Lost In Tyme Blog

Trotsky Icepick started out as one of those bands that simply was going to baffle anyone who listened to them. Made up of members formerly in 100 Flowers and The Last, Trotsky Icepick initially started out with the unusual concept of changing the band name upon each release but retaining the album title, Poison Summer. Originally, this album was released under the band name Danny and the Doorknobs on clear vinyl, but was reissued as "Trotsky Icepick Presents Danny and the Doorknobs in Poison Summer". A rather lengthy title, indeed. This album is not to be confused with another Trotsky Icepick album called Poison Summer, which is where the band apparently decided they had a nifty band name and should stick with it.
The SST version of Danny and the Doorknobs is a fine piece of music that actually sounds completely foreign if you try to consider it in a 1983 context, the year it was recorded. The band was a trio at that point, featuring mainstays Vitus Matare and Kjehl Johansen. The music they presented didn't exactly fit in with any of the hardcore, punk or even new wave of the period, nor does it sound dated listening to it twenty years later. The band hovers vaguely in the same post-punk territory as Mission of Burma but also finds a way to sneak in keyboards without resorting to dance floor tactics. The resulting album is a fine, expansive work that is entirely too pleasant. Oftentimes jaunty, the fifteen songs are well written and well performed. The opener "Whispering Glades" is a fantastic song, offering an intensely memorable melody and excellent interplay between all the musicians.
Vocals throughout the album are shared between Matare and Johansen.Danny and the Doorknobs does share a touch of the sound featured in Johansen's 100 Flowers project. However, the punkier edge of the music is refined and given a much moodier approach that entirely works out. Despite all the silliness surrounding the band name changes and confusion that may result in trying to figure out Trotsky Icepick's discography, Danny and the Doorknobs is a sparkling debut that seemingly has been far too overlooked by the indie and post-punk listening world.
Review by John Chedsey 04/2003

This is the original Old Scratch Grammphone release - the re-release on SST (on which the above review was written) had 15 tracks and "Winds Change Again " ommited.
Here's the tracklist
A1. Poison Summer
A2. In Exile
A3. Northern Lights
A4. Harmona
A5. Love To Hate
A6. Healing
B1. Slow Motion
B2. The Game
B3. From A Quiet Heart
B4. Full Cone Excursion
B5. Little Things You Don't Know
B6. Winds Change Again