early teenage head promo shot
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 11, 1990
By Steve Newton
In the early ’80s, Hamilton, Ontario’s Teenage Head was a real force in Canadian rock, one of the few punk-boogie Canuck bands that could compete with the best the Americans and British had to offer. Head’s album Frantic City went gold in Canada, and the band made headines across the country when 10 cops were injured and 58 fans arrested at a big riot at Ontario Place.
But the band had problems breaking out in the States, record deals fell through, and then lead singer Frankie Venon left to join the Vipers. Guitarist Dave Rave took over on vocals, but the band never achieved the same success it had with Venom at the fore.
Now Frankie’s back, and with original members Steve Mahon and Gord Lewis in tow, he brought the band to the Town Pump last Friday (May 4). Anticipation was high before the show, and plenty of local rockers from bands like the Scramblers and T.T. Racer could be seen scouting the place out. Was Frankie going to be able to bring that ol’ magic back? The answer was yes…and no.
With his deep-set eyes and squarish head, Venom still looks like something of a cross between Lou Reed and Frankenstein. He wasted no time wth small talk, and headed straight into “Summertime Blues”, following that up with the old Head fave, “Let’s Shake”.
By the time the band got to its third selection, “Picture My Face”, the dance floor had been taken over by frenzied pogoers reliving the painful joy of slam-dancing.
During its two sets, the band performed decent renditions of its best-known tunes (“Let’s Go to Hawaii”, “Top Down”) and a few covers (“Heartbreak Hotel”, “Reelin’ and Rockin'”), but the overall excitement level of the show wasn’t high. Venom lacked the wild energy he’s known for, and a lame drum sound crippled the effect of the band’s barrage of power chords.
The group did save the best for last, however, hitting a fever pitch with an impressive encore of the Ramones’ “Blitzkreig Bop” and the Sex Pistols’ “Anarchy in the U.K.”
