| | Disk 1 | Disk 2 |
ACT 1
Theatre Of Hate | 2 - Live In Sweden 81TOH broke as a band through hard slogging tours. The band spent months on end trekking across Western Europe playing to an ever growing army of fans who waited on every word from their heroes, Theatre Of Hate. During the three years TOH were initially in action, at the beginning of the eighties, Kirk and the changing band line up played over 400 shows. This is one of the best.Scandinavia was a favourite for the band, as the girls were gorgeous and the men just loved to go mental at the shows, a perfect recipe for some truly brilliant gigs. A better version of Conquistador cannot and will not be found. | 1 - RevolutionRevolution is the album released in 1984 but thankfully this release has been totally re-mastered to achieve a brilliant sound and clarity to these exemplary TOH tracks. A highlight has to be the song Americanos which was to have been a single but somewhere amongst the bullshit it got lost. Looking and listening back to these recordings makes it very easy to see why Kirk's face was on the front cover of every music and style magazine that mattered across Europe. This was and still is: Revolution Rock! |
ACT 2
Theatre Of Hate | 3 - Ten Years AfterReleased originally, by all accounts, in a major rush. The tracks on this disc are actually nothing more than the desk mixes given to the people working on a project at the end of each days studio session so they can have a listen to their efforts during the time before the next recording period. Some of the mixes are amazingly close to the tracks that appeared on the first Spear Of Destiny album "Grapes Of Wrath" recorded for CBS in 1983. The songs are stark and haunting and you have to wonder on hearing them what might have happened had this line up of Theatre Of Hate stayed together long enough to release a second album? These recordings feature Billy Duffy on guitar (just before he left to join up with Ian Ashbury and form Death Cult) and Nigel Preston on drums - sadly no longer with us. | 4 - He Who Dares 1This is a classic of its time. Released to stop the influx of the many bootlegs that were doing the rounds during this time, this disc - even as badly recorded as it is., gives an insight into the depth and variety of the TOH sound that was just beginning to form. Recorded at the warehouse in Leeds and printed with the somewhat horrific theatre masks on the front cover this initial step into the music scene for TOH left all those journalists given the task of reviewing the release the unenviable job of categorising Kirk Brandon and the band. Try as they might for the next 2 years those same journalists never quite got to grips with the entity that was Theatre Of Hate. |
ACT 3
Theatre Of Hate | 5 - RetributionOriginally released in the USA in 1996 this work was written and recorded in Philadelphia where Kirk Brandon had taken up residence. The tracks are unmistakeably influenced by the sights and sound Kirk had been experiencing while on U.S. soil. With the radio station blaring out full on rock 24 hours a day the songs have not been watered down to try and blend in with expected European radio parameters which had often been the plight of previous TOH and SOD releases. Versions of "Europa" and "Communication Ends", which have since become live favourites are also contained here as well as an excellent reworking of "Propaganda". A wonderfully perfected ode to Kurt Cobain "Stone In The Rain" is possibly the highlight. | 6- Live At Bingley Hall 82Culled from the numerous live TOH shows played by the band in 81 and 82 this recording captures the band at their most truculent and rebellious best. Showcasing many of the bands best tracks, this recording is close to the last ever shows the band played in the 80's, truly hypnotic and intoxicating. |
ACT 4
Theatre Of Hate | 7 - TOH The SessionsFeaturing some excellent and diverse versions of TOH songs these tracks have been selected from all TOH eras. The opening song "Original Sin" is a very different version than any other heard before and features a great sax solo. Although "I Can See" was originally released under the Spear Of Destiny banner this version was re-recorded by the 90's line up of TOH. Possibly most intriguing for TOH fans is the never been heard before demo track "Life Means Nothing" recorded in the USA this song is destined to appear on a new studio album one day. | 8 - Live At The Astoria 91Talk of a TOH re-union had always been rife, although many believed this would never happen, but happen it did, even though the shows were scheduled for a year earlier in 1990, to tie in with the bands ten year anniversary. This recording is as close to a TOH reunion that could be achieved. The strength and depth of the songs, both old and new, pay true testament to the skill and flexibility of Kirk Brandon's songwriting. The epic sound of John "Boy" Lennard's sax breaks, throughout this recording, sounds as fresh and as innovative as they first did in 1980. |
ACT 5
Theatre Of Hate | 9 - The SinglesRecorded between early 1980 and late 1982 these were the songs that were released by TOH as 7" and 12" singles, along with the B-sides. Mostly produced by Mick Jones of The Clash and recorded at Wessex Studios the TOH sound emanating from this compilation is totally unique. Although many have stated that this period of Kirk Brandon's career is, in their opinion, his most innovative it can now be seen as a springboard to his future works. The Top Of The Pops television appearances that heralded "Do You Believe In The Westworld" into the UK Top 40 pop charts is infamous as was the line up that appeared on the show which included a very young Nigel Preston (R.I.P.) and an even younger looking Billy Duffy - later of The Cult. From track 1 through to the end these tracks are part of the UK's music history, as is Kirk Brandon - like it or not. | 10 - He Who Dares 2The West Berlin of the early 80's was a very different place than the Berlin of today, verging on chaos, with the Berlin wall dividing both the city itself and the whole German nation. This concert was played as part of an anti drugs festival even though by this time the whole "alternative" generation of Berlin was riddled with a huge heroin problem. Viewed by the outside world as a stand against the Communist East this Western stronghold was more like a prison to those who lived there. Theatre Of Hate played this show with total conviction and were treated by the crowds like conquering heroes, the songs are very sparse sounding, as only Kirk is playing guitar, but with John Lenards' sax sounds echoing around the arena, it works excellently well. |
PSalM 1
Spear Of Destiny | 11 - Elephant DazeAt one time Elephant Daze was actually going to be the name of the band instead of a song title, thankfully someone with half a brain stepped in!! These studio tracks were recorded in Philadelphia, USA and were the first time Kirk had started to experiment with D tuning on his guitars. The songs are very influenced by the sights and sounds of downtown Philly where Kirk chose to make his home for nearly :- two years. The rawness of these works adds to the vibrant vocal performances which had always suffered from vast over production; on the majority of Kirks' earlier pre 1990 releases. | 12 - Live At The Forum 88London was always a struggle for SOD. Expectations were always way too high, as were the guest list and those fans who felt Kirk sould be playing a set full of songs from bygone eras that the band felt unable to recreate. This London show from 1988 at Kentish Town's Forum is an exception to the rule. Kirk leads the band through an electrically charged set of now classic material, thatboth the band and audience alike get completely immersed in. Grab a beer, turn the stereo up loud and let these live SOD waves lap uparound your ears. |
PSalM 2
Spear Of Destiny | 13 - Outlands - The DemosOutlands was Kirk Brandon's most successful album for Virgin Records. the single "Never Take Me Alive" taken from tBe;album reached number 14 in the UK charts with Outlands itself enjoying a lengthy chart run and obtaining a silver disc in the UK. This achievement heralded a new phase in the life Of SOD. With new musicians both recording and touring with Kirk Brandon a new heavier sound had emerged. As ever with Kirk Brandon, almost as soon as a very successful tour had been completed to promote Outlands, Kirk became v6ry ill and on the eve of an appearance at the Reading festival Kirk was ordered to bed to rest, he remained resting for almost a whole year. The songs on this disc are the prototypes for the tracks that became Outlands. | 14 - Live At The National 871987 was a great-year for Spear of Destiny, on the live front the band were flying high, with charting singles and; an album doing very well the already vast army of Spear fans grew bigger and bigger. A support slot with U2 at Wembley Stadium went down brilliantly with a huge crowd, as did a sell out show at London's Hammersmith Odeon. This disc is a good example of SOD showing their many sides from storming rock anthems to slow melodic ballads. Also contained is a classic Kirk quote On the fate of a former SOD member. |
PSalM 3
Spear Of Destiny | 15 - Manor Mobile SessionsRecorded on the infamous Manor Mobile, these tracks were laid down by a SOD line up that was falling apart at the seams. As is often the case with unrest and misplaced anger in the air Kirk somehow managed to guide the band through some majestic moments during these sessions. The apocalyptic mastery of "Whole World Waiting" is almost upstaged by a cover of Robert Marley's "Get Up Stand Up" which defies description. Many of the tracks were late to appear on SOD's most successful album to date "Outlands" | 16 - Live At The Barrowlands 85Glasgow's meat market is also home of the Barrowlands, the crowd at this show choose to show they could make more noise than any herd of cattle. A lot of the songs become audience singalongs with an added poignant Scottish binge to the lyrics. Recorded well into the bands 2nd UK tour of the year, the band are playing at full throttle. SOD have often been described as one of the best live bands, once again the proof is served up here with all the trimmings. |
PSalM 4
Spear Of Destiny | 17 - SOD The SessionsThis disc features material culled from the numerous sessions that have been undertaken by SOD during their main incarnations, these tracks are all different versions of SOD classics. The songs have been taken from the bands conception in 1983 and then forward and up to the current 1988 line up which features the now ever present John McNutt on guitar and Art Smith on drums. The evolution of SOD is all contained here and charts a progression that continues to scale new heights. | 18 - Live At The Lyceum 84This is the SOD line up that should have been. Signed to the massive Epic/CBS records, SOD had all the profile, all the songs and yet a major single chart success alluded Kirk and the band. Yet again the situation arose where the label management thought they knew best, somehow they managed to persuade the band to release the worst track on the studio album "One Eyed Jacks" that was also released in 1981. The single "Prisoner Of Love" taken from the album just scraped the Top 40 and then disappeared. Many of the songs from "One Eyed Jacks" are featured on this concert from London's I,Lyceum Ballroom. |
PSalM 5
Spear Of Destiny | 19 - Boys BrigadeCollected from various studios and recorded during different eras these tracks were the demos that would have made up a brilliant alhum. It was even possible that these songs would have appeared under a different hand name, as the musicians playing on the tracks varied considerably. Kirk worked on these songs as a project outside of SOD and the experimentation can clearly be heard. In fact the sounds contained on this CD are far closer to the new late 90's SOD than that of the time they were recorded. During one of the numerous sessions a then little known producer visited the studio where Kirk was putting vocals on a track, he expressed an interest in working on the project but unfortunately nothing came of the meeting, it would have been great to hear what input John Lecke could have had on the project!!! | 20 - LIVE AT THE ACE 83As the lights dimmed at the Ace Cinema in the heart of Brixton, London in 1983 and the sound of clicking wood blocks flowed from the PA a very pensive 4 piece band viewed a packed audience who had gathered to view Kirk Brandon's new band, Spear Of Destiny. With the set consisting of man ily new songs with only a few Theatre Of Hate re-workings thrown in, many people thought Kirk had gone mad. To try and win over a fanatical following with new songs and a new band is never easy but to do it in London and with the show being recorded live for television, was very daring indeed. During the days that followed the show. falls and the music press alike debated the transformation from TOH to SOD - Kirk liked being out on the edge and this recording shows this is where he works best. |
