The super-awesome Story of Hair are back with a vengeance, and tonight sees them debut their first album with a live show at Whelans. The album is entitled Cheap Rate, and promises to be one of the Irish releases of the year (and this in a particularly good year for Irish music).

The Hairs' live shows are notoriously quirky, poppy, noisey and great... so tonight will feature all of those qualities turned up to eleven as it's the band's biggest headline show yet. Providing support will the the excellent So Cow, and egoeccentric favorites Hoovers & Sledgehammers. Doors are at 8, with tickets going for 8 euros a pop. With the night that's in it, tis no surprise that Halloween dress is essential.

Check out the Hairs' new website which is all fancified and spanking new to tie in with the album release. And have a wander over to Sinead's Musical Rooms blog to get a peek into where the band write & practice.

So what does the new album sound like? For a clue, check out the readmore, where you can watch the video for Nanny Natch, the first single from Cheap Rate.

Tis yummy.

Nanny Natch:

Story of Hair - Nanny Natch from storyofhair on Vimeo.

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To celebrate the 6th Birthday of the Ballroom they are making a weekend of it
Friday 25th of July - Thomas Truax with Hoover & Sledgehammers, Mirakil Whip and The Bastard Rain - The Lower Deck. €10 on door
AND
Saturday 26th of July - Electric Eel Shock , Adebisi Shank and Oak - The Andrew's Lane Theatre. €15, tickets from WAV and Tickets.ie in advanace
Their also selling weekend tickets for €20 on the door on Friday 25th at the Lower Deck
more info on both gigs in the read more


Thomas Truax

New York City's Thomas Truax (pronounced troo-aks) is a left field troubadour and inventor/player of strange self-made instruments like his now legendary 'Hornicator' and a motorized mechanical drum machine called 'Sister Spinster'. He employs these and other contraptions as well as traditional instruments in exceptionally crafted, witty and often touching songs. Splendid magazine recently called him "one of the five or ten best singer/songwriters in the world that you've never heard of...an exceptional talent, unique and resistant to comparison, yet fairly accessible even to casual listeners."

He's got three acclaimed full length albums under his belt: 'Audio Addiction', 'Full Moon Over Wowtown', and 'Why Dogs Howl at the Moon', and numerous singles and compilation tracks. He has toured nearly
constantly for the past five years, most recently doing support tours with the Dresden Dolls and Duke Special. He's played Glastonbury and Edinburgh Fringe festivals and appeared on MTV. His own radio serial, The Wowtown News, plays on Resonance FM in London.

"In Truax's hands music is merely a vessel for his scattershot imagination, earning him a place in a lineage that includes Captain Beefheart and Viv Stanshall and, latterly, a less-frenetic Liars. Equal parts music-hall, avant-garde and garage rock, 'Full Moon Over Wowtown' is far more accessible than these references imply, thanks chiefly to Truax's lycanthropic bark... and his obvious love of primal rock 'n' roll. Had the bands that exploded out of CBGB's in '76 been inspired by LSD rather than cheap speed one suspects that the results would have been disturbingly like this, and that today's bands
hell-bent on recycling those days would be more interesting as well as
a hell of a lot better." -Alan Downes, LOGO Magazine (UK)

http://www.thomastruax.com/
www.myspace.com/thomastruax
Hoovers & Sledgehammers
Mirakil Whip
http://www.myspace.com/thebastardrain

Thomas Truax - "Why Dogs Howl At The Moon"


Electric Eel Shock
Electric Eel Shock are a glorious celebration of Classic Rock, Punk and Metal. A true power trio from the time before rock became fractured into a diverse multitude of sub-genres and we were all still one big happy Rock & Roll family.

"EES are nothing short of awesome" - Brent Hinds (Mastodon)

EES left their native Japan in 1999 to see what they could make of America and they have been on a near constant world tour ever since. EES paid their way by selling merchandise and their self recorded album "SLAYERS BAY BLUES" at their gigs. Headlining a stage at the prestigious Roskilde Festival in Denmark was a key early event for the band. By 2004 EES had toured 27 countries around the world and they decided it was about time to release an album: "GO EUROPE!" became the first commercially available EES release and the band performed at 30 European Summer Festivals.


Follow up album "BEAT ME" was recorded in Holland early 2005 with legendary producer Attie Bauw (Judas Priest, Scorpions, Bootsy Collins etc). BEAT ME achieved much critical acclaim from press and fans alike and EES continued to conquer the international musical scene step by step throughout 2005 and 2006 adding Australia and parts of Asia to their widening travels.

In 2007 Electric Eel Shock again worked with Attie Bauw on a new album: "TRANSWORLD ULTRA ROCK" is seems to sum up the past, present and future of the band in one album. The feeling seems to span the entire EES back catalogue, including the raw inventiveness of Slayers Bay Blues, the catchy songs of the GO albums and the hard tight rock of Beat Me. This album has it all. The overall atmosphere is more positive than ever before. It’s a feeling that reflects the Shock’s ongoing progression, from playing every dive bar and toilet around the world to selling out larger more prestigious venues.

And as if you needed more convincing to go it will be Adebisi Shank first Dublin gig in ages and will be a chance to catch a sneak preview of their new album

www.myspace.com/beatme
www.electriceelshock.com/
www.myspace.com/adebisishank
www.myspace.com/weareoak

Electric Eel Shock dublin mar 07


Adebisi Shank: 'Voodoo Economics'

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The Sugarlips chaperoonies would like to thank everybody for turning out and making last Fridays Sugarlips gig most triumphant. For everybody who missed it...well...you missed fun times.

Being the lazy and tardy bastard that I am I missed the opening act Blind Yacketi killed Kevin McNamara who by all accounts was savage cool and plays a MEAN guitar.

Patrick Kelleher & The Wet Dreams begin the touch of surreality that will pepper the evening with the sounds of keytar, squaking and general randomness which all manages to come magically together into some pretty fucking kick ass tunes. Perhaps some paid gigs will result in the affording of a keyboard stand instead of an ironing board however therein also lies the appeal.

Hoovers and Sledgehammers continue their tradition of mentalness. Dresses and wigs are the wardrobe of the day and now with added drummerness the songs are rocktastic. Unfortunately as the drummer is so new the full back catalogue of savagery isn't fully up to speed so songs like Thats Animal, So's Your Sister and AL Pacino do not make an appearance but it bodes very well for the future and they play this Thursday in the very same venue so go check 'em out.

The next Sugarlips gig will come soon so stay tuned. Same bat time. Same bat channel.

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Hoovers and Sledgehammers are fucking silly. Its hard to define exactly how fucking silly they are but suffice to say that silliness surrounds them in abundance. Its not really easy to say exactly what they sound like apart from the silliness but they definitely know how to make catchy little tunes. Its difficult to elaborate on what segment of society they may pander to with their silliness but they are sharp at pointing out certain weaknesses in different facets of Irish life (listen to That's Animal to hear Christy Moore taking a beating). One analogy I heard was if the Slate magazine (R.I.P.) was a band maybe it might be Hoovers and Sledgehammers. Thats kind of an old analogy seeing as The Slate doesn't exist anymore but if you know what I'm talking about then..well...you'll know what I'm talking about.

Still finding it hard to get a reach on them? Their bio states that: Members Igor Honey, Earl Mustard and Boris Pollenhands have been producing music since 2004 and have amassed a generous back catalogue of songs-5 albums worth, with each album averaging 30 songs or more. They played New York's Death Disco in September 2006 and BP Fallon thought they were great! Then he watched Igor undress in the lads toilet. They like fine whisky, Finland, Kylie Minogue and their songs to be mastered. They are currently working on an EP which will be due for release in late April 2007. Recently Charlie Schnitzel joined them on drums and now they are complete.

Its been three years since I've seen them live but rest assured I will be at the Boom Boom Room tomorrow night for Sugarlips to see these mad fuckers again and so should you.

Check the read more for some awesome sounds or go to their myspace for more recent fare. Oh and they're not actually knackers in case the video below makes you not want to go. I mention this merely for those who have no concept of irony.



So's Your Sister


That's Fuckin' Animal


Al Pacino


Joyridin'

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The mighty Sugarlips is returning to Dublin next weekend with a killer lineup of up-and-comings to rock the Boom Boom Room's latest venue.

The Boom Boom Room 2 has been steadily growing at it's home in Murrays on O'Connell street, and Friday May 9th sees Sugarlips host a night of madness in new surroundings.

Hoovers & Sledgehammers, Patrick Kelleher & The Wet Dreams, and Saviours of Space all feature on the tantalising lineup.

Doors are at 8, and admission is a paltry 5 euro.

Stay tuned over the next two weeks for extensive profiles of the lineup, mp3s, videos and all the updates you could possibly need.

Hoovers & Sledgehammers on myspace

Patrick Kelleher on myspace

Saviours of Space on myspace

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