Young Marble Giants - This Way (1980)

Young Marble Giants were a Welsh post-punk band from in Cardiff, Wales, who formed from the ashes of the band True Wheel in 1978. Their music was based around the vocals of Alison Statton along with the minimalist instrumentation of brothers Philip and Stuart Moxham, with Stuart writing the majority of the band's songs, and providing the scratchy guitar lines and Galenti electric organ, while Philip was in charge of the prominent basslines. Statton's vocals were an integral part of their sound, and when it was all put together they were a distinct contrast to the aggressive punk sound that was prevalent at the time. Very early in their existence, there was a fourth member of the band, Peter Joyce, who was a cousin of the Moxham brothers. Joyce was a telephone engineer and skilled at electronics, and had made his own synthesiser from a kit, sounding very much like Eno's synths in the early Roxy Music, and Kraftwerk, both of which employed similar 'low-tech/high-tech' electronics. Young Marble Giants used tape recordings of Joyce's home-made drum machine, since they did not wish to have a drummer at that time, and he piqued their interest in effects devices such as ring modulators and reverb units, with the emphasis always on simplicity. Their first vinyl release was on the compilation LP 'Is The War Over?' on Cardiff's Z Block Records label, contributing 'Ode To Booker T' and 'Searching For Mr. Right', and they were quickly signed to UK independent record label Rough Trade Records, releasing two EPs, 'Final Day' and 'Testcard'. Following the success of the EPs the band released their only album 'Colossal Youth', which soon became a touchstone for UK indie bands, showing that you could start a band which sounded like no-one else and still be a success. Their musical influences were wide and varied, including Eno, Kraftwerk, Neil Young, Lou Reed, The Velvet Underground, Roxy Music, David Bowie, Can and others, and they have themselves had a lasting influence on many other groups and artists. It was revealed in the 2003 book 'Journals' that the group were, along with The Vaselines, Kurt Cobain's favourite band, and 'Final Day' has been covered by both Belle and Sebastian and Galaxie 500. After the band split up in 1980, Stuart Moxham formed The Gist, whose song 'Love at First Sight' became a hit in continental Europe when covered by French pop singer Étienne Daho. Alison Statton, Spike and Simon Emmerson formed Weekend (with Phil Moxham on bass), and released two albums and a few singles, and Philip Moxham later played bass for The Communards and Everything but the Girl. In early 2003, Statton and the Moxham brothers reunited for a BBC Radio Wales special, and performed one new song, 'Alright'. For this celebration of the band I've taken both of their Rough Trade EPs and added in some rare demos, plus their full 1980 Peel session, to show why they are so fondly remembered by fans of their unique minimalist music.  

Track listing

01 Final Day (from the 'Final Day' EP 1980)
02 Radio Silents (from the 'Final Day' EP 1980)
03 Cakewalking (from the 'Final Day' EP 1980)
04 Ode To Booker T. (from the 'Final Day' EP 1980)
05 Clicktalk (from the 'Testcard E.P.' 1981)
06 Zebra Trucks (from the 'Testcard E.P.' 1981)
07 Sporting Life (from the 'Testcard E.P.' 1981)
08 This Way (from the 'Testcard E.P.' 1981)
09 Posed By Models (from the 'Testcard E.P.' 1981)
10 The Clock (from the 'Testcard E.P.' 1981)
11 Have Your Toupee Ready (demo 1979)
12 The Man Shares His Meal With His Beast (demo 1979)
13 Hayman (demo 1979)
14 Loop The Loop (demo 1979)
15 Searching For Mr Right (John Peel session 1980)
16 Brand - New - Life (John Peel session 1980)
17 Final Day (John Peel session 1980)
18 N.I.T.A. (John Peel session 1980)
19 Posed By Models (John Peel session 1980)