Tabla de contenidos para Issue 22 en Planet Rock

As you may or may not be aware, this is the final issue of Planet Rock magazine. We’d like to extend our thanks to everyone who has supported the magazine since our launch in 2017. We exit with heads held high, and our volume controls, as ever, turned firmly to 11. This issue is a celebration of the full spectrum of rock music, paying tribute to old masters (Deep Purple, Genesis, Pink Floyd), maverick game-changers (Nirvana, Jane’s Addiction, The Damned), and a bold new generation set to light up the decade ahead (Biffy Clyro, Blues Pills, A.A. Williams). You’ll continue to hear all these artists and many more on Planet Rock radio, of course, and you’ll find all the latest details of future gigs and events at PlanetRock.com. We’ve had…

“I ALWAYS thought that Van Halen was cool. I liked that they wrote great hard rock pop tunes. They were very unique, their music was edgy but sweet, and no matter how cutesy-pie Eddie’s riffs were, Alex always made them sound heavy, in the same way that John Bonham always made Jimmy Page sound heavy. I was always impressed by them – though I didn’t like [David Lee] Roth’s antics, and I didn’t see how any guys liked him – and I was even more impressed when I first jammed with them. It was so musical, so fresh. I took home a cassette of our first rehearsal and when I listened to it I was like, Wow, this is like Cream, so tasteful and melodic but heavy too. It was…

WHO: Rory Gallagher WHERE: Brighton Dome WHEN: January 21, 1977 I had my road to Damascas conversion from Top of The Pops to decent rock music in 1973, after a WTF! moment hearing a mate’s copy of Deep Purple’s In Rock. Then, presumably similar to most of your other readers, I devoured all the Zep, Sabbath, etc, that I could find. But my first gig wasn’t until January 1977 when me and a mate got tickets to the Brighton Dome to see Rory Gallagher. After a visit to the merch stand to buy scarves that we tied 1970’s football-style to our wrists we waited in excited anticipation. When Gallagher came on after teasing the crowd, he launched into Moonchild from the recently released Calling Card, and then held the audience…

DATE OF BIRTH: 1980 WHEN RETIRED: 1983 WHERE FOUND: Peterborough “I haven’t really worn this cut-off for a good few years now,” admits Neil Beards, now resident in Chesterfield, “but I’m pleased I hung onto it. Like my ticket collection, it brings back a lot of memories of the gigs I went to, and the pals I went to them with, all those years ago. Oh to be able to go to a gig now!” Huge thanks to everyone who trusted us with their beloved jacket and shared their gig memories in our Full Metal Jacket feature. It was a genuine pleasure to speak with you.…

THE CLASSIC ALBUM STANDING BACKSTAGE IN KITCHENER, Ontario, Phil Collins wondered if he’d made a terrible mistake. It was March 27, 1976, and the second night of Genesis’ A Trick Of The Tail tour. The last time the English prog rock band visited Canada, Collins was their drummer and Peter Gabriel their lead vocalist. Now Gabriel was gone, and Collins had taken his place. Gabriel had been a natural showman who used costumes and masks to transform himself into the fantastic beasts stalking the music. He wore a red dress and a fox’s head to illustrate The Musical Box and a flower mask during Genesis’s biblical epic Supper’s Ready. Collins didn’t want to do the same, and was still trying to fathom out what he could do instead. Whatever it…

I Would For You (on Jane’s Addiction, 1987) A beautifully bruised love song, with puckish arch-deviant Farrell at his most tender. Mountain Song (on Nothing’s Shocking, 1988) Led Zep rewired for Generation X, written about the highs and lows of drug use/abuse. “Drugs are not for everybody, obviously,” Farrell recently cautioned. Three Days (on Ritual De Lo Habitual, 1990) The band’s masterpiece, detailing a drug-enhanced, three-day threesome. “Erotic Jesus lies with his Marys,” Farrell sings at one point, clearly very pleased with himself.…

CHOOSING TO TAKE an extended time-out from music in 2020 might prove to be one of the smartest decisions Dee Snider has ever made. “I told my manager that I wanted to take the year off from performing, so that I could focus on my writing,” says the 65-year-old New Yorker, speaking from his holiday home in Belize. “Now I’ve finished my first novel, I’ve been asked to direct two movies, and I’m writing screenplays. I’m no Nostradamus, but I got lucky this year.” By Snider’s admission, his new live album, For The Love Of Metal Live, was originally intended as a “place holder”, but it’s a great loud and lairy reminder of the infectious camaraderie of metal gigs at a point when we’ve been starved of live shows. “I’ll…

“Biffy remain a band determined to shine a light into darkness…” BY PAUL BRANNIGAN BIFFY CLYRO A Celebration Of Endings Warner/14th Floor FUCK EVERYBODY! These are the two words with which Biffy Clyro have elected to close A Celebration Of Endings, delivered not with a snarl, but with an exultant yelp by Simon Neil. A declaration of independence at the climax of a set themed around the liberating possibilities of surrendering oneself to change and disregarding familiar routines, it’s a rallying cry for those seeking to find the courage to smash up their own internal tablets of stone and start over, unencumbered by the past. That A Celebration Of Endings is being released during a period of great societal flux appears prescient, but it should be noted that from day…

KERBDOG On The Turn FONTANA, 1997 FULL DISCLOSURE: it has been said, more than once, that this writer bears more than a passing resemblance to Kerbdog frontman Cormac Battle. His own brother once gave me a hefty kick up the arse by way of a friendly greeting before a gig at London’s Camden Falcon, and the man himself did a comical double take upon locking eyes with me at a club night. Years later, after we became friends, I stayed at Cormac’s home in Ireland and found myself exchanging pleasantries with his elderly neighbour who was clearly unaware that she was talking to a doppelgänger. I probably shouldn’t have promised to help with her guttering, looking back. I first became aware of my Kilkenny lookalike in late 1996. I was…

Mark Blake writes about Genesis’s A Trick Of The Tail in this issue. An author and regular contributor to MOJO, Mark currently edits the deluxe rock quarterly Outlaw, produced by the folks behind Ramblin’ Man Fair. Go to: alwaysoutlaw.com. Former Kerrang! Deputy Editor Simon Young is set to release his first book, So Much For The 30 Year Plan: Therapy? – The Authorised Biography, in September through Jawbone Press. In this issue, he explains why Kerbdog’s On The Turn is a criminally overlooked classic. Anthony Ventura is an award-winning Illustrator from Canada whose work has appeared worldwide in various publications, advertising and multi-media. Drawing is his passion. His illustration of Dee Snider is on p64. www.evolve-r.com PANiK started out as a spray can artist, and his illustrations continue to be…

1 Therapy? recorded their 1990 debut single, Meat Abstract, at Homestead Studio in County Antrim, where Northern Ireland’s 1986 World Cup squad recorded their anthem, Come On Northern Ireland. Shaun ‘Mudd’ Wallace produced both releases. 2 For their 1992 Reading appearance, the band printed shirts bearing the slogan ‘Fuck Woodstock’. One shirt ended up in the hands of Woodstock performer Neil Young, who found it highly amusing. 3 While recording their 1992 major label debut, Nurse, Therapy? crafted a 45-minute jam titled Penis Temple to wind up their A&R people. 4 After Ozzy Osbourne recorded his vocals for their collaborative cover of Iron Man, Andy Cairns congratulated the singer on nailing his parts in just two takes. “I’ve only been singing it for over 20 years!” came Ozzy’s reply. 5…

The first album I bought with my own money was Pendulum by Creedence Clearwater Revival, in 1970. I had saved for weeks to buy a Binatone record player with two speakers and the following week I went to Brady’s record store in Preston and bought this record. Unfortunately, when I got off the bus near my home the album slipped out from its cover as I was reading the sleeve, and a large chunk was taken off it. This meant that I then couldn’t listen to the first track on each side of the vinyl. It was only years later when I bought the album again on CD that I finally heard Pagan Baby (side 1, track 1) and Born To Move (side 2, track 1)! I still think Creedence…

DAVID LETT BORN October 12, 1956, Newcastle OCCUPATION Vocalist Musician Composer YEARS ACTIVE 1976-present ASSOCIATED ACTS Naz Nomad & The Nightmares The Phantom Chords 30 MINUTES LATE AND SPLENDIDLY ROBED IN FAKE FUR COAT, pin-stripe grey trousers and a red velvet jacket, Dave Vanian swishes into the King’s Head private drinking club in Hackney and heads straight for one of the many stuffed beasts adorning its ornate interior. “Ah, an ocelot,” he says, delicately stroking the creature’s pelt. “Look at those markings, extraordinary…” That The Damned’s vocalist should find pleasure in this vast imaginarium of taxidermy, pinned butterflies and careworn leather furniture ought to come as no surprise. As punk’s iconic horror-movie ghoul and, in later years, Byronic goth-rock pin-up, Vanian was – and remains – the focus of The…

Alice Cooper is to launch his own chocolate milk drink for charity. The shock rocker has teamed up with Phoenix’s Danzeisen Dairy for a limited-edition run of the drink. Proceeds from sales will go to Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock organisation. Queen are the subjects of an official photo book due in in October. Queen: The Neal Preston Photographs will be published by Reel Art Press, and feature text from Brian May and Roger Taylor alongside unpublished and classic images taken between 1975 and 1986. More info at reelartpress.com Former Hüsker Dü frontman Bob Mould is to release a new solo album, the follow-up to 2019’s Sunshine Rock, in September. The 14-track collection, Blue Hearts, is due on September 25 on Merge. David Bowie fans will be able to purchase six…

Thirteen Stars They may hail from Cumbria, but Thirteen Stars have their spiritual roots in America’s Deep South, drawing upon juke-joint blues, earthy funk and sassy rock’n’roll thunder on their recently released, and inviting, Finest Ramshackle Jam album. They’ll blow roofs off across the country when the live music circuit re-opens. FIND OUT MORE AT: facebook.com/ThirteenStars Mercutio London rockers Mercutio channel elements of Muse, QOTSA and Royal Blood on their seductive, slamming new single Slap Bang. Having previously sang for a time in Spandau Ballet, frontman Ross William Wild is clearly now ready to steal the spotlight on his own terms. FIND OUT MORE AT: Mercutio.me Karobela Kent’s Karobela deliver a pleasingly sleazy groove on their new song, Candy, a cautionary tale of a femme fatale “who got you tonguetied”.…

SPIRIT OF RADIO PAUL ANTHONY The best thing I’ve heard recently: Vandenberg 2020, the long-awaited new album from the band, and their first since Alibi back in 1985. Adrian managed to complete a masterstroke in recruiting Ronnie Romero (Lords Of Black/Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow) as lead vocalist. His delivery, style and range are the icing on the cake on tracks such as Hell Or High Water, Light Up The Sky, and the first single Shadows Of The Night. The best thing I’ve seen recently: Money Heist on Netflix, a Spanish TV drama. If you can get past the dodgy overdubbing, and questionable acting in certain areas, it initially made compulsive viewing. That was until after watching all 13 episodes of season one, and two from season two, I realised it’s not getting…

THE SUN IS GONE FIRST-CLASS MAIL As a reader from issue one, I’d like to express my sorrow at the news that your magazine is to close in July. When that first Planet Rock issue hit the shelves, with Motörhead on that shiny metallic cover (right), it was a real breath of fresh air, bringing the [Planet Rock radio] airwaves to life with wit and knowledge and obvious passion. What a shame that you’re bowing out so soon. I’ll miss the excellent stories and iconic photography, but more than that, I’ll miss the great sense of community you guys encouraged, much like Kerrang! did back in the ’80s. To quote your editor’s letter in issue 21, sometimes you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone. As I know the…

1 BLONDIE The Thin Line (on Blondie, 1976; reissue 2001) The Breaking Point: “I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!” You know the feeling of rage when everything is everyone else’s fault and you ain’t taking any responsibility whatsoever? That feeling of anger that you point towards a person that has hurt or betrayed you? So my timeline starts with this track. Debbie Harry, I love-love-love you! This song really brings out my salty attitude and gives me the feeling that I’m better than everyone else. Just say fuck it! There can never be too much swagger in a song! Sometimes in our life we really need these kind of songs that lift us up and give us a real boost of self-confidence. Debbie Harry is such an…

1 GENESIS The Girl Who Never Was (On In The Beginning, Mercury, 1968) “If this track was a ’60s movie, it would open with the camera panning across a field of flowers and there would be a girl in a mini-skirt swinging her handbag. The group were a five-piece and only made one record before disbanding. [Late ’60s vocalist] Sue Richman sings on this track, so it sounds a bit like Jefferson Airplane, with a great flute solo. The frontman Jack Ttanna had previously been in The Sons Of Adam, and their guitarist Kent Henry went on to play in Steppenwolf.” 2 BARRY RYAN The Hunt (Single, Polydor, 1969) “I love the big balladeers like The Walker Brothers, and I love Paul and Barry Ryan. The Hunt is very grandiose, strange, and…

ST. PAUL THE APOSTLE school was a unique educational establishment, even by LA standards. “Lisa Marie Presley was two grades under me, and Elvis would drop her off with fucking cops on bikes protecting him,” recalls Jane’s Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro. “Every kid was rich.” Navarro’s future bandmate, Jane’s Addiction bassist Eric Avery, attended St. Paul’s too, but the teenagers didn’t bond until much later, when Navarro started dating Avery’s sister Rebecca. On the face of it, the two musicians had deeply privileged upbringings, but like the wealthy and similarly hedonistic Angelenos in Brett Easton Ellis’s 1985 novel Less Than Zero, both grew up nursing deep emotional scars. Having learned that his biological father abandoned him, Eric Avery was in rehab for alcoholism by high school, while, horrifically, Dave Navarro’s…

“Fogerty’s men always swam against the prevailing psychedelic tide…” BY MARK BLAKE CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL Cosmo’s Factory CRAFT/CONCORD Californian swamp-rockers’ 1970 album back out on vinyl, and essaying Nixon’s America and celebrating old-school rock’n’roll. CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL’s John Fogerty ruled his band like a dictator in a plaid shirt. He wrote and sung the songs, managed the group, and was such a control freak that his brother, rhythm guitarist Tom, quit a year after the release of Cosmo’s Factory. Yet CCR’s fifth album suggests bands often work better when they’re not run as a democracy. This 50th anniversary reissue, half-speed mastered at Abbey Road and pressed on 180-gram vinyl, only confirms the uncomfortable truth. Fogerty might have been a despot at times, but the results were worth it. Incredibly, this…