Recommended by
Singles & Sessions 1979-1981
In retrospect, two things about punk rock now seem preordained: it would burn brightly and flare out quickly; and it would have a wide-ranging impact on popular music that would never completely go away. One of the most immediate manifestations of what would come to be called the “post-punk” style was the emergence of a school of dour, edgy pop music that drew as much on the rhythms of funk and disco as on the abrasive aggressiveness of punk. Gang of Four are perhaps the best-known manifestation of this school; Delta 5 are a criminally overlooked example. Led by two female singers, Delta 5 produced jumpy, jittery punk-funk with a sharp lyrical edge (“Can I interfere in your crisis?/No! Mind your own business”). This compilation brings together rare and unreleased material from their early years, and is an essential collection.