Category Archives: F/i

The Gift Of Noise subtitled Compilation Of Five New Underground American Bands is an album ranging from synth-punk to noise punk-rock. Psyclones is a long standing band with a diverse sound ranging from punk / post-rock / synth-pop to electronic industrial / ambient. Psyclones are Brian Ladd and Julie Frith of the well known label Ladd-Frith. Senseless Hate anyone any info? F/i are From Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and has been around since 1981, releasing half a dozen LP’s on RRRecords. The band started out as a unit elaborating on noise structures in the tradition of Throbbing Gristle or Nurse With Wound. They are also influenced by Hawkwind and Spacemen 3. No Trend surfaced in the Washington, DC area in the early 1980′s. They were associated with the underground hardcore punk scene of the time, but were not accepted by the cliques that existed. They didn’t care, either. No Trend viewed all cliques, even the ones that supposedly consisted of rebels, as conformist and ridiculous. The insert for their first 7″, which contains numerous clippings from teen magazines about how to dress “punk,” is all the clue one needs as to how they felt about the “scene.” Rumor has it that they used to invite members of the DC hardcore scene to their shows, and then place airport runway lights on stage facing the audience. There excellent first album “Too Many Humans…” and the lp with Lydia Lunch ” A Dozen Dead Roses” can be found on Phoenix Hairpins. Smersh was Mike Mangino and Chris Shepard. And from 1981 until 1994 they released far too many cassette tapes. They also contributed to far too many compilations throughout the known world. In the early eighties they established a unique sound that is known and loved, combining cheap electronics and wild guitar sounds with distorted vocals. They were in fact a bit The Ramones of the industrial scene. But were they industrial? The Smersh sound had so many faces that it is next to impossible to categorize their music. Smersh recorded on most Monday evenings for a couple of hours. Each song was improvised over the course of the evening and then recorded. Once it was finished they never played it again. They never rehearsed, they couldn’t read music, and they never played live. The Gift Of Noise was released on vinyl by L’Invitation au Suicide (ID 5) in 1983.

Tracks:

1. Psyclones – The Gift Of Noise
2. Psyclones – Rockin’ The Cong
3. Senseless Hate – Vengeance Of God
4. Senseless Hate – In My Chair
5. F/i – Stepping Stone
6. F/i – Frat Boy
7. No Trend – Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease
8. No Trend – Cancer
9. No Trend – Teen Love
10. Smersh – She Is Nervous
11. Smersh – The Exorcissy

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