Effigies - For Ever Grounded LP

Label: BFD

Indeed, any conversation about the genesis of Chicago punk, must include The Effigies, a band formed in 1980 and introduced on the seminal Busted at Oz compilation, which included contemporaries, Naked Raygun and the Subverts. While their debut, the Haunted Town EP, was indebted to the nascent strain of hardcore coming from the city, the quartet quickly started mutating into a darker, heavier, experiment, replete with an agitprop aesthetic concerned with urban decay and political upheaval.

By the time they arrived with 1984's For Ever Grounded, reissued on its 40th anniversary, The Effigies had fully evolved into a formidable post-punk outfit, with guitarist Earl Letiecg's steely, abrasive, guitars, polished into new wave sheen. Whether they were aiming for mainstream success or not remains to be seen, what's not up for debate is the band's tuneful glee, suitable for fans of PiL, Dead Kennedys, and the TSOL.