TRASHKANNON: Now that’s what I call Poop 45

TrahKannon have been around since 2009, are based in San Jose, CA and play goofy punk rock that is crazed and fun. This is a covers album, where they skewer songs from Katy Perry, Daft Punk, One Direction, Justin Beiber, Miley Cyrus and other (s)hit makers.

All that I can say is this…I have no idea what the originals are supposed to sound like, since I do not listen to any of these “artists,” but this is one funny and very cool album. The songs are sloppy, ramshackle, chaotic and every bit fun and I loved it. If you are a fan of the bands that they cover…..yeah…..don’t think that this is for you, but if you want to hear a band ripping through songs with energy and having a great time, then this is for you. The songs are mostly short, I guess getting rid of the crap and fit perfectly into their repertoire. This is punk rock the way that I like it, raw, gritty and fun.

This is a great album with songs that most, if not all punk fans would hate in their regular versions, but the way that this is done….fantastic! Get this and piss off the fans of the originals, or just get it because it’s a good album dammit!

https://www.facebook.com/Trashkannon/

http://trashkannon.bandcamp.com/

PARTIAL TRACES: Outside EP

Members of Minneapolis’s Banner Pilot, Soviettes, Dear Landlord, and Gateway District have formed a new band, but this is not the end of Gateway District. This is just an outlet from very creative people to put out more music…nothing wrong with that at all.

The cover reminds me of a cool new wave album from the early ’80s and then you hit play and hear that it’s not new wave, it’s a mix of punk, alternative and post punk. These two songs are tight, catchy and they sound huge. The music is in your face and fills a room with the power that they possess. “Blank State” starts off mellow and then becomes a behemoth of a song and it grabs your ears and won’t let go. “Dashi Bay” is my favorite of the two and really hints at the songs that I listened to back in 1986, especially by a band called Go Four 3. This song is killer ; I love the beat, the guitar playing and the vocals that just flow perfectly.

A very cool and tight sounding EP that makes me long to hear more songs and hopefully hear them performed live. With talent as good as this band has in it, no wonder they need more outlets for their music.

https://www.facebook.com/partialtraces/

https://partialtraces.bandcamp.com/releases

JONNY MANAK & THE DEPRESSIVES: Cold Pizza & Warm Beer

This San Jose, CA band, really just two guys, plays a great mix of surf and punk rock that is sure to put a smile on your face. This is their fifth album and it sounds like they are coming at you with guns blazing and tunes rocking your ass off.

All songs are written by Manak except for “Don’t Talk To Me” by GG And The Jabbers, and “New Race” by Radio Birdman. Manak also plays guitar, bass, piano and does vocals, while Thor DSR bangs those drums with vigor. The songs are catchy and immediate earworms that you never want to leave. The playing is impressive, with everything given room to be heard and the vocals have the right amount of snottiness to them that adds to the grit on the album. “Live In A Cube” has a fantastic early punk sound, kind of a mix of The Dead Boys and Iggy that I Can’t get enough of. That’s not saying that these guys don’t have any other good songs…that would be a lie since I liked every song on here and hit replay as soon as the album was over to hear it all again.

You can hear the fun that they had making this record and it will infuse you with the same excitement and cause random bursts of dancing, and singalongs, but that’s ok, there’s a cure for that…….play the album again! This is the kind of stuff that I look for and never find, but somehow, I got lucky and this found me.

https://www.facebook.com/Depressives

https://jonnymanakthedepressives.bandcamp.com/

http://www.jonnymanak.com/

https://www.facebook.com/SelfDestructoRecords/

https://selfdestructorecords.bandcamp.com/

http://reacharoundrecords.net/

RAGING DEAD: Born In Rage

 

Raging Dead is a horror punk/metal band based out of Cremona, Italy. This is the band’s debut EP, and contains six tracks, well, only five, since the first track is an intro.

“Scratch Me” is an upbeat song which grabs you right away with it power and lets you know what you are in for. The riffs and overall sound are a mix of punk and metal, but the anger is something that fans of either camp can appreciate. The vocals are fairly clean and gritty, giving a nice added edge to the music. “Anathema” is a nice crunchy song with a great chorus and gang vocals, plus a great guitar solo. “Redemption” keeps the venom going with more riffing and a slick groove that actually makes you want to dance along. “Nightstalker” is a brutal track with the bitterness just dripping from the vocals and the band plays so tight that it’s almost claustrophobic sounding. “Vengeance” is a bit more manic sounding, allowing the evil to shine through with the pure hatred ripping through the song.

These guys have a winner on their hands, with the vile and intense disgust that they spew forth covering you like a filthy blanket that you can’t get rid of, but you still stay there, tightly bound and it comforts you. The band has perked up my ears, and ripped a layer of flesh from them with their racket, but what a glorious racket it is.

https://www.facebook.com/RagingDead/

https://www.facebook.com/atomicstuff/

http://www.atomicstuff.com/

LOLA STONECRACKER: Doomsday Breakdown

 

Lola Stonecracker is a new hard rock band from San Giovanni in Persiceto, Italy that first got together in 2009, and have just released their debut album Doomsday Breakdown. The album contains fifteen tracks, including a cover of the Frankie Goes To Hollywood classic “Relax.”

The album is quite diverse sounding, with every song having its own identity and feel, which makes for a nice listen because you don’t have a few singles and album tracks, you get a solid recording that holds up better than most. The vocals are clear, powerful and have a lot of emotion. The band is sharp, with great dual guitar playing and the rest of the band giving their all on the tracks. “Jekyll And Hyde” is such a powerful and catchy song, with the mix of smooth and more raspy vocals, the groove is amazing and the guitar playing just blows you away. The band just goes from strength to strength on the album, showing the talent and fun that they seem to be having on this album. I mean, when was the last time that a hard rock album actually put a smile on your face without using tricks like risqué and juvenile lyrics to get a smile out of you? These guys just make fun music and for that I thank them. This is the kind of music that would sound amazing in a larger venue with a crowd shouting along, head banging and just losing their minds. “MC Kenny’s Place” is a song that would sound amazing in that setting, with the gang vocals and the hooks just blasting out of the speakers…..wow! Their version of “Relax,” while not everyone’s cup of tea, a metal band doing new wave, but they make it both heavy and funky and pull it off.

For a debut, they have to really come out with something to top or equal this album, but I can’t wait to hear what they do next. Don’t “relax” and do yourself a favor and get this album, play it loud, play it often and do it NOW!

https://www.facebook.com/LolaStonecracker/

https://www.facebook.com/atomicstuff/

http://www.atomicstuff.com/

https://www.facebook.com/thisiscoreagency#

http://www.thisiscore.net/

RED MORRIS: Lady Rose

Italian guitarist Maurizio Parisi has dedicated his eight song debut album to his wife Rosa. The talented guitarist is joined by drummer Claudio Amadori, keyboard player Beppe Premi and bassist Renato Mombelli. This album is the realization of a long-held dream, a dream that began to form during Parisi’s childhood, where a fascination for music and rhythm slowly became the obsession it now is.

As you might be able to figure out from reading the above section, there is no vocalist given because this is an instrumental album, there is a small vocal appearance on “Mystery” by Lou Longoni, but it really is just a small piece that it really doesn’t count as a vocal track. The music is a fusion of hard rock structures, Latin rhythms, and jazz; but highly influenced by big names like Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Cream. The guitar playing is amazing, with just the right amount of flash and no going crazy up and down the scales like some guitarists do……..Malmsteen anyone? The songs are actually catchy, even with the lack of vocals and the rest of the band are also quite good, playing with heart and feeling.

You can hear that Parisi has put his all into this album, his dreams and talent are on display and he has you from the first song rooting for him. This is the sound of a man fulfilling a dream, a dream long time in coming and done with love.

https://www.facebook.com/red.morris.musician/

http://redmorris.jimdo.com/

https://www.facebook.com/atomicstuff/

http://www.atomicstuff.com/

DIRTY FINGERS: 250 Dollars

Dirty Fingers is a band from Verona, Italy which was formed back in 2010. After various line-up changes over the years, they released their debut album of gritty hard rock.

Well, with a name like Dirty Fingers, taken from guitar pickups, how would you think these guys sound ? Gritty, sleazy, grimy……..and dirty. I was floored while listening to the album, with song after song becoming better than the last and the band just hitting their stride, it was a treat. So many great solos throughout the entire album made you wonder if they would run out, but no, they just tossed out more riffs. The vocals are perfect, just enough grime and bite to them, the production is done well, with a clarity, but not a smoothing out and the rest of the band adds depth with harmonica, and the tight bass lines and powerful drumming. The sound is a bit of Motorhead and Nashville Pussy, but they manage to make this their own beast, one that isn’t tame and going to cuddle with you, it may just tear you apart.

The mix of hard rock, sleaze, metal and a touch of southern rock is a deadly combination that you will fall onto your knees and worship them for it. This is a band to watch out for, because once you get a taste of them, you can’t stop.

https://www.facebook.com/DirtyFingersrockmetalband/

https://www.facebook.com/atomicstuff/#

http://www.atomicstuff.com/

https://www.facebook.com/logicillogicrecords/

http://www.logicillogic.net/

DANIEL LIONEYE: Vol III

 

Daniel Lioneye was formed in 2001 and originally consisted of HIM members Ville Valo on drums, Mige on bass and Linde on guitar and vocals. They released one album that year called The King Of Rock ‘n’ Roll, which was only released in Finland and Germany. The title track ended up being the theme song for Bam Margera’s TV show, “Viva La Bam.” In 2008, Linde felt the need to do another Daniel Lioneye album and wanted it to be completely different from the last, and put out VOL II. After 8 years Daniel Lioneye is now back with a third album Vol. III.

The album is a mix of heavy metal, black metal and progressive rock that works perfectly together. With all of these different styles on here, there is a song for everyone and the beauty of it is that the music flows so well between the styles of music. No style takes over, no style swamps the senses, it just seems to be a collection of great songs that they came up with. The playing is impeccable, tight, emotional and the songs are catchy, not in a pop music way, but they latch onto you, get stuck in your ears and become a part of you. The guitar playing has got to be heard with riffs coming at you at every turn and being some of the slickest playing I’ve heard in a long time. The entire band sounds like they are playing their hearts out and really tried to give the listener something different from past albums, and they’ve really accomplished that task with the intricate playing and arrangements on the album. They also have a new version of VOL II’s “Neolithic Way” that takes the song into a different place with the new arrangement.

This album is balanced between the cleaner, and harmonic and the crazed music that you are used to from this band and the production is more rounded out, with depth that adds to the experience. An album that has this much going for it shouldn’t just be considered a side project, it should be thought of as a full-fledged band that can stand shoulder to shoulder with any band.

https://www.facebook.com/daniellioneye/

https://www.facebook.com/theendrecords/

http://theendrecords.com/

THE BLACK RAIN: Water Shape

 

This Italian band from Bologna started back in 2002 and released their first album in 2012, and have released their newest one in 2014. It’s not because of lack of ability, but the care of the music and the songs that take so long.

You hear hints of Bon Jovi on here, not in vocal style, but in how huge the songs are. Of course, that’s when Bon Jovi wrote great anthems all those years ago before becoming sad, so I’m glad that these guys took up the mantel of writing songs that need to be heard with a ton of people singing along. The songs have enormous hooks, great guitar riffs, driving drums, thick bass, and rich vocals that flow so well. This has a nice mix of hard rock, a touch of blues mixed in and a bit of an ’80s sound to make for a slick sounding album. “Robert Johnson” is an amazing track that as soon as you hear it, it will get lodged in your head and you will have to hear it again. The production is great, a little grit left to add to the raw edge that the band has and makes this a great listen. The band has put a lot of effort into making an album with emotion and skill and it shows with how the songs seem to flow perfectly together.

This is an album that will get you up off your chair and rocking out, as well as singing along to….how can that ever be a bad ting? The bad part, is that being in Italy, I will probably never get a chance to see them, and I can imagine just how good these songs would sound live.

https://www.facebook.com/The-Black-Rain-137533619623054/

http://www.blackrainrock.com/

https://www.facebook.com/atomicstuff/

http://www.atomicstuff.com/

HIGH SPIRITS: Motivator

 

This Chicago band has released three previous albums, but their first was really only a demos release, so this counts as album number three. They play a mix of hard rock and NWOBHM, and do it with finesse.

This album is just so damn catchy! Song after song makes you bob your head along to it and has a chorus that grabs your ears. There are tons of riffs that will make the air guitarist quite happy, the drums and bass flow together perfectly and the smooth, but strong vocals are sure to please your ears. This has the feel of a lost album from the early ’80s when people playing rock without fluff and ridiculous makeup. Yes kids….this is real rock’n’roll. “Do You Wanna Be Famous” is just a huge song that will get you singing along to and have you hitting replay. Don’t think that this was the only good song, no sir, “Haunted By Love” is fantastic as well. It has stop start parts, gang vocals and was a highlight on this album of great tracks. The production id just right, nothing mixed too loud or buried, clear and with just a tough of edginess.

This is one of the better hard rock albums that I’ve heard in a long time and I can’t get enough of it. If you want rock that actually knows how to rock and sounds like the classic it should become….this is your band!

https://www.facebook.com/highenergyrock/

https://highspiritsmetal.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/hrrecords/

https://www.hrrecords.de/