Middle Class
I don’t know if this is coincidence, or pure dumb luck, or what have you. I had just finished drafting a post on LA’s Middle Class when I stopped over to Agony Shorthand only to find out that Jay had hammered out an excellent writeup on the band’s A Blueprint For Joy CD just a couple of days ago. Needless to say, his commentary puts mine to shame. My first thought was to ditch this, but I decided fuck it. Just do yourself a favor and read it - it’s spot on. When done, stop back and take a listen. If your too lazy to go a’clicking here’s the scoop:
In 1978 Middle Class appeared out of Fullerton, CA and released their legendary Out Of Vogue EP. Many a scholar has hailed this as the first true example of hardcore, and for good reason. Four short, hopped up punk blasts with rapid fire vocals that sounds revolutionary for the time. A couple of additional tracks in similar vein appeared a year later on the Tooth & Nail compilation. 1980 saw the release of the Scavenged Luxury EP. Compared to Out of Vogue the material on Scavenged Luxury is tame: Slower tempos, darting bass lines, and some jagged guitar. The early Gang of Four/Joy Division influence is undeniable. This would carry over to their only full length, 1982’s Homeland which featured a darker, more subdued set of songs. Not bad by any stretch, but missing the gut fire that propelled the earlier material. Some samples:
from 1978’s Out of Vogue:
Middle Class - Out of Vogue.mp3
Middle Class - Situations.mp3
from 1980’s Scavenged Luxury:
Middle Class - Home Is Where.mp3
Middle Class - A Blueprint For Joy.mp3
from 1982’s Homeland LP
Middle Class - Restless Young Men.mp3
>> I believe the A Blueprint For Joy CD is now out of print. Find it if you can - both EP’s the Tooth and Nail cuts, and a crapload of solid live tracks
>> pics scavenged from the Punk Rock In SoCal discography at CollectorScum
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Restless Young Men actually reminds me of the Feelies, if the Feelies were grouchier and not a spacey.
Those “Out Of Vogue” tracks sound like some sort of space/time-glitch comparable to something like the Electric Eels; unbelievable they recorded that in ‘78. Funny thing is, as you compared their later output to Gang Of Four, early GO4 label Fast Products actually released Out Of Vogue & Situations in the UK! (On a comp EP called Earcom3)
I have to admit, I was being lazy - skipping the text and heading straight for the MP3s. I listened to “Out of Vogue” and thought, “Oh, I like how they had that singing bit on top of the more traditionally hardcore vocals.”
Then I looked at the date of the EP and thought it was about time I read some hardcore history, because I clearly have the timeline all wrong. Then I read your post, and realized what the hell was going on. …but I should still find some hardcore history.
The brother have store in fullerton called…….OUT OF VOGUE, check em out outofvogue.com
this article made me an instant middle class fanatic. i found this on ebay. http://cgi.ebay.com/MIDDLE-CLASS-out-of-vogue-discography-CD-mint_W0QQitemZ4763892009QQcategoryZ307QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
but can’t find a lick of info to decide whether it is real or more bootleg. the seller says it’s out on Deny Everything records out of germany. if you know anything I’d be glad to hear it. thanks
First heard this in 1982, it blew me away. It still does.
I always wondered: how did their contemporaries view them? Was their music influential? They rarely get mentioned as a source of inspiration.
I used to hang a little bit with Mike Patton (bass player) when he worked at the Licorice Pizza on Tustin Ave. Middle Class one of the top bands when the OC scene exploded. Too bad people are just starting to get it. Check it out, Mike P. was part of The Adolescents blue album recording. I remember seeing TSOL, Social Distortion, The Adolescents etc. open for Middle Class during the Coo Coo’s Nest/Vex/Starwood days. They were fucking hot live!!! The records show a growth in a band/song writing sense, but live it was always heavy, fast and kick ass!!
Hey it is cool that somebody remembers us. When we were first playing OC was a real waste land.
Can seem to find my Middle Class stuff, too bad the traxx are gone. Anyone know anywhere in the blogsphere where I can find it? Thanks.
i just got the blueprint for joy album
its great