In the annals of Hardcore Punk history, there are certain bands who stumbled their way on to many vinyl and cassette compilations of the early eighties that stuck out so severely you just had to ask yourself Why?. Although their intention and sentiment fit right in with the Reagan Sucks/Drugs Suck/You Suck vibe of the time, their ineptitude and spirit created something so unique that it hit a vein of expression that was entirely of its own. None of the mask sporting pre-conceiving art wavers of the time could have come up with statements as effortlessly bizarre as the ones presented by such brave and confused one hit compilation wonders as Church Police, B.I.U, and Demented Youth. -Ç On the tipity top of that teetering list is Fresno Californias Maniax who supplied us-Ç with the beyond classic anthem Off to War on the beyond classic Not So Quiet on the Western Front double LP compilation in 1982. For nigh on twenty five years now, this track has intrigued the fuck outta me. With the fidelity lower than whale dung, a truly buzzsaw guitar battles for space with a barely pubescent vocalist who drones on and on reciting the words Off to War over and over again for a good five minutes. I always wondered if their other songs were this disorienting and wonderful. Well, I need not wonder no more! Maniax vocalist Gregg Mitchell has finally found the time to share with-Ç us the lost tapes of Fresnos youngest early 80s Punk band and its every thing Ive dreamed it would be and more.-Ç 34 tracks of bedroom recorded early teenaged Punk Rock-Ç anthems about-Ç dead-Ç dogs, posers and having a crush on Wendy O. Williams. Are they using an air organ on track 29? What the fuck? THE MOST ESSENTIAL AND NEEDED POSTHUMOUS PUNK ROCK RELEASE OF OUR CENTURY AND I MEAN THAT. Even though I really hate how nothing of the past is left to the imagination anymore these days, I gotta say my brain is exhausted after twenty something years of wondering what those other Maniax tracks sounded like. Thanks for the rest,-Ç Gregg. -- Tony Rettman.
After nearly a decade of false starts, multiple game plans veering off the rails, and a handful of shattered hopes and/or dreams, the odyssey is finally complete—the new Fusetron site is here.
This is the first phase of a multipart rollout that will span the next few months: the currently browsable stock includes miscellaneous new releases from the past 8+ months (we have a lot of catching up to do), plus approximately a third of our backstock. Note that we’ve reduced/slashed prices on many titles and will continue to do so in order to make room for new stock. We’ll also be expanding / tweaking / improving / debugging the site itself (for example, we still have work to do on the automated international postage system, not to mention the inevitable inventory discrepancies that come with transferring an ancient and massive database to a new system).
Over the next few months, as we take inventory, clean house, and delve into our storage, we will be uploading thousands of additional items, gradually, on a near-daily basis. This will include the majority of the LPs, as well as many titles, in all formats, once thought long-gone. Many currently “sold out” items are likely to resurface.
Finally, once our general backstock is up (probably in the next two or three months) we’ll begin making our extensive stockpile of rarities available online for the first time: tons of random out-of-print titles, "deadstock," warehouse finds, secondhand collectibles, etc., accumulated over the past few decades.
Frequent/returning customers will be getting early access to these items. Details to follow on how this will work (a priority mailing list? a 'frequent flyer'-like program?), but it will not be based on dollars spent. We want to reward those who consistently support us, especially in the discogs marketplace era (to those who show up trying to poach five copies of a one-off rarity, and nothing else, ever… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ).
So—we suggest you take some time to dig through the site—even we’ve been surprised by what’s been turning up, and there’s much more to come.
