'Here Come The Sonics' & 'Midnight Ride'

Two very different bands despite playing in the same genre in the same era. 

I actually thought the pair would be quite similar but Paul Revere and the Raiders are a lot more polished and poppy, whereas the edgy and unforgiving sound of The Sonics is uncompromising and downright harsh.

Here Come The Sonics is probably one of my favorite records to discover while doing this list. It is quite amazing in every way from the actual performances to the sound and the attitude that you see from modern independent rock to 1970s punk and 1980s hardcore. Kurt Cobain was a fan and it’s obvious if you listen to Nirvana.

Interesting facts: 

• Paul Revere and the Raiders started in Idaho. It makes them the most popular group from Idaho in the HISTORY OF IDAHO. Individuals from Built to Spill and Motley Crue (Nikki Sixx, of all people) are from Idaho. 
• I never considered Paul Revere and the Raiders as a manufactured band (despite the costumes) but there was an apparent falling out at the height of their popularity in the 1960s partially due to the use of studio musicians over the guys in the band.
• Paul Revere and the Raiders still perform and haven’t really stopped in 60 years. Say what you will about The Beatles or the Rolling Stones, but for those groups to maintain a line-up as long as they did is remarkable considering how many changes took place in any number of groups in the 1960s.
• Midnight Ride was produced by Terry Melcher, the popular producer for The Beach Boys and Byrds throughout the 1960s. He was Doris Day’s son and his father wanted him aborted.
• The Sonics are awesome.