Tracks one through four and six through nine on this vinyl/download Acute release account for everything released by Disco Zombies. A garagey power pop/punk band from Leicester, England that released three singles on different small labels during 1979 and 1980, Disco Zombies received most of their attention for the title track, a favorite of BBC DJ John Peel. Instantly ingratiating with a simple chorus, the song is a dig at xenophobes, with lines like “And they hate the Indians replacing our doctors and factory owners/'Who do they think they are -- they’re taking us over.’” Many listeners, Rock Against Racism included, heard it a different way and had to be set straight. The other five songs from the first two releases are also instrumentally frenetic, vocally snappy, and lyrically witty. For “Here Come the Buts”/”Mary Millington,” the sound slowed significantly, with drums replaced by a rhythm machine. Several additional songs, most of which are easily enjoyable, remained unreleased due to monetary and unspecified issues. A digital-only download features seven songs from an October 1980 performance (slower-tempo, drum machine era), including a version of “Buts” fused with a cover of Brian Eno's “Dead Finks Don’t Talk.” True to the Acute label’s standard, this release features lengthy liner notes (from the band’s Dave Henderson) and scads of photos.
© Andy Kellman /TiVo