The 1982 Listening Post - SPK (AKA Sozialistisches Patienten Kollektiv) - Leichenschrei

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey / LISTENING POST DISCOVERY

Released: 1982 SPK (AKA Sozialistisches Patienten Kollektiv) Leichenschrei Genre: Industrial Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Highlights: Genetik Transmission Post - Mortem “I think industrial music should have stopped completely after SPK made ‘Leichenschrei’ because that was the ultimate, it was a brilliant album that nobody could make a better, more definitive work in industrial music.” - Edward Ka-Spel of the Legendary Pink Dots. [1] With a title roughly translating to “Corpse Scream”, “Leichenschrei” is a deeply unsettling album, constructed out of abstract noise, pounding drums, metallic thumps, and occasional vocals and voice recordings which are more often than not indecipherable. The bits of recorded speech which can be made out more clearly are generally medical or sexual in nature, peppered with a sense of paranoia, and delivered with an almost clinical lack of emotion as if reading a journal entry for the sake of a court appearance. [2] The more emotive vocalizations are mostly incoherent; “Despair” features a brief duet between muffled male vocals and orgasmic female shrieks, while “Agony of the Plasma” is anchored by the rhythm of a looped scream. Heavy use of echo gives the album the feeling of being recorded in a cave or under water, and sparse use of synths and guitars round out the sound. What surprised me about “Leichenschrei” is how thoroughly composed it sounds. Little about it is conventionally musical, but the various elements are clearly assembled with an ear for thematic development. Unlike a lot of true industrial/noise music, the result feels neither arbitrary nor improvised. Unsurprisingly, founder Graeme Revell would go on to work as a soundtrack composer in the 90s; the roots are clear here, somewhat more structured and dramatic than the Eraserhead soundtrack but equally noisy. The more atmospheric material on the first side is especially affecting though. If I have a complaint, it does get a bit tedious towards the more savage second side – I would have appreciated an occasional change of tone or texture at some point before returning to the horror. Album closer “Maladia Europa (The European Sickness)" hints at this with a snippet of choral music before returning to the sonic onslaught, but it is too brief to provide true respite. Props to SPK for their consistency though. While I was trolling a bit with the Ka-spel quote (to be fair, this is lifted from the Wikipedia page for this album, so how could I not include it?), I do think this album is a high water mark for industrial music, reflected in my rating. Not the Nine Inch Nails / Nettwerk / Wax Trax blend of hardcore, goth and electro that passed as industrial music in the later 80s (a style which SPK transitioned to as early as 1984). But it ranks with the best of the original industrial sound heard in Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire, and Einstürzende Neubauten. I didn’t call it out as a “discovery” – SPK was well known within a certain crowd – but as someone who was somewhat familiar with their glossier dance music and had only read about earlier work, it was certainly a pleasantly unpleasant revelation for me. Should others listen to it? It really depends on how strong one’s stomach is, how narrowly one defines “music”, and what one is looking for from an album. While I think the album “Leichenschrei” is artistically very successful, it’s not so much an album to enjoy as to experience. If I were to have listened to this in a non-committal way – “hmm, maybe I’ll listen to this now, I dunno…” I would probably be off of it within a minute. To appreciate this album, it’s better to simply commit a period of time – even 10 minutes for the faint of heart – close your eyes and really listen. Or just choose this as the soundtrack to your next Halloween haunted house display. (Putting it on for a dinner party would be out of the question unless you’re trying to shed some guests.) At any rate, it may appeal to people who are interested in the music of Throbbing Gristle, early Cabaret Voltaire, musique concrete, and Karlheinz Stockhausen. I heard enough new elements with each listen that I don’t regret the 40 minutes (times three) I gave to it, and would listen to it again someday, but it’s not the kind of album I would keep in heavy rotation. ********** 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leichenschrei 2. As an example, one audible snippet of rather dryly intoned female speech includes the line, “The manager of the corporation tried to give me syphilis by wiping his cock on my sandwich.”

The 1982 Listening Post - Solid Space - Space Museum

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey / LISTENING POST DISCOVERY

Released: 1982 Solid Space Space Museum Genre: Minimal Wave Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Highlights: (*** = the best of the best): Destination Moon A Darkness In My Soul *** Tenth Planet ***“ Earthshock Contemplation *** Please Don’t Fade Away “It’s definitely a moment in time. It’s two kids of 17/18 in a garden shed in Romford in Essex […], it’s a lot of spirit and a lot of naivety and innocence. That is the charm …” - Dan Goldstein, Solid Space [1] I first heard “Space Museum” – the one and only Solid Space album (cassette) – a decade or so ago, probably on some music blog or other. I was immediately taken with their somewhat gloomy space-obsessed songs that are leavened by the duo’s modest sound – a combination of rock instruments with rudimentary drum machines and synths, all sounding like a bedroom production. It’s the kind of album that uses modest tools to make something unexpected, finding the right balance between amateurishness, aspiration, and luck. Consciously or not, the duo hews to the words of Brian Eno: “Regard your limitations as secret strengths. Or as constraints that you can make use of.” [2] While two Doctor Who fanboys interweaving teenage ruminations with 60s British sci fi might not sound like the makings of a classic [3], it's hard not to get lost in the moment. Rather than write songs for whatever instruments or skills they *want* to have (imagine writing Led Zeppelin songs when all you have is a cheap drum machine), Sonic Space put together a set of songs that are built for the band they actually have. And it works. The album sets expectations from the outset, thanks to affable opening instrumental “Afghan Dance” with its chintzy, Cluster-like synths and rhythm box beat. Through the rest of the album they add vocals, guitars, bass and even woodwinds to the mix, but the rudimentary synth and drum machine combo remains essential to their sound. The album lifts off properly with “Destination Moon”, a wistfully atmospheric new wave cut. One of the most distinctive features of the song is the acoustic guitar playing the bass part – apparently the real bass was left at home the day of the recording session. [4] But maybe this was for the best. I’d argue a real bass would have been too heavy handed here, because the light touch of the acoustic guitar feels right at home next to that early 80s rhythm box. Can I pause to gripe about the sequencing though? While Solid Space’s choices are largely validated by Spotify stream data, the album feels unnecessarily backloaded to me. Case in point, their best and most popular track – million streamer "Tenth Planet" – doesn't rear its head til the middle of side B. I resequenced it for them – I'll drop my playlist in the comments in case anyone would rather start there. “A Darkness In My Soul” kicks off the better second side with the most inventive production work on the album. True to the title, the track leans a bit dark and gothy, withs swirly synths and reverb-drenched vocals offset by jangly acoustic guitar and a peppy beat. The vocal production makes the most of whatever gear they had at hand, with a constantly evolving collection of reverb treatments smartly accenting the choruses. The song makes perhaps the best case for the tone of the album, where the somewhat gloomy lyrical content could easily take a turn for the embarrassing with a more melodramatic, Bauhaus-like delivery. Instead it comes off as earnest teenage self-reflection. With the album nearly complete, “Tenth Planet” and “Contemplation” finally deliver the hooks that we’ve been waiting for. After an uncharacteristic perky intro, “Tenth Planet” sounds like one of those songs from the transitional period between Joy Division and New Order, while being a good bit better and more upbeat than most of “Movement.” Meanwhile, the bouncy synth clav of “Contemplation” is offset by the angst-ridden lyrics and yearning Andy MacKay-like clarinet for another hidden gem. If they ever fail Eno's dictum, it's on the sloppy funk of "New Statue." It's a catchy enough song, but the "snare drum" player gets lost too often and it's begging for a bigger, better band behind it. (I can imagine the Fall doing a ripping cover of it.) Somehow they stick with it for over five minutes, their longest track. Keep it simple guys! The end result sounds like a midpoint between In Phaze labelmates Marine Girls and (yes) The Legendary Pink Dots, while generally not sounding like either. Though relegated to a marginal cassette-only release in 1982, the album quietly built up enough of a cult following years later, eventually leading to a vinyl rerelease on Dark Entries in 2017. The band apparently moved on to their respective professional lives and barely looked back. Maybe they would have never been the next big thing, even if circumstances were right. But they perfectly capture that teenage moment when a world of possibilities is within your reach – it’s just a moonshot away. ********** 1. https://ifonlyuk.com/moment-time-looking-back-solid.../ 2, 4. https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1195.Brian_Eno; see also, “Honor your mistake as a hidden intention.” 3. If an album inspired by Doctor Who seems goofy, remember how much mileage Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath got out of Tolkein.

The 1982 Listening Post - The Cure - Pornography

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: May 4 1982 The Cure Pornography Genre: Psychedelic Goth Allen’s Rating: 4 out of 5 Jim’s Rating: 5 out of 5 Highlights: One Hundred Years A Short Term Effect Siamese Twins The Figurehead Allen's Additional Highlights: The Hanging Garden “I know for a fact that we recorded some of the songs in the toilets to get a really horrible feeling, because the toilets were dirty and grim.” - Robert Smith, Rolling Stone, 6/18/04 “It doesn't matter if we all die Ambition in the back of a black car In a high building there is so much to do Going home time, story on the radio.” Over the course of their career, The Cure have covered as many moods and styles as Eve has faces, but “Pornography” establishes itself as their heaviest, most despairing, and most singular album from its outset. If the druggy, whirling guitars, thundering drums, and sinister bassline of “One Hundred Years” isn’t evidence enough, then those opening lyrics Robert Smith wails seal the deal. The third in a progression of albums with hazy, indistinct cover art, the searing red of “Pornography” heralds its sharp tonal shift from the previous albums’ fade to grey. The Cure abandons the minimalism of their previous albums: gone is the tight, sharp pop punk of “Three Imaginary Boys” and the meandering stoicism of “Faith.” “Pornography” is a defining album of the goth canon. Here The Cure amped up its angst to match the dark energy of Bauhaus or The Birthday Party, while running it all through more flanger and delay pedals than Siouxsie could shake a stick at. Only the relatively gentle, measured “Siamese Twins” harkens back to the previous album’s tone. The rest of the disc plays like a tiny mouse casting a towering shadow -- a modest three piece has been transformed into a hulking giant through muscular performances and a cavernous reverb. The darkness of “Pornography” obscures the fact that this is in fact a heavily psychedelic album, made clear in songs like “A Short Term Effect,” which is replete with murky Arabesque guitars and vocals that are so effect-laden the spiral downwards into the abyss. Whether or not this album was a commercial success, it surely was a boon to digital effects manufacturers. Reportedly the band was drunk and tripping for most of the sessions, not to mention overworked, but their state of mind was captured perfectly by producer Phil Thornalley. (Thornalley’s work would help usher in their forthcoming moodswing on the positively buoyant follow-up single “The Lovecats”, which he not only produced but also played its famous stand up bass line.) It’s hard to pick highlights, as for me the entire album is strong. It becomes impenetrably heavy in the final cut (the album’s title track), but the song is nonetheless thematically fulfilling. Beyond that, the album lacks an obvious single. While the band would prove its mettle as a singles act by the time the 1986 compilation “Standing on a Beach” was released, “Faith” and “Pornography” traded artistic vision for viable standout tracks. Neither 81’s “Primary” or 82’s “The Hanging Garden” matches the stunning non-album single “Charlotte Sometimes,” and are to my mind their weakest singles of their first decade. “The Hanging Garden” is a good track, with its martial beat and crisper sound, but I find both “A Short Term Effect” and “A Strange Day” to be catchier. That said, I can’t fault the band for its more daring choice. “Pornography” is perhaps the band’s ugliest album, but if you don’t mind wallowing the horror. it's one of their most distinct and fulfilling. Ask me to name my favorite Cure album and my answer will change with the day, with “Head on the Door” and “Standing on a Beach” (cassette version with the B-Sides) as other contenders. It’s not as forgiving as “Faith” or rich or mature as “Disintegration”, but it hits harder than either the former’s funereal walkabout or the latter’s finely texured soundscapes. The band imploded in the course of making it, which no doubt makes it an uncomfortable listen, but it’s drummer/keyboardist Lol Tolhurst’s favorite Cure album, and I can’t disagree.

The 1982 Listening Post - Middle Class - Homeland

 Reviewed by Allen Lulu / Tom Mott & Jim Coursey

Released: 1982 Middle Class Homeland Allen's Genre: Post Rock Tom's Genre: Gothy Post-Punk Jim's Genre: Post-Punk Allen's Rating: 4 out of 5 Tom's Rating: 4.2 out of 5 Jim’s Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Allen's Highlights: A Skeleton At The Feast Listen Tom & Jim's Highlights: The Call Listen Mosque (minus the lyrics) ********** (Ed. Note: Tom & Jim reviewed this album after Allen had already reviewed it. Shit happens. All reviews are included) ********** Allen's Review: Sometimes, when it comes to the “Housekeeping” albums (the one for which we have no dates, so I do them at my leisure … and your annoyance) I push one down the list because, man I’m just not in the mood for … say … post-rock. Or any genre that isn’t hitting me that day. So, when I saw this categorized as “punk” I just wasn’t up for it. Instead I went into the booth and plugged in and played some really shitty distorted mess of a guitar to a bunch of … punk songs. Partially because I’m trying to write a song and I’m at the chorus and my brain doesn’t want to work and also, to get me in the mood to listen to punk. Then, I relaxed, chewed the callouses off my fret fingers and fired up Middle Class. What? You call this punk? This is only punk in the sense that a band from California that listened to everything The Cure recorded and then went into the studio would be punk. Maybe they had spikey hair? In any case, if you like that throbbing bass and high string guitars with a wailing goth vocal then this is for you. Taking the best of that sensibility and merging with the skittish New Wave of Romeo Void and you’ve got quite a cocktail for this sound. I get a little weary of the same lyrical pattern but the adrenaline makes up for it. I’m gonna shave off a little because a few of these tunes could just be one long track. But I’ll get over it. ************ Tom & Jim's Review: NOTE: We reviewed separately, then swapped, thinking we'd write rebuttals or counterpoints afterwards. Turned out we didn't need to. TOM: Most first wave LA punk bands evolved towards roots, cowpunk, funk, or a mixture of those (ref: Minutemen, Meat Puppets). The MIDDLE CLASS first went louder and faster -- inventing hardcore with their 1979 1-min single "Out of Vogue" -- and then took a hard turn into goth. JIM: Orange County’s Middle Class may or may not have invented hardcore (this is apparently up for debate), but “Homeland” finds them following in the footsteps of various post-punk bands here. Their frequent use of bass as a lead instrument is reminiscent of either Joy Division (on the more plodding, pounding numbers) or The Minutemen (on the more spasmodically peppy funk). TOM: Tight fast drumming, muscular bass lines, and jangly tight rhythm guitar somehow manages to be Joy Division-adjacent and Minutemen-adjacent at the same time. JIM: Meanwhile another set of songs sounds more like Gang of Four, albeit a tad gothier due to the slower tempos and droning vocals. The band is good, so tightly would they keep things moving even in the more dirge-like numbers. TOM: On first listen, I thought I had unearthed a lost goth classic. On subsequent listens, the monotony of the vocals took some of the shine off. JIM: The vocals are the weak link, fine enough for a track or two but the dreary monotone turns tedious pretty quick. Opener “The Call” is the clear highlight for me, with enough changes through the song to keep things fresh. Like other tracks on the album, the downcast vibe of “The Call” is lightened a tad through tasteful use of acoustic guitar and synth. TOM: Still, it's a strong album, and if you like Joy Division, Gang of Four, Minutemen, Meat Puppets, Bauhaus, or Electric Peace, give it a listen. Produced by Paul B. Cutler (of 45 Grave, Bpeople, The Dream Syndicate). (After reading each other's reviews) TOM: Jim and I picked the same three highlights! The real discovery for me is their 1979 single "Out of Vogue." JIM: Whoa. Aside from the ratings, almost dead on! What Tom said, though I'll stick with my score of something lower than 4.2.

The 1981 Listening Post - The Reflections - Slugs and Toads

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: November 1981 The Reflections Slugs And Toads Genre: Post-Punk / Garage Rock Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Highlights: Tightrope Walker Zigzagging The Interpreter “The Reflections were a post-punk super-group formed by Mark Perry (Alternative TV, The Good Missionaries, The Door And The Window), Dennis Burns (Alternative TV), Karl Blake (The Lemon Kittens) and Nag (The Door And The Window).” - Forced Exposure Can I tell you how much I hate the misuse of the term “super-group?” I have no issue when it’s used appropriately (from CSNY to Traveling Wilburys to boygenius). The problem is it's so often abused such that the term becomes meaningless. Newsflash: THERE IS NEVER GOING TO BE A PROPER SUPERGROUP THAT IS COMPRISED OF MEMBERS OF ALTERNATIVE TV AND THE LEMON KITTENS. Worse yet, despite having heard albums by both of those bands, I have no %$%ing clue who “The Door And The Window” even is. Talk about a name destined for obscurity! The proper way to describe this album is a SIDE-PROJECT. Cancel my subscription! (End of rant.) But it would be patently unfair to judge this album based on the stupidity of a single word in a Forced Exposure blurb. “Slugs and Tools” isn’t half bad. I suppose stacking your band with members from three (barely known) artists is the key to their moderate quality? “Tightrope Walker'' kicks things off with a cheery, twee, garagey duet that reminds me more of the shabby but friendly fare of bands like The Clean or Television Personalities than the more “serious”, angry, angular sound common in the post-punk scene. They get a little more edgy with the next cut “Zigzagging”, veering a bit more towards Minutemen territory, but there remains a sweetness that keeps things in check: “I could blow raspberries… stay in bed with you, and zigzag between opti-pessimism.” It’s not all this lighthearted. The sax comes out on the next couple tracks, showing a free jazz / skronk side reminiscent of Missing Presumed Dead, and later piano ballad “Clamming Up” is positively dreary. But on the plus side they keep things varied. Better yet is the dreamy organ-drenched post-psych fare of “Demon of My Desires” and Roky Erikson’s “The Interpreter”, which sound like they recorded while hungover but to good effect. The vocals on this album wouldn't win them any mainstream success. They're more reminiscent of a sour version of Dick Van Dyke's lovable chimney sweep in Mary Poppins (to my American ear) than a proper singer . But unlike Alternative TVs 1981 album that I also reviewed, Mark Perry’s vocals here fit the songs well and give them a certain charm. While there’s plenty of forgettable stuff here, it’s a good listen on the whole, and I found myself enjoying “Slugs and Toads” beyond the highlights.

The 1981 Listening Post - The Crowd - A World Apart

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 The Crowd A World Apart Genre: New Wave Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Highlights: Can’t Talk Right Time On My Own As You Were (Tomorrow) Huntington Beach’s The Crowd was a fixture in the early surf punk scene that coalesced around Orange County’s The Cuckoo’s Nest venue. They made their recording debut on the 1979 “Beach Blvd” comp, posting four punk tracks clearly reminiscent of The Ramones – fast, hard, simple. [1] [2] By the time they got around to a full length their sound had moved on quite a bit though. Opener “Something Said” sets the stage from the outset – the off-kilter midtempo rhythm and chorused bass underscore the new wave tendencies here, which don’t fully let up even as the chorus straightens things out with more of the post-Ramones vibe. “Can’t Talk”, “Right Time” and “On My Own” return to the pace of the Ramones, and the claps on “Right Time” are reminiscent of the earlier rock’n’roll eras that the Ramones tweaked. But the vocals have become more affected and there are just too many chords for the Ramones wannabe vibe to stick. “He” meanwhile reminds me of a more demented version of Adam and the Ants. It’s a good album, but there are downsides. The recording quality isn’t great – better than a lot of their punk peers but worse than a lot of new wave. Meanwhile Jim Decker’s vocals are a bit all over the place too. He’s got a good sound, with an acidic delivery and a thick vibrato that reminds me of a less cloying Jello Biafra. Unfortunately, Decker has a tendency to show emphasis by raising his pitch and shouting, which makes him sound a bit like a drunken karaoke singer belting out a song everyone in the bar already knows. Many songs come unmoored by the vocal – “Desmond and Kathy” and “As You Were” have a lot of potential but lose the plot thanks to the vocals. The Crowd broke up before ever releasing another album, in part due to increasing violence at their shows, only to reform at the end of the decade. [3] If Decker tamed his vocals it would have been interesting to hear them develop further. “A World Apart” showed a musical ambition that wasn’t defined by their scene alone. 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jfhj-ewRB2w 2. https://deathburger.doodlekit.com/blog/entry/4535342/the-crowd-a-world-apart- 3. http://www.oocities.org/sunsetstrip/club/9953/history.htm.tmp

The 1981 Listening Post - Picture - Heavy Metal Ears

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: October 1981 Picture Heavy Metal Ears Genre: Heavy Metal Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Highlights: Heavy Metal Ears Spend The Night With You I'm Just A Simple Man “We're going to change the world, a revolution, every day heavy metal at school, it’ll be a world of destruction, we're gonna lock up the disco fools.” Move over Lipps Inc, move over Chic – there’s a new sheriff in town and he is declaring war on you with a heavy Dutch accent and a clunky lyric sheet. I mean, how much sillier does it get than “Spend the Night With You”? “I'm looking for a girl and I would say to her, would you like to play with me? We're going to drink a bit and if you want to, you can spend the night with me. I want to have it, I think I'll do it now. But after all my thoughts, I think I'd better spend the night with you. Ain't got no money, but after all, it's the best thing I can do. I want to have it, I think I'll do it now.” Words that just tumble off the page with all the grace of a pile of bricks. Didn’t he ever learn not to pepper his writing with filler like “I think?” And those lyrics were from the best tracks on the album. Thankfully the music is brisk, chugging and taut, with an economical approach to fills and guitar solos that keeps the listener’s focus where it needs to be. Maybe it’s not particularly distinct from their NWOBHM contemporaries, but the recording captures the energy well such that it’s hard not to move along with it. Apparently this is Picture’s second album, and they churned out five more before hanging it up in the late 80s. I would assume it is worth a listen for fans of the genre, and won’t be any more repellant to non-fans than other metal of the era. Bonus highlight: If you have a sense of humor about metal (and as a non-fan, I confess I do), the call and response vibrato fest at the 3:00 mark of “Nighttiger” is worth a chuckle.

The 1981 Listening Post - Killer (BE) - Ready for Hell

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Killer (BE) Ready for Hell Genre: Heavy Metal Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Highlights: Ready For Hell I Know Summer, 1981. With the New Wave of Belgian Heavy Metal on the ascendancy, Shorty, Spooky and Fat Leo were sweating through the seventeenth take of “Crazy Circus” in Affligem’s Dig-It studio. The Belgian trio were aware that members of Switzerland’s Kaktus had reformed as Killer and were due to release their debut album by year’s end. There had been an escalating war of words between the two acts of the same name, peaking when partisans of the Belgian band jumped their Swiss rivals outside of a Lucerne metal bar, leaving the Swiss band’s guitarist with a fractured rib. The stakes couldn’t be higher, the album had to be a hit. Their current track wasn’t coming together – maybe it wasn’t their best number anyway – and would ultimately be left on the cutting room floor. They would just have to hope that the songs they already had in the can would be enough. Ok, that story is made up; only the names have been preserved to implicate the innocent. I’m not a metal guy, and the Wikipedia bio is pretty drab. But there were two heavy metal bands called Killer, one in Belgium and one in Switzerland, who released their debut albums in 1981. So tell me… how else would it have gone down? I was ‘ready for hell’ when I started listening, but was relieved to hear the Mötörhead-esque title track. I don’t expect these guys were doing anything especially unique, but they pulled it off pretty well. The best here is the chugging, galloping, speedy music just over the metal border from punk, boasting notes of Mötörhead (especially when the vocals are gruffer) and Priest. There’s plenty of energy throughout, and the first five tracks would probably make for a fine listen for fans of the genre. (Much of Side 2 was unmemorable.) As for themes, I have a hard time making a lot of the lyrics out, between the gravelly delivery and unrefined accent. The album cover depicts the typical “sexy women are turned on by being stabbed in the neck” kind of fare, while the track “Killer” exposes that vocalist Shorty’s “baby” is the real killer. Tasteless, but then there’s always someone pushing it further. Spies for the Swiss rivals got a glimpse of the Belgians’ promo cover, and knew they needed to react. In a bid to one-up the Belgians, Switzerland’s Killer was convinced to change their album title from “Get Up, Get Down” to “Ladykiller,” and replace their cover with an “after” version of the Belgian’s art. The Belgians had shied away from showing an actual killing, so the Swiss took it to the “next level,” with the model lying dead on a bed, blood streaming from her open mouth. When both albums finally saw the light of day, the Belgians were initially furious and figured they’d lost the round. But while record stores showed the good sense of censoring the Swiss album cover, the Belgians’ album was plastered across shop windows, making them the talk of the town from Brussels to Bern. Ok, that last story is made up too, but the description of the covers is real. So tell me… how else would it have gone down? (Swiss Killer notes courtesy of Rod Brogan's review.)

The 1981 Listening Post - Joe Ryder - Joe Ryder

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Joy Ryder Joy Ryder Genre: New Wave / No Wave Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Highlights: We Do The Bop Suitcase New Place Wearing New Clothes If you only listen to the first track or two of Joy Ryder’s debut album, you’ll likely walk away with a certain impression of the music. It’s punky, sassy pop rock with a modern new wave sound, topped by strong vocals adorned with the sneers, squeals and hiccups that read “cute, cool, and a little bit naughty.” Put “We Do The Bop” on a mix tape next to “I Know What Boys Like”, “Girls Just Want To Have Fun”, “Hey Mickey”, “Kids in America” and we’re done. Maybe Ryder’s tracks aren’t quite as catchy as the others, but they nail the vibe. But the album quickly flies off the rails, in the best possible way, going spiky, nervy, dissonant, even downright angry. On the cover we have Ryder applying makeup on the street, awash in oversaturated neon colors, and while the album as a whole keeps to bright and striking hues, her teeth come out as it goes on. “Suitcase” starts to take the “bop bop shoo bop” vibe into a more discordant direction, and by track 4’s Devo-ish “New Place”, what seemed like a touch of pop-friendly zaniness at the album’s opening turns full bore dementia. “You Belong”, “Shut Up and Kiss Me” and “Oh, Yeah” are more No Wave than radio-friendly new wave, intermingling downtown jazz and anarchic punk. Only “Wearing New Clothes” returns Ryder to the wannabe pop starlet schtick of the opening, which intentionally or not lays bare the transactional nature of her persona and the male-gaze-dominated entertainment industry that demands it: I’m wearing new clothes I got a new dress I gotta look good I can’t look a mess I want to look pretty You said ought to I want to look good I want to impress you Yes I want to impress you Impress you, impress you, impress you, So I’m wearing new clothes The best bio I’ve found of Joy Ryder is a 2015 obituary [1], which places her in New York City’s counterculture from the late 60s until 1980 when she left for Berlin and presumably recorded this album. (She had enough visibility there [2] that I found at least one German language obituary too.) While her eponymous release isn’t an unmitigated success – it lacks the couple killer tracks to push it over the edge – it does a good job walking the fine line between mainstream appeal and boundary-pushing. ********** 1. https://evgrieve.com/2015/02/rip-joy-ryder.html 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=razXnYpZFYk

The 1981 Listening Post - Rox (US) - Rox

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: August 30 1981 Rox (US) Rox Genre: Campy New Wave Rating: 1.5 of 5 I was cleaning out the remaining detritus from my former rental of 25 years and needed something suitable to listen to. It seems fitting to work through the odds and ends left in 1981 while working through the odds and ends of my home. What’s more, most of what is left in the apartment is pretty shitty, so even if Rox’s album didn’t make my time more enjoyable it did feel “on point.” I’m not sure what this band is aiming for, but it probably didn’t achieve it here. It’s a mishmosh of Cars-like New Wave, Journey/Loverboy hard rock, and 70s disco/soul. It’s produced by Jacques Morali, the svengali behind the Village People, presumably as he was still riding the high of 1980’s “Can’t Stop The Music” and/or the lifetime supply of milk he must have earned for his work there.[1] The songs, penned by “Rox and Ross”, seem self-consciously clever in a way that made me think of The Sparks. The most glaring example of their overweening cleverness is the cartoonish instrumental ornamentation that follows the line “she shakes her head” in “That’s What Your Girlfriend Says.” More generally, it feels like the band writes songs as if pretending to be pop stars but playing it all for yucks. The problem is that the songs aren’t very good or very clever, and the lyrics are pretty dumb. So no, they aren’t The Sparks. They aren’t Elvis Costello either, which they make clear in the song “I’m No Elvis Costello.” The song consists mostly of Mike Rox & chorus belting “C’mon, let me kiss ya!”, often followed by “maybe baby way down low”, to an understandably hesitant romantic interest. Yuck. While the lyrics are generally less chauvinistic than these, even in songs whose titles read like they may be (e.g. “Death of a Teenage Girl”), the songwriting and production is heavy on the machismo. It reads like Rox are overcompensating on straightness to offset their disco ties, [2] [3] and the results just aren’t fun in the way camp should be. ********** 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mSlXVuHhU8 2. On top of Morali, the band released their sole single “Ddddddddance” on a split 12” with the Ohio Players. 3. So much more fun to throw some mystery into the mix via someone like Ron Mael, but their lone mustachioed member, guitarist Snuffy Waldren, keeps his stache bushy to match his “hey ladies” pose on the album’s jacket.

The 1981 Listening Post - Broken Home - Life

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Broken Home Life Genre: Prog Pop Rating: 1.5 out of 5 Despite Aaron and Allen’s 2 star rating for their 1980 album, UK’s Broken Home came back for seconds, and they manage to outdo themselves here. Aaron wrote of their debut, “I don’t hate anything.” I wonder whether he’d change his mind after this one. Well my better angels were on a coffee break for this one and I can say that *I* hate this. You certainly can’t blame the production values. From their predecessor band Mr. Big through the present, they’ve had a polished sound; here they’ve enlisted Mutt Lange to helm the album. The band is fine too, even if there is nothing particularly notable about them or their songs. The major change between the previous album and this is that they’ve gone full on 80s, awash with synths, electronic drum kit, and spacious reverbs. So far it’s not my cup of tea but I’d go 2.5-3 on the music and production. What sinks it is the execrable voice of Jeffrey Robert Pain, also known as, “Pain,” “JR Pain,” and now “Dicken.” (He got it right with straight up “Pain” IMO.) Looking back, I was surprised that nobody commented on his voice in the previous review, but actually I think that stepping further away from rock instrumentation has underscored his awfulness. Don’t get me wrong, Dicken/Pain is technically proficient and has a soaring falsetto. While his voice has a general quality I find strange, what pushes it over the line are all the interpretive elements he adds. In particular, he has this horrible way of sounding like he’s crying as he sings a line that turns up repeatedly. (I find this to be a desirable element when listening to various singers from Turkey, Iran and various Middle Eastern countries, but it doesn’t work for Dicken/Pain.) I’ve put far more effort into this review than the album deserves already, but I’ll touch briefly on four lowlights before I go, ironically the four most streamed songs from this album. The album kicks off with “Life”, a New Romantic number, but not in a way that would have threatened Duran Duran or Japan for that mantle. Dicken/Pain wails “I’m free” during the chorus, and indeed there is nothing that holds him back for the rest of the album. The “big hit” with 800k streams “Oh Yeah” follows - in spite of its life-affirming sing-a-long vibe, I’d probably kill myself if this was in heavy rotation in the US. (Apparently at least a few people in Norway were more forgiving.) [1] Track three “I’m Losing You” sounds like it could be the soundtrack for an 80s fantasy movie, and as a break-up song features Dicken/Pain’s most gut-wrenching cry-singing vocal performance on the album. Finally. “Rainbow Bridge” isn’t so weepy, but Dicken/Pain takes extreme liberties with his vocal performance here. While I think it may be worthwhile for people to hear this voice for much the same reasons that gory car crash footage is shown to driver’s ed students, I wouldn’t encourage anyone to linger. ********** 1. This song was a minor hit in Norway and Germany it seems. Seeing them perform it live humanizes them, but I can still hate the recording. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5toZKqaeDU

The 1981 Listening Post - Broadcast - Broadcast

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Broadcast Broadcast Genre: Soft Rock Rating: 1.5 out of 5 Finnish band records breezy tunes with California themes and a hint of disco rhythm. (Have they ever been to California? I guess titles like “Soderkulla Sungodown” or “Baltic” don’t evoke the same vibes as “Pasadena Sungodown” or “Pacific.”) Nothing is particularly memorable, but the vocals do me in from the first drawn out “boooogie baby”, never letting up. “Unctuous”, to borrow an Allen standby. That they seem to have more than one person taking a crack at the vocals doesn’t help – the more honey they pour out, the stickier the mess. I could be more specific I suppose, but that would require hitting “rewind”, and I’m not getting paid enough for that kind of torture..

The 1981 Listening Post - The Machines - The Machines Have Landed Part One

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 The Machines The Machines Have Landed Part One Genre: Sci Fi Prog Rock Rating: 2 out of 5 The lone album by Burlington, Ontario’s The Machines begins promisingly, with a lengthy sequence of newscasts filled with UFO conspiracy theories in which the US government has two alien spacecraft and twelve alien bodies. Gerald Ford’s release of these details appears imminent. Needless to say the anticipation builds. However, all interest is lost after two songs with the word “Trekkies” in the title and a barrage of pedestrian prog rock. It was hard to care enough to follow along, but the dumb humor of some of the lines was hard to escape: “Like a puppet on a string, if we lost our trust, we’d be like a toilet – broken.” (They liked that line so much they even sung it twice.) I suppose since the album was just the first of a multi-part series, the end leaves things hanging. The somewhat ominous closer “Mind and Body” reminds me a bit of something from the Residents' Mark of the Mole trilogy, as if drained of all its weirdness and covered by a mediocre prog band. Sure they can play, but to what end? Turning the Weekly World News into a prog rock concept album seems like it’s worth at least a laugh, doesn’t it? Well, as it turns out, it's not.

The 1981 Listening Post - The Legendary Pink Dots - Kleine Krieg

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 The Legendary Pink Dots Kleine Krieg Genre: Experimental Synth / Darkwave / Psychedelic Rating: 2 out of 5 Highlights: Brill Down From The Country Note: for an explainer on this notorious Listening Post bugaboo, see my review of their 1982 cassette “Premonition.” Standard early cassette fare from the Pink Dots. As usual with these releases, “Kleine Kreig” features numerous sketches of songs that later would end up on their first three proper albums, “Brighter Now”, “Curse”, and “The Tower”, as well as a few “standards” that would crop up on other cassette releases. Also usual for these releases, they bias towards experimentation over the type of editing and manicuring common on an album release. Unfortunately, “Kleine Kreig” is not one of the better ones. It’s overlong for one, clocking in somewhere around 90 minutes. There are precious few highlights adding value here that aren’t done better on other releases (even cassette ones). Album opener “Defeated / Deflated Black Highway” could be a fine track on the second side of one of these releases, after they’ve built up enough structure to allow for a descent into madness. As it stands, it is so disorienting it probably would not entice anyone to listen further. There are certainly moments of interest to a fan along the way in the variations on common themes, but it takes an hour before I found anything worth highlighting. “Brill” is a collage of synth weirdness, developing out of an especially spritely and demented version of “Doll’s House.” It’s followed by the lo-rent boogie of “Down From The Country” (the only track I recognize as being excerpted on subsequent compilations). This short streak of interest is killed with an incomprehensible rendition of “Thursday Night Boogie.” As a one-time superfan, there were a few of these cassette-only releases I listened to repeatedly. This one would have been listened to once and stashed with the collection.

The 1981 Listening Post - Shot in the Dark - Shot in the Dark

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Shot In The Dark Shot In The Dark Genre: Soft Rock Rating: 2 out of 5 Highlights: Just As Well Shot in the Dark got their start as Al Stewart’s backing band on 1980’s “24 Carrots.” With their self-titled debut, they step from the shadows and onto the marquee, with Stewart producing. The Funk Brothers they ain’t, and it seems like nobody bothered to commission a sequel. It’s always a bad sign for me when I start imagining sitcom credit sequences while listening to an album, and sure enough their self-titled song fit that bill. Most of the stuff here is plenty cheesy, if not as sitcom theme-like. Marginal highlight “Just As Well” breaks the mold with some Irish-tinged folk rock. It’s a fleeting respite though. Commenters on Discogs are very complimentary about the recording and pressing quality of this as well as Stewart’s 1980 album. If tastefully recorded, DBX-encoded soft rock is your bag, you could probably do worse than this album, but you could probably also do well better. Personally, I’ll skip the category altogether and go with the 1986 Ozzy single of the same name.

The 1981 Listening Post - Roger Voudouris - On the Heels of Love

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Roger Voudouris On The Heels Of Love Genre: Soft Rock Rating: 2 out of 5 Roger Voudouris apparently gained attention for his 1979 single “Get Used To It”, which charted in the US and hit a whopping #4 in Australia. Though his future work never hit the same soaring heights, Voudouris’ fame grew in Japan and he remained a sex symbol in Australia. (Look at the cover! He could be Rick Springfield!) But how does he sound? Voudouris’ music will appeal to people who want something a little more edgy than Barry Manilow, but found “Chicago XIV” a bridge too far. Michael McDonald might be a little more on point. Some songs are more soulful, others more funky, but all within a very narrow parameter such that the album would go down easy as it’s wafting through the dentist’s office. (The one exception is “First Love”, a power ballad which is always just a harp glissando away from Roger rocking out.) While there are no highlights here (aside from the steamy cover), opener “Heels of Love” did win me over as Voudouris crooned “she said she’d been scared all her life until she ran out of beer.” To be fair I almost certainly misheard the line, but I’m not getting paid enough to go back and fact check.

The 1981 Listening Post - Lake - Ouch!

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: June 3 1981 Lake Ouch! Genre: Jazz Rock Rating: 2 out of 5 Highlights: Come On Home Amigo “Ouch” was the fourth album by Lake, an German-English band, based in Germany. Produced by James William Guercio, who had worked on a string of Chicago albums previously, “Ouch” has notes of Steely Dan, Supertramp, Michael McDonald, and Journey. It’s almost like the 70s never ended here, and this one skews polite and polished like contemporaries who spanned into the early 80s. The songs are often funky, with jazzy harmonics, alternately tense and breezy and slightly more complex than your average pop, and totally serviceable if not terribly memorable. There’s a few mild surprises therein. “Amigo” had me expecting something more like Fairport Convention with its haunting folky intro, but quickly cheeses it thanks to the unnecessary addition of Rhodes piano. “Jamaica High”, their take on reggae, is more lighthearted, but would be better served in an ad for a travel company than a rock album. Any goodwill I had for the band disappeared when I got to “Hit Your Mama”, whose absurdly dated lyrics are about as deplorable as the title implies. Hit your mama, hit her again til she say ‘I love you’ Hit your mama, hit her again and again Do… cause she’s counting on you. The singer is giving advice to his friend, whose girlfriend - the “mama” in question – is insufficiently doting. Now imagine that gleefully sung to a perky 70s pop rock tune. While Lake aren’t my thing by any stretch, musically they deserve a higher rating. It’s just hard to overlook the awfulness of that one track.

The 1981 Listening Post - Jandek - Six and Six

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Jandek Six And Six Genre: Man In A Dark Room With A Broken Guitar Rating: 2 out of 5 I was right in the middle of listening to Lou Reed and Metallica's 2011 one collaborative album “Lulu” for the first (and last) time when I was asked to review one of Jandek’s 1981 albums. While I wasn't enthusiastic about hearing another Jandek album. I was happy to get a break from “Lulu.” That album pretty much consists of modern day Metallica doing the modern day Metallica thing with Lou Reed rambling on like a cranky old beat poet over the top of it. Occasional metal vocals courtesy of James Hetfield of course. I like Lou Reed but I don't encourage anyone to go out of their way to hear that album. If you had told me that Jandek’s “Sixes and Sixes” was a “Lulu” cover album, or vice versa, I wouldn’t have batted an eye. To be fair, Reed is more verbose and talks with a more of a “hip New Yorker” kind of jive to Jandek’s quiet caterwauling, but both albums feel like vehicles for bitter rambling / beat poetry. This album is to my ear almost identical to “Staring at the Cellophane”, and I can’t find anything new to say about it. I did however do some listening *about* Jandek including a lengthy interview with fellow weirdster John Trubee which I found much more enjoyable than the music.[1] Jandek comes across like a pretty down-to-earth guy, if a bit eccentric.[2] They spend a while talking about the poetry of his lyrics, and I must say that his album titles, largely excerpted from his lyrics, are often haunting and evocative: “Chair Beside a Window”, “Living in a Moon So Blue,” Your Turn to Fall,” “Telegraph Melts.” Jandek calls out "I Knew You Would Leave" from “Six and Six” as one of his favorite lyrics and I listened back to that one without finding myself any more engaged by it. Ultimately I’d rate Jandek higher than Lou and Metallica though. While I can’t knock these bigger names for their experimentation, the results don’t mesh, and the result sounds contrived. Jandek on the other hand is clearly true to himself, and I’d rather listen to his sour self portraits any day. ********** 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiF6yBRzA3w 2. Jandek claims he tunes his guitar frequently, often between each song, but tunes it to whatever he feels is right as opposed to relying on tuners. (He is well aware that his tunings are unconventional.) He reports listening to a wide variety of music, although Tom Petty is the only artist he namechecks (aside from a classical composer whose name I missed). Jandek targeted releasing 2-3 albums a year lest he fade into obscurity, although he seems well enough aware that he is not everyone’s cup of tea. He pays the production charges himself, presses 300 copies of each album, and appears to mostly give them away to interested parties, radio stations, etc.

The 1981 Listening Post - Get Wet - Get Wet

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: August 21 1981 Get Wet Get Wet Genre: Glammy New Wave Showtunes Rating: 2 of 5 (Nominal) Highlights: Just So Lonely Morton Street Get Wet are a duo featuring Zecca Esquibel and Sherri Beachfront. Little information exists about the band, but Zecca Esquibel had cut his teeth playing guitar for glam diva Cherry Vanilla during a phase when her band had left and Esquibel, Sting and Stewart Copeland were filling in. He left at some point, presumably for this band. Add Phil Ramone as producer and all these bigger names suggest that Get Wet’s sole album should probably be better than it is. Sadly, “Get Wet” feels like a late seventies hangover, theatrical, disco-laced tunes filled with nods to Grease-style retro 50s/60s fare, including a cover of Connie Francis’ “Where the Boys Are”. Get Wet’s sole hit, “Just So Lonely”, reminds me a bit of the Jackson 5, Beachfront’s vocals included, but is a far cry from “ABC” or “I Want You Back.” I prefer the somewhat melodramatic but catchy “Morton Street,” and her vocal style is more comfortable here as well. But Beachfront’s voice can be grating when she goes big and shouty, notably on the opener “Lucky You” and penultimate track “Turn On The Lights.” Listening to the chorus of the latter song I couldn’t help but wonder whether there was a Charles Foster Kane out there bankrolling his lover’s ill-fated singing career. (Check it out, it’s miserable.) The succession of romantic numbers ending with a bummer of a closer “Single” (a post-break up song) leaves me feeling like they’re going for a narrative arc here to boot. Indeed, the whole album is very theatrical, and reminds me of how different music was in the seventies, blurring the lines between stage and radio (think Elton John, Xanadu, the Wiz, and countless artists with guest spots on the Muppets). Different times. While this album is professional, it is flattered by such comparisons, and feels even more dated now than it may have in 1981.

The 1981 Listening Post - Coitus Int. - Coitus Int.

 Reviewed by Jim Coursey

Released: 1981 Coïtus Int. Coïtus Int. Genre: Goth / Post-Punk Rating: 2 out of 5 Highlights: Shrill Screams Out of the gate, the Dutch band’s debut has about as much effervescence as early Swans, although it isn’t nearly as confrontational. The aesthetic is pure drudgery, as if conceived to accurately represent the experience of working on a factory line. Vocals could be confused for Alexei Sayle’s tough guy landlord Jerzei Balowski. The first three songs follow this pattern, with a brief doubling of tempo at the end of a song being the only respite. By track four, “The Connection to the Obvious”, the band has learned to write a very modest hook, and by track five “Shrill Screams” the hook becomes moderately enjoyable. They slowly transform into something resembling Joy Division, but without Peter’s Hook-iness, Stephen Morris’ ear-catching syncopation, or Ian Curtis’ commanding presence. Sadly, Coïtus Int.’s band and album name determines our fate, and there is no climax to be had here. The album’s energy follows a bell curve, and the end returns to the joyless toil of the beginning. However the music was so sexless and inert for so much of this that it’s hard to imagine them getting to first base, let alone penetration.