Battle Flask – Smile! …Tomorrow Will Be Worse
April 18, 2010
Battle Flask's latest album "Smile! ...Tomorrow Will Be Worse" is both a nostalgic and a refreshing experience for fans of Punk rock. The North Hollywood natives cultivate subtle twists into the characteristics of Punk music to deliver a sound that while different, will remind the listener of several prestigious old school bands. Released through Fallen-Angel-Records, "Smile! ...Tomorrow Will Be Worse" is an album worthy of recognition from the Punk community.
The album upholds fast adrenaline fueled music that immediately captures the listener's attention and maintains it with melodic vocals that at times will resemble the melodic styles of Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys. The music itself fulfills the nature of punk rock, yet through the subtle changes in the guitar's method of playing, will at times prove to be a combination of punk and rock 'n' roll/rockabilly. All fourteen songs in the album provide an intriguing sound that Battle Flask diligently upholds and re-introduces to aficionados of skillfully performed Punk rock.
"Smile! ...Tomorrow Will Be Worse" exemplifies talent that Southern California is still able to produce, and above all, Battle Flask's right to rise in the punk rock music scene. The album is a classic embodiment of music that favorites of the past once provided, which will inevitably inspire the generation that follows after. Battle Flask's latest release is a listen worth the time and the attention.
Band Myspace: www.myspace.com/battleflask
Fallen Angel Records: www.fallen-angel-records.com
-Stephanie M.-
Big Wheel Online Magazine
Go HERE to see all the latest record reviews
Music play list for the week ending April 18, 2010
April 18, 2010
Top 25 - In no particular order -
Reel Big Fish - Skatanic
New Order - Regret
Pennywise - Kodiak
The Freeze - Lies
The Devotchkas - Oi! Toy
Bauhaus - Third Uncle
The Baloneyheads - I'm a Drunk
JFA - Do The Hannigan
Falco - Rock Me Amadeus
AC/DC - Walk All Over You
The Business - Blood Ties
Municipal Waste - Hazardous Mutation
Oingo Boingo - Dead Man's Party
TSOL - Nothin For You
Karla DeVito - We Are Not Alone
The Specials - Do The Dog
Save Ferris - Come on Eileen
Rudimentary Peni - Sacrifice
TV Smith - Not in My Name
The Cure - Why Cant I Be You?
Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition
The Quakes - Beer And Cigarettes
Screeching Weasel - American Suicide
The Exploding Hearts - Im a Pretender
Public Image Limited - Public Image
The above list are some of the top played songs amongst our staff this week.
Download the above songs HERE at the iTunes Music Store
Message of the week:
Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness.
It is not attained through self gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.
-Hellen Keller
Get the albums that these songs are on HERE
5 Minutes Of Fame for the week of April 18, 2010
April 18, 2010
5 Minutes Of Fame is the newest feature at Big Wheel and its purpose is to present short news snippets in a quick and efficient manner so that we can provide fresh news that is related to underground music. Ideally this will be a way to get out a wealth of interesting information out in a way that takes less than five minutes to read. If you have any news that you would like to be considered for inclusion in 5 Minutes we encourage you to submit them HERE. Look for a new edition here every Sunday.
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Off! will be playing their first local gig on May 2 in Los Angeles, California at an art show that features the work of Raymond Petibon. Off! features Kieth Morris (Black Flag/Circle Jerks) on vocals along with members of Redd Kross and the Hot Snakes. More info available HERE
Bay area legends Fang have announced dates for their East coast tour starting in May. West coast dates are still being confirmed, and will be posted shortly. Check out the band's MySpace for details: www.myspace.com/fangofficial
In preparation for their upcoming "Rohnert Park" full length, Ceremony are releasing an E.P. called "Rohnert Park: Sick" which will feature two songs from the L.P.. The record will be out on May 4, but we expect that some copies might be available at their three upcoming Southern California gigs- the first being at Chain Reaction with Bane on April 30, the second at Fox Theater with Circle Jerks, 7 Seconds, and Municipal Waste on May 1 and the last being at San Diego's Che Cafe on May 2.
UK Ska/ hip hop/ frenetic sound clash Sonic Boom Six have announced a US tour, kicking off in Vegas May 5, and hitting Los Angeles, Washington, Idaho, Colorado, New York, Boston and all points in between. Sonic Boom Six are leading the new ska wave from Manchester, and have played with everyone from Intro5pect to Bad Brains, not to mention being described by NME as "simply, the most exciting live punk band in the country." Find your city HERE
Type-O Negative/Carnivore frontman Peter O'Toole passed away at 48 this week from heart failure.
Sick Of It All have just released a new C.D. called "Based On a True Story" on Century Media.
The Business kicks off their newest US tour with the Hollowpoints April 22 at the Europa in Brooklyn. The tour runs through May 15, and covers east coast, midwest, and the south. Full list HERE
UK Hardcore group Broken Bones have announced the release date for their new album "Fuck You and All You Stand For" coming June 7.
Public Image Ltd and The Specials recently rolled through Los Angeles. Chekc out the show reviews HERE.
Punk Rock Bowling is coming very soon. This year’s PRB is being held at a new location, Sunset Station that is able to accommodate more bowling, more fun and all the gigs all in one place. Start making your plans now because rooms in the surrounding area will start to sell out. This will be the biggest and most ambitious PRB weekend ever held! More info HERE
Record Store Day 2010 was held worldwide over the weekend. We have our staff all over the place from the UK to Los Angeles to recognize the efforts that independent record stores go to promote the music and to keep the experience real. Check out the coverage HERE
*** If you want to join our staff and make an impact on the music scene - Contact us HERE
Check out the Big Wheel poll question for this week - Take a moment and VOTE
Get all the latest show previews HERE Win a pair of tickets to some upcoming shows HERE
Music play list for the week ending April 18, 2010 HERE
Get all the latest coverage NEW content here
Some of the shows coming up this week are: The full show listing can be viewed HERE
Mon- Apr 19 Echo & The Bunnymen The Filmore San Francisco, CA
Mon- Apr 19 Cat Party w/ Death Hymn No. 9 Avalon Bar Costa Mesa, CA
Tue- Apr 20 The Bronx w/ Japanther, Mariachi El Bronx El Rey Theater Los Angeles, CA
Tue- Apr 20 Solidmente w/ The Smashmanics & Kick Rawks The Terrace Pasadena, CA
Tue- Apr 20 Cat Party w/ Crazy Squeeze The Redwood Bar Los Angeles, CA
Wed- Apr 21 Gary Numan plays “The Pleasure Principal” El Rey Theater Los Angeles, CA
Thu- Apr 22 The Bronx House of Blues Anaheim Anaheim, CA
Thu- Apr 22 Hole The Music Box at Fonda Theater Hollywood, CA
Thu- Apr 22 Bermondsey Joyriders w/ Gary Lamin of Cocksparrer Joey's BBQ Pomona, CA
Fri- Apr 23 The Slackers w/ The Phenomenauts Slim's San Francisco, CA
Fri- Apr 23 Circle One w/ Terezodu, Blind Nuns Riff Haus Studios Fullerton, CA
Fri- Apr 23 Broken Bottles w/ The Vice Five & Sweatshop Foreman Fern's Long Beach, CA
Fri- Apr 23 Dogends w/ Knife Fight, Nails, Dry-Rot & El Mariachi Ventura Vineyard Ventura, CA
Sat- Apr 24 Social Task w/ Doggy Style, No Spectators Riff Haus Studios Fullerton, CA
Sat- Apr 24 The Dear Hunter Glass House Pomona, CA
Sat- Apr 24 Dead Lazlo's Place w/ Sidekick & Action 45 Old Towne Pub Pasadena, CA
Sat- Apr 24 The Slackers w/ Phenomenauts & Los Hot Boxers The Blank Club San Jose, CA
Sat- Apr 24 Symbol Six w/ Dead Lazlo's Place, Action 45 Old Towne Pub Pasadena, CA
Sun- Apr 25 Tom Morello: The Nightwatchman w/ Run Run Run Dragonfly Los Angeles, CA
If you would like to have us consider listing a show you know of - email us.
Stay up to date with all the shows going on with one of the top show listings out there.
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Get all the past weeks 5 Minutes of Fame HERE
Decry – Millions of Dead Comps – Broken Needle – Marriot Hotel – Long Beach, CA
April 17, 2010
I found myself over at the Marriot Hotel in beautiful Long Beach California. I wasn’t there to attend a nerdy sci-fi convention or to lodge for the night, but rather to rock for a good cause! That cause being put together by Bay Cities Narcotics Anonymous. The Bay Cities “NA” has been hosting annual Punk rock concerts for the last decade in order to raise money and awareness for those suffering from current addictions and those in recovery. This year the concerts headliner was none other than southern California Punk legends “DECRY”. Supporting them were other Los Angeles based Broken Needle and Millions of Dead Comps (not cops!)
The first band on the bill were LA’s very own Broken Needle ! Broken Needle are a band you’d think were formed in 1981 because of their ultra raw sounding non metal style of hardcore-punk. However they’re a newer band ( formed in 2001 is still new right??) that rips through songs in the style of Black Flag meets an ultra pissed off D.R.I. Their lead vocalist Todd Tyler wasted no time in getting things moving and even getting involved within the crowd. Todd spent most of their set off stage and on the pit floor screaming his lyrics in peoples faces and jumping around like a mad man. The pit would start moving but would be over before you knew it because Broken Needles songs are ultra fast and over within 2 minutes time. They played a number of jams like “Waste Away”, “My Rules” and “Who The Fuck Are You?” in their 30 minute set, to much of the crowds delight. Todd mentioned that their next song would be their last, and before the crowd could even move from one side of the dance floor to the other the song was over. I was hoping they’d gotten more time to play because I was just getting into them, thankfully they play often around LA, I look forward to catching them again soon.
Next up on the bill were LA’s Millions of Dead Comps, no that is not a typo ! MDComps are truly a unique band, they consist of LA punk veterans; London May (Samhain, Tiger Army) on Drums/Vocals, Chris Bratton (Chain of Strength, Inside Out) Guitar/Vocals and Stevo Brown on Bass/Vocals (Mad Parade). According the their founder and drummer London; The band was started with the purpose of playing 80s hardcore punk “comp”ilations in their entirety and donating 100% of the proceeds to local charities and organizations benefiting those in need of care, food and shelter. On this particular night they were to play 1982’s “This is Boston Not LA”, a first for them since they had just been playing Washington DC’s “Flext Your Head” at their previous shows. Before the band went into their first song of the night, bassist Stevo gave a shout out to NA and said “If not for NA and programs like it, I would not be here today, I’d be dead, so here’s a big thank you to the NA for helping me and of course helping others in need” The crowd sensed his honesty and respect for the organization and gave a big round of applause.
London then announced to the crowd that MDComps is an audience participation band and that there is a microphone open to anyone in the crowd who wants to sing along. They then went straight ahead into the breakneck classic “Straight Jacket” by Jerry’s Kids followed by other blisteringly fast tracks by band like The Proletariat, Groinoids, The FU’s, Gang Green and The Freeze. The crowds movement to these hardcore classics was very brutal, I had to duck out of the way of slam dancers while I tried to snap photos and sing along. After the “This is Boston” part of the set they went into the Minor Threats segment off “Flex Your Head” compilation and that’s when the crowd went nuts more so than any time earlier in the show. Todd Tyler of Broken Needle joined em on stage and sang a few minor threat songs before the power went out, turns out a fuse had been blown. Thankfully the sound guy was able to bring power back after 15 minutes or so, just in time for the headliner up next!
By now it was dark outside and the crowd who’d spent most of the day barbecuing in the courtyard were now making their way towards the stage in time for DECRY !
Decry opened their set with the Dead Boys Classic “Sonic Reducer” and from that moment on it was safe to say that the shit had hit the fan. I got knocked around a bit by dancers doing the HB strut and circle pitting while I was trying to take photos up front, I did manage to sing along to “Sonic Reducer” with Farrell (Decry vocalist), It’s like he had channeled Stiv’s body and soul during the performance with so much emotion ! They’d continue on with their set and rip through classics such as “Last Sin”, “Strapped” and “Suburban Death Camp” effortlessly like they were in their 20’s again. They were the only band of the day to have a circle pit that never slowed down despite all the people in it falling over each other, it was quite intense, especially since we were in a hotel banquet room !! Farrell dashed around the stage like only he could and never missed a chance to put the microphone into the crowd so everyone up front could get a chance to scream the lyrics back at him. The songs that had the best crowd response were “Falling” a Decry original and a rad cover of The Damned’s “Neat Neat Neat”. Farrell does a great job of bringing out the persona of whatever band he is covering, Dave Vanian would have been proud of their cover.
They closed the set with “I like Drugs” which was kind of a funny title considering we are at a NA event, but Farrell cleared that up by saying “ Hey! we liked drugs, and that okay, but It’s better not to do them!!” which got a lot of laughs from the crowd.
All in all there must have been at least 200 people in attendance that day, and with each ticket costing $15, and event shirts at $10, so at least $3000 was raised, which is great because the NA could use as much help and donations as possible. This years event was a success, and it’s looks like there will be another NA punk show this time next year. I look forward to being there again in 2011, there’s no better feeling knowing that rock n roll can help save lives.
Till next time, rock on !
-Louie B-
For more information on NA and the bands visit these websites
www.NA.org
www.myspace.com/decryband
www.myspace.com/millionsofdeadcomps
www.myspace.com/brokenneedle
Go HERE to see all the latest show reviews
The XGirlfriend Experience – Crazymaker
April 17, 2010
In Las Vegas, it isn't rare to see women glorified for nothing but looks; however, the members of The XGirlfriend Experience show that talented women in Vegas can make a name for themselves, solely based on their music. The all-girl group formed in the legendary and former New York Cafe in Las Vegas, when drummer and vocalist Emmalition Derby (Emma) mentioned she could play the drums and Ruby Scruffs (Brookelyn) responded by saying she was a guitar player, and XGFE was born when bassist Kate78 proved to be the missing link the band needed. Signed onto Unrepentant Records, the band released their debut, full-length album "Crazymaker" on December 19th, 2009 ranking up there with fellow female punk bands such as The Runaways and L7.
The XGirlfriend Experience proves to be an appropriate name for this group, seeing as most of the songs off "Crazymaker" employ women power or satirical, man-bashing qualities. Their sing-a-long anthem-potential tracks seem to carry these characteristics the most; namely "Scream", "Red Lips", "Zombie Heart", "Pregnant Again" and the incredibly witty song "I Am A Slut". Although XGFE's "Crazymaker" includes a great deal of raunchy, high energy tracks, the band displays the ability to range to a slower pace with "Johnny Walker Black", "Honey Baby", "Tsunami" and "Cold Cold Heart", illustrating comparable traits to the legendary band X-Ray Spex.
"Crazymaker" starts with a high note and finishs the exact same way, with controversy, feminism, and problems with men all thrown in between. Based on this album and the amount of notable bands they've opened for (The Muffs, The Adicts, Agent Orange, and Nerf Herder), The XGirlfriend Experience displays awareness, intelligence, passion and volatile energy through kickass music, making them a band on the rise that one should definitely keep under their radar.
Band Myspace: www.myspace.com/thexgirlfriendexperience
Unrepentant Records: www.unrepentantrecords.com
-Sarah K.-
Big Wheel Online Magazine
Go HERE to see all the latest record reviews
Record Store Day 2010 – Music fans turnout worldwide
April 17, 2010
Originally conceived in 2007, Record Store Day celebrates the culture of the independent record store, and over the years has spread internationally, getting a little better each time. It is a chance for music fans to meet artists, for artists to play DJ and share their favorite records, and for a whole lot of love and "thank yous" to get passed around. This year we were pressed for time, so we focused on Amoeba Records Hollywood. Anticipation was high, as the official RSD website had published a list of exclusive albums available for the holiday, and it was an end to end list of titles to covet. Would we get there in time? Would there be any Joe Strummer left? Was Amoeba even getting any of the 1000 RamonesMania re-issues on 2-coloured vinyl?
The store was set to open at 10:30, so we planned to get there as early as possible. As we approached the intersection of Sunset Blvd. and Ivar, our hearts sank a little, as we saw a sheer mass of people stretching around the building and down the block in both directions. On approach though, we discovered one line was for pre-order of the new Smashing Pumpkins album, and the other, shorter line was for the store, not yet open. So we headed around the corner, and settled in to wait. 30 minutes to opening. People in line were friendly, but a little edgy. Let's face it, none of us are at our best early in the morning, and some of the people around us had driven in from the Inland Empire, Orange County, and San Bernardino to stand in line an hour earlier for the Smashing Pumpkins. Still, the chatting and joking made the time slip quickly by, and before we knew it, the line was moving.
Amoeba employees were at the doors shooing everyone inside, and others were standing on podiums shouting directions to the two bins of exclusive releases, one in front and one by the Jazz room in back. The bins were quickly and utterly mobbed. Despite the population density, and the certain knowledge that there weren't enough records to go around, people were surprisingly friendly. There was jostling, but no actual shoving (this wasn't WalMart after all), and people stuck at the back of the crowd who couldn't reach the front were yelling out titles, which those who could reach the bins then passed back. Once our arms were full, we dashed to the regular stacks to pick up odds and ends, and a few replacements for fallen records no longer in our collections.
The highlight of the day was probably snagging one of the limited presses of Tutu and the Pirates, possibly Chicago's first punk band, and one of the acts featured in the documentary "You Weren't There". If you're not familiar with the band, they have a G.G. Allin sort of humour to their lyrics, and the frenetic rock sound that popularized so many Chicago bands like Naked Raygun. Oh, and to my knowledge, they never had an official release when they were playing back in the late 70's, so this was your first chance to get your hands on the long-lost demos of this excellent band.
But that wasn't the end of the fun. Check out came with the nice chat you always get at Amoeba, but today it also came with a goodie bag packed full of freebies, including Runaways posters, free CDs, pill boxes, pins, stickers, and even a reusable shoulder bag. Since we hadn't gotten tickets for the 2 pm Slash signing, we decided it was time to run across the road to down some hot chocolate and dig through the goodie bags to see how we made out. Answer? Like bandits.
If you missed Record Store Day, you don't necessarily have to wait for next year to get your mitts on some awesome music, Amoeba is also holding their first ever "garage sale" May 2-3 from 10 AM to 6 PM with 25 cent vinyl, and $1 LPs, as well as a load of books, VHS, magazines, and albums from the warehouse. If you miss that, then there's really not much I can do for you.
-Jo Problems-
Big Wheel Music Scene Reporter
More photos from Record Store Day can be seen HERE
Also check out the Record Store Day Report from the UK HERE
Other staffers stop in at Headline Records in Los Angeles and brought back this video message
www.headlinerecords.com
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