England’s The Beyond is one of those bands that – at least in the U.S. – went straight to the bargain bins at the local indie record stores.
Their debut full-length ‘Crawl‘ had an obnoxious folding digipak case with multiple cardboard flaps, all featuring a rather simple graphic of deep blue waters teeming with hammerhead sharks. The spiny band logo seemed to communicate very clearly that this was some heavy, menacing stuff – and back then in 1992, that seemed like $2.00 worth of metal to me.
The band’s sound was a blend of somewhat ordinary rock instrumentation with pronounced moments of experiment; they had a sort of shuffling, frantic rhythm section which showcased spastic drum patterns and popping basslines. It occurs to me now that – in metal – the slappy, pseudo-funky bass player was definitely a U.K. staple during that era (see also Culture of None faves Ignorance and Scat Opera).
It was quite a surprise, a few years later, to discover a sophomore release by The Beyond in the $2.00 cutout bin at Camelot Music, in the Gurnee Mills Mall. Apparently released in the U.K. only, this ultra-rare album is nearly impossible to find through online merchants or eBay, with occasional scarce copies listed on Amazon.com for ridiculously high prices. Is it worth $40-$50? No way. Is it 
better than ‘Crawl’? Sure. Does it deserve to be heard? I definitely think so.
It’s SO rare, in fact, that even I don’t own the original CD that was found in the Camelot Music bargain bin. That one is currently in the well guarded library of the enigmatic Mr. Mayhem, who has been kind enough to act as a sort of “remote” archive for this Culture of None rarity.
I’m providing you with a link here, because if I don’t – you’ll probably never hear this album. It’s that simple.
If you ever happen to find this one, by all means buy it:
{ 2 comments }
all hail the beyond
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Mr Mayhem? Dude, stop living in the past! I haven’t gone by that moniker since Clinton’s first term!
Also, to set the record straight, I do owe great thanks to you for locating that disc, however it was by NO MEANS a mere 2 dollars!
It was at least $10, and possibly even $20, though i honestly can’t grok why. Perhaps the prominent Import sticker? Or some rare rekkid-store employee knew of the band and discovered that it was an extremely hard-to-find (even then) import?
In any event, i would be happy to copy & upload/email the lyrics & liner notes to any interested party. I’m happy to opine that both Beyond albums have aged quite well. My personal preference is for the 2nd, but i must give great props to the band for a sound bite on the 1st album taken from the original Willy Wonka movie.
Thanks much for the kind adjective (“enigmatic” is so much nicer to read than the usual “weird” or “loser”).
OH! Hey, you should send me your address there in coffeetown so i can send you your ultra-rare “Little Drummer Boy” Tori Amos cd single. Spoken in the manner of Comic Book Guy: Longest…loan…EVER.
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