Crypt Kicker Five - Crypt Kicker Five (1986)

"4th Hole" by Crypt Kicker Five

Jack Endino produced Afghan Whigs's label debut.  It wasn't a very big or successful or necessarily well-organized label, but at the time, Sub Pop was a step up from the Whigs's self-released debut.  Endino, whilst producing, also played in a handful of bands throughout the late eighties, and his debut recording was on the 1986 self-released, self-titled Crypt Kicker Five (often shortened to Crypt Kicker 5 for... space reasons?)

While a lot of the music Jack Endino produced, and produced, favored hard rock and heavy metal influences, Crypt Kicker Five prefers surf rock and post-punk.  The allure of the band is in the interwoven guitar and bass and in the unique keys and tunings used to build songs that can sound at times oriental or aquatic or horror punk.  The lyrics are unintelligible without any liner notes (though they hardly seem necessary,) and Jaime Caffery's voice in the mix unfortunately doesn't have the force it needs to anchor the meandering compositions as Endino's drums do.  The album is one of two sides and Side B shows off the band in a live context: energetic, humorous, improvisational and imperfect.  Not much would be gained from the addition but for filler in a shoestring production if not for Side A which hypnotizes with its complexity and texture.  In turn, Side B becomes a fascinating microhistory of a band that could have been so much more.

Here is the Crypt Kicker Five discography:

Ya Ya Love Song (1984 song on The Sound of Young Seattle compilation album)

Crypt Kicker Five

Shoot to Kill (1988 song on Secretions compilation album)

Mecca (1988 song on Bands That Will Make Money, Too compilation album)

4th Hole (1990 single)

Shoot to Kill (1993 song on A Far Cry compilation album)

4th Hole/Bedouin Stomp (2011 song on C/Z Records Unreleased Singles 1987-1993 compilation album)

"Shoot to Kill" by Crypt Kicker Five

Crypt Kicker Five by Crypt Kicker Five

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Club Nouveau - Life, Love & Pain (1986)

"Jealousy" by Club Nouveau

Timex Social Club's producers, Denzil Foster, Thomas McElroy and Jay King, all bailed on the Timex Social Club project and formed their own Club Nouveau.  Off the strength of their hit single with Timex, Club Nouveau signed with Warner Bros. Records and released their debut album Life, Love & Pain in late 1986.  The album is much of the same including their first single "Jealousy" an echo of and response to Timex's "Rumors".  The songs are, as before, meant for the club and a good time and some of those songs endear you to them over time... particularly those silly, synthy "Lean on Me" bass lines.

Here is the discography surrounding Club Nouveau's debut album:

Woo Baby (1984 single as Sorcerey)

Jealousy (1986 single)

Life, Love & Pain

Situation #9 (1986 single)

Lean on Me (1987 single)

Why You Treat Me So Bad (1987 single)

Let Me Go (1987 promo single)

Heavy on My Mind (1987 single)

Who's That Girl (1987 album track)

Step by Step (1987 single)

Why You Treat Me So Bad (Remix) (1987 single)

"Lean on Me" by Club Nouveau

"Why You Treat Me So Bad" by Club Nouveau

"Woo Baby" by Sorcerey

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Timex Social Club - Vicious Rumors (1986)

"Just Kickin' It" by Timex Social Club

En Vogue were the brainchild of R&B producers Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy.  The two dance floor hitmakers got their start producing (with Jay King) the 80s R&B group Timex Social Club.  The band scored a club hit with "Rumors" that anchored their only album Vicious Rumors released in 1986 on Danya/Fantasy Records.  There are other songs on the album that are less grating than the "topical" hit song but Timex can't find the right balance between the humorous and the serious (often mistaking one for the other) nor can they find their harmonies.

Here is the discography for Timex Social Club:

Rumors (1986 single)

Vicious Rumors

Mixed Up World (1986 single)

Thinkin' About Ya (1986 single)

"Mixed Up World" by Timex Social Club

"Rumors" by Timex Social Club on Top of the Pops

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Dain Bramage - I Scream Not Coming Down (1986)

"Flannery" by Dain Bramage


Famous drummer and frontman Dave Grohl has told the story, many times, of Naked Raygun being his first concert at age 13.  Only a couple years later, he'd be joining/forming his own bands in the Washington D.C. area.  Of which Grohl was a member: the short-lasting, punkish Mission Impossible begat the shorter-lasting and unheard Freak Baby which then begat Dain Bramage before Grohl suddenly quit the band and the family line was cut short.  While only active for a little over a year, Dain Bramage did manage to release a short LP I Scream Not Coming Down in 1986.

Here is the complete Dain Bramage discography:

Alive & Kicking (1985 compilation song by Mission Impossible)
77K (1985 compilation song by Mission Impossible)
Thanks (1985 split EP by Mission Impossible)
Demo One (1986 demo)
Demo Two (1986 demo)
Laundry Room Demos (1986 demo)
I Scream Not coming Down

Dain Bramage Live in Burke, VA


"Helpless" by Mission Impossible


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Big Black - Atomizer (1986)

"Cables" by Big Black


Poster Children's album Flower Power gave the impression of a band unsure of the punk/new wave divide they wanted to fall on.  This uncertainty is aurally palpable as the album is divided by the sonic productions of two separate producers.  The producer on the first half of the album was the young, brash and purely punk Steve Albini.

A wunderkind of the Chicago underground scene, Albini would eventually become its very vocal conscious, decrying any band that sacrificed its raw sound for a more friendly sonic palette as they might try to graduate from the Chicago scene to the mainstream.  If you wanted that raw sound, you often went to Albini to produce your album.  He honed his craft and particular aesthetic in producing recordings for his own bands.  His first band was the solo project turned noise-rock trio Big Black.  Big Black's first album was 1986's Atomizer released on Homestead Records.  The EPs Bulldozer and Racer-X are also worth highlighting.

Special Note: If you pay attention to the listed discographies, you'd have noticed that I often include singles, EPs, and/or compilations from other bands (who never last long enough to record a proper album) that featured members who'd go on to be part of the tour stop's band lineup.  In this case, Big Black bass player Dave Riley was a member of the short-lived bands End Result and Savage Beliefs.  Normally, I don't highlight these bands because they're pretty deep cut and only occasionally reveal a unique or worthwhile song (the last one on the tour being "Amen" by Danny King and The Mayfair Set), but Savage Beliefs is notably great.  Reminiscent of Wire's simple punk perfection, Savage Beliefs's songs are all delights and I can't help feel that, with them, there was a huge missed opportunity.  Story is their breakup made Steve Albini cry.  I can imagine.

Here is the discography surrounding Big Black's debut album:

Lungs (1982 EP)
Bang Zoom Issue #3 (1983 compilation songs)
Big Black (1983 live bootleg)
Bulldozer (1983 EP)
The Moral Efficiency of Savage Beliefs (1983 EP by Savage Beliefs)
The Master Tape Vol. 2 (1983 compilation songs by End Result)
Racer-X (1984 EP)
The Middle of America Compilation (1984 compilation songs)
Il Duce (1985 single)
Rema-Rema (1985 single)
Ward (1985 EP by End Result)
Live at No Bar & Grill in Muncie, IN (1985 live bootleg)
Atomizer
Big Money (1986 EP)
The Hammer Party (1986 compilation album)
God's Favorite Dog (1986 compilation songs)
Live on VRPO (1986 live bootleg)
Live at Paard Van Troje, Den Haag, Holland (1986 live bootleg)
Heartbeat (1987 single)
Headache (1987 EP)
Happiness Is Dry Pants (1987 compilation song)
Sound of Impact (1987 live album)
The Rich Man's Eight Track Tape (1987 compilation album)
Hog Butcher for the World (1987 compilation song by End Result)
You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk 1977-1984 (2008 compilation song by End Result)
Big Big Sky (2015 compilation album by Savage Beliefs)

Big Black Live at CBGB's


"Kerosene" by Big Black


"What's Left in the Fridge?" by Savage Beliefs


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Steve Earle - Guitar Town (1986)

"Guitar Town" by Steve Earle


Steve Earle drummed on the Afghan Whigs' debut recording, but he's not to be confused with the more prominent country singer-songwriter Steve Earle, who recorded his debut album Guitar Town two years prior in 1986.

Here is the discography surrounding Steve Earle's debut album:

The Mexican Demos (1979 demo)
Pink & Black (1982 EP with The Dukes)
Nothin' but You (1983 single)
Squeeze Me In (1983 single)
What'll You Do About Me? (1984 single)
A Little Bit in Love (1985 single)
Hillbilly Highway (1986 single)
Guitar Town
Guitar Town (1986 single)
Someday (1986 single)
Live from Austin, TX (1986 live album)
Goodbye's All We've Got Left (1986 single)
Early Tracks (1987 compilation album)

"Someday" by Steve Earle


"Down the Road" by Steve Earle


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Yo La Tengo - Ride the Tiger (1986)

"The Way Some People Die" by Yo La Tengo


The Feelies did not play live very often, and when they did, the band rarely strayed from the New York and New Jersey area.  They played at the legendary CBGB's and Max's Kansas City semi-regularly, but the group's favorite venue to play was easily Maxwell's in Hoboken.  For the most part, The Feelies played Maxwell's only on holidays with the one exception being Hannukah... that's when the band Yo La Tengo would play.

Here is the discography surrounding Yo La Tengo's debut album:

The River of Water (1985 single)
Private Doberman (1985 compilation track)
Ride the Tiger
Heart's Expired (1986 compilation track)

"The Cone of Silence" by Yo La Tengo


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