Gits – Kings And Queens

Cast your mind back to 1988, if you will, and think of what was on the radio at that time. Grunge hadn’t really exploded, and hair metal hadn’t quite died away. The decade was certainly breathing its last, though there are notable exceptions to every rule. You can probably think of lots of good music from thereabouts. Good for you.

Anyway, the Gits put together this record called Kings And Queens that year, and it totally kicks ass. Of course, it got a lot of play for people who knew what was what, but radio missed it and such is the way of all things that matter, I suppose. You see, this record not only rocked (and it rocked hard) but the lyrics had something to say, and this music mattered. This was especially cool since the band was still nascent and finding their feet. Imagine being able to make something this great so early on. Damn.

With hooks galore and a punk rock attitude, Mia Zapata and her band of merry men offer their best attempt to rip your mind open and blow things apart. Zapata’s singing is second-to-none, with a voice as distinctive as any other you can name. The music is tight, heavy and fast. These were people going places – loudly, intelligently and with a whole lotta class and style.

This is a balls out, straight-on rock record in the best possible ways, and yet it maintains its own uniqueness too. Put on a Gits record and they’re instantly recognizable. That, my friends, is the thing that so many other pretenders have sticky dreams of developing for themselves.

My Own Little Soapbox: What happened to Zapata only a few years later, in 1993, was a total fucking shame and I hope the guy who did that to her suffers long and horribly. R.I.P. Mia. For more information, read here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mia_Zapata

Collector Geek Info: For all you info geeks out there, Kings And Queens was a band-released collection of early stuff, which used to be called another name (Private Lubs) until it was officially released several years later. Some of the songs here were re-recorded for the later album Frenching The Bully. But you knew that already, didn’t you!