Deviants

The Deviants are the kind of band more people should know about. In their on-again off-again existence since 1967 under front man Mick Farren, their raw psychedelic/punk sound has had a ripple effect that is still being felt. The 13 tracks on this vinyl only release contain a bitterness that probably threw a lot of hippies for a loop back in the '60s. Equally harsh are the songs from '76 and '77, which showcase a punk flavour and penchant for nihilism, as evidenced on "Let's Loot The Supermarket Again (Like We Did Last Summer)," "I Wanna Drink" and "Screwed Up" ("I think I'll take some pills and go to bed, I might get lucky and wind up dead"). This record provides a good retrospective of the Deviants blend of the Fugs, the Who and other British R&B groups, pub and punk rock and William Burroughs-style narrative, overseen by Farren's voice that sounds like the evil British villain in every B-movie you've ever seen.