Label: Capitol Records Released: June 24, 2008 Billy Idol’s early career in Generation X is of questionable importance, even in the UK where they had a handful of charting singles. If you like early British punk, Generation X put out a couple records worth hearing, but neither is a definitive album in any way. It was as a solo artist… Read more »
Label: self-released Released: September 30, 2008 While the album art for Catfight’s In Stereo is totally 80s (like, totally), their music spends an awful lot of time in the sixties as well. Eschewing all that is delicate, everything about their songs is based on their simple deliberate rhythms. They don’t waste time with frivolities like riffs or solos. The album… Read more »
Label: Retroactive Records Released: June 9, 2008 I’ve liked the Misfits (a lot) since I was about 15, even if the themes never quite sat well with me since I’m not a big horror fan and I have little tolerance for the celebration of evil. But the Misfits weren’t that serious and the B-movie quality of their music always made… Read more »
Label: Exigent Records (available through CDBaby.com) Released: July 15, 2008 Microtia clearly loves the Mars Volta, but the Mars Volta they are not. Of course, that’s not the worst knock in the world. Trying to play TMV’s game and not fully succeeding is kind of like being a guitarist that isn’t as good as Hendrix or a sax player that… Read more »
Label: Loose Recs Released: 2008 The Monocles tap into punk circa 1977 or so. Their songs consist of a single driving layer of frenetic energy, each of the three musicians moving in a single and deliberate direction at the same quick pace. Hey, it worked for the Adverts, right? And it works for the Monocles too, 30 plus years later…. Read more »
Label: Maniac Squat Records Released: March 3, 2008 There are plenty of bands revisiting the 80s, but most stick to post-punk and new wave rather than punk and hardcore. The Eruptors are certainly an exception. They avoid anything refined and go straight for the throat with noisy punk that sounds about as DIY as it can be. The downside is… Read more »
Label: Shout! Factory Released: April 1, 2008 I’ve had a bit of a stormy relationship with John Lennon, not that it would matter to John. His greatest public achievement was the band that made rock n roll matter and mine is…well…this website. Besides, John was dead by the time my relationship with him began. I was nine (almost 10) when… Read more »
Label: self-released Released: 2008 “Warning! The recordings contained on this disc are raw and far from perfect. Just how we like it!” That’s the warning on the CD, but it’s more like a mission statement and they back it up with the tunes. Another Shitty Band’s First Demo is raw beyond belief. Thick, sludgy guitar and bass are essentials in… Read more »
Label: self-released Released: May 24, 2008 I had the chance to catch the Niki Barr Band open for the Cult a few months back and they were an outstanding live band. They played with the confidence and intensity of a headliner, not the caution and tentativeness of a local band opening for an international act. However, when I heard their… Read more »
Label: Voice Music Released: 2007 The 70s seem to be a bottomless well of influence, particularly in the realm of hard rock and metal. Cavalar don’t break any barriers on As a Metal of Fact, but they do a good job rehashing a slightly different past. Twitch nails his take on Ozzy, but unlike so many bands, the primary influence… Read more »