Sunshine World, a collection of The Scenics’ 1977-1978 studio recordings, is a surprisingly tight and well-produced group of songs that proto-punk fans should investigate. The best songs are the straight ahead rockers, although if you like Pere Ubu you’ll gravitate towards the more angular songs like “O Boy” and “So Fine.” “Do The Wait” is one of the great unheard singles of the era (think Mink Deville covering “Sweet Jane”) and “Wild Trout” isn’t too far off from the sound of Television. Their cover of The Kinks’ “Where Have All The Good Times Gone,” however, is hampered by sloppy harmonies and poor playing.
If the Velvet’s chord-progressions sprinkled throughout Sunshine World weren’t enough of a testament to The Scenics’ love of all things Reed, Cale, Tucker, Morrison, and Yule, there’s How Does It Feel To Be Loved, compiling ten live VU covers recorded from 1977-1981. The sound starts off pretty lo-fi and gets increasingly worse as the album progresses, although it’s no worse than The Velvet Underground’s own live recordings. Looking past the bad sound (no easy task), the performances are for the most part pretty good, with some excellent guitar work – especially on “Here She Comes Now” and “Beginning To See The Light.” The album ends predictably, with “Sister Ray,” which The Scenics cut down to a slim ten minutes without sacrificing the song’s experimental aspects.
Midnight To Six 