Jeremy Porter talks about three exciting and current Detroit bands: Ladyship Warship, All Over the Shop and New Twenty Saints.
Read MoreSaturday Night Special (Redux): Remembering Malcolm Young
Revisiting Scott Carr’s In Memoriam on Malcolm Young five years later.
Read MoreCovid Thoughts, part seven: "If Things Had Gone According To Plan" / Missing The Road - by guest contributor Matt Carlson
Guest contributor Matt Carlson (The Stick-Arounds, Harborcoat) talks about the affect the pandemic has taken on the psyche of working musicians.
Read MoreTV Party Tonight! The Perfect Stones Record - by Jim Johnson & Ricki C.
Jim Johnson & Ricki C. on their picks for the perfect Stones album in this week’s Saturday Night Special. What would be YOUR perfect Stones album?
Read MoreTop 10 Albums of 2019 & Other Great Stuff - by Jeremy Porter
1. Bleached - Don’t You Think That You’ve Had Enough? Picks 1-3 were really tough this year. It could have easily been a three-way tie. I went with Bleached because this record was such a dramatic step in a new direction. There’s still moments of that surf-punk/mega-hook sound they started with two records ago, and after their last record, it could have gone in one of a couple different ways, but there’s a discernible right-turn into the pop world on this one, with forays into disco, dance, bubble-gum, and pure pop. I thought the record was a little long early on, but I eventually decided it’s just right. “Somebody Dial 911” is one of my top songs of the year for sure, and “Just a Heartbeat Away” is right up there. This is a band still on the way up and it’ll be exciting to see what’s next.
2. Ex Hex - It’s Real - I loved their debut Rips but this is a more fully-realized record - more confident and cohesive, better songs, and more identifiable. The production is crisp and clean and the performances are spot on. It was also one of the best shows I saw in 2019. “Rainbow Shiner” is my jam here, by guitarist Betsy Wright, with it’s Holy Diver-era guitar riffs and great vocal melody. Love cranking the vinyl.
3. Sturgill Simpson - Sound & Fury - I haven’t been able to latch on to Stu’s previous albums, but not for lack of trying. I love his politics, and that he’s got some Michigan connections in his band, I just couldn’t dive in like everyone said I should. That all changed when I heard Sound & Fury. It took me two listens to realize something special had happened, and another two to be up to my neck trying to figure it all out and digest it. I’m still working on that - but the record is fearless, and that alone is not enough to make it great, but the songs and production are, and it’s gonna be at the top of a bunch of lists this year. This is a ROCK album, not a country record, though you can catch a glimpse of Waylon here and there. It’s not for everyone - it takes a little work - but it’s worth it.
4. Foxhall Stacks - The Coming Collapse - This came out of nowhere and kicked me in the ass like an unexpected record seems to every year. Ex-members of Jawbox, Velocity Girl, and Minor Threat/Bad Religion make it a bit of a supergroup but the record plays like a well-oiled machine. If I have a wheel-house, this is it. Killer hooks and melodies, loud AF guitars, a real live sound and feel, and tempos that are upbeat but held back just enough to keep you squirming in your seat. At the top of the list though is just really great songs. Killer album, huge surprise. Really hope it’s not a one-off.
5. Micah Schnabel - Teenage Years of the 21st Century - Micah’s follow up to my #1 of 2017 Your New Norman Rockwell is a logical step forward into themes that are even more personal, more political, and more daring than those on ...Rockwell. The spoken-word introspective narratives have not been abandoned, but there is a familiar rock and roll aspect to a lot of these songs that fans of Micah and his Columbus-based band Two Cow Garage will embrace with open arms. He’s got a kid-like innocence and vulnerability but the skepticism, wisdom, vocabulary (and maybe just a dash of bitterness) of a well-read old man. There’s an underlying optimism that rears its head from time to time too, lest we jump off the nearest skyscraper at our earliest opportunity. It’s a special combination and Micah continues to set the bar of what one guy and a guitar can accomplish.
6. Todd May - Let’s Go Get Lost - Another Columbus entry. I can’t imagine why Todd May isn’t a superstar and Ed Sheeran is selling out arenas. These songs are masterpieces and his voice and delivery just tear me up. I hear elements of a lot of different things going on, more in spirit than sound, from Tom Waits here and there, to Jeff Tweedy, to his raspy Columbus colleagues Colin Gawel and Micah Schnabel in other parts. The record feels very Midwest - honest and melodic.
7. Juliana Hatfield - Weird - This was released in January, on the heels of her amazing album of Olivia Newton John covers (my #1 of last year). It’s more along the lines of her previous album of original material and homage to our political climate, 2017’s Pussycat. It’s got some really smart songs, played in her more recent indie-pop-rock, not quite lo-fi style. She’s made some life changes that have allowed her to make music a priority, so her productivity has been off the charts these last couple years. With quality standards like this being met, we’re on board.
8. North Mississippi All-Stars - Up and Rolling - Another band I never latched onto before. The production is amazing, the songs are fun, and the performances are killer. The guitar playing is engaging and inspiring. It’s a really comfortable and timeless record, sounds super warm, and made me a fan.
9. The Highwomen - S/T - These things usually don’t work. Take the two Highwaymen records, for example. Great story, amazing artists, not great records. This record is more unified, more thought out, and better executed. It suffers from a bit of sameness across the three-sides, and it’s at it best when it strays in style from that formula, but it’s an easy listen and at-times goosebump-inducing experience.
10. Taylor Swift - Lover - Don’t be a h8r. This record is the first one of hers I’ve been able to sit through. It’s got some stuff, probably half of it, that I’d classify as pure drivel - over-produced, formulaic, cookie-cutter, dime-a-dozen pop-radio garbage meant for girls 1/3 my age. But….there are a handful of songs that are really, truly great when you get right down to it. Interesting production, challenging arrangements, good vocal performance, and a super-sticky melodies. I’m not taking the TayTay train to Little Caesars Arena to pay top dollar for a nosebleed seat, and I’m not in the “greatest artist of our time” camp yet, but there’s some really good pop music on here that transcends its genre and social stature.
Other Cool Things (EPs, Reissues, Honorable Mentions, etc):
Shane Sweeney - Love The Dynamo (EP) Columbus mention #3. Great songs a la Cohen/Cave/Waits recorded on an iPhone. As raw as it gets. A beautiful collection.
Royal Scene - Meet You At The End (EP) Lansing, MI Replacements tribute band member’s collection of fantastic original songs - sounds great, high-energy, and super fun. Fans of well-executed Midwestern rock and roll should take note.
Drinking Mercury - S/T - GTG Records full-length recorded in a cabin in northern Michigan. Reminds me of some different British things - Who, Oasis. Super smart songs and instrumentation.
Popular Creeps - Bloodshot Red (EP) - Detroit-area dudes with a great batch of songs that remind me a bit of early `80s garage-alternative stuff. Think Murmur-era R.E.M., a less-punk Hootenany-era Replacements, stuff like that. It’s loose and raucous and raw with great, efficient songwriting and tight guitars. Great stuff.
The Replacements - Dead Man’s Pop - Desperately needed remix of their 1989 album Don’t Tell a Soul. Finally, the record it was meant to be. The extras are cool, but the album remix is pure gold.
The Stick Arounds - Hot Single Of The Month - Each month these dudes gave away a new song for free. The cover images are takes on classic album jackets. The songs are to the Stick’s standards - very well written and executed Michigan powerpop with a couple great covers thrown in. Look for #12 - their Cheap Trick cover coming out Christmas week on their Facebook page!!!
Keith Richards - Talk Is Cheap (box set reissue) - Long overdue remaster of this amazing record with a great book and some extras in a Telecaster case-like package. It was overpriced, the extras are forgettable, and I thought hard before I pulled the trigger, but it’s a great package and I’m glad I did. Now, where’s Main Offender?
Juliana Hatfield Sings The Police - I like this record, but it falls a bit short of her Olivia Newton-John covers album. Maybe the material is too familiar, maybe it’s not executed with quite the same level of commitment, maybe it’s just me. But that’s not to say it’s bad - it’s a fun listen - especially if you love Juliana and you love The Police - and I’ve gone back to the vinyl a few times.
Top Two Albums of the 2010s
Lydia Loveless - Real - The 4th Columbus record here, though she’s since relocated. This record is still in rotation. The best songs, the best band, great production. But that voice is what ties it all together. I find myself writing my own versions of these songs again and again. I just can’t get sick of it.
Jason Isbell - Southeastern - I still get goosebumps when I hear “Outfit” or “Decoration Day” live, but this record is so intimate, honest, and raw. The two follow ups are solid, but, for me, lesser extensions of this record, and haven’t quite had the staying power. “Elephant” is the best cancer song I’ve ever heard. A very personal and intimate record, and never a dull moment.
Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos.
www.thetucos.com
Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit.
www.facebook.com/jeremyportermusic
Twitter: @jeremyportermi | Instagram: @onetogive & @jeremyportermusic
www.rockandrollrestrooms.com
Remembering Malcolm Young - by Scott Carr
Remembering Malcolm Young ( January 6, 1953 – November 18, 2017 )
If you follow my ramblings on Pencil Storm you already know I am a huge Kiss and Alice Cooper fan. I am also a big fan of the thunder from down under known as AC/DC. It is with great sadness that my first writing about the Aussie rockers comes with the passing of rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young.
Generally when people talk about AC/DC they are quick to mention the zany antics of lead guitarist Angus Young, younger brother of Malcolm. The praises thrown at Angus are very well placed but often overshadow the importance of his big brother. Even Angus himself often spoke of the important role Malcolm played in the band.
Check out this excerpt from a Guitar World Magazine where Angus gives some insight about his brother...
"ANGUS YOUNG: Malcolm's really underrated. He makes the band sound so full, and I couldn't ask for a better rhythm player. Sometimes I look at Malcolm while he's playing, and I'm completely awestruck by the sheer power of it. He's doing something much more unique than what I do—with that raw, natural sound of his.
People like Malcolm, Steve Cropper, Chuck Berry and Keith Richards—they're all doing something better than the rest of us. I can't deny that Eric Clapton's and Eddie Van Halen's lead stuff has influenced a stack of people, but for me it's the rhythm thing that's way more impressive and important to a band. Malcolm is a big inspiration to me; he keeps me on my feet.
Even when I'm tired from running around the stage for two hours, I'll look back at what he's doing and it gives me that boot up the backside I sometimes need. [laughs] Also, he can always tell me if I'm playing well or if I'm not. Mal's a very tough critic, and I know that if I can please him, I can please the world.
A lot of people say, "AC/DC—that's the band with the little guy who runs around in school shorts!" But I wouldn't be able to do what I do without Malcolm and the other guys pumping out the rhythm. They make me look good. Mal is really a great all-around guitarist. I know it says "rhythm guitar" on the album jacket, but if he sits down to play a solo, he can do it better than me. Not a lot of people have picked up on this, but in the early days he used to play lead. But then he said to me, "No, you take the solos. I'll just bang away back here." And what's more, he actually plays rhythms. He just doesn't make a noise; he works them out, and he knows when not to play".
AC/DC was/is Malcolm's band. It was his idea and he was the man with the plan. He started AC/DC with Angus because he felt like there was no real rock 'n roll out there. With that he set out to fix things and for the next 40+ years he continued on the path to bring rock 'n roll to the people. Singer Brian Johnson recently commented that Malcolm gave rock 'n roll "a fist".
I guess it's fitting that I attended my first AC/DC concert with my older brother. We saw them on the Powerage tour in 1978 with Cheap Trick opening. That concert still stands as one of my all time favorite concerts ever.....a game-changer. I was still in grade school and my brother was six years ahead of me but he always let his little brother tag along to all the cool concerts even though his peers would rag him pretty hard. My brother played guitar and was in a band, so he was an early inspiration on my future musical endeavors.
Nothing can really take the place of that brotherly connection, so reading what Angus said about Malcolm really hits home.
My first AC/DC show
Angus with Malcolm's 1963 Gretch guitar known as "The Beast".
Hearing AC/DC in 1978 was a real eye-opener. I had never heard anything like it. The guitar riffs were so big and crunchy and every song was instantly catchy and stuck in my brain. After hearing Powerage for the first time I began seeking out the bands back catalog that included several albums that I had no idea existed. Along with the records the band had released in the US, there were other records that were only released in Australia. I had to have them all, which took some time.
The release of Highway To Hell in 1979 took the band to whole new level and the band really started breaking worldwide. I got to see them again on this tour and I would say they had become my second favorite band just behind Kiss but if I'm being totally honest I probably played Highway To Hell way more than I did Kiss' Dynasty in 1979 and I love Dynasty.
Sadly in the dawn of the new decade while working on their follow up to Highway To Hell singer Bon Scott unexpectedly passed away. I was devastated at this news. I was even more devastated when it was announced that the band planned to continue on with a new singer, because I figured no one could replace Bon.
Back In Black was released on July 25th, 1980 with new singer Brain Johnson at the helm and the next chapter for AC/DC had started. At first listen I did not like hearing a new voice in the band but those big crunchy guitar riffs from Malcolm and Angus seemed to make it work. I guess it was then that I realized how important those guitars were to the sound of AC/DC. I did miss Bon and my interest in the band would drift with each record but the sound that the Young brothers created was undeniable and uniquely their own.
Malcolm will be missed and there will never be another quite like him but he has left behind forty years of big crunchy guitar riffs that will continue to shake foundations worldwide.
RIP Mal
Malcolm Young tribute in Melbourne Australia
Check out some of my favorite lesser known AC/DC songs below......
Scott Carr is a guitarist who plays in the Columbus, OH bands Radio Tramps and Returning April. Scott is also an avid collector of vinyl records and works at Lost Weekend Records. So...if you are looking for Scott....you'll either find him in a dimly lit bar playing his guitar or in a record store digging for the holy grail.