Teenage Jesus and the Jerks - Everything (1995, Atavistic)

When the Sex Pistols formed in 1975, they thought themselves to be punks. Punks with a sense of nihilism, elemental comedy, and an obvious disdain for authority - a rocky hodgepodge of booze, rage, and spit. Most punk rock bands felt themselves led by the Pistols. Thus, they followed, in large, angry packs of wild dogs. But American No Wavers weren't just dogs - they were wolves. They came together in the chaos of mid-70s NYC and created their own noisy howl that was not only unlike their English counterparts, but something entirely different in terms of awakening the senses. From this emerged Lydia Lunch and furthermore, Teenage Jesus.

Teenage Jesus and the Jerks was formed in 1976 by Lunch and her companion James Chance,individuals who were later to became two of the biggest and most influential names in noise (Chance would later form the Contortions as well as James White and the Blacks, while Lunch went on to do solo work as well as material with Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore). But because Teenage Jesus underwent tumultuous line-up changes and sporadic recording schedules (essentially a live band), their catalog was slim. These rarities disappeared in the eighties and were very much forgotten by nearly everyone except for Lunch, Chance, guitarist Jim Sclavunos, and a few purists in New York City that were holding onto misrepresented Dadaist ideals. It wasn't until a decade or more later that these lawless recordings were revisited and compiled into Everything, which was released in 1995 and continues to be black, white, and red all over.

Everything opens with the twenty-two second, fast-paced "Red Alert," a prelude to forthcoming insanity. The "riffs" are reminiscent of those used in many tracks from punkers Chaotic Dischord, and while it is egregious noise, it may still be considered subtle in comparison to the tracks that follow. "Orphans," the first true track on the album, is considered a Teenage Jesus staple. Lunch howls and screams her way through a steady drum beat and excruciating guitar feedback, painting a portrait of small children with blood-covered feet running through trenches of snow. Subsequently, the songs continue in this fashion, varying in tempo and in faux instrumentation. The lyrics are hard and seemingly soulless with an unmistakable edge, to the point where you can visualize Lunch's vocal energy teeming through gritted teeth. "Freud in Flop" serves as an interlude to a few redundant tracks with instrumentals similar to that of proto-punk precursors. The album wears on until it reaches "Less of Me," a track featuring prominent and characteristic Chance saxophone and (almost) melodic repetition - another favorite among fans. "Red Alert (MK II)," a follow-up to the album's beginnings, fulfills its purpose as an ending by including a short, strangely normal bit of guitar before making a segue into small but vicarious applause.

In all its art-punk, glass-breakin' No Wave glory, Everything disappoints; not because of the material itself, but because of the selection of songs. While it houses the group's most notable singles and the infamous Pink EP, it simply does not deliver all of the band's recordings. Enthusiastic fans know all too well that Teenage Jesus recorded many different versions of their songs, and some consider a compilation like Everything to be sacrilege simply because it's not home to what it claims: everything. So if one is looking for "new" material, Everything is something to gather dust on the shelf if Pink and the seldom found 7" singles are already in your possession.

However, collection and bragging purposes aside, the album certainly delivers in terms of what you look for in Teenage Jesus and their nonconforming No Wave peers. Not only does it possess charisma and an unparalleled energy, but it also holds turmoil, anarchy, and the sense of pandemonium that could only be felt in New York during the mid to late 1970s. Oh, and howling. Don't forget the howling.