here<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\nPop culture is full of classic albums that slip between the cracks. In recent years the late Poly Styrene and X-Ray Spex have achieved iconic status with their 1978 debut \u2018Germfree Adolescents\u2019 album but the group\u2019s follow up album ‘Conscious Consumer\u2019 released 17 years later has been lost to the sands of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Often the greatest moments in pop culture are quicksilver. They don\u2019t follow tried and trusted career paths. X-Ray Spex seemed to appear out of the ether in punk rock, releasing a clutch of perfect singles that dealt with modern life with some of the greatest lyrics of the period sang with a startling voice. Ramped up over a chiseled chugging guitar and idiosyncratic fluid Lora Logic\u2019s sax lines played by her successor in the band, the debut was a raucous and witty rush of perfection. The band had somehow stumbled onto a sound that was all their own and Poly Styrene seemed to be on a fast forward to iconic status with her idiosyncratic DIY style and charismatic presence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Like most people though, the rough and tumble of the music world didn’t sit well on her shoulders and burned-out Poly seemed to disappear into the ether. Her apparent breakdown saw her slip away from the limelight and she saved herself in the rigours of the Hare Krishna movement where she reconnected with Lora Logic who she had kicked out of the band just when it had broken through. They even played together again with other Krishna’s in a low-key reggae-tinged band called Juggernaut who played a few gigs at the 1983 Glastonbury Festival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These days most people don\u2019t even realise that X-Ray Spex had a follow up to what is now embraced as one of the classics of the punk rock period. This lovingly compiled revisit puts the spotlight on a lost gem that has many of the hallmarks of the debut but is sieved through a different lens. \u2018Conscious Consumer\u2019 <\/em>was an upgrade of the classic debut with a same punk rock urgency and themes of consumerism but with a poppier edge and a more considered wisdom gleamed from the ups and downs of life from the perspective of an older, wiser, Krishna devotee.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOr as Poly herself said at the time: \u201cLondon. West End. Browsing in the record stores. I-Spy the Spex. Serious disbelief. How many times can they re-package one album? Crazy or what? So many unrecorded songs I’ve got, because I haven’t stopped writing since Spex disbanded, you know. So I phone Receiver Records to inform them of the Pop Art Moving Diary I’m compiling right now. It includes original X-Ray Spex songs and future material. At the same time I ask them \u201cWould you like me to do some shelf filling?\u201d and Frank Lea replies \u201cYes. We’d love it Poly!\u201d I like enthusiasm.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nI get together with Paul, Lora and friends. Six weeks later Receiver is in receipt of Conscious Consumer, our zillion-selling CD to fill all the shelves of all the record shops between here and the edge of the galaxy.
Love to spend more time with you, but I have to pop out for a byte of Audio Lunch.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nIn 1995 the album was an unexpected comeback. It was the first new material recorded by the band for years despite many of the songs being written a decade before. On release, though, the album disappeared into a void being out of sync with the times and before Poly got her deserved iconic status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bassist Paul Dean was equally shocked at the out of the blue recording: \u201cI was very surprised, this was the mid 1990\u2019s and 17 years since Germfree. It was the time of Britpop; Punk was now old news. Poly had 12 new songs and she said the album was going to be called Conscious Consumer and she wanted me on bass. I thought about and said yes of course\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nSax legend Lora Logic was equally surprised by the return of the band: \u201cI was ensconced in mummyhood with a 3-year-old and hadn’t connected with Poly for a long time. She rang me out of the blue, and without any small talk, suggested I come and stay with her in her small London flat to record a brand-new X-Ray Spex album. Excited and without considering any repercussions, I found myself on the train with my tenor sax, (childcare sorted) which had been sleeping in it’s case for years, and a soprano sax which I had not played since recording \u2018Pedigree Charm\u2019 in 1981.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe band who also re-formed in 1991, 1995 and 2008 are now revered worldwide for sparking a new kind of attitude in music. The late Poly is now a pop culture pin-up for an originality and feminism that barely existed at the time. Her acerbic, witty, and brilliant lyrics and distinctive voice have stood the test of time, and along with the band\u2019s original sax player Lora Logic, she has become part of the punk rock narrative. The fuzzy snapshots of the brief early lineup see the sassy and sharp dressed teenager core oozing talent, originality, and style in a freeze frame of pop culture punk rock perfection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The X-Ray Spex story has been told over and over in books, films and online and yet the band\u2019s second album seems to have slipped from view. Finally lovingly restored it\u2019s getting its moment in the sun and its punky pop\/noise songs that drip a punky sass with an added bubble-gum melody with Poly\u2019s sassy lyrical genius. There is not a dud on the album that updates the debut\u2019s kooky Day-Glo genius with a song cycle that are snapshots of the then contemporary culture. The tunes come wrapped up with Poly\u2019s distinctive voice and, finally, Lora Logic who is unleashed on a whole album playing her exquisite sax on each track with her distinctive standout style that is her trademark. There is something magical about the way the voice and the sax slip around each other in their own individual perfection. Poly\u2019s instinctive pop nous and Lora\u2019s bleating sax give the songs their distinctive twists and turns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Paul Dean remembers the recording: \u201cIt was Poly, Lora and me from the original band and we recruited Crispian Mills on guitar and Paul Winterhart on drums who were both brilliant and had a lot of input. Some of the songs I was already aware of and had been around for years e.g. \u2018Prayer For Peace\u2019. We had a few rehearsals, there were 12 songs to work out. Poly had the lyrics and melody and the band worked out the chords, riffs, and song arrangements into a recordable structure, it was a lot of work in a short time. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nSound wise it was the classic X-Ray Spex set up with Poly\u2019s unique vocals and raps and Lora\u2019s trademark saxophone melodies swinging it along on top of the guitar, bass, and drums. If I remember correctly, it was all done in a few weeks.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nFor Lora Logic, it was initially an exciting experience: \u201cMy first studio memory was being struck by Crispian Mill’s (or Red Spectre, his album pseudonym) impressive guitar presence and how tightly he played with drummer Paul Winterhart (or Pauli OhAirt, his album pseudonym), strengthened by a musical bond from years of gigging together. I had seen Crispian play in his first band in his early teens before Kula Shaker. Having previously made friends with his mum, Hayley Mills, from her Krishna Temple visits. It was awesome to find myself bumping into him again on an X-Ray Spex album!
Meeting up with original Spex bassist Paul Dean again, after nearly 20 years, was also wonderful. I very much enjoyed pulling sax flurries out of the ether after Crispian had arranged guitar to Poly’s contagious new tunes.
However, it was not easy to finish. Poly began suggesting that most of the sax should be taken out. Fortunately, the producer convinced her otherwise and the sax parts were subtly mixed in. Sadly, her emotional and mental decline became increasingly apparent as we went along. Completing Poly\u2019s vocal over-dubs became a priority.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nFinally recorded, the album is full of lost classics like Crystal Clear<\/em> that revisits the tension and release of the debut album whilst Cigarettes<\/em> and Junk Food Junkie<\/em> are closest to classic Spex style with an added pop touch and see Poly still examining the crassness of consumer culture. There is the amusing nod to Iggy Pop in Dog In Sweden<\/em>, which is an urgent punk rock missive just like the band had staked their reputation on years before. There is the nod to T. Rex on Prayer for Peace<\/em> that featured on both this album and the recent Essential Logic Album \u2018Land Of Kali\u2019. <\/em>or the hypnotic mantra like Sophia<\/em> that has the mystery of a Kate Bush in its exquisite grooves. India<\/em> is a paean to the holy nation of Poly\u2019s dreams that embraces a spiritual serenity far away from the urgent rush of the debut album whilst \u2018Hi Chaperone\u2019<\/em> has the cheeky twist of Lora Logic\u2019s own acclaimed post Spex band Essential Logic given the X-Ray treatment. Lora recalls the album fondly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\u201cI am honoured to have been creatively involved with this unique collaboration of musicians and sound engineers and to have contributed to Poly\u2019s extraordinary songwriting and performance.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nListening to the album again after a long break, Paul Dean is surprised: \u201cConscious Consumer now sounds so much better than I remember. It wasn\u2019t properly released at the time and so no one knows about it. If you love Germfree Adolescents, you will love Conscious Consumer they are linked together. X-Ray Spex didn\u2019t have just one great album it was two!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe album rewrites the X-Ray Spex story. No longer can they be seen as a moment freeze framed in time back in the punk wars but a potentially longer-term project that never lost their creative soul power. No mere flash in the pan, in many ways the album is even more frustrating and full of \u2018what ifs\u2019. Of course, Poly made her own great solo records and Lora Logic was also on her own creative high with Essential Logic but the pair of them working in tandem was potentially one of the great sounds of UK pop culture. They had a rare magic that is the heart and soul of all great music, and the album is finally a reminder of just how much potential there was whilst also being a document of their innate brilliance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DYI Records have announced the reissue of X-Ray Spex\u2019s 1995 lost classic \u2018Conscious Consumer\u2019. The highly sought after album originally received a very limited CD […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":39685,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[28,30,1907,32],"tags":[11384,11385,6845],"class_list":["post-39683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","category-new-release","category-news","category-records","tag-conscious-consumer","tag-poly-styrene","tag-x-ray-spex"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/7EA3F48D-680F-40CE-BE18-8C112126FD11-e1697281681568.jpeg?fit=736%2C534","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2B2TV-ak3","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":27400,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=27400","url_meta":{"origin":39683,"position":0},"title":"The Big Pink share new single ‘How Far We’ve Come’","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"November 24, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"UK electo\/indie-rock band The Big Pink have shared a stream of their new single, How Far We\u2019ve Come. The track features guest vocals from Ioanna Gika of Io Echo and guest guitars from Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and will be released via Los Angeles-based X-Ray Record Label\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "guitar rock"","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Big Pink - Robbie Furze","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/u34n_ScreenShot20171108at95810AM.png?fit=423%2C303&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":29750,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=29750","url_meta":{"origin":39683,"position":1},"title":"Spiritualized ‘Fucked Up Inside’ LP gets black vinyl edition","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"October 4, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"London-based\u00a0Glass Redux Records, the sister label of\u00a0Glass Modern Records, has announced a new black vinyl edition of\u00a0'Fucked Up Inside'\u00a0by British space rock legends\u00a0Spiritualized. The LP was originally released in 1993 and it was the band's first official live release. https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=GI5vPpiXuOI&list=PLpszlaVYHIX4A4QH3615vpiri9e8gKWSJ Formed in 1990 in Rugby, Warwickshire by\u00a0Jason Pierce\u00a0(often known as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "guitar rock"","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"Spiritualized","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/206532.jpg?fit=392%2C425&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2194,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=2194","url_meta":{"origin":39683,"position":2},"title":"Thrill Jockey Records announce their Record Store Day 2012 releases","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"March 5, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Thrill Jockey Records have announced the vinyl new releases and reissues by Hush Arbors, Arbouretum, The Black Twig Pickers, Freakwater and Tortoise available for Record Store Day on April 21, 2012. Hush Arbors release their first Thrill Jockey release with Arbouretum on the new 'Aureola' split album. The two bands\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "indie"","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/03\/37r7_rsddatewide2012low_2-1.jpg?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/03\/37r7_rsddatewide2012low_2-1.jpg?w=350&h=200&crop=1 1x, http:\/\/cultureaddicts.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/03\/37r7_rsddatewide2012low_2-1.jpg?w=525&h=300&crop=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":41425,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=41425","url_meta":{"origin":39683,"position":3},"title":"Lunchbox\u2019s lost album \u2018Evolver\u2019 resurfaces \u2013 reissued via Slumberland!","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"March 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"STREAM: Evolver \u2013 Available now on all streaming services. Lunchbox\u2019s legendary lost album \u2018Evolver\u2019 is lost no more! After more than two decades, this psychedelic gem has been remastered to perfection and is finally getting the release it always deserved\u2014on CD, cassette, and, for the first time ever, vinyl. Originally\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "guitar rock"","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"Lunchbox press photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_3946.jpeg?fit=864%2C649&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_3946.jpeg?fit=864%2C649&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_3946.jpeg?fit=864%2C649&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/IMG_3946.jpeg?fit=864%2C649&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":28648,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=28648","url_meta":{"origin":39683,"position":4},"title":"Wire to reissue first 3 albums via pinkflag","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"March 21, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"In addition to the previously announced Record Store Day 7\" singles box set release, the reissue of Wire's first three hugely influential first three albums is announced. 'Pink Flag'\u00a0(1977),\u00a0'Chairs Missing'\u00a0(1978) and\u00a0'154'\u00a0(1979) need no introduction. They are the three classic albums on which Wire's reputation is based. Holy crap...holy crap....holy crap...we're\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "guitar rock"","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"Wire","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2fd54faf611ac5bd5af99387_1100x754.jpg?fit=1100%2C754&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2fd54faf611ac5bd5af99387_1100x754.jpg?fit=1100%2C754&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2fd54faf611ac5bd5af99387_1100x754.jpg?fit=1100%2C754&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2fd54faf611ac5bd5af99387_1100x754.jpg?fit=1100%2C754&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2fd54faf611ac5bd5af99387_1100x754.jpg?fit=1100%2C754&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":40172,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=40172","url_meta":{"origin":39683,"position":5},"title":"Dave Clarke releases 30th anniversary limited edition of seminal \u2018Archive One\u2019 album","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"April 10, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Marking a significant milestone in electronic music history, renowned techno maverick Dave Clarke unveils the digital release of his seminal \u2018Red\u2019 series and \u2018Archive One\u2019 album for the first time. The digital re-release is accompanied by a unique box set edition commemorating the 30th anniversary of this landmark release. This\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "electronic music"","block_context":{"text":"electronic music","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dave Clarke press photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/918931B3-D113-4A8D-9AFD-1757B229E114-e1712489308866.jpeg?fit=802%2C692&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/918931B3-D113-4A8D-9AFD-1757B229E114-e1712489308866.jpeg?fit=802%2C692&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/918931B3-D113-4A8D-9AFD-1757B229E114-e1712489308866.jpeg?fit=802%2C692&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/918931B3-D113-4A8D-9AFD-1757B229E114-e1712489308866.jpeg?fit=802%2C692&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=39683"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39683\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39688,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39683\/revisions\/39688"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/39685"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=39683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=39683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=39683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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