2017:     PAGE 1
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RECORD REVIEW INDEX
REVIEWS INDEX
PUNK ROCKER
RECORD REVIEW INDEX
REVIEWS INDEX
PUNK ROCKER
DARKO
'Bonsai Mammoth'
(Lockjaw / Blind Attack)
CD February 3rd 2017
These days promo Cd's are usually by
bands who have absolutely nothing in
common with punk musically or
aesthetically, but you have to review
them just in case they might surprise
you. I was hoping
Darko may prove
me wrong. 'Bonsai Mammoth' kicks off
quite melodically until the shouty
vocals of Dan Smith kick in, which have
a few less frantic moments during first
track 'Life Forms'. But I'm afraid it was
just the precursor for what we are
about to hear and it all went downhill
pretty fast from here on in. What
grates most about the
Darko sound is
definitely the gnarly vocals, which
really do put your audio attention span
through an endurance test just to sit
through even after one track. And lets
not forget there are 9 more of these
fuckers on this release. The music is
played tight and the production is bang
on, but theres no immediate flow. It
stops and starts with infuriating
monotony, then goes off on a tangent
with annoying regularity. A sound that
goes melodic one second, then rages
on in another, then goes into HM
twiddling country and thats all in one
song. It's like the
Darko philosophy is
to tinker with the song structure once
they hit on somert good, which is a
shame as they can play with precision
and power but their style is so mind
numbingly varied it becomes a mess. It
seems playing the same rivvum track
for any length of time is unacceptable
in this bands ideology. They are either
way too clever for their own good or
just like showing off, which just leaves
us the audience with a mass of audio
schizophrenia to deal with. I also get
the feeling we have a Heavy Metal
guitarist in their ranks just waiting to
explode from their stop/start hardcore
confines? Meanwhile Smithy screams
on and on and on in the foreground.
His vocals do have the capacity to
change direction, which could've saved
him from being the prime suspect, but
like the music its all too little or too late
before that mind numbing screech
takes over his sand papered
esophagus. There are some pop punk
elements too if your lucky enough to
spot em, but these are way too fleeting
to catapult these hairy fuckers for a
career of pop punk hits.
Darko are
destined to be touring the indie circuit
of skater spaces and empty swimming
pools across the globe, which is great
if thats what they really want or the
promo machine behind them want?
However they must be eternally
grateful to the Japs, who seem to like
em, but we all know Japan is dishpan.
'Set In Our Ways' seems to be the
story of this bands life. They aren't
about to offer a new direction or a
more anthemic style that we could
maybe wrap our ears around or
capture our interests. But I did like the
title of one song 'I Should've Taken A
Left At Albuquerque', but the title alone
was about it and I'm afraid they didn't
carry on driving to the Mexican border
and beyond. I reckon
Darko are a
romanticised wanna be 'road band'. If
they really wanna break America so
badly, they ain't gonna do it on this
offering. Besides i suspect there are
way more qualified bands doing this
routine in the States already and if you
know of any please don't point em in
my direction. I  did like the beginning of
'Hiraeth' for about 10 secs, but then
the singing kicked in and it all
deteriorated into more of the same. I'm
sure even the skater punks amongst
us (whom I'm told are
Darko's core
audience) must get sick and tired of
this particular sound. They hail from
Guilford but have about as much in
common with
the Stranglers IV as the
Guilford four. Was half hoping 'In The
Company Of Wolves' may just show a
glimmer of gold dust amongst the
torturous toons but who the fuck was i
kidding. This album should be used in
Guatemala Bay as audio torture it's
that unpleasant. 'Bonsai Mammoth'
ain't punk rock, its a student take on
fast songs for the
Darko fan club in
Tokyo or wherever they reside and
probably features like minded
individuals with bug bushy beards and
lots of sweaty testosterone growling
along in synchronised head banging.
PLASTIC!
DARKO  
THE CRAVATS
'Dustbin Of Sound'
(Underground)
CD September 29th 2017
Had this sent in from Overground
Records who are fast becoming a
really diverse punk label,
concentrating on a more wide
spectrum of bands and sounds that
erupted from the initial wave of punk.
Unlike most review material its an
actual CD (not a download) but this is
also available on vinyl too. Was a bit
dubious as to how
The Cravats was
gonna sound after hearing some of
lead singer Shend's solo material on
the
'Outsider Artist' 45 back in 2011,
But I have to say 'Dustbin Of Sound' is
the Cravats as I remember them from
my sole
Cravats 45 'The End' back in
'79. They're older and they're not
necessarily wiser, but they still have
that unique saxophone driven punk
orientated sound, along with the trashy
guitar and rumbling bass. The sound
we loved so much on the John Peel
show. When you think punk and sax,
X-Ray Spex usually springs to mind,
but this is way more
Neon Hearts
/Jame Chance
in style, but with that
quirky transistor guitar and the
baritone wacky outbursts flavouring
the proceedings. It certainly becomes
something more. 'Dustbin Of Sound'
brings back all those sounds, smells
and DIY jobs from towns like Redditch
that littered the UK music scene back
in the late 70's. So if your a
Cravats/
Very Things
fan you will love this.
Even cunts like me like it!
For a band to capture that unique
spark and allure they had 35 years
ago is truly exceptional. The only
difference is production, which is bang
on and pristine with today's technology
and throws light on the individual
sounds.
'King Of Walking Away' has a
sinister deep sax growl courtesy of
Svor Naam that I can't get enough of.
It's mean bass riff by Joe 91 means
you'll probably love it, but as the lyrics
say
'hate me one day'. Air Raid sirens
are always great to hear on records
and ushers in
'Batterhouse' with its
shimmering guitars and grinding sax
that conjures up some neat chugging
power. Lead singer the Shend goes on
a Nick Cave, as the bass rumbles and
the drums pound by the delightfully
named Rampton Garstang. 'Motorcycle
Man' makes the pleasure of cruising
on your chopper, whilst overtaking
hearses (tee hee), and
'kissing the
wind'
with just 'the flick of his wrist'
never feeling so good. It's not quite as
gritty as
Motorheads 'Iron Horse' but
more Marlon Brando in feeling.
'100
Percent'
highlights Shend's word play,
a talent of conjuring outta thin air a
topic from everyday sayings,
statements and life in general. He also
has a knack of creating songs which
make you think! However it used to be
the 1% in punk folk lore, but in
the
Cravats
universe its 100% all the way.
Last years single
'Blurred' is probably
their most commercial song to date. Its
made even more accessible with its
neat promo
video which is probably the
most up to date snap shot of what
the
Cravats
are like live these days, if you
haven't seen them already. Morse
code introduces 'Power Lines Up',
which is a majestic ode to electric
pylons that stand tall and poke into the
sky all over the UK and give us and

the Cravats
the power to turn up the
amps and turn on our consciousness.
See what I mean about this bands
every day observations, which only
the Cravats excel in. 'Jingo Bells' the
other 45 from last year is a glorious dig
at the rich, the wealthy, and the people
in power and boasts a mischievous
cameo role in the
video of Penny
Rimbaud
collecting fares. 'Bury The
Wild'
has hints of James Chance if he
come from Redditch or Brighton and
not Milwaukee, it positively stinks of an
attack on carnivorous carnivores with
psychotic sax and those rabid guitars
as the penultimate
'cattle bomb' is
deployed.
'Big Band' speeds in as the
Shend teases us with a short lived
croon of
"aaaahhh aaah aaah
uuhhh"
which we wanted more of but
was sadly denied.
'Whooping Sirens' is
the slowest track and features a rather
eerie sci fi vibe or is it a mental state,
who knows? But i like it a lot.
'Hang
Them'
...'shoot them, electrocute
them'
the lyric concludes is all about
the opposite sex according to Shend.
Well he does write the lyrics and sings
the songs so he should know. Viscount
Biscuits on guitar gives us an
East
Bay Ray
shimmer in amongst an lyrical
dialogue. Trashy guitars ring in on
'All
U Bish Dumpers'
as another Orson
Wellian like dialogue steers us through
a remarkably off the wall, out the back
of beyond
Dada Cravats Laboratory
lyric as the Shend informs us
"all you
bish dumpers will be rosecut'
which
was adapted from a sign they found a
few years back which was missing
letters and should've read 'ALL
RUBBISH DUMPERS WILL BE
PROSECUTED' HA!
WORTH A LISTEN!
THE CRAVATS
Overground Records
HOOLIGAN
featuring CHRISTY DIGNAM
'Teenage Rebel'
(Reekus)
CDEP October 18th 2017
Dublin punks Hooligan have teamed
up with Éire rock star Christy Dignam
from Aslan (who I wasn't familiar with at
all until now). Mr Dignam is a major
celebrity and definitely a colourful
character, but not someone you'd
immediately associate with punk.
However he certainly does this cover
justice by giving us a bonifide 21st
century twist of
the Outcasts classic
'Justa Nother Teenage Rebel', which
first came out back in '78. This strange
collaboration with
Hooligan came
about through singer/guitarist Dave
Linehan and Christy crossing paths
back in the 80's with Dignam offering
advice and inspiration to young
Linehan. Nearly 25 years later they
met again by chance and Dave
recalled the story, which moved Christy
so much so, he agreed to collaborate
on a track, to which this is the end
result, and it works brilliantly. Christy
doesn't give us his regular
atmospheric crooning which he's
famous for, but really goes for it and
probably puts a lot of punk cover
versions of this song over the years to
shame. And considering his eventful
past where he's had to endure rape,
handle stardom, over come Heroin
addiction and finally battle cancer,
which he's still fighting. You really do
have to take your hat off to the guy.
What I like most is he offers a genuine
vulnerability only the young Greg
Cowan gave us on the original. Dave
Linehan of
Hooligan maintains a spot
on musical adaptation, with a brilliant
solo giving the song a catchy punch
very few has come close to. And
the
Outcasts
themselves have given their
approval. My only tweak would be Eoin
Page's bass could be more up front in
the mix. It comes with a great promo
video recorded at Fibber McGhee's
which really sells the song. So you
should check it out yourselves just to
see if I'm bullshitting or not. If that
wasn't enough, we also get 3
Hooligan originals which most
definitely are not a side dish on this
pink platter.
'Generation On Fire' kicks
off with a neat intro before moving into
a mid paced stomper with some juicy
guitar riffs along with Dave Linehan's
subdued, but rather compelling vocals.
This tight 3 piece always bring a good
tune to table, along with the added
back up vocals that really add
suspense to proceedings, as the
chords drop and rise to great effect.
'Calling Joe Strummer' has a ring of
the opening to
'Should I Stay Or
Should I Go'
with sole guitar and
singer complete with an ambience of
echo before the whole band jump in
and really give us something you could
imagine
the Clash doing. Even the
guitar sounds like Strummer's
telecaster and the drummer Paul Price
does his level best Topper Headon
impersonation with fills and pounds. It's
even got the ghost of a Guy Stevens
production, with an almost neat Chuck
Berry solo thrown in for good measure,
powerful stuff.
'Gang War' is a more
loaded track with rowdy out of control
solo's that sound great, but with Dave
Linehan's uncanny Srummer delivery
giving it that great vibe along with the
"wooagh ohhhhh gang war" chorus.
Every time I hear a new release by
Hooligan they never fail to impress.
This one will get all the attention for
the lead track, but
Hooligan are a
band who can do it as good, if not
better than most of the punk acts
around today, and if you've a
penchant for Joe Strummer vocals,
which most of us have, and punk rock
with tunes and imagination. You'll
fuckin' love it! Comes in a fittingly
sparse take on the original sleeve.
WORLD CONTENDER!
HOOLIGAN
Reekus Records
PUSSYCAT AND
THE DIRTY JOHNSON'S
'Ain't No Pussy'
(Johnson Family)
CD  October 26th 2017
First time I've heard this outfit from
Basingstoke who have been around
forever by all accounts. We are
immediately greeted visually with a
50's era tiger print roaring out at you
from the leather embossed cover,
before one gigantic screech hits you
between the eyes as the title track
kicks in.
Pussycat And The Dirty
Johnson's
have been releasing stuff
since 2010, so I'm a little late coming to
the pussy party, but from hearing their
sound and seeing some of their neat
videos online my curiosity was
immediately triggered. I just had to buy
their latest CD (2nd in a year). It's
called 'Ain't No Pussy', which they've
been touring round the UK. I have to
say on first impressions, they are one
of the most unique sounding trio's I've
heard since god knows when?
Featuring a big heavy looking
drummer with a curly top and bouncer
aggression as he pummels his kit and
goes by the name of Filthy Antz. He's
accompanied by a mammoth rockabilly
giant guitarist, who plays rampaging
power chords with hardly a hint of a
solo, that gives the band their punk
rock 'n' roll sound, his nom de plumb is
Dirty Jake. Lastly and of course the
focal point is a diminutive looking Su
Catwoman look alike (circa the 'Great
Rock 'n' Roll Swindle'), who actually
jumps around the stage like a kitten
chasing a ball and even her tail on
occasion. Pussycat is her pet name
and she's armed with one of the most
unique vocal delivery's to come outta
rock 'n' roll this millenium. Her vocals
are absolutely brilliant and the selling
point, coz she actually sings which is a
shock in todays shouty, gnarly one
drone punk arena. And this talent
makes such a difference to the songs
and to our audio pleasure. She even
has a cute Toyah lisp to her rasp,
which reminds me of the short lived
Maneaters from the 'Jubilee'
soundtrack, but this Pussycat has
more feeling, more energy and way
more appeal. She owns an equally
raucous set of tonsils that spit, snarl
and hiss with rabid regularity and
throws in the occasional

"whoaaaaghs"
to really emphasize
her commitment. Considering there's
no bass
the Cramps comparisons
aren't far from public opinion, and
even their song
'The Wasp' could
engineer a certain 'fly' simulation, but
Pussycat And The Dirty Johnson's
offer a more punky version of insectoid
frustration. If this CD is anything to go
by, the band are an explosive
commodity in todays punk scene which
I reckon you should see/hear any time
soon before the America's beckon.
'Pain' comes at us with a pounding riff
and a ultra addictive chorus. You'll find
yourself unable to shake off Pussycat's
unique way of prouncing
"Pain".
'Suneal'
is like a modern day punky
rendition of
'Lucille' by Little Richard,
but focuses on one of the bands uber
fans, of which there are many and
growing each time they play. It has a
slight sniff of
the Stranglers 'Go
Buddy Go'
in vibe and is completed
with a kazoo lead break which actually
works ha!
'Sylvia' takes aim at the
mainstream press hacks, which no
doubt will be sniffing round once this
band go big, and features a blitzing
dirty riff to go with all the lies and bias
printed on
'Himmler's stationary'.
'One Of The Boys' is autobiographical.
Pussycat is definitely a girl in a boys
world, but even that can't hide or
masque her feminine appeal. Call me
sexist if you like, but I'm sure she
carry's amps and loads the van with
the rest of the guys. But for men and
probably a few women whatever else
she does its hard hiding that feminine
appeal amongst a gang of talented big
brutes, even when you try and deny it.
Her howl is certainly from hell and is
definitely her fighting call, so I hope
she can embrace what she's got
without it being an issue. They end
with the mesmerising
'Midnight
Motorway'
that features..."Soft verges
Hard Urges"
which is unlike any of the
other tracks, and boasts an alluring
spoken word intro, before drums and
guitar jump in and has us totally
captivated, whilst a machine gunned
"upside down and inside out" is spat
out with an almost Eve Libertine circa
"Screaming Babies" mode is
unleashed. I'd love to hear more of this
kinda song, as it builds up into a
prowler before slowing down and ends
the album leaving you wanting more.
For all you rubber neckers, punks and
rock head cases I suggest you give
this dirty mob a blast coz you won't
regret it!
UK CONTENDER!
PUSSYCAT AND  THE DIRTY
JOHNSONS
SOAP GIRLS
'Society's Rejects'
(Self Release)
CD May 2017
I have to blame YouTube for my first
introduction to the hideously named
Soap Girls (for a band this good and
somewhat controversial). It was the
excellent
'Bad Bitch' and
accompanying video which got me
hooked. Within a month I caught them
live in Wolves (see
gig review). I can
report with confidence these young
South Africans are very much the real
deal. They play and compose all the
material, even though they are
portrayed in the media as media
darlings. However they use the media
with intuitive suss! Lets face it they're
using the technology available to every
band these days to publicise their
output. It's just that most bands
wouldn't look too cool in a bath fooling
around with only soap suds covering
their modesty lol. But thats another
dimension to this band. Musically they
can pull it off both live and in the
studio. I brought this CD off the
merchandise table at a gig for £12.
'Society's Rejects' features at least 3
anthems the rest were interesting, but
not half as memorable.
'Bad Bitch' and
'Rather B Dead' were the only tracks I
was familiar with previously, but they
kick off with the impressive
'Society's
Rejects'
that features a drum heavy
rallying call, as they scream
"Fuck me,
fuck you, fuck your mom too"
on the
ultra catchy opener.
'Johnny Rotten'
ain't a nod to once the Finsbury park
Antichrist, but a gun toting ex boyfriend
whose out for blood. Blood seems to
feature big in this bands world. It see's
them roll into grunge territory,
especially the roaring hoarse chorus.
The Soap Girls compromise Millie on
guitar whose tall, slim with a kinda
Bambie eyed innocence. But don't be
fooled she's doing all the axe work,
power chords and harmonies. Their
main protagonist has gotta be the bass
demon and lead vocalist plus band
raconteur called Naomie who is also
her sister. She comes across as a
really talented front woman, especially
with a big black bass as her preferred
weapon of choice. She shrieks, bawls,
and sighs with equal abandon. She
takes the piss and positively oozes star
quality without being too snide or too
pretentious. She owns a great vocal
that gives the 15 songs the explosive
tension and heart. The drummer is
usually a hired hand and male. I've
seen about 3 on the drum stool so far,
but who cares as long as he keeps the
beat. Songs that stood out were the
atmospheric
'Air', 'Original Sin' has a
certain Janis Joplin take, with its rock
vocal and rabid chorus.
'Break You'
features a positively heretic rant with
some utterly demonic put downs in this
revenge tale. Check out the hilarious
promo
video to it where what looks like
the drummer gets his just deserts. But
for the real class tracks its left to the
two bonus tracks
'Bad Bitch' that
comes with a classy grinding build up,
before the blindingly addictive revenge
chorus which will get you all singing
along too. And is easily their best song
to date with those soaring power
chords and the slightly  deranged
vocal delivery. You wonder if they had
any more left in their sparkling vanity
case, and yeah they do, its called
'Rather B Dead' and is a close
contender dealing with a more
controlled form of emotion and
rejection with a classic heart broken
vocal from Naomie. Check out the
videos if your not convinced. 'Society's
Rejects' comes with a foldout booklet
that contains all the lyrics which was
neat. Its gonna be interesting to hear
what they can come up with next in
2018, after a hectic tour schedule in
2017 to promote this all over Europe.
We wait with bated breath.
WORTH A LISTEN!
SOAP GIRLS
ACID BLOOD
"Dagger Eyes EP"
(JanML Records)
7" Summer 2017
Acid Blood hail from Umea, Sweden
and are a relatively new band (18
months old) and 'Dagger Eyes' is their
debut release recorded 4 months into
the bands existence March 2017. Not
sure its wise to release stuff so early in
a bands career as I bet their sound
has tightened up or developed
immensely by now. However their
opening title track
'Dagger Eyes' has a
definite
Motörhead vibe which they
admit is a big influence and is always a
positive if your a fan like me. It's not
suprisingly hard and fast with pounding
drums with a slightly off kilter solo in
the middle by Karl Backman (formerly
of
AC4,T-55's) which adds a new
dimension to this female fronted outfit.
'Full Speed Ahead' stays in line with
the high energy theme, but seems
slightly less frantic considering the
song title. Maybe its the English
translation? But I can't make out any
lyrics apart from
"FULL SPEED
AHEAD"
so its good you get a lyric
sheet to read what Jojo's singing
about. War seems to be the prevalent
subject matter of this EP and is
underlined by the penultimate track
'Wartimes', which is easily my fave
track. It positively stinks of
Iggy And
The Stooges
with a fucking neat dirty
riff which grinds into your brain and
drives this tank along, while Jojo
Anderbygd our buxom singer groans  
"war time, the peace is over". It
drops out to chaotic drum rolls before
the bombs drop and we try and read
the tattoos on the singers thigh. The
band are planning more dates this
year and should be touring in Europe
pretty soon. Comes in an array of
limited coloured vinyl on German
label JanML Records, so grab your
copy now.
WORTH A LISTEN!
ACID BLOOD
janmlrecords.bigcartel.com
THE ROCKIN HORSE CLUB
'Straight White Man' /
'All The Other Kids'
(Self Release)
45 July 14 2017
The Rocking Horse Club are a
fantastic punchy basement rock 'n' roll
outfit from Brighton and offer us their
2nd release the ultra catchy 'Straight
White Man'
which has elements of late
70's
Squeeze at their best, but with a
21st century perspective that will stick
in your head like glue. The promo
video is a stroke of genius and must
see which really puts the point across
in an hilarious way. It could by rights
get 'em exposure their contemporaries
could only dream of, but hey we know
the powers that be wouldn't allow that.
Late 70's new wave with hindsight was
never as naff as we once thought
. For
it had tunes, hooks and brought a
smile to our faces and
the Rockin
Horse
Club reminds me of what
bands like
The Jags or the Vapors
would put out
, except the vocals are
more John Lennon circa
'We Are The
Walrus'
era. You get the feeling they
don't take themselves too seriously
which is neat, but what a great sound
and vibe they create
even straight
white men can get off on it
. Image wise
you couldn't get a more rag tag bunch
of misfits
, but who gives a fuck about
image when you can kick out tunes this
good. I believe they gig very
spontaneously and probably have
other things going on in their
LGBT
lives, but if you think its a one hit
wonder which by the amount of
YouTube views
(79,000) and debate
its conjured up
, you'd be very wrong.
On the flip side despite not being half
as catchy
'All The Other Kids' still has
a really good
all round vibe. It shines a
light on the kids who don
't fit in but who
get their own back
, which is probably a
reflection on
what this band is all about
and comes
with a great guitar solo.
One good song and one a modern day
anthem ain't bad going and reminds
me of the days when bands had really
good
B-sides. So check out the video
and tell me you didn't sing along to it!
UK CONTENDER!
The Rocking Horse Club