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The very first Gexa X demos from 1979, recorded in the Hollywood-Cherokee building just weeks after his tenure in The Deadbeats had ended. This previously unreleased 45 contains an early version of Practicing Mice and the largely unheard "Me No Wanna Be". First pressing of 500 copies, includes insert with rare photos and liner notes by Geza X.
Our take: Those of you who have dug deep into LA punk should be familiar with Geza X. While, as a performer, he never achieved the fame of the Germs or the Dead Kennedys, he was a key player in the scene who played in a ton of the classic LA punk bands and produced a huge portion of that scene’s studio recordings. In fact, he produced early recordings by both of the aforementioned bands. I remember I picked up Geza X’s LP, You Goddamn Kids!, in the late 90s because it looked interesting and punk, but it confounded by teenage brain that was looking for more stuff that sounded like the Adolescents and the Circle Jerks. While Geza X’s music has a lot of punk’s energy (which is unsurprising given how talented he was at capturing that energy on tape), there are also elements of silliness and satire. The titles of the two tracks on this single, “Practicing Mice” and “Me No Wanna Be,” say quite a lot. While some people might not like the “wacky” elements like the lyrics and Geza’s high-pitched voice, if you’re a fan of the weirder, Zappa / Residents-informed end of the KBD spectrum, this will be right up your alley. The production is also interesting, with a very processed sound to the guitar. Geza X’s other production jobs are straightforward; I wonder if he felt more daring with this home-recorded material. Besides the music, you also get some interesting liner notes from Geza himself in which he recounts several wild and hilarious stories from the Masque days.