Natural Child-White Man's Burden 7" EP (2010)

I'm pretty sure that this is the sorta music white American teens had sex to back in the '70s, disco notwithstanding. Look up "sleaze rock" in the dictionary and you very well might find the cover art for this EP. Keith Richardisms aside, I love Natural Child for their unabashed celebration of rock as dumb teenage noise: blunt, straightforward riffage, lyrics about sex 'n' drugs, and a complete lack of interest in everything else.

I won't bother exploring why Natural Child felt compelled to write a song about the White Man's Burden; I'm pretty sure they're not in favor of (re-)colonizing Central Asia. Either way, it's a majestic, sprawling rock ballad that coulda been penned circa 1973. Best line: "thought rock 'n' roll was my own/but I found out we stole IT!/we ain't been here long enough to ever pay for IT/we ain't got 'nuthin' to our names but a shitload of MONEY...." Could you do better than that if you were Ernest Hemingway? No.
"Ray Thompson's Blues" is even better: pitterpatter drumming and vocals mixed so clearly you can hear every line as the singer yearns for Mexico. He probably isn't aware that for the last decade, Mexico's been a warzone, 'cause he's celebrating what us Yanks think of when we hear the name: beaches, sun, easy sex, and generally a life without any superego to get in the way of good times. It's blues-based sendup rock of the best kind. "Bang My head" is more of the same. Slightly more aggressive than the first two tracks, it's rambunctious, teenage blooz of the highest caliber.

I'm unabashedly re-blogging this from Iamtheleastmachiavellian blog. If you don't follow that dood already, you should be; you can download the EP there. Then you should BUY IT, for one lousy stinkin' gringo dollar, HERE!

Useless Eaters-Addicted to the Blade 7" (2012)

If you read Drug Punk and don't listen to Useless Eaters, you very well may live under a rock. Whatever, this 7", Seth Sutton's most recent, is as good an introduction as as any to his idiosyncratic songcraft.

"Addicted to the Blade" is built around an infectious guitar groove and Sutton's bratty, Class of '77 snarling whine. I think he's singin' about some girl he's in like with, go figure. The bridge has one of the best smart-dumb bass chords and guitar mini-riffs I've heard in months. In the background is an ethereal synth line, I think.

"Starvation Blues #2" is the sort of rigid funk produced by Brit post-punks like 23 Skidoo, Josef K., et. al.: repetitive, wobbly bass, chugging drums, slightly harmonized vox. Sweet, dood.

Check it out here. [password is "cantaloupe"]. Then buy the 7" at Midheaven, here. Useless Eaters is touring the eastern USA this summer, here are the tour dates.

I'm reblogging this from Iamtheleastmachiavellian blog, which you should be following if you aren't already.

*EDIT, 9.9.12: REupd the file, HERE. *

Natural Child-1971 LP (2011)

I should start this review by remarking that, from everything I've read, the early '70s were a remarkably awful period for pop music. There were gems, sure, but I don't really think fetishizing the era of Yes and EMerson, Lake and Palmer makes much sense. Punk happened for a reason, people.

But whatever. This LP is one of my favorite rock albums of the year. Spanning the full spectrum of Stones worship from ballsy swagger ("Hard Workin' Man") to pseudo-tender ballads ("Let it Bleed"), Natural Child is a perfect soundtrack to a nice evening spent reflecting on the deeper mysteries of Wittgenstein's Tractatus while knocking off that bottle of Rebel Yell you've been avoiding for so long.

White boy, this is what I gotta say.... Check out Natural Child's blog  or dis heer to pick up the LP and for tour info.

*By the by-"natural child" was the polite term for "bastard" back in dee day. Are these Natural Children implying they're Keith Richards' unacknowledged progeny?*