Tuesday, December 23, 2008

(VA) Undergrowth 84 (Re-Upped)



More proof positive that Vancouver are the kings of late 70s/early 80s punk rock (also see previous post):

This post is a response to a request over at Dgrador's O Canadarm! site.

This is an excellent rare tape of the Vancouver scene with otherwise-unreleased tracks (live & demo's of released versions) from 1984 - mostly punk but with some art/alternative rock thrown in.

Undergrowth 84 was released on Collector's R.P.M. Records, which reportedly was a rather large record store in Vancouver, which dealt in vinyl collectables. The following description is based on another site's testimony:

"The smaller front part of the store had the 'KISS collectable corner' and the 'Beatles Museum' along with all the high-$ items; the larger rear of the place was a dark mould-smelling grotto of a few thousand LPs, EPs, 7"s, and tons of bootlegs of all genres including a wall of punk boot's. In the far back corner was a hidden door to a poster-lined stairway leading up to an antechamber of music & entertainment ephemera like posters, buttons, & TV Guides from the 1950s-1970s. Incredibly cool place, but around 1990 the owner slowly went crazy with paranoia & other strange symptoms, moved to a smaller shop (while the original site was razed for a big-name hotel) & would only let people in either through appointment or if they "looked right", and then even that disappeared....)"

The following year, CRPM would release Undergrowth 85.

Click On The Download Links Below.  

(VA) Undergrowth 84 (1984):

Side 1 (Tracks 1-26) 


Side 2 (Tracks 27-43) 

1NomeansnoSelf Pity6:21






2NomeansnoSome Bodies4:02






3Bill Of RightsBlind Society1:36






4Bill Of RightsShot In The Ass2:02






5Bill Of RightsBack In The USSR0:51






6Clay PigeonParty Line2:33






7Clay PigeonHoly War3:34






8Soldiers Of SportThe Broadcast4:11






9Celebrity DrunksLaugh Till I Cry2:39






10Culture ShockStay Away1:26






11Death SentenceGet Out Of The Way2:13






12Death SentenceReal World1:05






13Death SentenceUltra Violence3:23






14Unnatural SilenceMisfits Are Innocent1:04






15Unnatural SilenceEnemies0:56






16SporesMeat Bi-Product1:36






17SporesPervert Me2:02






18Sudden ImpactHostage Taker2:11






19Sudden ImpactShe Drives Me Crazy3:48






20House Of CommonsInsane2:15






21Uknown FibresSurfer Joe2:06






22SlowThe Night Before4:54






23EmilyCows In The Field4:21






24EmilyDoomed4:11






25Der MittelgangTake Away The Love3:13






26 Der MittelgangCharade3:12






 27Family PlotGravedigger2:15






28Family PlotTaxi Driver5:35






29Quantum LeapCancelled Picnic4:08






30Kevin ZedRoulette2:52






31Red HerringIf You Work For Me4:27






32Animal SlavesSave Me From Ruin4:22






33CrushedClever6:51






34Scott DevriesAutoerotica3:59






35MoevHa (Biblebelts)5:13






36Skinny PuppyGlass Houses3:27






37Skinny PuppyK-93:38






38Gord MartinStill Examination Of Objects In Space5:57






39Courage Of LassieHopes and Fears4:26






40Courage Of LassieGrablied (Loved Ones)3:19






41PepperlipHambulance1:55






42Blair PetrieDesulastantiate7:09






43Blair PetrieGog Demanos (Live)3:09






Vancouver Independence


Not having grown up in either Toronto or Vancouver, I cannot personally attest to the efficacy of their respective punk scenes, circa 1980. But having listened to the musical records (excuse the pun) of each scene, it would seem to be that Vancouver was the punk capital of Canada. The sheer number of bands makes the city one to rival the London scene at the time.

Anyway, in 1980 this compilation was released, showcasing fourteen tracks by some of the city's independent artists. This collection is by no means "Punk" in the sense of the term as we know it: ie. how one might describe the music -- "rough, loud, etc."... But this is definitely punk in spirit.

The music is admittedly all over the map and may not always work, but that's neither here or there; it's merely my opinion. I'm posting it here for archival purposes.

Enjoy.


(VA) Vancouver Independence (1980):

1SubhumansBehind My Smile2:53






2MetrosDon't Like It At All2:49






3Si MonkeyThe Conquest Of Daytime2:58






4No ExitNo Excuse3:42






5DroogsNuremberg '342:56






6B-SidesSpy vs. Spy2:41






7Melodic Energy CommisionWhat Would You Say?2:50






8B-SidesUnderground Radio Stars2:40






9DroogsJ.K.O.3:09






10No ExitNothing New3:36






11Si MonkeyGet Rigid3:29






12SubhumansOut Of Line1:36






13MetrosIn With The Crowd2:22






14The Singing CowboysMidnight Cowboy3:41






Monday, December 22, 2008

Uh-Oh Canada! - Vol. 1 (Fan Comp)



Here's an early Christmas gift for you:

This is a fan compilation I made, of nothing but Canadian underground rock from between 1975-1995. This is the first in a series of similar comps I'm putting together.

I've tried to put together a nice mix of different styles, from straight-ahead Punk Rock and Garage Punk, to Alt-Country, New Wave and Post-Punk, Jazz-Funk, Jangle-Pop, Space Rock, Industrial and Reggae. While many of the songs and artists might not be "definitive" of Canadian punk rock ("What...? No Teenage Head? No DOA?, etc."), during the time frame I've provided, I've tried to concentrate on some selections that might not immediately come to mind.

Rest assured, the so-called "definitives" will be included in subsequent volumes.

I know the cover is a bit cheesy and lame (trust me...it's hard to find good band photos out there without copyright -- this one's courtesy of Chris Barry and the late Bryan Damaged c/o Punk History Canada dot com). Originally I was going to call it "Uh-Oh Canaduh!"... but that was too much of a ripoff of the Oh Canaduh series of punk rock covers. I might re-change it altogether, I don't know.

I'll keep you posted.

Cheers.


(VA) Uh-Oh Canada! - Vol. 1 (Fan Comp):

1TankhogI Woke Up In Love This Morning3:17






254-40Walk In Line4:20






3222sFirst Studio Bomb2:21






4ViletonesDirty Feeling3:04






5NostrilsI'm Vile2:16






6Crash VegasThe One That Keeps Me Running4:41






7Red TideMy Son Is A Kuwahara1:21






8Cottage IndustryTheme From Superstar3:54






9Shuffle DemonsSpadina Bus3:59






10Ceramic HelloSampling The Blast Furnace4:27






11Jr. Gone WildPoet's Highway4:15






12Heimlich ManeuverTakin The A-Train For Jesus3:27






13GruesomesFor All I Care3:09






14Grievous AngelsGordie And My Old Man3:38






15Payola$China Boys3:17






16Simply SaucerNazi Apocalypse3:10






17Animal SlavesCocoon4:21






18Shadowy Men On A Shadowy PlanetHaving An Average Weekend2:37






19Rupert Bailey and the SwingersMississauga Evacuation6:49






20MoevYeah, Whatever5:53






21Eastbound To KennedyBang3:48






22The NegativesEchos4:02































Sunday, December 14, 2008

htroF & kcaB


Back and Forth was the self-published debut album from Skinny Puppy, released in 1984. It was supposed to be a limited edition of 50 copies but only 35 were actually made. The first 15 copies were dubbed at a normal speed, while the remaining 20 were dubbed at a high speed, making them slightly inferior to the first 15. This album was remastered and rereleased in 1992 as Back and Forth: Series 2, with additional tracks. The inner sleeve includes a detail of George Tooker's 1950 painting Subway.



These tracks appear in a remastered form on BACK AND FORTH SERIES TWO.
The mix of 'Sleeping Beast' included here is a different (and shorter)
mix from those included later on the 'Remission' and 'Back & Forth
Series 2' releases.

Skinny Puppy - Back and Forth (1984):

1Skinny PuppySleeping Beast (B+F1 Raw)5:33






2Skinny PuppyK-9 (B+F1 Raw)3:29






3Skinny PuppyQuiet Solitude (B+F1 Raw)4:36






4Skinny PuppyThe Pit (B+F1 Raw)3:15






5Skinny PuppyDead Of Winter (B+F1 Raw)7:02






6Skinny PuppyA.M. / Meat Flavour (B+F1 Raw)1:53






7Skinny PuppyEdge Of Insanity (B+F1 Raw)1:28







Tuesday, December 9, 2008

When Politics Was Punk



For political junkies, the name Warren Kinsella will be familiar.

He was the Liberal Party of Canada's attack-dog, also known as "Canada's James Carville".

But long before became a Liberal Party strategist, a teenage Kinsella from Calgary, Alberta, Canada got together with his friends Alan McDonald and Pierre Schenk, to form a punk rock band called The Social Blemishes. In 1977, they changed their name to the Hot Nasties, purportedly taken from a XXX film.

In 1980, they released the Invasion Of The Tribbles EP, on Kinsella's own Social Blemish label. They later released an album's length of material on cassette.

In1981, the band called it a day. But in 1994, punk rock historian Frank Manley included it on the Canadian punk rock discography, Smash The State Vol. 1.

In 2005, Kinsella had a new band called Shit From Hell, which performs some covers of The Hot Nasties. Meanwhile, Narduwar The Human Serviette's band, The Evaporators, covered "Barney Rubble Is My Double" for an album.

1Hot NastiesBarney Rubble Is My Double1:44







2Hot NastiesI Am a Confused Teenager1:48






3Hot NastiesInvasion Of The Tribbles!3:42






4Hot NastiesKill Me If You Can1:47






5Hot NastiesThis Is Unlove2:40






6Hot NastiesVlad Ersatz Poet1:22






7Hot NastiesNasties Theme0:46






8Hot NastiesSteppin' Stone2:41






9Hot NastiesOllie Smith1:58






10Hot NastiesTeenage Lament (Live)2:16






11Hot NastiesLookin' 4 U (Live)2:08






12Hot NastiesSeven Years Old (Live)2:30






13Hot NastiesHey Guys1:16






14Hot NastiesJah Tribble Heavy Dub1:16






15Hot NastiesOctober Seven-Oh3:12






16Hot NastiesGetawayfromme2:14






17Hot NastiesFashion Show (Live)3:07






18Hot NastiesDo You Know (Live)2:44






19Hot NastiesSecret of Immortality3:55