Rocket From The Tombs
Man, I was thrilled when I finally tracked down a copy of the Rocket From The Tombs archival juggernaut The Day The Earth Met… Even with all of the hype I was still floored by the amazing sounds contained therein. For those in the dark Rocket From The Tombs where a proto-art-skronk-punk band from Cleveland circa 1974-1975 and served as the first band for underground rock dudes David Thomas, Peter Laughner, and Gene O’Connor (aka Cheetah Chrome). The band disintegrated before reaching a studio, but many of the track would gain new life in the members new bands. Thomas and Laughner would go on to form the legendary avant punk outfit Pere Ubu, while O’Connor and RFTT drummer Johnny Blitz would later surface as part of the Dead Boys.
As for the disc itself, well it contains 19 cuts of raw, vintage rock culled from rehearsels and live recordings. Track include early versions of Pere Ubu and Dead Boy classics, covers of The Stooges and the Velvet Underground, and tracks that never reappeared in any form. In short, this is a must listen for anyone with an interest in primal American punk.
Based upon the success of The Day The Earth Met…. Rocket From The Tombs regrouped (with Television’s Richard Lloyd filling in for the deceased Laughner) to tour and properly record many of the tracks for release as 2004’s Rocket Redux. These kinds of endeavors usually raise a red flag, but Redux is a solid, surprising rock album that deserves a listen. Below are a couple of my favorites:
From 2002’s The Day The Earth Met….
Rocket From The Tombs - Never Gonna Kill Myself Again.mp3
Rocket From The Tombs - 30 Seconds Over Tokyo.mp3
Rocket From The Tombs - Search & Destroy.mp3
From 2004’s Rocket Redux
Rocket From The Tombs - What Love Is.mp3
Rocket From The Tombs - Life Stinks.mp3
End:
8 Comments so far
Leave a reply
I’ve known bassist Craig Bell since about 1977 when he came into the record store I was working at in New Haven, CT looking to sell his 45 collection (we bought it). He started one of the original bands of the New Haven New Wave scene “The Saucers” which also included Mark Mulcahy (”Miracle Legion”) & Seth Tiven (”Dumptruck”).
Great to see Craig (back) in a happening band…
Spike
I was remiss in not mentioning Bell’s involvement in both the initial and reunited versions of the band. Thanks for pointing this out
I’ve been wanting to hear this band for years, so thanks for posting this stuff. Their “30 Seconds Over Tokyo” absolutely SMOKES Ubu’s! I guess it’s in the balance between the artsy sensibilities of the future Peres Ubu and the punk rock attitudes of the future Dead Boys.
Dude, you are the fucking MAN! This is so good… I mentioned Cheetah’s original band in a Dead Boys post a little while back but I didn’t think anyone else really knew about them.
this shit rocks! thanx
Rocket Redux is a bit of a sleeper. A much smarter idea would have been to tape every show in their little tour and compile of best-of live album. I saw 2 of the NYC shows and the debut reunion in LA, and all were great.
interesting that lloyd is taking laughner’s place in rftt considering verlaine (briefly) kicked lloyd out of television and got laughner as a replacement during tv’s ‘little johnny jewel’ era.
great stuff, by the way
i myself am on an endless fruitless search to find the timm kerr comp on peter laughner - take the guitar player for a ride.