rawk Archive
16 Jan 2019
No Way Out: The Curious Case of The Chocolate Watchband (Part Three)
Continued from Part Two… “I can’t think of too many bands that manage to build a reputation through as small a body of work,” says Palao. “When anybody looks at ‘60s garage, ‘60s punk – whatever you want to to call it – the Chocolate Watchband is always going to be one of the first
15 Jan 2019
No Way Out: The Curious Case of The Chocolate Watchband (Part Two)
Continued from Part One… The punky ethos of Watchband songs like “Are You Gonna Be There (At the Love-in)” and “Let’s Talk About Girls” was no put-on; the band could be wild. Aguilar relates one of many tales from the era. “We played for Hollywood producers on this big ship. We emptied out the trophy
14 Jan 2019
No Way Out: The Curious Case of The Chocolate Watchband (Part One)
(Note: An edited version of this feature appeared in Record Collector Magazine.) Throughout the history of popular music, certain managers, producers and promoters have been wiling to engage in a kind of sleight-of-hand to further their commercial prospects. If that meant sending a bogus version of a group out on the road; they’d do it:
13 Jan 2019
Greta Van Fleet: The Sound Remains the Same
Greta Van Fleet can’t seem to catch a break. The young foursome from the faux-Bavarian town of Frankenmuth, Michigan, has sustained criticism for copping its sound from 1970s rock giants Led Zeppelin. The group’s debut track, “Highway Tune” is characterized by Josh Kiszka’s Robert Plant doppelganger wail and Jacob Kiszka’s Jimmy Page-style guitar licks; the
11 Jan 2019
Alice Cooper: The Musoscribe Interview
As the title of yesterday’s feature indicates, Alice Cooper is the Grand Old Man of shock rock. Nearly a half century after the release of the debut album Pretties for You, Cooper remains busy as ever; he’s been recording and performing with supergroup Hollywood Vampires, and his most recent album, Paranormal, finds him reuniting with
10 Jan 2019
Alice Cooper: The Grand Old Man of Shock Rock
At its core, rock ‘n’ roll has always been about youthful rebellion. From the national debut of Elvis Presley — who was initially shown on television waist-up so as not to offend delicate sensibilities with his shaking hips — to transgressive modern-day artists like Marilyn Manson and GWAR, part of rock music’s mission has to
09 Jan 2019
Hundred-word Reviews for January 2019
The backlog is threatening to get unmanageable once again. As a kind of editorial pressure release valve, here’s a quick look at ten worthy albums that have recently crossed my desk. All new music. Paul Kelly – Nature Some artists accumulate a body of work that all ties together in a neat fashion. Paul Kelly
08 Jan 2019
No Way Out of Here: The Unicorn Story (Part Two)
Continued from Part One… David Gilmour wasn’t a complete novice in the ways of the studio. Then 27 years old, the guitarist had already co-produced six albums with Pink Floyd; he also handled production duties for the challenging sessions that yielded much of the material on Syd Barrett’s two solo albums. And his ear was
07 Jan 2019
No Way Out of Here: The Unicorn Story (Part One)
Early demo tapes from Unicorn, a country-rock group and protégés of Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour, show that the underappreciated British group had an authentic yet radio-ready sound that should have caught on. Despite a number of lucky breaks, the well-deserving band never lit commercial fire. But now there’s a new archival release from Omnivore Recordings,
06 Jan 2019
C&W UK Style: David Gilmour’s Pals Unicorn
Few people remember a British band from the 1970s called Unicorn. Though they never found widespread success, the band recorded four major-label albums. Two and half of those were produced by David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. His band’s manager Steve O’Rourke signed Unicorn to a management contract, and got them a record deal as well.