CULT OF THE UNDERDOG Podcast : Episode 25 Now Available!

[doomedplanet]

The successful unearthing of The Suspects definitely requires a photo response

IMG_20250930_125851553~2.jpg

If there isn't already a 'worst cover art' thread on the forum there ought to be, though that pic would be hard to beat. So much hideousness in one place.
Also, does anyone else find themselves reading the Holiday Shark logo as 'Holiday Snark'?

And it is made worse by the fact that all 3 are damned good records. I guess the upside is, if you know that, it may be possible to still find them for fair prices.

[bigfootkit]

Also, the Philadelphia identification, but not by me, is really annoying. Anyone noticing a trend, my ye-olde-I-can't-remember-jack-shit-syndrome?
And, yeah, the last track seems vaguely familiar, I'm probably going to be further annoyed when it is revealed

Music listening is such a nebulous business. Some songs/albums/bands stick while others don't. You forget some over time, yet others remain etched on your brain forever. Likewise with the attendent knowledge & trivia you accumulate over time.
I don't thinkthat your "my ye-olde-I-can't-remember-jack-shit-syndrome" is unusual or something you should be too concerned about, as the connections from ears to brain to soul are highly complex & ever-shifting apparently. At least that's what i try to convince myself of when i find myself having a musical 'senior moment'.
On a related note, when i gave Philadelphia's 'Search...' a listen recently i was struck by how much the singer reminded me of Jon Deverill of Tygers Of Pan Tang, yet somehow i'd never heard this similarity on any of the dozens of previous listens. Weirdly, that realization may have made the LP more enjoyable to me than previously.
I should point out that i never intended the podcast to be a 'name-that-tune' quiz, i was just trying to hopefully entertain & amuse whilst bigging-up some underappreciated musical gems. The quiz aspect is somehing i didn't predict, it just evolved naturally here & i do hope it brings more fun than frustration.
I'm certainly not trying to pass myself off as some know-it-all expert, nothing could be further from the truth. I'm quite sure if i was in the position of identifying music taken out of it's usual context in someone else's selection i'd be utterly useless at it.
Having said all that, yeah, you're gonna kick yourself when that final song's revealed.

[Khnud]

Hmm, that last track must be part of a compilation LP I think.

[bigfootkit]

Hmm, that last track must be part of a compilation LP I think.

Nope.

[Noisenik]

I think I spotted Ozzy twice, first on backing vocals., then as narrator.

You're correct in the 1st instance Nenad, though not on the latter. I forgot to ask, how did you enjoy the rest of the Madison Avenue material, as featured in the last episode?

I haven't listened to MADISON AVENUE yet. Hopefully tomorrow.

Overall, I'm really enjoying your exchanges.

I'm eager to know track no.8, that vibraphone-aping-keyboards are sth to behold.

[bigfootkit]

I'm eager to know track no.8, that vibraphone-aping-keyboards are sth to behold.

I know, right? I smile every time i hear it & the way they've structured the song so that the guitar solos duel back & forth against that faux-percussive sound is amazing. It works perfectly, though it really shouldn't.

[bigfootkit]

I'm eager to know track no.8, that vibraphone-aping-keyboards are sth to behold.

I know, right? I smile every time i hear it & the way they've structured the song so that the guitar solo duels against that faux-percussive sound is amazing. It works perfectly, though it really shouldn't.

Seems we were both wrong to assume that those percussion parts were being recreated by keys, as the credits reveal "Lynzi featured on marimba solos". Knowing that now, the performance is even more impressive.

[doomedplanet]

Music listening is such a nebulous business. Some songs/albums/bands stick while others don't. You forget some over time, yet others remain etched on your brain forever. Likewise with the attendent knowledge & trivia you accumulate over time.
I don't thinkthat your "my ye-olde-I-can't-remember-jack-shit-syndrome" is unusual or something you should be too concerned about, as the connections from ears to brain to soul are highly complex & ever-shifting apparently. At least that's what i try to convince myself of when i find myself having a musical 'senior moment'.
On a related note, when i gave Philadelphia's 'Search...' a listen recently i was struck by how much the singer reminded me of Jon Deverill of Tygers Of Pan Tang, yet somehow i'd never heard this similarity on any of the dozens of previous listens. Weirdly, that realization may have made the LP more enjoyable to me than previously.
I should point out that i never intended the podcast to be a 'name-that-tune' quiz, i was just trying to hopefully entertain & amuse whilst bigging-up some underappreciated musical gems. The quiz aspect is somehing i didn't predict, it just evolved naturally here & i do hope it brings more fun than frustration.
I'm certainly not trying to pass myself off as some know-it-all expert, nothing could be further from the truth. I'm quite sure if i was in the position of identifying music taken out of it's usual context in someone else's selection i'd be utterly useless at it.
Having said all that, yeah, you're gonna kick yourself when that final song's revealed.

I'm learning as I get older that if I can't make fun of myself, then I should not be making fun and joking about anything. This is me doing that.

And in line with that I consider your show as a mixtape someone sent me but I lost the jcard. Not every song is instantly memorable but some grow on me, some I know but cannot place some I also know instantly. I think about another thread where an old tape recorded off the radio back in the day had one song no one recognised, it took years for the people trying to ID it to come up with an answer and it wasn't the most obscure song in the world but it certainly wasn't a common song either.

I definitely do not consider anyone an 'expert' in the nebulous fields of rock/punk rock & metal. There are definitely specialists in areas that blow me away and I really appreciate all of them I come in contact with and learn from. I do consider myself knowledgeable, but I don't know a lot and have no problem admitting it.

The Philadelphia/Deverill connection I never made, I more hear Phil Lynott but that also comes from my love of the Survivor record so I will always hear that in the vocalist, but I'll keep your impression in mind when I spin up the albums next time.

[bigfootkit]

I'm learning as I get older that if I can't make fun of myself, then I should not be making fun and joking about anything. This is me doing that.

I get that. A self-deprecating sense of humour's a healthy thing in my book. It demonstrates insight & humility, characteristics you only truly acquire over time.

I consider your show as a mixtape someone sent me but I lost the jcard.

Nice analogy, i like that a lot. If that had occured to me at the beginning i'd likely have had the art reflect it somehow. Hindsight seems to reveal missed opportunities more often than not.

The Philadelphia/Deverill connection I never made, I more hear Phil Lynott but that also comes from my love of the Survivor record so I will always hear that in the vocalist, but I'll keep your impression in mind when I spin up the albums next time.

The Deverell comparison only came to me when one of the Philadelphia songs came up in a random shuffle & i found myself wondering where i'd acquired this unknown Tygers song from, before discovering who it actually was. Now i can't un-hear it, much like your Lynott comparison which i understand too.

[bigfootkit]

Is it time for the big reveal yet?

[bigfootkit]

Thanks to you good folks, this episode has been the most popular i've done so far.
Your support & interest is, as always, very much appreciated. Thanks.



As promised, here is the full tracklist for the episode:

01. NEIL RICHARDSON (aka Oscar Brandenburg) - Approaching Menace (from the Various Artists 'Kpm 1000 Series: Dramatic Background' compilation LP (1970))
02. BALTIK - Leslie Briggs (aka 'Theme from Cult Of The Underdog') (from the 'Baltik' LP (1973))
03. C.O.F.F.I.N. - Cum In The Street (from the 'Children Of Finland Fighting In Norway' LP (2020))
04. GREAT ELECTRIC QUEST - Wicked Hands (from the 'Chapter II: Of Earth' LP (2018))
05. GYPSY ROADHOG - Double Dealer (from the 'Double Dealer' Demo' (1983))
06. PARISH HALL - How Can You Win? (from the 'Parish Hall' LP (1970))
07. THE SUSPECTS - Want You (from the 'No Biggie' Mini LP (1982))
08. FIRST RUSH - Why Witch? (Death Hold) (from the 'Starkravin'' LP (1978))
09. NEW AMERICAN SHAME - American Shame (from the 'New American Shame' LP (1999))
10. DUNDERTÅGET - Låt Mej Va from the 'There's A Razzia Going On Volume 2' Various Artists compilation LP (2009))
11. ROLAND KOVAĆ - Jonathan (from the 'Jonathan' OST (1970))
12. THE GUESS WHO - Samantha's Living Room (from the 'Artificial Paradise' LP (1973))
13. JOY RYDER + AVIS DAVIS - Nasty Secretary (from the 'No More Nukes' 7" (1979))
14. PHILADELPHIA - Mirror Man (from the 'Search And Destroy' LP (1985))
15. THE STOGIES - Let It Bleed, Let It Play (from the 'Hoot' LP (2014))
16. BIRMINGHAM FREE MUSIC (feat. OZZY OSBOURNE) - Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (from the 'Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood' 7" (1975))
17. TORONTO - Delirious (from the 'Lookin' For Trouble' LP (1980))
18. THE BITTER TWINS (feat. BRIAN ROBERTSON & NICKE ANDERSSON) - Don't Hold Back (from the 'One More Story' LP (1994))
19. BIG GEORGE & THE BUSINESS - The Storm (from the 'The Alleged Album' LP (1989))
20. LEATHERMAN - Murder In The First Degree (from the 'Turn You On' LP (2025))
21. BEOWULF - The Hounds Of Tindalos (from the 'Slice Of Life' LP (1980))

Re track 08, which a few people asked about:
Apparently First Rush were a Texan band who signed to Polydor. The label changed their name to Starkravin', and under that name they released just one single 'Can't Wait' in 1978, which had 'Why Witch?' as the flipside, retitled (again, by the label) as 'DeathHold'.
It seems like very few copies of the single were pressed, though a promo version does show up once in a while. It has 'Can't Wait' on both sides and a white Polydor label, whilst the rarer version with 'DeathHold' has a red company label.
The album they'd recorded was shelved & after recording a further demo for the label the group were finally dropped. In the aftermath they returned to using the First Rush name & carried on into the '80's without releasing anything further.
The 1978 album was finallly released digitally in recent times under the First Rush name as 'Starkravin''. Their original bass player resurrected the First Rush name & has since recorded a few albums with a new line up & gigged, though they sound little like the '70's version of the band. They now bill themselves as a 'Christian Prog' band, though the original group had no detectable Xian bent.
You can stream or buy the 1978 album here:

[doomedplanet]

IMG_20251014_084853219_HDR~2.jpg (1.31 MiB) Viewed 1219 times

[Khnud]

Haha, yes of course I own Beowulf too. One of the first "private" LPs I bought. Haven't listened to it in AGES.

[bigfootkit]

Absolutely no need for
Despite having listened to that album for decades, the charm of 'The Hounds...' only just became truly apparent to me this Summer. I'd previously had that song mentally earmarked as average for some reason, but lately it's become one of the LP's highlights for me. Weird how that can happen.
I'm sure Nightsblood could pitch a good theory about that odd phenomenon.
I knew you'd both have Beowulf in your collections so i did try to come up with a hint i could drop, but every idea i had was either far too obvious or too obscure for the job.

[bigfootkit]

Absolutely no need to be "embarrassed to admit I don't know the Swedish speaking group". As far as i'm aware the band weren't exactly a big name even in their home country.

I meant to ask now that all's been revealed, was i right in thinking that DUNDERTÅGET/THUNDER EXPRESS were quite overlooked, even in Sweden?