| Just South of Heaven | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| EP by | ||||
| Released | 1985 | |||
| Recorded | July 1985 | |||
| Studio | Strongroom, London | |||
| Genre | Post-punk, punk blues | |||
| Length | 28:20 | |||
| Label | Mute | |||
| Crime & the City Solution chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| NME | favorable [2] |
| Trouser Press | very favorable [3] |
Just South of Heaven is an EP by Crime & the City Solution, released in 1985 through Mute Records.
The EP received quite favorable reviews upon release. Mat Snow, writing for NME , noted similarities of the band's sound to that of The Birthday Party and compared Bonney's vocals to "Tom Waits throwing up into a fried-egg sandwich." He writes however, that "Harvey, Soundtracks and the Howard brothers are developing into something equally commanding [to that of The Birthday Party's music] [...] should Simon Bonney ever outgrow this fetishism, then Crime And The City Solution will achieve the truly distinct greatness promised by this record. They're just a kiss away from the pearly gates." [2] Writing for Trouser Press , David Sheridan called the album "cleaner and more powerful [than The Dangling Man EP]: all six tracks work well. Howard's guitar is as strong as ever, but piano and organ figure just as prominently. A hauntingly beautiful record by a well- integrated band." [3]
Allmusic went on to pick the EP as the highlight of the band's discography, with Robert Gordon writing: "Aussies with a gothic vision of the American South." [1]
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Rose Blue" | Bronwyn Adams, Simon Bonney | Epic Soundtracks | 4:50 |
| 2. | "The Coal Train" | Simon Bonney | Mick Harvey | 5:55 |
| 3. | "Stolen & Stealing" | Bronwyn Adams | Epic Soundtracks | 3:20 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Five Stone Walls" | Simon Bonney | Mick Harvey | 4:15 |
| 2. | "Trouble Come This Morning" | Bronwyn Adams, Simon Bonney | Rowland S. Howard | 4:30 |
| 3. | "The Wailing Wall" | Bronwyn Adams, Simon Bonney | Rowland S. Howard | 5:30 |
| Chart (1985) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Indie Chart [4] | 3 |
The Birthday Party were an Australian post-punk band, active from 1978 to 1983. Despite limited commercial success, The Birthday Party's influence has been far-reaching, and they have been called "one of the darkest and most challenging post-punk groups to emerge in the early '80s." The group's "bleak and noisy soundscapes," which drew irreverently on blues, free jazz, and rockabilly, provided the setting for vocalist Nick Cave's disturbing tales of violence and perversion. Their music has been described by critic Simon Reynolds as gothic, and their single "Release the Bats" was particularly influential on the emerging gothic scene.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian rock band formed in Melbourne in 1983 by vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throughout its career and presently consists of Cave, violinist and multi-instrumentalist Warren Ellis, bassist Martyn P. Casey, guitarist George Vjestica, keyboardist/percussionist Toby Dammit and drummers Thomas Wydler (Switzerland) and Jim Sclavunos. With their "brutal blues and gothic nightmares" songs, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds have been considered "one of the most original and celebrated bands of the post-punk and alternative rock eras in the '80s and onward". They have released seventeen studio albums and completed numerous international tours.
Michael John Harvey is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, composer, arranger and record producer. A multi-instrumentalist, he is best known for his long-term collaborations with Nick Cave, with whom he formed The Boys Next Door, The Birthday Party and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.
Rowland Stuart Howard was an Australian rock musician, guitarist and songwriter, best known for his work with the post-punk group The Birthday Party and his subsequent solo career.
Crime & the City Solution are an Australian rock music band formed in late 1977 by singer-songwriter and mainstay Simon Bonney. They disbanded in 1979 leaving only bootleg recordings and demos, now extremely rare. In late 1983, Bonney traveled to London and in 1985 he formed a new version of the group in the U.K. which included members of the recently disbanded The Birthday Party; later they transferred to Berlin, where they issued four albums – Room of Lights (1986), Shine (1988), The Bride Ship (1989) and Paradise Discotheque (1990) – before disbanding again in 1991. In 2012 Bonney reformed the band in Detroit with two veterans of its Berlin era and a handful of new members.
Simon Philip Bonney is an Australian country rock musician. He formed Crime & the City Solution in late 1977 as a post punk group and an outlet for his song writing. The band has had different line-ups throughout their history, with Bonney as the only mainstay. Bronwyn Adams joined in 1986 on violin and backing vocals – the pair later married. Incarnations of Crime & the City Solution have existed in Sydney, Melbourne, London, Berlin and Detroit. When Crime & the City Solution split up in the early 1990s Bonney and Adams relocated to the United States where he released two solo albums, Forever (1992) and Everyman (1996). Crime & the City Solution reformed in 2012.
These Immortal Souls were an Australian post-punk band formed in London in 1987 by Harry Howard on bass guitar, his older brother Rowland S. Howard on guitar and vocals, Epic Soundtracks on drums and Genevieve McGuckin on keyboards. They issued two albums on Mute Records, Get Lost 1987 and I'm Never Gonna Die Again 1992. The group relocated to Australia in 1995 and played less frequently before disbanding there in mid-1998. Soundtracks died in November 1997 and Rowland died in December 2009.
Harry Howard is an Australian musician who played bass guitar in Crime & the City Solution and These Immortal Souls both also featuring his older brother, Rowland S. Howard. He then played guitar in Pink Stainless Tail for several years. Harry now fronts his own band Harry Howard and the NDE where he sings his own songs and plays guitar. The band also includes the author of The Inheritance of Ivorie Hammer Edwina Preston on backing vocals, Acetone organ and Stylophone, Clare Moore on drums and Dave Graney on bass guitar. They have played extensively in and around Melbourne since 2011. The band have also done two European tours and released three LP's Near Death Experience, "Pretty" and "Sleepless Girls" on Spooky Records, Melbourne, Crane Records France and Beast Records, France. Recently Harry has been involved in another project "ATOM" with Edwina Preston and Ben Hepworth and are affiliated with It Records, Melbourne and have an LP scheduled for release in early 2019. Harry Howard and Edwina Preston also play together as "Duet". "Duet" plan to release an LP of original songs and covers in 2019.
Honeymoon in Red is a concept album released in 1987 by Lydia Lunch and Rowland S. Howard. Honeymoon in Red is sometimes referred to as a band or alternately as a collaboration between Lydia Lunch and The Birthday Party.
Mutiny/The Bad Seed is a compilation album by The Birthday Party. It is compiled from 2 EPs, The Bad Seed recorded in October 1982, and Mutiny! recorded in April and August 1983, and both were released in 1983. The Bad Seed and Mutiny! were released as a compilation in 1989. It is written by Nick Cave, Mick Harvey, Rowland S. Howard, and Tracy Pew.
Door, Door is the debut album by Australian rock band The Boys Next Door. The album was recorded before the band left Australia for London in 1980, at which point they changed their name to The Birthday Party and created the body of work for which they are most recognised. Likewise, the album is different stylistically from their later work, being less dark and slightly more poppy.
Hee Haw is the second release and first EP by the Australian post-punk band The Boys Next Door. The Hee Haw EP was released in 1979 by the independent label, Missing Link Records.
It's Still Living is a live album by The Birthday Party recorded at The Astor Theatre in St Kilda, Victoria on 15 January 1982, and released in May 1985. The initial LP release in 1985 by the band's former manager and backer Keith Glass, on his Missing Link label, was not sanctioned by the band. The sound quality of the recording is poor and it is marred by technical glitches. In 1991 the album was re-released on the Virgin label, with the LP being released on green vinyl.
Rise Above is the 1992 solo full-length debut album by singer-songwriter Epic Soundtracks. He had previously been known as the drummer/pianist with the bands Swell Maps, Jacobites, Crime & the City Solution and These Immortal Souls. It was released by American label Bar/None Records in 1993.
The Dangling Man is an EP by Crime & the City Solution, released in 1985 through Mute Records.
Room of Lights is the debut studio album by Crime & the City Solution, released on October 27, 1986 through Mute Records.
Shine is the second studio album by Crime & the City Solution, released on April 25, 1988 through Mute Records.
The Bride Ship is the third studio album by Crime & the City Solution, released on July 11, 1989 through Mute Records.
Paradise Discotheque is the fourth studio album by Crime & the City Solution, released on September 3, 1990 through Mute Records.
"Release the Bats" is a song by Australian post-punk band The Birthday Party. Written by Nick Cave and Mick Harvey, the song was released as a single on 31 July 1981 through 4AD record label, with the B-side "Blast Off". The recordings were produced by the band and Nick Launay. The single charted on UK Indie Chart, peaking at number 3.
