Anorexia Nervosa b/w Bananas – The Normals (Leather Jacket Records)
Before The Allniters, before The Johnnys, before The Cool Charmers and before The Silver Dragons, Graham Hood was a young Kiwi punky rock chap playing in The Normals, who were Wellington’s first ever punk band. Future Headless Chicken Mike Lawry played guitar, Dazee Day was on vocals (she’s now a successful fashion label owner) and Karl Scutt (who went onto Domestic Blitz) was on drums.
Formed in 1978 and dead by 1979 - truly a band in the live fast, die young mould - they recorded three songs, two of which appear for the first time here on a label run by The Flying Nun folks via their punk subsidiary, Leather Jacket Records (good name hey?).
Its not as frantic as some of the other NZ punk bands like Superettes and Suburban Reptiles. The A side,” Anorexia Nervosa”, is leaning into post-punk female fronted bands like The Raincoats, Penetration or The Mo-Dettes.
The B-side, “Bananas”, could well be the embryonic version of the song “You Made A Monkey Out Of Me” that Hoody recorded in his days as bassist with The Allniters (but only in the lyrics). It’s a catchy bastard of a song, and you’ll find yourself singing it at the least expected times...and that my friends is a recommendation. - Steve Lorkin
Buy it
