Ausgang -

Ausgang was an English goth-rock band from Birmingham that released two EPs on Criminal Damage Records circa 1983/84, followed by the 1985 album Manipulate on FM Revolver.

Members: Mark “Max” Freeth (vocals), Paul “Cub” Balogh (bass), Matthew Amos (guitar), Ian “Ibo” Oakley (drums), Stuart Smith (bass)

Background

Ausgang formed in Birmingham in the early 1980s from the remnants of Kabuki, an earlier art-rock/post-punk unit that included singer Max Freeth, guitarist–keyboardist Matthew Amos, and bassist Paul “Cub” Balogh. Kabuki issued one single, “I Am a Horse” / “My Hair,” in 1982 on Kabaret Noir. The record paired Jean Arp-adapted words on “I Am a Horse” with a group original on the reverse and placed Freeth, Amos, Balogh, Jowan, Trnytron, and Wilz on the recording. Phil Savage recorded and mixed both sides at Outlaw Studios in April 1982, and the band packaged the release in a gatefold paper sleeve with photography by Roy Appleby and Amos.

By 1983, they regrouped as Ausgang and settled around Freeth, Amos, Balogh, and drummer Ian “Ibo” Oakley. Under the new name they moved onto Criminal Damage Records.

The Teachings of Web (EP)

Ausgang released the double-A-side 12-inch The Teachings of Web in 1984 on Criminal Damage Records.

The record captures the early four-piece lineup with Max Freeth and Cub Balogh sharing vocals, Amos adding guitar, piano, and clarinet, and Oakley handling drums and percussion. The four tracks move between clipped, fast attack and longer, more tensile structures, with Amos widening the sound through keyboard and reed color while Oakley keeps the rhythms broken up and restless.

A1. “Weight” (3:38) — Ausgang
A2. “This Lady Is for Burning” (3:33) — Ausgang
AA1. “Vice Like Grip” (6:50) — Ausgang
AA2. “County Hunters (You Just Can’t Count on Us)” (1:29) — Ausgang

Sessions took place at Rich Bitch Studios in Selly Oak, Birmingham, from January 10 to 14, 1984. Ausgang and Rob Bruce produced the record, and Bruce engineered and mixed it there.

The sleeve credits photography to Linda Rowell and artwork to the band.

“Solid Glass Spine” / “Strip Me Down”

Ausgang released the double-sided 7-inch single “Solid Glass Spine” / “Strip Me Down” in 1984 on Criminal Damage Records.

The single distills the group’s early approach into two short pieces. Both tracks keep the arrangement compact and push the rhythm section forward, with Amos’s guitar working in terse lines around Freeth’s vocal while the band maintains a hard, stripped frame.

A. “Solid Glass Spine” (3:27) — Ausgang
AA. “Strip Me Down” (3:30) — Ausgang

Oracle Music held the copyright, and Orlake pressed the single.

Head On! (EP)

Ausgang released the 12-inch EP Head On! in 1984 on Criminal Damage Records.

The EP expands the band’s short-format catalogue with four more titles, including one live cut and one uncredited extra track. The material keeps the group’s angular, bass-led attack in place while opening side-length space for sharper contrast between studio control and live abrasion.

A. “Sink Into You” — Ausgang
B1. “Lick” — Ausgang
B2. “If That’s Your Bat, I’m Leaving Town” — Ausgang
B3. “Untitled” — Ausgang

Andi Sex Gang produced the record. The band wrote all tracks, and Criminal Damage issued the release with one side marked “Other Side” and the reverse marked “This Side.” “If That’s Your Bat, I’m Leaving Town” appeared in a live recording.

Hunt Ya Down (EP)

Ausgang released the 12-inch EP Hunt Ya Down in 1985 on FM.

This release documents the lineup change with new bassist Stuart Smith, who joins Freeth, Amos, and Oakley for four tracks that keep the band’s clipped rhythmic drive intact while broadening the instrumental surface with clarinet and a cleaner studio finish. Amos again extends the arrangements beyond straight guitar-bass-drums interplay, and the group keeps the songs concise even when the titles lean toward provocation.

A1. “(You’ve Got The) Hots for Christ” — Ausgang
A2. “She Lacks Discipline” — Ausgang
B1. “Here It Comes” — Ausgang
B2. “Ever Licking Boots (Hunt Ya Down)” — Ausgang

Ausgang and Ian O’Higgins produced the EP, and O’Higgins recorded and mixed it at Alaska Studios. The sleeve credits all artwork to the band, uses a front image derived from the work of Eadweard Muybridge, and identifies an unknown photographer for the back-cover photo.

Manipulate

Ausgang released their singular album, Manipulate, in 1985 on FM.

The album presents the Freeth-Amos-Smith-Oakley lineup across twelve tracks and remains the band’s only full-length statement. The material keeps the drums active and syncopated, pushes bass to the front, and uses Amos’s guitar sparingly enough that each entrance cuts through the frame.

Several tracks build through pressure and repetition rather than density: “Pumping Heart” moves at a slower pace with emphatic guitar figures and strained vocal delivery over intricate drum fills; “Hope in Our Wake” gathers speed across its verses; and “Your Role Is to Tease as You Roll in the Lens” carries a faster charge without dropping the surrounding tension. Elsewhere, “Pressed to Your Breast” and “Girl Gristle” sharpen the album’s more direct side, while “That Heat” combines a wild surface with a strong internal pulse.

Other Side
A1. “Fat Vigilante” — Smith
A2. “Pressed to Your Breast” — Smith
A3. “Head On” — Balogh
A4. “Pumping Heart” — Smith
A5. “Hope in Our Wake” — Smith
A6. “Your Role Is to Tease as You Roll in the Lens” — Smith

This Side
B1. “4 Tin Doors” — Balogh
B2. “Girl Gristle” — Balogh
B3. “This Is Where I Was Meant to Fall” — Smith
B4. “That Heat” — Bell
B5. “Let Me Say, Then Have It Your Own Way” — Smith
B6. “Crawling the Walls” — Balogh

The album features Stuart Smith on bass, Ian Oakley on drums, Max Freeth on lyrics and vocals, and Matthew Amos on guitar, saxophone, clarinet, piano, and violin. Sarah adds cello to “This Is Where I Was Meant to Fall” and “That Heat.” Ausgang and Ian O’Higgins produced the album, and O’Higgins recorded it at Alaska Studios in September 1985.

The package includes a 28-page stapled booklet with lyrics, credits, and photographs. The cover draws from the work of Diane Arbus, Steve Mitchell shot the centrefold photo, John Payeley supplied the image on the booklet’s last page, and Freeth contributed a painting for that final page.

King-Hell (EP)

Ausgang released the 12-inch single King-Hell in 1986 on Shakedown Records.

The record extends their post-Manipulate run with three non-album tracks. The record extends their bass-led approach with room for sharper instrumental color and abrupt pacing changes.

A. “King-Hell” — Ausgang
B1. “Armadillo Man” — Ausgang
B2. “TYOBC” — Ausgang

Ausgang and Ian O’Higgins produced the record, and O’Higgins engineered it at Alaska Studios in August 1986. Shakedown Music published all three tracks. Nine Mile and The Cartel handled distribution.

Discography: