Broken

Having major issues (again) with my machine. Hope to get things running again next week. Until then the blog won't be updated, maybe use this time to go back and get the things you may have missed before the links expire or Nuclear Blast or Dischord records has them removed.

R.I.P. David Gold

Very saddened to hear about the sudden passing of Woods of Ypres' David Gold. David was always a very kind and thoughtful individual, and an immense talent. Peace be with his friends and family.

Discipline

Some manly fucking late '70s Cleveland style Punk Rawk courtesy of No Talk, a band from who are not from the '70s or Cleveland. These guys are circa fucking now and calling the humid stink pit of Houston Texas home. This LP is some bare-knuckle shit that woke me from my apathy towards the ol' punk.

Here

Intercourse & Lust

Here's the first album from the self proclaimed "Most evil band in Japan." Intercourse and Lust was released by the sketchy Modern Invasion label in 1997. Abigail's Black Metal is rooted in thrash and punk, the lyrics are brilliant Engrish soliloquies paying homage to things like nymphomaniacal witches, nefarious wizards, and the Yakuza, among other things. "Thrash til Die/To Glory of Attack/Attack with Spell/In my Attack," howls main man Yasuyuki on the track "Attack With Spell." Intercourse and Lust, I almost hate to say it, is a fun album, a record to spin with beer, lots and lots of beer and your bestest bros, and beer.

Here

Vacant

Generally most garage psych records bore me, too much of the same thing, useless cover songs, and most fall just shy of being truly heavy, or truly strange. However, The Jacks' Vacant World is just too enticing to be overlooked. Vacant World carries a darkness and a desperation that pushes it far beyond much of the typically saccharine psych-pop of the time. Some wild vocalizing and absolutely stunning guitar work keep the album interesting. The Jacks gets into gear with "Marriane," with it's strange crashy cymbals and almost free-jazz bass lines, wild styles indeed. "Stop the Clock" is a delicate glockenspielly track. The title track is another dour ballad that almost reminds me a bit of Leonard Cohen, if Mr. Cohen was Japanese that is. "In the Broken Mirror" has some of the greatest sounding fuzz guitar committed to tape, but "Gloomy Flower" is the standout track with Yoshio Hayakawa's pained crooning, the man sounds at his wit's end and although I have no idea what he is on about, I am assured that he fucking means it. "Love Generation" may be the most average track here, but still packs plenty of hooks. "Bari-Manji" is a bluesy lope with more Hayakawa wailing. "Where" is a laid back strut that sounds like it came from a Suzuki gangster picture. "Love" is a gorgeous ballad, and then the Vacant World comes to an end with "500 Miles from the Sky," a strange organ/vocal piece with spoken word. All in all, Vacant World is a trip, and a very satisfying one at that.

Here

Dekoder

Another cassette treasure nicked from Terminal Escape. I couldn't resist, this little demo is just so fucking delicious. Dekoder hail from Montreal and play the kind of dark and desperate post-punk that you so crave. Drums and bass pound out a stiff backbeat while the maudlin female voice and brooding guitars convey a wealth of unflappable, infectious melodies. My only problem with this demo is it leaves me wanting more. Dekoder, if you are reading this, please please please make an album or twenty. I love you.

Here

After Dark

You need some NWOBHM right about now, I can sense it. Your bird ain't right, your boss is a fucking cunt, and even the berks down at your local boozer got you a bit mithered. Fear not, you bloody minge bags, After Dark is here to make everything pukka once again, with their one and lonely little record, a real roister doister of a disc for your bloody saft earholes.

Crikey!

Midnight

Kenny Dorham's career trajectory was spotty due to the master trumpeter's ever-failing health, thankfully before his death in 1972 Dorham put out some great and versatile albums. As much as I love his entire body of work, my favorite Dorham moment is this 1956 club date committed to tape and titled 'Round About Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia. First let's take a gander at the cover: Dorham in a hideous blazer grips an old mic, superimposed behind him is a landscape of urban rooftops at dawn. The whole package perfectly captures the smoky, seedy city vibe of the recording. Dorham's band, comprised of names like J.R. Monterose, Bobby Timmons, Kenny Burrell, Sam Jones, and Arthur Edgehill, slide and slunk through the Monk classic from which the albums title comes, as well as a number of standards and a few Dorham originals. The perfect late night, ice clinking in a stiff drink type of record.

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Walpurgis

The Shiver were Switzerland's answer to the Krautrock boom of the late 60s and early 70s. They played weirdo, organ-heavy, psych, hung out with Geiger (who provided them with cover art) and released one pretty stellar album before the members went on to pursue other interests. Walpurgis, released in 1969, is a great album that suffers from spotty sequencing and a useless cover version of "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," but the strength of the opener, "Repent Walpurgis" and "Hey Mr. Holy Man" redeem The Shiver. If you are one of the handful of people that went all fucky over that Paternoster album posted here sometime ago, I recommend checking into Walpurgis.

Repent!

Bell Witch

So the top ten lists are rolling in, and some of you may have noticed an obscure CDR demo being mentioned, a demo by a little known Seattle doom band called Bell Witch. The gracious dudes from the band were kind enough to send me a copy. Admittedly I slept on it a bit, for this I am foolish. Bell Witch have ex-members of Samothrace, so right there I should have clamored to listen. This isn't terribly unlike Samothrace, perhaps a bit more menacing and less delicate in parts than the former band. Bell Witch also can boast some pretty compelling vocal work on this release. A truly special band that will go on to do great things. Someone give them money to make an album. This is gorgeous.

Here

Haus Music

As far as all these new fangled bands looking to Siouxsie and The Banshees, Bauhaus, and Joy Division, please consider The Vanishing. The San Francisco/Berlin band churned out creepy cantos of Deathrock's dusty past over a decade ago, and I think they were one of the best at it. In the Bathaus was the band's follow up to their strong debut titled Songs for Psychotic Children, and while I love that album, this EP feels deeper and darker. Absolutely mandatory.

Here

Another World

One of my favorite Death Metal demos of all time, Finland's Necropsy were such a stellar band that really never got out of the demo barn. Someone may have had the good sense to release all this rare bloody gold into one abhorrent anthology but I am not certain. I do know is that Necropsy were a skilled group of youngsters that packed a certain clinical crispness to their bludgeon. Another World contains four absolutely mandatory tracks.

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