My Generation... Your Generation MAY-JUN 2009

PHIL ISTINE goes Shindigging through the British undergrowth. In his basket are some tasty musical treasures for your delight.

Let us start in Manchester this time. There THE VIPERS have for the last couple of years been scaring small children and making noise fans rejoice. Think the edgier end of garage punk, in a Cramps meet Eighties Matchbox meets The Horrors fashion, and you are nearly there. The sleaze-fests ‘Ambulance Chasers’ and ‘The Death Rattle’ are not for the feint of heart. The band’s drummer, Kyle, must frankly be a genius to produce those perfect beats.
www.myspace.com/thevipersuk

On to Nottingham, where a couple of primitive pursuers reside. THE EVILTONES have a combined sonic wisdom and experience to know how to make rock ’n’ roll so visceral it is almost too much to bear. Clad in black, surly in nature and blues-punk of soul, the band take Davie Allen & His Arrows alongside The Sonics as their aural template and notch up the intensity a couple of levels. In their wonderfully written bio they describe their music as a “furious death-dance burn-out boogie”, and no one on this Earth with ears could disagree.
www.myspace.com/eviltones

Their urban compadres and fellow Dead By Mono artists are DUO-SONIC, your archetypal powerful garage punk duo – Josh and Lilly – doing it for kicks with savage abandon. Their debut 4-track vinyl EP has just come out and the video for the track ‘Blind And Deaf’ reveals ’50s visual influences and a penchant for revenge and melodrama. There’s also some exceptional slide guitar playing on ‘I Used To’. Highly recommended for fans of The Black Keys, Pulp Fiction and flick-knives.
www.myspace.com/duosonic1956

Leicester trio CHERRY COKE play MC5/Blue Cheer-type blasts of hard acid-fuzz rock. They have managed to capture that great, fat Gibson bass sound – what a joy to these ears! Their riff-heavy eponymous debut album on Elektrohasch Records has just hit the stores, and the righteous among you will seek it out. The rest of you will wither and die. An exceptional live band as well as visually arresting, this may be the year they break through. If they don’t choke that is (boom! boom!).
www.myspace.com/thecherrychoke

Time for a dose of nu-gaze. And it doesn’t come much better than Leighton Buzzard sextet THE KOOLAID ELECTRIC COMPANY, who possess my favourite band name of recent times. Matching the sound of the current American new wave of shoe-gazing psychedelia (more on that next issue), this 12-string-guitar, Ride-worshipping troupe are doing blissed out and truly stoned. The mostly instrumental sounds are ideally consumed with a frenetic swirl of dazzling lights. Perhaps too self-indulgent for some (‘Traumalo’ clocks in at 11 minutes), but pure heaven for others.
www.myspace.com/thekoolaidelectriccompany
Bristol has always had a strong music scene, as displayed by the coming together of FUZZ AGAINST JUNK, who have been going about their business a fair few years now but still worth a mention. The seven-piece have released music on Geoff Barrow’s Invada and John Stapleton’s Evil Kitty labels, making them an immediate hit in my household. Their unique avant-kraut-jazz-space-rock compares favourably to their spiritual forebears Can, Gong, Sun-Ra and John Coltrane.
www.myspace.com/fuzzagainstjunkuk

Also from the West Country stronghold are THE SHE CREATURES. Just back from Texas and off to Italy soon, this girl group from outer space are furious giggers. Their shouty take on vintage garage and power-pop is expertly executed, and you can never have enough theremin swirls on records neither. The B-movie horror look is endearing rather than gimmicky, and, as it is a phrase I will rarely get us use in this column, may I also say they look sexy as hell in their blue wigs and shiny outfits. Maybe I do believe in UFOs after all...
www.myspace.com/theshecreatures

Onto London Town now, and a couple of moddy bands for you perusal. First up is CONNETT, led by stylish man about town Darron. His jump from solo artist to a full-band line-up seems to have paid off. The classic rock and power-pop influences are still there, but new album Waging War On The Obvious takes in psychedelia (‘Son’) and orchestral flourishes (‘Can’t You Hear Me’) to great effect. If you’re open to a bit of soulful rock a la Weller and OCS then check them out.
www.myspace.com/darronjconnett

On a similar bent are THE CHARLIE PARKERS. Taking their cue from the late ’60s pop of The Small Faces and The Who and Britpops circa ’79 and ’94, they have an extremely powerful and talented songwriting duo in Tony Barker and James Wakefield. Mixing succulent sounding guitars with plenty of Fender Rhodes, and some striking harmony vocals layered on top, the band really stand out from the indie-rock herd. Their current debut If You Knew EP showcases their songwriting talents to the maximum.
www.myspace.com/thecharlieparkers
And finally we come down to THE LANDELLS, three teenagers with a bright future. The bassless street urchins with a perchant for sexy (there’s that word again!) garage of the Medway variety have only just started with their musical plans, but already I’m hooked. ‘Breed Of Their Own’ is a hypnotic blast of understated punkadelia, whilst ‘Ball ‘n’ Chain’ has some manic, strangulated vocalising concerning a desperate tale about the daily grind. The added bonus here is frontman Danny Grave, who has bags of personality that will win them many friends over the coming years. Check them out, now!
www.myspace.com/theelandells

I shall be heading across the Atlantic for the next instalment, so get those visas sorted out now.