Aural Sculptors - The Stranglers Live 1976 to the Present


Welcome to Aural Sculptors, a blog aimed at bringing the music of The Stranglers to as wide an audience as possible. Whilst all of the various members of the band that have passed through the ranks since 1974 are accomplished studio musicians, it is on stage where the band have for me had their biggest impact.

As a collector of their live recordings for many years I want to share some of the better quality material with other fans. By selecting the higher quality recordings I hope to present The Stranglers in the best possible light for the benefit of those less familiar with their material than the hardcore fan.

Needless to say, this site will steer well clear of any officially released material. As well as live gigs, I will post demos, radio interviews and anything else that I feel may be of interest.

In addition, occasionally I will post material by other bands, related or otherwise, that mean a lot to me.

Your comments and/or contributions are most welcome. Please email me at adrianandrews@myyahoo.com.


Sunday 28 February 2021

Rudimentary Peni Ludwick Hall Welwyn Garden City 28th May 1982

 


In Herfordshire's Rudimentary Peni, the anarcho scene surely had one of its most original and enigmatic bands. It could be argued that some of the bands were somewhat formulaic in terms of their sound. This could not be said for this three piece, put quite simply, nobody sounded like Rudimentary Peni! Many of the expected elements were in place but delivered in a completely unique style.

Nick Blinko of Rudimentary Peni (1982)

Rudimentary Peni's work stood out then as now (the band have never split up or reformed) additionally on the basis of the artwork that accompanied their records. Produced by the hand of Nick Blinko, in a style grouped under an umbrella of 'Outsider Art', the band's sleeve art was minutely detailed and very disturbing! Art aided and abetted by Blinko's precarious metal health issues.

Rudimentary Peni's second E.P. 'Farce' featuring artwork by singer and guitarist Nick Blinko.

Formed in 1980 the band, consisting of Nick Blinko (Guitar and vocals), Grant Matthews (Bass) and Jon Greville (Drums), released two brilliant E.P.s, the self titles 'Rudimentay Peni' and 'Farce', the latter being produced by Penny Rimbaud and released on Crass records which did much to cement their place within the anarcho musical genre. Their songs were fast, furious and very short, the majority clocking in at under a minute in length! Whilst the songs may indeed have been short they lacked nothing in style and substance, distorted guitar over intricate bass lines with a remarkable vocal.

In between the release of 'Farce' and the band's debut album 'Death Church', Grant was diagnosed with lung cancer, which he survived, but Nick Blinko was also suffering further mental health problems.

In 1989, Rudimentary Peni released 'Cacophony, broadly speaking, a 'concept' album centered on the life and work of horror writer H.P. Lovecraft. Since then, Peni have continued to avoid the trappings of playing live opting instead for periodic releases of new material on E.P.s. as and when the desirability to do so was shared by the members of the band. In fact the first new material for a decade. 'The Great War',  is scheduled for a Spring 2021 release.


FLAC: https://we.tl/t-cQHRljxxvO

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-yCaPdnjW41

01. Inside
02. Teenage Time Killer
03. Sacrifice
04. B-Ward
05. Mice Race
06. Blind Dogs
07. Dead Living
08. Zero Again
09. The Gardener
10. Hearse
11. Only Human
12. Media Person
13. Cosmetic Plague
14. Tower Of Strength
15. Dutchmen




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