Released a mere 10 months after the punk blaze of Pink Flag, Chairs Missing from 1978 proved Wire was more than a smart-arse punk band. The abrasive nature of the earlier release is still evident in many of the tracks, but the input of Mike Thorne's keyboard arrangements adds far more depth and atmospheric layers. Standout cuts are the instant pop single Outdoor Miner and the mindless but catchy chant of I Am the Fly. Chairs Missing is full of energy, wit and good songs. Chairs Missing has been often cited as the evolutionary link between punk and post-punk. In general, the lyrics are darker than those on Pink Flag, even morbid at times; images of cold, drowning, pain, and suicide haunt the record, and the title itself is a reference to mental instability.
