Hall Of Mirrors [1985] Nervous NER016 One last chance - Schitzophrenic emotions - Choice - Hall of mirrors(1) - Frenzy - Asylum moves - Skeleton rock - Sweet money - Ghost train - Long gone - Surfin' bird - Was it me? - Wound up - Frustration - Hall of mirrors(2) - Robot riot - Cry or die - All alone - Torment
If a label “classic psychobilly album” would exist, Hall Of Mirror would be among the first to deserve it.
In 1983, the split of the Sharks allowed Steve Whitehouse to fully concentrate on his new project: Frenzy. By many aspects Frenzy were more adventurous than the Sharks. It marked a new step for the psychobilly scene that was in full bloom and the band went into musical territories rarely explored by slap bass led combos. The recording of Hall Of Mirrors began with Simon Brand on guitar and Merv Pepler on drums, this trio having already released one ep for a Dutch label (included on the later cd reissues of this album). But Brand quickly left the band (he later formed Torment) with only three songs ready for the forthcoming album (Frustration, Frenzy, Sweet Money). Whitehouse eventually hired Kev Saunders to complete the album. Both Saunders and Pepler came from different musical horizons and combined with the double bassist’s rockabilly background the result was an unusual, unique and explosive combination.
Musically speaking, Whitehouse fast slapping and technique proved to be a lasting influence for the many psychobilly bassmen that followed.
Hall Of Mirrors offered originals (including a reworking of the Sharks’ Skeleton Rock) and one cover (Surfin’ Bird) probably the only weak track of the album (but who could come after the Trashmen and the Cramps?).
The lyrics also set up new standard. I addition to the usual crew of ghosts, skeleton etc. you can also find songs about madness, frustration and teenage angst.
Brilliant!
The Radioactive Kid
Clockwork
Toy Clockwork Toy - I See
Red - Misdemeanour -
Nightmares - Love Is the
Drug - Mexican Radio -
Howard Hughes - In My
Prison - Aftermath -
Nobody's Business
With Clockwork Toy,
Frenzy confirmed their
status of "Psychobilly
band with more than two
ideas in their songs".
The accent is put on
arrangements and
variations, giving more
elaborated melodies (and
sometimes more pop
sounding) than your usual
fast paced rockabilly (Misdemeanour,
Clockwork Toy, Howard
Hughes...). And if
Whithehouse's heavy slap
bass links the whole
thing to the rockabilly
idiom (listen to "I
See Red" - which
spent some decent time in
the indie charts - or
"Nightmares"),
the sound of the guitar
doesnt owe anything to
nobody. There's a lot of
production work. A
powerfull live band, they
also want to prove they
can deliver a "real"
album and not only a
hastily live in the
studio recording of stage
favorites. These'll
remain a constant (with
varied degrees of success)
in Frenzy's carreer.
Retrospectivly, it
sometimes turns to the
disadvantage of the band
and this will to explore
technology shows its
limits. The synthetizer's
sound on "Love Is A
Drug" (yes Roxy
Music's one) or the drums
on "Howard Hughes"
sound terribly dated now,
and let's say it, very
cheap.
But this minor flaws left
aside, Clockwork Toys is
as important, for
different reasons, as
their debut album and
still stands today as a
classic of the genre.
It's been reissued on cd
with two b-sides from the
same period and 3 songs
from Sally's Pink Bedroom The Radioactive Kid
Live
at the 100 Club
Nervous Records NER 033
Raucous Records I see red -
Misdemeanour - Love is
the drug 4.House on fire
- Howard Hughes - The
hunt - Clockwork toy -
Migraine - Gotta go! -
It's All Over Now - Robot
riot
In the quantity of live
albums released by
psychobilly bands, many
were disappointing,
whether they were poorly
recorded (remember the
Live & Loud serie on
Link) or the band wasn't
able to recreate the
studio recordings on
stage. Among the best you
find The Long Tall
texans' Five Beans In The
Wheel, The Sharks' Live
In Japan, a couple of
Meteors and... Frenzy's
Live At The 100 Club.
Recorded in 1986, it's a
magic combination of a
perfect recording and a
tight band of true
professionnals, playing
at that time 150 dates
per year. The set draws
heavily into "Clockwork
Toy" recorded that
same year.They kick off
with a roaring version of
their indie charts hit
"I See Red".
"Misdemeanor"
quickly follows,
featuring a pumping slap
bass, showing how good
Steve Whitehouse is.Roxy
Music's "Love Is A
Drug" is far better
than the album version.
The keyboards parts being
replaced by a guest
saxophonist giving a bit
of a ska touch. They
alternate "straight
in your face" wild
numbers (House On Fire)
with their more complex
and melodic songs (Clockwork
Toy, Howard Hughes) with
equal degrees of success.
Next are a couple of
covers, The Ricochets'"Migraine",
The G-Men's "Gotta
Go" and a epic 8
minute "It's All
Over Now" a song
previously performed by
Withehouse in The Sharks'
set. This perfect disc
ends with a 100 mp/h
rendition of their "early"
classic "Robot Riot"
that almost manages to
make you forget the
studio version. Issued on
vinyl by Nervous in 1988,
it's been reissued by
Raucous in 2001. You can
buy the mp3's on Nervous
website
too. The Radioactive Kid
The Very Best-Of [1990] Rage CD 107
A very good overview of the band’s seven first years including songs from Hall Of Mirrors, Clockwork Toy and This Is the Fire as well as unreleased stuff like Long Gone recorded live at Hemsby and some b-sides too. The Radioactive Kid
