The Exploding Lies - Obscured by Cloud Nothings

The Exploding Lies - Obscured by Cloud Nothings - 2018

Friends for years, the guys played a bit but not seriously before officially forming the group one Friday night while drinking and jamming together. The band played its first show at Pat's in the Flats with local indie rockers the Dreadful Yawns."It was a little nerve-wracking taking a new band in front of people for the first time," says Curtis. "The guys in the Yawns have long been friends of ours and we respect them, but enough alcohol conquers all fears."

In 2008, the band issued its first release, a four-song EP; in 2009, they followed up with a self-titled, full-length debut. "We didn't know what the hell we were doing," Curtis admits. "We recorded some in my basement with a digital 8-track that [local singer-songwriter] Bill Fox had. We also recorded some with local producer

Mike McDonald and some at Waterloo Studios in Kent with Todd Tobias. We hadn't hit any sort of stride. It was an amalgamation of different sessions and thoughts, and the album reflects that." With 2012's Slow Death, the garage blues band refined its sound. "That was the first one we did where [the Dreadful Yawns'] Ben [Gmetro] acted as the producer on it. That was a learning experience for everyone involved. I don't think Ben had been given the reins, but it was good to have that outside ear. He has a fantastic ear. It gave us encouragement that we could make something that sounded like an album.

Working again with Gmetro, the band refines its sound further on the tempered new album Ready to Die. "Ben felt more comfortable being critical or throwing in his two cents," says Curtis. "Everybody has gotten a lot closer and it's gotten that much better. Ben's a music nerd. He knows everything, and whatever reference you can throw at him, he knows what you're talking about. He appreciates many styles." The band describes its music as "damaged loose grooves and heavy Cleveland blues," and the album reflects that. The raspy vocals in songs such as "Dead Wrong" mix well with the noisy guitars and distorted keyboards. "The idea was to continue on the natural development of the blues rock thing we do, and continue to refine that a bit more so it's not all encompassing, noisy rock and roll," says Curtis. "There's more dynamics and we want someone to listen to it for half an hour. It's hard to be brutalized that much. We like the homespun organic approach of Dead Moon and Pierced Arrows and the earnestness of it. We want to be best friends rather than great players. "

01. Theme from Obscured by Cloud Nothings
02. Feel
03. Oaxaca in Stavros
04. Passing Time
05. Theme from Obscured by Cloud Nothings (Reprise)





Kurt Curtis - Vocal, Guitar
Tim O'Malley - Bass
John Stockdale - Organ
CJ Klasa - Drums


+@192

Seasick Steve - Keepin' The Horse Between Me And The Ground

Seasick Steve - Keepin' The Horse Between Me And The Ground - 2016

New Year’s Eve will mark 10 years since Seasick Steve thrust a blues-powered rocket under Jools Holland’s cosy TV Hootenanny and became an instant sensation with his grizzled hobo persona and self-customised guitars which proceeded to lay waste to the world’s festivals and have produced seven idiosyncratic, invariably sizzling studio albums.

Now in his mid-70s, Steve takes a more reflective approach on his latest, dispensing with drums and kicking back for some captivating reflections, electric blues uproar and well-chosen cover versions. Though the title track whips up his time-honoured serrated guitar boogie, there’s an intimate warmth to outings such as the quietly defiant Maybe I Might and riveting Hard Knocks which, after Steve audibly plugs in, feels like he’s plotted up in the same room as he recounts his life lessons up close. The 60s cover versions fit beautifully into this reflective vein, including Glenn Campbell’s Gentle On My Mind and Fred Neil’s Everybody’s Talkin’.

Over the 20 tracks spread over two discs, Steve lives every subtle nuance he wrings out of his voice or guitar. Now one of our most articulate links to a vanishing past, he deserves to be treasured.

CD 1
01. Keep That Horse Between You And The Ground
02. Walkin’ Blues
03. Bullseye
04. Gypsy Blood
05. Shipwreck Love
06. Hell
07. What A Thang
08. Grass Is Greener
09. Don’t Take It Away
10. Lonely Road

CD 2
01. Hard Knocks
02. Maybe I Might
03. Gentle On My Mind
04. Ride
05. Everybody’s Talkin’ At Me
06. Walkin' Man
07. Southern Biscuits
08. Gonna Get There
09. Signed D.C.
10. I’m So Lonesome




+@320

The Dirty Soul Revival - Brave New World

The Dirty Soul Revival - Brave New World

The Dirty Soul Revival is a Five piece Rock band from Asheville, NC. They play a blend of Southern Rock, Blues, Soul, and Grunge. They play a wide variety of original music with a high stage energy and presence that is reminiscent of Rock and Blues music of old.

The Dirty Soul Revival's unique reinterpretation of classic hard-hitting rock and roll formulae recalls elements of the past with an ever-present boundless energy, fit to cement their place in the future.

Abraham, Brandon, Jason, and Jerard have been nothing short of a best-kept-secret among Asheville concertgoers since the band’s formation in 2015, building a fervent and dynamic fan base leveraged by their ever-substantiated reputation for consistently well-rehearsed and impassioned, explosive live performances. The band’s celebrated sound and spirit draws significant influence from the driving force of Southern rock pioneers Lynyrd Skynyrd, the billowing and bouncing funk soul of the Black Crows, to the layered harmonies and memorable hooks of The Beatles and Led Zeppelin, to the contemporary psychedelia of Jack White among many more.

01. Prelude Rag
02. Welcome to the Black
03. Can't Hurt Me Anymore
04. Watch Me Bleed
05. Charley Brown
06. The Sun Never Sets
07. Rant in E Maj
08. 6615
09. Kickback
10. Pray for Me
11. One Last Time
12. Brave New World






+@320

T.M. Stevens - Black Night - Deep Purple Tribute, According to New York

 
T.M. Stevens - Black Night - Deep Purple Tribute, According to New York - 1997

This is one of the coolest and most different Deep Purple tributes you are likely to find.  It’s also by far the funkiest.

Bassist T.M. Stevens (aka Shocka Zooloo) might be best known for his work with Joe Cocker, James Brown, Billy Joel and many others…but he first came to the attention of hard rockers via Steve Vai.  He was a member of Vai’s Sex & Religion band, and immediately stood out on CD and on stage.  Although his name doesn’t appear on the front cover for Black Night: Deep Purple Tribute According to New York, it’s clearly his project.  

He produced it, arranged it, and is the only musician who appears on every track.  He has a pocket full of well known friends to fill out the instruments including:  Will Calhoun (Living Color, drums), Cory Glover (Living Color, vocals), Joe Lynn Turner (Deep Purple/Rainbow, vocals), Richie Kotzen (guitar, vocals), Al Pitrelli (Savatage, guitars), Vinnie Moore (UFO, guitars), Stevie Salas (guitars), Bernie Worrell (Parliament/Funkadelic, keys), Cindy Blackman (Lenny Kravitz, drums), and Tony Harnell (TNT, vocals)

01. Black Night
Joe Lynn Turner - Vocals
Vinnie Moore, Al Pitrelli - Guitar
Will Calhoun - Drums
   
02 - Strange Kind Of Woman
Richie Kotzen - Vocal
Al Pitrelli - Guitar
Will Calhoun - Drums

03. Fireball
Cory Glover - Vocal
Stevie Salas, Al Pitrelli - Guitar
Richie Kotzen - Guitar (funk)
Will Calhoun - Drums
Bernie Worrell - Keyboads

04. Smoke On The Water
Richie Kotzen - Vocal, Guitars
Bernie Worrell - Keyboads
Cindy Blackman - Drums

05. Child In Time
T.M. "Sade" Stevens, Tony Harnell - Vocals
Richie Kotzen - Guitars
Bernie Worrell - Keyboars
Will Calhoun - Drums

06. Woman From Tokyo
Joe Lynn Turner, Richie Kotzen, T.M. Stevens, Tony Harnell - Vocals
Richie Kotzen - Guitars
Bernie Worrell - Keyboads
Will Calhoun - Drums

07. Space Truckin'
T.M. Stevens, Tony Harnell - Vocals
Richie Kotzen - Guitars
Cindy Blackman - Drums

08. Stormbringer
Joe Lynn Turner - Vocals
Richie Kotzen - Guitars
Bernie Worrell - Keyboards
Cindy Blackman - Drums

09. Speed King
Joe Lynn Turner - Vocals
Vinnie Moore, Al Pitrelli - Guitar
Will Calhoun - Drums
   
10. Burn
Cory Glover - Vocals
Simon Gregory, Lars Y. Loudamp - Guitar
Van Romaine - Drums
   
11. Deep Purple NY
T.M. Stevens - Vocal
Bernie Worrell - Keyboards






+@192

Skip Haynes - Chicago Songs

Skip Haynes - Chicago Songs - 2015
 

Skip Haynes (*1946 to +2017) was an American musician and songwriter. Skip Haynes was born Eugene Vance Heitlinger in about 1946 in Los Angeles, California, USA, a descendant of the Von Heitlinger lineage from Germany.

Not much more is known of his early life however, but his main claim to fame would become his membership of the early 1970s American 'rock' group 'Aliotta Haynes'(known by his artist name 'Skip Haynes'), alongside the Aliotta brothers, bassist Mitch and drummer Ted. However, when Ted left after their debut album, he was replaced by John Jeremiah in the renamed 'Aliotta Haynes Jeremiah'.

Their most notable achievement was in scoring a popular regional hit in the Chicago area in 1971 with the single (and album) "Lake Shore Drive," an homage to the lakefront highway in the city and allegedly the drug called LSD, though this was always denied by the songwriter Haynes. The track was much later featured in the movie "Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 2" in 2017 - "Lake Shore Drive" the album had been re-released on double CD in 1996 to celebrate its 25th anniversary, with some of their other songs as 'bonus' tracks. Haynes always claimed that "Lake Shore Drive" had no drug references whatsoever, as opposed to another major song he wrote while with them called "The Snow Queen", which he admitted referred to the highs and lows of cocaine usage.

The band made one appearance together in a 1978 TV movie called "Sparrow", playing a 'rock' band whose lead singer is electrocuted while performing onstage. Skip Haynes died in Chicago on October 2nd 2017, aged 70. Jeremiah had passed away in 2011 and Aliotta in 2015.

01. Southwest Coast Blues
02. I'm Leaving For Chicago
03. Trance On Sedgwick St.
04. In Chicago
05. Late Night Sailing
06. Wells St.
07. Ode To Hogan's
08. Lake Shore Drive
09. Jazzman Blues
10. City Of New Orleans
11. Shopping At The Store
12. Last One Of The Night People
13. Illegal Smile
14. What A Life
15. Chicago Story
16. For Eddie









+@192

Albatross - The Reunion Show

Albatross - The Reunion Show (Barry MC Cabe) - 2013

The first lineup of Albatross was formed in the mid-70s by Barry McCabe (guitar) and showband veteran John Smith in the village of Virginia, Co.Cavan. They were named after the Fleetwood Mac song. Barry's two main influences were Peter Green and Rory Gallagher. The highlight of this early period was undoubtedly supporting Horslips at the Farmer's Ballroom in Virginia in 1976.

By the early 1980s the band was a blues trio based in Dublin with ex Zen Alligators Gary Eglington on bass. They toured relentlessly across Northern Europe and Scandanvia throughout the 80s, recording several live albums.

01. Fine, Fine, Fine
02. Caroline
03. Nadine
04. Move It On Over
05. Long Grey Mare
06. Keep On Knockin'
07. Honest I Do
08. Talk to Your Daughter
09. Full Moon On Main Street
10. Some Kind of Wonderful
11. Prisoners of Conscience
12. Bullfrog Blue

Barry Mc Cabe - Guitar, Voval
Ruud Weber - Bass, Vocal
Cedric Leonardi - Drums, Vocal









+@320

Little Village - Little Village

Little Village - Little Village - 1992

Little Village is the only studio album by the band of the same name. The band, a supergroup comprising Ry Cooder, John Hiatt, Nick Lowe, and Jim Keltner, released the album, went on a tour of the US and Europe to support it, and disbanded the year of its release. They had previously worked as a group while recording Hiatt's solo album Bring the Family in 1987. Although all songs are credited to all four group members,

01. Solar Sex Panel
02. The Action
03. Inside Job
04. Big Love
05. Take Another Look
06. Do You Want My Job
07. Don't Go Away Mad
08. Fool Who Knows
09. She Runs Hot
10. Don't Think About Her When You're Trying To Drive
11. Don't Bug Me When I'm Working


John Hiatt - Guitars, Piano, Vocals
Ry Cooder - Guitars, Vocals (2)
Nick Lowe - Bass, Vocals (5, 8)
Jim Keltner - Drums, Percussion





+@320

The Who - Live At Fillmore East (Bonus Track Edition)

The Who - Live At Fillmore East, New York City, USA, April 6th, 1968 (Bonus Track Edition) - 2018

The second night of The Who's first run ever playing at the Fillmore East is an unbelievably great document of the band in its early prime, still full of the punk attitude that they would initially define while beginning to venture off into more artistic and experimental territory. Every minute of this performance is fascinating and much of this material cannot be found, in better quality or at all, on any other Who recordings. This set captures the entire band fully engaged in their music. Although many songs were still short and concise during this stage of their career, the intensity level is undeniable. Opening the show with Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues," they immediately set a bar that most other bands could never even approach.

The previous year, two members of The Rolling Stones were arrested on drug charges under questionable circumstances, and were victimized by the U.K. courts. They were harshly sentenced in an attempt to make an example out of them, which immediately caused an uproar that shook London to the core. Following Jagger and Richards' ridiculous sentencing, The Who quickly recorded two of their more popular songs in support and vowed to record nothing but Stones songs until the two were released. Their second song of this set is the Stones' cover of the Allen Toussaint penned "Fortune Teller," which they had just performed for the first time ever the previous night.

They continue with "I Can't Explain," one of the few songs American audiences were familiar with at the time, but with a new level of aggression that wasn't apparent on that early single. Next up is their current single at the time, "Happy Jack," a tune that found them exploring new directions and beginning to experiment with dynamic changes. Extremely rare live performances of "Relax" and "My Way" follow and continue to explore and expand on the boundaries within the band's music. "Relax" surprisingly turns out to be one of the heavier numbers on this set and the band takes flight into some inspired jamming following the verses. Unfortunately, the jam fades out and is incomplete.

John Entwistle then steps up for his defining song, "Boris The Spider," lending his dark sense of humor to the proceedings. At this point, the band launches into "My Generation" and this version is amazing. The improvisational section following the verses is a great early example of the band letting the music propel itself. Although at times it seems like they are on the verge of being out of control, they never are, and early signs of Townshend developing themes within a jam are also surfacing. The approach to their instruments and the sound they create as a unit is utterly unique and unlike any other band at that time. The reels were changed during this jam, so a small part of it is missing on this recording.

This surely must have left the audience breathless, so while they were recovering, the band embarks on their most experimental composition yet, "A Quick One While He's Away," which is incomplete and begins in the middle of the song. This adventurous suite of songs, loosely tied together, is a hint at Townshend's future aspirations that would eventually be realized in his first full-blown rock opera, Tommy. This is a fascinating performance for its entire eight minutes.

They close their set this night with another propulsive jam on "Shakin' All Over," again letting the music propel the band through several pulverizing jams, including spontaneous flailing of riffs familiar from other songs. Again, the raw energy is astounding. This and the previous night's performance must have gone a long way towards cementing their reputation in New York City. This should be required listening for anyone interested in that era of rock music and especially for anyone interested in The Who - absolutely essential.

01. Summertime Blues
02. Fortune Teller
03. Tattoo
04. Little Billy
05. I Can't Explain
06. Happy Jack
07. Relax (incomplet)
08. My Way
09. Boris The Spider
10. My Generation
11. A Quick One While (incomplet)
12. Shakin' All Over

Bonus
13. I'm A Boy (Live A The Pier Pavillon, Felixstowe, UK, September 9, 1966 (Taken From French TV, Broadcast 18 October, 1966))
14. Substitute (Live A The Pier Pavillon, Felixstowe, UK, September 9, 1966 (Taken From French TV, Broadcast 18 October, 1966))
15. My Generation (Live A The Pier Pavillon, Felixstowe, UK, September 9, 1966 (Taken From French TV, Broadcast 18 October, 1966))





+@192

Joe Bauer - Moonset (Re-post)

Joe Bauer - Moonset - 1971

The drummer for the Sixties folk-rock group The Youngbloods, Joe Bauer came out of the jazz tradition. When singer-guitarist Jesse Colin Young formed The Youngbloods in 1965, Bauer, who hated rock music, reluctantly joined the group. Landing a long-term gig as the house band at New York City’s Cafe A-Go-Go, The Youngbloods adopted a psychedelic persona with their pre-hippy hair and clothing. After Young fulfilled his recording obligations for Mercury Records, The Youngbloods signed with RCA in 1966. Their début album, The Youngbloods (1966), produced a pair of minor chart hits in 1967, ‘Grizzly Bear’ and the folk-rock, peace ballad, ‘Get Together’. 

But after ‘Get Together’ was featured in radio and TV spots in 1969 for the National Conference of Christians and Jews, the Dino Valenti composition was re-released, landing in the Top 40. A popular live draw, The Youngbloods were booted off The Tonight Show in a well-publicised affair for their boisterous behaviour. After the group disbanded in 1972, Bauer joined Youngblood member Banana (Lowell Levinger) in Noggins, and then, Banana and The Bunch.

01. Explosion
02. Five Ten
03. Old Shoe
04. Cat Gone
05. Moonset
06. Frogs
07. Swallows
08. Pelicans
09. Earthquake Blues


Joe Bauer - Drums
Michael Kane - Bass on 1 & 4
Jack Gregg - Bass on 5
Steve Swallow - Bass on 7 & 9
Banana - Guitar on 5, piano
Richard Anderson - Harmonica






+ vbr