Photo by Kristy Walker
With ‘Gimme 5!’ we take a peek into the collections of artists we admire. The premise is simple: artists WE like share five records THEY love.
In 2021, American writer, editor and musician Noah C Lekas made it to the top of my year-end list with his Sounds From The Shadow Factory EP. The unique collection of beat poetry songs – ‘jazz for the mind, blues for the soul’ – blew me away. But he has more up his sleeve: I would like to introduce you to American Restless, a promising band he started with two old friends from Rancine, Wisconsin – bassist Ian Grant and drummer Arjuna “RJ” Contreras (Reverend Horton Heat). They describe their music as ‘Rust Belt Rock and Roll’, a strong expression that also works well as the title for their debut album, which will be released June 16 by Blind Owl (pre-order Rust Belt Rock N Roll here). Listen to its lead single Cadillac Head below for a first impression.
It’s quite a fearless and cool sound, bluesy garage rock with the swagger of rockabilly, restless and typically American. We’ll review the LP when it’s out, but we were bold enough to already ask Noah Lekas (vocals, guitar) and Ian Grant (bass) about the artists that influenced Rust Belt Rock N Roll: “We have played music together since we were kids, so it was a lot of fun getting to talk about some of the records that have really shaped our musical life.”
#Gimme10
The musicians chose five albums each – a wide-ranging selection, which clearly shows their love for music – and their relatable explanations say a lot about where they come from and where they are going.
1.
Deep Purple || Machine Head
Ian Grant: “I have to start with this one. My dad was a huge Deep Purple fan and I’m pretty sure the first song I ever heard was Highway Star. It’s certainly the first one I remember. This wasn’t just my introduction to rock music, it was my introduction to music, full stop. Sentimental values aside, Deep Purple in the early 70s were just incredible. Of course the song writing and musicianship were as good as any but, Machine Head also sounded better than everything else at the time in terms of production value. Even though they were all some of the best at their instruments, they really excelled at finding their place in a song and staying in their own lane, too, which continues to shape how I approach not just my songwriting, but arranging.”
2.
Sonic Youth || Goo
Noah Lekas: “I got my first copy of Goo in 7th grade, a year before Ian and I started playing together. When we met, he leaned way heavier, and I leaned noisier, but we met in the middle on this record, amongst others. It was such a formidable early influence that we actually covered Mote at our first show in Racine, WI when I was 14. I wore out a VHS copy of 1991: The Year Punk Broke, Dave Markey’s seminal documentary, and when I couldn’t be parked in front of the VCR, I was listening to Goo. Many Sonic Youth fans don’t even put Goo in their top 5, but for me, it was the first SY album that I dove head first into, and songs like Dirty Boots, Kool Thing, and the aforementioned Mote, beautifully weave exemplary pop sensibilities with unexpected and often erratic sounds and techniques. I rarely take the guitar outside the lines as far as Lee or Thurston, but I hear their influence in my approach. From Raymond Pettibon’s cover art, to the audio collages that kick off songs like Mary Christ, this album completely captured my imagination, and remains an influential cornerstone of how I organize my sonic ideals on an album.”
3.
Nirvana || In Utero
Ian Grant: “I think I have to put a Nirvana record on here. Nirvana embodied my idea of what a band was and should be a long time. That’s what Noah and I wanted to be when we first started playing together twenty-some years ago. We covered (poorly) so many of their songs. Looking back, I think what I appreciate about In Utero is the juxtaposition of Kurt’s brilliant melody writing with the gritty and retaliatory backdrop of the record. I love the aesthetic and, to me, it is the best example of what Nirvana was really all about. I love that all of their influences are heard on this record and yet it’s not derivative–something that American Restless always aims for. It’s unfortunate that Kurt is often maligned as a poor musician, because that line of thought completely overlooks the unbelievable melodies he came up with. Whether or not he ‘knew’ what he was doing didn’t stop him from doing it so who really cares?”
4.
The Blasters || Trouble Bound
Noah Lekas: “As a teenager my interests in rockabilly, blues, and post-punk started converging, luckily I had a guitar teacher named Mike DeRose who handed me a copy of this album. Trouble Bound is a live reunion album, when Dave Alvin rejoined his brother Phil, and the rest of the original Blasters. The album also doubles as a Best Of with blistering versions of I’m Shaking, American Music, and Marie Marie. But it was Dave’s guitar playing that really knocked me over – every note where it should, supercharged and intense. John Bazz and Bill Batemen are arguably one of the greatest rhythm sections in modern music, and Phil is in top form. This record showed me what a rockabilly/blues-inspired band could be live. I’ve seen multiple times, listened to all of their albums, and this one will always be my favorite.”
5.
Failure || Fantastic Planet
Ian Grant: “It’s a real shame that their label folded and (temporarily) sunk the band right after this record came out. We lost a lot of potentially amazing music when Failure was really doing some amazing things. This might be the best sounding record I’ve ever heard. It somehow sounds massive and delicate at the same time. The compositions themselves might not be revolutionary but they are expertly paired with exquisite production and mixing. Everything fits together perfectly. It’s also brilliant as a concept record wherein the sound from song to song evolves and gets larger and more spacey. At the very end as it feels like it’s about to spin completely out of control, it collapses in on itself and you feel like you’re right back at the beginning, even though you’ve been on this crazy trip. It’s really cool that they’ve garnered the following and recognition they’ve deserved since it came out.”
6.
The Messthetics || The Messthetics
Noah Lekas: “The lifelong influence of Fugazi can’t be understated, but there was something about this first Messthetics record that I just couldn’t shake in the pre-pro process for Rust Belt Rock N Roll. Joe Lally and Brendan Canty are another one of those underrated rhythm sections that make avant, aggressive, and often dischordal music hit like it belongs in a dance hall. Since buying surf music tapes as a kid, I’ve always looked for ways to blend surf guitar with hardcore, and Pirog does it masterfully – and with a prog-jazz edge. I guess Jazzmaster enthusiasts tend to find each other, but Anthony Pirog is one of those guitarists that I think we all wish we were a little more like.”
7.
In Flames || Come Clarity
Ian Grant: “I really like all sorts of music, but there are certain metal bands that I’ve really taken a liking to. I really like In Flames. I had been aware of them for a while but something about Come Clarity just grabbed me. I remember hearing Take This Life and being really blown away because it was the first melodic death metal that I found to be catchy. There’s a lot of polarization that seems to come with discussing In Flames, but you’ve got to admit Come Clarity is a really great metal record. It had a unique sound sonically that I really liked. There’s also really interesting chordal and melodic choices throughout. I almost unwittingly found myself listening to this record over and over for a few years when things, shall we say, were not going so great in life. I’ll always regard this record as proof that you can build an intriguing sonic landscape in many different ways and that even heavy music can be catchy and convey emotion–ultimately what we are all trying to do as musicians. I love a record with complexity that transcends the compositions themselves.”
8.
John Lee Hooker || Hooker
Noah Lekas: “I’ll never forget the first time I saw a John Lee Hooker poster, star socks, sitting down, with an Ephiphone Sheraton on his lap. Hooker is a boxset, and not a pure album, but when it comes to groove, pocket, boogie, and style, there is nobody better than John Lee. The storytelling, the mojo, it is all there, and anytime I’m recording, I think about John Lee Hooker. Of course the hits like Boogie Chillen’ and Boom Boom, but also songs like I’m Bad Like Jesse James, You Know, I Know, and Down Child. If you want to know why an American Restless song like Lost keeps repeating, “I may be losing but I ain’t lost”? The answer is John Lee Hooker.”
9.
Stevie Wonder || Songs in the Key of Life
Ian Grant: “Just about any Stevie Wonder record from this period could be on here for me. Obviously I was aware of Stevie Wonder. Who isn’t? But being fixated on rock growing up, I didn’t take the time to appreciate a lot of stuff like this. This record really represents all of the great music I came to appreciate so much later. Bill Evens, Dave Brubeck, Oscar Petersen (with Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen on bass!), Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye and anything James Jamerson played on. Stevie Wonder for me is the pinnacle. There’s more to appreciate and take away from this record than I can possibly do justice but suffice to say, it’s just Stevie at his best. He’s a prolific songwriting genius, and always an inspiration.”
10.
The Stooges || The Stooges
Noah Lekas: “A lot of great guitar sounds have come from the Midwest; Mike Bloomfield, Jack White, Steve Albini. I mean Les Paul was born in Wisconsin and Curtis Mayfield in Chicago, but it’d be pretty hard to claim Rust Belt anything without acknowledging the impact that Ron Asheton had on nearly every fuzz-ladened tone that followed – mine included. The sound of No Fun or I Wanna Be Your Dog, that is the sound of everything, and American Restless songs like Sleep for the Suffering are directly connected some 50 years later. Not to mention Iggy’s divining rod-like ability to find the core of a song, the core of a melody, that one line that just unlocks an emotion so it’s infinitely relatable, and instantly personal. The first Stooges album is the first one I really heard, so it’s the pinnacle for me, like with all of these albums, it’s always the first one that opens a new door for you that stays with you. Wall of fuzz, pop hooks, simple-clever-lyrics, no one will ever make another like it, but it’s a good hill for us all to try to climb.”
Rust Belt Rock N Roll, the full-length debut album from American Restless, releases June 16, 2023 through Blind Owl. Add to wantlist: Bandcamp
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