A day late, and the proverbial
dollar short, but the planned recommendations update is here.
All the recommendations come from
members of the Reservoir Droogs Facebook group.
Anything can get a shout out. The
only rule is there are no rules.
Yeah, I know that doesn’t make
sense. If you want shit to make sense
then what are you doing here?
Jimmy Devlin (Ex every punk band
in Scotland,
ex Wig Wam Bam, ex The Carpettes, currently on the run from debtors, and some angry
fathers who will soon be grandfathers. Allegedly. His lawyer told us to say
that bit.)
Green Room. Late to seeing this one,
but for those who don’t know it is Patrick Stewart as the owner and top man of
a dive bar. A skinhead/punk/metal club in the backwoods of the bad ol’ US of A.
Some right nasty stuff going on
throughout, and far better than most of the supernatural horror movies released
over the last couple of years. It’s everything that can go wrong does go wrong
mixed with American History X.
Perfect date night movie if you
want your partner jumping into your lap.
Klaatu has been getting some heavy plays around these here parts recently. Once considered to be the Beatles under a different name they also penned Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft that the Carpenters made famous.
Sort of lost in the mists of time, but worthy of a google in my humble opinion.
David (Munro) Orr (Vocalist Southern Approach/Outstandifold and the Wrttygrippers. Sex Badger and vodka and diet coke connoisseur) Sex Pistols tour of London on YouTube. It proves that you can take the punk out of London, but not the London out of punk. Mainy (Res Droog will weigh in here about his beloved US bands)
And as if by magic here it is here for your consideration.
Glen Robertson (The Stumblers)
Outside suggestion, but The Hope
County Choir with Let Your Water Wash away Your Sins is doing it for me, and
the album that it comes from. It's part of the new Farcry game soundtrack, and
to me it perfectly captures the gospel vibe with true country song writing.
And for all it sounds overly
religious it’s written to be cult propaganda but someone else can draw the
lines between religion and brainwashing.
Daniel Graham. The debut from Thunderpussy. Best
name for a band since Split Beaver. Oooft.
And not so rock and roll, but Anthony
Hopkins in King Lear is the daddy.
Jeff King. Millie Manders & the Shut Up
are currently on magnificent form, and been the talk of their recent festivals.
Pete Montador. Ghost in The Tanglewood from Ginger Wildheart has been getting bashed in the car, and the gig in Edinburgh was triumphant. (Link in Kels recommendations). Eureka Machines with Victories has been making an appearance too, but as of the Ginger gig it's Billy Liar that is getting a shout out from me. First time seeing him, but not the last.
Kel Droog (Right hand woman, the power behind the throne.)
Ginger Wildheart and his Ghost in the Tanglewood album has had me cheering and crying too. A very personal album, but made all the more powerful by the honesty that is on display.
It was my birthday and Mainy (Res
Droog) bought me some Alice Cooper Funko POP merch.
(Editor edit) What a nice guy he is.
A girl can’t have too much Coop
merch. If you are into that side of thing then these are nice collectables.
Reservoir Droog A hand me down recommendation from
me. Joe Whyte of Reaction and writer for Vive le Rock assured me that I would
like New York Junk, and he was right. One EP purchased from Love Music in Glasgow and I’m deep in
the groove. Bit of MC5, a whole lot of NY Dolls and a smidgeon of everything
that made the seventies New York
gutter scene so bloody attractive is thrown at the wall and what sticks is New
York Junk. So from Joe to me to you. Here's New york Junk. A review will follow.
And just a reminder in closing to go with the recommendations. If you like what has been posted here then go and buy the album, see the band, watch the movie. Support the artists because if we don't then they can't entertain us.
It gives us the distinct pleasure to feature Ryan and the Traitors (Again). Without gilding the lily we can hand on heart can say that he is one of our favourite artists.
One who jumped to the toppermost of the poppermost for us on hearing him midway through 2017. Embarrassingly so, we are a tad evangelical in spreading the word. Give us the slightest encouragement and we will drop his name into pretty much any music conversation we have.
If you haven't heard Ryan Hamilton & the Traitors, or any of his collaborations and solo work, then do something about that now. You will not be sorry.
It's not long until your UK dates with The Main Grains. Does
it feel good to be getting back on the road?
Ryan - Yeah it does! We've worked REALLY hard to gain our reputation as a great
live band. It's important to me, and I LOVE playing shows and being on the road
We often hear that there's a different vibe to how audiences react depending on
what country it is. How does the UK feel in comparisons to others?
And do you feel there's even a difference across the UK too?
People in the UK
sing along louder, drink more... and just seem to have a better time! Haha.
Seriously though. There's this extra cheerful, extra fun, extra "ohmygod
we're at a concert!" thing that happens in the UK. I love it. The only difference
is, some cities in the UK
go even crazier than others. But it is ALWAYS a good time on tour in the UK.
I love America,
but it's way more chilled out to tour over here.
You could be described as the new breed of artist. One who has taken the
independence angle to heart. It's not that this is in itself a unique approach,
but you self release, tour book, promote yourself, and in short cover as many
of the bases as you possibly can that would have previously been the
responsibility of a label/management team.
Tell us about the pros from your perspective, and the cons of working like this?
I could spend an hour talking about the cons of working with labels and
managers... but I'll save you that hour. Haha. In today's world, we have the
freedom, and the tools, to do what we want. Sky's the limit! You're really only
limited by your work ethic and your imagination!... and money. That's the one
place where the big, bad, major labels stay ahead of us independents.
They have lots and lots of money to spend.
People don't realize that all the radio play, all the magazine interviews and
ads... it's all PAID FOR. So much money is spent on acts like Ed Sheeran etc...
it's nearly impossible to compete. Somebody like that also has a huge team of
people to pay, and take care of. They also have a long list of people to answer
to and obey. It may sound crazy, but I prefer being a medium sized successful
independent artist. I'm in it for the music. Not the money.
Are you one of those people who believe that you make your own luck? From the
outside some may consider that you are in an enviable position just now, but
might not appreciate that you have committed so much time and effort to get
this far. So what is considered luck is really a relentless drive to create,
and get what you create out there. Is that possibly under appreciated?
This is what I believe. I believe you have to work as hard as you have to...
relentlessly. You can absolutely get there with a talent, and A LOT of hard
work... and any "luck" that happens is an added bonus. I will say
though; it's usually some random, "lucky", out of nowhere thing that
results in the extra big breaks.
As we are now onto talking about the perception of luck do
you want to let us in on how the album with Tony Wright came about? Pull back
the curtain. Obviously it wasn't just luck.
I don't know if I would call it luck, but it was super coincidental. We were
both working with super talented producer & friend, Dave Draper. Tony with
Terrorvison and me with the Traitors. Really just through the buzz we have
going on in the UK,
and a couple of conversations with Dave, Tony decided to check us out. Before I
knew it, we had emailed back and forth a few times, and were recording a song
together. It's strange, actually. I can't remember exactly how we got from
there to here. But I'm really glad we did. Love that dude. Got a feeling we're
gonna be friends for a very long time. We made an amazing album together, too.
Pretty much as an aside I've got to say that your cover of Wild Horses blew me
away. Similar to how Johnny Cash took Hurt away from Trent Reznor I'd say the
Stones should just accept it belongs to you now. That being said, what's the
track on the album that you are most proud of?
Haha. Awww, man... that's very high praise. Thank you very much. I think the
track I'm most proud of is WhiskeyRiver. We tacked that
tune differently than anyone ever has. It's so simple... but so pure. I love
the whole vibe of that tune.
Will there be any live dates to promote the album?
There will, indeed. In June. That's all I can say, for now.
Jumping away from the Grand Ol' Otley to go back to your Traitors material I
had noticed that you had an offer from a label and decided to keep going as it
is just now. Personally I would say you made the right decision, but what would
they have to offer for you to be interested in signing on the dotted line?
Yeah, it's been tough. We started getting some interest from
"industry" types... and labels. I was excited at first, but it left a
really bad taste in my mouth. If we ever partner with a label, I want to do
exactly that, PARTNER. I don't wanna talk too much shit about the label folks.
Because I know how lucky we are to even be in a position where people like that
are paying attention. So, I'll just say this: Currently, we wouldn't change a
thing. We are in control of our own destiny, and things couldn't be going any
better :-)
You've been honest on your podcast about being burnt before, and expressed a
less than enthusiastic opinion on the music business in general. Have you got a
once bitten, twice shy, attitude about that old style of approach to artists by
labels and such?
Yeah I do! Haha. Again, as much as I'd like to, I don't wanna talk too much
shit about labels or past experiences. I have definitely learned better.
There's no way I would have rejected an offer 10 years ago. Very happy to be in
a place now where I know when I'm getting screwed or manipulated. I try not to
be jaded. But I'm a product of my own experience.
And to tie that in with your equally honest revelations
about your own mental health do you think the business side the mainstream
labels promote are mentally unhealthy and just add an unjustifiable mental
strain on artists?
100%. Can't tell you how many friends I've seen get pushed to their limits. It
is SO unhealthy. Especially when you suffer from real Mental Health issues.
It's an issue that is clearly very important to me. There's so much more that
can be done to educate people on the issue. I will always do my part to do just
that. That goes for the folks in this business of music too. Sometimes the most
creative people suffer the most.
On a lighter subject I heard you mention how you lived in a tiny home for a
period. I love the whole idea of them, but I would need two. One for my record
collection. What attracted you to living in one, and was it a positive
experience?
Haha. I hear THAT! Holly (my wife) and I, our decision was primarily
financially driven. We built our Tiny House on the base of an old travel
trailer and lived in it for just over a year. I was essentially starting over
in the music business, and need to find a way to survive financially WITHOUT going
back and getting a "real job". I worked my ass off for the 8-10
months it took to build it. You learn A LOT living so minimally. Parts of it I
loved, parts of it I really loathed. I am forever grateful though that Holly
and I have that experience together. We now own about an acre of land, and have
a new house we lovingly refer to as "The Medium House". The Tiny
House has been converted into a studio... and sits just behind the new house.
Back to the music now. You often speak about the authentic rock and rollers,
and I think I recall you saying that you don't consider that they exist now. Or
can't exist.
Now I'm happy for you to say I have got that wrong, but do you really think we
won't see a Keith Richards, or the likes, again?
I'd say I know a few authentic rockers who just don't have a band, or any
artistic talent, but they do tick the rest of the boxes. Swashbuckling heroes
of the gutter. Even if that's only at the weekends. ;)
Isn't it maybe just a matter of the times, and not a paucity of rebel rousers?
You know, I wonder about that all the time. Are the last of the real rock n
rollers gonna die and go away forever? It appears to be so. But, I'd be super
happy to get proven wrong. For now though, it appears I am correct.
