Sights and Sounds: The Stray Cats, Claire Holley, von Grey

Fans of The Stray Cats, Claire Holley and von Grey will be excited with today's roundup of news releases posted here…

Stray Cats "Live At Rockpalast" 

DVD and DVD / 2CD set available on July 7th

The icons of neo-rockabilly, captured at their best in two amazing 

'81 and '83 Rockpalast concerts... Young, raw, and wild!

Every era has its heroes and every scene has its legends. The 80's had the Stray Cats and today they are the indisputable icons of neo-rockabilly. 

When the US trio stormed the top of the charts in their adopted country of England, punk still reigned supreme in the United Kingdom. But Brian Setzer, Slim Jim Phantom and Lee Rocker brought that certain something that the mo-hawked men also had: a feeling for danger and rebellion. Impressive footage of this time includes two performances in Germany: one in 1981 in Cologne and one in 1983 at the Loreley that were recorded by WDR. These are genuine recordings that make the trio's sound still accessible today. Both concerts are released here for the first time in the best possible quality and with a superb sound on DVD and CD. The Stray Cats will come to life at home just as they were at their best: young, raw and wild!

Brian Setzer, today a "statesman" of rockabilly and a many times platinum seller, works passionately as he struck the strings on the stage of the Cologne Satory Halls. He was a "rebel without a cause," similar to the young James Dean. But this guitarist has a desire: he wants to bring Rock n' Roll back to life. He wants to play his guitar as Eddie Cochran did. No question that he has succeeded; he is still loved for this today and this is why he is the first guitarist after the legendary Chet Atkins to have his own signature Gretsch model.

The Stray Cats aren't only made up of Setzer with his phenomenal guitar playing and his powerful vocals. Lee Rocker and Slim Jim Phantom are responsible for their special sound, too: Phantom's simple drumming became an example for rockabilly drummers worldwide and his wild screams in the songs belong to Stray Cats exactly as Brian Setzer's licks and Lee Rocker's clattering bass do. He treated his instrument like a lover or like monkeybars on which he did gymnastics. The bad boy attitude was internalized by the "street cats."

Both concerts also underline how rapidly Stray Cats' career progressed. Between both recordings were full worlds. In 1981 they were young rockers and by 1983 they had become full-fledged rock stars and known as tender teddy boys in part of the scene. The band rocked the mixed audience and were even honored by their discoverer Dave Edmunds. Next to Stray Cats were acts such as U2, Joe Cocker and Steve Miller.

The influence Stray Cats had on music and fashion is in hindsight undeniable. Where would psychobilly legends such as Meteors or Demented are Go!, who were founded as a counter movement to rockabilly, be today? Would the sound of the 50s still be so popular today if the Stray Cats had not brought it back to life in the 80s?

Classics like as "Stray Cat Strut," "Runaway Boys," "Rumble in Brighton," and "Rock This Town" will live forever through these two concert recordings.

Pre-order at Amazon: http://amzn.to/1A3WMkc

TRACKLISTINGS

DVD
Loreley, August 20th 1983:
1. Baby Blue Eyes 03:41
2. Double Talkin' Baby 03:37
3. Rumble In Brighton 04:11
4. Drink That Bottle Down 05:26
5. Something Is Wrong With My Radio 02:39
6. Built For Speed 06:30
7. Look At That Cadillac 04:25
8. Runaway Boy 03:46
9. Lonely Summer Nights 04:22
10. Too Hip, Gotta Go 02:39
11. Stray Cats Strut 05:42
12. She's Sexy And 17 04:40
13. Banjo Time 

(Foggy Mountain Breakdown) 02:16
14. The Race Is On 02:14
15. Tear It Up 04:03
16. Oh Boy 03:03
17. Rock This Town 06:50

Cologne, July.16th 1981
1. Sweet Love On My Mind 03:58
2. Double Talkin' Baby 03:37
3. Rumble In Brighton 03:34
4. My One Desire 04:38
5. Ubangi Stomp 04:16
6. Drink That Bottle Down 05:34
7. Storm The Embassy 05:05
8. Stray Cats Strut 04:09
9. Fishnet Stockings 02:48
10. Important Words 04:32
11. Rock This Town 08:28
12. Runaway Boy 04:40
13. Sometin' Else 04:45
14. Gonna Ball 04:14

CD 1, Loreley, August 20th 1983:
1. Baby Blue Eyes 03:41
2. Double Talkin' Baby 03:37
3. Rumble In Brighton 04:11
4. Drink That Bottle Down 05:26
5. Something Is Wrong With My Radio 02:39
6. Built For Speed 06:30
7. Look At That Cadillac 04:25

8. Runaway Boy 03:46
9. Lonely Summer Nights 04:22
10. Too Hip, Gotta Go 02:39
11. Stray Cats Strut 05:42
12. She's Sexy And 17 04:40
13. Banjo Time 

(Foggy Mountain Breakdown) 02:16
14. The Race Is On 02:14
15. Tear It Up 04:03
16. Oh Boy 03:03
17. Rock This Town 06:50
CD 1 total run time: 70:33

CD 2, Cologne, July.16th 1981
1. Sweet Love On My Mind 03:58
2. Double Talkin' Baby 03:37
3. Rumble In Brighton 03:34
4. My One Desire 04:38
5. Ubangi Stomp 04:16
6. Drink That Bottle Down 05:34
7. Storm The Embassy 05:05

8. Stray Cats Strut 04:09

9. Fishnet Stockings 02:48

10. Important Words 04:32

11. Rock This Town 08:28

12. Runaway Boy 04:40

13. Sometin' Else 04:45

14. Gonna Ball 04:14

CD 2 total run time: 64:27

Claire Holley to release 'Time in the Middle' on June 2

A native Mississippian now living in Los Angeles, Claire Holley began performing and writing songs in college, but released her first recordings while living in North Carolina. She began getting regular airplay on WUNC's "Back Porch Music," and her self-titled debut from Yep Roc Records was featured on NPR's Weekend Edition. A move to the west coast followed and, soon after, she began collaborating with directors on their film and play projects. Holley has released seven records, and her Powdercoat ep, a collaboration with Kristin Mooney, won the 2014 "Best in Popular Music" from the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters-Huffington Post called it "one of the year's loveliest recordings." A tasteful vocalist and guitar player, Claire is an engaging performer and has sung at Merlefest, Mountain Stage, The Oxford American music series and a host of listening rooms around the country. Holley's forthcoming solo album, Time in the Middle, will be released June 2, 2015.  

For more information:  http://claireholley.com/

Von Grey's 'Panophobia' EP set for release on August 14, 2015

Lead Single “Katie” Is Out May 12

Panophobia, the new EP from von Grey, will be released on Friday, August 14. Produced by Dan Hannon (Manchester Orchestra, A Rocket to the Moon), Panophobia is von Grey’s most raw and urgent offering to date. See below for track listing. The six-track EP follows 2014’s Awakening, praised by PopMatters as “strange, ethereal pop music, unencumbered by genre,” and 2012’s von Grey, which landed the alt-indie band bookings on “Late Show with David Letterman” and “Conan” and prompted Daytrotter to say, “They take our breath away.”

Bringing a fierce yet tender edge to their luminous harmonies, von Grey spins a story of unreciprocated longing on the EP’s first single, “Katie,” which will be released on May 12. The lyric video for “Katie” can be viewed HERE. 

von Grey – made up of sisters Annika (vocals, violin, guitar, keys), Fiona (vocals, guitar, violin, percussion), Petra (keys, electronic percussion, background vocals) and Kathryn (cello, bass pedals, keys, background vocals) – will be touring widely in support of Panophobia. Summer tour dates will be announced soon. The Atlanta-based band has toured nationally with the Indigo Girls, Lindsey Stirling, Ron Pope and Rusted Root, among others, and performed at such festivals as Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits, SXSW, Gathering of the Vibes and Shaky Knees.

While the EP’s title means “fear of everything” and reflects “the theme of insecurity or uncertainty threaded throughout the songs,” as Annika explains, Panophobia in fact represents von Grey’s bold and undaunted progression into new sonic terrain. “In making the EP, we really broke our patterns and worked with different sounds and textures that viscerally connected with us,” Annika says. 

To create Panophobia, von Grey’s main songwriters, Annika and Fiona, employed a stream-of-consciousness approach to songwriting that compelled them toward everything from exploration of the insidious nature of mental illness (on “Cyclical Dreams”) to esoteric meditations on the forces of light and dark (on “Phengophobia,” whose title means “fear of daylight”). Both lyrically ambitious and sonically eclectic, Panophobia shifts from the stark “Forever Bound” (a haunting track laced with delicate piano work that captures the pain of losing a loved one to suicide) to the gloriously swirling and beat-driven “Reborn” to the sensually charged “Say My Name.”

Panophobia - Track Listing

1. Phengophobia
2. Cyclical Dreams
3. Katie
4. Forever Bound
5. Say My Name
6. Reborn

2014 off to strong start via new releases

Peter Gabriel's songcraft is featured on 'And I'll Scratch Yours' 

An interesting and unique tribute to Peter Gabriel as well as a fantastic new EP from Atlanta-based indie folk group von Grey prove to be among the first noteworthy releases of 2014, while a recent DVD title celebrating a legendary music festival staged back in 1983 that paved the way for Coachella and other modern-day events also demands music fans' undivided attention before closing the door on last year's wealth of outstanding titles.

Various artists: Bon Iver, Randy Newman, Arcade Fire and more
Title: And I'll Scratch Yours (Real World Productions)
You might like if you enjoy: Peter Gabriel, Elbow, Arcade Fire, Lou Reed
Tell me more: It has taken more than three years, but the companion disc to Peter Gabriel's 2010 covers collection Scratch My Back (where he covered material by the likes of Radiohead, David Bowie and Arcade Fire) is being released this week. And I'll Scratch Yours (out Jan. 7, 2014) finds the majority of artists covered by Gabriel on Scratch My Back now reciprocating and covering some of his songs. Highlights abound; what's not to love about Elbow's tender "Mercy Street," Arcade Fire's artful "Games Without Frontiers" and the late Lou Reed's Neil Young & Crazy Horse-styled approach on "Solsbury Hill." Information: PeterGabriel.com. 
Get And I'll Scratch Yours now

Artist: von Grey
Album: Awakening (VG Publishing)
You might like if you enjoy: First Aid Kit, The Corrs, Clannad
Tell me more: Blending the Celtic stylings of Ireland's Corrs with the Americana strains of the Civil Wars and First Aid Kit, von Grey is something special. The group, which features four real-life von Frey sisters Annika (lead vocals, violin, banjo, guitar, keyboards), Fiona (lead vocals, guitar, violin, percussion), Petra (keys, lap steel guitar, backing vocals) and Kathryn (cello, bass, mandolin, keys, background vocals), shines on Awakening. The six-song collection (set for release on Jan. 21, 2014) boasts material ranging from textured harmonies-rich song craft ("Keep It Cool," "Upset Me") to modern pop-mining uptempo songs ("Come On," "Ashes"). Information: vonGreymusic.com.
Pre-order Awakening now

DVD title: '83 US Festival (MVD Visual)
You might like if you enjoy: U2, Men At Work, The Stray Cats, INXS
Tell me more: Long before Coachellafest began its yearly run in Indio, the groundbreaking US Festival ("US" was an acronym for "Unite us in Song") was staged at Glen Helen Regional Park in San Bernardino, California over the Memorial Day weekend in May 1983. Now comes the first official DVD release featuring highlights from the epic event, with a documentary and performances capturing the excitement of the three-day festival. Highlights include a young INXS tearing through "The One Thing," rockabilly trio the Stray Cats' one-two sonic punch "Double Talkin' Baby" and "Rock This Town," and Men At Work's infectious "Who Can It Be Now" and reggae-charged "It's A Mistake." One of the decade's most illustrious performances is revealed via U2's rousing "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "Electric Co." Information: mvdvisual.com. 
Get US Festival 1983: Days 1-3 now