After releasing a tribute EP to the New York Dolls, Pat Todd has just released another album with his band. Ahead of his European tour, we spoke with this friendly gentleman about the New York Dolls. Was it the death of the last Doll, David Johansen, that made you want to make this record? No, this was something I’d been wanting to do for over 25 years. We finally made time for it and got it done. We constantly work up new songs, record all the time and play shows, so we just never got around to it.                                     Some people discovered the New York Dolls when they appeared on the TV show “The Old Grey Whistle Test” (which had a similar effect as the Ed Sullivan Show with the Beatles for England). How did you discover the New York Dolls? I first discovered the New York Dolls in print magazines - Creem, Fusion Magazine, Rolling Stone, and Andy Warhol‘s Interview. I read abo...

  Gravest Gravy (le jus de viande le plus grave, littéralement) aurait dû être un DVD, incluant notamment le clip « Human Fly » réalisé par les Cramps.  C’est finalement un album, qui vient de sortir, officiellement le 22 août mais des boutiques comme Dangerhouse à Lyon ou Born Bad à Paris les vendaient déjà une dizaine de jours avant. L’album est décliné en plein de couleurs différentes, avec aussi une version « glow in the dark » limitée à 500 exemplaires, dont les prix ont grimpé dès la sortie. Il y a aussi une version CD et une version japonaise glow in the dark avec obi. Le premier album vinyle des Cramps à sortir au Japon.  Le label maison des Cramps Vengeance est ainsi ravivé, avec de nombreuses sorties à venir dont un single en octobre avec des versions alternatives de deux titres de Gravest Gravy (GG) . Il semble que c’est Larry Hardy, le boss du label In The Red , qui a réussi à convaincre Ivy, avec l’aide du rockabilly cat Jimmy Maslon (pour lequel Ivy avait ...

Today, we’re delighted to welcome Cindy Lawson, a true pioneer of the Minneapolis rock scene. She began her musical journey in 1985 with the all-female band The Clams and went on to play in several bands in Minneapolis and New York. After a long break from music, Cindy made a powerful comeback in 2021, bringing together classic rock ’n’ roll, garage rock and punk energy with her distinctive voice and sharp songwriting. Nearly four decades into her career, Cindy Lawson is still making bold, passionate and exciting music. Taste question: Which artists have influenced you the most, and what examples can you tell us about this influence? Who is the artist you dislike and why will he/she never influence you? I have always loved Joni Mitchell, Nina Simone, and Rickie Lee Jones because they created their own sound and didn’t compromise their vision. Joni Mitchell developed her own style of playing guitar because she had to compensate for the weakness in her left hand from a childhood bout wit...

« Les Monstres Sacrés n’ont jamais connu un début de saison aussi difficile. Jacques Ball nous a quittés. Quel article publier après une telle perte ? S’il devait y en avoir un, il faudrait que c'en soit un que Jacques aurait adoré lire... Avant son départ, il avait transmis quelques questions à Bernard, qui souhaitait interviewer Deniz Tek. Voici les réponses. Merci à Deniz, à Bernard… et à Jacques, qui nous manque. » Ron Asheton avec Destroy All Monsters Deniz Tek raconte Ron Asheton Destroy All Monsters + Deniz Tek, Detroit, 1980 (Photo Niagara) Interview Deniz Tek (Jacques Ball, 25/08/2024) : What was the first notable impact Ron Asheton had on you as a guitar player ? As for those wah wah guitar licks in 1969 on the first Stooges album were like magic. Deniz Tek : - "Those first chords of 1969 are a massive hook ! I first saw  them when they were The Psychedelic Stooges, and they didn't really have any songs. The music was essentially free jamming, with found sounds a...

It’s not often that we get to talk about a band that’s had run-ins with tractors on Les Monstres Sacrés! Thanks to Jean-Jacques and the Last Pages for this epic interview ! Taste question: Which artists have influenced you the most, and can you tell us examples about this influence? Who is the artist you dislike and why will he/she never influence you? Speaking for the band and our sound, our influences are The Who, Replacements, Mudhoney, Firehose and, generally speaking, most non-commercial 80s/90s alt rock. Our tastes run the gamut of genres, but I'm pretty sure we can all agree that Jandek will never influence us. Intellectual question: Which non-musical artist (filmmaker, writer, painter...) played an important role in the way the band evolved… Alex Cox, Richard Linklater, Quentin Tarantino History question: Can you sum up the life of your group? We are collectively 200 years old. Gordy and Larry have been playing since 2020. Will joined in 2021. Trevor joined and started this...

Following one of our “Top Monsters” features—and Kai Danzberg’s strong showing in it—we thought it would be interesting to get to know him better. Thanks to Kai and Jean-Jacques, who arranged this interview, we’ve now done just that. Thanks to both of them! Taste question: Which artists have influenced you the most, and what examples can you tell us about this influence? Who is the artist you dislike and why will he/she never influence you? My biggest influences are The Beatles, Jellyfish, Electric Light Orchestra, Queen & Michael Jackson. They completely changed the way I think about music. A lot of their songs rely on more complex arrangements and rich vocal harmonies, which really inspires me. That said, I don’t think a song always needs to be complex to be good. I tend to layer and harmonize my vocals in almost every song I write — it’s just something that feels natural to me. I wouldn’t say there’s a specific artist I dislike. What I do find frustrating is when everyone follow...