The Ugly Beats at Continental Club: December 26, 2008

 
 
 
 

The Paisley Umbrella's Top Ten for 2008

The Paisley Umbrella's Top Ten Albums of 2008,


Out of nearly 90 reviews this year, here's my top 10. I thoroughly enjoyed listening and writing about everyone, but a whole list would be a little too much. Enjoy.

The Stems

Heads Up!
Shock Records
Available in the US and Canada through Get Hip Distribution

The Stems made some great neo garage music in the mid '80s and then broke up to form other bands such as The Someloves, Chevelles, DM3, and a few others. Heads up! finds Dom Mariani, Richard Lane, Julian Matthews,, and Dave Shaw doing something that's brillaint and seems effortless for them. Guitar driven, melodic powerpop, but much edgier. For some, Heads Up! is a reminder of how much we missed. For others, an introduction to the incredible talents of Dom and Richard. Seeing them live and getting a chance to meet them at South By Southwest this year was a life changing event. For many of you who were lucky enough to see them or at least, heard them for the first time this year, you might feel the same. Go Here for a full review of Heads Up!


The Contrast

Perfect Disguise: Introducing The Contrast
Wicked Cool Records

Middleborough's The Contrast occupy their own space. It's hard to say what they sound like. One hears traces of early REM, Tom Petty, and Paul Weller with their six-string Rickenbacker sound which is so central to the music, but the song timing is odd at times (especially evident on previous releases like Forget To Tell The Time, the song structures different, and on top of that, it's highly polished powerpop. The result is that The Contrast are incredibly distinctive and don't really "sound" like anyone else, but the music remains catchy and accessible. The Contrast is well off the beaten path. Read the original review of Perfect Disguise here.


John Doe

A Year In The Wilderness
Yep Roc Records

I couldn't figure out why I loved this so much. This one really gets a hold of you and pulls you in. It works as a whole piece of work. John Doe is simply incredible, but his history sets the backdrop for his music: L.A. Punk, American music, incredible songwriting. "Hotel Ghost" is haunting, "Golden State" is strangely uplifting but not optimistic, "The Meanest Man In The World" is a pure illustration, "Darling Underdog", which had lyrics that Exene contributed, is just beautiful. A Year In The Wilderness rocks with pure heart and soul. Amazing.


The Fleshtones

Take A Good Look
Yep Roc Records

2008 was the year of The Fleshtones. These guys invented Super Rock, a genre of loud, fun rock 'n' roll that's takes roots from just about every influential three chord rock band and made it fun again. Their songs range from loud and fun ("Shiny Hiney") to a deep Kinks feel ("This Time Josephine") and still retain a sound and feel that's pure Fleshtones. They toured endlessly to support Take A Good Look. Hopefully, most of you finally did. For a full review of Take A Good Look, Go Here.


The Shake

Tripping The Whole Colorful World
Flor Y Nata
Available in the US and Canada through Rainbow Quartz Records

Gijon neo garage rockers The Shake are relatively unknown compared to other '60s inspired bands from Spain. Tripping The Whole Colorful World is a true gem of psychedelic '60s pop that's both melodic and basic at the same time. One hears a lot of Beatles For Sale on the album, but with stronger hints of psychedelic and a heavy soul base. This is a Wonderful find for anyone who loves '60s rock/soul and early psych. At the present time, their new album is complete but release is delayed for unknown reasons. Once you hear Tripping The Whole Colorful World, it will open up a new world. Let's hope we hear more from The Shake in 2009. Go here for their full review.


The Love Me Nots

Detroit
Atomic A Go Go Records
Also
Available in the US and Canada through Get Hip Distribution. Also available in "Farfisa Cream" Vinyl (inquire about availability before ordering)

The Love Me Nots are an ultimate combination of mod, surf, and cool. It's loud! Michael Johny Walker wails some seriously loud surf guitar, Nicole Laurienne packs a vocal dominance that will not only force people to listen, but will make you hang on her every word. Current band members Kyle Rose Stokes on bass and Vince Ramirez (former members Christina Nunez on bass and Jay Lien on drumes for the album recording) on drums round out a top notch combo that's perfect fuzz and farfisa go go, but much louder and tighter than expected. Jim Diamond at Detroit's legendary Ghetto Recorders puts in the knob duties that round out Detroit into an ultimate mod garage tome that's pure mod/surf/garage perfection. Additionally, they've turned down offers from popular garage rock labels in favor of controlling their own destiny, but that's no surprise once one hears them. They're too good to be held down. Check out the full review of Detroit here.


Los Peyotes

Cavernicola
No Fun Records as well as Get Hip Distribution

Listening to Los Peyotes is as much fun as once could possibly have listenint to music. Although originally released in 2005, Cavernicola is now available for the first time in the US. Not only that, but it's available in vinyl and it's worth it just for the vintage type album cover. Los Peyotes are loud cavemen that wield surfy, loud garage rock in all its primitive glory. Not to be passed up.


Paul Collins Beat

Ribbon of Gold
RockIndiana
Get Hip Recordings in the US and Canada

Great, simple, catchy songs that have their own voice and are instantly likeable created by a powerpop icon. Plenty of hints at brilliance from the guy who wrote "Hanging ON The Telephone" on "I Still Want You" and "She Doesn't Want To Hang Around With You", slices of jingle jangle Americana on the title track, and much more. There's no such thing as powerpop without Paul Collins Beat
Go Here for the full CD review.


Thee Vicars

Back On The Streets
Dirty Water Records
Available US and Canada through Get Hip Distribution

Thee Vicars are the undeniable truth of the statemaent "Look what you've created!" They're as much the bastard children of Pete Shelley as they are of Iggy Pop, Billy Childish, and '60s garage rock bands like The Chocolate Watchband. Heavy garage rock played through the brains of teenagers bent on playing loud and snotty. Thee Vicars will take over the world. Read all about them here.


The Ugly Beats

Take A Stand With
Get Hip Recordings

Austin's The Ugly Beats create an infectious mix of up and midtempo hits that lie somewhere inbetween the garage/powerpop forebearing sounds of the legendary Easybeats, some vintage surf, and the more subdued, melodic sounds of The Byrds and L.A. folk rock heroes Love. Take A Stand With is as close as one might get to real '60s rock and this band has made its mark on great rock 'n' roll for years to come. Go Here to meet Jason, Joe, Jeanine, Jake, and JSteve. With the great music in their veins and pouring out of them, it's no wonder that they're the darlings of Get Hip Recordings.



NOTE: Narrowing nearly 90 reviews down to ten was not an easy task. There are so many of you out there that I had the chance to listen to and write about. For those of you not on the list, I can't thank you enough for contributing, but if I name one, I'd have to name everyone and that's a very, very long list! For the most part, I've lived up to my goals. However, there are a few of you out there who I owe reviews to for this year, such as The Hosts, The Jungle Rockers, The Luxury Sweets, and a handful of others. I want to thank those of you not reviewed yet for your patience and understanding. I've written at least 2 reviews per week since I started reviewing in February. It's a hobby and I love doing it, but for a host of different reasons, not everyone got their say yet. This is it for 2008, but I'll have a month or so to catch up with everyone listed as well as some material from great artists that I've recently received. Starting in mid-February, the focus will shift to bands playing the 2009 South by Southwest Festival. The number of reviews I've done combined with those yet to be done is proof of what I've said all along: The Best rock 'n' roll is being made today! The Paisley Umbrella is here not only to spread the word about it, but to catch as many bands as possible and write about them since our information age produces such an overload that a lot of great things fall outside of people's radars. I hope many of you have discovered not only great new bands, but older ones that you might not have had a good listening to the first time around. I love writing about great rock 'n' roll and am lucky to have a growing number of readers and friends. I'm taking a well earned break until January. May you all have a Paisley/Psychedelic/Garage/Rock 'n' Roll, but most of all, a very Happy New Year!


Cheers and Thank You,

Michael from The Paisley Umbrella

Thee Vicars Are Back On The Streets!

Thee Vicars

Back On The Streets
Dirty Water Records
Available US and Canada through Get Hip Distribution


Along come Thee Vicars, a band not yet out of their teens from the shit town Bury St. Edmunds. They're loud, snotty, and play loud garage punk rock 'n' roll! That's enough for you to go get it, but I'll tell you a little more. Their Dirty Water Records debut Back On The Streets is a celebration of controlled rock 'n' roll noise from start to finish. Although one would hasten to call it garage punk, but garage and punk. It's garage rock with an obnoxious, '70s punk rock attitude. Truthfully, that sounds too academic. "Introducing Thee Vicars" is a chaotic free-for-all of surf guitars, crashing cymbals, and howls from the depths. If ideas of what is good rock 'n' roll can actually be set to music, this is a perfect illustration. Not hard, but finally, someone has the guts to do it. Leave it to the kids to remind us that we're too old! The title track is raw and highlighted with a lot of tasty r & b styled guitar riffs from lead guitar Reuben Kemp. "Why Have You Changed" is just raw and dirty. It would have been cool to hear Mike Whittaker's vocals a little louder, but it's rock 'n' roll that sounds live, setbacks included instead of studio manipulation. "Mindless Squares" is classic garage rock with a short beat, but the tambourine and occasional crashing cymbals from Jasper Kemp range from inventing one's own add-ins to the beat to something out of the book of Animal. "Budget Rock" is great! It's got a faster beat and bass from Mike Whittaker to make the song feel like nothing less than a good '70s British punk kick in the ass, only with more distortion, which results in the rebellion being music, not a message. "Small Town Blues" is almost minimalist with its searing guitar solo and not much blues, but more of a "fuck you!"

"Back On The Streets" has 16 songs. I'm not going to go through all of them, but the overall impression is that Thee Vicars have to be the most talented bunch of obnoxious, snotty kids to come along, but the recording is a little schizophrenic as a stereo recording done in low fidelity, as if Thee Vicars are too fucking good musically but don't want to admit it. However, the sound itself feels like a live show. As much as so many bands over the years have attempted to duplicate the live sound, the distortion on the recording actually does sound live because it's so static and the compromises in hearing what Mike whittaker is trying to say or Reuben's lead guitar sounding louder on tracks like "They Lied To You" just aren't important, although the refrain on it is just perfect! The honest truth is that maybe Thee Vicars have come to play and they don't care if you can hear what they're saying since your ears are going to be too occupied with them already. Besides Mike screams like Iggy did and hasn't done since "TV Eye". The album also has plenty of songs where everything comes together like the double fuzz guitar wail of "I'll Hunt You Down" or the bass heavy "I Don't Wanna Be Like You", which could be a long awaited response to those who used to think "I hope I die before I get old." It's telling many of us that we are old. Sigh.

This is a great time for rock 'n' roll. There is a greater number of awesome garage rock bands out there, but Back On The Streets feels like a warning that Thee Vicars are here, they don't need to be schooled, and they're just getting started. Older, more experienced bands will love them too, but knowing that these guys are going to replace them. Afterall, rock 'n' roll is rebellion, it's for the young. Rock 'n' roll has some simple requirements: It should be loud and it should piss off your parents. So when was the last time we heard something that did those things? A long time, right? Everything is a target market. Punk is for profit. Rebellion is packaged. You can buy Clash shirts at the mall (we miss you, Joe Strummer (21 August 1952–22 December 2002)). In truth, very few things come along these days that grab us by the yarbles and shake us furiously out of ourselves. That's what rock 'n' roll should do. Thee Vicars do that louder than anyone I've heard in a long time, but the beats are way older and the melodies basic on songs like "The Dreaded Day Job" that it's garage rock with straight punk rock attitude and volume. There's no mod coolness here, just older, basic garage rock songs that have more volume, distortion, and rebellion in the noise than anything out there considered "garage rock", but the talent is undeniable. Even on songs like "Leavin' Here" (not the cover), which has a familiar melody that's been duplicated by many for years, Thee Vicars throw it on the floor and take turns kicking it into submission as their own invention.

Back On The Streets is rock 'n' roll. Loud, obnoxious, based on old stuff beaten up in to something new. It's music to piss off your parents, although most of us don't live with them anymore (I hope). Buy it anyway. You'll want your parents to hear it just so you can feel young again.

I Don't Wanna Be Like You





Back On The Streets







Back On The Streets is available from Dirty Water Records
and the US and Canada through Get Hip Distribution

"Tis The Season For Cavernicola!

Los Peyotes

Cavernicola
No Fun Records

One just can't get enough of Los Peyotes! Fuzz, surf guitar, pure caveman garage rock all the way; teeth necklaces included! Luckily, not only did they release Introducing Los Peyotes(Go here to read the review), a fine collection of recordings from 2001 to 2008 on Dirty Water Records, Their 2005 dubut Cavernicola has been reissued and available for the first time outside of Argentina by No Fun Records! Additionally, it is the first time Cavernicola! is available on vinyl. The opening "I Caveman And You" is garage punk in all its frenzy: A simple blues base, a farfisa, lots of fuzz, and lead screamer David Peyote singing like an obsessed madman driven by only a basic urge to get with a girl. Primitive indeed! "Fuego" (Arthur Brown) is a little more basic, but Victor "La Pantera" takes lead with an all out '60s organ and enough swirls of it to make anyone spin in a frenzy. "Cry Baby" is slow and shares more of a '60s garage tone taken from The Seeds with plenty of fuzz. "Mocker" intoduces an older, basic garage rock sound with harmonica, but the tempo changes are impressive and Rolando Bruno's guitar ranging from tight and surfy to full garage punk chords is nothing less than impressive. In fact, everyone in Los Peyotes sound like garage rock/punk experts that it's really hard to make distinctions on who takes lead roles because everyone is loud and taking the lead. This is kind of a rare thing since great garage rock is all about the beat, being noisy, and having fun, but Los Peyotes deliver the '60s can of goods better than most. Although there's an overemphasis on Electric Prunes style fuzz is on "Satanic Rite", one could equally say that the organ sets the mood or that Pablo Bam Bam lives up to his name by taking every opportunity to play along with each musical part instead of just the beat, which was also something said often about Keith Moon.

One of the two songs on Cavernicola that made it onto Introducing... was "El Humo Te Hace Mal", which effortlessly encourages crowd participation to sing along, but the song also has guitar that's closest to surf guitar with lots of tremolo and David screams and howls his way in perfect time, even down to the first refrain, where his cough really sounds like it belongs in the song! Inevitably, debut albums have their share of covers. Among those on Cavernicola is the Mancini/Lord Sutch "Jack The Ripper", which is the best take on the the song to date with it's ghoulish laughs, fuzz, and Oscar Hechomierda's almost punk bass intro. "Te Pegare" has a Latin beat hint as well as some fancier flamenco style electric guitar playing, but it's still garage rock in all its troglodyte glory of howls and beats, while "The Brotherhood" is a nothing less than primitive r & b garage punk. In fact, that's what one always gets with Los Peyotes. They're proof that '60s garage rock is here to stay and they do it better than most. I'm sure every garage band started off trying to play "Wild Thing" and "The Witch", so it's no surprise that Los Peyotes would have one of those songs on their debut. The tempo is faster and the vocals are desperate, but it's in a slightly higher key than the original and it's a lot more fun to sing along to, even if some of they lyrics are indecipherable from the original song, which only make it sound more fun. Also, there's a b movie type, eerie keyboard track at the end of the cover that further illustrates the band's mastery of all things '60s garage punk. The bonus track is another Sonics song, Psycho. The addition of Farfisa on the song give it a good '60s go-go groove and is more than an honorable interpretation.

For all the cliches and standard instruments, look, feel and sound that epitomizes '60s garage rock and punk, Los Peyotes are it. They're authentic but sound never serious, which makes the music loud and fun. If anything Cavernicola is proof that the best garage rock and punk is being made today. Their stuff is simply essential in its mix of '60s garage like The Seeds, The Electric Prunes, some darker elements that lean towards The Fuzztones and other '80s neo garage acts, and some loud and lonely r & b. Los Peyotes are just too fucking good for anyone to pass up. Additionally, it's got great cover art and the inside cover painting of the band is worth the price alone for the vinyl version. However, Cavernicola on vinyl is selling pretty fast right now.


Fuego




Jack The Ripper




When I Arrive




Cavernicola is a available directly from No Fun Records as well as Get Hip Distribution

The BAcksliders: You're Welcome. Texas Rock 'n' Roll

The BAckliders

You're Welcome
Unsigned

Texas has a long history as a home for rock 'n' roll that dates back all the way to Buddy Holly. Although it's not always easy to pin down, a lot of bands from The Lonestar State sound uniquely Texan, no matter what genre they or others choose to categorize them in. In many cases I can think of, the "Texas Sound" has to do with adding key elements of genres together. Buddy Holly could be the primary example of playing rock 'n' roll that had a country base to it. Dallas band The BAcksliders are a good case in point: Powerpop, but still Texan. Their new release You're Welcome is a good showcase of Powerpop mixed with classic rock and blues elements. It's not too much of a stretch for powerpop since a lot of it is rooted in what can be generally termed as American Music, so it's not a confusing mix of elements, but a very cohesive one. The BAcksliders came to existence out of vocalist Kim Pendleton from Vibrolux, her husband Chris Bonner from Sons of Sound, and backed with a solid rhythm section made up of Nolan Theis on bass from Little Black Dress and Taylor Young on drums from Young Heart Attack and Polyphonic Spree. The resulting The BAcksliders is a band that has a solid sound that lacks rawness due to the professional experience of their members, but it also results in a solid approach to powerpop that shares elements of new wave, British Invasion, and just a hint of blues. The opening "You're Gonna Miss Me" falls somewhere between Elvis Costello's once controversial "Radio Radio", but with a catchy, repetitive chorus in the vein of "Dreaming" by Blondie. Kim's voice veers from smoothness to a rock 'n' roller's seasoned slight scratchiness, but the background vocals create a fun, new wave feel. "Typically I Don't Mind" takes Chrissy Hynde's style of a strong, faster beat and keeping the guitar as secondary to everything else. That style is perhaps one of the basic styles that defined new wave by re-emphasizing the beat and rhythm that cause many to consider certain new wave bands as making rock 'n' roll fun again. You're Welcome sticks to that basic approach mostly on songs like "I Got Mine". Other offerings such as "Under The Moonlight" take a Smiths take hear and there with a deeper guitar intro and powerchords, but it's a little bit refreshing in steering clear of MOrissey's self loathing. One thing noticable about You're Welcome is how the songs don't have gaps, which results in a certain continuity and given that the songs are so short and keep a basic approach, it's hard sometimes to make out where the songs end until the tempos change. One of the results is that "Under The Moonlight" goes right into "Now They Know", but the initial impression is that it's a melody change and chorus as an end to the previous song.

"Pass On All Your Fears", the first slow song, is a modern rock/blues tome that sounds like it was meant for everyone's moments of post breakup self loathing and solo drinking in a dark and smokey bar. Another surprise is "Fat Girls", with a hint of southern swagger that beats along to "Jumpin' Jack Flash" that's sure to please. The following "Disguise" is a strong, pumping song with flashes of The Gift era Jam, but a bass melody that's a little deeper and took a while to pin down and reminiscent of "Don't Go Back To Rockville". The material is pretty basic and familiar, but it's solid and fun. Despite strongly reconized formulas for You're Welcome, it doesn't mean that The BAcksliders lack originality. We all know how music styles have their basic formulas, so when one has a group of seasoned veterans doing a particular style, it's likely to end up sounding a lot like well known influences, which results in no big surprises, but a guarantee of good rock 'n' roll, nonetheless. The Texan in The BAcksliders comes straight through on the acoustic/country of "someone Has Broken". It's a little of a diversion, but a good one.

You're Welcome is full of strong rock songs that continue with "Serves You Right", which stands out a little more than other songs on the album in that it cannot be placed anywhere, but if there's one thing that many agree on, it's just fun rock 'n' roll with plenty of hooks and a beat you can dance to. One even catches Memphis Blues and echoes of Roy Orbison on "Cry" that is familiar and great. If one loves rock 'n' roll, one just "gets it" and doesn't pay much attention to something being punk, classic, new wave, garage, or whatever. There comes a time just to let it go, see some rock 'n' roll, and have fun. The BAcksliders don't fit into anything but rock 'n' roll. They're powerpop, classic rock, and hints of blues. Not earth shaking, but it will definitely catch you with your guard down and dancing along. They're playing December 19th at Austin's legendary Hole In The Wall, a dive that lives up to its name in size and atmosphere, which has seen everyone from Mojo Nixon, Drive By Truckers, Sons of Hercules, and even Laika and The Cosmonautspass through their doors. It's a place where the college crowd mixes with the old townies and all types. Nobody really cares about distinctions there. They want to hear some rock 'n' roll and kick back a few pitchers. The BAcksliders will fit in perfectly.

Fat Girls





CDs available at www.thebacksliders.com

Tourdates:

Dec 19 2008 10:00P Hole in the Wall Austin, Texas
Dec 20 2008 10:00P Double Wide with Hello Lover and White Drugs (Denton) Dallas, Texas
Dec 31 2008 9:00P New Years Eve at Lee Harvey’s Dallas, Texas
Mar 7 2009 9:00P VZD’s Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Gerry Alvarez (Gruesomes) Odyssey: Candy Prankster is Colorful Fuzz!

The Gerry Alvarez Odyssey

Candy Prankster
Ricochet Records and USA through Get Hip Distribution

Who knew that a punk fuzz purist would go completely psychedelic? Founding member/guitarist/singer for Canadian garage kings The Gruesomes created Gerry Alvarez Odyssey and made Candy Prankster in between time with them, and it's quite a contrast. The album has hints of psychedelic pop intertwined with dense, upbeat melodies. The title track has a heavy fuzz riff as an intro, but it's psych rock done with mostly chords. It's really interesting that there's little "psychedelic" effects, and no 12 string guitars. Just a basic song with a good fuzz riff and some great rhythm guitar that's both melodic and fuzzy. In compliment to the guitars that punch in like alternating bursts of colors, one's only left to consider the meaning of "Ratty desert is so dry, hushback clouds are in the sky, candy prankster takes you high". It's not really a trip, but an alternate reality without the hassle of the traveling. "The Prophet" is a little less of a freakout, but it has some nice licks that seem to be an inspiration from George Harrison's "Something". It's easy to say a song sounds like the Beatles, but George was the better guitarist of them, so it's more than complimentary. Can psychedelic rock be a bad trip? Not really. If it were, it would be called crap and not psychedelic rock. "It's Only Just A Dream" breaks the mold because it gives a vivid description of what sounds like a bad trip with "The sky is melting, slowly, it catches in the rainfall, a crowd is standing lonely, the hang their heads inside behind the wall", but the music has plenty of rough fuzz that alternates into acoustic refrains during the chorus, which also has great vocal harmonies. This one's pretty special, but hints start to come in of playing tapes backwards that are obviously Revolver inspired. Then again, we know how this works. Great rock 'n' roll steals from the past, but it's done right when it's stolen from the best. Additionally, it's been an awful long time since someone had the ambition to do that. Great song.

"Fly By Night" takes a little of a straightforward approach, but it relies on the overall theme of Candy Prankster of melodic fuzz songs that are both hard with a pop edge. That's a lot to say. I'm not sure anyone else created something out of those elements. Other standouts are "Urban Shaman", which is lush, but has a slight air of droning much like later works from The Church. "Heaven" is amazing! One is going to feel the obvious inspiration from "Tomorrow Never Knows", but Gerry deeper voice sounds better and has an air of authority. Not only that, but the solo guitar is great and the rhythm guitar feels like a droning, Tibetan chant, which John Lennon originally intented on "Tomorrow Never Knows", but "Heaven" is more convincing in using the effect that's it's hypnotic and mesmerizing, although it might carry a stronger attraction than it's inspiration since the perspective is Western instead of Eastern. Gerry Alvarez also shows a talent for deeper, electric folk music on "Universal Man", which relies on a more country like guitar at times that eventually intertwine with full powerchords to become a loud but still slow rock song. "In The Garden" is obviously similar to "I Am The Walrus" but with stronger vocal harmonies and a background that's psychedelic and instrumental, but the strings aren't as prominent.

Candy Prankster makes no bones about it's inspiration in John Lennon and his early psychedelic period, but the album somehow remains nearly "all about the fuzz" and therefore, has a heavy guitar chord base that is almost always loud and takes the lead, as in reminding one that it's still a culmination of '60s garage influences set to possibly more thoughtful songwriting, although the sky takes a common theme not only on "Is It Just A Dream" and "Heaven", but also "Open Up Your Mind" in its spaceship effects that are definitely somewhere off the ground, while "Time In Motion" causes the thought of anticipating the opening lyric "When the rain comes", but it suddenly feels more abrasive and eventually only shares the affinity to "Rain" with its prominent bass melody. It's also less pop friendly than "Rain" in that it has just a hint of being a little bit disturbing. "The Trail" is a perfect ending in it's gentler tempo that almost sings the listener "goodnight" by the image of riding off into the sunset that has a greater expanse as "a deep, dark ocean." Gerry Alvarez Odyssey take a big leap on Candy Prankster by putting the fuzz into deep psychedlic rock. In truth, "the fuzz" has always been a crucial ingredient to psychedelic rock more than garage rock. In conclusion, they put the fuzz BACK into it! The result is a creative, rock 'n' roll landscape deep in psychedelia but minus the 12 string Rick-o-sound. It's simultaneously basic and heavy pure fuzz all the way. After all, one can't take The Gruesomes out of a Gruesome, but The Gruesomes have a few tricks up their sleeves and Gerry Alvarez Odyssey will get you fuzzed up with Candy Prankster! Like anything great and fuzzy, turn it up to get the full effect.

Candy Prankster





Candy Prankster is available directly from Ricochet Records in Canada and USA through Get Hip Distribution. There's a free download of the companion pressbook The Gerry Alvarez Odyssey: Traveller's Vision, that has photos, articles, and so much more. Even better is the book Candy Prankster: A collection of short stories, drawings, lyrics, poems, and photos that's available as a hardcover book.

Other Gruesomes members Bobby Beaton and John Davis have their own side project, Fuad & The Feztones. Their music is r & b/early fratrock, Boogaloo your socks off music that's as fun as their name suggests. If you'd like to learn more about them and join in on building The Beeramid, there's more info Here. It's also available available directly from Ricochet Records in Canada and USA through Get Hip Distribution.

The Fleshtones: Stocking Stuffer and Vindicated: A Tribute To The Fleshtones!

The Fleshtones

Stocking Stuffer
Yep Roc

It's hard to write an introduction for The Fleshtones since by now, these hardworking guys from Hitsburg are getting their due and gaining the growing number of fans and praise that they always deserved. However, many of those numbers are the new converted who are likely kicking themselves over not knowing about them for the 26 or so years they've existed. Not only are The Fleshtones among the best, if not the funnest live act, but they have an extensive catalog, most of which is out of print, although one can always add a comment to the bottom of this review begging for those great albums to be given new lives in reissues. Not to worry, though. The past few years have definitely been the second coming for these Super Rock heroes, so as a holiday treat to all of us, we get the second release of the year in the nine song hurrah of Stocking Stuffer, a collection of originals and holiday covers that's nothing short of all the great stuff that we expect from The Fleshtones. Afterall, with that name, we all know it's gonna rock!

The opening "Hooray For Santa Claus" from the 1964 motion picture Santa Claus Conquers The Martians is loud and elated. One's sure to be singing along to the "We Spell" cheer by the second call. However, the movie is known by some to be the worst movie ever made and on par with the work of Ed Wood. Leave it to The Fleshtones to give a song from a C movie into something great. The followup to that is major: The Australian Xmas song Six White Boomers was recommended by Hoodoo Gurus co-frontman Dave Faulkner and includes the phone query to him "Well, what the heck is a boomer, Dave?" His recorded response is funny and a perfect omen for the song with it's powerchords added by Ross The Boss from The Dictators that put the sound right in the middle of the mid '80s Aussie garage rock scene, but with a great dose of AC/DC added. To bridge the inevitable cultural divide since nobody here connects boomers or joeys with Christmas, the sleighbells give out a truly rockin' Yule vibe! The original "Super Rock Santa" is probably the first song about how a saint can be cool with the line "Ho Ho Ho, Whaddya Know?' Peter Zaremba pulls on his crooner shoes for "All I Want For Christmas", which is a great song, but Peter Zaremba's deep, smooth voice on it can open up a can of whup-nog on any crooner out there.

The Keith Streng penned "Champagne Christmas" is a bit confusing. Like the liner notes say, it paints an intimate portrait. That's the confusion. Portrait or description of what many of you out there might be doing with just themselves and a bottle of bubbly on the holiday? Come to think of it, it sounds like a fun thing to do if you have to spend the night alone! Besides, the holidays and even more so this year's season give us constant reminders that things could be worse, such as "Champale And Christmas" or "Boone's Farm and Christmas". The lesson is if you're alone, grab yourself a bottle of semi good stuff and drink up! Like the song says "I got everything, everything I need, champagne Christmas tonight". Ken Fox makes a notable contribution in "Canadian Christmas", a longing for an authentic Christmas somewhere out of the Canadian cities, in the damn under freezing countries where Canadian Christmas is a 'Winter Wonderland". I guess this is a great example of why I'm thankful not to be of the dominant religion in this hemisphere; someone else can go out there and freeze their asses off in a Winter Wonderland, for crying out loud! However, it's still a great tune and I didn't hear "eh" once!

"Mr. Santa Claus," a rousing song from soul/r & b singer Nathaniel Mayer is sung by Keith Streng with all his soul. His scratchy but still toneful voice is a perfect compliment to the song and the person who originally sang it. Unbeknownst to most, Nathaniel Mayer died after having multiple strokes on November first of this year, which was after the Stocking Stuffer was pressed.

The Fleshtones take an approach that's purely youthful with bygone nostalgia on "Christmas With Bazooka Joe" that invokes images of silly fun found in those small comics. Definitely, a cool novelty. There's also a rocking version of "Run, Rudolph, Run". It's no surprise about it "rocking" since it was popularized by Chuck Berry. In fact, the opening guitar sounds like a Chuck Berry tune. Although the tune has been covered by many acts, including Dave Grohl with Billy Gibbons, Reverend Horton Heat, and many others, The Fleshtones distinctive old and new Super Rock treatment is the most complimentary to the song's heritage. In a related note, the song was co-written by Johny Marks, a Jew who also wrote "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer". Additionally, Irving Berlin wrote "White Christmas". So on one hand, Jews have written some very famous Christmas songs while Adam Sandler wrote the only rock 'n' roll Hannukah song. Lou Reed, Mick Jones, and Paul Westerberg, just to name a few notables of 'The Chosen People', but no Hannukah rock songs? I'd say one is over due.

The Fleshtones recently claimed that they're writing better songs now than they ever have. The originals on Stocking Stuffer are proof of that, with the final song "I Still Believe In Christmas", a great sing along done in their true sing along style with cool keyboards and a swingin' sax. Plenty of rockers do Christmas tunes, but when we think of Christmas albums, the knowingly less rockin' types are known for Christmas albums. I won't name them. You know them already because your parents probably own at least a few and you have to hear it when you go visit them. Stocking Stuffer is Yuletide Super Rock with great originals and some wonderful covers. It's no surprise that it's great, or that Keith, Peter, Ken, and Gordon all play at the top on it since they'd never settle for anything less. It's a damn good thing, too. Stocking Stuffer is the first great rock 'n' roll Christmas album. Besides, it's The Fleshtones! Their name is enough to know it's a great album.




Vindicated: A Tribute To The Fleshtones
Dirty Water Records
UsA through Get Hip Distribution


Tribute albums are usually hit and miss. Some of it's great, some isn't. That's not good enough for The Fleshtones. Their catalog is just too good. As a band, they take the cake for having the largest number of rock 'n' roll songs that are just perfect and give you the feeling that THEY ARE ROCK 'N' ROLL. So chances are, almost anyone can do a good cover since the material is just too good to work with. Again, not good enough for The Fleshtones. Instead, Vindicated: A Tribute To The Fleshtones takes the best garage rock bands from all over, although not known by most, to cover in tribute of super rock that can only be The Fleshtones! From Spain comes Los Chicos with their stripped down, bass thumped cover of 1991's "Living Legends". The powerpop production of Dave Faulkner is replaced with heavy doses of guitar and bass fuzz. What a perfect song (and title) to mark paying tribute to the eternal rock 'n' roll teenagers! The other contribution from Spain is the 1998 tune "Better Days" covered by Dr. Explosion, the band fronted by Jorge Explosion, the head of Spain's garage rock analog studio paradise Circo Perotti, not only home to an incredible vintage instrument collection and analog only recording studio, but also the studio where most of today's great garage rock bands native to Spain record. Philadelphia's legends The Cynics also recorded their recent release with Jorge at the studio. Whereas the original is almost frozen in time as either an acceptance of sad times for someone else or possibly a lament mirroring The Fleshtones status in the music business at the time, the cover communicates hope with it's louder sound recorded in mono. It's no suprise that Spain is represented here. It's a current hotbed for garage rock and has grown bigger in the past five years as a home for rock 'n' roll.

In greater proof of The Fleshtones status as international garage icons, Italy is represented with The Psychotones singing "Hitsburg U.S.A." in dual guitar, hot rhythm glory that tells the world where to go for rock 'n' roll! The U.K. joins in with Scotland's The Primevals adding their special ghoulish touch to "Screamin' Skull" from the 1983 release Hexbreaker, a song that was originally interpreted by Rolling Stone Magazine's Parke Putterbaugh as being about popping pills in East L.A. You be the judge of that. It's guaranteed that you'll be singing along with the first chorus. The other contribution from The British Isles is Richard Mazda with "Hope Come Back" from 1982's Roman Gods. It's on the "crunchy" guitar side with some suprising loud solos and a few synth/keyboard effects that fit quite well with the song's basic r & b base.

A garage rock invasion from Sweden has been taking place under our noses for quite some time now. The Maggots live up to their name by pumping up the Farfisa and clapping along with added guitar distortion, infecting the gloriously silly, repetitive lyrics with an almost nasal tone that brings home the youthful, amateur and fun sing-a-long quality of the 2005 song that ultimately celebrates self acceptance as pure joy. The Turpentines throw their hat in the ring on "The Girl From Baltimore" by lending a powerpop/metal guitar sheen, extended harmonica that brings out the vintage rock feel to the song, but adds a perfectly timed, Spike Jones like stutter resuperrocks a classic that one never tires of. As if to outdo everyone, the legendary Nomads take on American Beat in all its glory with heavier drumming and the anthemic "Can you hear the American Sound?". The added vocal harmony is great, but Handsome Dick Manitoba adds his traditional, over the top self promotion that only he can do and can never be topped or undone.

One doesn't think of rock 'n' roll when they think of France, but the French kids seriously one-upped their American counterparts when it came to The Fleshtones. Having little recognition in The States, they're long time rock stars in France. In fitting recognition of their support, there are four contributions from France. The Slow Slushee Boys turn "I've Gotta Change My Life" into a nugget with an organ led melody and some near pyschedelic vintage guitar that sound like a Vietnam War, Motown hinted self introspective. There's also the minimalist approach but simple chord super rock of Les Playboys "En Balade Avec Les Playboys". The other French Language song is Tony Truant's "La Fille du Noctambule". It just sounds cool in French! The unlisted fact that The Fleshtones are the backing band, but the drumming is heavier and the chords are fuzzier, giving it a more garage rock sound than the original recording. The final French contribution is more of an international coalition with France, Germany, and the U.S. with Snax Featuring Halloween Jack doing "Good Good Crack". It's techno! It's bizarre. The immediate impression is "What the fuck is this doing on here?", but the song topic deserves a pretty "out there" treatment. After all, it's only fitting that one hears techno while hearing "I need it need it, got to have that good good crack!"

We love The Fleshtones over here too, but instead of them elevating to super rock status, they always have and continue to serve as the blueprint of a great band that never gives up, stays true to what rock 'n' roll really should sound like, but also recreate what it should feel like night after night in small clubs and with small, but very happy crowds all across the country. The Fleshtones travel down the same roads and play in the same places every year, bringing back the whole ideal of great rock 'n' roll. Every time they play, one not only gets to see one of the best live acts ever, but ends up with an intimate connection to them as a result of a small crowd. After all, great rock 'n' roll is found in the small dives, punk clubs, and other crowded spaces, not the arena or stadium. Therefore, The Fleshtones are an ultimate guide for bands that are in it just to play their hearts out, regardless of the insignificant, small monetary gain, if there is one. Almost half of Vindicated: A Tribute To The Fleshtones is devoted to American acts. There's the classic garage stomp of "Watch This" recreated by The Havox, the very shakin' and psychedelic freakout of "I Wanna Feel Something Now" from The Insomniacs, the minimalist, Texas Hillbilly approach on "Whistling Past The Graveyard" by Hans Frank, "Headlock On My Heart" from the 2003 release Do You Swing faithfully rendered with blaring guitars and a great lead vocal from The Slickee Boys, desolate surf mixed with Cramps like buzzsaw chords of The Hate Bombs, the brash saxophone lending a '60s spy movie soundtrack feel on "Legend Of A Wheelman" from The Immortal Porpoises, and the Ramones/bubblegum resurrection on "Dreaming About Work" by The Subway Surfers. A special standout is the "Way Down South" by Florida's The Four Shames because it's the only track with a female voice, but it's awfully good and will make one crave for more fried chicken and all sorts of cholesterol laden Southern faire. A final American contribution comes from The Woggles, the Southern garage/soul counterparts of The Fleshtones on "The Theme From 'The Vindicators'.

Finally, Vindicated: A Tribute To The Fleshtones wouldn't be complete without a contribution from longtime friend, and one time producer Dave Faulkner and his hard and soft hitting powerpop legends themselves, The Hoodoo Gurus on "Pickin' Pickin", a super happy romp full of pop style that's always challenged by guitarist Brad Shephard's 'AC/DC Trigger fingers' that hearken back to another rock legend, The Flamin' Groovies.


Three Decades, 19 albums, and here we are. We love The Fleshtones! It's been quite a year for them with two new studio albums and endless touring accross the pond and back, throngs of new fans and regained old ones, and a chance to finally receive some of the praise (and profit) that they so much deserved for so long as among a chosen few bands to never put down the torch of rock 'n' roll in all its teenage dance party glory. 2008 was The Year of The Fleshtones. However, their extensive catalog is mostly out of print. The few copies available of such staples as Powerstance Hitsburg, Angry Years and others are only found on ebay for $80 or more being sold by obvious scum out to make money off of someone else's hard work. Roman Gods and Hexbreaker have about as much of a likelihood being found as Bigfoot! So The Fleshtones are left with a growing number and new and returning fans hungry for Super Rock: "Hitsurg USA", "American Beat", "Screamin' Skull", we all wnat to hear them, but at least for the present time, everything besides their four Yep Roc releases are out of print. It's time for Vindicated: A Tribute To The Fleshtones. They've earned it and as the legend has its long awaited growth spurt, we all want more of The Fleshtones.

It's a lot to take in, but the following \gives the perfect summary:

Feel that the beats back and play it that it happened that way
But you know that to us it was always there anyway
In Boston or New York or way out like in L.A.
Can you hear the American sound
Have your heard the American sound
Don't want to hear you put it down
I'd like to hear it on the radio in my home town

Every summer there's a number that I wanna hear the DJ play
In my room or at the shore man you know it's gonna sound OK
From Boston to Miami or way out in Malibu Bay
Can you hear the American sound
Have your heard the American sound
Don't want to hear you put it down
Hear it on the radio in my home town


Written by Peter Zaremba. Published by My Idea Music.