Author Archives: Steve Moyer

Quick Chris Spedding Post

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Lawr’s “Wild In The Streets” post made me think of Chris Spedding, who was our guitar hero back in the day. Probably because he was somewhat obscure, at least to American folks, and he embraced early punk instead of trashing it. We used to think this song was all that and a bag of chips. Now it seems a bit tame and cheesy, though still enjoyable. The accompanying video is kind of cheesy, but helpful:

Super Bowl Chili Peppers

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rhcp

I’ve been amused at how many times I’ve seen Anthony Kiedis in his Off! hat in reference to the Peppers playing the Super Bowl. It would make it the best Super Bowl halftime show ever if he actually wore it there. Do you think they’d let him wear it if he wanted to? It would be nice to forcibly expose the Beyonce and Lorde and Justin Bieber and Imagine Dragons goofuses to some cool culture.

I’m A Lot More Punk Than You

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SteveIan

A friend sent me this picture a while ago and I’ve been wanting to post it for a long time.

It’s a young Steve Moyer, a young Ian MacKaye and the Headless Horseman taking a break while the Follow Fashion Monkeys were recording our second album at Inner Ear Studios with Ian producing.

Dig the Rob Tyner/Phil Lynott hair, the ever-present beer belly and the punk-uncool Cardinals jacket.

The Best Album AC/DC Hasn’t Made In The Last 30 Years

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My foray into death metal has been interrupted by another Amazon Santa CD I received in the mail that I’d been wanting for quite a while – ’77’s 21st Century Rock.

These guys truly get what made AC/DC great and it has nothing to do with Brian Johnson’s screech or Back In Black. It’s three-chord boogie-woogie rock ‘n roll, the kind of music that makes one want to strut around the room like Bon Scott.

This song:

is the same as this song:

But they’re both great songs. (I must admit, the AC/DC is still better in the side-by-side taste test.)

Why doesn’t AC/DC sue the shorts off these guys? Maybe they understand that imitation is the best form of flattery and that 21st Century Rock is the best AC/DC album since Highway To Hell.

Anyone who isn’t smiling during three-chord boogie-woogie rock ‘n’ roll is no friend of mine. (OK, you still are, but it seemed like a fine phrase with which to end the post.)

P.S. – I’ve been through Wolverine Blues once now and it’s somewhat difficult. A little bit more of an aural assault than even I am used to. The good news is there are bits and pieces there that I found myself liking. Even one whole song. Again, I’ll keep you posted.

Since You’re Dying To Know. . .

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I got one of Santa’s Amazon CDs that I was most anticipating today – “Wolverine Blues” by Entombed. I am going to make an honest effort with this CD to acquire a taste for death metal, because I feel there’s something good there that I’m missing.

Actually “Wolverine Blues” is legendary for pioneering the “Death ‘n’ Roll” genre – death metal with groovy rock ‘n’ roll elements encorporated. The liner notes on the CD (won’t find them on a damn download) explain that this was Entombed’s way of countering all the electronics that were beginning to overwhelm death metal at the time. (More electronics almost always means more suck.)

Today we start. I’ll keep you posted.

For Me! 2:20 PM Music – I Should Be Watching Football

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But a Hellacopters came in the mail Friday that I didn’t have before – “Strikes Like Lightning” – a $25 used CD on Amazon. (I also found another one “Geekstreak” – $25 used as well – that’s on the way from Japan with songs on that I don’t have, so that may be a while.)

On a tangent, did you ever consider what music is worth? This “Strikes Like Lightning” is only six songs, but I’m in love again. What would I be happy to pay for it? $100? More? What’s your favorite song worth? Is a 20-song album of OK stuff for $5.99 a better deal than a $12.99 album with one really good song but the rest is crap? This is the stuff that will be swirling around in my head when the Alzheimer’s sets in.

Anyway, I only allow myself to listen to “Strikes Like Lightning” once a day, so I don’t burn it out. Upon first listen, it sounded kind of same-y (which I think Peter thinks the Hellas are, period), but even upon the second listen, the riffs started gripping my brain and the nuances started becoming apparent.

This is my favorite so far – the Stooge-y “No Fun” part, the little low riffy chord progression, the just AC/DC-enough feel and the singing guitars. Ahh, those dual guitars just sing. During the solo part, in stereo, the first two solo chops come out of one speaker and the other two come out of the other (as the guys are surely trading – I was always a sucker for the one speaker/other speaker stuff). Upon the third chop I have to yell out in the car every time. I get chills, seriously.

The Hellacopters are perfect.