The Tummies “9:30 Girl”
This Nashville, Tennessee group has a great dynamic with the dual vocals of Judd Fuller and Dana Radford, and a Beatlesque streak a mile wide. Fans of The Rooks and Grip Weeds will adore this band. The original songs all wear the influence on their sleeves but don’t sound like a slavish imitation at all.
The jangling Rickenbackers and harmonies of “Sweet Little Mistreater” will carry you away to Merseybeat heaven and it sticks fast. The catchy “Little Blue Heart” and “Puppet” continue the party, and the title track is a slow ballad daydreaming about a girl you see on your commute. It effectively shifts moods on the acoustic “Collector” but it’s the groovy dance tunes like “Stuff Like That” is what these Tummies do best. Overall, the songwriting and musicianship are perfect without a note of filler. Highly Recommended.
The Rockyts “Come On And Dance”
The Rockyts are a young Ottawa band who are modernizing the ’60s British Invasion sound for a new generation. Their high energy performances include original tunes that have a Merseybeat formula and several classic covers.
The opener “All of the Time” certainly has the goods, with some similarities to the Fab Four’s “Anytime At All,” it’s pure catchy fun. The originals recall several other bands, notably The Dave Clark Five, The Animals, and Manfred Mann. Most of the songs are fast tempo and around 2 minutes in length. “Run, Run, Run” and “Have Love Will Travel” have more of a garage rock style. The Knickerbockers “Lies” and The Easybeats “She’s So Fine” are also a perfect fit for this trio. They stray from the formula a little with the instrumental “Espresso,” and it’s a good showcase for each band member. While this is a terrific debut, I would love to hear more originals songs. But these guys are young and hopefully, we’ll hear more very soon.
