Intro to Airlift - The Music of... 7" (1997, In All Directions)

As a general rule I don't share music that's commercially available, but every so often I eschew that edict in order to provide you with a brief "taster" of sorts to whet your appetite/psyche for a much larger body of work that you might want to consider patronizing the artist for. Intro to Airlift is a name that's had been popping up on my screen and in music periodicals for decades, yet it's only recently that I actually made a concerted effort to acquaint myself with.  Finding a nice, sharp picture-sleeve 45 in a dollar bin is frequently the last bit of motivation I need, ergo the post you've already invested a few seconds in perusing.  

It turns out this defunct Bloomington, IL trio would have been of enormous interest to me all this time - even if the only thing they ever committed to tape was the song "Ed is on No Side," a clangy, 138-second morsel of ringing guitars, dissonant instrumentation, and a melodic acuity that impresses me as one of the finest tunes to ever bear a 1997 copyright date.  Intro's relatively lo-fi disposition is what really turns the key here, with an overall effect not far removed from Ted Leo's pre-Pharmacists combo Chisel. Toss in some faint, droney proclivities and you've got an absolute keeper on your hands. The second A-side, "Too Easy" finagles with some mod seasoning, while the flip "Because You're New" boasts a DIY  semblance of ramshackle post-punk aplomb.  If you enjoy what you hear, the vast majority of Intro's slim catalog, including a live tape and an album's worth of predominantly unreleased material can be had (for a price) on Bandcamp, so consider throwing your support behind these gents, posthumously as that endeavor may seem.  The three tracks here were taken from my own rip of the record.  

A1. Ed is on No Side

A2. Too Easy

B. Because You're New

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