New Bomb Turks - Four Times Nine (White Trash Soul Real R'n'R No.16)

 

In my previous post about Teengenerate, I mentioned the New Bomb Turks as one of my favored punk rock bands of the '90s. The first time I saw and heard them playing this suprecharged rock'n'roll, there was a look of obvious surprise on my face, see I was expecting guys in leather jackets with long or spiky haircuts and other such dumb clichés. I hadn't even heard of the Descendents or Milo yet (this was the pre-internet era, as I've mentioned many times already) and I also didn't know that the members of Bad Religion were college graduates. Learning through fanzines that these four guys had English degrees from Ohio State University was quite a revelation for me. I was myself, too, something in between because I wasn't a nerd definitely but I also wasn't someone who didn't like to read, especially literature and history. As you might have guessed, I felt completely at home.

The band took their name from Robert Wuhl's character in the early-'80s cult classic comedy 'The Hollywood Nights', which also marked the screen debut of Tony Danza. I remember them uploading a letter to their embryonic website from an Armenian guy complaining about the name because he believed it had something to do with Turkey and genocide. Afterwards, he told them to fuck off and sent him some patches or pins, it was hilarious!

It was the "Destroy-Oh-Boy!" album that first blew me away on Tim's Crypt. The New Bomb Turks combined the rawest '50s rock 'n' roll with the snotty '77 punk and the intense warp speed of '80s hardcore, a winning formula copied by at least two other great bands of the era, The Dirtys from Michigan and Los Ass Draggers from Spain. From that moment on, I felt that things were going downhill for me. I was hooked on like a heroin addict. I couldn't wait for their next single or LP and that continued until they decided to split. They reformed thanks to some evil rock'roll power and I got to see them on stage here in Greece about ten years back. 

The homegrown stuff I made especially for you once again was inspired by the Rolling Stones' "12X5". Somehow, I had to force myself to narrow it down to just four songs from each of their albums and three compilations of singles and other tracks. It turned out to be a real challenge. If you think the job of a serious compiler is easy, just try doing the same thing with the Ramones or Motorhead smart ass... But I think I've cracked it. The more I listen to this, the more I like it. For the cover of the comp, I used the stunning sketches of Arturo de Leon, the man behind the artwork for N.B.T.'s debut and a '90s t-shirt that I found on eBay and bought without hesitation. I believe it is his too. 

Bear in mind that these guys are from the same region as Cheetah Chrome of the Dead Boys and Mike Hudson of the Pagans. Their punk rock 'n' roll has some serious bloodline and DNA. I don't know about the Epitaph stuff but Crypt have reissued multiple times their first two albums, so do yourself a favor if you're not sitting on any of these and go fuckin' buy everything with their name on.