However, SF bands are well-represented on the Killed By Death and Bloodstains compilations (as well as Back To Front, Drop The Bomb, and others that followed).
KBD and Bloodstains collect the rarest and the rawest, and there's nothing politically correct about songs like "Bummer Bitch", "Tammy Wynette" or the music of the Teenage PhD's.
Here are three dozen Bay Area rarities released between 1977 and 1982. The Last Laugh label has reissued some SF collectibles, and HoZac reissued the Mary Monday single. The Destry Hampton EP was reissued by Superior Viaduct (buy here).
Recommended for further listening is this chapter in the Mythkoz punk history series "Once Upon A Time", which now numbers almost a hundred volumes!
KILLED BY SF: https://tinyurl.com/y5gtkpnj
ReplyDeleteThanks to these music blogs, the sources of the mp3's in this set:
deathburger.doodlekit.com/blog
disorderareyouexperienced.blogspot.com
frog2000.blogspot.com
www.kbdrecords.com
seveninchesisenough.blogspot.com
wdthtc.blogspot.com
Thanks for making the effort to post this. I look forward to hearing it.
ReplyDeleteI hope you find something to like in there! I won't say that it's all great, but there are some real gems.
DeleteA few random thoughts on the differences between the scenes.
ReplyDelete1) The greater Los Angeles area had several million more people. Every punk scene of any size had sub-scenes within it and I think LA had the numbers to make several such sub-scenes viable & fertile on a scale that SF just didn't have.
2) The geography (sprawl) of LA meant that there was a bit more geographical dispersal of clubs (at first just Hollywood, but relatively quickly the South Bay beach area, then later East LA). In the Bay Area, it was pretty much just SF, Berkeley notwithstanding. This also created commercial viability for a number of punk-friendly record stores. Lastly, sprawl generally means more cheap rental space for clubs, rehearsal places, etc. There were just a _lot_ more clubs in LA over time: early on The Masque, of course, but also Hong Kong Cafe, Starwood, Whisky, Madame Wong's, Blackie's, Fleetwood, Music Machine, Vex, Anti-Club, Club Lingerie, etc.
3) A couple of bands that either started or had their roots in SF (most notably, The Screamers) decamped for LA pretty early, so I think there was a bit of 'brain drain' to the south.
4) No disrespect to Re/Search, but SF didn't have a journal with the influence of Slash magazine. Slash published frequently (usually on a regular monthly basis) from mid-1977 all the way to early 1980). The importance of a semi-regular public forum for dissemination of information (and instigation/maintenance of feuds!) can't be overstated. Here too sprawl was probably significant -- it wasn't like you could just hang around the Mab and hear pretty much everything that was going on.
5) The record industry was of course located in LA, so there was a certain gravitational pull for some of the more commercially viable bands. More importantly, a lot of musicians who'd come to LA to make it _before_ punk were available to start or mentor bands. Peter Case of The Plimsouls had himself (I think I'm remembering this correctly) moved to LA from SF, and he actually played a significant role in organizing a few early shows for bands that were considerably further along the punk continuum.
6) Lastly, I'd note that some of us think that SF's scene is _over-represented_ at times. Simon Reynolds's book on post-punk, for instance, spends much more time on and accords much more respect to SF's much smaller post-punk scene, according LA's scene fairly shoddy & precursory treatment.
I truly appreciate you for sharing these thoughts. You're absolutely right about the size of the population, cheap rents, the record industry, and the media (print and radio). I think you're also right about Peter Case, and you reminded me of Greg Shaw as another person who was already there (before Year Zero) and who served as a mentor. The same could be said of Rodney, Joan Jett, and the folks who started Slash.
DeleteIn terms of the zines, someone else suggested that V.Vale, Jeff Bale, and Tim Yohannon had a tendency to come across as scolds. Ginger Coyote and Punk Globe championed SF without being overbearing.
I may need to revisit "Rip It Up And Start Again" with your last comment in mind. Again, I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to share these detailed counterpoints -- and I don't use that word to imply that you're being argumentative.
Excellent points, especially about Greg Shaw! He and Bomp! were a significant influence, kind of like a miniature Stiff Records. Not really 'punk' per se, but fully embodying the DIY ethos, which I think had a kind of 'demonstration' effect on the Dangerhouse, Slash, SST & other LA indies. I'd be interested to know whether he'd figured out distribution methods that the later labels were able to use.
ReplyDeleteIf you do return to the Reynolds book, note too the absurd amount of attention he pays to the NY scene. Two separate chapters, and most astonishing of all, he didn't write a word of the second chapter! It's all quotes from other books and interviews by other people! I wrote a thorough review of it on GoodReads if you're interested. As you might surmise, I grew up in the LA scene (ironically, I've lived in San Francisco for 30 years now).
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/272642.Rip_it_Up_and_Start_Again?ac=1&from_search=true
Regards,
Paul
Early singles on Bomp included the Zeros, Weirdos, the Last, Venus & The Razorblades, and a 1977 repress of Devo's self-released "Satisfaction" single (Stiff and WB signed Devo a year later). Plus Iggy, Stiv, Snatch, DMZ, and SF's own Flamin' Groovies.
DeleteI love your phrase "sin of emission" in describing Simon Reynolds' fascination with The Associates. There's nothing like a good double entendre. The Bomp book (written by Suzy Shaw and Mick Farren) is worth reading. Paul, I'm so glad you found my blog!
Ugh…age is taking its toll; I'd completely forgotten that the Weirdos were on Bomp! before Dangerhouse. With later records on Rhino & Frontier, they sure covered a lot of LA indie label ground. And I haven't listened to that DMZ EP in waaaay too long.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed the review. ;)
- Paul
Don't be hard on yourself -- I had to check Discogs for the Bomp! singles. It really was primarily a power pop and garage rock revival label, but Greg Shaw had a great ear. Hope you like some of the tunes, even if SF is overrated ;-) The Insults and Nubs are definitely worth hearing.
DeleteLet's see...on #1, I think Anonymous makes a valid point; L.A.s population is (and was) more than double the Bay Area's. I'm a big believer in the geography of rock n' roll; geography COUNTS. While I love the Bay itself, it subdivides the area. You have to pay a toll (these days $6) PLUS the bus fare/BART fare to get from Berkeley to SF. As we were penniless punks in Berkeley, we were less likely to see an unknown band in S.F. when we could see an unknown band in Berkeley. And we NEVER went to Marin County to see a show. When I moved to S.F. in '79, the opposite took effect: I wasn't likely to go to the Berkeley Square when I could go to the Mab.
ReplyDeleteI'll also point out that while the magnetic pull of L.A. (due to the industry?) was strong, some bands migrated in the OTHER direction (most notably the Dils). As to over or under representation, I haven't read the Reynolds book...but the Rhino DIY comps were widely distributed and were a major label view of history...and S.F. was left out. The KBD series was harder to find...heck, EVERYTHING was harder to find before the Internet. I grew up in the S.F. scene, so I've definitely got a local bias (and I never bought in the "I hate L.A." stuff; I don't care about Tommy Lasorda, and I loved all the L.A. punks bands!)
Now...one thing I'd like to know about the L.A. scene is "Was it every night, seven days a week?" Starting in '77, the Mab was putting on shows (not all punk, I know...) seven nights a week, so there was always something at least VAGUELY underground going on. In '77...that was a big deal. Not so much in '80, when there were a lot more clubs that catered to the "new music."
I think the scenes complimented each other in a lot of ways. Bands could play San Diego-L.A.-.S.F.-Portland-Seattle-Vancouver with just a day's drive between gigs. East of here? Oh, in 1977 you've have to drive to Chicago or Minneapolis, it's not like there was a punk scene in Salt Lake City.