We reprinted this one in Parade Brigade #2. Originally in Touch & Go Fanzine.
SS Decontrol come on strong…psychically, mentally, emotionally,…there is nothing halfway about them…their live attack is relentless and can be imposing to the uninitiated…their message is indelibly etched on every scrap of music…they have been branded everything from Neo-Nazis to mindless bullies…protagonists of a “right wing straight edge” philosophy…they seem to feed on the myths, the stereotypes…all the while strengthening the bond that exists between crowd and band…yes as an outsider to the Boston scene this will appear as somewhat conjecture…but I feel strongly that their message is a powerful one…brimming with a personal optimism that belies the menacing nature of their attack…although still a young scene the Boston thing has changed over the last year as the band stated in a recent interview with T&G…
The Boston scene has expanded to large numbers in the last year, with more and more kids coming in from the suburbs.
…let’s face it folks the city of Boston didn’t have much to cheer about until the likes of SSD/DYS/FU’s and the floundering Gang Green burst on the scene…the band remains conscious of what is said about them but doesn’t let it affect their overall attack…(In a recent Boston Rock poll “Hardcore” was the biggest fad of the year. What hurt the Boston music scene in 82) Sour grapes from the art fags? A little jealous that maybe all that media that has so eluded them should suddenly be laid waste on the likes of SSD? The band said it best “we remain separate and underground for the most part”…with the release of their new 12” entitled Get It Away the secret is out folks…simply one of the most powerful records ever made…The Kids Will Have Their Say was representative in it’s time and place, but we weren’t pleased with its sound. Get It Away is more characteristic of our sound, but 3rd phase SSD should be the most reflective yet? Indeed where the first LP combined a mixture of fast and slow, Get It Away storms through your living room with the two-guitar onslaught…fuller and more direct…the reason for the addition of a second axe man?
We wanted to add to our sound and power, along with adding fresh, new ideas…another Marshall!
Whereas a lot of bands seem to shoot their representative wads upon first record, where SSD is concerned there is a sense of resistance to lameness…A need to change and mature as a band with each outing…when any hint of stagnation begins to creep in they move on…perusing this new turf with all the tact and grace of a Sherman tank…needless to say all do not share my enthusiasm with the band…on a recent trip to Michigan they were greeted with mixed reactions…
We had fun on the road…Ann Arbor was good with a lot of young energetic kids. In Detroit, the audience had problems dealing with our enthusiasm.
Boston seems to share a lot of similarities with the DC scene…indeed there is a need for a steady all ages club. Their first trip to the nation’s capital was a bit tense with the crew from Boston mixing it up with the locals…certainly emotions run high among Boston regulars…things are in the works for a return to town by SSD…their schedules do not allow them the freedom to tour like they would like…but don’t fret all you west coasters…they plan a west coast tour between July 22nd and August 8th…influences range from The Bad Brains to AC/DC to Black Flag to Minor Threat…but thankfully their sound is their own…their message FREE BODY FREE MIND FREE SOUL…(Indeed)…TV
