Whether solo, playing as a member of the Kurt Baker Combo or a key member of Spanish pop-punkers Bullet Proof Lovers, something that comes across on pretty much any Kurt Baker recording is how much joy he gets just from playing music for the love of it. He’s also frighteningly prolific. If he’s not sweating it out at live shows, he’s in the studio. If he’s not in the studio, he’s writing. Obviously, with such a frantic recording artist, not everything makes the final cut of an album, but Baker is never content with leaving things on the shelf.
Tag Archives: power pop
Exclusive: Hey, Jackass! Get in here and download the new single from Justine and The Unclean for FREE!
In August ’17, Boston rockers Justine and Unclean unleashed their debut single via Rum Bar Records. A double A-sided download, ‘Love Got Me Into This Mess’ and ‘Passive Aggressive Baby’ delivered an adrenaline-shot of good old r’n’r, mixing the sounds of Ramones with something a little sweeter. The tracks retained a punky enough edge to thrill the pop-punk crowd and yet retained a little something to suggest their forthcoming album might just be a touch more varied.
PEZBAND – Women & Politics EP
Cheap Trick, The Knack and Nick Lowe might be the best known names from the late 70s power pop boom, but the genre and its various micro-scenes saw recordings and releases from other musical heroes between 1975-1980 just as worthy of attention. Fusing power pop and a spikier edge, The Real Kids’ debut is one of the greatest proto-punk discs ever; Earth Quake’s bombast showed the craft of gifted musicians; Fotomaker took the late 70s pop sound and made it even more retro by filtering it through a smoother vocal…and then there was PezBand. With a knack for bouncy tunes rivalled only by The Knack themselves, possession of quirky harmonies straight out of the school of Cheap Trick perfection and a natural gift for a chorus, PezBand were special.
Muy Mola!: Real Gone meets Kurt Baker
Kurt Baker is the very definition of “cult hero”. He’s played in various bands since the 90s and been a very active member of both the punk and power pop scenes. He knows most of your punk heroes personally…and yet, chances are, many of you will still be unfamiliar with his work. In July 2017, Kurt completed his first UK tour in several years, promoting the Kurt Baker Combo’s first studio release ‘In Orbit’. Real Gone met him at his Brighton stop for various drinks and a lengthy chat. Nothing was taken down formally. It was decided that upon Kurt’s return to Spain, we ought to get something on record for posterity, since the visit was an important one in his ongoing musical journey.
The Great 70’s Project: 1977
On December 1st 1976, UK TV history was made. On Bill Grundy’s Today show, the Sex Pistols and a couple of their associated chums shocked a nation. Their behavior was quickly seen as inappropriate for most of the 1970s public and by the time their interview concluded with Steve Jones calling Grundy “a fucking rotter”, things had moved from merely “inappropriate” to “causing outrage”.