Che is the Narcotic

This has been a winding way. I was listening to a heavy streak of Fats Comet. I thought I remembered some song Fats Comet had done, a different more cut-up version of what became "Heaven on Earth" on Keith LeBlanc's Major Malfunction album. It turned out to be "Be My Powerstation" which had been released as a 12" single in 1983 by St. Che & later on the 1989 full-length release Narcotic by Che.

Che turned out to be Alex Johnson aka Alix Plain. Alix was a founding member of Modern Eon, a new wavish post-punk band that was part of the "New Liverpool Scene" that sprang up in 1979-1980 around Eric's Club (in a basement opposite The Cavern Club of Beatles fame). Others belonging to the "New Liverpool Scene" included Echo & the Bunnymen, The Teardrop Explodes, Orchestral Manoeuvers in the Dark, Dead or Alive, Pink Military & others.

Modern Eon had a few compilation tracks & then a minor hit with "Euthenics". In June 1981 they released their only album, Fiction Tales. The songs are fueled by powerful tom-tom driven, inventive drumming provided by the band's new drummer, 17 yr. old Cliff Hewitt. Their music differs from their musical peers by occasionally adding odd analog electronics & saxophone while Alix's vocals are bathed in reverb & delivered with a smooth eloquence yet are barely intelligible. The music is moody & melodic but a certain harshness bursts through that always leaves a vaguely mysterious impression.

Following the release of Fiction Tales, a tour was arranged supporting The Stranglers. But, during rehearsal sessions Cliff Hewitt, whose drumming style had become such an integral part of the bands sound, seriously injured his wrist. He did contribute to scheduled appearances for the John Peel, Richard Skinner, & In Concert Radio One radio shows, but it soon became apparent that the rigors of a tour would be too much for him. A suitable replacement could not easily be found. The solution was that they toured with Cliff's drum tracks on a tape machine which Cliff operated.

The end of 1981 found Modern Eon at work on demos for a second album with Cliff back on his drum stool but sadly, Modern Eon faded away, never to release a follow up album.

Modern Eon - Fiction Tales, Dindisc DID 11, 1981.

all decryption codes in comments

Side One -
Second Still
The Grass Still Grows
Playwrite
Watching the Dancers
Real Hym
Waiting for the Calvary

Side Two -
High Noon
Child's Play
Choreography
Euthenics
In a Strange Way
Mechanic

Both the single "Be My..." & Narcotic are a druggy mixture of dubby funk & big beats that came about as the result of Alix meeting Adrian Sherwood (who produces three songs - "Fireflies", "Imperfections", & "Be My Powerstation") & Tackhead (former Sugarhill Gang legends Doug Wimbish, Skip McDonald, & Keith LeBlanc who provide all the music).

Che - Narcotic, Siren CDSRN 16, 1989.

Scream like a Swift
Fireflies in Summer
I Wish He Didn’t Trust Me So Much
Moving the Silence
Imperfections
Be My Powerstation featuring Fats Comet
Jerusalem
View from a New Perspective
Celebrating Life


& as a bonus, here's a compilation from 1993 that has a track from Modern Eon (as well as Legendary Pink Dots, Comsat Angels, Tuxedomoon & various other NSS alumni, which is really why I added it).

Various - New Wave Soft Class-X1, Antler-Subway AS 5085, 1993.

It's a Fine Day - Jane
Night & Day - Everything but the Girl
The Treasure - Fra Lippo Lippi
I Know Where Syd Barrett Lives - Television Personalities (listed as Sid on back)
Spock's Missing - Spizz Energi
Tonight - Patrik Fitzgerald
Waiting for the Calvary - Modern Eon
Sister Europe - The Psychedelic Furs
Dark Parade (BBC Session) - The Comsat Angels
La Fête Triste - Trisomie 21
Final Day - Young Marble Giants
The Wedding - The Legendary Pink Dots
My Sex - Ultravox
Iceberg - Shoc Corridor
Burning Skies - Tones on Tail
The Stranger - Tuxedomoon

Enjoy,
NØ