WEBVTT 00:00:02.819 --> 00:00:07.440 Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to violence. Welcome, 00:00:07.440 --> 00:00:10.779 welcome back to Pop Rocks Radio. As always, I 00:00:10.779 --> 00:00:13.699 am your host, Bijan. This is our first episode 00:00:13.699 --> 00:00:16.800 for a while. We can get into why that is in a 00:00:16.800 --> 00:00:19.480 little bit, but I gotta say it is great to be 00:00:19.480 --> 00:00:22.739 back. And before you say I didn't get you anything 00:00:22.739 --> 00:00:24.859 for Christmas, here are The Leopards with Block 00:00:24.859 --> 00:03:06.669 Party. You can thank me later. 00:05:43.720 --> 00:05:45.500 That was our friends The Voltz with their latest 00:05:45.500 --> 00:05:48.360 single, Over and Done. And we kicked off the 00:05:48.360 --> 00:05:50.819 show with Block Party from The Leopards' 1987 00:05:50.819 --> 00:05:54.560 album, Magic Still Exists. That was put out on 00:05:54.560 --> 00:05:57.240 Voxx Records, a sister label to Bomp, both run 00:05:57.240 --> 00:06:00.040 by Greg and Suzy Shaw. We lost Greg in 2004, 00:06:00.199 --> 00:06:02.519 but Suzy still runs the mail order herself out 00:06:02.519 --> 00:06:05.259 of her office in Burbank. Speaking of which, 00:06:05.300 --> 00:06:07.500 for any of you collectors out there, one of her 00:06:07.500 --> 00:06:10.810 hobbies, if you want to call it that, is to go 00:06:10.810 --> 00:06:12.970 through the Bomp archives and put together just 00:06:12.970 --> 00:06:15.810 the most fascinating bundles for sale on her 00:06:15.810 --> 00:06:19.949 site. She recently put together an amazing Flamin' 00:06:19.990 --> 00:06:22.750 Groovies bundle. The Groovies' single, You Tore 00:06:22.750 --> 00:06:24.870 Me Down, is the single that launched Bomp Records 00:06:24.870 --> 00:06:28.069 back in 1974, and Greg Shaw managed the band 00:06:28.069 --> 00:06:30.589 later as well. Go and have a look at that and 00:06:30.589 --> 00:06:33.649 all the other cool stuff they have at bompstore 00:06:33.649 --> 00:06:37.939 .com. Here's a clip from a recently unearthed 00:06:37.939 --> 00:06:40.699 recording of an interview that Greg Shaw did 00:06:40.699 --> 00:06:45.519 back in 1977 for a Boston radio show. Greg, why 00:06:45.519 --> 00:06:47.259 don't you tell us a little bit about Bomp Records 00:06:47.259 --> 00:06:49.439 and the distribution that you're setting up. 00:06:49.620 --> 00:06:53.180 Well, Bomp Records is our record label, and we're 00:06:53.180 --> 00:06:55.000 releasing underground records just like Stiff 00:06:55.000 --> 00:06:56.639 Records is doing in England and other labels 00:06:56.639 --> 00:06:58.740 around the world. Bomp Records is also a distribution 00:06:58.740 --> 00:07:00.480 thing. All of the records you play in your show 00:07:00.480 --> 00:07:04.610 are available by mail order through our... bomb 00:07:04.610 --> 00:07:06.670 records operation and anybody that wants to write 00:07:06.670 --> 00:07:08.689 to that address can get a catalog but some of 00:07:08.689 --> 00:07:10.230 these records are hard to find in stores although 00:07:10.230 --> 00:07:11.930 if stores want to order them we'll take care 00:07:11.930 --> 00:07:13.410 of them but it's been hard getting stores to 00:07:13.410 --> 00:07:15.649 recognize that why they should carry a seven 00:07:15.649 --> 00:07:18.009 inch record with three songs on it and a cover 00:07:18.009 --> 00:07:19.850 of some weird looking group you know so we're 00:07:19.850 --> 00:07:21.350 trying to push them so they'll understand it 00:07:21.350 --> 00:07:23.470 right and aren't you also trying to find like 00:07:23.470 --> 00:07:26.079 stores in every major city too hopefully carry 00:07:26.079 --> 00:07:27.779 a lot of the underground sounds? I think it's 00:07:27.779 --> 00:07:29.579 the next step, really. If these bands are going 00:07:29.579 --> 00:07:31.759 to get beyond the dingy clubs they're playing 00:07:31.759 --> 00:07:33.160 now, they're going to have to get national exposure 00:07:33.160 --> 00:07:35.620 through records, and the records have to be on 00:07:35.620 --> 00:07:37.459 sale. We found that whenever the records are 00:07:37.459 --> 00:07:40.120 on sale, they sell like crazy. We have Tower 00:07:40.120 --> 00:07:41.879 Records in Hollywood now is carrying punk rock. 00:07:41.920 --> 00:07:43.560 They're selling about 2 ,000 singles a week, 00:07:43.600 --> 00:07:45.360 and they've got a whole section for it, punk 00:07:45.360 --> 00:07:47.899 rock, and it's the category that attracts people. 00:07:47.939 --> 00:07:49.579 People are interested in it because it's weird. 00:07:49.699 --> 00:07:51.199 It's just a matter of getting it out in front 00:07:51.199 --> 00:07:52.540 of them, just like these bands, once they are 00:07:52.540 --> 00:16:26.200 seen, are appreciated nationally. We closed out that set 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:29.200 With Joe Glass who you may know of as part of 00:16:29.200 --> 00:16:32.299 Kai Slater's Sharp Pins that was Freight Train 00:16:32.299 --> 00:16:35.340 Woman from his new album Snakewards before that 00:16:35.340 --> 00:16:37.559 we had the Webstirs from Chicago with King of 00:16:37.559 --> 00:16:39.980 Distortion from their latest album High Up in 00:16:39.980 --> 00:16:42.860 the Trees and we kicked off that set with Kim 00:16:42.860 --> 00:16:45.639 Theory from Los Angeles with Child Star Teeny 00:16:45.639 --> 00:16:49.039 bopper that is from their latest ep Bitch Scene 00:17:14.250 --> 00:17:16.750 If you've ever wondered what an animated movie 00:17:16.750 --> 00:17:19.710 scored by Debbie Harry, Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, and 00:17:19.710 --> 00:17:21.829 Cheap Trick would look like when it completely 00:17:21.829 --> 00:17:26.190 loses its mind, 1983's Rock and Rule is your 00:17:26.190 --> 00:17:30.029 answer. Here's the basic setup, and I use the 00:17:30.029 --> 00:17:34.170 word basic generously. Rock and Rule takes place 00:17:34.170 --> 00:17:37.109 in a future where humans are gone, animals somehow 00:17:37.109 --> 00:17:40.089 survived, evolved, and turned into a... fully 00:17:40.089 --> 00:17:45.470 sentient mutant race. Why animals? No idea. No 00:17:45.470 --> 00:17:48.809 explanation. It's just weird Planet of the Apes 00:17:48.809 --> 00:17:51.589 logic that you either accept immediately or you're 00:17:51.589 --> 00:17:54.569 lost forever. In this world, rock and roll has 00:17:54.569 --> 00:17:58.470 actual power. Journey to a world where the cosmic 00:17:58.470 --> 00:18:05.230 forces of music, magic, and technology collide. 00:18:06.029 --> 00:18:09.609 Fame isn't metaphorical. It's... Currency, religion, 00:18:10.029 --> 00:18:28.500 magic. Which brings us to our villain, Mok. Mok 00:18:28.500 --> 00:18:30.779 is a decadent aging rock star who looks like 00:18:30.779 --> 00:18:35.039 glam excess weaponized. He's famous, rich, worshipped, 00:18:35.099 --> 00:18:37.799 but his popularity slips just enough to send 00:18:37.799 --> 00:18:41.119 him spiraling into a full cosmic narcissism. 00:18:41.200 --> 00:18:44.579 His solution? Open a hell portal and unleash 00:18:44.579 --> 00:18:47.819 a literal demon using the perfect voice of a 00:18:47.819 --> 00:18:50.019 young singer named Angel. Because when you're 00:18:50.019 --> 00:18:52.859 already on top of the world, obviously the next 00:18:52.859 --> 00:18:56.299 move is summon a beast from another dimension. 00:18:57.079 --> 00:18:59.880 Angel is the innocent with the voice. Omar is 00:18:59.880 --> 00:19:02.059 the scrappy musician boyfriend trying to save 00:19:02.059 --> 00:19:04.440 her. And somewhere in the background, the universe 00:19:04.440 --> 00:19:08.380 is hanging in the balance. The vibe is pure heavy 00:19:08.380 --> 00:19:12.220 metal. Adult animation, drugs, sex, nihilism, 00:19:12.279 --> 00:19:15.359 spectacle. But filtered through Canadian weirdness 00:19:15.359 --> 00:19:18.500 and art school ambition. There's a club scene 00:19:18.500 --> 00:19:21.380 that plays like Studio 54 for mutant animals. 00:19:22.079 --> 00:19:24.400 complete with Earth, Wind, and Fire on the soundtrack, 00:19:24.579 --> 00:19:27.480 and a moment where you suddenly notice, yes, 00:19:27.680 --> 00:19:31.380 all the female animals have nipples. And that 00:19:31.380 --> 00:19:47.579 soundtrack? Absolutely stacked. Music isn't background 00:19:47.579 --> 00:19:51.460 here. Music does things. It controls crowds, 00:19:51.700 --> 00:19:54.740 it opens portals, it literally shapes reality. 00:19:55.240 --> 00:19:57.579 The animation studio behind this madness was 00:19:57.579 --> 00:20:00.460 Canada's Nelvana. And at the time, they were 00:20:00.460 --> 00:20:03.500 among the very few North American studios seriously 00:20:03.500 --> 00:20:07.640 attempting adult cinematic animation. Combining 00:20:07.640 --> 00:20:11.339 dark themes, expressive character acting, experimental 00:20:11.339 --> 00:20:14.400 pacing, and rock music in ways most studios simply 00:20:14.400 --> 00:20:17.720 wouldn't risk. One of my favorite details? Character 00:20:17.720 --> 00:20:20.200 animator Robin Budd said Mok's movement was 00:20:20.200 --> 00:20:23.319 inspired by a young Peter O'Toole in heavy makeup 00:20:23.319 --> 00:20:26.759 pretending to be Mick Jagger. And once you know 00:20:26.759 --> 00:20:29.880 that, you can't unsee it. The plot eventually 00:20:29.880 --> 00:20:32.680 escalates to the point where the demon gets unleashed. 00:20:32.819 --> 00:20:35.900 No one can send it back, except somehow two people 00:20:35.900 --> 00:20:39.220 can. Don't ask how. Drugs may have been involved 00:20:39.220 --> 00:20:41.740 in the writing process. Rock and Roll is confusing, 00:20:42.180 --> 00:20:45.359 excessive, horny, overreaching, and visually 00:20:45.359 --> 00:20:48.059 unbelievable. It doesn't always make sense, but 00:20:48.059 --> 00:20:51.400 it absolutely commits. It's a movie from a moment 00:20:51.400 --> 00:20:53.960 when people genuinely believe rock and roll could 00:20:53.960 --> 00:20:57.920 change reality or end it. And honestly, I kind 00:20:57.920 --> 00:21:01.099 of miss that confidence. I haven't found Rock 00:21:01.099 --> 00:21:03.480 and Rule for rent anywhere, but someone has a 00:21:03.480 --> 00:21:06.119 full rip of the film up on YouTube, which is 00:21:06.119 --> 00:21:08.039 where I was lucky enough to have watched it. 00:21:08.099 --> 00:21:10.940 I didn't see it in the theater. I was about 14 00:21:10.940 --> 00:21:13.940 when it came out. I can only imagine how colorful 00:21:13.940 --> 00:21:19.140 my teenage years would have been if I had. And 00:21:19.140 --> 00:31:57.470 now, this. I would like to buy a hamburger. That was The Vandalias 00:31:57.470 --> 00:31:59.990 from the great city of Minneapolis with Buzzbomb! 00:31:59.990 --> 00:32:02.910 from their 1998 album of the same name. 00:32:03.430 --> 00:32:05.549 Before that, we had The Goods with their latest 00:32:05.549 --> 00:32:07.970 single back to you on Dandy Boy records from 00:32:07.970 --> 00:32:10.809 Oakland. That is a cover of the Riverdales song 00:32:10.809 --> 00:32:15.390 from 1995. And we kicked off that set with everything 00:32:15.390 --> 00:32:18.529 considered from Joint Pains, latest album, Ouch, 00:32:18.529 --> 00:32:21.789 more to come here on Pop Rocks Radio. But first 00:32:21.789 --> 00:32:25.230 a word from our sponsor, but. Since we still 00:32:25.230 --> 00:32:28.369 don't have a sponsor, it's really just a word. 00:32:28.750 --> 00:32:31.349 Want to stick it to the corporate overlords and 00:32:31.349 --> 00:32:34.089 help your community at the same time? Head on 00:32:34.089 --> 00:32:36.230 down to your local record store and show them 00:32:36.230 --> 00:32:39.049 some love. Sure, you could probably buy that 00:32:39.049 --> 00:32:41.730 record on Amazon, but shopping at your local 00:32:41.730 --> 00:32:44.490 record store is an adventure. And instead of 00:32:44.490 --> 00:32:47.269 funding somebody's second private jet, the dollars 00:32:47.269 --> 00:32:49.190 you spend there will likely stay right in your 00:32:49.190 --> 00:32:52.210 community. Don't have a local record store? Then 00:32:52.210 --> 00:32:54.470 head on over to bompstore.com where you'll be 00:32:54.470 --> 00:32:56.990 supporting one of the last of the true independents. 00:32:57.130 --> 00:32:59.609 Not to mention finding stuff that is just too 00:32:59.609 --> 00:33:03.089 cool to be found anywhere else. Okay, back to 00:33:03.089 --> 00:36:06.210 the show. That was, of course, the Go-Go's with 00:36:06.210 --> 00:36:09.150 Beneath the Blue Sky from their 1984 album Talk 00:36:09.150 --> 00:36:13.730 Show. If memory serves, I spent 1984 shooting 00:36:13.730 --> 00:36:17.349 at the walls of heartache. Bang, bang. Glad that's 00:36:17.349 --> 00:36:20.610 over. Hey, everybody! An old man's talking! Okay, 00:36:20.650 --> 00:36:22.750 for our featured artists this week, I have decided 00:36:22.750 --> 00:36:25.690 to spend the next few shows showcasing the work 00:36:25.690 --> 00:36:27.989 from the individual members of the seminal band 00:36:27.989 --> 00:36:31.159 The Nerves. Jack Lee, Paul Collins, and Peter 00:36:31.159 --> 00:36:33.719 Case did more for independent music, both as 00:36:33.719 --> 00:36:36.500 a highly volatile and underappreciated team, 00:36:36.639 --> 00:36:39.099 as well as their various other projects, than 00:36:39.099 --> 00:36:42.079 I think they are ever given credit for. This 00:36:42.079 --> 00:36:44.239 week, let's start out with friend of the show 00:36:44.239 --> 00:36:47.300 and one hell of a nice guy, Paul Collins. As 00:36:47.300 --> 00:36:49.260 drummer for The Nerves, he has carved out his 00:36:49.260 --> 00:36:52.480 own path since as a solo artist and as part of 00:36:52.480 --> 00:36:55.309 The Beat. This is from that band's classic 1979 00:36:55.309 --> 00:36:58.550 debut, which also provided the name for a very 00:36:58.550 --> 00:37:01.210 fun sub stack by Laurie Christian, who has many 00:37:01.210 --> 00:37:03.789 rock and roll stories to share. Check that out. 00:37:03.869 --> 00:41:44.599 This is Rock and Roll Girl. That was That's What 00:41:44.599 --> 00:41:47.539 Life Is All About from Paul Collins Beat's 1982 00:41:47.539 --> 00:41:51.019 album The Kids Are The Same. The Paul Collins 00:41:51.019 --> 00:41:53.380 Beat is a project that Paul has returned to over 00:41:53.380 --> 00:41:55.980 the years with different personnel, but always 00:41:55.980 --> 00:41:59.019 with that unmistakable sound. Here's one from 00:41:59.019 --> 00:42:03.239 Ribbon of Gold, his album from 2008. This is 00:42:03.239 --> 00:47:26.900 I Still Want You. That was Kind 00:47:26.900 --> 00:47:30.480 of Girl from 2018's Out of My Head, the, I believe, 00:47:30.519 --> 00:47:33.780 eighth solo album by Paul Collins. Paul has been 00:47:33.780 --> 00:47:36.099 touring both the U .S. and Europe for the past 00:47:36.099 --> 00:47:38.679 couple years. I actually made a trip down to 00:47:38.679 --> 00:47:41.300 L .A. to see him at the end of 2024, but they 00:47:41.300 --> 00:47:44.679 got grounded coming from back east due to a hurricane, 00:47:44.840 --> 00:47:47.980 so I missed them on that tour. Still on the bucket 00:47:47.980 --> 00:47:51.309 list, though. When I interviewed Paul for the 00:47:51.309 --> 00:47:53.849 Pop Rocks Radio YouTube channel, he told me that 00:47:53.849 --> 00:47:56.750 the enthusiasm from the crowds in Europe was 00:47:56.750 --> 00:48:00.210 just otherworldly. So, well-deserved for him. 00:48:00.449 --> 00:48:03.429 Let's do one more from Paul. This is from 2014's 00:48:03.429 --> 00:48:06.809 Feel the Noise. Really a great album out on Alive 00:48:06.809 --> 00:51:20.579 Records. This is All Eyes to See. And that is 00:51:20.579 --> 00:51:23.599 it for our featured artists this week. Next week, 00:51:23.619 --> 00:51:26.300 we'll dig into some of the amazing songwriting 00:51:26.300 --> 00:51:29.059 of the larger -than -life force behind The Nerves, 00:51:29.219 --> 00:51:32.659 Jack Lee. So tune in next time for that. Whatever, 00:51:32.820 --> 00:51:36.860 dude. Whatever. Peace. God bless. Okay, we have 00:51:36.860 --> 00:51:40.000 time for a couple more sets. This is the new 00:51:40.000 --> 00:51:43.099 single from Uni Boys off their upcoming album 00:51:43.099 --> 00:51:45.539 due out in March. This is I Don't Wanna Dream 00:51:45.539 --> 01:00:08.420 Anymore. That was Seattle's own The Darts with 01:00:08.420 --> 01:00:11.079 Apocalypse from their upcoming album Halloween 01:00:11.079 --> 01:00:14.760 Love Songs. Before that, we played Kai Slater's 01:00:14.760 --> 01:00:17.559 band Sharp Pins with I Could Find Out from their 01:00:17.559 --> 01:00:21.239 latest Balloon, Balloon, Balloon. Something just 01:00:21.239 --> 01:00:23.619 wonderful about how the jangle of that Sharp 01:00:23.619 --> 01:00:26.659 Pins track and the organ of that Darts track 01:00:26.659 --> 01:00:35.320 just make sense together, you know? Okay, before 01:00:35.320 --> 01:00:37.139 we head into our last set, just want to take 01:00:37.139 --> 01:00:39.599 a sec to thank all the artists and their promoters 01:00:39.599 --> 01:00:42.599 for sharing this music with me. And remember, 01:00:42.760 --> 01:00:45.219 everyone, if you really want to support independent 01:00:45.219 --> 01:00:48.099 artists, show them what they mean to you by buying 01:00:48.099 --> 01:00:51.000 their music, okay? This is from our friends Drugs 01:00:51.000 --> 01:00:54.260 and Sport from Newcastle, Australia. From, If 01:00:54.260 --> 01:00:57.239 Only We Could Use These Powers for Good, this 01:00:57.239 --> 01:10:07.560 is Cooked. We closed out that set with Bellevie 01:10:07.560 --> 01:10:11.039 from Sweden with their latest Feel So Far Away. 01:10:12.140 --> 01:10:15.260 Before that, we had The Arcs from Athens, Georgia 01:10:15.260 --> 01:10:18.060 with She's Just That Kind of Girl from their 01:10:18.060 --> 01:10:44.899 album Athens Avenue. And with that, we have come 01:10:44.899 --> 01:10:47.199 to the end of another episode of Pop Rocks Radio. 01:10:48.119 --> 01:10:50.760 Join us again next time when we'll try to shoo 01:10:50.760 --> 01:10:53.500 some of the craziness of these days away with 01:10:53.500 --> 01:10:56.840 just some cool goddamn music that will take care 01:10:56.840 --> 01:11:04.920 of just about anything. Playing us out today, 01:11:05.000 --> 01:11:08.220 we have The Primitives with Way Behind Me from 01:11:08.220 --> 01:11:11.600 their classic album, Lovely. And this is Bijan 01:11:11.600 --> 01:11:14.489 from Pop Rocks Radio. Thanks for listening. Be 01:11:14.489 --> 01:11:17.449 good, be weird, and we'll see you next time.