aaamusic | On 02, Aug 2010

It’s always a good thing promoting a charity album and I’m happy to do it, even because Breaking Rocks  costs only £8 and features 31 worthy tracks, lasting more than 1 hour of good music.

Before talking about tracks it’s the case to talk about the Jail Guitar Doors initiative, an organization set up by Billy Bragg which aims to provide instruments to those who are using music as a way of achieving the rehabiliation of prison inmates.

Founded by Billy Bragg, it takes it´s name from the b-side of The Clash´s 1978 single ´Clash City Rockers ´

The initiative has been operating since 2007 and is ever progressing.

All money raised from this download album will be used to fund return visits into UK prisons by the Jail Guitar Doors ´Graduates´such as Leon Walker and Jonny Neesom, and funding for more instruments.

Musicians already involved with the initiative include Wayne Kramer (MC5), Mick Jones (The Clash), Chris Shiflett (Foo Fighters) and Sam Duckworth (Get Cape Wear Cape Fly) and a Jail Guitar Doors U.S. is also taking shape.

The initiative is supported by Strummerville, The Joe Strummer Foundation For New Music and visually documented by director Alan Miles in Breaking Rocks recently premiered at Raindance Film Festival.

The album includes a wide variety of artists like The Neat, Baddies, Pete & The Pirates, The Victorian English Gentleman’s Club, Kids Loves Lies and many more , plus an exclusive Billy Bragg track recorded live inside one of Her Majestys Prisons, and is supported by musicians including Wayne Kramer (MC5), Mick Jones (The Clash), Chris Shiflett (Foo Fighters) and Sam Duckworth (Get Cape Wear Cape Fly).

It melts a lot of different genres going from the dark pop-rock of Televised Crimewave that kicks off the album to the Pete & Pirtates indie pop, it passes through an interesting tune by the Arcadian Kicks. The project is based on new bands and it’s interesting noticing that there are a lot of interesting artist in this moment, so this compilation shows that music is alive and has a good health. After the punk of Baddies and Mighty Roars, I like My Tiger My Timing’s tribal electro rock, I want to listen to something else while Shock Defeat are influenced by a lot of bands I love, mixing dance, punk and rock like LCD Soundsystem or the Rapture, they are remarkable,

This album makes room to metal (Castrovalva), to the hip hop of Johnny Neesom, and folk-country (Dolly and the Clothpegs) too, but the scene is dominated by indie and his derived. To note Violet Violet, a very interesting female punk-rock duo and the tune Facebook Killer by Oh Gunquit a trio from North London that in one listen transport you into a world of B-movies, grindhouse, killers and adventuring. Recommended for music and charity lovers.

Author: Roberta Capuano