THE VICIOUS CYCLES
The Strange and Terrible Saga Of…
Stomp N Howl 2011
To really get the full Vicious Cycles experience, you gotta see them live. Failing that, point your cursor toward vimeo.com/16950351 to watch their raucous Zenga Bros directed video for “Momma”. Filmed at The Fairview, a beer nuts and regulars type of bar in Vancouver, “Momma” gets you close enough to Billy Bones’ sideburns to feel like you’re right on stage with the ratbike ridin’, greasy good for nuthin’ Vicious Cycles Motorcycle Club. While the audience – if not when they got there, all friends and family by the time they left – pushes each other around and sings along, Billy, Rev. Norman, Skinny Tim, Beardo, and J-Rat on drums look like they’re playing the best show of their lives. But here’s the dirt on the VCMC: they ALWAYS look like they’re playing the best show of their lives. I have yet to see a band that has more fun onstage, and it’s damn infectious. “Momma” isn’t on their long-awaited (by me, at least!) debut CD but what you do get with “The Strange and Terrible Saga” is lucky 13 tracks of no good friends and loud pipes rock’n’roll. This spit-shined CD is a more polished VCMC than I’ve heard before, thanks in part to Bobby Froese who mixed it well over a year ago at Solid State Studios. Except for the beginning of “Destroy”, there’s no biker b-movie samples that frequently intro their crazied free for all live gigs. Instead Billy’s voice growls and howls and promises to wipe that smile right off your face. Compared to their deliciously trashy lo-fi Momma 7” (Teenage Rampage, 2010), these guys have noticeably cleaned up their act on this CD. If you’ve been waiting for a decent heir to Mommy’s Little Monster, this is it. Get it at theviciouscycles.bandcamp.com. (Janelle Hollyrock)
