McCarthy

McCarthy, the British ensemble, tends to be recalled chiefly for leftist political convictions rather than any jangly musical approach. The quartet originated in Barking, Essex, England, during 1985, with Malcolm Eden supplying vocals and guitar, Tim Gane handling guitar, John Williamson on bass, and Gary Baker behind the drums. Gane had started as a drummer before Eden instructed him in several guitar chords. Shared admiration for British punk outfits including the Sex Pistols, the Clash, and the Buzzcocks prompted the pair to perform those groups’ material at modest early shows. After Eden concluded his university coursework, his Marxist convictions had sharpened considerably and found expression in the band’s lyrics. The debut album I Am a Wallet surfaced in 1987 and drew scant notice from British radio programmers aside from the veteran DJ John Peel. Political outlook frequently placed the group alongside Billy Bragg and the Redskins, associations the members resented given those acts’ less pop-oriented style. Their next release, The Enraged Will Inherit the Earth, arrived in 1989. Eden concluded there was little point in carrying on once the third album, Banking, Violence and the Inner Life Today, had been completed in 1990, since he regarded that record as the creative summit of their work; fatigue from touring reinforced the decision. The band therefore disbanded, after which Gane launched Stereolab with his girlfriend Laetitia Sadier, who had already contributed vocals to McCarthy’s final album. Eden subsequently issued recordings with Herzfeld.