The Inevitable Velvet Revolver Discussion

By now, I'm sure you are well aware of the Velvet Revolver saga. Scott Weiland left the band to reunite with Stone Temple Pilots and now the remaining members of Velvet Revolver (*cough* Guns n' Roses *cough*) are looking for a new singer. I don't know who that singer should be and quite frankly I don't have any good guesses. For our purposes today, we'll just discuss the current VR catalog.

I was at the library last night and saw Libertad on the shelf. I never got around to picking up the disc, so I decided to take it home for a listen. I have to admit, Libertad  isn't as good as Contraband, but it's still decent. I *love* the song "Fall to Pieces" from Contraband. It's a great ballad and Slash has great guitar tone. Actually, he has a great tone on all of Contraband.

I've always thought of Velvet Revolver as a Glam band. They are not nu-metal, but certainly are modern rock. The tunes have a definite Glam throwback while still sounding fresh. I know Scott Weiland's voice grates on some people, but I still think in this instance, he became a "Glam" artist. No, Glam doesn't always mean spandex pants, eye liner or teased hair. It has a lot to do with music, lyrics, tone and soul.

Thoughts?

Here's "Fall to Pieces" live

Should've Been Huge...

Here's one for the "should've been huge file:" Spread Eagle. My Glam goodness they are great. In some ways, they are even better than Skid Row - and I think that's quite a bold statement.

I'm sure you're familiar with the band, but if not you should know Spread Eagle are from New York.  Ray West (vocals), Rob De Luca (bass), Paul DiBartolo (guitar) and Tommi Gallo (drums)  landed a deal with MCA around 1990. You can tell by that date that the band was just about D.O.A., a sad consequence of time and fate. While the music tides were turning, Spread Eagle were cranking out fabulous Glam -- songs that still stand up today.

If you own Spread Eagle's self-titled debut, consider yourself lucky. If not, you can purchase the reissue on Amazon.com.

Here's the track list:

  1. Broken City
  2. Back On The Bitch
  3. Switchblade Serenade
  4. Hot Sex
  5. Suzy Suicide
  6. Dead Of Winter
  7. Scratch Like A Cat
  8. Thru These Eyes
  9. Spread Eagle
10. 42nd Street
11. Shotgun Kiss

 
Here's the video for "Switchblade Serenade." This track owns.

**So, do you agree that Spread Eagle deserved stardom?  

Mixed Bag

Some people celebrate Memorial Day with parades, fireworks and a barbecue...I bought a bass. 

That's right, a brand-spakin new electric bass. I've wanted an Ocean TB70 for a year now. For a Guitar Center store brand, the bass has a super high-end sound. Goodness, the tone is so rich, just slamming any string makes me want to roll around on the floor. I got a new amp, too! I've wanted a Line 6 amp for as long as I've wanted the bass.

If you're not familiar, Guitar Center often has big sales on holidays. As we all know, the markup on music instruments and equipment is heinous...but, on select days you can beat the system!

I love beating the system!

So, now I have a new bass and amp to learn my Glam.  I was in bed, half-asleep yesterday morning when I realized if I didn't have the Ocean bass, I would seriously die. You see, I think Guitar Center is truly one of my natural habitats. My local GC is always jam packed with people wearing band t-shirts and ripped jeans. There's no judgement based on appearance...and it's pretty likely at least one person on the sales floor knows a Motley Crue song by heart.

So, getting some new goodies is how I celebrated my Memorial Day and now I'm easing back into a thankless work week. To make that process a little less painless on all of us, I found a couple cool videos you need to watch. Trust me.

Click here to see a reunited Pretty Boy Floyd perform at the Knitting Factory.

Now, watch this ridiculously funny clip featuring Slash and Billy Idol performing "In the Summertime."

I swear, the clip for "In the Summertime" made me cackle a solid five minutes. Good times.

Meet Leaded Fuel

Want some sleazy Glam? Look no further than Sweden's Leaded Fuel (cute name, eh?).

The Stockholm-based band wear Glam roots on their collective sleeves: they are proud of their work and cite Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Guns n' Roses, RATT, Alice Cooper and more as influences. I can hear each of these legendary Glam acts in Leaded Fuel's debut album Inhale and Get Pale.

So just who are Leaded Fuel? Well, naturally each member has a cute stage name: Liz Lascivious (vocals), John Priest (guitar), Dallas Chrome (guitar), Andy Jones (bass) and Iron Kongo (drums).

I've got to interrupt this introduction and review for a second. Iron Kongo?!? Seriously? How much pot do you have to smoke to think up Iron Kongo as a stage name? Crazy stuff right there. I like to think I'm on the creative side, but I'd never in a million years rename myself Iron Kongo. I digress.

So, Inhale and Get Pale has some good tracks.  Here's the entire list:

Leaded Fuel
Dirty Bitch Boogie
Southern Belle
Max Rear Traction
231 Miles
Hostage Situation
Yeah! You Bother Me
Side Effects
Rip It Up
The Way We Are

I really like "Yeah! You Bother Me"  and "Rip It Up." The latter really sounds like early Faster Pussycat. In fact, Liz Lascivious sort of has a Taime Downe quality about his voice. I think you'll agree all good sleaze comes with a little whine. I swear, this is just reason 9,876 that I need to holiday in Sweden. Me, some good Glam, Ikea and lingonberry jam. Good times.

You can buy Leaded Fuel's album here. Preview tracks at the band's official Myspace. Read an interview with Iron Kongo over at the Heavy Metal Time Machine.

Photo credit: Leaded Fuel official Myspace.  

How Much is Too Much?

Do you ever have "cheap" days? Ladies, I don't mean when you wear a micro mini and some plastic red pumps (and yes, I own both)... I mean, "cheap" as in financially aware.

My mom always called it "frugal."

Anyway, I helped my parents with a garage sale yesterday and it had me feeling cheap - and annoyed. We'll skip the annoyed part and go straight to the wallet.

I've been saying for awhile now that the price of everything is ridiculous. I mean, it cost me $40 to fill my eight gallon gas tank Thursday! It's now five bucks for a bowl of soup at the restaurant down the street and we all know the price of home heating and cooling is downright heinous.

I've never really paid much attention to gas prices before. I don't drive much - and when we go out of town, my husband sits behind the wheel. Yes, the gas money is out of the same account but I just never paid attention to how much we were literally burning... until now. When I filled up the tank in my tiny purple Kia, I had an epiphany: In many cases, it now costs more to actually drive to a concert than buy a ticket. Sure, my seats for Cruefest are more than the gas to get to Cincinnati, but when you consider how much it's going to cost to transport my crew to George Michael in Philadelphia...it's about a wash.

Even with gas prices the way they are, I still do and go where I want. I go out to eat, go shopping, take bass lessons and get my hair dyed every month. Of course, as the price of gas continues to rise...so does the cost of every other luxury I enjoy.

During the annual garage sale, I was subjected to the same negotiations as every year: people asking if I'd take a dollar for something marked ten. People want more for their money and are willing to try to make pennies stretch wherever possible.

At some point, the high cost of life is going to completely destroy the music industry. Literally, at some point we'll all ask "how much is too much?"

When will we start balking at $300 concert tickets and everything associated like $50 shirts, $20 parking and $9 beer?

The economic situation in America is getting a little grim, and this has me amazed that bands still try to tour the club circuit. Don't get me wrong, I love club shows. The crowds are small and therefore the chances of talking to the band members is very great. Still, I always wonder if the bands are actually making any money during these small gigs. If an L.A. based band gets in their van and drives all the way to Dayton, Ohio to play a show...you have to admire their determination. Even playing a lot of clubs between L.A. and Dayton is still no guarantee of a comfortable living.

So, I ask you..."how much is too much?" At what point do you shut your wallet and say "no more" to music-related luxuries like CDs, concert tickets and band merchandise?

 

Summer vs. Winter

Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start to summer. I always think there are "summer" bands and "winter" bands. This might be ridiculous since most acts tour in the summer, but it's more a vibe I get from music rather than a live show.

I've always considered Cinderella a "winter" band. Maybe it's because of Long Cold Winter - or maybe it's because the band's videos always seemed to have somewhat dark imagery.

On the other hand, I've always felt Poison a true summer band. Many people - including myself - equate parties with summer. Poison is the ultimate party band. If you need a good time, just dial up Bret, Rikki, Bobby and C.C.

Another band I've always considered a "winter" act is White Lion. Again, maybe it's the black and white imagery often used in White Lion videos, but it seems to me Mane Attraction sounds better when I'm locked up inside during a snow storm.

Like Poison, I consider Def Leppard a summer band. While bands like Cinderella and White Lion used black and white film and severe images for videos, Def Leppard pretty much always kept their themes light - or at least in full color. Even the video for "Love Bites" alternated between black background and full color. Plus, the Leps always have a big laser show and that to me is the epitome of summer.

Here's Cinderella "Heartbreak Station"

Rikki is Innocent!

From Blabbermouth, via Myspace:

Poison drummer Rikki Rockett was exonerated of a felony rape charge filed in Mississippi stemming from a September 23, 2007 incident in which a Neshoba County, Mississippi woman claimed that Rockett had forcibly raped her. Rockett was not in Mississippi during September 2007. The Neshoba County District Attorney refused to prosecute the case after determining that Rockett was not the person who committed the alleged rape. The charges carry a potential life sentence. Rockett said, "I want to sincerely thank my lawyers Barry Tarlow and Mi Kim for their commitment to my case and their terrific legal work that exonerated me of any wrongdoing.

Hooray! There is justice in this world after all. No matter what your opinion of Poison or Glam, no one should endure what happened to Rikki. Of course this case brings up the old argument of the haves and have nots: those with money can get out of prison, but the poor rot to death in jail cells. Surely, Rikki's lawyers are better than most - it seems the Poison drummer is using the experience for good and helping innocent people jailed for crimes they did not commit. Says Rikki "I also look forward to helping other people who have been falsely accused of committing heinous crimes. My lawyers, Barry Tarlow and Mi Kim, are helping me seek out organizations like Centurion Ministries to help if I can. This wonderful organization works to free innocent people in prison who have done serious time for crimes they did not commit." Good for him I say!

This calls for "Unskinny Bop!"