Chaos UK

Playing punk rock with a hard, fast, and gritty attack, Chaos UK were standard bearers of the British anarcho-punk scene that arose in the 1980s. Dominated by speedy tempos, walls of distorted guitars, and barking vocals concerning various political and social ills, Chaos UK were unapologetically confrontational even by punk standards on their 1982 debut album, Chaos UK, and they developed a potent reputation in the U.K. and Europe. They were especially influential in Japan, where the severity of their attack made a major impression on the nascent noise music scene, and 1993's One Hundred Percent Two Fingers in the Air Punk Rock more than lived up to its title ten years on from their debut; the same could be said of 2015's Digital Filth, which added a metal accent to their sonic assault. Chaos UK was formed in 1979 in Portishead, Somerset, a port community not far from Bristol. The initial lineup consisted of Simon on vocals, Andy on guitar, Chaos on bass, and Potts on drums. (The sizable majority of Chaos UK's members have preferred to identify themselves by a single name.) As they honed their sound to a fine point, they earned a reputation for their no holds barred instrumental assault and their strongly anti-authoritarian lyrics, and in 1982, the Bristol-based label Riot City Records stepped up to help the group release their first two 7"s, Loud, Political & Uncompromising (featuring "No Security," "What About a Future," and "Hypocrite") and the Burning Britain EP (a four-song release that included two longtime fan favorites, "Four Minute Warning" and "Kill Your Baby"). In 1983, Riot City brought out the band's self-titled debut LP, which introduced a new lineup –-- Chaos moved from bass to lead vocals, Nige played bass, Spot was on drums (not to be confused with the American recording engineer of the same name), and Andy remained on guitar. They jumped to Children of the Revolution Records for their second album, 1984's Short Sharp Shock, which documented another edition of the group, with Mower on vocals, Gabba on guitar, Chaos on bass, and Chuck on drums. 1986 saw the release of a split LP with Extreme Noise Terror, Earslaughter, as well as the group's first tour of Japan. The band stayed away from the recording studio for the next few years but returned in 1989 with The Chipping Sodbury Bonfire Tapes. The title was a less-than-polite reference to American anti-folk artist Michelle Shocked, whose debut album was 1986's The Texas Campfire Tapes. Her second full-length, 1988's Short Sharp Shocked, not only had a title very similar to Chaos UK's 1984 album, but they felt the cover art was too similar for their liking.) After several live releases (including 1989's Live 8/5/85, a split release with Concrete Sox, and 1991's Chaos in Japan), the band's next studio effort was 1992's Making a Killing, a split LP with U.K. crust punks Raw Noise. (Chaos UK's tracks would later appear on a separate EP, Making Half A Killing.) A full studio album, Enough to Make You Sick, was released the same year by the Japanese Toy's Factory label; at this point, the lineup was Chaos on vocals, Gabba on guitar and vocals, V.D. on guitar, Beki on bass, and Devilman on drums. In 1993, Chaos UK cut another split LP, this time with the Japanese hardcore outfit Death Side, as well as putting out a seven-song EP on their own, One Hundred Percent Two Fingers in the Air Punk Rock. 1995's Floggin' the Corpse was a collection of rare studio and live material from the 1980s, and 1997's The Morning After the Night Before was yet another live set, documenting a gig in Bristol in 1996. 1998's Heard It, Seen It, Done It was a studio project with the group covering songs from other artists, ranging from Elvis Costello and Ian Dury to G.G. Allin and Antiseen; this time, Chaos, Gabba, and Devilman were joined by new members J. Cloth on bass and second drummer Phil Thudd. Live work dominated Chaos UK's schedule and kept them out of the studio until they issued the limited-edition EP Digital Filth in 2015, featuring seven original tunes. 2020's Stunned to Silence was an archival release (originally issued only on cassette) that combined 1985 rehearsal tapes with a gig in Japan from the same year. In 2023, Cleopatra Records offered Chaos UK fans a collectable 7" single, with a live recording of "No Security" from the UK/DK video compilation on the A-side and the original studio recording of "Kill Your Babies" on the flipside.
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