sábado, 16 de diciembre de 2023
THE REDUCERS - Let's Go [USA power pop] 1984 Rave On Records TGP-1001
#1 CMJ chart-topper from the glory days of college radio and the classic 1984 LP from the pride of New London, CT.
"You know, rock and roll like you dream about it." - Robert Christgau, The Village Voice
"If I were The Replacements I'd be looking over my shoulder at these guys; they're far too good to ignore." Option Magazine, 1985
THE LEEPERS - Back In The Day [UK mod revival 1979] 2010 Detour Records DRCD057
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The Leepers were no different from all the other hopefuls all looking for stardom except they had the look, the attitude and two great song writers in their ranks in the way of Gary Simpson & Pete Helmer along with Paul Helmer playing bass and Sav on drums. One of Petes other brothers (John) had already found fame in the up-and-coming Brighton based band The Piranhas.. With MOD sweeping the country back in 1979, the band had a shared interest in the 60s. The lifestyle, the music, the scooters AND above everything else THE CLOTHES! The band were courted by several record labels but sadly no deal followed. By late 1980, the Mod scene started changing. The smartly dressed Mods started wearing more elaborate clothes with frilly shirts and sequins. This new scene was Psychedelia. The band didnt see it as selling out, just a natural progression to what had also happened in the sixties. They changed their name to Le Mat and brought in new member Mark Mifsud-Bonnici to add a new direction to the band by introducing violin & Keyboards. With this new line up, they signed to Whaaam Records and released one single and one album.
THE DILS - Dils Dils Dils [USA punk rock, power pop 1977-81] 2001 Bacchus Archives BA1166
This was one of the most important bands of the first Punk wave in California. They were a band apart, with a lot of political content in their lyrics. Here are two of their three singles plus ten live cuts from 1977-1981. Their leaders, the Kinman brothers, started Rank & File in the mid 80's.
THE HASKELS - Taking the City by Storm [USA punk rock, power pop 1980-82] 2020 Sptunge SPL 026
Rising like the phoenix from the ashes of the first version of the band; The Haskels served up heavy doses of three minute, adrenaline-fueled hard punk pop, as evidenced on the highly sought after, Killed by Death bootlegged, “Taking the City by Storm” EP released in 1981 on their own Milwaukee Hits label. Now the full story of the band can be heard, seen, and told.
As the decade turned from the rust belt 70’s to the Reagan-era 80’s, the original Haskels (see their self-titled LP released last year on Splunge) split into two factions, with the local punk/new wave/post-punk scene moving to the gritty Starship club in downtown Milwaukee. The Haskels were instrumental in getting bands to play the venue, including the Oil Tasters, Plasticland, Ama-Dots, Shivvers, Die Kreuzen and a burgeoning Violent Femmes.
The version of the Haskels represented here initially included Presley Haskel and Gerard LaValliere, fresh from the first line up of the band; joined by the crack rhythm section of Bobby Mitchell and Vodie Rhinehardt. Later tracks, including the EP were recorded by the Presley/Bobby/Vodie trio. In either case, the material is a match made in punk pop heaven; coupling Presley’s knife-sharp songwriting sensibilities with a tight unit of A-Team musicians driving the music forward.
“Taking the City by Storm” includes 14 tracks of rare and never before released material from the Splunge Archives. The release is comprised of demos, live tracks and the entire, highly coveted “Taking the City by Storm” EP, remastered for the first time.
martes, 7 de noviembre de 2023
THE CHIEFTONES - The New Smooth and Different Sound [USA pop, beat 1966] 2023 Numero Group Records NUM607
Billed as “Canada’s All Indian Band,” the Tsimshian Nation garage band The Chieftones stormed the U.S. in the mid-’60s with their own brand of native rock n’ roll. Led by guitarists Billy Thunderkloud and Albert Canadien, the band was filled out with Jack Wolf on lead guitar, Barry Clifford on bass, and Richard Douse on drums. Their repertoire was a heady mix of guitar instrumentals; Chet Atkins, Les Paul, Duane Eddy, and Brazil’s Los Indios Tabajaras, but through the lens of the American sock hop.
After a brief stint at Edmonton’s Alberta College, The Chieftones hit the road, eventually setting up a home base in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, where they reportedly worked as ranch hands in between tours.
More Buddy Holly than Link Wray, The Chieftones lone Cuca single—1966’s “Do Lord” b/w “I Shouldn’t Have Did What I Done”—expressed the group’s radio-friendly ambitions. The rest of their Cuca recordings, however, explore their indigenous roots. Tribal drums keep time under a wash of surf-y guitars. Ceremonial dance numbers are reimagined for the Elvis generation. When the single failed to light up the phones, the album was shelved, discovered only recently by Numero’s crack team of magnetic tape sleuths.
The New Smooth and Different Sound collects 12 unreleased demos and their sought after Cuca single, all recorded at the Sauk City recording mecca.
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