By Gary Held
The British are coming! The British are coming, with soon-to-be-released efforts from Holly and the Italians and The Equators following hot on the heels of Adam and the Ants', Spandau Ballet's, U2's and Echo and the Bunnymen's assault of the U.S. charts. Still, there are bands being ignored in the U.S. that have excellent new import releases. Here are some picks, in order of preference:
1) Killing joke - This four man group plays a brand of heavy metal, nihilist rock and has had an American LP release. But it was so delayed that a new song has already come out. "Follow the Leaders" (EG Import) is a 10" disk that continues where "Change" left off. Heavy punk with a computerized dance beat. Their debut LP is also highly recommended.
2) Gen X - The best single of 1981 is "Dancing With Myself", a great piece of rock and roll. Billy Idol made his comeback with this song and then reabandoned Gen X for a solo career. Gen X has carried on and released a single without him on a new label. "Dancing With Myself" is available on a dragged-out American version or a sped up import version (Chrysalis Import). Only Billy Idol can still get away with singing about "sinking a drink and proving myself". The song is receiving lots of airplay on WRAS.
3) Heaven 17 - An obscure electronic band reared up from The Human League. They have two singles, "We Don't Need this Fascist Groove Thing" and "I'm Your Money", both bits of disco-pop fluff with little lyrical content. Fortunately, the flip sides are fantastic. "Fascist Groove Thing" is backed by "Decline of the West", a somber electronic instrumental. "Money" is backed with "Are Everything", an ambitious interpretation of the Buzzcock's song. (Virgin Import)
4) New Order - New Order is Joy Division after Ian Curtis. Their new single, "Ceremony", misses the emotional vocals of the late Curtis but works well as a kind of tribute to the singer. Currently, the most highly acclaimed group by the avant-garde press. (Factory Import)
5) Comsat Angels - "Eye of the Lens" is the band's new single (Polydor Import) and it's their best. The song has a feeling of paranoia surrounding it as the lyrics speak of being boxed in and tracked down. Their LP, Independence Day continues to be a big-selling import. 6) Simple Minds - Just how many British dance bands are there anyway? Actually, the group has been around for a while but their latest single "The American" b/w "League of Nations" is their best. The group has toured America, even without an American contract. (Virgin Import)
7) Bauhaus - This is another punkheavy metal band in the Killing Joke vein. The lead singer sports olive facial make-up and (of course) a leering countenance. Their best single is "Telegram Sam", though they have several others. (4 AD Import)
8) Bill Nelson - Bill Nelson is most famous for the failed art-rock band Be Bop Deluxe. The band was ahead of its time and so was he. Nelson released a brilliant solo LP, Sound on Sound in '79 and then disappeared. He's back with a great single, "Banai"J which continues the art-meets-pop philosophy that he has set forth. (Mercury Import)
9) Stray Cats - Probably just another rockabilly band but Dave Edmunds is involved with them, so the hype is pretty thick. Sounds good, but not earth-shattering. (Arista Import)
10) Thomas Dolby - Lene Lovich's former keyboardist performs brilliantly on his debut single, "Urges", with help from XTC's Andy Partridge. The song is a spacy ballad with only electronics in the background. (Armageddon Import)
Also look for new efforts from The Beat, Echo and the Bunnymen (live four song EP) and The Psychedelic Furs. Even with all these groups releasing excellent product, what's most popular? Heavy metal, with Girl's School, Iron Maiden, Motörhead and Judas Priest leading the way up the charts without any radio play. Interesting fact dept: Spandau Ballet has been labeled "fascist" by the media and cannot play on British TV. Good News Dept: Lene Lovich's new 45, "New Toy" is great and will (it is hoped) get national distribution through CBS here. Stiff America is currently handling it.