Weird System / Germany / RE 2022
Weird System is proud to present the definitive reissue of "Youth Of America", the monumental second studio album by Portland’s highly influential icons, Wipers, led by the incorruptible genius of Greg Sage.
Originally released in 1981 via Park Avenue Records, Youth Of America represented a drastic, brave, and visionary shift from their 1980 debut, Is This Real?. While their first full-length delivered raw, direct, melodic, and razor-sharp punk anthems, this second effort completely shattered the mold of the "conventional punk band." Greg Sage conceived the album in late 1980 at Wave Sound Studios (Vancouver, WA) as a sophisticated, massive, and suffocating artistic response to the dark times and socio-political alienation of the new decade.
Consisting of six extensive, hypnotic tracks, the album immerses the listener in a cold, heartbreaking, and avant-garde sonic experience. Standing tall above everything else is the epic 10-minute title track—a sonic odyssey driven by a motorik beat heavily influenced by Krautrock, where Sage’s guitars build dense layers of distortion and gothic anxiety. This track alone single-handedly anticipated the rise of alternative rock and the 90s grunge explosion a full decade in advance.
It is no surprise that key alternative rock figures like Kurt Cobain (who included it in his famous top 50 favorite albums of all time) or seminal labels like Sub Pop have long revered Wipers as the hidden architects of the American underground.
This meticulous reissue by Germany's Weird System respects the iconic original artwork shot by Curtis Knapp and restores the magnetic force of these historic recording sessions. Here, Greg Sage (vocals, guitar, piano, and production), accompanied by Brad Davidson and Dave Koupal on bass and Brad Naish on drums, defied the boundaries of contemporary punk.
A timeless, claustrophobic, and absolutely visionary record that is finally available once again for new generations of misfits.