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Formed: Rhyl, Wales, UK

One of Wales' first punk bands was The Toilets, whose lineup was:

Mike Peters (aka Eddie Bop) - guitar
Glyn Crossley (aka Steve Shock) - bass
Richard 'O'Malley' Jones (aka Bo Larks) - vocals
Nigel Buckle (aka Des Troy) - drums

They played in Rhyl, Liverpool (at Eric's, supporting The Clash, and later, Buzzcocks)

In 1978 or 1979 they mutated into a mod band called Seventeen, and in 1980 toured with the Stray Cats and released a single, Don't Let Go / Bank Holiday Weekend with this lineup:

Mike Peters - vocals, guitar
Nigel Buckle (now calling himself Twist) - drums
Eddie Macdonald - bass (ex-Amsterdam)
Dave Sharp - guitar

In 1981 they became known as Alarm Alarm (believe it or not), split up, and reformed as The Alarm, playing the U2/Clash type songs for which they became notorious. Therefore it's no surprise that some saw these hairspray-obsessed folk-rock shouters as professional bandwagon-climbers.

Although histrionic and often downright embarrassing, they had a few killer singles in them, notably the anthemic Sixty Eight Guns (Part 1) and the spirited Where Were You Hiding When The Storm Broke? both of which agreeably call up the fire of Give 'Em Enough Rope-era Clash, albeit in a far more mainstream setting. Declaration has its moments, but the bluster gets a bit much towards the end, when their attempts to be U2 become increasingly evident. They have since made lots of records, most of them really bad.

Also, minus points for dressing like complete cunts.

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