Bell's Octoberfest

Märzen's can sure be tasty but it's probably also a good thing that they are traditionally seasonal because after a month or so of them, for me at least, they lose their charm. It would be like only having pumpkin pie available for dessert for months and months straight. It's belongs in it's own season specific time...any other time ya just gotta ask "Why?"
As I look at the glass before and then look out the window thinking of a clever way to describe the color of this autumn beer I think "That's it!" while looking at the maple tree in the backyard's leaves turn to a light rust color. A one & a half inch had tops off the glass and does it's best to hold on leaving a blotches of lace on the glass as it tones down.
It smells of maple, caramel and nutmeg mostly with a dint of yeast and alcohol. Yep, pretty much like the kitchen when it gets around baking sweets for autumn. The brew itself is of medium body. Not too heavy, not too light. There's a slight bit of pepper on the front end of this from the hops but it's quicky muted by flavors of caramel and something you can only find on vacation like maple nut honey butter on toasted bread. The finish keeps that sweetness but it's not sticky so any aftertaste doesn't hang around longer than wanted. It's very easy drinking and I'll enjoy a few of these while they're still available for the rest of this season. It's a good one to stick with instead of trying to be all on top of it and try all those (mostly disappointing) pumpkins beers that can be found in this neck of the woods.
http://www.bellsbeer.com/

the CHEATER SLICKS "Erotic Woman" 7inch

They're brash. They're surly. They may not be in tune sometimes. They're at an age where others younger than 'em have thrown in towel of the rock-n-roll dream. More than a handful of the garage punk youngsters owe them a big debt but sometimes room's clear when they hit the stage.
Do the Cheater Slicks care about all that though? Probably not-They just lumber ahead and knock down whoever sticks around and braves their sound. When they start firing on all 8-it's an unstoppable machine. A big, loud, oil leaking and fume making machine but a machine none the less.
"Erotic Woman" is primal screamer courtesy of Dana's blueball's howls and going totally of the rails punk rock.
One of the many things the band has always been good at is finding a song to cover that's so unknown only maybe ten other collectors of lost 60s 45's in the world could name off the the top of their head. Then they take it run it through the wringer and make it their own. "Can't You Hear (My Heartbeat)" is exactly one of those kinds of songs. Originally done by a band called Outcry (which I actually have heard before. It's on the "Scum Of the Earth" comp.) Tom wails over a jangler turned on it's a head as mangled feedback blues pushes it over the edge.
http://www.myspace.com/cheaterslicks

BR'ER "I'm A Kid Again" 7inch

The packaging of this record has got to be the most ambitious to come into the Smashin' Transistors mailbox in a long while. The outer sleeves are hand cut resembling a window pane on the front and a heart on the back. Inside it's line with vellum paper with the song titles hand inked on them. It also comes with inserts that appear to be cut put hand too. The colors used are hand painted watercolors and acrylics. Arty! Arty! Arty!
Both songs inside start out sparse and quiet with a wispy singer. As other instruments (including the use of harmoniums, toy pianos and organs just to name a few) come into the music starts to clatter and swell building up to something that can best be described as post lo-fi orchestral pop or the entire Elephant 6 collective getting one hand stuck in a garbage disposal while the other continues to make sound.
http://www.myspace.com/brrer

Lagunitas Hop Stoopid

Any brewer that names a beer "Hop (fill in the blank)" is going to get some of my money. You know, Hop Slam, Hop Wallop and so on (sorry, I don't have my check list handy to rattle off a litany of all the ones I've tried). Lagunitas makes some really good beers so of course there was no hesitation picking this up. Actually, I picked a bomber of this a week or so earlier but a friend stopped by we cracked it open and it disappeared pretty quick. I didn't take any notes that night so off to the store again to pick up another for this review.
Light amber rust in color. Thick head that melts in average time leaving a spotty & sticky lacing. Huge lemon and pine oil scents up front that jump right out of the glass with some honey & grassy notes.
A nice and lush juicy flavor here. Pineapple first comes to mind. A malt backbone is noticeable too but given this brews name it's not a really big part of the show. The 8% alcohol is hidden well in the flavor but does creep up on you as sips continue. Expected a bit stickier of a finish (we all know how the big hop brews can coat the throat) but this finishes fairly fresh and clean. Very drinkable and if it wasn't for the higher end of ABV I call it downright sessionable.
http://www.lagunitas.com/

REACHAROUNDS "Rocks Off" 7inch EP

With CV's that include, for Wendy Norton Plexi 3 and the Flips and for Roy the Evolutions, M.C. Monkey & Ape With Attitude and Kryptonite Records, the Reacharounds were a project they had together at the start of this century. Splitting guitar, vocals and drum duties between the two of them the sound is all about trash-n-blast fed up sped up garage punk of the Nth degree. Wendy sounds like she's chewing gum and spitting on people at the same time in "3 Minute Intervals", "Synthetic Soul" & "Cut Out Bin and turns the tables all around on the Stones "Rocks Off" making it sound like Penetrators backing up a 13 year old Joan Jett fan.
Roy sounds like he's bursting veins and busting blood vessels in his eyes whether it's beating up a drum kit or guitar and teeters of giving himself an aneurysm when screaming the words to the Teenage Queers "Slave To Mind (Fuck Power Pop)"
http://www.certifiedprrecords.com/

Bell's The Oracle Ale

Being that this is a Bell's some beer dorks were already claiming they knew everything about it's taste, scent and feel before even popping a cap off one. It's expected-Bell's knows it's fanatical following so it's rare they miss any chance of pre-hype these days. With only 50 barrels made and sold in as single bottles just made it more rare and desired.
Early autumn cooper in with a substantial head that melts away to a heavy lace and a cap that sticks through to the end of the glass.
The aroma is quite fruity. Strawberries and peaches come to mind. Much different than the earthy pines and citrus scents that usually come from a DIPA.
The scents show up big time in the flavors in this full bodied ale. The strawberry nuances are in the introduction. Woodsy and sweet tart. The snap of peaches take over in the middle til towards the end when a black peppery bite from the hops take it to the finish. Quite complex and though an alcohol hotness does kick up in the end the 10.4% abv is masked pretty well.
The aftertaste is a bit sticky but doesn't hang around to the point where you're searching for a couple huge swallows of water to clean the palate and wash out the back of the throat after a glass full of it. Hearty and bold yet refreshing and crisp. Though I didn't flip out for it as much as I did the not only the best DIPA a Michigan brewer has to offer but one of the best on the planet-the much less hyped and very incredible Founders Double Trouble (which I am thinking Oracle is suppose to be Bells answer to)-it is quite an interesting and flavorful take on the DIPA. Was it worth the hype? Hmmm. Let's just say I was happy to get my hands on a couple of bottles before they were gone from the shelves.
http://www.bellsbeer.com/

MIKE REP "Donovan's Brain" 7inch EP

For some years now I have heard a legend that when Rick Rubin set out to resurrect legendary flower hippie singer Donovan's career he called on the somewhat legendary not quite so hippie Columbus weirdo Mike Rep to do the production work. The story goes that the results were so messed up Rubin locked them away and then proceeded to do a boring flower hippie record. Split into two parts on this 45 (just like Don McLean's "American Pie" back when Donovan's career was taking a slide down) and ecorded through what sounds like a condenser mic Mile, along with some help from Tommy Jay, spins a freakish campfire yarn of brain transplants gone awry and neurosurgeons that think they know it all but just end up making matters worse. The record ends with a quick acoustic bit on everyone's parents favorite dead 70's pop folkster Jim Croce (which in it's own way could be further interpreted as commentary of what Rubin's results were on the job he did on Donovan's "Sutra" album.
http://www.columbusdiscountrecords.com/

13th CHIME "The Singles 1981-1983" LP and the CULTURAL DECAY "Eight Ways to Start a Day (Singles and Demos)" 12inch EP

The first two releases in a possible continuous reissue program from NYC based label Sacred Bones unearthing some long lost records that are on want lists of very obscure 80's post-punk and pre-goth record collectors.
13th Chime hailed from Haverhill Suffolk, a city 60 miles from London of about 20,000 people with no train station that's probably best know for it's toothbrushes and who's most famous citizen is record label Some Bizarre's owner Stevo.
With a reference from Orwell's 1984 used for their band name and living in a place where you submit to being stuck or imagining ways of getting out-it's a damp and foggy affair. In their two year existence of 81-83 they released 3 singles and made a demo for IRS-all of which are comp'd on here. De rigueur sound from the era of raincoat wearing mope-rock. Scratchy and flanged guitar grind sounds reminiscent of Killing Joke and Siouxie & the Banshees and prominent counter-melody basslines in the Joy Division & Bauhaus vein (Opening track "Cuts Of Love" opens paraphrasing "Bela Lugosi's Dead" to these ears before it goes of into it's own dark places) while vocals emote in a dour croon. As where a lot of bands from that era have found their sound years later to be stuck in just that era though-there's something about the songs here that have an aggression to them to a point where if one was to told this is a new band taking those times at a jump of point it wouldn't be so hard to believe. Maybe it's because of the lack of string synth washes (or hell, the lack of synths all together).
The Cultural Decay were from Belgium who's career existed from 80-82. Their sound is that of the transitional period of when some post-punk bands were heading into what was dubbed "Cold Wave". The songs are dark and brooding with a recorded in a spooky alcove sound because it had the best creepy echo they could find. Though the band consisted of a traditional rock band line-up (two guitars, bass and drums) plenty of synth bloops appear and on such tunes like "Song Of Joy", a track that features a collage of overlapped singing and talking that may or may not be inspired by the Gang Of Four's "Anthrax" or a Can's use of tape loops, some saxophone skronks and squeals.
Not too long ago a college freshman that has just recently started embarking on a musical journey that has started taking him a little deeper than what the Warped tour and Alternative Press had to offer him said to me "I'm surprised Joy Division aren't more influential". I told him that they are more than he may realize and have been for quite a long while. The next time I see him I am going to point him in the direction of these two albums.
http://www.sacredbonesrecords.com/

A Polecat Get's Set Loose In The Studio

Wednesday September 16th from 8-10pm Dale "Polecat" Beavers will be live on WSGR 91.3fm in Port Huron, Michigan. He's bringing in his guitar to do some playing and singing as well as telling us stories about playing with legends like Junior Kimbrough and Nathaniel Mayer as well as bass on the Compulsive Gamblers album "Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing" album. Check out Dale's music at his Myspace page.
At the present moment WSGR doesn't stream on the web but the show will be recorded and posted somewhere on the internet for those who missed it or are outside the station's broadcast area.

Lack of Action

I've gotten some emails from people concerned about the lack of posts here lately. I apologize for the lack of attention that some really good and interesting records I've received have gotten. There's been a lot of things going on that have kept me away/distracted me from regularly updating the blog. Hopefully, things are starting to smooth out a bit and things can start getting a little more busy around here. Be assured though that a huge majority of the things that have made it into the Smashin' Transistors post box have been put to good use as I host a weekly radio show on WSGR 91.3fm in Port Huron so not is all at a loss if you've promo'd me something the last few month. Keep an eye on this blog though cuz regular updates will (hopefully) return soon.
Now if you'll excuse me I have some records to pack up and ship out myself.

thanks
-Dale

CHROME SPIDERS "Black Butterfly" 7inch

Through his musical career Thomas Jackson Potter has been a punk rock guitar grinder in Just Say No, the crazy man on his back porch armed with a sawed off flamethrower in Bantam Rooster, Mick Collin's most perfect comedic foil in the Dirtbombs, grandmaster of ceremonies in the white boy sweat funk combo the Detroit City Council and now here, along with the help from some dudes from the Menthols and the Real Bitters , as the rock-n-roll ringleader of the Chrome Spiders. "Black Butterfly" moves like an old Cadillac driven by Thin Lizzy with the Damned on the 8 track tape deck barreling down a neglected state highway. The farther it goes the more speed it picks up with Potter providing some of the best yelps in the business to push it even harder. "The Whip Hand" starts out with a blues-punk smolder creeping up on to some combustible material. The spark ignites which not only the cornfield on fire but burns the barn down too.
http://www.bigneckrecords.com

FIRST BASE "I've Got A Girl" 7inch

One of the most heeded rules in pop music is to write songs about girls. With both of these songs, "I've Got A Girl" and "Nobody Makes My Girl Cry But Me", having the word in the title-it's obvious that Toronto based First Base have learned that lesson well.
Neither of the tunes are adorned with ridiculous amounts of multitracking or trickery that come to mind when using the word "pop" in the contemporary sense of something that you hear on the radio or in a Applebee's though. It's the songs themselves. If it wasn't for the simple & clean bedroom-fi recording of "I've Got A Girl" it possibly could fit right in as a "pretty song" on a Pebbles comp. It jangles and harmonizes not stomps and wails. More Beatles than Stones though simpler than both. "Nobody Makes My Girl Cry But Me" shows the same kinda sideways love/tribute to the Beach Boys that folks like Nobunny and the Poppets slather over their sound so much.
http://www.myspace.com/firstbaseband

DAVILLA 666 "Primero Muerta" 7inch

Making good time rock-n-roll with a stack of Velvet Underground and Crystals records under their arm Puerto Rico's Davila 666 throw a musical party where some are dancing like fools and the rest are bangin' on tambourines to set the beat for the dancing fools.
Side one's "Primero Muerta" idea might not having you thinking Uncle Reed & Cale or Phil Spector intimidating the shit out of girl group singer but maybe something like a tune lifted from the Kasenetz-Katz rulebook but the book got wet so some of the rules are smeared and can't be read properly. That's a good thing cuz it's reflected in the tune by blurred guitar lines and harmonies that float about & drift like an air mattress on a calm summer day out on the lake. The flipside's "Sabes que Querio" has the same kinda vibe but doubles the volume and the hip shakin' quotient.
http://www.hozacrecords.com/

Bancroft Records (that are still in print)

THE FLIPS "That Girl Stacy" 3song EP on pink vinyl
http://www.myspace.com/theflipsmilwaukee


THE GOODNIGHT LOVING "Up North Girl" 3song 7inch EP on black vinyl
http://www.myspace.com/thegoodnightloving

In the US & Canada paypal $6.25
The rest of the world paypal $8.00

The Flips and/or the Goodnight Loving (please note which in the special instructions section of your Paypal order)

US/Canada $6.25 The rest of the world $8.00

Email smashintransistors (at) yahoo.com for the price on multiple copies and distro's get in touch too.

Short's Pandemonium Pale Ale and Huma Lupa Licious IPA and

Located in the far northern region of Michigan's lower peninsula Short's Brewing in Bellaire has become somewhat of a holy grail to Great Lake State beer lovers the last few years. People travel sometimes almost 400 miles (some folks even more) specifically just to taste the wares straight from the source because that was the only way a person could taste them unless someone brought a growler or such back home to them. Back in the spring or so it was announced that the brewery would start bottling and making their brews available to a wider audience. Beer geeks all across Michigan jumped for joy and for good reason too because they are one fine crafter of the hops & grains.

Pandemonium Pale Ale
Cloudy & rust orange in color with a 1" head that fades into bubbly cap and decent amount of thick lacing. The aroma is that of fresh baked bread upfront from the malts with the hop profile providing a crisp and lemony backbone. Nothing superstrong stands out in the scent but it is quite pleasant and crisp.
On first sip I'm convinced that I have found a new favorite pale ale. The malt complexities come out at first on the taste buds with roasted and caramel nuances. The grapefruit and grassy tasting hops follow up and a bring the exact kind of bitterness I look for in an American Pale Ale. The meshing of the malts & hops compliment each other perfectly balancing each other out and though the finish does hold on to a bitterness there is a crispness to this too that is all it's own. The only other pale ale that takes priority over it as my go to this summer has been the excellent Founders Pale Ale. We all now how great of a brew that is...and yes, Pandemonium is actually that good enough to keep such company. Anyone big fan of pale ale's out there looking to try one a bit different and great this is worth seeking out.

Huma Lupa Licious
Slight cloudy and rich gold in color. About a 3/4" head that melts away in due time leaving patchy lacing. A very clean and refreshing scent. Slightly sweet & lemony along with something rustic and relaxing on an up north summer day. Nothing jumps out too much on the nose but the aromas to blend nicely.
The hop profile comes out quite much more in the flavor with lemon peel, green apples but, like the scent, subtle courtesy of roasty, rich malts mellowing it out. The twist comes in the end where a hop bitterness comes out the most, sticking to the back of the mouth but not as oily as with some other IPA's. Very interesting and very good. Though the brew is pretty full bodied it's carbonated in a way to give it an pleasant sparkle.
http://www.shortsbrewing.com/