The Passions- Sanctuary (1982)

You'd almost think "I'm in a Love With a German Film Star," was the only song The Passions ever committed to tape - and regrettably for about 98% of listeners who were fortunate to encounter them at some point that might as well have been the case.  Virtually no other tune in their repertoire has garnered anywhere near equal facetime, despite the Barbara Gogan-helmed London conglomeration having released three near-incendiary albums: Michael & Miranda (1980), Thirty Thousand Feet Over China (1981), and Sanctuary (1982), and roughly half a dozen singles.  However, those that delved beyond their aforementioned 1981 hit were privy to an intoxicating body of work. 

The loss of Passions guitar-chitect Clive Timperley, whose crisp, crystalline chords colored so much of "I'm in Love's..."  atmospheric persuasion, prior to the recording of Sanctuary, did virtually nothing to stifle the newly whittled down core-trio's ability to devise memorable, moving vistas.  Not as allegiant to the noir post-punk air of relatively close sonic contemporaries Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Passions didn't make a play for mystique, so much as depth - and they were all the better for, even if long-term success eluded them.  Sanctuary found them leaning into the nuances of the New Romantic movement with subtlety being the key watchword.  No, this wasn't quite your little sister's garden-variety "pop" setup, The Passions were considerably more advanced than that, yet they boasted a melodic allure and sophistication that should have roped in devotees by the millions.  Instead, they settled for a few thousand hangers-on, who were no doubt dazzled by plush, sublime propositions, "Small Talk," "Into Night," and Sanctuary's title piece.  Though not necessarily flawless, you won't encounter any filler amongst these grooves, and it's almost startling to realize the band would be defunct in merely another year.

And speaking of defunct, so is the label that curated the first digital release of Sanctuary, Rubellan Remasters.  In addition to a bright, resonant remastering of the album in question, this reissue boasts all surrounding singles and b-sides, as well as appending the contents of a four-song live ep that was bundled with certain original pressings of the LP.  Rubellan's somewhat tortured and occasionally heartbreaking saga has recently been laid out in nearly six-hours worth of narratives on YouTube, which you're encouraged to partake in, that is if you have any interest in learning how the sausage is made before it's submitted to the marketplace. It's quite an enlightening tale.   

01. Jump For Joy
02. The Letter
03. Into Night
04. Small Talk
05. White Lies
06. Cars Driven Fast
07. Love is Essential
08. Your Friend
09. Hold on Don't Go
10. Sanctuary

bonus:
11. Africa Mine
12. I Feel Cheap
13. The Story
14. Tempting Fate
15. Stop That Man
16. The Square (live)
17. Why Me (live)
18. Snow (live) 
19. I'm In Love With A German Film Star (Live)

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The Texas Instruments - ¡More Texas Instruments! (1985, Longhead)

Austin's Texas Instruments are no strangers to this site, and tonight I'm dropping what appears to be their debut release.  At this stage in the game our protagonists were functioning as an economical trio, but were soon to expand to a foursome.  And they were twangy youngsters at that, doling out fine rootsy traipses like "1000s of Things," a saucy mélange of mid 80's indie smarts a la a more pedestrian Minutemen with a pinch of southern rock snarl. "Checkered Flag or Crash" fares almost as effectively and presumably entails something of a narrative, albeit the Instruments' delivery is so rapid fire, you'd be forgiven for missing the plot. I can take or leave the cheeky "Queen of Chiba," and the lackadaisical "Last Lie" draws ¡More Texas... to a relatively lamentable conclusion.

01. 1000s of Things

02. Checkered Flag or Crash

03. Queen of Chiba

04. Last Lie

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...they play shadow games, I play with the light

From 2020. 

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The Loch Ness Mouse - From the Countryside ep (1993, Perfect Pop)

Here's one of many records that I'm just not sure how it found it's way into my collection.  What's more surprising is that some 30+ years later Norway's Loch Ness Mouse still have something of a presence, though this early 7" is all I know them by. That being said, I can't really extol on what they're up to these days or how/if they progressed, but Countryside's leadoff salvo, "A Picture in My Grandmother's Book," is a driving, twee-adjacent slice of punk-pop.  "My Old Coat" is notably calmer, a la something that might have been conjured up by the BMX Bandits or Teenage Fanclub.  Comparatively speaking, "Goodbye Helena," bleeds a distinct downer ballad lilt, while the concluding "Vespa 50" is a jangly, strummy delight bearing a prize-winning hook, any likeminded pop combo would crave to take credit for. 

01. A Picture in My Grandmother's Book

02. My Old Coat

03. Goodbye Helena

04. Vespa 50

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I've got a manual instructing my brain.

This weeks it's disc 3 of a deluxe reissue, featuring radio sessions and a handful of live tracks, all originating from 1981-82.

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Richard Barone and James Mastro - Nuts and Bolts (1983) ...plus my thoughts on the Bongos new/old live album The Shroud of Touring.

Call it a sheer coincidence, or musical synergy, or whatever you wish, but it didn't dawn on me until just an hour or so ago that tandem with my post this week of the long-neglected Richard Barone/James Mastro collaborative LP from 1983, a band that both gents made a more than significant contribution to, The Bongos are set to release a very belated but terrific live album next week, which I'll address a little later.  

For the uninitiated, Richard Barone was the front-man and bona fide fulcrum for the aforementioned Bongos, a guitar-pop, mini-maelstrom based in Hoboken, NJ who circa the early '80s released a blush of inspired singles and eps, that were consistently critically lauded.  As if 1983 wasn't an eventful year enough with the Bongos making a leap to a major label via the Numbers With Wings ep, Barone's creative juices were loaded for bear, so much so that a small body of songs were set aside from his meal primary ticket and dedicated to another endeavor Nuts and Bolts.  His partner in rhyme, James Mastro had only jumped aboard the Bongos express midway through the band's career, but had already served as a backing guitarist on Richard Lloyd's excellent solo debut, 1979's Alchemy.  

The premise for Nuts and Bolts was democratic with each singer/strummer compiling their respective songs on one side apiece of the record.  Furthermore, it was a logical choice for Barone to put his six numbers here under a separate umbrella from the relatively rambunctious Bongos, given the more contemplative tenor of  acoustic-enhanced pieces "Lost Like Me" and "I Threw a Falcon."  Elsewhere on his side of this proposition, "I've Got a Secret" would have slotted in nicely with what the dB's were finagling with around the same time.  As for the other side of the coin, Mastro's contributions are considerable, yielding the bouncy "In My Pocket" and the driving power-pop aplomb of "Jamais." If he wasn't already a consummate songwriter in his own right at this point, Mastro would in the near-future lend his talents to the likes of Marti Jones, Tim Lee (Windbreakers) and Jill Sobule, among other pursuits like the Health and Happiness Show whom I extoled about just a few months ago.     

As for the more current release I mentioned, read on - although it entails music that's not particularly "current."  1985 was a good year, and if you were The Bongos it was even better.  That’s when the release of the quartet’s first bona-fide album of unique material, Beat Hotel, landed on the heels of half a decade’s worth of lauded singles and eps (not to mention the crucial compilation thereof, Drums Along the Hudson).  The overdue live document The Shroud of Touring captures them at the peak of their collective powers, churning out a generous amount of what was then newer material, yet still attacking the mic and their respective instruments hungry-as-all-get-out on established setlist faves “In the Congo,” “Telephoto Lens,” and their renown remake of T. Rex’s “Mambo Sun.”  The Bongos wouldn’t be long for the world after this tour, but Shroud… stands as a compelling testament to their indigenous stripe of deftly crafted power pop that hasn’t traversed the Earth since.  Ironically, it's seeing the light of day on the the revived Jem Records imprint, who were also responsible for the aforementioned Nuts and Bolts way back when. It's available this coming week on Amazon.    

Nuts and Bolts

Richard's side

01. I've Got a Secret

02. I Threw a Falcon

03. My Side

04. Fie Years Old

05. Lost Like Me

06. Jacob's Ladder

James' side

07. Time Will Tell

08. Dizzy

09. Angel in My Pocket

10. Jamais

11. No One Has to Know

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I've been ten days in overdrive...

Perhaps not the most popular opinion, but I was utterly disappointed with the direction this band took on their third album.  Though it did entail a significant lineup alteration, they corrected course with this overlooked 1981 follow-up. 

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Zeke Fiddler - 1/2 Baked, 1/2 Inflated 7" (1993, Chunk)

I remember Zeke Fiddler's one-and-done LP, Waterproof being pretty ubiquitous in the mid-90s, so much so that I was armed with a promo copy myself.  Nonetheless I never quite caught the Z/F bug, simply due to the sheer glut of competition me and my CD player were overwhelmed with at the time.  Truth is, this Beantown-area trio deserved more of my attention, not to mention something resembling a concerted national audience, given Zeke's gnarly distorto-guitar splay that fit solidly in the realm of Archers of Loaf, Treepeople, and even SST-era Dino Jr.  Maybe not as searingly white-hot as any of the aforementioned, what these boys had was still impressive.  What I wasn't conscious of at the time was that preceding Waterproof, was this 45 rpm delight circa 1993, making a concise case for the band's aforementioned m.o., one which has held up pretty effectively over the ensuing decades.  Aficionados of Clinton-era indie rock take note!

A. Half Baked

B1. Half Inflated

B2. Brave Doorman

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The Montanas - s/t ep (1988, Lucy)

Well shucks, I don't have much to tell you about this crew, nor does the internet. There's not a tremendous amount to go by on The Montanas first and ostensibly last 12" record save for the fact that this quartet has a management/correspondence addy of Atlanta.  Going by the band's garb on the back sleeve I was expecting something along the lines of the Long Ryders, but instead was treated to something more akin to the Cavedogs or late '80s Dreams So Real.  Not an exact fit for the more jangly environs of say, the Strum and Thrum subset, but they come flirtatiously close on "It's Alright," and the driving "Chains."  A Montanas' 45 preceded this spotless slice of wax that I just might have to get my mitts on it.  If anyone has any pertinent deets on these guys please consider leaving a comment.  

01. It's Alright

02. New Way to the Sun

03. Should've Known

04. Sirens

05. Chains

06. Daddy Sold the Farm

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I was staring at your eyes in my wall...

An almost complete discography from these sardonic, San Diego outliers, circa 1979-89.

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