Feels a bit weird yet fitting that I’m reviewing the Doojimans debut record (of sorts) second after reviewing their second release first. Cofused? You will be but I doubt Doojiman and the gang would want it any other way.
Doojiman and his side kick Woogie Wombach grabbed a few space cadets and space cakes before heading into outter space to see if they could pull together something from the influences they had here on earth like The Ramones, MC5 and The Stooges but they weren’t just going to ape their idols they were going to throw their own shapes into the bowl and mix a fucked up salad all by themselves
With a bunch of EP’s, singles and two full-length albums under their belts (including ‘Electric Boogaloo’, released in January of this year by Beluga Records), Heavy Medication is bringing Stockholm’s D&TE’s debut digital-only e.p. from 2014 to vinyl for the first time and rockin up at Heavy Medications Door seems just about right and par for the course, to be honest.
From its opening chords, the “Watch Out! Look Out!” EP is everything as good as the ‘Electric Bugaloo’ album make no mistake about that. Its not just the debut EP though to be fair it also has the added bonus of four extra tracks (including a Nobunny cover) to make this another album they will certainly have orbiting around the end of the year best albums list. From the fuzzed-up organ heaving of opener ‘Woogie Wombach’ this record just motors. ‘(I Wanna Go) Take Me Away’ is a throbbing mass of Ramones angst being whipped by a Quo like twelve-bar chug.
They fly the Hives flag on ‘Doojiwoman’ and that filthy bass on ‘I Love It When You Hate Me’ would have been terrifying in the swinging ’60s where it was surely born. It’s like the Kinks on bad Acid but they’ve still got their mojo baby.
It’s not all crash bang wallop though kids, of course, it’s not as the band tackle the Nobunny tune ‘Apple Tree’ with nothing more than an acoustic guitar and some tasteful percussion and shimmering electric to puncture the chorus. but before things are brought to a close they venture off through late seventies NYC where they tune their antenna to something Blondie used to ply through the airwaves. Basically another top tune amongst an album full of top tunes but I expected nothing less. Sign me up scotty for the next one I can’t get enough of these crazy cats. Signing off starlog 2020 scribe Daley signing out! Buy it.
Buy ‘Watch Out Look Out’ Here or from Beluga Records outta Sweden Here
It only seems two minutes ago that Jim Jones And The Righteous Mind released their fantastic sophomore long player ‘CollectiV’ on the world. But after a three month break they are back with a new stand alone single entitled ‘Get Down Get With It’ on hot pink 7” and they are doing a run of live dates to support its release. The first date happens to be at my favourite local gig venue The Fulford Arms. Having only witnessed this band in full flow supporting in larger venues and festivals, it would be rude not to attend a full headline show, right?
Immingham’s finest exports Ming City Rockers open the evening’s entertainment in fine form to an already packed out room. The core of singer/guitarist Clancy and guitarist Morley seem to be keeping the good ship Ming flying, yet it seems every time I catch them they have a different rhythm section. That seems to be beside the point though, as whoever they have on bass and drums this week are pretty much up to scratch. The band’s sound is raw and ramshackle, but tight and punchy as fuck. In fact this is the best I have seen them and playing to a full room where the temperature is rapidly rising, can only be helping.
It’s not long before Clancy is stripped to the waist and shouting in-between songs at the crowd like Zed from Police Academy. The garage punk cool of ‘Sell Me A Lemon’ and ‘She’s A Wrong Un’ go down well and are perfectly delivered with the style and attitude that many of their peers can only dream of.
Clancy demands a volunteer from the audience to come and play his guitar for the final number or he will jump in and pick someone himself. Luckily some hapless punter steps up to the challenge, removes his shirt and straps on Clancy’s guitar as the smiling singer disappears into the crowd to sing the final song and bring their set to a chaotic climax.
They came, they saw, they conquered. Someone give these dudes a support tour sharpish.
The atmosphere is electric and the anticipation high as the headliners finally takes to the stage and Jim Jones peels off the opening riff to ‘Boil Yer Blood’. The familiar tribal beats fill the room as the song builds and the singer has the attention of every man, woman and child in the room. To his left Matt Millership bangs the keys, to his right Gavin Jay brings the low end, and just out of sight guitarist Mal plays some sweet pedal steel.
‘No Fool’ follows, drummer Andy Marvel beats out the most powerful of regimental beats as the frontman matches with dirty guitar and a deep bluesy hollerin’. If you thought Jim Jones And The Righteous Mind needed a gig or two to brush off the cobwebs after a 3 month live hiatus, you would be sadly mistaken. Dressed all in black, with matching turtlenecks and necklaces, the band fire on all cylinders for the next hour and a half and the energy levels do not diminish whatsoever. Even the claustrophobic confines of The Fulford Arms cannot hold back the raw power of the JJATRM machine.
‘Till It’s All Gone’ is all mad tribal percussion, maracas and cool as you like full band backing chants.
Jim and Mal ring seven shades of shit from their guitars, licks and riffs are peeled off with ease as the pair and the bassist aim their instruments to the crowd and to the ceiling for the majority of the set.
This is how live rock ‘n’ roll should be; raw, loud and sweaty… sublime. None of this Liam Gallagher ‘staring at the floor’ shit! This band gives everything they’ve got and they deliver songs, without pausing for breath, like they are unloading the magazine of an AK47 on an unsuspecting crowd.
The likes of ‘Satan’s Got His Heart Set On You’ and ‘Sex Robot’ from the recently released ‘CollectiV’ fit the set perfectly, as the singer struts the stage and hollers from the depths of his soul, channelling rock ‘n’ roll from another era. The aforementioned new single ‘Get Down Get With It’ is suitably raw and powerful and a highlight of tonight’s frantic set.
I thought I had already witnessed the hottest gig of the year, but tonight Jim Jones And The Righteous Mind turned it up another notch. You could say tonight was a near religious experience, but whether Jim and his band took us to church, or towards the gates of Hell is up for debate. One thing’s for sure though, tonight was a lesson in how to fucking deliver and raise the stakes for all who follow.
Keith John Moon was born in North West London and grew up in Wembley. He was described as a hyperactive child (no shock there) he failed his 11 plus and one teacher described Moon as, “Retarded artistically. Idiotic in other respects” so there was only one thing for the young lad to do and that was to get behind a drum kit and exert some of that boundless energy and mischief and at least people knew where he was when he was sat behind a drum kit. It would also not come as a surprise to find out that Moon also had a tendency to show off.
He learned the basics of drumming from a shop on the Ealing road in West London.
After knocking about in local bands Moon joined The Who in 1964 just before they recorded their debut single it is also a fact that as the band got older Moons kit expanded like his wasteline and he is also recognized as one of the first to employ a double bass kit.
Its also fair to say that Moon was known for his off stage antics as much as his talents behind the kit as his love of the goons spilled over with his tomfoolery he is remembered for some of his wild man antics that often spilled over and quickly became the stuff of legend.
Moon had a reputation for smashing his kit on stage and pioneered the fine art of redecorating hotel rooms when on tour. He also had a fascination with blowing up toilets with home made cherry bombs or dynamite, and lobbing television sets from his Hotel Room via the nearest window. Its fair to say Moon enjoyed the trappings of success and tour life and became bored and restless when the Who were inactive. His 21st birthday party in Flint, Michigan, is the perfect example of decadence and the stuff of legend.
It wasn’t all fun and games for Moon as he suffered a number of blows during the 1970s, most notably the accidental death of chauffeur Neil Boland and the breakdown of his marriage. He became addicted to alcohol, always seen waving a bottle of brandy or quaffing champagne. After all not everybody had the nickname “Moon the Loon” (it was a well earned name by all accounts).
Moon recorded a solo album after moving to LA even if it was poorly received ‘Two Sides of the Moon’. By the mid ’70s he was known to pass out on stage and was also hospitalised due to his excessive behaviour. By their final tour with him in 1976, and particularly during production of ‘The Kids Are Alright’ and ‘Who Are You’, People began to notice the drummer’s deterioration physically and mentally. Moon moved back to London in the late ’70s, sadly he passed away in ’78 in September from an overdose of Heminevrin, a drug he was prescribed to treat or prevent symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
Its believed Moon had wanted to get sober, but he wanted to do it at home rather than be admitted into a Hospital. Clomethiazole is discouraged for unsupervised use because of its addictive potential, and its risk of death when mixed with alcohol. The pills were prescribed by Geoffrey Dymond, a physician who was unaware of Moon’s lifestyle. Dymond prescribed a bottle of 100 pills, instructing him to take one pill when he felt a craving for alcohol but not more than three pills per day. Clearly someone who knew of Moons lifestyle would never have prescribed the drug unless he was admitted to Hospital and supervised properly and not let him self prescribe.
In September of 1978 just before his passing Moon was having difficulty playing the drums and according to a roadie Dave “Cy” Langston. After seeing Moon in the studio trying to drum on ‘The Kids Are Alright’, he said, “After two or three hours, he got more and more sluggish, he could barely hold a drum stick.”
On 6 September, Moon and Walter-Lax were guests of Paul and Linda McCartney for The Buddy Holly Story. After returning home, Moon asked Walter-Lax to cook him steak and eggs. When she objected, Moon replied, “If you don’t like it, you can fuck off!” These were to be his his last words. Moon then took 32 tablets. When Walter-Lax checked on him the following afternoon, she discovered he was dead.
Moon’s passing came shortly after the release of ‘Who Are You’. On the album cover, he is straddling a chair to hide his weight gain; the words “Not to be taken away” are on the back of the chair. Not the way such an iconic drummer should have gone thats for sure. Such a waste of life and talent its no surprise that we’re still writing and talking about a drummer that gave so much to Rock and Roll and lived it like he loved it and paid the ultimate price. Rest In Peace Moon The Loon you legend!
For his most iconic act of Rock and Roll excess it has to be the rumour that he drove his Rolls Royce into his swimming pool but this was just one of many stories that have done the rounds over the years. Whilst it might be generally frowned upon and some of his most UN PC excesses you’d never be able to indulge in these days back in the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s it was generally uncharted waters.
On Steve Marriott’s birthday he was given a record player from his Record Company as a gift that he proceeded to break after it made the record jump so incensed was the Birthday boy that he promptly threw it out of the window. Not to be outdone and taking his queue from his mate Moon proceeded to empty the contents of the entire room out of the window. After receiving a new player Moon entered Marriott’s room the following night only to unplug the player and sling it out the window like the previous one quickly followed by the rest of the contents of the room. Moons new favourite past time was a costly exercise in excess and one that has been repeated throughout the decades by many many bands the world over. Moon is believed to have been the instigator.
He was run over by a bus, Went on the razz with Oliver Reed and once filled his room with a bevvy of naked Swedish ladies. Sat on the Bonnet of his Rolls Royce naked whilst being driven through London looking for John Lennon. He drove a hovercraft dressed as Rommel that broke down on a railway track the mans tales are legendary and had he not died such a tragic death you wonder how long it would have been before one of his excess filled nights would have caught up with him. still my favourite is still the time he and his roadie packed the bass drum full of explosives and almost blew Townsend’s head off. Brilliant. They just don’t make them like Moon The Loon anymore, Do they?
Feels a bit weird yet fitting that I’m reviewing the Doojimans debut record (of sorts) second after reviewing their second release first. Cofused? You will be but I doubt Doojiman and the gang would want it any other way.
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