The Valentinos - Reviews of Great Detroit Rock and Roll Music

12/30/2004 Observer & Eccentric Newspapers
Observer & Eccentric Newspapers
Hometown life insert, "Waitin' on a scene" article by Kevin Brown December 30, 2004.

Thanks Kevin for listing The Valentinos on the article page.

Also, Willey Wilson (host of Rythm and Blues and Beyond show on 101.9-FM WDET, and as promoter for the Magic Bag on Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak, Michigan) included the Valentinos in his list of bands-musicians to watch in 2005. Many thanks. Following is the list and a link to the list.

Creating a spin
Watch for these local bands-musicians in 2005, says Magic Bag promoter and WDET-FM DJ Willy Wilson:
- Brendan Benson-Jack White- Look for a new CD from two of Detroit's best known performers.
- The Fags - Great new full-length CD coming out on Sire_Warner Brothers this spring.
- Outrageous Cherry - The new CD by the Matt Smith-lead psychedelic-power pop band should be out on Rainbow Quartz Records in January.
- The Fondas - Favorites of Little Steven, Bruce Springsteen's guitarist, star of TV's Sopranos and syndicated DJ. Look for their new record to come out next summer.
- The Tranzitorz - New glam-rock influenced band from Detroit featuring ex-members of the Go and Godzuki.
- The Muggs - Energetic blues rock trio, their new CD is to be released this spring on Times Beach Records.
- Powertrane - New project featuring legendary Detroit rockers Scott Morgan and Robert Gillespie. Look for a spring release.
- The Solution - Already a huge hit in Europe, this 12-piece soul band features Scott Morgan on vocals. The band is expected to release a CD in the U.S. this summer.
- The Hard Lessons - A female-fronted power trio, and one of the newest buzz bands in the city. Its new CD will be released sometime in this winter.
- The Volebeats - Detroit's original alt-country band has a new CD coming out this spring on the Turquoise Mountain Record label.
- The Greenhornes - Detroit garage scene favorites, the Greenhornes have been cutting demos for a new CD to come out sometime next year.
- Saturday Looks Good To Me - This Ann Arbor-based pop group has been getting a lot of major label interest. Look for a follow up to their acclaimed Every Night CD.
- The Valentinos - Formed from ex-members of some of Detroit's best punk bands, The Valentinos' music harks back to the formative days of Roxy Music and David Bowie.
- The Cyril Lords - Another three-piece group out of Detroit that's creating quite a buzz. Look for a new single in January and a full-length CD this summer.
- The Electric Six - Despite lots of changes to the line-up, and a new record label, the band should have its new CD ready this spring.
- The Dollfaces - Local teens have been generating a huge local buzz, look for a new CD this fall.
- The Nice Device - Led by Alicia Gbur, look for a new Jim Diamond-produced CD sometime this summer.
- The Detroit Cobras - The band was a huge European hit with their version of Cha Cha Twist. The new CD, Baby, should be out in the U.S. this winter.
- The Soledad Brothers - The new CD is out on Sanctuary Records. Look for a ton of press about them in the new year.
- The Gore Gore Girls - This four-piece all-female band can rock with the best of them. Look for a new release on Get Hip Records this summer.
- The Paybacks - Led by Wendy Case, the Paybacks have been getting rave reviews in Rolling Stone and Spin. They recently appeared on the Carson Daly Show.
- The Dirtbombs - One of the best acts in the city, the band has been getting a ton of major label interest.
- The Avatars - Look for big things to come from this five-piece garage pop band out of Ann Arbor.
- The Sights - The band's new CD comes out this spring on New Line Records. Wilson's show 'Rhythm and Blues and Beyond' airs 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays on WDET-FM, 101.9 FM.

9/29/2004
Metro Times
7" Pop Shots by Chris Handyside

´Aerosol Dream´ b/w ´Tell Me That It´s Over´ - Tom Perkins Records

Two big holes, 14 inches and more than 10 minutes of rock. We kneel before the single and all its potential ADD-blasting power just as we remind the bands on whom we´ve spent hard-earned dough that they have two minutes, if that, to impress us. Some take the balls and run. Others are content to float the half-asses into the ether. In this week´s installment of Retread Rawk Idol, the Valentinos make the most of their time. Hell, on the A-side, ´Aerosol Dream´, nary a chord has rung before a reverb-tanked punk has told us that he ´Can´t wait till the summer comes back home/Renew my contract with sweetness.´ The Valentinos´ racket is a dense, fat and swinging thing, all Vaseline-smeared guitar chug and insistent, near-swinging rhythm that reminds you the warm jets are still cum-ing. And apropos-of-nothing, yet somehow perfectly, they throw in a goddamned harpsichord solo. It´s a late-August torpor of, if genre-fingering push comes to shove, glam and punk. And the B-side, ´Tell Me That It´s Over´ hitches its Graham Parker wagon to a Blue Oyster Cult horse and goes for a surprisingly unbumpy ride. The Valentinos manage to speed along just ahead of their influences - even as a British accent creeps into the mix of these Midwestern dudes.

9/17/2004
Detroit News
Detroit News - Artist of the Week

The Valentinos, a suave Detroit rock group, were fortunate enough to have an audience before they even played their first show. The band of lads is made up of former members of two well-known punk groups.

Guitarists Paul Gibbs and Eric Villa were members of the respected Murder City Wrecks. The Valentinos´ rhythm section, bassist Charlie Fogg and drummer Eddie Altes, used play in the sloppy-but-seminal band the Clone Defects.

It would be expected that four guys who used to be in punk bands would join together to form yet another punk band, but that is not the case with the Valentinos.

´It seemed a lot of groups were doing the same thing,´ says guitarist and lead vocalist Paul Gibbs. ´We wanted to add a different element, so we looked deep (inside) and came up with a sound that personified all our major influences.´ That element would be sophisticated songwriting, crooning vocals and a smooth, dapper image.

In 2003, the band released its first recording, a vinyl single of the songs ´Aerosol Dream´ and ´Tell Me It´s Over.´ In pure Detroit style, the tunes were recorded at Jim Diamond´s Ghetto Recorders, and the record was released on Tom Perkins Records.

This year, the band strengthened its sound with the addition of keyboard player and guitarist George Papanikos. For a group of guys who have known each other for 12 years, adding a new guy was a big step.

´Technically, we´ve really only known George for a year, but it seems like he belongs here now,´ Gibbs says. ´We´re cut from the same cloth, me and the gentlemen in the Valentinos,´ Papanikos says.

The next step for the Valentinos will be to record and release a full-length album, and to scour the local vintage stores looking for additions to their collection of debonair suit jackets.

See the Valentinos perform tonight at the Magic Stick, 4120 Woodward Ave. in Detroit. The Mystery Girls and Gris Gris open the show. Doors open at 9 and admission is $7. Call (313) 833-9700.

Melody Baetens can be reached at (313) 222-2402 or mbaetens@detnews.com.

9/15/2004
Metro Times
Rock ´n roll always looks a little prittier with a side of glam, and the boys of the Valentinos have perfected a juxtaposition of the two that is both tough and lovely. Their snarky punk rock/come f ♥♥ k-me ethos makes this Detroit fivesome a piquant combination of everything that makes Detroit the one and only Rock City. See the Valentinos at the Magic Stick (4120 Woodward Ave., Detroit) with Mystery Girls and Gris Gris. Call 313-833-9700 for information.
Eve Doster

7/30/04
Radio Indie Pop
Radio Indie Pop has added ´Tell Me That Its Over´ to their Frydays play list beginning 7/30/2004 !

This is a broadband streaming WEB site for listening to great music with no commercials ! -:)

Also if you're visiting the Big Apple you might want to check out the Luna Lounge for your evening entertainment.

4/26/2004
Matador Records
Dave Martin of Matador Records put our CDR-demo on his play list. This CD contains six of our songs recorded in 2003.
Thanks Dave.

3/9/2004
motorcityrocks.com
The VonBondies CD Release Show: Review by Motor City Rocks:

´The first band up…local romeo´s THE VALENTINOS. Can I just say - it takes several listens to fully appreciate them? I have seen them 3 times now, and their demo CD has made my bathroom rotation stack. When I put a CD on repeat while I prep to hit the scene, you have arrived (well at least in my mind!). The crowd was reminiscent of me on my first view. They were thinking: Who are they? What's the groove? I overheard many ´looks like Jim Morrison´ comments directed toward Paul, the lead singer. And ya know, while they are right, I think it´s more of a Roxy Music feel rather than The Door´s - four well-dressed lads making well-played music. If the demo and live act are any indication, imagine how the finished CD will sound.´

NME Magazine
NME Magazine Interview with Jason of The Von Bondies:
Thank you for the comment when asked by LEO, ´What bands do you really like at the moment?´

You replied ´The Valentinos, Franz Ferdinand, The Avatars´

3/10/2004
motorcityrocks.com
Comments from Motor City Rocks:
"AT THE CHECKOUT
What do Detroiters buy when they go to the record store? We (MCR) asked a couple of our fav stores for their top five local sellers.

YOUNG SOUL REBELS
Located in Detroit, adjacent the the Majestic Theatre complex (4152 Woodward Ave.)
- Saturday Looks Good To Me (All Your Summer Songs)
- The Valentinos (Aerosol Dream 7")
- Iggy & the Stooges (Funhouse)
- The Ponys (Laced With Romance)
- The Piranhas (Piscis Clangor)
DEARBORN MUSIC
Located in Dearborn at 22000 Michigan Avenue
- Leaving Rouge
- Robb Roy
- Jill Jack
- Ethos
- Inside Five Minutes

2/5/2004
motorcityrocks.com
Valentines Day with the Sirens and Bisou Bisou:

´THE VALENTINOS...the sharp dressed men of the scene, hit the stage next. Howling Jim Morrison-esque vocals, and Roxy Music melodies made them a most enjoyable show. I love it when bands take interest in appearance, and the Valentinos don´t disappoint. Not enough bands focus on image, and its refreshing to see´

2/5/2004
motorcityrocks.com
Out of The Garage Festival, St Andrews Hall:

Review by Motor City Rocks:
´THE VALENTINO´S - a mysterious band, as no one seems to know much about them. What I do know: 1. they were quite dapperly dressed, 2. they had a great sound and 3. I felt I needed to join the rest of the crowd and dance. I´m sure Detroit will hear much more about this well-dressed group in the future.´

2/2/2004
Matador Records
Dave Martin of Matador Records put The Valentinos ´Aerosol Dream b/w Tell Me That It´s Over - Tom Perkins Entertainment´ on his play list.
Thanks Dave.

Record Reviews Jan.-Feb 2004
Terminal Boredom
Valentinos ´Aerosol Dream´ 7´

´Debut release from ex-Clone Defects and Murder City Wrecks that sounds nothing like whatever you're expecting. This shit is straight Roxy Music/Eno worship, with maybe some Thin White Duke thrown into a fairly avant-garde mix. And very ´glam´ in the British/Romantic sense, not the LA hair ´glam´ most people associate with the word. Very, very different sounding than anything else, without a trace of Defects/Wrecks damage to be found. I´m sure it will turn a lot of people off, and I´m actually kind of embarrassed to admit I like this record a lot. The songs are fucking long, the vocals are really affected, and most won't make it past the clavier (!) solo, but those who do and let it sink in for a couple listens will be justly rewarded. The others will just call it ´gay´ and go listen to another of the umpteenth bands still raping the ghost of the Dead Boys. Their loss is your gain. Pick it up while you can, unless you want to get skunked on another Tom Perkins rease. (RK)
(Tom Perkins Entertainment)´

mail-archive.com
Great 45s list

artrocker.com
´valentinos aerosol dream 7 cool Detroit action from the Valentinos with vocals coming on like the bastard son of stiv bators and bryan ferry and a rhythm section borrowed from the local clone defects. 1000 only on tom perkins records us import ´

Sugar and Spice Record Review
Aerosol Dream /Tell Me That it´s over - 7 - Tom Perkins
´The newest component to the Detroit Rock and Roll Scene, The Valentinos have quickly gathered a large and diverse audience on a handful of performances. Vocalizing as if it might be coming from the motherless son of Stiv Bators and Bry An Ferry, a more full and different sound than most of their contemporaries, a rhythm section most noted for their work in local all-stars Clone Defects, and bizzaro harpsichord work comprises their styling. The music can be linked to few bands, a testament in itself to originality. The Kinks, maybe had they been given the opportunity to record with Jim Diamond and grown up on the banks of the polluted Rouge River in Detroit´s shelled out southwest side. Paul K (vocals, guitars) Eric Villa (guitars), Chuck Fogg (bass) and Edward Altesleben (drums), have a busy summer of in and out of town shows lined up with a full tour come fall, their debut 45, limited press of 1000, is alredy in high demand locally, and is slated top be followed up with a full length.´

3/8/2003
jamrag.com
Hamtramck Blowout 2003:

Review on jamrag.com:
´The Valentinos are like some sort of ´60s retrothing. While fishing for examples, I ran into the leader of The Sunday Painters, and he hit the nail on the head: The Valentinos are like the Kinks.´