Mick Futures Banned From The Future & Show # 567

Banned From The Future is the debut full-length album by Sudbury’s Mick Futures, a pseudonym for Strange Attractor drummer and Statues bassist/vocalist Mitch Houle. At fifteen tracks, there is a lot of content, although most of the songs found on Banned From The Future are relatively short, some barely over one and a half minutes. The music pulls from the ubiquitous synth-driven sounds of the 80s, but specifically the sounds of artists such as early Brian Eno, Gary Numan, Devo and Kraftwerk. Futures also dons other subtler influences such as The Wipers, Buzzcocks and Wire.

The album opens with “My Machine Gun”. A song in which Mick Futures projects a Mark Mothersbaugh howl amongst fuzzy, static sounding guitar riffs. The chorus attacks with what sounds like either watery guitar effects or keyboards while throughout the song Futures sings with a verbal arsenal making a social commentary on the unease of the modern world and personal safety. The song also ties in with references of the frights of a past cold war hysteria. “Tentative Issue” floats with a Gary Numan influence. Paranoid expansive guitar lines glide with cold sounding drums and spaceship sounding synthesizers. It echoes the sounds of 80s, while at the same time offering something new to say, ending with the words “You can’t be everything to everyone”. These tracks are then followed by two shorter tracks. “A Few Pieces” melds together the different puzzle pieces of Devo, Kraftwerk and The Wipers constructing and infectious groove with handclaps and guitar lines, while “What Do You Say Now?” appears to be a comment on the creative process.

“Living On Dark Street” features acoustic guitar in the mix of a song that seems to bring forth a sci-fi element (one that is present throughout this album), but this song seems to be all about different personal perceptions. “In Case We Learn” chugs along with fuzzy guitar and a message that seems to portray a burning determination for success. “Whatever You Want” is part Canadian punk, part UK punk and part new wave. Futures sings in a voice similar to Diodes singer Paul Robinson, while the guitars echo with a the semblance of Buzzcocks guitarist Steve Diggle and the siren call guitar lines of Mick Jones on The Clash’s rendition of “Police On My Back”. This song is all about a call for action. It is not one with anything specific in mind, but just one that promotes going out and getting what you want. This also song struts with an underlying optimism.

Other confident moments on the album include, “Mini Mag” which seems to portray a feeling of the viewpoints in the mainstream media amongst icy Gang Of Four meets Canadian art rock band The Government song dynamics. “Cold Emotions” blurs the lines with its darker sci-fi dystopian imagery as “Two Hands” cascades with cleaner guitars and synthesizers. “Walk The Prism” sounds as if it were lifted from an old sci-fi soundtrack. The song also bears a resemblance to the instrumental songs found on Music Madness From The Kinetic Kid by Klark Kent. While Music Madness From The Kinetic Kid was the brainchild of Police drummer Stewart Copeland, Mick Futures takes his madness to different levels singing of “wishing his mind away” and “stitching the bonds of time to focus on something better” in his own illuminating patterns. The songs that make up Banned From The Future can at times have a bleak view, but there is also a silver lining of hopeful optimism. Banned From The Future takes the cold icy dystopian views of the past and applies it to the present.



Saturday Night Playlist:

1. Robert Gordon - Rock Billy Boogie
2. Cheater Slicks - Crying
3. Deerhunter - Memory Boy
4. Women - Shaking Hand
5. Slim Twig - Still The Same
6. Flamin’ Groovies - Shake Some Action
7. Luau Or Die - On The Fly
8. Pow Wows - Shock Corridor
9. Metric On The Sky
10. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - We Call Upon The Author
11. Paul Jacobs - Under Water
12. Guided By Voices - Echos Myron
13. Liz Phair - Girls! Girls! Girls!
14. Thee Oh Sees - Palace Doctor
15. Crosss - Mind
16. Jawbox - Jackpot Plus
17. Iceage - Simony
18. Test Tone Channel - Clown In The Dark
19. White Fence - Arrow Man
20. The Weirdies - Bad Connection
21. The Boys - I Don’t Care
22. The Wipers - Window Shop For Love
23. X-Ray Spex - I Can’t Do Anything
24. REM - (Don't Go Back To) Rockville
25. The Vee Eights - Trick Fueler
26. The Frenetics - Shortest String
27. Mick Futures - In Case We Learn
28. Mick Futures - Mini Mag

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for July 4. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Teenanger Chris Swimmings Interview & Show # 529

Toronto’s Teenanger released their fourth album EP LP on September 9th, 2014, featuring Chris Swimmings (vocals), Melissa Ball (bass), Jon Schouten (guitar) and Steve Sidol on drums.  EP LP comes shortly after 2013’s Singles Don’t $ell which featured the band exploring the deeper elements of the new wave and post punk genres of the late 70s/early 80s. The album’s title once again is a play on music release formats, this one being EP LP, a release in the middle of a full-length album and an EP perhaps. Its title could also be seen as the band’s sound on this release, which is a cross between 2012’s Frights & 2013’s Singles Don’t $ell.  Musically the album is aggressive and at times more relaxed, but it still has an undeniable sleazy grime to it.

“Fly On The Wall” starts off this release from Teenanger. The song displays the band’s wiry post punk influenced garage sound, while lyrically it conveys something else. With words such as “You’re just a fly on the wall/You eavesdrop” and other themes that pop up in the verses of this track, it seems to be a comment on our social media dominated society. “Sky Saxon” attacks with its synthesizer-like riffs and lyrics that seem to be homage to The Seeds front man Sky Saxon lyrically, as it addresses his popularity as opposed to Michael Jackson. “Twisted” bends with its deep bass groove that locks in with the drums as the guitar fills in the gaps, while vocalist Chris Swimmings sings in a lower register. The song is also notable for its saxophone solo, which clocks in around the one minute and 30 second mark. The solo sounds eerily reminiscent of the saxophone in post punk band Magazine’s early song “My Mind Ain’t So Open”.

“Mild Survival” is the first song to be sung by Teenanger bassist Melissa Ball and features a sludgy bassline with sugarcoated vocals, while “Think About It” follows next as one of the album’s first singles. The song sneaks in like a monster jumping out from the primordial ooze of a late 80s Horror B-movie. It lyrically seems to tell the story of impatience and indecision amongst the scratchy guitars and distorted vocals. “The Sequel” is one of the longer tracks found on this album. It sounds at times like it could have come from 2010’s Give Me Pink as it bounces back and forth between up-tempo walls of guitar riff fury, mid-tempo driving bass and solid steady drums as vocals are executed in a creepy drawl. “Negative Zeros” is a rant about minimum wage and drinking in sub zero degree weather. Guitar work by Jon Schouten on this track sounds like it could have been played by Keith Levene while sliding on ice.

The final track on EP LP is the slow and sludgy “Hot Rods At The Loser Convention”. As the primal bass and drums pound away and the guitars slice and stab in the background, Swimmings sings of cliques, jocks and so called “cool” kids in a sneering satirical tone. Some are calling this track a loser anthem. The sound on this album is one that is difficult to describe specifically, it is the sound of a band in their element. On EP LP the new wave/post punk influence from previous albums is still apparent, but there seems to be more voluminous guitar riffs that are like shards of shrapnel. Basslines sound thick and at times fuzz addled, as analog sounding drums, snotty vocals by Chris Swimmings and backing vocals provided by Melissa Ball add to the overall battlefield of dynamics found here. With EP LP Teenanger does not misfire. Throughout this nine-track launch the band hones their sound and are right on target.

Listen to the interview that I did with Teenanger vocalist Chris Swimmings here:



Note: The album review in this post was previously posted here.

Saturday Night Play List:

1. The Seeds - Try To Understand
2. The Arrogants - Drunky Blues
3. Motel Beds - These Are The Days Gone By
4. The Gruesomes - Hypnotized
5. Crazy Rhythm Daddies - Deep Ellum Blues
6. The Nature Boys - Can’t Think
7. The Rural Alberta Advantage - This City
8. Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs - Communication
9. Iceage - The Lord's Favorite
10. White Lung - Just For You
11. Metz - Rats
12. Teenanger - Fly On The Wall
13. Teenanger - Sky Saxon

Teenanger Chris Swimmings Interview

14. Teenanger - Power Trip
15. King Tuff - Sick Mind
16. DOA -New Age
17. Verdix - Lookin’ Around You
18. Female Hands - Annarea
19. Cellos - Mass Production Scheme
20. King Khan & The Shrines - Darkness
21. The Sonics - Don’t You Just Know It
22. Ex-Hex - Hot And Cold
23. Tweedy - World Away
24. The Oblivians - Call The Police
25. The Adverts - Quick Step
26. The Ruts -Bablylon’s Burning

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for October 4. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Teenanger EP LP & Show # 526

Toronto’s Teenanger released their fourth album EP LP on September 9th, 2014, featuring Chris Swimmings (vocals), Melissa Ball (bass), Jon Schouten (guitar) and Steve Sidol on drums.  EP LP comes shortly after 2013’s Singles Don’t $ell which featured the band exploring the deeper elements of the new wave and post punk genres of the late 70s/early 80s. The album’s title once again is a play on music release formats, this one being EP LP, a release in the middle of a full-length album and an EP perhaps. Its title could also be seen as the band’s sound on this release, which is a cross between 2012’s Frights & 2013’s Singles Don’t $ell.  Musically the album is aggressive and at times more relaxed, but it still has an undeniable sleazy grime to it.

“Fly On The Wall” starts off this release from Teenanger. The song displays the band’s wiry post punk influenced garage sound, while lyrically it conveys something else. With words such as “You’re just a fly on the wall/You eavesdrop” and other themes that pop up in the verses of this track, it seems to be a comment on our social media dominated society. “Sky Saxon” attacks with its synthesizer-like riffs and lyrics that seem to be homage to The Seeds front man Sky Saxon lyrically, as it addresses his popularity as opposed to Michael Jackson. “Twisted” bends with its deep bass groove that locks in with the drums as the guitar fills in the gaps, while vocalist Chris Swimmings sings in a lower register. The song is also notable for its saxophone solo, which clocks in around the one minute and 30 second mark. The solo sounds eerily reminiscent of the saxophone in post punk band Magazine’s early song “My Mind Ain’t So Open”.

“Mild Survival” is the first song to be sung by Teenanger bassist Melissa Ball and features a sludgy bassline with sugarcoated vocals, while “Think About It” follows next as one of the album’s first singles. The song sneaks in like a monster jumping out from the primordial ooze of a late 80s Horror B-movie. It lyrically seems to tell the story of impatience and indecision amongst the scratchy guitars and distorted vocals. “The Sequel” is one of the longer tracks found on this album. It sounds at times like it could have come from 2010’s Give Me Pink as it bounces back and forth between up-tempo walls of guitar riff fury, mid-tempo driving bass and solid steady drums as vocals are executed in a creepy drawl. “Negative Zeros” is a rant about minimum wage and drinking in sub zero degree weather. Guitar work by Jon Schouten on this track sounds like it could have been played by Keith Levene while sliding on ice.

The final track on EP LP is the slow and sludgy “Hot Rods At The Loser Convention”. As the primal bass and drums pound away and the guitars slice and stab in the background, Swimmings sings of cliques, jocks and so called “cool” kids in a sneering satirical tone. Some are calling this track a loser anthem. The sound on this album is one that is difficult to describe specifically, it is the sound of a band in their element. On EP LP the new wave/post punk influence from previous albums is still apparent, but there seems to be more voluminous guitar riffs that are like shards of shrapnel. Basslines sound thick and at times fuzz addled, as analog sounding drums, snotty vocals by Chris Swimmings and backing vocals provided by Melissa Ball add to the overall battlefield of dynamics found here. With EP LP Teenanger does not misfire. Throughout this nine-track launch the band hones their sound and are right on target.

Check out an interview I did with Chris Swimmings, the vocalist in Teenanger in this post. 

Saturday Night Play List:

1. Orphan Choir - Cold Book Of Matches
2. The Spooky But Nice - Sun Goes
3. David Bowie - Dirty Boys
4. Thee Mighty Caesars - This Man’s Determined
5. Spoon - They Want My Soul
6. A Sunny Day In Glasgow - Double Dutch
8. The War On Drugs - Need In Your Eye #16
9. Nap Eyes - No Fear Of Hellfire
10. Monomyth - Cigarette
11. The New Pornographers - Brill Bruisers
12. Small Teeth - Murder House
13. Marshmallow Overcoat - Knights Of Fuzz
14. Desperate Measures - Shane’s Song
15. Hag Face - Dirtbag Dreamboat
16. Siouxsie & The Banshees - Love In A Void
17. The Users - Now That It’s Over
18. Pseudos - Backdoor Man Bites The Dust
19. The Replacements - Hey Good Lookin’ (Live)
20. Lost Patrol - Second Time Around
21. Fugazi - Waiting Room
22. King Khan & BBQ Show - Anala
23. Teenanger - Mild Survival
24. Teenanger - Think About It
25. Husker Du - I Apologize
26. The War On Drugs - Baby Missiles
27. 999 - Emergency
28. The Jesus & Mary Chain - The Living End
29. Indian Wars - Walk Around The Park

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for September 13. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Our Boy Roy & Show # 506

In 2010, Telephone Explosion, a record label based out of Toronto, Ontario put out a tribute album to Roy Orbison. Titled Our Boy Roy, this was not your average tribute album, it was a Garage Rock tribute to Mr. Roy Orbison. The album featured many bands from the labels roster such as Teenanger, Holy Cobras, and other popular newer Garage artists such as Ty Segall, Charlie & The Moonhearts, Jacuzzi Boys and six others. For those of you who are not familiar with the label or the above aforementioned bands, they are not only Garage bands, but they also venture into noisy, distorted territory at times pushing high thresholds of volume and Punk Rock attitude.

The first track on this eleven-song album “Problem Child” originally appeared on Roy Orbison’s 1961 album At The Rock House. Camero Werewolf Band covers this track in a gritty, lo-fi take on the Orbison original and starts the album off on an offbeat note. This one track, which at times sounds like a bootleg recording sets the tone of what to expect on the Our Boy Roy compilation. It's going to be dirty, loud and different from what you might expect from a Roy Orbison tribute album. Jacuzzi Boys offer up their take on “You Got It” as the next track. This lush cover is one of the highlights of the album with its clean scratchy guitar in the verses and fuzzy guitar lines at the end of each of the catchy choruses. Montrealer Bloodshot Bill covers the obscure 1958 Orbison song “Cause of It All” in his Garage/Rockabilly style following this.

Throughout each of the eleven tracks found on Our Boy Roy, we travel from distorted, noisy versions of Orbison songs, classics and some obscure. On the noisy, sludgy side we have Haunted George’s version of “Rock House” that has garbled vocals and oozes with a primitive sludge that sounds like a cross between The Phantom, The Sonics and something that has crawled out of a radioactive sewer. There is also the Holy Cobras version of “Domino” almost unrecognizable as a Roy Orbison song here. It sounds musically as if it was recorded with one microphone at the back of a room, while slightly more audible vocals rest on top. Ty Segall tackles “Pretty Woman” adding his trademark fuzz, echo and reverberations to this track with the addition of psychedelic yelps that pop up at various points before leading us in to “You’re My Baby”. This song is done by Toronto’s Garage Punkers Teenanger.  They deliver this track with the original soul and emotion that Roy Orbison first showed us back in 1956, but with a dash of Garage and a pinch of Rockabilly showcasing an edge similar to early music by The Gun Club. Oh and if that isn’t enough this song was originally written by Johnny Cash, but performed by Roy Orbison.

Demon Claws add depth to this album with their jangly Garage/Indie take on “It’s Over”, providing a wonderful rendition of this Orbison ballad deterring us from what we might expect based on their ominous band name. Cheater Sticks perform an aggressive version of “Crying”, while still maintaining the melody and emotion of the original. This version musically sounds like a mixture of early Velvet Underground and a Surf band. Surf licks lay overtop the Garage Rock foundation of this song. Charlie & The Moonhearts, a band featuring Mikal Cronin, who is not only a solo artist, but he also plays frequently with Ty Segall’s live band and has recorded some material with Ty cover “Chicken Hearted”. This track is a bastardized version of the original “Chicken Hearted” and comes off with the feel of something on the Reverse Shark Attack album by Ty Segall & Mikal Cronin.

1000 copies of Our Boy Roy were originally pressed in 2010 on vinyl only by Telephone Explosion. It sold out quickly. But the thought of Roy Orbison and Garage Rock is not something completely foreign. Back in 1966, Roy Orbison released the single “Twinkle Toes” for the MGM record label, reportedly in an attempt to sound current at the time. The song features a prominent and ominous fuzz guitar line amongst the rowdy crowd noise filling in the background of this track. On this tribute album, Roy Orbison’s complex and dark ballads take on a new life just as it did on his song “Twinkle Toes” in 1966. The rowdy crowd noise and ominous fuzz guitar is pushed forward from the background into the foreground on this compilation album and it was all inspired by our boy Roy Orbison.

The Play List:

1. The Stand GT - Cool As Me
2. Famines - Faux Famous (Live July 14, 2008)
3. The Ugly - Alley Cat
4. OFF! - Void You Out
5. The Coathangers - Merry Go Round
6. Sabers - Big Fish
7. Natural Child - Rounder
8. Chris Bell - I Am The Cosmos (2012 Movie Mix)
10. Big Star - September Gurls (2012 Movie Mix)
11. Roxy Music - Street Life
12. Scattered Bodies - Rain On The Red Tin Roof
13. Particle Wave - Grand Unifier
14. Laughing Clowns - Diabolic Creature
15. Roy Orbison - Twinkle Toes
16. Bloodshot Bill - Cause Of It All (Roy Orbison Cover)
17. Teenanger - You’re My Baby (Roy Orbison Cover)
18. Mystics - So Cold
19. Ty Segall - Pretty Woman (Roy Orbison Cover)
20. Raised By Weeds - Fun And Games
21. Sex Pistols - Whatcha Gonna Do About It
22. Supergrass - Mansize Rooster
23. Ramones - Teenage Lobotomy
24. Radiohead - Bodysnatchers
25. Weirdonia - Don't Move To New York
26. Fergus & Geronimo - Uncanny Vision/Spies
27. Nirvana - Stain

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for April 29. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

TEENANGER FRIGHTS & Show # 396

Coming from Toronto, Ontario Teenanger released their first full length album Give Me Pink in 2010 and an EP prior to that. Their fourteen song debut album reflected more of a Garage Rock and Blues production style and sound, but with their new album, Frights the band did a few things different. The band worked with Howie Beck who is known for his mix engineering work on albums by Indie Rock artists Feist and Jason Collet. The paring was different, but Frights shows Teenanger finding a new voice by stripping their catchy well crafted songs down to the bare bones while at the same time reflecting a 70s Punk sound and approach. Just by looking at the excellently designed album artwork of red and neon green, you can tell this album is different . The songs are attacked with more aggression, the lyrics snarled out by singer Chris Swimmings as he sings about bank accounts, lawyers, security guards and cheap thrills. The songs are short, the album is shorter. At nine songs and clocking in at about twenty one minutes, Frights is one of those short albums that ends too soon, but one that warrants repeat listens. Frights was released on the bands own label Telephone Explosion.

This Week's Play List:

1. Pow Wows – Killing Me

2. Pow Wows – Worry…Don’t

3. Painted Ship – Frustration

4. TV Freaks – Casual Encounter

5. Ex-Girlfriends Club – Your Prescription

6. Energetic Action – Mud Hill

7. The Twilight Sad – Don’t Look At Me

8. New Order – Temptation
9. Public Image Limited – One Drop
10. Gang of Four – History’s Bunk (Peel Session)
11. The Stranglers – Hanging Around
12. Teenanger – Cheap Thrills
13. Teenanger – Frights
14. Fenster – Oh Canyon
15. Vic Godard & The Subway Sect – Split Up The Money
16. Joe Strummer – Leopardskin Limousines
17. Cake - Italian Guy
18. The Pointed Sticks – Born To Cry
19. The Ketamines – 1 Yr
20. Luger Boa – 1000 Hooks
21. Bronx Cheerleader - Camelot
22. The Hives – Go Right Ahead

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for March 20. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.