THIS WEEK I’M LISTENING TO...BIRTH CONTROL – Bäng! (Ohr / ZYX)

Most fans will know – it’s the stuff of legend, after all – that, for their first UK gig, on 25 October 1975, Blue Öyster Cult were supported by Motörhead; it was at this time that Lemmy’s boys picked up the tag of being the worst band in the world. After this one-off BÖC went over to Europe before returning to the UK for four more shows in October. This time around, though, their support was German band Birth Control.

Birth Control’s self-titled debut appeared in 1970, some four years after they were formed, and they still appear to be a going concern now, although the line-up has changed considerably over the years and the band are a living example of the ‘Trigger’s Broom’ syndrome (aka the Ship Of Theseus paradox). ‘Bäng!’ was originally released in 1982, and by that time only vocalist / drummer / percussionist Bernd ‘Nossi’ Noske and lead guitarist / vocalist Bruno Frenzel remained from that 1975 line-up, with Stefan Linke (rhythm guitar), Ulrich Klein (keyboards) and Jürgen Goldschmidt (bass) making up the rest of the roll-call. Birth Control’s earlier material was apparently quite progressive (they’ve been tarred with the krautrock brush a number of times), but by the time of ‘Bäng!’ they were a straight down the line hard rock band with a considerable amount of élan and some stylish BÖC-style licks, in particular in ‘Get Ready To Run’, with its classy guitar and keyboard runs, and the rather quirky opener ‘Nuclear Reactor’. And that’s just the opening pair! Elsewhere, there’s a nod to their progressive days in the lengthy ‘The Day Of Doom Is Coming’ and plaintive closer ‘The King Of An Island’, and the guitar interplay in the metalised workout ‘Greedy Eyes’ is a joy to hear.

Bonus tracks on the CD are the 12” version of ‘Nuclear Reactor’ (a B-side) as well as its seven-inch A-side edit, the 7” edit of ‘Get Ready To Run’ and a couple of live renditions, while the LP just adds the ‘Nuclear Reactor’ edit. The front sleeve image is awful, I’ll grant you that, but didn’t your folks tell you never to judge a book by its cover?