Dead Buttons (데드 버튼즈) (KR)Garage Rock from Seoul
Dead Buttons are a Seoul-based rock'n'roll duo comprised of Korean guitarist and singer Jihyun Hong and Paraguayan/Korean drummer and singer Kanghee Lee.
A veteran of Seoul’s indie scene, Hong previously played guitar for hardcore and punk bands like Combative Post and Sweet Guerillaz along with the psych- and pop-tinged garage rock act The Infamous Orchestra.
In December 2013, less than two months after their live debut, Dead Buttons traveled to Tokyo to perform at the Japan-Korea Punk Festival.
In May 2015 Dead Buttons published their first EP "Whoever You Are". Whereas the band’s early material had more of a garage punk feel, "Whoever You Are" boasts a wider array mixing garage rock, blues, country, punk, and psychedelic music. Subsequently Dead Buttons performed several gigs in the UK, Germany, Switzerland and France including the Liverpool Sound City festival and the Primavera festival in Barcelona.
Dead Buttons signed with U.K. record label Baltic Records and released their first EP titled "Some Kind Of Youth" produced by iconic rocker Kim In Su of Crying Nut followed by their second full length album "Rabbit" in 2017.
Reviews
"…fast, catchy, energetic, reckless and tongue-in-cheek straightforward garage rock, rockabilly and country blues in a terrific mix… great melodies and raw, rocking riffs... Definitely a band that is worth checking out for any rock fan."
- Mikkel Falk Moller, GAFFA.dk
"Dead Buttons hooked their crowd in unlike anyone else I’d seen at the festival. Dead Buttons are accessible to all, taking a more international approach to the rock scene, and singing in English. It is maybe this more international styling that has audiences so hooked by them, they are a shining example of what the Korean Indie scene has to offer."
- Unitedkpop.com, Live review
"It introduces a city sluggish with Beatles nostalgia to the likes of Dead Buttons with their Black Keys-esque dirty riffs and angsty blues-shot vocals."
- Silentradio UK, Live review Liverpool Sound City
"The sound is really garage-y, bit gritty, sometimes punk – a sound I have loved for as long as I can remember. So far, I have loved turning this up loud in the car and just singing along with it, but it also gets me through busy work days. I’d say the charm in this really is the sound: it’s very real and very solid work. The vocals match the instrumentation and the album is consistent, not all over the place chasing different styles. In all, I think it’s just really fun and totally worth listening to."
- Beats and sheets Blog
Dead Buttons – 16-22
Upcoming shows
No shows booked at the moment.
Band
- Ji-Hyun Hong – Guitar/Vocals
- Kang-Hee Lee – Drums/Vocals
- MJ moleman – Bass/Vocals
Discography
- 2017 – Rabbit (CD) / Loverock Company, Seoul / Baltic Records, UK
- 2014 – Whoever You Are (EP) / Loverock Company, Seoul / Baltic Records, UK
Also check out:
SECTS TAPE (BE)
Garage / Hardcore
Join the sect!
A better life awaits us all. Only those who know will experience it. Join us and be a part of the wise elite that will bloom in this world and the other.
We shall enlighten the world with the radiance of the guru's knowledges: an end to wars, diseases, sadness, and all things that hindered the greatness of humanity. May this world join the other in a joyful and eternal union.
The Guru and his apostles The Hairy, The Skinny, The Fat and The Tall created Sects Tape as a musical branch of the sect. The result is a mix of surf and garage rock riffs, with a punchier rhythmical section and of course the message and habits of the sect.
In summer 2015 Halshugga Records is released a 1-side EP with three new chants from the sect and in 2017 Rockerill Records in Belgium and Spastic Fantastic Records in Germany released the "We're All Pink Inside" LP.
Reviews
"Alter! SECTS TAPE! Henry Fiats Open Sore in Surf! Was für geile Asis! Kommen unter Nebel einzeln in den gefühlten 12-Quadratmeter-Raum und weihen jeden einzelnen Gast zur Begrüßung. Dann folgen 25 Minuten Feuerwerk."
- Bierschinken fanzine, Live review Crossbonefest
"Over to March 10th with an opener from Tournai, SECTS TAPE, a real weird combo.
They had these cool Agent Orange-like surf guitars, there were good parts of garage trash, classic covers by Devo ("Mongoloid") and Black Flag ("Nervous Breakdown") that you didn't expect to hear here, all played by dudes in huge pink KKK-hats.
A hilarious sight and not easy bunch to pinpoint, but this for sure was enjoyable!"
- Up yours! fanzine, Live review
THE GHOST WOLVES (US)
Blues / Garage / Punk Rock
THE CRAMPS FROM THE CRYPT MEET UP WITH THE RAMONES AND TAKE ALL THE COCAINE HASIL ADKINS LEFT ON THE FLOOR
Carley Wolf grew up with a pack of large white wolf-hybrid dogs on her family's Texas hill country ranch. When she met Jonny Wolf in 2011 and they started making music together, they named their band The Ghost Wolves as a way of memorializing the beloved animals from her family.
Blurring the lines between blues, rock n' roll, noise, punk and early American music, the duo has earned an international reputation as a must-see live act, with nearly 1000 shows between them in 23+ countries including most of western Europe, The USA, Scandinavia, the U.K., and Japan.
The Ghost Wolves have opened lengthy tours for Alejandro Escovedo, The 69 Eyes, All Them Witches, and Drivin' N' Cryin. Their music has been featured in film and TV by Netflix, HBO, Showtime and other major networks, and they currently have a line of apparel in 40+ stores throughout Asia via a collaboration with fashion label Hysteric Glamour.
Their second album “Texas Platinum” was released in 2017 in the US and in Germany by Berlin based label Hound Gawd! Records.
The Ghost Wolves are currently recording their third record with producer Rob Fraboni (Bob Dylan, The Band, The Rolling Stones).
Reviews
"They play stomping blues-garage-punk possessed by who knows what kind of demon... their music has just the right overdose of voodoo punk..."
-Rolling Stone Italia
"The pair tour relentlessly, showing a joy in the turn-it-up that evokes the visceral virtues of rock at its most raw and elemental."
- Lenny Kaye for emusic.com
"Bodacious garage rock with a sneer"
- MountainX, Asheville NC
"A primal musical jewel in wolf's clothing..."
- BP Fallon's Wang Dang Doodle
"Primal, grungy, lo-fi, disruptive, exhilarating..."
- Blurt! Online
"Vertreter dieser reinen - Pardon - schmutzigen Lehre sind etwa: Hazil Atkins, die Cramps, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Flat Duo Jets und wieder Elvis, der Glanz und Elend im Rock 'n' Roll verkörperte wie sonst niemand. Und da wären noch die Ghost Wolves aus Austin, Texas. Carley Wolf und Jonathan Konya sind das netteste Paar, das man sich vorstellen kann - privat. Anders die Lyrics und der Sound des Duos. Da werden keine Gefangenen genommen, da fliegen die Fetzen, da splittern die Knochen."
- Deutschlandradio Kultur
"...for the real experience, catch them on stage where their intensity and magnetism are amplified to such levels that you might just put on a mask and let Carley call you 'Grandma'."
- Deli Magazine
"...they opened the evening with a roar both from the stage and, by set’s end, from the audience, too. They played so well with such obvious delight that it was impossible not to get on board."
- Nippertown, Albany, NY
"This duo — female singer/guitarist and male drummer — provides raw, energetic rock that sounds more like it came from the Voodoo-soaked streets of New Orleans or back alleys of New York City than the farmlands of Texas. Punk sensibility, blues style, crashing drums, scattershot harmonies and moments of folk simplicity define the band’s six-song EP, In Ya Neck!."
- Jeff Hahne, Creative Loafing
"When the Austin band finally let us off the hook and left the stage, the only thing I could think of was the fact that I wanted more. I was ready to take the tunes well into Friday morning, not well short of midnight."
- Loopster Live
"They are wild, they are screechy, they are banging and down right feral, they are The Ghost Wolves."
- Whenthehornblows.com, Live review, London 2017
"C’est le duo de The Ghost Wolves qui avait la périlleuse mission d’ouvrir le bal. Juste un batteur et une chanteuse bien énervée, une guitare (parfois même une seule corde !) mais surtout une énergie assez dingue, reconnaissons-le. Notre pauvre Nicolas en a eu du mal à croquer sereinement…"
- Croque and Roll, live review Paris 2017
"The thrilling guitar fuzz and shrill teamed with adrenaline pumping drums gets the crowd warmed up screaming for more in no time. ”Do You Like Cry Babies?” Carley shouts at the crowd “nobody likes crybabies” is the fiesty introduction to the neck snapping ‘Crybabies Go Home’. The crowd roar the “whoohoohoo” lyrics back to her as she jumps about the stage. Elaborate guitar poses and all it’s purely captivating. Swagger is a tame word for these guys, they are wild and absolutely mental but it makes for a fascinating live set and the crowd were lapping it up. When you think it couldn’t get better she introduces the one string wonder “because all you need is one god damn string” that’s right a guitar with one string that plays just as mighty and meaty as a six string makes you wonder why anyone plays guitar normally. This duo are cool and feisty and boy do they put on a live show."
- Indiebuddie.com, live review Dublin 2017
"Carley “Carazy” Wolf (guitar & vocals, looking like Calamity Jane as imagined by Rob Zombie) and Jonathan “Little Hammer” Wolf (drums & vocals, total greaser – probably had a BSA parked outside ready for a ton-up run to the Ace Café) battered the hell out of their instruments creating an unholy yet unavoidably foot tapping head-banging blend of rockabilly blues. Imagine if Lux Interior and Poison Ivy had raided the bargain bins for old country blues instead of obscure rockabilly numbers. And had to play them at Download... Wolf, C worked the crowd throughout with the fervour of someone simultaneously selling snake oil, Jebus and the Golden Gate Bridge, bossing the crowd and making her presence felt: a hyperactive blur of helium voiced motion. It’s not often a support gets a full throated singalong but this gal had the crowd singing along to half the set, and to be frank the band went down a storm."
- Bristol 25/7, live review 2017
"The Ghost wolves made a mighty punk-rock noise in a powerful opener...their spunky energy engaged the crowd so well they whipped up a noisy singalong."
- Albany Daily Gazette
"Their live show is a bit of a spectacle, with Wolf, dressed all in white with a matching Warhol-esque wig, jumping around the stage as she plays. Konya is chatty between songs, making jokes and pushing the record. It's not your typical Austin act..."
- Peter Mongillo, The Austin American Statesman
"Their music is influenced by shamans, wolf dogs, and blues legend RL Burnside - that the Ghost Wolves makes it one of the most exciting newcomer band from Austin."
- On3, Germany
"The Ghost Wolves might be a mere duo (Carley plays a vintage hollow body guitar, Jonny thrashes the drums and they both sing) but they play hard enough for a full band. Playing second in a four-band showcase (including the Krektones, Alligator Indian and ER Airplane) at Jack of the Wood last Friday, the Ghost Wolves had the crowd on its feet."
- Mountain Xpress, Asheville, NC
"This new Texas based duo blend gritty backwoods blues with hints of Pyschobilly and folk that are conjuring up garage ghosts from the 60's and demons from the Delta. Known around the city for their energetic live show and infectious on-stage chemistry, The Ghost Wolves have been relentlessly touring their debut album, In Ya Neck!, bringing the raw and rabid rock and roll sound from their digitally unscathed record to dive bars across the plains."
- Band Soup
"The two-piece band Ghost Wolves, one of several acts on the lineup from Austin, offered a twist on the White Stripes formula when drummer Jonny Wolf switched places with guitarist Carley Wolf for a song."
- USA Today
"From the opening, bluegrass twang of ‘Gonna Live’, to the gorgeous live recording of ‘First Love’, it is clear that the duo’s relentless gigging – as well as their strong musical heritage – has produced a collection of tracks that is both exhilarating and infectious."
- Chybucca Sounds U.K
""While they each have their own impressive musical resumes, together they are an otherworldly presence."
- KUT- Austin
THE DIZZY BRAINS (MG)
Garage / Punk Rock / Rock
The Dizzy Brains are a garage rock band, inspired by The Sonics, as there are many around the world, except for Madagascar, one of the poorest and most corrupt countries in the world and the birthplace of the quartet. Founded by two brothers, Eddy on vocals and Mahefa on bass, the group fights injustice, lack of possibilities and freedom restriction in the everyday life of the islanders.
Their influences come from bands from their fathers’ generation (The Kings, The Stooges, The Vines etc.). That’s where they found their love for unbridled rock’n’roll (choosing Little Richard over Presley), garage style and psyched atmosphere. They even covered Jacques Dutronc’s "Les Cactus" in a version full of thorns. And it’s more than music. They are sharing a piece of themselves including their bravery and vulnerability.
They are the face of the opposition in their country, Madagascar’s youth trying to survive while going against the political system. This is their passion for life that shines off during their concerts.
The Dizzy Brains are regular guests in French TV and have toured in Germany, the Netherlands, France, the UK, South Korea etc. In 2019, they will bring their brand new second album "Tany Razana" to Europe, like the first one published by the French label X-Ray Production.
Reviews
"Garage rock by its nature is simple to play – its the entry point for nearly every guitar mangler on the planet and consequently can be a hit or miss afafair but when it is played with this much fire, intensity and imagination it can sound like one of the most thrilling types of music on the planet. Try and magazine watching the Stooges at their feral pre fame best complete witha skinny Madagascan hanging from the mic with his shirt stripped off like a youthful Iggy, or try to imagine the garage end of the Dead Kennedys cranked through the superfuzz of Mudhoney and that thrilling rush of early Nirvana and you are in the ballpark witha band who pique your curiosity with their home country but transcend it with their unrelenting power and twitching energy. With each song being a lesson in tension and dynamics The Dizzy Brains could actually be the best garage rock band in the world, they are that good…"
- Louder Than War, May 2017, Live Review
"Check it out. Its easy to see why they are a great band to have at any festival, as they bring with them energy, up beat rock songs to have any crowd dancing about. A young rock group from Madagascar The Dizzy Brains is capturing the imagination and attention of the music scene in Europe. The band’s unique style is a blend of punk and garage rock and their provocative lyrics tell stories about politics, power and protest in Madagascar. Since their songs challenge authority, the band was shunned from most concert venues and radio stations in Madagascar, but the band developed quite a following underground on social media and outside the country... The Dizzy Brains grabbed audiences in France after their appearance on the popular French television show 'Le Petit Journal' on April 14, 2016. During the show, one member of the band sparked a buzz on Malagasy social networks and blogs because he openly challenged Madagascar’s new prime minister, urging him on to do more for the country: 'just do your job, man!' This bold and spontaneous plea was the talk of the town in Madagascar for a while and fitted quite well with the group’s musical identity based on protest and civic engagement... The group continues to tour Europe and the young musicians continue to educate the world on their home country of Madagascar."
- 5shouts.com
"These kids absolutely rock. They are going to make the fire, I’m sure of it. Because rock, in the end, is the vehicle of rebellion, and that’s without a doubt a little lost in the West. While in Madagascar, what they’re singing has meaning. This is coming from the streets."
- Jean-Louis Brossard, director of the Trans-Musicales festival in Rennes