(Here's a meta-meta post I wrote back on 6/15/2007. These X songs are so amazing I have to re-post them; if they were a 45 I'd call it one of the Top 20 punk singles of all time).In our fEEDTIME post a few weeks ago, some mention was made of three tracks from the incredible late 70s Australian punk band X. I said I’d post ‘em – here they are. Here’s what I wrote about the tracks in 2003:
If you ask me, the best pre-1980 Australian punk rock ever recorded was NOT necessarily by the SAINTS. nor the PSYCHO SURGEONS, nor the LEFTOVERS, nor RADIO BIRDMAN -- but by X. The Australian X, of course. The past decade has seen them garner some deserved attention, mostly for the low-profile Amphetamine Reptile reissue of their raw, spastic debut LP "X-Aspirations" (also known by some as simply "Aspirations"). I think they actually topped that monster with their amazing earliest recordings, though: the three tracks "Home Is Where The Floor Is", "Hate City" and "TV Cabaret Roll" that were posthumously cobbled together on the Aberrant Records' "Why March When You Can Riot?" compilation. If these tracks had been put out as a 45, you'd be seeing it on numerous "best punk records of all time" lists, certainly on mine (note: these were put out on a 45 a couple years ago on a US label, now out of print, I'm afraid). We're talking barreling, steamrolling punk rock, but minus the "snotty" vibe and the over-the-top antics that mark some other richly heralded Aussie punk of the era. Not particularly well recorded, mind, but you never cared about that much, right? About the closest equivalent I can think of would be a kindly US punk band like The CONTROLLERS -- not too aggro, not too "punk", but blazing nonetheless. Skip the recent "X - Live At The Civic" CD -- despite looking like it should be an out of control rock and roll juggernaut, it's -- uh -- a bit boring. One last thing: if you now desperately need those 3 aforementioned tracks, you're in luck -- there's a double-CD on Small Axe Records that collects three Aberrant Records comps into one package called "Go And Do It". You can find it here.
Or you can download them right here and put them on your own CD.
Play X - "Hate City"
Download X – “TV Cabaret Roll”
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4 comments:
Hey Jay,
the deluxe version of X-Aspirations comes out this week on the Aztec label: swish packaging, bonus tracks and fully remastered. Woohoo! I agree: it's one of my top 5 Australian albums EVER.
Nice to see some recognition for X (Australian version). I wouldn't call them punk but they are one of the finest rock n roll groups from Australia or anywhere. Can't say I agree with your comment about the Live at the Civic - it makes my toes curl. However I acknowledge I am a saddo about these guys & managed to forgive them when Mr S Jones was in for a while. You, the reader here, should have everything but the first 2 albums are fundamental. Then something live, preferably from the 70's but the Live at the Stagedoor 78 is hard to find so Dropkick's Live at the Civic 79 is fine too.
Fantastic news on the X reissue. I am looking forward to it & have been impressed with other efforts from Aztec. Speaking of feedtime if Dropkick can't get the reissue happening then maybe Aztec can as those guys are up there with X.
HOME IS ALWAYS WHERE THE FLOOR IS!
great stuff.
personally i don't like he thought of Aztec reissuing the feedtime stuff at all . i think it needs to be done in a more hand done sort of way that reflects the band as they were instead of that classic rock reissue thing that Aztec admittedly do well . i just don't think it'd be a good uh ... fit for feedtime ... these once small albeit great underground bands getting repackaged in that bland classic rock vein is just re-writing history in the worst possible way in my opinion . feedtime deliberately stood apart from all that rock shit . watch the video of the last gig on y.tube & hear rick say to paraphrase "we're packing it in before it becomes something it aint" ... yeah something like a classic aussie post punk band whatever the fuck that means.
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