The Yardbirds - Five Live Yardbirds

 

Five Live Yardbirds was the first important -- indeed, essential -- live album to come out of the 1960s British rock & roll boom. In terms of the performance captured and the recording quality, it was also the best such live record of the entire middle of the decade. Cut at a Marquee Club show in 1964 , Five Live Yardbirds was a popular album, especially once Eric Clapton's fame began to spread after leaving the band. Although the album didn't appear officially in the United States until its CD release by Rhino in the late 1980s, four of its tracks -- "Smokestack Lightning," "Respectable," "I'm a Man," and "Here 'Tis" -- made up one side of their classic U.S. album Having a Rave Up, and the British EMI LP became a very popular import during the early 1970s as a showcase for both the band and the playing of Eric Clapton. That album had astonishingly good sound, which was not the case with any of the reissues that followed, on vinyl or CD -- even Rhino's compact disc suffered from blurry textures and noise, though it was an improvement over any release since the original EMI LP. The 1999 Repertoire Records reissue is the first CD that matches the clarity and sharpness of the original LP, and along with that improvement, their original concert has been very sensibly expanded with a half-dozen live cuts from roughly the same period, recorded at the Crawdaddy Club. Among them is a killer live version of the Billy Boy Arnold classic "I Wish You Would."There's also a pair of live tracks from German television in 1967 -- "I'm a Man" and "Shapes of Things"; the two, in a flash, make up for what they lack in perfect fidelity.   AMG

Listen: HERE mfire file

THE THEME - MOD/POWER POP - Live UK Dates

Some live dates for this most excellent band, if you are near any of the venues, do yourself a favour and go and have a great night out!!!!

Billeracy Football Club -  9th march
Scala , Kings Cross - DJ Set from Wombats - 24 march
Southend, The Riga Bar with The Most - 14 april
Islington O2  - 18 april
Ally club, Cambridge - 12 may
Fleece - Bristol 22 june
Help for heroes mod rally -  Birmingham 9 june
Clapham -  Granf 13 july
Fiddlers Elbow -  28 july

 Photo by: Neil McCarty

The Kinks - Live at The Rainbow 24th December 1977

 

I am not sure if this is an official bootleg, I don't believe that it is, it is however very obviously, a soundboard recording and the quality is excellent.

The Kinks were on the Sleepwalker tour at the time and the recording features many songs from that album as well as the classics. 

Tracklist

01 Sleepwalker
02 Life on the Road
03 Waterloo Sunset
04 All Day And All Of The Night
05 Slum Kids
06 Celluloid Heroes
07 Get Back In Line
08 The Hard Way
09 Lola
10 Alcohol
11 Skin And Bone
12 You Really Got Me
13 Juke Box Music

Get it: HERE

Telepathic Butterflies - Breakfast in Suburbia

 

Over 40 years after the Beatles grabbed North America's musical consciousness by the lapels and gave it a friendly shake, their brand of guitar-based pop is still influencing bands here, there, and everywhere, and the third album from Winnipeg's the Telepathic Butterflies, Breakfast in Suburbia, shows that plenty of good things can still be built from the Fab Four's model. The Telepathic Butterflies aren't devoted to the Beatles at the exclusion of all else — "Telescope" shows flashes of both the Hollies and the Kinks, and "If It's All Too Much" suggests someone in this band listened to a lot of Who records. But the clean melodic lines and energetic guitar figures of the Beatles circa 1963-1965 clearly loom large in the Telepathic Butterflies' pantheon of influences, and they certainly do right by their role models. Réjean Ricard's guitar work is sharp and engaging, and he's a first-class songwriter to boot, sounding equally clever as a lyricist and tunesmith, and Jacques Dubois and Eric Van Buren are an excellent rhythm section, giving the songs plenty of snap and crackle while pushing the tunes forward with just the right degree of force. Though it isn't difficult to suss out this group's influences, the Telepathic Butterflies aren't overwhelmed by them, or living in a bygone era; these are simply bandmembers who understand the virtues of a smart, well-crafted pop tune played with fire and skill, and they have the talent to apply those lessons to their own work. Breakfast in Suburbia is superb pop/rock in the classic style that anyone who still believes in the curative power of the electric guitar will want to hear. -AMG

Listen: HERE  Link refreshed and working.

The Cry! - The Cry!

 

Brian Crace :  Lead Guitar, Vocals
Ray Nelsen:  Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
Dave Berkham:  Bass Guitar, Vocals
Maus Mersky: Drums

 

The Cry say they are going to save Rock 'n' Roll from the grave and listening to their music I can tell you they are already in command of the undertakers shovels and menacingly looking at the back of Justin Beibers head.....and I am ready to look the other way!

This is brilliant straight up rock 'n' roll with a twist of doo wop , sure, it isn't reinventing the wheel, but it is keeping the wheel rolling (at great speed) greased with a passion and energy that is so often forgotten these days.

 The album is a brilliantly crafted power pop affair with only 3 of the 12 songs going past the 3 minute mark, three part harmonies in a 50's/60's styling and echoing bands such as The Beach Boys and The Exploding Hearts, and listening to the track "Be True" on the album, you could be forgiven for thinking that these guys are the bastard sons of the aforementioned artists! 

This album plays like a dream, from track one to track twelve The Cry! don't miss a beat, look as you might, there isn't one filler track or sub standard track to be found on the album.

The band have a motto and that is "Never Suck!" What a breath of fresh air that is in a world filled with X-factor, Idol type artists that seem to have the motto "Keep Sucking!"

The Cry! are playing loads of live dates from now until June in the States, so do yourself a favour, go and check them out and "Never Suck!" The Cry are rated A+ live!!!!!!

You can contact the band, like them on Facebook and find details of the album and the shows at the following links:

Official Website:  http://www.thecrypdx.com

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/thecrypdx

Reverb Nation: http://www.reverbnation.com/thecrypdx

The Exploding Hearts - Guitar Romantic

 

At first glance, the Exploding Hearts seem like mere revivalists. From the pink and yellow cover to their 1977 looks to their influences, it would be easy to dismiss them. But you need to hold the phone a minute and listen, because the Exploding Hearts are the best punk band to come along in a long time, maybe since the original wave. About those influences, here is a partial list: the early Clash if Mick Jones wrote all the songs and the Only Ones or Buzzcocks at their emotional best, but also classic power pop sounds like a (much) tougher Rubinoos, rock & roll like a tighter and sober New York Dolls, and the lo-fi approach of Billy Childish. Guitar Romantic is an amazingly raw and melodic debut, fully realized and original despite the obvious debt to the punk past. It is difficult to pinpoint just what it is about the band that helps overcome their idol worship. Maybe it is the love and authenticity that they pour into the worship, the raw production that smashes the guitars and bass into a whirling mess of tuneful noise, or the wonderfully tough but tender vocals. Most likely it is the songwriting. Too many bands that seek to re-create a sound or an era don't have the tunes to back it up. Not the Hearts. Every song on Guitar Romantic makes a bid to be the best on the album: "I'm a Pretender" is a jaunty kick in the head, "Sleeping Aides & Razorblades" is an ultra-catchy doo wop-inspired ballad with a brilliant guitar line, "Thorns in Roses" is a rollicking '50s-influenced ballad, "Throwaway Style" melds a lovelorn lyric to a Motown beat (the same one the Strokes heisted for "Last Nite") to great effect. There isn't a weak song here, not a single one that isn't on par with the best punk-pop. If you don't have this album and have even the slightest affinity for poppy punk rock or punky pop/rock, you are missing out on something special. -AMG

 

Listen: HERE 

Mod Gun - Fools - FREE ALBUM DOWNLOAD

 

Well, I can't tell you very much about this band, in fact I can't tell you anything other than who the members are and they are;

Paul Peters: Rhythm Guitar/Vocals
Jon Dyer: Lead Guitar
Kathleen Peters: Bass
Trevor Rubin: Drums

 

The band plays in a style reminiscent of Swervedriver, The Telescopes and Catherine Wheel, nice dirty guitars and well crafted songs with an almost floating effect to them.

You can contact and like Mod Gun: Facebook

You can download Fools here with the compliments of the band: Mod Gun