UNWANTED - Shattered Silence 1984

Sole album by Manitoba's Unwanted on Head Butt Records and the band consisted of Norm (vocals), James & Randy (guitars), Ken (bass) and Kirk (drums). Their first sign of life was the famous In Case Of Emergency Kick Ass tape, which set the bar high, followed by a track on BYO's Something To Believe In compilation (could post this sucker soon) and finally Shattered Silence. The title is superbly chosen, and it is powerfully stepped on the pedals that it just smokes. Eleven fast songs in twenty-two minutes speak a clear language, which reflecting in their words. The album will certainly not change the world but it is a little spicy cashew-peanut mix and makes you thirsty...

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DIE SEUCHE - Pächter Des Wahnsinns 1990

After their debut die Seuche from Berlin released the same year this mini-album with four more metallic punk songs on the A-side and five live recordings from the Open-Air Festival Hasenheide/Berlin 21.07.1990, again via Aggressive Rockproduktionen (AGR). Very powerful record and good German lyrics. Die Seuche broke up 1993.

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THE VIBRATORS - V2 1978

Classic punk by the Vibrators from London and active since 1976, they have released well over twenty records to date. You see, these are young veterans of good music. Info: The Vibrators were founded by Ian 'Knox' Carnochan, Pat Collier (bass), John Ellis (guitars), and drummer John 'Eddie' Edwards. They first came to public notice at the 100 Club when they backed Chris Spedding in 1976. On Spedding's recommendation, Mickie Most signed them to his label RAK Records. Most produced their first single, "We Vibrate". The band also backed Spedding on his single, "Pogo Dancing". The Vibrators recorded sessions for John Peel at BBC Radio 1 in October 1976, June 1977 & February 1978. They were one of the pioneering punk bands that played at London's Roxy Club. The band signed to Epic Records in early 1977. Their debut album, Pure Mania, was well regarded by some music critics and, seventeen years after its release, The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music named Pure Mania one of the 50 best punk albums of all time. During the 1980s, John Ellis recorded with Peter Gabriel, as well as recording and touring frequently with Peter Hammill, then subsequently the Stranglers, eventually joining the latter full-time in the 1990s. Pat Collier went on to work closely with the Soft Boys, producing their seminal album Underwater Moonlight, and Robyn Hitchcock, producing and mixing some of his solo albums (to which Knox also sometimes contributed). Phil Ram went on to form Able Ram and brought out two singles, "Disco In Moscow" and "Hope We Make It", although without any chart success. Despite numerous line-up changes, the Vibrators are still touring to this day as a three-piece, with "Eddie" being the only original member. V2 was their most successful album, reaching #33 in the UK Albums Chart and it earned the band a TV appearance on Top Of The Pops. You can read more about them in the web and you're doing nothing wrong buying a V record.

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DEAD CAN DANCE - s/t LP 1984

Today to a band that I appreciate very much and always enjoy playing: Dead Can Dance, formed 1981 in Melbourne by Brendan Perry (The Scavengers/The Marching Girls) & Lisa Gerrard. Excllent info from their 4AD label for you: "Their music began as collages made from musical lineages, lost tribes and cultures long since forgotten - and by giving new life to so much from the past, they created a genuinely timeless body of work. They shared vocal responsibilities, and while Perry was certainly capable of haunting subtleties and real sonority as a singer, it was more often Gerrard's rhapsodic vocalising that drew the attention of critics and fans. In a sense, Gerrard didn't simply sing for Dead Can Dance: she made sounds with her voice, and turned that experience into something much larger and more far-ranging than mere singing. Perry's soundscapes blur distinctions between organic and sampled, old and new, drawing on disparate traditions (neo–classical, choral, baroque, troubadour) and weaving together influences from Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Asia, North Africa, the Mediterranean and beyond..." I was lucky to see this fantastic band live in the old opera house in Frankfurt and the almost three-hour performance is one of the best I've ever seen live. With around twenty artists on stage and the appropriate equipment, they filled the hall with their spherical music and sent you into other worlds, far away from reality and I can tell you, my pearl and I are went home very impressed & flashed. "...having finally secured their contract in 1983, it wasn't until March the following year that 4AD released their eponymous first album, a collection of the songs they had written over the previous four years. Also 1984 they released a 12'' "Garden Of The Arcane Delights" which is included here as bonus." Though the band split in 1998, they reformed briefly for a world tour in 2005. In winter 2011, they reunited once again to record a new album and completed a world tour promoting its release in 2012 and they're still alive. I recommend you get to know this band, no matter what album you start with, there is no bad one.

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GOVERNMENT ISSUE - Crash 1988

Already the sevneth and last album by Government Issue, four gentlemen from Washington, and they're active from 1980 to 1989 and on this album are John (vocals), Tom (guitars), Jay (bass), Peter (drums) involved. They began as hardcore band but overtime transitioned into more alternative rock areas. Government Issue originated from the Washington, D.C. hardcore scene but added elements of heavy metal, new wave, and psychedelic rock on later records. Though this has caused the band to be sometimes overlooked in relation to other Washington D.C. hardcore acts, their stylistic diversity made them influential to later punk rock groups. They performed occasional reunion shows in the 2000s and 2010s with various lineups, until Stabb's death from stomach cancer in 2016. On this last output they are not as awesome as they were in their early days and I once had a double album but I can't remember which one. However, though they did have a following in the straight edge community, Government Issue's stylistic expansion from one album to the next alienated much of their early hardcore audience. Blush writes that "Unfortunately, most who went to see G.I. through the 80s still expected to hear hardcore reminiscent of the first EP. The group was moving into a softer, R.E.M. direction, and none of their fans gave a shit about such profound maturity." Huey remarks that the band "has remained somewhat overlooked in relation to the rest of the D.C. hardcore bands of their time, in part because their music never really fit the proto-emo bent of much of the local Dischord stable", while Burgess notes that they nonetheless "made history in their own way by never fitting into the scene most people naturally associated with their city." Well, no matter how their development went, G.I. are among the best of the Washington hardcore scene and have had a decisive influence on the American punk culture, Amen!

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V/A - Hurra For Norge #3 2008

I am always enthusiastic about creators, no matter from which country, who dig up rare and hidden treasures and publish them, usually in a series, with a nice artwork, lots of infos and with passion. Svindel Records fulfills with Hurra For Norge all these criteria and unfortunately only on CD (each release would have to be made as a double album but I guess this was discarded for cost reasons) but that's okay with all the good amount of bands/songs, some with singles, others only with demos or live recordings. Volume III is full with Norsk Punk-Rock 1978-88 and if you don't act stupid you will find more volumes. And now off into the weekend!

1.Gud Bevare Kåre Og Gro - NAKKESKUDD

2.Voksent Liv - DET PENE BÆN

3.Ingen Visjoner - HÆRVERK

4.Vet Ikke - K-ANFALL

5.Du E Galen - KVIIIN

6.Folk E Rare - DE SJENERTE

7.Scarface - FRONT PAGE

8.Why, Why, Why - ALTERNATIVE NORGE

9.Plikt - JUNK FOOD SOCIETY

10.Dommedag - BRENT FLAGG

11.Nekrofil - Ø.B.K.

12.Vi Skal Ta Rotta På Dere - ALTERNATIVE NORGE

13.Alt Går Til Hælvete - SKJIT LARS

14.Takk Hold Kjeft - OVERDOSE

15.Kor Var Gro - DATAKLUSS

16.Kjedelig Land - OPPSLUTNING

17.Prostituert - AKUTT 80

18.Håndballstøy - ROGNAN HÅNDBALLAG

19.Ronald Duck - PVC

20.Rus - Z-OFF

21.Bare En Jævel - FADER WAR

22.Ingen Vits Å Gråte - KAFKA PROSESS

23.Jeg Vil Bli Sadist - FORSIKTIG

24.Søppelkværna Står - KONFRONTASJON

25.Hæng Gud - MITTI SKRITTI

26.Under Fanen - LYSSKRIFT

27.Terrortid - STROYERS

28.Betale Skatt - SY-KISK TERROR

29.Right Or Wrong - REGULATORS

30.Burger Barn - DATA MORGANA

31.Klaner - KONGELIGE RÆVER

32.Pizzafyll I Beirut - SEPPO GOES TO HOLOCAUST

33.Du Klarer Det Hvis Du Vil - TERROR

34.Arendal SS - MUSIKALSK BARNEHAGE

35.Kom Deg Ned - BAKSMELL

36.Terrorsnut - DEAD SWINGERS

37.Merkelig - AVD. 13

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SIXTEN REDLÖS - Slå Alarm 1987

After two brilliant EP's followed the only full-length by Sixten Redlös from Jonköping on S-Skivor with ten solid mid-tempo pieces. I must say that I like their single songs better, there is more fire in them. The record is too clean produced and somehow not that attractive, certainly a question of taste. Nevertheless an album with some hits and I'd rather put this slab on than any other 2000er release. Besides, a decent thunderstorm is raging here and it's damn muggy.

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ZARAMA - Gaua Apurtu Arte 1985

Second record by this Basque Country band from Santurze on Discos Suicidas and they're part of the Basque Radical Rock genre. And again they recorded thirteen decent songs on their second album with good speed, joy of playing; the only drawback: seems a little powerless, probably due to the lazy production (the year before it was flawless on Indarrez (Por La Fuerza). Anyway, definitely worth hearing and since I don't feel like it anymore, that's it for today in this theater. I need a cooling-off as well because today again over thirty degrees and that sucks older men like me...

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THE EXCESSIVES - Wild Waves 1989

A pretty cool dynamic debut album by the Excessives from Mechelen on Bums Records and in their short lifespan the four, Johan (vocals), Stef (guitars), Hermann (bass),  El Loco (drums), made three albums and they're at home in splendid garage rock with a high punk factor. Actually one blast chases the other and fifteen songs in just under thirty minutes testify powerful, to the point mines. The whole record is surprisingly homogeneous and a highlight (next to the other fourteen pieces) is certainly the ingenious and worth hearing cover version of the Motörhead classic Ace Of Spades, you shouldn't miss that. Two EP's were still released and they were rarely featured on compis, one of them Double Shot is a cool one.

- Great Thx to Nolti -

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FEHLFARBEN - Monarchie & Alltag 1980

One more essential record is the debut by Fehlfarben on Welt-Rekord/EMI, formed 1979 by members of Mittagspause and other musicians in Düsseldorf. A bit wiki info: Fehlfarben settled into a sound perhaps most comparable to their English contemporaries Gang Of Four. Signing a contract with the German subsidiary of EMI lost them their status as an underground band, but in 1980 they released their debut, Monarchie und Alltag (Monarchy and everyday life), an album recognized then and now as one of the most important German-language rock records. Despite its cultural impact, Monarchie & Alltag did not reach gold status in Germany until 2000. The single Ein Jahr (Es Geht Voran), which would be their only hit single, was in fact disliked by the band members themselves, who had initially produced its slick disco groove more in jest than seriousness. Shortly after having released their debut album, Fehlfarben suffered the departure of lead singer Peter Hein owing to his frustration at the follow-up tour's being lengthened from three to six weeks on short notice. He went back to his day job at Xerox, where he worked until 2003. The band released two more albums without Hein during the 1980s, 33 Tage In Ketten and Glut & Asche, with only the latter making it onto the German charts. After struggles with their label, they disbanded at the end of 1984. They come back with all original members 1990s and two more albums were made but their sound is far away from the old goodies. Anyway, this record is fantastic in all respects.

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