Wanton « The RingMaster Review

After their recent introduction as the newest member of the Undead Artists family though the label’s compilation album Monster Mash-Up, we had real eagerness to check out the new album from Finnish psychobilly outfit Wanton. Their track was a potent teaser to their forthcoming second album, but only hinting at the bloody fun and raw adventure which was discovered within Harmageddon Get-Together.

Hailing from Rauma on the Finnish west coast, Wanton infuse a healthy dose of punk and instinctive rock ‘n’ roll in their psychobilly bred sound, a mix giving it a strain of individuality which sparks the imagination. and creates the visceral captivation cast by the Häiriö Piirinen recorded and Toni Randell mixed and mastered Harmageddon Get-Together. Wrapped in the artwork of Saara Jansson, the album casts its horror bound Intro before hitting the ground running with Fun ‘n’ Gore. With swinging beats from Eetu Ritakorpi aligned to the plucked throbbing of Santeri Toivonen’s double bass, the track is swiftly into its darkly aired stroll with swagger as compelling as the suggestive melodies and scything riffs from the guitar of Oskari Nieminen. There is no escaping the predacious tone of the song, its gait never forceful but more a stalking of ears as the grisly growl of vocalist Santeri Kero prowls. Even so, its catchy swing is openly lively and persuasive, leading ears to a truly seductive chorus and more flirtatious enterprise. Like a mix of Demented Are go and Zombie Ghost Train, it is an irresistible full start to the album quickly matched by its successor.

Censor This! is just as tenacious and catchy, Toivonen driving the temptation with his resonating strings as a rockabilly seeded guitar jangle courts the vocal growling of Kero. It is an easy going and simple to get involved in roar leaving a lingering snarl even as the excellent theatre and rapacious intent of Bump In The Night brings its ghostly haunts to bear on ears and imagination quickly after. Shadows line its corners, infection its vaunt as body and spirit bounces to its eager twists and turns. Nieminen’s guitar again spins a web of intrigue and melodic adventure, keys just as keen to toy with the senses as they spook the atmosphere.

DAG again comes to mind as 21st Century Haunting stomps through ears next, riffs and grooves compelling incitement within a web of imagination before Town Of Nihilo serenades with its suggestive caresses. Of course that initial smoulder is soon a feisty blaze as riffs and rhythms escape their restraints. Throughout the song they are caught and escape again and again as the western air of the song coats the senses with its sultry embrace.

There is a touch of cowpunk to next up Cyanide & Arsenic too, the song featuring a duet between Kero and an unknown but seductive female companion. It is like a bend of The Hillbilly Moon Explosion and The Only Ones when vocalist Peter Perrett dueted with Penetration front woman Pauline Murray and quite captivating, charming ears ready for the rhythmically skittish and hungrily infectious Meteors scented Scare Tactics And Human Frights. As in all tracks, Wanton soon sculpt their own creative character, an identity subsequently turning the outstanding Hyde into an insatiably addictive proposal with Ritakorpi ‘s anthemically stabbing beats and Toivonen’s pulsing riff the virulent heart to the enticing tangle of varied guitar and vocal devilry.

From one big highlight to another as Dystopia romps and rumbles with riotous intent and contagious endeavour straight after. It carries all the ingredients and zeal to ignite instincts and revitalise the spirit; psychobilly to leave the body and soul uninhibited. It is a prowess just as impressively found within the raw mouth-watering quick step of Second Coming and the passions nagging rockabilly bred Front Row Ticket. Imagine The Comets under the leadership of P Paul Fenech and you get a sense of the joy found in the latter alone.

Drama and attitude fuel the escapades of Vendetta next, where melodies and grooves are just as dangerous as the rhythmic and vocal trespass enslaving the appetite, while Infected is a corpse strewn infestation of senses clipping beats, brooding basslines, and sonic clang, all dripping decay and raw temptation as putrefied raw vocals scowl. Both are a trespass to devour and on their own a reason to declare Harmageddon Get-Together is a must.

The album’s fine conclusion is provided by the cleaner cut presence of The End; a warm and seriously enticing slice of boisterous balladry which may be missing some of the sparks of those before it but only leaves behind a lingering greed for more.

Psychobilly is blessed with some truly exciting potential loaded bands at this moment in time but, such the mighty assault of Harmageddon Get-Together, it is easy to suggest that Wanton have stolen a march on them all.

Harmageddon Get-Together is released April 1st through Undead Artists with pre-ordering available now @ https://wantonpsycho.bandcamp.com/music

https://www.facebook.com/wantonpsycho/

Pete RingMaster 17/03/2017

Always one to push his music family and label’s adventure, founder and owner of Undead Artists, Johnny Rose (Thirteen Shots) set the task for his bands to record a cover of a track from the other label companion he paired them up with. It was not just to be a simple version though but a task with the remit to make the song their own helped by Rose’s sly move of matching up different genre bred bands and their contrasting textures and sounds. What emerged is the ten track treat of Monster Mash-Up; eight songs not to be found anywhere else as well as a pair of additional slices of very appetising goodness.

The compilation gets off to a flyer with The Bloodstrings and the track Dead In Berlin. Grabbing the song from horror punks Cavaverman with relish, the German quartet swiftly grip attention as the throaty upright bass twangs of Nick waggle a beckoning finger. As the swinging melodies and rhythms of Manuel and Fest respectively, only add to the growing lure soon led by the captivating tones of vocalist Celina, the band fully infuses the track with their punkabilly touch and contagion. In no time hips are swaying and feet a skittish blur in union with the excellent start to the album and just as enthused by next up Motel Transylvania, and indeed the rest romping across the already appetite pleasing release.

The 2015 formed Italian horrorbilly outfit get their claws into Stolen By The Night from Silpha and The Corpseboners next, gnarly riffs and firmly kissing beats from stand-up drummer/vocalist T.Ghoul prowling the senses before sparking a ferocious roar led by the sonic fire of The Wolfman and the grumbling bass of Fish”The scarecrow”. Within that raw dirty confrontation, warm suggestive melodies radiate and deceptive calm seduces until the blaze is ignited again. As those around them, the band live up to instructions and make the outstanding fan favourite song of its creators into something distinct to themselves, the texture of male instead of female vocals alone giving it a new carnivorous air.

It is truly fair to say it is a success all the swaps achieve, the bloody punk ‘n’ roll prowess of Dr. Hell taking Don’t Say The Z Word from Lupen Tooth’s debut EP and infesting it with punk vivacity and aggression as well as a delicious almost ska inspired devilment half way in. A repetitious chorus backed by group vocals demands involvement to top one virulent stomp to keenly embrace before we get an alternative version of a song recently part of a release already exciting the year. From Hamme in Belgian, horrorpunks Deadite recently released their album The Damned, a compelling slab of ravenous rock n’ roll within which its haunting Tiger Army-esque title track provided one of many major highlights. The trio offer an alternative take for this album, a just as captivating and in many ways even more seductive temptation with its cleaner cut yet thicker smoulder, a twist giving it a more Dommin like air.

Bremen hailing Jamey Rottencorpse and The Rising Dead are next to step forward, laying their hands on I Sold My Soul Tonight by Raizing Hell, a band sadly no longer with us who split up before they could return the favour. The enjoyably scuzzy horrorpunk of Jamey and co easily infuses into the original’s more punk based rock ‘n’ roll, giving it a dirtier toxicity without losing the boisterous virulence which just hits the spot like a doppelganger to its counterpart.

The UK’s Lupen Tooth ignites the senses yet again straight after, the Bristol band grabbing the visceral punk of Hamburg’s Dr. Hell found in the track Carl The Metrosexual Werewolf to give it two minutes plus of their horror punk revelry, resulting in an insatiable slab of infection loaded rock ‘n’ roll. In the often rare climate of every track within a compilation being as equal in quality and invention as any other, bigger favourites did still arise with personal instincts, this one of them but persistently challenged with every listen by all with Silpha & The Corpseboners proving the fact with Go Psycho. The Stein/Nürnberg based three piece led by the temptress tones and presence of Silpha Obscura bring their bloodlusting horrorpunk trespass to the Motel Transylvania track. As ever, theirs is a sound with a glorious schizophrenic nature; sax and keys sultrily toying with jazzy intent as the band deconstruct and rebuild the track in their own devilish design to bewitch ears and imagination.

From one treat to another as we get a glimpse at label newcomers, Wanton next. Undead Artists is poised to release the Finnish band’s new album Harmageddon Get-Together in the near future. Censor This! is taken from that encounter, a psychobilly roar quickly taking body and spirit on a ruggedly tenacious and contagious romp. With a flavoursome spurt of punk in their caustically catchy sound and a vein of melodic temptation, the Rauma hailing band makes a thrilling introduction to label fans, one sure to incite plenty of anticipation for their second album.

The Bloodstrings get their song In Love With A Monster devoured and ignited again in their own way by Italian horror punks Cavaverman right after, the band blending English and their homeland tongue in a fiery and energetically rousing version luring air lashing limbs and aroused vocal chords as easily as the original.

The album is completed by Somewhere Under The Graveyard, the Jamey Rottencorpse and The Rising Dead anthem seized by a host of musicians from the Undead Artists Family and given their own seriously rousing punk and rock ‘n’ roll zeal. It is a riotous and fiercely enjoyable end to a release which not only has you bounding feverishly around the room but hungry to check out its occupants even closer.

Last year was a big and successful year for Undead Artists with Monster Mash-Up suggesting we and they have seen nothing yet.

Undead Artists Records Monster Mash-Up is released March 24^th with pre-ordering, also for Limited Edition CDs and T-Shirts/CD packs, available now @ https://undeadartists.bandcamp.com/album/monster-mash-up-2

http://undeadartistsbooki.wixsite.com/undeadartists https://twitter.com/ArtistsUndead https://undeadartists.bandcamp.com/

Pete RingMaster 07/03/2017