so many larger-than-life riffs.

 

“This is a ‘tip of the hat’ to our heroes, bands that influenced us when we use to buy their records as teenagers. Now we’ve put them all on one album and it seriously rocks!! You may think of us as ‘Rock Stars’ but at the end of the day we’re just huge music fans!” – John Corabi

This collection of covers comes together from a long list of some of our favourite tunes, some bonafide classics – or simply songs that made us all smile, sweat and scream, band and audience alike.

These are done Daisies style, with big guitars, big vocals and always a bit of dirt under our collective fingernails, just the way we like it which is why we always love to mix up the setlist and throw them into our live shows.

“Playing these songs live is a total adrenaline rush for all of us. Our audiences go nuts with our Daisified versions of these songs that come from an incredible time in music. It’s our way of paying homage to the ‘greats’ of rock.” – Doug Aldrich

 

So crank them up as they work better with generous amounts of volume and a huge smile on your face. After all, a great song is a great song. Rock is Indeed alive and well.

Released on August 23rd, 2019, it comes in a suite of formats including DigiPak CD, Coloured Vinyl with CD in paper sleeve, digital download and streaming.

All tracks are remastered for this project with ‘Rockin’ In The Free World (Live)’ and ‘Highway Star (Live)’ being released for the first time ever.

 The players:

 

A lot of great musicians have been part of The Dead Daisies over the years. The following musicians can be heard on this album: Doug Aldrich, Jackie Barnes, Deen Castronovo, John Corabi, Richard Fortus, David Lowy, Marco Mendoza, Dizzy Reed, Jon Stevens and Brian Tichy.

 

Rock Is Indeed Alive And Well!!!