Loveslug bio

Someone out there on the interwebs went through the trouble of writing a little LOVESLUG bio. Whoopee.

BIOGRAPHY
1987
Loveslug is formed is formed by Tony Leeuwenburgh, who, in the first part of the '80s, makes a name for himself with punk band the Nitwitz and hardcore band B.G.K. Frank Sloos is a former member of party punk band Outrageous, and Mike de Veer used to play in hardcore band Funeral Oration and '60s garage band Plainfield. For Brenzev, Loveslug is his first band. Loveslug is influenced by the likes of Radio Birdman, The Stooges, The Ramones, Ted Nugent and MC5. They call their music 'slugrock'.

1988
The band mostly performs in Germany. Glitterhouse Records, a German label, releases the Loveslug albums, starting with Slug 'Em All. Especially the German underground music press is enthusiastic about the Dutch band, which seems to have a fascination for serial killers and B-movies. Although Leeuwenburgh is not the world's best vocalist and the production of the album is regarded slightly dull, Slug 'Em All gets positive reviews. Loveslug contributes a song on an EP released via the German independent magazine Howl and the band also contributes songs for the Glitterhouse compilations Motor City Madness and This House Is Not A Motel.

1989
Loveslug releases the mini album Snail House Rock which contains a cover of the Linda Ronstadt hit You're No Good. Guest musician on the album is saxophone player Hans Dulfer. In the spring of 1988 Leeuwenburgh used to be a member of Dulfer's band Reflud. After the release of Snail House Rock Loveslug and US band The Fluid kick off a successful tour of Germany and Switzerland. The two bands also record a split single, which comes out of the Glitterhouse label. The single contains live recordings of Madhouse and Fire Free Zone.

1990
Loveslug and Dulfer again work together under the name Refslug. In March Beef Jerky is released. The album is recorded with the US Sub Pop producer Jack Endino, known from his work with Mudhoney, Nirvana and Screaming Trees. Again, there is criticism on Leeuwenburgh's vocal abilities. Hans Dulfer is guest musician on songs like Lily Is Dead, a parody of Candy Dulfer's Lily Was Here. In the spring Loveslug tours Germany, the north of Spain, Scandinavia, Switzerland and Austria.

1993
In the summer Loveslug's fourth album Circus Of Values is released. It is regarded being the band's artistic highlight. Circus Of Values is produced by Endino and is praised for its strong compositions and Leeuwenburgh's improved vocal skills. The band is still more popular in Germany than at home, but despite this their stage appearances are becoming less frequent.

1994
Loveslug splits up because of illness of bass player De Veer. Loveslug's farewell gig is played in the spring at the Arena in Amsterdam. Drummer Sloos has joined the bands the Kliek and the Treble Spankers.

1996
Sloos is successful with the Treble Spankers. Leeuwenburgh reforms the Nitwitz and records a demo for Epitaph.


Mike De Veer quit the band of diabetes. For Loveslug's last performance we bought 20 packs of sugarcubes and handed these out to the audience at the door, advising them to "pelt us with it". the venue was NOT amused.

V/A - The Basement Tapes

Track List
Loveslug - You sexy thing
Big Paulus - Get down (live)
Black Label - Come back
Speedloop - Stuck in the middle
The Nitwitz - Get there first
The Sgeurvreters - Kidnapper
Rude Rich & The Highnotes - Lion of Judah(live)
Loveslug - Bimb-o-rama MTV
The Hydromatics - Heaven (live)
Black Label - You'll have to wait
Big Paulus - Baby, now that I found you
Speedloop - You make me feel (mighty real)
The Sgeurvreters - Ramble
Rude Rich & The Highnotes - Man next door
The Nitwitz/ feat. DJ Mike - Surfin' on Insuline

Serious cross-fertilisation on this, ahem, star-studded compilation :

• Loveslug drummer Frankie Sloos is in Big Paulus
• Theo Brouwer (Big Paulus) also played on the Nitwitz, Speedloop, Sgeurvreters, and Hydromatics cuts. He is now in the Consultants
• "DJ" Mike was in Loveslug
• Benito Gasolini (RIP): Nitwitz, Speedloop

BUY IT

Loveslug / Skin Yard split

This split single came out on glitterhouse Records in Europe (black vinyl) and on Rave Records in the U.S. (yellow vinyl), in press runs of 1000 or 1500 each. The Loveslug track was produced by Kent Steedman of Celibate Rifles fame, who would resurface 20 years later playing on the Hydromatics album "the Earth is Shaking" as guitarist. Either way, this track is all that remains of Loveslug's ill-fated "Rauchende Colts" recording sessions that were intended as a 12" release. Eventually, the studio kept begging/bugging us for money ("hurry hurry hurry with payment, else you won't get the tapes!"), but when we came by to pick up the master tapes, it turned out the studio had gone bankrupt and mister tax man had confiscated everything.

Bye bye master tapes. Bye bye 4 grand.

No release means no tour. Thanks !

It wouldn't be the first time that happened though. The 2 inch tapes of the unfinished 3d B.G.K. album (that we had bought and were OUR property) later turned out to be erased or have some panflute radio jingle crap on them. Only two cassette tapes of those sessions rermain and are in my possession. They may be available for download here on Slug Trails someday.
Either way, Jack Endino's band Skin Yard (Funny : Google wants to know "did you mean SKYNYRD ?") takes the flip with a tonguetwister track called 'Psychoriflepowerhypnotized (live)'. Jack lifted the artwork from a government issued poster seen on the streets of amsterdam that apparently amused him greatly : It was the heyday of the first Dutch techno/rave scene, and the poster has "drugs are bad, mmmkay?" warning/message. Not in a "don't do drugs" or "if you are caught with drugs you will go to jail" kind of way, but in a "make sure your drugs are good and not cut up with poison, so PLEASE get them tested at mobile city council healthcare testing lab stations at your nearest rave party" only-in-Amsterdam kind of way.

No fooling, folks. Times have since changed considerably, I will assure you.

Nitwitz Interview 1995

Nitwitz Interview with LOWCUT magazine (Denmark) from 2005, retrieved from Nederpunk website / archives.

Tony Slug (guitarist, vocalist and leader of The Nitwitz) is a bonafide Dutch punkrock legend who started The Nitwitz, 'the least popular band in Holland', over 25 years ago! Later he also played in bands like BGK, Loveslug and The Hydromatics (with Detroit icon Scott Morgan). I visited him and his 'incest brothers' The Felchers in Amsterdam some years ago, and had a good drunken time and went back home to Copenhagen with Nitwitz's awesome "Dark Side Of The Spoon" album. Recently he sent me their two latest 10"s, "Totalitarian Rock'n'Roll" and "Nibble The Giblet", which more than confirmed Nitwitz's status as one of Europe's most superior kickass punkrock'n'roll combos. As you will experience in the interview, Tony is man of strong opinions on anything related to rock'n'roll. He's also born in Denmark, and still has family here, so he knows a lot of Danish cusswords, which might come in handy since The Nitwitz's upcoming tour includes some Danish dates (March 17th).


LC: Gimme a run down of your musical history, you started Nitwitz around 1978, and later BGK?

Tony Slug: Yes, the Nitwitz started in May 1978, barely catching the last glimpses of the first punk wave. By 1981 we were the most popular punk band in the country because we emphasized playing FAST instead of bleep bleep 'innovative' bullshit. So the Nitwitz played ALL the time, every barn, bar or bar-mitzvah for that matter. And 25 years later the Nitwitz are the LEAST popular band in the country, he he. By 1982, this English Oi thing was so nauseating we morphed into BGK, and we played what was later to be known as US hardcore. Even the punks didn't like us, they said it was too fast. We sped things up considerably after hearing the first US records that trickled over the pond, like Hüsker Dü's "Land Speed Record", and especially the Bad Brains casette tape on Roir. Jesus Christ. The best show I ever saw was the Bad Brains play to 40 people in 1981. UNBELIEVABLE! A bunch of dreadlocked brothers from DC doing it better faster and harder than ANY of those English spiky haired doltfucks. It was just what punk rock needed. Then by 1986 the whole scene had changed. You had all these metal guys trying to claim punk roots, punkers trying to play metal, I mean, what's the use. On the other hand you had all these whitebread suburban straight edge geeks, being right wing/reactionary and hardline about non-issues such as who does and who doesn't drink. Who needs another 7th generation Minor Threat clone? I sure as shit don't. I love Minor Threat, but Youth Of Today? I don't think so. And then there were all these bands doing the "jazzcore" thing which I found not so bad, but essentially it wasn't all that different from virtuoso Yes or Santana doodling, just faster. So I wanted to bring some original punk roots back in, you know, Stooges, MC5, Dead Boys, but played faster, at HC speeds. I thought that was the shit, so I formed Loveslug with a bunch of other knuckleheads. We were just a bunch of silly drunks, and the time wasn't right for this stuff yet.. I'm five years ahead of my time, hahaha!

Nitwitz 2001 : Benito Gasolini, Dick Ginger, Gadge, Slug

LC: Loveslug was a pretty successful band which records got distributed all over the world?

TS: Well, I don't know about being successful necessarily, I guess the records are distributed, and somebody is probably making $ off them but it sure as hell ain't me. The records weren't so great anyways. Still it was fun. We toured a lot and I like to think it had some impact, judging by the bands who play covers of our shit. People didn't know what to think of us. We had long hair, but didn't play metal, then when we did two LONG tours with the great The Fluid from Denver, and people lumped us in with all that grunge stuff, which we had nothing to do with. We were a good time rock'n'roll band, and those were some fun times indeed. In Spain some people claim we were the first to do that punk rock'n'roll thing, together with Union Carbide Productions so that's quite flattering. Nobody should take it all that seriously, though.


LC: There's been several line up changes in Nitwitz, gimme a 2005 update?




TS: Oh man, got a MONTH? Right now Dick Ginger quit playing bass with the Nitwitz to focus on the Felchers, Steven the Gadge is out of the Felchers and back in the Nitwitz. He plays industrial strength wood chipper. Then we have Dutch Frenchman Laurent van Bouvelen the Rickenbacker tamer, doing a great job and wild man Mr Paul 'SuperSonic' Smith from German great Dumbell and the Damagers fame on 5 string Gibson SG guitar. I have to say this line-up whups a woolly mammoths musty ass with a belt. It's totally working, at last.


LC: Tell me about your r'n'r brothers in The Felchers which I had the pleasure of meeting some years ago?

TS: Our incest brothers. Very good band, friends. We hang with them a lot and cook together because they're also hot pepper freaks. I can totally recommend their records. The Felchers ROCK.

LC: You recently had a show cancelled in Germany because the 'sexist' cover art of "Nibble the Giblet" 10"? Any problems before with 'politically correct' people?

TS: No problems as far as I'm concerned, we don't give a fuck. I mean the Nitwitz aren't all that hard up to drive 600 km to play some stank ass squat house to 30 sleeping crusties and their mangy fucking dogs for 150 lousy Euro's you know. If they want to censor us they're being like the Punk Rock Talibans. So, y'know, fuck 'em...


LC: Nitwitz had some serious troubles over the years with labels etc. according to some of your 'rants' at the website?

TS: You must know this is a very dirty business. EVERYBODY gets paid, except the band. And the labels are always covered on every angle. When they say "50-50 after break even", it usually means 100 - 0 and we end up being stuck with a studio bills or 4 grand or so. That's the way the cookie crumbles, I guess. It's very frustrating to be hamstrung because the line-up changes every year and to not have a supportive label. But I'll do it the hard way, because, well, um, I don't know any other way.

LC: Your heroes and inspirations? There's a tribute to the late Johnny Ramone on your website, and you done covers of Radio Birdman, Nervous Eaters and The Nomads.

TS: Johnny Ramone was the first to emphasize the importance of playing downstokes and hanging your guitar at knee height. Great! I totally stole his whole stance from day one. My other heros are the French writer L.F. Celine. And Fred 'Sonic' Smith of course. Chuck Berry, others. We like all those bands, so when we were asked to participate in the 'tribute' albums, which I'm personally not a big fan of AT ALL, we said yes. By the way, we decided that we could be bothered to spend our precious 15 minutes of studio time on quickie recordings.

LC: I really love the shitraw production of the two 10"s ("Nibble The Giblet", "Totalitarian R'n'R") you sent me, ballsy, man!

TS: Well, that's the Tube Tech compressor unit for ya - our secret weapon! As you know the Nitnitz are fighting for the right to be infantile with Friday nite sized loads in our balls , so "ballsy" it shall be, hehe! Mange tak, glad it found a good home. Good to know some people in my beautiful birthcountry Danmark can dig the SLUGROCK sound. We can't wait to rock København. (March 24th according to their tour plan)

LC: Turbonegro's Happy Tom and "Nuke Rock City?

TS: Well Thomas and I were discussing all kindsa silly crap and making fun of numbskulls as we do regularly. Then I went, Dude, I'm staring at a writer's block the size of the Cheops Pyramid here, we're recording this weekend, This is the title, this is what the song is about, help a brother out, yo. Then he immediately sent me a few funny verses the same day. We only ended up using 2 or 3 lines of those, but it fit, nicely. And we thought it'd be neat in a name dropping marketing scheme kinda way. And boy were we ever wrong, ha ha!

Nitwitz ca. 2005 : Laurent and the Gadge

LC: Tell me about the new album "Sex, Lies and Duct Tape"?

TS: Duct tape, it's known as gaffer tape in Europe, in the US they call it duct tape. Anyways it's that silver super-strong kind. Essential part of the Slugrock van repair kit, which also contains an empty beer can, a ballpoint , and a baseball bat , among other useful items for on the road. We actually fixed a busted muffler on the Slugmobile van with it once, on tour. It reeked like hell, but it worked ! For about 60 km to the next garage. Well the title is a spoof on the "Sex Lies and Videotape" movie. I guess Ministry are gonna steal this title too like they've done before with "Dark Side Of The Spoon", those faggoty Goth nerds. But that's just our luck, maybe.

LC: You also running the Rocketdog label which has put out several bitchin' comps?

TS: Well, 'running a label' as big words for such a low profile endeavor. I did the Nitwitz/Hellacopters split, the Hydromatics debut single, and the "Here's Fifty Bucks" comp, which sold a staggering total of FOUR copies in Scandinavia. I'm not fooling. Sex Lies and Duct tape will be next.

LC: Hydromatics and Scott Morgan, plans of new tours and records? What do you think of The Solution?

TS: It would be safe to say the Hydros are finished and over at this point. We've done 4 tours, it was fun, Nicke and myself had been talking about doing some Sonics Rendezvous Band cover/rip off thing, then one thing led to another. After Nicke left, being too busy with the Copters, we were basically on our own, a band without allies, although the Radio Birdman guys were really supportive and Deniz made sure we got to open for them a few times, which was super cool of him. Those guys are amazing btw. We did get to meet a lot of good bands and people all over actually. Holy Curse in Paris, numerous great Spanish bands, etc. But as far as organising stuff we were alone without label support, no management, no booker. And I ended up doing everything myself pretty much. As Theo went AWOL last minute the amount of stress became surreal. Thankfully Laurent, of French punk band the Dogs was willing to fill in, two days before the tour started. We had to make do. But all things come to an end. I'm glad to have been part of it. Plus we got to record most of Sonics Rendezvous Band's at the time unreleased material. So, that's a "Mission Accomplished" right there.. Pitshark from france put out a 10", and Suburban is gonna do a posthumous live CD. That one is almost finished and rocks nicely. As far as the Solution goes, Nicke sent me a raw mix CD-r of it which I played more often than the finished record. Overall it's a bit too lightweight and MTV friendly, non confrontational for my narrow minded tastes on occasion, but overall it's a solid good soul kinda record. Something different. They've got some great drum sounds. Glad to see they're being successful cause they're good at what they do and, they're hearts are in it, and they totally deserve it.

LC: Whats your take on Dutch rock'n'roll anno 2005?

TS: If you mean the crop of Zeke/Glucifer wannabes with flames, hotrods, fuzzy dice and 8-ball imagery, there's no shortage of that, like anywhere else, I guess. Peter Pan Speedrock are HUGE. It's pretty mind bogglingy, but they're cool guys. Felchers and Lo-Lite are great. Lo-Lite are this two piece playing this crazy distorted bluesy noise, really cool ! The Stilettos and 69 Charger aren't bad. I'm not very interested in the Zeke/Gluecifer clones.

LC: Any new year resolutions?

TS: Not really.

LC: Anything to add?

TS: Thanks for the support Jens, we'll see you soon !

Loveslug / Fluid single (1989)

Loveslug / The Fluid live split single, recorded at the AJZ Bielefeld Germany in 1989. Shows there were always wild ! Loveslug and the Fluid did two European tours as a package in 1989 and 1991, approximately 70 shows altogether.

750 copies exist.

GET IT

Another place to download

DISCLAIMER : I DID NOT UPLOAD THIS FILE. I DO HOWEVER, PLAY ON THE RECORD, AND WROTE ONE OF THE SONGS ON IT.

site update

Hello people,
Sorry about the time lapse and lack of posts here. I've been travelling all over the US the past weeks (from Olympia to Cleveland) and am currently back in Amsterdam where I am trying to get my shit together. Or fuck some shit up. Either one.

Coming soon (as soon as the dust is settled) :

• Loveslug Live + demos + radio stuff


• B.G.K. the 3d unreleased album


• Nitwitz "Sex Lies and Duct Tape" Raw mixes


• Loveslug "Beef Jerky" Raw Mixes


• B.G.K. live 1982-1987


• VIM "give sleaze a chance" demo (Loveslug shoot-off, ca. 1988)


• Hydromatics TONS live

All rare/unreleased/exclusive material and as always, for FREE ! Hope you'll enjoy listening to it. In addition I should also be scribbling stuff for a, ahem, book (no shit freaks) and for what it's worth, shall share miscellaneous brain farts and anecdotes with anyone who gives two shits.

So, thanks for stopping by, your patience and rock the fuck on.

Your pal,
- Sluggy

Loveslug video 1990

Loveslug perform "Slap Your Slug" in Utrecht, Netherlands 1990.
I think we opened for L7 that night.

V/A - Howl fanzine freebies

Another release I totally (like, totally, d00d) forgot about and probably don't even have a copy of myself. These freebie 45's came with the German shortlived (?) but tasteful HOWL magazine ca. 1987. The LOVESLUG track "Quest for Fire" was an outtake from the "Slug 'Em All" album, and appears here unmixed(!), hence the crappy guitar sound. A mixed version would later find its way to the flip of LOVESLUG's "Coyote Date" single.

I took the liberty of lifting this fuckin file off GARAGELAND blog. It also contains tracks by the Miracle Workers, thin White Rope, Venom P. Stinger, Scab Cadillac, Feedtime, King Snake Roost, Ignition, Denver Mexicans, Vanilla Chainsaws, Low Max, Trashing Groove, Destination Zero and Mudhoney.

PICK IT UP - pass is "radiobirdman" or "offlimits", either one.
Figure it out, chief.

Loveslug - "Strike me blind" Demo 1987

A few cuts from Loveslug's first ever demo. This was recorded right after B.G.K. broke up, in 1987. I wanted to get away from the overly politically correct bullshit from constipated, hypocritical squatter nerds AS FAR AS POSSIBLE and have some FUN doing it, singing songs about phonesex and Neanderthals.
PLUS put more ROCKNROLL in the punk. It's not called punk ROCK for nothing, hey I'm just sayin'. But more about that later. It was either "cross-over" or "jazzpunk" in those days. Everybody hated us.

However, future members of the HELLACOPTERS, GLUECIFER and TURBONEGRO took notes when we played their towns. Sluggy tells you no lies. Go and ask them if you don't believe me.


NOTE TO SELF : Insert old fart reminiscing stuff here

Anywhoo the source is 2nd (3d? 4th), shall we say 'budget' cassette tapes I dubbed personally on my cheap-ass cassette player so don't expect much in the way of quality. I did however try to (ahem) enhance the sound digitally (rush job though) but it's my barfday and I'm leaving on a west coast tour in a few hours. So deal, por favor. But you get the riffs, as per usual.

the songs :
- slap your slug
- quest for fire
- charlie
- search and destroy

ROCK ME

password : slugtrails

live Loveslug 1989 (Unreleased)

Here's 3 Loveslug tunes recorded live in Germany in 1989. Previously unreleased. Taken from cassette tape.

- Charlie
- I want you right now
- Killing for company

pass:slugtrails
GET IT

Loveslug - Snailhouse Rock 12"

This is the second Loveslug release, I think from 1988/1989. It is an 8 song, 12 inch 45 rpm mini LP that came out on Glitterhouse Shitterhouse records from Germany. The first 1500 copies were pressed in fluorescent green vinyl, consequent pressings are in black vinyl. The bizarre cover picture appears to be the portrait of some artist who used live snails doused in paint as his "brushes".

I'll digitize and upload the tunes when I have the time.

Vim - Give Sleaze a Chance (demo, 1991 ?)

Vim (the band) started ca. 1990 as a side project from Loveslug's notorious guitar weirdo Oekel, who decided he wanted to "play lead solo's" and it dawned upon him that was definitely not going to happen in Loveslug. Hence, Vim was another sprig on the family tree.
On vocals : Alex Vimski, true pioneer of shock rock. owner of a permanently sweaty bulbous snout, a belly the size of a sea turtle, always sporting leopard print suits and silver platform boots and "holdin'".
On guitar : Marc Vim whom I briefly played with in the ill-fated Freeloaders and as an acoustic duo the Calcium Brothers. Marky is currently also in Reputation, the Amsterdam Mofo's and the the Consultants). Owner of the Vim and owner of an incredibly amazing social calendar.
On Drums : Mikey Louder, self-admitted former nazi skinhead, and owner of two blossoming cauliflower ears.

A cast bound to be a glorious little freak show.

 Marky Vim, Scott Morgan, Nicke Hellacopter and Me ca. 2002

So when Marky Vim asked me to join them on bass for a show, I said "sure, why not".(Oekel, who requires mucho attention, was against it initially, but reluctantly agreed).

POWDER TO THE PEOPLE !

Some of Alex's quaint hobbies included reading the works of ancient Greek philosophers (in ancient Greek that is) by candlelight, hosting cocaine-and-booze-soaked basement freak sex orgies (don't ask), and whipping up some serious bad ass potions like Papa Smurf. This psychedelic punkaroo treasured his "bottle of death", a flask of doom filled with an undescribably vile and evil concoction, containing no less than 8 or 10 hallucinogenics, various opiates, stimulants, and other mind altering substances.
In his never-ending quest for "the perfect high", he carefully mixed the precious ingredients in ever-changing combinations, but always in sufficient quantities to zonk out rhino populations across the Serengeti Desert.

Seeing that chunky assed mega freak on LSD, teetering around in suede platforms, rolling around in broken glass screaming about eating out menstruating women (an activity which he, even when sober, claimed to sincerely enjoy), well, OK. Maybe you had to be there to think it was funny.
Use our imagination !

It was what I'd call


Our crowds weren't punk rockers by the way but bikers, housewives, stoned tourists and illegal immigrants. Nobody knew WHAT THE HELL was going on.

Vim did only a handful of shows to my recollection. We recorded one demo by bribing the engineer into free recording time with drugs (hey, it wasn't me), to the point the poor bastard got so paranoid and terrified he actually left town in fear of his life. I am not making this up !

Of said demos, the master tapes have, of course long disappeared.
But this demo is made of pure awesome.
For starters I'm pulling some serious John Entwistle shit on this motherfucker. Then there's the ouchy lyrics : If you can't handle Parental advisory" type lyrics, palsyfolks : Now is the time to walk away and get yourself a Dr. Pepper. But anywhoo, this comes from a (second generation ?) cassette tape that had the words "second unfinished mix" scribbled on it in sharpie.

Enough of my silly shit, let's get to the free shit. For your Saturday pleasure, I give you : VIM - GIVE SLEAZE A CHANCE demo (1990 ? 1991 ? 1992)

ROCK ME ! (pass : slugtrails)

- MUFFDIVE
"Lost in in a loveclench 69, smelling urine, brine wine divine. Dirty minds and dirty sheets, I'll show you where the Hershey highway leads"
- TRASH COMPACTOR
"Lice on her butthairs, pus ran from her cooze"
- RIVER
"You'll get your breakfast from my ass"
- BANNED (IN AMSTERDAM)
"I pissed in your beer and I fucked your wife"

And remember, folks :

Loveslug - Loser Bar video

Loveslug performs "Loser Bar" in Voerde, Germany 1990.
Oekel is on guitar, Frank Sloos on drums, Mike de Veer plays bass.

Loveslug - Coyote Date 45

Loveslug "Coyote Date" single. I stole the cover pic from a "feminist art exhibition" in hopes of getting "you're sexist" flak. But of course, when you try, it never happens. The flipside "Quest For Fire" is a different version from the one that appeared on "Howl" magazine freebie. I.e. it was actually mixed. I think 1500 copies exist. The "Coyote Date" lyrics are pretty sordid.

Loveslug - Circus of Values LP/CD

The fourth (actually 3d and a half) + final Loveslug release came out in 1994 shortly before band broke up, and Glitterhouse records, let's say, 'parted company' with us. Needless to say we never got a penny from that label, which seems to be 'not uncommon' among the artists on their roster.
To my surprise the also appeared to own a third of the publishing rights later. How the hell did that happen I'll never know. Then, and fifteen years later (i.e. just now) I learned that the record was also licensed to and released by Rave Records in the US (cat. nr. Rave 025) on vinyl. Did anybody even bother to tell the band ? Hell no. In which context this bit information is also interesting.

Deja vu / Deja screw, that's what I'm talking about brothers and sisters.

ADDING INSULT TO INJURY, German band DIE AERZTE blatantly stole my title "RocknRoll Ubermensch" (as they state themselves on an early pressing of their album with the same name), to consequently sell hundreds of thousands of copies of it.

Sluggy gets no love folks.

The sleeve art was created by famed Dutch underground comic artist Peter Pontiac, who also did record covers for B.G.K. and the Nitwitz. A part of it was reproduced on the cover of his (highly recommended!) rocknroll book "Pontiac Review #5"

GOODIES

GET "Circus Of Values" (password : slugtrails)

LINKS

Peter Pontiac expo

Slug Interview

The following interview was conducted by rockscribe extraordinaire and allround swell guy Ken Shimamoto ca. 2000 by mail for I-94 BAR, and is reproduced here for archiving reasons.

One of the rockingest platters I've heard this year, the Hydromatics' Parts Unknown combines the talents of Motor City R&B/garage/punk godfather Scott Morgan with three European disciples: Nicke Hellacopter and the Nitwitz' Theo Brouwer and Tony Slug. Tony joined me over a virtual brew from his home in Amsterdam on October 16.

K: Scott Morgan played me the rough mix of the Hydromatics album at SXSW in Austin last March. I remember thinking, "Who woulda thought the spirit of Fred 'Sonic' Smith would make its way across the Atlantic to the Netherlands?" The Rock works in mysterious ways.

T: Well, man, that's a very big compliment. I WISH I could get those leads to
fucking FLOW like Fred did. I think I got about a third down (at most), but y'know, I'm working on it.
Really, Fred's style of playing influenced me more than anything, ever since I was a teenager. (Of course, he got it from Chuck Berry.) I would listen to the Five over and over again. In the early punk days (late '70s), everyone was into these crappy English bands and I was just like, "No, no, that's not right, listen to THIS" and everyone thought it was a big bunch of noise. Or they'd call it "hippie shit." Then with my old band, Loveslug, we'd do like four MC5 covers live, and no one had a clue.

Thankfully, people are picking up on this stuff right now. I hope Scott gets some well-deserved credits at last with the Hydromatics. We're having a great time jamming together, and it's fucking awesome to play those SRB tunes live.

K: One thing I like about your approach guitar-wise is that you take what Fred did as a starting point, but you add your own slant as well. Being YOURSELF and using what you've learned as a springboard to your own expression is a big part of what Fred was about, I think.

T: That's absolutely right. There's so many kids out there who try to perfectly clone, say, Steve Vai or Hendrix, and even when they do master it, it has no soul or balls for that matter. Personally, I feel Chuck Berry is the originator.

K: Yeah, Chuck probably IS the man for rock guys. There's a line that runs from him through Keith Richard to Fred and Wayne Kramer and Johnny Thunders, on down the line. It IS folk music, after all.

T: I read ya loud and clear. Chuck himself stole a bunch of stuff, too, of course. But I also really like his calypso-ish stuff, for instance on Bio. Great album! [If you listen hard, you can hear some of this influence in Tony's playing on Parts Unknown. No fooling!]

K: Scott's girlfriend Maureen Ferrell tells me there's a possibility the Hydromatics will be playing at SXSW next spring. Sure hope so.


T: Cool, man, I can't wait. It depends on a lot of things. It's been like 15 years since I played there last, with the Big Boys and Minutemen.

K: I played once with Tim from the Big Boys before they were a band. I remember Biscuit used to pin Purina Dog Chow bags to his clothes as part of his stage getup.

T: Funny. How about the Dicks? They used to play a whole lot together. Originally MDC were from Texas, as were the great Offenders. Their bassplayer was this long haired, half-Mexican, half-Japanese guy called Mikey and he was incredible. Then two years later (1986), he moved to San Francisco and started doing smack. Duh. I played with all those bands in the early '80s. We actually did a show in Odessa, Texas, if you can believe that.

K: I was stationed in Abilene in the Air Force. Midland and Odessa seemed like places you didn't want to break down. Real "Bad Day At Black Rock" scenes.

T: I'll say, dammit. We played with this band called Research and apparently they had been frying in the Texas sun too much. I remember they had songs with titles like "Cows Eating Dolphins" and stuff like that. The dude told me he at one point wore a skinny necktie for ONE DAY, and he had guns pulled on him SIX times that day. So, you know, that kinda explains why there were no pink Mohawks in Odessa. Also, the accents were so thick that I couldn't understand a word.

K: How'd European post-punk go over in West Texas?

T: Well, we weren't post-punk but more like full-on super thrash. We did a few shows with the Dead Kennedys, including one in Dallas at the Republican Convention. Big riots.

K: Big Al Creed from the New Christs had some really good things to say about the Hydromatics...as if we didn't know!

T: That's great! I'm a big fan of the New Christs myself. Especially their 45s I like a lot.

 First ever Hydromatics gig in Amsterdam, 1999

K: So, how did the Hydromatics project come about?

T: Well, whew. Long story...Nicke and myself had wanted to do a side project thing for many years. We planned to record a heap of SRB tunes (or at least steal a bunch of their riffs, hee hee). But with the 'Copters being on tour all the time, we had to put this project on hold for a while. Then I hooked them up with Scott and so it happened that Scott ended up playing live with the 'copters and recording some tunes with them, which is very cool. Then Scott seemed really interested in participating in the side project thing with Nicke and me, so we could get to work.

K: Talk a bit about the recording of your album in Amsterdam last February.

T: It was real fun. Nicke hadn't played the drums really since he quit the Entombed, and he is just incredible. Great drummer. Of course we had all prepared ourselves, so we wouldn't be going "duh" in the studio not knowing what to play. We had exchanged tapes with ideas for songs through the mail. But seeing as how the four of us never had never all gotten together, I think we did a good job with the album. I mean, some members of the band only met each other six days prior to recording it! Of course, playing with Scott is a real pleasure, too.

We rehearsed for three days to get a live set going, and wrote the orginals on the album in the next three days. Then we played three live shows, which included a BAD ASS version of "City Slang" I might add. Scott and me were on our knees and rolling on the stage in the end part, the whole nine yards. So that was helluva lot of fun. I mean, the guy is 50-years-old mind you, and he's still got it!

 Hydro in Amsterdam, 1999

K: Who are the Hectic Horns [who appear on the album]?

T: They are this horn section that was rehearsing next door to our recording studio. They do some work with the studio engineer's blues band, Dripping Honey. Scott went up to them and asked if they wanted to help out and they did, quite nicely I might add.

K: Any plans for an American or Australian release?

T: I wish! Looks like a well-known label is gonna do it in the States, from what I hear. At this point nothing is confirmed, however.

K: You've got a pretty extensive tour of Europe coming up. How'd you pick the cities/venues to play?

T: Basically it's the Hellacopters tour, then Nicke figured we might as well be on it, so we said yes. But we needed a second band in between and this is where Zen Guerilla comes in.

K: How's Nicke feel about playing twice a night [on drums with the Hydromatics and gtr/vox with the Hellacopters]?

T: Man, the guy is unstoppable! The 'copters just came back from Japan and after one day their Scandinavian tour started. We cancelled that leg, to make it a little easier on him. At any rate, he told me he has no difficulties doing two sets a night, as long as he can rest for an hour in beween.Rock 'n' roll is top athletic, I tell ya. But he's like 10 years younger than me.

 Hydromatics at Roskilde Festival, Denmark, 2003

K: Any tour plans for the Hydromatics in the States or Australia?

T: No concrete plans at this point, but we're definitely up for it. We'd LOVE to go to Australia.

K: Any plans for further Hydromatics recordings?

T: Basically yes, but you can imagine this depends on many factors, foremostly the relentless touring schedule of the Hellacopters. We're thinking about possibly doing a next album next spring.

K: You and Theo also play together in the Nitwitz. Can we get some background on that band for fans who might not be familiar with your work?

T: Well, the Nitwitz started in 1978, and were like the first Dutch punk band to emphasize playing really fast. Then we turned into B.G.K. ca.1982, whose entire back catalogue has just been re-released on Alternative Tentacles, by the way. This is like full-on hardcore thrash. B.G.K. toured the States twice and all over Europe half a dozen times. After that, I was in Loveslug until 1993 or so. Consequently, I did a gruelling tour with Sonny Vincent and Spencer P. Jones from the Beasts Of Bourbon in 1995.

Then in 1996, there was a book coming out on Dutch punk 1976-1982, and I'm all over it, so the guys who did it asked us to do a reunion show for the publishing party. After some persuasion, we did and rocked the hell out of these nostalgic old punks in their mid-30s! Next, Epitaph slapped us with some dough to do a demo, and record some new stuff. But they weren't happy with it; I mean, we're not exactly marketable to the walletchain and skateboard crowd or nothing, or possibly the album title (Dark Side Of The Spoon) didn't go down too well with the Epitaph label boss [Brett Gurewitz], who was in rehab kicking heroin, hee hee. So Get Hip picked it up, and those dicks Ministry stole our album title. Now there's been more personnel changes and I am the only original remnant.

K: Who's this Sonny Vincent guy?

T: Sonny was in this band called the Testors in NYC in 1977, who useta play with the Dead Boys a lot. Then he played with Moe Tucker and has his other band, Shotgun Rationale, which sort of has different line-ups all the time, including members of the Dead Boys, Plasmatics, Replacements, Tank, Beasts Of Bourbon, Velvet Underground, Husker Du. All kinds of people, depending on where Sonny lives at the moment and who he can talk into it, I guess.

K: I know Scott Asheton did a record and tour with him.

T: Yep, Steve Baise from the Devil Dogs was in that line-up too.

K What music have you been listening to lately? Anything new/cool that I-94 patrons might not be familiar with?

T: Well, not much, actually. The only thing that cuts it for me is a personal approach, so I go out and support my friends' bands, and whatever people send me in the mail. I don't read music magazines or anything, really, to find out about stuff. Just see bands live. Once in a while you see some really cool shit. Turbonegro were fucking incredible, both live and on record. I've supported the 'Copters since they opened playing for 12 people and stuff. Just saw The Donnas the other night, who were all right, but nothing spectacular. A little too L.A. for me. There's a German band I like a lot, the Cellophane Suckers. Those guys fuckin' jam!

K: Last and most importantly, since we're in a bar -- what do you like to drink?

T: Chilled Grolsch lager. Not the fake Grolsch you can get in the States but the real Dutch kind. I live on that shit. American beer sucks ass. And I'm quite partial to the occasional tequila (straight), or vodka on the rocks.

 Ken, Slug and Pat Todd of the Lazy Cowgirls in Texas, 2003.

Slug life

If I had gotten a (Euro)buck every time someone told me "Sluggy, you should write a book, man." I'd be, well, not RICH rich or anything, but I could probably pay the rent for um, a month or two. Yes as all starving and misunderstood (f)artistes, I am struggling to get by, and should get another 20 scene points that alone.

Usually I respond "What the fuck for ? Who is gonna give two shits ?" and shrug off the wack idea of becoming one of those pompous "I was there in 1983, man" P-rock writers. I mean there's quite a bit of self-serving bullshit being published in the "punk books" department lately.

Well, then over a few months my girlfriend persuaded me and I got off my lazy ass and got to reminiscing and scribbling down bits and pieces describing some of the more comical and absurd adventures and situations on the road with B.G.K., the Nitwitz, Loveslug and Sonny Vincent. In at least 12 different countries. With theoretically makes for a better read than "I was a mohawked dumbass in Buttfuck Montana in the 80's".

While at a distinctive disadvantage (writing in a language that is not my mothertongue), not to mention my drug addled brain (alcohol damages the brain) and putting the bar pretty high, I hope to eventually turning raw words and incoherent brainfarts into something I can be proud of.

"Will it be as cynical and bitter as your grumpy self, Sluggy ?" you may ask.
Aw, hell yes. Expect many well-deserved ass kickings delivered to the behinds of those in the music industry I've been unfortunate to have delt with !
What I write will be 100 % true. OK, maybe 95 %, with 5 % added for comical value.

But it will also be funny.
No Pullitzer Prize or Oprah's book pick of the month type stuff, but I hope to document things that have been completely ignored by the mainstream press in this country, and maybe capture the early-mid 80's zeitgeist in Continental Europe and the US.

I realize that no matter WHAT I do, some people who shall remain unnamed here will criticize me for this narcissistic self-glorification, lack of continuity, no plot and aww my pussy hurts... but fuck them. I will expose the whole bunch of them for what they are. Katharsis, baby.

But my main objective is to provide an enjoyable read for anyone who is interested in "old school" punk rock/hardcore/rocknroll.

Things are still in embryonic stage so just wait.

Hydromatics bio

Taken from the Suburban.nl website :

The Motor City of Detroit and Europe's own Murder Capital, Amsterdam, collide in the lethal combination that is the Hydromatics, a trans-Atlantic rock 'n' roll outfit that brings together members of the Rationals, Sonics Rendezvous Band, Nitwitz, Loveslug and B.G.K. Hellacopters frontman Nick Royale and Tony Slug from Amsterdam's punk veterans BGK had planned to do a side-project since 1996, with the intention to record a demo with their cover versions of songs by their favourite group, the criminally under-documented Sonic's Rendezvous Band.

Still unnamed at the time, the recording project was put on hold for several years because of the Hellacopters' relentless and time-consuming touring schedule. BGK guitarist Tony Slug got Sonic's Rendezvous Band founder Scott Morgan in touch with the 'Copters, and after they met each other, the only logical next step would be a cooperation between them. And so it happened. Ever since, Scott has performed vocal duties on stage, recorded with, and written material for the band.

During the Hellacopters second visit to Detroit, Scott was glad to accept Nick Royale's offer to participate in his side-project, and it was him who came up with the band's name. With the addition of ex-Nitwitz bass-player Theo Brouwer, the Hydromatics were born. In February 1999, Scott and Nicke flew to Amsterdam where the band rehearsed for a mere six days, working on a live set as well as material for a full album. With only three gigs in small Dutch venues under their belt to try out, the Hydromatics managed to gel together as a tight and solid international riffing unit, as demonstrated by the band's debut album "Parts Unknown.

With Scott's soulful vocals sounding as fresh as ever. Nicke's 'School-Of-Keith-Moon' style drumming provides high-octane Rock Action thunder with Theo Brouwer's rock solid bass playing, and Tony Slug ripping the place to bleeding shreds with chainsaw guitar, the right chemistry was there for Sweden's renowned White Jazz label (Hellacopters, Nomads, Turpentines, Gluecifer) to put out "Parts Unknown".

Receiving rave reviews both from the mainstream press as well as from underground rock publications worldwide, the Hydromatics succeeded in documenting the legacy of the Sonic's Rendezvous Band as accurately and true-to-the-original as it gets, at last, and 20 years to date, the material proved to have passed the test of time, royally.

But the Hydromatics do not aspire to merely be another reunion/cover band that needs to rely on nostalgic sentiments. Besides the four Sonic's Rendezvous Band covers, Scott, Nick and Tony each penned two originals for the album to make for welcome variety. From the haunting sounds of "Calling LWA" to blitzkrieg riff-o-rama of "Valentine Frankenstein" or "No Justice (In Rock'n' Roll)", it's all high-energy rock'n'roll the way it was meant to be played and sound.

Then there is a (previously unreleased) cover by an obscure Detroit group called The Weathervanes and concludes with a wild rendering of "Baby Won't Ya" by the legendary MC5. The latter band of course featured guitarist Fred 'Sonic' Smith, who would later form Sonic's Rendezvous Band with Scott. Although the Hydromatics made a good solid studio album after practising for six days, after six weeks on the road with the Hellacopters and Zen Guerilla they had turned into a lethal rocking monster. What the band was capable of on stage can be heard on the upcoming live release "Fluid Drive", which is to be released in 2004. The six-song mini live album, accidentally recorded off the board in Freiburg, Switzerland, is the real deal, with no overdubs or fancy producer tricks. It's a pure adrenalin rush from the very first second to the last feedback-drenched note of the glorious Sonic's Rendezvous Band anthem "City Slang".

After the tour, Nicke Royale decided to part company with the band, as his career with the Hellacopters no longer allowed for double tasking with other bands, (much less bands of which all members live in three different countries). Needless to say, finding a suitable replacement for Nicke was a hard task to accomplish, but a young talent from Ann Arbor named Andy Frost (right), who had only recently had started playing with Scott in Powertrane, turned out to be a godsend, and capable of just that.

In May 2001, the Hydromatics got together in Amsterdam once again to record their second full length offering in Amsterdam for Italian label Freakshow. Well over one hour long, "Powerglide" features seven Sonic's Rendezvous Band songs, as well as seven new ones. Augmented by horns and female back-up vocals. "Powerglide" is a rare mix of soul and rock energy.

Unfortunately, the demise of the Freakshow label means it's difficult to find, but the Hydromatics plan to put a third studio album down whenever their schedules allow.

Also imminent is a month-long 2003 European tour which will include dates with Wayne Kramer and the legendary Radio Birdman. Early 2007, after a three year break, Tony Slug and Scott Morgan started planning a new Hydromatics record. Within a few weeks, Australia’s Kent Steedman from the Celibate Rifles and Dutch powerdrummer Ries Doms were recruited for the recording sessions. The Record is scheduled to be released through Suburban Records in September. A full European tour is scheduled from September 19th till October 14th 2007

Nitwitz - Totalitarian RnR picture disk 10"

Limited edition picture disk released on Cargo Germany in 10" format.
Each of the 4 songs appeared on the "Sex, Lies and Duct Tape" CD.
BUY A COPY
Listen to Raised by Drunks
Denmark's excellent Lowcut magazine raved :

The Nitwitz - Totalitarian Rock'n'Roll 10" (Cargo) + Nibble The Giblet 10" (Pitshark)

Remember when "Supershitty To The Max", "Ass Cobra" and "Dick Disguised As Pussy" came out? If those are some of your favorite albums then Tony Slug & Co. are one horny wet r'n'r dream come through, motherfucker! Happy Tom even co-written "Nuke Rock City" on the 4 track "Totalitarian R'n'R" picture 10" (hilarious fat Caesar cover!) but Tony ain't no rookie to scene since he has been a force to be reckon with in the Dutch punkscene since 1977! "Benito Gasolini", a hymn to their guitarist, sounds like a lost Dictators song, totally outstanding! The "Nibble The Biblet" 10" (limited to 500 copies) almost blew a hole in my roof with the frenzy meanspirited assault of "Rohypnol Lovedoll", but then "Get There First" burnt down house completely, imagine The Pagans and Poison Idea in a bloody knife fight and you're halfway there! The Nervous Eaters' "Just Head" has been covered by Columbian Neckties, and, I hate to say it, but Nitwitz's version totally tops my friends' take on the song. Some of the 9 tracks have been on the "Dark Side Of The Spoon" (Tony sez Ministry stole his title) Get Hip album in different versions, but get everything Nitwitz has released if you know whats good for ya, okay? Fuck the weak shit and get totalitarian, baby, its the only way!! Lowcut # 21 will feature a Nitwitz interview. If you're interested in more hardass Dutch r'n'r mayhem then by all means check out Nitwitz's pervert brothers The Felchers whose members have been in several line-ups of The Nitwitz. Amsterdam ain't just hippies, hookers, potheads and coffeeshops, there's some serious vicious r'n'r monsters lurkin' in the dark alleys!!

SLUGFACTS : It is 100% true that Ministry stole our title "Dark Side of The Spoon". I had that title reserved for a of Loveslug album title 5 years earlier.
The pictures of the crooked toothed lumpkin ass in the toga on the picture disk were found in a trashcan in Cologne Germany by Paul Dumbell. These snapshots were simply too hilarious to pass up, and we're glad to share them with you. They were colorized by myself (heavy duty pixellation) with mad Photoshop skillz.
Nitwitz interview in Lowcut
Felchers interview in Lowcut

Nitwitz - mouldy oldies

First Nitwitz EP (1980)
Second Nitwitz EP (1981)
Nitwitz / Gotterfliez live 12" (1981)
All in one tidy, handy package !

Recorded feb. 1981 live at "De Wielingen" squathouse in Amsterdam, a former orphanage/school building, where both bands rehearsed (in the actual mortuary in the basement, which also got flooded regularly).

Living in a broom closet was a homeless schizophrenic human scarecrow named Mark, AKA "Mark from the broomcloset" who I once caught in the kitchen, "frying" a dead, half-plucked pigeon that he had scraped from the sidewalk. Dousing it royally with a bottle of Sherry, he asked if I'd care for "a bite to eat". Declining the offer, this sordid image would still forever be embedded in, and haunt my spaced out brain. In fact it would find it's way into another Nitwitz song, "Drunk Tank Celebrity" a decade and a half later that appeared on DARK SIDE OF THE SPOON, and in a different Jack Endino produced form on NIBBLE THE GIBLET. I swear this shit is true.

Other bands on the bill that fateful night (who however declined the offer to appear on the record for some reasom) were future heartthrobs TROCKENER KECKS and polit-jazzpunkers(?) THE EX.

Cover art for "Wielingen Walgt" by Peter Pontiac, who also created covers for albums by my later bands B.G.K. and Loveslug.

750 copies were pressed of the 7" ers, 1500 copies of the 12" exist. Most of this material has since been bootlegged numerous times as original copies fetch a small fortune on Ebay. No I don't have a box full of these things under the bed. So unless you want to break your little brother's piggy bank, PICK IT UP HERE.

DISCLAIMER : I DID NOT UPLOAD THIS FILE. I DID, HOWEVER, WRITE THE SONGS, OWN THE COPYRIGHTS THEREOF AND PLAY ON THEM, WHICH MEANS I CAN DO WITH THEM WHAT EVER I WANT.

Niels blogspot
Nederpunk archives (in Clogspeak)
Peter Pontiac MySpace
Peter Pontiac blog