AUTONOMY

There's something in the water in Carbondale, Illinois. Last time I was there I swung an axe at some dude's head. It was pretty fukkd up, very uncool, happened 15 some odd years ago and totally not related to this cassette, but it happened. STARING PROBLEM, PARLOR, and now AUTONOMY...almost makes a fella want to move there. Well, maybe just hang out for a few weeks and see some shows? These kids trudge through dark and anxious punk tunes with the forceful determination that I remember from SF's PHANTOM LIMBS, but AUTONOMY seem to be more rooted in KBD punk grooves and are trying to reconcile that with a clear affinity for early post punk and goth. The songs are awesome, their construction is flawless, and "No Need" might be the heir apparent to THE MOB's "I Wish." What if ICEAGE were raw punks and featured bass solos? Whatever man, this shit rules.

AUTONOMY

Buy your copy here.

INTERNAL AUTONOMY

INTERNAL AUTONOMY seems ripe for rediscovery. Simultaneously insistent and dreamy, their vaguely goth/new wave by way of anarcho punk should be perfectly suited for legions of '00s punks struggling to embrace '80s roots that they never actually had. Also, INTERNAL AUTONOMY are really fukkn good. Vocals take center stage, a howling caterwaul that relaxes into a lilting monotone when the music requires it. Decidedly more melodic and subdued than earlier demos, this mysterious 5th Demo ventures into what might have been college radio fodder in an alternate universe, but then there are certified UK punk bangers (like the third track) to remind you where these folks are really coming from. The final seven songs that make up the second side of this tape are are demo gold - drum machine rehearsals, blown out and way more "out there" than the studio efforts. Genuine gems, interesting oddities...the final three tracks might be the result of one dude in a bedroom with hallucinogens and a 4-track, but the result is mesmerizing and well worthy of release on its own. But today it is presented to you the same way it was presented to me, because that's the way it should be.

5th DEMO

INTERNAL AUTONOMY

INTERNAL AUTONOMY are perhaps the complete antithesis of yesterday's noise assault. Female fronted late 80s UK peace punk showered with acoustic guitars and liberally effected ethereal vocals. Even the term "punk" might be a stretch on tunes like "One Fine Day," but IA were no doubt punks in their approach, and driving songs like "Persons Unknown" and "Burn The Witch" are fucking top notch anarcho shits that are impossible not to love. Together until the early 90s, INTERNAL AUTONOMY released several records (most notable to folks in the US was probably the Only You Have The Power 2x7" on Profane Existence in 1993) and this - their 4th demo.  

4th demo

Included at the beginning of the demo are the only two tracks I have from the drummer's side band MARBLE INDEX.  The first is a dark goth punk burner called "Rose Marie," and then they confirm suspicions about their influences with a cover of SISTERS OF MERCY's "Alice." I've only got the two songs, and they came on the same cassette as the IA shit, so it seemed logical to throw it in...pretend they are bonus tracks on a CD retrospective.  And pretend these are your liner notes. 

INTERNAL AUTONOMY

Hard to understand why this band continues to fly under the radar, but here I am with their fifth demo from 1991 and I'm still pinching myself hearing these sounds for (not the) first time. Authentic dark wave steeped in UK anarcho with BLACK SOLSTICE connections, INTERNAL AUTONOMY are a truly unique (sounding) collection of souls - and to go from the chaotic CONFLICT-esque bombast of "The Time Has Come" and the mania of "Doesn't Anyone Believe Me?" to the PINK DOTS vibes in "An Anthem For Humanity" and the pure proto-goth of "Just Another Day" and "Foresight + Hindthought" is a magnificent feat. Every IA release hits different, and the experimental phase/s at the end of their run are often the most compelling for me - I hear new sounds literally every time I listen. My copy is a dub labeled '5th DEMO - MASTER TAPE' so any souls holding a copy with the artwork....? You know how to find me.  

PURPLE AVANT GARDE NOIZE EXPERIMENT

INTERNAL AUTONOMY

Sometimes I wonder how long INTERNAL AUTONOMY will fly under the radar. Amidst the swells of dark-anarcho-goth over the last few years, one would think that a band like this would be exactly what all the mutants were drooling over - especially a relatively uncelebrated band with so many brilliant tracks. Well, until that day comes, the relatively small number of you who decide to dig deeper can enjoy a stunning unreleased session titled Here In Our Hearts, Most of these tracks popped up on subsequent releases and/or the collection CD that came out several years back. "Star Spangled Banality" is unquestionably a timeless and unsung smash hit...every other song is pretty fucking good too. 

HERE IN OUR HEARTS
Also...some of the responsible parties are now (very) active in a project called FEROXIDE. The split with ACHE OF AGES is pretty damn incredible. 

INTERNAL AUTONOMY

More dark punk from INTERNAL AUTONOMY. The vocals are still drenched with SIOUXSIE influence, but simultaneously softer and more on edge, and the guitars are distorted and fukkd so much that moments sound like a lost JESUS & MARY CHAIN recording with driving bass and drums moving things along at a steady pace. "Sick" is a total Crass Records throwback tune, while "Buffalo Land" is dreary 4AD styled shoegaze reanimated in the form of political punk, and the combination is fantastic. There are moments I could live without (the solo that extends through the majority of "The Pain" is a notable example), but as a whole this demo is an excellent chunk of late '80s female fronted UK anarcho/goth punk. 

SONG AND SPEECH

CYANIDE SCENARIO

Consider this vinyl release one of my top wants, even though I know essentially nothing of its actual existence. CYANIDE SCENARIO perhaps featured future members of INTERNAL AUTONOMY, and the lead track here, "Awayday To Auschwitz," appeared on 1990's Inquiry LP...but the rest of these tracks are a mystery. The sounds are gloriously brooding anarcho tinged goth with female vocals that envelop you like a slow moving mist. I have listened to these songs a thousand times.

CYANIDE SCENARIO

WITCHNAIL WOLF

Probably recorded around the time that the '80s faded into the past, WITCHNAIL WOLF tried to bring the past with them and made this bizarre proto-anarcho/goth hybrid. Female vocals reminiscent of INTERNAL AUTONOMY dominate the songs, which otherwise create a vibe somewhere between later JOY DIVISION and early '80s anarcho punk, but demo versions of both. Only three songs here, certainly not for everyone...but perhaps for you.

WITCHNAIL WOLF 

PARANOID VISIONS

Snarky Irish button pushers PARANOID VISIONS sometimes get lumped in with regional anarcho punk acts but, appropriately perhaps, they don't really fit in with most of their contemporaries from England. Bluurg released a cassette, All The Madmen had a hand in an EP in 1986 and there's an association with CRASS, but during their 10 year run starting in 1982, these kids mostly released their own stuff and did their own thing (including a pretty hilarious anti-U2 campaign in the late '80s). Halo Of Phlegm was recorded near the end of their initial run and circulated only on cassette until a recent CD reissue (that included other material recorded around '89/'90) and it's all over the place in a glorious way. "Afraid Of Life" has an early MISSION/SISTERS vibe, "AIDS" might be presented as an interlude but acts as a chill inducing quasi-industrial track, while "Autonomy," "Cycles Of Christs" and "Vandals" are pretty straight forward punk numbers and "Death To The Poor," "TV Ads" and "Lies" are hardcore punk burners. Combine this with the drawn out art/goth/anarcho title track and the full recording is more than a little scattered - which is a bit of the charm.

HALO OF PHLEGM