The first studio album from the Test Tubes was released in December 1983. At that time I was three months shy of my 14th birthday. Musically, I was still very much into electronic bands, the likes of Gary Numan, Ultravox and OMD. At that time though I was also aware of some original punk bands, there were a few Stranglers and Damned records in my expanding record collection. But to most of my mates at the time who were into punk, for them this meant bands of the UK 82 scene. Peter and the Test Tube Babies were critical at this time (and importantly local - the home town of Burgess Hill being about 12 miles north of Brighton) and a bit before that too. Someone in our small circle of friends had a copy of 'Pissed & Proud' and this got a regular airing, its content being instantly appealing to a group of 14 year old boys!
Some friends were seeing the band from 1983 onwards, not me though, I had to wait until early '85 to see then (sometime around the release of the 'Rotting In The Fart Sack' EP - a Sunday lunchtime gig at the Richmond in Brighton for the princely sum of 50p).
From this point on, punk both present and past became increasingly important in my world. So this album, aside from being a great album, holds great importance and many adolescent memories for me. There isn't a duff track to be heard on the original release (the throwaway ode to fast food, 'Wimpeez' only appeared on later issues of the album). Tracks such as 'The Jinx', 'Guest List' and always my favourite 'Let's Burn' still sound great nearly 40 years down the line. The additional studio expense (the album was recorded in Pink Floyd's Britannia Row Studios and Southern Studios (of Crass et al. fame) coupled with proper production, not to mention better playing ability (thanks to a heavy gigging schedule over the previous 18 months) propelled the album into a different league.
If 'Pissed & Proud' captures the raw, disorder of early Test Tubes, 'Mating Sounds' stands out as the band's definitive album. A review of a set list from 2023 shows that 17 out of 22 songs played at that particular gig were from '82 to '85. That said '83 to '86 was a fine time to be into the Peter and the Test Tube Babies as 'Mating Sounds' was followed by the cassette only compilation 'Journey to the Centre of Johnny Clarke's Head' (this was the first thing I heard in proper stereo.... never mind 'Oxygene' or 'Tubular Bells' when your first experience of stereo is 'Tupperware Party'!). That was followed by the aforementioned 'Rotting in the Fart Sack' which unleashed the brilliant 'Spirit of Keith Moon' and then came 'Soberphobia' which followed in the same vain as 'Mating Sounds' but never quite scaled the same heights as its predecessor. Oh and I nearly forgot 1985's 'The Loud, Blaring, Punk Rock LP', an album that caused much mirth and merriment back then!
Here's what the critics had to say... not that any of it changes my opinion of the album.
New Musical Express (29th October 1983)
New Musical Express (15th October 1983)
New Musical Express (5th November 1983)
New Musical Express (24th December 1983)
New Musical Express (17th December 1983)
These were the opinions of the New Musical Express at the time, from the 'unlistenable legacy of punk' to 'zomboid metal thunder'. Still does it for me though!
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