Be a Caveman: The Best of the Voxx Garage Revival (Garage/Psych/Indie compilation)

From 1979 onward, the Voxx label has been the home of more 1960s garage revivalist bands than any other company, although the label's activities tapered off in the early '90s. This is a 27-song survey of Voxx's output (excluding the actual '60s garage bands whose material it reissued occasionally). Many of these names were among the best-known groups in this rather insular movement, such as DMZ, the Crawdaddys, the Barracudas, Plan 9, the Unclaimed, the Pandoras, the Tell Tale Hearts, the Fuzztones, the Cynics, and the Chesterfield Kings. There are a few names that might be unfamiliar to those steeped in the style, like the Time Beings, the Leopards, the Event, and the Laughing Soup Dish. But even if you're the purist who only wants to hear the original 1960s garage recordings, you'll probably recognize most of these bands, if only because so many of them advertised in (and wrote for) fanzines detailing obscure 1960s garage music. The music on this disc? It's a cliché by now to note that it's not as exciting as the obscure 1960s recordings it's modeled on, but that's no less valid a statement than it ever was. Those songs that are covers of old nuggets don't match the original versions; much of the original material sounds like form without the content. Some non-standard garage influences peek through occasionally, such as surf, punk, and polished late-'60s British psychedelia, but for the most part it's bluesy, simple 1966-style ranting. the Leopards' late-'60s Kinks-style vaudeville-mod satire "Psychedelic Boy" really stands out (refreshingly so) in this context as something a little different. Should you want just one overview sampler of the genre, though, this -- despite the absence of some of the more celebrated names, such as the Lyres -- has got to be the best one out there.  

Track List

1. Left In The Dark - Vertebrats

2. Can't Stand The Pain - DMZ

3. There She Goes Again - Crawdaddys

4. This Ain't My Time - Barracudas

5. I'm Not There - Plan 9

6. Run From Home - Unclaimed

7. Melvin - Pandoras

8. Spooky - Gravedigger V

9. It's Not Me - Tell Tale Hearts

10. One Step Closer To You - Miracle Workers

11. Why Don't You Love Me - Time Beings

12. Green Slime - Fuzztones

13. I'll Make You Sorry - Odds

14. Nothing's From Today - Vipers

15. Waste Of Time - Cynics

16. Are You Gonna Be There - Chesterfield Kings

17. Dr. Syn - Stomachmouths

18. Bye Bye Baby - Wombats

19. Teenage Lima Bean - Laughing Soup Dish

20. Midnight Hour - Hypstrz

21. Fun In The Summer - Surf Trio

22. She Only Knows - Eyes Of Mind

23. Can't Get Enough - Things

24. Psychedelic Boy - Leopards

25. Living So Dead - Steppes

26. She's Our Girl - Event

27. Be A Caveman - Dwarves

AMG Review by Richie Unterberger