PanzerBastard / Rawhide – “Black Hearts and White Lines”
So this is another Panzer Bastard split with another fine band. This time the band is from Sweden and I wish for anyone reading this to imagine the rest of the review in a Swedish accent. Also, any hallucinogenic chemicals may be ingested at this time. It goes like this:
Now that we’ve got our parameters set straight, let me tell ya- this Rawhide may be the greatest Swedish import since…well, you know…(Slimedog is now looking down at the floor, shuffling his feet and blushing, so we’ll just relay a quote from Iggy Pop’s song “Five Foot One,”- “I wish life could be, Swedish magazines.”
(Regaining his composure once again, our valiant scribe scribbles)
So these guys in Rawhide have names like El Wocko (drums) and Captain Twofinger ( bass) and say they play rock’n’roll and THAT’S IT. But hey!- what’s this all by its lonesome under artists we like?-it’s Motorhead!
And who does Panzer Bastard revere and worship, as all true constituents of TNB do as well? (Andy and Slimedog do not necessarily believe in God but we do feel, that if there is one, it must be Lemmy). Yes,- the correct answer is Motorhead!
And let me reiterate, though Panzer Bastard do not sound the same as Motorhead (who does?), they do contain the spirit and heart of Motorhead because they play like a metal band that got sick of its restraints and said, “Fuck it, we’ll play hardcore punk, but we’ll never loose the feel of metal.” We’ll have the best of all worlds which we will then destroy and demolish with out diabolical, decibel detonating dichotomy.
Which bring us to the point in my lecture when we actually listen to the fucking music instead of some scribbling scribe who lost the last of his remaining marbles sometime at a crap shoot at a Psychedelic Furs show in 1987.
Please proceed without caution.
After a few metallic chords crash in with a throbbing bass below, like a throbbing blood vessel, “The Grand Bargain,” spurts forth in all its majestic blood and guts splendor. “Bleed with me/ ‘Cause I will never set you free/ Raise you up to be destroyed/ Just another fool.” The vocals are clear and gurgling with a melodic feel to them, kind of like if Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy ever got around to doing death metal. While the rhythm section is beating in a blood-thirsty, panting near hysterical state. “You fuckin’ love it here…just another broken toy.” The beat is relentless and then we’re pulled down into an intense, headbanging breakdown. “Down here we all will pay/ Down here we all will stay in hell.” The vocals scream as a guitar feedback squeal leads into a solo with a line that recalls Hendrix’s “Third Stone From The Sun” put through a meat grinder. A quick reprise and this awesome, powerful, guts and blood lullaby has rocked us to death.
With feedback erupting behind a hard guitar lick, “They Sing Death,” quickly goes for the throat. This is an even faster song with the vocals shooting out as if from a machine gun with the guitar answering with a saber-toothed cutting lead. The rhythm section pounds the head of the song into the pavement until it’s a bloody mess. Later the rhythm section pauses to let the head gasp its last breath while the guitar comes in feedbacking out of control and in a foreign key- only to reign it in to create a solo worth of James Williamson (Stooges). This is the best solo I’ve heard all year! Just enough time left to replay the chorus and this great song sings its death one more time.
These Swedish metal-balls start off “Devil’s Grip” in a bending guitar lick and an exhortation of “Go!”- and we’re off in a roller-coaster ride of mayhem with the drummer leading the beat like he’s got Satan’s baton. “C’mon and get me? I’m still right here/ Devil’s grip/ Just pull me down.” This is a smokin’ little number sounding like prime cut Motley Crue with a death metal singer. During the solo the drummer hits faster and harder as the guitar smashes the structure with his Chuck Berry/ Johnny Thunders solo. This song rides on a hurricane of sound that has everything from hair metal, classic high energy rock to hardcore and death metal but doesn’t forget to add tons of passion, energy and fun. They may be in the devil’s grip but here they successfully grab him by the balls with this ballsy, rockin’, stompin’ kick ass razzle dazzle of a tune.
A nice drum roll leads “Backstabber” in with some classic power chords before a bass fuzz lick pops in. “Backstabber/ I got news for you/ Nowhere to hide/ Your time is through.” This is a classic, hard rockin’ tune with harsh, biting lyrics and rollicking, rockin’ beat. Plus a nice guitar break where the chords are answered by some bluesy, guitar licks that actually has some cowbell thrown in by the drummer! This song is totally retro, totally rockin’ and totally perfect and true.
Though I think maybe Rawhide would be better suited on a split with Blue Oyster Cult or maybe Black Oak Arkansas, I did enjoy them immensely and think they’re a fun band that’s worthy of the term rock’n’roll.
And I think Panzer Bastard is extremely strong here, in fact, I think this is the best I’ve heard them. They were my favorite local metal band when TNB first started but then they seemed to fade away for awhile. But now I see them back stronger and better than ever before.
So I say, “All Hail Panzer Bastard”- godspeed in their bringing their metal to the masses, the lubrication to the asses, the laddies to the lassies- so we may all double dutch jump-rope to Culture Club records played backwards.
(Slimedog)
