TEEN SCENE #57
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       The Teen  Scene is copyright 1997, Blair Buscareno.  The rights on all writing and pics
are property of the authors & photographers.  Any recordings found inside are provided
courtesy of the bands and the record labels.  If you'd like to pass the Teen Scene on to a friend,
feel free, just tell 'em where you got it and give them the whole thing, not just some little piece.
If you'd like to include any writings published in this mag for your own publication, just be
sure you give credit to both the Teen Scene & the author of the piece.  And send me a copy.
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WHAT�S ON TAP
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INTRO - Blair�s Blab, basically

THE FLESHTONES - Steve Coleman had a chat with the Super Rock vanguard when they
were in France this past winter

EMPIRE STATE SOUL CLUB - The Pinnacle of Soul lives on

LIVE DOWN UNDER - Craig Regan reports on a couple Radio Birdman gigs, while
Michael Seman checks out The Hoodoo     Gurus plus a couple of Stems� reunion gigs
(lucky guy!)

THE BOMBORAS - Bob Kondrak meets up with one of the most explosive bands on
today�s scene

TREK TO STUPIDITY - Some things in life are just plain stupid

THE DAY CUB SAID GOODBYE - �Tis verily true... Cub are no longer

TALKING TRASH WITH SLIM CHANCE - Steve Coleman has a word with the man
responsible for promoting some of the best gigs in London

A WEEKEND WITH THE UNTAMED YOUTH - Pabst Blue Ribbon�s cheering squad hit the
NYC area at the beginning of November.  Here�s what I remember after many months

UNTAMED YOUTH BACK IN THE STUDIO - The Beer Bust Boys have come out with a new
disc of Untamed classics

WELCOME TO THE LIBRARY - Bill Luther checks out books on The Clash and Pete
Townshend; I look at one on The Kinks

LIVE AND OUTTASITE - Pages and pages of my rock�n�roll nights

A HAPPY HOLIDAY WITH THE SLICKEE BOYS - Rob White presents a slight interruption
to the saga of my night life with a look at the yearly reunion by the band whose
fan club he once presided over.

BOYS AND THEIR BOYS - Roberta Schiffer wonders why guys need to spread their
legs so wide when they sit down

BIG HOLES AND LITTLE HOLES, BUT ALL SEVEN INCHES - 45s, obviously

BUMMER BINGE - Missed opportunities, mainly (though not all!) my fault

SOME HATE �EM, SOME  BUY �EM.  THEY�RE CALLED... COMPACT DISCS - need more be
said?

TWELVE BIG INCHES, BABY - Yup, good ol� fashioned vinyl long-players.  Wish
there were more

THE �ZINE SCENE - Some damn fine mags out there

PUT �EM ALL TOGETHER - Anthologies of various types

COMPED - Various artists thrown together onto a disc of one sort or another.
You probably know the drill

STILL MORE MUSIC - That�s right, this part has even more  reviews

BITS AND PIECES - Various tidbits of interest to you, Dear Reader

WHERE TO GET �EM - Addresses for most of these records you�ve been lucky enough
to read about

SO SAYS A KING - A letter from Mark Chambers of The King Normals
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SEND GIFTS TO:
The Teen Scene
34 Highland Cross #2
Rutherford, NJ  07070
-OR-
[email protected]

WHO�S TO BLAME
Blair Buscareno - everything without somebody else�s name.  Nothing anyone else
wrote, however, has been changed, barring grammar and spell-checking.
Steve Coleman - interviews with The Fleshtones and Slim Chance, plus the photos
that go with them
Craig Regan - Radio Birdman live
Michael Seman - The Hoodoo Gurus and The Stems live reports
Bob Kondrak - interview with and photos of The Bomboras
Bill Luther - book reviews dealing with The Clash & Pete Townshend
Rob White - live report on The Slickee Boys
Roberta Schiffer - general help, plus a bit of levity
Andy Peters - photos of The Woggles and The Insomniacs

This issue is dedicated to Casey, the best dog ever.  I�ll miss you. - Love,
Roberta
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INTRO
       It�s been awhile.
       For the most part, it�s been a good while.  Of course, there�ve been some
downs, too.  I�ll take care of those first.  A bit before Christmas, Roberta
told me that we really shouldn�t be getting married in April.  I was pretty
upset.  (Duh.)  As much as I�d like to blame her for delaying �the big day�, I really
can�t.  Thing is, she is right.  Neither of us is ready.
       Now for some good news:  we�re still together.  And, while we�ve gone through some
tough times, our relationship has gotten stronger and we�re doing better than ever.

       Getting on with it then...
       It was a pretty good second year of teaching.  I like this job far more
than any I�ve ever had before.  It�s more work than I�ve ever done before, but
it�s also work well worth doing.
       I�m getting extremely into computers these days, as well.  Obviously, I
must enjoy them to some extent, since that�s the subject I teach, but it goes
beyond that.  I�m finding projects that I want to do on my own time.  Some
involve learning new things about programming, while others are more on the user
end.  In the first case, I�ve been learning how to program in C++.  The second
deals with something invented by Apple called OpenDoc that takes as its premise
that a user creates documents using only the particular parts s/he needs for
that particular task.    I toyed with explaining it in depth here, but decided
that not everyone reading this really cares.  If you�re interested, take a look
at http://opendoc.apple.com.
       The showcase product for the OpenDoc architecture is called Cyberdog.
This is a component-based Internet suite of OpenDoc parts.  Pretty incredible
stuff, actually.  There are a ton of cool things involved, not the least of
which is that I�m the one who decides what my interface to the Net is gonna look
like... I put buttons, mail trays, etc. where I want them.  But that�s just one
tiny tip of the iceberg.  Check this out at http://cyberdog.apple.com.
       Oh yeah, one more thing... this stuff�s Mac-only.

       What else?  Well, more Net stuff, I�m afraid.  No, I still haven�t gotten
around to putting this mag up on the web.  (It�s just too much dang work.)  Of
course, for those people who want the text and don�t care about pics and layout,
there is an FTP site that you can download it from. (ftp://ftp.etext.org
/pub/Zines/TeenScene)  But that�s not what this is about.
       People I�ve known for some time are aware that I used to publish a concert
calendar of events in the NYC metro area between �88 and �94.  I didn�t want to
stop putting out this weekly bugger back then, but I was back in school and I
couldn�t afford it.  Now, though, I�m doing it again, just not on paper.  Now
it�s available at http://shell.idt.net/~blairb1/nygarage.html.
       I�ve also put together a list of touring bands of interest to Teen Scene
readers.  This list (http://shell.idt.net/~blairb1/tours.html) names the band
and provides a link to the tour dates.
       Along the same lines is the Garage Fests page I�ve put together.
(http://shell.idt.net /~blairb1/fests.html)  This one lists all the garage fests
I know about, again with links to more info about that particular fest.  Those
that are past I�ve tried to get some commentary on from people in attendance and
I�ve put links to that stuff, too.  Some of the ones coming after the street
date of this ish include: the Rock�n�Roll Boat and Trailer Show up in Calgary
(August 22-24) put on by Roto Flex; the Fuzzfest down in Atlanta August 29-31
(hosted by folks from Thee Flypped Whigs, Feline Frenzy and Bad Trip); Cave
Stomp �97 in NYC October 24th & 25th, put together by ex-Vipers vocalist Jon
Weiss; and, of course, the Big Daddy of �em all, GarageShock, held in
Bellingham, WA by Estrus Records October 30th thru November 2nd.
       Finally, there�s the 60 Second Swinger page (http:
//shell.idt.net/~blairb1/60second.html) which I�m thinking of as sort of a mini-
edition of this mag.  So far, there are no reviews in it, just news and the
occasional small article.  Maybe the best comparison I can make is that I�m
hoping for it to end up being something like this �zine was back in the first
couple years.  Anyway, the nice thing about this being on the web is that I can
point people to more info on the subjects at hand.
       Apologies in advance for some jagged photos...  Next time that should be
solved.
       Also, sorry about the micro-print in the record label address section at
the end there.  I had an odd number of pages because of something that wasn�t
even a half page long.  This solved it.  Hey... it was this or listen to me yak
for more than a page and a half about whatever popped into my head.  The title
was gonna be �My Back Pages.�  Yeah, you�re welcome.

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Steve Coleman Has A Word With The Fleshtones
At La Maison Du Rock En France
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       L�Arapaho in Paris is practically the Fleshtones HQ when they visit the
French capital these days.  This relatively new club, situated in the Southeast
of the city, is conspicuously housed in the basement of a large eighties
shopping complex.  It�s tight, though big enough to hold three hundred people
and sits next to an underground car park .  A very appropriate location for a
session with New York�s ambassadors of garage-rock.  Arriving nice and early, I
had hoped to nail Bill, Ken, Keith and Peter for a chat on current Super-Rock
activity.  But what with the sound check, interviews with the music press, a
publishing contract to be signed and a photo call with the French fashion press,
all efforts came to nothing.  Despite posing a hundred questions to various
�Tones the tape recorder remained firmly in the Selfridges carrier bag.  The
stock response from the Z-man being �Don�t worry, just stick around and we�ll do
the interview later�.
       Before too long the club began to fill with Fleshtones hungry Frenchmen
and woman.  It is important to point out to you just how seriously these people
take their dose of Super-Rock revelry.  A Parisian crowd always plugs into the
band and the �Tones never fail to return the gesture.  So sitting behind stage
before the show, it was nice to watch the bands eagerness *and* the lead singers
nervousness.  After all these years too.  Perhaps it was down to the days
demands and the desire to please the Parisian public.  With guitar radio sets
checked and a final run through the set list complete, the Fleshtones filed down
to the stagedoor, screams and shouts rising from the dance floor.  Coming at you
BIFF, BANG, POW they tore into the Faces �Come On Now, Hey!�  A great opener.
The �Tones, effortlessly mixing old and new material into their trademark Super-
Rock sound, encouraged the hyperventilating crowd even further.  �Accelerated
Emotion�, �Let�s Go� and �This Is My Life� quickly came and disappeared into the
Parisian night.
       This band has such a rich songbook it�s always refreshing to see and hear
them flip through the pages.  Tonight�s musical trip included a bumper dose from
�Blast Off!� : �Comin� In Deadstick�, �BYOB�, an amazingly impassioned rip
through �The Way I Feel� plus an unscheduled journey across the �Shadow-line�.
During �Fingertips� an inebriated Frenchie clambered onto the stage and wrestled
the microphone from the Z-man, only to collapse to the floor screaming over the
PA, writhing in a paralytic heaven.  Totally unfazed Peter grabbed Ken�s mic to
continue the song and close the set.  With the crowd pleading for more the
�Tones returned to play three, or was it four, encores.  My blurry memory
recalls �Screaming Skull�, �The World Keeps Turning Round�, a nerve tingling
spin through �You�re Holdin� Me Down (UK Freakbeat from the Buzz) and the
inevitable �We Gotta Go�.  At this point Bill had pulled a floor-tom to the
centre of the stage joining Ken, Keith and Peter in closing the show and singing
adieu.
       The Fleshtones are one of the most entertaining ROCK bands anyone could
wish to stumble across.  Never mind prefixing the �R� word with a garage, punk
or frat label.  Much better to dispense with sub-genre tags �cause these boys
transcend categorisation while still pleasing the record collector types among
us.  Peter, ever the ringmaster, spent a good quarter of this show singing from
the middle of the audience.  While Ken played magnificently for two hours
despite carrying a painful back injury.  I really felt for him when the band
leaped off the stage and threaded through the crowd during the finale.  As usual
Lucky Billy worked tirelessly and turned his shirt into a dripping rag.  Bounced
around the stage ensuring the music ran smoothly was Keith, the perfect foil for
the impromptu behaviour of the Z-man.  In addition Strengo bailed-out of the
long delayed interview as he  kindly agreed to run through a few questions the
following morning in the bands hotel.  So grab yourself a strong black coffee,
pull up a chair and hit the play button...

Teen Scene: Let�s start with the new CD �Fleshtones Favorites� Keith.  You guys
have covered so many songs over the years didn�t you have a problem narrowing it
down to thirteen?
Keith Streng: Well that�s why were gonna have to make parts two, three, four and
five.  So maybe it�s not a problem.

TS: The songs for the most part seem to be R�n�B material.  For instance �Let
The Doorbell Ring� or �Next Time�.  Was there any decision to concentrate on
this style?
KS: Well usually when we do cover songs they�re usually more on the R�n�B side
anyway so when you�re talking about making Fleshtones covers records they�re
gonna be more slanted towards R�n�B.  We don�t really cover pop you know!

TS: When Lindsay Hutton looked after �The Vindicators� he said in a bulletin
that the Fleshtones were going to record a Fan Club disc of R�n�B crunchers.
Now that was over ten years ago.
KS: Yes it is true.  Anyway, anytime we want to get back to what we are about
and what we do, we always reach back to our R�n�B part of the Fleshtones.  That
is kind of what this is all about.  Plus like I said most of the covers we do
are R�n�B oriented so it�s a natural.

TS:  But there are one or two numbers, for instance the dB�s �If And When�,
which break that mold.
KS: Well that�s because that�s a song which Chris Stamey wrote a long time ago
and always said he had the Fleshtones in mind to do it.  So twenty years later
we did it!

TS: When Peter sent me a copy of the new CD I immediately connected with the
song.  It has a great Kinks/garage-rock riff .  I was sure I�d heard it before.
KS: It probably came out on Car Records.  Really early on.  You know Peter
Holsapple is not even on �If And When�.  This single is pre-Peter Holsapple.

TS: I was reacquainted with it on the �Ride The Wild Tom Tom� CD.  The dB�s
version is very different to the �Tones interpretation.
KS: You know obviously we relate to the Kinks a lot more than Chris Stamey does
so that�s the connection.  It just sounded more like a Kinks song to us I guess.

TS: One of my other favorites is Bill�s vocal debut.
KS: �Mister Custer�.  I have to say for a debut you can�t top what he did.

TS: I particularly like the sound of arrows whizzing past Bill�s head.
KS: That is actually Peter in the background off-mic.  We did this recording on
four track so there was a lot of things happening on each and every track.
That�s what makes it fun and exciting to do.  It�s not like you have forty-eight
million tracks and you can put that sound on one track and this on another.  So
on Bill�s lead vocal track you have Peter doing the arrows and percussion and
whatever else is happening.  It�s easier to mix then - it�s already done.

TS: Tell me about the recording.  You did it with Paul Johnson over in Flatbush,
Brooklyn.  Did it take a couple of days to lay down?
KS: It took I guess with the mixing - there were overdubs you know - probably a
week.  That�s what made it fun.  The whole thing about four track recording is,
when you�re recording, to make sure you have the right levels because you�re not
going to be able to mix it after it�s recorded.  Once it�s done, it�s done and
mixed.  Then it�s just a matter of you have your four tracks and mixing that.
That�s what takes time, to make sure you have the proper level for whatever�s
gonna be on that track.

TS: Looking forward to your next recorded project.  Peter said yesterday that
you are interested in producing yourselves.  Would you try and look for a small
studio and follow a similar approach?
KS: I think in the future that Fleshtones recordings are just gonna become even
more minimal or basic even if we go to a twenty-four track studio.  And I think
the next Fleshtones studio album is going to be a mix of studios.  From twenty-
four track to four track.    I think it would make an interesting sounding
record.  Not just the same thing from track to track.

TS: There is a trend on the garage-rock scene at the moment for lo-fi recording.
Where people go into very cheap studios and bang everything down quickly to try
and get that immediacy from the recording.
KS: This is true, but do you know what�s funny?  You take a group like the
Woggles, right, they�ve played me their new record.  I asked them �How many
tracks did you record this on?� and they said �Oh we always record this on
twenty-four track�.  Because it doesn�t sound it, it sounds like an eight-track
recording or something �cause it�s kind of trashy and really...  I just found
that kind of amazing but you know you learn as you go.

TS: I picked up the Woggles �Zontar Sessions� recently and there�s a track on
there called �Carnivore� which sounds very cheap.  Maybe they were using an old
microphone for the vocals because everything sounds compressed.
KS: That�s possible...

TS: That�s looking a bit further ahead to the next studio album, but I hear
there�s the possibility of a �Live In France� CD being released.
KS: We�re talking about that right now.  Our engineer on the last French Tour
recorded quite a few shows.  It was just recorded eight track off the desk.  He
compiled it and then he went to a studio and remixed it and it all sounds pretty
good and people are kind of excited by it.  I don�t know what to think �cause
live records for me are kind of... unless they�re bootlegs I don�t find them
exciting generally.

TS: Well on the whole, I�ve been a little disappointed with the official live
albums, we�ve all heard superior bootleg recordings, for example the Victory
Club Show in Philadelphia from �82.
KS: Right.  A much better live record than anything that was released
officially.   And that is what I am getting at because I�m usually more excited
by the things that are like off-the-cuff that you don�t realise are being done.
Then they come out and they are pretty exciting and fun.  Whereas like something
always goes wrong when you�re planning a live record.  I swear to God!  So I
guess if people want to put it out and they think it�s exciting and good... I�m
not myself excited by it.  But the �Live� album is probably gonna come out,
there is even talk now about maybe releasing the �Live� record and �Fleshtones
Favorites� as one package.  Which would be kind of interesting.  But it�s just
talk, only talk.

TS: Is �Soul Madrid� the last live album?
KS: Well that is an official bootleg OK.  This is the people from Record Runner
saying �Hey look, we�re gonna record you live tonight here�s money�, so that
makes it an official bootleg.  But basically that�s all that is!  It was mixed
as it was going down live and it was pressed...

TS: ...Direct Metal Mastered.
KS: Exactly.  So that�s what all that was about.

TS: �Cause that was when Fred Smith was briefly in the band.
KS: Well he was in the group for a year if you consider that brief.  That is
brief in the history of the Fleshtones.

TS: That was a difficult time for the Fleshtones.  You had Andy Shernoff helping
out after Fred,  and Robert Warren was only with the band a year.
KS: Yes that was kind of like when the band wasn�t really settled.  Now the band
is with Ken with what, seven years.  I�ve lost track!
TS: Ken said that sometimes he thinks he played all the bass parts on
�Powerstance�.  Turning back to �Soul Madrid�, no disrespect to Fred or Andy but
when Marek was in the band there was a much more funky/r�n�b edge.
KS: Marek really was a popping bass player and that�s what Ken is.  He follows
in that same mould.

TS: This is the thing I loved about the Fleshtones when I first discovered the
band.  A garage band with a bass player who was not afraid to add thumb-slapping
bass lines.  I found that very exciting.
KS: We�ll take chances, we like to mix it up, that�s what we�re about.  We�re
not scared to fall off a cliff you know!

TS: Now that Ken�s been with the band seven years you can definitely see a
tightness in the live performances.
KS: Did you like the show last night?

TS:  I loved it.  Especially the Buzz song - �You�re Holdin� Me Down� - it�s a
great number.
KS:  I�ll tell you the truth, that was one of the best versions last night we
ever did of it �cause that song for us can be hit or miss live.  But last night
it was really a big hit, it was a grand slam...

TS: You should seriously think about putting that on the next album.
KS: Which one?  �Favorites II� or the Fleshtones next studio album?  So maybe we
should put that on a major distributed album.

TS: Why not, I think we should introduce the world to a bit more Joe Meek.  When
you stretched out the �Go Back, Go Back� chorus...
KS: That must have been like three minutes and the song is only two!

TS: I was at the side of the stage racking my mind, I thought �I know that
number� it�s stuffed away on a compilation at home somewhere.
KS: Actually there is a Joe Meek compilation available isn�t there?

TS: There�s lots of Joe Meek material available but it ranges from
R�n�B/Freakbeat to embarrassing and maudlin ballads.
KS: Do you know that one song about Tokyo?  That is a ballad, do you know this?
It�s actually a beautiful song.  I�m surprised you don�t know that!

TS: I really like Joe Meek�s experimental stuff with beat groups.
KS: Do you like �I Hear A New World� by the Blue Men?

TS: This stuff has all been re-released in the UK.  There are some totally
obsessed Joe Meek collectors and they go for absolutely everything.  But it is
such a broad spectrum.  But you�ve got to admire the guy�s get-up-and-go.  The
fact he was operating from a bedroom on the Holloway Road and he did some
amazing things.
KS: This was after he was given money.  They said �OK, here�s money for you to
put together your idea of a studio� and as you said he made a studio out of a
bedroom.

TS: If you get the chance, watch the Channel Four TV documentary on him.  People
like Heinz and Screaming Lord Sutch are interviewed and there are is some great
footage of the Savages recording with Joe.
KS: So Heinz is still alive?

TS: Yes, and of course the million dollar question about his relationship with
Joe was...
KS: ...there are pictures with Joe behind him smiling! You wonder if he a little
more than assisted.  I�m not sure!

TS: Did you know that Joe blasted himself with a shotgun?
KS: Well, you know what was rumoured... I guess of course.  He was accused of
some pretty bizarre acts!

TS: It�s sad but the guy was becoming totally paranoid.  Phil Spector wanted to
meet him in �66 but Meek refused �cause he was convinced Spector would steal his
ideas.  By this time his personality was very unstable.
KS: Yes it�s sad how it ended.  It�s too bad there was no one there who could
help him.  He was probably too far gone.

TS: Let me ask you about garage-rock.
KS: What about garage-rock!

TS: Well it�s going through a bit of a resurgence at the moment.
KS: Is it!

TS: There is the Tom Hanks film �The Thing That You Do�.
KS: Should have had the Fleshtones in it.

TS:  Maybe.  It�s got a Hollywood take on the music.  I haven�t seen it because
it�s only just come out in London.
KS: I guess I should go see it.

TS: I�ve seen a couple of clips and the guys in the band look like the Trashmen
or Rivieras.  Very pre-Beatle invasion.  Then you have all the bands on major
labels borrowing from the garage genre.  For instance SCOTS...
KS: They�ve been around for a long time, since the early eighties.  This is not
new and that�s fine and great I think.  They�re doing fairly well and they are
on a major label and they are good live.  Actually I like them much better live,
much more fun, I don�t think it transcends as well recorded.

TS: Didn�t you play at a Pig Farm with them last autumn?
KS: That was with them and the Woggles.   It was very funny �cause you could see
the pigs in the distance.

TS: Were they enjoying it?
KS: I think so, they didn�t run!

TS: Wasn�t it raining that day?
KS: They had a torrential downpour, like days in a row before we arrived.  Then
we arrived and it cleared.  Except the place was full of mud and the truck
almost got stuck.

TS: Was this the show where Manfred and Peter had their showdown wearing Santo
masks?
KS: As part of the Southern Culture On The Skids show they hand out wrestling
masks to people in the audience who want to come on stage and wrestle.  So of
course Peter and Manfred after having about ten beers each decided this is a
great idea.  And then apparently there was someone else in the audience who had
their own wrestling mask who was a fan of SCOTS and somehow Peter talked him
into attacking Manfred from behind without Manfred knowing.  So they actually
double-teamed Manfred on-stage.

TS: And Manfred is not a tall guy!
KS: He�s smaller than me and I�m not that big at all.  So they double-teamed
Manfred, cleaned his clock and then carried him off.  It was fun.

TS: You seem to have a good relationship with the Woggles and the Hatebombs.
You�ve played Georgia and Florida a couple of time during the last six months.
What�s the deal down there?
KS:  Well the deal is it�s a nice part of the country to visit plus these bands
are down there and we like to play with them because it�s always good fun and it
makes for a good show.  But I think we are going to have to put off going to
that part of the United States for probably at least another year.  We have
kinda worn it out.

TS:  There is a lot of interest for the Fleshtones to tour the mid-west and west
coast.
KS:  The mid-west is probably going to be the next thing we are going to do.
When I get home and I�m only going home in the middle of March.  Let�s say at
the end of March we�ll go out and do a long weekend.  There is a club in
Columbus, Ohio called Staches that has been around for a long time.  It�s always
been a really good venue for us, good fun, and the owner Dan is a great guy.
But apparently they have to close and they wanted us to be the band to close the
club.  So I think we are definitely go out and do this.

TS: This is going to be well received by a lot of fans across the States.
�Cause now that the Internet site is running they can see the band popping up to
Toronto, across to Boston and down to Athens, Georgia...
KS: I guess I should get a computer one day.  But I�m not computer oriented.
I�m guitar oriented.

TS: Ken�s working on it.
KS: Ken�s doing really well.  Actually Ken got a computer from his father-in-law
and all of a sudden he�s addicted to his computer.  Here�s Peter Zaremba...

PZ: I want to eat something if that is possible... (hungover).
KS: Ken has this computer now and he�s talking about upgrade this, upgrade that.
I don�t even understand it.

TS: Well it�s such a shame �cause he has a modem...
KS: A what! (pulls face).

TS: A modem for connecting his computer to the Internet.
KS: OK thank you.

TS: He has a Mac, but it�s quite an old system and not smart enough to support
the modem.  He�s working on it and he�ll get there.
KS: Well can you talk to him about it later but...

Ken Fox: About what?
KS: Your computer.

KF: O there�s nothing to say, it�s a piece of edsel!
KS: He�s talking about getting a new one actually.

TS: You mentioned Southern Culture and the Woggles and Hatebombs who are more
grassroots garage bands.  But there is a US band who I went to see in London
last year who have Fleshtones appeal.  They�re called Rocket From The Crypt and
come from San Diego.
KS: I�ve heard of them.  Are they good?  I heard they�re really good.

TS: They have a rock�n�roll gang mentality.  But while the �Tones have a tongue
in cheek approach this isn�t so apparent with RFTC .  During a Super-Rock show
the macho element is diffused by the goofing around.   The RFTC gig was like
waiting for a football crowd to erupt.  There was no sense of �OK this is really
just a show�.  It was a bit menacing.
KS: But possibly quite a powerful band live, correct?

TS: Definitely.  They use a horn section and the pacing is very punchy.  At
times it�s reminiscent of the �Tones or the Ramones.
KS: I have to see this group.  A French fan of ours said he really liked RFTC
and that they�re a powerful band.

TS: Did you know they did a �Music Machine� CD single on Sympathy For the Record
Industry - �Masculine Intuition� & �Trouble� - which perfectly illustrates the
bands roots.  Their show echoes back to seventies punk and there is a fifties
visual element too.  They definitely mix things up.
KS: What I recommend for you to see is a band from New York called Los Dudes.

TS: This is Jesse, the guy who helped you with �New York, New York� on the
Dictators tribute.
KS: Yes Jesse Bates.  He�s a great songwriter.  It�s the one band in the past
two years that I�ve really thought were a good live band and really enjoyed.
Get the CD.  Half of it is really great songs.  Especially a song called �I Hate
You All�.  An excellent song, this is like an anthem of some sort and the lyrics
are great.  You have to get this within four days!

TS: Are they garage-rock?
KS: They�re garage oriented.  Kinda like the Replacements, that kind of sound,
that kind of approach.

TS: Talking about the New York scene like Brownies and the Continental...
KS: ...And the Mercury Lounge.

TS: The Fleshtones� old sidekick Gordon Spaeth seems very active at the moment.
Pat Lozito told me he is playing with Crook & the Flair City 5, he also recorded
with the Vikings and helped on �Fleshtones Favorites�.
KS: Well Gordon seems very busy at home.  Anytime we play in the area, is
available and wants to play is fine, and whatever studio recordings for sure.
You know he just cannot hit the road anymore and go out for extended trips.
It�s too much.  But as far as staying in the New York area and playing clubs and
being vital, he�s really great.

TS: A friend in New York, Eric Fusco, sent me a copy of a Brownies show
featuring the horn section : �Iron Arms� Joe, Markus and Gordon.
KS: ...�Iron Arms� Joe.  That�s a good one!

TS: I fell off my seat when I saw Gordon.  He came on-stage and busted straight
into �Legend of a Wheelman�.  It was very powerful.  He was playing so well
though his synchronisation with the other horn guys was a bit hit and miss.
KS: Well he�s not used to that anymore.

TS: He was sounding so good, it was the old Gordon that we remember here in
Europe.  It�s very pleasing to see and hear this.
KS: Well you know I miss him very much as far as really being in the band and
being with us all the time.  But it�s just impossible now.  He had a very bad
period for a while, but he came out of it and he�s doing OK now.  As long as he
stays in the New York area he�s just fine.

PZ: Tell him what Marek�s doing now?
KS: Marek.  What are you talking about!

PZ: Marek Pakulski.  He has a new group called Hooked On Sonics.  It�s a Sonics
cover band.
KS: This is pretty funny.  Remember a name John Weiss?  Well he played saxophone
on �Roman Gods� and he used to play with us. [After that, he fronted one of the
most popular bands on the 80s NYC garage scene, The Vipers. �- ed.]  Anyway he
and Marek had this group that were called Hooked On Sonics.

PZ: I thought they were hooked on somethin� else.
KS: They were a long time ago.  Anyway they were just a band doing Sonics cover
songs.  Marek is not playing bass he is just the lead singer.

TS: Didn�t he sing �The Eel� with the �Tones?
KS: You remember �The Eel�.  How do you know about this?  Did you know that �The
Eel� was supposed to be on �Angry Years� but all we could find left on the tape,
�cause we had to dig these tapes up from who knows where, were just the bubble
sounds at the very end that we used.  The rest of the track was somehow wiped
clean or was recorded over.  So all we have is a four track recording with just
the underwater bubble sounds at the end on the fade.

TS: Was that the recording you did in New Orleans when you arrived in a tropical
storm?
KS: Are you talking about �The Eel�?  No, it�s funny you�re talking about it
seriously, �The Eel� was done on our rehearsal studio four-track.  Marek used to
be the engineer on most of these sessions.

TS: This is the �84-86 period?
KS: Yes, something like that.  These were actually demo tapes for IRS Records
which were immediately rejected and thrown out the window.  Miles Copeland was
mad at us (laughs).

TS: Some of those songs ended up on �vs Reality�.  There was an instrumental
version of �Leather Kings� which you reworked and obviously added a lyric to.
KS: Was there a demo of that?  That was an instrumental for a long time and I
think there was another title for it.

TS: So Marek is back on the road with his new band?
KS: Anyway back with that.  They were gonna record a �Hooked On Sonics� record.
There was an offer made from some company in Europe.  And then they called me up
and said �Hey would you be interested in playing guitar on it?� and I said �Fine
I�ll learn all the Sonics songs, I kind of know them anyway�.  So then they call
me back, I�m learning these songs, they send me a tape, I�m kind of excited to
do another project and they say �Well we�re not getting the budget that we
wanted, we wanted to do it sixteen track, but they�re only sending us $2000, so
we�re gonna have to scrap the project�.  And I�m sitting there thinking the
original Sonics recordings were probably done four-track or less, maybe even
live to two-track and I�m sure they didn�t have $2000 dollars.  This is crazy
they should just take the $2000 dollars and smash it down.

TS: They should hook-up with Paul Johnson in Flatbush and book a session in his
basement studio.
KS: That was exactly the thought I had �cause we were working on our four-track
recording and thinking how good it was coming out.  Then I�m thinking they get
$2000 and that�s not good enough for a Sonics album.

TS: Well it�s good to see that Marek is back involved with music �cause I know
he was out of things for a while.
KS: You know what he�s really doing now is that he programs computers and he�s
making a killing apparently.  He�s successful at it.  I�ve known Marek since I
was fourteen, like way before the Fleshtones, and he was always oriented towards
that.  Everybody always figured he would wind-up doing something like that
..and he did!

TS: Isn�t Peter the Fleshtones manager now?
KS: Who?  Well Peter and I handle that side.

TS: How do you find taking on that responsibility what with all the agents and
managers you�ve had over the years?
KS: Well, to tell you the truth, if Peter and I were able to handle it full-
time, if we were not in the Fleshtones, I�m sure we would be successful at it
and probably do well (laughs).  But it�s really difficult because we�re always
on the road a lot of the time and realistically we really should get someone to
take care of our business.

TS: I guess when you�re in Europe for two or three weeks there is nothing you
can do on that side.
KS: There�s nothing you can do because there�s no one at the homebase.  We do
need a booking agent in America.  In Europe we�re fine, it�s good.  But in
America it�s just Peter and I.  All the guys in the band handle different
responsibilities so that�s the way it is right now.  We do the best we can.  But
do we really want to do it?  NO.  It�s just that we have to do it.

TS: So it�s not as if you�re looking for alternative careers then?
KS: No.  I don�t want to be a booking agent.  I really enjoy playing guitar
live.

TS: You�re gonna continue with the Fleshtones?
KS: Well I want to make some more records and I can�t see anything different.
I�m looking forward to playing tonight.  Maybe I�m short sighted but that�s the
way it is!

Interview conducted by Steve Coleman for Teen Scene.  First print publication,
Summer, 1997.   Check out The Fleshtones Hall of Fame on the World Wide Web
(http://www.pro-net.co.uk/scaf/fhof.html), maintained by none other than the
author of this very article.
********************************************************************************
Fleshtones Favorites
       The Fleshtones first mentioned the possibility of recording a collection
of R�n�B crunchers for their fans over ten years ago. And so, after the long
wait, here it finally is. Simply titled Fleshtones Favorites and recorded in
September at Compactor Studios in Brooklyn with the assistance of Paul Johnson,
it sweeps through thirteen numbers and nearly as many musical genres, embracing
along the way Richard Berry (�Next Time�), the dB�s (�If And When�), Ian
Whitcomb (�This Sporting Life�), Gene Chandler (�Rainbow In My Heart�) and nine
other monsters. Keith weighs in with two numbers, �Inside Looking Out� and the
soulful �I�m Crying�. The first is an Animals song albeit radically arranged.
Bill Milhizer makes his vocal debut on the side-splitting �Mr. Custer�, complete
with whooshing arrow effects. Peter handled the production duties and does a
fine job of delivering a neat tidy sound with one or two studio tricks. For
instance on �Let�s Get High� the drums sound like they are simultaneously fed
through a compressor and reverb unit. Overall the album has a good �live� feel
and all the songs are tackled in the �Tones inimitable fashion. Ken adds some
good fuzz bass lines on a couple of numbers and Keith uses many different guitar
textures. Peter sounds much tighter in the vocal department than on �Laboratory�
(OK �flame� me!) and blows some very bluesy harmonica. As for �Lucky� Bill, what
can one say except �Please Mr. Custer, I Don�t Wanna Go...�  �Favorites� is
available on CD direct from the band, either at their shows or through the post.
In addition Telstar Records are set to release it on vinyl with different
artwork and under the title �Hitsburgh USA�. --- SC
********************************************************************************

EMPIRE STATE SOUL CLUB
THE PINNACLE OF SOUL
------------------------------------
       I thought about including this bit in with the live reviews.  Thing is,
it�s not a show; it�s a dance.  No band is playing.  In fact, that�s a pretty
fine distinction, and I often wouldn�t bother making it.  However, the Empire
State Soul Club is something special and it�s been quite some time since I�ve
been to one.

       When I graduated college back in May of �87, the Empire State Soul Club
was just getting started.  Well, at least, it was under that name.  From what I
remember, DJs W. Lee and The Empress had done some other dances with WNYU Mod
Mondays DJ Captain Weems earlier on.  Or maybe that�s just my memory playing
tricks on me.  Yeah, I could go out and get the facts, but I kinda like that
Lost in Time bit.  After all, to me, the origins are unimportant in comparison
to the fact of Soul Club�s existence.
       As I eased into �real life,� I began showing up at the Empire State Soul
Club�s dances.  When the three regular DJ�s (W. Lee, The Empress, and Jeff the
Chef) took up their monthly Thursday night residence at the North River Bar down
on Hudson Street, below Canal, I became a regular.  It took awhile before I was
willing to admit to myself that I wasn�t gonna miss one of these things and it
was worth buying a membership card to save a couple bucks on admission and
merchandise.  But I had to face it... no way in hell was I gonna miss a Soul
Club.  There they�d be spinning all the best that Stax/Volt ever had to offer,
along with other gems.  It was a place that people got out on the floor and
shook a tail feather like nowhere else.  Sure, it was a great hangout if you
just wanted to talk with your friends (�cuz just about everyone on the scene
would show up for these things), but almost everyone would eventually do some
time on the dance floor.
       As the years went by, it started to get noticed.  Of course, it didn�t
hurt that the Stax/Volt box set was a pretty direct result of Soul Club, since
the guy who put it together was an ESSC regular.  And celebrities like Fred
Schneider could be found shakin� it up with everyone else.  But the biggest
crowds came about when the NY Times did a feature.  Suddenly, one summer evening
found the North River jam-packed on a Thursday night.  Many of the regulars
ended up moving outside till the newcomers left around midnight... it was just
too damned hot inside.  Now, over time, some of that bunch drifted off.
However, as with any good thing that gets some notoriety, some of them - the
ones that truly cared and felt it - stayed.  Eventually, it was time to try a
new location.
       The Empire State Soul Club made a stab at Irving Plaza, where The Empress
had reigned back in the mid-80s when the club had proudly advertised, �We Don�t
Have Video!�  Unfortunately, Irving proved to be a bit too big for Soul Club.
Not only that, it just wasn�t cozy enough.  ESSC started moving about, to the
Mercury Lounge (too small) and Coney Island High (just plain wrong).  And I,
personally, just didn�t feel it any longer.
       Connie The Empress eventually left town.  Soon, Soul Club just wasn�t
happening all that often.  There�d be breaks of three months, four months, or
even longer.  There just wasn�t any reason to send in my membership dues and I
let mine lapse.  The �94-�95 school year found me living down by New Brunswick
and I couldn�t justify driving up to NYC for a Soul Club on a rainy night at a
place I didn�t want to be.  When I moved back  up to Rutherford, Soul Club
seemed to be an increasingly infrequent occurrence.  Sad for me.

       In mid-May, I found out that a Soul Club was scheduled for Saturday May
31st.  Unfortunately, The Original Sins were playing Maxwells that same night.
Not only that, but Andre Williams was at Chicago B.L.U.E.S. doing three shows.
What to do?  Well, I�d seen the Sins a few weeks earlier.  Plus, it was at
Maxwells, which has pretty much gone to seed since early this year.  Not only
that, but the other act was the Mad Daddys.  Nothing against them personally,
but they�ve never done much for me, musically.  And I just didn�t want to take
the chance of having to see Stinky on-stage in his red bikini underwear again.
As to Andre... well, $15 is more than I felt like spending, what with summer
coming on and me not working.  Besides, it had been a loooong time since I last
made it to Soul Club.  And it was back at the North River.
       So once again Mike Sin and I jumped in the Blairmobile and pointed it down
towards Hudson Street.  The first surprise was that the parking lot behind the
North River Bar was no longer free at night.  (Which meant we kept cruising.)
The second surprise was much more welcome:  there was a pretty decent crowd
already building at 10:30 PM.  By midnight the place was jammed.  The soul was
flowing, tons of old friends were in attendance, and I was in heaven.  This is
what Soul Club was all about!  People were dancing, doing the ESSC Soul Clap,
and yakkin� away as the good times rolled.  Mike and I ended up staying pretty
late, talking to a whole host of people.

       Based on the results of this shindig, I�m hoping Warren, Jeff, and Matt
will start doing this on a regular basis again.  If not every month, then at
least every two months.  The Empire State Soul Club is something special; it�s
something I need and something I think many others do, as well.  It�s the
Pinnacle of Soul.
********************************************************************************
LIVE DOWN UNDER
with Radio Birdman, The Hoodoo Gurus, & The Stems
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Radio Birdman   by Craig Regan
Originally published on the Net on Divine Rites. (http://www.sdv.fr/
pages/dgieff/rob.htm)

Central Coast Leagues Club
Gosford 01/09/97

Selinas Coogee Bay Hotel
Sydney 01/10/97
       It�s Gosford Leagues on a Thursday night and there�s not a poster in sight
for tonight�s gig.   Radio Birdman are playing the biggest beer barn on the
Central Coast, a former weekend holiday region for Sydneysiders about 50 minutes
north of the city.

       As grey-haired pensioners shuffle out of the downstairs lounge bar after
their early evening meat raffles and cheap meals, the town�s reputation as a
retirement home provoke thoughts that it�s an odd venue for a Birdman show.  The
Central Coast certainly lacks the tradition of producing (or hosting) great
bands of industrial cities Newcastle to the north or Wollongong to the south,
which were both stop-offs on last year�s Radios On Tour.
       Although it�s also close enough to Sydney to drive to on a weekday night,
I (correctly) think most fans will wait until the weekend show at the
traditional rock pit of Selinas.  Upstairs in the half-full auditorium there�s a
buzz about another band touring after a lengthy break - Midnight Oil - who
played a well-received show here last week.  It�s ironic that the Radios are
following them a week later considering how much the Oils took from
the Birdman legacy, while at the same time denying any influence.
       Support band Front End Loader is first up and while they�re tight and
intense, it�s hard to see why they bother having two guitarists when, for most
of the night, they play the
same thing. I want to like them, but I can�t help thinking Helmet do the same
thing, only better.
       Radio Birdman saunters onto the stage in front of the enormous red and
black flag at 10 PM and waste no time cranking into �Smith and Wesson Blues.�
Rooms like this are potentially a sonic disaster (like their show in the
abominable Go Pavilion at last year�s Sydney Big Day Out), but tonight�s mix is
transparent and focused.  Close to the front with an uncrowded view, it�s easy
to see why the Birdmen have inspired so many imitators as they roll relentlessly
forward through �Crying Sun,� �Iskender Time� and one-time show closer �Do the
Pop.�
       It�s all in the attitude and feel as Deniz Tek and Chris Masuak lean into
the music, wringing feedback out of their overdriven Marshalls.  Occasionally
rusty last time out, Ron Keeley�s right on the money and he and Warwick Gilbert
are like tentpegs, holding down the framework nicely as the rest of the band
bounces back and forth around the beat.  Once the junior partner, Chris takes
two-thirds of the lead breaks and is sharp without over-playing. His
contribution on �Revelation� is a stand-out.
       Rob Younger�s obviously taking care of himself tonight with half the
contents of a (solitary) bottle of beer he grasps for most of the set ending up
on the front-row of dancers.   Pip Hoyle is nicely placed in the mix and his
washes of sound really fill out some of the songs that weren�t keyboard-oriented
on record.
       A vibrant �Aloha Steve and Danno� and then �New Race� round off the set
nicely and it�s time to grab liquid reinforcement before the inevitable five-
song encore.  �Snake� makes an appearance along with �Monday Morning Gunk� and
�TV Eye� (which segues into �LA Woman�).

       So on to Selinas on Friday night. The beachside pub is a less frequent
hang-out these days for those of us with flecks of grey hair, a family and a
mortgage, but it�s still the favoured Sydney venue for name bands playing �once
only� club-sized shows.  We give Front End Loader a miss and head for the front
bar. The gig�s not a sell-out as it lacks the �event� status of last year�s
reunion, but it�s still respectably full.  That 1996 gig was one of those
memorable, sticky summer nights when sweat dripped from the low section of
ceiling at the back of the room, and sales of bottled water rivaled that of
canned beer as hoarse fans struggled to replace fluids.
       Support act Wayne Kramer primed the crowd with a searing, flashy set which
ended with him intro-ing a �sensitive love song� by summoning the fast-filling
pit with the call: �Kick Out The Jams, Motherfuckers!�  An appreciative Rob
Younger and Friends looked on approvingly and applauded from the VIP balcony
before themselves laying waste to the place with a fiery, ragged set many fans
had waited years for.
       A fortnight short of a year later and it�s midnight when �Smith and
Wesson� opens the proceedings.  The result is, again, instant madness in the
mosh pit.  We watch from the relative security of a raised platform halfway to
the back of the room which gives a great view, even if the peculiar acoustics of
Selinas cut out some of the top register of the PA.
       If anything, Birdman�s in even hotter form than last night, playing a near
identical set with seemingly more purpose for their hometown crowd.  A subdued
Deniz again cedes most of the leads to Chris while Pip proves he�s no fashion
clothes horse with an ensemble of black shirt, red tie and matching baseball
cap.  My wife notes an uncanny resemblance between Rob and John Malkovich as he
sheds his black jacket and shock-dances his way around the stage.
       The songs gel and there�s a sense of momentum that can�t be denied.  �New
Race� caps the set proper before the encores start.  �TV Eye� is spat out,
mutates into �Looking at You,� turns back into itself and crashes to a finish
before it�s all over, far too soon.
       A writer from one of Sydney�s two daily newspapers who reviewed last
year�s gig called it �historical rather than historic� and called Birdman
�simplistic� and �derivative� - a
rich call considering he slavishly apes the �I�m-too-hip� critiques churned out
by NME in England.  He ignored them this time around...and that probably suited
band and fans alike.
       The Ritualism Tour proved that Radio Birdman did - and do - shit on
anything else around at the moment.  Let�s hope they realise as much and juggle
their other commitments to produce new and worthwhile work for years to come.

FOOTNOTE: With its members scattered around the globe, Deniz Tek says Radio
Birdman tentatively plan to go into the studio in September, other commitments
allowing, with an album out by Christmas. A tour of the US and Europe in January
was called off due to the Australian commitment but can�t be ruled out on the
back of the new album.

The Hoodoo Gurus                             by Michael Seman

Metropolis
Perth 01/23/97

       This was held in Metropolis, a 1500-capacity club, just the right size for
the Hoodoo Gurus.  Unfortunately, it�s also the newest night club, and the hi-
tech image wasn�t the ideal environment for them.  The sound quality was
excellent, albeit a little too loud.  Support acts were Flanders, and the
Chevelles, two of Perth�s power pop bands.  The Chevelles have been around for
seven years without achieving much except having product on an obscure European
label.  Flanders have only been going for two years, and maybe still have their
best days ahead of them.  The Hoodoo Gurus have been going for fifteen years
(although Dave is the only original member).  That makes them one of the old
guard, but they seem to have escaped the backlash against other veteran Aussie
acts, like INXS and Midnight Oil.  If you looked at the crowd, it was all ages
from eighteen to forty plus.  They still have wide appeal here, even if the last
album wasn�t a monster hit.  The audience seemed to like the oldies best.
�Bittersweet,� �What�s My Scene� and �Like Wow, Wipeout� had half the dance
floor singing along, and crowd surfing aplenty.  The only disappointment was
�Leilani,� which began great, but went on too long and kind of fizzled out.  Oh,
and some of the backing vocals were poor, that being the only other fault I
could pick.  You can depend on the Hoodoo Gurus to put on a professional show,
but don�t expect too many surprises.  Naturally, they were called back for an
encore, and did two obscure songs then finished with �Miss Free Love 69.�
       Well, I enjoyed it a lot.  I last saw them about 1991, and wondered why I
hadn�t been to see them more often.  I�ll see them again, preferably in another
venue.

The Stems
The Early Hours
The Dumb Angels                             by Michael Seman

Metropolis
Perth 02/28/97

       The Dumb Angels were on early, playing to about 100 people.  They are a
trashy pop band who scream and play fuzzy guitars.  A year ago, they couldn�t
play very well, but now they sounded more professional than ever, although they
did stuff up the Kim Williams song.  They also did the Dom Mariani song �Sick�,
quite appropriately for this special event.  At the end of their set, Sam
remarked that the Stems inspired them to learn to play the guitar.
       Next were the Early Hours, another band obviously inspired by the Stems.
The Hoodoo Gurus would be another major influence on them.  They had a few
guitar problems, swapping the things out, but carried on playing their usual
garage pop that got a few people dancing as the crowd numbers built up.
       We had at least a year�s rumours that The Stems were reuniting.  Then a
week of rumours about secret warm-ups that never came off, but there they were,
performing again at last.  It was something I thought I would never see again.
I recall seeing the Chevelles when Richard Lane was with them, and some drunk
was calling for a song by The Stems.  They did �You Can�t Turn The Clock Back�,
as if to say �Can�t you just accept The Stems are no more?�.  After waiting ten
years, the last ten minutes of that wait seemed unbearable.  When they finally
appeared, the crowded Metropolis erupted in clapping, cheering and whistling.
It was mostly an older audience, who obviously were fans since 1984.  It was a
CD launch for the Weed Out live CD, but I don�t think anybody mentioned that; it
was �just� a reunion to most people.
       They played most of the songs from the At First Sight album, the singles,
plus three covers (sixties songs, of course).  They played quite well
considering they only had a few rehearsals.  I had been listening to the Weed
Out CD and the vinyl live bootleg beforehand to remind myself what they sounded
like in 1986, and I think tonight was better.  There were minor flaws; e.g. bass
amp dying and the organ being a bit quiet at first.  There still seemed to be
some of that old magic when Dom and Richard got together.  The highlight was �At
First Sight� with many singing along.  �Love Will Grow� also scored a singalong.
Over 1300 people were having a great time (except for a few up front who got
hassled by the security, who must have been watching Leni Riefenstahl films for
training).
       After two encores, and almost ninety minutes, it was all over.  I was left
in no doubt as to why this band where so influential, and also thrilled knowing
I could see them again the next day.  As for the visuals, the paisley shirts and
page boy haircuts were gone, but at least we got Laurie Mariani�s fab light
show.

The Stems
Jack & The Beanstalk                           by Michael Seman

Dunsborough Tavern
03/01/97

       I wondered why the promoter chose this town for the final performance.
It looked like mostly a young surfing crowd out for the long weekend, rather
than the thirty year old fans who went the night before.  But they must have
heard of The Stems, or they wouldn�t have sold out at $15 (US $11.70) for just
any old Saturday night.  There was a queue to get in, so I missed the first
band, called Trout.  Jack and the Beanstalk were the other support act.  They
are another guitar pop band into sixties stuff like The Kinks.  Singer Joe
Algeri didn�t have his 12-string tonight, as he lent it to Dom Mariani.  They
played a lot of newer songs that weren�t known to the audience.  I doubt if this
mob had heard any of their songs at all.  Jack and the Beanstalk played well,
but didn�t get much response.  Joe sarcastically remarked something like �we�re
going to turn into a cover band� before playing a John Fogerty song that drew a
few more to the dance floor.  At the end of the set, Joe threw his spare guitar
on the floor, as he often does, but seemed more like he was pissed off rather
than a theatrical flourish.
       If Friday was the reunion, then Saturday was the farewell.  And so both a
happy and sad occasion.  At Dunsborough, we didn�t get the light show as at
Metropolis, but the bonus here was original drummer Gary Chambers, and he even
had a paisley shirt.  They reordered the set with several early songs in the
middle for Gary.  Then Dave Shaw returned and sang his song �My Beach�.  Richard
Lane sang several during the night, but most were Dom�s.  The crowd obviously
knew the songs, as they jumped about wildly with each song.  The bouncers were
quite liberal too, not stopping fans from leaning over the stage, or even
climbing on the speakers.  The Stems finished about midnight, before coming back
for an encore.  Dom introduced �At First Sight� as the last song The Stems would
ever play.  It was an overwhelming few minutes.  After the audience kept begging
for more, they eventually returned for one more encore, so �Stepping Stone� was
the last.  As they left the stage, fans rushed to touch them and grab the set
lists.
       It was worth driving three hours to see this. �- MS
********************************************************************************
The Stems - Weed Out
(House of Wax CD)
------------------------------
       The Stems were the best band ever to come out of my home town.  They had
five singles, an EP and one album that have been inspiring power pop groups ever
since.  If you wanted a live record of The Stems, you had to make do with a few
bootlegs on vinyl or cassette.  Now, at last there�s something on CD.  Since
there are only 1000 pressed, I suppose it, too, will become hard to find one
day.  It�s a ten-song slice from a performance at a hotel in Perth in April 86,
although the sleeve lists only nine tracks.  As such, you get a few gems like
�Love Will Grow,� but also some mediocre stuff like �All You Want Me For�.  I do
wish it had some better songs like �At First Sight� and �Always�.  But I am sure
the fans will want to get hold of it.  There can�t be much more left in the
archives, so this will probably be the last thing released with The Stems name
on it. �- MS

********************************************************************************
THE BOMBORAS
chat with Bob Kondrak
-------------------------------
EXPLOSIVE INSTRO-ROCK WITH BBBELLY DANCERS!!!
       So reads the poster hype, the first one I�d seen after stepping off the
city bus this cold clear afternoon in northwest Washington.  I watch my step on
icy Bellingham sidewalks on the way to 1226 State, the home of Garage Shock, but
better known to locals as The 3B Beer Joint.  The winter motto reads, �$2 Pints
of any micro brew everyday till 8!�.  Lone Star is $3 pitcher, so as the sun
sets in the cold sky I�m getting faced when in walks trouble.  I yell �Hey Vic�
real loud and The Makers walk over and we stand beside the pinball machine.
       I get the, �just one more drunk dog whose tail won�t wag if a bitch in
heat passes by� from the band as they stare at my grinning kisser.  I�m the
exception in The Makers fan club, the old sod with potency problems.  We talk
about the Japan tour and the big article in the Sunday Spokane Spokesman-Review.
Vic wants to set the record straight and says the splash in the paper was rated
�G�.  But he�ll soon tell the tale like it is.  So I ask �Who fucked the blond
Japanese doll�?  The one Vic sat beside in the picture of the stir fry scene?
Vic motions to (*&$) busy running a high score on �Martian Attack�.  I smile and
offer them my full pint of Old Crow. The cold booze is to Mike�s liking & we
chat sincere about the tour & fans like Texas Sherry.  He likes her too.  They
leave to have dinner.  I�m back to beer drinkin� and pool playin�.
       �Swinging Singles� by The Bomboras, is on the bar�s CD player loud.
Looking around the room I wonder how a band with six members, and whose act
contains elements of the pyrotechnic, the gymnastic and features a gogo dancer,
will fit on the new 3B stage.  I envisage a drunk crowd of frat rockers reacting
to that trashy Bombora surf sound of songs welded to
monster mash instrumentals using �Comanche� flux.  Midnight comes and that drunk
throng is compressed in the small pit to meet Jake�s trial by fire with burning
sparklers and firecracker blasts.  Finally, Ms. Spencer jumps off the edge clad
in fish nets and a modest two piece, her hair soaked by the beer we tossed (half
empty $3 pitchers).  The next night, down in Seattle my peak comes with the
interview with Jake & the band, Vic Mostly also pops a question.  Many thanks to
Vic for guest listing me into the room and to Jake for the pint of pricy beer.

Photos/Interview... Bob Kondrak
Bomboras and answers... Jake

TS: Who are you?
B:  I�m Jake, I�m Shane, I�m Dave and there�s Johnny and that�s Greg.

TS: That�s way too many voices to figure out later from tape so I�ll end up
calling you all The Bomboras, like in The Makers interview all the voices were
The Makers.
B:  Just call us The Makers.

TS: This is the latest from The Bomboras (Swinging Singles CD, Dionysus).  Let�s
talk about the cover, did somebody Photoshop the image of the woman�s legs with
the band�s name?
B:  Josh Agle, Shag, did it and he�s the best.  He just did the cover for Organ
Grinder (10�, Screaming Apple).  He�s doing our new record, It Came From Pier 13
(laughter).

TS: (Pointing to the small pictures of records on the CD jacket) And he did
these too?
B:  Yeah, he did Forbidden Planet.  I did Rodan.  For that, I took a picture of
our shipping clerk with the mask on.  And that is a side profile of Greg on
Dragstrip Tease.

TS: Oh yeah what�s that statue called?
B:  A stone head from Easter Island.

TS: In these small pictures of the Lord Hunt & the Missing Finks, the face on
the end looks like you.
B:  Yeah, that�s me and Dave in the middle then Greg on the other end.

TS: Is Lord Hunt a �real� character?
B:  He�s Lord Hunt (pointing to Greg), but we call him Lord Gump or Lord Dump.

TS: So Greg is Lord Hunt?
G:  No, I�m Sancho the Lover.

TS: Do Lord Hunt & the Missing Finks play out?
B:  We have, but why bother?  We have a whole band now.  That was just a thing
to piss off the rest of The Finks.  By the way, there�s a new Finks� record
coming out at the beginning of the year.

TS: I have the LP Fill �Er Up & Go! (Dionysus, �94) and then you were in the
band.
B:  And him and him and him (points to other Bomboras).

TS: OK, but on the single �Dirty Rotten Finks� you are not pictured on the
cover.
B:  That was an impostor band, an incarnation but not the Finks.

TS: On Dionysus too!  Man, when you can�t trust your label who can you trust?
What�s the deal with that and Screaming Apple too?
B:  We can do what ever we want, but we signed a contract with Dionysus.  We put
a clause in our contract saying we could do anything we want with anybody else
and all they ask is that we give them a certain amount of records or a certain
number of songs each year for three years or 36 songs.  We are almost finished
with that so we will be shopping around.

VM: (Vic Mostly) Excuse me for interrupting, but do all the bands on Dionysus
sign a contract?
B:  No.

VM: Just the Boss Martians and you guys?
B:  Hot Damn, Thorazine, those bands are on the Hell Yeah label.  And it�s their
way of separating punk rock from whatever you want to call us and The Boss
Martians.  It�s foolish if you ask me.  Just make one label and leave it at
that.  He has The Bacchus Archives and Romulan labels for reissues.

TS: How did you connect with Screaming Apple?
B:  He just called us.  I had met Richie a few times in Europe.  I went to his
club.  Did you guys go out there? (addressing Vic Mostly)  Richie�s Screaming
Apple club, in Cologne, The Underground?
VM: Yeah, The Makers got in trouble when we destroyed all these mannequins.
They claimed it was art, but it was just mannequins. (laughs)
B:  Like the Handyman, Mr. Security Man, for girls driving alone at night.  You
put the blow up dummy with a five o�clock shadow in the car, but what if a car
load of guys pulls up and gives the guy some shit and he�s not looking.

TS: You were also in The Witchdoctors.
B:  Yeah, and so was he, and he and he.

(Vic mumbles something I don�t hear.)
TS: Speak up, Vic.
B:  He said I used to be in The Makers and they beat me up and sent me down to
California.

TS: So besides those two bands did you play in any punk rock bands when you were
in high school?
B:  I was playing in The Witchdoctors when I was in high school.  Before that I
was in a garage band in San Diego called The Eastern Green.  We were in that
whole mid 8ts garage thing, like The Tell Tale Hearts, The Crawdaddys all that
shit.  We were johnny-cum-latelies.  I was 17 when I joined The Witchdoctors.

TS: There are some posters repo�d in the CD jacket and one of those contains the
following... �They all talk, fight and love just one way, Dirty.�
B:  Yeah!

TS: Was that poster a dig on the music scene down there, that people have put
you in a box?  Or are you goofin� around with your image?
B:  We were just tryin� to be tuff guys.  To get a bad-ass image.

TS: I looked at it that way, as well - the attractive JD image.
B:  We don�t try to give off a negative image.  I was just looking through a
psychotronic book and I liked the poster so we put our name on it.

TS: And on this I wonder about the way each side of the jacket headlines a
different band.
B:  Lord Hunt & the Missing Finks vs. The Bomboras was just another joke,
ourselves against ourselves.  The whole thing is a Bomboras� record.

TS: God, that�s what happens when I smoke pot and read record jackets!
B:  There�s no substance to our band, no ulterior motive.  We want to get fucked
up, play music and see the girls shake their asses.

TS: (It�s 10 PM and The Statics start playing upstairs.)
B:  Are there people up there?
VM: Yeah, and by the time you guys play it will be full.  You guys play next?
Don�t you play after The Boss Martians?
B:  No, we are on next, last night we went on before The Makers.

TS: I liked the line up last night, you guys got a little distructive and then
the Makers came on and things really got busted.
B:  We have to redeem ourselves tonight because we failed so bad last night.
The audience should know that we can do better than that.

TS: So show them your tattoos, what the hell have you got on?
B:  That�s my Tiki, let it speak!  (The group chants.)

TS: And what about this logo on your shirts?
B:  We had those made special for the Vegas Crap Out, girls, cars, you know.

TS: Cool, I saw you first in Vegas.
B:  That was a good show and we played just before The Makers.  Big time Vegas
show.  We blew up an M-80 and almost got thrown out.

TS: Last night people threw fireworks and lit sparklers.  Do you bring the
fireworks and have people throw them during the set?
B:  No but it�s slowly becoming a thing at our shows.  Remember that fuckin�
fountain?  One time I lit the organ on fire and people brought out marshmallows
and sticks right on time, they knew it was coming and they started cookin�.

TS: I wonder about gimmicks in the music, the fiery organ, the gogo dancer?
B:  It�s just like watchin� Shindig when Jerry Lee is being a wild man.  Or
watching Shindig and seeing gogo dancers.  We only have one because she is the
only one that will do it.  We would have more if we could.

TS: OK, man, I�m glad you make that connection, a total Shindig show, and you
might want to think of a scheme for fans to do that.
B:  Audition fans for gogo dancers.  We�ll let Sherry do it.

TS: Are you playing the same organ that�s pictured on that Finks record?
B:  I traded that organ for a Vox Phantom and I traded that for an Electrodan.
So that original thing is long gone.  The present thing has lasted for a year
and it�s just starting to die.  I�ll be lucky if it lasts the night.

TS: The way you throw it around is taking a toll.
B:  I abuse that hard workin� organ and expect no less.

TS: But you manage to find vintage stuff?
B:  Imagine what I would look like if I was up there like EMF with a Casio?
(laughs)  �Unbelievable!�  My first organ was a Farfisa that I bought from
Sherry�s boyfriend a long time ago.  Then I bought a Vox and was into Voxes for
a long time.  One time I played a
show and stood on top of it and it collapsed.  I left it at the club and knew I
could not use Vox anymore.

TS: You guys rock, some bands get rid of the organ cause they say it overpowers
the sound.  The band couldn�t kick you out.  But the way you play around with
that organ is a bit different than the way most bands use it.  Not just stand it
in the corner.  The Fiends have an organ and last night it was hard to see the
guy.  I doubt if Greg would allow him to do anything like what you do.
B:  It was that crustacean growing out under his chin, eh?  That scared me.  We
have a good rhythm section, so when I fuck up I just pretend to be playing.

TS: Yeah that bit at the 3B show when you repaired the AC cord was killer.  I
looked away cause the stage was a wash of beer.
B:  I got fried like three times.  I remember flipping around on the ground.

TS: I thought all the bands that played last night did a good job and even with
your tech problems I was glad to see you guys.
B:  We just wanna come out and do the hard hitting show we normally do and we
were sluggish.  It put it all in perspective for us cause it showed us that we
may not be as cool as we think we are.

TS: Who do you play with down in LA?
B:  Everybody that comes through town.  The Makers, The Boss Martians, Deadbolt,
Lune, 5,6,7,8s, whoever comes through town, they all put us on the bill.

TS: So you manage to make some money?
B:  Every cent we make goes back into the band.  The shirts, the inflatable doll
collection and our sex toy collection is vast and expensive.

TS: Hmm, Maybe I should look at blow up dolls as a collectable, but I couldn�t
set those on fire like I do real people.
B:  But when you come home, no attitude!  and those �Mr. T Fist Fuckers� get
expensive.

TS: Are you finding those at garage sales and swap meets in LA?
B:  Yeah, with the rings rubbed off. (laughter) �Bend over, I pity the fool that
don�t take the fist!�

TS: Shit man, this CD is a new collection, but you say you might be moving on to
another label?  Like Man Or Astroman went to??
VM: Touch & Go.
B:  Yeah K-Tel is hooking us up.

TS: I thought Crown records would be your next move.
B:  That�s the Phantom Surfer thing to do.  We aren�t at that level yet.

TS: So the Surfers are your competition?
B:  Nah, there is no competition, we aren�t trying to out-smart, out-cool or
out-play any band.  We play to have a good time.  If another band feels
threatened by that it�s their problem.

TS: Evan Foster says the same thing.  It�s one big happy family.
B:  It�s not a contest.

TS: But you�re down in LA, land of big money.
B:  Where�s the big money?

TS: I saw Los Straitjackets on Conan last summer.  You been on TV?
B:  Eddie Angel is a bigwig.  Whatever he does will get popular.  He had the
Planet Rockers.  Actually, Lord Hunt is going to back up Eddie Angel on his next
record.

TS: Where is Lord Hunt?
LH: Listen do you have this single (�Rodan/The Clutch�).  The songs we have on
here we recorded as a joke in a garage.  The fuckups on here are just like a
Link Wray record, screams and all.  It amazes me how much attention is directed
to this Lord Hunt project.  In all honesty, we put no thought in it at all.  It
was just something to do on a Saturday.  We wrote and recorded the songs in an
afternoon.  We borrowed the recording equipment and recorded in Lord Hunt�s
Mom�s garage.

TS: OK, you mention this guy Steve Hill as an engineer.  Is he some vintage surf
record dude or what?
B:  He used to be in The Witchdoctors and he was a Fink.

TS: And what about the clique thing?
B:  We used to have a clique but we got pulled away from it because certain
people had other interests or opinions about us as people.

TS: You guys moving in a direction into an act, fun, excitement, not just up
there playing instros.
B:  We have a good time.  We are not acting like some art show.  We are just
goofy guys that say. �Wouldn�t it be funny if we did this on stage?  Let�s see
if people like it.�  If they don�t - we laugh about it later.  One time we
dressed up like cowboys on stage.  Even better, we played with Deadbolt and a
lot of greasy haired guys in leather jackets and tattoos showed up and we
dressed like white trash.  We had greased back our hair and had fake tattoos
with words like �Ford� and �Coors� and we wore cutoffs with tank tops.  We did
it to goof on the bands playing.  Someone wrote about it afterwards �cause they
were upset that we were changing.  We laughed cause people took our band
seriously.  I�m surprised that people took what we did seriously.  When we
record as The Bomboras we might take that more seriously.  We want to have good
shows, but we are trying hard to shed some humor into this uptight scene.

TS: The draw and the money is to get people out and let them have fun.
B:  The politics of it is not that heavy.

TS: Yeah, and that�s rock�n�roll.
B:  Understand that we are just fucking off but in an orderly way and having
fun.  The thing is to get to the Frat party.

TS: Oh No, you mention the four letter word that lots of people line up against
- FRAT.
B:  First off, I have never been in a fraternity.

TS: And you don�t play in them either?
B:  I go by what is stated in the back of The Kingsmen�s records.  That�s our
idea of a frat band or party, people having fun.  Before we go on, I want to
mention that we have added a new
member.  He is Johnny Davila, our new rhythm guitar player.

TS: They still razzing you with initiations?
JD:  Nah (he smiles).

B:  So, are you gonna come up and have a good time?
TS: Yeah, baby.  Tonight�s gonna be just like last night.  Thanks, Jake.
********************************************************************************
TREK TO STUPIDITY
-----------------------------
       Welcome to a new Teen Scene feature.  I�d consider giving a prize to the
first genius who wrote in saying where the name came from, but... well, it�s not
that hard; besides, I rarely have anything worth giving away.  So, what is this?
Included herein are stories of some of the inanities we all run into in our
everyday lives.  Do I hope this column will be a force for positive change?
Puh-leeze.

       On May 10th, 1996, I got a parking ticket in New York City.  In all
honesty, it was my own fault.  I assumed that, because I�d parked in that spot
numerous times over the years, that it was still legal.  Well, anyone who�s been
parking in the East Village for the last few years should be able to tell you
that there are many, many new regulations.  Now, personally, the only reason I
can come up with for this one is that NYC needed a cash infusion.  Sure, I could
park in a lot, and thereby reduce the time I take looking for a spot, but if I
did that every time I came into Manhattan, I�d go broke.  See, NYC gets money
whether you park illegally or not.  If you get a parking ticket, well... you owe
them the fine.  However, if you decide to park in a lot, there�s a ton of taxes
on it.  Either way, they make the money.  Not a bad system.  (And I�m not even
gonna mention the four bucks they stick me for every time I wanna get out of
NJ.) But let�s get on to the case at hand.
       Seeing this ticket, Roberta made sure it was paid on May 15th.  Now,
according to the NYC Parking Violations Bureau, you have 20 days from the issue
date of your ticket to get your money in.  Well, we mailed our money in that
afternoon.  Now, I�ve had numerous problems with the US Postal Service:  they
never managed to get two different packages I sent to Finland; they lost some
papers I sent to the state of New Jersey; and they once took three weeks to get
a bunch of Teen Scene materials over to Quisp N. Quake when he was doing my
layout.  That�s three weeks to go a distance of 50 miles, at most.  Now,
personally, I�d think that they got my money there in plenty of time.  After
all, I had 15 days from the time I sent it to the time it was due.  However,
somehow, the NYC PVB only posted the payment on June 19th!!!  Now, the
supervisor I spoke to informed me that there was absolutely no way that it was
their mistake - they post them the day they get them.  (Yeah, OK, nobody there
ever makes a boo-boo and drops a check under a desk.  Nobody there ever says,
�Ah, it�s 5 PM, I�ll take care of it tomorrow.�  Nobody there could possibly
lose something in another folder, then post it later.)
       Allow me to provide you, esteemed reader, with a bit of background.  The
New York City Parking Violations Bureau charges you a fine of $10 if you are 1 -
30 days late with your payment; from 31 - 45 days, it�s a fine of $20; from 46 -
70, that�s $30; after that, you pay interest.  Now, those fines are not a simple
$10, $20, & $30.  Nope, they�re cumulative.  So, really, you aren�t paying $20
if you�re 31-45 days late; you�re paying $30.  And, heaven forbid you�re 46 - 70
days late:  then you�re going to be paying $60.  (Yeah, it�s that addition
thing.)  Get it?  Hmm... can you say SCAM?  I knew you could.
       Don�t order yet.  After all, it�s now time for the piece de resistance.
       You pay penalties on your penalties.  What Fun City is saying,
fellow/potential offender-friend-of-mine, is that it doesn�t matter whether you
paid your $55 ten days late or eighty.  If you didn�t pay the penalty with it,
said penalty will keep accumulating those penalties.  Now you�ll start to
understand why I�m ranting and raving.  (Well, besides the fact that it�s good
grist for the old mill.)  It goes like this... Even if I accept the fact (which
I�m probably going to have to) that they only posted payment on June 19th,
they�ve had that $55 accumulating interest since that date.  Meanwhile, if I
hadn�t bothered to pay it until November 15th, I would have had that $55
accumulating interest.  They charged me the remaining penalties on the basis of
the fact that I hadn�t sent along an extra $10.  (Of course, why would I?  I
sent in my check on May 15th - when it was on time!)
       I think I could (possibly) accept this whole mess if they only charged me
the $10 penalty.  But these guys want to make me pay a whole $60 plus interest,
even though they�re telling me I paid the flippin� fine in June.  (Tho� it was
really paid in mid-May, as I�ve by now reminded you way too many times.)

       Another interesting note... If you recall, last issue I told you about my
towing debacle.  Now, as I understand NYC law, your car will not be released to
you until you have satisfied all penalties and fines on that vehicle.  However,
I was towed on July 9th.  This was AFTER the penalties would have accrued to
$30.  Meanwhile, they didn�t ask me for that at all.  In fact, they told me I
was completely clear.  Yup, one of those things that makes you go, �Hmm....�

Post Script:  It�s December 3rd and I�m paying them their money.  I�m also
sending a letter along telling them they owe me $62 (or $52 if they want to
charge me a $10 fine), with an explanation of the problem.  I�ll let you know
how it works out.  (Although I�m willing to bet they�ll tell me to get stuffed.
Or, possibly, they�ll completely ignore me.)

Post Post Script:  In mid-February, NYC came to their senses.  (That�s nine
whole months after we paid the ticket in the first place.)  They sent me a check
for sixty-two dollars and some-odd cents as a rebate.  How come they aren�t
paying me interest?
********************************************************************************
THE DAY CUB SAID GOODBYE
--------------------------------------------
       Most of the following comes from a piece I wrote on my 60 Second Swinger
web page (http://shell.idt.net/~blairb1/60second.html) when I first heard about
Cub calling it quits.

       This is something that really bums me out.  In May of 1993, things were
pretty damned great.  I was all psyched to see The Muffs first appearance on the
East Coast (at The Beat in Port Chester, NY... whatta scene!).  How was I to
know that only five days prior to that, I�d discover something else that made
this world a better place to live in.  I�d headed in to the Continental in NYC,
with Matthew T. Kaplan, Esq., to see The Smugglers.  The bill was supposed to
have 1313 Mockingbird Lane headlining, but evidently their bus broke down.
Well, never fear, Dos Schmugs were actually touring with another group of
Vancouver-ites, one all-gal trio known as Cub.  It was late and I wasn�t sure if
I wanted to stay, but Matthew insisted that I give �em a chance; he said I�d
like them.  Well, he was right.  Immediately after the show, I bought the one
single they had available with them.  That Saturday, when The Smugglers played
Maxwells, I asked Cub singer Lisa Marr if I could buy another - I had a penpal
in Norway (Ms. Tuesday Knight of the Blind Bats) who I was pretty dang sure
would absolutely flip over them... possibly as much as I had.  (She did, by the
way.)
       As time went on, Cub released a ton of fantastic records and gained a
pretty good-sized audience.  Perhaps the high point, for me, was the tour with
The Queers and The Muffs, when I went five days straight (Philly, NYC, New
Haven, Providence, and Boston.)
       Now�s where we get to the part that truly upsets me... it seems that Cub
are breaking up.  Buried on the Mint Records� site (http://mintrecs.com/) are
letters from the three gals (http://mintrecs.com/bands/speak/cub/bye/cub.html),
Lisa G., Lisa Marr, and Robynn Iwata, all handwritten and scanned in.  I guess
these are supposed to explain the �why� of it, but it seems that all that�s
being said is that it�s time for a change.  Perhaps, tho�, Lisa Marr�s contains
some of the most telling.  She writes, �Why it�s over is why it worked.  Because
it�s about having fun.�  I�m guessing - and this is my interpretation, NOT fact
- this means it wasn�t fun any longer.  And, from various sources, I got the
impression that Cub�s last tour was far from fun.  There seemed to be hope, at
least for a while early this year, that they�d managed to get things rolling in
the right direction again, but I guess they decided that the best course of
action was to let it end.  Let�s face it - if a band is no longer fun, it
becomes work.  And, unless you�re making a TON of money at it, I can�t see how
going out on tour for months at a time can possibly be worth doing without the
fun aspect.
       In short, I�m extremely sad about the breakup.  Cub were one of my
favorite groups.  More importantly, I consider them to be friends.  *That* part,
at least, has not ended.  It�s just that I doubt I�ll see them as often now that
they�re no longer together.
       That said, I guess this is what�s best for them.  And that I can respect,
even if I don�t particularly like it.  As Lisa G. writes, part of it is about
taking control of her own life, and NOT doing what her friends want her to.  I
believe - and hope - that the way the band has chosen to end things means that
they�ve been able to part on good terms.  This may sound mealy-mouthed to some
of you oh-so-punk-rock types, but I believe the most important things in life
are happiness and friendship.
       Cub, I�ll miss you.  And I wish you all the best of luck in everything you
do in the future.

       As I write, I�ve just gotten a copy of a demo tape by Nitely, four songs
by Lisa Marr with The Smugglers� Dave Carswell playing guitar.  These are very
much Cub-type pop songs of the sort found on the second and third discs.  Quite
good.
       In addition, Lisa recently told me that she and Lisa G. are also working
on a new project... �more rock,� is the way she put it.
********************************************************************************
CUB
�T.J.�/�She�s A Rainbow�
(spinART)
-----------------------------------
       This one�s been out for nearly a year now, but I only recently picked it
up.  And since it seems unlikely that I�ll be reviewing too many more Cub
records, I wanted to get this one in.  While �T.J.� seems to have been recorded
at the same time of Box Of Hair, it seems to have more of a Come Out, Come Out
feel.  It�s a nice, simple Cub melody, more mature than the innocent playfulness
of Betti-Cola, but just as easy to fall in love with.  The flip is a cover of
The Rolling Stones� �She�s A Rainbow� that strips the song of its time-period
psychedelic feel and leaves it as a wonderfully naked pop song.  This is a
beautiful job on an old favorite.  Geez, it�s got me realizing all over again
how much I�m truly going to miss Cub.
********************************************************************************
TALKING TRASH WITH SLIM CHANCE
HE COLLECTS IT BY DAY,
HE PROMOTES IT BY NIGHT
an interview by Steve Coleman
------------------------------------------
Ask anyone.  The number one  place to catch the best garage bands in London and
the answer until recently would�ve been the Wild Western Room at the St. Johns
Tavern.  Since the beginning of the decade I�ve been lucky enough to live a
short walk from the St. Johns and have wasted many an evening listening to some
of the best Beat/Punk/ Garage/Surf/Rockabilly music around.  It would be
impossible to mention all the great shows but if pushed I would place the A-
Bones, John�s Children and the Wildebeests near the top.  That last one with
only about fifteen people in attendance as everyone was down at the Garage on
Highbury Corner for the El Vez gig.

       Most people outside London probably associate the St. Johns with Thee
Headcoats and Headcoatees monthly residency.  A few might even own the Live At
The Western Room album which appeared on Damaged Goods in �94.  The reality of
seeing the Billy, Bruce and Tub at the venue was so much better than that
record.  Funny, but if my memory is right the album had about three recording
attempts but still sounds like the aural equivalent of attending a Headcoats gig
with a helmet on.  One night I remember Sir William placing a small device above
the bar and recording a bloody brilliant set, apparently the sound quality was
unusable and the services of Liam Watson from Toe Rag Studios were called upon.
Not that Liam (AKA Basil Bile) wouldn�t have been there as his side project the
Armitage Shanks usually support Thee Headcoats anyway.

       Since getting an Internet account it�s been a surprise to discover the
amount of global interest surrounding the venue and the bands associated with
it.  So much so that one Sunday in March I invited the club�s promoter, Slim
Chance, over to Kentish Town for a chat and homemade treacle tart - OK I only
rolled the pastry.  Before Slim collapsed with indigestion or told me to put
something decent on the record player I started the cassette recorder and ran
the following interview.  Ladies and gentlemen here is the lowdown on the Wild
Western Room (now the Dirty Water Club at the Boston Arms) according to the man
responsible for all that great music - Mr. Slim Chance.

Teen Scene: What attracted you to the Trash/Garage scene?
Slim Chance: I was already involved with the Mod scene, on the borders of that
and I had my own personal interests in the 50s Rock�n�Roll scene.  A lot of the
people that I knew from both scenes had before that been into Trash and Garage
and I�ve always been more interested in the fringes than the already
established.  So if you look at early lists of things I�ve done you�ll find that
I would have had a 50s night say on a Monday, a 60s night on a Tuesday, then
Wednesday would have been Psychobilly, maybe Trash, and then Thursday would have
been the Headcoats or Prime Movers.  It was more the people I was working with
who were exposing me to influences that I might not have bothered with had I not
been a promoter and so I kind of moved with the people.

TS: Was this at the St. Johns Tavern?
SC: No this would have been the Dublin Castle in Camden Town.  The Dublin Castle
would have formed, for want of putting it a better way, my style of promoting
because I inherited a lot of bands that I didn�t like when I went into the
Dublin Castle and I had to weed it out by bringing in bands that I did like and
that�s kind of how it happened.

TS:  From the flyers I�ve seen you promoted a cross-section of music.
SC: That�s because I hadn�t got rid of the bands I didn�t particularly feel
represented me and I hadn�t yet managed to bring in all the bands that I felt
did.  Ska is a classic example, anyone who knows me, knows that I�m interested
in 60s Ska and Reggae.  Now the Two Tone thing would not necessarily be my
thing, but because of its connection and because the kind of people who went to
see that would also be into the sixties thing, I would embrace it.  The Dublin
Castle was known for Madness, but at the time I went in the Dublin Castle the
landlord tried to ban Reggae and Ska and I felt that was wrong because it had
built its reputation on that in the first place.

TS: What years were you working at the Dublin Castle?
SC: I think you�d be looking at early �89 and I lasted for eleven months.  I did
what I intended to do with it.

TS: From there was it a short break until the St. Johns Tavern?
SC: That�s right.  I would say three months.  I went back on the buildings for a
day and thought �I�m not doing this, I�ll find another venue�.  Mouse, until
quite recently the main DJ on the 50s scene had done a gig at the St. Johns and
liked what I did and said that it wasn�t really suitable for his crowd �cause
the dance floor was too small, but would I be interested in taking it, so I went
and had a look.  I only really took it on the understanding that I had Friday
nights already and that I could have Saturday nights as soon as I established
it.  The landlord took that away from me which is why we were only ever four
nights a week.  But once I was in and once I was involving myself in developing
it as a venue you felt you must follow it through, you can�t open it and then
close it, because it�s not going to be remembered and there�s no point in
promoting it if it�s not going to be remembered!

TS: Did you commence by booking the same mix of bands as the Dublin Castle?
SC: Well I was then in the position of where I could refuse to work with bands
that had played at the Dublin for years and years like for instance the Balham
Alligators.  Now there are probably people out there that think the Balham
Alligators are brilliant.  I thought they were toss from the first time I saw
them!  Their style of music was too old, wasn�t authentic enough,
wasn�t progressing either, so it was neither one thing or the other.

TS: So for people who�ve never heard of the Balham Alligators what were they
like?
SC: Cajun.  But the idea of a Scottish born violinist trying to sing in a
Cockney/French accent just didn�t appeal to me.  And I felt it�s all about doing
something which makes you feel vibrant, and it didn�t make me feel vibrant.
Wolfie Witcher�s Brew and all those kinds of band, were all bands that had
played the Dublin Castle but you couldn�t imagine any of those bands really
representing me.  Some of them I did one gig at the St. Johns Tavern with, but I
was more interested in, as I�ve always been interested in, is that I think
scenes breed really good bands, but those bands then deserve a wider audience,
no disrespect to the scenes.  There�s a lot of us out there that like more than
one style of music and so the purpose of my promoting was to put the scenes on:
a Mod night, a Rock�n�Roll night, and slowly I progressively blurred the lines.
I had Surf bands on
with Mod bands and things like that, which is now perfectly acceptable, but at
the time people thought it was me being cranky.  Which indeed it probably was
(laughs).

TS: The band associated with you over the last six years is Thee Headcoats.
What�s the story behind working with Billy Childish?
SC: I did one of their earliest gigs, but not their first gig, at the Dublin
Castle.  But I�d never worked with the Milkshakes or anything like that, that
was before my time as a promoter.  I guess we must have got on, because for a
while it was the only venue that they played.  Some of that may have been by
booking them once a month, that was as much as Billy wanted to play anyway.  Not
only that but the Medway beat thing really does bridge the gap between
rock�n�roll � la Link Wray and Mod, and so that is how the St. Johns formula
came together, and that�s what made the St. Johns Tavern different to the Dublin
Castle, whereas the Dublin Castle still had these dodgy Pub Rock bands which I
was having trouble weeding out.  The St. Johns didn�t have none of that.  It
wasn�t a venue when I went in there, whereas the Dublin Castle was, and I feel
that if you go into a venue as a promoter that�s already got a reputation then
out of respect you should build on that reputation, not go in and do something
totally different.  That doesn�t mean it can�t be done, the Dublin Castle is now
known as an Indie venue, but then that�s almost rubbished what it was before and
it achieved some great things in the past.  I�m talking about before me, one of
the reasons I went there and accepted it as a promoter is because it had an
identity, you know the Big Town Playboys and all those bands; brilliant, good
quality R�n�B.  To me it made good sense to bring the Clique in who were playing
a different; brilliant, good quality R�n�B and that�s kind of what I did.  I
left the Jump Blues behind �cause I was working with younger rock�n�roll bands
and they were more into Garagey Rock�n�Roll and Rockabilly.
TS: What are your favourite memories of the St. Johns Tavern?
SC: Yeah I guess I must have memories if I sit and think about it, but I�m not a
memories type of person.  Which I suppose I guess is why I�m still going.  The
Jessie Hector (guitarist/singer with UK punk band the Gorillas - Ed) gig took a
long time putting together - years!  And there were people who thought he�d
never do it, and when he did do it at the St. Johns he had Gilles from the
Clique...

TS: I remember Jessie jumping on-stage for three numbers...
SC: With the Aardvarks.

TS: ...and he did �Keep on Chooglin� by Creedence Clearwater Revival.  It was
explosive Mod pop with echoes of the Who and Hendrix.
SC: You see the man was just so brilliant but he had to have the right musicians
with him and I feel that, to answer your question, Gilles the drummer and Kevin
on bass, what a line-up.  If that wasn�t Power Pop coming into Glam then what
was!  I just thought that was so brilliant, that is a gig which touched me.
Meeting Phil May is another one, not so much because of working with the Pretty
Things  but because of Phil, I actually got on quiet well with him and Dick
Taylor for that matter, but meeting Phil was something in my life.

TS: For a while at the St. Johns there were some interesting re-union shows.
The Wheels, the Bo Street Runners, John�s Children, The Mark Four/Creation and
the Pretty Things.  Personally, I thought some of them were terrible while
others, for instance John�s Children and the Wheels were memorable.  They
appeared to work when the old heads were supported by the new garage band kids.
SC: Well now you�re beginning to get to the psychology of what I was doing.
Basically the 100 Club and the Marquee in the sixties when Sonny Boy Williamson
or John Lee Hooker came over they hooked up with a younger band as backing
musicians and so it was like a master class and because the St. Johns didn�t
have a history going into the sixties, but it was obvious that that�s where I
was coming from, I�d built its history.  The Len Bright Combo backing the Pretty
Things.  FUCKING HELL!

TS: That was Russ Wilkins and Bruce Brand from the Milkshakes along with
Wreckless Eric.
SC: Now that gig came together absolutely without me knowing what was going on
really, otherwise I�d have advertised it.  Bruce Brand looked at me one day,
half mocking and said �Do you want to do a gig with the Pretty Things?� and I
said �Yes�.  So he gave me their phone number.  I phoned Phil up and he came and
looked at the venue, then Phil saw the stuffed donkey, the cow horns above the
stage and stuff like that and he said �Yeah, alright we�ll do it, but it�s not
cost effective, some of the musicians I now work with are based in America and
it�s not cost effective.  I�ll bring in John Coglan from Status Quo and the
bloke who played sax on Gerry Rafferty�s �Baker Street��, and I said �Hold on,
can�t I provide some of the musicians for you�, and he said �Who did you have in
mind� and I said �Well, Bruce Brand� as much to pay him back for the gig but
fuck John Coglan, no disrespect, but that�s not what my style of promoting was
supposed to be about.  And Bruce had said �I can get a bass player, Russ Wilkins
would like to do it�.  Then Bruce was in Paris recording with Wreckless Eric in
his home studio and Bruce said to Eric �My new band�s doing a gig on Thursday�
and Eric had said �Oh yeah, what are they called then?�, and Bruce said �The
Pretty Things�.  Eric said �Fuck Off!� in his Southend accent, �Well, if you�re
in the Pretty Things, then I�m in the fucking Pretty Things� and he went out and
bought the plane ticket.  He turned up with a guitar and I said to Nick Garrard
�Who�s that?� and he said �I don�t know, I know his face but I can�t place it�,
so I said to Bruce �Who�s he?� and Bruce said �I�m not allowed to tell you�.  So
I went up to him and said �Who are you?� and he said �I don�t want to talk about
it� and he got up onstage and I didn�t know it but I�d got the Len Bright Combo.
Now, if I�d known that I�d have billed the gig as the Pretty Bright Combo!

TS: Can you explain that line-up onstage Slim?
SC: YEAH!  Well you got Phil May, Dick Taylor and a guy called Barclay who is
now in the Pretty Things, a young guy, good guitarist.  You�d got Wreckless
Eric, Russ Wilkins and you�d got Bruce Brand and then this bloody saxophone
player turned up halfway through the gig with a guy who said he was his road
crew or something.  They plugged this saxophone through an echo chamber and into
the back of the desk and flooded the whole room, the whole PA with echo.  For a
brief period there, some people remember Phil May echoing around the room saying
�Get rid of that fucking echo-co-co-co-o!�

TS: So did they play a Pretty Things r�n�b set?
SC: Yes the sixties stuff.  Well Phil was as good as gold, what a beautiful man,
I actually told him what I wanted and he told me he�d do it.  The wisdom of that
was, you were at the Bo Street Runners gig, which was pure chicken in the
basket.  Absolute cabaret and that terrified me.  That is really why I stopped.
You�ll see from some of the contracts I showed you that I worked with some
obscure 50s artists like DJ Fontana.  The St. Johns, I guess really achieved...
to have Presley�s drummer onstage the day before Jessie Hector, to some people
that will mean nothing, but to others - how on earth did I manage that one!  So
that was really something and then on the same time monthly lists you�d have
Dave Vanian and his other band, the Phantom Chords, the Meteors new incarnation
which then would have been the Johnson Family, and you�d have had the Prime
Movers which of course many people still remembered as the Prisoners.

TS: Weren�t Graham Day and Alan Crockford in the Prime Movers?
SC: Yes and of course Wolf Howard who still works with me.  You saw Wolf in
Dodson�s Dog a few weeks ago.  I�ve had a working relationship with Wolf for six
or so years.

TS: You have strong links with the Medway bands, Dodson�s Dog, Armitage Shanks,
Sexton Ming...
SC: The Medway thing really is kind of 60s rock�n�roll which does bridge the gap
with the 50s, but not only that it�s Punk, and so it bridges the gap also
between the 60s and the 80s if you will.

TS: At the Headcoats gigs there�s one guy, he�s always there, and those of us
who remember the Milkshakes occasionally think �Is he gonna jump up onstage
tonight� - Mickey Hamphire.
SC: I�ve tried so hard to get Mickey to do a gig with the Masonics, his new
band,  and he just grins, he doesn�t...

TS: Is it stage fright?
SC: No I wouldn�t think so, he�s far too whizzen for that.  I think he just
can�t be arsed to be honest with you.  I tried to do an anniversary gig, a sixth
anniversary gig and I wanted the Milkshakes.  Everytime I see Mickey in the
audience I know people would like to see him get up onstage but what can you do,
it�s the man�s decision you know.  We play Masonics records and that�s about as
close as we�re gonna ever get I think.

TS: So in November last year, after six years at the St. Johns Tavern there was
a change of venue.  How do you feel about moving from the St. Johns?
SC: How do I personally feel?  Well time marches on doesn�t it.  I�m sure the
St. Johns of today would not be the St. Johns of six months ago, it did go
through a lot of changes, but what a pain in the arse that landlord was!  A
lovely man, but the Clique, they came in and brought their own light show, their
own smoke machine, the governor went spare and told me it was peeling all the
paint off the ceiling.  Now there�s no logic behind that.  Of course I don�t
miss that, well I don�t stop to miss things really, I�ve brought the best of it
with me if you like.  Apart from that, as I�ve said to you before, we kinda need
a second night for the bands that don�t fit in.  Some way or other the Boston
thing has become a Garage/Trash night but there was of course other
undercurrents to the St. Johns.

TS: At the St. Johns you were booking bands Monday to Thursday and although a
lot of people associate the venue with Garage music there would also be Ska or
Rockabilly bands playing.
SC: I would say that it was probably very close to the Maximum Rock�n�Roll
approach to Punk rock.  When you read through Maximum Rock�n�Roll, the British
bands that they�re interested in, I�ve had demos from nearly all of them and
I�ve booked nearly all the ones from London.  We were working with some of the
Hardcore stuff like Joeyfat and it really did have a place as part of what we
were doing, but not of course on the rock�n�roll night, or the garage night.
But I do miss that side of things.  I guess you wouldn�t and I guess out-and-out
Garage fans wouldn�t give a damn if I never worked with that kind of band again,
but you�ll be surprised at just how much crossover there is.

TS: It was always fun to visit the Western Room and chance across a band that
you wouldn�t normally see, for instance a good Rockabilly band like Cowboy
Barnes and his Drinking Buddies.  I get angry when I see a band take along a fan
contingent, who disappear into the bar after their mates have played and then
miss a blinding set by another group.
SC: Of course, if you do that at the Dirty Water Club at the Boston you get
saddled with karaoke so that�s not going to happen, so that�s done me the
biggest favour of all!

TS: Tell me a bit more about the Dirty Water Club �cause you�re not far from the
St. Johns?
SC: No, we�ve only moved to the bottom end of Junction Road and of course it was
kind of accidental.  The governor messed me about.  I reached a point where if I
wasn�t going to get a Friday night, because of my day job, I just couldn�t
psychically do four nights midweek and do my day job.  So I said �I want a
Friday night� so he gave me the Friday night and I put the Headcoats in and then
he changed his mind and canceled it and I only found out by accident, and
unfortunately his brother died in that particular week and he was having a wake
on that Thursday night so that meant two Headcoat gigs in a row would have to be
canceled, now I didn�t want to do that to the customers, so I deliberated over
it and I phoned Strange & Blinding up - Paul and Alan, the promoters at the
Boston Arms - of course they�ve been mates for some time, so they said �Yeah,
bring it in�.  So we just stuck posters up outside the funeral essentially, and
140 people turned up.

TS: There�s a story that once the landlord at the St. Johns Tavern got wind that
you were looking for another venue, pound notes started to flutter in front of
his eyes and he approached Billy Childish direct.
SC: That�s right!  Yeah, but he hadn�t offered Billy a drink in six years and
the fact that Billy didn�t drink didn�t stop it rankling.  Oh, I don�t want to
badmouth John �cause I love the guy in his own way; he put up with me for six
years as well as I put up with him for six years and I can be just as pedantic.
But of course he was an endurance test and of course I haven�t had that kind of
problem in the Boston.  In fact, when I complained that the beer was too dear in
the Boston they put it down.  If I�d have done that at the St. Johns, he�d have
put it up and told me to mind my own business.  Of course it is my business
�cause you�ve got to do what you can for your customers and if you�re expecting
them to stay �til one o�clock then they�ve got to be able to afford another pint
and possible mess about with the night buses.

TS: You�re only promoting on a Thursday night at the Dirty Water Club ?
SC: At the moment.  I did need to consolidate and get that one night back into
shape, but now I�ve done that there�s a lot of bands that I wouldn�t book into
the Thursday that I feel that I would like to do a gig with, so we might have to
do some one-offs.  I want a Friday night, which is not quite as important now
that we have a two o�clock license which means that will give us room to do a
little club after the gig which might work, it might not, but we�ve got to try.

TS: A two o�clock license would be a stronger pull on a Friday.  Most people
don�t have the hassle of getting up for work the next morning.
SC: Actually there�s a three o�clock one on a Friday if I can get it.  What a
pain in the arse the system is.  One of the things which attracted me to
promoting was that I was out every night of the week anyway as indeed we all
were in the seventies and early eighties.  It�s only when it got really, really
silly that we perhaps couldn�t afford to go to gigs that we didn�t really care
about.

TS: So promoting one night a week doesn�t give you the same degree of
flexibility that you had at the St. Johns Tavern?
SC: I guess flexibility is one way of looking at it.  There�s more to Punk rock
than Garage-Punk and I really do think, although I can�t honestly say that I
read fanzines as often as I should, for instance Maximum Rock�n�Roll covers
quite a variety of stuff.  Now some of it, you know I�ve never been a big fan of
Dogs On Rope, so if it was down to me I�d let the dogs in and leave the punters
outside!  Obviously that type of Punk is outside of what I do, but some of the
melodic Hardcore I would really like to do something for.

TS: Would that include Toast?
SC: Toast are Pop Punk I guess, no for example Screeching Weasel.  I like record
labels like Lookout, Empty, Estrus, even Fat Wreck Chords, and if there are
bands like that in this country I would like to represent them and put stuff on.
But of course it�s getting an audience for it.  We did Toast on a Thursday night
and it worked because they brought their own crowd.

TS: That bill included an Empty Records band from Nottingham.
SC: Yeah the X-Rays.  But of course I�d worked at the St. Johns with Toast and
the X-Rays on other nights of the week.

TS: There was a great turn out for the Toast/X-Rays gig.
SC: It was a good gig as well.  I mean the headline band, the Country Teasers,
suffered a little bit.

TS: Maybe there was too much of a contrast with the other bands.
SC: Of course that wasn�t the original choice of gig, the original choice was
this band the Arse Draggers or Los Ass Draggers, a Crypt band.  So you would�ve
had a Crypt band and an Empty band on the same bill and that would have been
more on the Pop Punk side of things.  But gigs don�t often turn out the way you
want them too, you get a line-up and then one band will drop out, then you find
it changes.  I think my style of promoting, if we can call it that to express a
point, is to put on a showcase whereby if you have only heard of two of the
bands you can trust me that you�ll like at least one of the other two.  It has
worked to some degree and I have seen our type of line-ups echoed in other
places.  But then again I�ve seen that before I went there as well, you know I�m
not doing anything that Mike Spencer didn�t do before me.

TS: Mike Spencer of the Cannibals when he ran the Garage Club in the eighties.
SC: Although I never actually went to it, his booking policy was not dissimilar
to my own.

TS: In those days it would be the Milkshakes, Stingrays, Barracudas, Prisoners,
Surfadelics,
X-Men, Bad Karma Beckons, Purple Things, Surfin� Lungs etc.
SC: Like he would be dealing with Trash, Punk, Surf which is what I am doing.

TS: Do you think the UK Trash/Garage scene is in a healthy state at present?
SC: YEAH...  There are some good bands coming out and of course Surf is now
accepted as part of that scene whereas when I was trying to put Surf on a few
years ago, unless it was Man or Astro-Man? people didn�t want to know.

TS: So who are the new breed of bands to look out for at the Dirty Water Club?
SC: The best way of dealing with this is to look at the bands that have played
there since we�ve been open.  Now obviously the Headcoats are still the
linchpin.  Take the first gig on the 7th of November, you got Black Foot and the
Voola.  Now I still want our regular crowd to see them one or two times, so
they�re a band to look out for, that guy is such a frontman.

TS: The black sax player dresses like a Medicine Show entertainer.
SC: Yeah Rowan, who was with Jake Vegas for a while.  He�s like a more demented
Screamin� Jay Hawkins with a bit of Beat poetry and a bit of Jazz.  I mean he�s
kind of off his head!  But he�s so good at it.  Now Nero Burns, their first gig
failed because it was Industrial Rockabilly.  They had a DAT machine and I would
have been quite prepared to persevere with it in the St. Johns, but when people
saw there was no drum kit they were freaking.  They have a track called the
�River of Sleaze� which is spot on.  It has a Cramps element in there, sleazy
Camden Rockabilly influences.  And then we have Blue Voodoo, half the same
musicians as Black Foot and the Voola and Jack and the Rippers.

TS: Are these musicians from the Rocking scene?
SC: That�s right, which is the St. Johns coming through again you see.  Some of
these people I�ve know for some time and I wouldn�t dream of asking for a demo
tape or turning them down for a gig.  If it was slightly outside of what we did
then I would tolerate that �cause I trust them, they�ve been involved for so
long that you know they�re going to give you something of quality.

TS: Tell me about the Lowdown Shakin� Chills, �cause there�s a Headcoats
connection?
SC: Some people will remember me raving about a band called the Lost Souls which
isn�t the Lost Souls from the eighties; it�s very like Jack O�Fire on Estrus.
The first gig with him they were a three piece, the girl didn�t play drums but
upside down dustbins painted up like something from a Frat Shack night (monthly
Trash club in London - Ed).  The second gig they were down to a two piece and
the third gig he was on his own and now he�s resurfaced as the Lowdown Shakin�
Chills with Holly Golightly on bass and Bruce Brand on drums.  He�s less Estrus
than he was but he�s still so good, bottle neck guitar, definitely a band to
look out for.

TS: There�s a strong delta blues element to their set.  What I find so
reassuring is that he is only around twenty, I would love to see something on
record by them.
SC: Well it�s gotta happen �cause of the Headcoats connection so he�s gonna get
put out anyway.  But the guy, even before hooking up with Holly and Bruce, the
guy was just so good.

TS: You were telling me that �The Lost Soul� had a pretty varied taste in music.
SC: Yeah, we struck a chord immediately, we started talking about labels and he
was into all the same kind of stuff that I was.  You know that if the American
bands came over to England all the time...  Obviously I wouldn�t want to work
with every American band but virtually every band on Estrus would have been
offered a gig at the St. Johns.  Every band on Get Hip would have been offered a
gig at the St. Johns and so on and so forth.  This guy knew all the American
stuff that I would consider to be St. Johns type bands.  So it was inevitable
that he would become a part of what we did.

TS: The Sires appear to be a band that have taken off over the last twelve
months.
SC: Absolutely.  Well I felt about the Sires last year like I feel about the
Coyote Men this.

TS: For those people who have not heard of the Sires they�ve recently released
an EP on Twist with a sixties Back From the Grave flavour.
SC: I can hear a bit of the Cramps in there personally, but that might just be
Domi�s voice.  I think they�re brilliant live and I�m with them 100%.  I�d
recommend anyone who likes the things we do to persevere with that band if
they�re not used to them yet �cause I just think that they�re gonna go from
strength to strength.  Time will tell.  Let�s not miss out on the Embrooks.  For
people who remember the Mystreated for being one of the best garage bands, which
they were for a while before they became more folk-rock, then check out the
Embrooks because the Embrooks have taken on where the Mystreated departed.

TS: They include Mole, the drummer from the Mystreated.  So what do you think
makes them distinctive or better than the Mystreated?
SC: Well �better� is a word that I daren�t use, but Folk-Rock... Agghhh!  You�d
never come to terms with the phrase Folk Rock�n�Roll would you, so bollocks,
it�s not what I do although because of my policy of working with people
continually I�d do another gig with them, but I�d have to be careful because
quite a lot of the Garage crowd think that is going too far.  The Mystreated are
so good at it that they should be on Delirium, �cause they�d reach that crusty
Psychedelic audience as well.  They evolved slightly further than what people in
England wanted.

TS: Do you remember at the St. Johns Tavern when you screened �Riot On Sunset
Strip� and the Mystreated played immediately after the film?  They were a
totally different band then.
SC: Yes, and they were brilliant; they should have been in the film!  And this
is where the Embrooks come, in �cause the Embrooks have taken it back a couple
of years and started again.  How long it takes them to come forward�s another
matter.  But you know the Byrdsian jangly guitar sound has never been my kind of
thing anyway.  Make it dirty and break a string... PLEASE (laughs).

TS: So there�s a lot of good new bands appearing, but now that you�re in a
larger venue why not book more US bands?
SC: We tried, the Crypt Los Ass Draggers thing (from Spain - Ed).  These bands
say �Yeah, we�ll do it, we�ll come over to London� and then they realise that
they�re not a as well known as they think are and they can only get one,
possibly two gigs and then they see that they�re not gonna make a cent, so
what�s the point.  But what can I do �cause I�ve been battling against this one
since we started.

TS: Are there any specific American bands you�d like to work with?
SC: I�d work with any band from any part of the world which fitted in with the
formula that I�ve established.  For example, bands on Crypt, Estrus or Norton.
Good, well-rooted fifties bands; good, well-rooted sixties bands; good, well-
rooted Punk bands; that�s what I�ve always been about.  Of course, these bands
have always been there.  Sometimes you get them first, sometimes you get them
later and sometimes you don�t get them.  If only we could provide that same kind
of service for bands from all round the world.  I did try and put a circuit
together once and with disastrous results, but you do learn (laughs).

TS: So if bands reading this would like to play the Dirty Water Club what should
they do?
SC: Keep us in touch with records and things like that �cause if we can�t do it
one way we can perhaps do it another.

       Slim would like to thank Dr Strange, Professor Blinding, DJ Paul, Shirley,
Catherine, Webmaster SC and all the bands and regulars that have supported the
venue move.  If your band is visiting London and wants to play the venue, please
send demos to : Slim Chance, �Dirty Water� (Thursday), The Boston Arms, 178
Junction Road, Tufnell Park, London N19, England.
       Check out Steve Coleman�s Dirty Water Club home page on the World Wide
Web. (http://www.pro-net.co.uk/scaf/dirwat.html)  You�ll find a ton of cool
photos, along with the club�s schedule and interviews with bands that gig there.
********************************************************************************
Hey Mom, The Garage Is On My Foot! - Vol 1 (DAMGOOD102LP)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       Interested in hearing some of the above sounds but can�t afford the
airfare? Then look out for this long playing record featuring many of the Dirty
Water Club�s favourites: Thee Headcoats, Armitage Shanks, Cee Bee Beaumont,
Stewed, The Kravin� �A�s, The Green Hornets, Jesse Hector & the Sound, The
Campus Tramps and a slew of other lo-fi losers.
       Available on vinyl or CD and housed in a snazzy jacket with sleeve notes
by Slim Chance. Released by Damaged Goods Records, PO Box 671, London E17 6NF.
********************************************************************************
Slim Chance, Phone Home
-----------------------------------
       Two weeks after the interview Slim left a short, cryptic message on my
answering machine : �Steve, is it too late to stop the Teen Scene interview?
Come to the club on Thursday and I�ll tell you about my new plans for the
venue.�  So a few days later I walked to the Boston Arms hoping to gain further
insight.  On arrival, Paul Crittenden, the DJ, informed me that Slim had
disconnected his phone and that no one had seen or heard from him all week.
This all happened at the end of March and since then no one has seen or heard
from him.  As you would expect some people have vivid imaginations and several
theories are already floating around London.  Whatever the truth is, *everyone*
on the Trash scene is missing Slim Chance.  This guy has done so much for new
and established garage bands over the years and has put together one of the best
rock clubs in town.  SLIM, if your reading this please get in touch with the
Dirty Water Club even if it is only to let us know you are OK!  In the meantime
Paul �the DJ� and Paul �the sound� are looking after things in your absence.
The Dirty Water Club will still be there when you return.
********************************************************************************
A WEEKEND WITH THE UNTAMED YOUTH
       Forgive me, Brothers and Sisters, for I have once sinned against The
Untamed Youth.  The fingers are weak.  (What the hell is he yappin� about, Jim
Bob?)  Well, Ben, y�see... The Untamed Youth graced New York area stages for a
weekend in early November.  At the time, unfortunately, I was putting the
finishing touches on TS #56 and decided to hold off on writing about that most
incredible of weekends.  As a result, I�m here trying to figure out how the hell
I�m gonna tell you about it some eight months on.  Yeah, I know, I effed up.
Once again, I humbly beg for mercy from both you and the boys in the band.

       I�d heard a couple months earlier that the Youth might be swingin� our way
soon.  Seems their buddy, Joe Bargmann was gettin� hitched in Hoboken and wanted
his old pals to make the celebration true.  Being the true blue types they are,
the Youth obliged.  Pretty cool of �em, considering that only Mace (of bass) and
organ-meister Rager still live in Columbia, MO.  Drummer Joel Trueblood lives
out Washington-way, while ol� Deke resides in sunny SoCal.  So, shall we say,
getting together was not gonna be the easiest thing they ever pulled off.  But,
hey, they�d done it before... and this was for a worthy cause.
       The trick, however, was to see if they could grab another gig while they
were here.  Bargmann�s wedding was on a Saturday night.  If they could swing a
gig for Friday night, they�d be doin� just fine.  Well, I�ll cut out the
suspense and just let you know that it worked out and they got a show at
Maxwells in Hoboken.  In fact, during the week, I was in touch with my friend
Francis, who was then booking the first Saturday night each month at
Continental.   And he really wanted the guys to come on over to Continental to
do a late-night set when they were done at Bargmann�s wedding.
       Now, in the meantime, I�d been trying to find an organ for Rager to play
on.  The problem was that only one of my three Farfisa models is in stage-worthy
shape.  And that�s the Fast 3, the one Rager used the previous trip to town.
Quite honestly, that organ�s just not Youth-worthy.  It just can�t pump it out
the way a Combo Compact does.  Various calls to other people around town proved
that their own Combo Compacts were in a condition at least as crappy as my own.
Finally, the day of the Maxwells show, I gave Dave Amels a ring.  (Some may know
Dave from his organ work on the Swingin� Neckbreakers� records, among many
others.  Others may actually have some records by his old group, The Stepford
Husbands.)  Dave�s got more organs than anyone around, but I hadn�t been able to
get ahold of him.  That afternoon, though, I was able to catch him.
       Now, meanwhile, I had to go to Newark Airport to pick up Rager and Joel.
Things worked out pretty well and I got those guys while Todd A. got Mace.
(Derek was already in town.)  We headed straight up to Maxwells from there and
checked out the Combo Compact Dave had provided.  (I�d brought the Fast 3 along,
just in case.)  It played like a charm and that gave Rager and I some time to go
grab a slice down at Benny Tudino�s.

       I�m gonna be honest here... I don�t really remember who else was on the
bill that night, although I seem to recall The Subsonics as being part of it,
which pleased me to no end.

       Finally, it was time for the big event.  First off, they blasted into �I�m
Goin� Away� and from right there we were on top of the world.  �Russian
Roulette� added an element of danger, but then the sun shone again as they
launched into one of the all-time Untamed Youth faves, �Some Kinda Fun.�  A bit
later on came a particular favorite, �Beer Bust Blues,� by the Scotsmen.  And if
yellow alert was sounded with �Without A Word Of Warning,� they immediately
blasted off again with �Supercharged Steamroller.�  (If you can snag a copy of
the vid for this one, it�s quite enjoyable.)  �Overcast� darkened the skies, but
then came �KAPO.�  Yeah, obviously this one got me dancing up a storm all over
again.
       I wanna take a brief time-out here... Just felt like I needed to say how
great it was watching them play at Maxwells this time out without needing to
hold up the organ.  Now back to our show.
       Things kept right on movin�... �Girl & A Hot Rod,� �The Hearse,� and that
song Derek wrote for the first girl he ever loved, Miss Elly Mae Clampett,
entitled, �Hey Elly Mae.�  �Go Go Ferrari� kept up the pace, moving on to what�s
always a show highlight for me, �She�s So Satisfyin�,� a number that somehow
never fails to bring out the primal urge to stomp and shout and work it on out.
Onto the �Beer Medley� and then the closer, Andy Shernoff�s Statement Of Purpose
for The Dictators back on Go Girl Crazy in 1975, �I Live For Cars & Girls.�
Until the Youth did it back in the late 80s, nobody would�ve believed it was
possible to cover this without coming out looking like a fool in comparison to
the �Taters.  But the Youth did themselves proud.  And they did so tonight, as
well.
       As to the encore... it was a version of The Remains� �Don�t Look Back.�
What�s truly great is that we don�t really have to now:  a wish of mine has come
true, The Untamed Youth have a new album out and are actually doing a short East
Coast tour in August.  Yeah, you could say I�m a happy man.

       After the show, Joel and Rager came back to my place to crash out.  In all
honesty, it was a pretty packed house, what with a couple friends up for the
occasion, as well.  But it was FUN, too.  Our friends had journeyed up for a
damn good reason.  This was the Untamed Youth!
       On the Saturday afternoon, Rager asked if he could practice on some of the
organs I�ve got set up in the utility room.  I said sure.  Unfortunately, he
didn�t want an audience, so I had to close the door.  Of course, once I went
upstairs to work on the computer I could hear everything perfectly.  So I�d like
to take this opportunity to thank Rager for the private concert.
       We had to get moving pretty early that evening, since the boys had to get
to Hoboken and set up their stuff for Bargmann�s wedding.  They�d gotten the OK
for us to attend, as well, but we just didn�t feel right about that.  Besides,
there was a pretty damned good show going on at Continental that night and
they�d be by towards the end of the night to entertain us again.
       On to Manhattan then for some wings.
       Things were pretty good that night at Continental.  Wish I could remember
who the rest of the bands were.  (The Vacant Lot and Sit N�Spin stick in my
mind, but I could be completely off.)  Eventually, the U Youth showed up and it
was time to rock�n�roll all over again.
       Tonight they stayed away from most of the regular stuff.  They�d played
�em the night before and again just a couple hours earlier and it seemed like it
was time for something different.  As a result, they had some fun.  As a result,
so did we, as they launched into some incredible covers, including that demented
Trashmen-like take on �Whistle Bait� that can now be found on their new disc.
(See sidebar - ed.)  Basically, they just went wild and had a good time.  Yeah,
things got wild and woolly, but that was all a part of it.
       Sure, the show eventually came to an end.  But not before everyone was
completely out of their minds in a state of happy delirium that only The Untamed
Youth can inspire.  This weekend had proven just why The Untamed Youth are one
of the best damned bands of the past 15 years.  Rock�n�roll is supposed to be
about having a good time - The Untamed Youth are the personification of that.
Translation:  The Untamed Youth are what FUN is all about.
       That night, as we packed up my car and crammed Joel, Rager, and Mace (who
was flying out early in the AM) all in the Blairmobile, with Derek heading back
to the Millers and catching a flight to LA separately, Rager said, �Hey, Dekus,
guess I won�t see you till next year, huh?�  Deke replied that this was true and
Rager wished him a happy holiday season and a good New Year.  What�s the point?
Well, as The Remains once wrote, �All Good Things... don�t have to end.�  To me,
it meant that the Untamed Youth really are staying together, for awhile at
least.  It was nice to hear.  It meant, to me, that I�d see them again soon.
       Everyone was pretty tired by the time we got home, so we all crashed out
pretty quickly.  When I woke up the next morning and went out of my room, I saw
Mace on the couch, with a tired smile on his face... drinking a can of Pabst
Blue Ribbon.
********************************************************************************
UNTAMED YOUTH BACK IN THE STUDIO
------------------------------------------------------------
       It�s been about seven years since the last new studio album by The Untamed
Youth.  And quite honestly, that was the last one I ever expected to hear.
Yeah, I knew Derek and Mace were �goin� out west where they [felt they]
belonged,� but somehow even then I knew things�d never be the same.  That�s why
I was so psyched when I saw the Missouri lineup out at G-Shock, �95.  (Hmm...
�psyched� probably doesn�t begin to cover it; I was ecstatic when they were on-
stage.)  And I�ve been on top of the world the last couple times they�ve been
here, too.  And the Untamed Melodies disc was a reminder of how they were one of
the shining stars in the void that was the late 80s.  This was one damned great
band!  The fact that they were playing some shows together again was cause for
celebration.
       The boys have finally decided to take the logical next step.  They now
have a new disc out, Planet Mace (Estrus).  So, what�s the verdict?  These guys
have lost NOTHING in all those years.  This disc is filled with all the elements
that made The Untamed Youth fan favorites ten years back:  some cool garage-
punkin�, swingin� surf sounds, and the ever-present frat rock wildness.  In
other words, the boys have once again shown that it�s all about having a good
time.  Yeah, FUN is the name of the game.  And it�s the national pastime on
Planet Mace.
       So let�s get into it... They kick it off with some dirty garage-punkin�
chords on �I�ll Be Gone,� as Derek let�s the gal have it for treatin� him like
crap all this time.  She�s gonna be losing the best thing she ever had.  The
band crunches and Derek tells it like it is.  But things really start to roll
when Mace steals the mic for �Beer Bust Blues Pt. 2.�  (Why do I want to call
this �Beer Bust Blues Part Deux?�)  With such couplets as, �I ain�t got no car,
ain�t got no job / I turned out to be a no-good slob� and �There ain�t much to
do �round here / My welfare check at least keeps me in beer,� it�s pretty
obvious this one�s headed for Numero Uno on the BlairBoard  charts.  Lookin� for
car songs?  Check out �Fire Breathin� 32� which features some dang pretty guitar
work by Deke, as well as some nice clean vocals, too.  �Without A Word Of
Warning� has been part of the Youth arsenal for a couple years now, and another
version (performed by one of the California lineups) can be found on the live
disc released on Estrus a couple years ago.  I shouldn�t have to tell any true
Untamed Youth fan what the title of �F.U.J.I.M.O.� is all about.  The tune
itself is a fantastic surf number with both wild guitar reverb and some pretty
electric piano parts twinkling around.
       Seems like Planet Mace has some popular sports, too.  �Mailbox Jamboree�
is played with bats, but no baseballs.  In fact, in this sport (known, I assume,
to almost anyone who didn�t grow up in a city), it�s the batter that�s moving
and the target that�s standing still.  What�s amazing is just how damn enjoyable
a song this is (beyond the obvious lyrical fun)  As most of the group makes with
the party-time chording, Rager swoops in and out, up and down on the organ.
Meanwhile, Mace tells the story, �Louisville Slugger and a case of Strohs / Take
turns drivin� and you�re ready to oppose.�  Ah, yes, harmless teenage fun.
(Well, at least no people get hurt... tho� the mailboxes aren�t coming out of it
too happily.)
       Next is the absolutely DEMENTED insanity of the boys taking on The
Collins� Kids� classic, �Whistle Bait.�  This song was already a pretty wild
one.  How, then, could they make it their own?  By channeling the genius of The
Trashmen, of course.  �Ghost Wave� is one of those beautiful lonely surfer type
instros and makes for the perfect end of side one.
       They kick off the second side with another fantastic start-up number,
�Ain�t Got A Thing,� somewhere between the late 50s and good-time mid-60s frat
rockin�.  This gets the party movin� all over again.  Speakin� of the good
times, one of the major hits of this disc has gotta be �Life O� The Party.�  It
couples a swingin� tune and a singalong chorus with some fantastic lyrics.
       �I didn�t mind his type of show
       Till I looked into my baby�s eyes
       There was somethin� about this life o� the party
       He was better than us other guys
       Not an ounce of fat on his suntanned body
       He quoted from books I had skipped (...)
       The life of the party is a riot
       All the chicks get down and beg
       But if the life of the party talks to my chick
       I�ll proceed to break his leg.�
Before long, of course, our narrator�s chick is in line to dance with this
swinger and our guy just ain�t too pleased.  Finally, he figures it all out...
he tells the hipster all about this real cute gal and pretty soon they�re makin�
time.  Well, that is, they are till the gal�s boyfriend, who just happens to be
the captain of the football team, comes along and turns the Life O� The Party�s
face into mush.  All�s well that end�s well.
       We get a change-up thrown at us with �Jet�s Julep,� a trip down to Memphis
for some Stax-Volt styled instro cool.  After that, it�s time for some more
vehicular action, with �Two Wheel Show Stopper.�  Check out Mace�s lines at the
end.
       Then it�s time for a beautiful rip on part of today�s garage scene, with
�I�m More Punk Than You!�  This one�s got a lo-fi distortion sound on the vocal
as the group goes for dirty, meaty chunk chords.  The sound is extremely Mummie-
fied, which is the point.  With lines like �I got 97 Billy Childish poetry
books...� and �I�m more punk than you, I�ll kick your ass,� it�s pretty obvious
what the point is.  And in the meantime, they�ve gotcha rockin� right along.
       Suddenly it�s back to the purity of good ol� Untamed Youth.  This one�s
called �Beer Belly Baby.�  Rager�s organ dances along in the back while they let
fly.  After that, there�s but one more, the obvious last call, an instro
entitled �Scrambler.� It�s playing on the deep end of the guitar, singing, �So
long till next time.�  The organ comes in to sing it�s own good-bye song, as
well, eventually giving way once again to the guitar, which now takes it up,
then returns for one last salvo from the bottom end.   A proud good-bye.
       As I think about this disc, I realize that it�s got a ton of funny lyrics.
To me, this is a fantastic thing.  Music should be enjoyable.  Unfortunately,
far too many people seem to take it way too seriously.  This is something The
Untamed Youth have never done; they know that it�s all about having a good time.
In a recent interview with Cosmik Debris (http://www.cosmikdebris.com), Ben
Vaughn noted that his sense of humor had often gotten him filed in the novelty
section, something that seemed ridiculous to him, after all, he noted, Chuck
Berry�s songs were often hilarious.  (Just listen to �Dear Dad� for an example.)
Geez, gang, let go and have a good time, will ya?
       So, take The Untamed Youth�s invitation to Planet Mace.  It�s a place
where times are good, the Pabst Blue Ribbon flows freely, and people are out for
a good time.  But don�t forget, �This is Mace�s Planet.  We just live on it.�
********************************************************************************
WELCOME TO THE LIBRARY (shhh!)
---------------------------------------------------
Last Gang In Town:
The Story & Myth of The Clash
(Henry Holt & Co.)
by Marcus Gray
reviewed by Bill Luther

       Along with XTC and The Jam, The Clash will always be one of my faves from
�the old days.�  Unlike XTC or The Jam, I�d been virtually clueless about the
band�s pre-history.  Well, the shocking evidence is here in print!  We�re
completely stunned when we learn that leader Joe Strummer was not born in a
working class council estate in South London, but in Ankara, Turkey as John
Mellor, the son of a Foreign Office clerk.  What�s even more unbelievable is
John(Woody to his mates, in  honor of his idol Woody Guthrie) was �public school
educated.�  (�Public school� in the UK is certainly not �public,� it�s American
equivalent would be an expensive private Ivy League prep-school!)  So much for
humble roots for rebellion!  Mick Jones, through born into a lower middle class
scenario is profiled extensively as a Keith Richards clone (the shoulder-length
hair photos are more frightening than pics of Johnny Rotten�s �Hawkwind� phase.)
Only bassist Paul Simonon (born Gustave Antoine Simonon) fits the image we�d
come to expect.  He grew up in Brixton, South London where his love of West
Indian ska and rocksteady sounds were fostered by his skinhead trappings (of the
non-racist sort).  We�re treated first-hand to a view of Strummer and Jones�
confused political ethics and contradicting soap box operas and Strummer�s
attempts to not only cover up his upbringing, but all pre-Clash musical
involvement (including his pub rock band, The 101ers, who he jumped ship on to
strike up the punk banner.)  The book, however, is entertaining, but author Gray
relies far too much on quotes from Glen Matlock�s I Was A Teenage Sex Pistol and
Johnny Rotten�s No Dogs, Blacks Or Irish.  But all events in Clash
history/mythology are covered, ranging from their well-documented Bonds
�residency� fiasco, drummer Nicky �Topper� Headon�s heroin battle (which at the
time of writing, despite a detox-helping hand c/o Pete Townshend, he was still
living with) to lesser known tales like Strummer�s ongoing war on Paul Weller
and The Jam in print, or the fact tat the dreadful �Rock The Casbah� was
entirely written and put together by Topper working alone in the studio one day.
Contradictory, vindictive, image-mongering, politically confused, controversial,
but usually entertaining, The Clash have long been denied an extensive bio, and
this is it.  Or is it?

Behind Blue Eyes:
The Life of Pete Townshend
(Dutton Press)
by Geoffrey Giuliano
reviewed by Bill Luther

       First off, let�s focus on Geoffrey Giuliano.  For those not familiar with
the man, he�s a hack writer well worthy of my moniker, �The Albert Goldman Of
The 90s.�  I find it incredulous to believe, but he actually admits to being
invited to Townshend�s home/studio in the early 70s (when Pete was running his
�Lifehouse� project), stays as a guest and has the audacity to be pissed off
that Townshend asks him to leave after discovering Giuliano has helped himself
into Pete�s demo closet/library and liberated some �Tommy� demo tapes!  But
that�s only one of many anecdotes.  Giuliano spends more time chronicling Pete�s
substance abuse battle or broken home (w/pop-star dance band parents) upbringing
than he does on the actual music.
       Luckily, we�ve all had a crack at Richard Barnes� concise, uncompromising
Maximum R�n�B, so Giuliano can�t possibly hope to tell us anything of musical
value.  But what would we expect from a man responsible for hatchet jobs on The
Beatles (with help and collaboration of ex-Fab Four hangers-on, one-time
acquaintances, etc.) or his latest, The Murder Of Brian Jones?  Well, Geoffrey,
Mr. Goldman is awaiting your arrival.
       Maybe we are, too.

The Kinks:
Well Respected Men
(Castle Communi-cations)
by Neville Marten and Jeffrey Hudson
reviewed by Blair Buscareno

       I�m a Kinks� fan.  That much should be obvious to anyone who�s been
reading this mag for any length of time.  Be it reviews of Ray�s book and solo
show, the occasional WFUN pick, my occasional rants about the band�s greatness,
or just the general feel you�ll get for the kind of music I like, something
should�ve tipped you off.  Knowing this is important to understanding how I feel
about this book.
       As with most Kinks� fans today, I eagerly read anything I see to do with
the band.  (Well, OK, I�m not about to go out and buy something just �cuz they
write about Ray or Dave, but I�ll probably be quite happy to find a spot in the
local Barnes & Noble Reading Room and spend some quality time finding out what�s
up with the Davies boys.)  Anyway, after reading Ray�s fantastic �unauthorised
autobiography,� X-Ray, I was quite hyped to get some more insight into the band,
this time from the outside.  That�s where this book came in.
       I�ve wasted enough of your time now, so I�m going to give you my one-word
review of this... thing:  RUBBISH!  First of all, one of these authors is,
evidently, an editor of Guitarist magazine.  Now, that isn�t necessarily a bad
thing; unfortunately, he writes like he�s been there for twenty five years.
That is to say, his writing has no joy in it; he doesn�t seem to really care for
his subjects.  That�s something I just don�t understand... if you don�t have any
real feelings for your subject, why would you devote such a major portion of
your life on it?  Especially when it�s not likely to make you a whole hell of a
lot of money.  I mean, I�m a major Kinks� fan, but I�ll readily admit that there
are many bands out there these days with a much larger following, and -
therefore - a much larger potential customer base.  This leads me to believe
that maybe these guys really are Kinks� fans, but just have no idea how to show
it.  In fact, it seems like they�re bending over backwards to be objective, kind
of like a father coaching his son�s Little League team and yelling more at his
own kid than anyone else, just so as not to be seen as playing favorites, even
if the kid really is the best on the team.  I don�t know; I just can�t figure
them out.
       Most of this book seems to consist of record reviews.  As I said earlier,
however, the record reviews are rarely too positive.  I kept waiting to find out
exactly what these guys actually liked.  They managed to offend me over and over
again.  �You�re Lookin� Fine� is dismissed with two words: �rather uninspired.�
It got me wondering what these guys were looking for.  I don�t listen to music
for some Big Meaning or even some sort of smart arrangement; all I care about is
what it sounds like.  To me, �You�re Lookin� Fine� has a guitar riff that�s
always managed to lodge itself in my cranium for days after I listen to it, be
it The Kinks� original or just hearing it covered live.  (The best live version
I�ve heard has to be the one ex-Heartbreakers� guitarist Walter Lure used to do
with his band, The Waldos in the late 80s, early 90s.)  But this review comes a
few pages after the one that really set me on edge, that of my favorite Kinks�
LP, The Kinks Kontroversy, described here as �flawed.�  I�m tempted to take on
their one-two sentence reviews of each song and argue them here, but it�s just
not worth it.  If these guys can�t see the genius of this record, there�s
absolutely no hope for them.  I do find it interesting how, in the one page they
devote to the record, they fail to mention that Ray himself has said this is one
of his favorite Kinks� records.  (One interview I read a few years back had RD
calling it their best.)
       To be fair about it, they rave about �Waterloo Sunset.�  Unfortunately,
the minute they get into it, they end up in musician-muck, describing it in the
following terms, �This time it�s a B major scale with a flattened seventh note;
but as Quaife�s bass cascades down from the B, Dave�s guitar persists in playing
the note, creating musical tension which is only released when everything
resolves to the waiting E chord of the verse.� (p. 78)  Now, maybe that kind of
thing will send you musician-types into orgasmic ecstasy, but it just gets me
longing for different authors.  It seems as if they�ve completely missed the
beauty of the song.
       I guess this sounds like I�m whining that they disagree with me.  Well...
I guess to some extent it is.  And we�ll never agree.  That�s not what really
bothers me, though.  What really gets to me is the way they�ve put their book
together.  All they�ve done is string together a bunch of record reviews with
reports of concerts and some interviews done along the way.  Now, I guess that�s
the way many books are done.  The actual writing the �authors� have done here,
though, is completely flat and uninteresting.
       Is this book worth buying?  Well, if you�ve read the rest of this review,
you shouldn�t be asking.  Of course, if you�re a devoted Kinks� fan, you�ll
probably want this for your collection.  There are, after all, more pictures
than exist in X-Ray - eight whole pages worth.  As for the rest of you, I�d
suggest waiting till it ends up in the dollar bins.
********************************************************************************
LIVE AND OUTTASITE!!!
-----------------------------------
       I really didn�t think I�d get another chance to see Cub at Maxwells.
After all, they�d just been there in early September.  (Of course, they hadn�t
actually played, but that�s that whole fire thing that I mentioned last issue.)
Plus, they were originally supposed to be in Europe around November, I think.
And, of course, there was the fact that Todd wasn�t going to be booking the club
after New Year�s Eve.  Add up those three factors and you�ll probably get a sum
of �No Cub At Maxwells Ever Again.�  Well, luckily, things change.  The deciding
factor here was that Cub didn�t end up going across the puddle, choosing instead
to go on tour across the good ol� US of A with They Might Be Giants, who they�d
be hooking up with the night after Maxwells in NYC.  (But we�ll get to that in a
bit.)
       Anyway, I�d found out about the show thru the wondrous posts of Sir Grant
Lawrence to alt.music.banana-truffle.  I was reading the Mint tours post he did,
mainly out of interest in seeing what exotic locales various pals and pal-ettes
would be visiting that anything else.  Lo & Behold, there �twas - Cub at
Maxwells on November 7th.  Yup, I was a happy camper.
       We arrived about halfway thru Karp�s set.  I suppose I could get all punny
and tell you to switch the middle two letters in their name around to figure out
what I thought of them.  Honestly, I hadn�t wanted to go in after hearing them
from outside the door (now I knew why Frank and Heather had been standing
outdoors.)  But we had deliveries to make to Robynn back by the merch table.
(Mint had sent a couple packages of stuff to our place, �cuz the ladies had
requested �More Product!�)  Well, Roberta and I played UPS guy, hung around back
there for a minute or two, then beat an extremely hasty retreat and went to hang
out with Ms. Lisa and catch up on each other�s goings-on.  (Actually, this is
one thing I love about seeing rock�n�roll shows on the club level - the chance
to really hang out with friends, etc., and just chat.)
       Finally, the gals went on, kicking into gear right off.  It�s amazing the
changes that time has brought to Cub.  When I first stumbled across them in May,
�93 at the Continental, their sound was completely sweet and mid-tempo, all
completely happy.  They�ve branched out quite a bit since then.  At this point,
they�re a group that I can�t imagine any true rock�n�roll fan not enjoying.
Before, they were merely a pop lover�s dream; now they�ll please tons more
folks.  Tonight they blasted through tons of favorites, mainly from Box of Hair
and Come Out, Come Out, but also �Little Star� (sent out to yours truly) and �My
Chinchilla� (by someone�s genius request.)  Both of these Betti-Cola favorites
were hit with a major shot of speed.  As the guy on those NY Lotto commercials
says after he�s cleared out the opera house, �Cool.�  (Sorry for the completely
useless references, all you non NYers.)

       I�m not sure, but I don�t believe I�d ever actually been to Roseland
before November 8th.  Cub were going on early, the first act of three, and (as
it turned out) things were pretty close to schedule.  Personally, I prefer shows
to take a little while to get going.  (Unless, of course, I need to get to
another show afterwards... but that�s a whole �nother topic.)  Now, 8 PM on a
Friday night is tough for those of us living outside of Manhattan.  First off,
while I can pretty much be home by 3:30 if I need to, Roberta can�t always exert
that kind of control.  As a visiting nurse, she pretty much has to deal with
things on a case-by-case basis, which occasionally means a visit starting at 4.
And one never knows what it�s going to be like getting into Manhattan on a
Friday evening.  Well, she didn�t get home real early and when we finally got
out of the house, traffic hadn�t eased up nearly enough.  When we got into
Manhattan, we had barely enough time to find a place to park.  (Yeah... we paid
to park, since (1) there�s plenty of it up there and (2) spots on streets nearby
are extremely rare these days.)  We walked into Roseland about two minutes
before 8 and five minutes before they went on.  We had just enough time to get
within about 15 feet of the stage, over on the left.  I prefer to be front and
center, but... well, life doesn�t always go your way, y�know.  A bit over to my
left, I saw one of my students, but he didn�t hear me when I called.  Anyway,
the sound was completely messed up... way too much bass and drums in the mix.  I
was glad when Lisa sent a song out to Roberta.  The night before, she�d asked if
there was anything Bird would want to hear this time and she requested, I think,
�Go Fish.�  More importantly, Roberta sometimes gets upset that people dedicate
things to me and not her.  So this was nice, since she got a dedication all to
herself.  It was a decent set, not one of Cub�s best.  Of course, this had more
than a little bit to do with the fact that the sound was so bad.
       We hung out with our friends Frank & Heather afterwards, heading
downstairs for a bit, then going to the V.I.P. section, a side-stage, during
Magnetic Fields.  Yeesh, did that band SUCK!!!  Then, They Might Be Giants...
well, it was entertaining for a few minutes, but after a while, Roberta and I
couldn�t take it any longer.  We thanked Lisa & Robynn for putting us on the
list, wished them good luck on their tour and said goodnight before heading up
to Blondie�s to pick up some wings to take home and munch on.

       One day after the thirty-first anniversary of the day I first popped open
the hatch and took in the sights, the Blond Bomber, Ronnie Dawson, was playing
at Maxwells.  When we showed up, Wayne Hancock had just gone on.  Wayne�s got
more of a country-twang style than Ronnie and I can�t say as it completely
floated my particular boat, but the crowd seemed to like it.  Actually, I liked
his voice quite a bit.  And he certainly did yodel well.  (Tho� yodeling didn�t
exactly sit all that well with a few friends of mine.)
       Ronnie eventually took the stage and everyone had a ball.  Ronnie�s one of
those guys that learned early how to sell it with a smile.  He�s always up there
on stage with a big, wide grin.  His genuine good humor passes right through to
the crowd and, as a result, everyone�s dancing and laughing and carrying on.
Even  when they manage to get things wrong, that�s OK.  For instance, as Ronnie
began a particular favorite with �I�ll let the fat man do the fishin� / The lean
man do the huntin�,� our pal, The Platterpuss, broke in with �WHAT WILL YOU DO?�
Ronnie just kinda laughed and said, �Not yet,� and continued with the next line,
�And the smart man do the thinkin�,� then told Jeff, �Now,� before singin�, �Me?
I Make The Love.�  As per usual, Ronnie�s set included many of the favored hits,
�Action Packed,� �Rockin� Bones,� �Rockinitis,� etc.  And by the end of the
night, people were comin� up on-stage to join in on the fun, including Wayne
�The Train� Hancock, who guested on trade-off vocals with Ronnie on �Jambalaya.�
As to the band... well, I don�t believe Ronnie�s ever had a better group behind
him (although part of me still longs for the rawness of the days when he�d have
Vince Brnicevic on drums and Marcus the Carcass on bass.)  These days, he�s got
a great guitarist, as well as one of the best rhythm sections you�re ever likely
to be lucky enough to hear (yeah, the High Noon bunch.)  My only regret is that
I didn�t go see �em again two weeks later at the old Big Kahuna on Broadway.

       Yet another weekend spent at Maxwells.  (Yeah, I was trying to get in as
many trips as I possibly could before what looked like the end.)  This time it
was a Saturday evening with The Swingin� Neckbreakers and The Fleshtones.  Oddly
enough, The Fleshtones had the earlier slot.  Worse yet, I�m trying to write
this five months later and I can�t remember a blinking thing.  So... you�ll have
to do without.  Read on, MacDull.

       I can�t remember if it was Friday the 6th or Saturday the 7th, though the
haze in my brain seems to point to the latter... YEAH!  That was it.  Now I
remember.  See, Ms. Lisa Furlong was leaving town the following Monday and I�d
wanted to hang with her at the �FMU Record Fair in the late afternoon before
heading on to the night�s festivities.  Thing is, it was a pretty lousy night
out.  So I ended up just kinda sitting in and working on the TS web page.  Then
watching Star Trek , etc.  Bluesman showed at a bit after nine and I was still
upstairs.  By the time I got a move on and we left, it was nearly 9:20.  Even
without any traffic, we still didn�t make it to Brownies in time to see The
Gnats.  (Sorry, guys.  Mea culpa... mostly.  Of course, O Quisp, if you�d�a done
like I asked and given me a true start time, I might�ve swung it.  No, no...
that�s not fair.)  Next up were The Unband.  As I said to one friend, �Sometimes
crap is art... and sometimes crap is just plain CRAP!�  As I moved further and
further to the back of the bar, one guy sitting there said, �Just what I had in
mind.�  Yup.  Loud crap with no redeeming virtues.  Eventually (THANKFULLY!),
The Prissteens took the stage.  Once again, they kicked it out but good.  All
the (soon-to-be) hits, including the cover of �Sooprize Package For Mr. Mineo,�
�Hey Billy� (�I got my own song!� sez Bill P.), and those tough-chick girl group
numbers they do (the ones that really hit me hard.)  Make this bunch come to
your town.
       Even tho� The Upper Crust were due up next, Bluesguy and I split for
Continental, as The Lyres were set to play pretty soon.  We got there and
another Beantown bunch was still rockin� out, all Cramps-like (kinda), The
Strange Men.  Pretty good, actually, tho� I thought the lead singer was a bit
too big of a ham.  Definitely into the garage-surf mode, but with that big
bottom-heavy Cramps kick.  I guess I�d have to say that their biggest hit was
when they brought on �Amazona,� a gal-pal of their�s dressed in animal-skin
stuff, with really long legs.  She danced, as they pounded out a primitive cave
beat.  Kinda cool, actually, tho� the call on the conch shell to get her on-
stage was one of the weakest calls-on-the-conch-shell I�ve ever heard.  (And you
know I�ve heard �em all.)
       Next up, of course, were Conolly & Co.  �Cept for one prob... they were
nowhere to be found.  Like I said, it was a truly crappy night.  Up in
Connecticut, evidently, it was snowing something fierce.  However, the band was
soldiering on (they called a friend in town and asked her to relay the msg to
the club that they were on their way.)  So The Strange Men came back on to play
some more.  After about 6 songs, though, at about 1:45 AM, The Lyres finally
made it.
       They got on and proceeded to tear the place apart.  They just went wild.
The crowd (what was left of it) went right along, too.  They ripped thru the
hits as we jumped and shouted, making me wanna just go crazy all night long.
Yeah, I was damn happy.  Perhaps the highlight of the night, though, was when I
noticed bassist Rick Corraccio had taken over lead vocals on some new song, a
real-cool garage number with just the right bit of aging.  First off, the song
was one of the best new songs I�ve heard out of the band in quite some time;
secondly, Rick sounded fantastic on lead vox.  Afterwards, I asked him the name
of the song.  �In The Alley,� he replied.  I told him he sounded great.  He came
back by telling me it was completely nerve-wracking; he�s just used to being in
the shadows, not the spot.  So who wrote it?  �I did,� said Rick.  WOW!
Evidently he�s got THREE new ones for the band.  I hope they get around to
recording more of these.  I think this can only help the band.  After all, it
means Jeff doesn�t have to worry about singing the whole set, plus it takes some
pressure off him to write all the material, which is something fans have been
wondering about of late.  Besides, if anyone can write true Lyres� material
besides Jeff, it would have to be Rick; after all, he�s been in The Lyres for
more years than anyone except Conolly, as far as I can tell.

       Originally, I�d thought that Saturday December 14th was going to be my
last-ever trip to Maxwells.  Since Ms. Jody�s gonna be booking there in �97,
tho�, that outcome seems pretty unlikely.  Maxwells as we know it is already far
from what it was... the food is currently a thing of the past, for one; the
jukebox, once lovingly stocked with fantastic singles from the 50s thru the
present, has been replaced by a CD version, ordered before Jody was hired...
which means it came stocked generically - Eagles, etc.; and in the back room, a
big neon sign hangs over the bar, proclaiming that the place is a �BREWERY.�
Yippee.
       So Maxwells has lost its cool.  Be that as it may, it hasn�t yet become
another Hoboken meat market.  That may come in time, but at least some breathing
time has been bought.  Jody�s got Sleepy LaBeef coming in January, a show I
doubt I�ll show for, but at least it�s an indication that she�s going to have
some decent acts.  Also, she�s told me that The Oblivians will be coming through
in February.  Plus, that Black Thursday, after the show, I introduced her to
Mike Sin of The Insomniacs and they, too, may play the club early on in her
tenure.  So I�m hopeful.
       Anyway... December 14th saw me at Maxwells again.  I purposely wore the
same Voodoo Dolls� shirt as I�d had on two days earlier.  Sort of a reminder.
(By the way, said being did not approach me this night.)
       First up were the Demolition Doll Rods, a group I�d seen a couple years
earlier at the same club and absolutely despised.  I�d walked out by the second
song, along with many others, including some of their old friends.  Tonight,
though, I decided to give �em a chance.  They�ve become much more popular in the
meantime, so there was the added energy in the air.  I picked my way up to
within a couple rows of the front and actually found myself enjoying the show.
Now, no way am I gonna tell you I like the group as much as guitarist Dan
Kroha�s old bunch, The Gories, but I will say that they�ve come a long, long
way.  Some damn fine material, done in much the same manner as The Gories did,
albeit trashier.  Now, it�s hard to mention the DDR without remarking upon their
apparel: personally, I�m not all that interested in looking at Dan�s skinny body
wrapped in cellophane, with biscuits hiding his nipples; their drummer, however,
looked extremely cute with those little sombreros, barely covering her breasts,
bouncing up and down with each whack on the skins; and Margaret, the go-go gal
that inspired the start of this mag some six and a half years ago... well, she
in her cellophane, meat wrapped inside over part of her breasts... let�s just
say she looks at least as good now as then.  All that aside, I have to say they
finally have the goods to back it up.  After all, if a guy wants to see a live
sex show, there�re places for that.  That�s not to say it�s not enjoyable...
just that there�s no way in hell I�d stick around to watch a crappy band just
�cuz they had mostly-naked women on-stage.  As it turns out, Margaret has a
strong, commanding voice, a real stage presence, and an easy familiarity with an
audience.  Her voice can be Mae West-sultry, and she can belt out a greasy R&B
number with the best of �em.  Dan provides some cool guitar sounds, while their
drummer (Christine?) keeps a steady beat pulsing throughout.  After that first
experience some time back, I can�t believe I�m writing this, but... I�m actually
goig to make sure I see them next time they�re in town.
       Finally, the night�s main event... Mr. Rhythm, ANDRE WILLIAMS!!!  On-stage
with him was a six piece band (drums, guitar, stand-up bass, tenor sax, trumpet,
and keys), plus a four man vocal group, The Four Dollars.  Before I say anything
else, I�d like to mention that these guys were superb.  I�ve gotta ask around
and find out if they�ve recorded at all on their own.
       Anyway, Andre (decked out in a top-notch mustard-colored suit) kicked in
with the favorites, including a rousing rendition of �Riot In Cell Block #9.�
Eventually, he took a breather, leaving the Four Dollars to entertain us with a
stirring rendition of �In The Still Of The Night.�  Back on then, with a dark,
pin-striped suit, Andre got it going.  �We haven�t even got started yet!�  When
he hit �Bacon Fat,� the crowd was jumpin�.  �Jailbait,� of course, brought the
house down.  And the Four Dollars were in their element, providing the backing
pleas to the judge to be merciful.  �Weekend Man� turned out to be one of the
highlights for me, as the boys got to really shine.  Much as I loved �Greasy
Chicken,� (Bluesman, of course, mentioned my cooking) with Margaret getting up
on-stage and shakin� it, much to Andre�s delight (forget them, you shoulda seen
the looks on the faces of the Four Dollars!), it was �Is It True?� that got me
stompin� like a madman.  In the encore, everyone got a chuckle out of the dirty,
nasty things Andre was comin� up with for St. Nick and his wife.  (She was
waitin� for him, �Butt Naked!�)  When one of the �Dollars, said �Ho-Ho-Ho, Merry
Christmas,� I nearly lost it laughing.  Yeah, this was a fun night.  Thanks to
Norton Records for bringing Andre back to the attention of the garage set.

       First time I think I�d heard anything about The Gramblers was when my pal
Mike from Alabama told me about a show they�d be doing on my b-day in mid-
November.  Well, as luck would have it, I couldn�t make it.  Not long
thereafter, my friend Johna also gave me a good report.  So I figured I�d have
to get around to seeing them.  So when I ran into a couple of the guys at that
Lyres� show and they told me they�d be doing Continental on Monday the 23rd, I
figured, �Well, I�ve got that week off... no excuses.�
       Of course, I�d forgotten to ask what time they�d be on.  Luckily, I still
had Continental�s monthly calendar with me, so I could at least see who was at
the top of the pecking order.  Just to make sure, though, I stopped in at
Continental�s web site (http://www.nytrash.com/continental).  As it turned out,
the calendar had one extra band listed.  For some reason, even though The
Gramblers were second only to Cat House (the group that wasn�t playing), I still
showed up at 10:30.  Ah... weeknight gigs in NYC.  I�d forgotten how wonderful
it is to be able get a parking spot across the street from the club.  Back in
�89-�90, when I was at Continental Divide every Monday night, it was almost like
I had a spot reserved for me.  Now, though, I rarely get in on weeknights and
end up spending eons parking.  And then I feel like I�m parking in front of the
building in Joe�s Apartment (which I watched with LJ and Roberta the Sunday
night before Xmas... not bad, but nothing great.)
       When I arrived, there was a three-piece on that I quickly deduced to be
from Long Island.  (Being a native of said isle, myself, the WBAB sticker on the
amp seemed to be a giveaway, not to mention the look and sound.)  I think they
were called Mother Galaxy.  Unfortunately, it soon became apparent they�d just
gone on.  I took a walk over to Kim�s Underground, spending the next half hour
or so looking through their used LPs... there were about 3 good ones, all of
which I had.  (I did almost buy an extra copy of The Slaves LP, though.)  I got
back and MG were just finishing up.  (Hallelujah.)
       Next up were The Swingers, half guys, half gals.  A distinct improvement
over Mother Galaxy, but, really, nothing I�d go out of my way for.  The vocalist
went in for that big, powerful female vocal thing that only works if you write
music to fit it.  Hell, maybe her�s did... I just didn�t like it.  There were
exceptions in the set... I liked their version of The Cars� �My Best Friend�s
Girlfriend.�  Also cool was when the guitarist (who looked a bit like Robert
Plant... or maybe it was just the hair) took over the mike for a song.  THEN
they sounded like a cool power pop group.  Really good, even though he rushed it
a bit.  Also decent was their Ramones-y Christmas offering (which they finished
up with), featuring their bass player on lead vox.  Hmm... maybe I�m just trying
to say that I�d like this band better if the guys sang.  (Guess that puts a dent
in the theory that I like any band with gals in it, huh?)
       OK, finally time for the band I came to see.  (Yeah, by now it�s about
12:30.)  Not too many folks are around, but it�s far from empty.  Slowly, as the
band�s set gets underway, a few of their friends dribble in (many are, like the
band itself, Tower Records� employees, who�ve gotta deal with the Xmas retail
crap.)  They start off with a cool instro, not quite surf.  In fact, they lace
their set with a bunch of these types, proving, firstly, that instro rock�n�roll
can be pretty wild stuff when it�s done right.  In fact, I found the band�s non-
vocal material to be among their best, as it gave their lead guitarist a chance
to really fly.  He was pretty amazing, too, and not in an annoying technical
way, but in a psychotic, out-of-control, I-hope-this-goes-on-forever way.  The
one problem I have with the band is the amount of covers they do.  Maybe this
wouldn�t bother me as much if they did more obscure stuff, but I can�t say for
sure.  On the other hand, I can�t fault their choice of covers (�Talkin� Bout
You,� �Roberta,� etc.)  Even their version of �Money� was fun to hear, �cuz it
wasn�t done straight... they let it stretch out and GO.  And they finished up
with a pretty damn cool version of �You�re Gonna Miss Me,� a number not enough
bands deign to touch any more.
       I�m hoping to see these guys get some better gigs.  They deserve some
opening slots on good garage bills around town.  Of course, I wouldn�t call them
pure garage, but, then, the genre has widened considerably in the past 10 years.
Check these guys out.

       About three months after the fact, I�m remembering about the message I
received via e-mail back in January.  It was from some guy I�d never heard of
and I was on a list of at least 50 people, only one of whom I� recognized.  This
looked like Spam-Spam-Spam-Spam.  But I decided to read it.  As it turned out,
this guy could write.  The message said that this band, who played fun three-
chord rock�n�roll, were playing in a seminary basement on 9th Avenue.  Hmm...
And it was free.  I decided to get in touch with the guy.  Since he�d said
they�d take requests, I asked for �Farmer John.�  To my surprise, he said they�d
oblige.  So I passed the info on to a couple friends, stuffed Andy and the
Bluesman in the Blairmobile, and headed down.  We walked to a main desk and were
directed to walk in the courtyard till we got to the church, pass it and make a
left, and go in some doors, then downstairs.  Suddenly, we found ourselves in a
square block�s worth of college quad-like serenity, in the midst of Manhattan.
Beautiful.  We went downstairs to find a rec room.  We walked in to see a pool
table immediately in front of us.  Not one of those pay ones in a bar, but a
normal one.  Actually, more like the one we had at my basement growing up, with
not quite enough room on all sides, and cues missing their tips.  Much cooler
that way.  On the side we were on, there were some booths along the wall (which
we plopped our stuff in), with the band setting up in the corner.  On the right
side of the room, there were tables and couches, and even a piano.  In the far
corner, a bar.  All the tables had snacks sitting out (chips, pretzels, some
candy, and even cookies were all there).  And there was beer and soda there,
too.  Yeah, they�d done it all up out of their own pockets.  As time wore on, a
few more of my friends showed up, including a couple of The Church Keys.  The
band, The Hi-Balls, a two-guitar-and drum trio, finally took the stage for what
was to be the first of two sets.  Or so they thought.  After jumping into some
fun, asbilled, three chord rock�n�roll, the word came down from above that
they�d have to stop.  It was simply too loud.  And this after only about six
songs.  We were disappointed; we�d been having fun.  They were probably much
more disappointed.  And friends of ours kept arriving after that.  We hung out
for quite some time, though.  It was just a fun atmosphere for a party.
       On the positive side, The Hi-Balls met The Church Keys and now they�re
actually playing some actual club dates around town, including Continental and
the Lakeside.

       The Bluesman and Mike Sin never got back to me on Sat. evening, so after
getting thru half of Xena, Warrior Princess (don�t worry, I taped the rest, so I
could watch it when I got home... That show is *hilarious!*), I hopped into my
Smurfmobile and pointed it towards the Luna Lounge on Ludlow for the Sit N�Spin
record release shindig.
       I remember when the World Famous Blue Jays used to play the Ludlow St.
Cafe Thursday nights in �88 or so.  It was the only bar on the block and parking
was a simple thing.  Now there�s at least *four* flippin� major hangouts on that
stretch.  I actually saw a long line waiting to get into the Ludlow!  Somehow I
lucked out and got a parking spot across the street from my target.
       I�ll skip the pre-show conversations and move on to the back room. (Don�t
worry... the opening band sounded so horrifically atonal that I didn�t head back
till 5 minutes before S N�S went on.)  Hotfoot Lozito and I were the only two
standing right in front of the band.  Most people were sitting on these
couch/bench things.  VERY weird.  And the DJ either didn�t have a mixer or he
had no idea how to do a segue.
       Cool show by Sit N�Spin highlighting their new disc.  Heap big cheers for
Hotfoot�s hotfootin� on stage for Soul Finger.  And the gals on the side were
LOVIN� it!
       I thought about splitting with Pat over to Don Hill�s for The Fathoms, who
he says are a dang good surf outfit, but I�d never heard �em and I backed down
upon hearing the $10 price tag.  (After all, I�d just ordered 200 wings for my
AntiSuperbowl party, as well as bought a crapload of junk food and soda for the
thing.)  Instead, I headed over to Continental.
       Turns out my timing was pretty good... I only needed to waste fifteen
minutes driving around the block before someone pulled out of a corner spot on
7th whilst I waited for the red light to turn green on 1st Ave.  (Well... uh,
OK... I didn�t really wait.)
       Got over to Continental and there was a flippin� line out there!  A line!
Outside Continental!  The place where the Skeever tossed his cookies before Iggy
Pop.  But I hung out, �cuz The Prissteens were due on.  As it turned out, enough
idiots left that I was able to get in and weasel my way up front in time for the
start of their set.  Some damn fine rockinanrollin�.
       Next up were the Candy Snatchers.  I was fine on stayin� up front and
dealing with the slammers, but when the singer decided to get bloody, I backed
off.  I guess maybe I�m getting old and paranoid, but the idea of someone�s
blood getting on me just doesn�t thrill me these days.  I�d like to live a while
longer.
       Now, by this time, I figured it was time to go home... almost 2.  I was
bummed that I hadn�t known that Nashville Pussy (ex-9 Lb. Hammer) were on the
bill earlier, but past is past.  I hung a bit longer, chatting for a while with
Gramblers� singer Jeremy, and kinda dragged my butt on leaving, chatting for a
bit with the Solamente Records� duo.  They headed over to the Lakeside, but by
that point I�d figured out that another band must be goin� on.  (Another bunch
of guys was settin� up gear.  Call me Sherlock.)
       They get up on-stage, bass guy with a Teengen shirt and the singer says,
�Hi, we�re The Spaceshits from Montreal.�
       They certainly were.  WOW!  These guys were damn fun in a loud
Supercharger with some T-Gen bits type way.  They knew how to dip into the
garage standards, too... nice cover of �Going Away Baby.�  Talked to �em
afterwards and bought their double 7� on Sympathy.  They said they�ll be back to
record a new single next month.  They don�t know if they�ll be playin� a show or
not, but they�re gonna try and hook it up.  Check �em out.

       On February 6th, I was at Maxwells once again.  The headliners were Los
Straitjackets, with The Prissteens in the support slot.  Much as I love the
latter and like the former, though, I was there primarily for the opening act,
The Omega Men.  A couple issues back, Bill Luther wrote a short piece on them,
but this was my first chance to see this group, comprised mainly of ex-Cellar
Dwellers (a group that did one of the early Get Hip 45s.)  Except for one song
that the group�s drummer had attached to an e-mail message, I hadn�t really
heard the group.  Still, they�d been in a group I�d liked quite a bit almost ten
years back, they�re old friends, and they came highly recommended by Bill.  So
how were they?  AMAZING!!!  They get my vote for best thing to happen to the
East Coast scene this year.  My only complaint is that the soundguy didn�t have
a clue how to deal with Susan�s Hammond organ (Evidently, during sound check, he
kept referring to it as the �piano.�) ; this meant she was never loud enough.
And, for a group that relies on the organ to provide a good piece of the melody
line, this can be a problem.  I solved it by standing right in front of the
stage, by Susan, so I could hear all that primo organ playing.  The group has
two distinct sides that work well together.  First, the instrumental sound
(about two thirds of their set, at least), which recalls The Mar-Keys, but with
a nastier, garagey tone.  For any of those idiots out there who believe that all
instro is surf... here�s proof to the contrary.  Not only that, but this stuff
really swings.  I really want to see them do this in front of a packed house.
Their other side features guitarist Jonathan on lead vocals.  WOW!  He blows
into this stuff with an aggression and attitude that I haven�t heard in a long
time.  Nasty-ass garage rockin�.  This is a group to watch.

       That weekend, The Headless Horsemen did another reunion.  The last one was
at Coney Island High in December of �95 for GarageRage.  This time they were out
on their own.  The old crowd was, of course, in place.  The faithful never
forget.  And the guys reminded us just why.  From �Jumpin� In The Night� through
a cover of The Kinks� �Sittin� On My Sofa� and into their own classics, like
�Can�t Help But Shake,� they proved that they can still do it any time they damn
well please.  Honestly, I�m writing this too far after the fact to do right by
the band.  (Lucky for you, I hear there�s an article on them in the new ish of
Feline Frenzy.)  Hopefully, they�ll do another gig soon and I�ll get this right.

       I missed The Oblivians at Maxwells on the 14th �cuz, well... it was
Valentine�s Day and I figured I ought to be spending it with Roberta and I knew
darn well she wasn�t gonna want to see this bunch.  As it turned out, after a
really fantastic dinner, we fell asleep around 9:30 and didn�t wake up for
nearly twelve hours.  Dead to the world.
       So it wasn�t till the next night that I got around to seeing the Memphis
boys.  Somehow, Bluesman and I managed to show up at Coney Island High way too
early, so we spent quite a bit of time at See Hear looking thru the �zines.
When they finally went on, The Oblivians ripped thru a much shorter set than the
one they�d reportedly done the previous evening.  Seeing as that one was some
two hours long, I can�t say I was all that disappointed.  Don�t get me wrong, I
really did these guys live, but there�s some bands I just don�t want to watch
for that long.  The Oblivians, to me, need to be enjoyed at the highest
intensity.  That�s probably why I don�t think I�ll ever top the experience of
seeing �em out at GarageShock, �94, where they played to a packed house of fans
going completely nuts.  Tonight, tho�, they gave it their all, and what there
was of the crowd responded.  Don�t get me wrong, the place wasn�t empty, but it
wasn�t nearly as jammed as I thought it deserved to be.  (Nor, for that matter,
was it as crowded as I�d - for some reason - expected.)  They crashed through
many of the favorites, as well as a ton I didn�t know, having not bought one of
their records for some time now.  (Like I said, I love �em live, but... well, on
record, they haven�t done as much for me.)
       After they were done, I headed around the corner to the Continental, where
The Lures were already in full swing.  For the out-of-towners, this is ex-
Heartbreaker Walter Lure�s group and they play pretty much the same stuff he did
in the Waldos.  Which is to say that he�s still playing a ton of old
Heartbreakers� songs, as well as some others that he�s written in the past ten
years that sound much like the older ones.  A couple people I know from out-of-
town saw this bunch late last summer and couldn�t believe Walter was still doing
this stuff; they thought it was somehow laughable.  Now, these are guys who are
into some incredible music, otherwise, but here I have to disagree with them
completely.  OK, so he�s still doing the same kinda thing as he did 20 years
ago, but I can�t see what�s wrong with that.  What should  he being doing?
Playing MOR crap?  Heck, I don�t see them laughing at Iggy doing the same thing
he did over 25 years ago.  Granted, Walter isn�t as popular as Iggy, but he
still manages to have a great time doing this music and the crowd has a great
time besides.  I walked in that night and had to squeeze like mad to get up
front.  Once up there I could feel the joy people were getting out of singing
along and dancing like fiends to these great sounds.  What could possibly be
wrong with that?  I hope Walter keeps playing for as long as it makes him happy.
�Cuz I think there�ll always be people who want to see him.
       Next up were The Trick Babys, another group that rank among NYC�s top
acts.  This group is incredibly solid, musically speaking, boasting the
incredible Mitro on guitar, Brett W. on the big bottom, and the Dog on drums.
Fronting them, of course, is the phenomenal Lynne Von, who�s got perhaps the
best stage presence of anyone I see on a regular basis.  Top that off with a
rich, powerful voice and songs that any group would be proud to call their own
and you�re bound to get something special.  This bunch plays faster than Lynne�s
last group, DaWillys, but that�s probably a good thing, otherwise the NYC bunch
would forever be comparing them and that wouldn�t be fair to the Trick Babys.  I
only wish I could get out to see them more.  Tonight�s set kicked off with
�Cadillac Bra,� and hit �Born To Be This Way,� �Big Four Door� and other faves
on the way to �Bad For Ya.�  The funniest sight of the night, tho� would have to
be the guy goin� nuts up front.  Said Lynne, �Look, we�ve got Lou Diamond
Phillips on acid up here.�  Remind me to get Bluesman to bring the vid over to
the Skeever�s.  Maybe we can get it up on the CapSoul web page for everyone to
see.  (Who knows, maybe Steve�ll also post some of Bluesguy�s Oblivians� vid.)

       The next night was one I�d been looking forward to for quite some time.  I
first heard The Element 79 when I met guitarist Michael Daboll at GarageShock,
�95 and he handed me a copy of the band�s debut 45, �Upstairs� (360 Twist).  I
flipped out over their �84 Miracle Workers� take on the sounds of �66 and became
an immediate fan.  This was a trio that gave me what I really wanted in a garage
act.  The fact that they lived in Denver meant I wouldn�t be seeing them live,
as far as I knew, but I contented myself with the idea that I�d get to hear some
cool new sounds every once in a while.  Then came TrebleFest the First and I got
my chance to see the group live.  WOW!  Only one bad thing about it... no matter
how I looked at it, they were still a Denver band.  And Denver�s a loooong way
from the Big Apple.  On the other hand, Michael said they might tour.  Well, as
the new year came, so did word that The Element 79 and The Hectics were gonna
tour.  Great!  But in February?!?  I mean, sure, they got lucky... it was a
pretty wimpy winter here in the NYC area.  But they also played in Rochester and
Buffalo.  And there was a ton of snow up there.  Who the heck tours in the
middle of winter in the Northeast?  Ruminations about their sanity aside, I was
damned happy.
       So I arrived fairly early to Continental this Sunday night.  I figured
that arriving by 10:00 would be OK, since the club had told me that The Hectics
would probably hit the stage around 11:30, with the Element 79 about 12:15, then
Mondo Topless at 1.  (It�s a good thing I had the next two days off for
President�s Day.)  This way I�d have time to hang out with the bands for a bit.
       Well... when I arrived, I soon found out that things were much further
behind schedule than I�d been led to believe.  The band that was due up three
before the Hectics had just gone on.  And, quite honestly, they pretty much bit
the biggy.  So much so that Bluesguy and I took off for a while.  Thankfully,
The Churchkeys were playing over at the Lakeside.  We only made it over in time
for the last five songs of the set, but it was still well worth the time, �cuz
they were doing their thing with style.  Back, then, to the Continental.
       That last band was just finishing up and it was time for the next.  I
can�t remember their name, but they were pretty good, actually.  I saw a couple
faces I used to see at garage shows some years back.  The band had some good
melodic punk stuff happening and were definitely worth dancing to.  I was happy.
Till the next group came on.
       This bunch was waaaaaay too cabaret for me.  And they went on FOREVER.  A
bunch of us went next door (yeah, Sunday thru Thursdays at Continental are free,
so you can go in and out) and had pizza.  Thank God for St. Mark�s Pizza.
       It must�ve been about 1:15 in the AM when The Hectics finally took the
stage.  Geez, I thought they�d never get on.  What really annoyed me, though,
was that they�d come all the way from Denver and the crowd had definitely
thinned out.  Of course, considering most of the bands that had been booked that
night, it�s not likely that many of those people would�ve dug the group�s
Supercharger-styled garage-punkin�.  Still, a few might�ve enjoyed it enough to
stick around had they been on a couple hours earlier.  Not only that, but they
only got to play like seven or eight songs.
       Next up were The Element 79.  By this time it had to be at least 2 and
these guys deserved a much bigger crowd.  I�d run into a few people over at the
Lakeside who really would�ve loved these guys, but none of them could make it
thanks to the time.  They went through a set of a bunch of their recordings,
plus some other stuff they hadn�t set down yet.  Those of you who didn�t show
up, well... I understand, since it was a Sunday night (luckily, it was the night
before President�s Day, which meant I could sleep in), but you really missed
out.  This was (yeah, unfortunately, they�re now past tense... see the news
section) a truly great garage group, on the order of the early Miracle Workers.

       On Saturday the 22nd, I found myself at a fairly new venue, the Arlene
Grocery, for a gig starring the Prissteens, with the Churchkeys supporting, and
the Lowbrows kicking it off.  Well, actually, Bluesguy and I didn�t show up till
just after the latter bunch came off, so we made our apologies and said our how-
do�s to the rest of the gang.  Bluesman chose the back of the club, while I took
a spot next to the bar up front.  The Churchkeys were sounding damn good this
night and I realized that I�ve actually begun to know the words on a number of
their songs.  Sometimes when I�m listening to them I get the same feeling I used
to get playing street soccer with my brothers when I was a kid... just a good
time, that�s all.  Nothing deep or earth-shattering, nothing overdone; some
chunky guitars romping around played by a band that loves its ale.
       The Prissteens have established themselves as a major force on the NYC
music scene, playing to pretty good crowds just about every time out.  And every
one of those crowds has a good time.  It�s hard to say what my fave songs are by
them, but  if I had to pick I�d go for the ones that vary the most from their
mainline, be they slower girl-group-filled-with-Xena or the faster, rockier
types that they tend to hit towards the end of the night.  Tonight�s set was no
exception to their give-it-good-every-time rule.  I�d like to see them out of
town sometime... maybe out in Bethlehem or something.

       Somehow, I never did end up getting down to the Frying Pan to see the
Lowbrows & the Ton-Ups on Friday the 28th, opting instead to watch a couple
movies with Roberta, including Switchblade Sisters, which was perfect,
considering it didn�t get into the VCR before midnight.
       I hit March head-on.
       A Saturday afternoon call to the Bluesman and a ring from Mike Sin set the
stage for the evening.  The Bluesman got to my place around 8:45 or so and we
took off almost immediately.  This meant that I missed Xena (no Warrior Princess
for me that night), but Roberta taped it, so I�ll eventually get to it.)
       Now, my game plan for the evening was pretty clear:  first, get rid of
some crappy CDs; second, check out The Churchkeys and The Creatures of the
Golden Dawn; and, finally, head over to Brownies for however much was left of
the show over there.  Hopefully, that�d mean I�d get to see about half the
Prissteens� set, but I wasn�t holding my breath.
       The astute reader will have noticed that I was once again trying to catch
two shows in one night.  Once again, I�m going to complain about it.  Sure, I�ll
agree, it may seem like an embarrassment of riches to those of you who live in
areas where you�re lucky to get one good show every month or two.  Or worse.
(And people wonder why I don�t want to move?)  Yeah, well, I�ll agree that it�s
better to have to pick between shows than to sit around waiting week after week
for that next big show.  But, honestly, it really bothers me when I have to make
a choice like this.  I knew I could catch The Churchkeys without any conflicts,
but there was bound to be some overlap - at least! -  between The Prissteens and
The Creatures.  That stinks, �cuz it�s bound to cut into both crowds.  Honestly,
the NYC scene isn�t as large as it was in 1985 (when it could fill the old Ritz
with The Vipers and The Mosquitos playing.)
       Anyway... Bluesman and I found parking pretty easily, only a couple blocks
from Brownies.  We walked over there to find out the relative times.
Unfortunately, the Mean Reds had had to cancel, so it looked like things were
gonna go off pretty much on time.  Honestly, if this group had been playing, we
might�ve stuck around for a bit, since some old friends of mine are involved.
But they weren�t, so we headed for St. Mark�s between 2nd & 3rd, a block I�ve
often thought of as one of Manhattan�s most lively, with tons of stores, at
least 6 record shops, some eateries, and (these days) See Hear, one of the most
famous �zine emporiums in the country.  My objective, as stated earlier, was to
get rid of a couple truly horrendous CDs.  First stop was the Kim�s location,
where I was told their buyer was gone for the evening.  That meant I had to head
to Sounds, a place I�ve had some truly lousy luck with over the years, often
getting at most a buck a disc.  Tonight, though, they had a different buyer.
And I left with over three bucks per.  (Now, in other parts of the country, that
may seem pretty piddling, but around here that�s not bad at all.  For me, it�s
fantastic.)  So I immediately took my money and went and picked up that Lyres�
disc over at Kim�s.  (See the CD Reviews. �- ed.)
       I said my good-byes to the Bluesman, telling him I was heading over to
Continental.  He told me he�d see me at Brownies.  No problem.  Around the
corner then, for me.
       The Churchkeys were setting up when I arrived, but it took a while for �em
to finally get on the stage.  Why?  Well, Ms. Susan had drawn the short straw
and gotten the car-parking duties.  These days, parking in the East Village is
worse than parking in Hoboken.  Now, that probably means absolutely nothing to
out-of-towners, but... let�s just say it took our heroine over a half an hour to
get the job done.  Now, while that�s no record, it�s still one heckuva royal
pain in the aah-aah.  She was pretty dang POd.  And I knew exactly where she was
coming from, having gone through the same thing myself so many times.  Well...
they finally took the stage and proceeded to do one of their best shows in quite
some time.  I keep waiting for Dave Crider to pick them up for Estrus and write
about �em as originators of �Ale RockTM.�  Now, I don�t drink the golden ale,
myself, but this foursome has been really getting me going of late.  I truly
enjoy �em.  The combination of ex-Talismen Jon Chalmers and Doug Del Femine on
guitars is once again a true joy.  My fave vocalist in the band is drummer Bill
Paitch, who seems to handle these duties more than most.  Bill�s got an engaging
vocal style that just draws the listener in.  Even when I can�t understand what
the heck the lyric is, his character comes shining through. The group�s sound is
a bit muddy, but it just rocks along in a true good-time way, letting it all
hang out just for kicks.  As an added bonus, along for the ride most of the time
these days (including this night) is ex-A-Bones� hornblower, Lars Espensen on
sax.  He just adds fuel to the campfire, kinda like squirting gasoline to watch
the flames shoot skywards tryin� to burn down the moon.
       Next up were The Creatures of the Golden Dawn.  I�ve been seeing this
group, in one form or another, for ten years.  There�ve been ups and downs in
that time, but I believe that vocalist Mark Smith (the only original member
left) has finally found his absolute best lineup.  All these guys can play well,
and they add some good backing vocals to round things out.  Tonight may have
been the best I�ve seen the group in years.  In fact, I�d have to rank it in the
top 3 Creatures� shows I�ve ever seen.  (And, considering that I used to drive
out to their hometown of Bethlehem, PA to see them on a regular basis some years
back, that�s truly saying something.)  Simply put, they rocked like mad tonight.
They hit the chunky garage punkers with power and played it cool on the psych
poppers, like �Cynthia Cellophane.�  I kept wanting them to let up, so I�d have
an excuse to bolt over to Brownies to catch some of The Prissteens, but they
weren�t letting go, just blowing me outta my head over and over again.  I�m
really looking forward to their next disc.
       With that, my pal Chris and I hightailed it out the door, trying to get
over to Brownies before the Prissteens finished up.  Mike Sin caught up with us
about halfway there, wondering why I�d bolted without him.  (Sorry, Mike, I
truly didn�t know you were coming.)  As we got nearer to the club, we saw
something strange... a line.  A line?  Outside Brownies?  Of course, the place
was jam-packed; The Upper Crust were headlining.  These guys just pack �em in.
So, we stood on the line.  (Meanwhile, I�m getting horrible visions of being at
Tunnel one night when Wildgirl was DJing, standing around waiting for some girl
to say we were OK, deserving to be customers.  Eventually, we realized what
schmucks we were and pointed the Blairmobile towards Hoboken, to catch The
Raunch Hands at Maxwells.  Now, some of you may wonder why we weren�t there in
the first place.  Well... this was during the Raunch Hands� �metal� period, when
they were completely sax-less.  Honestly, it wasn�t a good time for them,
musically.  And we�d known it would be an unspectacular show, musically
speaking.  But at least there we�d be hanging out with some friends in a cool
place.  And at least they did their always cool cover of Van Halen�s �Everybody
Wants Some,� with Chandler�s middle bit about him, a girl, and some potato
salad.)  But we were talking about standing outside Brownies, weren�t we?
Nothing like a little digression.
       So the three of us are standing there, with a good 10-15 others ahead of
us and the line�s not moving much.  The only time anyone would go in was when
someone left.  Hell, there was condensation inside the windows �cuz of all the
people.  Soon a gal showed up who was desperate to see the Crust.  Chris soon
left �cuz he just didn�t feel like dealing with this kinda crap.  Mike said he�d
wait till The Upper Crust hit their first notes.  (In case you hadn�t guessed,
we�d missed The Prissteens completely.)  He did.  Then he left.  About the first
song and all but 3 of the people in front of me got in.  Not that it did me any
good; I was still outside.  Then I caught the eye of one of the guys who works
at the club.  We�ve known each other from hanging out over the years, talking
when the occasion arose, etc.  He books some of the club�s shows and I could see
him tell the doorguy to let me in.  Now, I could also see the doorguy saying
that he really couldn�t do that, just pick me out of the line and jump me ahead
of everyone else.  It just wasn�t fair.  (See, Brownies is not the Tunnel!)  So
the guy said he�d take the  next five.  Thanks, Dee.  I really do appreciate it.
       So, I only missed two songs of The Upper Crust.  Now, funny thing is, I
don�t remember too much about the show, even though I�m only writing this a week
later.  The show wasn�t much different than any other they do.  But that doesn�t
matter... they�re just great.  Oh yeah... Nat had some problems with
�Rock�n�Roll Butler,� but nobody cared.  They actually came back for two encores
this night.  And everyone probably could�ve gone for a few more.
       After that, it was over to the Lakeside to finish out the night.  Some
great sounds on the jukebox, some good friends to talk to... It would�ve been a
perfect night if I somehow could�ve seen The Prissteens, too.


       New York City - home of the Solar System Nightlife:  the Mars Bar, Luna
Lounge and, host to my fun of Saturday March 22nd, the Mercury Lounge.  Why the
hell�d I just go through that stupid inanity?  Probably �cuz it�s been on my
mind of late and I keep saying it to people.  This way, maybe I�ll shut up about
the stupid bit.
       Bluesman (who�d just had a birthday the previous night), Andy, and I
arrived pretty early.  The plan was to make it in time for the opening act, who
were slotted for 9 PM.  Of course, this time we managed to get parking fairly
easily and actually arrived by then.  And, as luck would have it, nobody was
gonna go on for at least another 30-45 minutes.  That, of course, was a good
thing, since a number of our pals and pal-ettes had done like us and made an
early evening appearance.
       Eventually, it was time for The Vacant Lot to go on.  I made my way to the
line and found my least favorite person right near me.  He, of course, being
drunk, decides to start talking and hanging on me.  I told him I just didn�t
want to deal with him, to please stay away and we wouldn�t have any problem.  He
kept harping on it.  Things escalated.  No, there wasn�t any violence.  Before
this guy could start any real trouble, the club bounced him.  I was as surprised
as he was.  Unlike him, though, I was kinda glad.  In the back of my mind,
though, I felt kinda bad for him, �cuz I know he was probably looking forward to
this night.  Still, if you�re gonna get that obnoxious on a regular basis,
you�re taking your chances every time.  I got inside just as the band launched
into their set.  Tonight included a healthy mix of the newer material and the
old.  Sadly, I don�t think the crowd has ever given the group�s newer material
the same attention as the songs from the first incarnation of the band.  Even
so, people seemed to be in an extremely Friday night mood.  And, yeah, I was up
there dancing for a good piece of the set.
       For me, the evening�s crown belonged to the next group to take the stage,
The Insomniacs.  I know I�ve written it a gazillion times in the past couple
years, but these guys have come a long, long way.  Music�s a weird thing:  some
bands seem to shoot to the top of the heap and have nowhere left to go; others,
like these guys, build slowly and steadily until it seems like everyone has
finally figured out just how damn good they are.  An explosive mix of Mod,
psych-pop, and garage raving that has finally lodged itself in the collective
cranium of the garage crowd.  Tonight�s set included a bunch of songs from their
new disc on Estrus (see the reviews - Ed.)   A few songs in, they launched into
�Jump & Dance,� probably one of the biggest fan favorites with the hometown
crowd.  Every time they play this one, the crowd starts bouncing wildly.  I�m
glad they stuck it early on in the set, �cuz as soon as they do that, the
crowd�s completely with them.  The big surprise of the set came when drummer
Mike Sinocchi took the lead vocal on a 60s obscuro by The Gaunga Dyns.  And, of
course, the Mike Sin Appreciation Society (girls down front) went absolutely
wild.
       Finally, it was time for The Swingin� Neckbreakers.  These guys must run
10 miles a day or something.  I just can�t think how else they could come up
with the endurance to keep up that kind of energy level for such a long damn
set.  At this point in time, there�s absolutely no need to explain what these
guys are all about.  I do, however, have to report that the set got mixed
reviews.  Some of the audience still proclaim these guys the absolute tops in
garage-rocking action.  Others, however, feel that something just seems kinda...
off.  I can�t explain it.  Maybe it�d help if the set was compacted more.  I do
have to compliment them on doing a cover of �Super Stuff.�  Every time they hit
that one, I�m singin� along and dancing like an idiot.

       I was all set to catch The Gain on Thursday March 27th at the Pyramid.
Problem was, I got there and found a big Master lock on the door.  So I went
over to the Lakeside for an hour.  When I came back, I saw the colored lights on
above the door, with a beefy bouncer guy in the doorway.  I asked when The Gain
would be going on.  �Huh?�
       �The Gain... what time is their set?�
       �Oh... the bands,� he said, �They�re not playing tonight.�
       �What happened?�
       �Some bullshit with the Fire Marshall.  The bands will be here on Tuesday,
instead.�  Now, since The Gain were on a cross-country tour, it seemed rather
unlikely they�d be playing that gig.  Besides that, I really couldn�t be staying
out late on a Tuesday night... especially since the marking period was ending
the next day.

       I was also psyched to see The Omega Men that Saturday night at Under Acme.
Unfortunately, the incredible Hammond-playing Ms. Susan had the flu all week and
they had to cancel.  Right now I�m just putting my best face on and looking
forward to their next show in town, May 17th at Don Hill�s.

       Speaking of Don Hill�s, that�s where I found myself on Saturday April 5th.
Firs on the bill were Gas Money, a South Jersey/Philly area group who�ve
recently released an Estrus single.  Given that background, I was somewhat
surprised by their sound.  To be fair, I haven�t heard the 45.  Even so, they�re
an atypical Estrus act, far more to the rockabilly side of life than the garage.
Unfortunately, I can�t say as they really thrilled me (tho� the song introduced
as the A-side of the single was quite good).  Friends say that they were much
better in their earlier incarnation, Blue Gene Blue.
       Next up were The Exotics, a Wisconsin instro group that I�d heard good
things about.  I�d come for the next group, but these guys were the ones that
ruled the night.  They did a loooong set - all instro - that just kept getting
better.  And, while they did do a couple surf numbers, they lent their strength
to Pat Lozito�s argument that not all instro is surf (contrary to the rather
putrid popular opinion) with a bit of hot rod, some country leanings, some
straight ahead rockin�, etc.  Best of all, almost every blinkin� thing they did
was highly danceable.  And the crowd was completely into it.  This thing Lo-Fi
Lee�s got goin� on at Don Hill�s evidently has its own set of fans; people who
don�t actually go to the other garage/surf-oriented shows in town show up at
this thing.  That�s extremely cool, too, �cuz it means that more people are
getting into this stuff... better yet, this crowd really gets into dancing,
rather than simply standing around.  I was dancin� around like a maniac.
       The Exotics gave way to The Bent Scepters, a group I�d been wanting to see
for a couple years.  Being a big organ fan, I was extremely psyched to see them
bring a Farfisa Combo Compact onto the stage with them.  They started off pretty
well, but the energy level of the show tended to be uneven.  They were at their
best on covers like �Midnight To Six� (probably the best song they did), �You�ll
Be Sorry Now�, and The Fleshtones� �Screamin� Skull�.  Overall, I liked them,
but decided that, while they have the potential to be incredible, they just
hadn�t quite managed it.  Also, they should�ve gone on before The Exotics... it
would�ve made the build-up that much better.
       Lastly came a psychobilly band from Europe.  By this time it was after 2
AM (which, since this was clock-changing night, meant it was actually 3.)  Not
many people were left and I told my friend Jeff I�d give them two songs.  If
they hadn�t captured my attention by then, I was heading home.  So, there�s the
gang sitting in a booth, while I�m up waiting to see what happens.  About one
minute in and I realized these guys were just not my mug of root beer.  I looked
at Andy, he nodded and then started laughing.  Turns out he�d asked Jeff how
long he thought it�d take me to make the motion.  Jeff told him what I�d said;
Andy had evidently known better.

       Friday April 11th was time for me to hit the Mercury Lounge.  This one
featured alternating sets by The Church Keys and The Phantom Surfers.  I showed
up about midway through the former group�s set.  This bunch is playing quite a
bit around town and, honestly, I�m hoping they�ll start making more road trips,
so as to get themselves known outside our area.  They�re getting pretty good.
Some damn fun rockinroll.  Guitarist Jon Chalmers is a constant source of
amazement and main vocalist Bill Paitch (all of the band take vocal duties on
one song or another) is the real find of the group.  There are songs where he
appears to just be running on with the general gist of a story-line.  And it
always works perfectly.  Can�t wait to hear a record by �em.
       It�s been a while since I last saw The Phantom Surfers and there�s been a
line-up change.  (Though I guess at least the SF crowd already knew this.)
Evidently, Johnny Bartlett decided to call it quits, so the band decided to keep
things in the family and the Mighty Maz moved out from behind the kit, handing
the sticks to his ex-Mummies mate, Russell Quan, while he picked up the guitar.
And it�s always a pleasure to see Russell in a band.  He�s just one of those
people who belongs on-stage.  For that matter, the whole group is.  Mike Lucas
spent the entire first set moving with a verse/story hear and there about �Old
Shep�.  That and alternating with Mel as a sort of comedy duo.  And Russell
would throw in completely out-of-the-blue musical jokes, falling into �Glad All
Over� or whatever whenever the moment seemed inappropriate.  Best of all, tho�,
came in the second set when Russell came out front to sing a few.  Not living in
SF, I�ve never seen the Count Backwurds, so this gave me a taste of what that
must be like.  Russell�s just a damn WILDMAN!

       The next night I�d been waiting for even longer.  Thing is, I still wasn�t
exactly sure of my schedule for the night even that morning.  The Dictators,
Patti Smith, and many more were playing a benefit at Brownies; The Fleshtones
were playing the Lakeside (occupancy 74) for free; and The Nines, Sit N�Spin,
and The Lyres were at the Continental.  Not only that, but there�d been flyers
saying that The Optic Nerve were playing that one, too.  Unfortunately, they
hadn�t been in the ad, so things were suspect on that score.  The decision was
made then, for Bluesman and I to drive by Continental at 9 and find out the
deal.  We did and their name wasn�t on the door.  Now, much as we like The Nines
(both as a band and as old pals), we knew that there was no way we were willing
to sit inside Continental from 9:30 till the end of The Lyres if the Optic Nerve
weren�t playing.  We could catch The Nines and then go over to the Lakeside and
see The Fleshtones, then come back.  But, oh, there�s that annoying little
obstacle... if you do that then you�re gonna have to pay Continental twice;
there�s that no re-entry thing they�ve got on weekends.  We decided that we
wanted to see The Fleshtones.
       Rather obviously, we were at the Lakeside extremely early.  That�s OK,
tho�, �cuz so were a few of our friends, as well as the boys in the band.  So we
all got a chance to hang out, listen to the best jukebox around (including more
than a few Kinks� kuts) and ease our way into the evening.  When they guys
finally took the stage, things were really filling up.  To be honest, it was
jammed.  In fact, I ended up being really glad I�d shown up so early.  This was
probably the best Fleshtones set I�ve seen in a couple years now.   They were
completely ON, playing a ton of newer material and only throwing in a couple old
favorites (e.g. �Three Fevers�, �Comin� In Dead Stick�).  I doubt most of the
crowd knew many of these songs.  It just didn�t matter.  Everyone was feeling
the power of one of the best rock�n�roll bands on the planet.  Outside the
floor-to-ceiling windows, passers-by on Avenue B looked in and stayed there,
some starting to dance on the sidewalk.  Eventually, they�d come in.  And that
just kept happening over and over.  It made me think of those liner notes
written about the band long ago.  The writer had, back around �78 or so,
happened upon the band and leaned over to ask someone who they were.  The guy
looked at him like he was from another planet, �They�re THE FLESHTONES, man!�
Tonight felt like that could be happening all over again.  They weren�t resting
on the old songs - requests for those were greeted with �You had 20 years to
hear that.� - tonight they were just gonna rock it up and have a ball.  And so
did the whole crowd.  Surprise of the night?  Probably in the encore, when they
tore through Jonathan Richman�s �I�m A Little Airplane.�  WOW!  That�s right...
they�re THE FLESHTONES!  Where�ve you been?
       But the night was far from over, as a whole bunch of us streamed out of
the Lakeside in pockets of twos, threes, and fours, heading for the Continental.
I walked in just as the band had started.  Things seemed a bit emptier than I�d
expected, but I knew that was about to change, as the crowd from The Fleshtones
made it over here.  The Lyres, too, were in supercharged mode this night.  While
they didn�t really do anything truly new, it was great to see bassist Rick
Corraccio take the mic on one song again.  And they did three or four Kinks�
songs, including �You Can�t Win� and �I Need You�.  The power - the whole set -
was overwhelming.  Here, at least, there was a bit of room to dance, and my
friend Kelly and I made good use of that, dancing up a storm.
       After the set, everyone went back to Lakeside to wind down the evening.
Since then I�ve heard the two bands I saw this night will be playing together up
at the Middle East in Boston on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, with The
Prissteens joining in the fun.  The last time I saw the Fleshtones and Lyres
together was down in DC about five years ago.  This should be a killer show,
well worth a 220 mile drive.

       April 25th meant seeing a band I�ve been waiting to see for a couple years
now, The Bomboras.  Now, while I like the other bands on the bill, I knew damn
well that this was the band that was really bringing me down.  And they did NOT
disappoint.  I�d like to pretend that I knew all their stuff (since I did snag a
set list), but I�m gonna play it honest.  Of course, I do have most of their
stuff, so I did know a bit of it, like �Pier 13�, the excellent �She�ll Do You
Wrong� (one of the crunchy vocal garage pounders), �Bombora Stomp,� and �Organ
Grinder.�  And, like any self-respecting garage/surf fan, of course I knew what
the answer was to �What time is it?�  That�s right, �Chunky� time.  I�ll never
be able to listen to this one, though, without thinking of the excellent version
the Raunch Hands used to do.  Even so, this bunch did it damn well.  The small
beach balls thrown out earlier in the set by the band�s go-go gal were also a
nice touch, as was when they set the cymbals, the top of the guitar, and the
aluminum coating the Farfisa all on fire at the same time.  But the music was
the big thing.  The first few things I remember getting by them were all pretty
much surf-oriented.  And they still do that stuff well.  But they�ve evolved
beyond that.  Sure, they�re mostly instrumental, but a ton of it is heavier,
with the lead often taken by Jake on organ.  And you know that makes me happy.
Even when the organ�s not taking the point, it�s filling out the sound
brilliantly.  Damn, I wish The Bomboras lived here.
       I hadn�t seen Cordell Jackson in a few years.  As she started her first
number, the sound crapped out on her and we had to wait about 10 minutes.  In
that time, she told some fun stories.  Thing is, when she started back in, I
began to realize that, contrary to her son�s advice not to sing, I preferred
when she�d do that, �cuz it meant there was a real structure to what she was
doing.  I like her style, but sometimes I couldn�t really see that the number
had any direction.  Such is life.
       The first time I saw the Flat Duo Jets, about 7 or 8 years ago, I was in
awe.  I�d never seen/heard anything quite like them.  And the next few years
went pretty much like that.  The last couple years, though, it�s seemed like
Dexter�s spent more time just taking his guitar and letting it just use him to
get out its aggressions.  In other words, unlike the genius recordings, so many
of the live shows you just weren�t hearing songs.  Tonight, there was a bit of
the guitar goings-on, but mainly it was songs.  And this is a guy who has a ton
of great ones, not to mention knowledge of a ton of 50s and 60s obscuros as well
as the standards.  Originals included �My Life, My Love,� while standards showed
up in the form of �Train Kept A Rolling� and �Rockhouse�.  All the way through,
though, he and Crow were right on, and the crowd knew it and responded in kind.

       Once upon a time, I used to go out to Bethlehem, PA at least twice a
month; sometimes I�d even hit the four or five mark.  I�ve gotten older, though,
and my life�s changed significantly.  On Saturday April 26th, though, I knew I
was heading out there, �cuz The Insomniacs were playing.  When they play out at
the Funhouse, I can be pretty sure I�ll see a bunch of the NJ crowd, along with
some old friends from when I used to make the trek more frequently.
       Bluesman got to my house just as Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was finishing
up for the night.  I finished taping some 45s to be reviewed for this ish, he
grabbed the boom box that serves as my car stereo, and we hit the road.  I�ll
skip the drive, as it was uneventful (meaning I kept close watch on the
speedometer, as Rt. 78 is where I�ve twice been the rather unhappy recipient of
a gift from the NJ troopers).  Once in the Christmas City, I made a beeline for
3rd St. Chicken for some wings & logs.  (For a video of this momentous occasion,
contact the Bluesman through this mag.)
       3rd Street shuts down at 10, so we walked up the hill to the Funhouse.
Way too early, of course, but a foray to the backyard showed they�d built a deck
with tables since my last trip six or seven months earlier.  Or maybe this is
just the first time I�d noticed.  Either way, when we came back out, Insomniacs�
guitarist Bob Woj and his gal-pal, Erica, had made their appearance.  A few
minutes later and more of the gang had arrived, so we went out back and hung out
till the guys were ready to play.  (Yeah, after three paragraphs warm-up, I�m
getting to that.  So much for �Just the facts,� huh?
       I�d been under the impression they were gonna do two sets, but they
clocked in with a full three.  (Not bad for three bucks.  And, for those of you
who like to imbibe, the beer�s damn cheap, too.)  This means we got about 40-45
songs out of the guys this night.  To me, this is a great thing, �cuz I believe
they�re the best band around the NYC metro area right now.  A night like this
translates into them mining the back catalog, as well as doing covers they don�t
do as often as they once did.  On that front, we heard �I�ll Make You Happy� and
�Try It�, along with �You Make It Move�.  As to originals, well... the whole
night started off with �My Favorite Story,� their first big fuzz-monster from
way back on the first 45.  I still don�t understand why they don�t do this one
more regularly.  Maybe it�s just a matter of not wanting to always play the old
stuff.  The set also featured quite a few tracks from the new disc (see the CD
reviews - ed.), including �God I Need It�, �Help Murder Police�, �Don�t Turn
Away�, and �Long Cigarette,� not to mention one of my all-time favorite
Insomniacs� numbers, �Sylvia Grey.�
       The night had its problems, as well.  The sound, for instance.  It seemed
there were at least four different sets of hands trying to deal with it.  One of
them graciously bowed out quickly.  The pair that were supposed to be taking
care of things seemed to do so when the spirit moved them.  A third pair was
obviously rather intoxicated.  The other one knew what they were doing, but as
soon as they�d turn around, one of the other ones would have moved everything
again.  The other sound problem came �cuz of the physical limitations of the
evening�s PA; there were only two vocal inputs.  That meant drummer Mike Sin
didn�t have a mic, leaving poor Bob Woj to go it alone on backing vocals.  Bob
can handle himself fine, but I�m too used to hearing many of those songs with
Mike and him together on those.
       Other things of note... Mark Smith of The Creatures joined the guys on
lead vocals at the beginning of, I think, the second set.  I believe it was even
an old Creatures� number, although I couldn�t quite make out what Mark was
singing at the time.  Things sounded good, though... I�d been kinda wondering if
they were gonna do their newest cover, �Stick With Her� by the Gaunga Dyns
(fantastic article on them in Brown Paper Sack �- ed.), since Mike does lead vox
on that.  No problem, tho�, as David simply passed the whole stand back to Mike,
brought it down, and they launched in... Overall, the night was fantastic.
While the Funhouse is a place for the boys to let their hair down, that doesn�t
mean they don�t play it for all they�re worth.  Rather, the energy level was
supercharged and they were kicking it out like nobody�s business.

       Saturday, May the 10th, saw Bluesguy showing up at my place a bit after
ten, ready once again to join me in our constant quest for (as Bill Kelly calls
it) �real rock�n�roll.�  Tonight featured quite a few choices, but there was no
doubt in my mind that a bill with The Vacant Lot and The Original Sins was gonna
take the cake.  Of course, the fact that we had so many choices meant that the
crowd was fairly sparse, a fact the bands couldn�t help but notice.  Such is
life.
       Blues and I had missed the first two acts and, as it turned out, we showed
up only a couple minutes before The Vacant Lot took the stage.  They launched in
with one of their early hits, �Good As Gone,� a number that, in those days,
would�ve gotten the place moving right away.  Of course, the place would�ve been
jammed then for either one of these groups, no matter who else was in town.
Well, let�s face it, time goes by, people change, other people move on, and the
new ones... well, they don�t always know what came before and what value it has
now.  As to the band�s performance... it was pretty good, not their best.  There
were some songs I might�ve preferred slower, and others I might have enjoyed at
a faster pace.  But those are personal calls.  The only real flaw, from my
perspective, was that the guitars just weren�t loud enough.  I remember seeing
the Vacant Lot (first LP lineup) out in Bethlehem, PA at the 4G�s one night.
Ben Vaughn was trying to work with the sound system.  He started out by trying
to bring Pete�s voice out to the front.  Now, Pete has a good voice, but the
group�s sound then demanded that the guitars and vocal be either equal in volume
or that the guitars slightly overpower the voice.  I think I�d still like to
hear that... it was kind of a �tidal wave of sound.�  So, guys, turn it UP!  The
songs tonight sounded good, what with a cover of �One Fine Day� for Jeff and a
version of the band�s classic �Blue My Mind� for yours truly.
       Next up were The Original Sins, who had their latest t-shirt design with
them, featuring the slogan �10 Years, 3 Chords, No Hits.�  Unfortunately, they
only had a few.  Since I knew I�d be seeing them again fairly soon, I opted to
let the less privileged make off with the booty.  Yeah, I know, I�m a helluva
guy.  And, to them, you�re welcome.  Tonight�s set had an short guideline list
that the band deviated from when they heard requests they wanted to play.  The
show began with �Let�s Have A Party� and moved on a ways into �Now�s The Time�
and �Watch You Dance� and a few others before settling on a pair of new ones
that had a bit too much funk in their psychedelia for my personal tastes.  The
third and last of the new ones, however, rocked things up a bit, which put a
smile on my face.  As I said, they did a ton of requests, both for covers and
originals, with �Why You Love Me So� and �Out of My Mind� (both from The Hardest
Way LP) being played in response to my own yelling for them.  (This is not to
say they pay attention to me over anyone else... after all, they didn�t do �Coca
Cola (Sweet)� or �She�s On My Side.�)  Somehow, I knew Vacant Lot front man Pete
Ciccone would ask them for Wreckless Eric�s �Whole Wide World�.  They consented,
even though ex-drummer Dave Ferrara was filling in and didn�t really know the
song.  Really, though, I�m not sure JT does, either, since he usually only gets
the lyrics right on about one verse plus the chorus.  Not that it matters.  And
another fulfilled request came when The Platterpuss stole JT�s line for the
487th time, yelling out, �Whaddaya mean, you don�t have any ice tea?�  And they
said what-the-hell and did �Donut Shop.�  The surprise of the night came with a
pretty rockin� version of �Why,� but I think one of my favorite moments came
when I heard them slow it down with �Read Your Mind,� one of my faves of the
slower numbers on Big Soul.  Also from that LP tonight came �Not Gonna Be
Alright.�  A damn good (and fairly lengthy) set from the Sins this time out.

       I showed up at the Mercury Lounge a bit before 10 PM on Wednesday May
14th.  The Bad Popes had the stage and Mike was writhing all over the place,
doing his damnedest to entertain and getting the job done well.  Some nasty
garage and punk with some blues flashes thrown in for good measure.  I think I�d
prefer to see them with a packed house that�s just loose enough to let it out.
And Mike would no doubt rise to the occasion.
       The reason I was out on a weeknight, however, was the reappearance of The
Friggs.  It�s hard for me to believe that it�s only been a bit over a year since
that show at Under Acme.  The group had been nothing short of amazing that
evening.  That it was to be the last appearance of the Jezebel-fronted lineup
was not yet known.  Perhaps there were signs of the possibility, I guess, to
those of us who were close to the band, but I, for one, chose to ignore them.
But within a couple of months, the news was out that both Jezebel and drummer
Kami had left the group.  And we thought that was it for The Friggs.
       By midsummer, however, guitarist Palmyra Delran and bassist Sookie Von
Trapp had fresh recruits.  A few gigs were done in Philly, but I heard of
nothing happening in NYC.  Finally, however, this show was booked.  I expected a
reasonable bunch of people to show up, considering it was a Wednesday night.
I�d never had bet money, however, that the place would be as crowded as it was.
And it was crowded.
       My main curiosity had to be what the new singer would be like.  Ms.
Jezebel, to me, was in a class by herself.  She�s one of those people that can
grab attention and keep it focused and entertained, seemingly without effort.
Could the new front-gal do so, as well?  She came up on-stage, a silver-black
outfit on, pretty face and blondish hair looking a bit like an early 80s John
Hughes film, taking the mic for �Bad Word,� one of my favorite Frigg-songs.
Immediately, I noticed her voice was in a lower register than Jez�s.  Yeah, I
couldn�t help the comparisons.  And they�d be going through my mind all night.
Is it possible not to do that when seeing a group fronted by someone else,
singing the same songs?  The song still sounded good, however, as did
�Loathe/Hate�.  In fact, most of the old songs sounded pretty good, although I
couldn�t help but miss Jezebel.  I had nothing against the new gal - in fact, I
think she�s pretty damn good (although I suspect Jez is a stronger guitarist) -
it�s just that, first, I�m used to the group�s music sounding the way I heard it
first; second, Jez is my friend.  Some of the old songs had Palmyra taking the
vocal chores over.  Personally, I don�t think that was the way to go...
Palmyra�s voice is more suited to songs like the encore, �On The Scene,� garage
crunchers that call for a tough, no-nonsense bashing.  The Jez-type numbers are
best left to the new vocalist.  This is NOT a slight against Ms. Delran, just a
personal opinion.  Perhaps my favorite moment of the night came early on, when
Sookie von Trapp took the mic for the gentle �Got Your Letter�.  I�d forgotten
how damn pretty her voice is.  (I�d always loved her backing vox when she was in
Sit N�Spin.)  The new singer sounded best on numbers like �Juiced Up� and
�Tragedy Ann,� and the set-ending �Cheatin�,� where she could let go and enjoy.
Perhaps, however, the best might be new tunes like �Princess Pool,� where old
fans have nothing to compare to.  All in all, The Friggs presented themselves as
still be a viable, enrgetic, melodic rockin� band.  However, it�ll take time
before the old fans can take them for what they are now, as opposed to what they
used to be.  I, for one, wish them all the best in their journey... and I�m
gonna give �em every chance and whatever help I can.

       Saturday the Seventeenth and I�m gearing up for Lo-Fi Lee�s �Tribute To
The 60s� at Don Hill�s.  I�ve gotta admit that I�ve never liked the �retro� tag
or anything associated with it.  As Dan Cuddy of The Plastic Device (a Long
Island group whose members later ended up in HypnoLoveWheel and King Missile,
and guest slots with Yo La Tengo, on occasion) said in an interview back in the
mid-80s, �It can�t be revived... it never died.�
       Mike Sin and I made sure we got there early, �cuz The Omega Men were first
on the bill, and they were the ones we wanted to see more than any of the
others.  OK, we definitely wanted to see the Creatures, but they�re a group we
see every couple months, while this bunch is pretty new and has only played in
town once before.  Not only that, but they�re easily one of the hottest new acts
on the scene.  Tonight they were so ON that I didn�t think they could possibly
stop.  Whether they were bashing out those few vocal garage pounders or grooving
through their many instrumentals, they were putting me in that state of
rock�n�roll nirvana that is all-too-rarely attained.  Susan�s organ is the
highlight, a Hammond bubbling thru a Leslie, with her fingers on fire.  Of
course, there are also some fantastic fuzz guitar salvos blasted out, attacking
the night, but it�s Susan�s organ that leads the way.  The signature number, of
course, is the aptly titled, �Susan Goes To Work.�  And she does so with
incredible gusto.  Can�t wait to see �em again in a month out in Bethlehem, PA.
       Sit N�Spin did a nice job getting people moving with their set, mixing it
up nicely between girl-vocal garage pop and some Chuck Berry-isms and even a
little bit of hillbilly hi jinx.  The Del Stars were traveling the furthest and
did some decent material, but things just seemed a bit generic for my tastes.  A
bit too bland, I guess.  One man�s opinion.  I�ll have to see them again before
I decide fully on them, though.
       Last up were The Creatures of the Golden Dawn.  Here�s a group I�ve been
seeing for over a decade.  At this point, the only original member is vocalist
Mark Smith, but somehow they�ve come up with the absolute best sound the group�s
ever had.  Credit for this goes to the band... this group meshes together with
him better than any he�s ever had.  Talking to Mark about this, he says it�s not
just �cuz the guys are so damned good, but because he�s been at it for so long.
He has more direction now, more experience, than ever before.  He knows exactly
what he�s trying to do these days - go for a mid-60s/Them R&B sort of sound.
And they�re achieving it admirably.  A recent tape he sent (with tracks that may
form a Dionysus EP sometime soon) had some of their newest material, featured in
this night�s performance.  Simply put, the songs are incredible.  �Stop, Stop,
Stop� raves all over, but the highlight is �Walking the Buzz,� which�ll have any
real garage fan raving up (as well as over, under, sideways, and down) every
time (s)he hears it.  (I can�t tell you how many times I�ve  rewound the tape to
hear it again.)  Tonight�s set also included some fantastic covers, including
�Journey To Tyme� and �Midnight To Six,� but it was those originals that made
the night.

       I don�t go out during the week as much as I once did.  Teaching puts those
kinds of limitations on you.  I mean, back when I worked for the Equitable, I
used to be able to wake up at 8:30, if necessary, and I could still make it in
by 9.  Now, tho�, I usually wake up no later than 6:15, so weeknight shows are a
no-no unless it�s something extra special - like seeing The Woggles.  And it was
a good bill, too, over at CBGB�s, with Sit N�Spin opening up and The Insomniacs
sitting in the middle.
       I didn�t really see much of Sit N�Spin, as I was intent on catching up
with the guys in the Woggles, as well as a few old friends who appeared out of
the woodwork.  The Insomniacs went on next and proceeded to get people moving on
the floor.  (Though I hate that CB�s dance floor... completely uneven and with
metal plates at various junctures.  But wearing sneakers makes it easier on me
than it is for some.  One gal who�d been dancing her boots off said, �Think how
it is for me with these four-inch heels!�  Thing is, it didn�t really appear to
slow her down... not with these guys and the Woggles playing.)  Some big TV
camera appeared on guitarist Bob Woj�s side of the stage, swirling in and out
around his guitar and occasionally pointing towards the crowd, especially in the
direction of our pal, Dancin� Annie.  Singer Dave Woj said something about it
being for Spanish television.  Things were moving pretty damn well with this
set; at least, it sounded great by the stage.  When I backed up to spend a bit
of time with an old hometown friend, tho�, I found the sound was kinda thin and
hollow.  This soundman had no clue.
       The Woggles were up next and they blasted in right off, gettin� tough and
makin� us PUSH!  �Maneater!  CARNIVORE!�  When they hit The Creeps� classic �Hi
Hi Pretty Baby� I launched into the air with a huge smile on my face.  A couple
days later, someone told me that Manfred said he wasn�t feeling well this
evening.  Yeesh!  The man was all over  the place, a ball of energy like you
wouldn�t believe.  He�s just one of those great showmen.  At one point, Montague
came off the stage into the crowd, guitar raging.  Later, it was Manfred�s turn,
as the Bluesman lifted him on his shoulders holding him up on high for all to
see.  (BluesPal, don�t you even think of whining about your back hurting ever
again!)  Yeah, The Woggles were well worth getting home at 2 AM for.  So what if
I only fell asleep at 3, then woke up again to get the boys in the band settled
in at our place at 4:30?  OK, I felt like utter CRAP at school a few hours later
but, like I said earlier, sometimes you�ve just gotta do it.  Some things you
just can�t miss.  The Woggles are one of �em.

       Friday June 6th and it�s time to head down to Under Acme.  First up were
Hooked On Sonics, featuring ex-Vipers� front man Jon Weiss on sax and his ex-
Fleshtones� mate, Marek Pakulski on lead vocals.  If you�re too dimwitted to
figure it out from the name, these guys are a Sonics� cover band.  The group
makes some incredible Sonics� noise, but Marek�s voice isn�t as rough as Gerry
Roslie�s, so I wasn�t quite as enamored of them as I might otherwise have been.
They must have something going for them, tho�, �cuz a nice crowd of attractive
gals was dancing like mad to them.
       The Ton-Ups were next up, with an act that�s somewhere between The Gun
Club and The Stooges, with an occasional good-time detour.  Things seemed good
at the start, but it quickly wore thin on me.  I got the feeling these guys
could be something damn good, but they just aren�t there yet.
       I hadn�t been really enjoying The Swingin� Neckbreakers as much as I once
did, but they were pretty on this time out.  Rockin� hard and belting it out,
they charged the jam-packed crowd up nicely.  This is when the night began to
really swing.
       Finally, it was time for The Fleshtones.  These guys have been blowing me
away lately.  Maybe it�s that intention to do mainly new songs.  Best of all,
they�re damn good new songs.  It�s nice to see that, after 20 years, the �Tones
are still the world�s greatest party band.  If you can�t have a good time at a
Fleshtones� gig, then you�re one dull person.  Seek help.  It�s SuperRock.TM

       OK, it�s time I came right out and said it:  I HATE The Continental.
Hmm... that�s not completely fair.  The club books some damn good shows.  The
thing is, the bathrooms are pretty putrid (of course, they�re far from unique in
that respect), there�s no circulation whatsoever, and the place doesn�t have
even a whiff of the fun atmosphere it did in its former incarnation as the
Continental Divide.  Quite honestly, I could live with all of that, except for
one thing:  the No Re-Entry policy.  Way too many people I know won�t come to a
show at the club simply �cuz they can�t head outside for air, or to hang out
while a band they don�t like is on.  Or, if they do show up, they only do so in
time for one of the bands, even if they like an earlier act, just because they
can�t take sitting thru a middle act... or maybe they just don�t want to stay
inside the club for all that time.
       Why the diatribe?  Well, I missed The Pleasantries (who�ve changed their
name to Loris Drift; no, not Lori�s Drift), in large part because I couldn�t
stomach the thought of sitting in that club through four bands.  I felt bad,
too, �cuz I like the group and they�re old friends.
       I did catch Mildred Pierce for the first time in at least a year.  In the
year that I lived down around New Brunswick, I saw this group pretty often.  In
the time since I last saw them they�ve changed lead singers.  Usually, that�s
the kiss of death for a group.  This bunch got lucky - they found another gal
who�s got a powerful set of lungs; and her voice suits the material well.  (To
be completely honest, though, she doesn�t have the same stage presence as the
old singer.) They played much of their back catalogue while also hitting some
cool cover material, including The Buzzcocks.  Best of all, tho�, came their
version of �Dirty Deeds (Done Dirt Cheap).�  Anyone who wasn�t singing along
with this one needs to go out and buy a sense of humor.  Anyway, the group�s
secret weapon remains their backing vocals.  Much of what they do just wouldn�t
work without the slice of pop fruit this throws into the bowl.  I�m looking
forward to seeing them again.
       I�ve been a fan of The Original Sins ever since they became a going
concern, roughly ten years ago.  They remain one of my all-time favorite groups.
Thing is, sometimes JT appears to be battling some personal demons.  I often
wonder if he�s just pissed off that the music industry hasn�t given the group
the respect they deserve.  And, with the records they�ve put out over the years,
they do deserve major recognition.  I know of NO other group that has managed to
record such a varied body of work and done it all so well.  Here�s a group that
does a better job than anyone in taking their influences and molding them into
something completely their own.  I�m not saying I believe that every O. Sins�
record is a work of genius; what I am saying is that their best discs (my faves
are Big Soul, The Hardest Way,  and Move) contain many different sounds and they
excel in every area.  That they�ve been so ignored by not only the mainstream,
but by much of the underground, is a major crime.  That people with less talent
than JT has in his pinky toenail actually make the Top 10 is beyond me.  So when
JT does a show where he fucks around with the phrasing of some of his best
songs, I understand.  Thing is, that feeling isn�t shared by the whole audience;
people want to see the Sins at the top of their form.  And I understand that,
too.
       That being said... the set the Sins did at the Continental that night was
one of the best they�ve done in a couple years.  Solid rockin� the whole way
through, never once wavering.  JT didn�t mess with anything, choosing to hammer
the audience into submission with some of the best damn rock�n�roll they�d ever
heard.  This is what the Sins are about.  This is why I spent so much time
raving about them in the first few years of this �zine.  This is why I used to
go out to Bethlehem once or twice a month to see them.
       It was a hard act for The Insomniacs to follow.  But if anyone was gonna
be able to do it, these guys were the ones.  What helped is that they�re a
completely different act.  I�ve been saying it throughout this extremely
extended section of live reviews:  The Insomniacs are one of the best group�s on
today�s scene.  This set was par for their course, getting the crowd moving from
start to finish, including some of the best ravers they�ve got in their arsenal.
The night came to an end with an encore request for �The Long Cigarette.�  This
one was the perfect wind-down for a night of some truly killer rock�n�roll.
       I�m not a big fan of The Psychlone Rangers, so I took off within minutes
of the end of The Insomniacs� set.  For that matter, so did most of my friends.
Best of all, about 20 of us set out for the Lakeside Lounge, where we spent the
next few hours hanging out, singing along to the jukebox, and even breaking the
�No Dancing� rule.  (I know, I know... we�re rebels.)

       The Omega Men have become one of my absolute favorite bands on today�s
scene.  And, as far as new bands go, they�re at the top of the heap.  As a
result, it should hardly come as a surprise that Bluesman and I hopped in my
hatchback on Saturday June 28th for another trek out to the most fantastic
Funhouse in Bethlehem, PA just to see this bunch.
       As we pulled up a couple doors from the club, I saw ex-Rebeltones� front
man, Scott, walking past.  I waved hello and he and his buddy stopped to shoot
the shit for a bit.  As it turned out, Scott and his pal were playing the in-
between set that night with their band, The Woadads.  Blues and I continued on
our way, passing the club and heading down the hill for my usual first stop in
town, at 3rd St. Chicken for some wings and logs.  Once that appetite is
satisfied, my rock�n�roll night is allowed to begin.
       Back up to 4th Street then and we round the corner and spot Omega Men
organist Susan Mackey and rhythm guitarist Mark Ebeling hanging out.  They were
both incredibly happy that we�d made the trek.  As far as I was concerned, there
was no way in hell I would�ve missed them.
       Eventually, it was time for them to hit the stage.  From the first blasts
of �Mania For Blondes,� I knew this was going to be an extremely special night.
Vocalist/lead guitarist Jonathan Sipes was right on and he had me wishing I�d
thought to bring a blank tape to record the night�s festivities.  On then to my
favorite of the band�s repertoire, a killer Hammond-organ led instro entitled
�Susan Goes To Work.�  And she surely does.  WOW!  This set also included covers
of Booker T. & the MGs �Soul Dressing,� The Shadows� �Main Theme� and Love�s
�She Comes In Colors.�  When they got to their only real funk number, �G Marks
The Spot� Jonathan told us that the original (and far more apropos) moniker for
the tune was �Porno Movie Theme,� but the record company didn�t think that was
all that smart.  (But they were perfectly OK with the title, �G Marks The Spot.�
Go figure.)
       The Woadads took over for the second set, burning things up with some
gritty rockabilly and a couple shots of garage.  Their best number was a killer
cover of �Whistle Bait,� with the lead guitarist just setting the whole place
buzzing.  I�d love to see them put that one down on wax.
       The Omega Men came back after that to do their second, slightly longer
set.  As they�re still a pretty new group, they found themselves repeating a few
numbers, but it didn�t matter a bit to the crowd.  Heck, by this time, the place
was a bit more well-oiled and ready to shake their hips.   Covers included the
John Barry 7�s �Beat Girl,� Cannonball Adderly�s �Sack O Woe� and a killer take
of �Midnight To Six� with three of The Creatures joining in on backing vocals to
bring the house down.  A new original (whose name I�ve since forgotten) also
surfaced this night, along with another killer take on another of my favorite
Omega Men originals, �My Favorite Dean Martian.�  Damn these guys and gal are
GREAT!

       Ah yeas... 4th of July.  I�ve had some pretty wild times on this date in
years past, but, for some reason, this year I blew off just about everything.
Heck, I wasn�t even sure I was gonna go out that night to see the show.  But
then Roberta, her cousin and her friend Amy wanted to go out for dinner, so I
ended up in Manhattan, anyway.  And, since I was parked only a couple blocks
from Coney Island High, it would�ve been a complete waste of a fantastic parking
spot to just go home.  So her cousin went back to her apartment, while Roberta
and Amy caught a bus back to Rutherford from Port Authority.  Me?  I went to
Joey Ramone�s Blitzkrieg Bop.
       I showed up a couple songs into a set by a band from Arizona.  I don�t
think I�ll ever forget their name (Black Fire), simply because they kept
repeating it after almost every lousy song.  A couple people seemed to really
like them, but I found them to be heavy, dark, and... just plain boring.  The
woman playing bass, tho�, was pretty energetic, though, jumping about like she
was on top of the world.  At least she kept me from falling asleep.
       Next were The Independents (from South Carolina, I think they said.)
Musically, they were an interesting (sometimes quite good) mix of punk-pop and
ska.  The best thing about the band was their lead guitarist, who came up with
some really lively melodic leads.  I�m still not sure I understand the point of
the makeup on a couple of them, though... or the fake blood packet bit.  Or the
bondage mask on the bassist�s face.  I just didn�t see how it really related to
the music.  But they were fairly decent.
       Finally, the band I most wanted to see, even if they were only doing seven
songs in all... THE DICTATORS!!!  Ms. Miriam Linna had recently noted on
alt.music.banana-truffle that mastermind Andy Shernoff had written ten new
songs.  Well... not for tonight�s set.  The band launched into the intro to
�Haircut & Attitude� (from the Manitoba�s Wild Kingdom LP, Und Du) and the
Handsome One took the stage, all beautiful NYC attitude, red, white, and blue
leather jacket on, turning around to show us where it said, �MANITOBA.�  And
then he punched in as well, with the crowd right along with him, pummeling the
air with our fists at the end of each line.
       �1997 and we�re still here.  Can you believe that?� asked HDM, King of
Men.  Then, kinda mockingly, �We wanna play into, like, the two thousands.�
But, as far as we were concerned, they could play forever and we�d never get
enough.  Next, Top Ten got his guitar singing out to start off the next one and
within a couple notes everyone knew they were about to hear the classic, �New
York, New York.�  This was followed by, �a song from our first album... The Next
Big Thing.�  Why aren�t they, anyway?
       �Won�t you please Stay With Me!�  And they�re off and we�re singing along
even more wildly than we have on the past few, Ms. Linna going absolutely
bonkers right up in the thick of it.  (Like I should talk!)  Then things started
sounding a bit more dangerous, as they obliterated everything in their path with
a cover of �Sonic Reducer,� Ross the Boss taking no prisoners with his weapon of
choice.
       Next, Handsome Dick called for �Giuseppe� to come to the stage.
Unfortunately, our host happened to be using the facilities at the time, so
there was a bit of a lag.  But then he was up and HDM said, �I�m gonna let him
borrow my band for a song.�  And soon the air rang with the chords of �The Kids
Are Alright� as Joey Ramone took the mic on one of my favorite Who songs of all
time.  And, seeing as some people were obviously there just �cuz this was �Joey
Ramone�s Blitzkrieg Bop,� the PandemonioMeter� got cranked up yet another notch.
After this one, Manitoba came back on to do the standard closer duet with Joey,
�California Sun,� with Top Ten and Ross the Boss calling and answering on the
guitars.  Ah... Bliss.
       Was there anything bad about the set?  Yeah... it was too effin� short!
       On the positive side, the Handsome One informed us that they were gonna
probably be recording again.  Plus, they�d probably play again pretty soon, too.
       Honestly, seeing The Dictators would�ve been a good enough reason for me
to come out, but there was one more group I wanted to see... it was billed as
simply �Dee Dee Ramone,� but it was Dee Dee with Joey singing.  Now, gee,
whaddaya think they�re gonna play?  (No, not the new Marilyn Manson record.)
Well, with Danny Rey on lead guitar, D-Generation drummer Michael Wildwood on
the riser in back, and a rhythm guitarist Joey introduced as �Barbara,� they
proceeded to do exactly what everyone expected and everyone wanted... Ramones�
songs.  (Duh.)  Well, actually, there was one song Danny introduced as being on
Dee Dee�s new record, which (from the lyrics Joey was reading off the sheet)
must be called �I Am Seeing UFOs� and sounds like a fairly decent Ramones� song.
But the rest was the vintage stuff... �Babysitter,� �53rd & 3rd,� �Carbona,�
�Sheena Is A Punk Rocker,� etc.  Best of all, they weren�t playing at breakneck
speed.  That meant you could actually tell one song from another.  And the crowd
wasn�t just a bunch of little just-got-my-mohawk punkidz, either... the age
range must�ve been from late teens thru mid-late 40s.  Sure, there were people
semi-moshing up front, but it wasn�t quite as out of control as it was at
Ramones� shows.  Most of the people were a bit older than that.
       My biggest surprise, though, came when I moved a bit away from the middle,
back a few rows of people.  There was this girl who looked so deliriously happy,
just dancing with a HUGE smile on her face.  When a song ended, she smiled up at
me and said, �I�ve never heard them before, but this is AMAZING!�
       �Wait... you�ve never heard The Ramones?!?!!!�
       �Well, of course, I�d heard of them, but, no, I�ve never actually heard
anything by them.  My friend wanted to come, tho�, �cuz she really loves them.
And they�re GREAT!�
       That kinda thing makes me feel really happy.  Just seeing someone flying
so high because s/he�s just discovered some incredible music makes me feel it
all over again.
********************************************************************************
A HAPPY HOLIDAY WITH THE SLICKEE BOYS
by Rob White
------------------
       The Slickee Boys, who were together from 1976 to 1990, have reunited for
two shows every year since they disbanded. They play around the Christmas
holiday - one show in Baltimore, and another in Washington, DC at the 930 Club.
This year was no exception. On Thursday, December 26, the Slickee Boys played at
Baltimore�s 8 x 10 Club. The lineup consisted of Slickee Boys founders Marshall
Keith (lead guitar) and Kim Kane (rhythm guitar), singer Mark Noone, bassist
Mike Maxwell, and drummer (and club owner) Giles Cook. The band was very
powerful, and the crowd never stopped moving all night. The band played songs
from all periods of their career. Songs included:

Escalator 66
Life Of The Party
Somebody�s Gonna Their Head Kicked In Tonight (Rezillos)
When I Go To The Beach
Journey To The Center Of The Mind
Death Lane (Dogs)
Going All The Way (Squires)
Glendora (Downliner�s Sect)
Here To Stay
Gotta Tell Me Why
Control
All The Way To Memphis (Mott the Hoople)
Pictures Of Matchstick Men
This Party Sucks

       The band played for over 90 minutes, and everyone sounded great.

       Two nights later, the band played at the �new� 930 Club (the club moved to
a bigger room one year ago). The lineup was the same except for drums - Dan
Palenski took his rightful position behind the drum kit, after driving 3 hours
from Williamsburg, VA.  As a surprise for the loyal Slickees fans, the original
1976 lineup got up and played 6 songs. Martha Hull (vocals), Kim Kane (rhythm
guitar), Marshall Keith (lead guitar), Andy Von Brand (bass), and Chris Rounds
(drums) last graced the stage at the band�s 1990 farewell show (where they
played two songs). On the 28th, they played:

Manganese Android Puppies
Golden Love
Heart Murmur
Try To Understand (Seeds)
What A Boy Can�t Do

       Andy then left the stage, and Kim�s brother Thomas came up to play bass
on:

Put A Bullet Through the Jukebox
Brand New Cadillac

       To me, this was the highlight of the show. The original band was very
tight and sounded incredible. Everyone was surprised to see them play after so
many years. They released one of the first US new wave EPs in 1976, and played 4
of those 5 songs (only omitting �Psycho Daisies�).

       Hopefully the band will do it again in December, 1997. �- RW
********************************************************************************
BOYS AND THEIR BOYS
by Roberta Schiffer
--------------------------
       OK, so what�s the deal with boys, AKA men?  I noticed this strange
phenomenon while I was briefly commuting to a job in NYC.  Picture, if you will,
a packed subway, a few seats open.  I find an open seat and grab it ASAP. A guy
comes and sits down next to me, and what does he do but spread his legs so wide
open you�d think he was carrying the world�s largest package.   And this
package, it had to be shown!  So, here I am sitting on a crowded train with this
guy�s open leg touching mine and I am afraid that something huge is going to
jump out and bite me.  I thought, �Well, maybe this is this guy�s tactic to get
the person sitting next to him to move.�  I could play that game just as well. I
opened my legs wide (thankfully, I was wearing pants) and pushed my knee into
his thigh (he was tall).  He didn�t even acknowledge me; nothing, not  even an
�excuse me�.  So there I sat, uncomfortable, but at least with room. I hate
space hogs!  Another whole person could have sat where his legs were.  All I
kept wondering was, �What is in there that needs sooooo much room?�
       The next day, I grab a seat and look out at the passenger across from me.
A big guy, his legs were spread for all the world to see, and guess what?  With
all that room he had made for his boys, I couldn�t even see a slight bulge, so I
thought, �If its not for room, maybe it�s for room to grow, like when a pretty
girl in a short skirt walks by?�  But no, I kept looking and nothing moved down
there.  In fact, he barely even moved.  When I got off the train, I was sure he
wasn�t even alive.
       On my return commute home, I was led to believe that this was not a
singular phenomenon, but that all men sit with their legs spread wide.  The guy
sitting next to me in a two person seat on the bus practically knocked my legs
into the aisle �cuz he apparently needed the room. I was tempted to grab hold of
his boys to find out just how big they were, but I decided that might not be in
my best interest.
       So, for the next week, I decided to conduct a study.  On the subway in
morning I looked at all of the men.  At least 90% had their legs spread wide. It
became obvious to me that this was an ego thing.  I mean, what else could
explain it? Here we are in NYC and the thing I�d be protecting if I was a guy
was left splayed wide open and unprotected.  Anyone  could  fall on, kick, hit
or punch it.  This must be a way that men in their secret male code prove to
other men how tough they really are.  They want women to think that they�ve got
something soooo special that it just cannot be hidden.  Meanwhile, they�re
signaling to other men, �See how strong and tough I am?  Not only I am so mighty
that it cannot be hidden, I am such a man that I need not cover it up!�  Well,
let me tell you, there�s not that much there, so close �em up and make room!
And don�t touch me!
********************************************************************************
BIG HOLES AND LITTLE HOLES, BUT ALL SEVEN INCHES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
       In the last few years, some of the cooler garage-oriented labels (Norton,
Get Hip, Dionysus, etc.) have been re-ishing 45s by some of the cooler groups of
the 50s and 60s.  Of course, they�ve also been doing full-length comps of some
of the groups, as well, but the seven-inch format recalls the way most of these
were released in the first place.  Somehow that makes things seem more
authentic.  Even though it has nothing to do with the music itself, it somehow
adds that little extra.
       Comin� straight outta the Minnesota �66 scene are The Boss Tweads (yeah,
that�s how it�s spelled, alright) with an old garage fave, �Goin� Away� (Get Hip
Archive Series).  This one�s kinda foreboding, fueled by a cold Farfisa.  It
really moves when the guitar kicks into gear, but the whole way it�s got a sort
of dark insistence.  The flip, �It�s Best You Go� is more of a ballad-type
thing.  Roberta liked it, but I can�t say it moved me all that much.  Still,
you�ll want this for the up-side.
       Movin� on over to today�s scene, the Farfisa still holds court, thanks in
part to The Hentchmen.  �Rainin� In My Heart� (Larsen) has the boys slowin� it
down, throwing a 50s-styled tearjerker through a campus-size garage blender to
good effect.  Flippin� the frisbee, then, they start off with a down-tempo basic
backbeat instro (somewhat Wray-ified at times) called �Mute.�  I can�t help but
wonder if they just said, �Why bother trying?� when it came to naming the damn
thing.  (Who can forget the working titles of Raunch Hands� songs some 8-10
years ago... they were all called �Pussyface.�)  Last up is a re-recording of
one of my fave Hentch tunes, the pepped-up party rocker, �Girl From Jackson�
which appeared a few years ago on Front Porch #3.  Keep On Hentching.
       At this point, I have a hard time believing there�s anybody left reading
garage/punk �zines that�s never heard of Pansy Division, so I shouldn�t need to
explain their whole approach.  The Manada EP (Mint) is sort of a tribute to our
neighbors to the North.  Kicking it off is the title track, catch punkin� about
the delights (Laurent in Montreal, et al) of Canada.  They also throw in a fun
take on Maow�s �One Night Stand� that only makes me wish it was longer.  Their
version tends to be a bit more chunky than the original, but it tastes just
fine.  Flip this puck over and you�ll hear the band�s lament about having it bad
for a guy with �Hockey Hair.�  (A cut you can, sayeth the lyrics, get in any
mall.  And this guy just doesn�t care, �cuz his first love�s the ice.)  Ending
it all is a French version of the title track, which sounds pretty good.
       Last year at Treble Fest, The Hatebombs provided a set of entertainment
that blew people outta the water.  We�re still awaiting their debut long-player
(set to come out on 360 Twist), but in the meantime we�ve got �One Thing On My
Mind� (Speed-O-Meter).  The vocals on the title track have a kinda whispered
feel to them, working on top of basic garage thump, together providing much more
than a hint at just what it is that�s on this guy�s mind.  Flip it over and
you�ll find out the other side, �What A Woman Wants� (a woman gets, they tell
us), as the tempo gets bumped up a couple notches.  This is my pick of the
three, with some well-done dual vocal parts and a wild guitar break that goes
that much farther at the end thanks to an accompanying yell/scream.  Finishing
it off is a cover of We The People�s �My Brother The Man.�  I�ve always loved
this song and the band does it well, but the recording (which buries just about
everything but some vocals) brings it down a bit.  But, as, uh... someone...
once said, �two out of three ain�t bad.�  OUCH!
       If you, like me, think The Milkshakes were the highlight of Billy
Childish�s musical career, then you may have tumbled to the realization that
Mickey Hampshire was at least an equal partner in that group, having been half
of the Hampshire/Childish songwriting team.  Not only that, but his voice played
a part, as did his guitar sound.  The latest from Mickey is The Masonics� �Earl
of Hell� (Super Electro).  This one�s a kind of Milkshakes in a ghoulish, bad-
side-of-town music hall.  On �Upside Down Man� Mickey doesn�t so much toe the
line as smudge it till it feels right.  The backing vox keep it goin� strong and
his guitar�s workin� the low-end, kinda reminding me of that Milkshakes pic near
some sort of dock.  Lastly, comes guest star Miss Ludella Black, taking the mic
for �Never So Sad,� which reminds me of an even tougher Shangri-La�s type teen
tragedy bit.  A few years ago, The Ne�er-Do-Wells sang �Where�s Mickey?�  Right
here and sounding as good as ever.  All thumbs up.
        I�d heard a ton about The Count Backwurds from various friends in the Bay
area, but till �Sorry Charlie� (Telstar) I hadn�t had a chance to actually hear
them.  On my trip out to LA, though, I couldn�t resist walking into a record
store that I happened to pass by.  And there it was.  No way I was gonna resist
hearing Mummies drummer Russell Quan fronting a group, not after having seen him
take the mic with the Phantom Surfers only a few weeks earlier.  Part of this
one reminds me of a faster, messier �Jolly Green Giant�/�Big Boy Pete�.  Simply
put, these guys are obviously having a damn good time.  Down below, they work
over an old favorite, �The Alligator�, jumping in like crazy men, playin� it
low-end and blasting through with a ton of fun.
       Following a line from Supercharger thru the Brentwoods, we fall into the
hands of The Bobbyteens, who pop it out at a good clip with a trashy attitude on
�Hey Roxy� (Super*Teem), a paean (great word, that) to teen lust, girl-style.
Flip it over for more of the same on �Firecracker�.  Boom-Boom.  Yeah.
       In that same quick-check at that record store in Santa Monica, I found a
Supercharger 45 I hadn�t seen before, �Sooprize Package For Mr. Mineo�/�South
City Psyco� (Super*Teem).  This seemed odd, �cuz I thought I had most of their
45s and I hadn�t even heard about this one.  Not only that, but I was under the
impression that Super*Teem wasn�t around back when the band was together.
(Heck, their address is the Radio X address.)  And, well, the A-side is from
that first Supercharger LP, the one that I�ve heard some people are paying $75
for only five years later.  Now, I�ll admit I shoulda bought that LP when it
came out, but when I saw it listed, I was in the midst of a buying binge of
other stuff and knew nothing about them.  By the time I considered buying the
thing, it was sold out.  That�s life.  At least someone made me a tape.  (Which
I�ve since lost, of course.)  In the meantime, �Sooprize Package� has been
covered on record by both The Mummies and The Statics; and, here in the NYC
area, The Prissteens have been blasting through it live.  But now I�ve got a
copy of this fave-o�-mine on vinyl.  What I especially like is that I can hear
more of the lyrics than on any of the covers, as well as Darrin�s cool guitar
sound.  Down below, tho�, things are much further into the lo-fi range.  If
you�re willing to listen, tho�, you�ll be rewarded by a good melody and a catchy
chorus.  This thing can�t help but remind you how damn good this bunch was.
       Once upon a time, Midnight Records released a 45 by a group called the
Frosted Flaykes.  This group was a collaboration between a couple by-then ex-
members of the Outta Place, Jordan Tarlow and Michael Chandler.  The A-side was
a cool low fidelity, mid-tempo garage rocker called �Waste Your Time.�  So, why
the history lesson?  Well, the debut 45 by another bunch of guys who�ve been
involved in various bands since that 2nd Garagic Era, The Loons, features
�Unwind� (360 Twist), a number that echoes that 80s nugget in its gritty, I-
don�t-need-anyone sound.  Involved are ex-members of the Telltale Hearts, Hoods,
and a host of other SoCal favorites.  The biggest surprise is that �the bass
that ate San Diego,� Mike Stax, has eschewed his weapon of choice for the
microphone.   Now, while I can�t say Mike�s got the pipes of ex-Telltale Hearts
mate Ray Brandes or Hoods� vocalist Jay Wiseman, on the dirty garage-rockin� R&B
sound of �Unwind,� his voice goes pretty well.  Down below, we�ve got �Slow
Knife,� slower and more deliberate, with a compelling combination of ringing,
open guitar and a cold, dark bass, opening up at times to an R&B chug.
       It�s been a long time since I heard a completely new group out of San
Diego.  At one time, the city was a hotbed of garage/R&B/Mod, with a ton of
rockin� bands including the Telltale Hearts, The Event, The Crawdaddys, The
Gravedigger V, Manual Scan and more.  Now, though, it seems as if there�s only a
few left.  That�s why it�s refreshing to me to see a new group emerge from
there.  On �Atlanta� (360 Twist), The Let Downs show that they belong solidly in
SD�s garage camp with a heavy, syrupy organ sound and a heavy, rhythmic
thumping.  Down below, they�ve got a cover of �Flash & Crash.�  The organ again
achieves prominence, although this time it plays more of a lead role than a
punching one.  Definitely a cool 1-2 combo platter.
       When I was 18 and just starting college back in the fall of �83, I quickly
learned that Boston was a hotbed of what I�d later hear WFMU DJ Bill Kelly call
�REAL Rock�n�Roll.�  Well, personally, I don�t think it�s quite what it once
was, but with bands like The Bald Guys sprouting from between the cracks in the
sidewalks of Kenmore Square, maybe it�s on its way back.  �Teleport� (Stanton
Park) features some fine primitive garage pounding that shows its Boston lineage
with some fantastic Prime Movers� (Boston version) blasting, plus some great
organ coloring (and a nice break for it, too, later on.)  Best of all are the
female backing vocals.  (In the Bald Guys?)  �Secret Mission To Spy Island�
isn�t as good vocally, which takes it down a notch.  Even so, the music rips it
up with some cool stops and starts.
       From Lafayette, Louisiana come Frigg-A-Go-Go with �Everything Around Me�
(360 Twist), whose verses have a double-time �Margio� beat going on; driving and
completely insane.  The flip, �Pre-Teen Love,� is just as frantic, featuring
some cool keys.  (Electric piano?)  These guys are different enough from much of
today�s scene to make a real mark.  I�ll be on the lookout for their LP.  In the
meantime, do yourself a favor and get in on the action now with this one.
       It took me awhile to dig in on the �Genie In The Lamp� 45 (360 Twist) from
Fortune & Maltese.  It just didn�t quite catch me the way most of their earlier
stuff did.  I solved this minor problem by cranking up the stereo loud enough to
wake the landlord�s baby downstairs.  That way it couldn�t help but blast right
through me.  Ah, bliss.  Especially Nat Cromlech�s tasty guitar solo.
�Vampira�...what can I say?  �She�s not too skinny and she�s not too fat / She
looks just like a bat (...) Vampira, oh what the heck / Come and sink your teeth
into my neck.�  Nothing wrong with some harmless teenage fun with the girl next
door, right?
       It�s been a long time since I heard anything by The Thanes.  But, hey,
that doesn�t matter much, �cuz they�re back, this time with �Better Days�
(Larsen) and all it does is prove once again why they were one of the best
garage acts of the 80s, right up there with The Lyres, The Vipers, The Telltale
Hearts, The Stems, The Creeps, and the Chesterfield Kings.  Here, they inject
the garage/R&B sound with an almost �65 Kinks-melody and fall just short of the
folk-punk border.  On the other side, �Never Make Me Blue� they start off with
some nice ringing folk harmonies before breaking in with an Outsiders-like beat,
managing to keep the guitars jangling while the bass urges them on.  A fantastic
guitar break resolves itself back into that killer thumping once again before
its all over.  I think they�ve got an LP coming out on Misty Lane, too... I�m
not sure; the promo materials are in French (since that�s where the label�s
based) and my skills on that score are kinda rusty.
       For some really enjoyable psych-pop, check out the swirling hypnotic
melody of �(We Are) The Orange Alabaster Mushroom� from The Psychedelic Bedroom
EP (Perfect Pop) by - you guessed it! - The Orange Alabaster Mushroom.
Actually, the whole EP�s pretty psychedelic, but not in some kinda stupid hippy-
trippy way.  �Tree Pie� is dominated by some cool combo organ sounds and I
coulda sworn I heard him sing, �I am the eggman�s egg roll.�  For a line like
that alone, this thing�s priceless.  But the other side�s got a couple more that
fall somewhere in between those on the top side.  In fact, I�d say �Rainbow Man�
is the best track of all, sort of Sgt. Pepper-esque with a nice juicy melody.
       In the past couple years, it seems Sit N�Spin have been knockin� �em out.
Besides the CD reviewed elsewhere, there�s also the �Primate Mixer Party� single
(Solamente), with the top side, an upbeat jumper, featured on the disc.
Luckily, below-decks it�s a live favorite, the group�s take on Chuck Berry�s �30
Days,� This one�s a real stand-out that�s bound to put a great big smile on your
face.  Glad I�ve got one, �cuz I was quite bummed this track wasn�t on the disc.
       Another Norwegian bunch, Kare & The Cavemen come through with some
swingin� instro sounds.  �The Mood� (Hit Me) is just that, a real mood piece
with strong hints of 60s lounge sounds.  �Inspector �71� picks up where its
predecessor left off, moving slightly in a spy direction.  �Tension!� makes it
feel like the Inspector has run up against some trouble and we�ve no idea what�s
gonna happen.  Things become slow, moody and lonely.  A decision must be made
and the music builds towards this.  Either way, things are never gonna be the
same after this.  Eventually, it feels some sort of action is taking place.
Finally, there�s �Point Of No Return� as they pick up the tempo.  Having made a
decision it�s time to follow where it leads.  This EP sounds like it could be
part of the score for one hell of a movie.  This is also one of the most
different-sounding instro records I�ve heard in ages.  A welcome breath of fresh
air.
       At this point, The Autumn Leaves� �You Didn�t Say A Word� (Grimsey) is
hardly a new release.  On the other hand, it�s my guess that not many of you out
there have been clued in on it, so I figured it was worth a mention.  Many of
you will remember bassist Keith Patterson from his days with The Spectors.
(Just so you know, he�s since left this bunch and started up a new bunch called
William & The Conquerors.)  Both �You Didn�t Say A Word� and the flip, �Magic
Red Raincoat� are excellent upbeat janglers that deserve a spot in the
collection of any Byrds fan.  The top side is the most melodic, but underneath
is some beautiful hypnotic ringing drawing you ever closer to a psychedelic
whirlpool in some enchanted forest.  Beautiful.
       The Daytonas provide us with one of the few surf instro seven-inchers this
time out.  �Emerging From The Tube� (Solamente) is a sprightly swinger movin� a
quarter past mid-tempo.  I�m more into the flip, �Moon Relay� with an organ
adding an extra touch.  The guitar�s the best part, though, with some spaced out
reverb, evocative of the now-deserted corridors of Luna City.  Still, there�s a
feeling for what a vital force said metropolis must once�ve been.
       Not quite rockabilly, The Sprague Brothers tend more towards the Bobby
Fuller school. �Battle Of The Bands!� (Hillsdale) goes on about a brawl at a
battle of the bands, with participants such as the CornDog and Dave & Deke.
�Green Arrow� goes for the instro sound, with a somewhat Middle Eastern exotic
feel to the guitar.  Pretty cool stuff.  (And fans of Derek �Deke� Dickerson
will be happy to note his involvement.)
       The Decibels� �Radio� (GI Productions) is a certifiable power pop classic.
Starting off with the flip of station static (a la The Ramones� �Rock�n�Roll
Radio� or The Slaves� �Radio Daze�) it breaks into some inspiring chord blasts
and a melody you�ll be singing along with by the time the chorus arrives.  While
�Jackie� is a fine tune, �Kiss Me Carolynne� is another couple minutes of pop
genius.  The guitars chime, ring, and knock about and there�s a great
intrumental section with a guitar singing the melody with handclaps backing it
up.  DAMN! This is the kinda thing that can put a smile on my face and keep it
there the whole day.  To close the EP out, they rock up The Association�s
�Windy� to nice effect.  Not only is this EP a must-have, but these guys are a
group to watch for.
       At this point in time, I�m not sure why I�m bothering with a review of The
Muffs� �I�m A Dick� 45 (SFTRI) since the full disc is out, but what the heck.
This one�s classic Muffs� with a fantastic candy-coated melody backed up by a
powerful punk-thump.  Throw it on and they launch into the rhythm, followed by
some cool feedback noise before they spring into the tune proper and proceed to
remind you just why they�re one of the best things going today.  Belowdecks is a
non-CD track, a cover of �Pacer� by The Amps.  This one�s slower, but no less
powerful, getting its strength from the way in which each note is attacked.  The
Muffs have once again picked a great song to cover.  A worthy addition to their
catalogue.
       As I noted in the live section, I came across The Hi-Balls completely by
mistake.  Their debut EP (Regent) is good-time lo-fi straight-up rock�n�roll
beginning with their theme, �Hi-Balls Feel Good Rock And Roll� right thru the
last of the four tracks, �Lucky Son Of A Gun.�  This is a two-guitar-and-drums
trio just gutting it out and laying it right down however it comes out.  My fave
on the EP is probably the last track, kinda warped and darker than the rest with
an oozing feeling of the sleazy side.  Wonder when the next one�ll be...
       I�m still counting my lucky stars for making me stick around this winter
to catch the last band of a Saturday night at Continental, the band that
happened to be The Spaceshits from Montreal.  These guys rocked like mad live
and their double-7�, Full Fisted Action (SFTRI) is just as good.  They fall
somewhere between Supercharger and Teengenerate in sound, but occasionally (�Aw
Yeah�) they throw in a dash of melody just to bring in pop nuts like me.  But
for the most part it�s just full-on punk, lo-fi style.  These guys oughta start
touring �cuz they�ve got a fury that�d go over extremely well these days.  They
end this double-dose with an unlisted cover of Supercharger�s �Ice Pick.�  Now
that is a great way to finish off a record.
       On a lighter note are Killer Kowalski with �First Date� (Blackout), a
melodic rocker with female vocals that will invite inevitable comparisons to
Debbie Harry (the guitars have a punkier quality, though).  The key to the
success of this one, tho�, is the backing vocals and the way they blend with the
lead.  This one always sticks around in my head for awhile after I hear it.  The
flip, �Goodbye Daddy,� rocks out more, but without quite as much melodic input.
Extra points for even more powerful backing vocals joining Kitty Kowalski on the
choruses.
       Continental Records impresario Sean Berry didn�t think he was gonna get
his debut release to me in time for my deadline.  But, due to �circumstances
beyond my control,� that deadline got pushed back.  That means Sean slid in
under the wire with Hit the Jet Stream with The Penetrators, a four-song seven-
incher that should touch all the necessary controls to make yours a pleasant
flight in the reverb-laden cloud cover.  The �First Leg� begins with a mission
briefing from pilot Buck Bangalore.  Y�gotta wonder what kinda airline this
guy�s flying for... he�s evidently got a �hold onto your drinks� sign.  (It�s an
�all smoking and drinking� flight.�)  Hmm... come to think of it, ol� Buck is
the only one on this whole record whose voice is heard.  His second shot comes
when he tells us about what�s in our survival kits (they include the Victoria�s
Secret catalog, a 72-hour supply of prophylactics, rubles, gold, a combination
bible/Russian phrase book, and sundry items).  The in-flight film is �She Cats A
Go-Go.�  Man!  I wanna be a penetrator.   Geez... whaddaya think ol� Buck means
when he says flight crew Midge and Pepper will be happy to give you anything you
need?  Now, while Buck still has another four spots to go after this, the boys
only get four shots at providing entertainment over the course of the whole
disc, so maybe it�s time we talked about them.  These guys provide some
seriously fantastic surf swingin� on this dish.  Half the tracks are covers
(one�s �High Tide� by The Lively Ones) while the middle two are group originals.
Both of these are quite up to the standards of their obvious heroes.  �Speed
Bump,� especially, is a major winner, as the boys are up and at �em, ready to
turn the anti-aircraft fire Captain Bangalore told us about into the subject of
this song.  Yeah, that�s right, evidently, our heroes had to hightail it outta
Moscow, with the baddies right on their tail.  But Cap�n Buck and the boys are
up to the task, and the boys turn their enemies into speed bumps at will.  I�m
looking forwardto hearing more from these Alabamans.
********************************************************************************
THE SLOW SLUSHY BOYS
-------------------------------------
       Denis from Larsen Recordz sent a couple seven-inch blasts of sonic action
my way this time out.  Not just stuff on his label, either; nope, he also sent
me a few slabs by his very own combo, The Slow Slushy Boys.  The first of these,
the G.U.R.L. 3-songer (Face), features some solid garage-punkin� with the organ
playing a strong supporting role.  (On the cover, I see a Korg, so I�m guessing
that�s what it is, especially since it doesn�t sound like a Vox or Farfisa.)
The major raver on this one�s the title track, guitars seething with the
�Psychotic Reaction� signature gut-churn, the one that�s hardwired into every
garage fiend�s slimy grey stuff. On the other side, there�s a version of the
classic, �Seven�; as with all the versions I�ve heard, this rocks damn well,
with the organ�s star flying highest.  However, I do have to say I prefer the
recordings by both The Lyres and The Kwyet Kings.  They finish things up with
�How Could You Lie?�  This one�s got the organ playing lead and defining quite a
cool vibe.  The backing vocals also provide a nice background although I�d�ve
preferred they were brought out a bit more in the mix.  This disc�ll make a fine
addition to any collection.

       For a soulful split between two great bands, look no further than The Slow
Slushy Boys meet The Kravin� A�s (Larsen).  The Larsen home team, The Slow
Slushy Boys gift us with �Say You Will,� which works quite well, but they can�t
stand against a blast from the past.  For that, Larsen has called on The Kravin�
A�s to take on a Motown classic, �Shop Around.�  Unsurprisingly, the KA�s didn�t
exactly get back together for this one, as the recording date was evidently late
�88.  Still, anything by The Kravin� A�s (featuring ex-Milkshake Bruce Brand) is
likely to get me off my butt and in a mood to shake a tail feather.  This is
quite a lively take on this classic and, as a result, it�s got my tail feathers
not only shaking, but practically having a seizure.  �I�m shakin� it, Boss.�

       WOW! I Don�t Want You On My Back (Wiped Out) is one stellar effort, as
these guys cover all the bases.  The title track, an original, is a kind of
Rhythm & Beat thing, kinda like the Milkshakes, but with more of a nod
Merseyside.  (Those who don�t know any better may just say it sounds like The
Kaisers.)  Extra points for the organ in the supporting role.  �Outside� recalls
nothing so much as The Outsiders themselves.  (Note:  When I talk about The
Outsiders in this mag, we�re always referring to the Dutch geniuses, unless
otherwise noted.)  It�s got the same kind of foreboding sense they got in the
guitar sound and they rave up beautifully on here.  �Dance On Thru� sees them
slowing it down a bit, letting the organ sing out happily in a cool, Stax/Volt
soul way.  Last up, they rave through the mainly-instro �Hullabaloo� with its
semi-�Peter Gunn� feel (but how does �Hullabaloo� come out �Hula Belew?�)  Damn
this is a good one.
********************************************************************************
THE NUTHINS
---------------------
       To be honest, I�m not really sure where I first heard about The Nuthins.
Their brand of garage is of a more direct lineage than much of what makes up
today�s scene.  At the same time, they�re not straight outta �66, either.
Pinning this group down is tough, as they tend to explore different roads when
the mood strikes them.  Every time they go out there, tho�, they make sure
they�ve got their biggest sticks and are ready to swing �em.  Their not-so-
secret weapon - a dominating combo organ.
       Here�s a look at a couple of their seven-inchers...

Cemetery Chemistry EP (Monsters)
       Dig in for some swingin� garage with the Diddley beat on the title track,
punctuated with some answering harmonica and often dominated by a swirling,
pulsating organ.  On �Missing Link� they rave up once again.  �Ages (I�ve Been
Waiting)� goes full-speed ahead with the organ, dirty and wild, faster than the
80s garage scene or the �66 feel, but still giving a good representation of
each.  �You�re To Blame� reaches further into the graveyard, with that classic
marble-mouth garage vocal sound.

Mistake (Detour)
       The title track finds the Nuthins have moved on to embrace some folk-punk
sounds, in the vein of The Optic Nerve or The Cynics when they covered �Lying
All The Time.�  It�s got a nice melody, ringing guitars, and a cool Outsiders�
feel, plus the organ keeping some color in the equation.  And the subject?  What
else?  Boy-sees-girl-he-digs, Boy-doesn�t-say-a-thing.  (Ain�t that the truth!)
�There Must Be A Way� sees the boys back in Cave Central, but this primitive
thumping lasts a scant 54 seconds.  Brief and to the point.  Flip it over for
�20/20� which finds the boys giving the mic a rest and rockin� out on an instro
rave-up.  �I Won�t Deny It� has a few echoes of �Why Don�t You Smile Now?�
although it�s rawer and more basic.

       The Nuthins LP, One Step Forward was released earlier this year on Twist
Records.  Look for that along with anything else you can find by them.  (And, if
you ask nicely, maybe Mr. Steve Coleman will provide us with an interview with
the group.)

Discography
45s:
�Allergic Kiss�/�Colour Trip� - Merry Go-Round, 1992
�Modesty Blaze� - Dionysus, 1994
�Cemetery Chemistry� - Monsters, 1996?
�Mistake� - Detour, 1996

LPs:
One Step Forward (Twist)

Comps:
�Why Do I Love You� - Submerge fanzine 7� giveaway
�Sick & Tired� - Transworld Garage Vol. I (Misty Lane)
�Put Down� - Transworld Garage Vol. II (Misty Lane)
�Harder I Try� - Takin� A Detour (Detour)
a track on Shake & Shame (Larsen)
********************************************************************************
THE GODZILLAS
-------------------------
       The only thing I know about The Godzillas is that they sound like they�re
an all-female outfit and they�re into some damn cool rock�n�roll.  Comparisons
will probably be made to the Headcoatees simply because of their gender, but
they seem to have more in common with that group�s predecessors, The Del Monas.
I�ve only heard these two seven-inch EPs, but it�s my hope there are either more
available or more still to come.

The Creatures Called The Godzillas (Larsen)
       The Godzillas kick it off with a cover of The Milkshakes� classic instro,
�Hide & Scatter� and get it going pretty well.  There�s a good lonely feel on
here.  �One Of Mine� has the gals movin� up to the mic.  These are cool girl
group sounds with a low guitar (kinda Mickey Hampshire-esque), reminding me a
bit of The Del Monas, but with more of a melodic quality.  A mysterioso organ
swirls the way in on their version of the classic �Be A Caveman.�  Backing
vocals make this thing work better than it might have otherwise.  Overall,
though, it�s a pretty straight reading of a favorite.  �Bloody Bitch� keeps that
Del Monas feel going, but the organ occasionally bursts in loudly (although it
spends more of the time swirling around underneath), as does the guitar.

I Love Him Still (Larsen)
       This one appears to be all covers, the most notable of which is The
Outsiders� �I Love Him Still.�  I can�t say it measures up to the original, but
it�s still a pretty fine outing.  I have absolutely no idea why �Pass The
Hatchet� (originally done, it says, by Roger & The Gypsies) has that title, but
this is a cool rocker with vocalist Spiga sounding like she�s in the ummm...
throes of passion.  The organ once again plays a strong supporting role on their
reading of �Hurtin� Kind,� coming out front for a solo at one point.  Definitely
some swingin� sounds on here.  Look for it or write to Larsen.  (See the
Addresses page for contact info. �- Ed.)
********************************************************************************
BUMMER BINGE
------------------------
       There�ve been various bummers this time out, but here are a couple
rock�n�roll related ones.

       As you no doubt know from my raving about it last ish, I�m pretty dang
nuts about Maow.  So, when I found out they were touring, not only across Canada
but down into the eastern part of the USA this spring, I was pretty darn
psyched.  Plus, the tour was with The Hanson Brothers!  As it turned out, I got
a message from Mint asking if I�d play mail drop for some merch for the girls.
Of course, I said, �Sure!�
       Well, the gig was slated for the Wednesday night before Memorial Day in
New Brunswick, NJ.  (Their booking agent evidently couldn�t find a gig in NYC.
Yeesh!)  No problem for me, as I had a five day weekend, so I didn�t have to
worry about waking up the next AM and facing those hungry wolves masquerading as
high school students.
       I drove home with a huge smile on my face.  I was going to see Maow that
night!  I got to my doorstep and found a nice-sized box from Mint with all the
merch.  I hoisted it up on my shoulder and continued up the stairs.
       I opened the door and saw the machine blinking at me.  I pressed Play.
Then came the message, from Maow... It seems they were stopped at the border and
weren�t going to be able to play the show.  They thanked me for playing mail
drop, but they weren�t going to be able to make it.  I called up Mint to find
out what had happened.  Well... unfortunately, the gals had done what most bands
usually do - they�d just decided to cross the border and not worry about it.
After all, who gets hassled?  Answer:  Maow.
       I ended up sending the package back to Mint the next morning.
       I�m hoping that Maow don�t get too soured on trying again.  They�re one of
my current favorites and the thought that I might not get to see them �cuz of
some stupid border crossing rules really grates at me.
       Thus endeth Bummer #1.

       Quite honestly, the next two are short enough that I can run them
together.  In addition, they�re both my own fault.  I could have gone to see
these shows, but made a stupid decision not to.
       The first of these came at the end of May or the start of June.  John
Fogerty was playing in support of his latest record.  Now, I saw him 11 years
ago up at the Finger Lakes Performing Arts Center in Canandaigua, NY (in the
middle of NY State wine country).  Back then he wasn�t doing any Creedence
material and he was still fantastic.  Now, however, he WAS playing that stuff.
       So, why didn�t I go?  Cash.  Summer was fast approaching and I knew I
wasn�t going to be bringing in any bacon.  And, at 35 bucks a pop, this was one
expensive evening.  (Or two if going to the first drove me wild enough.)
       Why am I so bummed out now?  Well, Ms. Miriam Linna told me that she
caught the first night and it was absolutely fantastic.  At one point, she even
yelled out for �Fight Fire� (by CCR when they were still called The Golliwogs.
Find it on a Fantasy LP called Pre-Creedence, a comp of The Golliwogs� singles
released after CCR broke up.  Look in the used bins.)  John heard her and
evidently laughed in surprise and pointed at her.  If only I could�ve been there
to yell my support... I�d go absolutely insane to hear him do that one - or
�Fragile Child,� even.  (That one he should re-record.)

       Finally, The Box Tops did their first show in NYC in 29 years the day
after I finished up the school year.  I�d been thinking about this one for quite
some time.  It was only $15, so the price was decent.  Plus they were doing two
sets.  AND The Skeletons were opening.  What the heck was wrong with me?  I
dunno... temporary insanity, maybe?  (Temporary?)  Too bad I missed it, too,
�cuz reports said it was one fantastic evening.

       WHOOPS!!!  Looks like I forgotteth a biggy.
       Back in April, Roberta and I were out in Santa Monica, CA for about five
days.  Most of the time was spent just sort of hanging on the beach or visiting
with her uncle.  The first part of the bummer on this trip came when we flew in.
We landed about 10 PM on a Saturday night.  OK, not too bad, I guess... till I
opened the LA Weekly and found out that Ben Vaughn had played an in-store at
Borders on the 3rd St. Promenade in Santa Monica that afternoon.  Life sucks.
       I kept reading and found that Dave �Death of a Clown� Davies was playing
early that week at Spaceland.  �OK,� thought your esteemed editor, �that sounds
great.�  Well, the day approached and we�d had quite the enjoyable time all
afternoon and were quite tired by show time.  So, we figured, we�ll blow it
off... he�ll be in NYC in a couple weeks.  Yeah, yeah... first solo show and all
that, but... it�ll be essentially the same thing in a few weeks at Tramps.  I�ll
just catch that.
       Well... guess what?  The eastern leg of the tour was cancelled.  No Dave
Davies for me.  AAUUUGGHHHH!
       This concludes another episode of �Bummer Binge.�  Thank you for tuning
in.
********************************************************************************
Some Hate �Em, Some  Buy �Em.
They�re Called... COMPACT DISCS
-----------------------------------------------
       I have absolutely no pretensions of knowing what rock�n�roll was meant to
be.  In fact, I don�t think it was �meant� to be anything at all. By the same
token, I don�t think it�s fair to be narrow-minded about any particular genre,
such as garage or punk.  There are plenty of people out there who seem to want
to say that �that�s not garage,� or �no way can that be called a punk record.�
Thing is, even when you look at the original time zones for both areas, you
realize how widely spread they were over the musical map.  The question, then,
of whether a certain band is garage or punk is pretty much meaningless.  I think
a larger problem lies in people liking something just because they believe it to
be part of some sub-grouping they�re into as a whole.  Now, please understand, I
am NOT saying that people don�t really like certain groups; I believe it is
completely possible that people actually do like the groups they�re talking
about.  And when they get pissed that someone actually feels like saying it�s
utter crap, I can understand them being upset.  (Of course, this is what started
religious wars, too, so...)  On the other hand, it might just help to remember
that anything written by anyone in regards to how good or bad any recording is
should be taken as an opinion.

       Now that I�ve written all that utter garbage, I�ll get to the point.  I�m
not a fan of Guitar Wolf.  I think Seiji looks incredibly cool up there, all
decked out in leather, posing like mad.  Thing is, after a couple songs, I just
don�t feel all that inspired.  Don�t get me wrong, style can be supremely cool,
it�s just that I prefer a greater degree of substance.  Now, that doesn�t mean
there�s nothing worth listening to in the band�s music.  Their latest disc,
Missile Me  (Matador), has some cool rockin� sounds bubblin� under all that
chemical crud up top, just not enough to make me want to make the dive.  There
are some people who go nuts for this sorta stuff.  I�m just not one of them.
       �Oh Jeez!�  That�s what I thought when I saw the cover of Life Could Be A
Dream (Lookout) by Auntie Christ, with a mannequin-type sculpture head, right
eye paint-blackened and head with what looked like candy suckers sharpened to
spikes pointing into and out of the thing.  Hell, that�s what I thought when I
read the band�s name.  So much for not being judgmental, huh?  So I�m not
perfect.  It gets worse, though... once I saw who was involved (Exene Cervenka
and DJ Bonebrake of X with Matt Freeman of Rancid), I thought I was in for
another boring record from a couple of people whose best work was fifteen years
behind them.  Luckily, I put it on anyway.  Most of this hearkens back to the
intensity and feel you got listening to X in their prime.  Exene�s still got
fantastic vocals and the lyrics are damn good.  The guitars play it hard and
true and the rhythm�s completely there.  All that, of course, would be nothing
without good songs.  Luckily, they�ve got those, too.  The best of these is �Not
You,� sounding kinda like The Muffs circa �I Don�t Like You� or even �New Love,�
melodic and demandingly insistent.  Having said that, there�s not a weak track
on this 10-songer.  I�m looking forward to seeing them tour.
       I�d read a few commentaries about The Crumbs on alt.music.banana-truffle,
but hadn�t heard them.  I wrote to Smugglers mouth-man Grant Lawrence to ask for
a more complete description and he said he�d send me a copy of their self-title
disc (Lookout.)  I can�t agree with the assessment put forth by some that these
guys sound like The Ramones.  Sorry, no way; these guys sound like they
practically worship The Saints circa �I�m Stranded.�  (Can�t blame �em for
that.)  The spoken intro to �Shakespeare� sounds like they�ve been listening to
Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers� DTK, but then it�s right back to Saints�
central.  The start of �Gotta Go Destructo� reminds me of The Shangri-Las� �Give
Him A Great Big Kiss,� before launching another rockin� assault.  This is one of
their best tracks, as there seems to be more attention paid to melody and song
structure.  Or maybe it�s just that they�re hitting on another favorite subject
of mine - the beach.  And they�re propping it up with the appropriate sounds.
�The Deal Down There� is also praiseworthy, coming about and changing tack at
all the right points.  I�ve always been a sucker for a punk band doing a ballad
and so �Come Home� gets me good.  Part of it�s that image of the 50s leather-
jacketed tough, softened only by the new girl in town, who somehow understands
him.  Overall, I�d have to say this is one damn fine disc; rousing good fun.
They sound like a great group to see live.
       If The Basement Brats had been a New York band during the early part of
this decade, they probably would�ve been one of the city�s top groups.  Not only
that, but they would�ve probably ended up touring all over the place, gaining
themselves a solid place in today�s punk pantheon, along with The Devil Dogs et
al.  That�s right... these guys were damned good.  Hmm... maybe I should amend
that; see, they�re still  around.  It�s just that they fired their lead singer.
Except for two tracks sung by the lead guitarist, I�ve no idea what the heck
they sound like now.  For now, though, just throw down this damn �zine and run
to the record store and find a copy of Curse of the Brats (1+2), a comp of a
mini-LP, an EP, and some unreleased tracks.  Almost everything on here falls
somewhere in Punksville, but they do a virtual bus tour (yeah, like maybe the
one from Speed) of all the neighborhoods.  They never go to the pit of hardcore,
though they skirt the border in a song or two before jumping back to the melodic
heart that draws most of their material together.  Some of these songs have a
definite Devil Dogs� feel to them , but others spend more time thinking about
the Exploding White Mice.  (By the way, in an interview with Cosmik Debris,
singer Magnum stated that, had they not seen The Devil Dogs, The Basement Brats
would never have existed.)  Best of all, there are parts that they actually
sound like they�re into some ska in the same way The Clash were.  (Heck, the
harmonica playing that comes in once or twice remind you that the band has
definitely hung out on the Norwegian garage scene, checking out The Cosmic
Dropouts, The Kwyet Kings, et al.)  But it�s the melodies that�ll draw you back
again and again.  And again.  Not to mention the fantastic sonic assault and
cool backing vocals.  And damn fine songwriting.  This one�s gonna be blasting
through my speakers all summer long... and I�m gonna be jumping around.  (Who
knows, maybe I�ll bring a boom box down to the park and sit on the steps of the
bandshell with ths thing playing.  Then I�ll time how long it takes the police
to get over from the station across the street.)  Seriously, tho�... this is one
of the best damn discs you�re likely to find right now.  Get it.
       I think it was Seth from the Mockers who first mentioned Insanity Wave to
me.  I think he�d run into them when the Mockers went over to Spain last year.
Anyway, Do The Worm (Roto) is one damn fine slice of power pop, produced by a
master of the form, Jeff Murphy of The Shoes.  Now, while there are some slower
numbers on here, the majority seem to be bright and upbeat.  �Annie� is one of
those classic p. pop tracks, riding a melodic high thanks to a girl, even if
she�d just up and leave.  Great arrangements on the backing vocals, too.  Some
other fantastic tracks on here, too, but the best is probably the first, �Spins
Round,� powerful and full of anticipation of greatness to come, the guitars
churning for all they�re worth, then crunching in like musical exclamation
points.  This is pop!
       Sit N�Spin have been playing the NJ-NYC area for a few years now.  Pappy�s
Corn Squeezin� finds them hitting on just about every musical influence they�ve
got, from the girls in the garage pop of �Dance With My Baby� and �Primate Mixer
Party� to the Tex-Mex instro �El Guapo�, on through to two-step hoppin� �billy
stylings of �Hillybilly Bill.�  Personal favorites include �I�m Sick� and
�Lupine Valentine�, both of which are straight up S N�S alley.  Yeah, that�s
right, despite having a ton of influences (which also include Chuck Berry, surf,
and last night�s pizza) they love to draw from, there�s a definite style to be
discerned here.  It consists of happy melodies on top of dancing rock�n�roll
guitars that occasionally let loose, with a rhythm that gets you moving every
time.  More evidence of this comes on �Buffalo Jump,� a personal live favorite,
with the guitar hanging tight with the vocal, though not quite twinning it.  But
don�t order yet, �cuz you�ll also get �Find Out,� which deserves, above all the
rest, to be a radio hit.  This one�s got tender, needy verses giving way to the
kind of chorus that deserves to be blasted out car windows at the seaside all
summer long.  Once again I find myself saying, �If there were any justice in
this world...�
       Once upon a time in Rochester, NY, a group known as The Chesterfield Kings
gaveth unto the world their debut LP, a collection of covers of some garage
rockin� obscurities.  That was fifteen years ago and the Second Garagic Era was
still in its infancy.  In that self-same city in Upstate New York, right about
that time, one Dan Frank was putting together a group called The Projectiles.
Where the C. Kings ruled the garage roost, Dan�s combo were the street kids,
playing it down and dirty.  By the mid-80s, The Kings were headlining some of
the biggest shows in town, while The Projectiles were still slugging it out at
the smaller clubs, often doing three long sets a night.  Unfortunately, in their
time together, those guys only released two seven-inchers.  (Both of which are
highly recommended to all fans of down�n�dirty garage rockin�.)  There was also
said to be an LP recorded, but it never saw  light of day, at least as far as I
know.  That�s what I call a major loss.  So, what�s my point?  Well, here we
are, probably at the peak of the Third Garagic Era, and ex-Projectiles Dan Frank
and Dave Anderson (bass) have joined forces with Dave�s ex-Mission Emission
bandmate Judd Williams (also ex-Lyres) to form The Riviera Playboys.  They�ve
released their Greatest Hits (Jargon).  One can�t help but wonder what the
reaction of the garage community will be in this day and age to a disc
consisting of all covers of garage classics.  Personally, I think anyone who
dismisses a record due to the lack of any original material is just an utter
fool.  Maybe that�s not fair, since most of us have, at one time or another,
seen some truly terrible bar bands doing �Gloria,� �Louie, Louie,� �Dirty
Water,� and other numbers we hold near and dear.  But these guys are of a
different breed; these guys have a long-standing relationship with this stuff.
(But you�d figured that out already.)  Their versions of �Warning,� �Wasting My
Time,� �It�s A Cryin� Shame,� �I Can�t Make A Friend,� and �I Can�t Stand This
Love (Goodbye)� stand up alogside the best takes you�ve heard.  In fact, they do
a damn good job on every track.  Dan�s vocals are still as wild as they were
when I last saw The Projectiles almost ten years ago.  The band can move from
tender to fierce from beat to beat without losing a step.  They�ve also got some
solid backing vocals, something sorely lacking in much of today�s sounds.  Best
of all, Dave tells me they want to come down and play NYC.  I�ll be looking
forward to seeing them.
       Geez... The Creatures of the Golden Down have been around for over ten
years now.  Of course, the lineup has hardly remained static.  (This Bethlehem,
PA bunch is quite deserving of the family tree treatment.)  But all that�s
besides the point because vocalist (and only original member) Mark Smith has
currently got his best band yet together.  We hear most of this lineup on The
Keys To The Kingdom (Collectables), the latest from the group.  A good portion
of the credit for the group�s sound is due Mike Lowe, formerly of The Tryptics
in central New Jersey.  (He was convinced by Mark a couple years ago to move to
Bethlehem to become a Creature.)  Mike�s written some fantastic songs for the
group.  (Not only that, but he also provides the group with  some cool guitar-
playing, as well as some strong vocals.  In fact, he occasionally takes the mic
from Mark.)  Mike�s written some fantastic psychedelic garage-pop numbers on
here, including �We Don�t See Eye To Eye� and, my favorite, �Cynthia Cellophane�
(one I�ve been waiting to see on a record for quite some time now.)  Things rev
up a bit, but keep a psychedelic overtone on Mike�s �Zuzu Girl,�
�I�ve got a girl who�s 17 / She�s stark in black, she�s tinted green
She doesn�t dig the nightclub scene / I peel her like a tangerine.�
Get the feeling he�s not talking about being her psychoanalyst, peeling away the
layers of hurt from her childhood?  Nope, I�m betting this is something Tipper
Gore might just wanna hear about.  After another verse, they throw a cherry bomb
into the works and detonate into a chorus with an organ swirling madly in the
background.  WOW!  Mike�s got some other killers on here, too, in the form of
�Love Me Don�t� and (a personal live favorite), �Shake Your Hips.�  The latter
features some swingin� organ painting the scene, with a driving beat directing
the action on a swingin� R&B stomper featuring just enough melody to keep a huge
smile on your face.  This one�s more in line with what they�ve been unleashing
on audiences in the past couple months.  The disc features a couple covers, too,
including one of �My Brother The Man,� but there are still more originals
included.  Four of these come courtesy of ex-rhythm guitarist, Mike Smitreski.
(The departure of said �Cryptic Zenmaster of the Universe� is what left Smith
the sole original member of the group.)  Often, Smitreski�s songs tend towards
the darker, cloudy side of the garage, but a couple of his contributions here
move in different directions.  One, �She Reminds You Of,� is a pretty swingin�
garage rocker with strong backing vocals on the chorus and a sparkling lead
guitar part.  The other, �The Golden Dawn Is Near� is more of a folk-punker,
with ringing guitars and softened backing vocals.  Zenmaster, you�ve gone out on
a damn fine note.  Nice work.  Also contributing a track is bassist Stu
Rutherford with �Wake Up Girl,� a cool psych-pop number that raves at all the
right places, but spends more time spiraling through the chorus.  Hopefully, Stu
will write more in the future.  As good as this disc is (and it�s damn good!),
you ain�t seen nothing yet.  They�ve been doing some truly killer originals
lately and Mark Smith and Mike Lowe both say that there should be an EP out
later this year, possibly on Dionysus.  So buy the current disc and keep your
eyes peele for the EP.
       As the press materials say, The Nomads were a driving force in bringing
the sounds of the garage back to the forefront in the early to mid-80s.  Well,
here they are in the late 90s, doing the same thing for some Canadian garage
obscurities on The Cold Hard Facts Of Life (Lance Rock).  Yeah, that�s right,
gang, another disc of all garage covers.  Must be catching.  The Nomads,
however, have a much harder, more modern sound to them.  This, of course, goes
along with their whole approach - they�ve never been content to stay within the
confines of the garage, drawing just as deep from the Dictators�/Stooges/Dolls
well as anywhere else.  Even that doesn�t completely describe their take,
though, �cuz this is a group that�s NOW!  Anyway, this disc includes covers of
two tracks by The Northwest Company (�Hard To Cry� and �Get Away From It All�),
two more from The Ugly Ducklings (�She Ain�t No Use To Me� and �Nothin��), plus
The Jury�s �Who Dat?�, �That�s My Girl (Rotten To The Core)� by The Great Scots,
Luke & The Apostles� �Been Burnt�, and a step into the 80s for Teenage Head�s
�Picture My Face.�  It took me a while to warm to their versions of �Who Dat?�
and �Nothin�,� if only because two of my fave live acts of the 80s used to do
them, The Vipers and The Projectiles, respectively.  But after listening to this
disc over and over (and it�s gotten a ton of plays at TS HQ), I�ve gotten just
as into these versions as the ones I came of age with.  I tend to think this�ll
appeal strongly to many of today�s garage fans, what with its combination of the
old and the new.
       YEAH!  Finally, a new one from The Woggles.  These Georgia boys�ll have
you shakin� it loose right from the get-go with their new one, Get Tough!  This
one blasts off with the title cut, as the band demands you �Get Tough!�  This
one�s pure Woggles, as they give it everything they�ve got and everything you
might possibly want from them.  Whether they�re telling you to �Push� and �Snap
Your Fingers� or demanding �Don�t Give Me No Sass� or �Do Just What I Say�
you�ll be chompin� at the bit for the chance to do just that.  Instros aren�t
left behind, either, with �Zombie Stomp� kicking in a nasty, quick-step spook-
tone.  Fans�ll be glad to hear long-time live fave �Mule-Lipped,� as well.  As
is my nature, my fave track is the one that�s the furthest removed from the rest
of the dang thing.  �Arthur Lee� is all about Love�s leader and does a
remarkable job of sounding like some of that group�s best work.  It�s got a pop-
psych melody and ringing guitar and - somehow - The Professor even manages to
channel Arthur right out of his jail cell.  Somehow, I wonder if this one�ll
ever capture audience interest the way the group�s grittier/tougher material
does (probably �cuz that kinda stuff�s built for the live setting), but I get
the feeling that it�s a track that nobody who gives it a good listen will soon
forget.  It�s one of those songs that�ll ring on in your head and come back at
those wonderfully random intervals.  Altogether, this is probably the best
recording the Woggles have ever done.
       It�s been quite some time since I got Danger: The Diaboliks (Dionysus) by
The Diaboliks, an English group of three gals and a guy.  I was playing it all
the time back then, but so much has appeared in the meantime that I hadn�t
actually heard it for a couple months before it was time to write this.  Back
when I was first listening to it, I brought it to school with me to listen to
while I was getting work done.  Inevitably, a few kids heard it.  And, surprise
of surprises, some of �em went absolutely NUTS over it, especially their rousing
version of �Willy The Wild One.�  (Of course, the cover shot, with the gals in
the group dressed in some tight pink vinyl outfits didn�t exactly bum out the
guys.)  The disc tends towards the cool yet sultry side of the garage, fuzztone
attitude on high.  Some of the material has an unmistakable Del Monas feel.
Extra points for a cool version of The Kinks� �He�s Got Everything.�  One of the
originals that got to me was �Groove and Grind,� hypnotically bubbling into my
brain.  �Nightmare� ups the tempo and screams into a short guitar burst before
jumping back.  Babz� vocals combine with Dan�s guitar to give the band its
sound, but everything comes together well.  Definitely something for any true
garage fan.  The only bummer for me is that they�re touring the West Coast,
rather than the one I�m on.  Not that I can blame them, since their label�s out
in Burbank, CA.  But they can consider this my request  for an East Coast
appearance.
       I was originally planning on doing a whole Kinks� mini-feature this issue.
It was going to include reviews of Ray and Dave live (a scary temptation for a
high school English class �Compare & Contrast� essay), a look at Dave�s book,
then a review of To The Bone (Guardian).  Well, when I was in LA, Dave played
the first of his solo shows, but I was tired and decided to wait a few weeks for
his NYC gig at Tramps.  Unfortunately, that was canceled.  Then I decided that I
didn�t feel like trekking down to Princeton for Ray on a Monday night after
seeing The Insomniacs, Makers, & Headcoats.  Of course, if Dave hadn�t canceled
out of that Tuesday night, I would�ve felt obligated to do these three nights...
picture a Sunday at Tramps for garage wildness, then a relaxing evening with Ray
in Princeton, followed by Dave rockin� out at Tramps on Tuesday.  No way I could
miss something like that.  But it didn�t happen, so you�re left with my review
of the double-disc, To The Bone.  It starts off with �All Day And All of The
Night,� featuring The Kinks� in full-out concert glory on the �94 tour.  Then it
quickly drops off to the intimacy of their own Konk Studios, where they
performed before a small audience in, writes Ray in the liner notes, �stripped-
down acoustic form.�  The first of these is one of my personal favorites,
�Apeman,� and you can hear Dave�s high backing vocals right where they need to
be.  �Tired of Waiting� follows that, gentle and compelling, reminding you just
how damned good this band can be when they put their minds to it and blow off
that arena rock thing that happened along the way.  The same can be said of �See
My Friends,� with its Indian overtones.  I suppose the nice thing about this
recording is that it breathes new life into songs many people have tucked up on
their shelves.  (Or, worse yet, never heard.  Shudder.)  Then, �This is Dave,
doing his �Death of a Clown� piece one more time.�  And, somehow, it works at
least as well as the original version; it could be better, if only due to the
passge of time giving Dave a number of experiences to make the song that much
more poignant.  Tons of old favorites are included, and not just the 60s tracks,
either (though you will get �Sunny Afternoon,� �Dedicated Follower of Fashion,�
�Village Green Preservation Society,� �Lola,� �Till The End of the Day,� �Days,�
and, of course, �You Really Got Me.�)  I still believe that The Kinks� best
moment after, say 1971 or �72, was �Better Things� which ranks amongst the best
material they ever recorded, and it�s found here, as well.  When they sing,
�It�s really good to see you rockin� out and havin� fun / Livin� like you�ve
just begun,� I can�t help but hope that it�s a look towards �Better Things� yet
to happen in the Kinks� future.  (Of course, in my mind, the best would bring
Pete Quaife and Mick Avory back to the fold.)  While �Better Things� is a long-
time favorite, it�s �Don�t Forget To Dance� which comes into its own here.
Maybe it�s because, when it came out, I just wasn�t in the mood to hear anything
slow.  The years have passed now, and I have less of a problem with ballads and
their ilk.  And so, �Don�t Forget To Dance� has a greater effect on me now.  And
it never would have if I hadn�t heard it on this disc, �cuz I probably wouldn�t
have played it again.  �Come Dancing� is also found in the collection, but it
suffers somewhat in comparison to the original, although it�s still a fine take.
�Celluloid Heroes,� on the other hand, is (possibly for the same reason as
�Death Of A Clown�) enhanced by the life experience gained.  One chestnut pulled
from the vaults is �Do You Remember Walter,� which Ray also likes, describing it
as being �straight out of a beer-cellar in 1930s Berlin.�  Of course, I can�t
say I agree with everything Ray writes in the liner notes, as he tips his hat to
brother Dave�s guitar work on �I�m Not Like Everybody Else,� one of the few
disappointing tracks on the disc (which, of course, comes from the �94 tour,
rather than the Konk performance.)  It suffers from that horrible, overblown lae
70s/early 80s arena thing and, contrary to Ray�s opinion, the worst thing about
it is Dave�s guitar sound (the same thing happens on �Set Me Free.�)  Give me
the �Victoria� guitar sound any day.  To be fair to Dave, the bass is also a
major offender, and Ray�s not helping anything with his throaty growling.  Nope,
if they�re gonna play this classic like this, they�d best leave it to any number
of modern garage groups.  While �Till The End of the Day� gets the Big Rock Show
treatment, it doesn�t lose too much as a result, perhaps because it�s always
been a rocker.  Yeah, it doesn�t measure up to the original, but you won�t wince
when you hear it, either.  �Give The People What They Want� and �State Of
Confusion� also don�t lose anything from the live, arena performance, but for a
completely different reason:  simply put, they�ve stayed in the environment in
which they were originally conceived.  These songs come from The Kinks� late
70s/early 80s period on top of the world.  (Part of the reason I became such a
big Kinks� fan is �cuz they were a major force at a time when I was in junior
high and high school.  I never understood why local radio stations had
�Zeppelin-Stones-Beatles-Who� days and didn�t count the Kinks in amongst the top
rock�n�roll groups.  Personally, I like the Kinks more than all four of those.)
Of course, if you didn�t like those songs then, these recordings probably won�t
mean that much to you.  In fact, you�ll find it hard to reconcile my feelings
for these songs with the rest of the stuff I like and dislike.  Getting back to
Ray�s kudos... he�s completely right in giving Dave the nod for his work on �A
Gallon of Gas,� an acoustic blues that works quite well, with the Hammond
playing the background superbly.  �Days� is from the �94 tour, but comes off
superbly, with Ray on his own at the start and the band falling into step at
just the right point.  The band treads lightly here, treating the song with the
respect it deserves.  It�s interesting, listening to To The Bone, to realize
that fewof The Kinks� classics are stuck in the 60s; they exist completely
outside of time.  It should be noted that the British version of this disc
evidently included �Waterloo Sunset,� something that bothers me, since I didn�t
get that.  On the other hand, the extra time it took to put out the US version
meant that the band had a chance to record two new compositions.  �Animal� is a
strong composition has a slight �Better Things� feel, although it doesn�t quite
reach those heights.  Finally, there�s the title track, a standard in Ray�s solo
shows.  It took me awhile to warm to this, as it�s got a sound that seems rooted
in FM radio, which (as every reader no doubt knows) isn�t much of a
recommendation.  I waited it out, though, and peeled back that first layer to
find something completely compelling.  Every Kinks� fan is likely to wonder why
one of his/her favorites didn�t make it on here, but we could go on forever that
way.  As it stands, this is a darn good disc.  If Ray can still write songs like
�Animal,� I�d really love to hear a new studio LP.
       I first ran into Roger Manning sometime around the Summer of �88.  At that
point, NYC�s Anti-Folk scene was in full swing.  I fell into it the way many of
us discover something new - a friend was completely immersed in it.  The timing
was good, too... I was only 22 years old, only out of college for a year and
still going out an average of five nights a week.  The fact that the home base
of the whole thing by that time was the Chameleon on East Sixth between Avenues
A & B made it easier.  Friends were working at the corner of 6th & A at the
Sidewalk Cafe; good shows were still a regular thing at the Pyramid Club, across
the street; King Tut�s Wah-Wah hut was up at 7th & A.  Trek a block down to 5th
Street and Sophie�s was a popular hangout.  Yeah, it was a pretty great time.
Funny thing is, I don�t really remember the first time I saw Roger Manning play.
I do remember being blown away by his first album, so much so that I brought a
tape of it up to my brother�s graduation from SUNY Plattsburgh in May, �89.
Turns out it was one of the few times he and I have both gone nuts for the same
music.  Roger�s music was a breath of fresh air.  I still refuse to define Anti-
Folk.  In fact, I believe the only reason they even came up with the name was
�cuz, back when a few of them were getting started around �84 or so, the West
Village folk establishment told them they weren�t folk music.  So the tall digit
in the center was symbolically lifted and they moved over to the East Village.
Thing is, when I listen to the Anti-Folk crowd (and Roger, especially), I find
that this is the kind of folk music I like.  Maybe it�s that there�s a spirit I
can understand.  I�ve never been a major folk fan.  I like some of the cool 60s
folk rock stuff and even more of the pure folk music from that decade and those
that came before.  But the regular folk music I�ve heard in recent years hasn�t
excited me all that much.  With Roger Manning there�s an independence, a freedom
of spirit that I either understand or want to feel myself, I�m no quite sure
which.  The �#14 Blues� on his first LP had an urgency describing the feeling of
being in the East Village, and being truly alive there.  Now, I�ll admit right
off that I don�t believe that his new record for Shanachie is quite as exciting
as the first one.  On the other hand, there�s that conversation I had with a
couple friends a month or so back... we tended to agree that there were few acts
that ever made a good record after their second LP.  Roger doesn�t put out
records every year... or even every two years.  Maybe that�s why this works...
he�s had time to get the songs together.  My favorites on this one are those
that mean something to me, like the next-to-leadoff track (�Grand Teton Blues�
starts the disc off with 15 seconds of the night sounds in the park), �Bohemia
Blues,� one that, like the �#14 Blues� from the first record, describes part of
life in the East Village.  Roger�s lyrics do rail against the hypocrisy in the
world, but he also explores emotions in songs like �The Rearview Mirror Blues.�
�You can break my heart, but you can�t put me in my place.  I guess you know
that by now.�  Besides, I can�t help but love that refusal to let anyone else
control your destiny.  He also likes to have fun.  In �The Pearly Blues #6
(Explanation Blues)� he talks about noticing girls in bookstores.  �Either way
I�m not looking for my mother (I think I�m looking for my grandmother.) (...)
Sure, you could break my heart but first you gotta climb the death mountain,
swim the burning ocean and cross the lonesome valley, and still there�s  no
guarantee.�  Yeah, I�m quoting lyrics, something I don�t often do.  Of course,
how often do you hear me praising folk records in this mag?  So I�ll keep going
with it... on �Hitchhiker Blues #5 (Midnight Blues),� Roger lets us know his
feelings about having to leave Tompkins� Square Park at midnight.  �(...)
millions trade in life for �law and order� and end their day at midnight.�  Most
of all, though, Roger Manning�s records are about thinking for yourself.
Thatwould mean absolutely nothing if he couldn�t put his ideas across in a way
that I�d want to let them in through the doorways on the left and right sides of
my skull.  But these do, and I invite them to stay awhile, happy to let them do
as they please... make me think.
       If you�re in the mood for some powerful instro stylings, look no further
than Huevos Rancheros� Get Outta Dodge (Mint).  If you like the way Dick Dale
plays his guitar heavy, then check out �What A Way To Run A Railroad� for more
of the same (though you won�t hear much double-picking.)  �Interstate Death
Toll� starts out with a hint of �Cherry Bomb,� then moves down the highway on a
late night trek into the Canadian hinterlands (where I�m sure they�ve got their
own equivalent of the New Jersey Devil.)  �Shadow of the Apache� plays with the
spaghetti western theme, focusing on the nobility of the Apache, standing tall
and looking down on the land he once roamed, now settled by cows and goats and
sheep, but the memories are  there.  This is probably my favorite recording by
these guys... maybe �cuz I�m a sucker for the western theme.  Extra points for
finishing up with a strong reading of �The Lonely Bull.�
       Sticking north of the border we�ve got the Curse of Horseflesh with
Burning up the Jade (Roto-flex).  Some of you will remember a 45 by �em last
year, but quite honestly, this one�s gonna be the one that gets them some
notoriety.  Quite simply, the title is quite apt, �cuz this disc truly does
BURN.  Like the Huevos Rancheros� disc, this one plays a bit with western
imagery, but these guys also include vocals in the mix.  Sure, they open up with
an instro, �Mojave Riptide,� but that�s more a get-settled-in-the-saddle/here�s-
what�s-in-store bit than anything else.  It stands up perfectly well on its own,
but then they kick in their heels and charge on with �The Bloody End,� somehow
reminding me a bit of what Thee Headcoats might�ve sounded like if they�d gotten
into a skirmish with The Jet Blackberries during  Sundown On Venus..  There�re
even some fantastic Diddley-esque bits.  Back for another instro ride, they hit
on a cover of �Hiawatha,� but after that the vocal�s are back for �Liberty�s
Cannonball.�  Yeah, definitely the Headcoats/Jet Blackberries� comparison.
There�re also some slower bits, like �Throttled 2 Death (With a Hair
Watchchain),� moving towards a more deliberate, lurking-danger feel, a tension
that�s almost Link-like, but without being a clone.  Also included is a good-
time version of �Long Tall Texan� (yeah, like any version of this could even
hope to work without being fun), with the vocals buried the way they are on this
whole disk, but coming thru just enough for you to catch it all.  While they
also catch a wave with �Surf of St. James,� it�s the western theme that captures
me completely.  Last time any band managed to do this so well was that Jet
Blackberries record I mentioned earlier... and that was really a Space Western
thing.  (To be fair to those guys, tho�, that record had a bunch of cuts running
around the same story line, where this just seems to work on a cool theme,
instead.)  This is one I�ll be listening to happily for quite some time.
       There�s something special about Nardwuar The Human Serviette.  No, it�s
not just those hilarious interviews, either.  (Here�s a guy who makes Stuttering
John look like Al Gore on one of his more boring days.)  This does not mean that
I�m gonna love everything The Evaporators record.  Indeed, there�s a significant
portion of United Empire Loyalists (Nardwuar The Human Serviette) that I just
don�t much care for, musically.  But the point-man is Nardwuar and his style is
all over this, be it on an original or the interpretation of a favored cover
song.  So, once you dig past the fact that some of this is just too damn noisy
for you and that it even hurts your ears in parts, you suddenly find yourself
drawn to it.  And, hey, there are some damn fine tracks, as well, including the
title cut, with its annoyingly catchy bass line.  And a version of �It�s My
Pride� that, if not as cool as the original (or even the one done by The Kliek a
few years ago), is still fun to listen to.  Of course, �Welcome To My Castle�
goes over better in video form.  Dave Carswell takes over the vocals on
�Pregnant� and transforms the band�s sound to more straight-up rock�n�roll
(providing a nice respite.)  Cub�s Lisa Marr returns to The Evaporators for
vocals on �Maneaters,� a number Cub do on a regular basis.  Gotta say, I like
hearing it with Nardwuar�s organ in the background.  Another of the easier-to-
get-into numbers is �Woah,� as they barrel through, the only vocals being the
band singing along, �Woaah... come along with me.�  (And sounding damn good
doing it, too.)  There�s not as many interviews as you might like to hear (only
three), but they include Dan Quayle (wait till you hear his answer when Nardwuar
asks him who the Prime Minister of Canada is) and Alice Cooper (who got his
invite to Bill Gates� wedding two weeks after the event.)  Anyway, this thing
comes on both LP and CD, but there�s a catch - they come together.  The disc is
inside the LP packaging.  Now, I gotta wonder, if Nardwuar can afford to do
this, and sell the cobination at a normal price, how come the major labels are
blasting a hole in our wallets for just the disc?
       One of the most ravin� discs you�ve got the good fortune to be allowed to
buy is It Came From Pier 13 (Dionysus) by The Bomboras.  If you were never much
of a fan before, oversimplifying their sound as just plain old instro surf, then
you�re in for a major surprise here; if you were a fan before, you�re gonna be
bustin� out like David Banner into the Incredible Hulk.  This one�s a MONSTER!
There�s just no other way to describe it.  Easily one of the best discs of the
year.  They kick it off with the title theme, a big fuzz-laden whomper that�ll
pummel you into submission in seconds flat.  SuperFuzz, killer chords, and an
all around party smash.  They downshift into �Kamikaze� to put smiles on the
faces of the kids all over again, but this time in a more lighthearted way.
Jake C�s organ leads the way, but the guitar�s the easy second-in-command.
Actually, �Guitar Grinder� will put you in the same mood most of the time, till
they come crashing down on some garage stomping midway through.  �Pier Thirteen�
has such a damn nasty tone to it that Davie Allan oughta be running for the
shadows.  An attitude like this, Young Man, is going to get you in a LOT of
trouble!  (But, as the Haze sang, oh-so-eloquently, �Ooooh, it feels so good!�)
Oh yeah, there were some of you out there who were still sayin�, �So-the-bleep-
what, they�re not stayin� straight in Surf Central; they�re still doin� instros,
right?  They�re still a surf band.�  Now, beyond the obvious fact that you guys
are numbnuts and are probably the same yutzes who think you�re supposed to be
slamming to the Fleshtones and Swingin� Neckbreakers, the Bomboras offer the
final proof that you guys haven�t got a clue what you�re talking about.  Exhibit
7, �She�ll Do Ya Wrong,� is a snotty garage punker that crams and crunches in
all the right places.  (In other words, every damn step they take.)  You just
wish you had the raw power to slam this one into existence.  Ah, what have we
here?  �The Bombora Stomp.�  Can you say �Commanche?�  I knew you could.  Now
that ou�ve learned that one, repeat when appropriate, �Bom-Bor-A.�  The disc�s
still got some pretty damn classy surf material, including �The Ninth Wave� and
�Hypnotica,� but it�s the diversity of the material on this disc that makes it
such a damn good one.  Heck, they�ve even thrown in a version of �Red River
Valley� just for good measure.  And any band who�s got this one in their
repertoire (see The Hentchmen) are alright in my book.  The final word:  just
BUY this damned thing.  You�re gonna thank me.  (Preferably with cash and
prizes.)
       Must be something about Dionysus Records and the number 13.  Another one
of their recent releases is The Boss Martians� 13 Evil Tales.  Who knows, maybe
it�s a lucky number for �em, �cuz this one�s also chock full o� goodies.  The
BMs kick it off with a Davie Allan/Arrows�-esque attitudinal instro entitled
�Hot Foot.�  (They don�t know it, but this one�s for Pat �Hot Foot� Lozito.)
�Haywire� has more of a staccato guitar thing going on with the organ playing
the main theme.  As with most Boss Martians� releases, this one�s also got some
vocal numbers.  The first of these is �Gonna Have Fun Tonight,� which stands
well with the rest of the vocal tracks the group has laid down these past couple
years.  �She�s Creepy,� however, has them a cut above the old stuff, with a
sorta �Louie, Louie� thing happening in the chorus, but falling into a smoother
surf/frat rock vocal type number in the verses.  Some nice guitar-slinging by
Evan on this one.  Lookin� for some swingin� hot rod vocal sounds?  Check out
�Mean Model A� and �Tombstone Track.�  But it�s �Long Hair Lenny� (who �took my
girl away�) that really gets things moving.  The signature guitar bit here�s got
a hint of �Suzy Q� in it and moves from there.  Once again, the highlight of the
track is Evan�s guitar solo midway through, fluid and hitting it right on all
the way.  The disc closes out with the vocal track, �C�mon Jenny!�  This one�s
further into Untamed Youth territory, tho� the Martians don�t quite have the
wildness the Youth do.  13 Evil Tales?  Maybe for those in Dullsville.  For you,
Dear Reader, I issue my personal Get Out of Dullsville Free card.  And, with
that, you may proceed to Swingtown and pick up this party platter.
       If you�re lookin� to hear some primo rock�n�roll, go directly to The
Lyres� section and pull out The Early Years (Crypt).  Most of this was
previously available on various LPs and 45s, but those aren�t always that easy
to find and this stuff pulls together some of that material in a nice, easy
package.  Best of all, you�re getting to hear The Lyres the way they should be
heard:  live.  �Cuz, while Jeff & Co. have made some pretty damn fine records,
those buggers can never match the sheer power of their live act.  (True, that
can be said for most great bands - especially garage-types - but the Lyres are
one of the best, so add that much more into the equation.)  Interestingly,
there�s no versions of two of the Lyres� classics, �Help You Ann� and �Don�t
Give It Up Now.�  On the other hand, you�re gonna get �Buried Alive,� �100 CC,�
and �How Do You Know.�  And you�re gonna find a slew of some of the best damn
covers you�ve ever heard, including The Kinks� �Never Met A Girl Like You
Before,� a killer take on The Isley�s �Nobody But Me� (no other group has any
right to do this one once they�ve heard the Lyres), and a heartfelt rendering of
Pete Best�s �The Way I Feel About You� (proof that the Beatles kicked Pete out
�cuz he had soul).  This is one of those discs that you can just play randomly
and get pure, unadulterated genius every time.  I mean, check out �Swing Shift.�
YEOW!  If only there was a way to expose kids in their formative stages to this
kinda thing on a Friday night.  I mean, there they are, in the high school gym,
right... lotsa crepe paper just waiting to be torn from the rafters, boys
sitting on one side, girls on the other... some utter crap is playing, the vice
principal�s watching the punch bowl.  Suddenly, the DJ gets thrown outta the
way, this disc gets thrown in and punched in to �Swing Shift.�  The sound system
gets cranked up so nobody can ignore it.  PLAY!  Yeah, rock�n�roll nirvana.
Magnificent Mayhem!  The kids are ready to swing and the party begins.  Let the
whole flippin� disc play,Daddy, �cuz The Lyres� have just said, �Let�s Have A
Party!�  WHEW!  Nobody But Lyres.
       I keep writing this over and over, I know, but it�s just plain true... The
Insomniacs are one of the best damn bands in existence.  I�ve been into them
since the beginning, but it�s still amazing to me how far they�ve come in that
time, both as a live act and a recording group.  It�s the latter we�re here to
discuss, though, thanks to their dynamite new disc, Out Of It (Estrus).  If
you�re gonna be annoying and ask for some kinda musical description, then
garage/psych-pop is the closest I�m gonna get, but that�s just too simple to
describe them.  You�ve got originals like �Crystal Clear,� both swirling and
insistent; the hypnotic �O�Clock O�Clock�; �Don�t Turn Away,� running and
smashing around joyfully; or even the inclusion of one of my all-time fave
Insomniacs� tunes, �Sylvia Grey,� with its guitar line dancing in the meadows of
my mind, putting a big smile on my face.  Then there�s covers that the guys
manage to make completely their own:  the crowd-pleasing �Jump & Dance,� which
gets the audience doing just that every time;  �Help! Murder! Police,� as Bob
lets fly on the solo and the band hammers through the whole tune;  or the
perfect number to finish out a night, �The Long Cigarette,� with the guitar
picking out a nice clean intro that gives way to brother David�s waiting vocal,
wondering what�s up.  Damn, I love this song.  It�s got a killer melody and an
easy feel, grooving slowly.  (And I�ve no idea why, but I get a mental picture
of myself sitting on one of the benches at Downstairs at Scorgie�s up in
Rochester, NY around 1985, right at the end of the night.  Just my own mental
picture... but any song that can do that so well has something going for it.)
Yeah, The Insomniacs have done it again.  Truly one of the best groups out
there.
       It was six years ago that I first wrote about The Botswanas in this �zine.
That�s where I wrote, �The Botswanas are a rock�n�roll band.�  For that, a
couple of my close pals let out a great big guffaw.  No, not a snort... a
genuine guffaw.  Yeah, it sounded silly to them, maybe, but to me it was the
only way to really describe them.  (Not to mention the fact that those who
scoffed hadn�t heard a single not by the band.)  This is a group that can�t be
thrown into categories all that easily.  I was right six years ago, The
Botswanas are a rock�n�roll band.  Plain and simple.  The songs rock and roll;
and they put a smile on my face.  In the past six years, the group�s undergone
various changes in rhythm sections, although they�ve had bassist Danny Ly (one
of the best around) for a few years now.  Eileen�s vocals sound at least as good
on this second disc as they did on the first one.  Price Harrison�s guitar-work
fits so perfectly it amazes me.  This is one of those discs I hate to pick
favorites on, but I�ll give the extra nod anyway to the leadoff, �Pretty Things
Are Unfair,� �Soul Kiss� (for some flying guitar by Price), �You Could Lose
Yourself� (great backing vox accenting a cool vocal line), �Junior High
Knockout� (as Eileen sounds like Debbie Harry at the outset), and �Future Scene�
(for a sort of T. Rex feel.)  The wild part is that half the time I don�t even
feel like I�m hearing the lyrics; it�s more like I�m just feeling Eileen�s voice
wash into the rest of the band as another instrument.  This makes two excellent
discs from this bunch.  Can�t wait to see what they�ve got in store for next
time.  In the meantime, tho�, I�ll just have to catch �em live.
       It�s hard for some people to accept that anyone would want to mess with
one of rock�n�roll�s classic LPs.  Even so, Columbia/Legacy decided to remix Raw
Power and they got Iggy to do it.  What was the point, you ask, �that record
kicks, punches, claws... it blinkin� DESTROYS!�  Yeah, you�re right - it does.
So, uh... why bother?  Well, Iggy himself was never pleased with the bottom end,
especially when it got transferred to CD.  So, nearly 25 years after the fact,
he went back in.  In the interview in the liner notes, Iggy says the point was
to give the record the kind of sound treatment a 90s audience has come to
expect, so they could hear how damn great that band was.  (And that was DAMNED
great!)  He says he jammed everything in the red and it certainly sounds like
it.  In fact, the only difference I can really hear between this and the
original is that this one lets you hear the bass better.  This thing is wild in
the streets.  The title says it all... Raw Power.
       All New Hits.  That�s the name of this compilation of material by Asteroid
B-612 on Lance Rock Records.  This Australian combo are obviously big fans of
Radio Birdman and, hence, The Stooges; at the same time, they�ve got some of
that basic Chuck Berry backbeat.  This is one of those records that needs to be
cranked way up for full effect.  It�s the kind of record that, like Raw Power
for instance, can�t be fully experienced with only the ears; it needs to pass
inside and rattle around your ribcage, then grab ahold of your spine and shoot
both up and down.  It�s powerful in a meaty, bullish way, yet it somehow flies
high and proud.  �You Know I�ll Never Be Good� jams the guitar out front,
letting it slip, slide and ricochet wherever it needs to.  The rhythm pounds and
there�s a hint of the Stones around the Mick Taylor period, but with a bit more
fun.  They punch the tempo up a few notches for �Farewell Cosmic Commander,� all
the while shouting and pounding it out for all they�re worth.  �Edge A Little
Closer� owes equal debts to the NY Dolls and the Stooges, the former for the
vocal feel and the latter for the guitar power.  Bluesman�s gonna love these
guys.  I could swear they recently passed through town... wish I�d heard �em
before that.
       It took me a bit to get fully into Happy Birthday To Me (Reprise), the new
one by The Muffs.  But, �cuz they�re The Muffs (and �cuz there were a couple
songs that grabbed me straight away), I kept it in regular rotation at TS HQ.
The effort paid off.  This thing effin� kicks.  The first couple tracks, �Crush
Me� and �That Awful Man� are either gonna get you up and dancing immediately or
finding you crushed in the stampede.  �Honeymoon� is one of the numbers I
remember best from The Muffs� shows around these parts last summer; just past
mid-tempo, it�s wistful Muffs� heaven.  �Pennywhore� kinda reminds me of some
20s thing updated.  �Outer Space� is another one I remember from last summer�s
shows.  This one is kinda dreamy, with a sliding guitar solo, and eyes in the
clouds (or further.)  �I�m A Dick� comes straight off the Sympathy 45 (reviewed
elsewhere) and is a highlight of this 3rd Muffs� disc.  �Nothing� revs things up
again, kinda angry-sounding at points, but sugarcoated enough to make it deeee-
licious.  If this disc isn�t as immediately gratifying as the earlier efforts,
it�s probably because it doesn�t rev up and go quite as often.  Listen to it a
few times, however, and you�re bound to realize it�s a damn good disc.  No
wonder - it�s The Muffs.  Need more be said?
       Here�s something most people might never have expected to hear:  April
March with The Makers on a disc entitled April March Sings Along With The Makers
(SFTRI).  After all, most people know April for her quirky pop numbers.  Some
may be clued into the fact that she was also lead voice for The Shitbirds.  Or
that she was involved, earlier on, with the killer girl group, The Pussywillows.
And very few have heard the stuff she did with (I think the name was) The F-
Holes.  (Probably �cuz it�s unreleased as far as I know.)  The point I�m trying
to make is that Ms. March has varied tastes and can rock out with the best of
them.  (One fantastic car trip up to see The Raunch Hands at Bard College, she
and I rocked out the whole way to the Del Monas and The Milkshakes.  Of course,
then there was the ride back, with April, Raunch Hands� mouth Michael Chandler,
Cracked genius Cliff Mott, and Crypt main-man Tim Warren crammed into my �78
Datsun 510, which picked the unbelievable hour of 3 AM to red-line the
temperature gauge.  But that�s another story... nothing like a good digression.)
Here we�ve got April taking lead vox on some of my fave Makers� tracks,
including �I Just Might Crack,� �Sometimes Sometimes� (this is one of my all-
time favorite Makers� numbers, and Mike Maker�s doing great backing vocals on
it), the cool, deliberate �Let Him Try� (taking on a whole different meaning
with April singing it), and �Bust Out.�  That last ends it all with the
following dialog:
Mike Maker:  (In low voice)  Hey, April March, why don�t you take your shirt off
for Michael Maker... c�mon baby, now.
April March:  (Pouting and petulant) No.
Mike Maker:  No?
(All break into laughter and they Bust Out!)
The only thing wrong with this disc is that it�s only got nine tracks.  The
Makers rage and April March goes wild up top.
       I�ve been absolutely nuts about The Omega Men since Eric Ebeling
(responsible for �Beat,� according to the inner sleeve) sent me a sound clip of
�My Favorite Dean Martian� some time back.  Getting it on the Instrumental Fire
comp intensified my craving for more.  Finally, in May came their debut, The
Spy-Fi Sounds Of (MuSick).  YEOW!  This thing�s movin� all over... their stock
in trade is wigged-out, Hammond-organ dominated instros, but their are some damn
fine vocal garage blasts, as well.  While there�re one or two tracks that may
get tagged as surf, most of the instros on here fall much closer to the
Stax/Volt sounds once offered up by The Mar-Keys and Booker T. & the MGs.  In
fact, they get quite a groove going on their cover of �Soul Dressing.�  The only
difference is that some of the Omega Men�s instrumental numbers get the guitar
raging away in the garage, threatening not to pick the lock, but to blow it into
oblivion.  Despite the fact that the group spends most of its time away from the
mic, the first track is a vocal, �Mania For Blondes,� an edgy garage mover.
Pick o� the Platter, though, has to go to �Susan Goes To Work,� as organist
Susan Mackey does just that.  Thing is, this one�s more than just an absolutely
killer organ instro.  Nope, the guitar is completely insane underneath, trying
to beat its way to the top the whole time.  INCREDIBLE!  The liner notes say
this spy-fi thing is �one measure of Booker T. and all that Memphis sound,
blended with equal parts of British-tinged R&B and American instrumental
madness, sprinkled with a handful of 90s growl and served over cracked ice
inside a secret agent�s shoe phone.�  Umm... actually, that�s pretty damned good
(much as I�d like to laugh at the verbiage.)  I�ll simplify:  this thing�s gonna
blow your mind.  Debut of the year, by far, and it ranks right up there with The
Insomniacs, The Lyres, and The Bomboras overall.
       As a kid, I remember my friend George raving about the genius of Eddie Van
Halen and various other guitar �gods.�  Eddie, at least, I understood, �cuz his
band was just beating the hell out of whatever got in its way and, being that I
graduated high school in �83, Van Halen were still a pretty outrageous act.
(Sadly, they replaced David Lee Roth with Sammy �I Can�t Drive 55� Hagar and all
was lost.)  But the rest of those guitar-weenies ol� George dug... well, I just
didn�t get it.  All they did was wank away; it was just plain BORING.  To be
fair, I didn�t hear Dick Dale or Link Wray till my first year of college.  But
after I did, I saw how damn FUN rock�n�roll guitar could be; no, make that
should be.  And that�s what Eddie Angel�s Guitar Party (MuSick) is all about.
These tracks were all recorded at Toe Rag in London about 3-4 years ago and
they�re just plain wild.  Remember all that great Strummin� Mental and
Rock�n�Roll Guitar stuff?  Well, this is more of the same genius, this time
coming to you courtesy of Eddie Angel (who many know as a member of Los
Straitjackets.)  Not much surf to speak of, gang, just wild guitars whangin� out
some primitive twang.  Check out:  �Jurassic Beat� for that Neanderthal cave-
stomp; �Topless Beach� for a lazy shuffle and a leering guitar that surveys the
scene with a connoisseur�s gaze; Eddie Angel�s rewrite of Link Wray�s �Run
Chicken Run� as �Itchy Chicken�; the benzedrine frenzy of �Kawanga� as the sax
blows the call and everyone else swings from vine to vine to do the jungle
proud.  This must�ve been some party.

********************************************************************************
CRAP BANDS HAVE LEFT IN OUR BATHROOM
-------------------------------------------------------------------
LV Tropicana 2 oz shampoo
Avalon & Gray almande cond.
Freeman Botanicals Hawaiian Mango  conditioner
Aussie Custard Apple shampoo
Pears oval soap
(What is this world coming to?)
********************************************************************************
TWELVE BIG INCHES, BABY
----------------------------------------
       It�s kind of amazing to me that there�re so few actual albums listed here.
Once upon a time, I pretty much laughed at CDs.  Thing is, I don�t buy nearly as
much stuff as I once did.  Some of the stuff you see reviewed in this mag comes
via record companies sending it my way.  (Something I truly appreciate since I
don�t have as much spare cash as I once did... that kinda goes with becoming a
teacher.  Of course, living in one of the more expensive areas of the country
doesn�t help matters.  But we�re getting off track.  Thing is, even when I do
buy stuff these days, it tends to be either a CD or a 45.  Granted, I�m still
waaaaay more into singles than CDs, but I often end up at stores that either
don�t stock the vinyl version of the recording in question or I choose the CD
�cuz I�m a pretty lazy guy.  Records require you to get up... plus, using the
disc player means I can throw five of �em on and be set for a few hours.  With
albums I have maybe 20-25 minutes.  Also, while I�ll agree that records do
probably have a better sound and, I�m told, they last longer if they�re treated
well, there�s a major caveat to these assertions:  you have to treat these
things with great respect.  So what�s the problem?  I�m an effin� SLOB.  I can�t
even take care of myself!
       There�s been a persistent thread on alt.music.banana-truffle that deals
with the topic of CDs versus LPs.  Most of those involved tend to disagree with
what I�ve said here... except for the part about my being a slob, that is.
Anyway, this bit has just been written �cuz I wanted you to know why this
section was so short.  I still love vinyl... I�m just the wrong type of person
to have it last for me.  Not that it matters, �cuz I still buy it when the mood
strikes me... Besides, the seven-inch single is still my favorite format.

       I�d been reading good things in various places about The Gain.  Most of
the reviews gave the impression they were a Mod band.  Maybe they are... they
certainly go for some of they stylistic trappings.  Musically, though... well,
they�ve certainly got some Mod elements, but they�ve got more in common with The
Queers and The Hi-Fives than, say, The Jam or The Creation.  Regardless of what
pigeonhole you try and stuff the band into, the fact remains that their LP, Sing
Ready Steady Smash (Mighty), is filled with bursts of energy interspersed with
land mines of melodic hooks.  One of my favorite tracks is �Song For Saturday,�
where they somehow end up far closer to Permanent Green Light than anything on
Lookout.  This one almost comes out as baroque pop, although with a bit more
bite.  I�ll be playing this one over and over again.  The other track that
stands out, for me, is �Last Years Memoirs,� which does up the tempo again, with
some great �wa-ooo� backing vocals.  Maybe next time they tour they�ll be booked
at a place in town that doesn�t have problems with the fire marshal.
       I wasn�t sure if I was gonna like Steve and The Jerks� Leaders of The
Jerks LP (Royal).  That was pretty unfair, considering I hadn�t heard the band.
Not only that, but I�ve known drummer Laurent Bigot for some years now and he�s
a great guy with incredible taste in music.  So why was I so unsure?  I dunno...
I just thought they might be another band that did some kinda lo-fi punk thing,
hiding the fact that there were no decent songs under an ocean of crud.  (Sorry,
gang, but that�s happened all too much of late in the garage-punk world.)
Luckily, my fears were unfounded.  I soon learned that Laurent not only had damn
good taste in stuff he listened to, but he�d also rounded up some pals to play
some pretty damn good dirty-ass garage-punk.  I can�t say this stuff�s straight
outta �66, cuz... well, it�s not.  Thing is, The Jerks don�t just take their 60s
influences and smash �em to a pulp at breakneck speed.  Instead, they just bring
their own experiences to bear and let that take it where it leads.  One example
of this is �New York City,� where you can certainly hear the influence of NYC
70s punk (a la Richard Hell, etc.), but at the same time there are the
occasional tones and structures from the hallowed halls of the garage.  But the
great rock�n�roll continues throughout this fine slab o� wax.  Included is a
killer cover of �I Wonder Why,� updating an old classic with some attitude and a
tougher feel.  �You�re Down� is an aggressive Jerks� original that keeps its
dander up the whole way, yet never strays into stupidity.  A damn nice touch.
�Girlfriends� has a wavering feel to it and a vocal that�s hidden a bit further
in the back, combining for quite the nice touch.  And for one final blast,
there�s Cecilia from the No-Talents taking over the mic for an absolutely
explosive shot at The Runaways� �Cherry Bomb.�  I like these Jerks.
       Jumping back in time almost 40 years, we encounter The Thunder Rocks.  Of
course, those of you with good memories will recall that I reviewed the
�Rampage�/�Bugle Rock� 45 about a year or so back.  This time, tho�, we�re going
for the long-player, On The Rampage (Get Hip Archive Series).  �Oh My Linda� is
one of the band�s few vocal tracks and it turns out to be nothing more than an
early version of �Slippin� & Slidin�.�  But, most of the band�s material was
instrumental, of the wild, late 50s wailing sax sort, that is.  One of the best
tracks on this one�s gotta be �What�s The Word� (taken from the then-current
expression, �What�s The Word - Thunderbird.�)  This one slams itself all over
the place with that sax goin� absolutely NUTS.  In fact, the best Thunder Rocks�
material tends to be tracks where the sax gets to sing lead, while the guitar
flails away underneath.  This really is pretty crazed stuff, the kinda thing
that should really get a party moving.
       A couple years ago, I flipped out over a single by The Yum-Yums, a band
that included one Morton Henriksen, ex- of The Cosmic Dropouts and also a member
of The Vikings with ex-Devil Dog Steve Baise.  The sound of this group, however,
was more appealing to me than either of the other projects I�d heard him in.
(Pretty high praise, as I really liked the Cosmic Dropouts and I love The
Vikings.)  Well, I�m happy to be the bearer of great news - the new LP from The
Yum-Yums, Sweet As Candy (Screaming Apple), is probably the best thing I�ve ever
heard from the group.  Every single song has a melody that you�ll be singing
along with by the first chorus.  Picture The Real Kids with a bit less rock and
more of a sugar buzz.  Yeah... that good!  To me, music like this is what power
pop is supposed to be all about.  The melodies jump around inside your skull
like a 10 year-old on rock candy; you want to sing at the top of your lungs and
let the world hear how alive you feel (tho� you might be better off blasting
your radio... after all, you want them to like the music!); and the stuff�s got
energy bursting out all over the place.  To me, that is what Power Pop is
supposed to be about... not some kinda bland �artistry.�  These guys have put
together an album�s worth of songs that are mainly about that number one topic,
girls/relationships.  Their guitars whang along, they hammer away, and the
backing vocals make it all sound even better.  I�m tempted to pick out favorites
and tell you all about each one, but every time I play this sucker, my picks
change.  Every single song on this LP could easily go to #1 on my personal
playlist at any given time.  WOW!  (And Thank You!, gentlemen.)
********************************************************************************
THE �ZINE SCENE
--------------------------
       We�ll begin with the first �zine I picked up in time for this ish, the
Rhythm & Roots Review.  Editrix Joanne Erhardt Van Vranken handed me ish #10 at
a Ronnie Dawson show in November.  Now, it�s kinda obvious that The Teen Scene
isn�t a rockabilly mag.  On the other hand, I�d hope that you guys are smart
enough to figure out that I do like that kinda stuff, too... just not as much as
the garage-rockin� I spend most of my time with.  That said, R&RR is into the
rockabilly scene - BIG-TIME!  Now, while I don�t know Joanne all that well, we
have hung out on occasion and I can tell you that she�s gotta be one of the
biggest r�billy fans on the planet.  Heck, I get the feeling she travels further
for shows than I ever did.  (Believe me, that�s saying something.)  Of course, I
suppose it helps that she�s got a couple people who are just as ready to jump in
the old jalopy at a moment�s notice... unlike me.  In the late 80s/early 90s, I
spent more weekend nights alone on Route 78 going to and from Bethlehem, PA
(home of The Original Sins, The Creatures of the Golden Dawn, The Rebeltones,
and St. John�s Alliance, among others) than anyone I�ve ever known.    But we
were talking about R&RR.  (Yeesh... and I wonder how this danged �zine gets so
flippin� huge each time?)  Inside are reports from a number of r�billy/roots
fests (including �We Wanna Boogie, �96,� an event sponsored, I believe, by the
R&RR home team), r�billy news, and reviews.  As anyone who�s run into Joanne on
the �Net will tell you, she�s got definite opinions on how things should be.  In
here, that means she�s gonna tell you exactly how she feels about some of the
lame dancing going on at r�billy shows.  She can�t stand the yuppie types that
take ballroom dancing and do all the steps perfectly and hog the dance floor.
Kudos are sent to a few scenesters who take the trad steps and bring their own
style in.  Now, personally, I can�t dance all those steps... I just don�t know
�em.  That seems to be OK with �Rocket J,� though... at least folks like me are
ito it enough to move around. Anyway, the reviews are done in-depth, something I
far prefer to the three-sentence thing you get from some mags.  Some of this
stuff sounds interesting, too, and I think I�ll be looking to pick it up.  Send
$3 to Rhythm & Roots Review, 360-A W. Merrick Road, Box 296, Valley Stream, NY
11580.  (It�s $6 if you�re from another country.)
       Cheers to Sean Berry on The Continental #2.  Billed as �Bellingham�s Surf-
Garage-Exotica-Indie Magazine,� I can�t say that I�m a big fan of all the record
reviews, but, then, everyone�s got different tastes.  The title also reminds you
where Sean�s based, right up there on the Estrus home turf.  Personally, I�d
like to hear about more gigs at the 3-Bs, but how would I know if that many
really existed, anyway?  The ones Sean mentions he�s seen there sound pretty
cool.  Featured this time out are interviews with The Penetrators and Karla
Pundit.  (See TS #56 for a review of Mr. Pundit�s disc. � ed.)  Lots more, too,
including Sean�s trip to Las Vegas, a round-up of Nancy Sin records, and another
Gear Report from Evan Foster of the Boss Martians (this issue is �Part 2: The
Guitars.�)  This may be one of my favorite parts of the mag... and I�m not even
a guitar player.  Heck, I can�t even manage to hit a note right on the damn
things.  Give me a combo organ any day.  Even so, I love reading about some of
the stuff Evan�s got to say here.
       Sean�s already got #3 out and here I am still working on the same blinkin�
issue.  OK, so I don�t have time anymore... leave me the bleep alone!  This
one�s got interviews with the Fathoms, The Volcanos, & Thee Phantom 5ive.  Yup,
it�s an all-surf issue!  At one point, Sean asks the P5 when they started and
Todd replies that they began in �92, �if you do not count the sissies we stole
the name from.�  For his sake, I�m hoping he wasn�t referring to the NJ garage
pounders of the late 80s period.  �Cuz the Grogan boys and Bluesman would pound
him and his pals into the flippin� ground!  (Both physically and musically!)
Let�s hear Todd manage a cruncher on the order of �She�s Not.�  For that matter,
I don�t think he�ll ever write something as brilliant as �Great Jones Street,�
one of my fave garage/folk tunes of all time.  But maybe Todd was talking about
someone else.  And, most likely, he was just kidding.  (But hey... y�gotta watch
who you�re messin� with.)  Anyway, there�s another installment of Evan Foster�s
�Gear Report,� plus a bunch of live stuff, reviews, Frank Sinatra, and whatnot.
But the best thing you�ll find inside is on the art side of the cool rockin�
sounds you�re checkin� out.  In other words, the guys who make your record
jackets look so golldarn cool, including Shag, Art Chantry, and Pete Ciccone.
Well, �nuff said... Send your two bucks to The Continental, PO Box 4336,
Bellingham, WA 98227-4336.  Or go to http://www.az.com/~sberry
       Also from out in the Pacific Northwest is 10 Things.  This one I got
courtesy of Bob the K, who sent it along in a package I�d been looking forward
to.  Though I knew Bob contributed to this mag, I�d never actually read it
before.  (Well, except for a quick glance at a copy one of my students had.)
I�ll be honest - this mag is not gonna appeal to the garage crowd; it�s a punk
zine.  On the other hand, it�s a fairly interesting punk zine.  The music they
cover doesn�t interest me.  (Though it was kinda cool reading Bob�s Spider
Babies interview.)  On the other hand, some of the columns were pretty good.  My
favorite came from a woman who�s a computer teacher (just like yours truly, tho�
she�s in the elementary setting.)  It was interesting hearing from someone else
who�s into rock�n�roll night life, �zines, etc. and is also in education;
someone who understands the realities of the situation.  (Maybe someday I�ll
talk about this stuff.  Not now; it�s the end of the year and I�m just
desperately waiting for the end.  Trust me, summer vacation is necessary!  And I
say that as a teacher who really enjoys his work.)  Anyway, send $2 to 10
Things, 8315 Lake City Way NE #192, Seattle, WA  98115.  E-mail them at
[email protected] or check out http://weber.u.washington.edu/~ten.
       Well... John Chilson has done it yet again.  Schlock #23 is another
winner.  A main feature this time out focuses on Mrs. Brown, You�ve Got A Lovely
Daughter (starring Herman�s Hermits) as a looking-glass into the �kitchen sink�
genre (English films of the 50s/60s which depicted everyday working-class life).
As always, Beth Accomando�s �Asian Files� are a standout, leaving me wondering
if there�s anywhere in my general locale that I can find any of these films on
video.  Tons of reviews of various flavors (print, recorded, video) appear under
different guises (�Bargain Bin Boffos,� �The Wax Museum,� �Video Miscellanea,�
and �Spilled Ink.�)  John also hands out a page on �Hollywood�s Noir Today - A
mini, mini tour of �ol Tinseltown.�  Pick this one up.
       John�s another guy who�s able to put out at least two issues to every one
I do.  His latest starts off a series on what�s happened to San Diego�s old
movie palaces.  (Not a happy topic.)  As usual, there�s tons of video and �zine
reviews, some jazz recordings, and some very cool columns (Gary Pig Gold�s
�Brush With Greatness,� Apocalypse Coffeeshop, and a look at some of SD�s gin
joints.)  Beth Accomando�s �Asian Files� find her speaking to one of the Hong
Kong cinema�s female directors, Cheung Yuen Ting.  An extremely interesting read
with a look towards what may happen as China takes the reins from the British.
Send a couple bucks to Schlock, 3841 4th Ave #192, San Diego, CA  92103 or try
John via e-mail at [email protected].
       Looking for something from far afield?  Well, personally, I can�t read
Norwegian, so I didn�t get nearly as much as I might�ve liked out of Jello
Submarine #1.  Interestingly, however, there are two articles included that�re
in English - one�s an interview with The Yardbirds� Chris Dreja and Jim McCarty,
while the other�s the story surrounding the family tree for Motorpsycho.  The
big cover story seems to be on the incredible Basement Brats; I just wish I
could read it.  (That�s what I get for not becoming multilingual.)  There�re
also some cool-looking record reviews, including one of The Creation�s Power
Surge disc.  How much does it go for?  Ummm... good question.  I�m guessing
those of us in the United States should send $4 or so.  Jello Submarine,
Sagstuveien 10, 0976 Oslo, NORWAY.
       I tend to keep most of my �zine reading centered on garage/surf and other
elements of trash culture.  As a result, I don�t always get around to some of
the truly  fine reading material the �zine world has to offer.  For instance,
although I�ve seen Tail Spins before, it really hadn�t hit me that this mag
really has some excellent points to recommend it.  Granted, they don�t spend all
that much time reviewing stuff I�m that interested in (though ish #28 gives the
thumbs-up to The Untamed Youth�s Untamed Melodies) , but they do have some
pretty cool article.  This time out, there are two features that truly caught my
interest:  one on �The Irretrievable Titanic� and the other on poltergeists.
The Titanic piece, especially, was quite interesting.  There were plenty of
interesting things I�d never known.  (Of course, for all I know, they�re making
it up.  After all, these are the people who�ve got an incredibly flipped out
piece on lobotomies.  Regardless, it�s an interesting read.)  My only gripe is
that there�s so many blinkin� advertisements.  Don�t get me wrong, I completely
understand why they�re there... it�s just that it kind of gets to me having to
flip past them just to get to the next page of reading material.  Maybe it�s
just that it keeps happening over and over again.  But that�s really a minor
concern, �cuz there�s some cool content here.  Send $3 for a sample copy to Tail
Spins, POB 1860, Evanston, IL 60204.  ([email protected])  Oh yeah!  Also
check out �Friends Made in Lot �E�,� a trip to see the protesters at the
Democratic Convention.  Definitely good for a few yuks.
       If it hadn�t come out in the same time frame as Mike Stax�s Ugly Things,
Brown Paper Sack would�ve garnered Pick O� The Ish honors hands down.  At the
very least, tho�, it deserves Best Debut, since it�s the first new �zine I�ve
read in quite some time that�s done such a damn good job digging up stories on
cool garage acts circa �66.  This one mainly concentrates on the Texas and
Louisiana areas, with stories/interviews on/with The Five Canadians (fantastic
story!), The Bad Roads, The Roamin� Togas, The Gaunga Dyns, The Shades of Night
(�FLUCK-CHEW-AYE-SHUN!), Oedipus & The Mothers, and The Playgue.  (And that�s
just reading off the cover.)  Lots more inside.  Some incredibly cool pics,
including some strange postcards for an article with no available photos.  I
could probably go on about all the great stories in here, but you�re really
better off reading �em firsthand.  This one�s 6 bucks (or eight for those of you
in Europe), but worth every damn bottle you�re gonna recycle to get it.  Send it
to PO Box 1622, Houston, TX  77251-1622.  You need this!
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PICK O� THE ISH
------------------------
       Anyone who�s been into garage, 60s-styled R&B, etc. in the last ten years
should already be well aware of Ugly Things.  Editor Mike Stax�s long-awaited
latest, #15, is yet another in a long line of well-researched, enthusiastically
(yet responsibly) written, KILLER issues.  It just doesn�t get better than this.
The lead story this time out is on The Creation.  Now, in case you don�t already
know this, The Creation are one of my all-time favorite groups... power, volume,
melodies, excitement - everything!  I could easily go through song after song
proclaiming their genius.  But, quite honestly, you�d probably be better off
just picking up some of their records and flipping out on your own.  But for a
HUGE piece on the band, their different lineups, the personality problems, the
excitement, the tours, the records, etc., just take a look through this
incredible body of work in UT 15.  Here are interviews with guitarist Eddie
Phillips, first lead vocalist Kenny Pickett, bassist/second lead vocalist Bob
Garner, and bassist Kim Gardner (who was also responsible for bringing in his
ex-Birds� mate, Ron Wood on guitar after Phillips left.)    Also found in here
are comments from Mick Farren of the Deviants, photographer Roman Salicki (who
played road manager for one Creation tour), author Johnny Byrne (who was also  a
tour manager for the band), and producer Shel Talmy.  (Talmy, also known for his
work with The Who and The Kinks, as well as many, many others, proclaims, �The
Creation, of all the stuff that�s ever happened, that was my biggest regret that
they didn�t become the superstars that I think they could have been - that they
would have been.�  He says he had a big deal set up for them in the US.)  This
(25-30 page collection of articles, interviews, and commentary) is the
definitive word on The Creation!  Honestly, that alone would have been enough
for my money.  But there�s still over 70 pages of stuff!  Besides the expected
reviews, there are articles, interviews, and personal recollections from members
of grops like The King-Beezz (of Canada), The Montells and Evil, Spain�s Los
Brincos, the 5 Gentlemen of France, The Jaguars hailing from Rome, The Chocolate
Watchband, Sean Buckley & the Breadcrumbs, The Rings, The Poets (Scotland), plus
some cool commentary from guys like Don Craine of the Downliners� Sect and Mick
Farren.  Actually, Farren�s bit is fantastic, entitled �Never Trust A Keyboard
Player.�  Now, as an admittedly mediocre (at best) organ guy, I was ready to
take umbrage.  However, he quickly explains he has nothing against the swingin�
sounds of organ players like Alan Price or the Young Stevie Winwood, so I
quickly figured out where he was coming from.  Part of his apprehension comes
from the two guys he played with in The Deviants, but some also comes from the
horrible possibilities brought forth by today�s sampling-type keys.  It�s all
summed up when he writes, �what doesn�t kill keyboard players turns them into
Paul Shaffer.�
       Send $6 (in the US & Canada), $8 overseas, and $9 for Japan and
Australasia.  Send to Ugly Things, 3737 Fifth Avenue #145, San Diego, CA 92103.
Or find a cool record/�zine store.
********************************************************************************
PUT �EM ALL TOGETHER
------------------------------------
       Reviving Spark (1+2) is a collection of �early tracks, demos, and out-
takes� by The Shambles.  On the liner notes inside, TS stringer Matthew
Fidelibus chronicles the band�s history and numerous lineup changes.  The group,
for those still unfamiliar with them, arose at the start of this decade out of
the remnants of various San Diego bands, including (but hardly limited to)
Manual Scan, The Crawdaddies, and The Telltale Hearts.  The group has long been
a combination of the influences of the members� past experiences, moving through
Mod and garage to come up with their own unique blend of power pop.  They still
touch on garage faves such as �Louise� (with ex-Telltale Hearts� vocalist Ray
Brandes filling that slot once again; and it�s great to hear him sing again),
but it�s Bart�s touching, emotional originals, rooted in his Mod youth, that
truly define the band.  Be it �Of Heart & Soul,� �And If,� or �For Jaime�, the
slow chiming of �You Make Me Feel Good� or the urgency of �I Can�t Don�t Want
To...,� the Shambles are one of those groups that�s got that special something.
The disc has a number of other highlights, too, including their pal, Jon Kanis,
taking lead vox for his own composition, �It Is And It Isn�t,� more of a
straight-up rocker with an organ hiding underneath.  There�s also a version of
the �James Bond Theme,� caught on tape while the band was warming up for a
recording session.  Thank you, Mr. Engineer.  Finally, we get one of Ray Brandes
originals, �What Went Wrong,� meaning he�s on lead vocals again, which is always
a treat.  While this is a collection of what�s past, they�re still going strong,
ready to give us more.
       Retreating back to the early-mid 60s, we meet up with Merrell Fankhauser
on Desert Island Treasures:  Featuring The Impacts and Merell & The Exiles
(Bacchus Archives).  I�m gonna be honest; a couple of these tunes, credited to
Mr. Fankhauser, bear a remarkable resemblance to other favorites.  This starts
right off with �Shreader,� all but a dead ringer for �Church Key.�  Later on,
�Kon Tiki� reminds me of something, but I just can�t for the life of me figure
out what.  �Switzerland,� is credited to Seals & Crofts!!!  Listening to that
pap they inundated the world with some years later nobody would�ve ever expected
they could write anything worth listening to, but The Impacts provide proof.  Of
The Impacts� material on here, my picks go to the two non-vocal numbers, �She�s
Gone� and �Shake My Hand.�  The former has a mean-ass guitar sound playing
underneath some dual-lead vocals that seem a bit too clean-cut for that ugly
git, but these guys were originally a surf instro act.  Damn great sound on that
guitar.  �Shake My Hand� is a bit more upbeat, but rocks nicely.  Part of it
somehow reminds me of the lighter version I�ve heard of �The Invasion Is
Coming.�  (Unfortunately, I don�t have it in my collection; nope, I�ve only got
the killer version, by The Invasion.)
       Merrell & The Exiles kick it off with �Let Me Go� in a frenetic Merseybeat
style.   I can�t say I�m quite as enthralled with �Please Be Mine,� but it does
have an appeal in that mooning, mid-60s pop kinda way.  In fact, most of the
Exiles� material is in this vein.  Too bad they didn�t do more like �Let Me Go.�
There�s one more treat on here, �Burton�s Jam.�  Evidently, guitarist James
Burton dropped by to jam one night and this blues bit was the result.  This
one�d be great to either start the night moving or let things wind down as the
wee hours wore on.
       Sticking with the 60s, we�ve got Let�s Talk About Girls (Bacchus
Archives), a collection of music from Tucson, AZ from �64 - �68.  The featured
artists are The Grodes and The Dearly Beloved.  Quite simply, this is one of the
best discs you�re likely to buy.  It starts out with The Grodes� �I Won�t Be
There,� a number I first heard on The Chesterfield Kings� debut LP back in the
early-mid 80s.  Truth be told, it�s a garage classic, with a ringing guitar
pumping out an enticing riff, while the band keeps an insistent rhythm
surrounding it.  Now, not all The Grodes� material rocks like that one; some of
it even moves towards ballads.  That�s OK, though, since these guys are one of
those few groups that can handle one of those without sapping out.  The melody
carries them through.  Now, I�ve gotta tell you that recommendations for tracks
on this disc are all relative, �cuz there�s nothing on here that�d make me reach
for the remote.  So, when I talk about one track over another, understand that
I�m talking about a number that stands out above a field of strong competition.
The next one of these we come to is The Grodes (er, I mean, �The Tongues of
Truth�) doing �Let�s Talk About Girls.�  That�s right, gang, The Chocolate
Watchband didn�t write the classic they�ve long been associated with.
Interestingly, the liner notes inform us that The Grodes didn�t even know the
Watchband had done it; they�d thought producer Ed Cobb was gonna give it to The
Standells, but had chucked the idea.  It�s been awhile since I read the liner
notes, so I�m unclear on the relationship of The Grodes to The Stumps.  The
track in question, �Think of the Good Times,� is credited to �The Stumps (with
The Grodes),� and is an organ-fueled mid-tempo punker with full-group vocals on
the chorus.  There�s some time difference between tracks like �I Won�t Be There�
and material such as �Give Me Some Time� and �Sand.�  While these are far from
the wildness of �Let�s Talk About Girls,� moving towards a kind of �67/�68 love
vibe, they�re still damn god pop songs.  The liner notes state that �Give Me
Some Time� took a few months to do, with �every wife and girlfriend� getting
into the act with numerous overdubs.  Surprisingly, it still works for me.  The
Grodes� final recording was under the name Spring Fever, a track called �Sand,�
featuring dual lead vocals with Patti �Grode� McCarron.  This one�s got a sort
of bright, fresh smile, something like what you expect from 1968... but in a
good way.
       The Dearly Beloved�s material features a greater percentage of real
rockin� numbers.  First we find them in their original incarnation, The
Intruders.  They�d started their musical life as a surf group, but hired
vocalist Larry Cox when the Beatles hit.  The track they�ve got on here, �Every
Time It�s You,� has definite Beatle-leanings, but spends far more time slipping
and sliding around beer-soaked mid-60s frat parties.  They soon moved on to the
name The Quinstrells and a track entitled �Why Me,� with a cool fuzz sound that
the engineer evidently termed the �most awful guitar sound� he�d ever heard.
This sees them starting to define their sound, much more of a garage-punk thing.
In fact, this one�s somewhat reminiscent of some of Mouse & the Traps� stuff.
One cool one on here is �Peep Peep Pop Pop,� a song brought to the group by
their manager one night.  The number had been done by a bunch of black teens in
the early 60s and he�d always hoped to find a group to make some headway with
it.  The Dearly�s were far from impressed by it, but were eventually persuaded
to cut it.  Lo and behold, they had a number one regional hit!  This got them a
contract with Columbia.  Unfortunately, the LP they laid down became one of that
label�s write-offs.  Happily, some of those tracks are included in this package.
My favorite of these is probably �Iceman (Wild About My Loving),� a chunky mid-
tempo pounder that features some damn good braggadocio (plus some wild-ass
guitaring.)  The Dearly Beloved got out of their contract with Columbia and
signed on with White Whale.  Unfortunately, they were working so hard doing the
record and gigging at night, that they ended up crashing their van on the way
back to Tucson from LA late one night.  Why didn�t they just stay in Southern CA
that night?  Vocalist Larry Cox was getting married the next day.  He died in
the crash.  That voided the White Whale contract and the band only recorded one
more 45 before calling it quits.
       It�s one of the saddest stories in rock�n�roll history.  This is a band
that had a ton of talent and appeared to be on the verge of making it.  Luckily,
the fine folks at Bacchus Archives have given us this collection of both The
Dearly Beloved and The Grodes to remind us of what once was.
       Boston, as anyone with a clue most likely already knows, has quite the
rock�n�roll past.  One of that past�s prominent elements is Willie Alexander.
Stanton Park offers up a couple tracks from Willie�s group of some 30 years
back, The Lost.  Up top is a live take on �Who Do You Love,� and you can hear a
band really rockin� out, with Willie whippin� out the lyrics like he�s tryin� to
spit the devil out of his throat.  Underneath, they slow it down with an
original called �It Is I,� moving more towards a psychedelic feel, with a touch
of folk-rock.  Me, I prefer the rockin� out up top.
       Back to the now.  Just in case you  tuned in late to the magnificence of
the Mr. T. Experience, Lookout has issued Big Black Bugs Bleed Blue Blood, a
comp of thirty-one tracks covering 1989-93.  You�re gonna get to hear old hits
like �Up & Down,� �The End of the Ramones,� Shonen Knife�s �Flying Jelly
Attack,� the revved-out �Psycho Girl,� a great guitar-take on Blondie�s �Sex
Offender,� the all-out blast of �God Bless America,� �Vive La France,� �God
Bless Lawrence Livermore,� and �Hello Kitty Menendez.�  Quite the lineup of
hits.  Call it an extended sugar buzz.
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COMPED
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       If I recall correctly, Ear-Piercing Punk (AIP) came out on vinyl around
1980 or so.  The cover shot of a 70s punk character with spiked hair a chain
hooked from his mouth to the safety pin in his earlobe was a marketing ploy
designed to get that element to buy the damn thing.  The idea, I guess, was that
if they actually heard some of this wild garage-punk stuff, they might go out
and buy more.  Seventeen years later, the gimmick is no longer necessary, but it
stands as an interesting testament to an earlier time in garage history.  As for
the music, it sounds as fantastic today as it ever did.  This one goes from the
latent R&B hostility of Outlaw Blues take on �Nonstop Blues� (basically a
rewrite of �Milkcow Blues�) to the pop sounds of The Kommotions doing a version
of the classic �Little Black Egg�.  It also provides further evidence for the
theory that �Louie Louie� was responsible for much of the best rock�n�roll
sounds of the 60s, with the Sound Extraction doing �I Feel Like Crying�.  Pure
garage crunch comes courtesy of Keith Kessler�s �Don�t Crowd Me�.  One of my
particular favorites is the slightly psychedelic folk-pop tinged �Magnet� by The
Age of Reason.  For those of you who�ve never heard The Ugly Ducklings, well...
you�ll be a fan as soon as you hear �She Ain�t No Use To Me�, thanks to a garage
pounding owing at least a little to some of the best mid-60s Stones� records.
The disc also includes versions of �I Can Only Give You Everything� (Bram Rigg
Set), Train Kept A-Rollin� (The Precious Few), �I�m A Hog For You� (The
Groupies, who also appear with their classic, the dirty cool �Primitive�), and
�Down The Road Apiece� (Color).  I liked the organ up on top of �Growth� by the
Guys Who Came Up From Downstairs.  From Maltese comes �You Better Stop�, which
hits hard on the fuzz on the chorus, but delivers a nice melody in the verses
(which are played down in favor of the tag line, �You Better Stop.. Yeh-Yeh-
Yeh!�)  What I really want to know, though, is who the hell was Animal Jack?
His �Gotta Hear he Beat� sounds like it was recorded somewhere around 1980 or
so, itself.  This guy sounds about on par with The Dootz, whose �I�m The Dootz�
on the Train To Disaster comp first gave me a notion of some of the crazy
wildmen out there when I was about 18.  I�ll admit that the sound quality isn�t
100% perfection all the way through, but I can�t believe too many people will
let that keep them from getting this thing.  Well worth the money.
       Word has it that Murder Punk Volumes I & II, The Australian Years (Murder
Punk, Inc.) are not coming from Down Under, as they�d have you believe.  In
fact, correspondents in Australia report that the address listed (in Tasmania),
is actually that of a serial murderer that killed over 30 people a year or so
ago.  So there�s obviously no point in giving the address on the back of this
thing.  My advice is to go through Get Hip.  So, where the hell did this come
from?  I could make some guesses... Some years ago I picked up an LP called
Where Birdmen Flew (Taz Devil Records) that had quite a bit of this stuff on it.
In fact, that�s where I first heard �Television Addict� by The Victims which
just happens to lead off Volume 1.  Fans of The Hoodoo Gurus will find this
interesting, since it�s the first song leader Dave Faulkner (then known as Dog
Collar and, I believe, Dave Flick) ever released.  This thing�s full of rage and
aggression and stands as one of the best punk records I know of.  The sound on
here is also better than both that on Where Birdmen Flew and that of The
Victims� mini-LP comp that came out on Timberyard a few years back.  If you want
to hear a modern version of this song, check out The Hoodoo Gurus� take on it
from a live radio broadcast, appearing on The Right Time 5-song CD.  I can�t say
for sure, but my guess is that the next track on the disc, �I�m Flipped Out Over
You,� might be the B-side of the single.  Either way, this thing puts even more
go-juice in the mixture and barrels straight through anything in its way.  Damn,
these guys were great...  In fact, the aggression of The Victims on those two
tracks make it a good thing that Razar�s �Money� starts off so slow and melodic.
Of course, they launch into the wildness about 30 seconds later and get things
running.  Probably the best track from them on Volume 1 is �Here Is The News�,
due to them managing both the punk attitude as well as song structure pretty
well.  Or maybe I just like the backing vocals...  I have to admit that Suicide
Squd didn�t do all that much for me, probably due to the girl�s shrill vocals.
On the other hand, I got the distinct impression that I probably would have
enjoyed them live at the time, if the venue was packed and everyone was going
wild.  But I�m listening to them on a stereo and, hence, I was rather glad to
glance over at Volume 2 and find out that they weren�t on there...  I was happy
to see The Babeez on here, �cuz �Dowanna Love� (which does appear on this disc)
is one I liked from one of those old comps.  This one�s got those all-hands-
singing things on the semi-anthemic chorus, not to mention a pleasing sound.
Two more tracks appear from them, too, �Hate� and �Nobody Wants Me.�  While both
are cool, I like the latter best, as it�s a nice change from most of the stuff
on here, a real pretty bummed-out pop lament.  I can�t believe I�d never heard
it before... The Thought Criminals� 3rd 45, �Land of the Living Room�/�Oceania�,
was evidently recorded at radio station JJJ and given away at a gig.  Honestly,
I prefer �More Suicides Please� (found on Volume 2.)  This one�s not
necessary...  The sound quality on The Psycho Surgeons� �Horizontal Action� is
nowhere near hi-fi, but it�s good enough to get the point across that these guys
must�ve been something else.  Personally, I like �Wild Weekend� the best of the
their two tracks, as it�s got an Iggy feel on the vocals (which�d explain how
they evolved into the Lipstick Killers, I guess)...  While The Victims take the
cake on Volume 1 for their powerful attack, I�ll never be able to choose between
them and The Scientists for a fave group on the two comps.  The Scientists gave
the world one of the best power-pop numbers of all time, �Frantic Romantic.�
The guitar sounds fragile as it plays out the melody line and the vocal conveys
the emotion perfectly.  Many people know this group as the ones who are at least
partially responsible for grunge, due to their heavy, swampy sound in the 80s.
What many don�t know about is the band�s early incarnation, which included
Vicims� drummer, James Baker, who�d later get together with Victims� singer Dave
Faulkner to form the Hoodoo Gurus.  The early lineup (actually, I believe it may
have been two early lineups) were much more into the pop sounds of punk rock.
For me, that era of The Scientists was the best.  The other track they have on
Volume 1, �Shake (Together Tonight),� is slightly more ragged and revved than
�Frantic Romantic,� but it�s a great song, nonetheless...  The Chosen Few
display a real attitude on �The Jokes On Us� although the guitar is occasionally
overburdened by that �rock� sound.  That�s not as much of a hindrance on �T. A.
L. O. I. G. A.�  This one�s got a vocal and a feel that�s somewhat reminiscent
of Radio Birdman and, of course, The Stooges.  Some of their other tracks have
even less of that guitar sound, and are, therefore, easier for me to deal with.
Overall, Volume One is a definite winner.
       Volume Two burns in with The News, doing �Dirty Lies� which, to my ears,
is another of the classic Aussie punk numbers.  This one�s also on the Where
Birdmen Flew comp, but I�m damn glad it�s on here all the same.  These guys
evolved out of The Babeez and you can hear that bloodline, but this one�s far
more powerful than �Dowanna Love.�  Energetic, with a melody that�ll have you
singing along without being pop.  Rather, it�ll work you into a frenzy.  Not
only that, they keep things up with �Chop, Chop, Chop,� which is poppier, but in
a decidedly punk way.  On both sides, the singer and guitarist play the lead
line together.  Damn good group.  Wish I could�ve seen these guys... Razar are
back with a couple on this disc, starting with �Stamp Out Disco,� an angry punk
call-to-arms.  �Task Force� doesn�t have quite the same urgency, but still works
pretty well, possibly due to the churning guitar sound... In case you didn�t get
the point about The Scientists being one of my fave groups on these comps in my
description of Volume 1, they�ve got four more on this second edition.  None of
these are in the same league as �Frantic Romantic,� but that�s an unfair
comparison, since that one belongs in the Aussie Punk Pantheon.  Here you�ve got
the basic lo-fi pop/punk of �Last Night� (which works really well on a tape next
to The Fingers� take on �The First Time�); the more power-pop oriented �Bet Ya
Lyin�,� a number that provides a perfect intertwining of power pop and punk;
�It�s For Real� is my least favorite of these Scientists� tracks, but includes a
guitar bit in the beginning and midway through that�s kinda fragile, working up
the courage it needs to say what it needs to say; the most punk number is
�Pissed On Another Planet,� whose chorus owes a debt to the NY Dolls... Probably
the weakest of the four tracks by The Fun Things is �When The Birdmen Fly,�
which suffers due to the unavoidable comparison to Radio Birdman, themselves,
since this tribute is both poorly produced and not up to Birdman standards.  On
the othr hand, if you�re a Birdman nut, you�re gonna dig it, anyway, since it is
such a Birdman-type number.  Things pick up with �Lipstick,� another track that
owes a bit to the Dolls, tho� not as much as The Scientists� number mentioned
earlier.  This one�s got a snottier guitar sound going through and a cool
dueling guitar lead midway through.  My fave of the group�s four tracks on here
is �Time Enough For Love,� covered by The Devil Dogs a few years back.  A listen
to the original will show that the D Dogs didn�t stray far from the original, a
real powerful punker with a rough-singing guitar line that takes the point and
let�s the vocal provide the entertainment.  Many are also familiar with the Fun
Things� last track on here, �Savage,� due in part to the version by The Vikings.
Also a strong number, it falls somewhere between �Lipstick� and �Time Enough For
Love�, although closer to the latter... The (Fuckin�) Leftovers only committed
one three-songer to vinyl in their time, but it�s a pretty worthy document all
the same.  Their material will never be confused with pop in any way, shape, or
form, as it�s straight-out punk.  Best number�s probably �Cigarettes and
Alcohol�... Five more songs from The Victims appear on Volume Two, the first of
which, �I Understand,� was, though no one could have possibly known at the time,
a foreshadowing of the pop influences that Dave Faulkner would wear proudly a
few years later with the Hoodoo Gurus, although this one has a rougher, uncut
undercurrent than any Gurus� material.  �Open Your Eyes� picks up the tempo
again, but maintains a melody over the choppy guitar and punchy drum-banging.  I
think if he heard The Donnas, Dave might just start singin� �High School Girls�
all over again.  These lyrics (�I like you if you�re only 14... I just want a
high school girl in bed tonight�) obviously didn�t win him any friends on the
local school board.  Real singable, too; so much so that you�ll find yourself
singing it in all the wrong places at the wrong times.  �TV Freak� shows the
grup in a speed frenzy and once again exploring the sort of territory they
checked out in �Television Addict.�  For some reason, Murder Punk has chosen to
delete �Perth Is A Culture Shock� (you�ll have to go to The Victims� All Loud On
The Western Front mini-LP on Timberyard for that), but �Disco Junkies� does
appear.  This one combines a straight-up rock�n�roll backbeat with punk drive to
take on a subject that evidently rankled more than a few Aussie punks... The
Thought Criminals round out the comp with five tracks, the first of which is
�More Suicides Please,� a number that shows them to be, sound-wise, into the
English punk scene.  It�s far better than the tracks on Volume 1.  Their other
offerings don�t have quite the same quality, but they�re more than listenable.
       Like most readers, I love the early Saints and believe that Radio Birdman
are one of the great gifts of the Land of Oz.  But if that�s all you�ve ever
known about the Aussie 70s punk scene, either one of these discs will be a
perfect place to find out more.  (My guess, though, is that you�re gonna want
both.)  And if you�ve already got Where Birdmen Flew, Year of the Rat, and the
Scientists� and Victims� comps on Timberyard, then you�re probably a big enough
fan of Aussie punk to warrant getting this for the tracks you haven�t heard.
The question, then, is whether to get one or both volumes.  Well, number two is
a better comp than the first one, without question.  Unfortunately, if you blow
off Volume 1, then you�re not gonna get those classic singles by The Victims and
The Scientists.

       Time for Volume II of Jeff Dahl�s Trash On Demand  (Ultra Under) series,
this time featuring 23 current punkers (and other stuff) of various flavorings.
The Assassination Bureau start it off with �51 Crazy Zone,� a bubbling, frenetic
punker with a melody that had me singing along by the end of the first chorus.
The next item to catch my attention was The Rosehips� blues of �Jacob�s
Progress.�  I would�ve preferred the guitar was just slightly lower; not much,
just a bit.  Thing is, I got the feeling this was recorded live.  Personally, I
preferred the beginning acoustic part to the bigger sound later on, where they
sound a bit like late 60s  Stones.  Even there, though, things are pretty good,
with hints of �Sympathy For The Devil� peeking through.  I can�t say I�d be
running out to see Big Bobby & The Nightcaps every week if they were playing
locally, but I get the feeling I�d probably give �em a go once  in a while.
�Wanna See Her Cry� is kind of rough, with garage just edging out the punk
rock... but only by a hair.  The Boyz Nex� Door say �Hey� like they�re being
chased by the cops, but they�ve got a commitment to play the gig.  Geez, they�re
doin� it fast.  What�s amazing is that the song still manages to convey a
melody, even with the breakneck velocity.  Jimmy Keith & His Shocky Horrors
provide one of the shining moments on the disc, with a blowzy version of Johnny
Thunders� �Little Bit Of Whore.�  My fave track of all is The Cynics� doing a
live version of �Baby What�s Wrong.�  Granted, it�s nowhere near as monstrous as
the studio original, but it still sounds damn cool, reminding me just how damn
good these guys could be when they put their minds to it.  Here�s hoping they�ll
find their way back together.  Finally, there�s an unlisted track, which sounds
like Jeff Dahl to me; pretty decent melodic punk, but nothing that�s gonna make
you willing to go through puberty all over again.  (Please don�t ask me where
that came from.)

       The eMpTy Sampler II (eMpTy) isn�t something I�ll be throwing on all the
time, but there are a few unpolished gems.  The X-Rays clock in with a kerosene-
ingested �Thrown-Up,� raw and hard.  Sicko�s �Indie Rock Daydream� features a
ringing guitar and some upbeat smiling.  It has me picturing a video with bunch
of indie rock/pop-punk kids joining in a march like the curtain-call ending of
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across The 8th Dimension.  It�s that kind of a
happy, triumphant march of unity.  (Another of their contributions, �Wave Motion
Gun,� is pretty good, too.)  Definitely a winner.  Satan�s Pilgrims follow it up
with more of their trademark instro sound on �Devil�s Punchbowl.�  (Later on
you�ll find �Turkey Trot,� featuring more of a pinched staccato sound.) For all
you fans of The Motards, there�s �Shut Your Face,� a sentiment all of us have
probably expressed at one time or another.  Scared of Chaka check in with the
pleasant �Wanna Make It Happen.�  Yeah, I�m a sucker for something with tag team
vocals, especially when there�s a decent melody line to hang �em on.  Besides
the groups mentioned, you�ll also find tracks by Steel Wool, Gas Huffer,
Crackerbash, The Meanies, The Derelicts, The Sinister Six, The Putters, and The
Fumes, none of which excited me all that much, but that�s a matter of personal
taste.  Many readers are pretty into some of those bands and, therefore, will
look quite longingly at this comp before they jerk spasmodically out of their
temporary daze and cough up their long green.

       More my style is the excellent Instrumental Fire disc (MuSick).  Aptly
titled, it includes material from many of today�s finest instrumental acts,
including such favorites as The Bomboras (who contribute the... ummm, forbidding
�Forbidden Planet�); Laika & The Cosmonauts (with the sprightly alien sounds of
�C�mon Do The Laika�); Man or Astro-Man? (with one of their classics,
�Intoxica�); Ben Vaughn (who I quite miss seeing live, now that he�s out in
Santa Monica, CA doing the score for �3rd Rock From The Sun�, with a classic
atmospheric offering, �Enfermo�); Lord Hunt & His Missing Finks (the stomping
�Twice Pipes� hints at what would follow a bit further down the timeline); Eddie
Angel (with almost a Duane Eddy meets Link Wray original entitled �Brawl�); The
Omega Men (cool Stax-Volt organ tonics dance on top of a fuzztone guitar wailing
away behind on �My Favorite Dean Martian�); and Los Straitjackets (taking a
joyride south of the border on �Spanish Fly�).  While these are my favorites,
there are plenty of other great numbers in store from The Cave 4, The Fathoms,
Four Piece Suit, The Vice Royals, The Travelers of Tyme, Scratch Bongowax, The
Tiki Tones, and The Tiki Men.  This sampler provides an excellent overview of
today�s instrumental rock�n�roll scene.  For those of you who can�t stand
hearing surf instro after surf instro... Never Fear!  This one goes far beyond
that.

       Staying in the instro vein, we�ve got a present-day comp of �Michigan Surf
Music� entitled Surfin� The Spillway (Happy Hour).  Kicking it off are The
Prodigals with four killer kuts, my favorite being �Ride the Savage Dolphin,�
featuring some absolutely burning guitar blasts and a cool primitive vocal bit
in the middle.  (But the guitar�s gonna blow ya away.)  The Silencers pad in
with �Matt Helm.�  I  think this may be their only 45 to date, but they show a
ton of promise.  From Detroit come The Volcanos, who blow us NYers outta the
water last year when they rode the wild surf into Hoboken.  I seem to remember a
couple of these guys being in another surf act about 10 years ago, but I can�t
for the life of me remember which one.  Whatever, the liner notes (by ex-Ten
High vocalist supreme Wendy Case) say they �represent the old guard,� which may
help to explain why these guys swing so well together.  You may remember my
mentioning Professor Schmiddy from a split 7� a couple issues back.   Of his two
tracks here, it�s �Hotfoot� that�s making its debut, and what a debut that is.
If this professor got lost on an island, he�d quick make a board, sling his
guitar around his neck, and catch the nearest tsunami and head for civilization.
Honestly, tho�, I get the feeling that if anything started to go wrong, he�d
just whip out that magic six-stringer and make the sun shine all over again.
Play it, Professor!  The Campus Kings aren�t really a surf act, falling
somewhere between favored westerns and beautiful sleaze.  (Just listen to that
sax!)  I wanna hear more from these guys.  I love that western guitar sound.
We�re also lucky enough to be treated to three tracks from another non-surf act,
Mondo Mod, whose completely non-secret weapon is a Farfisa that leads most of
the charges here.  Last up are The Lustre Kings who�ve evidently broken up.
This one comes from that split they did with Professor Schmiddy, so they�ve been
reviewed in these pages before.  Pretty damn fine stuff; they�ll be missed.  As
for you... dont miss this disc, �cuz it�s more than likely that you won�t be
able to find some of these tracks anywhere else.  Besides, in some cases, you�re
gonna be the first on your block to rave about some of these Michigan wild ones.
       We�ll close this section out with a look at the Poptopia comps from Rhino.
This three-disc series works from a chronological standpoint, so you�ve got one
disc each from the 70s, 80s, and 90s.  Obviously, any power pop fan is going to
argue with some of the choices that were made here, but that�s going to be true
with any comp.  Hell, I get the feeling that I could put out a comp on my own
and then be pissed at myself for leaving certain tracks off.  There�s just no
way to get everything in.  My only question is who the team was shooting for:
those who didn�t know anything about Power Pop before, or an audience who
already knew much of the music.  From the choices made, it seems that they ended
up somewhere in the middle.  It becomes abundantly clear that anyone who�s
really a Power Pop fanatic probably has most of this.  Heck, I�m only moderately
into Power Pop (yeah, I really like it, but it�s not my main focus) and I have a
pretty good percentage of these discs myself.  (Interestingly, the disc I have
the least of is the 90s material.)
       One of the smartest decisions the Rhino team made for this series had to
be the idea to split it into separate discs and not make it some kind of stupid
box set.  In this form, fans can find a particular disc they really want and
just buy that one.  I know that personally I�d be pretty put off by having to
spend forty or fifty bucks all at once.
       I�ve been hearing that most people prefer the discs in this order... 70s,
then 80s, then 90s.  That�s really a tough call, though.  For me, I�m finding it
depends on my mood.  Each one has a definite timbre.  Thing is, you can also
hear how the music is changing as the years go on.  In fact, it�s tempting to
make overreaching generalizations as a result.  For instance, I might look at
the 70s disc and say that most of these bands were looking to really end up on
the radio.  (And, without going and doing a count or any statistical analysis,
this seems to be the one that had the most chart action.)  Some of the 80s acts
obviously had those aspirations, too, but so many ended up (at least in this
country) mainly becoming popular with the college radio crowd, although there
are some hits on here (The Romantics� �What I Like About You,� for instance.)
Looking at the 90s disc, there are few groups who�ve had anything resembling a
commercial hit, although Matthew Sweet does lead the disc off and The Rembrandts
(who will forever be known as the group that did the theme for �Friends�) appear
with a song, as well.  On the other hand, it�s also pretty obvious that this is
an extremely good decade to be into Power Pop as a whole what with the Poptopia
festival every year, some labels dedicated to the genre, and some pretty
fantastic magazines supporting the whole scene.  Of course, without some bands
involved, it�d mean nothing... and there�re probably more bands going around
with the Power Pop tag these days than ever before.
       What is true about the discs is that the general public will probably know
more songs from the 70s disc than any of the others.  This one includes The
Raspberries, Todd Rundgren, Big Star (with �September Gurls,� of course),
Badfinger, the Flamin� Groovies, Cheap Trick, The Records, Nick Lowe, and The
Knack, as well as nine others, some of whom are also fairly well known,
especially if you�re already into this kinda stuff.    This is the disc I�d
probably recommend to someone I knew in high school back in the early 80s.  Some
of these songs are ones we heard on the radio as kids. (�Cruel To Be Kind� and
�Good Girls Don�t� were pretty popular when I was growing up.)  These are the
songs that a high school friend might find the most easy to get into.  Some of
them come from a certain shared background in time.  Most of these tracks were
really aimed at getting airplay and they have an extremely radio-friendly feel.
On the other hand, a younger kid that�s into underground music might have a much
harder time enjoying these tracks... they�ll probably seem too clean to them.
There will be exceptions, of course.  Some kids may be able to find something to
identify with in the rougher parts of Cheap Trick�s �Come On, Come On.�  The
Beat�s �Rock�n�Roll Girl� also has a more jagged feel than some of the others.
Of course, anyone with any taste whatsoever should be able to sink their teeth
into The Flamin� Groovies� �Shake Some Action.�  And anyone with a pop-lovin�
bone in their body will be won over by the jangling guitars ringing around
�September Gurls.�  Quite honestly, this is probably the disc that most fans of
this melodic rock�n�roll stuff will find easiest to fall in love with.  There
are, of course, some songs that I�m not all that into.  For instance,
Fotomaker�s �Where Have You Been All My Life� is just too bland for me.  I�m not
saying they have no place on this record, but they just wouldn�t have been on my
list.  And, while I like other things by 20/20, I�m just not a fan �Yellow
Pills.�  Sorry, the syntesizer just sounds stupid to my ears.  But, with those
few exceptions, this is a solid collection of melodic rock�n�roll.
       The 80s disc is probably the one I�d send one of my college friends to.
Of course, when I was up at the University of Rochester (�83-�87), the people I
hung out with most were those who were into music.  Many of us either DJ�d at
the campus station (WRUR) or worked on the concert committee we�d started.  (Our
first show was The Violent Femmes supported by The Fleshtones, with 10,000
Maniacs opening up.  Yeah, this was early �85 and the latter hadn�t yet hit big.
In fact, The Fleshtones were the most popular band that night, getting the
nearly 2000 people in attendance going pretty nuts.)  This disc starts off with
a major hit, The Romantics� �What I Like About You,� which became one of the
major party songs of the decade.  Following it up is Phil Seymour, whose sound
hearkens back more to the 70s disc.  Great Buildings are a band I�d never heard
of.  I get the feeling they�re appearing as sort of a link to the 90s disc,
where a couple of them appear in The Rembrandts.  Interestingly, the music
sounds like a pretty solid link between the 70s sound and the one that would
take hold in the 80s.  Still, I would�ve probably replaced it with something
that moved better, perhaps The Three O�Clock�s �Jetfighter� or �She� by The Real
Kids.  (I gotta stop playing second-guesser.)  I was happy to see Holly & The
Italians� �Tell That Girl To Shut Up� on here, even though it�s also on an
earlier Rhino series.  Sadly, it�s one of the few tracks in the whole series
with female vocals.  To be fair, there just aren�t enough female acts doing
anything resembling power pop to really balance things out, at least not without
slighting some of the major male groups in the genre.  This was actually a topic
of discussion recently on the Audities power pop list on the �Net.  Eventually,
Bruce Brodeen of Not Lame Records took a look at his catalog and found that only
about five percent of the groups in there had females involved.  It doesn�t have
anything to do with discrimination in the music, as far as I can tell; it just
seems to be he way things are.  Most people will be glad to see The Plimsouls�
�Million Miles Away� on here.  Of course, that�ll make some wonder why the hell
The Nerves didn�t make it onto the 70s disc.  You�ll find some fantastic ringing
guitars and a melody slightly reminiscent of the mid-60s Beatles on The
SpongeTones� �She Goes Out With Everybody.�  (This is one I didn�t have before;
I�m really glad I do now.)
       I�m not sure I would�ve put Marshall Crenshaw�s �Whenever You�re On My
Mind� on the disc.  This gets into my argument about just what power pop is all
about.  I thought the idea was supposed to be melodic rock�n�roll with something
behind it.  It�s not that I don�t like this song, it�s just that I don�t think
it�s all that powerful.  It�s the same argument I have with The Shoes.  I think
those guys had some fantastic pop songs; it�s just that I don�t find them all
that powerful.  It gets me wondering why The Last didn�t make it.  Or Stiv
Bators for �The Last Year.�  But there I go again, second-guessing.  Bad Blair.
Gotta stop doing that.  I could be here forever that way.
       I loved that Rhino put The Hoodoo Gurus� �I Want You Back� on the
collection.  While it�s not my favorite Gurus� track, I do think it�s their best
pop track.  In fact, I believe the album it�s from, Stoneage Romeos, is one of
the best albums ever made.  I tend to think the comment in the liner notes was a
bit of a left-handed compliment, though.  �A bunch of Aussies, who sang driving,
garage-rock ditties about kamikaze pilots, echo chambers, and Zanzibar, turning
in one of the niftiest power pop tunes of the �80s?  Why not?�  That probably
shouldn�t bother me; it�s just that I can�t see what any of those things have to
do with man-in-the-moon-marigolds.  Or, more importantly, good music, in
general.  They obviously can�t be referring merely to the fact that the group is
Australian; after all, that country also gave us Dom Mariani, whose work with
The Stems (�At First Sight�), The SomeLoves (�Girl Soul�) and, more recently,
The DM3 (�1x, 2x, Devastated�), has provided the world with some of the best
power pop songs ever made.
       Let�s Active were also a favorite of mine in the 80s.  Well, let me amend
that - Let�s Active were a favorite of mine on their first EP.  Luckily, that�s
where Rhino looked when they picked �Every Word Means No.�  This was a favorite
at WRUR.  It was even bigger in my dorm room, where the five songs on that EP
got played over and over, driving my suite-mates insane.  Still, I�ll never
forget listening to this as I played soccer on my Commodore 64 after dinner each
night, demolishing my friend Al time after time.
       Somehow, Todd Rundgren�s group, Utopia, get thrown in after Let�s Active
and before The Bangles.  I keep wondering why.  Was it to provide some content
with chart action?  Or maybe to remind us that Todd was still making music at
this point?  The Bangles were still pretty much a college radio act when they
put out All Over The Place in 1984.  Some of us knew them from their earlier EP.
After all, they were still considered part of the garage scene by some of us at
that point, although this record was considerably more pop.  They still had
ringing Rickenbackers, but instead of covering songs like �How Is The Air Up
There?�, they�d moved on to the track they�re represented by on this disc, a
cover of �Going Down To Liverpool� by Katrina & The Waves (whose hit, �Walking
On Sunshine,� is noticeably absent from this collection.  DAMN!  I did it
again!)
       I�m going to be brutally honest - The dB�s have never done it for me.
Tons of my friends in the mid-80s and beyond raved about them.  For me, though,
they always fell flat.  It�s true that �Love Is For Lovers� is probably one of
their catchier songs (though, personally, I liked �Amplifier� more); besides, I
can�t imagine anyone getting away with putting together a power pop comp of 80s
stuff and not including them (even if they leave the taste of creamed corn and
mashed lima beans in my mouth.)  Candy have a commercial pop appeal to them.
Evidently this was Kyle Vincent�s band in the mid-80s.  (It also featured Gilby
Clarke, who�d end up doing a stint in Guns N�Roses.)  �Whatever Happened To
Fun,� while perhaps not appealing to me the way some previously mentioned tracks
do, still has one of the most important qualities of a great pop song - it�d
sound GREAT blasting out of a car radio.  And in the middle of the �Whatever
happened to fun, etc.� chorus near the end, Vincent throws in the semi-spoken
line, �What the hell happened to us?�  And it suddenly becomes far more
personal.  Tommy Keene has had a career of being just on the fringes.  He�s
always had great talent, but he�s never found the combination that�s taken him
to the next level.  �Places That Are Gone� is far from my favorite of his, but
it serves as a fair representation of his sound.
       I used to see The Smithereens in Manhattan every once in awhile in the
mid-80s.  A few times they�d end up on bills with The Mosquitos, the group that
really flipped me out some 14-15 years ago.  In particular, I remember shows at
the old Lone Star Cafe on 5th Avenue at the corner of 13th Street in Manhattan.
The Lone Star�s policy was that the opening act would play a set, then the
headliner, then another from the openers, then the headliners would finish out
the night.  Well, as I recall, most of us would hang outside the doors while the
Smithereens were on, come in and dance like mad to The Mosquitos, go cool off
during the second Smithereens� set, then come in and get all sweaty again during
The Mosquitos� final set.  But, as luck would have it, The Smithereens were the
ones who ended up making a ton of records (and even doing fairly well with some
of them.)  Thing is, I never really thought they were all that good.  Even so,
listening to �Behind The Wall Of Sleep� from the vantage point of a decade in
the future, I realize they were actually a pretty good group.  I�d still rather
listen to my live tapes of The Mosquitos, but the Smithereens did some fairly
decent pop.  And, again with hindsight, it�s a bit easier to see their
relationship to the NYC garage/60s scene that existed at the time.  (Even if you
hadn�t heard their first record.)
       The final few tracks on this one are a bit of a letdown for me.  Bill
Lloyd�s �Lisa Anne� is too bland for my tastes.  �She�s So Young,� from The
Pursuit of Happiness improves a bit, but not enough to warrant my playing it all
that often (although I like the texture of the backing vocals).  The final
track, �There She Goes,� comes from The La�s, a group I seem to remember seeing
sometime around 1990 or so in Manhattan during CMJ or the New Music Seminar.
I�d been at some show at Maxwells and then jumped in my rickety old �78 Datsun
to head under the river to some venue (the Marquee?) near the West Side Highway.
Luckily, someone had a pass for me.  The La�s were fairly decent, but their
track here pretty much sums them up... it�s nice enough pop, but it doesn�t seem
to go anywhere, even if the guitars do chime nicely.  (The liner notes are right
on here, at least, describing the song as sounding like �Frankie Valli fronting
the �Mr. Tambourine Man�-era Byrds.)
       Overall, the 80s disc is pretty enjoyable. It�s got some tremendous
highlights and those tend to move me more than the best tracks on the 70s disc.
On the other hand, it has a few more disposable tracks, as well.
       On to the Now.  Perhaps it�s a bit early to be putting together a Power
Pop comp of the 90s; after all, we�ve still got a few years to go to finish up.
However, I think Rhino�s original intent was actually to do a comp of the power
pop sounds of today, so I suppose we should just be thankful that this exists.
As I look over the groups on here, I see a ton of names that I know, but I
realize that there are only a few groups that I�ve actually seen (or have any
interest in seeing).  Perhaps this is because my interest has long been the
garage scene, rather than power pop.  Still, I do like this stuff.  I guess my
interest in live music tends to veer towards a group that can really work me up
when I�m out at night.  That said, let�s get on with it...
       It can be argued that Matthew Sweet has done more for power pop in the 90s
than any other act.  His Girlfriend disc from 1991 brought the genre back to the
limelight.  I might have picked a different track to represent him, but �I�ve
Been Waiting� is still a smart choice to kick off the disc.  Now, I realize most
power pop fans hold Jellyfish in high regard; I�m not one of them.  And �That Is
Why� does absolutely nothing to change my mind, with some darker sounds giving
it an uneasy, nervous feel that does nothing but turn me off.  Ride make a
motion in my direction, punctuating the swirling �Twisterella� with just enough
percussion to keep me interested, but they still haven�t come far enough towards
my type of pop.
       The first time I ever heard The Gigolo Aunts was around �86 or so, when my
high school friend Nancy Ericsson sent me a tape of their stuff from SUNY
Potsdam, where she was in her last year or so of college.  A few years later, I
found the band was still around, but they�d moved to Boston.  In that time,
they�d strengthened their sound somewhat.  Interestingly, they just kept going
and somehow ended up becoming popular with the power pop crowd.  Personally, I
like some of their earlier stuff more than �Cope,� their contribution to this
disc, but the chorus on this one is pretty dang catchy, even if the rest is
kinda skewed.
       It seems rather obvious that The Rembrandts would have to be included on a
power pop comp.  I�m guessing �I�ll Be There For You� (better known as the theme
from �Friends�) was passed over either because of licensing problems or because
Rhino wanted to put something on that people might not know.  The thing is,
�Rollin� Down The Hill� just doesn�t have the same power as their better known
track.  It�s followed by a group called The Tearaways with a song called
�Jessica Something.�  This one slows things down for the verses, with a lonely
voice backed by an acoustic and little else, then hits hard on the choruses with
some nice backing vocals to add flavor.  A sprightly keyboard solo works nicely,
as well.
       The Posies have been college-radio/alterna-rock faves for some time now.
While I�ve personally never bought their records, I�ve always had respect for
their pop talents.  A couple of these guys have played in the touring version of
Big Star in the 90s, but I�m hoping that they�ll be remembered for their own
work, as well.  �Solar Sister� should help ensure their reputation as a group
who could rock out their pop nicely.  The Wondermints� �Proto-Pretty� is another
highlight of this volume, with some lead vocals that recall Brian Wilson and
some backing vocals that help you understand the high praise heaped upon them by
said genius.  These guys have come up with some gorgeous sounds here, not to
mention some inspired arrangements.
       There�s no getting away from the fact that The Lemonheads were pretty
popular on MTV for some time.  Taking a look beyond the teenybopper fascination
with Evan Dando, they actually did have a few pretty decent melodies in them,
one of which is �Into Your Arms,� which has all the trappings of an actual hit.
(In fact, it reached #67 as a single.)
       We move on to Redd Kross, a group that I�ve never been able to truly
embrace, though I�m really not sure why (maybe it was that show down on East 4th
Street some 8-9 years ago).  After all, they�ve got some truly beautiful vocals,
not to mention providing something to back it up.  Well, I�ll at least give it
to them for their track here, �Lady In The Front Row.�  The fact that this one
failed to dent the charts in 1993 just shows how damn stupid people can be.
But, hey, it�s their loss - they missed out on something damn great.  (For that
matter, so did I.  Mea culpa.)  Let�s hope some people pick up on them due to
this comp.
       I get the feeling The Grays � �Same Thing� got included only because a
couple of the guys were in Jellyfish.  The liner notes state that this group was
too heavy for some fans of their former group.  Personally, I can understand
that, but I actually like it better than the Jellyfish track on here, if only
because of the brief glimpses of melody and a slight touch of the nastier side
of late 70s Cheap Trick.
       By far my favorite group on this volume is The Rooks.  This NYC-based
group is one of the absolute best things to happen to pop music in the 1990s.
Michael Mazzarella writes genius pop songs with absolutely beautiful melodies.
Guitarist Kristin Pinell provides ringing leads that deserve a spotlight all
their own.  The group�s vocals?  Don�t even get me started... I�m not sure
there�s anyone else that can even catch a glimpse of them, they�re so far beyond
everyone else.  The track featured here, �Reasons,� is a perfect slice of Rooks�
heaven.  Anyone buying this disc who doesn�t go out and pick up another Rooks�
disc after this shouldn�t have picked up this comp in the first place.
       The Greenberry Woods� �Trampoline� is a nice ringing melody with some
churning guitars augmented by well-executed vocals.  As to Velocity Girl�s �I
Can�t Stop Smiling,� it�s a pretty nice, occasionally bubbly, melody that works
best when Sarah Shannon joins in on or takes over the lead vocal.  Personally, I
would�ve preferred something with her singing the whole lead, as she tends to
give the song more personality.
       Velvet Crush have been around for quite some time now, in one form or
another.  They�re a group with quite a bit of talent in the Byrds/Big Star vein,
although they also mix in a bit of Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys at times.  �Hold Me
Up� is notable mostly for its vocal arrangements (although occasionally the
melody gets just juicy enough to put a smile on my face.)
       I�ll admit it - I hadn�t heard of Zumpano till Roberta and I got a call
from Smugglers� guitarist David Carswell a couple months back asking if the
group (who he was touring with at the time) could possibly crash at our place
for a few nights.  (The answer was, of course, �Yes.�)  To be honest, a listen
to a single they left as a thank you didn�t elicit much excitement from me.
However, �The Party Rages On� is a pretty nice updating of the late 60s folk-pop
sound created by groups like The Association and The Turtles.
       In 90s power pop circles, P. Hux has become something of an icon.
Although this is not my favorite track on here, I can understand the
fascination:  P. Hux has done an admirable job of bringing the 70s Power Pop
sound to 90s ears.  �Every Minute� is the kind of track that could easily make
it on the radio, much as some of the acts on the 70s disc did.  Unfortunately
for P. Hux, there wasn�t much of a push on them.
       This disc ends much better than its 80s counterpart, with The Idle Wilds
hitting a nice balance between ringing melody and power with �You�re All
Forgiven.�  This ranks as one of the better tracks on the 90s disc, providing a
fine ending for the series.
       As with the other discs, questions will be raised as to why groups like
The Mockers, 20 Cent Crush, and The Shambles were left off.  (Heck, to go back
in time a bit, people are going to wonder why Squeeze and XTC didn�t put in an
appearance.  At least on those, the answer is given - licensing problems.)
       Summing it up, then... for those who were around in the 70s, either as
teens or older, that disc is the obvious first choice (at least, if said person
hasn�t been paying much attention to pop happenings this decade.)  Fans of
college radio pop in the 80s will go for that disc in a bigger way.  If, on the
other hand, you�re someone who prefers a more modern sound, then the 90s disc
should be your intro.  Again, Rhino�s decision to split the series up into three
individual discs rather than box them together was a smart one.  This way,
people can buy one and decide whether they want to take the next step, rather
than being asked to cough up forty or fifty bucks all at once.
       Musically speaking, Poptopia is a strong sampling of the power pop sounds
of the past few decades.  Any true pop fan will argue with the choices made
here, but... hey, you can always spend your own money and do your own.  I�ve
mentioned some of the tracks I would�ve included, but they�re my own personal
opinions.  (Besides, I have all the records I mentioned that I would�ve
included... having them included wouldn�t have given me anything extra.)  You�ll
find some old favorites, some vague recollections, a few tracks that sound like
duds to you, plus some new thrills.  Overall, a worthy effort.
********************************************************************************
STILL MORE MUSIC
----------------------------
       I was pretty much prepared to dismiss the self-titled Mother Fucker 666
disc (Get Hip) on the basis of the name.  (Bad experiences, I guess, with bands
who�ve used �fuck� or �motherfucker� in their name.)  To be perfectly honest,
this CD isn�t one that�s riding high on the TS playlist at the moment.  On the
other hand, I�m not gonna toss it, either; there are some worthwhile moments.
�I Don�t Wanna� reminds me a bit of the calmer/slower side of the Dead Boys.
I�m always a sucker for a Kinks� kover, so the sped-up take on �Celluloid
Heroes� is enjoyable, if nowhere near the genius of the original.  The revved-up
cover of �Then He Kissed Me,� with Hot Damn�s Zebra taking the guest vocal, is
fair, but doesn�t convey the melody as well as, say, The Hard-Ons� version did
some ten years ago.  The solo works pretty well, though.  Speaking of solos,
perhaps the best track on this disc is the Jeff Dahl-penned, �Byron�s Calling,�
which features a flyin�-high solo, with a smoothed-out Saints� feel.  Best title
on this one, tho� not enough for me musically, would have to be �Blues Theme
from Teengenerate Vs. Godzilla�; all-instro, but it doesn�t move enough for me,
tho� there are at least some dark Birdman-isms in it.  For some, the
participation of Mike Metoff and Jeff Dahl will be enough to make this a must-
buy, though I can�t recommend it for everyone else...  Every once in a while, I
get a package in the mail that I think is gonna completely suck.  As much as I
love all this garage and punk stuff, I�m not a music historian.  I love history,
in general (I added it as a second major as an undergrad, actually; the first
was math), and I do enjoy reading rock�n�roll history.  That doesn�t make me an
expert on it, though.  I�m better at what�s happened while I�ve been an active
participant.  Even so, I always enjoy �zines/books/articles on the older stuff.
(Hence my love of Kicks, Ugly Things, Brown Paper Sack, etc.)  Which brings me
to my point... I had no idea who The Huns were when I got this package.  So,
first off, a apology to the Austin crowd for not knowing about this segment of
your history.  I guess I just saw this package with a whole bunch of stuff that
looked like more harsh punk rock that was, in the end, just gonna get filed away
or, with luck, given to someone who might enjoy it more.  But it�s not fair to
judge a disc by its cover, so I figured I had to throw it on.  Live At The
Palladium 1979 (Get Hip) isn�t about what I�d personally call perfection in live
sound recording, but it�s good enough to hear each part most of the way through.
They throw themselves into the fray with �Violence,� pure punk rock driven along
by some 1-4-1-4 banging, given a deceptively pleasant form by the keys.  �Busy
Kids,� according to the liner notes, was a criticism of the punk scene clothed,
as all the best destructive forces are, in that scene�s own accoutrements.  Damn
good listen, too.  Another standout is �Murder In Texas,� with singer Phil
Tolstead starting off with a spoken bit, �I want you to shit on my face, Cullen
Davis,� referring to �the richest man in the world ever to be tried for murder.�
(Evidently, he was acquitted.)  I like the way the organ�s played up in much of
this.  I�m gonna be honest, I don�t think these guys are the greatest thing
since Buffalo wings (far from it), but, then, I�m much more of a garage nut than
a pure punknik.  And there are enough good songs on here to keep you punkin� out
all night... If you still think The Sex Pistols were the end-all, be-all of punk
rock, then you�re probably pretty bummed out that you didn�t get to see them in
their prime.  Well, for what it�s worth, you can get that same kinda sound from
The U.S. Bombs on their Never Mind The Opened Minds six-songer (Alive).  Just
about everything on here is a complete tribute to the Pistols, right down to the
�Ballad of Sid� (not to mention the reprise of the same)...  I hadn�t heard of
The Kindred till a friend of mine dropped Bomb Up The Town (GI Productions) at
my place before we went out one night.  This one features a punk-mod ix,
something that�s become less uncommon in recent years.  Personally, I would�ve
preferred a louder mix; hell, everything�s too buried.  There are still some
standouts, including �Throwback,� with a circling guitar riff running rings
around me while the vocal line calls me to stand up and be counted.  �I Can�t�
is one that really bums me out... here�s something that sounds like it could be
one of their strongest numbers, but the backing vocals (which play the call part
in a call-and-response) are so far back that I wonder if someone put the mic in
the neighbor�s garage instead of the one they were recording in.  �Gonna Find
Out� is one of those things anyone can identify with (switch genders if
necessary, but the sentiment holds)... �I don�t know what your name is, girl...
but I�m Gonna Find Out.�  Sure, it�s nothing new, but that kinda theme and the
passion involved carry it (even if the vocals are revealed here to be a bit
wobbly.)  Most of this falls somewhere below these numbers, but none is a waste
of time...  The Stand G.T. have done some pretty damn cool stuff over the years
and their latest, Apocalypse Cow (Lance Rock) is more of the same.  I have a
hard time calling this stuff punk rock, but working with that kind of thinking
I�d have to eliminate a whole bunch of other bands from that kind of
categorization.  Hmm... that might not be such a bad idea, huh?  Let�s face it,
all these genre classifications are just a way for everybody to get a handle on
the music.  You�ve gotta wonder if people�d listen to a wider variety of stuff
if there were no neat little cubbyholes already labeled for them.  But I guess
I�ve digressed yet again.  I guess the easiest musical comparison might be to
Bum, but I don�t think these guys can stand up to those guys.  Still and all,
fans won�t be disappointed...  OK, time to switch tracks.  Let�s go Around The
World With  Satan�s Pilgrims (eMpTy).  That�s right, we�re globetrotting ears-
open, mouths shut, sampling the local culture through its sounds.  Or, to be
more accurate,Satan�s Pilgrims have done all that for you and bring you their
own interpretations of just how their vacation went.  Well, OK, they had to
stretch their definitions a little.  Sure, there�s John Barry�s �Theme From Beat
Girl,� but you know you�re stretching things when you assign a Davie Allan/Mike
Curb collaboration to France �cuz it won a prize at Cannes.  Not that I mind,
really, �cuz the whole disc is a damn good listen.  I�m gonna admit right now
that I often have a hard time understanding where some groups come up with the
titles for their instros.  That is most definitely not the case with �The
Godfather,� which truly gets the Pilgrim treatment here.  Things finish off with
the gentle �La Cazuela,� a group original that evokes an evening at a Mexican
tavern, drinking this very drink.  Well (un)spoken, gentlemen...  Listening to
Cordell Jackson on Live In Chicago (Pravda), I�m starting to believe I made a
major mistake skipping out on most of her set a couple months ago.  I don�t
know, I�d seen her before and really enjoyed her, but that night it just wasn�t
happening for me.  On this disc, though, she�s playin� it proud.  Interestingly,
I prefer the vocal numbers - especially �Midnight Rodeo� - over the instros.  On
the other hand, it�s those that she really bangs the heck out of the guitar
on...  I like this Snake Hips disc, Memphis Juke (Feralette) much more than the
last one.  The sound on �Road To Nowhere� is kinda like Warren Zevon and it
really appeals to me.  The next track, �She�s So Square� is sparser and sports a
vocal waver, but ends up both more melodic (at points) and more beguiling.
�Houndog Blooze� ends up as a Lou Reed/Warren Zevon mix done in a kind of
southern boogie style; sleazy fun.  �Nothing� moves more towards a �Honky Tonk
Woman� Stones thing.  The final track, �Southern Crawl,� oddly conjures up an
acoustic Marc Bolan.  Overall, the disc has an enthralling laid-back Southern
rock�n�roll feel.  Find this for those times when you�re not willing to have
your ears blasted to a pulp, ut want something to ease you into the evening...
If you�re looking for some cool country punk with a damn good sense of humor,
you�ll want to check out What I Love About America (One Drinky-Winky), the
second helping from Lancaster County Prison.  Most of the vocals come courtesy
of John Carruthers, ex-Alter Boys and Gashounds and he sounds better than ever.
The disc starts off with �Fat, Old, Drunk, & Proud� which oughtta tell you just
about everything you need to know.  I never knew John played banjo, but that�s
what it says in the credits.  And he�s got some nice sounds comin� out on
�Darlin� Corey.� I guess the stuff I like best on here, though, are the ones
that, like �Go �Long Mule,� kick the tempo in the donkey and make you want to
get up and grab a partner to swing around with.  On the other hand, they�ve also
got some pretty slower ones, including �The Ballad of Joel Rifkin� with a cool
banjo pickin�.  There�re also some nice story-songs (something I�ve always
enjoyed), like �Go Cup in the Pick-Up,� where the guy�s drivin� his pick-up, his
gal�s mouth is motorin� along, and he says he�s gonna stop for something to
drink.  She tells him that if he does, then they�re thru.  He pulls in at a bar.
She tells him he�s been warned.  He says fine, that way he won�t be surprised.
He gets his �go-cup� filled up, comes back and tells her to hop in.  She tells
him to go scratch.  He�s at a light, it turns green and he says to his truck,
�let�s go.�  Unfortunately, the songs says, the guy in front of him didn�t hear
him.  The cop tells him that he hopes the truck doesn�t drink gas the way he
drinks beer.  Guy ends up in the lockup.  Gal says let him rot.  Eventually he
pays a fine and goes home.  But his stuff�s on the porch and his best friend�s
hangin� with his lady friend.  Nothing like a story with a moral... Introducing
The Frantic Flattops on Cheap Women, Cheap Booze, Cheaper Thrills (Pravda) is
the Blond Bomber himself, Ronnie Dawson, leading in to the cool r�billy instro
of �The Look At The Size Of That oogie.�  I�d heard quite a bit about Rockin�
Rochester�s latest claim to fame, these rockabilly rascals.  Even though they
recently passed through, I once again missed their show (no way was I gonna miss
The Omega Men, even for this.)  Even if I had somewhere else I needed to be, I
gotta say I�m sorry I had to do so, �cuz this is one fine slice of rockinroll
music.  �Sweeter 17� lets the good times roll, word-playin� on Ye Olde Sweet 16.
In fact, this track serves as a damn fine overview of all that�s good about this
record, �cuz they just let it rip  all over.  �If This Is Love� slows it down
just a mite bit, but sweetens up the melody.   Next time they come to town,
hopefully I�ll be able to make it...  If The Kindred�s sound was Mod mixed with
punk, The Spider Babies is garage with pure punk attitude and aggression.  I
can�t say I�m nuts about this stuff.  In fact, the more I think about it, the
more I realize I enjoyed their early material better.  But that�s not to say
this stuff�s no good... in fact, it�s just that  my ears can�t stand the grating
the way they might have once.  Adventures In Sex and Violence (GI Productions)
features a Sex Side and - yeah, good guess - a Violence Side.  These guys are
not winning any points with N.O.W., I�ll tell you that., not with songs like
�Jr. High School Cuties� and �Suck It To Me Baby.�  If what you want is a raging
Vox Phantom and punk grit vocals on top of sped up garage rock chordings, then
this might be just what you�re looking for...  The Aquavelvets� debut disc, The
Then... Then Now (Velvatone) is a sixteen track collection including ten
previously released recordings.  (See the story on the band in TS #55. �- ed.)
Most of the tracks are originals, but the tracks from the three seven-inchers
also include covers of  �Seven & Seven Is� and �Voices Green and Purple.�  The
group�s been evolving over the years, from a straight-out organ throb spook-tone
into something a bit more modern.  Yet the influences are still there, most
especially on �Hitman� which hearkes back nicely to the older sound.  �Workin�
In A Cemetery� moves through some of the same B-movie horror theme with the
organ providing the clamminess and the guitar fuzzing the flesh off.  Honestly,
I�m more a fan of the more garage material that came earlier, but this isn�t
bad, either...  Many folks in the power pop camp rave like mad about Wonderboy
and group leader Robbie Rist (who most of you will recognize as The Brady
Bunch�s Cousin Oliver.)  Now, I�m not gushing the way I�ve heard many others do,
but Napoleon Blown Apart (Racer) does have a few tracks to recommend it,
including �Why Can�t One And One Be Two?,� with an incredibly catchy melody and
well-placed, well-executed backing vocals; the bouncy �Unconditional Love�; and
the soaring �Hindsight�s 20/20.�  In fact, I can�t say that there�s anything
actually unlistenable on the disc.  I do think that it suffers from a slight
sameness; of course, it�s a likable sameness, so I can�t really complain... I�m
just not used to hearing such big production anymore, I guess.  And the
production on Supergrass�s In It For The Money (Capitol) is definitely big and
clean.  That�s not necessarily a bad thing.  In fact, this is a pretty decent
record.  Much of it sounds like a modern version of The Beatles� circa �66.  On
the other hand, I don�t think they have quite as much of a knack for melody as
did the Liverpool lunks.  Still, these songs swirl and step in a fairly pleasant
manner.  Overall, my favorite number is probably where they drift a bit towards
The Kinks�, echoing the bass line to �You�re Lookin� Fine� in part of �Going
Out.�  I just wish they�d spend more time on that piece of the tune, �cuz most
of it�s even more awash in Beatlemania than the rest.  Not that there�s anything
wrong with that, really; overall, it�s more than listenable.
       On Talent Is A Crime (Royal), The No-Talents let fly with some of their
wildest punkin� out to date.  The title track is reminiscent of some of the
darker, more aggressive Aussie punk sounds of the late 70s, as is the next one,
�Meeow.�  (Check out the Murder Punk CD reviews for more info on that kinda
thing.)  On the B-side, they cover �Life Is Just A So-So� (one I�ve never heard,
by Blitzkrieg Bop), which has a bit more structure to it... Lookin� for more
trashy rock�n�roll?  Search no further than the B section - for Budget Girls.
These two American gals somehow ended up at London�s famed Toe Rag Studios with
�Long Dong Liam� and friends backing them up as they cavort and scream thru
these four tracks.  While I like the title �Pop-a-Wheelie-Cop-a-Feelie� and love
how the gals can�t get thru �Teabaggin�� without crackin� up, the best
rock�n�roll on here comes on side two with �French One.�  The first line is
either �Deux Trois / Mange Moi� or �(something) Toi / Mange Moi.�  Either way,
here�s a hint, �Mange� is �eat.�  I think you know what �moi� means.  But what
makes this one work better than the rest is that the band is doin� it well in a
classic Toe Rag type of way.  �Go Away Geek� is pretty funny, but it�s not
something I�d put on at a party if I wanted everyone to stick around...  Los
Tigres Guapos BLAST into their Play Hard to Like EP (Mortville) with �Sixteen�
singin� �HEY NOW!� and hammerin� their guitars like there�s nothin� else in the
world.  Some of this stuff is just too harsh for me, but �Don�t Call Me Bobby No
More� has a kinda Whap-A-Dang era Raunch Hands� quality to it, albeit with more
of a melted-hardcore power-chord feel... The second side of Helldorado�s �Jesco
Way� 45 (eMpTy) doesn�t do much for me all, but the title track starts off like
a steam locomotive and is at least somewhat appealing... Movin� a bit closer to
my own aural pleasure are the Screamin� Furys with their Estrus 7�er.  Not quite
as hard as LTG, but they�re still not in my ballpark.  Tho� they�re probably
tailgating outide, tho�, and I get the feeling that I�d probably get up during
the 7th inning stretch and run out to see what the ruckus was about.  Dropping
the stupid baseball analogy, then, these guys are probably a blast to catch in a
small sweaty club with an enthusiastic audience, �cuz they�ve definitely got a
handle on the kind of sound that can drive a crowd to sweaty heights.  And, as
if to say �so there� to me, they thrown in a high-speed version of The Real
Kids� �She�s Alright� that wins me over completely... If you�re a fan of
Television Personalities, you�ll probably want to pickup Where�s Dan Treacy Jowe
Head Now? (Perfect Pop).  Covered on here are They Might Be Giants�
�Constantinople� along with the Velvet Underground�s �White Light/White Heat,�
(with a lyrical change dealing with Chinese food for dinner or something) which
ends up in the middle of The Modern Lovers� �Roadrunner.�  Also found are
versions of �Part Time Punks� and �The Man Who Paints The Rainbows.�... At the
Man or Astro-Man? show at Maxwells last December, Birdstuff handed me a 45 by
Servotron, �Red Robot Refund (Ode to A5-04)� (Goldenrod).  If you�ve ever
believed that anyone in MOAM? had a Devo fixation, here�s proof.  Here�s a pair
of Devo-esque melodies with some good rhythm pounding to back them up.
Personally, I�m even more into the flip, �Batteries Included,� with it�s shared
male-female tradeoff vocals and a nice guitar lead happening, tho� it�s
dominated by some of that 80s keyboard stuff that seemed abominable at the time,
but somehow works here.  (Uh, was that a run-on, Ms. Casey?)  Kinda reminds me
of tapes of the early Plastic Device, before they started rockin� out.  (But
that�s a reference most of you will never be fortunate enough to understand,
since the closest they ever got to making a record was the songs on the Origin
of Grapefruit cassette released over ten years ago)... Squid Nachos! (Chicken
Ranch) is a split 7�er between Squid Vicious and Los Nachos.  On their second
track, �Hombrecio,� the former bunch takes a slow,lonesome journey in the
desert, pining away for the surf.  Nicely evocative.  Their first contribution
is a live track called �Armadillo Races,� which moves at a pretty nice clip.
(How fast are armadillos, anyway?)  As to Los Nachos, their contributions are
entitled �Neuf a la Banque� and �Burro Loco Fandango.�  What the heck is goin�
on with alla this foreign talk?!?!  The French title runs just beyond mid-tempo,
but has a cool middle part where it�s like they�re just resting for a bit,
watering the horses, and having a bite before hitting the trail again.  The
second one sounds best turned up �cuz the guitars hit damn well together... When
I threw on the Poopiehead 7� EP (Peek-A-Boo) I felt like I was about eight years
old watching Saturday morning cartoons.  (Pretty amazing, considering that my
parents didn�t allow us this All-American pastime.)  This group writes childlike
singsong-y melodies (call it lo-fi pop) that might, at first, turn a listener
off, but if you�re into Jonathan Richman, you might just have a mind open enough
to truly enjoy this... With their Go To The Ice Cream Social EP (Peek-A-Boo),
Junior Varsity show us what you might get Cub (circa Betti-Cola) had bumped into
Supercharger and gotten their chocolate in the Radio X crowd�s peanut butter.
The songs (with titles like �Two Scoops� and �Wizz-bang Boy�) tend to be
delightfully innocent and cheerful, but with a more basic rock�n�roll backing
that occasionally veers in the lo-fi punk direction.  Happily, they don�t lose
themselves there, using it as only one more tool.  My fave track is actually the
one cover on the EP, �Hot Rod,� with some beautifully pure guitar sounds... The
1-4-5�s Almost Good (Twist Like This) has a cover proclaiming �No Fidelity.�
And that�s not gonna get them an argument; this one was recorded by their pal
John Lowe on his Walkman at the Blue Flamingo down in Texas.  While the fidelity
is poor at best, the spirit is alive and kicking and it sounds like this bunch
was having at least as much fun as the audience.  Andwho can help but appreciate
a band that introduce song after song as being �about my car.�  Each one is
beautifully short, the kinda thing that someone with no sense of humor (and no
clue) might say came from a mind that couldn�t get past one or two verses.  Not
the case at all; it�s just that this bunch knows when to shut up.  The songs are
all pure rock�n�roll fun, sometimes punkin� out, sometimes just laughing it up.
Wish I�d been there... On the more pop side of punk rock are The Parasites with
�Hang Up� (Lookout).  The feature cut�s pretty cool, but I prefer �It�s Getting
Hard� down below, as it�s catchier and has well-placed backing vox...  It seems
like this ish has far less surf/hot rod 45s than usual.  The Delstars, from Des
Moines, Iowa, seek to remedy that problem with Peel Out! With... (Swizzle).  The
4-songer starts with a cool hot rod track entitled �Rocket 455� as they pour on
the gas for some major engine action.  Next up�s a vocal track, �Peel Out!�
which doesn�t much do it for me, mainly �cuz the vocals just remind me too much
of an early 80s surf punk thing that just put me off.  The beat�s pretty primal,
tho�... maybe I can find a way to EQ this thing to get rid of the vocal?  Back
to the instros, then, for �Mr. Horsepower� as he leaves the rest of the field
eating fumes.  After a long day at the track, these boys decide it�s time to
catch the �Last Wave,� but the beach sure is lonely at that point in the day.
This one�s slow, reflecting a long, hot day, but there�s a certain satisfied
feel, as well.  I�m hoping these guys stick to the instros; they do �em well...
Lastly, I just got an �advance promo copy� of The Oblivians� Play Nine Songs For
Mr. Quintron CD (Crypt).  I don�t have song titles yet, so I�m gonna hold off on
a full review.  All I�m gonna say is that this is the best I�ve heard these guys
sound in the studio.  WOW!
********************************************************************************
BITS AND PIECES
-------------------------
       After a particularly hellish day at work, I came home to find a message on
our answering machine.  �Hi, Blair, this is Chris [Cush] from The Headless
Horsemen (and Mojo Guitars).�  For those not in the know, the HH were one of the
top bands in NYC (or anywhere else, for that matter) in the mid-late 80s.  Where
many bands were always trying to shrug off the retro/60s tag, bassist Peter
Stuart would always say he was happy to have people say that about them; it was
great music.  For people to say they played that sort of stuff, then, was a high
compliment.  Their records on Resonance (as well as their 4-song sojourn as
Chris Such & the Savages on the Chaos label) were filled with garage, psych and
60s pop-isms that still get repeat plays on my hi-fi.  The bands� gods always
appeared to be The Flamin� Groovies, although The Kinks were certainly never far
behind.  Sometime around the turn of the decade, the Horsemen unfortunately
decided to call it a day, leaving  a bunch of us looking for a new band to dance
wildly to.  About a year or so after they broke up, a one-night reunion was
attempted, but the club was not conducive to great rock�n�roll shows and - well,
perhaps it simply hadn�t been long enough.  In December, 1995, though, NYC�s
first GarageRage fest was held at Coney Island High.  One of the highlights of
the Friday night was, of course, the Headless Horsemen reunion.  They had us
dancing like mad to - well, to quote them - the �Same Old Thing.�  But it was
their same old thing.  And we were the same old core crowd, with a new bunch
stepping in to catch some fantastic sounds.  After that one, Chris swore they�d
play again.  Sure enough, this past February, they did just that.  (See the Live
Reviews. �- ed.)  And, this time, Chris said it wouldn�t take nearly as long for
the next one.  Still, who knew if it would actually happen.  Chris� message said
to call him back.  So I did.  At that point, the plan was to play Continental on
June 14th.  Well, as the time drew near, it became apparent that they
weren�tgoing to be able to do it, �cuz one of them couldn�t make it.    A recent
conversation with Chris revealed that they may still get around to doing a show
once in a while, though.
       On a related note, Chris Cush and Peter Stuart have formed a new group,
with Horsemen drummer Dave Ari taking his seat once again. Peter is slated to
move to guitar, while the bass slot is filled by a guy named Michael who used to
be with the Insect Surfers.  �What kinda stuff?� I asked, pretty sure I knew the
answer.  Without hesitation, Chris said, �Flamin� Groovies-type.�  Looks like I
was right.  At present, they�re planning on using the name The Bitter Hearts.
(Hmm... shades of John Felice naming his post-Real Kids group The Taxi Boys,
huh?)

       One of the best �zines I�ve ever had the pleasure to peruse is Noise For
Heroes.  Unfortunately, by the end of 1992, it went dormant.  Well, Steve
Gardner is now back, with what he terms �Phase 3� of the �zine - The Internet.�
(The first was a xeroxed version from �80 - �83, and the second was the full-on
�87 - �92 version that was the envy of any �zine editors� heart.)  For those of
you who aren�t on-line yet, tough noogies; the rest of you can check it out at
http://home.sprynet.com/interserv/nkvd/index.htm.

       Evidently Crypt is putting together a 4-LP box set of some of their best
surf-oriented stuff.  There�ll also be a 57 track, 3 LP box of the Strummin�
Mental series, cutting out what Tim Warren terms the �40-or-so weaker cuts.�

       Grant Lawrence of Mint Records (and, of course, The Smugglers) tells us
that Huevos Rancheros have had their video �Get Outta Dodge� in rotation on
MuchMusic.  (I�m glad I don�t have MTV, but I�d love to have MuchMusic, since
they seem to play some cooler stuff.)  They�ll also be on TV screens (in Canada
only... of course!) for some Labatt�s beer ads with Don Ho.

       Lime Spiders� fans will be glad to hear that singer/leader Mick Blood is
putting together a new group, called The Fram, based in Sydney.  Evidently
they�ll be like his old band, but with, as someone on the Divine Rites list
wrote, a �more relaxed feel.� One track, �Urban Cowboy,� has been released so
far on a comp called No Guts No Glory (Antfarm Records).  In addition, the Lime
Spiders, who�ve been dormant for at least five years, played a festival in
Victoria called Offshore on March 30th.

       Seth Gordon of The Mockers, writes that they are �working on material for
next disc.�  They�ve recorded a couple songs in Nashville already and Seth has
registered my vote for recording their biting �Velveeta Underground.�
Evidently, bassist Tony got himself an ADAT and is  recording some instro & surf
when he�s got the time.  (Note: about ten or twelve years ago, while living
abroad, Tony and some friends released an LP�s worth of this kinda stuff.  I�ve
never heard it, but I�m told it was damn good.)

       TJ from 13 Frightened Girls writes in to report, �I found out a couple of
cool things regarding Gonn (again). First, Craig Moore wants to put out a
compilation record of all the cover versions of �Blackout Of Gretely�.  So if
any of you were/are in a band, and you have a version to submit, by all means
send it to Craig.  Secondly, I had mentioned [previously on Bomp list] about us
recording with Craig.  Though it hasn�t happened yet, he did say he wanted to do
a PUNK version of �Come With Me To The Stars�, and we�re gonna back him up!�

       Australian correspondent Michael Seman informs me that, �Strangely enough,
Julian Mathews of The Stems joined DM3 [the group led by his ex-bandmate, Dom
Mariani] after Tony Italiano left.  DM3 recorded half a dozen songs, presumably
for an EP just before Tony left.  The compilation called Garage Sale came out
last month, but it has only one previously unreleased track, an instrumental
called �Beechline�.  In other DM3 news, Greg Shaw recently mentioned on the Bomp
list that there will be a 20-track disc coming out on Bomp Records soon
featuring the best of the group�s material up through this point in time.  (It
will not feature anything from their new record, though, so as not to interfere
with sales of that.)  In addition, he says that they�re supposed to tour Europe
and he�s hoping that if the disc stirs up some interest in the US, they�ll tour
here.  (That would be a dream come true for me!)

       In case you�ve been wondering what Keith Patterson�s been up to since the
demise of The Spectors... wonder no longer!  As mentioned in the singles
section, he did record a single with The Autumn Leaves.  However, his latest
project finds him playing in a group called William & The Conquerors (a name
evidently originally thought up by Smashed! Blocked! �zine editor - and pal of
his - Bill Luther.)  The group also features Willie Wisely, and ex-members of
The Loose Rails and The Floor Shakers.  They were soon contacted by a co-writer
of Troma Pictures� latest, Tromeo & Juliet, to do the title track and incidental
music for this Troma-tic version of Shakespeare�s tale.  (Other groups with
music in this one include Motorhead, Superchunk, Supernova and the Meatmen.)
Descriptions so far have ranged from sounding like The Kinks and Yardbirds to
the early Beatles BBC sessions.

       Tim Gassen, author of Echoes In Time and The Knights of Fuzz (as well as
being the singer for the Marshmallow Overcoat), is now doing a monthly garage
column for Magnet magazine.  The last one is now available on his web site
(http://www.azstarnet.com/~tgassen/), while the new one (for ish #29) includes
stuff on �The Watch Children, Bomboras, The Bald Guys, The Nuthins, Dupont
Circles, Aquavelvets, Others, Effervescent Elephants and the Brown Paper Sack
fanzine.�  He�s also got some of his own music coming out... The Purple Merkins
have tracks on Transworld Garage (a Misty Lane LP comp), including one
mistakenly credited to their alter-ego, The Marshmallow Overcoat.  They�ve also
completed the Merkinmania LP sessions and are searching for a label for them.
One more thing on Tim�s palette is a new compilation series named for his book,
The Knights of Fuzz.  This CD series will start out by putting together some of
the best tracks from the 80s garage scene.  Hopefully, it�ll do well enough to
keep the series going for a long time.  (There are some great tracks that are
crying out to be comped.)

Break-Ups:
       A couple months ago, alt.music.banana-truffle witnessed the following sad
message, �We regret to inform the rock �n�roll fraternity that the Campus Tramps
have split up... They do have an LP out on Rock Ola & a 7� coming out on
Screaming Apple.�  Some of them have evidently gone on to a new group called the
Superfly T�n�Ts who supposedly sound a bit like Supercharger.

       The Trick Babys came back from their cross-country trek and started
dissolving.  One by one, evidently, is the way it happened.  Still, they seem to
be pleased with what they accomplished over the few years they were together.  I
recently put the bug in Mitro�s ear to reactivate one of his old projects, The
Bowery Rhythm Kings, who were always a fine act to catch, doing  cool old R&B
numbers like �I�m Gonna Be A Wheel Someday.�  And, last time we talked, he said
they�ve been talking about it.  Very cool.

       The Upper Crust were supposed to play Brownies the last Friday & Saturday
night of April.  I returned from my trip to LA to find a message in my in-box
from Evan, who runs Monarchy in the USA (http://www.juvalamu.com/crust), the
best of the Crust web pages.  Now, to be fair about it, I�d known I wouldn�t be
making either show, anyway, since there were other events I�d planned on.  So,
that Friday night, after seeing the Bomboras, Cordell Jackson, and The Flat Duo
Jets at the Mercury (see the Live Shows section), I found myself at the
Lakeside.  There, bassist Danny Ly (of The Botswanas and The Senders, both of
whom had played Brownies that night), informed me that the Crust were no more.
It seems that fisticuffs were involved.  I probably should�ve asked Lord
Bendover, who was in town anyway, and was also hanging out at the Lakeside.  But
I didn�t, and had to await confirmation from Evan.  He tells me the group�s
still got a new LP slated for release and he�s hopeful that maybe (yeah, there�s
a phrase to bet on!) they�ll come to their senses to support it.

       As many of you out there no doubt already know, The Element 79 broke up
while they were on tour.  Evidently it had something to do with a drunken night
in New Orleans.  Meanwhile, though, you can pick up the group�s phenomenal debut
CD (see the reviews section �- ed.)

       From The Hoodoo Gurus camp comes the following, �[The group] have
announced that 1997 will be their last year together.  The Gurus formed in 1981
and since then have been regarded as one of Australia�s most credible and
successful bands. After having just completed yet another sold out tour of major
venues throughout Australia they decided that now is the right time to bring the
band to its natural conclusion.
       The Gurus embark on a one month tour of Brazil next week and upon their
return will be confirming dates for a farewell tour of Australia towards the end
of the year. The band will not be recording any further studio albums.
       The Hoodoo Gurus would like to express their sincere thanks to all of
their fans and those who have supported them over the past fifteen years.   It�s
been quite a trip.�
       The reason that the guys are packing it in is that it�s just the right
time. The last album they released is one that they all regard as their best.
They played better than they ever have before on the recent Australian tour and
packed venues at a time when a majority of bands are struggling with live
attendances. They are all very good friends and feel good about the Guru
identity right now and would like to leave it that way.
       I�m sorry if anyone feels that we have let them down but fifteen years is
probably enough. As Dave said, It�s been quite a trip.

       While Elka Zolot�s group The Spastics are no longer, she�s jumped right
back into the thick of things with a new group, The Glamour Pussies.  Songs
include:  �Down In My Trailer Park,� �Penile Pump,� �Get It Up, Get In, Get Off,
Get Out!� and �She Smells Like Tuna.�  (You know, just the kinda gals you want
to bring home to meet Mom.)  In a recent message to her mailing list, Elka
described it as, �A night of lingerie and loud noisy chicks! Why would you miss
that? Well, maybe if you�re NOT into hot sweaty chicks wearing feather boas and
6-inch heels, belting out loud, fun, and fast punk rock!�

Records To Be On The Lookout For:
       On the as-yet-unconfirmed rumors front (tho� the source is pretty dang
good), it seems as though Triple X is reissuing both of the first couple LPs by
The Saints.  Regardless, you can also pick up a British �Best Of� comp that
includes tracks from those LPs, plus the original version of �This Perfect Day,�
as well as the complete 1-2-3-4 EP.  Word has it this is a pretty incredible
disc.

       The MuSick label is planning another comp of cool instrumental music.
This time out, it�s a tribute to The Shadows.  So far, I only know that The
Omega Men will be on it.  (I�d guess doing the �Main Theme,� since they recently
performed it live.)

       Way back around 1986, when I was still in school in Rochester, NY, this
local club used to have the DJs from my college station spin records and play
videos on Thursday nights.  On one of those, I ran into Chesterfield Kings�
bassist Andy Babiuk.  We got into a conversation and he mentioned that the band
wanted to do a hot rod/surf vocal record (as well as a folk-rock LP).  Well,
about two years ago, when the band last played NYC, Andy said it was happening.
That Christmas, I got a postcard with the band looking kinda like The Beach Boys
circa 1964.  A year went by and no record.  Well, rumor has it that now it�s
gonna be a DOUBLE album.  And at least we know that something�s in the can, �cuz
a song did come out on a recent comp.  Look for this one �any day.�

       That just about wraps it up for this one, folks... See ya sooner or later.
(Probably the latter.) �- BB
********************************************************************************
WHERE TO GET �EM
-----------------------------
This section is my attempt to give the addresses for most of the recordings
reviewed  in this ish.  Of course, I kinda forgot to start doing this right off
the bat when I began writing the reviews months back, so I�ve probably missed a
few.  For that, I sincerely apologize.  (Well, mostly...)

1+2
Clean Nishi-shinjuku
Nishi-shinjuku 7-5-6
Shinjuku-ku Tokyo 160
JAPAN

360 Twist
PO Box 9367
Denver, CO  80209

Bomp/Alive/Marilyn
PO Box 7112
Burbank, CA  91510

Blackout
PO Box 1575
NY, NY  10009
[email protected]

Capitol
1750 Vine Street
Hollywood, CA  90028

Chicken Ranch
PO Box 151922
Austin, TX  78715
[email protected]

Collectables
Box 35
Narberth, PA  19072

Detour
PO Box 18
Midhurst
West Sussex
ENGLAND
GU29 9YU

Dionysus
PO Box 1975
Burbank, CA  91507

Empty
PO Box 12034
Seattle, WA  98102

Estrus
PO Box 2125
Bellingham, WA  98227

Face Records
Via Sopramuro
48 Piacenza
ITALY

Get Hip
PO Box 666
Canonsburg, PA  15317

GI Productions
PO Box 6948
San Jose, CA  95150
[email protected]

Goldenrod
3770
San Diego, CA  92121

Grimsey
PO Box 541
Stillwater, MN  55082

Guardian Records
PO Box 641
Holmes, PA  19043-9692
Hillsdale
PO Box 641592
San Francisco, CA 90068

Hit Me!
Deichmansgate 17
0178 Oslo
NORWAY

Lance Rock
1223 College Drive
Nanaimo, BC
CANADA V9R 5Z5
(604) 753-2362

Larsen Recordz
116 rue du Crey
73230 St Alban Leysse
FRANCE

Lookout
PO Box 11374
Berkeley, CA  94712-2374
www.lookoutrecords.com

Mighty
PO Box 1833
Los Angeles, CA  90078

Mint
#699-810 West Broadway
Vancouver, BC
CANADA V5Z 4C9

Monsters
c/o Roberto Vallebona
Via Monte Mixi  11/A
09126 Cagliari
ITALY

Mortville
PO Box 4263
Austin, TX 78765

Nardwuar the Human Serviette
PO Box 27021
1395 Marine Drive
West Vancouver, BC
V7T 2X8 CANADA

One Drinky-Winky
564 Sackett Street
Brooklyn, NY  11217
[email protected]

Peek-A-Boo
PO Box 49542
Austin, TX  78765

Perfect Pop Records
Daelenenggata 14 A
N-0567 Oslo
NORWAY

Planet Pimp
1800 Market St. No. 45
San Francisco, CA  94102

Racer
http://www.racerrecords.com
1-800-5-RACER-5

Regent
532 Pacific Street #12
Brooklyn, NY  11217

Rhino
10635 Santa Monica Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA  90025-4900

Roto-flex
PO Box 64252
Calgary, Alberta
T2K 6J1
CANADA

Royal Records
7 Rue Tholoze
75018 Paris
FRANCE


Shanachie
PO Box 284
Newton, NJ  07860-0284

Solamente
124 St. Marks Place #2
Brooklyn, NY  11217-2015

Speed-O-Meter
1430 Lake Highland Dr.
Orlando, FL  32803
[email protected]

spinART
PO Box 1798
New York, NY  10156-1798
[email protected]

Stanton Park
PO Box 58
Newtonville, MA 02160

Super Electro
PO Box 20401
Seattle, WA  98102

Super*Teem
PO Box 63
South City, CA  94083

Swizzle
PO Box 684586
Austin, TX  78768

Twist Like This
PO Box 540995
Houston, TX  77254

Velvatone
2104 S. Glenwood
Springfield, IL  62704
[email protected]

Wiped Out
72 rue Ernest Grangeat
73000 Chambery
FRANCE
Where To Get �Em
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SO SAYS A KING
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       I had a letter from Johnny Bartlett of Hillsdale Records the other week
and he mentioned you wanted to do an article on us.  Well, this could be a real
scoop, �cos we usually don�t do these type of interviews, [so as] to keep our
mystery status intact.  But, any recommendation from Johnny is fine by me.  So,
I�ll tell you what I can.
       We formed in 1991 doing various gigs in the South of England, France,
Belgium, Germany and Holland.  We also did extensive busking in all the
countries mentioned, gaining valuable experience and a large repertoire.
       Our major breakthrough came in 1994-95 when Johnny Bartlett heard our demo
tape and released our first single, �Sugar Baby� on Hillsdale.  This was a smash
hit, gaining national Radio 1 airplay in England and a lot of attention.
       At this point, we decided to take a low profile in England and turn down
all offers of gigs, thus making us more in demand.  The follow-up single in the
summer of 1995 was also a success, leading to many live shows in Europe.
       Around this time, we added a fifth member to our band, Chris Shore, guitar
and lead vocals, who we discovered busking outside a Folkestone cafe.  Chris is
featured on our new EP coming out on Hillsdale real soon, which we predict will
be another big one.
       We hope in the future we can do an American tour, both West and East
Coasts, and are currently working on new material hopefully for further releases
on Hillsdale.  We still go busking regularly on the streets of Southeast
England, but no live gigs.  We have a Belgium and Holland tour lined up for the
summer, where we have many friends and fans.
       I must say thank you to Johnny Bartlett, without whom none of this would
be possible.

                       Cheers,

                       Mark Chambers
                       The King Normals
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       As they say in the cartoons... �That�s All, Folks!�

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