Sozz - Patrol Car and Law N' Order Singles

Label: Farmer Records; Year: 1979; Format: 7" Single

It's about time to pump some life into this blog, and since the sun has come out here in Buffalo for the first time in some time today my mood is a little better after having suffered through too many grey days when it becomes just too hard to do anything besides going to work. Back in the late '70s punk rock reached the most peculiar places on earth by infecting the local youth with a virus that would have long lasting effects on music and society in general. Switzerland, a beautiful and peaceful country in the middle of Europe, and the country where I lived most of my life, gave the world some wonderful early punk rock 7"s that are sought after around the world. Many of the early Swiss punk acts came from Zurich, but there were some notable exceptions, and Sozz is most certainly one of them. Out of the ashes of No Fun, founded in 1978, came a quartet which consisted of three brothers (Andreas, Ernest and Stefan Maeschi) and hailed from the small village of Bueren an der Aare in the Kanton of Bern. In April of 1979 the band entered the Sunrise Studios in Kirchberg where many early Swiss punk records were recorded resulting in the 'Patrol Car' single with 'Lurch Gang' being the other track. I don't think the first single is as good as the second one, but Patrol Car is a cracking song and provides a hint as to what direction the band was going to take. Influenced heavily by the Clash it is a melodic yet hard stomping song with lyrics depicting problems of urban nature and far removed from the idyllic views of village life, yet unsurprisingly appealing to a bunch of punk rockers literally lost in Heidi-Land. Lurch Gang on the other hand is the weakest song to be found on either of the two singles, but despite sounding disjointed it maintains high levels of that certain charme of late '70s rudimentary punk rock. 

Sozz band photo (Source: Patrol Car 7" fold out cover)

Label: Farmer Records; Year: 1980; Format: 7" Single

Just like with the first single Sozz self-released their second singe on their own Farmer Records after entering the studio in January of 1980. While 'Patrol Car' pre-shadowed the potential the band had, the two tracks on this single are both smashers. 'Law N' Order' is by far my favorite Sozz track and a perfect '77 punk cracker, again not shy of a heavy Clash influence. If melodic and anthemic punk rock is your thing, you will want to hear this song as well as 'All the cops in the streets' on the flipside. I really wish I could write more about Sozz as they are often somewhat forgotten when it comes to early Swiss punk history. Over the years I've gotten to know one of the three brothers, bass player Buzz, to a lesser degree. In the early '90s he opened up a small record shop in Zurich selling mostly punk vinyl and also vintage clothes and I was lucky to find some really great records there but was never able to strike up much of a conversation with the proprietor. It is a shame as I am pretty certain that Sozz were approached to participate in the making of Lurker Grand's great book on early Swiss punk - Hot Love, but turned down not just that, but also subsequent interest in reissuing these two rare examples of great early Swiss punk. You can find their songs on Youtube and if I am not mistaken some of the songs have made it onto some KBD comps, but don't quote me on that. I was lucky in the sense that a friend of mine gifted me these two records years ago, but the hope remains that one day a reissue of sorts will become reality. I should note that out of the ashes of Sozz came Last Romance and especially Hungry For What, a band that gained more international recognitinon and will be reviewed on this blog in the future. Members of Sozz also ended up in Sophisticated Boom Boom and nurtured and released records by the all-female band Chin Chin.

Old gig poster and other Sozz related material. Source: Hot Love (Swiss Punk & Wave 1976-80); Book by Lurker Grand and many others

Sperma - Zuri Punx Single and S/T 12" EP

Label: Another Swiss Label; Year: 1979; Format: 7" 45RPM Single

Some of you will know that Switzerland and in particular Zurich had a thriving and very active Punk scene back in the late '70s. As soon as the punk virus from London caught on in the land of cheese and chocolate bands and fanzines started to spring up, at first mainly in Zurich. Sperma started off as an idea in late '77 after The Clash played a gig in Zurich and then became reality in '78 as a strong bond between TNT and Sperma evolved into not just a friendship but also sharing of a practice space. Urs Steiger, the main force behind so much in the early days of Swiss Punk, started to not just manage Sperma but enabled them also to get into a studio which resulted in two sessions in March and May of 1979. Two of the March tracks ended up on the famous Zuri Punx/Bombs Single, which I have bought decades ago from an ex-Punk for little to nothing and who was happy it found a new home. The song Zuri Punx was featured on one of the first Boot Comp LPs highlighting KBD Punk from around the world, but don't ask me which one. It's a neat little song, but in my opinion much more enjoyable if you understand Schwizer Duetsch (Swiss German). The lyrics deal with the frustration of being stuck in a dead end job from Monday to Friday only to come alive Friday night and go see the local punk bands performing while dreaming of punk and anarchy. That dream doesn't last too long before it's Monday and the shit starts all over again. Probably my favorite Sperma song is the B-Side 'Bombs', an excellent upbeat bass driven cracker of a track sung in English. Should you not have this then get it, and no worries it's been reissued by the nice gentleman behind Static Shock in Berlin so you'll only have to spend the price of a beer. 

Photo of early Zurich Punx including Urs Steiger (No Fun Fanzine, Another Swiss Label), Sara (TNT), Sylvia (Mother's Ruin), Sperma etc - Source: Hot Love (Swiss Punk & Wave 1976-80); Book by Lurker Grand and many others

Label: Static Shock; Year: 2020; Format: 12" RMP EP

A long, long time ago I reviewed the three songs contained on this 12" as they are also to be found on the 1981 released "Rough Mixes from Switzerland" 10" released in Germany. And also a long time ago I was a happy owner of an original of this 12" but that's another story. Regardless I really wanted to have this one again as a 12" and the way it was originally released back in 1979 and Static Shock has done a wonderful job at doing just that including a nice little fanzine like booklet. Unlike the time I reviewed the above mentioned 10" tonight I really enjoyed listening to these three songs. If you are not too familiar with Sperma or early Swiss punk in general do know that Sperma were known for their great punky looks, but there were - at least in my opinion - musically tighter and better acts from Switzerland. Still, they certainly had their heart in the right place and recorded songs that are full of great humor and the spirit of '77. While Sperma's recorded material could be viewed as quite rudimentary, all of their early songs are nevertheless catchy and well produced three chord anthems. Sperma fizzled out by 1980 and released one more Single which is not even worth mentioning as it was an attempt to sound and look poppier and New Wave. I highly recommend getting these two European punk rock nuggets to get your appetite up for more cheese, chocolate and Swiss Punk. 

Sperma/Technycolor/Glueams Poster courtesy of "Hot Love" Swiss Punk & Wave 1976-1980 book by Lurker Grand and many others