Album Reviews

May 19 would have been Joey Ramone’s 69^th birthday and to celebrate the occasion, twenty bands from all over the world got together for a Ramonescore extravaganza. And while not every single song is equally impressive, the overall quality here is pretty excellent. Or as Fil McRackin and the Hens would say, eggcellent.

Canada’s Johnny Terrien and the Bad Lieutenants kick things off in the best of ways with the über-catchy ‘I Lost My Mind,’ which is quickly followed by more four-on-the-floor awesomeness by Italy’s McBain (When I Was Old’), Canada’s Follow Ups (‘Ballad of Razor Ramone’) and Fil Mcrackin and the Hens (‘Great Eggspectations). Elsewhere on the album the Black Russians win you over with ‘A Blaze in the Soviet Sky’ while Germany’s The Barbecuties and Brazil’s The Yodees will put a smile on your face with ‘Wearing Thin’ and ‘Loony’.

While you probably have a very specific idea of what a Ramonescore band will or should sound like, this comp does a great job of showing that even in a subgenre there is plenty of room for variation while also allowing you to discover some new bands that are definitely worth your time.

Track listing:

1. Johnny Terrien & The Bad Lieutenants – I Lost My Mind
2. McBain – When I Was Old
3. Atoms – Pre-Teen Coke Fiend
4. Evil O’Brians – I Wanna Be Dumb
5. Follow Ups – Hey Yo (Ballad Of Razor Ramon)
6. Fil McRackin & The Hens – Great Eggspectations
7. Black Russians – A Blaze In The Soviet Sky
8. Softcrime – Skip The Punk Rock Show
9. Radio Blast – Dog In The Window
10. Tarleks – Silver Machine
11. Barbecuties – Wearing Thin
12. Yodees – Loony
13. Radio Buzzkills – Without A Trace
14. Prozacs – We Wanna Rock
15. Kobanes – Dilemma
16. Mean Black Cat – Don’t Sell It (Don’t Give It Away)
17. Anderson Stingrays – I Don’t Wanna Be A Vampire
18. Heart Alarms – Digging In My Heart
19. Bricheros – Narcoleptic Youth
20. Sad Sally – F.L.N