german shepherds: music for sick queers

Formed by Stephen Scheatzle and Sandy Stark (a.k.a. Mark Hutchinson), German Shepherds grew out of San Francisco’s art-punk scene in the early ’80s. Their first single, “I Adore You,” is a lost minimal synth nugget with an unforgettable rhythm box pattern, and their second, “THC,” showcases Stark’s menacing and child-like vocals. Music for Sick Queers (originally released in 1985) brings together these and more beautifully disturbing songs with electronic noise reminiscent of Allen Ravenstine (Pere Ubu) and the best of The Residents, Suicide and Psychic TV. While more tracks would appear on compilations, such as Mykel Board’s infamous The “You’ll Hate This Record” Record, German Shepherds themselves virtually disappeared as their self-released album went out-of-print for decades. After years of searching the catacombs, Superior Viaduct finally caught up with only surviving member, Stark, and uncovered the band’s secret history growing up in Ohio. This first-time reissue comes from the original master tapes and features a special bonus 7-inch containing previously unreleased material plus archival inserts and a digital download card. “A masterpiece of minimal synth combined with experimental and noisy synth punkish elements!” —Mutant Sound

I Adore You by superiorviaduct