THE MOFFS
The Collection
SEKRET SEKRET
Happy Town Sounds (Singles, Live & Rare)
Feel Presents CDs
www.feelpresents.com
Unlike most of the Sydney based Citadel Records roster of bands during the ‘80s, usually drawing their influences from the American ’60s garage punk, The Moffs seemed to be focused on the same time span, but another coast. While wearing similar pointy Cuban heels and paisley shirts, the sound they were achieving was pretty close to what the Ally Pally crowd was grooving to during the 14 Hour Technicolor Dream. It’s the Syd-fronted ‘Floyd that comes across as the main influence, given a bit more of a contemporary touch by way of The Chills or Mancunians such as Inspiral Carpets and The Stone Roses.
Starting out a bit earlier, it’s no surprise that the initial output of soul mates Sekret Sekret shares quite a bit of the post-punk/new wave-ish feel that was a-happening at the time. Most audibly, it’s Buzzcocks and early XTC they most usually remind me of, and it’s only with their latter-day mid-80s output that the band jumped into the paisley regalia, wearing it much less comfortably than The Moffs though.
Goran Obradovic
VARIOUS ARTISTS
Dancing, Food & Entertainment; German Neo Psych Classics
Sireena CD
www.sireena.de
In the ’80s the ‘Neo Psych’ bin of my local record store was home to artists as diverse as The Long Ryders, Rain Parade and The Cramps. This compilation proves the point; the ‘neo psych’ umbrella shelters all kinds of pop, rock, garage and psych music. Practically the only thing they have in common is that they are German and recorded between 1985 and 1987. The most successful tracks are by the artists whose records I sought out at the time. The Shiny Gnomes ‘Temple Balls’ is enjoyable, full-on pop-pysch. (I still smile at the final passionate refrain, ‘Feel The Balls’).
All the bands involving Sandy Hobbs are a good bet, as, like The Black Carnations and The Beatitudes, they focus on stylish ’60s pop with female vocals. The brooding organ and confident vocals of The Multicoloured Shades still impress. The rest of the artists are new to me, but the lack of strong tunes amongst the effects suggests I made the right choices in the ’80s.
Phil Suggitt
VARIOUS ARTISTS
The Spirit of Sireena Volume 3
Sireena CD
www.sireena.de
Sireena specialise in German reissues. Unfortunately the artists featured are so diverse that this compilation has no real identity. The first three cuts are promising ’60s influenced pop and pysch. A track from the reissue of The Multicoloured Shades’ mid-80s garage revival is followed by a fine folk-rock number from Manderley, with female vocals and sitar. The Electric Family’s ‘Landmark Visions’ is long, atmospheric and largely instrumental. The rest of the album is a real mixture of styles, none of which are particularly notable. You get ’70s funk, blues rock, an extremely long ’80s style New Wave dance track, folk blues and even a bierkeller tune.
In other words, only the first three cuts are likely to interest Shindig! readers.
Phil Suggitt
VARIOUS ARTISTS
Titan: It’s All Pop!
Numero Uno CD
www.titanitsallpop.com
Several powerpop fans from back in the genre’s heyday remember the ‘little label that could’, Titan Records, out of Kansas City, and the LP they released in the early ‘80s, chronicling a choice selection of the 7” singles they’d released in the previous few years. There had been talk about a Titan Records CD compilation for several years, and it’s finally here, in a two-disc set released by that great maverick label, Numero Uno!
It’s All Pop! contains 42 tracks of Kansas City powerpop, much of it previously unreleased. Granted, there’s a lot of filler here, but there’s also a lot of killer, like the classic ‘It’s Your Heart Tonight’ by Secrets, the exquisite ‘Real Life Saver’ by Gary Charlson, ‘No Way Baby’ by Arlis! (a vocal dead ringer for Eric Carmen), ‘I Think About You’ by Scott McCarl (speaking of The Raspberries), ‘Baby (It’s You)’ by The Boys and several others.
If you’re a powerpop head then this collection is essential, and if you want to know what a previously unheralded pop scene was like in a time when ‘indie rock’ was not a misnomer, then by all means check this out!
David Bash |
