Kevin Warwick,Reader associate editor
Giuda, Racey Roller If this 2010 album from Italian glam-rock geniuses Giuda (pronounced “Judah”) doesn’t get your toe tapping from the first notes of thumping opener “Number 10,” then I’m sorry but your descendents are doomed. It’s show-offy, lick-heavy rock ‘n’ roll, with a glut of tambourine and enough hand claps to fill a football stadium—and every line of the lyrics could serve as the hook for a lesser band’s anthem. I missed their recent visit to Liar’s Club, and I cry myself to sleep about it every night. Luckily, TKO Records has reissued Racey Roller with a cool Giuda patch slipped into the sleeve. Join the club.
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Tweens This newish trio from my hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio, describe themselves simply as “nasty doo-wop,” which is fair enough, but Tweens are at their most lethal when they’re playing spastic, fuzzed-out bubblegum punk. I finally caught them at a steamy DIY basement show over the summer, and watched front woman BB Tween tear through the band’s catalog with a brazen sweetness that hooked the kids and urged them to shake off the sweat and dance. The band just finished recording its debut full-length for Frenchkiss Records.
Heather Gabel, artist
Saturnalia Temple live at Reggie’s Rock Club on September 28 My eyes were closed for most of their set, but because there weren’t many people at the show yet, I was right in the middle of the room and it sounded awesome. I swayed, I felt a phantom breeze blow my hair across my face, and I effectively disconnected myself from myself in some way.
Mazzy Star Hope Sandoval’s breathy, determined vocals and David Roback’s sliding guitars are the first sounds in my studio on any given painting day. Mazzy Star’s second album, So Tonight That I Might See, was the first CD I ever bought. I was a high school freshman, and its sound was so far from what life outside my bedroom was like (and so much like what I longed for) that 20 years later it still feels like a best friend. I’m so glad to finally get the chance to see the band play next month at the Vic!