Scars - Author! Author! [3 Disc Expanded Edition]

The 3-Disc Expanded Edition of Scars’ Author! Author!, released by Cherry Red Records, stands as a definitive, lovingly compiled monument to one of the post-punk era's greatest "lost" masterworks. Originally released in 1981, the solitary studio album from this Edinburgh outfit has spent decades in digital obscurity, frustrating collectors due to licensing disputes. This comprehensive reissue finally fills the void, packing the original 10-track album alongside essential singles, unreleased demos, and blistering live recordings. It successfully recontextualizes the band's critical legacy, proving that their angular, darkly melodic music has outlived the ephemeral 1980s New Romantic aesthetics that temporarily boxed them in.

Scars - Author! Author! 12''EP

Scars’ "Author! Author!" USA 12-inch 4-track EP delivers a definitive snapshot of 1981 Scottish post-punk, fusing angular art-punk tension with dark, melodic pop sensibilities. Driven by trebly, scratchy guitars, propulsive basslines, and urgent vocals, the release showcases the band’s ability to anchor avant-garde, unsettling themes within accessible hooks. Tracks like the title cut and the frantic "She's Alive" balance confrontational energy with sophisticated song structures, drawing stylistic parallels to early Siouxsie and the Banshees or Fire Engines. Though it remained a cult underground release in the United States rather than a commercial breakthrough, the EP is critically revered as a hidden treasure of the era, capturing a highly influential, jagged alternative sound at its absolute creative peak.

Scars - Author! Author!

Is the post-punk group Scars one of the Last Great Lost Bands?

Chances are that you won't remember post-punk band Scars. Their moment in the sun was both tragically and gloriously brief. They stormed out of Edinburgh in the early 1980s possessed of equal parts glam audacity, art-rock solemnity and futuristic zeal. They were roundly hailed as the next great white musical hope. Two Peel sessions and a handful of music-paper covers later, they vanished in a fog of egotism and unhealthy appetites. But not before they delivered their one and only album, 1981's maddeningly beautiful Author! Author!

In the intervening years, Scars have been effectively forgotten. Years ago, Mark E Smith name-checked them as his favourite band ("because they were the complete opposite of the Fall"), and more recently, Lemon Jelly briefly raised Scars' profile by sampling them on their '64-'95 album. But despite guitarist Paul Research's sterling efforts to keep the name alive on his Scars website, the band appeared to be permanently consigned to the dustbin of history. Even in Simon Reynolds' encyclopaedic post-punk history, Rip it Up & Start Again, they merit only the most fleeting of mentions.

Meanwhile, down the last 38 years, every other once-forgotten band of their era has been either endlessly repackaged and/or critically rehabilitated to enable them to enjoy an extension on their fifteen minutes. Even the very worst of the fag-end punk bands (The Lurkers, Chelsea, Slaughter and the Dogs) have been kept on life-support by virtue of their appearance on a thousand and one dodgy service-station compilations. Music monthlies can be relied upon to remind us all of the greatness of cult artists (John Cooper-Clarke, Vic Godard, Penetration's Pauline Murray) who might have accidentally slipped off the radar. Most recently, Castle's CD86 compilation plucked the likes of Darling Buds, Revolving Paint Dream and 14 Iced Bears from the kind of shambling obscurity that most would agree was their deserved fate.

As for Scars, their fate has hardly been helped by the convoluted copyright situation that held up the reissue of Author! Author! for all these years. Now that it's finally here and sounding as edgy and lovely as it always did, maybe the band can finally enjoy some of the critical acclaim that has long been denied them. If that should come to pass, then this will surely establish them as one of the Last Great Lost Bands to come to our attention. Unless, that is, you readers have any better ideas. Word of warning: the likes of Toad the Wet Sprocket, Stump, Cock Sparrer and Bum Gravy will automatically be disqualified on the grounds that the dustbin of history is exactly where these bands belong.

Scars - Love Song 7'' + All About You 7''

Love Song 7'' (Pre Records, 1980)

Released in 1980, this seminal single is celebrated as a high-water mark of early 1980s Scottish post-punk that balanced avant-garde tension with genuine commercial potential. Music critics and collectors frequently praise Paul Research’s "dazzling, sexy, and angular" guitar work, which underpins a dark, driving rhythm section and urgent, melancholic vocals. Backed by the track "Psychomodo", the single earned a 3.8/5 rating on Discogs for its brilliant fusion of jagged art-punk energy, infectious melodies, and a lingering sense of romantic menace.

All About You 7'' (Pre Records, 1981)

Issued in 1981 to promote their singular studio album, this release is widely regarded by fans as a masterpiece of yearning, 1960s-influenced art-pop. While the A-side delivers a mysterious, driving melody with a rousing extended coda, the single is equally famous for its rare B-side, "Author! Author!"—a critically acclaimed, rhythmic post-punk track that was bizarrely excluded from the actual album of the same name. Holding a high 4.13/5 rating on Discogs, reviewers often note that the raw energy of the flipside rivals the main track, making this specific pressing a highly sought-after piece of vinyl history.

Scars - Adult/ery / Horrorshow 7'' + They Came And Took Her 7''

Adult/ery / Horrorshow (1979)

Released on the legendary Fast Product label, this debut single is widely celebrated as a foundational masterpiece of Scottish post-punk. Reviewers consistently praise its frantic energy, driven by angular, trebly guitar riffs and intense, art-glam vocals that evoke a dark, Clockwork Orange-esque tension. While some listeners note that the original pressing suffers from a notoriously thin and grating mix, the raw, urgent songwriting on both tracks easily overcomes these sonic limitations, cementing the record as a highly influential cult classic.

They Came And Took Her (1980)

Marking their transition to the Pre/Charisma label, this sophomore single showcases a tighter, more melodic refinement of the band's signature art-punk sound without sacrificing their nervous edge. Fans and critics view the track as a high point in the Scars' brief discography, blending driving rhythms with catchy yet sophisticated hooks that proved the band was ahead of its time. It stands as a vital bridge between their raw, DIY origins and the polished, expansive new wave direction of their sole studio album.