Wolverine Records Proudly Presents: Roots! Riot! Rumble!

Wolverine Records, 2013

Compilation discs can be notoriously hit or miss affairs. And thankfully Wolverine records has knocked this one out of the park. And the label didn’t simply use this opportunity to recycle material that was cluttering up previous releases. No less than a dozen track appear here for the first time.

The Detonatators and Drongos for Europe each offer up great tracks with “Highway” and “Revolution times” respectively. Matt Voodoo’s take on Dramarama’s “Anything Anything,” is bright spot of fun.

Buried deep in the heart of the CD is Cry Babies Buddy Holly-ish hillbilly take on The Ramones “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend.” Sublimely beautiful and wonderfully unexpected, it should already be an alt-country hit by the time you read this.

There’s a nice variety of music here. Psychobilly from Night Nurse, Bonsai Kitten and Johnny flesh and the redneck Zombies; Post punk from Mike Zero and old school punk from Drongos for Europe and Strawberry Blondes. And all the tracks have one common denomenator: Great hooks on all of them. The Buccaneers close out this release with a sea shanty channeled through the best ’77 era type Clash one could hope to hear.

Wolverine did an exceptional job of on this comp and look forward to more bright spots like this in my in box in the future.