Sweet anthology of live / rare / out-of-print / hard-to-find / never released tracks of these Orange County hardcores who eventually (de)volved in the overrated/over-hyped mess that is Fu Manchu.
While I expect none of you to agree w/ me about Fu Manchu, the fact remains that Virulence was an interesting band in a far more interesting scene than the "desert rock" vibe. Enjoy this one, educate yourself on some long-lost O.C.H.C.
(Props to that trendy label that put this out. Best record they have released in a LONG time - especially one that doesn't involve the label "heads" as part of the "band")...
http://lix.in/-893c0d
ReplyDeletenever heard this before
ReplyDeletecan't say it surprises me that Fu Manchu started out as a hardcore band
a long list of other bands did, too
it's sort of the embryonic form of band, I suppose
(reading that over, it sounds condescending-- not intentional)
I agree with you regarding Fu Manchu but I'm from Texas so clearly don't know shit, or so those unlucky enough to live in the promised land will tell you.
ReplyDeleteDude, I was just thinking about this record the day before you posted it and wondering where my copy went. Saw Virulence at Gilman Street in 1989 or thereabouts, were pretty damn slow and heavy. Fu Manchu went downhill pretty fast. And I can't seem to get into any Sunn O))) no matter how hard I try. Reminds me of the old joke about what the Deadhead said when the drugs wore off. Love your blog, don't quit on my account!
ReplyDeleteI remember paging through one of my "Creem Presents Thrash Metal" back in 1989 and seeing an ad for Virulence's album and wondering if I should order it sound unheard. I'd had good luck with Excel's "The Joke's On You" and Gang Green's "Drunk & Disorderly 1986" in that department but there'd been some terrible mistakes as well. Fast forward (if you have vhs, beta or cassette) twenty years and my local rock shop has this re-issue on it's shelf. I gave it a spin, revelled in it's brutal glory, and picked it up so that I could gorge/gore myself whenever the need arises. Which is often.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, excellent post! And a big thank you to Music Ruined My Life for pointing me your way.
CallPastorJerkface
Yer cracking me up, Convertido!
ReplyDeleteBlue Seven - Yeah, I'm no fan of Greg Anderson, Steven O'Malley, or their label. Sunn 0))) is SO. FUCKING. BAD. Fuck those guys. All of their bands have been terrible, even Engine Kid.
ReplyDeletewow. I didn't know of your hatred for Southern Lord. I like Sunn0))) and Goatsnake quite a bit but 98% of the other bands on the label don't do much for me. Anyhow, thanks for posting this as I'm also a fan of Fu Manchu's pre "California Crossing" albums.
ReplyDeleteTotal Bl'ast worship. Thanks.
ReplyDeletebl'ast worship = good.
ReplyDeleteThasnks for this little collection! Greatly appreciated - take it easy, Emile
ReplyDeleteThis record is solid! I was kinda regretting ebaying this a few years ago. After picking it up at the viscera I'll have to find the vinyl again. ahhh hindsight.
ReplyDeleteFu Manchu aren't bad, but Virulence was def on another level. and some of these later Alchemy releases are still some what easy to find on LP, which is nice in this case. i was actually listenin to Blast - The Power Of Expression - earlier today and started thinkin about Virulence, so it was a nice little surpsise to find a few words bout em here now. haven't heard this in some years. as for your comment about the label, i was tryin to figure out what bands on Alchemy had band members who were also label heads, but now i see what u meant. i can't really say i know much about the actual S Lord roster outside of Sunn O)) who i think are pretty good (i dig some Earth, The Dead C, that kinda stuff, from time to time). they did put out the new Confessor record a few years ago - one of the few metal records on my radar in the last 15 years - and i feel like they've done a few decent re-releases. i was gonna mention the Buzzoven comp CD a few years ago, but i think that was Alternative Tentacles. And they also put the Clown Alley record out on CD which was cool - another Alchemy classic (and somebody needs to pull their heads out of their asses and re-release the first Sacrilege BC record!!).
ReplyDeleteFu Manchu was bad; just a very shallow van-rock trend band. It had a short shelf life for me - maybe two songs I could actually listen to these days.
ReplyDeleteAlchemy was a great label - much of it still underrated & we'll be raving about in 10 years - but Southern Lord doesn't have anything to with that legacy other than re-releasing other people's stuff that other labels initially did the legwork on. I realize that is what reissuing records is all about, but I could do w/o 96% of the buzz bands that are on SL, regardless of what contry they are from. Drone music bores the fuck out me - just sayin'...
Just discovered your blog. Thanks for posting all this great music. Downloading the Pink Turds atm. Going on full volume when i've DL-ed it :)
ReplyDelete(Props to that trendy label that put this out. Best record they have released in a LONG time - especially one that doesn't involve the label "heads" as part of the "band")...
ReplyDeletethis says it all nice and on the point. -ohwellmonkey
Glad I'm not the only one who doesn't like fu manchu... those guys couldnt play a decent riff for all the weed in california
ReplyDeleteI dug OP shirts/shorts & old school Vans too, but that ain't enough to make a band sound good...
ReplyDeleteWell, here's another one who's not at all crazy about Fu Manchu.
ReplyDeleteNot too bad but I've never really gone mad for them (15 minutes are enough).
And, as it is time for outing, I can't stand SunnO)))! OK, I eventually said it, I feel better now.
But I have liked several releases from Southern Lord.
This one however was a nice surprice indeed.