OFF: Magazine

[Jon Browne]

In article <keX2pEAwLRE7EwBq at hermit0.demon.co.uk>, Nick Medford
<nick at HERMIT0.DEMON.CO.UK> writes
>I've read  a lot about this band but AFAIK never heard anything by them.
>They were a late 70s/early 80s group that included Howard Devoto and John
>McGeoch, and supposedly were something pretty special, but of course the
>mainstream music press cannot be trusted on such things...
>
>Anyway the point of this post is that my local CD emporium has the triple
>CD Magazine retrospective called "Maybe It's Right To Be Nervous Now"
>going for just 10 quid, and this seems like a remarkable bargain to me, as
>from what I've read I suspect I might really like this band, but OTOH a
>triple CD box-set is a bit of a biggie for a speculative punt on a band you
>haven't heard... so can anyone fill me in a bit on this band and their sound?
>The kind of reference points I had were that they might be a sort of UK
>equivalent of Pere Ubu or early Talking Heads.  If in fact they were a
>power-pop outfit like the Buzzcocks can someone warn me please...
>--
>Nick Medford


I haven't bought "Maybe It's Right", but I've got everything else by
Magazine. I think they're great. Buy it. If you don't like it, I'll buy
it off you.  You can't lose, eh? Do bear in mind it's like outtakes,
live versions etc.

Real Life is their best LP, a real fave which gets played regularly even
after twenty-plus years, followed by Secondhand Daylight. Real Life is
one of two or three albums that I have had five or six copies of over
the years, because it just gets played to death. Magnificent in places.
"The Light Pours Out Of Me" - wow.

They ain't like Buzzcocks, (who are also great BTW, and still produce
fine spiky stuff!)  They do have punk sensibilities, but were clearly
very prog influenced too. Longer songs, mood pieces, keyboard solos etc.
Another thing that marked them out was the lyrics, which were literate
in the main. Devoto now works on and off with Apollo 440, who covered
Don't Fear The Reaper. (BOC-L content here!)

I honestly couldn't say how they would sound these days, to modern ears.
Not fantastic, I suspect, but at the time they were a bit of revelation
to me, and they still work for me. They were my favourite band, one
month in 1978.
--
Jon
NP Punishment of Luxury - Puppet Life (Anyone got the LP this came off?)