The Short Fuses - Get the Hell Down

Friends turned me on to the Short Fuses after playing gigs together and being knocked out by their sound and stage show. Led by the dynamic and sexy Georgia Peach and guitar maestro Travis Ramin, these cats created a powerful sound that mixed pure raw power with pop and even sixties influences to form their own r’n’r sound.

The band bashes and crashes out the unimaginatively titled (yet universally appropriate) “Bored” in their best punk’n’roll style with excesses of strength and melody somehow combined as the Short Fuses. Georgia has a helluva voice – tough as nails yet a real singer and not afraid of her own sexuality, as evidenced in the rave up at the ending where she sings “faster, faster baby, masturbate me baby”!

Shifting gears (so to speak!) in “Corvette Summer”, they perform a perfect pop-teen tale of escape (and failure) while the guitars continue to blaze. Really clever lyrics here about plans made that just kinda dissipated causing the chick to leave her loser boyfriend. Travis includes a shrieking solo, too!

One of their most intense numbers if “The Golden Strip” where Peach sounds like she is ready to kick your ass as the band raves like crazy behind her! Fantastic guitar noise madness on this one! A master riff-rocker is served up in “Rev’d-Up-n-Ready”, frantic as hell with great lyrics like “I’m the kinda lady who’s ready to rock you…I want satisfaction, I don’t need no back talk, so shut your mouth and get yer ass to dancin’ baby!” Nice dynamic work here and cool keyboards help push this along as they break down and build up even stronger than before.

The band raves up a simple progression similar to the Kinks’ “I Need You” for “Devastator”, telling the listener just how much the band kicks ass. Groovy egomanical boost! Piercing lead guitar abounds, also, which is always a plus!

Travis and Georgia act out a b-movie/Scooby-Doo styled monster attack in “Night of the Bloodsuckers”, ending with an excellent shriek and then becoming a wild hard-rock horror tune with tons of guitars! There’s a great title in “Beneath the City of the Guitar Vixens” which is propelled with a punk rock beat and plenty of riffs and feedback.

I’m assuming that “Midway Motel” is about some place that the band would gig at, and they are at their punk’n’roll best as they rant through this one! This is like the Hellacopters fronted by a chick! “One Eye” has Peach at her fiercest – singing about how great the band is and how she and the boys are the center of everyone’s attention. I love the line “listen up, can I have your attention, you have permission to get the hell down” and all of the fantastic guitar playing! She just freaks and yelps like Lisa from the BellRays in an out of control moment! Terrific!

They revert to pop with real power in “Spare Me”, though as good as it is, it’s not one of the best from the record. “Messenger of Rock” starts off as a mid-tempo riff rocker before taking off into the stratosphere as a manic gospel of r’n’r. Even more crazed is “Powerlord” which is so fast and furious that Peach can hardly keep up. Supersonic riffs explode all around and all you can do is hang on for the ride of your life!

Starting off slow and sultry, “Becoming Invincible” creates a groovy mood and then jumps into Stooges “I’m Sick of You” high speed territory. Excellent “I will never be destroyed” lyrics end this piece.

For those who dig a little pop and sex with their punk’n’roll, these cats and kitten were a potent combo! Get it if ya find it!