VA - Cherrystones Presents: Critical Mass (2015)

Expertly selected compilation of blindspot gems from the 'Worldwide New-Wave, Post-Punk and Industrial Underground 1978-1984' picked up and spat out by London's venerated Cherrystones. A killer compilation for both the insatiable digger and curious psych-o-naut alike, it starts at the fringe and moves every farther outwards via the sort of selections that only come from decades of paper cut cuticles and breathing in decayed cardboard in mildewed basements and record shops. From an unfamiliar treat in 'A Modern Lesson' by Belgian freaks, Aksak Maboul, the names get more obscure and the sounds more fanciful in Crazy House's psychotic tribalism, 'People Fall From Tall Buildings', to the discordant No wave funk of Quincunx's 'Dojoji' and The Flowerpot Men's bestial arabesque dub, 'UG'. There's hip-smart no wave disco from Chandra; Transmitters come off like a louche and drugged-up Talking Heads in 'The Beat Goes On'; The Method Actors yank out the tightest punk-funk in 'Bleeding'; Fote kiss with sweet vocals while jabbing angular drums in a discordant tangle of guitars and synth. You can almost bet you've never heard any of them before, and their brilliance is near-guaranteed.