FROM THE USA: The Incredible Kidda Band: "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" 2LP - Detour Records, 2000.

It's without shame that I estimate this release as the most important one in a lifetime!

The Incredible Kidda Band burst on to the UK power pop scene in the glorious year 1977 and for years their few 7"s have been topping collectors wish lists; they can easily be obtained if you want to make a £150 minimum bid! Detour Records luckily traced down the members

of the group and got hold of the master tapes that included the singles and a vast variety of unreleased demos from 1977-81. This has resulted in a double LP containing 29 superb examples of mod/power pop from one of the most underrated UK bands of that time!

It would be too big a task to go in detail with all the songs on the album, but believe me when saying that perhaps only a handful of these 29 'exhibitions of musicianship aren't worthy of single releases; that's basically how good this album is. The interesting thing about the

Kidda Band is that they didn't really have a distinct punk rock or mod approach to their music, rather an undefined and artistic rock' n roll orientation, perhaps originating from early Rolling Stones and The Beatles and with an enormous feeling for the 'melody'. Characteristics

for the song writing style are the elegant chord progressions, the lovely choruses and the incredible lead-guitar phrases! I haven't ever witnessed a similar musical unity.

You could put down The Incredible Kidda Band with more well-known power pop acts like The Jags, The Plimsouls, The Real Kids, etc. but you would still be somewhat off the mark.

They are Incredible and they are unique and if there was ever an album to buy this would have to be it! Even the two inner sleeves are a real feast; lots of photos that have never been seen before.

JW

http://wondervinylworld.freeservers.com/kidda_band.htm

FROM THE USA : Remember during the good ol' days of late '70s and early '80s guitar-based new wave and power pop?  Remember when the Boys had a new release, and how the raw energy almost ripped holes in your speakers?

Prepare to relive those days, because here come two CDs of raw, unpretentious energy, dressed up in the catchiest hooks this side of the Boys.

Recorded between 1977 and 1981, The Kidda Band  never got the break they deserved, due to circumstances beyond their control. They certainly had the talent and the songs, but it just didn't work out for them. With 29 tracks, there's

something for every guitar pop fan. All the tracks are raw and primitive, but not sloppy. And each song, written by leader Alan Hammonds, has so much snap, crackle, and pop, you'll be stuffed silly by the time Disc Two ends. "Can I

Take the Car Tonight" sounds like it could've been at least a regional hit way back then!

While the 1979-1981 material is in stereo, the earlier 1977 recordings are in mono, enhancing the experience for the fan, while irritating the audiophiles at the same time! "Fighting My Way Back" musically resembles a mix between

power pop favourites Bram Tchaikovsky and the Records .

"If Looks Could Kill," "Big Boys Don't Cry," and "Get off the Telephone" are such nice, hooky little songs, that you have to wonder why no major label snapped them up.

 Though the sound quality is debatable in a few places, the songs speak for themselves. -  

Stephen SPAZ Schnee, All Music Guide www.artistdirect.com

http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3vfwxqwaldje

FROM ITALY : Nuovo 'colpo' della Detour Records. L'etichetta di Midhurst ha pubblicato l'album "Too Much Too Little Too Late!" esteso lavoro che documenta l'opera completa degli Incredible Kidda Band, quintetto pop inglese attivo nel periodo 1976/1980. Ventinove

canzoni - incluse le prime registrazioni demo, i brani dei loro rari 45 giri e le sessions finali - vicine all spirito di bands come Big Star, The Plimsouls, The Jags.....Rockerilla, Italy  : September 2000 : 

Translates into : Detour Records have published an album "Too much Too Little Too Late!" (which is available on CD  or LP) which documents the complete catalogue of the Incredible Kidda Band, an English 5 piece from the period 1976/1980. Twenty nine songs -

including early demo recordings - and also rare 45s and their final sessions - very much in the spirit of Big Star, The Plimsouls and the Jags......

Rockerilla, Italy  : September 2000 : 

 

From Germany: I heard the wonderful INCREDIBLE KIDDA BAND tracks again today, the music is just fantastic. In my opinion some tracks sound similar to the BOYS...and I love the BOYS.

My personal favourites are If Looks Could Kill, The Girl Said No, Can I Take The Car Tonight, Saturday Night Fever, Radio Caroline, Gotta Keep The Noise Turned Down, Big Boys Don't Cry, Wait Til' Your Father Gets Home, Fighting My Way Back and I'm Gonna Join The

Army. I put all of these incredible songs onto a single tape....just so that I can hear my own personal “Best Of” at all times.

These songs are perfect and 100% British! There is no way that bands outside of the UK could play this kind of music. So catchy, so warm, so wonderful, the highest level – all at the highest level.

Peter Parzinger - Insekten Records, Berlin.

From Germany: Was für eine wundervolle Doppel-LP einer mir bis vor kurzem unbekannten Band.

Lasst euch nicht von dem dämlichen Namen irritieren. Hier bekommt ihr Power-Pop-Punk allerfeinster Bauart um die Ohren.

Die Kidda band Band muss sich nicht vor Größen wie den Real Kids verstecken. Das Dumme ist nur, dass die KD Band schon seit 20 Jahren nicht mehr existiert.

Zwischen 1976 und 1981 brachten es die Fünf aus Nuneaton, England gerade mal auf zwei Singles. Dass daraus nichts wurde, zeigt mal wieder wie ungerecht die Welt war und ist. Auf der Doppel-LP sind 29 verschiedene Songs (also keine Versions) in Demo-Aufnahmen, denen

man den Demo-Status allerdings nicht anmerkt. Und langweilig wird es auch nie. Es ist unglaublich, wieviel Songwriter-Talent hier verschwendet wurde, denn man findet keine ideensparenden Cover-Versionen.

Also Herzchen, tut euch einen Gefallen und legt euch diesen Schatz zu. tb

Translates into: What a wonderful album from – until quite recently to me - an unknown band.

Don't be put off by that irritating name. Here you can hear state-of-the-art Power-Pop-Punk. The 'Kidda Band' doesn’t have to hide behind bands like the 'Real Kids'. But the foolish thing is, that split over 20 years ago.

Between 1976 and 1981 the five guys from Nuneaton, England produced only two singles. That their career came to nothing shows how unfair the world was and is. On this album there are 29 different songs, mainly demo versions, but you won't realize the demo-status, and you

won't be bored. It's amazing how much songwriter-talent was wasted here, and you won't find any kind of cover-versions here either.

Ok, sweetheart, do yourself a favour and go for this treasure.

From Germany: In ihrer ganzen Karriere hat es die englischen Kidda Band gerade mal auf eine handvoll Singles gebracht, die heute für horrende Preise den Besitzer wechseln. Dabei hatte das Quintett Songs für mehr als zwei Alben geschrieben. Das englische Label Detour Records

hat dieses Material jetzt ausgegraben. Auf der Doppel-CD “Too much Too Little Too late”, befinden sich sage und schreibe 29 Songs aus den Jahren 1977 bis 1980. Alles Demo-Versionen, die eigentlich nur eine Frage aufwerfen: Wieso wurde dieses Material nicht schon früher

veröffentlicht? Die Songs stehen nämlich denjenigen von vergleichbaren Gruppen wie den Jags, Boys, Mods oder Squire in nichts nach. Einige wie Saturday Night Fever, F.A.B., Fighting my way back oder If you think I am square übertreffen sogar das Material der Jags oder der Mods.

Dass, obwohl man überdeutlich hört, dass es sich um Demo-Songs handelt. Aber schlussendlich ist halt das Songwriting entscheidend. Mit Alan Hammonds hatte die Kidda Band einen ausgezeichneten Songwriter. Zur Information: Detour Records hat die rockigeren Songs auf CD 1

gestellt und die poppigeren auf CD 2.

This translates into: In their whole career, the English band The Kidda Band published only a handful of singles, which are traded nowadays for enormous sums. In reality though, the quintet actually wrote songs for more than two albums. The English label 'Detour Records' have now

dug out this material.

On the double CD 'Too much' there are all together 29 songs from the years 1977 to 1980. All of these demo-versions in fact raises just one question: why wasn't this material published already?

Compared with songs from bands like the 'Jags', The Boys, The Mods or Squire and these songs rank far ahead. Some of them, like Saturday Night Fever, F.A.B., Fighting my way back or If you think I am square beat the material from the 'Jags' or 'Mods' by far, even though you can hear

clearly that it is just demo material. Finally the song writing is important, and in Alan Hammonds, the Kidda Band had an excellent songwriter.

FYI: Detour Records put the rock songs on CD1 and the more 'poplike' songs on CD2.

From Germany:

"Dad, what was Power Pop?" Hin und wieder taucht dieser schwammige Begriff auch noch heute in Plattenbesprechungen auf, dann aber meistens um Musik zu beschreiben, die etwas mehr Schmackes als 

reiner Pop hat aber eben noch kein Punk ist. Dennis Lyxzén hat z.B. mit seiner Lost Patrol Band zwei astreine Power-Pop-Platten alter Schule rausgebracht. Dass es eine alte Schule überhaupt mal 

gab und wer sie besuchte, wissen aber in der Regel nur eingefleischte Nostalgiker. Ja, Power Pop kann man aus heutiger Sicht durchaus historisch eingrenzen, auch wenn es vor 1978 und auch nach 

1981 Bands gab, denen dieses Label gut zu Gesicht steht. Diese beiden Jahreszahlen markieren jedoch in etwa eine Boomphase, in der sich unzählige Bands aufmachten, poppige Melodien mit Wave- 

und/oder Punk-Einschlag zu versehen und dabei einige der tollsten Songs jener Zeit zu erschaffen. 

Dummerweise sind die meisten davon heute nur noch kleinen Randgruppen bekannt, denn die Power Popper schafften es einerseits selten in die höheren Regionen der Charts, andererseits hatte ihre 

Musik nun mal nicht die inspiratorische Kraft von Wire, den Ramones, Gang of Four oder anderen kommerziell mäßig erfolgreichen aber eben einflussreichen Bands jener Zeit. Zu den wenigen 

Ausnahmen gehören The Knack, deren "My Sharona" bis heute fast jedes Kind kennt. Aber wem sind denn heute noch Namen wie The Plimsouls, 20/20, The Records, The Shoes, The DB's oder The 

Advertising geläufig? 

Nach dieser kleinen Geschichtsstunde können wir nun endlich zu "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" kommen, einer schwer erhältlichen Doppel-CD, die zwischendurch vergriffen war, vor kurzem neu 

aufgelegt wurde und nun darauf wartet, entdeckt zu werden - was sich definitiv lohnt. Power-Pop-Fans dürfte die Incredible Kidda Band durchaus ein Begriff sein, denn zumindest "If Looks 

Could Kill" und "I'm Gonna Join the Army" waren schon auf so mancher Genre-Compilation vertreten. Diese beiden Songs sind bereits so hochkarätige Power-Pop-Knaller, dass sie fast schon alleine 

den Preis für diese CD rechtfertigen. Der eigentliche Clou liegt hier aber in der Quantität der Qualität. Während zahlreiche Bands in der Hochphase des Power Pop eines oder mehrere Alben 

veröffentlichen durften, obwohl sie eigentlich nur zwingendes Material für eine EP besaßen, ist die vorliegende Zusammenstellung das erste Full-Length-Release der Kiddas überhaupt - was man 

kaum glauben mag, wenn die Hits nur so an einem vorbeirauschen. Es handelt sich hier um 29 Demoaufnahmen (alles Eigenkompositionen) aus den Jahren 1977-1980, wobei man eigentlich nur den 

77er Demos auf CD 1. ein hörbares Qualitätsdefizit beim Sound und zum Teil auch bei den Songs selbst attestieren kann. Ansonsten waren die Nordengländer mit ihren fetzigen Frisuren, 

teenagergerechten Inhalten und einer mitreißenden Mischung aus Pop, Punk und Mod absolut auf Augenhöhe mit bekannteren Zeitgenossen wie den Undertones oder den Boys. 

Wie schon angemerkt ist die CD in Deutschland nicht ganz leicht zu bekommen, Interessierte könnten aber bei Fachmailordern oder bei Ebay fündig werden. Ansonsten wird das gute Stück über die 

bandeigene Homepage vertickt, die mit großem Eifer von den Originalmitgliedern verwaltet wird. 

- Marek Weber -

Which translates as:

"Dad, what was power pop?" Now and then this fuzzy label is used in music reviews, mostly to describe music that has a little more punch than pure pop, but is not quite punk. Dennis Lyxzén 

for example released two bona fide old school power pop albums with his Lost Patrol Band. But it's mostly knowledgeable insiders who are aware that there actually was an old school and who 

attended it. Yes, from today's point of view power pop can well be placed within a concrete time period in the history of music, although, of course, there have been bands who pretty much fit 

the label before 1978 and after 1981. However, these dates mark a boom period, in which countless bands set out to provide poppy melodies with an edge of wave and/or punk and create some of 

the most terrific songs of their time.
 

Unfortunately, most of those bands are only familiar to genre fans today, since on the one hand the power poppers rarely made it to the higher regions of the charts, and on the other hand their 

output didn't have the inspirational power of Wire, the Ramones, the Gang of Four, or other commercially rather unsuccessful, but highly influential and acclaimed groups of that era. One of the few 

exceptions are The Knack and their "My Sharona", which most kids are familiar with even today. But who's familiar with names such as The Plimsouls, 20/20, The Records, The Shoes, The DB's or The 

Adverts?
 

After this short history lesson it's time to talk about "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late", a hard to get double CD, which was temporarily sold out, but has recently been re-released and is now waiting 

to be discovered – and it is absolutely worth discovering. The Incredible Kidda Band should ring a bell with power pop fans, since at least "If Looks Could Kill" and "I'm Gonna Join the Army" were 

included on some genre compilations in the past. These two songs alone are so good that they almost justify the purchase of the whole CD but ,what's truly remarkable about this compilation is the 

quantity of quality. 

While there were many bands during the heydays of power pop, that managed to release one or several full-lengths despite having worthwhile material for an EP at best, "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" 

is the first ever full length release by The Incredible Kidda Band, which is hard to believe when hit after hit rushes past yours ears. Included here are 29 demo recordings from 1977-1980 (all 

their own compositions) and it's only some of the 1977 recordings on disc one that don't quite live up to the rest of the material in terms of sound and song quality. Otherwise the northerners with 

their hip haircuts, teenage-oriented lyrics, and an intoxicating mix of pop, punk and mod, were absolutely at eye level with better known contemporaries like The Undertones or The Boys. Listen to 

their gems today – it's never too late!

The original review is online: http://www.noize.cc/reviews/main.php?p_id=7736