Art/into/Pop: What I Want for Christmas: The Deviants’ Ptoof! on Vinyl (along with many other records....)

When the mode of music changes, the walls of the city shake!!!

The Deviants, first known as “the Social Deviants,” were an English psychedelic Proto-Punk group that were active from 1967-1970. Their frontman was countercultural icon, Mick Farren, who went on to be a prolific writer and journalist, publishing over 20 novels, several biographies, and articles for publications such as NME. Along with the Pink Fairies, the Deviants were the UK’s most “punk rock” band of the 60s/early 70s. In fact the Pink Fairies were born out of the ashes of the Deviants’ first formation; both anarchic proto-punk projects were from the same UK Underground scene of bohemians and psychedelic rockers. It was this scene that also produced the famous counter-cultural newspaper, The International Times, which served as Mick Farren’s first major outlet for journalistic expression. John Peel, a big fan of the Deviants, once interviewed Mick Farren about the publication and the greater Underground scene:

While the Pink Fairies played a more frenzied form of fast blues rock ‘n roll, the Deviants explored more psychedelic soundscapes. If the early John Cale-produced Stooges hung out with Syd Barrett or Rocky Erikson for a weekend jam session, they might produce something akin to the Deviants’ debut full length, Ptoof! (1967 Impressario/Decca), hands down their best record.

Before the era of McLaren and the Sex Pistols, the Deviants were the first D-I-Y artists of the rock world. The first album, with the help of a wealthy friend, was self-released by the band on their label, Impressario. The album is one of my favorite British rock records of the 60s, and that’s a provocative thing to say when one thinks about all the masterpieces of the era. Here’s the awesome opening track, “I’m Coming Home”:

Mick Farren has that all-to-familiar punk rock tone of snide despondency down to perfection. I love the vocals, but I also love the song’s gradual, instrumental escalation into sonic chaos. The band can also tone it down, however. The album, for instance, immediately goes from dissonant chaos to subdued folk-like melodies with the 2nd song, “Child of the Sky”:

The album is obviously very dynamic, more so than anything by their successors, the Pink Fairies. Here’s one more track, the more experimental conclusion to the debut album, “Deviation Street”:

Wouldn't mind having this one too!

That’s a pretty weird collage of noise and melody.... The Deviants recorded two more albums, Disposable (1968 Stable Records) and The Deviants 3 (1969 Transatlantic), but by 1970, the group disbanded with Farren pursuing writing and the other members joining famous psyche drummer, Twink, to form the band, Pink Fairies. Mick Farren did release one solo album, Mona - The Carnivorous Circus (1970 Transatlantic), and in recent decades, Farren has released some records under the Deviants name - none of it, however, compares to the early days of recklessness that are so well captured on the original three Lps, and Ptoof! definitely blows them all away. It’s an essential for all rock collections, and for this reason, I desperately want a vinyl copy for Xmas.... Not gonna happen, but one can still dream...

I’ll now leave you with some live footage. These guys are so punk rock, just watch, and you gotta love the hippie dancers....