Underground

Underground was a UK indie music magazine that ran 13 issues between 1987 and 1988. The magazine was an alternative to the major music newspapers such as the NME and Melody Maker, who didn't focus too much on underground artists. Apart from interviews, the magazine also featured music reviews and alternative music charts. It also featured a monthly section called Tip Sheet, where alternative music celebrities review demo tapes of unsigned artists.

Links to Peel
Peel was invited by the magazine to review demo tapes, where he had to give out of 10, the content of the tape, delivery in performance terms, presentation of the overall package and the potential on whether they'll bend a cheque book or two !!

These are the following artists Peel reviewed for the November 1987 issue:
 * Tip Sheet.JPGng File (Music described vaguely as industrial with a few synth noises) (JP: 'I expect this sort of thing would go down better with Janice Long') 3/10 (content), 5/10 (delivery), 2/10 (presentation), 5/10 (potential)
 * Sychotode (Peel mentions they sound like Gaye Bykers On Acid) (JP: 'What a crappy name') 4/10 (content), 4/10 (delivery), 3/10 (presentation), 5/10 (potential)
 * Those Famous Red Shirts (A conversation about groups with 'red' in their name ensued) (JP: 'I used to like Simply Red until Mick Hucknall slagged me off in a Melody Maker interview. It struck me as being very odd as I'd had a perfectly friendly conversation with the bloke a few weeks before in the BBC bar... anyway, I went home and threw all his records away after that.') (Back to the music) (JP: 'A lot of people might say this is no good because it sounds like it's cheaply recorded, but I think it sounds rather interesting') 7/10 (content), 7/10 (delivery), 6/10 (presentation), 6/10 (potential)
 * Burning Baby (Their music is described as an intriguing mess of spoken vocals, chopped up guitars and the sort of drumming you'd expect from someone with his arms tied behind his back) (JP: 'I like the ideas but I don't think they see it through terribly well) 4/10 (content), 4/10 (delivery), 4/10 (presentation), 4/10 (potential)
 * Conspiracy (described as a combination of a hip hop beat which suddenly turns into an Eagles track for the middle eight) (JP: 'It doesn't pull it off completely as it's not hard hitting enough') 6/10 (content), 6/10 (delivery), 4/10 (presentation), 5/10 (potential)