dRedzilla - Red Beat - Roy Jones

Red Beat came to prominence during the post-punk era in the London rock scene along with bands like Theatre of Hate, Killing Joke and Ski Patrol. Now for the first time they have released their early catalogue of songs from the early days when they were breaking their balls in small pubs and clubs in London and the south of England, learning the craft. These songs are far more optimistic and up beat than the dour post apocalyptic dub-metal thrash of their later sound on 'The Missing Album'. Originally recorded on a 4-track machine at The Boilerhouse and engineered by Derek Timms, these songs, which were all played in one take by a gig-sharp band, have been painstakingly remastered and repaired by Roy Jones, Red Beat's singer and lyricist for the bulk of this body of songs. The guitarist and drummer are Roy's brothers Martin and Paul, with Majid Ahmed on bass. Influences you can hear include XTC, Blondie, The Ruts, Elvis Costello, Jo Jackson as well as PIL and Killing Joke who's drummer, Big Paul Ferguson was a friend of the bands' and plays on the track 'Television Hum'. This was an experimental and exciting time for rock music and some of these songs show great originality and freshness from a band whose average age must have been around 20.