Wayne County & The Electric Chairs* – Storm The Gates Of Heaven

More profound than offensive

Ms Jayne was still called Wayne in 1978 when this remarkable album was released. However, I first encountered the artist with her Blatantly Offensive EP which is a bit of an understatement where at least two of those four tracks are concerned. But this album reveals a very different side to Ms County: reflective, serious, profound, prophetic even. The only unpleasant & unnecessary part is the monologue that introduces the title track. At its core the sound consists of bass, lead & rhythm guitar, drums & percussion provided by the versatile Electric Chairs.

The aforementioned title track, embellished by Hammond organ, is a rant against, and a lamentation of the bloodshed resulting from the abuse of religion. Anger drives it but the song contains humor too so perhaps the word “rant” creates an unfairly one-dimensional impression. Cry Of Angels might be characterized as an eloquent, even anthemic defense of Enlightenment values. The guitar textures and the hook around the chorus superbly complement one another.

Three elements make Speed Demon unusual – the special guitar effects, fierce vocals and the subject matter. That the lyrics were prophetic cannot be denied. Side One concludes with Mr Normal, another mix of angry rant & plea for tolerance which displays an extraordinary degree of psychological insight. Here also the arrangement impresses through dynamic interactions of varied vocals & guitars. A typo occurred somewhere down the line as the title has morphed into Mr Norman on the record itself.

The second side opens with Man Enough To Be A Woman on which the tempo slows down somewhat from the uniformly fast pace of side one. This song has a rich instrumental mix that includes Hammond organ & synthesizer, whilst piano & Vox organ adorn the ironic and witty Trying To Get On The Radio. What a pity it didn’t stay on the playlists long enough (if it ever got on the radio in the first place) as it’s quite a catchy number with an appealing arrangement which includes manic pianoforte.

The psychedelic classic I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night gets a suitably oneiric though still highly uptempo treatment. These qualities are not mutually exclusive - think of Bowie’s cover of Let’s Spend The Night Together on Aladdin Sane. Dream sequences don’t have to be slow. Being unfamiliar with the 1967 original by The Electric Prunes, I cannot make comparisons.

Storm The Gates concludes with an atmospheric ode, Tomorrow Is Another Day. The song deals with the life and death of certain Andrea of Warhol Factory fame and recalls the wistful Sunday Morning on the first Velvet Underground album as well as some of the later work of Nico. Acoustic guitar and harmonium reinforce the association with the German chanteuse. I suppose Ms County outvelvets Nico & co on this haunting composition with its aching sense of loss and yearning.

The color of the vinyl record resembles a type of marble in a cohesive blend of mauve, pink, green and white. Finally, Martyn Goddard deserves credit for the striking front & back cover pictures. Storm The Gates Of Heaven approaches genius so the absence of a CD re-release is inexplicable. Fortunately most of the songs are available on the albums Rock ‘n Roll Cleopatra and Let Your Backbone Slip.