Author Archives: dan

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – The Bronx – V

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The Bronx - V

The Bronx

V

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/10897120-The-Bronx-V

Year Of Release: 2017

Review

“We are The Bronx from Los Angeles, California!”

I’ve been a fan of The Bronx since my friend Viktor gave me a CD of the band’s first album in 2003. Thirty-one minutes and thirty seconds of blistering punk rawk. Just the right length that I could play it twice on the way to the office and get the day off to a strong start. The Bronx (V) is much the same experience, clocking in at just over three minutes longer than the first album, albeit with a more measured pace but the same relentless punk feel that attracted me to the band in the first place.

The Bronx is one of those bands that sounds almost the same in concert as it does on the studio albums. Indeed, the live performances usually sound a little better. According to my setlist.fm profile, I’ve been fortunate enough to see them play live four times now, and I can confidently say it’s been a brilliant experience every time. You never feel like the band is phoning it in – it’s always like this is the last time they’re ever going to play, so they’re going all out. If you ever have the opportunity, I can’t recommend it strongly enough. Regretfully, I was out of the country this year when the band was doing the double-headliner with its alter ego Mariachi El Bronx, but I’ve heard nothing but good things about those shows as well.

Standout tracks on this album are Fill The Tanks, Sore Throat, Cordless Kids, and Channel Islands.

Rating: 8/10

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – Public Enemy – It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

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Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

Public Enemy

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/5159474-Public-Enemy-It-Takes-A-Nation-Of-Millions-To-Hold-Us-Back

Year Of Release: 1988

Review

I bought this album on CD a year or two after it came out. I didn’t know a lot about Public Enemy, but I’d seen some of the clips on Rage (surprise!) and read about some kind of connection with Ice Cube and I thought that was something I should investigate. This was the first hip-hop album I’d heard that was a dizzying mix of political messaging and powerhouse vocal delivery, backed by Terminator X’s deft control of the turntables and an amazing overall sound from Hank Shocklee and the Bomb Squad. The sampling on this album? Crazy stuff. I had no idea at the time what most of the lyrics really meant, but I knew that they were covering some important topics.

I have a friend who has Chuck D’s number and talks with him from time to time. By all accounts he’s a super switched on guy and really knows what’s what. Which comes through in the album too. This is a hard album to skip tracks on, but standouts for me are Don’t Believe The Hype, She Watch Channel Zero?!, Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos, and Party For Your Right To Fight.

If you want to read more about the background of this album, Christopher R. Weingarten does a pretty good job with his book in the 33 1/3 series. This album sparked a lifelong appreciation for Public Enemy and pretty much everything  the group has put out since.

Rating: 9/10

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – Rancid – Let’s Go

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Rancid - Let's Go

Rancid

Let’s Go

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/1525004-Rancid-Lets-Go

Year Of Release: 1994

Review

I’ve mentioned before on this weblog that I was ignorant when it came to Rancid until I heard …And Out Come The Wolves some time in 1995. A friend (RIP Fat Greg) made me a tape of Let’s Go though (it fits nicely on one side of a C-90 cassette) and I was all in. This is an album that sounds like how I thought punk albums were meant to sound.

This is just a great punk album – with excellent, short songs and the kind of energy that you expect from a band with this talent and background. Matt Freeman’s bass is the standout here, but the rest of the band really brings it as well. I’ve written before about how enjoyable it was to see Rancid play live, and this album is a great indicator of how fast paced and frenetic the band could be. There’s no ska on this one, just straight up punk rawk.

I also remember being amused by Burn which contains a quote from Rock Master Scott & the Dynamic Three 1984 hit The Roof Is On Fire (“We don’t need no water, let the motherfucker burn!”), and then hearing a version of the track on Bloodhound Gang’s album One Fierce Beer Coaster.

Most all of the tracks on this album are excellent, but my favourites are Nihilism, Side Kick (who doesn’t want to help out Wolverine?), Salvation, Harry Bridges, and St. Mary. While this isn’t my favourite Rancid album (I think that’s Life Won’t Wait) it’s definitely up there.

Rating: 8/10

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – Mike Patton – Mondo Cane

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Mike Patton - Mondo Cane

Mike Patton

Mondo Cane

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/8892543-Mike-Patton-Mondo-Cane

Year Of Release: 2010

Review

Someone once commented on a YouTube video “if weird was a colour, Mike Patton would be a rainbow”. I don’t know if that’s entirely fair, but Patton is well known for doing a whole lot of different and interesting projects, many of which veer into the realm of weird, I guess. Like putting out an album of cover songs of fifties and sixties Italian pop songs. Does it sound weird? Maybe. Does it sound cool? Absolutely. I can’t speak Italian, but I know that every track on this album is a banger. Would I be listening to it if Patton’s name wasn’t on the front? Nope. And I’m not alone in thinking that. But it’s absolutely worth your time to check it out.

The orchestra gives it some oomph, but the whole concept only seems to work because it’s easy enough to tell yourself that this is a project Patton would do, and that’s usually enough to listen to it. There are plenty of clips on YouTube of him playing the album through live, and it sounds (and looks) tremendous. I can’t say enough positive things about this album (or about Patton, for that matter). And I hope that the fans he’s picked up from Faith No More or Tomahawk pick up this album too.

Standout tracks for me are Deep Down, Ore D’Amore, and 20 Km Al Giorno.

Rating: 9/10

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – Regurgitator – Tu-Plang

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Regurgitator - Tu-Plang

Regurgitator

Tu-Plang

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/5017253-Regurgitator-Tu-Plang

Year Of Release: 1996

Review

Regurgitator’s first full-length studio album, Tu-Plang, was released in 1996. The first time I saw them play was at The Roxy in Brisbane in late 1995 (supporting Dub War) and they rocked out [edit 2026.10.12: this is bollocks – it was Pangaea supporting Dub War, not Regurgitator]. I also remember seeing them supporting (with Fireballs) CIV in Byron Bay – and they just blew CIV away in terms of energy and crowd support. I almost felt sorry for CIV, because they clearly weren’t the real headliner that day. It seemed like they were everywhere at the time (I recall seeing Ben Ely at Toowong Village one day and thinking that was pretty special), and they were certainly working hard to get the album heard by as many people as possible. I always thought that Regurgitator sounded a lot better live than on record, but this album still holds up well.

“Happiness is a Kong-Foo Sing”. Anyone who can deliver some lyrics about fortune cookies wrapped up in a catchy rock song can do no wrong in my opinion. Not to mention starting the album off with I Sucked a Lot of Cock to Get Where I Am. Just brilliant stuff. Hard to explain to some of the non-Australian listeners.

The music videos from Regurgitator were always entertaining too, and I was also a big fan of the band’s DIY ethic (and the obvious talent enabling them to pull it all off). Standout tracks for me are Mañana, F.S.O., and Music is Sport. If you can get hold of the first two EPs – do that too.

Rating: 8/10

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – The Mark Of Cain – Songs Of The Third And Fifth

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The Mark Of Cain – Songs Of The Third And Fifth

The Mark Of Cain

Songs Of The Third And Fifth

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/4700315-The-Mark-Of-Cain-Songs-Of-The-Third-And-Fifth

Year Of Release: 2012

Review

I’ve been a fan of Adelaide-based The Mark Of Cain since I was in high school. I knew about them (via skateboard magazines) when I was younger (and had a Battlesick sticker on my wardrobe), but I didn’t have access to any of their albums. When I enthuse about The Mark Of Cain to people unfamiliar with the band I say things like “imagine if Joy Division was crossed with Helmet”. It’s a somewhat unimaginative take, and I don’t think it really covers the breadth of what this band plays, but it kind of gives you an inkling.

It had been 11 years since the last album when this one was released, and I was stoked to hear that it was being released. It’s a pounding, brutal piece of work, with heavy instruments and drill sergeant like vocals. But there are also fantastically musical bits on the album too, like the last 30 seconds of Separatist – which is just a great moment that makes me stop whatever I’m doing and listen, regardless of how many times I’ve heard that track.

The Mark Of Cain has been touring pretty regularly over the last few years, and I’ve been fortunate to see them more than a handful of times (after first seeing them play at Livid in late 1995). Things are changing for the band but as far as I’m aware they’ll continue to put out the kind of music that they have been renowned for for the last forty-something years. If you get a chance to see them live – don’t hesitate.

Standout tracks for me are the aforementioned Separatist, Barkhammer, Milosevic, and Grey 11.

Rating: 8.5/10

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – Rage Against The Machine – Evil Empire

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Rage Against The Machine - Evil Empire

Rage Against The Machine

Evil Empire

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/2268260-Rage-Against-The-Machine-Evil-Empire

Year Of Release: 1996

Review

Hard to believe it’s been over thirty years since this album was released (I know, old people love to say stuff like that). This might be my favourite Rage Against The Machine album. I remember buying it on CD as soon as it came out but being unable to listen to it because my CD player was broken. At the time it seemed normal to spend money on CDs while not having a working CD player. The CD I have is also one of those ones where the tracks aren’t separated correctly, so Year Of Tha Boomerang has the last twenty or thirty seconds of Roll Right at the beginning. Something about CDs pressed in Australia during that period. I’ve had it happen with a few different albums.

I got to see them play live at Big Day Out in the Summer of 1996, and I remember Zach De La Rocha being a blur as he was constantly moving around the stage – so energetic. The video clip for Bulls On Parade has footage from the Perth Big Day Out (I think). An absolutely amazing band to see play live.

I was at university when this album came out, so a little more across many of the themes covered by many of the tracks (as opposed to being in high school when the self-titled album was released). Standout tracks for me are People Of The Sun, Vietnow, and Tire Me, but this is another album that plays through easily. If you haven’t, you should. And if you have, then you already know.

Rating: 9/10

Brisbane VMUG – July 2026

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The July 2026 edition of the Brisbane VMUG meeting will be held on Thursday 23rd July at the NetApp Office, Level 17, Central Plaza II, 66 Eagle Street, Brisbane from 3pm – 6:30pm. It’s sponsored by NetApp, Ingram Micro, and Broadcom and promises to be a great afternoon.

Here’s the agenda:

3pm – VMUG Leader Intro

3.10-4pm – Unlock unrealised value from your VCF deployments with NetApp ONTAP 9.1

Presented by Chris Gondek – Solutions Engineering Manager, Australia and New Zealand, NetApp and Wade Juppenlatz – Technical Business Development Manager, Ingram Micro

Live demonstration of the NetApp Data Infrastructure insights Observability of VMware environments.

  • Showcasing where there are opportunities to right size
  • Where there is over/under utilisation/provisioning
  • Where there is opportunity to reclaim waste
  • Audience Participation / interaction where you can ask your own questions to the NetApp AI chat bot on VMware environments
  • Always popular, you can ask anything that you would want, in natural language like “show me where I save on VMware licensing cost”, etc)
  • Trident for TANZU / VKS
  • Our ONTAP tools for VMware integration / UX demo
  • Broader VMware in cloud and the NetApp Console Canvas
  • Shift Toolkit (Convert/Migrate other HyperVisor environments to VMware)

4-4.30pm – VCF 9.1 Introduction and Updates from Broadcom

Presented by Peter Hauck, Staff Solutions Architect, Broadcom

4.30-5pm – Community Session (tbc)

5pm onwards – Networking, Pizza, vBeers and Giveaways!

You can find out more information and register for the event here.

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – Beastie Boys – Paul’s Boutique

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Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique

Beastie Boys

Paul’s Boutique

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/47802-Beastie-Boys-Pauls-Boutique

Year Of Release: 1989

Review

It’s impressive just how ignorant I was about Paul’s Boutique until I bought a copy on CD in a Virgin Megastore in France in late 1994. I’d owned Check Your Head, and heard most all of Licensed To Ill, but wasn’t at all aware of Paul’s Boutique. I know it seems really ignorant, but in the olden days (before the Internet, and Discogs for that matter) the only way I heard about albums was via magazines like Thrasher, Countdown (!), or Rolling Stone. Or maybe in the giant catalogue that they kept behind the counter in my local Chandlers and let me scour through from time to time. So I really was clueless.

In any case, I think this is a fantastic album, and it should have propelled the Beasties to even greater heights, not bombed like it did (at least, that’s the way the story is told now). It’s a sophisticated concoction of samples and rhyming lyrics and humour delivered in the Beastie Boys’ inimitable style. The whole album feels like they’re really going for it, but at the same time it’s also an experiment in testing the limits of their abilities (and the equipment they were using). The Dust Brothers had a big hand in the production, and they went on to do some pretty influential stuff too.

There’re a tonne of samples in this record, and this site has done a fantastic job of putting together a comprehensive reference of the samples used in the tracks, as well as what the various references are. I’ll admit that I didn’t realise Machine Gun by The Commodores was the backbone of Hey Ladies until last decade (mainly because I was unfamiliar with The Commodores back catalogue). Standout tracks for me are Shake Your Rump, Johnny Ryall, The Sounds Of Science, and the aforementioned Hey Ladies (mainly for the video clip).

I also highly recommend Dan LeRoy’s book on Paul’s Boutique (part of the 33 1/3 series) for a comprehensive overview of the album, the production process, and insight into the Beastie Boys at that point in time.

Rating: 8.5/10

Sunday Afternoon Vinyl – Beastie Boys – Check Your Head

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Beastie Boys - Check Your Head

Beastie Boys

Check Your Head

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/release/3950974-Beastie-Boys-Check-Your-Head

Year Of Release: 1992

Review

Released in 1992, Check Your Head is the first Beastie Boys album I owned and is, therefore, my favourite Beastie Boys album. It doesn’t make sense, because you could argue that Hello Nasty is the Beasties at the peak of their powers, but for me, Check Your Head is it. I wouldn’t own Paul’s Boutique for a few more years, and I’d only really heard the hits from Licensed To Ill. I was lucky enough to see them play at Summersault on the Gold Coast in January of 1996. They rocked out. I believe if you look around the Internet there’s a tape of Triple J’s Live At The Wireless with them playing the Sydney version of that concert. I remember playing this album in my bedroom when my mother came in to enquire about whether I was listening to music with swearing in it. To this day I’ve tried to reassure her that the lyrics in Funky Boss weren’t what she thought they were.

So what is it about this album that I love? It’s that they’re all over the place stylistically, with hip hop, jazz, rock, and punk songs all making an appearance, with some amusing skits also popping up. To this day I grin ear to ear when The Blue Nun shows up in my music queue. For me, this is where the Beasties really went back to their roots in a lot of ways and picked up the instruments again to put together some great songs, while still being able to effortlessly put together some tremendous hip hop tracks as well, ably assisted by Mario Caldato Jr.

Standout tracks? All of them? Okay, I’ll pick five: Jimmy James, Gratitude, So What’cha Want, The Maestro, and Professor Booty. I’m also a big fan of Stand Together and the cover of Time For Livin’. Licensed To Ill hasn’t really aged well, Paul’s Boutique was amazing for its time, and the Beasties went on to deliver some terrific albums in Ill Communication, Hello Nasty, and To The 5 Boroughs. But if you want to hear (what I thought was) a groundbreaking trio of white guys from New York who could play their instruments and deliver top tier hip hop – Check Your Head is the album you need. I won’t be taking any questions at this time.

Rating: 10/10