CJ RAMONE, ROCKS,
BATFOOT!
12.2.2015
Bald Faced Stag Hotel
Chinese Burns Unit
had to unfortunately pull out at the last minute. Batfoot!play uptempo
poppy punk with youthful energy.
ROCKS put in a kick arse set, as always. Featuring Pete back
on bass, their blistering set covers all eras of Rocks recorded output. Songs
such as Mental Bank, Migraine headache,
Your so boring, Combat Zone, What I say,
and even a new one called Bombs away
rev us up in a blitz for CJ. Forget superlatives, they were just fuckin’ great, OK and that’s about it.
CJ and his band come on a little while later kicking off
with Understand Me? , the opening cut
from his new LP Last chance to dance.
From then on, the set is Ramones classics peppered with CJ’s solo stuff, mostly
the bulk of Last chance to dance, and a couple from his earlier release Reconquista. Highlights from Last chance to dance include Pitstop, the title track, Clusterfuck, and Won’t stop swinging. The majority of the set is Ramones classics –
Blitzkrieg Bop, Suzie is a Punk, Sheena
is Punck Rocker,53rd and 3rd, Judy is a punk, Cretin Hop,
Commando, Glad to see you go, Do you
wanna dance, I wanna be sedated,the
list goes on.
The band is absolutely shit hot, and they’re all having a
great time. The guitars of Dan Root and Steve Soto (both from the Adolescents)
are spot on, as are their back up vocals. On songs like Listen to my heart they are note for note perfect with the harmonies.
CJ's bass, with Pete Sosa (Street Dogs) provide a rock solid rythym section. CJ banters in between songs just enough to
engage with the crowd, but not hinder the workmanlike ethic of the band to just
get on with it, which he obviously learned during his apprenticeship with the
Ramones.
CJ is in the enviable position of being able to hand-pick
his own favourites from the Ramones back catalogue. Interestingly there is a bit of a trend towards the love themed songs, such as the KKK
took my baby away, She’s the one
and Baby I love you (of which he said “I guarantee
you’ve never heard this one live before”). They play only one song from CJ’s tenure with the band, Strength to endure.
In summary, if you are a (Ramones) fan, you just couldn’t be
disappointed. CJ is gracious enough to give the fans what they want – Ramones
songs (geared to the early stuff, which everyone loves), even though his own
solo material is more than worthy;the proportion of solo stuff is far
outweighed by the Ramones stuff in the set. The set goes for almost an hour and
a half, played by one of the last remaining Ramones, with band that’s got a
pretty good pedigree. Everyone’s got their favourite Ramones songs, but it would have been impossible for anyone in
the room to not have heard plenty of their own in the sizable set.
CJ RAMONE
LAST CHANCE TO DANCE
I’ll admit, this one blipped on the radar late last year when it came out, but I let it slide as I wasn’t really familiar with CJ’s solo stuff. Then I heard CJ was touring here in February and a mate said Let’s go. So I thought I’d check out the record, and get familiar with the songs for the gig.
First time I put on Last chance to dance I was hooked. And that was listening over/through my kids noise and mayhem. I gave it a proper spin later on –twice in a row. It was about the only thing I played for a week.
For me, CJ pushes the Ramones legacy here and keeps it alive, whilst doing his own thing. If ya don’t mind me saying, it’s a Ramones-y record. But it’s not the Ramones, it’s CJ Ramone and his individuality of course shines through here. Let’s not forget who revitalised the band when Dee Dee left.
There’s a kinda late-era Ramones feel here but with a completely different flavour. Understand Me, and Won’t Stop Swinging, a one-two punch pop-punk melodic gem barrage kicks the album off, and One more chance keeps the pace up. The next two, Carry me away and ‘Til the end slow things up a bit, but that ain’t a bad thing, and the melodic element is highlighted to good effect. Side one closes with the more out and out buzzsaw-rock interpretation of Alice Coopers’s Long Way to go.
The rock element continues with the chugging Mr Kalashnikov. It’s back to core business with Pitstop (which borrows/uses the chorus harmony from Carbona not Glue, again to good effect. Correct me if I’m wrong). Grunt is also a bit of a chugger, and if I’m guessing correctly is partly based on CJ’s experience in the Marines. You own me slows it up again, while the title track gets back firmly again in pop-punk territory, and gives a nod to Do you wanna dance (off Rocket to Russia). The hardcore of Clusterfuck closes the album with a bang.
It’s obvious CJ and the band are having fun and coalesce well together. CJ’s bass flourishes and vocals seem to cement everything in place. The long time relationship between CJ and Steve Soto (Adolescents-guitar) is apparent, having played together since at least the late 90’s when CJ filled in on bass in Steve’s band for 22 Jacks for a while.
Package wise, not bad at all. The black and white cover is a bit of a nod (in my mind anyway) to The Ramones first LP. There’s a lyric sheet which is simple but effective. Production gives a tight but not overly glossy sound which suits the album well. Download code for those that need ‘em.
4/5
