Crime: San Francisco's Still Doomed

Crime: San Francisco's Still Doomed

2004

Swami Records

Format I Own it on: Vinyl

Track Listing: 1. Frustration  2. Crime Wave  3. I Knew This Nurse  4. San Francisco's Doomed  5. Rock 'N' Roll Enemy No.1  6. Piss On Your Dog  7. Feel The Beat  8. I Stupid Anyway  9. Twisted  10. Murder By Guitar  11. Instrumental Instrumental  12. Flyeater  13. Rockabilly Drugstore  14. Dillinger's Brain  15. Flipout  16. Emergency Music Ward  17. Monkey On Your Back  18. Yakuza  19. Rockin' Weird  20. Samurai  21. Hot Wire My Heart (Alt. Take)  22. Baby, You're So Repulsive (Alt. Take) 



Crime has the distinction of being one of (if not the) first west coast punk bands to release a record, with the "Hot Wire My Heart/Baby You're So Repulsive" single. The band only released a few singles before breaking up. In the 90's, a compilation of their recording sessions were compiled, titled "San Francisco's Doomed"...

"San Francisco's Still Doomed" is a reissue of that release along with alternate recordings of their first single. The recording is a bit rough (especially once you reach the '79 sessions starting with "Flyeater") but the bulk of it isn't of much worse quality than most other 70's California punk...And I'm not sure a super-clean recording would really suit these guys...

Although they clearly fall into the "rock n' roll" spectrum of the punk sound, with its flaming leads and early rock rhythms, the album almost feels like a hardcore record to me. It's characterized by a spartan efficiency. A big, blaring blur where one song bleeds seamlessly into the next. There aren't many memorable melodies so much as there are some memorable chants. For example, the track "San Francisco's Doomed" doesn't get stuck in your head because the melody is well-constructed, it gets stuck there because that phrase is a cool-as-fuck thing to shout. Hell, "Piss On Your Dog" sounds like one giant hardcore break...

It feels like their goal was to turn out the loudest, most-bludgeoning old-fashioned rock n' roll possible. Like if the New York Dolls were actually as sonically terrifying as people probably seemed to think they were at the time. Your grandparents will undoubtedly cover their ears in horror, yet they'll no doubt recognize the underlying Chuck Berry-ness of it all. Especially as you get deep into side two...The alternate takes of the classic first single still stand out from the rest of the material, due to a unique, wiry energy. Like the buzz of the New York Dolls album was still fresh in their heads. I can't say these versions are any better or worse than the officially released takes. I'm calling it a draw.

So yea...Really, really early punk. Probably only a few months removed from the Ramones, but they don't seem to be influenced by them at all...I'd guess they were concurrent bands with similar influences that evolved in isolation of each other with largely different outcomes. No buzzsaw guitar or bubblegum here...Just rock n' roll menace and ear-splitting volume...

Let's check out some Crime...Here's "San Francisco's Doomed." Enjoy...