m
question this begs. This isn’t their best effort,
New Age Steppers: My Love (Statik being a bit low on attack, but its got a chorus 12")
One step outside normalacy that’s for sure — reggae/funk mixture (heavy brew) vocals veering on and off key (or maybe it’s the music . . . this is . . . disorientating.) Super dub-break is something to hold on to before the slabs come crashing back against each other — a big sound all around. Impressively esoteric.
ES E.P.’s, Mini-L.P.’s Maxi-singles and other Non-conformists. The Jumpers: Galimatias Amoureux E.P. (Polymorphous) It gradually dawns on one that there are NO guitars on this E.P. And what’s more, it doesn’t matter. Bass and drums interlock efficiently and there’s enough colour and shade in keyboards sax and vocals to give the Jumpers a lean but wholesome sound. The music is ska/reggae based, lively on ‘Everytime I look At You’, written by bass player Michael Hope and Good lyrics admir ably sung by a slightly breathless Cathy Tune. A good catchy song, well arranged, catchy melody — all the ingredients iri fact of a commercial success. That’s not all either — Me No Send’ leans the chunky side of bouncy — the underproduction gives it a loose sparse feel that is not at all unpleasant. There’s a throaty, almost bluesy touch to Cathy Tune’s self-penned ‘Anytime’ — the music muted in the background. The music is at its most skeletal on ‘Girl and Toy’, a love song of sorts courtesy of keyboardist Jim Bowden. Effective and affecting. This is no pale pastiche; the Jumpers have moulded their influences marvellously.
The Jam: 4 Side Effects E.P. (Polydor) Very definitely a collectable item this one. Three bona-fide classics Eton Rifles’, ‘Going Underground’ and ‘That’s Entertainment’ (one of the ten best songs ever written by ANYONE) and one near-miss in ‘Start’. The perfect introduction to the Jam for those with modest budgets. Watch out though — you’ll get addicted!
The Dance: In Lust (Statik 12") With a name like th a t. .,. yup, beefy bass beat, filling funky fingerpoppin’ feel. Street wise jive, so hot it hurts. Git down and you’ll be with it. Ah, New York, New York.
you could hang a large hat on and might just wriggle onto the airwaves. If it does — watch it go.
Serious Young Insects: Trouble Un derstanding Words (Native Tongue)
Serious Young Insects seem to be unable to make up their mind whether they want to sound like the Jam or the Cure. They fall somewhere uncomfortably in the middle. Still Normal Seven Inchers give ’em time — they’ve got 3 million years of Kid Creole and the Coconuts: Me No evolution to go through to catch up with the I Pop I (Ze) rest of us (tee hee). August Darnell makes it quite clear on this, the Coconuts Australian vinyl debut, that you ‘will hear him out!’ And the pleasure is all ours Rockers Time in this steaming slice of salsa. KC & the C’s UB40: Don’t Slow Down (Dep) UB40 plough the deepest groove of I are Latin; they’re Caribbean, they’re New York street; they’re 30’s potted palms; they’re anyone in reggae. Deep and straight and hot’n’humid, slick’n’sassy. Tropical beat, smooth. They have a sound of their own and this is a song with that sound. Sounds good oiled and supple. Darnell’s imagery is as colorful as his to me. shirts. Rapping street warrior style slides, in the most sinuous manner imaginable, into a Third World: Dancing On The Floor high incomparably sweet chorus, and then (C.B.S.) back to the tale. A disco/reggae hybrid which sounds as Boy, this single is so good. I LOVE it! slick as souless as most black American LIT T L E M U R D E R S music used to be. Soft and flabby.
Eddy Grant: Can’t Get Enough (Ice) Smooth again, but avoiding the trap of slushiness but by virtue of a tight arrange ment and the compelling delivery of Grant. A mover rather than a groover, but no raver. Clever...and catchy too.
Sirens
Lyrics and vocals are the stand out on this debut single for all female Adelaide Band Foreign Body. Natasha Koodravsev wrote and sings this innocuous sounding song, but there’s real bite in her tale of Hetero-love gone oh-so-wrong.
Kate Bush: Sat In Your Lap (EMI) Kate verges on Nina ‘Histrionics Unlimited’ Hagen territory on this one. It’s got modern ‘Tribal’ drums and is generally wild and uncontained and not at all mannered. A step ahead for Ms. Bush.
Pat Benatar: Fire and Ice (Chrysalis) Ms Benatar rocks out in the time-honoured tradition. Nothing particularly wrong (or strong) about the song, but it’s her perfor mance that makes this a cut above the norm. Controlled power (vocal) chords and a hint of darker passion than the lyrics explain. Immaculate.
Back to Basics Ruts D.C.: Dangerous Minds: (Virgin) Far from it.
Angelic Upstarts: Never Come Back (EMI) It won’t be too long.
Motorhead: Over The Top (Bronze) Faintly invigorating in very small doses.
Belle du Soir: E.P. (M squared) Garage - art.
The Professionals: Join The Professions (Virgin) Don’t make me larf!
Mother Goose: I Can’t Sing Very Weil i (Parole) Elton John goes cabaret.
Little Heroes: Last Number One (Giant) Little Murders: ‘She Lets Me Know’ (Au-Go-Go) Little Murders, on the other hand, have no doubts at all about who they want to sound like! Glorious sixties Pop! Hard drivin’! Guitars! Whoa — whoa choruses! Shit, with the Sunny Boys in Sydney and the Dagoes in Adelaide, and now these chaps from Mel bourne, there’s a bloody full scale pop renaissance happening right under our very noses! And about time too is all I can say. Excellent single.
Foreign Body: Gang Land (Good Bunch)
A song of delicate poise. Set against an ethereal, alien atmosphere — after the holocaust the first thing you will notice is the siience. It’s an oblique angle from which to view the end of civilization, but a novel and dreadfully intriguing one. The edge to which w e’re hurtling where suddenly the last number one in the world has lost all its meaning — along with everything else. A minor classic of the S.F. rock genre.
Donald Robertson.
Dagoes: ‘Ten Years On’ (Phantom) And talking of the greasy ones, if you weren’t one of the Chosen Few who man aged to snap up the double E.P., ‘It’s You’, then this is your consolation prize. Damn fine it is too, and worth every penny. Imagine — owning a piece of living history!
Allfliters The B-52’s: Mini-L.P.)
‘Party
Mix’ (WEA
Funny, I thought all the B-52’s songs were perfect for parties already. But obviously not — an update of history was obviously in order. The ‘cute’ vocalizations are intact but everything else has had a bagful of elec tronics thrown at it. ‘Party Out Of Bounds’ and ‘Private Idaho’ are given fairly hefty injections of funkability, but side one closer ‘Give Me Back My Man’ is a trifle on the tedious side. ‘Lava’ is tough and taut and treated. ‘Dance This Mess Around’ is bony and verging on the desperate while ‘52 Girls’ seems almost un changed. One for M arxist dancers everywhere.
Allniters: Made A Monkey/ Allniters are Allniters/ ‘Round the Bend (Green) Ska, if you hadn’t heard. There’s some thing boring about the B side but ‘Made A Monkey’ is hard and driving — relentless in its attack (Sydney ska? Well, yes!) and the theme song is sloppy as all good theme songs should be. ‘Made A Monkey’ is just beaut though. Have a listen.
The Undertones: ‘It’s Going To Happen’ (E.M.I.)
How come it hasn’t happened before here for these high flying Irish pop masters? is the 29