Alan Hauser of Jungle Records
We just recently put out a new Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers L.A.M.F box set. The crazy history of the album meant that there was a multitude of tapes and mixes that hadn’t seen the light of day. On the internet people had regularly been debating the merits of various releases. So the 35th anniversary gave us an excuse to delve deep into them and make sense of the history and all the different versions.
Walter Lure had kept a copy of the original demos all this time, which helped our project. Richard Hell has used some of the tracks on his previous releases, but I think ours have a bit better sound quality.
The underground scene has changed a lot throughout the years, you know the obvious thing being we started out in the 1980’s just doing vinyl, and it could sell well, being the only format. We love the internet and how it can connect people. But back then scenes could get quite strong before being discovered and propagated by the media; they could just explode after building up pressure.
Now the underground can be found by a click, so there’s not so much that can suddenly seem interesting to the mainstream media. But in many respects, it’s still the same, artists and fans just doing what they want to do. It’s a shame for artists though, especially new ones with it being far more difficult to earn a little to cover costs. The single good result of that can be that only the most dedicated and obsessed artists will bother continue.
We’ve also been digging through the past recently with reissues of Fallen Angels (Knox of The Vibrators solo project), Bone Orchard (1980’s goth) and Ducks Deluxe (1970’s pre-punk rock). So in this coming year we’ve got four brand new albums coming up from the following bands:
The Hillbilly Moon Explosion, who are not just a hot rockabilly band. They played both the Punk Rebellion Festival and The Jazz Café in the same week, which demonstrates their wide appeal. Their last video, a duet with Sparky from Demented Are Go, is coming up to 2 million views.
The Eden House is a project founded by Steve Carey (Adoration) and Tony Pettitt (Fields of the Nephilim) with changing female singers and other guests. Monica Richards (Faith & the Muse) and Julianne Regan (All About Eve) are two of the vocalists, Simon Hinkler (The Mission) and Phil Manzarina (Roxy Music) are two of the guest guitarists. Their follow-up album to 2009’s successful ‘Smoke & Mirrors’ is due in April.
Geraint Watkins is a classy Welsh singer songwriter. His next solo album is due in May, following 2009’s ‘In A Bad Mood’. He’s been seen on BBC TV’s ‘Later with Jools Holland’, heard often on radio including on Bob Dylan’s radio show. As a sideman he’s in demand, regularly appearing in Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings and Nick Lowe’s band, as well as stints with Van Morrison and Paul McCartney.
NFD are led by vocalist/guitarist Peter ‘Bob’ White, and also feature Tony Pettitt (Fields of the Nephilim/ The Eden House) and James McIlroy (Cradle of Filth). After a few years break, they’re back with a new album ‘Waking The Dead’ and mini-album ‘Reformations’.