From the underground. (Notes).

The Deadly Snakes came through town on their way to, uh, bigger and better things I guess, and unfortunately played a very short set to a bunch of people sitting around in their chairs. I hate to bitch, but a lot of the rock clubs in town put tables and chairs five feet from the stage. And people are suckers enough to sit down and watch the show, so the place seems dead. Still, the seven or so songs they played (with horns and organ) was enough to make it seem like a good set would be something to see, and there's always that second record to fall back on if you get tired of the first... New from Rip Off is The Kill-A-Watts' Electrorock LP. True to the Rip Off sound, it's full of short, frantic, "one-two-fuck-you" tunes, stripped-down with guitars blazing the way. Two chicks and two dicks, trading off vocal duties, this one rocks... Also on Rip Off is The Tyrades' 7" "Stain on Me." Whoa! Someone in this band looks like Taxi Driver-style Robert Deniro! It ain't the singer, 'cuz she's a chick! And she wails to the punk rock emanating from her bandmates. And hey! One of the other guys has a mustache!... And speaking of Rip Off, Shane White's latest project, Loose Lips, has a new 7" out entitled "I'm Addicted to You" on Just Add Water Records. Although he used to make fun of hippies, Shane is sporting long hair now. Contradictions aside, this shit rocks in a late-'70s punk way--loud guitars, the whole bit, and it's great. Keep America beautiful, get a haircut... From Tokyo, Japan, via I Don't Feel a Thing Records in Tempe, AZ, comes The Lottie Collins' 7" "Runaway to the Mexico." "The" Mexico? Don't know what it is about these Japanese bands, but they seem to turn up the noise at the right time, producing some stompin' garage punk such as this single... Next up, from Southern Indiana's "premier R & B Band," is the new 7" from John Wilkes Booze called "Whiskey and Pills" on Rock and Roll Blitzkrieg. A spoof (I hope) of '70s rock excess, the b-side features a tribute to T. Rex's Ma rc Bolan. If you listen to this more than twice you are seriously warped... In the "from the vault" category comes the Roddy Radiation Anthology. A founding member of The Specials, Roddy turned toward rockabilly ("skabilly") with a series of bands dating to 1981 (The Tearjerkers, The Bonediggers, The Raiders, and then a session band to record some demos). It's all quality stuff, nothing too ground-breaking, but a must-have for the Specials fan who's gotta hear everything...