This vile rapport.

This vile rapport.

Life Support like many kitchen sink bands started out with one guitar two spoons, three chairs with four legs and many hands. What followed is the long legged tale of leg ends.

With borrowed gear their first gig was to 500 at the St. Andrews pre-university audience
 of 1981. The Rock goes to College intro led to a frenzy of excitement among the 16 & 17 year olds as they got their first taste of the students union and general university life. The screaming would quickly subside as the band made several false starts, a stuttering start they would use at every gig thereafter.

Rock'n'roll, romantic turn(just wanted am rocks off), waiting for the man, UMC, on the dole, people at their best, sweet Jane, londons burning.

A straight mix of one velvet's classic for every one of their own until the Clash finally cleared the audience.

By the end 100 shell shocked teenagers stared at the stage. Vin's bare arse splits doing nothing to distract from the sound.

By June they had returned but the audience hadn't. This audience had heard the banana album so the gig was structured around new songs and a few of the classics.

On the dole, teenage kicks, on your own. Stop, sweet Jane we're quickly rattled out and the band were in a groove. The crowd had swollen and 200 bemused students stared in wonderment at the transformation, the seemingly impossible had happened and the band had practiced and seemed tight almost professional.

In the end, people at their best, why, sallies boy, romantic turn followed and so did fatigue. All their own compositions the band clearly hadn't learnt the songs. Reckless Eric's whole wide world steadied the ship before last time, on your own and londons burning closed the gig. Schools out Alice Cooper shouted and as the band looked out at Jim and a few others, they knew the first bus had gone.

Already the first of 12 band changes had taken place. It was June 1982. Simon was on bass and it would not be long before the girls arrived.

First Susan and then for Christmas Hilary arrived too. The band played at St. Andrews as well as the Tayside bar in Dundee where Vin's gold lammie came unstuck as he straddled a table only to find his meat and two veg had fallen into an ashtray full of smouldering fags.


As if the sight was not gharish enough both the sound of crackling pubic hair and the smell of burning bawbag flesh would put the punters off their fags never mind their joints.

Happily the bad look was quickly tidied away and the singers squeals calmed as the band rolled on, and on and on.

The first album had been produced in one hectic day of recording and mixing at Inner City studios Dundee.

This will never be
Romantic turn (rocks off)
In the end
On your own
Out of sight out of mind
Penny drops
On the shore
Sweet Jane
Stop
Londons burning

It might have been the best move the band ever made. Recording the demo

taught them about the music and the sound they were trying to produce and these songs, the Noise with poise album, would sound so much better live now, although that wasn't too difficult.

Being in tune, knowing the lyrics, the arrangement, with the kitchen table band had gone, a new sophisticated beast emerged.

It wasn't long until drummer Dave had seen enough and as he departed Gav Duncan arrived. The girls left in the summer of 83. When love breaks down the band found themselves fumbling in the dark.

Mark rolled another fat one and everything was fine. Vin was now in Edinburgh and rehearsal time was rare. Well to be fair, it always had been pretty rare. Nobody had a degree yet and the clock was ticking.

The summer of 1983 would see Deadbeat sales rising and Vin had made his choice. Issues 13 & 14 had come out to coincide with his final exams whilst 16 & 17 coincided with the final August resits. His meltdown would continue for another year as he dragged his resits into 1984. Now he could get back to concentrating on the band again.

The band put 3 tracks onto the first deadbeat tape that year. All from the noise with poise album and gigs followed the publicity. Whilst clearly one of the weaker acts on the tape the inclusion of twisted nerve ensured they weren't the worst! The tape was typically eclectic and had sounds from the pure harmonies of sunset gun through the velvety sounds of young Scotland to the triumphant organ and keyboards of the early 80s pop sound. It brought gigs. It brought Galashiels.

1983 would also see the band booked for Sallies Ball. St Salvator's finest clearly had no idea who or what they were booking but Dr Jim the manager was well connected and the 2am shift was theirs. Battling through a 2 hour set saw them come unstuck just before dawn when the organisers finally marched them off the premises. The set list included "Why", "Double Pernod" and "L'amour Biscuit...they call it biscuit love"









1984 - February

1984 - July

3 tracks showing Life Support's distinctly unique and confused style. From the dark brooding love song About You, through the nuclear wasteland of 'the penny drops...as the mushroom rises',to a throwaway teenage kicks arrangement, State of Mind the band were rarely restrained by their influences, more by their instruments.

"About you" starts with sharp guitar, then poppy bass before heavy snare, adds a wee scare, a hint of the darkness to come. "I felt I sensed the worst, the day that I met you, you radiated something special, a sort of instant doom...". Its not a love story. The complete opposite of The Police's "every breath you take". This is the song of a man being stalked, then trapped and powerless to evade. He shouts but you feel the voice is suffocated. Unlucky Pal, you've no chance is what this reviewer thinks.

The only link between 'About You' and 'The Penny Drops' is the despair you feel for the character. The Penny Drops starts with heavy rising bass before "a loud bang, alarm bells ring" and the drums are smashing you ear drums. "The penny drops as the mushroom rises" tells the story of a lonely survivor and wanders into the era that gave us Trainspotting. The drugs culture in the late 70's and early 80's saw Edinburgh one of the homes of AIDS. This song clearly compares the imagined post Nuclear landscape to the carnage being reaped by Thatcher on communities in Scotland. Its a song that could've made the Trainspotting sound track.

State of Mind is a return to simple songs in C, F & G. Two verses, two chorus, middle eight and a final chorus. Easy on the ear and so derivative of Teenage Kicks, but good for it.









If 1984 had heralded the single 1985 brought more gigs and more band changes. By the time the band played La Sorbonne Rich and Ross had arrived on guitar and drums. Vin's hair was causing a fire hazard every time he lit a fag and his voice was as shit as ever.

A huge set list saw many old favourites ditched as the vile rapport developed their sound. A new wall of noise had replaced the nascent and naive noise with poise. Intricate velvets influenced guitar work started many songs before the groove was established.

The set list read

Psychosis (strangers in alleyway)
Mothers son
The donkey
On your own
Teenage kicks
Fall from grace
Cafe bar Jazz distractions
Love on the sea

Mongoloid
Watch you grow
Platform 99
Mountainous task
Stay free
All right on the night
Sweet Jane




A late summer gig at Baxter Park (advertised in issue 31 as Caird Park) saw the band join Plastic Surgery, AGGA and a few more on a somewhat dreich Dundee day. By the time the band performed Hilary and the travelling support were the only ones left to play to, so they did. Clearly the crowd had got lost searching for  Caird Park






As 1985 drew to a close the band pitched up at Riccarton to play as a five piece. Rich would have his swansong as Gordon learned the tunes. The band brought a bus load from the Avon Hotel out to Heriot Watt's fine campus and along with three bemused students started to party from the first note, which was of course the debut single.

About You
Teengage Kicks
Romantic Turn
Love on the Sea
Alright on the night
The Donkey
Richard's Song
Sweet Jane
Saturday Night
People at their best
Standing (at the edge)
Terrified
State of Mind
Time will tell
The Penny Drops
On your own
Stay Free

Were some of the songs that night in November. A real mixture of songs from the earliest days and the more intricate later sound. A complete "mish mash of shite" as one reviewer called it. Thankfully it was recorded on a 4 track so we can now listen to it and remix it. On its own the bass really does sound superb, taken individually both guitars sound pretty special too, its just when you turn the volume up on them all that you realise not all members of the band had the same set list.



By 1986 it was time to switch off the machine. As Rich had left Gordon Tucker arrived. Tucker had added even more finesse to the guitar riffs.

The band got together at the barn and played the driving beats of

Hiawatha
Love you girl
Waiting for my time (move your feet)
Johnny (aka Michael)
Mountainous task
On your own
Stay free
Watch you grow
Fall from Grace

Their sound was now characterised by repetitive riffs that would start slow grow to a crescendo then start again. It was a groove the band never found. It looked unlikely they would find it and that's why they stopped, or not as the case may be as endings were frequently aborted. The structure that was imposed on early songs had given way to a jamming mentality which would work with musos but not these bozos. Vin would sing across the instrumental, Ross would destroy the drums during the quiet spell and they had the timing of a bad Neil Smith joke.

Still they could laugh. It was a five year apprenticeship for Simon and 30 years later he's still going strong.

The band got back together for 4 well chosen tracks and nailed them before heading to the bar in 2012, who knows what another practice might do!

A recording studio has been sourced in Bilbao and 2017 will see them back making noise.



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