Rip van Winkle is a short story about a Dutch settler who escapes to the mountains from his naggin wife. He meets a group silent, bearded men who are playing nine-pins. Rip does not ask who they are, instead, he begins to drink some of their moonshine* and soon falls asleep for 20 years, so sleeping through the American War of Independence (1775-83). This is told by Shannon & The Clams in 50s style dirty sweet rock and roll

from the album Dreams In The Rat House on Hardly Art. Video is made by the many sided guitarist Cody Blanchard.

Euro tour May-June

*Term for illicitly distilled spirits in the US.

Double A side split single by

GUANTANAMO BAYWATCH
„surf sex sludge garbage”

SHANNON & THE CLAMS
„a heartbroken John Waters trying to be a good girl”

dirty sweet rock and roll on Suicide Squeeze Records

Record Store Day will be on 19 April.  Participant stores on your location.

Shannon & The Clams – Rat House

„is what SHANNON AND THE CLAMS (da) do (ron ron) heads and tails above and more importantly, BEYOND the other troglodytes and biscuit-heads out there. Can a group be a „girl group” if there is only one girl in the group? Can a modern working band be considered „oldies”? No silly, but the rules are none, and anything goes, and this is PUNK, punk. Or is it rock ‘n’ roll, or whatever? It is SHANNON AND THE CLAMS and they do what they want.” NOBUNNY

Rat House is taken from their latest album, Dreams in the Rat House

Todd Tamanend Clark started out listening to his mother’s Yma Sumac records as a child in the 1950s. Some of his favorites were Bo Diddley and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. Then he heavily influenced by the 60’s psychedelic rock bands like Jimi Hendrix Experience, Doors, Electric Prunes and particularly the United States of America, in consequence of their synthesizers. He has fallen in love with these instruments. Then there were some bands from the end of the 60s sure, but rather he worked with occasionally collaborators. For example Cheetah Chrome (Rocket from The Tombs – David Thomas’ pre-Pere Ubu band, Dead Boys) or W. S. Burroughs. The Aardvark Thru Zymurgy LP was recorded and released in 1977 under the name of New Gods:

Reissue by Burka For Everybody

*

Silly surfy cartoon rock by King Lollipop aka Cody Blanchard, the guitarist of Shannon & The Clams:

7″ by Surfin’ Ki Records

I’m having this pretty weird vision in my head while I’m trying to grab the essence of Shannon and the Clams– I’m seeing a heartbroken John Waters trying to be a good girl, I’m seeing the sweetest pop music turning into a psycho-killer lollipop from too much overdrive and most of all I’m seeing lots of eccentric fucked-upness. Just look at these crazy Californian guys and you would probably know more of this band than any shitty record reviews could ever tell – the harshest of good old pin-up style, some weird uniforms, lots of gayness and colors everywhere, so obviously all of these (alongside with the catchy melodies) are about FUN and the result is fully pleasing.

Still, Shannon and the Clams are by no means a scam band with only one cheaply over-hyped debut album – Dreams in the Rat House is already their third full-length release while Shannon is also involved in Hunx and his Punks (another brilliantly gay band) and Cody is simply King Lollipop –  I honestly think they’re just getting better and better in their songwriting skills. If I was a bitch, I would even be envious of them, haha.

All in all, this LP is a perfect pick for the summer for any record junkies who enjoy surf pop with an almost sickening overdose of a hundred different bubblegum flavors, or who appreciate some troubled, nastier allusions meanwhile, or who are still fond of the garage ideal (i. e. exploding band dynamics plus infectious energies) or who are really fed up with bands trying to make an intellectual / arty impression. 

Dreams in the Rat House is out now on Hardly Art Records – sorry for demonstrating the album here so poorly but I’m afraid the label is a lot eager to make you listen to the vinyl and they are probably right!

Or you can catch Shannon and the Clams on tour in France and Belgium this July!

Shannon & The Clams

Dreams in the Rat House LP by Hardly Art Records

One of Hunx’s ex-punkette, Shannon has founded own band. It called Shannon & The Clams. Easy beach garage rock and roll

Rip Van Winkle and Into a Dream from Dreams in the Rat House LP by Hardly Art. The 2 tracks are free download. Euro tour in August.

Miss Alex White (guitar) and her brother Francis Scott Key (drums) are the White Mystery. They play raw wild garage rock’n’ roll. 3rd LP

White Mystery Euro Tour