Image from http://problemchildrenmusic.tumblr.com/
In 1986, relatively pure, 1977-inspired punk rock was nearly extinct.
If bands weren’t incorporating thrash metal and string-shredding guitar solos, they were toning down their sound to try to appeal to college students and hipsters.
That year, Hamilton’s Problem Children’s put out their first full length, The Future of the World is Up to Us.
It must have been a breath of fresh air to the die-hards.
With very few exceptions, the songs – whether short, snotty blasts like “Red Dyed Hair”, or anthemic, poppy singalongs like “We Are the Children” – sound like they couldn’t have been recorded any later than ’78.
Formed in 1982 as the Tits, the band had to change its name in order to get gigs.
In 1985, a demo entitled “Fuck Yuz All” appeared on the scene, followed by the lp and a five-song ep entitled “On The Air,” both of which contained songs that dated back to 1982.
Both the demo and the subsequent ep were more raw and hardcore than the lp; in all, however, the band maintained a sound that owed more to the Sex Pistols and Generation X then to Black Flag or Minor Threat.
A couple of later tracks, included on the career overview album Long Weekend (1989), show the band moving into more mainstream territory – for which vocalist Jamie now apologizes.
After an aborted second lp, More Noize, which didn’t see the light of day until years later, the band continued to sputter on until 2000.
“I was a 35 year old alcoholic who had spent more than half of his life in a band that was spinning it’s wheels”, Jamie writes.
At its best, Problem Children’s music sounds as refreshing today as it must have in 1986.
Jamie writes that, while some of his lyrics “seem trite and naive now, the real meaning behind those songs was empowerment. The power to do what you want, say what you want, and most of all, think what you want.”
Problem Children’s music will, hopefully, continue to inspire those who are lucky enough to be exposed to it.
Vocalist Jamie’s blog, including band history:
http://problemchildrenmusic.tumblr.com/
“We Are the Children” on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIao0R9MR3Q
“Red Dyed Hair” on Youtube:
Germ Attack 