Tuesday, September 23, 2014

The Breathers - Normal, Illinois ep (1989, Scheisterfest)

Here it is, the debut platter from The Breathers, whose Rain Down ep I pitched to you last year.  Big, plump, near-anthemic power pop here, like a fattened-up Plimsouls or Off Broadway.  Think of 415 Records acts like Wire Train and Red Rockers had they fully embraced the AOR shtick they always seemed to be flirting with.  "Stay the Boy" and "Thin Ice" are the clear winners here, but the seven minute "I Can Make it Rain" could have been whittled down a bit.  My apologies for the slight vinyl static.  Maybe a re-rip is in order.

01. Thin Ice
02. Annabel Lee
03. Anywhere But Here
04. Stay the Boy
05. I Can Make it Rain

Hear
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5 comments:

acupraet said...

Can't believe I found this!! I have been searching for it since losing the cassette when I left college in '91! Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I saw them perform at Illinois State University my junior year and was blown away. I hoped for big things from them. Wonder if they ever evolved into a bigger band. Ideas?

January 18, 2015 at 7:07 PM
acupraet said...

I never heard their follow-up EP. Would you mind re-posting it? Thanks again!

January 18, 2015 at 7:14 PM
Bill Shaffer said...

I was the drummer in The Breathers. We broke up in 1992 and started a new band with a few new members called Much Too Fantastic. After a few years, we broke up. I became a neurologist with MS who specializes in MS. My name is Bill Shaffer. Our original keyboard player is still playing in his own band called Meyerman. Check them out.

Thank you for saying such positive things about our music. It was a great time playing.

March 3, 2015 at 6:51 AM
spavid said...

Nice hearing from you bill. Your band had some dandy tunes to show for themselves. May the road rise with you.

March 5, 2015 at 5:31 PM
DU WAG said...

The link expired, can I inspire you to re-post?

October 12, 2018 at 8:15 PM

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