Cool Names and Retro Revivals

Norway's answer to Motorhead, Chrome Division

In my roamings through iTunes recently I’ve discovered a handful of bands to whom I was attracted initially solely based on the coolness of their name.  Now, a band’s name isn’t always going to tell you everything about a band, but it often gives you some indication of their musical direction.  Take the Diamond Dogs, for example.  Their sound  of this Swedish band nestles nicely in the mid-70’s niche between Bowie’s immediate post-Ziggy work (obviously) and the arena rock strut of Kiss, Nugent, etc.  “Generation Upstart” off their 2006 album Up the Rock even starts with a tinkling piano and rollicking tempo of classic T. Rex, but with raspy vocals that evoke Jim Dandy of Black Oak Arkansas .  “Come Away” has bluesy kick and blustery horns but rides along like a cross between “Strutter ‘78” and Cherie Currie’s “Call Me At Midnight”.  “You’ve Got Nothing On Me” starts with a countrified guitar riff but evolves into a catchy blast of 70’s inspired guitar-infuse blue-eyed soul in the “Young Americans” vein.  The Diamond Dogs are worthy peers to their more rockin’ fellow countrymen the Hellacopters and Finland’s Flaming Sideburns, both of whom worship at the idol of Iggy, Kiss, the Dolls, etc.

Speaking of the Stooges and Dolls, the Chelsea Smiles (another great name) play a raucous 21^st century take on their classic protopunk sleaze.   “Nothing Wrong” off their album Thirty-Six Hours Later in fact sounds like a perfect amalgamation of “Raw Power” by Iggy and the Stooges and “Puss In Boots” by the Dolls, two of my favorite songs ever.  It’s got the lurching, bludgeoning wall of guitar of “Raw Power” and even adds some skirling James Williamson style guitar over the top of it.  “I Want More” also has the three chord rhythm of “Raw Power”; any fans of this album and song will love either of these contemporary takes on Iggy’s classic sound.  “Nothing To Lose” comes across like a cross between Johnny Thunders and the MC5, all flashy strut and jackhammer rhythm guitar again with the blasts of Williamson “Search and Destroy” style lead guitar licks pasting it together.   “Alright, Alright” has an even faster tempo and reminds me of some of the Hellacopters’ manic take on 70’s protopunk.  The Smiles even do a cover of “Chatterbox” by the New York Dolls that’s a turbocharged update on the original.

And talk about a great name:  the Lords of Altamont from my hometown of LA are amazing purveyors of 60’s garage rock with a contemporary blast of energy and amplification.  One of my favorite songs by them is “$4.95” off 2005’s Lords Have Mercy, with its bludgeoning low-fi 60’s vibe and swirling Farfisa organ sound that builds into a repeating, heavy but catchy riff and bombasting drums.  This is music that makes me want to frug AND slam and must be amazing live.  This song is very strongly recommended for anyone who wants to see what the Human Beinz or the Standells would sound like in the 21^st century.   The song “Intro” which starts their third album The Altamont Sin is really nothing but the big guitar intro from Joy Division’s “No Love Lost” fuel injected and fuzzed out and is thoroughly enjoyable.  “Going Nowhere Fast” off this same album starts with a drum kick that makes me think of the Three O’Clock’s “With a Cantaloupe Girlfriend” before launching into a catchy chorus that sounds a little like “Search and Destroy” too but again the delicious organ, particularly the solo at the break, keeps it more firmly anchored in an updated 60’s garage sound.  “F.F.T.S” off their most recent album, 2011’s Midnight to 666 is less overtly garage-y, sounding more like a reboot of the MC5 crossed with Guitar Wolf, possibly “American Ruse”? 

I don’t have too much from them, but the Cherry Valence named their group after Diane Lane’s character in the classic 80’s teen movie “The Outsiders” (which was based on the book by Susie Hinton).  Their sound centers on a reinterpretation of classic 70’s hard rock and southern fried boogie like Skynyrd, Nuge, Black Oak Arkansas, etc., but adds a soupcon of Detroit protopunk that lifts this music even higher.  “Sunglasses and Headlights” from 2005s TCV3 has that southern stomp but adds a liberal dose of Guns ‘N’ Roses snarl.  “Two Steps Forward” has the bump and bounce of Foghat or “Stranglehold” but the vocals remind me of Rob Tyner’s on MC5 songs like “Back in the USA”.  “You’ve Got To Wait” and “Caves of Steel” continue with a grinding rhythm still firmly grounded in the whole Molly Hatchet, .38 Special vibe but again there’s an MC5 flavor here too.

And finally, Chrome Division are Norway’s answer to Motorhead, playing music with jackhammer tempos and bludgeoning punk/metal riffs that is the best thing this side of Lemmy’s warts.  The are a side project of vocalist Shagrath, who sings for several Norwegian black metal bands.  “Chrome Division” off Doomsday Rock and Roll is a great example here; the Motorhead vibe is broken only by the dark/black metal interlude in the middle of the song and the guitar harmonies that remind me of Thin Lizzy’s dual guitar attack at the end.  I even love that they wrote a song named after themselves, much like Lemmy named his post-Hawkwind band after one of the only songs he wrote for that band before leaving.  “Serial Killer”, also off this same 2006 album has the growled Lemmy vocals and triphammer tempo of “Ace of Spades”; even the guitar here sounds like “Fast” Eddie Clarke’s work on that legendary album, except toward the end, where again the guitar harmonies evoke Thin Lizzy or Wishbone Ash. “The Angel Falls”, also off 2006’s Doomsday Rock and Roll ,starts quietly, like “No One Like You” by the Scorpions but quickly builds to a thunderous AC/DC-like riff (it actually sounds to me like something that might have come off the Cult’s Sonic Temple Album guitar-wise) that occasionally chugs like “South of Heaven” by Slayer.  This is Chrome Division at their mellowest and most melodic and while it’ll never supplant Leo Sayer or Roxette in terms of pop sweetness, it’s a refreshing change of pace (literally) from the blitzkrieg assault of songs like “Serial Killer”.  “Wine of Sin” off 2008’s Booze, Broads and Beezlebub has a crisp guitar riffing that almost reminds me of the riffage on Metallica’s “Jump into the Fire” with elements of GnR’s “Nightrain”. And finally, “Satisfy My Soul” off 2011’s 3^rd Round Knockout is another slow heavy chugger.  My only problem with Chrome Division is that the growled vocals can occasionally veer away from Lemmy and toward Norwegian death metal or even nu-metal, neither of which I much like.