LINK: Cool interview with Tony Slug on IPunkRock.com. It is in Spanish, but run it thru' this handy dandy translation device and you'll get the general idea...

Norton is set to release the first 2 of 15 split Rolling Stones cover singles recorded by today's coolest hit makers and packaged in their own company sleeve.
Knaughty Knights/Wildebeests
"Memphis' Naughty Knights fronted by Jack Yarber (Oblivians/Cool Jerks) sonically rip through 'Connection' while the Wildebeests pound out the psycho Diddley 'Please Go Home'".
Reigning Sound/Hentchmen
"Another Memphis topside! Reigning Sound, featuring Greg Cartwright (Oblivians/Compulsive Gamblers), offer a stunning take on 'I'd Much Rather Be With The Boys' duking it out with the Hentchmen, who serve up 'Surprise, Surprise' (produced by Freddy Fortune) with a nod to their Motor City Idols The Underdogs".

"'It's Everything and Then It's Gone' a documentary featuring the brief era when a group of bands took over an old rubber workers' hangout and created a mix of punk rock and art rock that would be coined 'The Akron Sound' will be aired on PBS 45 & 49 at 8 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 5.
Produced by Phil Hoffman, UA adjunct professor of communications, the hour-long program chronicles the early 1970s, when rubber was still king in Akron, and how, just a few years later, Akron's most important export was music.
Writer/director Hoffman says the documentary takes you back to a time when the music really did mean everything. And, for these musicians "most of them children of rubber workers" music was a way out of the factory.
The program features music from Devo, the Rubber City Rebels, The Bizarros, Tin Huey and The Waitresses, and interviews with members of Devo, Akron writer David Giffels, legendary rock critic Jane Scott and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame chief curator Jim Henke. "
(Anybody out there able to land me a video copy of this?.)

"The August updates to 60sgaragebands.com are now online. Featured is Ted Liebler's excellent interview with Notre Dames' The Shaggs, who recorded the classic "Wink" LP!. Also included are interviews with R.T. Salazar of The Tears ("Weatherman") and Rick Levy of The Limits. And, as always, all the current NEWS & NUGGETS, and a handful of additions to our comprehensive garage band filmography".

Remember the Angry Samoans' 'They Saved Hitler's Cock' ?, well again truth is stranger than fiction. GO!.

Thundertrain reunion tour: "Hot off a rave review in Rolling Stone of their TEENAGE SUICIDE reissue on Gulcher, Thundertrain will reunite for the first time ever, playing six cities in six nights! The Boston-area dates kick off August 19 in Worcester, roll on through Attleboro, Somerville, and Jamaica Plain to a Saturday night climax in Cambridge with Cheetah Chrome and Unnatural Axe, and wrap up with a Sunday afternoon finale and weenie roast in lead singer Mach Bell's hometown of Holliston. For complete details, click here: Thundertrain Tour Hotline".

Dunno how many of you remember Gene Sculatti's 'Catalog Of Cool' book and it's follow up 'Too Cool', but it was great to note that most of those books contents are now available on-line. And yeah, some of this stuff is a bit too corny/cheezy for my particular taste, but you also get contributions by such fine folk like Tim Warren, Nick Toshes, Lux Interior, John Waters and Joey Ramone, all of 'em cool to the point of bein' frosty. GO!.

thedictators.com is updated with news and upcomin' tour dates (includin' a couple o' shows in Italy).

"Crypt Records is clearing out the Garage!. So much stuff got piled up we need to get rid of a LOT!. Records, t-shirts, posters, test pressings, silly stuff and all kinds of junk... So make sure you check out our other options too, now and later!". GO!.

This month's releases from Ace includes hipsters like the Sonics, Prisoners, B.B. King plus Laurie and Combo label anthologies. Out soon will be a couple of rockabilly 45s taken from the label's recent Meteor collection.

Looks like Norton is set to release vinyl re-issues of the 4 original Gene Vincent LPs in September...

It's been a while since I've last been in contact w/ former MRR scribe Mark Murmann, but noticed that he's been setting up his own weblog 'Blitz My Brain' over the past few days. Obviously still tryin' to get the hang of it, but he should be on a roll in no time soon. And don't let the MRR tag scare ya, Mark's taste in music probably runs pretty much along the same lines as that of most NBT readers. And credit where it's due; Mark mentions a new Lester Bangs anthology to be published on August 12, that I haven't seen mentioned anywhere else yet...

Great wee Blasters and B-related site constructed by bass fella John Bazz. GO!.

RIP: Sam Phillips. GO!.

Aye... hopefully somebody will have the presence of mind to sink the bastard with all of 'em on it. I guess there's no end to the humiliation. I was certainly cheated the night I had to watch them vomit out their lumpy paen to rawk. Can somebody make sure the Kings of Leon are on the boat too?

NEWS FLASHES: "Rhino Records is giving its legendary compilation power to the punk movement. 'Ever Get the Feeling You've Been Cheated?', which ironically doesn't include a single Sex Pistols track to back up its name, is due for Oct. 28. The four-disc set spans bands that came out from 1973 to 1980, and is intended to show the links between classic punk rock and proto-punk, new wave, post-punk and no wave" (tracklisting)..*****Lindsay will be overjoyed that the new Turbonegro video is available here, and the band has a "secret" gig comming up according to this this article.

Finally took some time to dig into the Star Spangles debut full-length disc 'Bazooka', and I gotta tip my hat to our chief o' staff Lindsay for knowin' a contender when he sees one, 'cause this here disc is a rip roarin' p-rock blast, w/ the p standin' for "pop" !. And save for one weak Hoodoo Gurus cover (you can't beat perfection) it's all top shelf stuff. Just take note of those involved (Sleeve pic taken by former Heartbreakers manager Leee Black Childers, produced by Ramones regular Daniel Rey and their official bio is written by Richard Meltzer !) couple that with looks resemblin' Sire era Flamin' Groovies crossed w/ the NY Dolls and you'll get a pretty good idea of what to expect.

On Friday night I caught the Buff Medways at the Dirty Water Club. The first 45 minutes were dependable if nothing earth shattering from Sir William et al. That's the way it goes, sometimes a band will spark and on other night's the timing will be a smidgen out. However, as we rounded the bend at midnight Billy starting playing around with Punk Rock Is Nicht Tot and turned it into a rap about bogus celebrities and phoney people. It worked as treat as did the segue from Jack The Ripper into John The Revelator. To cap it all off, Johnny Johnson (ex-Headcoats) jumped ontstage to play guitar for an encore of Baby What Do You Want Me To Do and You Don't Love Me. With that done and dusted, Billy turned to the audience and said: "Now go home and form a rock'n'roll band." Who would refuse?

The Barracudas and Lazy Cowgirls now have Yahoo! Groups dedicated to their past, present and future activities. Both have the support and the participation of band members so here's your chance to ask for the story behind some of your favourite tunes. Thankfully, no one appears to be too mentally damaged by their ordeals at the RnR coalface.

Way "backintheday" there was a band by the name of New Math. Then they became The Jet Black Berries and made a few more albums then folded. They were really something.
Now Gary Trainer, Roy Stein and Chris Yockel of the NM/JBB axis have got a new combo together with April Laragy pictured here and Scott Ostrowski called The Atomic Swindlers. They trade in a grandiose swinging glam long considered lost to the world and add a little punk rock undertow as one might expect. www.atomicswindlers.com