DISCO ZOMBIES – DRUMS OVER LONDON

— Dan on September 7, 2011 at 10:59 pm

Disco Zombies
Drums Over London

Purchase

Vinyl is sold out! Check stores and distributors. Digital still available from iTunes, Beatport , Amazon and other reputable services.
Itunes all territories: Drums Over London - Disco Zombies

The Disco Zombies should rank high in the pantheon of legendary English DIY punk bands, but a frustrating career of bad timing, record label mismanagement and three terrific singles slipping through the cracks have kept them in the shadows.

In 1977 they were Leicester’s greatest punk band but the single that might have shot them to the top of the UK heap, filled with pop gems like Top of the Pops and Punk A Go Go, was scrapped at the last possible minute due to a production company implosion.

Still hopeful, they moved to London and prepared for stardom. They recorded and released the John Peel favorite “Drums Over London” themselves, a song whose satire may have been too subtle for the masses. Sung from the viewpoint of a xenophobic right-winger, many took it as racist and it found fans among the crowd they were trying to critique. Peel had to explain to Rock Against Racism it actually supported their views!

Due to the success of Drums Over London, their first single finally saw release as The Invisible EP. Unfortunately as it was a year late it was seen as being out of time and quickly sank without a trace. With hindsight we can hear it for what it really was, an EP of killer pop-punk. And had it come out on time, their Top of the Pops would’ve beaten the Rezillos to the charts by 6 months.

One more single—an artier affair with a drum machine and DIY atmosphere—was released. Here Come the Buts backed by Mary Millington, their tribute to England’s most famous porn star suicide, marry a more post-punk atmosphere of repetitious drum machine programming with their usual infectious melodies and snarling guitars.

Three more aborted records followed and more songs, only ever played live, were heard by increasingly fewer people as the punk dream gave way.

But now, at long last, The Disco Zombies—a great pop band with catchy hooks, witty lyrics and infectious energy—can be appreciated by the rest of us. Available for the first time since their release, The Disco Zombies’ three classic, collectible singles, coupled with seven bonus unreleased tracks, are featured on the new Acute Records compilation LP Drums Over London. In addition, the digital download contains a complete live set including five more songs not recorded or heard anywhere else, as well as some choice covers that will prove the Disco Zombies are more than another forgotten punk rock hard-luck story.

[expand title=TRACKLIST AND DOWNLOADS]
Several sample tracks for previewing and sharing are below. Control/right-click names to download individual songs.

side a
1. Top of the Pops
2. Time Will Tell
3. Punk A Go Go

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/03 Disco Zombies-Punk A Go Go.mp3]

4. Disco Zombies
5. TV Screen Existence
6. Drums Over London

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/06 Disco Zombies-Drums Over London.mp3]

7. Heartbeats Love
8. Here Come the Buts

side b
1. Mary Millington

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/09 Disco Zombies- Mary Millington.mp3]

2. The Year of the  Sex Olympics
3. Target Practice
4. New Scars
5. Paint It Red

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/13 Disco Zombies-Paint It Red.mp3]

6. Greenland
7. Where Have You Been Lately Tony Hateley

bonus tracks included with digital download:
Recorded Live at the Music Machine, October 1980
1. Boolean Procedure
2. Night of the Big Heat

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/17 Disco Zombies-Night of the Big Heat.mp3]

3. Sad Skinhead
4. Again Again
5. Dead Finks/Here Come the Buts
6. Not Another Hit
7. Lee Harvey Oswald

[/expand]

[expand title=BONUS UNRELEASED SONGS]
Throwaway Line

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/23 Disco Zombies-Throwaway Line.mp3]

Man From U.N.C.L.E.

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/24 Disco Zombies-Man From UNCLE.mp3]

Honesty

[audio:http://www.acuterecords.com/sounds/ACU013/samples/25 Disco Zombies-Honesty.mp3]

[/expand]

[expand title=ORIGINAL SLEEVES]

The Invisible E.P. recorded April 78, released 79. Front


The Invisible E.P. recorded April 1978, released 1979. Back


Drums Over London/Heartbeats Love released 1979. Front


Drums Over London/Heartbeats Love released 1979. Back


Drums Over London/Heartbeats Love released 1979. Outside Spread


Drums Over London/Heartbeats Love released 1979. Inside Spread


Here Come the Buts/Mary Millington released 1980. Front


Here Come the Buts/Mary Millington released 1980. Back
[/expand]

[expand title=PHOTOS]

[/expand]

[expand title=SCRAPBOOK]


0533 #5 scans care of Chuck Warner/hyped2death

 


Safety In Number #5, scan from Bored Teenagers


Safe as Milk #2, scan from Bored Teenagers

[/expand]

10 Comments »

  1. Hey – whats the deal with the Drums Over London track? I bought this in 1979 is Bodmin, Cornwall!!! Love it!!! Please get in touch and let me know if you’ve re-released it on CD.

    Mark

    Comment by Mark — October 1, 2011 @ 1:07 pm
  2. Sorry, no CD. Vinyl with download, or digital download from most good sites. Lossless files from Boomkat.

    Comment by Dan — October 1, 2011 @ 6:31 pm
  3. hi,
    great lp, thanks a lot!! knew only the title-track up to now.
    bought it new a few weeks ago from german mailorder “bis aufs messer” and just realised that there is no downloadcode card included. could you send me a code please?
    or did i get something wrong?
    ciao
    Al

    Comment by Al — October 28, 2012 @ 7:57 am
  4. I tried emailing you but got no response. Please email info at acuterecords to follow up.

    Comment by Dan — November 13, 2012 @ 7:24 pm
  5. Hi,
    Trying to download the Disco Zombies album, but it’s only availablee on US itunes. Any chance of putting it on UK itunes so I can buy it as US itunes won’t let me.
    Cheers
    Darren

    Comment by Darren — June 23, 2013 @ 4:56 am
  6. Should be on UK iTunes, will look into it. Sorry fell behind on the blog. Any queries best sent to info @ acuterecords dot com.

    Comment by Dan — August 5, 2013 @ 4:33 pm
  7. Darren, don’t know if you’ve checked back, but I see Drums Over London on UK iTunes. Email me directly if you’re still having problems.

    Comment by Dan — August 20, 2013 @ 1:23 pm
  8. Hi there. Are the three bonus tracks on this page no longer available for download?

    Comment by Michael Bennet — December 11, 2014 @ 8:56 am
  9. Hey. Sorry for the problem. Try again now. Some wacky stuff has been going on with this website and the link seemed to not work anymore. I just updated it and it should work.

    Comment by Dan — December 16, 2014 @ 10:00 pm
  10. Hi there guys, lets repress it please? ??

    Comment by Marcus — July 27, 2021 @ 12:07 pm

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