These guys are relatively well-known for their uber-psychedelic classic over-the-top ‘CQ’ album. But there is much less of a buzz about their first outing. A rawer, punkier, crunchier, less psychedelic slab of garagey noise, mixed with 60s pop a la Stones and Seeds, ‘The Outsiders’ actually smokes my pole much more than the sequel. The band lineup as well as record company did change between the albums: here we have Leenderd ‘Buzz’ on drums, Tom Krabbendam on guitar, Appie Rammers on bass, Ronnie Splinter on vocals and more guitars, and lead freak Wally Tax singing, guitaring and harmonicaring. The core trio of Buzz, Splinter and Tax would be joined by Frank Beek for CQ. Do all Dutchmen have such cooool names?

Strange spoken Dutch opens the album as someone introduces the band, who are playing in what feels like a close, intimate venue. The tension builds and eventually the drummer kicks up a beat. But the other musicians aren’t ready and it collapses straight away. The second attempt hits home, and the one-chord ‘Story 16’ opens with a dizzy raw soundscape. Steady drumming, a screaming crowd, eery wailing harmonica, a repeated crunchy guitar chord and an escalating chromatic bass riff form the stodgy organic stew. Wally Tax adds broken phrases in heavily-accented English. Things gradually speed up to a sprint and it comes to a head with almost animal vocalisms and more freaky harmonica. It’s a very very crunchy record.

The whole of the first LP side was recorded live at beat-centre DE SCHUUR in Breda, and has a feel comparable to the ‘live’ Seeds disc. ‘Tears are falling from my eyes’, ‘Ain’t gonna miss you’ and ‘I wish I could’ are all pop music played by desperado musicians, Wally’s breathless vocals are Sky Saxon with the sneery edge replaced by a thick Dutch accent. The lyrics are all about love and lies.

‘Afraid of the dark’ closes the live set with a sinister minor ringing chord and the story of a lonely night walk.
‘This whole town makes me feel down. Don’t look back cos there ain’t noone around.’
The guy seems a little paranoid and eventually the walk becomes a fearful run for cover.

The studio tracks on side two open with ‘Teach me to forget you,’ pure pop with just a hint of psychedelic echoed vocals. Apparently these tracks were recorded as instrumentals then speeded up before the vocals were added. ‘Filthy rich’ features a fine fuzz guitar solo. ‘I would love you’ is more catchy pop. ‘Don’t you cry’ is rawer and crunchier, recalling the live side. This feel continues into the fuzzed-up, amped-up, pumped-up and crunched-up ‘Won’t you listen.’ The closer, ‘If you don’t treat me right’ is a frantic blues runthrough.

So there you have it: a blast of high class power pop with added fuz and grit. Dated? Some of the poppier tracks do sound their age a little, but this is not a major flaw. Dancable? You betcha! The crunchiest album ever? Certainly a strong contender.