But unlike yesterday's obscure British new wave group, Linda and the Dark, there's no mystery about who the Rezillos are and where they came from. They formed in Edinburgh in 1976, and although they were contemporaries of the Sex Pistols and The Clash, they were much more interested in performing songs about space travel and young love than government corruption and societal decay. Clearly the Rezillos were drinking the same glam rock/B-movie/thrift shop smoothie that The Cramps, The B-52s, and The Fleshtones were enjoying at the same time in America.
The Rezillos' 1978 debut album, Can't Stand the Rezillos, hit the top 20 UK album chart with an accompanying top 20 single. But despite the album's success, the group disbanded only a few months after its release. After a lineup shake-up, however, the band lived on as the Revillos for two decades. In 2001, the V became a Z again when most of the original line-up reformed, and they are still touring to this day! Pretty impressive for a group that technically only released one album during its heyday.
Today's song is a single by the original lineup that came out shortly after the release of Can't Stand the Rezillos. "Destination Venus" chronicles the lengths true love can travel over both time and space. It is also one of the grooviest videos I have ever seen in my life. The futuristic yellow leisure suit! The plastic cavewoman dress! The coordinated back-up moves! This thing is aural and visual serotonin.
And because I cannot ever hear this song enough, here is a cover of "Destination Venus" by the excellent spaced-out surf group Man or Astro-man. The video isn't as exciting as the one by the Rezillos (how could it be?!?), but they do a great job of putting their mark on this addictive song!
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