M.I.A. - After the Fact

Darla Records is proud to offer the first digital and CD reissue of M.I.A.'s fourth and final record After the Fact, originally released on Flipside Records in early 1987. Included is the alternate vocal recording of California Dreamin' from Flipside Tunes Vinyl Fanzine Number Three.

"After the Fact is one of the best US punk records of the late 1980s, mostly because it mixes many post-punk influences and innovates where other punks cling to tradition. The two guitars rarely play similar parts, there are dynamics and mood settings, contemplative sound ("Whisper in the Wind") and even a Killing Joke inspired tribal backbeat ("When It's Over"). The production on After the Fact is far superior to M.I.A.'s past efforts, with real bottom, kick, drive and guts. Just check out the cover of "California Dreaming" or the effortless "Edge of Forever" for proof that punk can be a fresh aural pleasure, even at this late date. M.I.A. ultimately paid the same price that the original TSOL and Effigies did when they went against the grain and tried to take punk to its next step: the group split up in early 1988." - Jack Rabid, Trouser Press

After the Fact is a favorite of some of us second wave punk and post punk aficionados. In 1987 M.I.A. were as always true blue to punk's core socio-political principles and still leaning proto-Green Day pop punk but they had also evolved and adopted both a bit of Factory-esque aesthetic and some solid American underground college rock chops. I imagine they could just as easily have joined the Epitaph Records roster and found mainstream US mega-success with the third wave reinforcement of hardcore punk/rock, however, it was not to be.

M.I.A.'s Frank Daly and Mark Arnold would go on to find some success in Big Drill Car. 

"One of the 50 best So-Cal punk bands of the great early-'80s second wave explosion." - All Music Guide

M.I.A. formed as a hardcore band in Las Vegas in 1980 and began to find their place and sound once they moved to Orange County, CA in 1981. They played out often including at premier punk venues the Cuckoo's Nest in Costa Mesa and the Cathay de Grande in Hollywood. M.I.A. was part of So Cal punk's hardcore to melodic post-hardcore evolution alongside the scene's best known bands - Adolescents, T.S.O.L. and Social Distortion.

In 1984 M.I.A. signed with Alternative Tentacles label, after label founder/Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra saw them play at a secret illegal punk nightclub in Las Vegas. Biafra was impressed by Mike Conley's distinctive voice, saying "The minute you hear a song with him singing you know it's him."

M.I.A. released a split LP Last Rites for Genocide and MIA in 1982, followed by the album Murder in a Foreign Place on Alternative Tentacles in 1984, Notes From the Underground on National Trust Records in 1985 and After the Fact on Flipside Records in 1987.

Since singer Mike Conley's death in 2008, the remaining band members have reunited for many shows, including the Warped Tour, the Alternative Tentacles 30th Anniversary show, Punk Rock Bowling and the Las Vegas Hardcore Reunion. They currently play as a trio.

Track List:

1. Edge of Forever
2. What I See
3. Whisper in the Wind
4. Beautiful World (But Not For Me)
5. California Dreamin'
6. When It's Over
7. Time to Change
8. It Follows Me
9. Whatever Happened
10. It's Hard to Say You're Wrong
11. Broken
12. Out of Control
13. California Dreamin' (Flipside Tunes Vinyl Fanzine Number Three Version) 

Recorded & mixed Winter 1986
Produced by Richard Andrews at Radio Tokyo
Drums - Chris Moon
Vocals, Guitar - Mike Conley
Guitar, Vocals - Mark Arnold
Bass, Vocals - Francis James Daly
Drums - C. Gordon Moon
Guitar on Edge of Forever intro - Nick Adams