May, as the saying goes, brings new life to everything. Whether that actually happens is another question. But it's nice not to be goin' robotic on this first day of this wonderful month and let’s start the first record, a fine litte EP on Plastic Records with two combos and it's the first vinyl release by these both. Info: Following a brief stint as the Resistors, the Luton based UK Decay was formed in the winter of 1978 and consisted of Abbo (vocals/guitar), Martyn (bass), Steve (drums) and they released several 7Inches and an LP for Fresh Records, before forming their own label. Both of their songs are captivating due to their dark atmosphere and didn't sound like the typical British Punk sound, which is quite unusual considering that at the end of the Seventies a lot of music was played fast and hard. That's the reason why UK Decay are one of the original bands to cross over from Punk to what was then becoming called "Gothic", in the early '78 London scene. Their last studio recording was an EP titled Rising From The Dread, recorded in 1982 on Corpus Christi, a Crass label. A posthumous release, "A Night For Celebration", which was a live recording of the very last show (Klub Foot, Hammersmith, Dec 1982) came out on cassette in early 1983. After a long hiatus, they released their last EP in 2014 and I guess they continue to tour here and there in England. - Pneumania were Elaine (vocals), Pete (guitar), Steve The Voice (bass) Dave (drums) and they have only made these two beauties on vinyl. Both songs convey the crude and disrespectful attitude of the fucking society towards her and her kind. It becomes clear when you listening to the songs how energetic she brought herself in. Fazit: a successful debut for two extraordinary bands who are pioneers for a new genre and today's growing scene. Both can also be found on some Compilations.
When I'm drunk, or worried, or just unfocused and my mind is completely empty, I like to resort to tried-and-true methods. I don't need to write much about them because most of you already know them, and that's not to detract from the post, but it does make things easier for me, and now is such a moment. Today my friends from Leatherface from Sunderland are pushing me over the blind spot and not for sale is their intense fifth EP with three exquisite weaving arpeggiated guitar filigrees in amongst barrages of power and barre chords and one of the fiercest playing dynamic songs, two are non-album tracks, and released via Roughneck Records. These days, their 7Inchers are highly sought after and hard to come by, so that's enough for today. I'm tired and looking forward to tomorrow's day off.
I have one more and we shoot ourselves back almost fifty years and there is enough wiki info about the band and a little intro of it now: The Nerves were an American PowerPop trio, formed in San Francisco in 1974 and later based in Los Angeles, featuring Jack Lee (guitars), Peter Case (bass) and Paul Collins (drums). All three members composed songs and sang. They managed an international tour in the U.S. and Canada, including dates with the Ramones, and performances for the troops as part of the United Services Organization (USO). Their career was over by 1978, but they produced a great EP that featured the PowerPop classic "Hanging On The Telephone," which was later recorded (and brilliantly so) by Blondie. (John Dougan) In addition to being the drummer, Paul was also the trio's manager and did most of the bookings and promotion. The Nerves' EP was distributed by independent Bomp! Records and officially re-released on CD and vinyl by Alive Records in 2008. - All I can say about the EP itself is: four fantastic songs that are second to none, with beautiful melodies and excellent lyrics. Timeless and suitable for any romantic occasion, perfect for your sweetheart who doesn't understand that you love her, or anything along those lines. With these songs, you can declare yourself and win the heart of the person you want. And look at all the filth that is broadcast over the airwaves today. I mean, I don't follow any of it, but I am confronted with the new shit sound in the train, on the street or in the World Wide Web, and I am always disgusted by the stupid and simple-minded piss that is gloriously celebrated and yet has nothing honest or authentic about it. A real disgrace, and the masses buy their nonsense and make them rich. Stupid. Well, some say Musicblogs are ruining the music scene, I say: We make sure that really good and beautiful music stays alive. And in this spirit, let's continue and now have heavenly moments with this beautiful record!
Fizik is an interesting band from Bruges who produced two delicate 45s in the early Eighties and this is their final piece on Aaltrack Records. Members were Carl (vocals/bass), Mey (guitar), Pros (drums) and that's where my information about these gentlemen ends. Fact is, they belong to all the young bands that were founded at the beginning of the spring days in Brussels and across the country with presenting lots of new & weird music. An nice overview about this scene offer three Compilations named Antler Records Early Years which first volume was released two years ago. The A-side features a real hit: a catchy sound, echoing guitar, driving rhythms, excellent interplay, fitting vocals, and a powerful chorus. Everything fits perfectly with this 3:33 cracker and I wonder why the song never made it onto a Compilation. Even I was asleep. The flip, on the other hand, is a lame backdoor entrance adorned with pop undertones that don't really convince me. But it's all a matter of taste. Overall, an interesting record that's worth listening to at least once!
Desperate Livin' were a four piece from Stockholm and consisted of Giorgio (vocals), Lars (guitars), Mikael (bass), Bengt (drums) and made a fucking rare 7Inch of which only circa 300 copies were pressed and only a few survived. Info: "To top it all off, part of the edition was ruined by the sun. The remaining copies they sold themselves to friends and at gigs, they had no distribution. Consequently, the single is not so easy to find today. At the end of 1979, Desperate Livin’ took their first steps. Guitarist Lars had previously been in the Rapers, one of Stockholm’s very first Punk bands. Bassist Mikael and drummer Bengt (called Beppe) were on vocals. They had an Italian who had previously lived in England. His name was Giorgio, but he was called George. The influences were the usual ones, i.e. The Clash, Sex Pistols & The Stooges. The members were active in the Ormen association in Nacka and thus got many gigs, but sometimes they also arranged gigs in the city. The highlight was when they played support for Ebba Grön. The idea of making a single came a bit hastily, they saw it mostly as a fun thing and hadn't even had time to agree on which songs they would record when the time came. In retrospect, they have regretted the song choice and they themselves prefer to listen to the demo that was recorded after the single. When it came to which language the band should sing in, opinions diverged, so it became both parts. And it was these conflicts that finally caused the band to split up in the fall of 1981." (source: from the book Ny Våg) - Four solid tracks and to find on two great Compilations.
We stay in Berlin and meet a four piece called Benzin and they consisted of Anne (vocals), Phuong Vu (guitars), T. Rexilius (bass) & Denes (drums). A jagged, agile strumming guitar, a furious drum kit, pissed-off vocals, a helter-skelter sound: That's the sounds of Benzin. They founded 2019 and in the same year the first demo with seven excellent smashers was released, four years later a live tape followed. They are a HardcorePunk band with heart and songs that are centered around catchy riffs with outbursts and the zeitgeist of the Eighties HC scene. Last year they released their debut album Treibjagd on StaticAge Records and Benzin stands for distinctiveness and feels comfortable in the underground and has little interest in being "discovered". This little sucker is a blistering barrage of blazing beats and breakneck bursts and it's good to see that the Punk spirit is alive. Now I'm going out and enjoying the sun.
An extremely cozy 7-inch with delicate sounds of the Eighties, and I'm really surprised that there's excellent information about the young combo on discogs, which I'm happy to include here: Hardcore Punk from Spandau/West Germany. Crapscrapers from Berlin started in early 1984 as a three piece band, founded by singer and guitarist Bruno, the driving force of the band. The members were: Bruno (vocals/guitar), Blume (bass), Thomé (drums). With this line-up, they released the self-produced tape 'Alle Haben Gekotzt, Nur Ich Nicht' in 1984, followed in spring 1985 by the EP 'Don't Waste Money', recorded in October 1984. In May 1985, singer Kunterbunt joined the band as the fourth member. With this line-up, they recorded two songs co-written by Kunterbunt in the Studio Kerngehäuse in Kreuzberg in fall of 1985 for a planned compilation LP - one of them, "Next Generation", was released on the Kulturschock Attacke Vol.1 Compilation in 1986. The track "Soccer" was instead released on the German Spiel Ohne Grenzen (W.Bärlin "DDR" Sampler) tape in 1986, both tracks were also released on V/A - But This Product Is Crap ! Compilation tape in 1986. From then on, drummer Thomé was replaced at rehearsals by Marina from Subkultur due to differences in opinion. The band did not split up in 1985, as wrongly stated in the booklet of 'Spiel Ohne Grenzen' - the year 1985 merely marked significant changes in the band's line-up and with it a change in the band's style. They continued to rehearse and write new material, their sound became more compact and powerful over time - but they no longer performed live and there were no further releases. Guitarist Bruno became more and more influenced by speed/thrash metal during this time, which was noticeable in some of the newer songs from this period, e.g. "Bad Attitude" and "Rhythm Of Death". Sometime between 1986/87 they changed their name to Bad Attitude (not to be confused with the german Punk band Bad Attitude who were active at the same time). The result of all these developments was a studio recording in March 1988 of the song "Rhythm Of Death" for a planned EP under the new band name - with Marina on drums and Matze from Malinheads on bass. But there were still plenty of straight forward HardcorePunk songs, like the also new tracks "Theory" & "Abortion", as well as mid-paced punk songs - unfortunately, no material from this period was ever released. In the course of 1988, the band broke up for good. Bruno later played with Malinheads and can be heard on their 1991 split LP with MVD. Two identical pressings of 500 copies each, only the cover layout has been slightly changed for the second one. Decent board with eight noisy highlights. Cheers!
Before I dedicate myself to another self-made Compilation, we travel to England and visit a band that likes to be guests in my four walls: Penetration, known for its powerful sound and the distinctive voice of frontwoman Pauline Murray. The band was part of the emerging Punk scene & characterized itself through a blend of Punk, New Wave, and Post-Punk. "Danger Signs" is one more great record with three goodies, two of them live on the flip. Opens with the energetic title track which immediately captures your ears and demands your full attention. Murray's haunting vocals and dynamic instrumentation immediately create an enthralling atmosphere. The next highlight are the live pieces which impresses with its catchy melody and powerful rhythm. This showcases the band's ability to combine catchy hooks with an aggressive sound. The guitar work is concise and driving, while the bass and drums provide a solid foundation. Penetration manages to strike a balance between a raw Punk sound and melodic elements. Overall a strong 12Inch that showcases Penetration's evolution as a band. It cements their place in British Punk history and highlights their ability to create both powerful and insightful music. They're a band that capable of expressing the complexity of human emotions through their music.
Hotter than hell is the following rare 7Inch on No Wonder Records by a three piece from Brussels which consisted of three members: Erik (vocals/guitars), Philippe (bass), Giovanni (drums) - I'll quote a few info from the Bloodstains Compilation II: "Spermicide from Brussels was short-lived and this time we present you the title track of their 7Inch 'Femme Prothèse' (note how many punk bands were inspired by this shitty country we live in; one of them was even simply called "Belgium"). Most copies were released without a sleeve, but with an insert. They never released anything else, but a (demo) tape is circulating somewhere. "They never had a political agenda, nor was there any fighting against the police in squats. It's all a fable." (Guy Delcroix, brother of singer Eric) After Spermicide, singer/guitarist Eric, together with a new drummer and bassist, formed another band: Neo Arya, which released an mini album, Entre L'Amour Et La Haine, in 1984. Neo Arya's rhythm section remained active in various bands over the years and today plays in Europe's leading instrumental band, the Vice Barons (three albums on Demolition Derby), as well as in the mod band Supersonic." - Delicious record!
