Review: Bag People ‘Bag People’
Bag People never put out a proper full-length album during their lifetime, their only output came in the form of a self-released demo and 7” single. Until now, as the band’s self-titled archival release, unearthed from tapes thought lost from forty years ago, has been released by Drag City, the spiritual home to Ty Segall, No Trend, Pajo, Venom P Stinger, U.S. Maple et al.
The Chicago orientated band’s USP is bassist Algis Kizys, best known as a member of Swans, Of Cabbages and Kings; he’s joined by guitarists Carolyn Master (Of Cabbages and Kings, Glenn Branca Ensemble) and Gaylene Goudreau (Bloodsister, Da), Pete Elwyn on drums and Diane Wlezien (Of Cabbages and Kings) on vocals. Described as a ‘righteous puke of art-punk from a time of incredible brokenness in the world’, it’s sad that humanity hasn’t much changed in the intervening years thus rendering these songs still sadly relevant.
Fire God kicks things off in a proto-punk The Stooges and Sonic Youth noise-rock fashion, and if this track is anything to go by we’re in for one hell of a ride with the rest of the album. Dead Meat, one of the releases preview singles, is infectious, restless dance-punk that recalls The Slits and a more aggressive Talking Heads. The track sounds like it’s on the verge of collapse at any moment and it’s this exciting element that elevates it above the aforementioned artists. A personal favourite. Parade takes a slower goth rock/post-punk route, and I couldn’t help but be reminded of very early Banshees, especially that band’s debut album The Scream. A brooding classic.
James Chance and The Contortions always floats my boat, and thus, by extension, so does UPS with its brand of jazzy punk-funk, while Blessed Ignorance sounds a lot rawer than previous tracks and reminds one of Cleveland bands such as Electric Eels and Rocket From The Tombs, lovely stuff. I Got A Leotard pre-dates the ugly ‘pigfuck’ sounds of bands such as Pussy Galore and Royal Trux with reckless, glorious abandon.
Forty-two minutes of glorious post-punk, noise-rock and art-punk are exactly what the doctor ordered in these challenging times…
Lark’s Vomit gets its name from Monty Python’s Crunchy Frog sketch and there’s, unsurprisingly, a Swans vibe, albeit one with some cool Richard Hell and The Voidoids subtly slipped in. Despite being labelled ‘instrumental’, it is anything but, instead imagine outfits such as Crass but with the emphasis on that band’s latter-day art-punk and avant-garde releases. This is chaotic with all the accessibility of an Ornette Coleman record, not that I’m complaining at the thought of that.
Sweet Roughness Blues offers the listener a sonic respite with a slice of krautrock ala Can and Long Way Back has a ‘60s psych sensibility as intonated by the title and as demonstrated musically. That the band manage to tip their hat to the ‘60s whilst remaining refreshingly contemporary is truly extraordinary.
What’s What is a little more straightforward, by Bag People‘s standards that is. A Punkier tone with some of the more experimental elements toned down makes for a punchy classic, think of it as the band’s equivalent of Public Image Limited’s Public Image. The album concludes with Don’t Make Me (Live at CBGB 1983), the aforementioned Sonic Youth once again spring to mind and a number which wouldn’t have sound out of place on Confusion Is Sex or indeed Live Skull’s 1984 self-titled EP. A satisfyingly raucous conclusion to the album.
It’s thanks to labels like Drag City that recordings such as this are being slowly rediscovered. Forty-two minutes of glorious post-punk, noise-rock and art-punk are exactly what the doctor ordered in these challenging times. Exceptional.
Label: Drag City
Band Links: Bandcamp | Spotify
Scribed by: Reza Mills
