F-Systems
Four Flies on Grey VelvetFormed in 1979, F-Systems became one of Austin’s earliest DIY bands. Hip enough to reference Dario Argento in a song title, but accessible enough to garner the occasional spin on KLBJ, the combo cut-and-pasted from both punk and New Wave in the brief window before the antagonistic demarcation between the two. The hyper-participatory impulse that has defined local underground music ever since colors the primitive-yet-adventurous musicianship and trenchant lyrics of Four Flies on Grey Velvet, a document of F-Systems’ short life via 1979 and 1981 recordings thought lost. “People,” one of two previously released tunes, remains the calling card. Penned by bassist/bandleader/filmmaker Neil Ruttenberg and his Inner Sanctum Records colleague Richard Dorsett (1955-2012), the droll synth-punk anthem crosswalks Eighties avant-pop and existentialism with aplomb. “Dawn of the Dead” recasts the plot of George Romero’s horror classic as a tongue-in-cheek broadside against consumerism. Closer “SIN” codifies the band’s evolution with vocalist Lorinda Ash projecting darkened high drama to complement potent guitar interplay that enlivens the slow fade.
This article appears in July 24 • 2015.
