Monthly Archives: February 2018

VIA PRESS RELEASE | “No other record captures that period so perfectly,” says Elbow’s Guy Garvey. “The concerns of the songs, the stories, the experimental sounds. It was so brave for a band to record themselves at that time: it allowed a direct and undiluted account of the band as aspirational, big-hearted friends in love with making music and each other. It dared us to record ourselves. But they did it first. It’s the most deserving recipient of the Mercury Prize in its history: a breathlessly ambitious and lovingly crafted masterpiece. It should be called Bring It ‘The Fuck’ On.”

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of Gomez’s Mercury Music Prize winning debut album, Bring It On will be re-mastered and reissued on April 20, 2018 digitally, and May 18, 2018 as a super-deluxe 4CD set with an accompanying remastered double LP release. The 4CD 20th Anniversary edition of Bring It On contains the original, classic album remastered by Frank Arkwright at Abbey Road studios and 35 previously unreleased tracks including 25 demos (recorded between January 1996 and August 1997) – 13 of which are appearing on an official Gomez release for the first time. The band will be playing the album in its entirety on all of their upcoming tour dates in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, and North America.

Twenty years on, the debut album by Gomez sounds not of its time, but ahead of its time. You can hear its echoes in so much of the music that followed it: not just in Elbow, but in any artist who heard Bring it On and realized the possibilities of combining indie and roots music with lo-fidelity electronics: a modern experimental sensibility with a love of the past. Bring It On was an album that synthesized styles in a way that seemed remarkable then, and now sounds utterly unforced and contemporary. Where so many of its contemporaries sound completely of their time, Bring It On sounds as if it could have come out to equal acclaim at any point over the past 20 years. It’s a record that thoroughly merits its expanded 20th Anniversary Edition.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | If your knowledge of hard-rockin’, all-female bands from the late ’70s is limited to The Runaways, friend, it is time to broaden your horizons and cast your eyes across the pond to the British rock institution that is Girlschool.

Closely associated with fellow New Wave of British Heavy Metal legends Motorhead (with whom they shared the hit single “Please Don’t Touch” found here), Girlschool is still kickin’ out the jams 40 years later with 3 (Kim McAuliffe, Enid Williams, and Denise Dufort) of the 4 original members.

And here, collected inside a gatefold package sporting original picture sleeves and great liner notes by compiler Mark “Captain Oi” Brennan, are all their classic early singles, including their first one, “Take It All Away,” for the City Records label, followed by all those fantastic Bronze-label sides featuring hits like “Race with the Devil,” “Hit and Run,” “C’Mon Let’s Go,” and “Wildlife.”

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We didn’t mean to shoot the water heater.

That water heater was a casualty of war, and its shooting was just one of those things that happens when you’re abruptly levitated out of bed in shock and awe in the form of some ferocious Pharaoh Sanders free jazz skronk playing at maximum volume on your younger brother’s stereo at 10:00 on a hungover Sunday morning, and then proceed to get half drunk and decide it would be a real cool idea to go down to the basement of your parent’s house in Littlestown, Pennsylvania to play a lively game of “Dodge the Ricochet.”

“Dodge the Ricochet” is fun and easy to play and basically involves standing maybe six feet away from a brick wall and then taking potshots at said wall with your dad’s kid-sized .22 caliber “cat” rifle. The rules are simple. You shoot, then duck, because those .22 slugs are coming right back at you.

Not that it’s really possible to dodge a ricocheting bullet; they’re pretty darn fast. It’s more of a case of very quickly covering your balls and contorting yourself into as small a target as possible for that rebounding slug. It’s kinda like playing kamikaze frisbee, only instead of a frisbee you’re playing with live rounds.

Where, you may be wondering, does German saxophonist Peter Brötzmann’s seminal 1968 European free jazz recording Machine Gun come into this? Patience, friend, patience. Suffice it for now to say that Machine Gun is one of the most abrasive, anarchic, and hair-raising free jazz albums to ever set your synapses sizzling like overworked bug zappers. Think yer some kinda hot shit noise aficionado cuz you’ve managed to sit through John Coltrane’s Ascension or Albert Ayler’s Spiritual Unity? I dare you to check out Machine Gun. It makes those free jazz landmarks sound like Duke Ellington in comparison.

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Back in 2016, the Emotional Response label released their first Typical Girls compilation, and it shed a fine spotlight upon female fronted punk, post-punk, and associated styles. Early last year, a second volume extended the momentum, and now comes the simultaneous release of the third and fourth installments, both issued on clear vinyl. Their contents bring back memories of sitting in a Hardee’s reading an issue of Maximum Rocknroll while listening to homemade punk tapes on a Walkman and sipping on a half-flat Coke, but even better is that the music spread across these four sides is a ripsnorting representation of right now.

Speaking of Maximum Rocknroll, there was a time when comps of an openly punk orientation cared little or not at all for diversity in annotation; it was part of the reason many became detached from the scene. Thankfully, Jen Turrell and Stewart Anderson, along with Camylle of the Midnite Snaxxx and Bad Daddies bands, who helped with the compiling of these two sets, share a broad definition of punk’s possibilities, so that even with a unifying theme, namely female and trans empowerment, these volumes not only avoid boredom but are loaded with surprises.

But hey, if it’s a beefy, fast-paced, full-throated gallop you want, Volume Three has it right off the bat with “Make Room Make Room” by the UK’s Natterers, and follows it with the anthemic and hooky “Por no estar sola” by Madrid’s Rata Negra; next comes the vaguely Bratmobile-ish (but with hardcore breakdowns) “Greedy Goblin” from Hattiesburg, MS’s Judy and the Jerks. Completing the set’s first fourth is Fresno’s Fatty Cakes and the Puff Pastries, whose “Girl Gang” combines a distinctly more pop sensibility with Riot Grrl righteousness.

From there, Portland’s Macho Boys serve up a sub-one-minute breakneck HC blitz in “Victim to Blame,” and Carrboro, NC’s Fitness Womxn dish garrulous and rhythmically driving post-punk in “Living Hell.” Although Crooked Bangs’ Leda Ginestra sing-shouts “Baudelaire” in French, the band is from Austin; their stated influences of ’80s Crass Records, UK82 HC, and ’90s noise-rock are palpable, but are aided by a solid melodic foundation, the better to fend off the genericism mentioned above.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | BMG is proud to announce the release of Hotter Than a Pepper Sprout: A Hillbilly Poet’s Journey From Appalachia to Yale to Writing Hits for Elvis, Johnny Cash & More on April 3. The book is an intimate memoir by Billy Edd Wheeler, an award-winning songwriter, musician, author, playwright, poet, visual artist, folk singer, and Appalachian Renaissance man.

Wheeler is best known for penning “Jackson,” the Grammy-winning single popularized by Johnny Cash and June Carter in 1967. His songs have been recorded by Country Music Hall of Fame members such as Bill Anderson, Chet Atkins, Bobby Bare, Jim Ed Brown, Glen Campbell, Roy Clark, Tom T. Hall, Elvis Presley, Jerry Reed, Kenny Rogers, Hank Snow, Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn, and others. He notched his own Top 5 country hit with “Ode to the Little Brown Shack Out Back” in 1964. Folk artists covering his material include Judy Collins, The Country Gentlemen, John Denver, Hazel Dickens, Richie Havens, The Kingston Trio and Tim O’Brien. In addition, Wheeler has released 20 albums, 14 plays and musicals, nine books, and two collections of poetry.

Wheeler’s memoir is populated by a fascinating cast of characters he encountered on his journey from humble Appalachian beginnings to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. His lengthy career saw the birth of classic tunes such as “The Reverend Mr. Black,” “High Flyin’ Bird,” “The Coming of the Roads,” “It’s Midnight,” “Coal Tattoo,” “Coward of the County,” and others. Peppered with the folksy wisdom of his beloved region, Hotter Than a Pepper Sprout chronicles the following milestones: Billy Edd’s troubled relationship with his volatile stepdad; his time studying at Yale to become a playwright; his years working for legendary songwriter/publishers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller in New York’s famed Brill Building; his experiences with the Nashville music industry; and his friendship with Chet Atkins.

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“My first record was “Oh, Pretty Woman” by Roy Orbison. It came with a record player on Christmas, probably 1965. I played the crap out of that record and couldn’t wait to buy more. I recall furiously debating whether I should spend my hard-earned 79 cents on “Wild Thing” or “Hanky Panky.” I figured “Wild Thing” would have a longer radio life so I went with “Hanky Panky.” Decisions, decisions.”

“I lived overseas in the late ’60s and ’70s. I was civilian, but my military friends had PX privileges where albums cost $2.50. One day they took me on an album buying trip. I had to stay in the car while they hit the record rack. I only had enough money for one album and the choices were Stand Up by Jethro Tull or Spirit’s first album. I thought Spirit was slightly more obscure so I went with the underdog. Fresh Garbage never sounded so good.

I remember exactly when the vinyl era ended. My album Sunny Nights was released on vinyl in 1988 by Columbia Records. The second single “Double Our Numbers” was released on CD. I made it onto a major label 12” just in the nick of time. A CD release wouldn’t have been the same. I’m hugely proud to have my name on Columbia’s big red label surrounded by my songs etched in glorious black vinyl.

My relationship with vinyl atrophied for years after CDs became the norm. It was just the way things were. When I was dating my (soon to be) wife Helle in the late ’90s, it was her CD collection that I admired. LPs were gone.

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Boston’s garage soul kingpins Barrence Whitfield & the Savages have released four records since kicking it back into gear in 2010, and not one of them has been less than a keeper. As reflected in its title, their latest takes inspiration from multifaceted jazz genius Sun Ra, but don’t go thinking Barrence and company have radically altered matters; no, on Soul Flowers of Titan, the Savages’ howling, stomping, grooving essence is as recognizable as ever, as they deliver their signature sound with obvious relish. It’s out March 2 on compact disc and vinyl, with a limited deluxe clear wax option, from Bloodshot Records.

Barrence Whitfield & the Savages have accumulated a fair amount coverage in these digital pages, in part because they’ve accomplished an unlikely feat. Specifically, since the reunion of Whitfield with guitarist Peter Greenberg and bassist Phil Lenker, with drummer Andy Jody and sax blower Tom Quartulli filling out the band, their output has easily equaled, and to my ear slightly surpassed, the records that put them on the roots-party radar screen in the first place.

Indeed, coming back so strong after such a lengthy break in activity is impressive, but that they’ve successfully honed (and not overly finessed) an approach on record that is best-suited for small, tightly packed nightclubs only heightens the achievement. Large and bright but lacking in slickness, they’ve managed to retain a tight focus without falling victim to the samey.

Integrating Sun Ra-inspired space themes to Soul Flowers of Titan certainly helps to keep matters fresh, but a more um, down-to-earth maneuver comes through the lineup’s addition of B3 and Rheem organ courtesy of newest member Brian Olive. Perhaps the most successful ingredients in their recipe are enduring, namely Whitfield’s undiminished capacity as a raw shouter with beaucoup soul flair, and continued savviness in blending non-played out cover material with originals that hold right up.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Punk rock in downtown New York City seduced Laura and her friends. By day they attended school, and by night they snuck out to hear Patti Smith poetry readings, Jonathan Richman concerts, and early Ramones, Blondie, and Talking Heads gigs in the exploding clubs, CBGB, and Max’s Kansas City. These clubs also featured bands such as the Dead Boys, the Heartbreakers, Richard Hell & the Voidoids, Television, the Cramps, the Erasers, the Fast, the Mumps, and so many more.

Laura became the drummer of the Student Teachers, not because she had always wanted to be a drummer, or even a musician, but because it seemed like a great thing to do at that time. Female drummers were unusual in the late ’70s. Girls were usually in the front. Not in the back! When Jimmy Destri of Blondie discovered the Student Teachers, he was hooked and signed on as their producer. Even more provocatively, he became interested in Laura, which led her on a whirlwind experience with Blondie and, astonishingly, David Bowie.

It was Bowie who developed an interest in their band, led them into new territories, and shepherded them through complicated decisions, which, curiously and unfortunately, contributed to them not signing with RCA Records in 1979. Finally, it was Bowie’s intelligence and influence that pushed Laura to go where she really wanted to go—very far from rock ’n’ roll.

In this book, Davis-Chanin takes readers on a thrill ride though the late 1970s punk scene that ultimately crashed to a sudden halt. After playing a show at Town Hall in 1980, Laura was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. That was the end of her life as a teenage girl drummer.

Says Davis-Chanin, “we are all kicked in the gut by many things. And honestly, I was lucky. Lucky to have been stopped when I was, because rock ’n’ roll, despite the glamour, the fun, the money, was not an easy life. Many of us were really young at that time, and there were a lot of drugs. It felt like it was getting dangerous and, even scarier, possibly fatal.”

With a foreword by Yo La Tengo drummer Georgia Hubley and prose that flows like music, The Girl in the Back is a rich work of narrative nonfiction that is not only deeply personal but also revealing of the punk rock heyday in New York City.

“The thumping sound when a record ends is like a heartbeat. A knock on the door of the moment that says, “turn me over and begin again.” I used to search through my basement as a kid, seeking some form of treasure. I would find piles of scratched vinyl, warped and dusty, and I would wonder—what strange world did my parents come from? I would envision previous eras as forgotten lands of faded color and emotion. When you hold a vinyl in your hand, you are forced to see the artist in front of you—the product of their hard work, creativity, style, and choices.”

“In the basement as a kid I was alone, but sorting through those records, I was surrounded by ghosts in glittering gowns and bellbottoms—smiling at me from the time machine abyss of their record cover, saying “I still have things to say to you.” The truth we find in music doesn’t just exist in the past or future, it is always true.

A strange and serendipitous moment involving a record store occurred on the island of Martha’s Vineyard on a cold December day. It involves two lonely artists—the artists are me, Leslie Schott, and Andrew Valenti. Together we are the band Holy Golden. We owe our meeting to a now extinct record shop called Aboveground Records. I was alone in Cape Cod caring for my elderly grandmother. Andrew was a farmer and tractor driver on the Vineyard and worked one day a week at Aboveground Records. I decided to take the ferry over to the Vineyard to wander around and film some material for a film I was working on.

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