Pop Tarts “Age of the Thing” 1988. World of Wonder/Funtone USA Records. Very 80’s, very dancey synthpop. Think a mixture of New Oder, Pet Shop Boys, Fine Young Cannibals with  dashes of *early* Ministry, Nitzer Ebb and Paula Abdul. I know nothing about Pop Tarts (plenty about the breakfast/snack of course): turns out it was a short-lived project put together by World of Wonder producers Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey; WoW is most notable for managing RuPaul and producing RuPaul’s Drag Race, plus a slew of other shows and films and the production company has won several awards over the years.

Age of the Thing was the first of just two LP’s (the second is Gagging on the Lovely Extravaganza, 1992, upon which RuPaul produced a couple of the tracks). It’s a fun, very danceable album though it does feel a bit generic in the disco-synth-dance genre. The opener “Money Success Fame Glamour!” has an EBM/industrial edge as does “Elected!” but that track also has some metal-shred moments and some light “rap” (it’s not really rap). The vocals on “Cherry Red!” (and some others) is very reminiscent of Pet Shop Boys’ singer Neil Tennant’s deadpan tone and other tracks could be pulled directly from a New Order record (“Ultra Brite” among others). I’m not sure I have a top pick as the LP does start sounding the same after awhile, though it’s a perfect example of the disco-synth sound of the latter half of the 80’s that evolved the simpler synthpop style of the early 80’s with more musical influences, sampling (for instance I think they lifted the riff at the intro to “Off Your Mind (Can’t Get ‘Em)” directly from INXS’ “Need You Tonight”) and better technology. There isn’t much available to link from Pop Tarts Age of the Thing – but one of the links below is from a very FYC-meets Pet Shop Boys track “Another Grey Day in London!” which is a pretty bland dance pop song, and according to the YouTube caption it “was their first music video to be broadcast on MTV. Fenton Bailey filmed and produced the music video.”

Smoke Free Home “Reburns” 2025. Tsurumi Records, limited edition (?) colored vinyl 7″ single. Smoke Free Home, from Oshkosh, are one of my favorite current young punk bands from Wisconsin. We caught their set at a Battle of the Bands this past weekend at Falcon Bowl in Riverwest (Milwaukee). I don’t know if they won (they absolutely should have) but we definitely voted for them. Fast, clever, all low end (the lineup is Jesse on vocals, Kevin on bass, Alex on drums), young and FUN, their performance was raucously captivating. A huge love-filled pit of kids dancing their asses off. Aside from two or three other couples (probably parents or >shudder< grandparents of some of the other local bands), we were hands-down some of the oldest people there. No matter, everyone was cool aka they all ignored us. I’m fairly certain they played  both “Fast Hands” and possibly the flipside “Broken Toe.” Their Bandcamp page says about the single “Two fan-favorite tracks from our first release re-recorded…” the tracks appear on their 2021 self-titled EP, though “Fast Hands” is titled “Blue Hands” on the earlier release. Both versions are great!

I wasn’t able to find any live videos of either song so here’s another performance of one my favorite of theirs:

The Hollywood Brats “Hollywood Brats” 1973/1980. Cherry Red Records. Glam rock/protopunk from the UK (and sometimes credited as the UK’s first punk band), originally recorded in 1974 for NEMS Records but the label refused to release it. The band formed in ’71 as The Queen, changed their name, added a guitarist in ’72 (recruited through an advertisement in Melody Maker for a guitarist “drunk on scotch and Keith Richards”) and then disbanded in ’74 after being boo’d offstage and kicked off their label. The Brats performances have been described as raunchy, flamboyant and meant to “to annoy and disturb.” Contemporaries of and very similar to New York Dolls musically and with nihilistic tendencies like The Stooges and other US hooligans, the band leaned into shaking things up and being obnoxious. Singer Andrew Matheson “hobnobbed with (and stole from) Cliff Richard, punched a young Freddie Mercury in the mouth for having the temerity to call his band Queen (before renaming themselves, The Hollywood Brats were The Queen), and managed to alienate every record company that came sniffing. Even when his band was thrown a lifeline, Matheson managed to torpedo it. In 1974, Mick Jones, not yet of The Clash, introduced him to an eager Malcolm McLaren, convinced the Brats might just be on to something. Matheson considered McLaren a man of no substance, and sent him packing. McLaren had to settle for signing The Sex Pistols instead.” Reportedly The Who’s Keith Moon said they were the best band he had ever seen.

Hollywood Brats is snotty, glammy, hard rock and hilarious. The track “Sick on You” is about a man so tired of his girlfriend’s actions that he wants to vomit on her. Their cover of  the Phil Spector penned and The Crystals performed classic “Then He Kissed Me” is dripping with punk sarcasm. The Brats continue to foreshadow the Ramones’ sound which evolved 50’s/60’s pop into a punk sound (“Zurich 17“) while “Tumble With Me” flips the narrative to the chaste “Wake Up Little Susie” (Everly Brothers ’57) and asks her, point blank, to enjoy herself and take a tumble. It probably had those early 70’s record execs clutching their pearls. Other tracks lament the irritations of youth like “Another Schoolday” (it’s sooo good!).