Friday, October 23, 2009

MORAL CRUSADE - IMMORAL CONDITION DEMO & 3 LP TRACKS


Moral Crusade - Immoral Condition Demo & 3 Tracks from 'An Act Of Violence' LP
Dublin, 1988-90, DIY, Tape & LP

Classic Dublin Thrash, the first three tracks are from the 1990 'An Act Of Violence' Lp and the rest are from the 1988 'Immoral Condition Demo', excellent stuff sent on by Ratzy, thanks. From the myspace..'MORAL CRUSADE were a Thrash Band from Dublin Ireland formed in 1988. The line up was Pincher -Vocals, Ratzy -Guitar, Mano -Bass, Joe -Drums, Trev -Bass. In '88 we recorded our 1st Demo entitled 'Immoral Condition' shortly after that our Bass player at the time Trev decided to leave the band due to musical differences(he was musical and we were different) So Mano a good friend from our Chromatic Death days took over on Bass and we spent the next months gigging. In late '89 we recorded our 1st and only full length 9 track LP entitled 'An Act Of Violence'. Finally in 1991 after disasterous management, promotion and distribution of the LP the band tired from endless gigging decided to take a break (a long one at that!) but unfortunetly never got back together. Over the years the band has reformed in one shape or another and jammed a few times but due to work and other stupid shit it never really got going again.' www.myspace.com/moralcrusadehcthrash

download Moral Crusade Demo & 3 Tracks via mediafire

KILLER WATT - DEATH E.P.

Killer Watt - Death E.P.
Dublin, 1987, DIY?, 7"

Thrash/Speed Metal from Dublin, thanks to Ratzy for sending this on, taken from the myspace...'Killer Watt were a Speed/Thrash Metal Band From Dublin Ireland. The band was started I think back in 1985 by drummer Steve and bassist Sid who recruited Marcus burns on guitar but in '86 Marcus decided to leave. We rehearsed in the old Temple Lane Studios in Temple Bar Dublin. In 1987 we recorded a 3 track EP which was inspired by The Nightmare on Elm St. movies, the EP also got into the Irish Top 30 chart at the time. After that we went on to proudly play in and get barred from nearly every dump around Dublin and Ireland including wait for it...a tour with Irish heavy rock band Mama's Boys (?? god only knows who had that brainwave) but thankfully we got thrown off the tour after only two dates due to the drunken rabble that turned up each night to see us! Soon after that we decided to add a second guitarist so Derek Sweeney joined, finally that year we appeared on the Irish TV Music Show Mega Mix doing a cover version of the Sex Pistols track Pretty Vacant. In 1988 after on-going disagreements the band decided to split. It was a great and crazy three years and thanx to all who bought the EP and came to the gigs.' http://www.myspace.com/killerwattdublin

download Killer Watt - Death EP via mediafire

NOISE POLLUTION/PROTESS - SPLIT EP

Noise Pollution/Protess - Split E.P.
Dublin/Japan, 1999, MCR Company?, 7"

2 tracks here from Noise Pollution, fast heavy hardcore punk fronted by Mero, on this recording there seems to be a pretty heavy Siege influence which can only be a good thing. One long tune by Japan's Protess on the flipside. Thanks to Sean Protest Zine for sending this on.

download Noise Pollution/Protess Split via mediafire

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

VOX MAGAZINE - ISSUES 2 & 4


Vox Magazine - Issues 2 & 4

Ireland, 1980, DIY, Zine

VOX magazine was launched by "Honest" Dave Clifford in March 1980 and ran for 15 issues. It covered a wide cultural agenda including post-punk, punk, electronic music, experimental music, new wave/pop, performance art and pretty much anything else strange or interesting that fell under the umbrella of leftfield arts. It's consistency, insight, cleancut presentation and existence in ( what is quite obviously in retrospect ) an extremely fertile period of modern musical ideas makes it one of the most important underground magazines ever to come out of Ireland. More issues to follow...(Thanks to Boz for sending these on)

VARIOUS - BONEASS COMPILATION VOL.2

Various - Boneass Compilation Vol. 2
Various, 200?, DIY, CD

The 2nd of the Boneass Comps featuring bands from Ireland and abroad. Irish bands included are Crookie Fix, Margin Of Error, Backhanders, Already Dead, Foot In Mouth, Kidd Blunt, Soldiers Take Half and many more. Thanks to Bob for sending this and Fiddlesticks to me.

FIDDLESTICKS - OUR OWN DESIGN E.P.

Fiddlesticks - Our Own Design E.P
Dublin, 200?, DIY, CD

Excellent 7 track e.p here from Fiddlesticks. Coming across equal parts Propaghandi, NOFX and with a smattering of bay area punk rock ala Crimpshrine.

download Fiddlesticks - Our Own Design EP via mediafire

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

BAMBI - MAY CONTAIN TRACES OF PEANUT CD

Bambi - Warning May Contain Traces Of Peanut
Dublin, 1997, Rejected Records/Damaged Goods, CD

Yet more Bambi upped to the blog! Hard to believe that this came out 12 years ago. This cd was my first exposure to Bambi and it blew my 15 year old mind that an Irish band could really be such a monster of sleazy rock n fuckin roll. Christ I miss Bambi!

download Bambi - Warning May Contain Traces Of Peanut via mediafire

LANGDON BECK - S/T

Langdon Beck - S/T
Wicklow, 2004, TCF, CD

Brilliant Melodic Punk from Kilcoole in the vein of Small Brown Bike, North Lincoln and a whole host of other 'No Idea' type bands. 7 tracks on the this EP/mini-album.

download Langdon Beck S/T via mediafire

JIMMY CARL BLACK - 'BOSS RELIEF' TAPE

Jimmy Carl Black - 'Boss Relief' Tape
Dublin, 1992, DIY, Casette

An unusual band named after an unusual guy (Jimmy Carl Black was a member of the Mothers Of Invention). Fast hardcorepunk with excellent time/tempo changes and a brilliant rhythm section that sets it apart from the usual guff, the vocals adding to the overall mania. Thanks to Dave for passing this one and sorry for the delay putting it up here.

V/A - DAFT COMPILATION NO.1

Various - DAFT Compilation No. 1
Various, 200?, DIY, CD

For those who mightn't remember the Dublin Archive Of Free Tunes it pretty much was a precursor to this blog back in the time of dialup and bad internet connections. The site was a great introduction to many of the excellent bands that existed in Ireland in the late 90's/early oo's. Excellent Cdr comp here featuring Puget Sound, Bastard Youth, The Dagda, The Poke, Lynched, Nappyrash and Sir Killalot to name just a few. 26 tracks in all.

download VA DAFT Compilation via mediafire

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

PARANOID VISIONS - LIVE AT JJ SMYTHS 'SCHIZOPHRENIA WORLD TOUR' 87'

Paranoid Visions - Live At JJ Smyths 'Schizophrenia World Tour', Dubin 1987
Dublin, 1987, Live Recording

16 tracks in all here, the first 13 from the 'Schizophrenia World Tour' gig and 3 from another JJ Smyths gig around the same time. Sound quality is decent as I cleaned up the tape given to me by PA to the best of my ability. Download is split over two .rar's as it was too large for one click download.

PARANOID VISIONS - DESTROY THE MYTHS OF MUSICAL PROGRESSION REHEARSAL TAPE

Paranoid Visions - Destroy The Myths Of Musical Progression Rehearsal Tape 1983
Dublin, 1983, The Rot Sets In, Tape

7 songs here from the 4th or 5th ever Paranoid Visions rehearsal (I am reliably informed by PA). Apparently Conscription, Vivisection and Take It Back were songs that were carried over after the change from Insane Youth to PV. Personally I love the dark, atmospheri sound of alot of this early PV stuff. Classic Dublin Punk.

Monday, September 21, 2009

VARIOUS - FREEDOM OF CHOICE COMPILATION

Various - Freedom Of Choice Compilation
Various, 1993?, F.O.A.D?, Tape

Absolute blinder of a compilation here, some of the punk bands you'll recognise from the blog already - Coitus, Paranoid Visions and The Radiators From Space. Other recognisable names in the more indie rock vein would be A House, Engine Alley and the Joys. One band that I hadn't heard before 'The Subterraneans' are a welcome suprise of scuzzy attitude dripping rock n' roll. 12 tracks in all, well worth the download.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

ZERO BUDGET - PUNK FLYERS 1992-2005 - BOZ MUGABE

Zero Budget - Punk Flyers 1992-2005 by Boz Mugabe
92-05, pdf

Lets face it, anyone who attended punk gigs between the early nineties and the last few years would be well aware of the art of Boz. I have yet to be in any 'punk gaff' in Dublin worth its weight that hasn't had Boz's signature style flyers in their toilet, kitchen, sitting room etc. At a time where it seems less and less people are actually printing up flyers and instead opting for lazy assed internet only promotion the days of trundling these beauties into the beer soaked floor after a gig are perhaps numbered. This lovingly put together pdf I'm sure will jog the memory of anyone who downloads it, worth it for the introduction by Boz alone.

BLACK & WHITE ZINE - ISSUE 1 NOVEMBER '79

Black & White Zine - Issue 1 November '79
1979, Zine, .pdf

'A few months after dust had settled on the whole U2/HEAT situation in 1979, Stephen Rapid and Pete Price ( Now sans punk monicker, " Nasty " ) launched a new xerox fanzine with a different angle called BLACK & WHITE, the first issue of which appeared in November ‘79. This time they let the bands write the stuff and the editors designed the layout. This fanzine had much more of an emphasis on post punk ideals, new wave, electronic and avant-garde groups than HEAT. In Dublin, groups like the Virgin Prunes, the Modern Heirs and Tell-Tale Heart experimented with the idea of music outside a strict rock format, including electronic music, while groups like the Blades, DC Nien were taking the ideals and inspirations of punk off on a tangent. The weakness in BLACK & WHITE as a fanzine was that, while the review material showed that they were on the pulse of what was happening, the exercise of allowing bands to write their own material resulted in a magazine which read like a handful of press releases gathered together. This was in total contrast to HEAT’s opinionated humour, and strangely, even U2 got a look in, which seemed more like a charitable peace offering than anything else. BLACK & WHITE itself only ran for 3 issues, barely scraping a foothold in the ‘80’s. It seemed that its editors’ passion for underground press, not to mention their tolerance for the endless barrage of Irish indifference, had finally run out of steam, but it's content serves as an interesting snapshot of Dublin during a transitional period.' - Boz Mugabe. Thanks to Boz for sending this pdf on, while the content may be a lacking a little in this zine the layout of it is fucking spot on.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

V/A - DISTORTED FOR LIFE, DISGUSTED TIL DEATH CD

Various - Distorted For Life, Disgusted Til Death CD
Various, 2007/8, DIY, CD

The tagline for this cd is 'A DIY punk compilation from Scum Island', that kinda says it all. This excellent comp put out by Eric (Easpa Measa/Two Headed Dog/Cotton Fist Zine etc) about 2 years ago features some of the best crust/d-beat that has come out of Ireland over the past 5 years. This cd came free with an issue of 'Two Headed Dog' fanzine and I'm unsure if Eric is still selling these however knowing the sound lad that he is I'm sure he'll be glad to see it online. So there are two or three numbers here from the following Still Birth (Belfast), Carosah (Dublin/Wicklow), Putrefaction (Dublin) and Divisions Ruin (Wicklow). The cd and inlay are beautifully put together and are a credit to the saying that 'DIY is not an excuse' for shoddy substandard releases.


download VA Distorted For Life, Disgusted Til Death via mediafire

V/A - 'BONE-ASS' COOLIE TUNES

Various - 'Bone-Ass' Coolie Tunes CD

Wicklow, 2003, Goozer, CD

The second of these diy compilations that came out at the height of the deadly Kilcoole gig madness. Maybe it was seeing Kidd Blunt play their last ever gig last week that has made me nostalgic for so much that has come out of the village also known as Glenroe. This compilation is truly unusual, the first few tracks being straight ahead numbers from No Compliance, Scared Shitless, Kidd Blunt, Foot In Mouth & Old Man Eoin and the second half being a rake of various tunes ranging from hip-hop to dub, the outstanding track being 'Scummer's Blues' by Luke's Duke!

MONKHOUSE/STRIKNIEN D.C. - GLUE BAG/...FROM THE DEAD ROOM SPLIT CD

Monkhouse/Striknien D.C. - Glue Bag/...From The Dead Room Split
Belfast/Dublin, 1996, Rejected Records, CD

About time I got this one up here! I can't really stress enough how excellent this release is, possibly the best to ever come out on Rejected in my humble opinion. I could rant on for ages about how getting this cd around 96/97 pretty much exposed me to the fact that there even was an Irish punk scene. Monkhouse were one of the more prolific of 90's Northern Irish bands with a variety of releases on various labels, songs with incredibly heartfelt lyrics about isolation, alienation and dissatisfaction, I'm just pissed I never got to see them live. Striknien D.C. pretty much are/were 'dublin punk' personified and these tunes I feel really were their strongest, don't think I could ever listen to 'Drugs Crisis' without it raising a smile.

THE GOLDEN MILE - DISCOGRAPHY

The Golden Mile - Discography

Belfast, 1993-95, Various

The blog is back! Haven't been able to post over the past while, moving house is one hell of a pain in the bollox and left me with boxes and boxes of stuff to rip! :) Anyway thanks to Martin (check out the Swedish Nurse blog here) for sending on this discography of the excellent Golden Mile from Belfast. This band started in the early nineties and garnered a strong reputation both in Ireland and across the water in England. The Golden Mile featured some of (in my opinion) of the strongest vocals on an Irish release ever which grow in intensity and edginess with the music. There is something about their sound that reminds me of bands like Moss Icon, brilliant stuff altogether. The songs on this discog are in reverse chronological order and are as follows.

Track 1: On Che Records com 2x7" w/ merzbow, The Delgados, Bis (Recorded Aug '95)

Tracks 2-5: 'Blowing Hot and Gold' 7" EP (the song 'Answers' was not on the EP, Recorded Jul '94)

Tracks 6-10 Demo, September '93

Tracks 11-17 Demo, June '93

18-20 Filler!

Monday, July 27, 2009

HEAT - ISSUE 1 (July '77)

Heat - Issue 1
Dublin, 1977, Zine

Produced by editors Pete "Nasty" Price and Jude Carr, HEAT was the most professional of all the early Irish punk fanzines until VOX emerged in 1980. The magazine ran for 12 issues ( 9 physical zines - for some reason issue 7,8,9 was all one issue ) and had an ever evolving style and content ranging from music to comics to cinema. The dominant feature of HEAT was it's ability to take the piss throughout it's hand written pages, something which eventually led to being sued by U2's management ( look hard enough and you'll find info on this urban legend!! ). It folded in May 1979 and Pete Price went on to produce the short lived but equally interesting BLACK & WHITE fanzine.- Boz Mugabe


RAW POWER - ISSUE 1 (March '77)

Raw Power - Issue 1
Dublin, 1977, Zine

Ireland's first punk fanzine from March 1977 produced by Steve Rapid, vocalist with The Radiators From Space. The zine ran for 2 issues from March to June 1977. This issue contains an interesting editorial, compulsory Radiators interview ( of course !!!), a good piece on Nick Kent, a small piece on Dublin Band Revolver, some reviews and what were often fondly described as " rumours and snide remarks " in this and some subesquent Dublin Fanzines. Issue 2 of Raw Power supposedly contained the first ever Undertones interview and photo!!! - Boz Mugabe


Tuesday, July 14, 2009

NAPPYRASH - RASHCORE TAPE

Nappyrash - Rashcore Tape
Kilkenny, 1996/97?, Fuckface Records, Cassette

Hooray the other Nappyrash tape, excellent pure punk rock with all the youthful enthusiasm/disatisfaction that a bunch of teenagers from rural Ireland can muster, yet again more cathcy as fuck songs with an excellent use of samples.

DR. SHITFACE - 2 TRACKS FROM 'A SCREAM FROM THE SILENCE - VOL. 3'

Dr. Shitface - 2 Tracks from 'A Scream In The Silence - Vol 3 Compilation'.
Dublin, 1994, Loony Tunes Records, LP

Funnily enough I had never heard any other Dr Shitface stuff except the Rejected 7" comp until I heard this, picked it up in Minneapolis and at the time the person I was with couldn't understand my joy of finding it. So two great tunes, especially the brilliantly titled 'You're Only A Bollox', fast melodic hardcorepunk from the Mero!


PARANOID VISIONS - POLITICIAN E.P.

Paranoid Visions - Politician EP
Dublin, 1991, FOAD, Tape

Cassette EP of surely one of the most catchy of all PV tunes, this tape also contains the excellent Fear of Blood, Sásta and even a Wayen County cover. Thanks to PA for this one.


Monday, July 13, 2009

VARIOUS - THE DIRT BEHIND THE DAYDREAM VOL.1

V/A - The Dirt Behind The Daydream Vol. 1
Dublin, 1991, FOAD, Tape

Now this is pure gold. Absolute cracker of a compilation from FOAD. The quality of the recordings on this are brilliant, all recorded live or in Sonic Studios. On the tape we have the Blue Babies who I truly wish had recorded more, their song 'Drunken Church' on the second side is a fucking classic. Two tracks from the much loved Ciúnas doing two great speedy shouty hardcorepunk tunes. One of the stand out recordings on the tape in my mind was Sín who come across like the Alternative Tentacles band Iowaska, atmospheric, doomy, desperate sounding stuff. Coitus don't fuck around with two roaring songs, 'Black Bart' particularly rocking form. Some live recordings in Dublin of Decadent Few, and a few numbers form the V.D Crew and Paranoid Visions which takes the second half of this tape in a very hip hop influenced direction! If you don't believe me download it. All tied up on the end with a classic version of 'Look At Me' by PV. Thanks to PA for passing this one on. Also sorry that its a two link download (its over free mediafire limit), so unless someone wants to buy me a mediafire account, it'll have to do!

SPIDERMITES - Graphic Zine!

Spidermites
Dublin, 1991, Nosebleed, Graphic Zine (pdf)

Excellent to have more non mp3 items up on the blog, and this excellent pdf of Spidermites from 91' well deserves its place here. A Futuristic Saga with the obvious punk influence, plus a new foreward by Boz.

TENSION - SO YOU SAY 12"

Tension - So You Say 12inch
Dublin, 199?, Label?, 12"

Alas its up, sorry for the slowness with the blog of late, was just busy getting the zine finished, now that its done heres some new (old) stuff! When I mentioned Tension on a few internet forums I realised quickly they seem to be a fondly remembered band. Featuring an amazing rhythm section these guys fucking rock. Apparently two members of Wheel and 1 member of Not Our World featured in the lineup. Thanks for the person who sent on this Rip, its loud as fuck.


Friday, June 5, 2009

PARANOID VISIONS - DESTROY THE MYTHS/BLOOD IN THE SNOW TAPE

Paranoid Visions - Destroy The Myths/Blood In The Snow
Dublin, 1983, Bluurg, Tape

Finally got these upped today. The first two Paranoid Visions demos which were subsequently re-released on the infamous Bluurg Records. What can be said about Paranoid Visions that hasn't been said already. Paranoid Visions are one incredibly prolific band the amount of different releases I still have to rip testifies to this! This early PV stuff has an incredibly dark, depressed, nihilistic sound to it. It's a brooding soundtrack to a cold grey city, with Deko's lyrics uncovering and damning the true nature and underbelly of Irish society. Enjoy! Apoligies but I had to put up two download links for this one due to it's size.

Friday, May 22, 2009

NAPPYRASH - 'INBRED' TAPE

Nappyrash - Inbred
Kilkenny, 1997, Fuckface Records, Tape

Ahh Nappyrash, its about time I got some of their stuff up here. Thanks to Lyncher for passing this and the Stagnation on, I managed to get the sound pretty decent from ripping the tape. Nappyrash smacks of the enthusiasm, energy and pure fucking mayehm of teenagers in a world of pure punk rock! However to say that's all Nappyrash were would be a disservice, the songs are far more interesting than your usual sloppy punk fare. The structures of the songs themselves are pretty clever with the really excellent use of samples too. Also the lyrics, you can't really beat them, poking fun at and sharing their frustration with the idiocy that passes for life in alot of Irish country towns. This is simply brilliant, also worth the download alone to hear Thomas Mc's excellent DIRT 'Hiroshima' style high pitched scream on 'Fucking Weirdo'!

STAGNATION - PURE DEKAY TAPE

Stagnation - Pure Dekay
Dublin, 1997, Resented Records, Tape

This stuff is quite different in many ways than the Stagnation stuff that was upped here before. These recordings have a pretty big sound with the keyboards and extra percussion used to full effect. With obvious death metal, crust and Killing Joke influences(I use them far too much in comparisons. Stagnation managed to create an air of real desperation, frustration and brutality mixed in with tripped out sections of dark dark atmospheric music.

CHROMATIC DEATH - HOODYCORE DEMO

Chromatic Death - Hoodycore Demo
Dublin, 1987, DIY, Tape

Okay here's hoping that the people invovled with Chromatic Death won't mind too much me putting this up here, if anyone has any objections do let me know and I'll take it down. I just had to put up this excellent rip that was passed on to me. Check out a retrospective myspace here
Taken from the myspace, "CHROMATIC DEATH were a Hardcore Band from Dublin Ireland formed in 1987. The line up was the same as Moral Crusade but band came prior. In early '87 we recorded a 10 track Demo entitled 'Hoodycore' this was to be our only recording as Chromatic Death."

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

UNDERFOOT - 'A SELECTION'


Underfoot - 'A Selection' of Various Recordings
Dublin, 1995/96, Vraious Recordings

"Underfoot formed in the summer of 1995.Played with nofx when they were good.Nofx that is,not underfoot.First band since Paranoid Visions to be barred from the Attic.That’s what the landlord told them anyway.Took a planned 6 month break in the summer of 96 and it’s more or less still a break.So never really split up I suppose!!!Members went on to be in bands such as Death Race,Sir Killalot,Holemasters and most recently Razortown". Thanks a million to Liamo for sending this one on.

Thursday, May 14, 2009

NOT OUR WORLD - LIVE AT TRINITY NOV 89


Not Our World - LIve At Trinity Nov 89
Dublin, 1989, Unreleased Tape

Another live set from the brilliant Not Our World. From what I've heard and seen the influence of this band on the Dublin punk scene of the late 80's was immense. Here are 13 tracks of amazing pure punk, catchy as fuck songs, the riff in 'Big Long Song' is so good its unreal. Throughout a lot of their stuff I can see a WIRE influence in the guitar playing and perhaps a fair whack of The Clash also. The bass playing and drumming are impeccably intertwined also, and sure there is even a great Blondie 'Call Me' cover thrown in for good measure. Thanks to the person who sent on this recording to me, did my best to clean up the sound and so on. Enjoy!

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

THE VIPERS - I'VE GOT YOU/ NO SUCH THING 7"



The Vipers - I've Got You/No Such Thing 7inch
Dublin, 1978, Mulligan, 7"

Another excellent one from Boz! 'The Vipers were a band formed in Dublin in 1977 directly in the wake of the Boomtown Rats and The Radiators from Space. One of the 4 piece's first gigs was the Radiators organised 5 band punk festival at UCD along with The Undertones, Revolver & The Gamblers. After initial line-up shuffles, The band's intensive rehearsals paid off with an ever increasing local following and a deal for a single with Mulligan Records. By the end of 1978 they had released their excellent single I've Got You / No Such Thing, which remains a gem of naive 70's pop punk, & provided English tour support for lablemates the Boomtown Rats along with Several dates in Ireland supporting the Jam ( Paul Weller was also a fan ).

From Hot Press late '78 " Probably making more prestigious strides than any other local band in 1978, The Vipers - boasting a new improved, streamlined line-up - Finally look set to fulfill the potential which they've displayed - If erratically - in the past. A fine single on Mulligan and a successful British tour supporting the Rats will have garnered for them the much needed experience and attendant confidence. The likelihood is that '79 will bear witness to more important and far reaching developments "

By 1979, they had, like many other bands absconded to London to seek fame and fortune, recording a peel session & demos for Virgin records. Later in the year toured with Thin Lizzy ( Philo had also extended a similar helping hand to The Rats, the Radiators and Protex ) as well as playing their own UK gigs, but the all important album deal fell through and by 1980 the band had split and returned to Dublin. One other track, TAKE ME appeared on a 7" EP called ROOM TO MOVE ( along with the Outcasts, Shock Treatment and Big Self - EG records 1980 )'

Monday, May 4, 2009

SEARCH & DESTROY - WATCHDOGS / PROBLEM CHILD 7

Search & Destroy - Watchdogs / Problem Child 7"
Dublin, 1987, Comet Records, 7"

Ripped and Written about by Boz 'Search & Destroy were spawned
from older Dublin Bands Ministry of Youth and Napalm Sunday,
and as their name would suggest, went for a more garage-y punk
sound. Their one single Watchdogs / Problem Child was released in
1987 by Comet Records. The A side was a
studio recording and the
B side was recorded live in JJ's on Aungier
Street - see attached flyer
( during a gig with Paranoid Visions - who
also released live
recordings from the same day on the flipside of a
number of EP's ).
This was supposed to be followed by an album called
BLOOD FROM
A STONE, probably also for Comet but this never transpired.
One
further track MY LIFE surfaced on a comet cassette
compilation in
1988.'

Friday, May 1, 2009

THE THREAT - "HIGH COST OF LIVING / LULLABY IN C 7inch

The Threat - High Cost Of Living / Lullaby in C 7"
Dublin, 1981, Web Records, 7inch


The next three 7" have all been kindly sent along by Boz (without whom this blog wouldn't be half as good.) and as he says himself it's a good way of tracing the first progression of the Dublin Punk Underground way back when. The descriptions for the next 3 7"'s are by Boz,


"The Threat ('78-'81) was one of the first authentic local post-punk
bands that didn't have bar rock roots or power pop aspirations.
Their name is synonymous with the Dandelion market and crops
up as a footnote in much ofU2's folklore of the era. Their one
single, High Cost of Living / Lullaby In C commanded a brooding
PIL/Wire tone and a tribal fan base, casting an influence on many
subsequent bands from My Bloody Valentine to Napalm Sunday
to Paranoid Visions ( who resurrected and reworked HIGH COST
OF LIVING recently ). 2000 copies were pressed. The story of
The Threat was covered in detail in a feature that was originally
published in RIOT 77 magazine a couple of years back - the same
article can be found here...

The original line-up of core member Maurice Foley, bassist Larry
Murphy and drummer Paul Monahan ground to a halt after 2 gigs
when violence marred a trip to Dundalk. Murphy and Monahan
departed to form Chant Chant Chant ('80-'82) and The Threat
continued with bassist Deirdre Creed from the Boyscoutz
( Ireland's first all girl punk band ) and a drummer called Longer
( replaced by Ken Mahon from DC Nein for the recording of the
single ), and notably, the addition of Stano on synth which
broadened their possibilities significantly."


CHANT CHANT CHANT - QUICKSAND / PLAY SAFE 7inch

Chant Chant Chant - Quicksand / Play Safe 7"
Dublin, 1981, Peig The Man, 7inch

Chant Chant Chant meanwhile developed a quirky and striking sound, reminiscent in places of The Birthday Party and Gang Of Four, punctuated prominently by Larry Murphy's unique bass playing. Part of the rhythm heavy feel was due to the fact that guitarist Robbie Wogan worked in England during weekdays and returned to Dublin to gig and practice at weekends, filling guitar parts into previously worked material!! The band gigged regularly and played several high profile supports ( The Fall in Cork & the infamous 4 BE 2's charade in the Trinity JCR amongst them ) making their first vinyl appearance with a track called "What Do You Know" on the Boddis EP, side by side with the peridots, Big Self and The Departure. This was followed in 1981 by their only other recorded work, the excellent Quicksand / Play Safe 7" on their own Peig The Man label. 500 copies were pressed. The band dissolved in 1982. Paul Monahan currently records electronics under the moniker M101 (here).

VOX fanzine issue 7 - review of the Chant Chant Chant single -
" Confident and upfront drumming , driving bass and scratchy but accessible guitar dominates this, their first single. The vocals in places sound a little like Andy Partridge. It was recorded in November 1980 but judging by the recent session they did for RTE they certainly have progressed. This is one of the better Irish singles for a while "

STANO - ROOM / TOWN 7"

Stano - Room/Town 7inch
Dublin, 1982, Vox Records. 7inch

The Threat finally ceased to exist in 1981 when Maurice Foley became a Hare Krishna. After the disillusion, Stano began to make more experimental recordings almost immediately, broadening the post-punk field even further... His first single Room / Town 7" was financed by Vox editor Dave Clifford ( who had also designed the Threat sleeve ) in 1982. The sonic scope of these experiments can be loosely compared in retrospect to the work Bruce Gilbert and Graham Lewis did with dome ( post Wire ) around the same time.

Stano on the single - " My first single ROOM.. I remember meeting people at the time and they had this image of punk and a lot of people were taken aback when my first single was a grand piano and a drum machine and to me that is a real bloody punk single. It still exists on it's own..."

Stano Subsequently recorded a series of albums on Scoff, Dossier and Mother records and continues to make left field experimental music to this day....(Boz)

STRESS - LIVE AT THE WARZONE 2002

Stress - Live At The Warzone 2002
Dublin, 2002, Not released

Great live recording of arguably the best Stress Line-up during the band's few years. With Suzanne, Derenzy & Dunchy being added. Brillaitn, raging, crust-punk

Sunday, April 26, 2009

BLUE BABIES - FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM Tape

Blue Babies - From A Whisper To A Scream
Dublin, 1991, FOAD, Cassette

Ah the Blue Babies! This was the band that made me wanna start doing this blog/archive in the first place, after kindly getting their songs sent on to me at the end of last year they have been on constant repeat. The fact that this band didn’t record more than these six songs here is one of the biggest fucking travesties of irish punk rock. This was recorded in 91’ when I was still too busy listening to Alice In Chains and Soundgarden and growing my hair long to even have this type of stuff on my radar, my loss. This is fast, angry, punk rock, with wit and sarcasm, they sound like a whirlwind of fucking insanity. The more and more stories I hear of this band the more the legend grows and grows. If anyone has any of their gigs recorded live please let me know. This recording is fucking whopper too, clear and with plenty of heft. Thanks to Al for sending this on.

DISMAL ABYSMALS - 'ILLEGITIMATE TARGETS' Tape

Dismal Abysmals - 'Illegitimate Targets '
Dublin, 1992, Fuckurma, Tape

This is chaos punk, well kind of. Not in the fucking boring, monotonous, fucking generic stuff that the likes of punk core records or whoever puts out, this is pure proper chaos punk, it don’t even sound like any of those bands. This is chaos punk in the manic, sarcastic, fucking pissed off, insane, fucking brain-addled. stressed out, bemused chaos that shines through on bands like the feederz or dead kennedys in some moments. Each song is totally different, fuck they even have bits that sound like GISM vocals. 19 songs with brilliant titles such as, ‘You’re A Wanker‘, ‘Mustshag Sally‘, ‘Me-shelle Suit’ and ‘Art School Wank’, excellent stuff indeed. Thanks to the person who sent this in.

CIRCLE AGAIN - XXX Tape

Circle Again - XXX Tape
Belfast, 1999, Surehand, Cassette

I only saw Circle Again a handle of times, one of my fondest memories of them is seeing them play Knockrockstock in Batty O Briens in Roscommon in 00’. Straight from the off they really seemed to be on a different page altogether, and what a fucking blinder of a page it was too. I think Tadhg was one of the best vocalists of an Irish punk band, he had amazing presence and fuckin rocked it. Brilliant fast as fuck hardcore.

STRESS - 1ST DEMO

Stress - 1st Demo
Dublin, 1999, DIY, Cassette

Thanks to Sean Stress for sending this on, classic Irish Crust Punk. This is the first Stress line-up Mark (the Boxes) drumming, Danny (Ructions) bass, Johnny (Aces Wild) guitar and Sean (Violent Phobia) on vocals. Recorded in Noiseland in 1999.

Monday, April 20, 2009

COITUS - IN TWO MINUTES YOU'LL BE SMOKIN' IN HELL TAPE

Coitus - In Two Minutes You'll Be Smokin' In Hell Tape
Dublin, 1991, FOAD, Tape

First two demos by Coitus here released by FOAD on one tape. Amazing raw discharge and amebix style punk. Now back playing gigs together and soon to have a collection of all their post 91' songs released on a double cd by Underground Movement.Taken from the Underground Movement website "Initially formed in 1989 amidst the sqautter/Punk scene of North London, the band saw several members pass through the ranks including Pete “Lippy” Lyons, formally of Antisect, Martin Tyan, later to form Screamer and Pato Duffy, now sadly passed away. The band settled on the stable line up of Skinny-Bass/vox, Alien Drums/vox, Mik Guitar/vox and embarked on a chaotic journey, which saw the band tour all over the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe, releasing several recordings along the way. Coitus finally split in 1996 but have been sporadicallyreforming since 2000 and will play a handfull of live dates to support this release."

PARANOID VISIONS - FROM THE WOMB TO THE BUCKET DEMO

Paranoid Visions - From The Womb To The Bucket Demo
Dublin, 1984, Bluurg Records, Tape

Absolutely delighted to get my hands on this, brilliant early PV demo, they had such an excellent PIL/Killing Joke influenced sound around this time. Download this now!

PERIDOTS - OPEN SEASON/CALM 7" + EXTRAS!

Peridots - Open Season / Calm 7" + 2 Bonus Tracks
Dublin, 1981, Optional Goods, 7"

This is one absolute cracker sent on to me by Boz, amazing dark, atmospheric post-punk, been listening to this constantly all week and I honestly think this band could've been fucking huge. More from Boz here, "An very interesting first generation post-punk band, the Roots of the peridots lie in Steve Rapid's decision to leave the Radiators and remain in Dublin in 1977. Together with Pete Hamilton they formed a band called the Modernaires, experimenting with the possibilities of newly available and affordable Wasp synths. With the addition of Stan Erraught ( later of Stars Of Heaven and The Great Western Squares ), and the departure of Rapid, the stable duo renamed themselves The peridots and released their only single Calm/Open Season in 1981. Previous to this they had been included on the Boddis 7" EP (1980) which celebrated a run of gigs at the Magnet on Pearse Street and also featured Big Self, Chant Chant Chant and The Departure. Pat Larkin of the Blades briefly played drums before they split i n 1982.There are 4 tracks included here - The two off the 7", the unissued track "So Many Angels" and the Boddis EP track "Precious Blood". "

SLEDGEHAMMER - MONEY IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL DEMO

Sledgehammer - Money Is The Root Of All Evil Demo
Belfast, 1980's, Warzone Records, Cassette

Pretty interesting one here, posted by Lazy Rod on Land Speed Sonic blog. Can't really find out much about this band any more information on this band would be appreciated, thanks to Sean for the scanned cover. Brilliant female fronted punk with dashes of reggae.

THE GROWN-UPS - CHILLI-CHEESE DOG TAPE

The Grown-Ups - Chilli-Cheese Dog Tape
Dublin, 1991, DIY, Casette

More excellent pop punk here sent on by Boz "Here's the second and final GrownUps tape... 4 tracks were meant for circulation but the full session of 8 tracks is here for posterity!! This was released just before they broke up some time in Summer 1991"

PINK TURDS IN SPACE - THE COMPLETE PINK TURDS IN SPACE CD

Pink Turds In Space - The Complete CD
Belfast, 1980's, Rejected Records, CD

Possibly one of the best Irish bands of all time, more than 40 songs of straight up punk as fuck gems. Good interview with Crispo about the Turds here, had to split this download into two parts as its pretty massive, apologies.

NOT OUR WORLD - LIVE AT THE EARL GRATTAN , FEB 1989

Not Our World - Live at the Earl Grattan, Feb 1989
Dublin, 1989,Unreleased

Another excellent quality live recording from this legendary punk band from Dublin. It's an incredible pity this band never recorded in a studio.

BLOOD RED DOLLS - BANNED CD

Blood Red Dolls - Banned Album
Dublin/Wicklow, Early 2000's?,CD

Full lenghter here of more excellent rock n roll. Apparently only about 100 copies of this cd were ever pressed up, so here it is for your enjoyment passed on kindly by Tommy.