: Eric Benac
: Cardiacs Every Album, Every Song
: Sonicbond Publishing
: 9781789524161
: 1
: CHF 8.30
:
: Musik
: English
: 160
: DRM
: PC/MAC/eReader/Tablet
: ePUB

When Tim Smith died in July of 2020, he left behind a legion of adoring fans and an honorary doctorate in music. Not bad for someone who never had a top ten hit and who's music was so infamous during its heyday, that some magazines not only refused to review his work, but edited out praise from fellow musicians. But who was Tim Smith?
He was the composer, guitarist, singer, and lyricist for cult band Cardiacs. Working in the 1970s up to 2008, Smith and his rotating band of musicians created some of the most intricate and original music of all time. They combined punk energy, prog complexity, ska rhythms, heavy metal drama, and much more with an absurd and satirical lyrical stance, while creating a confrontational on-stage image that inspired as many as it appalled.
Eric Benac examines each Cardiac album (including the never-re-pressed, cassette-only releases) and side projects, like the sublime prog-folk of Sea Nymphs, the warped psychedelics of Spartley's Japs, and the twisted brit pop of Tim's solo album. Each song is discussed both musically and lyrically, making this the first full analysis of the work of this unique band.


The author:
Eric Benac is a freelance writer. He has over a decade of experience as a professional writer, including three years as a journalist and ten years as a marketing and blogging expert. Beyond his paid work, Eric enjoys writing poetry, short stories, novels, plays, and music reviews. In his spare time, Eric records Zappa and Cardiacs-influenced electronic pop as Gergy 12. His first book was Frank Zappa On Track, also for Sonicbond. He lives in Holt, Michigan, USA.
Chapter1

The Obvious Identity (1980)


Personnel:

Peter ‘Zip’ Boker (Michael Pugh): vocals (Tracks 1 and 7)

Philip Pilf (Tim Smith): guitar, synth (Vocals on remaining tracks)

Patty Pilf (Jim Smith): bass, vocals

Duncan Doilet (Colvin Mayers): vocals, synth

Little Bobby Shattocks (Mark Cawthra): drums

By the time the band recorded their full-length debut (under the band name Cardiac Arrest), they’d already lost a few members from their single. Ralph Cade and Peter Tagg left to form The Trudy, with Tagg’s brother Derek on guitar and bassist, Sue Smallwood. That band had a unique pop/new wave style, releasing albums as recently as 2016. Their work can be found on various 1980s-released compilations (such as The Snoopies Album), and their more recent work can be found on Bandcamp.

Their departure didn’t impact the band much musically. Cade had always been more of a presence on stage, where his wild dancing and dramatic postures helped amplify the band’s theatricality; and replacement drummer, Mark Cawthra, filled Tagg’s shoes just fine. The most significant change was the limitation of Michael Pugh, who sings on just two tracks. Tim was becoming more confident in his singing and wanted to assert a more active frontman presence to direct the increasingly ambitious and entertaining live shows.

While this album’s four-person lineup is stripped down, the band often featured auxiliary members live. Friends and past members would come by to sit on sax, keyboard, guitar, or even drums. And yet, the music presented here is the band’s simplest and most immediate. Even albums like Toy World have a more diverse sound than this one and an occasional respite from speed.

In contrast here, the rhythms are hectic, the guitar dissonant, and the lyrics, bizarre and hard to suss. Unfortunately, the sound is poor: perhaps the roughest of any Cardiacs album. Cheap tapes were used, to cut down on studio costs (Crow Studios, Kingston). As a result, as one member said: ‘The recordings were so shit, it wouldn’t matter if they were copied onto washing- up sponges’.

Despite the rougher sound, the band’s talent is undeniable. The playing isn’t quite up to the level of later recordings but remains strong. Jim, in particular, consistently sounds great on bass, though Tim and Cawthra operate very well in this more punky mould.

Like all albums pre-The Seaside, The Obvious Identity was never re-released after its initial cassette pressing. As