|
Retro rockets Scat Rag Boosters kick in by RUPERT BOTTENBERG
Not much of a prediction, though, since the process has already begun. Spearheaded by age-old acts of debatable authenticity (Jon Spencer and Rocket From the Crypt in particular), a veritable tidal wave of garage punk bands are brewing, both around the world (behold the Makers, Gaunt or Japan's Teengenerate) and right here at home as well. A local example are the Scat Rag Boosters, whose shaky, lo-fi grind can't conceal the raw punk energy and rock 'n' roll roots of their sound. "I used to listen to a lot of rhythm & blues and rockabilly without knowing who the bands were," says drummer Edouard Larocque, "because they were on mixed tapes that friends gave me. Later on I started listening to [seminal psychobilly resurrectionists] the Cramps, and that really put me on the map." "Playing the music came later, though," adds Larocque, "because the people I was playing with were into hardcore." For most punk rockers who came of age between the late '80s and now, going "retro" means dusting off your big sister's old Sex Pistols LP. But the garage punk bag is a further stretch back than the Spirit of '77. Before the British Invasion of the mid-'60s spawned the lumbering behemoth of corporate rock, rock 'n' roll was the genuinely rebellious sound of wound-up, hormone-frenzied kids playing for other wound-up, hormone-frenzied kids. Beer sponsors and tour jerseys weren't part of the equation yet. "I find there's a lot of what one looks for in punk," concludes Larocque. "Not necessarily the attitude or the politics, but the spirit of sincerity that has always been present in rock 'n' roll." So prepare for revolution number umpteen. The Scat Rag Boosters play Jailhouse Rock Café with Gouvernement Zel and Rotten Heads on Friday, July 4. 8:30pm, $4.
A nature lover's guide to garage punk in Montreal Scat Rag Boosters Fairly new band, but they give good racket. Sound like someone reciting the alphabet backwards while being strangled. Except you can dance to it. Track on forthcoming comp from Rotoflex Records. Guitarist Martin Dupras does the 'zine Kiss Me Quick!, a cornucopia of punk rock, comics and sleaze. The Irritations Doing their best to live up to their name. Bras and diapers are standard stage wear. Opened a can of rotten fish at a Café Chaos show, perhaps in tribute to headliners The Stinkies. 45 forthcoming on Sack O' Shit Records. Tricky Woo The tightest and slickest of the bunch, but not necessarily the most authentic. Put on a damn good show regardless. Singer Andrew's chicken-peck attacks at his mic stand are particularly amusing. 7" on Mag Wheel, CD on SSG. The Treblemakers In the tradition of the Finks and the Phantom Surfers, a blend of ear-splitting reverb and puerile laffs. About as obnoxious as an instrumental band can get. Vinyl LP on Primitive, track on Stomp's Time Machine comp. The Spaceshits The real thing... a big ol' rock 'n' roll mess. Bass player Blacksnake holds a degree in Advanced Idiotics. Singer Creepy, on the other hand, is secretly a nice guy who plays the flute and reads poetry. Records out on Sympathy, Rat City, Primitive and Japan's 1+2. Los Infernos An import from the prairies. Singer Kid Calgary is a former breakdancing champ and consumate showman. Their cover of Twisted Sister's "We're Not Gonna Take It" positively shines.
|
I'd drop this Mirror gig in a second if I got a call from the Weekly World News--or any of the supermarket tabloids, for that matter. It's my dream to make a mint cooking up ridiculous "psychic predictions" about Bigfoot's Miracle Cancer Cure or the Second Coming of Elvis. In fact, I feel a vision coming on right now: the "electronica revolution" will trigger an equal and opposite backlash, wherein grungeoids and phat-pants punks will crawl deeper into the dark, dirty tunnels of rock music's history.