The Cardiacs

Purveyors of truly demented music, the Cardiacs' nonpeggability may be one of the reasons for their lack of exposure in their British homeland press, creating a ridiculous blender of sharp power-pop, crazy circus music, punk aesthetic and dense flurries of prog. Think a more synth-heavy Drums and Wires-era XTC, excuse the lazy journalistic term, on acid (yes, it has been said), while chasing its tail around at high speed cramming in as many notes and time changes as possible and you get sort of a picture of what's going on here. While that may seem either exciting or dreadful to you personally (reactions to me playing them on air and to associates are quite polar to say the least), they definitely have a following of hardcore fans, myself included. My Finnish pal Jussi, whom I tip the hat to for this amazing video (10MB mpeg download or view here) has even flown on occasion to England just to see them! Despite having quite a few albums, you can't find them in too many places, though your chances in the USA are good here. Word has it that Ipecac Records has some reissues up their sleeve, but for now I guess those are just rumors. More videos of them on You Tube too, of course.

Comments

[fatty jubbo]

I have been obsessed with this video since I first saw it. I watched it over and over one week...pretty much memorizing it. That kick to the head! Those faces. The kiss. All the ridiculous orchestration.

that sad face the sax player makes as the camera pans over to her. yowza!

the video for RES is great as well.

[craig]

they have their moments... but... i dunno. Just. Trying. TOO. Hard.
i bet even their underwear is choreographed.

[zac]

a kind of circus-prog new wave... or progressive new wave cabaret...

[steve]

This stuff has damaged my brane irreperrebly. Thanks a whole lot!!

[Brandon]

I am pretty sure I hate this band. This is not my first run in with The Cardiacs in the last few weeks (strange as the DIY scene I have been around a bit) and each time the conclusion is "nope, I hate this band". I will agree with Craig above, they are trying to hard to be "eccentric" while only achieving "annoying". Try a band like Digital Dinosaurs who are oddballs with more chops.

[C.C.]

Cardiacs vs Digital Dinosaurs = apples/oranges. Chops make a good band?

[fatty jubbo]

When I think of "trying too hard" I always think of Stump or They Might Be Giants...two very annoying bands (although I have to admit I like a few Stump songs). I never really understand this insult in the first place...a lot of people level the insult at Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica as well.

The "Tarred & Feathered" video is like nothing I have ever seen before. I am a big fan of multiple camera-shoot videos shot in one space where the editing is the most important aspect. This video amps that up one hundred percent and makes a mess out of the whole room but does it in such a minuetely choreographed manner that it becomes unsettling. So much information crammed into this video!

I'm sure most people are turned off by the hammy muggings of the players...Check out some newer stuff- it retains some of the proggy complexity but features more straightfoward songwriting. It kinda reminds me of what the Pixies would be if they weren't so incredibly annoying and boring to my ears.

[Jeffersonic]

For me, this video is breathtakingly great. I think it's somewhat contrived,
but that hardly seems worth considering here; its very artful and effective. The delicious "circus gone awry" riff it opens with is a scream...

[craig]

looked at it again.

they remind me a bit of deaf school.

on soooooooooooooooo many levels.

[gropingdentist]

I didn't know Neil Hamburger played the organ.

[rich]

Many thanks, I've only ever seen this in poor Real Player quality. As for the songs, it probably helps if you're musically literate (the power of the whole-tone scale!), but really, it's such seriously catchy and fun stuff it should be accessible to all. I have no idea why they were never popular.

The back catalogue is available at www.cardiacs.com - essential purchases the lot of 'em. Every single one. The stuff that's still unavailable and needs REISSUING pronto are the other promotional videos, the Seaside VHS and most important of all the live Mares Nest video. I have all this stuff & a hell of a lot more if anyone wants to trade (I'm mainly looking for rare, vintage American New Wave/ artpunk at the moment).

[Jesse]

Cardiacs are so much more than the hamminess of this video. They are so much more than the silly, manic tone of this song. Cardiacs are, without a doubt, the most underappreciated band in the last 30 years. They are so much more than what this video shows. Believe me. They are finally getting a foothold over here - too bad it took so long.

[orion]

Could I toss in a Toy Dolls comparison...

[Mark Boyle]

The Toy Dolls? I'd say the Cardiacs are halfway between the dry observations of Half Man Half Biscuit and the surreal ones of They Might Be Giants, but with the mania of the Toy Dolls & the old Channel 4 comedy show "Absolutely" thrown in just to keep people on their toes. A band with more inspired lunacy and talent than has ever been good for them.

And yes, it is hard not to wonder if they are the insane siblings of the members of XTC having escaped the asylum - if so, may they never be caught :)

[abnego]

...I disagree just about as much as is possible with craig and brandon up above...no disrespect intended, but have you guys seen/listened to much Cardiacs beyond this video? Bear in mind as well that Tarred and Feathered twenty years old and represents Cardiacs at their wackiest, hamming it up for 'The Tube' television programme...I'd say check out www.cardiacs.com, where you can download sundry tracks from their various albums...try 'fiery gun hand', 'come back clammy lammy' or 'day is gone' and tell me you still feel the same way...

...they are truly better than 'the other'...

[Marina Organ]

That video just does not do Cardiacs justice! Its twenty years old! You only get a smidgen of what they're really about, they ditched the make-up at least a decade ago... there's a huge depth to their music, which is 90% obscured by what they're doing there. If only The Tube had let them do a full live gig, instead of that one-off: it got a lot of people into them at the time, but also turned off many.
Listen to some other tracks -
http://www.cardiacs.com/downloads
http://www.cardiacs.com/resources_non_cms/Cardiacs_Fiery_Gun_Hand.mp3
http://www.cardiacs.com/resources_non_cms/Cardiacs_The_Duck_And_Roger_The_Horse.mp3
http://www.cardiacs.com/resources_non_cms/Cardiacs_Plane_Plane_Against_The_Grain.mp3
http://myspace.com/cardiacs
x m