I was less than two years old when (in early 1980) The Effigies formed and became one of Chicago's first and most important punk rock bands. They (along with bands like Naked Raygun) can be credited with creating the Chicago-style punk rock sound of the 80's. Driven by forceful guitars (a la The Buzzcocks) and the down-to-earth lyrics of frontman John Kezdy, the band was (unlike a lot of other "punk" bands) never afraid to write a catchy melody.
The band released the Haunted Town 12" in late 1981 and then the Bodybag/Security 7" in 1982 on their own Ruthless Records which also put out the debut records from Steve Albini's Big Black and even Naked Raygun. In addition to touring the country multiple times, The Effigies released an EP and three-full lengths before breaking up in 1986.
The band reformed in 1987, performed with a few different lineups, and called it quits again in 1990. In 1995 (however) the original members agreed to rerelease almost all of their early material on the Remains Nonviewable retrospective on Touch & Go Records in late 1995 and reunited for a few shows in late 1995 and early 1996.
Interestingly enough, my chance to see The Effigies live in action has not yet passed. The band (featuring 3 of the 4 original members) has been playing shows again since 2004, but (alas) hasn't released any new material in 20 years. For a better rundown of their history than I could ever hope to write, go here or here.
MP3 | The Effigies - Body Bag Bodybag/Security 7"
MP3 | The Effigies - Mob Clash Haunted Town EP
MP3 | The Effigies - We're Da Machine We're Da Machine EP
MP3 | The Effigies - The Eights Fly On A Wire
1 Comments ↓
The new album is kind of mediocre
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