Catherine Wheel - She's My Friend [12"]

Another fine EP by the amazing CATHERINE WHEEL. Besides the title track and the song Salt, which both ended up on the Ferment album the year after, this SHE'S MY FRIEND EP contains a song called Wish (of which a demo version was featured on the I Want To Touch You 12") and an otherwise unavailable song Upside Down. That one is actually now my favourite of the four tracks on this EP, and in general one of the best Catherine Wheel songs that i know. In fact that song alone was well worth the purchase.

Label: Wilde Club Records

Cat.nr.: WILDE 4

Year of release: 1991

SIDE A:

01. She's My Friend

02. Upside Down

SIDE B:

01. Wish

02. Salt

The Sundays - Reading, Writing And Arithmetic [12", LP]

Oh rejoice, my writer's block has ended! I completely didn't feel like writing anything for the past three months. Summer holiday, and being outside a lot because of the excellent weather, made me stay away from my pc for most of the time. I just couldn't be bothered. But tonight i was spinning READING, WRITING AND ARITHMETIC and suddenly i felt the strong urge to bring new life into this little blog of mine.

THE SUNDAYS were such a great band. I really love Harriet Wheeler's distinctive vocals. Some years ago, i bought the Can't Be Sure 12" somewhere in Ireland, but until this April i did'n't have a vinyl copy of the great album where that single came from - just the CD version. But i came across it at the Utrecht record fair for a very decent price (only 5 bucks!) so that was my chance. It's not been reissued for such a long time that secondhand copies are usually a lot more expensive.

There are so many great songs on this album. Here's Where The Story Ends, for example. Or a song that sounds like it could've been written by The Smiths: I Kicked A Boy. Also Skin & Bones and A Certain Someone are favourites. Really happy i have the LP in my collection nowadays.

Label: Rough Trade

Cat. nr.: RTD133

Year of release: 1990

SIDE A:

01. Skin & Bones

02. Here's Where The Story Ends

03. Can't Be Sure

04. I Won

05. Hideous Towns

SIDE B:

01. You're Not The Only One I Know

02. A Certain Someone

03. I Kicked A Boy

04. My Finest Hour

05. Joy

Various Artists - A Means To An End - The Music Of Joy Division [12", 2LP]

There are only a few tribute albums out there that are really worthwhile having, to my opinion. This is definitely one of them. A MEANS TO AN END is a tribute to JOY DIVISION, with some really good bands on it, doing equally good cover versions. For example, the song that opens the album is a great version of She's Lost Control by Girls Against Boys. The next one (Day Of The Lords) is by an outfit called Honeymoon Stitch, which consists of Dave Navarro, Chad Smith and Michael Angelos ( of the band Plexi). Another peculiar band is Starchildren, with their version of Isolation. It's a project by Billy Corgan, that only released this particular cover and a song on a split 7" single with the band Catherine (which was fronted by the Pumpkins' bass player D'Arcy's then husband, Kerry Brown). My favourite cover on this album however is Transmission, in a beautiful version by the band Low. Atmosphere, done by Codeine here, is a true gem as well. And Moby's version of New Dawn Fades is really nice too. It fits perfectly with what he did on his Animal Rights album, the year after.

In general, i think the first record of this double LP is the most interesting one, but the second certainly isn't bad either. A notable tune on that one for example is the cover of Warsaw by an outfit called Desert Storm, which consisted of some members of the Drag City label. It's a ferocious punk rock song, produced by Steve Albini, with an intermezzo of David Bowie's song Warszawa.

I've had this compilation on CD for many years already, but never bumped into a vinyl edition - until a few months ago at the Utrecht record fair. Very reasonably priced as well. That probably had to do with the sleeve that is slightly damaged because of a removed sticker. But the discs are in perfect condition, and that's what counts most. Happy i finally have this in my vinyl collection now as well.

Label: Hut Recordings

Cat.nr.: HUTDLP29

Year of release: 1995

SIDE A:

01. GIRLS AGAINST BOYS - She's Lost Control

02. HONEYMOON STITCH - Day Of The Lords

03. MOBY - New Dawn Fades

SIDE B:

01. LOW - Transmission

02. CODEINE - Atmosphere

03. FURTHER - Insight

04. STANTON-MIRANDA - Love Will Tear Us Apart

SIDE C:

01. STARCHILDREN - Isolation

02. KENDRA SMITH - Heart And Soul

03. VERSUS - Twenty Four Hours

SIDE D:

01. DESERT STORM - Warsaw

02. GODHEADSILO - They Walked In Line

03. FACE TO FACE - Interzone

04. TORTOISE - As You Said