I Break Horses - Chiaroscuro [12", LP]

CHIAROSCURO, the second album by I BREAK HORSES, came out in January this year. Two and half years after their debut Hearts, which was one of my favourite albums of 2011. And i must say that this one also has become one of my favourites of this year. Not sure if it will end up in my Top 10 of 2014, but i've still got some weeks to think about that. Compared to Hearts, it's just as electronic - but on the other hand sounds ten times more electronic. Any connections with shoegaze like they had in the past have disappeared, however Medicine Brush would come close to dreampop if it wasn't for the beats and elecronica. A grower, this album. Put on your headphones and let it get under your skin.

Label: Bella Union
Cat.nr.: BELLAV428
Year of release: 2014

SIDE A:
01. You Burn
02. Faith
03. Ascension
04. Denial
05. Berceuse

SIDE B:
01. Medicine Brush
02. Disclosure
03. Weigh True Words
04. Heart To Know

Mogwai - Record Industry 3. Fitness Industry 1. [12"]

Listening to Teenage Exorcists on RECORD INDUSTRY 3. FITNESS INDUSTRY 1. i wonder why MOGWAI didn't put this great song on Rave Tapes. Apparently all three new songs on this EP's A-side came from that album's recording sessions. Together they show exactly how diverse this amazing band's music is: a catchy rock song, a cinematic instrumental track and a post-rock tune (also instrumental) that builds up slowly until it ends in a bombastic noise explosion.
The remixes on the B-side are also pretty decent, especially the Nils Frahm remix of The Lord Is Out Of Control which is actually really good. I just realised that i saw both him and Mogwai at this year's Best Kept Secret Festival. Stunning performances, by the way.

Label: Rock Action
Cat.nr.: ROCKACT89
Year of release: 2014

SIDE A:
01. Teenage Exorcists
02. History Day
03. HMP Shaun William Ryder

SIDE B:
01. Re-Remurdered (Blanck Mass)
02. No Medicine For Regret (Pye Corner Audio Remix)
03. The Lord Is Out Of Control (Nils Frahm Remix)

Loop - Fade Out [12", LP]

This LOOP album is another find from the Utrecht record fair last weekend. FADE OUT was their second album (of only three, not counting the singles compilation The World In Your Eyes and a Peel Sessions LP), and the only one that was still missing in my collection. Just like Heaven's End and A Gilded Eternity this album's packed with psychedelic repetitive space rock. Great stuff. Recorded at Blackwing Studios, about which i wrote something a few months ago. The original release was in 1988 on the Chapter 22 label, but this is a 1992 reissue on the Reactor label. Limited edition, grey vinyl. Extremely happy that i bumped into this album on the last day of the fair when it was sold for less than half of the normal price.

Label: Reactor
Cat.nr.: REACTOR LP4
Year of release: 1992 (originally: 1988)

SIDE A:
01. Black Sun
02. This Is Where You End
03. Fever Knife
04. Torched

SIDE B:
01. Fade Out
02. Pulse
03. A Vision Stain
04. Got To Get It Over

Whirr / Nothing - Split EP [12"]

When two of my current favorite bands release a split EP, i'm extremely stoked of course. WHIRR and NOTHING both provided two excellent tracks, and the result is one of the strongest EP releases of this year. While Whirr makes modern shoegaze, Nothing leans more towards nineties alternative rock on this release. For example Chloroform has a great Smashing Pumpkins (Siamese Dream-era) vibe to it, which i like a lot. I saw Nothing last week in Amsterdam and they really rocked. Now let's hope Whirr will do a European tour as well soon. The EP is single-sided and there's a nice etched B-side that shows both bands' logos as eyes of the well-known "Nirvana smiley". It was hard to make a photo, but at least you'll get the idea:

There were several pressings made of this EP. Mine is the cream/green marbled one (1000 made) and there's supposed to be a DVD included as well, but that didn't come with my copy unfortunately.

Label: Run For Cover Records
Cat.nr.: RFC 109
Year of release: 2014

SIDE A:
01. WHIRR - Ease
02. WHIRR - Lean
03. NOTHING: Chloroform
04. NOTHING: July The Fourth

SIDE B:
etching

Chvrches - Under The Tide [12"]

This year's Black Friday saw many special limited releases again, but i only bothered to buy this 12" by CHVRCHES. It's on beautiful light orange vinyl (although the sticker says it's yellow) and besides the single version of UNDER THE TIDE, it has an unreleased song called Strong Hand on it, plus two nice re-recorded versions of The Mother We Share and Gun. And a remix for Recover, which i don't like that much to be honest. As far as i understood most of these tunes were released digitally earlier this year.

Label: Glassnote
Cat.nr.: GLS-0163-12
Year of release: 2014

SIDE A:
01. Under The Tide (single version)
02. Recover (KDA Remix)

SIDE B:
01. Strong Hand
02. The Mother We Share (Alucard Session)
03. Gun (Alucard Session)

This Mortal Coil - Blood [12", 2LP, Promo]

Another great find at the Utrecht record fair last weekend was this promo edition on Rough Trade of the BLOOD album by THIS MORTAL COIL. I like the band's (or project might be a better word) first album It'll End In Tears better because of Cocteau Twins and Dead Can Dance appearances, but this one's got some excellent tunes and participations of fine artists as well. You And Your Sister, the Big Star song performed by Kim Deal and Tanya Donelly, is a perfect example. But also Syd Barrett's Late Night, performed by Caroline Crawley of Shelleyan Orphan is amazing.
So this is a promo edition on one of the labels 4AD licensed it to: Rough Trade in Germany. It's got white labels and comes in a record company sleeve. The runout grooves show the 4AD catalogue number (DAD 1005) but the sticker on the sleeve mentions the Rough Trade details plus release date 22-04-1991.

There was also an original fax included with my copy, from the Rough Trade Records GmbH headquarters (dated 18-04-1991) with track info. I like those authentic details.
Like said, a great find, and on top of that it's in absolutely perfect condition. That's often the case with promo copies because they normally don't get played that often.

Label: 4AD / Rough Trade
Cat.nr.: DAD 1005 / RTD 120.1218.1/2/4 
Year of release: 1991


SIDE A:
01. The Lacemaker
02. Mr. Somewhere
03. Andialu
04. With Tomorrow
05. Loose Joints
06. You And Your Sister

SIDE B:
01. Nature's Way
02. I Come And Stand At Every Door
03. Bitter
04. Baby Ray Baby
05. Several Times

SIDE C:
01. The Lacemaker II
02. Late Night
03. Ruddy And Wretched
04. Help Me Lift You Up
05. Carolyn's Song
06. D.D. and E.

SIDE D:
01. 'Til I Gain Control Again
02. Dreams Are Like Water
03. I Am The Cosmos
04. (Nothing But) Blood

Ride - Leave Them All Behind [7", Promo]

Last weekend i've visited the bi-annual record fair in Utrecht again, and this 7" by RIDE was one of my best crate digging finds there. It's a pretty rare Spanish promo for the song LEAVE THEM ALL BEHIND. Both the A and B side have the same lengthy (album) version of the song, by the way.
I'm so excited that this great band will be back together for a tour in spring 2015! There were already rumours that it was going to happen for quite a while. I actually heard it first when i was in London to see Slowdive getting back together in May this year, and i promised to myself i'd make a similar trip to the UK in 2015 if it would happen. But since they planned a show in Amsterdam i can simply hop on the train to see them over here. Bloody brilliant! After My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive and now Ride, who else would i like to see getting back together? I'd say Lush, although i'd perfectly understand in their case that the reason for breaking up might perhaps be still valid for not getting back together anymore again. It would be different anyway. So perhaps Chapterhouse would be a nice alternative.

Label: Warner Bros.
Cat.nr.: 1503 
Year of release: 1992

SIDE A: 
01. Leave Them All Behind

SIDE B:
01. Leave Them All Behind

Dead Horse One - Without Love We Perish [12", LP]

Finally time to write something about this fantastic album WITHOUT LOVE WE PERISH by the French band DEAD HORSE ONE. The reason it caught my attention was that i'd heard that it was produced and mixed by Mark Gardener. Mark is an artist i truly admire for what he did with his band Ride back in the early nineties, and also more recently when i saw him at the Sonic Cathedral anniversary party earlier this year in London he still impressed me a lot with his performance. So i was really curious what he had done with this band from France that i'd never heard of before.
Well... the sound is absolutely brilliant! It's a perfect mix of shoegaze and neo-psych music, with a very lush and summery vibe to it. Maybe it's because they're from the deep south-west coast of France; surfers' paradise. If i'd have to name 3 bands that come to mind when listening to this album, i'd say Brian Jonestown Massacre, Dandy Warhols and Ride. It simply is really good stuff. It's hard to choose a favourite track, but when i look at my ipod, i see that i've have been playing both Raven and I Love My Man the most. Nothing beats a vinyl though, and after quite some hassle to get my hands on a copy i finally found it from a distro on Discogs! A shame though that the sleeve of this limited release (only 300 copies) is of such thin quality cardboard. Nothing the band can be blamed for of course, but you'd almost think that's why the label's called A Quick One. Music-wise however, i think it might just end up in my top 10 list of this year!

Label: A Quick One Records
Cat.nr.: AQO LP86
Year of release: 2014

SIDE A: 
01. Hopper
02. I Love My Man
03. Raven
04. By My Side

SIDE B:
01. Never Be Your Lover
02. Undone
03. Blackwood
04. Teen
05. Wicker

David Sylvian - Secrets Of The Beehive [12", LP]

Of all the solo work of DAVID SYLVIAN after Japan called it quits, SECRETS OF THE BEEHIVE is without doubt my favourite album. It's more acoustic than his previous solo stuff and has a beautiful, introvert vibe. On tracks like The Devil's Own and Waterfront you can clearly hear that Ryuichi Sakamoto is collaborating. Also his former Japan bandmate Steve Jansen is featured. The album is jam-packed with amazing songs, but if i'd have to choose i'd say Orpheus is my favourite song - and probably even my favourite David Sylvian song ever. The great artwork clearly bears the signature of Vaughan Oliver and Nigel Grierson of 23 Envelope. If you wouldn't know any better, you'd think it'd be a 4AD release, for that matter.

Record label: Virgin
Cat.nr.: V 2471
Year of release: 1987

SIDE A:
01. September
02. The Boy With The Gun
03. Maria
04. Orpheus
05. The Devil's Own

SIDE B:
01. When Poets Dreamed Of Angles
02. Mother And Child
03. Let The Happiness In
04. Waterfront

Swervedriver - Sandblasted [12"]

SWERVEDRIVER always was a somewhat different band in the early nineties than the other UK bands from around that time. They sounded more like USA bands such as Buffalo Tom and the Posies, with their powerpop/college-rock. This SANDBLASTED EP is a good example. The title track comes from the amazing Raise album and the other 3 (non-album) tracks are nice little gems. Although little... Laze It Up almost lasts 7 minutes, and is actually my favourite song of this EP. Awesome stuff!

Label : Creation Records
Cat.nr.: CRE 102T
Year of release: 1991

SIDE A:
01. Sandblasted
02. Flawed

SIDE B:
01. Out
02.Laze It Up

Cocteau Twins - Iceblink Luck [12"]

ICEBLINK LUCK is a single taken from the Heaven Or Las Vegas album by COCTEAU TWINS. A great song, and the two non-album tracks on the B-side are gorgeous as well. Mizake The Mizan would certainly not have been misplaced if it would've been on the album, while on Watchlar the drum machine is perhaps a bit too present but still i love it a lot.

Label: 4AD
Cat.nr.: BAD 0011
Year of release: 1990

SIDE A:
01. Iceblink Luck

SIDE B:
01. Mizake The Mizan
02. Watchlar