Duplication – Eater – Punk77 Review and Andy Blade Interview 14.09.2025

The last album by Eater was 1977. Their second album was being worked on, but the band split before it got anywhere near finishing. Now in 2025, the Eater/Andy Blade version of the band, which is him fronting Jo Jo & The Teeth, has a new album out now called Duplication released on the marmite punk label Cleopatra.

People who read Andy’s Facebook posts will know he’s no fan of nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake, so may raise an eyebrow when they find out Duplication is an album of old punk covers.

Andy has some form here. Let’s not forget the first Eater album had five covers on it and in darker days, only a few years later, Andy sang on Dave Goodman’s Stars on 45 cash in the Friendly Hopefuls disco 45.

British punk rock legends Eater return with their first full-length set of new recordings in nearly 50 years with Duplication!

Still led by the incomparable Andy Blade, Eater exhudes all the attitude, raw energy and rebellious spirit of the early punk movement on this fantastic album of cover songs!

Includes revolutionary new takes on songs made famous by the bands that Eater emerged alongside and defined a generation including Buzzcocks, Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Ramones, The Damned, and more!

So what do you get with Eater’s Duplication? Well, it’s a workmanlike run through of the songs. There’s nothing to dislike because the songs are classics but as with all these types of albums, the edges and nuances (the time, alcohol, drugs, production, the band’s ability and delivery) tend to be smoothed off because it’s one production in one studio.

Where the songs take on more of a life is when they are added to like The Damned’s New Rose; it’s still got the bite, but its additional backing vocals and harmonies ‘Eaterize’ it. Some songs come across better than others. It’s interesting how well Andy’s voice has fared over the years from that original Outside View debut, and to be honest, he’s sounding better than ever. In fact, the vocals, almost double-tracked at times with Jo Jo’s, are a highlight of the album.

It would have been interesting to have flipped vocals on Outside View and had Jo Jo sing it and Andy do back up or dual vocals, or the covers that never made it with female vocals, like Hong Kong Garden or Denis. But maybe that’s for Volume 2, as Andy says below.

Nice cover featuring the Roxy Club!

Punk77 caught up with Andy Blade to interview him on the new album

1. How are things in the world of Andy Blade – seems a lot going on and the usual pushing peas up the musical hill!

It’s been full on busy since the end of Covid with various stuff, albums, writing, podcast etc. I don’t see it as pushing peas up a hill, more like finding tunnels through it.

2. As a well-known disparager of things nostalgia it might seem odd to people you’re doing this? Or not?

I don’t see it as nostalgia. I’m just covering some songs I love. Nostalgia for nostalgia sake is what I dislike. It’s like a dodgy funfair – same old rides, getting more useless & rickety as the years go by.  Anyway, I am not welcome in the nostalgia club, even if I wanted to be. I have reconciled with the fact that there are people that ‘know’, and those who don’t.

3. The last time you did something like this (which also included Outside View) was the Friendly Hopefuls for Dave Goodman which was a Punk on 45 style ting! 

Totally different thing, badgered into singing over a bunch of stupid clap-track backing tunes of Goodman’s so I could go and score.

4. I get the challenge of being Eater and locked to 1977 so any new stuff would be a challenge but is there nothing new in the tank with the current Eater? 

Never say never, but not at present. If the time was ever right, that would be different

5.  How did you come to choose the tracks and was it a democratic process?

My choice. I wanted it to be mainly early stuff, some of which the band  wouldn’t have known. Obviously they know the Pistols, Clash, Damned, but not the Stranded or Breakdown, Your Generation etc.

6.  It clocks in at just over 26 minutes which is 3 minutes shorter than the Ramones shortest album  – their first– were there any others you were tempted to do or ones that canned?

I don’t like the idea of outstaying your welcome, short but sweet is good – but yeah there’s others I’d love to have a go at. Hong Kong Garden almost made it, Denis (Blondie), Prove It (Television), Blank Generation (Richard Hell). If there’s a vol 2….

7.  Cleo must have creamed themselves – this is right up their alley – how’s relations with the worlds marmite record company

Cleopatra have been very good to us. We get on well and yeah they are excited about this album. Breakdown is a great choice as the first single. They’re one of the few professional labels out there who do what the fuck they like, it’s not just punk. I respect that…in fact there is a mutual respect that’s built up over the past 3 years. They don’t interfere on the creative level, just let us get on with it.

8.  If you’re gonna cover songs you set yourself some task with doing both White Riot & God Save The Queen – Did you find it daunting?

Not at all. I approach every song I’m recording the same way, ie: ‘I own this’ – even if it’s not my song. I have never liked the first bridge of GSTQ, ‘don’t be told what you want’ – so I used the second bridge twice (‘when there’s no future, how can there be sin’) – first time round and second time.

9.  I see you’ve enunciated very clearly on White Riot which makes it a bit of a mouthful – the Clash demo version comes to mind when the record company criticised Joe so he over-annunciates.

Yes, I like to enunciate. It’s the way I sing. There was a lot of finessing with almost all the songs to make lines scan without ‘doing a Strummer’ and having it all go unintelligible & garbled. As for Breakdown – fucking nightmare. It’s like singing a dissertation. Trainspotters will detect slight changes in each song. 

10.  Marking your own homework how do you think you’ve done? It’s a fine line between staying true to the original but adding character and going off piste. It’s why the Pink Floyd and Beatles covers work well IMHO. What’s your favourite cover?

Very happy with it. I’d have liked more time recording, but the ethos was to just go for it, using the least amount of overdubs as possible. These aren’t boring, strict covers, or OTT workouts – it’s all quite subtle, the small changes, the inflections – but also quite lovingly done. Derwood gave the thumbs up to Your Generation – I’m happy about that.

Why the cover of Outside View?

11.  Because why not? There was never any question, just had to be…3rd punk single released and all that included

12.  So what’s next for Eater? That’s the old stuff done with Cleo Wasting Time and a covers album and not a lot gigs this year. 

Watch this space.

13.  Personally I love Wasting Time – how’s the reception been for it?

Great so far, from what I’ve heard, because it is – but I’m not a big one for giving a fuck about what other people think

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