EVEN AFTER 40 YEARS, GARAGE ROCK IS STILL ROARING (Continued from page 5) thanks to tinkering, tune -ups, and gins, never really disappeared. Still, viable garage rock enjoys just finished three laps of the coun- What may have been "guy carloads of reissue treasures, the "It's always been there, but it's "very little" support at radio and try and went from playing to three music" then "ain't just guy music music these bands made continues no longer a tiny niche. [It's] retail, notes Weiss, "other than ran- or four people at some gigs in May notes Irwin. Nor is garage to enjoy a strong following and to groundswelled to the point where dom college radio programming, to headlining rooms on the West rock solely an American institution steadily influence musicians today. it influences contemporary music to maybe another W or two every Coast that we couldn't even get a any more. Gregg Kostelich, head of Labels like Rhino Records, Sun- amazing degree," says Irwin. now and then who loves this stuff, date in six months earlier," he says. Pittsburgh's Get Hip garage -rock dazed Music, ROIR Records, Ace Every" time I walk by my teenage and scattered specialty shops. You "But we always play fora group of label and distributor and guitarist Records, Cavestomp! Records, daughter's bedroom and hear what go to a Tower [Records store] and people in a city who knows every- for the label's group the Cynics, was Norton Records, Telstar Records, she's listening to, f pause and count e a lot of this music lumped into "else in the last city we were just surprised to draw 5,000 people dur- Bomp! Records, Estrus Records, the influences: 'Boy! That electric the oldies section, but that goes in. So there's a real community." ing the band's recent tour of Spain. Hillsdale Records, Dionysus piano sounds like the Seeds! Oh, against the grain of what I feel it is. Characterizing the musicians' side Fans from around the world attend- Records, Spinout, and Get Hip man! I know where that guitar Think of oldies and you think of the of this community,James adds that ed the Cynics appearance at the Recordings steadily churn out both sound came from: It sounds like an Chiffons and the Four Seasons. garage rock encompasses both "the Las Vegas Grind last July as well. vintage garage -rock reissues and Ed Cobb the Standells, Chocolate They're cool, but they're not the original '60s American teenagers in Weiss points out that there ]s a product from noteworthy new Watch Band] production!' Seeds, which is garage and deserv- their parents' garages responding to huge international mail-order busi- groups like the Mooney Suzuki, the "If you put on a record like ing of its own category and rack, the British invasion with more ness for Cavestomp! product, and Greenhorns, the Embrooks, the [1965's] 'Steppin' Out' by Paul Re- because it's certainly not oldies enthusiasm than musical proficien- Alec Palao, reissue producer for Cynics, and the Swingín' Neck - vere, you hear a plethora of sounds music." cy and music that was immediately England's Ace label, also sees breakers. Garage -rock festivals like that pervade modern music: fuzz Whatever it is, garage rock is inspired by [those teenagers garage heavy overseas interest in the New York's Cavestomp!, the Las guitar, pulverizing bass, organ, and "super-popular now," according to rock, namely] the proto-punk of the genre. Vegas Grind, and Detroit's Gutter - most important of all, the trash - Miriam Linna, co -owner of New Stooges and the MC5 and the punk "There's a devoted audience feat draw thousands of fans, while talking snot- nosed, ad- libbed York-based Norton Records, home rockers of the '70s." around the world who hears the venues like the Spy Lounge in New magic in garage rock and stays with York's Windows on the World atop it," says Palao, an "ultimate the World Trade Center hold regu- groupie" who now lives in Califor- lar dance parties catering to nia's Bay Area, where he plays bass garage -rock enthusiasts. with vintage garage groups that he Indeed, Jon Weiss, founder of including the Beau Brum- Cavestomp! Records and the annu- mein and Chocolate Watch Band. al three -day Cavestomp! festival of "Younger people from other coun- garage -rock bands, speaks of a ver- tries, like me, who don't have nos- itable garage -rock community. The talgia for it from being played at fourth Cavestomp! took place last their high school prom or what have month, featuring heroic garage you, are still able to recognize the bands Blues Magoos, the Beau rush and joy of discovering it, with- Brumtneis, the Troggs, and Syndi- out any of the cynicism." cate Of Sound, as well as such Palao, who has currently em- young descendants as the barked on a major garage band Embrocate and the Monises. reissue program for Ace, including "It's not only about the making a "Northwest Battle Of The Bands" and selling of garage music, but series featuring groups like the about interacting with its very loyal Sonics and the Live Five and a audience," says Weiss. 'That's what "Nuggets Of The Golden State" the festival has always been about: series dedicated to Bay Area staging a gathering of the people groups, is among many who credit who love this music and its way of vocals of Mark Lindsay," he adds. of such classic '60s garage rockers Likewise, Todd Abramson, head the legendary "Nuggets" compila- life and celebrating it with rue per- Listen to a successful contempo- as suburban Cleveland's Alarm of the Hoboken, NJ. -based Telstar tion for sparking his interest in formances by the original pioneers rary group like Smash mouth, con- Clocks, Iggy Pop's pre -Stooges Records, observes that the best of the sound and scene. And we're tinues Irwin, and "you can certain- garage band the Iguanas, and key contemporary garage groups, such g "Like a lot of people, I'm a late - seeing a more diverse audience ' ly trace the sounds of the Fender Pacific Northwestern garage bands as his label's principal garage band 30s child of punk rock," he says. each time that's not as staunchly Jazzmaaters, Teiaco guitars [a the Sonics and the Wailers. "Great the Swingin' Neckbreakers, 'take "But what blew me away more than garage but spilling over and pick- cheap '60s department store - rock'ri roll never dies. It's just that influences from a variety of sources: punk rock was hearing the 'Nug- ing up fans from the whole alterna- bought Japanese instrument], and this stuff wasn't available no readi- '60s U.S. garage banda and British gets' album when I was 15, which tive scene." Vox Continental organs. But even ly, and now a lot of labels are put- mod bands, but also the '50s R &B changed my life. I'd found the ulti- Eddie Angel, guitarist of former more interesting is the whole next ting out cool stuff on vinyl and 45s and blues bands that influenced mate music." Upstart /Rounder instrumental layer dews of bands like the those bands, se well as the '70s ' Rhino, notes Stewart, is now group Los Strait Jackets, and his Chesterfield Kings, the Moviees, [do- it- yourself] school of doing a sequel consisting of Eng- wife, Melanie, are owners of the the Swingin' Neckbreakers-all C/BSTOMP! 2000 punk." lish- language garage rock of the lgtrevu:nr :. s vs r.;vsi Nashville -based Spinout garage/ those groups who are really car- Irwin also notes the "melt- same era from countries outside the what consti- The initial box, he says, sold rockebilly/surPwestern awing label rying the torch. With the success -.till., tar., SUN. ing pot" aspect of U.S. and promoters of the Las Vegas of events like Cavestomp! and N0.3-45 tutes garage rock today. four times the label's projections, Grind festival. He also notes that Las Vegas Grind -and the TESTBETH T.'1°:111: "There are 30 -40 types of "not because it was purchased by the garage sound attracts a wide amount of music we cell -it's no things lumped as 'garage' now: fans of the original two-LP set or variety of listeners. longer a cult thing." everything from bands influ- nostalgia'60s collectors, but by a lot "You got to seek it out, that's all," Sundazed sells well beyond Me BLUES MANUS enced by folk /rock like the of kids into cutting-edge and alter- says Angel, "but at the Spy the oldies market, Irwin notes. Byrds and the Beau Brum- native music and press. Radio also Lounge -where Los Strait Jackets "We market to the 18- to 36- mels, to Northwest groups picked up on it because it fit right played and where my garage band year-old audience, and make no like the Kingsmen, Sonics, alongside what's going on." the Neanderthals is booked -it's a mistake, these people buy Wailers, and Raiders, to Such music now fits in, too, with completely mixed crowd: touriste Chocolate Watch Band, Paul groups influenced by Tbx-Mex more established labels. Cary from the [Trade Center's attached Revere & the Raiders, and other like the Thirteenth Floor Ele- Mansfield, VP of catalog A &R for hotel] Marriott who don't know wonderful '60e garage records," vators, to the L.A. Sunset Universal-distributed Varèse Sara- what they're getting into, Wall he says. Strip/go-go sound of the Seeds bande, has just released a pair of Street partyers, and hipster fans of While Sundazed reissue titles and Standells, to Michigan's ? Cavestomp! titles featuring the music. And everybody's having have sold as many as 100,000 ,,:.mrnuwsiNCErzi'vvrii , & the Mysteriana and Mitch "Nuggets" -represented bands the a blast." copies, Irwin says, "in the world oanmaveaan Ryder." Standells ('Ban This! Live From New interest in the venerable of '60e reissues, 20,000- 30,000 iiáál Such '60a music, adds Cavestomp!"and the Monks ( "Let's genre aside, Sundazed Music pres- [sold] aren't uncommon, but [we To.ar¢ r, iree mRme Rhinos senior VP of A &R Start A Beat! Live From ident Beh Irwin, whose label has also sell] in the 5,000- 10,000 Gary Stewart, may well be Cavestomp!") through his label's reissued such vintage garage rock- range. But our confidence in this marked by "Farfisa [organs], Varèse Vintage imprint, which fea- ers as Paul Revere & the Raiders, type of music is well -founded by Rickenbacker[guitars], Beat- tures new or live recordings by Syndicate Of Sound, the Shadows the simple fact that we license from as well as CD," she says. les affectations, Who power chords, original vintage acts. Of Knight, Music Machine, and the the major labels, so we have to step Sammy James Jr., vocalist and and Stones snarls. But underneath "I can't imagine anybody listen- Beau Brummels, along with con- up to the plate and give them a rhythm guitarist for New York's it all is the raw and unrefined urge ing to the Standells' live album and temporary product by the Moviees guarantee. So the genre is certain- highly regarded Estrus Recorde to get something out," he says, not thinking it's from 1966," says and the Chesterfield Kings, notes ly viable -which isn't to say that if contemporary garage quartet the "which is what every great under- Mansfield of the 1999 recording. "It that the music, while an under- it wasn't we wouldn't still be doing Mooney Suzuki, echoes Weise in also ground alternative movement in really captures the essence of the ground phenomenon since its ori- it, because we love it." sensing a growth in the genre. "We rock'n'roll is about." (Continued on neat page)

90 www.billboard.com BILLBOARD DECEMBEn ao. 2000 www.americanradiohistory.com