The latest release from the Massachuset’s finest melodic hardcore band. The only thing that is bad about this ep is that it is too short. In the end, it leaves us wanting more and more, more of the great stuffs please!!.

As usual, they crafted an execelent pieces of hardcore punk tunes that is extremely complex, and at the same time extremely enjoyable. The 5 song ep kick off with ‘Australia’, a pretty much enjoyable and accessible song, and not too complex. The tempo increases a little on the second song, the smartly titled ‘Every Great Show has a Shower Scene’. Not over the top, but fine. The third song is a slower tempo song, in the fashion of Polar Bear Club songs. I’m pretty sure that this one will easily grow on me. The fourth song is probably the finest track in this ep. ‘Bulletproof Tiger’ is a number that resembles their more complex tunes from the album ‘Career Suicide’. Pure lunacy and madness to the top, with its nearly acrobatic instrument works and song structure, while maintaining the groove. The ep closes with the song ‘Skid Rock’, which is just as complex as ‘Bulletproof Tiger’. The song build up a bit slowly, then up to the top of the mountain, and kick you down from there.

Well, to sum up, I can say that this is one record that truly rocks, edgy, playfully, and still holds to their roots. highly recommended!

Track List:
01. Australias
02. Every Great Story Has A Shower Scene
03. Fun Time
04. Bulletproof Tiger
05. Skid Rock

download (mediafire)

records label: Paper and Plastic

myspace:  http://www.myspace.com/awilhelmscream

Deixo esse som que tem a ver com os ultimos posts da galera..

Banda paulistana que faz parte da minha vida…

A cidade não para

Chuck Kraus carries some great links and analysis of the current academic and popular craze for Chinese “underground” rock music:

Then we have the Japanese band Electric Eel Shock, who have been rocking audiences for years, with their song “Rock ‘n Roll Can Rescue the World.”  I was fortunate to hear this band in 2005 on their first North American tour in a gritty Beachland Ballroom outside of Cleveland Ohio in the middle of a raging blizzard that left the band playing for a screaming crowd of about twenty people, but they rocked like it was a giant, packed, arena.  Completely unforgettable.

After the show, I spent some time chilling with the band over an icy PBR.  I asked them, “Have you performed in China?”  (One of their albums starts with a song entitled “Give Me Chinese Food.”)

“Oh, yes,” they nodded vigorously, “but the government asked us not to come back.”

“Why is that?” I asked, realizing that there was very little specific political content in the songs.

“Well, it’s him,” the guitarist said, pointing out the drummer.  “He doesn’t like to wear clothes during concert.”  I think you will see what I mean.

On classical music, I contributed some thoughts on a New York Times blog on Guitar Hero (scroll down for the comment) and found a wonderful story of a French Horn player who ended up in Pyongyang with the New York Philharmonic last year.

Thomas Joestlin, French Horn, fresh from "the geopolitical rabbit hole"

Besides the fact that he took 54 auditions before getting the gig with New York, the money quote from his interview is:

…during the concert, we played the North Korean anthem and then the American national anthem, and the Koreans gave us a huge ovation. It was very moving. Ultimately, I don’t know whether the visit did any good. As a boy, I once visited relatives in communist East Germany, so I thought I’d be prepared to visit another communist nation. I was wrong. East Germany seemed like a paradise compared to North Korea.

Maybe Rock n’ Roll won’t rescue the world after all?  No, just oust that thought!  Read some Stephen Epstein on Korean punk music!  And get that naked drummer to Pyongyang, pronto!

Things like this happen with bands who’ve been around awhile and have the good sense to record themselves in fortuitous circumstances. Back in 2006, the Asylum Street Spankers – the world’s smartest, most deliriously fun oldtimey Americana band – recorded some live performances at the Saxon Pub in their hometown of Austin. Among the songs were several traditional gospel tunes along with a handful of originals that wouldn’t be drastically out of place, musically at least, in a straight-up gospel set. It isn’t implausible to imagine the band hanging around the dressing room one night after a show after someone put these songs on a boombox, while a  joint made its way around the room. Suddenly percussionist/singer Wammo has an epiphany and turns in amazement to multi-instrumentalist/siren Christina Marrs: “Holy shit, we have a gospel album here!”

As improbable as it might seem at first thought for the Spankers to be doing a gospel album, it actually makes perfect sense when you consider how deep their knowledge of American roots music is. As sacriligeous as the band is, Marrs has an amazing set of pipes and pulls out all the stops here. Likewise, the band’s vocal harmonies are tight and inventive when they’re not being tight and absolutely period-perfect, as with their minstrel-esque version of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.

An ancient-sounding  instrumental version of the Blind Willie Johnson blues Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground opens the cd and sets a rustic tone. The standards Each Day, Down by the Riverside, By and By and Wade in the Water each get a fervent, ecstatic treatment which rather than being camp reaffirms the band’s seemingly innate feel for these songs as universal expression of the human spirit that transcend any doctrinaire limitations. Then they do the same thing with a contemporary Christian song (yes, that’s what it is), the Violent Femmes’ Gordan Gano’s Jesus Walking on the Water.

But as expected it’s the originals that bring down the house. Wammo’s somewhat snide Right and Wrong has an ironclad Iraq War-era logic to go along with the stoner humor: “I ain’t got no problem with Buddha, ’cause he’s a huge Nirvana fan.” And his other song here, Volkswagen Thing reclaims a Nazi-era relic as vehicle for the divine. In case you don’t remember it, the Thing during its brief revival in the 70s was  one of the most unsafe cars ever built, a car so rear-heavy that it could pop a wheelie despite being ridiculously underpowered. Satan, on the other hand, drives his Mercedes like the pig he is – and he’s got a Hummer, too. The band closes out this raucous collection with a defiant version of Gershwin’s It Ain’t Necessarily So, a vivid reminder of where they’re really coming from for anyone who might not have been paying attention. Steampunks everywhere, not to mention fans of both traditional and secular gospel alike (the Lost Crusaders and Rev. Vince Anderson especially come to mind) will love this album. The Spankers made it to NYC a couple of times this year and they will doubtlessly be back (they recorded their sensational What? And Give Up Show Business? live cd here), watch this space for details.

Well, since The Swagger Sticks are off until mid-November (we’re playing our video release show at The Bootleg on Sat, 11/14/09), I’m making an effort to go out and see some shows. And, since I missed The Shakers on Wednesday and The Aggrolites in Pamona on Thursday, I made sure to make it out to Alex’s Bar in Long Beach for Mike Watt and Stab City. The flu was responsible for Stab City’s last minute cancellation but, fortunately for me, what followed was an amazing night of music…I saw all four bands and it could not have been better. On the bill were Telomere Repair, The Radio Sweetheart (I love that name), Los Mysteriosos and Mike Watt and The Secondmen.

Power to the Pedro! Mike Watt & The Secondmen

Openers Telemer Repair were filling in for Stab City at the last minute. They played some of the most searingly angular punk I have ever heard. The trio’s musicianship was off the charts. They made Gang of Four sound like a Vegas lounge act. I was totally intimidated by them until I traded CD’s with the bass player and then the band’s girlfriends, who were minding the merch table, gave me some stickers. They were all incredibly nice. I am a fan for life.

The Radio Sweetheart!

Next up was the all-girl punk trio, The Radio Sweetheart. Lead singer Dylan Kent had the most vicious punk guitar tone imaginable and the rhythm section was right on. I fucking loved it. Later that night I asked Kent about her rig and how she got such an amazing sound. She said, “You know, you’re talking to the wrong person about this stuff…I just turn everything up as loud as it will go.”  And that, my friends, is what makes punk rock great. If it sounds good, that’s all that matters. Added to that was a dead-on cover of The Pixies ”Isla de Encanta” at the end of their set. Now if only we can convince TRS to let The Swagger Sticks open for them.

The third band was Long Beach’s very own, Los Mysteriosos, in what can only be described as Latin surf  meets meets a “Fiesta of Flamenco.” Dios Mios, these guys rocked. You don’t need to speak Spanish to understand the ways of the Matador and, as Los Mysteriosos will tell you, they are the only ones who can make a Chupacabra dance on its tail!

When San Pedro natives Mike Watt and The Secondmen hit the stage I wasn’t sure what to expect. Watt had sat patiently on his amp the entire night smiling as he watched all three of the opening bands. I don’t think he got up once the entire time. He could have just as easily showed up five minutes before his set but instead hung out all night talking to friends and fans (myself included). That should tell you something about Watt – he’s one cool cat.

I’d seen Watt at The Echo about five years ago and, I have to admit, my simple I-IV-V mind had trouble digesting the free-form song structure. If Zappa had played bass he might have come close to Watt. On this night the Secondmen were on absolute fire and, combined with Watt’s incredible bass mastery, they worked together to form slightly more accessible songs (translation: this time ‘I got it’). The result was that Watt and his longshoremen absolutley blew my mind. I was mesmerized. 

Never mind the fact that Watt founded some of the most influential punk bands in history like The Minutemen and fIREHOSE and that he’s recorded with members of Sonic Youth, Beastie Boys, Pixies, Nirvana, The Lemonheads, Dinosaur Jr, Black Flag, Soul Asylum, Screaming Trees etc.  And yes, forget about the fact that he played bass on Iggy Pop‘s tour a couple years ago. None of it matters. That’s because tonight was all about Mike Watt and The Secondmen. See their MySpace link below for upcoming shows. You won’t want to miss them.

 Thanks to Alex’s Bar for putting together a great night of music. It was my first time there and I had a blast.

If you come across any great local LA bands that you think I should check out please leave me a comment or hit me up on The Swagger Sticks MySpace page. I look forward to hearing from ya! ~ Aron

Links:
Telemer Repair
www.myspace.com/telomererepair

The Radio Sweetheart
www.myspace.com/theradiosweetheart

Los Mysteriosos
www.myspace.com/httpwwwmyspacecomlosmysteriosos

Mike Watt & The Secondmen
www.myspace.com/secondmen

Mike Watt Bio
www.allmusic.om/MikeWatt

The Watt From Pedro Radio Show
www.twfps.com

Alex’s Bar
www.Alexsbar.com

AFG Must Rock!
Check Out: www.myspace.com/TheSwaggerSticks

The Toy Dolls – Nellie the elephant

It’s Sunday afternoon and there are a few things that I gotta do , and I’m gonna do them , I’m gonna do them . . .

If you’re not familiar with the comedic likes of Jon Lajoie you’ll have no idea what the fuck that first part is about . So I’m thoughtful enough to have made it a link to his YouTube video – Sunday Afternoon (:

I was going to super clean my room and oragnize the shit out of everything because either Jack is ignoring me or – more than likely – my gaytastic phone is being uber homosexual at the moment . ( Bell , KISS MY ASS ! Rogers is better in bed anyways – totally kidding , don’t ask . . . )

Xantha and me are making a joint YouTube account to “display our artistic endeavours” . It’s going to be epic . I’ll post it once we make the account . So rather than super clean , I’m going to Xantha’s before the sun goes down to make a stop/start animation of her mom’s old cassettes . We were thinking domino effect . We just need some cheesy , lesser-known punk song to top the piece off .

What do you guys think ? Let me know (:

Da lan de Maresias, ai vai uma música que o Kassab deve adorar:

A maior banda de punk rock gaúcha de todos os tempos, tocando no aniversário de 2 anos do programa Mistura da Ulbra TV, No Estúdio Rock Bar em Canoas/RS.

eu piro no estilo dessa vocal mandando um punk com a voz grossa…Júlia Barth Bivis

Subhumans are an English punk band formed in the Trowbridge and Melksham area of Wiltshire in 1980. Member, Dick Lucas – piano/vocals, joined later in the year; having formerly been in another local band, The Mental. Other members; Bruce Treasure – guitars, b.v./drums, Trotsky – drums, Phil – bass; had been in The Stupid Humans. The band’s musical style is typically classified as hardcore punk or anarcho-punk. It is what punk music should sound like, they are an awesome band!! Associated with acts Citizen Fish

Like Jewish hip hop, Muslim punk or “taqwacore” is about finding one’s place at the intersection of a global religion and a nation-state in which that religion is in the minority.  I’ve heard of taqwacore a few times before, but it seems to be getting more buzz lately and I thought it was worth a shout-out.

Taqwacore as such is the brainchild of a guy called Michael Muhammad Knight, a convert to Islam who became disillusioned with his faith and, in 2003, published a novel called The Taqwacores in which a bunch of Muslim kids who feel like they don’t fit in anywhere else move into a house together and do their own thing.  (Basically just like parts of West Philly, but plus Islam and probably more fun…anyway.)

The novel inspired a full-fledged genre of Muslim punk music, which is becoming more and more successful all the time; most of the music deals with issues of concern to American Muslims and generally sounds like regular punk music with a few nods to Arab influence here and there.  The musicians conceive of themselves as

stoking the revolution – against traditionalists in their own communities and against the clichés forced upon them from the outside – “we’re giving the finger to both sides,” says one Taqwacore. “Fuck you and fuck you.”

Here’s a review of an Al-Thawra concert earlier this year. As an aside that should be developed further at some point, I think it’s pretty interesting that this is (to my knowledge) the only music scene that has grown almost entirely out of an imaginary group of music-makers in a fictional work.  It’s almost too pomo to be happening in real life.

Unlike Jewish hip hop (which is the topic of my current research hence my constant reference to it), which tries very hard to contextualize itself within and connect itself to both mainstream American society and to the larger Jewish diaspora, taqwacore seems to be more about individual identity–more about asserting oneself against the larger Muslim and American communities.  (Not that there aren’t elements of both in each style.)  I don’t always like the strident individualism in the punk ethos, but I think in this case it can be really valuable for members of a community who are often seen by other Americans, and by the media, as monolithic, dogmatic and obedient (especially women).

Taqwacores don’t unproblematically identify as Muslim; they have many different views on the practice of Islam, on American culture, on music, and how they deal with all of the above and more.  They’re also really savvy about speaking for themselves–check out the Taqwacore Webzine–and seem to be making room for themselves and their unique take on American Muslim identity.  Perhaps their paradoxical “shared sense of isolation” will be the tension driving a new way of thinking about Islam in the American public sphere.  We can hope, right?

Friday October 9^th 10:00p.m. at THE HYDE PARK CAFÉ which is located at 1806 W Platt st Tampa Florida. The Event will feature special guest THREE&DROOG for more information on the event please visit www.myspace.com/djthree

Every day for the next few days, our top 666 songs of alltime countdown will get one step closer to #1. Around the 27th of this month, we’ll put up a whole bunch of them at once and keep you in suspense until we return with regular daily listings, review and so forth around the middle of October. For now, Thursday’s song is #307:

The Boomtown Rats – Diamond Smiles

Savage new wave/punk sarcasm from The Fine Art of Surfacing, 1979, the sarcastically glossy tale of a girl who had everything but did herself in. Sadly, the late Jay Bennett quoted a lyric from the song in the title of his final, unfinished album, Kicking at the Perfumed Air. The link above is the original video; here’s a live take.

Pretty much every day, our top 666 songs of alltime countdown gets one step closer to #1. We missed Saturday, spending the day helping yet another New Yorker become an ex-New Yorker and there was no internet service where they were. And why spend a hour on the  Blackberry when we could do it in five minutes the following day?

So, Saturday’s song was #312:

Chicha Libre – Sonido Amazonico

The greatest one-chord jam of alltime, a melody that will someday be as well-known as, say, Fur Elise or Satisfaction. Although the band is American, Chicha Libre have almost singlehandedly resurrected chicha, the intoxicating Peruvian hybrid of Colombian cumbia, American surf music and psychedelia that was wildly popular in the Amazon oil boom towns of the late 60s and early 70s. The original by Los Mirlos (available on the amazing Roots of Chicha compilation) is a lot of fun but it’s this version, the title track to Chicha Libre’s 2008 debut cd, which is the best, keyboardist Josh Camp’s vintage Hohner Electrovox adding a hypnotic swirl.

And today’s is #311:

Elvis Costello – No Dancing

Here the preeminent musical psychopathologist of our time dissects what being a killjoy is all about over wickedly catchy, slightly doo-wop inflected janglerock. From My Aim Is True, 1977. The link above is the album version; here’s a fascinating live video with the Attractions from what looks like the following year.

Check this story – I swear, it’s the only guitar case you’ll ever need-RB Continental
I have to tell you about this RB Continental guitar case I recently bought. It’s pretty amazing. I can literally pack everything I need for an overnight night gig in this case and not even need any other luggage. I was traveling to Grand Junction, CO from San Francisco for a gig. I arrived at the US Airways baggage check-in in Oakland and (reluctantly) handed over my RB Continental case, with an Epiphone Dot Studio guitar inside, to the airline.

The flight there was about the worst ever, the turbulence was scary as there were storms lined up the whole way. Then, if that wasn’t enough, I had to hop on a 2 propeller prop job for the final leg to GJ. It had been a number of years since I’d had the pleasure to fly on one of those and I’d forgotten just how much “fun” they can be.

Upon landing I headed to baggage claim. Here comes my RB case down the carousel – with nervous anticipation I slowly opened the case and voila! There was the Dot in perfect condition. Not a scratch, dent, ding or blemish of any kind. Truly amazing.

In fact Reunion Blues even threw this case off of a 3 story building (video). If your guitar has to be subjected to the whim and whimsy of airline baggage handlers you can at least have some peace of mind knowing that it’s ensconced safely in a killer case. It’s the only case I’ll ever need, they last forever and the RB Continental won’t break the bank either! Click here to locate the closest dealer with it in stock (they sell out fast!)

Ah, my dear wife will cringe at this topic. She knows where I’m going with this. It seems like everyone has some band, album, or genre of music that they like but don’t necessarily want to admit to liking. I don’t think it’s pretension, I think it’s just sincere embarrassment.

Take yours truly, for instance. I don’t have longish hair that sweeps down over my eyes. My jeans aren’t inordinately patched. I don’t dye my hair. I don’t wear eyeliner. But, I do, on occasion, sing along ridiculously to whatever pop-punk I can get my hands on. It might be Blink182, it might be ReliantK, it might be Brand New… but whatever it is, it’ll make my wife roll her eyes (rightfully so) and it’ll make me play air drums.

Whew. I just admitted it. So, now I’ll put the question to you… who or what is your guilty pleasure listening?

I’ve gotta go find Rebecca’s eyeliner.

Little Cow are arguably the hottest band in the former Eastern Bloc. The Hungarian sensation’s mix of gypsy music, punk, ska and even indie rock scored them a platinum album on their home turf and a fanatical European following. Now they’re taking their high-energy stage act to the US, with a NYC date on Sept 18 at City Winery. With tongue planted firmly in cheek, the band’s self-described “lead vocal, composer, songwriter, at home film director, and writer” Laci Kollar-Klemencz took some time out of Little Cow’s whirlwind tour schedule to chase the devil out of the details with Lucid Culture’s somewhat confused interviewer:

Lucid Culture: How does your set list for a show here differ from what you play in Romania. Woops, I mean Hungary?

Laci Kollar-Klemencz:  OK, why a question about Romania? We are from Hungary. Set list is the same, exactly, just we’re singing the songs which have been translated from Hungarian to English.

LC: Do you find that audiences around the world prefer different songs?

LKK: No. Their reaction is sometimes different – short people in Spain jump higher, and tall people in Holland keep just one hand up, but Little Cow is the same.

LC: Are your songs that are big hits at home just as popular on the road?

LKK: Yes, but the most popular at home is Cyber Kid, and we are sick of it and if it’s possible we do not play it here [in the US] – it’s topical song which is very famous in Hungary, but nobody else understands it.

LC: What other countries have you toured? What kind of reaction do you get? It seems to me that for example anyone who likes Gogol Bordello would like you…

LKK: In Hungary people and magazines talk about us something like that. This kind of punk rock based on Balkan rhythm is very famous now in Europe, and if anybody sounds a little bit like that, it’s easy to say GOGOL BORDELLO, but there are lot of thin differences. And you know the devil always hides between the little things. And I think Little Cow talks about much more  – philosophy, personal behavior, attitude – than only a style.

LC: I see that you have a smaller acoustic version of the band. Which version of the band is on this tour?

LKK: Both. In theaters we will play the “Melancholic” acoustic program, but in rock clubs and festivals we will do the electric dance songs.

LC: How much of your set list on this tour is in English?

LKK:  Half and half, maybe more.

LC: Your songs are often very funny. Are you aware that in the indie rock scene here in New York, people aren’t supposed to laugh or make jokes? Does that seem as weird to you as it is to me?

LKK: Yes, it is interesting, the  underground scene never was about laughing – from the 80’s dark feeling till today people think underground, or indie band, that they are cool, sad, depressed, or untouchable mad, sick, but some artists  – for me Warhol, and many dadaists, and musicians, like David Byrne, Pere Ubu – were pretty funny. And the sadness and the fun are big brothers as we know from Buddhism for example. And I hope people, who see some dark story one night from Grizzly Bear, or Tom Waits, they will go home and will laugh all night, and people who come to see Little Cow, and laugh a lot through the concert, they will commit suicide after the concert. It’s just a good joke, sorry.

LC: How did the band start? I see that you did the soundtrack for a very popular children’s cartoon, the Little Yellow Cow.  Is that cartoon something that adults would also enjoy, like the Simpsons?

LKK: Yes you can see it on our myspace... it’s a short film for kids and parents and grandparents, doesn’t matter,  it has been on screen in many Hungarian cinemas as the opening film for a Woody Allen film in 2002.

LC: I hear some punk, gypsy music, new wave, even ska in what you play. I know you get this question all the time, but what bands have influenced your sound?

LKK: It’s not only the bands, it’s many things. Mostly not one music, much more one girl, or one sickness, or a trip, or a bad relationship. I’m always thinking about a feeling, and never about a style, band etc. How I feel, myself, now, and how can I balance it if it is too wrong or too good? Otherwise I’m always looking for that kind of artist who can open one new window in this dark depth blind cultural level, where humans exist now. And there are many artists, and musicians. Last year my favorite was Sigur Ros, MGMT, Beirut, now Grizzly Bear, the Decemberists… From indie music, but  BACK…it could be an artist who can be one of my musical influences as well.

LC: Your last album went platinum in Romania, I mean Hungary. How many albums do you have to sell there to go platinum?

LKK: In Hungary? Twenty thousand.

LC: Tell us about your huge hit Cyber Boy, which set a record for most downloads and most ringtones in Hungary. What’s it about?

LKK: It’s kind of Hungarian punk wedding music… typical Hungarian tone, with danceable rhythm, and crazy lyrics about a cyber generation who want to forget real life and hide in cyberspace.

LC: You’re playing pretty late, I’m guessing about one in the morning on Friday night in New York. Do your concerts always start that late? How long can we expect you to play?

LKK: My information was we will play at 10 PM. We will see, but I don’t like to play too late, it’s not good for our health.

Little Cow play as part of this year’s predictably excellent New York Gypsy Festival at City Winery on Sept. 18 with the incomparable Hazmat Modine; $15 advance tickets are still available as of this writing (Sept. 15) but going fast. It’s not clear who’s playing first but it really doesn’t matter since both bands are good.