If there were some sort of last.fm-type service that catalogued the number of plays on your vinyl, you would no doubt find that the Saints’ Eternally Yours LP is one of my most well-worn and well-loved LPs. I just sort of happened upon that record when I was but a young n00b, and it immediately sparked a love affair with Australian punk that continues to this day. From the Radio Birdman collection LP on Sub Pop to the Murder Punk CDs to Bloodstains Across Australia to shitty bootlegs of the Victims’ “Television Addict,” I’ve roved far and wide to get my fix of punk from down under.
Naturally, then, I was excited to see that California’s Going Underground was reissuing the debut EP by the Chosen Few, expanding the original 7″ to a nice, loud 45RPM 12″. This thing absolutely smokes, and is pretty much exactly what you want from an early Australian punk record. The Stooges influence is extremely prominent, meaning this bears more than a passing resemblance to Radio Birdman (there’s even a song here that makes a jab at Deniz Tek), but there’s also the grit, energy, and sloppiness of the other Murder Punk bands. Raw guitars, simple but blistering riffs… raging, off-key vocals… this little beauty has it all. Just listen to the track above.
There have been a ton of great Australian reissues coming out lately, including material by X, Just Urbain, and Young Identities, but for my money this record is some of the very best. If you dig both Radio Birdman and raw 70s punk of the KBD variety, this is one that absolutely must be in your collection.
Excellent… I need to keep an eye out for this one.
Well, there’s a certain NC-based distro you can buy it from, hint hint!
I did buy it from a certain NC distro, got it in the mail today and it’s great.