TIME
- Richard Hell (Matador)This double disc retrospective by one of NY punk's originals incorporates a fair whack of previously-released material, drawn as it is, in part, from
ROIR's
1984 cassette only "R.I.P." release. Disc one is that album - which,
until his reappearance in the Dim Stars, brought a close to Hell's musical career
- re-mastered with a couple of extra tracks (a rough take of "Time"
and the only studio version in existence of "Funhunt".) "R.I.P." was a little patchy, but where else were you going to hear the original (three-piece) Heartbreakers demo-ing "Love Comes in Spurts" and "Chinese Rocks"? Appended here is the earliest version of "Can't Keep My Eyes on You" and it's also worthwhile.
In case you're not familiar with the original tape, the rest of the tracks are mostly mid-period Voidoids demos and some, punky R & B mid-80s material that Hell worked up with a new band in New Orleans. "Funhunt" is muddy but mighty. "Betrayal Takes Two" is a spikier take than the one that made it to vinyl.
Disc two is mostly from a 1977 Voidoids show at The Music Machine in Camden Town, England, and is breathtaking in its ferocity. Coming, as it did, at the end of a taxing UK tour supporting The Clash, it was the first gig the band actually headlined. What it lacks in length (nine songs) it makes up for in sheer, pissed-off brutality. A junk-sick Hell sings his heart out and the dual guitar weapon that was Robert Quine and Ivan Julian cranks out an unseemly noise. You even get Johnny Rotten launching onto the stage and demanding an encore. This show has been widely booted, but it's good to finally hear it in a slightly more pristine sonic form. The remaining four tracks are from a CBGB show and are a little less fiery but better fidelity. Elvis Costello weighs in on "You Gotta Lose".
The generous liner notes package (penned by Hell) are a nice adjunct, with the exception of the dissection of the lyrics of "Time" where his penchant for over-analysis runs amok. Most people I know either love or loathe Hell. His off-the-wall yelping can be abrasive (that was the point, right?) but the quirky songs - and angular guitar presence of supreme noisemaker Robert Quine - set off sparks for mine.
Hell had his dodgy moments (the appalling "The Plan" for one) and wavered dangerously close to pretension in parts, but if you like his stuff then this set will have a prominent place on your player. More's the pity that the only contemporary musical endeavour Hell has undertaken was the reformation of the classic Voidoids line-up for one song (the so-so "Oh" on Wayne Kramer's "Cyberpunk" compilation.) There's a distinct possibility Hell could have something interesting still left to say (especially coupled with Quine), if he could be bothered. Now where's my ROIR tape of "Funhunt"? - The Barman
