Bon Boy – First Class Ticket to Earth
What happens to the unsung heroes of the great duos, or power-trios in rock? Routinely these bands have one head honcho calling the shots, writing the songs, and tinkering with the group’s image. If they are lucky, they have a second group member taking the slack when it comes to songwriting.
The bass players, and drummers of the world, usually are left cruising along, making sure they keep in time and in tune. But do they ever dream of writing their own songs? Do they ever get frustrated with taking orders? What would a Black Keys album sound like if the drummer had written all the songs?
I’d like to think he’d be able to bring his frustration out in writing and sound something a bit like Bon Boy’s First Class Ticket to Earth, a nasty and distorted like a garage-rock gem that sounds mixed while under the effects of horse tranquillizers and vodka. Some music makes you want to buy better speakers. This one makes you want to downgrade. Sharp, exciting, and like nothing that would make the classic rock playlists. We like it!
Simulated Youth – Go For A Drive
It must be hard to know how veteran musicians should evaluate success past supermodel wives, gold-plated swimming pools, and personal jets. I mean, sure, there’s that. But, how are the people going to talk about their work years from the fact that their greatest works were unleashed on to the world?
If they’re unlucky and have a few friends in the music biz, their music gets chosen in TV adverts, tribute bands are created in their honour, and it may even inspire some dreadful Broadway shows. These are great compliments, but they surely help keep the gold-plated swimming pools in order.
If they’re really lucky, they end up like one of the bands that have inspired the cultish-sounding Simulated Youth. Go For A Drive sounds like what would happen if a computer began fantasizing about writing songs inspired by Nine Inch Nails, Krautrock, and witch house while running it all on Windows 95. It’s modern, cheeky, funny, and damn eerie. Just the right kind of music to get a cult started.
