I was looking forward to the upcoming shows, a triple bill with The Peppercorns, The Penelope Tree and my favorite, the Jack Chicks.
I had seen the Peppercorns and the Penelope Tree a few times and they were enjoyable but my favorites were the Jack Chicks.
They came out in the early roll out of punk and new wave. Post punk hadn’t been invented yet. They were hugely influential to a lot of bands that followed. The Peppercorns were contemporaries of the Jack Chicks. The Jack Chicks broke up in 1979 and reunited in the mid 80s.
The lineup remained the same but this time the Jack Chicks were determined to get paid for their efforts. The reunion was a big deal in the alternative scene.
Having paid their dues on the underground circuit in the 80s,The Peppercorns earned their spot opening up for the Jack Chicks. Some thought their songs were a bit twee, but if the Jack Chicks picked them out, then all the doors were opened on their behalf. I enjoyed the Peppercorns, I was friends with one of them, Stuart Errols.
I admit having a crush on Stuart. Not a sexual thing, just found his spoirit and talent so warm and inviting and we jammed a few times, one song we called ‘Driving in Arabia’ which was a blatant rip off / homage to Pylon.
It never went any further from my apartment, Stuart made his way back to the Carolinas after the Peppercorns took a break, only to reawaken when the Jack Chicks tapped them to open the tour.
The Peppercorns in turn asked the Penelope Tree to open for them on the tour and while the Penelope Tree were still somewhat wet behind the ears, they were game and willing to take a chance. I enjoyed them, their music was very much chill out music, perfect for a 3AM hang out after the bars had closed.
In fact that was what was playing that night on Jane Street when I was with the Patricks and our collective coats toppled a chair causing much alarm in the beds of Pattie and Fred Kleinke. The Patricks soon left after that, after the powders had been inhaled and come down was approaching and Pattie and Fred Kleinke were sharpening their knives to jab me in the direction of the exit.
I canot blame the Peppercorns for that. So the Jack Chicks. Sometimes melodic, sometimes abrasive, sometimes like a detergent removing sink stains on a rainy day. That was an actual line from a review during their heyday.
A few documentaries of the Jack Chicks pop up every now and then on the You Tube but the Jack Chicks are very private and somehow get them taken down almost as soon as their are put up.
Friends have recorded the videos directly off the screen of their computers so as to have their own copy that will not be taken down. It works for them.
Who knows what will unfold for the Jack Chicks, much less the Peppercorns and the Penelope Tree? Anything is possible I reckon, though the world has changed considerably.
A Google Gemini rewrite as if in a Punk fanzine
# NOISE & NOSTALGIA
**Issue #13 // DIY OR DIE // Free to those who get it**
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## THE HOLY TRINITY: THE JACK CHICKS, THE PEPPERCORNS, & THE PENELOPE TREE
Get your earplugs ready, kids. We’ve got a massive triple bill coming to tear the roof off, and if you aren’t buzzing, you’re already dead.
### THE GODFATHERS: THE JACK CHICKS
Let’s talk about the **Jack Chicks**. They crawled out of the swamp during the first wave of punk and new wave—back before “post-punk” was even a word in some critic’s mouth. They paved the goddamn road. No Jack Chicks = half your record collection doesn’t exist. Fact.
* **1979:** They split, leaving a crater.
* **Mid-80s:** The resurrection.
The lineup is exactly the same, but this time around? They aren’t playing for exposure. They want their fucking money, and they deserve every cent. The reunion sent shockwaves through the underground.
Sometimes they’re melodic. Sometimes they’re abrasive. Like some old zine review said back in the day:
> “Like a detergent removing sink stains on a rainy day.”
Fucking poetry.
*Want to watch them online? Good luck.* Documentaries pop up on YouTube, but the band is notoriously, fiercely private. They yank them down almost instantly. **PRO-TIP:** Do what the rest of us do—bootleg those bad boys. Record your screen. Burn it. Share it. Keep the underground alive because the internet won’t do it for you.
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### THE CONTEMPORARIES: THE PEPPERCORNS
Sharing the stage are **The Peppercorns**, contemporaries of the Chicks who spent the ’80s eating dirt on the basement circuit to earn this spot. Sure, some scene elitists call their stuff “twee,” but if the Jack Chicks hand-picked them, shut your mouth and listen.
I’ve got a massive soft spot for them—especially **Stuart Errols**. Total crush, but not a physical thing—just pure adoration for his spirit and talent. He and I used to jam in my apartment. We wrote this tune called *”Driving in Arabia”* which was a total, shameless Pylon rip-off. Good times.
Stuart drifted back to the Carolinas when the band went on hiatus, but the Chicks’ bat-signal woke them from their slumber.
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### THE NEW BLOOD: THE PENELOPE TREE
The Peppercorns tapped **The Penelope Tree** to kick off the night. They’re still wet behind the ears, but they’ve got the guts to take the leap.
Their sound is total 3:00 AM comedown music. Perfect for when the bars spit you out into the cold night. In fact, their tape was spinning the night I was over at Jane Street with the Patricks. We piled our coats so high they knocked over a chair, waking up Pattie and Fred Kleinke in a panic.
Once the powders were gone and the comedown hit, Pattie and Fred started sharpening their knives to nudge us toward the door. Can’t blame the Penelope Tree for that disaster, though.
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### THE VERDICT
Who knows what’s next for any of these bands? The world is a different, weirder place now. But for one night, the noise is ours. **Be there.**