Reviews January 2008 Reviews Page 4 Various Artists - Greg Shaw: He Put The Bomp! In The Bomp (Bomp! / Vivid) This is the Japanese pressing of the compilation put together to honour Bomp! Records founder Greg Shaw, the man credited with rediscovering garage rock (with Lenny Kaye), putting power pop on the map, inventing the fanzine, making sure that no recorded Stooges rehearsal went unissued and generally being one of the good guys. This great collection compiles some of the great bands that found a home on the Bomp! Label and it’s a fitting tribute to Shaw’s taste and his consistent championing of ‘60s inspired music. Born in 1949, Shaw was 16 in 1965 - does it get any better? 24 years old in 1974, the year the Ramones broke, he started his label. Soon they were the only indie distributor in the US, Shaw was managing the Flamin Groovies and Bomp! were releasing singles by Devo and The Weirdos. ‘He Put The Bomp! In The Bomp’ is a collection of Bomp! bands - past and present - covering garage punk, psyche and power pop songs. The artists featured include The Plimsouls, The Briefs, The Black Keys, The Barracudas, Nikki Sudden / Captain Sensible and Outrageous Cherry - 23 in total - and features material originally recorded by artists as disparate as Kim Fowley, Willie Dixon, The Dead Boys and The Easybeats. I imagine Greg Shaw would have loved it, I know I do. I advise you track this down without delay - by all accounts, stocks are pretty limited. Rob F. Also recommended: Various Artists - Destination Bomp! The Best Of Bomp! Records: The First 20 Years (Bomp!) - Jubal Lee Young - S/T (Reconstruction) Jubal Lee Young is the son of country-rock singer-songwriter Steve Young, and on his second album, he follows pretty well in his ol’ man’s footsteps. Which is no surprise, considering he learnt from some of the best singer-songwriters the ‘70s chucked up. The results of this schooling can be found all over this record, and he comes up with enough great songs to forgive all those advantages. Opener ‘I Don’t Know What I Want’ delivers a strong start to proceedings, but in no time at all things are livening up nicely with ‘Greed is the Creed’ and getting rootsier on ‘Deep South Blues’. ‘The Window Song’ provides a memorable finish and when it’s all done, you’ll have no hesitation pushing ‘play’ again. Check out Young’s Myspace page where half a dozen tracks are there for audition. Rob F. - Puny Human - Universal Freak Out (Small Stone) Another welcome contribution from Small Stone, this third release from Puny Human marks something of a departure for both band and label alike. Breaking away from the Human’s standard stoner sound ‘Universal Freak Out’ is higher in energy, less riff-obligated and much lighter in mood than either their own back catalogue or the dense and doomy output of stable-mates such as Sasquatch and Five Horse Johnson. The same demented blues spirit that drives (mega-stars-in-waiting) Clutch is firmly evident throughout, especially on ‘Up Not Out’ and standout ‘The Real Johnny Charm’ (featuring guest vocalist Danko Jones). Song titles such as “’The Bus Will Eventually Crash’ and ‘Every Brain Cell is Immense’ confirm their growing sense of whimsy without blockin’ the rockin’. Neil B. - Good Loser Club - Rag & Bone Shop (Independent) An impromptu, not quite supergroup of part-time roots-rockers mightn’t sound like an especially enticing prospect, but in the three and a half days it took to make their self-titled debut in a Catskills’ barn, oh alright then a room above a garage, Frank Randall, Mark Lerner, Mark Donato and Chris Erickson have come up trumps, delivering an end result that refreshingly belies any lack of anticipatory excitement. With three singer-songwriters in the frame - Messrs. Randall, Lerner and Donato - there’s plenty of variety on offer; the playing is tight, spontaneous and unfussy, the songs never less than wholly engaging. Uncomplicated yet always interesting, The Good Loser Club offer deceptively fulfilling entertainment and deserve your patronage. Geraint J. - Paul Haig - Chain (Cherry Red) A welcome reissue of the ex-Josef K man’s 1989 album with 5 extra tracks. The record kicks off with ‘Something Good’, possibly the most commercial thing he’s ever done (one of the bonus cuts is the 10” remix) before settling down into something altogether more thoughtful and considered, though for the most part, just as upbeat. Originally released in ‘89, it had been recorded a couple of years previous to that and, unfortunately, the production gives it away. It’s a little dated in places and probably a touch too polished for today’s ears. It’s not going to make many new friends, but there are plenty of old ones out there, waiting to catch up. Rob F. - Crawlspace - The Spirit of ’76 (Gulcher) To many the real spirit of ’76 was a furious poltergeist which laid waste to the complacent prog aristocracy of the day, leaving behind hardened and ignorant punk cockroaches to crawl out from the devastation and rule the world in its stead. This is of course no fair reflection of the social and artistic upheaval ushered in the wake of the Ramones and the Pistols and which has left an indelible boot print on much of cultural value since. It’s an enduring myth though, and if your own fond remembrance of punk locates it in a spectrum from Slaughter and the Dogs to the UK Subs, the Exploited and the Circle Jerks then this Gulcher Records release could be your album of the year. It’s uncultured, under produced, and ferociously feral. If a record could sound inbred then this would. The trio of Eddie Flowers, Grey Hajic and Joe Dean set about butchering both their own songs and a set of perfectly innocent covers (Hey Joe, Sympathy for the Devil, Space Truckin) without a care in the world, and succeed in making Half Man Half Biscuit sound like Tangerine Dream in the process. Like all the best cartoon punk it has its tongue firmly in its cheek and, sounds as if it was a right laugh to have been part of. Fair play to Crawlspace then and long may they thrive. Neil B. Next Past Reviews: March 07, April 07, May 07, June/July 07, Sept/Oct 07, Dec07