I’ve said before how hard it used to be to collect Hellacopters music properly. Back in the day, if you were the sort of person who wanted everything, not just the albums, then you were in for a right old chase. Singles, B-sides, imports, odd little bits tucked away here and there – half the fun was in the hunt, but half the pain was that you always suspected there was something else out there you didn’t have.
That’s why something like “Cream Of The Crap Vol. 3” matters.
It is a collection of odds and ends, the sort of release that fills in the corners of the story and proves that even the offcuts, rarities and one-offs can tell you just as much about a band as the studio albums do. Covers, alternate versions, little blasts from different eras – all of it adds up to a reminder that The Hellacopters have always had more depth than people sometimes give them credit for.
And straight away, “Long Gone Losers” does exactly what a set like this needs it to do. It is brand new, but it doesn’t feel out of place among the scraps and treasures. Instead, it reminds you what they have always done better than just about anybody else: make rock’n’roll feel effortless, dangerous and ridiculously exciting all at once.
The covers here are a huge part of the story, of course, but more because they show the band’s range than because this is some themed exercise. “Pack Of Lies” by The Nomads has that same sheer abandon that marks out the best Hellacopters performances, while Bob Seger’s “Her Strut” comes on like a lost original, all swagger and cowbell. “Little Miss Sweetness,” from The Temptations, underlines the breadth of their taste, and that’s really one of the joys of this whole compilation – the way soul, punk, garage rock and classic rock all end up sounding like part of the same language.
That’s the thing with The Hellacopters. They have always had the gift of making anything they touch sound like them. “Oh Yeah Allright!” is a proper punk stomp, “I Get A Sensation” shows off that later-period feel for melody, and “Disappointment Blues” has more of the early fury, with gorgeous guitar work giving it a real snarl.
There’s also a brilliant sense of movement through their history here. “Ferrytale (1998 Version)” is raw as hell, a reminder of just how hungry they sounded back then, while “American Ruse” turns the MC5 into a boogie that feels both reverent and playful. “Whole Lot Of Shakin’ In My Heart (Since I Met You)” and “Get Ready” prove once again how good they were at taking Motown and giving it a rock’n’roll shot in the arm, the latter sounding like the original simply cranked up to absurd volume.
Elsewhere, “I’m Eighteen” is interesting because they don’t really try to overthink it – and why would you? – while “Working For MCA” gets slowed down a touch. “Bony Moronie” distils rock’n’roll down to the bare bones, “A Man And A Half” is full of joy, “455 SD” has brilliant dynamics, and “Freeway To Hell” sounds like it is permanently one second away from spinning out of control.
And that’s before you get to the shorter, sharper moments. “Stab Your Back” takes less than a minute to do its damage. “What’d Ya Do?” isn’t quite as fast as the Ramones, but keeps the same kick. “Speedfreak” handles Motörhead in exactly the right spirit, and “Ungrounded Confusion” has a very Stonesy looseness to it. Even “Doggone Your Bad Luck Soul” offers a brief breather in the middle of all this glorious racket.
What “Cream Of The Crap Vol. 3” really does, then, is underline why those of us who spent years trying to piece this band’s catalogue together cared so much in the first place. The Hellacopters were never just about the “proper” albums. They were always a band whose side roads, throwaways, covers, rarities and in-betweens were worth hearing too.
That’s what makes this such a great odds-and-ends set. It doesn’t feel like leftovers. It feels like evidence. Evidence of a band with taste, range, identity and an almost unfair knack for making rock’n’roll sound alive.
And yes, it also reminds you why they were worth collecting in the first place.
RATING: 9/10
