BASSHOLES
Out In The Treetops (Dead Canary; double 45)
    What connects The Misunderstood and Bassholes? John Peel managed the psych legends and would very much enjoy this trash/blues/lo-fi shite! That's it! That's as far as it goes! So don't be expecting any heavenly crafted psych, as this guitar/drum duo (a trendy and bad American invention) certainly won't provide it. In the press-kit they claim that they are 'never at a loss to soil the garage rock purists formulas' with pride, and I can safely say guys that anyone who likes '60s garage - if that's what you call 'purist' - won't wanna listen to this. And soiled the formula they have… why mess with it when it worked in the first place? This isn't music. It's depressing trash, and who wants that when there's plenty of good music out there… still I'm sure the NME will lap this up.
www.deadcanaryrecords.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

BLIND JACKSON
Keep On Running/Back On My Feet Again (Deadskool; CD single)
    It was only last month that Shindig! reviewed Blind Jackson's last EP, the ace 'Boastin', Braggin', Cussin', Slaggin' ' and so it's a pleasure to have them pop up again with their second single. Yet another cool sleeve (who is their designer? we should be told) and yup, corking contents too - I just love it when a band's consistent! The only problem (for review purposes anyway) is actually being able to describe this music and say why it's so good. If anything, these two songs are rather reminiscent of the kind of rocking but arty pop that used to appear circa 1979, before the synth took over. Comparisons like XTC, Martha & The Muffins, Sparks and even The Korgis (and if you think that's not a compliment, then you haven't listened to any Korgis albums) spring to mind. It's the knack for writing a good tune, but playing it with lots of guitars as well as keyboards, so the thing actually has some oomph. 'Back On My Feet Again' probably steals the honours because of the pretty little instrumental hook inbetween the verses and the choruses, and because it reminds me in a strange way of 'Palisades Park', but the tougher 'Keep On Running' makes it a close race. This is a fun, eclectic group, and it's going to be a gas seeing what else they come up with.
Jane Farrell

THE CREATURES OF THE GOLDEN DAWN
Blood From A Stone (Buttefly; EP)
    Mark Smith and crew have been knocking around for some time, and as with the similarly minded Fuzztones and Chesterfield Kings trends and fads have never swayed them from their garage/psych mission. The Dawn's sound is that of Prozac and delirium. The monotonal angst vocals, Third Bardo / Golden Dawn style guitar fragments and the repetitive folk-rock riffing of Love's first make up the band's template. Alas, keen melodies are lacking and the attempt at pulling off Chuck Berry's 'Almost Grown' is a mistake. Nevertheless, hardly anyone else tackles this sound with such gusto these days and for that alone The Creatures Of The Golden Dawn deserve some merit.
www.butterfly-records.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

CURLEE WURLEE!
Curlee Wurlee (Buttefly; 3-track picture disc)
    This French boy/girl band have a Delmonas vocal style and the slightly punky Kinks beat that typified them. This disc really ain't that bad, but then it ain't great either. If a fan of the Medway approach of old you might just lap this up, but for the more demanding listener it just won't be that fulfilling.
www.butterfly-records.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

THE FLESHTONES
Do You Swing? (Yep Roc records; CD)
    'The Fleshtones have the spirit that has always moved great pop music. They have the raw enthusiasm, the exuberance, the slight touch of madness. They have the beat - big, broad and danceable. What they don't have is much of an image, and still less, any gimmicks… the core of the group, singer Peter Zaremba and guitarist Keith Streng have been together as a band since 1976. But that lack of an image, coupled with long periods of inactivity, have kept the Fleshtones from the limelight they deserve.'
    The above is part of a 1980 NME article by Richard Grabel. Twenty-three years later and his analysis still stands. Always exciting as a live band, The Fleshtones have honed their craft over the years, becoming one of the best live acts on the planet. I have heard people dismiss the 'Tones as 'too frat', or 'not authentic enough', but I have never heard anyone say a bad word about them after they seeing a live show. This is a good album. In 27 odd years, the band has never released a bad one. There is a good mix of rockers, cool covers, instro-mentals, and just about everything that's fun about rock music. However, the band hasn't quite managed to distil the magic essence of their live shows. The current interest in garage rock is fertile soil for The Fleshtones. If they want to make this album a success, they need to tour, tour and tour some more. Sadly they are unlikely to get on a bill with many of the current crop of fashionable garage favourites. Those in the know are unlikely to share a stage with a band that can blow them off it!
    John O'Neill, writing in the San Francisco Bay Guardian, summed it up; 'there's no way an A&R person with an expense account and a job is going to take a chance on an ageing party band. So the 'tones will have to settle for the personal satisfaction of being America's greatest living live rock and roll band.'
Phil Suggitt

GLUECIFER
Basement Apes (SPV; CD) 
    This album has been out for a year now, but it's never too late to review a truly seminal piece of work. Why on earth Turbonegro and The Hives are getting all the attention whilst Gluecifer are forced to play wallflower at the loud-guitars-are-cool-again party is beyond me. Actually on second thoughts, no it isn't: the reason is that the former are both good bands who are great at marketing themselves to the media via uniforms, (ironically something that Gluecifer ditched a couple of albums ago) stylised arrogance, entertaining fiction about their origins, etc., whereas Gluecifer are an astounding band who seem to have been absent from rock star school when the 'how to play up to the press' classes were held. Lack of any overt image never stopped Deep Purple or Led Zeppelin - ah, different times - but nowadays it's led to the best heavy rock album in at least the last 19 years getting sidelined. Basement Apes represents Gluecifer's full transformation from their earlier garage punk/metal days into a band able to produce the kind of consistently classic rock that was last heard in the halcyon years of the 1970s. 
    What they've done is harness the pop sensibility of bands like Cheap Trick ('Round And Round') and The Raspberries to the sheer force of prime period Motorhead ('Easy Living'). Simultaneous to that is an appreciation of the value of the kind of groove inherent in early Fleetwood Mac (think 'Rattlesnake Shake' or 'Green Manalishi'), Aerosmith or AC/DC, so the album drives along with nary a pause for breath, but somehow manages to avoid feeling rushed (much credit due to an amazing rhythm section). Take your pick...air-riff furiously or just get down to these songs. The '70s feel is accentuated by extensive use of organ and mellotron (some of it played by Soundtrack Of Our Lives' Martin Hederos - now, would he play on anything less than wonderful? Of course not!). 'It Won't Be' is a Zep/Move melange, the monstrous windmilling riffs of 'I Saw The Stones Move' come over like the greatest song that never made it onto Live At Leeds, and 'Black Book Lodge' is the Stooges on amphetamine jamming with Ritchie Blackmore. All that along with the twin guitar attack of Raldo Useless and Captain Poon (daft pseudonyms being a hangover from the matching shirt days), probably the finest pairing since Gorham and Robertson, the soul-belter vocals of Biff Malibu (no, really, don't judge them on the names, please!), and you've got a record that makes you want to give thanks to someone-or-other that you're around on the planet at the same time it is. What more can one say, except buy this and seize the opportunity to see them live, because right now Gluecifer are undoubtedly the best rock band in the world.
www.gluecifer.com
Jane Farrell

GRAFTON
Blind Horse Campaign (Dead Canary; CD)
    Loud and angry contemporary American garage-punk (in that thrown-together blues music, '60s Detroit, '70s metal, '80s hardcore and Estrus '90s garage kinda-vein). There's some variation in attack, although you won't find any Beach Boys harmonies here. A little like The Mono Men (or even The White Stripes meanest moments)… exposure to this disc is good for cleaning the ear wax, that's for sure… and this sound is very much in vogue right now. If 'nu-garage' fires you up, this will.
www.deadcanaryrecords.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

LES SLOW SLUSHY BOYS
Slushy Puppy / Das Weiss Der Teufel (Butterfly; 45)
    Two fab frenchy instros with the marvellous tones of band leader Denis' teenage son's solid keyboards and 'ye ye' backing from Phil Suggitt's faves Les Godzillas on 'Slush Puppy'. This is truly great stuff, and I'm so pleased things are still on the up for this fine band that we have supported since Gravedigger #1 Both of these are the finest instros released on Butterfly and give everything else out there, including The JTQ, a bloody good run for their money. This is ready-made, or should I say tailor-made, for the mod dancefloor. 'Das Weiss Der Teufel' will be a floor filler. It really doesn't get much groovier than this!!!!
www.butterfly-records.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

PETER LACEY
Anderida (Pink Hedgehog; CD)
    Deep, moody singer-songwriter psych with a cosmic vibe not unlike Surf's Up era Beach Boys. When the right buttons are pushed the practically one-man-band Peter Lacey can work some small wonders with his multi-layered harmonies and crafted melodies, but the modern synths and at times '80s AOR production brings Peter Gabriel to mind rather than the sun kissed sound of late '60s harmony pop.
www.pinkhedgehog.com 
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

THE LOVETONES
Be What You Want (The Committee/Bomp; CD)
    Although these guys are from Sydney, Australia, if you didn't know any better you'd swear they were from the UK, as Be What You Want is filled with the kind of textural, psychedelic-tinged sounds that the un-informed mainstream press will liken to Radiohead. Lead vocalist Matthew Tow (formerly of Drop City) possesses a powerful instrument indeed, which serves the band well on cool, Brit-pop tunes like 'The Sound And The Fury', 'Give It All I Can', and 'Something Good'. The album has its lighter moments as well; 'Drink The Night (My Love)' will recall Squeeze with its octave-separated vocal harmonies, and 'The One And Only', with its soulful bent guitar notes, is as catchy as pop music gets. There's also the standout ballad 'It's Always Been This Way', which has the kind of gut-wrenching impact that Dennis Wilson provided on Pacific Ocean Blue. Good stuff, this!
www.bomp.com/Lovetones.html
David Bash

THE NEW CONSTITUTION
On 4 (Audello; CD)
    Right off the bad, you gotta love the name of this Chicago combo which, while not really echoing those bombastic Who's Next-era sounds, does call to mind some other favourites of the period like T. Rex and The Faces, along with the irresistibly ragged melodicism of Liquor Giants and some garage leanings thrown in for good measure. None of the 12 tunes on On 4 ever let up on those wonderfully distorted melodic rock 'n roll sounds that you used to know and love, and the keyboards of Dan Brown add some flavor. The tunes that Brown writes and sings, like 'Shook Last Night,' 'Country Life,' and 'Lies About It' are probably the most rockin' of the bunch, while guitarist Mike Downey, who sports a rather authentic Bolan-esque vibrato, pens the ultra-hip 'So I Walked Into The Earth Bar,' No Easy Way,' and 'East Lawn'. Not much variety on the album, but you won't care as you'll enjoy this one from start to finish.
www.audello.com 
www.thenewconstitution.net
David Bash

THE CLIQUE
Vanbrugh Park (Detour; CD)
THE JAMES TAYLOR QUARTET
The Oscillator (Rootdown; CD)
THE PLAYERS
Clear The Decks (Upfront; CD)
    Ahhhhhhhh the Hammond organ. It still sells records. It still sounds untouchable. And Mick Talbot (Merton Parkas, Style Council, Galliano etc) and James Taylor (The Prisoners, JTQ etc) are still utilising the '60s/'70s jazz/soul/funk/soundtrack trademark in an impressive manner.
     One of the earliest records purportedly recorded for the inception of Eddie Pillar's legendary Acid Jazz label were London mod faves The Cliques' session with James Taylor. Vanbrugh Park was dropped at the time - for a reason that Pillar claims he can't recall; although I'm sure the uninspired vocals of Paul Newman may have been the case in question. Nevertheless, The Clique mk.1, whom I never saw, straddled the 1965-66 UK mod R&B sound perfectly and the addition of Taylor's Hammond is crucial to the mix. The Clique went onto far greater things (hear The Self Preservation Society on Detour for proof) but for a recreation of mid-60sdom in the hellish mid-'80s it deserves a few listens.
     The JTQ have returned to the stripped down quartet that they started out as and The Oscillator is a fine return to form too with the band straddling prog-rock (a freak-out version of 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and plenty of Jon Lord finger fests elsewhere), gaining inspiration from Latin jazz, classic blaxploitation soundtracks and early '70s Roy Budd styled party scene a-go-go blasts all performed with the usual vodka fuelled fingers. A wonderful return from the tough looking fella from Medway. Of a similarish ilk are The Players (which consist of Merton Mick, Aziz Ibrahim (Stone Roses), Damon Minchella (Ocean Colour Scene), Steve White (Style Council, Paul Weller), and even a guest appearance from one of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers)… but let none of this put you off. The Players aren't The JTQ, but then they're not trying to be. Their breakbeats are as tight as The Meters, and there're some magnificent sci-fi elements too; all done in a contemporary style. Long live the Hammond!!!
www.detour-records.co.uk
www.jtq.co.uk
www.theplayerslounge.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

SPLIT EP
THEE JENERATORS 'Fight The Power' / HOBO SOUNDS 'Hang The President (He'll Do The Same For You)' (Twist / Finacially Attractive; 45)
    Risk main man and Twist head honcho Mark Le Gallez turns in an angry Detroit garage sound on Thee Jenerators politically vitriolic 'Fight The Power' with a mean attitude and Toe Rag production, whilst fellow Channel Islanders Hobo Sounds are distinctly boring with their supposedly edgy, but dated, indie-rock.
http://www.cionlne.com/twist/
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

VARIOUS ARTISTS
South American Teenage Garage Punk: Volume One (Butterfly; 45)
    If listening to this record is anything to go by it seems that the '80s and '90s garage bug has only just hit South America. Elio & The Horribles' rendition of 'Ain't No Friend Of Mine' is an unimaginative, lacking in spice rip of The Mummies, The Tandooris have heavy guitars and Kinks riffs aplenty, not unlike The Cynics or Fuzztones, and The Supersonicos seem to be in awe of Man Or Astroman. But all of the average plagiarism is made up for by the energetic 'pure '60s garage' sound of Los Peyotes, whose 'Vampiro', I dare to say, reminds me of my old band The Nuthins' attempts at capturing the urgency of the period. They do it incredibly well, achieving the exact period vibe. (Check out their site at http://personales.ciudad.com.ar/songoku/pagina1.htm). EPs like this are a great way to discover new bands, and one good song out of four isn't bad. I'm looking forward to hearing more Los Peyotes, so someone give 'em the cash to do an album
www.butterfly-records.com
Jon 'Mojo' Mills

VIBEKE SAUGESTAD
Overdrive (Universal Norway; CD)
    The fabulous Ms Saugestad is back! back! back! with a follow up to her first solo album, 2001's Into The Shimmering. Haven't heard of her? Well, if you're not inside the borders of Norway that's (unfortunately) par for the course. She seems to have been a fixture on the music scene over there for yonks, moving through combos such as Weld, Thelyblast and Thinkerbell, and even playing keyboards with power pop gods the Yum Yums. Indeed Yum Yums presidente Morten Henriksen and drummer/bassist Tomas Dahl get reciprocal here by forming half of Vibeke's backing band along with Swedish group Brainpool (haven't heard them, but with cohorts like this they must be pretty damned cool)'s David Birde and Magnus Borjeson. Apparently, some of her previous gigs with the Yum Yums have involved non-stop cover versions of great girl-fronted pop - yer Go-Gos, Holly and the Italians, Transvision Vamp, B-Girls type stuff - and that seems to be a pretty good guide to the heights that this album aims for and amply succeeds in attaining. It's nothing but superbly catchy melodies, infinitely singalongable choruses and shamelessly new-wave-styled beats. Whereas Into The Shimmering toned down Vibeke's rocking tendencies to fit into a softer, somewhat balladic mould, Overdrive is generally much more uptempo and hard-edged and it really works. This is particularly the case on the 1973-model glam rock stomper 'C'mon C'mon C'mon' a song which Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman would have been proud to have written (and I bet the boys had fun doing those ridiculously camp backing vocals too…). But there are so many great touches all over this album - a hint of the Dave Clark Five in the insistent drums on 'Lovesong', the bells on 'My Final Invitation', slinky vocals and cowbell on 'Here She Comes Again', 'All You Ever Need's touches of slide guitar - Vibeke and crew simply don't put a foot wrong. If you love great pop and great songs, there's no way you can afford to be without this record. 
www.bennis.no
Jane Farrell