Bobby Steele and The Undead

I forgot to post about The Undead show at Clash Bar a couple of weeks ago. I was a little iffy at first because Bobby has gotten a little shaky over the years, but it turned out to be a fun show. The drummer in the band Hitomi is a really petite lady who can hit the crap out the drums and Hiromu is an awesome bassist with a friendly attitude. Yay for Japanese band members! Bobby's vocals were good along with his guitar solos and he spent most of the set shirtless.

The Undead covering "Rat Fink" by The Misfits

NOFX New EP Cokie The Clown Review

original review in The Aquarian
I’ve never seen a Punk-O-Rama compilation without NOFX on them. Does that make them super punks? Even though NOFX has graced the t-shirts of teenage adolescents with bad acne for more than two decades, the band still remains at the top of punk rock charts. Why? Because people will always associate punk with acting like assholes, musicians selling their soul to bad hair, and having less than two minute songs, which NOFX fits perfectly into that punk rock formula.

NOFX have always been clowns in my book, so it’s perfect that their new EP Cokie The Clown has a portrait of Fat Mike as a drugged up clown that’s snorted one too many lines. I hate to admit this because I’ll probably loose around 100 punk rock points, but I liked all of the strung out pop punk songs on this EP. The title track has funny lyrics about a drug cocktailing clown’s stage show accompanied by fast bass lines and simple guitar solos. The EP also features an acoustic version of “My Orphan Year,” which is a heart-warming song about Fat Mike loosing his parents in 2006. Though it’s strange hearing a sincere tune from NOFX, it’s a straightforward likable song. The rest of the songs are your average everyday fast NOFX that people can’t get enough of. The band really are those annoying circus slapstick acts that you’ve seen over and over again, but you still end up smiling no matter how bad they are.

Cokie The Clown shows that NOFX still have a sense of humor and they can make fun of themselves like they’ve been doing since 1983. It’s nice that these guys don’t take themselves seriously, so you can’t bash them for their sloppy stage show and crappy lyrics. Though I stopped listening to NOFX years ago, they still haven’t changed and for once that’s a good thing.

Lee Harvey Osmond A Quiet Evil Review

original article from The Aquarian

Marinate the members of Blackie and The Rodeo Kings, Cowboy Junkies, and Skydiggers. Then sauté their folk rock flavors together in a black cauldron of spooky malevolence, and you’ll end up with a pot of beatnik hippies, who could sound anywhere from Kenny G to Shawn Mullins and still be considered cool.

Lee Harvey Osmond’s new album A Quiet Evil combines elements of folk, country, soul, blues, and indie rock to enjoy on an early Sunday morning. With the slide guitar, cello, harmonica, and Tom Wilson’s tender baritone voice, it’s a nice ensemble of silky melodies. “The Love of One” is the best track on the record due to its soulful organ and smooth vocal harmonies between frontman Wilson and guest vocalist Suzie Vinnick, who sounds a lot like Emmylou Harris. “Lucifer’s Blues” starts off with a spoken word and quickly goes into a catchy Jack Johnson-like song with jangly guitars and bongos. Most of the songs have a laid-back country vibe to them, but not so soothing that it’ll put you to sleep.

A Quiet Evil doesn’t go overboard with its ensembles. Even with all the instruments featured on the album, Lee Harvey Osmond balance them throughout the whole album so it wouldn’t sound like a train wreck of jam solos all on one track. The album is consistent with its moonshine-fueled tone, dark ambiance, and quixotically keeps you on your feet with a downy, velvet sound.