4/28/2014
4/27/2014
THE CHEVELLES - Rollerball Candy
She's Not Around / Mesmerized / Rollerball Candy / Something / Playground / 867 5309 / No Need To Say / Time Machine / Us / Phenobarbital Love / For Your Love / Fall / Starlet / Gold Trans-Am / Delirium.
Produced by The Chevelles.
The Chevelles: Duane Smith: guitars & vocals / Julian Buckland: drums & vocals / Adrian Allen: guitars & vocals / Jeff Halley: bass.
The Chevelles are a power pop band from Perth, Western Australia. They formed in 1989 and have toured Australia, Europe, the United States and South America.The band took its name from the Chevrolet Chevelle. They played their first headline show at the Coronado Hotel on 15 December 1989. They soon came to the attention of independent labels across the country, including the Sydney-based Zero Hour Records (named after the Plimsouls' tune) operated by former Stems roadie George Matzkov.
''Rollerball Candy'' was released by Running Circle in early 1995. The album was more varied than "Gigantic", displaying a punk sound in "Delirium" and including a melodic ballad called "Fall". Its 15 tracks made it a long album for a pop group but in essence it was tailor-made for Spanish rock and roll fans.
Initial sales of the record in Spain and Portugal were encouraging. Response from Spanish press and radio was excellent. The record received strong reviews in established Spanish rock zines like Ruta 66, Beaten Generation and La Musica, in which the band were compared to DM3 and The Dubrovniks.
Sales and promotion of "Rollerball Candy" were slower in Australia. With no distribution deal the band relied on sales at shows and through a small number of Perth and eastern states record stores. It became apparent that fans in Sydney and Melbourne were unaware that a new album been released. At the same time Running Circle's European distribution campaign was floundering. There was no evidence that the disc had was being distributed or promoted outside of Spain.
Around this time Smith put together a band called Rollercoaster to play some songs he thought unsuitable for the Chevelles. Teaming up with Grant Ferstat (ex-Month of Sundays), Dave Shaw of The Stems and Boom Babies) and friend Craig Maclean, he recorded an 11-track rock album. At the time Smith thought it might be well received in the ever-hungry Spanish rock scene. The album eventually was released in mid-1999 on Spanish power pop label Snap Records.
In mid-1996 news was received from Spain that Running Circle was bankrupt. This annulled the Chevelles' contract with the label. Rollerball Candy had been released almost 18 months earlier and had not succeeded, through poor distribution and promotion. The band resolved to take the record back to the market. Smith contacted Paradoxx Music, a Brazilian dance music label that had distributed Gigantic from Survival and had sold several thousand copies of the record, and went to Brazil to negotiate a Rollerball Candy release. An agreement was formed but the deal fell apart when Paradoxx restructured and restaffed.
Notwithstanding Running Circle's demise the band continued to have a strong following in Spain. Smith and Allen played three acoustic shows in Madrid in January 1997.
Later that year, after six months of sporadic playing in Perth, and with continuing frustration with overseas record labels, the band sought a new deal in Australia. David Hughes-Owen, the manager of Perth power pop label Spinning Top, had known members of the band for several years. Smith had actually offered Rollerball Candy to Hughes-Owen for Australian release in January 1995, but at the time the label felt it didn't have the money or network to support the album. Spinning Top put together an Australian power pop compilation called Pop on Top for U.S. label Bomp! Records, using the Chevelles' "She's Not Around" as the lead track. The compilation was released in 1996 and was well received in the U.S., where Spinning Top discovered the Chevelles had a small but strong fanbase.
In 1997 the Chevelles and Spinning Top formed an agreement to see if the label could market Rollerball Candy. Spinning Top had a long association with U.S. label Not Lame, whose manager Bruce Brodeen was a fan of Australia pop and regularly stocked records from Australia in his mail order catalogue. Brodeen was a fan of the Chevelles and accepted Spinning Top's offer of an opportunity to release some Chevelles material. The band had obtained the rights to its back catalogue so Not Lame had the choice of all tracks recorded by the band back since 1992. Brodeen put together a 'Best Of'-style compilation titled "At Second Glance", concentrating on the band's melodic pop sound rather than its rock aspect. Source: Wikipedia
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PRIMA DONNA - Europe Tour 2014
The high-energy machine PRIMA DONNA from Los Angeles will be back in Europe in spring 2014! The band has only been on the scene for some years now, yet in that time have knocked out over 600 shows all over the world, toured with Green Day and Adam Ant and played successfully 5 European tours on their own.
Their live show is a whirlwind of color, energy, bravado, volume and an avalanche of catchy, sing-along choruses. A band you won’t forget anymore, once you have seen them live on stage.
Clearly inspired by early punk groups such as X-Ray Spex, the Ramones, and the Sex Pistols as well as 1970s glitter such as Mott the Hoople and David Bowie, the group is ready to kick your rockn roll asses out of the dirt into the charming side of sleazy sexy glamrock music!
This is the special tour single for this event!
2 brand new songs: "Living In Sin" & "Rubbish", explosive and full of rock'n'roll melodies!!!
100 x black vinyl & 200 x red/ black vinylBUY THE 7'' HERE (Wanda Records)!
AVAILABLE FRIDAY, APRIL 25 HERE !
You can hear it HERE if you want!
4/22/2014
THE JOLT - The Jolt
Mr. Radio Man / Watcha Gonna Do About It / I Can't Wait / Chains / No Excuses / Decoyed / I'm Leaving / Everybody's The Same / In My Time / Hard Lines / (Can't Tell You) It's Over / All I Can Do / You're Cold* / Again And Again* / Route 66* / Maybe Tonight* / I'm In Tears* / See Saw* / Stop Look*.
*bonus tracks
The Jolt: Robbie Collins: vocals, guitar, harmonica / Jim Doak: bass, vocals / Iain Shedden: drums.
Best remembered for their smartly suited, tightly riffing contributions to the late-'70s mod revival, the Jolt were, in fact, one of the few bands who not only straddled the divide between classic punk and that more specialist sound, they were also the only ones who could give label- (and genre-) mates a run for their money. Debuting in late 1977 with the sparkling "All I Can Do" single, the Scottish band barreled through the new year, redeveloping their sound as adroitly as Weller and company ever did, and drawing from many of the same archetypes as well -- a virtue proven by their second single, a sterling cover of the Small Faces' "Watcha Gonna Do About It." Punk in a parka had never sounded so fresh. By the time of their self-titled debut album, however, the Jolt were already consigned to dwell in the Jam's lengthening shadow, a fate that the band themselves seemed to encourage. The best tracks on the album were those that could have sprung from Weller's pen -- and that is precisely where they did get "See Saw," the finest song among the eight bonus tracks appended to the Captain Oi! reissue. The B-side to Jolt's final single, "Maybe Tonight," the song was written for the band by the Jam man himself. But there is so much more to Jolt than an adrenalin rush of Jam-isms. Noisy, exuberant, eminently danceable and absolutely exhilarating, Jolt is the sound of mod at its most potently creative, a record that could have been made in 1965, but was certainly remixed in 1978, to take into account all that had happened since then. Even more importantly, the passing years have chipped none of that original excitement away, and Jolt remains just that...a welcome, thrilling jolt. Allmusic
"The Jolt formed in the Glasgow area of Scotland September 1976 while guitarist/songwriter Robbie Collins and bassist Jim Doaks were working as lowly clerks in the Civil Service and Ian Sheddon was a journalist writing the pop page for his local newspaper.
Apart from The Self Abusers and The the Zones there were few Glasgow punk bands not helped by an unofficial ban on punk in Glasgow. Originally playing 60's based covers the band influenced by the new punk spirit quickly got up to speed with tunes like Decoyed and Mr Radio Man and built up a following in Jim and Robbie's home town of Wishaw playing the Crown Hotel.
As a lot of Scottish bands found there was only so far you could go in their native land and the decision was taken to move to London. In one sense the gamble paid off. They played the Marquee, Nashville and supported bands like The Jam, Stranglers and Generation X. In Sounds 13.8.77 it reported the bands signing to Polydor which they did for £90,000 and a four year deal. In another way it was the start of their troubles.
Having left Scotland they were accused of selling out and got the cold shoulder from 'the scene' and the press.
Worse than that the punk scene they came from was now over a year old and there were hundreds of bands in London. Ironically punk was taking a different direction that would have suited the Jolt. Punk had turned to New Wave to power pop and The Jolt went back to their roots (just like The Cortinas) and began to change image and produce commercial pop with a punk punch.
Ten months on from forming the band released the Faces 'What'cha Gonna Do About It?' and overhaul their image into a sixties mod suited look.
Around September 1978 the band expanded into a four piece with keyboards. In June 1979 they released a final single before splitting up ironically just missing the mod revival that in the end they seemed to becoming so suited to.
Another single and an album were released to some critical acclaim along with favourable live reviews and interviews but not translated into sales. At the same time other events overshadowed the band that took the spotlight off their music. The Jolt were signed to Polydor, home to another three piece with a monosyllabic name beginning with 'J' and a penchant for suits. We mean of course The Jam who The Jolt often toured with and were great pals with. Inevitable comparisons were made to the detriment of the band.Whereas they were conceived as a tribute and for originality, I think in the end the suits helped kill the band and just create more Jam comparisons." www.punk77.co.uk
http://www.punk77.co.uk/groups/jolthistory.htm
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4/18/2014
Looking For ...
Directed by Danny Garcia (The Rise and Fall of The Clash), Looking For Johnny is the definitive documentary on New York legendary guitar player Johnny Thunders.
In 90 minutes, this film covers Johnny Thunders career from his beginning in the early 70's to his demise in New Orleans, where he died under mysterious circumstances in 1991.
MAY 3 - CHICAGO/ CIMM FESTIVAL
MAY 5 - NYC / ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES
MAY 9 - TORONTO/ CANADIAN MUSIC WEEK
MAY 11 - ARLINGTON, MA / THE REGENT THEATRE
MAY 15 - GLOUCESTER, MA/ CAPE ANN CINEMA
MAY 17 - WASHINGTON DC / GALA THEATRE
MAY 22 - NEW ORLEANS / ZEITGEIST
MAY 23 - DALLAS / TEXAS THEATRE
MAY 24 - LOS ANGELES / DOWNTOWN INDEPENDENT
MAY 27 - SAN FRANCISCO / ROXIE THEATRE
JUNE 5 - LONDON/ PRINCE CHARLES CINEMA
JUNE 7/8 - STOCKHOLM / BIO RIO
JUNE 27 - MADRID / TRANSMISSIONS FESTIVAL
JULY 5 - BARCELONA / TRANSMISSIONS FESTIVAL
4/13/2014
THE JET BOYS - Larger Than Life
Jet Rollers / You Tell Me Lies / Blind's Night / You Talk Too Much / I'm A Lonesome Boy / The Story / Call Me Sister Midnight / Teenage Kicks / Like A Shooting Star / Untitled Ghost Track.
Produced by Si Freddi Di Angelo.
The Jet Boys: Freddy Lynxx: vocals, guitar / Poker Alice: bass, vocals / Nick Hell: drums, vocals / Vic Vixen: guitar, vocals + The 3/8: brass section / Paul Walfish: piano.
About The Jet boys
« Freddy Lynxx was playing in a band, the Aristochattes, when he first saw Thunders play in Paris in 1983. Lynxx left his band to start working as a roadie for Thunders then started a new band. When it came time to name the group, the top three choices were Jet Boys (the name of a Thunders song), Flying Pizza and Vendetta (Vixen/Alice’s choice). To settle it, Lynxx took his mates and the three names over to Thunders to ask him which was best. « How could he not choose the one after his own song? » Lynxx said. « I picked Jet Boys the way the Rolling Stones took their name from the Muddy Waters song. Going to Johnny Thunders for the name was like a little boy going to church and being given his church name ».
Scott McLennan Time Out 1994.
The Jet Boys – Year by Year
1984 - The Jet Boys took off after 3 weeks of rehearsals with a guy named John as their drummer, they were asked by Johnny Thunders to be his supporting act at the Gibus Club in Paris on September 26th & 27th. The second night, while playing « Can’t Keep My Eyes On You », a suitably impressed Johnny Thunders jumped on stage to grab the mic… that’s a double rock n roll confirmation of biblical proportions! They also played the Gibus club with the Flying Padovani’s in November & December as the word spread like napalm and the band moved up a gear. John was ejected from the drum stool and replaced by Phil Nodon in September 1985 and the next logical step was to get into the studio.
1986 - In January, the first demo is recorded with Johan Asherton, Mickey Blow and mixed by Dominique Laboubée (Dogs). The studio was so small that Phil had to use a drum machine. They later played the Gibus again with The Vibrators.
1987 - Phil left the band for unknown reasons and was replaced in 1988 by Nick Hell. They recorded their second demo in February and narrowly escaped death when a landslide destroyed part of the studio while Freddy was recording his guitar; the song « Like A Shooting Star » was born before the dust could settle.
1989 - From March 8th to 11th they returned for more shows at the Gibus club, again with Johnny Thunders. Then on April 4th they recorded the « Larger Than Life » album in 3 days at Mesa studio, on glorious 8 track, and after 2 days of mixing on 19/20th for a total cost of 6035 Francs (£920) including the master tapes, the deed was done. A month later a Debut single “Just Wanna Talk To You“ in pink vinyl is released on Sucksex Records (pronounced Success) and is quickly re-pressed in black vinyl in September when it sells out. Meanwhile, The Jet Boys keep busy touring and playing with The Del Lords, The Fleshtones, The Inmates and Dogs D’amour. October saw a release of a pink vinyl 12 » followed by the album in December. Heaps of great reviews in the worldwide music press followed, even without proper distribution; but it proves to be too little, too late, and believe it or not the band splits up because of Vic Vixen complaining about a missing credit on the inner sleeve! Only Nick Hell and Freddy remain, and quickly bring in Mad Engine on Bass and Fuzzfox on guitar.
1990 - Touring mostly in France and Spain and with new demos recorded in Lille attracting attention, the band is approached by Musidisc Records. In December, Johnny Thunders is playing an acoustic gig at the Gibus Club and Freddy brings him the tape of the album. Talking about project, Johnny tells Freddy he knows the people from Musidisc and would be interested in producing the album himself. Tragically, it will be the last time they speak.
April 1991 - and new demos for Musidisc , but the band has already planned to use 2 of the songs on a single in memory of Stiv Bators and the sleeve poster bag is already printed. During the mix on 23rd April, the phone rings and Marc Zermati tells them the sad news about Johnny Thunders… From that moment on everything goes wrong so they decide to mix in a different studio with Phil Sevin who was an assistant engineer during the last Stiv Bators studio sessions! Meanwhile, back from a Spanish tour, Musidisc don’t return their calls…
1992 - Mad Engine is leaving and is replaced by their roadie, Ian Dollz. They tour France, Belgium and Spain where they get a contract to release « Larger Than Life ». Marc Zermati asks Freddy Lynxx to help him produce a Johnny Thunders tribute album and secures a deal for « Larger Than Life » and the tribute album at the same time, on Meldac Records in Japan.
1993 - Ian Dollz and Nick Hell quit the band. A New York girl called Big G is recruited but it’s difficult to find a permanent drummer, with Jean-Lou Kalinowski (Shakin’ Street) sitting in for a while before Big G suggests they hire the drummer Yo, from her other band Loco Lizzards.
1994 - Freddy Lynxx asks Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols, Rich Kids) and Julian Standen (who produced The Lemonheads and London Cowboys to name but two), if they are available to produce the Jet Boys. Live action continues with gigs at the Gibus club in June 4th and 5th with guest Rick Blaze & the Ballbusters from New York and results in some return gigs in the America. In August, touring in the United States with The Ballbusters, It appears Arista are interested in the band after they play up a storm at the Webster Hall in New York City. They even manage to secretly record a demo at Edison Recording Studio on 46th St while the big boss is on vacation. However, the relationship between Big G and Yo is becoming intolerable so it’s back to France, and Freddy calls it a day, bored of feel ling like a baby-sitter. Back at base he is soon busy with a Japanese split single with the band « The Golden Arms » released in the US on Jeff Dahl’s label Ultra Under Records, and another in the pipeline.
1998 - Freddy plans to re-release « Larger Than Life » and asks Jean Cataldo from Action Records to do some remixes. Something is in the air and by pure coincidence he’s then contacted by the US label Triple XXX (via Jeff Dahl’s connection) and offered a 3 album worldwide deal including The Jet Boys album! Since 1994 The Jet Boys have been in financial debt to Skydog manager Marc Zermati , when Marc asks Freddy to let him release « Larger Than Life Dusted » the debt is written off.
In conclusion: The Jet Boys have never been a big success but sold something like 7000 copies of Larger Than Life with minimal, or bad distribution. You can find the « Dusted » version on Amazon but expect a « Producer’s Cut » one day, including all of the demos mentioned above. In my humble opinion, you are encouraged to seek any and all of the Jet Boys recorded output by regular searches on the www, e-Bay, Record fairs and the usual methods of tracking down the good stuff. A small caveat, dear reader, since the crash and burn of THE original Jet Boys there are a few bands out there who share the same name, but only the line-up with Freddy Lynxx carries the trademark of quality you can trust.
Finally, this page is dedicated to Nicolas Chante aka Nick Hell who was defenestrated in Costa Rica in 1998. May you be remember as « THE’ Jet Boys drummer!
Tom Crossley-Last.fm
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4/05/2014
DAVE KUSWORTH - Princess Thousand Beauty
DAVE KUSWORTH Princess Thousand Beauty CD 1996
Princess Thousand Beauty / Temptress / Torn Pages / Strangers Together / All My Dreams About You / Always Be There For You / She Lives In A Movie / Just A Girl / False Promises / Fantasy Island
Produced by Dave Kusworth, Jeremy Thirlby &Terry Miles.
Dave Kusworth band: Dave Kusworth: guitar, vocals / Carl Eugene Picot: bass / Andy Bush: drums / Paul Caton: guitar / Jeremy Thirlby: slide guitar, harp, percussion / Glenn Tranter: guitar, backing vocals / Terry Miles: keyboards, backing vocals.
Inspired by the raw power of the Stooges and the glam rock excess of the New York Dolls, Birmingham, England, native Dave Kusworth formed his first band (TV Eye) at the age of 16. Since then, the versatile singer/songwriter/guitarist has done time in the Hawks, Dogs D'Amour, the Jacobites (with ex-Swell Maps mastermind Nikki Sudden), the Bounty Hunters, and the Tenderhooks, as well as his own Dave Kusworth Group. His songs, gutter-bound tales of rock & roll heartache that bring to mind the Faces and the Rolling Stones, have been covered by Evan Dando and Mercury Rev and feted by the likes of Tom Waits, Chuck Prophet, and Peter Buck. Allmusic.com
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4/04/2014
BRAND NEW HATE "Hangover And Over" Official Teaser
http://brandnewhate.bandcamp.com/album/hangover-and-over