A re-issue of this 1996 collection of 7" tracks by the amazing but unfortunately now-defunct VSS. Not quite as excellent as their full-length "Nervous Circuits" (which is rumoured to be on it's way to a re-issue also. Fingers crossed!), but definitely offers many a glimpse at the awesomeness of this band. The sound? Dissonant, angst-y and very Roland Juno 6 synth-driven. Totally furious and ass-kicking. FYI: Andy, Dave and Josh are now the excellent Portland based Pleasure Forever (formerly SF band Slaves), Sonny now heads the very label on which this release appears.
First things first, we know some folks have strong feelings both positive and negative for all things 'Star Trek'. So if you fall into either camp you might wanna disregard this band's name and the album's title completely! We found the music to reveal very little connection to Star Trek and/or Vulcans. In fact, we sensed very little overt sci-fi action here at all. Well aside from the song titles... and the galactic analog synth action that accompanies the reggae riddims. While the name choices did successfully grab out attention, we were subsequently a bit disappointed by this discovery, however, the music quickly won us over anew in surprisingly different ways! This album is sooo awesome and sooo perfect for baking in the (late) summer sun! Imagine this... what if Os Mutantes lived in Jamaica? And had a rendezvous with Perry & Kingsley, Joe Meek and an Arp 2600 synthesizer? Or how 'bout some kick-ass psychedelic prog dudes getting their reggae on while sipping fresh fruit cocktails? Got you hooked yet? Well, here's the skinny... The Vulcans were actually not a band in the traditional sense, although after hearing this cd we sure wish they were! As legend tells it, back in the early '70s some session musicians including Ken Elliot of UK prog-psych band Second Hand got together and recorded these songs. They group were dubbed The Vulcans by Trojan Records when the smart decision was made to release an album. We have to stress once again that despite what the title and band name suggest this is far from a novelty album. You can drift off, trip out or sink right into this generous serving of Vulcans tunes - there's two albums on one cd, 1972's Star Trek and perhaps slightly heavier and edgier Interstellar Reggae Drive (the latter originally released under the wacky moniker Colonel Elliot & The Lunatics). Recommended!
Approaching 30 years of making music, Tom Waits presents two wonderful albums at once, Blood Money and Alice. This collection, actually recorded many years ago but only now seeing its proper release, richly evokes particular moods and sounds of a world long gone, yet also captures a pure timeless beauty just like that of the Lewis Carroll tale. After all these years, it's truly a pleasure to see that he's still quite the wise, eccentric and immensely romantic fellow. There's such a consistency to all that he does, and that is made no clearer than when you stack these two albums up against one other. Alice is a mournful, weathered variety of songs one might just as fittingly hear coming out of a shady speakeasy or from a roaming band of minstrels. Twisting strings, subdued horns and piano, plodding rhythms and his unmistakably sandpaper-raw, billy goat's gruff voice. Smoky, sinister jazz and blues numbers entwine with looming, somber waltzes and darkly creeping, gutwrenching ballads. Although the music is definitely much more fleshed out than his great works like the Spare Change or Swordfishtrombones, this album offers many moments reminiscent of those releases. So enveloping and theatrical, if anyone's music can transport you spiralling down rabbit holes or indeed through the looking glass, his most definitely can. Recommended.
Wow, so well worth the wait! This highly anticipated M. Ward album has finally surfaced, and it's fucking fantastic!! Oooh sorry, shhh, maybe that was much too loud and boisterous an exclamation for such a beautiful work, but hopefully that gives you an ample impression of our enthusiasm for this release!
It was recorded at a number of different studios around the country with a number of different awesome performin' and producin' participants (such as Howe Gelb, Vic Chesnutt, John Parish, Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley, My Morning Jacket's Jim James, and The Old Joe Clarks), and it traverses as much of the mood and folk music spectrums as those of the geographic and personnel.
The first impression that struck us was that Transistor Radio sounds as though Mr. Ward has brought his songbook a lot closer to that of Ms Jolie Holland (or vice versa... expect much more cross-pollination between the fan camps of both artists). The recordings have that brittle old tyme-y feel but the vocal performances are overflowing with heartfelt gusto. The addition of Ms Lewis' vocals on songs such as "Big Boat") do much to reinforce this sonic kinship. Also materializing in a few of the songs is a fevered twang akin to Howe Gelb, Giant Sand or Calexico which makes sense when you find out that some of these songs were recorded at Wavelab Studios in Arizona (where those artists all record). Warm, earthy, haunting and sooo damn gorgeous! Definitely an album for sharing! Very very recommended!
I was completely crushed when I heard that Chris Ware had decided to end his Acme Novelty Company / Jimmy Corrigan comic series. A very very special and moving story by an astounding artist. At times, brutally heartwrenching, at others darkly humorous. Honestly this has brought tears to my eyes more than a few times. Completely redefining and elevating the form of the comic book. Ah, what could Mr. Ware do for a finale? Wrap the complete story up in a beautiful hardcover with a fold-out poster / dustjacket. Of course, sorely missing from this format are the added features and embellishments found in the individual comics such as the highly detailed and entertaining faux ads and extra stories. If you've not yet discovered the greatness of Chris Ware's Jimmy Corrigan, here's your chance to jump right in head first and experience it from beginning to end. So absolutely positively recommended.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Would you happen to be seeking some really epic, catchy, melodic, complex, amazing music that just happened to encorporate elements of Black Metal before Black Metal even existed? That sounds like an impossible request to fill, doesn't it? But we've got it! Look no further than this ultra obscure, short-lived California band's groundbreaking debut mini-album from 1983. Seriously, Black Metal historians know that a lot of the BM touchstones Warlord practiced predated genre titans Celtic Frost and Mercyful Fate by years. A little aQ back story, once upon a time many moons ago, it seemed that only our own Mr. Connors and his friend Dustin Donaldson (of I Am Spoonbender and co-founder of tech-prog-math-metallists Thought Industry) knew about (let alone loved!) the band Warlord. Through proximity to their gushing, Cup got to hear Warlord a whole bunch, but it only took a couple of listens to get her hooked too. So much so that she's been known to burst out singing "Winter Tears" without warning!
Proto Metal, Power Metal, call it what you will, Warlord's music embodies epic European melodicism, veiled mysticism and a haunted romanticism. It sweeps the listener up in its neo-classical movements, each one possessed with an almost medieval feel and an ever present doomed, tragic tone. The band members fearlessly tread in flamboyant theatrics, assuming mighty pseudonyms (such as Destroyer, Damian King and Thunder Child) and suitably audacious stage garb.
So how did this band fall through the proverbial cracks? Well, keep in mind that this was back in the olden days (when there were truly underground music scenes, before the age of mp3s, cdrs and the internet... alright, 'nuf jokes about us being grannies and gramps!). Beloved as they are, cassettes and vinyl lps were inarguably more labor intensive and cumbersome vehicles to spread the word about a band you loved. It was even harder once said releases vanished into the record label's out-of-print bin. So needless to say, all of the abovementioned individuals were quite elated when this mysterious reissue appeared before them.
Most of these songs are from their long-gone first mini-album, but there's a few extra fan pleasers such as the non-album single "Mrs. Victoria" plus lyrics (so that we can all sing along accurately). Unfortunately this reissue does suffer from a few disappointments -- namely rather flimsy digipak packaging and a not so hot mastering job (there's occasional slight distortion of the bad kind). Not complaining tho', the original was a less than stellar production unto itself, suffering from among other things a less than impactful final mix. And yet, all in all, the greatness of the songs still shines through!!
Causing quite a stir with our neighbours to the north, it's the Weakerthans featuring former Propagandhi member John K. Samson. Don't be expecting any fiery political punk though, this is coming from quite a different direction. However, let it be known the attention and accolades are very deserved - often-brittle vocals convey poetic narratives from and about a depressed region around Winnipeg, Manitoba (a central province of Canada). Samson is a fantastic lyricist, nailing the most achingly personal sentiments and weighty political commentaries. Desolate, intimate and filled with heartache. From the first strains of "Everything Must Go!" to the final chord of "Slips And Tangles", this is some damn fine, melancholic, hook-laden emo pop. An all-time Cup fave, 'Left and Leaving' is their second full length and it stands head and shoulders above the rest... of their own releases and any other emo band's for that matter. Very very recommended.
This is indeed the first Wedding Present album in eight years! While it's not like David Gedge has been sitting on his hands all this time -- he's had his share of other irons in the fire, one of them being the glorious band Cinerama -- but to that we still say, "Holy smokes!" The first AQ customer to buy it had this to say, "Gloriously heartbreaking. Makes me want to drink expensive liquor & sleep around." And to that we say, "Oh my!" While we didn't have quite the same reaction, we can wholeheartedly confirm that all of you Wedding Present devotees have certainly been rewarded for your admirable patience. Mr. David Gedge delivers his trademark top-notch pop goods with Take Fountain. Somewhat darker and more subdued than the WP of old, but no less captivating -- he's definitely brought a great deal of the smooth elegance of his other group Cinerama into the mix, and it blends super well. Happy to hear that even after eight years, Wedding Present pop songs continue to snap, sparkle and soar in that unmistakable Gedge fashion. Recommended.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
White Noise's first album has long been one of the holy grails for kosmische / space rock collectors. Kinda strange, actually, because it's actually more on the "exotica" Moog side of things, as opposed to a Klaus Schulze or Conrad Schnitzler production... Released in 1968 on Island in a total vacuum, An Electric Storm could be a Perrey & Kingsley soundtrack to a Radley Metzger soft-core porn film with twee psych-pop vocal melodies (a la Beach Boys, Free Design, Monkees) topped off with lots of bizarre electronic squiggles that originated in the BBC's Radiophonic Workshop (home of the Dr. Who title track). White Noise's mastermind David Vorhaus keeps things pretty surreal with a track based around the recordings made at a orgy and with a precursor to the John Balance vocal mumbles about how "darkness was enshrouded by darkness and the darkness was deadeningly dark."
Wow, this is fantastic! All on its own (i.e, even without the film for which it was made) Jim White's soundtrack to Searching For The Wrong-Eyed Jesus is one helluva stunning, evocative collection. The odd thing is, the film itself (by British filmmaker Andrew Douglas) was inspired by one of Jim White's previous albums. Funny how things come full circle, innit? Anyways, this will surely appeal to fans of Calexico and Giant Sand. The artists certainly weave similar musical tapestries, but whereas those Arizonans' music is drenched with Southwestern desert sunsets, Jim White's is conjured from the humid Deeep South. In addition to his own material, this cd includes songs by many AQ faves such as David Eugene Edwards of Sixteen Horsepower, Cat Power, Johnny Dowd, Maggie Brown, Handsome Family, Clarence Ashley, Doc Watson, Lee Sexton, Trailer Bride's Melissa Swingle, David Johansen, Larry Saltzman, and spoken word from Harry Crews (one of Andee's favortie authors EVER!). Steeped in rich imagery with plenty of soul searching and haunting gothic chills, each individual artist's contribution converges magically with the rest, making for a deeply moving and cohesive aural journey. Really, if this soundtrack's impact is even a fraction of that of the film, we're gonna totally love it. Recommended!
First things first, if you want one damn terrific song with one catchy soaring chorus with some really pretty backing vocals and some rockin' heaviness to boot, "Time Machine" by Whysall Lane is where it's at. Hey, sometimes all you need is one song! You'll be singing along and/or humming it during the day in no time. However this Bay Area based band deliver much more on their self-titled debut! This is the current incarnation of former Versus vocalist Richard Balayut's longtime personal project. Up until recently the entity named after a street in Detroit, MI was either a solo endeavor or had an ever-changing supporting cast, but now along with the solid presence of Adam Pfahler (Blackball Records bossman and ex-Jawbreaker, J-Church) on drums and Mikel Delgado (ex-Wussom*Pow) on bass and vocals, his formerly stripped-down songs have been fleshed out into rockin' full band extravaganzas -- dark and smolderingly brooding and peppered with occasional slightly proggy or postrock-ish excursions and sweetly heartfelt sentiments. As we touched on above when Delgado chimes in with her back-up vocals, they really complement Balayut's deep world-weary delivery (also check out their song "Half Life" for more dreaminess!). Recommended.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Quite possibly Lucinda Wiliiams' best album. It contains her alterna-country hit "Passionate Kisses". Despite the slick production (which seems very oddly out of place with the grit and yearning of her voice), this is simply wonderful, rootsy and earnest.
In 1978, being qualified as "the Pink Floyd of the New Wave" might have come across as something of an insult; and by today's artistic strategies of rampant revivalism such a pithy remark may ring true to many a listener. That statement was, in fact, the critique prescribed to Chairs Missing, Wire's second album, as the album decelerated the pogo punk minimalism found on their first album with an increasing use of experimental production. In hindsight, Chairs Missing is the perfect transition between the high-strung velocity of Pink Flag and the staggering gloominess of 154; yet most transition records have a clunkiness about them, like a lanky teenager not quite able to fit into his sunday best. But Chairs Missing is miles above the average transition album. To many a listener, Chairs Missing stands as the ultimate Wire album, with near perfect pop songs alternating between anthemic punk and eccentric production techniques (i.e. atonal synth drone, staccato guitar chops, overdubbed guitar distortion, etc.). Where Pink Flag kept many of the songs under a minute and half, Chairs Missing is downright baroque in its presentation of 3 minute tunes. The genius of Chairs Missing is how Colin Newman, Robert Gotobed, Bruce Gilbert, and Graham Lewis manage to steer through the diverse songwriting landscape, in how the album's opening track "Practice Makes Perfect" transitions from a delicate prance for jangled guitar into a precise expression of menace, in how "Outdoor Miner" creates the catchiest, Beatlesque chorus you'll never be able to sing back to yourself given the complexity of its rejoining, nonsensical syllables, in how jaggedly clean the guitars of Newman and Gilbert attack each other, in how Lewis' bass is fluid and effortless, in how this run-on sentence seems to have lost its way trying to fathom the complexity of Wire. If you believe that the length of Aquarius' reviews directly correlate to how good the record actually is, then we have failed as we would need to write a fucking a book about how stunning this album is. Yeah, Chairs Missing is incredible; and if you don't have it, you really should.
Okay, one thing to bitch about the reissue of Chairs Missing is that the cover is curiously bleached out of its color; the reissue also doesn't come with the (really great!) bonus tracks found on the EMI cd version of the album. Come on Wire, you released this album on your own label. At least you could give us all the bells and whistles found on other versions of this album! This is our only complaint, and a minor quibble for sure.
Everytime we've played this delicious reissue in the store, people have eagerly inquired, "Oooh, what's this?!" If you dig music that gleefully jumps boundaries and melts together genres with whimsical abandon (but NOT in the current irony-sodden, just-fuckin'-around fashion) -- in this case, a cross-cultural funneling in on the sounds of French Ye Ye Girl pop, far-out Japanese psych and prog influences, some almost-Carpenters level sing-song-y glorious pop, and assorted other vintage Euro-funkiness -- well then, Le Monde Fabuleux Des Yamasuki is for YOU!
Lovingly mastered from the original tapes by one of the original producers Monsieur Jean Kluger, this is the first time these recordings have been released on cd. Apparently there was originally one album and two singles released under the name The Yamsuki Singers on the French label Biram back in 1971. Needless to say, they've been next to impossible to find for years. If you're eager to get the skinny on Yamasuki, the project's lively history is printed in English in the liner notes, but there's also an added bonus on the back page of the booklet. If your French comprehension is any good, you can find out how to do the dance moves -- le salut, la joie, la peur, la grace, le combat, attaque (translation of this move's description: one assumes karate positions while shouting "caa ooh") and hara kiri!
By today's standards, you might find some of the 'oriental' (ahem, Asian) elements downright corny (the first song begins with a gong, and songs are introduced by a black-belt judo master!), but the sheer exuberance of the performances sweeps away any possibility of scowling criticisms. The sticker on the front proclaims "A fuzzed-out-educational-multi-cultural psych-rock-opera from 1971. Proto-psychedelic hip-hop with overweight drum beats and basslines!" Who's gonna argue with that?! Not us, we particularly appreciate the record label's use of the word "overweight". Yeah, we can hear what they're gettin' at -- the rhythm section is pretty thumpin' and hefty -- but it still made us giggle. Anyways, not to be super nit-picky but although this is indeed a conceptual album, after reading the liner notes we deduced that it's not so much a 'rock opera' per se, but more like a dance performance with lots of choral accompaniments. So who was behind all of this wonderful madness? Two French producer/composers, the aforementioned Kluger and Daniel Vangarde... and various children's choirs singing in Japanese. Ultra bizarre, campy, freaky and outrageous (again, even by today's standards!), we've got a sneaking suspicion that Ron and Russell Mael of Sparks probably saw/heard Yamasuki 'cause there sure are some striking resemblances with their own deliriously fantastic Kimono My House album that came out a few years later in 1974. You might find it sorta Zappa-ish too. Heck, it even spawned a dance move, "The Yamasuki"! Oh yeah, and if the fifth song "AIEAOA" sounds oddly familiar, you might recognize it as a song covered by Bananarama. Apparently the gals heard a version recorded by a band from Zaire (!), and loved it so much that they covered the cover "Aie A Mwana" and made it their first single!
Cup sez "Yaaaaaaaaaaaay!" Who's gonna argue with that, either?! Recommended, along with the other amazing reissue on the Finders Keepers label we reviewed last week, Jean-Claude Vannier's L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches.
Soooo worth the (nearly three year) wait! Yes, this new album from the ever-evolving Yo La Tengo can be simply described with two words: positively dreamy. With grace and ease, Ira, Georgia and James transport you to their lovely otherworld. Choosing gentle transitions over abrupt changes, with each release they've moved farther and farther from their feedback-laced, decidedly more cacaphonous early years. Which has brought them to this, their tenth album! Always bringing a little something from their previous release to their next, they've brought the pretty organ drones and sequenced beats from their last full-length 'I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One', and drawn them out over the course of a full album. Both Ira and Georgia's voices blend seamlessly into the music and into each other. In fact, it's not until track 9 that Ira pulls out his guitar for a little upbeat number reminiscent of "Sugarcube" or "From A Motel 6". With 'And Then Nothing...' Yo La Tengo have successfully created an album that moves forward, but still blankets you in a warm fuzzy familiarity.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Some of Yo La Tengo's best and dreamiest pop songs invariably got bullied out of the way by the Ira Kaplan's earlier tendencies towards Sonic Youth-ian blasts of ear-piercing guitar distortion. Such is often the case on their 1992 album May I Sing With Me, but even still, the melodic genius and intelligent, unwaveringly heartfelt lyrical sentiments stand strong and shine through the dissonance. Don't even think of calling yourself a Yo La Tengo fan if a well-worn copy (or two) of this album doesn't grace your record collection. My (Cup's) second favorite Yo La Tengo album next to Painful. Highlights: "Upside Down" and "Detouring America With Horns". Man, I could listen to those two songs back to back on repeat all day long... in fact, maybe I'll go do that now!
Finally, one of our all time favorite Yo La Tengo albums gets reissued on vinyl! Released in 1993, Painful represented a really important moment for and shift in YLT's sonic scope. While their early records were brimming with feedback and displayed a Sonic Youth like approach to rock, Painful fully introduced the more dreamy, blissed out and intoxicating side of their sound which they have continued to develop and master as the years have gone by.
Painful opens with the bittersweet "Big Day Coming", and gorgeously unfolds with some of the most beautiful and sad pop songs ever recorded, including "Nowhere Near" which still freezes us in our tracks and gives us goosebumps every time we hear it. While later albums like And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out, and I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One, might be more widely recognized as classic albums, Painful really was the blueprint for the sounds that would evolve making Yo La Tengo one of the best bands of our generation. An absolute must have!
Okay, we admit that we cringed slightly at their chosen band name (again, what is it with Canadian -- or more specifically Vancouver -- band name choices?!), but their glorious pop tunes are pretty darn hard to resist. Really, unless you're a complete stone-hearted curmudgeon, Young & Sexy's second full length will have your spirits lifted in no time! Each song has been lovingly polished to a wonderful warm glow with delicious multi-part harmonies and lush instrumentation. The third song "Herculean Bellboy" is a definite highlight. Come to think of it, have ya noticed Canada's stronghold on the swoonsome pop these days?! AQ superfaves New Pornographers, Destroyer, Broken Social Scene, P:Ano, The Gay, Metric... and now Young & Sexy! You may have been lucky enough to see them on tour recently opening for their Mint Records brethren and fellow Vancouverites the New Pornographers. And actually, they're sort of like the mellow side of the NPs and Zumpano melded with the honeydrop girl group vocal sweetness of UK bands such as Broadcast, Belle & Sebastian or Camera Obscura. We sell at least one of these each time it's played in the store!
Young Marble Giants' true minimal masterpiece, Colossal Youth, receives yet another reissue. Whatta cause for celebration -- this is absolutely essential listening (and Cup and Windy don't use that word lightly, mind you)! This British trio's existence was ever so fleeting, and they only had one proper album, but what a leftfield classic it is. It sounds *totally unique*, like nothing before, and has made a huge impact in the many years since it was originally released in 1980. Seriously -- this is one of those classic albums that not only has influenced tons of musicians (Hole even covered "Credit in the Straight World", but don't hold that against YMG!) but is also great listening in and of itself. It ranks up there with, like, The Velvet's first record, Neu!, the Raincoats, Pere Ubu's Modern Dance, etc etc.
A very hushed, metronome-sounding drum machine ticks out the tireless beat of each song like a friendly clock, and its neutral tone is also reflected in Alison Statton's girlish, earnest, not always pitch-perfect vocals as well as in the muted string strum of Stuart Moxham's electric guitar. Spartan, angular strikes from the same guitar punctuate this steady atmosphere as a frail organ does its wheezing, bleeting melodic best and Philip Moxham's rubbery bass line hesitantly bends and bounds. Minimal and no-frills, yes, but somehow there's so much more going on, and so much more expressed than its quietness belies. The songs are tiny and simple and total perfection. Powerful and totally f**king timeless and yes, very highly recommended.
(We believe this just might be the fourth edition. In the past, each time it's been pressed the track listing has increased, but not so with this Play It Again Sam America pressing. The song count remains at twenty five. Might be that there simply aren't any more recordings left in the vault to plunder. Not that we're complaining, we just wish a label would once and for all release it and be able to keep it available forever and ever and ever! Hopefully PIAS America is that label. Heck, we're truly fortunate to have as much YMG music as we do!)
Young Marble Giants' minimal masterpiece, Colossal Youth, receives yet another reissue (the fifth or sixth to date)! This one is extra super special because it's a three cd set which compiles ALL of their previously released music! So you not only get the fifteen songs that make up the Colossal Youth album, but also a five song Peel Session from 1980, six songs from their 1981 Testcard EP, three from the Final Day single, sixteen from their 2000 Salad Days album, and their first ever recorded appearance titled "Ode To Booker T" from the 1979 compilation Is The War Over?.
Needless to say, it's a cause for celebration! Absolutely essential listening. This UK trio's existence was ever so fleeting, and they only had one proper album, but what a leftfield classic it is. It sounds *totally unique*, like nothing before and pretty much nothing since. Amid the aggression and edginess of the post-punk movement, YMG emerged as a remarkably stark, understated and utterly engaging wonder. It has made an enormous impact in the many years since its original release in 1980. Seriously, this is one of those classic albums that has influenced tons of musicians (Hole even covered "Credit in the Straight World", but don't hold that against YMG!). It ranks up there with, like, The Velvet Underground's first record, Neu!, the Raincoats, Pere Ubu's Modern Dance, etc., etc.
Their music's simplicity is deceptive. A very hushed, metronome-sounding drum machine ticks out the tireless beat of each song like a friendly clock, and its neutral tone is also reflected in Alison Statton's girlish, earnest, not always pitch-perfect vocals as well as in the muted string strum of Stuart Moxham's electric guitar. Spartan, angular strikes from the same guitar punctuate this steady atmosphere as a frail organ does its wheezing, bleating melodic best and Philip Moxham's rubbery bass line hesitantly bends and bounds. Minimal and no-frills, yes, but somehow there's so much more going on, and so much more expressed than its quietness belies. The songs are tiny and simple and total perfection. Powerful and totally f**king timeless and yes, very highly recommended.
As we mentioned above, we believe this just might be the fifth or sixth edition, and we hope that it's kept available forever and ever and ever!
What a treat, and 21 years after the fact, too! In the ensuing years since Young Marble Giants made their masterpiece "Colossal Youth", they've become cult favorites beloved by music fans of all stripes and styles (close to home, Windy, Owen of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone and Cup of I Am Spoonbender are big big fans). "Salad Days", recorded in 1979, is a perfect example of a 'home recording' done right. Featuring different versions of 11 songs from "Colossal Youth" PLUS four others, "Salad Days" preserves the immediacy and personalities evident in this performance of the group at such an early stage. It's easy to envision Stuart, Philip, and Alison huddled together on a worn couch playing such gems as "Brand New Life" or "N.I.T.A.". Alison's voice, especially, sounds like she's RIGHT THERE sitting next to you. This is a record you wish would never end.
Sometimes you just have to pause from the hustle, bustle and general assault of the modern world to refresh your appreciation of something truly exceptional and timeless. So, that said... Everyone! Stop what you're doing this very second, and get your own copy of this album! If you already have it, then get another copy for your best friend! If they already have it, then... well, you get the picture! Its presence is absolutely essential in any/every self respecting music lover's library.
This is not a new release, in fact it is the 30th anniversary edition which came out back in 1998... which means this classic album is pushing forty, and it still delights like a pup! Simply stated, Odessey & Oracle is a rare beautifully plumed pop bird that soars above the crowd. So many of our favorite more recent pop gods were clearly enormously influenced by this band and this album in particular -- Pernice Brothers, Zumpano, The New Pornographers, The Posies, The Shins... the list goes on and on and on. And we could go on and on but why waste breath and time? Highest recommendation, 'nuff said!
This edition also includes a bunch of bonus tracks for the completist (primarily alternate and mono versions). Heck, if you wanna go totally whole hog... may we recommend the Zombie Heaven 4 cd box set? At least two aQuarians own one, and several others are definitely considering it...
So by now everyone knows how great the New Pornographers record is. I mean, the label sold out of 'em in a matter of months, it got written up in the New York Times, and we've sold tons of it. And while some of the credit goes to Neko Case's sublime vocals, the songs, and the vocals of lead pornographer Carl Newman, remind us of a band we were raving about 3 or 4 years ago, and that coincidentally featured one Carl Newman on vocals and keyboards. Zumpano put out two records of absolutely perfect pop, with enough musical bite and lyrical savagery to keep it interesting, even after all this time. Unlike all the pop groups that stole liberally from the Beach Boys and the Beatles and Supertramp, Zumpano, while obviously indebted to the above, dug much deeper and/or much farther back finding influences in the Zombies, Kinks, Chicago, Redd Kross, Jimmy Webb and even Neil Diamond. Amazing musicianship, crystalline production, beautiful harmonies, and some of the catchiest kick ass songs we've ever heard. Here's what we had to say about 'Goin Through Changes' way back on AQ list 38:
"THE pop record of the year. An amalgamation of all those AM radio anthems you heard day in and day out as a child yet it's somehow still wholly original. A pinch of Jimmy Webb, a dash of Chicago, a little Kinks, a little Zombies. Horns!... Piano!... Harmonies!... Somehow it still rocks!... Andee and Byram swear by this record & even Windy loves it. Allan loves it too but Andee refuses to believe him."
All of you that love the New Pornographers record should definitely give Zumpano a try, if you haven't already!
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
So by now everyone knows how great the New Pornographers record is. I mean, the label sold out of 'em in a matter of months, it got written up in the New York Times, and we've sold tons of it. And while some of the credit goes to Neko Case's sublime vocals, the songs, and the vocals of lead pornographer Carl Newman, remind us of a band we were raving about 3 or 4 years ago, and that coincidentally featured one Carl Newman on vocals and keyboards. Zumpano put out two records of absolutely perfect pop, with enough musical bite and lyrical savagery to keep it interesting, even after all this time. Unlike all the pop groups that stole liberally from the Beach Boys and the Beatles and Supertramp, Zumpano while obviously indebted to the above, dug much deeper and/or much farther back finding influences in the Zombies, Kinks, Chicago, Redd Kross, Jimmy Webb and even Neil Diamond. Amazing musicianship, crystalline production, beautiful harmonies, and some of the catchiest kick ass songs we've ever heard. While this record predates the AQ list, it's equally as amazing as recor number two, which we reviewed on AQ list 38:
"THE pop record of the year. An amalgamation of all those AM radio anthems you heard day in and day out as a child yet it's somehow still wholly original. A pinch of Jimmy Webb, a dash of Chicago, a little Kinks, a little Zombies. Horns!... Piano!... Harmonies!... Somehow it still rocks!... Andee and Byram swear by this record & even Windy loves it. Allan loves it too but Andee refuses to believe him."
All of you that love the New Pornographers record should definitely give Zumpano a try, if you haven't already!
