That Petrol Emotion - Manic Pop Thrill

After the demise of the Undertones, their vocalist Feargal Sharkey embarked on a solo career and the O'neill's formed That Petrol Emotion. At first, I don't know what to think of this record, because I was hoping it would like the Undertones but its not. In fact, it kind of launched the music Madchester bands became famous for.

"That Petrol Emotion's scintillating debut reminds everyone, first and foremost, what an incredible musical alliance the O'Neill brothers can be. Following a succession of independent singles (after all, who wanted to touch a couple of ex-Undertones in the mid-'80s?), they settled on Demon for this inspired debut. "It's a Good Thing," "Mouth Crazy," and "Circusville" are typical of the contents -- relentless pop hooks married to surging guitar chords, underpinned by hints of swamp blues and nods to garage rock and other mutant strains of the rock & roll animal. As naked, bold, and impassioned a record as had been heard in years. The title says it all." (AMG)

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That Petrol Emotion - Babble

In my opinion, this is their best album and Manic Pop Thrill came in second. Their songs in all of their releases is an eclectic mix of Brit pop, dance (house ?) music, folk. Plus their highly political lyrics make this album very interesting.

"Following hotly on the heels of 1986's Manic Pop Thrill, That Petrol Emotion's Babble brought more clever madness onto the scene, happily cutting Sean and Damian O'Neill's diversified punk influences with dance music, hook-laden pop, and a streak of acerbic political and social commentary. It certainly wasn't the Undertones. But the wiry, treble-kicking guitars and whooping vocals of "Swamp" made it just as vital, and "Dance Your Ass Off"'s "Party all nights"'s and "Hey! Hey! Hey!"'s weren't so much vapid dancefloor catch phrases as they were righteous calls to action. Despite the hooks that bled from every busted seam, Babble seemed to bask in the glow of a freshly lit car fire. Its walls of guitars, incessant, processed snare kicks, and snarling vocals celebrated the empty calories of pop music, and did so with bared teeth. (Was that a bullet ricocheting off "Split!"'s overdriven rhythm?) At the same time, the album's slower moments were just as accomplished. That Petrol Emotion didn't just set the fires -- they took time to watch them burn. Arriving at a flux point in pop music, Babble became a bridge album between blissfully ignorant dance, radio-ready pop and the remaining sentiment of punk rock. It wasn't just a call-to-arms snapshot at the end of a decade, but a prominent influence on the coming Brit-pop revolution." (AMG)

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Love and Rockets - Earth Sun and Moon

The first I heard Love and Rockets was through the local radio station WXB 102.7FM. Their single "If There's a Heaven," off their debut album Seventh Dream of a Teenage Heaven, received some airplay. Needless to say, that single caught my attention which led me to buying their cassette (good thing it was locally available!). Their debut is a far cry from any Bauhaus releases and they continued this trend up to their last record.

A friend of mine saw Love and Rockets I think in Germany during the Earth Sun and Moon tour where they supported Depeche Mode (it was the 80's and not sure about the details of the story like the country and the headliner, but he saw them and was very impressed) and quickly bought their album after seeing them. He he went back here in the Philippines, he made me a tape and was so pissed because it's not locally available.

I listened to the tape for weeks because their sound was different from what I usually listened to, which is punk, hardcore and metal. No New Tale to Tell became a minor hit for them and I think the Mirror People too but my favorite track here is Waiting for the Flood.

Luckily, this record was made available after So Alive became a smash hit. Actually, all their albums became available locally.

I hope you like it as much as I do.

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C.o.C. - Eye for an Eye Plus Six Songs with Mike Singing

I had this idea of posting classic punk and hardcore releases for those youngsters who are new to punk and for those who just discovered punk. Though I have yet to decide how often (every week or every two weeks) but one thing's for sure, I'm gonna do it guys.

And for the first of these classics, I chose C.o.C. because I was wearing their shirt when I thought about this idea. But I had a problem. I can't seem to make up my mind which of the first three releases of C.o.C. I'm going to post. They are all great and classic in my opinion.

So I did the next best thing, post the their first three releases!

So here you go guys, come and get a piece of (hardcore) history.

Enjoy!!!

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C.o.C. - Animosity

This is a classic. Anybody who loves hardcore should own one. Don't just take my word for it and read what the "experts" at AMG has to say about it.

"Released in 1985, this second full-length Corrosion of Conformity offering features Mike Dean (bass and vocals,) Reed Mullin (drums), and Woody Weatherman on guitar. Just as the N.C. group's lineup constantly shifted, so did their music. While still plenty hyper, Animosity has a bit more metal mixed in with the hardcore punk of the band's debut, Eye for an Eye. Weatherman's guitars and Mullin's drums get a more sophisticated studio treatment, creating a thicker sound that reflects a mid-80s thrash influence. C.O.C. weren't following any trends, they just incorporated all the things they liked about thrash, punk and '70s metal originators Black Sabbath into their constantly evolving brand of down-home hardcore. The politically charged lyrics that marked the group's early-career progressive outspokenness are very evident on tracks like "Mad World" and "Intervention." With its thematic and sonic improvements to their successfully established punk, Animosity secured Corrosion of Conformity's artistic and commercial credibility." (AMG)

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C.o.C. - Technocracy

This is my favorite C.o.C. release. It already has hints of crossover which began in Animosity. But it's not awkward nor did they sounded as a trying-hard crossover band because it's the flavor of the week. But instead, their metal-tinged songs sounded as natural as it comes.

Enjoy!

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Ministry - Cover Up

By this time, you already know that I'm very much into cover versions. And this Ministry release is one great collection of covers. From The Doors, T. Rex, Sabbath and the Stones just to name a few. Standout tracks for me were the heavier-than-thou versions of Bang a Gong and Space Truckin', the thrash metal-inspired Roadhouse Blues and Mississippi Queen. But there was a misfire as well in the shape of Dylan's Lay Lady Lay. I don't like what they've done to the song.

But overall, this is a very good All Covers Album.

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