OLD NOISE (duh)

Tonight, my band, along with a bunch of others (upcoming reviews???), will be doing our best to rip off The Jesus Lizard. And who could blame us? In leu of ranting for half an hour about how the Lizard is the best band ever, we'll take a look at this instead:

SCRATCH ACID : The Greatest Gift (Touch & Go 1990)
This record has everything. Literally. 28 tracks is everthing they recorded, put together in one anthology, and seriously, except for GOAT, you might never hear another more intense record. David Yows vocals (yes, of JesusLizard fame) brings us from Elvis to Danzig to Hank, yet he's still that wierd dude who sounds more like the possessed, speaking in tongues. The songs are everything that rock had been up to that point. In "Monster", it's hardcore punk rock, in "Skin Drips" it's honky tonk ( Yow does his best impression of a harmonica, their might even be a real one in the way background, i can't tell), but through the whole, it's just noise. Most excellent noise. My favorite song would have to be "Owners Lament", a pretty epic song, and i'd have to say uncharacteristic of the rest of the album, with some hints of psychadelic and classic rock, and Yow sounding like a drunk Roy Orbison, and the band reminding me of the MoodyBlues.
Grotesquely wierd at times, Morosely beautiful in others, intense the whole time. But seriously, GOAT. That's it.

MISSING SHOW, REVIEW INSTEAD

Dead Mechanical is playing down the street tonight, but i'm stuck here "working". So instead of "working", which is frying my brain, i'll review!



DEAD MECHANICAL : Medium Noise (Sex Cells 2007)
More Baltimore hero's of mine. Seriously, Baltimore rules.
Ok, i'll say it, and i'm damn sure not the first, but if you HAVE to compare bands to get a sense of what someone sounds like, fine: JawBreaker. But Dead Mechanical is so much better and more complex than a simple comparison like this, and hey, i can think of BETTER: Listen to the track "New Alchemy" and tell me you don't hear some D4. Sounding much more midwestern than east coast punk, i'll go so far to say that this album would go great next to The Replacements ( Let it Be) in the jukebox. Anyway, i have to find better ways to explain a band than a bunch of analogies, but you get the point. GET THIS ALBUM. www.myspace.com/deadmechanical

SCREAMING FEMALES : What if Someone is Watching their T.V.?
My one true obsession. Well crafted rock and roll 3 peice with elements of psychedelic, punk, and grunge, this album is full of the catchiest tunes ever. In some bands, Marissa's absolute shredding of the lead guitar might overpower the rest of the band. Not this one though. The guitar is a spectacle allright, but it's the dizzying baseline layed down by KingMike and the smart, fun drums from JarrettD that really cary you through this record. Listen to "Humanity Arranged" and tell me i'm wrong. Then there are Marissa's intense, full, bright vocals, carried overtop the record, reminiscent of Grace Slick in the best of ways. A special surprise is the awesome, wierdly original artwork by Marissa, the record showcases 12 awesome paintings, i suggest buying the vinyl, then you can hang the insert on your wall.
If you don't request "Boyfriend" when you see them live, someone else will, for sure.
www.myspace.com/screamingfemales

FIRST REVIEWS!

Let's get this shit started. (By the way, i will not be doing any editing for grammar or really long sentences, or anything like that. so suck it.)

(i will obviously be playing some catch up with some 2007/08 releases, since this blog is new)
Double Dagger : s/t
Hailing from Baltimore, these are my hometown heros. This is one band i refuse to get roped into categorizing, as their eclectic sound, simply, just plain rocks. Maybe if the TalkingHeads had decided to be a hardcore band? Nah, that analogy sucks, so you should probably just go and listen. www.myspace.com/doubledaggersucks
Bruce Springsteen : The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle (vinyl)
The second album from the BOSS, this album leaves behind alot of the folk from "Welcome to Asbury Park", and picks up a little of the r&b rythem and grandeur that made him my hero. I won't lie, i don't play it nearly as much as "Born to Run", but still, this album is the shit.
Cloak / Dagger : we are
Once again JadeTree records let's me know why they are one of the best labels. ever. Richmond goes back to hardcore roots with this stripped down quartet that plays, um, hardcore. Thats it. Nothing special, nothing new, all your favorite riffs, played at break-neck speed, with some rad vocals kicking you in the face. That said, this album really is pretty special, because it is done better than any other band has done it in the past 20 years. In my opinion, the best release of 2007.
The Pretenders : Extended Play (vinyl)
There is no reason NOT to listen to ANY pretenders album, but this one is pretty rad. The record was presented as a treat for fans between the release of their first and second album in 1980, and 2 of the songs, "Message of Love" and "Talk of the Town" are found on the second full length. The b side singles are what make this album worth something, especially the live version of Precious, (recorded @ Central Park in August, 1980), which is even better than the studio version. A little hard to come by, but if you see this record somewhere, get it.