Wilko Johnson (in The Blues Magazine)
Just in case you missed it (don't worry, you can order this online), our very own Mr. Johnson has a sixpager in the debut issue of the new Classic Rock offspring "The Blues Magazine".
Should you be wondering, the scan is of the real magazine, this comes in a cardboardsleeve with a different design.
Cheers
Devon
Monday, August 6, 2012
Friday, August 3, 2012
Jolly Roger - Rock And Roll Machine - #92
Jolly Roger - Rock And Roll Machine
It's a bit of a workout to write a review about a band's longplayer, when one knows at least one member of said band personally. When I receive such a CD, I usually go "please God, make it be a good one, so I don't have to lie about the virtues of the album", and, I've not been let down so far. Usually the music is excellent and I don't have to worry about growing a nose one foot long. The guardians of Rock'n'Roll can vouch for me, I'm writing nothing but the truth here and I'm not even taking shortcuts or brush the statements up.
The second serving of Finland's Jolly Roger, entitled "Rock And Roll Machine", lets you have 14 tracks, clocking in at just under 45 minutes. The tracks have been recorded in 2010 and 2011 and finally released this year. The big plus with this CD is, that all of the tracks are self penned (more about this later), and quite good ones they are. Excellent soundquality, yet with exaclty the right dose of roughness. This is not your polished Sunday morning pop tune, this is Rock the way it should be played. Short, concise and to the point.
The whole enterprise starts with some kind of Blues/Bluesrock ("Sugar Daddy") with the Harmonica playing very hard and giving no way. Gets you a bit on the wrong foot, with an album title like "Rock And Roll Machine", but this is just a surprise moment, the song itself is first class. "Teleport Man" seems, to me at least, to be a Dr. Feelgood cover in disguise. Not that there's anything wrong with that, at the moment it's just killing me to remember where this riff is coming from. Yes, sure, I should know! But I have a Dr. Feelgood blackout now. You know how it is, it's on the tip of your tongue, but for the life of yourself, you can't get it out.
"Lover Man" proves, that Jolly Roger can shift gears down as well, although this is still a rocker, there's no "Kuschelrock" here. What's the thinking behind "M.I.L.F. Cow Blues"? Can someone explain this please? Not that I should have any strange ideas! A track that owes a lot to Rockabilly is surely "Loveless". I'm pretty sure, any halfway decent Rockabilly fan would have me crucified for this, but it does sound like straight out of the fifties (well, maybe a bit exaggerated). And, hello, who's making an appearance in a further sort of cover version with "Come Back". I can't point my finger exactly to it, but my brain screams Hurriganes. Of course, it's an "original" again.
The line-up is as follows:
K. T. Kotila - Guitar/Vocals (of Jolly B. Good fame)
T. Levonmaa - Bass/Vocals
Ande Niemi - Drums/Harmonica/Vocals
By track ten, not that I needed to be assured, it dawned upon me, that trios (and it seems mostly to be a trio) are, where the real Rock'n'Roll meat is. Well, throw in some additional help every now and then, but the core of the Rock'n'Roll world since time began, is the trio. Everything else is pretentious noodling. Just listen to "Forty-Four", which is quite some example of what a stripped down band can achieve. Some musicians complain about having to play to many fills in a trio, which might be true, but on the other hand, I think with such a bare bones group, you're being kept on your toes. There's no slack for you, you better pay attention all the time. I'm talking about R-O-C-K and not some, ahem, "Prog" or the like.
While the album slowly draws to a close, I have the feeling, "Evil In My Head" is another "cover". Now I'm leaning very far out of the window, but it does have traces of the Meteors (the Psychobilly outfit). What I actually wanted to say, is, when the 45 minutes are almost over, you realise that there was not a boring second in listening distance and you know, that you've just heard one of these rare albums that will make a return visit to your CD player every now and then. And then they leave you with the "Jolly Roger Rock'n'Roll", some kind of westside stadium screamer. Well, that's Rock'n'Roll for you. Aren't you glad Finland shows the world where the hammer is hanging?
And I haven't lied once in this review. You can order this CD via their website at www.jollyrogerband.net and have yourself a pretty good time with this album.
Cheers
Devon
Monday, July 2, 2012
Wilko Johnson - Rapperswil June 29, 2012 - Part 2 - #91
Wilko Johnson - Rapperswil June 29, 2012 - Part 2
Just read today a rather lengthy review about Friday's event in Rapperswil and Wilko is just mentioned in one sentence
QUOTE
Wilko Johnson spielte Brit-Pop, der nach Talking Heads klang und nach 80er-Jahre Pop
UNQUOTE
This roughly translates as "Wilko Johnson played Britpop, that sounded like Talking Heads and 80's Pop.
Uh, yes! An expert speaking, I dare say. Seriously, the guy has no clue whatsoever.
Cheers
Devon
Just read today a rather lengthy review about Friday's event in Rapperswil and Wilko is just mentioned in one sentence
QUOTE
Wilko Johnson spielte Brit-Pop, der nach Talking Heads klang und nach 80er-Jahre Pop
UNQUOTE
This roughly translates as "Wilko Johnson played Britpop, that sounded like Talking Heads and 80's Pop.
Uh, yes! An expert speaking, I dare say. Seriously, the guy has no clue whatsoever.
Cheers
Devon
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Wilko Johnson - Rapperswil June 29, 2012 - #90
Wilko Johnson - Rapperswil June 29, 2012
The Blues'n'Jazz Festival is a three day event, held right in the center of the town. Three main stages plus a few lesser ones. Wilko Johnson and band started the festivities at 1900hrs sharp and the whole set lasted just around 70 minutes. Naturally, I could have done with double or triple the length of the gig. But I really should be grateful that Wilko Johnson has visited these shores once again, and I should be even more grateful to the organisers of the Blues'n'Jazz Festival for booking our favourite guitar slinger.
Ecellent sound, crystal clear bass, guitar and drums and all those well worn song ditties, that somehow manage to sound fresh each and every time you hear them. As the event is more like a big public party (there's an entrance fee of around EUR 40.00 for a oneday ticket to be paid, but this is valid throughout the area), you didn't have the typical Wilko Johnson fan in the audience, although I did spot a few with their well worn Dr. Feelgood T-shirts.
It was a bit strange to see Wilko on stage at 1900hrs in glaring sunlight, but I believe he needed to be in Scotland the next day for a gig, so he probably took the flight back the very same evening (Zurich airport is close). The band was in excellent form and went down better than I had thought possible for this kind of background. I didn't catch the drummer's name when Wilko introduced the band, but it wasn't Dylan Howe. The very same day there was also Rudi Rotta on stage and if you waited long enough, you could catch Poppa Chubby as well.
Cheers
Devon
The Blues'n'Jazz Festival is a three day event, held right in the center of the town. Three main stages plus a few lesser ones. Wilko Johnson and band started the festivities at 1900hrs sharp and the whole set lasted just around 70 minutes. Naturally, I could have done with double or triple the length of the gig. But I really should be grateful that Wilko Johnson has visited these shores once again, and I should be even more grateful to the organisers of the Blues'n'Jazz Festival for booking our favourite guitar slinger.
Ecellent sound, crystal clear bass, guitar and drums and all those well worn song ditties, that somehow manage to sound fresh each and every time you hear them. As the event is more like a big public party (there's an entrance fee of around EUR 40.00 for a oneday ticket to be paid, but this is valid throughout the area), you didn't have the typical Wilko Johnson fan in the audience, although I did spot a few with their well worn Dr. Feelgood T-shirts.
It was a bit strange to see Wilko on stage at 1900hrs in glaring sunlight, but I believe he needed to be in Scotland the next day for a gig, so he probably took the flight back the very same evening (Zurich airport is close). The band was in excellent form and went down better than I had thought possible for this kind of background. I didn't catch the drummer's name when Wilko introduced the band, but it wasn't Dylan Howe. The very same day there was also Rudi Rotta on stage and if you waited long enough, you could catch Poppa Chubby as well.
Cheers
Devon
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Lita Ford - Living Like A Runaway - #89
Lita Ford - Living Like A Runaway
Lita Ford (of Runaways fame) has released a new album. I had my doubts about it, considering that the last offering, "Wicked Wonderland", was a b with an oring attached to it. And extremely so. I fully expected the new album to fight its corner with the predecessor. Took me on the wrong foot, I have to admit. This is actually one of the best rock platters to come my way for ,,, I don't know! The thing rocks and is a million miles away from the earlier outing. The recording is excellent and the sound is not the kind of roadwork operation that you sometimes hear with bands trying to make some sort of noise, just to cover their inability.
Excellent songs, there is not one filler on this album, and Lita Ford's vocals fit the performance like the proverbial glove. Excellent guitar work of hers as well, but the whole band is on top of the game. This is released as a double LP and includes a CD (you can also buy this as CD only, of course). Vinyl is coloured (mine is mainly dark red, I don't know wether there a any other shades to be found) and lets you have two bonus tracks that are not on the standalone CD. One thing that is a bit irritating, the music reminds me sometimes of Alice Cooper ca. late 80's up to late 90's. Could be my imagination only, but the songs could well be played at an AC gig (although Mr. Furnier would have to write some new lyrics, as these were mostly not really his).
Cheers
Devon
Lita Ford (of Runaways fame) has released a new album. I had my doubts about it, considering that the last offering, "Wicked Wonderland", was a b with an oring attached to it. And extremely so. I fully expected the new album to fight its corner with the predecessor. Took me on the wrong foot, I have to admit. This is actually one of the best rock platters to come my way for ,,, I don't know! The thing rocks and is a million miles away from the earlier outing. The recording is excellent and the sound is not the kind of roadwork operation that you sometimes hear with bands trying to make some sort of noise, just to cover their inability.
Excellent songs, there is not one filler on this album, and Lita Ford's vocals fit the performance like the proverbial glove. Excellent guitar work of hers as well, but the whole band is on top of the game. This is released as a double LP and includes a CD (you can also buy this as CD only, of course). Vinyl is coloured (mine is mainly dark red, I don't know wether there a any other shades to be found) and lets you have two bonus tracks that are not on the standalone CD. One thing that is a bit irritating, the music reminds me sometimes of Alice Cooper ca. late 80's up to late 90's. Could be my imagination only, but the songs could well be played at an AC gig (although Mr. Furnier would have to write some new lyrics, as these were mostly not really his).
Cheers
Devon
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Wilko Johnson - Looking Back At Me - #88
Wilko Johnson - Looking Back At Me
The book has finally been released, albeit with a slight delay. It had a June 2012 street date (up from April 2012 - see #54) and I got it yesterday. I'm not going to write a review, but the haptic perception of the item is very good. Lots of never before seen pictures (and some that are familiar) with a little less text. I don't think I need to tell you to order this in your local bookshop. Enjoy!
Cheers
Devon
The book has finally been released, albeit with a slight delay. It had a June 2012 street date (up from April 2012 - see #54) and I got it yesterday. I'm not going to write a review, but the haptic perception of the item is very good. Lots of never before seen pictures (and some that are familiar) with a little less text. I don't think I need to tell you to order this in your local bookshop. Enjoy!
Cheers
Devon
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Ducks DeLuxe - Riviera Shuffle - #87
Ducks DeLuxe - Riviera Shuffle
This is a 2011 release from Jungle. Live in Monaco. Until about five minutes ago, Jungle was a class A label in my books. This here is trash. Unbelievable, legit labels are still releasing recordings that make any audience tape an aural highlight. I've heard a few bad live recordings, but this one takes the cake. No selfrespecting bootlegger would release something like this. Thumbs down and in future I make sure, I listen to a Jungle release, before I buy the CD (if I'm buying any other release from them at all, that is).
I'm only at track three right now, but it feels like half an hour has passed. I'm not sure I'm going to make it through the whole CD ever. Not recommended! Definitely not recommended!
Cheers
Devon
This is a 2011 release from Jungle. Live in Monaco. Until about five minutes ago, Jungle was a class A label in my books. This here is trash. Unbelievable, legit labels are still releasing recordings that make any audience tape an aural highlight. I've heard a few bad live recordings, but this one takes the cake. No selfrespecting bootlegger would release something like this. Thumbs down and in future I make sure, I listen to a Jungle release, before I buy the CD (if I'm buying any other release from them at all, that is).
I'm only at track three right now, but it feels like half an hour has passed. I'm not sure I'm going to make it through the whole CD ever. Not recommended! Definitely not recommended!
Cheers
Devon
Friday, June 8, 2012
V/A - El Mexican Rock & Roll, Vol. 1 + 2 - #86
V/A - El Mexican Rock & Roll, Vol. 1 + 2
If you're like me, always looking for the strange, exotic and wonderful, you might have seen these two CDs and were tempted to fork out your hard earned cash. Batman to the rescue! Forget about it. This is a misnomer as they come. First, there's very little in the way of Rock'n'Roll on these two discs. This is more like show music that could be heard around the 60's and 70's on TV. With accompanying dance troupe. In other words, extremely boring stuff. I've quite a few compilations of 50's lounge music on my shelfs, but the stuff I have is hot, thîs here is dead.
If this was the state of Rock'n'Roll in Mexico in the 50's, I'm sorry for the guys and girls there at the time. Must have been awful to be presented with this crap. Sometimes I think they are pulling my leg, Some covers of songs that have been ridden to death, are very badly presented. Of the nearly 60 tracks on offer here, only a handful can be called Rock'n'Roll. And what's more, some of these tracks are pulled from very very scratchy records, the stuff you'd get rid of, no matter how rare it is. Frankly, I don't understand El Toro, I would never have expected them to release such trash. It took me a few attempts to make it through these CDs. Buy yourself a few beers but avoid this at all costs.
P.S.: On the inlay card it says "The sound will CHARGE you!" (El Toro's spelling). Yes, I put my fingers into the next socket, see what happens!
Cheers
Devon
If you're like me, always looking for the strange, exotic and wonderful, you might have seen these two CDs and were tempted to fork out your hard earned cash. Batman to the rescue! Forget about it. This is a misnomer as they come. First, there's very little in the way of Rock'n'Roll on these two discs. This is more like show music that could be heard around the 60's and 70's on TV. With accompanying dance troupe. In other words, extremely boring stuff. I've quite a few compilations of 50's lounge music on my shelfs, but the stuff I have is hot, thîs here is dead.
If this was the state of Rock'n'Roll in Mexico in the 50's, I'm sorry for the guys and girls there at the time. Must have been awful to be presented with this crap. Sometimes I think they are pulling my leg, Some covers of songs that have been ridden to death, are very badly presented. Of the nearly 60 tracks on offer here, only a handful can be called Rock'n'Roll. And what's more, some of these tracks are pulled from very very scratchy records, the stuff you'd get rid of, no matter how rare it is. Frankly, I don't understand El Toro, I would never have expected them to release such trash. It took me a few attempts to make it through these CDs. Buy yourself a few beers but avoid this at all costs.
P.S.: On the inlay card it says "The sound will CHARGE you!" (El Toro's spelling). Yes, I put my fingers into the next socket, see what happens!
Cheers
Devon
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