AMG Review of Demolition [Bonus Tracks]

Wade Kergan
All Music Guide

The debut from Girlschool arrived in the U.K. in 1980, smack in the middle of punk frenzy and on the cusp of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Demolition never feels like it's a part of either, a lone dog that has the bravura of punk with the same timeless hard rock boogie of Motörhead and the edgy femme attitude of the Queens of Noise themselves, the Runaways. This reissue is everything a fan could hope for with the addition of nine bonus tracks rounding out the original Spartan ten album tracks. Single versions of "Take It All Away" and "It Could Be Better" are for completists only, but the "Emergency" single B-side, "Furniture Fire," and two demos, "Nothing to Lose" and "Not for Sale" are the kind additions that make good reissues great. The all-time Girlschool classic "Demolition Man" makes a return in a live set from a BBC radio appearance that also includes "Take It All Away," "Breakdown" and "Nothing to Lose."