VAMPIRES OF BIRMINGHAM: Rockin at Dracula's Garage
Birmingham is England's second biggest city yet it still somehow suffers from some weird, unexplainable inferiority complex when compared to, say, the big oomph of London and even much smaller, yet perhaps trendier towns such as Manchester, Bristol, Liverpool or even Brighton. In his liner notes to "Un-Scene", an excellent compilation showcasing the cream of the crop of the city's post-punk and underground scene from 1978 to 1982, curator Dave Twist writes that acting flashy isn't like "Brutalist Birmingham" at all and, of course, he should know; With that being said, the Second City has always maintained a strong musical and, more generally, artistic presence, spawning a long list of big name talent and hugely influential artists (do the names Black Sabbath, the Move, Idle Race, ELO, Dave Kusworth, Nikki Sudden, even Duran Duran say anything to ya?) not to mention a cosy and passionate underground RnR community that, in spite of the truly "bruta...