A post-punk masterpiece straight out Scotland. Named for the protagonist in a series of Kafka novels, Josef K formed and disbanded within three years, but left in their wake a great number of spectacular tunes. Their first single was released on Orange Juice drummer Steven Daly’s Absolute label, and they were soon signed to Postcard Records (also founded by Daly). They released a string of acclaimed singles before their debut album, Sorry For Laughing, in 1981. That album was shelved because the band was unhappy with the slick production techniques. When they returned to the studio in ’81, they cut The Only Fun In Town in two days. Guitarist/vocalist Paul Haig described the sessions by saying, “We decided to make an almost unlistenable record with the vocals mixed down really low.” The result was anything but unlistenable, as it has gone on to influence countless bands since its release.
“Spiky, insouciant, sardonic, existentially loaded and debonair. And throughout, their melodies remained pop at heart. Now post-punk punk-funk is the current alt rock flavour, the Edinburgh band sound more prescient still; they also cast a shadow on newsworthy Americans from The Rapture to !!! to Erase Errata – and even Joy Divisionesque Interpol. Before then, much C86-era indie rock (Jasmine Minks, June Brides) and even The Soft Boys and Pavement owed something to them”. – Martin Aston, Mojo Magazine (2004)
Josef K
The Only Fun In Town
(Postcard, 1981)
MediaFire DL Link
01. Fun ‘n’ Frenzy
02. Revelation
03. Crazy To Exist
04. It’s Kinda Funny
05. The Angle
06. Forever Drone
07. Heart Of Song
08. 16 Years
09. Citizens
10. Sorry For Laughing
