Artists starting with B

The New Transistor Heroes

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Bis, “The New Transistor Heroes” (Grand Royal/Capitol, 1997)
Teeming, fun-crazed post-punk/pop/everything explosion, with a rapid-fire channel-switching ethos reminiscent of the Boredoms, but different source material – the twee-pop of their native Scotland, riot grrrl, ska, electro-pop, etc. – all spun into the blender and blasted out in a Ritalin-defying fleet-footed squeal of snot-nosed glee that threatens to break free of Earth’s gravitational force.
Try 1, 2, 11, 14
2/21/16

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Second Place

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Blasted Canyons, “Second Place” (Castle Face, 2012)
This label can do no wrong in my book, and this just might be its best release yet. Blasted Canyons hit the sweet spot right where trippy garage-punk evolved into no-holds-barred freakout psychedelia, and filled it with pop melody, sound-spasms, and everything but the kitchen sink, while always staying hooky and on-the-beat.
Try 3, 5
4/30/12

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Black Sabbath

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Black Sabbath, “Black Sabbath” (Warner Bros., 1970)
Debut slab from these Midlands industrial-wasteland lugs, and of course the mothership of all subsequent Doom. Even so, there’s something unique about the swirling psych residue that colors their shadowy blues-trudge-sludge here.
Try 1/ 1, 2/ 1
7/11/16

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It’s Great When You’re Straight . . . Yeah

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Black Grape, “It’s Great When You’re Straight . . . Yeah” (Radioactive, 1995)
After the Happy Mondays went up in (crack) smoke, Shaun Ryder defied near-universal assumptions of his artistic demise and returned with this booming, oozing compendium of bigfoot hip-hop beats, thick funk tracks and brilliantly preposterous brain-fried banter.
Try 2, 4, 6
6/9/11

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Rad Times Xpress IV

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Black Bananas, “Rad Times Xpress IV” (Drag City, 2012)
Jennifer Herrema has been making cool, fun underground rock for nearly a quarter-century, and this is one of her wackiest, most exhilarating releases yet, returning some of the deconstruct-on-impact space-electronica of her work with Royal Trux to the one-woman arena-metal revival she’s been conducting for the last few years. The result at times resembles a jam session between Funkadelic, Def Leppard, Joan Jett, Kylie Minogue and Throbbing Gristle.
Try 2, 4, 7, 9
2/28/12

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Buck Biloxi and the Fucks

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Buck Biloxi and the Fucks, “Buck Biloxi and the Fucks” (Red Lounge, 201?)
Current garage-punkers fill out their trebly sound with obnoxious humor and personality plus good old gratuitous aggression.
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Strobosphere

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Bailterspace, “Strobosphere” (Fire, 2012)
This band goes back to the ‘80s, with further roots in the early New Zealand postpunk underground. Their umpteenth record sounds similar to its predecessors – droning/chiming guitars and wide-swinging, heavy rhythms create a shadowy, metallic dome of sound with pop undertones, and, like the others, it’s very good.
Try 1, 2
7/26/12

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Bananarama

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Bananarama, “Bananarama” (London, 1984)
Misleading title, actually their second LP, and a move from goofy new wave to a cooler, more atmospheric synth-pop. Some great songs here, girls-lost-in-the-city weepig romantic light-and-shadow.
Try 1/ 1, 2/ 3
6/18/18

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Greatest Hits

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Bananarama, “Greatest Hits” (London, 1988; originally 1981-1988). Non-stop peak moments from one of the ‘80s’ great singles bands, effervescently amateurish girl-vocals (like the Slits gone bubblegum) atop state-of-te-art music from new wave to electro-pop to freestyle. Try 1, 4, 6, 10, 11.
11/12/12.

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Exploding Man

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Bastards, “Exploding Man” (Glitterhouse, 1989; original recordings 1987-89)
In the wake of Big Black, Killdozer et al, noise-rock exploded across the Midwest like the garage-punk of its day, and these guys were among its most gutter-level rock-and-roll exponents, particularly on these early singles. Viscous, lurching sludge that will have you wondering if the record is on the right speed, like being attacked by Chris Christie when you’re drunk on your feet and can’t quite make out how fast he’s coming at you. The kicker is, the choruses are really sing-along-catchy in a nice fuck-the-world kind of way that foreshadows Nirvana, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Kurt was on to this at the time.
Try A/1, B/1, B/2.
11/10/16

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