This band was from the Bay Area and was originally called Apocalyptic Judgement (I liked that name better, so brutal). The band featured a buddy and ex band mate of mine named Zoran Theodorovic. Zoran Played guitar with me in the Romper Room Rejects, and then did this band (singing) after we broke up. Turmoil also featured Ken Sovari who was the second Autopsy bass player. Ken played on the 1988 "critical mass" demo. Turmoil existed from between 1988-91 and played loads of local metal shows. Zoran is still active today in underground/extreme music. Dudes been a bay area staple since 1985. Enjoy!
Erik
Meade is a musician who has been a SF staple for decades.
We met as neighbors in the Hayes District
of San Fransisco in the mid 80's. Back then if you looked different, or
wore a certain band t shirt you'd likely make conversation with others
that
also looked the part. Erik sort of became my
mentor turning me onto some cool obscure punk/hardcore, and introduced
me to
other like minded folks in the Bay area. I moved back East in 1989 so
we lost touch for over twenty years. I randomly ran into Erik
while he was working at a record store about 8 years ago. It was crazy, and was weirdly emotional for
me. I felt like I needed to tell him that he had influenced my entire
life in a positive way through his influencing me musically. I ended up sending him everything I played on, and records I'd released over the years. At any rate Erik has a
long history of playing in tons of bands. One of those bands was the
Florida death metal band Death. Death along with Possessed pretty much
invented the death metal genre. I thought it would be cool to pick
Erik's brain about his short time in the band. In my opinion he played on the best demo by this Legendary metal act.
Nate -You were one of the most open minded people I'd met in
the 1980's San Francisco scene. You and your ex girlfriend Janis turned
me onto a lot of different music and art back then. It was the
punk/hardcore stuff that resonated with me. I still to this day have a
tape you made me in 1985 with a bunch of East coast hardcore bands on it (76%
Uncertain, Bad Brains, SSD, Sacred Denial, Beastie Boys ep, etc).
You
played bass in Death in 1985... I am trying to figure out the timeline
because we were next door neighbors from late '85-1987. You were taking
me to early meetings at Gilman Street as it was just being constructed,
you introduced me to Tim Yo (who disliked me because I was metal dude), and
you had me singing in a band you were doing with Short Dogs Grow, and
Rhythm Pigs folks. Was this all taking place during the days you were in
Death, or after it? How the hell did I miss this?
Erik -I would think it was during the period I was in Death,
although it seems strange that I wouldn’t have mentioned it. It was
probably just after I left, and I might not have mentioned it because,
at the time, it didn’t seem important. LOL.
I'm sure I knew, but probably acted unimpressed because I was one of those metal dudes who was transforming into
a hardcore kid, and I was rebelling against my metal roots. I'm WAY more
impressed now...Haha. Did your days playing in Death end your playing in
metal bands all together?
Erik - Yeah, I just played in punk and rock bands after that, as a guitarist, not a bass player. How did you end up meeting Chuck and joining Death? What made him relocate from Florida to the Bay Area in '85?
Erik -Eric Brecht was playing metal with some guys in Oakland,
and somehow, I had joined the group, I think as the singer. That project
quickly fell apart, but a few weeks later Eric got a call from Chuck,
who sent him some demo tapes. Eric was really excited about it, so when
Chuck asked him if he knew any bass players, Eric asked me if I played
bass. I didn’t really play bass much. I was a guitar player, but I said
yes, and ran out and bought a bass. I then created a really ridiculous
bass rig by putting my Roland guitar amp thru a 400 watt Sunn Power amp
into a 4/12 guitar cabinet. It was an odd combo, but it worked. Chuck
flew out a few weeks later and started staying at Eric’s place, and then
with a girl named Amber who hung out in the scene. She drove him around
everywhere while he was out here because he didn’t have car. I assume he
moved here because the bay area had become the home of thrash metal. How long did your time in the band last? Why did it end? Did Chuck
continue with Death in the Bay Area after you guys were out, or did he
move back to Florida?
Erik -We were only in the band for about six months and a few
shows. then we had an argument with Chuck and he left. He just stormed out
of the rehearsal room and that was that. I think he went back to Florida
for a few months and then came back to SF, but I’m not 100% sure. Did Eric Brecht quit DRI to Join Death? I recall seeing DRI at the Rock On
Broadway once in 1985, and Eric approached his brother Kurt after the
gig and started telling him about how he was jamming with
Death. Kurt was totally supportive of everything Eric was telling him. It was a cool conversation that I dropped in on.
Erik - No, as I said, Eric had already left DRI when Chuck had
called him. As for Kurt, as soon as we started rehearsing we got a call
from Kurt, who was in Chicago touring with DRI. He said “You’ll never
believe what some kid just gave me, It’s a tape of you guys rehearsing
last week”. It turned out that Chuck had taped our rehearsals, and then
dubbed copies and sent them to particular die hard fans in various cities,
who then made copies for their friends. It was at that moment that I
realized just how powerful and important the tape trading circuit was
within the metal scene. That was why Chuck already had a fan base in SF
before he even had an album out. How old were you guys at the time?
Erik -I would have been 22, Chuck was 18 and I don't know how old Eric was, but probably 19 or 20. Did you help in any of the song writing at all, or did Chuck
move to the Bay Area with all the songs that you were going to play
already written?
Erik - We worked on creating some of the songs that were on the
first Death LP although over the years I’ve become a bit hazy about
which songs, but overall they were Chucks ideas. We may have had a hand
in some of the arrangements though. I bought the first LP when it came
out just to see whether he gave us any credits, and was kind of amused
to see that he’d gotten around the songwriting issue by simply not
having any songwriting credits at all. I assume that was because he
would also have the original members from Florida and Mantis to contend
with. He may have claimed ownership on later pressings. but I don’t
care. It was clearly his ideas. Did you play on any of the demos or rehearsals that have been released through out the years?
Erik
-Yes. I'm on the Back From the Dead demo which was the tape that Kurt Brecht
heard in Chicago. Scott Carlson gave
me a board recording of one of our Ruthie's Inn shows that is a much
higher quality recording then Back from the Dead (which was recorded on a
boom box). I've thought about trying to have an engineer clean up the
Ruthie's tape and boost up the guitar tones if possible.
How many live gigs did you play with Death? Where were they? Most in Bay Area I assume?
Erik - As far as I can remember we only played three or four gigs
total. All but one of them at Ruthie’s Inn in Berkley. The other one was at
the Farm in SF with Mordred and the Rhythm Pigs.
I think I recall that you guys used to practice at Turk Street Studios in SF?
Erik- I honestly don’t remember where we rehearsed initially. It
might have been Turk. But near the end we were rehearsing at a studio out by Potrero hill owned by Franco from MDC.
What was the reaction to the band by other local metal bands in the Bay Area
at the time? Did they accept Chucks move to the area? Did they welcome the band? I recall much competition
back then within the metal scene. Bands sort of competing to get
signed, play bigger shows etc. Was Death involved in this crap?
Erik -I wasn’t really that familiar with the East bay metal scene
since I was part of the punk scene in SF, and was only occasionally
crossing paths with metal bands. But the first time we played Ruthie’s I
was really surprised by how excited the kids there were to see us. You
see, I had never heard of Death before Eric Brecht asked me if I’d want
to play bass in the band. I thought they were just a band with a few home made
cassette tapes out, which in punk circles meant you were just locally
known. Death were from Florida so I figured nobody in the bay area
had heard of them/us. I didn’t realize that within the metal scene tape
trading homemade cassettes was a big deal, and true fans took it
seriously. So at our first show there were actually people with our band
logo painted on the back of their leather jackets who were all jacked
up to see us. I also remember that the opening act at our first show
was an Oakland band called Black Death who sounded an awful lot like us,
and were really excited to be on the bill. It was an nice surprise for
me. I think we either played with Sacrilege BC, or at least they were at
the shows because I became friends with those guys thru Death, and
later on when Dave Edwardson (of Sacrilege and Violent Coercion) started
Neurosis. He and Scott Kelly asked me to be part of it. I lasted about
two rehearsals before I guess they decided I wasn’t on the same page
with them musically, and stopped calling me about rehearsals. When I
finally called Scott he said “Oh, we decided we just want to be a three
piece”, so I said, "Ok, well then, I’m gonna come over and pick up my
amp”, to which Scott said “Oh, that’s another thing... we accidentally
blew up your amp the other night”. Only last year Scott commented to me
on Facebook, “By the way, I still haven’t forgotten that I owe you an
amp. But you will always be OG Neurosis”. I thought that was nice. but
back to your question. No, I didn’t see any backstabbing or catty
behavior ever, in fact one of the guitarists from Testament loaned
Chuck a Marshall Stack for one of our Ruthie’s shows, because at that
time all Chuck had was a Peavey Transistor amp.
What was it that Chuck and you guys were listening to at the time that
helped influence the extreme sound Death was later known for? This
boggles my mind…
Erik- I have no idea what Chuck was listening to that made him come up
with his sound. Me and Eric were both into mostly punk, so honestly Chucks
music didn’t seem that radically new to me since I’d been listening to
really harsh fast music for quite some time, and well Eric Brecht was
the kid who invented ‘blast beats when he was in DRI. In fact, that was
probably why Chuck called him in the first place. So I suppose it’s safe
to say that Chuck had heard DRI. A few of the albums that come to mind
were the first Die Kreuzen records, Dehumanization by Crucifix, and
Animosity by Corrosion of Conformity, which had just come out around the
time I joined Death. That one was particularly relevant as me and Janis
Tanaka were hanging out with COC when they toured thru SF that year
because they were staying with our friend Ruth Schwartz for the couple
days they were in town.
Chuck, Erik, & Eric Brecht at Ruthies '85
Did you or those other guys realize at the time that you were basically
involved with something that was much different then other metal that was happening at the time?
Erik- Not me, No. In fact, to be quite honest I didn’t get it,
and really didn’t like it. I thought I was gonna be joining a band more
like Exodus or Slayer, and I thought that Chucks, or to be more precise
Eric’s, beats were so fast that nobody could mosh or headbang to them. I
kept coming home and saying “I don’t like what we’re doing,
it’s too chaotic”. and Janis would say “No, it’s great. Keep doing it”.
Even after I left/quit/got kicked out of the band I didn’t get it. and
consequently, gave away or taped over all of my cassettes of our
rehearsals. I didn’t have any tapes of myself with Death for two
decades, until one day I ran into Scott Carlson of Repulsion, who had
been the original bass player for Death back in Florida. First off he
told me that tapes of our rehearsals and Ruthlie’s shows were still
being traded by Death fans, but more importantly he said that Chuck had
mailed him copies of the tapes back in 1985 and he still had them. So he
burned me a tape of all the recordings I was on. To be honest, I still
think it sounds like a couple of kids going crazy in a garage. But my
Girlfriend Sonja loves it. Her current favorite band is GoatWhore. On a
side note some time around 1998 I was walking past a club, and heard a
band inside that was playing blast beats with a cookie monster voiced
singer, and I thought, ‘Fuck, they sound exactly like what we were doing
18
years ago. who would have thought our sound would stick around so long. I
was also kind of astounded when I was in a bookstore and started
browsing thru the pages of that book Lords Of Chaos. I thought, ‘man,
this is some crazy shit. how did this start’. Then was kind of
shocked and surprised to find Death listed as one of the original
inspirations for those bands.
Do you think Chuck was setting out to try to invent a genre that later
turned into "Death Metal", or was it like many things in life that was
just a series of mistakes that happened? Bad recordings that were
looked at as raw because engineers had no idea how to deal with the
production...musicianship, etc? I can't get my head around what bands
like Death and Possessed were thinking, and how they did what they did
back then? Total innovators.
Erik- I think Chuck had it in his head that he was trying to
create something new that had never been done before. At least he always
talked that way. I remember asking him how he had come up with the name
Death, and he said, “ I just wanted to have the heaviest band name ever, then it hit me...what’s heavier then death? The answer was,
nothing... nothings heavier then death. So that had to be the name”. I
thought that was kind of funny because it reminded me of that line from
Spinal Tap, ‘How much blacker can it be? The answer is, None. None
more black”. Did you ever play in a band with Eric again?
Erik -I never played with him again. He was asked to be in Hirax pretty soon after that and moved to LA I think.
Had you been in Touch with Chuck after your time in the band...before his passing?
Erik -No, the last time I saw him or talked to him was at our
last rehearsal at Franco’s place. We got into an argument about the
lyrical content, which I thought was juvenile even though he had said he
wanted to get more serious. Then he came in with another song about
ripping peoples guts out (Regurgitated Guts maybe?), so I complained,
and I guess Eric Brecht sided with me. Chuck said “I don’t need you guys. I’ll
find someone who really wants to play my songs”. He then dragged his amp
out onto the sidewalk and sat out there for the next hour waiting for
his ride to arrive. I think if we had just walked outside and apologized
we might have continued as a band, but we didn’t because of course at that time Death weren’t legendary, so we really didn’t care that
much. Which is fine because I already knew I wasn’t the right bass
player for his ideas. so it all worked out the way it was supposed to. Was chuck someone that was easy to talk to, or was he difficult to get along with? He seemed to be hard headed but also seemed to know exactly what he wanted. Was he a control freak?
Erik
-No, Chuck was a pretty easy going guy. A bit like Sean Penn's
character Spicoli in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, only not stoned.
Chuck seem a little bit more square then that. He knew what he wanted musically, but
compared to some of the egomaniacs I've dealt with over the years he
wasn't unpleasant at all. Like a stoner surfer attitude? He didn't really party?
Erik -I remember that he was really straight (no drugs) and kind of
innocent when he first arrived in SF, but near the end of our run he changed. Oh come on, there must be some crazy stories from those days? Something Death fans would find interesting? Drinking? Violence? Drugging? Hookers?
Erik -Lot's. but I don't think any of them involved Death. We
went to keg parties and the like but it never got out of hand with
regards to the three of us.
What are your fondest memories of those 1985 Death days?
Erik - Chuck playing with Kittens at Eric Brechts place which was
a storefront at Haight and Fillmore. I think its next door to that
crepe place that’s there now. Tell people about the music climate in the bay area at the time. I recall Janis was in bands (with Courtney Love), and you were always in multiple bands.
Erik -the San Francisco scene in the 1980s and mid 90s was a really
amazing thing. It seemed as though everybody was either in a band or a
bike messenger, or both. it was a pretty large scene of hundreds of
people who were all trying to do something creative. Back then the idea
of playing in a cover band or tribute band was unthinkable. if you were a
musician you wanted to create something new and hopefully unique. Not
like today where most musicians are fine playing in tribute bands, or,
if they do deign to play original songs they go out of there way to
sound like whatever everybody else is doing. Granted, the metal scene
has fought the longest against that mentality. but back then, the
concept of creating original, unique music was everywhere. Take hardcore
for instance. RKL, DRI, NOFX , Rhythm Pigs, Victims Family, COC, MDC,
Dwarves, may have all been super fast thrash bands, and usually friends,
but they all put their own spin on the form. Same with Bay Area Metal, Anvil
Chorus,Exodus, Death Angel, Possessed. Then throw in all the artsier
bands like Tuxedomoon, Flipper, Melvins,Neurosis, Trial, Treason, a State
Of Mind, Clown Alley, etc, etc, and you can kind of understand why I
didn't think what Death were doing was particularly weird or
groundbreaking. I mean it was but so were dozens and dozens of other
bands at that time, just ground breaking, original, and unique in
different ways.
1.I've got the disease
2.suck and fuck
3.with friends like you
4.G.I. sex
5.road kills
6.you're cracked
7.I wanna be on tv
8.everybody makes me happy
9.junky dare
10.Berkeley heathen scum
I've posted Fang's Landshark LP on here in the past. This one is the bands 2nd LP, and almost as good, coming out a year after Landshark in 1983. The Band formed in around 1980, and put out a 7" that predates the LPs. I wish I had that one.
I sold this LP years ago, When I became disgusted with SammyTown's past(his conviction for the murder of his girlfriend in 1989). I Recently bought it again from a store in Oregon. Sammy was a Junkie going back years and years in S.F./Berkely area. Looking back I really am glad I got to see these guys in the mid 80's with my Buddy Zoran Theodorovic. We loved getting wasted, skating, and watching Fang play badly at random clubs in the bay area. It really is amazing to listen to both the bands first records, and to hear the major impact and influence it had on Kurt Cobain. The guitar playing is brilliant on the records. Weird and pretty experimental for the time period.
Living in the Bay area in the 80's was insane. Both the metal and punk scenes were infested with meth. It was almost impossible to not be involved in it. Frankly, I feel pretty lucky to have lived through the 80's, as it was a dangerous time to be fucking around with shit out there. This record, and Fang in general bring me back to a time when life was really dangerous. Enjoy, and as always say Hi!
In the 80's I was going to some shows with a small hand held recorder. I think some of the shows I recall taping were Absolution, and Swiz in Albany ny on a trip home to visit, then there was DRI & Discharge @ the farm when Discharge got booed off the stage and drI threw a garbage can at them. Another would be this RKL set from the farm. The band was introducing some new songs for their new LP "rock n roll nightmare", but played the 7", the keep laughing LP, and more.
Its just so hard to explain to people how amazing a live band the Rich Kids On LSD were in the 1980's. I miss every thing about these fuck ups...They could get as wasted as possible and still play flawlessly.
I was at my moms last weekend and found a bunch of my old tapes, this one was in it. so stoked...I'm still trying to uncover the drI Discharge tape... my buddy Mike J who also does a blog has a copy, I know that. I gave it to him in around 1990. Share RKL live.zip - 35 MB
1.political destruction
2.not guilty
3.adolescent death
4.beautiful feeling
5.why?
6.tell me the truth
7.I'm locked up
RkL were one of the most important bands to me at a certain point & time in my life. The time was around 1986, when I was 19 years young, screwed up on anything that could get me off, and punk rock as fuck! The music, the lyrics, the artwork all spoke to me in ways other bands or music never had. I lived and breathed this shit.
I can recall seeing these guys play the Farm, the Stone, the Mab, the On Broadway, Ruthies Inn, shit... even the Oakland Omni. It's So depressing to think about the fact that two of the dudes are now dead from Drugs. Both Jason, and Bomer died a few years ago...a tremendous loss of life.
I'd hung out with these guys on Haight Street, ate at the soup kitchen with them, drove around in the rkl van looking for drugs and a gig, and even had a chance to try out as a bass player for them. To see this band of young kids perform in the mid 80's sent shivers down my spine at the time. They were all over the stage, and doing amazing jumps in the air while playing flawlessly.
I'm one of these Rkl fans with a tattoo, and who still believes in the first 3 records being equally as awesome as the next one. I really miss these guys, and those times. This post makes me sad, but at the same time really makes me remember my friends like Zoran, Kurt, Kenny, and Michael Roy. Hope you dig this.
1.the money will roll right in
2.land shark
3.law & order
4.diary of a mad werewoulf
5.destroy the handicapped
6.drunk and crazy
7.an invitation
8.skinheads smoke dope
Man, what can be said about Fang? One of the greatest punk bands you ever loved to hate. I was lucky to have seen them a few times in S.F. and Berkeley in the mid 80's. I'd say this record was a humongous influence on Kirk Cobain and Nirvana. The riffs, the drums, the production, so primitive and raw. Pure punk energy that was 100% real. The members of this band were junkies, and the vocalist Slammie(Sammy) Town was convicted for murdering his girlfriend in a Junkie rage. I can recall when the news hit the scene of SF in the late 80s, people were just stunned. Slammie split the city, and went on the Run. He was eventually turned in by fellow punks, and served some messily time in prison. I sold this LP in the early 90's (probably in disgust to Slammies actions)... I later regretted ever getting rid of it, and recently scored another copy of it here in NYC. I hadn't listened to it for a while, till a friend (RyanV)re played it for me on a work trip. I had to re score the wax after that.
Another of the SF punk greats that I can remember getting as messed up as possible with my buddy Zoran, then skating to their shows, dancing hard then skating home. The lyrics on this LP were hilarious. Enjoy. http://www.mediafire.com/?m4u37k9sg3e
Demo #1 1985
1.Ja hooa's guys
2.8 hour shift
3.when mom finds out i drink
4.blind date
5.conceptual realizations
6.stop n go
7.california lottery
8.team Gilligan
9.this is rock n roll
Demo #2 1986
1.weird intro
2.the scene has suffered
3.Republican children
4.typical chick
5.fashion risk
6.up in flames
7.on top o the world
8. N.I.F.
9.wayne is big
10.we play pool
11.cow tipping
12.i'm in charge
For me when I think of Stikky I think of fun. These guys were a Bay Area hardcore band that I was lucky enough to see at Gilman street almost weekly. Seriously, in those days either them, Isocracy, Operation Ivy, Corrupted Morals, Sweet baby Jesus, or the Lookouts were opening a bill for a touring punk band. Stikky played "wacky" joke filled hardcore that was done in a fast, sloppy manner. I love the song "on top 'o the world", as it was on a tape comp that my band was on as well, the tape was called Lethal Noise vol 2.
I believe both these demos are pre Chris Dodge, who later joined the band and put records out on his label, Sap A Ham records. These guys almost invented "powerviolence". Demo #2 is better in my opinion, as its faster, and tighter punk. Enjoy, and comment if you want more.
1.the fault
2.death machine
3.product of society
4.forgotten
5.lockjaw
6.insomnia
7.deadly intentions
8.aftermath
9.tribulation
10.hypothermia
These guys were one of the Bay Area second string speed metal/thrash bands. This and the demo are about all I can stomach by these dudes. The only reason I know anything about them at all is because I saw them with my buddy Kenny D. at the Stone on Broadway. Dude used to drag me to all the metal gigs in SF.
I think these guys got attention due to ex Vio-lence members? These guys were def heavily influenced by the likes of Testament, and the bay area cash in. At any rate I ended up with this LP and thought I should share it.
1.I'm not smiling
2.Mr. liberty
3.I don't know
4.American dream
Okay, the deal with this tape is that Its what was sent to me when I ordered the bands 1st demo(the 1986 tape). That was reviewed in maximum rock n roll in around 1987, and I needed it. Whomever did the mailorder stuff for C.M. back then sent me this 4 song demo instead, saying that the 5 song 7" would be out in a few weeks, and they weren't selling the first demo anymore (that this demo was newer, and more current, recorded in the same session as the 7"). I was bummed, but later lucked out scoring the 1st demo when Joel (the second bass player)gave me a copy at Gilman Street. I'll post that one someday, its fucking great.
Corrupted Morals played the perfect fusion of thrash metal and punk. Trotting metallic guitar riffs with political lyrics that were sung in a nerdy punk sorta way made this shit some of my favorite Bay Area music ever. Members over the years included Larry L from Possessed, and somebody that is in Green Day as well. I ripped this from the original tape this past weekend, and it Sends shivers up my spine to listen to this stuff, and recall the live shows.
1. abortion
2. judgment day
3. Body pile
4. challenger
5. Reagan lies
This demo was recorded at Gilman street by this dude named Brian. Yes, Gilman used to record demos there on its off days back then. They would jst use the sound system and record you live, so there were no over dubs or anything. I played in this band while living in S.F. It was my first hardcore band. Zoran and Myself pretty much started the band. The band had many line up changes through its two years of existence. We started off jamming in my bedroom on 603 Fell street... Zoran played guitar, Michael Roy (from France) played bass, I played drums,and we had numerous singers (sic nic, and Rainer reject). We later met metalhead Kenny, and he Switched to drums, and I took on vocals. We then released a demo, and were featured on a Lethal Noise tape (became Very Small records).