Before moving to Atlanta, Kevn Kinney fronted the Prosecutors with bassist Doug Lavalliere and the help of various drummers, including local legend James “Tess” Tessier. This CD collects the band’s lone three-song 45, a demo and a loose, after-hours take on “Are You Lonesome Tonight.” The real crackerjack is a handful of songs recorded live at The Starship, Milwaukee’s long-gone downtown music venue. The Prosecutor’s power trio punk sound—concise tunes, Kinney’s yelp, roaring guitars with minimal solos and interlocked bass and drums—recalls The Dictators, Ramones and more than a dash of The Clash. Tunes like “Brute Force” and “Red, White and Black” paint a band raging with energy on a night when they might be lucky to earn enough to stop for a burger after loading out.
Kinney continues to wield his trusty Mosrite guitar, aiming for the big time with his other band Drivin’ N’ Cryin’. Songs like “Teenage Doll” and “Everything Looks Better in the Dark” serve as DNA for his next stop.
More than a mere footnote, the Prosecutors’ CD captures a band charging full steam ahead into a future yet to be defined by MTV, alternative radio and a watered down aesthetic for sale at the local mall.
