Magic in Here....The Go-Betweens--Live in London!! and Goodbye Maxwells....

I'd like to say I saw Australia's songwriting laureates The Go-Betweens live once, but I can't....

I saw them 2 times. On consecutive nights. But let me digress a little.

I miss Maxwell's, the club/restaurant located in downtown Hoboken New Jersey. The restaurant remains open, but this summer they stopped booking bands. I hadn't been there in a while--I almost went to see Sloan play there in June. Yeah, that's right Canada. Sloan, your alternative-era version of the Beatles in a place where the fire code limited attendance to 175 people. Hard to believe. But it's why Maxwell's will always be regarded by me as a legendary venue.

Though I didn't make the trip there often, it was my favorite place to see a band. Tiny room with an amazing sound. And a restaurant/bar attached to the performance area. A great roster of bands have played there over the years. Ticket prices were cheap too. I've heard so much press and bemoaning about the closing of CBGB's, but really, Maxwell's really deserves more than it got. Give CBGB's credit for it's place in punk history, but for many years it was a shadow of the joint it once was. It was kind of a dump when I first went there, but eventually when I looked at the music ads in the Village Voice there would almost never be any interesting bands playing there anymore. But the club business seems to be a pretty hard way to make a living, and small venues have an even tougher time competing with larger places. Maybe its not a surprise, then, that places like Maxwell's have stopped booking bands, given the economic malaise and the sort of economics of scale we have in the US, where small fish ultimately get gobbled up by the bigger fish.



So, I saw the Go-Betweens for the first time at Maxwell's---It was the reunited band, probably their 2nd tour here after Forster and McLennan got back together. I have to say that the show was fantastic, probably perfect. The two guys and I think Adele Pickvance on bass. Nope, I'm wrong. It was in fact Carrie Brownstein, formerly of Sleater-Kinney. No drums. Though they both composed their own songs, it was remarkable seeing Grant and Robert's synchronous performance, how their two guitars meshed together while playing altogether different parts.

And it was pretty amazing seeing them perform from about 8 feet from the stage.

Something kind of weird happened early on at the show. No, not a riot---seeing the Go-Betweens is a lot like seeing Simon and Garfunkel--but apparently a tall lanky guy in front of me was up to something. He was right next to the front of the stage in front of Robert Forster. A security guy came up to him and told him to cut it out. I don't know what it was that he was doing. Honestly never really noticed anyone doing this sort of thing at Maxwell's before. About 5-10 minutes later the security guy came back and spoke to him again. The guy remonstrated with the bouncer a little and suddenly the guy wrapped his arms around the guys arms and torso, picked him up and carted him out of the concert while the Go-Betweens were in the middle of a song!! When the song ended, Forster had this incredulous look on his face, and said something like "I wonder what that was all about?"

When the show was over the band left the stage. If you know Maxwell's, you know that there is no rear exit from the stage. The band goes through room to get on stage, and departs through the crowd at the end. So that same bouncer was escorting the band through the mostly rapturous audience. Then they went past me. I was just standing there with my arms down looking at Forster when the bouncer guy gives me a big open handed shove to my chest. Kind of caught me by surprise and completely unnecessary. It wasn't like a mosh pit opened up during Cattle and Cane.....Maybe the other guy was out of line, but its funny how people behave when get an iota of power bestowed on them...

I was excited about the concert that I tried to see them the next night. They were playing at the Knitting Factory when they were still in Manhattan. Sold out. I actually called the place and discovered they had a few tickets still. It was also a good concert, but not the same as at Maxwell's. There were a few drunk overly rowdy people shouting stuff at the band way too much, which wasn't really appropriate. I mean are you there to watch a show, or be the show?



If you have never seen the Go-Betweens live, I have located an unsatisfactory substitute, for there really are no better options anymore. A great musical partnership was permanently sundered eons before its time. Recently, I noticed people selling a live CD of the Go-Betweens for pretty extortionary prices on-line. Well, I went on the Go-Betweens' offical website and discovered that Live in London, a 2 disc greatest hits live collection is available for only 10 Pounds. 28 songs in total, very well recorded, and the songs on the 2nd disc mostly have strings on them. You can't beat that.

The greatest hits album that was recently released entitled Quiet Heart also has a bonus live disc from 1987 from Germany, I think. But if you aren't familiar with one of Australia's greatest exports, the Live in London discs would not be a bad place to get acquainted! Just listening to the 2 disc reminded me that they made a ton of terrific songs. And there were still a lot of great songs that I wished were included.

And the disc brought back a lot of great memories.

Happy Halloween! Dream Syndicate, Go Groovie Ghoulies and The Cramps that Bind!

Happy Halloween! Here's a few super songs from the Kings and Queens of Halloween!

Groovie Ghoulies! This is the Ramones on Halloween!


I will relate a spooky story that happened in my own home town probably 10 years ago. It is a true story and could probably only happen here. A couple was handing out candy for Halloween. At some point the wife decided to take out her false teeth for a little bit and left them on the table. Later that night, when she went to retrieve them, she couldn't seem to find them!

The next morning, I hear her husband's voice on the radio, telling their story, and imploring the kid who found dentures in their candy sack to please return them! Dentures are expensive Halloween treats, after all.

Reality is a lot scarier than anything even Steven King could dream up!


Here's my favorite Halloween song from Lux and Ivy. It's not about Hockey goalies.





Have a fun and safe Halloween! From the Days of Wine and Roses.....

Goodbye Sweet Lou......The Velvet Underground spawned Multitudes

Not a lot to say here, since its so very obvious to most music fans. The Velvet Underground were a very important band to me. As I listened to the new music back in the 80's, I looked back and acquainted myself with the Velvet Underground.

Sure they were a contrast to the Peace and Love era of the 1960's, revealing a grittier, less idealistic, and more realistic view of the world. But they also were incredibly poignant, sad, remarkably astute.

I guess to me they revealed an intellectual side to rock music that I hadn't seen or noticed before. They were artists in the highest (and lowest) sense. And while they rocked out, I also appreciated both their incredible subtlety and experimentalism. And while they did not move sales like their predecessors, but they were the inspiration to several generations of great bands and musical movements.

Lou Reed will be greatly missed. My last memory of him was being on stage with Metallica and truthfully he looked like a fish out of water. Maybe it was the best pair up they could put together that day.

Not being a a master of the obvious, here's a nice cover of a Velvets classic. From the box set.
Back in February I also posted Whipping Boy covering Candy Says (one of my favorite songs), if anybody is interested.

Huw M---Os Mewn Swn---Welsh Language Chamber Folk

By chance I found a lovely album for sale in the Sain Records Shop. My original reason for visiting the Sain website was not for this album. But as I checked out their inventory I saw the interesting looking cover, and so I stopped to take a look at the description of the disc and I wanted to hear it.
Hey I'm a human being like everyone else. Why do you think casinos are so shiny inside? Since I'm discussing it now, you may have guessed already that I found a good one here. And you would be correct. And I have not yet posted anything about the record I was actually seeking out at the time!

Huw M, aka Huw Meredydd Roberts is a musician from Bangor, Wales, and it is pretty clear from the liner notes that he can play a lot of musical instruments! Guitar, banjo, mandolin, ukelele, sitar, bass, piano, piano organ, Hammond organ, melodica, percussion, and harmonica. Note: in welsh ukelele is spelled iwcalili, which for I find interesting for some reason.

On Os Mewn Swn translated as If In Sound, his first record, recorded in Cardiff in 2010, he is joined by Bethan Reynolds on vocals and clocsio "clog dancing". I think that's his wife. Frank Naughton produced and plays a whole slew of instruments too, including the Maui Xaphoon. It's described as a "bamboo sax", and is somewhat similar to a clarinet. I never heard of one before and just looked it up. The first one was made in 1972. Lucello (aka Lucy O'Connor)plays cello on this recording, and she may in fact be the secret weapon on this album, as the cello work is superlative.




The music here is very sweet sounding folk music, with beautiful harmonies, all in the Welsh language. I don't know what they are singing about, but that's never stopped me before. Most of the songs are originals, but 2 are reworkings of traditional Welsh songs. It's a nice album for a quiet Sunday morning. If you are into Belle and Sebastian, Velvet Underground, or Nick Drake, I think you will find this appealing. And certainly if you enjoy the solo work of Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals, or Meic Stevens or the Welsh folk music scene  of the 60's and 70's in general you will need to have this near you at all times.




The album is described as being influenced by Brazilian and French music. Maybe those descriptions are a little beyond my knowledge. The second song Ond Yn Dawel Daw y Dydd has an African sounding riff at the beginning, like maybe Soukous being played at half-speed. The album is fairly laid back and it really allow you hear the Welsh language, which I think sounds so beautiful here. In the mad scramble of the 90's, when record industry people scampered to all corners of the world to find a new scene after every single band in Seattle got a major label contract, Wales was a gleam in someones eye for a few nanoseconds. I don't know if its loyalty, or just stubborness, but I investigated a little myself when bands like 60 Foot Dolls and Catatonia were being marketed, and I continue to find great music even after the Music Industry's all-seeing eye moved on to other places. It should be no great surprise. And I think that its great that in a small country of only 3 million people they are keeping their heritage alive.



After listening to this album 5 times, I have to say that Os Mewn Swn is flat-out beautiful. Very glad I found this, a very special surprise. I've already decided that I need to hear his second album, Gathering at Dusk, which was made in 2011. People at SainWales seem like really nice people. I had trouble ordering on their site and they straightened things out fairly quickly for me. And they seem to have a lot of items at very very reasonable prices.

What was the name of the place?--The Morells---Shake and Push

One of the benefits of having a College roommate who DJed back in Wormtown was being introduced to some unusual recordings. One such record was by The Morells, a rockin' little band from Springfield, Missouri.

Hamburger, Cheeseburger, Lettuce & Tomato!

Being a freshly converted Punk hipster in the early 80's, I was a bit incredulous. Shake and Push seemed to be a fish out of water, perhaps a little old fashioned and corny for 1982. I think I thought this was some sort of goofy parody. But the more I listened, the more I liked. Turns out at this album is a a lot of fun. But probably just a shadow of the live experience.

I almost feel like I went to a flea market and made a mix tape of assorted obscure old vinyl releases. Or found a soundtrack to an unreleased John Waters movie. Or probably they simply know a lot more about music than I do.

But this is the good stuff, played with love. The band is having a blast and they invite you to share in the good times. And though the atmosphere is loose, these guys have some pretty impressive musical chops. And though Punk Rock was the music of choice for us, it was also true that there was a bit of a rockabilly revival going on, with groups like The Blasters and The Stray Cats. So maybe it really wasn't the worst possible time for this album.




The cover of course features Red's, aka Red's Giant Hamburg a local legendary restaurant on Route 66. Supposedly it was the first "Drive-Thru" Restaurant. I think Morells insured that Red's would be remembered forever with their homage to the restaurant. It's a great song that makes me smile every time I hear it. It makes me want to hop in a time machine and eat there! Unfortunately, Red's closed down shortly after the release of Shake and Push. I still miss it, and I never was there.....

The Morells are:
Lou Whitney: Vocals, Bass
D.Clinton Thompson: Guitar
Maralie: Piano, Vocals on Go Ahead
Ron Gremp: Drums

Comparisons can also be made to NRBQ and Austin's Brave Combo I suppose. Infectious 50's rock like Push, Kick, Shout! You have a tune like That Mellow Saxophone, which sounds like they are doing a cover of a song by some guys who wanted to sound like Louis Prima. They do a cool version of Bumble Boogie featuring Maralie, I guess. Ugly and Slouchy is a country novelty tune that would fit in on Hee Haw, and Growin' A Beard could have been a weird rockabilly number from an Elvis movie. But listen to that guitar. D. Clinton knows his way around a fret board!

Before The Morells did Shake and Push, Whitney and Thompson were in a band called The Skeletons, who put out a couple albums in their day. The Morells reunited eventually have put out a few more albums, including some live Cds, which I haven't heard.



You know an album is special when the first song Gettin' In Shape segues into the Village People's YMCA toward the end. Perhaps Shake and Push is an album that won't change your life, but it's an album that still amazes me. In a country where technology is homogenizing culture to such an extent, it's great to hear an album that is a poster child for American regionalism and diversity.

Minneapolis on the Mersey!!! The Beatifics--The Way We Never Were!

I think that I first found out about The Beatifics on AllMusic by seeing them as being related to another band I was getting info about. I picked both of their albums a while ago, and they are definitely manna for the pop aficionado. Minneapolis seems to have a knack for growing great bands.

It would be a little unfair to characterize these guys as merely competent musicians playing around in the Beatles sandbox. As to the Beatifics' sound I referring specifically to the influence of the early Fab variety Beatles, rather than their beardy later years. Certainly, the songs are really much more than that of course. But there is a sort of that Liverpool vibe to their songs---perhaps its Chris Dorn's voice. The album I am discussing today is The Way We Never Were, the band's 2nd album, released on The Bus Stop Label in 2002.



Certainly they can be compared very favorably to bands like 60's influenced groups The Smithereens, Teenage Fanclub, or Velvet Crush. Dorn knows his way around a pop hook. Some of the songs are quite reminiscent of the first Pernice Brothers album, melodious but melancholy and bolstered with strings. But probably not recorded on a big budget. Actually, the liner notes reveal that it was recorded in a variety of studios and homes. But the album sounds better than what a lot of big label acts have done.

This album came out 6 years after How I Learned to Stop Worrying, and by that time The Beatifics were were more of a one man show. People who collaborated with on this album are Jacques Wait, Randy Seals (Beatifics drummer), Keely Lane, Eric Kassel, and Andy Schultz.

The song below is actually from their In The Meantime ep:



Don't know what became of Chris Dorn after The Beatifics, but I am happy that these albums found their way to me. I like groups like the Gordons, Albert Ayler, or Tuvan throat singing as much as the next guy, but I grew up listening to massive amounts of AM Radio. To this day, I find a great pop song irresistible. These songs may not change the world, but they definitely can change your mood for the better.

Trouble in Hawkes Bay---Devil's Elbow--Sand on Chrome

Alt-Country has been fairly negligible on this site, and not for any overriding reasons of personal taste. I've toyed with the idea of discussing "paisley pop" groups like The Long Ryders, or True West, or Jason Ringenberg and the Scorchers, or even the band that spawned the name of a whole movement (and a magazine, you know "No Depression"), Uncle Tupelo, to name a few. I did a post on the Waco Brothers quite a while back. But a post like this is long overdue.

Probably about 2 or 3 months ago, I saw a nice review of an album by a New Zealand band on the site Elsewhere, by NZ journalist Graham Reid. He has a lot of interviews and album reviews, and not exclusively New Zealand acts. His concise intelligent reviews remind me a little of Robert Christgau's old reviews in the Village Voice. Well worth seeking out.

As is Sand on Chrome. Based on the review I picked up a copy, and it is pretty great. A sleeper that you should not ignore, and for me I grow fonder of the album with each listen.

Devil's Elbow is a two piece outfit from Hawkes Bay. Alec Withers on guitars and vocals, Andrew Gladstone on drums and backing vocals.

Sand on Chrome, their first album on Hit Your Head music, is full of ballsy Replacements/Stonesy barroom swagger, but in all honesty they remind me of Social Distortion at their rootsiest. Withers has that raspy voice like Mike Ness. I think they would fit right in on the insurgent country roster of BloodShot Records. Like Chicago's Waco Brothers.

Chock full of choice songs, of particular note is the first song Brainstorm. In a more traditional vein, When You're On Top is a nifty duet with Sarah Wiig. Also impressive is the kick ass These Days, and the country punk KO. Great stuff!

The release of their second album, Absolute Domain, is immanent. All of their music is available at Bandcamp, and I know Sand on Chrome is on I-Tunes. This is a pretty excellent album that any fan of the Alt-Country genre would enjoy. I'm interested to see how they do on their follow-up.

Waiting for Eventuality....Ups and Downs--Out of the Darkness

I started listening to an anthology by an Australian Band I never ever heard of! Well at least until I saw it being advertised, probably on the Citadel Records mail order website. The band, Ups And Downs, existed in the 1980's through the early 90's and hailed from Brisbane originally. Generally the word on these guys was extremely positive. This anthology, Out of the Darkness: Sleepless, Singles, and Other Stories is a very very strong 20 song career (which includes the Sleepless mini-album in its entirety) overview which came out a few years ago on Feel Presents. Feel Presents appear to primarily be concert promoters, but they have put out some extremely nice reissues of important Aussie Bands.

But not lately. Maybe the recession has bit the hand that was feeding us. Let's hope they pick up where they left off!

Let me be clear; this is not some Aussie GBV, do it yourself band, or your requisite hard rocking Aussie garage punk group well schooled in the Detroit Arts of Iggy and the MC5. I love all that stuff of course, but Ups and Downs is a different sort of animal entirely.

The Names of the Band is......

This is big rock--tuneful, soaring harmonies well played and engineered. This could have been made by some band from America's heartland and recorded in a high priced studio in LA. I can't help but make comparison to some of their contemporaries like Died Pretty, Lime Spiders, The Church, HooDoo Gurus, Triffids, Go-Betweens, DM3, The Sunnyboys, NZs Straitjacket Fits, or Post-Kuepper Ghost Ships-era Saints. This band should be regarded in the same ranks as these bands, which I am quite familiar with. This is a pretty great collection of music which would make a great addition to anyones Antipodean music collection.



But by the time I listened to the first half of the Cd, I was wondering, What the Hell happened? This music is simply too accomplished!

How could these guys not have been globe trotting millionaire rock stars. This songs on this album are radio and video ready, the kind of stuff that sells millions. Even the critics liked them. An it was not like they were ahead of their time, or making cool music that was out of vogue like the Soft Boys.

The accompanying booklet is very well-done, filled with most of the information you need to know about the band, plus many photos. Sometimes artists are a little self-effacing about the music they have created--oh that single? It was okay, we did the best we could. But one of the sections of the booklet has the heading Where Did It All Go Wrong?



Thank goodness it wasn't something tragic like a premature death. Seems like it was a few bad choices, blame the band, blame their manager. But the notes by Lead Vocalist Darren Atkinson seem a little embarrassed about their posterity. Why?

Because they knew how good they were, and how great their songs really were. So he sort of shrugs having to explain why they may have missed the gold ring. You know, like in Westway to the World when Joe Strummer talks about the Clash splitting up. Because believe me, the music is peerless here. The notes say they charted a bit on US College radio, and they must have had some success in Australia, once they left Brisbane and moved to Sydney. Which is something most Brisbane bands did quickly. If you have read Andrew Stafford's book Pig City, you get an idea of what Brisbane was like in the day--not a place for non-conformists. I have a pretty good idea what the Saints were singing about in Brisbane (Security City). Wish Ups and Downs had made a trip to the States.

A week ago this band was a mystery to me, but it was definitely good to make up for lost time. My only regret is that this wasn't a 2-disc set. Believe me, this is music that would appeal to a broad range of rock music fans, and not just 80's music fetishists.

A very nice surprise, which made a nice weekend for me even better.

Welcome to Hotel Figueroa--Anytime of Year You Can Find It on his Website--Max Eider!

Wake Up! Slow Down!

You may not have realized it, but The Jazz Butcher, the deliriously witty band led by Pat Fish actually released a new album. I certainly just found out about it. Last of the Gentleman Adventurers.
I haven't heard it as you may have guessed, but if you rely on The Jazz Butchers past recordings, the odds are it is worthwhile. When you listen to a Jazz Butcher album its like picking up a great collection of short stories, some sad and touching, others laugh out loud hilarious, while some are wacky satiric send ups of whatever may have wound up in the cross hairs at the moment, be it President Reagan, Mark E Smith, Olof Palme, Betty Page, or even Peter Lorre.

But this is post is about his partner in crime, Max Eider, an extremely capable guitarist who has 4 solo albums to his credit. This is about his 2nd album, Hotel Figueroa, originally released in 2001.

And turning away from my recent indulgences in the punk-pop sub genre I've switched gears a bit. I present to you an entertaining excursion into a musical world of sophisticated, classy, jazzy pop songs, with a dollop of Velvet Underground balladry tossed into the mix.

If you like Roddy Frame's stripped down solo work or the Go-Betweens you would probably like this. It's an album that brings me back to those salad days of the 80's, when "Smooth Operator" by Sade ubiquitously lilted out unto the shopping plazas of most major European capitals.




If you are at least passingly familiar with The Jazz Butcher, you know how Max Eider can play. He can play in a variety of styles. Hotel Figueroa is a subdued sort of album, but with repeated plays, the rewards reveal themselves with greater clarity. Listen carefully to the guitar accompaniment and the riffs hit that sweet spot every time. He is own Glen Campbell session man in a way.

Max: Vocals, guitar and keyboards
Owen Jones: drums, percussion, accordian, vocals
Steve Valentine: Bass



And for all its fairly subdued manner, Eider tries a few things on this album. Other Kinds of Love is sort of a Samba-like pop, with what sounds like vibraphone. The Long Night sounds like a fragile lost Velvet Underground song, like a country-tinged "Candy Says". One of my favorites on the record. A guilty pleasure here is a cover of the old standard Lazy Bones, when it started my first thought was, he's not really doing this, but it turns out to have been a good idea after all.

Of course the opening track Hotel Figueroa, which is reminiscent of the aforementioned Forster-McLennan with some Chet Baker trumpet added for texture. Her Life is a quietly nuanced little gem as is the sunny harmonica embellished pop of All Your're Good For. Sweet End appears to be a Scandinavian pun of sorts.



Bottom line is, if you are asked to put something "romantic" on the stereo, take that copy of Big Black's Atomizer or Pink Floyd's Wall from your sweaty little hand, and give the talented Mr Eider  a try. I can also vouch that Eider's first solo effort, Best Kisser in the World is worth a listen also. There was a time when most of the records I owned were loud and fast, but at some point unbeknownst to me, I developed some other facets, I guess. And I'm not sure if there is a cure for this condition yet.

And please give the Jazz Butchers a try because if you are a fan of clever music injected with humor, you will want to hear everything they ever did.

Spanish Bombs--Airbag---Spain's Answer to the Ramones.... and much more!

I first heard a song by Airbag accidentally. I was trying to locate an album and found myself on the website of some European Record shop, whose name escapes me. But as the site came up on the screen I got an earfull of Roswell 1947, the first song from Quien Mato a Airbag?, their 3rd album which I still have not picked up. But I was mightily impressed with their punk pop majesty.





And I like the fact that they sing in their native tongue--so many European punk bands choose to sing in English, which I guess is becoming the modern idea of having a language like Esperanto. Of course here in the Americas, maybe our Esperanto will in fact be Spanish.

But the music stuck in the back of my head someplace. Unfortunately, it seems like there are about 50 bands called Airbag. There is a Scandinavian one, and another one that appears to be an Argentinian boy band. So I was a little confused as to which one was the right one for a while. I think that I may have originally thought that these guys were Italian.

About a month ago I picked up their first record, Mondo Cretino aka "Super Jerk". It came out in 2000 on Wild Punk Records. And it does not disappoint--if there is any disappointment, it can mainly be attributed to my High School knowledge of Espanol, long lain dormant. I have to consider this to be at least a minor masterpiece in the Punk Pop canon. Sure, they doesn't sound terribly original, but they sound great.

Adolfo: Guitar and Vocals
Pepe: Bass
Jose: Drums




Mondo Cretino is a loud, fast, tuneful exposition of the Ramones style, with a fair dollop of California Sun via the Beach Boys. They even do Surfing Airbag, a surf style instrumental. Because of the vocals, in my ears they sound a bit like Indianapolis' Sloppy Seconds with the SAP button on. They need no stinking editors--only one song clocks in over tres minutos, and that's about Batman Comics, so its quite understandable.

Though some of the short tunes actually approximate the speed of hardcore, their pop sweet tooth is evident of their slightly sped-up but basically reverential cover of Don't Worry Baby by the Beach Boys. Sounds nice to me, and the song was reintroduced to me a few years ago by Alex Chilton, who performed a snippet of the song, which was placed to the end of the Ardent Records anthology which came out a few years ago. Ran shivers up my spine.





Album starts with a classic song, Marta no es una Punk, which is right out of the Ramone songbook ala Sheena is...., and you get an idea of what these guys are about. I hear that like a lot of bands, their more recent material has shifted more to pop end of Pop Punk, but for me that's really conjecture, as this is the only album I've heard.

I definitely recommend Mondo Cretino for its energy, and hearing Punk Rock sung in Spanish is pretty cool for me. This album seems to be the easiest one to get a hold of these days in disc form (though and odds and sods record of theirs came out recently Versiones and Rarezas), but as far as mp3's are concerned getting their music probably isn't so tough at all now. So if you like what you hear, give these punks a shot.

Transistors Is This Anything? Punk Pop you Need to Know Now People

Finally got a hold of the Transistors is This Anything?, the Rangiora band's 2nd album, which was released this August on Arch Hill. I found an on-line retailer, Newzealandcds.com, which is actually a music store in New Zealand, and they have been very accommodating to me. Even when individual records advertised on the site are no longer in stock, are hard-to-find, and in many cases out of print, they have gone out of their way to locate them for me when possible. Nice people, very knowledgeable. I found them as a link on David Kilgour's webpage. Though Is This Anything? was not yet available on their site (they are in the process of updating their webpage), they got copies in stock after a request from me. It's why record stores can be so great.

Define anything....

I did a little blurb on the Transistors, when I heard Your Life Can Be So Easy on YouTube. I was so excited with the song that I could not wait to post something. Punk Pop Perfection, and a funny video to boot, with spoofs of advertising that hearkens back to the original wave of punks the 1970's and early 80's. They sound like a band that would be at home on the Dirtnap Records label.

Now that I have the entire record in my possession, I can say that this album is a beautiful thing. High energy punk pop. If you like things like, say Manchester's Buzzcocks (who they opened for on their New Zealand tour), Wire's Pink Flag, or The Clash's Green Album, or more recent bands like the sorely missed Exploding Hearts from Portland, you will find some infectious new music that you will not be able to stop playing. I even hear a little Mission of Burma in some of the music. I've listened to the album 3 times today already.

Is This Anything? is strong from beginning to end. Your Life Could Be So Easy is a marvel, but that is one great song alongside another 5 great songs. This is my favorite Punk Album of the year so far, though it does not appear to be getting the notice other New Zealand bands are receiving internationally, like Surf City, Naked and Famous. Sure they have not developed their own new unique sound, but the songs are all terrific, full of energy, but not samey sounding. The last song on the album, Dirty Diver,  has a real classic New Zealand Flying Nun sound to it--perhaps its just the reverb on the vocals. I've already listed the two aforementioned videos on my previous post so here are some more great songs!









So, all you punk rockers, check out the Transistors Is This Anything? and get on this seemingly nonexistant bandwagon that I am on. Arch Hill Records, BandCamp or the Flying Out consortioum webpage will gladly assist you, as will the aforementioned NewZealandRecords. com, i.e., a real record store.

As I said before this is one enjoyable album that has been in heavy rotation here at T-Funk since yesterday. Don't hesitate.

At Home He's A Tourist, Part 2: Record Release Party for American Pinup--Support your local Bands

So last night I went to a belated record release party for a local band from White Plains at the Capt. Lawrence Brewery in Elmsford N.Y. The band is American Pinup and their 2nd album Change Machine came out on the market September 3rd on Altercation Records.

Six-pack, nuthin' to do......

But first, a disclaimer:

I work with one of the band members, so bear this in mind as you are reading this post. And the drummer at the show was clearly not the guy in the above picture.

I don't have any of their records--yet, but I have to say that it was an enjoyable show. A band celebrating a new album release in front of family, fans and friends makes for a nice environment.
And the show took place right in the brewery itself, so it was a pretty cool and unique experience, listening to music while surrounded by beer kegs, vats, and bags of ingredients. Maybe it's not that conducive to sound quality, but I think that the people doing the sound for the gig did a nice job given the acoustics of the building.

Musically, they are a chameleon-like group, playing in a variety of styles, from punk-pop, country, ska, reggae, rockabilly, and their final song was reminiscent of the Pixies. Some of the faster rockabilly music reminded me of the Waco Brothers or Social Distortion with a female vocalist. So they are definitely not 3 chord wonders---they pulled off everything they did pretty effortlessly.





Certainly the focus of the band is Lauren West, the vocalist/rhythm guitarist. While No Doubt comparisons are inevitable, her voice reminded me a little of Patty Smyth in the early days, like that song Goodbye to You. Maybe on some of the country balladry I heard a little Neko Case, but perhaps that has as much to do with her appearance as her vocals. She is very charismatic, and is very confident in what she does. And she can belt out a song. In the above video, she has that old retro look of the old WWII posters with Rosie the Riveter.

That being said, all the genre-hopping complexity of the music requires able musicians to back her up. And the rest of the band was up to the task. Tim, the bass player seemed to propel the band forward with his energetic basswork and I would have said this even if I don't see him at work 5 days at work, when they aren't jetsetting off to parts unknown on the national touring circuit. The guitarist switched from country twang licks to punk roar with ease and the drummer pounded the skins with punk energy at times, while taking the tempo down for the quiet bits. It's pretty obvious that if you are playing ska, dub, ska-punk, two-tone reggae type music, you need a little bit of subtlety that isn't always there with punk bands.

But the band does a very credible job shape-shifting from song to song and everybody seemed to have a great time. I was really glad I decided to go.

So that's about all I have to say. Believe me, if I didn't like what I heard last night, you would not be reading this post. It would not have happened. Judging by the YouTube videos I had viewed from the first album, I thought that they were a good band with a few good songs and that they were only going to improve if they persevered. Now, seeing them live after a few years of hard work and touring they have definitely upped their game.




And I find it extremely cool to see a talented local band from Westchester on their way to making good.

So give Change Machine a listen--I think you won't be disappointed. Or give their self-produced 1st album, Strange Creatures a spin, if you like the Strongbow video.

Secondly, for all you fellow alcoholics, Captain Lawrence Brewery makes a nice Kolsch. I was surprised that an American Brewery made this, as I thought it was basically a German regional style of beer. So also please support your local Braumeisters! And they also make a seasonal Pumpkin Ale that I've heard some good things about.