Fist and the Laurels

Speedking, the infamous and short-lived band from NYC that had a reputation for brutal, loud, intense and devastating live shows finally is getting the release they always deserved. In the mid-90's, the band was fairly active; it recorded 4 seven inch singles for 4 separate labels, toured with the likes of Six Finger Satellite and June of 44 and recorded a brilliant full-length entitled "The Fist and the Laurels" which was never released, until now.

The members of Speedking, Miriam Maltagliati, James Murphy and Chet Sherwood were all very concerned with both the live show and the recording studio. In fact, James Murphy (aka LCD Sound System) runs the infamous Plantain Studios in New York and has worked with such groundbreaking acts as June of 44, Le Tigre, Massive Attack and The Rapture and has recently started his own record label entitled DFA with a focus on a punk/dance/thrash sound that many accredit to Speedking.

One might ask, "Why release this record now?" The answer is simple, the record is just that good. Whether it was released in 1997 or 2002 is irrelevant as Speedking's music is timeless. Progressive, beat heavy, pounding and hypnotic, Speedking are able to do it all. Guest musicians such as Matt Harmon and Justin Simon added moog to both the live and recorded incarnations of Speedking, while James Murphy added electronic layers of his own. Disc 1 of this two CD set contains the unreleased "The Fist and the Laurels" full length while Disc 2 combines all of Speedking's seven inch releases in CD format with a bonus track. This record is gem, enjoy.