Monthly Mixtape #1

Too Late for 78 proudly presents: Monthly Mixtape #1!

The first collection of songs by bands I have or want to write about. For this first edition I wanted to start and end with tracks that inspired me to start this blog.

01. ’78 - Michael Monroe (Sensory Overdrive 2011)

I took inspiration for my blogtitle from this song, it’s a piledriver of a track where Mr Monroe tells us “It’s time to take that middlefinger out your ass”. From critically acclaimed debut album Sensory Overdrive of then newly formed Michael Monroe band.

02. Stray Doll - Prima Donna (After Hours 2008)

These guys know how to rock n’ roll and it sounds like they like it. Awesome New York Dolls style song played with wild abandon. 

03. She’s Like Heroin to Me - The Gun Club (Fire of Love 1981) 

Jeffrey Lee Pierce was one of those pioneers in rock n’ roll that never really got the credit he was due. Self sabotage and substance abuse kept his band from success but it didn’t stop them from making some classic records.

04. Glore - Radkey (Dark Black Makeup 2015/Delicious Rock Noise 2016)

Radkey is firing on all cylinders on this one. Also check out the awesome claymation video on youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaVpWb0kYiU

05. Sleeping Aides and Razorblades - The Exploding Hearts (Guitar Romantic 2003)

The sky seemed to be the limit for The Exploding Hearts, their debut album was getting great reviews and they were being hailed as the best punk band since 1977. A few months after the release of Guitar Romantic their van crashed and tragically killed 3/4 of the band. “Sleeping Aides and Razorblades” is a perfect piece of power pop.

06. Get Back to New York City - Dr. Boogie (Gotta Get Back to New York City 2005)

Like I wrote before, I instantly fell head over heels for Dr. Boogie after hearing this track. I L.U.V. love it. 

07. Kicked in the Teeth - Crank County Daredevils (Feed the Beast 2017)

I first heard C.C.D. about a decade ago and loved their stuff. It bummed me out when they broke up in 2010. A while ago I checked up on the Kings of Sleaze and was pleased to find out they were not only playing again but released what I think is their best record to date. “Kicked in the Teeth” is litterally that, a kick in the teeth. In a good way. 

08. Coke’n - The Sweet Things (In Borrowed Shoes, On Borrowed Time 2019)

The Sweet Things just released their debut album and it’s insane how much it rocks. Fuck this band is good. Think Exile era Stones mixed with the attitude of the Dolls. These guys are going places. 

09. Cigarette Spit - Sick Bags (Cigarette Spit 2018)

High voltage garage punk from Richmond, Virginia. Fuzzed up guitars & a beat that you can’t help but bang your head to. Sick Bags released their first E.P. last year and it left me hungry for more.

10. Buzzsaw - Brower (Buzzsaws 2018)

The spirit of Marc Bolan is alive and well and it lives on in Nat Brower. Buzzsaw is a 70’s style glam rocker that’s refreshing like a cold beer on a hot day.

11. Mary, Are You Livin’? (I Kill Me 1990)

First song from the first Jeff Dahl solo album. Dead Boys’ Cheetah Chrome goes full throttle on this one. “Mary, Are You Livin’?” is a classic any self respecting punk rocker oughta know.

12. F.Y. I’m Free - Mondo Generator (A Drug Problem That Never Existed 2003)

Oliveri’s voice thunders with anger as he sings about the effects of drinking Drano. He was really going through some stuff at the time. There’s just something exhilarating about hearing someone scream Fuck Yeah I’m Free

13. C.U.N.T. - PUSSYLIQUOR (C.U.N.T. 2018)

What’s even more exhilarating is hearing PUSSYLIQUOR screaming profanities for two minutes and eight seconds. These girls from brighton are, and I quote, putting the amp in tampon. It’s like Nina Hagen had a quintuplet, awesome. 

14. Liquor Store Romance - Sex Slaves (Wasted Angel 2009)

This is the perfect tragic love song. The Sex Slaves are brilliant and the world sucks a bit more because they went on hiatus. This year they played a couple reunion shows but I want more. These guys have a special place in my heart. they saved my ass when I got beat up after their show for wearing guy-liner.

15. The History of Rock ’n’ Roll - Supersuckers (Suck It 2018)

Eddie and co. clearly share my sentiments as they sing and praise a long list of great bands that are wrongly being pushed towards obscurity. They call it a footnote in the history of rock n’ roll, it is the exciting third act in my eyes.

Catch 'Em While You Can - Radkey

Radkey in Paradiso 2019, Photo by Susana Martins

I want to write about a band I have very high hopes for, they’re one of my favorite bands around right now (and I’m not just saying that because as of writing this they’re my first & only twitter followers), they make great records and kick-ass & take names live.  

Radkey are three brothers from St. Joseph, Missouri who say they are on a quest to help save the world from false rock. 

They’re doing great so far.

Dee Radke (guitar and lead vocals) Isaiah Radke (bass) and Solomon Radke (drums) formed their band in 2010 and have been gradually knee-sliding and pogoing towards a bigger fanbase. They cut their teeth playing festivals & going on tour, releasing singles & E.P.’s on their own label Little Man Records. These first releases are mostly no-nonsense punk reminiscent of early Misfits and Ramones. Dee’s baritone voice and chainsaw riffs, Isaiah’s 200mph basslines and Solomon’s super-tight drumming make them a force to be reckoned with. 

In 2014 a Spotify Sessions live recording was released, it perfectly showcases Radkey’s capability and sheer energy of their live shows. What it fails to convey though is the fullness of Radkey’s sound, I’ve seen them live twice in Paradiso, Amsterdam and both times I was engulfed in the richness of their guitar & bass sound.

2015 saw the release of their first full length record “Dark Black Makeup”. Producer Ross Orton helped the band to polish their sound and, (I can’t remember where I read this) taught the band it’s okay to slow some songs down. The result is a more mature, but in no way less fun, record on which Radkey really found their own sound. Title track “Dark Black Makeup” is an instant classic for a new generation of punk kids. For “Hunger Pain” the band went out of their comfort zone & it paid off. They slowed things way down here and get groovy in the verses followed by a big chorus perfect to sing along to. There’s enough high octane tracks to be found though, “Le Song”, “Song of Solomon” & especially “Glore” will get crowds off their feet anywhere.

The following year, Another Century Records reissued the album with two bonus tracks under the titel "Delicious Rock Noise".

Last year Radkey started putting out new singles online, later combining them in the “No Strange Cats…P.A.W” E.P. The songs once again show great progress in their writing and more variety in their songs. Tracks like “Junes” and “Basement” have big hit potential. “Spiders” and “Rock & Roll Homeschool” can and will melt your face off. Opening track “P.A.W” is the perfect protest song for this age of hate-mongering politicians and the increasing gap between rich & poor. 

"'P.A.W.' is a song mostly about “Redlining” and how shitty it feels to be considered less than others. It’s about the times when you’re reminded of that fact. The feeling that you’re always being watched." - Isaiah Radke.

Radkey is a hard working band that tours non-stop their sound a breath of fresh air while not shying away from the music that inspired them, this creates their own unique sound which I’m sure a lot of people will start hearing more of sooner rather than later.   

When you see their name on a marquee or poster at your local venue I urge you to go check them out while you can because I honestly believe Radkey is one more album away from, say, opening a stadium tour for a band like Foo Fighters.

Get their records: https://radkey.merchcentral.com/

Listen to "Strange Cats...P.A.W" on Spotify (I hope there will be a physical release of this):