Description
Atavistic – “Retrospective: From Within To Clear-cut Conscience” Double LP
Unsung underdogs of the mid 80’s DIY punk underground. From Whitstable, Kent, Atavistic launched their anarcho punk propaganda via their zine (I think it was called Direct Action, but I might have just made that name up…?) and their musical/noise broadcasts: the From Within demo of 1986, and the two 7″s of the following year, released on Peaceville and then Looney Tunes. All of which are compiled here on this double LP, along with an unreleased demo from 1985, (plus some compilation tracks). In the mid eighties these guys were as exciting and innovative as the early recordings made by Heresy and Napalm Death. Sound-wise, very little set them apart. As to why they didn’t get the same attention and success – well, if you heard the full-length album (not included here) that was released in 1990 on Peaceville Records, you’d know that it was an out of time shambles. Such a shame. A potential unfulfilled. Maybe during the early years the band had a different line-up(?), Because, this is a documentation – complete with 24 page booklet – of a band that could and should have caused much more of a sensation. And their mad-speed interpretation of Antisect and Discharge – a maelstrom of distorted riffs, beats and vocal rants – is well worth the reappraisal thirty plus years later.
