Pussycat & The Dirty Johnsons – “Dirty Rock N Roll”

It is unlikely that Basingstoke is a hot bed of punk rock but that is where the power trio, Pussycat & The Dirty Johnsons hail from. They have already established a reputation as a ferocious live band, that are able to deliver an energetic and vibrant performance. The test for a band like this, however, is whether they are able to capture that in a studio. This album certainly shows that there is nothing subdued about this band’s studio performances.
“Bringing The Bodies” opens up like something out of a punk horror story. It’s all very menacing, but also strangely seductive. Opening up with the lyrics “Your hell bent for leather, gonna make me some boots out of you” there are no signs the hostile attitude is going to ease up on “Hell Bent”. This song actually adds more of a metal sound to the punk vocals. “Why Do You Hate Me” similarly has metal guitar licks that go along with the punkish attitude. The band are at their heaviest on “Souvenir” a song with a dark, horror feel to it.

They add a rare bit of frivolity on “Livin’ With Mum and Dad”, this is a bit more ‘pop punk’ and comes across like a modern Sex Pistols track. “Get Outta My Face” sees a psychobilly influence thanks to the great double bass which drives it along. This brings a great rock n roll feel to their sound. Then on “Dirty L’il Dog” there is almost a feeling of Southern boogie to the overall punk sound. Both of these songs provide some respite to the harder punk songs and help to give the album some diversity.
Their core is clearly punk rock though and “She Don’t” is a great punk song which is just full of attitude and anger. A song with a title that is the name of an anti depressant like “Mirtazapine” is never going to be a song full of fun and light heartedness. So it’s no surprise it’s a brooding and full on punk racket. The album ends with “Hideous” which is still hardcore but, perhaps, suggest the band still know the importance of a bit of melody.
To be honest, the band have reviewed this album as succinctly and accurately as you could do with the title, “Dirty Rock N Roll”. It would perhaps have been a bit more accurate if they had changed the word “ Rock” for “Punk”. The whole album has a sense of danger, anger and passion, that’s delivered with a spit and a snarl. The difference between Pussycat & The Dirty Johnsons and other bands is probably the fact that a)they are clearly quality musicians and b) they seem to really, really mean it!