5.6.7.8's.....New Vinyl and other cool stuff.

Yet another essential slab of wax !

Well, well, well......The good stuff just keeps on coming !  New album out on Japanese label timebomb for those eternally hip gals The 5.6.7.8's and a 7" ('Mothra' released late last year) to keep you on your toes too. Making no bones about it, I've been a fan of these folk for many a year and in my eyes they can do no wrong ! This album does it for me, offering their usual mix of mashed up 50's mayhem and Garage, even incorporates a touch of Ska rhythms on one of the tracks....but no worries, it's a well conceived sound and works just dandy. Has the songs from the Third Man 7" releases and a totally reworked version of Harlem Nocturne which appeared on their debut album. This LP is limited so don't be slow or you'll be paying E(vil) Bay prices before you know it.

Just have to love leopard print leotards !

If you're going to get it direct from Timebomb Records, you could do far worse than pick up The Bait Ones (That's 'Bate Ones' not 'Bay Tones') The Weird Weird World of The Bait Ones....These cats are often referred to as The Cramps of Kobe.....I wonder why ? Covering the likes of Bob Vidone, The Novas and Kai Ray. Of the 13 tracks on the CD, only 4 are originals.....BUT it really doesn't matter, Yep, I liked The Tokyo Cramps (are they still going ?) however these guys are more original, rather than imitate they give it a reworking and you have to give the dude who looks like Slim Chance a bit of credit for having the balls to climb into a gold lame catsuit ! Unfortunately I think this may be a retrospective release and they may well be split up at this point, if anyone wants to confirm or let me know otherwise ? It'd be most welcome.  There are a couple of vids lurking out there and a little website but my Japanese is as good as my Swahili so.....

Out on CD.

Ye Nuns have their absolutely brilliant 'Nun More Black' released on CD for all of you unfortunate enough to have missed the mega limited vinyl release (300 copies only). It;s out on the Radiowave label and should be available from the first week of Feb (2015). For those of you who remain unconvinced !  Head on over to their Facebook page and read the review of the album by none other than Eddie Shaw himself.
To to keep up with them and all that's of a Nunnish persuasion check out their website https://itsnuntime.wordpress.com/  for gigs and the latest news...They're going into the BBC studios in mid Feb to record a session for Mark Riley so keep your ears open to catch that when it's broadcast ?  Feb 17th ?

35 years late for an introduction !

Another CD only release (by the looks of things anyhow) is the up coming Tav Falco and The Panther Burns retrospective compilation 'Hip Flask' sub-titled 'An introduction to Tav Falco & Panther Burns' which is kind of weird since they've been around since 1979 !
What you get is 19 tracks culled from their back catalogue, from 'Behind The Magnolia Curtain' upto and including 2 tracks from the as of yet unreleased 'Command Performance' album which still has no release date !
And if you missed them before, you can pick a few of Tav's vinyl releases over at Stag-O-Lee mail order.

This should be out late Feb or early March.

Inspired by The Cramps crazy collection ?

Time for a bit of a moan about those (surely) well intentioned folk over at Cherry Red, Yep another Cramps Tie-In release......seriously guys, what's the next compilation of, 'Songs The Cramps May Have Heard At Some Point In Their Lives' ?
Anyway, apart from 'borrowing' the title from a series of books (of which in one volume, The Cramps actually appeared) put out by REsearch quite some time ago and the pretty rubbish sleeve for this CD...the album isn't so bad although theres an awful lot of stuff on it which you probably have already on other albums/compilations so check the track listing before handing over the dosh !  Out now.




Timebomb mail-order website : http://www.timebomb.co.jp/

Just have to say that the version of The Witch by GMC & The Arcells on BFTG vol 10 is truly AWESOME !    Just goes to show that there is always something new to discover.

Journey To The Centre Of The Cramps.... Dick Porter's Revised & Updated Book

304 pages no less !

It's been almost 6 years since Lux rocked off into the great blue yonder and 9 years since Dick Porter (or rather Plexus) published
'A Short History Of Rock 'N' Roll Psychosis'.......and 25 Years since Ian Johnston's 'Wild Wild World Of The Cramps' !
So I'm rather looking forward to this updated edition, and by the looks of things there's a whole lot more in there ! At a tad over 300 pages, it's a hefty enough tome at more than double the number of pages than previous books......Here's the blurb from the publishers marketing dept !

Dick Porter's acclaimed and authoritative biography of one of the most influential and inventive garage punk bands ever, The Cramps. This book will take you through the turbulent history of the band by way of an exciting narrative and in-depth interviews, leading you on a Journey To The Centre Of The Cramps.

The Cramps were a unique phenomenon that took the New York punk scene by storm in the late 1970s. They were immediately notorious as their live performances continued to astonish and shock crowds, not least because of frontman Lux Interior's almost 7 foot frame. Their characteristic blend of lo-fi punk rock and traditional rock n' roll, with a little bit of kitsch horror thrown in for good measure has left an enduring legacy, including being recognised as the inventors of the psychobilly genre.

Based on Dick Porter's original and renowned biography, this new and revised edition goes into far greater detail, with even more unseen interviews with Poison Ivy, Lux Interior and other former band members. Importantly, Journey To The Centre Of The Cramps is more up-to-date than any other Cramps biography, telling their entire 35 year history up until their tragic split in 2009 following Lux Interior's untimely passing. The high-quality photograph section is the icing on this rock horrorshow cake, giving you an unparalleled insight into their live shows and their off-stage personas.

The Cramps had a fascinating history and every funny, terrifying and tragic tale is told in this no-holds-barred biography that is a phenomenon fitting for such a band. For anyone interested in the story of Lux Interior and Poison Ivy, the New York '70s CBGB scene, or simply good old rock 'n' roll, this fully updated Cramps biography is guaranteed to shock, surprise and entertain you for years.

 

Out Now although some delay in distribution to the USA.

 

Publisher:	Omnibus Press
ISBN:	9781783053735
Catalogue No.:	OP55693

 

Available online from the usual suspects, Waterstones, Amazon Etc Etc.

 

 

The Trippy Ones........Trash On Acid !

Hmmm, you can't really ignore the fact that during the 80's at the height of the whole TRASH thing, there was a lot of acid floating about. Blotters, dots and little jellylike squares....Supermans, Pink Panthers, Dartboards, Windowpanes, Ying Yangs the ever present White Lightnings or at least the leftovers thereof after Operation Julie had closed the lab producing it down in the late 70's or perhaps they were just using the 'brand' name ?....Regardless, a lot of the bands were partaking and this is evident by some of the glorious tracks that were released during this time, hardly the stuff to get hippies into the groove and more likely than not to induce a bad trip rather than assist a mellow comedown they were none the less good fun !  In no particular order of preference, here a few of the best.

Shut the door Suzy and don't let them in !

- The Vibes.    The Inner Wardrobes Of Your Mind.   1985.    Chainsaw Records.     UK.

The absolutely fantastic Vibes really caught the moment with this 12" release,  with the 'extended trip mix' of 'I hear Noises' epitomising the whole sense of an acid experience starting to go wrong.
The bassist incidently (If you didn't know anyway) was none other than 'Capt' Lloyd Tripp ! The other tracks all equally noteworthy were a cover of 60's garage punk band The Outcasts 'I'm In Pittsburgh And It's Raining', a self penned ode to the chicken meister 'Hasil Adkins In My Head' and an unrecognisable jazz cover from 1958 called 'Scratch My Back.
Never released on CD, in fact none of The Vibes releases are available on CD with the exception of a couple of tracks on comps...if you want to experience it first hand you're just going to have to track the vinyl down. 

Shriek Inducing !

- The Nomads.   Nitroglycerine Shrieks.           1985.      Various labels.       Sweden.

Another fine track that was released in 1985, guess the psychosis had really started kicking in about then, this sounds quite menacing with the distorted vocals over a repetative drumbeat. It came out as the b-side to the 'She Pays The Rent EP' on different labels in the UK, France, Sweden and the USA at the same time, so is easily picked up for a reasonable price. It's also on the ESTRUS 10" & CD ' Raw & Rare' which also contains their cover of 'I Wanna Come Back From The World Of LSD' as well as a great version of 'Weekend On Mars'....If all you know of The Nomads is their later material ? This is a great eye opener to their more Rockin', Trashier side.....truly worth the investment. 

24 Tracks of Glorious Trash.

- The Raymen.  Just Dropped In.    1999.    Demo.    Germany.  

Brilliant cover of Kenny Rogers and The First Edition's 'I Just Dropped In To See What Condition My Condition is In'  a highlight of the movie 'The Big Lebowski' for me. But, Yeah...The Raymen, vastly underrated and nowhere near as recognised as they should be !
This track can be found on a compilation of unreleased material (Just check out 'White Witchdoctor' for pure genius) put out by Raucous Records in the UK a good few years back. Point worth noting to the more Crampsically inclined among you, is that this CD contains a very early cover of  'Goo Goo Muck' recorded in 1984 which was on The Raymen's first release, unfortunately put out on a very limited casstte only basis at the time and never released on any other format since.
Big retrospective post on The Raymen coming in the next weeks.

The second version released in 1989.

- The Cannibals.   Paralytic Confusion.    1984.    Hit Records.        UK.
- Five Young Cannibals. Paralytic Confusion. 1989.  Hit Records.      UK.

This track was so good they released it twice !  First time it came out as a freebie with 'Bucketful of Brains' magazine in 84' as the b-side to 'The Submarine Song'. It was given a commercial release 5 years later as the b-side (again) to 'You Drive Me Mental'. I think there may have been a mild humouristic attempt at the expense of the pop band the fine young cannibals.....but I'm only guessing here !
A very trippy ditty about alcohol induced altered states far more geared to acid rather than getting pissed to my mind though.

Turn off the lights !

- The Purple Things.   Out Of The Deep  (5 track EP)   1986.  Media Burn.   UK.

Basically I've cheated by including this and it's sister release (below) as both records (vinyl only releases to date) are prime examples of what happens when you drop a few tabs and let loose. Five tracks of pure psychedelic Trash...The epic cover of Teddy & His Patches 1967 classic 'Suzy Creamcheese' really stands out as does the tikiesque exotica of 'Theme From The Gunship Reptile.
Following on from the demise of The Vibes and the formation of The Purple Things, they hit good form with their 2 Media Burn releases but kind of had a dodgy patch with the LP and 12" for Mother records....not essential and heading in the direction that would eventually see the formation of Terminal Cheesecake.........But don't take my word for it, listen and make your own judgements.

Sub Pop club release from 1989.

- The Mad Daddys.   Alligator Wine.    1989.      Sub Pop.      USA.  

Cramps prodigees (their first mini LP 'Music for Men' was produced by Lux & Ivy) take on rather admirably, the Lieber/Stollar classic made famous by Screamin' Jay Hawkins. A very swampy, screeching rendition with lots of reverb, it comes across as a tad over produced to be totally trashy but still managing to hit the sweet spot and do justice to the original. Funnily enough, The Vibes had recorded this too back in 1984 and their version can be found on the psychobilly compilation 'Blood On The Cats 2' equally worth digging up. 

Not good for a bad trip !

- The Purple Things.   Deep In The Mind Of.    1985.    Media Burn.      UK.

This was the first release of the post Vibes formation and a cracker it is too. Two cover versions, The Red Crayola's 'Hurricane Fighter Plane' and The Tamrons 'Wild Man' and three originals with 'Subterranean Cave Mind' being the stand out self penned composition, the use of a slide guitar gives it an almost Doorsy feel in places. It's a real shame that the output of The Purple things hasn't been combined and released either (heaven forbid) on CD or as a double album which would be ideal and if anyone does, then don't forget to include 'Valley Of The Purple' which can be found on the 'Meltdown On Media Burn' compilation from 1986.

And just to say, that in no way could I possibly advocate the use of hallucinogenics such as LSD, Peyote, Mescaline, Psilocybin or any other mind altering substances come to think of it !

Bloodshot Bill..New LP 'Shook Shake' & Heavy Trash Tour !

http://www.bloodshotbill.com

The new album from that busy, busy Canadian 'Bloodshot Bill is out since Dec and it's a real humdinger ! The 3rd release for those cool folk at Norton....here's the thing though, I was on their site (can't recommend it enough if you live in the USA) putting my order together as they've also released the original version of Bobby Fullers classic 'I Fought the Law' and The Seeds 'Nightime Girl'as well as few other bits and pieces I fancied....go to checkout and hit the calculate shipping button and nearly pass out ! Looks like the US Postal service has decided to really ramp up the cost of sending stuff overseas....basically the cost of my order was doubled when you added the delivery charges.....Hit cancel order button ! and ordered from nearer to home. At the same time Norton released the album, they also put out a Christmas single from BB too, couple of original tracks called 'Stuffin' her stocking' & 'Naughty or Nice'  bit late now I know but thought it's worth the mention. This is album number 18 (Yep, eighteen albums, not including splits and other collaborations, he's also half of The Tandoori Knights & The Ding Dongs) and not a bad one yet ! Not only is he prolific but he's always doing something, he recently went on tour in the US with non other than Heavy Trash playing double bass and by all accounts will be doing so again very soon as they're on a French tour :

FEBRUARY  2015 (all * dates playing bass for HEAVY TRASH, as well as playing solo acoustic)

Sat 7 - TBA

Tue 17 - BRISE GLACE, Annecy, France *

Wed 18 - LAITERIE CLUB, Strasbourg, France *

Thu 19 - L'AUTRE CANAL, Nancy, France *

Fri 20 - BIG BAND CAFE, Caen, France *

Sat 21 - CHABADA CLUB, Angers, France *

Sun 22 - VAUBAN, Brest, France *

Tue 24 - ECHONOVA, Vannes, France *

Wed 25 - COOPERATIVE DE MAI, Clermont Ferrand, France *

Thu 26 - 106 CLUB, Rouen, France *

Fri 27 - LA MAROQUINERIE, Paris, France *

Sat 28 - LA CAVE, Macon, France *   

And a date in Switzerland.......check and confirm these before heading off though !

I've been wondering what happened to the new album from Heavy Trash which was due out late 2013/early 2014.....perhaps it'll be released shortly ?