Nirvana Nevermind 20th Anniversary Release... Show # 358

Originally released by Nirvana in September of 1991, Nevermind was the bands breakthrough album. It crashed into the Billboard charts shaking up the music industry and eventually went on to sell over a million copies, the sales figures are said to be around the 30 million mark currently. Now twenty years later Nevermind is getting the deluxe reissue treatment. Previously Nirvana's first full length album Bleach was released in 20th anniversary form in 2009 it came with a bonus disc featuring a live concert, but this release falls into a different category of deluxe reissues, it is super deluxe. It will be released on September 20th, 2011.

The reissue is more like a box set, featuring four CD's and one DVD of a Nirvana concert never before released in complete form officially. Rumours and speculation have already been made on internet sites as to what will be contained on this release some claiming that it may contain the original rough mixes of the album done by producer Butch Vig, but an official release confirmed that it will include B-sides, rarities, BBC radio sessions and live recordings. Dave Ghrol in a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine had this to say of the release, even hinting at future Nirvana releases:

"I wouldn’t doubt it if something very special happens – we have a few things up our sleeves. I can’t really say anything yet. But you’ll see. It’ll be fun."

The latest info on Nirvana can be found at http://www.nirvana.com/

This Week's Play List:

1. The Stooges - T.V. Eye
2. Magic Hall of Mirrors - Coke Mountain
3. The Doughboys - Until The Clock Strikes Doom (Live)
4. Cat's Eyes - Over You
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. - We Almost Lost Detroit
6. Neil Young International Harvesters - Get Back To The Country
7. Lonesome Lefty - Let's Go For Breakfast Anyway
8. Gunfight!- Sticks
9. Goldtones - Strike
10. Mark Malibu And The Wasagas - Wasaga Run
11. Link Wray - Deacon Jones
12. The Hook Up - Come Down With Us
13. Nervus Rex - Love Affair
14. The Donkeys - What I Want
15. Pointed Sticks - How Could You?
16. Active Dog - Fun While It Lasts
17. The Bureaucrats - Grown Up Age
18. The Subways - It's A Party
19. Nirvana - Drain You
20. Buzzcocks - Fiction Romance
21. Fire Engines - Everything's Roses
22. Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - Milk Me (Live Max's Kansas City 1979)
23. The Gruesomes - What's Your Problem?
24. The Clash - Ivan Meets G.I. Joe (Live Amsterdam 1981)
25. The Clash - I Fought The Law (Live Amsterdam 1981)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 28. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Join The Professionals ... Show # 357

The Professionals formed in late 1979 after the demise of The Sex Pistols. After Johnny Rotten had left the Pistols, a make shift band was put together for a few recordings featuring session bassist Andy Allen and Steve Jones on vocals for the songs “Silly Thing” and “Lonely Boy”. Later on that year the Pistols officially split and this line up was converted into a new group that would call themselves The Professionals. In July of 1980, The Professionals released their first single “Just Another Dream” backed with “Action Man”. The music while people could make Sex Pistols references was different, reflecting a more Hard Rock based nature. The single “1-2-3” followed in October of 1980, it went to number 43 on the UK singles charts. The band then recorded a full length album that was to be self titled and released in 1980, but there were some issues that stopped its release and as a result, it had to be re-recorded and released under a different name.

So what happened? Well it was a combination of a few things, first of all bassist Andy Allen left the group following the release of their second single “1-2-3”, he was replaced by bassist Paul Myers of The Subway Sect and a second guitarist (Ray McVeigh) was added to the line up. Andy Allen sued their label Virgin Records, claiming that he had not been paid for the recordings he made. In attempt to avoid further complications with the matter, the new line up of The Professionals re-recorded previous material that the band had done so that he would no longer be owed royalties. The result of these recordings would be released under the name I Didn’t See It Coming, the bands' first officially released full length album. Recorded by Nigel Gray, the album was released in November of 1981. But the album wasn't a re-recording of every Professionals song per se.  It featured several new tracks such as "The Magnificent", "Payola", "Northern Slide", "Friday Night Square", and "Too Far To Fall".  These songs were mixed in with re-recorded versions of the songs "Kick Down The Door", "Little Boys In Blue", "All The Way", "Crescendo", and "Madhouse".  The songs on this album featured more of a production based sound, as opposed to the intended 1980 album The Professionals, which features a rawer, more based live sound. 

The band released a single in June of 1981 called “Join The Professionals” which was featured in the cult movie Ladies and Gentleman The Fabulous Stains. The single chosen from the I Didn’t See It Coming album was the song “The Magnificent”. The band set up a UK and US tour in support of the album, but the tour was cut short when Cook, Jones, and McVeigh were injured in a car accident during the American tour. The band regrouped in 1982 to tour in America. They were also offered a spot on The Clash’s tour, which they declined. Shortly after this they broke up.

The Professionals first full length album, with Andy Allen on bass was finally released in 1990 by Limited Edition Records in modified form, and then again by Virgin Records in 1997 in yet another modified form. Both releases featured slightly different track listings, the 1990 edition featured the song “Rockin’ Mick” and an alternate version of the song “All The Way”, but it did not contain the song “Just Another Dream”, which was their first single. The Virgin Records edition removed the song “Rockin’ Mick” and added two bonus tracks “Join The Professionals” and “Has Anybody Got An Alibi”, which were actually recorded with the second line up of The Professionals. Some say that the first full length album recordings by the Professionals are actually better than I Didn’t See It Coming featuring a rawer, more spirited sound, its hard to disagree. While I Didn’t See It Coming features a boxer getting punched in the face and musically is good in its own right, for some it’s the original Professionals album that knocks you out. A greatest hits was released in 2005, while the album I Didn’t See It Coming was reissued with six bonus tracks in 2001.

This Week's Play List:

1. The Vandelles - Summer Fling
2. Johnny West - I'm Optimistic
3. Joel Plaskett - Extradordinary
4. The Phonenix Foundation - Skeleton
5. Blue Stones - Star Killer
6. Private School - Money Guns and Power
7. Silicon Injection - Payday On Friday
8. Lowlife - Leaders
9. Crash Kills Five - Oddy Knocky
10. The Love Me Nots - Cheap Knockoff
11. The Coathangers - Chicken: 30
12. The Youngthings - All My Friends Are Junkies
13. New York Dolls - Looking For A Kiss
14. White Denim - It's Him
15. Novels - This Wouldn't Be The First Time
16. The Boys - I Don't Care
17. The Vibrators - London Girls
18. Blitzkrieg Bop - 9 till 5
19. Rolling Stones - Before They Make Me Run
20. Black Lips - Spidey's Curse
21. Black Lips - Raw Meat
22. The Police - Dead End Job
23. The Misfits - TV Casualty
24. The Professionals - 1-2-3
25. The Professionals - Join The Professionals

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 14. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Washing Machine Fill In ... June 16 2011

Today I filled in for The Washing Machine, which airs every Thursday from 10:30 until Noon on CJAM 99.1 FM. I played a mix of Indie Rock, Garage, Punk, New Wave, Soul, and Blues music. You can also visit The Washing Machine Blog for more info.

Washing Machine Play List:

1. The Strokes - Gratisfaction
2. Dan Sartain - I Don't Wanna Go To The Party
3. Ugly Ducklings - I Wish You Would
4. The Detroit Cobras - Ya Ya Ya (Looking For My Baby)
5. John Lee Hooker - Jump Me One More Time
6. Johnny West - Purgatory Waltz
7. Papermaps - Reunion
8. Novels - Big Run
9. Novels - Record In Hand
10. Balkans - Edita V
11. Pluto - Cool Way To Feel
12. Eric's Trip - Follow
13. The Wipers - Tragedy
14. Booker T. Jones - The Vamp
15. Otis Redding - Down In The Valley
16. Tammi Terrell - What A Good Man He Is
17. Sloan - Follow The Leader
18. Hater - Blistered
19. Iggy Pop & James Williamson - Johanna
20. Dee Dee Ramone & The Chinese Dragons - Chatterbox
21. The Rapture - Out of The Races and Onto The Track
22. The Government - Real Computer
23. The Subway Sect - Ambition
24. The Kills - Satelllte
25. Black Lips - Mad Dog

You can download the show here.

New Direction ... Black Lips Arabia Mountain & Show # 356

On June 7th, Atlanta’s Black Lips released Arabia Mountain, an album that took over a year in the making and an album that marked the first time that they worked with an outside producer (Mark Ronson). But before you scream sell out, there are a few things that you should know. The band actually worked with two producers, Mark Ronson, who has been responsible for working with artists such as Amy Winehouse, Lilly Allen, and Duran Duran for the majority of the album and Lockett Pundt (of Deer Hunter) for two songs (“Bicentennial Man” and “Go Out And Get It!”). In addition to this, Black Lips have used a lot of different types of instruments to add to the songs structures such as Saxophone, Theremin, Muscle Saws, and a human skull which was used as an echo chamber. Guitarist Cole Alexander described the use of the human skull in terms of recording in an interview with SPIN Magazine in August 2010:

“Yeah. I'd been searching for a human skull and I found one in New York City. We used it as an echo chamber. One of our favorite bands, the 13th Floor Elevators, had a jug player who would makes noises into a jug and it would reverberate. So we used the skull the same way. When music reverberates in your head it has a certain sound based on the geometry of your head. So this resembles the echo you would hear in your head at a live concert. Also, if you believe in spirituality, it's cool with the trippy spiritual implications of the sound going through this particular person's skull. It's also straight up creepy. The eyes and the nose created a problem during recording because the sound escapes there. But I'd just put my hand over the nose and eyes -- problem solved. “

“Family Tree” opens up the album with a raw Sonics/Stooges swoon, infectious beats and aggressive vocals. “Modern Art” is a 60s Garage Rock styled number that lyrically was based on a true experience of tripping out at the Salvador Dali Museum in Spain. The humorous lyrics reflect the fact that they were tripping out on Ketamine at a surreal Art museum, feeling normal as a result. “Spidey’s Curse” is a 60’s Pop song that tells the story of Peter Parker being subjected to the sickness of society during his childhood. Songs such as the extremely catchy Garage Surf mix of “Bicentennial Man”, the Pop of “Go Out and Get It!”, and the 70’s Punk Stylings of “Raw Meat” all contribute to Arabia Mountain’s cause. Lyrically and musically Black Lips are un-relentless, keeping true to their gritty and at times strange lyrics which has never been more evident on songs such as “Raw Meat” a song about food poisoning, “Dumpster Dive” a song with splashes of Exile On Main Street era Rolling Stones, the sleazy fuzzed out “Noc-A-Homa” a song about the former Atlanta Braves Mascot Chief Noc’A’Homa. “Mad Dog” deals with subliminal messages that can be found in songs by Judas Priest and The Beatles, musically it features sleazy horn sections and Surf/Garage Rock riffs, while “Time”, the only song featured on the album written by guitarist Ian St. Pe, is Pop flavoured track with Surf guitar licks, “New Direction” is a positive song with 70s Punk sensibilities, “Don’t Mess Up My Baby” a song that at times seems to have Garaged up Bo Diddley like rhythms and Beach Boys styled vocals in the verses, and finally “You Keep On Running” is a slow Psychedelic track that ends Arabia Mountain on an eerie note.

Arabia Mountain features sixteen tracks, all of which sound fresh and exciting while at the same time staying true to the bands ethics. Working with Ronson helped Black Lips and their songs to reach their maximum potential. Lyrically the album features many songs that reflect a narrative based nature, sounding mature while at the same time keeping true to the unique tenacious style. Amongst the sixteen tracks found here you will find elements of Surf, 60s Garage, 70s Punk, and Psychedellic music. After six albums this album serves as a new starting point for the group, while fans often choose 2005’s Let It Bloom and 2007’s Good Bad Not Evil as the bands best work, Arabia Mountain serves as a new contender. The band has never sounded better on record and as a result, this may be not only one of the bands strongest produced efforts, but also one of their best albums so far.

This Week's Play List:

1. Sex Pistols - Satellite
2. Reatards - C'Mon Over
3. Lost Patrol - Grown Up Hard
4. Fatal K.O. - Inside Scene
5. E.B.S. - Glass Slippers
6. Ugly Motels - Not For Me
7. Disband - One Man Army
8. Thurston Moore - Bennediction
9. The Soles - Illusion
10. Mazes - Summer Hits
11. Crocodiles - Refuse Angels
12. Captain Sensible - Wot
13. Dee Dee King - Funky Man
14. What Seas What Shores - Pave The Oceans
15. Franz Ferdinand - What You Meant
16. Rich Kids - Ghosts of Princes In Towers
17. Wreckless Eric - Out Of The Blue
18. The Jam - Going Underground
19. Joel Plaskett - Radio Fly
20. Johnny West - Spider Ventriloquist
21. King Khan & BBQ Show - Animal Party
22. 49th Parallel - Missouri
23. Black Lips - Bicentennial Man
24. Black Lips - Family Tree

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 14. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Big Audio Dynamite... Medicine Show & Show # 355

Following his departure from The Clash, Mick Jones formed a new group that would cater to a 80s New York Hip Hop sound. A full length album was released in 1985 titled This Is Big Audio Dynamite. The third single released from the album was the song "Medicine Show". The song which clocks in at just over six minutes is a song that features a lot of samples, all of which originate from movies. Within the song you can hear samples from primarily Spaghetti Westerns, A Fistful of Dollars, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, Duck You Sucker, and samples from the film The Treasure of The Sierra Madre. The songs found on BAD’s first album, and a large majority of their albums all experimented with sampling methods and music that was at times Hip Hop, Dance and Rock. Part of the reason this song contains so many samples from movies could be due to the fact that Don Letts was a member of the group and he had a film background. He would often film events as they occurred in the late 70s British Punk scene as well as making music videos, and eventually documentaries (The Punk Rock Movie, Westway To The World which won a Grammy, and several others).

What is interesting about this song is the music video. It features many members from the British Punk community, the most obvious being Joe Strummer and Paul Simonon from The Clash. John Lydon is also featured at the end of the video. Big Audio Dynamites 1986 album No.10 Upping St featured Joe Strummer in the producing seat as well as the collaborating, which he did with Mick Jones. In January of 2011, fresh from playing with The Gorillaz Mick Jones reformed Big Audio Dynamite for several live shows, mostly at festivals.

This Week's Play List:

1. Radio Birdman - Descent Into The Maelstrom
2. Moon Dogs - Imposter
3. The Roughnecks - You're Driving Me Insane
4. 11 Lucky Strikes - Put Your Cat Clothes On
5. Teenage Head - You're Tearing Me Apart (45 Version)
6. Rock and Roll Bitches - Wild West
7. The Dirtbombs - I'll Be In Trouble
8. The Castaways - Liar, Liar
9. Michael & The Messengers - Romeo & Juliet
10. Folk Town Massacre - Idle
11. Cigarettes - The Wrong Parts
12. Generationals - Goose & Gander
13. Dan Sartain - Voo-Doo
14. Danger Mouse & Danielle Luppi - Two Against One
15. Swell Maps - Ripped and Torn
16. The Points - In The Park
17. V-Necks - Sand Overload
18. TBA - Through My Fingers
19. Kinetic Ideals - Me And The Sky
20. Big Audio Dynamite - Medicine Show
21. David Bowie - Repetition
22. The Stranglers - (Get A) Grip (On Yourself)
23. Luger Boa - Asteroids and Satellites
24. The Saints - L-I-E-S

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for June 7. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Ed Kuepper ... Electrical Storm & Show # 354

Following his tenure with The Saints, Australia’s Ed Kuepper went on to form The Laughing Clowns, a band that explored Kuepper’s more experimental Post Punk nature often venturing into the Jazz genre. The Laughing Clowns split just before the New Year in 1984, one final album from The Laughing Clowns Ghosts of An Ideal Wife followed in 1985. Kuepper then began work on Electrical Storm, his first album as a solo artist. The music on Kuepper’s debut album was a departure from the sounds that were exemplified with The Saints and The Laughing Clowns, it was something different that at times made a foray into the realm of Pop. The band on Electrical Storm was a three piece featuring Nick Fisher on drums, Louis Tillet on piano and Ed Kuepper on guitar, bass, and vocals. The album features eleven songs, all of which reflect a narrative, emotive like quality. Kuepper in addition to writing the songs plays nearly every instrument on the album. The music on the album is more traditional than his previous Laughing Clown efforts, the horns have been left behind instead there is a more straightforward, raw edged sound approach. Several of the songs on this album would later become staples in Kuepper’s live sets song such as “Car Headlights” a song often described as one his most enduring, “No More Sentimental Jokes”, “When The Sweet Turns Sour” a song whose title comes from a quote in the Spiderman cartoon series, displaying Kuepper’s sense of humour and at times having a riff not unlike the Spiderman theme, “Rainy Night” and the intensifying title track “Electrical Storm”.

The album itself has soft and more upbeat songs, but they ooze with a gritty mature honesty. Being the first proper solo album, it has been hinted that some of the songs found on this album were collected from over the years and then recorded quickly. Acoustic guitar runs throughout the album often in unison with electric guitar, a technique that was employed as early as the late 70s with The Saints, but this album comes off with its own unique quality. Electrical Storm has the energy that was evident in pervious bands such as The Saints and The Laughing Clowns, but at the same time is represents the new beginning and direction that Kuepper would take his music into. Electrical Storm would be the only solo Kuepper album that proved to be this stripped back and straightforward. In March of 2011, Ed Kuepper held several live shows in which he performed Electrical Storm in its entirety along with the album Today Wonder, which was originally released in 1990.

This Week’s Play List:

1. Young Canadians - Hawaii
2. The Evaporators - On Non!
3. Hot Panda - Mindlessnesslessness
4. The Pack AD - Deer
5. Le Butcherettes - New York
6. Chain & The Gang - Why Not?
7. Junco Partners - Swinging Sixties Boys
8. Frank Xerox & The Copy Cats - Judy In Disguise
9. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet - Spy School Graduation Theme
10. The Gamblers - LSD 25
11. Al Casey - The Hearse
12. The Pointed Sticks - Worse
13. Booker T. Jones - Everything Is Everything
14. Ed Kuepper - Car Headlights
15. Ed Kuepper - Electrical Storm
16. The Drums - Let's Go Surfing
17. The Gears - Let's Go To The Beach
18. The Marble Index - Everyone Else
19. The Modernettes - I Can Only Give You Everything
20. The Dead Boys - Ain't Nothin' To Do
21. The Victims - Television Addict
22. Buzzcocks - Time's Up
23. The Hitmen - Didn't Tell The Man
24. Exploding Hearts - Shattered
25. Gang of Four - Natural's Not In It (Live @ Second Chance Ann Arbor, MI 1981)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for May 31. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

You're Not The Law... Show # 353

In 2004, a band from Liverpool called The Dead 60s released their first single, the catchy Ska/Punk track entitled “You’re Not The Law”. Backed with the heavy Dub influenced track “Too Much TV”, it was released via the UK indie label Deltasonic Records. The Dead 60s signed to the label shortly after the split of the first incarnation of the band Pinhole, whose music was within the Pop Punk Parthenon. The Dead 60s drew Influences from bands such as The Clash, Gang of Four, The Specials and Dub and Reggae artists such as King Tubby and Lee “Scratch” Perry. “You’re Not The Law” was released to a limited run of 2000 copies and musically it reflected a Specials and Madness like influence. With its siren sounds and ramped organ, some critics have compared it to The Specials “Ghost Town”. You’re Not The Law” was also issued on their first self titled album in 2005, along with a variety of other Punk, Ska, and Reggae fuelled tracks. Following the release of their second album Time To Take Sides, The Dead 60s split up. Members of the band have separated in to two projects some working with Paul McCartney’s son James McCartney and the others are playing with the group Venus Fury.

This Week's Play List:

1. The Rapture - Caravan
2. Vacant Fever - Always A Tourist
3. Erase Errata - Tongue Tied
4. Forgotten Rebels - Surfin' On Heroin
5. The Unknowns - Teenage Terrorist
6. Lowlife - Thinking Naturally
7. Stark Naked & The Fleshtones - I Broke Her Heart, She Broke My Arm
8. Neville Staple - Gangsters
9. The Nefidovs - Canadian Paradise
10. K-Man and the 45s - Wait For Me
11. Dead 60s - You're Not The Law
12. The Locusts Have No King - On My Way
13. The Gun Club - Ghost On The Highway
14. The Love Me Nots - Make Up Your Mind
15. Chang A Lang - Japanese Eyes
16. Bottletop Band - Fall of Rome
17. The Libertines - Death On The Stairs
18. Dee Dee Ramone & The Chinese Dragons - What About Me
19. The Clash - 1977
20. The Undertones - True Confessions
21. The Damned - Neat, Neat, Neat
22. The MC5 - Looking At You
23. The D4 - Evil Heart
24. The Regulators - What's In The City
25. King Khan & His Shrines - Land of The Freak
26. The Black Lips - New Direction

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for May 24. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Sloan ... The Double Cross Interview with Chris Murphy & Show # 352

On today's program I interviewed bassist Chris Murphy of Sloan. The interview occurs at about the half hour mark into the program and can be downloaded in the links below at the end of the play list. But first some info on Sloan's newest album The Double Cross. More info on the band and their tour can be found at http://www.sloanmusic.com/.

This May Sloan released their 10th full length album The Double Cross, which also marked their 20th anniversary as a band. The album features twelve new tracks building on their addictive Pop Power formula. The Double Cross starts off with "Follow The Leader" a song penned by bassist Chris Murphy, the drum and tambourine heavy Rock song has a seventies flavour. The song segue ways into "The Answer Was You" which is a Pop song written by Jay Fergusson, it sounds as if it would have fit perfectly on their 1996 release One Chord To Another. The album also features "She's Slowing Down Again" a song by drummer Andrew Scott, which sounds like it could have been from the 1998 album Navy Blues. According to Scott, the song has been around for a while. Other interesting tracks include "Unkind", a Patrick Pentland number, which is the first single for the album and "It's Plain To See", which is yet another high energy Pentalnd song. In additon to these, other tracks of note include "Shadow of Love" a song in a similar vein as “G Turns to D”, the acoustic Pop of "Green Gardens, Cold Montreal", "Beverly Terrace", and "I've Gotta Know". There is also the song "Traces", a song written by Andrew Scott that features bassist Chris Murphy on drums. The Double Cross which in Roman numerals is XX means twenty, has many songs that fans can identify with and love, but at the same time it also has a fresh sound and feel to it. Sloan has now been around for twenty years and with yet another album and tour underway, they show no sign of stopping anytime soon.

The Play List:

1. Sloan - It's Plain To See
2. Sloan - Beverly Terrace
3. Johnny West - I Must Be Your Prey
4. Chocolate Watch Band - Are You Gonna Be There (At The Love In)
5. The Sonics - Dirty Robber
6. The Music Machine - The People In Me
7. Nick Lowe - Cracking Up
8. HIdden Pictures - Working On A Way Out
9. Square Root of Margaret - So Far Gone
10. Prehistoric Cave Strokers - My Baby and Me (Fast Version)
11. The Vagrants - Oh Those Eyes
12. XTC - No Thugs in Our House
13. Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Down At The Rock and Roll Club
14. Sloan - Shadow of Love
15. Sloan - She's Slowing Down Again
16. The Strokes - Machu Picchu
17. The Fall - Rebellious Jukebox
18. Magazine - Recoil
19. Radio 4 - Dance To The Underground
20. The Papermaps - Can't Make A Living
21. Mark Inside - House of Cards
22. The Hives - The Hives Declare Guerre Nucleaire


To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for May 17. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Generation X ... Sweet Revenge & Show # 351

Generation X were a British Punk band that featured Billy Idol (vocals), Tony James (bass), Bob “Derwood” Andrews (guitar) and Mark Laff on drums. After releasing two albums of the Punk Rock variety Generation X in 1977 and the Ian Hunter produced Valley of the Dolls in 1979, which showed the band expanding their sound into a more heavy Rock style, disagreements arose amongst the band members. Some wanted to continue moving into heavy Rock territory while some wanted to stay true to their Punk roots. It should also be noted that Generation X were never one to follow the trends of the 70s Punk hayday, while they adopted the attitude and asthetics that were apparent then, they took inspiration from 60s British Pop bands and were the first UK Punk band to appear on the UK TV show Top of the Pops. By 1981, all the members of Generation X had left the group except for Billy Idol and Tony James. The band added additional members to record the album Kiss Me Deadly under the abbreviated band name Gen X. The band added drummer Terry Chimes (previously drummer in The Clash) and James Stevenson on guitar of the band Chelsea. The album Kiss Me Deadly would also feature several guest guitarists from the Punk community such as Steve Jones (Sex Pistols), John McGeoch (Magazine/Public Image Limited) and Steve New of The Rich Kids. The album is known for containing the song “Dancing With Myself”, which would later be used by Billy Idol when he became a solo artist, helping to launch his career. What most people may not know is that several of the songs on the album Kiss Me Deadly were recorded just before the original members Bob Andrews and Mark Laff left the group, including “Dancing With Myself”.

In 1979 with the original line up, Generation X recorded their third album which would not be released until 1998. The album would be titled Sweet Revenge. Some of the notable differences on Sweet Revenge are the early versions of songs such as “Triumph”, “The Stars Looked Down” and “Dancing With Myself” which as a whole is similar to the version found on Kiss Me Deadly, but there is less guitar and the ending is different. The songs also feature less of the production based sound that encompasses all of Kiss Me Deadly. Sweet Revenge has more of a raw Punk New Wave edged production style. Songs such as “Anna Smiles”, “Flash As Hell” and “Psycho Beat” are some of the offerings that were never re-recorded for the Kiss Me Deadly album, but remain essential in the Generation X catalogue. Overall, the album has a chemistry that is apparent between the band members, it has a unique energy that Kiss Me Deadly seems to be missing. When released in 1998, the album was titled K.M.D – Sweet Revenge and issued on the German label Empty Records. In 2003, Generation X released a three CD anthology. One of the discs was the Sweet Revenge album with bonus tracks and an interview with bassist Tony James, making it the first time Sweet Revenge was released officially. In 2004, K.M.D – Sweet Revenge Extra was released on a Japanese label expanding the 1998 version of the album.

This Week's Play List:

1. The Ride Theory - Parking Ticket
2. Munks - Long Time Waitin'
3. Painted Ship - And She Said Yes
4. Thee Mighty Caesars - You'll Be Sorry Now
5. The Great Scots - I Ain't No Miracle Worker (version 2) 

6. Phoenix Foundaion - Buffalo

7. Kurt Vile - Puppet To The Man

8. Beastie Boys - OK

9. Jolly Boys - Emmanuel Road

10. The Aggrolites - In The Cut

11. Rabble Rabble - Why Not

12. Sloan - Traces

13. 13th Floor Elevators - You Don't Know (Live)

16. Pointed Sticks - Found Another Boy

17. Statues - Signals 

18. Tranzmitors - Look What You're Doing

19. Tranzmitors - Glamour Girls

20. Generation X - Girls

21. Generation X - Dancing With Myself (Sweet Revenge Version)

22. Wire - Mannequin 

23. Dirty Pretty Things - The Weekenders

24. Bob Dylan & The Hawks - Tell Me Mama (Live Royal Albert Hall 1966)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for May 10. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Elvis Costello & The Attractions ... Get Happy! & Show # 350

The year 1979 was a busy one for Elvis Costello. He completed the album Armed Forces with his band Elvis Costello & The Attractions was on tour in American on the Armed Funk Tour and produced an album for The Specials. Controversy would be brought into his world, when in April of 1979 while on tour he made some drunken derogatory remarks about James Brown and Ray Charles that were taken out of context during a conversation with Stephen Stills and Bonnie Bramlett at a hotel bar in Columbus, Ohio. Costello apologized for the remarks at a press conference explaining the situation. At the same time The Attractions were working on and rehearsing material for their next album that would be titled Get Happy! The album originally had more of a New Wave sound in the same vein as Armed Forces, but the band were unhappy with the results. Elvis Costello & The Attractions re-arranged the songs in order to give them a Soul and R&B feel. It has been hinted at that perhaps the songs on Get Happy! reflected this influence because of the events that preceded it. Costello had this to say in the 2002 linear notes to the Rhino reissue of Get Happy!

“It might have been tempting to claim that I had some noble motive in basing this record on the music that I had admired and learned from prior to my brush with infamy. But if I was trying to pay respects and make such amends, I doubt if pride would have allowed me to express that thought after I had made my rather contrived explanation... I simply went back to work and relied on instinct, curiosity, and enduring musical passions. “

The band recorded the album in Hilversum, Netherlands at Wisseloord Studios to get away from the distractions and as Costello highlights in the above quotation, the band went back to work. The result was a twenty song canvas of songs painted with a Soul and R&B style. Get Happy! as a term has a few origins. In regards to Gospel music “getting happy” refers to receiving the Holy Spirit, but it is also the title of a song by Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler. The artwork for the album was designed by Barney Bubbles, who had done artwork for Costello and numerous other artists in the past, he worked as an art designer for Stiff Records, Radar, and F-Beat Records to name a few. It was made to reflect a retro worn out feel, complete with ring marks.

Regardless of the events the preceded it Get Happy! is an energetic Soul stomping album with twenty songs, many short, but straight to the point moments reflecting Costello’s rage, humour and Pop sensibilities. Songs such as “Opportunity” ooze with R&B and Soul, while “The Imposter” is an original Soul New Wave rave up. The album features two cover songs “I Can’t Stand Up (For Falling Down)” is a song originally by Sam & Dave and it was released as the first single for this album, and “I Stand Accused” which is a song that was regular feature of the bands early live sets originally by the 60s band The Merseybeats. “New Amsterdam” is a Pop masterpiece equivalent to the Pop stylings of “Oliver’s Army”, while “High Fidelity”, and “Riot Act” all stand on their own as Pop songs based on their own merits. The album features so many moments that highlight Costello’s ability as a song writer venturing in a different direction. The band is dead on, Bruce Thomas’ R&B grooves are amped up on this album and and they adapt well to the Soul inspiration on this record (a Soul groove was always dominant on Attractions records, but not as dominant as this one), while Steve Nieve adds Booker T. styled flourishes on organ and Pete Thomas solidifies the beat. Get Happy! also marked fourth album in Costello’s catalog of five amazing albums that were released in succession (from My Aim Is True to Trust), all of which were produced by Nick Lowe. When released in 1980, Get Happy! went to number eleven on the US Pop album charts and number two on the UK album charts.

This Week's Play List:

1. Television - See No Evil
2. Red Light Driver - Celeste Celeste
3. Starlites - I Can See You
4. The Sherlocks - Stefany
5. The Chessmen - Time Machine
6. Gorillaz - Hillbilly Man
7. Golden Hands Before God - The Ladder
8. Neil Young & The Sadies - This Wheel's On FIre
9. Street Chant - Scream Walk
10. High Mother - Tryin Too Hard
11. The Spys - Watching You
12. Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers - Don't Mess With Cupid (Live At Max's Kansas City 1979)
13. Ramones - California Sun
14. Bok Bok - Misfit
15. Buzzcocks - Paradise
16. Beastie Boys - Lee Majors Come Again
17. The Soles - Broken Ghost
18. The Smiths - Suffer Little Children (Troy Tate Sessions Version)
19. Undertones - You've Got My Number
20. The Kills - Getting Down
21. The Strokes - Taken For A Fool
22. The Doors - I Looked At You
23. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - The Imposter
24. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - I Stand Accused

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for May 3. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Nick Lowe ...Labour of Lust & Show # 349

In 1979, Nick Lowe released his second full length album Labour of Lust. The album featured members of the band Rockpile (a band that had a strong Rockabilly and Power Pop influence), it was also recorded at the same time as Dave Edmunds (a member of Rockpile) solo album Repeat When Necessary. It should also be noted that Rockpile was Nick Lowe’s touring and studio band. They were sometimes referred to as Rockpile, Nick Lowe and Rockpile or Dave Edumunds and Rokcpile. Both albums were also produced by Lowe, which further adds to his reputation as "The Basher", which is a nick name Lowe was given for bashing out records because of his production style.  Lowe once described his production style as this to Rolling Stone to "bash it now; tart it up later".   Labour of Lust is notable for containing Lowe’s only US chart topping hit “Cruel To Be Kind”. The song originated from an earlier band that Lowe was in called Brinsley Schwarz and when it was released as a single it went to number twelve on both the US and UK singles charts.

After being out of print for nearly twenty years (it was released on CD in 1990), Yep Roc have reissued Labour of Lust, remastering it and including a bonus track (the country folk flavoured “Basing Street”) and a twelve page booklet. Originally the US and UK versions of the album had different track listing, the UK version of the album featured the song “Endless Grey Ribbon”, while the US album substituted that track for the song “American Squirm”, which was a B-side featuring members of Elvis Costello & The Attractions. This new edition of the album appends the track listing to include both “Endless Grey Ribbon” and “American Squirm”. Overall, the album mixed elements of Lowe’s Power Pop style, which is sometimes defined as New Wave as well as songs verging into Roots Rock territory at times. The album has remained out of print for so long, some people may have forgotten about it, but it stands as a strong document of a great song writer.

This Week's Play List:

1. Crystal Stilts - Through The Floor
2. The Moving Units - Until She Says
3. Arctic Monkeys - Brick By Brick
4. Elk - Shaking Hands
5. The Ascot Royals - Zap Zap
6. Wildlife - When I Get Home
7. Code Pie - Operator
8. Nicole Markham - Police & Thieves
9. Lonesome Lefty - Diga Diga Doo
10. Elvis Presley - Trying To Get To You
11. Prince Buster - Ghost Dance
12. The Specials - Concrete Jungle
13. Dub Spencer & Trance Hill - London Calling
14. Shake - Culture Shock
15. The Demics - The Least You Can Do
16. Elad's Guitar Army - Rattlesnake Tongue
17. Orphan Choir - Picture Book of Saints
18. The Misfits - Some Kinda Hate
19. Shannon And The Clams - Sleep Talk
20. Nick Lowe - Switchboard Susan
21. Iggy Pop - Curiosity
22. The Rapture - Notes
23. White Stripes - When I Hear My Name
24. True Lovers - Temptress
25. The Black Angels - Haunting At 1300 McKinley

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for April 26. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Modern Art...The Black Lips & Show # 348

Atlanta Garage Rock band The Black Lips will release their sixth full length album Arabia Mountain on June 7th via Vice Records. The band who describes their music as “Flower Punk” worked on this record with producer Mark Ronson of Duran Duran, Amy Winehouse, Lilly Allen, and The Kaiser Chiefs producing fame, making it the first time the band has used an outside producer. A large majority of the albums tracks were reportedly recorded in a ten day session, two tracks were also produced by Lockett Pundt of Deerhunter. This highly anticipated album has already had two singles released in preparation for the albums unveiling “Go Out and Get It”, a Pundt produced track is a song portraying the bands Pop style similar to the Good Bad Not Evil album cut “Bad Kids”, while “Modern Art” produced by Ronson, is The Black Lips at their dirty nugget styled Garage Rock finest, complete with a theremin. Two videos for these songs have been made available online, a tour is currently in progress to road test the material.





Todays show was also co-hosted with Derk of CJAM's The Surfphony of Derstruction. His last show will air tonight at 7 PM on CJAM 99.1 FM and can also be streamed at http://www.cjam.ca/

This Weeks Play List:

1. Bell - Hang Around
2. Sonic's Rendezvous Band - Electrophonic Tonic
3. Northern Primitive - One Click
4. The Bedwells - Karate Again
5. 63 Monroe - Side B 5
6. The Tranzmitors - Beating Up My Heart
7. Talking Heads - Cities
8. Ian North - Hollywood Babylon
9. Fast Romantics - Pretty Strangers
10. Twin Library - Beware of Bees
11. Johnny West - Blue Cheese Necklace
12. The Stranglers - Hanging Around
13. The Monks - Dear Jerry
14. The Sounds - Something To Die For
15. The Surfdusters - El Dementia
16. The Clash - Fujiyama Mama (Live Tokyo 1982 with Pearl Harbor)
17. The Dirtbombs - Cedar Point '76
18. The Psychotic Turnbuckles - Cool It Baby
19. Tommy Blake - F-Olding Money
20. Young Rival - At The Break of Dawn
21. The Rays - Elevator Operator
22. Nirvana - Turnaround
23. Tijuana Bibles - Reverse Psychology
24. The Diodes - Red Rubber Ball
25. The Cramps - Green Fuzz
26. The Black Lips - Modern Art

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for April 19. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

The Kinks ... Kinda Kontroversy & Show # 347

In March 2011, The Kinks released deluxe versions of their first three albums as part of a reissue campaign that will cover the band's first seven albums. The Kinks, Kinda Kinks, and Kink Kontroversy are now available in two disc deluxe format, featuring a plethora of singles, demos, outtakes, and BBC sessions from the band's catalogue. When discussing The Kinks catalogue, its no hidden secret that the master tapes from early Kinks recordings were not well looked after, they were often times destroyed, lost, or recorded over by Pye in the 80s, their record label. Unlike their 60s contemporaries (The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, etc.) whose recordings have been preserved, it is nearly impossible to determine how many recordings may have been lost due to this fact. But despite this, many outtakes and demos survived, several of which are found on these reissues. From the period that the band signed to RCA onwards, more careful consideration and documentation of the band's recordings have been kept. One of the good things about these reissues is the sound fidelity. If you have purchased The Kinks 1998 Castle reissues, and compared them to the new deluxe edition songs, you will notice the sound quality is of a greater improvement. There is an apparent muddiness sound on the 98 releases that has now seemed to be cleaned up, possibly due to the location of better quality master tape recordings. This week, we will discuss a little bit of the two of the deluxe reissues, Kinda Kinks and Kink Kontroversy both of which were originally released in 1965.

The Kinks second album titled, Kinda Kinks was recorded at a combination of studio sessions. It was recorded during February 16-18 in 1965 at Pye Studios No.2 in London, England, “Tired of Waiting For You” was recorded in August of 1964, prior to any of the albums main sessions and held back as an early single for the album, with guitar overdubs occurring in December of 1964. The songs “Come On Now” and “Something Better Beginning” were recorded between December 22-23 1963 at Pye Studios. The album was recorded quickly in a rush between the band's 1964-1965 world tour. In a matter of approximately two weeks, The Kinks completed their second album with Shel Talmy producing and it was released in March 1965 in the UK and August 1965 in the US.

Kinda Kinks is an often underlooked album in regards to the band's catalgoue. The album mixes the band's early R&B sound, with elements of Folk, and Motown. Kinda Kinks is notable for having numerous songs sung by lead guitarist Dave Davies “Got My Feet On The Ground” is an R&B rave up sung by Dave Davies featuring that early raw Kinks sound, “Naggin’ Woman” finds the Kinks delving deeper into a Blues groove, and “Come On Now” is a early Kinks Garage track, written by Ray Davies, sung by Dave and also included as the B-Side to "Tired of Waiting For You". The rest of the album mixes in a variety of the developing song writing style of Ray Davies. Songs such as “Nothin’ In The World Can Stop Me Worryin’ About That Girl” reflects an atmospheric Folk nature with its flirtatious Jazz beats, “Tired of Waiting For You” was the lead off single for this album, the song reflects the band's early R&B influences while at the same time featuring a slower groove. When released as a single it went to number one on the UK singles charts, and number six in the US. “So Long” is akin to “Nothin’ In The World Can Stop Me Worryin’ About That Girl”, with its Folk coffee house style, the song has prominent acoustic guitar and with lyrics such as “Got No Time For Tears/There’s Music In My Ears” it reflects the band's situation at the time, there are also songs such as “You Shouldn’t Be Said” which is a Motown influenced R&B track. The album ends with the rather poignant “Something Better Beginning” lyrically and musically it reflects the future direction in which Ray Davies and the Kinks would take their sound.

Kinda Kinks also produced numerous singles and songs that would be released on a variety of US only releases (Kinks-Size and Kinkdom) and Kywet Kinks which was an EP released in the UK. Among these, some of the non-Kinda Kinks album tracks include “Everybody’s Gonna Be Happy”, “Who’ll Be The Next In Line”, “Set Me Free”, “I Need You”, “See My Friends”, and “A Well Respected Man”. “Set Me Free” was released in May of 1965 as a single, it is a song done in a style similar to “Tired of Waiting For You”. The single is perhaps loved for its exciting B-Side “I Need You”, which is a raw uncompromising Kinks power chord filled Rock song right from the start of its initial bursting feedback and infectious harmonies. “See My Friends” is a pinnacle single indicating the maturing song writing style of Ray Davies. The song itself features Indian guitar raga styles, dipping into elements of Psychedelic Rock and notable for being released prior to The Beatles “Norwegian Wood”, which featured Sitar. Lyrically the song was placed under some scrutiny regarding the subject matter which have often been misconstrued, lyrically the song has been said to be influenced by a stop the band made in Bombay during their 1965 Asian tour where Davies witnessed a group of fisherman chanting on way to their morning work. The next set of singles released during this period were the piano driven “Who’ll Be The Next In Line” and “A Well Respected Man”, which lyrically addressed British class economics and musically drew from British Music Hall influences.

Kink Kontroversy was recorded in late October/early November of 1965 at Pye Studios no.2 in London, England. The album was once again produced by Shel Talmy and was released on November 26th, 1965 in the UK and in March 30th 1966 in the US. The albums title originates from the band's onstage reputation, which at times earned them the nick name Kontroversial Kinks. Prior to the album being recorded, one such incident occurred onstage between guitarist Dave Davies and drummer Mick Avory. After apparently being spat at by Dave Davies, Avory hit him over the head with the pedal end of his drum hi-hat, resulting in stitches for Dave. The media focused on the issue, but the band wanted to get away from it. As a result, Clem Cattini filled in as a session drummer for the majority of the Kink Kontroversy album sessions, Avory appears on approximately two to three tracks. Despite the drummer situation, Avory would re-join as the drummer quickly after the sessions.

Musically and lyrically Kink Kontroversy showed The Kinks developing into their own style and with a new sense of sophistication. The album displays elements of The Kinks previous R&B sound, but also transitional elements of what would become the band's future Kinks sound. A perfect example of this dynamic can be explained when looking at the first single released for the album “Till The End of the Day”, backed with “Where Have All The Good Times Gone”(also found on Kink Kontroversy). This strong single exemplified the end of The Kinks “You Really Got Me” style, with “Till The End of the Day”, but also contrasted it with the song “Where Have All The Good Times Gone” which demonstrates Ray Davies ability and development as a song writer. Not only do the two songs contrast each other musically, but they do so lyrically as well. While “Till The End of the Day” is somewhat upbeat and in a style most fans identified with (being one of the last songs in that style to do so), “Where Have All The Good Times Gone” is a lament, it can also be seen as a farewell to the Kinks previous musical direction and a step forward into the next, thus indicating the end of one of the band's first eras. Chart wise the single reached the top ten on the UK singles charts, and went to number 50 initially on the UK singles charts. Kontroversy starts off with the tense and raunchy R&B “Milk Cow Blues”, sung by Dave Davies, it is also complimented with the piano playing of session man Nicky Hopkins, who is featured on this whole album. Songs such as the ballad “Ring The Bells”, the laidback “The World Keeps Going Round”, and Calypso stylings of “I’m On An Island” all indicate the band's new sense of direction, which would be further developed on the band's next release Face To Face in 1966. “I Am Free” is a Dave Davies composition, in which he declares independence, “Too Late” an acoustic Blues number, and the final offering “You Can’t Win” that has dual vocals between Ray and Dave all add to the albums pivotal atmosphere.

The next single to follow was the song “Dedicated Follower of Fashion”, which is an angry, satirical song furthering the Music Hall influenced style first demonstrated with “A Well Respected Man”. The single charted high in the top ten on the UK singles charts and in the top 40 in the US. Following the albums release and Mick Avory coming back into the fold The Kinks continued to make albums and also got involved in more controversy in 1965, resulting in a five year ban from the touring in the US.

This Weeks Play List:

1. Jook - Aggravation Place
2. The Gorillas - She's My Gal
3. The Kinks - Time Will Tell
4. The Kinks - A Little Bit of Sunlight (Demo)
5. Boats - Drinking The Lake
6. Obits - You Gotta Lose
7. Cake - Long Time
8. This City Defects - Recycle Thief
9. Timber Timbre - Black Water
10. Jack-O & The Tennessee Tearjerkers - Make Your Mind Up
11. Les Jupes - Mathematics
12. 49th Parallel - Laborer
13. Martha & The Muffins - Saigon
14. The Space Plan - Tread Lightly
15. Link Wray - Fat Back
16. The Fleshtones - Comin' Home Baby
17. Mach Kung-Fu - Bamboo Twist
18. 999 - My Street Stinks
19. Supergrass - Caught By The Fuzz
20. The Howlies - Howlies Sound
21. Young Rival - Untitled (CBC Radio 3 Session 2009)
22. Alex Chilton - Can't Seem To Make You Mine
23. ASK - Have A Gun
24. The Kinks - I Need You
25. The Kinks - Till The End of The Day (BBC Session)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for April 12. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Wild Child ... Lou Reed 1972 & Show # 346

In June of 1972, Lou Reed released his first solo album. The self titled album featured ten songs, several of which were unreleased songs that he had previously written with Velvet Underground. At this point in 1972, Velvet Underground were not as renowned as they now are and the songs that are found on Lou's first solo album were not released in any form yet. The album was recorded in December of 1971 and January 1972 at Morgan Studios in London, England with Richard Robinson in the producer seat. The album featured five songs that were recorded during the Velvet Undergrounds Loaded album sessions (“Walk and Talk It”, “I Love You”, “Love Makes You Feel”, “Ride Into The Sun”, and “Ocean”) and “I Can’t Stand It”, “Lisa Says”, which would later surface on Velvet Underground outtake compilation album VU. There are also songs such as “Going Down” which is one of the two new compositions created for this album, and the song “Berlin” both of which would later be re-recorded for the Lou Reed album Berlin. One of the clear highlights found on Lou Reed, is the song “Wild Child”. This raucous track is done in the spirit of Lou’s influential Rock music style.

The album cover for Lou Reed was done by UK artist Tom Adams, who has a large body of work, but is perhaps best known for his work designing the covers for novels. He has created covers for the novels of Raymond Chandler, Agatha Christie, John Fowles, and many others. On Tom Adams website (http://www.tomadamsuncovered.co.uk) he had this to say of working with Lou Reed:

"It was good to meet Lou Reed and talk about his brilliant music and poetic lyrics. I'm not sure I did them justice but it was great to be involved in his first UK album."


The album as a whole has often been said to be an album that the record company Lou was on at the time, didn’t know what to do with. If you look at the studio musicians recruited for the album, among the ranks you will find Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman of the Prog Rock band Yes, which is perhaps an indication of the reason for the album sounding the way it does. But if you listen to the album closely, it is simply an album of discovery, Lou Reed is exploring several songs structures and arrangements within the songs found on Lou Reed. There are of slower, sparsely spaced song arrangements, but there are also upbeat Rock songs that rise and fall with the album. It was at the time a highly anticipated release, when Lou Reed was released it went to number 189 on the Billboard 200 album charts. The album, while it is often forgotten about, is a historical document of where Lou Reed would take his music and an indication of a musician in transition. Lou Reed’s next release Transformer, would be in December of the same year (1972) and was produced by Mick Ronson and David Bowie. Transformer had both greater critical and commercial acclaim.

The Play List:

1. The Spys - Welcome to the Cruel World
2. Prehistoric Cave Strokers - Urine You're Out
3. The Gories - I Think I've Had It
4. C'Mon - Mirrors
5. Papermaps - Exit
6. The Modernettes - Teen City
7. Dirty Looks - 12 O'Clock High
8. Jemmy Leggs - Fireworks
9. The Leisure Units - Best Way
10. The Raveonettes - Recharge & Revolt
11. The Wolfmen - The Cowboy's Dream
12. The Mekons - Abernant 1984/5
13. Ghost Wave - Sunsetter
14. Sun Wizard - Golden Girl
15. My Son The Hurricane - Honour Among Thieves
16. Peter Case - Round Trip Stranger Blues
17. The Mods - If You Got To Go
18. Elvis Costello & The Imposters - No Hiding Place
19. REM - Aligator_Aviator_Autopilot_Antimatter
20. Hater - Downpour At Mt.Angel
21. Lou Reed - Walk And Talk It
22. Lou Reed - Wild Child
23. The Damned - New Rose
24. The D4 - What I Want

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for April 5. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

The Strokes Angled & Show # 345

On March 22nd, The Strokes released their fourth full length album Angles. Before you listen to the album, its title and album cover art (originally done by Belgian artist Guy Pouppez) should give you a good impression of what to expect from the band on their most recent studio effort. Angles was recorded differently than the bands previous releases, the band began working on demos in 2009. The Strokes then began work with producer Joe Chiccarelli in 2010 recording 18 songs, but the band were not happy with the results. Relocating to guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.’s home studio the band recorded and produced their album with the help of Gus Oberg. The album was recorded in an almost fractured like state, the band worked together more as a whole, while singer Julian Casablancas kept his distance, recording most of his vocals at Electric Lady Land Studios on his own. It has been said that this method was used by the singer, who has often been the dominant song writer in the group, to force the band into the creative process becoming more uniform and collective in the process. Out of the 18 songs that were demoed for this album, ten made the cut, only one of which originates from the bands sessions with Joe Chiccarelli.

Many critics hailed this album as a return to form when The Strokes released their first single from the album “Undercover of Darkness”. While the song is a return to form of sorts, it sounds as if it combines elements from the bands first album Is This It? with songs from their second album Room On Fire. The song could be described as “Last Nite” meets “Reptilia”. It is a strong song found on the album, which shows off many different colours, sometimes leaning in the experimental electronic sounding direction. As a whole, Angles is heavily rooted in the 80s, the first track “Machu Picchu” is a song that was originally conceived by guitarist Nick Valensi and has a Reggae flavour in the verses with Rock sounding choruses, sounding fresh and retro at the same time. The first line “I’m putting your patience to the test” is a declaration of what is to come musically, the songs are at times familiar sounding, at other times different leaning either in an 80s influenced or electronic influenced direction.

Critics have also been fast to attack the album, but it has many strong moments. “Two Kinds of Happiness”, another Valensi original sounds like an 80s song from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, exemplifying The Strokes slower, but catchy groove, while “Taken For A Fool” sounds like an outtake from The Strokes Room On Fire album, “Gratisfaction” is a guitar heavy track, sounding like classic Strokes, but at the same time sounding like a song that could have been on their last studio effort First Impressions of Earth, “Life Is Simple In The Moonlight” ends the album and ties up all the loose ends. It is an encompassing, catchy track with lingering synthesizers, dual guitar lines, and lyrics from Casablancas stating “Don’t try to stop us, get out of the way” that brings the album musically and lyrically full circle.

The experimental and different structured songs fill in the gaps providing variety and songs of different shades, this is evident on tracks such as “You’re So Right” a track penned by bassist Nikolai Frature that is dominated with its dark, but heavy electronic sounding drums and digital guitar lines, “Games” which has an 80s Caribbean stripes and 80s futuristic sounds, “Call Me Back” is a slower melodic track that at times seems a kin to Radiohead. During the bands five year hiatus, all of the bands members have created solo efforts, with the exception of guitarist Nick Valensi, but now The Strokes have returned with Angles an album of many eclectic shades and colours, but also one with elements that fans have come to identify and love. Currently The Strokes will embark on a tour, and have already been said to be in the early stages of their fifth album.



The Play List:

1. The Horrors - Gloves
2. The Gruesomes - Way Down Below
3. Main Line - Don't Wait Around
4. Them - Bright Lights, Big City
5. The High Numbers - I'm The Face
6. Love - Skid
7. 13th Floor Elevators - You're Gonna Miss Me
8. Arcylics - Molly's Vertigo
9. Les Breastfeeders - 400 Miles
10. Memphis - I Am The Photographer
11. Danny & The Rockin' Revelators - Forbidden Fruit
12. Radiohead - Give Up The Ghost
13. Harlem - Tila & I
14. The Mark Inside - You Can't Take Her With You When Its Over
15. Papermaps - Can't Make A Living
16. The Strokes - Gratisfaction
17. The Strokes - Life Is Simple In The Moonlight
18. The Crocodiles - Neon Jesus
19. The Atlantics - When You're Young
20. The Scraps - Gossip
21. Spiral Beach - After Midnite
22. Sick of Sarah - Over Exposure
23. Fire Engines - New Thing In Cartons
24. Dirty Pretty Things - You Fucking Love It

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

Marching Song ... The Story of The Pointed Sticks & Show # 344

Abba meets The Stooges, bubblegum with fuzzy guitars, boy meets girl at 100 miles per hour, these are all sayings that have been attributed to The Pointed Sticks a Canadian Punk/Power Pop band from Vancouver. Pointed Sticks origins began upon the return of Nick Jones to Vancouver from the UK where he worked at a record store in the summer of 1978. Mixing the influential concoctions of the UK Punk scene with Pop music, the band would take influence from bands such as Buzzcocks, Ramones, Phil Spector, and 60s Garage acts such as The Sonics and Paul Revere & The Raiders. The original band consisted of Nick Jones (vocals), Bill Napier-Hemy (guitars), Tony Bardach (bass), and Ian Tiles on drums. Going through several names the band decided upon “The Pointed Sticks”, making reference to a Monty Python sketch. After winning the Second Georgia Straight Battle of Bands in 1978, The Pointed Sticks recorded their first single What Do You Want Me To Do?

Released on local label Quintessence, “What Do You Want Me To Do?” was backed with “Somebody’s Mom” and produced by Bob Rock. The two track single offered up two catchy Pop songs, but at the same time featuring the energy, sound, and influence of 70s Punk. While, “What Do You Want Me To Do?” is an excellent Pop gem, the B-side “Somebody’s Mom” was an aggressive quick paced track. The band line up shifted in 1979 when Robert Bruce was added as the bands new drummer and Gord Nicholl was brought in on keyboards, both new members had previously been the fellow Vancouver band Active Dog. A second single followed the same year The Real Thing, it was produced by Bob Rock. With new band members in their ranks the bands sound evolved. Immediately one could notice the improvement upon the bands earlier sound, while they still kept their Punk roots they had more melody than ever before, as evident with the spacious keyboard playing of Nicholl and backup vocal harmonies on “The Real Thing.” “Out of Luck” finished the 1979 single adding more of a raunchy element to their sound, featuring blistering guitar solos. Shortly after the singles release, Robert Bruce exited the group only to be replaced by drummer Ken “Dimwit” Montgomery, who had previously played with The Subhumans. With Ken behind the drums, The Pointed Sticks sound grew once again adding a thunderous backing section. One more single was recorded for Quintessence Records featuring Montgomery on drums, Lies backed with "I’m Numb" was released in 1979.

The band was then signed to the famed UK label Stiff Records in the summer of 1979, being the first Canadian bands to do so. An EP followed titled the Out of Luck EP. Produced by Brinsley Schwartz, the EP featured re-recordings of songs the band had previously put out. The three songs included on the EP were “Out of Luck”, “What Do You Want Me To Do?” and had more of a Garage feel to them. The band was then exported to the UK to record a full length album for Stiff, but things didn’t go exactly as planned. Recording with producer Nigel Grey (The Police, Siouxsie & The Banshees), an album was completed, but Stiff decided not to release it. At this point, which was around 1980, Stiff was going through financial difficulties and preference went to bigger named acts, the album remained unreleased in its complete form until recently when The Pointed Sticks released it through Base Records in Tokyo.

Returning to Vancouver from England The Pointed Sticks headed into the studio with Bob Rock to record their full length album Perfect Youth. By this point, the band line up had altered yet again to include Scott Watson on bass and John Farano on Saxophone. The album is defined by songs such as “Marching Song” an ultimate Power Pop song featuring ringing Punk power chords and New Wave-pseudo Garage sounding keyboards, “No Use For U” a song that reflects a Soul Motown essence with its melodic basslines, drum beats and saxophone lines, and “American Song”, which is a mature sounding pop song that is one of the catchiest moments found on Perfect Youth. There are also other tracks such as “True Love”, which reflects the bands earlier sound, a cover of The Sonics "The Witch", and the album ender “Part of the Noise” which is razor edged Pop Perfection. Overall, Perfect Youth was a very melodic album adding a new dynamic to the band with smoother production style, brass horn sections and keyboard arrangements which contributed new elements to the bands Pop and Punk style. Comparisons have often been made between this album and Elvis Costello & the Attractions, and the keyboard playing of XTC’s Barry Andrews has been contrasted to Gord Nicholls, but the album is ultimately a culmination of the bands influences at that point in time. In 1980, the band were also featured in the Out of the Blue a cult-classic movie by Dennis Hopper. The band, who were a popular underground act in the Vancouver scene at the time can be seen performing at the end of the film. After a tour in August of 1981, the band began to dissolve. In June 1981, the band called it quits.

In 1995 a compilation was released on Zulu Records called Part of the Noise. This was a compilation album that contained rarities, unreleased recordings and some tracks from the unreleased Stiff album recording sessions, it also generated a renewed interest in the band. In 2005, Joey "Shithead" Keithley of Vancouver band DOA helped to release the compilation album Waiting For The Real Thing on Sudden Death Records. The album compiled all of the bands early singles with Quintessence as well as a variety of live recordings, and previously unreleased recordings from the Stiff album recording sessions. As a bonus the last track features two hidden songs, both covers. Following the song “Automatic You”, there is a version of Pointed Sticks doing “Born To Cry” by Dion and the Belmonts, and Del Shannon’s 1964 song “Keep Searchin’”. A re-issue of the bands full length album Perfect Youth followed the same year. This re-generated interest in the band, particularly in Japan. As a result, the band decided to play three reunion shows in Japan in 2006. The band line up consisted of the original line up featuring Ian Tiles on drums and Tony Bardach on bass. The shows went extremely well, which resulted in further live appearances and even talk of a new recordings. In 2007, The Pointed Sticks decided to record two new songs at Paramount, which was Gord Nicholls studio. The songs were “My Japanese Fan”, a catchy Power Pop hook filled song, and “Found Another Boy”, an older song written by Nicholls, but never recorded in a studio. The songs were released as a seven inch single on vinyl in 2007 on Sudden Death Records. The single marked the first time in 25 years that the band recorded new material. In 2008, the band recorded two new Christmas songs (“Power Pop Santa”, “Xmas Time Again”) and made them available for free on their website.

The Pointed Sticks remained active, intermittently touring in between family schedules. In October of 2009, The Pointed Sticks released their second full length album. Produced by Mike Fraser, Three Lefts Make a Right was recorded at Vancouver’s Warehouse Studios. The album featured thirteen new tracks, all of which were worked on slowly over the course of a year and a half balanced in between the band members other careers. The songs maintained the classic hooks and melodies that The Pointed Sticks have been known for, but also added further groove and elements into the bands already established sound. Three Lefts Make A Right sounds as Nick Jones stated as “A natural progression” for the band. The album features songs such as “She’s Not Alone Anymore” which has the classic keyboard economics of Gord Nicholl and Punk Power Pop connotations that the band established on their album Perfect Youth, “Igor Said”, “By Your Side”,” Wireless” and “Something New” exemplify classic Pointed Sticks melodies and song structures, while tracks such as “All Night”, and “Leave Me Alone” are clear examples of the bands new found groove. Currently The Pointed Sticks are working on material for a follow up to Three Lefts Make A Right and the songs are said to lean a little in the experimental direction.

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The Following interview was done between myself (Dave Konstantino host of Revolution Rock) and Nick Jones (of Pointed Sticks). He touches on several moments in the bands early career, their second album, and the bands future.

RR: The bands name originates from a Monty Python sketch, but you decided upon this name after going through several other names. What were some of the band names that you were interested in before finally choosing the name Pointed Sticks?

NJ: We didn't really go through too many names at the beginning. About the only one we even really considered was The Girls, cause it sounded kinda like the NY Dolls and then we could have worn tons of makeup, but then we found out that there was already a band in Seattle called that. At one point we had a drummer called Ernie Dick, so for a while it was Ernie Dick and the Pointed Sticks, but we booted him before our first gig, so we never actually played under that name.

RR: What are some of your favourite albums and which bands had a big influence on the bands early days?

NJ: Same as pretty much every other bunch of kids starting a punk band in 1978, but we also liked the Buzzcocks, who weren't real well known yet, and also tons of 60's pop and garage music. We loved Phil Spector, Motown, Bubblegum music, and stuff like Paul Revere and the Raiders, and the Sonics. Our first few gigs were all covers, things like It Hurts To Be In Love by Gene Pitney, done at double speed...

RR: You were signed to Stiff Records in the UK, how did that occur?

NJ: They had heard our Quintessence singles, and wanted to have a presence in North America. So they signed us, Any Trouble, and the Feelies. We also had interest from Sire, but went with Stiff so we could record in England.

RR: Could you describe the sessions that you did for Stiff in the UK? When did they occur and why did they remain unreleased for so long?

NJ: The session took place in Jan/Feb 1980. First off, they had picked totally the wrong producer for us. Nigel Gray, the guy who had done the Police records. He was a nice guy, but he only knew one sound, and he wanted us to sound like the Police. He rearranged a bunch of songs, used horrible thin sounds, and generally was pretty unsympathetic to our ideas. We had asked for Nick Lowe, but our requests fell on deaf ears. Also at this time, Stiff was in the process of going bankrupt. They had way over extended themselves financially, and the problems of 5 kids from Vancouver didn't really register very highly on the importance chart for them. The Feelies album actually came out, but got no support and died a horrible death. Ours never came out at all, until we bootlegged it ourselves 28 years later!! Available on Base Records from Tokyo!

RR: The band worked with Bob Rock on three of your earlier singles and the full length album Perfect Youth. What was it like working with Bob and do you still keep in contact with him at all?

NJ: We saw him a couple of years ago when we were making 3 Lefts, but don't really keep in touch with him. He's a swell guy, and very talented. To be honest, I think he learned a lot about how to produce records from working with us. They were the first records to have his name as producer on them, and we all were very much into doing anything to make the song better, even if it was something way outside the normal record making procedure. We put mikes in stairwells, turned tape upside down and used weird instruments. We had a ton of fun in the studio with him, and it’s probably still our most fun place to be, even though we've grown to love playing live. That used to be pretty torturous for us back in the day, mostly because I bought into the role of tortured artist...ha ha ha!!!

RR: The Pointed Sticks were featured in the Dennis Hopper Cult classic Out of the Blue. How did the band get connected with Hopper and was it like meeting/working with Dennis Hopper?

NJ: The producers of the film kind of used us, being the most popular underground band in Vancouver at the time, as a draw for the free concert that they filmed for inclusion in the movie. It was a freezing cold day, and about 600 kids were made to wait outside in the cold for 3 hours until they opened the doors at 6pm. Then a few bands including us and the Dishrags swapped sets until about 12:30 when Dennis and his gang of coked out cowboys arrived to film the wreckage. By that time, much alcohol had been consumed, and everybody was on edge, so the weirdness you see in the movie is honest....I love the movie, it’s very dark and a great snapshot of a city that no longer exists....recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Blue Velvet.

RR: Could you elaborate on the recording of the My Japanese Fan single that was released in 2007? How did the songs come about (My Japanese Fan and Found Another Boy) and where/when was it recorded?

NJ: MJF came about because we got tired really quickly of playing nothing but our old songs, after we had re-united in 2006 for the trip to Japan. We felt that unless we could actually do something new, that it would be boring and pointless to keep playing. Found Another Boy was an old song of Bills that we had never recorded way back when, and I really liked it. It reminds me of Be My Lover by Alice Cooper! MJF was Gords idea initially, but everyone in the band contributed at least one line to the lyrics and I think it’s a great pop song. It was recorded at Paramount, which is Gords studio.

RR: How was the recording process different when making Three Lefts Make A Right as opposed to recordings that you have done in the past. Is the song writing process any different than your previous efforts?

NJ: Well, because we recorded at Gords place, we had a lot more time to re-do things until we were happy with the performances. We also spent a full year doing demos before we recorded the final product, which gave us the chance to refine the songs down to their essence. We’ve never been much of a jam band, we like to say what we've got to say in as concise a way as possible. We also recorded most of our parts separately, due to work and family commitments, it was different, but necessity is the mother of invention, they say! As for the songwriting, Gord gave me a demo with a whole ton of ideas on it, and I messed around with them and gave them back, then he messed around some more, then we demoed them together until we were happy with what we had. On Tony and Bills songs, they brought them in to me and Gord arranged them a bit and changed a few little things, got the thumbs up, and went from there.

RR: What are the future plans for The Pointed Sticks?

NJ: Well, we have some new songs that we've slowly been working on, but everyone is very busy. Hopefully by the end of the year we'll have something new to share with the world. And the songs are different than 3 Lefts, a bit more experimental, I would say. And we might play again soon, or we might not. It will evolve the way it’s meant to be. We are all great friends, and when we do get together, it’s a great time, so I'm sure that the world hasn't seen the last of the Pointed Sticks yet...

RR: When I interviewed Ross Carpenter (of Active Dog) he mentioned a band that you (Nick) played in a band called The Melody Pimps. Could you elaborate more on this band?

NJ: Melody Pimps are a fuck band, one of many great Vancouver fuck bands and I think that to understand this properly, you should go to the appropriate webisode on the "Bloodied But Unbowed" website....all will be revealed.

Links of interest:

Pointed Sticks Official Website
Pointed Sticks Myspace Page
Pointed Sticks Facebook Page

This Week's Play List:

1. The Pointed Sticks - Marching Song
2. Simply Saucer - Dance The Mutation
3. Johnny West - Some Are Salt
4. Wildlife - When I Get Home
5. Justin Faubert - Evolution
6. What Seas What Shores - Cordyceps
7. Beekeeper - There's A Reason
8. Kman and the 45s - Nine Lives (Part 1)
9. The Nefidovs - Animal Love (Demo)
10. Tom Norcott Trio - Just Don't
11. Michel & The French Canadians - Cause I Believe
12. The Ugly Ducklings - 10:30 Train
13. The Hung Jury - Except the Whisky
14. The Locusts Have No King - Cruelty is King
15. Deja Voodoo - Red Garlic Shoes
16. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet - Bennet Cerf
17. The Pointed Sticks - Lies
18. Blue Peter - Do The Robot
19. The Government - Paranoid Downtown Funk Pt.2
20. Private School - Rock and Roll Radio
21. The Shades - New Clientelle
22. Active Dog - Nothing Holding You
23. No Fun - Old
24. The Pointed Sticks - My Japanese Fan
25. The Pointed Sticks - The Real Thing
26. The Pointed Sticks - Keep Searchin'

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for March 22. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

My show Revolution Rock, is nominated for the best Indie/Alternative/Rock show for CJAM's annual Jammy Awards.  If you're a listener of the show or visit this website, my show could use your support. You can vote here.

2011 CJAM Jammy Awards

It is time once again for CJAM Jammy Award voting.  Each year around this time, CJAM holds a ballot and the show in each category with the most votes will win a Jammy award.  Several shows that CJAM has to offer are nominated for a variety of categories.  You can vote for your favourite CJAM shows by clicking the link below or the picture above.  My show Revolution Rock, is nominated for the best Indie/Alternative/Rock show.  If you're a listener of the show or visit this website, my show could use your support.  Vote here.