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 The Hangmen "Loteria"
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The Hangmen Press & Reviews
"Imagine if Johnny Thunders had replaced Mick Taylor instead of Ronnie Wood. 'Some Girls' might have sounded like this." Cosmik Debris "The toughest, most unapologetic record in many years" Launch.com "The best Rock album of the year so far..." New Times Los Angeles "The toughest, most unapologetic record in many years" Launch.com "Metallic I.O.U. is Bryan Small's supreme triumph" LA Weekly "I'm tossing the 'Album Of The Year' award to this lot!" "A nose-thumbing, do it my way, fuck all brand of fueled up rock n' roll" Critic's Pick Top Ten Record of the 2000: ANGRY THOREAUN - Issue #27 Swaggering through riffs that should make the remnants of AC/DC jealous, THE HANGMEN mix blues and bar rock with a singer whose swarthy vocals are sure to leave an impression. Few bar bands make recordings worth recording, much less keeping. Hell, this is the only such band that warrants retention. An L.A. classic project that will, unfortunately, not be realised until too many years too late - unless one is fortunate enough to know and get a copy now. (Rev. Tin-ear) THE PLAGUE - SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2000 Alright this is more like it! Anyone out there miss the good ol' days of sleazy glam metal, circa 1988? Okay, sure the image we could do without, I'll grant you that, but bands like Faster Pussycat, L.A. Guns and Bang Tango released some truly inspired bursts of swaggering rock 'n' roll that actually ROCKED (unlike the more commercial crap bands like Warrant and Bullet Boys). The Hangmen have a much more gritty, punk rock image, but the music is very much in the same tradition as the above-mentioned bands. Throw in a bit of Social Distortion (just a bit though) and you've got a loud, rockin' album with a distinct blues influence. Songs like "Downtown" and "Shoot" rely onsimple but catchy riffs, while the band shows off a twangier, more introspective side on "Bent." "Russian Roulette" even reminds me of The Church in a way, albeit a very rocking version of The Church. The lyrics are a perfect match for the music, detailing the usual sordid tales of motorcycles, twisted love and life on the skids. Vocalist Bryan Small has a good voice and can deliver the slower, more emotional stuff just as well as the more revved-up songs. This isn't an album I will listen to a lot, but it is a good thing to have on hand when I'm in the right mood. The Hangmen must be congratulated at the very least for creating some actual songs and not just a collection of melodies. There seems to be more of this more traditional rock n' roll coming out these days and it makes for a nice antidote to the pessimistic and pointless crap that the 90's churned out. [Daniel Hinds]
HITLIST - November / December 2000 In the Dynamite Jet Saloon, you'll hear me bitchin' all day about how come no American bands can still deliver bloody-knuckled, punch-drunk, blues-punk-punch of the Austrailian rock scene. The Hangmen are an exception. World-weary, raw-deal, raunchy rock n' roll from the rock bottom, gut-bucket voice of experience. Underworld cowboy Bryan Small and his dangerous cast of nasties, including once and future Coma-tones guitarist, the awesome Jimmy James and his bag of abrasive Mick Taylor-meets-Brian James-style guitar treachery. Fine songwriting and a reverent cover of The Lords of the New Church classic, "Russian Roulette." (JDM) NYROCK.COM If you're somewhat disillusioned by the state of rock today, awash in prescription pop or bands that aren't sure if they want to rap, rock or scream, and end up doing all at once (poorly), here's your cure. Pick up the CD from the Hangmen, throw it on, crank it up, and sit back. Soon you'll be covered by guitar-driven rock so pure you'll just close your eyes and smile. Recorded with a raw sound, with Country and Western overtones in all the right places, there's a simplicity at work here that must be heard to be understood. And once you get it, you'll listen repeatedly, and revel in the fact that there are still bands out there that care, and make the music the way it was intended to be made. Rock on Hangmen, rock on. L.A. WEEKLY - August 31, 2000 After two disastrous outings with two different major labels back in the late '80s and early '90s, Hangmen founder and lone original member Bryan Small decided to take matters into his own hands and, along with veteran engineer Jimmy Sloan, has produced this no-nonsense rock & roll disc. Low on studio flash and high on attitude and pure, raw energy, Metallic I.O.U. is truly Small’s supreme triumph, finally capturing on tape what the Hangmen have been all about for the last 12 or so years. Yes, Small's been to hell and back, and on Metallic I.O.U. he lives to tell the tale. Songs like "Downtown" and "Bent" do not paint a pretty picture, confessing as they do the sad truth of life gone bad, living day to day and couch to couch, failed relationships, and always looking for that next fix. These are gut-wrenching tunes about harsh reality, plus a scorching version of the Lords of the New Church's "Russian Roulette" that probably has the late, great Stiv Bators smiling in his grave. Contributing to the disc are longtime drummer Dino Guerrero, excellent dirty-blues slide guitarist Jimmy James, and Laura "Lucky" Bennett on bass and background vocals that perfectly complement Small's supersnotty Johnny Thunders– meets–Tom Petty snarlings. To the unknowing who had written off the Hangmen, who thought they were dead and buried, Metallic I.O.U. is a big, swift kick in the ass announcing their return to Hollywood's re-emerging rock scene. (Jimmy Ansourian) KNAC.com "Fix it!" shouts head Hangman Bryan Small, as his band's long, long awaited second album kicks in with a fury. The song is "Downtown," but this ain't the jubilant "where the lights are bright" fantasy, this is the corner of Bonnie Brae and Hard Times, a drug-addled netherworld that Small acknowledges with a shrug, 'cause fact is, he used to live there. "Downtown" is driven along with a repeating guitar hook which will enter your brain with all the subtlety of a knitting needle lobotomy, and fuck, this is just the first song! Brother Frank Meyer (KNAC.com Managing Editor) recently rolled out the ol' soapbox and commenced to preachin' about the B-Movie Rats latest, claiming it the Album of the Year so far. Fair enough, but I'm tossing the imaginary award to this lot. The Hangmen's record is the toughest, most unapologetic rock 'n' roll record made in some time. It's as good as Apocalypse Dudes by TurboNegro or Blastronaut by Lee Harvey Oswald, and most likely will remain as obscure as both. And while both of those bands were dabbling in a revamped post-glitter punk rock performed with one eye winking, there is no irony or in-joke satire on the barren landscape occupied by the Hangmen. Is there a place for The Hangmen circa 2000? We got room for all the R&B-inspired boy bands and divas, and all the white-boy rap poseurs you can shake a stick at, and there's certainly no shortage of dope peddlers keepin' it real as gangsta rappers, and to quote Brian Slagel, Heavy Metal Will Never Die. Yes, yes, all of this is true, but the white boy boogie has had it's day, and a more multi-ethnic, less Camaro-tolerant world is getting ready to put their Stones and Aerosmiths into nostalgia land, and certainly the bands whom they inspired will seems almost non-existent, much less relevant. But, just as jazz guys kept blowin' for smaller and smaller crowds as a million girls chased the Beatles down the street, so too will rock 'n' rollers like the Hangmen carry an ever-dimming torch down the road to infamy. Wow, I really got carried away there. Well, fuckit, they say this is the NUMBER ONE heavy metal website in the whole goddamned world, so let's pretend there is a lot of you fuckers browsing in and out of here, and given that you must at least like heavy metal or else you wouldn't be here, you just might like good ol' AC/DC, Stonesy, rough 'n' tough rock 'n' roll. File alongside the Saints or Rose Tattoo and the Hangmen will sound just fine. For those of you who have no idea who the Hangmen are and why I'm going on about it to such an end, here's some Hangmen 101. Bandleader, guitarist, singer, songwriter and only remaining original member Bryan Small high-tailed it from Boise State College heading for L.A. in '84. Fired up by L.A. heroes such as Gun Club and X, he formed the Hangman, who released their first album on Capitol in '89. Street smart, hard rockin', and before long thoroughly debauched, Hangmen got dropped, splintered, reformed with a new lineup, signed to Geffen, recorded with Radio Birdman vocalist Rob Younger producing, and got dropped again with alb number two shelved for eternity. Small grappled with his addictions, his family life, his band lineup, his dwindling audience, and took no small amount of punishment, much self-administered. Like a hero in some cornball noir boxing movie, he never went down, never gave up, and never really changed the basic brand of honest and unrepentant hard rock The Hangman were known for. Now, a new century later, Small is clean and sober, still leading The Hangman, and has finally released a second album. The title's a twist on Metallic K.O., the Stooges' equally bullheaded live swan song. The songs deal with hard times, couch tours, bein' horny, bein' bored, bein' fuckin' sick of bein' fuckin' sick, you get the idea. "Bliss" is more about resignation than euphoria. "I Luv You" promises "I kill you." "Bent" is a chuggin' grinder that builds up out of a smoky brew based on a loop of an old country lap steel riff (or something), sounding like it's being broadcast on some broken portable radio out on a lost highway in the Mojave. This is definitely not a country album, this mother rocks ultra hard top to bottom. Still, there is something in the honest, no bullshit style of country legends from Johnny Cash to Hank Williams to Merle Haggard that rings in Smalls' writing and delivery. This dose of reality sets the Hangmen apart from sooooo much of what passes as rockin' these days. Maybe, just maybe, enough people are still interested in hard-hitting, driving and honest rock that the Hangmen may actually have a go-round worth remembering. Maybe there's room for one more to hop on the train's last car before it drops out of sight on the other side of the horizon. All aboard. TOXIC FLYER FAN 'ZINE Sleazy, nasty ass gutter rock n' roll out of Hollywood, CA from this veteran band called THE HANGMEN who's music is a blast of Lou Reed's "Sweet Jane" meets The Dead Boys "Sonic Reducer" with songs about sex, junkies & rock n' roll. The boozy / drugged out gutter rock of THE HANGMEN will appeal to fans of bands who like danger in their rock, reminiscent of bands like The Black Halos, The Dolls, Stooges, Hollywood Brats, Dead Boys and The Stones. The new CD entitled "Metallic I.O.U." features 10 rocked out tunes that are razor blade cool with songs like "Downtown," "Bliss," "Shoot," "I Luv U," as well a cover of the Stiv Bator, Lords of the New Church song "Russian Roulette" Sinful rock n' roll with the attitude to back it up. (Excellent) New Times Los Angeles Most Angeleno rock hounds probably know the saga of the Hangmen, but here's a quick recap: Bandleader, guitarist, singer, songwriter, and only remaining original member Bryan Small hightailed it from Boise State College to L.A. in 1984. Fired up by L.A. heroes such as Gun Club and X, he formed the Hangmen, who released their first album on Capitol in '89. Street-smart, hard rockin', and before long thoroughly debauched, Hangmen got dropped, splintered, reformed with a new lineup, signed to Geffen, recorded with Radio Birdman vocalist Rob Younger producing, and got dropped again with album No. 2 shelved for eternity. Small grappled with his addictions, his family life, his band lineup, his dwindling audience, and took no small amount of punishment, much of it self-administered. Like a hero in some cornball noir boxing movie, he never went down, never gave up, and never really changed the Hangmen's basic brand of honest and unrepentant hard rock. Now, a new century later, Small is clean, sober, and still leading the Hangmen, who have finally released a second album -- and it's the best rock album of the year so far. The title's a twist on Metallic K.O., the Stooges' equally bullheaded live swan song. Containing songs familiar to anyone who's seen them over the past several years (or heard tapes of the lost Geffen album), these all-new Hangmen recordings are a state-of-the-art slap in the face. The sound is huge; local vet Jimmy Sloan's production is terrific. The band plays with no remorse, and Jimmy James lays down the fat Les Paul/Marshall leads like a punkified Leslie West. (Anyone gotta problem with Mountain?) There's no disguising the fact that Small has lived his songs. His tales of regret, mistakes, loss, and lust ring true, a rock version of the honesty we've come to expect from the outlaws and outcasts of real country music. The disc starts right off on the corner of Bonnie Brae, or somewhere "Downtown," as Small warns "Little boy, you're out in the street" while James drives the repeating lick into your head as if it were a railroad spike. A loop of some ancient cowpoke steel guitar anchors the album's centerpiece, the beautiful and yearning "Bent." When the band kicks in, it's with a combination of power and restraint that's awe-inspiring. The hooks are deep, the grooves move the hips as well as the head, and the rock is relentless. Wouldn't it be great if Metallic I.O.U. were on a label wealthy enough to payola the damn thing onto the radio and give all the chumps one last chance before they're sucked into the Britney Bizkit void forever? Sadly, it can't happen here, not now -- it's too late. But for those who still want to rock out to the good shit, here it is. Got redemption if you want it. |
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