„A wild, independent mix of styles with plenty of sixties beat, garage punk, drugged wah wah guitars and surf and reggae influences. The Stooges and the Cramps meet with the Hives and the Strokes in a newly renovated German garage. „So vividly brings the author of a leading music magazine to the point, what he has heard in The Swipes. Many of his colleagues are similarly fascinated.
Clear case: The quartet from the Greater Frankfurt am Main beats a wide arc from the 60s to the present and goes with mighty pressure and drive to the point. More and more fans are electrified by this extravagant yet radio-friendly in-your-face rock. Well over a hundred gigs in trendy clubs and at festivals, the guitar band has already completed, and the demand is growing continuously.
This is ensured by the never-ending output in sound carrier form. The CD debut „Destroy Your World“ from 2010 soon followed the CD / LP „Lost“ as well as two Maxi-CDs with a total of eight tracks. Material for another longplayer is freshly rehearsed and will be presented live already. The wide-thumb-high echo the previous productions have found in various media can be found on the website of The Swipes. A total of six of the songs were or will be sent by public and private broadcasters on air.
Similar to the retro to punky touched kick rockers of The (International) Noise Conspiracy, one of the most influential influences of the Frankfurters, swinging in the lyrics of The Swipes also political. The best example: their mischievous-winking in untypical country-style on-line billing „Best Tip: No TTIP“, which dissected under the corresponding abbreviated free trade agreement between the EU and the US with snappy rhymes. No sooner was the song outside, he was officially featured by the anti-globalization organization Attac. Also „Back to Life“, the band’s latest release, carries a social message. It is dedicated to the eponymous nonprofit relief project for India and Nepal, to which all profits from production are passed on.
And here´s their debut album.
This is what the press says about The Swipes:
“An elegant-dirty mixture which reminds a bit of bands like Triggerfinger, The Strokes and The (International) Noise Conspiracy (…)” noisy Neighbours
“If you’re fans of The White Stripes, The Hives and The (International) Noise Conspiracy, then you will love these four Frankfurt’s.”RockAndReview.com
“These boys play a thoroughly fancy blend of The Hives, The Stooges, The Cramps or anything of the kind. (…) An appealing sound… And I’m eager to see them live!” Trust
„Fresh songs that bear comparison with the big names (i.e. The Hives, The International Noise Conspiracy and The Clash) but are very independent.“Wildwechsel
„Unfilial amalgamation of garage, pop, beat, punk and all kinds of well worked out sounds (…) Comes increasingly across as being spacy – like out of this world.“ Ox
“Top cover, top claim! And the music is no less awesome. 13 garage smashers on a debut cd without noteworthy deficiencies. Hats off! ”Pankerknacker
„A hipswinging, fist-in-the-air-pumping sound à la Hives, Hellacopters and Dictators Flight 13
“The band of the evening (…) Inspired rock’n’roll hooklines, igniting effects.” Journal Frankfurt
“One of the currently most interesting bands in Frankfurt is called The Swipes.”Frankfurter Neue Presse
And I saw The Swipes last week in Leverkusen/Germany:
Listen !!!
Personnel:
Stefan Becker (vocals, guitar)
Jens Uwe Pätsch (drums)
Thomas Striffler (guitar, vocals)
Udo Trauteberg (bass)
Tracklist:
01. Destroy Your World (Becker/Striffler) 4.01
02. Silent Alarm (Becker) 2.34
03. Light The Night (Becker/Striffler) 3.01
04. Who Told Me Lies (Becker/Striffler) 3.37
05. Never Accept (Becker) 2.38
06. Here Comes the Swipe! (Becker) 2.43
07. Cage Of My Dreams (Becker/Striffler) 3.30
08. Outer Space Theme (Becker) 3.13
09. Agents From Outer Space (Becker) 4.30
10. If the Grandpas Are United (Becker) 4.53
11. Welcome To The Lo-Fi School (Becker/Striffler) 3.42
12. Leaving Soon (Becker) 1.48
13. Thorn (Becker/Striffler) 5.51
All lyrics: Stefan Becker
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