SPERMA – s/t LP

Brilliant archival reissue of late 70s Zuri-punk s/t 12″ ep by SPERMA. Originally released in 1979 on Another Swiss Label, the same genius which brought us so many of Switzerland’s early punk releases, this reissue is like a magnifying glass overtop of the moments in Switzerland (and around the world) where punk was truly breaking ground internationally. This is dripping in delectable ineptitude all the way from the broken English ‘I hope this works’ melody of “No More Love” to the textbook contempt for mainstream radio on ‘Radio.’ All three tracks are overloaded with happy flare ups of singalong melody mixed with mindless and perfectly undeveloped rock and roll aggression. The light touch of the clean guitars being boiled in pummelling drums and loud bass feels like a clue to what the recording session might have been like, battling with an engineer inexperienced in the pneumatics of punk and insisting on quieter and quieter guitars to prevent too much sound bleed, or just an old amplifier pushed to its limits. Regardless, the magic is there and the songs are there. This new issue comes with a beautiful printed 20 page booklet with unseen photos, flyers, and moments otherwise lost in time. ( Dr. Jonah Falco )