Echoes of Crust: an Anthology of UK Crust 1985-1995

Alright then, let's get back to it and by "it", I mean "crust" of course. 

 

 

 

If you must know the truth, I spent the last month in a secret crust monastery which accounts for my temporary absence from this respectable - without mentioning influential - blog. Not unlike in Karate Kid, but with high-brow punk shirts and tragically more pronounced receding hairlines, I needed guidance about the next step that had to be taken in my quest for the meaning of life, and by "life" I mean "crust", again. In the temple of crust, discipline is strict. Drinking water is banned and has been replaced with cider and anyone caught showering is severely punished, while the hideous sin of listening to neocrust systematically results in public flogging and lifelong excommunication from the Crust Society (you don't want to know what happens if you're caught enjoying shoegaze). During the retreat, one is expected to listen exclusively to old-school crust music - be it of the stenchcore or cavemen variety - and it is required that you pray for long hours each day in the traditional crust position of meditation: barely sitting on a filthy floor with your back against a wall while holding on to a half-empty bottle of special brew and muttering the lyrics of "Relief" or "Drink and be merry" ("Stormcrow" or "Grind the enemy" are also perfectly acceptable alternatives). Only then may the Revelation occur and only the chosen few are able to attain real illumination before prematurely dying of cirrhosis. I came home exhausted but enlightened, with a halo of flies around my head determined to zealously spread the Word of Crust and to convert as many doubters as possible through impeccably curated compilations of UK crust music. 

 

The elaboration of those UK crust compilations was the logical step after our intense coaching session in mastering the proper crust lifestyle, Ten Steps to Make your Life CRUSTIER Starting Today (by the way, I hope you have all become decent soap-dodging noize freaks). The idea behind their making is to offer a fairly comprehensive view of a specific time and place in order to establish and define some descriptive criteria and approach this punk subgenre that has come to be known as "crust" from a contextualised, diachronic perspective that both stresses significant stylistic similarities and reflects a common vibe and tension while also illustrating a diversity in paces, textures and intents that you will not fail to notice. A walk in the fucking park. The selecting process was not an easy one. Actually, the last version of the compilations (several failed attempts preceded, I'm sorry to say) has been ready for two weeks now but I wanted to make sure that, not only did they sound powerful and balanced, but also that they told the right story, that, through my narrative choices, you could get a relevant idea of what crust really is and what it expresses, what cultural moment it embodies, namely the collision of anarchopunk, hardcore and extreme metal in the British soundscape of the mid-80's. The task was extremely fun but also somewhat ambitious and you would be surprised to know how hard I thought about the inclusion or exclusion of some of the bands (Bolt Thrower to give you an example).

 

In the end, you get two compilations of 95 minutes each, thus roughly respecting the classic mixtape format, with 58 bands in total (including bands from the Republic of Ireland) and 62 songs, spanning a decade, from 1985 to 1995. Working with both 80's and 90's bands made sense for several reasons. First, it illustrates how the genre survived and evolved after all the founders called it a day, how the new generation of bands considered and reworked the original crust sound. Second, too often we tend to erect a wall between the 80's and the 90's, retroactively glorifying the former and discarding the latter, as if there were major epistemological differences in the making of punk after 1989, and I believe the transition between the late 80's and the early 90's was very fluid, the major change being the rise of the cd format at the expense of vinyl in the music industry. 

Some choices were delightfully comfortable and picking songs from the undisputed classics of the genre felt strangely rewarding. On Echoes of Crust you will of course enjoy a display of the official canons of UK apocalyptic metallic crust in all their glorious power (Deviated Instinct, Hellbastard, Axegrinder and the likes) that have built the genre on the sound of the two founding fathers, Antisect and Amebix (however, I chose to leave out the Bristol style of noize, though bands like Chaos UK and Disorder certainly played an important role in the rise of crust). The school of cavemen impersonation of raw and furious hardcore punk is also well represented through Doom, Extreme Noise Terror and their enthusiastic followers. You will also find bands that do not really fall under the crust umbrella on this exploratory celebration of crust music such as fast political hardcore acts like Generic or Electro Hippies, metal-punk crossover ones like Sacrilege and Concrete Sox or obscure grindcore units like Grunge or Drudge, all of them delivering songs that nonetheless exemplify that crunchy heavy crust vibe that I am always looking for, hence their inclusion of these compilations. Some would even probably argue that the metallic industrial sound of Sonic Violence or the groovy straight-edge hardcore take of Ironside have no place in the selection, which I can understand, but even unintentional, a crusty vibe does permeate some of their works and, at the end of the day, it also provides some interesting variety to the mix. 

 

The sound quality varies a lot as there are rough live or sloppy rehearsal recordings as well as rather clear near professional production and although I have done my best to equalise and even up the levels (without mentioning that many rips come from my own collection), it was near impossible an endeavour at times even for a computer genius like me. Some songs are actually hard to listen to, but it would feel incomplete to have a crust compilation without a proper sonic challenge (I'm thinking really hard about Violent Phobia and the enigmatic Angry Worta Melonz here), right? I tried as much as possible to select songs or versions of songs that were not too obvious in order to keep things interesting and, perhaps, even surprising.

Massive thanks go to all the bands for writing such great (and, well, even objectively not so great) music. Crust music has always been a massive part of my life and hopefully, through these humble compilations, I managed to convey a real sense of crustness and meaningfully tell the story of the genre. As for you dear listeners, I hope you enjoy this journey into the first ten years of the genre, inside the cradle of crust.  

 

 

 

Volume one: 

 

01. Intro: Antisect "Instrumental" from Live at Planet X, Liverpool, March, 27th, 1987 (London)

02. Prophecy of Doom "Insanity reigns supreme" from The Peel Sessions 12'' Ep, 1990 (Tewkesbury)

03. Bio-Hazard "Society's rejects" from A Nightmare on Albion Street compilation Lp, 1992 (Bradford?)

04. Rest In Pain "How the mighty have fallen" from A Vile Peace compilation Lp, 1987 (Bath)

05. Coitus "Silo 5" from Failure to Communicate unreleased album, 1994 (London)

06. Pro Patria Mori "The question (chains of guilt)" from Where Shadows Lie... demo tape, 1986 (Wokingham)

07. Embittered "Infected" from And you Ask Why? When you've only Got Yourself to Blame tape, 1991 (Middlesbrough)

08. Aural Corpse "Cong" from S/t split Lp with Mortal Terror, 1990 (Middlesbrough)

09. Hellbastard "Death camp #1" from Hate Militia demo tape, 1987 (Newcastle)

10. Depth Charge "Sirens" from Just for a Doss demo tape, 1988 (Birmingham)

11. Generic "The death of an era" from The Spark Inside Ep, 1987 (Newcastle)

12. Sore Throat "Something that never was" from Never Mind the Napalm Here's Sore Throat Lp, 1989 (Huddersfield)

13. Mortal Terror "Release / Horrible death" from S/t split Lp with Generic, 1988 (Newcastle)

14. Napalm Death "The traitor" from Live at the Mermaid, Birmingham, January, 1st, 1986 (Birmingham)

15. Black Winter "Winter armaggedon" from Live at Queen's Head, ?, July, 25th, 1987 (Doncaster)

16. Interlude: Axegrinder "Armistice" from Grind the Enemy demo tape, 1987 (London)

17. Debauchery "Ice of another" from The Ice Lp, 1988 (Newcastle)

18. Deviated Instinct "Scarecrow" from Hiatus (The Peaceville Sampler) compilation Lp, 1989 (Norwich)

19. Warfear "Dig your own grave" from Wild & Crazy Noise Merchants... compilation 2xLp, 1990 (Bradford)

20. Raw Noise "Communication breakdown" from Making a Killing split Lp with Chaos UK, 1992 (Ipswich)

21. Sarcasm "Suppression" from Your Funeral My Party Ep, 1991 (Leicester)

22. Electro Hippies "Acid rain" from The Only Good Punk... Lp, 1988 (Wigan)

23. Doom "Same mind" from The Greatest Invention cd, 1993 (Birmingham)

24. Sonic Violence "Crystalization of despair" from Jagd Lp, 1990 (Southend)

25. Filthkick "Mind games" from Peel Sessions, July, 8th, 1990 (Birmingham)

26. Extinction of Mankind "Confusion" from A Scream from the Silence Volume 2, compilation Lp, 1993 (Manchester)

27. Drudge "Sacrilege" from Suppose it was you / Drudge split Lp with Agathocles, 1990 (Wolverhampton)

28. Gutrot "Hypocrites archieve nothing" from Filthy Muck 10'', 2008/1987? (London)

29. Violent Phobia "Animal abuse", from No Excuse demo tape, early 90's? (Cork)

30. Bolt Thrower "Concession of pain" from Concession of Pain demo tape, 1987 (Coventry)

31. Antisect "New dark ages" from Leeds 2.4.86 Lp, 2010/1986 (London)

Echoes of Crust 1

Volume two:

01. Intro: Amebix "The moor" from Live at the Station, 1985 (Bristol)

02. Policebastard "Traumatized" from S/t split cd with Defiance, 1995 (Birmingham)

03. Atavistic "Maelstrom" from A Vile Peace compilation Lp, 1987 (Whitstable)

04. Saw Throat "Inde$troy part 4" from Inde$troy Lp, 1989 (Huddersfield)

05. Blood Sucking Freaks "Raining napalm" from Those Left Behind tape, 1994 (Bradford)

06. Life Cycle "Indifference" from Myth & Ritual Ep, 1988 (Neath, Wales)

07. Domination Factor "Judge not the cover" from Dominated Till Death tape, 1987 (Tewkesbury)

08. Corpus Vile "Waste of life" from I'm Glad I'm not in Danzig & I Bloody Mean that tape, 1991 (Bristol)

09. Anemia "Axe the tax" from Live at the Tyneside Irish Center, August, 14th, 1991 (Newcastle)

10. Extreme Noise Terror "Deceived" from Are you that Desperate? Ep, 1991 (Ipswich)

11. Kulturo "Unknown" from Live at Planet X, Liverpool, April, 13th, 1991 (London)

12. Oi Polloi "Resist the atomic menace" from Outrage Ep, 1988 (Edinburgh)

13. Genital Deformities "Crouterposs / Dark sky" from Shag Nasty Oi! Lp, 1989 (Birmingham)

14. Ironside "Suffocation" from Endless Struggle compilation 2xLp, 1995 (Bradford)

15. Screaming Holocaust "Fanta babies" from Cancer Up Your Bum Ep, 1990 (Ipswich)

16. Interlude: Deviated Instinct "Possession (intro)" from Terminal Filth Stenchcore tape, 1987 (Norwich)

17. Rhetoric "To no one in particular" from Consolidation compilation Ep, 1987 (Norwich)

18. Senile Decay "Isolated (in your private cell)" from S/t split Ep with Canol Caled, 1989 (Gateshead)

19. Killer Crust "Random intimidation, anywhere" from S/t split Ep with Undersiege, 1989 (Dublin)

20. Angry Worta Melonz "Third world" from Rehearsal tape, April, 5th, 1986 (Norwich???)

21. Sludgelord "Rillington sunrise" from Unreleased recordings, September, 1989 (Huddersfield)

22. Axegrinder "Lifechain" from Hiatus (the Peaceville Sampler) compilation Lp, 1989 (London)

23. Hellkrusher "Dark side" from Wasteland Lp, 1990 (Newcastle)

24. Dread Messiah "Mind insurrection" from Mind Insurrection Ep, 1994 (London)

25. Acrasy "Pain" from Deviated Instinct's Re-Opening Old Wounds cd, 1993/1990? (Birmingham)

26. Sacrilege "Stark reality" from Demo 2, February, 1985 (Birmingham)

27. Excrement of War "The ultimate end" from S/t demo tape, 1992? (Birmingham)

28. Grunge "Lemmings" from Gore Maggots tape, 1989 (Aberdeen)

29. Concrete Sox "Speak Japanese or die" from Crust and Anguished Life compilation cd, 1993 (Nottingham)

30. Mortified "Dreary" from Drivel (the Grungalogic Beer Theory) tape, 1991 (Honiton)

31. Amebix "Chain reaction" from The Power Remains Lp, 1993/1987 (Bristol) 

Echoes of Crust 2

Give Us This Day Our Daily Death, Uplifting yet Melancholy British Anarchopunk Songs '79/'95: a Compilation

This is the third anarchopunk compilation I did and it has not been banned from youtube (yet?) but I thought that it would be safer to post it on the blog proper. So here we go again.

Third compilation of dark and tuneful British anarchopunk with songs from 29 bands recorded between 1979 and 1995. As with the first two, the purpose of this selection was to emphasize the moodiness and the diverse ways to express anger and outrage that characterize the anarcho wave.  

1. Disrupters « Rot in hell », Alive in the electric chair 12'' Ep, 1985 (Norwich)

2. Faction « Turn away », You've got the fire Ep, 1984 (London)

3. Internal Dimenzions « Wargames », S/t demo tape, 198?'s (?)

4. Youth In Asia « When the wind blows », S/t demo tape, 1983 (London)

5. Potential Threat « A cry for help », Brainwashed Ep, 1984 (Blackburn)

6. Icon AD « Fight for peace », Don't feed us shit Ep, 1982 (Leeds)

7. 7th Plague « Painful death », Aristocrap compilation Ep, 1984 (Wolverhampton)

8. Toxic Waste « Traditionally yours », The truth will be heard split 12'' with Stalag 17, 1985 (Belfast)

9. Slaughter Tradition « Nightmare », Passion revolt demo tape, 1983 (Wales)

10. TVOD « War is for rich men », TVODemo demo tape, 1985 (Bolton)

11. The System « Their corrupting ways », Thought control Lp, 1983 (Wigan)

12. A Touch of Hysteria « Death cart », S/t demo tape, 1983 (Ambleside)

13. Anathema « Fighting to win », Smash the illusion/Acceptance split tape with Systematic Annex, 1986 (New Malden)

14. Wartoys « Ignorance », Indoctrination is the system, indoctrination is death demo tape, 1983 (Wigan)

15. Riot/Clone « A letter to no one », Still no government like no government 2xLp, 1995 (Ashford)

16. Schwartzeneggar « Child of the times », Art XX craft cd Ep, 1993 (London)

17. Honey Bane « Porno grows », You can be you Ep, 1979 (London)

18. Anthrax « It will be alright on the night », Who? What? Why? When? Where? compilation Lp, 1984 (Gravesend)

19. Alternative « Love and life », If they treat you like shit, act like manure Lp, 1984 (Dunfermline, Scotland)

20. FUAL « Repetition », S/t Lp, 1990 (Belfast)

21. The Apostles « Worker's autonomy », Punk obituary Lp, 1985 (London)

22. Chumbawamba « Common ground », Common ground demo tape, 1984 (Leeds)

23. The Assassins « Ronnie's bomb »,  S/t demo tape, 1983 (London)

24. The Mad Are Sane « Collision », Look further than vengeance demo tape, 1985 (Bournemouth)

25. Reality Control « Another sunrise », The reproduction of hate Ep, 1983 (Newcastle)

26. Two-Fingered Approach « World War album », My World War album Ep, 1982 (Cheshire)

27. Omega Tribe « When I'm with you », S/t demo tape, 1984 (Barnet)

28. Morbid Humour « Give us this day », Daffodils to the daffodils here's the daffodils compilation Lp, 1984 (Bradford)

29. Blood And Roses « Necromantra », Love under will 12'' Ep, 1983 (London)

Give us this day our daily death

The Terror of Loaded Guns, Diverse Textures of Moody British Anarchopunk '82/'93: a Compilation

This was the second anarchopunk compilation I did for youtube and, just like the first one, because of monetisation issues, it also got banned from the platform and cannot be uploaded again and I don't really care that much to be honest (do you?). Anyway, here it is with the original introduction.

This is my second anarchopunk compilation after "All the lonely faces" with a selection of 28 songs from as many bands that existed at some point between 1982 and 1993. 

This time I tried to go for a more narrative feel and convey a sense of storytelling informed by the arrangement of the songs. On the whole, the atmosphere is rather moody, sometimes melancholy or bitter, sometimes poignant and hopeful. I also intended to select songs that are different from each other (there are some acoustic and strange-sounding tracks here) but hopefully echo with each other significantly. There are some well-known faces here as well as more obscure bands but all were connected with the anarchopunk world.

1.Blood Robots « Loaded guns », S/t demo tape, 1984 (Newcastle)

2. DIRT « Mother », unreleased Ep, 1985? (London) 

3. Thatcher On Acid « Put it in », Frank Lp, 1990 (Somerset)

4. The Waste « Stop the hate », Not just something to be sung Ep, 1986 (Exeter)

5. Decadent Few « They shoot children », They shoot children Ep, 1993 (London)

6. Man's Hate « Porton Down », Forward into the abyss demo tape, 1988 (Peterborough)

7. The Amebix « Moscow madness (no gods part 2) », No sanctuary 12'' Ep, 1984 (Bristol)

8. Internal Autonomy « Trapped », Inquiry Lp, 1990 (Surrey) 

9. Flowers in the Dustbin « The journey's end », Freaks run wild in the disco 12'' Ep, 1984 (London) 

10. Terminus « Terror is the best of guards », Going nowhere fast Lp, 1990 (Scunthorpe) 

11. Joyce McKinney Experience « Ghost in the mirror », Braemar demo, 1992 (Leamington Spa) 

12. Decadence Within « A breath of fresh air », unreleased Ep, 1987 (Ledbury)

13. The Astronauts « Typically English day », It's all done by mirrors Lp, 1983 (Welwyn Garden City)

14. Dominant Patri « Experiment », Heroes'  glory demo tape, 1983 (Luton)

15. Passion Killers « Why? », Motion... yet motionless demo tape, 1984 (Leeds)

16. A-Heads « Forgotten hero », Forgotten hero Ep, 1983 (Warminster)

17. Conflict « To be continued », The ungovernable force Lp, 1986 (London)

18. Toxik Ephex « Final epitaph », The adventures of Nobby Porthole the cock of the North Lp, 1991 (Aberdeen)

19. The Pagans « Quality of life », The cuckoo has flown demo tape, 1982 (Warminster)

20. Hex « Initiative », Nothing ventured nothing gained split Ep with Feed Your Head, 1987 (Sunderland)

21. Earths Epitaph « Reality song », Child's play demo tape, 1985 (Cwnbran, Wales)

22. Flux of Pink Indians « Is there anybody there? », Strive demo, 1982 (Bishops Stortford) 

23. Virus « 3rd world wonders », You can't ignore it forever demo, 1985 (Dorset)

24. Dan « I think I should », Where have all the children gone? Lp, 1987 (Darlington)

25. Louise « Ribbons and roses », Chiswick demo tape, 1989 (London)

26. Kronstadt Uprising « The horsemen », Part of the game Ep, 1985 (Southend-on-Sea)

27. Blyth Power « Bind their kings in chains », The barman and other stories Lp, 1988 (Somerset) 

28. Paranoid Visions « Strange girl », The robot is running amok Ep, 1986 (Dublin)

The Terror of Loaded Guns

All the Lonely Faces, Darker Shades of British Anarchopunk '82/'92: a Compilation

To help you fight boredom, here is a reupload of the first anarchopunk compilations I did and that youtube banned a few month ago. Below is the original text detailing the thought process and my motivation behind it. Unfortunately, youtube won't let me upload it again but if there are any takers, feel free to do it. 

This is a compilation of 30 anarchopunk bands from Britain with songs recorded between 1982 and 1992. 

The selection reflects a specific angle as I only picked songs that were not your usual snotty and punky numbers but rather, were informed by postpunk or goth. 

I am aware that both terms have been misused and overused in recent years and this is a modest attempt to show that anarchopunk was not a "genre" but an approach to music and shared values. On this compilation, the moody, dark, melancholy side of the anarcho spectrum is partially and hopefully aptly represented.

I tried not to pick bands, songs and recordings that are too obvious and focused on bands who, for some unfathomable reason, have not benefited from the "dark punk trend" of the 2010's (not that this is any sign of accomplishment in itself, trends come and trends go). 

I am not aiming for exhaustivity but intended to present a relevant, significant set of songs (some of them pretty obscure) as a meaningful testimony of the "postpunk" influence on the British anarchopunk wave.

I did my best to use my own rips whenever it was possible and to equalize the sound levels so it has a "mixtape feel". I hope I succeeded and hope you enjoy it!

Cheers

1. Lack of Knowledge "We're looking for people" from the Grey Ep, 1983 (London)

2. Anarka And Poppy "P.O.P.P.I.E.S." from the All that is shattered demo tape, 1983 (Preston)

3. Famous Imposters "The cage" from the Cradle to the grave demo tape, 1983 (Newcastle) 

4. I'm Dead "Page after page" from the Page after page/Necrolatry split flexi with Epidemic, 1984 (Kent) 

5. Shrapnel "Autumn" from the Acts of desperation split Ep with Toxik Ephex, 1989 (Briton Ferry, Wales) 

6.Awake Mankind "Disappearing world" from the Freak demo tape, 1984 (Portsmouth) 

7. Systematic Annex "All the lonely faces" from the Acceptance demo tape, 1985 (Sheffield)

8. This Bitter Lesson "In the eyes of a child" from the Value of defiance demo tape, 1982 (London)

9. Civilised Society? "Tonight" from the Who would have thought? demo tape, 1985 (Batley)

10. Polemic "End song" from the S/t demo tape, 1982 (Fareham) 

11. Smartpils "Life cycle" from the Open mind surgery compilation Lp, 1985 (Bath)

12. Know The Drill "The offending article" from the Who? What? Why? When? Where? compilation Lp, 1984 (Manchester)

13. Nox Mortis "In memoriam" from the Spleurk compilation Lp, 1988 (Southampton) 

14. Null And Void "An old way" from the Four minute warning! demo, 1982 (Yeovil)

15. Hysteria "Tears of wax" from the Behind the veil 12'', 1984 (Plymouth)

16. Cyanide Scenario "Awayday to Auschwitz" from the unreleased split 12'', 1985 (Surrey)

17. Hysteria Ward "Vietnam" from the Breakfast to madness demo tape, 1986, (London)

18. Naked "War machine" from the S/t demo, 1984 (Sheerness)

19. Karma Sutra "Intelligent life" from the Daydreams of a production-line worker Lp, 1987 (Luton) 

20. Rubella Ballet "Slant & slide" from the 42°F 12'' Ep, 1984 (London)

21. Indian Dream "Discarded" from the Walk across America for Mother Earth compilation Ep, 1992 (Scarborough)

22. Paranoia "Dead man's dream" from the Shattered glass Lp, 1984 (Stoke-on-Trent)

23. Lost Cherrees "Who believes it?" from the Unwanted children 12'' Ep, 1985 (Sutton)

24. The Deformed "Psalms" from the Blind faith Ep, 1985 (Lowton)

25. The Dead "Prince of darkness" from the Rest in peace demo tape, 1984 (Whitehaven) 

26. Kulturkampf "3rd world holocaust" from The corpse of bureaucracy demo tape, 1983 (Barnsley)

27. Political Asylum "Trust in me" from the Fresh hate demo tape, 1983 (Stirling, Scotland)

28. Cold Vietnam "Winds of change" from the Blast into action with hunt the man demo tape, 1988 (Redditch)

29. We Are Going To Eat You "Life of lies" from the Four heads feast demo tape, 1986 (London)

30. Vex "Pressure" from the S/t demo tape, 1983 (London) 

All the Lonely Faces

Last Week's Trend is Now Passé (part 5): Shrapnel / Symbol of Freedom "S/t" split Ep, 1986

In the year of grace 2006, renowned punk archaeologist Ian Glasper introduced the chapter devoted to Shrapnel with the following philosophical statement:

Many great bands have slipped silently beneath the radar of the average punk rock fan, never gaining the kudos they rightly deserve; in the wrong place at the wrong time, they just never got the breaks afforded far lesser bands and remain criminally overlooked by all but a few die-hards. If a book like this can change anything at all for the better, bands like SHRAPNEL will be finally acknowledged as the fine song-writers they truly were and hordes of new adoring fans will run up and down the streets screaming "Missile" at bewildered passers-by...!

Never has a man been more in the right and, if I am being honest, this moral epistemological stance has been fueling Terminal Sound Nuisance's indomitable fire since the beginning. Unfortunately, and contrary to what postmodern ideologues would have you believe, language is not that performative and biblical opus The Day the Country Died did not result in any massive resurgence of professions of love for Shrapnel. I suppose it should no longer come as a surprise, but it still amazes me that the average punk-rock fan has not had his or her radar sorted by now. At a time when even short-lived second-rate 80's punk bands get retrospectively hailed as underestimated classics, their fictional legacy a uchronia to be printed on cool shirts for cool punks, Shrapnel are still left without a decent discography or even a meretricious vinyl bootleg to their name and that, comrades, is just bloody unfair.

In 2020, it is ingloriously easy to claim that the name "Shrapnel" is, possibly, a little too unremarkable and generic for a punk band. You would not be totally wrong to think so since many other bands have gone for this moniker, from a late 70's US super catchy punk band who dressed up as GI's, to a technical Polish black metal band from the early 00's, to dreadful Australian "blackened thrash" or a Quality Control SxE hardcore band from Leeds who should have been aware of the Welsh Shrapnel of old and if they were, they just shrugged it off. I was lucky enough to be familiar with Shrapnel before reading Glasper's wisdom since a mate of mine had got a copy of the split with Symbol of Freedom in the early 00's after an old French distro and label - New Wave Records - got rid of some old stock. I wish I could tell you that, upon listening to it, I instantly got hooked and spent the following days tormenting anyone who would listen, or who were too polite to tell me to fuck off, about the greatness of Shrapnel. However, I just thought that it was alright but that the two sides sounded a bit similar, still taped it for posterity and forgot about it until I played the tape again a couple of years later, this time armed with some basic knowledge about UK anarchopunk and thinking that it was pretty good indeed.

Shrapnel formed in 1981 and split up in 1988, which was not a bad run at all for what was originally just a snotty punk band from a small Welsh town, and their sound consequently evolved a lot throughout the 80's. Because of Britain's centralisation, punk bands from Wales, although very active and relevant locally, did not enjoy the same exposure and opportunities as London-based acts for instance (touring constantly with Conflict, Icons of Filth were an exception) and this discrepancy could account for Shrapnel's relative obscurity even if they played in London several times. There is no real point in dwelling too long on Shrapnel's infancy but let's have a quick word about the band two demos that preceded their first split Ep. Recorded in early 1983, They Control our Destiny, was a typical example of spiky and angry protest punk music that did not only rely on raucous chorus over a basic and pogoable riotous beat (though it contains its fair share of them) but also used clever bass lines and dared tread into more tuneful territories. Their second demo Restricted Existance, recorded in september, 1984, was an incredible step forward in terms of songwriting flair and had it been done in a better studio with more time (it was after all a humble four-track endeavour), it would have made for a wicked Ep bound to join the exclusive anarcho canon. Instead it was released on tape by Bluurg Records (Shrapnel and Subhumans played together several times) although the song "Unjustified actions" got included on Mortarhate's We won't be your fucking Poor Lp. Restricted Existance is nonetheless one of my favourite demos of the era as it really showcased that vintage Bluurg punk sound, catchy but snotty, with memorable tunes but also youthful spiky energy, high-energy tempo changes, smart bass and guitar hooks and distinct vocals, half sung and half shouted.

If 80's anarchopunk mixtapes were any indicators of bands popularity and relevance, then Shrapnel certainly did matter since, like Political Asylum or Instigators, they appeared on numerous homemade tapes, probably because they toured a lot and played in many places but also because their demo recordings were strong. The band's crowning moment would come two years after the last demo, in 1986, when Shrapnel contributed two magnificent anarchopunk anthems to this split Ep with another Welsh anarcho outfit Symbol of Freedom. By that time, the band had perfected their brand of fiery tuneful anarchopunk, classically and yet outstandingly performed. Thanks to a better production highlighting the details in the guitar work (that opening riff!), the many bass hooks and the drum variations, "Fact or fiction" and "They are wrong" are close to anarchopunk perfection. The song structures are smart and narrative, with some of the crispiest mid-paced punk of the time, and the climaxes sound brilliant, just capturing, and meaningfully serve the Cold War-inspired lyrics. The songs feel direct, honest and memorable, creative and quintessential. And so bloody catchy. In fact, challenges not to sing along to "Patriotic bullshit, political lies" after hearing "Fact or fiction" are a safe way to earn a bit of money on the side if you are skint. That Shrapnel do not enjoy a cult status in our internet age is perplexing (but then, many things are nowadays) and these two songs - at least - should be consensually regarded as top-shelf anarcho anthems, up there with those of early Subhumans, The System, Instigators or Pagans (whose two listenable songs were insanely great). After this split, Shrapnel recruited a second guitar player, who previously played in Capital Gain, and Steve from Symbol of Freedom on the bass, and they changed direction, becoming more intricate, with more of a progressive punk influence, but still bloody brilliant if you ask me (just listen to their 1988 split Ep with Toxik Ephex or to their live tapes here).

Which takes me to Symbol of Freedom, another small-town Welsh punk bands from Pontypridd, with a, admittedly naive but still terrific name. Funnily enough (brace yourself for some trivia), Briton Ferry's Shrapnel first came across SoF through a 1985 tape compilation entitled There's more than Male Voice Choirs in Wales that had both Shrapnel and SoF. First, let me tell you that, apart from SoF, it included many excellent and rather diverse Welsh punk bands, from the ferocious Soldier Dolls and Classified Protest, the immense No Choice, to the postpunk-oriented Earth's Epitaph and Slaughter Tradition, and I will allow myself to state that, with my proverbial absence of objectivity, it can be an enlightening, educative listen. Being French, I was clueless as to why the average Joe would think that Welsh cultural life revolved exclusively around male voice choirs (I knew that Wales was officially the last country allowed to breed dragons though). And then, I saw some videos. I'll take that tape over any male, female or non-gendered voice choirs any day.

I have already written about SoF since they contributed a song to the classic You are not Alone 1986 compilation Ep, representing Wales on the record (here). By that time, SoF had recruited the former Shrapnel bass player on drums and original drummer Steve had switched to vocals. There is an earlier demo recording of the band released on Faeces Records (run, I believe, by Shrapnel's roadie), taken at the local YMCA in 1985 with Scottie behind the microphone. It is a rough collection of direct, angry and snotty anarchopunk that should please fans of Riot/Clone and Uproar. For the split with Shrapnel, the band had the great idea to hire a female singer to share the vocal duties with Steve, a wise choice which conferred another dimension to otherwise decent but rather generic fast punk numbers. The two songs on SoF's side, "Against our wall" and "Another day", are a massive improvements and make one ponder over what could have been, had the band kept going with this lineup instead of breaking up shortly after the release of the split. The fantastic chemistry between the two singers sounds very spontaneous and dynamic and emphasizes the raging aspect of the songwriting. The sound is quite raw but very organic and, given the band's rather basic sonic recipe, effective enough to convey significantly the heartfelt outrage. What an angry bunch. Stylistically, early Conflict really comes to mind and I would also send invitations to Toxic Waste and Disorder for good measure. Compelling stuff if you are into raw, fast and venomous UK punk music. The trade-off male/female vocal style is highly, albeit anachronistically, reminiscent of 90's US anarchopunk as well and I would be curious to know if bands like Mankind? or Antiproduct were at all aware of SoF.

The artwork of the split is beautiful done (I particularly love the caricature on Shrapnel's insert) and does not exactly correspond to your ordinary anarcho aesthetics while being evocative and dark enough. If Shrapnel dealt with media propaganda and Cold War paranoia, SoF's lyrics were of a more confrontational radical anarchist nature and as you can see they had a lot to say and to be angry about as working-class Welsh punks. The split was released on Hand in Hand Records, a label run by SoF Steve. If you are interested in Shrapnel and SoF, or more generally in Welsh 80's punk, then Bullsheep Detector is an ideal entry into that scene. Released in 2012 on Antisociety Records, this compilation was made up of an Lp with 20 songs from 20 bands that came in a foldout anarcho poster and a dvd that contained full demos lesser-known Welsh punk bands like Pseudo Sadists, Reality Attack, Condemned Skull Attack or Armistice. Amazing shit.

Shrapnel of freedom

Who Needs Wacky Titles Anyways!?! (part 3): No Choice "Sadist dream" Ep, 1983

Last time, I tackled a sadly overlooked record released on Riot City Records in 1982. Today's post will be something else entirely since we will be dealing with a sadly overlooked record released on Riot City Records in 1983. You see, that is exactly where the strength of Terminal Sound Nuisance lies: variety and constant reinvention. 

Undead's Violent Visions was Bristol label's Riot 15 while No Choice's Sadist Dream was Riot 20 and if not much time had passed between both releases, the years 1982 and 1983 were so prolific for Riot City (and many other punk labels at the time) that it is no wonder that records that did not sound exactly like the fashion of the day could have gone relatively unnoticed. As we have seen, Undead were both typical and yet quite original with their darker, gloomier take on the UK82 blueprint, No Choice however were unlike anything Riot City had released at that point and it stands as a bit of an anomaly - albeit a brilliant one - in the label's full catalogue, much more so than the label's subsequent Ep, Emergency's very Buzzcocks-influenced Points of View. No Choice, in terms of sound and lyrics, were basically an anarchopunk band (Ian Glasper was right to include them in The Day the Country Died), and you could definitely picture Sadist Dream being released on Bluurg or Spiderleg at the time. But punk-rock is full of little surprises and things are not always as clear-cut as we imagined them to be, especially from a point of view distorted by 35 years of storytelling and mythification regarding the collective fantasy that the 1980's have turned into.

But back to No Choice, a band unlucky enough to hail from Wales. Now, I have nothing against Welsh punk-rock, on the contrary, but you have to admit that many amazing 80's punk bands from Wales unfairly remain largely ignored, like Shrapnel, Soldier Dolls, Symbol of Freedom or indeed No Choice themselves. Therefore I cannot recommend Antisociety's grand 2012 compilation Bullsheep Detector (Wales is supposed to have a lot of sheep and the Google search "Wales sheep to human ratio" is apparently widespread) which offers a great and thoroughly enjoyable overview of early 80's Welsh punk music including a classic No Choice number. The band formed in Cardiff in 1982 and settled for the "No Choice" moniker in order to reflect the pervasive feeling of powerlessness inherent in the working-class life of teenagers during Thatcher's rule and the need to do something about it. I have never been a fan of band names starting with a "No" because they always remind of jumpy U$ hardcore from the 90's for some reason. To be fair, No Choice could not be further from 80's hardcore though. 

Their first demo was recorded in 1982. It was a collection of 13 songs which, despite a very raw, trebly sound and some really sloppy bits (to play in time or in tune was not always a priority), showcased what No Choice really excelled at: crafting tuneful anthemic punk songs with a strong Beat vibe. I would be lying if I claimed that this first demo was flawless. However, songs like "Wotswar", "Hard life", "Sale on" or "YOP" are instant winners blending the poppy, melancholy side of anarchopunk with gritty singalong punk-rock. A bit like a lo-fi jam between Zounds, Omega Tribe, Demob, Menace and Passion Killers. Though by no means a ground-breaking recording, it sounds very promising and fresh and after a gig with Chaos UK in Cardiff (they also got to play with local anarcho heroes Icons of Filth, Conflict and Omega Tribe), Chaos took a copy of the demo to Simon from Riot City who then offered No Choice a deal for an Ep which Sadist Dream would materialize.  

Sadist Dream is certainly not your average Riot City Ep and the cover, a mushroom cloud with the shadows of a mother and her child in the foreground (the latter weirdly resembling the creature in the movie E.T.), was already a clue that No Choice's pacifist imagery and politics were closer to those of Crass than Vice Squad's. And indeed, I can imagine how baffled some of the listeners must have been when playing the A-side of the Ep: it is an almost five minute long pensive spoken word piece - done by the band's second singer Cid - about war with melancholy melodies in the background. If I am a sucker for such anarcho cheese and therefore gladly enjoy it, one has to admit that it had much to do with Flux of Pink Indians' praxis and had no antecedent in what Riot City would usually put out. The two songs on the B-side are fantastic slices of anthemic melodic political punk-rock. "Nuclear disaster" starts out deceptively with a slow eerie, Zounds-like introduction before exploding into an intense bass-driven punk number with a dark, hypnotic guitar tune and very passionate vocals about the - then - impending threat of nuclear annihilation (not unlike Kulturkampf I guess). The second song, "Cream of the crop", is a massive working-class (and proud) hymn with a crispy Beat vibe and a chorus of the catchiest order, a bit like a mix between Demob and the Upstarts or something. On the whole, the production is still quite raw, with an organic sound that confers warmth and authenticity to the songs and even though there are a couple of sloppy bits here and there, the energy and the ambition to play non-generic catchy punk-rock are remarkable. I love Sadist Dream and I apologize for the skips on the rip but I have played that fucker a lot. 

Following the Ep, the band split up (of course they would) but reformed shortly after with a new drummer. This lineup recorded the magnificent Question Time? demo in 1984, a six song effort that was, by far, their most powerful in terms of sound and saw No Choice at the peak of their songwriting ability as they blended seamlessly catchy melodic poppy tunes and anthemic working-class punk-rock with sensible political lyrics from the heart. If you like your anarchopunk with grit and tunes, it just doesn't get much better than this demo (that no one thought of reissuing it on vinyl yet is unexplainable although Grand Theft Audio released a cd that compiled the band's 80's recordings in 2001) and four songs from it got included on two Rot Records compilations (the Have a Rotten Christmas ones). 

This was not the end of the No Choice story however. Along with Tim from Icons of Filth, three members of No Choice formed SAND in the 90's before reforming No Choice in 2001 for good. The band didn't try to live on their past and wrote a new songs with a different sound, though they did not give up on tunefulness, quite close to UK melodic hardcore like Leatherface, HDQ or Snuff. Their 2003 album on Newest Industry Records, Dry River Fishing, is very good if you are into that sound. I got to see them in 2013 and they were energetic and only played songs from their 00's albums which was both a bit of a disappointment since I wanted to sing along to "Cream of the crop" and also a sign that they did not want to be just an old reformed band from the 80's. Truly punk this lot.    

Sadist Choice

           

Summer comps not summer camps (part 5): "Spleurk!" compilation Lp, 1988

There you go, here is the fifth installment of my unseasonal series about lovely compilations to listen to in the summertime. Some argue that I should have picked at least one record that includes jumpy, shorts-wearing Californians - usually wannabes - singing in nasal tones, but I just did not find it in my heart - and in my record collection - to do it. I suppose you can consider yourselves lucky for that discrepancy since I have never been into melodic hardcore from that side of the pond and writing about it would have been very challenging indeed (not to mention ripe with gratuitous negativity). So let's stick with the comfort zone of UK punk, although, it has to be pointed out, some bands on this one certainly looked up to American melody makers.

OMG! A barcode! :'o

I guess a compilation Lp called Spleurk conjures up images of nasty, distasteful, gore-oriented grindcore bands or numbingly deafening one-man noisecore bands, but you would be wrong. If the onomatopoeia is indeed used to convey the sense of something slimy and gross splashing on a surface (like a fat smoker's phlegm or a slice of your granny's sunday cake), the lineup of Spleurk has more than a few tunes in its bags and sounds decidedly more melodic than other late 80's UK compilations like Hiatus or Digging in Water (but about as much as Airstrip One if you need a point of comparison). But then, I suppose it makes sense since Spleurk was released on Meantime Records - the label founded by Ian Armstrong, who played in the tuneful Dan and then Sofahead - an entity that illustrated two coexisting sonic faces of the UK punk scene of the mid/late 80's. If Meantime did put out some illustrious gruff crust works by the likes of Sore Throat, Hellbastard or Mortal Terror, it also promoted the more melodic, US-influenced part of the scene with records from HDQ, Exit Condition or Leatherface, which certainly showed that there was more variety to the punk scene then than what is officially thought. As a result, the Lp sounds very diverse and, if it would be far-fetched to claim that it is packed with unforgettable punk anthems (the epic claim is often found on the cover of corny streetpunk/oi compilations and it is pretty much never true, I mean, who really needs live versions of Anti Nowhere League or Anti Pasti?), there are still some genuinely brilliant songs that will surely make your punk day. Besides, the Lp includes a thick booklet with artworks and lyrics from - almost - all the bands and that, faithful readers, is what a top notch comp is all about.

The first band of the Lp is Exit Condition, who hailed from one of punk's most sacred places: Stoke-On-Trent. Now, I am sure that the band is revered in some dark, badly ventilated corners of the punk scene but I am not that familiar with their discography (especially their 90's period). What I do know however is that their late 1988 Ep, Bite Down Hard, was not only a prime example of energetic and fast melodic hardcore but also ticked three incredible boxes for the time: it was released on Pusmort, produced by Bones and had a cover drawn by Squeal. If that does not qualify the Ep as a classic, I don't know what would. The song "Twisted tracks" is taken from EC's first demo tape, Impact Time, recorded in early 88', which was rawer and snottier than the Ep (works for me) but already contained the formula the band were great at, fast hardcore with great tunes, reminiscent of Hüsker Dü, Minor Threat and The Stupids. This is a perfect opener from a solid band that, I'm guessing, must be held in very high esteem by some segment of the punk population.

Next are Gold, Frankincense + Disk- Drive but first, that we will refer to as GFDD from now on for the sake of decency. I don't really know them that well but they had a song on an early Peaceville sampler and their first '87 Lp was also released on the label. I think they were from the Leeds area since Mavis and Harry from Chumbawamba (and Passion Killers for the former!) collaborated with the band on the aforementioned album. Musically I suppose you could say GFDD (who were really a dynamic duo) played progressive punk. Or something. Their songs had a lot of variations and variety and included drum machines, samples, weird sound effects. Interesting, creative stuff for sure but it's not really my cuppa. "Necessary extremes" sounds like a trancey, darkened, demented bend of GBH, NoMeansNo and industrial punk (?).

Cowboy Killers then follow with the song "Your dreaming" (a spelling mistake since it should have been "You're dreaming" as is indicated on the CK's first Lp, Koyaanisqatsi, for which the band re-recorded the song). This number is a sarcastic critique of anarchopunk's idealism and naivety (more often than not, their lyrics were often humorous and tongue-in-cheek) and Terminus even wrote the very serious song "We're dreaming?" in response to it. Anyway, CK were a fast, energetic and tuneful US-styled hardcore punk band (not unlike Bad Brains maybe) from Wales with great singalong chorus and a Biafra-esque singer who was famous for his stage antics. This early song was recorded in 1988 but the band kept going until 1999 which is quite an achievement. 

Sore Throat are next with a...let's call it a noise contribution. Technically, the band has four ""songs"" on Spleurk but three of them are just two second long bursts of savagery while the fourth one is a crunchy Frost-like cavemen stomp with a filthy metal riff and over-the-top gruff crustier than crust vocals. Yes, I love it. Misaaaarrrrrrggghhhhhhey! I'm sure you already know about Sore Throat so need to dwell upon them. Let's just say that your dad won't probably like them too much.

After this much-needed break of neanderthalic music, let's get back to some cracking tunes with the mighty Cold Vietnam from Redditch. Actually, I have already talked about them in the past for the 8 Years Too Late article about melodic UK anarchopunk circa 88/92. This is what I had to say about them. And yes I am literally quoting myself:

"This was an obscure band from the same area as Joyce McKinney Experience that only released one demo and appeared on a handful of compilations between 1988 and 1989: Cold Vietnam. Based in Redditch, the guitarist and singer, Andy Forward, had also played on Visions of Change's final LP, My Mind's Eye in 1989. Cold Vietnam formed in 1986 after the demise of several other local bands. They were apparently not too active for the first year but, in 1988, they managed to record a demo, Blast Into Action with Hunt the Man, that should have taken them to much greater things. Despite a cover reminiscent of the cheapest crossover music, the demo tape is an incredible effort. Carried by the singer's powerful and tuneful voice, "Blast Into Action" is a unique collection of political punk hits (with a strong emphasis on animal rights) and displays a wide variety of genres, from moody anthemic post punk, to passionate melodic US hardcore, to mid-tempo anarcho punk, to melodic UK punk rock and even a punky reggae number. Perfectly produced, this demo is one of the most underrated recordings of this era. Two songs were lifted from it and landed on the brilliant "Spleurk" compilation LP in 1988. Released on Meantime Records, it saw Cold Vietnam rub shoulders with bands like Sofa Head, HDQ and Cowboy Killers. It was not however Cold Vietnam's first vinyl appearance. Indeed, earlier in 1988, their song "Rock Stars" was included on a compilation LP entitled "Vinyl Virgins" that was aimed at providing a first vinyl appearance to promising rock bands! It was released on Mighty Sheffield Records and Cold Vietnam even contributed another song on the label's second compilation LP, Lemonade and Cyanide."  

CV have two songs on Spleurk, one on each side, "9-25" and "Hunt the man", both taken from their exquisite Blast into Action demo tape. "9-25" is an intense yet melodic hardcore number with catchy chorus reminiscent of this distinctly British, very tuneful take on hardcore that was rampant in the late 80's. "Hunt the man" is a hard-hitting, rocking mid-paced anarchopunk hit about animal rights. If Omega Tribe had been into heavy rock, it would have produced something close to this gem. A cracking, versatile band that had tremendous potential. 

The Fine Arts of hardcore

Trench Fever from Brixton, London, are up next and I must admit I have never really paid much attention to the band (though I really dig the name). Trapped in a Scene tells us that TF was made up of former Bad Dress Sense and Destructors (yes, Destructors!) members so you can already guess that they - also - played fast and tuneful UK hardcore influenced by Bad Brains and the likes, not unlike what Cowboy Killers or Depraved were also doing. Not bad but maybe a bit thin. I like the backing chorus and the cheesy drawing of the punk lad though.

People who are fortunate enough to know me will all tell you the same thing: I am a huge sucker for Dan. Of course, the name is terrible and the band's aesthetics rather peculiar but Dan bridged the gap between classic UK anarchopunk and melodic hardcore with maestria, one cracking tune after another. I don't like Sofa Head quite as much, probably because the vintage anarcho influence was more in the background, but I see them as the logical, diachronic continuation of Dan. Hailing from Darlington, SH had Meantime boss Ian on the bass and Wal on the guitar (both previously in Dan), Claire on vocals and Laing (from Hex, HDQ and Leatherface) on the drums. However, the SH songs included on Spleurk were not recorded with Laing but with former Dan's drummer Jim, so you've basically got Dan with new compositions and a new vocalist. The two tracks, "Ugly" and "World", are raw but potent melodic hardcore punk anthems with top notch guitar leads and bass lines, reminiscent of other Northern bands previously mentioned but with anarcho-tinged female vocals, not unlike Indian Dream or... Dan. Really classy stuff though you can tell that the band was still in its embryonic stages. I particularly like the moodiness of "World" (the full correct title is "A world fir for nothing") which would be re-recorded for the first album. Ace! 

Next are Chopper, who also have two songs on the Lp, "Mr Shitface" and "Workout!". Now I know nothing about Chopper but from what I can hear, they were a humorous, fast, snotty hardcore band. The playing is a bit sloppy and the songwriting fairly generic but the energy is there and the lyrics to "Workout!" are pretty funny indeed. Works well enough on this compilation for me. 

The aptly-named Why? follow with the very good song "It could be better". The band was from Brighton and had a demo tape with the ineptly-named Immolato Tomatoes (Why?'s drummer would join Sleep afterwards). Why? were, judging from their aesthetics and lyrics, an anarchopunk band but they were certainly influenced by the tunefulness and speed of US hardcore like many other bands at the time included on Spleurk. I guess they retain a punkier side which reminds me quite a bit of an '87 Revulsion jamming with an '87 Hex in HDQ's shed. I really like it! The riffs are very melodic and the singing almost too happy-sounding at times but there is an undeniable drive and sense of tunes here that I find most pleasing. I wish I knew more songs from them. How catchy can punk get?

And now let's have some half-demented, weirdo, surrealistic punk-rock in the guise of Shrug, a long-running theatrical band from Middlesbrough. They are somehow difficult to describe and I suppose that's the whole point of Shrug anyway. I can hear bits of All the Madmen type anarchopunk like The Astronauts or Blyth Power, some dirty psychedelic rock (especially with the garage beats and the organ) and an absurdist sense of humour like a more adult Wat Tyler. It is actually really good once you get into it and the song "Donna and the Daleks" (about Doctor Who obviously) will make you move your hips in a disorderly situationist fashion. If Beckett or Barthelme had been into punk, they would have listened to Shrug I'm sure. An entertaining and interesting bunch.

Next are Doom. Yes, Doom. Need I say more? Actually, yes, I kinda do. This version of "Agree to differ" was recorded in May, 1988, a few months after the War Crimes sessions and was part of an unreleased demo - their third one - entitled Domesday that you can listen to in its entirety on the retrospective Doomed from the Start (I recommend the cd version, for once, because it has a fourth demo as well). Ironically, "Agree to differ" was one of the only slow songs from Doom's repertoire, not to mention the longest. It was Doom at its rawest and most juvenile and I just love the dark tones and the threatening simplicity of this number. Unselfconscious crust. Lovely.

Following up, City Indians, from Derby, contributed one of Spleurk's most memorable moments with their song "Hanging by a thread". In spite of their well-meaning but rather awkward and cheesy name (but then, Flux of Pink Indians had opened that gate earlier), CI were a solid anarchopunk band around in the mid-80's whose drummer Andy would join the mighty Concrete Sox in 1986. Their first demo Spoilsport was enjoyable but pretty generic however, 1987 Root of Freedom was a much more accomplished, versatile anarcho work that was both hard-hitting and moody, somewhere between Conflict and Ad'Nauseam for their fast and angry side and The Mob or Omega Tribe for the mellower, more introspective, darker vibe permeating the songwriting. Very classy stuff and "Hanging by a thread", having been recorded just a few months after Root of Freedom, displays the same attributes. The song starts as a heavy, angry mid-paced number, not unlike Icons of Filth or Stone the Crowz, before going into a soft, poppy, almost hippyish moment with delicate harmonics and tuneful vocals (Omega Tribe really springs to mind), then the punky mid-tempo resumes before ending with rocking dissonant guitar solos. Quite a ride. The riffs are great, the vocals are pissed, low-pitched and adequately expressive and the conception of the song itself shows that CI certainly had original ideas about songwriting. Unfortunately I cannot say that their 1988 Ep lived up to what they displayed earlier. Still, someone should reissue the recordings from 1986 and 1987. For my birthday for example. Just saying.   

Anarcho Fine Arts 101

By comparison, Upset Tummy sound quite basic but no less enjoyable if you are into parodical anarchopunk spoken words. The song is called "State oppression" and it pretty much ticks all the boxes which makes me think that it is some kind of joke band (assuming it is an actual band). The address is from Gipsy Hill, London, where some well-known farcical jokers lived (and still do to my knowledge) so my best guess is that Sean Wat Tyler had some fun in the studio with a mate and send these 30 seconds of self-righteous anarcho outrage to Meantime. But I could be wrong.

Nox Mortis were of course much more serious - not to mention gloomier - and, like Cold Vietnam, I have already touched upon the band in that quixotic article about late 80's anarchopunk (here). If anything, our current decade can be defined as a very nostalgic one, to the point of goofiness at times. Not only are 80's punk-rock bands being reissued at a crazy pace, but even new bands tend to do little more than worship and refer to 80's punk-rock bands, often branded with the essentialist seal of "authenticity". And to be honest, it's not just punk-rock, it's pretty much a global postmodern urban thing. But anyway, I am dying to see the day when there will be a NM reissue. In fact, along with Awake Mankind, The Assassins and Polemic, NM is THE 80's anarchopunk band I would love to see reissued (and my opinion is gold so if you want to be seen as one of the cool kids, you should at least pretend to agree with the statement).

NM were from Southampton and formed in 1986 from the ashes of another local anarcho band called Suicide Pact (I unfortunately know only one song from SP but, based on that one number, they played moody female-fronted anarchopunk, just how I like it). Musically, the band was absolutely brilliant, tuneful and dark, passionate and desperate, angry and sad, reminiscent of Omega Tribe Kulturkampf, Naked or The Mob (or even Demob actually), with great emotional, bittersweet vocals, moody guitar leads and the catchiest of tunes. However, NM were not your typical punks: they were into poetry. To be more specific, into WW1 poets. Some of their songs ("Arms and the boys", "Flanders Field" and of course "In memoriam") were adaptations of poems from WW1 poets Ewart Alan Mackintosh, Wilfred Owen and John McCrae and the very name Nox Mortis referred to Paul Bewsher. Pretty grim and moving at the same time, I admit, but then it was a clever and original way to express your opposition to war and it certainly conveys an appropriate sense of hopelessness and loss. War-poem-turned-anarchopunk "In memoriam" is maybe the band's best songs, intense and profound, with that typical anarcho sensibility. It was recorded in 1987 during the same session as the Shall we Dance? split Lp. Top drawer, definitely.

Next are HDQ, a fairly well-known and respected band from Sunderland that included three members of Hex (and of course, Leatherface). I am not sure when "Bridges & walls" was recorded (1987? 1988?) but I guess it was with the same lineup as the You Suck! Lp that was also released on Meantime. So basically it was the melodic hardcore HDQ, a prime example of the British version of US melodic hardcore bands like 7 Second or Hüsker Dü. I like that song and I can definitely hear the similarities between this HDQ and late Hex. It's a winner, full of energy, passion and tunes (of course). 

The last band of Spleurk is Inside Out, the only non-British one on the Lp since they were an all-female trio from Detroit. I am not really familiar with them but I guess they fit well in this context. I suppose you could describe them as a proto-riot grrrl band, with that typical grungy rock sound and garage tones. I've never been much of a sucker for that specific early 90's American sound, precisely because it sounds too American for my ears, but this Inside Out's song does it for me. Quite poppy and punky at the same time, like cross between Androids of MU, Joyce McKinney Experience and US bands like The Gits. Fun and liberating.

To wrap it up, I have got some good news for you: you'll be able to find Spleurk for pretty cheap. I am not sure why, since it is a solid compilation from a significant label with some very strong songs and an ace-looking booklet, but there you go. If I were a cynical bastard I would venture that the reason is that the hipster fringe of the punk scene does not care for that sound (yet?) and prices haven't been inflated (yet?). A second volume of Spleurk was released in 1990 but I don't think it is quite as good, or maybe it's just not punky enough for me. Yet?     

Spleurk!