Artist.........CRAZYHEAD
Album.........Desert Orchid
Label.........Food(cat foodlp1)
Year..........1988
Personel
Anderson-vocals
Reverb-Guitar
Porkbeast-Bass
Fast Transatlantic Dick-Guitar
Rob Vomit-Drums
NB.
Like any other small city in the arse en of the 1980's Leicester was a suffering from high unemployment,a tired looking city centre and drug scene that the powers that be refused to acknowledge(funny how things change).It was to this backdrop that a scene started to develop.Grebo.Although at the time it was just a bunch of lads playing a local brand of rock n roll.The Hunters Club,Bomb Party,Fockewolfe,Gaye Bykers On Acid and Crazyhead were the leaders.A lot of leather,whizz,weed,Thunderbird and shades was about the only thing these bands had in common.
To look at this album you might think that inside lurks a anthother shoe gazing piece of indie shite.How wrong could you be?Look closer and you see 5 leather clad rockers that just can't be bothered to look at the camera evan for their own album cover.With a backdrop only of Leicester's urban sprawl.It is that attitude that set this album apart from it's contemperies at the time.
Desert Orchid(named after the horse they won some money on) starts with "In The Sun"which leaps at you and smacks you round the face with an empty bottle of Thunderbird(well it aint going to be full now is it)Before you have had a chance to to take a breath "Jack The Scissor Man" repeats the process only faster.
"Time Has Taken Its Toll On you" is where the album could fall apart from being over produced,if it was'nt for pure energy,attitude and great lyrics.
"I gotta dresden bombing oh such pain
saw the bottle by my bed only i'm to blame"
A cover of The Sonics Have Love will Travel shows how to cover great songs and keep them great.
"What Gives You The Idea That Your So Aazing Baby?" reeks of sleeze,and"I Don't Want That Kind Of Love" is a drug drenched monster with guitars that are bring to mind late nights lost in a bottle.
Side two opens up with "Dragon City" and the classic line,"Well the mad dog went insane,so we beat him up and down again".
"Buy A Gun" well the tittle says it all and oh what a chorus"you know what to do with it,you gotta buy a gun and kill her" how wonderfully un-pc.
"Rags" was the big single and was so over produced that you cant help but think they are taking the piss.
"Tower Of Fire" and "Cardinal Phink" are the two song that close the album and are both stories of Leicester's more unsavory places and people.
It's not always how heavy a band is or how well they play that makes them great.The attitude on this album is what makes still sound so good today.
After this things went down hill for the band.Food was sold to EMI and they were not bothered.The follow up album although good in parts lacks passion.Go on do yourselves get a piece of Leicester,get Crazyhead and Like they say listen to some "urban bastard blues"
For more info there are a couple of my space places and a wikipedia entry.
Album.........Desert Orchid
Label.........Food(cat foodlp1)
Year..........1988
Personel
Anderson-vocals
Reverb-Guitar
Porkbeast-Bass
Fast Transatlantic Dick-Guitar
Rob Vomit-Drums
NB.
Like any other small city in the arse en of the 1980's Leicester was a suffering from high unemployment,a tired looking city centre and drug scene that the powers that be refused to acknowledge(funny how things change).It was to this backdrop that a scene started to develop.Grebo.Although at the time it was just a bunch of lads playing a local brand of rock n roll.The Hunters Club,Bomb Party,Fockewolfe,Gaye Bykers On Acid and Crazyhead were the leaders.A lot of leather,whizz,weed,Thunderbird and shades was about the only thing these bands had in common.
To look at this album you might think that inside lurks a anthother shoe gazing piece of indie shite.How wrong could you be?Look closer and you see 5 leather clad rockers that just can't be bothered to look at the camera evan for their own album cover.With a backdrop only of Leicester's urban sprawl.It is that attitude that set this album apart from it's contemperies at the time.
Desert Orchid(named after the horse they won some money on) starts with "In The Sun"which leaps at you and smacks you round the face with an empty bottle of Thunderbird(well it aint going to be full now is it)Before you have had a chance to to take a breath "Jack The Scissor Man" repeats the process only faster.
"Time Has Taken Its Toll On you" is where the album could fall apart from being over produced,if it was'nt for pure energy,attitude and great lyrics.
"I gotta dresden bombing oh such pain
saw the bottle by my bed only i'm to blame"
A cover of The Sonics Have Love will Travel shows how to cover great songs and keep them great.
"What Gives You The Idea That Your So Aazing Baby?" reeks of sleeze,and"I Don't Want That Kind Of Love" is a drug drenched monster with guitars that are bring to mind late nights lost in a bottle.
Side two opens up with "Dragon City" and the classic line,"Well the mad dog went insane,so we beat him up and down again".
"Buy A Gun" well the tittle says it all and oh what a chorus"you know what to do with it,you gotta buy a gun and kill her" how wonderfully un-pc.
"Rags" was the big single and was so over produced that you cant help but think they are taking the piss.
"Tower Of Fire" and "Cardinal Phink" are the two song that close the album and are both stories of Leicester's more unsavory places and people.
It's not always how heavy a band is or how well they play that makes them great.The attitude on this album is what makes still sound so good today.
After this things went down hill for the band.Food was sold to EMI and they were not bothered.The follow up album although good in parts lacks passion.Go on do yourselves get a piece of Leicester,get Crazyhead and Like they say listen to some "urban bastard blues"
For more info there are a couple of my space places and a wikipedia entry.
