Eater are an early British punk rock band from North London who took their name from a Marc Bolan lyric.
In October 2001, the band's second single, "Thinking of the USA" (originally released in June 1977), was included in Mojo magazine's list of the best punk rock singles of all time. In 1999, the track also appeared on the five-CD Universal Records box set 1-2-3-4 Punk & New Wave 1976-1979.
Their sound has been characterized as "run-of-the-mill dole queue punk rock" and "basic boy-ish punk rock".
In 2022, Andy Blade collaborated with rock'n'roll band JoJo & The Teeth in a new incarnation of Eater, starting with warm up gigs under the alias Ant. The band was formed in 1976 by four high school friends from Finchley, North London: Anglo-Egyptian singer and guitarist Andy Blade (real name: Ashruf Radwan (name), guitarist Brian Chevette (real name: Brian Haddock) and Blade's brother, drummer Social Demise (real name: Lutfi Radwan).
Eater were known for being one of the youngest bands, if not the youngest band, in the punk scene. They were 14–17 years old when they formed the group. "They were basically young kids, striving to master their instruments and out to shock", according to Up Yours! A Guide to UK Punk, New Wave & Early Post Punk.
Despite originating in London, the band made its first public performance on 20 September 1976 at Manchester's Holdsworth Hall, featuring Buzzcocks as their support act. The band did not yet have a permanent bassist and rented a local musician for the show. Lutfi Radwan (aka Social Demise) was soon replaced by drummer Dee Generate (real name: Roger Bullen), and by November 1976, they had recruited bassist Ian Woodcock in time to play their first London gig.[6] Lutfi Radwan went on to become a highly regarded scholar and academic, who now lectures in food ethics and the central role of sustainable living in a time of scarcity in the 21st century.
Eater became one of the pioneering punk bands that played live in the first few months of the now-legendary Roxy Club. They topped the bill twice in January 1977; the second time they were supported by the Damned. They headlined again in February, this time supported by Johnny Moped, and twice more in March, supported first by the Lurkers and then by Sham 69. They also supplied two of their tracks, "15" (a version of "I'm Eighteen" by Alice Cooper) and "Don't Need It", to the seminal live compilation album The Roxy London WC2, released on 24 June 1977 by Harvest Records. Extracts from their performances at The Roxy were also included in Don Letts' Punk Rock Movie (1978).
The band signed to a small London independent label called The Label, which released three initial singles produced by Dave Goodman: "Outside View" (1 March 1977), "Thinkin' of the USA" (June 1977) and "Lock It Up" (October 1977).[6] The latter featured new drummer Phil Rowland, who had replaced Generate in May 1977.
Their sole studio album, simply titled The Album, was released on 11 November 1977. Again produced by Goodman, it included sped-up versions of songs by David Bowie ("Queen Bitch") and the Velvet Underground ("Sweet Jane" and "Waiting for the Man"). "All songs on their sole full-length release sound about the same, played with one stiff light-speed beat and a snotty vehemence to each track, adding up to a ridiculous classic", said AllMusic critic Fred Beldin in a retrospective review, adding, "As fast and clumsy as the material is, there's an undeniable tunefulness at work, particularly in irresistible singalongs like 'No Brains' and 'Room for One', and the sprightly single 'Lock It Up' even attempts some naïve vocal harmonies as they sneer at the upper classes".
