Artist Biography by Andy Kellman
With no "proper" musical skills upon their formation
in Surrey, England, the Lemon Kittens epitomized the "anything goes"
spirit of late-'70s post-punk in the U.K. Karl Blake, who cut his teeth
in numerous outfits prior to the Lemon Kittens, started the band with
Gary Thatcher and a revolving cast of others (which at one point
included future Alternative TV leader Mark Perry), but at the time of
the release of their first EP in 1979, the seven-song Spoonfed +
Writhing 7", the group's lineup featured Blake, Thatcher, N. Mercer,
Mylmus, and Danielle Dax. The group was whittled down to a duo of Blake
and Dax by February of 1980; the other three members had fled, making
for the group's 16th different lineup change since initialization in
April 1978. Blake and Dax then decided to operate primarily as a duo,
with help coming from whoever whenever they needed the assistance to
perform. Later in 1980, Blake and Dax released We Buy a Hammer for Daddy
on the United Dairies label (their labelmates included fellow oddballs
and noise-mongers Whitehouse and Nurse With Wound), an album that
featured the duo swapping a wide variety of instruments. The Cake Beast
EP came out in February of 1981; Dax left after its release to begin a
successful solo career, which Blake took part in sporadically throughout
the '90s. In late 1982, the Illuminated LP Those That Bite the Hand
That Feeds Them Must Sooner or Later Meet...the Big Dentist (best
referred to as The Big Dentist) became the group's second full-length.
Blake rounded up a new group of cronies, laid the Lemon Kittens to rest,
and began the Shock Headed Peters.
Label:Illuminated Records – JAMS 131
A1 They Are Both Dirty 11:19
Lemon Kittens:
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