We all know the drill: a successful songwriting partnership breaks up, and the defector goes on to form a band that either sounds exactly the same as his former band-- or one that sounds exactly the same, but much, much worse. In the annals of pop music history, Magazine were something of an exception, seeing how they matched the Buzzcocks in many ways while still spiraling off on several new tangents. If the Buzzcocks were a melodically inclined punk band that helped transition punk to new wave, Magazine were a new wave band that retained the fury and edginess of punk. The difference may have ultimately boiled down to the use of synthesizers, but still, Magazine posed much darker stuff than the Buzzcocks, and differently, too. As spin-offs go, Magazine were no mere copycats. They were something else entirely.
Howard Devoto was only in the Buzzcocks for a few months before ceding control to Pete Shelley. And, burning hot and bright, Magazine itself lasted only a few years. What they released, though, comprises one of the most distinctive catalogs in new wave, ranging from "Shot by Both Sides", the defining outburst of alienation, to more refined takes on the same subject like "A Song From Under the Floorboards", the last of Magazine's songs to feature founding guitarist John McGeoch before he jumped ship to Siouxsie and the Banshees.
That line-up switch is pivotal to Magazine's Play, a 1980 live album recorded in Australia and featuring McGeoch's freshly tapped (and short-lived) replacement Robin Simon. Most bands wouldn't have dared press "record" with the new guy barely installed, but clearly Magazine knew what they were doing. While hardly epic, the disc bristles with intensity and arty, angular grit. In fact, for a while, Play might have been the best introduction to the band, as it showcases several of the group's best attributes-- Devoto's acidic singing, the disorienting keyboards, and future Bad Seed Barry Adamson's pulsing bass.
That's not really the case anymore, since the band's four studio albums are widely available in remastered editions and Magazine's discography has been distilled down to the pretty solid best-of Where the Power Is. For more enthusiastic listeners, there's also the 3xCD companion Maybe It's Right to Be Nervous Now, which featured several of the group's most familiar songs, either live or in alternate form. And finally, there's the small matter that Play lacks the trademark "Shot by Both Sides".
Yet it's still substantial. Magazine were plenty muscular and, for a new wave act, not afraid to drop the sheen in favor of something less polished. Not that the likes of "Definitive Gaze" or "The Light Pours Out of Me" were ever particularly polished, but Play does show off the more feral side of the band, even when toning down the guitars on "A Song From Under the Floorboards" or deconstructing Sly Stone's "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)". It's for fans only at this point, but arriving just in time for next year's reunion, Play is a welcome reminder of the band's prowess.
