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Throw Rag
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13 Ft. And Rising
BYO Records
Release: 6/28/2005
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Rated:
Review by:
Jason Warner
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Throw Rag is many things; subtle is not one of them. I
recall reading interviews with them in one local rag over the
last couple years and thinking they sounded like some kind
of insane party band. When I finally got my hands on their
latest release on BYO Records, titled, 13 Ft. And
Rising, I was not disappointed. Their one sheet that
came with the record says, "Throw Rag is Rock and Roll."
Well, that they are. Loud, raw, rowdy, fast. Throw Rag is
not the kind of band you take home to introduce to your
mother. They are more like the bad habit you try to partake
in without your parents finding out, and when they do,
they're going to lecture you for hours about 'hanging out
with the wrong crowd.'
Throw Rag has been compared to many different bands and
has toured with the likes of NOFX, Queens of the Stone Age,
The Reverend Horton Heat, Southern Culture on the Skids,
Motorhead, Flogging Molly, Supersuckers, Circle Jerks, The
Damned, and X, to name a few. I guess if you throw all
those bands in a blender you get something very nasty, and
that's about where Throw Rag picks up. Their sound is
rooted in early punk, but there are many different sounds
lurking inside the Throw Rag, including some surf rock,
psychobilly, alt-country, Celtic rock, and even Cajun sounds.
The band hails from the barren deserts of California, but
playing upwards of 250 shows a year it's hard to call
anywhere home but the inside of vans and hotel rooms, and
apparently the bottom of a bottle. Throw Rag have built
their reputation by playing lots of shows, good shows,
entertaining shows where people who work a 40 hour work
week can come to party and have a good time and leave
their worries behind.
13 Ft. And Rising is the third release from
Throw Rag. (They actually have another album that has
never been released). 13 Ft. And Rising is 14
tracks of blistering bar room rock worthy of all the sweat,
beer, and blood that Throw Rag has sacrificed over their last
10 years together as a band. But, the music on 13 Ft.
And Rising is not just a bunch of loud nonsense.
When you play 250 shows a year you get really good at
playing music and Throw Rag prove this is what they love to
do. The musicianship borders on virtuosity, with lyrics
planting tongue firmly in cheek. The sound quality on
13 Ft. And Rising is great, being produced by
Motorhead producer, Cameron Webb. The songwriting is
also great.
Throw Rag has declared themselves "Sailor Rock," and while
I can't think of another band in this subgenre, I think Throw
Rag would still be considered the top of the heap. 13
Ft. And Rising is a great album for those who like it
loud and obnoxious, and of course with washboard
accompaniment. |
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