VANCOUVER COMPLICATION (1979 compilation)
(n.b. the U-J3RK5 tracks here much better than on the better-known EP...)

Vancouver Complication is a potent document, rife with frenetic, explosive punk, yet with a smattering of quirky new wave and edgier post-punk for good measure. Local kingpins DOA of course anchor the disc with the muscular 'Kill, Kill, This is Pop' and the caustic punk of 'I Hate You'. The all-girrrl fury of the Dishrags marks their vinyl debut here with the studied anglo-punk of 'I Don't Love You.' The K-Tels, soon to be the Young Canadians, weigh in with their crabby pop-punk, while Exxotone straddle Devo and Gang of Four with the jumpy, oddball "Big Shot'. Not to be outdone, U-J3RK5 contribute the most fascinating track here. A prime shard of spastic weirdness, 'U-J3RK5 Work for the Police' is a stunningly intense 1:03 of jerky, chafing post-punk, all the more fascinating for having been recorded in March of 1979 as well as for counting among its members future photographer-extraordinaire Jeff Wall. Alas, few bands here ever achieved much in the way of fame, even by the paltry indie standards of the day - Pointed Sticks and of course DOA the obvious exceptions. Still, this is a gutsy sampler, a lucid snapshot of an adolescent, though swiftly maturing underground scene...

photo of the Dishrags (who I saw open for the Clash's first North American gig, with Bo Diddley!) by
Don Denton