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What’s up Sorry Staters?
I’m feeling a little fried at the moment. Why? Shit, definitely has nothing to do with the Super Bowl. I honestly forgot that was even happening while I was at work on Sunday. I couldn’t even tell you which teams were playing. Seriously. Maybe I’m worn out because I overdid it on the beer and vegan cheese dip while at my friend’s birthday party the other night while homies were doing karaoke renditions of “Freak on a Leash” by Korn? Yeah, that’s gotta be it. I’ve also been working on getting details together for Public Acid’s European tour later this year. More to announce on that front in the weeks to come.
Also, attention NC locals reading this: There are a couple of cool punk gigs coming up in Raleigh, so mark your calendars! I’ll announce the full lineups and get Daniel to include the flyers for these in the next week or two. Here’s what I’ve got cookin’:
-April 2nd- PAPRIKA (NOLA) @ The Pour House
-April 24th- JAIL (DETROIT) @ Neptunes
My staff pick this week is kind of a funny one that caught me by surprise. This past weekend, I happened to quickly pop into a local shop just down the street from where I live called Nice Price Books. Nice Price is a long running store here in Raleigh that sells used books, records, VHS, and other knick knacks. Every now and then, I’ll wander in there and find some cool punk records. I always think to myself, “Huh, I wonder who sold these?” Because I imagine judging by the records, it must be someone I know personally unloading stuff from their personal collection. Who knows?
Anyway, I was lucky enough to grab the Official Bootleg double 7” by Poison Idea. You’re probably thinking, “Geez, Jeff talking about Poison Idea once again! Who woulda thought?” I know, I know. While I do have a sizable chunk of the Poison Idea discography crossed off already in my personal collection, I’ve never stumbled across this double single—or just never bothered to order a copy off of the internet. I always thought the packaging looked cool with what I always refer to as the “Kings of Punk skull” repurposed on a red background. The records also come housed in a cool gatefold 7” sleeve. This super nice copy was mad cheap at Nice Price, so I was stoked to find it. For those unfamiliar, this release came out in 1991 around the Feel The Darkness era. It’s a funny collection, with PI’s take on cover tunes like “We Got The Beat” by The Go-Go’s and “Harder They Come” by Jimmy Cliff. Now, how often will I revisit the saloon blues rendition of “Lawdy Miss Clawdy” on a regular basis? Shit, I dunno, probably never! Kinda funny, but at least these cover tunes are an entertaining listen, if nothing else.
“Plastic Bomb” is also on one of the 4 sides, the only original tune by Poison Idea. To which I was like, yeah cool whatever, I’ve heard this song a million times. I threw the 7” on the turntable, and that all-too familiar piano intro kicks in—but within a few moments, I was like wait a minute… this is different. In all my years loving Poison Idea, I had no idea that this version of “Plastic Bomb” is basically like an alternate mix version. In the intro, the guitar is way more up front and playing a different melody. Even in between the verses, the little lead sections are totally different. Most importantly, the melodic solo that happens after the 2nd “whoa-oh” chorus has this guitar harmony that I’ve NEVER heard before. My mind was blown. I posted a clip of this on my Instagram story, and one of my buddies was like, “Yeah dude, you’ve ain’t never heard Poison Lizzy before?” Haha. Then on the other hand, I had several other people that reacted just like me, like “Wow, I gotta go back and check this out!” It’s funny when you’re so familiar with how a song sounds on a particular recording that when any type of alteration from your expectations makes you do a neck-breaking double take. Now hearing this badass Iron Maiden-esque guitar shred version of “Plastic Bomb”… dare I say, better than the album version?
If you’re interested, I imagine this version of “Plastic Bomb” is available to listen to on the internet. Or perhaps it’s also been included as a bonus track on one of the many Feel The Darkness reissues in recent years? I definitely recommend experiencing this version of the song, especially if you’ve become all too comfortable with the proper album version over the last 30+ years. Anyway, that’s all I have to discuss this week. As always, thanks for reading.
‘Til next week,
-Jeff