The Needles
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The Needles

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"Avenue Magazine"

The Needles - In The Red

Take any electrical appliance and rip the electrical cord from it leaving
the wires exposed. Then plug it into a wall socket and touch the exposed
wires. The extreme volume of energy that will shock you is a good comparison
to the energy on In The Red, the new album by The Needles.
It is a one hundred mile per hour explosion of music. If there ever was a
soundtrack to a high intensity speed chase, then add Jet Setter
Extraordinaire to it. On the bands newest release the rock and roll
mentality is extremely intact, the songs are more spread out compared to the
punk concentration of Fun, Fun, Fun. Lets be clear, this is a great
punk-rock and roll record.
Vocals by Gut are somewhere between Kevin Kinney and Bon Scott of early era
AC/DC. They are great in contrast to vocals supplied by guitarist Chad Heye.
The backbeat is amply maintained by Mick, an animal on the drums to be sure
and bassist Will Dellamorte tying it all together.
On Down The Line, an exquisite track, the vocals are rough and soaring,
channeling Duff Mckagan and Steve Jones. Its the sound youd think Neurotic
Outsiders or Velvet Revolver would have given their bands collection of
members. Somebody ought to get a copy and wake them up with it. On (On
Sundays) You Need Love the drop dead rhythm gets you low in the back like
Kiss Shock Me.
In The Red is a tight record overloaded with adrenaline. The album is
relentless and the title couldnt be more clear. The guitar is sonic, like a
chainsaw in a closet. Think Ramones, think Sex Pistols, think Dead Boys.
Think The Stooges. The Needles sound is pure raw power. Theres little
flamboyance to turn anyone off, musical integrity in an animalistic position
of playing loud, fast, honest rock and roll. Whats important are the guitar
breaks, those brief minutes of silence in between that give it rhythm and
bump. Guitar solos and kept simple and stated, not a lot of showboating
here.
Theres a danger to their music that gets put down easily, an open approach
that hits hard like a hammer on bones and ear drums. Its not anthem drenched
stadium music. The music is better off played in smoke drenched bars in low
light and dirty floors. Although it would be pleasing to hear it sent across
a field of people. This is music to live hard to, fight to, party to and
annoy your neighbors with.
Hearing a band like The Needles makes you think about the state of music
today and what the hell has happened, how it got to be so mundane. Many
modern rock bands could use a wake up call from these four guys, a back
alley education in playing lean, fast music.
This is what rock and roll is meant to sound like. And listen to it loud.

- Avenue


"The Cutting Edge"

THE NEEDLES
In The Red
That’s Right! Records

From out of North Carolina (Wilmington to be exact) and straight into
your veins comes the high-octane, volatile madness of The Needles.
Loaded with 11-songs of true rock grit about “Running Wild”, “Beggar
Man’s Blues” and “The New Enemy,” this dangerous little four-piece is
absolutely the fix you need. Three records into their career, The
Needles know exactly what you want and hand it to you in big AC/DC
meets Muddy Water sized slabs. Check out the massive riffage in “Too
Hot” and “Down the Line” – total Angus Young. Then there’s “Seersucker”
which throws just enough Nugent on the fire for a well-roasted guitar
barbeque. Incidentally there’s a hysterical video for “Seersucker” on
the band’s website.

Lethal doses of speed-freak punk kick in about a quarter of the way
through the record starting with “Jetsetter Extraordinaire” and hitting
“New Enemy” and “Tune In Tokyo,” the latter possibly being the best
track on the disc with “Running Wild” coming in as a close second.
Produced by Dick Hodgin, (Corrosion of Conformity) In the Red could
easily stand next to anything the majors could come up with. It’s got
the muscle, attitude and craftsmanship. Big fat hooks help – and it’s
loaded with ‘em. A beefy backend keeps the whole thing thick and
groovy. Independents that have balls like this are worth supporting –
hunt it down and buy it.

Website: The Needles, That’s Right! Records
- www.thecutting-edge.net


"VILLAGE VOICE"

They play rock music. They play it fast. They play it loud. Rocked out punk with attitude, may be best heard live in the confines of a sea of bopping heads. With the Snakes, the Monumentals, and Playboys.

- Village Voice


"Thrasher Magazine"

And talk about smokin’ live shows! North Carolina’s THE NEEDLES just rolled through town and blew a few doors off before headin’ out. Total energy, these guys kick out guitar-laden power punk rock and ain’t afraid to make fun of the sissies in the front row. Something in the vein of the Candy Snatchers for an unadulterated blast. Go see them quick or check out their newest release Fun, Fun, Fun, if you can find it… - thrasher


"Beat Magazine"

You can call them whatever you want, but The Needles' performance was one for the record books, measured in metric units of volume, intensity, style, and loads of exuberance. - beat mag


"CD Review"

This is the second full length CD by The Needles. This release proves not only that they have staying power but that, unlike most bands’, their sophomore effort is more sonically advanced and malicious than that of their debut full length, Meet The Needles. Fun Fun Fun proves the band has staying power. The songs have more texture than a hand shoved in a leather glove full of razor blades. This stings the ears and assaults the nervous system over and over. It’s almost as if the listener can blatantly detect that The Needles have apparently been sniffing some uncut Rock’n’Roll. Songs like “Captain America,” “Hari Kari,” and the title track “Fun Fun Fun,” are everything that punk rock anthems should be made of except they have the most rock’n’roll guitar riffs… It’s like a really pissed off AC/DC here folks… It’s like The Sex Pistols if they were into Thin Lizzy or Ramones into the Stones.

On the mid tempo side of things tracks like “Bad Case of the Heavies” and “Up Your Nose” show The Needles solid Rock prowess. This disc is essential for fans of razorblade rock’n’roll, for the young AND old punks. For that redneck in your high school annual with the mullet and the AC/DC shirt on… This disc is for real!
It also has two very obscure covers at the end that illustrate these guys are doing this for themselves. These boys just “wanna have fun,” and it truly shows/sounds.
- ENCORE Magazine


"Jersey Beat Magazine"

. . . But not as loud as Wilmington’s own The Needles, who ended W.E. Fest ’03 with a driving set of hopped up, super rocked out, raunchy garage-punk that had a big crowd of fans dancing till closing time.” - jersey beat


"GarageBand.com"

GARAGEBAND.com
Oh, hell yes! Easily the best punk lead guitar I've heard on here, this is some rockin’ shit. I hear both the So-Cal punk influence and the BIG AC/DC type rock influence, and it works together REALLY well here. The vocals really stand out as well. The production fits this song like a glove, with the big guitar crunch and a near perfect mix. The performance is tight as hell, everybody sounds great. Sometimes I get really tired of having to do reviews on here, but then something like this comes along and totally blows me away. Definitely the best I've had all day. I can't wait to hear the rest of your stuff, guys
- reviewer


"CD Review"

FUN FUN FUN by The Needles
This is the 4th release and 2nd full-length release from Cape Fear, NC’s action rockers The Needles. This album not unlike the other releases features The Needles slicing out semi vintage styled, punk rooted Rock’N’Roll gems. However, there’s a more prevailing, stripped down and straight up Rock’N’Roll presence that throbs and weaves from the speakers right into the ears of those who are ready to receive. Arguably the best release The Needles have yet to dish out.

Super raw and unaffected guitar tones a la The Frenchman and Charlie M., blood curdling, broken blood vessel vocals, snotty yet filled with over confident sincerity. The frenetic yet rock steady drumming of the one and only Mickey B. and the undertow bass throbs of Mr. Dellamorte. The fact that most songs were first takes and that hardly any equalization was used in tracking and mixing the record clearly illustrates that these guys either don’t give two shits about perfection or they just don’t need the glossy, sonic make over (they don’t on either account). This is not a polished album. It bullies stereo speakers into aural submission and gives the listener unadulterated Rock music with a spirit that left the airwaves some time ago.

From the breathing sheen of cymbals to the quirky samples on some of the songs, the amplifier noises to the piercing guitar sustain that transforms into feedback that’s actually in tune… This is the record of a band that set up their stuff, plugged in and simply played their songs in a recording studio. You can actually hear them clearing their throats and taking off headphones too early after several vocal sessions demanding that the “for realness” remain in the songs. Why? This album not only matches the individuals that make up The Needles but it’s like them talking, walking, it’s them playing their music in their time. It fits them all too well if you know them at all. This CD is their aural snapshot and every one of them has the weirdest look on their faces.
These songs are every one of their personalities stacked up and package on this little digital disc called FUN FUN FUN.

Every song was mixed in the early hours of several different mornings under sleep-deprived conditions and on coming hangovers. FUN FUN FUN was mixed by The Needles themselves (as is the case with every one of their releases).
FUN FUN FUN is what The Needles were hearing their songs in their heads and if no one else heard it in the studio then they were asked to step aside.
Many question the mastering of this album/CD. The facts: every song was a rough or first mix, the guitars are too loud at times, it was never mastered at all and yet it sounds like a really good Rock Album. Why? Good question, I asked them once. Ask them and see what they say to you.



- Lukas Trosman


"Surfing Magazine"

The Who. The Ramones. The Clash. The Sex Pistols. History shows that when a band slaps "the" on the front of its name, they mean to make a statement — a loud one. The Needles are no exception. This four-piece pairs screaming guitars with spitting vocals to prove that hard rock never died, it just blacked-out for a while. Now it's awake, it's angry and it wants more: more energy, more speed and more volume. - Matt Walker


Discography

In The Red (March 2006)
Fun, Fun, Fun, (Sept. 2003)
I Can't Stand You Anymore 7" (Jan. 2003)*
Captain America EP (Oct. 2002)*
Captain America 7" (November 2001)
Meet The Needles (Sept 2000)

*Out of Print

Photos

Bio

The Needles do dirty, smokey, Beam-soaked, batter-fried, late-night rock-n-roll--meant to be played loud as it spits one of todays thickest, most searing sonic loads in your face. Metaphorically medicinal, aurally honest, true, proud and over the top, always sending a jolt of rock right through your dome. Their sting is infinitely more effective, unable to be ignored, and similarly unable to be forgotten. If you don't believe that, get a load of the names of some of the festivals these guys have become favorite regulars at: The Low Down Ho Down, Sleazefest, Heavy Rebel Weekender, Elvisfest, The Hotrod Thrills and Kustom Kills Shindig, and the Mob Town Grease Ball and Bubbapalooza in ATL.

The Needles come from a hotbed of culture- Wilmington, North Carolina (aka Cape Fear) where world-class surfers, skaters, and a powerful cult of rock and roll call home sweet home. Their music does show shades of vintage punk but the band's loyalty to an un-dissected rock-and-roll calling is obvious. Their influences are as colorful as each of The Needles personae: all things that rock, all things that roll, all things that make you loose control. Big guitar bursting out molten hot rock'n'roll. Sometimes fast, sometimes faster and everyonce in a while slowed down to fit tight in the pocket.

The Needles have been bursting eardrums since April Fools Day night in the year 2000. For the last seven years they have been dedicated to the cause- touring, writing music, and living the life of rock n roll. With ongoing support from the surf/skate scene in California, companies like Electric Visual have placed The Needles on center stage during the biggest industry trade shows of the year - Surf Expo on the east coast and ASR on the west coast. Their music has been featured in everything from surf flicks like Eastern Surf Magazine's Always Right to Tony Hawk's latest video game, American Wasteland. Of recent news, The Needles were the chosen rockers to open for Legendary New York Dolls and Supersuckers for Little Steven's Underground a-go-go tour.
As well as unleashing high altitude rock thunder for the worlds Highest Skate Park in Fairplay, CO. Most recently The Needles were flown to Vegas to kick out the jams as the surprise Rock'N'Roll act at Bam Margera's bachelor party at the Hard Rock Hotel Casino in late Jan. 2007.
All over the place mackin' on the scene. The rock'n'roll machine that Rolls it right and Rocks it tight!

Their third full-length release (April 2006), entitled In The Red, is not only molten hot, it's molten rock. From the total rock grooves of "Shake Yourself", and "Beggar Mans Blues", to the late night creep-groove "You Need Love", In The Red features 11 tracks of true grit rock. With the present day anti-war anthem "Invitation To The Night," and the punk blues slasher "Tune in Tokyo," this album makes a statement - a loud one. In The Red was recorded and produced by Dick Hodgin (Corrosion of Conformity, Hootie and the Blowfish, Velvet Revolver) at Osceola Studios in Raleigh, NC. Come on; turn your stereo up, until the needle is in the red!

Meet The Band

Gut, or Christopher- Farfisa Organ, Gibson SG, vocals. Gut is the energy behind the band. He ignites on stage and gets the crowd moving. He can play just about anything, anytime, anywhere. A lifelong surfer and skater, he makes the most of every tour stop looking for a decent wave to ride or a good park to skate. He describes The Needles sound as, �loud- like the kid that lives in the apartment next door and won�t shut up. He doesn�t give a shit if the world can�t sleep because he�s having too much fun.�

Charlie Massacre- Black Les Paul Custom, vocals. Charlie is a guitar maniac; a mixing specialist, and an eloquent yet confused songwriter that has a long list of musical influences. He�s played in a slew of bands that made their mark on the US and Europe. He says The Needles are, �suave, bold, and dashing, hip, groovy, and rocking.� His words to live by are: ��I�m a demon and I love rock�n�roll.��

Willy Dellamorte� Fender Bass, vocals. If Willy were a sailboat he�d be called Vitamin Sea. His decorative flair rolls over into his bass lines, and underneath his brass knuckles is a sweetheart that the girls pine for. He was born and raised in a 66� El Camino.

Mickey Blueyes- Trap Kit Boomer, vocals. Although he suffers from KMD (Keith Moon's Disease), he manages to keep in line most of the time. Holes in Walls of Hotels' in Florida, bar top nude dancing in Brooklyn New York, Water Tree climbing sports at every HRW. This is Rock'N'Roll's drummer!

Check out these links for more on the Needles
http://www.myspace.com/theneedles
http://www.theneedlesrock.com
http://www.garageband.com/artist/THE_NEEDLES
http://www.interpunk.com/item.cfm?Item=59053&
http://www.juicemagazine.com/ASRJAN2005AMERIKANPARTY.html

The Needles have been featured in the following TV/DVD's
TV- Fuel TV's "Fir