Two years and three months later, I’m back with this awesome little platter from Syracuse, NY’s own Dress Code. There is honestly not a lot of information about this band I can muster up but they are responsible for these four awesome tunes which teeter between power pop, mod punk, and neo-pyschedelic rock. “Alcoholic” is definitely the punkiest of the tunes with some simple lyrics about the narrators greatest vice and a little tiny bit of snotty vocal. “I Knew” and “Never Let Me Go” could have easily been pulled from some 60′s garage rock bands songbook or passed as such to music purists. “Somethings Really Wrong” would find itself at home on an early Television Personalities record, complete with the same childlike vocal delivery and satirical lyrics. Overall, a thoroughly entertaining listen that I’d recommend for fans of the previously mentioned TV Personalities, The Nerves, and bands that tried to sound like The Beatles but weren’t The Beatles, and therefore better than The Beatles. Boom! Rocking stuff!
Dress Code - Alone in the Crowd - 1981
01 Alcoholic
02 I Knew
03 Never Let Me Go
04 Somethings Really Wrong
Up next is the only official release by what may qualify as my favorite Syracuse band ever, or at the very least my favorite non-catergorically punk/hardcore band from the area. Bad Cops we’re a band that floated around the first half of the 00’s and to my knowledge may still even technically exist although deterred from recording and playing live by location, responsibility, and other projects. They played a proficient intertwined style of rock featuring the highly technical bass, guitar, and vocal talent of former Spark Lights the Friction members Jon Peters and Jim Heffernan. These four songs each clocking in at over 7 minutes each are mini operas in a sense, staying interesting and entertaining enough for even a short attention spanned weirdo like myself.
As great as this EP is, it was live where this band truly shined, never taking themselves too seriously (as you can hear at the beginning Me, Rest, Drums) and always having fun while still playing effortlessly. Antics such as being poured sparkling grape juice by Jim between songs and having everyone watching them jingle their keys as further instrumentation during the shaker part of “Me, Rest, Drums” immediately come to mind.
I don’t even really know how to describe this musically so I’m not even going to bother aside from saying “for fans of interesting, proficient, and anthemic indie rock.” Featuring former and future members of One King Down and Rejouissance as well but don’t expect a whole lot of similarity there.
Bad Cops - S/T - 2003
01. Shitty Beach Party at Verona Beach
02. Me, Rest, Drums (You, Rest, Drums… Thank You)
03. Between Breaths
04. Gore and Tinto
Another old Syracuse, NY power pop staple of the dollar bin. Produced by the drummer of The Ohms and released on The Flashcubes “Northside” label that brought us some previously featured gems. This record is admittedly not the most memorable thing you’ll ever hear but good enough for the completist none the less. The A-Side is pretty reminiscent of early Blondie (whose even mentioned on the single sleeve), the singer herself being a near dead ringer vocally for Debbie Harry. The B-Side is a potential attempt at starting a dance craze that just sounds like a girl giving excercise instructions over a Sound Affects era The Jam song. I recently met former Syracuse punk turned actor/comedian/director Bobcat Goldthwait who seemed to hold more enthusiasm for The Most than anyone. Makes me wonder if there was more to this band that time has forgotten.
The Most - Take A Chance b/w (Do The) Jumpin’ Jack
01. Take A Chance
02. (Do The) Jumpin’ Jack
Teenage Alcoholic is a fantastic uptempo, power pop tune about being young, dumb and drinking your problems away like the after school specials on TV. I feel like this particular track is a sleeper easily filed away only to sneak back into your consciousness and kick you in the butt later. Chain Letter is a slower ballad but a fine track in it’s own right. Overall, a decent slab similar in style to The Nerves courtesy of some Syracuse weirdos that later included (although not on this 7") Tom Kenny of Spongebob Squarepants fame on vocals.
The Ohms - Teenage Alcoholic b/w Chain Letter
01 Teenage Alcoholic
02. Chain Letter
Today we have yet another Syracuse music classic, featuring a local broadcasting legend and produced by disc jockey/local music historian Ron Wray.
The a-side is courtesy of The Fallen Angels, a garage rock tune by the name of “Bad Woman.” This is the true gem of the split, which while well known amongst collectors and psych enthusiasts, remains an obscurity amongst the general populous. Pounding drums, simple riffs, and the ranting of a man scorned that would fit well on any Nuggets style comp (in fact, it is featured on a Pebbles LP).
The b-side is a recording by Ron’s fellow disc jockey and morning drive partner Rick Gary (billed without the “K”). The novelty tune, that features Rick speaking during pauses in the music, is mostly a throwaway good for a quick chuckle. This of course only adds to the a-side’s status as a total ripper. Rick Gary, as many may remember from his on-air gig with News Channel 9, remains a popular area fixture to this day.
The Fallen Angels/Ric Gary - Bad Woman B/W Pimples and Braces
01. The Fallen Angels - Bad Woman
02. Ric Gary - Pimples and Braces
Because it needs to be Halloween already, I present to you Syracuse, NY’s own horror television host Baron Daemon with this bloody slab of novelty garage/surf music. The Baron brought local television viewers his own sense of comedic macabre in the early 60’s and has been making sporadic appearances ever since. Fortunately, he left us with this little nugget during his original run. Not much needs to be said about this as horror host records were pretty common at the time, and more or less interchangeable stylistically. None the less this is still an enjoyable little piece of Syracuse history.
Baron Daemon - Transylvania Twist B/W Ghost Guitars
1 Transylvania Twist
2 Ghost Guitars
Here we have an obscure upstate NY album produced by Rochester music legend Armand Schaubroeck, who is better known as one of the owners (along with his brother) of the great House of Guitars. These songs range from intense retellings of human trafficking, cheating significant others, and “jailbait” induced wet dreams. All of which are wonderfully executed via what seems like stream of conscious lyrics made up on the spot. More akin to what I expect a drunk homeless man to be shouting on a street corner somewhere.
The musical arrangements on this record present an effective mixture of punk, soul, 70’s rock, and even at times employ a gospel style choir. Armand himself sounds much like Lou Reed at points and Iggy Pop at others. This is a real deranged curiosity but strangely listenable. Where else are you going to find pop songs about selling babies to young couples? By the way, did I mention this is not for the easily offended.
Armand Schaubroeck Steals - Ratfucker
01 Ratfucker
02 Gigolo, Gigolo
03 I Love Me, More Than You
04 Buried Alive
05 The Independent Hitter
06 Preteen Mama
07 The Queen Hitter
As a bonus, here is a great House of Guitars commercial (from the same year this album was released) featuring the man himself and The Ramones.
Syracuse punky, power pop of yesteryear played by Ramones loving teenagers and also the source of the namesake for this blog. This record is a local killed by death classic eclipsed only by their previous 7" which now consistently brings over a thousand dollars on various internet auction sites. Unlike their 7", the vocals on this LP are completely taken over by guitarist J. Marc Patenaude who notably was going through puberty during the previous recording and was unable to do his duty. The drummers lone fronted song on this LP was accidentally left off during pressing (yet remains on the packaging) and subsequently destroyed by the band who used the master tape and only copy as car streamers on I-81. This record shines through as a few friends who obviously loved playing music together without expecting anything or ever taking themselves too seriously. Unfortunately, this beautiful union was to be short lived, and with the death of their leader in a 1985 car accident, the band disbanded. Think of them as the little brothers of The Flashcubes, yet much more interesting in approach and unpolished. An underrated Syracuse classic!
The Trend – Batman Live at Budokan
01 Butler Did It
02 Giddy Up and Go
03 Zink Tabletz
04 Don’t Talk to Her She’s Just the Maid
05 Mommy is a Jilt
06 Toy Section
07 Peer Pressure
08 Pop Star
09 Quarantine Teen
Download Link - Out of Print (Only available via Italian import)
According to most accounts, Dolly Mixture started very humbly as the girlfriends (and one future wife) of the early UK punk band The Damned who simply figured if the boys could do it they could too. Unlike many bands of the era that existed out of this sensibility rather than actual proficiency, these ladies quickly picked up their respective instruments and were pumping out delightful pop nuggets not only much more prolifically but of higher quality than many of their peers. These songs owe a great deal to the earlier “girl groups” of the 60’s with topics ranging from love, break ups, and even a tongue-in-cheek barb towards another girl who’s a so-called “hit with the boys.” This record is a self-released collection of various demos and studio sessions that while recorded at different times and of differing quality flow coherently as a stand-alone record. Completely underappreciated, innocent, and catchy as hell tunes you’ll have stuck in your head for days.
Dolly Mixture – Demonstration Tapes 2xLP
01 Dream Come True
02 Ernie Ball
03 He’s So Frisky
04 The Didn’t Song
05 Will He kiss Me Tonight?
06 Miss Candy Twist
07 Shonay Shonay
08 How Come You’re Such a Hit With The Boys?
09 Side Street Walker
10 Treasure Hunt
11 Never Let it Go
12 Angel Treads
13 Welcome to the Perfect Day
14 Step Close Now
15 Stareaway
16 In Your Eyes
17 Understanding
18 Never Mind Sundays
19 Spend Your Wishes
20 Day By Day
21 Wave Away
22 Sorry to Leave You
23 Winter Seems Fine
24 Grass is Greener
25 Round the Corner
26 Remember This
27 Whistling in the Dark
Download Link - Out of Print
Tip of the day: Never trust a punk who doesn’t like The Ramones.
Here we have a live set from the original lineup, three years into their existence and days after the release of their third full length “Rocket to Russia”. In other words, this set documents an absolutely essential period of the band and of course, true to live Ramones form, all of these songs are performed at breakneck speed. It also sounds fantastic for the era (radio quality) and features a rare performance of “I Can’t Give You Anything”. Local ties aside, this boot is definitely worth a listen for any Ramones fan or even anyone that would like to hear what is probably the only time the words “It’s great to be here in Utica” have ever been uttered.
P.S. Johnny’s guitar sounds incredible during the second half of the show. Raw and much more distorted than usual!
The Ramones - Live in Utica: 11-14-1977
01 Rockaway Beach
02 Teenage Lobotomy
03 Blitzkrieg Bop
04 I Remember You
05 Glad to See You Go
06 You’re Gonna Kill That Girl
07 Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment
08 53rd and 3rd
09 Sheena is a Punk Rocker
10 I Can’t Give You Anything
11 Let’s Dance
12 Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
13 Surfin’ Bird
14 Cretin Hop
15 Listen to My Heart
16 California Sun
17 I Don’t Wanna Walk Around With You
18 Pinhead