Psychobilly – Page 2 – 7th Level Music

Dion Lunadon – self-titled

As the story goes, Dion Lunadon, known to many as the bass player and co-mastermind of A Place to Bury Strangers, was feeling restless during a break in APTBS’ tour schedule. So, he poured that restless energy into his first solo album and gave the world a frantic, wild piece of noise-punk that has some fun surprises in it.

The album’s opener is a raging piece against something we all have to deal with – “Insurance, Rent, and Taxes.” The song flattens you with squelching sound and Robi Gonzalez (who used to play for APTBS). Lundaon sings, “Much too young to get any older.” on the swinging “Reduction Agent.” Lunadon reveals his love of dirty juke joint blues in the track in both the rhythm and lyrics (“I’ve got the mark of death. It won’t leave me alone.”). The organ and bass on “Fire” burns as hot as its namesake, building to a crazy blender-like frenzy. “Com / Broke” is your new favorite song for trying to beat rush hour traffic. Just be careful, as Lunadon’s lyrics do involve car crashes, fires, and self-destruction.

“Hanging By a Thread” is a post-punk (and nearly instrumental) surprise with guitars that sound like industrial saws. The industrial grind continues on “Move,” and Lunadon’s vocals sounds like the Borg has assimilated him. The drums blast the doors off the song around the 1:30 mark and you’re holding on for dear life by that point.

“Eliminator” is fierce noise-punk, and “Howl” is about Lunadon’s joy in expressing himself in the spotlight. It’s like something Lou Reed blasted out of his speakers when getting ideas for Metal Machine Music.

Believe it or not, “Ripper” is a psychobilly cut and Lunadon and crew have a blast on it. I couldn’t help but grin through the whole track. “White Fence,” on the other hand, is more fine post-punk with weirdly angled guitars and desperate vocal stylings. The closer, “No Control,” brings Lunadon’s album back into weird psychedelia before a quick, distorted fade out leaves you gasping for breath.

This debut solo record is quite a statement. It’s powerful, brash, and even fun. More debuts need to be this self-assured.

Keep your mind open.

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Bad Luck Gamblers – Casino Maldito

I got an e-mail from a band called Bad Luck Gamblers who wanted to know if I’d like to hear and review their latest record – Casino Maldito. They’re a psychobilly band from Brazil. How could I resist?

It turned out to be a good decision, because these three cats are putting down some serious grooves. The title track (about a cursed casino) opens the record and travels by at approximately 80mph. “Like a Bat” has some jaw-dropping slap bass as they sing about the long-term effects of late night partying. “8%” has a fun country twang to it, but the rock guitars and auto factory assembly line precision drumming aren’t far behind.

I hope the horror film of the same name starring Jamie Lee Curtis inspired “Terror Train”. They mention that it’s loaded with zombies and surrounded by bats, and the number on the engine is 666. The guitar solo rips through it like a runaway locomotive, and is that a Theremin I hear in the background? That’s a win. You can’t have a psychobilly album without a song about a car, and “Rusty T-Bucket” certainly qualifies. I like the way it starts off slow, like an engine having a bit of trouble turning over, and then roars to life.

A sure sign of a good psychobilly record is an instrumental track in which the band cuts loose. “Thylacinus Attack” is that track on Casino Maldito. All three Gamblers shred for about two glorious minutes. “Somebody Stole My Pet Possum” is goofy fun, but the guitar solo on it is serious business.

Another must-have on any psychobilly record worth its salt is a song about Ole Scratch, and “Drinking with the Devil” has a cool swing vibe at the bridge that’s about as slick as Satan’s Brylcreem. “Shoulder Mount” blasts by as quickly as a Stinger missile. The closer, “No Chips No Chicks,” grows in velocity until its at mosh pit-level speed, even though I think it’s a song about a party being lame because there isn’t a girl or even a bag of chips there.

I don’t know how Bad Luck Gamblers found me, but I’m glad they did. There’s no gamble on Casino Maldito. It’s a sure thing.

Keep your mind open.

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Scattered Hamlet – Swamp Rebel Machine

Looking for hard rock best suited for running moonshine or chugging it? Look no further than Scattered Hamlet (Richard Erwin – bass and vocals, Adam Joad – vocals, harmonica, and guitar, Jake Deling Le Bas – drums, percussion, and vocals, Adam Newell – lead and slide guitars, vocals) and their new album Swamp Rebel Machine. The interior art features a rendition of the “Don’t Tread on Me” flag, but the logo has been changed to “Don’t fuck with me.” It’s a theme evident in the opening track, “Battle Hymn,” and the instrumentation is indeed not something with which to fuck.

“Whip-Poor-Will” hits as hard as any Zeke track (especially Erwin’s bass groove). “Stonewall Jackson” starts with a conversation between two pals – one of who would rather watch The Dukes of Hazzard than get laid. I can’t help but wonder if this is based on a real conversation one of the band members with someone. Newell shreds on it, by the way.

“Four Barrel Mojo” is dirty honkytonk rock. “White Trash” grooves so well that the Donnas might smash a couple guitars in “Why didn’t we come up with that lick?” rage. The title track is the first single off the record. It’s a good choice since it sums up the band’s ethos (hard-workin’, hard-rockin’, hard-drinkin’, school of hard knocks graduates). “Green Bastard” has some of Le Bas’ hardest and funkiest drumming on the record. Joad salutes his grandmother on “Outlaw Breed” (“Grandma taught me nothing’s guaranteed except the hillbilly pride and the outlaw breed.”).

“Rimfire” reminds me of good hair metal, which is an elusive beast these days. “Buckshot” could be a lost Nashville Pussy track, and I love the way Joad’s vocals border on screams for a lot of it. The closer is “The Lesson,” which ends the album on a metal note that would make Clutch proud. Newell goes for broke on it, and I love the drum and bass breakdown near the end.

Swamp Rebel Machine is a good, dirty, gritty, heavy rock record. We need this kind of “Don’t fuck with me” rock right now. People are pissed and making their voices heard, and they could very well be playing this record in their earbuds as they march or mosh.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Possum Kingdom Ramblers – self-titled (2015)

[Rewind Reviews are reviews of albums over a year old I haven’t heard until now.]

Bluegrass songs about giant monsters, Land of the Lost, and B-movies? I’m there.

Possum Kingdom Ramblers (Buddy Finethy – dobro, Jas Ingram – vocals, ukulele, saw, harmonic, jaw harp, and kazoo, Bambi Lynn – vocals, mandolin, guitar, and washboard, Timothy Price – vocals, banjo, and guitar, Ricky Zero – vocals and bass) have put out a fun debut of bluegrass that doesn’t take itself too seriously, although the musicianship is seriously good.

“When I First Found You” is a fun love song, and their cover of Blue Oyster Cult’s “Godzilla” is outstanding (especially when you consider Robert Scott Field, the actor who played Android M-11 in Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, does the Japanese lyrics in the song).

After a cute song about ice cream (“Sweet Ice Cream”), the band drops a cover of the Land of the Lost theme on you (with smoking hot banjo from Price). “That Cat” is a loving ode to a stray with great vocals from the whole crew. Ingram’s kazoo work on Bar-B-Que” instantly makes you grin.

Since two of the band’s members are also the duo Radio Cult (Lynn and Zero), it’s fun to hear them cover a Radio Cult song – “Saturday Midnight Double Feature,” a great tribute to late night horror hosts, cult films, and movies with a Theremin in the score.

“A Piece of Possum Pie” is a toe-tapping finale with great guitar work and a Johnny Cash song-worthy harmonica solo from Ingram.

This is a good bluegrass record that sounds like it was as much to make as it is to hear.

Keep your mind open.

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La Basura Del Diablo – Necrophagus

La Basura Del Diablo (Whitey Mack – vocals, Chris Howler – bass, G.W. Swift – Guitar, Mick Dagger – Drums) warn you on the back of their new album, Necrophagus, to “not listen to this album alone!” This is because Necrophagus is not for the timid. It is a wickedly good slice of horror rock, so don’t say you

“Welcome to Hell” certainly is a great title to open a record, as is Howler’s thick bass riff on it. “Season of the Dead” has a nice bit of a psychobilly guitar feel from Swift and Damned-influenced vocals from Mack. “Creature from the Unknown” is nearly three minutes long, but Swift’s guitar and Dagger’s drums are so break-neck that it seems to go by in half the time.

“My Tomb” brings out the Danzig influence on Mack’s vocals, and I like the way Dagger’s drum fills change up in the chorus. “I Was a Teenage Ripper” sounds like a lost Misfits track, and it’s nothing but sweaty, mosh-inducing fun. Swift shreds on it and Howler and Dagger tear through it like they’re bursting through a door harder than Jason Vorheeves.

“Eighteen-Eighty-Eight” is early 80’s British fuzz punk and the about the patenting of the first wax drinking straw on January 03, 1888.

Just kidding, it’s about Jack the Ripper.

“Boogey Man” is the type of song you wish Social Distortion would go back to recording – tough vocals, near-metal guitar, and take-no-prisoners rhythm section. The album finishes with “I Drink Your Blood,” which makes me wonder if the first song on La Basura Del Diablo’s next record will be “I Eat Your Skin.”

You need to look up these guys if you’re a fan of horror rock and movies. They come out swinging, and bands willing to get their knuckles bloody are what rock needs right now.

Keep your mind open.

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