The Front Bottoms let it all hang out, Miles Kane mans up, Mammoth double down, Odds crash the party, Robert Jon & the Wreck see the light, Jah Wobble gives you a history lesson and more — these are your plays of the week:
The Front Bottoms
You Are Who You Hang Out With
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “For New Jersey’s The Front Bottoms, working on new music has always been therapeutic, but on their forthcoming new album You Are Who You Hang Out With, having complete and utter fun took top priority for the duo of Brian Sella and Mat Uychich. It’s this carefree and laid-back mindset that colored the sessions for You Are Who You Hang Out With. Armed with the duo’s signature anthemic melodies, take-no-prisoners lyrics and tight musical interplay, every spin of the album is a chance to peek behind the curtain at two friends having one hell of a time doing what they do best. “Oh yeah, it had to be fun for us,” says Uychich of the freewheeling, oft-emotional sessions. “Also, we said numerous times that we needed to make it sound like The Front Bottoms.” To hear Sella tell it, things had to feel comfortable for he and Uychich. Because, sure, they could get self-serious about their craft. But The Front Bottoms have never been that band. “So we had to keep it natural,” Sella says of the process that resulted in a stunning 10-track album full of explosive hooks and even harder-hitting melodies “Don’t force anything and just let the songs develop the way they develop. That’s just the way it’s meant to be.”
The Jesus And Mary Chain
Sunset 666 (Live At Hollywood Palladium)
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Recorded in Los Angeles in 2018, Sunset 666 is a new live album from The Jesus and Mary Chain. In 1990, a young American band, full of a precise kind of noise and darkness, were special guests on the U.S. tour being undertaken by a group who had noise and darkness, poise and catharsis of their own. The young band: Nine Inch Nails. Those headliners: The Jesus and Mary Chain. Almost 30 years later, an invitation was extended. Would the Reid brothers care to reverse the roles and open for Nine Inch Nails on their own North American tour? Trent Reznor had been a fan of the Mary Chain, and influenced by them since hearing Psychocandy, so it felt a good fit and the brothers accepted. The resulting tour ended with a run of six shows at the Hollywood Palladium and the 17 tracks captured on this double album were recorded from the desk on two of those nights. Sides A, B and C are from the final show, Dec. 15. Those 12 songs were the full set that night, in sequence, meaning the show began with the here-we f*cking-go drums of Just Like Honey and ended with the ferocious euphoria of an eight- minute Reverence. Side D of the vinyl record is taken from the Dec. 11 show and serves almost as a mini-showcase of the Automatic album, featuring versions of Blues From A Gun, Between Planets and Halfway To Crazy.”
Miles Kane
One Man Band
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Miles Kane returns to his guitar hero best on One Man Band as he focuses on big hooks and even bigger anthems. Sharp, infectious, urgent and packed to the brim with singalong moments, it’s Miles on the top of his game. A deeply personal record, Miles returned to Liverpool to work on the album, finding himself reflecting on his journey. “Making the album back in Liverpool with my family really helped to bring this out of me,” Miles said of the writing process. “We left no stone unturned. Sometimes you have to go backwards to go forwards, and this album helped me rediscover why I picked up a guitar in the first place. This album is like a brand new, yet somehow familiar leather jacket. A comforting melting pot of all the music that has inspired and continues to inspire me every day.”
Mammoth WVH
Mammoth II
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Mammoth WVH’s second studio album Mammoth II was ecorded at the legendary 5150 studio. On the heels of a whirlwind debut that included a Grammy nomination for his first single, No. 1 debuts on multiple charts, television performances, and sold out shows over a two-year span, Wolfgang Van Halen continues the tradition of writing all of the songs and performing all of the instrumentation and vocals himself. But this time he set out to challenge himself and expand his sound beyond what people had already come to know. From the rocking opener Right? to Beatles-esque fade on closer Better Than You, Mammoth II showcases his growth as a songwriter, musician and vocalist. Songs like Like A Pastime, Take A Bow and Waiting are all sonically different from each other but unique to what Mammoth WVH is. “I knew that I wanted the new album to contain elements of what people heard on the debut,” he say, “but also giving me a chance to branch out a bit.”
Odds
Crash The Time Machine
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Canadian rock band Odds have announced their long-awaited seventh studio album Crash The Time Machine, a vibrant painting of struggle and the community that both feeds it and transcends it. The band goes in new and exciting musical directions while retaining the dark ironic signature that has earned them a place in the hearts of listeners for over three decades. Craig Northey and his fellow Odds — bassist Doug Elliott, drummer Pat Steward, and guitarist Murray Atkinson — have a rich history, but are firmly rooted in the present. “We’ve been waiting a long time to share this album,” says Northey, “and we’re all really proud of it. We’ve been playing it for some of our musical inner circle for a while and it truly buoys our spirits when somebody says it sounds like Odds, but it also sounds new.” As the title implies, Crash The Time Machine finds the Odds firmly embracing the future and the possibilities of catharsis.”
Robert Jon & The Wreck
Ride Into The Light
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Robert Jon & The Wreck have announced Ride Into The Light, their seventh studio album. Packed with blistering blues-rock and sun-soaked Americana ballads, Ride Into The Light is as high-octane as it is soul-stirring, proving that rock ’n’ roll is thriving in 2023. Reinvigorating their traditional production process, The Wreck teamed up for this release with the legendary producers Don Was (John Mayer, Bonnie Raitt), Dave Cobb (Brandi Carlile, Chris Stapleton), Kevin Shirley (Iron Maiden, Black Crowes), and guitar maestros Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith (Marc Broussard, Eric Gales, Joanne Shaw Taylor). The resulting album finds the band reaching a new level of musicianship and songwriting prowess, delivering a fresh take on rock ’n’ roll while evoking classic artists like The Allman Brothers Band, Eagles, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. “We met with the legendary Tom Hambridge (Buddy Guy), who’s written songs with a lot of great artists,” shares frontman Robert Jon Burrison. “A few weeks later we went into Sunset Sound in L.A. with Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith as our producers… it evolved into a bit of tribute to the L.A. session musician scene through the years, combining elements from a few different decades and wound up being a really fun sonic experiment. Joe and Josh were also great to be around, providing a lot of fun musical suggestions and of course some top-notch vintage guitar gear!”
Jah Wobble
A Brief History Of Now
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “After an astounding 45-year career in music that began as the bassist for John Lydon’s post-Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd., earning immense and lasting praise for his trailblazing musicianship through his solo career and collaborations with the likes of Holger Czukay (Can), The Edge (U2) and later with Brian Eno, Chris Connelly (Ministry) and Geordie Walker (Killing Joke), one would think that Jah Wobble would have said all he has to say. Turns out, he was just getting started. A Brief History Of Now finds the eclectic troubadour returning to the post-punk genre that he had a key role in developing, both in his tenure with Public Image Ltd. and later. Co-written, produced and performed with another post-punk hero Jon Klein (Siouxsie & The Banshees), the album packs a powerful punch both musically and lyrically as the two veterans deliver an energetic and innovative collection of musical treatises. “It’s all about the dopamine rush,” says Wobble. “Assault on the senses. Bang! Bang! Bang! Rush after rush after rush. But never satisfied. No satisfaction. Never any conclusion. Always moving. Appearances arising. Ephemeral. Lacking substance. But often so beautiful and exciting. Glorious esoterica.”
