The Barley Hops "Rhymes from the Pubs" WLVR Records Release date: July 14, 2018 Running time: 21:53, 6 tracks
We have been following and supporting the Indonesian Celtic punk scene from our very beginning. However, after the release of “Wind from the Foreign Land – An Indonesian Celtic Punk Compilation” everybody in the Celtic punk scene admitted that something was happening in Indonesia. Then, The Cloves and The Tobacco “Across the Horizon” reached the 4th slot at our Best of 2016 (albums) and Black Rawk Dog “Suburban Folk Stories” reached the 2nd slot at our Best of 2017 (EPs). Only one or two Celtic punk CDs are released every year in Indonesia. But all of them are worth hearing.
The Barley Hops had previously released a couple of tracks that are still available for free download at Reverbnation. Fortunately the 6 piece band from Yogyakarta have finally issued their first CD, a 6 track EP titled “Rhymes from the Pub”. I guess that this recording will top the Best of 2018 (EPs) together with The Grinning Barretts EPs.
The EP kicks off with the title track. “Rhymes from the Pub” is not an instrumental, but the lyrics are so short that one may think that this number is a set of tunes featuring the “John Ryan’s Polka”. This track set the pace for the rest of the EP: kick ass mandolin, badass tin whistle and lots of guitar together with yeah shouts.
The next track is titled “Barleys Drinking Team”. Some pub voices and then the mandolin and the tin whistle open for the rest of the band. Electric guitar and tin whistle shine on this powerful number.
“Glory never Fades Away” is an upbeat number featuring amazing mandolin and more tin whistle and electric guitar. The Indonesian DNA is obvious on this awesome number.
Cut number 4 is called “Fare You Well”. Some train sounds and then The Barley Hops deliver another catchy Celtic punk number with woah backing vocals.
“Homeland” is my favourite number on “Rhyme from the Pubs” and sometimes reminds me of The Popes “Holloway Boulevard”. Great electric guitar work in The Clash vein too.
The 6 track EP is over with “Sunny Side of the Street”. No, this song cannot be found on the excellent Russian compilation “Tribute to the Pogues” (Happy Ol’ McWeasel covered this track on that album). The song gets the Indonesian Celtic punk treatment and it’s an enjoyable cover.
A reduced version of the EP can be bought from Bandcamp (only 2 tracks). If you’re interested in the full EP, then e-mail the band’s label: wlrv.record@gmail.com
Tracking list:
1 - Rhymes from the Pub 2:39 2 - Barley's Drinking Team 3:26 3 - Glory Never fades away 3:44 4 - Fare You Well 4:35 5 - Homeland 4:22 6 - Sunny Side of the Street (The Pogues Cover) 2:55
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Black Rawk Dog "Suburban's Folk Stories" WLRV Records WLVR 008-2017
Release date: July 6, 2017
Running time: 16:19, 5 tracks
Indonesia
has a burgeoning Celtic punk scene. The bands coming for that country
share their love for Flogging Molly and Dropkick Murphys with their love
for Rancid, Cock Sparrer or Social Distortion. After having added their
local music influences to their sound, the Indonesian bands have been
able to develop their own musical print. Bands around the world can be
divided into Flogging Molly infused bands and Dropkick Murphys infused
bands. But bands from Indonesia are not so easy to label. They have
merged both bands influences in such a way that you can’t tell them
apart.
After
the success of the Rain in Summer EP, WLVR keeps up the good work and
the Indonesian label has just released another excellent EP: Black Rawk
Dog “Suburban’s Folk Stories”. A five track EP that is called to be a
classic CD.
“Suburban’s
Folk Stories” starts off with “Brand New Day”, a catchy as hell song.
Banjo, fiddle and tin whistle can be heard at the beginning of the song.
Then the full band burst on this fast-paced song with great chorus to
sing along. The sound is top-notch and fiddle and tin whistle are not
hidden in the mix. Hats-off to the studio lads and the producers!
The
next track is titled “Work Proud”. The beginning reminds me a little
bit to the Italian band The Clan. Black Rawk Dog like gang vocals and
they do it perfectly well. There is an electric guitar passage that is
followed by the fiddle, tin whistle and banjo tune. Another infectious
song.
Acoustic
guitar opens the path for “Still One”. The banjo, fiddle, harmonica and
vocals give the song a slight country feeling. There are woahs too, but
it’s not a fast-paced song. The Celtic tune comes when the song is
coming to its end, just before the amazing female vocals (guest Pramytha Ayu).
The
level moves higher with “Rumble in the Bar”. The song kicks off with
the typical banjo and tin whistle intro that we all love. The two
vocalist fight each other. Gang vocals and hey! shouts are backed by
fiddle and banjo. The electric guitar is showcased once again and the
tin whistle and fiddle tune is perfect.
The
last song on the EP is called “The Old Man Stand Alone”. Kick-ass
upbeat song with pipes, banjo and fiddle. Boy and girl share vocal
duties.
The
Cloves and The Tobacco topped the Celtic punk album charts in 2016. And
Black Rawk Dog are going to top the Celtic EP charts in 2017. If you
felt disappointed with the latest Dropkick Murphys album, then check out
how their sons are protecting their musical heritage. You’ll enjoy Black
Rawk Dog “Suburban’s Folk Stories”.
Track listing:
1 - Brand New Day 3:48
2 - Work Proud 2:59
3 - Still One 3:45
4 - Rumble in the Bar 2:58
5 - The Oldman Stand Alone 2:47
Rain in Summer "Discordant Anthem from the Gutter" WLRV Records WLRV-007 Release date: April 22, 2017 Running time: 16:37, 6 tracks The band from Bandung Rain in Summer is the latest addition to the WLVR Records roster. The label from Yogyakarta has already released CDs and cassette tapes by The Cloves and The Tobacco, Dirty Glass and Forgotten Generation, apart from the kick-ass compilation “Wind from the Foreign Land”.
Rain in Summerwere established in 2008 . Their current line-up is Az-war Sidick (lead vocals and tin whistle), Weda (bass, bckg. Vocals), Sule (acoustic guitar, bckg. Vocals), Yopi (electric guitar), Opik (mandolin, guitar, bckg. Vocals), Luis (fiddle) and Essa (drums). This is their second EP, since they issued previously a 6 track EP titled “Untuk Kutaku”. Five of the songs from that EP can be download for free from Reverbnation or from some of our samplers.
The first cut is the amazing “Suara”. From the first notes we feel the Indonesian DNA. Drums, mandolin and fiddle open for the vocals. The tin whistle is added just before the chorus and after some whistling, shouts and drumming, the band speeds up. Second turn for the Suara chorus. Then, more mandolin and vocals and the chorus. Finally, another turn for the catchy chorus and a pub end.
The next song, “Are You Okay?” starts off with electric guitar and tin whistle and then the rhythm section and the fiddle come in. Gang vocals follow on an infectious martial chorus.
“Semua terekam dalam media” gets a punk treatment from the very beginning with electric guitar and strong drums. The vocals are backed by the mandolin. Gang vocals on the chorus, just before an electric guitar passage. The mandolin and the fiddle open the path for the full band end.
Track no. 4, “Kita semua saudara”, is not a fast-paced number. However, it’s one of my fave songs on the EP. A classic Indonesian tin whistle kicks off. Vocals are backed by the fiddle and the mandolin. A catchy gang vocals chorus arrives and then some tin whistle and fiddle. The song comes to its end with tin whistle, mandolin and fiddle and some woah woah shouts.
“Eksplotaisi” moves again to the punk end. First of all, vocals backed by electric guitar and the rhythm section and the mandolin are added. Then, the number turns into a fast-paced anthem featuring great electric guitar.
The EP is over with a gem: “Warrior”. The acoustic instruments (tin whistle, fiddle and mandolin) are perfectly blended with the electric guitar on this Stiff Little Fingers sounding number.
“Discordant Anthem from The Gutter” was released on Record Store Day 2017 and only 100 CD copies were pressed.
Rain In Summer “Discordant Anthem from the Gutter” is another proof that the Indonesian scene is alive and kicking.
Track listing
1 - Suara 2:48 2 - Are You Okay? 2:42 3 - Semua terekam dalam media 2:56 4 - Kita semua saudara 3:17 5 - Eksploitasi 1:56 6 - Warrior 3:11
Last year I focused on reviews, videos and free downloads, so no sampler was posted. However, my friend Lewdd "pushed" me to post a new sampler. I have put together 5 tracks that were posted as free downloads or on previous samplers and 6 new tracks and the final result is a new Indonesian sampler featuring 8 bands. Remember that all of these songs are played regularly at Celtic Folk Punk - Radionomy.
Other full Indonesian bands samplers are available here and here.
Rotten Riot are an Indonesia Celtic punk band from Bogor. A couple of tracks can be downloaded for free. If you tune regularly to Celtic Folk Punk radio, you should be familiar with them, as they have been played for the last two weeks.
The Cloves and the Tobacco "Across the Horizon" WLRV-006-2016 Release date: March 2nd, 2016 Running time: 40:22, 10 tracks
At last! The Cloves and The Tobacco, one of our favourite bands from Indonesia, have just released the follow-up to their debut album “The Day with No Sun”. And one thing is for sure: “Across the Horizon” is a killer album. The Cloves and The Tobacco have invested a lot of passion and musicianship on this CD and the result is outstanding: kick-ass songs, excellent arrangements, brilliant production and a top-notch digipack packaging.
Their latest offering consists of 9 original songs, together with a song written by the omnipresent David Watts aka Spider Mahone ("Too Much Trouble"). There are no covers, since “The Fields of Athenry” is used as a bridge on one of the tracks, but it’s not the main theme on the song.From the first notes of the street punk opening track “Too Much Trouble” to the last instrumental number “Across the Horizon”, TCATT deliver a bunch of songs intended to share their lives and experiences with the Celtic punk fans from the 5 continents. As it has been previously said, the album starts with “Too Much Trouble”. This song is an amazing Rancid infused number with catchy chorus and gang vocals. It’s followed by “You’ll Never Know”, a song with the TCATT classic sound based on hypnotic banjo picking, in yer face whistling and haunting fiddling.
Track number 3 is a personal fave: “When the War is Over” is a poignant ballad about love in the time of war with a The Pogues twist. The next song is catchy as hell: “Sally O’Riordan”, a tale about a working girl tribulations on a Monday morning. I’m sure that you’ll end up singing along when you listen to this number. The Cloves and The Tobacco don’t slow down with “The Whiskey Tales”, a song about themselves. The arrangements are fantastic on this well written song and every single member of the band shines. Nana Nofi guests on female vocals.
“Pure & Innocent” shows the band’s quieter side. The lyrics are about the innocence of the children and how good it would be for the world if they could keep it when they grow up. The next track is titled “And the Rain Will Fall”, an upbeat song about a prisoner’s life.
“The Town that We Love So Well” is another standout number, a badass song about a September night in their hometown, Yogyakarta. “The Old Harbor” is a song about emigration, a goodbye song. I love this kind of song. While “Far Away in Australia” has a happy end (“Now has come the time when I’m ready to welcome at last the girl I left behind”), “The Old Harbor” is an open-ended song. The album is over with the title track, “Across the Horizon”, an amazing instrumental.
The album packaging is a labour of love: the guys from WLRV Records always do a great job and this one is not an exception. Great 4 panel digipack with a 12 page booklet where all the lyrics and all the studio and song credits can be found. There are 2 thank you pages with a global band’s section and a section for every band member. The Cloves and the Tobacco thank the likes of Andries van den Broeck aka Dutch Irish Bastard, Cathy Shannon, Andrew Watts aka Spider Mahone, the people in charge of the main Celtic punk blogzines, podcasts and radio stations (Waldo Kinksmarkham from Celtic Folk Punk and More, Eddie from London Celtic Punks, Phil from Paddy Rock, Nico from MacSlon’s Irish Radio, Irish punk, Alex from Ukraine and Vladimir Kipelov from Russia), all the Celtic punk/Irish punk groups on Facebook (Indonesia, London, Brazil, Hungary, Denmark, Italia, Zaragoza), all the Celtic punk bands from Indonesia and a lot of Celtic punk / folk punk bands from all over the world.
The Cloves and The Tobacco “Across the Horizon” is a breath of fresh air for the Celtic punk scene. This album should be a Top Ten album at the end of the year, since it has all the things that fans should appreciate: hard work, modesty, a different Celtic approach, love and respect for others bands’ music and a feeling of community. Hats-off!!!
Tracklist:
01 - Too Much Trouble 3:19 02 - You'll Never Know 3:53 03 - When the War is Over 5:37 04 - Sally O'Riordan 3:35 05 - The Whiskey Tales 4:29 06 - Pure & Innocent 4:39 07 - And the Rain Will Fall 4:32 08 - The Town that We Loved so Much 4:24 09 - The Old Harbor 5:05 10 - Across the Horizon 4:49
