The last I knew about Tuomas' whereabouts was my review in post #193 (Jolly Roger). He has found a new stomping ground with the Rockanites. This is a brandnew combo and, of course, hails from Finland. World capital country of Rock'n'Roll and Rock-a-Billy. No, make this a large slice of the music scene in general. The important part!
Let me think, I might have to rewrite this again. Where's Noise, Improvisation, Industrial and the like from Finland? I believe, there might be a hole somewhere. But it's Rock'n'Roll/Rock-a-Billy we're concerned with here. The band is made up of three individuals:
Tuomas - Vocals and Guitars Janne - Drums Sami - Bull Fiddle Bass (hey guys, you just lost me there, I will have to look this up)
What you get here is an offer of nine songs, clocking in at just under the half hour mark. And, once again, I'm very much impressed by a band from Finland, not a single cover version here. Not that this is a bad thing in itself, but lots of Neo Rock'n'Roll/Rock-a-Billy bands play it safe and release albums without a single original idea. Not these guys. Tuomas must have worked some overtime, as eight of the nine tracks are his, with Janne (I assume it's Janne) being listed for one song.
My brain is running in circles, I have half an idea whose parents "My Grain-O-Salt Baby" are. This is just one of these thoughts that you can't pinpoint and it drives you nuts. An excellent piece with a nice retro feeling from a bygone era. It's really old-fashioned, I can't help it. Excellent track, no doubt about it. "Mopin' 'bout Your Man" echoes a certain song as well, but I assume this owes more to the style than an actual blueprint. What I want to say is, you're feeling instantly at home with all of those nine selections.
Now that I have listened to the CD for about the 30th/40th time (I kid you not!), some words about Tuomas' singing. Somehow, I think he hits the nail right on the head. His voice is very much suited to the tracks (and not just because he wrote most of them). His voice is such, that you can sit through repeat listens without getting tired. Do I hear some Mick Green influences on guitar? Yes, I do. "Feelin' Horny Tonite" is such a case. Learned from the best, did you?
Janne seems to be a rock solid drummer, but his playing is always in the service of the songs. Not a show-off like so many, just bolting the band to the floor and giving directions. You can actually hear how the band is being ... it's like a railroad train huffing and puffing and Sami, the man on the bass, is oiling the wheels and shifting coal on the steep ascent. Those three guys are really clicking.
The CD was recorded in April 2016 in Helsinki. I'm not sure you can buy this album in any shop outside of Finland, but you can contact the band on their Facebook website, I'm sure you can work something out, so you're soon the proud owner of "Great Shakes".
Uh, and don't forget the Pin-up Girl on the cover and at the back of the booklet. Just sayin'
Red Elvises - Grooving To The Moscow Beat I found this CD only today in one of my local record shops and I'm asking myself, where have I been all those years? Never heard of the Red Elvises despite the fact that this release dates from 1996 and they seem to have released quite a number of albums. Looks like I'm the only one who wasnot aware of this band.
Strange little CD this is. You get everything from Rock-a-Billy to Tango and Country (and a lot in between). There's a bit of Russian influence present, or should I say, probably fake Russian influence? It's a bit tongue-in-cheek but not overtly so. Although you might be tempted to compare them to the Leningrad Cowboys, albeit on a small scale, you're entirely off track. There are a few guests on this release, so that gives the whole listening experience a full bodied sound. And by the time you've made it to the last song, "Romantic Junk", you're hooked. There's even a website at www.redelvises.com
Don't ask me! No idea how I came across Riyoko Takagi and her debut album "The Debut!". All I can say, once I checked out videos on the internet, I knew that I was dabbling in a "musical" genre, that's not really mine. Forgettable and mediocre music, somewhere between cheap Dance stuff, that you actually believed was stone dead since at least 1996 and Easy Listening, Japanese style.
Not knowing what to say about this "music", I better talk about her videos. Except, there's not much to say either. Ms Takagi seems to perform almost everytime showing her two sales points (covered by a bra) to the public. O.K., she's definitely good looking, but she (probably) overdid it on surgery. Less is sometimes more, actually.
The video is kind of funny though. There's almost nothing else for the camera to show but her breasts. Nowadays the "sex sells" videos seem to be the fashion of the day, but this here is ... well, I've seen a few Japanese music videos that exploit the female gender in a way you wouldn't see in a video around here, not that I can come up with any.
The CD comes with a DVD as well, so, it's your choice. Just don't expect any revelations regarding music. You've been warned. I like the package!
Frankly, I'm done with reviews (mostly), as you can see from the frequency this blog is being updated. I'd rather enjoy LPs and CDs on my own (and going to gigs), than let the world know what I think about something. Not that the world cares, btw. However, every now and then music lands on my tt/in my player that's worthwhile losing a few words about. Not that it sinks like a stone in deep water. Steve Hooker's new one is a record that deserves such a push.
I admit, I'm a Steve Hooker fan since way back when. Actually must have been before I saw him live at the Sommercasino in Basel in the year of our Lord 19andsomething. His latest release is a seven song offer (I believe the two remixed songs have been issued earlier - I'm just too lazy to search for the MCD). What you get here is Steve Hooker at full throttle. Quite the way you associate the music with the man. Always on Rockabilly's edge.
... you still with me?
The only downside is the short playing time of this CD. At just over 25 minutes not really a full evening's worth of entertainment, unless you count repeat playings as a way of extending the enjoyment (and believe, you will). Steve Hooker came up with a couple of excellent songs, not a dud in there. As a matter of fact, the album had me caught right from the start. I believe, it took me all of three seconds to get into the groove.
As long as Steve Hooker and others release new music, all is not lost. So, it's even more important that you keep artists like him afloat. Buy this CD (PIMPHOUSE CD2) and if you can make it, go to see the man in person at one of his gigs. I've just been playing this now for the fourth time in the last two hours. Yes, that's how good this one is.
Jolly Roger - Third Strike Between general lazyness and the fact that I switched from a Windows system to a Mac (and you all know what that implies), I'm forgiven for being late. Very late in fact! I got this CD back in March 2015 and it's been on my desk ever since, being played on the small stereo system I have at my computer working place at home. There's some Jolly Roger in my collection, but what caught my ear with this release was the fact how Rockabilly the album is. Modern/classic Rockabilly, not the watered down version you hear nowadays every now and then and yet, not the barely dusted off stuff from yesteryear either (not that I have anything to say against a good 50's Rockabilly platter - in this case, a CD). And Tuomas is right about the sound, excellent. Not polished to death and then some, just excellent recording with a clean and crisp soud. What do you get here? 12 original tracks and they're all keepers! And for the romantics out there, there's a ballad to be found here as well. While I write this, "For Now And Never Again" has just started and this is the one ... usually it's either Rockabilly or bust, but this is good enought to make the cut. Strange, the track makes me go and fetch a Port Charlotte Cask Strength Single Cask Malt Whisky. Bear with me, I'm back in a minute!
62.7 % of peat and smoke makes a grown man cry (of joy and happiness). In general, this disc goes for a very entertaining 36+ minutes of your valuable time and I can't single out certain tracks. Tuomas, who's not with the band anymore, has nevertheless taken the mike on three songs. However, not to prefer any singer over the other, K.T., Ande and Tuomas do their part on their respective tracks and this is very competent singing. In ancient times, K.T. Kotila was with Jolly B Good, hence maybe the wordplay. And another former member of the latter makes an appearance here, although "only" in the form of the song "Shame What You Do", where Teppo Nättilä has a composing co-credit. If you're even remotely interested in today's Rockabilly scene and if you think, some of the best Rock music comes straight out of Finland, then this here is for you. I can tell you one thing though, the CD is not going to show up in your local record shop (if you live outside Finland, that is). Try your luck with ande.niem@gmail.com (this is the address that's printed in the booklet). I suppose you can work something out. I'll follow this up with a more detailed review on my website. But at the rate I'm going right now, don't expect anything before 2016. In the meantime, I'll keep this slab of plastic ready to pop into the CD player whenever the urge hits me. Cheers Devon
Here's one I recently discovered: Sven-Åke Johansson's "Konzert für 12 Traktoren" (Concert for 12 Tractors). Being the Avant-Garde buff that I am, this, of course, quite fascinated me (and I do have some strange records in my collection).
If you want to check it out, this masterpiece (no pun intended, seriously) can be heard here in all its glory
Easily my most expensive 7" (by a long shot). Just had to have it, no questions asked. This single is for sale for up to EUR 500.00 on a good day. What you get here is Finnish proto Punk released in 1979, so it's a real item from the time when this genre was making waves. I was (and still am) quite interested in this scene, although I was never a Punk myself. The first such LP I bought was "London Calling" (Clash), which turned out to be anything but Punk, but a hell of a Rock album in it's own right.
This has led to a fair few 7"s, LPs and CDs in my collection and to this day, I'd argue you under the table regarding the worth of this kind of music. It's not one and the same bullshit and no, Sir/Madam, it doesn't sound all the same either. The imbeciles (Sid Vicious et al) trying to make a ruckus and proclaiming their "vision" were very few and far between. That's not to say they didn't have a voice, just that they didn't really matter in the big picture. No, friends and neighbours, even the Sex Pistols made a rather small dent in the history of Rock. If it was Rolling Stones or the Beatles, I was always on the Clash side.
I should think, that Punk was alive in Finland as much as in the rest of Europe. Now, crucify me, but Punk, at least to me, was a European thing. Of course I know the claims of mid-60's bands from the States being the Punk types, but frankly, they are Garage and nothing more. Just don't get me started on the subject, I've enough recordings in my collection to cover most angles there. I do like Garage, but don't fly a flag that's not yours. I wouldn't be too surprised if one day Elvis Presley would have the dubious honor, to be named the first Punk ... oh, wait, this has happened already.
Here are four tracks that sound like they were recorded when they were recorded. Typical songs, that seem, at least to me, a bit slow. They must have had someone stomping on the brakes all the time. I wish it would pick up every now and then. Still, if you're one of the folks thinking this is not worthwhile, I'm telling you, you are ... right! No, forget it, you're completely mistaken. This is a period piece and really, I've heard worse. My copy looks mint, but I guess, they've recorded this somewhere near the sea, with the studio doors wide open. The swooshing is like the tide swapping up on a beach. And to my ears, it sounds like the recording is not quite in balance. The drummer is a bit to prominent and the guitar player is to far set back.
Is this "Audiophile Today" or what? This is a bloody Punkrock review and certainly not about sonic qualities. What I'm hearing is like travelling back in time, 35 years in a flash and the soundtrack of some half forgotten era is here again. To me, this is well worth the cash spent, but you might think otherwise. A few years ago, I began to understand people who collect only original Vinyl (no 2nd pressings, reissues and the like), it's as much about owning such a period piece than the music itself.
Now that I read a ton of comments on the web about this reissue and actually having listened to my newly acquired double LP a couple of times, I have to say it out loud:
DO NOT BUY THIS THING!
The nerve they have to issue such a substandard product is awesome. This is by far the worst "new" vinyl I bought, let me see, since ... well ... ever since I started buying LPs. I didn't believe it first, when I read other folks' opinions on this. The LP was sealed, just to put this straight, but then ... fingerprints all over the records itself, dirty like having been buried in a pig sty and forgotten for the last onethousand years and, oh, do not forget the scratches(!) all over the platters. This is supposed to be an item fresh from the factory?
Don't get me started on the way the "super" box set is done (CD only and then it cries cheapo all over). The single LP without the zipper and ... look Stolling Rones, you've proved yourself that you can milk your fans dry and that some blokes swimming in lots of money are in dire need to squeeze the last cash you can get out of your fan's wallets.
It's not youth rebelling here, it's the geriatric unit. Hope you're satisfied with your brilliant marketing ploy. I think I'm going to puke. And before I forget it, the sound is nothing to write home about either. Thin, lifeless, a complete waste of time and money.
