We've Solved the Mystery

De De Troit in full Cleopatra Goth Spider Queen regalia. Scan pinched from here

So, hooray for the internet! For years a fragment from a distant song had lodged annoyingly in my brain. All I could remember was the fantastic opening line of "My mommy died a social drinker and my daddy still collects guns," and that it was a killer track. Nothing else. I periodically Googled the intro to see if someone, anyone in the noosphere could help scratch my itch. No luck.

That is, none until the other day, when I chanced on a post at Good Bad Music For Bad, Bad Times, curated by the mysterious Erich. Oh, frabjous day!

Turns out the track is "Immunity" by the mighty UXA. United eXperiments of America, to give the band its full name, hailed from San Francisco in the late 1970s and put out some righteous old-skool punk. It was fronted by the formidable De De Troit, one of the original (and seemingly largely unsung) riot grrrls. UXA split up in the early 1980s as the burgeoning hardcore scene (Black Flag, Circle Jerks et al) eclipsed the "Class of 1977." But afore they went, they released one LP, Illusions of Grandeur, most of which you can find ripped from the original vinyl and posted by Erich right here.

I'm mortified that such a fabulous song had slipped my feeble mind! Methinks it's an absolute gem. From the aforementioned opening lyrics to the buzzing guitar that starts in the left speaker then migrates to the right to De De's howling to the song's sheer defiance. Almost perfect.

Right, here you go then:

UXA - Immunity (buy here, but only on vinyl. An Italian label released a CD version in 2004, but buggered if I know where to find it)