bad.squirrel presents...

Saturn V - "Skycycle"

Our Greg's a bit talented isn't he? First he gives us cult indie band, The Razorcuts, in the late 1980's. Then, with Elizabeth Price, they form the timeless Carousel. During his involvement with the latter, he spawns another alter ego, Saturn V. This platform gives him the freedom to do all those things he couldn't do with The Carousel. Like write songs about huge rockets, shout "Do it, right now!", make guitars buzz and fizz to his heart's content. Like a hibernating bear awakening from winter's slumber, Greg's tetchy, moody and above all hungry. He's been away but now he's back. Grrrooowlll!

After some single releases in 1992 (which appear to be dry runs for the LP), Saturn V's true lasting legacy is the epic "Skycycle" LP, recorded in 1992 and released on Vinyl Japan the following year (it included new versions of "Skyfall", "Happy trails" and "Red Star in Orbit"). When I say epic, I mean it sounds big and feels big, big like the Milky Way, to which I mean our solar system and not chocolate. I mean it's a record on a mission, to boldly go to those sonic reaches where The Carousel and The Razorcuts had feared to tread. Some songs like "Air Balloon" and "Jesus Stole My Girlfriend" plainly refer to Elizabeth. Many of the catchy tunes easily attain maximum velocity and arc high over the sky and out into space, trajectory unknown. "Skyfall", "Machinegun Head", "Fireball" and "Happy Trails" are such fine examples. The unforgiving "Dominator II" pulls 20 G's. The distorted climax to the final song "Red Star In Orbit", a tribute to Soviet cosmonauts Yuri Gagarin and Valentina Tereshkova, takes the Saturn V spacecraft to its zenith.

Talk about having the universe at your feet.

Saturn V were Chris Scott on bass, Kevin Pickering on guitar, Gregory Webster on vocals and guitar and Struan Robertson on drums.

Discography

1991 - She's gone (live) Flexi (Pop Bus)

1992 - Dominator, Red star in orbit, Skyfall - 7" EP (Kokopop) KOKO7

1992 - Happy trails, Rocket spaceship - 7" single (Summershine) SHINE21

1992 - Everything tends towards chaos EP/CD (Vinyl Japan) TASKCD14
Skyfall, Hour of pure sorrow, Machine-gun head, She's gone

1993 - Skycycle LP/CD (Vinyl Japan) ASKCD22
Fireball, Skyfall, Air balloon, Happy trails, Jesus stole my girlfriend, Dominator II, Machinegun head, Stars dim slowly, Strong, Red star in orbit

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