A little pedigree action going on here. File under Yo La Tengo and Hypnolovewheel, cos' A Special Pillow entailed James McNew and Dan Cuddy of the aforementioned respectfully. Cuddy is actually the mastermind here, and the only consistent participant on the trio of full lengths that followed this 45. Just as significant are the contributions of violin shredder Katie Gentile and cellist Cindy Brolsma, who provide a poignant chamber pop element.. "Tomorrow Night" (not the Shoes classic in case you were wondering) is sheer naval-gazing bliss if there ever was such a thing. Slow, strummy, and even a tad glummy, it's the perfect slacker lullaby for hammock season. The flip, "Paranormal," is considerably more enthusiastic, with Gentile's chin-music savvy escalating the tune's fervor to something along the lines of Pillow's string-wielding contemps the Dambuilders. 
The 1986 album from an unheralded Minneapolis combo. Lots of ringing guitar leads on this one, not dissimilar to another troop from this era, Dreams So Real.
I went into this one with a couple of serious misconceptions. Doll Congress' lineup contained a pre-solo/pre-fame Michael Penn, who would later rise to prominence in the late '80s with a big 'ol Top-40 hit. He also happened to be the brother of Sean Penn. I was under the impression that Michael fronted Doll Congress. Not exactly. Furthermore, an unverifiable source led me to believe that D/C were all about the power pop. Waaaay off the mark. The lead-off number, "Concrete and Clay" is outright owned by chanteuse Gabriele Morgan, whose ungodly high pitch is at the very least an appropriate pairing for this tropical slice of pseudo new wave. Clearly not what I was expecting. The two flip-sides are at least a tad more in my wheelhouse. The comparatively rockin' "Easy to Touch" bears a bouncy, Blondie-esque panache that I don't have nearly as much of a beef with, and we finally get to hear Mike adorn the mic on "The Main,"the closest Doll Congress comes to offering conventional guitar chords. Make what you will of this long defunct L.A. quintet.
Presumably taking their name from the R.E.M. song, it's virtually inevitable for me to draw some sort of parallel between this Cleveland area quartet and Michael Stipe's former meal-ticket. Rotary Ten, in fact, didn't siphon as much as you might assume from said Athens, GA staple, so much as the bands whom R.E.M. informed - Miracle Legion, For Squirrels, and even more negligibly Toad the Wet Sprocket. Submitted for your approval, two low-budget forays into the unlikely realm of organ-laced indie pop. The proceedings on Long Walk and Coffee Songs emanate a discernible collegiate ardor, yet are uniformly approachable. Rotate Ten wield some fairly ambitious melodies when they put their collective minds to it - "Glacier Run," "Rainfall" and "Insomnia" for starters. Otherwise, I have precious little else to opine on here. However, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that some of these songs are available on an R/T compilation from this period, Adopt a Highway, which is attainable via Bandcamp, alongside a collection of later material. Should you find anything stimulating on these cassettes, please consider supporting the band and send a few $$ their way!
Long Walk (1990)
Pure pop for not-so-now people. From the Great White North, circa 1987. Impeccable stuff here my friends, and one of the best M/M titles I've shared in awhile. 
Was surprised to see this one wasn't archived elsewhere online (save for Discogs). Imitation Life presumably called Los Angeles their stomping ground and had two albums to show for themselves, 1986's Ice Cubes and Sugar, and the more impressive Scoring Correctly at Home which followed two years later. The latter of those two is sequenced first on this two-fer CD. More pub rock than power pop, I/L also veered into punk and roots rock terrain, sounding like a crossbreed between Dramarama, and such no-nonsense traditionalists as NRBQ. Per the sleeve notes, John Easdale and Chris Carter of the aforementioned Dramarama actually make guest appearances here, though they aren't credited on any specific songs. And speaking of songs, there are some pretty phenomenal ones hanging out on Scoring..., namely "Sad Man," and "(I Don't Wanna) Shake in the Shadows." This one had been sitting on my shelf for a few years, and I could kick myself for not getting to it sooner. Better late...enjoy.
