As I have previously spoken about, I was brought up in my early years listening to the blues through my Dad. My Mum however, was a huge northern soul and motown fan, and some of my earliest memories of car journeys to and from school are sound-tracked by the likes of Move On Up, Keep On Runnin' and Heard It Through The Grapevine, songs that to this day I still adore. In my teenage years I went on a discovery into punk and hardcore. Inevitably the garage rock and proto-punk bands such as MC5, The Stooges and The Sonics came to be of keen interest, particularly the latter who I think are one the most ground-breaking yet underrated bands of their era. Shortly after moving to London some years ago, I accidentally ended up at a garage rock night at The Fiddler's Elbow in Camden, and it reignited my interest in the genre. I still listen to some of these bands on occasion; there is something quite compelling about the raw creativity of these groups that never fails to tickle by eardrums.
What I have never been able to find before is a band who combine both of these styles into one, melding the organic soulfulness of early motown with the pulsating energy of garage rock. That is until now, because this blend of styles is exactly what The Stone MGs create. This duo's three track EP Good Times delivers all of this vintage flair with a modern production that doesn't lose any of the grit, and dear god it is fucking fantastic!
The opening track I Need You, originally released a couple of years ago as a single, is a wild and funky opener conjuring up Temptation's style call and response vocals over a driving drum beat and a relentless bass line, while the dirty guitars, smooth organs and saxophone solos make this into an incredibly addictive tune. The vocals throughout this EP really are amazing, the lead vocal particularly sounds like Otis Redding and Rob Tyner somehow crossed their vocal chords together and made a fiercely prodigious hybrid.
Shotgun Mick is a more rock'n'roll tune, taking in New York Dolls vibes as it tells a story of the title character's adventures in a post-apocalyptic motor city. It's got an almost constant pummelling rhythm that reminds me of The Dogs and other harder edged garage rock bands too, whilst in the guitars I even hear some Hendrix-esque grooves. There is still that soul influence in the track too, and it comes out not just in the vocal performance but in the melodies too. This is some clever song-writing and the more you listen the more you can hear the distinct characteristics of this duo.
The final track Detroit is just stunning, combining all of their elements together perfectly. It makes you want to just put your foot to the floor and drive at full speed through the blurring city lights. In this track I can hear the sound of many bands that would come well after motown and garage rock – Queens Of The Stone Age, Grave Pleasures, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Guitar Wolf and even early Kings Of Leon. When the track breaks down we get a Solomon Burke style call out delivered at break-neck speed before the track builds up again into that stunning chorus.
I absolutely loved this EP, and I cannot wait to hear more from The Stone MGs in the future. What makes this record so good though is not just the sound and the catchy hooks, but that on every listen you can still hear something new. This is isn't just simple four to the floor punk rock'n'roll, these are some well crafted and immaculately written songs that mix motown soul and garage rock in a way I never thought imaginable before.
Listen to Good Times by The Stone MGs right here
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