Thee Mojomatics -Don’t Pretend That You Know Me (Ghost Records) 2008. A really great Hives-influenced two man garage punk combo from Italy. Like a lot of young’uns, these guys sometimes substitute tunefulness for full-on energy but really, if I had to pick which one I need more from my rock-n-roll, it would probably be full-on energy. Save tunefulness for Tori Amos I say. Now when The Mojomatics combine both melody and energy, they are really excellent. Combine that with their rather slick and dapper European approach and I think this is a band that is probably going to be number one with a proverbial bullet at some point. Of course, by then I will hate them. Because I’m a pretentious asshole. So if you’re like me you should probably enjoy the Mojomatics now while you can. Your future cred won’t allow you to and you may miss out altogether.
Hardcore Podcasts
September of 2010 I put together eight Hardcore Podcasts. You can check them out here if you are interested. For more insight into how I came up with the years 78-90 for the First Wave you can read about The Hardcore Superiorty Myth.
That is a pretty fucking rocking video. The whole just guitar&drums 2-piece usually seems stupid and cloying–it kicks here. Though I don’t quite get the stuffed lion. & the girls sitting in the chairs…& the third girl who then steps onstage. The suits & ties…is that some sort of Eyetalian thing? I think you’re totally right. Like the Hives/Vines/Strokes vein. Come Sophomore Effort, when they’re featured MySpace Artistes and trolling the cover of People magazine wearing their new fashion model girlfriends, we’ll be like, FUCK, burned again!!! As they grow from human to simian, sporting new tails of shit-plastered hundred dollar bills growing out their asses. So let’s just enjoy them for what they are now, in and of the moment, and sounding pretty damn good. Worry about the scorch marks later.
Links don’t work — no file name in the url.
yep… not bad. basic guitar riff, driving beat, catchy refrain… garage, mersey beat, power pop…. what’s not to like!
an ya know what? i still listen to the hives every now and again, and the strokes too. i’m an old man; i got nuthin ta prove.
Ivan – all fixed.
Otto – yeah I still love the Hives. Never really dug the Strokes. I was thinking of the White Stripes when I wrote that though. Do you like them?
I dig the White Stripes (good songwriting, impressive guitar work), but I find their releases get old for me very fast… think it’s Jack’s voice.
But there are lots of ‘in’ bands I dig or have dug. Arctic Monkeys, Libertines, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Black Keys, Kills, Raveonettes, Bell Rays. Hell, I was even listening to the latest Rapture CD in the car the other day…. right after the new Harvey Milk (which is a killer). I can even tolerate that post-modern Ronette, Amy Winehouse (she does a great cover of Little Rich Girl).
Music either has ‘it’ or it doesn’t… Can’t be bothered with the street cred thing anymore… not to mention the fact that, other than the yahoos I communicate with on these blogs, virtually no one I know has a clue about the music I listen to.
Thanks for this, Joe. I hadn’t heard these guys until now, but I really dug it. In a strange way, they’re like a Mod version of the Flat Duo Jets. Great stuff.
Just got around to hearing this record, what, four months after reading this post – and holy crap! Except for a couple of bluesy touches I’m not sure I’d even call it garage rock. Too catchy. Reminds me more of the Marked Men or something else from the rougher, faster end of the power-pop alley. Thanks for turning me on to this ripsnorter!