I was sitting in my easy chair sipping my afternoon tea after a rousing game of strip-polo, when I was approached by the representative of Jesse Davidson to write a review for This Place is a Zoo’s latest album Strangers. “But this is a hardcore band,” I replied remembering years ago hearing their music in class with former drummer Ryan Wolanski and genuinely enjoying it, “I don’t know anything about hardcore punk music.” It’s true, I’ve dabbled in Dance Gavin Dance, I’ve heard a few North Lane songs and liked them and I’ve been known to, as the youth say,”fux with” with La Dispute but for the most part remain ignorant about the genre. “Mr. Davidson would like you to have the review on his desk by Saturday” I was told. And thus began an interesting prospect to offer an outsider’s, or dare I say, Stranger’s perspective on what proved to be quite the complex album.
The soundscape opens up with “Distinction” in which some ambient space pinball sounds that give way to heavy guitar, drum beats and screams. By the slow, smooth, somewhat jazzy refrain of the second track “Curiosity Killed Us All” (a song I expect is about the dangers of what we may find on Mars) it became clear that This Place is a Zoo exhibits a trait that is the one common through-line of all good Antelope Valley bands. They refuse to be confined by one specific genre and will borrow from and shift to anything that fits. Their protean antics take the listener from the zesty Latin waltz feel of “Deadline”, to the funky reduction spread over the title track “Strangers”, to the insane gumbo of stylistic changes within “Compulsion Sets In” morphing effortlessly throughout the album from one style to another and always bringing it back home to the brutality
Now, one of the things I immediately noticed as someone enthusiastic about lyrics is more often than otherwise, I couldn’t understand a single word happening and of course I tried my best to avoid reading the provided lyrics on bandcamp because that’s cheating. I assume that’s a customary staple of hardcore, as I never can figure the words out. At some points it even felt like the vocalist made a clear and potent point to be as unclear and unintelligible as possible but I was pleased to find that it didn’t just descend into chaos and wild careless thrashing. The music seems more to follow the Khalil Gibran philosophy that music is the language of the spirit and communicates primarily to the emotions telling stories of hopelessness, frustration, revenge, and frustration masterfully through the notes, dynamics and syncopations. Leaving the actual words as supplementary footnotes in case the listener wants further exploration of the themes. And this is so well done and so captivating, I found myself dancing along, shouting unintelligibly and overturning furniture alone in my bedroom. “THE WALLS ARE CLOSING IN. MY SANITY’S WEARING THIN” (I really can’t get enough of that bittersweet tortured disco “Insecurities”). Not to mention my delight to find the album includes a seven-minute track about extinction called “Extinction” which, I have to say is EXACTLY the kind of thing I’m into.
I came to about 50 minutes after the start of the album when my laptop fell silent. My clothes were badly torn and I was washing blood off my hands. Whose blood? What transpired on this night? What had I done? What evidence had I yet to hide? I wasn’t sure but I found myself feeling strangely hopeful for the future after listening. Awash with an unexpected euphoria. This Place is a Zoo delivered a solid hard core punk rock music album and I’m confident their future as musicians (barring crumbling society, alien invasion, and the end of the world) is a bright one.
This Place is a Zoo’s album Strangers is available on bandcamp for $8 or more if you so choose and if we’re ascribing numerical ratings with these reviews, I’d give them an 8174/10000 and a “Good Job” sticker with a star and a thumbs up. And I’d like to offer my recommendation for anyone capable of turning sound waves into information to give them a try.
Check out Strangers below:
If you would like to hear Marlon on soundcloud, click here:
When most people think of concept albums, a few things may come to mind . Usually, images of the past are conjured up. Bands and artists from the 60’s and 70’s singing about strange things like Pinball Wizards, brick walls, and such. Most people probably wouldn’t think of a punk band from the early 90’s. That’s where The Vindictives came in. Formed by singer Joey Vindictive in 1990, The Vindictives were known for sporadically releasing 7″ inch records and not touring on a regular basis. In 1999, that changed with the release of Hypno-Punko™. This is truly a unique document in rock ‘n roll. Not just of the idea of a punk rock concept album but also of Joey Vindictive’s struggle with mental illness and everything happening in his life at the time.
At first listen, it gives off the feel of 90’s punk. But the real beauty of Hypno-Punko™ comes with the more you listen to it. The style on this record was dubbed “Punk Floyd” by Joey Vindictive during the making of this album. The meaning of the title is a satire on the hypnosis tapes that were popular at the time while the album art itself harkens back to carnival and magician aesthetic. The inside liner notes speak of the powers of Hypno-Punko™ and warnings how powerful it can be. The concept of the record is about using Hypno-Punko™ or punk rock to eliminate negative things in your life that you don’t want to be apart of or avoid that you otherwise couldn’t do without the aid of it.
Preceded by visits to psychiatric hospitals, a traumatic car accident, and other serious health issues, had created doubt on whether Joey Vindictive would continue. The original intention for all these songs was to create a punk rock musical. This is a culturally accepted idea now but not so much in the late 90’s. A large portion of the album and lyrics originated while Joey was hospitalized. During rehearsals for recording, the band relentlessly practiced the music while Joey provided musical direction from a distance. Despite having hardly a budget to create a concept album, the production of the album and overall song structure is something of incredible worth that is rare to find.
The album begins with “Medication Time” which is a take on the effect and the relationship between people and various pills that are widely consumed. Leading into that is the key track on the album, “I Will Not: Pt I (sections A & B). Much like “Another Brick in the Wall”, various “I Will Not” tracks appear in four separate parts as a reoccurring theme in the album (and is one of the greatest rock screams of all time). Through the use of Hypno-Punko™, the story’s protagonist (and perhaps the listener) can stand up and say “I Will Not” to various controlling factors in his life. So much of the struggles and conflict in the album is directly pulled from Joey Vindicitive’s life at that time. It has deeply personal touch throughout the album, including his kids singing on “I Will Not: Pt. 4” and using an edited voicemail of his mother complaining about punk rock friends hanging out in front of her apartment building .
Stylistically, this album is so eccentrically diverse and yet flows together like they all belong under the same album and band. The sound can shift radically from fast punk rock, to an a capella harmony track, Benny Hill-esque music, and even a cover of Bing Crosby’s “Accentuate the Positive”. Along with layered guitar and sound effects throughout the pieces, there are various tracks done to give the effect of a hypnosis tape so they drone on for long periods of time (In Pursuit: Pt. 2 which is the last track on the album and loops for 43 minutes straight).
The best part about this album is that it has a timeless sound. Much like albums that are classics, Hypno-Punko™ has a sound that could be played at anytime and still sound great. This, I believe, accounts for the new discovery of this album by many music fans of today’s generation. As a music fan, to experience something different, or just hear what people missed out on, I highly recommend this album.
Thank you to Jughead’s Basement for providing the background on this album. If you’d like more info on this record, visit this podcast:
For throwback thursday, we’re releasing another preview of our podcast
This clip features Josh Bennett, guitarist for ACIDIC and formerly of Order 66. Find out about his experience in Louisiana and flying out of his bunk on tour.
Hosts: Codi “The Seismic Yeti” Yost, “Diamond” Jeff Collier, and Jesse Davidson
Unlike other careers people choose, the music industry is one of the strangest anyone does. Although nothing is guaranteed in life, the path to become a doctor, engineer, accountant, etc., has been traveled by many before and is a reasonably safe journey. When you enter the music industry, there is no path. You only have a vague map to your destination, whatever tools you have with you, and off you go. When you talk to others that have entered the music industry, they can only tell you what worked for them. Sometimes that will work for everyone or it will only work for them. Sometimes you have a guide to point you in the right direction or you won’t have anyone. Sometimes you just throw your hands in the air and see where the wind takes you. It takes a certain kind of person to take on a business like this.
So this is an on-going series for those who are working in the music industry and for people trying to break into it.
While the Band is Playing
by Jesse Davidson
In this edition, we had a chat with Mac Skinner, General Manager of Two-Rock amplifiers. For those unfamiliar with the brand:
Two-Rock is the boutique amplifier performance leader. Since our founding in 1999, our expert team of amplifier artisans has consistently delivered fully transparent, touch sensitive tonal performance at the very highest level of the industry. It’s hand wired, point to point excellence relied upon by leading artists like John Mayer, John Scofield, Eric Gales, and Matt Schofield – and the performance standard by which all other high-end amplifiers are judged. (Two-Rock.com)
Two Rock-Bionyx
We talked over the phone about his story in the industry.
JD: How did you get your start?
MS: It’s kind of interesting how it all came together. I’ve always played music growing up either with childhood friends or playing clarinet and saxophone in a jazz band. Then I left music behind for a bit when I went to college in ’94. I sort of tinkered around and dropped out of college. I tried to figure out what I was doing and where I wanted to go. When I finally made a decision I said, “ I don’t want to live in the restaurant industry the rest of my life. I want to finish my degree.” So went back to school asking myself, “What’s the one thing that’s always been a staple in my life?” and the answer was music. It always has been. So when I went back, I finished my music degree.
JD: Where did you go to school?
MS: Sonoma State. Around that time, I had made a ton of friends from my first time at college. One of those friends was a buddy of mine named Chad. We were roommates and hung out together. He couldn’t drive at the time so I would drop him off at work, which was KNM Analog Designs (the company that owned the Two-Rock brand) at the time. One day, sometime around December, the owners of KNM, Joe and Bill, wanted to go to the NAMM Show. They asked Chad if I could drive him and all the gear down to L.A. for the show and they’d pay me $500 and I would have my meals paid for. After that, there was a potential Guitar Center deal with the company that never panned out. But, they were worried about taking large amounts of orders and had asked me to come on and do piece work at the time. Little self-assemblies here and there.
Being at college, having some time, and doing solder work, gave some time to do it on my own. I started as a 1099 and within about a month, I didn’t just want piecework, I wanted to start building amps. I stayed late one night and built an entire amp. Much to Chad’s dismay, who was kind of my “supervisor” at the time (laughs). But I built the whole thing from start to finish. It had two problems but the thing fired off. That was the start of it. We moved into a new shop and for the next three or four years, I built amps. From start to finish and from the ground up. The chassis prep, building circuit boards, the entire amp assembly, shipping and final assembly. Somewhere in there, Chad left to start his own cabinet company, which became a full time job for him. So I took Chad’s place as the lead builder. About that same time, the owner’s of Two Rock were starting to feel burned out and I started taking on more responsibilities. The rest compounded from there and they sold the company to Premier Builder’s Guild. I was sold along with the company and became General Manager to run all of the production in this facility. Like I said, I always wanted to be in the music industry but I just never knew I’d be in the manufacturing of musical instruments (laughs).
Tone King: Falcon
JD: That’s awesome though. It seems like you just went with the flow of things for the most part.
MS: Yeah. The cool thing about Two-Rock is it was always an entrepreneurial business from the start and I always thrive in that sort of environment. And when you can stand by the product and you know it’s a good product. It doesn’t take much to put all of your heart into it, you know?
JD: Absolutely. As far as going to school, you met someone there that hooked you up with Two Rock. Many young musicians and industry professionals’ debate about whether they should go to college or go straight into looking for work. What do you think that college provided for you that you otherwise wouldn’t have?
MS: Well I think that’s a multiple part question. First of all, the connections I made in college and the amount of work I did in college with the musicians I was around helped shape who I am now. I really wanted to be a recording engineer. I wanted to sit behind a board and I wanted to have my own studio or work in a studio. Then I realized, I was supporting myself too and that wasn’t going to be easy. Because I’d probably end up as an intern, be working for 3 years with no money, get coffee for the bands and clean the studio (laughs) and I didn’t want to be that guy.
But the cool thing was, I was around enough musicians at the time that I got tons of recording experience on my own. I did a lot of work in that field but I became so busy with Two-Rock that I never had the ability to keep up with the changes in gear. This would have been around 2002-2003 and advances in recording came really fast after that. And my sessions became increasingly out of date (laughs) I just couldn’t keep up with it. So that said, being around all of that music, the musicians I was around, recording guitar amp after guitar amp, and listening to different styles from jazz, metal, rock country, folk etc., gave me the ears to be able to hear, from amplifier to amplifier, what sounds good and what doesn’t.
So if anyone were to ask me if college were a waste, I’d say no. I don’t necessarily have a ton of connections from college in the industry I’m in now although I do have some. Even the people I was around, I still run into from time to time.
JD: Yeah it’s a small world, right?
MS: Absolutely. I think college gave me the ability to communicate effectively too with people like artists and what they’re after. Not just in a studio but live performances as well. And all the makings therein.
JD: With all these people you’ve met and formed connections with, how do you stay in contact and maintain a good reputation with them?
MS: Well it’s hard to say because I’m so busy, it’s really hard for me to maintain a lot of contact. If it’s someone I work with closely, I try to reach out at least once or twice a month. If not, every six months or so. I have a high profile artist that I try to reach out to. I don’t much time to reach out to him very often but I try as much as I possibly can. Everybody is trying to get their stuff in the hands of somebody famous so the high profile artists don’t tend to contact back very often (laughs). But there are some I maintain relationships with. Matt Scohfield and I are really close. I leave him be for the most but he can call me up in a minutes notice and say something like, “Hey, I need something in New York in five days. Can you help me out?” and I’ll bend over backwards for him. And most of the artists and professionals that I deal with in the industry know that. I think follow through is important. I give everyone my email and phone number to make sure that I’m always accessible.
Two-Rock: Schofield Signature
JD: Is there similarities between being a general manager at Two-Rock to being on the other side of the business as recording engineer or an artist?
MS: Well I don’t just manage Two Rock but I also manage the production facility that builds Two-Rock and Tone King.
Tone King: Falcon
As for the similarities, its funny, I had one of my managers come to me and say, “I want to take a class at the JC and what should I take?” He doesn’t speak English very well and I said, “What you really need is to take an English class because the ability to communicate effectively is key.“ It doesn’t matter what business you’re in. To be able to talk to people and able manage employees, an artist, a band, whatever. You have to be able to communicate well and you have to do it respectfully. You have to really set aside ego or any other bad personality trait that may come in the way of communicating effectively. Put that aside, be honest with yourself and be honest with the people you deal with. And that’s probably the biggest similarity.
JD: Any last bits of advice for young musicians or people looking at breaking into the industry?
MS: Follow your dream and work hard. Hard work pays off. I’ve worked my ass off and made pennies to get where I’m at and that hard work paid off
Two-Rock: Bionyx
If you’d like more info on Two Rock and Tone King, visit:
If music is a form of art, then are all musicians artists? They’re often discussed as two separate forms of creative expression, yet they go together so naturally that we don’t really think about it. Artists are typically called upon if a band needs album artwork created, a music video directed or a promotional flier designed. More often than not, creative expression is a communal effort. There is a continuous gust of imagination blowing throughout our shared empty space. Whether we are the creators, volunteers, or supporters – our contributions, however small/large/vague, help the processes of creativity flowing steadily in our dry corner of Los Angeles County.
Visual art, punk rock and Skateboarding
In the 1980’s,downtown Palmdale had everythingin one spot. Aside from Rick’s Record Store, the best spot was Bicycle Radness. My first brush with punk rock happened during a Powell-Peralta skate demo there. I got to see a few of my skate heroes along with the dude who played Harry from Harry and the Hendersons. Beyond skateboarding, I looked deeper into shirt, deck and sticker designs and found inspiration from artists like C.R. Stecyk III and VCJ . Similarly with art in music, I dug deeper and discovered artists like Raymond Pettibon, Parched Art and even paintings from Captain Beefheart.
Art by GONGCO
D.I.Y.
With all of these forms of expression going around, it was punk rock that fueled the inspiration. I quickly shelved my Dr. Demento and Monkees records (though, not for too long) in favor of this “new” stuff. Not only was it easy to play, but you didn’t need the Steely Dan-level production value either. If you had the idea, it was up to you to make it happen and creatively share it with your friends. https://www.facebook.com/TheNarcTwins/info?tab=page_info
I associated these philosophies with the heroes I invested so much time learning about, but what had more of an impact on me was seeing it with my own eyes in my own community. Below are a few examples of local bands or shows that inspired me to continue to create art in the Antelope Valley.
I can’t remember if the Pink Rebellion was an ongoing event or a one-off, but it was the first time I saw people displaying art at a show-setting. It took place at the Cedar Hall in the very-late 90’s/early-aughts and was my first introduction to the Cedar Center . This show was the second time I saw Funcondump, Inc.— the first time was at a small bar in Palmdale called Louisiana Hots. I saw local bands Airplanes, Dead Rats and bands from beyond the A.V. like Cinema Strange. One particular show was also a premiere of an animated music video by a local video artist. It was like the chicken or egg thing, but with artistic expressionisms.
Throughout the above video, you can spot a sign for “Blvd Music Showcase.” I wish I knew more about what this place was and who has played there — especially if there were more performances like the one above by Leia:SLUT. This show in particular contains costumes, set design, story lines as well as the music itself. The crème de la crème of quality entertainment in my book.
Dumpsterpiece Theatre was broadcasted on live television every week out of KPAL studios in Lancaster. Each episode contained a feature film with facts, live music and improvisational skits, and a bunch of zany stuff. After each episode ended, I’d have to channel surf or spend more time training my brain to unscramble late-night HBO. That is, of course, until one of the number of late-night music TV shows came on, not unlike something off the Dope Guns and Fucking Up Your Video Deck series . The show times were sporadic, but it was here where I’d discover all the music videos that MTV was hiding from me.
Today though we have local news on Channel 3 as well as Palmdale Channel 27 and Lancaster Channel 28, you still need to pay Time Warner some pretty mega moola to access it. Unlike in Los Angeles where a lot of channels are offered for free over-the-air. Time Warner’s Channel 3 is also barely 40% local news and is repeated all day with very little (if any) attention paid to local arts and music. There are people working on creating a local studio space (http://coastalgold.tv ) for local television again and I wish them the best of luck.
Radio Freed Your Hope
For a moment, there was High Desert Modern Rock 97.7 in the Antelope Valley. One time, their sticker was featured on Beverly Hills 90210 and I think it was the episode with The Cramps in it. I remember listening to the broadcast as the station faded out; really sad stuff. Shortly after, there was Mono FM. Very much like the P@#&@#@ and $P@#!#& of its day, except songs were listed on the Mono FM website and you could request them. It was an indie radio station where the community was the DJ.
I just checked whatever was on 97.7 now and it’s a lot of twangy boringness. Today we have so many options: lots of great Podcasts, Youtube, iTunes and one of the thousands of streaming audio sites with a business model of sharing data-driven algorithmically-sorted inferior-fidelity files. With the announcement of Apple Music and its focus on live “DJ-curation” you can see the digital media backpedaling. Our local radio should give equal representation to our own artists than the ones who have the money to pay (or are willing to sacrifice more) for “exposure.” As for now, Chris Compton of KXFM 96.7FM does an excellent job on his own local morning show (and usually on the weekends, too).
Right where the Ralphs used to be on 20th Street West and Avenue L, there was a tiny record store in the corner called Rave Up Records. If they didn’t have it used at the Wherehouse, Blockbuster Music, Barnes & Noble or Best Buy, you could at least order it at Rave Up and not feel the guilt associated with purchasing indie music at mega-corporate chains. Plus, it was a place where I could pick up local vinyl. It was where I bought the Fed Up 45 (which I unfortunately traded a couple weeks later for a Voodoo Glow Skulls CD)
After all the mega-chains put Rave Up out of business, they too went out of business and abandoned even more high-priced real estate. Thankfully, a few years later, Crosstown Records opened up on K and Challenger next to the Tokyo Steak House. This shop was comparable to most shops in L.A. in selection, plus they frequently had live performances. I would spend a lot of time talking to Terry (who owned Crosstown with his wife) about all genres of music, though we mostly talked about late-70’s British Power Pop bands like The Boys and Eddie and the Hotrods . It was where I was introduced to locals The Resistors and Sex Conscious Young Moderns (featuring a member of one of my favorite local bands at the time, Hoomdorm).
Though Crosstown is no longer around (Terry still buy/trade/sells at the Pasadena Rose Bowl Flea Market), Wayne Tarasoft opened up Full Score Music on Avenue L and 45th Street West. Wayne has one of the best collections of Beefheart/Zappa available, plus he offers lessons and sells new and used instruments which comes in handy if you need money to purchase music like a good human being. With a Wienerschnitzel in the same parking lot, it’d be cool to have parking lot shows there.
Growing up in the Antelope Valley, I was lucky to have older friends and relatives introduce me to outside culture, but amongst all my long-distant punk heroes were the local ones doing it in our hometown. I could see them at a show, around town or on television and radio. Creating and sharing art and music seemed like an attainable and worthwhile goal. It has been an honor to work alongside many of the people who inspired me back then and not only to hear how their artistries have evolved, but to also help carry out a harmonious visual aid to such a wide range of beautifully-crafted auditory experimentations.
Today our technology is far more advanced, while simultaneously user-friendly and accessible at low cost. We can film, edit, record and share ourselves from our phones in a single sitting (and on most days, I attempt just that). We have all the music, films and information at our fingertips always. There’s no reason not to make something yourself (or with your friends) and share it with all of us, in your hometown— for those of us who are paying attention.
Album art for Godde Hill Road also used for their album release show.
By Jesse Davidson
“That Reverend Red ain’t right!”
They sure ain’t, Reverend Red aka Marshall Dymowski and his band have been causing a musical ruckus for years now and are back with their second full-length album Godde Hill Road. When you listen to a band like this for the first time, you may not know what to make of it. Surf guitar sounds with metal drums underneath them? Punk rock guitar along side a banjo? What is this madness?! Reverend Red that’s what. It’s this weird gumbo of Americana, surf music, punk rock, country, folk, goth, rockabilly and a few more genres to boot that form together to make their sound and this new album being no exception.
Songwriting:
For those who are fans of Reverend Red, this album is a musical evolution of the Rev sound. For those who’ve never heard the band before, this is an interesting start to becoming a fan of the band. Overall, Godde Hill Road broadens the style of songs performed from This Damned Town, their last album. Instead of a primary focus on a psychobilly sound mixed with a Tom Waits/Gothic element, Godde Hill Road includes not only songs that fit right into the canon of songs already in the Reverend Red repertoire (“Burn Um” and “Its My Fault” the first two tracks on the album) but there is a real diversity here between country, ballads, punk, surf guitar, spaced out jams, and an almost metal vibe on certain tunes. A great example of this “Rivers Red” and “What Now Sinner” which feature breakdowns and guitar solos that would make you think you’re listening to a progressive metal band for brief moment and not a contemporary of Hank 3 and Bob Wayne. Although listening to “Working On Sunday”, you can hear how much of an influence Bob Wayne and outlaw country has on Marshall’s song writing. It almost sounded like a song written for Bob to cover at some point.
Another sonically expanded area for the band is in the ballad type songs on this album. “Everyday Conversations”, “I Did it For Denver” and “Godde Hill” put a nice change of pace in the listening order of the album. In the midst of these high-energy songs, in come these folky ballads about love/heartbreak, leaving home, and whores (in which no Reverend Red album would be complete without). “Blood of the Lamb”, an old gospel song originally penned Elisha Hoffman in 1878, is one of the more unique songs on the album. This is gospel meets distorted guitar, punk backing vocals, and Tom Waits. At times this song is slow and creepy and switches gears into a punk sound. Lyrically, Rev has take a few liberties from the original song to create something resembling “Chocolate Jesus” by Tom Waits. The pinnacle of the new sound comes from the last track “Knock Three Times”. This track sums up the best of the creativity and performance of all the new musical elements Godde Hill and hints a possible new direction for the band to take. It not only features added instruments like steel guitar but adds a duet with a female lead vocal and has interesting dynamics from the entire band. The end of this song is entirely unfair because it’s a musical build with Marshall screaming at the top of his lungs and band playing as hard as they can then the song just stops. I didn’t know it was possible to have blue ears but now I do and it’s for the band’s next album.
Performance:
The way the band plays is just as eclectic as their songwriting. Marshall is back with his infamous fuzz tone and clean country tones and you can hear them demonstrated on solos throughout the record. His vocal styles often mimick his guitar playing going from a screaming vocal to a folk tones just as fast as he switches effects on his pedalboard. Banjo has also taken just as a prominent spot as guitar in his playing now. Along with many style changes, this album also introduces “Sloe Hand” Servio Maladanado on the upright bass. Although his has moments of flashiness, Servio is the man holding down the pocket while guitars and drums are doing a lot of movement through the songs. This album also sees the return of “Whitey” Matt Grahmn on drums. Along with his psychobilly style playing before, he has incorporated a lot of metal influences in his playing on Godde Hill. This really shines and comes through on the songs with open jam and solo sections. I don’t know if “Blood of the Lamb” has ever been played with blast beats in it but now it has. Notable guests on the album like Andy Gibson on steel guitar (who also recorded and mixed the album), Amanda Contreras on guest vocals, and Jimmy Clark on fiddle and a nice level of depth to the album and provide tasty bits that would otherwise not be there on the album.
Production:
Overall, the sound of the album is enjoyable and step up in production value for the band. One odd thing I noticed throughout the album is that at some points the record sounded somewhat thin. I could hear all the instrumentation but in order to really hear the detail and definition of the low end (bass, kick drum, etc.), I had to turn up the record louder than I normally would. This is something I usually do on old school albums because that’s just how they sound. Since this feels like an intentional part of the production and not an accident, it brings up questions. Was this album mixed in the style of an older rock, country or punk album? Or did the band want to capture the sound of the band without being beefed up by Protools trickery? Another noticeable thing about this album is that it’s not over compressed. So when you do listen to it loud, the quality of sound isn’t really compromised. Which is a nice change of pace from some new music being released today.
Art/Design:
Something not as considered as it should is album art and design. Reverend Red has considered it for this album and it’s fantastic. Done in an old grindhouse/horror movie style art, the album cover folds out like a poster. This is a unique featue of the album coupled with the cover gives it that extra something to make it cool. Also, added inside is a description of the Rev’s plan to go and raise hell complete with a set of liner notes. This coupled with using a picture of the Antelope Valley as a background for the CD itself is a nice tribute to the real “This Damned Town”.
Overall:
This album is for anyone who is a fan of rockabilly, punk, country, rock n’ roll, goth, or music period. Not only has Reverend Red created a good album but is paying omage to local places and people who have helped him in Antelope Valley who have helped out. This album is evolutionary step for the bands sound and I’m looking forward to see where it goes from here.
If you want to check out the album, you can listen via Soundcloud
