Welcome Crampophiles, Psychotic Rockabillies, Garageniks and Surf Dudes and Dudettes ! Hope you find something of interest, feel free to comment and corrections to erroneous info most welcome.
The blog is also the inspiration behind the label TRASH WAX and our webstore where you can buy all the releases and lots more similar stuff. We ship worldwide too ! www.trashwax.com
Some serious talent coming to the fore recently in both London and Paris (NY was covered by Twin Guns not too long ago)...Could be simply that I haven't moved out of my comfort zone too much in a good while, musically speaking that is, but I really get the impression that there's a lot happening out there and these guys & gals, while not exactly household names, are prime movers in their respective scenes, so if by any chance you haven't picked up on them yet ? It's a good time to acquaint yourselves with them, neither have an album out, although plans afoot no doubt, but both do have a bunch of 7"s out now which deserve a place in anyones vinyl stash. So if you do miss the early bus, you only have yourself to blame when you find yourself trawling Evilbay for them later !
Out late August.
What a great pairing this is, Sarah Vista teamed up with the legendary Boz Boorer to cover and revamp an all time Polecats classic 'Make A Circuit With Me'...This little beauty will be out in a few weeks time and will be available in both black and coloured vinyl. This was recorded in Boz's Portugaul based studio, Serra Vista, for his upcoming album 'Age Of Boom' which should see the light of day in September.....You could hardly escape noticing that Sarah is not only a rather talented gal herself but that she also has some amazing folk behind her with the likes of Terry Edwards from the mighty GALLON DRUNK providing the requisite brass as well as former SHILLELAGH SISTER Lyn Halpin (you probably know her better as Mrs Boorer) stepping in on bass for the flipside of the 'I Wish You Hell' 7" and if that wasn't enough, Jeff Mead, former CANNIBAL who has also played with The STING RAYS & IMELDA MAY among others, not failing to mention that our pal Marcel B provided the artwork......Not exactly your standard debut single affair.
A Heart Full Of Hate !
Sarah Vista's debut platter is a little taster of a forthcoming album that will be released earlyish next year and if you like Spaghetti Western tinged, revenge soaked R'n'R that moves along to a hillbilly beat ? then this will not disappoint...BUT, it's a little more than simply another play on a Western Swing/Cowbilly theme, the album that is on it's way is called 'Killing Fever' and will include tracks that have been used as part of the soundtrack for an upcoming movie (Western of course) and I believe that the bones of a second album are already being prepped. These aren't a bunch of Death Country tunes or anything like that, more like the finely crafted thoughts of many a spurned woman set to some rather great music..anthems to kill your (ex) lover by !
To launch her first single, Sarah played an acoustic set in the hippest record shop in Camden, Sounds That Swing/No Hit, needless to say there were a few folk that couldn't get in due to the fact the place was jammers, although someone well positioned did manage to capture a bit of film footage (with their phone) of her singing the title track...It's hardly Spielberg but not bad at all really considering you get to see the lovely lady and her acoustic Gretsch (not sure which one is the more attractive to be honest!).
You can get yourself a copy direct from Sarah Vista (Check out Facebook & Discogs) or you can get a copy from Sounds That Swing/No Hit Records and from our goodselves.
Woah !!! Chrome Reverse (Who ? I hear you ask)....What you have here fine folk, is basically French R'n'R royalty....I shit you not! It's got to be at least 25 years that some of the members first came out of Parisian Garages and cellars in various combos such as The No Talents, Les Terribles, The Splash Four who had releases on some of the most influential labels around at the time including Estrus, Dionysus, Lookout, 1+2, Larsen, Soundflat as well as releasing stuff on their own labels Wild Wild Recs & Royal Recs. Iwan & Lili being the senior veterans here, it's really no surprise that their releases to date have been right up there on the awesome scale ! Pure rock 'n' roll with a very cool sound that is far less punk rawk than much of what they did in previous incarnations...The Chrome Reverse sound has that primitive 50's feel to it but without sounding dated...They're not trying to be some kind of revivalist clone, far more Crypt Recs than Wild Recs.
As I've already said, a couple the members have been around the block and they shouldn't have any problems in building a decent enough rep, I'd be expecting to see them playing a good few festivals next year on the back of the releases so far and judging from what I've seen online to date, I'll be making a trip or two to catch them. I thought that the upcoming release on Kizmiaz was an LP but was only a small bit disappointed when Yannick (of Kizmiaz) told me it was 4 track EP, it's due out in mid August so another to put in the diary....If you're into The 5678's (It's Lili's vocals), The Fireworks and Trashy R'n'R in general...let me introduce you to your new fave band ! Don't take my word for it, go check them out up there !
Available from most quality outlets including Born Bad Record Shop in Paris, Cool & Crazy/Crypt in Hamburg and from our goodselves too.....Happy Hunting.
So, our American friends are in for a real treat during August ! Oleg, Svetty and Boris, collectively known as 'Messer Chups' are ambarking on a 23 date tour of the USA, kicking off the tour with a first date in Milwaukee on the 4th August and finishing up in Cambridge (Massachusetts) on the29th August.
Been a long time coming but now the Americans will be able to experience these crazy Russians first hand and see what all the fuss is about !
Apparently, part of the visa application process involved being interviewed by consular staff in regard to the musical influences of the band (trying to catch them out no doubt)...So Mr Gitaracula, which American guitar players would you say have had the most influence on your style ?......Response : Link Wray & Dick Dale !.........OK, you can come in !
I only wish that my circumstances had allowed me to catch a couple of the US dates, unfortunately it's not the case but I am looking forward to seeing some of the crowd responses on social media as I'm sure that the folk seeing them for the first time will be totally blown away and leave them clamouring for more !!! Enjoy the tour guys.......
Gone, but what a legacy !
Today is a pretty sad day as we learned of Alan Vega's death this morning, a truly iconic figure and one whose influence stretched far and wide, both with 'Suicide' and as a solo artist in his own right ! Innovator, Agitator, Protopunk pioneer, Shit....the guy even dragged Rockabilly into areas thought by many to be borderline blasphemy....I for one loved his minimalist treatment of many standards and his FUCK YOU stance to the whinging detractors.....Rock On Ghost Rider !
Today we'll be listening to a lot of Vega & Suicide......Tomorrow too !
Includes added Catman ! 1st 100 copies GREEN Vinyl
A few folk have asked recently if there will be 'record club' of some description for Trash Wax releases but to be honest there aren't any plans for one, not that we haven't toyed with the idea, it's just an organisational nightmare which would involve getting the factories to stick to a delivery schedule and this just isn't happening at the moment. What we are doing though, is getting the first 100 copies of each release pressed in a coloured vinyl which are available exclusively through the website, these will be put up for pre-order approx 6 weeks before expected release date and once they are gone...that's it, there won't be a second chance.
We've some nice releases already at the factory and we're expecting the 1st Messer Chups LP release (we have 2 in production) on the 15th July, then there's The Cheating Hearts LP, the Smoggers/Charm Bag 7", Oh! Gunquit 7" and the 2nd Messer Chups LP. That's without mentioning the Marcel Bontempi EP and a 7" from Scotland's The Strange Blue Dreams (More about this later but it's very special)....Awesome stuff !
While we're on the subject, there is an absolutely stunning project we're working on at the moment with the legendary Boz Boorer ! Back in the very early 80's, Boz was a very busy (Rockabilly....tish, boom!) guy indeed, not only was he the guitarist of The Polecats & Shillelagh Sisters, he was also moonlighting with a bunch of lads that would become The Vibes (Yes...Lloyd Tripp (on Bass), Gary Boniface (on Drums) and Bob Martin (vocals)....nothing was ever released by this combo who went under the name of THE MEGATONS but they did manage to get into the studio....TWICE and we've found the sessions (Boz did actually)..the first one from around '82 is having a bit of restoration but sounds like some lost Sun Session, real savage Rockabilly...the 2nd session which was recorded a few years later during an impromptu reunion in the USA (different drummer) is crystal clear and absolutely sensational....not saying anymore except that it's some of the wildest and best Rockabilly I've heard in a long while..Hopefully, this will be out before the end of the year ! In the meantime, enjoy the only known footage to exist of The Megatons : https://www.facebook.com/lloyd.tripp.5/videos/10153112030116175/
Out in August (2016)
For those of you that like a bit of scuzzy, fuzz garage punk, The Smoggers won't disappoint ! After 4 albums, the latest being the brilliant 'Shadows In My Mind' which came out on Lutz Rauber's ever cool label 'Soundflat, you'd be forgiven for thinking that this is the first Smoggers slab of 7" vinyl...actually it's their fifth and what a track it is too...It's My Time takes you on a bit a roller coaster ride with Fernando's demented wailings duelling with the Farfisa while Anna beats out a pounding rhythm on the skins, building to great finish...
Out in August (2016)
Now, this is a split 7" with Charm Bag but....Charm Bag are actually Fernando & Anna so you could argue that they're the same group only the styles are totally different ! Charm Bag are a CRAMPED duo with a distinct penchant for rather dark Link Wray styled Trash.....I caught them live at last years Munster Raving Loony Party and their live set just blew me away, and if you like this when you hear it, they have another couple of mini LPs out already, well worth the investment !
The first 100 copies of this 7" will be on Orange vinyl !
CHARM BAG : An Andalusian Dog
Limited edition of 300.
Also out in August will be the first full length LP from Hamburg's Uber cool The Cheating Hearts, 12 tracks of love induced misery, heartbreak and heartache...FUCK LOVE ! This is snotty as hell and the guy & gal from St Pauli deliver a soundtrack for anyone whose lovelife has gone down the drain, forget the sugary, country & western sentimental nonsense...this is where it's truly at, as it says on the tin (Sleeve), this is 'Primitive, Trash, Rock'n'Roll !
The entire album has been re-recorded to analogue and tweaked by our noisemeister Mondosean and the sound is fricken amazing...must be said. The fab sleeve was done by the Voodoo scribbler himself, Mr Chris 'Sick' Moore. Don't put off delaying on this one as it's strictly limited to 300 copies !
7" Nomads Of The Lost.
I'm guessing that the major record labels go on holiday for the month of August as we've been told (with the arse covering 'provisionally') to expect another great release (Yep, we've been busy little beavers) from London's Trashy, Rumble Rocking Party animals OH! GUNQUIT....2 brand new stunning tracks from their latest recording sessions, If you can get your head around this? you'll kind of get where this is coming from...just imagine a big messy mix of The Delmonas, The Detroit Cobras, a big guitar sound and a wailing sax...throw it all together and out comes OH! GUNQUIT...The A-side is 'Nomads Of The Lost' with the flip being a rather Delmonasesque 'Walking The Street'....The 1st 100 copies of this will be a rather fetching shade of green (Like the cover......for those of unfortunate enough not to be familiar with either of their previous singles or the magnificent LP released by Dirty Water Records not too long ago....Here's the A-side to their very first 7" release.
Oh! Gunquit : Bad Bad Milk.
Check this baby out !
Here is a long awaited album and we're making it a special one to boot, 16 Tracks in total from Messer Chups with a couple from their alter ego Rockabilly band The Bonecollectors, what's different ? Well apart from that they've all been remixed by Oleg, they feature the vocals of Zombierella on all of them ! Not only that but the artwork is by Solrac and features our fave bass player on the front AND the rear....a real Zombierella fest ! Heavyweight sleeve, heavyweight vinyl and the 1st 100 copies are Black & White SPLATTER in translucent red vinyl....This has been guaranteed for a September delivery. Are we excited by this.....just a wee bit !
Now you've finished reading and oggling....wipe up the drool and go buy some records so we have the funds to actually pay for all this stuff !
We've got (literally) ton's of stuff that you need or really should have in your record collection, so head on over to website and treat yourself ! HERE : www.trashwax.com
Well, The Cramps franchise is most certainly alive and kicking out there judging by the choice of various Cramps associated releases which have been made available in recent times....be it the lovely packaged 10" LP series from Stag-O-Lee in Germany or the rather less interesting CD only releases from Cherry Red (UK) sub-label 'Righteous' which can also boast some the poorest artwork seen on the 'official' releases....It should also be pointed out that none of these are bootlegs as the artists copyright has lapsed....most of these tracks are OLD ! (Pre-1966).
To a degree, it's almost as much fun collecting these releases as it is collecting Cramps stuff, especially as there's also a market out there for reproductions (copies) of the original 7"s too, which only adds to the starin on my wallet.
Really ?
I suppose that really, this area of Cramps 'associated' releases falls into 2 parts, the compilations of original tracks which the Cramps used to make their 'own' songs and the more recent releases claiming to be compilations of records in Lux & Ivy's personal record collection....To be honest, the most reliable source for these tracks would be at 'Kogar the Swingin' Ape's' blogsite....Over the years the guy (who has infinitely more patience than me) has tracked down any reference to records in Lux & Ivy's record collection, be it mentions in magazine and radio interviews, mix tapes put together by Lux or anecdotal. All of these tracks are there to be appreciated and can be downloaded for free....Cynical of me probably, but I imagine that the compilers of the recent and recentish releases make this source their first port of call !
Sophia Loren...Cramps fan extraordinaire !
I'm not too sure how I feel about actually buying these records (& CDs), although sucker that I am, if it has 'The Cramps' on it, I'll pick it up and give it a home ! Ivy, (notoriously private) has never actually published or publicly listed the contents of their record collection even when the annual rumour of an impending auction crops up. So it's never sure that what's being put out, is in reality, somewhere among their boxes of vinyl.....maybe a forthcoming title will be 'Songs we thought The Cramps may like' ?
Personally, I'd much rather see 'Vengeance' release a series of compilations compiled by Ivy, and obviously on vinyl...least ways there would be no doubting the source and I'm sure that the liner notes would make a far more interesting read too.
Best sleeve of the series.
The upside about these comps is that they're fairly cheap and relatively easy to get hold of, 10 minutes on Google and you could probably have most of them in your collection within the week. The Cramps association aside, they're generally good comps, to my taste at any rate....apart from the repetition of a few tracks, the CDs in particular make car journeys that bit more enjoyable. The artwork on the CD releases (as I already mentioned) is pretty lame and poorly conceived but the sleeves on the 'Beat From Badsville' series are rather decent and actually tie into the theme for the most part. However, I did find that Vol 4 was a bit of a stinker truth be told.....can't be a winner every time. The 10" format forces me to make the purchase without fail though !
Crap sleeve, has to be said !
If you want more stuff to take with you on that Cramps trip and you find that the Born Bad series and the Songs The Cramps Taught Us series, just ain't enough then you could do worse than pick a few (or all of them) up...You've plenty of choice ! 'Smell Of The Cramps' The Cramps Jukebox', Spirit Of The Cramps' 'What The Cramps Ate For Breakfast'..........
I had considered putting up the track listings for these releases but then why should I spoil your fun ?......Seriously though, you can have a bit of fun hunting these all out and waiting for the postman or you can just Google....'Kogar's Jungle Juice' and get 'em for free !
Double LP, Orange vinyl.
Shameless plug time : The Trash Wax website has never been fuller, shitloads of new stuff, restocks and probably one of the best selections of Trash out there....New Cramps stuff, a few boots (We have 6-7 copies of The Cramps 'King Is Back' LP from Russia), The new semi-official, Double LP on Orange vinyl 'Do The Clam'...if you can't see it, just email me directly. Stunning releases from 'Jungle Jim' Chandlers band 'Twin Guns'....you need their records, brilliant stuff even if I say so myself !