Figures of Light

Figures of Light is an American proto-punk band formed in 1970 by Wheeler Winston Dixon and Michael Downey.

The new Figures of Light album,"Smash Hits," was released in late July, 2008 by Norton Records, containing new studio material recorded on July 7, 2007 in New York, live material from the December 15, 2007 Southpaw "comeback" concert, a chunk of their infamous 1970 TV smashing concert, plus some early, rare demos.

Writing in The Los Angeles Times on July 30, 2008, critic Jason Gelt wrote a rave review of the new CD, titled "Figures of Light Reunite and Reignite," which chronicled the band's long history, noting that "with a catalog of stripped-down two-chord songs inspired by the likes of the Stooges, The Who, Blue Cheer and the Pretty Things [ . . .] Figures of Light – a frenzied four-piece that embodied punk rock before the phrase existed – played its inaugural concert in the summer of 1970," praising the band's new CD as "long overdue," and noting that "thirty-six years after the band tore apart the stage [during the first gig] , their edge remains as sharp as a hatchet" (see link to full review below).

The pop music site Garage Punk Hideout agreed in an August 28, 2008 review, calling "Smash Hits" "one of the best rock 'n' roll releases of the year . . . when "Gimme Gimme Gimme" and it's snotty delivery came through the speakers I felt like I was socked hard in the gut, left gasping for breath and stunned . . . whether it's me, you, or some Hives / Strokes hipster wannabes getting the beating, this record kicks ass, literally and metaphorically speaking" (see link to full review below).

The band's first single, "It's Lame," was released in 1972, and re-released on Norton Records in 2006. With a style of two chord rock prefiguring The Ramones by several years, the band performed gigs for two years in and around Rutgers University before disbanding in 1972.

The group's signature tune, "It's Lame," has been described as " . . . one of the ultimate proto-punk basement rock singles of all time . . . [l] ike the dinosaur etched into relief at Angkor Wat, it shouldn't be there. It's either 6 years behind its time or 27 years ahead . . . They cite the Stooges and the Velvet Underground as influences . . . During their first gig, where they played such unreleased material as "Why Not Knock Yourself Off?", "Seething Psychosexual Conflict Blues" and "Black Plague Blues," they rode up to the stage on a motorcycle, played their songs and destroyed 15 television sets . . . They sound nothing like the 1st Captain Beefheart LP, Debris, The Electric Eels or Memphis Goons, but if any of that appeals to you, you shouldn't be caught dead without this . . ." by Mike Sniper of the Terminal Boredom website.

The first concert of July 23, 1970 was recorded in stereo, complete with the television smashing finale. Listening to tapes of their first concert, Norton Records producer Billy Miller commented, "you guys make [the Velvet Underground's epic 17 minute song] Sister Ray sound like [ Richard Harris's 60s pop hit] MacArthur Park!"

In March 2007 critic Jill Hubley wrote that the band's first single "was raw, loud, and nothing like the prevailing music of the time. Dixon and his band had their own vision and interpretation of the times, and they’d be damned if they weren’t going to make it heard . . . Without the snarling closeness of the vocals, the music might sound aloof—merely sloppy rather than out of control. As the song progresses, there are many mixed metaphors, a rhyme scheme that would make Shakespeare cry, and an overabundant use of reverb . . . It’s also incredibly catchy, the instrumentation serving as a glorified metronome to which you can keep your head bobbing steadily . . ." (see full review below as link).

In the February 2007 issue of Mojo, the British pop monthly, Figures of Light's first single was described by Ian Harrison as "a treat . . .throbbing with real 1972 mockery and boredom . . . "It's Lame" casually dimisses everything with Holden Caulfield sang-froid, sounding like a surly cousin of The Electric Eels' "Agitated" and rejoicing in "two" false endings. A whiny B-side does much the same job with Bo Diddley chugging and lots of guitar distortion."

In the 2006 Pazz and Jop year end poll in the Village Voice, David Sprague, rock critic for Variety, voted "It's Lame" the number one pop single of 2006, beating out Kelly Clarkson and Gnarls Barkley.

On July 7, 2007, the core members of the band reunited in the N.Y. Hed studio under producer Billy Miller of Norton Records to record a batch of new and old songs, including "Gimme Gimme Gimme," "Nothing to Do," "Seething Psychosexual Conflict Blues," "I'm So Sick of Everything," and "Angeline," backed up by Miriam Linna on drums, Marcus "The Carcass" Natale on bass, and Matt Verta-Ray on lead guitar.

On December 15, 2007, Figures of Light performed live for the first time in 35 years at the Brooklyn, New York club Southpaw, as part of the Norton Records Holiday Spectacular.
* [http://myspace.com/figuresoflight Figures of Light MySpace Page]
* [http://eng-wdixon.unl.edu/smash%20hits%20review.html LA Times Review of new CD, "Smash Hits"]
* [http://eng-wdixon.unl.edu/smashreview.html Blog to Comm Review of new CD, "Smash Hits"]
* [http://eng-wdixon.unl.edu/mattress.html "Smash Hits" Review in Garage Punk Hideout]
* [http://reviews.shindig-magazine.com/reviews-apr2008-3.html Shindig! Magazine Review of "It's Lame"]
* [http://www.shit-fi.com/Reviews/FiguresofLight/FiguresofLight.htm Jill Hubley review of "It's Lame]