From: jeremy@sw.oz.au (Jeremy Fitzhardinge)
Newsgroups: rec.music.industrial
Subject: Re: SEVERED HEADS BREAKUP? OUCH!
Date: 9 Apr 92 05:11:14 GMT
Organization: Softway Pty Ltd

In <30540@skye.dcs.ed.ac.uk> awrc@dcs.ed.ac.uk (Al Crawford) writes:

>And lo, heagleda@cnsvax.uwec.edu spake unto the masses saying:
>>
>> Severed Heads? Breaking up? <ULP!>
>
>Yep. Although I wouldn't normally quote private e-mail in news without
>getting permission beforehand, Tom seems to have been *very* quiet lately
>(nary a peep heard from him in weeks), so I feel he won't mind me including
>the following quote..
>
>"Sev's will do a show 3rd April in Sydney and then really think hard about
>breaking up completely. A pity but most people really don't care for it
>anymore. We'll see."

I went to the show and enjoyed it a lot.  Tom seemed to be in a very
irritable mood though.  He played pretty much a "standard" set (Greater
Reward, Pilot in Hell, Twister, All Saints Day, Harold and Cindy
Hospital, Big Car, Dead Eyes Opened), and refused to do an encore ("No
means NO!").  Rumors were flying (Brian Eno to do graphics, this was
the last ever gig (like Big Bigot was going to be the last album?
:-)).  I suspect that he was expecing more adulation from the crowd,
but mistimed it.

At the previous concert he was reluctant to do an encore, partly because
there seemed to be technical problems with the video.  The were sorted out
and there was an encore that time (Rotund for Success I think).

>> I don't know if I could handle Severed Heads disbanding! Would it help to
>> send mail to Tom, begging he keep it together?
>
>I don't think the problem is really with Tom - he's not gotten bored with
>Severed Heads, far from it, he seems to have plenty of plans for it and the
>Coklacoma project. The problem seems to be with the record companies -
>someone else posted here that Nettwerk had given "Cuisine" zero promotion.
>The same is true here in Europe with PIAS.
>
>When "Retread" was released here back in January I found a total of *2*
>copies in the shops, one in a "Compilation CDs" rack and another in a "Sex
>Pistols" bin. While "Retread" had been released in Australia at CD single
>price, the UK price was about #10 which, while cheaper than a full-price
>album, was still considerably more than a CD single or even a mid-price CD.
>
>Add to that the "promotion" of "Retread" - it was released here in January
>[...]
>selling, despite good reviews.

Cuisine got quite a lot of promotion, air time etc here. There was also
the Volition TechoPop gig at the Phonecian at the end of last year,
which also promoted "Single Gun Theory" and "Box Car" (ik, but..).
There was plentiful supply about. Retread however...  The only place
I've heard about it is on r.m.i, and I've seem precisely one copy of
it, the one I own.  It was only $11 though.  I think it was binned
with Kitaro.

>OK, so the reviews were generally good but...
>
>1) They came out two months too late and failed to mention the low price of
>the disc.
>2) PIAS weren't getting the disc into the shops.
>
>As for "Cuisine" - that was scheduled for a February UK release but I've
>yet to see a copy, even though it's almost April.

>Personally I'll be saddened if Tom does stop making music but given the way
>he's being treated by PIAS and Nettwerk I wouldn't blame him if he did. If
>you want to write to anyone, write to Nettwerk or PIAS, although I doubt
>very much they'll listen.

I really like Severed Heads' work, but I wouldn't mind if Tom made a 
break for it and started production under a new name.  I think perhaps
people are confused by Slashing the Old May West compared to Pilot in Hell.
Cuisine/Piscatorial summed it up really.  I still like Quest for Omm Pa Pa.
Perhaps Ellard is feeling hemmed in by commercial demands that seem to be
made on 'Severed Heads'.  In a radio interview late last year he seemed to
say that Cuisine was the result of commercial pressure, but Piscatorial
was purely what he wants to do.

--
jeremy@softway.sw.oz.au ph:+61 2 698 2322-x122 fax:+61 2 699 9174
Many a wonderful picnic has been spoiled by Blubberknife.