Better Than Coffee: A Fierce Pancake
Good morning! Fancy A Fierce Pancake for breakfast?
HOW MUCH IS THE FISH? HOW MUCH IS THE CHIPS?! (Lara! Thank you!)
Eee! How could I have forgotten about these freakwads? I once loved their one-and-only studio album, A Fierce Pancake with the same passion reserved for exceptional goofballs like Primus, Billy Nayer Show, Mr Bungle, Idiot Flesh, Violent Femmes, Fishbone, and Adam the the Ants. But it’s been a long, long time since I last listened…
Is it just me, or does Mick Lynch look uncannily like Siege (yanno, if Siege were crossed with Ed Grimley and a lemur)?
Formed in London in 1983, Stump were a legendary Anglo-Irish indie/experimental/rock group inspired by Captain Beefheart. The lineup was Kev Hopper on bass, Rob McKahey on drums, Chris Salmon on guitar, and Mick Lynch on vocals. They toured a lot in the mid 80s on a couple of brilliant, bizarre EPs, and their energetic live shows quickly earned them a cult following. Then they got signed to a major label, apparently squabbled constantly during the production of AFP and broke up soon afterward, a quarter of a million pounds in debt to their record company, and never to be heard from again.*
The entire album is cracked fucking genius. It’s also very difficult to track down anymore. Beg, borrow, steal a copy if you can.
*Hopper has more recently written and compiled extensive material relating to the band, you can read it all here. He’s also made his entire solo discography available for free download (but don’t ignore that donate button, heathens!) and there’s some amazing stuff. I’m currently listening to his prodigious musical saw album, Saurus, and grinning like an idiot.
February 8th, 2010 at 5:57 am
I LOVED these guys. Thanks for starting my morning off right, Mer!
February 8th, 2010 at 9:10 am
I bumped into Mick Lynch sometime in the summer of 1992, he was working as a stagehand at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden when I was on the construction crew rebuilding the scenery dock. Pavarotti was trying to rehearse and bitching about all the dust and flouncing around with seven silk scarves around his precious neck. Mick and his crew were getting paid double-bubble to clean up all the dust that me and my crew were blowing into the Auditorium in the process of knocking down several walls.
He was instantly recognisable with the distinctive haircut we had a good few lunchtime beers. ‘Bit-part Actor’ was always my favourite song.
BTW my mate Kev who was also on our crew was working as an editor on ‘the Tube’ when this performance of Tupperware Stripper was recorded’.
February 8th, 2010 at 2:49 pm
Very cool! Thanks for sharing. And if you liked Hopper’s saw music, you might like to go to the Musical Saw Festival in NYC :) If you don’t know about it: http://www.musicalsawfestival.org
February 8th, 2010 at 3:08 pm
Alex, that’s a fantastic story. And I clicked the link to your site and realized you’re one of Fortean Times’ main illustrators. Love your stuff!
Michelle, that’s an excellent suggestion. I always meant to check out the Musical Saw Festival when I was living in NYC, but never did, and now I’m in New Zealand. Ah well. Someday….
My old pal Danny and I have some saw/theremin duets in the works. I’m planning to go back to Oakland and record them with him in April. Woohoo!
February 9th, 2010 at 3:45 am
Cheers for the kind words Mer. I am constantly amazed by how cool so many of the FT fans are, it does seem to be a bit of a guilty pleasure for many. Apparently Neil Gaiman’s cat, ‘Princess’ reads it with her bottom. Top endorsement :)http://journal.neilgaiman.com/2008/07/black-on-black.html
February 9th, 2010 at 10:39 am
thanks for posting this, mer. probably my favourite thing to come out of Scotland along with fire engines..
February 9th, 2010 at 10:42 am
err.. goes to show how little i know.
February 9th, 2010 at 9:58 pm
Thank you for bringing this lost memory back to life! And while I would NEVER advocate such things… http://isohunt.com/torrent_details/91487925/stump+%22a+fierce+pancake%22?tab=summary
February 10th, 2010 at 9:40 am
i guess i should have read the article. i immediately thought “Siege doesn’t sound like he’s from nola at all…”