2010 Record Reviews

12" maxi ep

Hammer and the Nails

12″ Maxi ep

Rock’n'Roll Disgrace Records

Having released the best demo of the last few years, expectations were understandably high for the first “official” release from Boston’s Hammer and the Nails.  The 12″ maxi ep from Rock’n'Roll Disgrace focuses on the elements that made their live shows and the aforementioned demo such a success – utilitarian lyrics, delivered brutally, at measured pace, and with a technical prowess that rivals any band playing today. The ep opens with a sense of the foreboding; a stark drum undulates, leading into what is possibly my favorite track on the ep “Ten Fingers.”  The set up in many ways reminds me of early Strong Style, but Hammer and the Nails surpass any direct comparisons. At this point, their style is well defined and easily identifiable as their own. As stated, the band have never sounded tighter, their pulse set to mid-tempo, the pedal in full effect. The messages behind songs like “Faux” and “Sleeping Giant” are delivered with a grim clarity – taking no prisoners, making no apologies. The sheer vigor of the band and this release is something that demands attention – Hammer and the Nails should revel in the fact that they have clawed their way to the top. A must have. 

Problem.Reaction.Solution ep

Tommy & the Terrors

Problem. Reaction. Solution. EP.

Rock’n'Roll Disgrace Records.

No doubt mirroring the current political zeitgeist and the overall paranoia of the times, Tommy and the Terrors have capitalized, upped the ante and delivered what I can safely say is their strongest work to date. Front to back, the ep works as a minimalist whole – the production seems, for lack of a better word, lo-fi. The tempo of the band has slowed. The artwork and packaging is stark. Tommy’s lyrics come off as more desperate, more claustrophobic than ever before. This sets the tone for the entire ep. And taken as a whole, it really, really works as a complete statement. It becomes, as a manifesto, almost Discharge-ian. Obviously not in sound, but in how the themes connect with the intonation which connect with the art. From the outset of “I Don’t Wanna” to the closer “No Mas” and especially the two in between, “Problem. Reaction. Solution.” and “NWOFU” it’s believe nothing and trust no one. People are out to get us. “I want to believe.” The band, while remaining tight as a drum, have relaxed the pace, and it only makes things angrier; Everything has come together and the results are one of the best eps I’ve heard in years. Buy this before they break down your doors, take you away screaming with the only thought left running through your mind being “Tommy and the Terrors were right.” 

Nothing Left to Say ep

The Trouble

Nothing Left to Say ep

Painkiller Records

Released to coincide with their reunion shows at Boston’s PLAY IT LOUD II in late September, Painkiller Records has compiled unreleased material from one of Boston’s most fondly remembered outfits. By this point in time, a description of the band would be fruitless – you either know or you don’t – but what was of slight surprise to me was the quality of these tunes. Not to say that I was expecting to be let down, but 2 of these 4 songs had never been released, and the other 2 were on lesser known comps. And sometimes material of this ilk has been hidden away for a reason. Not so here. Opening with “Panic Fit,” which had previously appeared on a Suburban Voice comp, this ep means business. “Panic Fit” is a ripper, and deserves a place in the Trouble canon as one of their best. “Self Destruct” follows up, and had previously appeared on a Victory Records comp East Vs. West. Again, the quality is high. Side two opens with “Short Song” which is exactly that – a quick blast of adrenaline, and then on to the closer “Brighton Roof” which gets my nod for best cut on the record. Introspective, personal lyrics combined with a less breakneck approach make it a unique winner. A real lost gem. This 4 song ep acts as a great bookend to close the chapter on one of the nineties favorite sons. Pick it up quick.   

Days Gone By

Marching Orders

Days Gone By

Longshot Records

Australia’s  Marching Orders return with their long awaited full length debut Days Gone By. On the heels of their acclaimed (at least by this blog) 10″ Last Train Home, they deliever more of the same, that is to say, catchy, well-played oi! with that unmistakeble Aussie bent. Perhaps the band’s main strength is their ability to write a memorable melody that lingers in the head and remains with you long after playing. Their sound hasn’t changed; still highly charged Cock Sparrer meets Rose Tattoo (“Assault and Battery” cover included) and why change, when it works as well as it does? The lyrics, for the most part, avoid being overly cliched (though there are moments) but tunes like the title track (nice Jam-like opening bass riff) “Weight of the World” and “Years Pass Me By” work with the right combo of wistfullness, regret and realism. The last song mentioned is probably the best on the record, and impressed me as one of the better oi! tunes of the last several years. The heavy Melbourne accent puts a stamp on the tunes as well, gives them distinction which sets this apart from the glut of sound-alikes in the scene. A special mention must also be made of the packaging. Longshot  has delieved on this record – a beautiful gatefold with a Sharpie theme, hat tipping Australia’s subculture past. Every piece of this release, from front to back, is top notch and gets our highest recommendation.

Friends of No One ep

Negative Approach

Friends of No One

Taang Records

So the story goes – after NA break up, Brannon puts all remaining recordings in a trunk and locks them away; inevitably, NA reunite, and said trunk is found containing tapes from March 1984, and Taang! capitalizes and releases said tapes on an unsuspecting public. The results? To begin with, let’s not kid ourselves; fairly poor sound quality (a tape recorder in the middle of the room, it sounds like) and a short running time. But what of the songs? To put it simply, the songs are ferocity incarnate. If it’s possible for a poor recording to lend itself to the charm of an overall release, this is it; the guitars are tortured, the feedback howls, and Brannon’s shrieks are near otherworldly – the vocals are aberrant and disturbed – the experience far from pleasant, but as “Friends of No One” clatters forth from the disc, a classic is born. And the tunes don’t let up from there. Most have appeared in one way or another before (“Genocide,” “Kiss Me Kill Me” a cover of Iggy’s “I Got a Right”) but hearing them in this setting is more satisfactory than hearing a horrible live recording, and as stated, the title track demands to be labelled a legend. Is this disc a goldmine for the ages? Well, no, but it is highly recommended for fans of the band who wondered to what sick depths NA would plunge for continued aggression had they stayed together awhile longer. Fans need to pick this up.

The Heartbreaks

The Heartbreaks

I Didn’t Think It Would Hurt to Think of You single

Liar, My Dear single

Zip It Up comp track

I’ve learned the hard way not to trust much that the NME writes. As a publication, they obviously need to move papers. The direct result of this is that 1) they live to hype bands and 2) once the hype is live, the band of the moment is crushed into overkill, featured every other week until said band burns out, or the NME moves on to the “next big thing.” Which is ironically exactly what they have pegged The Heartbreaks. At this point, having only sampled two singles and a comp cut, I can’t either debunk or support this theory, however, I can say this: I like what I hear. Really like it. Hailing from the seaside town of Morecambe, the instant comparison is The Smiths. Not entirely off base, considering lyrics directly referencing kitchen sink drama like Billy Liar, as well as their outlook – relishing the day to day normal life of living in England, and celebrating the mundane in what would probably be considered a “literate” way, the spectre of Moz is never far removed from the equation. You can hear Marr’s guitar sound in the tunes as well, and at times a bit of Weller, but The Heartbreaks don’t really sound like either The Smiths or The Jam. The have a sound of their own, which is fairly energetic but non-aggressive, with a big sense of the melodic. Orange Juice-ian in parts and at times C-86ish, but neither as a whole overall. People have mentioned Motown, but I’m not hearing that. The tunes are nothing if not slowly addictive; “I Didn’t Think It Would Hurt to Think of You” is an instant best of, but others like “Your Affection is Wasted On Me” made their way into my subconsciousness more slowly. But make no mistake, you will remember these songs. So is the early hype justified? So far, I’d lean towards yes, but The Heartbreaks, having only 5 tunes available so far, have a lot more to prove.

CONCRETE GODS – “TOMMY’S SONG” SINGLE FOR HELP FOR HEROES

Our friends from across the pond – and this year’s receipient of “Best Thing We Heard All Year” award, THE CONCRETE GODS have just released an online single for the HELP FOR HEROES charity for soldiers that have served their country and are suffering the after effects.

Please see the details below on how you can do your part to help out, and get a slice of crackling power-pop, served up in that classic GODS way at the same time. I’ve had it for a few days, and trust me, if you dig the CGs, you’ll want this release.

We have recorded TOMMY’S SONG to raise money for the HELP FOR HEROES charity.

Hear it on our MySpace site - http://www.myspace.com/concretegods

Those of you that know us personally will know that we are 100% sincere in wanting to collect for our brave lads and lasses who’ve done their bit and are left with the scars of war. We aren’t famous like Bob Geldof and Simon Cowell. All the money that you donate by buying TOMMY’S SONG will be given to HELP FOR HEROES. We don’t agree with the politicians or their reasons but then again that’s another story. If you’re a DJ or someone that can help push this song then please do contact us.

The lyrics to TOMMY were written by the immortal Rudyard Kipling, a man who respected and understood the lot of the British soldier.

You can get it from……. iTunes………..Amazon………..eMusic and others for around 70 to 80p. (.99 CENTS or so)

The JAM: Top Ten.

At this point, this blog has been dead for some time, and lest I turn into Rob O’Connor and just bide my time with this blog by making grocery lists that substitute as content, please cut me some slack, as I am just breaking back into updating, so I’m posting a few basically meaningless things to get back on track. Hence, I apologize for another BEST OF/TOP TEN LISTS type thing, but hey, doing the PIRANHA 3D review below was work enough for a day.

Did Jamaroquai lose his hat?

So THE JAM are probably my favorite band of all time. They are, these days, kind of one of those bands that you have played so often in the past, that they don’t get as many regular spins as they used to. However, since my pimp my ride 2001 VW Golf has only a tape deck in it, and I have a few JAM tapes from back in the day, they are still in fairly regular rotation. So this afternoon, I popped in Greatest Hits and when “In the City” kicks in, it still does it for me.

I kind of quickly thought about my Top Ten JAM tunes of all time. Doing so is really just asking to fail, as ten is far to few to be able to encompass what Weller and co achieved. Regardless, I thought it might be a nice way to get back in the swing of the bog. Sooooo, I present to you, my:

TOP TEN FAVORITE TUNES BY THE JAM. As of today, 8/23/2010.

(In no order, and one should assume this list is always changing, but whatever.)

1. “In the City” – The first song by the band I ever heard, and probably a lot of people’s first exposure to them. GREAT tune, great message (being from outside the “city” of Chicago, I could fully relate) and a riff so good The Pistols stole it for “Holidays in the Sun.” Then Paul hit Sid with a bottle and hospitalized him. All is fair.

2. “Ghosts” – Not sure how this one ranks among fans of the band, but it was really one of the more mellow tunes that really got me into loving the band. Great lyrics, and simple, laid back groove. Really excellent.

3. “Boy About Town” – Nice stab at Revolver meets Northern Soul. Song just propels along, then the horns kick in, etc. Excellent.

4. “Running on the Spot” - Love the whirling intro, and the way the song refuses to stagnate – something about it’s style has made it an all-time favorite.

5. “Going Underground” – The Jam’s first number one and strong contender for my favorite of this Top Ten list. From the classic build-up into the the furious finish, a  kiss off classic, classic, classic.

6. “Saturday’s Kids” – Weller had the same gift as Davies et al to describe ordinary life in extraordinary tunes, this being one that captures being a teenager perfectly. “Saturday’s kids play one arm bandits, they never win, but that’s not the point is it?”

7. “Eton Rifles” – Noel Gallagher said when he first heard this song, he thought the band had no right to be that good. Agreed. A top tune, and I like the fact it doesn’t polarize the factions involved and immediately side with the left wing students involved in this real life fiasco.

8. “Absolute Beginners” – As The Jam progressed, some fans pined for their good ol’ days of straight power-pop and complained about tunes being “boring.” Again, the punch of Northern Soul rears it’s head, and if this tune is boring, then so be it – it’s classic regardless.

9. “Standards” – …buuuuut, if it’s early power pop you dig, then I submit THIS tune as one of their finer efforts, on the critically panned, and now overlooked second album, This is the Modern World. Great ‘us against them’ set up, great WHO-like rave up, great chorus, great all around. (“Life From a Window” is another VERY underrated tune of this record…)

10. “Town Called Malice” – Another strong contender for favorite tune in their catalog, the Motown influence (rip-off?) really sounds great as done by Paul, Bruce and Rick. Perfect mix of soul and punk rock.

10. “Beat Surrender” – Even though I’m over 10 tunes, I have to include their swansong. Bittersweet but upbeat all the way. What a finish. “Bullshit is bullshit, it just goes by different names.”

Realizing that I had to cut a few tunes that are no doubt classics (“That’s Entertainment,” “Down in the Tube Station,” “Tales From the Riverbank,” “Start!” etc, etc) it would be interesting to get some feedback, and give-and-take on this list from other fans of the band.

Anyway, at least it’s another post…..

The Best Thing I Heard All Year

As 2009 is but a memory, it is time for a re-cap…

When I’ve shamlessly ripped off others ideas in the past, I’ve usually done it discreetly. That has now fallen by the wayside. With this feature – The Best Thing I Heard All Year – I have 100% stolen the idea from MOJO magazine.

I'm always ready to steal an idea

Their idea, and a good one, is to have several enteries by well known musicians/people involved with music, which give a couple examples of the best thing they heard all year. Doesn’t have to be newer stuff (though most of the time it is) but just what the person in question was into in the year previous.

So, I have decided to take that same idea and run with it. Hopefully in time, you will find folks associated with the music scene that this blog promotes, or into music in some of the same respects as myself, and what they feel are the best things they’ve heard all year.

(As of right now, all of the people who agreed to submit, only three have done so. The rest of you douches know who you are, so let’s get your picks submitted so that the other 3 people who follow this blog can see what you have to say. Ugh.)

Regardless, take note, as there is much good music to be discovered in this way. Tally ho.

- BRIAN LOGAN (Terror/Nail/Call(er)/Promoter): London Diehards demos, T.H.U.G. s/t record, and the various mixes on the CRAZEE KIDS SOUND BLOG comps, with lots of pre-punk/oi!/terrace bands like Slade, The Rivals, The Squad, The Jook, The Faces, Skrewdriver, Sweet, Rejects and on and on and on.

- MATT KELLY (Hairdresser’s cousin): 2009 was a year for quality, not quantity.  The RIFLES’ new album “No Love Lost”, as well as their live performance at Great Scott in Boston, the aptly-named T.H.U.G.’s promo CD (which is now available on vinyl through Rock and Roll Disgrace Records), the new album from PLAN OF ATTACK out of Brisbane,  and probably my favorite of ’09 was “Welcome To the Empire Club” by the London outfit THE CONCRETE GODS. 

- BOB BELMONTE (No cred whatsoever/Rock’n'Roll Disgrace Records): Best things I heard/saw/read all year-

1. Dude on the blue line heading to Boston, yelling at some beat welfare oven and her 9 kids to shut the fuck up and tells her to close her legs and get off the system, there is a Dunkin Donuts hiring somewhere.

2. Getting the pre-paid cell phone for the R77 tour and having the rather hefty girl at Wal-Mart bendover to get it at the bottom of the rack, max out any of her bodily functions and just rip the loudest most repungent fart. It sounded like the kickstand kid was lifting wheelies with his 1982 Huffy Moped with no seat thru a mud bog.

3. T.H.U.G. – S/T LP/CD

4. MAMMOTH GRINDER - 12″

5. NEW LOWS taster tape on Painkiller. 3 songs to hold you over till the LP drops. (Awesome cover of Jerry’s Kids – Raise The Curtain)

6. CONCRETE GODS – Welcome To The Empire Club CD

7. THE BOOK OF BASKETBALL – By Bill Simmons (He has turned into Rick Reilly at this point, but this book is a must for any fan of the NBA/Basketball).

8. JUDGEMENT “Live” @ Chaos In Tejas 2009

9. CLOSE CALL “Live” while Jimmy Flynn wore a shawl from some grandmother he purse snatched on the way to the show.

10. LONDON DIEHARDS – Demos

- SATURDAY NIGHT’S PICKS: We were impressed with several things in 2009, from old stand-bys like Naked Raygun returning to form with their Riot Fest 7″, as well as the amazing Madness release The Liberty of Norton Folgate. From excellent oi! courtesey of Evil Conduct & Frankie Flame, to the power pop leanings of Stamford Bridge, to newer stuff such as demos from Boston’s Hammer and the Nails, San Francisco’s Sydney Ducks, as well as demos/debut ep by NYC’s 45 Adapters, to discovering  Richard & Linda Thompson’s I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, it’s been a busy year.

Still on the stereo round our way is Battle Ruins debut ep, Gang of Four’s Damaged Goods ep, Mayer Hawthorne’s A Strange Arrangement LP and Elvis Costello & the Attractions Get Happy LP! Also played alot: Another Sunny Day’s album London Weekend. The choices were many.

However, with gun to head and forced to choose, the best thing we heard all year at this blog would be:

The Concrete Gods. Welcome to the Empire Club

 

Gods of Concrete

Nostalgia is a time honored subject in the rock’n’roll canon. British bands that are afforded classic status – from The Kinks to The Jam, to Madness and Blur – have all made records (and in some cases, careers) that pine for simpler days, whether with a wink and a nudge, or with earnest seriousness. The danger in being swept up in such a tide is complacency. Reminiscing turns to apathy, and that is that; a cycle of repetitive stagnancy and acceptance, with no outlook for the future.

The Concrete Gods’ latest offering, Welcome to the Empire Club, exists as something far more relevant than blissful nostalgia discussed over a few pints in the new art deco pub. No, this work actually stands as a call to resistance in the face of change for change’s sake; for progress that few see as progressive. While others are simply swept away in the tide of a changing world, The Gods emerge as soldiers of the last bastion willing to stand and put two fingers in the air and say ‘no more.’

To those familiar with The Concrete Gods, the delivery will come as no surprise; a mixture of a shared heritage with bands like aforementioned groups The Jam (the title cut and “Britpop Collector” amongst several others) as well as Slade (“My Old Man”) and mid-period Who (“Will You Stop Dancing?”) The unfolding of the newest offering showcases a band that is simply getting better and better. “Maturing” is a word I’d hesitate to use, but the sound reflects that. Songs need not be top-speed to be angry; they don’t have to be thrashy to voice dissent. Several of the songs are slower tempo, but sacrifice no power.

Built as a near conceptual record, it is as intelligent as any other of the aforementioned groups. The lyrics are smart and avoid simple moaning and groaning. Arguments are formatted and delivered, and grievances aired in an angrier Ray Davies voice. The album includes a perfect choice in cover as well; a reworking of Pulp’s class commentary “Common People,” that seamlessly melds in with the band’s own efforts.

The landscapes of the wayward youth of the band members have all but disappeared, with modern Britain not caring much; The “Boring British Town” of old pushes out its residents, and less and less is afforded to those that built the country. Rather than muse about it wistfully, The Gods have chosen to present their own social critique with aggressive rock’n’roll, complete with a last spit of venom aimed at “those who have conspired.”

The result is this blog’s choice for the best album of 2009. Simple as that.

Here to buy: Rock’n'Roll Disgrace Records.