Monthly Archives: July 2018

VIA PRESS RELEASE | When the first single from Fastball’s second record was released a few months before the album dropped, it was apparent there would be no sophomore slump. “The Way” exploded at radio, eventually going Gold, and propelling All the Pain Money Can Buy to Gold status in only three months and Platinum another three months later. The release also received two Grammy® nominations, and the band won four Austin Chronicle awards for the album.

Produced by the band with Julian Raymond (Cheap Trick, Sugarland, LP), All the Pain Money Can Buy also delivered the second single, “Fire Escape,” as well as the Top 20 single “Out of My Head” (whose chorus was recently reinterpreted in Bad Things by Machine Gun Kelly & Camilla Cabello) while also including a track with Poe (whose Hello was certified Gold in 1996).

This 20th anniversary edition contains the original 13 songs, plus nine bonus tracks including rare B-sides, compilation tracks, and four previously unissued demos. To make this anniversary even more special, the album makes its vinyl debut as a double LP containing all of the bonus material. Street date is November 9, 2018 via Omnivore Recordings.

With expanded packaging and an essay from Scott Schinder including a new interview with the band, All the Pain Money Can Buy returns stronger than ever. The way is finally clear. As Schinder notes, “It’s not surprising that All the Pain Money Can Buy would catch on with the public. The album’s 13 original songs embodied an irresistible mix of catchy song craft, melodic sophistication, and emotional depth, and the band arranged and performed them with an unmistakable sense of urgency that underlined the opportunity that the project represented.”

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“I grew up in a musical family where everybody would sit around the table and play different instruments and sing along. It was easy and pretty natural for me to want to play around with the tape recorder in the house and record myself.” 

“I would always pick the radio instead of the CD player because I liked the analog feeling when I pushed the buttons, switch and listen to different mix tapes I had recorded from the radio. I remember around the living room there were big speakers and a big stereo that we always used for tapes and CDs. On the left side of the stereo there was always a vinyl player that I never really noticed as a kid, because it didn’t work and I didn’t care to investigate.

It was only some years later when I found my dad’s vinyl collection looking through our kitchen’s wooden couch (one you could store stuff in) that my curiosity started. I could see the happiness on my dad’s face when he found me on the floor going through his old treasures. He sat down and told me about them and which ones were his favorites. It was easy to tell because they were pretty worn out. I love that about vinyl; when you can tell by the sleeve that it’s been listened to a lot. It tells a story about the people who own them and it’s a beautiful thing.

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There are a few utterly joyful experiences in this world, and one of them is the music of Joseph Spence. In 1958 while on a field recording expedition in the Bahamas, Samuel Charters captured Spence’s unique guitar playing and idiosyncratic singing; the combination is amongst the most infectious entries in the folk canon. Those tapes comprise Bahaman Folk Guitar: Music from the Bahamas, Vol. 1, first issued by Folkways in ’59, and on July 27, it gets a welcome reissue by the label, tucked into an old-school tip-on jacket with the original liner notes.

From Andros Island in the Bahamas and a stonemason by trade, Joseph Spence is one of folk music’s true originals. The notes to this reissue emphasize the importance of the guitar to Bahaman life during the period of its recording, and amongst no shortage of talent on the instrument, Spence was acknowledged as the best around. He tapped into the three threads of song popular in the island nation at that time; the older “anthem” songs, southern USA-derived spirituals, and the “folk songs” that accompanied dancing and enlivened parties.

When Charters first heard him, playing for workers as they built a house, the folklorist was convinced a second guitarist was accompanying him nearby. Later that day, on the other side of the settlement of Fresh Creek, Charters recorded Spence entertaining a small gathered audience. This LP offers the bulk of that impromptu session, a landmark in personal folk expression that resulted in subsequent releases on Elektra, Arhoolie, and Rounder.

I first read of Joseph Spence in Byron Coley’s “Underground” column in SPIN magazine, the April 1988 issue in fact, though by the time I caught up with it, that edition was about a year old. It took me good while longer than that to hear the guy’s stuff, as the store racks turned up nothing, and the same with the libraries in my area. Of the locals I consulted who were affirmative of Spence’s stature, none were record collectors. Those were the days.

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MANSFIELD, MA | Rivers Cuomo was literally ready to “bless the rains,” (their new single’s homage to Toto’s hit) down at Xfinity Center on Tuesday night. But even torrential rains didn’t stop long time Weezer fans from showing up to rock with their favorite band. Devotees wearing shirts that read “Weezer ‘til I Die,” kind of said it all.

In a recent press release, the band shared that there is nothing like a summer trek across the country and welcomed the Pixies and Sleigh Bells on their current tour across the U.S. “…we’ve been on plenty of [tours] dating all the way back to 1994, when we opened for the legendary UK band Lush, driving around in an old conversion van named Betsy. So much has changed since those days but the main thing that’s changed about a Weezer concert is that they’ve sounded better and better, and have been more and more full of fans. This coming summer will be no exception.”

A large curtain dropped to reveal the band on what looked like the set of Arnold’s on Happy Days, paying tribute to the video of the beloved Weezer hit, “Buddy Holly.” Cuomo also played homage by sweating it out in his own Buddy Holly sweater and signature frames.

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Sound reads from the archives, all summer long. —Ed.

Those with a serious jones for power pop might already be hip to the Numero Group label’s dandy 150-gm repressings of the early work from the killer Illinois group, Shoes. However, interested parties new to the band of John Murphy (vocals and bass), Jeff Murphy (vocals and guitar), Gary Klebe (vocals and guitar), and a whole lot of drummers should begin with their still massive 1977 album Black Vinyl Shoes. It’s quite a stunner, and the fact that it’s freshly available is a surefire antidote for many ills, including creeping cynicism.

Along with pub-rock, power pop gets very frequently lumped in with punk rock as one element in the big 1970s disdain with the overwrought staleness of the norm. And since punk rock, which at the time was largely a dismal commercial failure, has proven to be the most lingeringly influential and historically captivating part of the ‘70s back to basics impulse, that’s unfortunately resulted in pub-rock and power pop getting the short shrift far too often.

It’s probably true that cacophonous youthful anger will always be a more immediately attractive musical avenue than non-photogenic Stones/Yardbirds descended stuff (pub-rock, in an oversimplified nutshell) or the sound of a younger generation discovering the glories of unadulterated pop-rock gusto ala The Beatles, The Byrds, The Hollies, and the early Who (power pop, in a bargain basement distillation).

But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t champion the achievements of Dr. Feelgood or 20/20 if given half the opportunity. If their stuff lacks an air of loutish hooliganism, it instead basks in an atmosphere of non-telegraphed classicism that’s as rare these days as a natural born redhead. So it’s no surprise that when people hear the strains of undiluted power pop for the first time, they often react with an uncontrolled outpouring of euphoric emotion; my goodness, this stuff is so simple! And yet so perfect! Why can’t it always be like this?

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | On July 20, 2018, UMe will reissue the out-of-print, 2LP vinyl set of Diamond D And The Psychotic Neurotics’ landmark album Stunts, Blunts & Hip-Hop. Urban Legends will also release a very limited amount of color vinyl pressings available here.

Twenty-six years ago MC/producer Diamond D from New York’s mighty D.I.T.C. (Diggin’ In The Crates) collective debuted with a stunning classic that entailed elements of what brought him and his crew notoriety—grimy boom-bap anchored by effusive yet obscure samples. Diamond emerged in the late ‘80s as a member of Ultimate Force, a short-lived troupe whose debut album was shelved and didn’t see the light of day until over a decade afterwards. Diamond’s encyclopedic knowledge of records, after years of contributions and studious vision, came to the forefront in 1992 with his first official solo venture, Stunts, Blunts & Hip-Hop.

Despite his acumen and talent as a beatmaker, Diamond D had other production notables pepper his album with mastery and know-how. While Diamond helmed the majority of the beats, longtime visionaries like The 45 King, Jazzy Jay, Large Professor, and D.I.T.C. teammate Showbiz all make stellar appearances on the project. Despite its gritty, sonorous East Coast aesthetic, the album still hit No. 47 on Billboard’s R&B and Hip-Hop chart. You also hear sped up samples and vocals, a sound that would also be forever influential in the decades to come by the likes of 9th Wonder or Kanye West, respectively.

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I’m of two minds about Oasis’ (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, which many consider the crowning glory of the 1990s Britpop movement. On one hand I can’t help but bask in its bold strokes, symphonic sweep, and big, soaring anthems. On the other, there’s this nagging voice in my head that tells me it’s a stellar example of cocaine-induced grandiosity, and all sound and fury signifying nothing.

On this 1995 LP older brother/songwriter Noel Gallagher eschewed the rawer sound of the band’s debut Definitely Maybe in favor of a slew of pumped-up arena rockers, and in so doing produced the biggest–both in sonics and sales–album to emerge from the Cool Britannia movement.

Gallagher’s formula was simple; he took a cue from McDonald’s and supersized everything. The key world is swelling, and the results sound just swell, that is unless you’re of the opinion that (What’s the Story) is all steroidal bravado and no content.

And I can understand those people who have come to the latter conclusion, because Gallagher doesn’t really have much to say. The lyrics are crap; they sound like placeholders for some real lyrics Gallagher was simply too lazy to write. He goes heavy on catch phrases, cliches, and the like, and comes up with more than his fair share of howlers; “Slowly walking down the hall/Faster than a cannonball” will stand forever as one of the dumbest couplets in the history of Western Literature.

But in the end I say to hell with the slipshod lyrics and simply revel in these soaring anthems to nothing: “Wonderwall,” “Champagne Supernova,” “Don’t Look Back in Anger,” and “Some Might Say” may not mean much of anything, but rarely have a bunch of empty gestures sounded so inexplicably… sublime.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Intervention Records is thrilled to announce The Flying Burrito Bros.’ classic 1970 sophomore effort, Burrito Deluxe, on 180-gram vinyl (Cat# IR-022/UPC: 707129301505) and hybrid CD/SACD (Cat# IR-SCD8/UPC: 707129301512). The anticipated on-sale date for the 180G LP is early October 2018, and the SACD will be available by the end of the year.

Burrito Deluxe is the second and final hot Burrito made while the band was still led by former Byrds member Gram Parsons. The Flying Burrito Bros. are widely viewed as the inventors of country rock and are one of the most influential bands of all time. Burrito Deluxe is another classic full of great tunes written and sung by Parsons and Hillman.

Burrito Deluxe is 100% Analog Mastered by Kevin Gray at CoHEARent Audio from the best source available—a phenomenal sounding 1/2″ safety copy of the original stereo master tape. Intervention’s remastering preserves all of the top-end energy and “snap” of the original A&M LP, while the bass foundation is fully restored to make this new Intervention reissue the definitive listening experience for this classic LP! The hybrid SACD is mastered Direct-to-DSD from analog tape.

The original LP art is restored by IR’s Tom Vadakan, and the old-style, “tip-on, brown-in” single jacket is printed by Stoughton. It features super Deluxe red foil accents on the front cover. The Hybrid CD/SACD is housed in a super jewel box.

Sound reads from the archives, all summer long. —Ed.

Contrary to what’s sometimes published, the studio legacy of The Velvet Underground didn’t end with 1970’s Loaded. No, it culminated with what many consider to be an abomination, an offense in the annals of one of the greatest bands to ever transcend and redefine rock’s limitations. The record is 1973’s Squeeze, and despite music that’s inescapably lackluster there is a case to be made for bringing the album out of the shameful shadows that persist in shrouding its existence.

For many VU fans, Squeeze exists on the same plane as that uncle who’s been sent up the river for crimes that nobody in the family feels comfortable discussing. Other Velvets fanatics LLLOOOVVVE to talk about this understandably scarce LP, mostly because it helps to flesh out theories over what made the band so exceptional, speculations that often vary greatly from person to person. Because if The Velvet Underground are the ornery granddaddy of an often sorta suspect category known as “cult bands,” unlike many of the groups awarded with this stature there is no consensus on what is VU’s best LP, or for that matter what is even their finest era.

And this seems to have been a gradually evolving process. Around 1987, when I first began listening to the Velvets in earnest, the older heads with whom I spoke (almost always inside the welcoming walls of record stores), seeking guidance on this somewhat daunting entity, were essentially divided between which of the band’s first two records, The Velvet Underground and Nico and White Light/White Heat, was best. This is to say that while surely considered valuable, the post-John Cale material was definitely esteemed as lesser.

But a new day was dawning. As the arrival of groups like The Wedding Present and Galaxie 500 made clear, a generation of young musicians had come of age subscribing to the notion that the music produced for the band’s self-titled third LP was the true apex of the Velvets’ achievement. This phenomenon was aided by VU and Another View, both compilations fairly fresh in the racks and often easier to obtain than the actual full-length studio records.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | While contemplating future acquisitions, audiophiles among us need look no further than Dave Thompson’s The Ultimate Guide to Vinyl and More: All You Need to Know About Collecting Essential Music, from Cylinders and CDs To LPs And Tapes (Backbeat Books; September 25, 2018; $29.99) for an unrivaled overview of collectible music.

Thompson, the author of nearly 200 books on subjects ranging from music and film to erotica and philately, has made a career of scrutinizing what’s cool before it’s cool. His first vinyl study, Backbeat’s classic The Music Lover’s Guide to Record Collecting, was published in 2002, putting Thompson’s decades of audio interest and expertise to use back when PVC was MIA.

Today, The Ultimate Guide to Vinyl and More picks up where Thompson’s original left off. Enhanced with a new full color design, expanded timeline, and reams of information, the book offers an in-depth introduction to (and history of) music collecting. Neither price guide nor instruction manual, this text offers a clear, concise summary of the many items one can collect by exploring areas of interest (e.g. an artist’s career, a format’s development, a label’s history, etc.) and niches of note.

Dense, droll, and always illuminating, Thompson shepherds readers through over a century of recorded music, exploring every format in which audio has been released. Unlike other books that focus exclusively on vinyl, this 10×10 LP-lookalike caters to those whose obsession for music welcomes all vintage media. Landmark labels, collectible artists, specialist themes, and more are explored across a series of essays, while dozens of images bring the collector’s world to life.

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