Grant Lee Buffalo "fuzzy" 1993****

I just returned from watching a concert in The Hague, featuring Grant Lee Buffalo's Grant Lee Phillips and Giant Sand's Howe Gelb. Grant Lee had a cold and apologized for his ragged voice but he was easily the better of the two, although admittedly he couldn't hit the high notes on "Fuzzy". I came back, poured myself a drink, slipped the cd in the stereo, turned on my laptop and started writing. "Fuzzy" is a record I've bought twice, since the original lp didn't survive the great vinyl purge of 2004. In retrospect the great vinyl purge was a bad move but my collection was just sitting in the old family house as it was too big for my bachelor's apartment. I salvaged a small portion (maybe 400-500 records) and emptied out my old room to clear space for my baby nephew. This album from 1993 was the Buffalo's first and a mini-masterpiece that may not have set the charts on fire but got a lot of praise from those who knew best. R.E.M's Michael Stipe for example declared it "The best album of the year, hands down" and asked them to support R.E.M in their tour. The music is alternative rock with folk elements, lyrical piano and acoustic guitars alternating with distorted electric ones. Neil Young, R.E.M, Pearl Jam, 16 Horsepower and The Waterboys are some comparisons that spring to mind. "The Shining Hour" is a fast piano-led song while "Jupiter And Teardrop", "Stars N' Stripes", "The Hook" and (lead single) "Fuzzy" are gorgeous ballads that nevertheless also sport some great electric guitar. "Wish You Well", "Soft Wolf Tread" and (second single) "America Snoring" are alt.rock and "Dixie Drug Store" Americana with blues and soul elements. Listening to this album again so long after it first came out, I can verify that Grant Lee's marvelous voice and strong songwriting remain relevant and impressive 20 years later, which means that it can now rightly be declared a classic. Time for a new generation of music lovers to discover it.

***** for Fuzzy

**** for The Shining Hour, Jupiter And Teardrop, Wish You Well, Stars 'N' Stripes, Dixie Drug Store, America Snoring

*** for The Hook, You Just Have To Be Crazy
** for Soft Wolf Tread, Grace

Grant Lee Phillips and Howe Gelb on stage at the Paard van Troje, earlier tonight

Live "V" 2001**

I got this recently with a bunch of other cd's for 1 euro per piece. They were more than 30 of them, some only vaguely familiar and some that did get some exposure in their time, but were subsequently forgotten. I'm in the process of listening to them and will be presenting them here among other new purchases and random choices from my collection. There were a lot of Live cd's in that box, a statement of both their former popularity in The Netherlands and current unfashionable status. I remember liking their debut "Throwing Copper" back in the day but I haven't listened to it for what seems to be a decade. "V" is the second Live album in my collection and their 5th in chronological order. It's commendable for trying to distance itself from the "grunge" label by bringing together different elements: Beatle balladry, U2 epic rock, hard rock guitars, rap-metal fusion (RHCP, Faith No More) etc. One of my favourite details is the ever present but discreet oriental melodic lines. Opener and lead single "Simple Creed" is a strong track and features a guest rap by Tricky. "Deep Enough" is a radio friendly rocker, introduced with a solitary piano to make room for a melange of all the aforementioned elements: hard rock guitars, eastern melodies, nu-metal (system of the down-like), rap, the works... "Call Me a Fool" and "Nobody Knows" are a couple of Beatles influenced ballads. The latter, although a good song, suddenly had me wondering what John Lennon's ghost thinks of all his imitators. Does he smile pleased at the flattery or is he sharpening a stick for when he finally meets them? "Forever May Not Be Long Enough" is the 3rd single from the album, a hard rocker with Arabic flourishes and incidentally the theme song of the "mummy returns" movie. "Overcome", the second single, is a beautiful ballad with piano and strings that sounds like it escaped from REM's "automatic for the people". Due to the timing of its release and message it has become forever connected with the 9/11 attacks, something also stressed by the video clip. "People Like You" reminds me a bit of Guns 'n' Roses, "OK?" is funk metal, "Transmit Your Love" and "Hero of Love" are power ballads and the rest rather generic 90's grunge rock. My copy of the album closes with an (unannounced) alternative version of "Deep Enough". Overall, it's a listenable but undistinguished album. Play it if you nostalgic for the "good ole days" of grunge. It'll melt your nostalgia away...

**** for Simple Creed, Deep Enough (both versions)

*** for Like a Soldier, People Like You, Forever May Not Be Long Enough, Nobody Knows, Overcome

** for Intro, Transmit Your Love, Call Me a Fool, Flow, The Ride, OK?, Hero of Love

Eric Clapton and Friends "The Breeze: An Appreciation of J.J. Cale" 2014****

Eric Clapton must surely be JJ Cale's biggest fan. For his very first solo album he recorded a cover of then completely unknown Cale's "After Midnight". He then had a big hit with another Cale song, "Cocaine", while he recently recorded a whole album with him ("The Road to Escondido"). This fascination isn't all that apparent if you compare their playing styles: Cale's is fluid and relaxed, while Clapton's can be loud and fiery. Anyway, Cale's unfortunate passing last year led Clapton to curate a tribute album to him, with himself playing guitar and singing on some songs while various "friends" provide vocals & second guitar. These include Tom Petty, Mark Knopfler, John Mayer, Don White and country legend Willie Nelson. Other guest guitarists include Albert Lee, David Lindley, and Derek Trucks while Cale's widow Christine Lakeland helps with backing vocals. All artists approach their source material with respect (perhaps too much respect), resulting in beautiful and understated performances and an album that is quite homogenic and manages to exude the same feeling as Cale's own. "Same Old Blues" is probably the only song where Clapton's style is readily identifiable, as he mostly prefers to play close to the original rather than rock it out like he did with "Cocaine". Knopfler on the other hand makes "someday" sound like Dire Straits without straying too far since his style was always closer to that of Cale's. Opener "Call Me the Breeze" is indicative of the album, rolling along nicely with fantastic guitar work, although it still isn't as good as Lynyrd Skynyrd's version. "Rock and Roll Records" featuring Tom Petty is another winner. Not being familiar with the original versions of this or "Someday", I was much more pleased with these than e.g. "Lies", a great performance of this hit that is nevertheless so close to the original it's like listening to karaoke. John Mayer was known to me by name only but his singing here and on "Magnolia" convinced me to search for more. "Sensitive Kind" features fellow Okie Don White on vocals and is a delicate ballad that reminds me of Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight". Once more, although flawless, not my favorite cover of this song-that would be John Mayall's. "Cajun Moon" and "I Got the Same Old Blues" are two bluesy numbers by Clapton while "Songbird" and "Starbound" feature country legend Willie Nelson on vocals. He makes no effort to imitate JJ's singing and he songs are the better for it. "I'll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)" is a fast country number while "The Old Man and Me" sports a hypnotic bossa/blues rhythm. "Don't Wait" and “Train to Nowhere” are a couple of very successful collaborations between Clapton and, respectively, Mayer and Knopfler. Overall, the album manages to convey Cale's spirit and provide an enjoyable listening experience with some virtuosic but restrained guitar playing. Nevertheless I, for one, would like to hear such good musicians give their own version of the songs and preferably expand them beyond the 3-minute mark. Faithful as it is though, it makes for a good introduction to JJ Cale's music and should convince newcomers to dig deeper. If you're one, I'd suggest to get any of his first 5 albums, although you can't go wrong with anything bearing his name (As his critics like to point out, they all sound more or less the same).

**** for Call Me the Breeze, Rock and Roll Records, Someday, Cajun Moon, Don't Wait

*** for Lies, Sensitive Kind, Magnolia, I Got the Same Old Blues, Songbird, The Old Man and Me, Train to Nowhere, Starbound

** for Since You Said Goodbye, I'll Be There (If You Ever Want Me), Crying Eyes

The Proletariat "Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies" 1980-84(orig) 1998(comp)****

Today is election day in my homeland, Greece. As I live in the Netherlands and don't get to vote, I can only wish the voters a clear mind and courage to stand for their beliefs. It seems that a (true) left party will win the election and probably the government for the first time. They have promised to end the austerity policies dictated by IMF and EU, policies that wrecked the country's economy and have raised unemployment and poverty to third world levels. Supposedly that is the "bitter medicine" the Greek people have to swallow to cure their sovereign debt problem. In reality, the debt spirals out of control, wages fall and taxes rise driving the middle and lower classes to desperation while the corrupt politicians, bankers and oligarchs that benefited from the loans are left untouched. I sought an appropriate record for a day such as this. Well, Boston punk-rockers' "Voodoo Economics" may have been written 30 years ago for Reagan's America but it fits like a glove: "Voodoo economics/ force fed, hard to swallow/ the cure is worse than the illness/ this cure, worse than the illness/ pull yourself up by your bootstraps sounds so good in theory/ the poor must shoulder the burden/ pull yourself up by your bootstraps voodoo".

Even in liberal Boston, naming your band The Proletariat and dispensing Marxist propaganda with punk guitars in Reagan's America right in the middle of Cold War must have been asking for trouble. It certainly meant excluding yourself from any kind of radio play, not to mention MTV. No wonder you may have never heard of them, then. I hadn't either, but the band name and cover with the ragged american flag caught my attention. I'm glad I've followed my instinct and bought the CD, because it contains some of the best punk music produced in the US in the 80's. I'd recommend checking out their lyrics at: http://theproletariat.com/prolelyrics.htm, it's all fiery and eloquent anti-capitalist stuff. Fans of agitators like Rage Against The Machine and System Of The Down will certainly recognize a kindred spirit here. But even if you're unpolitical, if you like punk music you're bound to love The Proletariat. This double CD compilation gathers everything The Proletariat ever recorded in one neat package. At 45 songs, it can be overwhelming to say the least. I like this kind of music but too much can be headache-inducing. It has been described as a mixture of Wire and Gang of Four and the angular and minimal guitar sound does remind me of Wire, but the overall feeling is much heavier. I'd certainly add New Model Army, Killing Joke and Black Flag as reference points. Even Heavy Metal, at times - is it my imagination, or does the riff on "Decorations" sound similar to "Enter Sandman"? And while the likes of "Voodoo Economics", "Ten Years" and "Westernization" sound like an angrier Gang Of Four, there's also hardcore ("Allegiance", "Famine". "Blind", "Subsidized") and enough of that old school punk ("After The Rise". "Options") that  Rancid love to recycle. Disc 1 covers 1980-1982 and Disc 2 1983-1984. The latter offers some slightly more melodic new wave and interesting collaborations, namely Laurel Bowman as guest female vocalist on "The Guns Are Winning" & "Homeland" and  Mission Of Burma's Roger Miller in keyboards on "Uneasy Peace". Punk/Alternative Rock fans should seek this CD out and boast they had it before they are re-discovered and their albums declared hidden treasure.     UPDATE 2020> I (only just) found out that the band has in the meanwhile reformed, had their debut LP Soma Holiday re-released, and even recorded a new album. Good for everyone, Trump's America really needs a band like The Proletariat! P.S. Regarding the political events I mentioned in the prologue, the leftist Greek government crashed and burned, having resisted for 6 months before capitulating to all of the EU and IMF demands. I guess there's only so much one can expect from politicians. You gotta stick it to The Man yourself if you can!

**** for Voodoo Economics, Ten Years, Options, Westernization, Splendid War, Decorations, Homeland, An Uneasy Peace, The Guns Are Winning, Piecework, Religion is the Opium of the Masses

*** for Abstain, Allegiance, After the Rise, White Hands, Famine, Events/Repeat, Another Banner Raised, Hollow Victory,  Avoidance, Pictures, Bread & Circus, Blind, Subsidized, Torn Curtain, Purge, Scars, No Lesser of Evils, Choice, Death of a Hedon, Indifference, Better Man, Columns, Recollections, Trail of Tears, Instinct, No Real Hope, Marketplace

** for Embraced, Condition, Decide On Change, It's More Than Soil, Pride, Sins, No Real Hope-Prelude

Egg Hell "Once Part Of A Whole Ship" 2014***

plan of a raft that was once part of a whole ship

Back in the day, I used to know every last group active in the Greek alternative rock scene- a few of them personally. I'd see them at the clubs or listen to them on the specialized radio show (hosted by former Panx Romana drummer Dimitris Dimitrakas, I believe it was called "Rock'n'Roll Voitheies"). I kinda feel guilty, being so out of touch now. So I'm glad to present a modern Greek indie band - the atrociously named Egg Hell. This CD was a present from my best friend Anastasia, who is a DJ/journalist/publishing house worker etc. It is the debut of Sao Paolo born/Athens resident Jef Maarawi. The album is a varied affair that can be generally described as indie folk-pop. Radiohead seem to be the main influence, but almost every song is in a different style ranging from pop to folk to electronic to experimental. "Never Sailed" for example starts as a whisper and gradually transforms into an indie pop that reminds me of James. "Suffering" is the radio-friendly Coldplay moment and "Gingerhead" a lyrical song with dramatic strings. "Particles" reminds me of that long forgotten group, The Band Of Holy Joy. I doubt Jeff has ever heard of them, he was unborn when they disappeared from view. "Pandemic Blues" is more experimental with electronic sounds (the "Kid A" moment) and "Black And White Shoes" (Damien Rice-like) indie-folk. "Fish" reminds me of those likeable Belgians dEUS, "Porto Madero" is delicate folk a la Nick Drake etc.  Sorry for the parade of references, you can take it as a sign of the elusiveness of Maarawi's sound. The cd cover and title are actually a cryptic reference to the wreck of the French frigate Medusa and the raft the survivors made from the pieces of the ship (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Raft_of_the_Medusa). Besides Egg Hell, it has inspired a (rather more famous) painting, currently at the Louvre. If what you read sounds interesting to you, the album is available via iTunes. I don't know if it's physically available outside Greece.

**** for Suffering, Gingerhead

*** for Never Sailed, Black And White Shoes, Fish, Porto Madero, Particles

** for Pandemic Blues, Oh Lord, Napoleon, Useless Captain

The Sound “All Fall Down” 1982****

All Fall Down, aka part 3 of The Sound box set

A while ago, I announced the delivery to my door of The Sounds box set and promised to write individual presentations for every CD. The first two were easy, as they were all-time favorites of mine and the vinyl versions of them have kept me company for more than 20 years. "All Fall Down" is a different beast altogether. It was completely unknown to me, never heard any songs off it before on the radio or anywhere else. Not surprising, since there were never any singles released and no promotion whatsoever. As legend has it, when The Sound delivered to WEA their dark masterpiece "From The Lion's Mouth", it responded with pressure to "make something more commercial". This led to a power struggle between band and record company, which saw everyone on the losing side: The Sound delivered a totally uncompromising and deliberately uncommercial record of shadows without light, devoid of the memorable choruses and driving guitars of the past. The record company on its part just released the record without promoting it and broke the band's contract. Fan reaction was (mild to complete) disappointment. It is said (and I will attest to that) that "All Fall Down"is a difficult album that nevertheless possesses hidden virtues and rewards you after repeated listens. Uncommonly, I can use 3 words beginning with "ang" to describe it: Angry, Angular, Angst (as in the work of Kierkegaard and Freud "Angst=an acute but unspecific feeling of anxiety; usually reserved for philosophical anxiety about the world or about personal freedom"). Regarding the individual tracks, “All Fall Down” is a dark and borderline scary beginning, thankfully followed by the two more listener-friendly songs of the record, the upbeat “Party Of The Mind” and mid-tempo “Monument”. As with previous records, the music is reminiscent of contemporaries like the Cure and (especially) Joy Division.“In Suspense” has a nice chorus with electronic handclaps of some sort and “Where The Love Is” is a beautiful song with strong lead vocals by Adrian Borland. The rest of the album (i.e. second side of the old vinyl) is slightly inferior to the first. "Song And Dance” has a fast and driving rhythm, “Calling The New Tune” typical new wave synths and "Red Paint" sounds like a throwback to the post-punk of their first album. “Glass And Smoke” is a bleak and experimental song constantly repeating the catch-phrase "We have killed our days with boredom" and “We Could Go Far” is a slow song that closed the original album. Some reviewers consider it their favorite track off “All Fall Down”. It kind of sounds like Pornography-era Cure (which is, of course, a good thing) but it leaves me cold. Of the three album outtakes "Sorry" is the keeper with its nice guitar riffs and pounding (drum machine?) rhythm, while “As Feeling Dies” is a dark anti-lovesong. As a bonus,  this edition contains the "This Cover Keeps Reality Unreal" EP, a collaboration with singer-songwriter Kevin Hewick. It's an interesting amalgam of folk and punk/new wave, but not up to The Sound's usual standards.  

**** for Party Of The Mind, Monument, Where The Love Is, Song And Dance, Sorry

*** for All Fall Down, In Suspense, Calling The New Tune, Red Paint, Glass And Smoke, As Feeling Dies, Plenty, 'Neath Dancing Waves

** for We Could Go Far (both versions), The One And A Half Minute Song, Amber, Scapegoat In A Country Churchyard

Ane Brun "It All Starts with One" 2011****

Another Norwegian act (after Ulver) and one that could hardly be more different. Ane Brun comes originally from Molde, a city I first heard of when Olympiakos played the local team for the Champions League some 15 years ago - and never again since. She (Ane, not Molde FK) traveled extensively around Europe and in 2002 embarked on a singing career. Brun's biggest asset is her beautiful, expressive and delicate voice which, in combination with her art-rock sensibilities, has led to frequent comparisons with Kate Bush. She soon became famous in Scandinavia, winning many awards including one for her collaboration with (my favorite Norwegian group) Madrugada. International success nevertheless eluded her until Peter Gabriel asked her to contribute vocals in his album "New Blood" and join the subsequent world tour. "It All Starts with One" is the album that followed that world wide exposure and was immediately successful, occupying the top of the charts in both Sweden (her adopted homeland) and Norway and gaining great reviews everywhere. Right from the start (opener "These Days") I was amazed with how well arranged the album was, with a variety of musicians perfectly complementing Ane's vocals without ever shifting the focus from the voice to the instruments. Everyone's playing is subtle and restrained, especially the drums that so often tend to overshadow everything else: usually when they want to make a slow and intimate ballad they remove the drums altogether but here they place them in the background in a way that adds to the mood while barely getting noticed. "Words" adds strings to the mix and "Worship", a duet with José González, complets the opening trio of wonderful ballads. Lead single "Do You Remember" is something different altogether, a rhythmic track with the drums on the forefront (although never too loud). The combination of tribal drums and backing vocals from young Swedish duo First Aid Kit give the song a distinctive African feel. It seems someone has been spending time with Peter "mr.World Music" Gabriel! "What's Happening with You and Him" is another ballad with piano and soaring strings and "One" an upbeat theatrical song with flamenco-style castanets. Of the remaining 3 ballads, "The Light from One" is the most dramatic while "Oh Love" is jazz-folk a la Joni Mitchell. The "deluxe edition" contains a second cd with 8 extra tracks. Of these, "Dirty Windshield" is a stark affair with piano, "Take it Slow" contains some nice violin and "Queen and King" a live country number. "One Last Try" steals the show with its vivid piano and high pitched vocals, and finally the second disc ends with two cover songs, Anthony Hegarty's dramatic "Another World" and Mercedes Sosa's "Alfonsina y el Mar" whose Spanish lyrics she handles with ease.

**** for These Days, Worship, Do You Remember, One, One Last Try

*** for Words, What's Happening with You and Him, Lifeline, The Light from One, Oh Love, Take It Slow, Another World, Alfonsina y el Mar 

** for Undertow, Dirty Windshield, Queen and King, Du Gråter Så Store Tåra (English Version), I Would Hurt a Fly

Ulver "Live At Roadburn (Eulogy For The Late Sixties)" 2013***

A Norwegian Black-Metal-turned-Stoner-Art-Rock band playing barely rehearsed covers of 1967 garage-psychedelia in an one-off festival in Tilburg, Netherlands? Of course I'd have the CD, are you kidding me? Ulver (Norse for “wolves”) began as a black metal/pagan folk band in 1993 but slowly progressed to experiment with every genre under the sun from progressive rock to electronica to classical. Not surprisingly then, they made a detour with Childhood's End, an album of garage-psychedelic covers which they presented at the Roadburn 1967 Concert. In their own words it "felt quite invigorating after the doom and gloom of the last few years". Given that the arrangements were hastily worked out, the live album of that concert holds out incredibly well. Garage nuggets "In the Past" and "I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)" are played relatively straight while "Soon There'll Be Thunder" and "Today" are given a slow-and-heavy twist with Jim Morrison-esque vocals. "Velvet Sunsets" and "Magic Hollow" are beautifully executed psychedelic ballads (cool choices, by the way!). The Elevators' "Street Song" and the Troggs' "66-5-4-3-2-1" are heavy rock à la Monster Magnet, something arguably closer to Ulver's home. Gandalf's "Can You Travel in the Dark Alone?" (another inspired choice and one of my favorite songs from the era) is a flower power ballad that gradually wanders off to outer space, while the album ends with a (Can-inspired) instrumental improvisation. Ulver were strangers to me before I heard this album but now I'm intrigued to learn more about them. They've obviously got some chops!

**** for Today (Jefferson Airplane), 66-5-4-3-2-1 (The Troggs), Magic Hollow (Beau Brummels)

*** for In the Past (Chocolate Watchband), Can You Travel in the Dark Alone? (Gandalf), Velvet Sunsets (Music Emporium), Street Song (13th Floor Elevators), I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night) (Electric Prunes), Impromptu Performance (Dedicated to Can)

** for Bracelets of Fingers (The Pretty Things), Soon There'll Be Thunder (Common People)

Quicksilver Messenger Service "Happy Trails" 1969****

I owe my discovery of "Happy Trails" (and psychedelic rock, in general) to the older brother of a former girlfriend, waaay back in the late 80's in Athens. That was the time before youtube, before MP3's and music downloads, when listening to such outré music was really difficult. State radio was indifferent to rock (with the exception of legendary dj Yannis Petridis). Pirate stations would play some rock, though you'd be much more likely to hear stuff like Deep Purple rather than Quicksilver. Record store employees were one source of information, friends another. Girlfriends with older siblings sometimes came in handy. So one afternoon I armed myself with a few C-90 cassettes and secretely recorded a bunch of said sibling's records, carefully putting everything back exactly the way I found it, since we had been in a restricted area. Valuable finds from this excursion included Country Joe & The Fish, the Chocolate Watch Band, Mad River, Sopwith Camel and some others you could probably spend a lifetime listening to the radio and never come across. "Happy Trails" was another find, and it is one of those records that music critics feel obliged to vote for at polls (yes, it's one of the albums you must hear before you die) but I'll bet they very rarely listen to. Because, let's face it, a 26-minute jam around a Bo Diddley beat isn't everybody's cup of tea. It was, of course, very revolutionary and psychedelic at the time (only 4 years before, any song longer than 3 minutes would have been rejected for being too long for the radio). Most of the album was recorded live in front of the hippy-friendly audience of The Fillmore in San Francisco. Side 1 of the LP was the band's version of "Who Do You Love", divided in sections that allowed every member a place in the spotlight. The introductory killer rendition of "Who Do You Love" is followed by "When You Love", essentially an extended jazzy guitar solo by Gary Duncan. "Where You Love" is a loose improvisation with audience participating and "How You Love" a shorter, hard rocking, solo by John Cipollina. "Which Do You Love" is bassist David Freiberg's turn to shine before going full circle with "Who Do You Love? (Part 2)". Side 2 contained another long Bo Diddley cover ("Mona") with excellent fretwork by the two guitarists (Always Duncan on the left channel, Cipollina on the right) and two instrumentals, "Maiden of the Cancer Moon" and "Calvary", a 13-minute improvisation with Morricone flourishes. The album closes with "Happy Trails" a short simple cowboy song which is in complete contrast to everything that went before. Generally the record is rather experimental and too much of its time, but you have to admire the inventive guitar playing and intuitive collaboration between the musicians. I don't listen to it very often, but I couldn't possibly give it less than 4 stars...

**** for "Who Do You Love? - Part 1, When You Love, Mona, Calvary

*** for How You Love, Which Do You Love, Who Do You Love - Part 2, Maiden of the Cancer Moon, Happy Trails

** for Where You Love

Richie Ramone "Entitled" 2013***

Among other disasters, small and great, 2014 saw the passing of the last original Ramone, Tommy Ramone/ Erdelyi. Although the Ramones legacy lives on in a million other bands (It can justifiably be said that they've influenced more bands than anyone but The Beatles), there are precious few opportunities to fly the eagle flag and chant the hymn of the Ramones nation (you all know the words: Hey Ho, Let's Go!). Marky and CJ have been appearing in festivals and making albums, but there's one Ramone who had been absent until recently: Richie drummed for the Ramones for 3 albums and more than 500 shows during his 5 year stint in the band (1982-1987). He helped them regain some of the momentum they had lost during the early 80's and attract new fans with a more hardcore sound. He wrote, among others, one of their greatest hits "Somebody Put Something In My Drink". Now, more than 25 years after he left the band, he took once more the Ramone nom de guerre and released his first solo record. The first impression is that it does not sound like The Ramones. It misses Joey's pop sensibilities and Johnny's love of 60's rock. Which doesn't mean that Ramones fans won't like it, because there is a lot to like: the music is hard and fast with driving drums, great guitar solos and memorable choruses. Richie may not be a great singer but he pulls through without embarrassing himself, playing an amalgam of punk and no-nonsense hard rock. Three of his own compositions from his Ramones days are resurrected here: "I Know Better Now," "I'm Not Jesus," "Humankind" and they all sound different from the originals but just as good. A few songs (e.g. "Take My Hand") sound curiously like Dinosaur Jr but mostly it reminds me of that other New York punk institution, The Dictators. "Smash You" is the one song that sounds exactly like The Ramones. Together with "Criminal", "Entitled" and "Into The Fire" they make up a quartet of new songs that stand up well next to the ones of his Ramones period. Although it does not add much to The Ramones legacy and it's doubtful that will be even a footnote in the band's history, it's nevertheless an enjoyable album with fantastic drumming and fun songs. In the absence of Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee and Tommy it's good to at least have Richie around to carry on the family name. Like the graffiti on the cover of the very last Ramones album said "Viva La Revolution - Arriva Los Ramones"!

**** for I Know Better Now

*** for Criminal, Entitled, Take My Hand, Smash You, Into The Fire, I’m Not Jesus, Humankind

** for Better Than Me, Someday Girl, Vulnerable, Forgotten Years

John Grant "Pale Green Ghosts" 2013***

John Grant's second album followed on the footsteps of debut "Queen Of Denmark", an artistic (and relative commercial) triumph. That album found the former Czars singer without a group and down on his luck, battling addictions, romantic failure, depression, loneliness and feelings of inadequacy and guilt stemming from the contradictions between his Christian upbringing and homosexuality. Folk-rockers Midlake helped him arrange and record a bunch of emotional and highly personal songs dealing with these issues, which met with wide recognition. For his second album he bravely (or foolishly) left Texas and benefactors Midlake behind and sought inspiration in Iceland. His musical foil now is Icelander Biggi Veira (of techno group Gus Gus), other local musicians and new friend Sinéad O'Connor on backing vocals. Lyrics are, once again, highly personal - only, this time he sounds self-centered and petty, constantly jabbing at his former lover. He can be funny, as when boasting in "GMF" ("I am the greatest motherfucker that you're ever going to meet") or ridiculous, as in "Vietnam" when comparing his lover's silence to getting attacked with chemical bombs. Musically the album alternates between the balladry of "Queen Of Denmark" and the electronic sounds of 80's Depeche Mode and Gorgio Moroder. Electronic "Pale Green Ghosts" provides a first shock for old fans. Here his rich voice blends well with the electronic backing, something that doesn't apply to "Black Belt" or "Sensitive New Age Guy". "Why Don't You Love Me Anymore" and "Ernest Borgnine" are two only semi-successful electronic tracks, the latter featuring vocoder vocals and tasty sax and openly expressing his feelings about his recent diagnosis with HIV. "GMF" on the other hand, sounds like a track out of "Queen Of Denmark" and constitutes the highlight of the album with its witty lyrics and soft croon. "Vietnam" and "You Don't Have To" are dramatic ballads with electronic elements. "It Doesn't Matter To Him" is a gorgeous ballad with Sinéad on backing vocals, just like the sprawling closer "Glacier". Overall the album is a worthy affair but I can't help but wonder if Midlake would have done a better job with this material. Veira's synth pop is well executed but doesn't blend so well with either Grant's voice or confessional songwriting. My version of the album has a second cd with two remixes each from "Black Belt", "Pale Green Ghosts" and "Why Don't You Love Me Anymore". None of them improves on the originals.

**** for Pale Green Ghosts, GMF, It Doesn't Matter To Him, Glacier

*** for Black Belt, Vietnam, You Don't Have To, Ernest Borgnine, I Hate This Town, Pale Green Ghosts (Rmx)

** for Why Don't You Love Me Anymore, Sensitive New Age Guy, Black Belt (Rmx), Why Don't You Love Me Anymore (Rmx)

Ian Dury "New Boots and Panties!!" 1977*****

"Assholes Bastards Fucking Cunts and Pricks..." is how Ian Dury starts his song "Plaistow Patricia" and therefore I guess a perfectly acceptable way to start my own presentation. This album of his often features in the "best albums of all time" lists but brought him only moderate success at that time. He was a very unlikely candidate for a rock star: A 35-year old former teacher and father of two children, crippled by polio at the age of 7, the only thing he had going for him was his wit, ingenious wordplay and flair for provocation. He didn't have much of a voice and used to half-sing and half-recite the words. But his aggressive style, sneer and obnoxious cockney accent sat well with the punks and, despite being a generation older and musically more diverse, he's considered part of that movement. What's often not acknowledged is just how good his band (The Blockheads) was. They expertly mixed up funk, rock, reggae, jazz, music hall and punk, every little guitar phrase or sax solo being exactly the right thing at the right moment. Opener "Wake Up and Make Love with Me" has a disco beat with dirty sexual lyrics and spacey moog synthesizer alternating with jazzy piano. "Sweet Gene Vincent" is a tribute to the great rock'n'roller starting as a nostalgic ballad before turning into rockabilly while "Dickie" and "Trevor" are music hall influenced numbers with Dury inhabiting different characters. "Blockheads", "Plaistow Patricia" and "Blackmail Man" closed the original album with a punk attack. "Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll" and its B-side "Razzle in My Pocket" were not part of the original package but fit well here and provide us with the immortal slogan "Sex and drugs and rock and roll/Is all my brain and body need/Sex and drugs and rock and roll/Are very good indeed". The song itself is also a fittingly hedonistic mix of rock, reggae and funk and its addition raises the album's rating to 5*. "You're More Than Fair" is a reggae ditty with rude lyrics, music hall "England's Glory"a song by his old band the Kilburns and "What a Waste" an excellent 1978 single. The album's title derives from Dury's habit of buying everything second hand except from boots and underwear and cover photo is taken outside a clothes shop in Westminster. His son (future singer Baxter Dury) ran in to pose with his dad during the photoshoot, thus getting himself on a record cover 25 years before recording his own debut.

***** for Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll

**** for Wake Up and Make Love with Me, Sweet Gene Vincent, Billericay Dickie, Plaistow Patricia, What a Waste

*** for I'm Partial to Your Abracadabra, My Old Man, Clevor Trever, If I Was With a Woman, Blockheads, You're More Than Fair, England's Glory

** for Blackmail Man, Razzle in My Pocket

Anekdoten "Chapters" 2009****(comp)

The name "Anekdoten" makes me think of people sitting around a fire and exchanging amusing stories. So I slipped the CD in my player, grabbed a beer and got ready for a good laugh. And so it began: "Hear me breathe/From the other room/So which of all the lies you told/Should I keep as my own?/The metaphors are lost on me/What I see is what I see/The earth is moving - time to say goodbye?/Only sky ahead/Love's so hard to find...". If that is Scandinavian humor, it's totally lost on me. But to be honest "funny" is not the word most associated with this band. I believe that that would be a tie between "mellotron" and "KingCrimson". For those unfamiliar with mellotrons, they are a form of primitive synthesizer mimicking the sound of a symphonic orchestra. The Beatles have used it on occasion but some bands have based their sound on it: The Moody Blues, Genesis and...King Crimson. After listening to the first CD, I have to say I don't see that many similarities to the latter group (other than the omnipresence of mellotrons). The sound is much more contemporary, reminding me more of Porcupine Tree, Anathema or Marillion. Opener "Ricochet" is atmospheric alternative rock while "The Great Unknown" is more progressive with flute and mellotron fills, heavy guitars and melodic vocal."From Within" and "In For A Ride" are heavy prog with loud guitars while "The War Is Over" is a gentle psychedelic piece with acoustic guitars and light percussion. "A Sky About To Rain" juxtaposes heavy Sabbath riffs with synths and segues seamlessly into the instrumental "Every Step I Take". "Groundbound" and "Gravity" are two more experimental psychedelic tracks and "When I Turn" an excellent ballad with beautiful piano and a full sound courtesy of the grandiose yet warm mellotron. When I started on the second disc, my expectations were rather lower. After all it's mostly demos and previously unreleased songs, something to hook in the completists. Well, I was right about this: It was different from the first. For one thing, I found out where the King Crimson comparisons come from. Half the songs sound like the spiritual child of KC's "21st Century Schizoid Man" but the opener "Sad Rain" is like a new "In the Court of the Crimson King". And I absolutely loved it. To think that the band had it previously exiled to the Japanese-only edition of their debut...presumably for being too derivative? It was the very first track written by them and they probably still wore their influences on their sleeve. The next two are also from the band's debut "Vemod" and include Opeth's Per Wiberg on piano. They are well suited to the "prog" label as they are really dense compositions. Lead vocals are handled by the bassist Jan Erik Liljestrom who has a more romantic and operatic voice than guitarist Nicklas Berg who handles most of the vocals on disc 1. "Wheel" has a lonesome horn playing in the background that is absolute genius. The rest of the songs are demos from the albums "Nucleus" and "A Time Of Day" although it may be more accurate to call them alternate versions, since they're fully realized songs. They're loud and complex compositions alternating from fairy-like to nightmarish and verging on the prog-metal of Tool or the aforementioned Opeth. Closer "Prince Of The Ocean" is an atmospheric song with a gentle acoustic intro and a combination of male and female vocals. Overall an album highly recommended to fans of Porcupine Tree and modern prog in general.

***** for Sad Rain

**** for The Great Unknown, The War Is Over, A Sky About To Rain, When I Turn, Prince Of The Ocean

*** for Ricochet, From Within, In For A Ride, Groundbound, Wheel, The Old Man & The Sea, Nucleus, Book Of Hours, 30 Pieces

** for Monolith, Every Step I Take, Gravity, This Far From The Sky

Temples "Sun Structures" 2014****

As often happens in the UK, The Temples were already tipped as the hottest new band in Britain before they even released their first long player, being anointed by The Smiths' Johnny Marr and Oasis' Noel Gallagher. When you hear the first song on the album, you'll know why: It's pure Beatles 1966 - Melodic, psychedelic pop of the highest caliber, immaculately produced the way only George Martin in his fabled Abbey Road studios could back in '66. The Temples have taken Oasis' Beatle-worship to the next level by not only reconstructing new songs from Beatles melodies but actually replicating their studio tricks and retro sound to dress their own songs. But the Temples are actually not influenced by any single band but rather a whole era: There are echoes of The Who, Kinks, Syd Barrett, Marc Bolan, Byrds, Electric Prunes, Doors etc. to be found everywhere in the songs, not to mention clothing and haircuts. Second track "Sun Structures" is distinctly harder and more psychedelic with even more pronounced oriental influences (Which reminds me of those other revivalists, Kula Shaker. I wonder what happened to them...). "Golden Throne" is pop-psych with soaring strings and "Keep in the Dark" sounds like a lost T-Rex single. "Colours to Life" sounds like The Byrds and Pink Floyd had a recording session together in 1967. If it was an obscure record from the 60's, collectors would commit murder to get their hands on it. "The Guesser" is a soft and sweet àla Zombies and "Test of Time" a perfectly executed psych-pop single. "Sand Dance" is with 6:30' the longest track and the group's grandest psychedelic statement, featuring heavy riffs and mini-melodies over an Arabic groove. I'd go as far as to say it sounds like a more controlled, cleaned-up version of "Set the controls for the heart of the sun". Folky ballad "Fragment's Light" rounds up the proceedings on a gentle, melancholic tone.

**** for Shelter Song, Sun Structure, The Golden Throne, Colours to Life, Test of Time, Sand Dance

*** for Keep in the Dark, Mesmerise, The Guesser, Fragment's Light

** for Move with the Season, A Question Isn't Answered

Offspring "Conspiracy of One" 2000***

Another CD of the latest 1 Euro batch and one of which I already had a bootleg version, having bought it from a street seller back in the day (I'm in the process of replacing old pirated CD-Rs with the real thing whenever possible). This was released in 2000 as the follow-up to the hugely successful "Americana" album. Offspring were at the time one of the most commercial US groups but still tried to keep some punk street credibility as evidenced by their support for file-sharing sites like napster at the same time that Metallica were suing their own fans for illegal downloading. It's a fun album if you don't mind the fact that they're re-hashing for the umpteenth time the formula perfected on "Smash" years before: fast and furious tempos, melodic choruses and surf guitar solos. For variation they expand (just a little bit) on the hip hop elements first introduced in their previous effort. Opener "Come Out Swinging" is one of the many songs in the typical South California punk idiom, just like the title track, "All Along", 2nd single "Want You Bad" and others. 3rd single "Million Miles Away" is the cream of that crop, featuring super-fast guitar and singalong chorus. Lead single "Original Prankster" is a shamelessly commercial rewrite of their MTV hit "Pretty fly (for a white guy)" right down to the satirical lyrics, catchy chorus, funky riff and hip hop elements. "Living in Chaos" and "Special Delivery" have a funk-metal vibe, the former sounding a bit like early RHCP. "One Fine Day" sounds more like English Oi! rather than Californian punk (until you get to the rap segment, that is) while "Denial, Revisited" is a ballad of sorts, not Offspring's forte but at least it provides some welcome variation. "Vultures" is a much more natural mid-tempo effort with echoes of Nirvana and even 80's New Wave while the CD ends with an a hidden song in the familiar melodic hardcore style. The album sold millions of copies but marked the start of decline for a band unable to renovate its sound (albums released later keep re-hashing the old formula with diminishing success). Having caught them at a festival a few years later, I can testify they were still great live, not unlike other veteran pros doing the festival circuit. That's no small thing, but it'd be great if some day they prove me wrong and make another album as good as "Smash".

                                 **** for Million Miles Away, Original Prankster, Living in Chaos

     *** for Come Out Swinging, Want You Bad, Special Delivery, One Fine Day, Vultures, Conspiracy of One

                  ** for Dammit, I Changed Again, All Along, Denial, Revisited, Huck It (hidden track)

The Shams "Take Off" 2001***

I just bought this cd and some others from a second hand store for 1 euro per piece. Being a garage music fan I was convinced to buy it by the cover: everything about it screamed "60's" and "garage". And just for this once, it turned out you can judge a book by its cover. This unholy ruckus could very easily have been produced by one of the countless garage bands blasting loud rock'n'roll with tons of attitude back in the 60's.That's exactly what The Shams do, no more and no less, and it's good enough for me. "Rock N' Roll" has singer Zach Gabbard doing his best impersonation of Mick Jagger fronting a very inept, loud and slightly off-key Stones (And I mean that as a compliment). "Scream My Name" is an absolute delight with groovy organ, loud drumming and stinging guitar licks. "I Get High" messes up by incorporating a psychedelic jam. "1/2 Past 12" sees the drums getting some serious pounding. "Me No More" is bluesy with a hint of Jim Morrison and Allen Toussaint's R&B standard "Get Out My Life Woman" gets an aggressive yet groovy reworking with handclaps (and the obligatory organ). "Not Right Now", "In The City" and "Don't Cry to Me" are garage dynamite and "Wolfman" pseudo-blues, sounding actually exactly like the short-lived Sky Saxon Blues Band who were, of course, just The Seeds in disguise. The cd closes with two long live tracks that are a bit too loose for their own good. All in all a good effort, totally devoid of originality unless you count the ill-advised forays into psychedelia. Pink Floyd they are most certainly not. But if you're a garage fan, here you'll find everything you look for in a record: bad Attitude, screaming vocals, primitive drums, cheesy organ and loud slightly-out-of-tune guitars. Close your eyes and it will transport you to a dark and seedy go-go bar at the bad part of town in 1966...

**** for Scream My Name

*** for Rock N' Roll, Not Right Now, 1/2 Past 12, Me No More, Get Out of My Life Woman, In the City, Wolfman, Don't Cry to Me

** for I Get High, Walkaway, Free My Mind, Sleepy Hollow (hidden track).

The War On Drugs "Lost In The Dream" 2014****

I got this one as a Christmas present - I'm easy in that respect, friends always know what to get me. This is a CD I was eager to listen to, since it featured on the top of many end-of-the-year lists of 2014. A lot of classic rock acts were name-checked as influences: Springsteen, Dylan, Pink Floyd and Neil Young. I hear some of them but I get more of an 80's feel myself: The Waterboys or Cure. In any case the album is quite original in its assimilation of various influences and worth the accolades of the music press. Keybords construct a hazy atmosphere for the songs to float in. The guitars on the other hand are surprisingly clean, eloquent but for the most part relaxed. Drums typically settle into a relentless monotonous rhythm reminiscent of kraut rock acts like Can and Neu! Opener "Under the Pressure" is a sprawling 9-minute epic the with atmospheric 80's keyboard sounds. To be fair the last 3 minutes are nothing but ambiance, deemed perhaps necessary as a palate cleanser for the next course: lead single "Red Eyes" is similar to the 1st track but faster and fuller, the band breaking through the synth-created fog with some stirring rock. "Suffering" is slow and dreamy alt.country haunted by the specter of 'Floyd circa '69. "An Ocean in Between the Waves" has a driving beat while the song builds up slowly with rousing guitars and vocals towards the end. "Disappearing" is another atmospheric piece with fluid guitar work. "Eyes to the Wind" reminds of late period Dylan while "The Haunting Idle" is an instrumental with no apparent value other than facilitate the flow of the album. "Burning" is one of the highlights and sounds like Springsteen set to a kraut rock beat. "Lost in the Dream" has some folky harmonica and "In Reverse" a long ambient intro with the song proper kicking into existence around the 3' mark. This use of spaces in War On Drugs is one of the things that sets them apart and establishes them as a band with strong roots in music history but an individual and timeless sound. I tend now to side along music critics and declare this album a classic. Individual songs work well enough but to really appreciate it you must immerse yourself into its atmosphere and enjoy its flow from start to finish. Oh, and by the way: great album title...

**** for Under the Pressure, Red Eyes, An Ocean in Between the Waves, Burning

*** for Suffering, Disappearing, Eyes to the Wind, Lost in the Dream, In Reverse

** for The Haunting Idle

Boss Hog "Whiteout" 1999****

Eye-catching cover, isn't it? That's Boss Hog's lead singer Cristina Martinez there, and more dressed than she usually is - in fact this the demure alternative cover, the other showing her topless with nothing than long hair extensions. She was in the habit of often posing (and even performing) naked. Not that anyone ever complained about that little knack of hers, mind you - certainly not her husband and Boss Hog guitarist John Spencer. There's a lot of back history for this punk-blues couple and we'll get into it. Since I own quite a few of John Spencer records, we'll get back to him later and focus for now only on Cristina. She hooked up with Spencer in 1985 and almost immediately joined his band Pussy Galore as guitarist despite never having played guitar before. That caused a lot of friction with the other members (especially "real" guitarist Julie Cafritz) who eventually kicked her out of the band before the group itself disintegrated. In '89 the (by then married) couple formed Boss Hog and immediately became an underground NY sensation thanks to their wild and noisy music and live antics. Constant personnel changes and Spencer's preoccupation with his other group (the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion/JSBX) prevented Boss Hog from having any success until a major label deal with Geffen in '95. Which brings us to this 1999 album which reads like an all-out assault for pop stardom. Two big name producers helped them clean their sound: Andy Gill (former Gang Of Four) and Swede Tore Johansson who had masterminded the Cardigan's rise to the top and also produced dance acts from A-ha to Melanie C/Sporty Spice. And they do a great job: The tunes are catchy and danceable and the vocals sweet and sexy. Martinez sounds less like her old self and more like Garbage's Shirley Manson. Her new sexy and comparatively restrained singing style, electronic beats, retro farfisa organ and funky guitar breaks combine to make the most accessible and mainstream album imaginable from these former punk rockers. Opener "Whiteout" is a declaration of intend, perfectly balanced between dance pop and indie rock. Spencer takes the lead vocal on "Chocolate" doing his familiar Elvis meets James Brown routine. He returns to backing vocals and distorted guitar for "Nursery Rhyme" with Martinez doing her best PJ Harvey impersonation before turning sweet and sultry again for synth-pop "Stereolight". "Fear for You" is one of the highlights with its retro-keyboard and 60's garage feel and "Get It While You Wait" another danceable pop single ala Garbage with a catchy chorus. Spencer is held back lest his guitar riffs scare innocent MTV viewers away. On the next song he offers a lot of "ugh"s and "c'mon"s, the combination of male and female vocals, funky rhythms and retro sounds sounding like a rootsier B52's. "Itchy & Scratchy" is another pop song with electronic beat and sultry female vocals before a sudden change of mood: Aggressive singing, loud guitars, wild garage punk are unleashed for the closing trio of songs, as a reward for any old fans still listening. In the end, although the album did well by their own standards, it failed to conquer the charts and put a stop to Boss Hog and Martinez's career in show business. Why it didn't catch on is a mystery. It certainly didn't lack the tunes, production or charismatic frontwoman. My guess is that it was too tame for rockers and too "meaty" for a pop audience used to ingesting nothing but hot air. As for Cristina's intended transformation into a pop idol, it was bound to fail. Dress a pussycat as a tiger, people will find her cute. Dress a tiger as a pussycat, you won't fool anyone into petting her... UPDATE: Two years after I wrote this, and after almost two decades of absence, Boss Hog were back with a new album and tour. Still an explosive live band judging from youtube clips, hope to see them live someday. They were last seen in 2018, but never say never...

**** for Whiteout, Chocolate, Stereolight, Fear for You

*** for Nursery Rhyme, Get It While You Wait, Jaguar, Itchy & Scratchy, Trouble, Monkey  

** for Defender