Category: Classic Rock

Digging The New - Joe Strummer And The Mescaleros* - Rock Art And The X-Ray Style (CD, Album)

The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in as part of the original wave of British punk. They had iconic status even then. The Clash outside the Roundhouse, Camden , London taking a break from their busy rehearsal schedule. Max Browne started photographing top bands when he was a school boy. Allan Ballard began his photographic career at the Evening Standard where he assisted the picture editor. All rights reserved. Prices and availability are subject to change without notice.

Read our Privacy Policy. Vinyl Record. Indie Rock. Phonographic Copyright p — Mercury Records Ltd. London Copyright c — Mercury Records Ltd. The Last Night London Burned. Retrieved 4 December Archived from the original on 17 November Retrieved 23 November Strummer, who was the band's guitarist, vocalist and songwriter alongside Mick Jones, died on Sunday at his farmhouse in Somerset, southwestern England. Contact Music. Retrieved 4 October Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 July FH Tobias Zywietz, — Retrieved 17 February D'Ambrosio, Antonino 13 October Aggressive Bittersweet Druggy.

Energetic Happy Hypnotic. Romantic Sad Sentimental. Sexy Trippy All Moods. Drinking Hanging Out In Love. He utilizes that style a few times on this record, most noticeably on the second track Sandpaper Blues with the effective use of bongo drums, backing tribe like vocals, and numerous other foreign instruments. Rock Art and the X-Ray Style is not a very heavy album as it has more of a laid back feel to it. Although this album does not have as much straight foward rock as later Mescaleros albums would have, Global A Go Go and Streetcore , more so the latter, Joe and the gang use the diversity to its full potential.

However, Strummer still shows he can play some rock demonstrated in the track Diggin' The New. It is not very heavy mind you, but does its job well as a rock song and expands the range of genres here.

Joe Strummer, despite being in his late forties here, gives a strong vocal performance, and doesn't even sound as though he has aged all these years, but at times sings in a calmer manner which he does extremely well. Some songs don't have the intensity of the older days, but his calm and relaxed voice sooths each song well.

But Joe can still belt out those powerful yells in which he does in Techno D-Day , making it one of the better vocal acts on the album. But Joe's backing band should not be overlooked or not be given enough credit. Each one is multi talented and can play a number of instruments and there are numerous instruments used here ranging from the basic guitar, bass and drums to the turntables, synthesizers, strings and saxophones.

Martin Slattery does a great job on keyboards and plays a good portion in some songs such as Yalla Yalla and Forbidden City. Slattery also plays other instruments like the flute and saxophone which are best demonstrated on songs like Sandpaper Blues, probably the most diversifying track on the album. Pablo Cook plays the different types of drums like the bongos, steel drums and kettle drums.

Some of his best performances on the album include the semi-title track X-Ray Style and yet again, Sandpaper Blues. Steve Barnard a. For the standard instruments or most common, there is Scott Shields on bass, and Anthony Genns who also plays piano and the synthesizers on guitar along with Strummer. Yalla Yalla features the heaviest use of synthesizers. The majority of the songs here are done acoustically guitar wise, but the electric guitar is used still, displayed on tracks such as the album opener Tony Adams , Techno D-Day , and Diggin' The New.

Even with all these various types of instruments which may seem disorganized or disordered, it doesn't and each one seems to flow well making for smooth song transitions.