Achtung Baby! KMFDM Will Rock Your World!

KMFDM- Blitz (KMFDM.com)

KMFDM started out in Hamburg, Germany in 1986 making soundtracks for friends' performance art in Paris, and their music has maintained a certain European vibe (Kraftwerk, Raminstein, etc.) ever since.

Often tagged as an industrial dance band, KMFDM (whose acronym is most frequently explained as Kein Mitleid Fur Die Mehrheit , which translates as “No pity for the majority” - or as legend has it, “Kill Mother Fucking Depeche Mode”) do indeed produce a dark, throbbing post-modern noise. They also toy with heavy metal, disco, hip-hop, and a wide variety of samplings- often within the same song.

Once you get past the industrial dance beats after a few listens, you’ll find KMFDM’s political awareness and fondness for found sound in songs like “People of the Lie,” and “Me & My Gun,” is still intact as they brutally blitz Krieg through these new favorites.

Verging on dub as much as on hard rock, and the afore mentioned genres, the synthesizers and guitars are pushed right up front, adding electronic accents, occasional vocals, and embracing them all with excellent effect. Elsewhere, the group either rocks out like metal maniacs, or just hammer home an intense dance beat with inspiration. “People of the Lie” adds female vocals to a time warped disco beat. Like Nine Inch Nails’ monster hit “Head Like a Hole,” “Being Boiled’s” rhythm section digs in for the duration of the song spewing out some of the nastiest, catchiest, aggressively brain-draining beat since KMFDM’s German counterpart, Nitzer Ebb.

“Blitz” is one of KMFDM’s most accomplished records to date. It benefits from the band’s overheated attention to the full sound of the music, and strict attention to the beat!

Great Vibrations!

Brian Wilson - That Lucky Old Sun DVD (Capitol)



The first part of the DVD for That Lucky Old Sun is an in studio performance in Studio A, at the Capitol Records building in California, where many classic Beach Boys songs were created. Brian and his band play all of their new album to a small, but appreciative audience. They recreate the entire album without any extra songs, or Brian or anyone frim the band talking to the crowd. Just a straight, live performance piece.

My thoughts after seeing about two minutes of the first song “That Lucky Old Sun” was that this was going to be a cut and dried show with very little emotion. Then the band, including a six piece string section, breaks into a mid-tempo boogie-woogie vibe, with Brian becoming animated, and the band locking in together, with everyone smiling ear to ear! You get the feeling that the past and present of Brian’s music has just evolved, and has enveloped everyone within listening distance, and brought us to a higher plane.

“Forever My Surfer Girl” features spot-on Beach Boys-like harmonies. Like most of the songs' harmonies (they’ve added a female backup singer, Taylor Mills, who helps brighten the songs through the set), the band helps open the door to Brian’s new music with an eye toward the legacy of his past.

“Venice Beach” and “Live Let Live/That Lucky Old Sun” (reprise)” are basic, simple snapshots of California today, put to beautiful music. They’re reminiscent of the Beach Boys’ “California Saga,” from their late 70’s Holland album. It’s like Buddy Holly said: “Look around you and write about what inspires you, that’s how you compose.” These are beautiful songs colored with pictorial soundscapes.

The music takes a new direction with “Mexican Girl,” “Cinco De Mayo,” and California Role,” which all feature a taste of The Grateful Dead’s “Mexicali Blues”-vibe. The band’s added gusto gives you the feeling that this is the next best thing to being there!

Some of the songs are punctuated with short cartoons, or photo stills from the 60’s featuring Brian, The Beach Boys, and The California scene, all of which are highlighted with hot rods and surfing shorts.

“Oxygen to the Brain,” and “Going Home” are brighter and bouncier than the studio versions, if that’s possible. This is a band that rises to the occasion every time they're challenged, either by Brian (“The Making of the Album” documentary is eye-opening) or an audience that’s pretty much expecting a nostalgic Beach Boys set. Amazingly, they not only deliver the goods in the “Bonus Material,” but they also bring Brian’s music into the here and now, vibing off each other with a mix of nostalgia and originality.

Back in the 60’s Brian Wilson gave instrumental surf rock a voice. He took Dick Dale & The Ventures’ mojo, and added romance (“Surfer Girl”), excitement (“Fun, Fun, Fun”), and love and loss (“In My Room”). He made the whole experience accessible to every one, and epically this New Jersey guy, and most of my friends.

On the documentary he uses his current band like he did the Wrecking Crew, which back in the 60’s included ace studio musicians like Glen Campbell, and Hal Blaine on drums. Part of Brian's creative process is examined by his current band in interviews, who say that Brian hears the complete song in his head, then he explains it to them, and then they have to play their parts with reverence and originality. They don’t use ProTools, it’s just Brian, the band, and a few microphones. At one point you hear Brian say to the backup singers to: “I want to hear your soul!”

Contemporaries from the 60’s like Mickey Dolenz from The Monkees give in-person testimonials about Brian and The Beach Boys, and Tony Asher, who co-wrote most of the songs with Brian on Pet Sounds, gives an incisive fly-on-the-wall overview of Brian and The Beach Boys’ creative process.

The DVD also includes track by track commentary by Brian and Scott Bennett, who is one of the guitarists from the band. There’s also performances from live sets that show the bands strengths on past and present songs. “The Black Cab Sessions,” is a web performance that will knock your socks off!

Just about everyone knows of the stories of Brian’s drug use in the 60’s, his demise and fall, and his recent amazing resurgence in the past few years. With all that said, we really don’t need to know too much about what Brian Wilson thinks, we just need to feel and listen to what inspires him. - Phil Rainone

Guilty Pleasures For A New Generation

Guilt by Association Vol. 2 - Various Artists (Engine Room Recordings.com)

I’m usually one of the first to jump on the bandwagon when it comes to guilty pleasures. To me, there’s more pleasure then guilt, especially when it comes to music. I’ve found a lot of guilty pleasures while rummaging through garage sales and such for vinyl records. One of my first “treasures” was a Neil Diamond album with a cover of The Beach Boys’ “God Only Knows,” an amazingly quiet acoustic cover. I also love stuff like The Archie’s, Chipmunk Punk, and the holy grail of guilty pleasures, The Royal Guardsmen’s trilogy of “Snoop Vs. The Red Baron!”

But I digress: The guilty pleasures on “Guilt by Association” are cool-as-a-cucumber cool! Fourteen indie bands that sometime or another crossed paths with mostly 80’s & 90’s Top 40 staples like “Tainted Love,” which is revamped here by My Brightest Diamond with less drama, and from a female’s point of view. The electronic dance beat that they dose it with is more subliminal than Soft Cell’s original, but still dancey! Toto’s “Africa” is given a much needed face-lift; hell, the original actually needed to be put in a body bag an thrown in the river! But Lowry does a nice job of fleshing out the words and adding an mid-tempo beat. The Forms cleverly synthesize and slow down Billy Joel’s historic epic, “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” The majority of the covers are bona fide hits in their own right, but there are a few misses, including Cassettes Won’t Listen’s drab cover of INXS’ “Need You Tonight.” It lacks the snap, crackle, and pop of the original. The lone song from 2008 (from the 00’s? what are they gonna call this decade anyway?) Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl,” turns the tables as Max Vernon’s piano-fied version provides a guy’s eye view: “I kissed a girl just to try it/ Hope my boyfriend don’t mind it…” Hey Katy, I sorry for all those mean things I said about you. You go girl! - Phil Rainone

Don't Forget The Hungry During The Holidays

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Punk Rock Karaoke - Birth of a New Religion?

Punk Rock Karaoke - DVD/CD (mvdvisual.com)

By Phil Rainone


“Music is a religion, Karaoke is a cult.”- Little Steven

I’ve used that quote a few times over the last couple of years, sharing Steven’s love of music and utter distain for that lounge lizard, Neanderthalic, knuckle -dragging, watered-down muzak they try to pass off as music in karaoke bars. Phew! That was a mouthful! But it’s all true! I’ve asked everyone from The Boss (Mr. Testa) on down to my friends Gary, Diane, and just about everyone I know at some point, if they’ve ever done Karaoke.- They’re answers were all pretty much the same: “Only when I was drunk!”

Well, after listening to Punk Rock Karaoke, I have a newfound respect! What this DVD does is take everything bad about Karaoke and replace it with a real deal live band, consisting of some very cool punk rock musicians, including Eric Melvin on guitar (NOFX), Greg Hetson on guitar (Bad Religion/ Circle Jerks), Steve Soto on bass and backing vocals (Adolescents/ Agent Orange/22 Jacks), and Derek O’Brian on drums and backing vocals (Social Distortion/ Agent Orange/ Adolescents). This scenario was tried with other musicians on the first few years of the Warped Tour. There, they used musicians from the bands that were on break as a backing band, and had the fans come up an sing to some of their favorite punk rock tunes.

What makes this DVD/CD even better is how, in the extra features, the band mentions how psyched everyone gets playing because they get to be Black Flag (“Gimmie, Gimmie, Gimmie”), or The Buzzcocks (“What Do I Get”), or The Dead Kennedy’s (“California Uber Alles”- which is one of my son Steve’s and my faves, played over and over on many a road trip.) With 10 songs in all (they should make a whole DVD with more Karaoke punk rock tunes), the first disc here includes both the instrumental and vocal versions of the songs. But wait, there’s more! They also include a second CD with the same ten songs as the DVD but with special guests doing the vocals. For example, you’d have the ace Karaoke backing band with Dickie from The Mighty Mighty Bosstones covering Stiff Little Fingers’ “Suspect Device,” or Dave King from Flogging Molly doing an amazing version of Bad Religion’s “Fuck Armageddon… This is Hell.”

And they just don’t put the words up on a blank screen like in some bar. Behind the words, they’ve projected either homemade videos or 50’s black & white B-movie clips, or wild WWII footage, which could be a little distracting, but very cool all the same. They cover all the bases, and then some, with on-the-money punk rock karaoke selections, a who’s who of musicians, and an extra CD sung by some of the best voices in punk rock.

During the interview (“Meet the Band” in the extras), they mention that they’ve been doing this since New Years of ’96 ( I hope this will inspire a gazillion punk rock Karaoke bands to spring up), and they still sound energized doing it! They talk tongue-in-cheek about how “We play and you’re the star, in three minutes,” and about the kids getting up on stage with some of their favorite musicians.

Besides footage of the band, you see the singers and the crowd get into it, moshing, and crowd surfing, as the singers, both male and female, storm the stage, working off the crowd, and the crowd getting enveloped in the musical mojo being created on the stage.

So you’re probably wondering if I tried it?! Well, like I always say, “They pay me not to sing… or dance!”
But, yeah I’m writing this up at work - not a soul around, except Otto (the seagull). So I put on “California Uber Alles,” grabbed a wrench for a microphone, and tried to copy Jello Barfia’s shrill vocals, leaping and hoppin around the room, doin’ the electric boogaloo! I’m such a pathetic sight, but I’m enjoyin’ the hell out of it!!

Dang! If they keep it, up they could turn this punk rock karaoke thing into a religion!

Bringin' The Mojo

Mavis Staples- Live: Hope at the Hideout (Anti-)

Without any intro or fanfare, the band - including Mavis Staples on vocals, Rick Holmstrom on guitar, Jeff Turmes on bass, Stephen Hodges on drums, and background singers Yvonne Staples, Donny Gerrard, and Chavonne Morris - take the stage, adding a soulful strut to Buffalo Springfield’s “For What it’s Worth.” After a that Mavis Staples takes the mic to say that, “We’ve come tonight to bring you some joy, some happiness, inspiration, and some positive vibrations!”

With that said, the mojo gets deep, funky, and fun. “Wade in the Water” from Mavis’ current studio album, was brought to a higher plane as the band jammed for six minutes plus, with Mavis roaring at times like a late train that’s trying to catch up with Curtis Mayfield’s train that left the station on time from “People Get Ready.” Both songs being about redemption and damnation. The background singers sweetly countered some of Mavis’ gutsiest vocals.

“This Little Light of Mine” which is usually given a traditionally spiritual reading, on “Live: Hope at the Hideout,” in Chicago, Mavis and the band conjure up a emotionally charged, but slow, smoldering cadence. The effect- it bristles with energy heightened by Mavis’ free flowing guttural growl that’s positively enlightening. It’s a stark change from Springsteen’s version who, on the “Live in Dublin” album, with The Seeger Sessions band, turned it into a righteous rockier, seating right it in the front pew.

Even the more slow, introspective numbers like “Waiting for My Child,” or “Why Am I Treated so Bad,” are attention-getting spirituals that focus on Mavis’ and the band’s interplay. It’s like sharing a secret between the audience and the artist. The band is viding off the audience, as they audience vibes off the band, creating an equally upward, musical spiral taking the songs to another place and time. Packing both equal parts intellectual, and emotional feeling into an organic thing, with both songs catching fire.

Hearing “We Shall Not be Moved” just two days after the presidential elections, and Mavis’ first-hand experience about racial discrimination, is both inspiring and shameful. We still have a long way to go but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

With many exciting peaks and valleys the show was kicked up a couple of notches by the encores of the traditionally upbeat spiritual, “Will the Circle be Unbroken,” “On My Way,” with it’s slow blues break, and The Staple Singers original, “I’ll Take You There.” The latter song ended the night, and was a standout. Led my Mavis Staples’ and underpinned only by Rick Holston’s subliminal guitar licks, they never approach the originals flaring, horn-fired R&B groove, but they did get the point across: Joy, Happiness, Inspiration, and Positive Vibrations!- Phil Rainone

Mavis Staples Brings It All Back Home

Mavis Staples- Live: Hope at the Hideout (Anti-)

Without any intro or fanfare the band, including Mavis Staples on vocals, Rick Holmstrom on guitar, Jeff Turmes on bass, Stephen Hodges on drums, and background singers Yvonne Staples, Donny Gerrard, and Chavonne Morris, take the stage, adding a soulful strut to Buffalo Springfield’s “For What it’s Worth.” After a that Mavis Staples takes the mic to say that, “We’ve come tonight to bring you some joy, some happiness, inspiration, and some positive vibrations!”

With that said, the mojo gets deep, funky, and fun. “Wade in the Water” from Mavis’ current studio album, was brought to a higher plane as the band jammed for six minutes plus, with Mavis roaring at times like a late train that’s trying to catch up with Curtis Mayfield’s train that left the station on time from “People Get Ready.” Both songs being about redemption and damnation. The background singers sweetly countered some of Mavis’ gutsiest vocals.

“This Little Light of Mine” which is usually given a traditionally spiritual reading, on “Live: Hope at the Hideout,” in Chicago, Mavis and the band conjure up a emotionally charged, but slow, smoldering cadence. The effect- it bristles with energy heightened by Mavis’ free flowing guttural growl that’s positively enlightening. It’s a stark change from Springsteen’s version who, on the “Live in Dublin” album, with The Seeger Sessions band, turned it into a righteous rockier, seating right it in the front pew.

Even the more slow, introspective numbers like “Waiting for My Child,” or “Why Am I Treated so Bad,” are attention-getting spirituals that focus on Mavis’ and the band’s interplay. It’s like sharing a secret between the audience and the artist. The band is viding off the audience, as they audience vibes off the band, creating an equally upward, musical spiral taking the songs to another place and time. Packing both equal parts intellectual, and emotional feeling into an organic thing, with both songs catching fire.

Hearing “We Shall Not be Moved” just two days after the presidential elections, and Mavis’ first-hand experience about racial discrimination, is both inspiring and shameful. We still have a long way to go but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

With many exciting peaks and valleys the show was kicked up a couple of notches by the encores of the traditionally upbeat spiritual, “Will the Circle be Unbroken,” “On My Way,” with it’s slow blues break, and The Staple Singers original, “I’ll Take You There.” The latter song ended the night, and was a standout. Led my Mavis Staples’ and underpinned only by Rick Holston’s subliminal guitar licks, they never approach the originals flaring, horn-fired R&B groove, but they did get the point across: Joy, Happiness, Inspiration, and Positive Vibrations!- Phil Rainone