Reigning Sound Split
"December kicks off with the thoroughly sad news that the Reigning Sound have called it a day, with only a few lucky Scandinavians having had the chance to see them grace the stage. Here's what Greg Cartwright had to say: "The Reigning Sound will end Dec. 31st for all practical purposes. A little over 3 months ago we lost our keyboard player which forced us to scrap the new record we had just recorded with him and record a more guitar driven record. This worked in our favor as I think the new record could be our best yet. On top of this, My wife, my kids and myself are moving to North Carolina next Feb. Trying to keep a band together long-distance is hard. I know I've tried it several times. Me and the guys still get along and perhaps we may do a show here and there in the following year." (news c/o Sonic Dirt).

Rockstars as kids (yep, that's our pal Joey), shows that there might still be hope for all you geeky kids. GO!.

"In December 2002, a shipping container arrived in Sydney, Australia. Its contents largely unknown, it was unloaded into a warehouse in East Botany. For the next 6 months a story unfolded, a history of the recorded music of Rochester, NY, from the immediate post-war era, until the untimely death in 1977 of studio owner and jazz big band leader Vincent Giancursio, aka Vince Jan, aged 58. The studio later suffered fire and flood damage.
The contents of the container, as they were unpacked, revealed hidden musical treasure representing every genre and diversity of the era. Big band jazz and lounge music, popular songs, country and western, rockabilly and incredible gospel groups dominate the 1950's. Following this came early beat and pop groups, early garage r&r, northern soul and funk, culminating in a slew of brilliant undiscovered garage punk masterpieces, the reason for the existence of this site. After 1967, psychedelic and progressive styles took hold, and the energy was lost. However, the story must, and will, be told...". GO!.

24 Ways Record Geeks are Different from Other People.

Christmas Party in the Lunn-dunn Pt 1. A far more worthwhile cause than the celebration of those troglodytes that brought Trafalgar Square to a halt today... over to them Sonic Reducer fellas...
We'll see ya, and raise! Christmas, inna Texas Hold 'Em stylee! The Boogaloo on London's uncelebrated Archway Road is THE rock 'n' roll pub. The Stooges AND James Carr on the juke, a roaring fire (stray Strokes fans?), mebbe David Soul or Wreckless Eric doing a few numbers over by the mural of The King ... WE LOVE IT! So when Boogaloo master Gerry O'Boyle asked yer ever-lovin' 'Reducer boys to bring some sounds up the hill, to play our top shebeen's festive shindig, we said, "Fuck, yeah!" Oh, and it's also BigKegShandy's birthday (the old scrote) ... So we'll do for ya at The Metro on the 18th, then we'll give ya a day off. Be good to your people on the 19th. And be ready to GET DOWN on the 20th! For FREE!
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Sock It To Me, Santa! - The Boogaloo Christmas Party
Music from the Sonic Reducer Tag Team - December 20th 7pm-late
The Boogaloo, 312 Archway Road, Highgate, Highgate Tube.

*All the shit that's fit to spin!* Funk, soul, ska, rock 'n' roll, R&B, reggae, country, soundtracks, garage, punk, psych, power pop, and just plain good musics.

Hipsters, flipsters! The time has come to say "turn that motherfucker UP!"
Sonic Reducer is inordinately proud to announce our first late nite shindig at a new venue, the Metro, on December 18th. The match of the year will see the 'Reducer tag team of BigKegShandy and TeenSlain locked in pitch-controlled battle with The Bunker's Paul ' Blow Up' Tunkin. Using only the most deadliest 45rpm ammunition - namely the choicest punk, funk, garage, R&B, ska, soundtracks, soul, electronica and beat sounds - the multi-frequency square-off will mean non-stop dancefloor action.

Referees for this cerebellum 'n' instep-mashing bout will be the finest band in all Londinum, those missing-in-action Beatings. Call them tardy, by all means. Think of them as people with far too much free time one their grubby little hands. Wonder at the amount of Angry Samoans and Saxon vinyl at their collective disposal. But at just 60 Earth minutes past the witching hour, The Beatings will take to the stage, armed with favourites old & new. Fresh from the loving arms of Mr. Kevin Shields, and the stage of The Forum, they will undoubtedly be "Young, Fast & Scientific."

Ho, fucking, ho, children!

Christmas classics a la Sonic Reducer:

White Christmas - Otis Redding
Back Door Santa - Clarence Carter
Santa Claus - The Sonics
Holiday Cheer - The Martinis
Christmas In Viet Nam - Jon & Johnny
Jesus Christ - Big Star
Hey America It's Christmas - James Brown
I Want An Alien For Christmas - Fountains Of Wayne
Message To Santa - The Cheetahs
Gee Whiz, It's Christmas - Carla Thomas

Stay tuned for the second part of the Sonic Reducer Xmess Thang!

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Sonic Reducer vs The Bunker with special guests The Beatings The Metro Oxford St December 18th 11pm-3am Beatings onstage at 1am Tickets are £6 via ticketweb.co.uk

Limited guest list, email for inclusion.

The Scoundrelles debut Organic Molecules In Action! is ready to roll into your exixtence now and what a fab racket it is too. Imagine "Flies" period Chilton marinated in Scientists with a little Neil Innes on the side and you ain't even close. Not released officially until February 4th 2004, you can score your copy now by clicking here.

Scored a copy of the latest Magic Dirt album from Agent Lizzy Pepper out there in Oz at The Dirtbag News Organisation. Tough Love continues the high-end work of this fine combo and further ponders the question of exactly why this group hasn't conquered the world. As the world readies itself for a Pixies reunion, the Dirt have all their chops and a whole wad more. Short sharp jolts of real rockin' - they got 'em. Spaced out psychedelics with feedback sorbet to spare? Plenty o' that in supply too. They combine many, many elements to make a heckuva noise. But it's not Nu-metal, just good natured all-weather rawk that should really be pointing them at the stratosphere. These kids have it all and why Adalita isn't a role model for a new generation surely bears investigation by authorities on such behaviour. Their website doesn't seem to be operating at the minute but when it is, like them Staples said... I'll take you there.

(photo from www.abc.net.au/triplej/jfiles/)

'Louie Louie' gold record going on eBay - Forty years after a song with mumbled vocals and supposedly lewd lyrics went from Pacific Northwest radio hit to nationwide sensation, the gold record it earned has gotta go...more

Great to see Joey honoured there in NY. I managed to finish Monte Melnick's Ramones book over the length of the train trip to and from London and it's heartily recommended. Not an easy read sometimes but 100% for real. I always found Monte to be a great guy. Firm but to my mind he was always fair. It's great that he got this tome together. How was the trip to London? Well it was grand to see the crew but the show was kinda disheartening. I need to put it into some kinda perspective before I run off at the word processor... I did finally get my mitts on a copy of Sonic Reducer #1 though so at least that was something.

More pictures here and here.

Just got the Wanda Jackson album "Heart Trouble" which includes Dave Alvin and also Lux and Ivy of The Cramps. Sympathy have a vinyl edition of it on the skelp also. You need it. Hearing Ivy's guitar on the version of "Funnel of Love" almost makes me forget that travesty known as "Fiends of Dope Island".

It's been a rough and tumble old week. The Spit and Polish Tour is underway and Amy's Allison and Rigby along with Neil Cleary and Mark Spencer have been bogged down with all kindsa crap. We've been trying to ease the pain but lessons have been learned folks. I'll expand on all that in due course after we get back from the London show tomorrow (Monday). Special agent David Scott is now accompanying the posse and Cap'n Jon Graboff of Special Forces have been drafted in. How do you educate people who will pay money to see shysters like Ryan Adams that they're just plain wrong? I'm not sure but I sure as hell ain't about to give up trying. Remember that old New Math chestnut "Die Trying"? Well if that's what it takes...

I generally hate and almost never open blanket e-mail but for some reason I opened this one and found it vaguely appropriate... it might make you smirk too, who the heck knows...
"It's the Spring of 1957 and Bobby goes to pick up his date. He's a pretty hip guy with his own car. When he goes to the front door, the
girl's father answers and invites him in."Carrie's not ready yet, so why don't you have a seat?", he says. Carries father asks Bobby what they're planning to do. Bobby replies politely that they will probably just go to the soda shop or a movie. Carries father responds, "Why don't you two go out and screw? I hear all the kids are doing it." Naturally this comes as quite a surprise to Bobby so he asks Carries dad
to repeat it. "Yeah" says Carrie's father, "Carrie really likes to screw; she'll screw all night if we let her!" Well, Bobby doesn't quite know what to think, but his plan for the evening is beginning to look pretty good. A few minutes later, Carrie comes downstairs in her little poodle skirt and announces that she is ready to go. Almost breathless with anticipation, Bobby escorts his date out the front door. About 20 minutes later, Carrie rushes back into the house, slams the door behind her, and screams: "Dammit Daddy! ITS CALLED THE TWIST!"

The I-94 Bar e-zine: Rock Action from Sydney, Australia, via The Bowery and the Motor City.

'In this issue of the I-94 Bar e-zine, we carry an interview with Mike Watt, formerly of the Minutemen and now of the Stooges. Mike opens up his tour scrapbook and shares what it's like to become a Stooge.

Deniz Tek of Radio Birdman previews his band's forthcoming two Australian shows and reveals a studio album and live DVD are not the only things in the pipeline. The band also has its sights firmly set on a U.S. tour.

Live, we run the rule over Killing Joke in Sydney, the Celibate Rifles, the Re-mains, the Volts, Penny Ikinger, Pubert Brown Fridge Occurrence and Ian Rilen.

On disc, we review discs by Iggy Pop, Pubert Brown Fridge Occurrence, Starky, Adam West, Cowboys from Outer Space, the Royal Dave Graney Show,
Bouchard, Dunway & Smith, Alice Cooper, Sunday Drunks, Michael Yonkers, Les Ecureils Qui Puent, Los Muertos Confederados and Rhino's box set "No Thanks - - the '70s Punk Rebellion".

We also have a giveaway - win a Pubert Brown Fridge Occurrence album".

http://www.i94bar.com.

This month's releases from Ace. GO!.

RIP: Claude Trenier. GO!.

Just reading Monte A Melnicks fine tome on The Ramones. A lotta warts there to be sure but let me tell you, without this guy there could have been no Ramones. As hideous a proposition as that might be - tis the fact of facts. Great "Please Kill Me" style format, even better cast. There are details back there on one of J's post with regard to how to get it. Typing of things Ramonic, I think I neglected to put the word out on Gary Pig's Baby Doll (not the Dee Dee song) 45 on Pop The Balloon records. It tweaks all the spots those Eastern Dark records did so whattayou waitin' for? E-mail: manuel campos@wanadoo.fr for availability details.

8 inch lathe cut records anyone? Snazzy lookin' things which sound different everytime you play them. Manufactured in New Zealand for a UK label, Heliotone. Investigate.

"Ronnie Dawson Tribute/Benefit Weekend Scheduled for November 21, 22 and 24

Get Ready to Support a Good Cause! The weekend of November 21 - 24 will see a trio of Ronnie Dawson Tribute / Benefits in the New York area. These events will honor the late great rockabilly singer and Wonderful Human Being ... RONNIE DAWSON, who passed away last month of cancer. (All proceeds will be donated to Ronnie's Family)

Friday Nov. 21st - Ronnie Dawson Tribute/Benefit Record Hop @ Motor City Bar located at 127 Ludlow Street (off Houston Street) in New York City. Tel: (212) 358-1595. From 10 pm - 4 am. Six sensational DJ's playing sets of rockin'¹ music until the wee hours. No cover! -- Special Guest DJ Rob "Chop Shop" (Dallas, TX), Rex (WFMU), Rockin Daddy O (WFHU) Jumpin' Joe Doto, Nick at Night, and Wolfman Josh. Raffles and Cool Prizes! Come on down and "Buy Ronnie a Drink!"

Sat. Nov. 22nd - Ronnie Dawson Tribute/Benefit Show @ Union Pool located at 484 Union Avenue in Brooklyn, NY. Phone: (71 609-0484. From 5pm til 12 am. Admission is $10. Eight bands including several who played with Ronnie, BBQ, Raffles with Cool Prizes! Featuring: The A-Bones, The Frantic Flattops, King Memphis, The Painkillers (w/Mike Hendrix/Belmont Playboys) Rhythm Bound - The Memphis Morticians - The Wanda Jackson 5 - Turbo AC's Plus a Record Hop with DJs Rob "Chop Shop", Jumpin Joe Doto, Rex (WFMU), Rockin Daddy O (WFHU), Jukebox Jodi, and Dirty Dan.

Monday Nov. 24th - Special Ronnie Dawson Themed "MAD DADDY MONDAY" @ Motor City Bar located at 127 Ludlow Street (off Houston Street) in New York City. Tel: (212) 358-1595. From 10 pm to 4 am. No cover! Benefit raffle and prizes! Record Hop with DJ's Rob "Chop Shop", Matt Fiveash, Wolfman Josh, and Nick at Night

At all three nights raffles will be held to raise additional funds. Donations have been received to date from Hepcat Records, Rockabilly Barbers and Wowsville with more to be announced. Members of the Press, for additional information, contact: Larry Shell @ 973-374-8495 or lawrenceshell@comcast.net".