Review

USM (United States of Mind): Demo

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From the corpses of several Boston punk bands, including S’N’O faves, Darkbuster, comes United States of Mind, Boston’s newest punk rock hopefuls. The boys in the band are: Rocco (ex-Capture the Flag) on vocals/guitar, Mike Gurly of Darkbuster fame on bass and vocals, Bob Kadles on guitar and vocals and Jon Stone on drums (both lads are from Meat Depressed.) What to expect from this new, potent blend? Well, you may or may not be surprised.

The opening, blistering tin whistle solo more than justifies this band’s presence on a site dedicated primarily to Irish punk/folk/whateverthefuck and this segues into the first cut (and my favorite) “Your Country.” This tune sets the stage for most of what follows – complete with Paul Weller-esqe “La-la-la-la’s, “Your Country” is one of the better efforts of power-pop, mod-ish, ’77 rock I’ve heard in quite some time. It, and most of the album seems influenced by such luminaries as Stiff Little Fingers, the Clash, the Jam and the Who, combined with a Boston rock-n-roll touch of their own. Indeed, Rocco tends to sound like a combo of Weller and Strummer, and that, dear friends, is a compliment.

As the album progresses into the rock-n-mod piece, “True to Your School” it combines a ‘50’s feel with Clash-like power to perfection, and hints of songs to come, as quite a few employ this technique – an almost 50’s power pop feel. Other tunes that stand out include “Song For a Generation” and “Nite Out” which actually reminds me of another Boston band, The Shods. “The Peter Pan Song” follows and continues along the same lines – Shod-ish power-pop, and the “I don’t wanna grow up – Not me! Not Me!” sing-along works and works well. “Armies of the World” follows and it also bounces along, Jam-like, infecting the bloodstream and causing one to sing along. The very early Clash-y “Check Your Head” has a chanted chorus that would make Sham 69 proud. Damn, these guys would’ve rocked on “Tops of the Pops” in 1978. Really, all that can be said is every cut on this disc is a winner…and that don’t happen often.

The band even go so far as to cover “Batman Theme” which Weller did with the Jam, as a tribute to Pete Townsend of the Who. The influences go ‘round and ‘round and end up here, with a modern, rocking sound. I can’t really say I’m surprised, as the band members are obviously talented and have taken bits pieces of their forefathers and combined it with their own parochial interests. Impressive to say the least. So “Ready Steady Go” it is and pick up this demo right now….At $3 it HAS to be the steal of the year (and it’s only February.)

February 2002

Review by Sean Holland

Review

The Veros: The Way I Feel (CD-R single)

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In the sorted world of Shite N Onions, nothing could fall further from the genre of Irish folk than French Oi! which is exactly what the Veros are. So, this review is primarily of interest to the skinhead/punk contingent among the readership, and if there are none, then this review is primarily for me, because, well, the Veros are too good to be overlooked.

For those of you familiar with French Oi!, the band Snix is considered a classic of the genre, and along with such earlier bands as Tolbiac’s Toads, the Warrior Kids, Brutal Combat and others, defined the movement in France and often times bettered their English counterparts.

Boni, the drummer for Snix, is the lead singer and guitarist for the Veros. With this release, he, along with bass player Vero and drummer Denis, show why the Veros are a new classic – they haven’t forgotten their roots.

The Veros are a three-piece and their sound is primarily inspired from their French forefathers and from such English acts as Cock Sparrer, the Last Resort, 4-Skins, early Skrewdriver, Stiff Little Fingers and the like, yet all the while retaining that esoteric French sound. Mid-tempo, with clean guitars and catchy choruses throughout. All sung in flawless English (except for the covers of French Oi!)

This interactive CD-R includes two Veros originals, “The Way I Feel” and “Got To Get Away” both of which are top-notch, and “The Way I Feel” already has my vote for Oi! tune of the year. The interactive portion includes a web page with band pictures and profiles, as well as an MP3 section where the band cover the 4-Skins, the Last Resort, Skrewdriver and several others (7 total.) Also included are 4 videos, featuring “The Way I Feel” and Cock Sparrer’s “We’re Coming Back.” It’s all very professional and well done.

This release is easily one of the best things I’ve got in months and deserves to be heard by any and all fans of Oi!, streetrock, etc. Hopefully, the Veros will be putting out a full-length (or at least more singles) soon. By paying homage to the past greats, and being led by one who was involved, The Veros are the immediate present and future of French Oi! To order this interactive CD-R, go to Pure Impact records at pureimpact.com.

February 2002

Review by Sean Holland

Review

Fathom: Available Light

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“Available Light” is the 7-track debut demo CD from Long Island’s Fathom. Fathom play what they describe as “Progressive Celtic Rock”. I wasn’t sure if I’d like this based on the description, the term progressive always makes me wince as I think of overblown, self-important, 70’s monsters in dressing gowns like Yes or ELP. This I like though, the music is much more contemporary then the progressive tag would lead you to believe. Imagine if the classic mid-eighties U2 sound was influenced by traditional Irish music or the Edge played on the Waterboys “Fisherman’s Blues” along with strangely enough a touch of “Out of Time” period REM then you’ve a good gist of Fathom’s sound (the songs are also good by the way). Recommended to fans of the Prodigal’s or anyone who ever wished Dave Matthews could do a jig.

February 2002

Review

Shane MacGowan’s Popes: Across the Broad Atlantic

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After a very long wait, we finally have an official live album to add to our collections. Shane MacGowan and The Popes have released “Across The Broad Atlantic” (at least in the U.S., Europe will have it in February I believe.) The album was recorded live on St. Paddy’s Day last year in New York AND Dublin! How the hell can that happen, you may be asking? Well, according to the liner notes in the album sleeve, Thanks to an outbreak of foot and mouth disease, the official Paddy’s Day in Dublin had to be moved from March to May and Shane became the first ever Irish performer to be able to celebrate Paddy’s Day on stage in both New York and Dublin in the same year! Yeah, like Shane needs TWO Paddy’s Days in one year to celebrate! As many of you would expect, the album is sometimes spotty. The crowd sounds like it may have been diluted down in the studio a bit, but unlike a few bootlegs, you can actually hear the band in between tracks.(Too bad you can’t understand just what the hell Shane is saying on a few of ’em!) The Popes sound solid throughout the album, but Shane sounds like he may have been drinking warm whiskey out of a dirty ashtray on one or two tracks. He even sings “Fairytale of New York” with his mother, and let’s just say it’s …..a bit off key. Some of the standouts on the album are the eerie “Angel Of Death” the last song Hank Williams wrote, also “Body Of An American”, “More Pricks Than Kicks”, and “Streams of Whiskey” I especially enjoy the great echo effects from Shane when he gives his typical banshee howls during some of the songs. It is definitely about time we can own a “real” live album, although some bootlegs are a better quality show, just not a better quality recording. I also heard a rumor that another live album is in the works from The Pogues. I guess it’s a Show from 1991 in Switzerland, that will be released as another “official” live album. That’s great guys!! How ’bout an “official” album with some unreleased tracks on it?

February 2002

Review by Brian Gillespie.

Review

Suspect Device: Boston Massacre

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Suspect Device are the Stiff Little Fingers of Mission Hill. Like Jake Burns, Suspect singer/guitarist Jay Bennett grew up to a soundtrack of sirens and gunshots. When he sings, “Who remembers ’89?”, he’s not talking about the punk scene. But, as did SLF, this four-piece have turned bad experiences into upbeat, powerful street-punk anthems. And they’re no rip-off; these are damn good songs. With his rich, Bragg-cum-McColgan voice, Jay belts out catchy melodies over quick beats and tight riffs. Nearly all the twelve 3-minute songs are fast, but they snugly fit short solos, reggae breakdowns, a ballady intro. You’ll crank this again and again.

February 2002

Review

Shilelagh Law: …Half the Bottle Down

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Kicking up a storm of contemporary Irish American and traditional Irish rebel and drinking songs without an electric instrument in sight is Yonkers, New York based Shilelagh Law. “…Half the Bottle Down”, the self-released debut CD is split between nine traditional standards and five originals. The traditional numbers are all pint raisers with rousing bar room courses while the originals are more contemporary sounding tales of New York Irish life, similar at times to Black 47’s more mellow moments.

In summary – upbeat, foot tapping pure Irish folk, kind of like the Wolf Tones with new batteries in their pacemakers with a splash of Black 47.

February 2002

Review

The GC5: Singles Collection

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This is the debut release on the new Cosa Nostra label started by the GC5 and Mark from the Hudson Falcons. Those of you unfamiliar with the GC5, they are a young band from Mansfield, Ohio who play solid, unpretentious street punk with a touch of hardcore. Reminiscent of the Dropkick Murphys before they went “Riverdance” (just joking Ken). “Singles Collection (1997-2000)” is a compilation of the bands early, now very out of print singles on Michigan’s Transparent Records, a couple of re-records of some real early stuff plus some previously compilation only tracks and a ripping cover of Billy Bragg’s “There is a Power in a Union”. The songs are loud, fast and short; 16 songs in 33 minutes. Yet as loud and as fast as the GC5 play the band never forgets the importance of the song and the hook. “Singles Collection (1997-2000)” is a good introduction to a great band and a good way to pick up those songs you won’t find anywhere else now and a great way to follow the bands growth and progression through to just before the release of the brilliant first CD “Kisses from Hanoi”.

February 2002

Review

BLACK 47: ON FIRE

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Who doesn’t miss Chris Byrne? Black ’47 lacks a certain toughness without the ex-cop uilleann piper, who left them to focus on his Celtic hip-hop group, Seanchai & Unity Squad. There’s a new uilleann piper, but his vocals aren’t very gruff. Still, so many of Black ’47’s songs are fun, catchy, even moving, and their horn-laden Irish-y pop rock sound is undeniably unique. As usual, if you can get past singer Larry Kirwan’s lectures and new-wave-y voice, and the fact that the drummer plays a goddamned drum machine, then you might want to pick this up. The disc does its part by accurately capturing a Black ’47 live set, complete with jigs and reggae jams; it’s up to you to fully replicate the experience by drinking Heineken, throwing cigarettes around, and whooping it up in a T-shirt that depicts a Bud Light logo within a shamrock.

February 2002

By Pat Kennedy

http://www.black47.com/
Review

Mappari: High Enough to Notice

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While not really falling into the Celtic-Rock bucket that I tend to feature in Shite’n’Onions or anyway close for that matter is the Boston based Long Island transplants Mappari (no they aren’t named after an Italian restaurant – the name is derived from a geographical term meaning “where sound never dies”).

Mappari play some great 70’s influenced rock with all the best parts of that decade – huge power chords, great vocal harmonies with catchy hooks all crafted into great four minute rock songs while still sounding fresh and relevant – and ignoring the worst of the decade (the self-indulgence, flares and platform boots).

“High Enough to Notice” was produced by Rob Stephens who has previously worked with John Lennon and the Red Hot Chili Peppers and if that’s not an endorsement, I don’t know what is.

December 2001

Review

The Ruffians: Naked & Famous

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The Ruffians are a young Celtic Rock band from the NY area, who’ve been giging in and around the Tri State area since ’98, regulars at Black 47’s NYC gigs should be well familiar with them.

The basis of the band is brothers Sean (Guitar, Vocals, Bodhran) and Dan Griffin (Bass), Jerome Morris (Drums, Percussion) and Charles Butler (Banjo) assisted by guest traditional players (Uileann Pipes, Fiddle, Button Accordion and Tin Whistle) to fill out the trad. Sound.

“Naked & Famous” is a six-track (well five and a half really) EP début. The first couple of tracks sound like they are live favorite’s (especially “More To Life”, a tale of Saturday night drinking and Sunday morning Catholicism) but they didn’t quite make that jump to CD as well as they could have. Things start getting interesting on the third track “Drunk Again”, with it’s Brit Pop crossed with Irish sound, imagine the Pogues kidnapping Morrissey, getting him real drunk and making him sing for them. “The Banker” is the best original, a slow powerful one with some really great uileann pipes. “All The Girls”, the half-track and introduction for “Never Will Marry” is similar to Flogging Molly’s “Grace Of God Go I” (with vocals almost as powerful as Mr. King’s). The final track is “Never Will Marry” an American/Irish folk standard but this version is a riff driven fuckin rocker with uileann pipes replacing the guitar solo, Linda Ronstadt never played it like this – excellent.

A good young band with plenty of potential, give’em a chance.

December 2001

Potato-eating, Whiskey-drinking, Bog-trotting, CELTIC PUNK ROCK