The 80s skatepunk legends are back and it’s like they’ve never been away, playing the old classics plus premium cuts from the brand new album “The Kids Don’t Like It” ready to be released on Boss Tuneage Records this summer.
To celebrate this new release after many years of not punking it up, the Stupids have joined up with Shitty Limits and Section 13 at the Old Blue Last in Old Street for a night of hardcore bliss.
Doors are 8pm, get there early.
The Ghost of A Thousand‘s insanely good album is released on 1st June via Epitaph. Titled ‘New Hopes, New Demonstrations‘, the first song to be lifted from this monster of a full-length is called ‘Bright Lights‘ and we have the video available for your viewing pleasure here.
Also look out for them live as they ripped a hole in the Great Escape festival down in Brighton this weekend with a ferocious live set which was talked about around Sussex the entire weekend.
If I were to say Castrovalva had loud, catchy riffs combined with heavy drums then you’d probably think they are a metal outfit. If you thought this you would be wrong, this duo rocks out to the beat of progressive with a little bit of a dance twist thrown in.
Played with only a bass guitar and drums this self-titled album is music stripped down to the bare essentials. Being in the vein of bands such as Death From Above 1979 and Lightning Bolt. A few years ago this record would have been completely original, however due to the emergence of bands like Death From Above the genre is already thriving. Although the music isn’t original its definitely a great representation, encompassing all that’s right with progressive rock.
Every song is insanely catchy and you can’t help but tap your feet along to the rhythms. The bass and drums fuse together to create a deep, droney sound that works extremely well. The distortion on the bass makes the noise fuzzy, which adds to the character of the music. If they threw in an electric guitar over the top the music would probably sound like Metallica in the black album era. So you know you’re dealing with great riffs that have been brought down to the minimal.
All sorts of music fans can appreciate Castrovalva. If you like progressive music then you’ll certainly dig them. You may also like it if you’re a fan of down tuned doom metal, as the music has a dark edge too it. The infectious beat that runs through the songs may even bring in fans of more dance oriented “indie.” The sounds are contagious and could definitely fill a dance floor.
Castrovalva certainly cover a wide spectrum of music, especially when you know that it’s just a bass and a guitar. This 8 track record should definitely be at the forefront of progressive rock and if you give it a chance you won’t be disappointed. Out now on Brew Records.
Jonathan Teggert
As far as vintage riff rock goes, Tee Pee records seem to be putting out the cream of the crop lately. This is no exception with The Atomic Bitchwax‘s new record TAB 4, an appropriately titled 11-song trip back to the 1970’s.
The record opens up with the sweet licks of Revival, a medley of guitar and vocal harmonies sending you into outer space. We’re then thrust into Super Computer, an instrumental that appeared surprisingly early in the album. The Atomic Bitchwax don’t want to ease you in, they set the pace right away and if you don’t like it then don’t listen. You will like it though, and you’ll find yourself jamming the air guitar by the time Don’t Do It kicks in.
The record is extremely retrofied, sounding like vintage Rush, Cream and Deep Purple. They may not strike a chord with the younger generation but the oldies can definitely dig it. Nonetheless I think the music is still quite relevant, bands like Wolfmother and early Kings of Leon gained plenty of success ripping off the aforementioned bands.
The music is played in quite an updated fashion however, throwing in a bit of progressive rock now and again. You’re never short of a face melting solo in the songs; so musicians will appreciate the shit out of it, as TAB seem to be a talented bunch. They tend to keep in with the whimsical themes that the classics used, but if that’s your cup of tea then TAB should be too.
TAB 4 is a very listenable album and if you like your rock and roll vintage then I definitely suggest you check it out. The complex polyrhythms will never leave you bored as there’s always something working your brain. The Atomic Bitchwax are one of those bands you will find yourself tapping your feet along too, and if they were around 40 years ago they’d be up there with the classics. For now they will just have to be part of the revival, but I say the best of luck to them!
Jonathan Teggert
Unless you’re a Gallows novice (and if you are, then believe me, you’ve got plenty of catching up to do), then you’ll most likely be aware of the contrast in circumstances between ‘Grey Britain‘ and the band’s debut ‘Orchestra Of Wolves‘ – the latter a record now loved by many, but (at the time of its 2006 release) anticipated by few. Fast forward to 2009, and it seems as if every man and his hard-rockin’ dog has been waiting for ‘Grey Britain‘ with bated breath.
In short: Frank and the boys have not let us down. Whereas ‘Orchestra Of Wolves‘ came across as a violent, savage reaction against all the various mishaps and problems that plagued the band in their early days, the Gallows of 2009 has bigger fish to fry. Make no mistake, they’re still furious, but not overwhelmed; they’ve seen the sheer magnitude of our society’s ills, and they’ve made a behemoth of a record to reflect the state of this not-so-fair isle. ‘Grey Britain’ certainly isn’t any more commercial than their debut, just bigger in terms of sound and subject matter, and it will deservedly reach a larger audience.
Oh, and did I mention that the songs are great? Recent live favourite ‘London Is The Reason‘ kicks things off with the band’s signature abrasive swagger, and from then on, it’s one hell of a ride. ‘Leeches‘ has an awesome Rage Against The Machine style riff in the middle, ‘The Great Forgiver‘ and ‘Crucifucks‘ take aim at religion in spectacular style, and the anti-knife crime anthem ‘Queensberry Rules‘ is as sonically brutal as its subject matter.
However, the most disquieting track on offer here is arguably ‘The Vulture (Act 1)‘, which sees Frank actually singing. He does a decent job of it, but when contrasted to his usual roar, it’s rather like sitting next to a sleepy tiger; knowing that at any moment it could wake up and rip your throat out. And sure enough, the teeth are bared in fine style on ‘…Act 2’.
Ultimately, ‘Grey Britain’ sees Gallows take a bold step forward, whilst retaining all of the facets that made them so good in the first place. This is as ugly and twisted a record as you could hope for from Watford’s finest: check out the next single ‘London is the Reason’ on the link above, or watch the video to the Vulture below and judge for yourself. On tour now.
Alex Gosman
Assemble Head’s new record When Sweet Sleep Returned is their third effort, and what a good effort it is. 8 Songs of atmospheric, experimental, space rock played in the vein of Pink Floyd and Crazy Horse. Combining catchy riffs with whimsical synthesisers and vocal harmonies.
Tee Pee Records definitely like their spaced out bands and Assemble Head don’t differ from these. The songs aren’t as balls out as other things on Tee Pee; nonetheless the label’s resume is building into quite a respectful one.
When Sweet Sleep Returned is a very sweet record indeed, it has a certain sincerity about it that hasn’t been heard for quite a while. It seems like music created for the sake of music, not to get big and famous, just some friends who like to jam. It’s a relaxing sound that comes straight out of Woodstock; the air of peace and serenity is always there.
Such strange sound effects as air raid sirens are frequently used, which really reminds me of the Floyd. Using these ethereal sound effects to create an eerie feel to the record. There is also a hint of garage rock hidden away in there, the track Drunken Leaves could be gritty punk song if it were played with rawness and more distortion.
Assemble Head are a band anyone could get into, they’re as eclectic as they are intriguing, and I’m sure seeing them live would be a mind blowing experience. Once you’ve wrapped your head around the beauty that can be found in not cranking your guitar up to 11 and letting the instruments do the talking, you can truly understand this album.
If you want to listen to a record that is actually nice to listen too, When Sweet Sleep Returns should be top of your list. It is calming, soporific, but definitely great music. This is the kind of album that works its way into your head and lingers there for a very long time.
By Jonathan Teggert
Here’s a disc that might well appeal to you skaters and punks. LOTBM number the legendary skater/tattooist twins Art and Steve Godoy in their ranks (on drums and guitar) as well as Radio Birdman lead guitarist Deniz Tek. Joined by bassist Troy Zak and vocalist Danny Creadon these grizzled rockers kick up some mighty fine jams on this 10 track album.
Clocking in at a shade over 30minutes, these snappy numbers pack plenty of punk rock punch which rocks in a hard edged UK ’77 meets SoCal ’82 vein. Art ‘n Steve have previously collaborated with Deniz in The Golden Breed, as well as performing live with him in a rejuvenated Visitors, but their best known outfit was The Exploding Fuck Dolls, who were fronted for a period by The Master of Disaster himself – Duane Peters. And there is a reprise of EFD’s ’93 single, the lurching “City Action” … “give me a box of matches, give me a load of pills”… guess they can hit up Dr Tek for that prescription!
“Day to Ride” from Deniz’s solo album “Outside” is given a welcome dusting down, as is a killer work out of ‘Birdman’s anthemic “Hit ’em Again” which is ramped up by some scorching fret work. Fantastico! There’s plenty of meat on the bones of the original material too, notably surf-punker “1959″, “Bottle Rocket” with snotty snarling vocals and slashing riffage. “Full Pipe” is a raucous celebration to vert ramps, front side airs, falling on your face, black eyes, and riding all night… can you dig it??!!
I’ve been spinning this disc repeatedly since it dropped thru my letter box. If the likes of US Bombs/Hunns, Birdman, Vibrators, Heartbreakers, UK Subs, Humpers, Agent Orange and Shattered Faith rock your planet, I can definitely recommend further investigation of Last of The Bad Men. Let’s Ride!
Pete Craven
The Macbeth
13th May 2009
Photos by Phil Procter
Evan Dando is in town to promote his newest venture, a covers album called ‘Varshons’, a wonderful mix of tracks from GG Allin, Christina Aguilera, Gram Parsons and Leonard Cohen to name but a few.
The Macbeth provides an unusually intimate venue for tonight’s show – given that on his previous trips to London Dando has sold out The Empire, Forum and Somerset House. Tonight’s venue is heaving by the time Dando bounds onto the tiny stage over half an hour late. It’s just him and his guitar standing alone in front of a few hundred ardent fans (some a little too ardent, but more of that later..). He drifts into ‘Outdoor Type’ and from there the pace rarely slackens, as he slips from track to track, his notebook open on the stage with a hastily scrawled set list and lyrics to some of the newer tracks.
‘Drug Buddy’, ‘Rudderless‘ and crowd pleaser ‘It’s a Shame About Ray‘ are all hollered back at the stage word perfect – there are a couple of girls at the front whose voices actually overtake Dando’s at some point. He keeps the chatter to a minimum, and seems a little shy of the attention, his hair falling over his face, shoulders hunched around his guitar. ‘Down About it‘ and ‘Into Your Arms‘ get just a few verses and a chorus each, as Dando flits about the set list, picking and choosing – and even taking requests from the crowd.
A cover of GG Allin’s tongue in cheek ‘Layin’ Up With Linda‘ is a glimpse at the new album, as it the sublime version of Gram Parson ‘ I Just Can’t Take it Anymore‘ – Dando’s wonderfully smooth country lilt is enough to give you goose bumps, Parsons would be proud.
A blonde hops onto the stage to provide backing vocals and dances around – which at first is ok with Dando, he even offers for her to sing a verse – but when she declines to leave the stage at the end of the song he gets visibly annoyed, and goes to leave, only returning to get his guitar, before the evening is saved by another audience member who hauls the girl and her friend off the stage. Well done that man.
Dando seems a little rattled by this, but returns to sing a few more tracks, including a half hearted version of ‘My Name is Luca‘ and then stunning renditions of ‘ Bit Part‘ and ‘Different Drum‘. There’s another upset when one of his lyrics sheets goes walking, and by the end of the evening his scrawl filled notebooks has gone walkabout too. Whilst it’s one thing to request a set list at the end of the night, stealing personal items is a step too far.
Tonight the Evan Dando we see is bashful, shy and humble in front of a packed room. He is -as ever- very understated, leaving the songs to do the talking. With 20 years of music under his belt, Dando has nothing to prove. Tonight’s show is simple but stunning, and goes to show that you don’t need the light shows, backdrops and pyrotechnics when you’ve got real talent.
Dee Massey
Varshons is released on 15th June 2009. Look out for an interview with Evan Dando on this site soon.
Thanks to photos by Chuck Espinoza for the photos.
Gran Ronde have a reputation as being THE opening band for huge LA shows – but luckily for them it’s not a case of always the bridesmaid, never the bride. Whilst Gran Ronde fans have swelled in number from opening slots for Razorlight, We Are Scientists and The Enemy to name but a few, they are a stand alone force to be reckoned with.
With their Mark Needham produced debut album due for release in the UK in June, a Great Escape appearance this weekend and a UK headline tour, Gran Ronde are taking their well earned place at the top of the bill.
Frontman Chris Pearson took some time out to introduce Dee Massey and the Crossfire readers to Gran Ronde…
Gran Ronde are pretty new to us over in the UK – so give us a little background… how did you meet? How long have you been plugging away with this band? What’s your background?
We are all from different parts of the states. Bryan came from New York, Fern came from Miami and I came from Oregon after a couple years living in Tokyo. I first came to LA in 2000 on a road trip, and just ended up staying. I wanted a place where I could see the best live music and have the best weather and lots of friends. In 2004, I started to get the idea in my head that it would be a really great idea to be in a band, so I started asking all my friends who wanted to play and ended up meeting Fern and Bryan that way …friends of friends.
In the early stages of the band, when we were just figuring stuff out, but there was so much buzz and the shows were crazy. We were offered a weekly residency in December of that year at The Silverlake Lounge by Scott Sterling, a local promoter. A little known band called Silversun Pickups opened up for us. Ha, now they are playing stadiums or something here!
How would you describe your sound to someone new to Gran Ronde?
That’s a hard one to answer. Reverb drenched, melodious guitar driven rock!? Ha, I do love the reverb and delay pedals. I do love a good melody, and am a sucker for a big sound.
What bands do you think you’re mostly influenced by?
I think it’s pretty easy to hear my love for Echo and the Bunnymen, early Cure, but when I was young I was a metal head, and I love it loud. In college I discovered The Jesus and Mary Chain, that completely changed my perspective on music. From there I got into so much music everything from the Flaming Lips to Yo La Tengo and Stereolab, Low, Guided by Voices. I still want to cover Motor Away. Great rock tune. But my voice is kinda weird and when I sing it kinda has it’s own sound. I just build the songs around that really.
For you what’s the best part of being in a band?
Playing live!
I’m going to stop asking that question…everyone says the same thing! You’ve opened for some great bands – Razorlight, We Are Scientists, The Enemy etc – how did those opening slots come about, and what was it like playing to those huge audiences?
We have been very fortunate to get onto some great bills. Mostly, we will just get an email from a promoter asking us if we wanna play a local show and it kinda goes from there. I have to say the WAS dudes are some the nicest guys around. Silly but nice. The highlight so far was playing NYC with Razorlight at the Irving Plaza on Friday evening. Great show, great crowd. You just wanna live in those moments for ever.
So let’s talk about the new album – Secret Rooms. I understand you ended up working with Mark Needham, who’s produced some amazing albums for The Killers, We Are Scientists etc – how did you end up working with him?
Mark is a great champion of music in LA. He had heard about us in the early stages of the band and took us under his wing and really helped us out. We worked on a bunch of music that ended up on Secret Rooms. He is a very talented guy, who really puts his heart into a project. When you work with him you really feel like you can make that sound you are trying to get.
Did you enjoy your time in the studio? Is the end result all you hoped it would be?
Yes. We did record half of the record on our own because Mark was so busy at the time. In the end Mark was kind enough to mix the whole thing.
The album is out on Filter in the US, and I heard you just got a distribution deal in the UK too? When can we expect to get our hands on the record over here?
June 2009, it will be released by Friends Vs. Records
You’re coming over to the UK this spring for a headline show, this isn’t your first time over here it is? What do you make of UK audiences? How do you handle English food?!
We first came over a couple years ago for a week in London. We did a few shows at Club Fandango and opened for The Academy Is at Barfly Camden. It was great fun. We met very cool people, had some so-so food (we try to stick to Indian). The fans were very cool. UK audiences are much more receptive to music than what we were used to in LA. That kinda heightens the whole experience. We have been waiting to have an actual release before coming back.
You just played The Big Escape in Brighton this weekend – are you going to be playing anymore festivals in the UK?
We are doing the Dot to Dot. and we will be doing a full scale UK tour all over the place. Our dates are posted on our myspace page.
A few quickfire questions…
What’ll be on your rider when you’re big and important?
Motorcycles
What’s your poison?
Michilada
Best hangover cure?
Michilada
Most listened to album recently?
Lou Reed Transformer
Worst thing about living in a van on tour?
Living in a van with 4 dudes (sounds pretty self explanatory to me) – that van is my only vehicle too!
Can people follow the band on Twitter? Do you buy into all that social networking stuff?
No. Not really. I don’t have time for it. I’d rather live a life outside of my computer. Too much maintenance!
What was the first gig you ever went to?
David Lee Roth “Eat Em and Smile” Tour. I was a little rocker. Cinderella opened. Haha!
Finally – any words of wisdom for the Crossfire readers?
Don’t anger a rattlesnake. Come see us play!
For further info on Gran Ronde check out their target=”_blank”>MySpace
For all you whores out there in Shoreditch, here’s the first line up for this Festival for Sunday 26th July at Shoreditch Park starting at 12pm-9pm. Entrance is £15. Includes entrance to all day festival and ten after parties
BANDS STAGE:
ADVERT // A GRAVE WITH NO NAME // AN EXPERIMENT ON A BIRD IN THE AIR PUMP // A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS // BANJO OR FREAKOUT // CC-SB // CHROME HOOF // FACTORY FLOOR // FLASHGUNS // HATCHAM SOCIAL // IPSO FACTO // KASMS // LION CLUB // O CHILDREN // POLLY SCATTERGOOD // PROJECT: KOMAKINO // RELICS // S.C.U.M // SILHOUETTE // SLOPPY SECONDS // SUNDERBANS // TELEVISED CRIMEWAVE // VEGAS WHORES // THE WARLOCKS // WILD PALMS // ULTERIOR // VIDEO NASTIES
ELECTRONIC STAGE:
**K // AUTOKRATZ // BOY CRISIS // DEATH TO THE KING // JOE & WILL ASK // KOOL KIDS KLUB // KRAZY BALDHEAD (ED BANGER) // LUNG ROTTER & SEVEN // MODEL FOR MEMORY // MICRON 63 // THE LOVELY JONJO
With many more to be announced soon. All details at www.the1234shoreditch.com