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LP
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H 10152LP
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One hell of an obscure release for fans of leftist German street punk. A compilation featuring one of the most iconic underground acts Germany saw in the 1980s, Tollwut (Bochum). Punk rock in its original form and spirit: border songwriting with lots of ska rhythms among furious riffs. Seuchen compiles the rare 1981 Seuchen 7" EP, the even more rare 1983 MC cassette album, and the more sophisticated 1983 recordings. It makes one think of a way more raw, nihilistic, and aggressive Ideal, Fehlfarben, and Ton Steine Scherben, and might appeal to fans of the more wicked Neue Deutsche Welle underground as well. In the end, all of these bands are rooted in a similar background they share with Tollwut ("rabies"). Interchanging male and female vocals add much diversity to these tracks. When it gets to the four tracks from the classic 7" EP, ferocious underground punk rock are placed in between more tracks from the 1983 tape. It works fairly well with this splitting of the original single tracks and illustrates how a full-length album released back in the day might have sounded. Tollwut have a good feeling for great punk rock anthems that stick to your mind and deliver a brilliant rabid performance. They could have become a hard hitter on the scene back then! Fans of German punk music of the '80s should definitely give this a go.
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LP
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H 10151LP
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2017 repress. Black vinyl version. The Strawberry Jam is a rather fresh UK band and Jam is their debut from 2007, originally released on CD. The first three songs have a quite earthy feel and go from utterly cool country garage rock hybrids to proto-punkish eruptions, all within the first ten minutes of the record. Initially it's tempting to file this band under garage rock music due to its lovely late '60s feeling. There is a savage lead guitar on the first few songs, making them a great joy to listen to. However, there is much more to discover. "Alice D.", "I Like You The Most" and "Alice D. Reprise" take the turn from the down-to-earth, fuzzed-out US garage rock to a rather British psychedelic pop with a slightly giddy expression. This is the kind of stuff on some early records from the London underground and Canterbury scene. The more laid back and folkish psychedelic sound and the weird humorous pieces stay with the listener for a while until The Strawberry Jam find themselves slipping through a time hole which leads from early 1967 to the summer of 1969. "I Don't Want To Make You Mine" is a straight blues rock stomper with a typical British blues approach similar to bands such as Savoy Brown or Ten Years After. Some more beautiful hippie folk follows in its veins and an epic psychedelic pop tune ends a very colorful and captivating album. It's noticeably a modern day effort since this bandwidth of styles and sounds would have been a bit too far out for an original sixties audience. The closing track "Dragon Seed" is a laid-back epic with ever drifting rhythmic pulsations and a wicked swirl of sounds. A few moments of free-form experiments close this retrospective but joyful album. From The Seeds to MC5 to The Beatles to Tomorrow and Twink, this is a great soundtrack for a summer trip.
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