THE LORDS OF ALTAMONT PRESENTS "THE ALTAMONT SIN" - The Lords of Altamont (Easy Action)
The Lords of Altamont had offered two solid releases in "To Hell With The Lords of Altamont" (2002) and "Lord Have Mercy" (2005) but somehow, you had the feeling the band, no matter how hard the band worked on both CD’s, they had been overlooked with the sudden “garage du jour” craze that existed for a while with the music press. Less credible bands, which will not be mentioned, had been praised and then anointed as the second coming of Sky Saxon and the Seeds when, in fact, the Lords based on their impeccable resume (i.e. Cramps, MC5) where head and shoulders above the critic’s darlings. Now, after listening to their new release The Altamont Sin, you get the feeling these guys reached a creative peak and are no longer willing to be passive. The Lords are now demanding your attention!!
Starting with a mock B-Movie introduction, which would make Roger Corman proud, warning that “scenes of brutal honesty” could have a detrimental affect on young listeners, the lead off track “Intro (No Love Lost)” possesses a urban surf feel complete with great organ and distorted guitar. The song ends and a pounding drum intro anounces the second track “Faded Black”. The song is a great rocker and manages to pull off two memorable moments. The first is a great lyric that vocalist Jake Cavaliere delivers (“Got me a record that I can’t shake off / They’re taking all my possessions, repossessing it all”) which might help catapult “Fade to Black” into serving as the sub-prime mortgage crisis anthem song! The second moment is when the organ and the guitars of DeVilla and Medina form a descending wall of sound reminiscent of classic Blue Oyster Cult Tyranny and Mutation period. It’s absolutely awesome to hear.
“Going Nowhere Fast” is a complete rave up; a bona fide no-holds-barred rocker. Pounding drums, a great riff and a pronounced element of pop (in the true sense of the word) help elevate the song’s emphasis on skilled songwriting. Here on this track, you can tell the band is willing to grow as musicians and risk criticism of being overtly commercial to it’s hardcore fans. Who cares, it’s a great track; besides, rock and roll doesn’t sell these days! Why worry..
The sixth track “Lightning Strikes” brings into focus all the unique qualities of this great band. The song displays a great groove provided by the tandem of bassist Michael Davis and drummer Max Eidson. The rolling drums, hypnotic organ and crunch of the guitars one can assume would be ideal in a live setting. Speaking of Davis, his roots are very clear on the title track with great harmonica and those unmistakable MC5 qualities we all know and love. The Detroit connection is further provided by the tracks “Make Out Doll” and ‘Living Hell”. The latter reeks of prime Stooges mania. Man, it’s nice to hear.
The relationship between The Lords of Altamont and the UK label Easy Action form a natural bond. On one hand, the Lords of Altamont are providing quality rock and roll steeped in tradition as well as their own individual talents / sensibilities. The other aspect to the equation is that the label Easy Action is documenting timeless music in a fast paced world which is quickly losing sight of yesterday’s iconoclasts. Both band and label are partners, and succeeding, in carrying the torch for what rock and roll is, and will always be about. - Arthur S
LORDS
HAVE MERCY – The Lords of Altamont (Gearhead)
When your band name references an iconic event/disaster in American music
(even if its status as the end of the ‘60s and the age of innocence
is a pile of crap) you better be up to the mark. There’s a degree of
hype attached to these guys - but for once it’s merited. Dark, raucous
and ultimately a lot of fun, they don’t work with any basic ingredients
other than those every other so-called garage band has access to, but they
do it better than most.
This is Album Number Two for the Lords, who were formerly on Sympathy.
They sound like they would have fitted in well there, but props to Gearhead for picking them up. MC5 bassist Michael Davis contributes liner notes and
his wife’s management company runs the Lords’ business affairs,
so there’s a bit of heavyweight endorsement going on. Not always a bad
thing but MC5 comparisons are spurious.
Jake Calaviere (organ and vocals) is a former Fuzztone, Bombora and (briefly)
a Cramp in their LA days and sits at the centre of what’s going down.
While the MC5 tag won’t wash, don’t make the mistake of using
the Lead Lord’s antecedents to mentally brand these guys as just another
‘60s punk rehash either. The Farfisa’s a bit reedy at times and
the fuzztone guitar fairly underplayed, but it’s the big bottom end
and backbeat that stand out. Plus Calaviere’s distinctly rocky voice
and tunes.
Lyrical themes range from the predictable live fast/die young ethos (and it
must be said that “Live Fast (die young)” isn’t dire, as
you might think), porn mags (“$4.95”) and generally being pissed
off (almost all the other songs).
It’s a stomping, grinding mash of grooves and squawk and occasionally
relies too heavily on a repetitive organ line for its own good, but when it
hits the mark it leaves a bruise. The great thing is that it’s not over-produced
(not that you’d expect it would be). Surprise cover to close the thing
down is the Chambers brothers’ “Time Has Come Today” and
the good news is that the Lords’ version does compare well to that of
the Ramones.
Best dose of The Rock out of LA since The Hangmen.–
The Barman
