Da Slyme Album

With the exception of the afternoon set at the B.O. Aug 31 /80, Da Slyme did not play again for almost another year. This was likely due to the unavailability of various members who were away for various educational pursuits etc. However things had not died completely. In the late summer of 1980 a bold plan was bought to fruition. The release of a vinyl album - in fact a double vinyl album.

One has to appreciate that at this time locally the idea of issuing a group's own material was considered a pipe dream - only a few had done so. Most "musicians" considered that "well, you have to get a record deal and that it has to be done right" - i.e. it cost a lot of money, etc. Fuck that. Da Slyme was in the habit of recording most of it's shows and practices in various formats and as such had a fair cross-section of stuff to choose from. Two sides worth of studio material and reams of live.

Da Slyme was never a polished band and neither were the recordings. What better way to put the boots to the status quo but to do what most considered impossible - release such a raw, un-cultured, musically illiterate collection to the populace? Financed in the time honoured "pool finances among band members and friends" method, the album was prepared and a receipt indicates that the finished product was shipped from Toronto to Nfld. on Sept 30 /1980.

The disks were shipped. There was no clear vision on the packaging mode in the collective vision when the albums were ordered. The basic thought was to concoct some poster-like papering which could be printed locally, which would include lyrics and all other notes required. This would be folded around the recordings. The price of packaging albums (as also CD's today) in covers and the subsequent printing and printing set up costs, have usually been more expensive that the recordings themselves. For Da Slyme standard packaging was definitely out for reasons of packaging costs alone.

The albums had arrived and it was necessary to finish the process, somehow, and get it out. The partial solution was wrought by an impulsive decision undertaken by No Moniker and Dead Beat. In a morning trip around to record stores and local distributors they hastily bought up eighty or so religious albums and through connections (The Beat worked in a record store at the time), a large number of empty promotional record jackets were acquired - bearing such titles as "The Old Sod - Carlton Showband", "Mr. Dressup" and numerous others. These promotional covers minus disks would adorn the windows and walls of record stores advertising each new release and then be discarded, replaced by the next big thing - "Saturday Nite Fever" (which was another Slyme cover) or some silly thing.

"We'll just spray "Da Slyme" across these and put the albums in side with a booklet!" No and Beat told a sceptical Kirt. "It'll be great", they said. There was considerable discussion amongst the other sceptics but in the end, money had been spent and what was done was done. In retrospect the whole concept is what most people remember about the album, tho it caused not a small amount of discussion. The booklets were quickly contrived and the printing done by Oct 29th.

With little hoopla, the album was first distributed at the Browned Off, later placed in a few select record and "not so record" stores in St. John's. Later 10 copies were placed in the Record Pedlar in Toronto when Groon was there on a business trip. No one knows what happened to these and no money ever changed hands.

The album was reviewed in the Newfoundland Herald, Nov 15/ 80. A year later Paul Wilson reviewed the album in the Toronto based magazine SHADES - p.9 December issue 81. Still, on the playing front, nothing was attempted at this time - fall 80. On Nov. 9, Wet Cheeze Delirium played a gig at the B.O. with an expanded lineup: Wallace, Craig Squires, Justin Hall, Lorne Taylor, and others. Another was played on Nov.30. No more shows of any kind occurred till the following summer.