A.P.P.L.E. - Peace is Possible (Vinyl Communications)
Friday, March 17th Evening @ Foufounes Électriques
LAURA KRIEG - Tout S’effondre Tout Va Bien (Detriti) Saturday, March 18th Matinée @ L’Achoppe
DEADBOLT - Natural Born Hater (Ice Island Hardcore) Saturday, March 18th Evening @ Foufounes Électriques
THE SODS - Police (Medley)
Bands that played at the Combust show
EXHIBITION - Can This Last Forever? (Triple B)
90s Garage (Rob)
THEE MIGHTY CAESARS - 1977 (Hangman) TEENGENERATE - Let’s Get Hurt (Crypt)
The Chords commonly associated with the 1970s mod revival, were from South East London.
They formed in 1978 when singer/guitarist Billy Hassett and his bassist cousin, Martin Mason, advertised for musicians in the NME and found guitarist and songwriter, Chris Pope. By March 1979 The Chords were taking the stage. They gigged continuously over the spring and summer, headlining two mod festivals at London's Marquee Club and recording their first BBC Radio 1 session for DJ John Peel in early July. They also featured, along with some of their fans, on the cover of Time Out magazine. Amongst their early supporters were Paul Weller, who saw one of their first concerts, and Sham 69's Jimmy Pursey, who signed the group to his JP Productions company.
The quartet recorded a handful of demos for Pursey, before the relationship soured after he heckled The Undertones at a concert which the Chords had opened. Polydor then signed the band to a recording contract. For their debut single, the Chords chose one of the songs recorded for Pursey, "Now It's Gone", re-recorded it and had it released in September 1979. It rose to No. 63 in the UK Singles Chart.
THE CHORDS - Don't Look Back (Polydor)
THE CHORDS - Maybe Tomorrow (Polydor)
They followed it up in January 1980 with "Maybe Tomorrow", which, bolstered by rave reviews in the press, shot in to the UK Top 40. A second Peel session was recorded in March, and the next month their third single, "Something's Missing", arrived. This taster for their debut album, So Far Away, reached No. 55. The album made No. 30 in the UK Albums Chart in May, bolstered by a UK tour.
THE CHORDS - Something's Missing (Polydor)
The album included two cover versions; Sam & Dave's "Hold On, I'm Comin'" and The Beatles' "She Said She Said". AllMusic gave So Far Away 4.5 stars, the second highest rating possible.
"The British Way of Life" single arrived in July and reached No. 54,
THE CHORDS - The British Way of Life (Polydor)
THE CHORDS - In My Street (Polydor)
"In My Street", released in October, topped out at No. 50. This song would go on to represent the band in many mod comps through the generations.
The group continued touring, until a show at London's Music Machine in November 1980. The Chords sacked Hassett, and the former Vibrators' singer Kip Herring stepped in. The old line-up was featured on the cover of their next single, "One More Minute", which arrived in May 1981. It was a flop, as was August's "Turn Away Again", and the Chords called it a day the following month.
In 1986, a live album entitled No One's Listening Anymore was issued, which was recorded at the Rainbow room in 1980.
A decade later, the double album compilation CD, This Is What They Want was released.
In August 2010, The Chords went back on the road with their original line-up, promoting the single, "Another Thing Coming", and playing gigs across the UK. They also toured Australia and Japan in 2012. A DVD, What Became of the People We Used To Be - The History of The Chords was available from May 2012, charting the band's rise to cult status. Here's a track from the live recording.
THE CHORDS - I'm Not Sure (Unicorn)
New Releases (Chris)
RUM RUNNER - What's The Music Mean To You (Stumble)
OBEDIENT refer to themselves as cross channel basement hardcore because one member is in Vancouver and another is in Victoria. The songs were originally recorded in 2019 and re-recorded in 2020. The vocals were laid down in January of this year.
OBEDIENT - Over It (Slow Death)
OBEDIENT - Dead to Me (Slow Death)
OBEDIENT - Black Out and Block (Slow Death)
OBEDIENT - Want to Die (Slow Death)