Rocket From the Tombs “The Day the Earth Met The…” 2002. Smog Veil Records. Subtitled “Live From Punk Ground Zero, Cleveland 1975” on marbled vinyl, I’m spinning this collection of early protopunk songs in honor of Joe’s birthday, who is pictured below with RFTT’s own Cheetah Chrome (Gene O’Connor) giving Joe bunny ears and Johnny Blitz (Madansky). It’s become a tradition for me to write about records or bands that I usually won’t listen to – but in this case I’m really fine with Rocket From the Tombs. The Stooges-influenced 70′s band, plagued with internal strife from the outset, split after just a couple of years and formed The Dead Boys (Chrome and Blitz plus the fantastic Stiv Bators). The other half, Peter Laughner and David Thomas (Crocus Behemoth) formed Pere Ubu (who I really don’t care for.) This double LP (“the greatest album never recorded”) has early versions of “30 Seconds Over Tokyo” and “Final Solution,” which Pere Ubu would later rerecord and self-release as singles, as well as the entirely insane “Life Stinks” (on The Modern Dance). “What Love Is,” “Ain’t It Fun,” “Down in Flames” and “Sonic Reducer” all showed up on on the Dead Boys’ debut Young Loud and Snotty. RFTT also honor The Stooges with fairly authentic covers of  “Raw Power” and “Search & Destroy” plus a sludgy punk version of the Rolling Stones’ “Satisfaction.”