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BANDS: Punk
& Ska INTERESTS: Venues ETC... About LOTD
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Rubber City
Rebels: Pierce My Brain
Just in time for the Vans 2003 Warped Tour, all the pre-teens who want to expand their horizons past Simple Plan and Good Charlotte can pick up a copy of the new Rubber City Rebels full-length, the bands first album of new material in over twenty years. The good news is they pick things up right where they left off. They sound as fresh now as they did on From Akron or their seminal split with the Bizarros, both from 1977. Oddly enough, this album is some sort of a mixed blessing. Songs like "I Don't Wanna Be a Punk No More" and "Dead Boy (Eulogy for Stiv)" are a testament to the fact that fading away into obscurity in the early 1980's was the best possible fate for these original punkers from Ohio. Actually, "original punkers from Ohio" sounds like a paradox if one considers that Ohio has as much to do with the creation of punk as France can hold a legitimate claim to french toast. However, lyrics from this album explain the story of the Rebels as well as any punk rock historian ever could: "I've seen Dead Boys rise from the Crypt/I've seen Vicious fight Dogs in the pit" (from "Punk Daddy") so there is little mystery concerning the inspiration for this band. The bad news is that while fellow Ohioans such as Pere Ubu and the Dead Boys were signed to the big labels without that being an initial goal, the Rebels admired those same bands for their success but never really went anywhere musically. So guitarist Rod Bent (born Firestone) and Buzz Click worked as hard as they could to get big, and no one listened. Anyone who never gave up on the idea of legitimate punk coming out of Ohio sees their patience come to an end, although some propagandized lyrics might put a damper on the reunion. The Rebels are pissed, and they have every right to be since it is likely that no one is listening now either. You can tell that this is the case with song titles such as "Your Television Lies" and "Your Warlord is a Pussy" the latter track being a troubling one, indeed. It is unclear if the Rebels are insinuating that being a "pussy" or having a "pussy" is a negative thing but they probably shouldn't scratch their foreheads too much as they try to figure out why every female who picks this album up will look at that title, roll their eyes and move right on to a Bikini Kill album. It's sad that these guys are so bitter, but the 1970's are long gone, and they should have clued into the fact that sexism and racism are out. Again, lyrics such as "My War Lord is a rockin' dude/Your Warlord is a son of a Jew" are inappropriate; as happy as we are for the Rebels that their "warlord has a hundred wives" we're dumbfounded that they don't realize that 90% of those hundred wives would probably leave that warlord in the 21st century as opposed to just sitting back and taking abuse as many-a-woman in the punk era had done. Actually Penelope Houston or Patti Smith would beat the piss out of the Rebels if they are ever unfortunate enough to gaze upon this album. In short, it's no wonder the Rebels canonize Stiv Bators and Johnny Thunders; they're everything Rod Bent and Buzz Clic wanted to be, but sadly for the Rebels, nothing like the way that they actually turned out. Pierce My Brain might be a welcome addition to a collection that exudes stale musicianship, but for those of us who just give up on punk at the point at which we feel it died, this album might not be worth the trendy paper packaging that encases it.
This album can be purchased at Amazon, Insound, and CD Universe Rubber City Rebels Official Website About LOTD Contact/Staff Advertise Home All content LEFT OFF THE DIAL 2001-2005. All rights reserved. |
