Sinking Ships were a criminally undersung post-punk band, lost in the mire of the early 1980s explosion. The band released two singles and two compilation tracks on the infamous Household Shocks compilation, disappearing off the face of the earth after 1980. They seemed to draw great UK press at the time and even caught the attention of John Peel, who played the tracks on his infamous radio program. The band opened up for several bigger names at the time, including the Psychedelic Furs, but never could tap into that same level of success as their peers. A similar tale to many we’ve heard here in the past, hopefully culiminating in a new audiece for this excellent single.
There is a different rip of this single floating around, but I’ve re-ripped a copy I picked up recently for maximum enjoyment. Once more, my good friend Goutroy and I will be teaming up to bring you the full 7” discography of the band. You can find his rip of the Dream 7” over at A Viable Commercial, complete with an equally strong a-side and a curiously overlong live dirge crammed on to side B. As for this single, the title track is one of my favorite obscure post-punk rave-ups, akin to the likes of Chairs Missing-era Wire and early Modern English. The b-side is a catchy, jangly affair with a huge, pub-singalong kind of chorus that shuffles over the course of three minutes.
The Sinking Ships- The Cinema Clock 7”
1. The Cinema Clock
2. Strangers
