Child Molesters - "(I'm the) Hillside Strangler" - 1978 kbd punk

The Child Molesters - (I'm the) Hillside Strangler
(Ace & Duce - 1978)

While two other L.A. punk bands (the Hollywood Squares and F-Word) also seized on the murders for lyrical fodder in 1978, no one packaged the carnage quite like the Child Molesters. For all intents and purposes, this record is a how-to guide on making a classic punk collectible. Combine minimal/non-existent production values with over-the-top band name/subject matter. Press a couple hundred. Whip up a super-limited printed/stamped/splattered/numbered pic sleeve to accompany the vinyl. Age 20 years. Add a couple zeros to original retail price. Watch the collector nerds sweat.

With their original vinyl stashes all dried up, these pedophiles could no longer enjoy the sweet cash harvest reaped from selling spare copies of their first two 45's through the late 80's and early 90's. It was then that Ace Farren Ford added a new twist to the band's time-tested formula. The CM rap sheet would include a new venture: counterfeiting. Circa 1995, a previously unseen variation of the Hillside Strangler 7in. started to pop up. According to people offering them for sale or trade, the source of the records was a Child Molesters member; it had to be legit. The pic sleeve was a light yellow stock but otherwise looked just like the second unnumbered edition of the record — bloodsplats, rubber stamping, the works. Phone calls confirmed the matrix etchings matched (simply "HILLSIDE" on the A-side and "DONT WORRY" on the B-side). And still several collectors (myself included) smelled a rat. It wasn't until the detective duo at Discourage Rock & Roll located a standard issue second press for a side-by-side comparison that Ace's scheme began to unravel.