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It's hard to let go of a good thing. More than four decades after the Mutants first appeared on the San Francisco underground music scene, four of the original members are still playing shows together under that name in 2022. After all, mutants are known to mutate, and that's what this colorful, energetic musical collective has been doing off and on since 1977.

Perhaps even more surprisingly, the sessions for their lone album, 1982's Fun Terminal, continue to bring forth lost nuggets. In punk and new wave lore, Fun Terminal is considered a troubled project. Prior to the album's appearance, the Mutants had released only one 7-inch single -- 1980s' The Mutants EP -- and the band also had songs featured on two local compilations. Both the EP and one of the compilations were issued by 415 Records, the legendary Bay Area indie that made the jump from the new wave trenches to the majors when they signed a deal with Columbia Records in 1981. Many scenesters felt that the Mutants should have begun album sessions for 415 immediately after the EP, but that didn't happen.

Each of the 14 tracks on the new collection, "Curse of the Easily Amused" has either been remixed, or sourced from previously unreleased tapes. "From the band's point of view, each cut is a substantially different version than what might have appeared before," explains current Mutants bassist and project producer Peter Conheim. Eight songs have never been officially released on vinyl or CD in any form. The versions of 'Think Think Think' and 'Tribute to Russ Meyer' feature radically different approaches than what was heard on the Fun Terminal reissue. We recently rediscovered a tape reel that included those songs. The Mutants discarded or forgot about a ridiculous amount of music during its first eight years. Audio quality for all the tracks here is superior to anything that's come before. No overdubs were used in preparing this release."

Track Listing

Sales Points

• Release promoted in a full-on publicity campaign by Prime Mover Media
• for fans of Devo, The B-52s, The Cramps, Tuxedomoon, Frightwig
• Performed with the Cramps in 1978 at Napa State Hospital, a psychiatric facility, one of the most legendary shows in music history
• Their only 415 Records LP “Fun Terminal” was also the name of the game arcade downstairs from their SF headquarters
• 14-track collection of remixed tracks and previously unreleased recordings
• One of the original “art-punk” bands pioneers of late '70s/early '80s SF area music scene

Press Quotes

The Mutants emerged as one of the great art school punk bands of the late 1970s with their unique seven member strong high octane, alcohol fueled melodic punk assault. Each performance was treated as a special event, which the band packed with memorable tunes

     —Shredding Paper

In historical perspective, they came after the Avengers and before Dead Kennedys. Known for their energetic live shows, the Mutants were lauded as the ultimate Art PARTY band. Curse of the Easily Amused captures 14 songs that havent ever been released

     —Scene Point Blank

With Curse of the Easily Amused, old school punk collectors have a reason to cheer, as the set offers a substantial batch of wholly worthwhile previously unreleased material

     —The Vinyl District

Punk era odds and ends collections have a tendency to dish a few highs amid sustained stretches of the underwhelming, but Curse of the Easily Amused is a consistently pleasurable ride, recommended to those who like a little fun in their punk

     —The Vinyl District

These songs paint a diverse picture, from straight punk rock to pop numbers in a New Wave guise, everything reflects how the late 1970s punk scene was developing at a rapid pace

     —Ox Fanzine

This is classic US new wave power pop: melodic, tuneful and well produced with hints of the B52s and Go-Gos along with a gritty edge that helps them avoid being too polished or saccharine

     —Russ Bestley, Vive Le Rock

The result is a heretofore unheard collection documenting The Mutants. As fine as those few previous releases have been, Curse of the Easily Amused in likely to serve - and serve well - -as the definitive document of the Bay Area's premier art punk collec

     —Bill Kopp, Musoscribe

Taken as a full-length, this is more insistent and cohesive than their Fun Terminal LP, with shades of Voidoids, Pere Ubu, and others on the artsy fringe of punk popping up in the edgy shards they deliver. This is as 'punk' as it gets

     —Jimmy Alvarado, Razorcake

Musically, they still sound unique and that gives these recordings a vitality that makes them sound surprisingly fresh. If you've ever been interested in the early punk scenes, this is something you really need to hear --Andy Pearson, Fear & Loathing

     —Andy Pearson, Fear & Loathing

A legendary San Francisco outfit spearheaded by Fritz Fox alongside Sue White and Sally Webster, as The Mutants the trio all sing across art-punk songs that are full of energetic and rowdy song craft.

     —Take Effect