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The Detroit City Council: Wow, They rock

There's more to Tom Potter than Bantam Rooster and The Dirtbombs. The MCR crew caught him with his newest project on Saturday at the Lager House. We all agreed that The Detroit City Council, whose lineup has an uncanny resemblence to The Dirtbombs, sound like a million dollars. Clad in white tuxedos, the City Council combines soul, funk and rock in tunes such as "Fuck Like Folks." The stage is ablaze with nonestop motion as the clan cranks out their brand of danceable funk.

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Silver Screen Meets Electric Six

Trying to find something good about the new Charlie's Angels film? Check out the soundtrack and you'll find "Danger! High Voltage" by our boys, the Electric Six. While the band has had some shakeups in the roster recently, they have reincarnated with the original two members and a few new additions to continue their tour.

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August: The Big Show Month

Step right up and get you tickets because a couple of big shows have been scheduled for August. The White Stripes have scheduled another date at the Masonic Temple on August 10. A few days later on August 14, none other than Iggy & the Stooges will be playing a gig at DTE Energy Music Theatre. The Von Bondies are slated to open this show.

Dirtbombs In NYC

The Dirtbombs will be playing the Siren Music Festival at Coney Island, New York on Saturday, July 19. Other acts include The Datsuns, Hot Hot Heat, The Kills and Idlewild.

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Album Review: 61/49 - The Romantics

Revivals can often times be inspirational, and are seemingly almost inevitable, especially where music is concerned. Whenever a particular style causes a particularly big fuss within its “day,” it’s almost certain that style will come ambling back into the picture somewhere down the road. To be adored again, and to, most importantly, save the day from whatever in its line of expertise is sullying things. And few things have made as big a fuss as good ol’ Detroit rock ‘n’ roll. Enter The Romantics. Playing heroes (along with an ever-steady flow of other excellent Detroit bands) against the slobbering, heinous ogre that is “popular” music, and their timing is perfect.

61 / 49 is The Romantic’s weapon of choice, and it’s ultra – effective and plenty sharp. Their first proper release in close to twenty years, this record proves itself as one of the band’s finest; completing its order of business in just 36 engaging minutes of pure and wonderfully sleazy Detroit rock.

This incarnation of Detroit home-brew, The Romantics, including Coz Canler and Mike Skill on guitars, Clem Burke at the drums, and as always, driven by the unmistakable crooning of Wally Palmar, is definitely all about efficiency. Things get started right away with the very Kinks-ish first track, "Devil in Me." The drums are sure and confident, the guitar hooks catchy as ever, and the whole deal will have you moving in spite of yourself. On from there, songs like "61 / 49" and "When the Angels (Hear Me Calling)" keep the pace nicely. "New Kinda Pain" is probably the most memorable track on the album - an infectiously energetic track with every Romantic playing his own part too perfectly to pick a favorite.

After thoroughly cleaning house, the crew only slows down a bit for dreamy ending numbers like "Paint the Sky" and "Still We Remain." These offerings are refreshingly pretty, but still potent enough to keep things serious and leaves opponents shaking in their trendy, uncomfortable shoes.

When all is said and done, it is undeniably evident The Romantics are here to stay, and are still our reliable champions of powerful, pure rock ‘n’ roll. - Amanda Van Keuren

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Spin Meets Detroit

The Gore Gore Girls, The Paybacks and The Hentchmen have all recorded songs for an obscure Spanish label called Broncos Records. The record is a Chuck Berry tribute and slated for release in the summer.

The Buzz On The Fuzz

Tom Potter, The Dirtbombs fuzz bassist, has left the band permanently to focus on his new project, The Detroit City Council. The band is hitting the road in July, and picking up the fuzz bass for the tour will be Ko Shih. The tour starts in Detroit at the Comerica Tastefest and concludes in Coney Island, NY at the Siren Music Festival.

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Jack & Renee Zellwger?

The New York Post reports that Jack Whate has been spotted in Los Angeles looking romantically engaged with actress Renee Zellweger. Watch out Jim Carey, Jack's in town.

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Detroit Cobras Lineup Change

The Detroit Cobras have made a few shifts in band members. Joey Mazola from Sponge will be taking over bass duties for Matt O'Brien. O'Brien has left the Cobras to spend a bit more time with Tom Potter's new outfit, The Detroit City Council. The Detroit Cobras also got a new guitar player

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Electric Six: Refueling The Fire

Electric Six has told British music mag NME that three members have left the band. Lineup problems prompted the band to cancel a recent show in Detroit at the Magic Stick. NME reports that Rock 'n' Roll Indian, Surge Joebot and Disco have been replaced by new members Johnny Na$hinal, The Colonel and Frank Lloyd Bonaventure. The band's UK tour will be unaffected by the changes.

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White Stripes To Virgin: No Thanks

Virgin Mobile almost got the White Stripes to play a concert for them on an airplane as a promotion. However, after the Stripes saw themselves in a Virgin Mobile ad, they quickly took a pass on the deal and Jack reportedly responded: "When did we ever sign a fucking contract with you pigs?" (NY Post)

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Detroit News Feature on Motorcityrocks.com

Motorcityrocks.com was featured in the Detroit News on Monday, June 9 2003.

Detroit Showcase At NYC's Bowery Ballroom

Bantam Rooster will appear in NYC's Bowery Ballroom on Friday, July 12th. The show is part of a 'two-days hoedown' named DETROT SHOWCASES. You can catch Rooster's Tom Potter and then continue rockin' with the Dirtbombs. D'bombs will perform also on Saturday, July 13, alongside the Detroit Cobras and a couple more Detroit bands.

Album Review: Party Planet Rising - Detroit City Council

Through live performances, The Detroit City Council seems to have done a decent enough job of slowly building a reputation as a modern-day, fun-filled, no-frills predecessor to Funkadelic (with the comparison being made even more obvious courtesy of The DCC’s frequent live covers of “Hit It and Quit It”). The problem with funk-rock reputations, however, is that they often tend to play out much better in concert than they do in the studio. This single doesn’t really do much to sway a listener either way in The DCC’s case, though admittedly, that’s more because of the brevity of the release than anything else (three tracks at barely eight minutes, if that).

“Party Planet Rising” itself is a surprisingly strong rock tune in the vein of the late, great Big Chief – a track funky enough to get asses shakin’, but still rock enough to aggressively air guitar along to. The anthemic chorus echoes out powerfully, though the track’s best moment comes just after the first chorus peaks, when the dirty rhythm guitar and bass kick up in nasty fashion. The mostly instrumental funk romp “Ass Struggle” follows, with the only lyrics coming in the form of a few rousing gang choruses of the song’s title. The CD-exclusive toss-off track is an acoustic cover of the Electric Six’s “Gay Bar” (jokingly referred to as the song the Six “stole” from The DCC) that’s good for a few chuckles on the first listen, though that’s about it.

As a sampler to the band’s forthcoming full-length release, this single is a bit scattershot. “Party Planet Rising” is a solid number, indeed, but the Electric Six cover is pretty moot, and “Ass Struggle” is the sort of thing that’s fun, but far more convincing in a live environment. Still, there’s a hell of a lot worse music around to be dropping cash on these days. -Gary Blackwell

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Techno: Detroit's Gift To The World

Have an extra five bucks to spare (three if you’re a student)? Then take a jaunt down to ye ol’ Detroit and feast your eyes upon the world’s first exhibit on the history of techno music. “Techno: Detroit’s Gift to the World” recently opened at the Detroit Historical Museum. Ever wanted to know what it’s like to be a DJ? Well now’s you chance. You can mix your very own techno track on one of two interactive kiosks at the museum.

You can also hear interviews from various techno artists and fans, feast your eyes upon different performances and listen to the music styling created by four young men from Detroit. Juan Atkins, Eddie Fowlkes, Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson created and developed this unique art form more than twenty years ago. You can feast your eyes (and ears) on the display, which chronicles the birth of techno music, until June 6, 2004. Then the show hits the road, appearing in various education institutions and museums around the globe.
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