Peter And The Test Tube Babies — The Albums 1990- 98( CD boxset)

Here’s a five-CD box set bringing together all of the 1990s output from lyrically playful UK punk rockers Peter And The Test Tube Babies. Featured here are four studio albums and one live album, and throughout the set, the key elements are the tongue-in-cheek humour and general feeling of playful swagger.

This release appears on Captain Oi!- which is the punk sublabel of Cherry Red. The CDs, each in their own card slips featuring the original album's artwork, come presented in a buoyantly pink and glossy flipside box. Inside, we find a colourful sixteen-page inlay booklet- with brief write-ups about each release, loads of band pics, and album artwork.

Peter And The Test Tube Babies were formed in 1978 in the Sussex town of Peacehaven. The band's key members were/ are vocalist Peter Bywaters and guitarist Derek "Strangefish" Greening.  Their sound is seen as a mix of Oi, pop punk,  and Punk pathetique( a subgenre of British punk that involved humour and working-class themes). Between 1982 and 2020, they’ve released thirteen albums, and they are seemingly still actively touring band.

The first disc in the set is the album The $hit Factory- it’s from the year 1990, and it’s a covers album. Now, normally I’d run a mile with a covers record, but this is a genuinely fun/entertaining affair. The focus is the band giving their take on a selection of tracks penned by the 80s/90s pop producing team Stock, Aitken, and Waterman, with the covers being largely rewarding and different from the original tracks. We go from punk chugg, fired-up harmonic guitar tones, and wavering joint singsong vocals of “Toyboy” which was originally released by American-British singer Sinitta in 1987.  There’s the gunning and baying metal of “I’d Rather Jack”- which was a hit for The Reynolds Girls in 1987. We have the swaggering Brit pop-punk charm of “Hand On Your Heart” with its blend of male lead vocals & wavering/wonky female back vocals- this was originally sung by Oz soap star turned pop star Kylie Minogue. The original album featured twelve tracks, but this version adds in two bonus tracks, including a cheeky ‘n’ charming cover of Jason Donovan's 1987 hit “Too Many Broken Hearts” with its amusingly altered lyrics.  As I said, a most entertaining/ not taking itself too seriously covers

Next is 1991’s Cringe album- it takes in sixteen original album tracks, and two bonus tracks. Initially, when you put the album on, you think you’ve got the wrong disc- as we get a blend of fading in bagpipes, rolling synth timpani drums & synth strings- but fear not, this is just a brief/ if rather bizarre introduction, and fairly soon we’re back into bounding punk rock. We go from the strutting guitar lines, gang vocals, and wailing solos of “Shit British Tour”. Onto swinging ‘n’ swaying punked up cover of “Bare Necessities”.  Through to the tuneful, cheeky, chant-along pop punk of “Goodbye Forever”.  I’d say as an album sits on the cusp of Oi! & pop punk, with a few quirky, playful twists added in.

Disc three takes in 1995’s Supermodels album, which takes in fifteen tracks in total. It moves from the bounding and urgent title track with its malicious spit-flecked male vocals and gunning guitars. Onto the chiming guitar, pounding bass ‘n’ drums, and singsong pop punk of “U Bore Me”. Through to La-La chant, gang vocals, tuneful riff climb of “Busy Doing Nothing”. This is a passable enough album, though it does feel a little predictable- with the band rather losing some of their original charm 'n' cheek, for a more formal pop punk sound.

Next is the 1996 live album Schwein Lake Live, which on its front cover features a photo of the band dressed up in tutus on stage. The album has eighteen tracks, with a good, clear, well-defined, yet raucous sound, which was recorded in Munich in December 1995. In the set, we get more punchy versions of tracks from the Supermodels album, as well as a good selection of early tracks. Highlights, including the rapidly bound & forcefully chanty “Student Wankers”. The moody-yet-chugging “Spirit Of Keith Moon”- which has an almost goth punked-up vibe to its verses' riff. The initially pared-back jiving guitar strum, amusingly bad taste lyrics, and wavering vocals of “Elvis Is Dead”. All in all, Schwein Lake Live is a decent enough live album, with a great, balanced/ punchy mix.

Finally, on disc five, we have 1998’s Alien Pubduction- it takes in sixteen original album tracks, and two bonus tracks. The tone here, both in the lyrics and music, often feels a bit more serious/ less playful. We move from moodily gunning chugg of “Early Grave”, onto the gloomy bounding bass line meets tolling punk guitars of “Talk Show”. Though there are still a few cheeky/ tuneful numbers like the pop-punk waltz of “Why Do You Bother”, and the instrumental track “Meet You At The All Night Offy” with its subtle rising keyboard tones & jaunting guitars.  All in all, it’s not a bad latter-day album from the band, with more straight/serious edge to some of the tracks working well.

If you dig your British punk with a bit more humour and playful pop edges, then I’d say you’ll enjoy a big chunk of what this box set has to offer.