Archive Review: The Gossip's Undead In NYC (2003)

Although the Reverend has vintage bootlegs in his collection with better sound quality than Undead In NYC, there’s no denying the power and the passion of the Gossip’s performance. Kicking out mutant punk blooze with a whiskey edge and an amphetamine heart, the Gossip’s secret weapon is singer Beth Ditto. Ditto’s sweaty, leather-lunged vocals rise above the muddy mix to grab the listener by the ears and shake ‘em out of their major label induced coma. Axeman Nathan Howdeschell rails at the world with all the subtlety of the Mississippi River breaking through its levees and flooding the Delta.

With Ditto’s vocals lost in the din, and her lyrical obsessions with love and lust all but indecipherable, the band rocks like a drunken fratmonkey and the audience’s obvious enthusiasm is contagious. A raucous cover of the Stooges’ “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” performed with friends from Chromatics, quickly spirals out of control and into chaos before ending in an orgy of feedback and clashing instrumentation. Undead In NYC may not be the best example of the Gossip’s charms but it does show that 30 minutes is all it takes for this Arkansas trio to rock your world. (Dim Mak Records)

Review originally published by Jersey Beat music zine, 2003

Remembering Dave Cousins & Strawbs

Photo courtesy strawbsweb.co.uk

British folk-rock innovator Dave Cousins passed away on Sunday, July 13th, 2025 after a lengthy illness; he was 85 years old.

Cousins is best known as the frontman and creative force behind the Strawbs, the ground-breaking and influential 1970s-era British rock band. Cousins and the Strawbs took on many faces over the years. The band’s first incarnation was as the Strawberry Hill Boys, a traditional bluegrass band formed in 1964 by Cousins, guitarist Tony Hooper, and bassist John Berry, who would later be replaced by double-bass player Ron Chesterman. 

The band changed its name to the Strawbs for a 1967 concert, and gradually began to move towards an original folk-rock sound fueled by Cousins’ imaginative lyrical prowess. The trio added singer Sandy Denny to the group and recorded 13 songs in Denmark for a proposed debut album, All Our Own Work. When the band couldn’t find a record deal in the U.K. Denny left to join Fairport Convention. All Our Own Work was later released in 1973 by budget label Pickwick Records, the album including one of Denny’s most beloved songs, “Who Knows Where the Time Goes?,” which she later re-recorded with Fairport Convention.

The Strawbs were the first British band signed to the American A&M Records label, the trio releasing their self-titled debut album in 1969, accompanied in the studio by bassist John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) and pianist Nicky Hopkins. The Strawbs followed up its debut a year later with the critically-acclaimed Dragonfly, after which Chesterman left the band. The Strawbs expanded its sound, adding keyboardist Rick Wakeman, bassist John Ford, and drummer Richard Hudson for the mostly live album Just a Collection of Antiques and Curios, which was the band’s first charting album, peaking at #27 in the U.K.

After recording 1971’s From the Witchwood, Wakeman left the Strawbs to join Yes, replaced by keyboardist Blue Weaver for the band’s 1972 breakthrough, Grave New World. Peaking at #11 on the U.K. charts and inching onto the Billboard ‘Top 200’ albums chart stateside, songs like Cousins’ “Benedictus” and Ford’s “Heavy Disguise” received heavy FM radio airplay. Feeling that the band was moving away from folk and deeper into rock ‘n’ roll, Hooper left after the release of Grave New World, replaced by guitarist Dave Lambert of the psych-rock band Fire.

During a short summer hiatus, Cousins recorded his 1972 solo album, Two Weeks Last Summer, with guest musicians like Deep Purple’s Roger Glover, Miller Anderson of the Keef Hartley Band, and Jon Hiseman from Colosseum as well as members of the Strawbs. Underpromoted by A&M, the album failed to chart on either side of the Atlantic. Returning to the Strawbs, Cousins pursued a harder-rocking, almost proggy sound for 1973’s Bursting At the Seams, scoring hit singles in the U.K. with Cousins’ “Lay Down” and the Hudson/Ford song “Part of the Union.” The album proved to be their most commercially successful, hitting #2 in the U.K. while also charting in the U.S. and Canada. Tensions grew during the album’s supporting tour, however; afterwards Hudson and Ford left to form the pop-oriented Hudson Ford band while Weaver went to work for the Bee Gees. 

Cousins and Lambert recruited keyboardist John Hawken of the Nashville Teens and Renaissance along with bassist Chas Cronk and drummer Rod Coombes of Juicy Lucy. This is the line-up that recorded 1974’s classic Hero and Heroine and 1975’s Ghosts, the former being the last Strawbs’ album to chart in the U.K. while the latter achieved the band’s highest position on the U.S. chart, rising to #47 as the band toured heavily in North America. Released in late 1975, Nomadness found critical acclaim but continued the band’s commercial slide; it was their last album for A&M Records.

The band’s tenth album, 1976’s Deep Cuts, was released exclusively in the U.K. by Deep Purple’s Oyster Records imprint, while the following year’s Burning For You was picked up for North American distribution by Polydor Records. Cousins intended Burning For You to be the band’s swansong, but the band’s management got them a deal with Arista Records and the singer was convinced by label head Clive Davis to record one more album. Working with an unsympathetic producer for 1978’s Deadlines – one who Cousins felt didn’t understand the band – the Strawbs recorded Deadlines in Dublin, Ireland.

Disaster struck when the tapes for Deadlines were almost entirely accidentally erased; Strawbs re-recorded the songs, but as Cousins stated in the liner notes for the album’s CD reissue, the new performances failed to capture the unique flavor of the original recordings. The Strawbs completed a second Arista album in 1978, Heartbreak Hill, recorded largely without Lambert, who was working on a solo album. When Cousins decided in 1980 to leave Strawbs and get into the radio industry, the album was shelved and remained unreleased until 1995. Cousins recorded a second solo album, Old School Songs, in 1979 with guitarist Brian Willoughby. 

Invited to headline the 1983 Cambridge Folk Festival, the Strawbs’ Grave New World line-up reunited to perform with Willoughby on guitar in place of Lambert. The reunion led to a 1987 album, Don’t Say Goodbye, released by the band’s own Strawberry Hill Productions label. It was fairly quiet for the Strawbs during the ‘90s, the band releasing a single album – 1991’s Ringing Down the Years – and touring the U.K. in 1993 in celebration of their 25th anniversary. Cousins’ second album with Willoughby, The Bridge, was released in 1994. Cousins staged a 30th anniversary Strawbs reunion performance at Chiswick Park in London in 1998, which led to a relatively prolific and productive period for the band, versions of which (“Acoustic Strawbs” and “Electric Strawbs”) toured the U.K. and North America throughout the early 2000s.

The Strawbs and Cousins were both busy in the studio during this period. Cousins released a number of acclaimed solo albums, including 2002’s Hummingbird (with Rick Wakeman), 2005’s High Seas (with German guitarist Conny Conrad), 2007’s The Boy In the Sailor Suit (with Miller Anderson), 2008’s Secret Paths, and the live 2008 set Duochrome (with violinist Ian Cutler), all distributed through the Cousins’ own Witchwood Media label. The Strawbs were no slackers during this period, either, the acoustic version of the band comprised of Cousins, Willoughby, and Lambert releasing 2001’s Baroque & Roll. 

Strawbs’ 2003 album Blue Angel featured new material alongside re-worked versions of Cousins’ solo songs and 1970s-era Strawbs tunes. The album also featuring a literal Strawbs’ “Hall of Fame” of bandmembers, including Lambert, Willoughby, Blue Weaver, Richard Hudson, Chas Cronk, and Rod Coombes. The band’s 16th studio LP, 2004’s, Déjà Fou, brought John Hawkens back into the fold, and was followed by critically-acclaimed fare like Painted Sky (2006), The Broken Hearted Bride (2008), Dancing To the Devil’s Beat (2009 and featuring Rick’s son Oliver Wakeman on keyboards), Hero & Heroine In Ascencia (2011), the band’s previously-unreleased debut album Of A Time (2012), Prognostic (2014), The Ferryman’s Curse (2017), and Settlement (2021) as well as a number of live performance albums.

The Strawbs toured the U.S. in 2019 in celebration of the band’s 50th anniversary, including a three-day event in New Jersey that included former members and friends of the band like Annie Haslam (Renaissance), Larry Fast (Synergy), and singer/songwriter Wesley Stace. Cousins released his autobiography, Exorcising Ghosts: Strawbs and Other Lives, in 2014 and retired from live performances at the end of 2021 due to health reasons. 

When South African filmmaker Niel van Deventer contacted Cousins about creating a Strawbs documentary, the director wanted to film the recording of new songs at a studio in Cape Town. These sessions, featuring Cousins, Blue Weaver, and John Ford resulted in the final Strawbs’ album, 2023’s The Magic of It All. Released by U.K. label Cherry Red Records, who had bought the entire Strawbs catalog, van Deventer’s documentary film will be completed sometime in the future. Cousins and Strawbs performed their final concert in August 2023.

Dave Cousins had a unique creative vision and performance style, and he managed to record a massive body of impressive work that spans seven decades and better than two dozen live and studio albums. In my dealings with the artist, he was also the consummate British gentleman, wryly humorous and as enchanting as Strawbs’ music. He will be missed by the band’s loyal worldwide legion of fans...

 

Archive Review: Velvet Crush's Free Expression (2003)

Velvet Crush is one of those great little pop/rock outfits that continuously cranks out choice tuneage with little or nothing gained in the way of commercial success, fame, or even respect, fer christ sakes. If you haven’t heard of VC before, well, Free Expression is as good a place as any to get your feet wet. Originally released in 1999 on the band’s own Action Musik label, this two-CD deluxe reissue from Parasol is the way to go. Disc one offers the complete original Free Expression album as produced by Matthew Sweet (no neophyte around a pop song himself), as well as a bonus song tacked onto the Japanese version of the album. The second disc holds the original demo versions of many of the songs on Free Expression, recorded by vocalist/guitarist Paul Chastain in his home studio (including several cool unreleased tunes!)

The demo disc holds several unheard gems and holds up well on its own; sounding better than most of the legitimate album releases you’ll hear this year. The full-bore Sweet-produced version of Free Expression is a marvel though, Chastain and partner Ric Menck crafting an excellent collection of power-pop and twangy rock that will have you humming for days. Imagine the Byrds jamming with Big Star with the Everly Brothers adding harmonies. Sweet contributes some of his own underrated guitar work here, but Free Expression is Chastain and Menck’s show, an obvious labor of love resulting in an obscure classic that stands tall among the giants of rock ‘n’ roll. (Action Musik/Parasol)

Review originally published by Jersey Beat music zine, 2003

Archive Review: Jarboe’s Thirteen Masks (2004)

The enigmatic Jarboe is best known as the musical partner and collaborator of Swans mastermind Michael Gira. A haunting vocalist with an impressive, expressive range and a captivating stage presence, Jarboe has placed a human face on Gira’s often musically oppressive songs. After recording a number of albums with Swans and Skin – an even more musically experimental side project – Jarboe stepped out on her own with Thirteen Masks, her surprisingly diverse 1991 debut. Reissued with three bonus tracks by Atavistic after having been out-of-print for a number of years, Thirteen Masks is worth seeking out for listeners who prefer their music to be unpredictable, exhilarating and intellectually challenging.

Jarboe’s Thirteen Masks

Recorded over a number of different sessions, the material on Thirteen Masks evidently reflects the artist’s vision and mindset at the particular time. Given the stylistic diversity and varied performances, one wouldn’t expect Thirteen Masks to exhibit the thematic and musical cohesion that it does. “Listen” opens the album with an almost prayerlike quality, Jarboe’s lonely voice accompanied by a ringing chime, random percussion, and meager string instrumentation. It is a haunting moment that sets the stage for what follows on Thirteen Masks.

The album quickly jumps into a higher gear, “Red” evincing a dancefloor beat and aggressive, often altered vocals describing various (unknown) aspects of the color red. It’s an interesting and intriguing bit of wordplay, playful and thought provoking with a cacophonic soundtrack. “The Believers” offers Jarboe’s ethereal vocals layered on top of staccato drumbeats and explosive instrumentation, the martial rhythms balanced by the song’s soaring lyrical imagery. “The Never Deserting Shadow” is a folkish, ebony-hued track with beautiful instrumentation and powerful guitarplay matching obsessive lyrics, reminiscent of Current 93.

Two of the most powerful moments on Thirteen Masks come near the end, and the two songs couldn’t seem more different on the surface. “Shotgun Road (Redemption)” pairs a delicate guitar track with Jarboe’s almost-whispered vocals. The reflective lyrics speak of love and salvation, frustration, and betrayal. The gentle nature of the instrumentation belies the fury that lies beneath the words. “I Got A Gun” is equally moving (and disturbing); the repetitive refrain of “I got a gun” an expression of self-empowerment, shouted over a pounding drumbeat and chaotic guitar. When Jarboe states authoritatively that “I won’t stop until I get what I want,” you have to know that it’s true! Of the three bonus tracks, “We Are the Prophecy” stands out, Middle Eastern influenced instrumentation and chanted melodies lying beneath the artist’s breathless vocals.

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Jarboe is assisted on Thirteen Masks by Gira, Swans’ guitarists Clinton Steele and Norm Westberg and the ever-changing musical terrorist Foetus, among others. The album’s focus and direction are entirely Jarboe’s, however, the music an unreal hybrid of Gothic rock, industrial dance, and dark jazz with the heart of a Delta bluesman and the soul of a German cabaret singer. Jarboe’s emergence as a skilled songwriter is evident, her potent pen blending emotional resonance, spiritual yearning, and a strong defiance of conformity, creating unique and thoughtful lyrical poetry.

Thirteen Masks was a powerful debut, a fiercely independent album too often (sadly) overlooked in the overall discussion of popular music. Restored here with pristine remastering and an expanded tracklist, Thirteen Masks is well worth rediscovery. (Atavistic Records, reissued 2004)

Review originally published by Alt.Culture.Guide™ zine

Bootleg Review: Captain Beefheart’s Captain, My Captain (1999)

SOURCE: Radio broadcast on WLIR-FM, live from My Father’s Place in Roslyn, New York; November 18, 1978 (although some sources claim that it was December 18th).

SOUND QUALITY: Good to Very Good FM broadcast (7-8) with some hollowness and echo, especially on the horns. The good Captain’s vocals are clearly up front though and the entire set is quite listenable without causing any aggravation.

COVER: Single-sided panel with color picture of Beefheart on the front cover and a different shot of the Captain on the back cover with tracklist and venue info.

TRACKLIST: Tropical Hot Dog Night (listed as “Hot Dog”)/ Hit A Man (listed as “Woman’s Gotta Hit A Man”)/ Owed t’Alex/ Dropout Boogie/ Harry Irene/ Abba Zaba/ Her Eyes Are A Blue Million Miles (listed as “Million Blue Miles”)/ Old Fart At Play (listed as “Old Fart”)/ Well (listed as “Well, Well, Well”)/ Ice Rose/ Moonlight On Vermont/ Floppy Boot Stomp (listed as “Floppy Boot”)/ You Know You’re A Man (listed as “You’re A Man”)/ Bat Chain Puller/ Apes, Ma        

COMMENTS: Although I don’t share many of my critical brethren’s adoration of Don Van Vleit, a/k/a Captain Beefheart, I can easily see his influence on a generation of young noisemakers. Beefheart’s blues-infused improvisational jazz skronk can be followed in a steady timeline from the early seventies through numerous bands up to, and including Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and other current critic’s darlings. Personally, when one of Beefheart’s Kenny G-wannabe brassmen start blowing and choogling like a pale Coltrane imitation, it makes me want to take a freshly-sharpened fireaxe to the box from which said offending decibels are bleating.

That said, I must admit that Captain, My Captain is a fairly accessible live performance from Captain Beefheart and crew, including his aural executioner of choice, ex-Mother of Invention trombonist Bruce Fowler. Dating from the time period of Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller), the set is representative of where Beefheart seemed to be artistically situated at the time, mixing mutant blues with clever pop/rock and jazzlike, avant-garde musical experimentation. The Captain is a truly unique vocalist, sort of like Howlin’ Wolf on a steady liquid diet of broken glass and rotgut whiskey while the band, which includes guitarists Jeff Morris Tepper and Richard Redus, were capable of handling most of what Beefheart might ask of them.

This particular performance is a familiar one to fans of the Captain, having been previously circulated on vinyl and CD under such titles as Live At My Father’s Place and New York Hot Dog Night. This Tendolar CD-R version doesn’t include the entire performance, missing some four songs and at least a quarter hour from what I can tell. The neophyte Beefheart fan might find Captain, My Captain to be a heady brew, difficult to swallow in light of Beefheart’s penchant for surrealistic, stream-of-consciousness lyrics and discordant instrumentation.

The newbie might want to start with the legitimate release Safe As Milk, work their way up to Trout Mask Replica and then jump into Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) before searching for the one of many Beefheart boots that circulate in fan circles. As for the dedicated follower, they probably already have the material here, albeit in not as sonically pleasing a form. An acquired taste and touchstone of modern alt-rock, the good Captain is nothing if not a true original. (Tendolar Records CD-R, released 1999)

Review originally published by Live! Music Review zine...

Bootleg Review: Roy Buchanan’s Telecaster Country (1999)

SOURCE: Radio broadcast on WLIR-FM, live from My Father’s Place in Roslyn, New York; August 17, 1973.

SOUND QUALITY: Good FM broadcast (6-7) with some hollow, cavern feel to it. When Buchanan hits the high notes on his Fender Telecaster, though, they ring clear as a bell.

COVER: Four-color, four-panel insert with picture of a young Buchanan on front cover playing his beloved axe, a sepia-toned pic of Roy in the studio with guitar in hand on rear of insert. Inside offers excerpt of Guitar Player mag interview with the artist while back cover shows a much older Buchanan and offers tracklist and venue information.

TRACKLIST: I Can Fly Now/ C.C. Rider (listed here as “See See Rider”)/ Susie Q/ Hey Joe/ Blinda Lou/ Johnny B. Goode/ Bad Case Of The Blues/ Green Onions/ Pete’s Blues/ You Don’t Own Me       

COMMENTS: Since editor Bill tossed this musical hand grenade in my lap, I handled the crisis as best as I could. You see, in my ignorance, I knew little about Roy Buchanan other than his name and the occurrence of his tragic death. I was uninitiated in the wonderful legacy that this Telecaster maestro left behind in his wake and therefore had to dig up every scrap of info that I could on the artist. Thanks to Big Joe at Rossi’s Record Room in Brentwood TN, I acquired copies of Buchanan’s first two albums; later a copy of Sweet Dreams: The Anthology, a two-CD retrospective of Buchanan’s work fell into my lap. I was ready to tackle “Darth” Glahn’s review assignment with the proper tools to do the job.

Buchanan’s story, for those of you as blind as I once was, is classic blues material all the way. Born in Arkansas, raised in the California desert, Buchanan grew up in the Pentecostal Church of God, his father a fire and brimstone preacher. He often attended revivals with members of the area’s black church and, falling in love with gospel music, the blues and African-American guitarists like Blind Boy Fuller, Buchanan taught himself to play. He left home at fifteen, made his first recordings at the tender age of twenty, and played with folks like Ronnie Hawkins, Dale Hawkins and Freddie Cannon. He really wasn’t discovered until he was almost 32 years old, when a 1971 Rolling Stone article sang his praises. A checkered career followed, with a slew of major label recordings, a handful of indie sides and lots of live performances earning Buchanan lots of critical praise but little in the way of filthy lucre. He tragically took his own life in 1998 after a minor arrest for public drunkenness.

Said story is a way of explaining that Buchanan may well be one of the first true “cult” artists, a six-string wizard without peer who numbered among his admirers folks like Stanley Jordan, Mick Jagger, Jeff Beck, John Lennon, and Steve Cropper. All of which makes the appearance of this show especially poignant, since the market for Roy Buchanan boots must rank just above live discs by Stuffy & the Frozen Parachute Band or Hello People on the “labour of love” obscurity scale. Telecaster County documents a pretty tasty show, tho’, a fine mix of rocking covers like “Johnny B. Goode,” “Green Onions,” and “Susie Q” with extended blues jams on tunes like “Hey Joe” and the ten-minute “Bad Case of the Blues.” Although this show took place chronologically between Buchanan’s second album, released in ’73, and 1974’s “That’s What I’m Here For,” there’s very little overlap in songs. The performances slash and burn, however, Buchanan’s Telecaster dominating the arrangements – the shy artist never liked singing much and mostly stuck to instrumentals – while the rest of the band struggles to keep up.

Other than a few tapes that the hardcore faithful keep in circulation, there’s not much live Buchanan to be found in this world, and most of it is from late in his career. With much of his official efforts lapsing into undeserved obscurity, I’d recommend that anybody who loves guitar playing first check out Sweet Dreams: The Anthology. If you dig that, I’d heartily recommend Telecaster County, a fine document of an artist in his prime. (By the way, do you think that the producers of this disc meant to call it “Telecaster Country”? Surely the fabled guitar deserves its own fantasyland and not just a single county, eh?) (Head Records CD-R, released 1999)

Review originally published by Live! Music Review zine...

Archive Review: Jack Oblivian's Rat City (2011)

As a founding member of both the Compulsive Gamblers and the Oblivians, Jack Oblivian is as close to Memphis garage-rock royalty as you’ll find. For all that Oblivian has accomplished through the years, it’s often his solo work that shines the brightest. Rat City is Oblivian’s latest shot at glory, a boiling, rumbling stewpot of fatback punk-blues, spicy garage-rock, and sweet pop delivered in the Memphis tradition.

Whereas the title track is a streetfight with clashing instrumentation and city-slang lyrics that would make Armand Schaubroeck blush, cuts like the rollicking “Kidnapper” evince a Duane Eddy twang and Alex Chilton soul. “Girl On the Beach” is a melodic romantic ode with an undeniable hook while the stunning “Girl With the Bruises” is what the Clash would have sounded like had they come from Memphis. There’s a lot to like in the musical gumbo that is Rat City, Jack Oblivian one of rock’s lovable outcasts like Chilton, Willie DeVille, and all those others who dared walk on the edge with heart and soul. (Big Legal Mess/Fat Possum Records)

Review originally published by Blurt magazine, 2011

Hot Wax: The Reverend’s Summer Singles Playlist (2025)

Summer has finally opened its eyes and shaken off its long hibernation here in WNY, which means that those of us who reside on this frozen tundra are seeing the end of a long, cold, and wet spring season and staggering into the three-month inferno that is summertime ‘round these parts. The pile of 7” singles teetering in a haphazard pile in the Reverend’s office is threatening an unfortunate workplace disaster, so I thought that I’d pluck a few of the more worthy slabs ‘o wax from the stack and let you know about them with this year’s “Summer Singles Playlist.” Listen at your own peril…

The Big Ol’ Nasty Getdown – “Trill Seekers” b/w “Bananas” (Getdown Entertainment)
This one actually came out back in 2023, but it’s been given repeated spins on the trusty ol’ turntable since Big Ol’ Nasty Getdown bandleader John Heintz sent me a copy late last year. Side A’s “Trill Seekers” is a funky amalgam of Funkadelic and Sly & the Family Stone with the former’s wigged-out guitar strokes (courtesy of Timo Somers) and the latter’s undeniable rhythmic sense (provided by bassist Remco Hendriks and drummer Wesley Ritenour, along with wah bassist Cody W. Wright). It’s a pulse-quickening instrumental foot-shuffler with a bit of horn honk and an undeniable groove. 

Flip this gorgeous purple flapjack over and spin the “B” as in “Bananas” and you’ll find a similarly funky jam tho’ with more of a jazzy feel as a backdrop, the performance led by Keith Anderson’s frenetic saxplay and Bobby Sparks II’s nimble keyboards. Throw in Hendriks’ monster bass line, Jack Iron’s rock-solid timekeeping, and some delightfully skronky guitar via Tim Stewart’s out-of-control id and you have another liver-quivering, deep pocketed performance. The 7-incher is packaged in a thick quality fold-out sleeve adorned with gorgeous gonzo artwork by Jim Mazza and Jeff Wood.   BUY OR DIE!   

The Low Spirits – “You Lied” b/w “Never Said I Need You” (Outro Records)
The Low Spirits are a contemporary garage-rock outfit hailing from Rochester NY, but they sound like the Seeds cruising down Hollywood Boulevard on their way to Bido Lito’s. This latest 7” slab kicks off with “You Lied,” a punky high-octane treatise on love and betrayal fueled by Ryan Moore’s unrepentant keyboard-bashing, guitarist Michael Maier’s fuzztone string-pulling and snotty lead vox, and a heavy-as-uranium rhythm section comprised of bassist Richie Dejohn and drummer Zachary Koch. All of the guys contribute backing vocals, which add even more momentum to an already exhilarating performance. 

B-side “Never Said I Need You” rocks just as recklessly, but with a more somber vibe provided by Moore’s excellently-moody keys and moodier vocals, punctuated by shards of atmospheric guitar and well-timed backing harmonies. If you’re a fan of the Nuggets/Back From the Grave-inspired rock ‘n’ roll then you’ll dig the hell outta the Low Spirits!   BUY OR DIE!

Nervous Eaters – “Man’s Got A Right” b/w “No More Idols” (Penniman Records, Spain)
Boston’s Nervous Eaters are, in my estimation, one of the sorely overlooked punk rock outfits of the 1980s, a “one and done” major label flash ‘n’ the pan that subsequently went indie, releasing a handful of rockin’ elpees before calling it quits. Eaters guiding light Steve Cataldo reformed the band in 2018 and has since provided fans with two wonderful new albums on Little Steven’s Wicked Cool Records label. This recently-released import single dives into the time machine to offer up two previously unreleased vintage tunes. Side A’s “Man’s Got A Right” is a slaphappy slice of early ‘80s punk with a power-pop heartbeat, Cataldo’s low-slung vocals pumped up by the band’s gang harmonies and Jonathan Paley’s delightfully-tortured fretwork. 

Bassist Rob Skeen and drummer Jeff Wilkinson are a strong rhythm section, never more apparent than on the B’s madcap “No More Idols,” which one-ups the Ramones with a machinegun arrangement that features chainsaw guitar and more manic beats per minute than any slackjawed EDM wank-off. Both tunes provide unbridled energy, guaranteed to kick yer pacemaker into overdrive. Dave Anderson (of the Rochester NY band Calidoscopio) does an impressive job resurrecting what seem to be unreleased demos, bringing them back to life in the studio, Frankenstein-style.   BUY OR DIE!

The Shitkicker Rebellion – “White Light, White Heat” b/w “99th Floor” (Penniman Records, Spain)
The Shitkicker Rebellion is singer Greg “Stackhouse” Prevost and some of his friends from ‘round the Rochester NY area (sensing a theme here, are we?). Prevost, of course, has released four fine blues-rock albums over the past few years, each guaranteed to tickle your eardrums and pound your medulla oblongata into submission. Prevost gets his NYC groove on with this groovy new black pancake and a turbocharged cover of the Velvet Underground’s “White Light, White Heat” that comes into the DMZ hot with snarling vox resembling a cross between Lou Reed and Iggy Pop. The backing band offers tilted harmonies, and the song’s git solo is razor sharp, devastatingly recorded in the red for major mondo distortion. It’s a spine-yanking cover of a legendary tune that many have tried, but few have mastered; kudos to Prevost for blitzing an otherwise overplayed cover with unrelenting energy and attitude.

The poop-punting B-side (sorry, couldn’t resist…) is an equally inspired cover of the Moving Sidewalks’ 1967 treasure “99th Floor.” As the former frontman of beloved garage-rockers the Chesterfield Kings, Prevost can growl these Nuggets-styled gems out in his sleep; he’s no slacker, though, so he imbues the performance with a crackling, uncompromised punkish ferocity that is calmed only slightly by the mournful wail of his harmonica in the background while guitarist Ryan Moore (The Low Spirits) doesn’t so much as mimic Billy Gibbons’ guitar noise as re-writes its DNA. Guitarist Paul Morabito delivers a subtle-but-strong instrumental backdrop while the rhythm section of bassist Rick Cona (Chesterfield Kings) and drummer Zachary Koch (The Low Spirits) provide a cold steel consistency to the song’s runaway locomotion.   BUY OR DIE!

CD Review: Dave Specter’s Live At SPACE (2025)

Dave Specter is the secret weapon of the contemporary Chicago blues scene. A guitarist of extraordinary talent, Specter is well-versed in, and adept at melding blues, jazz, and rock into a singular, unique style. He’s kept the flame burning for blues music in his hometown, and although he doesn’t seem to venture far beyond his Illinois base too often, he’s helped promote and support other artists as a co-founder of SPACE, the Evanston IL club that features a wealth of performers of the blues, folk, jazz, and rock persuasion. Even a glance at the club’s upcoming schedule – which includes a slate of ‘must-see’ artists like the Sun Ra Arkestra, Don Flemons, Cedric Burnside, Roseanne Cash, NRBQ, and Walter Trout – is enough to make any music enthusiast not in Chicago green with envy.

If Specter isn’t as well known to the casual blues fan, it’s not for lack of anything. The guitarist has played with some of the finest in the blues universe, artists like Sam Lay (Paul Butterfield Blues Band), Hubert Sumlin (Howlin’ Wolf’s guitarist), and Son Seals, and he’s produced a slew of records by talented bluesfolk. His relationship with the legendary Delmark Records goes back roughly 35 years, and the recently-released Live At SPACE album is Specter’s 14th release with the esteemed blues label. Specter doesn’t get nearly the respect he’s earned, nor the attention he deserves, but his legion of loyal fans wait in anticipation for each new album.

Dave Specter’s Live At SPACE

Specter’s Live At SPACE isn’t his first live effort – the wonderful Live In Chicago came in 2008, and the equally-engaging Live In Europe way back in 1995 (with soulful vocalist Tad Robinson on the microphone). Still, 40 years into his career, Specter pursues growth as an artist and Live At SPACE displays a still-creative performer using his guitar as the brush and the stage as his canvas. It helps that his firecracker band, comprised of keyboardist/vocalist Brother John Kattke, bassist Rodrigo Mantovani, and drummer Marty Blinder, has developed a closeknit musical chemistry with the bandleader and is skilled enough to follow his every move on stage. The result is an entertaining and enticing live performance that would thrill any Chicago blues fan.

Live At SPACE opens with a pair of rambunctious instrumentals – “Rumba & Tonic” and “Alley Walk” – that are reminiscent of Booker T. & the M.G.’s and Stax Records. The former offers up an exotic, jazzy guitar intro and a loping rhythm that sways from one speaker to the other, with some elegant guitar licks along the way. Kattke adds a rollicking piano jam in the middle, followed by some Southern-fried keyboards. The latter song offers up more of a menacingly slow-paced, low-slung groove that allows the band to revel in some free-wheeling instrumentation like Specter’s livewire fretwork, Blinder’s jazzy brushes, and Mantovani’s fluid bass lines. It’s an invigorating performance that, at nearly six minutes, still ends too soon. A cover of the 1962 Otis Rush single “Homework,” by way of the J. Geils Band, is a clever amalgam of both versions, jazzy six-string flourishes and soulful vox vying with Kattke’s lively keys.  

(Not The) Same Old Blues

Specter’s own “Blues From the Inside Out” offers a jaunty, up-tempo performance that matches its sly lyrics to a jump-blues framework with plenty of jazzy guitar and a swinging rhythm while the original “Chicago Style” is both a reverential tribute to those who came before, from Howlin’ Wolf to Otis Clay, while establishing a Chicago blues sound for the new millennium, with vibrant guitarplay, hearty vocals, and an infectious walking rhythm. A cover of Memphis music legend Don Nix’s “Same Old Blues” (originally recorded by Freddie King) is a pastiche of 70 years of rhythm and blues history, honoring the soulful original while embellishing it with some hot licks and subtle, yet powerful Gospel-tinged keyboards. Specter’s original “March Through the Darkness” offers an uplifting, almost anthemic performance marrying a spiritual, Staples Family vibe to Specter’s gorgeous fretwork and Kattke’s soulful, Booker T-styled keyboard runs. 

A cover of the traditional folk song “Deep Elem Blues,” best known as recorded in 1935 by country outfit the Shelton Brothers, but resurrected in 1981 by the Grateful Dead as an Americana-styled excuse for extended jams, hews closer to the Dead’s version in spirit, but puts a ‘Chicago blues’ stamp on the song with a distinct Midwest vocal drawl, lively guitar strokes, and a funky groove punctuated by Kattke’s honky-tonk piano-pounding. Specter’s take on the great Sonny Boy Williamson’s “Bluebird Blues” is a blissful blues romp with heartbreak vox, late-night piano trills, and nuanced but emotionally-powerful guitarplay while Specter’s reverent take on Chicago blues legend Magic Sam Maghett’s “Ridin’ High” closes the album with an upbeat, intoxicating blend of Chicago-styled guitar pyrotechnics delivered against an exhilarating rhythm track.    

The Reverend’s Bottom Line

Dave Specter may not be as well known as some of his contemporaries, but he’s been a constant presence on the Chicago blues scene for better than four decades – so long that he’s helped refine and define the city’s traditional sound with disparate elements that have expanded and improved upon what stalwarts like Tampa Red, Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, Paul Butterfield, and others had accomplished. Live At SPACE captures a March 2024 show by the underrated guitarist and it documents a performance without peer, as electric and entertaining a blues album as you’ll hear this year, or any other. If you’re a blues fan and haven’t yet picked up Dave Specter, you owe it to yourself to check out the transcendent performance offered by Live At SPACE. (Delmark Records, released June 6th, 2025) 

Also on That Devil Music:
Dave Specter’s Live In Chicago CD review

Buy the album from Amazon: Dave Specter’s Live At SPACE