Post by johnfoyle on Apr 1, 2005 17:30:33 GMT
The Evening Herald , April 1 '05
( It's Friday! supplement , p. 8)
Radical
There has only ever been one answer to the question :
Rads or Rats ? says George Byrne
ONE OF THE LESS LOGICAL but always interesting
aspects of music fandom is the way devotees of a
particular band frequently pit their favourites
against another act.
It’s absolutely daft of course, given that music is
not football and the outfits involved aren’t actually
competing against each other in the strictest sense,
but down the years there’s been the spice of rivalry
to liven up many a schoolyard scrap or pub debate.
The Beatles or the Stones? The Pistols or The Clash?
The Happens or A House? Big Tom or Larry Cunningham?
All good harmless funwith the possible exception of
the feud between Blur and Oasis in the summer of 1995.
Back in the mid-’70s the Dublin Punk scene had its own
mantra of sorts with the question ‘Are you Rats or
Rads?’<br>
Of course, if you’d any aspirations towards cool there
was only one possible answer to the question, with The
Radiators being far and away the more interesting and
credible band. While the Boomtown Rats certainly had
their moments, the fierce ideology which blazed
throughout certain sections of the city’s population
in the wake of the release of Anarchy In The UK meant
that it was difficult to take Geldof & co all that
seriously, given that the mouthy frontman was a former
Blackrock College boy and the band’s formative years
were effectively spent as a Dr Feelgood tribute band.
And then there were the incriminating photos of them
with long hair and moustaches (a capital offence!)
wearing flares, clogs and dungarees. Nah, the Rats
were opportunistic dabblers but The Radiators were the
real deal.
The first time I saw The Radiators From Space (as they
were) was in November 1976 when they supported Eddie And The Hot Rods at Belfield and while they were
certainly as rough around the edges as you’d expect
any band making their debut, there was an energy and
vision about them which cut through all the technical
inadequacies on the night.
Taking their cue from Glam Rock and the scuzzy riffola
of 60s US garage bands the Rads were clearly coming
from a tangent which no other Irish band had even
dreamed of and their progress was remarkable. Barely
five months after that debut they'd released the
stirring single Television Screen (boredom, teenage
anxiety and a ‘Let’s make some serious noise’ message
delivered with a nod to classic Rock’n’Roll and
clocking in at just under two minutes) and their live
performances were becoming even more daring.
At a gig one Sunday afternoon in the Baggot Inn
(supported by some shower of youngfellas called The
Undertones) the theatrical aspects of the show had
been really ramped up. Lead singer Steve Rapid rolled
around the floor wearing handcuffs as they segued
Them's Gloria into Set Me Free from the classic ‘60s’<br>rock flick Privilege. Meanwhile guitarists and
co-vocalists Phil Chevron and Pete Holidai were
playing with increased confidence while bathed in
white light.
They were making quantum leaps every couple of months,
producing a great debut album with TV Tube Heart,
coming in for the ‘Shock! Horror!’ treatment from the
Sunday World and getting the nod to support Thin Lizzy
on an extensive UK tour, by which stage Rapid had
opted to stay here with his family as the rest of the
band relocated to London. And while their reputation
was deservedly growing abroad the songwriting had
reached a new plane entirely, with the material for
the Ghostown album putting them way ahead of any
competition.
Produced by Bowie/Bolan cohort Tony Visconti the
breadth and vision of the songs here is still
breathtaking, with the spirit of Joyce, Behan, Brel,
Brecht and Weill filtered through a sonic sheen of
classic and classy guitar Pop.
They’re Looting In The Town, Million Dollar Hero,
Let’s Talk About The Weather, Kitty Ricketts and Song
Of The Faithful Departed work on an incredible number
of levels, proving beyond doubt that The Radiators
were most definitely one of the most ambitious and
articulate bands on the planet.
Alas, record company thingy-ups and indecision delayed
Ghostown until 1979, which was an absolute catastrophe
for a band who’d moved at lightning pace in their
first 18 months as a professional band. But let’s not
get hung up on hard luck stories but rather remember
just how good those two albums are, with timeless
songs into life in the live arena courtesy of The
Radiators (Plan 9).
Rats or Rads? You’re having a laugh, aren’t you?
TV Tube Heart and Ghostown are reissued today. The
Radiators play Whelan’s on Sunday
( It's Friday! supplement , p. 8)
Radical
There has only ever been one answer to the question :
Rads or Rats ? says George Byrne
ONE OF THE LESS LOGICAL but always interesting
aspects of music fandom is the way devotees of a
particular band frequently pit their favourites
against another act.
It’s absolutely daft of course, given that music is
not football and the outfits involved aren’t actually
competing against each other in the strictest sense,
but down the years there’s been the spice of rivalry
to liven up many a schoolyard scrap or pub debate.
The Beatles or the Stones? The Pistols or The Clash?
The Happens or A House? Big Tom or Larry Cunningham?
All good harmless funwith the possible exception of
the feud between Blur and Oasis in the summer of 1995.
Back in the mid-’70s the Dublin Punk scene had its own
mantra of sorts with the question ‘Are you Rats or
Rads?’<br>
Of course, if you’d any aspirations towards cool there
was only one possible answer to the question, with The
Radiators being far and away the more interesting and
credible band. While the Boomtown Rats certainly had
their moments, the fierce ideology which blazed
throughout certain sections of the city’s population
in the wake of the release of Anarchy In The UK meant
that it was difficult to take Geldof & co all that
seriously, given that the mouthy frontman was a former
Blackrock College boy and the band’s formative years
were effectively spent as a Dr Feelgood tribute band.
And then there were the incriminating photos of them
with long hair and moustaches (a capital offence!)
wearing flares, clogs and dungarees. Nah, the Rats
were opportunistic dabblers but The Radiators were the
real deal.
The first time I saw The Radiators From Space (as they
were) was in November 1976 when they supported Eddie And The Hot Rods at Belfield and while they were
certainly as rough around the edges as you’d expect
any band making their debut, there was an energy and
vision about them which cut through all the technical
inadequacies on the night.
Taking their cue from Glam Rock and the scuzzy riffola
of 60s US garage bands the Rads were clearly coming
from a tangent which no other Irish band had even
dreamed of and their progress was remarkable. Barely
five months after that debut they'd released the
stirring single Television Screen (boredom, teenage
anxiety and a ‘Let’s make some serious noise’ message
delivered with a nod to classic Rock’n’Roll and
clocking in at just under two minutes) and their live
performances were becoming even more daring.
At a gig one Sunday afternoon in the Baggot Inn
(supported by some shower of youngfellas called The
Undertones) the theatrical aspects of the show had
been really ramped up. Lead singer Steve Rapid rolled
around the floor wearing handcuffs as they segued
Them's Gloria into Set Me Free from the classic ‘60s’<br>rock flick Privilege. Meanwhile guitarists and
co-vocalists Phil Chevron and Pete Holidai were
playing with increased confidence while bathed in
white light.
They were making quantum leaps every couple of months,
producing a great debut album with TV Tube Heart,
coming in for the ‘Shock! Horror!’ treatment from the
Sunday World and getting the nod to support Thin Lizzy
on an extensive UK tour, by which stage Rapid had
opted to stay here with his family as the rest of the
band relocated to London. And while their reputation
was deservedly growing abroad the songwriting had
reached a new plane entirely, with the material for
the Ghostown album putting them way ahead of any
competition.
Produced by Bowie/Bolan cohort Tony Visconti the
breadth and vision of the songs here is still
breathtaking, with the spirit of Joyce, Behan, Brel,
Brecht and Weill filtered through a sonic sheen of
classic and classy guitar Pop.
They’re Looting In The Town, Million Dollar Hero,
Let’s Talk About The Weather, Kitty Ricketts and Song
Of The Faithful Departed work on an incredible number
of levels, proving beyond doubt that The Radiators
were most definitely one of the most ambitious and
articulate bands on the planet.
Alas, record company thingy-ups and indecision delayed
Ghostown until 1979, which was an absolute catastrophe
for a band who’d moved at lightning pace in their
first 18 months as a professional band. But let’s not
get hung up on hard luck stories but rather remember
just how good those two albums are, with timeless
songs into life in the live arena courtesy of The
Radiators (Plan 9).
Rats or Rads? You’re having a laugh, aren’t you?
TV Tube Heart and Ghostown are reissued today. The
Radiators play Whelan’s on Sunday
