The Subterraneans
The Subterraneans - Swamp Psyche & Garage Fuzz - Lost Sounds From the Leodhasach Trashbeat Era 1983/84 (2008)
CD Cover for "...Lost Sounds..."
Compilation CD put together in 2008 to go out with the rediscovered Subterraneans Show DVD. The sleeve notes read as follows:
"Back in the early 80s 5
unhip dudes from the Broad Bay
area (Tolsta, Gress, Newvalley,
Sandwick and Parkend to be
precise) decided the time was
right to cook up a mess of
fuzz-drenched 60s
garage punk, wailin' electric
blues and primeval surfabilly
rock n roll trash.
It wasn't. Radio and TV were
dominated by synthipop and Wham.
"Rock" meant keyboard-saturated
AOR or Hair Metal. Post-punk was
over and "alternative" music was
all anaemic tuneless crap played
by wimps in raincoats who had
passed their NME "rockism"
checks.
Back on ol' SY it was different but not better; with a few honourable exceptions every band in town worked from the same small reeper-toire of Eagles, Fleetwood Mac and Clapton covers. And "Freebird", as required by local licensing laws.
Consequently the Subterraneans
didn't get out much. The
"classic" lineup of Emil The
Shrink (vocals, harmonica), Bob
Bitchin (Lead Geetar) Zink
Sputnik (Rhythm), Leroi Z
Coondawg (Bass) and Etheridge
Lockjaw Jones 1st (Drums) spent
most of their existence jamming
in garages and spare rooms.
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In May 83 the band recorded
10 songs on a ghetto blaster in
Leroi's garage and "released"
the results as "Garage Fuzz", 10
trashy tracks on C45. An ad
placed in "Sounds" at great
expense resulted in 1 order,
from Tom Erik "Trash"
Kristofferson. "Trash" later
founded Sneakers
Records
,
Norway's top label for cool
garage stuff, but for some
reason never came looking for
the Subterraneans to add to his
roster. Not only that but he
didn't send enough money to
cover the postage.
In December 83 the Subterraneans
went to Tong Studios, where they
recorded 5 songs live with
Spectoresque production genius
Noel Eadie. Replacing the garage
tracks on "Garage Fuzz" with the
studio versions, they released
"Swamp Psyche". "Swamp Psyche"
sold in similar quantities to
"Garage Fuzz", but it did
briefly attract some attention
from Lindsay
Hutton's "Rockin
Bones" fanzine and from Greg Shaw, proprietor of legendary US
label Bomp Records.
In late 1984, notorious trainee
accountant and B-movie
exploitation director Ken "Russ
Meyerybank" Livingstone featured
the band in "The Subterraneans
Show", an ultra-low budget flick
shot on Super-8 in Newvalley and
featuring all the necessary
ingredients of a 50s classic :
Flying saucers, werewolves,
chicks (OK, 1 chick, but she
later went on to great things)
commie spies, rock n roll, and
fast cars. Grease it wasn't...
By early 85, frontman Emil The
Shrink couldn't take the shame
no more and went off to go a'
hoboin' across the pond, where
among other stuff he met John
Lee Hooker and nearly met his
end at the hands of The Killer,
Jerry Lee Lewis. The
Subterraneans kept the set but
got a new singer and changed
their name to Memphis Louie an
the Rockin Firebirds of Death...
but that there's another story".
Tracks:
1 The
Subterraneans Says Hi 0:56
Studio Recordins (From "Swamp
Psyche" 1984):
2 Louie Louie 3:25
3 I Was Murdered By The C.I.A.
2:54
4 Who Do You Love? 2:41
5 Wherewolf 2:00
6 Hi Heel Sneekers 2:43
Garage
Recordins (From "Garage Fuzz"
1983):
7 Strychnine 2:37
8 Crawlin King Snake 4:09
9 Honey Hush 2:11
10 E.S.P. 2:46
11 Hobo Blues 3:17
Half plugged : Spare Room
Tapes (1984):
12 18 'Gators in Space 3:17
13 He's Waitin 2:37
14 Up The Line 1:49
15 You're Gonna Miss Me 2:59
16 Out of The Question 2:27
17 Dead Presidents 2:12
18 Nobody Now 3:53
Garage Fuzz Alternate Takes
(1983):
19 Louie Louie 3:40
20 I Was Murdered By the C.I.A.
2:52
21 Wherewolf 1:59
22 Hi Heel Sneekers 3:00
23 Who Do You Love? 2:56