Nick Oliveri's Uncontrollable-Leave Me Alone

Schnitzel Records
2014

Before we even start with "Leave Me Alone" let's go ahead and establish a quick point of reference just so that we can get it out all of the way. Bassist/guitarist/vocalist Nick Oliveri is primarily known for having spent time with Kyuss (and subsequently Kyuss Lives!), Mondo Generator and of course Queens of the Stone Age. He has also played with the Dwarves and Moistboyz. What's more it is making the rounds that Oliveri is collaborating with the likes of Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Gary Holt (Exodus) and Casey Chaos (Amen) on the soundtrack for the movie documentary "House Of Shock"! So, even if Nick Oliverri is mostly recognized for his contributions to the stoner rock scene this bassist/guitarist/vocalist has seen and done it all. Or at least musically-speaking. But, here's the thing about "Leave Me Alone". Cue the dramatic music because this is not the Nick Oliveri we've heard before and for those looking for past points of reference an album like this one shatters those expectations (along with rock and roll fundamentals!) into a million tiny pieces. In other words if you are expecting something along the lines of Queens of the Stone Age or Kyuss you are going to be disappointed. "Leave Me Alone" abandons those kind of principles. There is just no other way to put it then that. And other than a couple of guests (one of which is Motörhead's Phil Campbell!) "Leave Me Alone" finds Nick Oliveri working solo in order that he alone can take credit for the new direction he takes on his first solo release. It's true that he oft-times discomforting nature of  "Leave Me Alone" is unexpected as it definitely finds Nick Oliveri throwing all caution to the wind! By deconstructing (raw, striped-down and dive bar-worthy to begin with!) rock and hard rock and purging punk rock of what little purity it had left Nick Oliveri has certainly given fans and critics alike something new to talk about with this new release! At it's best "Leave Me Alone" is ramped-up post-rock/punk-rock cleverly disguised as noisy trash metal. And that works! At it's worse though it's an exercise in tolerance and patience where noise is just that-noise. Often times "Leave Me Alone" balances perilously close to that edge (a uneasy tipping point if you will) where one minute it's pure heavy rock/punk rock ecstasy and the next it's merely a bad acid trip waiting to happen. More so "Leave Me Alone" kind of carries itself as if it is a live album misdiagnosed as a studio recording. What happens to work great live (bare naked riffs, grungy bass lines and clunky drums) is a different animal all together behind the paddle walls of a recording studio. I suspect the bulk of what's been laid out on Nick's first solo album (the unedited moments where this vocalist/string-man just goes with the flow and improves punk rock and roll) would go over gangbusters in a live setting. Otherwise it is suspect to interpretation (ie: is this true, unfiltered and unspoiled post-rock art or is it much ado about nothing more then unrestrained noise?) more so then a statement one way or the another of whether or not is is good. Honestly I fall more of the side of "Leave Me Alone" as a good album with quite a lot to say, but there is a case to made that the "Uncontrollable" part of this project's title might be more than mere words....

Bastardogs-No Pain No Gain

Street Symphonies Records
2013

I'm not going to lie, but anytime a band's promo material starts off by mentioning Motörhead it's almost a guarantee that I'm going to like where things are heading! In the case of Bastardogs, a Genova-based four-piece band with at least one other recording (a demo) to their name, it's really more about sleaze but I can hear Lemmy's influences in just about every modern hard rock including this Italian act! With a line-up that includes (founders) Bonne (vocals & rhythm guitar),  Andy K. (lead guitar) and Atta (drums), as well as new (as of 2012 or so) bassist Cosme, Bastardogs draws their sound from "80's Sleaze style and from historical people of that period like Blackie Lawless and Nikki Sixx". Translated that means you've got the obvious, both Mötley Crüe (up to and including 1987's "Girls, Girls, Girls" minus any ballads!) and W.A.S.P., and the not-so- obvious (Skid Row, Alice Cooper, Sister, Warthchild, mid-eighties solo Ozzy, L.A. Guns, Zodiac Mindwarp, "Turbo"/"Ram It Down"-era Judas Priest and even Kiss) as well as the aforementioned mention Motörhead. Add to that a little 80's metal (as interpreted by the skillful guitar playing of Andy K.) and you've got one act who have the whole eighties vibe down pat without sounding too retro for their own good! Songs like "Sex Machine" and "Drinkin' My Brain Off", as well as demo-leftovers "Bad Dog" and "The Pit", are obviously all in good fun as this is one band that comes across as having just that in mind, having fun! That's not to say that Bastardogs are too one-dimensional  in their way of thinking. For example one need only check out the track "Edge Of Youth". Here the band remembers those who didn't make it like Crashdïet's Dave Lepard. It shows a different side to a band that also has cuts entitled "Bite You Down" and "Zombietown"! Other then maybe the vocals, which are fine as far as the actual singing is concerned (it is just that they are just buried too far down in the mix!), there isn't a whole lot not to appreciate about "No Pain No Gain". As far as debut-albums go it's a steady rocker filled with catchy material, plenty of melody and some really cool guitar solos! It has a little bit of a punk attitude and carries itself as if it's trying to be equal parts Motörhead and Ratt. And, as stated, it's fun. Simply put "No Pain No Gain" is a fun record harkening back to a simpler time when it wasn't all that usually to see band's treading water between sleazy hard rock and traditional heavy metal. For fans of Mötley Crüe this one might be a bit too guitar-driven, but regardless it's worth checking out. And that goes for folks who enjoy eighties bands like L.A. Guns, W.A.S.P., Zodiac Minwarp and the Love Connection and yes, even Motörhead! Find out more about these Italian rock and roller's right here: https://www.facebook.com/BastardogsGE

Mantar-Death By Burning

Svart Records
2014

Don't let that cover art, which is beautiful and mysterious all at once, fool you my friends or even lull you into a false sense of security. This upcoming (self-produced mind you) release (February 7th, 2014 to be exact) from the half German/half Turkish two piece known as Mantar is anything but lovely and divine. Even here at Heavy Metal Time Machine (or in my own words if you want to be technical about it) words like raw and ugly (or even beastly for that matter) are thrown around far too haphazardly. And yet here it is. Raw, ugly and beastly metal which, despite lacking a bass player (as that would just muddle up the process anyway for this drums, guitars and punk/hardcore vocals designed two-piece), out does even Motörhead in the HEAVY rock and roll department! Alongside The Melvins and Darkthron you have your three humble influences for this blackened rock n' metal band and this release, which you'll be able to pick up in just about any format of your choosing (CD, LP, Tape and Digital), adds it all up and (collectively) drops it face down at your feet so that it can stand as a lasting tribute to the enduring power of D.I.Y. projects! All told there's ten tracks atomic-fueled mayhem from two men who sound as if they are on a mission from the dark lord of rock and roll himself! Hail hail rock and roll (especially when it's all twisted up and slapped down in all of it's thick and gooey goodness!) and any band like Mantar who provide proof that (sometimes) all you need is a guitar, one drum set, devilish lead vocals and heavy metal that melt your face off with it's foul breath!

Against The Grain-Surrounded By Snakes

Self Destructo Records
2013

Serving as the follow-up to their aptly-titled full-length debut release, 2012's "Motor City Speed Rock", this makes album number two for Detroit's Against The Grain. That's right boys and girls. From the same great city that gave us Motown (and of course the MC5 and Iggy and the Stooges) we have the newest saviors of rock and roll, Against The Grain. Or are they the destroyers or rock and roll? Either way it's all good as this band, which was formed in 2009 and also has a 2010 self-titled release to their name as well as 2011, 7" split EP with Chapstik, delivers the same kind of speed freak, burning rubber and burning blunts heavy rock and roll that makes life just so much more easier to cope with! From the minute this one opens with the oh-so-appropriate "Raise Your Glass" Chris Nowak (vocalist/bassist for Against The Grain who may or may not be another one of Lemmy's no doubt limitless bastard offspring!) and company roll out the red carpet for punks and metalheads alike! Motörhead seems like a good starting part substance and style-wise (And yes, their are style points awarded in life kids so do it right!), but these lads, who list MC5, Motorhead, Fu Manchu, Dead Kennedys, Turbonegro, Pentagram, DRI, Thin Lizzy and Black Sabbath as a few of their influences, cover a lot of ground on these 12 tracks as we'll soon enough see. After the fitting opener sets the stage and we blaze past the Motörhead-infused title cut we get things cooking with the MC5 meets Black Flag cut "Get in the Van". These boys then channel C.O.C. on "Outta Touch" before crisscrossing their way back to some boogie-woogie Motörhead on "Don't Care What You Say"! For those most part all of the numbers on "Surrounded By Snakes" (length-wise) have all the trademarks of punk rock songs. Every track here (with the exception being the four-minute plus doom-laden track "Last Breath") finds a band quite comfortable in the fine art of smash and dash style dirty rock. "Get Ready", which is under two minutes in length, is "Garage Days Re-Revisited"-era Metallica taking a harder look at what makes hardcore punk work so well to begin with while the 1:44 length "Comin’ Home" is drunken speed-punk as envisioned by a hungry young rock and roll band that just wants to play for the hell of it all! While Chris Nowak has the lead vocalist part down pat (moving between Lemmy and a rougher James Hetfield at times while also sounding like he could have easily fronted an eighties punk/hardcore band on "Outta Touch" and "Comin' Home") and his bass playing is never in question (we're talking thick and heavy playing here boys and girls!) special mention should also be paid towards the rest of Against The Grain. Lead guitarist/backing vocalist Nick Bellomo and his cohort Bryan Griffin (no, not the character from Family Guy!) crank things up big time on this 12-track platter of dirty speed-rock and whether we're talking about boogie cuts like "Get in the Van" and "Don't Care What You Say" or the near-thrash attack styling of numbers like "Under Attack" and "Livin' a Lie" (both of which showcase a band that is all too familiar with early LPs of Metallica and Slayer!) the pair are equally capable of making it all work. Drums meanwhile are handled by ex-Break Anchor Rob Nowak and with Kyle Davis serving as a touring guitarist this is one act that is too good to pass up! Speaking of touring, this Detroit act supposedly plays in the neighborhood of 150 shows a year(!) and has played with the likes of The Meatmen, Church of Misery, Valient Thorr (who are similar in nature to what these Detroit rockers are all about), Nashville Pussy, Black Fag, The Hookers, Gang Green, D.R.I, The Angry Samoans, Zeke (whose fans would no doubt love this band!), Jello Biafra and the Guatanomo School of Medicine, Guttermouth, Jugheads Revenge, Agent Orange, D.O.A., Iron Cross, Negative Approach, The Flatliners, Hit and Run, Star Fucking Hipsters, Murphys Law and countless others! That means I've got another band that I have to keep an eye out for here in my little part of Ohio. One would imagine that a live show for this bunch is equally (if not more so) cool and that heavy cuts like "Padded Cell" and "Extinction" just shred the living daylights out of everything when played live! Now, picking a fave moment on this one would be hard as these rad rockers pull out all the stops as you can imagine. The album definitely opens strong with "Raise Your Glass" and then closes in similar fashion with the gritty "Extinction" which, believe it or not, touches on some N.W.O.B.H.M. moments! Still, numbers like "Outta Touch", "Get Ready" and "Comin' Home" appeal to the old punk in me while the cool title cut, which also features a bit of N.W.O.B.H.M. guitar playing (think a street punk's take on Iron Maiden) and the tracks "Under Attack" and "Livin' a Lie" are the stuff that heavy metal wet dreams are made of! So, picking just one number out of these twelve would be a hard chore and I'd much rather just advise that you grab the whole kit and kaboodle! As it appears as if it's available in both digital and physical formats (with an LP version available as well!) there's no reason not to try hunt this bad boy down for yourself! And, seeing as it would make a very cool last-minute present for Christmas for that certain someone in your life, an album like "Surrounded By Snakes" is also worth sharing! So, snag and bag this one folks. If you love all things Lemmy or bands like Zeke and Valient Thorr then this is the album you've been wishing for!

French Metal Friday: The Zombie Dandies

Normandy, France is home base for the two-piece glam punk due known as The Zombie Dandies. Formed in 2011 by guitarist/vocalist K1000 Zombie and drummer/bassist/vocalist Marty Dandy (two old friends/high-school classmates who came up with the idea of "creating a glam punk duo mixing heavy metal with the energy of punk and garage rock") and sporting a DIY outlook on life (which often times makes for the best music if you ask me) the group has one four-track release to their name so far. The band's self-titled EP, which was released in 2012 and opens with the fun "Girls & Whiskey" (two essentials in life right?), is equal parts early Mötley Crüe and the Ramones. Well, that's if the Ramones (no doubt still high from sniffing all that glue!) got all dolled up for Halloween and went out trick or treating for cheap booze and cheaper women all while wearing leftover make-up from a dirty and raw garage rock-inclined Kiss tribute band!

 

As this is a D.I.Y. project the recording process for the band's first EP was obviously done on the cheap. Of course that just adds to the overall charm of "Zombie Dandies" which can be downloaded for free at the link below!  Whether the band will be able to break past their local scene is a question better suited for another time and place. All that matters in the here and now is how fun this EP is and how bands like The Zombie Dandies are keeping the true spirit of garage rock/punk rock alive! If glam punk and/or dirty garage rock is the butter to your toast then march yourself over to this French duo's site and snag a copy of their 4-track EP for your personal collection.


http://zombiedandies.bandcamp.com/