Well, to be honest, I didn’t grew up with Hank Williams or The Doors. In fact, for years, I was totally into disco !!! At the age of 13, I was addicted to ‘Thriller’, Duran Duran was my favorite band and once (only once, I swear!) I snatched 300 Belgian francs outta my mother’s purge in order to buy Queen’s ‘Greatest Hits’! Thankfully, the following albums changed my life:

Rollin’ Through The Night – EVAN JOHNS & THE H-BOMBS (Alternative Tentacles 1986)


This killer album - originally recorded in 1982 - is so criminally underrated it’s ridiculous! Guitars galore and tongue-in-cheek songs mainly about partying. All hail Jello Biafro for releasing one of the very best rock ‘n’ roll records of all time!

Hallowed Ground – VIOLENT FEMMES (Slash 1984 )


This is the record that guided me through my adolescent years. Even my father knew the lyrics by heart ‘cuz I kept on spinning the record day after day! Due to overkill, I haven’t listened to the Femmes in recent years though…

Invisible Lantern – SCREAMING TREES (SST 1988)


I bought this record at the age of 18 and 2 weeks later the band played at the Democrazy club in Belgium. One of the very first live shows I attended that totally blew me away! Van Conner (or was it Gary Lee Conner?) lying in front of us on the floor fuckin’ up his guitar combined with Mark Lanegan’s feverish vocals was pure bliss! “Ivy” still sends shivers down my spine!

Not Born Beautiful – SHOCK HEADED PETERS (El Records 1985)


A friend of mine recorded this 1986 album on a tape and I soon became enthralled by the alienating songs and lyrics. I didn’t read novels at the time and found this album a genuine piece of escapism.

Just Keep Eating – SCRATCH ACID (Rabid Cat 1986)


I’ll never forget that very evening when Scratch Acid played in Belgium (5/01/87 ) and I couldn’t attend the show because it was a two hours drive and I didn’t have a car. I was really a die-hard fan and even had the band name written with Tipp-Ex on my black leather jacket! That very evening (it was in the middle of an ordinary school week) I felt really depressed. Later, my sister used to tell all her friends that I only dated girls with cars…

Who's Who?

I couldn't see the forest for the trees so I did a little homework. I thought you might be interested too...

1) THE BLACK JASPERS
= King Khan + Jasper Hood

“The Black Jaspers are King Khan (King Khan & BBQ, Shrines, ect, ect) and Jasper Hood (Moorat Fingers) getting together for an exercise in lowest common denominator, lowest fidelity punk stupidity imaginable. The Black Jaspers have been playing on and off since 2000 but are only just now getting around to releasing some of their recordings. This debut album was recorded in 2001 and has sat in King Khan's vaults aging like a fine wine ever since. Not until now has the King decided to unleash this record on the public. Twelve tracks of retardation inspired by the likes of the Angry Samoans, Electric Eels, Mentally Ill, and any of the dumbest Killed By Death tracks you care to name."

RELEASES: eponymous debut album out on In The Red Records

http://www.myspace.com/theblackjaspers

*****

2) THE DING-DONGS
= Bloodshot Bill + Mark Sultan

“Introducing the modern day Rat Fink and Boo Boo (yes, they are THAT great!), Montreal mega-monster talents BBQ and Bloodshot Bill, each the greatest young vocalists to erupt from the the City of Smoked Meats!”

RELEASES: debut album 'Ding-Dong Party' out on Norton Records

http://www.myspace.com/officialdingdongs



*****

3) TANDOORI KNIGHTS
= Bloodshot Bill + King Khan

Tandoori Knights interview from Mongrel Zine here

RELEASES: "Pretty Please/Bucketful" 7" on Norton Records + 3 songs 7” in Norton Records’ Rolling Stones cover series + debut album due in August on Norton Records

http://www.myspace.com/tandooriknights



*****

4) THE ALMIGHTY DEFENDERS
= King Khan + Mark Sultan + Black Lips

RELEASES: debut album on Vice Records

http://www.myspace.com/thealmightydefenders

COMPILE ME CRAZY !!!

I just finished my third 'mixed' compilation (thanks MixMeister!).
Download the thing, burn it on a cdr and ENJOY!!!


1. Jungle Queen – FRED PRENTISS
(That’ll Flat Git It, Vol.17 (SUN) – Bear Family cd)
exotic & eery rockabilly track from an obscure master

2. Rap Pon Rydim – TIGER
(Sunset Records 7”)
weird & wonderful: reggae toaster goes rap anno 1988

3. Obeah Man – CAPTAIN BEEFHEART & HIS MAGIC BAND
(Grow Fins Rarities (1965-1982) – Revenant 5cd)
no reason to explain

4. The Way I Feel About You – THE BRISTOLS
(Alright, This Time Just The Girls Vol.2 – SFTRI cd)
shortlived English supergroup feat. Liam ‘Toe Rag’ Watson and Fabienne Delsol

5. Goin’ Down The Road – BEN VAUGHN
(Mono – Club de Musique Records cd)
a great Ersel Hickey cover from an amazing covers only album

6. Lightning-Rod Man – LOWELL GEORGE & THE FACTORY
(Hotcakes & Outtakes : 30 Years of Little Feat – Rhino 4cd)
produced by Frank Zappa who also plays the piano!

7. Come On Home – LAMBERT, HENDRICKS & ROSS
(The Hottest New Group In Jazz – Columbia/Legacy 2cd)
my favorite vocal jazz trio!

8. Massa – LE GRAND MAITRE FRANCO & JOLIE DETTA
(World Legends: Franco – Sonodisc 2cd)
ex-Franco's OK Jazz legends Odemba OK Jazz Allstars still play this wonderful song today!

9. Mother Of Earth – DM BOB & THE DEFICITS
(Salvo Of 24 Gunshots: Tribute to Gun Club – Unrecording Records 2lp)
amazing cover from a decent tribute album

10. Milouda – BELLEMOU & GANA EL MAGHNAOUI
(Le Monde du Raï – Buda Records lp)
probably my alltime favorite raï track!

11. Inside The World Of The Blues Explosion – THE JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION
(Extra Width – Crypt Records lp)
still crucial!

12. El Son De Nicaragua – ORQUESTA CHEPIN
(Sabroso! Havana Hits – Earthworks/Virgin lp)
superb song from one of the first world music compilations (1989)

13. The Object Of My Affection – PINKY TOMLIN
(Pop Music: The Early Years 1890-1950 – Columbia/Epic/Legacy 2cd)
“by the end of WWII, Tomlin had left music, finding a new and more profitable career as the head of an oil development company” - thanks for the tune Pinky!

14. One Steady Baby – THE GRIFFIN BROTHERS feat. MARGIE DAY
(Blues With A Beat – Acrobat Music cd)
one of the most succesful of the DC R&B groups!

15. Pana Cand Nu Te Iubeam – MARIA TANASE
(Malédiction d’Amour – Oriente Musik cd)
the Edith Piaf of Romania

16. Lam Sarawan - UBON PATTANA WITH SURIN PAKSIRI AND ANGKANA KHUNCHAI
(Siamese Soul 2 – Sublime Frequencies cd)
Thai jewel

17. The Dark Age Of Love – THIS IMMORTAL COIL
(The Dark Age Of Love – Ici d’Ailleurs cd)
the opening track from a great COIL tribute album

just listen...

or download the file here!

The Lords Of Altamont

Yesterday, I went to see THE LORDS OF ALTAMONT only because the band played 200 yards from my house. I always thought they were some poser/crap/glam rock & roll band; like a punk rock version of Mötley Crüe. But boy was I wrong!!! On stage, the band played some very exciting hi-octane punk/garage rock & roll that mixes the best of The Cramps & The Stooges (the band’s main influences according to singer Jake "The Preacher" Cavaliere). Moreover, The Lords Of Altamont do have an awesome charisma: tattooed, energetic & very compelling to watch! The singer played this huge farfisa organ and was really wild & crazy. Some songs reminded me of The Joneses and I think The Lords Of Altamont would be the ultimate band to cover The Joneses’ immortal classic “Pill Box”. L.A. Sleaze Supreme!!!

(picture above by Ronny Wynants)

As if this wasn't enough to make an awesome party, the band had brought along 2 professional go-go dancers from L.A. who were very raunchy (but not vulgar)! I really felt in heaven being surrounded by a hot-rocking band and two gorgeous and thrilling beauties who looked like they had just stepped out of a Russ Meyer film poster! If god exists, he did an amazing job creating these femmes fatales! Hail Hail Rock & Roll!!!

Fast & Funky - LARRY JOHNSON

Here’s one hell of a thrilling acoustic folk blues album that could as well have made it into my all-time top 10! LARRY JOHNSON did a lot of session work throughout the last 50 years (!) and recorded his masterpiece ‘Fast and Funky’ in 1971 for the Blue Goose label, a subsidiary of Nick Perl’s Yazoo Records. According to the original liner notes, Larry would now be a legendary blues figure if he had belonged to an earlier era and I wholeheartedly agree! Listen to his crystal clear finger-picking style and powerful voice and you will soon realize that LARRY JOHNSON is a unique talent whose music is too good to be forgotten! Click here for a great piece about LARRY JOHNSON written by Elijah Wald for The Boston Globe in 1998 (scroll halfway down the page). Enjoy the 3 songs below and good luck finding a copy of this album! (I’m afraid the cd reissue by the Baltimore Blues Society from 1996 is long out-of-print)

“Larry Johnson, alone on stage with an acoustic guitar, reminded the audience of what the blues is all about, singing with a depth, directness and passion that made most of the other performers seem like they were just clowning around.”

“Its is no exaggeration to call this the most satisfying acoustic blues record by any artist born after 1930, the only one that completely captures the spirit of the classic blues while still sounding utterly personal.”

Keep it Clean - LARRY JOHNSON mp3

Pick Poor Robin Clean - LARRY JOHNSON mp3

The Beat from Rampart Street - LARRY JOHNSON mp3

Pic of the Week

NAPALM DEATH FOREVER !!!

Those damn music festivals! A couple of weeks ago, I bought a ticket for Europe’s biggest indoor extreme metal fest, only to find out that the 2 bands that I absolutely didn’t want to miss were scheduled at the same time! Whereas a friend of mine choose to see NAPALM DEATH’s hyper intense show in its entirety, I decided to quit halfway through their fantastic show in order to see Finland’s grindcore masters ROTTEN SOUND who laid down an ultra-ferocious & devastating set, dedicated to… NAPALM DEATH!


“I can’t believe so many people showed up for us while the gods of grindcore are playing in the main hall” said Rotten Sound singer Keijo Niinimaa and I immediately realized that I wasn’t the only one who had just made a very difficult choice. Apparently, ROTTEN SOUND was somehow aware of this which resulted in an extremely ruthless set that sounded like the aural equivalent of a precise bombardment. This may sound like a cliché but really, this set was so fuckin’ HEAVY that it felt like a BOMB. An earth-shattering gig by one of the most ferocious grindcore bands around these days. Like my old Big Black t-shirt used to state: Power Where You Need It!


NAPALM DEATH has been around since 1986 and although their music underwent quite some changes, they are still considered one of the best and most crucial bands around in the metal department. Singer Barney Greenway is a wonderful down-to-earth bloke who is a real joy to watch on stage and one of the few lead singers who has actually something interesting to say in-between songs. You should definitely check out Earache’s 2003 2cd compilation 'Noise For Music’s Sake' which is a perfect anthology but even if you are not so keen on their albums, a NAPALM DEATH show is a total unique experience that you cannot afford to miss if you like your music loud, adventurous and heavy. I hereby induct NAPALM DEATH into my personal Hall of Fame!



One other band that made quite an impression on me was SIX FEET UNDER whose singer’s ear piercing screech and huge dreadlocks had to be heard/seen to be believed! Each time he started banging his head, it looked like he was in a terrible fight with a huge octopus. Awesome!


Brutal Truth, Venomous Concept, Cripple Bastards, Eyehategod, Rotten Sound, Napalm Death… what’s next?