Vancouver’s Rebel Priest took a trip to Japan in 2019 and from the ensuing drunken debauchery they wrote a few songs, now being released as a four-track EP, the aptly named Lost In Tokyo. The second single off the EP is the second track Back Alley Blues – watch the clip for the song below!

Instead of a full-length concept album, Rebel Priest decided to make a punchy, succinct EP. They set the tone on each single by adding a few similar elements which bind them together on the album as a whole but each track is a juggernaut on its own and will stand strong independently. Back Alley Blues is a slinking little ditty about an imaginary place that is half sunset strip, half Detroit rock city, and all about hanging with your crew. The band explains further:

“Imagine if you will, you’re a stray cat, walking down the street. You come across a mean old junkyard dog, you’re not afraid ‘cause you’re a tough-as-nails, street thug. The dog starts barking, you keep walking, and the smell of a kitty of the other persuasion is in the air. You’re now hotter than on a summer day, you see an alley with an intoxicating scent. As you walk down the place you feel most at home, your nostrils spike because there is something else in the air. As you get to the end of the alley you see the kitty you have been looking for and they have a bag of catnip. That’s just the beginning of your night.”

Lived experiences, vivid imagery, and wild rock n roll is the name of the game for Rebel Priest. The writing process for the band is simple and organic, the result of them working together previously and being no strangers to their craft. They will write a riff, work on it together, and then if it has wings, they let it fly. There is no microscope to put tracks under and obsess over, in this world of autotune and time-shifting, it’s all about trying to find the ghost in the machine, and Rebel Priest is bringing the Ouiji board!

Greasy, smooth, and catchy, Back Alley Blues is recommended for fans of ZZ Top, Rose Tattoo, and Deep Purple.

Lost In Tokyo Releases on August 13th.