In case you haven't already heard

I-94 Bar Records are delighted to announce the signing of Australia's leading exponents of suave voodoo garage rock and roll, The Intercontinental Playboys.

The Playboys have been treading the boards in their home country for the last decade, winning a reputation as one of the hardest-working outfits on the underground garage scene.

Their new album, 'Hymns of The Flesh', was conceived over mint juleps on the terrace of a decaying plantation mansion while the Playboys were on holiday in Louisiana.

Plans to lay down tracks at a resort in Bermuda were dashed when visa irregularities and a paternity suit (settled out of court) had them turned away at the border.

The Playboys do their best work in the dark anyway and recording had them locked away in catacombs underneath Tardis Studios, at Marrickville in Sydney's Inner-Western Delta, for the best part of a year.

It was serious business, fuelled by hard liquor (shaken, not stirred) and Cuban cigars. The Playboys even undertook a vow of abstinence, eschewing pleasures of the flesh to conserve bodily fluids and maintain a pure focus on the sessions.

Post-production, guitarist Benedict Van Der Smuts applied a series of experimental electro-magnetic sound treatments to the finished tape, which was passed through a bath of animal blood blessed by a Haitian voodoo priest.

The result is 'Hymns of the Flesh', which treads a similar path to one established by their debut, 'Ladies, May We Introduce Ourselves', and then deepened by 2005's 'Sonic Seducers', but has a whole new bag of hooks thrown in.

While it's true that the Playboys still mine that rich '60s musical stream first tapped by the Cramps, the Music Machine, Question Mark & the Mysterians and the Fuzztones, they apply their own skewed vision.

Working without a safety net (or bass player), they apply thick layers of organ (Michelangelo Alluro) and fuzz (Benedict Van Der Smuts) to an irresistible rock and roll beat (Lorenzo-Bob de Chauvel), upon which charismatic frontman Tom Von Spatula lays down his sermons.

The Intercontinental Playboys rock like the house band from the Island of Dr Morpheus with a chronic fuzz fetish.

Theirs' is a hypnotic but probing sound that?s won many hearts down the years, and the Playboys have supported the likes of Rocket Science, You Am I, The Strokes, T-Model Ford, The Monarchs, Freddy Negro, Penny Ikinger, the Persian Rugs and JJ Speedball.

' Hymns of the Flesh' will be released in mid-2009 with the band playing selective shows until then and a more extensive run of shows thereafter.

The Intercontinental Playboys join Klondike's North 40 and Mick Medew & The Rumours on I-94 Bar Records. Release of the debut album for Mick Medew & The Rumours is imminent.

www.i94barrecords.com

Glimpses of NY punk

There's a nice showreel from a US video production house here. Joey Ramone and friends, the Two York Dolls and Manitoba's Wild Kingdom are among the tidbits.

Airfare wanted

The Stooges en el programa de Sánchez Dragó

So there's a Spanish book? I'd be grateful if someone could give me a rough translation of what this is all about. The Spanish have a true appreciation of the finer things in life (Real Rock and Roll being one of them) so if this tome is any good I sure do hope they share and publish in English.

Sonic Youth pop the major label pimple

Following their departure from major label Geffen, Sonic Youth's 18th album is due out on indie imprint Matador in June. The label says, in part:

"We've not had a record in our recent history that's been the subject of nearly as much speculation and anticipation. Suffice to say we're pretty amazed at the way the band delivered something this neoteric while still sounding like, well, themselves. Less of a reinvention and perhaps more to do with a particularly awesome dozen songs."

Sheesh. You're not the only one who had to look up "neoteric".

Here's the track listing:

1. Sacred Trickster
2. Anti-Orgasm
3. Leaky Lifeboat(for Gregory Corso)
4. Antenna
5. What We Know
6. Calming The Snake
7. Poison Arrow
8. Malibu Gas Station
9. Thunderclap For Bobby Pyn
10. No Way
11. Walkin Blue
12. Massage The History

Note the usual selection of rabbit-down-a-hole titles and in-jokes. So we know they didn't leave their sense of humour at the exit when leaving Geffen.

Here's the cover:



It's called "The Eternal" so any enlightenment on why it looks like an ad for Clearasil can be left in the Comments section.

Mortality happens in threes

First Ron Asheton...now Lux Interior. Should the adage about these things happening in threes be true, I've formed a view on who should be next. Click here to find out.

Kid "Congo" Powers on Lux

There's a nice piece by guitarist Kid "Congo" Powers on the late Cramps singer (and his former bandmate) on his blog.

Sonic Reducer - Joey Ramone & Friends

Unreleased MTV footage from the 1988 Glitter Acid Trash Ball at the Ritz in Manhattan. That's Marky Ramone on drums, Cheetah Chrome (Dead Boys) and Ritchie Stoltz (Plasmatics) on guitar. Daniel Rey's also on guitar so who's the bouffant guy on bass? Props to Russell from the Please Kill Me mailing list for the heads-up.

A Ramone + Tommy Hilfiger = 500 buck jeans

Wasn't it only a matter of time before noted punk rock fan Tommy Hilfiger teamed with Marky Ramone to launch a label of Ramones-inspired denim gear. With jeans priced at up to $US495, the clothes sound an absolute steal. Which is the only way most people may get to wear them. See it here.

Cyril Jordan and Roy Loney ride again

There are two names who haven't played a proper show together since 1971. The Flamin' Groovies founders are going to rectify that at the annual Ponderosa Stomp festival in New Orleans in March.

Cyril and Roy will be backed by the A-Bones. Here's the full Stomp line-up:

Wanda Jackson, Roddy Jackson, Alton Lott, Carl Mann, Johnny Powers, Jack Earls, Dale Hawkins, James Burton, Dan Penn And Bobby Emmons, Howard Tate, Otis Clay, The Hi Rhythm Section, The Remains, Question Mark And The Mysterians, The Legendary Stardust Cowboy, Bobby Patterson, Wiley And The Checkmates, The Bo-Keys, Lil Buck Senegal And The Top Cats Featuring Stanley "Buckwheat Zydeco" Dural, Dennis Coffey, Robert Parker, Jivin Gene, Ray Sharpe, Long John Hunter, Texas Johnny Brown, Little Joe Washington, James Blood Ulmer Trio, L.C. Ulmer, Little Willie Littlefield, Lil Greenwood, Jerry McCain, Kenny And The Kasuals, Classie Ballou, Deke Dickerson And The Eccofonics, Roy Loney And Cyril Jordan Of The Flamin Groovies Backed By The A-Bones, Lazy Lester

The Ponderosa Stomp is a not-for-profit that celebrates American music and makes something of a speciality of bringing together estranged rock and pop notables. More details here.

James Williamson

So what's the rumour about James Williamson playing with the Stooges again? That's him in the photo as he looks today, doing well in his career as a senior executive for Sony and as an audio industry decision maker. Thanks to Block for the heads-up. It also seems he's more into lap steel today, judging by this link.

And just for old time's sake, here's Ken Shimamoto's I-94 Bar interview which marked a public re-emergence of sorts for Strait James.

Ryan Adams and a broken heart

I never thought Ryan Adams would rate a mention here (I couldn't name a song of his if you held a gun to my head) but this "review" of a Melbourne gig is so funny it merits a link. It reads like the work of a spurned girlfriend (as in: "He didn't speak to me and the set was badly list so I'm going to have a crai...")