Product Review

UK 2-CD set. "Drummer wanted. Young, slim, must look, act and think like a star. No beards, no chrome-domes, no fatties". So ran The Hollywood Brats' infamous 1972 advert in Melody Maker. Born out of the imagination of singer Andrew Matheson and his musical ally and partner in crime Casino Steel, the band went on to lay the foundations of what would become punk-rock, guzzling up every gallon of glitter juice they could black and leaving no stiletto unturned along the way. London's hottest nightspots became their playground, Keith Moon their cheerleader and every record label in town detested them. Freddie Mercury was punched in the face and Malcolm McLaren sent home disappointed as The Brats moved at the speed of light through a London that was doing it's best to remember how it'd swung. Over the years, material has crept out in one form or another, but here, in 2016, is the definitive sonic record of The Hollywood Brats, as selected and conducted by the band themselves. Sick On You, Matheson's account of the band's story, was the must-read rock book of 2015 (Mojo Magazine's Book Of The Year).