ERRRDAY_LIKE_SUNDAY…
// Sometimes you strike gold right off the fucking bat… which is exactly what MISSION OF BURMA did on “THAT’S WHEN I REACH FOR MY REVOLVER,” the opening track from their 1981 debut EP titled ‘Signals, Calls, and Marches’ (Ace of Hearts). The Boston based group, consisting of Roger Miller (guitar), Clint Conley (bass), Peter Prescott (drums) & Martin Swope (tape manipulator/sound engineer) were/are/will forever remain wholly their own… the purveyors of a devastatingly noisy live show whose actual studio recordings would capture a more nuanced take of their chaotic post-punk, a sound that would go on to influence a legion of bands ranging from R.E.M. to Nirvana (& pretty much anyone featured on this here blog) For yours truly, that sound/influence culminates on “That’s When I Reach for My Revolver,” a track that means more to me now than it did upon my initial listen as its influential relevance broadened the further I dug into the American Underground of the 80s. The endless wake that MoB would create is on full display: the verse section’s rangy guitars, propulsive low-ends & the patiently measured vocal that idly cruise & build until we’re face to face w/ that massively singable chorus & it’s bashed out percussion… it sounds fucking huge because it is… a cathartic gut punch of an anthem.
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