Product Description
SIDE A
Exhibit A – Rain
Sad Lovers & Giants – Take Me Inside
Mex – Evil Creatures
Gambit Of Shame – Dancing With The Turks
Flying Beechcraft – Bugger Off
Image In Ruin – Tank
Soft Drinks – Squash
S-Haters – Necromancer
SIDE B
Soft Drinks – Pepsi Cola
Flying Beechcraft – Frog Girl
Image In Ruin – Bottle
S-Haters – Canal
Exhibit A – Echoes
Sad Lovers & Giants – Clint
Mex – Functioning Fripp Girls
Gambit Of Shame – She Lawn
Dark Entries is proud to present “The Thing From The Crypt,” a 16-track compilation of UK DIY/Synth/New Wave/Post-Punk originally released in 1981. Showcasing the thriving post punk sound of Watford, a town in Hertfordshire, England, located 20 minutes northwest of central London. “‘The Thing From The Crypt’ neither attempts to sell a ‘Wotford sound’ nor claims to be a comprehensive guide to the area’s best beat bands. Like all good compilations, its essence is variety: some tracks will make you come whilst other will make you vomit.” – original liner notes by Robert Dellar
This compilation features 8 bands with two songs included by each group. EXHIBIT A were a quartet featuring Mat and Dan from Solid Space and Paul and Andrew from Twelve Cubic Feet. Legendary post-punk act SAD LOVERS & GIANTS make their first appearance here as a five-piece. MEX was the solo project of Paul Mex, the man responsible for this compilation, who went on to produce songs for WHAM and George Michael. GAMBIT OF SHAME deliver driving carnival pop and would later work with ex-Soft Machine member, Robert Wyatt on their debut single. FLYING BEECHCRAFT serve a slice of wistful Flying Nun indie pop. IMAGE IN RUIN bounce between off-kilter NY No-Wave skronk and angst. SOFT DRINKS were a short-lived synth-punk trio featuring the Jon Greville of Rudimentary Peni and Martin Drooper of The Magits who released a 3 song EP on Outer Himmylayan Productions. S-HATERS were a deathrock quartet also on the Outer Himmylayan roster who channeled the gothic punk of PIL’s “Metal Box” and Joy Division.
All songs have been transferred from the master tapes by Paul Mex and remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The vinyl comes housed in a full color printed jacket using the original silk screened artwork. Each LP includes a copy of the 12 page booklet that came with the original pressing. “The Thing From The Crypt” is more than a local compilation, its the stuff John Peel shows were made of.
