Killing Joke - Brighter Than a Thousand Suns

Killing Joke is one of those groups, who's output just seems so vast, it's hard for someone to really know quite where to start, and none of their 'collection' releases really seem to do much justice. The fact is there are only two Killing Joke releases you ever need to worry about. One being their first release, that's the one which sleeve depicts the iconic imagery of shadowy, anonymous figures preparing to demolish a wall. The latter, being their 1986 release 'Brighter Than a Thousand Suns'. This is one of my all time favorites. They had already put out several albums treading closer to a more electronic/industrial, even dancy type sound, which is a high contrast from their first album. Though on early songs such as 'Requiem' and 'Wardance', it's perhaps not so difficult to fathom that BTATS is the album they would be releasing half a decade later. The title of the album refers to a quote describing the explosion of a nuclear bomb. Well, armageddon had come and gone, well not exactly, but at least Jaz Coleman had returned from his hide out in Iceland at this point to continue writing some extremely foreboding, cryptic, and very 'dance' sounding Killing Joke records. The production of BTATS is larger than life, very dramatic, very ethereal. Huge sounding drums, guitars that slice through your brain with lazer-like precision, pounding bass lines, and to top it off is Jaz Colemans over the top vocals. There is really nothing I could say to do this album justice. The atmosphere is tense, while the mind bending lyrics create visions of apocolyptic beauty. If you are a Sandman fan (dork, I know) you are probably already into this album. If not, this is the perfect album to have playing while reading volumes of Sandman. It's as if Coleman is chanelling some great, ancient mythological god, recalling the past, looking into the future, watching down from the heavens as we 'Move like pawns on chessboards.' Stand out tracks are, well, all of them really...But 'Sanity', which contains an eerie piano melody, over frightening guitars, and a heavy dance beat, and 'Chessboards' are probably the greatest. Do yourself a favor and find this album!

"So let the sunrise light up the distant shores And we'll remember last days of Rome again"

Legionaire's Disease-Rather See You Dead

The lead singer looks like a mixture between Iggy, Buffalo Bill, and Vivian from the Young Ones. The bassist looks like Bruce Foxton from The Jam.

Okay, I have to make this quick because there is a To Catch A Predator marathon on TV. Legionaire's Disease were from Houston Texas. I love when records sound ahead of their time, and this one definitely does. Raw as hell, this record was put out in 1979. "Downtown", the B-side of this is a fucking ripper. Somebody had a Stooges obsession. Plus all the members of this band look psychotic .The video is from an old public access show, shot in a trailer park near where a friend of mine used to live. It's supposedly a meth crazed shithole. I love the demented sliminess of Texas punk. If you like this stuff, check out AK-47, Boy Problems, or Vast Majority.

RATHER SEE YOU DEAD

The Chameleons

one of my favorite bands ever. if you are my friend, and love me....you should download this so we could gush over how amazing they are together, because as of right now im alone and sooooo in love with this band. so i really hope people actually give them a listen... and im too lazy to write anything about em so im stealing this from Wikipedia...

"The Chameleons (called The Chameleons UK on some American releases) were a post-punk band that formed in Middleton, in Greater Manchester, England in 1981 (see 1981 in music). They consisted of singer and bassist Mark Burgess, guitarist Reg Smithies, guitarist Dave Fielding, and drummer John Lever (replacing original drummer Brian Schofield). The core quartet were sometimes augmented live by keyboardists Alistair Lewthwaite and Andy Clegg in the 1980s, and percussionist/vocalist Kwasi Asante during their reunion period (ex-Magazine

drummer Martin Jackson also briefly replaced Lever during 1982-83 while the latter was on sabbatical).

Through Mark Burgess' vocals and dark and ironic lyrics, their songs often dealt with personal themes of childlike innocence and a reverence for nostalgia. Musically, perhaps most notable in their work was the band's innovative and distinctive use of dual guitar melodies, courtesy of Reg Smithies and Dave Fielding, as opposed to the traditional rhythm-and-lead guitarist format prevalent in rock music even to this day. These arrangements were often characterized by the use of delay and choral effects."

if you dont love this you have issues...

Perfume Garden - The Chameleons


those are two songs from the two different albums im posting here: Up the down escalator from script of the bridge, and perfume garden from what does anything mean?



SCRIPT OF THE BRIDGE -DOWNLOAD HERE



WHAT DOES ANYTHING MEAN? BASICALLY - DOWNLOAD HERE

The Sugarcubes - Life's Too Good

Hailing from Reykjavik, The Sugarcubes are one of Iceland's best kept secrets. The band had at least 2 previous incarnations first as Tapi Tikarass, and again as KUKL (Icelandic for witchcraft) which released an album on Crass Records. Fronted by both the maniacal Einar, as well as the lovely (then mostly unknown) Bjork. The band's first full length came out in 1988 with the release of 'Life's Too Good' on One Little Indian Records, label home to several other great bands of the time. The sound of the band is wonderful, strange and very unique. It combines elements of dance, jazz, funk and psychedelia. Within the lyrics is offered an untraditional take on the classic idea of the 'love song', the duality of male and female seems to be played upon and put into humorous, often surreal situations. This concept is usually highlighted in the manner which Einar narrates over the song, as Bjork pushes forward, seemingly unaware of his presence.

As the album begins, your senses are alerted to the distant voice of a ranting lunatic, he begins to play a discordant melody on his harmonica. Out of nowhere a bass drum begins beating, as a wailing female voice begins to set the scene "When the sun rises". The raving madman is now much closer, and confidently expressing that "My punctuality is well known/When the revolution takes place I'll be late/And I'll be shot as a traitor". Einar continues to narrate in his unusually reserved Icelandic accent, while Bjork wails away in the background.

Jangly, funky sounding guitar and bass against some frantically upbeat drumming, instantly transports you to another much brighter, but equally bizarre scene which is 'Motorcrash'. A girl riding her bicycle happens across a terrible car accident involving a family. She rushes through the crowd of gathering spectators to see for herself, she seems more fascinated than horrified.

'Birthday' is an unsuspecting piece of whimsical dream pop bliss. A sleepy sounding trumpet against the back drop of careful jazz inspired drumming and chimes begins to draw you in, while the guitar and bass keep a muted, shy sounding melody that endlessly wanders. Like a mobile that hangs above a cradle, the instrumentation meanders innocently, without any of it ever quite falling into place, though it all seems to rotate around one central aspect which is the vocals. Throughout the chorus, Bjork goes from a growl to a wail, creating a dizzying effect that sounds not unmusical but quite soulful. Einar stays in the background on this one, and as it is one of the few Cubes' tracks that doesn't feature his vocals, not at all surprising that it would have been easier to swallow for a mainstream audience, and became one of their biggest hits.

In the 'post-punk' world of the 1980s that brought to us so many of the 'doom & gloom' (most of which I also like) type bands, the Sugarcubes stand far apart. They are upbeat, without being annoying, and strange enough to keep you thinking. The Cubes' played eccentric, humorous, playful, dream-like pop songs, and though they are one of the more memorable bands of the 80s, they are also one of the sadly overlooked.

All albums by the Sugarcubes come highly recommended, but I really advise searching for any of the singles which B sides may contain versions sung in their native Icelandic. Hearing some of these tunes in their own language seems to take some of the novelty out of the strange contrast between Einar and Bjorks vocals.

In the early 90s the band went their seperate ways. Bjork became Bjork, and I don't know what became of the other members. However, they did reform for a one off anniversary show in Reykjavik in 2006... - Joe Western