Hemi Devils-The Trilogy Of 6 – Volume 1

Self-Release/Independent
2015

"Rock-n-Roll Fueled By The Devil". That's the short and the (sinfully!) sweet of it when it comes to Ohio's one and only Hemi Devils. Based in Cleveland, with the recently-released EP, "The Trilogy Of 6 – Volume 1" serving as the soundtrack to this band's (alcohol-fueled) crazy train ride to hell and back (!), this wicked cool hard & heavy rockabilly band is another Ohio band destined for bigger and better things and it all starts here with these six songs. As usual though I'm getting WAY ahead of myself so let's rewind the tape and start somewhere closer to the beginning. Driven by not only "Hotrods, Hot Broads, and Hot Rock n Roll.", but (judging by the EP's lyrics and all!) cases of  Pabst Blue Ribbon beer (!), Hemi Devils is a band deeply-drenched in nostalgia and the good old sounds of yesterday. OK, let me rephrase that as I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea. Hemi Devils is a throwback to when rock was still dirty and dangerous and heavy metal wasn't so damn serious all the freaking time! The five guys in Hemi Devils (Jack, Rob, Kenny, Burn, and Scott) offer the listening audience a great alternative to the bland crap now plaguing rock radio. It's a sound and a lifestyle that many of us are secretly craving, but dare not say out-loud for fear of reprisal. To put it another way this is one band that (thankfully) doesn't give a rat's ass about the PC police! With Hemi Devils there are no pulled punches when it comes to things like booze, drugs and yes, even women ("Barfly Baby" anyone?) and man alive is that refreshing! Trust me here friends. After it's all been said and done you're going to want to check out this band's bandcamp page because (frankly speaking) it's all so much fun! Engineered, produced, mixed and mastered by Noah Buchanan at Brainchild Studios in the band's hometown of Cleveland, "The Trilogy Of 6 – Volume 1" was just released at the tail end of July. As such it's still hot to the touch and that much is abundantly clear once you've dug into this EP's blazing opener, "Baptized in Gasoline". It's got a nasty Rob Zombie meets Motörhead vibe going for it and if there is a better way to start an album off then this ripper then I sure as hell would like to know about it! From "Baptized in Gasoline" we head on out to aforementioned "Barfly Baby". Here we find lead singer Jack and his comrades adding some rockabilly to the mix by way of The Stray Cats. It's a potent addition alright and one has to assume that this mash up of Rob Zombie, Motörhead and The Stray Cats must sound as good in a live setting as it does here on tape! "Uncle Satan" throws more gasoline on the fire with dive bar worthy riff & roll flirting it up with rockabilly and for some reason I had flashes of Lords Of The Highway zipping through my mind! Not that the Lords Of The Highway were ever this HEAVY or anything. It's just a similar (somewhat) sleazy vibe. "She Devil" is next and this gritty roller is as sick as it is slick. It's also heavy as all get out and with it's bad woman from hell story-line it's a tale that many of us can easily relate to! "Angel Waiting" is sing-a-long rockabilly tossed together with garage rock and roll and if not for the explicit content this one could makes waves on alternative radio. "Electric Wine" (see video below) wraps things up and this heavy, fist-clenched rocker is one of the EP's finest moments. Heavy metal fanatics will appreciate it's all or nothing aggression as will the hard rock crowd. It's the perfect bookend to "Baptized in Gasoline" and it does the job that it was put in place to do. It makes you want to hit repeat in order that you can enjoy this wild rock and roll roller-coaster all over again! Given this EP's crazy low price (it's something like $7 for U.S. customers and that includes shipping!) there's no reason not to jump on this release so do it now!

Bad Guys-Bad Guynaecology

Riot Season Records
2015

It's sounds like a bad joke, but here goes. What do you get when you lock two Englishmen, a Canadian and a Hungarian together in a filthy rehearsal room, force feed them shit food and even shittier booze and then tell them there is no way in hell that they are getting out of this London Dungeon until they have provided you with the perfect soundtrack to that hole in the wall (read: DUMP) joint down the street? If you answered Bad Guys then be sure to go and pick out one treat from the prize box. But if your answer was "Bad Guynaecology" then be sure to grab an extra treat for yourself as that is the exact name of dive-bar inspired masterpiece! Wait, you don't know which dive bar I'm talking about? Oh, sorry about that. It's the one where they like to host underground boxing and wresting matches and the air always seems to smell of cheap cigarettes, stale beer, greasy fried "food", pot and sweat. Well, it's mostly (stink palm) sweat but you get the general idea. It's also the dump where bar fights are a everyday occurrence and the chicken wire that encases the front stage is as much for the audiences' protection as it is for the bands! Do you recognize the place now? Yeah? Well, I'd wager a crumpled up twenty that Bad Guys would not only recognize such a place but that they would fit right in! And that's all thanks to the red hot way in which these four rock the living hellights out of "Bad Guynaecology"! Working with producer Jaime Gomez Arellano (Ghost, Cathedral, Angel Witch) proved to be a blessing for Bad Guys as they have cranked out a finger lickin' and ass kickin' sophomore release that is by God all kinds of  loud and proud! When it comes to Bad Guys we're talking about a band whose beer-soaked take on heavy rock/heavy metal is nothing short of amazing and that's all thanks to the fact that these guys have a balls-deep kind of love & appreciation for the likes of Sleep, Deep Purple, Electric Wizard, Motörhead, Harvey Milk, Black Flag, MC5, ZZ Top, Killdozer and Black Sabbath. The music of Bad Guys is all of that glorious goodness smashed and bashed together with a case of Natural Light and a box of cardboard pizza and damn if this doesn't just remind me of the underground punk, rock and metal scene of my youth then I must just be off my golden oldie meds again! This one's fine as wine kiddos....it's just so fine....