Published in Sounds, 6th March 1982
SINGLE OF THE WEEK | THE BUSINESS: ‘Smash The Discos’ (Secret EP). In the blue corner bops gormless, smug ‘opiate of the people’ disco musak, champion of the airwaves and the puke-making voice of passive acceptance everywhere.
Don’t think! Don’t ask questions! Just vegetate and booooogie, ma babe . . . In the red corner, prowl the Business with one of the hardest-hitting most relevant punk singles of the year so far, raising the standard for music with GUTS, music that asks WHY, with ill-concealed glee.
Sure the imagery is violent. But that’s to make you sit up and notice, to plunge you head-front into the campaign to get the rebel voice of youth-agitation heard.
You thought ‘Harry May’ was good? This knocks it into the middle of the public bar, smashing straight into a sprightly, relentless punk rally cry for musical choice and musical relevance, celebrated via a nightmare of rhetorical revenge on soul-destroying disco cattle markets.
‘SMASH THE DISCOS – SMASH THEM UP’ yells Fitzy with feeling. But this is much more than another slice of ‘F*** The Mods’ no threat hot air, it’s a v-sign to passivity, a passionate cry for musical fight-back that hollers: THERE ARE THREE MILLION PEOPLE ON THE DOLE — WE DON’T WANT TO GET DOWN AND BOOGIE!!!
‘Disco Girls’ takes a similar irreverent attitude to same, with handsome heavy drumming leading straight into the punch verse and sneering chorus, while ‘Deo’ is a menacingly pounding punky interpretation of the old Harry Belafonte standard much loved by disco-philes and TV ad-men, a tongue-in-cheek but total demolition of the dross anthem! ‘Streets of London’ was never like this.
This EP should have been in the shops last Friday, knowing Secret it probably won’t be there till next year, but believe me chaps it’s well worth the wait . . .
Total Chaos | Punk 45s Reviewed by Garry Bushell
CHARGE: ‘Destroy The Youth’ (Kamera). Handsome. A great punch intro steams right into a demented hundred mph verse that sounds unholy like a rabies-ridden version of the old-time Subs with its plenty persuasive fervent furty and great singalong chorus.
Definitely one of the records the word ‘blistering’ was invented for, but, a bit sadly, head and shoulders above the rest of the ep. ‘No One Knows’ is a Crassier dawdle that aims at insistency and doesn’t quite make it, while the b-side is okay in the belligerent noise stakes (though it’s a shame singer Moose is muffled by the manky mix) but doesn’t quite attain the staggering sulphate standards of the title track.
CHRON-GEN: ‘Jet Boy Jet Girl’ (Secret). I must admit I hated this when I first heard it. I probably had a hangover, cos when you get down to it it’s the best grin out for ages.
Imagine the legendary poofter Plastic Bertrand stuffed silly with speed, imagine the Damned pissed as parrots and you’ll get a rough idea of what this sounds like.
A glorious sing-along-a-pogo party piece that somehow keeps together despite all the odds and is guaranteed to get ’em rolling in the aisles in inebriated joy.
I’m not so sure about the b-side though, after all this will be the THIRD version of the diamond ‘Subway Sadists’ Chron-fanatics will have, but the chinky cover’s okay. “Let a hundred flowers bloom,” said the good Chairman after a piss up down the Bridge House last month – a plea from the heart of one of the world’s deadest Communists to keep the punk movement vigorous and varied, with its feed on the ground and its eyes on the stars. Or so Joe King told me.
Total Chaos | Punk 45s Reviewed by Garry Bushell
DEAD WRETCHED: ‘No Hope For Anyone’ (Inferno). A dubious start, what with them half-inching the chords of ‘I’m An Upstart’, that soon recovers as the boisterous verse gives way to a great singalong chorus of ‘No Hope For You/No Hope For Anyone/No Hope For The Wretched.
Pessimistic fun, or what? The reckless bruisers on the b-side confirm these unknown Brummies as a band with much mob appeal and definitely a good idea to catch live.
THE XPOZEZ: ‘Systems Kill’ (Retaliation). Youth club punk ordinaire, sadly, from Huddersfield, lacking punch and passion, passion and originality. Strictly support band stuff at the mo.
DEAD MAN’S SHADOW: ‘Heathrow Touchdown’ (Anarcho). A quick, not to mention uncharacteristic, apology to DMS and Action Pack who share this EP and whom I erroneously described as the same band with and without a girl singer last column. George is still squeaky and ‘Police Force’ still rips off ‘Wonderful World’ however.
HOAX: ‘Blind Panic’ (Hologramme Music). All things are relative writes C. Mao from beyond the grave. Next to Charge this sounds positively laidback, but next to the Xpozez it’s powerful and chuggingly heavy.
Nothing too special but an entertaining four track loaded with spirit and occasionally reminding of a rockier version of The Fall. But why was the singer in another room when they recorded it?
Total Chaos | Punk 45s Reviewed by Garry Bushell
DRONGOS FOR EUROPE: ‘Death’s A Career’ (Inferno). Not since Attila has a name produced so much hilarity in these offices. And when it started like ‘Hot Love In The City’ we were sure it was Rox extracting the urine. In fact it’s another great big racket, arguably akin to Crass having a punch-up with Anti-Pasti outside the Army Careers Office. Good chorus.
LONDON PX: ‘Orders’ (New Puritan). For a band with a ‘rep’ amongst spikey herberts this ranks highly in the worra-let-down stakes being not only the worst sort of wimphemic punk but also boasting a feeble limp-wristed production job that leaves the guitar so low you’d have to be a dwarf or a member of Dollar to hear it. And to think they wouldn’t let me review the Tank single! That’s true total chaos, take it from me . . . (Garry Bushell)
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