PURE MANIA - CD

The Vibrators: Knox (vocals, guitar, keyborads); John Ellis (vocals, guitar); Pat Collier (vocals, bass); Eddie (drums). A stirring debut album by a first wave British punk band? In a manner of speaking. Actually, the Vibrators--all of whom were at least ten years older than the Pistols or the Clash--were total poseurs, long term scene veterans and wannabes who found themselves, finally, in the right place at the right time when punk broke. Although the Vibrators didn't really (in the immortal words of Johnny Rotten) "mean it," at least they were able to come up with a likable formula--essentially, a mix of the Ramones three-chords-and-a-cloud-of-dust approach. To this mixture they added the pop side of the Velvet Underground and a certain deadpan British wit (as witnessed by the tenderly romantic "I Need a Slave"). Like most punk artifacts of the period, PURE MANIA has moments that now sound somewhat quaint, but its energy is still irresistibly infectious.