The 1980 Listening Post - Direct Hits - Collisions at Teen Junction

Direct Hits - Collisions at Teen Junction 

1980 Housekeeping

Direct Hits

Collisions at Teen Junction

Genre: No Hits

3.25 out of 5

This album is so benign that I forgot it was on.

Seriously.

I started surfing Facebook and saw that a member of this group posted an article about an actor who had come off the stage to fight a heckler and I alllllmost wrote to him…”I know that guy! He’s an acquaintance of mine!!”

And then I got bored. 

And distracted when I went down a rabbit hole to find out that friends of mine whom I hadn’t spoken to in about 9 years and who I thought had a rock solid marriage, got divorced a couple years ago and that made me…shrug, really.

Like this album.

It’s super dull. Like if R.E.M. took extra melatonin to get through that night’s sleep and decrease the rapidity of the eye movement.

The real trouble is that it comes across as poorly produced demos with no producer to push them in the right place and turn the right knobs. 

 

It’s like a jangle pop but without any real direction. They show flashes but…maybe if they had Mitch Easter…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aixdmXldR7Q&list=PLlvn8uktX5Luhh0vqF55Jv6aSaiEiDqMn

The 1980 Listening Post - Winterhawk - Dog Soldier

 Winterhawk - Dog Soldier

1980 Housekeeping

Winterhawk

Dog Soldier

Genre: Rock

2 out of 5

Lowlights:

Lady Blue

Winterhawk was a rock band that was fronted by a Native American and, I think, so was the rest of the band. 

And, that explains the cover. I mean, there’s a tinge of outlaw rock going on but for the most part it’s pretty straight forward rock with lead guitar solos aplenty.  Winterhawk is a rock band that is out of place in 1980. As are so many others. 

As pedestrian as it gets. And at this point I need songs that move me or surprise me or do…anything besides swagger and give space to lead licks. 

Next. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLd_vQUOzt8&list=PLlvn8uktX5Lu3fnYJhJCOV9VFUUB_wQqZ

The 1980 Listening Post - The Dudek-Finnigan-Krueger Band - The Dudek-Finnigan-Krueger Band

 The Dudek-Finnigan-Krueger Band - The Dudek-Finnigan-Krueger Band

1980 Housekeeping

The Dudek-Finnigan-Krueger Band

The Dudek-Finnigan-Krueger Band

Genre: AOR

2.75 out of 5

Les Dudek is back! 

Before he went solo he hooked up with the other guys and made a hyper commercial rock stadium friendly rocker that would have fit nicely as an opener for Billy Joel. 

We’re missing a couple tracks and that first one is a mess, it drops into another tune and then comes back but you can get a sense of what they were about.

It’s way too soft and toothless for my tastes. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHd1k2NeBQ0&list=PLlvn8uktX5LsRZBZW92rXFXGxwoTAkix9

The 1980 Listening Post - Sneakers - Ear Cartoons

 Sneakers - Ear Cartoons

1980 Housekeeping

Sneakers

Ear Cartoons

Genre: Local Band Rock

3.25 out of 5

Requisite 80s Cover: “It’s My Life”. And it’s not inspired. But it closes the album out and that’s when you know you can turn it off. Even they got too bored to come up with something to finish this thing out. 

With this title and that cover I want this to be nothing but zany. Like, mid-70s zany. You know what I’m talking about. When novelty songs were at their height. I’m talking “Mr. Jaws” era.

Is it?

No. The band sounds just as bored playing these middling rock pieces as I do hearing them.

The album cover is a lie. There’s nothing wacky for your ear here. Just a bunch of middling tunes that I bet everyone in this band has forgotten by this point. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUeWuz_I1io&list=PLlvn8uktX5LuKWKgqzED5ZOhAA2cBTADw

The 1980 Listening Post - Naughty Sweeties - Chinatown

 Naughty Sweeties - Chinatown    

1980 Housekeeping

Naughty Sweeties

Chinatown

Genre: Power Pop

3.25 out of 5

Highlights:

Rendezvous

Alice

Skittish skinny tie with angular chords and a nearly epileptic backbeat, Naughty Sweeties only record has me wishing that there were a few tracks that were available to add to playlists. 

Songs like “Rendezvous” and “Johannesburg” have all that New Pop Power Wave sound that we all love so much from this year. 

Alice is a hoot and I bet it was a fuck ton of fun live. Same for “No. 64”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuGg3LZa5p0

The 1980 Listening Post - Canus Major - Butterfly Queen

Canus Major - Butterfly Queen 

1980 Housekeeping

Canis Major

Butterfly Queen

Genre: Pomp Rock

2.25 out of 5

Listen to that rolling bass! And the swirling synths! The vocalist is channeling her inner Geddy Lee with aplomb. 

How many prog rock bands had a female lead singer? Not many, right? 

This group doesn’t really have any focus or any songs, to be honest. 

That title track…the bassline…is that…”Sweet Child O’ Mine”??? It’s almost note for note!! (Which is really an Australian Crawl tune, yes?)

Man this thing goes on forever. It’s really boring. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Afn-vGeFQ8Y

The 1980 Listening Post - The Gadgets - Love, Curiosity, Freckles & Doubt

 The Gadgets - Love, Curiosity, Freckles & Doubt

December 5 1980

The Gadgets

Love, Curiosity, Freckles & Doubt

Genre: Synth-y stuff

3.5 out of 5

Highlights:

Aeron

It Wasn’t That Way at All

Another, ANOTHER, Matt Johnson Gadgets album in 1980??

Ok…

This one is more melodic than the last one, which just felt like shaking out ideas. 

But, nothing really grabs me. I mean some tunes are kind of funny and sardonic but they don’t linger. 

“It Wasn’t That Way at All” is a prime example of their sense of humor dancing with minimalist ideas but, as well know, Matt is capable of so much more. That’s a good place for him to start, though. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzxNc1hOCE8&list=PLlvn8uktX5Lvih5pTBQKjpzxbVsW4U_sH

The 1980 Listening Post - Zaine Griff - Ashes and Diamonds

 Zaine Griff - Ashes and Diamonds

October 1980 Listening Post Discovery

Zaine Griff

Ashes and Diamonds

Genre: New Wave

4 out of 5

Highlights:

Run

Secret Pleasures

She’s My Man

The Scandinavian 

Zaine sounds an awful lot like Ric Ocasek. Nowhere is this more evident than on “Secret Pleasures” but, really, the Bowie/Cars adulation runs through this whole album’s veins. 

Why does it sound so cool and refreshingly New Wave? The bona fides, baby! 

Produced by Tony Visconti and…

Sequencer [Roland Micro Composer], Synthesizer [2 Moog 55 Modulars], Synthesizer [Roland System 700+IOO], Synthesizer [Prophet 5 Voice], Sequencer [Sequential Circuit Sequencers], Programmed By [Selidor Computer Programmer], Programmed By [Remote Control Programmer + Productions]  by….

Hans Zimmer!

There’s a tonnage of tunes that could have made it to the left of the dial in 1980. I’m very surprised that I never even read about Griff. “The Scandinavian” is the exact type of song I would have claimed for red. 

If you like The Cars and Bowie and even a little Gary Numan, this would make a great addition to your record collection.

Zaine had a lot going on for him and, for the times, this is dynamite. Imma give it a second spin.

Missed:? Oh, yes. 

https://music.apple.com/us/album/ashes-and-diamonds/1262319258

The 1980 Listening Post - Far Cry - The More Things Change

Far Cry - The More Things Change 

September 16 1980

Far Cry

The More Things Change

Genre: Steely Dan

3 out of 5

That’s what this sounds like. Soft, uninspired, unmemorable Steely Dan. Since I’m not really a fan of SD to begin with this does much less for me. 

It’s soft…it’s toothless. It’s background music for your next backyard get together when you don’t want people to ask about the music. 

https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-more-things-change/1307111903

The 1980 Listening Post - Matchbox - Midnite Dynamos

 Matchbox - Midnite Dynamos

September 1980

Matchbox

Midnite Dynamos

Genre: Rockabilly Noveltabilly

2.75 out of 5

Highlights:

Midnite Dynamos

When You Ask About Love

You know that this is like? (I’m trying to avoid the word “sounds”) Adam Ant’s take on Rockabilly on Viva Le Rock. Big drums and very twangy geetars. I love that record. It’s bonkers. This one WANTS to be thought of as bonkers but they seem to be trying too hard.  If you put Adam in a blender with the Beat Farmers, this might be what it would sound like. 

The covers of “C’mon, Let’s Go” and “Marie Marie” just have me hankering for the original, better versions. 

AM - On the album "The Albums 1979-82" - Tracks 17-29

https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-albums-1979-82/1508110742