Interview with Homebase

Homebase is a great new band based out of New York and New Jersey.  They have just released their debut Close To Something, a five song EP that does a brilliant job of meshing hardcore aggression and hook-heavy pop punk.  I had the chance to talk to guitarist/vocalist Matt Valentin and vocalist Tony Valentino.

I know most of you played together before Homebase.  Can you give me a little bit of background on the band?  Also, how do you think Homebase differs from what you did before?

Matt: There is such a deep lore behind our history before Homebase. To keep things simple, our story began at The School of Rock. That’s where I met Ochoa and Tony. Our passion for music grew stronger after we recognized that we each had similar interests in the music that we enjoyed listening to. Ochoa was the most excited and hit me up over the phone when he was first introduced to Tony. “Bro, there is someone here that you HAVE to meet. He is just like you!” It was something along those lines. There was already a high bar Ochoa had set for him. Once we met, we connected instantly. Without hesitation, all three of us went into the rehearsal room and started covering ‘All Systems Go’ by Box Car Racer. It was such a beautiful moment because I knew that These were the guys I wanted to hang out with and work on music together. Caruso and I knew each other long before Ochoa and Tony. When we were younger, we casually hung out at his place along with some other friends of ours. But once we started discussing starting a band, it was like clockwork. Caruso had converted his basement into a practice space for us and the rest is history. It wasn’t until recently we’ve tagged Churro along with our journey. We’ve played shows with him before in a previous band we were involved with. Overtime, things had changed for Churro and he wanted to be part of something completely different than what he had worked on previously. We couldn’t have been more excited to bring him on board.

I think Homebase is fundamentally different than what we’re used from our previous projects. The writing, the production, the stage presence. It’s in a way that we’ve always wanted it to be but never fully understood how to get there. I recall doing some ridiculous skits on stage or uploading skit-like videos with the old band that weren’t as fun as I thought it would be. At least, not in a direction I’d wanted it to go towards. I think the most important difference is our presence. Before, things felt goofy or not serious enough. Not to mention we had a mascot that aged like milk. Looking back, we were completely new to this sort of thing and thought some of the things were funny. But as we grew older, we knew we wanted to step away from the old goofy acts and take things one step further. It was hard, because it felt like we were being pulled away from what we wanted to achieve.

Are any of the songs on the EP from that earlier era or are they all new for Homebase?

Matt: The one song that I can think of before Homebase was even a thing would be "Close to Something." What’s interesting about that track is I remember revisiting Ochoa and Tony after a long hiatus and presented this song to them at some point. The guys were pretty hyped. Tony especially. It gave him such great vibe and impact on the sound. The final mix is far different from the demo. The rest of the tracks we’re written fairly recently.

How does your songwriting tend to work?

Matt: Our songwriting may be considered unusual. I tend to assume that most bands write songs together as a group. While part of that is true to us, we usually write songs on our own privately. Once we’ve felt like they’re good enough, we present it to each other and discuss if it’s something we want to pursue or not. So far this process has never changed for as long as I can remember. It’s honestly pretty rare for us to get together as a group to write, let alone two of us at once to write a song.

For me personally, I write my music based on events I’ve experienced. And yeah, that seems pretty obvious to any musician, but getting the melody, sound, and words down can be pretty difficult. There’s a specific way we each want to express these emotions in sounds that best suit the theme of what we’re going for, and it doesn’t get easier. What helps is we have each other to fall back on. There’s always one of us with an idea to expand the songs that we’re writing, and it keeps the creative juices flowing throughout the creative process.

While I am a fan of pop punk, over the years the genre has become a bit stale with so many bands sounding like each other.  A lot of them also veer so far to the “pop” that there is almost no “punk.”
I tend to be drawn to bands that take it and do something fresh, and having said that, I like how you take that pop punk foundation and then add the heavier hardcore aggression (“Bold” is the perfect example of this).  Do you think this was the sound you were looking for from the start, or did it evolve into this?

Matt: I’m glad you mentioned this. Pop Punk has diversified itself in many different ways. What we may consider pop punk could be something completely different to someone else. What we’ve noticed is that some of our favorite bands crank things up a notch and take their sound into a completely different direction than what we were anticipating. I think that’s what we are aiming for. I believe a great example of what I’m describing would be ‘Letters to you’ by Finch. The beginning of the song clearly shares pop-punk sensibilities but quickly molds itself into this heavier grit-like sound as the song progresses. Though there can be ‘pop’ elements in our music, we lean towards more heavier elements. Head bobbing melodies. This was the type of sound we were aiming for since the very beginning. Writing "Bold" appears to be such a fast-paced song but the writing process took some time to get it exactly where we wanted it to be and for us to consider it a definitive sound of Homebase.

I love the intro to “Close To Something” and how it opens the EP.  Can you tell me a little about that?

Matt: "Close to Something" was a song I wrote sometime back around mid or late 2022. It was what I considered the true beginning of my adult hood. Life for me around that time was questionable for a lack of a better word. I was a lot more ambitious than I am today, I felt strong about pursuing so many different things like becoming a YouTuber, a sound engineer, or a professional go-kart driver. Regardless of what It was, I always felt held back. Most of it was my fault. Either from stress and anxiety or just giving up entirely. Another part of my failure were these poor habits I had. I didn’t really take good care of myself. Eating junk food, playing video games all day. Those were some of the things that were easier to do than put myself in a position where I can learn or become something I’ve aspired to be. I can be very harsh on myself. Over the years, that part of me has improved. I’m back in a position in life where things aren’t looking as bleak, and I’m more inspired than before to take one step at a time towards things I want to achieve and break those poor habits that would normally prevent me from doing so.

“Start Over” is such an interesting song, starting off with what sounds like a long instrumental section and then just breaking down into an introspective acoustic guitar strum and vocals that sound like they are coming from the bottom of a barrel, and then what sounds like a single hit on a piano key.  Can you tell me a little bit about the idea behind that song.  Also, is that meant to be an intro to “Nuff Said”?

Tony: "Start Over" was one of the quickest songs we put together. At the time we were recording at the studio, we had 4 songs ready to go but needed a 5th one, and considering it was our last weekend at the studio, we needed to be snappy with it. We believed it was the perfect interlude track into "Nuff Said" due to its nature in tone and transition. The instrumentals create this feeling you would get on the last day of school but immediately shifts into this dark but almost beautiful acoustic section. The lyrics are simply from the last verse of "Nuff Said", just rearranged in a way where it almost feels like you’re about to give up on something. 

There are actually a lot of little snippets or sections throughout the EP where you throw in a little twist, like the section at the end of “Nuff Said.”  When I listen to it, I hear an industrial metal heaviness that reminds me of Fear Factory.  Are these things that you consciously added or is it something that just happens organically?

Tony: Honestly, when re-recording songs that we’ve had in the vault for a while, it was fair to expect a few changes. The little bits and pieces you hear throughout the track were elements that we never expected to make in the final mix. Ideas involving pedal effects and layered vocal tracks are examples of ideas that just spawn out of nowhere. Stuff like that made the recording process a lot more exciting and the level appreciation just grows through the roof the more those ideas start to form.

The song sequence has a flow to it, and they seem to somewhat segue well from one song to the next.  Is that something that you had in mind when you recorded them and decided on the song order?

Matt: We wanted our EP to be this cool musical journey to follow through. Almost like opening a flip book. We were intentional with most of the transitions from one song to the next. At the studio with Rob (Barbershop Studios) he helped us expand that even further with sick effects and loops that enhanced the transitions and overall sound of the music. We didn’t fully realize how well it all sat once we placed the songs together on the EP. Ochoa was very intentional with the transitions for the ending of "I Feel" and the beginning of "Close to Something". When you loop the EP, they should transition together really well.

Tony: I believe it was early 2025 was when we had a discussion about this. Transitioning into tracks was the least of our problems compared to the overall theme we wanted to go for. We wanted to make sure that each song sounded different while keeping the message of confronting inadequacy the same.  It was definitely something we needed to consider if we wanted people to take our band seriously. In a way, it challenged our perception a little bit and by the time we had the songs done, deciding on the track order came easy as certain keys of the songs made transitioning feel smooth.

I know the EP is streaming several different places.  Do you have physical copies available?

Matt: Yes! We’ve recently printed out CD’s! We intend to sell them at shows we perform at if you visit our merch table. We’ve been discussing shipping the CD’s out to those who live further who want to support us, but we haven’t gotten that far yet. I love vinyl media, and the guys aren’t ready for that, haha.

Now that the EP is out what are the band’s future plans?

Tony: At this point, we’re just gonna keep going. This summer we have a weekender lined up with a few great bands. On top of that, the hype for new music has us rushing to make more. It definitely has us excited and we couldn’t be more grateful to be doing what we love and cherish most.

I saw online that you have a few upcoming shows and when I looked over your previous shows it looked like everything is in New York or New Jersey.  Do you have any plans to expand your touring area?

Matt: Oh absolutely. We intend to travel to nearby neighboring states like Pennsylvania and Connecticut. We’ve been discussing traveling to California for an opportunity when the stars align, but we aren’t entirely sure just yet.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Tony: For those that have ideas in the chamber, just release them in whatever way you can. Whether it’s with music, art, or even film, those ideas can be inspiring to someone someday. We hope you enjoy the music and we can’t wait to start making more. Thank you!

(Homebase)

Lou Gramm - Released

It’s been fifty years since Lou Gramm co-founded Foreigner and seventeen since he released an album.  Now, he’s back with Released, a collection of ten songs that were recorded in the eighties when he was working on his prior solo albums and have now been finished.  With the exception of one track, they were co-written with Bruce Turgon  (a pre-Foreigner bandmate in Black Sheep and often a Gramm collaborator over the years), who contributes a variety of instruments on all but one track.  Among the other contributors are Vivian Campbell playing guitar on one track, Tony Franklin playing bass on three and Lou’s brother Ben Gramm playing drums on four.  The album opens with “Young Love” and you have to wonder why this one was left on the shelf.  It has all the elements of a classic arena rock hit with some excellent guitar from Vivian Campbell (it’s possible this was left over from the Shadow King sessions with three-fourths of the band appearing on the track) and Gramm’s vocals sounding great.  “Lightning Strikes” is a strong, hard-driving rocker, and with a bit of a funky swagger, “Walk The Walk” is a fun track that is kinda different for Gramm.  Although the vocals are a little weaker “Long Gone” is a decent midtempo track and rockers “Heart And Soul” and “Long Hard Look,” another midtempo tune, often bring to mind classic Foreigner.  Originally released on the Long Hard Look album, “True Blue Love” is here in an unplugged version with Gramm accompanied by piano and keyboards and has an outstanding emotional vocal performance from him.  “Deeper Side Of Love” has more of a modern day AOR sound with a lot of emphasis on the keyboards which are full of big solos (while not in a bad way, his vocals on this one are distinctively different).  The album closes strongly with the solid rock ballad “Time Heals The Pain” and “Word Gets Around,” which has an energetic, hard rock edge.  Even though it's a collection of older leftover tracks, Released holds together very well as a unit and makes a welcome addition to Gramm's discography.  

(HNE Recordings)

Jon and Roy - I Can Dream

For their most recent EP I Can Dream, Canada’s Jon and Roy decided to steer away from the digital technology that has taken over the music industry and instead recorded on tape, resulting in a collection of tunes that are warm and more intimate sounding.  Opener “Maywell” was inspired by what has now become an annual winter hike to a rustic cabin in the mountains that was built by a man with that same name. It’s a captivating track of briskly paced folk rock with Jon Middleton’s fragile vocals and during the second half of the song the wonderful addition of horns.  “Waves Of Pleasure” is a jaunty folk rock track with a bounce that will have you swaying along, while “More Than I Can Dream” is a beautiful love song that’s slow and stripped down with a powerful, emotional vocal performance.  Bookended by two instrumentals, the easygoing, rootsy reggae-beat driven “Part One” and the slow, hypnotic closing track “Part Two,” is the lazy surf rock track “Make This Darkness Bright, which is enhanced brilliantly with horns and is reminiscent of Jack Johnson.  Unfortunately, at just over twenty-three minutes, the EP ends too quickly, but thankfully it is one that will have you hitting repeat over and over.  

(Blue Heron Music)

Blodwyn Pig - The Recordings 1969-1974

Blodwyn Pig was founded by Mick Abrahams in 1968, following his departure from Jethro Tull when Ian Anderson decided he wanted to move away from their bluesier side after the release of their debut album This Was.  The band was rounded out by Jack Lancaster, Andy Pyle and Ron Berg, and released two albums between 1968 and 1970 (both were top ten releases in the UK).  Abrahams left the band following the release of the second album due to his fear of flying, hindering their upcoming US Tour.  For the tour they did replace him with two guitarists, Peter Banks (formerly of Yes) and Barry Reynolds, but the band still fell apart shortly after that.  This new three CD box set The Recordings 1969-1974 compiles those two releases, along with non-album single tracks and numerous radio sessions, including several recorded by a reunited version of the band in 1974 with Clive Bunker replacing Berg. 

They show what they are striving for right out the gate with “It’s Only Love,” the opening track off their debut album, Ahead Rings Out.  It’s a rollicking bluesy rocker fleshed out with big band horns.  Featured in Almost Famous, “Dear Jill” is a gorgeous, lazy and laid-back blues track highlighted by Abrahams' slide guitar and Lancaster’s clarinet.  The upbeat blues rock of “Sing Me A Song That I Know” also has a jazz and funk undertone and sounds a little like The Doors at times.  Written by Lancaster, “The Modern Alchemist” is a full-blown jazz rock track that does a great job of showcasing the musicianship of every member, while “Up And Coming” is slow and smoldering blues reminiscent of Cream.  The bouncy, old school cabaret jazz sounding instrumental “Leave It With Me” is the one track here that brings to mind Tull, which is made even more notable by Lancaster’s flute.  “The Changes Song” is a stunning acoustic blues track with Abrahams once again displaying his slide guitar prowess, accompanied by Lancaster’s violin.  Following the lilting fifty-two second interlude “Back Wash” comes the noisy closing track “Ain’t Ya Coming Home, Babe?,” a six minute plus track of bluesy hard rock with some jazz elements and squeaking sax.  It’s very loose and often sounds like a jam session.  The bonus tracks on disc one start with recordings of “The Change Song” and “It’s Only Love” from 1969 BBC Sessions.  “Sweet Caroline” and “Summer Day” are a couple of upbeat bluesy rockers that were single b-sides, while the single only a-side “Walk On Water” is a solid rock track with elements of jazz and psychedelia (also included here in an alternate version).  Any or all of them would have been welcome additions to the albums.  The last bonus track on this disc is “McGregor Muckabout,” which was recorded during the sessions for the album and is a bizarre 10 minutes plus cut of almost incoherent rambling and noise that really should have been left on the cutting room floor.  

A little less than nine months after they released their debut, Blodwyn Pig was back with album number two Getting To This.  The album gets off to a strong start with “Drive Me,” which after a heavier, Cream-like blues intro, evolves into a swinging, jazzy blues track with Lancaster once again shining on the horns.  “Variations On Nainos” is highlighted by Abrahams guitar work and Lancaster’s flute, giving this laid-back, jazzy, funk rock track some Jethro Tull vibes (the song title, an anagram of “Son Ian,” is a poke at Ian Anderson).  The more straight-ahead, hard-driving rock of “See My Way” is up next and is again set apart by the horns.  At just over a minute, “Long Bomb Blues” is a nice little solo acoustic blues track with just Abrahams on guitar and vocals, followed by “The Squirreling Must Go On” a hard rock instrumental showcasing more of his blistering guitar.  The most ambitious cut the band released on either album is the four part, eight minute “San Francisco Sketches.”  After starting with a wistful, gently strummed guitar accompanied by flute, it shifts to jazzy, blues rock (again with lots of horns), followed by a section with Beach Boys like vocal harmonies, before shifting back to a jazzy free for all to close it out.  Although not among their best, “Worry” is a solid, straight-on rocker, followed by “Toys,” a laid-back tune with lyrics looking back reflectively on his youth.  This brings us to what many consider the biggest misstep of their recorded output, “To Rassman.”  This reggae wannabe novelty song sounds like an experiment gone wrong that should’ve been left behind.  The album’s final song “Send Your Son To Die” is a very Blodwyn Pig sounding track of horn driven rock with jazz influences.  Four more bonus cuts round out disc two, starting off with the super infectious rocker “Same Old Story,” which was a single only track along with a high energy cover of Larry Williams’ "Slow Down" on the flipside.  Lastly are a couple of tracks recorded during the Getting To This sessions.  “Meanie Mornay” is a bluesy track with some great slide guitar that actually has a bit of a country influence and would have been a great addition to the album, while “One Thing Leads To Another” has a somewhat lazy, laid-back groove.

The final disc here is titled Blodwyn Pig at the BBC 1969-1974 and consists of recordings from five different BBC Sessions.  First up are three songs from Top Gear on March 24, 1969, consisting of a couple of tracks from their debut album, including a great version of “The Modern Alchemist” that really shows off their musicianship.  There is also a variation of “Up and Coming” called “Mr Green’s Blues,” which Is a tribute Peter Green, made even more interesting with Abrahams' “spoken word rapping” in the middle, followed by versions of a couple of songs from Getting To This recorded March 4, 1970 for Sounds Of The 70’s.  The next two tracks were also from Sound of the 70’s, but were recorded a few months later on September 23, and are notable because at that point Abrahams had been replaced by Peter Banks and Barry Reynolds. “Moon’s Gone” is a catchy, very horn-driven song that shifts in more of a soulful rock direction, somewhat reminiscent of Van Morrison and “The Lady Of Liberty” (written by Banks) is a dreamy, acoustic track.  The final nine tracks were recorded in 1974, with the band back to the original lineup with the exception of Clive Bunker now on drums.  First up are four from a June 17, 1974 session for Sound Of The 70’s starting off with a take on the album track “See My Way.”  The other three are “Baby Girl,” a ragged, bluesy rocker fleshed out with some honky tonk piano, the easygoing, midtempo “Leaving Song” and “Blues Of A Dunstable Truck Driving Man,” a really fun acoustic folk blues tune that Abrahams says is about his time driving a truck.  Lastly are five cuts from In Concert that were recorded on August 15, 1974 starting once again with another great version of “See my Way,” this time a seven minute plus version with the band really letting loose.  Next up are a couple of new songs, the gospel-tinged rock of “I Know” and the funky “Cosmografication.”  Closing the set are a great cover of “Six Days On The Road” and a rocking version the debut album’s “It’s Only Love.”  Following the 1974 reunion that was documented in these live performances, various incarnations of the band got back together off and on in the nineties, and even released a couple more albums.  Abrahams sadly passed away in December 2025.

(Esoteric Recordings)

Wild Horses - Standing Our Ground - Complete Recordings 1978-1981

When guitarist Brian Robertson left Thin Lizzy in 1978, he teamed up with his flatmate bassist Jimmy Bain (formerly of Rainbow) and they formed Wild Horses.  Bain handled the bulk of the lead vocals with Robertson singing on a couple and the initial incarnation of the band was rounded out by Neil Carter on guitars and keyboards, and Clive Edwards (formerly of Pat Travers and Uli Jon Roth’s Electric Sun) on drums.  Unfortunately, the band was fairly short-lived and ended up going through some lineup changes and releasing only two albums before imploding in 1981.  Now, with the release of the six CD box set Standing Our Ground - Complete Recordings 1978 - 1981, those two albums, along with live cuts, demos, b-sides, alternate takes, 2025 remixes of album cuts and more are all compiled into one collection.  

The band released their debut album, The First Album, in April 1980 and actually hit number thirty-eight on the UK charts.  The original mix of the album opens disc one and starts strongly with “Reservation,” a solid rocker with some stellar Robertson guitar work.  The Thin Lizzy influence shows itself from time to time, most notably on “Face Down” and “Blackmail.”  The album also contains a couple co-writes with his former Lizzy bandmates with Phil Lynott on the poppy power ballad “Flyaway” and Scott Gorham on “Dealer,” which has a fun boogie woogie groove.  Other highlights include “No Strings Attached,” a solid rocker that beautifully adds some acoustic guitar to the mix, “Nights On The Town,” which has a bit of a funk and at times sounds like Bad Company, and closer “Woman,” with its slinky groove. There are a couple of missteps here, most notably “Street Girl,” which shows the influence of producer Trevor Rabin, especially with the vocal effects that sound like his later work with Yes.  Unfortunately, the album didn’t do as good as expected, which was partially blamed to the label not printing enough copies making in unavailable for potential buyers.  As for the bonus tracks on disc one, first up are excellent 2025 remixes from Per Olsson of eight of the album’s ten tracks (multitracks could not be found for all the songs).  According to the liner notes, they were remixed to Robertson’s specifications and have a much fuller, meatier sound.  Having said that, both the original versions and remixes have their own charm, so it’s nice to have both available here.  There is also an alternate take on “Street Girl” and the b-side “The Rapist,” another great Thin Lizzy-like rocker that is one of the stronger songs here, in spite of its title and subject matter.  

Carter left the band in August 1980 to join UFO and was replaced by John Lockton.  This lineup recorded their second and final album, Stand Your Ground, which was released in May 1981.  Arguably stronger than anything on the debut, “I’ll Give You Love” is a galloping, hard charging rocker that opens the album and shows the band means business.  The slightly more midtempo “In The City” has a really cool, somewhat bluesy groove.  The Thin Lizzy influence is strong again here showing itself in the easygoing, laid-back groove of “Another Lover,” “Miami Heat” and the gritty rocker “Stake Out” that closes the album.  Other highlights are “Back In The USA,” a solid, midtempo rocker with an infectious chorus, the driving title track, the darker, more intense “The Axe” and the fun, upbeat “New York CIty,” with its boogie woogie beat.  The bonus cuts on disc two include 2025 remixes of five album cuts, that once again really fill out the sound making them sound fuller.  There are also a couple of demos that are quite different from anything that was on the album, with “Because I Care,” which strangely reminds me of the soulful yacht rock of Boz Scaggs and “The Stash,” which has a slight reggae beat.  A week after the album's release, following a show in London, Robertson left the band and Edwards was right behind him.  They did try to move forward with Reuben and Laurence Archer, but that was unsuccessful, and shortly later the band was done.      

While the band only released two albums this box set has a treasure trove of bonus cuts with four more discs.  Disc three and four contain a variety of bonus tracks with each disc covering one of the albums.  The disc devoted to the debut contains several really interesting cuts including an early acoustic demo of “Flyaway” with Phil Lynott on vocals and another take with Gary Moore on lead guitar (this song was initially among some that were being considered for either Thin Lizzy’s Black Rose album or Phil’s Solo In Soho album), along with a demo of “Dealer” with Neil Carter doing a great job handling lead vocals.  Other notable tracks include demos of unreleased classic rock track “Retribution,” which has some great guitar work and really should have made the album, a cover of Ron Wood’s “Breathe On Me,” which definitely has a bit of that Stones sound in the guitar work, and a beautiful acoustic version of “No Strings Attached.”  There are also demo and alternate versions of “Top Mod,” which is an early version of “Face Down” with different lyrics and a somewhat different arrangement, and demos and rough mixes of several album tracks.  The Stand Your Ground bonus tracks starts off with three b-sides taken from the “I’ll Give You Love” single consisting of “The Kid,” a solid, straight-ahead rocker with more great guitar work and live versions of Joe Walsh’s “Rocky Mountain Way” and Eddie Floyd’s “Saturday Night” (co-written by Steve Cropper), along with the complete left turn, standalone cover of the soul pop tune “Everlasting Love” (most successfully recorded by Love Affair).  The remaining tracks on this disc are demos, starting off with five album tracks with Robertson and Bain playing all the instruments (Robertson handles the drums).  The last three are demos of Thin Lizzy’s “Are You Ready,” album track “Back In The USA” and b-side “The Kid” that were recorded with Clive Edwards on drums and Neil Carter playing everything else including vocals.  These demos are all great additions to this collection and while a little raw, are well recorded and sound great.  

The final two discs consist of two live recordings.  The first is from a set at The Marquee in 1980 and while a little rough it’s far from bootleg quality.  The performance is loose and makes for a really enjoyable listen.  The final disc is also from 1980, this time in Tokyo, and while it’s a much longer set and the band still sounds great, it definitely sounds like a bootleg and probably isn’t something you would listen to repeatedly.  Wild Horses is one of those bands that on the surface had all the right things going for them and honestly really should be a name that is more familiar to music fans today, but thanks to HNE they are getting another chance to have their music heard. 

(HNE Recordings)

Smash Palace - 87

In 1980, brothers Stephen and Brian Butler released an album as members of the band Quincy, which was followed in 1983 with an EP under the band name Lulu Temple, a change necessitated by a lawsuit from Quincy Jones.  Shortly after the EP’s release that band broke up and the brothers then went on to form Smash Palace, releasing their debut album in 1985.  When their A&R man moved to a new label he asked them to come with him, but after leaving their label the deal with the new label didn’t come through.  Due to this, the demos they had recorded for their second album were never released.  Over the ensuing years they did other things including being staff songwriters and Stephen working with the band Mary Lee’s Corvette.  In 1999 the brothers reformed and released the first of thirteen Smash Palace releases working with various band members over the years.  Now, thirty-eight years after they started working on that sophomore album, these lost songs are getting their day with the new album 87, which contains five tracks rerecorded by the original lineup and five demos from 1987.  The album opens with the five new tracks starting strongly with “Bitter Blue,” a solid power pop tune with a rock edge that comes across a bit like a jangle rock version of the Psychedelic Furs.  Up next are “I’ll Be There,” a gritty alt rocker with a hint of a rootsy side, and the straight-ahead rock of “Poor Man’s Paradise,” both of which have a Petty vibe.  “Top Of The World” is a midtempo track with a really nice groove and “Everything Under the Sun” has a darker alt rock sound.  The influence of the eighties can definitely be heard on the five demo tracks.  “Along For The Ride” has a very radio friendly alt pop sound that is often reminiscent of Simple Minds.  Relying heavily on the synths, “Centipede” has more of a New Wave bounce, while “Stranger Than Strange” is a moodier, midtempo track. “First Time For Everything” is a more laid-back tune but is a bit plodding and probably the weakest song here.  The album closes with “Imaginary Lines,” which is their attempt at a bigger epic rock track and does a good job at presenting that, but is set back a little by the thinner production, which plagues several of the older tracks.  87 is a very enjoyable release that bridges the early days of the band with today, and hopefully is just the first of more from this newly reunited lineup.  

(Think Like A Key Music)

The Exploited - Punk's Not Dead (45th Anniversary Vinyl Edition) 

Forty-five years after it was originally released, Punk’s Not Dead, the classic full-length debut from Scottish punk band The Exploited, has been reissued on a limited-edition black vinyl with a red splatter.  The album’s title was in response to critics saying punk was on its way out with the rise in popularity of new wave and post-punk, and the band was quick to prove them wrong with the opening title track, a chant-along punk anthem with throbbing bass and chainsaw guitars.  Their anthemic cover of Puncture’s “Mucky Pup” is up next and manages to mix a hint of melody into the aggression.  “Cop Cars” is a bouncy, fast paced track with a fun side highlighted by the “mee maw mee maw” lines with vocalist Wattie Buchan impersonating a siren.  Thanks to Gary McCormack’s prominent bass, “Free Flight” is a gritty track that is on the heavier side but still manages to be a little hooky.  Shifting back to the pure, straight ahead punk, “Army Life (Part 2) and “Blown To Bits” show their more political side lyrically, respectively dealing with Wattie’s pre-Exploited stint in the army as a seventeen-year-old and the results of IRA bomb explosions.  Side One’s closing track “Sex & Violence” shifts musically throughout its five plus minutes, but the lyrics are just the title repeated over and over which gets kind of annoying and is a bit of a novelty that wears thin quickly.  Side two opens with another blast of punk with “SPG,” which criticizes the “Special Patrol Group” that was created in London to fight serious public disorder and crime.  They change things up a bit with “Royalty,” which still has punk energy but mixes in a bit of new wave, and with its propulsive drumbeat “Dole Q” has more of a darker intensity that goes with the lyrics about the woes of being on the dole.  “Exploited Barmy Army” is up next and is an anthemic battle cry for the band.  Darker and heavier both musically and lyrically, “Ripper” is a bit out of place, dealing with serial killer Peter Sutcliffe.  The taut, aggressive rapid-fire punk of “Out Of Control” and “Son Of A Copper” bring you to closing track “I Believe In Anarchy,” another punk anthem that is the perfect bookend to the title track that opened the album.  Whether you missed out on it before now or just need to replace that worn out copy, it's the perfect time to grab this newly reissued version.

(Captain Oi!)

Moonrider - Moonrider (50th Anniversary Edition)

Moonrider was formed in 1974 after vocalist Keith West (formerly of Tomorrow) worked with guitarist Jason Weider (previously in Family and The Animals) on West's solo album Wherever My Love Goes.  Along with bassist Bruce Thomas, who would go on to play with Elvis Costello, and drummer Chico Greenwood, they released one album, made a couple TV appearances and opened for a few other artists before calling it a day.  Now, fifty years after its release, that album has been remastered and reissued with 9 bonus tracks.  While the music of their prior bands tended to be in more of the psychedelic and prog rock genres, Moonrider’s music drew more from pub rock and the country rock of the West Coast.   After starting off sounding like a dance tune, the album’s opener “Angel Of Mercy” becomes a nice, laid-back pub rock track with a bit of a soulful side, and is followed by the gentle, country rock of “Having Someone” with its Eagles like harmonies.  “Our Day’s Gonna Come” shifts gears a bit, sounding like more of an easy listening, yacht rock ballad, and is one of the weaker tracks here.  Featuring Weider’s only lead vocal on the album, “Good Things” is a nice midtempo country rock track with a laid-back, galloping beat and some really solid guitar.  The upbeat “Livin’ On Main Street” adds a little boogie to the beat and has some bluesy guitar from Weider.  With a bit of a funk groove, “Too Early In The Morning” is another change of pace that’s reminiscent of Steely Dan (Steely Dan producer Gary Katz was initially supposed to produce the album but never showed up to the studio).  The next two tracks, “Golddigger” and “Danger In The Night,” are to me the best on the album and both show their rock side with the latter having a darker, Neil Young vibe.  “Ridin’ For A Fall” is another country-tinged pub rocker with an extremely catchy chorus, which brings us to the album closer, “As Long As It Takes,” a somewhat generic country rock ballad that is a little too soft rock.  As for the bonus cuts, first up is the non-album single “I Found Love,” which is on the poppier side and sounds like they are trying a little too hard for a hit.  The remaining bonus tracks are a previously unreleased six song set that was recorded for the BBC In Concert radio session and two cuts from their appearance on the BBC’s Old Grey Whistle Test.  Both performances sound great and make excellent additions to the CD.  Following the album's release, they toured with John Mayall, Ace and even Chaka Khan, but between label financial woes and conflicts between the members, the band was short lived.  While its not without its flaws and weaker cuts, Moonrider is an album that is definitely worth checking out.  

(Think Like A Key Music)

Rose Tattoo - The Albums 1981 - 1984

Australia's Rose Tattoo formed in 1976 and were led by vocalist Angry Anderson along with the distinctive slide guitar work of Peter Wells.  Between 1978 and 1984 they released four albums (Wells left after album three) with a sound that notably drew from elements of pub rock, punk, metal and blues.  Now, thanks to Lemon Records, those first four albums, along with a handful of bonus tracks, have been compiled on the four-disc box set The Albums 1981-1984.

The band set the bar high with their eponymous debut (also titled Rock ‘N’ Roll Outlaw in some areas), an album that explodes with bluesy Australian pub rock delivered with a raw and ragged, hard rocking punk energy highlighted by Wells’ aforementioned slide guitar.  The album opens with the perfect introduction to the band - the ragged and full of swagger “Rock ‘N’ Roll Outlaw” followed by “Nice Boys,” which was made even more famous when Guns ‘N’ Roses covered it.  While GnR definitely did the song justice, just take a listen to this version, a raw, punk-paced rock and roll anthem that takes it to another level.  Shifting gears a little, “The Butcher And Fast Eddy” is a slower, gritty storytelling tune reminiscent of Thin Lizzy that tells the real-life story of a gang war that led to the death of one gang's leader, followed by “One of The Boys, a bluesy boogie woogie track not so unlike George Thorogood.  “Remedy” is up next and is a blue-tinged rocker with no-frills punk energy, similar in style to later tracks “T.V.” and “Tramp.”  With guitar riffs taken almost directly from AC/DC’s “She’s Got Balls” (the album was produced by the team of Vanda and Young, who notably also worked with AC/DC), “Bad Boy For Love” is more of a midtempo blues rock track with some great slide guitar.  The slide work is again very notable on “Stuck On You,” a captivating, soulful, semi-acoustic cut that is the only slow song.  At almost six minutes, the album closes in fine fashion with “Astra Wally” is a super fast rocker with some absolute killer guitar work and an extremely infectious groove.  Also included on disc one is the bonus track “Snow Queen” another solid hard rock tune.

For their sophomore release, Assault & Battery, the band stuck pretty close to what had made the debut successful, with songs like “Let It Go,” “Assault & Battery,” “Sidewalk Sally” and the radio-friendly “Rock & Roll Is King” sticking to the straight-ahead rock, while “All The Lessons,” “Magnum Maid,” “Manzil Madness” and the raw, crunching “Suicide City” having more of the in-your-face punk element.  The AC/DC influence also shows up from time to time, most notably on “Out Of Place” and album highlight “Chinese Dunkirk,” a slower bluesy track that sounds like a cross between AC/DC and ZZ Top.  Although not quite as good as the debut, this album is another outstanding release.  Six more bonus tracks can be found on disc two starting with the swagger filled straight-up punk of “I Had You First.”  Followed by a 7” version of “Rock ‘N’ Roll Is King” are four live cuts.  The sound quality is just so-so, but they definitely show the power of the band playing live.  

While album number three, Scarred For Life, ended up being their most successful album in Australia, it also found them largely bailing on their aggressive raw punk element and instead shifting towards a more mainstream, radio friendly sound.  Throughout the album there is an emphasis on rock anthems with songs like “It’s Gonna Work Itself Out,” “Sydney Girls,” “We Can’t Be Beaten,” a bluesy rocker with a big anthemic chorus, and “Branded,” an extremely catchy track that’s on the poppy side, but one where they really make that work.  They also throw in a little Southern Rock influence here on tracks like “Juice On The Loose” and “Who’s Got The Cash.”  They tap into Led Zeppelin on the barnstorming “Revenge” and show the AC/DC connection again on tunes like the title track and “Texas,” the latter of which also adds a little ZZ Top flavored boogie.  As for the punk, they haven’t completely abandoned that as can be heard on “Dead Set.”  Although not quite as good as their first two releases, there is plenty to like on album number three.  There are three more bonus tracks on this disc, including the single version of “Branded,” the honky tonk country rock of “Fightin’ Sons” (this one would have been a nice addition to the album) and the rocking anthem “All Hell Broke Loose.”  

When album number four, Southern Stars, came along, the band had gone through a pretty big overhaul with Anderson and bassist Geordie Leach not only the remaining original members, but also the only members left from the Scarred For Life lineup.  That album also saw them shifting even further in more of a generic AOR direction. Unfortunately, a lot of these songs ended up being pretty lackluster with nothing to really set them apart.  They also venture into reggae on “The Pirate Song,” and “No Secrets” is an attempt at a rock ballad, but neither of these really work well.  Having said that, there are a few that are worth the listen.  These include the radio friendly “I Wish,” which has some really strong guitar, “Saturday’s Rage,” with its high-energy drive and “Death Or Glory”.  A couple of the songs, the gritty rocker “You’ve Been Told” and the hard driving, boogie woogie rocker “The Radio Said Rock ‘N’ Roll Is Dead,” take you back to the earlier “old school Rose Tattoo” days.  There are two more bonus tracks on disc four along with a single version of “Freedom’s Flame."  They are both a couple of solid straight-ahead rockers, “Never Too Loud” and “Wild One,” that are ironically stronger than most of the album cuts.  Rounded out with an informative CD booklet detailing the band’s history The Albums 1981-1984 is a nice box set that gives some much deserved attention to a band that although not overlooked, one that deserved more attention and accolades than they got.  

(Lemon Records)

Buzzcocks - Attitude Adjustment

When Pete Shelley passed away in 2018, Steve Diggle became the only remaining founding member of the legendary Buzzcocks.  Instead of replacing him, they continued as a three-piece, with the remaining members Chris Remington and Danny Farrant in the band since 2008 and 2006 respectively and released Sonics In The Soul in 2022.  They have now followed that up with the band’s twelfth release Attitude Adjustment, an excellent album from start to finish that does a great job of showing what made the Buzzcocks who they are but also branches out a bit as well.  That classic sound is evident out the gate with the straight-ahead punchy punk of “Queen of the Scene,” the slightly slower “Games,” which also has a hint of a rootsy undercurrent, and the mellower “Seeing Daylight.”  “Poetic Machine Gun” and “Tears of a Golden Girl” both find them shifting in more of a classic punk direction, the former with a couple of psychedelic breaks and the latter with more of a pop side.  Slower, heavier, noisier and darker, “Heavy Streets” is an interesting departure that at times comes across sounding like something that Bowie would’ve recorded in Tin Machine. Bookended by two fifty-five second musical interludes titled “One of the Universe (Part One)” and “One of the Universe (Part Two)”, “All Gone to War” is a nice, stripped down acoustic track that is a complete shifting of pace.  Not really what you think of when you think Buzzcocks, album standout “Jesus at the Wheel” is a gorgeous, very melancholy, largely acoustic cut that rolls along and digs deeper in your brain as you listen.  The extremely catchy “Just a Dream I Followed” is another super melodic, extremely catchy punk blast and “Feelin' Uptight” follows the same punk path but is a little repetitive and to me is the weakest cut here.  Ironically, it’s followed by another of the album’s high points in “Break That Ball and Chain,” an incredibly fun track driven by a Motown beat that gives it more of a mod Sound.  The album winds up with the perfect closer with the anthemic ballad “The Greatest of Them All.”  Attitude Adjustment is a welcome addition to the Buzzcocks discography.  

(Cherry Red Records)

   

Los Armadillos - Another Monday Morning single

The Armadillos initially got their start in Zurich in 1985 and over the years have gone through some changes including changing their name to Los Armadillos.  Two of the current members, vocalist / guitarist / organist Bernie Sprenger and drummer Dominique Muench, have been there since the beginning, now being joined by Michael Herzig on bass and vocals.  Following an EP in 2023, they are now back with the new single containing a couple of garage rockers that take inspiration from bands like The Fleshtones and mix in a little Tex-Mex and some great pop hooks.   “Another Monday Morning” has a lazy groove and stabbing organ fills that will have you singing long after the music is over.  The flipside “Do It” is again rather laid-back, but with more of a surf / garage rock sound.  

(Los Armadillos)

McAuley Schenker Group: Bad Boys - The McAuley Schenker Group Story 1987-1992

After getting his start in his brother Rudolf’s band The Scorpions in his mid-teens and then playing guitar on their debut album when he was just sixteeen, Michael Schenker joined UFO, playing with them for the next five years.  Following that with another short stint with The Scorpions, he then formed The Michael Schenker Group with vocalist Gary Barden.  From 1980 to 1984, they released four studio and two live albums (Barden was replaced by Graham Bonnet for their third studio album before Barden returned for number four).  When Barden left the band again, Schenker teamed up with former Grand Prix vocalist Robin McAuley and together they released three albums, an unplugged live album and an acoustic EP, which have all been collected here on Bad Boys- The McAuley Schenker Group Story 1987-1992.

Their debut was Perfect Timing, which ended up as their most melodic album and kicks off with “Gimme Your Love,” which epitomizes that, with big choruses and hooks, and great guitar work including a strong solo.  “Here Today - Gone Tomorrow” and “Don’t Stop Me” are more great examples of their mastery of that sound.  “No Time For Losers” and “Get Out” are a couple of shredders that give the album a bit of a punch, while “Follow The Night” and “Time,” a really gorgeous tune enhanced perfectly with Steve Mann’s keys, are really strong ballads, but with a bite.  “Love Is Not A Game” walks the line between ballad and rocker and “I Don’t Wanna Lose,” in my opinion the album’s best song, mixes acoustic guitar with electric and has a slight bluesy groove (don’t miss the guitar solo on this one).  Disc one closes out with a couple of bonus tracks in the form of edited versions of albums cuts.

Their sophomore album opens with the title track “Save Yourself,” which starts off with an excellent guitar solo leading into a hard-driving rocker that explodes with Schenker’s guitar work.  “Bad Boys” is up next and is more straight-ahead rock with a touch of bluesy swagger, while “Anytime” is a great power ballad with more strong guitar and McAuley’s emotional vocals (this was the biggest single of their career).  While there are a couple of other really solid tracks like the darker “Shadow of the Night” and “This Is My Heart,” another strong ballad, a lot of the remaining songs are just a little too generic (“I Am Your Radio” is the epitome of this), making this a less consistent release.  Disc two has seven more bonus tracks that include “There Has To Be Another Way,” a strong instrumental that really showcases Schenker’s guitar work, and the straight-ahead hard rocker “Vicious,” which was released as a b-side.  Both of these tracks are actually better than some of the songs that ended up on the album.  The remaining tracks include several single and radio edits of album tracks along with a nice acoustic version of "Bad Boys."

When they got around to album number three, simply titled MSG, melodic rock and hair metal was being pushed aside by grunge and as a result the album at times had a heavier, more guitar-driven sound than its predecessors.  Songs like “Eve,” which still has that melodic rock sound but with an edge, the straight-ahead hard rock of “Invincible,” and “This Broken Heart” are good examples of this.  Having said that there are several power ballads here where they really shine and show that not many bands did them as well as them  These include “When I’m Gone” (written by McAuley and Jesse Harms, who at that time was Sammy Hagar’s keyboardist), “What Happens To Me” and “This Night Is Gonna Last Forever” with its big sweeping choruses, and the hauntingly gorgeous closing track “Never Ending Nightmare.”  Some of the other high points are “Lonely Nights” (check out Schenker’s soloing on this one) and the catchy midtempo rocker “We Believe In Love.”  Five more bonus tracks can be found on disc three consisting primarily of edits and alternative versions of album cuts, most notably a great acoustic version of “When I’m Gone.”

With grunge taking over the rock charts at this point, MSG didn't make much of a dent in America and there wasn't a full electric tour to support MSG.  The band did though see the success that bands were having with MTV's Unplugged, so after releasing Nightmare: The Acoustic EP in Japan, a mini-album of acoustic tracks (the acoustic studio versions included here appear to come from this release), they did a nine-month acoustic tour resulting in the Unplugged Live album, found here on the box set's final disc.  Stripped down to just McAuley’s vocals and Schenker's guitars, along with Shark Island’s Spencer Serombe on rhythm guitar and 12-string, the songs are given a completely different life here and honestly this is the disc that I go back to the most.  Along with songs from all three of their albums, they performed three UFO songs, “Lights Out,” “Doctor Doctor” and “Natural Light.”  The disc closes out with five more bonus tracks, including a live acoustic version of UFO’s “Only You Can Rock Me” and acoustic versions of four more songs.  This highly recommended box set is rounded out nicely with a very informative booklet detailing the band’s career with stories behind each release.  

(HNE Recordings)

Bagdad - They Don't Know EP

Formed in 2023 by a couple of high school friends, guitarist/vocalist Franciszek Drobiński (guitar, vocals) and bassist Wojciech Stach, and later rounded out by drummer Jakub Gadamski, Polish three-piece Bagdad have recently released their debut EP They Don't Know.  While it does have a few short bursts of energy, the Cobain like vocal delivery and droning guitars of opening track "Valley Of Dry Bones" are quite reminiscent of Nirvana's slower moments.  With it's infectious beat, the fuzz rock of "Somewhere, Nowhere" is the most upbeat and "pop" (using that term loosely) track here and really highlights their diversity.  The midtempo "Knight Errant Block" starts off somewhat restrained and then becomes even more introspective about halfway through before letting oose at the end.  The dreamy "Ash Pan Nocturne" is a gorgeous cut of swirling slowcore with a taut undercurrent rearing its head at times.  The seven plus minute "Heartland" closes out the EP and is a very introspective track at first, building to a slow, but much noisier instrumental ending about halfway through.  With elements that include slowcore, grunge, pop, fuzz rock, and post-punk They Don't Know is quite an impressive debut.

(Rite Field Records)

Howard Jones - Live At The Marquee

On September 20, 1983, a few months before he released his debut album, just as his first single “New Song” was about to break into the UK Top 40 and a couple of days before he would make his Top Of The Pops debut (both of which he mentions during the show), Howard Jones played his first show at London’s Marquee Club. About twenty-five years later a previously unreleased recording of that performance was found in some tapes that were being transferred for possible bonus tracks on the 2018 reissue of Human’s Lib.  Now, thanks to Cherry Red Records, that full show has been released on CD and double LP, and sound great.  Among the thirteen tracks in the set are eight of the ten that would end up on Human’s Lib, with the bulk of the remaining songs ending up as b-sides or future album cuts.  Jones performance is animated and full of energy, and the crowd is very enthusiastic, as evidenced by the singalong on “New Song.” While at this point the album had been out for about six months, it’s definitely not a paint by numbers performance, with Jones expanding and extended many of the songs.  Several of the tracks like “Hunt The Self,” “Pearl In The Shell,” and “Equality” also find him kicking up the tempo a little, and the synths sometimes have a harder edge than the softer sounds on the album.  A couple of other notable moments are the fun, upbeat honky tonk piano that closes “New Song” and the extended “Ruth, David and Dennis” story that he tells at the beginning of “Human’s Lib.”  Live At The Marquee is an extremely fun listen and a great listen back to Jones’ early days.  

(Cherry Red Records)

King - Soul On My Boots - The Collection

Following the demise of the Coventry rock-ska band Reluctant Stereotypes, singer Paul King formed the Raw Screens, who then in 1983 became King.  Over the next couple of years, the band released two albums and had several hit singles in the UK, including two that hit the top ten (unfortunately their only US hit was "Love & Pride" at 55 on the singles chart).  Now those two albums, along with King's 1987 solo album and numerous bonus tracks (35 previously unreleased), including remixes, B-sides, demos and live recordings have been compiled on the five-disc box set Soul In My Boots - The Collection.

Their debut Steps In Time gets things started here and is highlighted by their most successful single, the incredibly infectious “Love And Pride” and its pure eighties dance beat driven, new wave pop (I”m really not sure why this wasn’t more successful in the States).  While a lot of the songs have a similar sound like “Won’t You Hold My Hand Now”  and “Kiss The Pikey Fridge” with its heavier beat, others show they did have some diversity like opener “Fish,” with more of a rock edge, the moodier, more subdued “And As For Myself” and the soulful “Soul In My Boots.”  Closing out disc one are six bonus tracks consisting of a variety of remixes of albums tracks (the extended mix of "Love and Pride" is great), along with an interesting, somewhat darker and slower alternative version of "Won't You Hold My Hand."

The band’s sophomore album Bitter Sweet is on disc two and opens with its first and biggest single “Alone Without You,” another catchy new wave pop track, here with some slight hints of Duran Duran in the keys.  Also like the debut, quite a few of the tracks here continue down that path with “I Cringed I Died I Felt Hot,” which has a more midtempo groove, “(KFAD) Wair For No One,” the driving, classic eighties new wave of “Torture” and “Sugar Candy Mountain Buddhas.”They also continue to branch out even more here with tracks like “Platform One,” with its laid-back soulful reggae beat, the excellent “2 M.B.,” a throwback to the ska of Reluctant Stereotypes, the gorgeous, should have been a hits “The Taste Of Your Tears” and “Mind Yer Toes, with is strings and horns.  Five more bonus tracks can be found at the end of disc two, which are again remixes of album cuts.  

Recorded between albums in 1985, disc three contains their previously unreleased live performance at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland.  In addition to performing eight of the ten tracks from their debut (including playing both "Won't You Hold My Hand Now" and "Love & Pride" for a second time for the encore), they gave the crowd a preview of four songs that would later appear on their sophomore album as well as “Don’t Stop,” the b-side to “Love & Pride,” and future b-side “Crazy Party.”  Although the recording is a little thin, the band sounds great, and the crowd is energetic, making this live recording a great addition to the box set.   

In preparation for their next album, CBS booked the band studio time to record their next single.  Produced by Julian Mendelsohn, who had already had production success with Pet Shop Boys, "Baby Raven Mane" was to be that single, but the band felt it didn’t really represent their new sound and asked the label to delay its release.  They ended up recording numerous more songs in several different sessions, but there were conflicts among the members and after King worked on some songs with producer Dan Hartman he decided to leave the band.  Now for the first time, 21 previously unreleased bonus tracks, including demos plus that abandoned single, can be found on disc four of this box set.  That unreleased "Baby Raven Mane" single gets things started and is an extremely catchy track that would have had great potential to give them another hit.   The b-side was set to be “Something To Believe,” another excellent track that’s moodier with a bit of a rock edge that was a bit of a different direction for the band.  Songs like "Man For All Seasons," "Can't Help Myself," "Let's Find A Home," "Rock Trash Go" and "Some Risks Are Worth Taking" are reminiscent of what they were doing on their earlier albums, but with more experimentation and maturity.  There are also several songs where funk elements come more into play, like "Love Has Let You Down," "Ten" and "Building."  Some of the other highlights include “Glory’s Goal,” a laid-back, dreamy track with a soulful groove, and the ballads "Play That Song Again" and "Someday."  A couple of the other tracks of interest are "At The End Of the Day," a totally different sounding song for them, relying more on synths and giving it a colder, more electronic sound, and an interesting cover of David Bowie's "In The Heat Of The Morning."  This disc is an absolute goldmine for fans and shows a band that was really moving forward.  

As mentioned above, after being motivated by the James Brown song "Living In America" Paul King met Dan Hartman, the song's writer and producer, to discuss how he thought he was the perfect person to bring his vision for King to fruition.  He wanted them to have a more modern, soulful sound and was further encouraged by Hartman's suggestion to use horns and backing singers.  Hartman also said he thought the best results would come from using the session musicians that played on "Living In America" and then have the actual band members fill in when appropriate, which ultimately resulted in King leaving the band and releasing his solo album Joy.  Included here on disc five, Joy shifted somewhat away from the sound of the band towards a more polished, and quite often more horn-fueled, soulful sound.  That at times comes across a little sterile, causing the album to lose some of the charm of his work with the band, but it's still quite a good album. The two singles that were released from the album, the laid-back "Follow My Heart" and the catchy, upbeat pop of “I Know,” punctuated with horns from The Uptown Horns, are among some of the better tracks here.  A couple of the album’s other highlights are “Glory’s Goal,” a more soulful, laid-back tune that is reminiscent of Spandau Ballet or ABC, “One Too Many Heartaches,” a bouncy pop tune that has a little more of an edge to it, and ”So Brutal,” a soulful tune at first before kicking up the pace with some super funky bass.  A few others worth mentioning are “Pass On By,” which brings to mind his earlier work with the band, the poppy dance cut “It’s Up To You” and “Slow Motion,” an upbeat dance tune with a slow, slinky funk groove and backing vocals from Nona Hendryx.  Disc five also includes five more bonus tracks, again mixes and remixes of album tracks including “Love - Pride and Brutality,” an interesting “mashup” of sorts of "So Brutal" and "Love and Pride."  Also included is a CD booklet with an essay written by Paul King, giving details on each disc.  While I was only slightly familiar with King back in the day, I was quite pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable a listen Soul In My Boots - The Collection is. 

(Cherry Pop)

British Lions - Trouble With Women (2025 Remaster)

British Lions were formed in 1977 from the remnants Mott (the renamed Mott The Hoople after Ian Hunter's departure) when lead singer Nigel Benjamin left the band and the remaining four members (Morgan Fisher, Dale Griffin, Ray Majors and Pete Overend Watts) teamed up with ex-Medicine Head vocalist John Fiddler. After releasing an eponymous debut in 1978 and touring with the likes of Status Quo, AC/DC and Blue Oyster Cult, they recorded the follow-up Trouble With Women the following year.  It was recorded with their American audience in mind, but their American label RSO rejected the album and a short time later their UK label, Vertigo, did the same.  While these rejections led to the band’s demise, the album was finally released by Cherry Red Records in 1980.  Now, following the successful reissue of their debut, Think Like A Key has released a newly remastered and expanded version of Trouble With Women.  The album opens with the quirky, slightly funky swagger of the title track, a catchy rocker that, after some old school electronic blips at the beginning, is punctuated with somewhat psychedelic keys and even a little harmonica.  The straight-ahead rock of “Any Port In A Storm” mixes in some piano with the keys and has a hint of Mott The Hoople.  Somewhat a change in direction, “Lady Don’t Fall Backwards” moves in more of a new wave direction and even has some farfisa to add to the fun.  “High Noon” shows the band’s heavier side and really highlights the guitar work, while “Lay Down Your Love” is a rollicking, upbeat tune with some killer piano.  The bluesy rock of “Waves Of Love” often brings to mind Bad Company, but with more emphasis on the organ and some T Rex-like glam vocals in the chorus.  By far my favorite track on the album, “Electric Chair” is another heavier, hard-hitting track that at times reminds me of Phil Lynott and Thin Lizzy.  Closing the album out is their cover of “(Won’t You Give Him) One More Chance”, which had previously been recorded by Solomon Burke. It’s a very poppy song with a strong glam influence, along with a hint of ELO, that’s probably the weakest track on the album.  The nine bonus tracks kick off with the Status Quo demo of “Eat The Rich,” a fun, rollicking, bluesy take on the song, the home demo of “One More Chance To Run” (the studio versions of these tracks was on their debut), and the home demo of a slower ballad, “But The Night Is Young.”  “The Studio Song” is a goofy little “joke” song recorded at Mickie Most’s RAK Studios and highlights their recording session there as well as paying tribute to the people involved in the recording process.  The final four bonus tracks are all live recordings and includes a solid, straight-ahead, hard-driving take on the Medicine Head song “Rising Sun,” a punky pub rock cover of Chuck Berry’s “Come On,” “My Life’s In Your Hands,” from their debut, and “Wild One,” which would later become “Lay Down Your Love” on the second album, although it’s a little grittier here.  Trouble With Women is a sadly underappreciated album that shows a band embracing their past as well as the changes that were taking place in the music scene at that time.  

(Think Like A Key Music)

Leisure Process - The Complete Epic Recordings 

Formed in the early eighties by Ross Middleton, who had been in the band Positive Noise, and session sax player Gary Barnacle, Leisure Process released four singles during their short career, all produced by noted producer Martin Rushent.  The new two-CD collection The Complete Epic Recordings includes, for the first time on CD, all the A and B sides of these four singles (both 7-inch and 12-inch), as well as sessions, demos and instrumentals that were being considered for a never released full-length album.  "Love Cascade" was their debut single and is a catchy, very dancey eighties electropop track with hints of The Human League.  It really establishes their sound with the unique blend of synths and saxophone and made for a very promising start.  It was Single of the Week in most of the music publications as well as Peter Powell's Pick on Radio 1, but unfortunately, there was a mix-up at the label's pressing plant, and the single didn't hit the shops for another month.  Because of this, customers weren't able to get the single and by the time it was released they had moved on.  Their follow-up was "A Way You'll Never Be," which featured Mark King and Phil Gould from Level 42.  It moves in more of an electronic direction with a bit of funk, largely in part to King's bass playing.  The hooks were back full-force on their third single, "Cashflow," a super bouncy mixture of synthpop and new wave.  "Anxiety" ended up being their final single and is a solid, poppy, midtempo synthpop tune, but comes across as a little too radio friendly and therefore was safer than its predecessors.  The B-sides to their singles often found them showing their more experimental side.  These include the darker, haunting bass-driven "The Sun Turns Back," and "The Fluke," a slower track that's very sax and piano driven that strangely gives me Springsteen "Meeting Across The River" vibes and features Magazine's Dave Formula on piano.  "Rachel Dreams" is a colder, more sterile sounding synth driven song, but with Barnacle's warm sax, while "The Company" ("Company B" on the extended version) is another darker synth tune containing samples from films and TV and some great trumpet from Gary's dad, Big Bill Barnacle, and the slow and atmospheric instrumental "The Emigre" is quite different from anything else they had done.  In addition to multiple versions and mixes of the singles, along with a couple of the B-sides, are 2024 remixes of "Love Cascade" and "A Way You'll Never Be" from Klaus Devore that were included at the request of the band.  They are interesting remixes that are respectful of the originals, while giving them a modern day sound.  The remainder of the tracks are rough mixes and instrumentals, many of which were being considered for their shelved album Remarkable People With Interesting Lives.  Some of the highlights include “Pentagon,” with it’s fun, slinky swagger, the sprightly “Learning To Love Me” with its bleeps and bloops (check out the bass solo here), “Interesting Lives,” a slower, more atmospheric track that’s one of the standouts, and the upbeat “Call Me President” with its stabbing synth pulses.  Rounding out the bonus tracks are rough mixes of “Cashflow” and “Anxiety” and a trio of unreleased instrumentals.  The compilation also includes a thirty-two page booklet full of fun and informative essays from Middleton and makes this a welcome addition to the collection of any fan of eighties synthpop.  

(SFE)