If The World Didn't Suck We'd All Fall Off

Issue #5 of Incremental Decrepitude out now

Mountain Movers interview (from 2016), the usual photos and reviews,
and a "Favorite Bands" feature on Breaking Circus


18 pages, 8-1/2" x 11", corner-stapled

PayPal your address and $1.68 (as "family") to rock_in_my_shoe @ yahoo.com
or, if you're not a peckerwood, you can ask for a free copy
in person if you see me at a show or something sold out

I've also posted some for sale on the Cheat Prick Tapes store (cheatprick.storenvy.com),
along with some back-issue copies of Inc Dec #3 from 2014, although Storenvy will
add another fee to your order which is kinda sucky.

We Represent What You Most Fear

The first Breaking Circus record most likely comes across as the least rocked-out of their three Homestead releases to most ears, seeing as it features only Steve Björklund and a drum machine, plus one other guy. That shouldn't fool anyone into thinking that this thing doesn't have the hits, though, because underneath the somewhat fragile presentation lies some great friggin' songs-- a fact that became even more apparent once Flour and Todd Trainer were on board. Beyond what their records may tell you, as a live band Breaking Circus had the ability to take any one of their songs and turn it into a ruthless oi!-metal attack.

The disquieting "Knife In The Marathon" seemed like a throwaway to me the first time I heard it, but it became to be the centerpiece of "The Very Long Fuse" for most people, with its striking repetitive lyric unfolding like a newspaper article being read ("An unidentified third-world athlete was wrestled to the ground by security... they said he had a knife in the marathon"). As you dig in further past the first couple of tracks, other coolness reveals itself at every turn: "Morning", with its "ohh ohhh ohhh" refrain, is put together like an early "Basement Screams"-type Naked Raygun song, and the knock and the sound of the opening chords to "Monster's Sanctuary" is one of my favorite parts of any Breaking Circus record.

The indisputable masterstroke here, though, is "The Imperial Clawmasters' Theme", which is only one of the most hilariously-great songs ever written. "Stupid little zeros with the courage of a rollerskate, we represent what you most fear! 7,941 undefeated amateur bouts, and now we're turning pro!" "We've got a master plan and it goes like this: Gagne... DEAD! Patera... DEAD! Von Erichs... DEAD! Heenan... DEAD!" Twenty-something years later, and it still almost kills me every time I hear it.




Breaking Circus -

"Precision"

"Knife In The Marathon"

"The Imperial Clawmasters' Theme"

"Monster's Sanctuary"

"Morning"

They're Lined Up Waiting And They Don't Look Pleased

"Stupid little zeros with the courage of a rollerskate... we represent what you must fear." --Breaking Circus, "The Imperial Clawmaster's Theme", The Very Long Fuse

"Eat lead, sucker... I'd rather skin you alive, then roll you in salt, you sonofabitch." --Breaking Circus, "Eat Lead", Smokers' Paradise

I remember seeing Breaking Circus perform "Eat Lead" in Boston before the record came out, and thinking that it was gonna be an absolutely punishing song once they got it down on vinyl. I might've overestimated a bit, but not by much.... seriously, one of the top ten finest moth-o-fucking bands to ever walk the planet... rumor has it that "Smokers' Paradise" was supposed to be an LP, but the label only wanted to pay for six songs... kinda hard to believe, looking at Homestead's track record, yet there it is. Potentially the greatest career-ending record of all time.




Breaking Circus -

(these files are now listen-only)

"Three Cool Cats"

"Shockhammer 13"

"Eat Lead"

These Are The Things They Have And Hold

This would be just another decent record from a shitty '80s fanzine except that it's the last record ever to come out with Breaking Circus' name on it, which makes it more than alright. This isn't even really Breaking Circus proper-- more like Steve Bjorklund alone in a studio with a drum machine-- which means the two punk covers here (of Naked Raygun and UK Subs) are given a definitely non-punk delivery... and in the case of "Home Of The Brave", it makes the somber lyrics even more chilling. As for "Warhead", well, I never was a UK Subs fan, but bands I like keep covering them, so hey, whaddo I know.


Breaking Circus -

"Home Of The Brave"

"Warhead"

(these files are now listen-only)

Can't Stand Up Straight In Here The Pipes Are Low

In the late 80's there was no band higher on the list for me than Breaking Circus. Like almost all of the great Mid-Western post-HC bands of that decade, they brought a toughness and attitude with them that bore the unmistakable residue of hardcore-- exactly what it took to catch the ear of a stupid ex-straight-edge kid like me-- while writing songs that were flat-out amazing, taking their cues from a whole variety of places: Oi!, metal, Brit-pop, hard rock, punk, you name it. Plus, I doubt you could find any three musicians who were more assured at their craft than Breaking Circus.

Steve Björklund was seriously one of the coolest guys I've ever met. As a frontman, his stage presence was like Marlon Brando and Keith Richards all rolled into one. His lyrics were wry as hell (listen to "The Imperial Clawmasters' Theme" from "The Very Long Fuse" and you'll die), and his musical tastes seemed impeccable. I saw Breaking Circus twice in Boston; once at The Rat, where I interviewed them, and once at a place in Cambridge called T.T. The Bear's. At the T.T. The Bear's show, Steve recognized me as I was walking up the sidewalk and put down the equipment he was unloading to talk for a while, which I thought was pretty cool. During Breaking Circus' set, I shouted out some Oi! song, either Cock Sparrer's "Running Riot" or "Bad Man" by the Cockney Rejects-- I don't remember exactly which one-- but Steve flashed a grin and instantly started playing the chords. I don't think the rest of the band knew the song, but Steve played it anyway.

I can still clearly remember the day I pulled "The Ice Machine" out of my P.O. box; somehow, I ended up on the Homestead promo list in 1987, meaning once a month I'd get a mailer with two new LPs in it, which seemed to be how Homestead's pressing schedule went. I didn't know I was on the list until a box showed up in the mail on the first week of January '87; inside was Squirrel Bait's "Skag Heaven" and "The Ice Machine" by Breaking Circus, two of the greatest indie rock LPs ever. Homestead was untouchable as a label back then, but even now I can't imagine any label being able to flop two records on the table to beat that pair.

Breaking Circus' previous record, "The Very Long Fuse", was more of a mellow, moody affair, so when I first put "The Ice Machine" on the turntable and "Song of The South" kicked in, it served notice that Breaking Circus were ready to rock at this time, thank you very much. And rock they did.




Breaking Circus -

"Took a Hammering"

"Song of The South"

"Swept Blood"

"Caskets and Clocks"

"Where"

"Gun Shy"

"Laid So Low"

"Evil Last Night"

(these files are now listen-only)