June 25, 2014 9:41 AM CDT
June 20, 2014 9:15 AM CDT
This week's show pits legendary bands from L.A. and NYC for a rock and roll Stanley Cup thrown down! Listen to it here: http://cjamlog1.cjam.ca/mp3dirnew/381-The_Trip-20140615-0000-t1402786800.mp3
The setlist:
richard hell and the voidoids- blank generation
mink de ville- spanish stroll
mumps- crocodile tears
the heartbreakers (johnny thunders &)- born to lose
velvet underground and nico- sunday morning
new york dolls- private world
the dictators- faster and louder
crystal stilts- darken the door
the ramones- my back pages
the ramones- can't seem to make you mine
the standells- medication
love- the red telephone
the beach boys- with me tonight
the beach boys- three blind mice
frank zappa- apostrophe
the seeds- lose your mind
spirit- when i touch you
the g.t.o.'s - do me in once and i'll be sad, do me in twice and i'll know better (circular circulation)
the music machine- double yellow line
davie allan & the arrows- grungy
fear- lost in los angeles
the ramones- 7 and 7 is (song by arthur lee and love)
black flag- louie louie
June 13, 2014 11:37 AM CDT
This week on The Trip! Things really do go better with Coke! Listen here: http://cjamlog1.cjam.ca/mp3dirnew/381-The_Trip-20140608-0000-t1402182000.mp3
The setlist!
THE CREEPS - DOWN AT THE NIGHTCLUB
THE ARGONS - DO THE DOG
TONY RANDALL - THINGS GO BETTER WITH COKE
JERRY DALLMAN & THE KNIGHTCAPS- THE BUG
THE MODS - I GIVE YOU AN INCH
PETULA CLARK - THINGS GO BETTER WITH COKE
THE PAGANS - BABA YAGA
THE TROGGS - COKE SPOT
SALTY HOLMES - THE GHOST SONG
GROTESQUE MOMMIES - ONE NIGHT STAND
CAPTAIN BEEFHEART - ABBA ZABBA
EASY BEATS - COKE SPOT
3 ACES AND A JOKER- BOOZE PARTY
THE RUNABOUTS - WHEN I GET THE BLUES
THE WHO - COKE AFTER COKE
DUKES OF HAMBURG - ROSALYN
JACK WEBB- THINGS GO BETTER WITH COKE
THE EARTHBOYS - SPACE GIRL
THE PREMIERS - FARMER JOHN
DAVE DEE, DOZY, BEAKY, MITCH & TICH- COKE SPOT
THE BIKINIS - BOOGIE ROCK AND ROLL
BILLY THORPE & THE AZTECS - THINGS GO BETTER WITH COKE
THE DEL-MONAS - PETER GUNN LOCOMOTION
THE SUPREMES - COKE AD
JAN & DEAN - COKE AD
POLKA DOT SLIM - A THING YOU GOTTA FACE
PURPLE HAZE - ALT TAKE
MARK & THE ESCORTS - GET YOUR BABY
THE SEEKERS - COKE SPOT
TAKESHI TERUACHI & THE BLUE JEANS - YAGI BUSHI
DAVEY DAY - MOTORCYCLE MIKE
FABULOUS MCLEVERTYS - BLAME IT ON ELVIS
June 23, 2014 10:33 PM CDT
Just a week left to go! Get those songs in!!
June 22, 2014 2:06 PM CDT
Here is last week's episode of Revolution Rock featuring music from The Standells, The Churls, Cousins, The Ghost Wolves, Mac DeMarco, Husker Du, The Users, Iggy Pop and more.
The Playlist:
1. The Standells - Dirty Water (Live University of Michigan, October 22nd, 1966)
2. The Churls - Trying To Get You Off My Mind
3. The Spectres - I Never Had A Love Like That
4. False Poets - Call The Doctor
5. Husker Du - Girl Who Lives On Heaven Hill
6. Ought - Habit
7. Doug Gillard - Upper Hand
8. The Birthday Party - The Dim Locator
9. Joy Division - Interzone
10. Invasions - Black Lagoon
11. Vaguess - Shadow People
12. Seven Story Redhead - Shake It Out!
13. Cellos - White Swans
14. The Walkmen - The Rat
15. The Shilohs - Queen Light Queen Dark
16. The Ghost Wolves - Shotgun Pistol Grip
17. Cold Warps - Dream Creepin’
18. Mac DeMarco - Passing Out The Pieces
19. Spoon - Yougot Yr Cherry Bomb
20. The Users - Listen
21. Iggy Pop - I'm A Conservative
22. Actual Water - Brighton
23. The Stomach Mouths - Coming Back Alive
24. The White Stripes - Death Letter
25. Thee Oh Sees - Penetrating Eye
26. Cousins - Death Man
27. Sun Kil Moon - I Love My Dad
28. OFF! - I Won't Be A Casualty
29. Buzzcocks - Time’s Up
Download/listen to the podcast here: http://cjamlog1.cjam.ca/mp3dirnew/36-Revolution_Rock-20140614-1900-t1402768800.mp3
Check out my blog post on the band Cousins here: http://revrock.blogspot.ca/2014/06/cousins-halls-of-wickwire-show-513.html
June 17, 2014 12:06 AM CDT
Great stuff... Modernettes, Westerberg, Wanda Jackson.
Very enjoyable listen!
June 11, 2014 1:52 PM CDT
The second episode of Revolution Rock as a two hour program featured music from Link Wray, The Dream Dates, The Cramps, Wydle Rattz (a short lived band featuring members of The Stooges, Sonic Youth and Mudhoney), and The Velvet Underground.
The playlist:
1. Link Wray - Big City After Dark
2. Dream Dates - The Mess You’re In
3. Cousins - Other Ocean
4. Fuzz Kings -Republican Haircuts
5. Blitzen Trapper - Fletcher
6. Neil Young - My Hometown
7. Wanda Jackson - Tunnel Of Love
8. North By North - Break Some Bones
9. M.G & The Escorts - A Someday Fool
10. Cool Rays - Diary Of You
11. Wylde Rattz - Take LSD
12. She Wolf - Going Back Home
13. The Cramps - Lonesome Town
14. Cream - From Four Until Late
15. Nature Boys - No Subject
16. Mystics - Can’t Be Happy
17. Paul Jacobs - A Place To Stay
18. Tele Novella - Stephanie Says
19. The Carbonas - Count Me Out
20. The Modernettes - Confidential
21. The Spy’s - Machine Shop
22. Paul Westerberg - Got You Down
23. Paul Westerberg - Silent Film Star
24. Pow Wows - Plastic Factory
25. The Replacements - I’m In Trouble
26. Black Lips - Dog Years
27. The Almighty Defenders - Ghost With The Most
28. Dead Ghosts - I sleep alone
29. Plimsouls - Zero Hour
30. Nervus Rex - There She Goes
31. Velvet Underground - Heroin (Different Take) (1966 Scepter Session)
Download/listen to the podcast here: http://cjamlog1.cjam.ca/mp3dirnew/36-Revolution_Rock-20140607-1900-t1402164000.mp3
Check out my blog post on Velvet Underground's 1966 Scepter Studio Sessions here: http://revrock.blogspot.ca/2014/06/the-velvet-underground-scepter-studio.html
June 21, 2014 8:49 AM CDT
Radio What Wave Playlist June 19/2014
This show we go back to the first wave of Toronto punk/new wave combos with an emphasis on the artier side as we pay tribute to Steven Davey. Former member of The Dishes and The Everglades, both early influential bands at the very begining of what was to become a scene. Long before the testosterone and suburbanites invaded, Steven was creating a scene and gently pushing bands to form and get out of the rehearsal studio and onto the stage. Thanx for the push and encouragement!!!
1. Nihilist Spasm Band....This Is A Test...London Ontario's longest lasting art/punk band(???) who were around long before anything resembling new wave was even considered.
2. Keith Whittaker....Drink To Me...from the CD of the same name. This was Keith Whittakers last recordings. Assembled, recorded and guitar playing by Steven Davey, who was a good pal of Keith's prior to his passing. This was put together for the 10th anniversary of Keith's passing.
3. Keith Whittaker...Hungover You.... as above.
4. Keith Whittaker...Beef Stampede....as above.
5. The Dishes....Walky Talky.....from their Fashion Plates EP from 1977.
6. The Everglades....I'm In A Coma....from The Last Pogo LP from 1978. There's a movie of the same name that documents the Toronto and area punk/new wave scene in the late 70's. It was done by Colin Brunton who was there and comes highly recommended! Haven't seen it yet, but they did use a couple of my pics (with permission of course) in the movie.
7. The Dishes....Monopolies Are Made At Night....from the Fashion Plates EP. BTW, there is a Dishes compilation CD on Bullseye Records that's on my want list.
8. The Everglades....Rock'n'Roll Cliche...from The Last Pogo....this was the first Toronto compilation LP i bought way back when that really turned me on to some of the early Toronto bands!
9. The Diodes....DOA...from the Sony Greatest Hits CD that manager Ralph Alfonso compiled. Steven got The Diodes onto the stage and out of the rehearsal studio for their first show.
10. The Diodes...I'm In A Coma....from the Survivors LP from 1982. A Steven Davey tune that you heard earlier in the show.
11. The Diodes...Shape Of Things....from the Time Damage LP on Rave Up Records.This is the 1978 live to air as played on CHUM FM back in 1978. This was the first Toronto new wave band to actaully get airplay and accepted (well, somewhat) by the mainstream. A huge stepping stone for the Toronto scene!! Although rumour has it, this was only broadcast so that CHUM could do a similar event with Elvis Costello.
12. The Viletones....Possiblities....from their 1977 7" EP.
13. The Viletones....Rebel....as above and written by Steven Davey for the Viletones.
14. The Viletones....Never Feel Sad...from the OPM CD. This is 1977 recordings souped up by Peter Moore and Chris Spedding. Peter Moore was active on the London Ontario scene in the late 70's/early 80's recording bands and he also had a show here on CHRW. He went under the name Simon Less as he was kicked off the air occasionally for lack of professionalism (he said FUCK on the airwaves). One of the greatest shows ever on this station and he would sometimes play live recordings of local bands, some of which i taped and have used on shows several times.
15. Zoom....Massacre at Central High...from an early 7" and predates the shootings at high schools by a good 25 years. The members of Zoom went on to bands like The Viletones, Diodes, Secrets and others.
16. The Secrets....Suzie Peroxide....from the Teenage Rampage CD. This is members of The Viletones (without singer Steven Leckie) playing 60's style powerpop and doing an excellent job!! These guys were way ahead of the curve and didn't get the expected response.
17. The Curse....Shoeshine Boy....from their only 7" and the first all female Toronto punk/new wave combo. They took a lot of flack for this one, as it chronicles an incident that actually happened in Toronto. The Curse were the 3rd punk band to play sleepy London Ontario, the first being The Diodes and the next Eddie and the Hot Rods (although they are considered pubrock, but at the time we considered them punk).
18. B Girls...Boys Are Drinking....from the OPM CD, Who Says Girls Can't Rock. Produced by Mick Jones of The Clash, The B Girls were a band that coulda and shoulda but somehow didn't make it big. They had a record on Bomp Records, opened for The Clash on the east coast, one of them was the girlfriend of Stiv Bators (Dead Boys) and even had a London Ontario connection in Marcy Saddy on the drums.
19. The Cads....Do The Crabwalk...from the 7" EP of the same name from 1978.
20. The Scenics...O Boy....from the unreleased Last Pogo recordings from 1978. Artpunk at it's finest and way different than anything else happening in Toronto, yet welcomed into the punk/new wave scene. We had singer/guitarist/bassist Andy onair many years ago when they did their first reunion tour.
21. The Government...Hemingway Hated Disco....form their first 7" from 1979. Another band that didn't fit as they were heavily into video long before VCR's were available for the average home. A personal fave, didn't get to see these guys until late 1981 and by that time, they were a shadow of their glory days.
22. The Ugly....Streanded In The Laneway....from their lone 7". Way different from the chaos of their live shows, this is really good powerpop and not at all what you would expect The Ugly to record. If you want chaos, check out their OPM CD that has all that and more little girl.....right here on the floor.....
23. Cardboard Brains....Caesar Drives A Fast Car....from their 12" EP.
24. The Hi-Fi's....Look What You've Done....from their only 7", but there's rumours they recorded more back then, so if anyone can get me copies of those recordings, i have lots to trade. The Hi-Fi's went on to become the darlings of Canada's alt-country/pop as Blue Rodeo. Back in The Hi Fi days, they were an incredible band live and i caught them a few times at the Cedar and Larry's in Toronto.
Well that was a fun show, and once again, just the tip of the iceberg as there is so much good music from that era. Hope you enjoyed the show and thanx for listening and putting up with my screwups and mumbles.
And thanx for all the phone calls, emails, facebook messages and Heys!!!! And thanx to all the crazies that tune in every week while they do the dishes!!
See ya next week!
And here's a link to the podcast:
http://chrwradio.ca/programs/radio-what-wave
June 13, 2014 7:42 AM CDT
Radio What Wave Playlist June 12/2014. Shortened show and all London Ontario bands tonite!
1. Vintage Experience....You Really Got Me...recent demo from Ryan In The Red, host of Rock City Madness over on the Garagepunk Hideout. They are playing Sat June 21 at Norma Jeans.
2. Heart Attack Kids....Cold Hands...from the Hooligans download.
3. Don't Touch The Dancers....Acid Drops....they will be playing June 20th at APK as part of the CHRW CD release party.
4. The Icons...End Note....from a download.
5. Astoria....So Far Gone....from a download, part of their soon to be released CD and the radio debut of this song!!
6. Red Arms....Quiet Resolution....from a download.
7. Foam....Silver Spoons....from a download.
8. Fireball Grant....Jean Genie....from a live to air on Radio What Wave, Oct 31/2013. Not really from London Ontario, but from the thriving metropolis of Watford, between London and Sarnia Ontario.
9.Pink Cadillac Scat Cats....Jolena....from their Rip It Up CD from 2006. We had these guys as one of our very first live to airs!!
10. Larry Lee and The Leesures....Odd Man Out...from the Number 1 LP from the early 60's. One of the best songs to come out of sleepy London and few remember or have heard it. The Cramps shoulda covered this one, but The Black Holes did instead.
11. Matadors...Pink Lincoln...from the Devil's Music CD. They are at CTO tonite.This seems be the band people from outside London know of....and The Demics of course!
12. Black Frame Spectacle....Bust Out The Boogie...from their Grady Sessions II CD. They will be at Black Shire PubJune 20th
13. Alcohollys....Girls Night....from their CD, EP. They are at APK on saturday night.
14. Marcellus Wallace...Dollar Bill....from their debut CD, one of the only soul bands that play out regularly.
15. The Demics...Talk Talk....recorded live in Toronto early 80's.
16. The Demics....7 and 7 Is....as above. Showing The Demics roots in 60's garagepunk with these 2 covers.
17. Second Thoughts....Wound Up....from their only 7" from 1980
18. Crash 80's....Thrills....from t heir only 7" from 1980.
An all London Ontario show and this was only the tip of the iceberg. Join us next week as we do a special on late 70's/early 80's Canpunk (with the emphasis on the artier side) as we pay tribute to Steven Davey who passed away the other day. Steven was one of the prime movers behind the beginings of the punk scene in Toronto which in turn influenced the rest of Southwestern Ontario. If you tune in, you might just hear some of Steven's early bands, The Dishes and Everglades as well as some of the songs he wrote for bands like The Demics, The Diodes, Keith Whittaker of The Demics and many others.
And thanx for all the phone calls, emails, facebook messages and Heys!!!! And thanx to all the crazies that tune in every week while they do the dishes!!
See ya next week!
And here's a link to the podcast:
June 21, 2014 5:04 AM CDT
Night Beats.
They're absolutely fantastic.
June 18, 2014 3:43 PM CDT
Well, at least we still have Vimeo... for now.
June 18, 2014 3:41 PM CDT
I wish these articles listed more of their sources.
Anyway, it's not surprising. Maybe someday we will learn that nothing on the internet will stay free?
June 18, 2014 3:37 PM CDT
http://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2014/06/18/youtube-is-about-to-delete-independent-artists-from-its-site/
June 18, 2014 3:22 PM CDT
I just read this and am wondering what the whole truth is:
http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/permalink/2014/06/17/youtube-not-going-remove-music-videos
Sounds like they just won't offer monetization for the indie ones?
June 17, 2014 4:20 PM CDT
" as a revenue source for the music industry,” Key words right there.
June 17, 2014 9:32 AM CDT
Well, this sucks. Fuck YouTube:
From http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jun/17/youtube-indie-labels-music-subscription
Starting internal tests of subscription service but faces accusation of 'catastrophic error of judgement'
Stuart Dredge and Dominic Rushe
theguardian.com, Tuesday 17 June 2014 10.03 EDT
Adele, Arctic Monkeys and Jack White could disappear from YouTube "in a matter of days" after the Google video service confirmed it was dropping content from independent labels that have not signed up for its upcoming subscription music service.
YouTube is about to begin testing the new service – which will charge people to watch and listen to music without ads, and download songs to their mobile devices – within the next few days, initially within Google.
The company's head of content and business operations, Robert Kyncl, told the Financial Times that the service – previously rumoured to be called YouTube Music Pass – will launch more widely later in the year.
His confirmation that YouTube will block videos from labels that do not sign licensing deals for the new premium tier will be hugely controversial among indie labels, with trade body WIN already filing a complaint to the European Commission about its negotiating strategy.
"While we wish that we had 100% success rate, we understand that is not likely an achievable goal and therefore it is our responsibility to our users and the industry to launch the enhanced music experience," said Kyncl, claiming that YouTube has signed up labels representing 90% of the music industry.
Independent labels are likely to disagree. Their licensing agency Merlin estimates that indies collectively account for a 32.6% market share of the recorded music industry's sales and streams.
Contacted by The Guardian following his comments, WIN's chief executive Alison Wenham was blunt in her response. "They have suffered a simple but catastrophic error of judgement in misreading the market," said Wenham, who had organised a press conference earlier in the month to protest at YouTube's plans.
WIN claims that the company has signed lucrative licensing deals with major labels Universal, Warner and Sony, while demanding that independent labels sign up to inferior terms or face having their videos blocked from YouTube's free service.
“Our goal is to continue making YouTube an amazing music experience, both as a global platform for fans and artists to connect, and as a revenue source for the music industry,” a Google spokesman said. He said the subscription-based service would bring new revenue streams “in addition to the hundreds of millions of dollars YouTube already generates for them each year. We are excited that hundreds of major and independent labels are already partnering with us.”
Wenham's criticism echoes a claim made at the event by musician Billy Bragg, who said "I don’t know why they’ve opened this hornet’s nest right now, apart from corporate hubris. I don’t think they realise what a stupid thing they’ve done."
The site has become a key promotional outlet for independent labels of all sizes in recent years.
YouTube attracts more than 1bn monthly viewers, with music one of its biggest categories. Its upcoming premium music subscription tier will compete with Spotify, Deezer and Napster among other services, including Apple-owned Beats Music and Google's own Google Play Music All Access.
Independent labels have long complained that they deserve more respect from digital music services negotiating licensing deals, and set up Merlin to strike deals on their behalf.
The agency has remained silent throughout the recent arguments about YouTube's planned new service, although its chief executive Charles Caldas criticised the company at an industry conference in late April.
Referring to an earlier quote from Bragg suggesting that musicians unhappy about royalties paid by Spotify should be "marching to YouTube central with flaming pitchforks", Caldas said: "I can’t say Billy’s right, but I can say that he’s not wrong."
The move comes as Amazon too has begun to flex its muscles in ways that limit the content its customers can receive. Amazon is delaying shipments and refused pre-orders for some titles from Hachette, publisher of Harry Potter author JK Rowling, and home to David Baldacci, Stephen Colbert, David Foster Wallace and others.
It has also pulled pre-orders for forthcoming Warner Home Video features, including international blockbuster The Lego Movie, 300: Rise of an Empire, Winter’s Tale and Transcendence.
• YouTube accused of strong-arming indie labels into poor deals
June 17, 2014 3:45 PM CDT
Voix de garage#28 Special We’re Back in Town! (11/06/2014)
*Jingle* Know Your Product / The Saints / Eternally Yours / 1978 / Australie (Brisbane)
Back In The USSR / Lemmy + John 5 + Eric Singer / Butchering The Beatles / 2006 / US
If I Can’t Come Back / Reigning Sound / Love and Curses / 2009 / USA, Memphis (In The Red Records)
What’s so new about you / The Fleshtones / Hexbreaker / 7th June 1983 / US (NYC)
Come Back D.A. / Lemonheads / Lick / 1988 / US (Boston)
She’s got everything / The Kinks / single B-side / 28/06/1968 / UK
*5' French talk*: the comebacks
Back To Your Heart / Dinosaur Jr / Beyond / 2007 / US (Amherst, MA)
Come back Baby / The Lords of Altamont / Lords take Altamont / 14/04/2014/ US (California)
*The quite moment*: Back in Baby’s Arms / Patsy Cline / The Patsy Cline Story / 1963 / USA, Virginia (Decca Records)
*The 60's Chapel*: Don’t look back / The Remains / single / 1966 / US (Boston)
The Line / Wonderflu / What’s Inside / 2014 / France (Paris)
Back To Mamie / Wonderflu / What’s Inside / 2014 / France (Paris)
*The Norway lesson*: Back to Dungaree High / Turbonegro / Live Köln (German TV program Rockpalast)/ 2005 / Norway
*The Glitter Moment*: Hello Hello / Forgotten Rebels (Gary Glitter cover) / This ain’t Hollywood / 1981 / Candada
Take me Back / King Khan & The BBQ Show / Éponyme / 2007 / USA (In The Red Records)
The Boys are Back in Town / Thin Lizzy / Jailbreak / 26/03/1976/ Ireland (Dublin)
*Must be played at MAXIMUM volume*: Back on the Streets / Thee Vicars / Back on the Streets / 2008 / UK
- Listen to the show: http://www.trensmissions.ens.fr/voix-de-garage-28/#sthash.KlSHbpQy.dpuf
June 16, 2014 11:38 PM CDT
The Volts ,Yes , Los Punk Rockers' LP is SO fucked up...It takes on new meaning as a Punk record.
It was , of course , a quickie cash - in ( Dazzlingly inept covers of the entire Sex Pistols LP.) like the great Exploitation LPs of The 60'S. But , even worse !!!! I say that lovingly. Gary Pig Gold said he mentioned a review I wrote of an unauthorized (Boo hoo.) reissue of teh album to John Lydon , whom , he said , was very interested in hearing it.
June 14, 2014 9:27 PM CDT
Lubricated Goat
June 10, 2014 4:26 AM CDT
Nice stuff, too. Thanks!!
June 9, 2014 12:51 PM CDT
How about these bands?
June 14, 2014 3:03 PM CDT
Playlist 06/14/14
Legal Weapon Daddy's Gone Mad
Saints Lost and Found
Hex Dispensers Taxidermy Porno
Len Price 3 Billy Mason
Electric Mess Better to be Lucky Than Good
Motobunny Thinkin About Me
Norvins I Need Your Lovin'
Mystic Brew Don't Cry No More
Sonic Avenues Automatic
Bleeding Rainbow Time & Place
Thee Oh Sees Drop
Warm Soda Postcards
Trousers I Get Around
Cryptics Do The Trash
Lovesores Mission To Mars
Curse World Domination
Harmonica Lewinski Running Wild
Bad Beats It Breaks Me Down
Banditos The Losing Game
Fagettes My Girl Looks Like Johnny Thunders
Deathrays What It Means
Safes The Wide Open Sky
Micragirls Rock n Roll Rocket
Black Randy and the Metro Squad I Slept In An Arcade
99ers Godzilla's A Punk
Forty Nineteens Can't Let It Go
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Top of the World
Redd Kross Stay Away From Downtown
Andy Smash She's Haunting
Porno Mags Not Free
Mighties The Seducer
ToughMF's Sweet Anneli
Ace Egil's Head-Ransom
Quity and the Don'ts All of You
Beach Party Geronimo
Dry Heeves The Creep
Bob Mould I Don't Know You Anymore
Sensible Gray Cells Tragic Roundabout
Godfathers Gone To Texas
June 14, 2014 7:26 AM CDT
I will be on the air and the web on Saturday June 14th playing the usual garage-punk trash. You can listen at 89.7 WITR-FM in Rochester, NY or streaming live at http://witr.rit.edu from 1:00-3:00PM EST.
June 13, 2014 2:56 AM CDT
A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
June 13, 2014
Chances are, unless you live in New York or unless you religiously listen to my radio show, Terrell’s Sound World (which, by the way, you should), you haven’t heard of The Electric Mess. Actually, if not for the glory of the internet — and, specifically, my favorite musical community of recent years, The GaragePunk Hideout — I wouldn’t have heard of this Mess either.
But, by golly, if you like wild, frantic, high-energy rock ’n’ roll, you really need to acquaint yourself with this New York band. The group’s third album, House on Fire, is as good a place as any to start. All 13 tracks are full of fire and craziness. The sound is not drastically different from the band’s first two albums (its self-titled debut from 2009 and 2012’s Falling off the Face of the Earth). But that’s a good thing. If you like this one, you’ll want to seek out those first two.
Fronted by singer Chip Fontaine (real name Esther Crow), the group has a sound rooted in 1960s garage rock but not shackled in nostalgia. True, The Mess is a guitar-based band that features an electric organ (Oweinama Biu), but you won’t get the idea that the musicians are trying to sound like Question Mark & The Mysterians or The Standells (though, at least in their early days, they were known to cover “Sometimes Good Guys Don’t Wear White”).
Fontaine/Crow’s voice reminds me a little of Joan Jett’s. (Here’s a fantasy: a Jett/Crow duet on The Replacements’ “Androgynous.”) House on Fire’s highlights include the opening song, a crazed little rouser called “Better to Be Lucky Than Good,” which could be a grandchild of The Velvet Underground’s “White Light/White Heat.” (One recurring lyric: “They did it all for the white light.”) This is followed by the album’s title song, in which the speed is just as breakneck and intense.
“She Got Fangs,” which starts out with a throbbing bass line from Derek Davidson, is a hoodoo-heavy song about vampires: “Vampire woman, can’t you see/What your hunger does to me?” I’m not sure what Jimi Hendrix’s “Third Stone From the Sun” has to do with any of this, but it’s there, courtesy of guitarist Dan Crow (Esther’s husband), during one of the song’s instrumental breaks.
Then there’s “The Thing That Wouldn’t Leave” (the title is from a classic John Belushi Saturday Night Live skit), which is about folks who always wear out their welcomes. And even fiercer is “Leavin’ Me Hangin’,” a song in which the singer expresses displeasure at being stood up. In the middle of the song is a weird spoken-word segment:
“Girl, you ain’t no Queen of Sheba, and I ain’t no piece of liver, but you never deliver. Man’s ego is like a fragile bird, but you step on that bird’s wings one too many times, and he turns into an evil hawk with red fiery eyes, on the hunt for you girl. ’Cause you’re my bird of prey, and this is what I have to say.”
This is followed by a 10-second (yeah, I timed it) scream as the band goes into overdrive.
The final track, “Every Girl Deserves a Song,” starts off fast but then, after a minute or so, slows down into a wah-wah-enhanced groove. (Am I crazy, or do I hear a faint echo of The Allman Brothers’ “Midnight Rider” in here?) “Why don’t you bring some Percocets just to help me cool my jets,” Crow sings. No, you can’t exactly call this song mellow, but after the pace of the first dozen songs, The Electric Mess deserve to cool their jets a little.
Now go get yourself a copy of this album. And tell at least five of your friends. Next time I review an Electric Mess album, I don’t want to talk about how undeservedly obscure this band is.
Also recommended:
* Drop by Thee Oh Sees. I was just beginning to come to terms with last year’s announcement by Thee Oh Sees frontman and resident wizard John Dwyer that his prolific band was going on “indefinite hiatus.” The group’s album Floating Coffin, you might recall, was my pick for the best of 2013, and its Albuquerque show last fall was one of my favorite concerts of the year.
Now here comes a new album by Thee Oh Sees. And no, it’s not an odds ’n’ sods collection of old tapes, demos, and stuff from long-forgotten tribute albums. It’s actually a new album. That’s the good news.
The bad news is that the band we came to know and love as Thee Oh Sees — vocalist and keyboardist Brigid Dawson, bassist Petey Dammit, and drummer Mike Shoun — seems to be, well, on indefinite hiatus. Dwyer moved from the group’s home base of San Francisco to Los Angeles. I think some of the other Oh Sees scattered as well.
But more good news. Even without the old lineup, Drop is a pretty decent album. Although not as overtly powerful as the magical Floating Coffin, it still has several mighty examples of Dwyer’s fuzzed-out, rubbery psychedelic excursions.
He saved his best for the first three tracks: “Penetrating Eye,” “Encrypted Bounce,” and “Savage Victory,” which make up nearly half the album. These could almost pass for outtakes from Coffin, or perhaps Carrion Crawler/The Dream (2011). One could make that argument for the garagey “Camera (Queer Sound)” as well.
While this is clearly Dwyer’s show, he’s aided on Drop by Chris Woodhouse — a longtime associate of the band — on bass, drums, and Mellotron and Mikal Cronin on alto sax. Cronin is best known as a guitarist (if you saw Ty Segall at High Mayhem a few weeks ago, you saw Cronin). There’s also someone called Casafis on sax.
Unfortunately, after such an auspicious beginning, the album ends with a three-song fizzle. “King’s Nose” sounds like an attempt to channel Electric Light Orchestra. “Transparent World” is plodding and over-synthy. And the closing number, “The Lens,” is uninspired wimp rock. Come on, Dwyer, lose the damned Mellotron!
Although Drop is a welcome addition, I’m not sure what the future of Thee Oh Sees is. Dwyer recently released an electronic album called Hubba Bubba under the name of Damaged Bug.
But he’s one prolific guy, so Oh Sees fans shouldn’t abandon hope.
Here's some videos from these bands
June 11, 2014 8:41 PM CDT
Hey John, thanks a lot. I will let him know.