You would think that ultra-niche labels such as Only Fit For The Bin must some day run out of lost material, but it would seem the sheer number of worthy bands that fell between the cracks during the highly fertile post-/punk era provides an inexhaustible supply.
The Orange Cardigan were formed in 1979 in Essex, by bassist Niki ‘Stitch’ Berlin and drummer Lee Faust, both previously with The Outsider, and with Paul Markz on vocals and guitar. Again, like many OFFTB bands, The Orange Cardigan had a much higher profile than you may imagine. They played venues such as The Marquee, The Music Machine, The Clarendon and The Bridge House, supported acts such as The Birthday Party, Pet Shop Boys, Everything But The Girl and Classic Nouveaux, and gained plenty of press coverage. In 1980, the band signed to Situation 2 and, though a single was recorded, it was never released. Interest from the likes of Rough Trade, Cherry Red and Fresh followed, but sadly came to nothing.
These recordings may be raw and a little hissy, but clearly show that the Cardigan were one of those stark, jerky, clever post-punk acts of the time – and a superior one at that.
