Tag Archives: Rock and Roll

Art, Band Spotlight, Entertainment, Lists, Music, pictures, Video

Band Spotlight: Box Elders

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Band: Box Elders
Year Formed: 2005
Label(s): Goner, Shattered, Hozac, Grotto
Members: Clayton McIntyre, Jeremiah McIntyre, Dave Goldberg
Hometown: Omaha, NE
Genre: Cave Pop (according to Facebook page), Garage Pop, Garage Rock, Rock and Roll, etc.
Influences: Redd Kross, Jeff Barry, The Clean, Science Fiction (all according to FB page)
Influenced: Time will tell
Top Songs: Jackie Wood, Alice and Friends, Atlantis, Hole In My Head, Ronald Dean, Isabella, Death of Me
Top Album: Alice and Friends (2009, Goner)
Note: If you like BE, you will probably also dig Nobunny, Black Lips, Thee Oh Sees, The Okmoniks, Hunx and The Punx, Jay Reatard, King Khan & BBQ Show, Mark Sultan, Bobby Ubangi, Gaye Blades, and others of similar styles/genres
Note II: Box Elders are opening for the Black Lips at the Middle East on March 25!
Comments: These guys create some of the catchiest, funnest, Rock and Roll around! Their live show is incredibly entertaining, especially due to drummer/keyboardist (yep, he plays both simultaneously!), Dave Goldberg’s exqusite dance moves/antics.

I’d rather post live versions, but they just don’t do justice to the studio versions. The videos themselves, that is, not the actual performances.

P.S. Glen and other Klyamers, why haven’t we done more BS on here like WE?!

Chris

Entertainment, Music

Malt Shop Memories

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Back when I was a freshman  in high school I became exposed to some pretty good music at work. Well, most people my age (then and now) don’t really dig old skool rock and roll and doo-wop, but any way I dug it quite a bit (and still do). Some songs aren’t as awesome as other ones, but whatever. I saw on TV a few times (no pun intended) TimeLife’s Malt Shop Memories and damn I got to say it’s a beautiful thing. The little videos are great…I can’t say I ever bought the $150 ten CD set. If you want to, though, remember you can do it in easy payments!!!

Art, CD Review, Entertainment, Femmes, Music, pictures, reviews, Video

Classic Album Review: Misbehavin

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Artist: Spaceshits
Full Title: Misbehavin’
Year: 1998
Label: Sympathy For the Record Industry
Grade: A/A-
Tracks:

1) Can’t Fool With Me– 9
2) We Know Where the Girls Are– 9
3) C’mon Let’s Suicide- 8
4) Won’t Bring You Back- 8
5) I’m In Love– 9
6) Jungle Beauty- 8
7) Turn Off the Radio– 9
8) Piss On Your Grave– 9
9) She’s A Bad Luck Charm- 8
10) 60 Nights Of Boredom- 8
11) Creepy Says- 8
12) Kill Me- 8
13) Tell Me Your Name– 10 Saved the Best for Last!

Comments: Before the Shrines, before the King Khan & BBQ Show, hell before the names King Khan and BBQ meant anything to the music world, there was the notorious Spaceshits! I know some of y’all are familiar with their name because they were “crazy” and constantly blacklisted, which is true, but unlike most performers that rely on childish antics like food fights, the shits had the music to back it up, they had their shit together! Misbehavin’ opens with “Can’t Fool With Me,” a fast, catchy, Rock and Roll number, pretty much sets the tone for the rest of the record. Mark “Creepy” Sultan lol primarily takes care of the vocal duties and he demonstrates some of his best screaming, shouting, and straight up singing on this album. The soulful, delicate, “Into the Snow” like vocals are nowhere to be seen. The fun continues with the second track, “We Know Where the Girls Are,” a tune that must have got the Canadian, garage rock, femme enthusiasts racing to the dancefloor! Most of the songs are about the hunnies and rockin and dancing and what not, you know the good stuff, Chuck Berry style, but ocassionally you witness some fucked up, but hilarious themes relating to death, as seen in “C’mon Let’s Suicide,” “Kill Me,” and “Piss On Your Grave,” which has now become my new favorite insult. The LP closes on it’s highest note with “Tell Me Your Name,” a track not as fast or as loud as the previous rockers, but still heavy and tremendously danceable. All in all, this is one of the best Rock records you can find, it’s everything great Rock and Roll should offer. Essentially, we have sped up versions of 50s-60s Rock and Roll, definitely not the most original artistic expression out there, but certainly the funnest!

Chris

Art, Entertainment, Lists, Music, reviews

Shattered Records Tour: Jay Reatard, Nobunny, Hunx and His Punx, Box Elders, Useless Eaters @ Harpers Ferry (10/2/09)

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Artist(s): Jay Reatard, Nobunny, Hunx and His Punx, Box Elders, and Useless Eaters
Location: Harpers Ferry, Alston, MA
Date: Friday, October 2, 2009

Pre-Show Activity: Doors opened at 8, so we arrived at 8, but that was not good enough apparently. Doors were now to open at 8:30. In the meantime we shot the shit with Billy, drummer for Nobunny, whom would later play before Jay Reatard. Billy was a great guy and provided Glen and myself with insight on the real world of garage rock: Grueling tour schedules (driving in vans to and fro, none of that pussy bus shit), partying, and fun fun Rock and Roll! Having played with Jay for some time, Billy voiced his admiration for the band, particularly the incredibly fast guitar playing. He also mentioned the light and dark sides of Mr. Reatard (calm at one moment and gonzo the next); no surprise.

The Show:
Useless Eaters:
Chris: This duo composed of Reatard on bass with a fierce, energetic comrade on guitar and vocals. Clearly, guitar-driven music; vocals were weak. But, I thought it was decent, a good start to the show. I am glad to see Jay keeps busy with side projects.

Glen: Played hard punk-influenced garage rock that sounded at times like early Jay Reatard. Jay’s bass play is what made this band, but I got to complement the guitarist on his fine solos. The last song, which was at leat over five minutes long, stood out in my mind as the group’s best. Jay played the same bass line over and over again while the guitarist went through a few different effects.

Box Elders:
Chris: With this group we see a slight progression in crowd reaction. This progression would sharply follow with each group up to and including Jay Reatard. Anyway, Box Elders (I thought they were “Box Cutters” until just now haha) offered me a rare experience. Only once in a blue moon, if that, do I see a live band, especially an opening act and almost immediately find myself singing along to their tune. So, props to Box Elders for that. They displayed plenty of passion and high energy, particularly the drummer, who stood up the entire and simultaneously played keyboards the entire set! He also made goofy faces and body movements, which was funny and entertaining, to say the least. The guitarist sported a fancy, double guitar, which I have never seen in person, so that was cool. Well, I can really see their music appearing on my ipod in the future.

Glen: Really really catchy. Old sounding garage-pop, fun for the entire family! The drummer made this band in my opinion. He was quite the character, doing aerobics and stretches all whilst playing the drums with one hand and using the other to hit some organ keys. The two singers voices went well and definitely this is a band I’ll keep a fine eye on in the future. Their best two songs in my opinion were “Jackie Wood” (brought back memory of Ramones + arm aerobics!) and “Librarians” (awesome little keyboard part).

Hunx and His Punx:
Chris: Wow! Bruno Live! Which I’m sure disgusted or irritated, or possibly enticed many. For me, I just laughed my ass off in bewilderment. If you think you have seen homocore or queercore, then look again. Hunx and His Punx is just about as gay as it gets and unabashedly so. I will admit, the music was fine, but nothing special. Wit that beings said, singer Hunx (? lol) demonstrated fabulous showmanship, albeit in tight spandex, which he disrobed until her was down to a thong. The guy next to me had his face planted in the singer’s crotch…. it looked like he enjoyed it though haha. By the way, he looked like Cole Alexander.

Glen: When it comes down to it, Hunx and His Punx played some pretty awesome good music. That’s beside their stage presence which made everyone in the audience except for one guy feel really awkward. A homo-punk band taken to the most literal sense, the singer chanted about how he “likes [his] boys like meat – juicy and raw.” The singer actually reminded me of a really flamboyant Dean Allen Spunt plus an intense lisp.

Set List:
1. You Don’t Like Rock & Roll
2. Hey Rocky
3. Cruisin”
4. Teardrops
5. Do the Makeup
6. GOOD Kisser
7. Gimme Gimme Back Your Love

*On October 1, 2009, Hunx and His Punx arrived at the Holiday Inn in Montreal. How much did it cost to accommodate five individuals? Why 126.99, in case you wondering. Seth Bogard made the reservation. Yeah, next time don’t put your set list on the back of your hotel invoice. Good times.

Nobunny:
Chris: Perhaps the best band to play straight before Jay. These wild bunnymen, (yes there was a bunny!) continued the trend of charisma Hunx created. Playing loud, fast, garage punk, they garnered the crowd in to intense dancing, moshing, pogoing and just about any -ing you can think of. The guitarist (drummer, Billy’s bro) spent most of their set at the very front of the stage with and sometimes in the audience. I even grabbed one of his fluffy bunny tails, which he proceeded to Jay(ha!) with. The set concluded with some good old fashion Pyrotechnics! Unfortunately, the security stomped them out merely after seconds of ignition. I dug the last line of their performance, right after the pyro was put out, “We still have seven more songs to play.” Something to that effect.

Glen: The crowd really got into Nobunny. They fuckin’ rocked the place. Their formula for success was essentially the same as the other bands, except they just seemed to have a little something extra. The singer was really interactive, jumping into the crowd on a few occasions. The bassist also didn’t hate going up to the crowd. We met the drummer Billy! Such a cool dude…besides him dressing in only underwear. That’s what the singer did too and a bunny mask too. Apparently, the lead singer of Hunx is the lead singer of Nobunny, but I can’t confirm this. They pulled similar antics on stage, except Nobunny was far less gay. “BoneYard” was probably their biggest hit.

Jay Reatard!!!!:
Chris: Looking back at my earlier post, “Jay Hopes and Expectations,” I can say most were ultimately satisfied in this great concert. He played over half of the favorites I envisioned him playing. He did not get pissed and leave abruptly. There was no animosity between the audience and the performers. His set was about forty minutes I believe that is the exact time or longer than I expected. Unfortunately, he did not play all of my favorites; these are songs I wish he would have played: “Blood Visions,” “Waiting For Something,” “Screaming Hand,” “Always Wanting More,” “DOA,” “No Time,” “You Were Sleeping,” and “Rotten Mind.” It seems like he will never play those really soft songs like “No Time,” “You Were Sleeping, and even one of his latest, “There Is No Sun.” Nahh, Jay has to maintain that unrelenting, brutal, live assault. His music live is much different than on record. I know this true of all artists, but especially true of him. Live, sometimes you cannot even tell which song it is, even if it is a number you would normally recognize if you heard the recording; it’s all heavy, great for rocking out, moshing, crowd surfing, stage diving, etc. And our crowd certainly did so. We Reatards had tons of fun bashing around and singing along to his malevolent, anti-social lyrics. “My Shadow,” “It’s So Easy,” and “See/Saw” evoked tremendous crowd response, more than any other tracks. Fans, self-included, got a massive kick out of screaming “IT’S SO EASY WHEN YOUR FRIENDS ARE DEAD! IT’S SO MUCH EASIER WHEN YOU DON’T EVEN CARE! ALL THESE FACES MEAN NOTHING TO ME! ALL THESE FACES MEAN NOTHING TO ME! ALL THESE FACES MEAN NOTHING TO ME!” Just taking a quick gander at the set list (which is featured below) one will notice most of the songs were from Reatard’s earlier albums, Blood Visions (7) and Singles ’06-’07 (8, though some of those are BV tracks). This is another indication that he plays mostly raw, heavy, guitar fuzz-driven songs in his concerts, since these albums feature such music much more than his past two releases: Matador Singles ’08 and Watch Me Fall

Glen: I was pleasantly surprised that the crowd was 10X more into Jay this time around than they were in July. He played all good ones. He’s rocked for a while and probably will for years to come. “See/Saw” certainly got me the most excited.

The following is Jay’s set list for the night; in parentheses is the album/compilation of which the song appears:

An Ugly Death (Matador Singles ’08)
Nightmares (Blood Visions and Singles ’06-’07 but under the name “Haunting You”)
Fading All Away (BV and S0607 as “Searching For You”)
It Ain’t Gonna Save Me (Watch Me Fall)
Trapped Here (MS08)
Greed Money Useless Children (BV)
_*_*_- Switch To Acoustic- _*_8_
All Over Again (S0607)
I Know A Place (S0607)
I’m Watching You (MS08 and WMF)
–_*_*_-Switch Back-_*_*_–
It’s So Easy (BV and S0607)
Not A Substitute (BV)
MY Shadow (BV)
Oh It’s Such A Shame (BV and S0607)
See/Saw (MS08)
Hammer I Miss You (S0607)
Faking It (WMF)
A Whisper (demo)
Let It All Go (S0607)

Final Thoughts:
Chris: My 3rd favorite concert! Behind Black Lips, King Khan & The Shrines and just ahead of good old No Age. Four solid opening bands, a lot of charisma/energy, highly entertaining. I always get really exited when I see my ABSOLUTE FAVORITES and Jay is #4 for me, so this was big time. Pure Rock And Roll Fun!

Glen: Overall the experience was similar to the best concerts I’ve gone to…and that’s always awesome!

Grade: A

Chris

Culture Jamming, Entertainment, Music, rant

Rock and Roll Is Dead…

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You can eschew the title, I simply employed that as an attention grabber. Is rock dead? Well, that’s for you to decide, because it means something different to everyone. I suppose. Anyway, the point of this brief rant is actually about the rise and fall of good, mainstream music. Now, I know there was plenty of fantastic music before the dawn of Rock and Roll, but you have to start somewhere and I’m starting with Rock and Roll in the 1950s. It was new, rebellious and danceable. Hell, it even broke the color barrier. Whether it was Chuck, Dick, or Elvis that kicked off the whole show in a big Fucking way is another story. As we move into the 1960s, the bubblegum remains, but it’s still passionate. The Brits invade and take over the charts, Americans fight back. The music of the Beatles, Bob Dylan, and dozens of others becomes the soundtrack to a youthful Revolution protesting Western Civilization… and just having a gooddd time, man. By the 1970s, things start to become too commercialized. Right around 1973. Then tons of shit is splattered at us! We have dealt with shit before (see Patti Page), but not to this extreme. This begins, what Pete Townsend once declared “the fall of the Roman Empire.” And ever since then mainstream pop music has been more or less dominated by shitty, overly mersh music. The 90s did have various stellar mainstream bands (Smashing Pumpkins, RATM, STP, etc.) riding the wave Nirvana reluctantly christened. But, it appears to me that we will never again see the days of music with soul, integrity, and passion in domination as we did in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. But, this is not necessarily a bad thing. Most of the great music for you is unmainstream, if there ever were such a label. There have always been underground movements and especially uprisings against the corporate ogre and status quo which make Rock and Roll fun and exhilarating like it supposedly was in the early days. Right now could be the best time for music; in fact most of the best music I listen to is from the past few years and yet 90% (probably more) of people haven’t heard of it. I advise anyone and everyone to not get caught up in that phony, retro trend of thinking that most of the great music was from the 1960s and 1970s and today’s music just sucks ass. It is true that the “better” music was popular and dominated the radio back then and modern radio bares no resemblance to that, but don’t get sad, go out and discover new bands or dare I say start your own! Good Luck!

Chris

Culture Jamming, Drugs, economics, Entertainment, Music, religion

GG Allin Manifesto

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The wise words of the messiah…..

GG Allin Mission Statement

If you believe in the real underground of Rock ‘N’ Roll, then now is the time to do something about it. The time is now to overthrow the current situations and declare war on the record companies, radio stations, publications, clubs, and anyone who promotes the whole so called “scene” as it now stands. We need to destroy it all and take it back from the corporate phonies and conformist. But action must be taken now and blood must be spilled.

First let me tell you who I am. I was born Jesus Christ Allin in 1956 in Lancaster, NH. The Jesus Christ they preach about in the Bible is a phony imposter – just a crutch for the cripples to lean on. Fuck that weak shit! I am the man to deal with. I created myself inside the womb from the fires of Hell. There are no separations between Jesus Christ, God and the Devil, because I am all of theme. I am here to take Rock ‘N’ Roll back & prove to the world that I am the real king through the powers I have acquired.

When I was born in 1956, Rock ‘N’ Roll first started taking off. Why do you think that was? Because I created it. I created Elvis. I made it all happen. Even before I was born I was plotting. But through the years everyone has let it all go. That’s why I am ready to take it all back. Nobody has held on. Nobody has had the indurence to finish what they were set out to fucking do. They all let me down or I took their lives for a purpose. I was the one who was throwing all the monkey wrenches into the gears. But money and commercialism made them all sell out. Even Iggy let me down. The Sex Pistols let me down. Sid let me down when he fell in love (that’s why they are all dead). And now we have the Ramones praising bands like Guns N’ Roses, which runs against everything they were set out to destroy.

But now it’s 1991. This is the decade for the final bloody mutilation. Time to get Rock ‘N’ Roll out of the hands of the masses and back to the people who will not accept comfort or conformity at any cost. Then I will commit suicide on stage and the blood of Rock ‘N’ Roll will become the poison of the Universe forever. Take a look around and see what’s happening. Spineless record companies kissing the mainstreams ass, being pressured by the money media and politicians. So called cutting edge radio stations as fucking lame as the stations they oppose. Censorship publications kisssing the monkey suits asses, who in turn, are kissing someone else’s ass. Even so called “underground” publications have no fucking desire to get blood on their hands. They are too busy crying about how we can make the world a more wonderful place and how politically correct they can be. Talk is fucking cheap.

It’s time to fight. It’s time for revenge. We need to overthrow Rock ‘N’ Roll as it now stands. We must bring down record companies by not buying their products. A boycot. If you have to have a record, steal it. That way they wont get your money. We’ve got to stop feeding them. Your support must now go to me – GG Allin, the commanding leader and terrorist of Rock ‘N’ Roll. Why do you think I am in prison right now? Because they know who I am and they fear my reality. Our society wants to stop my mission. They want to brain wash you and keep you locked into MTV, and their stagnating, safe worlds. It’s a plot to kill Rock ‘N’ Roll. I am the savior. Thats why I am considered a threat to society.

This is what you should do:
Go to your record store and buy all the GG ALLIN recordings you can find. If they dont have any in stock, tell them to order some. If they refuse, then do what you have to do. Call radio stations and demand GG Allin. Spray paint “GG ALLIN” everywhere. Make them aware that the disease and the Scumfuc tradition is still spreading. Write “GG ALLIN” on all your dollar bills. Any bills you have. People do not throw money away, so it would be a free way to get the message out. You must do it every day of your life. We must live for the Rock ‘N’ Roll underground. It CAN be dark and dangerous again. It CAN be threatning to our society as it was meant to be. IT MUST BE UNCOMPROMISING. And with me as your leader, it will happen. I am ready to lead you, my allies, into the real Rock ‘N’ Roll underground. Let’s get started.

Too bad, you died GG ahha ohh well. Gonzo indeed!

Chris