MP3: Len Price 3, “The Girl Who Became A Machine”
Wicked Cool Records is sort of like Bomp or Norton, only a little more mainstream. It’s the label started by Little Steven Van Zandt, and the focus is on garage rock.
The label pretty much sticks to acts like Len Price 3, and the jangly Nuggets-style power pop they knock out. They’ve released albums from long-running acts like Dave Allan & the Arrows and the Chesterfield Kings, who’ve been knocking out records for thirty years, as well as up-and-comers like Sweden’s the Maggots.
The label is kind of hit-and-miss, and the releases are either stellar or ho-hum, without much in between. The cover art on most releases is atrocious, but thankfully not much of an indicator as to what you’ll get. The Maggots’ Monkey Time art looks like it should be thrown in a dumpster, but “Ain’t Nothing But A Maggot” is instantly addictive, locking itself in your brain the instant you hear the organ kick in.
The Len Price 3 track comes from their forthcoming album, Pictures, out January 19 on Wicked Cool.
