Born To Rock & Roll

Who knew?  Not us, that’s for damn sure!  Good thing we happened to stop by Slicing Up Eyeballs today…

We’re ecstatically giddy to report that The King In Yellow, the first new Milkmen album since 1995′s God-awful Stoney’s Extra Stout (Pig) and the first since bassist Dave Blood went to the Great Laundromat In The Sky, is an exceptional return to form.  And given the utter shitshow of a century we’re having, Rodney Anonymous couldn’t make a more timely return.  He’s like a punk rock Superman.

Between the Milkmen, Beady Eye, R.E.M., the Vaccines, the Strokes, Glasvegas, and now The King In Yellow… it’s an embarrassment of riches, people.  Our cup runneth over – 2011′s shaping up to be one for the books.  Expect – or at least hope for – a review soon.  But know this – that goddamn tin whistle that “colored” their last couple of albums is nowhere to be found.  This is primo Milkmen at their funky cowpunk best.  And don’t worry – they still can’t sing.

Oh, and the icing on the cake?  The Milkmen will be playing at Warsaw is beautiful downtown Greenpoint, Brooklyn on Sat. April 9th!  We saw them there in the early stages of their reunion two years ago and our souls rotated – it was a blazing, strangely life-affirming evening and it goes without saying that this is a show not be missed.  Get your tickets here and unless you want to wait a month for physical product, you can download the album right now for a mere $9.99 here.  But as a wise man once said, “Feel the heat of the moment, feel the heat of the now.”  Take heed.

Trivia factoid – you know that Jonny Wurster kid mentioned in “Stuart”?  The one who some of the neighbors thought smoked crack and who got a burrow owl for his 10th birthday?   Well, that fine kid grew up to be none other than Jon Wurster, drummer of Superchunk.  Turns out he booked the first Milkmen show way back in the early ’80s – fancy that.  No word if Wurster ever figured out what the queers are doing to the soil, though…

Until then, dig…

Reunionized in Greenpoint, 2009.

(Nice hat, Joe!)

And, of course…

Let’s do it, man – let’s torch the whole village.

Of all the great rock n’ roll reunions of recent years - and I’m talking about the Descendents, Too Much Joy, and the Almighty Redd Kross, thank you very much – the one that I’d always secretly hoped for to help put this socio-political shit-charade of a decade in proper perspective was the Dead Milkmen.  The right-wing pigeons had swooped down onto the landing strips made for gay martians and we were left high and dry.  Where was our voice of reason?  Where had you gone, Rodney Anonymous?

At long last, our prayers have been answered – after fizzling out in the mid-’90s, Philadelphia’s finest once again appear to be a fully-functioning rock n’ roll unit.  Though Dave Blood sadly put the “dead” in Dead Milkmen, Rodney, Joe Jack Talcum, and Dean Clean eventually recruited Dan “Dandrew” Stevens to fill the vacant bassist position.  After a couple of memorial shows for Dave in 2004 and then a just-for-the-hell-of-it appearance at beautiful downtown Austin, TX’s Fun Fun Fun Festival last November, they’re coming to Warsaw in Greenpoint, Brooklyn on April 17th.

Thank God.  Now let’s enjoy some of our favorite Milkmen moments:

The Thing That Only Eats Hippies (1985)

Methodist Coloring Book (1990)

The Secret Of Life (1992) **with bonus Canine Bastards baseball hat content!**

Take Elvis For A Walk And Shut Up.