Saturday, January 13, 2007

V.A. - Unzipping the Abstract LP ,packed with V.A. - Potent Human 7" E.P and The Manchester Mekon 7" E.P


The Manchester Musicians' Collective Of West Didsbury were responsible for this album of @1980 bands,all detailed in the Fanzine styled enclosed booklet printed by the Moss Side Community Press. This is where we enter the territory of the Unknown,the Rare and Precious,something pretty untouchable and unreachable. Its a glimpse of the past in a moment gone forever,when all these bands clutched at the Brass Ring and all of them were unable to hold on to it though Dislocation Dance made the Indie chart a year later and the Enigma were called the "best band in Manchester" by "City Fun" though noticeably missing from the Guiness Book Of Indie & New Wave. "Available as an 8 track 12 inch" read an advert for the Hoax,"as soon as we've enough money available" Or "Performance are going to go places and in a big way" Its a time capsule of what could have been because,for Godssakes some of this stuff is as good as what was going down in the South.It was,after all,issued at a time when the Joy Division were about to metamorphosise into New Order,when Mick Hucknall was a Frantic Elevator and before the Smiths took hold.

UNZIPPING THE ABSTRACT LP
Bathroom Renovations - Intensely Henna'd
Cajun Cutie - Black Man's Hat
Dislocation Dance - You Can't Beat History
The Enigma - Play With Fire
Gods Gift - Creeps In
The Hoax - World War III
If Only - If Only
The Liggers - Pretty Girl
The Mekon - Must Have More Wheels
Outer Edge - Old Wives Tales
Performance - Natural Equilibrium
The Spurts - Boyfriends Or Your Money Back
The Still - 9.5
Undercovermen - Of No Fixed Abode
Vibrant Thigh - Walking Away
POTENT HUMAN
Bathroom renovations-Aputhetic hell
The Liggers-Deathwish
The Mekon-Little boys
The Spurtz-I won't
THE MANCHESTER MEKON -NO FORGETTING E.P.Have a go go
Jonathan Livingston Seafood
No forgeting
My apologies for no picture sleeve of the potent human and manchester mekon e.p.'s.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Man, I have the potent human ep. I was playing it just lastnight. Its great to know someone outthere is also listening to it

Christopher

Anonymous said...

This is wonderful, thank you.

Farlac said...

potent human cover here:

http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Limo/8385/comp/uk80comp2.htm

Anonymous said...

I went to school with the singer of the Bathroom Renovations; WHGS in Manchester...John somebody...tall geeky guy with loads of hair kinda JCC but more hippy. Marky of Chepstow

Anonymous said...

I have been frantically searching for "Pretty Girl" by the Liggers and you have ended my search! Thanks a million!!

Anonymous said...

I was 'best friends' with the bloke who released the Potent Human EP - John Richardson - who tragically died in a car crash in 1983. Through John I knew Corky (the singer of the Spurtz) who's now emigrated to NZ, and teaches dance; John 'Bidet' (I think his real name was Bonsor, I could be wrong) was the singer of the Bathroom Renovations (and Corky was the bassist !); I went to school (MGS) with John Richardson, and also Andy Wilson, who was in the Spurtz (guitarist), and later went on to form the Action Holidays (who had the Bathroom Renovations keyboard player on drums!) and joined the semi-famous "The Passage" - Dick Witts's band. Andy is now a DJ in the Balearics. Email me "riceuten@gmx.de" for more information

Phonic theE Bomber said...

My sister kicked this record down to me many years ago. I believe she was given it in turn by Gary Madely, her boyfriend for a few years in the late 70's and early 80's. He was the drummer for a Factory Benelux band called CRISPY AMBULANCE and may have actually played a role in the creation of the MMC (?). We were all denizens of Didsbury at the time.

Musically...at a non-nostalgic level, I still enjoy the Cajun Cutie track. It has a certain cheeky appeal. Intensely Henna'd sticks with me too. A true dirge if ever there was one. Droll even.

Beyond the music I think that the visual presentation of this record is notably cool. I ripped off the zip motif for a party flyer back in my DJ ing days. So simple and elegant. No disrespect Mr Creator whoever you were/are. The event was not a big money maker as I recall...(smile).

Additionally I named my Consulting company SECOND EQUAL in reference to the BASH STREET KIDS cartoon that is collage into the inner sleeve. "Thats right we'll tell our Mums that we came in second equal!"...(FAILED stickers stuck on their foreheads).

The inner sleeve also contains a conformist hippy cartoon that I quite like. There is something quite sussed and subversive about its framing of a GEODESIC suburban nightmare et al.


Then there is the succinct insertion of the phrase ..."You and your filthy ilk are to be eradicated..."

Quotable!

When you consider the historical context for this record... Manchester had an unabashedly COMMUNIST City Gov't at the time it is redolent of its time. For a short period of time it was possible to get CITY money for projects like the MMC....(see the excerpted part of the MMC's proposal also on the inner sleeve).

The indulgent face of COMMUNISM in action.

The swimming pools installed at schools in blighted parts of the CITY were another nice touch. BRISCOE LANE for example in Newton Heath etc.

Freedom from class oppression requires a degree of personal buoyancy perhaps. Not to mention confidence around deep bodies of chlorinated water certainly.

Any fool prole knows that...

ON ILKLEY MOOR BAH TAT.

John M

aka

Phonic theE Bomber

Miles said...

I was in a band called The Waste and we were supposed to be on Potent Human but one of our number bottled it on the day and wouldn't pay his share of the studio fee!
It got a great review in either Sounds or Record Mirror and they loved the band that replaced us at the last minute.

SonceGrib said...

Thanks! Very Interesting Strange Punk Relics!!