The Vacant Lot - Creatures Of The Night 7"

The Vacant Lot formed in Canberra 1978, released one EP on The Thought Criminals’ Doublethink Records, broke up, and the record became a collectors item. It's a story we’ve heard before and the type of thing record store regulars desire, BUT I think the 21st Century continuation of this group is more interesting, surprising and stimulating existence than just something to go on a punk obscurities compilation. 

The 'Creatures of the Night' EP is mostly songs with beginnings in their '78/'79 existence, with lyrics written in recent years. Here’s what George Howson had to say about the process…  

"Writing songs is something I have to do. I wanted to bring life to some of our earliest songs which were never recorded, and to pair them with lyrics that did justice to their energy and power. A lot of my working life outside the band takes place in that edge territory where bush intersects with farmland, which provides much of the setting for the lyrics, inspiring the images and sensibility. My interest is in exploring internal and outer landscapes, and to try to make sense of the complex interplay between the two. This EP is also a tribute to Bruce Hart (now deceased), with whom I co-wrote most of our early music; finishing off unfinished business, layering new sensibilities on old, and honouring that original creative partnership."

There’s a unique character and perspective in George that takes this beyond fan service for people that can’t get enough Murderpunk, Magazine, Wire, Swell Maps, Buzzcocks etc. Getting to know this EP has felt a little like the experience of cracking Eddy Current Suppression Ring’s “comeback” album ‘All In Good Time’. Something I wasn’t sure I needed in my life but eventually spoke to me more than their “classic” era. — Nic