NEW BLOG

I've created a new blog that will concentrate more on live music. I'm running out of things to post here. So please check out:

GREAT WHITE WONDERS

LET'S DO THIS....

http://sonofthesubversivesounds.blogspot.com/

Really? My site has been listed as an "Attack Site"?

Ridiculous. I come back to start posting for a new year and this is what I get?

New blog and new link above.

Back soon

Really busy this time of year. Hope to be back soon...

PSYCHOMANIA - Original Soundtrack

Psychomania - Original Soundtrack
(Trunk Records 1971) Out of Print

01. Psychomania Front Titles        
02. The Frog        
03. Cross Over To The Other Side        
04. Secret Of The Living Dead        
05. The Cross        
06. How Do The Dead Come Back?        
07. Secret Of The Locked Room        
08. Locked Room And Mirror Sequence        
09. You’ve Got To Believe        
10. Motorcycle Mayhem        
11. Cat And Mouse With The Fuzz        
12. Tom’s Last Ride        
13. He’s Coming Back        
14. Riding Free
15. Up From The Grave        
16. Tom’s Return        
17. Carnage At The Pub        
18. First Of The Deaths        
19. The Empty Coffin        
20. Truck Destruction        
21. Hanging Jane        
22. It’s Evil        
23. I’m Coming With You        
24. One By One        
25. Abby’s Nightmare        
26. Morgue Line Up        
27. Morbid Substitution        
28. The Trap        
29. Breaking The Bargain        
30. The Decision        
31. Turned To Stone        
32. Psychomania End Credits

File Under: Cult Soundtracks
RIYL: Cult Soundtracks!, Strange Music, 70s Exploitation, Psychedelic

Here’s a strange one. This is the soundtrack from one of my favorite cult films (and where I got my avatar from). It’s a movie about a motorcycle gang called The Living Dead. I won’t give away the plot, but you can watch the movie on YouTube right here.

Random Review: This is the first time the soundtrack for this (ahem...) semi-legendary 1971 British horror/biker flick has been released. Devotees of those late-night showings of laughably poor horror films on ITV or BBC will be no doubt be familiar with this ‘item’ but I won’t enlighten those in the dark. Suffice to say, it never won a BAFTA (or whatever it is they had back then).

However, this music bought to you all here by Trunk is a whole different kettle of frogs. It was composed and recorded by John Cameron (the man also responsible for the excellent “Kes” soundtrack) using a collection of session musicians and assorted jazzers. The tracks themselves are mainly instrumental and can only be described as an eclectic mixture of 60’s pre-punk garage-band, dark-edged psychedelia, and blaxplotation-style funk, all seasoned with subtle touches of ecclesiastical music and even (heaven help us) a dash of early prog. But it all gels very well to produce a dark and disturbing artefact.

Ok, true, the week this was recorded, the local guitar shop must have been having a special offer on fuzz, overdrive and, most noticeably, wah-wah pedals, because the music here is SATURATED in those tools of the gutarist’s trade. But those who like their music acoustic and a little more gentle are not totally forgotten, because in the middle is a hippy-ish funeral song that is rather drippy, but should be seen as a product of its time.
And (as stated in the brief liner notes)the audio quality does suffer in places, but it’s not too bad at all, considering it was compiled from old & deteriorating analogue tapes.

Despite this, it mostly works pretty well and I’d even say that the music is light-years better than the film it was made for.

So, if you’re a fan of musical oddities or a collector of the more off-the-wall, weirder soundtracks, then this will keep you as happy as a very happy thing indeed.

Psychomania - Original Soundtrack

10. Motorcycle Mayhem 

LOWLINE - Monitors (video)

First single by this new Manchester, UK band. Sort of an Editors/White Lies vibe but a little more upbeat and rocking. Looking forward to hearing more.

PETE TOWNSHEND - Who Came First

Pete Townshend - Who Came First
(Ryko Disc 1972) Out of Print CD

01. Pure and Easy    
02. Evolution
03. Forever’s No Time at All
04. Let’s See Action
05. Time Is Passing    
06. There’s a Heartache Following Me
07. Sheraton Gibson    
08. Content
09. Parvardigar    
10. His Hands
11. The Seeker    
12. Day of Silence    
13. Sleeping Dog    
14. The Love Man
15. Lantern Cabi

File Under: Classic Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Alt.Country
RIYL: The Who, Ronnie Lane, Faces

The Who were on of my first musical discoveries as a kid. Right after the Beatles. This is Pete’s first solo album and was pretty hard to find in the early 80s. I had exhausted all of The Who albums and what I thought was Pete’s only solo album Empty Glass. I had read about Who Came First but was never able to track it down until the day I found it on 8-track in a cut-out bin at Woolworth’s. Of all places. I grabbed it without hesitation. I was disillusioned at first listen - this wasn’t the rocking Pete with the windmills that I was so familiar with. Some of these tracks were almost country and the closest I could come to a comparison was some of the songs on The Who By Numbers. But I kept listening and came to love this album. Some of these songs eventually made it onto Who albums, but this is where they belong. These aren’t demos like the stuff that ends up on Pete’s Scoop releases - this is a wonderful thematic album.

AMG: Pete Townshend’s first solo album was a homespun, charming forum for low-key, personal songs that weren’t deemed suitable for the Who, as well as spiritual paeans (direct and indirect) to his spiritual guru Meher Baba. Who fans will be immediately attracted by the presence of a couple of songs from the aborted Who concept album Lifehouse (much of which ended up on Who’s Next), “Pure & Easy” and “Let’s See Action.” The Who did eventually release their own versions of both those songs. But Townshend’s own versions aren’t the highlights of this record, which shows a folkier and gentler side to the Who’s chief muse than his albums with the group. “Sheraton Gibson” is a neat tune about rock & roll road life, and “Time Is Passing” takes very subtle inspiration from Baba. Most of the rest of the album contains some of the most unusual pieces Townshend has released: his acoustic cover of Jim Reeves’ “There’s a Heartache Following Me” (recorded because it was one of Baba’s favorite tunes), “Evolution” (which is actually pretty much a solo track by his buddy Ronnie Lane of the Faces), “Parvardigar” (adapted from Baba’s Universal Prayer), and “Content” (a philosophical poem by Maud Kennedy that Townshend put to music).

Pete Townshend - Who Came First

05. Time Is Passing

THE TOLL - Jonathan Toledo (video)

Columbus, OH legends The Toll performing live at the 700 Club in 1992. I saw New Model Army there the same year!

Various Artist - BEYOND PUNK!

Mojo - Beyond Punk!
Mojo Presents 15 Tracks Of Post-Punk Noise 1978-2005
(Mojo Magazine 2005)

01. Pere Ubu - Non Alignment Pact
02. A Certain Ratio - Choir
03. Cabaret Voltaire - Silent Command
04. The Futureheads - Park Inn
05. Essential Logic - Aerosol Burns
06. Mission Of Burma - Academy Fight Song
07. Death From Above 1979 - Better Off Dead
08. Kleenex - You
09. Wire - Kidney Bingos
10. The Human League - Almost Medieval
11. Siouxsie & The Banshees - Mirage
12. Bird Blobs - Billy
13. The Fall - The Classical
14. Scritti Politti - Skank Bloc Bologna
15. Radio 4 - State Of Alert

File Under: Punk, Post-Punk, New Wave
RIYL: Any of the bands on this comp.

Another hit or miss compilation. I was a little surprised to see this one since Mojo usually concentrates on more classic rock. But then again, some of these tracks are over 30 years old. Does that make Pere Ubu classic rock? Hardly. There’s a couple of classic post-punk bands here, the previously mentioned Pere Ubu, Cabaret Voltaire, Wire... But I question some of the newer bands. Are we still calling it post-punk 30 years after punk? Is it Neo Post-punk?

Random Review: Well look, it’s another one of those free compilations that come with those great MOJO magazines and yet usually sells individually for a few bucks (or more) at record shops. Lucky for us, some of these can be found cheaply here and there.

No, I imagine you’re not shocked that this compilation has the word ‘punk’ in it and I bought it, but you may be surprised that I still held this record with hesitation. I have to say that I am not a huge post-punk fan and, if I am going to be honest, the Siouxsie song I’m most familiar with is “Peek-a-Boo” that I heard a lot of from watching Beavis and Butthead. Yeah, I know, my credibility just took a hit there (even if I scored major points with the mundane humor crowd!) Therefore, this record reads like a list of bands that I should know more about, so I suppose that the choice to pick it up was even more obvious.

Post-punk, by definition, really does mean ‘beyond punk’ when put in context of the time. Punk was getting played out and musicians were trying to be more creative with elements of punk but without resorting to the typical thrash and yelp that was common in most punk outfits. What you get on this compilation is a wide array of sometimes complicated, sometimes noisy tunes that won’t always necessarily mesh with your tastes. However, there are quite a few great tunes on here, like Mission of Burma’s “Academy Fight Song” (mislabeled on this comp) which is a classic song that is right up there with their “Revolver” tune in greatness. Wire, my favorite post-punk band, gets their soothingly enjoyable yet essentially nonsensical “Kidney Bingos” on this disc, which highlights their later period of music more than their earlier raucous.

Siouxsie and the Banshees’ “Mirage” comes across as the most punkish tune, with the speed and hard riffs required to cause a bit of pogo-ing. The band that I had hoped would be great is Bird Blobs, if only because their name is rather amusingly curious. However, they are rather noisy without being memorable, which I suppose appeals to some. A few more modern bands, like Radio 4 and Death From Above 1979, get a tune on this record due to their post-punk style in the more modern day. It’s too bad that the latter have disbanded and the former hasn’t put out anything particularly good since 2002. Those two groups, once promising in 2005, are now just another addition to the post-punk back catalog.

Unlike some other genres, I’m not sure if there are many people out there who like everything that is post-punk, but this is a great introduction to the sound of the genre. Some of the artists on this compilation are still putting out music, like Mission of Burma and Siouxsie Sioux, but it’s mostly a collection of tunes from time gone by. One would have to check out some post-punk revivalists like A Place to Bury Strangers and the Walkmen to get their modern day fix these days, but that shouldn’t be too much of a chore since I can vouch for the Strangers’ excellent live show. Still, is there any chance we can rewind a few decades to when the music scene was utterly fantastic?

Mojo - Beyond Punk!

06. Mission Of Burma - Academy Fight Song

TOMMY STINSON - Teenage Kicks (video)

The Replacements are one of my all-time favorite bands. Here's ex-Replacement Tommy doing a cover of one of the greatest punk/new wave tunes ever - Teenage Kicks by The Undertones. That's Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum smashing the guitar.

THE TOLL - Stick & Stones And Broken Bones

The Toll - Sticks & Stones And Broken Bones
(Geffen - 1991) Out Of Print CD

01. Tongue-Tied River
02. Boys Are Bustin’ Bricks
03. One Last Wish
04. Something ‘Bout the Struggle
05. Hear Your Brother Calling
06. War Is Release
07. Standing on the Ledge
08. American Mess
09. Happy
10. Never Enough
11. Colorblind
12. Sweet Misery

File Under: Rock, Alternative Rock

By request... The Toll were an institutional in Columbus, OH and The Ohio State University campus in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It’s always been tough to describe their music. It had a combination of a lot of sounds and influences. Their first album, ‘The Price Of Progression’ which is pretty hard to find now combined hard rock with the sensibility of The Doors. Three songs passed the ten minute mark. Probably due to record company pressure, the band reeled it in on their sophomore effort which was more of a straight ahead rock sound. The songs were shorter, but much more focused, and maybe not as inspired. I had the fortune to witness The Toll many times, in many venues and they always gave more than anyone else. Those are some of the times when I wish I was more aware of what I was watching.

Geffen Records Bio
Fan Page

Here’s one of the few write-ups I could find about the band, unfortunately it predates this album:

The Toll - The 100 Club, London, 13 March 1989
I was looking at Brad Circone’s eyes. You can tell a lot from people’s eyes. Some look depressed, dull, enveloped in mediocrity. In Circone’s case, they’re not so much windows into his soul as opaque enigmas. They only allow you to glimpse patches of the rage, unpredictability and sheer frustration the man must be feeling. The Toll, you see, are victims of their own circumstances. Whenever you try and interpret your own thoughts and ideas into something tangible others can relate to (be it on paper, on canvas or onstage) then inadequacies will always arise. The more depth and electricity there is to the idea, the greater that feeling of frustration. Circone (vocalist/guitarist/pianist with The Toll) is a remarkable man. Someone for whom the art of communication is perhaps the most frustrating thing of all. He wants people to listen to his tales of pain, dishonour and betrayal through the likes of ‘Jonathan Toledo’, ‘Word of Honor’, ‘Living In The Valley Of Pain’ and ‘Anna-41-Box’. But they only stand and stare, waiting for him to do something manic, something outrageous, something off-the-wall. Einstein came to lecture, but all they wanted were the jugglers! Maybe I’m being rather too cynical. However, when I see a performer as unique and magnetic as Circone reduced to climbing on tables and amps simply to get attention, then I feel saddened. To me, it was the look in his eye, the threat in his voice and the imposition of his personality that mattered tonight. That made me feel at the end of the evening that The Toll are remarkable and special, not the circus clowning. Some might wish to compare The Toll to Jane’s Addiction. I’d say that Circone has the genius, but JA have the talent. Some might want to suggest The Doors or U2 and I wouldn’t dispute these frames of reference. But tonight, I saw The Toll. But I’ve a feeling most of the others here weren’t watching... and that disappoints me. This band will be huge... but on whose terms? Brad Circone and his troops (guitarist/vocalist Rick Silk, drummer/vocalist Brett Mayo and bassist/vocalist Greg Bartram) are out on their own. They have to weigh integrity against commercial pressures. I hope the compromise isn’t too damaging. - Malcolm Dome - ‘RAW’ Magazine issue 16 (April 5-18 1989)

The Toll - Sticks & Stones And Broken Bones

07. Standing on the Ledge

PETE TOWNSHEND - Give Blood (video)

From the White City album. I'd like to see Pete put The Who to bed and go on tour playing only tracks from his solo albums.

ABC - The Lexicon Of Lust

ABC - The Lexicon Of Lust
(Soundboard or Broadcast Recording)

February 2, 1983, Musichalle, Hamburg, Germany
1. Show Me
2. Many Happy Returns
3. Tears Are Not Enough
4. Date Stamp
5. The Look Of Love
6. I Wish I Were In Love Again
7. Poison Arrow (solo piano)
8. All of My Heart
9. Poison Arrow (full band reprise)

File Under: New Wave, New Romantic, Synth-Pop
RIYL: Roxy Music, OMD, Spandau Ballet, Human League, Depeche Mode

The Lexicon of Love was one of the greatest and most successful albums of the new wave era. This concert is from the height of ABC’s popularity. It’s not a guilty pleasure. It’s just a pleasure. Martin Fry is so suave I would have enjoyed seeing him working on a project with Bryan Ferry. That may have been too cool for many...

AMG: One of the most popular new wave bands of the early ‘80s, the British group ABC built upon the detached, synthesized R&B pop of David Bowie and Roxy Music, adding a self-conscious, campy sense of theatrics and style. Under the direction of vocalist Martin Fry, the group scored several catchy, synth-driven dance-pop hits in the early ‘80s, including “Poison Arrow,” “Look of Love,” and “Be Near Me.”

During the late ‘70s, Fry ran his own fanzine, Modern Drugs, while he attended Sheffield University. ABC formed in 1980, after Fry interviewed Vice Versa members Mark White (guitar) and Stephen Singleton (saxophone) for his fanzine. The two musicians asked Fry to join their band as a vocalist, and he soon became part of the group; the lineup also featured drummer David Robinson and bassist Mark Lickley.

Soon, Fry had taken control of the electronic band, steering them in a more pop-oriented direction and renaming the group ABC. By the fall of 1981, the band had signed a record contract with Phonogram Records, which agreed to distribute ABC’s own label, Neutron. ABC released their first single, “Tears Are Not Enough,” in November; it peaked at number 19 on the U.K. charts. Before they recorded their second single, Robinson left the band and was replaced by David Palmer in early 1982. Two singles, “Poison Arrow” and “The Look of Love,” became British Top Ten hits in the spring, paving the way for their debut album, The Lexicon of Love, to enter the charts at number one. “All of My Heart” also became a Top Ten hit in the fall of 1982.

ABC - The Lexicon Of Lust

8. All of My Heart

THE HIVES - Tick Tick Boom (video)

The Hives were one of the funner shows I've seen in the past five years. They really put on a show in concert. About time for a new album too.

LIFE IN THE EUROPEAN THEATRE

Various Artists - Life In The European Theatre

(Elektra/Asylum Records 60179 - 1982

01. London Calling - The Clash
02. Little Boy Soldiers - The Jam
03. I Am Your Flag - The Beat
04. Man At C & A - The Specials
05. Living Through Another Cuba - XTC
06. I Don’t Remember - Peter Gabriel
07. Peace Frog - The Doors
08. Grey Day - Madness
09. Psychedelic Eric - Bad Manners
10. Nuclear Device - The Stranglers
11. It’s Going To Happen - The Undertones
12. All That Jazz - Echo & The Bunnymen
13. Diet - Au Pairs
14. Reasons To Be Cheerful Pt.3 - Ian Dury

File Under: New Wave, Post-Punk
RIYL: Any of the bands contained within

Face it, most comps suck. Unless it’s one you made yourself. There’s always something that throws the flow off. Or a track that makes you think ‘what the hell is this doing on here?’ Life In The European Theatre isn’t one of those. Released in 1982 to raise awareness in opposition to Nuclear Power and Nuclear Arms, it’s a virtual who’s who of early post-punk/new wave... but The Doors and Peter Gabriel? Believe it or not, it works. Add the Jam and The Clash and those were the only bands I was familiar with on the tape - But I ended up loving every track and have held onto this cassette for over 25 years. As far as I know, it’s never been reissued or released onto compact disc, so I eventually sought out digital sources and compiled this cd. If you’re not familiar with some of these artists, every band is worth exploring more. The Ian Dury track was not on the North American release, it was substituted with The Doors. I’ve included the track for completists. Something I just noticed - On the cover art it's spelled "Theater" while on the spine it's spelled "Theatre." LOL... suppose they were trying to appeal to both sides of the pond.

AMG: The Doors are the only non-United Kingdom act on the album, which is dominated by new wave rock, with nods to Two-Tone bands Like the No Nukes and M.U.S.E. movements in the States, the mainly British musicians here express their opposition to and fear of nuclear power while donating royalties from the album’s sales to anti-nuke causes. Unlike the California-dominated, touchy-feely approach of Jackson Browne, Graham Nash and James Taylor, these guys really kick the nuclear industry right in the pants -- starting with the impassioned “London Calling” by the Clash. the Specials and Madness. European Theater is worth having, even if some of the sounds are dated to the 1980s and the threat of nuclear annihilation isn’t what it used to be.

Life In The European Theatre

10. Nuclear Device - The Stranglers

THE BEAT - I Am Your Flag (video)

First heardthis song on the Life In The European Theater compilation. Still one of my favorite comps. It exposed me to a lot of great, unheard music.

ELECTRAFIXION - Burned

Electrafixion - Burned
(Elektra 1995) Out of Print CD

01. Feel My Pulse
02. Sister Pain
03. Lowdown    
04. Timebomb    
05. Zephyr    
06. Never    
07. Too Far Gone    
08. Mirrorball    
09. Who’s Been Sleeping in My Head?    
10. Hit by Something    
11. Bed of Nails

File Under: Alternative, Indie, Grunge (?)
RIYL: Echo & The Bunnymen, Nirvana (?)

As a huge E&tB fan, this was a must have. It had been seven years since Ian and Will had worked together and expectations were high. What we ended up with is a Bunnymen album on steroids. Listening to this now, I’m amazed at how LOUD the guitars are. This is a stomping album. Nothing subtle here and that seemed to be the main criticism of many. The Bunnymen were as much about atmosphere as anything else and that doesn’t exist here. These are aggressive, in-your-face rock songs. Having said that, I love it and think it’s brilliant that it wasn’t a Bunnymen album. It gave them the freedom to crank it up a little without having to fly the Bunnymen flag. Will’s signature guitar is still hear, it’s just turned up to 13. And Ian’s voice is in fine form. If this was the bridge to get them back together as E&tB, great. I believe they release several eps with live tracks and if you collected all of them, you had the complete concert - I’ll have to try and track that down...

AMG: When something promises a lot given the participants, the expectations understandably ratchet up as well. So that’s why Electrafixion’s sole album comes across as an experiment in frustration more than once. The prospect of Ian McCulloch and Will Sergeant working together for the first time in around seven years revived the hopes of the Echo & the Bunnymen fan base that the pleasant but not often striking solo and side projects in the interim would be left behind for something more distinct. That Electrafixion was, but Burned still disappointed as much as it pleased. A lot of it had to do with McCulloch’s wholehearted embrace of Nirvana and grunge -- Burned isn’t Nevermind redux, per se, but the wickedly entrancing combination of voice and guitars from Echo days turned into a full-on rock stomp. Sergeant, essentially, is wasted -- while his playing can’t be faulted, much of the time he’s playing feedback-heavy mega-rock riffs that sound like somebody trying to prove he’s still with it. McCulloch, meanwhile, often has an unpleasant whine in his distinct vocals that also sounds like somebody trying far too hard to impress. If this was a totally new band, these elements might be overlooked (or even celebrated), but given the duo’s past history, everything comes across in comparison to that past, often poorly. It’s a mistake to say that Burned is a complete wash, by any means, as both still have strengths aplenty and quite often play to them. Lead single “Zephyr” actually kicks some major butt with style, with a classic spiraling-up Sergeant riff amped to the max and a gutsy performance from McCulloch. Meanwhile, the two tracks rescued from McCulloch’s abortive collaboration with Johnny Marr also appeal, especially the comparatively sly and strong “Lowdown.” “Who’s Been Sleeping in My Head?” is a classic McCulloch title, while the song itself has a nicely drugged-out atmosphere. By and large, though, Burned is an opportunity missed.

Guitarist Will Sergeant and singer Ian McCulloch formed Echo & the Bunnymen with bassist Les Pattinson in Liverpool in 1978. The group later replaced a drum machine with Trinidad-native Pete de Freitas, and became one of the most important British indie bands of the ‘80s. Ian McCulloch left for a solo career in 1988, and his debut album Candleland proved successful. Meanwhile, his former band imploded after 1990’s Reverberation, recorded with a McCulloch imitator named Simon Burke.

In 1992, McCulloch’s second solo album Mysterio flopped, and he reconciled with Sergeant two years later. Sergeant and McCulloch recruited bassist Leon de Sylva and drummer Tony McGuigan and toured England as Electrafixion. Crowds and the press approved of the group’s groove-heavy update of Echo & the Bunnymen’s moody, slightly psychedelic, indie-pop. In November 1994, Electrafixion released “Zephyr” on their Spacejunk label, and followed with the album Burned in late 1995.

Electrafixion - Burned

05. Zephyr    

LIVE - Pain Lies On The Riverside (video)

This song has been running through my head for about two days now. First time I ever heard the band was this video on MTVs 120 Minutes. Still one of my favorites by the band.

DEAD BOYS - Younger, Louder and Snottier

Dead Boys - Younger, Louder & Snottier (The Rough Mixes)
(Bomp Records 1989) Out of Print CD

01. Sonic Reducer
02. All This And More
03. What Love Is
04. Not Anymore
05. Ain’t Nothin’ To Do
06. Caught With The Meat In Your Mouth
07. Hey Little Girl
08. I Need Lunch
09. High Tension Wire
10. Down In Flames

File Under: Punk, Post-Punk
RIYL: Pere Ubu, Rocket From The Tombs, Lords of the New Church, The Damned, Stooges

The Dead Boys were one of those bands, like The Sex Pistols and The Jam, that I always read about but never heard. You didn’t hear this stuff on the radio and you couldn’t download it. Either you knew someone who had it and you made a cassette copy or you bought it. And try finding a Dead Boys album at the National Record Mart in eastern Ohio in the early 1980s. It wasn’t going to happen. Eventually, like what usually happened, I had it special ordered without ever hearing a track. I bought a lot back then just from reading a review or looking at an album cover. Listening to Young, Loud and Snotty threw me off completely. At this time I was pretty immersed in British ‘punk’ like The Jam and The Buzzcocks - I just didn’t listen to US punk. Probably because Trouser Press, the magazine I got all of my recommendations from usually seemed to concentrate on UK music. So I wasn’t sold right away. But it was one of those albums that I kept going back to until I did appreciate it. I never did get into US hardcore, it always seemed so nihilistic compared to the British counter parts. So this release is a collection of early takes of that original Dead Boys album. It’s even more raw and sloppy than the official release.

AMG: The Dead Boys’ debut album, Young, Loud & Snotty, stands as a superb document of the original late-’70s punk rock movement, full of nihilism and rage and just plain bad taste. These are the original rough mixes done by lead singer and punk rock poster boy Stiv Bators, guitarist Cheetah Chrome and engineer Bob Clearmountain before Genya Ravan was brought in to clean things up. What emerges from these alternate mixes is something akin to history reversing itself and the “Bowie mix” of Raw Power coming out 20 years later. There are plenty of useless overdubs that would later get scrapped for the released version, but the largely effect-less guitars are full of sheet metal, as opposed to metal, tonality. Everything on here sounds crispier, more wired, and so treble-accented that it ends up embellishing the offensiveness of the material itself, full of punk energy and electric scrabble for the chemically enhanced set. Even the tunes that were originally slagged by punk critics as sounding “too metal” emerge here sonically sounding more like Stooges outtakes, especially “Caught With the Meat In Your Mouth.” Given the meager recorded output of the band, this will easily find a place in the collections of the band’s old fans.

Dead Boys - Younger, Louder & Snottier (The Rough Mixes)

01. Sonic Reducer

DEAD CONFEDERATE - The Rat (video)

Southern psych. This is from their 2008 album Wrecking Ball. Nice, hypnotic tune...

LIVE - The Distance To Haag

Live - The Distance To Haag

December 2, 1999, The Statenhal, Den Haag, Holland
01. Where Fishes Go
02. Operation Spirit
03. All Over You
04. Selling The Drama
05. The Distance
06. Shit Towne
07. Sparkle
08. Pillar Of Davidson
09. The Dolphin’s Cry
10. Lakini’s Juice
11. Imagine
12. Run To The Water
13. Dance With You
14. They Stood Up For Love
15. I Alone

File Under: Alternative, Indie, College Rock, Post-Grunge
RIYL: REM, U2, Public Affection

IMO Live always got a bad rap. Besides always being called a poor-man’s R.E.M. (I never got that reference), they were continually accused of being ‘over-earnest.’ Imagine that. Being criticized for singing about hope. In the age of Limp Bizkit, and 2nd generation grunge, they were a welcomed respite. They didn’t want to “fuck you like and animal.” They didn’t have “a pocket full of shells.” And they didn’t “do it all for the nookie.” They “stood up for love.” But apparently that wasn’t cool. So here’s a fantastic recording from the Distance to Here tour. I had the opportunity to see them perform many of these songs before the album came out at the Woodstock 99 fiasco. They were one of the highlights of that abysmal weekend. Apparently LIVE is no longer together. Ed left for a solo career and the other guys picked up the lead singer from Candlebox to form The Gracious Few.

AMG: After the tepid reaction to the subdued, over-produced Secret Samadhi, Live took some time off to rethink their direction. For their fourth full-length studio album The Distance to Here, the band called on producer Jerry Harrison to recapture the raw energy and emotion that fueled Mental Jewelry and Throwing Copper. A self-conscious response to Secret Samadhi with plenty of guitar riffs, thunderous tempos and a mystical aura, The Distance to Here emerges from their last album’s swirling, numbing stupor and regains some of Throwing Copper’s aggressive intensity. But Live doesn’t just meld their last two albums for this release; it’s a livelier, lighter collection. Though the group is slowly evolving their sound -- Ed Kowalczyk’s vulnerable-turned-angry vocals have become freer, more confident and more expressive, while Chad Taylor’s background vocals add needed depth and harmony - they’re retracing their steps before making any major changes. Live made its name by combining brutally honest, searching lyrics with equally intense and emotive music, but the fine line between genuine soul-searching and heavy-handed preaching is in the eye of the beholder. With The Distance, this line sways on individual songs: “Feel the Quiet River Rage,” “Sparkle,” “Meltdown,” “Sun,” and the title track -- reflect Live’s evolution, but the lumbering “Face and Ghost (The Children’s Song)” and the gushy “Dance With Me,” aim too high for their own good. This doesn’t make for a failed or bad album, just an uneven one. Overall, Live continues to plunge into dramatic, emotional, and spiritual realms, but the band needs to be more adventurous musically to complement its ongoing spiritual journey.

Live rose to chart success on the strength of its anthemic music and idealistic, overtly spiritual songwriting, two hallmarks which earned the group frequent comparisons to U2. Live first formed in the early ‘80s in their hometown of York, Pennsylvania, when future members Chad Taylor (guitar), Patrick Dahlheimer (bass) and Chad Gracey (drums) began playing together under the name “First Aid” while attending middle school. After losing an area talent contest, they decided to enlist singer Ed Kowalczyk, and as a foursome the group played under a series of names before settling on Public Affection.

After earning a rabid local following, in 1989 Public Affection released a cassette, The Death of a Dictionary, on their own Action Front label. After graduating to CBGB and other famed New York clubs, they earned a demo deal with Giant Records which proved unsuccessful; the completed demo earned them a deal with Radioactive, however, and before drawing their new name out of a hat, Live recruited Talking Head Jerry Harrison to produce their 1991 debut, Mental Jewelry. A collection of songs based on the writings of Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti, the record made Live one of the key players in the post-Nirvana alternative music scene thanks to singles like “Operation Spirit (The Tyranny of Tradition)” and “Pain Lies on the Riverside.”

Three years later, Live returned with the muscular Throwing Copper, which lingered a number of months on the charts before pushing the group into the rock mainstream; after a series of popular singles like “Selling the Drama” and “I Alone,” the album’s slow build climaxed with the funereal “Lightning Crashes,” which propelled the album to the top of the charts and paved the way for the hits “White, Discussion” and “All Over You.” Secret Samadhi, the third Live LP, followed in early 1997, but failed to match either the commercial or critical success of previous efforts. The band resurfaced two years later with The Distance to Here. Through 2003, the band continually refined their ambitious, spiritual sound; both 2001’s V and 2003’s Birds of Pray cracked the Billboard Top 30.

Live - The Distance To Haag

05. The Distance

OCEAN COLOR SCENE - Hundred Mile High City

OCS were always the more trad rock of the Britpop bands. Half the time they looked like a band of Steve Marriott clones. But their three albums from the 90s - Mosley Shoals, Marchin' Already and One From The Modern are trad/Britpop classic.

GENE - Libertine

Gene - Libertine
(Contra Records 2002) Out of Print CD

01. Let Me Move On
02. Does He Have a Name?    
03. A Simple Request    
04. Yours for the Taking    
05. Is It Over?
06. O Lover    
07. With Love in Mind    
08. Let Me Rest    
09. From Georgia to Osaka
10. We’ll Get What We Deserve
11. Walking in the Shallows    
12. You    
13. Spy in the Clubs    

File Under: Britpop, Indie
RIYL: The Smiths, Blur, Pulp, Marion

Gene always received the unjust comparisons to The Smiths. How do you survive that? You can’t. Their first two albums, Olympian and Drawn To The Deep End are Britpop classics. Rossiter does have more in common with Morrissey than Gallagher. Libertine, a slight return to form from their lackluster previous release Revelations, was to be their last release of new recordings.

AMG: Though not quite back to the high plane of their first two monumental albums, Libertine is an improvement over 1999’s Revelations. Producer Hugh Jones (who really should be knighted by now) has corrected the rare small botch he made of Revelations, restoring the dollops of shiny radiance and vigor. If the band still seems more world-weary than in their beginnings, when their songs were hung on greater exuberance, Libertine is still the most soulful record since Ken Stringfellow’s Touched. And whereas Revelations’ most emotional, astounding song came too late for many, at the finale, this time the three that break 1,000 hearts -- the sort of wildly emotive feeling this band gives at its best -- mostly come at the onset. The first, the seven-minute epic opener “Does He Have a Name,” features the pungent rage and helplessness of a left-behind lover contemplating his ex’s next. Likewise, the five-minute soundtrack-spectrum single “Is It Over?” backtracks to the sticky endgame of that deteriorating romance. What lies in the valley betwixt these mountains? Namely, a greater predilection to classic ‘60s soul influences in a modern, post-Smiths pop context than listeners have seen previously. There’s a few lesser songs that don’t rate, but the more up-tempo tracks -- like the nimble bounce of “Walking in the Shadows” and the late-period Jam-ish “Yours for the Taking” -- are spry winners, and the eerie, desperate “Spy in the Clubs” is the sort of haunting, worried beauty that was once Gene’s staple. Libertine is the sort of LP that is rarely made by anyone anymore: one that engages every ounce of empathy one possesses.

Gene will forever be haunted by comparisons to the Smiths, especially since lead singer Martin Rossiter favors the same strangled croon and tortured loneliness of Morrissey. Nevertheless, under the direction of guitarist Steve Mason, Gene developed a tougher sound than the Smiths, drawing not only from the fey tradition of British indie-pop, but also from the three-chord raunch of the Faces, the working-class punk of the Jam and the soulful stomp of Motown. Most critic s didn’t hear such subtle differences, and opinions on the group’s worth were fiercely divided upon the release of the group’s first single in 1994, with the band earning as many detractors as supporters. Amidst such divided reaction, Gene developed a devoted following which helped them become one of the leading artists of the Britpop second tier in 1995, even if the band had trouble breaking into the States.

The roots of Gene lay in a band called Spin, which featured guitarist Steve Mason and drummer Matt James. Spin disbanded after their career was sidetracked by their bassist’s injury in a car crash, yet Mason and James continued playing together, recruiting bassist Kevin Miles through a mutual friend. The trio eventually met Welsh native Martin Rossiter, and the quartet formed Gene in 1993. Over the course of the next few months, the band wrote a batch of songs and had performed a number of concerts by the end of the year. A pair of music journalists, Keith Cameron and Roy Wilkinson, formed the Costermonger label in order to release Gene’s debut single, “For the Dead,” in April 1994. Nearly every copy of the limited-edition release sold out within the first week, and Gene soon became favorites of the British music weeklies. That July, “Be My Light, Be My Guide” became a number one hit on the indie charts, and Gene had emerged as one of the leading new bands of the burgeoning Britpop movement. Major-label interest beckoned, and the group signed with Polydor, who subsidized Costermonger in the U.K. An acclaimed third single, “Sleep Well Tonight,” followed in September, and in January of 1995, Gene was named Best New Act at NME’s Brat Awards.

Until the release of the group’s debut album, Olympian, in the spring of 1995, Gene had continued to build momentum, partially because Martin Rossiter had adopted Morrissey’s technique of giving articulate, outrageous and witty interviews. Olympian, however, was greeted with mixed reviews, and although the group had a sizable fan base -- the album debuted in the Top Ten -- they were soon overshadowed by the legions of groups that popped up in the wake of Blur and Oasis’ success. Even so, “Haunted by You” and “Olympian” both became Top 20 hits. Early in 1996, To See the Lights, a collection of B-sides and BBC sessions, was released in England. For the remainder of the year, Gene was quiet, preparing their second album, Drawn to the Deep End. “Fighting Fit” was released as a teaser in the fall and became a Top Ten hit, but Drawn to the Deep End didn’t follow through on its success. Although it debuted in the Top Ten upon its release in early 1997, it was greeted with decidedly mixed reviews and quickly fell down the charts, although the group’s core audience remained loyal. By the new millennium, the band was without a label. They founded Contra and issued the live set Rising for Sunset: Live at the Troubadour in 2000. The album went almost unnoticed among the indie scene, however a true comeback loomed ahead. In mid-summer 2002, Gene emerged with Libertine, their strongest material since Olympian. A late summer/early fall trek across America coincided with the release.

Gene - Libertine

04. Yours for the Taking     

EMF - Unbelievable (video)

Silly, goofy song... but it was a lot of fun in it's time. To many drinks, t-shirts, trainers, whistles... hard to believe this was twenty years ago.

RANK & FILE - Hot Wind At The Blue Note

Rank & File - Hot Wind At The Blue Note
(Soundboard Recording)

December 2, 1985, The Blue Note, Boulder, CO
01. Introduction
02. Conductor Wore Black
03. She Said Dont Go
04. Hot Wind
05. All I Had To Offer
06. White Lightning
07. Golden Age
08. Long Gone Dead
09. One Big Thing
10. Black Book
11. Pistol Down
12. Sound Of The Rain
13. Nothing Thats Lost
14. Unlucky In Love
15. Rank & File
16. Amanda Ruth
17. audience
18. Sundown
19. Im An Old Old Man
20. audience
21. Tell Her I Love Her
22. Sweet Jane

File Under: Cowpunk, Alt.Country, Hillbilly
RIYL: Long Ryders, REM, Jason And The Scorchers, True Believers, Lone Justice

Another footnote of the 80s. Their first two albums are classic, their third and final, not so much. This seems to be a sanctioned recording that was never released. At one point one of the brothers says the show is being recorded for a live album (which never materialized). When you look at the pedigree and associations these guys had: The Dils, The Nuns, Lone Justice, Alejandro Escovedo and the True Believers - it’s hard to understand how the Kinman brothers aren’t better known. Their influence can be heard on a lot of the alt.country movement that included bands like Uncle Tupelo, Whiskytown, Ryan Adams, Wilco and Son Volt. Contrary to the review below, the brothers did go on to release a few traditional old-school country albums under the name Cowboy Nation (check the links on the left).

AMG: Formed by brothers Chip and Tony Kinman after they split up their hardcore punk band the Dils (who recorded the great L.A. punk single “Class War”), Rank and File were, at times, a dazzling roots rock post-punk band that stumbled early in its career, only to flame out much too quickly and finally collapse with an embarrassing thud. Their debut record, Sundown, was a gem of tuneful, Byrds-ian pop, with a healthy dollop of Gram Parsons and Merle Haggard to boot. The Kinmans’ singing was distinctive; they weren’t traditional harmony singers à la the Everly Brothers, but rather sang synchronized upper and lower octaves. The songwriting was wry, heartfelt, and cliché-free; the band (which at the time featured the guitar of the immensely talented Alejandro Escovedo) rocked with gusto, but never bombastically, preferring nuance and subtlety over volume and simplicity. In fact, the Kinmans were so into cowpunk and so far from their hardcore punk beginnings that they even landed a spot on PBS’s revered country music showcase Austin City Limits. The sophomore record, Long Gone Dead, was an excellent follow-up, but the self-titled third album (it’s never a good sign when a band releases a self-titled record three records into a career), recorded three years after Long Gone Dead, was absolutely awful; the songs went nowhere, and the singing and playing, which had previously been so precise and artful, was now buried under a thicket of clichéd hard rockisms. After listening to side one, you knew these guys were done for. Sad, really. In a stunning repudiation of Rank and File’s roots rock style, the Kinmans’ next project was the execrable Blackbird, an ill-conceived try at synth pop that went a long way toward making them laughingstocks. Former guitarist Alejandro Escovedo formed the excellent (but also short-lived) True Believers with his brother Javier, and since their breakup has recorded a number of interesting solo records.

Rank & File - Hot Wind At The Blue Note

04. Hot Wind

LEONARD COHEN - Hallelujah (video)

Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah via Jeff Buckley has become an American/Pop Idol, X-Factor standard. Too bad. Buckley without a doubt made it his own, but here's how it was meant to be sung, by the man himself.

THE ALARM - King Biscuit Flower Hour

The Alarm - King Biscuit Flower Hour
(King Biscuit Flower Hour 1999) Out of Print CD

01. For Freedom
02. Marching On    
03. Reason 41
04. Up for Murder
05. The Deceiver    
06. The Stand
07. Blaze of Glory    
08. 3rd Light        
09. Tell Me    
10. Across the Border
11. Sixty Eight Guns
12. Unsafe Building    
13. Marching On
14. We Are the Light
15. Bonus Interview

Here’s a quick one. Nice early recording from the western wear big hair punk days. Essential if you are an Alarm fan.

AMG: Recorded at Boston’s Paradise Theatre in 1983, King Biscuit Flower Hour is a typically passionate performance by the Alarm, which was broadcast on the titular syndicated radio program. Even though the group had yet to issue a full-length album in the United States, their frequent U.K. single releases already provided a vast majority of the material needed to fill out a standard-length concert. The band’s performances strike a nice balance between tight professionalism and raw vigor, and their commitment to the material is total (if unsubtle), making this an exciting listen for devoted fans.

The Alarm - King Biscuit Flower Hour

10. Across the Border

HUSKER DU - Live at Camden Palace 1985 (video-complete show)

I've been under the weather the last few days, but here's a good one to tide you over. A complete Du show from 1985.

FATAL FLOWERS - Younger Days

FATAL FLOWERS - Younger Days
(Atlantic - 1986) Never On CD / Out Of Print

01. Deep Inside
02. Good Enough
03. Ballroom
04. Nowhere To Lay My Head
05. Younger Days
06. Well Baby (pt.2)
07. Gimme Some Truth
08. Blackspot
09. For Christ’s Sake
10. Here’s Your Song

File Under: Nederbeat, College Rock, Alternative, Indie
RIYL: Long Ryders

This was a nice surprise. Judging by the cover and band name, I was expecting some fey synth-pop. I was wrong. This is actually a really cool ‘college rock’ type album that I probably would have played the hell out of back in the 80s. The production is pretty tight, but still retains some nice rawness. And it doesn’t have that big fake ‘rawk’ sound that ruined a lot of rock albums in the 80s (i.e. Neil Young). This is a pretty nice find and a solid vinyl rip. Give the sample a listen.

AMG: On Fatal Flowers’ second album the lineup consisted of Richard Janssen, Marco Braam, Henk Jonkers, and Dirk Heuff, who had just replaced Erwin Wolters on guitar. Upon entering the music scene, they all had agreed to put all of their time and effort exclusively into the band, something which was not regarded as common practice by most of their colleagues. Their iron discipline resulted in a repertoire of catchy rock songs and an exciting live performance. With Younger Days they did more than improve upon their debut mini-album, Fatal Flowers. Although the sound is at times a little over-produced -- Vic Maile wasn’t able to catch their energetic live appearance -- it still offers the blueprint for the band’s creativity. Part of Younger Days reminds of the Dutch “Nederbiet” movement. However, the influence of the ‘60s shouldn’t be overexaggerated, for their sound showed just as much familiarity with the ‘80s. For instance, the classic rock of the title track (a minor hit in the Netherlands) is placed beside the new wave bliss of “Ballroom.” The latter is among the best tracks on this album, which further includes the desperate plea of “Nowhere to Lay My Head” and the “murder-ballad” “Well Baby, Pts. 1 & 2,” a second single drawn from Younger Days which failed to make the charts. Much like Daryll-Ann during the ‘90s, Fatal Flowers made Dutch rock music exciting and most relevant outside the Netherlands.

Fatal Flowers is a must hear for music fans who are even slightly interested in ‘Nederbeat’ (or Dutch rock music from the late sixties). Since Rhino included some of these gems on their Nuggets II, people outside The Netherlands should be aware of the existence of bands like The Outsiders, The Motions and Golden Earring. To a certain extent they proved an influence on the ambitious and short-lived Fatal Flowers. At first it seemed Dutch critics had difficulty to reach a unanimous verdict, but by the time the band split they had to agree Fatal Flowers were in fact the country’s most important band of the 1980s.

One of the first bands to evolve from the Dutch punk scene, together with likewise legendary and still existing Claw Boys Claw, Fatal Flowers belonged to what was then called the ‘Amsterdam school of guitar’. Core members Richard Janssen and Henk Jonkers formed the band in 1984, after recruiting bass-player Marco Braam and Erwin Wolters on guitar. The latter remained only temporarily and was soon replaced by Dirk Heuff. Shortly thereafter, the band got signed by major Warner and in the summer of 1985 released their mini-album Fatal Flowers. On account of the exceptional guitar playing of Heuff and the punk inspired rhythm-section of Jonkers and Braam, the debut earned them some fair reviews. Together with Braam, Wolters was credited for “Crying over Sin”, arguably the best song on the album which earned them a contract in the first place.

After releasing the second album Younger Days, the band’s popularity grew on a national scale. Especially live, Fatal Flowers were practically invincible and made endless appearances on Dutch radio broadcasts. In 1987 they were the opening act of the renowned Pinkpop-festival and received an Edison (Dutch equivalent to a Grammy Award) for their second album. Although their fulltime commitment to touring and practicing bettered their skills, in the end it would also kill the initial enthusiasm of some of the members. Braam was the second to leave, shortly after the title track “Younger Days” hit the Dutch singles chart in early February 1987.

After replacing Braam for Geert de Groot, Fatal Flowers left for Woodstock to record with admirer Mick Ronson. The outcome Johnny D. is Back! was the first record to capture some of the energy of their live performances. A little help of John Sebastian (adding acoustic guitar and harmonica on a couple of tracks) and backing vocals of Ann Lang helped Fatal Flowers to enlarge their reputation as the best Dutch band of the moment. Critics and music fans alike called 1988s Johnny D. is Back! a Dutch classic. Sadly though, upon returning to The Netherlands Heuff quit the band. René van Barneveld of Urban Dance Squad filled in for him at the remaining Dutch gigs.

Near the end of 1988 a more permanent replacement for Heuff was found in the promising, young, self-taught guitar player Robin Berlijn. His contribution made the fourth Fatal Flowers album their ultimate statement. Again with Mick Ronson in the producer’s seat, elements of the new wave like Younger Days and the soulful Johnny D. Is Back! were combined with a more aggressive play style. Through 1990s Pleasure Ground Fatal Flowers planned to make it outside of The Netherlands as well. Unfortunately singer Janssen left the band in the summer of 1990, disillusioned about their new label Phonogram’s neglect to properly promote the band abroad. One of the most promising Dutch bands of the era fell apart. Separate members remained active within the music business, with Janssen forming Shine in mid-‘90s.

Not much was heard of Fatal Flowers until July 2002, when the band joined for the first time in twelve years to promote a greatest hits album Younger Days -- The Definitive Fatal Flowers. There appeared to be no upcoming reunion plans.

Fatal Flowers - Younger Days

04. Nowhere To Lay My Head

THE (INTERNATIONAL) NOISE CONSPIRACY - Capitalism Stole My Virginity

20% of the people in the United States own 93% of the wealth. That leaves 7% for the other 80% to share... Interesting fact. Whatever your political leanings, T(I)NC rock.

BOYS FROM NOWHERE - The Bridal Album

Boys From Nowhere - The Bridal Alum
(Skylab/Young Lion 1990) Out of Print CD

01. Beyond The Time Barrier
02. My Chequered Past
03. Viet Namese Baby
04. All Tied Up
05. Cyclone Death Machine
06. Bring Me The Gigli Saw
07. The Art Beret
08. Back Of My Mind
09. One Of Those Days
10. Rocket To Nowhere

File Under: Garage, Indie, College
RIYL: The Sonics, Fleshtones, Cynics, Stiv Bators

The Boys From Nowhere were a mid-80’s to early 90’s band based out of Columbus, OH. And they kicked ass. Led by lead singer and band constant Mick Divvens, they released three of the most ferocious 45s your gonna hear. This is their one and only album. While it’s not as great as those 45s, it’s still pretty barbaric. Mick Divvens, who for all intents and purposes was TBFN lives in my hometown and I’ve talked to him a few times on Facebook, trying to see if he has any live stuff lying around. Nothing so far. Play this stuff loud!

There’s not a lot of information out there about TBFN, but check out this 1991 interview/article with Mick Divvens.

Boys From Nowhere - The Bridal Album

08. Back Of My Mind

IAN BROWN - Keep What You Got (video)

Ian used to sing in the Stone Roses. This is a song off of his Solarized album, written by Noel Gallagher of Oasis. Always like this one. There's an official video with Noel in it but I can't seem to track it down.

JOHNNY MARR & THE HEALERS - Boomslang

Johnny Marr & The Healers - Boomslang
(Artists Direct Records 2003) Out of Print CD

01. The Last Ride
02. Caught Up
03. Down on the Corner    
04. Need It    
05. You Are the Magic
06. Inbetweens    
07. Another Day
08. Headland
09. Long Gone    
10. Something to Shout About
11. Bangin’ On

File Under: Indie, Britpop, College Rock
RIYL: The Smiths, Stone Roses, The Verve, Charlatans

If you’re here, you know who Johnny Marr is. Here’s his fist offering ‘on his own’ and not as someones side-kick. It’s Johnny’s voice and guitar on this one. The result is an amalgamation of everything that came before: The Stone Roses, Charlatans and Verve can all be heard haunting this disc. That’s not a bad thing though, especially if you like those bands. It’s not a classic, but definitely worth having. And I’m sure you’ll play it more than that other band by John Squire but maybe not as much as Music of the Spheres...

AMAZON: Musician, heal thyself. Having lived with advanced sideman syndrome ever since his glory days in the Smiths, Johnny Marr finally steps into the spotlight with his full-length frontman debut. So how do Marr and the Healers stack up against alma maters the Smiths, The The, and Electronic? Boomslang is a rock-solid collection of dreamy, droning, sublimely melodic pop offerings. Marr makes little attempt to match the languid solipsism of Morrissey, the existential dread of Matt Johnson, or the enigmatic electro-pop of Bernard Sumner. Instead, from the hypnotic rock of “The Last Ride” to the reflectively pastoral “Something to Shout About,” Marr’s songs are as unaffected, his singing as mellifluous, as the tastefully expressive guitar work that’s earned him a place among rock’s most acclaimed instrumentalists. Already together for three years, Marr, Zak Starkey, and Alonza Bevan form a tight rock trio that knows when to loosen up, not least on the seven-minute “You Are the Magic.” While cohort Sumner’s career trajectory from Joy Division guitarist to New Order frontman was decidedly faster, the cofounder of Manchester’s other best known band has made a two-decade journey from codependency to creative control that, in its own unassuming way, is no less satisfying.

AMG: The supple, ringing guitars of Johnny Marr helped establish the Smiths among the most acclaimed and enduring bands of the 1980s. Born John Maher in Manchester, England, on October 31, 1963, he played in such little-known groups as Sister Ray and Freaky Party before forming the Smiths with singer Morrissey in 1982. In the years to follow they emerged among Britain’s most successful acts, but in 1987, following sessions for the LP Strangeways, Here We Come, Marr dissolved the group, claiming their musical approach had gone stale.

In the wake of the Smiths’ demise, he made cameo appearances on records by the likes of Talking Heads and Kirsty MacColl before joining Matt Johnson’s The The for 1989’s Mind Bomb. Marr also teamed with New Order’s Bernard Sumner and Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant in the alternative supergroup Electronic, scoring a hit with the single “Getting Away With It.” Apart from a handful of guest appearances, he kept a relatively low profile during the 1990s, most notably lending his talents to The The’s 1993 effort Dusk and Electronic’s long-awaited sophomore record, 1996’s Raise the Pressure.

Marr returned to music three years later on Electronic’s third album, Twisted Tenderness, which wasn’t released in the U.S. until fall 2000. He also spent time working with his new band, the Healers, playing dates across England. The next few years saw a time of redefinition and reflection for Marr. He finally assembled his Healers with ex-Kula Shaker bass man Alonza Bevan and Ringo Starr’s drumming son, Zak Starkey, in 2002; a deal with ARTISTdirect’s iMusic followed before the end of the year. Fans of this legendary guitarist were treated to Marr’s proper singing debut in early 2003 with the release of Boomslang. In 2007 Marr appeared on the Washington band Modest Mouse’s album, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, and toured with them as a member.

Johnny Marr & The Healers - Boomslang

01. The Last Ride

MOBY - That's When I Reach For My Revolver (video)

This is Moby doing a pretty convincing cover of Mission of Burma from his 'punk' album Animal Rights. I remember when this came out in 1996 and all of the rave/dj/techno kids were ready to cut their wrists. "Moby sold out!" Really? They started yelling "sell-out" as soon as he signed to Elektra and released Everything Is Wrong, one of the greatest albums of the genre. Wonder what they thought when he licensed every track from Play? LOL...

LONE JUSTICE - Cowpunk Adolescence

Lone Justice - Cowpunk Adolescence

01. Rattlesnake Mama
02. Working Man Blues
03. Grapes Of Wrath
04. Jackson
05. The Highway Song
06. This World Is Not My Home
07. Cactus Rose
08. When Love Comes Home To Stay
09. Cottonbelt
10. Nothing Can Stop My Loving You
11. Dustbowl Depression
12. Soap, Soup and Salvation
13. Sweet Jane (w/Bono)

There are very few bands I like with female front women. The Pretenders, X, Concrete Blonde and Lone Justice being the exception. Maria McKee could kick your ass in concert. I remember seeing them open for U2 on the Unforgettable Fire tour in April of 1985. They didn’t even have an album out yet and I didn’t know one song, but I was sold. It seemed like months until their debut finially hit the racks. It didn’t disappoint when it finally hit my turntable - “Should I go north?!” blasting out of my cheap speakers. I’ve always heard from critics how the albums never captured their live shows. Well, that’s why you go see them live! I saw them again in 1986 at a small club and they blew the roof off the place. I’m not sure that could be captured on vinyl. So here’s a collection of early demos and outakes with the original line-up. Some of these appeared on the posthumous album This World Is Not My Home in one form or another. Yeah, Lone Justic were a band with a female lead singer that could have blown a lot of guys off the stage...

AMG: The roots rock band Lone Justice was formed in Los Angeles by guitarist Ryan Hedgecock and singer Maria McKee. The half-sister of Bryan MacLean, a member of the seminal psychedelic outfit Love, McKee’s involvement in the L.A. club scene dated back to her infancy; at the age of three, she joined MacLean at a performance at the famed Whisky-a-Go-Go and was befriended by Frank Zappa and members of the Doors. As a teen, she studied musical theater, and briefly performed in duos with MacLean and local blues singer Top Jimmy. McKee and Hedgecock first met while dabbling in the L.A. rockabilly scene, and their mutual affection for country music inspired them to found Lone Justice in 1982. Initially, the group was strictly a cover band, but the additions of veteran bassist Marvin Etzioni and Don Heffington, a former drummer in Emmylou Harris’ Hot Band, prompted McKee to begin composing original material inspired by Dust Bowl-era balladry.

Gradually, elements of rock began creeping into the Lone Justice sound as well, and soon the band became a local favorite. At the urging of Linda Ronstadt, they were awarded a contract with Geffen Records; their self-titled debut appeared in 1985, followed by a tour in support of U2. Still, despite good press and media hype, Lone Justice failed to sell; slickly produced by the band’s manager, Jimmy Iovine, it failed to connect with either country or rock audiences. In the record’s wake, Hedgecock, Etzioni, and Heffington all exited the band, leaving McKee to lead Lone Justice alone. After enlisting guitarist Shayne Fontayne, bassist Greg Sutton, drummer Rudy Richman, and keyboardist Bruce Brody, Lone Justice recorded their second LP, Shelter. Shortly after the record’s release, McKee broke up the band for good and went on to a solo career. Heffington became a successful session drummer, while Etzioni recorded under the guise Marvin the Mandolin Man. After a decade removed from the music industry, Hedgecock returned in 1996 as half of the duo Parlor James. A posthumous Lone Justice retrospective, This World Is Not My Home, followed in early 1999.

Lone Justice - Cowpunk Adolescence

03. Grapes Of Wrath

R DEAN TAYLOR - Ghost In My House (video)

Was listening to a Northern Soul Compilation on the way to work this morning. Here's a classic from 1967.

THE WATERBOYS - Dream Harder

The Waterboys - Dream Harder
(Geffen 1993) Out of Print CD

01. The New Life    
02. Glastonbury Song    
03. Preparing to Fly    
04. The Return of Pan
05. Corn Circles    
06. Suffer    
07. Winter Winter
08. Love and Death    
09. Spiritual City    
10. Wonders of Lewis    
11. The Return of Jimi Hendrix
12. Good News

File Under: College Rock, Celtic, Alternative, Big Music
RIYL: The Alarm, U2, Levellers, Sinead O’Conner, Simple Minds

I haven’t listened to this one for awhile and was pleasantly surprised to hear how good still sounded. I always preferred their early albums of ‘Big Music’ as opposed to their more traditional Celtic sounds. This was a return to that ‘Big Music’. Albeit, Mike Scott was the only Waterboy left, but there’s still a passion in the music. Opening track The New Life is almost a declaration. I think the AMG review below misses the mark when he compares Dream Harder to Fisherman’s Blues. They are not the same and were never meant to be. Is it This Is The Sea or A Pagan Place? No, nothing since has been or will be. But for me, The Return Of Pan brings it full circle. There is at least one cringe inducing track - Corn Circles.

AMG: After two albums of neo-traditional Irish music, Mike Scott brings The Waterboys back to the big rock sound of earlier albums like This is the Sea. Coming after the remarkably accomplished Fishermen’s Blues and Room to Roam, Dream Harder is a bit of a disappointment. Its best material doesn’t carry the same weight as compositions from Blues -- compare the simple beauty of Fishermen’s Blues’ “Has Anyone Hear Seen Hank” to Dream Harder’s overblown “The Return of Jimi Hendrix.” Scott can still bang out some good songs, but on Dream Harder there aren’t as many as on previous efforts.

Led by the literate singer/songwriter Mike Scott, the group’s sole constant member, the mercurial Waterboys formed in London in 1981. Born December 14, 1958, in Edinburgh, Scotland, Scott first became involved in music as the creator of the fanzine Jungleland and later played in a series of local punk outfits. After college, where he studied English and philosophy, Scott and his band, Another Pretty Face, moved to London; following the group’s breakup, he formed the Waterboys, so named after a line in the Lou Reed song “The Kids” but wholly appropriate given Scott’s recurring lyrical fascination with sea imagery.

A newspaper advertisement calling for musicians led to a response from multi-instrumentalist Anthony Thistlethwaite; along with drummer Kevin Wilkinson, the Waterboys issued their self-titled debut in 1983. Keyboardist Karl Wallinger and trumpeter Roddy Lorimer joined for the 1984 follow-up, A Pagan Place, which expanded the group’s rich, dramatic sound while further exploring Scott’s interest in spirituality. With 1985’s This Is the Sea, the Waterboys reached an early peak; a majestic, ambitious record, it earned the group a significant hit with the single “The Whole of the Moon.”

However, after the album’s release, Wallinger departed to form World Party, which prompted Scott and Thistlethwaite to relocate to Ireland and begin with a clean slate. When the Waterboys returned in 1988 with the acclaimed Fisherman’s Blues, they were joined by traditional Irish players like fiddler Steve Wickham, drummer Dave Ruffy, keyboardist Guy Chambers, and bassist Marco Weissman, resulting in a stripped-down, folky sound that was continued on 1990’s Room to Roam.

In 1991, Scott moved to New York without Thistlethwaite or any other bandmembers; the release of 1993’s Dream Harder, cut with session musicians, marked a return to an electric, more rock-oriented sound. Soon Scott moved back to Scotland, where he began a lengthy stay at a spiritual commune; there he recorded the folk-tinged Bring ‘Em All In under his own name, apparently putting the Waterboys to rest for good.

The Waterboys - Dream Harder

01. The New Life    

DEAD OR ALIVE - You Spin Me Round (video)

A new wave, dance floor classic. I guess the chorus and melody has recently been lifted by rapper Flo Rida. Of course vulgar lyrics had to be added : :You spin my head right round right round when you go down..." Whatever. This will continue to be a classic long after Flo Rida is forgotten.

THE PRETENDERS - US Festival 1983

The Pretenders - US Festival 1983

May 5, 1983, Glen Helen Regional Park, Devore, CA
01.  My City Was Gone
02.  Message Of Love > The Adultress
03.  Talk Of The Town
04.  Stop Your Sobbing
05.  Private Life
06.  Time The Avenger > Mystery Achievement
07.  The Wait
08.  Middle Of The Road
09.  Up The Neck
10.  Precious
11.  crowd noise
12.  Back On The Chain Gang
13.  Brass In Pocket
14.  Money

File Under: Punk, New Wave, College Rock
RIYL: The Clash, Elvis Costello, The Kinks, Iggy Pop, X

I've always liked The Pretenders. I remember buying a tape of Learning To Crawl from the stoner who worked at National Record Mart. He would 'borrow' tapes and sell them for $3. The first time I saw them was in the mid 80s with Iggy Pop opening! Anyhow, this is a classic bootleg and a nice FM broadcast. Grab it.

WIKI: The US Festivals (US pronounced like the pronoun, not as initials) were two early 1980s music and culture festivals sponsored by Steve Wozniak, formerly of Apple Computer. The first was held Labor Day weekend in September 1982 and the second was Memorial Day weekend in May 1983. Wozniak paid for the bulldozing and construction of a new open-air field venue as well as the construction of an enormous state-of-the-art temporary stage at Glen Helen Regional Park near Devore, San Bernardino, California. (This site was later to become home to Blockbuster Pavilion—now San Manuel Amphitheater—the largest amphitheatre in the United States as of 2007.) The festival stage has resided at the Disneyland theme park in California since 1985 and has operated under various names and functions as the Videopolis dance club, the Videopolis Theatre, and the Fantasyland Theatre.

AMG: Originally from Akron, OH, Hynde moved to England in the early ‘70s, when she was in her twenties. British rock journalist Nick Kent helped her begin writing for New Musical Express; she wrote for the newspaper during the mid-’70s. She also worked in Malcolm McLaren’s SEX boutique before she began performing. After playing with Chris Spedding, she joined Jack Rabbit; she quickly left the band and formed the Berk Brothers.

In 1978, Hynde formed the Pretenders, which eventually consisted of Honeyman-Scott, bassist Pete Farndon, and drummer Martin Chambers. Later in the year, they recorded a version of Ray Davies’ “Stop Your Sobbing” produced by Nick Lowe. The single made it into the British Top 40 in early 1979. “Kid” and “Brass in Pocket,” the group’s next two singles, also were successful. Their self-titled debut album was released in early 1980 and eventually climbed to number one in the U.K. The Pretenders were nearly as successful in America, with the album reaching the Top Ten and “Brass in Pocket” reaching number 14.

During an American tour in 1980, Hynde met Ray Davies and the two fell in love. Following a spring 1981 EP, Extended Play, the group released their second album, Pretenders II. Although it fared well on the charts, it repeated the musical ideas of their debut. In June of 1982, Pete Farndon was kicked out of the band, due to his drug abuse. A mere two days later on June 16, James Honeyman-Scott was found dead of an overdose of heroin and cocaine. Pregnant with Davies’ child, Hynde went into seclusion following Honeyman-Scott’s death. In 1983, two months after Hynde gave birth, Farndon also died of a drug overdose.

The Pretenders - US Festival 1983

13. Brass In Pocket

DAVE SHARP - Lookin' This World Over (video)

Dave Sharp used to be the guitarist for the Alarm. Seems he still plays live. The last studio album of new material was Downtown America released in 1996. Since then he's released a few live albums and compilations of demos and outakes.

THE STAR SPANGLES - Dirty Bomb

The Star Spangles - Dirty Bomb
(Tic 2007) Out of Print CD

01. Take Care of Us
02. Tear It to Pieces Girl    
03. Make Yourself Useful, Babe    
04. This Side of the Sun    
05. Gangland
06. I’m on a High    
07. Gimme an Answer    
08. Tell Lies    
09. ‘Nother Weight to Hold Me Down
10. Revolver
11. I Told a Lie
12. Bash Your Brains Out    
13. Someone in You

File Under: Punk, Garage, Indie
RIYL: Hives, Strokes, Stooges, New York Dolls, The Replacements

Here’s the Star Spangles second (final?) release. If I remember correctly, the thing that turned me on to these guys was a review that said “Which of the Two of Us Is Gonna Burn This House Down? is the best Replacements song not by The Replacements.” And considering The Replacements are probably one of my favorite all-time bands, I had to check it. And damn if they weren’t right. The track smokes! I could actually picture the Mats on stage making a wreck of this. Brilliant. Give this NY bunch a try, you’ll probably like it. Grab their first album here.

Random Review: Last time the Star Spangles landed - back in 2003 (fuck, was it really that long ago?) - we all instantly fell head over heels in love with their NY ‘street appeal’, snappy threads & sneering melodies - & duly thanked our lucky stars that their dads earned considerably less per anum than the Strokes’ fathers. We bought in: hook line & sinker! - Tommy’s incendiary guitar slinging, Ian’s moody Nick Cave as Garage Punker strop, the bubblegum classics, the cool city manner – eventually taking Rat Scabies along to see them at their Virgin Megastore LP Launch (where, incidentally, we encountered a geeked-up Robin Hitchcock queuing patiently behind much younger Spangles fans - in line to get his copy of “Bazooka!” signed by the group!).

Since those heady days, the Global General Public (GGP) have spectacularly failed to elevate the Star Spangles to superstardom on just about every level imaginable. What they may have lacked in instant success, however, the Spangles have more than made up for in extra-curricular activities: rumours of Tommy & Ian’s habits/issues have allegedly tested the resolve of those around them to the point of distraction.

There have been casualties along the way: it’s not exactly hot news to discover that Joey Valentino (drums) & Nick Price (bass) have both departed – in fact even Nick’s replacement – Pud Reznifoff (possible made- up-name-alert!) – has since vacated – but it is bloody good to have them back!

“Dirty Bomb” is the title of the second Star Spangles full-length outing – due to drop on May 1st on Tic Records. Recorded, mixed & produced by Jason Carmer, the record was recorded in San Francisco & mastered in NYC late last year. The album was supposed to have come out on Capital Records some time ago - but they either unceremoniously dropped the Spangles - or went out of business – one or the other (you do the math!). So the Spangles set up Tic Records – guaranteed to bug ya! (registered trade mark – copyright reserved!).

“Dirty Bomb” effectively picks up where “Bazooka!” left off – but with a generous dash of added m-a-t-u-r-i-t-y. If the latter sounded like it was recorded in a genuine garage somewhere on the Lower East Side, “Dirty Bomb” sounds like it was recorded in a bigger garage just off E-Street. A slug of “Darkness On The Edge Of Town” era Brooce & a toke of early Tom Petty & His Heartbreakers have been added to the joint this time out. Expansive, as opposed to expensive. Sew in a few nods to more recent Jesse Malin material, & you’re just about there: a-good-time-in-a-bottle.

“Dirty Bomb” opens with a quality 1-2-3-4-5-6 shuffle (like Jonathon Richman on “Roadrunner”): “Take Care Of Us”, “Tear It To Pieces”, “Make Yourself Useful, Babe”, “This Side Of The Sun”, “Gangland” & “I’m On A High”. To the uninitiated, that means an opening gambit of 6-total quality songs on the bounce – something you don’t get that often in the populist arena of a rockin’ & a rollin’! By the time you get to “Gangland” you may well be making preliminary arrangements for the Star Spangles to become your ‘favourite-new-group-in-the-entire-universe’, forthwith. You may well have your mobile phone in your hand with Zane Lowe’s phone number on repeat dial. You may even be outside Pat Long’s house, lobbing Locust LPs at his window, demanding something real in place of platitude.

If we bunched the above up & called it side-1 – we wouldn’t be that far off the mark. That’s how they used to make LPs, you know? They had a beginning - & an end - & they knew full well the ups & downs that needed to happen along the way to make the ride worth pimping!

Side-2, should we chose to accept the construct, fairs no better, no worse. You don’t get this far down the hill only to discover you’re crap after all: “Gimme An Answer”, “Tell Lies”, “Another Weight To Hold Me Down”, “Revolver”, “I Told A Lie” & “Bash Your Brains Out” do exactly what you’d expect them to considering fully what they’ve followed. “Dirty Bomb” is in a class of it’s own! The class of ’76: the class that refused to accept ‘bullshit’ as the only answer to every question.

The spell is finally broken by the acoustic tremblings of “Someone In You” – the tender acoustic lament that closes the LP. Many of us thought the Star Spangles would never make another LP – yet alone one as rounded & finely honed as “Dirty Bomb”. If you liked “Bazooka” - you’ll love “Dirty Bomb” – it’s everything its predecessor was - & so much more. The Star Spangles are untouchable in their genre-pool. The rest of you playing this kind of schtick should be very, very disappointed with yourselves. As Joey Ramone would doubtless attest: you don’t come close!

The Star Spangles - Dirty Bomb

02. Tear It to Pieces Girl