Circle Jerks - June 21, 1986

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G.B.H. - June 21, 1986

One of the few I have from Florida.

Dark Angel - June 20, 1986

Circle Jerks - June 7, 1986

Another show from Phoenix - they had a hot little scene there in AZ - pun intended.

Siouxie & the Banshees - June 2, 1986

This one got by me from last week! Siouxie and the Banshees were terrific - all the punk girls I know adored her as well as Nina Hagen. Stylistically they both inspired a lot of the fashion among the young women in the scene. I also liked the proto-Goth Love & Rockets even though neither of these acts are punk - early alternative I guess you'd call them. Love & Rockets were named after a popular comic book - not the other way around as I had imagined. The comic was another pioneer in "alternative" entertainment.

Siouxsie - methinks Nikki Sixx may have been a fan.

The lovely Nina Hagen

Adolescents - May 30, 1986

Dice, rats, pistols, bubbles, no kitchen sink. That's May ...

TSOL - May 22, 1986

In my time, there were basically two promoters in town, Ground Chuck and Clear & Distinct Ideas. The latter was run by a relatively successful attorney, the former was literally one of the street kids. Their slots in society then couldn't have been more different. Chuck remains a local legend in Sacramento and is still very visible as a chalk artist, musician and promoter. I doubt' he'd recognize me today - it's been 30 years since I last seen him, but we used to be pals through all this.

D.R.I. - May 18, 1986

Another one from Phoenix - the art work on their flyers has steadily improved.

Ludichrist - May 3, 1986

This Long Island show features a bunch of bands I'm not familiar with. Searching around, I'm sure I would have liked Ludichrist. Understand there was no internet then so the primary way to hear new music for me was KDVS the college radio station we could get from UC Davis. They had weekly late night shows featuring acts from all over. I used to record it on cassette, then track down the acts/albums I liked at Tower Records who typically carried most of what I wanted, bless them. Maximum Rock'n'Roll was another source for scene coverage and band interviews.

Dayglow Abortions - May 2, 1986

I don't know any of these acts, but after sampling "Dayglo" Abortions I'm sure I would have liked them. I also can't pin down the location of this venue, nor any reference to the promoters.
Very nice of the Catholics to host such an event though.

Anthrax - April 25, 1986

A guitarist/singer friend of mine were both just starting out and had a few jam sessions together. We called ourselves Abattoir and that was as far as it ever went. We were heavy and sucked - but it was tons of fun.

The Swans - April 12, 1986

The mice got to this one as well it appears. I know the Swans are big deal in experimental rock circles, but they are another that isn't my thing at all. First appearance of Mabuhay Gardens - we'll see that place again a lot. I was there only once where I saw Possessed at maybe their last show before a long breakup in the summer of 1987.

Jodie Foster's Army (JFA) - April 5-6, 1986

JFA - now these guys were great adding in a a surf punk aesthetic. Not bad since they hail from the great southwestern deserts near Phoenix, AZ. They still get a listening to from me now and again - especially "Beach Blanket Bongout", their cover of "Walk, Don't Run" and other instrumentals. I don't recognize any of the other acts, but I enjoyed a pair of summers with little else than JFA in the background.

The Wallmen - April 5, 1986

This one was a tough one as I'm unfamiliar with almost every aspect of this show and had to look up virtually everything. The Wallmen are described as "schizoid psychedelic/garage rock ... inspired by Andy Warhol's random pop frescos, by Dada's irreverent nonsense,and by Allen Ginsberg's beat poetry" - in other words: not my thing at all. "Supersonic Witchcraft Cookies" is the name of the cassette they had just released. I can't even assuredly identify the venue, the promoter ?Dead Judys? or even the supporting band names on the bill other than the Bicycle Thieves. A band called Death is on the bill but it is certainly not the Orlando based death metal pioneers of the same name. But for a clip-art ensemble of a flyer it deserves entry here - note the DEVO reference near top left and for the life of me I can't even identify the demonic gargoyle imps in the foreground. The central one was on a movie poster I can't find.

 

Venom - March 28, 1986

Venom - wow. They, more than anyone, pushed me toward preferring more metal than a punker was allowed to peaceably enjoy at the time. Boundaries were clearly delimited and there was quite a light-hearted rivalry between the punks and the "rockers". Anyone in a Maiden muscle-t was beggin' for a haranguing.
What subversive lyrical content too - a totally different form of "dangerous", anti-social content than the political commentary from the likes of say DK or MDC. and they made Tipper Gore's list of the "Filthy Fifteen" for their brand of black metal occultism. Sadly, the mice got to this one and ate off a corner.

Megadeth - February 28, 1986

All Wrong - February 21, 1986

I know the bigger scenes created outstanding art and collages for their show promotions. This one, as are many of these honestly, is a tad underwhelming compared to the quality of work from LA and SF.

Dead Kennedys - February 21, 1986

I don't know who the other "bans" were for this one. This handout flyer also came in orange as well as a larger alternate version which included the addition of Mojo Nixon for the telephone poles seen below.

Pretty sure the first punk record I ever heard (and then bought) was DK's Plastic Surgery Disasters. These guys and Jello were among the best and brightest defenders of free expression. I still listen to that one from time to time.

Toy Dolls - January 23, 1986

This one was for telephone poles - the bottom one for hand outs. And this marks the first time I saw the Sea Hags who I remember being just terrific. I believe I still have their '86 demo around somewhere - great stuff. Here's a taste.

Circle Jerks - January 23, 1986

If I had a favorite band in these early days it certainly was these guys. It was my first proper hardcore show I ever attended (on this tour) - and I think it was the last one too when they came through NYC almost 15 years ago.