Eater

by Richie Unterberger
One of the first British punk bands, much of Eater's notoriety stemmed from their tender ages. These have been variously reported as anywhere between 13 and 17, with drummer?Dee Generate?(usually said to be 13 or 14 when the band formed) probably the youngest first-generation punk of all. At any rate, the London group recorded some singles, an EP, and an album (called, in a gimmick?Public Image Ltd. would pick up years later,?The Album), all released on The Label. Playing stripped-down power-chord bile anthems in the mold of the?Buzzcocksand (more distantly) the early?Jam, Eater weren't nearly as talented or diverse as those early punk pioneers. But they did manage some spirited, if typical and rather generic, early punk that isn't as dispensable as some reference books would lead you to believe. Eater had imploded by the late '70s.?Dee Generate'sreplacement,?Phil Rowland, joined?Slaughter and the Dogs, and singer?Andy Blade?recorded a single with ex-Damned?guitarist?Brian James?in the mid-'80s, but that was basically it for the members of the band.