This punk/new wave band from Alaska released one 4-song EP via 7″ vinyl in 1980, entitled Beat the Cynics for their native Unregulated Records. The band was contemporary with other punk acts at the time who had already started shifting their sound to either new wave or post-punk. The Cynics don’t sound too far off from The Buzzcocks, The Clash, The Stranglers, and at times is reminiscent of the funky approach of Ian Dury and the Blockheads. Yes, their sound is remarkably British, considering how far they were geographically from that region.
Two of those songs wound up on another single, released two years later in Belgium, for Stinkfoot Records. While the name may sound puzzling to listeners of a faith-filled perspective, their lyrics were not:
I say the Rock is the Son
And nothing else counts
Love your neighbor and Him
And your sins renounce
Mockers will mock, and liars deceive
But faith in the Rock is all I believe
This is one of those rare gems that seems too good to be true. Was there really Christian music this good, this timely, this early on? And from–of all places–Fairbanks, Alaska?!? Yes indeed, there was. Now to track down a physical copy!