Bootleg Booze is a Swedish label that specializes in the rock that only Scandanavia seems capable of rolling out…

The Deadbeats will appeal to those who dig The Hellacopters but with a twist of Thin Lizzy thrown into the mix. “Long Hard Nights” will push all the right buttons because it’s made with a lot of panache. Bringing the finest ingredients of Australian and Detroit to Sweden where it seems to be the perfect environment for it to breed like topsy. A question of temperature indeed. The “Come Clean” EP has 4 tracks, one of them is Cheap Trick’s “He’s A Whore” and you can always tell how cool a band is by the calibre of their cover versions and that famous guitar lick is Dictatorised and as you can imagine that scores pretty much a bullseye around these parts.

Ever consider what Nine Pound Hammer going on “Stars In Your Eyes” as a cross between Mud and The Ramones might sound like? Well, The Accidents are waiting to happen in exactly that holding pattern. To consider that their shows might be a tad boisterous is perhaps an understatement. To be this loud and fast yet retaining that melodic pop edge is some kinda high wire act but they make it across and back time after time with no safety net in sight. "Kings of the Night" is like The Aliens reinventing "This Ain't The Summer of Love". Or even The Clash on the odd occasion when they ripped it up.

The Hangmen Vs The Supersuckers 45 offers “Never Go Home” and “Trouble Man” in an old, loud and snotty demeanour. Rough as a bears arse and flying a rocktastic flag for the sound we veterans will never tire of punching the air to.

The Incubators are from Oslo but suffer the same condition as their label mates. They’ve been sentenced to make the sign of the devil like they just don’t care. These guys remind me of the great b-sides that The Sweet used to bolster their more bubblegum tunes with. Semblance of vintage Alice Cooper in there too. Onetime Gluecifer and Tip Topper alumnus, there’s definitely a bit more glam about this but it swings no less for it. Like Dave Champion sez in the liner notes “Parasite in Paradise sounds like Roky Erickson if he ever got to Scanadanavia”. That scenario is about to happen. Incidentally the Rok is at the Bowery Ballroom in New York tonight. It’s set to be a cold, wet night there. Hold the alligators willya? Final song on the EP is “Vision Express”, crying out to be the theme song of the chain of opticians stores here in the UK. It’s even more reminiscent of our favourite martian and could well be the greatest slice of Norwegian rock since The Tracemen’s “She’s Got A Hard-On”.

Urkke T and the Midlife Crisis are a Scando supergroup with a backyard baby, a maggot, a hellacopter and a maryslim belting out punk rock classics the way only such a crew could. High octane thrills and fun, fun, fun until your daddy wrestles that firearm outta your mitt. They seldom make them like this anymore. Covers of The Users, The Warheads and The Avengers rejuvenated and pogoing harder than the originals ever did.

Mary’s Kids “Destroy” is perhaps the best of the bunch. Like Suzi Quatro fronting Radio Birdman with a chorus worthy of Slade. A rendezvous of sonics and then some. Very sharp revved-up run through of Ike Turner’s “I’m Fed Up” on the flip will make sure you end up anything but. That mood should remain intact just so long as you keep flipping the record over. I can’t legislate for the bummer that might ensue when you stop.

You can check out the sounds and all the info at the BB site, just click on the link back there and get lost in the waves of unbridled rock action.

This is not a gig poster, it's a serious plea for information... click on the image to enlarge.

The gods or who/whatever continue to conspire agin me and this portal is acting up again into the bargain. This may result in no more posts for the next day or three but we'll see... there also seems to be an ongoing e-mail problem, so if you've sent a message and got no reply over the past week then use the contact link here because that "seems" to work.

Anyway, have a look at this Germs story if you're bored. (link courtesy of Bruce Bennett)

More US Punk Rock, The Choke (pictured) are headed your way opening for Theatre of Hate over the next week or so. Tuts in Glasgow on Tuesday (24th).

Danny and Dusty at Glasgow ABC2 on Wednesday.

Good luck to all the folks in the tri-state area and above and below these parts, who are expecting a big storm today. Hopefully it'll just be "wind and pish" on the behalf of the forecasters and you come out unscathed.

Checks and balances, swings and roundabouts, all part of the day to day tolerance testing. I was having a pretty good week all told until last night when it all sped downhill pretty rapidly. Nothing to do with The Sopranos (which was great, and was over by the time the phone rang). Nowt I can exactly drag through the neighbourhood. Just plain bad news that affects people that I have some concern for. Once again, a perspective not exactly considered, comes crashing into view, all a far cry from where I was at this time last Friday.

But hey, existence must go on and will go on regardless. Waiting (im)patiently for the WFMU archive of Amy Allison's sesh on "Give The Drummer Some" earlier today. Will post when available. Meanwhile, check out this review of "Everything And Nothing Too" to get you in the mood...

(Update at 7.40am - Saturday...)

It's up there, setlist is...

Don't You Know Anything/Don't Go to Sleep/Don't Go Downtown/Out of Sight, Out of Mind/Have You No Pride?/Listeless and Lonesome/Every Day Is Like Sunday/Was/Pretty Things to Buy/Baby You're the One/Moonlight on the Mountains/Rose Red

live on WFMU. Absolutely sodding priceless... Whole show is cool, Amy comes on about 2 hours in. Abetted by Pete Galub on guitar.

OK so i'm just about to sit down to watch The Sopranos so this'll be short and sweet.

Some stuff you might care to schedule should you be in the locale of such happenings...

Kill Your Timid Notion in Dundee this weekend.

The Spitz Festival of Blues (all through April) including The Scientists on the 26th. They should be landing in Spain right about now to tear the place up starting tomorrow.

Le Weekend in Stirling (last weekend in May)

Hello Saferide is headed for Japan. Shows next week.

To the dvd player it is then...

Lucky 13! - That's where Maia Hirasawa hit in the Swedish album charts today!

No need to call out the taste police in that territory then...

(Thanks to Martina for the info)

RIP - Terry Hall (Not the guy from The Specials)

"Mark Perry of Sniffin' Glue and Alternative TV fame is appearing at the Filthy Macnasty's Whiskey Cafe, Amwell St London (nr Angel tube) on April 12th - entrance is FREE!!! He'll be having a talk about punk (as the venue is linked to a punk posters exhibition) - playing a few songs with myself on guitar and Steve Carter on bass (the stage is too intimate for as drumkit!) and taking a few questions afterwards.

Be there!!! Or be somewhere else....."

Info from Lee McFadden

This is part of a weekend of events taking place in Glasgow at the end of May. I would urge people in Central scotland to support this. As I would urge people in all countries to support people who are trying to organise shows outside of the "circuit". I think Robbie may also be doing Newcastle and London so if you haven't seen him then treat yourself. He has a double live album coming on Yep Roc this May 1st. It could very well be the Americana "On Your Feet Or On Your Knees". Visit the Fallen Angels Website for further details. I'll post more as it becomes available. incidentally, FA are putting on Heidi Talbot at Brel in Ashton Lane tonight...

Well there goes Easter in the rear-view. Anybody out there heard this group - The Cloned Wolves? Pretty good name. And topical. Don't really have the inclination to tap away here for much longer. Had two instances of power flicker, maybe a third will take the power straight out. Hopefully not before the tape of the last "Life On Mars" episode is completed.

Hit earth with a bump today after the highs of Suzy & Los Q but who knows what tomorrow might bring. Maybe even a proper blog entry...

There’s been a slew of commemorative 30 year milestones lately. They’ve been turning up like buses. My latest is darkening the door of the 100 Club in London and it hasn’t changed at all, at least not noticeably. Yer veritable Oxford St time capsule. T’was also the anniversary of The Adverts “Crossing The Red Sea”. TV Smith didn’t go the way that so many “survivors” do and devalue the material that meant so much all those moons ago. It would have been nice to see Gaye brandish a bass again to be sure but one presumes that she doesn’t have the notion to. But the next best option is to enlist the aid of some firebrands from Spain who know the songs inside out and can inject them with new-found propulsion.

That “secret weapon” is The Bored Teenagers and they are to TV what The Wondermints are to Brian Wilson. Smith has worked long and hard to maintain a career and his relish to keep moving forward is what sets him apart from so many contemporaries. To see him invigorated and quite obviously loving it was a real treat. He’s a great performer. Pure and simple. Maybe not rich but what he has in terms of respect from his audience is worth more than bagfuls of filthy lucre. There was a healthy contingent of folks from all over that made the pilgrimage because they believe. An interesting notion in these days where individuals switch allegiance more often than socks. I hope that they can do more shows and that you folks can see it in full flight. There’s some YouTube stuff to give you a flavour here and here. And you can check out the TV website here. It was also very cool to meet Kris Needs. Nice geezer. He even had a cheeky wee play of The Vice Creems at the end of the night. Bless.

And those “Teenagers”? Well they’re three-fifths of Suzy Y Los Quattro. Having missed their UK debut last May in Liverpool, I wasn’t about to miss out again. Imagine The Ramones fronted by Brenda Lee. Or maybe Debbie Harry with Screeching Weasel or indeed neither of those but you'll get the idea. Suzy Chain is the kind of performer that could have legions of young (and old) males crying themselves to sleep the way that some of my crew used to sob over Clare Grogan. There’s a risqué innocence (or should that be innocent risquéness) about the way she prowls the stage, cute as the proverbial button. These are infectious metallic teenage bubblepunk anthems. A cover of “Rock’n’Roll Love Letter” favours The BCR version over that of The Records. That small detail outlines these kids supreme-eority. Of course that’s not a real word but it ought to be. A fleeting visit by the aforementioned TV Smith feller during “New Church” was a nice touch also and added to the sense of occasion.

It felt like the spirit of Joey was there in the room smiling on us, bathing the attendant crew in his positive vibes. I know he approves from that big Paul’s Lounge in the sky. I’m not prone to this type of thing, but from the minute they took the stage a big fat grin broke out across my kisser. It was seamless, bang, bang, bang. Jonathan told me that he was given some sage advice by the Handsome One during a Dictators tour of Spain that he really took to heart. SyLQ are fun personified and have the power to make you forget that outside of the venue that there’s a big, fat greasy world that’s out to fuck you up. This is good old loud pop music, bashed out the way nature intended by very cool people. A very special commodity.

Part of another fine DWC triumph curated by Prof. Crittenden, Los Cretinos started the evening well but played just a tad too long. The Demons Claws drew the short straw and had to follow Suzy. Their southern-countrified space rock didn’t hold no water for me. Perhaps under different circumstances, where we hadn’t just been rocked within an inch of making fools of ourselves. Dave liked them. He bought their cd. They also have a split 45 out with The Black Lips on Norton as well as recording for Larry Hardy’s “In The Red”. They have excellent credentials like these and an upcoming French show with The Fleshtones. TDC have all this but no Suzy Chain.

The Hollywood Sinners name doesn’t do them justice. It sounds generic and conjures up dice and lucky 13 tattoos but they specialise it short sharp blues jags. Like Mudhoney wrestling the Sensational Alex Harvey Band while rolling down a flight of stairs to the soundtrack of a rockier end Real Kids. To say they’re “hopped-up” is an understatement, like a bunch of hyperactive kids od’d on e-numbers. It’s a crazy, no holds barred spectacle and they cover The Len Bright Combo so what’s not to love.

And it’s all over, quicker than it began. Four bands is sort of too much to take in. Particularly when one of them is as sharp as my friends from Barcelona. It’s another steee-rike for the enclave of good music that is the Dirty Water. The Boston Arms is a mighty good home. Met a lot of great people over the course of the whistle stop including Chris and Clive from the Surfin’ Lungs who are headed for Spain to tour very soon. That country is giving the rest of the world a good rattle around the face in terms of rock’n’roll appreciation. Me, I have to brave the garden now and tussle with the hayfever fairies in a bit to tidy the bloody place up. I’ll be hyperventilating by the time I come back in but it’s about time I was punished. I just had 48 straight hours of hijinks after all.

Photos from DWC by Martin Percival

Aye... well today didn't exactly unfurl as planned so this is probably it. Certain commitments to fulfil and I've been engrossed in the Peter C Johnson dvd that HT kindly sent. While you folks have been gorging yerselves sick on the old chocolat it's been nowt but yaka yaka around here.

And you Americans start the final Sopranos semester tonight too. Crikey. In nine weeks it'll all be over.

If you live in Brighton or thereabouts then you should be cutting along to The Engine Room to catch Suzy Y Los Quattro right about now. Full report on the DWC show coming soon.

Just back from "The London", innit. Sorry folks, a small attack of the "Parsons" there...

"The MC5 is historically significant and its music and story merit being heard today.

The film had and still has the potential to spread the music and story of the MC5."

MC5 - A True Testimonial, the findings, courtesy of Detroit Tango.

You may have to refresh your browser a couple of times, it's intermittent. bear with it...

THE THANES
launch their 8th LP 'A Night In Great King Street'
available from Larsen Records.
plus surfin' instrumentalists THE NUKES
and the Edinburgh debut of
THE FNORDS

SATURDAY 14TH APRIL. HENRY'S CELLAR BAR,
MORRISON ST. EDINBURGH. 11PM - 3AM £5/4

The KING BROTHERS:

Keizo Matsuo: guitar, vox
Masafumi "Marya" Koyama: guitar, screams
Ray Bcanero Shinnosuke: bass
Taichi: drums

You may need to wear a helmet and body armour for protection but you don’t want to miss the glorious, physical insanity of a King Brothers performance. From Osaka, Japan, the King Brothers combine the elements of every vital era of rock ‘n' roll music into one reverb drenched ball of sound that will make your jaw drop…or break (depending on how close you’re standing!). This is very wild music and they take it very seriously. The King Brothers have toured Europe, the US and of course Japan leaving a trail of blind worshippers in their wake. Jon Spencer of the Blues Explosion (with whom they’ve toured twice) produced their album “6 x 3”. Now it’s Australia and New Zealand’s chance to witness what all the fuss is about.

In-Fidelity Records is releasing the King Brothers’ mighty album, Blues, in time for the tour. It’s a brutal, take-no-prisoners explosion of guitar and drums and vocals that leaves speaker cones shredded and begging for mercy.

As an added tour bonus, the album comes with a bonus DVD of an entire King Brothers live show (plus two video clips).

The KING BROTHERS are the new face of rock n' roll music.

"The King Brothers are the best rock n' roll band in the world"… Eric Oblivian (The Oblivians)

"See them before they all die of heart attacks"… Exile Osaka magazine

KING BROTHERS AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2007

Thur 19 April - Crown & Anchor, Adelaide
Fri 20 April - Espy Front Bar, St Kilda
Sat 21 April - Exile On Smith, Collingwood
Tue 24 April - The Tote, Collingwood (Anzac Day Eve)
Thur 26 April - Rics, Brisbane
Fri 27 April - Spectrum, Sydney

www.boprecords.net

www.myspace.com/boprecordsaustralia

There's a Suicide box being put together for release sometime in 2008. The folks who are assembling this time capsule are looking for posters, articles, photos and just about anything to annotate their journey. Know the whereabouts of the axe (and we're not talking guitar here) that flew past Alan's napper at the Glasgow Apollo? Then you can give the curators a holler via this very blogspot.

And just 20 days to go until the new Alan Vega album "Station" comes out on Mute/EMI.

"All hail, kits'n'kittens!

First off, we'd like to wish Parsley at very happy 45th birthday, and say thanks for inviting us to play at his secret birthday party in Acton Town over the weekend - The Stripchords are available for weddings, parties, naughty parties, burlesque shows, vicar's conventions, bar mitzvahs, etc, at very enticing rates, contact us for details...

Secondly, we're pleased as gosh-all to be play at old pal Healer Selecta's Raison d'Etre Bash at Londinium's Cargo this Friday April 6th (that's Good Friday, for all you god-botherers, or Bob Hoskins worshippers!), a "Tiki Swing Party" with the mostest! Details below, courtesy of the Reason2B massive, and it's FREE ENTRY BEFORE 9PM!!!!

Mizz Lager-Shandy and Mizz Stephanie will be go-go and hula dancing with us on Friday, and BigKegShandy will also take a turn on the wheels of polycarbonate, spinning a selection of hot 45s, including The Marquees' "Wyatt Earp", Johnny Johnson's "Lone Ranger's Gonna Get Married", and just cos it's Easter, Otis Williams' "Jesus Is A Soul Man"... The Stripchords will be on hiatus from mid-April to early-May, and then back with a bang at the Gypsy Hotel on May 18th... Hope to see ya on Friday, don't eat too much Caramac in the meantime...
Selah
The Stripchords
------------------------------
Raison d'Etre Tiki Swing Party
When : Friday 6th April
Time : 8pm/3am
Entry : FREE b4 9, £10 after / *£7 Raison D'Etre members
Students : as member
Where : Cargo, Rivington St, London
Step Right up folks, step Right up! We are back at Cargo for an unique event. We will start with some Afro-Latin Beatnick fiesta beat from Peyoti For President, then THE STRIPCHORDS will bring their smokin' Sleazy Vegas Grind Striper sound with plenty of houlala DJ Big K Shandy Drivin boogaloo and juicy Rhythm & Blues Size 9 will bring an other gallon of fuel in the fire with they frantic Buttshaking Soul Funk Ska Boogaloo live session with plenty of mini skirts...
PLUS!!! D.I.R.E.C.T from PARIS ! The incredible MIMI DE MOMTMATRE, can't tell you more...SURPRISE!! The DustAphonics + HEALER & The STORM (Live PA) with the wonderful Aina and finally the "piece de resistance" with HEALER Selecta's 3 hours set of maximum action packed dance floor filler! Yes Ladies and Gentlemen an evening to remember indeed !!...
DON'T FORGET YOUR MAGIC DANCING SHOES, SEE YOU ALL ON THE DANCE FLOOR.
*For all members and friends, If you would like to be on the £7 guest list, please send a email with full names at crystal@reason2b.net before 5th of April midnight
http://www.myspace.com/healerselecta
www.cargo-london.com