The Charlottes - Things Come Apart [12", LP]

THE CHARLOTTES were a band from the Cambridge area in the UK. A favourite band of BBC's John Peel (they did a Peel Session in 1989 as well) and their drummer was Simon Scott who later joined Slowdive. Awesome music, loud and distorted, with female vocals. A bit like early My Bloody Valentine. This album, THINGS COME APART, was originally released in 1991 on Cherry Red. Optic Nerve Recordings decided to do a limited reissue on green vinyl this year, with two bonus tracks which were B-sides to their "Liar" EP in 1990. "Venus" is of course the Shocking Blue song, and a way better version than Bananarama did (duh!). Inside the gatefold sleeve are some pics of old concert tickets of shows where they supported Ride. Those were the days! There were 500 numbered copies made of this reissue; I've got # 070.

Label: Optic Nerve Recordings
Cat.nr.: OPT4.004
Year of release: 2013 (originally released in 1991 on Cherry Red)

SIDE A:
01. Liar
02. Prayer Song
03. See Me Feel
04. By My Side
05. Mad Girl's Love Song

SIDE B:
01. Beautify
02. Love In The Emptiness
03. We're Going Wrong
04. Blue
05. Venus

Tripping Daisy - Piranha [7"]

In the mid 90's i got to know TRIPPING DAISY through MTV's 120 Minutes and i was immediately hooked. They had a really good psychedelic vibe which reminded me a bit of Jane's Addiction. This song, PIRANHA, was one of my favourite songs of the album I Am An Elastic Firecracker. I even saw them live in Amsterdam in 1996; great show. I bought all of their stuff on CD at the time (including the CD-maxi version of this single) and didn't have anything on vinyl until recently, so i was pretty thrilled when i bumped into this 7" at the latest record fair in Utrecht. I just had to have it, if only for old times' sake.

Interesting detail about Tripping Daisy: i did know that the band continued (in a very different way, musically) as The Polyphonic Spree after the death of their guitar player Wes Berggren in 1999. But what i only recently found out, is that their drummer from 1997 until Tripping Daisy disbanded, was Ben Curtis who plays in School Of Seven Bells. I really didn't know that; they are very different types of bands, yet still i like them both a lot. Sometimes these kind of things go unexpectedly "full circle". I've had that a few times before. It's one of those similar things like seeing your (then) current heroes Billy Corgan, Thurston Moore and Frank Black being invited to join the stage with all-time hero David Bowie at his 50th birthday celebration gig, back in 1997. Or Jeff Schroeder, guitar player for the awesome (yet unknown) indie band Lassie Foundation that i liked a lot, becoming a member of Smashing Pumpkins a few years ago. Suddenly all pieces of the puzzle are put together! Anyway, this 7" is regularly found on my record player since i bought it a few months ago. Tripping Daisy ruled!

Label: Island Records
Cat.nr.: 854 572-2
Year of release: 1995

SIDE A:
01. Piranha

SIDE B:
01. Creature

Catherine Wheel - I Want To Touch You [12"]

This was a pretty good find at the record fair in Utrecht last month. A 12" by CATHERINE WHEEL, still originally sealed and therefore in completely mint condition . It's a limited edition (part one of a two record set, it says) which comes in a screen printed gatefold pvc sleeve. The cardboard sleeve itself is plain white; all the info plus the cover photo of the dog is printed on the pvc. It was sealed with a sticker. The 12" contains 3 demo songs. Two of them ended up on their Ferment album while Wish's final version appeared on the She's My Friend EP. For demo recordings they sound very good, by the way. The other 12" that fits in the sleeve and was available separately, has a remix of the title song I WANT TO TOUCH YOU and some other songs on it. Would be cool if i'd bump into that one some day.

Label: Fontana
Cat.nr.: CWB 312
Year of release: 1992

SIDE A:
01. I Want To Touch You [Original Demo]

SIDE B:
01. Black Metallic [Original Demo]
02. Wish [Original Demo]

Younghusband - Dromes [12", LP]

DROMES is the debut full length by YOUNGHUSBAND from the UK. A great mix of 60’s psychedelica, shoegaze and krautrock. I really like the artwork as well; totally fits with the music. The title track and "Silver Sisters" are my favourite songs of the album, but the rest is also really good. Some bands that come to mind when you listen to this album are for example the Byrds, Spacemen 3, Ride - and more recent bands like Deerhunter and TOY. The Sonic Cathedral label usually stands for quality releases and this is no exception.
For Younghusband it’s a shame that so many other good albums got released in 2013: it was a close call, but otherwise they surely would have had the honour to end up in my Finest Vinyl list ;)

Label: Sonic Cathedral
Cat.nr.: SCR060LP
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Running Water
02. Comets Crossed
03. Left Of The Rocks
04. Sunstroke
05. *
06. Silver Sisters

SIDE B:
01. Reunion Message
02. **
03. Wavelength
04. Divisions
05. Constantly In Love
06. Dromes

David Bowie / Iggy Pop / Roxy Music / Syd Barrett - The Photography Of Mick Rock [7", Book, Tin]

A few years ago, four MICK ROCK photograph books in 7" tins were released, each carrying a 7" vinyl single by the artist featured in the book. The man was mostly known (to me at least) for his pictures of DAVID BOWIE, but he also made some really nice ones of IGGY POP, SYD BARRETT and various glam rock bands like ROXY MUSIC. These tins were released as limited editions and were rather expensive, but lately they have been available on offer for a very reasonable price. The 7"es are each on a different colour vinyl and feature not necessarily the artist's biggest hits, yet pretty cool songs nevertheless. Each book has 128 pages which makes it a pretty heavy package, but definitely worth buying it if you're into high class rock photography. I decided to buy all four of them and this is what the 7"es are about:

David Bowie

Label: EMI
Cat.nr.: 5099964038070           
Year of release: 2011

SIDE A:
01. Starman

SIDE B:
01. Suffragette City

Roxy Music

Label: EMI
Cat.nr.: 5099964038179          
Year of release: 2011

SIDE A:
01. Virginia Plain

SIDE B:
01. The Numberer

Iggy Pop

Label: EMI
Cat.nr.: 5099964038278          
Year of release: 2011

SIDE A:
01. Success

SIDE B:
01. The Passenger

Syd Barrett

Label: EMI
Cat.nr.: 5099964037974          
Year of release: 2011

SIDE A:
01. Octopus

SIDE B:
01. Golden Hair

Tropical Popsicle - Dawn Of Delight [12", LP]

This album by TROPICAL POPSICLE was released earlier this year. I bought it shortly after it came out, but didn't write something about it so far, i noticed while compiling my Finest Vinyl list for 2013. It didn't make it to the list but was definitely a runner-up. DAWN OF DELIGHT is a cool mix of garage and psychedelic music (and some post-punk, like the song Ghost Beacons - my favourite song of the album). Think Velvet Underground meets Wire, or Jesus And Mary Chain meets Echo And The Bunnymen; or something like that. Like said they didn't make it to my top 10, but if i would've made one for silliest band name or weirdest album cover of the year, they would have had a fair chance to win it. Seriously. But having said that, the music is really good and i look forward to hear more from them in the near future.

Label: Talitres
Cat.nr.: TAL070LP
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Always Awake In Shadows
02. The Age Of Attraction
03. Ghost Beacons
04. The Beach With Now Footprints
05. Tethers
06. View From The Dihedral Wall

SIDE B:
01. Canyons
02. Cathedral City
03. Havana
04. The Omnipresent Heart Shield
05. Queen Of New York
06. Universe Of God Shadow

David Bowie - Love Is Lost [12"]

In this year's Finest Vinyl list, DAVID BOWIE's album The Next Day came second after My Bloody Valentine. Only just, though. While i had a lot of trouble making up my mind what would be 2013's best album, it would be an easy victory for Bowie if i would make a list of the year's best remixes. Because as far as i'm concerned, the version that James "LCD Soundstystem" Murphy did of the song LOVE IS LOST is definitely the best remix of the year. The mix is called "Hello Steve Reich Mix By James Murphy For The DFA" and it combines Clapping Music, a minimalist piece by composer Steve Reich, and Love Is Lost from Bowie's latest album. But where it gets really interesting is in the middle of the song, where the distinctive piano intro from Bowie's Ashes To Ashes suddenly kicks in. I'm not very often putting audio or video links on this blog, but for this one i'll gladly make an exception. Check Clapping Music, Ashes To Ashes and then this great remix of Love Is Lost.
Besides the 10+ minute version there's also an edited version of around 4 minutes on side B, plus a somewhat baroque sounding remix of I'd Rather Be High.

Label: Columbia
Cat.nr.: 88843016561
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Love Is Lost (Hello Steve Reich Mix By James Murphy For The DFA)

SIDE B:
01. I'd Rather Be High (Venetian Mix)
02. Love Is Lost (Hello Steve Reich Mix By James Murphy For The DFA - edit)

Nothing - Downward Years To Come EP [12"]

A couple of days ago i wrote about the Dreampunx album by Anne. It was released on the same label as this DOWNWARD YEARS TO COME EP by the band NOTHING: the hardcore/metal label A389 Recordings. As far as i understood from their bio on the website of Relapse Records, to which they recently signed, Nothing's main man used to be in a hardcore band called Horror Show. That could explain the fact that this release is on a typical hardcore label, because otherwise (just like Anne) Nothing's music has nothing to do with hardcore nor metal. It's pure shoegaze. Signing to (extreme metal label) Relapse for their upcoming full length is for that matter also a very interesting fact. This particular EP was released in 3 versions (a black, white, and clear vinyl edition) for Black Friday in 2012. As you can see, i have the clear version. It contains 5 tracks, of which the title track is the best one i think. As far as i'm concerned, Nothing's sound can best be described as some kind of mix between Starflyer 59 and A Place To Bury Strangers, with the obvious bit of My Bloody Valentine added as well. Excellent stuff, and i look forward to hear their full length when it comes out early 2014.

Label: A389 Recordings
Cat.nr.: A389-112
Year of release: 2012

SIDE A:
01. The Dives
02. Downward Years To Come
03. Mine Is Clouds
04. If Only

SIDE B:
01. The Rites Of Love And Death

The Finest Vinyl of 2013

Mid December; time to look back at the year's best vinyl releases.
And i dare say it's been a darn good year in music. I found it pretty hard to compile a Top 10, because there were so many good releases this year. It was a tough choice between #1 and #2, for example, but also i had a shortlist of 20+ albums that i honestly think were just really good. Had to narrow that list down to less than half of them. It's only fair to mention the ones that nearly made it here, i think.

These are the ones that didn't make it to my Top 10 of 2013, but only just.
In alphabetical order: Austra - Olympia / Besnard Lakes - Until In Excess, Imperceptible UFO / Deafheaven - Sunbather / Edweena - Solar Days And Lunar Nights / Esben And The Witch - Wash The Sins Not Only The Face / Girls Names - The New Life / Still Corners - Strange Pleasures / Team Ghost - Rituals / The Knife - Shaking The Habitual / Tropical Popsicle - Dawn Of Delight / Younghusband - Dromes.

And this, my friends, is The Finest Vinyl of 2013:

01. My Bloody Valentine - mbv
Just when you thought it would never happen anymore, MBV makes a glorious comeback.

02. David Bowie - The Next Day
Berlin (and therefore his best work) revisited. Best Bowie album since Scary Monsters.

03. Stargazer Lilies - We Are The Dreamers
Hands down the best dreampop album of the year. Or even: of the past decade.

04. Sigur Rós - Kveikur
Ég elska bara þá.

05. Yuck - Glow & Behold
"Difficult second" passes the test without any problems.

06. Medicine - To The Happy Few
Really, really good. And really, really underrated, unfortunately. Hence the title, perhaps?

07. The Flaming Lips - The Terror
Weird but beautiful. As always.

08. Primal Scream - More Light
100% back at the top of their form.

09. Chvrches - The Bones Of What You Believe
Totally worth the hype.

10. Black Hearted Brother - Stars Are Our Home
Slowdive frontman going into the right direction again.

The Knife - Gender Bender [10"]

This GENDER BENDER 10" EP by THE KNIFE is nowadays a pretty rare item, and it goes for steep prices on sites like Discogs and eBay. I bumped into it at the Utrecht record fair a few weeks ago for a very reasonable price however, so it was hard to leave it standing in the crate. The only song that i didn't have yet was Manhood; the others are from the Deep Cuts album. It's a limited numbered release. I couldn't find anywhere online how many copies were made, but my copy is # 0986, so at least 1000 i assume.

Label: Rabid Records
Cat.nr.: RABID022
Year of release: 2004

SIDE A:
01. Handy-Man
02. Manhood

SIDE B:
01. You Make Me Like Charity
02. Hangin' Out

Anne - Dreampunx [12", LP]

This LP by the band ANNE is actually a compilation of various demo and mixtape recordings from 2010 and 2011. It's a really cool shoegaze/dreampop album, released on A389 Recordings, which is otherwise home to hardcore and metalcore bands like Ringworm and Integrity. Perhaps that's how they came to the title DREAMPUNX. Anyway, the title may be a bit silly, but the music's certainly not. I knew the band's name from a split 7" they did with Whirr (still looking for the thing, actually) and stumbled upon this LP some time ago. So after double-checking if it was the same band, i decided to take a chance buy it. Turned out to be certainly worth it! And not only is their sound great; the beautiful album artwork and coloured vinyl top it off.

Label: A389 Recordings
Cat.nr.: A389-081
Year of release: 2011

SIDE A:
01. All Your Time
02. Virginal Plight
03. Thrush
04. Lower Faiths

SIDE B:
01. Tarvantovaara
02. Get It How You Live
03. Perfect Teeth
04. Summer Babies
05. Punk Bike

The Flaming Lips - The Terror [12", 2LP, Bonus 7"]

After releasing The Flaming Lips And Heady Fwends last year, THE FLAMING LIPS decided that this year the time was right to release a new album completely on their own. The result is just great. Weird and psychedelic as ever. It's even so that THE TERROR has become one of my favourite Flaming Lips albums ever. It took a while to grow on me, but songs like Try To Explain and Be Free... A Way are among the best the band has ever done. The vinyl edition has one track extra compared to the CD (We Don't Control The Controls, which fills the whole D-side) and there's a bonus 7" as well, with an extra track and a Beatles cover. Together with the beautiful shiny cover artwork it makes a really nice package.

Label: Bella Union
Cat.nr.: LP388
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Look The Sun Is Rising
02. Be Free... A Way
03. Try To Explain

SIDE B:
01. You Lust
02. The Terrror

SIDE C:
01. You Are Alone
02. Butterfly, How Long It Takes To Die
03. Turning Violent
04. Always There In Our Hearts

SIDE D:
01. We Don't Control The Controls
mashed-the-fuck-up-remix
Dan Deacon and Electric Worms insight violence

Label: Bella Union
Cat.nr.: BU7666
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Sun Blows Up Today

SIDE B:
01. All You Need Is Love

Chvrches - The Bones Of What You Believe [12", LP]

Before CHVRCHES released their debut full length THE BONES OF WHAT YOU BELIEVE a few months ago, the band was hyped quite a bit. They had some pretty strong singles/videos out (The Mother We Share, Lies and Recover) that had caught the attention of various magazines and blogs. Some critics say that the album hasn't got any other songs of the same quality; well, i totally disagree. We Sink is one of my favourites; catchy as hell. Gun is another one. These people sound like they're influenced by both ABBA and M83, and simply delivered an album with great pop tunes. Funny fact: Iain, one of the band members, used to be in a band called Aerogramme. I have their split EP "In The Fishtank" with Isis. Great stuff, but completely different from what Chvrches is doing.

Label: Vertigo
Cat.nr.: 3748517
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. The Mother We Share
02. We Sink
03. Gun
04. Tether
05. Lies
06. Under The Tide

SIDE B:
01. Recover
02. Night Sky
03. Science/Visions
04. Lungs
05. By The Throat
06. You Caught The Light

Death In Vegas - Satan's Circus [12", 3LP]

SATAN'S CIRCUS by DEATH IN VEGAS is pretty different from the other Death In Vegas albums, in that it is completely instrumental. Also musically it's not as diverse as the other albums: it's pure krautrock and not much anything else. Which is, when done properly like it's done here, not at all a bad thing of course. Perhaps a little cheesy for a krautrock album, but a lot of song titles are related to Germany: Ein Für Die Damen, Kontroll, Sons Of Rother (must be referring to Neu's Michael Rother), Reigen (a controversial play by Arthur Schnitzler) and Anita Berber (a bisexual drug-addicted and alcoholic actress/nightclub dancer from Berlin, during the Weimar period). I found this 3LP for a really good price at the record fair in Utrecht, a few weeks ago. It's been on my wishlist for quite some time so i'm glad i finally have it now.

Label: Drone
Cat.nr.: DRONELPONE
Year of release: 2004

SIDE A:
01. Ein Für Die Damen

SIDE B:
01. Zugaga
02. Heil Xanax

SIDE C:
01. Black Lead
02. Sons Of Rother

SIDE D:
01. Candy McKenzie
02. Reigen

SIDE E:
01. Kontroll
02. Anita Berber

SIDE F:
01. Head

David Bowie - The Next Day [12", 2LP]

A lot has been written already about DAVID BOWIE's majestic return this year with THE NEXT DAY, his first album since 2003's Reality. So i won't go into that too much. It truly is a masterpiece, and the references to parts of his impressive oeuvre in the lyrics, album artwork (obviously) and even the videos are witty to say the least. Of course i already had this album from day one, but since there was (rightfully) such a buzz around it, i didn't feel the urge to write something about it on my blog. But hey, the end of the year is approaching and i'm compiling my yearlist, so.... You feel it coming, right? In a few weeks you'll know where exactly it ended up in my Top 10, but it's definitely going to show up in there. An amazing piece of work.

Label: Columbia
Cat.nr.: 88765461861
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. The Next Day
02. Dirty Boys
03. The Stars (Are Out Tonight)
04. Love Is Lost

SIDE B:
01. Where Are We Now?
02. Valentine's Day
03. If You Can See Me
04. I'd Rather Be High

SIDE C:
01. Boss Of Me
02. Dancing Out InSpace
03. How Does The Grass Grow?
04. (You Will) Set The World On Fire

SIDE D:
01. You Feel So Lonely You Could Die
02. Heat
03. So She
04. Plan
05. I'll Take You There

Various Artists - And Suddenly It's Evening [12", LP, Compilation]

I've been looking for a long time for the 12" of "Primitive Painters" by Felt (or their "Ignite The Seven Canons" LP on which it's featured) but for some reason i never come across it. It's such a wonderful song. Also after last weekend's record fair in Utrecht i returned home Felt-less once again. At least: almost. Because shortly before leaving i ran into this compilation album AND SUDDENLY IT'S EVENING from Cherry Red, and there it was! At least i can play it on vinyl now. The album has some other fine tunes by the likes of Jane, Eyeless In Gaza, The Monochrome Set and Laibach - but it was the Felt song that i bought it for. The song in which Elizabeth Fraser joins in in the refrain only for the words "you should see my trail of disgrace" is hands down one of the best indie songs of the eighties.

Label: Cherry Red, Rebel Records
Cat.nr.: RE 0035
Year of release: 1986

SIDE A:
01. EVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL - Night And Day
02. MARINE GIRLS - On My MInd
03. MORGAN-FISHER - Geneva
04. BEN WATT with ROBERT WYATT - Walter And John
05. TRACEY THORN - Plain Sailing
06. GRAB GRAB THE HADDOCK - For All We Know
07. JANE - It's A Fine Day

SIDE B:
01. ANTHONY PHILLIPS - Esperansa
02. IN EMBRACE - This Brilliant Evening
03. FELT - Primitive Painters
04. EYELESS IN GAZA - Welcome Now
05. THE MONOCHROME SET - The Mating Game
06. LAIBACH - Die Liebe

My Bloody Valentine - Peel Session And Rare Tracks [12', LP, Unofficial]

Last week i was at the Utrecht record fair and obviously i came home with some good stuff again. That place really is heaven for vinyl collectors. MY BLOODY VALENTINE recorded a Peel Session on September 25th 1988 and it was broadcasted, but never officially released on CD or vinyl. This is actually the first time i come across a MBV bootleg with these tracks. The others songs on this compilation are "rare tracks" that were included not too long ago on the "EP's 1988-1991" 2CD, plus the excellent cover versions of Wire's "Map Ref 41°N 93°W" and Louis Armstrong's "We Have All The Time In The World", from the soundtrack of the James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service. The first was originally on a Wire tribute CD called "Whore", and the second on the "Peace Together" charity compilation album.
Bootlegs are usually full of typo's and omissions, and PEEL SESSION AND RARE TRACKS is no exception to the rule. On the back of the cover where the tracklisting is, they simply forgot song #4 of the Peel Session ("Feed Me With Your Kiss"), and they spelled "Angel" as "Angle". But all in all, it's a decent compilation of songs that are otherwise unavailable on vinyl. It wasn't too expensive either, so a welcome addition to my MBV collection.

Label: none
Cat.nr.: none
Year of release: ?

SIDE A:
01. I Can See It (But I Can't Feel It)
02. Lose My Breath
03. When You Wake (You're Still In A Dream)
04. Feed Me With Your Kiss
05. Sugar
06. How Do You Do It

SIDE B:
01. Angel
02. Map Reference 41 N 93 W                                                                               
03. Instrumental No2
04. Instrumental No1
05. We Have All The Time In The World

Whirr - Around [12"]

One of my favourite modern shoegaze bands is WHIRR. Their AROUND EP was released shortly before summer this year and consists of 4 tracks which are slow, melancholic and pretty heavy. If it weren't for the dreamy female vocals, this release would probably have been labeled as post-metal rather than shoegaze: their sound on this EP has just as much in common with bands like Isis and Jesu, as it has with My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive. Besides the fact that it's on beautiful coloured vinyl, it also has a very nice spiral-cut sleeve. Looks great! A very nice EP to keep the fans happy, and i can't wait for a new full length to be released.

Label: Graveface Records
Cat.nr.: GRAVE092
Year of release: 2013

Side A:
01. Drain
02. Swoon

Side B:
01. Keep
02. Around

Serena-Maneesh ‎– Ayisha Abyss [12"]

This rare 12" by SERENA-MANEESH was bought at the great Big Dipper vinyl specialist store in Oslo, Norway. It's a white label edition, according to Discogs given as a pre-order incentive - i guess for their #2: Abyss In B Minor album. AYISHA ABYSS on side A is an edited version of the song that appears on that album, while Call-Back From A Dream on the other side is a rather psychedelic and chaotic non-album track. Would love to see them perform live some day; unfortunately i never had the chance.

Label: 4AD
Cat.nr.: BAD 2941
Year of release: 2010

SIDE A:
01. Ayisha Abyss

SIDE B:
01. Call-Back From A Dream

Pale Saints - The Comforts Of Madness [12", LP]

Considered by many as one of the albums that defined the shoegaze genre, THE COMFORTS OF MADNESS by PALE SAINTS couldn't be missed in my vinyl collection. For some reason this band has been thoroughly overlooked by me, but since i bought some 12"s earlier this year i'm slowly getting into them. This album is indeed a classic. It's less dreampop than Slowdive and less avantgarde than Cocteau Twins. Definitely less noisy than My Bloody Valentine as well, however they sometimes remind me a bit of them in their pre-Creation period in the way the songs are written. All in all, a great album and it has a really nice cover as well; of course designed by Vaughan Oliver who did all the 4AD artwork in those days. My copy is a recent reissue from 2011; the original is very hard to find.


Label: ORG Music (originally: 4AD)
Cat.nr.: ORGM-1003
Year of release: 2011 (originally: 1990)

SIDE A:
01.Way The World Is                                                                                   
02.You Tear The World In Two   
03. Sea Of Sound
04. True Coming Dream
05. Little Hammer


SIDE B:
01: True Coming Dream                                                                                   
02. A Deep Sleep For Steven
03. Language Of Flowers 
04. Fell From The Sun
05. Sight Of You
06. Time Thief
                                                                                                                                                             

Black Hearted Brother - Stars Are Our Home [12", 2LP]

When a frontman of a shoegaze band I really love goes all country and folky for nearly two decades and then suddenly returns with loud guitars, I'm all ears. Neil Halstead (Slowdive, Mojave 3) has teamed up with Mark Van Hoen (Seefeel) and Nick Holton to form BLACK HEARTED BROTHER, a spacerock/krautrock/electronic/shoegaze band (or project?) that just released STARS ARE OUR HOME. It has become a wonderful album. It's so diverse that it's hard to describe as a whole. Experimental, yet packed with great pop tunes in disguise. And i'm loving every bit of it: from the shoegaze tune that was used online to introduce this release (I Don't Mean To) Wonder to the krautrock-ish track Oh Crust and the space disco of My Baby Sailed Away. Great stuff. Nothing wrong with folk and country music, but as long as there's no concrete plan to revive Slowdive, Halstead's new musical directions are at least a step in the right direction again as far as i'm concerned.

Label: Sonic Cathedral
Cat.nr.: SCR070LP
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Stars Are Our Home
02. (I Don't Mean To) Wonder
03. This Is How It Feels

SIDE B:
01. Got Your Love
02. If I Was Here To Change Your Mind
03. UFO

SIDE C:
01. Time In The Machine
02. Oh Crust
03. Take Heart

SIDE D:
01. My Baby Just Sailed Away
02. I'm Back
03. Look Out Here They Come

 

The Stargazer Lilies - We Are The Dreamers [12", LP]

I didn't know THE STARGAZER LILIES until a few months ago, when some teaser songs of their debut album WE ARE THE DREAMERS showed up online. The moment i heard those, i just knew i had to get this album. It's dreampop in its purest form. Loads of reverb, fuzzy guitars, soothing vocals, slow-paced tunes, and mostly in minor keys so in general it sounds pretty sad and melancholic. When songs like that are over-produced, they all start to sound the same and can get pretty boring; that's definitely not the case here. The songs usually keep a raw edge, especially when it comes to the guitar work (check Undone and Light Of Day for example).
At this moment, the songs Del Rey Mar, Sad Colored Tears and Endless Days are my favourites, but i keep on discovering new things when i listen to this album. At the moment i'm writing this, i'm listening to How We Lost and suddenly i start to think that parts of this song sound a little bit like a slow version of Radiohead's Creep. Ha!
This album is one of the best dreampop albums i've heard in years. Besides that, the artwork and the coloured vinyl really suit to the music and make it a true gem for vinyl collectors who dig shoegaze and dreampop.

Label: Graveface Records
Cat.nr.: Grave096
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. We Are The Dreamers
02. Del Rey Mar
03. Undone
04. How We Lost

SIDE B:
01. Endless Days
02. Well Versed To Verb Doubt
03. Light Of Day
04. Sad Colored Tears
05. Don't Waste My Time
06. Because

Siouxsie & The Banshees - Happy House [7"]

Another copy from the archive of the Dutch Top 40: HAPPY HOUSE by SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES. I'm not particularly a big fan, but this happens to be a great tune so i just couldn't let it lie when i bumped into it. And apparently I'm not the only one who likes it: in 1993, Cappella had a hit with the song U Got 2 Know, and in 2011, The Weeknd released House Of Balloons. Listen to the original by Siouxsie and you'll know what i mean...

Label: Polydor
Cat.nr.: 2059 215
Year of release: 1980

SIDE A:
01. Happy House

SIDE B:
01. Drop Dead/Celebration

Slowdive - Slowdive EP [12", Promo]

The regular version of the self-titled EP by SLOWDIVE is something i still haven't been able to find, but the promo edition i bumped into a while ago for a decent price. This was of course their first ever release and i'm happy to finally own a copy now. Previously, the only vinyl release that i had with these tracks on it, was the Blue Day compilation. These tracks are among my favourite Slowdive songs; especially the title track, with its majestic wall of guitars.

Label: Creation Records
Cat.nr.: CRE 093TP
Year of release: 1990

SIDE A:
01. Slowdive
02. Avalyn 1

SIDE B:
01. Avalyn 2

Edweena - Solar Days And Lunar Nights [12", LP]

EDWEENA is a shoegaze band from Stockholm, Sweden. A friend of mine (Vionyl Richie; check out his blog) told me i should check them out, and since i'm a sucker for any good new music i gave it a try and checked out their Bandcamp page. Guess what? They completely blew me away! This LP, manufactured in a limited run of only 300 copies, is definitely 2013's best kept secret when it comes to new shoegaze/dreampop. The band they remind me most of is Ride, mainly because of the song structures. Check out Perspective or Deathstar for example, and you'll know what i mean if you are slightly familiar to Ride. Simply beautiful songs! But when it comes to their sound, also Slowdive comes to mind. Edweena is definitely more uptempo than Slowdive ever was, but it has the same ethereal and fuzzy sound (Heliopause, for example). So, to cut a long story short: if you sound like the love child of Ride and Slowdive, you've hit the right spot with me. SOLAR DAYS AND LUNAR NIGHTS definitely deserves a lot more attention than it got so far. Until now this LP is only available to order straight from the band, like the way i got my copy. But hopefully soon it will be possible to order from a lot of other places, like your local record store.

Label: none (self-released)
Cat.nr.: EDW01
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Thunderboy
02. Perspective
03. Featherfeet
04. Deathstar
05. Adamantium

SIDE B:
01. Heliopause
02. Dyson Sphere
03. Sold Gold
04. Phantoms
05. Solar Days

Drop Nineteens - Your Aquarium EP [12"]

This is typically a 12" maxi that i came across for a reasonable price and thought "why the heck not", and bought it. It's decent 90's indie rock. Some people call DROP NINETEENS a shoegaze band, but then bands like Breeders and Sugar would also be shoegaze. The song My Aquarium sounds like a good mix of the aforementioned bands, i think. The song Mandy on the B-side of this YOUR AQUARIUM EP is a pretty cool cover of the Barry Manilow hit from 1974.

Label: Hut Recordings
Cat.nr.: HUTT 22
Year of release: 1992

SIDE A:
01. My Aquarium (Second Time Around)

SIDE B:
01. Mandy
02. Nausea

Fucked Up / Serena Maneesh - Here Lies Are / Opium Priest [12", Split]

This split 12" was sold out pretty quickly when it came out in 2010 on the Canadian/Norwegian indie label Best Of Both Records, and i never thought i'd run into a copy anymore. But fortunately i found one at the Robot store in Bergen, Norway. I was mainly interested in the SERENA MANEESH song since i really like their music and this track can't be found on any other release. OPIUM PRIEST is a trippy and lengthy cacophonic song; really cool. But of course FUCKED UP is also a great band, and HERE LIES ARE is a typical F.U. song that starts in a somewhat slower tempo and then turns into an epic singalong melodic hardcore punk song. Awesome!

Label: Best Of Both Records
Cat.nr.: BOBR 1003
Year of release: 2010

SIDE A:
01. FUCKED UP - Here Lies Are

SIDE B:
01. SERENA MANEESH - Opium Priest

Catherine Wheel - Painful Thing EP [12", Promo]

The first thing i ever heard by CATHERINE WHEEL was the song Shallow. It was on an "Indie Top 20" compilation CD that i had, and i liked the song a lot. Until recently i didn't have any vinyl by this band, but i came across this pretty rare white label promo edition of the PAINFUL THING EP a few weeks ago and i decided to buy it for old times' sake. Shallow is still my favourite track of this 12", but the other 3 songs are also pretty good. Maybe it's time to check out some more stuff they released...

Label: Wilde Club Records
Cat.nr.: WILDE 5
Year of release: 1991

SIDE A:
01. Shallow
02. Spin

SIDE B:
01. Painful Thing
02. I Want To Touch You

Yuck - Glow & Behold [12", LP]

This album by YUCK was released about a month ago, and overall it wasn't as well received as their self-titled debut from 2011. Most reviews mentioned the departure of the band's frontman as main cause for this album being weaker than the first. But i can't help but liking GLOW & BEHOLD actually better that their debut. And i think that Pitchfork in their review hit the right spot when they said that the first album sounded like Yo La Tengo, Superchunk, Built To Spill and Dinosaur Jr, while this one is more like Lush, Buffalo Tom, the Lemonheads and Teenage Fanclub. What i certainly do not agree with however is that they consider that first batch the A-list of 90's indie rock, and the second batch of lesser status. Don't get me wrong, i love Dinosaur Jr, but i simply like bands such as Lush (and Swervedriver, and Nada Surf, to name a few that came to mind when i first heard this album) better. It's all just a matter of taste, isn't it. So yes, this album sounds more polished and catchy and commercial, but hey... i love it. Songs like Rebirth and Middle Sea are some of the best songs of 2013, i dare say.
Also I was happily surprised when i found out that Yuck were supporting Pixies in Amsterdam last month. A lot of times i skip support acts, but this was something i didn't want to miss, so i got to see them live for the first time. And i'm glad i came early because they were really good!

Label: Fat Possum
Cat.nr.: 3751547
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Sunrise In Maple Shade
02. Out Of Time
03. Lose My Breath
04. Memorial Fields
05. Middle Sea
06. Rebirth

SIDE B:
01. Somewhere
02. Nothing New
03. How Does It Feel
04. Twilight In Maple Shade (Chinese Cymbals)
05. Glow & Behold

Lou Reed - Rock 'N' Roll Animal [12", LP]

Today is a sad day. News just broke that LOU REED died, at the age of 71.

Having become a massive David Bowie fan when i was a teenager, i first got to know Reed from the stuff that Bowie did for him (producing Transformer together with Mick Ronson, for example) and the songs that Bowie covered (most notably White Light/White Heat during his Ziggy Stardust period). So out of curiosity i started to listen to the man's work. First Transformer, then i discovered Berlin, and then the whole Velvet Underground catalogue. Amazing stuff! I still rank many Velvet Undergound songs as some of the best pop/rock songs ever written, and Lou Reed was the writer of nearly all of them. His solo work rarely reaches the same level as the Velvets did, to my opinion at least, but still i love albums like Berlin and New York. Also Transformer, The Blue Mask, Magic And Loss and the phenomenal Songs For Drella (with John Cale) are albums that mean a lot to me. So does this particular album, ROCK 'N' ROLL ANIMAL. It's a live album from 1974 and the songs are mostly from his Velvet Underground period. It only has five songs on it, but these are definitely the best live versions i've ever heard of every single one of them, and the total length of the album is still over 40 minutes. Especially the guitar work is excellent. Some live albums are true classics. This is one of those.
Funny detail: the musicians on this album would later join Alice Cooper when he had parted ways with his old band members and went on to release Welcome To My Nightmare. Producer Bob Ezrin introduced them.
As for myself, i've seen Lou Reed perform live twice. First during his Magic And Loss tour in 1992, and a year later with the Velvet Underground during their MCMXCIII reunion tour. And as of today, it's clear that there will definitely be no further chance. Truly sad.

I own two different editions of this great album. The picture above is from an original pressing from 1974. Below, it's a reissue from 2012, when Music On Vinyl released it as a special Record Store Day release, remastered and on 180 grams vinyl. Even sounds better than it ever did before.

 

Label: RCA / Music On Vinyl
Cat.nr.: APL1-0472 / MOVLP 529
Year of release: 1974 / 2012

SIDE A:
01. Intro/Sweet Jane
02. Heroin

SIDE B:
01. White Light/White Heat
02. Lady Day
03. Rock 'n' Roll

Dråpe - Blue Skies [7"]

It's always cool to learn about some good local bands when you're visiting a foreign country. Recently i was in Norway, and when i asked they guy in record shop Tiger in Oslo if he could recommend some good Norwegian shoegaze vinyl releases, this recent 7" by DRÅPE was something he suggested. Indeed really good stuff! The dreampop tune BLUE SKIES on the A-side reminds me a bit of Cocteau Twins, while the uptempo Wash Away with its much louder guitars on side B, fits more into the shoegaze category of bands like good ol' My Bloody Valentine. Dråpe is definitely a band to keep an eye on!


Label: Riot Factory
Cat.nr.: -
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Blue Skies

SIDE B:
02. Wash Away

Ride - Twisterella [7", Promo]

The TWISTERELLA single by RIDE features some songs that are not on any album. I still haven't got the 12" edition at this point, which has all 3 of them, but the 7" promo edition i recently found somewhere at a good price and it has the song Going Blank Again on it. You'd expect it would appear on the album by the same title, but it doesn't. Another nice addition to my Ride / Creation Records collection. Slowly getting there ;)

Label: Creation Records
Cat.nr.: CRE 150P
Year of release: 1992

SIDE A:
01. Twisterella

SIDE B:
01. Going Blank Again

Brief Candles - Fractured Days [12", LP]

 

To be honest i never heard of this band or this album until just a few weeks ago. By coincidence i came across this LP and got curious what it was, so i did a quick check on the internet - and got really blown away! I just love their sound; a great mix of shoegaze and power pop / 90's college rock. If you need references: they remind me of bands like Swervedriver, Catherine Wheel, Ride, Silversun Pickups, Nada Surf and Ringo Deathstarr, to name but a few. Damn catchy tunes, female vocals and distorted guitars; an excellent combination. This album came out in 2011 and when i visited their Facebook i noticed that they're about to release a new EP in October. Definitely something i'm gonna check out.

Label: Guilt Ridden Pop
Cat.nr.: GILT 050
Year of release: 2011

SIDE A:
01. Intro
02. 10 Weeks
03. Sink Or Swim
04. Permafrost
05. The Sentiment
06. Small Streets

SIDE B:
01. Bitter End
02. Skylark
03. The Completist
04. Recognition
05. Nosferatu Monks
06. Knock 'Em Deaf

Slowdive - Morningrise [12", Promo]

Of course i already had the regular version of the MORNINGRISE EP by SLOWDIVE, but this was an offer i couldn't refuse. I rarely buy things on eBay, but when i do it's only because something's cheap. Which is rarely the case when it comes to shoegaze/dreampop vinyl these days. Those items either have absurd buy-it-now prices, or in case they're auctions, they're skyrocketing close to the ending. Well, not in this case :) So for less than 10 UK pounds including postage i got this beauty delivered at my doorstep. It comes in a typical Creation Records company sleeve, like their other promo vinyls that i own. A very nice addition to my Creation Records collection!

Label: Creation Records
Cat.nr.: CRE 098TP
Year of release: 1991

SIDE A:
01. Morningrise
02. She Calls

SIDE B:
01. Losing Today

Eternal - Breathe [10"]

Before Christian Savill joined Slowdive as a 3rd guitar player, he was in a band called ETERNAL. They released only one 7" in 1990, on the legendary Sarah Records label. It had three tracks: Breathe, Sleep and Take Me Down. Sleep was actually covered by Slowdive during the recording sessions for Souvlaki, but it didn't end up on the album. It can be found on various bootlegs, such as Hide Yer Eyes for example.
You can listen to the song Sleep in the original version here, and this is the version Slowdive did.
Earlier this year, Graveface Records released a reissue of this excellent shoegaze gem as part of their Charity Series, with proceeds going to Charge Family Support Group. This time around, the BREATHE EP was released on a 10" format with one extra track (Remember), which was recorded by Christian during the same recording sessions for Souvlaki.
I've been looking for the original 7" on Sarah Records for quite a while, but it's extremely hard to find. So this reissue was a welcome surprise, especially because it has this otherwise unavailable 4th track.

Label: Graveface Records
Cat.nr.: Grave080
Year of relase: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Sleep
02. Remember

SIDE B:
01. Breathe
02. Take Me Down