The Mob: Let The Tribe Increase 1983 (And The Singles) 2001

 

The Mob began around the beginning of 1978 around Yeovil in Somerset, England. Their first line-up

was Mark(main songwriter) on guitar and lead vocals, Curtis on bass and backing vocals and Graham on drums. Before The Mob they were called Magnum Force. They started out by playing local halls and stayed as a local band at first. The mob were plagued by violence in the early days, and played at the 1978 Stonehenge Festival. In 1979, The Mob toured with Here and Now and got the chance to play outside of their area. They once again played the summer solstice Stonehenge festival.
                              

Their first single Crying Again 7" was recorded at Crypt Studios in Stonehenge during the Winter of 1979, by the same soundman for Here and Now, and studio engineer Grant Showbiz. It was put out on The Mob's own label All the Madmen. Max helped out with money to help to put the single out in the

beginning of 1980. It was sold through the All The Madmen fanzine, at gigs and at Acorn Records. During this time, several people with similar ideas started bands and organised gigs with The Mob. One person was Geoff, whom had the original fanzine for All the Matmen based at his house. Since the fanzine began to die down a bit, the name was carried over for the label. Debbie, (formed My Bloody Valentine in the 80s) Christine(from the Bikini Mutants) and Wilf were friends whom contributed artwork to all The Mob's albums,output, etc. The Androids of Mu also became close to The Mob.
                                     

During the summer of 1980, the Witch Hunt single was recorded at Spaceward in Cambridge. It's spread was far more than the first, reaching John Peel and Crass. Many people were introduced to The

Mob through this single. The intro scream used to be used as an ansa-phone message for Geoff's phone at his house. Several more gigs followed, then a 'free' tour that Here and now had been promiting called 'Weird Tales' featuring The Mob, The Astronauts, Zounds, Androids of Mu plus many local bands that happened to show up. The band played at the Stonehenge free festival in 1980, but a couple of biker gangs that disliked punk turned it into a brawl. The Snipers had played first, then The Mob, but when the Epileptics(later known as Flux of Pink Indians) began playing, the fights broke out.
                                

Zounds, Poison Girls and Crass were on the bill too, but were unable to play due to the violence. In late 1980, Mark and Curtis moved upwards into London, but Graham decided to stay in Yeovil so they went

to find a new drummer. Adie(Null and Void) tried out, some guy named Tim did too, but Josef Porter(Zounds, Entire Cosmos) became the new drummer. They quickly rehearsed and recorded the Ching cassette. It was recorded in Josef's bedroom and was sold at gigs and to people who wrote to the band. Soon after, they caught the attention of Penny Rimbaud, who was the drummer and writer for Crass. He brought them in and let them release a single on Crass Records.
                            

In 1981, the No Doves fly here 7" was recorded. Penny put in his own synth parts to the song, which

upset the band at first, but they ended up accepting it. It stood in the top 5 in the independent charts for weeks. In 1982, they played at the infamous Zig Zag squat gig in December alongside other bands such as Omega Tribe, Faction, Dirt, Null and Void, Lack of Knowledge, The Apostles, Conflict, Poison Girls, The Epsilons(D & V), Youth in Asia and Crass. In late 1982, The Mob recorded a couple of tracks at Spaceward with financial help from Alistair and Mick Lugworm. It was released early the following year on All the Madmen.
                       

It was called 'Let the Tribe Increase'. The band refused to sign to labels, and dedicated this to the 'scene'

that the band had been lumped into against their wishes. It came with artwork(burrowed from Alternative T.V.'s second album) and a big poster. The original artwork the band had in mind was too expensive so they went for a cheaper two colour one instead. It hit the top 3 in the independent charts with the aid of fanzine writers(Kill your Pet Puppy) and music weeklies pushing the album out. The Mob played several gigs to promote it.
                     

The last Mob release was the Mirror Breaks 7" recorded once again at Spaceard and relased in the

summer of 1983. The single sold really well, and after a European tour in the winter of 1983, Mark disappeared to roam the countryside. He packed his teepee in his truck and went off. At their last show, he had thrown his guitar into the audience, never seeing it again(he always had the same guitar. This was not the reason why the band split). He later settled down near Bath with his family. It was ironic that the band split up when it was at its highest. On the other hand, Josef grew tired of "singing about children dying" and moved on with Curtis to form Blyth Power.
                              

All the Madmen went on under Alistair following Marks disappearance in 1984. It helped release

material by the Astronauts, Flowers in the Dustbin and Zos Kia that same year. In 1986, Rob from Faction took it over and relseased more stuff in the label until 1988. Anarka and Poppy were supposed to have a 3 track single released, but it never happened and the one copy of the tape disappeared. Recently in 2010, the Mob reformed and played their first gig in over 28 years in April of 2011.
                                

The band's initial line-up consisted of Mark Wilson (vocals, guitar), Curtis Youé (bass guitar) and Graham Fallows (drums). Later drummers included Adie Tompkins, Tim Hutton and Joseph Porter.

The Mob disbanded in 1983 and reformed in 2011, playing a number of gigs with the original members. The first was on 8 April 2011 at The Fleece in Bristol and later in the year, The Levellers' Beautiful Days Festival in Devon on 20 August. North American shows followed in October 2012, and various European gigs in 2012/13. Their first new release in almost 30 years was the single Rise Up! in August 2013. Further North American/European dates followed in 2014/15.
                          

Let the Tribe Increase is the only studio album by English anarcho-punk band The Mob. It was released in 1983, through record label All the Madmen, and is considered an early example of the

anarchopunk genre. Let the Tribe Increase was the groups first (and only) LP. It was preceded by three singles: Crying Again, Witch Hunt, and No Doves Fly Here, all songs which were included on Let the Tribe Increase. The album was originally released in 1983 on All the Madmen Records. The address used on the front cover was of the Freedom Press bookshop in London, as all band members were living in squats and co-ops at the time, and did not have a permanent address.

Listen And Understand Blog  anarchoscene.blogspot

MEMBERS

Mark Wilson - "warbled" vocals, "strummed" guitar
Curtis Youe - "plucked" bass
Josef Porter - drums
Josef Porter, Mark Wilson, Stephen "Wilf" Wilmott - "Artbitz" (artwork)

The Mob – Let The Tribe Increase
Label:Broken Rekids – SKIP 57
Format: CD, Compilation
Country: US
Released: 2001
Genre: Rock
Style: Anarcho-Punk

TRAXS

                           

01. Another Day, Another Death    2:23
02. Cry Of The Morning    2:23
03. Dance On (You Fool)    3:23
04. Raised In A Prison    4:12
05. Slayed    3:12
06. Our Life Our World    5:33
07. Gates Of Hell    2:50
08. I Wish    3:43
09. Never Understood    3:58
10. Roger    5:23
11. Witch Hunt    3:07

BONUS TRAXS

                          

12. Crying Again    2:13
13. Youth    4:54
14. Witch Hunt    3:07
15. Shuffling Souls    1:48
16. No Doves Fly Here    6:35
17. I Hear You Laughing    4:10
18. The Mirror Breaks    3:48
19. Stay    2:37
20. What's Going On    1:27

NOTES    

Compilation of the "Let The Tribe Increase" album (Tracks 1 to 11) and the singles "Crying Again" (12,13) / "Witch Hunt" (14,15) / "No Doves Fly Here" (16,17) / "The Mirror Breaks" (18,19).
Track 20 is a live recording from the "Crying Again" 12" recorded 06/25/83 Meanwhile Gardens.

Track 02 : marked as "Cry Of A Morning" instead of "Cry Of The Morning".
Track 04 : marked as "Prison" instead of "Raised In A Prison".
Track 15 : marked as "Suffering Souls" instead of "Shuffling Souls".
Track 18 : marked as "Mirror Breaks" instead of "The Mirror Breaks".
Track 19 : marked as "Sink" instead of "Stay".

ANOTHER DAY ANOTHER DEATH  LYRICS

                     

I woke up screaming from the nightmare that's begun again
Cold tears of sweat dripping down my face
I slipped up again, I slipped up again
The radio is playing songs whirling in my head.

Another day another death
Another day another death
Ice cold needle that splits my every breath
Another day, another death.

The cold and frigid wind that blows through every crack
The wild and tortured dream - the straw that broke the camel's back
We slipped up again, we slipped up again
And I wanna know why, I wanna know why.

Another day another death
Another day another death
Ice cold needle that splits my every breath
Another day another death.

I'm reaching out again and clutching flowers thrown in the breeze
They're all quite meaningless and yet they mean so much to me
We slipped up again by not recalling all the pain
And I wanna know why, I wanna know why.

Another day another death
Another day another death
Ice cold needle that splits my every breath
Another day another death.

GATES OF HELL  LYRICS

     

Living here at the gates of hell
My body is a bombed out shell
Devoid of feeling, devoid of life
The only flame is a flicker in my eyes
Living here at the depths of pain
the sun is blacked out by the rain
that keeps on falling, as the blood keeps flowing
Lights at the end of the tunnel
At the gates of hell
Where the corpses yell
And the only sound
Is the toll of your death bells.

Living here where the sun hits the streets
Peace flags flying in the breeze
of illusion, a mirage in the desert
Lights at the end of the tunnel
At the gates of hell
Where the corpses yell
And the only sound
Is the toll of your death bells.

CRYING AGAIN  LYRICS

            

I stare at the wall, disguising my fall from elation
With a knife in my back, the radio blares, and I fall down
The sign on the door is scaring me more, but I don't know
what time of the day I started to run from nothing at all.

The time spins around, the wall closes in
I think of a place I used to know, and I'm crying again.

I slip on the road, although it's not wet, I'm disabled
I crash through the door of a place I once knew, and it's all changed
Or is it just me? The people all stare, they're not seeing
They think that they know, but nobody knows that I'm lost now.

The time spins around, the wall closes in
I think of a place I used to know, and I'm crying again.

There's room in the chair, but nobody's there, where have they gone?
The cupboard is clean, and nothing is seen at the windows
But something is there, smell in the air tells me something
But I haven't a clue. There's nothing to do, and I fall down again.

The time spins around, the wall closes in
I think of a place I used to know, and I'm crying again.

NO DOVES FLY HERE  LYRICS

                      

The sky is empty and it's turning different shades of colour
It never did before
And we never asked for war
My mind is empty and my body different shapes of torture
It never was before
And we never asked for war
No-one is moving and no doves fly here
No-one is thinking and no doves fly here
No-one remembers beyond all this fear
Nooo doves fly here!!!

The buildings are empty and the countryside is wasteland
It never was before
And we never asked for war
The playgrounds are empty and the children limbless corpses
They never were before
And they never asked for war.

No-one is moving and no doves fly here
No-one is thinking and no doves fly here
No-one remembers beyond all this fear
Nooo doves fly here
Nooo doves fly here
Nooo doves fly here
Nooo doves fly here!!!

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