Album of the Week: The Orwells’ Disgraceland

Rock ‘n’ Roll from Chicago

What do you get when a group of kids in their late teens and early 20s grab a bunch of instruments, turn the amps up to 11 and join forces with a lead singer who looks like Robert Plant? You get a rip- roaring, brain-melting rock ‘n’ roll band from Chicago called The Orwells. They have their second album, Disgraceland, out this week and it’s a doozy of a record. Each track has the right amount of grit, angst and devil-may-care attitude to give your ears exactly what they need. If Disgraceland doesn’t kick popular music on its ass in 2014, I might actually lose faith in humanity. It’s that good.

Despite being so young, this quintet has been making music together since high school. Seven years later, you could consider them music vets even though they can’t legally drink. What impresses me the most about The Orwells’ new album is the perfect combination of production quality and powerful songs. Ranging from tales about innocent teenage love, to dramatic suicide and one night stands, Disgraceland is as rock ‘n’ roll as it gets. After listening to this beauty, I can’t imagine a better album coming out in 2014.

Racist owners of sports franchises, angry middle-aged men throwing rocks at Ferraris, neo-Nazi reality TV one-hit-nevers and people talking about how World War III is going to happen by the end of the decade. We live on a pretty crazy, messed-up planet. Take a break from all the madness and ease your mind with the top tracks off of my Album Of The Week. It might not stop the impending apocalypse, but at least it can serve as the perfect soundtrack. Anyways, here goes something:

If you have long hair and you don’t plan on cutting it anytime soon, “The Righteous One” is your ideal jam. This is an anthem for youth rebellion that will have you going crazy in an instant; once you hear that hook you won’t be able to stop. Another rocker on the album is “Let It Burn;” the drumming is simply seismic as the backbone for a song about lighting up a cigarette after a one-night stand. I always love the deep tracks of an album and “Gotta Get Down” is an exception. Those dueling guitars electrify the whole song by getting louder and louder with each riff. Disgraceland is a complete masterpiece from front to back.

The Orwells will be one of the premier acts to see at Riot Fest in the band’s hometown of Chicago between September 12 and 14, which is a perfect way to finish off your summer music festival season. They’ll be going on tour with New York City punk act Skaters this fall with a stop at Brighton Music Hall in Boston on October 9. Hopefully The Orwells come down to Providence sometime and show us music fanatics what rock ‘n’ roll is all about. Until then, get yourself a copy of Disgraceland. It’ll blow your music taste away to new heights and you’ll never want to come down.

The Orwells’ website: theorwells.com

Hail, Hail Rock ‘n’ Roll! Prom in July

From Punk to Funk to Hard Rock at Dusk

Here’s where it’s at, kids! The Gentleman Sound System is presenting their second Prom Show, and this year it’s a little different. This year, DJs Tom Butts, Miles (aka Skunk), Suicide King and a couple TBA guest DJs will be spinning a vast collection of hits spanning more than just the ’80s music scene they usually cover. This year they will cover everything from punk, metal, OI!, funk ‘hard rock’ ska, and rap to everything in between.

But on top of this amazing group of DJs killing it as usual, also performing is Nailer, a multi-level slash textured sleaze band from RI with a couple of twists. Sleaze rock is the bastard child of heavy metal, a musical genre that has almost as much to do with attitude as music. The music itself is rebellious, aggressive and downright nasty. The PMRC hates it, as do your parents. They are at the top of their game when playing incredibly loud, abusing drugs and alcohol, and having sex with your daughters or wives. Their long hair that looks like it’s been washed with used motorcycle oil, black leather jackets and tight pants, and tattoos proudly displayed from head to toe are all trademarks of Nailer. They truly are the outlaws of rock ‘n’ roll.

Manning the engine room on drums is Brutus Gash, a longtime gun for hire in the New England music scene with a backbeat that combines the best of Krupa, Bonham and Aldridge. His favorite pastimes are Bud Light and Marlboro Reds. Bringing the Thunderous Bottom End is Marky RÖkker. This dude knows what time it is and the time calls for some serious rhythm. Coming from the Dirty South of RI, he’s looking for some cheap thrills and fast ladies. The Riffmaster General (aka Big Bad John) wailing on the lead guitar while providing some sweet backup vocals hails from the sleazy bordertown of Attleboro, Mass.. To get the true ’80s metal sound, you need an axemaster from that time period and he is the perfect time capsule! Fearless leadership is provided by the formidable Adam Bomb, bringing the outrageousness straight outta South Central Los Angeles. This tattooed wildman is a combination of David Lee Roth, Jim Dandy and Paul Stanley. With that wicked Flying V of his, he leads Nailer to slaying the New England crowds.

NAILER played their last show on August 6, 2013, and will reunite annually to decimate the crowds and show all the lesser bands how to RAWK! So clear your calenders, because on July 31, Nailer and Gentleman Sound System invade Dusk on 301 Harris Ave. in Providence to ensure that everyone who is in attendance leaves with their minds blown and a longing for the return of Gentleman Sound System and the almighty Nailer. Prepare thyself!

Album of the Week: Clear Plastic Masks’ Being There

Garage Rock from New York

It’s always refreshing when you stumble upon an album by a band you never heard of and it rocks your socks off. The other day I got to listen to one from a group of Nashville garage rockers by way of New York — Clear Plastic Masks. Their debut album, Being There, is hitting record store shelves and (legal) music download websites all over the globe and I can safely say it’s one of the best releases I’ve heard this year. It’s a tad bit of punk and a touch of old-school soul thrown in a rock & roll sundae, and then you have a rhythmic cherry to put on top to make one hell of an album. It’s ideal for the hopeless romantic who wears their heart on their sleeve, so scream your heart out and get ready for a wild ride.

Andrew Katz’s howls mirror an amalgamation of Iggy Pop and Tom Waits — heart-trembling sounds that will hit you like a wrecking ball to the mind. The drumming from Charlie Garmendia is on point as well; endless amounts of power and vigor pound through each track. Vintage and timeless in its own right, Being There is bound to astound you by not letting up at all in its intensity. Clear Plastic Masks and their brand new debut is definitely going to make sure that rock & roll is here to stay.

And now for my favorite tracks off the album: Katz starts getting philosophical on “In Case You Forgot” about life realizations and broken hearts, saying that we truly are nothing and everything. The bluesy fuzzification (is that an actual word? Because I don’t care.) of “So Real” pretty much sums up this album in a nutshell — an injection of rock & roll into a musical vein will cure any ills. Getting you high and letting it fly, “Pegasus In Glue” is groovy as hell with infectious riffs and psychedelic tinges. Being There from Clear Plastic Masks is bound to have you in a trance as soon as you press play.

Opening up for Spanish Gold, which features My Morning Jacket’s Patrick Hallahan on drums, at T.T. The Bear’s in Cambridge, Mass., on May 30, Clear Plastic Masks are bound to put on one hell of a show. If you’re in the Boston area, you’d better go. While you’re there, grab a copy of Being There. It will electrify you in a way a police officer’s tazer could never do.

Clear Plastic Masks’ Website: clearplasticmasks.com