Southern Backtones Los Tormentos de Amor ­ Pinche Flojo Records PFR 009 by William Michael Smith

The Southern Backtones have been honing their chops in Houston dives for years. They were a mainstay at the legendary but now defunct Blue Iguana back when that whole crazy scene centered around other hell-for-leather post-punk bands like The Flaming Hellcats and Los Skarnales. When that all tumbled down, they became regulars at the Ale House and other local establishments supporting the rock side of the local scene. The Backtones have finally worked their way up to respectability with regular dates at The Continental Club and other more upscale venues, and have developed a decent regional following. Houston's trend-setting public radio station KPFT has even given them a bit of airplay. About two years back the Backtones had their first fifteen minutes of fame when they were selected for a Levi's commercial, which used their song 'Fallen Angel.' (Ironically, when I encountered them at The Continental Club Thursday night, they were wearing leather rock star pants.) The Levi's commercial led to their being the headliners on a "Levi's Tour" for three weeks ­ and some decent paychecks. Hank Schyma used the cash to produce "Los Tormentos de Amor." The Backtones fuse rockabilly and surf music with a dash of punk, a dash spaghetti western theme music, and a dash of pychedelia to create a Reverend-Horton-Heat-meets-The-Doors sound. Schyma uses lots of echo on the vocal tracks and often sounds like a Southern Jim Morrison. He also makes generous use of whammy bar on his Gibson hollow-body and adds a bit of echo chamber to get that big, fat sound like Duane Eddy or Lonnie Mack. Bassist Mykel Foster, besides having one of the coolest stage personna's in Houston, plays a thick bassline that gives lots of depth to the three-piece ensemble. My favorite cut is 'Call Off Your Dogs,' a tune full of rockabilly, Gene Vincent, hepcat humor and hiccup vocals. "Sneaking out for blatant trouble-making, she'll lie when she's late, she'll cry but she's faking." In the great tradition of rockabilly, the evil woman gets the guys ­ and she makes them beg. There are Reverend Horton Heat echos all over this barnburner. Bassist Foster puts the pedal to the metal. 'El Camino Peligroso' sounds like theme music for a Quentin Tarrantino movie. Schyma demonstrates that he's spent his time studying the surf masters like Dick Dale and Nokie Edwards on this extended jam. 'Morning Star' has a Doors vibe and Schyma uses Morrison-like phrasing and intonation to accentuate the similarity. 'Won't Pray' sounds like some of Reverend Horton Heat's seminal work and would fit nicely on "Smoke 'Em If You've Got 'Em." Schyma toys with variations of Duane Eddy's signature lick from "Rebel Rouser" on the guitar solo, then does a neat jump into Scotty Moore/Elvis territory with tasty licks ala Elvis's rockabilly classic, 'Mystery Train.' But there's more, as Schyma stretches the solo over into some territory reminiscent of Dave Edmunds guitar-god days in Love Sculpture. This track is a fun romp. If you like that fun-loving, let's-not-take-ouselves-too-seriously Texas psycho-punkabilly music, this is the cd for you. You'll want to get to know the 'Girl Named Gone.' Contact William Michael Smith at: wms-at-rockzilla.net

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