Various Artists - Record Store Day 2013 4-Way Covers Split [7"]

TROUBLE IN MIND got 4 of their best artists to record a cover especially for this limited Record Store Day 33 rpm 7" on white vinyl. Jacco Gardner does a Billy Nichols cover, The Resonars do Fairport Convention, Mmoss does a mighty fine Everly Brothers tune, and Maston covers The Kinks (and do a better job with that, than the Pretenders did in the eighties). The single comes in a great looking company-sleeve. They made 2000 copies, hand-numbered. My copy's #442/2000.

Label: Trouble In Mind
Cat.nr.: TIM049
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. JACCO GARDNER - Always On My Mind
02. THE RESONARS - It's Alright Ma, It's Only Witchcraft

SIDE B:
01. MMOSS - Cathy's Clown
02. MASTON - I Go To Sleep

Porno For Pyros - Porno For Pyros [12", LP]

Some songs on this first PORNO FOR PYROS album i like just as much as -or perhaps even better than- Jane's Addiction. So i was happy to hear that this album would finally get a vinyl release again after 20 years for Record Store Day - because it was impossible to find these days. But it's still limited: they only pressed 1000 copies on blue vinyl this time. I was really happy that i managed to get one, because especially songs like Pets and Cursed Female are some of the best things Perry Farrell ever wrote.

Label: Enjoy The Ride
Cat.nr.: ETR-025
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Sadness
02. Porno For Pyros
03. Meija
04. Cursed Female
05. Cursed Male
06. Pets

SIDE B:
01. Bad Shit
02. Packin' .25
03. Black Girlfriend
04. Blood Rag
05. Orgasm

Tame Impala - Tame Impala [12"]

The self-titled EP by TAME IMPALA has been on my wishlist for quite some time, but was pretty much impossible to find for a normal price. Luckily the people at Modular decided to reissue the EP (originally on 10" format, MODVL107) as a 12" with two extra tracks for Record Store Day 2013. They made 5000 copies on red vinyl, and since April 20th i'm the happy owner of one of those. The bonus tracks have been previously released on limited 2CD editions of the Innerspeaker album: Wander on the Australian edition, and Forty One Mosquitoes Flying In Formation on the UK edition. First time on vinyl for both, as far as i know.


Label: Modular
Cat.nr.: MODVL174
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Desire Be Desire Go
02. Skeleton Tiger
03. Half Full Glass Of Wine

SIDE B:
01. Forty One Mosquitoes Flying In Formation
02. Slide Through My Fingers
03. Wander

Various Artists - The Bridge (A Tribute To Neil Young) [12", LP]

When this compilation had just come out, i borrowed the CD from the library and taped it. Around 6 years ago i threw away all my tapes and i forgot about this NEIL YOUNG tribute called THE BRIDGE ever since. It's long deleted on CD as well nowadays so you rarely find it in shops anymore, but last weekend i stumbled upon the vinyl edition at the Utrecht recordfair. Brought back sweet memories so i couldn't resist buying it. I must say that I'm not particularly a Neil Young fan (although i appreciate his work and i'm certainly not a hater), but i really do love some of the artists on this tribute LP. I mean, where do you find a compilation of rare tracks by bands like Flaming Lips, Loop, Nick Cave, Pixies, Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr.? One by one great versions of these songs as well. Definitely worth the purchase.

Label: Caroline
Cat.nr.: CAR LP 5
Yera of release: 1989

SIDE A:
01. Soul Asylum - Barstool Blues
02. Victoria Willams & The Williams Brothers - Don't Let It Bring You Down
03. Flaming Lips - After The Goldrush
04. Nikki Sudden & The French Revolution - Captain Kennedy
05. Loop - Cinnamon Girl
06. Nick Cave - Helpless

SIDE B:
01. Pixies - Winterlong.
02. Sonic Youth - Computer Age
03. Psychic TV - Only Love Can Break Your Heart
04. Dinosaur Jr. - Lotta Love
05. Henry Kaiser - The Needle And The Damage Done/Tonight's The Night (Medley)

Pale Saints - Flesh Balloon [12"]

PALE SAINTS is a band that for some reason i never really was into at the time, and that i'm only starting to discover now over the past few months. I didn't have anything on vinyl by them yet, but at the Utrecht recordfair i ran into two EP's for only 1 euro each, so i couldn't let those stand in the crate of course. On this FLESH BALLOON EP there are 4 songs. Hunted and Hair Shoes appear on their great In Ribbons album, while Kinky Love on the B-side is the track that was used as a single at the time. It sounds a bit like their label mates Cocteau Twins.

Label: 4AD
Cat.nr.: BAD 1009
Year of release: 1991

SIDE A:
01. Hunted
02. Porpoise

SIDE B:
01. Kinky Love
02. Hair Shoes (Demo)

My Bloody Valentine - Geek [12"]

The GEEK EP is the first recording by MY BLOODY VALENTINE on which Debbie Googe plays bass. My copy, which i bought last weekend at the Utrecht record fair, is obviously a counterfeit. I don't mind really, as it's impossible to find an original one these days. And if you do, you won't pay only 15 bucks for it like i did. The sound quality is a bit "thin", but i doubt if the original would sound better. Originally released in 1985, MBV sounds like a garage rock band here, and still had vocalist David Conway (who left in 1987). It's not music i'm particularly fond of, but i didn't have these tracks on vinyl yet, and this title was still missing from my MBV collection. So after having seen this EP 3 times in a row at the fair now over the past one and half year, i decided to buy it this time around.

Label: Fever
Cat.nr.: FEV 5
Year or release: 1985

SIDE A:
01. No Place To Go
02. Moonlight

SIDE B:
01. Love Machine
02. The Sandman Never Sleeps

The House Of Love - Shine On (Fuck Version) [7", Flexidisc]

My first ever flexidisc is number 3 out of 4 singles by THE HOUSE OF LOVE that i bought at the Utrecht recordfair last weekend. The version of SHINE ON on this single (called "Fuck Version" for a reason unknown to me) is a quiet and acoustic solo rendition of the song by Guy Chadwick, recorded in Holland "during Guy Chadwick's infamous and well-documented breakdown". That's at least how it's described in the CD booklet of the Pensioners On Ecstasy compilation, the only other release that had this version featured a bit later. Last year it appeared on the deluxe CD edition of their s/t Creation album as well, as one of many bonus tracks. Apparently this 7" was given away for free at shows; but how many were made, and at which shows exactly they were given away, i have no idea of.

Label: Creation Records
Cat.nr.: CREFRE 5
Year of release: 1988

SIDE A:
01. Shine On (Fuck Version)

SIDE B:
-

The Soup Dragons - Mother Universe Remix [12"]

Bought this 12" at the Utrecht recordfair last weekend, paying only one Euro for it. Not that it's really worth more or anything, but anyway this MOTHER UNIVERSE 12" by Scottish band THE SOUP DRAGONS was a nice find. It has two versions of this indie rave song, in the same vein as their hit song I'm Free at the time: laidback and groovy. Totally in the same league as for example Happy Mondays and The Farm, although much lesser known.

Label: Big Life
Cat.nr.: BLR 30R
Year of release: 1990

SIDE A:
01. Mother Universe (Dub Version)

SIDE B:
01. Mother Universe (Original '89 Version)

The Black Angels - Indigo Meadow [12", LP]

INDIGO MEADOW is the second full length on the Blue Horizon label for THE BLACK ANGELS, and i can already tell that i like it better than their previous one, Phosphene Dream. It's a little less polished and the songs got some rougher edges again, like in their earlier days. The more i listen to it, the better i like it, but for me Directions To See A Ghost is still their best album. The artwork of Indigo Meadow by the way is quite different than their previous three albums, which all have hallucinating lines on the cover. As you can see on the picture above, this one has a psychedelic sixties-style drawing of the band members. Inside there's a lyrics booklet with some nice drawings (and yes; lines) as well. That's another thing that i really appreciate about The Black Angels: the well looked-after artwork of their releases. Once again they did a great job with that.

Label: Blue Horizon Ventures
Cat.nr.: BHV-16790-1
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Indigo Meadow
02. Evil Things
03. Don't Play With Guns
04. Holland
05. The Day
06. Love Me Forever
07. Always Maybe

SIDE B:
01. War On Holiday
02. Broken Soldier
03. I Hear Colors (Chromaesthesia)
04. Twisted Light
05. You're Mine
06. Black Isn't Black

The House Of Love - Destroy The Heart [7"]

This DESTROY THE HEART 7" by THE HOUSE OF LOVE was the second of four The House Of Love 7"es that i bought last weekend at the recordfair in Utrecht. I already have the 12" version, but this one wasn't very expensive so it is a welcome addition to my Creation Records collection.

Label: Creation Records
Cat.nr.: CRE 057
Year of release: 1988

SIDE A:
01. Destroy The Heart

SIDE B:
01. Blind

Team Ghost - Rituals [12", LP]

RITUALS by TEAM GHOST is a really good debut album. I wondered if they'd ever release an album at all anymore, having waited for it quite some time after two great EP's that were released in 2010. The cover of course immediately reveals that there are more people now involved besides Nicolas Fromageau and Christophe Guerin. While checking the names, it turns out that most of them were already involved with the other releases as well. Now mentioned on the sleeve as band members, Jean-Philippe Talaga, Felix Delacroix and Benoit de Villeneuve already did the previous artwork, producing and drums, for example. Speaking of the artwork, i think it's a bit too much over the top - but that's to my personal taste. I think it's neo-romantic kitsch with the skull and armors and i liked the artwork on the EP's way better.
But hey, it's the music that counts, and like i mentioned earlier it's a really good album. As long as Team Ghost will create epic songs i can't help but comparing them to M83, but it's quite noticeable that they've evolved and have become a real band now. An electronic indie rock band, with a much darker and heavier sound than M83 that Fromageau was first a part of. I'm happy they took that path. They'll be playing the London Calling Festival over here in Amsterdam in a few weeks and i really look forward to see them.

Label: wSphere Records
Cat.nr.:3267826
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Away
02. Curtains
03. Somebody's Watching
04. Dead Film Star
05. Things Are Sometimes Tragic
06. Broken Devices

SIDE B:
01. All We Left Behind
02. Fireworks
03. Montreuil
04. Pleasure That Hurts
05. Team Ghost
06. We Won't Fall

The Knife - Shaking The Habitual [12", 3LP]

Quite different from their previous album Silent Shout, this SHAKING THE HABITUAL album by THE KNIFE. It has become a challenging and thought-provoking, by times uncomfortable and disturbing, uneasy-listening electronic album. And i like it a lot. Most songs are long: many last for more than 6 minutes, with Old Dreams Waiting To Be Realized and its 19:02 minutes being the most extreme, filling the whole of side C. This album is as much modern art as it is pop music. They're going to be touring soon and i feel really sad that i can't go to their show over here, since i won't be in the country then. Would love to see how they'll be doing these songs live. I'm still continuously hearing new things in this album, but at this point i can say my two favourite songs are Raging Lung (which comes closest to what Karin did as Fever Ray) and Wrap Your Arms Around Me, a song as sensual as Ravel's Bolero but with rather estranging lyrics that show a very clinical view on romance. But it might take months, perhaps maybe a whole year or longer, to understand this album. If that's possible in the first place. The album comes as a 3LP foldout package in bright pink and green colours that hurt your eyes, and includes not only the album on 2CD but also the cartoon "End Extreme Wealth". Interesting!

Label: Rabid Records
Cat.nr.: RABID048
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. A Tooth For An Eye
02. Full Of Fire

SIDE B:
01. A Cherry On Top
02. Without You My Life Would Be Boring
03. Wrap Your Arms Around Me
04. Crake

SIDE C:
01. Old Dreams Waiting To Be Realized

SIDE D:
01. Raging Lung
02. Networking
03. Oryx

SIDE E:
01. Stay Out Here (Shannon Funchess, Emily Roysdon and The Knife)

SIDE F:
01. Fracking Fluid Injection
02. Ready To Lose

The House Of Love - Christine [7"]

CHRISTINE is definitely my favourite song by THE HOUSE OF LOVE; a true classic indie tune of the late eighties. I've been looking for this particular single for quite some time because it's the only vinyl release that has the slightly psychedelic Loneliness Is A Gun track on it. The CD edition of the so-called German Album has it, but the vinyl edition does not. So i was happy to find it last weekend at the recordfair in Utrecht, as you can imagine.

Label: Creation Records
Cat.nr.: CRE 053
Year of release: 1988

SIDE A:
01. Christine

SIDE B:
01. Loneliness Is A Gun

Fidlar - Fidlar [12", LP]

The self-titled debut full length by FIDLAR is an in-your-face snotty skate-punk outburst of songs about drugs, booze and surfing. Sounds a bit like Wavves (same attitude) but the songs are meaner and sharper. Think of a mix of Wavves, Blink 182, Motörhead and Zeke. The opening song (and hit single) Cheap Beer perfectly captures the spirit: I. Drink. Cheap. Beer. So. What. Fuck. You.
This one was not in my best-albums-of-the-year list last year, but it probably was 2012's best party album.

Label: Mom+Pop Music, Wichita
Cat.nr.: WEBB 355LP
Year of release: 2012

SIDE A:
01. Cheap Beer
02. Stoked And broke
03. White On White
04. No Waves
05. Whore
06. Max Can't Surf
07. Blackout Stout

SIDE B:
01. Wake Bake Skate
02. Gimmie Something
03. 5 To 9
04. LDA
05. Paycheck
06. Wait For The Man
07. Cocaine

Tame Impala - Mind Mischief [12"]

MIND MISCHIEF is the second single taken from TAME IMPALA's excellent Lonerism album. Besides the album version, there are two remixes on this 12": a very laidback Ducktails Remix and one by The Field, whose monotonous (in a positive way) distinctive sound fits very well with this track. Over 10 minutes to get you in a trance....

Label: Modular
Cat.nr.: MODVL 175
Year of release: 2013

SIDE A:
01. Mind Mischief
02. Mind Mischief (Ductktails Remix)

SIDE B:
01. Mind Mischief (The Field Remix)

The Knife - We Share Our Mothers' Health [12"]

WE SHARE OUR MOTHERS' HEALTH is one of the best tracks on the Silent Shout album by THE KNIFE. That fact alone is no guarantee for a good remix 12" maxi (see what i wrote about Fever Ray's Seven earlier today), but Trentemøller and Radio Slave did a mighty fine job here. The Trentemøller remix is a lengthy floor-filler and my favourite of the two, but the Radio Slave mix (taking more the acid approach) is pretty cool as well.


Label: Brille Records
Cat.nr.: BRILS09T
Year of release: 2006

SIDE A:
01. We Share Our Mothers' Health (Trentemøller Remix)
02. We Share Our Mothers' Health (album version)

SIDE B:
01. We Share Our Mothers' Health (Radio Slave's Secret Base Remix)

Fever Ray - Seven [12"]

SEVEN is presented here in 4 remixes, of which only the remix by CSS is one that i enjoy playing, to be honest. Especially the one by Crookers really gets to my nerves, with those irritating phone rings. Seven is actually one of the best songs on the FEVER RAY album as far as i'm concerned, so these remixes were quite a letdown when i bought this 12" some years ago. Haven't played it very often ever since. Ah well.


Label: Rabid Records
Cat.nr.: RABID043T
Year of release: 2009

SIDE A:
01. Seven (Crookers Remix)
02. Seven (Marcel Dettmann's Voice In My Head)

SIDE B:
01. Seven (Martyn's Seventh Remix)
02. Seven (CSS Remix)