Were
the Vibrators real punks? Maybe not, but then again, were
the Stranglers? Or
Eddie and the Hot Rods? Even more to the point, was
Steve Jones? Plenty of
rock careerists jumped onto the
punk/
new wave bandwagon in the wake of
the Sex Pistols' success (and more than a few folks, like
Jones, stumbled into the new movement by accident), but unlike most of them,
the Vibrators took to the fast/loud/stripped down thing like ducks to water, and both
Knox (aka
Ian Carnarchan) and
Pat Collier had a genius for writing short, punchy songs with sneering melody lines and gutsy guitar breaks. If
the Vibrators were into
punk as a musical rather than a sociopolitical movement, it's obvious that they liked the music very much, and on that level their debut album stands the test of time quite well.
Pure Mania boasts a bit more polish (and less politics) than many of the albums from
punk's first graduating class (such as
Damned Damned Damned or
The Clash), but if you're looking for a strong, satisfying shot of chugging four-square
punk, cue up
"Yeah Yeah Yeah," "No Heart," "Petrol," or
"Wrecked on You" and you'll be thrown into a gleeful pogo frenzy. Maybe
Pure Mania isn't purist's
punk, but it's pure
rock & roll, and there's nothing wrong with that. ~ Mark Deming
