- Artist: INXS
- Title: I Send a Message
- Year: 1984
- Format: Vinyl 12 in.
- Rating (1-10): 6
- Owner: Mary
- Acquired: 1987? - Used at Plan 9 Records in Richmond, VA
- Keeper: No
This INXS single, “I Send a Message”, is decent. I think I remember it from the radio or MTV. The back has “Mechanical” which does in fact have a lot of mechanical sounds mixed in with some strange too-arty ska groove. I doubt many people would recognize it as INXS. I think I bought one of their albums way back, but I really know much about the band. That said, I do have a story.
My friend John Hurlock and I went to see the Go Gos at the amusement park King’s Dominion. Please don’t tell anyone I told you this. Anyhow, we were in high school and it seemed like a good idea at the time–have fun at the park all day and see the Go Gos for cheap, $5 or something. This would have been in the very early 1980s. INXS was the opening band. At the time I had heard of them but that was about it. When they came on stage all the girls in the audience started losing it. They were screaming and rushing to the front. John and I were completely baffled since we had no idea Michael Hutchence was such a teen idol. It was like those films of the Beatles at Shea Stadium. Crazy.
- Artist: Inca Babies
- Title: Evil Hour
- Year: 1988
- Format: Vinyl 12 in.
- Rating (1-10): 5
- Owner: Tracy
- Acquired: 1988 - Promo at our store RIP Records in Norfolk, VA.
I was thinking this Inca Babies record, “Evil Hour”, sounded familiar in some way, but I wasn’t sure why. I thought maybe there was some milder Birthday Party thing happening, but that seemed like a lazy comparison. Then, I read this article about the Inca Babies at Trouser Press. Turns out, I’m not lazy. It looks like this was their last release and apparently they had started finding their groove, but overall this record wasn’t as exciting as I remembered.
Update: Inca Babies’ new site is up and running, and they have a new “best of” called Plutonium out on Cherry Red Records.
- Artist: Billy Idol
- Title: Rebel Yell
- Year: 1983
- Format: Vinyl 12 in.
- Rating (1-10): 5
- Owner: Tracy
- Acquired: 1983 — No idea.
- Keeper: Yes
I admit that I think the title track “Rebel Yell” is a great pop song, probably Billy Idol’s best. The rest of the album is not so exciting, except for Steve Stevens excellent guitar work. I read an interview with Stevens in Guitar Player magazine back in the 1980s. He said people were always asking him to “do the raygun Steve”, and everyone wanted to know how he did it. The raygun was some killer effect/trick that he did twice in the song “Rebel Yell.” Steve didn’t want to say exactly how to do it. As I remember it, he thought it was kind of lame for people to just copy it and said people should just experiment and come up with their own stuff. I agree, but you can tell me Steve. Seriously.
- Artist: Billy Idol
- Title: Hot in The City / White Wedding Promo
- Year: 1982
- Format: Vinyl 12 in.
- Rating (1-10): 5
- Owner: Mary
- Acquired: 1986 ? - She probably got it when she was working at Plan 9 Records in Richmond, VA.
- Keeper: Maybe
This is just between us. I went to see Billy Idol in a concert during what was probably his first big US tour. That’s embarrassing enough, but since we’ve known each other for so long, I’ll keep going. I’m pretty sure what follows, or something similar, is what I was wearing:
- Camouflage BDU pants (probably from the local surplus store).
- Black tee shirt with the name of a local new-wave band, “The Nerve”, printed on it in neon pink, with the sleeves cut out, because I’m cool and all.
- Not sure about the footwear, probably army surplus boots or maybe Vans.
- Hair? I wish I could remember because I know it would be funny.
- And the best part… a wide black leather wristband with chrome spikes, not sissy studs, spikes!
While we were waiting in line outside, forever, a police officer apparently inspecting the line for trouble-makers saw my wristband and said it had to go. They knew. I was dangerous!
This 12 inch single has a remix of “Hot in The City” on one side and a remix “White Wedding” on the other. It was a promo, but it looks like it’s been sold a few times. Everybody knows these songs; they were huge hits. I even think they’re decent pop songs. But there is one hilarious detail to this version of “White Wedding” that isn’t on the original.
After one of the verses Billy yells “Rock… Music” and then later “Dynamite… (plus something else I couldn’t make out). ” What?!?… What?!? Did he just yell “Rock Music”? And there is a mega “delay” or echo so it’s really more like “ROCK ROCk ROck Rock rock rock… MUSIC MUSIc MUSic MUsic Music music…” What?!? Was this record intended for a non-english-speaking country? In the studio did someone say “Billy just scream the silliest thing you can think of and we’ll make it sound cool with effects”?
- Artist: Ignition
- Title: Sinker
- Year: 1987
- Format: Vinyl 7 in.
- Rating (1-10): 6
- Owner: Mary
- Acquired: 1987 - “Probably at a show”
- Keeper: Maybe
I was trying to figure this record out when I did a search and found this. That guy’s site probably will tell you more than you ever wanted to know about Ignition. I agree with him that the bass is way loud. It’s like the bass player sneaked back into the studio after everyone left and made a few “adjustments.” Anyhow, I was surprised it was self-produced and not on Dischord until I read the piece linked to above. I only got to see the band once or twice and I didn’t buy any records. Mary must’ve seen a better performance. And why is there an illustration of a distributor, cap and rotor on the back? Oh right, “Ignition.”
- Artist: Billy Idol
- Title: Don’t Stop
- Year: 1981
- Format: Vinyl 12 in.
- Rating (1-10): 5
- Owner: Tracy / Mary - We both had copies.
- Acquired: 1981 - Unknown origin.
- Keeper: Yes
Please, do stop. Actually, this is a reasonably listenable pop record. It’s hard to think that Billy Idol was in Generation X, not that they were really all that punk, but still… “Don’t Stop” is a four song EP that includes a cover of “Mony Mony” and the hit orginal “Dancing With Myself.” This guy definitely turned into a clown, but like any decent clown he’s always good for some laughs. More about that later…
- Artist: Ideal
- Title: Der Ernst Des Lebens
- Year: 1981
- Format: Vinyl 12 in.
- Rating (1-10): 6
- Owner: Mary
- Acquired: 1981 - Mary bought it in Germany when she was an exchange student.
- Keeper: Yes
I’m writing this one from Virginia Beach, we’re house hunting, but I did actually play the next week’s worth of records, just all yesterday before we hit the road. Also, this really isn’t an “I” day, but I misplaced this one earlier in this pass through the alphabet. Back on track with my favorite letter, “X”, tomorrow.
You may think this band’s name is pronounced I-DEEL, but it’s really i-dee-ALL. They are German, very German. All of the lyrics are in German, and I’m not sure if that makes me like it more or less than I would if knew what they were saying.
Stylistically Ideal are all over the place. One song may sound like Missing Persons, another will have steel drums(?) with more of a pop/ska feel. Some of this apparent eclecticism may come from the alternating of vocalists. Sometimes the one woman in the group is the lead singer and other times it’s a man. One of the more manly songs is “Sex in der Wüste”, or “Sex in the Desert.” Remember what I said about not understanding the lyrics? I’m guessing on this one it’s better that way. This song is so arty, so early ’80s that it you can imagine it being the inspiration for any number of skits on Saturday Night Live. And now… we dance.
(You probably won’t get good search results unless you add some other words like the song title above.)
- Artist: I Love You
- Title: Live
- Year: 1989
- Format: Vinyl 12 in.
- Rating (1-10): 6
- Owner: Tracy
- Acquired: 1989 - Promo we got at our store RIP Records.
- Keeper: Yes
This is an EP. The word we got from the label rep was this EP was intended to create some buzz about the band, similar to how Guns & Roses was hyped. These guys are nothing like GNR. They are more of a straight-up riff rock band not unlike a lot of the hard rock coming out of the northwest at this time. Please don’t call it “grunge” kids. I have no idea where these cats were from.
Four originals and one solid cover of Cream’s “SWLABR.”
