Formed in 1980, Bourbonese Qualk weren’t designed for easy listening. Preparing For Power partly lampoons the Labour movement and addresses the prevailing Thatcherism of its day. Vocalists and multi-instrumentalists, Julian Gilbert and Simon Crab, along with drummer Steven Tanza, had broadened their musical palette to include EBM and a funkier dub-influenced post-punk sound at this stage. However, the aggressive shouted lyrics remained, and the pain and heartache is real.
BQ insisted on maintaining complete control of their work, recording their music in their own studio and running their own venue, Ambulance Station, on the Old Kent Road, London. The consequence being they largely existed under the radar. This Mannequin and Platform 23 Records reissue sheds light on this important link in the UK anarcho-punk story.
