From Spiral Scratch November 1991
by Mike Hall
PLAY DEAD
"The sun had set too fast, forgotten lessons from the past"
Out of the fire and rage of punk emerged a strange confusion of musical variety hitherto untried; when the smoke had settled it was clear to see the range of talented power and passion inspired by the explosive reaction against a stagnating decade of insipid disco commercialism. Many bands opted to try their luck along the same commercial path and, ultimately, were mostly tamed and subdued into blandness by the very system which had first aroused the flames; witness The Cult, B-Movie, and Gene Loves Jezebel, arbitrarily to name a few; burnt out after their independent recorded inspirations and subsequently eaten alive by the "progression" to the major-label production. Many, thankfully perhaps, never polished the same furrow and despite falling apart or simply fading into obscurity, have left a lasting impression on a primarily fiscal-oriented music industry with honor intact and a legacy of intelligent music which superseded the initial spark of the fire itself. UK Decay, a band recently featured in this very magazine, were one such entity who inspired and paved the way for many others, as were Play Dead, perhaps not so well known, but posing an equally idiosyncratic style combining the intense emotion of life with a versatile and compelling form of music. Powerful enough to demand you listen, compulsive enough to force you to dance...
"Like the tapping of the ocean waves, you come and go, you never offer a reason"
After a considerable initial interest, the latter part of the chronology of Play Dead was sadly overlooked by a fickle music press, as is often the case with many groups who avoid flamboyance, hype and superficial outspoken tendencies that our contemporary tabloids thrive upon, preferring the integrity of judgment on musical-basis alone. This piece reflects the dearth of information about the band later in their career and is intended only as an introduction to Play Dead rather than a complete history, although for the purposes of record collecting, the discography is, I hope, fairly accurate and comprehensive. Spiral Scratch would be delighted to hear from anyone who can add to the recorded output or to the band's history.
"You want everything forever, and you always want it now"
Play Dead, a name incidentally culled from "a percentage of people playing dead with no life in them", formed in November of 1980 comprising of two members from Banbury and two from nearby Oxford. The original lineup consisted of Rob (vocals), Pete (bass), Re (guitar), and Wiff (drums); in July of the following year, Steve replaced Re on guitar which established the group, to the best of my knowledge, for the rest of its life. Their first demo was recorded in December of 1980 and within six weeks of formation they had secured a recording contract, opting for Fresh Records instead of 4AD, and despite having only four songs at that time! A Peel session was recorded early in the new year, and then the band embarked on their first tour, playing support to the aforementioned label stable-mates and mentors UK Decay; by this stage they had increased their repertoire of songs to seven! Just after the end of the tour, the first Play Dead single was unleashed and the band were away...
"The twisted truth infects them all"
However, the band were less than happy with their first two singles, indeed about the record (TV Eye) all they had to say was "that record is nothing to do with us-we just blot it out of our minds completely!" Then arrived 1982, an awful year of enforced hibernation for the group following the untimely demise of Fresh Records. Propaganda, the third single had been recorded in April 1982, but didn't surface until the following November, by which time a new recording contract had been signed with the Fresh-offshoot Jungle Records. When it was finally released, it received much critical acclaim, gathering Single of the Week accolades in both Melody Maker and Sounds, the latter describing the song as "a combination of buoyant funk, blistering force, punk rawness and heavy metal dynamism." More notably though, it was the first single the band themselves were happy with.
"A gallery of wishes, watch every move you make"
An eagerly awaited mini LP, complete with experimental percussion in the form of scaffolding, was released the following May, again to good reviews, and went to number 4 in the independent charts; at the same time the band were touring as support to Sex Gang Children, culminating in a capacity crowd at London's Lyceum. A second John Peel session was recorded in July, including at least one track which still has never been released, Total Decline. Play Dead then guested on a number of dates with Killing Joke that summer, and went down a storm at the Futurama 5 Festival that Autumn. However, despite their very powerful and direct live potential, the group always considered themselves to be "much more of a listening band than a going mad sort of band."
"Alive in the shadow of the promise we once shared"
The same Autumn saw the band transfer once again to record company pastures new, this time signing a one off deal with Situation Two and immediately releasing the excellent single Shine 12" an essential purchase for the strikingly dynamic Promise/Gaze combination on the other side. 1984 saw the move to Clay Records, where it seems the band were at their most settled, judging by the prolific vinyl output of a consistent highly-potent standard. Unlike many bands of their ilk, their music continued to mature and grow in stature, and after the transition from Clay To Tanz midway through 1985, Play Dead recorded possibly their finest studio LP in Company of Justice, the bleak, almost final passion of Treason and Reward to be found at the end of the album representing a peak to which few others of their time, or since, have aspired.
"This heart of glass was easily broken"
It also spelt the beginning of the end. Live appearances had continued throughout, Play Dead headlining tours in March (with an upcoming Balaam and the Angel as support) and May of 1985, but music press coverage for this period seems almost non-existent. Three days before Christmas, the band played close to home in Stevenage, a gig recorded for a later live album (The Final Epitaph) which was to prove a posthumous release as the group did not play together live again.
"So let the river change, flow you away..."
By February of 1996, Pete decided he'd had enough and left for India. The remaining members formed The Beastmaster Generals, who certainly recorded some demos, but more than this I do not know...
(submitted by Melinda Williams)