| SNOTTYNESS... Punk Rock Classic - World Contender - Worth A Listen - Average - Plastic - No Future |
| THE CRAMPS 'Songs The Lord Taught Us' (Capitol) CD I picked up this double CD release in HMV recently for a bargain price of £5 which is splendid value for money and comes with bonus tracks plus 'Off The Bone' album. Songs the lord taught us? More like songs Lux and Ivy learnt from their exhaustive record collection. It's long been acknowledged that some of the greatest Cramps songs are those they've shamelessly nicked from obscure '50s originals and nowhere was this more obvious than on their debut album. Recorded at the legendary Sam Phillips' studio in Memphis, Tennessee, in July 1979 with seminal cult guru Alex Chilton producing, 'Songs The Lord Taught Us' bends over backwards to reproduce the sound and the spirit of deranged '50s rockabilly with large slabs of psycho sexual subversion and a late 70's B-movie attitude. By the way, the Cramps ain't a rockabilly group. Or they are, but hanging them on that revivalist peg would be to credit them with about 10% of what they actually create. Featuring the original bass less line-up of Lux on vocals and Ivy, Bryan Gregory on guitars and Nick Knox on drums. This is the album that defined what these most exalted disciples of trash can aesthetics were all about. The resulting sparseness steadily and mercilessly will gnaw at you until you start to like it. If a song is their own it hurts so much it's fun, if it's somebody else's they bend it to their will, substituting quaint nostalgia for kinky perversion. Lux Interior has a name that speaks of Fifties motorvation and slinky black leather upholstery, but on the rear of the record sleeve he and the other Cramps are caught in severe black-and-white. Looking as if they just escaped from an institution for the criminally insane. 6ft 3 inch Interior's crows nest hairdo is about to launch him into the stratosphere of the real gone. His vocals have that ring of careless menace one might associate with a serial killer taunting his captors. While voodoo queens Bryan Gregory and Poison Ivy set their clanking guitars in perpetual motion with Nick Knox's uncomplicated drums, set up a hideously obscene, liberating racket. Tracks include the voyeuristic 'TV Set', the thrashy 'Garbage Man', the spagetti westernised 'I Was A Teenage Werewolf' which slinks effortlessly into the hilarious 'Sunglasses After Dark'. Along with outstanding covers of 'Fever' which is well worth tasting, for its wolverine growl of a vocal and minimal accompaniment that kidnaps the original tease and transforms it into a sexually starved beast that's hungry for more than love. They also pollute us with a blistering version of the Sonics' 'Strychnine'. The religious, or quasi-religious, aspects of Crampdom ain't to be overlooked. Quite apart from the album title which is a killer before they even struck a chord and the legend 'File Under Sacred Music' on the original albums spine. The obsession with spirituality extends way beyond their much-touted interest in Southern snake-handling sects and such. The Cramps religion is devoutly PVC, lurid tiger prints, red wine and a perverse sense of humour. Like many of rock's greatest achievements, 'Songs The Lord Taught Us' is probably nowhere near a million seller even 26 years later, not because of any underlying defects or inaccessibility in the music, but because, again like many of rock's finest hours, it's by, about and for people who don't feel 'right' in the world. Of course, the Cramps are trying to prove something: They can take the piss, and they don't care if it's therapeutically unsound or obsolete they just keep doing it. Of the the 5 bonus tracks on this release we also get the hilarious unedited 'I Was A Teenage Werewolf' original mix complete with an egotistical Lux Interior bollocking some lowly studio technician in hilarious fashion as the his teeth get brushed along the way. There's also the transistorised dance anthem 'I'm Cramped'. The Cramps will be around for quite a while to come, because they're not the norm, they're definitely not safe but they are timeless! PUNK ROCK CLASSIC Capitol Records in their infinite wisdom have made this reissue Copy Controlled so it can't be burnt grrrr! THE CRAMPS |
| THE CRAMPS 'Off The Bone' (Capitol) CD CARAAASH! IF there's one band designed to shift the new breed of hardcore punks, wacko attacks and garbage geeks off their studded perch it's The Cramps. Taraaaaash! — don't you just love it when it's treated with disrespect? What we have here is not so much an album, more a selection of undead greats dredged from the vaults of The Cramps past. Music to be vulgar standing up, or hanging from the ceiling. Either way, there's a sublime power here that's unmatched by the vast majority of the modern bone rattlers or head jobs. Somehow The Cramps run a clammy hand down your spine and all sanity is cast to an evil wind and even the most stable amongst us will be joining in the stomp. So what is it, this novel unsophistication, this contrived dumbness that can break the minds defences and strike the same sticky spot as the crummy delights of an 'Evil Dead' movie? The answer lies in The Cramps deep understanding of two remarkably close genres, 'rock & roll' and 'trash'. Like the Gun Club when they still had guts, The Cramps dredge up rock and roll's festering corpses. The attraction is In their own indecision: should they treasure the fragile remnants or defile them? Should they elevate the bones to the status of grisly icons or fashion weapons to bludgeon the puritan renegades? As for trash — America's always been good at pumping it out, little wonder that her most wayward children should want to fling it back in her face. Originally released in '83 as a compilation of singles and B-sides from 78-'81, 'Off The Bone' offers 15 prime cuts plus two bonus tracks from the band's inner sanctum, all of which first appeared on various, long lost 45s. For the fan, it's a feast and for those uninitiated, it's the perfect first bite as the album contains the Alex Chilton- produced line-up which included the manic guitar duties of cigarette chewing demon Bryan Gregory before Kid Congo Powers took over. These primal sessions spawned such classics as 'Human Fly, where Lux Interior metamorphoses in front of your very ears into a "bzzzz bzzzz bzzzz" house fly endowed with â €œ96 tears and 96 eyesâ€�, while the rest of the band pound out a mini earthquake in a cellar full of skulls. In true Cramps style a mere four of the 17 tracks can rightly claim the revered status of being Rorschach/lnterior originals - 'Human Fly', 'Garbage Man', 'Drug Train' and 'New Kind Of Kick'. The meat carved up may not be fresh off the carcass but there's no whiff of decay present here either; each slice is as raw and bloody as the day it was first served. It's down in those self-defining depths that you'll find The Cramps at their most lethal. The majority of this album's muscle, however, has been looted from other tombs, mainly obscure Rockabilly burial mounds, from where the Cramps have salvaged the more interesting remains long forgotten slices of wayward 50's kitsch that would end up being cramped for posterity and given a new identity, for those with a distinctive taste of poison. 'Surfin Bird' from the Cramps debut 45 don't quite better Joey Ramones unforgettable gargled possession job, but Lux comes damn close! However his maniacal delivery on 'I Can Hardly Stand It' makes for one of the most bizarre delivery's in the history of rock, as he jerks and squirms into the mic and just catches his breath alongside Ivy's spider-leg guitar work. The sweat really begins to pour on 'Goo Goo Muck' as Lux howls like a Tourette sufferer as those shimmering guitars jangle out and crampified for eternity. On a downer I found 'She Said' was amusing at first, but become more and more annoying the more you hear it so thank gawd for the 'the Novas 'The Crusher', a dance craze that's both here reformed and deformed. 'The Crusher' was probably the world's only wrestling dance routine and as such deserves to be remembered by giving it their all, without actually sending it up. Another highlight was definitely Cramp original 'New Kind Of Kick' from 1981 which oozes sordid subversion in an almost Iggy kind of way. 'Off The Bone' is, thankfully, no tombstone but more a hell-fire cocktail of gutter riffing and Rockabilly voodoo strum, into which is dropped an electric swagger of psychedelic power drive for mind- numbing effect. All this excitement is sleeved in a lovingly executed 3-D design that claws out at you and draws you in. Once inside, you'II praise the Lord that records this good exist. Of the two bonus tracks the live version of 'You Got Good Taste' from 'Smell Of Female' in 1983 is a real clincher. US CONTENDER THE CRAMPS |
| THE GREAT ST LOUIS 'Forever Now' (jsntgm023) CD December 2006 First release from Bolton combo The Great St Louis on JSNTGM Records. These ain't a million miles away from that breed of 'punk' band today who can play their instruments, look like polite young straights and would fit into almost any musical niche without too much difficulty. Which immediately rings alarm bells for me! Hmmm is it just me who thinks this kinda sound is just indie with power chords or wot? From a band who are hailed by the dubious moderate wing of punk as "possibly the best punk band in the UK". I was expecting a lot more! I'm old enough to know the real deal when I hear it or so I thought. And it ain't presumptuous of me to require something a lot more rowdy or even twisted to satisfy my hunger? Well at least downright fucking entertaining to be regaled to such a degree. Even if its a slight chip on the shoulder or a snotty outlook from a bunch of no-hopers, its a bonus coz its genuine. But I'm afraid you won't find any of those decrepit traits on this album. What you do get are decent tunes, but within a bland concept. A compact production but with yet another singer/guitarist called John who may feel like he's changing the world down the Dog And Partridge in Bolton. But he ain't hitting the passer-by in punks grimier ghettos with anything that's lethal or detrimental to our health from this set. This 11 tracker seems to merge with the rest of these faceless bands doing this kinda thing in the current climate but it won't impress or win over new fans who crave a bit more danger. TGSL sound like they've been listening to way too many Social Distortion and Leatherface records to unleash something really worth waiting for. I never rated Leatherface at all. And Social Distortion were good in small doses, but even with those kinda comparisons TGSL just ain't got the grit or enough eye-liner to really grab you by the jugular. Bland radio friendly punk was never a dish I could hold down easily. But there again I ain't the kid who reads Big Cheese and who will probably wet their pants over this kinda sound. To be fair there's some neat chunky guitar work on 'Endless War'. During 'Robbie Jones' (a cover) the band really loosen up which was a relief from the squeaky clean balance and added some much needed rowdiness to the proceedings. They then follow it with 'Sink' which proved to be their best number finally letting rip with a disorderly vibe you could almost imagine singing along to. Had a job reading the lyrics on the inner sleeve but I suspect they ain't gonna take much away from this bands overall appeal, because the kids who'll dig this won't care what they're singing about anyway. Well played but an extremely safe album. If you want punk with a sting in its tail or suprises you ain't gonna find it on 'Forever Now'. Comes with an striking cover shot of some geezer from a 1950's tattoo magazine sprawled on the front and inked to the hilt! AVERAGE www.jsntgm.com |
| ANTIBODIES 3 TRACK PROMO CD Yipppeee we finally get to hear the Antibodies in a real studio with a raging mix, levels in the red and all the snot you can fit into a microphone booth. Y'know what, all that waffle I've been blurting out about this band over the last decade is at long last starting to roar out the speakers in the form it was meant and should be heard. Yep all those sweaty scout hut rehearsals that primed their directive so long ago finally comes to fruition. I'm still coming to terms with the fact you can hear all those rabid elements in full sonic audio. Those string slides, chunky bass runs and precision drum rolls we once imagined took place and were lost in those early demos, are at long last bought to the fore in 3 pristine rants. These Essex fuckers mean business and will hopefully be blasting out on a bigger stage for some deserved action real soon. It's surprising what a decent production can do for a bands morals and these dissidents morals have taken a severe dive into excellence here. 'I Ruin Everything' is always gonna be the top of my shitlist, coz all that "negativity is our positivity", and aint that the truth!? Pete, Warlock and Paulo are the Antibodies that could ruin your safe spiky life if you were expecting another predictable, plastic copy cat punk band. But im afraid these Harlow hoodlums won't let that happen. Pete's rancid vocals and brutally honest reflections of real life as it is, are an hard act to follow. The rocking continues on an acidic news bulletin called 'Assasinate Me' complete with bass, drum and guitar solo giving this trio the full mix of opinions, noise and frightening distain, nice one. Last but by no means least, we get an oldie but goodie called 'Concrete Cancer', which is served up with a supreme mix and don't it make all the difference, as we hear the soundtrack of the demise of Harlow, as seen through the eyes of its structurly unsound inhabitants and local outcasts who go by the name of Antibodies. This song comes with the brilliant line of "im drowning, im sinking I hope your dogshit breaks my fall" before the hometown blues goes Terminal. This is a sneak preview to the long overdue Canadian 45 release featuring 4 tracks of Harlow hedonism in an age of rage. Can't fucking wait! UK CONTENDER www.myspace.com/antibodiesuk |
| DERITA SISTERS 'The Band That Refused To Die' (Trash2001 Records) CD 2006 The Derita Sisters bid us farewell on this bumper 2 CD package that comprises a brand new 21 track studio album (there 25th to date) plus a 35 track bonus CD featuring all their hits re-recorded and live with the FINAL line-up. Disc 1 If you don't already know is a classic slice of Derita Sisters at their rampant best! An album that comes dressed in a sharp production that compliments the energetic, snotty appeal this highly underrated band are renowned for. You can sing-a-long to, hum to, do your mates heads in at work to...a Derita's record. They spit out a bunch of satirical anthems for every occasion. Or probably in an ideal world hearing these played live at one of their numerous live performances over the last 13 years must've been the best way. I'm forever peeved I missed this cult band live due to my financial situation when they came blitzin through the UK. Coz they were one of the few latter day punk bands id drag my arse out the pub for. But with this, their final release you and tossers such as myself can savour a band in the studio who are definitely on top of their game. Sadly this wasn't enough to stop them losing money! They never reached the acclaim or success they had hoped for, or if the truth is known thoroughly deserved! They were always kings of "sarc", a comedy of errors or just plain too zany for most peoples tastes. But they were honest! And without getting too fanatical these punk enthusiasts were true ambassadors of Punk Rock! Whats best about the Derita Sisters is their seemingly inexhaustible knack to create 120 second catchy ditties with an almost long lost attitude that's so true to life, it becomes one BIG joke! I find this album sums up the bands gut feelings probably more than any they've released so far. They mount hilarious attacks on a lot of the poseur punks and bands out there, coz lets face it the Derita's were always outsiders. Ostracised for not having Mohawks or studs to seduce the youngsters or enough political intrigue to enlist the right on brigade, they were doomed to the fringes of the punk scene. Yet their naturally enhanced spirit and ability as frenzied tune smiths is a lot more closer to the original ethic of punk than most of the so called pharmaceutically enhanced contenders out there today. And any band that made Maximumrocknroll mag bleat "I wish these guys would get killed in a van wreck" has gotta be doing something right lol. Despite slugging their wares across the US and Europe since 1992 with nothing more than a deserved thank you, some groupies and a small band of loyal fans to show for it, they still give out a great show and still found time to enjoy themselves. As they poked fun at the usual subjects like... following through, tranny magnets, rednecks, bent cops plus the English in the so true it hurts 'Isle Of Apes' you could not help but be entertained. The comparisons with a souped up Buzzcocks or Ramones don't do em justice. Those lazy writers don't see the joke. For this band have engineered their own twang in the punk rock ghetto and I'm sure the music will speak for itself when future bands start getting Derita Sisters comparisons. But for now and before their plan to make everything they recorded available for download, buy this package and regret never seeing them live! Disc 2 35 Tracks of Derita masterpieces re-done by the masters themselves and imaginatively entitled 'A Basket Of Snakes' certainly lives up to its description. Featuring fast blasts gleaned from the 13 years they were together, that vary from the hilarious 'I'm Crowning' to the side splitting 'Born Without A Punk Rock Name'. The true to life 'Last Gasp Of Youth' slips through to the autobiographical 'Nobody Cares'. Songs that are all reworked. By that I mean they are all played with a break neck pace and seem a lot faster than I remember the originals, but without becoming a messy blur. These fuckers are vice like tight in their playing. Just how many bands accelerate with precision as they progress with age, not many I guess? But it looks like the Derita Sisters broke yet another mould. We also get a live set from probably their favourite venue... the 'Wild At Heart' club in Berlin where they seemed to be recognised for their true potential and includes such cult faves as 'Butterface', 'Itie 69', 'Wino A Go Go' and of course the '77 Forever' Derita's theme song. As always with a Derita Sisters release it comes with a typically colourful foldout lyric booklet with shots of steak, toilets and a band-shot on Morecambe sea front! US CONTENDER www.myspace.com/deritasisters |
| LOWER CLASS BRATS 'New Seditionaries' (TKO Records) CD Sept. 5th 2006 Austin's Lower Class Brats epitomise the positive aspects of punk in the 21st century. They come from the streets but embrace and spit out all the best elements of real punk rock! Great tunes, spot on attitude and a seditious production, none of which is fake or manufactured. 'New Seditionaries' is probably one of their best, if not their best album in their 14 year career. The 13 songs differ in sound and content which makes them one of the truly multi-dimensional punk bands around. Why can't other punk bands do this or even comprehend such a thought god only knows? Or maybe its coz these guys have got talent! And if you like your punk with chunky guitar riffs, a vocalist who has that wicked gleam in his eye and a rhythm section who keep the momentum running all the way around the globe, (although as we speak they have been replaced). You know your gonna be playing this for years to come. Marty Volume keeps his guitar solo's to the bear minimum, but that's all they need as Bones De Large sings "This one goes out to all the punks we rule the fucking world". Ha that may sound like bravado in print, but having witnessed the band live they actually do rule their world on stage. Sedition is such a great theme, and sums up the Brats ideology perfectly. They sing about goin insane and being in a mess which are all old subjects. But even old wankers like me can empathise, coz records like this makes the kids out there who play em see some sorta escape within punk rock. The subject matter may seem negative sometimes, but they make negativity sound good, which is what all the best aspects of punk does or should do. On the instrumental 'Lip Music' which incorporates a great piano inclusion and shows us these snot buckets can create some inventive musical landscapes when they ain't busy touring the bars. How many punks do that these days? Even Rancid with all the studio time at their disposal would be hard pressed to come up with something so inviting these days. The gang mentality on tracks like 'See you Go' could sound contrived with other less talented individuals, but the Brats propel themselves forward forever optimistic theres a bar or a dollar round the next corner. 'The Worst' has some dare I say it Johnny Thunders touches on guitar as the band repel their early detractors with a derisive "1 2 Fuck You". Lower Class Brats are at their best when they go for menace which the brilliant 'Cats Clause' is full of. Combining a fucking blinder of a riff complete with heavy breathing and subversive feedback on this drug soaked manifesto. 'Beware' continues a sinister vibe as CT surveillance is spotlighted and a low in the mix organ get hijacked with good back up vocals. They encounter alleyway romance gone wrong on 'Two In The Heart' ..."one in the back". As they walk off into the fire of the summer heat down on the street. US CONTENDER The band are currently writing a follow up with the new rhythm section can't fucking wait! TKO Records |
| DESTRUCTORS + RADICUS 'Gott Mit Uns' (RF005) Split CDEP November 2006 The Rowdy Farrago label is becoming the most prolific independent punk label in the UK at the moment. I think I think they dished out about 5 releases last year alone, and like most of this labels cargo they feature yet more tracks from the Destructors666 growing catalogue. A band who must have numerous material circulating the Peterborough suburbs and E-bay as we speak. Well here's 3 more to add to your list. And once again they are joined by another local outfit.... Radicus are a new age young punk (rock) band from the Destructors666 backyard. They've been together 3 years. On first impressions this is the kinda band that you'd be reading about in mags like Big Cheese instead of punk sewers such as here. Not sure I could stand hearing an albums worth of tracks by em! Especially with the nauseating rock vocal and those horribly taut bass lines, but the tunes were OK. 'Soundcheck' (their best track) has some good backup vocals on the chorus. 'Fodder' veers more into that rock harmonic territory, and is begging for column space in Kerrang! As is 'FashionXcore' which sums up today's new breed of punk band. They look like students in non descript t-shirts and baggy jeans who revel in creating a bland rock soundtrack and repackage it as punk for an ipod generation...next! The Destructors666 let rip with 'AK-47' which has a bit more grit, way more grease instead of hair gel and at least does some damage. It sees the punk vets hitting a higher gear as a machine gun rattles off a few rounds on this weaponry salute. They then return to the back streets of Detroit with another cover. This time it's the MC5's 'Kick Out The Jams'. Which turns out to be a faithful rendition of the original, but without Rob Tyner's more boisterous delivery. This new direction sees the band adopting a very definite Detroit scuzz on these 3 tracks. Which is underlined by the final track 'Dig My Grave (45 Rave)' that has more Stooges and early Damned elements thrown in on its reckless mix. Nothing really new to get excited about, but they do keep churning out this product and give younger local bands a showcase. Which lets face it more higher profile bands wouldn't even consider. Maybe one of these days they're gonna really deliver the goods? Comes with more impressive artwork of a speeding cyclist about to take a deadly bend. AVERAGE www.thedestructors66.com |
| THE RUINED 'Here lies....' CD Halloween 2006 Now here's a band with a great name but only seem to be here to bring us songs about the undead, graveyards and all the other over used themes we get every Halloween, which is when this was released. But this ain't Halloween as I slip the disc in its slot. And from a few plays I could endure I can't see it being a new Halloween classic for years to come either. The Ruined are a band who seem unsure about where they're heading? So hedge their bets conveniently between the punk and rock circuit. This CD is only 10 tracks long coz they must've run outta material to sing about, but this skeleton crew actually sound OK for the first couple of numbers, opening with 'Death Will Be A Lady'. However it does have dare I say it touches of Iron Maiden on the screechy Sean Phillips vocals. But at least the band keep the punkier vibe going to good effect. 'City Of The Dead' was also noteworthy with that solid drumming keeping it primed. I'm still deciding about the vocals which are slowly starting to grate as they get progressively theatrical in that rock arena kinda way. The Ruined supply a weak version of the song 'Do Ya Dig My Grave' which was done way better by the Destructors666 so work that one out? I enjoyed 'Generation Braindead' with its atmospheric intro, but yet again it's ruined by a bombastic vocal interpretation. I reckon Bruce Dickinson's young AFI protege ain't the right man for the job, although he does have the tattoo and loses the squeals as the track closes. 'Dead By Dawn' sees the band putting their foot on the accelerator which is where they score best. I just wish the singer would actually "run to the hills" and let the band play on coz its becoming a joke by now. The Ruined remind me of a rock band who want some punk action but find it hard to camouflage their real metallic aims. They probably still play up to prospective rock/punk audiences which is never a good sign for a band. Good organ sequence ushers in 'She Must Die' and it even had a decent chorus before our hero spoils it all by auditioning for a slot on some LA Rock station. 'Brains' confirms our worst fears, ain't these bands learned nothing from past mistakes of the Varukers/Discharge late 80's period? By the time the last track 'Skeleton Crew' hits your speakers your glad to get it all over and throw this bag of bones in the bin. PLASTIC. Comes with a stylish lyric booklet with 50's looking illustrations that seem such a waste when there's genuine, sharp, fast, punk bands out there waiting for this kinda opportunity. I think the Farrago A&R men need to cast their net wider than the local rock venue. www.theruined.com |
| DESTRUCTORS666 '06:06:06' (RF666) CD Single Released June 6th 2006 I like this one for its stark black and red packaging and the novelty value. A 2 track CD single released on wait for it...June 6th 2006 and only 666 copies are available. With the 666 prefix in the bands name being the catalyst it was just waiting to happen. I'll also remember this date coz it was the same day I had a batch of Stench records arrive which were 12 months late so something was definitely afoot. But back to this release and the Destructors666 continue in their "write it - rehearse it - record it - release it" mantra. Which has had more misses than hits over the last 12 months. But even the bad reviews don't seem to deter 'em from banging out these slickly packaged releases. And thats gotta be applauded for downright cheek alone. 'Fast Fast Forward To Hell' begins with a devilish incantation that slowly turns into some demonic rage as the bell tolls, the wind blows and the band slouch into hades on top of a mid paced rocker. Its one of their better tracks and comes armed with a simple riff and Allen Adams clinical vocal delivery, along side some over the top fiddly guitar solo's. Not quite as haunting as something like Cult Maniax 'The Antichrist Is Here' from the early 80's, but a novel attempt all the same. 'The Neighbour Of The Beast' comes next which must make Peterborough the Devil worshipping capital of Great Britain if Satan is on the housing list? This is another wicked bit of Destructors666 tomfoolery with a tongue in cheek vibe and a drum roll straight off the Banshees 'Metal Postcard' as they spell out a list of the beast next doors anti social behaviour and lecherous activities. WORTH A LISTEN coz in the words of the record label... "this is new, were little, please give it a listen". www.thedestructors666.com |