Tshirt - Grim Reaper - Black Tshirt w/ White Ink - Small - $14.99 - BUY
Tshirt - Grim Reaper - Black Tshirt w/ White Ink - Medium - $14.99 - BUY
Tshirt - Grim Reaper - Black Tshirt w/ White Ink - Large - $14.99 - BUY
Tshirt - Grim Reaper - Black Tshirt w/ White Ink - XLarge - $14.99 - BUY
LIFE IS SHORT, BUY MORE RECORDS!
Designed by Ryan Duggan (of Loose Dudes/Basic Cable). Ultra soft - Many sizes available!
Permanent Records' 39th Label Release!
Our buds at the Empty Bottle penned this little bit about Basic Cable for our 7th Year Anniversary party and we think it sums these snide booze fueled bad vibe bringers up very fucking nice:
"Channeling bad vibes, worse hangovers and a general life-keeps-shitting-on-us attitude, Chicago's BASIC CABLE find a way to have fun as they commiserate with each other, and their listeners. Fairly new to "the scene," their blown out guitars, shouted, monotone vocals and punishing rhythms make for a noisy, punk-as-fuck attack that tingles our dingles in ways we can barely comprehend." – Empty Bottle
Review snipets from split flexi single with Endless Bummer on Notes and Bolts / Eye Vybe Records:
"Basic Cable, formed by ex-Loose Dudes, Heavy Times, and current Running members, is a thrashing two minutes of caterwauling vocals, and instruments that sound like they're going to fall apart at any moment." – Notes and Bolts / Eye Vybe Records
"Basic Cable, comprised of some Chicago's assorted noteworthy maniacs from various other quality acts mentioned above, lean in thick and mean with a paranoid rocker that pummels a riff into the ground while some terrifying laser sound sets its sights for your soul. It's all over waaaay too soon, so here's hoping we're getting more material from BOTH acts in the near future. Savagely Recommended." – Permanent Records
RIYL: Cows, Jesus Lizard, Pissed Jeans, METZ, Watery Love, Fang, AmRep
LP - Various Artists - Who's A Punk - The Very Best Of British Punksploitation - $14.99 - BUY - LISTEN 
- LISTEN First came 'Je Suis Punk", a collection of unheard French Punk "punksploitation" obscurities (i.e. band's who were created to - or changed their sound in order to cash in on the burgeoning "punk fad"), and now comes "Who's A Punk?" - the British counterpart to those finicky Francs. LOADED with razor-sharp riffs and catchy as hell melodies designed to make you pogo your safety pins right off! We dug "Je Suis Punk" and are jammin' hard to these 14 tracks - RECOMMENDED, but act fast - it's surely limited and won't stick around too long!
"Track Listing:
RICHARD NEWMAN – Juvenile City
RADIO ACTIVE – Alltime Needletime Loser
TELESCOPE – Bye Byes (Ain’t Nice)
STEVE VOICE – Schooldays
GYPPO – High Rise Love
WOZO – Punk Rock
HORRORCOMIC – Jesus Crisis
SEPTIMUS – Do You Wanna Touch My Safety Pin?
AIRSHIP – Gimme A Can Of Spray Paint
YELLOW DOG – Down At The Vortex
COLIN LLOYD BAND – Badly Bruised Slightly Stoned
JOHNNY DU CANN – Throw Him In Jail
THE MONKS – Johnny B. Rotten
ALBERTO Y LOST TRIOS PARANOIAS – Fuck You"
LP - White Fence - Live In San Francisco - $19.99 - BUY
LIMITED LENTICULAR COVER / CLEAR VINYL DELUXE EDITION!
It's amazing to us that what started out as a home-recording project by former Darker My Love/Fall/Strange Boys guitarist Tim Presley has evolved into a fully-functioning hot-shit live band! Presley's pitched tent recently over at his SF-homies' label Castle Face Records - read the straight dope from Tha 'Face:
"The first in a series of live albums from the Castle Face stable gets you TIM PRESLEY and company tearing it up over two nights (March 30th and 31st) at San Francisco’s Amnesia club. Thirteen songs that show a different side of the band than their studio output, recorded straight to Tascam 388 by engineers CHRIS WOODHOUSE, ERIC BAUER, BOB MARSHALL and JOHN DWYER. LP includes a download. Everyone with any degree of hearing loss knows that, at its best, the loose and shaggy beast of a band balancing on the crest of their capabilities is the ideal, the firefly that all records aspire to capture in a jar for your repetitive pleasures. The live record promises better, but somehow most fall flatter than the painstakingly refined and honed tones of a studio creation. Who better to try to right this wrong than a bunch of home friers, 4 track freaks, and DIY gear-cookers? John Dwyer had the idea of recording our friends live with his Tascam 388 and it rapidly galvanized into a real crew of heavy hitters and voila, we come bearing the fruit of that unholy union... WHITE FENCE throw a fork in the light socket with their blistering live set, captured in all it's ragged glory to tape on Thee Tascam 388 under the sternly masterful yet tender care of low-budget luminaries Eric Bauer, Chris Woodhouse, Bob Marshall, and of course, our own John Dwyer. They were screaming out of the speakers that night and we kept it safe in a jar for you, undiluted and unsullied. This and the whole series will be packaged in handsome but simple trappings - a thick gloss jacket featuring black and white photos of the evening (shot to film!) that you can marvel to in envy as the jams pour out of your speaks and into infinity. However, this being the first of (we hope) a long and fruitful series, we're offering a limited colored vinyl edition that will feature an alternate lenticular cover, catching the band eternally between two instants of an amazing night at a tiny club full of sweaty, lucky souls."
Dubba-dubba-whaaaaa??? This record is a scorcher! White Fence RIP thru what's essentially a greatest hits collection of their material from "Swagger Vets and Double Moon", "The Pool", "Baxter Corner" and cuts like "Pink Gorilla" from their most recent album "Cyclops Reap", sporting a TRIPLE guitar lineup including Presley's brother Sean-Paul. The live setting really gives Presley time to shine - he's an excellent and inventive guitar player, whose real chops seem to get buried or lessened on White Fence's proper albums. This album marks the first in a series of "Live In San Francisco" albums Castle Face is doing (we hear a Fuzz one isn't too far behind), recorded by John Dwyer, Eric Bauer (the man behind the decks of Ty Segall and Mikal Cronin's albums) and engineer du jour Chris Woodhouse, so you KNOW this puppy sounds GOOD. Get this while the gettin's good - Live free or die hard, motherfuckers. RECOMMENDED.
LP - Fuzz - Live In San Francisco - $13.99 - BUY
Fuzz has taken everyone by storm in 2013 - spitting out three killer singles and their undeniably SHREDDING debut album on In The Red, but WATCH OUT DUDES. We know you thought you could end 2013 unscathed, but Fuzz is back on the block with this HOT SHIT scorcher of a live album on Castle Face Records. Pay attention:
"Behold—when we introduced this live series, we spoke of lightning in a jar—this here’s a thunderstorm. TY SEGALL’s new stoner thrashers FUZZ not only totally murdered this set at San Francisco leather-daddy hangout The SF Eagle, but it was Ty’s birthday and he blew out his birthday cake candles mid-song, didn’t miss a beat, and that moment is forever etched into this record (we took a photo, too). “The place was insanely packed and they sound like the agile wolf-men they are up close and personal—Ty, mic wailing through a guitar amp and dominating drums like it’s the easiest thing in the world; CHARLIE, guitar set to Hendrix-meets-Hawkwind melter-mode; and ROLAND, keeping his bass firmly lodged in the groove—the jams are thick and wooly, we got some great photos of the night—man, this was one to remember and we’re super excited we captured such a freakishly good performance. As always, captured hot to tape, and mixed and massaged by our crack team of speaker-freakers (CHRIS WOODHOUSE, ERIC BAUER, BOB MARSHALL and JOHN DWYER) and shot to nicely grainy (real) film by BRIAN PRITCHARD.”
BELIEVE US when we tell you that as great as the Fuzz album is, the best way to experience FUZZ is in a live setting. If you haven't yet, then this album should get pretty damn close. Recorded like a live-wire direct t tape by master audio-alchemists Chris Woodhouse, Eric Bauer, Bob Marshall and John Dwyer, Fuzz is practically sweating thru these grooves pushing out the tuneage by force and jamming them into your earholes. The controlled chaos of the tunes in their recorded version is blown apart in these four jams herein - the band is tight as fuck and Charlie shreds - SHREDS like a man possessed! Live album stigma be damned this one is WELL WORTH your attention and is full to the brim with more cauldron bubbling evil than conveyed in the pic of a smiling Segall and Dwyer holding birthday cake on the back cover. RECOMMENDED, but act fast - if Fuzz's previous sales history tells us anything is that these WILL NOT be around long!
OUI!!!!!! Our favorite French rock n rollers, Limiñanas, are back with their third long player, "Costa Blanca", on Trouble In Mind!!!!
"The Limiñanas are back on Trouble In Mind with their third album, “Costa Blanca”! Once again recorded at their home in the south of France by Lio himself, “Costa Blanca” pushes the envelope of their signature Franc-o-phonic sound; the coloeur café cool of Gainsbourg, the hypnotic drone of VU-era Cale, and the spiky fuzz of Davie Allan. This time around the band laces the tunes with a dramatic flair of French New Wave soundtracks and the percussive sonic accents found in Morricone’s work in Il Gruppo, particularly “The Feed-Back” whose funk-laced tracks incorporate elements of avant-classical and experimental sonic elements.
Fans of the band will no doubt hear familiar passages; melodic themes that appear and disappear not only over the course of this album, but that also reference The Limiñanas’ entire oeuvre - melodic “jump-cuts” that are sonic echoes of previous tunes and future melodies. Thematically, “Costa Blanca” is an insular record, with subjects that reference Lio’s youth growing up in Spain in the 1970’s near the Mediterranean Sea and lyrics which are nostalgic odes to the music, films, girls, books and cars that shaped his world. “Costa Blanca” includes a printed inner sleeve, and a download code.
RIYL: Sérge Gainsbourg, Velvet Underground, Kim Fowley, Ennio Morricone, Stereolab, Stereo Total"
On "Costa Blanca" the Limiñanas have hit their hypnotic stride!!! Hazy melodies waft through the air, sexy vocals twist and turn around the droning psych, fuzzed out ye-ye morphs into garage jangle and then vanishes into thin air. "Costa Blanca" is a place you've never been before, a new wave French film you've never seen, a good memory that's gonna repeat itself, a dream you spend all day revisiting and remembering, an aural journey you're gonna want to take over and over again. No French band going these days swirls together such an addicting mix of Gainsbourg and VU like the Limiñanas. So grab yer sunglasses and yer pack of Gauloises, and head out for the "Costa Blanca." It's where you need to be. Vous besoin de cela. Très recommandé!!!!
Edition of 250
The Austin Texas onslaught continues with Simple Circuit's art damaged self-titled self-released debut!!!!! Fighting for notoriety in a city already overflowing with killer bands, Simple Circuit's brand of catchy fuzzed out, angular garage punk definitely puts them at the top of our lists of bands to watch out for. Fans of fellow Texans rock n rollers Video, Spray Paint, OBN IIIs and Gospel Truth as well as junkies for shop faves like Intelligence, Thee Oh Sees and Tyvek might've just found your new go-to record. Forget the second tier garage punker bands kicking around and grab this killer debut album now. "Simple Circuit" is SUPER RECOMMENDED!!!!!!!!
BACK IN STOCK!!!
Get ready to blast off in to the stratosphere with Sweden's newest cosmic adventurers, Yuri Gagarin, and their self titled debut album on zine-turned-label, Levande Begravd !!!! Here with some words for the occasion is our friends over at Terminal Boredom:
"Debut LP from Swedish space-rockers named after a Soviet astronaut. Whereas the real life Gagarin was the first man in space, the band named after him is another in a very very long line of spacerockers and psychedelic cosmonauts dating all the way back to Hawkwind, the band YG are obviously the most influenced by. Nothing wrong with some wind hawking, especially when it's done as heavily and respectfully as these guys do it. Swedish rock might not be a very original scene, but they replicate other locales and genres very very well. Two massive instrumental tunes per side, and I was at first worried that there were no vox, but after soaking in this for a few spins I'm glad there's no voice to distract me from the hypnodrone. Two guitar attack, one doubles up with the bass for propulsion and the other is the explorer venturing out on solo missions. The real key here is the synths/FX guy who makes the whole outerspace trip work with ring modulators, multiple synth layers and drones, squeals and lasers, and whatever machine makes that deep space whoosh sound that is in the background on every one of these songs. I'm going to call it an orgone accumulator. It's a pretty cool tone and essential to space travel emulation on record. This thing doesn't go in for any of that doom-rock or stoner Sabbath worship, they just stay on mission and traverse the outer reaches of the galaxy for a good hour or so, like a heavier modern update of 'In Search of Space'. They keep it crisp and smart and don't fall victim to the dum-dum moves that makes bad stoner rock bands a dime a dozen (and again, this thing it not stoner rock, although I imagine it would be conducive to the puffing of some herb). A very good genre piece, and a fantastic record to zone out to. Artwork looks like a collaboration between Moebius and Roger Dean ripped from the pages of Heavy Metal. It certainly does the trick. (RK)"
Man oh man it's difficult to return to earth after one side of Yuri Gagarin's debut album, even more so after the whole LP. A heady mix of Amon Duul II / Hawkwind meets Loop / Monoshock cosmic travelling, "Yuri Gagarin" fits right in with all the kraut obsessed space rock bands we can't get enough of here at the shop. Guitars explode, synths swirl, lysergic grooves suck you deep into the outer realms of the universe, where you might never return from, and that would be fine by us. Junkies for Mind!, Tjutjuna, Wooden Shjips, Our Solar System, White Hills and Oscillation might just have a new favorite band. Levande Begravd couldn't have picked a better album to start their label with!!!! COSMICALLY RECOMMENDED!!!!!!!!
It's a veritable convent full of Flying Nuns ovah here! Captured Tracks has dropped more FN-bombs, mining the creme de la creme of the roster with two, count-em, TWO new Verlaines reissues! Read on:
"The Verlaines 1985 debut album, Hallelujah - All the Way Home defined both the Dunedin band''s style and the ''Flying Nun sound''. Grounded in songwriter Graeme Downes’ innate and inventive sense of melody, at the heart of these 8 songs are magnificent tales of drunkards and romantics all punctuated by guitar blasts and instrumental flourishes. Re-issued in its'' original gatefold format along with a replica album release poster from the time.
Out of press since its release, all tracks have been remastered and each gatefold LP includes a digital download and replica of original poster."
UNSEEN on vinyl since it's domestic issue on Homestead in 1989, "Hallelujah All The Way Home" finally makes its way back onto our turntables, and if you ask us - 24 years has been way too long. Between The Clean and The Chills, The Verlaines helped to define the Flying Nun sound of smart pop hooks laced with a healthy dose of reverb and jangle. "Hallelujah..." was many people's first taste of what these guys had to offer and it garnered them some serious fans along the way, including Superchunk, who covered "Lying In State" in '92 for the Aussie 'tour-only' "Hit Self-Destruct" 10-inch. There's a real debauched but scholarly elegance to many of these tracks, like a gaggle of learned drunkards jamming in your grandma's living room - good thing there's plastic on the duvet! A TOP-TIER reissue sneaking in JUUUUUST before the end of the year - good thing we haven't finalized our "Best reissues" list yet! RECOMMENDED!
It's a veritable convent full of Flying Nuns ovah here! Captured Tracks has dropped more FN-bombs, mining the creme de la creme of the roster with two, count-em, TWO new Verlaines reissues! Read on:
"Juvenilia is a compilation of the Verlaines’ brilliant early singles and EPs. First released in 1987, and reissued in 1993 with bonus tracks it documents the band’s early history and is the perfect introduction to one of New Zealand’s great bands.
Opening with the irrepressible ‘Death and the Maiden’, a song that for many is archetypal of the group’s deft ability to wield a pop hook. The album also features their first two tracks, ‘Angela’ and ‘Crisis After Crisis’, recorded on Chris Knox’s four track and released on the infamous Dunedin Double EP.
Juvenilia, complete with orchestral and brass flourishes, is a constant display of the unstoppable songwriting skills of vocalist/guitarist Graeme Downes. From single ‘Doomsday’ through to their perfect love song ‘Joed Out’, Juvenilia is a compilation filled with all the elegant and often magnificently moody elements of the Verlaines."
THIS is what we're talkin' about - between The Clean and The Chills, The Verlaines helped to define the Flying Nun sound of smart pop hooks laced with a healthy dose of reverb and jangle. This is ground-zero for Verlaines' music; here's your gateway record. LOADED with hits starting with their signature tune "Death and The Maiden" and not even coming close to stopping after that. If you've been looking for the first place to start your Flying Nun obsession (or Verlaines obsession - an easy one to acquire), you could do a lot worse than 'Juvenilia'. FUCKIN' A. Recommended to the MAXXX.
2xLP - Various Artists - The Ecstasy of Gold: 26 Killer Bullets from the Spaghetti West Vol. 4 - $23.99 - BUY - LISTEN
- LISTEN
LIMITED TO 750 COPIES!
Semi-Automatic Records offers up volume number 4 of their amazing Spaghetti Western compilation series, here's the details directly from the label:
"Volume four in this essential and peerless series. Selected from one of the most complete Spaghetti Western audio archives, this five-volume series showcases the most inspired tracks in this legendary genre. Digging deep to excavate a treasure trove of obscure and rarely-heard tracks by some of the genre's greatest composers and vocalists, Ecstasy of Gold is the definitive series for aficionados of Euro-Western films and the music that they created. Loud gunshots with reverb and echo appear with the first image of a lawless killer riding a horse... a punchy and trebly bass guitar seeps into your brain as he draws his pistol, a hair-raising scream half-melodic, half-banshee spews forth from the speakers as blood splatters yet again onto the desert floor. The audio soundtrack to the Italian version of the American West is flamboyant, brutal, intense, and unforgiving. Songs composed for the Italian Westerns of the 1960s and 1970s have become a genre all unto themselves. There were hundreds of European Westerns during this period and the majority of them were made by Italian directors and scored by Italian composers. Crying trumpets, exploding surf guitars, thundering drums, droning organs, dramatic vocal performances, and innovative special effects were woven into a wild and violent desert backdrop creating that undeniable Spaghetti Western sound heard on this record. The most famous of all the Italian soundtrack composers is Ennio Morricone and his music for the Italian Western is guaranteed to inspire and amaze until the end of time itself. But there were many other great and legendary maestros who scored their share of Westerns and this compilation presents transcendent, brilliant and challenging tracks from the likes of: Bruno Nicolai, Gianni Ferrio, Francesco De Masi, Marcello Giombini, Luis Bacalov, Stelvio Cipriani, Alessandro Alessandroni, Nora Orlandi, Nico Fidenco, Piero Umiliani, and many others. 2LP gatefold in a limited edition pressing of 750 copies."
This 4th volume is further proof of the thrilling sounds coming out of Italy in the hey-day of Spaghetti Western productions. 26 more heart pounding, mood setting pieces rife with tension to perfectly compliment the image. 26 more examples of how when great score music is composed by some of the most talented composers going, the image becomes unnecessary as the sounds more than stand on their own. This compilation will more than deliver with its 26 cuts of cinematic soundscapes, but we recommend tracking down all 4 volumes for the full experience. Heavily Recommended.
Chicago folkster Ryley Walker ups the platter size for his 12inch debut and it's on the always solid Tompkins Square label no less! We'll let the Tompkins Square folks get you started:
"Ryley Walker’s debut 12″ EP featuring three songs : “The West Wind” from his forthcoming album, due in April; “A Home For Me”; and “Sweet Little Betsy”, an instrumental guitar duet with Daniel Bachman. (The latter two songs are exclusive to this EP and will not appear on the album, or anywhere else, online or otherwise). The EP is audiophile quality 180g vinyl at 45rpm."
After dropping our jaws with that 7inch single on Addenda, Ryley Walker is back with another spirit lifter. Like a man from another time, Ryley Walker's gentle workings of acoustic guitar intricacies are simply sublime sounds. This little teaser EP, which features 2 exclusive tracks as well as track from his forthcoming LP, is the perfect little ear pleaser for fans of well crafted folk music in the vein of Nick Drake, Bert Jansch, Tim Buckley and Richard Thompson. Supremely Recommended.
Hard 'n' heavy jammmmmmz reissued by Spanish label Out-Sider Music of this Idaho quartet! Out-Sider's got the IN-side scoop on these long-hairs:
"Stone Garden were a heavy psychedelic band from the Midwest, famous releasing in 1969 one of the best heavy-psych 45s ever, “Oceans inside me”, for the same label as the legendary Fraction (Angelus). Between 1969 and 1971 they also recorded a bunch of tracks which never saw the light of day until the mid-90s, when the great Rockadelic label issued them in a limited edition vinyl album. Out of print for many years, we present a new edition of the Stone Garden album featuring new artwork and insert with lot of pictures and liner notes. Furious, ultra-primitive hard-psychedelic rock in Sabbath and Blue Cheer vein, highly recommended to anyone into obscure 70s doom and hard-rock sounds."
HOLY HELLFIRE! These dudes are firing on all-cylinders straight from track one! "Oceans Inside Me" is the obvious hit here, packing a punch reserved for other bands of greater notoriety; this tune should have made these guys as big as Blue Cheer, Cream, Groundhogs or at least Bloodrock fer chrissakes! The rest of the tunes pack nearly as serious a whallop (check the serious jammer "Woodstick" on side 2!), basing their melodies in the blues, but skyrocketing into the stratosphere until their faces turn "Cherry Red" (if ya know what we mean). There's a serious whiff of proto-punk too - the single version of "Oceans" even has some Steve McKay-style saxophone rockin. If you dig any of the aforementioned bands, grab this MONSTER of an LP before it gets scarce... seriously we've not heard an archival release this savage since perhaps the Jerusalem reissue - GET THIS OR DIE TRYING. Recommended!
Murky, moody psych-rock from this Minneapolis quintet! Thundertree recorded this lone album in 1970 for Roulette and politely sank without a trace! Guerssen lovingly reissued this mustachioed monster for the rest of us to enjoy, so plant those roots and read on:
"Coming from the same Minneapolis 60s scene which spawned bands like The Litter, Thundertree evolved from garage band The Good Idea. In 1970 they released their sole album for the Roulette label: a perfect example of the transition from psychedelia to hard-rock and early progressive sounds. Killer fuzzed out guitar, organ, powerful vocals…Including hard-psych classics like “In the morning” or “Room at the top of the stairs” along with the monstruous 17 minute long “2025” suite. For this, the first ever legit vinyl reissue of Thundertree, we’ve included two previously unreleased tracks: “Pepper Palace” (a great psychedelic number) plus a storming cover of “Sixteen Tons”, which was the signature song on Thundertree’s live shows. Both tracks were recorded at UA Studios, Minneapolis, in 1970. An insert with lot of pictures and bio notes by Billy Hallquist (Thundertree, Persephone Billy) is also included. 24-Bit remastered sound."
Laced to the gills with stinging fuzz leads and some heady organ swells, Thundertree take you on a truly cosmic odyssey culminating in the sidelong "1225" suite, a journey of it's own consisting of six musical movements playing out like an acid-fried freakout version of "A Quick One"... damn! These guys skirt the line of "flower power" ever so deftly - there's some soft psych harmonies and even some progressive flute-flourishes here and there, but overall it's some seriously hirsute heady jams! Psychedelic lumberjacks need not apply. Guerssen has sweetened the pot by adding a couple of killer unreleased bonus cuts too - We can dig it! It's our happening and it's FREAKING US OUT ~ RECOMMENDED.
The Superior Viaduct label continues to own 2013 with its unrelenting reissue campaign of everything essential and her yet again they are offering up this stone classic by the Glaxo Babies. Read on as the label tells you what lies ahead:
"After the abrupt departure of singer Rob Chapman, Bristol’s Glaxo Babies moved into more improvised and electronic-based territory. Their early demos (as compiled on Put Me on the Guest List, also available from Superior Viaduct) only hinted at such exotic sounds. Other bands from Manchester and New York were spiking post-punk with dance beats, yet Glaxo Babies were brimming with fun and spontaneity, spearheading England’s death disco movement in the process. Reportedly recorded in a single day, Nine Months to the Disco originally appeared on Heartbeat Records in 1980. Glaxo Babies’ sole proper album veers between wiry electro à la Liquid Liquid (“Free Dem Cells”), piano-based free jazz burners (“Seven Days”) and progressive post-Krautrock jams that would make even This Heat blush, culminating in the mutant funk masterpiece “Shake (The Foundations)” (which was regularly covered by The Pop Group in their live set). Nine Months to the Disco is a monster statement, equal parts ballroom bangers and dancefloor clearers. Released domestically for the first time ever, the album is available on vinyl and CD with liner notes by The Pop Group founder Mark Stewart and band members Dan Catsis and Charlie Llewellin."
Uhm, yes yes yes… what they said times a million! Those hints of Liquid Liquid, This Heat, progressive post-Krautrock and mutant funk are all spot on. And liner notes from the Pop Group's Mark Stewart! Yep. We're sold completely. Superior Viaduct is killin' with all these amazing reissues and this Glaxo Babies LP is just as essential as the rest of their catalog. "Nine Months To The Disco" is a freaking fun filled blast from end to end and comes with our most enthusiastic Recommendation!
HOO BABY - S-S Records just won't quit! Soriano's back with two heavy hitter's just comin' in under the wire of 2013, one being this debut MONSTER of an album from San Francisco band Life Stinks! Grab a beer and read what S-S is spewing:
"As Robvertogo of Terminal Boredom wrote, Life Stinks is "San Francisco's last punk band." Firmly standing in the puddle created by Crime, Flipper, Fang, and the Fuck-Ups, Life Stinks is the proper negative reaction to the rapid take over of San Francisco by cyber douchebags. Cool, dark, bad attitude with a groove (and a nod to Velvet Underground). They have a single on Totally Punk which is aces, a nice slap in the face. Producers Mikey Young and Kelley Stoltz have taken that face slap and turned it into a gut punch. Blow for blow, this is one of the best punk rock and roll albums to come out of the Bay Area in at least a decade."
Life Stinks features former Outdoorsmen singer/guitarist Chad Kuwamara and shares that band's chaotic scumfuckery, however Life Stinks comes 'atcha with switchblade drawn like some back-alley scuzzball with ice in his veins and a thirst for blood. There's a healthy dose of treachery and menace that's been sorely missing from a lot of rock'n'roll and punk these days, and to our ears the warped tunes spewing from this platter sidle up and push you around like the unholy collision of Fang, Flipper, Modern Lovers and the Velvet Underground (particularly on the 16 minute closer "My My My", a tune we wish would never end every time we hear it). This is music made for miscreants, mutants and malcontents, so if you're jonesin' for some nihilism grab this one ASAP. Guaranteed to bum out yer friends before side one is over. This party-killer is RECOMMENDED.
Austin, TX's Spray Paint are BACK buds and they're back with a vengeance. "Rodeo Songs" is their second full-length this year and it's on S-S Records again, Soriano's got the low-down on these chaps, so perk up, young buckaroos:
"We released Spray Paint's first full length at the beginning of 2013 and it quickly sold sold. Did a repress and it keeps selling. Why? Because not only are these guys a great band, playing an updated mix of Wire/100 Flower/Lake of Dracula/A Frames - style punk/post punk, but they regularly tour (and like to do so). They've played SXSW a few times, Cropped Out, Gonerfest, and a couple stages at Fun Fun Fun. They have played live on WFMU and KDVS and get good rotation at college stations across the US. They have an increasing fan base in Europe, Australia and Japan. In 2014, they have their sights set on touring Europe and the West Coast. Their second album Rodeo Songs is even better than their first, so we expect no drop off in response to this Austin trio."
It's only been nine months since Spray Paint's eponymous debut album was released and in that time they've gestated this mutant masterpiece in their respective wombs. "Rodeo Songs" skitters and scrapes like a shuriken-stocked ninja tweakin' on joy-juice, upping the ante on the debut by exuding not only a firmer grasp on their musical vision, but also a dizzying confidence is the power of silence and space. The songs push and pull on each other, radiating a tension and menace we haven't had the pleasure of hearing since the last time The A-Frames graced our turntables! There's ample amounts of cacophonous No-Wave guitar scree all over this platter, but the band uses it with precision, only drawing the blade when necessary (which makes it's impact all the more jarring) This is a TERRIFIC one-two punch from S-S by one of the best and most alluring bands out there right now - GRAB THIS ONE NOW before you get lost in the dust, cowpoke. RECOMMENDED and destined for Top Tenner status fer sher.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH SHIT! "Get Stoned Ezy" is HERE. We are so stoked. As you might have guessed we are HUUUUGE Afflicted Man fans here at the shop (we reissued "I'm Off Me 'Ead" fer chrissakes!) and the very sight of 'Get Stoned Ezy' in our record racks has us doing backflips! Reissued with love from the heavies o'er at Guerssen Records - here's the low-down on this low-brow, psych-punk JAMMER:
"In 1982, the mysterious Steve Hall, a self- proclaimed hippie- punk who had previously released a couple of D.I.Y basement- punk albums with his band Afflicted Man, recorded one of the most obscure, underrated and KILLER heavy- psych albums of all time. Credited to High Speed and Afflicted Man, Get Stoned Ezy consists of three long tracks of late 60s / early 70s influenced psychedelic hard- rock. A fuzz- wah assault of epic proportions in the style of other guitar- damage Gods like Human Instinct, Wicked Lady, Hendrix, High Rise, Sabbath, Stooges, etc, all played with a real acid- punk attitude.
We present the first ever legit reissue of this lost masterpiece, licensed by Steve Hall.
Remastered sound, insert with detailed liner notes by Chris Stigliano (Black To Comm) and rare pictures.
"High energy post- Stooges, wah- guitar brain- melt of the highest/lowest order. One of the great lost albums of the 80's. Fucking essential."
Ripley Johnson (Moon Duo / Wooden Shjips)
What is Steve Hall? He's the pinnacle of psych! Chris Stigliano (Forced Exposure / Black To Comm) Too freaked out for punks, too punked out for freaks, 'Get Stoned Ezy' is a bloodbath of pedal stomping carnage - Tom Lax (Siltblog)"
If the testimonial from Siltbreeze head-honcho Tom Lax isn't enuff for you, then TAKE IT FROM US - "Get Stoned Ezy" is one of the greatest (and misunderstood in it's time) psych-punk records EVER MADE. Weird that by looking to the past, Steve Hall was too far ahead of his time for 1982! This is straight up Ron Asheton circa 'Funhouse'/Hendrix/Wino circa 'Obsessed' guitar scree! Hell "Sun Sun" (which occupies ALL of Side Two) could easily be mistaken for a Butthole Surfers outtake! IT'S JUST THAT GOOD. WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS? BUY THIS NOW. Hell, buy two 'cuz you're guaranteed to wear out your first copy! OG's of this bad-mutha are SCARCE, so don't count on finding one at as reasonable a price as this. RECOMMENDED times INFINITY.
GET STONED EZY MOTHERFUCKERS...
Seattle's Night Beats blew our collective noggins off with their s/t debut album on Trouble In Mind a couple years ago - a dizzyingly refreshing take on reverb'd out, Texas-tinged, acid-fried psych-garage! The trio is back with their newest long-player 'Sonic Bloom' on The Reverberation Appreciation Society - sit back and take a whiff off this Pflower:
"The Reverberation Appreciation Society is proud to announce the release of the new Night Beats record, Sonic Bloom.
Recorded in a Tacoma, Washington warehouse, Sonic Bloom is an explosion of reverb soaked rock and soul blended with sharp drone numbers and classic rhythm-and-blues founded tracks. From the haunting psychic groove of 'Seven Poison Wonders' to the sparse Zombies influenced 'Playing Dead' to the squealing ruckus of 'Rat King', Sonic Bloom harkens back to the outer corners of rock and roll radio of yore.
The Seattle-based band have spent the past few years relentlessly touring in over 20 countries. The trio -- featuring Danny Lee Blackwell on guitar/vocals, Tarek Wegner on bass/vocals, and James Traeger on drums/vocals -- will keep up the pace, touring this fall in support of Sonic Bloom."
The years on tour have definitely solidified these road dogs as one of the tightest-wound units playing! "Sonic Bloom" swishes, sways, shimmys and sashays across the turntable, exuding the left-handed smoke of tweakers bred on pounding, savage garage stompers and sun-baked, psychedelic sonic explorations. This time around The Night Beats keep it a little closer to the chest, with most of the tunes never straying too far "out" (save the 7-minute mind-jamming closer "The New World"), and they temper some of the acid-freakouts that peppered their s/t affair in favor of a more varied palette; jazzy tunes, barrelhouse piano, and sitar mantras resonate fluidly across the album's 52 minutes, almost sounding like a distillation of their killer live set - pop hits that you can shake your ass to. Guitarist Lee Blackwell continues to shine here, with his scorching lead work continuing to set the tunes ablaze o'er the top of one of the tightest rhythm sections since Thee Oh Sees started pluckin' their plectrums. We're definitely fans of these boys and "Sonic Bloom"s got the goods - what are you waiting for? Grab this one quick - RECOMMENDED!
YEEESSS!!! The Obscure Oxide label has gone and reissued this legendary album of punk blues. Take a quick look see at the thrilling story below and grab this sucker like yesterday cuz its not gonna leave your turntable for a spell:
"Released in 1975 by Baltimore teenager George Brigman, "Jungle Rot" was a self-produced slab of molten fuzz that had no chance of gaining an audience before the punk revolution. Conceived as a tribute to British psych-blues band the Groundhogs and their leader Tony McPhee, the album takes that bands' acid-fried boogie and warps it with primitive recoding techniques and the fevered isolation in which Brigman worked. The title track alone with its fuzz-damaged guitar pan and punishing four-on-the-floor rhythms is worth the price of admission, yet the rest of the album delivers equally inspired wallops of technical brilliance and blown-out acid shred. Predictably, the few hundred copies of the album that Brigman pressed quickly fell through the cracks and were promptly forgotten—until a music collector found a copy at a flea market in Maryland and started making noise about it. Reissued on disc for the first time in 2005, this is not only a lost classic, it’s one of the loudest, rawest, and most uncompromisingly great albums of the 70′s. Brigman might have been a self-confessed Groundhogs fan, but this buzz saw concerto sounds like it was created by Iggy Pop’s more demented younger brother. Sparkling new vinyl version from the original tapes, mastered by John Golden; the sound quality exceeds the original (poorly mastered and pressed) release in every way. Comes with a color insert, and exact copies of labels and cover art. Hear Brigman sing—with an ear-to-ear sneer from beneath an avalanche of distortion—"Remember what your father said / When the weather’s hot / Talking about all the young girls / Beware the jungle rot”, and you'll wonder why Jungle Rot hasn't been shouted from the roof tops in every Blue Cheer, Groundhogs and Stooges-loving ghetto the last three decades.
"The music is as advertised: gutbucket 1975 energy crisis blues, awash in FX and teenage hormones... (Brigman's) punk/blues approach also prefigured the White Stripes to whose fans Jungle Rot will appear to in particular.. it deep-mine(s) a moment that, because it has not yet been referenced to death, remains startling and vital." —Jon Savage, Mojo Magazine
"George Brigman has been popular for decades among underground music fans. he has an amazing voice full of snarl and venom, and uses layers of murky fuzz and phasing in the background. Jungle Rot is an original work that contains elements of psych, hardrock, and 1970's proto-punk, and it has garnered fans in all three fields. The lyrics hit the same renegade vibe as the music." —Patrick Lundborg, Acid Archives" - Obscure Oxide
We've long hailed "Microminiature Love" by Michael Yonkers as one of Permanent's all time faves and if you dig that one then this will be right up your alley. Fans of the Bonehead Crunchers comps take note as well, George Brigman's unsung outsider masterpiece is one for the ages. Gobs and gobs of fuzzed out distorto blues that just bleed with honesty and hard earned authenticity is what Brigman is bringing and his blistering psychedelic punk is as pure as it gets. You can hear the long hair and feel the dirt under the fingernails as blazing guitar clatter spikes your eardrum like a prison shank hell bent on revenge and escape. If you dig blown out bizarro gutter jams with layer upon layer of fuzz and a frenzied voice baring his soul then cop this Baltimore born rip-roaring classic now. Absolutely Essential and Supremely Recommended.
BACK IN STOCK!!!!
We just got a batch of the latest album from Brooklyn, NY's Eidetic Seeing called "Against Nature" and boy is it a doozy. 5 cuts of fuzzed out, down-tuned psychedelic space rock that bobs and weaves from slow burn head nod blues tinged doom, acid damaged stoner grooves to hyperdrive feedback drenched speedfreak powerhouses. There's touches of Earthless, Heads, White Hills, Earth and some classic Sabbath worship at play here, but Eidetic Seeing are blazing their own lysergic path of psychedelic crunch and "Against Nature" is further proof of the time put into song craft and countless hours spent experimenting with dynamics and pushing ever forward into further reaches of the cosmos. There is some serious musical chops on display here with nuanced yet frantic guitar playing, bass moves that slither while rattling yer insides and some damn fine drumming going on. This is self-released and comes with a complete download of the album as well as our heaviest Recommendations.
PRex shoppers outta know by now that we are massive, MASSIVE Chrome fans over here at the shop, so when we caught wind that Helios Creed was compiling unreleased tracks recorded during the band's classic and most fertile period of 1979-1980 we just about soiled our spacesuits! King Of Spades Records are the lucky ones tapped to release these lost treasures into the world, and here's Helios himself pontificating on Chrome and this release:
"Tracks recorded by Helios Creed and Damon Edge in '79 and '80, during the Half Machine Lip Moves and Third from the Sun period, but never released. About this era Helios recently wrote: 'We were into Iggy and the Stooges, and punk shows started happening at the Mabuhay Gardens in 1976 which was right there in North Beach too, at the end of the Broadway strip. It was the most fun era of my life. The punk scene had an incredible energy and fire. Then the Sex Pistols came out with Never Mind the Bullocks in 1977 and we released Chrome's second album Alien Soundtracks the same year and the whole punk thing exploded. Next we released Half Machine Lip Moves in 1979 and it and Alien Soundtracks took over in the punk world. Our record covers filled the windows of record stores and I was in awe. We weren't really a traditional punk band. Nobody else sounded like us. We were more of a psychedelic band, but a punk version of psychedelia, acid-punk. But I was influenced by the punk scene, because the music was experimental and free, but still hard and solid. punk's guitar was fucked up and without rules. So it was a great scene to keep developing my sound and my approach to guitar. Damon and I were both into expanding the possibilities. We fed off of each other in our experimentation and as we created we'd both like the same things. There was this thing that Damon and I called 'the Chill Factor' where if its really good you get goose bumps, and we used to get the 'Chill Factor' at the same time. We shared concepts about how to approach music and we pushed the limits and that is how I guess we became known as proto-industrial, because we expanded the possibilities of what music at the time could sound like and people were influenced from there. Damon's and my meeting had become a catalyst for the birth of a whole new sound.'
We gotta say - the prospect of listening to unreleased Chrome tracks from the CLASSIC fucking lineup had us licking our lips and this double LP does NOT disappoint! EVERYTHING you'll wanna hear is here; Helios Creed's brain-busting guitar squall sounds like an intergalactic transmission coming from the inside of a space demon, and Damon Edge's abstract synth-screes conjure up visions of soul-sucking cosmic banshees! It's frickin' great - if you're a Chrome fan AT ALL you definitely NEED THIS. Pressed up onto sun-baked orange vinyl and remastered/mixed by Jay Tausig under the supervision of Helios himself this makes it practically undeniable!!! These WILL NOT last long, so if you're on the fence at all, just go ahead and get it. This one comes with our highest (and HIGHEST) recommendation. GET THIS.
BLAKES GOLD EDITION!
The Death Waltz folks unveil another drool worthy release with this deluxe edition of The Fog soundtrack by horror legend John Carpenter. We'll let the Death Waltz peeps fill in the gaps:
"Death Waltz is set to release a double vinyl album of The Fog which includes the original movie score as released in 1984, along with a bonus vinyl including all of the original movie cues which have never been made available on vinyl before. The Fog was JOHN CARPENTER’s first film after the low-budget success of Halloween, and tells the story of a small North California fishing town terrorized by a glowing supernatural fog containing the vengeful ghosts of six murdered lepers. Like most of Carpenter’s films, the score was written by the director himself, and built on the more simplistic piano melody and synthesizer combination of the iconic Halloween score, to create something much more abstract and foreboding. Album cover art is by DINOS CHAPMAN—yes the Dinos Chapman: as an internationally renowned solo artist, and together with his brother Jake, Dinos Chapman makes iconoclastic sculpture, prints and installations that examine, with searing wit and energy, contemporary politics, religion and morality. The Chapman's have exhibited extensively, including numerous shows at White Cube, Tate Britain, and Tate Liverpool."
Horror movie soundtrack fans best grip this one immediately as it is a classic amongst the genre. Goosebump inducing synthesizers, menacing bass tones and eerie piano melodies pervade throughout the entirety of this soundtrack and the second LP contains all the movie cues, which have never been on vinyl ever! Can you say collector's item? These records have been lovingly assembled with the greatest care and attention to detail, seriously once you feast your eyes on these beautys in person you'll see that these truly a work of art. Fans of Goblin, Umberto and Ensemble Economique will definitely want to take note, but you prolly already knew that since John Carpenter is the OG when it comes to terrifying and beautiful soundtrack music. Super Recommended.
Like bringing a gun to a knife fight, Chicago's Sea of Shit are slaying ALL with their blistering brand of power-violence vengence. 15 cuts, burns and slashes of sadism pressed up in an edition of 500 out now on Diseased Auido.
LIMITED TO 300 COPIES ON "UNCLEAR" WAX AND COMES WITH A SALT AND PEPPER PACK FOR EXTRA FLAVOR!!!!
Upcoming and coming LA garage punks, Way To Go Genius, are back with a brand new / heavy hittin' 7 inch, entitled "Egg." Fans of the stripped down, extra mean variety of PUNK RAWK like the Drags, Supercharger, New Bomb Turks and the Humpers will absolutely start bouncing off the walls when the needle hits the wax on "Egg." There might even be circle pits and shotgunned beers in yer near future. But one thing we now for sure is Way To Go Genius know how to keep rock n roll LOUD DIRTY and FUN AS FUCK. And that'll always get our HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION!!!!!!!!
NOW AVAILABLE ON CASSETTE FROM EASY RIDER RECORDS!!!
Hey you, stop counting the days, cuz FUZZ IS IN THE BUILDING. Three teaser singles didn't satiate us, so thank god we finally have the self-titled debut by Fuzz to crank all the way up til the neighbors complain. YES! Take from here In The Red:
"Fuzz is Ty Segall (drums / vocals), Charlie Moothart (guitar / vocals) and Roland Cosio (bass). They’re heavy rock lifers—three California-bred dudes who have been refining their riffs and getting weird together since high school (which wasn’t that long ago, actually). If you are not already aware of Segall, well, what’s up? He’s one of garage rock’s most prolific sons. He said he was going to take it easy this year, but by the time you finish reading this, the onesheet for his next record will have already arrived in your inbox. Moothart plays guitar in The Ty Segall Band and was also a member of The Moonhearts, which included Cosio on guitar. Way back in the early ’00s, all three played in the Epsilons. Fuzz was formed a couple years ago as a collaboration between Segall and Moothart, but only recently did the pair have sufficient time to guide the band out of side-project limbo and into a recording studio. Since then, they have released two singles, “This Time I Got a Reason” (Trouble In Mind) and “Sleigh Ride” (In The Red). Around the time of the latter, Cosio joined on bass.
They are not dabblers or dilettantes. Fuzz flipped through used bins, hard drives and record collections of the world, seeking out the finest weirdo cuts. The band’s self-titled debut LP, which was recorded by Chris Woodhouse (Thee Oh Sees, The Intelligence), dives deep, drawing inspiration from the more esoteric reaches of heavy metal pre-history. There are Sabbath and Hendrix nods, obviously, but on “Sleigh Bells” you might also catch a whiff of UK progressive blues business like The Groundhogs, particularly when the song quits its 10/4-time intro and reboots into full-bore choogle. Maybe you’ll even glimpse the ghost of Australian guitar legend / sharpie guru Lobby Lloyde sniffing around “Raise.”
The mood is not light. The songs project a state of perpetual paranoia and eroding mental health. And as it should be, you know? It’s a record for the burners."
"This TIme I Got A Reason" grabbed us by the ears and wouldn't let go. Then "Sleigh Ride" 7 inch turned us into junkies. And then came the "Sunderberry Dream" single which, as far as we can tell, has whipped up a frenzy from coast to coast. So here it is, no riots, there's enough Fuzz to go around!!!!!! We're not sure exactly what happens when Ty, Charlie and Roland get in the same room, magic maybe, but the words "power trio" don't do it justice. Get ready to journey through halls of RnR most unruly forefathers, from the garage rock unknowns to the psych rock warriors and on through the proto metal heads and into the cosmic realms of anyone who dared to take guitar riffs and RnR pummeling to whole new levels. HOLY SHIT THIS ALBUM IS OUT OF CONTROL GOOD. But don't let us try and convince you. Let yer ears walk your through the checkout line. THIS ONES MEGA RECOMMENDED!
Tape - Quingo - Quingo - $4.99 - BUY
LIMITED TO 50 COPIES!!!!
Mysterious sonic evil from members of ET HABIT!!!!!!! Need we say more? RECOMMENDED!!!
