New Compilation 'Moving Away From the Pulsebeat – Post-Punk Britain 1977-1981' Collects Classic Tracks and Underground Oddities

Cherry Red Records' latest compilation Moving Away From the Pulsebeat – Post-Punk Britain 1977-1981 is a 105-track, 5CD that advertises a "compendium of familiar names, underground oddities and freshly excavated nuggets." Selling points to be sure. But let's get down to the music!

The compilation zeroes in on bands who arrived in the combustible days during and following the initial anti-establishment charge of punk, which revolutionized the way music was created. While the period produced a glut of still-relevant icons – the Clash, Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Cure, the Jam – plenty of their contemporaries burned brightly for a moment and then disappeared, washing their hair, removing the nose pins and maybe leaving behind some good tunes.

What comes through loud and clear on this compilation are not only the recognizable names – Ultravox, XTC, Sisters of Mercy – but the lesser known bands and the gems created from cult heroes, one-hit wonders and several all-but-forgotten bands who produced a pretty hefty concoction of grit, fizz and buzz.

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Glaxo Babies' "Stay Awake" hooks you with its doom-and-gloom cadence and the campy twang of the guitar. The Raincoats' "Adventures Close to Home" is a minimalist, experimental jaunt with a slightly Japanese-inspired backbeat that clocks in just under two minutes.

The compilation gets its title from the Buzzcocks, whose release from 1978 sits comfortably in the timeframe. Galloping along at five and a half minutes, the track's driving rhythm would offer a bedrock that was built upon by bands that came soon after, namely Bow Wow Wow ("C30 C60 C90 Go") and Adam and the Ants, whose "Tabletalk" sounds like an ultra slow-motion, echo-y cousin to the Buzzcocks' tune.

For some listeners, the names here will have zero impact unless you're a hardcore devotee or actually had these 45s spinning on a Garrad turntable in your flat back in 1981. But all of them are prime for rediscovery: Helsinki 5 Below with "Jennifer Darling," Swell Maps "Black Velvet" (a band that had a heavy influence on Sonic Youth and Pavement), Essential Bop with the synth-heavy and snarl of "Chronicle," and Occult Chemistry's "Water," a group fronted by Martha Tilson who went onto A Certain Ratio.

Lene Lovitch's "Bird Song," included here, is instantly recognizable from her quirky, high-pitch intro yodel. But it was her off-kilter fashion sense and staccato movements, combined with a solid backbeat and inventive use of keyboards, that placed her at the vanguard of what would eventually become the next big thing: new wave.

Moving Away From the Pulsebeat – Post-Punk Britain 1977-1981 is available from Cherry Red Records website. The box set, with songs presented in chronological order, comes with a detailed booklet containing band bios, disc imagery and sleeve notes.