Batusis - Batusis EP

Review by Dave Evans Would you care to step inside the minds of two of rock n' roll's greatest characters?   Then please leave your inhibitions behind - this is no place for the faint hearted. Batusis are a meeting of minds between the legends that are Sylvain Sylvain (New York Dolls) and Cheetah Chrome (The Dead Boys / Rocket From The Tombs). It goes without saying this charismatic pair have been responsible for helping mould the Glam Rock/Punk movement that has gone on to influence everyone from Hanoi Rocks, Kiss, Guns 'n Roses to members of the Sex Pistols. Between them sees a life filled with debauched excess and decadence, that saw many of their friends sadly fall by the wayside. in fact the title of The New York Dolls 2006 album "One Day It Will Please Us To Remember Even This" is testament to an iron plated resolve and a sheer determination not to be rock music's next casualty. The raw rock n' roll that oozes out of this collective is enough to fuel the fleet of Harleys that prowl The Sunset Strip for a lifetime. It's DNA is a rubber stamp for fast living and good loving.  Sylvain and Chrome (who share guitar and vocal duties) have been joined in the studio by no less than Joan Jett and The Blackhearts rhythm section (bassist Enzo Penizzotto and drummer Thommy Price).  Their job seemingly to balance out what Chrome describes as a pair of 'loose cannons', and enable Sylvain and Chrome to get their collective ideas nailed into shape. The name Batusis incidentally came about when, Sylvain was 'cutting the rug' in the studio whilst listening back to a track, when Chrome asked what he was doing he replied "it's the dance Batman does" - referring to a dance Adam West performs in the original Batman TV series (itself a pastiche of the popular Watusi dance) .. "that's the fuckin' name" Chrome exclaimed.  The band now had a name and, considering Batusis origination, a name that indeed fits them like a glove. The EP itself starts with the instrumental "Blues Theme", a cover version of the Davie Allan And The Arrows tune that appeared in biker flick 'The Wild Angels' (starring Peter Fonda).  If you imagine the house band in a Tarantino film you'd be bang on the money.  It is a perfect vehicle for Sylvain and Chrome's collective glam punk, their guitars spitting out the notes with a real feel of danger that at any point it could all fall apart and leave the room to a torrent of feedback and tempers. In fact Tarantino may well have found his new Dick Dale here. Price's solid drumming nails the whole thing down tight and as such keeps the song from running off the rails. Although I feel that is what's intended - a happy collision of rock n' roll and attitude. The next track "What You Lack In Brains" sees Sylvain tinkling the honky-tonk ivories, and taking lead vocals. This really is sheer bar room rock n' roll at its whiskey-stained best, Sylvain's shriek at the start is a precursor to what is pure stripped down unbridled 'fun'. The band themselves the embodiment of all things 'excess'. Such is this vibrancy and urgency to this song if you didn't know the collective "tour de force" behind it, you'd swear it was a new bunch of up-starts delivering their manifesto to rock n' roll. Sylvain delivers lyrics like "Long legs short skirt, close your eyes babe it's gonna hurt" and "what she's lacking upstairs she's got it under her skirt" with a wink of the eye and a cheeky charm, only someone who's been there can deliver. It's at this point we all wish we were Sylvain Sylvain. Cheetah Chrome adds his own stamp with "Bury Me Alive". This is a master class in all things rock n' roll, Penizzotto and Price are a solid backbone to Chrome's classic punk rock guitar riffs, all squealing and flailing, whilst never losing sight of the track and perfectly adding light to his raw passionate vocals delivered in a road worn fashion. Chrome singing the line "I wanna be there when it all comes crashing down, to bury you alive" with vitriol and pure attitude. Like Sylvain this is a guy who has lived life to the fullest and you can feel his commitment to the rock n' roll cause in this song. The EP ends with another instrumental "Big Cat Stomp", this is just over three minutes of Sylvain and Chrome duelling it out, it really acts as a showpiece for their talents, the perfect 'jam'. As Sylvain exclaimed "We had no idea what we were gonna do until we got together and jammed... we're just nuts about rock and roll, and we knew that's what we'd come up with", this final track being the perfect example of Chrome and Sylvain 'working off' each other and just seeing what happens. The spontaneity of the aforementioned mixed with the disciplined rhythm of Penizzotto and Price have resulted in a delightful EP.  Those involved never lose sight of their past, yet don't want it to hold them back - there is a youthful exuberance here and it is delivered in a primal form.  What this EP displays first and foremost is that you can't just 'play' rock n' roll, you have to 'live it'.  Sylvain Sylvain and Cheetah Chrome haven't only 'lived' the lifestyle, they've somehow managed to survive it and come out the other end to pass on their stories to others. They've got the pedigree, they've got the songs, now have you got the cape?  Batusis are coming to get you. Tracklisting: Blues Theme / What You Lack In Brains / Bury You Alive / Big Cat Stomp The EP is released on May 4th 2010. Batusis play Birmingham O2 Academy 2 on May 13th, you can find details of this and the band by visiting their website: http://www.myspace.com/batusis