**Please do not reveal artist in comments!**
Wilfully Obscure
power pop * punk * emo * indie rock * shoegazer
Sunday, March 26, 2023
Once you were the first in line and now you’re in the back...
Thursday, March 23, 2023
V/A - Every One a Classic!!! Vols. 1 & 2
Truth be told, I didn't have the opportunity to research everyone on the two rosters, but per my queries on Discogs and elsewhere, the vast majority of bands involved only stuck around long enough to mint a single ep or 45. Quite literally one and done, but as always, the brevity of an artist's discography is rarely indicative of the significance of the roughly seven minutes (or so) of music that's occupying the wax. Generalities are a bit fuzzy to level here, but Vol. 1 seems to skew slightly more towards power pop, while the second volume tends to shine the spotlight on more aggro punk. There are plenty of exceptions on both disks. At the very least, virtually everywhere the laser lands you're bound to encounter something good/acceptable, but a good half of the tunes are of significantly higher caliber than that. Highlights are plentiful, and though I'm strapped for time a few recommendations would have to include Quality Drivel, Shock Treatment, Moving Targets (UK), Train Spotters, Acme Attractions, Martin and the Brownshirts (very New York Dolls-y), Cyanide, and Radio City (the latter being as an enticing a power-pop proposition as the moniker might lead one to believe). Enjoy.
Volume 1
01. Acme Attractions – Anyway
02. Fascinations - Blue Movies
03. The Escorts - Bingo
04. The English - Hooray For The English!
05. Xpress - Junked-Up Judy
06. HorrorComic - England 77
07. Warm Jets - Big City Boys
08. Moving Targets - The Boys Own
09. The Trainspotters - High Rise
10. Fun 4 - Singing In The Showers
11. The Rivals - Here Comes The Night
12. Shadowfax - Calling the Shots
13. Blunt Instrument - No Excuse
14. Lenny And The Lawbreakers – Me And Bobby McGee
15. The Now - Nine O'clock
Volume 2
01. The Perfectors – YT502951D
02. Quality Drivel - Stagnant Minds
03. Sta-Prest - Schooldays
04. Kidz Next Door - Kidz Next Door
05. Silent Noise - I've Been Hurt (So Many Times Before)
06. Bee Bee Cee - You Gotta Know Girl
07. Martin And The Brownshirts – Taxi Driver
08. Psykik Volts - Horror Stories #5
09. Long Tall Shorty - Win or Lose
10. Accident On The East Lancs – Tell Me What You Mean
11. Notsensibles – The Telephone Rings Again
12. Xtraverts - 1984
13. Shock Treatment - Big Check Shirts
14. Radio City - Love and a Picture
15. Cyanide - I'm a Boy
Sunday, March 19, 2023
Poisoned by the time, you know everything should rhyme.
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Saturday, March 18, 2023
The Weeds - Windchill (1988, Permanent)
A friend with Weeds is a friend inde....oh never mind. But chances are this Wisconsin power-trio did have some friends and a gaggle of fans in their proverbial corner. No wet-behind-the-ears slack here. Much to the contrary - rather robust and resonant in fact, recalling the usual suspects from Minneapolis, but moreover the Weeds debut, Windchill has a discernible Midwestern tincture to it. Loads of guitar-laden amperage, with ballsy, cranking salvos like "Replaced," "Leslie's House" and "Dicked," that are certain to leave a concussive impression on your little eardrums. If you've enjoyed some of the band's featured in the early days of this site like the Pedaljets and Hollowmen I doubt you'll go wrong here. The Weeds followed this up with King Crow in 1992.
01. Cold Blooded Snake
02. Replaced
03. California
04. Duty Calls
05. Funny
06. Leslie's House
07. Under the Bed
08. Hush Hush
09. Graceland U.S.A.
10. Dicked
11. Safer Than Sorry
12. untitled
Sunday, March 12, 2023
Saturday, March 11, 2023
Human Hands - s/t (1982, Independent Projects) - 2 x LP w/ bonus 7"
In their original 1978-81 incarnation, the quintet in questions managed to eke out one single, an ep, and somewhat posthumously, this two LP extravaganza in 1982 consisting primarily of demos and live material. Aesthetically, the band's closest kin might have been a slightly more renown local troupe, 100 Flowers (a band who had their antecedents in the considerably less serious Urinals). The Human Hands drew considerably from the left-of-center music that surrounded them, which meant everything from Gang of Four and Wire to the more tuneful reservoirs of the fledgling New York no-wave scene. They bore an uncanny noisenik flair, and while there probably isn't one morsel in this set that you might refer to as "polished" there's an accessibility there, especially if you were fond of staccato rhythms, flourishes of jovial Farfisa organ, and topical songwriting. "Dilemmas," "Stupid World," "I Got Made" and "Go Existential' are a handful of my favorites. The Mission of Burma-esque "The Man Who Knows Too Much" is a real peach, as is the icy, marathon length "Phantoms in the Darkroom."
As I mentioned a great deal of songs here are either live or in embryonic stages. Several of them underwent more formal recording, and can be had on the 1997, Bouncing to Disc compilation. In the 2000's Human Hands resurfaced with an overhauled lineup and in the process expanded their discography considerably, releasing their debut LP Backyard Anthems in 2008 and a couple of subsequent EPs. Original drummer David Wiley passed away in 1988. More info can be had on Human Hands via their website.
01. Hex
02. Dilemmas
03. Stupid World
04. The Man Who Knows Too Much
05. Rapture of the Deep
06. My Kitchen
07. Ghosts
08. Checkout
09. I Got Mad
10. She Eats Bugs
11. Lurk
12. Dog Food
13. Crazy Lies (live)
14. Dillemas (live)
15. New look (live)
16. Diplodicus
17. Sticks and Stones (live)
18. Go Existential (live)
19. Phantoms in the Darkroom
20. Beginner's Rap
21. Upside Down
22. Carnivore
23. Happy Ending (live)
bonus single
A. Sensible Guy
B. Fair
Sunday, March 5, 2023
Is this love out of fashion, or is it the time of year?
There was a lot of talk last week surrounding the fiftieth anniversary of a certain landmark album. How about another pivotal record that just celebrated it's fortieth anniversary, and what if I was to offer you just the bonus disk to the deluxe version thereof? Enjoy.
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Hear
Throw 7" (1992, Limited Potential)
With a little more amperage and angst Chicago's Throw might have been convincing grunge contenders, and to the contrary, had they possessed a sunnier disposition and quickened their riffs they could have passed for punk-pop. I'd say that to everyone's advantage they wound up as genuine, distortion-driven indie rockers unto themselves, at least as far as this pair of tuneful and confident slammers were concerned. Think in the same vicinity as Monsterland, Poole and other crunchy contemporaries of their era. This was Throw's debut, but they would soon buttress their profile with well received albums including 1994's Trace that found the band curtailing some of the fuzz and angling in a more nuanced direction with lengthier songs that arguably bordered on post-rock.
A. All Too Human
B. Parasite
Velouria - Smooth! Lite tape (1996)
01. Where Ford Falcons Come To Die
02. Audrey & Anguish
03. Sunbeam
04. Women's Wednesday
05. Perpetually You
06. Reville
Sunday, February 26, 2023
...the power lies inside the head, not inside the hand.
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Hear
VHF - One Chance ep (1986, Straight-Face)
01. One Chance
02. Harmonium
03. Video
04. In Time
Friday, February 24, 2023
Das Damen - Noon Daylight 12" (1989, What Goes On)
The A-side to this wax, "Noon Daylight," in my opinion was the epitome of what the band was capable of - dense and melodic, yet somehow breathable in spite of the extraneous feedback. It's taken from their 1989 Mousetrap LP on Twin/Tone, and if you have any affection for the late '80s Minneapolis sound you're almost sure to appreciate it. As for the 12" in specific I'm posting, this is a European import boasting two live b-sides from a Boston 1989 gig. "Give Me Everything" is a Magazine cover, and a relatively obscure one at that (a b-side maybe?).
A. Noon Daylight
B1. Give Me Everything (live)
B2. Firejoke (live)
Sunday, February 19, 2023
Perhaps it's something that he had for dinner.
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Hear
Toby Redd - A to Z (1982, Plastic)
Regarding that later Chad Smith lineup of Toby Redd, the band released their second full length, In the Light for Nemperor Records in 1986, which startlingly enough was reissued for Record Store Day just two years ago.
01. Can't Get a Job
02. Double Timed
03. More Time
04. Make it Up to You
05. Harry's Alright
06. It Ain't Me Babe
07. Won't Get Far
08. City
09. Why Can't I
10. Melea
Sunday, February 12, 2023
Yeah we got a way with words, so hey look now I'm flippin' the bird...
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Hear
Tobin Sprout/eyesinweasel - Demos & Outtakes (unabridged version) (1999, Luna)
These days, Sprout's focus is on painting, not so much making music, but when GBV started to blow up circa 1994 he was all in, not only contributing a bevy of stellar songs to the aforementioned albums and beyond, but also prepping material for a spate of solo albums, beginning with Carnival Boy in '96. The 1999 release which I'm sharing today is a double vinyl LP collection of demos for songs that would occupy his first three solo records, plus the singles and lone full length for his short-lived but remarkable Eyesinweasel project.
So far as demos, outtakes, odds & sods compilations go in general, the worthiness of such compendiums depends for better or worse if the songs occupying them are promising in their most nascent incarnations. In Toby's case, his Clinton-era material proved to be his absolute halcyon era, both within and without Guided By Voices. As songwriting went, the man in question was always the more insular yin to Pollard's extroverted yang in GBV, and this modest acumen carried over to his solo material as well, belying a certain charm and sensitivity that Tobin could genuinely lay claim to.
Right from the get go, armed with just a guitar (and/or keyboard), a drum machine, and naturally, a portastudio of some variety, the initial versions Sprout laid down captured not only the flow and arrangement of his songs, but more importantly the essence thereof, so much so that laying down the finished versions was seemingly a breeze given that Toby nailed down the demos to a fault. That's not to say there aren't differences between these prototypes and the versions that were recorded for mass consumption, which is what made this collection such an enormous treat. Plus, there are some worthwhile cuts here that never made it past the demo stage, "The Lords Of Pretty Things," "Quarter Turn Here," and an ace cover of the Tall Dwarfs' Kiwi-pop gem "Highrise" among them.
The original incarnation of Demos & Outtakes was 31 songs long and spread over two vinyl LPs, housed in a plain white gatefold sleeve, with transparent stickers and black typeset identifying the title of the album and it's songs. I bought it upon release and almost immediately made a tape of it for my car. Two years later a truncated 20-song version of Demos... landed on CD. To my knowledge, this is the first digitized creation of the entire thing, and as mentioned, I can't believe it just dawned on me to put this together now. Voila, and enjoy in both MP3 and lossless FLAC.
01. Seven and Nine
02. The Lords of Pretty Things
03. Jealous Mantles
04. I Didn't Know
05. To Remake the Young Flyer
06. Making a Garden
07. Highrise
08. Hit Junky Dives
09. Dusting Coattails
10. To My Beloved Martha
11. Cereal Killer
12. Quarter Turn Here
13. E's Navy Blue
14. Little Bit of Dread
15. Blankets of Hair
16. Sot #1
17. I Wonder If It's Cold Outside
18. Slow Flanges
19. Something Today
20. Silicone Slugs
21. Paper Cut
22. Digging Up Wooden Teeth
23. Ketiling Park
24. Curved Warlords
25. Smokey Joe
26. Exit Planes
27. There She Goes Again
28. Water On The Boaters Back
29. MP
30. Hint #9
31. Piano
Friday, February 10, 2023
The Dentists - See No Evil 7" (1992, Homestead)
A. Box of Sun
B1. See No Evil
B2. I Can See Your House From Up Here (acoustic)
Sunday, February 5, 2023
Leave your sneakers at the door, you don't need them no more.
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Hear
Moon - Questionable Places and Things (1990, Skyclad)
01. The Never Room
02. Two Options
03. The September Song
04. In the Backwoods
05. Can't Stop the World
06. Jane Roberts
07. Listen
08. When You Wrecked The Room (With The Nervous Green Light)
09. Brain Don't Fail Me Now
10. The Broken Picture
11. I've Got A Way Of Gettin' Back At People
Sunday, January 29, 2023
And if you’re sleeping and having nightmares in your head...
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Hear
Rational Youth - s/t ep (1983)
01. In Your Eyes
02. Just a Sound in the Night
03. Latin Lovers
04. Holiday in Bangkok
05. The Man in Grey
Monday, January 23, 2023
Agitpop - Open Seasons (1988, T/T)
Dissonant and off-kilter to be certain (not to mention a real acquired taste if you were a more conventional pop listener) this trio bore warm and sentient affectations as well, especially on their final album, Stick It! wherein they were making significant tuneful strides. Truth be told they were halfway there on their penultimate LP, Open Seasons. DeVries' singular, half sung/half spoken parlance made for cutting commentary, yet occasionally a soothing and poetic balm too. Agitpop by and large occupied their own airspace, leaving indigenous chemtrails like "Straight Through to Nashville" and "Girl But Not a Friend," in their oblique wake, but not without inserting an ever-so-sly accessibility factor if you could spot it.
Incidentally, for several years now I've been sharing a hard-to-come-by Agitpop promo ep from '89 that you can check out here. Furthermore, after the band were decommissioned (sometime around 1990 or so) DeVries went on to serve as mouthpiece for another downstate New York act, Cellophane, who I have yet to familiarize myself with.
01. Straight Through to Nashville
02. It Won't Be Long Now
03. Getting Up to Go Down
04. Top of the Stairs
05. Three Boys and Space
06. Memory-Go-Round
07. Kick Back the Hands
08. Stagnant
09. Out to Pasture
10. Without a Trace
11. Girl But Not a Friend
12. Inventor
Sunday, January 22, 2023
Only accidental, the car was just a family rental...
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Hear
Sunday, January 15, 2023
Time to loose this senselessness, of happiness with no address.
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Hear
Junk Monkeys - Soul Cakes (1989, No Wonder/Restless)
01. Lost My Faith
02. Anywhere With You
03. I Couldn't Smile
04. Trade
05. Today is Summer
06. Round and Round
07. Medicine
08. So American
09. Time Ain't On My Side
10. I Want More