The Exploited
The Exploited are a Scottish punk rock band from Edinburgh, formed in 1978 by Stevie Ross and Terry Buchan, with Buchan soon replaced by his brother Wattie Buchan. They signed to Secret Records in March 1981,[1] and their debut EP, Army Life, and debut album, Punks Not Dead, were both released that year.[1] The band maintained a large cult following in the 1980s among a hardcore working class punk and skinhead audience. Originally a street punk band, the Exploited eventually became a crossover thrash band with the release of their album Death Before Dishonour in 1987.
The Exploited
Edinburgh, Scotland
1978–present
- Nuclear Blast
- Secret
- Rough Justice
- Captain Oi!
- Cleopatra
- Exploited
Wattie Buchan
Wullie Buchan
Irish Rob (Robert Halkett)
Steve Campbell
Although the Exploited continue to perform live, they have not released any studio material since their most recent studio album, Fuck the System, in 2003. Their songs have been covered by Slayer and Ice-T. Despite many lineup changes, Wattie has remained as the Exploited's singer and leader.
Career[edit]
Formation and early days (1979–1980)[edit]
The original line-up consisted of Terry Buchan (vocals), Stevie Ross (guitar), Colin Erskine (bass) and Andy McNiven (drums). After a few gigs in and around Edinburgh, Stevie Ross left after an appearance in Aberdeen supporting the UK Subs.
Stevie Ross was briefly replaced by guitarist Stevey Hay (Hayboy) who died 14 July 2013 after a successful career as a blues musician.[2] Guitar chores then fell to Big John Duncan.
Stevie Ross still writes songs and along with solo performances he also plays in The Station Road Band.
Early releases and Punk's Not Dead (1980–1981)[edit]
Influenced by 1970s punk rock music such as music by the Sex Pistols,[3] the quartet created a simple, no-frills sound characterised by speed and aggression. In 1980, the group founded its own independent record label, Exploited Records, and released their debut EP Army Life, which was #6 in the Indie/Independent charts for eight weeks, then was in the Top 20 for eighteen months.[4][5] The B-side was called Fuck the Mods / Crashed Out and the record's back cover stated "To all the Edinburgh punks and skins - keep on mod-bashing!!".
They then released another single, "Barmy Army", which jumped into the independent charts and remained there for 53 weeks, peaking at #4.[4] Their single "Dead Cities" peaked at #31 on the UK Charts.[5] Their single "Exploited Barmy Army" peaked at #4 on the Independent/Indie chart.[5]
In March 1981, the band signed to Secret Records, and spent a month recording their debut album, Punks Not Dead.[6] The Exploited released the single "Dogs of War", which peaked at #2 in the Independent charts and #63 on the UK Charts.[4][6][7] Also in 1981, the band released their first live album, On Stage, recorded during a concert in Edinburgh. Thereafter, the band performed, along with Discharge, Anti-Nowhere League, Anti-Pasti and Chron Gen on a tour called Apocalypse Now, which was recorded and released as a live album. Their album Punks Not Dead, released in April 1981, went to #20 in May,[8] then number 1 on the Independent Charts.[4][7] During this time, the Exploited appeared on the popular mainstream TV programme, Top of the Pops.[9][10] A lot of fans of the Exploited were unhappy with the band's decision to appear on the show.[10] The hardcore punk band Conflict wrote the song Exploitation about this appearance, which began a long-standing rivalry between Conflict and the Exploited that divided the punk fan base.[11]
Legacy[edit]
The Exploited are one of the iconic bands of the UK 82 punk movement along with Charged GBH[30] and Discharge.[31] The term "UK 82" came from the Exploited's song "UK 82".[32] AllMusic described the Exploited as "one of most riveting British punk rock units of the early 1980s".[33]
The Exploited have influenced Metallica,[34][35] Slayer,[34][35] Anthrax,[36] Nirvana,[34] Queens of the Stone Age,[34] Discharge,[37] Stormtroopers of Death,[37] Agnostic Front,[37] Exodus,[38] the Virus,[39] Napalm Death,[40] Terrorizer,[41] NOFX,[36] Rancid,[36] Dropkick Murphys,[36] the Casualties,[42] Pennywise,[36] 7 Seconds,[43] Anti-Flag,[44] Blanks 77,[36][45] Atari Teenage Riot,[34] Death Angel,[46] and Total Chaos.[47]
Musical style and influences[edit]
The Exploited has been categorised as crossover thrash,[48] punk rock,[16] thrash metal,[49] speed metal,[50] punk metal,[37] anarchist punk,[51] hardcore punk,[49][52] street punk[53][54][55][56] and oi!.[56][57][58][59][60][61] Originally playing street punk and oi!, the Exploited became a crossover thrash band with their album Death Before Dishonour.[48] The Exploited's influences include Sex Pistols, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, the Vibrators, the Threats, Alternative, the Belsen Horrors, and Johnny Moped.[56][62] Wattie Buchan also mentioned being influenced by James Brown and he likes The Cure's first four albums.[63]
Other sources