Saturday Singles: Japanese Fighting Fish – “U Ain’t Gonna Win This”

Vandal Records
2015

Born in Leeds, but now based in London, Japanese Fighting Fish is a four-piece band that self-dubs it's sound & style as "Odd & Theatrical Space Funk Rock". Also described as "an eclectic semi-genius, semi-ludicrous mix of metal, dance, pop, Latin/Cuban beats and more stuff that probably shouldn’t ever go together." (which is perhaps a more fitting starting point when and/or if you are going to be talking to your friends and family about this eclectic English alternative rock/metal band!), Japanese Fighting Fish (or the Fish!) is as quirky as they come and that same courtesy is extended to the band's latest single here. For band members Karlost (guitar/vocals), Gareth (guitar), Al (drums), and Matt (bass) the song "U Ain’t Gonna Win This" marks the first time that the Fish have written a track collectively. Maybe that is why this single goes off in so many directions at the same time? Whatever the case might be when it comes to this single there's two things to keep in mind. The first thing is this particular song comes from the group's forthcoming album of the same name. That album is due out on 13th November and (fingers crossed here) I'm hoping to have a chance to cover it. It's got to be all kinds of crazy given this song's weird punk/funk space rock vibe*! The second thing is this song's official video (posted below) is as odd and unsettling as the single itself! And you know what? I really appreciate that small detail! If you like your rock and metal to be fun, quirky, weird, strange or whatever(!), then be sure to check this video out for yourself! I've also provided all of the appropriate links for Japanese Fighting Fish. Enjoy the show!

Links:

  

http://www.japanesefightingfish.co.uk/

https://www.facebook.com/Japanesefightingfishuk

https://twitter.com/jffuk

https://soundcloud.com/japanese-fighting-fish

* The promo material that came with this hard rocking single mentioned how much appreciation "U Ain’t Gonna Win This" owed to the likes of Q.O.T.S.A. and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Who am I to disagree? All I ask is that I be allowed to toss some Red Hot Chili Peppers into that delicious dish. Sure, my Flaming Lips might need cooled down after that, but that's where my friend Frank Zappa comes in! He's always on hand with a tall cool glass of milk and a piece of Cake or two Yum! It's all good!! Right? Sure, things can and do happen. Especially when you stop and consider how we all live and play in a dangerous Soundgarden !!! Even so I absolutely swear that this time around I will not lose myself in a System of a Down. Not again! And as far as my spiritual life is concerned? It's still there. Until Death** as they say. At the end of the day you're never going to hear me scream to the heavens how I've got  Faith No More! So my friends and fellow music lovers just keep on rocking and rolling and as always keep it loud and proud! And whatever you do please try to do something awful like list a band's influences (whether obvious or not) in the form of a short nonsensical story! You'd have to have Bad Brains to think that's clever!!

** The punk rock band...

Metal News: England's Stiletto Farm release "January Sales" preview track "Adrenaline TV"

"Adrenaline TV" is the latest single from English rockers Stiletto Farm. Taken from the group's upcoming full-length debut album, "January Sales", "Adrenaline TV" might have a short run-time (1:25), but it packs a serious punch with it's fast & fun take on punk rockin' heavy metal! Now, I simply loved the group's 2013 single, "Bad Reception"/"Strawberry Sundae Red", (review below) as well as their 2012 debut offering "Decimation Baby" (no review, but damn it's a cool banger anyway!), but both of those singles sort of pale in comparison to this new cut! Offered free at the link below (as are the other singles incidentally), "Adrenaline TV" finds this über-talented trio speeding through a three-way stop where Black Flag, Green Day and The Ramones meet to hang out and swap tales of glory and yes, it is more than a little awesome! If their long-overdue full-length debut is anywhere near as good as this single suggests then we could be looking at a sure-fire hit for Stiletto Farm! And Lord knows these three fine gentlemen* are desiring of such success! You can find the "Adrenaline TV" single here:https://stilettofarm.bandcamp.com/

 Review of "Bad Reception"/"Strawberry Sundae Red":
http://metalmark.blogspot.com/2013/12/stiletto-farm-bad-receptionstrawberry.html

*Stel - Bass/Vocals
  Davyd - Guitar
  Newt - Drums

Idiom-Movement

Dirt Track Records
2014

Included free with the March 2014 issue of Metal Hammer, "Movement" (which may have initially been released back in 2013) looks to be the latest from Exeter-based "alternative metal" band Idiom. I say "looks" because there are no other references to other recordings on the group's Facebook page. Online, and indeed on iTunes, the album "We Can't All Be Superheroes" (from November of 2010) is shown, but beyond that it's anybody's guess as to what else this band has done since first forming back in 2005. As for the second phrase in quotation there ("alternative metal") that's their description and not mine. For this lot (and this is none too surprising given Metal Hammer's containing obsession with the better left dead genre!) is prime-time nu metal with just the faint hint of metalcore. Said to be influenced by the likes of Faith No More, Korn and Deftones the band comes across as more of the later and not more of the former. Descriptions have been made to the likes of Rage Against The Machine and System Of A Down and both tags are more then a bit fair. Admittedly this English metal band has a solid front-man in Matt Sharland and his companions (guitarist Kris Gibbs, bassist Grant Knight and drummer Dan Harrison) are none-too-shabby. The problem is music like this has been played to death and really it should remain DEAD and BURIED! There is nothing worse they hearing bands like this that have the HEAVY part down, but then are extremely limited because they refuse to allow their guitarist to let loose. That's always been a issue for me when it comes to both nu metal and metalcore (the lack of solos) as you end up with (essentially) nothing more then a HEAVY rhythm guitarist! That said the band does have potential. You can sense that. But why restrain yourself? Why settle for being a second rate nu metal/metalcore band when you could easily take your influences (which would also seem to be the likes of Papa Roach, Korn, Ill Niño, P.O.D., DevilDriver and even Pantera) and with a few twists and turns of the dial turn them upside down and inside out creating something truly wicked and fresh? If that were to happen, and this band suddenly developed the urge to thrash their heads straight off(!), then I would ENTHUSIASTICALLY endorse this English act. For now though I just feel like shrugging my shoulders and saying "Eh"....

Near Ruin-Smoke & Mirrors (Single)

Self-Release/Independent
2014

Metalcore with synthesizers? Not exactly a novel concept. Still, some do it better then others. And in the case of Maidstone, Kent's Near Ruin it's far from a bad combination. Too be fair it might just be this single which, besides being nearly drenched in heavy, guitar-driven metal, does feature the more traditional sound of pianos. All of which does give this band a somewhat different vibe then a lot of what passes for metalcore these days, whether melodic-in nature like this four-piece act or not. Serving as both a follow-up to Near Ruin's "Rebirth" EP and the first single from the group's upcoming album "No End" (due to be released sometime this year) "Smoke & Mirrors", which can be heard in the YouTube video posted below, finds Near Ruin (lead vocalist/guitarist Marcus Kidner, keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist Simon Beck, bassist/vocalist Luke Knight and Tim Morgan) utilizing their influences (As I Lay Dying, Bullet For My Valentine, Attack Attack, Korn, Slipknot) while simultaneously exploring all of the possibilities that can be achieved by blending such unique (read: varying contrasts) elements as "synth, piano, melodic and hardcore" (their words not mine!). While that might all seem like a mouthful (as it does to me as I read it back over in my head!) what it boils down to is something much more simple in it's delivery, but nonetheless effective! As hardcore and heavy metal influences crush the listener's eardrums, highlighted by the rough vocal-styling of  Marcus Kidner and real ROCK guitar playing, Near Ruin utilizes Simon Beck advanced ability on all things keys-related to balance the (perhaps overused description on my part, but extremely applicable in this instance so we'll just roll with it folks!) madness and the melody! For a band which has already released (at least) one EP and has shared the stage with artists like Blaze Bailey and Silent Descent a single as strong as this one is points towards bigger and better things while also showing off the (charming) underground appeal of Near Ruin. Hopefully their upcoming album will prove to further showcase how metalcore can be made-over into something truly fierce and wicked, but for now I'll just be enjoying the head-rush that is "Smoke & Mirrors"!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1GdiAuAA3c

Asomvel-Knuckle Duster

Bad Omen Records
2013

Twenty years have passed since vocalist/bassist Jay-Jay Winter (RIP 2010) and guitarist Lenny Robinson first started Asomvel. Back then the group, which also featured ex-Cathedral/Acid Reign drummer Mark Wharton, could not have possibly guessed all that would happen to their band in the coming years. Before they could even get around to releasing their first demo, "The Blood Eye", which featured a "fitting" cover of a great white shark on the move, they reportedly went through ten or so different drummers in a way that would make even Spinal Tap chuckle! Not so funny though was the tragic passing of Jay-Jay Winter. Killed in a road accident in 2010, Jay-Jay's death would nearly crippled the band. While ex-Deathwing bassist Conan, who also plays/or did play bass in deathcore act Tangaroa (not quite sure if he still plays with them or not as there are conflicting reports online), would step in to handle vocals and bass even he knew that he could never really replace Jay-Jay and to this day both the band members themselves and fans still consider Jay-Jay to be a member of the band. Now, I freely admit that this release was a spur of the moment/impulse buy and prior to receiving it in the mail I had never heard of this British three-peace (which is rounded out now by drummer Jason hope) so I do not know how this one could or would compare to their older material. As I simply did not wish to be bias one way or the other I purposely choose not to listen to any of their previous recordings. That means "Knuckle Duster" is it for me as heck, I didn't even listen to samples of this one before I ordered it off of Amazon! I simply went by a review that I read in some metal mag (or was it online?) and now you will have the same option if you want. Here's the nitty-gritty details of this English heavy metal act. And actually gritty is as good a place to start as any. These English rockers play real, working man blues, drink hard and play even harder rock/metal that sounds as if it was honed by playing in every dive bar, biker hangout and empty parking lot between in Europe and the U.S.! That's a compliment of course as these fine gentlemen play working-clash rock and roll with lyrics that reflect a life that's seen it's fair share of blood, sweat and cold beer. These guys sound as if it's been a hell of journey, leaving behind them a trail of cheap liqueur and "Bad Mojo Rising" women, but we all know that "it's a long way to the top if you want to rock and roll"! That said, in Conan we find a better then advertised bassist whose gruff, whisky-soaked vocals fall somewhere between Zodiac Mindwarp (the man and not the band) and a certain Lemmy Kilmister (the main man period!). He's able to convey real emotion with his delivery while the rest of the group as a whole, which at times (admittedly) did have me thinking about Lemmy's band, rock the part the freak out with a wonderful blend of sleazy hard rock, raw blues-rock, drunk punk rock and of course heavy metal! On one hand these guys (deservedly so) fit into perfectly into my ideal collection of all things "loud and proud". On the other hand though these English musicians do a good job of playing "cut  the crap all you crazy cats and get down with your bad selves!" rock and roll that wouldn't be too far out of place if served up hot and spicy alongside the likes of Neil Young, Aerosmith, Kiss, AC/DC or Ted Nugent! So yes, even though I "took a big chance at the high school dance" when I bought this one blind it paid off big time! This is one of those "9 points out of 10 points" or "three and a half stars out of four" albums that's a leap and a (HUGE) bounce better then (and yes, it does make me choke up to say this as I'm a total fanboy for the band!) "Aftershock" (I'll cover Lemmy's latest release tomorrow if I can) from a band that is "shut your mouth I'm just talking about Shaft" epic in magnitude and ready for the big time/primetime baby!

The Brink-Would You Love Her

Self-Release
2013

Based in and around Cambridgeshire, the English rock group known as The Brink are due to release this, their first full-length release, in just a few weeks. With 2 addition EPs contributing to their back-catalog, and having already shared the stage with the likes of Heaven's Basement and Tigertailz (indeed, the group is well-known for their hardworking style), The Brink are not exactly newcomers to the rock scene in the strictest sense of the word. Even so, The Brink, and everything that makes up their world of good, old-fashioned and damn authentic hard rock/rock and roll, are likely new to US fans. Lead by Tom Quick, who for some reason reminds me of a cross between Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong and a more "down-the-middle of the road" (and much more mellow) James Hetfield, The Brink features two great guitarists in  Lexi Laine and Joey King and a up-beat and perfectly-suited rhythm section in bassist Gary Connor and drummer Dave Forster. Even in their chosen field (new rock and roll with an open-minded, older mindset) things are getting a bit crazy with this past year alone seeing more and more new names entering into the fold. What does The Brink offer on "Would You Love Her" to help them stand out? For one thing, The Brink know how to write catchy material that sticks to listener's ears. This album comes attached with actual, honest to goodness, singles! Crazy huh? Opener "One Night Only", the album's first single, is pure rock and roll bliss as is "I Want It" (with it's smiling nod to Bon Jovi), but the one track that has radio-airplay written all over it is "I Know". With it's somewhat laid-back, 90's vibe this is one track that could and should dominate rock radio as should it's follow-up cut, "Broken Romance". This 5-piece act, which lists it's three biggest influences as Bon Jovi, Skid Row and Aerosmith, bring back the groove of old school rock radio, but they do it with more then enough sweet nuggets of modern rock that one could easily see these guys break-out and in a huge way! The album's mixture of radio rock and rock ballads is a grand adventure in the making. And the thing is The Brink comes across as more of a fresh-faced (and in a good way) hipster act then some new band just recycling old classic rock riffs. Even if it's bands like Bon Jovi, Skid Row, Aerosmith, Whitesnake, Deep Purple, Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC and Jimi Hendrix that has helped define the sound of The Brink are more then adapt at cranking out fresh rock beats. And let's face the music here folks, that is easier said then done. Even when you have youth, energy and tons of enthusiasm on your side that's still not a guarantee recipe for success. With the end of 2013 clearly in sight now, which is just about crazy when you think about it, the one thing that has stood out has been the large comeback of traditional rock/hard rock and traditional heavy metal. adventurous. That means there are more then enough new acts to check out and it can be frustrating trying to find the cream of the crop. Well, The Brink are at the top and looking to keep that title anyway possible I figure. With the powerful appeal of "Would You love Her" (both as an album and as a title cut!) paving the way for this English act I see big things out of The Brink. So, why not jump on board now then before the bandwagon gets overly crowded?

Anacondas-Sub Contra Blues

Prosthetic Records
2013

As the artwork for Anacondas' first full-length album brings about feelings of sorrow and loss in me it's only fitting that the music found within  "Sub Contra Blues" is dark and cold. "Progressive post-metal grunge sludge" is one way to look at it, but considering the wide range of influences present here (everything from the likes of Cave-In and Meshuggah to Seattle bands like Green River, Soundgarden and Alice In Chains) even that tag might not be enough to cover everything for this young, Brighton-based band and their slowly creeping album of doom, darkness, despair and dread. Still, it's a close enough description as to what awaits the listener come October 10th when this album is set to be released. But, while the band itself  might be new to the scene, having only formed back in 2010, the musicians involved here are most certainly not. It would be the demise of  the English band Johnny Truant that would lead to the fittingly-named Anacondas (as their music feels at times as if it is slowly wrapping itself around you with the intent to kill and then devour you) and the birth of "Sub Contra Blues". Both Stuart Hunter (guitars) and his brother James Hunter (bass) played in Johnny Truant, but while Johnny Truant was all about metalcore, and decent-enough metalcore at that, the brother's new act is more about slowly crushing the listener with doom-covered post-metal then killing them quickly with the fury of metallic hardcore. Joining the brothers in Anacondas is their friend Tim Newman who, in addition to playing drums, shares vocal duties with the Hunter boys. This three-pronged vocal attack really adds to the album's delightfully dizzying delivery (try to say that a couple of times fast!). And while the album does approach things in down-turned/down-tuned fashion there are still times on this release where you pick up on the groove that these three try to hide away. So yes, this power-trio might be filled with more then their fair-share of angst and yes, this album might be about as cheerful as a rain-soaked funeral, but it still knows how to spring to life when the source material calls for it. Or at least they "spring to life" sort of like the dead in any of Romero's zombie flicks! Oh, lest I forget, it's worth mentioning that the material on hand here likely came from self-recordings, as that's definitely the picture that this album's promo material paints, but that in no way seems to effect the overall feel of  "Sub Contra Blues". Part of that has to do with the fact that the band was able to get famed British producer Russ Russell (Napalm Death) to come in and master the sessions. His hands helped shape the sound of Anacondas and with this being only album number one for this power trio it's a damn fine start to what will hopefully be (if there's any justice to be found in the the heavy metal universe) a long career for this bunch.

The Jokers-Rock & Rock Is Alive

Steamhammer
2013

Yes, rock and roll is still alive. Just take a listen to The Jokers for proof. On the follow-up to their 2009 album, "The Big Rock 'n' Roll Show" (Two albums with rock and roll in the title? Really?) this Liverpool 4-piece brings to mind AC/DC first before they down play that slightly obvious influence in favor of bands of the classic rock variety. This 11-track release even sounds a bit more retro then modern thanks to producer Andy Macpherson (Eric Clapton, The Who, Barclay James Harvest, The Buzzcocks). The band, which is made up of two brothers in Paul  (guitar) and Simon (bass) Hurst, is lead by vocalist Wane Parry and rounded out by drummer Chris Poole. Together the four musicians delve into the archives of classic rock in order to fine-tune their own take on vintage sounding rock and roll. As guitarist Paul Hurst (in regards to their newer material) puts it "I love Free and their guitarist Paul Kossoff, just like The Who and Led Zeppelin, in other words all bands who play classic rock music with strong emotional vocal melodies and bluesy guitar riffs – pretty much like we do today." True enough it's that same rock and roll spirit that filters on down through all of The Jokers the heavy rocking riffs. Despite album art that would hint at something like glam or sleaze, and potentially bad glam and sleaze at that, these 4 musicians strut to the likes of AC/DC and the best classic rock that England has ever given us. When you start a band in England, that incorporates both rock and roll and boogie rock, it's quite likely that some of that rich classic rock history would rub off on you. We're talking about the likes of Status Quo, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, The Who, Bad Company, Free, Mott The Hoople, The Faces and many more here. So, while the vibe on "Rock & Roll Is Alive" might suggest some appreciation of Angus Young and his mates, there's a bit of that classic English rock and roll attitude in these 11 cuts. As far as sophomore releases go (or, if you will, this album's overall quality) this one is good enough to suggest to classic rock and roll fans even if these 4 have a bit more to go before people start name-dropping The Jokers.