Title of the single: Raw / War
Title: War (B-Seite)
Publisher: Crash'n' Burn Records, Toronto
Date: 1977
Medium: record 17cm
The single Raw / War by the two conceptual artists Amerigo Marras and Bruce Eves, which they recorded together with the band The Diodes and the singer of the band The Curse, Mickey Skin, is considered one of the first punk music releases from Canada.
Michael Panontin wrote on canuckistanmusic.com, a platform for alternative Canadian music, about the record: "It was around this time that the band, along with singer Mickey Skin of the all-girl group the Curse, were sort of corralled by the artists into contributing to what was essentially an issue of the CEAC's newsletter. The Diodes' Paul Robinson: 'They [the CEAC] wanted the Diodes and the Curse to be political, and manipulated 'Raw' / 'War' to this end. It all seems a bit contrived now, but it was interesting and very them.' The 1:37 of 'Raw' finds Maras querying us with bits like 'Does a repressive society reproduce repressive social models?', with Skin in the background snarling, as if in response, a litany of gems like 'Stick it up your fucking ass!' and 'You're the scum of the earth!'". On the flip side, they record what will be the first recorded sounds of the Diodes and use them as punky background music.
Michael Panontin, www.canuckistanmusic.com/index.php?maid=192, 02.08.2022
Biographies: Amerigo Marras & Bruce Eves