Wow, Germany is out of the World Cup. It is hard to believe, right? And yesterday my dear Peru, playing their worst game in the tournament, could score and win a game. Pisses me off though, when we played better we couldn’t get a result. We were an exciting team, played well football, and it does annoy me that Denmark with its boring and pragmatic style is in the next round. Nothing against Danes, I love the Danish Dynamite team back in the day. But this team has no flair at all. France has the talent, so they were going to go through, and always thought we’d come in second. Australia didn’t have much quality though so really had no chance. But well, for many that wasn’t an upset as it was for me. And no one really would care about it. But yeah, today’s Germany’s elimination and Sweden topping that group, that is definitely a surprise. I feel sad for my German friends, but very happy for Sweden (even though I don’t like their play style) and Mexico of course.

Speaking of Mexico, in about two weeks I’ll be visiting the country and if anyone would love me to bring records so you can save on shipping costs please let me know.

Some new video finds today!

Catenary Wires: Amelia Fletcher and Rob Pursey’s band has a new 7″. I had recommended that a few posts ago. But now there is also a new video for the song “Was That Love?” that I can’t not just pass, I need to let you know about it.  The 7″ is available now from WIAWYA, the label of Mr. John Jervis of course. I still haven’t ordered it, which I’m not happy about. I hope it ends up being available on Jigsaw Records.

Cooper: another video, this time by the superb León, Spain, band. This song, “Ya Llegó el Verano”, is included on the “Tiempo, Temperatura, Agitación”, album that Elefant has already released on vinyl LP and CD. Another top song by Alex Diez, the ex-frontman of the legendary band Los Flechazos. And yes, as the song says, summer is here, though the World Cup is not letting me go out as much as other summers!

Wave and So: seems today I’m having a video review on the blog. Now is the turn for the song “Sun” by one of the best Thai bands today, Wave and So. I don’t understand the details on the Youtube link, but I do know that this song will be included in their new album that is to be released this year on the label Parinam Music. Would be great if this band’s releases were easily available, perhaps distributed here in the US, or at least in Europe, like it is happening with for example the Korean band Say Sue Me.

I Saw You Yesterday: and if was just talking about a Thai band, then there is this Japanese band that I’ve featured before that has actually filmed their last video, for the song “City Girl”, in Bangkok. The band had visited the city when they participated in the Pow Fest in that city in January 2018. That’s when all this footage was recorded. So cool. It made me remember my visit to Thailand in 2016. Such a good time. I hope to go back to Asia again soon. The song is available in the band’s latest EP, “Topia”, which is available from the label Space Shower Music.

Watoo Watoo: and the last new video that I want to recommend is the one for “Au Fond Des Allées” by Watoo Watoo. True, I just recommended their album but at that moment I wasn’t aware there was a video for the song included in “Modern Express”, their fifth and last album, that was just released by Jigsaw Records. So I would say the same thing, this is top French indiepop. Elegant and playful at the same time. The classic French band still shows to be in top form.

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So I finally ended up ordering all the Messthetics collection. A bit late indeed. But as the saying goes, better late than never.

I have actually featured a few bands that appear in those compilations on the blog, the ones I consider as proto-indiepop like Cinematics or Scissor Fits. DIY bands but with a pop sensibility. I am by no means an expert in that period, the early 80s, so I’m actually hoping to discover many bands through these CDs. The first band I had never heard before that caught my attention was the Dundee, Scotland, band Scrotum Poles and their infectious song “Pick the Cat’s Eyes Out”.

As I know very little about them, as they are new to me, I’m doing my investigation now. Discogs describes them as an indie/punk band. And it seems that back in the day they only released one proper record, one 7″, on the label One Tone (ERECT 1). It is actually the only record on this label so I believe it is safe to think this was the band’s own label. The 5 song 7″ EP was titled “Revelation” and had the A side stamped the word “SAD” and the B side had “HAPPY” stamped and had a sticker with two “Hazchem” symbols printed in red ink and stamped “ONE TONE”.

The songs on the record were on the A side, “Why Don’t You Come Out Tonight?” and “Night Train”. While on the B side we find “Pick the Cat’s Eyes Out”, “Helicopter Honeymoon” and “Radio Tay”. There are credits too on the back cover of the record:
Sid ‘Bones’ Gripple – vocals and bass
Burt Spurt – drums
Stripey Sleep – guitar
Smeg Pole – vocals
The songs were mastered by Porky, the famous George Peckham, the famous Porky prime cut. And of course we know those are not the real names of the band members. So, Sid was actually Steve Grimmond, Burt was Glenn Connell, Stripey was Colin Smith and Smeg was Craig Methven.

Other interesting info about this first record was that there was backing vocals by the fabulous “Scrotettes” and that it was recorded by Wilfred Smarties. The design of the sleeve was created by Steve Grimmond.

There are two versions of this 7″. There is the one that has a black and white sleeve and there is one with a yellow sleeve that has a different band logo and illustration. This yellow one actually comes with some inserts with lyrics for the songs. According to a comment on a blog called The Street lamp Doesn’t Cast, what happened was that this sleeve was produced by a dealer who bought the remaining 200 or so copies of the single from their bass player in the mid eighties. The real official sleeve is the black and white one (as the band could never have afforded colour).

Later on, this 7″ was to see some reissues. In 2009 the label Rightback Records released a CDR version of the single and included 3 more songs on it as bonus tracks: “Put an End to it All”, “On the Street Where You Live” and “Eye to Eye”. This CDR came with liner notes by Craig Methven and there it tells that the band took their name from the book “The Choirboys” while he and Colin studied at the Dundee College of Education in 1978. Their first songs were “This is Love”, “Pillars” and “Victims of Vietnam”.

They first released a tape that was limited to 100 copies. “Auchmithie Calling” was released in 1979. At this point Craig and Colin had added Steve Grimmond, Matho and Ronnie Lawson to the band. It seems that after they put out this tape Matho and Ronnie left the band. Glen Connell joined soon afterwards.

According to the story on these liner notes, the band opened for The Exploited and the Thompson Twins. And they were able to raise five hundred pounds to do the “Revelation” 7″. It seems Colin drove down to London with Ricky Ross of Deacon Blue to get the songs mixed in London. The final gig by the band happened at the Tayside Bar in Dundee. The last song they played live was “Memories”.

And then two years later, in 2011, the American label Dulc-I-Tone (TT-013) was to re-release the 7″, as a 7″, with the original tracklist.

This same label had released two years before an LP full of rare Scrotum Poles songs. The “Auchmithie Forever” (TT 012) LP included tracks from the “Auchmitie Calling” tape (A1-A2), “The Bedroom Tapes” (A3-A10) and “A Shot in the Dark go Pop” (A11 & B1-B11). All of these songs were mastered by Weasel Walter and were recorded by Alan Officer. The songs were, on the A side, “It Just Ain’t Fucking Funny”, “Just Another Number”, “Be No More”, “Pick the Cats Eyes Out”, “On the Street Where You Live”, “This is Love”, “The Smile”, “Pillars”, “Roadrunner”, “Apocalypse” and “Swing Baby”. On the B side there was “Helicopter Honeymoon”, “Fast Changes”, “You Can’t Say Anything Nowadays”, “Undivided Loyalty”, “Circumstances”, “Pick the Cats Eyes Out”, “Hold Me Tight”, “City Limits”, “Cocaine”, “Birthday Boy” and “Put an End to it All”.

The band have a bunch of compilation appearances but to be honest they are mostly from a later period. Not from the 80s.

On “Back to the Front Vol.2” by Incognito Records the band contributes the song “Radio Tay”. That LP and CD compilation came out in 1993 on this German label.

On the “Thrilled by Dearth” CDR comp released in the US label Pop Con (02), they had the song “Helicopter Honeymoon”. It seems this wasn’t an official release, instead it was just a CDR that was compiled and given away at the 3rd EMP Pop Conference in Seattle. Only 25 copies were made.

Next up is “Pick The Cat’s Eyes Out” on the Messthetics Greatest Hits CD compilation on Hyped to Death (Messthetics #1050) that was released in 2006. This is the CD I was listening and which made me discover them. And they are on another of the Messthetics compilations, on the “Messthetics #105, “DIY 77-81 Scotland” from 2007. On this one they have the song “Helicopter Honeymoon”. I have yet to listen to this one, I’m going in order with the compilations!

Then there is a tape called “Halloween 2012” released by Eat the Life Records from 2012 that incldues the song “Why Don’t you Come Out Tonight?”

And lastly on the partially unofficial compilation “Kilt By Death: The Sound of Old Scotland (1977-1984)” they have two songs, “Helicopter Honeymoon” and “Radio Tay”. These three CDs were compiled by an American DIY and Scottish punk enthusiast named Michael Train.

I look for more info and I find a post on the website Punk77. Here they are compared to the Television Personalities. They say that after they split the band members went to play in Pigs are Cute, Aaga, Synthetic Dreams and the Summerbees (featuring Red Snapper and Beth Orton bassis Ali Friend). Steve Grimmond went to be Director of Music and Art and Cultural Services at Dundee District Council. It also seems at some point there was a proper Scrotum Poles website. The band used to have a Myspace too.

Sadly I stumble upon band news. On the Courier newspaper I find that on May 21st of 2015 the vocalist Craig Methven died aged 54. At that time he was living in Tunbridge Wells and it seems he was a big supporter of Tunbridge Wells FC, whose website he developed too. At this point in time we know too that Steve Grimmond was Fife Council’s chief executive.

Lastly a Facebook page. And it hasn’t been updated since 2015 when they shared these sad news. There is really not many new details about the band here aside that it is clear they were big fans of the TVPs. Some links for songs by Aaga, the band Grimmond formed afterwards, are perhaps the most interesting finds in here.

But perhaps the best anecdotes are shared on the liner notes of the Messthetics compilations:
“Pick the Cats Eyes Out” featured lyrics found on the back of a set list by one of the first Dundee punk bands, Bread Poultice and the Running Sores (a band once fronted by Billy McKenzie of The Associates). “Cats Eyes” are what Brits call those little orange highway reflectors embedded in the pavement: “Cats Eyes Out Ahead” used to be a common roadside warning.”

All very interesting. Now I should try to get a copy of the 7″ reissue. Start there. I couldn’t find much info about gigs. I’m sure they played many. I guess that would be something I would like to ask them. And also why they didn’t get to release more records.

Do you remember them?

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Listen
Scrotum Poles – Pick the Cat’s Eyes Out