Various
The Vikings Are Coming
Swedish punk began in the late '70s and by the mid-'80s, the small steel mill town of Fagersta had seven bands, immortalised on rare compilation 'The Vikings Are Coming...', which is surprisingly diverse: Bizarr's old-school punk is influenced by the Clash and SLF; Cruel Maniacs give social criticism and Crude SS's hardcoredraws on Discharge; Rescues In Future's speedcore is super melodic, influenced by Hüsker Dü; Fear Of War's thrash is anti-religious and there's more thrash from Bedrövlerz (or 'Miserablerz'), while Ugly Squaw proffer unique power-punk humour (also making an incognito faux-reggae appearance as Rasta Boys). This edition revives the original Swedish version released on Uproar Records in 1985, giving us the full monty of this must-have anthology.