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Review of:
Snew and Whisper Alley
live show
Reviewed by Tawny Khat on July 8, 2009
Photos by Tawny Khat, copyright 2009, all rights reserved
I got to celebrate the 4th of July with fireworks, but not the kind of fireworks you're thinking of. The fireworks I experienced were on stage at The Blooze Bar in Phoenix, Arizona. The Blooze Bar, in association with Electric Pussycat magazine, presented Snew and Whisper Alley.
We featured Snew in a previous issue of Electric Pussycat. This band rocks! So, I was happy Tumbleweed (owner of The Blooze Bar) and I were able to bring them to Phoenix for a show.
Snew hit the stage around 10pm and the crowd was quickly drawn into the hard rockin' sounds from this band. Phoenix gave Snew a warm welcome, and the band delivered a helluva show. I was already a fan of Snew as soon as I heard their album, but they are even better live! They perform straight up hard rock, stuff like bands like AC/DC play, down and dirty rock 'n' roll with plenty of meaty guitar hooks.
Curtis Don Vito delivered the goods on vocals. His vocals are gritty, and he's got great range. Andy Lux is an amazing guitarist and great fun to watch live. Cat Tate is a most talented bass player and rocks on stage, and Mark Ohrenberger is a madman on the drums. Mark plays the drums like Ted Nugent plays guitar. He's wild!
Snew definitely made some new fans and friends, some of whom purchased CDs, t-shirts and more. The show went so well that they are considering making monthly trips to the Phoenix area, since we're so close to L.A. I'd love to see them here every month, so I hope they follow through with those plans. Thanks guys, I love you my friends!
Appearing next that night was the long awaited return of valley favorites, Whisper Alley. I was unable to stay for the entire show because I'd only had about five hours of sleep in the 48 hours prior to the show, so I was exhausted and ended up going home early. But, I did see the first set, and it kicked ass!
It's been many years since I had last seen Whisper Alley, so I was looking forward to this show. I really wish I'd been able to stay till the end of the night, but I'll catch their next show. The band did a great mix of classic rock covers and Whisper Alley originals. They didn't just play the music, they put on a show. Rusty Payne (vocals) was all over the place, on and off the stage, and interacting with the crowd. Johnny Rambo just flat out shredded on the guitar. He was fantastic! Robby Erwin (bass) and Atomic "Tom" Higgins (drums) smoked on the rhythm section, too. I can't wait until the next show.
Snew is going to be in Janesville, Wisconsin this Friday July 10th and for further show info go to their MySpace page. Also, if you missed these earlier, make sure you read my review of their CD and my interview with the band.
Whisper Alley has many more local shows coming up, so if you're in Phoenix you'll want to visit their MySpace page to find out where you can see them, and if you're not in Phoenix go to their page anyway to check out their music!
You can also find show listings on our events page.
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Review of:
Vains Of Jenna and
Suite 88 in concert
Reviewed by Tawny Khat on July 8, 2009
Photos by Tawny Khat, copyright 2009, all rights reserved
This all ages show took place
this past Friday, July 3rd, at
Club Red in Tempe, Arizona.
There were other bands that
performed, too, but I had
primarily attended to review
these two bands. Besides, I was
also busy putting up posters and
passing out flyers for Electric
Pussycat's "Night of
Sleaze" show to take place at
Club Red's sister club, the Red
Owl, next Thursday, July 16th.
Vains Of Jenna actually played
before Suite 88, presumably so
the younger audience members
could see them before it got too
late in the evening. They hit the
stage at around 10:45, to the
delight of their many fans at the
show, myself included. This
band is probably the most well
known Swedish sleaze rock band
in the U.S., so it was no surprise
to see the audience singing along
to all the b
and's songs. The
members of Vains Of Jenna are
real pros on stage. I was quite
impressed by their
professionalism,
and their musicianship. In fact,
I've come away from the show
liking them even more than I did
before.
Vains Of Jenna's approximately
one hour set included all their
hits like "Enemy In Me", "Hard
To Be Vain", "Noones Gonna
Do It For You" and "One Last
Pleasure", plus they performed
their new single, "Get It On",
from their album to be released
later this year.
This band has that cock-sure
attitude that makes a great sleaze
band, and makes for a great
stage performance. Lizzy
DeVine's vocals have the sound
of a singer who's been drinking
whiskey and smoking cigarettes
for 30 years, perfect for this
band's uber sleazy style. Nicki
Kin is an impressive guitarist. I
enjoyed watching and listening
to his work on stage, and JP
White on bass and Jacki Stone
on drums are a tight rhythm
section that had the venue
rumbling.
Vains Of Jenna fit right in with
bands from the 80s like Faster
Pussycat, Guns N' Roses, Skid
Row, Bang Tango, L.A. Guns
and other sleazy bands from the
gutters of Hollywood. Speaking
of Bang Tango, Joe Leste (lead
vocalist) was in attendance at
this show. I only had time to say
a quick hello to him, so
unfortunately I wasn't able to get his opinion about the show. I
can only assume that since he attended the show he's likely a fan
of Vains Of Jenna. At any rate, the following video of "Enemy
In Me" is a good representation of what you'll see at a Vains Of
Jenna show.
Vains of Jenna- "Enemy in Me"
Suite 88 took to the stage
after Vains Of Jenna.
They gained a
lot of new fans with their
performance that night.
Fans of Vains Of Jenna
discovered that this local
band kicks ass, too. The
band members, Mike
Gunns (vocals), Kolton
Lee (guitar), Vick Bourne
(bass) and Jesse Clutch
(drums), blazed with
energy.
After rocking the crowd
with tunes from their
album like, "Ten Shots,
Ten Minutes", "Sleazy
Susan" and more, Suite
88 closed out their set with
a rowdy rendition
of "Walkin' the Dog" with guest performers Asijah and Erik
Tyler, as you can see in the rough video below.
Suite 88 is turning heads
and making big
impressions on all
who hear them. I'm
confident that these guys
have a very bright future
in store for them. They
truly get what it means
to "rock 'n roll". This
combo of Vains Of Jenna
and Suite 88 made for a
killer show.
To find out where you can
see Vains Of Jenna next,
visit their MySpace page
for show listings (or
our events page). Also,
don't miss my interview
with Vains Of Jenna
drummer Jacki Stone.
The same goes for Suite
88. Their future shows are listed on their MySpace page, too. In
fact, Suite 88's next performance will be at our "Night Of Sleaze"
showcase at the Red Owl in Tempe, Arizona on Thursday, July
16th, along with Ripp Tyde and Middle Finger Mob from L.A.
(featuring former members of Total Chaos and BulletBoys). This
will be another killer show! Also, make sure you read my review
of Suite 88's debut album and my interview with the
band.
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