It is a story now approaching myth and legend. The Sex Pistols play the Manchester Free Trade Hall and simultaneously launched punk in the North of England and numerous notable musical careers.
Before Punk there wasn't any Indie music movement. These days the Internet can launch a career from a single Instagram post. In the seventies it was very much a hands on affair. The self produced, self cover designed self publicised and self distributed single, assembled in someone's bedsit or squat, became the archetype of those who were truly independent. There are likely many competitor's for who did this first. But the one that set the template was The Buzzcock's ' Spiral Scratch EP. From now on anyone could do it.
The Buzzcocks in 1977, there they are on the cover fuzzy in black and white. The creative force and lead singer at this point was Howard Devoto. Though everyone sang in those days in permutations of Johnny Rotten's style. Devoto gave it a sardonic darker twist. And though he gets most of the songwriting credits, there was also Pete Shelley hiding in the background perfecting his writing chops, as well as the obligatory insolent straight to camera stare.
The defining style of an era, and the prototype for the New Wave, is in one track from Spiral Scratch - Boredom. Driven on minimalistic propulsion and a lyrical hook line that goes Boredom Bore..da..am Badum Badum. Plus a guitar break so minimal consisting of two discordant notes played over and over and over, becomes genius. The timing of it, two minutes fifty two, is short, but quite immaculately conceived.
This version of The Buzzcocks barely lasted a few months after the single took off. With Devoto leaving in order to - forge a new musical direction for himself. Which left the way clear for Shelley to assume main songwriter and lead singer duties. And hence the blossoming of a masterful songwriter of three minute power pop.
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