Tales of Terror Tales of Terror LP reissue

The main point of reissuing important albums is to draw attention to underrated bands, and TALES OF TERROR’s self-titled is certainly deserving of another look. Originally released in 1984 and reviewed in Maximum Rocknroll #16 by Tim Yohannan himself, this record is a wild ride. Boozy and raunchy, the tracks call to mind early STOOGES, obviously, but lead vocalist Pat Stratford has more Darby Crash energy than Iggy Pop. Interesting and weird, undeniably punk streaked with psychedelia, this one left me scratching my head in a good way. Tracks veer one way and then swerve into a digression that ends up just ending. Did they run out of ideas, or did they need a refill? Tracks like “Deathryder” and “Over Elvis Worship” hit hard, but other tracks like “Jim” and “Tales of Terror” show potential and land with a thud. Potential is smeared all over this album since the band’s trajectory was cut short with the murder of guitarist Lyon Wong in 1986. How big could they have gotten? How great were they live?