Each week the Stacks Manager adds 4-6 albums we call P-cuts. Their aim is to dig up those forgotten gems that have been lost in obscurity, and to spotlight the innovative and influential works that have inspired the artists we enjoy now. If you would like to suggest an album/artist/or theme, please write to the Stacks Manager.

Week of 9/28-10/4 - "We Put the ROCK in Cleveland Rocks"

Dead Boys - Young Loud and Snotty (1977, Sire)
If the grit and gristle, sonic bombast, and snarling vocals of the first track are any indication, the Dead Boys inherited Rocket from the Tomb's volatile punk side - and ugly birth marks. Look at it this way: four out of the five schlocks you see on the cover died of some kind of drug overdose. Life styles put aside, this is a messy, meaty, perverse slab of rock n roll. Cheetah Chrome's licks will have you air guitaring for sure, and the legendary Stiv Bator's growl is a visceral experience that will cause you to perform your own cathartic acrobatics.

Pere Ubu - The Modern Dance (1978, Geffen)
Ahh, Dave Thomas. He sounds like Big Bird gone berserk, and yet, he conjures up so much energy on the first release by Pere Ubu that his high-pitched paranoid warble will convince any punk rock purist to acknowledge the arty, cerebral, and abstract music of Pere Ubu as a turbulent force to be reckoned with. Tom Herman's guitar work hisses and shrieks before melting into its own feed back while the rhythm section pounds out angular sound forms that pre-date anything by Gang of Four or Wire. Highly experimental and cutting-edge for its time, it still sounds absolutely fresh today.

Rocket from the Tombs - The Day the Earth Met… (2002, Smogveil)
Shall I compare thee to scorching plane wreckage? Huh? Let me explain: This Cleveland collective of miscreants, Lou Reed romancers, and Iggy Pop idolizers never got together to record a proper studio album, so instead what have we got here: a collection of live material - packaged primitive rhythmic noise that bangs and rattles the attention span. Get cut up on the jagged, atonal guitar lines and watch these songs go up in fuzz. And like any devastating experience, there is an atmosphere of bleakness throughout the album, primarily provided by Peter Laughner's mournful guitar. The static solo in "30 Seconds over Tokyo" is suitable black box material - one last desperate cry out to the rest of the world. Bonus: Dig the Velvet Underground cover of "Foggy Notion".

V/A: Those Were Different Times (1997, Scat)
This is a great compilation that highlights the underground Cleveland scene circa 1972-1976. You get a whopping 26 tracks total for three bands. The Mirrors pull off the psychedelic garage rock that all the hipster kids are starting to claim nowadays. The Electric Eels are beyond words. Turn up the volume knob on these guys and prepare for a proper freak out. The Styrenes play a muscular rock beat that although economic, relies on its primitive orangutan instincts for survival.