No Trend were a noise rock/post-punk band from Ashton, Maryland that were around from 1982 to 1988. The first incarnation of the band was a four-piece, comprised of members who came into the band with a punk/hardcore background. Despite this, they were intentionally antagonistic towards the DC scene they existed in the periphery of, wanting to eschew the subculture that had grown out of it. They set out to make music that they wanted to make, with no creed or agenda, and it shows. For their early material, Flipper and Saccharine Trust are often cited as loose comparisons, though No Trend really did occupy a space of their own. Teen Love was their debut, a 7" they self-released (as they would for the majority of their material). This was followed up by a full-length, Too Many Humans. These are the best introductions to the band, as they immediately throw you into the misanthropic, nihilistic world they created. Through driving bass lines, pummelling drums, and trebly feedback-laden guitars, vocalist Jeff Mentges delivered shrieks, screams, and the occasional spoken word. It makes for an impactful listen, and highly recommended to anyone looking for raw, unbridled negativity.
Following these early years, the band experienced a line-up overhaul, with Mentges being the only original member left for by their second album. 1985's A Dozen Dead Roses was a major shift from the overt, noisy and hardcore-adjacent sound they were founded on. Though there are still flashes of that, they expanded their sonic palette to include elements of funk and jazz, while keeping the bass as the driving force behind these songs. Instrumentally, their palette is widened to include synths and saxophones, and the guitars are laden with chorus, taking on a more traditional lead role with a litany of classic rock-esque solos. A handful of tracks were also done as collabs with Lydia Lunch, which were also released on a separate EP. Overall, I absolutely love this album, as much as their early work, because it maintains that desperate, pessimistic aggression while exploring a new, genuinely unique avenue.
By 1986, the band had now rounded out as 12-piece to include strings, horns, and synths as mainstays of their sound. They continued on this wave of hybrid experimentation into their next full-length, with more layers of instrumentation and a cleaner sound. This record was put out by Touch And Go, their first to not be self-released. It was followed by another album slated to be released in 1989, but was shelved until 2001. More, as it became, completed their full heel-turn into deconstructionist jazz-funk, with their cleanest sound to date, but too Beefheartian avant-garde to ever come close to a traditional rock outfit.
No Trend were a one-of-a-kind band with an equally intriguing legacy. There's a few great articles that came out around the reissue of Too Many Humans / Teen Love, which I suggest checking from Bandcamp, The Washington Post and Tidal for more information. If you're new to this band, the aforementioned reissue is probably your best bet for a starting point. Enjoy.
1. Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease
2. Cancer
3. Teen Love
1. Family Style
2. Blow Dry
3. Reality Breakdown
4. Kiss Ass To Your Peer Group
5. Fashion Tips For The 80's
6. Do As You're Told
7. Too Many Humans
8. For The Fun Of It All
9. Mindless Little Insects
10. Happiness Is...
1. Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease
2. Cancer
3. Die
4. Teen Love
5. Untitled
1. Two Seconds Til Non Existance
2. Die
3. Cancer
4. Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease
5. Too Many Humans
6. Fun Of It All
7. One Last Dream
8. Killing Me
9. Heartache
10. Mindless Little Insects
11. Blow
12. Teenlove
1. Your Love
2. Tear You Apart
3. The Curse
4. Who's To Say
1. Karma Nights
2. Your Love
3. Tear You Apart
4. Never Again
5. All Of Nothing
6. Good Day Mrs. Hamm
7. For The Fun Of It All
8. The Curse
9. Heartache
10. Who's To Say
1. One Under Parr
2. Copperhead
3. Without Me
4. Fred Reality
5. Space Disco
6. Cry Of The Dirtballs
7. Angel Angel Down We Go
8. Overweight Baby Boom Critter
9. Choc-O-Jet
10. Freak
11. Bel-Pre Rising
1. Cancer
2. Hanging Out In Georgetown
3. Kiss Ass
4. Family Style
5. Reality Breakdown
6. Human Garbage
7. Purple Paisleys Make Me Happy
8. Mass Sterilization
9. Teen Love
10. Turn Away
11. Cancer
12. Blow Dry
13. Polyester Man
14. Kiss Ass
15. Teen Love
16. Mass Sterilization
17. Hanging Out In Georgetown
18. Death
19. Punker
1. Intro
2. Fuzzy Dice
3. Sorry I Asked
4. Spank Me (With Your Love Monkey, Baby)
5. Last On Right, Second Row
6. Bel-Pre Declining
7. No Hopus Opus
1. Cancer
2. Hanging Out In Georgetown
3. Kiss Ass
4. Family Style
5. Reality Breakdown
6. Human Garbage
7. Purple Paisleys Make Me Happy
8. Mass Sterilization
9. Teen Love
10. Death (Live)
11. Punker (Live)
1. Family Style
2. Blow Dry
3. Reality Breakdown
4. Kiss Ass To Your Peer Group
5. Fashion Tips For The 80's
6. Do As You're Told
7. Too Many Humans
8. For The Fun Of It All
9. Mindless Insects
10. Happiness Is...
11. Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease
12. Cancer
13. Die
14. Teen Love
15. Untitled
16. Cancer (demo)
17. Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease (demo)
18. Teen Love (demo)
19. Hanging Out In Georgetown (demo)
20. Kiss Ass To Your Peer Group (demo)
21. Family Style (demo)
22. Reality Breakdown (demo)
23. Human Garbage (demo)
24. Purple Paisleys Make Me Happy (demo)
25. Do As You're Told (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
26. Fashion Tips For The 80's (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
27. Mindless Little Insects (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
28. Reality Breakdown (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
29. Teen Love (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
30. Cancer (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
31. Family Style (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
32. Blow Dry (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
33. Kiss Ass To Your Peer Group (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
34. Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease (live at Mabuhay Gardens, San Francisco, 1983)
35. Do As You're Told (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
36. Fashion Tips For The 80's (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
37. Mindless Little Insects (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
38. Reality Breakdown (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
39. Cancer (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
40. Family Style (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
41. Kiss Ass To Your Peer Group (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
42. Teen Love (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
43. Mass Sterilization Caused By Venereal Disease (live at Cathay de Grande, Hollywood, 1983)
There's shitloads of stuff here I've been looking for a long, thank you.
ReplyDelete