THE MAD – Eyeball 7″

Hands down my favorite pre-hardcore record from NYC, and a collector scum want list staple for ages. The chorus of the B-side track, “I hate music/I like noise,” sums upmy musical tastes to a T.

The Mad’s multi-media live shows often included singer Screaming Mad George’s early forays into special effects (he later ended up in Hollywood doing horror effects) including faked self-mutilation and a mock abortion performed on stage. Check out some original footage here – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fxdiw1FKBkI – I had no idea this footage even EXISTED (ie, mind = blown) until I was googling for mp3′s to post. The video is cooler than just the tunes though, so give it a look.

Scum stats: 500 pressed in 1979, self released on their own Disgusting label. Tough to find complete with the insert, and even tougher to find w/o ringwear on the front cover. They had another 7″ after this (Fried Egg) that’s a little more Cramps-y but still classic. I’m glad to have scored one of these for $5 a few years ago.

And for all the Norman Coremans out there (I never forget you guys), drummer Dave Hahn later went on to be the original drummer of the Cro-Mags.

PS, fuck reserve price auctions. Worse than people who only want you to “make offers” on their shitty unpriced sale lists.