The legendary New York punk band Dead Boys have reconstituted to celebrate the 40th anniversary of their debut album “Young, Loud and Snotty.” Guitarist Cheetah Chrome and drummer Johnny Blitz are the only original members involved. Singer Stiv Bators died in 1990 after being hit by a cab in Paris. Guitarist Jimmy Zero is said to have some health issues and wasn’t able to join this venture. Bassist Jeff Magnum, depending on who you ask, declined or wasn’t really asked to rejoin.
No matter. Jason Kottwitz (guitar) and Ricky Rat (bass) are more than capable and are not just hired guns. Both are long-time musical associates of Mr. Chrome. Taking the place of the late Stiv Bators on vocals is Jake Hout. He is not Stiv Bators. He is the singer of the Dead Boys. He embodies the spirit of Stiv and has his own take on the attitude and performance. He’s the real deal. The whole band is the real deal. They even re-recorded “Young, Loud and Snotty” with the current line-up. It’s really good. Cheetah and Blitz are playing as good and ferocious as ever. The band as a whole is tighter and more aggressive than the original.
A point of note about the pictures: The lighting on the side of the stage with Rat and Kottwitz was particularly bad so I wasn’t able to get any good pictures of them from where I was at. Even if I moved, the lighting would still be horrible. As far as Johnny Blitz goes, there was virtually no stage light illuminating him or his drums. I was impossible to get anything close to a usable picture. Next time I’ll bring some clamp lights along just in case.
