Cop Shoot Cop

lucifer_sam · 11-20-2009, 11:28 AM

I was on tenterhooks about starting a thread for these guys, considering how absurdly underrated they are. I've shared these guys with a few of you already & most of you will probably ignore this post anyways, in favor of more recent material I'm sure. But what the hell...

Cop Shoot Cop were a controversial New York band that existed in a short window between 1987 and 1994, playing into the role of the burgeoning "industrial/alternative" loop that somehow fed clubs with Reznor fans and shitheads alike. It's pretty easy to see where they diverge from this stereotype. Early works like Consumer Revolt and White Noise were deep seated in sarcasm and abrasion, taking an almost ephemeral quality to the musical structure. Things changed after a while, but for the entirety of the band's existence, they purposefully avoided the road towards popularity (or a guitarist, for that matter).

For the most part, Cop Shoot Cop appends nihilism to the growing list of influences which you could attribute to them; artists like Big Black, Tom Waits & especially Foetus spring to mind when you hear them. With the aid of a competent producer, their 1993 masterpiece allowed these influences to bloom into the turgid mess known as Ask Questions Later, arguably one of the most powerful "alternative" albums of the decade. Lead bassist (that's not a typo) Tod A.'s caustic songwriting dances furtively between disillusionment and affectation, burning one of the least travailed bridges between the mordant and the accessible. If nothing else, Cop Shoot Cop did what nobody else on the industrial/alternative fence could do -- make an album worth giving a damn about.

Ch-ch-check yourself.

music_phantom13 · 11-20-2009, 01:55 PM

Why, because we're a bunch of dumbasses that ignore anything pre '00s? That's ****ed up.

I love Consumer Revolt. To be honest, I greatly prefer it to anything else from that sound (Big Black included). It's a little more abrasive and punk like than what those three videos sound like to me (I've only heard their first two albums). Seems like they followed the progression from punk to post punk in their influences, which is pretty cool. 3 A.M. Incident and Room 409 songs were sick. May have to check out the second half of their albums.

The first three are from Consumer Revolt, the last one is from their second album White Noise.

jackhammer · 11-20-2009, 02:40 PM

I had heard lots of good things about this band both on here and way back when so I checked out Consumer Revolt a few months back and I was disappointed to say the least. I shall listen again tonight and report back.

music_phantom13 · 11-20-2009, 03:17 PM

From those songs I'd imagine you'd like Ask Questions Later. I really like Consumer Report but hardly anyone else seems to.

EDIT: Wait since when were you a mod again?

Mondo Bungle · 10-06-2011, 08:43 PM

I got all their albums. Possible biggest fan

11-20-2009, 11:28 AM	#1 (permalink)
lucifer_sam Unrepentant Ass-Mod Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 3,921	Cop Shoot Cop I was on tenterhooks about starting a thread for these guys, considering how absurdly underrated they are. I've shared these guys with a few of you already & most of you will probably ignore this post anyways, in favor of more recent material I'm sure. But what the hell... Cop Shoot Cop were a controversial New York band that existed in a short window between 1987 and 1994, playing into the role of the burgeoning "industrial/alternative" loop that somehow fed clubs with Reznor fans and shitheads alike. It's pretty easy to see where they diverge from this stereotype. Early works like Consumer Revolt and White Noise were deep seated in sarcasm and abrasion, taking an almost ephemeral quality to the musical structure. Things changed after a while, but for the entirety of the band's existence, they purposefully avoided the road towards popularity (or a guitarist, for that matter). For the most part, Cop Shoot Cop appends nihilism to the growing list of influences which you could attribute to them; artists like Big Black, Tom Waits & especially Foetus spring to mind when you hear them. With the aid of a competent producer, their 1993 masterpiece allowed these influences to bloom into the turgid mess known as Ask Questions Later, arguably one of the most powerful "alternative" albums of the decade. Lead bassist (that's not a typo) Tod A.'s caustic songwriting dances furtively between disillusionment and affectation, burning one of the least travailed bridges between the mordant and the accessible. If nothing else, Cop Shoot Cop did what nobody else on the industrial/alternative fence could do -- make an album worth giving a damn about. Ch-ch-check yourself. __________________ first.am

11-20-2009, 02:40 PM	#3 (permalink)
jackhammer Ba and Be. Join Date: May 2007 Location: This Is England Posts: 17,331	I had heard lots of good things about this band both on here and way back when so I checked out Consumer Revolt a few months back and I was disappointed to say the least. I shall listen again tonight and report back. __________________ It be my music and film collection. “A cynic by experience, a romantic by inclination and now a hero by necessity.”

11-20-2009, 01:55 PM	#2 (permalink)
music_phantom13 Music Addict Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 942	Why, because we're a bunch of dumbasses that ignore anything pre '00s? That's ****ed up. I love Consumer Revolt. To be honest, I greatly prefer it to anything else from that sound (Big Black included). It's a little more abrasive and punk like than what those three videos sound like to me (I've only heard their first two albums). Seems like they followed the progression from punk to post punk in their influences, which is pretty cool. 3 A.M. Incident and Room 409 songs were sick. May have to check out the second half of their albums. The first three are from Consumer Revolt, the last one is from their second album White Noise.

11-20-2009, 03:17 PM	#4 (permalink)
music_phantom13 Music Addict Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 942	From those songs I'd imagine you'd like Ask Questions Later. I really like Consumer Report but hardly anyone else seems to. EDIT: Wait since when were you a mod again?