DAN

You can't really go wrong with DAN. Their somewhat second tier status is likely a product of a few years and scene fluctuations more than a reflection on their recordings - image these tracks had come out in 1983 with a slightly less metal guitar tone, and I think you'd have an entirely different legacy. DAN were serious, but DAN seems fun. Like you imagine their shows were smart and sharp and intense, but you can also picture everyone smiling and singing along to "Into The Field" and leaving all sweaty and full of hope. The instrumental "The Cull" and "Once Upon A Time," presented back to back, are indescribably powerful, and then they launch into the demo of "Loophole" which sounds so totally fucking weird - an all out thrasher, but recorded quietly so to not wake up the parents? The seeds of MANKIND? are here, the bridge between early '80s UK anarcho and the metallic anarcho thrash that dominated the end of the decade is here, but Here's The Story....The Furthur Adventures Of DAN is also packed with demo recordings, live cuts, outtakes, which is what makes is such a great listen (even still) because everything is here. If "anarcho twee thrash" was a genre....

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF DAN!