LOST CLASSICS OF CHI-TOWN PUNK UNDERGROUND

although YOU WEREN'T THERE chronicles chicago's early days of punk and BUSTED AT OZ, the
original scene document / live album, has been reissued, much of the windy city's unruly late 70s / early 80s RNR history remains sadly forgotten........

so here to rectify that in a "killed by death" kinda of way is TINY GROOVES!!!!

below is a list of some of chicagoland's most overlooked / most fringe and best PUNK bands.....

and after you cycle through this playlist, you'll realize what a strange weird place the Chicago area scene was back in the day......... and that being PUNK IN CHICAGO MEANT MAKING MUSIC WITH NO REGARD FOR THE RULES.......

so CRANK UP THE VOLUME AND LISTEN BELOW!!!!!!!!

post script - i've avoided adding the more renown chicago punk bands (and more straight forward punk and hardcore acts) to this list and stuck to the weirder more outsider edges of the "punk" scene, and yes a few of these bands aren't from the chicago proper but to exclude them wouldn't be fair since all of them played in chicago during the heyday of the "punk" scene......and yes this list is meant to show the world that chicago had a real unique / wild / creative take on PUNK ROCK unlike many other places......  and had a RnR history that needs to be reassessed or at least comped again..........

PENTAJECT CORPORATION "blackmail stretch" 7in



SILVER ABUSE "fall from grace" 7in



DA "dark rooms" 7in



IMPORTS "untitled" 7in



ONO "machines that kill people" lp


END RESULT "ward" lp



TOOTHPASTE  "s/t" 12 ep



THE EXIT "who asked you" 7in



SUNDOG SUMMIT "crude sounding rock" 7in



C*NTS "chemicals in the mail" 7in


SUBVERTS "independent study" 7in



IDENTITY CRISIS "pretty feet" 7in



EPICYCLE "residential area" 7in

punk rock classics - the rats

MISSISSIPPI RECORDS JUST DID US ALL A HUGE FAVOR AND REPRESSED THE FIRST TWO LPS FROM FRED AND TOODY COLE'S PRE-DEAD MOON PUNK OUTFIT, THE RATS!!!!!!!!!   FUCKIN' A!!!!!!   

YOU THOUGHT DEAD MOON WAS KILLER, JUST WAIT TIL YOU GET YER HANDS ON THE S/T (1980) AND INTERMITTENT SIGNALS (1981) LPS FROM THE RATS!!!!!!!  LEAN MEAN STRIPPED DOWN GARAGEY PUNK ROCK AT ITS BEST!!!!!!!

ORIGINALS OF THESE TWO ALBUMS ISSUED ON WHIZEAGLE RECORDS IN THE EARLY 80S GO FOR EPIC AMOUNTS OF MONEY, BUT THANKS TO THE FINE FOLKS OVER AT MISSISSIPPI WE CAN ALL CRANK THESE CLASSICS UP TO 11!!!!!!!

SERIOUSLY LISTEN BELOW IF YOU MUST,
BUT BOTH THESE ALBUMS ARE RECOMMENDED LIKE A MOTHER FUCKER.

SO GO TO YER LOCAL SHOP AND GRAB BOTH NOW!!!!!!!!

crime - murder by guitar

SUPERIOR VIADUCT is back with another KILLER FUCKING archival release, this time from san francisco's seminal punks, CRIME, entitled MURDER BY GUITAR!!!!!!!

comprised of their first three blistering singles, including HOT WIRE MY HEART (one of the best songs of all time) and nine unreleased tracks, MURDER BY GUITAR is finally the definitive comp we've needed for years and now we can have all the CRIME we can handle!!!!!!!

fans of early punk, raw RnR and proto punk, especially those into TESTORS, PENETRATORS, ELECTRIC EELS, ROCKET FROM THE TOMBS, DEAD BOYS, JOHNNY THUNDERS, RICHARD HELL and the like, NEED TO ADD CRIME TO YER COLLECTION ASAP!!!!!!!

THIS IS AS ESSENTIAL 
AND RECOMMENDED AS IT COMES!!!!!!!

click here to grab one from SUPERIOR VIADUCT
and listen to some of yer new favorite jams below -

punk rock classics - adolescents

take a minute out of yer day to BLAST the uber classic 1981 self titled debut from LA's ADOLESCENTS!!!!!!  this is early hardcore punk at it's best!!!!!  and if you don't have a copy yet, you better change that STAT!!!!!!!

spike in vain - disease is relative

ohio's SPIKE IN VAIN only ever released one lp, 1984's "DISEASE IS RELATIVE" (on TRANS DADA) but it's a fucking killer slab of noise bent / post punk damage hardcore punk...... an album that should've cemented their place in the KILLED BY DEATH hall of fame....but alas it's been mostly forgotten (aside from a few obscure comps that included the band)....

so educate yerself, and spin "DISEASE IS RELATIVE" via youtube below.....

and then hunt down a copy of the lp for yer collection.  
cuz it's absolutely ESSENTIAL!!!!!!!!!

frantix - my dad's a fuckin alcoholic

ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES just released what just might be the REISSUE OF THE YEAR, a complete discography of colorado KBD punk legends FRANTIX, compiled as MY DADS A FUCKIN ALCOHOLIC !!!!!!!!!!   and um you need this blast of depravity NOW!!!!!!!!!

little fanfare has existed for FRANTIX outside the punk rarities hoarders, fans who checked them out because Mudhoney covered one of their songs, those who have KBD #6, or as a footnote to THE FLUID's SUB POP records success, BUT THAT DECISIVELY SHOULD NOT BE THE CASE !!!!!!!!!   FRANTIX WERE THE REAL DEAL, FACE MELTNG, EXPLOSIVE, FERAL, MENACING, FUZZ COATED, 80s HARDCORE PUNK BAND.......    

they only released two EPs and a demo tape during their short run in the early 80s and that might be part of the reason they've been mostly forgotten, but MAN HOPEFULLY THAT'LL CHANGE.  their BLACK FLAG / CIRCLE JERKS / JFA amphetamine hardcore was bruised with GARAGE ROCK VIBES, PSYCHEDELIC NOISE and a heavy dose of SLUDGY BAD ATTITUDE...... you can hear shards of FLIPPER, MODERN LOVERS, SABBATH and THE NEW YORK DOLLS in their RIPPER BLOWN OUT HARDCORE which set them apart from the cookie cutter hardcore scene that was emerging at the time.......  they even cover PINK FLOYD's INTERSTELLAR OVERDRIVE and make it more punk than you can even imagine!!!!!!  and well the title track is a CLASSIC PUNK ANTHEM as well as other jams like DANCIN' TO PUNK and FM EARS......and well pretty much every song they wrote could've been a single in a alternate universe!!!!!!

thankfully MY DAD'S A FUCKIN ALCOHOLIC gathers all their chaos into one lp for us to savor.  both 7 inchs, their demo and one helluva live set, THIS LP SHOULD CEMENT FRANTIX IN EVERYONE'S LIST OF ALL TIME GREAT PUNK BANDS.......  really, this isn't so stupid fanboy reissue of a shoddy local band that someone is still obsessing about.  FRANTIX ought to be mentioned just as frequently as the GERMS, MINOR THREAT and any of those other bands that've hogged all the attention all these years.

SO YEAH THIS ONE'S RECOMMENDED LIKE A MOTHER FUCKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!


LISTEN TO A FEW HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE LP BELOW !!!!!!!!


and be sure to grab it from ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES cuz yer PUNK ROCK RECORD COLLECTION ISN'T WORTH A DAMN WITHOUT THIS LOST CLASSIC!!!!!!!







AND AS A KILLER BONUS WATCH FRANTIX LIVE IN '83 BELOW!!!!!!!!!
(and for a rad interview with FRANTIX click here!!!!!)

flipper - generic flipper

FLIPPER's first album, GENERIC FLIPPER, is one of the most menacing, swampy, feedback & mud caked rock n roll albums of all time and if you haven't it heard it yet, NOW IS THE TIME!!!!!!!!!

seriously they took punk rock, which at the time was calcifying into a simple loud/fast hardcore formula, into whole new noise damaged, warped directions......and to say that countless bands cite GENERIC FLIPPER as an inspiration doesn't come close to how insanely killer FLIPPER's debut lp was and still is.........

their first three albums are all CLASSIC, but GENERIC FLIPPER is one of my hands down favorite spins of all time.........

so crank up yer stereo and listen to GENERIC FLIPPER below - 

urinals - negative capability

thanks to IN THE RED RECORDS we can finally grab the uber classic URINALS' comp NEGATIVE CAPABILITY on wax!!!!!!  originally released in '96 by AMREP, this collection contains all three of the URINALS self released 7 inches, a comp track, studio outtakes, and a killer live set....increasing their total discography to 31 tracks of pure short fast and raw punk!!!!!!  a necessity in everyone's collection that considers themselves a fan of rock n roll.....and that is the truth!!!!!!!!

for those not in the know, the URINALS were LA's greatest. most art damaged, minimalist punk rock bands.....formed in '77 and existing only until '80 when they mutated into the post punk act, 100 FLOWERS.....the URINALS' scrappy no-fi raw punk rock n roll has influenced more bands than you can count...... everyone from THE MINUTEMAN to OBNOX has covered them, including JAY REATARD and HALO OF FLIES (and the list could go on and on....)  

and i'm in good company when i say that ACK ACK ACK and I'M A BUG might be two of the best punk songs ever......  maybe the URINALS didn't invent punk rock, but they made it faster, weirder, more primitive and way more amateur......  they were a band that showed the world that as long as you could learn two chords, you can make a life changing racket!!!!!

SUPERIOR VIADUCT reissued their first three 7 inches (s/t, another ep, sex) earlier this year, but if you want yer URINALS fix all in one place, this comp NEGATIVE CAPABILITY is the way to go!!!!!!!

so do yerself a favor and jump over to IN THE RED now and grab one before they're gone......

stream all of NEGATIVE CAPABILITY below - 

and watch the URINALS at P-REX LA on RECORD STORE DAY here - 

punk rock classics - the electric eels

the most infamous of all ohio rock bands, THE ELECTRIC EELS have left an indelible mark on punk rock everywhere........more destructive, crazed, unstable, drunk and explosive than any band before or after, THE ELECTRIC EELS run as a band lasted three years, six shows and a few recording sessions during the early 70s..... and after apparently getting banned from ever playing CLEVELAND again due to a fight onstage, getting arrested and/or playing a lawnmower as an instrument, they broke up for good......disappearing into the liner notes of rock n roll history....(a more detailed account of the electric eels can be found here or here.)

sure fellow deranged ohio rockers, the PAGANS, ROCKET FROM THE TOMBS, BIZARROS, RUBBER CITY REBELS, DEAD BOYS and PERE UBU, picked up where they left off, but the world just isn't the same with THE ELECTRIC EELS........  

so if you're forever warped by rock n roll like me,
you need some ELECTRIC EELS in yer life now.......


listen to the killer ELECTRIC EELS' comp 
THE EYEBALL OF HELL on SCAT RECORDS below.......
     and crank it way up!!!!!!!!!!

action swingers - miserable life 7in

the newest single from TOTAL PUNK RECORDS is by none other than legendary dirge punk delinquents, ACTION SWINGERS.......the 7 inch MISERABLE LIFE B/W LOSING MY COOL is two trashy as fuck noise soaked garage punk stompers that are a more necessary addition to yer rowdy record collection......

formed in the same garbage crusted alleys in NYC as PUSSY GALORE, CHROME CRANKS, HONEYMOON KILLERS and SONIC YOUTH, ACTION SWINGERS slashed and burned rock n roll like no one else in the early 90s......

you might compare them to FLIPPER, CHEATER SLICKS, ROYAL TRUX and/or the BEGUILED, but the Action Swinger's shit storm of noisy garage is much more explosive, vitriolic, in yer face and fun than any of those aforementioned bands.....the mastermind/vocalist/guitarist behind Action Swingers, NED HAYDEN, was joined at times by members from bands like Pussy Galore, Sonic Youth, Unsane and A Bones to complete his unique, angsty vision of demented feedback jacked punk......lending them a sort of all star lineup of noise junkie guitar mangling rock n roll status.....which they certainly lived up to.....  

this 7 inch is from the early more off kilter version of the band which features Julia Cafritz, Johann Kugelberg and a one J Mascis on drums for the B side of this fucking thrashy unhinged raucous single. Action Swingers' gutter blues meets noise punk scrap heap ought to have cemented their reputation as cult rock heroes, but alas they've slithered back into obscurity until now........

but thanks to TOTAL PUNK, we have two lost songs from the Action Swingers resurrected from their short and mean existence...... both of these songs were released on the b-sides comp QUIT WHILE YOU'RE AHEAD in 1994, and never on vinyl.  so MISERABLE LIFE is cause for celebration...... and certainly since this is the only ACTION SWINGERS music that's still in print.......

this is so very very recommended, and i hope this isn't the first and last installment of reissue love for the ACTION SWINGERS, cuz this is CLASSIC AS FUCK NOISE PUNK.......

so crank the volume and listen to the single below.....
  and grab one quick from TOTAL PUNK.
     only 500 were pressed and they're sure to go quick.

MISERABLE LIFE (A SIDE)


LOSING MY COOL (B SIDE)

punk rock classics - the saints

THE SAINTS were one of the best punk bands to explode outta australia in the late 70s..... often looked over in the rock n roll history books because of the narrow focus on the rock n roll scenes in america and england, they deserve a rightful place next to the ramones and the damned as one of the legendary early punk bands......

the saints put out two of punk's greatest lps, I'M STRANDED and ETERNALLY YOURS back to back.....and if you've never heard them, now's the time to introduce yerself to THE SAINTS........

this is classic as it gets.......
rock n roll below......

I'M STRANDED (1977)


ETERNALLY YOURS (1978)

punk rock classics - the zodiac killers

every band GREG LOWERY was in is worth checking out, from SUPERCHARGER to the RIP OFFS and most certainly his last band, the ZODIAC KILLERS...... who played more the same addicting killer no-frills trashy punk rock as his more well know bands......  ZODIAC KILLERS released four absolutely fast loud and riotous as fuck albums during their short run as a band, all of them absolutely necessary additions to your collection....(though i doubt you'll have an easy time tracking them all down, i know i am........)   indebted to the ramones, damned, angry samoans, pagans and adverts as well as the other early punk greats, ZODIAC KILLERS knocked out some of my favorite punk songs of all time.....

and they influenced everyone from the carbonas to the marked men.....i'm pretty sure that dirtnap, hozac and tic tac totally records wouldn't exist if not for the no-fi punk trail blazed by greg rip off's various bands and seminal label, RIP OFF RECORDS......

file the ZODIAC KILLERS next to the MUMMIES, OBLIVIANS, THEE HEADCOATS and GORIES in the PUNK ROCK CLASSICS SECTION OF YOUR RECORD COLLECTION CUZ THAT'S WHERE THEY BELONG........

and check out some choice songs from all four 
ZODIAC KILLERS albums below,
   and good luck crate digging......

MOST THRILLING EXPERIENCE (RIP OFF RECORDS 1999)


HAVE A BLAST (RIP OFF RECORDS 2001)


SOCIETY'S OFFENDERS (RIP OFF RECORDS 2003)


RADIATION BEACH (RIP OFF RECORDS 2005)

not so quiet on the western front (reissue)

ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES and MAXIMUM ROCKnROLL have teamed up to reissue the absolutely classic collection of the early 80s northern Californian hardcore punk scene, NOT SO QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT....and its fucking essential, period.

this double lp of sordid sonics showcasing the madness happening in early 80's northern california (and nevada) hardcore punk scene is the quintessential document of that particular geographic region and the punk uprising happening there.  holy shit, the tracklisting alone is enough to get you amped up enough to run out to yer local record shop!!!!!

with some better known acts like DEAD KENNEDYS, FLIPPER and 7 SECONDS dropping some mean tracks, the goodness doesn't stop there..........there's 47 bands jam packed into 74 minutes of a who's who of the early SF punk rock scene......and with little played feral gems from almost forgotten bands like MDC, Impatient Youth, Angst, Domino Theory, Section 8, Vegenence and Vicious Circle filling the double album, there's plenty of new bands to introduce yourself to.......

just as the "Busted At OZ" (Chicago), "Flex Your Head" (DC), "Decline Of The Western Civilization" (LA) and "This Is Boston Not LA" (Boston) comps were the defining soundtracks of their respective locales, NOT SO QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT is your history lesson on Northern California punk rock in all its anti-reagan spitting drunk glory.........a scene that incidentally had a lasting impact on punk rock everywhere, just as much or more than those other cities and their hardcore scenes.......

hardcore punk in its earliest fastest and loudest incarnation,
this comp is hands down recommended......

thanks maximum rocknroll and alternative tentacles 
for reissuing this classic....

STREAM THE WHOLE FUCKING THING BELOW.....
and click here to grab yr own copy,
which comes with a repro of the first ever issue of maximum rocknroll......

iggy pop and the stooges - a documentary film

THE STOOGES are hands down one of the best rock n roll bands of all time...... all three of their albums are MUST OWN CLASSICS, so if you don't have STOOGES, FUNHOUSE or RAW POWER, RUN OUT TO YR LOCAL RECORD SHOP AND GRAB THEM IMMEDIATELY...... even their chaotic live lps have attained legendary status, from METALLIC KO to A THOUSAND LIGHTS.....

the stooges kick started the punk rock explosion and their music remains as powerful, fresh and menacing as the day it was recorded....  i needn't say much more, but i'd be remiss to have a music blog and not have at least one post dedicated to one of the most influential rock bands of all time..... after all, it seems like every other band i review is carrying on the stooges tradition in one way or another.......

so, for all you stooges fans and tiny grooves fans out there, WATCH THIS DOCUMENTARY ON IGGY POP AND THE STOOGES BELOW...... complete with interviews from iggy as well as both asheton brothers, classic early show footage and some video of their first reunion tour..... probably not the best film that could be made on such a classic band, but very interesting all the same.......

the undertones - here comes the summer

THE UNDERTONES wrote what are perhaps two of the best rock songs of all time, TEENAGE KICKS and HERE COMES THE SUMMER...both from their self titled debut record from 1979... a record that's hands down a punk rock classic, if not one of the best two minute three chord chainsaw pop lps of all time.....  

the undertones didn't stick around for very long, but they left in their wake a slew of power popped punk singles that not only i can't ever get enough of but remain fresh as they day they were written......  

if you don't know about the undertones yet, 
now is the time to introduce yerself......

watch the BBC documentary HERE COMES THE SUMMER: THE STORY OF THE UNDERTONES below in its entirety - 

tv smith and the adverts - we who wait

THE ADVERTS were one of the greatest bands to explode outta london in the original heyday of the punk movement......though usually overlooked in comparison to the sex pistols, the damned, the clash and others, the adverts' first album CROSSING THE RED SEA WITH THE ADVERTS is one of punk rock's classic fucking lps.....influencing more musicians than you can even list in one blog post.....

and TV SMITH, the adverts' leading man, may be punk's most original and creative songwriter.... from his proto punk band SLEAZE (which is getting some reissue love from SING SING RECORDS) through the adverts' short glorious run and subsequent burn out, and through his post adverts bands, EXPLORERS and CHEAP, all the way to his solo albums, tv smith has been fighting the good fight with biting new rock n roll for years......  he's still up and at it (and very worth the ticket price if he ever rolls through yer town)

lest anyone forget his place in the punk rock canon, the BBC released this awesome documentary titled WE WHO WAIT, so you and me can get all the gritty back story from the legends, TV SMITH and his great snotty punk band, THE ADVERTS.......

watch the entire film below......

replacements - color me obsessed

THE REPLACEMENTS were one of the greatest underground rock n roll bands of the 80s, and maybe one of the best bands ever.....their albums, SORRY MA, STINK and LET IT BE are forever cemented in my list of top LPs of all time.......

so when i heard that they were finally getting the documentary treatment, i was more than stoked...  COLOR ME OBSESSED is riotously fun oral history about one of the only rock bands that matter.... the film follows the REPLACEMENTS from their unruly start as young punks through their drunken heyday as college radio heroes to their unceremonious breakup at a show in chicago and their influence on just about everyone who started a band in their wake.......

you won't find a band with more rock n roll stories than the 'mats...... 
that's for sure....

so go ahead and watch the entirety of 
COLOR ME OBSESSED below.....

and as a added bonus, click here to download THE SHIT HITS THE FANS live album 
(a tape only release) from 1985 on TWIN/TONE.

blackout fest recap - REDD KROSS

saturday night at BLACKOUT FEST.....chicago got a full taste of classic snotty bubblegum punk rock via the legendary REDD KROSS..... 


definitely one of my favorite sets of the weekend, REDD KROSS slammed through their classic BORN INNOCENT lp as well as their s/t debut ep....... 


it was so fuckin' killer......
 i can't even say anymore, just watch below.......









thanks to sadly panda for the live footage...... he's one of the few rock n rollers that puts forth the effort to document the scene here in chicago and it makes all the difference......

End of the Century - The Story of the Ramones

watch the excellent documentary 
END OF THE CENTURY: 
THE STORY OF THE RAMONES below......


this is essential rock n roll history.... 
the RAMONES are one of the best bands of all time......

punk rock classics - the testors

the TESTORS were the band that was too punk to get in the history books..... formed in '75 in nyc and part of that now famous CBGBs and Max's Kansas CIty scene, they've always been overlooked by rock n roll critics and fans.... maybe its because they never signed to a label.  or maybe it was because the TESTORS were even more raw, loud and destructive than the Dead Boys..... who knows...... but sonny vincent and his band the testors ought to hold a place in yr heart next to johnny thunders and the heartbreakers......they are the original trashy garage punk band....

the readers of Tiny Grooves need to know about the TESTORS......  so check out the download links below and listen to some of their mayhem even further below that.......  

this is some pedal to the metal fucking rock n roll.......
classic shit you need to listen to right now.........

(and if they two releases aren't enough, go track down the best of comp from SWAMI RECORDS, THE TESTORS: THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS 76-79.....absolutely necessary and ridiculously hard to find on the internet or otherwise.....)

EP Vol 1. (on Incognito Records).
(a comp of unreleased songs)

Together b/w Time is Mine 
(their first and only single during the bands original incarnation)