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[Skanatra] [Rocket] [The Gefkens]
[Tin
Huey]
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Skanatra -A ska band. A Sinatra tribute band. That's right- grown men playing the classic catalog of The Chairman to a herky jerky ska beat. Chairman Sunbeam leads the fellas through all the great American Pop Standards and the Toastmaster makes sure everyone is well imbibed. Give it a listen. You will not be the same afterwards. Be warned! You may embarrass yourself.... |
Listen -> Saturday Night (mp3) from "It's Happy Hour Somewhere"
Listen -> High Hopes (mp3) from "Skanatra"
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ROCKET - "7 Miles High"
Rocket is Matt Azzarto (vocals and guitar), A.J. Lambert (vocals and bass) and Murph (drums). Matt was the singer/songwriter for Hoboken pop mainstays The Fundamentals and The Gefkens, A.J. was in a sleepy L.A. band called Sleepington and Murph is the original Dinosaur Jr and long-time Lemonheads drummer. Their debut CD was recorded with producer Don Fleming (Teenage Fanclub, Hole, Posies) If you like your pure pop with a power booster then Rocket will take you there!
Listen -> Burn Out (mp3)
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The Gefkens
The island of Manhattan values Hoboken for two reasons: it gave birth to Frank Sinatra and it obstructs the view of Jersey City. Nowadays, that old green broad on the Hudson has one more reason to shine her light west ... The Gefkens. Unlike many of their noisy brethren, The Gefkens did not form in a garage. Instead, Matt, Fran and Chris began playing together at Gefkens Flower Shop in Maplewood, NJ. Undoubtedly influenced by the Daisies, Mums and Lilies, the three began spawning delightful hooks.
When it was time to branch out to the clubs, the brothers Gef were met with a small case of culture shock. You see, the early 90's was not a great time for melodies - it was rather noise, fuzz and angst (not necessarily in that order) which ruled the gin joints in those days. The Gefkens, forced to share bills with bands like Grab Ass and Bitch Poker, played to some less than friendly audiences. Thoughtful verses about the trial and tribulations of three white boys, mom and dads divorce, fear and loathing in the Garden State, and trying to date women whose bar bills surpass the band's annual income - at first were too subtle for folks accustomed to heroin, teen runaway, and the chick-I-slept-with-turned-out-to-be-a-guy songs.
Nonetheless, our boys persevered. More and more folks piled into Maxwell's saying "Ya know, my parents are divorced, this town rips the bones from my back, and man, that little number in the black dress sure can drink! Those three big-teethed shaggy-haired guys sing the truth and shoot if you can't dance to it!. Pass me another longneck." Yep, our boys have put down roots among their own kind.
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Listen -> Grind (mp3) - "Grind" - The very first Gefkens release.
Listen -> Pavement Head (mp3) - "Live! Live! Live!"
The only Gefkens release. Everything you've heard up 'til now (with possible exception of the rare "Concert in Mindowaskin Park" bootleg) has been audio sanitized for your protection. Without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, from a Greenhouse in Maplewood, to the clubs of NYC< to your home ... The Gefkens - Live! Live! Live!
Listen -> Anticipation (mp3) - "Heroes"
On their third album, "Heroes" The Gefkens deliver a rabbitt punch consisting of 12 cleverly crefted gems produced by Don Flemming (the Posies, Teenage Fanclub, Screaming Trees) and Bill Emmons (Soul Coughing, Violent Femmes, Boss Hog). The first song "Anticipation" is featured in the Paramount Pictures film "Dead Man on Campus" and demonstrates the raw power that the band brings to their live show which has put them as the opening act for artists such as Oasis and Buffalo Tom. Bursting with brilliant hooks and memorable melodies this album displays the unflinching pop sensibility which in the past has earned the band - KROQ's "Best Unsigned Band" title.
Tin Huey www.tinhuey.com
Featuring: Ralph Carney, Chris
Butler, Harvey Gold, Michael Aylward, Ralph Legnini
This band burst on the Akron Ohio music scene in the late 70's with their brand of new wave, melodic and downright distinct music. "Art Rock for Laughs" . Signed to Warner Brothers, the cult favorite Hueys made several releases, of which 'disinformation' is one of them.
This never before released record (ok, CD) is historical in some ways- because it took the band 20 years to complete it!- but is also very forward looking in that it combines intricate music with the pop mentality. It is truly music in the sense that it is very different from what is played on today's commercial radio.
They eventually parted ways and went to form other groups. Butler went on to play with The Waitresses and Ralph Carney went on to play with Swollen Monkey.
Given Tin Huey’s incredible commercial history, we’d be hard pressed to argue that this is solely a marketing tool, and a gift to our fans. First off, how many fans are there? The few we had have had a good 20 years to either get a life and/or die since we released ‘Contents Dislodged During Shipment’ .... and anyone who WAS a fan that might have seen fit to pass our music down through the generations.... well... we’d rather ask that person to come live with us rather than labor through the internet. Said person would likely be lodged in a fruit cellar without a door knob, but we’d come down and talk to him or her through the door to help us boost our self esteem, and we’d provide food, water, and a CD player.
So, is this just another vanity project? Well... yeah, to a point, but we’re not THAT arrogant, so we’ll try to do what we always did - Have fun. Chris wrote a song called "I Could Rule The World If I Could Only Get The Parts". Well - we have more parts now.
So... once again welcome. "The Critics Raved... then we ate bag lunches"..
Listen -> Closet Bears (mp3)