It's day three of my '80s flashback week and today's featured act is Fingerprintz, who were a post-punk/new wave combo. They signed to Virgin Records and released three albums over three years, 1979 to 1981. The band members were Jimmie O'Neill on vocals & guitar (he had previoulsy written songs for Lene Lovich), Cha Burns on guitar, Bogdan Wiczling on drums (who went on to be in Adam & The Ants and play for Bill Nelson) and Kenny Alton on bass. These guys also served as singer Rachel Sweet's backing band for a while. Yes Eyes is taken from their second album, 1980's Distinguishing Marks. It's a blazing, catchy new wave pop tune with great yelped vocals that kicks off with a big riff and pounding beats. On their next album, 1981's Beat Noir they altered their sound and moved away from the new wave stylings into funkier material. The Beat Escape is a prime example of the new direction - big dance-y disco beats, a funky ass bass line, some cool sax. None of the records proved very successful, and the band fell apart. Jimmie O'Neill & Cha Burns went on to form mid '80s band The Silencers - a much more successful group who are still together today.
5 comments:
I loved Fingerprintz! My favorite from the first album is the instrumental "2.A.T."
Distinguishing Remarks is one of the best albums of the 1980's. It's terrific. Wish they would get back together. Silencers were good, too but not as good as Fingerprintz. "Some say this is a dangerous place..."I need a bulletproof heart.''
Yes Eyes - Houdini Love - Criminal Mind - Bulletproof Heart - Remorse Code - Amnesia - Ringing Tone - Radiation - Jabs - Hide and Seek
YES!! Fingerprintz!!
_I found 'Changing' from Beat Noir to be haunting. Wasn't there a different singer (female) on the album?
Favourite fingerprintz song has to be bulletproof heart,far better than the silencers version,changing is also a great song,was talking to o'neill before a silencers gig in glasgow a few years back and he told me he wanted to release it as a silencers song but the record companies could not agree,great band which I was too young to know but have discovered their music through being a silencers fan!!!
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