Amebix

Amebix, now recognized as one of the most influential heavy bands ever, was born in England during the summer of 1978. Originally trolling their minds and coming up with the thought provoking moniker the Band With No Name, the group of dirty, broke punks recorded a trashy six-song demo and managed to sell a meager four copies of it. Opting for the name Amebix, the band released a track from the demo called "University Challenged" on the first edition of the obscure compilation series Bullshit Detector. Life was chaotic from start to finish for Amebix, because they were really living the lifestyle that their lyrics and image portrayed. Guitar player Stig writes on the gatefold of the posthumous album of live and studio recordings The Power Remains that "none of us signed off the dole in all the years we were together." Living in squats (abandoned buildings) and other unstable accommodations, eating out of the garbage, scamming and hacking out a living by any means possible, it's amazing that the band were able to amass equipment and practice on a somewhat regular enough basis to last for nine full years. However, through all of the strife and chaos, the band were astoundingly prolific, recording enough material (including bootlegs and posthumous releases) for seven full-length albums, two 7" records, two compilation tracks, and the previously mentioned Band With No Name demo in that period of time. Prior to 1983, the band's lineup changed quite a bit. In one humorous incident, shortly after the release of the Bullshit Detector compilation, the band added a fellow named Martin to their roster in the drummer role. One of the fringe benefits of Martin's being in the band was that he invited the whole group to come live with him in a manor house in Dartmoor. Unfortunately,...