Brothers Nikki Sudden and Epic Soundtracks, in hindsight, were true hidden visionaries of the punk era. Forming Swell Maps as early as 1972, and performing mostly under the radar during the heyday in England through the rest of the 70?s, their music anticipated so many sub-genres that punk was to inspire. Listening to these two classic reissues, you can hear lo-fi, grunge, psychobilly, garage-punk, even outsider rock. Angry, cynical, funny, at times barely competent, and always aggressive, the Maps are one of the few lost treasures left from that era to be discovered, until somebody digs into an aging punk?s attic and finds some cassettes. Secretly Canadian has re-released 1979?s "Trip" as well as 1980?s "Jane From Occupied Europe." Of course, any of their releases is worth it.

Trip features raging mad classics like ?H.S. Art,? ?Bridge Head (Pt.9)?, ?Harmony in Your Bathroom, ? ?Full Moon in My Pocket? and ? Adventuring Into Basketry.? Listening to Swell Maps is like finding bones in the dirt: the past and the present suddenly make more sense. 10/10 -- Mike Wood (27 December, 2006)