Onslaught (not to be confused with the speed / thrash metal band of the same name)
were a
Punk Rock band from Hertfordshire formed by Simon (vocals), Matt (lead guitar), Adrian (guitar), Sam (bass) and Tom (drums). Their only EP, 'First Strike', contains slow-to-medium-tempo stuff with no special spunk. “State Control” has a great memorable chorus, but the sluggish drumming holds Onslaught back. [SOURCE: MAXIMUM ROCKNROLL]
Label:
Complete Control – contrOL1, Complete Control – TROL1
Null Set recorded their only EP under the auspices of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design between October and November, 1980. The four (Chris Cooper, Ron Dickie, Allan Scarth and Heather Ferguson) no doubt helped to kick start a nascent post-punk scene way out in the far-flung, though student-heavy, Halifax area. Much of the record treads those by now well-worn paths of quivering vocals, scratchy guitars and stop-start rhythms so common at the time. But for those looking for something a little farther out, the opener "Stripe", a mostly wacked-out drum and synth workout by Ferguson and Dickie, packs decades of fun into its brief (1:17) existence. That one is still amazing after all these years! And for those crate-diggers who are adding this to their lists, 'New Job' was pressed up in a relatively healthy run of 1000 copies. [SOURCE: CITIZEN FREAK]
Label:
Null Records – PAR 12-128
Format:
Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM, EP
Country:
Canada
Released:
1980
Style:
Art Rock, New Wave, Experimental, Post-Punk, Art Punk, Experimental Rock
The Moodists were a Melbourne, Australian post-punk band that formed in 1980, when Dave Graney, Clare Moore and Steve Miller of punk group Sputniks moved from Adelaide to Melbourne. They added bass player Chris Walsh and later added guitarist Mick Turner. After recording two singles and a six track EP for the Au Go Go label in Melbourne they relocated to London.
They then recorded the albums 'Thirstys Calling' (1984) and 'Double Life' (1985), a nice mix of Captain Beefheart with the post-punk of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. The band supported Public Image Limited on their 1984 tour of Australia, along with punk band Box of Fish. They returned to Australia in 1985 for six months (Turner quit and reconvened his earlier group Fungus Brains; he would later form Dirty Three) and then travelled again to the UK. During this time they toured extensively through Northern Europe and also made a short tour of the United States.
Label:
Red Flame – RFM 44
Format:
Vinyl, 12", 33 ⅓ RPM, EP
Country:
UK
Released:
1985
Style:
Alternative Rock, New Wave, Post-Punk, Punk Blues
Originally formed in 1983 in England, Last Rough Cause has undergone a number of line up changes bringing us to the present day. The best way to describe the sound of the band is to say is it's foundation is built on melodic punk rock drawing influences from the early roots of the 76/77 scene right up to the current modern punk sound.
Anhrefn (Welsh for "Disorder") were an influential punk rock band from Bangor, North Wales and formed in 1982, and initially sang only in Welsh. The band were not supported by Radio Cymru or Welsh-language TV channel S4C, beyond an occasional interview, and bassist Rhys Mwyn became known as an outspoken critic of the Welsh pop industry. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
Label:
Released Emotions Records – REM 003
Format:
Vinyl, LP, Album
Country:
UK
Released:
1989
Style:
Rock & Roll, Punk, Oi, Punk Rock
Tracklist:
A1 Last Rough Cause – The Great Divide
A2 Last Rough Cause – Hey Lady
A3 Last Rough Cause – Feel The Fear
A4 Last Rough Cause – Locked Up
A5 Last Rough Cause – War Stories
A6 Last Rough Cause – Always Had It Easy
A7 Last Rough Cause – Time To Think
AA1 Anhrefn – Edrych Ar Y Rude Boys (An Old Classic)
AA2 Anhrefn – Cornel (The Old Man Alone In The Corner)
AA3 Anhrefn – Rhywle Yn Moscow (Love In Moscow)
AA4 Anhrefn – Action Man (Your Country Needs You?)
Kein MenscH was an underground band from the early 1980s from Hagen, Germany. They were also one of the first bands internationally to create new sounds with the Roland TR-808 drum computer and synthesizers such as the Korg MS-20 and Roland TB-303.
The music of Kein MenscH combines garish synthesizer sounds with the innovative use of electric guitars. Alternating between punky riffs, harmonious melodies and experimental sounds, they recorded a wide variety of songs about human strengths and weaknesses and deal with the social zeitgeist.
Kein MenscH's first single, produced by Tom Dokoupil (The Wirtschaftswunder), was released in 1981 on the indie label Tonträger 58. The following single 'Süchtig' was released in 1982 on the major label Virgin.
Tracks by the band were released in 1981 on the Neue Deutsche Welle sampler 'Alles aus Hagen', and in the 1982 TELDEC Records Sampler 'Neue Deutsche Unterhaltungsmusik (Rock In Deutschland, Vol. III)'. [SOURCE: LAST.FM]
Jus Dorange
was a Minimal Wave duo formed in Belgium by Dries Decocker (Durango & The Wall, The Misz, Absent Music) and Frank Decru. They only released this 7'' single on their own Trouble Records imprint.
Good comedic punk hardcore by Ism, from Bayside, Queens, N.Y.C. Band was originally a concept by manager and producer Bob Sallese and fronted by the enigmatic and classically trained pianist Jism. Ism's 1983 full-length debut 'A Diet For The Worms', originally available in a limited release by S.I.N. Records, dominated college radio and the CMJ radio charts while the group popularized their new brand of hardcore punk at venues like CBGB, City Gardens and A7 alongside the likes of The Ramones and Black Flag.
Before leading the cranky / sweet Magnapop through an ambitious release schedule in the '90 and '00, Linda Hopper partnered with Lynn Blakely in a Washington DC outfit dubbed Holiday. 'Hello', a lovely 1987 EP, blurs the lines between perky and melancholy in a way that recalls Let's Active debut. By the way, Hopper was in an earlier band called Oh-OK, based out of Athens which inlcuded not only Matthew Sweet but also Linda Stipe, who was the sister of Michael Stipe.
Geisterfahrer is a dark wave band from Hamburg that was founded in 1979 by Michael Ruff (vocals), Matthias Schuster (guitar, synthesizer, vocals), Hans Keller (violin, synthesizer, bass) and Holger Hiller (synthesizer). Supported by a drum machine, the group had one of their first appearances at the Hamburg "Into the Future" festival, where they provoked the hardcore punks there with improvised electrical noise so much that they were switched off during the gig. Holger Hiller left shortly afterwards to form Palais Schaumburg. Jürgen Weiss (drums, bass) joined the band as a replacement.
Geisterfahrer was the first band to release a single for Alfred Hilsberg's record label ZickZack Records. However, the EP 'Geisterfahrer' was inferior due to the lack of studio technology, so that the group was the first German new wave band to sign a contract with a major label. The debut LP 'Schatten Voraus' was released in 1980. With lyrics by singer Michael Ruff about scarlet fever and plague crosses, as well as a musical mixture of cold wave, gothic rock and medieval moments, Geisterfahrer steered into the dark wave environment and stylistically anticipated the Neue Deutsche Todeskunst. In 1980 they were pretty lonely with this kind of music.
A short later, Hans Keller left to work as a music journalist in New York. Shrinking into a trio, the follow-up LP 'Fest Der Vielen Sinne' turned out to be much more rock. The group now focused more on the dark wave sound a la Joy Division and Bauhaus. With "Himmel Auf Erden" there was even a smaller hit that found its way onto various NDW samplers. After various live concerts, the next LP 'Topal' was released in 1983, which was again produced independently of the industry in its own GF studio, but did not match the success of the previous records. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
Label:
Konkurrenz Schallplatten – KON 15, 0647 160
Peterboro, England-based indie pop combo the Fat Tulips was formed in 1987 by guitarist/songwriter Mark D. and singer Sarah C., the latter exiting upon the release of the duo's debut flexi-disc "You Opened Up My Eyes." Undaunted, Mark D. assembled guitarist Sheggi Clarkson, singer Katie Keen, bassist Paulie and drummer Matt Johnson to form a new Fat Tulips lineup which debuted in 1989 with the single "Where's Clare Grogan Now?," issued on their own Heaven Records imprint. Keen left the group immediately after, with Clarkson assuming vocal duties; the 'Four Songs for Simon EP' followed later that year, and in 1990 the band resurfaced with the four-song 'Ferensway'. A series of EPs including 1991's covers collection 'The Tulip Explodes', 1992's 'Nostalgia' and 1993's acoustic 'Albie' preceded the release of the Fat Tulips' long-awaited first full-length album, 'Starfish', with the group promptly disbanding soon after. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Label:
Sunday Records – Sunday 011
Format:
Vinyl, 7", EP
Country:
US
Released:
1992
Style:
Indie Rock, Indie Pop, Twee Pop
Tracklist:
A Rainbow Sky
B1 You Opened Up My Eyes
B2 On Virgin Isles
Notes:
Tracks were recorded at the Music Room, 29th June 1987
