The Trans Revolutionary Freedom Fighter is back with her second collection of lockdown inspired glam punk.
From working as a roadie for The Sex Pistols to fronting 70’s punk bands The Nosebleeds and Slaughter & The Dogs, Edweena Banger has walked the walk of the punk movement. Born Edward Garity in Manchester, England, Edweena has since embraced her feminine side and is now a proud trans woman.
The new album is the second in a series that features ‘Diamond’, a trans escort turned punk rocker. It follows the highly praised ‘Diamonds on Tenth Avenue’ and is an ode to two inspirational albums which gave Slaughter & the Dogs their name (‘Diamond Dogs’, David Bowie, and ‘Slaughter on Tenth Avenue’, Mick Ronson).
The first track (of 12) ‘Rock and Roll Land’ opens with ferocious energy and immediately sets the tone for the album. Writing from lockdown, Edweena flirts with the idea of breaking free and toasting the weekend with live music. Choppy grunge distortion, rockabilly piano slides and a driving rhythm bring us from start to finish.
Similarly to the last solo album, ‘Diamond Rocks‘ is another multi-instrumentalist feature with Edweena playing every instrument.
‘She’s The One‘ and the title track ‘Diamond Rocks‘ maintain high energy and drive with several head-banging opportunities. After that, the poetic, regretful ballad ‘Where Did It All Go Wrong’ achieves a much gentler pace. Edweena’s storytelling ability shines through in what is one of the more poignant tracks.
Throughout the album, there are several musical tributes to icons and heroes of the ’70s including David Bowie, New York Dolls and T-Rex. The penultimate track, ‘Boogie In The Well of Love’, is a charming well-executed salute to the late Marc Bolan.
Finally, ‘Let’s Do It’ sees the album out with a punchy, on-brand, rebel anthem with the punk turned up. The unrestrained guitar flourishes, primal energy and anarchistic lyrics conclude the story well.
This is a solid 12-carat diamond ‘banger’ of an album and should be on heavy rotation. Gems like this don’t come along too often.
Punktuation’s Verdict: 4/5
Diamond Rocks is out today.
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Bristol-born U.K. expat living in Brisbane, Australia. Music enthusiast and graduate, guitar shredder, and crowd-surfer. When I’m not writing about punk, I’m talking about wine.
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