TV Smith's Cheap: Third Term 7" (1989)

(Image courtesy of Record Collectors of the World Unite)

In the late eighties, despite mass indifference, TV Smith (more here), formerly of The Adverts (more HERE), fought on with a bracing electric band he dubbed, Cheap, which featured Mik Helsin on guitar, Andy Bennie on bass and Fuzz Deniz on drums. TV says, “Summer, 1986. Time to form a new band. After The Adverts and the Explorers had both broken up in disarray I´d thought I wouldn´t fall for it again, but hmmm, there was that familiar itch. This time though, it would be JUST FOR FUN. A bunch of mates traveling around the country in a couple of estate cars, all the equipment piled in the back; mobile, compact, above all CHEAP.” TV's razor-sharp writing remains full of treasonous sing-alongs like the anti-Thatcherite anthem, "Third Term", which burns like a fuel factory fire.





The other side of this 1989 single, their sole album, R.I.P. Everything Must Go, only came out after they broke-up, may even best the A-side. "Buried by the Machine" is a song that you can imagine being in a room full of sweaty punters roaring along to, only partly realizing how that ringing melody brings you face-to-interface with your own dehumanization.



MRML Readers give us your take on TV's Cheap-ness and tell us if you want to hear more!



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