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Between the Cracks: 1986 Compendium

July 23, 2020 by A.S. Van Dorston

A few more albums came to mind since I wrote the original piece last year. I realized the additions to the original would go unnoticed unless I made a fresh post. Agent Orange’s first album got heavy rotation on my post-punk show back in the late 80s, but for some reason I had mixed feelings about their 1986 album, and my cassette was discarded and I hadn’t heard a note from it for 30 years until I stumbled upon “Fire In The Rain” while making a Spotify mix. Now I can’t stop listening. I listened to T.S.O.L. (True Sound Of Liberty) fairly often, but limited mainly to the first EP and Dance With Me (1981). I’d always meant to get their subsequent three albums, but they were difficult to find in the late 80s, and I forgot about them. All three are well worth checking out. A new album from The Primevals prompted me to check in on their original 80s albums which were very difficult to find for many years, and sure enough, the lost garage noir classics Sound Hole (1986) and Eternal Hotfire (1985) were given double deluxe reissue treatment in 2015 on LTM’s Boutique label. Lyres’ On Fyre (1984) always got decent rotation, especially in the summer (when else would one listen to surf punk?), but Lyres Lyres (1986) is probably their best album. Yes, they were one of the original 60’s garage rock revivalists, but remain one of the best.

Agent Orange – This Is The Voice (Enigma/Restless)

When I first heard this album, I was unsatisfied because I had a preconceived notion of how Agent Orange should sound, which was faster punk rawk. But the band was unique from the beginning, blending surf covers with the California post-hardcore scene on the classic Living In Darkness (Posh Boy, 1981). Hindsight shows this is the best they ever sounded, despite the somewhat dated 1986 production. It’s a wildly colorful blend of psychedelic punk and surf with just a bit of metallic edge that measured up to the cream of the British and Australian albums that year more than any other American band. They took another ten year hiatus until their next album, and missed out on much of the recognition and success they could have reaped from the rich potential of this album. “Fire In The Rain” should have been a hit.


T.S.O.L. – Revenge (Enigma)

Even more so than Agent Orange, T.S.O.L. confounded expectations of what a California punk band should sound like, quickly evolving from the political rants of their first self-titled EP in 1981 to the fabulous horror punk of Dance With Me (Frontier) that same year. On Beneath The Shadows (Alternative Tentacles/Restless, 1982) they took on psych and Kate Bush styled prog pop. Change Today? (Enigma, 1984) featured new vocalist Joe Wood that previewed the directions The Cult and Danzig would take. It wasn’t very highly regarded at the time, but has plenty to like. Revenge is even better, this time tapping into The Gun Club for inspiration for their garage noir and blues punk on “Madhouse,” X and the Misfits on “No Time” and the title track, and slow-burners “Memories” and “Colors – Take Me Away” strive for Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds level of simmering menace. Success!


The Primevals – Sound Hole (New Rose/Boutique)

I first heard The Primevals via their contributions of “China Pig” and “Crazy Little Thing” to Fast ‘n’ Bulbous: A Tribute To Captain Beefheart in 1988. They weren’t my favorite covers, as they sounded a lot like post-peak Blasters to my ears. Man, did I miss out. Had they stuck to their signature, feral garage noir style, as the Scientists did on “Clear Spot,” I would have rampaged through the record stores like an amphetamine pumped elephant until I found their records. I don’t know why this Glasgow band was such a well kept secret, with no entry in the usually thorough Trouser Press Record Guide, and very little press in general. Most likely it was the fact that their classic 80s albums were only released on the French New Rose label, and not in the U.S. We missed out on a perfect hybrid of sinister sounding punk/blues/garage rock just as potent as anything by contemporaries the Scientists, The Gun Club, The New Christs and The Bad Seeds.

The second album after Eternal Hotfire (1984), Sound Hole finds The Primevals at their peak powers. “Prairie Chain” is a prime combo of slide guitar blues and rootsy twang, while “Saint Jack” gives a character study that measures up to what Nick Cave was up to. “Spiritual” is another highlight, with vocalist Michael Rooney adding a bit of quaver that reminds me of Wall Of Voodoo’s Stan Ridgeway, while some horns briefly enter the mix recalling The Saints. The simmering groove of cuts like “Nutmeg City” (lightened up by a bit garbled blathering via Lux of The Cramps) suggests that Australia’s Radio Birdman may have been an influence, so it wouldn’t be fair to say these Scots are fixated only on Americana. It may have been underground, but by the mid-80s, garage noir was already a global phenomenon. Their first three albums, including Live A Little (1987), were reissued by Last Call in 2006 as On The Red Eye, and the first two albums were reissued as deluxe double discs in 2015 on Boutique, part of LTM. The band is still active, and also just released a new album, Second Nature. | Buy


The Lyres – Lyres Lyres (Ace Of Hearts/Munster)

Tremolo guitar, organ, inexact garage punk vocals, proto-surf noir, it’s all here swathed in hot pink. The Boston band is the brainchild of Jeff Connolly, originally of garage punkers DMZ. The Lyres debuted with the smokin’ AHS1005 EP (Ace of Hearts, 1981), featuring the first version of one of their most memorable originals, the surf rockin’ “Help You Ann.” By the mid-80s, there were a number of bands working this territory, such as The Original Sins and Lime Spiders, but none were quite as soulful as The Lyres in full-throated anguish on “She Pays The Rent.”


There’s plenty more obscure garage psych to dig into, as 1986 was just at the tail-end of the peak of the global underground revival.

The Things – Outside My Window (Voxx) USA
Plan 9’s Dealing With The Dead (Midnight, 1983) has an underground classic reputation, but of this batch, my new favorite is The Things, from La Habra, CA. In the garage psych bible, The Knights Of Fuzz, Timothy Gassen said “no band from the 1980s re-captured the creative spirit of mid-period Beatles better than The Things.” High praise indeed. Coloured Heaven (1984), meant to be a demo, was released on Greg Shaw’s Voxx label. Their second album from 1986 found the band at peak powers in both songwriting and studio craft, despite the limited budget. The manic Roy McDonald was known as the Keith Moon of the garage scene, which would have meant a great live show. This was never issued digitally, but vinyl rips can be found where music fiends lurk in the dark.

The Cynics – Blue Train Station (Get Hip) USA
The Spikes – Colour In A Black Forest (Greasy Pop/Zinger) Australia
The Creeps – Enjoy the Creeps (Trax On Wax) Sweden
Plan 9 – Anytime Anyplace Anywhere EP (Pink Dust) USA
The Stomach Mouths – Something Weird (Got To Hurry) Sweden
The Vietnam Veterans – In Ancient Times (Music Maniac) France
Bruce Joyner & The Plantations – Swimming With Friends (Closer) USA

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