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Well, although there's a lot to criticize Slipknot for, what I realty meant by the title is mainly concentrating on albums or singles that got lost in the 70's-80's shuffle when records were actually selling by the millions back in the magical Pre-Internet times and the hype was major - Cue some crazy "Back in my day we had to actually go out of the house to buy records" rant that I never use. In The US, the Mall certainly was a gathering point for a lot of music fans who did not have the luck to be near a hip record store, but most of them are seriously gone now, hence the term Ghost Malls to those asking what the term actually means.

Times change, and I don't really mourn the passing of what I call a major stepping stone for developments like Wal Mart, but there is kind of kinky fascination for some with going into ran down malls. In a way, after looking at a few You Tubes of people who have the guts to go through some, I sometimes imagined what would go great to play while looking at these videos. As a listener to a lot of New Pop and anything that was of interest back then, I was always attracted to what under-performed and sold little, so my perfect sounds would be something that might have been buried under the rubble, never sold or something slashed at a discount but still lingering in the cut out shelves what seemed like forever.

For me, The 80's was a perfect last call for that Plastic Pop Culture that was big and surrounded all around you - now the Pop Scene is mainly on the Internet, in your I Phones and super stores which for me have no mystery at all although I might say that the early days of the Internet before the 2Ks or at least 2003 has some interest with a lot of people trying to create a Music Scene through the Web before the major corporations finally knew how to promote through it. So much "Fell through the cracks", and I feel that it's time to at least dig some finds up and hear what a lot of people have missed - good discs and even bad ones that merit attention, especially with the New Wave era for me which was a time I lived through.

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I understand, but I feel that my journal is kind of like the Ghost of New Wave Past, who I think is a relative of Caspar the Friendly Ghost.

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MODERN ENGLISH - RICOCHET DAYS and STOP START

Release years: 1984 and 1986
Cuts on covers: Both the Warners' Saw Cut
US Chart Peaks: #93 and #154
(UK Indie Chart Peak for Ricochet Days: #5 - No mainstream UK album placement)

After their turn in the spotlight in the 80's, Modern English have been here and there, peeping around, enjoying their strong standing in the music scene's New Wave memories with a small following reportedly still active with the odd release every now and then (most recent is 2010's Soundtrack). in a way, you can't really fault them for turning into a short lived Pop machine that released catchy sounds on a regular basis for a couple of years after their debut album Mesh and Lace caused little interest in 1981 despite a promising Indie Top 10 placement and struggling to find some kind of audience. Still their two albums after After the Snow still spark some interest with fevered New Pop fans who wanted to know just after "I Melt With You" gave them a much deserved iconic hit.

Introducing the Band: Robbie Grey is their leader, Gary McDowell is the Guitarist with a bad fashion sense, and at the Production Boards for their 4AD records was Hugh Jones. Rounding up the band were Michael Conroy (B), Richard Brown (D), and Stephen Walker (K).

To give you a pre-history, before they "Melt"-ed into the US New Wave scene, this was the band before smoothing out the edges. Even then, there was a Pop sound hidden behind the arty moves. They had the Post-Punk sound down, but not very convincingly.



They were on 4AD, which after being a start up label for bands aimed for Beggar's Banquet (This was where Goth legends Bauhaus entered the BB history) was fast moving into becoming one of THE definitive Indie labels of The 80's - With a roster that included Cocteau Twins, The Birthday Party, Wolfgang Press, Dead Can Dance, Throwing Muses, The Pixies, and the 4AD artists collective This Mortal Coil and collections including Lonely as a Eyesore, you knew that this was serious business. It was serious enough to see the increasingly Pop-centric Modern English to be shoved aside.

By their next album in 1982's After the Snow, Modern English, turned out to be the label's Pop kids having to face the facts in The UK that being on 4AD was a little tricky for them - Too Pop for the Serious Gothic and Indie crowd who bought 4AD on a regular basis and being on a label that the Pop side of the UK media possibly did not want to really know about even if some of their songs would have made strong impressions on the radio. Still, when you have a song like "I Melt With You" turn into something that still gets airplay around the world (even if it actually charted at #18 UK Indie with no Mainstream chart peeping) and still retain credibility despite all of the re-recordings, movie placements, and commercial use, it's good to have the last laugh in the end. Their 1982 album may not have been an Indie smash (only a small appearance peaking at #15), but it did OK in The US (#70 with a quick rise and fall of about four months) with the hit single turning into an iconic song of the year, despite only going to #78, which was enough to think of a move to The States.

To skip the over-played song I'm sure you have heard a million (deserved) times already, here's something to make this a real report and not another mountain of words, here's the UK Indie #43 single "Someone's Calling" which was the "I Melt With You" follow-up from After the Snow, to show that the album had some strong merit beyond the hit despite dodgy videos which was possibly the major stumbling block of the band...



Now onto the albums in review!

While their US following was running smooth as silk, things were a little shaky back home. As there was some notice with "I Melt With You" stirring up the Stateside scene, things could have been a little better in England as they had the hooks to break through although they were in a growing mountain of New Pop bands that went under-performing after aiming for the big time (Remember this Journal's report on the "CS Angels"?). There was the potential, although they could have done with better videos, and their first 1984 video did not change things while album #3, Ricochet Days, was about to be unleashed.




Starting off their 1984 account in March was "Chapter 12" which did as well as "I Melt..." there, but that's both the good news and the bad news. Promoted with one of those "Band trying to look serious in the cold weather" things, you could say that things were not looking too good despite the music still New Wave Top Pop as ever with those slightly Post-Punk Guitar and Bass sounds adding a nice touch. Still, achieving another Indie Top 20 which did not even grace the main charts only added to the pain of trying to break through while the album actually regained their Indie Top 10 status briefly but again not troubling the big chart.

Then around the next month, there was the trouble of having yet another classy single with an even worse video to promote the album in The States in "Hands Across the Sea", with the song filled with that Acoustic feel that made "I Melt With You" a Pop treat. Sadly, in a possible case of Blame the Director, this was a case that Videos with Pop bands and kids was never a wise move, even with good intentions. Plus, the song did not grace the UK Indie Singles chart as it was possibly due to it being not with the Gothic Doom and Gloom and the Wanna-Be Smiths attitude that was trendy at the time in Indie-land while the US chart placement was only down to #91 circa Apr. for a one month stay...not a good sign!



In 1984, it looked like that they were going to be one of THOSE 80's bands - Not so well known in The UK, better known in the US but still winding up something of a one-hit wonder that was pushed aside by the time MTV developed their superstars. There were some fine songs on Ricochet Days, but there was some trouble in trying to convince a lot of people who only go by the last video and move with the trends about this, although the increasingly twee nature of some of them was also another problem. The album wound up doing #93 in The States on a three month sighting, only to wind up in the Cut Outs very soon.




After many years, fans of the 4AD era had a chance to hear what was happening by this time. Again, this is filed in the "you can't blame them" department as the band aimed for higher ground as they moved to Sire completely after possibly seeing themselves as small priority over at the legendary Indie. There may have been some hints with this final recording for them...



...which then turned into this.



Then the problems really started.

A change in sound was now in order...or possibly ordered by Sire after seeing a lot of it's New Pop bands fall by the wayside by 1984 (I'm sure Seymour Stein was not happy that the once world-conquering Soft Cell went into more interesting worlds as their sales slipped big.). Through a quiet 1985, and a prominent change in base in NYC, they wound up on the main label and went to work on their Mid-80's album that would sink the band quick. True, there's fans of Stop Start, but it's convincing that they love that BIG BIG 80'S SOUND - filled with Treble. With album #4, I heard a band that was willing to do anything to make sure they were going to continue while losing their unique edge as they sounded like any other band by this time...with bad videos and a guitarist that looked like Long John Silver's lost cousin.

Still, let this be a warning, this song will hook you. It's a Big 80's Sound with everything in place.




As 1986 rolled around, dropping off Brown and a change of Keyboardist to Aaron Davidson rounding out the band, Modern English turned out one of the many Quick to Cut Out Land albums of the year, and it's first single, "Ink and Paper", this time written in collaboration with the Rubinoos (and with a dash of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" thrown in), showed that the plan to Pop which worked a charm the first time around back in '82 was their ruin in '86 despite a halfway decent single in there. Was there anything else good about this album other than the last 4AD era song given a new production? To me, with one 80's song after another coming at you loud without any substance to back them up and with 80's Guitar solos all around, not really.

OK, I might have been harsh, and there are moments where the Modern English harmonies show up, but truth is truth. Still, as a credit reader, it was nice to see Gary Barnacle, Horn player to the British New Pop stars, getting another gig on this album. See, I'm not THAT judgmental!



So what happened after? A move to TVT who unfortunately forced them to re-record "I Melt With You" for their failed comeback Pillow Lips album, a move to Imago for 1996's Everything's Mad, the usual retrospectives (The 4AD released one is the one to go for!), many live shows with Grey and a new line-up, and 2010's Soundtrack that got a good write up in AMG. While all of this was happening, "I Melt With You" still gets played and possibly offers the original line-up some nice change from time to time (Written by Modern English read the credit!). Despite having that sad Mid 80's fall off, the end of the story was not bad for an iconic one-hit wonder that had more to offer.

Well, as you traveled this far into my report, here's that song. Plus, it's straight from the 4AD You Tube list. They have every right to be proud (despite, once again, a very dodgy...aah, forget it, it's iconic, the song's great, that's all that matters!).

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JUST SOME RANDOM GHOST MALL MUSIC NOTES

Double Album Album collections time - or as I like to call it the Nice Pair Syndrome
Keith Emerson With The Nice (Mercury, 1972 comprising Five Bridges Suite and Elegy)
Cat Stevens - Matthew and Son and New Masters (Deram, 1971 from albums released in 1967 and 68)

I have been going through my collection recently and noticed a hell of a lot of trends going through it. Double Album Sets of Old Albums or Nice Pair Syndrome comes to mind. I was thinking of doing a journal called Make Mine a Double celebrating that glorious era where the record companies wasted a lot of money and vinyl in trying to sell off the remaining stock of some of their back catalog once one of the musicians that they used to have made it big in the Album Rock world. The Nice is a band not many have remembered in the States except if you like me are so crazy into the Immediate Story, but once you say Keith Emerson was in it, the interest picks up a little although of course the worldwide interest is still pretty good today. That was what Mercury did when they sold off the remaining stock of Elegy and Five Bridges Suite (well, at least Elegy as 5 Bridges was given the new name) under the name Keith Emerson WithThe Nice. It was sold in several markets to some success although not too much in The States and today you're lucky to find it alongside the later ELP albums that hit the cutouts or, if in a better area, the very albums that made ELP's name in the used bins.



For those who like those classic concert clips, here's the classic version of "America" that was performed in an excellent extended live version on Elegy, but sadly it's not easy to find on the Tube, so here's a Swedish clip from 1968.


Very little is mentioned about the band on Keith Emerson and The Nice, but they possibly figured that you're buying it for the name and not the band. Sad, but The Nice were good and deserving of their legend.

Oh yeah. they were subject to craploads of re-issues and "Greatest Hits" releases that mainly were re-pressings of the first album with altered track listings and songs dropped off for a single.


While Cat Stevens was winning the hearts of post-hippies with songs like "Oh Very Young", Deram/Decca decided to get some Retro Money with their pressing of Matthew and Son and New Masters. While he did make a few chart hits in The UK, over in The States he was not as known beyond those who followed the British charts. In other words, this was possibly the first time Mainstream America hear this much-covered song which was not even a single for it's writer (it was a hit for PP Arnold in '68...DAMN, another Immediate connection in this post!)...in the live footage, you will see a young Cat without all of the hippie mystic mumbo jumbo and just rocking out as a short time teen idol, the side that The US rarely heard.




It was possibly safe not to show the track listing on the double album product in The States avoiding those "I Never Heard of This" complaints that will turn into a No Sale/Not Interested response, as there was hardly any songs a common American even heard. Kind of gives it that sense of mystery of what they were going to get - Cat in Swinging London trying to be a hip hit songwriter and actually achieving it a couple of times on these two albums before he changed his tune for The 70's.

In fact, Matthew and Son was a very small chart album in The US, peaking at #197 through this release in 1971. On it's original release, New Masters tanked in The UK following the debut's Top 10 position.

As for US singles, "I Love My Dog" was #118 in '66, "Matthew" was #115 in '67, and "Kitty" missed all together in '68. They were all UK hits. Father and Son was recently sung by Ronan Keating for a charity single in The UK for the Band Aid Trust featuring backing vocals from Stevens, now known as Yusuf Islam, who has been releasing recordings under the name for quite a while.

Here's a "Very Young" Cat Stevens...Damn I have to stop it with the bad puns! On the debut, another "Very Young" studio musician was on Bass...John Paul Jones later of Led Zeppelin!


Here's Cat giving it the Scott for this performance!



A little more on these kinds of albums, plus a little more insight on both of these in a later post, but I have to get this thing moving again or it will be back in that state of limbo that was it was for the last few months. More later!!!

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I seriously hope that the planned Documentary on Devo will be finished. OK, now onto the new review...

Devo-Shout (1984)



It's seriously hard for me to criticize an album by a band I love, but it's still one I seriously learn from - something you don't get with any ordinary band. This is about a band who actually mean a hell of a lot to the evolution of music and video, but this is one that almost killed their position in music let alone having that dip in a time when the very thing they helped start was going down into an area that was marked self-parody with that band turning into a big example of one to some - and there was no supportive on-line fanbase to heavily defend this album or the band back in 1984 as they were moving down the Pop Culture chain.

After years of not hearing the full album, I finally decided to give this a go, with the Warners' saw cut being the mark for the Ghost Mall. Wen the needle hit the record, I thought that my original gut reactions for avoiding the record were justified. I had a strong negative reaction upon hearing this at first, but as much as I still view it as a weak Devo album there are some second thoughts considering the electronic sound of the album and hearing this on computer (some may even want to hear this on CD!), which proves that this was not meant for vinyl when all is said and done. Then again, I might be finding something great to say about this...so follow along.

Anyways...Here I go. Once again, I love this band, but not this album much.
"Feel my pain!"...or just "Laugh at me".

Let the Synth Horns that sound like a cheap video game on a Devo album after years of well constructed sounds shout out!!! (I wonder, though, if Death in June heard this...the start sounds a bit Nada-ish...)



It was Late 1984, and time was tight for Devo - make or break time! The last album, Oh No It's Devo was less of a hit than their 1980 breakthrough album Freedom of Choice and the 1981 follow-up New Traditionalists. 1983 saw a disappointing theme for Dr. Detroit, a single that slightly charted in The US as well as went under the Top 75 radar in England, and that really was almost all that you heard for a while. In a way, you could sense that this was going to be an album that had to be good or face some sad decision for the band. There was the news-making cover and video for Jimi Hendrix's "Are You Experienced" which got more notice than the album itself, so at least this did not go down without a fight, but as you can tell something was going wrong otherwise.

SPECIAL BONUS TRACK - The theme to Dr. Detroit! (#98 in The UK!) Get out your rubber gear!!!





The cover - Kids?!!! I knew that Devo had their own world and they seem to be very cool mega intelligent guys with some uniqueness that makes them stand out, and their images did border on the cheesy at times, but to a good amount of listeners not so well in tune with Devo it seemed very old school fast food ad cheesy and a one-shot method to the cut out bin fast and furious (Alternative to the snobs then meant serious stuff!) - and while seeing those Shout! shirts on the order form looked cool, you certainly wound not want to be seen in one. Strike one! The inner sleeve shots with the band looking pretty cool if a little over-made up in the Chinese-American Friendship Suits (also sold) would have been far better! Also, in the Shout catalog for this album had a Shout! Club Cap that looks like The fast food connection closer...see the Skip Track section.

Plus, and this is just my view, the kids may hint as some possible regression back to their childhoods - going back to go forward in Devo's belief - The simple with modern tech. 8 Bit before 8 Bit was Cool!



Oh No! They REALLY Devo-ed! (or did they not?) - I knew that Devo were one of the major steps in Electronic music and obviously were aiming to do a mostly-electronics album with the expected guitar touches of Bob 1, which would have came as no surprise especially as Mark Mothersbaughs other Brother, Jim, worked at Roland, who had a few new machines for the band to try out. Still, that's not the point - the case here is that the songwriting seemed a little too dashed off with repeated phrases and even more uses of ripped off melodies for a few phrases here and there than usual. In other words, this was way too late in the game with the muse clearly gone with pressure to cook up a sellable album after Oh No It's Devo caught some fire after seeing one of John Hinkley's poems set to music, a move that some people did not like at all and 1983 was relatively quiet sans a single.

Maybe it was a case of pressure, maybe a case of inter-band leaders vs. the rest of the band stuff, maybe all of the above in a cooker about to explode.

Then again...a little bit of that later.

Who was running the show? - Devo may have been still together in their classic line up, but it sounds like that it was only Jerry Casale (with help from brother Robert, or Bob 2) and Mark (with help from brother Jim from Roland) straining to come up with an album that would have commercial potential after seeing their status die sharply, with a sharp Honda Motor Scooter TV ad seen as a career low by snobs now an iconic 80's moment and but also a step for up Mark Mothersbaugh into the world of commercials - a lot of their other special appearances were in more interesting things like the movie Pray TV (Where they appear as Dove, an anagram of the band's name where they play a Christian group) or even the Square Pegs TV show (cult, not a hit show). Reportedly Bob 1 (Mothersbaugh) was having some personal problems enough to add something here and there but not everywhere while in 1985 their Drummer Alan Myers left after having some problems with the new recording set ups which resulted in his resignation from the band.



Highlights? - There were a couple, but if you hear "Are You Experienced" after hearing 20/20's iconic Power Pop song "Yellow Pills" you just might get the "Connection" between the melody of the verses. Yes, it was not a carbon copy, but it's that close! Still there was songs like "The 4'th Dimension" featuring some good emotive vocals from Mark and "Jurisdiction of Love" (like "Don't Rescue Me", written alone by Mark) which would have made a good EP.

By the way, just for the compare and contrast, hear Devo's "Are You Experienced" again, then hear this verse to verse (Not the choruses).


The Skip Track - There may be those who defend "Puppet Boy" for having Boojie Boy for the first time in voice on a Devo record, but it sounded very stupid even if it did go with some part of the philosophy. Other than that, there's the not so full powered songs like "Here to Go" (once again a Fast Food-style line used), "C'mon" (C'mon?), "Please Please" (Me?), and "The Satisfied Mind" where we know that having a mind that's satisfied is not really all that's meant to be.




The defense - Hardly any except for the few good songs plus catching the parts of the guitar solos doing licks from The Beatles' "Day Tripper" and Davie Allen's "Blues Theme" (the one that many reviewers NEVER get!!!). In a way, with the odd tips of the hat to music memories, you could understand Jerry and Mark harking back to their 60's past, pre-Kent State, with simple songs with catchy riffs and sing along styles. One of the kids on the cover is actually the step son of 60's Psychedelic idol Timothy Leary, Zachary Chase. Regression, Devo style! You have to admit that "The 4'th Dimension" actually is a bit of a B-Movie ready song!

Still, if you're hearing them on a computer or even I Pad, there's the possibility that these songs may work! Considering the mechanical world of Pop these days, these should sound pretty damn good today. They knew where the future was headed, after all! It's kind of retro cool - ready for the CD era when a lot of the music world was still in Vinyl and perfect music to play old school games with. Sadly, due to circumstances beyond human control, the entire vision was not complete and left empty and it was not up to the level of total Devo classics like those found on the first four albums.

While there were already all-electronics albums that hit well (hello, Kraftwerk), Devo were seen as one of the originals who were a part of the Pop Culture that still were a major part of Synth Pop's development even in a classic band style that still used Rock as a way to subvert, something very important to The States where many music listeners were still clutching onto Arena and Boogie Rock. Sadly their vision was fading out when they went more into the Electronics with Oh No... and were disintegrating when they were recording Shout! which can be seen as a case of the tech taking over the creativity. It was a right kind of album for Devo, but sadly at a bad time and long after their formation and early years which saw many of their innovative ideas already created before a good amount of the world heard of them.

Timing - Could not have been worse! Right when mega MTV hits were happening (some seriously deserved...Prince seriously upstaged maybe everyone in the Pop Pantheon that year), Band Aid was big news, Frankie Goes to Hollywood getting the last New Pop era hit with a bloated double album, and U2 was stealing a lot of attention with the New Music set with their 4'th album, this went to the flop house along with Fee Waybill's solo Read My Lips, David Bowie's Top 20 but still flop Tonight, Men Without Hats more stupid than Shout! crap of Folk of The 80's Part 3 and Dave Edmund's Riff Raff (including the not so good synthed up "Information"). As Culture Club's Waking Up With the House on Fire proved that the 80's Pop dream was really over for the early MTV crew (soon to be confirmed with a VJ shake up by the Late 80's) and U2's Unforgettable Fire being the base for the many clones to come for the next couple of years, mainly to show that New Rock was the commercial tool (In The US, there was still fear of Synths) Shout! showed that if even a legendary band was doomed to release a half powered album, then things were going to be tough all over for the scene.

Plus, as a piece of trivia, the Jimi Hendrix estate had released a posthumous collection out at this time as well, Kiss the Sky, which sadly did less business than it should have...



Personal reflections - This sounds like an album that was rushed due to in band problems and maybe contractual pressures while trying out a new strategy for recording. As Devo worked great as a band that blended Electronics with Rock through the course of four classic albums and slipping with a more electronic fifth, the danger signs were clear as day. Only a third works, and that was not what it took to keep the career moving even if their video to Are You Experienced was a strong big budgeted happening - The order form's flip side advertising their video collection on Sony Home Video was another hint that they were headed to Memory Lane.

Synth powered music needed a major shake up, and at that's something for Ministry to be thanked for, but that was for 1986...when Devo went even deeper into the crap for a cover of "Bread and Butter" for the soundtrack to 9 1/2 Weeks. True, both Mark and Jerry would find a lot of success through the years the band were not active after two disappointing albums for Enigma (and let's skip the ill fated Devo 2.0 project, please), and even Shout! was re-issued through Henry Rollins' Infinite Zero label giving it some long overdue respect value (Out of Print quick...collectable!), but it would take a reunion and a good new album to at least put a true happy ending to their story.

Alan Myers passed away on June 24, 2013 (stomach cancer). RIP

Don't believe they looked cool on Motor Scooters? DIG THIS!

Unknown Soldier

I thought Shout was a terrible album and the band were never the same after (based on what I've heard) The band maintained a peak over their first five studio album (even though I think New Traditionalists is the weakest of these albums) It's hard to believe that Shout only came out a few years after the excellent Oh, No! Its Devo album.

__________________
Metal Wars

Power Metal

Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History

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What a difference two years makes, indeed. For some reason I have a hate/half-like affair with that album now - don't worry not really a full on like but something of a respect that they Mark and Jerry tried something under increasingly difficult circumstances that was actually released under contract which at least had one last classic Devo shot before it all fell down (pre-reunion, of course). I used to really slam it down through the last few months after hearing it, but maybe I'm kind of seeing it's few strengths as something as a VERY flawed precursor of what was to happen in Mark Mothersbaughs's career as a Soundtrack composer with a few slightly interesting quirks to make it worth owning despite being weak. There were more superior examples of Electronic music around, especially within the underground (and, dare I say, Noise), but Devo's take on the music in their Early years even in the worst of times has some charm for me now - although you might want to chalk that down to getting back to my day in music before it's too late.

The only problem I have with them, besides that damn Devo 2.0, are the Enigma albums that show a band seriously struggling to keep afloat within a label which was not really able to promote them well with two albums that had worse album covers than Shout! (The Total Devo cover reeked of desperation enough for me to have avoided it even now). Although the faithful may find "Disco Boy" (once again with song-saving Guitar twang from Bob 2) with some charm, in the end that's where it was all over and done. The video was placed on MTV's Make or Break (or whatever it was called) and seriously lost and while some may call it playing it for the wrong audience, it would have flopped any way in my opinion.

Oh No... has it fans, and respectfully so, plus it was a bit of a fun relief from the over-seriousness of New Traditionalists (which for me still has "Beautiful World" and "Enough Said" as favorites), but when one looks at the same looking videos for "That's Good", "Peek a Boo", and "Time Out For Fun", all decent singles, there seemed to be something a bit off while trying to have something that looked like the live show of that album. The ride was slightly going off the rails, and it was in 1983 when things were getting to the point where one had to worry. There seemed to be a very uneasy balance going on - having Cult Art friends (The Church of the Sub Genius being connected with a couple of their videos like "Love Without Anger"), trying to keep in the Pop spotlight, and dealing with a fragmenting band. Maybe it would have been best if Shout! would have been rejected by the label forcing Mark and Jerry to do a whole other album's worth of music, but it was really the twilight time for their time in the sun, but in a perverse way what was released was almost like a prediction of how Pop music has been turning out to be although without the quirks that makes the band at their next to worst at least interesting to some.

Sometimes I have to have those ugly duckling albums that will never turn into swans (somehow there's a bad pun in what I just wrote) by bands I respect just to remind me of how far down the chain bands can go who may have one or two tricks despite those tricks being weakly performed and very non-effective to the average listener. I don't expect any love for Shout!, but I find something interesting within the sad story of what it actually is. A painful mark of an end of an era, but a also message that Synth powered music seriously had to shape up, and Devo's music was not going to be as strong as Are We Not Men anymore with it already regressing by that time - it was going to be someone else, or a number of different musicians to do that.

Maybe that's what I hear in that album when all is said.

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I'm going to go to a different topic in this journal. I'll admit that talking about failed albums, especially those that deserved their fate, drains me out quite a bit - that means a look into Allman and Woman will have to wait for a long time. I take too long and go into things more seriously than what I should.

in my research, I have actually been getting into singles that "Bubbled Under" the UK Top 75, possibly sparked by my interest in one of my favorite underdog bands of The 80's, The Icicle Works - the band known in The US with Birds Fly (Whisper to a Scream) and in The UK with the light but still pretty cool Love Is a Wonderful Colour. The saddest thing was that Arista, the label that released the Icicles' first album flat out rejected their great second album, The Small Price of a Bicycle as "Punk Demos" - although I think that the company were saving all their promotional monies for Whitney that year and weeding out their Alternative wing (what little of it they actually had by then!), but that's just my opinion and I hope that someone will do a full research on that. Most of the rest of the world followed suit that year, with only Canada being treated with an EP of some of that year's music by the band.

Little did I really know back then was that as they had a little success with their albums If You Want to Defeat Your Enemy Sing His Song and Blind, almost every one of their singles except for a couple hovered around the 100-76 area of the chart. At first I owned that famed Guinness book of records that made the 75, but I wanted to know more and thankfully I came across a couple of sites, one having it's compiled charts took down by the BPI, which detailed things more for me. Being one of the many New Pop kids that was also an Info Freak (o - yes, a Jesus Jones reference!), you could say that I had some headaches and a lot of fun finding out what went on in that Limbo world between making the big chart and totally failing.

My research starts in at 1983, kind of a perfect way to actually get into the 80's way (although I'm sure that my LP Chart search goes a couple of years before that!).

Right now, let's take a look at the Bubbling Under Adventures of the Icicle Works' through the years featuring their main lineup of Ian McNabb, Chris Layhe (Bass), and Chris Sharrock (Drummer - later in World Party, The Las, and I think even Oasis for a short while!).

This part will look at 83, 84, and 85, three pretty cool years of music that still has a strong cult today.

On 7/1/83, after a 1981 cassette called Ascending and the classic "Nirvana" debut single (which was a small Indie hit in 1982), "Birds Fly (A Whisper to a Scream)" made it's very first attempt to rise into the charts hitting in at #90. Later it would peak in the Top 60, but this first edition carried the B Sides of Reverie Girl and Gun Boys on the 12 Inch with the first song only on the 7...aah, the days of multi-formating.





As some remember, in The UK, they had a pretty good Top 20 hit with "Love Is a Wonderful Colour" and then another run of "Birds Fly" that went to #53 that actually had a shave of Top 40 Action in The US where where jangle sound had a number of fans that were more comfortable with their great Guitar music than what a lot of people were passing off as New Wave (I think there was a Budweiser radio commercial to that song then as well...that was when even Oingo Boingo had a TV ad for the beer company, not the best of promotion ideas for a New Pop crowd who were mainly not amused - but I digress). The second version of the single had In the Cauldron of Love plus Scarecrow and Ragweed Campaign for the 12 ("In the Dance the Shaman Led" was the US B-side).

Then after a while of promoting in the US ("I Never Saw My Hometown Till I Went Around the World" would be a good way to hear McNabb's views on the touring subject) in October, 1984 saw their return with "Hollow Horse" go all the way, way up to...#91. OUCH! What is seen as one of their greatest singles of all time came in a month of other great singles that under performed such as Cabaret Voltaire's legendary "Sensoria" (#95) and SPK's "Junk Funk" (#94)...in VERY good company even if the sound is clearly 180 Degrees apart from those two great Electronic cult hits.

Although one can say that "Hollow Horse" was too Guitar rocking for the Pop charts this time, with the fans of "Love Is a WC" possibly in shock at the Rock image they were headed for, one could also point to the slightly clumsy video as a cause of the single's failure as well.



Here's the appearance on The Tube with a great comment from Jools Holland at the start.


Later on in May 1985, there would be the Motown-influenced "All the Daughters of Her Fathers House"...don't ask me what it means. A classy B&W/Color video was made of "Their Fab New Single", but even that would not do the trick. They were already in the breed of great 80's bands who created Byrds/Buffalo Springfield influenced music, and were tough enough to be as popular as the Long Ryders and very early REM even after tasting a brief moment of stardom, The Icicles were still putting up a good fight to return to the Pop charts in an era of Wham.



In June, 1985 came the classic "Seven Horses" which at least scrapped it's way to #82 in the same week as The Cure stole a lot of Alternative thunder debuting with their amazing Poptastic comeback "In Between Days" (a long runner on the single charts peaking at UK #15) plus a cult hit in The Untouchables' "I Spy for the FBI" steeling even more with a song that was produced by Jerry Dammers (#59, but hovering around for a month and a half it seemed). This was seriously a case of bad timing here...it was a dog eat dog scene, after all!

Starting off with Ian on the Modern MOO-g Tech of the day, here's a live performance...




As their second album, The Small Price of a Bicycle, was rejected by Arista as "Punk Demos" (My thoughts on this rejection, the label was saving all their money for the promotion of Whitney Houston...just my guess as their Alternative section was very, very slim) and not released by other countries around the world following it's UK#55 peak (well, at least Kate Bush stole a lot of thunder from the rest of the competition, so I'm not complaining this time!), there was one last epic of 1985 in "When It All Comes Down", another song which I think had no video to promote it for the second single in the row. The "Midfield General" (thanks, John Peel!) is with a beard in this live clip on the Whistle Test, and the end credits show a very interesting line up for the next show (The Clash in their Cut the Crap lineup...need to look for that one!)



To those wondering about how the studio version sounded, here's the original mix (there was a re-do for a 1992 Best Of...). Still wondering why this missed the chart all together (now...damn me and my cheesy references even if it does fit).



To wrap things up, here's the B to "Hollow Horse", the cult classic "The Atheist", plus "Seven Horses" B, "Slingshot" featuring Sharrock's thundering Drumming that made the early Works' sound.



Part Two soon, but there's other sounds I want to get to as well...enjoy!

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You know that I love supporting music new and 100 percent all the way, but you have to admit that sometimes you have to think about that budget, especially as a music listener who still has that fever to actually own the damn thing. Back in The 70's, the bargain bins were almost like a calling to some, knowing that the more outcast the music the better it might be. In the MC5 Documentary A True Testimonial, High Time Producer Geoff Haslam even said that the thrust of musical development comes from the outside...many events through the years have proven that strong and all too correct.

Through The 70's, there was something wild happening that was released to the public that either did not know or even did not want to know in the era of AOR, MOR, and Muzak. Kids with a couple of dollars to spare and an addiction for vinyl sometimes looked in the budget bins, especially those who were not happy with the Top 10 and wanting something a little different. In a way, you could say that Punk, Alternative, and possibly even Techno (hey, who knows, maybe your favorite DJ started buying Disco past the assumed sell by date and just rocked to the beat) were partially born from the Cut Outs, outcast sounds given loving homes and sometimes influencing the listeners to do something.

in recent years, some of the most important of these albums have seen extensive re-issues, and that makes me feel good.

CUT OUT THEN, IMPORTANT NOW


In the Internet, quotes are usually used in the worst of ways, and following that great tradition, I will gladly use myself, my experiences, and what I learned through the years as a customer of the Music Industry who loved going through the Cut Outs to learn that some of my purchases through my teen years and those of cheap teens looking for a vinyl fix in a time when records were flying out of the production lines sometimes form a cult following that sometimes leads to important music scenes and usually to very expensive re-issues featuring all kinds of bells and whistles for you to part with your hard earned cash for a good reason. Every one of these albums usually has that group of johnny come lately people who were never around when the original article was out and about, ignored and flopped into a cheap bin, but always use those albums as proof that music of a long time ago was better than it is now once that influential album gets a powerful release to a waiting and wanting group of buyers who wanted to know (I was sometimes in that group, so it takes one to know one!).

Yeah, it was a great time, but as back then as now, the good stuff can be described with a very important comment from one who knew. The Co-Producer of The MC5's High Time, Geoff Haslam, stated "The real thrust of musical development comes from the outside", and back when Music was an important commerce-driven industry, a lot of that development was shunned off to the Cut Outs after the original release flopped and failed with few sales of a fresh pressed copy. Back then, a lot of music-driven Teens with very little money but a lot of reading and researching or with a drive and an instinct to find out about that edge that was never promoted for various reasons (usually half the band's own - half the industry that wanted to shove them off) decided to part with a couple of dollars for a taste of real music education.

I'm sure there's a modern day Internet-based comparison, although to me it lacks the feeling of going to a store and finding something that was cut which would possibly lead to something in the future. Yeah, I'm showing my age, but at least I don't dismiss downloaders who are seriously into the music and the alternatives. Enough of my thoughts, let's get into the music!

One of my favorite examples, released a little before my time in the marketplace, is Iggy and The Stooges Raw Power. This was the very album that kids in LA actually parted their pennies for once it hit the 99 cent bin after knowing of his wasted presence in the Sunset Strip/Rodney's English Disco scene which was a part of forming it's very influential Punk scene. One look at that cover, knowing of the MOR crap that hit the American Top 10 (now you understand why I don't side with Carpenters Retro Fans who knew in my time it was Us Vs. Them), and you could just feel the inspiration.

Released in what's possibly Columbia's final time when they did not mind sending albums to that valley of the damned (after the Mid 70's, they put a major slow down), there was a brief time when it faced going full on out of print until a group of Punks in The UK showed that there was an audience for it. There have been many re-issues ranging from a Nice Price release as 1) it was produced by David Bowie and 2) It's an important album for a lot of musicians who formed the basis of Punk and Alternative.



There were those who claim with all the right to that The MC5's albums were slapped into the Cut Outs who bought them at first 99 Cent Sight, with their two Atlantic albums landing in the fastest. As someone who actually spotted High Time at a high price with "That Mark" as well as Back in the USA with the C/O Hole, you can quote The Beatles by saying "Yes it is, it's true". A number of Michigan Musicians wanting to know what they were like in a time when The 'Nuge and Bob Seger were making their hit records (and when singer Rob Tyner was milking the name with a new backing band as a warm up act and playing small clubs and ran down theaters) finally found out what it was like before FM Album Rock turned into a boring molten mess to hear that MI actually had a real alternative. Some of them wanted to join up what was going on in the Late 70's after hearing a lot of people in England bringing up their name in major respect.

While The 5 shot themselves in the foot many times over through their original existence, for every mistake there was another progression, possibly the fate of ground breakers of all eras. The lean production of Back in The USA which was a relief from the bloated Hippie jams of the day led to Punk (especially in England where that title was possibly as mentioned as much as Raw Power in some circles) and the fuller sound of High Time was just a full on sharp attack of excellent music heard by few back in the day. It was almost like you were part of a secret society of those who knew it was an important album.

I was very young when High Time escaped, about 5-6, but if I would have knew then, I would have been a believer as well.





In the Late 80's, the PVC label was a company that found a lot of it's records in the cheap bins, especially once it went out of business as a sub label of Passport circa 1988, and possibly the most talked about album in that batch when one thinks of important albums is Big Star's Third/Sister Lovers. The release may have been called not the definitive article, and in fact Producer Jim Dickenson called the PVC release "a bootleg as far as I'm concerned" for a Mojo article in 2000, but I'm convinced that if everyone that heard Big Star's music became a critic (or wanna-be critic) in a time when their music was not seen as a commercial path for musicians that were instead encouraged to form bar bands, then Third was the one that inspired a small group of musicians who got into the darker areas and covered them to greater success...yes, I'm looking at you This Mortal Coil (great covers!)...or just get into the great melodies for learning on how to create memorable Pop (hear Kizza Me) and that seriously goes for possibly every 80's Alternative band around the world who caught wind of the album through hipster mention or band name drop.

The lack of any industry support after a Stax Records test pressing was made in the company's original final days in 1975 (early in the next year it would claim Chapter 11), Big Star's troubled life in it's pre-reunion round, and PVC's first release helped create an army of people who loved it. Through the Late 70's and Early 80's, it was almost like a manual for Alternative bands with This Mortal Coil's covers of "Kangaroo" and "Holocaust" only adding more interest within the Underground. In a time of New Pop's bloated era and the days when The 'Mats, REM, and even Husker Du were very known in the Late 80's, copies of Big Star's Third were finding their way into the cut outs through Passport's closing which effected the future of PVC releases, and those who were only starting to catch on found out that a good amount of what they listened to had some of it's beginnings in an album that was recorded in 1974.




Speaking of PVC, it also had US Distribution of some albums released in the UK through Some Bizzare (a very influential Indie who licensed Soft Cell to great success to Sire), Self Immolation (Really, Jim Thrilwell), and Ze. The fate of Big Star's Third also wound up with the first US releases of albums like Scraping Foetus Off the Wheel's Hole and Einsturzende Neubauten's Drawing of OT. While technically they were not really "Cut Out" in the normal definition, they found their way into the cheap bins at better record stores in one way or another. That was where I found them, with bonus 12" discs!

After finding the world of New Pop a dead end, you can say that those on the outside with a couple of dollars found some answers or new expressions in these albums. Some of the Industrial scene got it start here...remember the "Outside" Haslam was talking about? For The 80's, this was as outside as it could get!




Sometimes being cheap can be a good decision. Of course buying a Cut Out was not going to lead to artist support at the time, but in some cases it did lead to a lot of influence that would at least give the music some exposure that led to a greater audience which helped later on.