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Gypsy Pistoleros Album Review
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Shoot to Thrill ....
Naturally , you'd be horrified if the Gypsy Pistoleros set up camp in the l...Shoot to Thrill ....
Naturally , you'd be horrified if the Gypsy Pistoleros set up camp in the lay-by outside your house. Then, after a week of curtain twitching and calls to the council, you'd find yourself knocking on the door of their caravan, seduced by the Glam-meets-flamenco riffs and guttural shreiks within, bandana and gold tooth in place, begging to join their seedy world.
Reissued with two extra tracks, the Pistoleros' debut is sheer musical escapism, with curiously titled standouts like Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz evoking a Motley Crue package holiday to Tijuana, the cover of Ricky Martin's La Vida Loca falling just the right side of ludicrous, and the revelation that this lot are actually British hard to fathom
8/10 By Henry Yates
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Wild, Beautiful Damned
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The Renegade Gypsy Flamenco Rock N' Roll Glam Sleaze Punksters are back with a new mini album.
T...The Renegade Gypsy Flamenco Rock N' Roll Glam Sleaze Punksters are back with a new mini album.
The debut album "Wild Beautiful Damned" dates back to 2007 and since Gypsy Pistoleros has been touring extensively on that album including two appearances at Rocklahoma. The album opens with the title track Hotel De La Muerte, which smartly fools around with several lines from Eagles' Hotel California. The song is a based on strong riffs and great melody lines.
The debut album caught everybody off guard with its blend of English and Spanish. Gypsy Pistoleros is unique and this mini album again underlines you can blend Latin and Sleazy Rock N' Roll successfully. Guitarist Iggie Pistolero is solid and Lee's vocals are strong. The guitar sound and Lee's characteristic vocals define Gypsy Pistoleros. Joe Gibbs has once again produced the band and he has provided the band with a crystal clear sound that suits the English rockers perfectly.
Sangre de Las Rosas is the surprise of the album. It is a beautiful ballad with a great signature riff and a most extraordinary guitar sound. The chorus is great and the use of trumpet adds more emotion to the song and also gives it a Spaghetti western flavor.
Sleaze/Glam metal was born in Hollywood clubs like Troubadour and Gazzaris, but Gypsy Pistoleros can take it to a Mexican cantina and make it work. Unique is the keyword! Hopefully a full length release is in the can soon since this mini LP feels like an appetizer only. We want more!
Turn it up, Amigo!
Written by Michael
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Ratings
Michael: 7/10
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Wild, Beautiful and Damned
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" One of the best Rock n Roll groups to come out of the U.K in years!! "- Kristy 'Krash' Majors & Tr..." One of the best Rock n Roll groups to come out of the U.K in years!! "- Kristy 'Krash' Majors & Tracci Guns L.A Guns
"Man, You got one Hot,Hot band!And i dont shit people"-Joe Leste ( Bang Tango/Beautiful Creatures
15,000 ALBUMS SOLD IN A MONTH!!!! WHY?
BECAUSE!!!!
WILD, BEAUTIFUL, DAMNED!
Released 2007 (Evil Boy Records)
GYPSY PISTOLEROS
Track List:
01. The Crazy Loco Loquito
02. Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero
03. Forever Is Para Siempre
04. What's It Like To Be A Girl In The House Of 1000 Dolls?
05. Una Para Todo Es Bandido!
06. Senor Mangi Acqui
07. Moonchild
08. Switchblade Kiss Comes Close
09. Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz
10. Shotgun Kiss Is Ay Que Dolor
11. 1-2-3-4 Kiss Me Then I'm Damned For Sure
Band:
Lee J Pistolero - lead vocals
Iggie Pistolero - guitars
Angel Pistolero - bass
Leeroy Pistolero - drums
Additional Musicians:
Joe Fletcher - drums
Ian Walker - bass
Kris Jones - trumpet
Bo Fletcher - acoustic guitar
Gethos Woolcock - rhythm guitar
Band:
Produced by Joe 'Victorian Dad' Gibb. Engineered by Gethos 'Masked Pistoleros' Woolcock.
Review:
Upstart label Evil Boy Records has just released their initial CDs, and in the case of Gypsy Pistoleros I can only say that they managed to sign one of the most unique bands I've heard in years - sleaze rock meets Spanish flamenco music in a refreshing blast of originality. Listening to Wild, Beautiful, Damned I immediately picture the band playing in the background of Quentin Tarantino's slash-fest From Dusk Till Dawn. Gypsy Pistoleros could easily have been the banditos strumming severed limbs while Salma Hayek gyrated across the stage.
Don't ask me what the hell these guys are singing about, because half the time I have no clue, nor do I care. The music rocks and that is the most important thing. Right from the beginning of "The Crazy Loco Loquito" you can tell that Gypsy Pistoleros is on to something special, and it just gets better from there.
"Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero" is one of the best songs I've heard so far this year. Complete with trumpets, the song evolves into a screaming energy filled chorus. "Una Para Todo Es Bandido" starts off nice and slow, but it doesn't take long for that to change and once again the chorus is over-the-top. It is that same change of tempo that makes "What's It Like To Be A Girl In The House Of 1000 Dolls" work so well, as it is one of the few songs that abandons the flamenco sound ("Switchblade Kiss Comes Close" and "Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz" being the others). The band even throws in a nice ballad called "Moonchild" for good measure.
Gypsy Pistoleros is blazing a new trail here and doing a hell of a job. There isn't a song on this release that I didn't like, right from start to finish the boys offer a steady dose of sleaze with a twist. The liner notes call Wild, Beautiful, Damned the "greatest renegade gypsy flamenco sleaze glam rock n roll album ever" - who am I to argue?
Reviewed by Skid for Sleaze Roxx, April 2007.
KOMODO ROCK –SPUNKEY LOBSTER
OVERALL RATING 8.0
ARTWORK 7.0
PRODUCTION 8.0
MUSIC QUALITY 8.0
LYRICS 8.0
OVERALL 9.0
KOMODO ROCK –SPUNKEY LOBSTER
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Wild, Beautiful and Damned
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Gypsy Pistoleros mix glam rock with rumba catalana (a distant, pop-oriented cousin of flamenco), and...Gypsy Pistoleros mix glam rock with rumba catalana (a distant, pop-oriented cousin of flamenco), and as a result arrive at a stylistic hybrid with textures of rock and rhythms of the genre that so far has been completely alien to it.
The rumba influence equips their songs with timeless, ready-made rhythms that the band is happy to turn to over and over again. The album's opener, "The Crazy Loco Loquito", is a perfect example of the straightforward way in which Gypsy Pistoleros use the rumba grooves, introducing the sound and the feel that will continue for the rest of the record. It's a feisty, direct song, danceable and very interested in chart action. The band's chops are confident and sleek, but not too glossy to warrant the kind of criticism that has always been aimed at those who exploit flamenco purely for commercial success. The vocal is charged with sleazy sex appeal and sounds perfectly practiced, floated by the vigorous rhythm section that propels the beat with single-minded determination. All this works, so the band repeats the pattern on other songs, with rock and rumba themes spinning around each other with salsa-flavoured buoyancy throughout the album.
The album's palette of moods is simple, but "Moonchild", a ballad, brings in the much needed change, imbuing reflection into the sound that starts to become habitual as the record goes on. It is a beautiful, moving song with subtle backing vocals adding an extra delicate layer to the proceedings. The spare acoustic guitar parts not only contribute finesse, but carry enough meaning to evoke the scent of an age and a culture that up until now haven't been touched by modern rock'n'roll. The result is stunning, adding to the drama already stirred by the spare but intense harmony.
"Moonchild" being an exception, the band's sound doesn't change much from song to song, but at times they simplify both rumba and rock'n'roll harmonies to the point where only the very basic structure is left to build a song on. This is the case on "Switchblade Kiss Comes Close", an LA Guns-inspired frantic song with raw-edged guitar parts picking up on the heat generated by the clear-cut rhythm section. Even though the band doesn't favour big rock riffs, the solo on this track is pure untainted rock'n'roll calling to mind the 1980s LA scene and bands like LA Guns, Faster Pussycat and early Motley Crue.
The song that follows, "Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz", is another highlight of the album. It has a silly, but infections chorus and cooks up a delicious mix of rock swagger and pop-flavoured hooks.
Overall this is a solid album, and while Gypsy Pistoleros are certainly not aiming at changing the face of rock'n'roll, they successfully manage to add to it the emotional resonances that so far haven't been heard in rock. Falling into a routine is easy when you engage in flamenco and its offspring styles, but the band knows how to manipulate the elements of this tradition to make their music genuinely entertaining.
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Para Siempre
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So these dudes - skinny, chain-smoking Brit-Spaniard sleaze-beasts - were at Rocklahoma last year, a...So these dudes - skinny, chain-smoking Brit-Spaniard sleaze-beasts - were at Rocklahoma last year, and I didn't include them in my report on the three-day long debacle in Classic Rock magazine. So, I think they're pissed at me about it, and want to stove my brains in with a pint glass or something. At least, that's what I've heard. But I wasn't even there when they played, I was outside, ankle deep in the mud, waiting for a backstage pass that took hours to procure. Obviously, my pain and suffering over that long and winding festival, from the sunburn and fatigue to…well, watching three days' worth of aging hairspray bands, offered them no solace. So, hopefully, the following will patch things up, and we can all move on:
Para Siempere is a thrill-a-minute collection of melodic eye-patch swagger that smells of exotic spices and forbidden concubines. The Gypsy Pistoleros sound like Hanoi Rocks, if Hanoi Rocks were sultans and snakecharmers. The Pistoleros' bilingual tongues are as smooth and fluid as their easy-sleazy guitar riffs and their scarf-waving Big Hooks. Now that Hardcore Superstar and the Backyard Babies have traveled even further down the Bon Jovi path, seems obvious to this old salt that the Pistoleros are the new sleaze-bags du jour. Try the plastic-fantastic majesty of Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz or the hand-clapping gutter-glam of What’s It Like To Be A Girl In the House of 1,000 Dolls? for proof. Nothin' left to do, really, except to find the biggest hoop earring your lobe will endure and join the mad gypsy dance.
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Para Siempre
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As I grab my morning cup of Joe and check my e-mails I come across an e-mail from Chilli manager of ...As I grab my morning cup of Joe and check my e-mails I come across an e-mail from Chilli manager of a band coming out of California called DIRTY PENNY. As I do some research and await their press package I check out the bands individual MySpace pages, which I always do.
First up was DIRTY PENNY’s guitarist Jonny Prynce MySpace page and it’s kinda funny getting blown away by a song that’s not even from the band that your checking out which is on Prynce’s page.
Up pops a song called “Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero” by this band called GYPSY PISTOLEROS and it just amazed me how unique these guys are. They called themselves Renegade Gypsy Flamenco Rock N´Roll Glam Sleaze Punksters. Ha what the double shift is that, well check it out, you don’t have to be bilingual to get the full brunt of these guy. They just kicked my ass how good the songs are written, hooks galore and check this out the songs are bilingual mixing English and Spanish and it works.
Lee J Pistolero vocals has range and is crisp with power, the Charisma he possesses is down right nasty and I am sure when they play out live he should have lots of hooch mama’s bowing to his commands.
The CD was produced by Mr. Joe Gibb (JANE’S ADDICTION, MADONNA, THE CURE) and in the first month of release sold 15,000 Copies. These rocking amigos from the UK have the MOTLEY CRUE feel with sounds of flamenco molded into their tracks. The opening track “The Crazy Loco Loquito” shows the diversity of cultures and if you bias towards anything on this disc. you should be put in a straight jacket; These boys can rock with the best of them and should not be transformed into a record company executive trinket as a marketing gimmick.
GYPSY PISTOLEROS are a band that is heart felt and should stick true to their roots and it shows that the guys don’t give a double shift what people say and are playing some of the best music I’ve heard since the debut of CRASHDIET.
“Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero” is the song that knocked me down that will put a tail spin on the youth as did “Youth Gone Wild” by SKID ROW did. The chorus is burning in your memory as Iggie Pistolero reels off killer riffs and the Trumpet by Kris Jones sets a Spanish vision. Such a good song that you will listen to over and oven again.
“Forever Is Para Siempre” has the full throttle vintage CRUE vibe, another great track that will have the repeat button being pushed often. The array of talent built into GYSPY PISTOLEROS should not be past off as a fade but nurtured as they gather a huge fan base. Fans of FASTER PUSSYCAT, PRETTY BOY FLOYD, MOTELY CRUE, POISON and others during that great era in music should check GP. This should be another release that will make our top ten best CD’s of 2007 at the end of the year, not a bad track on the entire CD don’t believe it read what some veterans comments:
Kristy “Krash” Majors & Tracci Guns: One of the best Rock n Roll groups to come out of the U.K for years!”
JOE LESTE (BANG TANGO/BEAUTIFUL CREATURES): "Man you got one Hot band there!"
One of the best albums of the
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Para Siempre
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Originally released in June of last year under the title of ‘Wild Beautiful Damned’, the Flamenco Sl...Originally released in June of last year under the title of ‘Wild Beautiful Damned’, the Flamenco Sleaze rockers The Gypsy Pistoleros have since signed to French label Bad Reputation which see's the band take the next step forward in what promises to be a interesting career.
The album itself has been repackaged for the European release date with two additional tracks (more of them later).
The album features a great selection of good time rock n' roll mixed with the sleazy 80's styles of Motley Crue and Hanoi Rocks, combined with more than a little Latin American influence thrown in for good measure. All of which goes to make this a very unique album.
Things get underway with ‘Shotgun Kiss Is Ay Que Dolor’ and instantly you think you’ve been thrown into a Quentin Tarentino soundtrack. The band have definitely nailed the Latin American Glam Sleaze sound with this album.
There aren’t many albums that come my way that will have that unique factor about them, but Gypsy Pistoleros have created just that. They are without a doubt the most eclectic rockers this side of the Pecos.
This unique mix of Spanish/Mexican influences and old school hair metal are just superb and this is felt throughout the entire album with the likes of ‘Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero’ and ‘Forever Is Para Siempre’, both carrying on from where opener left off.
The bands obvious punk influences are found on the up tempo rockers ‘What's It Like To Be A Girl In The House Of 1000 Dolls?’ and ‘Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz’. This band are like a breath of fresh air in a scene dotted with wannabe’s and copycats. It's great to hear a band that just do their own thing and obviously have a hell of a lot of fun doing just that.
The band include one cover version on this album, a quite superb fired up rendition of Ricky Martin’s ‘Livin' La Vida Loca’, which just simply has to be heard to be believed!
Other outstanding tracks of note are ‘Chicas Peligrosa’, a song that will have those spurs a-tapping in the saloon tonight, and the more relaxed tones of ‘Moonchild’ which shows the band can slow things down when the need arises.
If you want something a little different from your usual Crue wannabe crowd then check these guys out, they're like a breath of fresh air.
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Para Siempre
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Released: January 15, 2008
For those not familiar with the Gypsy Pistoleros, they play sleazy, g...Released: January 15, 2008
For those not familiar with the Gypsy Pistoleros, they play sleazy, gritty glam with a touch of Latin flair (although not quite as prevalent as they sell it, it certainly amounts to a lot more than just some Spanish lyrics). Unlike the many bands from the hair metal heyday of the 80s that refuse to die a dignified death (let's face it, dignity wasn't exactly their thing anyway) and the many new bands that simply regurgitate material that, with a few exceptions, wasn't all that great the first time around, the Pistoleros are an exciting rock n roll band. Their energy, swagger and creativity is more reminiscent of the original wave of glam bands that dominated the British rock scene of the 1970s even if their sound has much in common with early Motley Crue as it does with Mott the Hoople. In a genre that seems like it should be long dead, the Gypsy Pistoleros have more than enough life to stay afloat in what is otherwise a fairly stagnant sea.
Para Siempre is essentially a re-release of the Pistoleros debut, issued last year on Evil Boy Records, remastered with two additional tracks. The remastering made a noticeable difference. The sound on Para Siempre is considerably richer and packs a solid punch even if the previous release was entirely acceptable. The track list was rearranged to include the additional songs and the flow is every bit as good. "Chicas Peligrosa" is more of the same fun that's to be expected from the band, but their cover of "Livin' La Vida Loca" (yeah, it's the Ricky Martin song, but something tells me their crazy life is a little bit different than his) is the big surprise. It takes the catchy pop song, gives it some teeth and stirs it into an actual rock song. If anything justifies buying this repackaging, this cover is it. For those who missed the original release, you luck out, because they improve upon an already very good record the second time around.
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Gypsy Pistoleros - Para Siempre
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Well, this is something different. Gypsy Pistoleros, a band of Spanish flamenco infused rockers from...Well, this is something different. Gypsy Pistoleros, a band of Spanish flamenco infused rockers from England, er sorry Espangland, have re-released some material from last year with additional new tracks here on ‘Para Siempre’. I didn’t get the chance to hear the previous ‘Wild, Beautiful, Dmaned’ and so I can’t comment on what exactly is different, but from what I know this is a remastered version and supposedly a better introduction to the band.
They bill themselves as the worlds best glam sleaze-flamenco band and although they appear to be the only ones, anyone trying to emulate the Pistoleros have their work cut out. The material is without a doubt unique and if they continue on this path they are sure to turn a few major industry heads if they haven’t already.
‘Para Siempre’ is a down and dirty sounding album switching between English and Spanish lyrics with that typical Spanish/Mexican bull fighting, showdown, flamenco style added by the riffs and occasional trumpet. Strangely enough it sounds very cool and even though I don’t understand Spanish in the slightest I didn’t find myself looking for the skip button.
Every song is actually very, very good although the Ricky Martin cover of ‘Livin La Vida Loca’ isn’t my favourite but that probably has as much to do with me hating the original as anything else. At least the Gypsy Pistoleros have given it a big set of balls!
It might take some people a little while to get used to but once you get beneath the surface you can hear classic elements of glam, sleaze and punk but being played in a gritty Spanish saloon.
I’m not sure how it came about but Gypsy Pistoleros have come up with an interesting, individual sound and there just isn’t anything else like it at the moment. ‘Para Siempre’ is as exotic as rock n roll can get.
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Gypsy Pistoleros Title Para Siempre Label Bad Reputation
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The Gypsy Pistoleros are back, well sort of! Para Siempre is a re-issue of the bands soon to be clas...The Gypsy Pistoleros are back, well sort of! Para Siempre is a re-issue of the bands soon to be classic debut 'Wild, Beautiful, Damned' with a couple of extra tracks, and now released on Bad Reputation, rather than self released. Oh, and the new tracks? You might have heard of one of them, a cover of a certain Ricky Martin song 'Livin La Vida Loca'!
If you missed this the first time around, or were too slow to catch the ship before it sailed into out of print land, this is your chance to get your hands on what could be the best album of 2007. Yes it really was that good, and with the extra tracks, it got even better. The cover is actually superb, and suits the bands latin infused style down to the ground, and 30 seconds in your singing along despite who did this originally.
We've got a new track order, we've got new songs, but we've still got the same attitude. To quote myself from the earlier review "Evenin' Pardner. Ya be wantin' some whiskey with them 'ere Pistoleros?" That's how the album should have started. This is hot for the faint hearted or those purists who say sleaze should be predictable, for that's one thing that 'Wild, Beautiful, Damned!' is not. This is not your normal glam/sleaze album, this is something new.
"It's like listening to LA Guns and Guns N Roses playing in the saloon in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. It's dirty, it's nasty, you can practically smell the sawdust on the floor."
It all stands, it's all still true, and the Gypsy Pistoleros are one of the best things to come out of the UK in years, these are the bastard children of Axl Rose and Ennio Morricone, and just for the record, I still stand by the fact that this should have been named 'The Good, The Bad, and the Gyspy Pistoleros'!
Lineup:
Lee J Pistolero - Vocals
Iggie Pistolero - Guitars and Backing Vocals
Leeroy Pistolero - Drums and Backing Vocals
Angel Pistolero - Bass and Backing Vocals
Overall rating 10.0
Artwork 10.0
Production 10.0
Music Quality 10.0
Lyrics 10.0
Overall 10.0
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Track Listing:
1. Shotgun Kiss Is Ay Que Dolor
2. Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero
3. Forever Is Para Siempre
4. Senor Mangi Acqui
5. What’S It Like To Be A Girl In The House Of 1000 Dolls?
6. Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz
7. Una Para Todo Es Bandido
8. Living La Vida Loca
9. Chicas Peligrosa
10. Moonchild
11. Switchblade Kiss Comes Close
12. The Crazy Loco Loquito
13. 1-2-3-4 Kiss Me Then I’M Damned For Sure
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Gypsy Pistoleros - Para Siempre Album Review
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Tracks:
1. Shotgun Kiss Is Ay Que Dolor
2. Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero
3. Forever Is Para ...Tracks:
1. Shotgun Kiss Is Ay Que Dolor
2. Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero
3. Forever Is Para Siempre
4. Senor Mangi Acqui
5. What's It Like To Be A Girl In The House Of 1000 Dolls?
6. Jet, Jet, Jet Boyz
7. Una Para Todo Es Bandido
8. Living La Vida Loca
9. Chicas Peligrosa
10. Moonchild
11. Switchblade Kiss Comes Close
12. The Crazy Loco Loquito
13. 1-2-3-4 Kiss Me Then I'm Damned For Sure
The Gypsy Pistoleros have created an extraordinary fusion of punk, glam, sleaze, and flamenco in this album. The Spanish style guitar riffs and the Spanish horns will draw you in and transport you to sunny Spain, or perhaps Mexico. But, your trip won't be a quiet affair. It'll be a crashing, ripping adventure filled with saucy senoritas, cape wielding matadors, and menacing hombres with big guns. Right from the beginning with "Shotgun Kiss Is Ay Que Dolor", you'll know what you're in for. As the song goes from in your face rock to beautiful flamenco, it evokes images of a matador spinning around in the bullfighting ring with his cape spread out and rippling in the air as he turns. Lee J's strong vocals, with a hint of an early Vince Neil quality, grab you by the throat, and he doesn't let go until the end. The mixture of English and Spanish lyrics add another dimension and depth to what are already great songs. Iggie, the band's very talented and versatile guitar player, sets the mood with his flamenco style guitar licks, that in a second transform into balls out, sizzling, hard rock riffs. He can seamlessly switch from acoustic to electric guitar, making a smooth transition from gentle, melodic, flamenco to gut-ripping, thrashing rock. And, although you can't explain why, it just works! As you listen, you just can't help but to find your head rockin' back and forth and your toes tapping to the driving beats supplied by the rhythm section of the band, which is now supplied by Harri on drums, and Nasty on bass.
This album is a re-mastered version of their debut album, "Wild, Beautiful, Damned", along with a couple extra songs. It was produced by the legendary Joe Gibb, who has also worked with Madonna, The Kinks, Jane's Addiction and The Cure, among others. When I saw the title of one of the extra songs, "Livin' La Vida Loca", I thought it surely couldn't be the Ricky Martin song of the same name. However, I was wrong. I was pleasantly surprised at the amazing job they did of covering that song. They took what to me is a catchy, but boring, song, and turned it into a truly hard rockin' piece of music.
I hate comparing one band to another, but unfortunately it's necessary in explaining a band's sound. And, it's made more difficult in the case of a band like the Gypsy Pistoleros, whose sound is so unique they don't readily compare to anyone else. However, you can pick up on their influences and there are a few similarities to other bands. For instance, one of their influences is Hanoi Rocks, and you can pick up on that when you listen to their music. You can also hear the influences of such classic glamsters as T. Rex and the New York Dolls. And, songs like the other new addition to this album, "Chicas Pelgrosa", lean towards a bit of a punk sound. Their sound is also often compared to early Motley Crue, if it were merged with flamenco, and I can see that, too.
"Un Hombre Sin Rostro, Pistolero" is one of the highlights of the album. As it switches tempo, I picture a lovely senorita, wearing a traditional long red dress covered in black lace, dancing, Spanish style of course, in a cobblestone paved plaza that has a fountain at the center. And, the buildings in the background have flower draped balconies and window boxes to add to the setting. But, then I'm snapped out of my reverie when I'm hit head-on by the switch back to the adrenaline packed, raunchy guitar and vocals that make up the bulk of the song. One of my favorite things about this album is that not only does it supply great sleaze rock 'n' r
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GIPSY PISTOLEROS - “Para Siempre” (Bad Reputation Records)
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Hold on to your skirts, this one is guaranteed to oil up those hips! “Para Siempre” is Flamenco disg...Hold on to your skirts, this one is guaranteed to oil up those hips! “Para Siempre” is Flamenco disguised as Hard
Rock... or is it Rock disguised as Flamenco! It really does not matter because it will certainly rock you! Actually
“Para Siempre” is a re-packaged version of the Gypsy Pistoleros debut, “Wild, Beautiful, Damned” with a couple
of new tracks for good measure. This album is bristling with attitude and exposes the band’s influences in a brazen
way. Everything that is great from Punk to Classic Hard Rock is right here, and in your face! A thunderous ride
through Lee J’s musical creation, “Para Siempre” is the genuine article. No strangers to the road, Gypsy Pistoleros
are a tight, highly strung and finely tuned music machine! Driving through thirteen tracks, one cannot help but move
those hips and feet to provocative rhythms that these lads create. To sum up, Gypsy Pistoleros have put a metal
sheen on Flamenco, bringing this fantastic style of music shining into the 21st Century. After only one listen this
musical collection will leave your head spinning, and that is a good thing! (Bruce Atkinson)
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GYPSY PISTOLEROS - 'FOREVER WILD, BEAUTIFUL AND DAMNED: GREATEST HITS VOL. 1' (Heavy Metal Records)
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I have the latest album of Gypsy Pistoleros in my hands while swallowing the recent shock of the dep...I have the latest album of Gypsy Pistoleros in my hands while swallowing the recent shock of the departure of the founder and singer Lee Pistolero. But with this album we have, as its name suggests, a collection of their best tune and a great chance of knowing what this band of gypsies were about. Might seem strange for a not very well known band, but they have been there for a long time now with three albums and one EP under their belts.
As explained in the last issue of Fireworks, they are the only band in the whole world that practice flamenco mariachi sleazy glam punk. And how can you chew this mix? Its a musical travel around the Mexican border through Los Angeles and flying to the Spanish suburbs for later jumping onto a flamenco stage and finishing in UK, the place where they come from - everything together under the flag that they have created as unique. But this really works!
The Spanish incluences are obvious not only in the music but also in the lyrics where they are brave enough to sing in Spanglish, as Lee has the ability of singing in English or in Spanish depending on his mood. So songs like the beautiful ballad 'Sangre De Las Roses' (Blood of the Rose) or 'Hotel De Los Muertos' (Hotel of the Dead Ones) are examples of what I'm talking about. But I guess the most clear example is the cover of the Rick Martin hit 'Living la vida Loca', that with the GP touch you would never think of as a cover as they have turned it into their very own tune, with a western intro that misleads you. You could never imagine hearing that song in such a sleazy glam way, but it totally fits into their style! Another example not so well known is the cover 'Ay Que Dolor', a Spanish street flamenco tune that was a big hit on the streets in the 80's - what we call 'rumba' - and is quite funny for us that know the original. Same with 'Son Illusiones', another very well known rumba from the 80s. But not everything here is covers, their own material following the same line: gypsies, pirates, outlaws, cock rock cowboys with lots of attitude.
The album kickstarts after a flamenco intro with 'Living Down With the Gypsies/Viva Con Los Gitanos' and is pure dynamite followed by 'Senor Mangi Aqui', all framed in the dirtiest sleazy glam of Los Angeles, with touches of Vain or even L.A. Guns. 'Switchblade Kiss Come Close' is a shot of pure punk tex-mex direct to your face, and even in this tune though they sing in English turns into a Spanish rumba once again. Risky? Yeah. Effective? Certainly! With the Gypsy Pistoleros you have the "fiesta" just starting. Bourbon, tequila and Rioja win in the same cocktail, and it is very hard not to dance around and sing with this work.
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Welcome To The Hotel de la Muerte
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The gestation of the new Gypsy Pistoleros mini album ‘Welcome To The Hotel de la Muerte” (“Welcome t...The gestation of the new Gypsy Pistoleros mini album ‘Welcome To The Hotel de la Muerte” (“Welcome to the Hotel of the Dead”) has been a turbulent one, with the original sessions scrapped and release dates rescheduled, all playing out against the backdrop of the band’s high profile appearance at Rocklahoma in July 2009, sponsorship by video game WET and new record deals with Chavis Records in America.
Finally holding the CD in my hands, I can recognise what all the fuss was about – Welcome… represents a formidable step up for The Pistoleros, the world’s foremost “flamenco sleaze glam band”.
For starters, the album sounds fantastic, courtesy of the legendary Joe Gibb (Catatonia, Funeral For A Friend, The Kinks, Janes Addiction, and many more). The band are playing better than ever, and it’s hard to tell if Gibb has been the primary catalyst for their new-found clarity of vision and focus, or whether it’s the new stability in the ranks – Denny and Jet Pistolero joined on drums and bass respectively in June 2009, and provide a punchy bedrock to the songs that the band have lacked in the past – that we have to thank.
The album kicks off with the title track, Lee J Pistolero’s lyrics referencing The Eagles’ Hotel California while the song tumbles down the stairs like Guns n’ Roses and Hanoi Rocks jamming after a tequila fuelled lost weekend. Kris Jones’ mariachi trumpet is a great touch.
Living Down With The Gypsies is perhaps the truest song on offer to Lee’s punk roots, and sees his trademark vocal flourishes paying off (“lilo-lilo-lee-lilo” and Latin yelps abound), while Iggie gives us a killer wah-wah pumped riff.
Sangre De Las Rosas (“Blood of the Roses”) is a string drenched, eight and a half minute long epic as delicate as crystal and as ballsy as the local chapter of the Hells Angels, if The Angels were playing at a Mexican wedding and getting paid in tequila, cocaine and love. This is fantastic stuff and the production on this track alone makes it worth the price of admission, with gritty Mexican dust and magic oozing from every pore. The rumour is that this song will be released as a single later in the year, with Joe Leste of Bang Tango and Beautiful Creatures duetting with Lee.
The album is rounded out with a Pistolero flavoured run through a cover of the legendary Mexican rhumba band Los Chicas’ Sons Illusiones (“Are Illusions”), as tight and punchy and enjoyable as a Fight Club basement brawl.
With only 5 songs on Welcome… it clocks in at just under half an hour, following the old stage adage to always leave ‘em wanting more. Iggie Pistolero has captured a fabulous guitar sound on this album, managing to sound heavy and distorted one minute, and fragile and beautiful the next.
If their 2007 debut Wild, Beautiful, Damned (and its 2008 remixed re-release Para Siempre) were an exciting introduction to the band, Welcome To The Hotel De La Muerte is leaps and bounds ahead - a dynamic and unique statement of intent from a band that are legitimately doing something completely original and exciting.
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The Gypsy Pistoleros and El Mariachi
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If Robert Rodriquez plans on a return to Mexico for yet another sequel to ‘El Mariachi’, he better h...If Robert Rodriquez plans on a return to Mexico for yet another sequel to ‘El Mariachi’, he better have the Gypsy Pistoleros’ number. I can see it now, the opening frame is a shoddy bar, where the chongo is piss-warm and the bartender is missing a fistful of teeth. The Gypsy’s swagger in, slow motion, of course. They look like leather-clad outlaw trash, fresh off the sunset strip, surrounded by the perplexed stares of the locals. They jump up onstage and run through a quick sound check, while spitting back spanglish insults at the threatening patrons. The amps and microphones spark and pop from the frayed wiring, not many rock bands play here.
The Gypsy’s open with a straight punk number laced with a funky flamenco drum and bass line called Close As You'll Ever Be. The set is furious and hard edged, and some of the vatos at the bar grab at their ears and scowl toward the stage. By the end of the set, there’s a dead silence from the audience who don’t quite understand what they just heard. Then, an uproar of flying beer bottles and whoops of approval, even a discharged pistol here and there. The locals like what they hear.
From the opening Santana-esque shrieks of Crazed Gypsy Girls Lair, I too, was hooked on The Gypsy Pistoleros, whose name sounds like homage to the Sex Pistols and “Johnny Rotten” Lydon. It’s hard to put a finger on Singer Lee J’s vocals, which I think is a testament to the band’s originality. Lee J is a healthy amalgamation of Johnny Rotten, Vince Neil, and Tito Puente, coupled with the screaming backup vocals it’s like a kick to the sternum in the mosh-pit, but it feels good.
Craig Smith is a master of the somber minor tones of Spanish guitar and shredding heavy metal, it shows on the track Crazed Gypsy Girls Lair. His chops are really shown with the scorching solo on Switchblade Closer. The drums and bass of Leeroy Pistolero and Nate Pistolero(respectively) are the driving force behind each of the three tracks I heard. The super up-tempo bass lines and heavy crash symbols are really what give the songs their speed and intensity. Some of the tempos are so fast it feels like Leeroy & Nate are pushing the tempo up without variation just because they can. It’s like the bass and drums are leading the song by a hook to the nostrils with machine gun rapidity.
In a nutshell, what the Gypsy Pistoleros have done is taken a fat vein of punk rock and injected it with a hit of Spanish flamenco, the result of which is a meth bender that will leave you naked and disoriented in the front yard.
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Gypsy Pistoleros
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They've supported The Dogs D'amour, Adlers Appetite, Enuff Z Nuff and shared stages with the likes o...They've supported The Dogs D'amour, Adlers Appetite, Enuff Z Nuff and shared stages with the likes of Dio, Motorhead and The Cramps, and now they come flying out into the retail market, guns blazing, saddle bags full.
"Evenin' Pardner. Ya be wantin' some whiskey with them 'ere Pistoleros?" That's how the album should have started, instead it starts even more appropriately at the birth of the Pisteleros, these bastard sons of Ennio Morricone and Axl Rose. This is hot for the faint hearted or those purists who say sleaze should be predictable, for that's one thing that 'Wild, Beautiful, Damned!' is not. This is not your normal glam/sleaze album, this is something new.
It's like listening to LA Guns and Guns N Roses playing in the saloon in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. It's dirty, it's nasty, you can practically smell the sawdust on the floor.
Supposedly frontman Lee J Pistelero (they're all Pisteleros in this band!) came up with the idea for the band while living in the backstreets of Zaragoza. Obviously influenced by flamenco and that latin guitar sound, the album throws in some brass here and there to flesh out the sound, while guitars thrash and drums smash, and Lee J stands serenading the latest girl to fall into his lap.
'Un Hombre Sin Rostro Pistolero' the second track on the album is gun toting rock and roll express train. It has everything you'd want in one of the songs you jump around to in a club half cut, spilling more beer than your drinking, complete with sing a long chorus where you don't need to know the words, just shout "Pistolero" at the right time.
And on it goes, although we get an interlude late in the album with the more punk fueled 'Switchblade Kiss Comes Close", more in line with the New York Dolls. With much of the singing on the album seemingly unconsciously switching from Spanish to English and then back again, you get a real feel for where the band are trying to take you. It works, at least it does for me, although I imagine a lot of other people are going to to lambast the band, more interested in the latest GNR influenced, basic rock n roll, easy to like.
If they don't call the follow up to this "The Good, The Bad and The Gypsy Pisteleros" I really am going to be disappointed though!
Take this one for a spin, grab a bottle of whiskey, strap on your colt, and go rock in 2007's Old West.
(SugarBuzz London)
By Alissa Ordabai
SugarBuzz Magazine
supersonic
