After Suck There's Blow

Gaye Bykers On Acid

Gaye Bykers On Acid were formed in 1984 in Leicester (U.K.) by Ian ‘Mary’ Hoxley (vocals) and Ian ‘Robber’ Reynolds (bass), joined by Tony Horsfall (guitar) and Kevin Hyde (drums) and later by DJ Ronnie Rocket. They were regarded as a part of the ‘grebo’ movement whose bands distinguished themselves by their ragged and greasy looks. Musically, most grebo bands tended to mix different rock styles with samples and loops. G.B.O.A. started out with a messy mixture of punk and psych rock on “Everythang’s Groovy” and brought in some dance grooves on their second release for the In Tape label, the “Nosedive EP”. Their strident band image and stage shows led to Virgin signing the Bykers with a large advance, partly spent by the band on a film accompanying their debut album “Drill Your Own Hole” (1987). The sound of the album upped the chaos and noise levels as well as the electronic share of the content. Up to that point, most critics of the band complained about the lack of memorable tunage. The band corrected that flaw with their second album for Virgin, “Stewed To The Gills…” (1989), going back to the basics of punk and dropping most electronics with the exception of occasional samples. The album received little promotion and soon after its release Virgin ended the partnership. G.B.O.A. set up their own label, Naked Brain, and went for a harder, metal-influenced sound. Their third LP was the concept album “Cancer Planet Mission” (1990), inspired by author Ludwig K. Pullman. Simultaneously, they also developped their electronic tendencies, though they always retained their punk ethic, as captured by the band’s fourth album “Pernicious Nonsense” (1990). Soon after its release and a third U.S. tour the band split, and all members engaged in new projects. Gaye Bykers On Acid used various pseudonyms: They pretended to be a thrash metal band from East Germany calling themselves ‘Rektum’ (releasing the album “Sakredanus”); they sometimes used the tag ‘PFX (Purple Fluid Exchange)’ alongside their band name, mostly for their dance-oriented releases (the 12” “SPACE” being solely credited to PFX); and they created ‘Lesbian Dopeheads On Mopeds’ as a support act to G.B.O.A. to cash in twice per gig.

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