Pinch, Punch, first of the month. Well that was unexpected,
loads of people enjoyed last month’s series of compilations so much so, that I’ve
made an executive decision (well, it is only me), to continue with them into a
second month. So hold on to your hats ladies and gentlemen because this time
around we’re really getting the BIG GUNS out. Namaste
The Connoisseur Collection's ten-volume Indie Scene: The
Story of British Independent Music series maps the shift from punk to post-punk
and new wave in the U.K. from 1977 to 1986. Focusing on artists who were on
fledgling independent labels and thus digging up plenty of otherwise forgotten
chips from the late-'70s/early-'80s fireball, each volume contains plenty
enough for voracious neophytes to sink their teeth into. And if you were a
scenester back then (a hipster today) and need to relive the glory of all those
singles your mum threw out while you were at your umpteenth punk festival,
these compilations should plug some gaps. The Indie Scene 1977 begins with the
Flamin' Groovies' title track from 1976's Shake Some Action, but after that the
disc more or less sticks to the younger and snottier generation that carried
the torch for proto-punk bands like the Flamin' Groovies themselves. As with
the other instalments in the series, the inclusions are mostly from U.K. bands,
with the odd exception figuring into the scheme -- the Dead Boys ("I Don't
Care"), the Ramones ("Sheena Is a Punk Rocker"), and the
Heartbreakers ("Born to Lose") represent the U.S. bands that had an
effect (and/or a major influence) on their English counterparts. It makes
perfect sense that Buzzcocks' "Boredom" appears, as it was part of
one of the first self-financed and self-released records, the legendary Spiral
Scratch EP. Other highlights include the Stranglers' brutish "(Get A) Grip
(On Yourself)," Tubeway Army's (pre-Gary Numan solo) roaring "That's
Too Bad," the Adverts' "One Chord Wonders" (they were!),
Wreckless Eric's "Whole Wide World," and Johnny & the Self
Abusers' (pre-Simple Minds) "Saints and Sinners."
