LISTEN: Spike Jones - I Wanna Go Back To West Virginia

Heading back home to West Virginia tomorrow, so no better time for this 1942 big band number from Spike Jones and His City Slickers.

"I wanna go back to West Virginia. I wanna go back to the one I love," - indeed.

LISTEN: Living Saints - Living Saints

I've known Living Saints' main man Cody Lynch for many years since his days in the skate punk trio Feet First. He then played in Down Goes Frazier before doing his solo project Wine & Water. I have a lot of talented friends, but I've always admired Lynch's work ethic and ambition. In 2011, he formed Living Saints, what I believe is the first full-time full band he has fronted. With Living Saints, Lynch's hard work seems to be paying off with what is his most creative and professional musical outing yet. Living Saints blends many of Lynch's influences including Leatherface, Austin Lucas or Dinosaur Jr., making for some enjoyably catchy folk punk rock and roll. The production of this record isn't top quality (a demo recording in a living room), but I've certainly given it a number of listens. I hope the band can get into the studio soon, as I'm excited to see what is to come from this pretty promising group from Huntington.

LISTEN: Old Poets - Demo

Time for a little self-promotion as I post the demo from my new band. Old Poets is a new hardcore punk band in Austin, Texas. We formed in late 2011 because there is a lack of quality hardcore in the area. Being a band of older guys who haven't played in years, we just wanted to write music that we listened to when we were the age of most people in hardcore bands in Austin. Since releasing this demo, we've had light comparisons to Right Brigade, Black Flag and Youth of Today. So have a listen, or download it, and feel free to drop a donation. We hope you dig it.

LISTEN: M Iafrate - Happy Xmas, X Is Here

Happy Holidays. Enjoy this seasonally appropriate record from M Iafrate. See you in 2012.

LISTEN: 63 Eyes - Look in For Mothmen

Here is material from an incredible 1980s underground rock band from Parkersburg. 63 Eyes featured now prominent West Virginia musician Todd Burge on vocals and bass along with Mark Poole (guitar) and Wes Poole (drums). Influential on the likes a number of area bands to follow in the years after, 63 Eyes could be compared to Husker Dü, Meat Puppets of Flipper. One fan commented: "I swear I hear 'Exit the Pig' when I [listen to] Foo Fighters 'This Is a Call.' Same chords, same guitar sound, same attitude... but 7 years after [63 Eyes]." Considering this album was recorded in 1987, the terrific songwriting paired with quality production could fool any listener into believing this record is contemporary. Look in For Mothmen is now available for download for $10, and upon streaming it for free, is well worth it.

LISTEN: Unwanted Christmas Presents - LP

As I mentioned Friday in a post about The Mad Daddys, Unwanted Christmas Presents were brought to my attention by my friend Eric who read about them on the Terminal-Boredom forum. UCP was an improvisational garage-noise punk band from Charleston in the mid- to late-80s. The duo was made up of Keith Dunleavy on vocals and Jon Nathan on guitar/percussion/electronics. Dunleavy, who along with Nathan also played in Death & Co., died in a car accident in 1990 at the age of 26. By that point he had already established himself as a sort of Jim Shephard of West Virginia. As an experimental rock cult figure in the region, Dunleavy was seemingly as controversial and confrontational as he was creative and brilliant. It is difficult to compare Unwanted Christmas Presents to any other bands. The music is abrasive and sleazy punk rock but with a poetic and bluesy backbone to it that brings to mind the MC5, Pere Ubu or Cheater Slicks. While UCP may not be easily approachable by those who don't listen to artists from the In the Red, Siltbreeze or Flying Nun rosters, there is a beauty to the songs. It is a tragedy that Keith Dunleavy died so young - the cause of which I do not know. Jon Nathan did an interview with Negative Guest List magazine (of Australia) in 2010 that my friend is trying to track down. Maybe that will shed some light on this somewhat mysterious Charleston band, who only hinted at their potential to exist among some truly great experimental noise acts from that era. So take a listen to these two tracks from the band's LP, which was recorded in the late '80s but not unearthed until 1993 by Electrocution Records. This is a truly fantastic piece of West Virginia punk rock history.

LISTEN: Unwanted Christmas Presents - Industrial Death
LISTEN: Unwanted Christmas Presents - Everything Is Fine

LISTEN: The Mad Daddys - Nancy

It is safe to say that Keith Dunleavy is an unknown name to most, even within the West Virignia music scene. In fact, I didn't know of him or his music ventures until a couple years ago when my friend Eric read about Keith's band Unwanted Christmas Presents on the Terminal Boredom forum, where members came to blows discussing the controversial band's greatness. I bought the Unwanted Christmas Present record, originally released in the late '80s, from the band's guitar player/drummer Jon Nathan. It was wonderful to discover that there was a band from Charleston that made such gritty and visceral punk rock, and was decades ahead of its time.

I have come across some fantastic videos and recordings of some of Dunleavy's projects, and I am very excited to share them. This live audio recording is of Dunleavy's band The Mad Daddys playing at his residence in Charleston on New Year's Even 1985-6. It is more approachable than Unwanted Christmas Presents, less punk than another of his bands Death & Co., and sort of reminds me of Velvet Underground or Pere Ubu. This video also features some old images of Charleston, which is fun to see.

LISTEN: Sundown - Mansion Burning

On Monday I posted the demo from Charleston accordion-driven punk-pop band P'u Rens, which featured Dustin White on bass. Nowadays, Dustin is living in Columbus, Ohio, playing in a new band Sundown. The "psych-folk" group recently released this six-song cassette, which you can stream below via Bandcamp. Sundown is comparable to other bands of the sub-genre including Grizzly Bear or Deerhoof, with a mix of folk rock and electronic noise. It is enjoyable stuff that has the potential of gaining popularity with Pitchfork readers. The band recently played a gig at The Empty Glass in Charleston, and did an interview withe Charleston Gazette, in which Dustin talks about his Appalachian roots.

LISTEN: The Rozwell Kid - LP

The Rozwell Kid is the solo project of Jordan Hudkins, who drums for The Demon Beat. I'm actually not that familiar with The Demon Beat, who is a garage rock band out of Shepherdstown (my favorite town in West Virginia). I tried to go see them in Austin once, but on the day of the show they were no longer on the bill. The Rozwell Kid moves away from the style of The Demon Beat and instead play "noisy power-pop" that "recalls the earlier, glory days of acts like Weezer and the more amplified side of Ben Kweller and Spoon." Living in Austin, I've come to despise Spoon, but I certainly love early Weezer, and I see where Jordan is coming from. Rozwell certainly rings of mid-'90s big guitar pop rock. I have to say, the songs on this LP are quite enjoyable. You can stream the album here or download it for free via bandcamp.

LISTEN: Pike Holt - Call Me Up

It's been a little less than a decade since the release of the Complete Strangers' brilliant self-titled album, which still stands as one of my favorite albums ever from a West Virginia-related band. Its blending of styles that range from The Stooges to the Talking Heads, Velvet Underground to Prince, was unique, ahead of its time, but simply fun and exciting.

The mastermind of that band was Pike Holt, who is still at it making music in Columbus, Ohio. As part of his current solo venture, he has released a new track called "Call Me Up." It rings of Complete Strangers, but with a matured approach to rock and roll. I can't wait to hear what comes soon from Pike.

LISTEN: Spirit Night - Normal EP

It has been a busy few weeks, so I apologize for not posting much. I have some things queued up to post soon, though. For the time being, check out the new EP from Spirit Night, an excellent ambient post-rock (think Bon Iver, Iron & Wine) project from Morgantown's Dylan Balliett. Click here for a review of the EP from WVRockscene, or just give it a free listen (and download) below.

LISTEN: M Iafrate - No Matter How Deep The Darkness, He Descends Deeper Still

A mere 24 hours after recording began, M Iafrate (with the help of producer David Klug, both formerly of The Minus Tide) has released his new 5-song EP No Matter How Deep The Darkness, He Descends Deeper Still. Great stuff. Give it a listen, then name your price and buy it.

LISTEN: Doc Williams, RIP

Though Doc Williams was born in Cleveland and raised in a small Western Pennsylvania coal town, it was in Wheeling where his career in country music began, and recently ended with his death on Jan. 31. Leader of the group Doc Williams and the Border Riders, he was a constant fixture on WWVA in Wheeling, and appeared on the radio for more than 50 years. He was 96 when he died.

LISTEN: Austin Lucas - Hollywood

Austin Lucas first came to my attention in early 2007 when he was featured on the track "Hold My Bed" from Chuck Ragan's Blueprint Sessions demo compilation. I sought out Austin's solo material via MySpace. It was there that I discovered at the time he was living in Prague, but originally from Bloomington, Indiana. He had previously been in grind punk bands Rune and Twentythird Chapter, but was now returning to his roots playing country/folk.

In an exhausting list of punk-turned-country singer-songwriters like Ragan, Tim Barry, Ben Nichols or Drag the River, Austin Lucas sets himself apart with a more traditional approach and a truly gifted voice. Influenced by his musical father Robert Lucas, Austin spent six years of his youth with the Indiana University Children's Choir and performing in operas and classical choral pieces. While the appeal of the likes of Ragan and Barry is the gritty punk rock undertone to their solo material, the conventional roots style of Lucas's songs may be a turn off. For me, the sincerity is the appeal. His songs are tender and reflective tales about situations and characters to which we can all relate, played with an simple but passionate honesty in his voice and his guitar playing backed by subtle instrumentation from a banjo, stand-up bass, or violin. When I saw Lucas play in Austin, Texas, in late 2007 in a bar with less than 12 people in attendance, I was simply blown away.

On this one track, "Hollywood," Austin Lucas introduces us to the horrors of combat through the experience of a "broad shouldered West Virginia boy" and how they compare to the movie industry's representation of war. The song comes from Lucas's 2007 album Putting the Hammer Down. Great track. Great musician. Check him out.

LISTEN: Austin Lucas - Hollywood

LISTEN: Phil Ochs - The Hills of West Virginia

In light of the Jan. 5 opening of the Phil Ochs documentary There But For Fortune, I want to post his song "The Hills of West Virginia." Ochs was a protest singer who was born in El Paso, Texas, and died way too early at the age of 36. Influenced by the likes of Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Buddy Holly, he was a topical singer and songwriter who unfortunately fell in the shadow of Bob Dylan. In his own right, Ochs was a one-of-a-kind talent - confrontational but witty, fierce but earnest - all with a voice that was unassuming but subtly haunting. "The Hills of West Virginia" comes from one of Ochs's best albums - 1965's I Ain't Marching Anymore.

LISTEN: Phil Ochs - The Hills of West Virginia

LISTEN: Arcane Rifles - Wicked Girl

Arcane Rifles is the newest band from Lexington-based Morgantown legend J Marinelli, who is on drums with Ben Allen on guitar/vocals and Phil Farmer on bass. Described by Marinelli has having a Stooges/Wipers/Joy Division vibe. I dig it.

LISTEN: The Moatsville String Ticklers

Moatsville, West Virginia is a speck of a town in Barbour County from where The Moatsville String Ticklers emerged in the 1920s. In 1929, the group recorded four songs at a make-shift Columbia Records studio in Johnson City, Tennessee. One week later on "Black Tuesday" the Stock Market crashed, the Great Depression began and put an end to Moatsville's claim to fame. All that was left was a 78 rpm record put out by Columbia Records in 1930 that included the tracks "West Virginia Hills" and "Moatsville Blues." Have a listen to a piece of West Virginia music history.

LISTEN: The Moatsville String Ticklers - West Virginia Hills

LISTEN: The Moatsville String Ticklers - Moatsville Blues

LISTEN: Hazel Dickens - Coal Miner's Grave

Hazel Dickens, born in 1935, is a legendary bluegrass singer from Mercer County, West Virginia. She may be best known for her songs featured in the 1976 documentary Harlan County, USA. Dickens' songs are pro-miner, pro-union, pro-West Virginia anthems sung with an unmistakable high lonesome voice. In the wake of Monday's coal mine disaster in Raleigh Country, never more appropriate is Dickens' "Coal Miner's Grave," which was one of her songs featured in Harlan County, USA, an absolutely incredible and important film about the coal miners striker against Duke Power in Harlan County, Kentucky in 1973. (If you haven't seen in, see it. Immediately.)

LISTEN: Irene Perry - The '72 Flood

Courtesy of Eric Courtney, this song is worth a listen:

"Here's a heart-wrenching tune about a devastating flood that swept through 17 small West Virginia towns on February 26, 1972.

"The flood was caused by the catastrophic failure of a coal slurry impoundment dam built along Buffalo Creek in Logan County, WV (about 30 miles south of Madison). What the hell is a coal slurry impoundment dam? Basically, a colossal (mostly) liquid garbage dump built to contain the impurities that are left over as a result of the coal mining process. The poorly built dam in question was less than 3 years old when it gave way, the deadly consequence of a myriad of engineering deficiencies. The resulting flood killed 125 people and left approximately 4,000 people homeless. For more appalling details on this horrific disaster, check out the video clip below from the History Channel."

LISTEN: Irene Perry - The '72 Flood.

LISTEN: Wheeling, West Virginia Hardcore Mp3 Archive

A lad by the name of Corey who used to play in the bands Bala and Union Deposit road has created an archive of hardcore/punk from Wheeling, West Virginia, from the early '90s. This archive was sent to me by my Wheeling-native friend David who played in bands like The Minus Tide, Cobra and Five Minute Conspiracy. Because of my age and and my location, it is a scene I was never a part of and there are bands with which I am not familiar. There are a number of streaming/downloadable songs, and some really good stuff there. I highly recommend taking some take to listen to it or downloading the songs.

"I spent most of my youth playing in various punk/hardcore bands. In the early 90s Wheeling, West Virginia was not exactly a mecca for this fringe culture, but there were about 200 or so kids that would come out to shows. We would book and promote shows anywhere we could rent space. The following archive is my document of that time. Please contact me if you have anything else that could be added to this page; photos, flyers, mp3s, etc."

Check out the Wheeling Hardcore archive here.