ST VALENTINE’S DAY MASSACRE – Niagara & The Hitmen (Steel Cage Records/Savage Beat)
Sure, Radio Birdman might have been the first band in Australia to play “TV Eye,” but relations between the Birdmen having scuttled their latest reunion, Chris “Klondike” Masuak’s subsequent band the Hitmen remain Oz’s longest-lived purveyors of Detroit ramalama. And while eccentric art brawd Niagara’s blasé brand of Nancy Sinatra-styled vocalismo might not be everybody’s cuppa tea, she’s got genuine Detroit cred from her service in Ron Asheton’s post-Stooges outfits Destroy All Monsters and Dark Carnival. So when she found herself Down Under for an art exhibit in 2007, it was a no-brainer for them to hook up, which they did for the solitary 2008 pub show in the Sydney ‘burbs where this was recorded.Head Hitman Johnny Kannis makes the introduction, then the band kicks off the Bo Diddley thump that begins “Little Doll,” with Klondike’s fuzz and wah in full effect; you can imagine Uncle Ronnie smiling really big, off in the Great Beyond. A cloud of feedback leads into the telegraphic intro to Destroy All Monsters’ “You’re Gonna Die,” with Masuak dutifully pealing off the Asheton signature that I understand you people call “The Lick,” before breaking it down with extemporizations of his own. He and guitar foil Tony Jukic make the transition into “I Love You But You’re Dead” with some blistering dual-lead action; the paint must have been peeling off the walls of the Crest Hotel that night.
The Hitmen allow scarcely a second for the crowd to catch its collective breath before stomping into the Stooges’ “Real Cool Time,” Tony Robertson’s bass and new boy Murray Shepherd’s traps leading the charge as the guitar tandem aims for the stratosphere. Niagara berates the band boys for ending the song too soon, so they resume the mayhem, only to get faded out in the recording. One wonders. Niagara’s DAM zenith “Bored” is up next, with the Hitmen’s assaultive attack surpassing the original.
“I Died A Thousand Times” recycles the first Stooges album’s Diddleyismo, with a campy-dark, Alice Cooperesque lyric that concludes, “Life ain’t for sissies.” True dat. “Anyone Can Fuck Her,” er, comes with an inspirational sing-along chorus. “TV Eye” is the godhead. Then the folks who put this together saw fit to fill it out with a coupla Hitmen toons, including the unreleased “Another Lost Weekend” – a nice Dictators homage - and a coupla vids for your edification and enjoyment.
Sure, there have been finer crafted records released this year, but for unbridled excitement and face-melting guitar abandon, you just can’t top this. And a finer tribute to Ron Asheton would be hard to imagine – debt paid in full. Spin this one back to back with Funhouse and New Race’s The First and the Last, and render a salute to a fallen rock ‘n’ roll soldier. - Ken Shimamoto
HOW DID WE DO?
ADD YOUR OWN COMMENT OR RATE THIS MUSIC
Comments to date: 6. Page 1 of 1. Average Rating:
Rod Anderson San Fransisco
4:49am on Monday, October 19th, 2009
what a monster CD. I waited for LA Woman at the end and it knocked me right out! Kannis is the New Lizard King! LA WOman - Raw Power style! Niagara is shreddin it and the band rocks! Never heard anything this good in many many years. Co,e to America.... read more »
niagara detroit
7:44am on Friday, October 16th, 2009
....ah...no it wasn't....and yes it
surely was...Stefan San Fransisco
7:00am on Thursday, October 15th, 2009
Hey Jason Coogee you must be tripping!? Who do you know that can play this stuff like this? They're all orginal songs buddy! played better than the original recordings. Niagara wrote most of this stuff with Ron Asheton. It's dedicated to him. That's ... read more »
Jason Coogee
6:21am on Thursday, October 15th, 2009
Maybe not at cutting edge of originality...but I love this...Good Stuff
Elvis Sampson Los Angeles
6:20am on Thursday, October 15th, 2009
My CD kept playing and I found there was an incredible version of the hitmen with Johnny doing LA Woman live. Why did it take so long to play this track on this CD? Is it meant to be a surprise? It worked for me!!!! It's a gem! I've played LA Woman 1... read more »
Klondike Flyspeck
6:18am on Thursday, October 15th, 2009
Just wanted to clarify...
Real Cool Time was done as per Ni's instructions. I didn't know she was gonna give us heck! The fade was cause the recording dropped out for obscure technical reasons. Lots of problems salvaging the gig, actually. The res... read more »
