THE DIPLOMATS OF SOLID SOUND
Alligator Boogaloo (Butterfly, 45)
     Iowa's jazz-soul-quartet return to Butterfly with a four-track EP featuring three originals and a cover of Lou Donaldson's 'Alligator Boogaloo'. All is kept punchy and simple in the tradition of Booker T, however the tunes are marred by a flattish production, lacking in power. So guys when in London get your arses down to Toe Rag and let the bespoke Mr Liam Watson work some voodoo. It'll be dandy!
     www.butterfly-records.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

THE GENE DRAYTON UNIT
Due Bottoni / Juicy Lucy (Butterfly, 45)
     Corkin', and I'm not just saying that because Sax supremo Mark Norton works for the same company as me. 'Due Bottoni' could easily have been the theme of some lost mid-'70s BBC cop show. Led by Norton's rasping Sax, a tumbling bass and cool Hammond, the cut contains both mood AND groove. Flip, 'Juicy Lucy' (possibly dedicated to a girlfriend who loves onions and beans) again is ideal for TV, perhaps a kids' game show. The cut is full of funky sax, fat drums, jangling arpeggios, a prominent jazz vibe and many great stops and starts. Now please, will some production company use these guys for some incidental TV music.
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

LES INDIKATION
Tu Manipules Ma Tête / Jacqueline / Indikation Ye Ye (Larsen, 45)
     From Norway come one of the sharpest dressed and most authentic '60s styled freakbeat bands in years. The cover pictures the guy in the attire of the Scandanavian '60s beat scene, equal parts Mod cool and snotty surliness. More importantly the music on the platter equals their threads. It's pure '66! A cover of Bryan & The Brunelles' 'Jaqueline' is exceedingly well executed, and the French number kinda cool, but it's on the 'Bert's Apple Crumble' styled Small Faces pop-art/freakbeat instro 'Indikation Ye Ye' where the band really cook.
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

LAZY LANE
Sea Witch (Butterfly, 45)
          This won't be to everyone's taste, but I admire Butterfly for working with this droney, almost gothic-psychedelic act who centre around the spooky voiced Lily Lane, twisted keyboards and taunting deathly tunes. If Tim Burton was to move into music production this is exactly the type of act he'd choose to work with!
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

SWEATMASTER
Sharp Cut (Bad Afro, CD / LP)
     This Finish three-piece have been lauded as the latest stars of the current Scandinavian garage roots firmament. Weeelll, they're loud, raucous and I like 'em fine. However, I don't hear anything that makes them stand out against The Hives (who have better riffs anyway) or any of the other bands of this genre. At just under thirty minutes and twelve songs long, this is good 'getting-ready to go out on a weekend' sort of an album. I am a big fan of the current inundation of Scandibeat bands, it's been years since so many loud guitars have graced the stages of the continent and I grab as many as I can, Sweatmaster included. 'I Am A Demon' And 'I Love Rock & Roll', their cult 45 which caught the ears of many is here along with their latest 45, opening track 'Hold It!'. These are for me, the highlights of the CD along with 'Wanna See It Done'. Nice noisy stuff, but Sweatmaster need more distinctive hooks like 'I Am A Demon' if they want to nudge ahead their contemporaries.
Paul Martin