The Defects are a punk rock band from

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

, formed in 1978

History

The band formed in 1978 with a lineup of Ian "Buck" Murdock (vocals), Marcus "Dukie" Duke (guitar), Greg Fenton(bass) and Glenn Kingsmore (drums).Glasper, Ian (2004) "The Defects", in ''Burning Britain: The Story of UK Punk 1980 - 1984'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 346-352( Fenton was soon replaced by Jeff Gilmore.) After playing some gigs locally Gary Smith replaced Jeff Gilmore on bass and they recorded their first demo, (in Downtown Studios Newtownards)but when this failed to gain them a record deal, they started their own Casualty Records label and issued their debut 7", "Dance (Until You Drop)". The three-song EP sold all 2,000 copies and brought the band to the attention of the UK music press. '' Melody Maker'' journalist Carol Clerk who befriended the band and recommended them to John Curd, manager of WXYZ Records, who signed them to his label. The Defects moved to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1982 and embarked on the six-week "So What" UK tour with labelmates

the Anti-Nowhere League Anti-Nowhere League are an English punk rock band, formed in 1979 by lead singer Animal (Nick Culmer), guitarist Magoo (Chris Exall), Bones (Tony Shaw) on drums and Chris Elvy on bass. Career Early days The band first played at the 1980 Cha ...

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

and

Chron Gen Chron Gen (short for Chronic Generation) are a British Punk rock, punk musical ensemble, band, formed in January 1978 in Letchworth, Hertfordshire, England.Strong, Martin C. (2001) ''The Great Metal Discography'', MOJO Books, , p. 115-6Glasper, ...

. The tour was filmed by

Stewart Copeland Stewart Armstrong Copeland (born July 16, 1952) is a Scottish-American musician and composer. He is best known for his work as the drummer of the English rock band the Police from 1977 to 1986, and again from 2007 to 2008. Before playing with th ...

(with backing from brother Miles) and intended for cinema release, but it was never issued. A second single, "Survival", was issued in 1982, reaching No. 8 in the

UK Indie Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the rel ...

.Lazell, Barry (1997) ''Indie Hits 1980-1989'', Cherry Red Books, The band released their debut album, ''Defective Breakdown'', in 1982. Christopher Owens (writing for The Pensive Quill) describes the album as one "...that epitomises the sound of (what we now call) UK82 (or early 80's British punk)." With Curd looking for ways to gain crossover success for the bands on his label, he persuaded the Defects to record a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

's "

Suspicious Minds "Suspicious Minds" is a 1968 song written and first recorded by American songwriter Mark James. After this recording failed commercially, it was cut by Elvis Presley with producer Chips Moman, becoming a No. 1 song in 1969, and one of the most ...

" with producer

Ray Shulman Raymond Shulman (born 8 December 1949) is a Scottish musician, and the youngest of three brothers in progressive rock band Gentle Giant. Shulman was born in Portsmouth. His father was a trumpet player in a jazz band, and that was the first inst ...

on keyboards. The single's release in early 1984 coincided with the decline in popularity of second-wave punk, and did not sell well. With control of the band's destiny slipping away, Murdock left after the release of "Suspicious Minds". The band continued, playing a gig supporting

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with Kingsmore on vocals, before Murdock rejoined to play in support of

the Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the w ...

in Belfast. The band then permanently split, with all members returning to Belfast except Duke, who stayed in London. Kingsmore joined Western Justice with former members of Rabies, including Murdock's brother Gary, and was later a member of Ashanti. Murdock revived the Defects name in 1996 for a one-off performance at a punk festival at the Bath Pavilion, which was filmed and released on video by Barn End Video as ''Live at the Pavilion 12.10.96''. He later started the punk and

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

covers band Doghouse. The Defects reformed again in 2010 and played various punk festivals. Added to the lineup were Roy McAllister and Aidy "Fudge" Dunlop (replacing Duke and Smith). In 2012, they toured Australia, followed by appearances at the Rebellion Punk Festival in Blackpool in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018. Since 2014, Duke occasionally joins them on stage for some of their best known songs.

Discography

Studio albums

*''Defective Breakdown'' (1982, WXYZ Records) UK Indie No. 10 (reissued 1994,

Captain Oi! Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

) *''Politicophobia'' (2013, Punkerama Records) *''45 Minutes'' (2015, Punkerama Records) *''Feed the Good Dog'' (2017, Punkerama Records) *''The Death of Imagination'' (2020, Punkerama Records)

Singles

*"Dance (Until You Drop)" (1981, Casualty Records) *"Survival / Brutality" (1982, WXYZ Records) UK Indie No. 8 *"Suspicious Minds" (1984, I.D. Records) UK Indie No. 17 *"Revelator" (2011, Punkerama Records) *"Riot Free Zone?" (2013, Punkerama Records) *"Hill Street" (2013, Punkerama Records)

Live albums

*''Live at the Ulster Hall March 2014'' (2015, Punkerama Records)

Compilation albums

*''1979 - 1984 (2010, Punkerama Records/Antisociety)

Compilation appearances

*"Dance (Until You Drop)" on ''Punky Party E.P.'' flexi-disc (1982,

Flexipop ''Flexipop'' (stylized as ''Flexipop!'') was a British pop music magazine that ran from 1980 to 1983, which featured a flexidisc in each issue. The magazine was launched in 1980 by ex-''Record Mirror'' journalists Barry Cain and Tim Lott. One of ...

)

Videos

*''Live at the Pavilion 12.10.96'' (1996, Barn End Video) *''Made in Belfast'' (2015, Punkerama Records)

References

External links

*O'Neill, Sean
The Defects Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Defects, The Punk rock groups from Northern Ireland Musical groups established in 1979 Musical groups disestablished in 1984 Musical groups from Belfast