Live at Bookies - Iggy Pop (Easy Action)

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By Bob Short

Bob Short

01 September 2018

Hits: 4109

Despite an increasing lack of consistency with his official album releases, it's fair to say Iggy Pop continued to reign supreme in the live setting throughout the eighties.  You could always guarantee he wouldn't actually sound like the horror that was "Blah, Blah, Blah" in the flesh.

This disc emerges from around the period of the equally undigestable "Party" LP.   Fortunately, despite sharing two guitarists, it sounds nothing like that.

Along with other companies, Easy Action has recently all but flooded the market with a seemingly endless slew of concert releases from this period.  The "Where the Faces Shine" box sets proved more than worthy but they alone bought us more than 12 hours of live Pop music.

• iggy
• iggy pop
• robert duprey
• ivan kral
• live at bookies

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Trash Town Rock - Ace Killers Union (Hurtin’ Records)

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By The Barman

The Barman

01 September 2018

Hits: 4742

“Noise annoys,” said the Buzzcocks and although they took a more melodic bent than most of their contemporaries, you knew what they were on about. “Ugly music for ugly people” was the apt review tagline for the self-titled Kim Salmon and the Scientists album, many years ago. 

This confronting record from electro-punk duo Ace Killers Union is a bit of both. If their music doesn’t make a mark, stick in your craw or drive you to reach for a stiff glass of Suntory whisky after a couple of listens, you’re just not paying attention. 

Ace Killers Union - ACU for short - is Hiroshi The Golden Arm and Mr Ratboy with their guitars and a whole slew of machines. From the impossibly fast title track and opener to the low-fidelity, speed pulse-attack of “I Wanna Be Your Dog” (yes, that one) this is an abrasive melange of noisy, gutter rock skronk.

• sour jazz
• japanese
• marky ramone
• hiroshi the golden arm
• the remains
• mr ratboy

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Miles of Love - Powerline Sneakers b/w Star - Some Jerks (Buttercup)

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By The Barman

The Barman

30 August 2018

Hits: 5304

It's double A-sided goodness from two of Australia’s best rock and roll bands, issued as a split-single to mark their shows together in Brisbane this weekend.

Melbourne’s Powerline Sneakers contribute “Miles of Love”, a harder-than-diamonds snarler from their “disasterpiece” long-player. Sly Faulkner’s soulful plea for his other half to come back is pitched against a background of his and John Nolan’s muscular guitars snaking in and out of each other’s pathways. Its lingering feedback outro is a signal to play it again.

Some Jerks have won a rep as Brisbane’s premier “surf garage rock” trio to see and “Star” is what you’d expect on the back of their “Strange Ways” LP. It sounds very ‘90s college radio (in a good way) without any false production veneer. It has an ethereal vocal and slinky bass-line from band-leader Vicki Watson and enough collective energy to light up the old Lang Park.

It’s the usual Buttercup deal (colour inserts, limited hand-numbered edition, this time just 300 copies.) Get it at the shows or drop the label a line.

Powerline Sneakers and Some Jerks play the Bearded Lady in Brisbane with Slumlawwd on Friday, August 31. Buy tickets here because Some Jerks shows there always sell out. Powerline Sneakers play an in-store at Sherpa Records in Brisbane on September 1.

• brisbane
• live
• buttercup records
• powerline sneakers
• some jerks
• star
• miles of love

Wacka Lacka Boom Bop A Loom Bam Boo - Walter Lure and The Waldos

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By The Barman and Bob Short

The Barman and Bob Short

29 August 2018

Hits: 5900

There’s a temptation to hail this record as the last gasp from a dying breed. After all, it’s 24 years since the last Waldos studio album, the wonderful “Rent Party”, and a lifetime since Johnny Thunders and The Heartbreakers last staggered onto a stage.

Walter Lure is almost The Last Man Standing from what’s erroneously generalised as “the New York punk scene”. There was a scene but it was more than just punk (whatever that is or was) and it was pushed to the margins by the dual forces of Disney and gentrification.

Walter has lived his share of the nine lives that his old band was gifted, and maybe then some, so if the temptation proves too much not to tag “Wacka Lacka Boom Bop A Loom Bam Boo” as a lowering of the curtain on a long-gone era of Lower East Side guitar sleaze, cut me some slack. A handful of other people still wave that flag.

There are a dozen songs on “Wacka Lacka…” and most contain more raunch per ounce than you can squeeze into a digital back catalogue of Strokes records. This is as you’d expect: Walter Lure – “Waldo” to his stockbroking mates – was the guitar foil to Johnny Genzales in the post-Dolls Heartbreakers, and they were the band that made the template for street-level, pharmaceutical-fuelled, bad boy, four-chord goodness. (Yes, Keef did it first but he could afford not to mix it with the masses who were copping on Norflok Street, hence the term “street-level”.)

• waldos
• rent party
• heartbreakers
• cbgb
• cleopatra records
• jerry nolan
• johnny thunders
• walter lure
• andy shernoff
• Wacka Lacka Boom Bop A Loom Bam Boo

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Subversions – UK Subs (Cleopatra)

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By The Barman

The Barman

29 August 2018

Hits: 4003

Revisionism is a wonderful thing. If you’d suggested listening to an album of cover songs by UK Subs as a useful way to spend some time 30 years ago, I’d have told you to check yourself into a psych ward.

I never “got” the UK Subs, despite their membership of the first wave of English punk…probably because I’d never bothered to try. There was just too much other stuff on the same block. Time marches on and you can't ignore band leader Charlie Harper’s indefatigable nature (he’s 73) or the 26 original studio albums (one for each letter of the alphabet) as testament to their durability.

“Subversion” is good. Better than good. It’s capital ‘F’ for Fun, underlined by great playing and a collective “we don’t give a fuck” attitude. Which should be what punk rock was - and is - all about. Fuck the fashion.

• iggy
• mc5
• cleopatra records
• uk subs
• subversions
• alvin gibbs
• charlie harper
• bob seger

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Bring On The Mesmeric Condition – The Morlocks (Hound Gawd)

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By The Barman

The Barman

29 August 2018

Hits: 4666

When it comes to bands from the ‘80s wave of garage revivalists, The Morlocks don’t get a fair shake, even for cult artists.

Put it down to their splintered history - there have been more line-ups than chords in a prog rock opera - or singer Leighton Koizumi’s disappearing act - years behind bars after a drug deal gone wrong will do that to your profile - but you never hear them mentioned in the same breath as, say, The Fuzztones or Lyres. 

It’s been eight years since the all-covers “The Morlocks Play Chess”, a salute to the artists from the label of the same name, and Kolzumi has left the US West Coast to domicile himself in Germany.

For “Bring On The Mesmeric Condition” he assembled a “new” crew of mostly old fuzz fiends: Rob Louwers on drums ( Fuzztones, Q-65, Link Wray) Oliver Pilsner on bass (Fuzztones, Cheeks, Montesas, Magnificent Brotherhood) and guitarists Bernadette (Sonny Vincent, Humpers) and Marcello Salis (Kolzumi’s ex-Gravedigger V bandmate) make for some line-up. 

• hound dawg records
• garage punk
• the morlocks
• Leighton Koizumi
• Bring On The Mesmeric Condition

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Penny Ikinger album Australian launch dates set

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By The Barman

The Barman

29 August 2018

Hits: 5750

Penny Ikinger’s third solo album, “Tokyo”, is on the way in Australia with launch shows in Melbourne and Sydney.

“Tokyo” is an international collaboration with guitarist Deniz Tek from Radio Birdman and musicians from the Japanese psychedelic rock underground.

“Tokyo” was released on Kerosene Records in Japan when Penny Ikinger performed in the Japanese capital with local band The Silver Bells last month. The Silver Bells will also back her at the Australian Tokyo album launch at Melbourne Museum’s Nocturnal on Friday, September 7.

The Japanese version includes a bonus track - a cover of “Boys in Town” by Divinyls. “Tokyo” will also be released by Melbourne label Off The Hip Records worldwide in August. Pre-orders (A$20 within Australia or A$25 overseas, postage included) can be made by Paypal at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Penny Ikinger “Tokyo”  album launch dates
Friday 7 September - Nocturnal at Melbourne Museum with The Silver Bells, Taipan Tiger Girls, The Pink Tiles & Adalita (DJ set)
Friday 22 September - The Union Hotel, Newtown, solo with The Maladies
Sunday, 23 September – The Golden Barley Hotel, Enmore (solo)

• penny ikinger
• deniz tek
• tokyo
• the silver bells
• kerosene records

Don't let The Animals of 2018 be understood

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By Robert Brokenmouth

Robert Brokenmouth

28 August 2018

Hits: 8342

_{The Animals in 1964 with John Steel behind the kit.}

By now you will have heard that The Animals are returning to Australia in October-November.

Now, this isn't the version of The Animals which features Eric Burdon; Burdon also uses the name, which is handy because, like many a frontman who wants a solo career, Burdon's solo career didn't quite end up the way he'd hoped, so he can use The Animals name to get a bit more attention.

But really ... the way things have turned out, when you see The Animals name, most of us aren't thinking of Eric's LPs, however they're badged. 

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Resident Reptile – Pink Fairies (Cleopatra)

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By The Barman

The Barman

28 August 2018

Hits: 4974

We often give you the back story of the music reviewed here. Context is important for discerning consumers and we dig it up so that you don’t have to. It saves you buying the same record by a band that’s been repackaged by a nefarious label, for one. 

Recounting and understanding the long and confusing history of the Pink Fairies, however, would require Mensa membership - and the odds are that neither of us carries that card.

Let’s skirt around the history and cut to the chase: There are two versions of the Pinks; one based in the UK comprising Russell Hunter, Duncan Sanderson, Andy Colquhoun, Jaki Windmill and (until last year) George Butler (R.I.P.), and an American version led by the original band’s Canadian co-founder, vocalist-guitarist Paul Rudolph.

“Resident Reptile” is the album from Rudolph’s version (2017’s excellent “Naked Radio” by the other line-up came out on UK label Gonzo) and he’s joined by former Hawkwind bassist Alan Davey and original Motörhead drummer Lucas Fox. The trio recorded in Texas for L.A. label Cleopatra. 

• cleopatra records
• pink fairies
• russell hunter
• larry wallis
• paul rudolph
• resident reptile

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