1313 Mockingbird Lane - "Triskaidekaphobia" (Midnight Records, 1993)

If I remember correctly, the first garage band I ever heard was 1313 Mockingbird Lane. Not the Fuzztones, not the Chesterfield Kings or any other of the 'big' names by the rebirth 80s era. Strange, right?  I do remember also that first read about the whole 'garage punk' revivalism and then came to like it for their sounds, and that’s because of the band pictures I was seeing in fanzines and magazines (for some strange reason, Greece’s kind of mainstream 'rock' press had a good coverage to many garage bands at the time!). Yep, sometimes image is everything! I was full on punk. Not the 90s punk... OK, some of it maybe, but I had a passionate relation with the '77 movement and its bands. So, everything had a 'punk' synthetic, was a target for the little prick here. For another and even stranger reason, a classmate of the 'not so cool' stockyard (that’s not an impression of mine, as I recall the ‘neat chicks’ was ranking him that way - btw I'm still proud and obdurate by the way treated them, all these bitches deserved every little insult and mockery...), had a TDK C-60 from his cousin with most (if not all...) of the "Triskaidekaphobia" plus a good shot of "Have Hearse Will Travel" toons on the side B . So, he handed me the tape, because it had "no signs of heavy metal" and “it was badly played music” and wished me luck ironically... Thanks pal! I still owe you and it’s a pity we lost contact (you know, I hate re-unions and I detest Facebook!) cause in a way your power metal strains (what?), had opened me a whole new and exciting scene that in any way I HAD TO DISCOVER!  Anyway, every time I was coming to Athens with my parents to visit grandma, a quick hike with specific chases (cause my dad was boring to death from my record stores enticements) was taking place. In one of those hunting saunters, grabbed two of the Lane’s singles but by then, nada! Of course all other band’s singles through the years appeared in front of me but with salty prices as an accessory… Sorry, not enough money to spend. Thanks to some same minded bloggers, I got lucky and had at least the chance to hear them. And I really wonder why doesn't start yet a 80s garage re-issue tsunami? There are SO MANY things remaining in unavailability...!
Anyway, from a band with SUCH A COOL name, an anti-Beatles song in their canon, a former Link Wray drummer, a huge Flamin’ Groovies admiration, some more cool influences by side (instead for the 'standard' garage trademarks their 'comrades' did, here they pick on Freddy Cannon, Johnny Kidd and of course the Groovies!), a Greek superstitious title for the bad luck day of Friday the 13th, and some damn well tones of fuzz, screams and haunting organ, you really don’t expect more... Am I right?!