Modern Warfare - Dayglo Shadows Delivered 7"

UT (2014, Reissue)

The folks at UT records have been pretty great about sending me copies of their records as they've come out.  I'm glad as there have been many more hits than misses so far.  Also exciting is that they have been doing more vinyl as of late.  This Modern Warfare 7" is the second time they've reissued an old 7" from a largely forgotten band.  I can't say that I was particularly familiar with these guys prior to getting this 7", but based on what the original pressing seems to cost on Discogs, they must be well known to others.

I have to say that this is probably my least favorite thing that UT has sent me so far.  While I would not call it bad or anything like that, it's not really the sort of punk rock that has ever been my thing. I think it's probably the vocals as there are a lot of older 70's and 80's punk bands that have a sort of nasally sneer that I've never been been able to get behind.  There's some good guitar work and the treble heavy guitar tone lends itself to the vocals, but I can't help but think it just sounds kind of old.

I'm not sure that's a valid criticism as it is old.  This 7" came out in 1980 and was recorded and pressed with the sort of punk rock budget that came with those times.  If you are into the punky power pop of this era, Modern Warfare is probably more up your alley. For me, I'm just more stuck in the 90's I guess.

Modern Warfare - Dayglo Shadows Delivered 7":

http://utrecords.bandcamp.com/album/delivered

The Blues Brothers - Briefcase Full Of Blues LP - White Vinyl

Music On Vinyl (2014, Reissue)

This will mark the third time that I've written about Briefcase Full Of Blues on this website.  A brief recap of what was previously written: This is the single most influential album I've ever had.  It's the first record I owned and without exaggeration, I've listened to it thousands of times.  I can't say enough good things about the music.  It's really one of those records that I think everyone should own.

As far as this reissue goes, I'll mostly be comparing it to the other recent pressing that came out in the US on Friday records.  This white vinyl version is only available as an import and of course, comes with a healthy price tag because of that.  The white vinyl is pretty neat looking and unlike the Friday version, Music On Vinyl uses the red, white and green Atlantic records label.  I couldn't tell you why that is so important to me, but it is.

The sound quality of both reissues are really top notch.  The Friday version may sound slightly better, but I'm really just splitting hairs as both are comparable and either version would spruce up any collection that's missing this essential record.  Keep in mind that the Friday records version is also on the pricey side, but will probably be easier to find than the Music On Vinyl version.

The final verdict?  I obviously have them both and I don't think I could settle with one or the other.  The Atlantic Records label on this version tips the scale slightly for me, purely because of nostalgia.  But anyone would be happy with the Friday records version as well.  I don't know, I suggest you buy as many blues albums as you can.

The Blues Brothers - Hey Bartender:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWAifinmBJg

The Blues Brothers - Almost:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMwZ17-Yjj8

Unwound - 06/30/1999 Reykjavik, Iceland LP

Numero Group (2014)

Unwound Wednesday is hanging in there for another week.  Next week may be the last one for a while though.  This time we've got the 06/30/1999 Reykjavik, Iceland LP that was available to purchase with the third Unwound box set from Numero Group.

This LP is a five song live document from, not surprisingly, Reykjavik, Iceland.  It was recoded by RUV according to the description on the Number Group website.  I assume they're a radio station because the sound quality of these five songs is outstanding.  I've never really been a live album guy and I do somewhat question the song choices here, though the version of "Here Come The Dogs" is pretty stellar.

The LP was limited to 1000 copies and only available to purchase directly from Numero Group.  I would not call this essential by any stretch of the imagination, but for only $10 while you're picking up the No Energy box set, I don't see why you wouldn't pick it up. 

The Blues Brothers - Original Soundtrack Recording LP - Blue Vinyl

Music On Vinyl (2014, Reissue)

If I already own a record, I've been trying to stay away from silly, high priced cash grab reissues.  Now, if I didn't already have the record, that can be another story.  I don't always follow that rule as gospel, but I've been trying not to buy multiple copies of the same record unless it's one of my absolute favorite bands.  The Blues Brothers qualifies.

I've had this soundtrack LP since I was a child.  Unlike my childhood copy of Briefcase Full Of Blues, my copy of the soundtrack is actually still in pretty good shape.  Even so, I just had to buy this reissue on blue vinyl.  It's  UK import so there's that added expense in addition to it being a fairly pricey reissue.  I think it's around $35 - $40 depending on where you look. 

As far as quality goes, this is a really nice reissue.  The artwork looks great.  The blue vinyl is striking.  They used the old school red, green and white Atlantic records logo.  The sound quality is really nice too.  I'll say this, even though it's a pretty expensive reissue for a record that's probably not all that tough to find in $5 used bins, they really did try to make this as high end as possible.

Musically, this is just one of my favorites.  You've got Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and James Brown.  There's killer Blues Brothers songs like "Gimme Some Lovin," "She Caught The Katy" and "Sweet Home Chicago."  The only negative things I could ever say about it is that there are songs in the movie not on the original soundtrack.  It would have been nice to get a 2nd disc with those.  Plus, even since I was a little kid I never liked the female backing vocals that have been bizarrely added to "Everybody Needs Somebody To Love."  I actually recorded the version from the movie off of my DVD a long time ago and slid that into the version that lives on my iPod.

If you don't have this soundtrack, this is the best version of the LP you can currently buy.  But it's a big money commitment for someone that maybe doesn't have quite the history and passion for these songs that I have.   The Blues Brothers is the only favorite movie I've ever had since I was about 4 or 5 years old.  Having two copies of the soundtrack seems totally fine to me.

The Blues Brothers - "She Caught The Caty":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hB3eCv_FOk

The Blues Brothers - "Gimme Some Lovin":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hX5zaS0vgJ8

China Drum - It's Punk Rock, Son 7"

Too Pure (2014)

Early China Drum is right at the very top of my list of absolute favorites in the world.  Their first few singles and their debut album Goosefair are about as good as rock and roll gets if you ask me.  To this day, I still probably listen to Goosefair at least once or twice a month, it's just that good.  The problem is that after that initial flurry of greatness, they put out an extremely mediocre second album.  They then changed their name to The Drum and released a truly terrible record and that was that.

When news came out that China Drum was back together and playing shows again I was pretty excited.  Even better, they apparently were focusing mainly on Goosefair era tracks and ignoring some of the songs that I thought were sub par.  Then came the news that they were writing new songs.  This 7" is the first document of this new material.

The return of China Drum is a two song 7" that came out as part of the Too Pure Singles Club. Luckily, it was easily available to get without joining the club.  Unfortunately, this new China Drum 7" isn't very good.  The A side "Water" just plods along without any real energy or purpose.  This 7" is called It's Punk Rock, Son, but this song just sounds like the worst of 90's alternative rock deep album cuts.  I can't fathom why this would be the song they'd lead off their resurrection with.

B-side "Kitty's Burn" is at least a little better.  It's faster and catchier, being somewhat more representative of the band's earlier work.  But there's this ridiculous drum fill during the verse that absolutely murders the momentum of the song.  Again, how could they think that this was a good idea?  

There is a reason most people a skeptical when bands that they love get back together again.  This 7" is exhibit A.  I will not write off China Drum because of this 7", but if they put out a new album, there is absolutely no way that I will blind buy it without hearing a good chunk of it first.  The band has proven in the past they are capable of truly great things.  But they've also proven that they are not infallible and can put out some bunk songs too.

China Drum - It's Punk Rock, Son 7":

https://soundcloud.com/too-pure-singles-club/sets/china-drum-7

Against Me - The Daytrotter Sessions 7"

Total Treble (2014)

This was released for the yearly Black Friday Record Store Day from this past year.  I never really understood the Black Friday one.  It always seems to me like the very worst of Record Store Day without the handful of cool records that make it tolerable.  This was literally the only thing I had any interest at all and I just ordered it online after the fact.  Like Black Friday's Record Store Day, this 7" is kind of pointless as well.

This is the very definition of a collection filler to me.  I like Against Me quite a bit, I have all of their LPs and every one of their 7"s.  So, I did feel to keep the collection complete I should pick this up as well.  I can't imagine ever listening to it again though.

It's 4 of their previously available songs.  "500 Years," "Transgender Dysphoria Blues" and "Pretty Girls" are done using an electric guitar, but played as if they were slowed down acoustic songs with minimal accompaniment from Atom Willard of Drums.  "Two Coffins" is actually played on an acoustic guitar.  I guess they're kind of interesting takes on the songs and I don't think it's wrong of them to document this with a 7" or anything like that.  I'm sure some people will be excited that this is available to own.  But for me, I just don't really care that much. 

Maybe if there was one unreleased song or something.  But honestly, the only radio sessions I want to see on vinyl at this point are those first three Beck at KCRW sessions.  That's some radio gold right there.

Against Me - The Daytrotter Sessions:

http://www.daytrotter.com/#!/concert/against-me/21021268-37382290&playerLoadAndPlayTrack=49113060

(You do have to sign up to actually listen to this on their website)

Unwound - No Energy LP Box Set

Numero Group (2014)

For this week's Unwound Wednesday, I'm taking a look at the 3rd Unwound box set from Numero Group.  There's only one more to go after this and we're starting to enter into the territory of Unwound songs I'm not really as familiar with.

Starting off with 1995's The Future Of What, this box set starts off with a bang.  This is the last Unwound album I bought back in the 90's.  I was starting to move on to other things around this time and while I really did like this record, I never loved it quite as much as some people.  I'll stand by my claim that New Plastic Ideas is their best record.  Listening to The Future Of What twenty years later, I'm much more struck by how good of a record it is.  Unwound was definitely maturing in their songwriting and while they still had their share of noisy freak outs, the album is held together with a darker, bass driven undertone.

By the time 1996's Repetition came out, I wasn't paying as much attention anymore.  I'm sure I must have heard it at some point, but I never bought it and certainly don't remember much of it anymore.  So for me, this was like listening to a brand new Unwound record (as will everything in the next box set coming out).  I enjoyed Repetition way more than I thought I would and honestly, I can't figure out why I didn't like this when it came out.  Especially considering that "Corpse Pose" is such a ridiculously good song.

The last LP is a bunch of singles and rarities.  Maybe they're not quite as strong as the songs on the LPs, but everything on here is also pretty darn great.

As always, Numero did a stellar job with the box set.  The original album art is recreated on the inner album sleeves, which are then encased in larger, sturdy cardboard sleeves.  It comes with another incredible booklet with detailed writing about this stage in Unwound's history and everything is housed in in an outer box.  If you've seen the first two sets, you know what you're getting into.  This set is every bit as good as those.

I can't recommend these Unwound box sets enough.  For the price you pay (Less than some of the BS reissues you'll see on Record Store Day) you just can't beat the quality or all of the great music.

Ex Hex / Twerps - Split 7" - White Vinyl (+Merge Box & CD)

Merge (2014)

The last 7" in the Or Thousand Of Prizes series from Merge is a split 7" between Ex Hex and Twerps.  Ex Hex is a band that I am somewhat familiar with.  I had seen the Mary Timony fronted band open up for Rocket From The Crypt last year.  While I did enjoy them, it wasn't to the point where I felt that I wanted to pick up one of their records.  I'm pleasantly surprised with how much I like their contribution, a cover of The Real Kids' "All Kindsa Girls."  It's tremendously catchy in a garage-y Ramones sort of way.  Just a really fun song.  

Twerps, on the other hand, is a band that I'd never heard of before getting this 7".  Their song "Science" is pretty good.  It leans towards the indie rock side of the spectrum with muddy production, but strong harmonies piercing through the fog.  It has a distinct 90's sound, but I'm having a difficult time really pinning it down.  It mostly reminds me of Cub or Go Sailor, but not nearly as in-your-face upbeat and energetic.  I actually like this song a bit more.  I'll have to check out more of their records as I was pretty intrigued by this.

Since this is the last of the series, I've also taken a picture of some of the bonuses.  It comes with a nice, sturdy box set to hold all of the singles.  They also sent along a CD of every song in the series (I nice bonus since the 7"s didn't have MP3 download coupons). I also got a Merge shirt and another bonus 12" of Merge bands covering other Merge bands (That's a review for another day).  

For the money, the quality of these records is really worth it.  Merge handled this like champs.  The records always came out on time and the extras were really cool.  Musically, I can't say this series thrilled me as a whole.  Though I was really into Superchunk, Mikal Cronin, King Kahn and a few others; for the most part this just seemed like a box set of mid afternoon NPR bands.  I wish there were some more bands with a little more oomph.  Still, it's hard to complain about this series as it was just presented so flawlessly.  Kudos to Merge.

Crooked Fingers / Spider Bags - Split 7" - Green Vinyl

Merge (2014)

We're in the home stretch for the Merge Records Or Thousands Of Prizes singles series.  For the November release they paired up Crooked Fingers and Spider Bags.

Let me admit right up front that I hate Crooked Fingers.  That band drives me out of my mind.  Sure, it may simply be because Eric Bachmann was in Archers Of Loaf and Crooked Fingers sounds nothing like Archers.  But I think even past that it's because I've always felt that Crooked Fingers was making pretentious music just for the sake of it.  I'm sure I'm wrong, but I've tried to give them another chance again and again and I just never like anything they's done.  Their contribution to this split is no different.  "Western Line" is built over minimal rhythmic drumming, the occasional quick guitar overlay and harmonized lyrics that sound like their off of a band Paul Simon benefit record from the 80's.  It's just not for me.

On the flip side, Spider Bags are a band I find much more agreeable.  While they don't knock my socks off or anything, their song "Into A Tree" benefits from being much more upbeat and cohesive.  The cadence of the lyrics remind me a little bit of The Dandy Warhols, but just slightly.  When compared to the other side of this record it sounds like the best song in the world, but in reality it's just ok.

Samiam - Billy LP - Green Vinyl

New Red Archives (2012, Reissue)

Billy is the last of the Samiam full length albums that I needed to round out my collection.  There are still quite a few EPs and 7"s floating around out there, but at least I have the main ones taken care of.

Billy was Samiam's 3rd full length and was absolutely their best one up until that point if you ask me.  It still was reasonably tough and punk rock but it showcased the band's pop songwriting chops way more than anything else they had previously released.  For my money, I still think that Clumsy is the best Samiam record, but Billy is definitely no slouch.

Especially when you have a song as good as "Well" on your record.  With it's vaguely sinister lead guitar riff and buckets of energy, you could make the argument that "Well" is the best Samiam song they ever wrote.  But let's not discount the rest of this album as it quite good for the most part.  There's a handful of slower songs that drag down the record in places, but in general Billy has way more high points than low. 

It still blows my mind that this record came out in 1992.  The fact that these punk rock records that I remember seeing in the record store and passing on because I just wasn't that interested at the time is just weird.  I remember it all like it was yesterday.  At least with age I was able to go back and appreciate Samiam in ways that I didn't when I was younger.  They ended up being a pretty great band.

Samiam - "Well":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc8UgB2fZ0s

Samiam - "Hey Brother":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WYoCX2Y6UE

Unwound / Steel Pole Bathtub - Split 7"

Honey Bear (1996)

I probably don't have many more Unwound Wednesdays left.  I'm pretty much through all of the 7"s of theirs I picked up.  This one is a split with Steel Pole Bathtub.  I generally love split 7"s.  They were pretty much my favorite thing back in the 90's.  You buy a record for a band you like and then you get to hear another band on the flip side.  I discovered a lot of new music that way and I still love picking up new split 7"s when I have the chance.  They're not quite as common as they were back then, but they're still around.

This split is an odd bird.  There is no label at all on the record itself and the bands are not identified on the artwork anywhere.  I guess that's not really that big of a deal as your loyal record store employee would likely just write it on the plastic sleeve for you before putting it out in the store. Though it does make me wonder how many of these records went out into the world and sat around because no one knew who was on it.

Anyway, Unwound deliver one of their slower paced, gradually building songs for their side of the split.  It's classic mid 90's Unwound working off of a sliding bass guitar loop with softly spoken vocals.  I tend to like it when they're a bit more chaotic, but it's still a very good song. 

Steel Pole Bathtub delivers all of the chaos you would need on this record as their side is really just noise.  I'm sure I sound like an uneducated poser and all, but I do not understand this sort of thing at all.  The song starts with a fury of pounding drums and feedback before dissipating into the occasional noisy squall over some primal and repetitive chanting.  I couldn't tell you if this is good noise or bad noise.  All I can tell you for sure that the only way I'll ever play that side of this record again is if I put it on by mistake because the sides aren't labeled.  I couldn't find this song streaming online, but you probably don't need to hear it to be honest.

Unwound - "Seen Not Heard":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acFWLaxY1Rg

Remember The Radio - Owls From The Firewater LP

Self Released (2014)

I don't really get a whole lot of records sent to me to review and even when someone sends me a record rarely is it a full length album.  Not only did Remember The Radio send me their newest release, but they also sent their two prior LPs as well.  That's a lot of music by a band to go through in one sitting, so I'll have to get to the other two at a later time.

Owls From The Firewater starts off slow.  Really slow actually.  I wouldn't say in a bad way, but it definitely has a Sea Change era Beck vibe to it.  From the acoustic guitar to the plaintive distant sounding vocals, it's pretty spot on.  Now an album full of that could have been pretty annoying honestly, but luckily Remember The Radio has more than one trick up their sleeve.

As the album goes on the songs get louder and fuller.  The acoustic guitar gives way to fuzzy electric.  The drumming becomes more intent and hard hitting and I guess the singer moves a little closer to the microphone.  Tempo wise, Everything remains pretty slow for the duration of the album, but there is some variety thrown around.

That being said, I really can't say I like this album all that much.  It's not bad, but it never grabs me and screams at me to pay attention.  I find that it tends to just play in the background as I lose focus and start working on something else.  Owls From The Firewater is decent listening, however it never really rises above decent for me.  Maybe if you can get down with ten pretty slow songs in a row this will be more up your alley. I need bands to step on the gas every now and then.

Remember The Radio - Owls From The Firewater:

http://remembertheradio.bandcamp.com/album/owls-from-the-firewater

Prince - In The Living Room 7"

Dead Broke / Drunken Sailor / ADD / No Breaks (2014)

No, not the purple Prince.  This Prince is an actual band hailing from Austin, TX.  It makes you wonder how long they can hold this out before the purple one tries to make them change their band name.  We'll see I guess.

This Prince is has certainly put out a better record than the other one has in a few decades as this 7" is packed with four killer punk rock songs.  They bridge that gap between garage and pop punk in a way that reminds me a bit of Low Culture with furious guitar strumming and big catchy choruses.  Though all four are great, the one that really stands out to me is "Tips From Margarita."  It's a masterclass in incorporating a simple two note lead guitar riff into a song that just elevates everything around it.

I know that Prince has another 7" floating around out there somewhere and after hearing this one, I am going to have to track that one down as well.  This is just such a fun, listenable record and I am very hopeful we'll hear more from these guys really soon.

Prince - In The Living Room 7":

http://deadbrokerekerds.bandcamp.com/album/s-t-e-p-2

Beach Slang - Cheap Thrills On A Dead End Street 7" - Orange Vinyl (/100)

Tiny Engines (2014)

Sometimes people really get bent out of shape about preorders.  Sure, I ordered this record back in September and just got it a few days ago, but vinyl delays at pressing plants shouldn't be anything new to people.  I've seen a lot of folks freaking out on message boards about this delay, but Tiny Engines did a pretty good job of keeping everyone in the loop.  The one thing that they probably could have done but didn't would have been to send out an email to everyone that bought the record updating them on the delay.  That would be helpful for those not as active on message boards and the label's website and what not.  Still, a silly thing to get worked up ocver.

This is the 2nd Beach Slang 7" and you could argue it's just as good as the first 7".  For the most part this is slower paced, serious punk rock.  It still has solid hooks and some great melodies, particularly on "American Girls And French Kisses."  I really like these guys a lot, but I will caution that they may get a bit sentimental and syrupy for some people.  I don't want to throw around the "E" word, but the lyrics certainly have that heart-on-your-sleeve flavor.

The orange vinyl was limited to 100 copies sold direct by the label.  My wife bought this for me on my phone while we were driving on the New Jersey Parkway.  Isn't technology grand?

Beach Slang - Cheap Thrills On A Dead End Street 7":

http://beachslang.bandcamp.com/album/cheap-thrills-on-a-dead-end-street

Even Hand - Even Hand LP

Mandible (2013)

This album was just another one of those records I picked up on a lark.  Whenever I order a record direct from a label, I try really hard to go through their distro list and add to my order.  It takes the sting of shipping costs out of my main purchase and I'd like to think kicking a few more bucks to the label is helpful in some capacity.  I can't remember what part of their description made me pick up this album, but I am quite glad I did.

I'm never going to be offended if I'm accused of being too into 90's sounding bands.  I will own up to that right away, I love the 90's musically and Even Hand would have fit in nicely during that decade as well.  Their debut is a little bit indie rock, a little bit post punk but every song just has a killer hook.  They have the noisy guitar work of an Archers Of Loaf type band, but the vocals are completely different and don't have that Eric Bachmann rasp to them.

Typically I'm one to gravitate to the faster, poppier songs on an album and Even Hand delivers a show stopper in "The More It Shows."  But, I find myself going back to some of the slightly slower and more textured songs on the record like "Down The Lighted Strip" and "I'm Not Concerned.  It's just a great record overall and I'm a little bummed that it took me this long to discover these guys.  It looks like they just released their followup album digitally on Bandcamp. I don't see any mention of it coming out on vinyl, but I sure hope some label gets it together and puts that out.

Even Hand - Even Hand:

http://evenhand.bandcamp.com/album/even-hand

  

V/A - Jabberjaw No. 1 7"

Mammouth (1994)

The first Jabberjaw CD was one of my favorite compilations back in the 90's.  It just had a little bit of everything on it and believe me I played it quite a bit.  I'd never really gone crazy trying to get the four 7"s that made up the original version of the compilation even though they don't tend to be particularly expensive.  However, when I decided that I wanted to complete the Unwound 7" collection, it would never be finished unless I owned this record.  So after a few weeks of end of the year and holiday wackiness, Unwound Wednesday is back.

We'll start out with Unwound as they are the entire reason I bought this 7".  Their contribution "Broken E Strings" is my absolute, hands down favorite Unwound song.  Its slow, quiet verse suddenly explodes into one of the more chaotic choruses you're likely to hear.  I could listen to this song over and over and over again.  Though the band had many highlights, you'll find none higher than this song.

The other 3 were never really among my favorites on the compilation.  I always found Helmet a bit too noisy, but always in a sterile kind of way that I didn't quite understand.  "Turned Out" is no exception.  I can't say it's inherently bad, but I can't say that I like it either.  "Borax" by Slug also isn't going to win any prizes from me.  It feels a little directionless, but it is quite loud.  So it's got that going for it.  Hammerhead's song "Cleaning Woman" would probably be my second favorite on this 7". It has a blazing fast guitar riff, pounding drums and although the singer is quite loud and shouts a lot, he never breaks down into an annoying scream.

Really this 7" is just all about that Unwound song.  It's just perfect.  You could interchange any other 3 bands around it and it would still be an absolutely essential purchase.  Or I guess you could by the Numero Group Unwound box set that has this song on it.  That way you'll also end up with a ton of other great Unwound songs.

Unwound - "Broken E Strings":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqGnEgFvcLg

Helmet - "Turned Out":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgwHGrWhyF8

Del Tha Funkee Homosapien - I Wish My Brother George Was Here 2xLP

Traffic (2004, Reissue)

Admittedly, I don't buy a ton of hip hop records anymore.  I listened to a lot of rap from about 1988 to 1993 or 4, but after that I just lost interest.  As the genre became more popular, I feel like the options became less diverse.  I know a lot of the really innovative stuff got pushed underground and I have stuck my toe in from time to time, but to me, that late 80's early 90's era was the golden age of rap.

Released in 1991, this could be considered one of the most important hip hop records I ever bought.  Not necessarily because of its direct influence, but because I liked it enough to purchase Del's follow up No Need For Alarm, in 1993.  No Need For Alarm became my all time favorite hip hop record ever and led me to go crazy buying everything in that was released by Del's Hieroglyphics crew.  Souls Of Michief, Casual, Extra Prolific; they all ended up being some of the greatest records I ever heard, but it all started here.

I Wish My Brother George Was Here is primarily built off of Parliament Funkadelic samples.  Though, when this record came out, sampling P-funk wasn't quite as common as it later became.  Most people know the hit single off this record "Mistadobalina," and it's a hit in every sense of the word.  Seeing the video on Yo! MTV Raps made me immediately rush out and buy this album.  But's in not a one song record.  "Hoodz Come In Dozens," "Pissin' On Your Steps" and The Wacky World Of Rapid Transit" all should have been big hits.  The entire album is remarkably strong and it's downright eerie to think that this record came out 24 years ago.

While Del would absolutely surpass his debut with No Need For Alarm, I Wish My Brother George Was Here is no slouch of a record.  Del's dynamic lyrics and slightly off kilter flow are still on display and while it doesn't hold up quite as well as No Need For Alarm, it's still a pretty important record to have in the collection.  I couldn't tell you why it took quite so long to add the vinyl version to mine.

Del Tha Funkee Homosapien - "Mistadobalina":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFieSQHmQT0

Del Tha Funkee Homosapien - "Dr. Bombay":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AUP4KLCW6s

Screamfeeder - Kitten Licks LP - Red Vinyl

Poison City (2014, Reissue)

Kitten Licks is one of my very favorite records of the late 90's.  Though it originally came out in Australia in 1996, I first heard of it when it was reissued in America in 1999 by Time Bomb.  I'm not sure that Screamfeeder ever made it out of the used promo bin back then, but for me and a handful of likeminded friends, this record was just amazing.

It had super catchy, fuzzed out guitar work that built a foundation for the male/female vocal interplay of Tim Stewart and Kellie Lloyd.  Nowhere is their chemistry more evident than on on their masterpiece of a song "Dart."  Over a start/stop guitar riff, the two engage in some incredible call and response melodies.  This is a song that was put on mixtapes for years after the fact and it's just one of the many, many highlights of this album.

Screamfeeder was around for a while and put out quite a few records in Australia during their time. While everything of theirs that I have heard is pretty good, Kitten Licks is just something special.  Poison City did a tremendous job with this reissue.  The vinyl sounds top notch and the packaging looks sharp.  I like that they used the original Australian art (Which they should as the band, the original label that released the record and Poison City are all based in Australia) instead of the wacky purple tornado that adorned the American version.  

You may not be familiar with Screamfeeder, but they are well worth going out of your way to listen to.  Conveniently, the album is up on Bandcamp to check out, so make with the checking.

Screamfeeder - Kitten Licks LP:

http://poisoncityrecords.bandcamp.com/album/kitten-licks-lp-reissue