In my latest installment of goodies that I found over at Simon’s site, I give you a band that needs to stop making music, another that already has and one that has yet to put out an official album.
When you hear, “On My Way”, the opening track on Billy Boy On Poison‘s 2009 debut, Drama Queen Junkie, you’re immediately sent a few years back in time when the band Jet ever-so-briefly ruled the world.
Billy Boy On Poison – On My Way
However, just like their Australian counterparts, BBOP don’t have much staying power. It quickly becomes apparent that they are just a one-trick pony, churning out glam/garage-rock that conjures up thoughts of bands such as The Subways and Living Things.
Although this five-piece band hails from Los Angeles, at times you would swear that it was borne out of the same scene that begat British rockers the Arctic Monkeys and the Fratellis.
They do try to slow things down on occasion, and do so successfully on the introspective “4 Leaf Clover”. But, aside from a couple of good tracks, this album is a throw-away.
The group, which takes its name from a quote in A Clockwork Orange, is said to be working on a sophomore album. But if it’s anything like the first one, don’t waste your time on it.
I begin this entry on a sad note. After putting out two very solid albums at the turn of the century, The Rocking Horse Winner has since disbanded. But their music lives on, and I shall now attempt to describe it.
Fronted by the soft, angelic voice of Jolie Lindholm, TRHW sounded like a less-rocking Shirley Manson fronting Dashboard Confessional. In fact, Lindholm has sung on several of that emo band’s recordings.
Evoking memories of The Sundays in their heyday — and perhaps the Cranberries without the accent — TRHW deliver emotionally raw tunes that uplift rather than depress, like their emo brethren.
The Rocking Horse Winner – When Songbirds Sing
The Lake Worth, Fla., outfit formed out of the ruins of the band As Friends Rust. Lindholm joined as the vocalist and, after making a split demo, they released their debut State of Feeling Concentration in 2001. They put out Horizon the following spring, but within a couple of years, they had called it quits.
The various band members have since gone their separate ways. In fact, unsurprisingly, guitarist Henry Olmino is now touring with Dashboard Confessional.
Meanwhile, Lindholm is fronting a new band, Popvert, which released its second album in 2009.
You can still hear some The Rocking Horse Winner’s songs on their MySpace page.
And, on a sidenote, the band’s name is derived from the title of a short story by D.H. Lawrence. I actually had to read it in high school and watched the movie. It was an interesting one. You should check it out.
It’s difficult to make a good comparison for The Riot Tapes, mostly because there aren’t any well-known acts out right now that sound like them.
This female-fronted pop-rock five-piece from Dublin are most similar to what you might’ve heard on the radio around the late ’90s and early Aughts.
That sound is most prevalent on their first single, “Photograph”, where they sound a lot like Garbage, with Elaine Doyle playing the role of Shirley Manson.
“Open Eyed Dreams” starts out slow, with Doyle baring her soul about a lost love — I think. And song ends with that late ’90s vibe.
That retro label isn’t meant as a bad thing. The Riot Tapes definitely have modern feel as well, especially on the more electro-based tracks “Sun Keeps Beating” and “Everything Is Local”
The Riot Tapes – Everything Is Local
As of yet, The Riot Tapes have only shared some demos online and have not yet put out an album, but when they do, it should be pretty solid.
You can hear six tracks, including a live one and a remix of “Photograph”, on their MySpace and Facebook pages.
Infinite Shuffle 