Pissa & Poupoula b/w Phenomenon

Alright, so here's the first post with a nontrivial musical content.

Side A of this tape contains an interview of Πίσσα & Πούπουλα (Pissa & Poupoula/Tar & Feathers) conducted by Σιχ (the name is an abbreviation of Σιχαμερός, which translates into 'disgusting'); in fact, an excerpt of this interview appeared in the sixth compilation tape released by Radio Utopia, namely, the part where the band explains the idea behind their tune "Α Γαμήσου Ρε Μπάμπη (Βάλτε Φωτιά Στα Σκυλάδικα)." What you get here is a larger part of the band's interview together with an untitled live track of theirs, an instrumental live track of Αρνητική Στάση (Arnitiki Stasi/Negative Stance) called "Λόγια Σοφίας" which hasn't appeared in their record releases, & an instrumental live track of Make Believe which must have been recorded in the period before guitarist Diamantis Kazouris joined them (this last piece of information is due to the unmatchable singer of the band Flora Ioannidou). Also certain tracks played from records which you can hear elsewhere in much better quality but which I chose to include for completeness. The live tracks have been recorded at Φ.Λ.Σ. - i.e., the squat at the Philosophy Dept. of the U. of Salonica (if I'm not mistaken, the space was squatted in 1989 & lasted until 1993 or so, with people from Ναυτία, Πανικός, & Ήταν Είναι Και Θα Είναι being part of it - please, DO correct me if I'm wrong here); probably at some show organized by the team "Άνοιξη Στο Σκουπιδότοπο (Anoixi Sto Skoupidotopo/Spring In The Refuse Dump)" which was active at the time. (Φ.Λ.Σ. was really a household name for pretty much all salonicans with an interest in the alternative scene; people elsewhere probably know the name from the tape compilation "Νύχτες Στο Στέκι Φιλοσοφικής" (released in 1993 & still available in mp3 format here).) According to the recent booklet "Η Ιστορία Των Punk, Hard Core Και Άλλων Σχημάτων Από Το 1990 Έως Το 2000 Στον Ελλαδικό Χώρο" (Αναρχική Αρχειοθήκη), Πίσσα & Πούπουλα recorded a live tape at Φ.Λ.Σ. which they distributed; if there is any connection with the recordings here, then that would mean that the recordings here are from that 1992 session.

The aforementioned Σιχ was the person behind the radio show "Τα Κουρέλια Τραγουδάν Ακόμα (Ta Kourelia Tragoudan Akoma/The Wretches Are Still Singing)," the long-term (1989-1998) punk/HC show at Radio Utopia whose name derives from the N. Nikolaidis movie. I will stick to facts & postpone commenting on the effect that the show has had on me for another post, as I'm getting a bit emotional here. I've never met Σιχ in person & probably also never talked to him on the phone, but I remember listening to his show on Wednesday evenings, him hardly ever missing a show even when it was raining cats & dogs outside (you know how that city gets at times). The onslaught of bands that paraded from the radio station's decks during those shows (as evidenced from what few shows of his I taped) is hard to stomach: So Much Hate, Exploding White Mice, Nomeansno, Amebix, Life... But How To Live It?, Extreme Noise Terror, & a host of others - people reading this probably know it, so excuse me for repeating, but I'm talking about the pre-internet era, where the best you could wish for was getting a couple of mail-order catalogues into the mail & friends going abroad bringing back some records... & then of course all the local bands that paraded from the studio either in person or through some demo of theirs being played by Σιχ - I have three of them being interviewed on tape & there must surely be tons of others... Σιχ is still active, by the way, & puts out a magazine called "Τα Κουρέλια" which "μοιράζεται χέρι με χέρι με καμία απολύτος οικονομική συνδιαλαγή και ουδεμία σχέση με μαγαζιά" to use his own words (my eternal gratitude to Billy for providing me with an issue). He also went through some rough shit having to do with the usual shaved shitheads, which goes to show that no good deed goes unpunished (eventually, that particular bad deed also didn't go unpunished...).

The end of the tape's B side is probably the precursor to the beginning of side A (...this sentence makes sense, believe me) & contains standard studio material. The rest of side A, though, belongs to a local band called Phenomenon (it could be that the name should be spelled with greek characters, seeings also as their lyrics are in greek, but it's spelled with english characters on the tape cover) which I had totally forgotten about until I found this tape again. Honestly, I don't know for sure how I came across these recordings; I think I remember, though, that they were passed on to me by a friend I was sitting with in high school (& probably around 1992-1993, then). The story, the way I remember it, is that this kid had a cousin living in Salonica, working in a garage, & apparently playing in Phenomenon; they must have recorded this demo, & I came across it through him. This could be complete fiction - even if it isn't, though, it hardly says anything about the origins of the band. What is for certain is that I don't recall seeing this recordings anyplace else in any format or hearing of the band in any other context; for all I know, this demo could have never been publicly available (or was pressed in a few copies, or... - the list goes on). That's about all; if you have any other info, I would greatly appreciate it if you could take the time to post a comment, as I absolutely love this demo (it may be fair to say that it betrays some Εκτός Ελέγχου influences & in a really charming way).

Note that the tape, & especially the Phenomenon side, has been played multiple times. Nevertheless, the sound quality is pretty good (for my ears, at least). Some more info on Radio Utopia may be found at Radio 98's forum - check this topic, in particular, & then the downloads section for the great Άνθη Του Κακού retrospective. The date of either recording is unknown. If my recollections are about right, the Phenomenon demo must have been recorded in 1992-1993. As for the interview, it certainly happened before '96 - as part of it appeared in Radio Utopia's sixth tape compilation in '96 - & no earlier than '93 - as the band's record is mentioned. Seeing as I also recorded a Λώλαμα track from their 7" in the same tape, it must have also been before I bought their 7" & thus before '95; that's about as close as I can get to pinpointing it.

This first post it dedicated to Σιχ - I hope he won't be pissed when he finds out I put this material out - & to Flora - whom I promised the live track to a full decade ago; here it is, finally... - THANKS.

Tracklist

A01. Αναγγελία A02/Prologue To A02 (vox) (Σιχ & Πίσσα & Πούπουλα)
A02. (untitled) (live) (Πίσσα & Πούπουλα/Tar & Feathers)
Α03. Περάσαμε όμορφα... πάμε παρακάτω (vox) (Σιχ)
Α04. Ο Παραμυθούλης (LP) (Πίσσα & Πούπουλα/Tar & Feathers)
Α05. Όχι άλλος Μπάμπης (vox) (Σιχ)
Α06. Δύσκολη Φάση/Tough Situation (LP) (Πίσσα & Πούπουλα/Tar & Feathers)
Α07. Η ιστορία του Μπάμπη & Το 'Επίλογος' δεν είναι καψουροτράγουδο (vox) (Σιχ & Πίσσα & Πούπουλα/Tar & Feathers)
Α08. Αναγγελία Α09/Prologue To A09 (vox) (Σιχ)
Α09. Λόγια Σοφίας/Words Of Wisdom (live) (Αρνητική Στάση/Negative Stance)
Α10. "Αναγγελία Α11" (vox) (Σιχ)
A11. (untitled) (live) (Make Believe)
Α12. Δύο Δευτερόλεπτα/Two Seconds (LP) (Πίσσα & Πούπουλα/Tar & Feathers)
Α13. Ευχαριστίες/Thank-you's (vox) (Σιχ)
Α14. Η Εκτέλεση/The Execution (LP) (Λώλαμα/Craziness)
Α15. Είναι το Ράδιο Ουτοπία/This Is Radio Utopia (vox) (άγνωστος/unknown)
B01. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B01. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B02. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B03. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B04. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B05. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B06. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B07. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B08. (unknown) (Phenomenon)
B09. Η Δικιά Τους Αρετή/Their Kind Of Virtue (LP) (Εκτός Ελέγχου/Out Of Control)
B10. Αναγγελία B11/Prologue To B11 (vox) (Σιχ)
B11. Το Κουτί Της Πανδώρας/Pandora's Box (LP) (Αρνητική Στάση/Negative Stance)

one mile from the cage