By 1988 the Joke appeared washed up. Their last album for Virgin, Outside The Gate, had sold poorly and had alienated many hardcore fans with its commercial production. Coleman and co retired to their lair to lick their wounds, however, and in 1990 unleashed the blistering Extremities, Dirt & Various Repressed Emotions, which signalled a new, more metal/ grunge direction.
Inside Extremities offers a fascinating insight into the genesis of that album, with indispensable mixes, instrumental versions and rehearsals of the material that would appear on the original album proper. The live disc from the same period captures the band in full flow and has the added bonus of an immense version of the sadly long forgotten Inside The Termite Mound.
The two vinyl bootleg archives contain even richer seams of long lost gems. Across the six discs are some of the most scorching live shows the band ever performed. The second volume also contains the must-have for any completist The Bum’s Rush demos, which features alternate versions of classic early Joke material.
