Gang Of Four
Damaged Goods

Leeds is never felt... always Liverpool, London, even Brighton or Guilford. But that city is so rare and uncelebrated, at least that's what my mind and memories tell me. Yet it is the homeland of the Gang Of Four, creators of that creative punk/funky/dub provocation. Annoying tongue twisters to summarize the epic "Entertainment" of "Ether", "At Home He's A Tourist" and other gems.

While in 1976, in Italy, we are thrilled with our Woodstock at Parco Lambro, across the sea we find the debut of countless bands. The EP "Damaged Goods" finds beams of light on the crowded shelves of 1978. As soon as you start the title track, sped up in "Entertainment", you understand what they have in mind. Indeed, we get a taste, since the first album is truly the zenith of the combo.

But the initial hiccups of guitar and bass are entirely peculiar, and needless to say, the latter has a joyfully dub imprint. A slowed-down ska and punk, it's hard to tell. Jon King's voice is so natural, fresh, and without studio tricks and gimmicks. Just like Bono Vox post "Zooropa"...

They are simple, straightforward, bold, and serene.

They don't want compromises or manipulations.

They already have the gift of being molded into a personalized form.

"Armalite Rifle" is the evidence that the power of this emerging genre lies in the carefree and drunken beat awareness of the Kinks, funk, psychedelia, and reggae. The rawness is precisely the coup de grâce for the Gang Of Four. It's a pungent, mocking, cautious amateurishness that only the Fall can boast about.

"Love Is Like Anthrax" is the last track of the EP, and we will also find it in "Entertainment" as the work's closing. The bass is the voice of post-punk, there's nothing you can do about it. Dave Allen's four strings revel in leading and being simultaneously overshadowed by Andy Gill's saturated guitar. Crossings of voices haunt us throughout the song until they fade, almost being interrupted at the end, which more anti-traditionalist than this, kills us.

The continuation of their chatter is found in the next single "At Home He's A Tourist" and in their first masterpiece.

Take them and listen to all of them.