DISCHOTOMY / RARITIES 1971-74

"Dischotomy" is a collection of demos, outtakes and live versions from String Driven Thing's early years when Chris and Pauline Adams formed the core of the band along with violinist Grahame Smith. The tracks are therefore from the period when the band released what are regarded to be their two strongest albums, "String driven thing" (1972) and "The machine that cried" (1973).

A significant number of the tracks here will already sound familiar to those who know those two albums as they appeared on them, albeit in different form. "Let me down", "Circus", "The machine that cried", and the magnificent "Heartfeeder" all fall into this category. The versions here are demos and early unfinished renditions which, while of some interest, are largely superfluous, the final album tracks being the definitive versions.

"It's a game" was a non album single which deserved much greater success in this form than it gained. It and "City at night" (also sometimes called "Part of the city") subsequently appeared as bonus tracks on the re-master of SDT's finest album, "The machine that cried".

Of the other tracks here, "Moonlight kid" would have fitted in well on the band's albums of this period. "Timeglide" is a slow atmospheric piece, the decent production defying its "demo" status. "Are you really a rock'n'roller" is something of an oddity for the band. This B side finds SDT really rocking to a driving guitar rhythm with echoed vocals and references to Little Richard et al.

The two live tracks here, "Sold down the river" and "Circus" are little different from their album originals. The final track is a 10 minute interview with Chris Adams, who provides a candid history of the band up until "The machine that cried" and the subsequent single "It's a game", shortly after which he and his wife Pauline left the band.