TAPE ONLY

Rip It Up, Issue 77, 1 December 1983, Page 24

TAPE ONLY

Neil Cartwright

Various Artists Uptown Friday (Industrial Tapes C3O, 57) This is a cassette souvenir of an "Alternative Cabaret," featuring Kiwi Animal, Heptocrats and Papakura Post Office. As such, it is valuable as a document but not quite so much as a listening experience. There is music of quality hidden in here (especially P.P.O.'s 'People the Lifeboats') but I find it a little disturbing that even at this esoteric, minority level the "Big-Act-With-Records-Out" (Kiwi Animal) gets by far the most enthusiastic response. Still, that's piss-all so buy it as a tiny little act of rebellion, huh? CK Paul Luker This is Heaven (Industrial $5) Industrial's first release and a good one too. A rather harrowing series of "songs" that make fascinating if not comforting listening. Luker hasn't been scared to experiment with sound and has left himself a lot of territory to explore.’ Some of the effects, particularly on the vocals bring to mind a slightly sparser Chrome, but for all that this is intensely personal. Heaven this isn't. Paul says he was angry, at the time. The Normal Ambition Watch It There (Industrial 55)

The opening instrumental The Normal Ambition' not only bears the band's name, it sums up their strengths and shortcomings. It's aurally pleasing, intelligently put together but overall, a little controlled. To be fair, 'TV' and 'lndecision' expand on that but they too seem to have a very conventional basis. What the Normal Ambition do with that basis indicates they're capable of something very good if they free themselves up. This isn't bad but I think they can do more. (All Industrial releases are available from PO Box 8809 Auckland.)

The Axemen Equinox (56 from 17 Robert Drive, ChCh) Jesus! Not only do you get gear fab LP-size packaging in eyestraining colours (including a sixperspective view of Sonny the Sony, the pocket-sized. cassette recorder responsible for the whole shebang), a poster (with another pic of Sonny) and a lyric sheet but ■you also get a tape with two (2) sides of the Axemen raw, alive and silly. You get lots of songs by the Axemen ('Man Thing Cuneiform' and 'Chorus of Irony' to name a couple), and two absolutely free cover versions (Miss You' and 'Love is the Drug'). Ragged, occasionally in tune and rather neat. Various Artists 1 Nightshift 1 V(56 from 143 Wilsons Rd, ChCh) . Arnie Van Bussel wee home studio has copped a 'Jot of flak over the years but the fact remains it has provided the onlyt'practical recording option for most Christchurch musicians: Dozens of acts have been through Nightshift since it began. A full 27 are represented on this compilation. To be sure there's stuff that's (subjectively) average and even awful but there's also a song by Ballon D'essai that eats anything they've put on record and rather good tracks from such as the Wangs, the Venetians, My Three Sons, Ritchie Venus and others. Well worth owning as some kind of document of the sadly under-recorded Christchurch music scene, even if it's a long way from complete. One moan my copy didn't have a lot of info with it not even song titles. I hope the copies to be sold carry more it is important.. Russell Brown

Desperate Measures/Unauthorised

Wasted Again (Fail Safe, PO Box 3003, ChCh 56.50)

Two for the price of one? Not quite, the Measures mutated into Unauthorised and this tape delivers seventeen welcome slabs of angry punk. Despite rough recording their spirited approach bursts forth impressively with sensibly anti-military lyrics. Although this'll never sell as well as Exploited LPs it pisses all over them easily recommended.