Postcard From London: Don't you wish you went too?
Pretty weak year for new albums, I thought, though some great reissues and archival releases made up for that. Gig-wise, it was quality over quantity, as three consecutive nights of the Mott the Hoople reunion shows in London stood far above anything else I saw this year (or most other years). Truly magical and quite emotional. It was inspiring, as well, to play shows with some great young bands from around here (Vancouver/Vancouver Island) and be reminded that it’s not all ironic facial hair and indie rock from here on in. So, hats off to you, Pretty Vanilla (super-catchy T. Rex lovers) and Madonna Bangers (channeling Born Innocent-era Redd Kross w/ your bratty punk rock). Burn the Flame!
FAVORITE ALBUMS
Visqueen-Message to Garcia (Local 638) Rachel Flotard, leader of these awesome Seattle rock and rollers, may be the most underrated songwriter on the planet. And yeah, she’s got a whole lot of soul.
Pointed Sticks-Three Lefts Make a Right (Northern Electric) Vancouver punk/pop (the good kind) legends reunited a few years ago to tour Japan (where they’re huge!) and this album, released 29 years after their first, happily finds them sounding pretty much the same.
Young Fresh Fellows- I Think This Is (Yep Roc) More Pacific Northwest fun and a fine return from the band I’ve seen more times than any other (40 +).
Black Crowes-Before the Frost….After the Freeze 2-lp vinyl version ( Silver Arrow) They’re frequently maligned but I don’t mind.
Reigning Sound-Love and Curses (In the Red) Little disappointing at first but repeated listenings prove very rewarding.
Honorable Mentions: Cheap Trick, Walter Lure, Roger Manning, Tinted Windows
FROM THE VAULTS
Stooges-You Want My Action (Easy Action) Holy Shit.
Big Star-Keep An Eye On the Sky box set (Rhino) Sounds better than ever and a new live show to boot on the last disc.
Rolling Stones-Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out (Abkco) My only complaint would be that there must be more potential bonus material in the can than what they included here. The dvd is 28 min. but what an awesome 28 min. Great idea, too, to include the opening sets by B.B. King and Ike and Tina, as had originally been intended.
Death-For the Whole World to See (Drag City) Seemingly from out of nowhere.
Chris Bell-I Am the Cosmos (Rhino) Reissue of the 90’s release w/ an extra disc of demos, collaborations, etc. Title tune one of the best songs ever written.
Honorable Mentions: Rationals, Imperial Dogs, Ian Hunter, Neil Young
Final thought: Repeated airings of the Instant Live Recording of the first Mott Hammersmith show confirm that, yes, it was really was that great.
Related posts:
- Andrew Molloy Guitarist/vocalist with Canadian bands BUM and Budokan. Contributor at...
- Bob Short, I-94 Bar contributor, guitarist-vocalist with Dead Rabids and member of original Sydney punks Filth [caption id="attachment_485" align="aligncenter" width="483" caption="Bob leading the Dead Rabids...
- Steve “Danno” Lorkin – Guitarist with The Cool Charmers, occasional -94 Bar contributor [caption id="attachment_481" align="aligncenter" width="437" caption="Ron Asheton passes judgement on...
- Roberto Calabro, Rock and Roll Soldier from Italy and I-94 Bar correspondent [caption id="attachment_374" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Dom Mariani and Rob compare...
- Simon Li, Sydney-based I-94 Bar correspondent and alt.country performer My Morning Jacket @ Metro Theatre, Sydney A truly...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Place your comment