Another important band of the early 80's punk scene in Honolulu was The Squids. The Squids actually leaned more on the side of new wave, not in a Knackish skinny tie way, but much more in the mutant rock style of Devo, the Suburban Lawns or the B-52's. Lots of faux Farfisa and angular bristled guitar jabbing, with catchy songs to boot- the song "Tourist Riot" is the best song off their self titled seven inch, leading-off with a trancy synth line and detailing a nightmare fantasy of locals at war with the toursit population, leaving singer Beano Shots to scream "Ah, fuck it! I'm gonna move to New York city!" The other tunes show a lot of variety for just a four song single, from the ska tinged "Rio" to the Venturesish surf guitar instrumental "Love Theme From Surf Boy", while ending with the rattling guitar explosions that punctuate "In." They were a fun sounding, kitcshy group with lots of bright pinks and cheesy leisures suits to match the quirky day-gloish music. It was also reissued, for a 20th anniversary 7 inch in 2001, put out by longtime local punk label Hawaiian Express, and copies are still available through their website. Another interesting factoid about the Squids is that Beano Shot's son Matty also became involved in the Hawaii punk scene later on with the bands The Ex-Superheroes and Vax.DOWNLOAD
BUY THE REISSUE SEVEN INCH HERE
Hi, I don't know how to contact you as you suggest on the top page.
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to say that I think it's great that you're using photos and mp3s from the Hawaii Punk Museum, but could you give me credit for that when you do? I see at least six entries here that have stuff from my site.
It took me years to collect all of that stuff, as a participant in the scene of the 70s and 80s and it's kinda harsh to see my archives presented under someone elses name.
Enough guilt tripping though. The important thing is that people get to enjoy the bands.
Thanks,
Dave Carr