Right then. I’m gonna listen to this bad boy blind, just burn it to CD and let it rip a couple of times and fill in the bands and bullshit later. Six bands, twelve tracks, two each. Off we go…

 

The Drippers – ‘Stuck with You’: Overkill to the max. Full-on no-compromise rock & roll. Motorhead-tastic. I like it a lot!

 

The Hip Priests – ‘666 Sister’: Okay, I recognise Cruz’s voice straight away. Short sweet and with wah-wah frenzy soloing filling ever bit of breathing space.

 

Stacy Crown – ‘Heavy Rain’: Kind of reminds me of The Almighty and throws me right back to the dawn of nighties. This lot aren’t wah-wah shy either. You even get a Black Diamond build up at the end. Cool stuff.

 

Black Gremlin – ‘Cosmic Death’: Doomy riffing that kind of hits me with a seventies sounding Metallica flavour.

 

Grindhouse – ‘City High’: Yeah Grindhouse straight off the bat. A band I need to see so I can buy their records. Straight down the line rock & roll with and edge of mental.

 

The Empire Strikes – ‘Not in Toulouse’: This is a sleazy beast. Very different from the tunes so far. It’s a laid back and dirty affair, kind of Hanoi plays Fleetwood Mac. Ooooh, nice but naughty.

 

So I guess I’m half way through now and have heard each of the bands once. Retro Vox have really pulled it off again, there’s not a stinker amongst them. Honest !!

 

The Empire Strikes –  ‘No Action, Non Rock’: Ah ha, this is the last band again. More riffed up and rockin’ than before. Kind of like a decent Reckless Love. I bet they’re from Finland !!! (Yup, I was right)

 

Grindhouse – ‘Shit Together’: Another slice of Grindhouse. Hooky as fuck. Proper black magic from the earth’s under carriage.

 

Black Gremlin – ‘Quiver’: I recognise that this must be the “doomy band” from side 1. More metal than the other bands on offer here but with some great chug going on. I definitely need to check this lot out.

 

The Drippers – ‘The Monetary Selection’: Okay, so this is The Drippers?!? I haven’t seen the track listing at this point so I’m still flying blind. Yeah this is right up there with the best Gothenburg has to offer. Proper good.

 

The Hip Priests – ‘Head Over Heels’: Back to the Priests with a cool Motherfucker Superior kind of tune. This one is right up there with their best tunes. Wah-tastic mates.

 

Stacey Crowne – ‘Fool Hearted’: This is Hellacopters enough to melt the hearts of any closet Scandi-rocker. Yeah…. you gotta love it.

 

Demolition Derby Volume 2 is released on Retro Vox Records on October 23. Give it a listen and pre-order it on all kinds of sexy vinyl: Here

Author: Fraser Munro

The Finnish band The Empire Strikes (Denim rock, some guys with denim jackets, guitar necks up, you know…) put out last Friday “Rainmaker”, the 3rd single of their upcoming album! Have a look, give it a shout!

On Spotify /  Facebook

The new album “Charm” will be available on Ghost Highway Records. for Europe and Savage Magic Records. for the USA (a sure guarantee of value in terms of Rock’N Roll)

Building a reputation for their live performances, they played many shows across Europe since 2012, opening from time to time for bigger bands like Phil Cambell & The Bastard Sons and Marky Ramones Blitzkrieg… But they were also in good company with their Swedish neighbours, hitting the road and sharing stages with Honeymoon DiseaseScumbag Millionaire and Grande Royale

By the way, if you like those ones, if you’re singing along on Imperial State Electric melodies while stamping feet, there’s no doubt that The Empire Strikes will excite you!

Plus, if you’re living in Spain, or Swiss, or France (or Finland, of course), you’re gonna get a chance to catch them live at the end of September / early October!

(Spain Tour soon announced)
02/10 : Brin de Zinc, Chambéry (FRANCE)
03/10 : Irrsinn Bar, Basel (SWITZERLAND)
04/10 : TBA, Paris (FRANCE)
05/10 : L’Imposture, Lille (FRANCE)

The Hellacopters tribute pre order is live!

over a year in the making and well worth the wait ! A tribute to the Hellacopters !! Available in very limited quantities on classic Black and Red variant vinyl !! 11 tracks from some of the finest bands in the land paying homage to one of the greatest rock n roll bands ever !

You can pre order the vinyl here: