Posts By 75orLess
Motif Magazine reviews The Funcrushers and The Lincoln Tunnel
Alt-Nation: Handsome Pete and Lincoln Tunnel
Handsome Pete’s Birthday Shitshow – The Funcrushers – Self-Titled CD Release (75orLessRecords)
Longtime local music fixture Handsome Pete Lima’s annual birthday never fails to live up to its billing. This year will be no exception as it includes a self titled CD Release for Lima’s surf rock band, The Funcrushers, who no longer exist. His new surf rock band, The Anchorites, will play instead. That’s a little confusing so I contacted Handsome Pete to get the lowdown. As far as The Funcrushers CD, I’ve heard bits of the album over the years, but it was always around 4am in a practice space in Olneyville so those memories are sketchy. I feared the record was lost forever in a warehouse next to Dr. Dre’s Detox album. Happily, the lost Funcrushers record has resurfaced and is even better than I remembered. The all instrumental record is very much in the style of Man or Astro-Man? as far as spacey surf punk. Highlight tracks include the sprawling “Rampart,” “Seamantics” and the soothing “Fond Farewell.” The whole album is something one can listen to on repeat because it just has a great chill atmosphere for sunny days.
Marc Clarkin: There are a lot urban legends surrounding The Funcrushers. Who is in the band and how long have they been together?
Handsome Pete Lima: The Funcrushers are myself and Jesse Roy, who I’ve known since the 5th grade. We recorded the record in November 2008, and we only played together for maybe 6 months before that. There were never any plans for it to be an active project; initially we just wanted to document what we had written and I wanted to try my hand at recording and mixing. The entire process was kind of a nightmare up until this past year or so, when I finally learned the “right” way to approach mixing. Somehow a rough mix leaked and since then there has been great speculation that this was the greatest unreleased surf album ever created by two guys from Seekonk.
MC: Some call this record a very political instrumental record. Did it start out that way?
HPL: If you listen closely to the lyrics on this album you would be hard pressed to disagree with any of our political leanings. We are all things to all people
MC: I believe it was Cream magazine that likened the record as the surf rock answer to Dr. Dre’s Detox and GnR’s Chinese Democracy. Do you think that’s fair?
HPL: During the 6+ years it took to finish the record, I can totally relate. The only thing I can say for sure is that it’s better than Chinese Democracy, and I’ve never even heard it.
MC: Oh it was the best thing GnR ever put out! Who is in The Anchorites and how would you describe the sound?
HPL: The Anchorites are myself and Kevin Bowden on guitars, Bobby Gregory on drums, and Chris Monti on bass. The sound is based on the traditional surf rock style, but it’s a definitely a little rough around the edges. Man or Astro-Man? is obviously a huge influence along with Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet and maybe some of the twang of the Flat Duo Jets thrown in there.
MC: What are The Anchorites’ upcoming plans? And what is it about the band that has publications like The Source magazine saying that The Anchorites are far superior to any band today?
HPL: We’ve already started working on writing tracks for our debut EP. I’m hoping to have it out sometime before 2022. We just wanna show people that it takes a little more than reverb to have a “surf” sound. After such high praises, I’m really hoping they invite us to the Source awards. I wanna take a selfie with Diddy.
Handsome Pete’s Birthday Shitshow featuring performances by Teazer and The Anchorites will rock The Met Café on August 21. The show will also be your first chance to get the new CD by The Funcrushers.
The Lincoln Tunnel – Today 2.0 (75orLess Records)
The debut release from the Lincoln Tunnel is a mess of indie rock, Americana and mariachi horns thrown together like a Jackson Pollock painting where against all odds, it somehow works. On Today 2.0, Lincoln Tunnel come out swinging like Mike Tyson with the frenetic “Damn, I Wear It Well,” which has the gall to sound like a cross between The Gun Club and the Jim Carroll Band. “Big Decision” and “All Together Wrong” are rockers that get bailed out by big infectious choruses, but otherwise would have no redeeming value. The horns on “Friend of the Roses” invoke bands like Mariachi El Bronx, but I can’t picture singer/guitarist Christian Caldarone being able to pull off a sombrero. On “Memphis” they have the nerve to sound like pre-sober Replacements — think “Left of the Dial” on meth. “Makin’ Cents & Takin’ Vows” and “Line My Pockets” turn to Americana folk. Begrudgingly, I’ll admit to really liking the lyrics on the latter. “Ordinary Sun” was probably a mistake because it is just an all around good tune with a soaring skyscraper hook.
75orLess Records presents a triple CD release show featuring new biscuits and performances by Lincoln Tunnel, Karma Rocket, and Groundhawgs. As an added bonus, Jets Can’t Land will also rock the house and it all goes down at The Parlour on August 29.
– See more at: http://motifri.com/handsomepete2015/#sthash.wNDamMc8.wf5RMH6g.dpuf
The Funcrushers at The Met
CD release show for their self titled album and Handsome Pete’s Birthday Shit Show!
with Teazer and The Anchorites
The Met
Main St
Pawtucket, RI
9pm
Jodie Treloar Six Star General Split – Lathe Cut 7 Inch Single
75OL-217 Jodie Treloar / Six Star General – Split Lathe Cut 7 inch Single
$11.00 S&H Included
Limited to 25 copies. These singles consist of clear poly-plastic with holographic, kraft, white, or clear numbered jackets. The four options are shown in the photo above. All styles while supplies last.
There is no digital download for this release. However, both songs are available on albums.
Tracks
1. Jodie Treloar – Sonic Boom 5:15
2. Six Star General – Christopher Walken 6:00
Jodie Treloar reinvents a song from Six Star General’s vinyl-only release “These Woods Smell Like Grape” and Six Star General contributes a song from their full-length album “Hair Supply,” which features choral vocal contributions from Mark Cutler, Suicide Bill, Jodie Treloar, and Dan Ulmschneider (Coma Coma, Bob Kendall Band) with piano from Tom Chance (The Propellers.)
This is not vinyl.
Brook, Bear and the Elephant ‘Montreal’ Album Reviewed at Foster’s
Here’s what we know. Nate Laban and Eric Ott have both enjoyed individual successes in their own respective songwriting endeavors. We also know that they’re good friends. So, it makes sense then that at some point in time they’d join forces and pump out some creative jams. That time is now.
Under the band name Brook, Bear and the Elephant (joined by other Seacoast musical vets Sean Yadisernia on lead guitar and vocals, and Dan McGary on drums and vocals), Laban and Ott have crafted a collection of nine tunes that push the bounds of each other’s general comfort zones. The result is grandiose, and the collective whole of their debut, “Montreal” is eclecticly interesting and wholly satisfying, from the influences that earned both of them individual praise to the inclusion of a little “Pet Sounds” era Beach Boys psychedelia pop, and contemporary Tweedy-ish playfulness and experimentation.
The most impressive part about the collaborative journey these fellas have embarked on is the successful forging of two uniquely different voices and outputting memorable vocal harmonies throughout the entirety of the record. I’ve long written about how Ott’s voice is reminiscent of Michael Stype, and the same is true of Laban’s Elvis Costello-ish punk-injected croon. Mash ‘em up, and you get some interesting results.
One of the highlights for me is the track, “Normal, IL.” Among the record’s other eight tracks one of the two gentleman take the vocal lead, while the other harmonizes in accordance with the general feel of the tune. On “Normal, IL,” both take the lead for a turn (while the underlying harmonizing still takes place). The track is fairly mellow compared with the rest of the offerings, but is cut right in half by a solo that you might find as a working piece of a Traveling Wilbury’s song structure. Upon completion of that slicing six-string flame, both Laban and Ott finish out the tune in unison, as the lead, levels both equally matched. It’s mighty fine.
Sam Hill – Sonja
75OL-216 Sam Hill – Sonja CD
$8.00 S&H Included
Digital download is available here
Track Listing
1. 37 Rings 3:06
2. Serpents 3:59
3. Bullet 5:24
4. Scourge of the Warm Blooded 3:12
5. Wait For Me 3:00
6. Lithuanian Maiden 5:34
7. Electric Funeral 4:58
Sam Hill is the devil. The band originally formed in 2013 to be the backing band for some of Nate and Cam’s pop-punk tunes, but with the added influence of Jason and his harder hitting tastes turned into what is now Sam Hill. All members of the band have been playing regionally for 20+ years and have been friends for just as long. Themes on the record range from tree people (37 rings), to life taking a form of a bullet, to ice giants (scourge of the warm-blooded), to the love of the woods by Maine’s own North Pond Hermit: Mr. Christopher Knight (Wait for me). The song ‘Serpents’ refers to an experience of losing 3 friends in a freezing winter river and being the last to see them alive. Lithuanian Maiden was a piece inspired by a piece of artwork by Joshua Belanger, a local NH artist.
Feng Shui Police video for “Shit, Man”
Groundhawgs – Lets Get Dark
75OL-211 Groundhawgs – Lets Get Dark CD
$8.00 S&H Included
Digital download is available here
Track Listing
1 Mr Walks On Water
2 Dogs of El Agustino
3 Lets Get Dark
4 Double Nickels On The Dime
5 Floored
6 Mercury and Mass
7 Apartment Down The Hall
8 Oblivious
9 Out Of It
10 Darkwaters
The Hawgs are back with a deftly crafted batch of NUMBERS that will quench your thirst for TIGHT, HARD ROCKING, POST PUNK FARE. From the get go to the final bell, LET”S GET DARK will scratch your rock itch!
Karma Rocket – Parts to Pieces
75OL-203 Karma Rocket – Parts to Pieces CD
$8.00 S&H Included
Digital download is available here
Track Listing
1. Basements
2. Disassembler
3. Providence
4. Telemetry
5. Karma Slut
6. Sun & Sludge
7. In The Car
8. Add It Up
Ingredients:
Sing-along harmonies
Pop-punk songwriting
Killer vocals
Dual guitar solos
Smart, hard-hitting grooves
Directions:
„« Mix together the catchy hooks of pop music with the
energy of new wave and punk. Add a heaping spoon of
post-punk a la The Pixies, Sonic Youth and Husker Du.
„« Swirl in a pinch of industrial New England city grit. Stir
until thoroughly blended.
„« Cook for 22 minutes, preferably in your car with the
stereo volume up and the windows down.
Some or all of us have performed with The Providence Singers, Rudy Ray Moore, The Brimstone
Assembly, What Cheer Brigade, The Panorama Jazz Band of New Orleans, Gallus Mag (Texas
psych rock mavens), The Big Heads of Pluturnas, and Radio Silence Sweetheart.
“Uptempo, fun core, party punks Karma Rocket have been rocking so hard lately they’ve been chipping their teeth. At rehearsal! Very metal.” – Providence Daily Dose
The Sound reviews Sam Hill’s new album ‘Sonja’
Nate Laban was born to rock and roll. He’s been an integral part of the Seacoast music scene for more than 20 years, always with a contagious smile on his face. His career has spanned a multitude of solo incarnations and bands including Brook, Bear and The Elephant, The Frosting, and Wallos. Over the years, he’s done it all, from anti-folk to skate punk to country; his quirky storytelling works in most any genre. When ex-Satan’s Teardrops drummer Jason Lara steered Sam Hill, their newly formed group, toward playing metal, it was a natural fit. Their debut album, “Sonja,” is a fresh throwback to metal’s classic days of mythical creatures and tales.
It’s not surprising Laban’s vocal stylings and pop know-how work well over galloping riffs and Tony Iommi-influenced solos. His powerful voice and registry have always been suited for metal. Never one to settle into a genre or project for long, Laban indulges in this chance to let loose a torrent of epic songs. The result is an inventive alchemy of an accomplished songwriter’s take on a new genre. Recorded by the band, “Sonja” has a slightly lo-fi sound that gives it a nostalgic feel — think “Day of Reckoning”-era Pentagram meets newer Saint Vitus.
The opener, “37 Rings,” is a stoner metal jam that chronicles a tree being cut down in winter; it doubles as an introspective story and features a chorus that shows off Laban’s hook-y aptitude. “Scourge of the Warm Blooded” displays his writing chops in an epic about a frozen giant who has come to destroy man: “He has had as much as he can take, enormous the patience, equal in rage.” And their cover of Black Sabbath’s “Electric Funeral” is spot on. In Sam Hill, Laban has found a transcendent medium for his harder-edged endeavors. Let’s hope it lasts