Zine - Mute Elation

Mute Elation was a punk fanzine from Toronto. This issue looks like it came out at the end of 1986 based on some of the gigs that they covered and when those happened in Toronto. This was not the first issue as content alludes to continuing of features and written pieces in previous issues. There is a significant amount nof content dedicated to writing in the form of poetry and fiction writing and even an interview with a writer. But there is also lots of punk and post punk content. I really like that the issue starts out with a scene update on Toronto, which provides a snapshot of some things happening at the time. This report mentions the Forgotten Rebels, the Dundrells, The Daleks, The Purple Toads, Ameoba Quiche, and Bratty and the Babysitters.

There are extensive multi page reviews on gigs at the time starting out with Iggy Pop who played the Concert Hall on November 9th, 1986. The Rebels opened up that show and the reviewer is quite harsh on them. Iggy Pop's back up band doesn't fair much better, but Iggy gets credit. The review is followed by a review of the "Blah Blah Blah" LP.

DOA played at the RPM on October 2nd, 1986. I actually went to that show and took photos which I posted on the EXD blog. The review complains about the hardcore kids slam dancing and that wasn't such a big part of the show. The RPM was a huge place and there didn't seem to be the scale where kids could slam so it wasn't as bad as the reviewer makes it out to be. But the show was not the best DOA show I had ever seen either.

There is a glowing show review of a Shreikback show which sees a full page photo repeated on the back cover. This is also accompanied by a review of their Big Night Music" LP. Lou Reed played at Kingswood which was the outdoor venue at amusement park known as Wonderland out in Maple. There is also a show review of a Psychic TV show that took place at the Diamond Club (August 11th). The reviewer was disappointed by this show.

The main feature of this issue is an interview with Blair Martin of the Raving Mojos. It was after the Mojos had broken up and Blair had some great insight into a number of things. Blair writes about how the Brits re-interpreated the Ramones version of punk with a little too much theatre and as a result got the speed confused for wanting not to sing. Blair talks about being the original drummer for the Androids and filling on for Teenage Head for one tour on drums. It is an amazing piece. Blair had assembled a band with members of Youth Youth Youth, Living Proof, and Mick Slick, but I don't think they played out.

There is other local content that features a piece on Richard Carstens who I know as the guy who wrote most of the No Mind album. He was the guitarist in Funhouse, Afhaken, and Madhouse and at the time was playing in Sun Zoom Spark, which is the band that Alisdair from No Mind played in. Richard also writes some pieces in this issue. He wrote one of the only interviews I have read about Neon Rome. This is the band that John Borra of the Screwed started out in. The first half of this interview is a made up story by the singer about how the band met. The other interview I read in Nerve about Neon Rome had a similar fiction telling pattern. The interview does disclose that their album ad been recorded by the time and that Comfort Sounds had recorded it.

There is a piece on a new U.I.C. album titled "Our Garage", a review of Fifth Column's "To Sir with Hate", and a funny interview with Erica Ehm, who was a VJ on Much Music at the time. Great time capsule on Toronto.

This piece is courtesy of Dhaibid james archives. Dhaibid hosts Moondog's Ballroom on CIUT.

Flyer - Friday December 26, 1986

Flyer - Friday, December 19, 1986

Flyer: Friday December 12, 1986

Some skinheads showed up to this show. The Hammer skins were known for being racist skins. they were denied entry to the show, so they tried to break in through a side entrance and the crowd pushed them out. The show was stopped and then 7 Seconds broke into a rendition of Colorblind, which Ray Cappo from Youth of Today did the rap vocals in the chorus too.

Release - SNFU "If You Swear, You'll Catch No Fish" LP

This is SNFU's second full length and songs like "The Ceiling" and "Mind Like a Door" were written and being performed live before the first album came out."Mind like a door" was a suggestion by the singer of his own mental health issues.


In his book "SNFU: ...What No One Else Wanted to Say", Chris Walter describes the new material as "still fast and furious punk rock, but not as basic". SNFU used the same studio (Power Zone) and producer (Dave Mockford) as the first album. The second album was recorded in April 1986. Dave Mockford was inexperienced and the record cover says that the album is casually mixed by Dave Mockford and Ken Chinn, so Chi was their for moral support. It was Dave's nervousness that made him work extra hard at getting the sound right and the band was blown away.

There are a number of sound effects used on the song "Scarecrow" which include birds chirping borrowed from a sound effects record that Brent borrowed from the public library. There was also a beer bottle dropped on the strings of a piano, hand claps from a Yamaha RX drum machine, and acid style guitar leads courtesy of the Belke Brothers showing off the band's interest in experimenting.

On "Black Cloud", David and Ken doubled most of the lead vocal tracks.

Guitar effects were added by the producer to "He's Not Getting Older, He's Getting Bitter".

Brent and Muc added leads like "Mary Had a Little Lamb" to at least four songs on that album.

On "Humble Life of Disarray", Marc, Brent, dave , and Jn all take turns singing lines of a verse and Ken sings the chorus alone.

The song "Snapping Turtle" was written about a cranky roomate that he had at the time. this song also suffered fom being recorded last. Chi didn't have much throat left, which partially led to making it the last song on the release.

The title came from an old flyer that Chi made for a show at Spartan's. There was a blank space that he filled in with a fortune cookie message he got at the Double Greasy (the nickname for the Chinese Restaurant really called "Double Greeting Wonton House). This would set a rule that all album titles from here on in had to contain exactly seven words.

The cover art featured an abstract sculpture by Edmonton artist Blake Senini and Ken Hensen pulled together the design end.

The record was pressed in Mississauga and the band would arrange to pick them up on their next tour. The messages "Gang Green Sucks Bud" and "Rectum Damn Near Killed 'Em" etched on the inner grooves of the record.

The songs that make up this album are:

1. The Devil's Voice
2. Where's My Legs
3. Better Homes and Gardens
4. Scarecrow
5. Black Cloud
6. I Forget
7. The Ceiling
8. Mind Like a Door
9. He's Not Getting Older, He's getting Bitter
10. Electric Chair
11. Welcome to My Humble Life of Disarray
12. Snapping Turtle

Flyer - Wednesday December 3, 1986

This was MSI's first show. I was super excited to see them play seeing as I hung out with them and went to a lot of their practise sessions. I was so excited to see them play live. Circus Lupis was the band that morphed out of Mike Markey and the Sailors and would become Rocktopus. And I think this was the tour for SNFU where "If You Swear, You'll Catch No Fish" came out. This might have been a Reuben Kincade show. The Latvian House wasn't used for too many shows, but I remember taking a phot of Chi Pig jumping off the speaker stacks at this one and he must have been about 20 feet in the air. He was known for his aerial acrobatics at the time.

Flyer - Monday December 1st, 1986

SNFU plays in Guelph. The show is sponsored by CFRU, the local campus community radio station.

Zine - Nerve #30

Issues 30 of Nerve Magazine has David Lee Roth on the cover. Unusual for Nerve but I think this was the time when he was leaving Van Halen to become a solo artist and was wearing flash dance clothes to fane like a new waver. Aside from a feature on David lee Roth, this issue also contains a piece on Fishbone, the Brunswick House, the Pig Paper, the New Jazz fest, Sigue Sigue Sputnik, Hunters & Collectors, Woodentops, SST Records, and a column by Dave Bidini about L'Etranger and Vital Sines.

MRR Scene Report - London, December 1986

A scene report for London Ontario appears in MRR issue #43, which came out in December 1986. This scene report writes about October Crisis, Black Donnellys, 63 Monroe, Condo Christ, and a few others. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

MRR Review - Throbs "Proud to be Loud" LP

Dog wrote a review for MRR of the Beyond Possession LP. This appeared in issue #43, which came out in December 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

MRR Review - Lost Patrol ep

Steve Spinalli wrote a review for MRR of the Lost Patrol ep. This appeared in issue #43, which came out in December 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

MRR Review - Deja Voodoo "Swamp of Love" LP

Tim Yohannon wrote a review for MRR of the Deja Voodoo LP. This appeared in issue #43, which came out in December 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

MRR Review - Beyond Possession "Is Beyond Possession" LP

Walter Glaser wrote a review for MRR of the Beyond Possession LP. This appeared in issue #43, which came out in December 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

Propagandhi "Letter of Resignation" ep

This is a split ep with FYP. The Propagandhi song is the same as the title.

Flyer - Sunday November 30, 1986

The Spores "Narc in my Pants" ep

The Spores were from Vancouver. This was their first ep and it came out on Criminal Records. The songs on here are:

1. Narcs in my Pants

2. PM Conspiracy in the Sky

Flyer - Saturday, November 29th, 1986

Flyer - Saturday, November 22, 1986

Flyer - Friday November 21, 1986

Flyer - Saturday, November 15, 1986

Flyer - Thursday, November 8, 1986

Flyer - Friday November 7, 1986

The bass player, Alisdiar Jones, made this flyer. Other flyers can be viewed at http://homepage.mac.com/alisdairjones/PhotoAlbum85.html.

Flyer - Thursday November 6, 1986

Don of Reuben Kincade started doing some of his bigger shows at the Latvian House. there was only a few shows that happend here. This is the tour where Youth Brigade had changed their name to the Brigade.

Hype "Burned"

A video shot for the title track of the second LP. The club is at the Bridge on Bloor Street.

Wrath "Might Ain't Right"

"Might Ain't Right" by the Wrath

Nerve Magazine - November 1986

Nerve Magazine from November 1986 featured an interview with Iggy Pop. There is a features on Molly Johnson, Groovy Religion, Love and Rockets, Nick Cave, and Motorhead. There is regional reports on Hamilton. There is show reviews for REM, Doc and the Medics, and Camper Van Beethoven. There are release reviews for Shreikback, New Model Army, Elvis Costello, 7 Seconds, Change of Heart, Cowboy Junkies, Andrew Cash, and Suffer Machine. There is show listings as well. 

MRR Review - Varous Artists "It Came from Canada" comps

Tim Yohannon writes reviews for MRR of the "It Came from Canada" . This appeared in issue #42, which came out in November 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

MRR Review - P.T.D. "Free of Sin" cassette

Walter Glaser wrote a review for MRR of the P.T.D. cassette. This appeared in issue #42, which came out in November 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

MRR Review - Gruesomes "Tyrants of Teen Trash" LP

Steve Spinalli wrote a review for MRR of the Gruesomes LP. This appeared in issue #42, which came out in November 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size.

MRR Review - Death of Gods "Great Omnipotent Deceiver" cassette

A review for MRR of the D.O.G. cassette. This appeared in issue #42, which came out in November 1986. Click on image to enlarge it to a readable size. Thanks to Operation Pheonix Records for doing the PDF archives of the early issues of MRR.

Release - SNFU "She's Not on the Menu (Dance mix)" ep

During the summer of 1986, SNFU go back into the studio to re-record "She's not on the Menu", which they planned to release independently. Instead of the straight forward punk version that was originally recorded they added a funky bass line and gave it a "Mix" subtitle. Instead of "Dance mix" they made a play on that and called it a "Dunce Mix".

There were delays with the pressing of "If you swear, you'll catch no fish" so SNFU wanted to release something so that the people knew the band was still active.

The songs on the B-Side, "Life of a Bag Lady" and "This is the End" were from the West Watch recording back in 1982. This was SNFU's earliest recording and would later get released as a 7" and represented the recording that the Stern Brothers had heard prior to the "Something to Believe in" compilation.

The EP was limited to 500 coloured vinyl copies with silk-screened covers. The record was supposed to be mail order only, but Cargo helped distribute the single and was impressed with how well the single sold.

Thanks to Chris Walters notes in "SNFU...What no one else wanted to say".

Young Lions "Welcome to the Freak Show" LP

Here is MRR's review back when this came out in 1986. The review appeared in MRR #47. And the rveiew is correct. From what I have read the A-side was recorded at one time and the B-side a few years later when Chris came back to town to finish it. According to Kill From the Heart, tracks 1-5 recorded November 1983, tracks 6-13 recorded September 1985. The B-Side showcased the Young Lions Replacements meets Husker Du inspiration that happened later on. Yodel Gems was a label put together by some of the memebers of the New Mr. Orrs. The songs that appeared on this release are:

1. Freak Show
2. Shithole
3. Gutter Rat Blues
4. Lizard for a Day
5. Pray for Julie
6. In the Fields
7. Progress
8. Motor City Jam
9. Royal Killers
10. United
11. One Brick at a Time
12. Freedom Fighter
13. Outlaws

Flyer - Friday October 17, 1986

The bass player, Alisdiar Jones, made this flyer. Other flyers can be viewed at http://homepage.mac.com/alisdairjones/PhotoAlbum85.html.

Flyer - Tuesday October 14, 1986

Groupoem "What you See Here, Hear Here, Say Here, Stays Here When you Leave Here" 12"

Local Toronto band with a great camper that was converted into a touring van. The band featured Nobody on vocals, Terry Robinson on guitar, Darren Katamay on bass, and Christopher Flea on drums. This was recorded in 9 hours by Matt Miller and was self-released. The songs on here are:

1. Nice Stunt

2. Drink Beer till it Hurts

3. Why I'm the Roast of Beef

4. Told

5. Hammers

6. Frank Sinatra of Misery

Flyer: Friday October 10, 1986

This was a huge show. A lot of metalheads were at it. I remember hearing DRI play songs like "5 Year Plan" so "Crossover" was about to come out. Aggressive Rock was a co-sponsor and I remember Brain Taylor working the door. And I remember a huge circle pit.

Flyer - Friday October 10, 1986

This was a legendary show. It was probably the biggest show ever in Toronto from a hardcore perspective. This was the first big crossover show. I remember seeing loads of metalheads at this show and I remember them being a bit more violent in the pit, but it was a learning process. We were trying to figure out how to get along. The Ukranian Hall is now a Buddhist Temple. The "Corssover" album had just come out and DRI weren't as good as the time I say them at Ildiko's. But this show has it's place in T.O.'s history books.

Negative Gain "Back from the Dead" LP

Negative Gain were an awesome hardcore band from Oakville. They were one of the fastest bands we had at the time and remain one of the fastest bands to have been part of the Toronto scene. This made them perfect candidates for Pushead's label because Pushead's motto was the faster the better. The singer, Peter, commited suicide after the record was recorded but before it was released giving the title an unintended meaning.

The band had a demo and this record. A couple of these songs came out on my comp "Ontario: Yours to Discover". Songs found on the LP are:

1. No Life at All
2. Face First
3. Descend on Youth
4. Dark Places
5. Nuclear Winter
6. Live or Die
7. We Believe
8. Night Stalker
9. One Way Livin'
10. Prsident's Women
11. Piss Me Off!

12. Back from the Dead
13. Situation All Fucked Up!
14. When the Pounding Stops
15. Psychic Hours
16. Destiny's Uncertain
17. What's the Reason
18. Loss of Self
19. Night of the Rat
20. My Old Man

Bunchofuckingoofs "There's NoSolution, So There's No Problem"dbl ep

This was the first release by BFG. There is so much to write about BFG, but let's just focus on this release. It was a double ep. The records were put out by Steve's nephew who hung out with the Goofs. He called his label Back Alley Records, which was fitting because at the time the entrance to the fort was through a back alley. The songs on here are:

1. Alcoholiday Turned Alcoholocaust

2. Too Bad

3. Creating Criminals 2 Create Employment

4. Exploding Glue Bags

5. Religion

6. Putting Us Down

7. Preprogrammed

8. Total Breakdown

Photos: DOA at RPM

This show was at RPM and according to a review in Mute Elation zine the show took place on October 2nd, 1986. I remember that psychedlic backdrop. I remmeber this being a mismatch of bands and venue. The RPM was located donw by the water front and is transportation inhibited. There was no TTC buses that went near here so there was a lot of walking involved in geting to the show. And the stage at RPM was shoulder height which was unusual for shows back then so there was no stage diving. The club was also really big which made it seem like there was a poor turnout even though there was probably a couple of hundred kids at the show. And it was a 19+ venue and the club was pretty strict about ID. Lots of things sucked about this show but DOA was not one of them.