![]() “My name’s Tad and you’re stuck with me!” he yells unapologetically before launching into “Damaged”, perhaps one of the most appropriate song titles on Salt Lick. Here it is as if the band’s sound had been forged somewhere in the depths of the wooded Pacific Northwest - perhaps accompanied by a host of Sasquatches - where it required absurdly heavy guitars and drums played at maximum volume merely to compete with Doyle’s throat-shredding, all-consuming bellowing. While grunge has never been a particularly appropriate sobriquet for the bands to which it has repeatedly been applied, it seems more than fitting for Tad’s grimy, angry, dirty sound. The Salt Lick EP appeared in 1990, further streamlining the Tad aesthetic into blisteringly short bursts of agro-metal heaviness, this time courtesy of Steve Albini. ![]() It’s a massive opening statement that helped set a stylistic precedent from which they would mainly refuse to deviate for the remainder of their career. ![]() Relying on legendary Seattle producer Jack Endino to help translate their monolithic live sound to record, the band set about doing what they do best - namely channeling ‘70s heavy metal into something even heavier and more oppressive than any of their forebears could’ve imagined. Instead, Tad delivered one colossal sonic assault after another, none of which allowed much time for the listener to catch their breath or regain consciousness following the initial blast of opening track “Behemoth.” With its unison scream of “Motherfucker!” scattered throughout the song’s chorus, Tad presents themselves as a gleefully uncommercial act hell-bent on remaining as such. Far from a backhanded compliment, this instead is a testament to the band’s steadfast adherence to a particular musical vision even in the face of potential commercial success as Seattle gradually became a musical hotbed. If you’ve heard one Tad song you’ve pretty much heard them all. Not that it makes all that much difference. Reissued here in a “deluxe edition”, the original album is augmented with three bonus tracks. One of the first bands to sign to Sub Pop, Tad released their debut, God’s Balls in 1989. Having taken their name from frontman Tad Doyle, perhaps one of the most physically imposing singers of all time at well over 300 pounds (something he seems well aware of in the sideways smile flashed above hairy crossed arms bigger than most people’s legs), the band proved time and again they bashed about to the Neanderthal beat of their own drum. In short, no other Seattle band managed the same visceral heft as Tad what they lacked in memorable songs they more than made up for in the sheer mass of the music they laid to tape. In Tad’s case, the underground was their domain a cavernous space within which to create the greatest of sonic poundings, mercilessly pulverizing the competition. It’s a sound so viscerally elephantine as to virtually defy description short of simply being forced to describe their sound to the uninitiated as, “Tad sounds like Tad.”īut doing so is something of a cop-out as the band did indeed possess its own distinct brand of heaviness and visual presence (a proudly blue collar/white trash/lumberjack aesthetic) that separated them from their more tuneful fellow Seattleites, nearly all of whom appeared far more groomed and ready to make the jump from the underground to the mainstream. In fact, quite the contrary as the members of Tad unapologetically went about their heavier-than-heavy business, delivering one pummeling assault after another. Of course album titles like God’s Balls and 8-Way Santa didn’t help their case any. Any questions, just ask.Listening back now, it’s very clear why Tad did not find themselves immediately picked up by a major label in the vast pilfering of the Seattle music scene in the early 1990s. Check with your country's customs office to find out what these additional costs will be before you bid or buy. These charges are the buyer's responsibility. Import duties, taxes, and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. SHIPPING RATES: US: 7”s $4 first class mail plus $1 each additionalLPs $4 media mail plus $1 each additional CANADA7"s $10 plus $1 each additionalLPs $14 plus $4 each additional MEXICO7"s $13 plus $1 each additionalLPs $17 plus $4 each additional REST OF WORLD7"s $15 plus $2 each additionalLPs $20 plus $4 each additional ANYONE NOT IN THE UNITED STATES (shipping requirements) Any item/items over $100 must be insured. So don't pay and ask me to ship it to another address. It is against eBay/PayPal rules to ship anywhere else. SHIPPING ADDRESS: I will only ship to the address listed in your PayPal account. I'm also including an 8x10 black and white glossy promo photo. The cover is VG+-there's a slight amount of cover stock missing in the upper right corner that's not even 1/8th of an inch (see third photo). An original copy with the banned cover of Tad's "8-Way Santa" album.
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