Screams - Screams

Screams is a band who came to my attention through my buddy Jeff. I've mentioned Jeff a few times, often in a derogatory manner as he is one of those jacks of all trades and master of all, types who despite his protestations that he is in fact just a normal guy, is in fact not normal. In short I'm more than a little jealous and proud of my friend ...

A while back I found an Elvis Brothers album and I had just written up. Jeff casually brokered an introduction to Brad Elvis (Brad Steakley) and we traded a couple of really pleasant notes. Brad has a pretty active Facebook which is fun to keep up with. Anyway (yeah, I may have to edit this for clarity at some point) I found out Brad had been in a band called Screams, and that Jeff had been looking for the album for a long time.

I decided I'd look for it, and I found not one, but two copies in a little second hand record store close to where I live so I sent Jeff one, and kept the other. When Brad and I were trading notes he'd mentioned Screams as well, and gave me the 10,000 foot history of the band's. Which was cool and tragic at the same time. Rock and roll kids, it's a contact sport. Wear a helmet.

I've actually had the album for well over a year, and have played it off and on, it is a really fun record, and the only way to hear it is on vinyl, not because it sounds better ... it's the only way you can listen to it. Ah, not entirely true, some industrious fans have posted the album to YouTube, but if you're looking to stream, Screams good luck. I often wonder what happens to master tapes when a label folds and acts are orphaned. 

I kept meaning to write it up, as it was a pretty cool listen ... instead the album kept getting shoved deeper and deeper into the pile. Well, to cut a long story a little shorter (which is hard for me), today was the day I pulled it out. The record, I pulled out the record. Oh boy, this is going downhill. On the plus side I may gain a little momentum before things collapse under the weight of my incessant need to keep going no matter the consequence. I really need an editor, I wonder how Jeff does it?

Screams was from Champaign, Illinois and like their heroes Cheap Trick who were Rockford, Illinois (I'm assuming it was relatively close-ish) the band took the energy and sonic assault of the early punk movement, and gave it proper form and function, and polished it just enough so that there were still some rough edges and crafted their own flavour of power pop. The band was around for a couple of years before being signed to Infinity Records, which was a subsidiary of MCA Records.

Infinity was a strange label, who's biggest achievements appear to be driving up the price of coconuts in 1979 by releasing Rupert Holmes "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)" and in October that same year, pushing out a million advance copies of Pope John Paul II Sings at the Festival of Sacrosong, to retailers, which should have been a big deal ... except the perceived appetite for hearing the Pope sing hymns in Polish was kind over overstated ... and when the unsold inventory was returned by the truckload it cratered the company. By November the label was shuttered - leaving behind a legacy as on of the most expensive failures ever.

Meanwhile, oblivious to the impending drama, Screams was on the road in '79 opening for Van Halen and then headlined their own tour in the UK in the fall just as the label imploded. One would have thought there was enough momentum to have caught the attention of the suits at MCA ... but no. Screams were cut loose and after one album the band closed up shop and called it day. At least MCA had the foresight to bring over Rupert Holmes, because you know ... Rupert Holmes, think of all the hits that guy amassed after his stint on Infinity (crickets). 

So it's a sort of melancholy listen. It's like watching Friday the 13th Part III in 3D (I saw it in the theatres, don't judge me) and you're rooting for Michael J. Fox's character ... of course there was no happy ending. It didn't help he was sort of a dick in the movie so it was fun watching him snuff it. What this has to with Screams is still to be determined ... oh right, horror movies, screams. You're welcome. Oh, don't you roll your eyes at me - you knew it was coming. and you kept reading anyway.

If you're still here you're probably wondering when I'll get to the point. I'm getting there I'm about to let the rock start rolling down the hill, I just had to get it to the top. Call me a literary (or illiterate) Sisyphus, I'm determined to get to the top ... I just can't stay there.

Here we go.

Screams came out in 1979 and was right in the thick of that glorious first run of power pop. The Knack, The Records, The Cars, 20/20 and of course Cheap Trick. It was glorious time. Screams debut (I'm still optimistic about a follow up) was produced by Terry Luttrell, who was in the band Starcastle, which wasn't exactly power pop, but I gotta say whatever mojo Terry brought to the table must have been more of a help than a hindrance as the band was ... screaming (sorry ... not, sorry I can't help myself. You want to write about the album, get your own blog). Whatever may have happened later with the label, one gets the sense there was support and a budget at some point. After all, this was mastered by George Marino, a name I always associate with great sounding records ... and this was (is) a great sounding record.

The really cool thing about this era, especially when it was done right, was how timeless the music would end up being. Screams was pure unadulterated rock and roll goodness, it was raw, enthusiastic and so much fun. Power pop in all it's unadulterated goodness. Everything was crisp, clean and the mix was near perfect. The vocals were right up front, and not drenched in reverb, it was like David Adams was in the room with you belting it out. The guitar tone too was so good, John Siegle was an economy player who could unleash a barrage of notes when called upon. Thick, and bright where it needed to be and still sounds fantastic. It's all grounded and anchored with a fat bass provided by Steven Jones and natural sounding drums with a classic great snare courtesy of Brad Steakley. Some of the arrangements give away the era, after all this is well over four decades old now, but my goodness if you didn't know better this could be a new band wanting to play good old rock and roll.

The first time I dropped the needle, I did one of those cartoon double takes. You know the one where your eyes practically do that ahooga thing popping way out before snapping back in. "Paper Dolls" written by vocalist Dave Adams literally screams through the speakers as a cacophonous array of guitars chug along to Brad's pounding before the song levels off into power pop heaven. What really got my attention was how this predated Foo Fighters by decades yet sounded like something they could have recently released, right down to the double stop guitar ending and the big rock finish. As an introduction this was absolutely mind blowing.

Then it just kept going, you could tell the guys were fans of Cheap Trick. John sure did like using distortion and octaves - he must have really liked Rick Nielsen. Why not, it sounds awesome. The band, or at least Brad, cites Cheap Trick as an inspiration from their early days.

The only song that felt like an odd duck (at first) was "I Play for You" which was written by Gregg Clemons who from what I can find was in a local band who had released it as single and I suspect it was a song that meant something to the guys in the band. While the song does have a slow burn, it does eventually get under your skin. It's also the only song not written by the band.

The first side closes out with guitarist John Siegle singing his song "It's Just a Matter of Time" and it's a decent track, and John's voice is quite good. I know guitar players love to sing, and John could sing but when you have a singer like Mr. Adams in the band why not let him sing? Band dynamics I guess, besides John did write it, so why not? With only four songs, the first side goes by in a hurry but man oh man, that first cut "Paper Dolls" was so good it begs the question, "Why didn't this catch on?" I'd rather hear this than a song that asks me if I like Pina Coladas ... (oh no, now that's in my head).

The second side keeps things going with a "Imagine Me Without You" that has some great guitar work and it's a shimmery pop song. So good and this could easily have been a single. It is so good. There's a swagger to the songs, and while a couple of the songs aren't standout tracks they're solid. John again sings one of his own compositions, and it was a keeper. The album closes out with "Pop Art" written by Brad Steakley (Brad was the drummer, and he wrote the words and music ... obviously more going on with that guy than just a pair of sticks and hitting things) and honestly it's a song that didn't have the gut punch of "Paper Dolls" or the shimmery pop magic of "Imagine Me Without You" but it has a relentless groove and an almost haunting quality that is emphasized by David's vocal delivery. I can't say it's Bowiesque, but if that helps paint an image that'll do. John again colours the song with distorted octaves gamely running up and down the neck while reigning in the tension. The song is almost morbidly prophetic looking back on it with the benefit of hindsight, and having the song fade rather than end just adds to the melancholy.

The timing's just not right
and sometimes I never say goodnight
I have no complaints
Marc Bolan had it down
Now it's all too late

Take this, take that
You're gonna lose it all
Don't you go away mad
Sympathy for All

A strange thing happened over the last few days ... yeah I know I said today was the day I pulled this one out, and that was true a few days ago. I just kept spinning this whenever I was downstairs. The album got under my skin, and in many ways I felt like the sixteen year old kid I would have been if I'd managed to have this back in the day. I've sat listening while holding the lyrics, and as I listened to John play I could visualize how he was playing the shapes he was making on the fretboard.

It was magic.

The only fly in the ointment was the cover. I don't want to be that guy, but my goodness what were they thinking? Sigh. Oh well, it's too late now, whatever will be, was. I wonder if Richard Lester had the album, because that space prison in Superman II sure did look familiar.