Cheena, “Spend the Night With…”
Available: Friday via Sacred Bones Records as a compact disc, on standard black vinyl LP and a limited edition LP available by mail order only, featuring hand-numbered copies and comes with alternate screenprinted wrap-around sleeve and wax-sealed.
Earlier this summer I made a quick turn and burn trip to the Duke City to see music with a friend. I’ve made this trip with him, and others, many many times in order catch bands of a certain ilk. When making these trips, it is inevitable that the discourse turns to some sort of tangential music conversation. A question was posed that rightly stumped me: When was the last time I heard a debut record from a band that really resonated with me?
I had no clue. Most of the new albums I’d been listening to were from pre-established bands with a body of work to compare to. Many were follow-ups or sophomore efforts. That changed when the good folks at Sacred Bones Records (Moon Duo, Psychic Ills, Amen Dunes, Holy Drug Couple, Destruction Unit, etc.) sent along the debut from Cheena.
The album blazes from the opening chords of Track 1, Side 1. Swaggering slide guitar and jangly spirit channeling the best of Johnny Thunders. Straight forward rock ’n’ roll. I love when you can hear a band’s influences, yet they aren’t completely replicating what they heard or ripping another band’s style. The five-piece features members all born and raised in New York City and succinctly from their bio, “formed in 2014 out of their shared affinity for ’77 punk and a mutual respect for Mercer Arts-era NYC early glam and West Coast country punk.” Fantastic, fantastic debut.
Highly recommended for fans of The Men, Gun Club, X, The Dead Boys or New York Dolls.
— Jon E. Lynch[email protected]
