With Just A Hint Of Mayhem

Music reviews, gig reviews, fun trivia and extra added random stuff!

‘Pillow Talk’ – Party Nails January 9, 2025

Filed under: Album,Review — justwilliam1959 @ 7:24 pm
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Elana Carroll from Chatham, New York is a singer-songwriter, artist, musician and producer. She goes by the name of Party Nails. She has just released her third album, ‘Pillow Talk,’ on Eye Knee Records. The album kicks off with “Same Old Song”. It is a mid paced ballad style song. It evokes early Taylor Swift and oozes emotion, from blues to ultra happy. This is one of the three singles taken from the album so far. Next up is another single, “First Responder”. This is a gorgeous slice of percussive synth pop with some great vocals. I really love “D.R.A.M.A.” it is a quasi rap beat driven pop construction. It reminded me equally of Kelis, Gwen Stefani and Charli XCX. The call and response elements and harmonies with Emma Kern elevate this song into something very special. If you like classy pop with 80s synth styling you will love “Movie Scene”. I can imagine Abba covering this, or if not the Swedish megastars then maybe Erasure! The dark synth riffs of “Bull In A China Shop” add some great musical tension to a fabulous brooding tune. This track was included on the 2023 Party Nails EP ‘Someway Somehow’.

Another single, “Trigger Warning” is next and this is probably my favourite track on the album. It features some delightful electronic sounds. These perfect sonic explosions ebb and flow like the best early Giorgio Moroder forays into pop music. Party Nails finds time for a mostly acoustic guitar driven ballad with “Dirty Water”. This showcases the fragility that Elana can project in an almost ethereal vocal performance. If grunge had embraced more synth sounds, it would have sounded like the title track of the 2023 EP ‘Someway Somehow’. This track would have led the way. The hard edged riffage is offset by a voice that has the clarity and honesty of Karen Carpenter’s best moments. “Do You Know How?” gives the album its most rock moment. There is a frantic, frenetic feel that harks back to the early releases of Lene Lovich. The incessant post punk style riff is mesmerising. The album closes with “Puppet.” It feels like a Stevie Nicks outtake. But it’s one that Stevie really ought to have used. The PR blurb that arrived with the album for review described it as “a genre-bending timeless yet forward thinking album featuring an intoxicating mix of retro synthwave, futuristic electro-pop, and lush indie rock.” It is hard to disagree with that description. It is only January 9th as I type this, but I believe this is a potential contender for album of the year!

If you are in the USA you can catch her supporting Bad Bad Hats on the following dates. You should go it will take you away from the prospect of four more years of the orange moron. Can we get Party Nails to come to the UK please?

Jan 09 Los Angeles CA at The Echo
Jan 10 San Francisco CA at Bottom of the Hill
Jan 11 Sacramento CA venue TBA
Jan 12 Bend OR at Volcanic Theatre Pub
Jan 14 Baker City OR at Churchill School
Jan 15 Tacoma WA at Elks Temple (Spanish Ballroom)
Jan 16 Seattle WA at Barboza
Jan 17 Portland OR at Mission Theatre
Jan 18 Boise ID at Neurolux
Jan 19 Salt Lake City UT at Kilby Court
Jan 21 Cheyenne WY at The Lincoln
Jan 22 Denver CO at Lost Lake Lounge
Jan 23 Colorado Spring at Vultures
Jan 24 Omaha NE at Reverb Lounge

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On This Day Linda Raised The Jolly Roger! January 8, 2025

Filed under: On This Day — justwilliam1959 @ 8:29 pm
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On 8th January 1981, Linda Ronstadt made her Broadway debut. She performed alongside Rex Smith and Kevin Kline. They starred in the revival of The Pirates of Penzance, which ran for 787 performances. Linda could clearly tackle any genre; country, rock, folk, pop, swing/ big band and light opera among many other styles. I love her voice, even in opera, which is a genre I am not very fond of!

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On This Day Bill Spied A Comet And Rocked Around It! January 7, 2025

Filed under: On This Day — justwilliam1959 @ 8:55 pm
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On January 7th 1955, “Rock Around the Clock” by Bill Haley and his Comets made its debut on the UK chart. It is often cited as the biggest-selling vinyl rock and roll single of all time with sales over 25 million. It made it to number one and has been in the charts at least three times

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“My Lighter Weight” – Varas

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 8:16 pm
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Benjamin Muñoz Varas is a self-taught producer, singer and songwriter. He uses the name Varas. With roots in Chile, Varas grew up in a small town called Götene in Sweden. When he was twelve his father introduced him to Led Zeppelin. At this time he took up the guitar. Having listened to his new single I am glad he got into music. The current single might not contain any guitar but it is a spine-tingling piano driven dark-tinged ballad. This song is the sort of thing I could drown happily in, it is a thing of pure beauty. It has a delicate fragility and the emotion is palpable. The track comes from his upcoming ‘Eaten by Worms’ EP which is due out next month.

Varas said this of the song “It’s about that feeling of embarrassment, but also liberation, when someone close to you points out that you look worn out and tired. I don’t even see that weariness when I look in the mirror, but having it highlighted by another person can be both mortifying and strangely cathartic. There’s a sense of the facade being as thin as rice paper, and a desire to be scrutinised, to be seen in our truest, most unguarded form.” This is a song you sit down in a relaxing environment and listen to. Do that now, you will not regret it!

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Mayhem Gives You 12 Inches… Of Music! “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” – Santa Esmeralda Starring Leroy Gómez January 6, 2025

Filed under: Mayhem Gives You 12 Inches — justwilliam1959 @ 10:32 pm
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This is the sixth in the Mayhem 12 Inch single series. I apologise again for the rather smutty, Carry On, double entendre, innuendo title for this feature. Can any of you constant readers think of a better title? But I am quite obviously talking about the 12-inch vinyl single. This series is now a playlist of my favourite 12-inch singles. I used to own many of them on vinyl. There are six songs so far and as they are extended versions that is more than 50 minutes of music! The sixth song is the second longest so far. It clocks in at more than 10 minutes. It is a monumentally glorious cover of “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” by Santa Esmeralda (starring Leroy Gómez).

I bought this record while on holiday with my mates in Benidorm, Spain in 1977. I know it is hard to believe, but I was only 18 at the time! Santa Esmeralda were a French-American disco group. The group was created in the studio by French producers Nicolas Skorsky and Jean Manuel de Scarano. The duo recruited Leroy Gómez to sing on their first single, which was “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”. Prior to this Gómez had been in other bands. His biggest claim to fame up to that point was that he played sax on “Social Disease.” This track is on Elton John’s 1973 opus ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’. “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” was the acts biggest hit. It hit number one in France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. It didn’t chart in the UK and only limped to number 8 in Spain where I bought it.

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On This Day The Pistols Get £40k From Electric and Musical Industries!

Filed under: On This Day — justwilliam1959 @ 8:18 pm
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The Pistols on the day they signed with EMI (6th October 1976)

On 6th January 1977 EMI Records decided that they couldn’t handle the Sex Pistols. The company dropped them from the label and gave them a parting gift of £40,000 to cancel the contract. They were later dropped by A&M before eventually signing with Virgin. The incident did lead to the fabulous punk track “EMI” included on the Pistols first and only album ‘Never Mind The Bollocks Here’s The Sex Pistols’

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‘Sydereal’ EP – Eugene

Filed under: EP,Review — justwilliam1959 @ 7:28 pm
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Eugene is Eugenio Valente from Rome. He is described as an eclectic artist and producer with a special focus on electronic sounds. He also works as a remixer and soundtrack composer. His new EP is called ‘Sydereal’. I imagine that many of you are thinking, why is it called that. Well it contains some electro styled covers of some classic Syd Barrett tracks. There are two tracks from ‘The Madcap Laughs’ (1970). One track is from ‘Barrett’ (1970). Another one is from Pink Floyd’s debut album ‘Piper At The Gates Of Dawn’ (1967). Eugene captures the wonderful whimsy sound and feel that filled many of Syd’s songs. But he brings them neatly and nicely into the 21st Century.

The EP kicks off with two tracks from ‘The Madcap Laughs’. “Golden Hair” and “Love You”. “Golden Hair” has a really dark tone. It possesses an almost light horror quality. In some ways, it haunts you long after it has finished. Eugene gives “Love You” a wonderful electro pop style makeover which in some ways made me think of Mika. This is the first single to be taken from the EP, and given how catchy the sound is I am not surprised. Could anyone other than Syd Barrett have written a song called “Effervescing Elephant”? I suspect not. Eugene keeps the spirit of Syd well and truly alive with such a fun take on a fun song. The EP closes with an ethereal, fairground like, chilled dance spin on “Astronomy Divine”. I felt like I could drown or drift away in the cinematic waves of sound in this song. This is probably my favourite track of the four, but it is a close competition.

Eugene had this to say about why he likes Syd and why he decided to do this EP. “Barrett has always represented the purest example of creative freedom to me. He transcends time and evokes something cosmic—something ‘sidereal’—that gives life to unimaginable dreams, just like the cover artwork, where an electronic circuit is brought to life by a magnificent diamond through what feels like magic or alchemy.” Please check out ‘Sydereal’ I love it and I hope that you will too!

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On This Day Bruce And The Gang Brought Some Of Their Kids To The Abattoir! January 5, 2025

Filed under: On This Day — justwilliam1959 @ 8:49 pm
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On January 5th 1991, Iron Maiden went to Number 1 on the UK singles chart. They achieved this with a late period classic, “Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter.” It was the second single from their album ‘No Prayer for the Dying’. It was the lowest selling Number 1 since 1960, with just over 42,000 copies sold in its first week. I wonder how that has changed in these days of greedy bastard streaming companies? Bruce Dickinson originally recorded and released the song as a solo artist. It was for the soundtrack to ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child’.

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Mayhem’s Parental Advisory Playlist (The Tipper Gore Mix) Part 4

Filed under: Mayhem's Parental Advisory Playlist — justwilliam1959 @ 8:26 pm
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It has been a few months since the last entry in Mayhem’s Parental Advisory Playlist (The Tipper Gore Mix). So here is another fine fucking addition. The thirteenth song. It is sometimes hard to shake off a great earworm of a song even if that song drops regular F-bombs and other profanities. The new addition to the playlist is Wayne/ Jayne County and the Electric Chairs with “Fuck Off”. I always thought this had the longer title of “If You Don’t Wanna Fuck Me Baby, Fuck Off”. Either title is fine, it remains a great slice of punky 70s sound. The link to the full playlist is below.

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“Stanley” – Camille Schmidt

Filed under: Review,Single — justwilliam1959 @ 7:55 pm
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“Stanley” is the current single from queer Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter Camille Schmidt. It kicks off with some perky metronomic percussion before bringing in some super insistent riffs. Then the piece de resistance of the song is Camille’s voice. She captures the dark humour of lives observed in the lyrics. Jarvis Cocker used to do this so well. Camille had this to say about the track: “I started thinking about my plane ride the night before. This woman in front of me had been texting a friend about her boyfriend, Stanley (who I later discovered was a few rows behind us). I was thinking about the loneliness you feel when you’re alone, but also the deeper loneliness when you’re with someone, and that person doesn’t fill the hole inside you the way you’d hoped. It was a time when I was searching for comfort in anything – overheard conversations, interactions with strangers, little jokes I would make to myself.”

The lyrics make it very clear that the titular Stanley is not very nice, certainly a bit of a loser. These lines really describe that Stanley bloke! “Stanley sits and Stanley drinks. When he takes off his shoes he stinks. He’s going nowhere, going nowhere“. Having heard this rather ace song and watched the weird, warped and wonderful video I will be seeking out more of Camille Schmidt’s music. You should do the same!

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