Jolt - Singles: 1992-96

For starters, this isn't the late '70s ,British power-pop act, but even if that's who you were expecting, stick around. This particular Jolt were from California, and to my knowledge, released vinyl 45s exclusively. No albums, no CDs, just singles. Perfect for the ADD contingent out there.

A little under a year ago, Ready Steady Smash blog posted a Jolt feature which you can peruse here. Jolt's crucial "Lullaby"/"Jalopy" and "Burn"/"Epilogue" 7"s were featured. This inspired me to do a more exhaustive Jolt overview, showcasing the aforementioned along records with four others that I know to exist.

 

A trio based in Fremont, California (according to the sleeves anyway), Jolt weren't the stuff of legend, nor were they anything resembling a phenomenon. Not by a long shot in fact. Building a modest underground following, seemingly by word of mouth alone, anyone who came in contact with their raspy-throated, but roaring punk-pop became an instant fan. Jawbreaker were Jolt's prevailing influence, and while they didn't share Blake Schwarzenbach and Co.'s assaulting modus operandi, they pushed the melodic envelope as far as bassist/mouthpiece Paul Duarte's strenuous croon could extend without completely konking out.

Armed with romantic, heart-on-sleeve aplomb, Jolt's yearning, slice-of-life motifs could be passed over as pedestrian in terms of lyric-sheet fodder, but the trio's ability to bring their verses roaring to life put them in league with creme de la creme contemporaries Samiam, Jawbreaker (once again), and dare I say Green Day?

What's here are twelve songs - a veritable album in itself, with remarkably strong continuity and quality control (that is with the exception of The Agony of Deceit single from 1994, featuring a pair of "experimental" oddballs that unravel from second-one). In addition to nine, near-flawless originals comes a faithful rendition of Husker Du woefully ignored Candy Apple Grey gem, "Eiffel Tower High," - perhaps the first and last time the song was covered. 

 

Sheer brilliance abounds.

 

01. Let It Go

02. Tilt

03. Lullaby

04, Jalopy

05. Burn

06. Epilogue

07. Emily

08. Eiffel Tower High

09. Celeste

10. Old Milwaukee

11. Down

12. Tragedy 

 

1 & 2 (1992, split 7" w/ Wynona Riders, THD Records)
3 & 4 1992, Shredder Records)
5 & 6 (1993, Buzzsaw Records, 2nd pressing on Shredder)
7 & 8 (1996, Rhetoric Records)
9 & 10. (1996, World Static Records)

11 & 12 Tragedy (aka Agony of Deceipt 1994, Custodial Records)

Hear

Full Fathom Five - Multinational Pop Conglomerate (1989)

By popular request, Full Fathom Five's third and final album. This is the CD version with two bonus tracks. 16 friggin songs. Enjoy (or not).

01. Paint Another Picture
02. A Little Hope
03. My Friend George
04. American Machine
05. Babyland
06. A Purpose
07. Return to a Place Called Home
08. Talking About Business
09. Caroline
10. Pickup
11. Who's In Control Here Anyway
12. Mellow Song
13. Exit
14. Open Letter
15. She Lied
16. Night Watch

Hear

Singles Going Single #36 - Joybus 7" ep (1991, Catalyst)

Sure, the sleeve is a totally daft on this one, but for your ears’ sake make an effort to get past it. The little known Joybus were a quartet residing in Benicia, CA, on the outskirts of Oakland in the early '90s. Indulging in the local ‘popcore’ trend du-jour, Joybus found themselves squarely in league with the likes of such area DIY luminaries as Fifteen, Soup, and the Wynona Riders (no, I’m not kidding about the name of that last one). Sonically, they were economic to a fault, but Joybus’ humble ruminations on romantic angst played on a universal theme nonetheless, making for a gratifying listen. 

01. Cold

02. Thief

03. Separation

04. Kitchen Paint 

 

Hear

Singles Going Single #35 - Handsome 7'" (1996(?), Full City Blend)

Allmusic can give you a much better overview of Handsome than I ever could:

When five pieces from the splintered membership of hardcore's most influential '90s outfits came together, Handsome was formed and the songwriting, textural, and creative limits of an entire genre of rock music were expanded to a previously unimaginable degree. At its center, Handsome was directed by former Helmet guitarist Peter Mengede. While not officially credited as the group's songwriter, Mengede's very identifiable riffs and song structures seem to be a musical basis for Handsome's music. Ex-Quicksand guitarist Tom Capone also had a significant impact on Handsome's tight yet exotic hardcore grind. Joining Mengede and Capone on the band's one and only release — 1997's eponymous debut on Epic — are drummer Pete Hines (Cro-Mags, Murphy's Law), bassist Eddie Nappi, and Salt Lake City area vocalist Jeremy Chatelain.

While Handsome retained the eminently powerful lock-step guitar licks that Helmet established as their calling card, the approach is decidedly less brusque here. Incorporating just enough accessible melodicism, it's easy to surmise why a major label, in this case, Epic, would salivate over Handsome, given their multi-faceted appeal. The band's self-titled debut tanked, perhaps with the exception of the built-in fans that were groomed on Handsome's aforementioned predecessors. Needless to say, lineage doesn't necessarily spell a recipe for success.

This single preceded the album by what I'm estimating to be a year or several months (sorry, no copyright date provided). If features a bruising, early version of "Needles" that would make it's way onto Handsome in a different incarnation. The quite-loud-quiet, non-LP a-side "Waiting," represents them at their most dynamic. 
 

A. Waiting

B. Needles 
 

Hear

The Bardots - Eye-Baby (1992, Cheree)

On their debut album, Eye-Baby, England's Bardots suggest the crystalline jangle-pop that emerged from the C86 movement a few years prior, as well as dream-pop bands like Revolver and Chapterhouse, indigenous to their homeland. Problem is, when this was issued in 1992, The UK was knee-deep in Manchester mania, as well as the burgeoning Brit-Pop phenomenon that threatened to take over the world. Presumably, this scenario (not to mention their label Cheree going belly up shortly after Eye-Baby's release) made it difficult for a fringe act like The Bardots to make inroads at home or abroad. It's a shame because their's plenty of gold here that any fan of say, Straitjacket Fits or Venus Beads would do smashingly well with.

1995 saw the release of the largely uneven Bardots follow-up album, V-Neck. In 1998, a compilation of singles and out of print songs titled Sad Anne followed in 1998. The Bardots releases are somewhat difficult to track down, but worth the effort if this album makes a believer out of you. You can satisfy more of your Bardots curiosity here and here.

01. Pretty O
02. Chained-Up
03. Cruelty Blonde
04. Sister Richard
05. Slow Asleep
06. Sunsetted
07. My Cute Thought
08. Obscenity Thing
09. Gloriole
10. Caterina
11. Shallow

Hear

Snatches of Pink - Dead Men (1989, Dog Gone)

Chapel Hills Snatches of Pink have been on-again, off-again southern fried inide-rawk proposition for over twenty years now. Dead Men, saw the light of day in '89, and although it was their second long-player (preceded by '87s Send in the Clowns) it was the first to go digital. Ablaze with lotsa grit, a modicum of twang, and just enough restraint to keep the whole shebang from careening off the rails, the Snatches Dead Men is a minor masterstroke of ragged, yet unmistakably earnest rock 'n roll fervor. The best moments are the opening selections "Salty Dog," and "Bed of Nails," but the remainder is rewarding for those patient enough to acquire the 'taste' (or perhaps "dust" might be more accurate).

The band would rechristen themselves as Clarissa in the mid '90s, splinter not too long thereafter, and reunite under their original moniker in 2003, with the stunning comeback album, Hyena.

 

01. Salty Dog

02. Bend of Nails

03. Song

04. Midway

05. Witch Dance

06. How the West Was Won

07. Look Away

08. Sleeping Dogs

09. Goin' Down

 

Hear

Full Fathom Five - The Cry of a Falling Nation (1987)

Even the most ardent, ear-to-the-ground indie rock connoisseurs in the late '80s can be forgiven for letting Iowa City, Iowa's Full Fathom Five slip by with nary a trace. Given their circumstances of hailing from a flyover state, coupled with less than adequate record distribution, FFF's dilemma was a not uncommon one of their era. On their Link Records debut, The Cry of a Falling Nation, Eric Melcher pins half-crooned bronchials to a tapestry of buzzsaw riffs that would do the brothers Reid proud. The songwriting is slack in spots, and there isn't a single defining moment here to really put this record over the top, but listenable nonetheless. If anything, Cry... cemented a reasonably durable foundation for more convincing moments to come, specifically 1989's improved Multinational Pop Conglomerate, which may see the light of day on Wilfully Obscure in the coming months. As for the Hendrix retread, it's just kind of...there.

The front sleeve was considerably defaced with radio station call letters and catalog stickers, so I've opted to depict the reverse instead. Boogie 'til ya puke ya'll.

 

01. The Way We Communicate

02. Isaac's Eyes

03. What He Needs

04. Words

05. Hours

06. The Order of the Space

07. Moving Too Fast

08. Listen

09. Hard Times

10. It Wasn't Jesus

11. Foxey Lady

12. The Cry of a Falling Nation

 

Hear

Ultra Cindy - Mermaid's Parade (1994, Earthling) & V/A - Wyatt's Torch (1994, Brilliant/Spinart)

I suppose it wouldn't be inaccurate to term Ultra Cindy as part of the "second-wave" of shoegazer bands, part of the unheralded American contingent that featured contemporaries Fudge and The Swirlies. Like the aforementioned, the Virginia Beach-rooted Ultra Cindy also had their sights set on something other than the floor. Their most sublime moments, particularly Mermaid Parade's stunning opener "Hoyt," as well as "Starblazer" benefited greatly from the echoing, tremolo-laced glaze the quartet was wont to embellishment them with, but strains of more straightforward anglophile pop cropped up elsewhere. Ultra Cindy failed to make it onto the field in time to be included in the dream-pop vanguard, and despite their capabilities they were barely regarded as a footnote.

Had it not been for the Wyatt's Torch four-band compilation, The Mermaid's Parade wouldn't be a component of this posting. I initially bought it for the inclusion of Poole, a whip-smart indie-rock troupe, also from Virginia, with considerable power pop leanings. It was here that I made the discovery of Ultra Cindy. Featured here are four alternate recordings of songs that made it onto their lone album. The Wyatt's Torch arrangements have a rawer, and from my experience, a more visceral bent that didn't quite translate over to the album. This collection also includes two Richmond, VA natives, The Technical Jed and The Seymores, the latter impressing mightily with a host of slackeresque, yet melodic tendencies.

 

Ultra Cindy - The Mermaid's Parade

01. Hoyt

02. Fever Pitch

03. 18 Stories Down

04. Eusebio

05. Starblazers

06. Neat

07. Red Nails

08. Crinoline

09. Near Perfect

10. Dean Henry 
 

V/A - Wyatt's Torch 
 

Poole

01. Si

02. Tangle Up

03. So Peaceful When He Sleeps

04. Smiley Mr. Lion 

The Seymores

05. Sicker Than You

06. Drywall

07. Red Snapper

08. Sidewinder 

The Technical Jed

09. Hanging Brain

10. Moebius Strip

11. New Messengers of Happiness

12. Dual Buckets

Ultra Cindy

13. Hoyt

14. Starblazer

15. Neat

16. Near Perfect
 

Ultra Cindy: Hear

Wyatt's Torch comp: Hear

Singles Going Single #34 - Chopper One 7" (1995, usaside1/Dummy)

Even in the John Luerssen-penned Weezer bio River’s Edge, from 2004, it’s somewhat unclear whether original ax-slinger Jason Cropper was exiled from, or left the band on his own volition, but Chopper One would wind up being his cup of lemonade extracted from the proverbial lemon. Considering the lucrative entity Weezer would soon become, I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t Cropper’s loss, but as far as I’m concerned it was River’s as well, evidenced by the strength of the two songs here, and even more so on Chopper One’s debut album, Now Playing. Jason’s sonic template paralleled River’s to a certain extent, not the least of which being the fuzz-addled guitars, but I’ve always found Chopper One’s material more relatable and endearing. Admittedly, Now Playing’s revisions of “Free Lunch” and “Mr. Waldon” were an improvement over these vinyl incarnations, but eminently catchy as they are, it’s hard to complain. You can obtain Now Playing for mere pennies on Amazon.

A. Free Lunch
B. Mr. Waldon

Hear

Singles Going Single #33 - Shufflepuck (1994, Catapult)

L.A.’s Shufflepuck first came onto my radar via the Hear You Me! compilation CD. Upon hearing their absolutely flooring “Where the Hell is She?” I went on an immediate manhunt to procure any sliver of info on a relentless quest for more Shufflepuck material, and by and large my efforts weren’t terribly fruitful. That was until I found this single, featuring an alternate version of “Where the Hell...,” and the accompanying flip, “Fool Like Me,” both devastating slices of riveting, power chord-laden power-pop, or at any rate a heavier variation thereof. In the coming years I eventually made contact with Shufflepuck lead-man Adam Orth, and furthermore learned that the band had their proverbial wings clipped just as their first major label album was slated to hit shelves, which you can read all about here. If “Where The Hell’s” mesmerizingly addictive hooks weren’t enough to perk your eardrums, the song touches on a subject that spells ‘worst-case scenario’ for many, if not all men pursuing the fairer sex…and strangely enough you can hum along to it.

A. Where the Hell Is She?
B. Fool Like Me

Hear

The Special Goodness - At Some Point, Birds and Flowers Become Interesting (2001)

Thought I'd throw this on here before I send it to the lucky Ebay winner. The Special Goodness is the side-project for Weezer guitarist, Buffalo's very own Patrick Wilson. The self released At Some Point... is the second Special Goodness album (aka "Pinecone"). Sonically, these songs come from the same place as the last couple of Weezer albums, but without Rivers on board, not as stimulating or for that matter charismatic. This album was followed up by the Epitaph released Land Air Sea. Enjoy (or not).

01-You Know I'd Like To See
02-The Story Is Wrong
03-Life Goes By
04-Whatever's Going On
05-Let Go
06-Say It
07-Let's Go Down
08-Reason To Worry
09-What You're On
10-Happy

Hear

The Downsiders - lp (1987, Black Park)

The Downsiders were yet another band to quietly emerge from the "new south" in the mid-80s, which makes the fact that Mitch Easter's omission in the credits as something of a surprise. The North Carolina quartet plays ringing, collegiate guitar-pop with the best of them, but tend to emanate to the more "downcast" side of the fence, in league with the likes of Dreams So Real and the Rain Parade. Over the course of what feels like a very lengthy nine-song album, The Downsiders grows a little redundant, but if you're an aficionado of this stuff, there's plenty of decadent nooks and crannies to excavate and revel in. The band released a second album, All My Friends Are Fish, on Mammoth Records in 1989.

01. Another Horn's Cry (Count on Your Hands)
02. Fourth Falling
03. Curl of Hair
04. My Only Reply
05. Or So He Said
06. Mudslide
07. Ugly History
08. Goodnight Troll
09. How We Used to Play

Hear

Singles Going Single #32 - The Pods "It's a Bummer About Bourbie" 7" ep (1992, Stone)

As Evan Dando said himself, "I"ve never been too good with names." If you happen to be Ben Deily, former co-singer/songwriter for The Lemonheads, I suppose you'd have a right to harp about the fact that said band forged ahead without you, retaining the moniker in the process. The cutoff point for Deily was shortly after their third and final Taang! Records album, Lick, released in 1989. Not only did Deily jump ship, but bassist Jesse Peretz departed as well. The Deily-helmed Pods (yet another power trio) arose almost immediately afterward, but made a minimal impact in comparison to Evan's "altera-hunk", Spin-cover adorning status that was shortly in the offing.

During the Deily era, The Lemonheads produced three rough and tumble punk-pop doozies - Hate Your Friends (1987), Creator (1988), and the aforementioned Lick. Dando unarguably dominated this trifecta of barn-burners by leaps and bounds, but the notably higher-pitched (not to mention a bit hoarse) Deily left his mark with some considerable songwriting contributions, including lacerating offerings like "Second Chance," "Uhhh," "Ever," and a walloping reworking of "Amazing Grace."

While the exact impetus for Deily's resentment of Dando remains something of a mystery (at least to myself), you can do a lot of reading into It's a Bummer's... lead-off cut, the fairly telltale "Name In Vain." Maybe there's more to the story, or maybe there isn't. The rest is purely conjecture I suppose. With the emergence of the Pods came a rapidly maturing and lucid-throated Ben Deily. "Name In Vain" is the 'statement' here, but the keeper is the flip-side's "New Stings," which really finds the man coming into his own. This single was followed up with a just as worthy album, Where I'm Calling From in 1994, but both didn't enjoy wide-scale release or promotion.

IMHO Deily's departure from the Lemonheads was appropriately timed, as I seriously question if he would have inhabited a comfortable spot on the refined 'heads albums to follow, specifically It's a Shame About Ray, and Come on Feel... Unfortunately he wasn't able to stake his own legacy with the Pods, or for that matter, as a solo artist. I guess we can't all grow up to be "alterna-hunks," can we? 
 

01. Name in Vain

02. Can't Win

03. New Strings

04. Blackout 
 

Hear

Various - Four Dots (1998, Montesano)

The germ that inspired the location-specific Four Dots compilation was the death of curator Adam Gimbel's girlfriend Summer Brannin, who passed at the tender age of 21 due to cancer. Per the liner notes, Summer developed a taste for indie-pop bands from the Pacific northwest, as well as maritime provinces Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. The four cities/towns specifically honed in on here are Seattle, WA; Bellingham, WA; Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Moncton, New Brunswick.

The international plethora of musical combos that comprise this album were many of Summer's favorites, including Bellingham's then nascent Death Cab for Cutie, proving if anything else, she really had her ear to the ground. Not a "hit parade" so to speak, Four Dots features a bevy of exceptional Washington state guitar pop acts, like Tubetop, Five Gears In Reverse, Peter Parker, that didn't make much of a dent beyond their overcast hometowns. The Emerald City is furthermore represented by the Ken Stringfellow helmed Twin Princess, and the long-running Green Pajamas.

The Moncton and Halifax entries are less recognizable, but the latter city's creme-de-la-creme rawk ambassadors, Thrush Hermit, deliver the vigorous yet sublimely tuneful "Everybody's Gotta Move," one of the choicest nuggets in their catalog, and exclusive to this comp no less. We're also treated to a contribution from Halifax's Elevator Through Hell, an offshoot of Eric's Trip, not to mention noiseniks North of America. Sackville's Sycamores chime in with the Weezer indebted "Me & You," and The Peter Parkers (different from the Seattle band, strangely enough) sweeten the pot to further delight. Four Dots is one of those rare compilations that you buy with one band in mind, only to be introduced to half-a-dozen others that will become eventual favorites. I really dug this one.
 

01-Tubetop - So Blind

02-Thursh Hermit - Everybody's Gotta Move

03-Elevator Through Hell - Only Sea To Thought

04-The Revolutionary Hydra - Everything Sounds So New

05-Rebecca West - Dead Men (Don't Sing Along)

06-Green Pajamas - Ballerina

07-Death Cab For Cutie - Hindsight

08-The Peter Parkers (Canada) - Different Kind of Stride

09-Veer - Deep Freeze

10-North of America - Walking in Greatcoats

11-Appleseed Apart - Two Separate Hills

12-Purple Knight - To Our Moderesty

13-Twin Princess - Gimme a Kiss

14-This Busy Monster - Don't Walk Away

15-5 Gears in Reverse - Apathetic Regimen

16-The Sycamores - Me & You

17-The Delusions - 96 Beers

18-Peter Parker (USA) - Aesthetic of Dumb

19-The Microphones - Bass Drum Dream
 

Hear

Singles Going Single #31 - Christmas (the band) 7" (1984, Iridescence)

Yes, Virginia, there really was a band called Christmas, and they were damn good. A co-ed trio from Cambridge, MA, Christmas' quirky but compelling post-punk/indie-pop, assumedly made minor ripples left of the dial, but little elsewhere. According to a highly informative band bio found here, this was their debut release, featuring the Mission of Burma-inflected "Wilhelm Reich." It would later be followed by their first album, In Excelsior Day-Glo in '86. Christmas signed to IRS Records for their next album, the often wondrously melodic Ultraprophets of Thee Psykick Revolution, which saw the light of day in 1989 to little fanfare. A third album, Vortex was posthumously issued in '93 on Matador Records. Perhaps Christmas' true claim to fame was that it served as a launching pad for an eventual reformation as wry, cocktail revivalists Combustible Edison in the early 90s. I apologize in advance for the vinyl noise.

A. The Invisible Girl
B. Wilhelm Reich

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Dragnet - Life in General (1988, Whittier)

Yet another bargain bin find that panned out nicely. I have precious little info to disclose about this Minneapolis punk-savvy, power trio, but even the briefest listen to Life in General will yield that Dragnet were undeniably a product of their era, and more tellingly, location. You could say some of their Mpls contemporaries rubbed off on them just slightly (ha ha). The proceedings here lean a bit pedestrian at times, but Dragnet's revved-up fervor, as well as a deliberate-or-not penchant for keeping all of the dozen songs here under the three minute mark, compensates more than satisfactorily.

01. Recycled Day
02. Five Days
03. Love is Green
04. So Sincere
05. Situation Nowhere
06. The Race is On Today
07. Did You Compromise
08. Falling Down
09. Just Disappear
10. Life in General
11. Radio Won't Play
12. Did I Say

Hear

Singles Going Single #s 29 & 30 - Solomon Grundy (1991, New Alliance) & Dr. Janet (1990, Ringers Lactate)

The Screaming Trees will always be defined not only by Mark Lanegan's husky bellow, but it's colossal backbone, namely brothers Gary Lee Conner and Van Conner, rounding things out on guitar and bass respectively. Circa the Trees Uncle Anesthesia album in 1990, the Conners produced two worthy spin off outfits.

Van Conners's baby was dubbed Solomon Grundy, ostensibly named after the brute force villain in the Legion of Doom, but I won't go into that any further. Van's axe-squalling, pysch-freakouts that colored many a Screaming Trees tune were also adorned on Grundy's one and only album, unofficially known as Stone Soup and Other Stories. More hard rock than grunge, the band surged forth with sturdy, mid-tempo finesse, but as a whole, far from a classic. Alongside Stone Soup, Solomon Grundy also released a companion single, both releases coming courtesy of the SST Records offshoot label, New Alliance. Their lone single featured a rather faithful rendition of Rush's signature hit, "Spirit of Radio," and the non-lp, "I'm Not the Freak." Although a Rush cover seemed ironic at best, at the time anyway, it's arguably more entertaining then Van Conner's original compositions. In fact, if you listen closely as the song trails off, they segue into Rush's "Limelight." Neat. Really neat actually.

Both Van and Gary Lee Conner are of considerable...well...girth. Despite this fact, their vocals are surprisingly fey held up against Lanegan's golden throat. Gary Lee's day in the sun came in the form of The Purple Outside, who like Grundy also recorded one album (Mystery Lane) that happened to bear the New Alliance imprint. However, this intrepid crusader had another trick up his flanneled sleeve. Enter the 1990 one-off, un-super-group Dr. Janet. Spearheaded by Gary Lee, the group was further bolstered with axe/bass slinger Matt Sweeney of the then active Skunk (who you really should check out), and in years to come, Chavez and Zwan. Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan also straps on a bass, while drummer Lyle R. Hysen, formerly of Das Damen fleshes out the ranks. For better or worse, Dr. Janet's "Ten Years Gone" ain't the Zeppelin tune, but "Starry Eyes" is The Records power-pop classic for the ages. A good time was had by all - at least I hope so.

Solomon Grundy

A. Spirit of Radio

B. I'm Not the Freak

 

Dr. Janet

A. Ten Years Gone

B. Starry Eyes

 

Solomon Grundy: Hear

Dr. Janet: Hear

Luxurious Bags - Frayed Knots (1995)

With the rapid dissolution of independent (and even some chain) record stores, not only are discophiles like yours truly left with fewer places to buy tangible recordings, we're also left with fewer places to be exposed to music. Case in point is the Luxurious Bag's excellent mini-album, Frayed Knots. This band would have remained unbeknownst to me, at least indefinitely, had I not heard this cd played in-store at Reckless Records in Chicago a few years ago. Something tells me this experience wouldn't be duplicated at say, FYE or a big box retailer. In-store play sells records - always has, always will...that is until there's no more stores...

Before approaching Frayed Knots, it would be to your benefit to be acclimated with Polvo. While the Luxurious Bags don't share any affiliation with the Chapel Hill quartet, they take more than a couple pages from Polvo's chord-mangling indie-rawk days of yore, particularly their earlier releases like 1993's gloriously dissonant, Todays Active Lifestyles. The Bags slide the lo-fi quotient up a few notches, while carrying a tune at the same time. Furthermore, the songwriting occasionally strikes an emphatic tenor here, a move that's an anathema to most noiseniks.

The Luxurious Bags earlier recordings, collected on Quarantine Heaven were a largely in one ear, out the other proposition, leaving Frayed Knots as the band's most essential offering.
 

01. All the Time in the World

02. Movie Mind

03. Woolite

04. Lost Wallet

05. 12 Miles Back

06. This Won't Help a Bit

07. Eyes Tell Me, Hands Tell Me

Hear

Singles Going Single #28 - The Fans 7" (1979, Albion)

I'm still trying to make sense of this one. I was such a sucker for the eye catching sleeve, I paid $8 for it on that basis alone. The Fans were from Atlanta, GA, and were considered one of the first, if not the first new wave band from The Peach State. Utterly feigned British accents gave many the impression they were from the UK, and the fact that this wax was minted on a Brit label only added to the "myth." Signposts here point squarely to Pink Flag/Chairs Missing-era Wire. "Cars and Explosions" wields a sly melody that sneaks in and out, buttressed with strong dynamics. On the flip, "Dangerous Goodbyes," The Fans offer a comparatively linear and sustained attack, albeit less memorable than the A-side.

You can read an alternate write-up on The Fans here (just scroll down a ways).
 

A. Cars and Explosions

B. Dangerous Goodbyes
 

Hear

Ken Stringfellow - SXSW 2004, Austin, TX

This cd-r of Ken Stringfellow's performance at SXSW in March of 2004, was given away for free with pre-orders of his third solo effort, Soft Commands. No room for Posies (or Saltine) material here folks, but Ken's solo work succeeds just as well by it's own merits. The emphasis here is on Soft Commands selections, as well as choice cuts from his preceding solo record, the even more stimulating Touched. Just Ken, a guitar, and a modest audience. No venue info provided. An impeccable soundboard recording, with entertaining inter-song chatter. No venue info provided. Ripped @ sparkling 256 kbps. Enjoy. 

01. introduction

02. Death of a City

03. Cyclone Graves

04. chatter

05. Known Diamond

06. chatter - switching to guitar

07. chatter - music theory

08. Any Love

09. chatter - tuning, back catalog intro

10. The Lover's Hymn

11. chatter

12. Here's to the Future

 

Hear

Sour Landslide - They Promised Us Jobs (1997)

Toronto's Sour Landslide were one of many bands I discovered on a barn-burning, mid-90s compilation of Canadian bands called Popcan, perhaps a subject of investigation for a later post, but as always, I digress.

The two boy, one girl trio swiped their moniker from an REM lyric (in "Moral Kiosk" from Murmur to be exact). While their debut, Friends of Dracula utterly failed to do Sour Landslide justice, they made amends with the exponentially more satisfying They Promised Us Jobs in 1997. Akin to Shoes (the band) on a serious Nirvana kick, SL had their hooks and hearts in all the right places. Vince Nicholson's buzzing guitar salvos and melodic paeans to post-academic life, not to mention an array of romantic conundrums, dovetailed seamlessly with Landslide's crack rhythm section, occupied by bassist Vern Nicholson and skins-woman, Dee Gorvath. "Guns of Navarone," "Pop Knows a Weasel," and the more subdued "Hired Goons" are just three of fourteen exemplary selections, comprising a rather inconspicuous power-pop stunner that isn't likely to gain any further recognition - outside of Wilfully Obscure of course.
 

01. Human Rain Delay

02. Houdini

03. Star Search

04. Don't Call Me Stupid

05. Ghost Story

06. You Killed My Son

07. Guns of Navarone

08. Fuckin' Freak

09. Pop Knows a Weasel

10. Congratulations

11. Get To Know Me

12. Lenny

13. Hired Goons

14. Hero vs. Heroine
 

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Smudge - Tea, Toast & Turmoil (1993) & Hot Smoke & Sassafras ep (1994)

Never heard of Smudge? Chances are, if you're a Lemonheads fan, you have likely heard Tom Morgan's (Smudge frontman) songs, including "It's A Shame About Ray," and "The Outdoor Type." In fact, co-songwriting credits between Tom and Evan can be found all over Come On and Feel the Lemonheads. Defunct (with the exception of a few recent one-off gigs), co-ed power-trio Smudge hailed from points south, Sydney, Australia to be exact. Evan Dando has returned the favor by penning songs for Morgan, as well as a tribute song to Smudge drummer Alision Galloway, in the form of "Alison's Starting to Happen" from It's a Shame About Ray.

Smudge existed for the better part of the '90s, but only their first two albums saw any distribution in North America. Morgan and Co. had a penchant for up-tempo, riff-happy power pop with an emphasis on conciseness and the kind of hooks to give a right nut for. 1993's Tea, Toast & Turmoil was their debut album, rife with bitchin' two-minute ear confections, adorned with clever wordplay. In a perfect world, "Spoilt Brat," and "Don't Want to Be Grant McLennan" should have been universal classics that usurped the hollow dreck churned out by such embarrassing contemporaries as Hootie and Collective Soul.

The Hot Smoke and Sassafras ep came a year later, delivering more brisk, tongue-in-cheek tunes. Manilow, their second proper album broke Smudge to a larger audience in Oz, but did little to make waves Stateside. The two disks this post concerns are out of print, but Manilow was reissued as a splendid, two-disk deluxe edition, on Half a Cow Records.

"Somewhere between the Lemonheads and Husker Du, she keeps on getting on top of the sink but she can't get on top of you." from "Alison" 

 

Tea, Toast & Turmoil

01. Superhero

02. Missing You

03. Spolit Brat

04. Straight Face Down

05. Outside

06. Make All Our Dreams Come True

07. Pulp

08. plug It Up

09. Divan

10. Alison

11. Don't Want To Be Grant Mclennan

12. Stranglehold

13. Dabble

14. Leroy de Foix

15. Tea Toast & Turmoil

16. Foccacia

17. Steak & Chips

18. Babaganouj

Hot Smoke & Sassafras ep

01. The Wrong Pony

02. I Am Not the Cosmos

03. Coal Srge

04. My Bright Idea

05. It's Over

06. Tenderfoot

07. Guess I'm a Goner

08. All the Money in the World Can't Buy You A Near Death Experience 

 

These are now available on iTunes and Amazon.

Singles Going Single #27 - The Affected 7" (1991, Rubber)

There's not a whole lot of info floating around in cyberspace on this long gone Aussie trio. I discovered The Affected by virtue of their debut (and perhaps only) album, the ingeniously titled A Fate Worse Than a Fate Worse Than Death, in 1994. Brandishing a searing, indie-punk panache with a faint but bratty No Depression-inflected sneer tacked on for good measure, The Affected were about as genuine and earnest as they came, especially by today's standards. Much rawer than their comparatively refined album, this 45's gloriously powerful thirteen minutes finds the Affected on a blistering tear, on par with some of the choicest, American indie rock, circa 1986. And that's a damn good thing.

01. Livin' a Lie
02. What
03. Cutdown
04. Feelin Alright

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Chapterhouse - Pearls and Treasures (1990-91)

For any of you familiar with Chapterhouse, I need not go into how immensely superb they were, if only for one mind blowing album, 1991's Whirlpool. For everyone else, you can safely be forgiven, as it probably isn't your fault that you haven't been acquainted with them, thanks to the press and indie radio stations that were too busy drooling on themselves over much more anointed dream-pop titans of the era, My Bloody Valentine and Lush. Though this Reading, England quartet were of first class caliber, they were forever treated as second-string newbies, and never enjoyed the limelight. As far as early '90s shoegazer rock goes, there were many outstanding bands, but I have yet to find one that was as ethereal, transporting, and utterly engulfing as Chapterhouse.

Though they blew it on their 1993 followup, the dance heavy, Blood Music, and split shortly after, Whirlpool is crucial listening. You can obtain the 2006 reissue of it here. To the converted, Pearls and Treasures is a collection of radio session tracks and live cuts from two different concerts, that makes a fine companion to the band's halcyon era album. I know, like you really need three different versions of "Something More" on one disk. Chapterhouse weren't terribly prolific, so take what you can get and enjoy.

Mark Goodier session

01. Breather

Peel Session 10/7/90

02. Falling Down

03. Something More

04. Inside of Me

London, Marquee 9/3/91

05. Breather

06. Something More

07. Treasure

08. Then We'll Rise

09. Pearl

10. Autosleeper

Paris, La Locomotive 4/13/91

11. In My Arms

12. Something More

13. Come Heaven

14. Feel the Same

15. Pearl

16. Autosleeper

17. Falling Down

18. Rain

 

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Tictoc - Where the Picnic Was (1983)

Alright, I might as well fulfill my "new romantic" quota for 2008 and get it out of the way. Seriously, this one really is an obscurity. My information on this assumedly Canadian band is merely limited to the LP jacket. No insert with any pertinent band info provided, and not a speck of cereal to be excavated online. Nada. Nothing. Zip. Zero. Bupkis. What I can tell you is that Tictoc's album, Where the Picnic Was, saw the light of day in 1983 on the Canadian indie label Dallcorte Records. You should also be informed that the quartet appears in a very distant shot on the back of the sleeve, and furthermore appear to be of Hispanic descent, but that's purely a guess on my part. Heck, I can't even give you the proper names of this quartet. Since this was purchased secondhand, something tells me there was a long misplaced lyric/stat sheet that went with this record.

Signposts lean heavily to Duran Duran here, sans the arena-rock appeal and ego. Where the Picnic Was is actually a quality synth-pop record, that for better or worse, is highly derivative of it's era. There's really nothing here that echos as timeless as say, "Love Plus One," or "Space Age Love Song," (by Haircut 100 and A Flock of Seagulls respectively, for all you youngsters), but nevertheless, Tictoc's familiar strain of new wave was fun, Anglo, and otherwise totally in vogue despite the fact that they ostensibly failed to make any inroads in Canada, or anywhere for that matter. Extra crackly vinyl this time around. Sorry folks.
 

01. Twenty Questions

02. Cry on Cue

03. Critical Path

04. Anything Everything

05. Open for Suggestions

06. In My Room

07. Halo

08. Crown of Snakes

09. V.F.W. 
 

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