The Stranglers’ early sound was a mix of pub rock, punk and new wave, with influences ranging from 1960’s psychedelic rock, R&B, and the blues. Their early lyrics were often political and literate, with themes ranging from the war in Vietnam to nuclear proliferation. The band’s later...
Eddie originally formed The Vibrators in February 1976, and their first gig was supporting The Stranglers at Hornsey Art College in North London. They supported The Sex Pistols at the 100 CLUB and were one of the bands playing at the now legendary 100 CLUB PUNK ROCK FESTIVAL. Early in 1977...
The band - featuring original membersDom Mariani, Julian Matthews, andDave Shaw, along with acclaimed guitarist Ashley Naylor (Even/Paul Kelly/The Church)- are set to hit the road once more with a limited series of shows along the east coast of Australia in April. . ...
There was a charm and innocence to Beach Party, no surprise when the ages of the performers were 14-17 and they were still very much learning how to play and sing. The entire length of the album was under 30 minutes and this also made for very short and occasionally shambolic live appea...
Ash Naylor, Dave Shaw. Dom Mariani and Julian Matthews are The Stems in 2024. Craig MacLean photo @shot.by.mac. It’s called anticipation. You’re in a band. You’ve re-convened after a very long lay-off. The line-up’s now well-rehearsed, fed and watered, and it’s the lull ...
the new wave jungle at that point, thanks to an older brother and his mates, and the band I saw that night – Blank Expression, schoolboys themselves but crucially two years older – exuded punk rock for me, pitched somewhere between the Pistols, Buzzcocks, The Damned, and The Stranglers....
Best known for their 1980 hit “Turning Japanese,” The Vapors are a band that formed in 1979 in Guildford, UK which is also home to The Stranglers. They were brought to a larger UK audience with a support slot on The Jam’s iconic 1979 “Setting Sons” tour, and were by then manage...
Laurence Mason’s very pleasing reimagining of The Stranglers’ Golden Brown as if it had been played by Dave Brubeck in his Take Five days – soon to be released on vinyl with a cover of Walking On The Moon by The Police. Mason’s bassoon overdub of Jonathan Swan’s incredulous intervie...
Then this long-awaited new 40th anniversary album by Cleveland’s legendary Backdoor Men is for you because Mohawk Combover takes its retrofitted satirical musical cues from the likes of Alice Cooper (“Take Me Away”), the Stranglers (“Not Fed Up With You Yet”) and even the Dictators (...
During Britpop’s heyday, Elastica were unjustly denied the same respect as peers like Blur and Suede in the powerful British music press. The best bits of “Connection” and “Waking Up”? Just rip-offs of Wire and the Stranglers. The band’s initial hype? It was little more than prur...