The Slits | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Along with the Raincoats and Liliput, the Slits are one of the most significant female punk rock bands of the late 70s. Not only did they bravely (or foolishly, you be the judge) leap into the fray with little, if any, musical ability (on their debut tour with the Clash, Mick Jones used to tune their guitars for them), but through sheer emotion and desire created some great music. This was especially true when they worked with veteran reggae producer Dennis Bovell, setting the stage for a future generation of riot grrrls. Though much derided in their short existence, what the Slits achieved and what they meant to succeeding generations of young female rockers cannot be underestimated. The Slits formed in 1976 when 14-year-old Ari Up (sometimes Air Upp) ran into her friend Palmolive at a Patti Smith gig in London. The latter suggested the former consider becoming the lead singer for a new all-girl punk band. Up agreed on the spot, and the Slits, with borrowed equipment and knowledge of two, maybe three chords, were a reality. They made some crude recordings (so crude that they make early Mekons recordings sound like 64-track by comparison) that were never widely circulated, and it wasnt until they nabbed the opening spot on the Clashs White Riot tour of England in 1977 that the Slits became a part of the punk pantheon. Despite this sudden notoriety, little was recorded by the Slits in the early days, save for a couple of sessions of John Peels BBC radio show. These recordings place the Slits firmly in the punk rock aesthetic of blaring guitars and braying vocals. But its not generic-sounding rant: Ups voice bounces along, alternately hiccuping and bellowing to the stiff rhythms; the songs are meditations on alienation, but have a satiric, tongue-in-cheek quality instead of strident preachiness. It wasnt until 1979 that the Slits made their first proper record under the watchful, supportive eyes and ears of reggae vet Dennis Bovell. By the time Cut was released, the raging guitars were replaced by subtle reggae riddims, the band was now a trio (Palmolive had been replaced by new drummer Budgie, soon to join Siouxsie and the Banshees), and there was a stylistic suppleness that the Slits had heretofore never displayed. Ups voice still warbled uncertain of the key, but for a band that had been playing its instruments for a little more than two years, this is a remarkably confident record. It was two years before a second album was released (Return of the Giant Slits), which was denser, darker, and full of surprises. But the Slits, due primarily to their interest in incorporating other forms of ethnic music into their mix, were leaping beyond what was commonly accepted as punk rock and, as a result, were no longer seen as a punk band. This probably didnt distress them in the least, as they were more interested in expanding the barriers of punk rock rather than simply adhering to "rules" that claimed all punk bands must bash out simplistic guitar rant. By the close of 1981, Up was singing in Adrian Sherwoods dub/funk aggregation the New Age Steppers, and the Slits had become both legendary and somewhat notorious. After releasing a solo album -- Dread More Dan Dead -- in 2005, Up revived the Slits with Tessa Pollitt and new members and began gigging. The group released a three-song EP, Revenge of the Killer Slits, in 2006. The first new full-length Slits album in 28 years, Trapped Animal, appeared in 2009. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 8 Title: Cut Released: 1979-09 Tracks: 10 Duration: 31:45 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Instant Hit (02:43) 2 So Tough (02:41) 3 Spend, Spend, Spend (03:18) 4 Shoplifting (01:39) 5 FM (03:35) 6 Newtown (03:41) 7 Ping Pong Affair (04:17) 8 Love und Romance (02:27) 9 Typical Girls (03:56) 10 Adventures Close to Home (03:28) |
| Cut : Allmusic album Review : Its amateurish musicianship, less-than-honed singing, and thick, dubwise rhythms might not be for everyone, but theres little denying the crucial nature of the Slits first record. Along with more recognized post-punk records like Public Image Limiteds Metal Box, the Pop Groups Y, and less-recognized fare like the Ruts DC and Mad Professors Rhythm Collision Dub, Cut displayed a love affair with the style of reggae that honed in on deep throbs, pulses, and disorienting effects, providing little focus on anything other than that and periodic scrapes from guitarist Viv Albertine. But more importantly, Cut placed the Slits along with the Raincoats and Lydia Lunch as major figureheads of unbridled female expression in the post-punk era. Sure, Hole, Sleater-Kinney, and Bikini Kill would have still happened without this record (there were still the Pretenders and Patti Smith, just to mention a few of the less-subversive groundbreakers), but Cut placed a rather indelible notch of its own in the "influential" category, providing a spirited level rarely seen since. Heck, the Slits themselves couldnt match it again. You could call some of these songs a reaction to the Nuggets bands, or the 60s garage acts that would find as many ways as possible to say "women are evil." Songs like "Instant Hit" (about PiL guitarist Keith Levene), "So Tough" (about Sid Vicious and Johnny Rotten), "Ping Pong Affair," and "Love Und Romance" point out the shortcomings of the opposite sex and romantic involvements with more precision and sass than the boys were ever able to. "Spend Spend Spend" and "Shoplifting" target consumerism with an equal sense of humor ("We pay f*ck all!"). Despite the less-than-polished nature and street-tough ruggedness, Cut is entirely fun and catchy; its filled with memorable hooks, whether theyre courtesy of the piano lick that carries "Typical Girls" or Ari Ups exuberant vocals. (One listen to Up will demonstrate that Björk might not be as original as youve been led to believe.) Islands 2000 reissue blows away the 1990 CD version in sound and presentation. A mammoth improvement is made with the sound, and extensive liner notes and photos are included. Movie fans should also check out High Fidelity, in which a copy of Cut makes more appearances than many of its co-stars. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 8 Title: Y3LP: The Official Bootleg Released: 1980-04-05 Tracks: 10 Duration: 02:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 A Boring Life (02:48) 2 Slime (?) 3 Face Place (?) 4 No 1 Enemy (?) 5 Vaseline (?) 6 Or What Is It? (?) 7 Bongos on the Lawn (?) 8 Let’s Do the Split (?) 9 Mosquitoes (?) 10 No More Rock and Roll for You / Once Upon a Time in a Living Room (?) |
| Y3LP: The Official Bootleg : Allmusic album Review : This anonymous record (its been referred to as Retrospective, Untitled, and Once Upon a Time in a Living Room) is, in some respects, the quintessential punk rock statement. The album sleeve is plain, white cardboard; the song titles are scribbled haphazardly on the center label . The recordings, which pre-date any of the Slits studio releases, are from demos and live shows. The playing is crude and amateurish while singer Ari Up shrieks like a pre-adolescent child. Thats not to say that its unlistenable. The first cut, "A Boring Life," encompasses everything that was exciting about British punk: a breakneck pace, buzzsaw guitar, primitive drumming, and Up railing about a humdrum existence. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 8 Title: Return of the Giant Slits Released: 1981-10 Tracks: 8 Duration: 38:39 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Earthbeat (03:49) 2 Or What It Is? (04:20) 3 Face Place (04:20) 4 Walk About (04:40) 5 Difficult Fun (04:03) 6 Animal Space / Spacier (06:36) 7 Improperly Dressed (04:25) 8 Life on Earth (06:26) |
| Return of the Giant Slits : Allmusic album Review : Never released in America, the Slits second and final record found them pushing the envelope rhythmically. Although designed to be more commercial than Cut, its actually less so, sounding more like the innovative work a young Adrian Sherwood was doing with Creation Rebel. Fans of the early Slits, who were put off by the reggae of Cut, were no doubt further alienated by this records comfortable use of Afro-pop tempos and style. Which was a shame, because this music was interesting, daring, and exciting. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 8 Title: The Peel Sessions Released: 1989 Tracks: 7 Duration: 17:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Love and Romance (02:25) 2 Vindictive (02:14) 3 New Town (03:28) 4 Shop Lifting (01:28) 5 So Tough (02:16) 6 Instant Hit (02:30) 7 FM (03:32) |
| The Peel Sessions : Allmusic album Review : Upgrading an earlier disc that featured the bands first two John Peel sessions only, this ten-track compilation rounds up all of the Slits BBC recordings, with the most crucial of their three sessions, the previously unreleased October 1981 airing, added in to remind listeners that the groups early reputation as a slipshod blur of punk-oid energy was only the first of the faces they turned to the world. In terms of classic punk energy, sessions dating from September 1977 and May 1978 are unbeatable, the sound of the unsigned, untutored, and -- in the eyes of many people -- unlistenable Slits crashing defiantly through distinctly formative renditions of songs that would not reach fruition for another year, and the completion of their debut album. "Vindictive" alone was not realigned for that disc; of the other six songs, all underwent sufficient reinvention to create starry-eyed converts of even the most disdainful of early witnesses. Famously, at the bands first BBC session, an anguished technician crept out to retune their instruments while the quartet was busy elsewhere. It doesnt affect their performance. By the time the Slits returned to the BBC in 1981, their original vision had become totally skewed -- along with much of their early optimism. The Return of the Giant Slits, their long-awaited second album, had arrived to absolute incomprehension, and the bands future was already in doubt. The music they were playing, however, was the future. No longer the adrenalined D.I.Y. disaster that had clattered so alluringly across the early sessions, nor the dubbed-out hybrid of Cut, the Slits were now embracing a tribal thud that, while wholly anticipating the later fashion for world music, was so far out on a limb that even Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush had yet to clamber out to join them. Lengthy throbs through "In the Beginning There Was Rhythm," the so-haunting mantra "Earthbeat," and (the aptly titled) "Difficult Fun" are readily superior to their vinyl counterparts, tasting much the same as the bands period live performances, but imbibed, too, with a questing tenderness that reveals just what a fabulous vocalist Ari Up was; her post-Slits recordings with the New Age Steppers caught many people by surprise, but the Peel rendition of "Earthbeat," in particular, proves there was no need for that. Sometime during the mid-90s, John Peel rated the first two Slits broadcasts among his all-time favorite sessions -- one reason why many first-time purchasers chose to overlook the repackaged Peel Sessions altogether. In terms of illustrating all that the Slits were truly capable of, however, the third session is even better than either. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 8 Title: In the Beginning: A Live Anthology 77-81 Released: 1997-08 Tracks: 15 Duration: 1:02:49 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Vindictive (03:00) 2 A Boring Life (03:00) 3 Slime (02:26) 4 Newtown (04:04) 5 Love & Romance (02:44) 6 Shoplifting (01:51) 7 Number One Enemy (02:14) 8 Number One Enemy (acoustic) (02:03) 9 In the Beginning (06:05) 10 Newtown (04:29) 11 Man Next Door (07:12) 12 Grapevine (03:30) 13 Typical Girls (04:08) 14 Fade Away (03:41) 15 In the Beginning (12:15) |
 | Album: 6 of 8 Title: Live at the Gibus Club Released: 2005-02-21 Tracks: 12 Duration: 30:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Split (01:53) 2 Vaseline (02:15) 3 So Tough (02:17) 4 Newtown (03:49) 5 Instant Hit (03:17) 6 Une homme et un Slit (00:55) 7 Love und Romance (02:42) 8 Femme Fatale (02:47) 9 Shoplifting (01:41) 10 Enemy Numero Uno (05:22) 11 Split (encore) (01:52) 12 Shoplifting (encore) (01:38) |
| Live at the Gibus Club : Allmusic album Review : Historically, this tape of a January 26, 1978 show in Paris has considerable value. Its the original lineup of the Slits -- Ari Up on vocals, Viv Albertine on guitar, Tessa Pollitt on bass, and Palmolive (who would leave before the Slits first album, and later join the Raincoats) -- well in advance of the release of the groups first LP in 1979. Musically, however, Live at the Gibus Club is not as exciting as either of the Slits later releases, or as legend would have the band sounding in their early days. The sound qualitys actually fairly decent for an early live punk recording, and the four thrash around with as much venomous energy as almost anyone from the first wave of British punk acts. But the musics isnt nearly as inventive as it would be when they went into a heavily reggae-influenced approach by the time they started recording. Instead, its tumbling, lumpy tempoed, similar-sounding rants with proto-hardcore anthemic choruses, with Ups vocals so howled that the words are difficult to make out (admittedly a trait shared by many an early punk recording). There are early versions of a few songs that would make it onto their debut album ("Instant Hit," "So Tough," "New Town," "Shoplifting," "Love and Romance"), along with a more unexpected cover of the Velvet Undergrounds "Femme Fatale." You also have the pleasure of hearing Up interrupt "Enemy Numero Uno" to deliver the following scolding: "F*ck off, you frustrated bouncer, you! Sh*t-ass! What are you doing up here anyway, you asshole?...Go to the bog and have a wank!" Early British punk insider (and, briefly, Slits manager) Don Letts contributes entertaining liner notes about the groups early days. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 8 Title: Trapped Animal Released: 2009-10-05 Tracks: 15 Duration: 1:05:09 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Ask Ma (05:35) 2 Lazy Slam (03:57) 3 Pay Rent (04:39) 4 Reject (02:36) 5 Trapped Animals (04:22) 6 Issues (03:37) 7 Peer Pressure (03:46) 8 Partner From Hell (04:58) 9 Babylon (05:56) 10 Cry Baby (03:35) 11 Reggae Gypsy (04:14) 12 Be It (04:36) 13 Cant Relate (04:36) 14 Had a Day (04:21) 15 [untitled] (04:13) |
| Trapped Animal : Allmusic album Review : Talk about pressure! In the realm of post-punk, the arrival of the first new Slits album in 28 years is roughly akin to a surprise return to publishing from J.D. Salinger. Led by the charismatic Ari Up, the Slits were deeply rooted in the first-generation U.K. punk scene (a couple of members had been involved in semi-mythical rehearsal-only collective Flowers of Romance alongside early Clash guitarist Keith Levene and a pre-Sex Pistols Sid Vicious), and became pioneers not only of post-punk itself, but of femme-punk and the use of reggae and dub in a post-punk context. The Slits 1979 debut, Cut, inspired legions of jagged, rebellious, female-fronted bands for decades to come, and 30 years later, the long-inactive pioneers finally got around to releasing an official third album. Up and bassist Tessa Pollitt are still on hand for Trapped Animal, along with a batch of relatively new (the re-formed band had been playing live in one form or another for the last few years) recruits, including Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cooks daughter, Hollie Cook, on keyboards. When you recall that Up herself is John Lydons stepdaughter, those aforementioned punk roots come into even sharper focus. For all their punk cred, though, the first thing one notices about Trapped Animal is how damn professional it sounds. Thats not a pejorative statement, simply an observation about how far the band has come from its unschooled, rough-and-ready beginnings. Not only is the reggae influence thats always been at the core of the Slits sound more concentrated than ever here, easily dominating the proceedings; more strikingly, Ari and company sound like a legit reggae band -- albeit a quirky one -- locking into their one-drop grooves like seasoned Studio One pros. Over the course of the album, they dip convincingly into everything from a roots reggae feel to dub flavors, ska, and even semi-dancehall. Lyrically, theyre as uncompromising and in-your-face as ever, coming on strong straight out of the gate with the unrepentantly feminist opening cut "Ask Ma," and examining the struggle between art and commerce on "Pay Rent." That said, the albums only real misstep is one of the most overtly topical tunes, the child-abuse-themed "&Issues;," which suffers from a blunt, clumsy lyrical approach. Beyond that, the 21st century Slits rarely take a wrong step, even when they dip into a sort of Henry Cow-gone-cabaret feel on closing track "Had a Day." Die-hard Slits fans who arent put off by the bands newfound professionalism or the greater reliance on keyboards at the expense of guitar will find their faith rewarded by Trapped Animal. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 8 Title: The John Peel Sessions Released: 2011-05-03 Tracks: 12 Duration: 45:26 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Love & Romance (19th September 1977) (02:23) 2 Vindictive (19th September 1977) (02:14) 3 New Town (19th September 1977) (03:28) 4 Shoplifting (19th September 1977) (01:28) 5 So Tough (17th April 1978) (02:15) 6 Instant Hit (17th April 1978) (02:29) 7 FM (17th April 1978) (03:32) 8 Difficult Fun (12th October 1981) (05:42) 9 In the Beginning (12th October 1981) (11:03) 10 Earthbeat (12th October 1981) (05:42) 11 Wedding Song (12th October 1981) (02:52) 12 Vindictive [2006 version] (Monsterland, Brooklyn, 29th October 2006) (02:18) |
| The John Peel Sessions : Allmusic album Review : Upgrading an earlier disc that featured the bands first two John Peel sessions only, this ten-track compilation rounds up all of the Slits BBC recordings, with the most crucial of their three sessions, the previously unreleased October 1981 airing, added in to remind listeners that the groups early reputation as a slipshod blur of punk-oid energy was only the first of the faces they turned to the world. In terms of classic punk energy, sessions dating from September 1977 and May 1978 are unbeatable, the sound of the unsigned, untutored, and -- in the eyes of many people -- unlistenable Slits crashing defiantly through distinctly formative renditions of songs that would not reach fruition for another year, and the completion of their debut album. "Vindictive" alone was not realigned for that disc; of the other six songs, all underwent sufficient reinvention to create starry-eyed converts of even the most disdainful of early witnesses. Famously, at the bands first BBC session, an anguished technician crept out to retune their instruments while the quartet was busy elsewhere. It doesnt affect their performance. By the time the Slits returned to the BBC in 1981, their original vision had become totally skewed -- along with much of their early optimism. The Return of the Giant Slits, their long-awaited second album, had arrived to absolute incomprehension, and the bands future was already in doubt. The music they were playing, however, was the future. No longer the adrenalined D.I.Y. disaster that had clattered so alluringly across the early sessions, nor the dubbed-out hybrid of Cut, the Slits were now embracing a tribal thud that, while wholly anticipating the later fashion for world music, was so far out on a limb that even Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush had yet to clamber out to join them. Lengthy throbs through "In the Beginning There Was Rhythm," the so-haunting mantra "Earthbeat," and (the aptly titled) "Difficult Fun" are readily superior to their vinyl counterparts, tasting much the same as the bands period live performances, but imbibed, too, with a questing tenderness that reveals just what a fabulous vocalist Ari Up was; her post-Slits recordings with the New Age Steppers caught many people by surprise, but the Peel rendition of "Earthbeat," in particular, proves there was no need for that. Sometime during the mid-90s, John Peel rated the first two Slits broadcasts among his all-time favorite sessions -- one reason why many first-time purchasers chose to overlook the repackaged Peel Sessions altogether. In terms of illustrating all that the Slits were truly capable of, however, the third session is even better than either. | ||