Seattle has a storied musical history. From the arena rock of Heart to the birthplace of grunge and leading alternative label Sub Pop Records. The city is also the birthplace of snot nosed punk rockers BABY AND THE NOBODIES, who have just released “Bombs Away,” the first single from their forthcoming Ready or Not album, through F-Bomb Records.
Recorded in Seattle at the legendary London Bridge and produced by Jonathan Plum (Ann Wilson, Candlebox, Alice in Chains, etc.), BABY AND THE NOBODIES have delivered the perfect album to get you off your ass and up to the bar to kick off the New Year correctly. Finding the mental midway point between tipsy and sloshed and ready to thrown down on a moment’s notice, Ready or Not is eight solid tracks of pure melodic mayhem …
So what’s it like? Well the press release above builds it nicely and goes on to reference “Pop punk, glam punk, edgy power pop, however you want to label it”, and essentially it’s a bit of all of those things. Their latest album takes all the sounds of the best few decades (70’s, 80’s and 90’s that is) and mixes everyone from The Runaways and Californian Punk to the East Coast’s Johnny Thunders and even Blondie and spews them out nicely mixed with more than a little attitude.
If you like the sound of that then songs like opener ‘Bombs Away’ will pique your interest with a very Debbie Harry delivery over a cool driving riff. ‘Nothing For Me’ adds more spiky swagger, and ‘Kings and Queens’ a dreamy low-key revolution. At times you could be at CBGB, at others at a So-Cal punk Rock yard party.
There’s depth though, hinted at on Kings and Queens, the gentle ballad ‘Why’d You Have to Go’ is pure teen dream balladry, the sort of sound that influenced everyone from Blondie to Ramones. It’s the gritter tunes though that work just as well, and the well worn riff of ‘The Next One’ is a highlight along with the slower-paced grind of ‘Here I Am’ or teh moody fist-pumping ‘Aggressive’.
We close this one with the almost Celtic-edged ballad ‘Back to Start’, a fine song that has a hint of ‘X’ and things to come. At only eight tracks you do feel a little shorted, but there’s enough quality here to make you want to discover more.
