The D.I.Y Ethic Lives On - More Homemade Candy for Your Ears

Man, I've been so excited to write up this month's D.I.Y Ethic column that I've been chomping at the bit like some racehorse dying to jump out of the starting blocks. Well, maybe I'm no racehorse, but at least I've been chomping like some quality quarterhorse at a riding school. A mule in a hayfield? A broken down burro in line at the glue factory?

Whatever, I've been so excited to write this column that I secretly jumped it ahead in the schedule so I could shout out about some of the great independent bands out there, slaving away on their own dime, dishing out some quality tasty treats for your aural consumption.

So without further ado . . .


Music Lives Here Volume 1- Red House Benefit CD

We're starting off this column with something a little bit different. Rather than a D.I.Y. band, we're kicking the gig off with a D.I.Y. effort, and an exceptional one at that. The Red House is a quality music school, recording studio, performance venue, and free form jam get together located in Walnut Creek, California, about 30 miles east of San Francisco. In addition to being a musical meeting mecca in the East Bay, and the venue responsible for starting off the careers of such notable Ripple favorites as Miggs, The Red House is also the home of the international Guitars Not Guns Program (www.guitarsnotguns.org). Now, truly, there can be few worthier efforts than GNG to write about in the Ripple. The organization's mission is to offer kids an alternative to life on the streets and in the gangs, and instead, turn them on to their natural talent and the joys found in playing music. To that end, Music Lives Here is a Red House produced benefit CD, featuring several bands with roots to the Red House. And the way it works is simple. For every 10 CD's sold, one child learns to play guitar.

Got your attention yet? If not, then the line-up of this CD certainly will. 12 songs of quality independent music lives within the silicon and graphite of the disc, including the previously mentioned Ripple men of Miggs, who blaze across the CD's second song with their scorcher, "St Rita," a rarely heard modern rock gem from their hard to find second album. But the goodies don't stop there. Every song pulsates with a modern rock energy that keeps the album driving all the way to the end. All Heroes opens up with a terror of a reggae-inflected agit-pop gem. Dear Kerosene show off some serious pop smarts with their song, "Long Island Sound." Now We Are Six plow a fertile field across a post-punk, modern rock field with "Devereux Martyrs," and Route 111 bring on a slightly rootsy flavor to their pop nugget, "Never Before." And that's just a cursory glance at what awaits inside. 12 tracks from 12 bands committed to the Red House and the Guitars Not Guns program.

Last I checked Music Lives Here Volume One is no longer available on the Red House website, but Volume Two, a collection of the Bay Area's best high school rock acts, is. Inside, you'll find an amazing collection of talented bands, working hard to create music they believe in. Check it out. You just may find the stars of the future and help a great charity at the same time.

http://www.redhouselive.com/musicliveshere/




Modern Science - S/T

In all honesty, I looked forward to listening to this CD with all the enthusiasm I had for my last hernia exam. Don't get me wrong, I try not to pre-judge albums, but looking at the cover art, I just had the sinking suspicion that I was about to unleash some nerd-fest of dweeb rock that would bore me to tears with soul-less techno-geek wizardry.

Man, I couldn't have been more wrong!

Don't make the same mistake I did. Run, no sprint I say, sprint as fast as you can to your computer (oh wait, you must be at your computer already) and rush to www.myspace.com/modernscienceband to get this amazing delectable treat of funky power-pop majesty. And it's a free download! I'll say it as clearly as I can, I love this disc, and you will too. Freaking love it.

Essentially a two-piece, studio creation, Modern Science unleash the funkiest bunch of white boy song craft since the finest material released by Was Not Was. Every song on this platter is a delicious nugget of walloping bass lines, crafty synths, and impeccably tight song writing. And when I say tight, I mean Difford and Tilbrook masterpieces. Listening to this was like walking into my favorite old-fashioned ice cream parlor where all the juicy tidbits are lined up for you to pick and choose, but your mouth is watering so much from the sheer delight of the selection that you can never make up your mind on what's your favorite. Certainly, "Look Where You're Walking," is as tasty as they come, riding a bass line sweeter than pralines and cream. But every song is so laden with with honey-dipped vocals, power pop guitar bursts, glorious harmonies, and damn hummable choruses, it's like an IV-infused sugar high guaranteed to keep you bopping in your bucket seat as you motor down the freeway.

"Every Little Thing," positively bounces across it's jaunty rhythm. "I'm The One (Pick Me)" is glorious, quirky, white boy funk pop. Somewhere Don Was is absolutely green with envy. "Baby Please," is that lost Squeeze classic that was finally discovered mining through the lost caverns of Tibet. "Whatever You Say," may be what George Michael would have written if he hadn't forgotten how to write pop gems. Seriously, if those references appeal to you at all, this is the disc for you. This is about as good as funky pop gets. Check it out, go over to their myspace page, and download the entire album for free! I'm so confident you'll like it that if I was selling these I'd hand em out with a money back guarantee. And not one person would take me up on that.

www.myspace.com/modernscienceband




Swift Ships - Rebel Renaissance

I'm thrilled to be writing a new review of Swift Ships because in many ways they (along with our long-time waverider Dimaension X) are responsible for this column existing in the first place. It was the sudden appearance of their latest disc, the self-titled Swift Ships, with it's alt rock, funky, bluesy soul that inspired me and the Pope to dedicate a special space in the Ripple (and our hearts) for those who toil alone, crafting and creating music to please their own inner muses, regardless of the potential for commercial success. And let me tell you, Swift Ships can craft some beauties.

Stepping backwards in time, Rebel Renaissance is the album that pre-dated the S/T and in it you'll find all the same glorious quirks that made S/T such a revelatory find. "Wedding Day," percolates out, a mid-tempo, slightly blues-weary ode to . . . well, I'm not exactly sure. But between Ben Shanaberger's disaffected vocal delivery, Scott Lovings searing guitar work and a steady, constant, driving rhythm, this track is a winner of alt-angst. "Gunslinger," features what may be the most impassioned singing I've yet heard from Shanaberger and another Fourth of July burst of Loving guitar fireworks. Hard to declare a standout track among so many fune songs, but I defy you to sit in your seats for the entire 3:30 of "Flatland." Damn, between that funky-ass, scratching guitar riff, a bopping bass and another masterpiece of impassioned, yet disaffected vocals by Shanaberger, I can never get enough of this song. Expect to hear it on Ripple Radio. Soon and often.

From there, the whole album is one beautiful ride of alt-angst funk, like the stuttering guitar of "Nice Guy," the charging drive of "Pursuit Race," or the tin-pan alley depression of "Under the Weather." Don't really know where Swift Ships plan on setting course next, but count me in as deck hand. I'm on board for the sail.

www.myspace.com/swiftships



Tok - Long Tall Cobra Box

Now, it's not very often that I'd let a band's self-penned description influence my review of their music. Lord knows, bands can sometimes be prone to hyperbole when it comes to themselves. And it's even rarer that I'd actually let that band's words make it's way into the review itself, but damn if the boys from Tok haven't captured the imagination and hammered the nail right on the head with the handwritten note they scrawled to me. "(Our music) is like if the Replacements, Nirvana, the Pixies and the MC5 got in a fistfight. Then someone scooped up all their blood and teeth and rubbed them all over a golden skeleton, and the golden skeleton had a flying V carved out of woolly mammoth tusks. So he's wailing on that thing and some grizzly bear is eating people and playing drums, and every time the bear hits a drum someone's head explodes in a beautiful shower of confetti." Um . . . yeah, that just about does it.

So what does all this mean for the uninitiated or less imaginative? It means one flaming, chaotic, bad-ass mess of punked up rock and roll of the ilk that would make our Ripple brethren Mighty High proud. "What Can I Do," is without a doubt the standout track on this collision of insanity. If you ever wondered what it would sound like if Henry Mancini lived during the punk rock revolution, pierced his cheek, wore a Mohawk, tattered jeans, hated humanity, and wrote the Peter Gunn theme while strung out on uppers, here's your answer. An absolutely devastating, brash demonstration of rawk and roll, driven by that massive drum and bass "secret-agent" riff while the boys, full of snot, wail on "Every night I hope and pray that the world becomes a disaster/I don't mind if you don't bother me, I'm gonna keep on being a bastard." Absolutely incendiary stuff. A song so addictive it's already been outlawed in several states and been responsible for the formation of 19 detox centers. Not content to stop there, the Tok brothers, Bryan and Matt Basler, rage through meth-speed rave-ups like "Dracula Time, "I'll Get Even Later," "Hot Rod Goat," and "Been Thankless," all overflowing with MC5 mania. They even slow it down for a punk jazz torch song, "All The Time."

In truth, the album is a bit rough around the edges, and nothing quite lives up to the sheer shove-it-up-your-ass-and-smile brilliance of "What Can I Do," but it doesn't matter. This beauty is worth listening to for "What Can I Do," alone. And if that song is any inclination of what the Tok boys are capable of, then I'm willing to bet they got lots more gems up their sleeves, just waiting to be unfettered on a helpless population.

www.myspace.com/tokandroll

--Racer

Modern Science




Tok

A Sunday Conversation with The Steps

Attacking us with a double-barreled assault of garage rock and vintage psychedelia, all mixed in with a blinding amount of modern savvy and serious songwriting chops, The Steps were a major surprise when their self-released disc poured on into the Ripple Office. Grabbing a couple of cold frosty ones, we couldn't wait to get lead singer, Will, to plop on down onto our red leather interview catch and share with us the culmination of his Steps wisdom.

When I was a kid, growing up in a house with Cat Stevens, Neil Diamond, and Simon and Garfunkle, the first time I ever heard Kiss's "Detroit Rock City," it was a moment of musical epiphany. It was just so vicious, aggressive and mean. It changed the way I listened to music. I've had a few minor epiphany's since then, when you come across a band that just brings something new and revolutionary to your ears. What have been your musical epiphany moments?

When I was younger I really loved punk music. For my birthday, my dad took me to this festival where all my favorites we're playing. That was the first time I really thought about it. I guess another was when I saw The Strokes on MTV. They were featured amongst all these horrible bands that were huge at the time. It gave a lot of hope.


Talk to us about the song-writing process for you. What comes first, the idea? A riff? The lyrics? How does it all fall into place?

Usually its a part on the guitar or some instrument that comes first. Then I'll try to find cool sounding melodies to place over the music. I typically write lyrics towards the end once everything else is done.


Where do you look for continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?

Just in hearing new bands and what they offer. Personal experiences and when were able to travel; taking all those surroundings in really helps with songwriting. It's never good to stay in one place for too long a time.


Genre's are so misleading and such a way to pigeonhole bands. Without resorting to labels, how would you describe your music?

I always say rock and roll but that's still very broad.


What is you musical intention? What are you trying to express or get your audience to feel?

I guess to put my ideas out there. Most of our performances are really just meant for the audience to get up out of their seats and nod their heads for forty-five minutes. It is nice playing in venues where they can hear the words in the songs and that makes it more meaningful.


In songwriting, how do you bring the song together? What do you look for in terms of complexity? Simplicity? Time changes?

The band is crucial in structuring the songs. Everybody has input. I think we like challenges when working on songs. If there's a part we feel could be better we'll really work to find it.


The business of music is a brutal place. Changes in technology have made it easier than ever for bands to get their music out, but harder than ever to make a living? What are your plans to move the band forward? How do you stay motivated in this brutal business?

Playing is important and the more people that see you and hear your name, the more they are to recognize and bring their buddies the next time were in the area. For most rock bands touring is essential. We've just gotten started so I figure we're gonna have to pay some dues before we see real success.


Come on, share with us a couple of your great, Spinal Tap, rock and roll moments?

It'd be far too dirty for internet bloggers


Where do you see you and your music going in ten years?

Maybe then we'll have a song with a time change.



What makes a great song?

A song without a time change


Tell us about the first song you ever wrote?

I think i was trying to come up with a tom petty sounding part and ended up just sorta stealing the whole verse. It was really bad


What piece of your music are particularly proud of?

Some of the new material we've got right now. It's the first time I've listened to one of our songs and not immediately torn it apart.



Who today, writes great songs? Why?

There's loads. Conor Oberst, Ryan Adams, Jim James. Those guys really have a sense of it. Really great lyricism and how they're able to arrange it with their bands


Vinyl, CD, or digital? What's your format of choice?

I really like vinyl at home. I have an ipod that I listen to on the road. There are a lot of artists now that release on vinyl and include a free download. Best of both worlds.


We, at The Ripple Effect, are constantly looking for new music. When we come to your town, what's the best record store to check out?

Waterloo Records get a lot of hype. There's End of an Ear on South First Street too.

Soundscapes Hits the Ripple Effect - Duo of New Prog Reviews

We've got an extra special treat for all you waveriders out there today. Jumping into the Ripple Office with a fist full of Cd's, an itchy typing finger, and more musical knowledge than a hippy at Woodstock, we've got two guest reviewers today, lending their vast knowledge to us seekers of music. David Bischoff and Steve Weese co-host Soundscapes, a progressive rock radio show over at KRVM 91.9 FM Eugene OR. www.krvm.org. You can catch them streaming live 10 PM to 12 PM PST Sunday nights. These two musical Einstein's dropped off a couple of recent prog discs with their thoughts, feelings and summaries.

So let's get to it.



SAGA- The Human Condition

SAGA is the kind of rock band just keeps on ticking.

The Human Condition finds them in darned good form, with fresh ideas, good tunes, and a proggier tone. It's surprising that longtime lead singer Michael Sadler left, since SAGA had been picking up steam and returning to a form staked out in the 1981 classic Worlds Apart.

Still, new singer Rob Moratti is a superb replacement, with a warm, rich voice that's a pleasure to keep company with.

Perhaps Sadler has other surprises in store, as songwriting contributions were important to the band, his dynamism certainly the last album 10,000 Days. But these songs really have great textures with dreamy keyboards and memorable melodies that hang together in a pleasant tapestry with just enough taste of a great yesterday to keep today happy. We especially like "Step Inside" and the punchy, snappy "Avalon."

buy here: The Human Condition



Derek Sherinan -- Molecular Heinosity

Recently at the Saturday night "On-air party" at Nearfest on a popular net radio prog show,
a couple of tracks were played from this CD to good effect as people drank and partied. Dererk Sherinan's new album works best as a kind of background music.

Oddly for a man who's best known for his keyboard work with Dream Theater, Sherinan's sixth solo album is dominated by guitars. Fusion-metal rock shredding. Fortunately, before the songs can verge of boredom, most of these tunes shift gears -- unlike many CD's of the Joe Satriani ilk, mired in the Slough of Ennui.

We like this type of metal-like fusion, but only in smaller doses. We'd like to hear a bit more "space" from him. Planet X in our opinion, seems more successful because there seems to be more outside influence. Some of Sherinan's solo work seems to sound a lot alike and by the end of an album, you kinda just want to put on some Simon and Garfunkel.
Still, Derek Sherinan sure can race his fingers across those keyboards.

buy here: Molecular Heinosity


--David Bischoff and Steve Weese

Field Report: Bethlehem, Pa. June21, 2009 – Trettioariga Kriget (NearFest)

It’s a Sunday morning, the clouds have formed over New York City, and anxiety has struck my being with the force of a ten ton nuclear warhead. I was leaving the city that I had just begun to fathom in theory for Newark, New Jersey en route to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania via train and bus, respectively. As if taking on the New York City terrain and subways alone wasn’t a daunting enough task, now I was embarking on a journey across state lines that I was completely unfamiliar with.

Sign of the cross, silent prayer, and . . . break!

I’ll spare you all the boring travel details, but in short, I took a train to Newark, hopped on a bus to Bethlehem, and hoofed it on foot up many a hill to Lehigh University to check out one of my favorite prog-rock bands. Yes, Trettioariga Kriget were back in the States for only the second time in their history and performing on the last day of NearFest, the annual festival that throws a blinding spotlight on all that is progressive in music, especially rock. Most of you know that I’ve had a fascination with these Swedes from the moment I first heard “Lang Historia” off of their 2004 release, Elden Av Ar, so it should come as no surprise that being a mere seventy miles away that I was gonna’ do everything possible to check them out. Again, I have no plans to bore you with every minute detail of me getting to the University, finding the hall, and locating my seat assignment . . . so let’s fast forward to the show, shall we?

The lights went down, the new visual projections were flickering across the back of the stage, and the band made their way to the stage to the massively tense build up of “I Krigets Tid I.” The sound was a little rough in places, but for the most part, Trettioariga Kriget sounded as good as anything one might hear on the live War Years album from last year. Even as singer Robert Zima and keyboardist Mats Lindberg were motioning to the sound crew to increase various levels in their monitors, the band powered through the first two tracks from the brilliant I Borjan Och Slutet. The bass work of Stefan Fredin drove through the sternum, drummer Dag Lundquist hit the skins with primitive force, and guitarist Christer Akerberg showed fluid grace throughout the entire performance, and through the initial songs, powered their way by sheer force of will to get the bands point across.

After the first two songs were complete, I noticed that this NearFest crowd was far from an exuberant bunch, clapping briefly in between the songs, and almost acting like this gig was some odd sort of classical recital. Last time I checked, prog-rock was a derivative of rock ‘n roll, which was all about rebellion and playing music at extreme levels, so in natural rock ‘n roll form, I belted out blood curdling screams of appreciation each and every time that I could. Walk with me or get left behind, NearFesters! TK turned in a blistering rendition of “Lang Historia,” and it was during this song that I recognized the phenomenal playing style of Christer Akerberg. My God . . . his right hand was like water as he half picked and half strummed the passages, his left hand practically had a mind of its own, weaving its way through the complex array of notes. And the band was tight! Throughout the near eight minutes of dips and dives, odd ball time changes, and textural shifts, these guys were on it! Highly technical work with a soulful foundation . . . Trettioariga Kriget showed that they were well prepared to capture the imagination of all in attendance.

For the next hour and a half, these prog-masters filled the air with tunes spanning their entire career though practically eliminating all selections from the more pop oriented Hej Pa Er and Mot Alla Odds, which makes sense. TK were performing for a group of folks who would argue to the death about the greatest moments of King Crimson’s first album, so it makes sense that the bands most technically complex moments were going to be on full display for the mathematicians to contemplate. Tunes like “Kriggsang” and the rarely performed “Roster Fran Minus Till Plus” garnered the loudest responses from the crowd as TK powered through these progressive epics like a group of men with something to prove. But, it was the stunning performance of “Jag Och Jag Och Jag” that knocked the room on its ass. Robert Zima’s heartfelt execution of the vocals, accompanied by the smooth arpeggio’s from Akerberg, took the crowd to their happy place, and once Fredin and Lundquist stepped up to the mic to add vocal harmonies, the crowd damn near passed out from sheer pleasure. Highlight of the show? To many, the answer is, most certainly. If you weren’t there, you can hear the song on War Years and get a strong sense of what we all got to witness first hand.

The band followed up with a couple of tracks from I Borjan Och Slutet in the title track and “Benke.” Again, Akerberg killed me with his playing on “Benke” as he tastefully and gracefully plucked notes from the ether. His accompaniment with Zima’s acoustic guitar playing was also an item of note, and a musical connection that I had either not noticed before or simply took for granted. Go back and listen to the studio version on I Borjan Och Slutet to hear what I’m talking about and then imagine it tenfold as these two worked together like the appendages of the same being.

Trettioariga Kriget wrapped up the show with a tune from their first album called “Ur Djupen.” Mats Lindberg’s keys shimmered across the airwaves and laid down a glimmering plate for Zima’s unique vocal stylings to be served upon. The tune weaved and wound through the various time changes and before we knew it, the band was walking off stage, returning mere minutes later to a joyous cheer from the suddenly ecstatic and boisterous crowd. The band then closed the show with two more fabulous tunes from the first album, “Fjarilsattiyder” and “Kaledoniska Orogenesen.” Both songs are as complex as brain surgery and were what this seemingly critical group of music fans were waiting to hear. The heads were bobbing in an odd off time fashion, the hands came out from underneath their seats, and there were scattered looks of amazement. As the band made their way back stage, I looked at the faces of the exiting crowd and saw smiles, hearing bits of conversation that they had to track down the bands stuff, and I ultimately felt that TK left a well deserved and hard fought footprint in the sand.

Personally, I was so damned satisfied with the show that even if there was bad sound and a lack of initial excitement from the crowd, well . . . it just didn’t bother me. Getting the chance to see Trettioariga Kriget live was an experience that won’t easily be forgotten, and finally getting the chance to shake hands with the band afterward felt like one chapter with the band was complete. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to meet chief lyricist Olle Thornvall who ended up cancelling his trip at the last minute, so that tells me there will be at least one more chapter in my relationship with this group of outstanding musicians.

If you couldn’t make it out to the show, I hope that this review helped paint a picture of what went down. There were no crazy explosions and balls of fire . . . it wasn’t that kind of a rock show. It was an hour and a half of solid prog-rock played by five exceptional musicians with no frills outside of their own God given abilities. Okay. There was the projection screen in the background for some added flavor, which did add a nice mood to most of the songs. If you do get a chance to see these guys do their thing live, I highly recommend it. You’ll be treated to a very entertaining and professional performance. - Pope JTE

www.myspace.com/trettioarigakriget

www.trettioarigakriget.com

http://www.nearfest.com

Kylesa - Static Tensions

A few years ago when the Melvins absorbed Big Business and became a 2 drummer band I was curious to see who else would do the same thing. I wasn’t surprised at all to find out that Kylesa replaced their old drummer with two new ones. What was surprising to me was the results on their 4th and latest album Static Tensions.


I had heard some of Kylesa’s music in passing over the years but none of it left much of an impression. I liked what I heard but was never inspired enough to buy an album. Still, I knew I had to check this album out. Any band with 2 drummers or 3 guitarists is something I always need to investigate. Static Tensions is a kick ass record start to finish and one that will appeal to a wide range of people like their music hard and heavy.

Kylesa get compared a lot to Torche and it’s easy to see why. Both bands are brutally heavy yet include a lot of melody and hooks in their songs. Torche’s live shows are an incredible thing to behold but the records sound a little too much like heavy Foo Fighters for my taste. Kylesa’s sound ranges from Neurosis to the heavy distorto pop of New Day Rising-era Husker Du and the slow pummel of Swans.


Oh yeah, and they’re LOUD.


The first song “Scapegoat” starts off with the drums. Put on your headphones because there are some great panning effects that makes you feel like your sitting between Eric Hernandez and Carl McGinely’s drum kits. When the band kicks in it’s heavy as hell but also very melodic. The guitars of Phillip Cope and Laura Pleasants are tuned way low but have great definition and never get mushy. They must have spent hours tuning their guitars in the studio. How bassist Javier Villegas manages to hold it all together is very impressive. (Javier only plays on the album, Corey Barhorst is doing the touring).


“Insomnia For Months” continues the barrage. Cope’s harsh screamed vocals are offset with Pleasant’s ethereal counterpart. For a 2 minute song it packs in a lot of riffs and a short Space Ritual jam. I wish more bands would be this economical in their arrangements.


There’s plenty of variety to be heard here. Trippy adventures like “Unknown Awareness” and “Perception” will make your head swirl with all the layers of guitars and rhythms messing with your brain. It’s a good thing this album doesn’t come with a strobe light because it would give most people a seizure. “Running Red” is the slowest and heaviest song with an overt Melvins/Neurosis influence. It starts off with solo acoustic piano before kicking into super heavy overdose. This would be a great one to play in traffic. It has a road rage chorus perfect for screaming at the idiot in front of you that keeps jamming on the breaks.


When Mastodon’s Crack The Skye was released a lot of their older fans who were unhappy with it were quick to point out that they preferred Static Tensions. It’s easy to see why. This sounds like the type of record a band like Mastodon would make. The cover art is by John Dyer Baizley of Baroness and the music has much in common with that band as well. They’re both from Savannah, the humidity capitol of Georgia. Savannah is about 3 hours from Macon, GA the home to the Allman Brothers Band museum. I think Butch Trucks should hold a ceremony where he hands the Georgian 2 drummer crown to Kylesa.

--Woody




www.kylesa.com
www.myspace.com/kylesa

Garage Rock Battle of the Bands - The Seeds vs The Sonics

We're going to do things a tiny bit differently today. Shake it up a bit.

As many of you may know, in addition to our prides and joys, The Ripple Effect and Ripple Radio, we also run a site over at last.fm and a fun-filled, ball-of-fun group, From The Garage. Over at FTG, we celebrate all things garage rock, from the punky and scuzzy to the glammy and rocky. Most recently, in addition to our normal run of group discussions, we're in the final Round of our second annual Battle of the Bands. The finalists: The Cramps vs The Mummies in a heated battle, the winner of which will take on last year's champ, The Sonics.

In the spirit of that epic Battle, we're presenting a brief Battle of our own between two garage rock Giants. Sit on back at ringside, toss back your brew, place your bets and get ready to rumble.

And now folks, it’s time for our main event. Brought to you by The Ripple Effect and fully licensed in the state of California, tonight’s headline bout features a battle of the garage rock pioneers. In one corner, coming from L.A., featuring the heavy weight songwriting of Sky Saxon, we have the neo-psychedelic fuzz of The Seeds. In the other corner, from the rain-soaked garages of Tacoma, Washington, we got the five-piece underground legends, The Sonics. It’s time to bring these two Garage Heavyweights into the center of the ring, stand em up toe-to-toe and let ‘em have at it. Since production on all these early garage classics usually left a lot to be desired, it will be ignored for our fight tonight. Instead, our judges will rate the fight on a four point scale, giving one point each for: Creativity; Urgency, Musicianship, and Heaviness. May the best band win.

Stepping into the ring first is The Seeds and their classic 1966 release, The Seeds. Mixing a roughed up, raw garage appeal, a dash of early Stones and a flourish of trashy psychedelia, The Seeds may have been the prototypical Southern California underground band. A touch of punk energy infuses their fuzzed out pop, littered with some big washes of a clearly ragged, pre-Sgt. Pepper Beatles psychedelia. “Can’t Seem to Make You Mine,” sets the pace perfectly, Sky Saxon’s nasal voice wailing over a rudimentary beat and occasional guitar flourish. Songs like this and the album's hit, “Pushin’ Too Hard,” broke the band out of the pure LA underground and onto mainstream radio. But really it is songs like the amped up “No Escape,” with it’s menacing “Nowhere to run/ Nowhere to hide,” lyric, and the awesome fuzzed out organ tones of “Girl I Want You,” that reveals this albums unique appeal. Sky Saxon fashioned some intensely melodic songs, usually lined with a coat closet full of hooks. At times, the added psychedelic washes, like the feyness of “Try to Understand,” steal from the proto-punk urgency of the album. And you don’t have to look any farther than the frankly repetitive arrangements, primitive music skills, or the stolen riffs-- like the clearly swiped Buddy Holly guitar lines of “Evil Hoodoo,”-- to realize that the band had it’s limits. Still, it’s not mystery to see why bands like the Stooges and Alice Cooper all site The Seeds as a major influence.

Coming out of its corner next, and looking particularly pissed, we have The Sonics brandishing their 1965 fuzzed up, trashed up, beast of early raunch-and-roll, Here Are The Sonics. Gerry Roslie bears one of the world’s greatest underground vocals, belting it out with massive amounts of rough-throated, Little Richard-inspired soul and wailing screams. Behind him, we find a garage band raging at full fury, not afraid to drop guitar solos in amidst their proto-punk ravings or the soulful howling of a big saxophone. Original songs are few here, but back a vicious punch. Just check out the song titles, “The Witch,” “Psycho,” “Strychnine,” and “Boss Hoss.” This is hardly “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” stuff. These guys were clearly a bad influence, insidiously released upon the unsuspecting youth of the Northwest. And the music sounds like it. This isn’t pretty pop. This is full on, kick your nuts and stomp your face, prison pounding, juvenile delinquent rock. A constant driving rhythm section drives the big kicks of songs like “Boss Hoss,” right down your throat. Mix in some definitive versions of standards like “Have Love Will Travel,” “Dirty Robber,” and a performance of “Money,” that makes the Beatles version look like an outtake from American Idol, and you got serious reason to lock up your daughters and hide the keys. There’s a bad influence in town and there ain’t no way I want them spreading their seed in my house. Just give one listen to the roaring, menacing guitars, near-manic, screaming vocals, and relentless pounding of “Psycho,” and you’ll agree. This was punk long before anyone ever heard the word.

So, how do our judges call the match? For Creativity, the nod has to go to The Seeds. When The Sonics wanted to crush out an original, it was pretty fucking impressive, but with only 4 originals on the original version of the album, it hardly compares to the productivity of Sky Saxon’s 17 songs. True, not all Saxon’s songs were that original, recycling his own arrangements, but then, The Sonics were pretty simple themselves, straight-forward, 50’s soul-fired rock and roll. Edge; The Seeds.

For Urgency, there’s no dispute. The Sonics literally blow the doors off the garage with this beast. This was everything punk would become, minus the safety pins and Mohawks. Edge; The Sonics. As far as musicianship goes, we got another non-contest. Search hard for a drum fill on The Seeds album, really hard. You’ll find one, somewhere, but in the meantime, The Sonics will have pounded a battering of garbage cans down your throat, thrown in a couple of guitar solos and screamed like a wild man the whole time. Edge: The Sonics. And finally, I think the question of heaviness has already been answered. At times The Seeds can get a little dark and disquieting, like the nasty, tasty organ riff on “Girl I Want You,” but too much of the cutesiness of flower pop rears its head to make the album a plower. The Sonics, on the other hand, must have scared the shit out of every kid who’d mistakenly played their disc instead of Introducing Herman’s Hermits, or Sounds Like the Searchers. God bless em, the edge here goes to The Sonics

So as the ring announcer steps to the center of the ring, we get the final call of the judges’ tally. The Seeds put up a good fight, but in the end, The Sonics are still the undisputed champs.

This whole piece was written in the spirit of fun, with respect to both bands and musicians and a special nod of respect to the recently departed Sky Saxon. R.I.P. Sky. Thanks for all the great memories.

--Racer