Hopped Up! / Get Gone /
Rhythm Bomb Records
We
had to miss the Thursday and Friday shows at the annual Rockabilly Ball in
Seattle due to a death in the family but we made it back in time to catch
Saturday's complete line-up and boy, what a pleasure to see such a great band
open the show. Hopped Up! pretty much sums up how I like my rockabilly -
memorable songs with great melodies and a strong beat, energetic &
authentic.
Their
cover/originals ratio at the show was about 50/50 as I recall, but here they
only incorporate three classics, Carl Perkins' "that Don't Move Me",
Brenda Lee's "Bigelow 6-200" and the rocker "Little Pig"
(Dale Hawkins, also The Polecats). Their nine originals range from cool boppers
and rockabillies ("Bop House"), Hillbilly rockers ("Don't Make
Me Holler") and full blast Rock 'n' Roll ("Rock 'n' Roll Rocket) to
swinging honky tonk numbers that would make BR549 proud - "Old Cars"
and "Drinkin That Gin". "Hopped Up" is a fast surf boogie
instrumental. "Bad Girl Boogie" and "Hot Car Girls" are two
of many songs with a "take no crap from nobody & being a strong
woman/bad girl" - message, sung by front woman Scotty who delivers with
confidence and power.
Second lead singer of the quintet is guitarist Ralph Rodriguez,
a welcome addition to the team. Powerful, authentic Rockabilly from the Bay
Area you just gotta dig? www.hoppedup.com
- GMB
BLUE SUEDE NEWS # 69 Winter 2004/'05
***
"The 2004 Rockabilly Ball was a packed house thriller all
three nights. The surprise of the weekend was the band Hopped Up! from Santa
Rosa. They kicked ass…"
- Dr Leon Berman Shake the
Shack 90.3 fm KEXP Seattle
***
Hopped Up! / "Get Gone"/"Rock & Roll
Rocket" / Straight 8 Records S8-101
Hopped Up hails from the North San Francisco Bay area and
features two guitars, upright bass, drums and a female singer. The single has
her ("Scotty") singing lead on the hot "Get Gone" on side
A, and one of the guitarists ("Ralph Rodriguez") singing lead on side
B. Both songs are originals, and the drummer ("Gary Daly") has been
with Rockin' Lloyd Tripp and Cari Lee in past bands. Fine rockin' music, a band
to watch for. They have a CD, but haven't sent that here yet, I don't think.
Maybe they want to hit us with a one-two punch!
- Marc Bristol BLUE
SUEDE NEWS
***
Hopped Up! has been described as "Roots Rockabilly with a
Twist"! …. Bursting into the scene in 2002, Hopped Up! has had the
pleasure of supporting U.S. acts such as Wayne Hancock, Deke Dickerson, Cave
Catt Sammy, The Paladins and the Dusty 45s, to name a few…..The band
recently signed with the German Rockabilly label Rhythm Bomb Records and
appears there with their debut album "Get Gone!" Hopped Up are a
5-piece Rockabilly and 50s Rock'n'Roll Combo from Northern California who plays
a fantastic mixture of authentic Rock'n'Roll sounds and Hi-Octane-Hot Rod
Music…….. You better throw this fine silver thang in your local
troublemaker and GET GONE!!!
- Mr. Firecreek, 2004 BlackCat
Rockabilly Europe
***
HOPPED UP is a mighty fine outfit from Santa Rosa made up of
four talented fellas and one swell chick who's gotta big voice and knows how to
use it! so step back when she steps up!! whether they're smokin' through some
swinging western bop or puttin' the pedal to the metal on a greasy rawkabilly
original, or putting their own spin on a rawkabilly standard, you ken bet that
all eyes will be on the stage and all feets will be tappin' out a message of
pure delight on the dance floor! when you go out for a night of cold PBR's and
fired up rawk and roll, be sure it's HOPPED UP thats doin' the pickin' an'a
grinnin'! and dont forgit ta buy 'em a few shots along the way!!
- dx SPEEDYS WIG CITY S.F.
***
HOPPED UP BAND DEFIES CATEGORIZATION
Describing country music or rock 'n' roll isn't too difficult,
but people might find it hard to describe the rockabilly sound that local band
Hopped Up! belts out.
Lead
singer Scotty Shanks-Bruemmer of Santa Rosa calls it hillbilly rhythm 'n'
blues. Justin Barr of Petaluma, who plays lead guitar, describes it as a blend
of rock 'n' roll, country and a little bit of jazz. But there's also some swing
thrown in, with some honky tonk and a dash of surf music too. "Our sound
is louder and faster than traditional rockabilly,'' Barr said.
Whatever the definition, Hopped Up! offers a high-octane,
high-energy sound.
The
group's first recording, "Hopped Up! Get Gone,'' has original tunes like
"Old Cars,'' "Bop House,'' "Bad Girl Boogie,'' "Drinkin'
That Gin'' and "Hot Car Girls.'' It was recorded live to eight-track,
using vintage recording equipment, capturing the true rockabilly sound.
The
German label Rhythm Bomb Records picked up the initial recording and is
distributing the record to European markets, where rockabilly has a huge
following, as well as to American audiences.
The
band is touring the United States with an upcoming appearance at the
prestigious Shake the Shack Rockabilly Ball in Seattle.
With
only two years as Hopped Up!, the band already is big in hot rod circles and
was featured in a live presentation last week on KRSH radio. It is also
receiving airplay in other markets.
- Shelley Shepherd Klaner
THE
PRESS DEMOCRAT
***
The
new Hopped Up! CD, Get Gone, is real gone, Daddy-o, all the way back to the
Janis Martin and Wanda Jackson schools of rockabilly, yet with some
contemporary twists.
It
certainly touches on all the important rockabilly themes from bygone times to
the present day, like where to go boppin' ("Bop House" of course),
what get drunk on ("Drinkin' that Gin Again"), an honest-to-goodness
"Rock and Roll Rocket" song, a homage to '50s cars ("Old
Car"), and a homage to cars and girls together ("Hot Car
Girls"). Talk about a rockabilly smorgasbord, dig in!
Hopped Up!'s rockabilly love, however, takes a more
contemporary turn than most of what one finds in Janis' and Wanda's catalogs.
Song titles like "Don't Make Me Holler," "That Don't Move
Me," "Bad Girl Boogie," and "Get Gone (You Two-Timin' Daddy
Who I Caught Doin' the Horizontal Mambo with Peggy Sue, You)" speak
volumes about a rockabilly gal's heart in the 21st Century. Could Scotty
Shanks-Bruemmer's married status have anything to do with her take on love?
Naaaah, they're just songs after all, but why not visit
http://www.hoppedup.com to hear song samples, pick
up the CD and find out for yourself?
- Jose Segue
HICKS WITH STICKS
***
Just
wanted to let you know of a great new Rockabilly band out there from Santa
Rosa, California. The band is called Hopped Up! and is the Pick of the month
online at Rock-it Radio. You can listen to their latest release at the start of
Rock-it Radio show #871.
-- The band's latest release is the start of this broadcast! It truly is worth
a listen.
- Bennie Dingo
ROCK-IT-RADIO
***
The
local high-octane rockabilly band "Hopped Up" wailed in the dining
room at Penngrove's Twin Oaks tavern. Dancers were swinging, gyrating, and
spinning, grinning from ear to ear at the sheer fun of plunging full tilt to
the thumping beat on a hot, hot Sunday a few weeks back at the very first
barbecue and hoedown hosted by the Lucky Bastards car club.
Read
More...
- Rayne Wolfe
THE
PRESS DEMOCRAT
***
We've snagged the first South Bay appearance of the flathead
revving, cam-rumblin' rockabilly harmonies of Hopped Up!, Santa Rosa's freshest
faces on the traditional NorCal hot rod and kustom car and music scene.
- Vida Lee
CHERRY BOMB PRODUCTIONS
***
