composed of guitarist Jet Suicide, drummer Bobby Skull, bassist Kitty Hawk, and vocalist Carolyn Lengel. Their two songs, "Killer Instinct" and "Torture You First", were recorded at the band's rehearsal studio, Rock Bite. Killer Instinct's first gig was at A7 in January 1982, and the band broke up six months later, before The Big Apple: Rotten to the Core had even been released. They later regrouped (with Meryl "Lynch" Hurwich replacing Suicide) as XKI, whose song "I Hate Everything" appeared on the 1983 7" compilation EP Big City Aint Too Pretty. Squirm were from Brooklyn. Their song "Fuck You Brooke Shields" received some commercial airplay (with bleeps inserted throughout the song). Bassist Igor Jakuskowas, who used to room with Cheetah Chrome, was noted for shouting the traditional hardcore count-off "1,2,3,4!" in Ukrainian. Squirm had a string of opening slots for most national touring punk bands at the Brooklyn club Zappas. Jakuskowas later hanged himself. Aftermath The album was the first New York City hardcore punk compilation made available to college and alternative radio stations nationwide. It quickly gained notoriety, but despite its success, the album seemed to be jinxed. Demand for the record's second pressing could not be met because the pressing plant would not release the masters and was bootlegging them in other parts of the country. The owner of the plant was eventually busted by the FBI for bootlegging Beatles albums. A follow-up album, The Big Apple Rotten to the Core, Vol. 2, was released five years later by the Raw Power label, and included the returning Ism, Butch Lust, The Mob and The Headlickers alongside newer bands such as Ed Gein's Car, Bunker's Boys, Slime Puppies and The Six and Violence. Omer Travers (infamous for breaking into Yoko Ono's apartment and leaving love notes) appeared on this album with a song produced by Jism and Sallese. Travers and Jism were later invited onto The Howard Stern Show to promote the album. References 1982 compilation albums Music of New York City Hardcore punk compilation albums