As you know if you're a regular visitor to this blog, Rum Bar is one of my favorite labels. But Malibu Lou puts out such an incredible volume of music that I have struggled greatly to stay caught up. Literally two-thirds of the tracks on this sampler are by artists I have not reviewed before! This was a great way for me to catch up on some of what I've missed. And for the amazing price of free, Somebody Out There Is Having A Party Vol 2 is an easy way for anyone to become familiar with one of the planet's finest independent record labels. Stylistically, it covers garage, rock and roll, punk, power pop, dirty blues, glam rock, heartland rock, country, psychedelic pop, pub rock, and everything in between. The variety across these 33 tracks is tremendous. Of course this collection highlights many top bands from the Boston area (The Hi-End, Justine's Black Threads, Watts, The Dents, Muck & The Mires, Dirty Truckers, Stop Calling Me Frank, Jay Allen and the Archcriminals). But the Rum Bar family extends well beyond its Boston hub, and you'll also hear ace tracks from the likes of Florida's Cheap Gunslingers, Spain's K7s, Switzerland's 45 Rally, Rockford, Illinois's Mono In Stereo, and Ken Fox of the legendary Fleshtones (doing power pop!). There's even a golden oldie from The Heartdrops, who were a fixture on Lou's old label Melted Records. While most of these tracks are from Rum Bar's existing catalog, I was tickled pink to hear unreleased songs from Justine and the Unclean (the spectacular "Fourth Love"), Indonesian Junk ("Nothin' I Can Do", an old Daniel James Gang favorite), and the aforementioned K7s (one of the best pop-punk bands on earth!). The Heatwaves track "Vampire" alone justifies the price of admission. Wait, there is no price of admission! Even better! Download this sampler today and make it part of whatever socially-distanced summer parties you've got planned. And then go buy all of these bands' records. At the rate Lou is putting out great music, he's gonna need a bigger bar.
-L.R.
https://rumbarrecords.bandcamp.com/album/somebody-out-there-is-having-a-party-vol-2-free-digital-summer-sampler
https://www.facebook.com/RumBarRecords
Thank you kindly my Liege!!
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