The Beep Tapes

Description

The Beep Tapes is a four-track cassette-EP by the British alternative rock band Tribe of Dan, independently released in the UK on Mister M Records in 1989. (Comment: ‘Beeb’ is a reference to the BBC – Brits often refer to the BBC as ‘Auntie Beeb’ or just ‘the Beeb’; and the place of origin is actually ‘Cambs’, which is short for ‘Cambridgeshire’, one of the English counties.) All songs written by Dan Donovan.

Featuring Dan Donovan on lead vocals and guitar, Mark Stirk on keyboards and vocals, Solze on bass, and Ali Byworth on drums.

This is the first Tribe of Dan tape that Dan Donovan recorded after Back to Jordan. I’m not really sure what a Beeb is, though :). The music here is a tiny bit more alternative and melancholy than their later full-length, but you definitely see where they are going. The driving rock part is still in full force. «Cooking Pot» and «Away from Here» would appear again on the next demo (Git Down, Thrash It: Live), but none of these songs made it onto either of their full-length releases. Donovan also went on to record many solo albums, as well as form bands like The Swamp Cranks and King Kool. But this early work is just as engaging as his later work, unlike many artists that started off rough and improved over time. Donovan does improve over time, but his early work is also incredibly strong in its’ own right. [Christian Tape Underground, June 28, 2018]

Cassette tracklist:

Side One
A1. “Learning From You”
A2. “Cooking Pot”

Side Two
B1. “Just a Little Bit More”
B2. “Away From Here”