The Wiz

Mega City Four played punk for rainy days. Loud songs of loneliness, betrayal and alienation may sound like like 21st century Emo but they're just common elements of the rain-soaked melancholy that affects much of British pop-punk from the Buzzcocks to the Zatopeks. Their American light wasn't the cartoon-punk of the Ramones but the feedback-soaked pop of Husker Du. (The MC4 in fact covered what may be Husker Du's greatest song, "Don't Want to Know if You Are Lonely".)

The year I forsook the sun-swept flatland for the damp, mountainous coast, I spent a lot of time under an umbrella with Walkman continuously auto-reversing through those early Mega City Four albums. Just listening to these albums again makes me feel a little damp.

Madly, the MC4's early singles remain out of print, so MRML has elected to post each of them in their double a-sided glory.

"Miles Apart" which starts with the line, "I'm standing in the rain/And I'm thinking once again/How the way we see is never quite the same", sets the tone for the first few years with its bashing tempo, amped-up guitars, sing-along melody and that all-pervading sadness that the singer never fully succumbs to.


"Running in Darkness" repeats the trick of the a-side and adds one of those little bursts of defiant optimism ("I've got to win a race") that Wiz tossed off so well.

Dowload Miles Away (1987)

Principle song-writer and lead singer Wiz passed away so very prematurely in 2006 - in his memory go and buy Tranziphobia or one or their more accessibly pop albums from Amazon.

Mega City Four: Magic Bullets

MRML READERS: Don't miss our top ten Mega City Four videos over at The Big Takeover

Opinions are divided over Mega City Four's 1993 album, Magic Bullets.

Jack Rabid (at both The Trouser Press and allmusic.com) says the album, "fails to match Sebastopol Rd.'s end-to-end excellence... Still, it's far from a failure. "Perfect Circle" jump-starts the album, the single "Iron Sky" is a lacerating, fresh gem, "Enemy Skies" recalls the whomp and whack of the band's early days and "Speck" closes things on a somber note. Best of all, the melodies still stick to you like a dog in a thunderstorm."



Spavid of Willfully Obscure says that the album "is a favorite of many, if not most die-hard MC4 fans. And while it may lack the visceral thrust of their early material, "Wallflower," "President," and ''Toys" convey the kind of bittersweet pathos that so many of the Brit-plop hopefuls of MC4's era could hold a candle to. Not that they'd even try to of course."




Our own commenter extraordinaire CallPastorJerkface says the album is, "Achingly melodic and, well, just aching now that you mention it, the Four's fourth proper studio album is perfect fodder for a sad lonely day in your room/on the bus/at your cubicle. Some might say that all that sadness makes Bullets proto-emo-pop in its narrow focus on the ground beneath its feet but when the Mega's do raise their heads and run for the horizon ("Rainman", "President", "Greener") you'll find it hard to keep up. Excellent production, glorious guitar soaked pop songs with lyrics that speak to who you are (or were depending on how well the Prozac's working for you) and a nice variety of tempos and song templates may make this a good first Four-ay into the Mega City."



In my view, it's a more consistent album than Sebastopol Road but it lacks a song as perfect as `Stop`. And while I remain a devout fan of the hard-hitting, pop-punk-oriented Decoy years (1988-1990) I`ve really come around to subtle power of the more Brit-poppish Big Life years (1991-1993).

So leave us a COMMENT about how you rate Magic Bullets (and that`s where you`ll find the link, as well).


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The Wiz III

How many Number One Hits do you have to write before anyone bloody-well notices? For their their third single, 1989's Less Than Senseless, the MC4 again topped themselves to little commercial avail. In "Less Than Senseless" all the instruments seem to be battling Wiz's vocals for supremacy, as if the band applied metal legends Motorhead's mantra of "everything louder than everything else" to pop music. When that indelible chorus finally wins out, it's a great rush.


The next a-side is "Dancing Days are Over", an all-adrenalin 1:50 blast whose chorus echoes forties film dialogue, while its verses dissect a lost friendship ("It would be funny/If it weren't so sad").

Perhaps the shy humility of the band doomed them publicly. After all, the British music press' insatiable thirst for outrageous slurs is so strong that they continue to quote the Brothers Gallagher (Oasis), each of whom cannot construct a single slurred sentence without using some permutation of the verb to fuck as adjective, noun, verb or conjunction. For evidence of the the MC4's early awkwardness, see this interview and the accompanying video for "Occupation".


Download Less Than Senseless

P.S. Speaking of the MC4's songs of rain and sadness, listen to the folk-punk-rock of "January", a fitting song if you're enduring an inclement January (mine involves -44 with the windchill and if you don't understand that say a little prayer of thanksgiving).

The Wiz: Mega-Epilogue

The Decoy era of the MC4 was rounded out by the underwhelming Who Cares Wins, a model of the infamous Second Album Slump. While the 1990 album is much less apathetic than the title might indicate, it does still seem like the band is losing the battle with their own formula. It's hard to get a bead on the precise weakness here. This is still a band going full tilt yet their momentum is limited by a certain sameness of playing and production that occasionally marred even their greater work. Some of the songs, such as "No Such Place as Home", still soar high but something has come to an end. A re-invention was coming but that's a story for a future post.



Download Who Cares Wins

For the fanatic Wiz-ite, here's a wee little bootleg called Extras that contains two tracks from a 1988 compilation called Undeground Rockers, the B-side to a late single (Android Dreams) and a cover of the Beatles' "A Hard Days Night".

Download Extras

Then, to hear all of singles posted earlier all wrapped up together with a bonus track, go visit the incredible Hangover Heart Attack who have posted Terribly Sorry Bob.

Finally, for now anyway, check out the MC4's Peel Sessions CD over at Primitive Offerings

Mega City Four: Sebastopol Rd

Thanks to CallPastorBob for the Guest post!

It's an easy argument to say that "Terribly Sorry Bob" contains MC4's highest highs and that "Tranziphobia" is their best overall album. But, for me, my real love of Wiz and co. started with a ride down "Sebastopol Road". Yes, the breathless popcore of their earlier work has been slowed to a more standard rock n' roll pace but that does nothing to negate the insane catchiness and intelligence that seemed as natural to Wiz's songcraft as breathing underwater is to Aquaman.


O.K., not everything on "Seb. Rd." is a hit (the album seems to go back and forth between mini-masterpiece and decent filler on a track by track basis) but, when they're on, it's shocking how fabulous those Four were. Take the lead off track, "Ticket Collector", as but one example. A catchy riff to start followed by an every/only teen vocal that builds to the heart-bludgeoning refrain: "I've all the time in the world for you / but I'm using it up on me".
"And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why they call it a crush."


It's an on-going frustration that Mega City Four's mastery of power pop is as neglected and sniffed at in critical circles today (I recently read their name followed by the words "and other lesser English bands" in a book that had the gall to tell me I had to hear at least four fucking Morrissey solo albums before I die!) as it was in their heyday. Thank the little fiber optical cables that strangle the globe that we can, on a whim, tune into a Mega-work such as Sebastopol Road for ourselves and leave the opinions of those who tell us what our tastes should be in the dust.

Oh wait, that's me isn't it? Terribly sorry.



MRML Readers: Leave us a comment telling us what you think of this, or any other, era of Mega City Four

Sebastopol Road CD

Sadly, one of the only ways (that I know of) to support the band is to buy "Tranziphobia" from Amazon or Cherry Red Records.

The Wiz II

The MC4 grew stronger. Their second single, 1988's Clear Blue Sky is more frenetic than ever. On "Clear Blue Sky" Wiz lets the rain clouds depart for a host ringing guitars and an expansive chorus that just keeps building as the song winds up.

"Distant Relatives" is another song of sweet sorrow. While Wiz, with his vocals dominating the mix, laments the absence of his family, the chorus still cries out, "Don't ever leave me, Don't ever wander, don't ever let me slip away". A masterwork, only made sadder by Wiz's early passing.


Download Clear Blue Sky

Mega City Four: Stop (Live)

So (as per yesterday's post), WHY did I sell those Mega City Four CD's? I could proffer dozens of reasons ranging from the financial to the spiritual to the practical but the clearest motivations in that case were geography, climate and history.

Y'see, I discovered the MC4 while sharing a basement apartment with my girlfriend in the wet climes of Vancouver, British Columbia in the early 90's. With the sound of grunge roaring all around me, I focused on things faster, catchier and perhaps a bit tinnier, like the MC4. I first found Tranziphobia, then Terribly Sorry Bob (my favourites!) then Who Cares Wins and the Live Album and finally, Sebastopal Rd. on vinyl, all of which I sold and replaced with CD's. I played tapes of those albums on my ever-present Walkman during a hundred downpours (mostly literal but a few more metaphorical ones) and those songs became attached to that mountainous place, that damp environment and that specific girlfriend.

So when I returned to my home in the yawning prairies, perhaps something of me got left in a West Vancouver dumpster. Maybe that loss of place and the great break-up that was soon to follow, pushed me to jettison a few necessities amongst the genuine dead weight.

Rest in Peace, Wiz - I'll correct my mistake one day.




Here's a cool live 7" from 1992, which has no overlap with the collection of rarities posted yesterday. (For Much More Megas - go here.)


Have you ever regretted something you've sold? Tell us about it in the comments section!

Speaking of the comments section, that's where you'll find the link for Stop (Live)

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Tradtion IV

So the Doughboys career picked up just as it was winding down. Signed to A & M, the band got a big push for 1993's Crush. It's still the college-rockish sound of Happy Accidents and like that album it also starts with another Kastner classic, "Shine" (co-written with Wiz of Mega City Four).


(A charming fan video mash-up with the George Lucas movie, Willow.)

However after that, things get dodgy. The filler here is particularly egregious with "Fall" sounding like a passing attempt at grunge and "Shitty Song" far surpassing its titular promise. On the plus side, the mid-period Soul Asylum-ish "Fix Me" was another good single and "Tearin' Away" still rocks. The version of Crush below features bonus material, including songs like "Good Cop, Bad Cop", that really should've made the album.




"Turn Me On" is the end of the road. There are still good rockers here, like "My Favorite Martian" and the power-pop songs like "Everything and After" still work. None of that changes the irrefutable fact that by 1996 the Doughboys were done, they'd surrendered their underground followers long ago and the fans they'd gained for "Shine" were ephemeral. Next up Kastner formed All Systems Go with members of Big Drill Car and Cummins formed Bionic.



These two albums remind me of Winnipeg musical fixture Mike Koop (subject of an upcoming Dylan-related post), who has for years harboured an unfinished song titled, "Whatever Happened to Brock Pytel?" It's a pointed question that neither Kastner on these later Doughboys albums or Pytel himself on his one solo album, ever answered.

Mega City Four: Stop

Mega City Four (discussed at length here) made their grab for the Big Time with a college-rock styled album, Sebastopol Road, that arrived in North America at the tail end of a wave of NME-hyped British guitar-dance bands like the Stone Roses and Ned's Atomic Dustbin that would be decimated by Nirvana. "Stop" was the stand-out from the album (and one of the few songs where the chorus had much to do with the song title).



The B-sides, such as "Back to Zero" show-off Wiz's (R.I.P.) fine song-writing too and, as was often the case, are better than some of the songs that made the album.

Stop 7"

Sadly, one of the only ways (that I know of) to support the band is to buy "Tranziphobia" from Amazon or Cherry Red Records.

Mega City Four: Terribly Sorry Bob (singles, 1988-1990)

MRML READERS: Don't miss our top ten Mega City Four videos over at The Big Takeover



While searching for Mega City Four related goodies, I came across this (previously unknown to me) singles compilation on Vinyl Solution from 1989:







I considered posting this release but since it's just an earlier version of Terribly Sorry Bob (with better art direction), it seemed like a better idea to just share the cover art with you and finally post my favourite Mega City Four release.




These early singles (as I discussed in detail HERE) define Mega City Four for me and that's no insult to my (ever-growing) love of their later work it's just that this is one of the most insanely-ignored singles collection in existence - don't miss it!

Track List

A1 Miles Apart
A2 Running In Darkness
A3 Distant Relatives
A4 Clear Blue Sky
A5 Less Than Senseless
A6 Dancing Days Are Over
A7 No Time
B1 Awkward Kid
B2 Cradle
B3 Finish
B4 Severence
B5 Thanx
B6 Square Through A Circle

Credits

* Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals – Gerry Bryant
* Drums – Chris Jones (28)
* Guitar, Backing Vocals – Daniel Luther Jonathan Brown
* Guitar, Lead Vocals, Lyrics By – Wiz (7)
* Producer – Alan Scott (tracks: A5-A6), Iain Burgess (tracks: A7-B6), Matthew Fisher (tracks: A1-A4), M.C.4*

Notes

This is a compilation of the first five singles on Decoy.
· A1-A2 originally released on Miles Apart / Running In Darkness (7'')
· A3-A4 originally released on Clear Blue Sky / Distant Relatives (7")
· A5-A6 originally released on Less Than Senseless / Dancing Days Are Over (7")
· A7 is a bonus track, originally released on Vinyl Solution freebie 7" (same recording session as B1-B2)
· B1-B2 originally released on Awkward Kid / The Cradle (7")
· B3-B6 originally released on There Goes My Happy Marriage (12", EP)


Is Terrible Sorry Bob the best MC4 release? Give us you opinion in the COMMENTS section (where you'll find the Terrible Sorry Bob link)


For a fantastic dose of MC4 rarities visit the ever-wonderful, Willfully Obscure.


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Mega City Four: Who Cares Wins

Okay I sold my vinyl copy of Mega City Four's second album, Who Cares Wins, back in '91 and probably didn't regret it much till yesterday. It's an album that grows on you slowly, in my case, glacially. My initial disappointment stemmed from a certain sameness to the record's sound and shortage of those magical Wiz hooks. Perhaps I expected something along the lines of The Doughboys' sophomore album, Home Again where the sensitive-pop-kids-with-loud-guitars shtick went 3-D, with sympathetic production and a commensurate leap in songwriting strength. But that's not quite the way of this album,which employs most of the lyrical and musical tricks of their earlier work without adding any one obviously new element.



But a consistent MC4 album is no bad thing. Instead of the songs leaping out at you, they skulk in the shadows waiting to found and appreciated; it's a very passive-aggressive as pop albums go.



One of the least surreptitious moments of the album is "No Such Place As Home" which packs an album's worth of hooks into 4:09.



So, give WCW a spin and see if it takes less than 20 years to grow on you.

(For Much More Megas - go here.)


Please leave us a comment giving your take on Who Care Wins.

Speaking of the comments section, that's where you'll find the link for Who Cares Wins


Support the band

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Mega City Four: Soulscraper

1995' s Soulscraper is sometimes called MC4's 'grunge album' due to the thicker, chunkier guitar sound that dominates songs like "The Dog Lady" but fear not listeners, Wiz's gift for sad-but-strong hooks (check out "Android Dreams") is still there beneath the thick layer of gunk.

So what do you think of the Soulscraper era of the MC4? Let us know in the COMMENTS section (where you'll find the link as well.)





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The Wiz IV

On the 1989 single Awkward Kid, Wiz and co. moved closer to what the Brits call "bed-sit angst" ("naval-gazing" and "Morrissey" are possible synonyms) and the small-scale melodrama detracts a bit. Primary A-side "Awkward Kid" is a touch over-confessional ("Deep down I'm still an awkward kid... I'm as lost as I ever was before") but it still crams a lot of pop smarts into 1:54.


In "Cradle" the band's clingier, self-pitying side almost trumps what is still a pretty fair tune.


Download Awkward Kid

The Wiz V

The final single of the MC4's first and, possibly finest era (the Decoy era lasted till 1990) was actually a four-song e.p., referred to as either the There Goes My Happy Marriage e.p. or simply Finish. Side one's tracks, "Finish" and "Severance" seem marked by bitter resignation and workmanlike song-writing. Side two, however, contains the gracious but flat-out rocker that is "Thanx" and the haunting shape-of-pop-to-come ballad, "Square Through a Circle". It's like another brilliant MC4 single but with two outtakes attached.


Download Finish

Mega City Four: Android Dreams

To obsessives who are willing to stick aorudn till the bitter end, here's the finest moment from the most-inconsistent album (1995's Soulscraper) of the MC4's career. There are two B-sides here, including the attractive acoustic ballad "Skywide" which is otherwise unavailable. Much more MC4 HERE.

Is this the last great Mc4 tracks? Let us know what you think in the COMMENTS section (where you'll find the "Android Dreams" link).


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Mega City Four: Shivering Sand 12" (1992)

MRML has spent so much time on neglected early nineties UK rockers Mega City4 that we;ve amassed a nearly unparalleled NINETEEN posts on the band (see HERE!). With this CD single (insanely never part of an album!) we see the band playing at the top of the their 2nd peak.





COMMENTS on the MC4 are always a good thing!! (Even though the link for the Shivering Sand single is right HERE!)




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Mega City Four: Barbue (1990)

Live MC4 from the Decoy era. (More studio rarities and more of The Bag to come!)

COMMENTS on the MC4 are always a good thing!! (Even though the link for the Barbue 1990 single is right HERE!)


Support the band

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Mega City Four: Iron Sky

I stopped following Mega City Four after Sebastopol Road. After listening to, "Iron Sky" another of Wiz's soaring, hooky anthems, I see that I may have erred.



To hear the album from which the single derives, Magic Bullets, go visit the conspicuously concupiscent, Willfully Obscure.


Iron Sky 7"

Sadly, one of the only ways (that I know of) to support the band is to buy "Tranziphobia" from Amazon or Cherry Red Records.

Mega City Four Mania!

YouTube user acceptable76 has been posting all manner of Mega City Four (more HERE) live videos. Some has dubbed sound, some get cut off by slack cameramen and some have less-then-perfect quality but it's all testament the mightiness of the sadly-departed Wiz (not to mention his much alive band-mates!). Many of the videos still have low views, so go check 'em out and leave a word of thanks behind!











As mentioned in the comments section, Spencer Chase (a.k.a. acceptable76) has been building a fine MC4 Facebook group, which all interested readers should join forthwith!