Mission of Burma

Too herky-jerky and too enamored with the joys of noise to ever find mass acceptance during its active years, Mission of Burma has nevertheless garnered a posthumous reputation as a crucial force in U.S. punk history. It wouldn't be inaccurate to call this Boston quartet the missing link between the artier side of late-'70s British postpunk (Wire, Gang of Four, Joy Division) and the American indie rock that flourished in the '80s (R.E.M., the Minutemen, Hüsker Dü). Signals, Calls, and Marches introduces the band's central features: Roger Miller's vicious guitar work, Clint Conley's octave-jumping bass lines, Peter Prescott's off-kilter drumming, and Martin Swope's surprising tape-loop textures. The music turns crazy corners with aggro aplenty; the lyrics are as intelligent as they are angry; and Miller, Conley, and Prescott deliver them with appropriate levels of spit and snarl. "That's When I Reach for My Revolver" (later covered by Moby), "Fame and Fortune," and the entrancing instrumental "All World Cowboy Romance" are standouts. The Ryko CD reissue also includes the valuable early single "Academy Fight Song."

If Signals was a nasty scuffle, then Vs. is a full-armored onslaught. Although melody is sometimes at a premium, the band's intensity is astonishing, making the album's quieter moments -- "Trem Two," "Weatherbox" -- all the more effective. The Horrible Truth, recorded during Burma's last tour in 1983, is less necessary, though "Tremelo," "New Disco," and an extended cover of Pere Ubu's "Heart of Darkness" testify to the group's live power.

In 2002, nearly two decades after their dissolution (due to the hearing damage Miller had suffered from years of playing at top volume), Burma reunited for a series of shows in England and the U.S. The adoring response made a new album almost inevitable. Miraculously, ONoffON equals its predecessors; judging by the brittle, manic energy of "Fake Blood" or "Absent Mind," you'd hardly guess any time had passed.

Burma novices shouldn't start their investigations with the two haphazard discs of unreleased studio recordings on Taang! (originally issued in the mid-'80s; in its initial release, Peking Spring was titled simply Mission of Burma). But both albums contain good material: Peking Spring's title track and Forget's "Eyes of Men," for example. The best Mission of Burma primer remains Ryko's 1988 single-CD compilation, also titled Mission of Burma and now out of print, but Accomplished will do in a pinch. (MAC RANDALL)

From 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide