The Renfields' Reviews
Spring-Heeled Jack
Four reasons to like the Renfields: 1) A sense of history. Unlike most bands, the Renfields realize life did not begin with Huskers, Ramones, Heartbreakers, and Dead Boys. Sure they swagger while wiping the snot off their upper lips, but they also comb through the grey hairs of their record collections. And it leads to some unlikely stylistic collisions ( Big Star meeta the Sensational Alex Harvey Band meets Yardbirds). 2) A few good songs. At least five of these serve proudly as A-sides to any single of the month club, running the gamut from pure pop woozy blues to anthemic garagepunk to quirky progrock. 3) A killer rhythm section. No band should be without one, and this one knows instictively when to push and when to pull. When they're in full "push" mode (think Keith moon) they wind up at number... 4) Total Abandonment These guys get all whooped up at the first sniff of their own sweat, and its damn infectious, like the earliest Replacements gigs must have been.
From OPTION
Spring-Heeled Jack
The Renfields' tapes have always been explosions of modern
guitar rock, loud and unpredictable. Always fun. You get the
feeling as if very little is preconceived. Just throw a bunch of
songs on a tape and the fact that these guys simply cook together
makes the whole thing great every time. They've put a little
polish on the stuff here with a consistent set of songs and very
little not to like. It's got a better handle. Which, perhaps, is
a problem; perhaps it's not. A 7-1/2 on a scale of 10, only 'cos
I've tasted their brand of danger and this sorta stops short in
an indescribable kinda way.
From Gajoob
Spring-Heeled Jack
They're
a Rock group with one foot in the Progressive past, the other in
a Post-Grunge-Pop present...
click here for entire review
Sounds Of Romance Sounds Of Horror
Surely this is the same devil's music that has dogged musicians from Jerry Lee's day onward. "Head Devil" is one number on Sounds of Romance Sounds of Horror, and it sounds like an incantation for voodoo kids too stoned to leave the garage. "He Made Me Blind has fat, Phallic riffs and the kind of hip shake rumble that makes nubiles' thighs part with unsophisticated passion. And "South Pacific" jumps and jives its instro butt off while tipping a hat to Chuck Berry (speaking of adolescent corruption). Illinois' Renfields get in a groove as filthy and slinky as it comes. The hysteria-plagued vocalist takes helium hits and they collapse in the ditch like a lowbrow cross between the Stones, Meat Puppets, Prison Shake and Crazy Horse.
Fred Mills, Magnet
Sounds Of Romance Sounds Of Horror
A rough, rumbling of garage rock that'll shake down the walls of your parent's house (even if you don't live at home anymore). Great songs too.
From Gajoob
The Renfields Walk Among Us
Moody, garage band mind-music. These guys do a version of Blue
Oyster Cults "Godzilla" that leaves me scratching my
head & wondering if The Renfields really ARE Blue Oyster
Cult! Damn! What a cover!! The instrumental cuts are fun, and
then there's the really cool song that reminds me of early Pink
Floyd with Syd Barrett. Or the killer song that reminds me of the
original Alice Cooper Band, but I can't tell you any song titles
since there are none listed! Rockin, diverse, electric anthems
combining psychedilia sounds and blues, pop, hard rock and all
around madness!! Renfields Rock!!
Live Review
Though it may seem like an ungodly marriage, The Renfields sound like a combination of AC/DC and Fugazi with a bit of old fashioned rockabilly thrown in for good measure. The vocals can be a bit grating, but overall, its a jolly hard-rock experience. The Renfields really shine when they play with the rockabilly tinge. They pleasantly remind one of the under-rated Texas band 66, or even Chicago's Moonshine Willy's (though with a bit less of the obvious country influence). It's loud and fast, but awfully fun. As an added treat, most of their shows feature neo-fifties hipster fans complete with slicked back hair and cigarettes rolled up in their sleeves. It can be endlessly entertaining to watch these anachronistic miscreants mosh
A Remix of Several Reviews
"Though it may seem like an ungodly marriage, the fact
that these guys
simply cook together makes the whole thing collapse in the ditch
like
slicked back hair. A rough, rumbling hip shake that has dogged
musicians all whooped up at the first sniff of their own sweat.
When
they're in full "push" mode you get too stoned to leave
the garage. I've
tasted their brand of danger and the Renfields realize life did
not begin
with another lazy, dry-warmth voodoo that makes nubiles' thighs
part
with unsophisticated passion."
by Dawn
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