Yazoo returned to number one for one week on 2nd October 1982
Depeche Mode returned to the top for one week on 9th October 1982
In the absence of any other major competition in the independent chart at this point, Mute's two prime artists simply swapped their positions in the opening week of October, before swapping back again the week after. As tempting as it might be to froth enthusiastically about each single all over again, it probably makes more sense to take a look at what was entering the charts lower down.
New Entries in Week One
22. Attak - Murder In The Subway (No Future)
There are two ways to capture the fear of malevolent crime on the underground - one is to create a story arc around it, as The Jam did on "Down In The Tube Station At Midnight". The other is to gruffly and savagely terrify the listener with a dense, bass heavy punk racket.
"MURRRDER..... on the subway!" they roughly growl over an almost jolly rhythmic march, and to give Attak credit here, this is Second Wave Punk with a very slight dash of post-punk about it. The guitars may twist and snarl, but that rhythm section has obviously been listening to a few Factory Records releases in its time, probably behind the guitarist's back. No wonder everyone sounds so pissed off.
25. Various - Back On The Streets (EP) (Secret)
Yet another Gary Bushell approved Oi release, this one offering penny-pinched punks five bands for the price of one - Venom, East End Badoes, The Strike, Skin Disease and Angela Rippon's Bum all take up space here, and if you've been following this blog for a few months now, you'll know what to expect.
Of the above, the inventively named Angela Rippon's Bum actually bothered to shoot a video of sorts, and far from being the Splodgenessabounds indebted piece of larkery I expected, it's pretty straight-ahead Oi thrash delivered by a bunch of disaffected herberts. The group wouldn't release another record until 2000, when the presumably long awaited "Nice Arse Shame About The Face" was launched into the world.
27. The Enemy - "Punk's Alive" (Fallout)
Another 45 protesting that punk still existed, only adding to the sense that the movement was not waving, but drowning. There's little to distinguish The Enemy from their many Oi and Second Wave Punk peers here, with only the weird breakdown halfway through the track showing any sign of inventiveness. If I'd first heard this single during the beginning of my expedition with this blog I might have been more charitable, but getting through some of these groups is really starting to feel like a slog now. However much journalists at the various IPC music magazines were being paid to cover this stuff, it wasn't nearly enough.
30. Wasted Youth - Reach Out (Bridgehouse)
East London post-punks Wasted Youth, on the other hand, took their societal frustrations in a different direction; most of their fellow travellers tended to back away from direct commentary, but "Reach Out" is a sympathetic nod to skint youths everywhere, begging "It's not that easy and it's getting harder/ Reach out and touch somebody today".
It's minimal and frosty, but as the singer Ken Scott states knowingly as the song fades, looking over his shoulder, it's an "ordinary song about ordinary people", and it challenged people to stick by their communities rather than gnashing and wailing or filling the lyrics up with ambiguous poetry - a novel approach at that time.
Sadly, Wasted Youth would split up before the end of 1982.
Week Two
14. Special Duties - Bullshit Crass (Rondolet)
In which the conflict between Crass and other more heads-down-and-shout second wave punk bands spills over into the indie chart. "Fight Crass not punk!" the group urge their listeners. "Crass were first to say punk is dead/ now they're rightly labelled as being red/ Commune Hippies, that's what they are/ they've got no money, ha ha ha".
If you had no dog in this fight, you could probably admire the sheer vim of the performance. As much as Crass looked down on some of the less imaginative punks on the circuit, I suspect they might also have admired how the group's name came about, naming themselves after a box of 200 stolen school badges they found so they could sell them on to any prospective fans as their own merchandise. I can't make my mind up if that's just bald opportunism or anarchy, but it is quite funny.
"Bullshit Crass" is just a frustrated racket which doesn't really take that band down a peg, though - if anything, it underlines their point that a lot of the punk movement had become extraordinarily tired by 1982. Sometimes the truth hurts.
23. Felt - My Face Is On Fire (Cherry Red)
Lawrence's long artistic journey has taken him through many strange, sketchy and twisted scenes, from Dylanesque indie to gentle cocktail party jazz to glam rock to novelty pop. As ambitious as he is restless, he's like a faultily wired pop star - continually short-circuiting as soon as he gets close to fame.
His earliest work is unique sounding, but not as eccentric as it became. "My Face Is On Fire" is a strange combination of perfectly fussy chiming guitar lines, desperate and braying vocals, and simplistic Tyrannosaurus Rex drum patterns which all add up to make something imperfect but unique.
Felt would become a much more developed and confident group in time, but even this early offering is wildly different from everything else which has entered the indie top 30 in 1982, even if the pieces aren't quite falling into place yet.
25. The Insane - Why Die? (Insane)
More second wave punk, but this one is a bit more interesting than most of the rest, initially consisting of creeping audio samples taking prominence over chugging guitar riffs. The first of a high number of records passing comment or observation on the Falklands War, it would climb steadily up the indie charts in the weeks that followed, the chorus of "Please sir, why do I have to die?" propelling it along during an uncertain period. Sometimes, as John Lydon knew, it's better to use sarcasm and mock civility than invective to get your point across.
26 Yazoo - Situation (Remix) (Sire import)
Yazoo-mania continues in the lower reaches of the chart. While it was never released as an A-side in the UK, "Situation' picked up club popularity in the USA thanks to this 12" remix. It shows how flexible the duo's grooves could be, creating a popping and passionate dancefloor experience. Enough British people wanted a taste of it to allow the expensive import to climb to number 21 in the indies.
29. 52nd Street - Look Into My Eyes (Factory)
Yet more Factory financed funk. Unlike A Certain Ratio, though, 52nd Street aren't gumming up the works with sinister effects or complex arrangements. "Look Into My Eyes" is cut from a very similar cloth to the more commercial Britfunk doing the rounds in 1982, with only the soft, twinkling hum of those keyboards in the background adding a more sophisticated eerie atmosphere; like taking a luxurious, smooth night-time ride through a city scene which could only ever look beautiful at speed.
The full charts are available on the UKMix Forums.
Number One In The Official Charts
Musical Youth - "Pass The Dutchie" (MCA)
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