found these guys on tiktok who talk about nothing but metalhead stereotypes and metal music... do not listen to (much) metal but this is prime entertainment and i love them
You're Soaking in It!
1988
Indie Rock / Alternative Rock / College Rock / Jazz / Rockabilly
Continuing to explore this whole forgotten realm of ephemeral alt-indie-underground rock stuff from the late 80s and early 90s, with this little dispatch from New Jersey's APEX Records that was largely a showcase of Philly bands who are all long gone now. And with names like 7 Dancing Etruscan Slaves of the 4th Dimension and The Things That Creeped-N-Crawled Right Out-O-the Ground—whose lead singer is The Woman With the Most Scaryest Name (Too Scary to Print)—that should give you an idea of just what to expect from a release like this one: silly, fun, and quirky music that's really not to be taken all too seriously.
Now, I love lighthearted tunes that can be all things dumb, ironic, and self-aware, but, unfortunately, I don't have any highlights to post from this particular record here. And usually when that happens, that means that the record is bad, but actually, this isn't a bad record at all. There are a bunch of songs on this LP that, in fact, happen to be pretty good; but "pretty good" doesn't end up cutting it in order to achieve that coveted "highlight" status! 😅
So, while Ornamental Wigwam's shallowly inquisitive "Song No. 15" makes me laugh out loud, with purposely clunky lines like, "if there were no more residential districts, where would we go to bed?" and Nixon's Head plays with this satisfyingly catchy and lively, light rockabilly tinge on "Dollars and Sense," and a band called Wack Mags deliver a mix of irreverence and 70s Detroit on their only ever released song, "Baby, Baby, Baby," I just can't bring myself to lie to you all and tell you that any of these songs are excellent 😔.
But I'm also not gonna end up leaving you empty-handed here today, either; if you want some awesome Philly fare, there are some great tunes on this YouTube-only 90s Indie Rock playlist that I put together a few years ago. Terrific offerings from bands like Transient Waves, Photon Band, Lenola, and The Asteroid No. 4. None of it's intentionally wacky, like what's on this late 80s record, but it sure feels like some of the best of what indie Philly had to offer at the time 😊.
And I'm counting the steps to the door of your heart
Only shadows ahead
Barely clearing the roof
Get to know the feeling of liberation and release
Hey now, hey now
Don't dream it's over
Hey now, hey now
When the world comes in
They come, they come
To build a wall between us
You know they won't win
Songwriter: Neil Finn
Don't let them win (Hey now, hey now)
Hey now, hey now
Hey now, hey now
Don't let them win (They come, they come)
Don't let them win (Hey now, hey now), yeah
Hey now, hey now
SongFacts:
"Don't Dream It's Over" is a song by rock band Crowded House, recorded for their 1986 self-titled debut studio album. The song was composed and written by New Zealand frontman Neil Finn, and released in October 1986 as the fourth single from the album.
The song became the band's biggest international hit, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in April 1987. "Don't Dream It's Over" was also a great success in Finn's native country of New Zealand, where it reached Number 1. It also topped the charts in Canada, while in Australia it peaked at No. 8. In continental Europe, it reached No. 6 in Norway, No. 7 in the Netherlands, and No. 13 in Germany. At the 1986 Countdown Australian Music Awards the song was nominated for three awards, winning Best Video.
The music video for the song was created by Australian film production company Meaningful Eye Contact and was directed by Alex Proyas. It was filmed in Sydney at an abandoned theatre in Balmain. The video features some surreal special effects such as household objects – including shattering crockery – and film reels that float in the air, with lead singer Finn playing a guitar and walking through the same house during different time periods while his bandmates are either performing household chores or playing various backing instruments. It was nominated for Best Group Video and Best Direction at the 1987 MTV Video Music Awards, and earned the group a Best New Artist award.
Gimme the Keys !!
1988
Garage Punk / Punk Rock / Garage Rock / Alternative Rock / Psychobilly
Goddamn, dude. Feel like people are constantly forgetting about this side of rock music from the 80s and 90s: that cheap, greasy, sleazy, raw, high-octane, noisy, fuzzy, rambunctious, hectic, hard, beer-soaked, sticky-concrete-bar-floor, 70s Detroit-inspired underground garage shit. There was so much of this stuff floating around in the 80s and 90s, but it doesn't really get talked about all that much. It wasn't really on MTV or corporate rock radio stations and you won't find much of it on Spotify either. And in this album's case, for the most part, you'll also fail to find it on YouTube as well 😔.
Truth be told, I've never heard of any of these LA bands before (apparently Claw Hammer landed on Epitaph and Interscope years after appearing on this comp), and much of the A-side on this album (deemed the 'Light Side') doesn't hit, but once you get to the very problematically titled "White Ghetto" by Thirsty Brats, this LP kicks itself into full gear and it's nothing but kickass, chaotic rock good from there. Plus, the cool artwork was done by none other than The Flaming Lips!
For me, this type of stuff is the best kind of 80s and 90s rock music there is and most rock narratives tend to just totally gloss over it. I mean, to put it in the broadest of strokes, the 80s was metal, the early 90s was grunge, the mid-90s was post-grunge, and the late 90s was pop-punk and nu metal. But this strain of rollicking and rip-roaring DiY rock was there during all of those years and people just choose to forever sleep 😴🤷♂️. It belongs on the "broadest of strokes" list!
So go buy this LP to get a small taste of this ephemeral and unjustifiably unremembered rock & roll greatness. This album focuses on a crop of LA bands, but this reckless undercurrent was in a lot of different places throughout the US, and so much of it's just sitting on disused and dust-collecting, inexpensive CDs and records still waiting to be picked up for the first time. The shit was, and still is, pure, undiscovered gold as far as I'm concerned.
Highlights:
Thirsty Brats - "White Ghetto"
Fearless Leader - "Move a Little"
Fearless Leader - "Last Nite"
Fearless Leader - "Tortured Soul"
Crawlspace - "Time for Fun"
Crawlspace - "Black to Comm"
Lexington - "Wisconsin Death Trip"
Claw Hammer - "Bullet In My Head"
Claw Hammer - "Self Destruct"
art inspired by our headliners: stars, dan mangan + men without hats
xo, hc
"Plastic talk on the TV
Backwards love from your family
All the things we'll never be
Shut off and turn it up
One more time no one is lost
If you have it hard, if you have it soft
It's still not loud enough. It's still not loud enough!"