Huntsville, Alabama couldn't be a more perfect setting for oddball 80s indie-lore. Huntsville, at once completely anonymous and three hole-punched notches in the Bible Belt, but a little digging and you discover Space Camp. Southern dredge with ties to the cosmos. Mustachioed men in tiny Eraser Head tees. The universe seems charmingly smaller, everything makes a bit more sense. Fertile ground for a band called Sex Clark Five (four conveniently pictured above) to take the neighbor's basement by storm. Theirs is a brief tale of Kinks obsession and John Peel ordainment, seemingly cut short by their own quick wit. Leader James Butler and crew tracked their debut Strum and Drum! (a neatly precise genre-tag for their sound) in late 1986, and aside from an EP or two, all was said and done. They've left behind a truly astonishing document of Southern jangle-pop, and I recommend seeking it out. I also recommend covering your neighbor's car in bologna and letting it sit overnight. Same difference.
