Stürm Group - s/t (1984, Green Fuse)

Thought I would stick with the post-punk theme I've been angling towards all week, and Toronto's long-departed Stürm Group struck me as superb candidate for today's slot.  With a pervasive Bauhaus bent and an unremitting rhythmic sway, this north of the border quartet resided on the lighter end of the darkwave continuum.  Much of their well-endowed cadence is perpetrated by Walter Sobczak, whose loping and often zig-zaggy bass lines go a long way in dictating this album's ominous and chilly textures.  "The Lottery I Am" and "The Gin Palace" are where the Stürm's efforts and talents really make themselves evident.  If you're anything like me you might sense traces of the Lucy Show and Comsat Angels, but these guys definitely cut their pearly whites on Peter Murphy and Co.  Enjoy (or not). 

01. Outdoor Cafe
02. Upon a Nerve
03. Loaded Life
04. Folding Chair
05. The Gin Palace
06. Red Balloon
07. The Lottery I Am
08. In the Shower

http://netkups.com/?d=bd875476ab188

Book of Lies - Cryptic Memo ep (1983, Fever)

I caught wind of this thirty year-old relic just a few months ago.  Upon receiving it in the mail I learned that the Chicago area-Book of Lies had the good fortune of hiring the services of the late, great Iain Burgess, who has his name strewn all over this thing, including a co-production credit.  Cryptic is a fairly accurate one-word summation of the Book's modus operandi, but "oblique" is even more befitting.  Billed and depicted as a trio on the back cover, but with some songs credited to a quartet of musicians inside, prime mover Preston Klik leads his troupe through four pieces of curious, art-damaged (anti)pop, boasting a sonic ken well ahead of their time.  Book of Lies wield an avant angle that's dense and lithe as all-get-out, and if fact, the only parallels I can faintly draw might be to Japan, or Perry Farrell's pre-Janes outfit Psi Com. 

The opening "Book," with it's abstract spiritual connotations, doesn't make for the best intro, but the remaining three songs compensate, some of which possess a surprising measure of warmth coming from such a mangled delivery system.  Bass (quite possibly of the fretless variety) is quite prevalent throughout.  Those who are capable of feeding off of Cryptic Memo's crooked energy will find the mystique of this record enthralling.  A Google query, believe it or not, conjured up this brief write-up in the New York Times:

On ''Cryptic Memo,'' the Chicago- based rock trio Book of Lies purveys a funk-oriented, densely mysterious and quite original sound, and answers an old question: ''Who wrote the book of love?'' These folks claim they wrote it, and that it's really a book of lies. ''Cryptic Memo'' is available in new-wave and import stores...
 
01. Book
02. Tree of Laughter
03. Rattlesnakes
04. & Then Some

http://netkups.com/?d=5dc908e1e827a 

Re-up: The Verge - Habitual 7" ep +2 (1983)

Per the title above this is a re-upload, but then again that may not be saying much since virtually every download link shared on these pages from our 2007 inception to January of this year was stifled in one fell swoop when my file-hoster of six years, Rapidshare, pulled the plug on the "library" Obscura.  I've made significant gains in restoring the majority of said links, but I thought I'd re-do this one entirely, given it's significance to me and so many of you who originally downloaded it since it made it's digital debut in November of 2007.  In this iteration, I've re-ripped the record from scratch, editing out the more extraneous surface annoyances, and I've doubled the bit rate.  If that weren't enough, I've expanded the sleeve art considerably.

The Verge were a phenomenal and relatively short-lived Albany, NY post-punk trio, who recorded a small body of work during their early-80s lifespan, with an even more minute segment of those recordings having been made available for public consumption.  From what I've been informed by band personnel (as well as the thoughtful testimonies of some ardent Verge aficionados left in the comments portion of my original entry) the Habitual ep and a contribution to the Albany-centric, 1982 compilation record Hudson Rock, comprise the group's scarce surviving fossil record.

The Verge's regrettably limited oeuvre was nonetheless deliriously visceral, bearing flashing signposts to such period luminaries as Joy Division, Killing Joke, Mission of Burma, and even a dab of pre-ego U2.  Not plagiarism so much as compulsive inspiration, The Verge's revisionism married a sweeter guitar tone to the demi-nihilistic angst of the aforementioned.  One arguable exception to this winning formula is "Picturesque," whose dive-bomb salvos of serrated power chords elevates the trio's game to a doubly more fearsome level.  That comp cut I mentioned, "1-2-3-4-5-6" is also situated on a different plateau, and functions much better as a one-off track than it would have served on the ep.  As a bonus, I'm sharing the heretofore unreleased jewel, "Day and Age," which was furnished to me by a Verge alum himself.  How's that for gratitude?

If you haven't had the opportunity to immerse yourself in these recordings before, it's never too late.  As for the rest of you, please treat yourself to an upgrade.  If you fancy what you hear, you'd do well to enlighten yourself by reading the copious comments section from my original write-up. 

Habitual ep

1. Tradition

2. Understand

3. Picturesque

4. Hypocrisy

plus

1-2-3-4-5-6 (from Hudson Rock compilation)

 Day and Age (unreleased!)

http://netkups.com/?d=90381d5deb9d1

Failure of all punk.

This week's installment is an anthology from a quartet that made the transition from hardcore to post-punk, even absorbing a little melody along their journey.  Half studio, half live...and roughly half out-of-print.  You know how these things work.

Having difficulty accessing the file?  Please try again a little later.  Too many people hammering the link simultaneously is apparently giving Netkup's servers a headache.  With this in mind, I'll leave this up for a few hours past the usual twenty-four, k?  You're welcome to comment, just don't give away anything obvious.  Enjoy. 

http://netkups.com/?d=8c5a5f7e716e8  

Dead Trend - False Positive (2013, Cabildo/Cut the Shit) - A brief overview.

How’s this for a statistical dichotomy.  Dead Trend, a New England hardcore/punk conglomerate originating from the Reagan era (and known for making a point of reminding us of such) took 21 songs they had penned between 1986 and 2003 (27 years for those of you keeping track at home) into the studio this January and committed them to tape in the span of seven hours.  This quotient somehow never ceases to boggle my mind, and had I not already given away their genre of choice, most of you would have probably put two and two together.  Oh yeah, one more part of the equation - Dead Trend squeeze said 21 tracks into False Positive's roughly 26 minutes.   

While their Facebook bio posits that Midwest wrecking crews such as the Zero Boys and Necros were D/T's inspirational antecedents, I'd argue these guys had their collective gaze much more situated on the creme de la creme of the SST Records roster, particularly Black Flag and early Husker Du.  Bear in mind, Dead Trend were contemporaries of that pivotal pair, and being that they had a nearly three decades-old backlog of songs to tinker with, don't be surprised to hear such themes as the Iran-Contra Scandal and the 1983 invasion of Grenada brought passionately to the fore.  The often brusque and acerbic False Positive, doesn't necessarily scale the heights of say, New Day Rising and Damaged, but a similar aesthetic is nonetheless baked into Dead Trend relentlessly vigorous cake.  As an additional SST Records tangent to make note of, Mike Fournier (one fourth of the D/T roster) was responsible for penning an installment of the 33⅓ paperback series, specifically the one dedicated to the Minutemen's landmark double LP Double Nickels on the Dime.  

False Positive is slated for availability on Bandcamp May 7th (this Tuesday).  CDs will also be a purchase  option, though I need to verify if any vinyl is being printed.  You can listen to a portion of the album on B/C, and I'm also making a two-song taster available below.  

Bad Policy

Implications

http://netkups.com/?d=d468b547fb3d1

Jawbox/Edsel split 7" (1993, DeSoto)

Was happy to oblige a request for this classic split screen of a 7" which is about to enjoy it's twentieth anniversary sometime this year (I want to say summer, but don't hold me to that).  When this hit the racks in 1993 I was quite the drooling Jawbox fanboy, and I was totally lamenting the fact that the coolest band in D.C. was about to embark on a major label venture.  Turns out I had little to fret over, and in fact, this wax offered a preview of their suprisingly uncompromising third album 1994's, For Your Own Special Sweetheart.  By mainstream standards "Savory" was dark, tense, and at least moderately dissonant, yet it felt like a comfy pair of moccasins to my ears.  Later re-recorded for Sweetheart, the variation appearing here is almost note-for-note identical, albeit a tad slower.  As for the abrupt ending, I believe it's by design. 

I became an instant Edsel convert upon encountering their half of the obligation, "Penaluna," which boasted a a heavily phased guitar technique, mimicking a woozy keyboard effect (or so my mind likes to think).  Throw a murky sonic mystique into the mix, top with a succulent chorus hook, and you have a mighty tasty post-punk confection on your hands.  I did a write-up for the Edsel album this would soon appear on, The Everlasting Belt Co., and though I had to pull the link, it has been reissued.

Jawbox - Savory
Edsel - Penaluna

http://netkups.com/?d=94054018566ab

VA - Never Mind the Jacksons, Here's the Pollocks (1985, Abstract Sounds)

Well, this Brit eight-pack is certainly more dangerous than anything the Jacksons ever brought to market (collectively and otherwise), but some of the sub-rosa participants contained within inch considerably closer to the Sex Pistols realm.  Case in point would be the warbler for The Three Johns, who kicks this thing off bearing a strong resemblance to John Lydon's quivering wail, circa Second Edition.  Their track is promptly followed up by the even more avant Five Go Down to the Sea, but the real keeper on side one belongs to The Word, whom meld conventional new romantic aptitude with a hint of Echo and the Bunnymen.  I should also mention the Word's jangly chords anticipate the C86 indie movement that would soon be sweeping their home turf. 

Overall side two wins this match, commencing with a hot Peel Session take of New Model Army's "Small Town England."  The next tune, courtesy of The Gymslips was also cut for John's fabled hit parade, and is enough to renew anyone's faith in the girl-group contingent of the wave/punk arena.  The Bomb Party deliver a frothy, pounding surge akin to Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, albeit with more frivolous subject matter.  The concluding  "Violation," an offbeat spoken-word piece by Joolz, plays out like a small portion of a greater narrative, thus making for a decidedly confusing end to otherwise appealing compilation.

01. The Three Johns - Fruit Flys
02. Five Go Down to the Sea - Often
03. Hagar the Womb - Song of Deep Hate
04. The Word - Different
05. New Model Army - Small Town England (Peel Session)
06. The Gymslips - Empire Song (Peel Session)
07. The Bomb Party - Henry Was a Babysitter
08. Joolz - Violation (Peel Session)

http://netkups.com/?d=054145853f053

Noise Petals - s/t mLP (1988, Stonegarden)

I wasn't aware of it at the time of purchase (or for that matter when I took it for an initial test drive), but Noise Petals was commandeered by Jeremy Toback, who would in five years go on to rock the four-string (and occasionally take the mic) in Brad.  Yes, that Brad, the Pearl Jam splinter project involving Stone Gossard.  Okay, I get it.  If you're not exactly starstruck by this revelation you're completely forgiven.

As for the record at hand, I was anticipating just about anything, but was hoping for something a la the Replacements or REM.  Instead, Noise Petals revealed themselves to be a nondescript collegiate guitar rock quartet, whose most prominent attribute fell to Toback's consistent bass poppin' forte.  Noise Petals vaguely suggests Me and Mr. Ray-era Miracle Legion, but that's about as specific I can get.  To my knowledge, this was the band's first (and last) will and testament. 

01. The More Things Change
02. North By South
03. Skin
04. Trespass
05. The Happy Song
06. You Should Be Afraid
07. Were Yeats Gene Simmons

http://netkups.com/?d=58c5128fb390c

I don’t think about tomorrow...

Ok, maybe not a M/M to die for...unless you have an ear for early '90s, dream pop gold.  Me thinks you won't be disappointed.

Having difficulty accessing the file?  Please try again a little later.  Too many people hammering the link simultaneously is apparently giving Netkup's servers a headache.  With this in mind, I'll leave this up for a few hours past the usual twenty-four, k?  You're welcome to comment, just don't give away anything obvious.  Enjoy. 

http://netkups.com/?d=425f1dc415d7d

Mood Paint (pre-Pond) demo 1989

It didn't strike me as a remarkable album at first blush when it dropped in 1993, but Pond's debut album for Sub Pop was an ever so slow-charmer, gradually inculcating it's tuneful guitar crunch and sinewy pitch and sway into my cerebellum over the next several years.  Two respectable albums followed - The Practice of Joy Before Death and Rock Collection, but neither quite held a candle to it's immensely more intoxicating precursor.  While there were pre-album singles, there wasn't much evidence of life prior to Pond.  That was until one of my readers contacted me last year and shared a 1989 cassette by an Oregon trio dubbed Mood Paint who contained in their lineup soon to be Pond stalwarts Charles Campbell (guitars/vox) and Chris Brady (vox/bass).  For better or worse, Mood Paint's easy-goes-it penchant didn't carry over to the frenetic and feedback-ridden noise pop that would be uncorked by these very same hands in the Clinton-era.  That being said, the relatively lucid hue of these half-dozen tunes aren't the stuff of embarrassment, rather the product of a humbler, and dare I say, more approachable muse than the one that was about to come roaring to life in Pond.  A big thanks to Jeff for setting me up with everything!

01. When You Get What You Want
02. Cracks and Swirls
03. 25 Years Ago
04. Florida
05. Everything
06. The Dull Earth

http://netkups.com/?d=45b5ed1576cb0

VA - Pure Spun Sugar: An International Pop Compilation (1998, American Pop Project/Candy Floss)

Pure Spun Sugar's premise is that it's a decidedly anti-punk affair...but it's not all twee sweetness and light as it's title and cover art misleadingly project.  One of the album's key commonalities (with only a couple of exceptions) is it's emphasis on female-fronted groups.  So how does Pure Spun miraculously almost never exude a "chick-rock" vibe among it's fourteen grooves?  Chalk that up to a bevy of indie talents who more than get by with quality songwriting that completely transcends gender lines.

The highlights here are numerous.  Japan's Dizzy Joghurt contribute an exuberant slice of Shonen-like power pop in "Noncense Is Good," Dressy Bessy pitch us the indelibly hooky, mid-tempo "Makeup," and the San Diego based Sleazy Beats lend Pure Spun a pre-homicide paean to Phil Spector, that in retrospect is really how we'd all like to remember him (if we only could).  BTW, I wonder how that fella is holdin' up these days?  The album soon after pivots to the classic indie aplomb of Poastal, who emanate the old school Slumberland Records sound big time. Sweden's Aquadays take the cake as far as this comp's sublime quotient goes, with a Lush-ious stab at chiming dream pop, "Gem."  Red Dye No. 5, Balloon Chase Team and Twig all hit the indie guitar-pop g-spot, in that mid-90s sort of way.  Brian Jonestown Massacre are a surprise entry (and commercially, the biggest draw) that Pure Spun has to offer, with what appears to be a Bowie cover.  The big payoff for me comes relatively early on, courtesy of The Cherry Smash, whose "Split Screen" is an immense surge of gazey-guitars (think Fudge, early Lilys) and intoxicating harmonies to trade a limb for.  I put up a single of theirs quite some time ago that you would do well to investigate.  As for the scan of the album sleeve, let's just say light pink and grey don't make for the most complimentary colors.

01. Balloon Chase Team - White Star
02. The Cherry Smash - Split Screen
03. Jenny Mae - Ralston
04. Dizzy Joghurt - Noncense Is Good
05. Bidston Moss - Silver Top Taxi
06. Dressy Bessy - Makeup
07. The Sleazy Beats - Phil Spector's Birthday Song
08. Poastal - Kicked in the Face
09. Aquadays - Gem
10. Red Dye No. 5 - Hope
11. Cuckooland - Rock On
12. The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Good Morning Girl
13. Twig - Clock
14. Azalia Snail - Getting Lei'd

http://netkups.com/?d=12e59272b9e59

The Wrens - (the incomplete) Overnight Success demo (1997)

Because the bulk of their catalog has remained in print (at least digitally) for all these years I've been doing Wilfully Obscure, I've brought The Wrens up fairly infrequently, which is a bit unusual for a band I've had so sizable of an investment in.  Words usually fail me in summing up their dizzying sonic panache, but that probably goes for anyone whoever attempted to describe the dense layers of multi-tracked harmonies and overloaded melodies that threaten to topple over virtually any song they commit to tape.  The basis of their back catalog is comprised of three stunning albums: Silver (1994), Secaucus (1996) and The Meadowlands (2003).  The first two arrived on the indie Grass Records (later Wind-Up) imprint, a label that was eventually sold to BMG.  After the spellbinding Secaucus (and the outright migration of Grass Records itself), the New Jersey quartet went back to square one, and via DIY channels shopped a self-funded cassette, Overnight Success, around to prospective labels.  Absolutely Kosher would finally give them a home in the early '00s, but as far as this post is concerned that's neither here nor there. 

Thing is, even those who pride themselves on being hardcore Wrens aficionados are to be given a pass on this lost holy grail, if only because it slipped out when the Web was in it's infancy.  In all honesty I didn't even catch wind of Overnight... until I was perusing the "indie" folder of a fellow MP3 trader on a file sharing platform in 2010, or thereabouts.  A thread on the Wrens message board, dating back to 2005, provides the most useful dossier of information on this exceedingly limited release.  What follows is a useful backgrounder and critique. 

Talk about pleasant surprises. . . more than a year after issuing their breakthrough Secaucus disc for Grass Records, and a good six months since they officailly parted ways with that label in search of greener pastures, The Wrens, still working on a major-label deal, have taken it upon themselves to release Overnight Success, an absolutely incredible batch of ten sonic-pop deconstructions that should serve not only to bolster their label bargaining power, but to build on their (all too) slowly growing reputation as one America's most intiriguing and inventive new bands, as well. If you can imagine XTC's avant-pop colliding with Pixies-esque tortured, blast-first guitar lines, capped by Richard Hell's new wave vocal twitch, you'd have a vague idea where the Wrens come from - but we're only talking ballpark here. The recording quality of this self-made, basement production is murky - nearly bootleg variety, but the songs are as stunning, provocative and well-arranged as you're going to find. 

What the above write-up doesn't mention is that Overnight Success was comprised of ten songs, of which I have only six, I'm happily offering here.  Not as sonically sweeping as any of their proper albums, these half-dozen tunes are still about as intoxicating as anything you're likely to hear Wrens-wise.  A major treat for those of you who've only been exposed to the official releases.  If any of you have an original copy of the tape, or a complete digital version.  And for any neophytes who've made it this deep into the text, you can sample album tracks on the Wrens site here as well as a 1995 single that I posted awhile back.  BTW, a fourth Wrens album is tentatively slated for later this year.

From the Rack
Player
Blind
Take Me or Leave Me
Shakers
Don't Be Shy

http://netkups.com/?d=0887a85a1826a

New noise: Graham Repulski - Cop Art (Big School) and Kent State/Shivering Window split cassette

I wanted to take a break from my usual volley of retro grooves to zero in on a couple of contemporary acts that have become not just perennial favorites, but veritable bi-annual and tri-annual mainstays on these pages - Graham Repulski and Kent State.

I've long waxed on Graham's longstanding exaltation of everything lo-fi, stemming largely from his appreciation of the Godfather of that very form itself, Robert Pollard.  His prodigious absorption thereof usually materializes in ninety-second blast-waves of frizzy and fractured noise-pop that are startlingly similar to that noted Dayton, OH avant-bard.  On previous releases, including the teaming 2011 full-length, Into An Animal Together, alongside countless cassette eps, our man was oft found sloshing about in the backwash yet to recede from the great Bee Thousand flood of '94.  His newest LP, Cop Art is chockablock with a likeminded assortment of crackly and clangy cacophonies, but Graham's once deeply penetrating melodies ring a little less poignant, at least throughout side one.  Established customers and G/R completists need not shy away in the least, however new ears would be advised to plunder his back catalog Bandcamp style before delving into his latest, but perhaps not-so-greatest.  Cop Art should soon be available on LP direct from Big School, and digitally here. 

Nearly as prolific we have L.A.'s Kent State and their new split tape with Shivering Window.  Equally as noisesome, if not more so than the aforementioned Repulski, Kent State's murky muck might impress you as a scuzzy, art-damaged deconstruction of everything from Swervedriver to Japandroids, plummeting the fidelity bar basement-ward big time.  Decent, but you might have more fun with last years Behind Closed Doors ep.  Splitting the difference with them is Shivering Window, the tape-hiss enshrouded brainchild of Matthew Gray.  His two drum machine-enhanced contributions here skew in the vicinity of Lou Barlow, but are otherwise unremarkable.  This cassette cartridge will be limited to 100 copies, and made available in late May, but you can stream the whole thing right this very instant over at...you guessed it, Bandcamp. 

You and me raking leaves, all day for no pay…

This week’s entry is the unheralded sophomore effort from a ‘90s Cali indie trio.  It’s an initially unassuming album that reveals itself slowly, a la Twice Removed or Pinkerton.  It also happens to boast the same sort of wryness of the aforementioned, albeit with less of an emotional tug. 

Having difficulty accessing the file?  Please try again a little later.  Too many people hammering the link simultaneously is apparently giving Netkup's servers a headache.  With this in mind, I'll leave this up for a few hours past the usual twenty-four, k?  You're welcome to comment, just don't give away anything obvious.  Enjoy.  

http://netkups.com/?d=5401db718162c

Badgers - Picnic ep (1992, Wilde Club)

Well, well, if it isn't another cold case.  The Badgers were a Brit four-piece who unfortunately adopted an already ubiquitous moniker, making for a rather aggravating search engine query.  That aside, mouthpiece Emma Hewitt possess glass-shattering pipes, which fortunately for us dovetail well with Robin Jeynes echoing guitar fills, especially on the furious title track, and the nearly as fervent "Ragged Jack."  The most obvious comparison I can draw would be a group equally as arcane, The Millions, who I featured way back in '09.  Shades of the Sundays filter through the curtains on the sleepy "Rejuve," and much fainter glints of Tsunami and the Spinanes peer in as well.

01. Picnic
02. Cycleface
03. Ragged Jack
04. Rejuve

http://netkups.com/?d=49e8e71525fac

All I see is a void...

Hope ya'll had a lovely and prosperous Record Store Day 2013.  This one is for all of you who were unable to find it (and sadly, probably never will). 

Here

Game Theory - Ziggy's, Winston-Salem, NC., 10/12/85. R.I.P. Scott Miller (1960-2013)

Another college-rock legend has departed this mortal coil for the choir invisible.  Although the circumstances have yet to be reported, Scott Miller of Game Theory/Loud Family/Alternate Learning renown passed away this Monday at 53.  Like many of the "yesteryear" indie acts I pimp on Wilfully Obscure, I discovered Game Theory a few years after the fact - but luckily in enough time before their albums (specifically on CD) started going for extortionist prices online.  Playing just about any given G/T disk is invariably a treat - yet for whatever the reason I never quite "immersed" myself in any particular album.  This bodes well for me in the respect that I'm not the least bit burnt out on anything with Scott's name attached it (heck, I still haven't gotten around to some of the later Loud Family albums).  Had my investment in his music been greater, I'm confident I could dispel a far more profound remembrance than this, but alas, most Scott Miller die-hards would deem me as a casual fan.

Scott's slyly offbeat vocal panache wasn't far removed from that of Mitch Easter and the dB's Chris Stamey.  Game Theory's crooked pop muse made for good company with that lot, albeit Scott and Co. were a west coast proposition.  G/T and Loud Family were routinely pegged as power-pop, but their comparatively dense and oblique song arrangements placed them on the left side of that continuum.  The concert I'm presenting here is situated around the era of G/T's first proper full-length, Real Nighttime, which wasn't their most sophisticated work...but they were definitely getting there. Overall, it's a fine soundboard memento from this period, boasting plenty of their early signature songs.

For the time being, pretty much the entire Game Theory catalog is available free for download via the Loud Family website.  In addition you can check out a collection of demos for widely revered Big Shot Chronicles album here. Perhaps more Scott Miller-related goodies are to follow later this year...

01. Gloria
02. I Tried Subtlety
03. Shark Pretty
04. Curse Of The Frontierland
05. Never Mind
06. Linus And Lucy/24
07. Waltz The Halls Always
08. Rayon Drive
09. Where You Going Northern
10. Make Any Vows
11. Here It Is Tomorrow
12. Real Nighttime
13. She's The Sweetest Queen

http://netkups.com/?d=121b06d778855

The Donner Party - Complete Recordings 1987-1989 (2000, Innerstate)

After some coaxing by one of my readers, I've decided to share this collection in it's entirety, as opposed to merely the album's worth of Donner Party tunes I put up as one of my Mystery Monday features a few weeks ago. Truly in a class by themselves, this mid-fi, Bay Area indie trio may ultimately be remembered as a footnote to the career of frontman Sam Coomes, who would eventually helm a considerably more popular band, Quasi.  If that wasn't enough, Coomes also played bass with Portland's Heatmiser, who themselves featured a rising star in Elliott Smith, but I digress.

Out of all his ventures, The Donner Party fascinates me the most, not only by virtue of their small but excellent body of work, but by their strikingly casual and humble tact.  A tact, I might add, which was perfectly conveyed by Coomes fey croon, one that was apt to impart a bevy of wives tale motifs, morbid scenarios, character vignettes, and several benign, offhand references to Satan.  Frequently accompanied on backing vocals by drummer Melanie Clarin, the Donner Party had an endearing chemistry that sinks in the moment their records first grace your ear.

Sonically the band meshes well with early Camper Van Beethoven - a band who-not-so coincidentally released the Donner's second album on their in-house Pitch-a-Tent label.  You can throw in Let's Active for comparison's sake as well, and when D/P really get crankin' (i.e. "John Wilkes Booth") they even forecast the likes of Superchunk. In fact, a lot of territory is covered ranging from punk ("Sickness," "Treepig"), folk ("The Owl of Minerva"), a Sesame Street cover ("Up and Down") and even a dazzling foray into full-tilt bluegrass ("Halo").  And it all works, courtesy of Commes relentless whimsy, wherein mercurial gestures evenly split the difference with the macabre and misanthropic.

Complete Recordings features their two albums (both self-titled), a third unreleased LP, and closes things out with eight live cuts.  Over 50 songs total (far too numerous to type) but click the tray card scan
to your right.  Below is a breakdown where everything is sourced from.  Enjoy.

Disk One
1-15. first album (Cryptovision Records, 1987)
16-28. second album (Pitch-a-Tent Records, 1988)

Disk Two
1-4. second album continued
5-17. unreleased third album
18-25. live 2/2/89 at Berkeley Square

Disk One: http://netkups.com/?d=e6a255d3d701e
Disk Two: http://netkups.com/?d=ad556e65c8a10

Fighting for the smallest goal, to get a little self-control.

Todays Mystery Monday feature is a live album from a contemporary singer/songwriter.  That should narrow it down for you, right?

Having difficulty accessing the file?  Please try again a little later.  Too many people hammering the link simultaneously is apparently giving Netkup's servers a headache.  With this in mind, I'll leave this up for a few hours past the usual twenty-four, k?  You're welcome to comment, just don't give away anything obvious.  Enjoy.

http://netkups.com/?d=b262b917a075f

The Deacons - With Hope and Sincerity 7'' (199?, Pogostick)

Here's a slab of Brooklyn post-punk that was minted at some point in the '90s, before that locale painted a new-school whitewash on what is now a ubiquitous sound.  In all honesty, I should stress the "punk" quotient, because that's what the Rich Stremme-lead Deacons emphasize on ...Hope and Sincerity's three bristling numbers.  Perhaps it's Stremme's unique vocal penchant, or the working class themes explored within, but the Deacons naggingly bring to mind Stiff Little Fingers.  The quartet's sonic aptitude wavers towards DIY minimalism, but the less-is-more thing is typically a selling point here.  One Base on an Overthrow dedicated some text to a split single these chaps did in 2009, which you can peruse here. 

A1. Paper Soldier
A2. D Train to Brighton
B. Dreams of the World

http://netkups.com/?d=156f25414b025

All 2008 download links fixed.

You're welcome.  In fact, all d/l links spanning January 2008 to today should be functioning.  When Rapidshare pulled the rug out from every single entry I poured my time and effort into, I surmised that only a fraction of the content would be returning.  Instead, I went for the entire enchilada, and hopefully by months end, just about everything on these pages will be accessible again (I only have one more year to attend to, and it's half a year at that).  If any of the Netkups links appear to be broken please bring them to my attention.  As always, thanks for stopping by.

Hummingbirds - "Word Gets Around' 7" (1989, Rooart), "Alimony" 12" (1990, Rooart)

How's this for a grossly belated follow-up?  About five and a half years ago I featured the Hummingbird's scrumptious, Mitch Easter-produced loveBUZZ album, and haven't uttered their name since.  In the interim I've obtained a pair of singles contemporary to that LP, each bearing an exclusive b-side.  The 'birds were a co-ed Sydney, OZ four-piece who weaved indelible jangle-pop songs, the quality control of each befitting a greatest hits album.  Deeper background details have been made available about them in my loveBuzz post, due in large part to some thoughtful commenters.

"Word Gets Around" is a soaring saccharine high if there ever was one, that manages to avoid any insipid transgressions.  The flip, "Today of All Days" constitutes the icing on an already gratifying cake, thanks to a bevy of chiming arpeggios worth their weight in six-string gold.  "Alimony's" ballad-esque b-side "Candle" settles for a slower pace, clocking in at just over six minutes.  Side two of this 12" also features "Word Gets Around," but since it's the same iteration as the supplied 45 version, I opted not to be redundant.  As for the d/l link to loveBUZZ, I plan on updating it shortly.

Word Gets Around 7"
A. Word Gets Around
B.  Today of All Days

Alimony 12"
A. Alimony
B. Candle

http://netkups.com/?d=f89556a4d5c1c

The Rangehoods - Rough Town ep (1984, Big D)

Some of you older folks in the audience may recall a Seattle power pop combo, The Heats who issued an acclaimed album, Have an Idea at the dawn of the eighties.  Scintillating as that platter was, lead Heat Steve Pearson went onto a somewhat lesser known quartet, The Rangehoods whose quality control was even more stringent, at least as far as the contents of this ep are concerned.  Possessing a timbre almost identical to Tommy Keene, Pearson leads his fellow Rangehoods through five Plimsouls-ish jewels, without over or under-doing a god damn thing.  Dare I say this is borderline stupendous and one of my best retro finds of late?  Dare I do.  Masterful stuff.  Enjoy.

01. Rough Town
02. Chip on My Shoulder
03. Dangerous
04. Used to Be You
05. Not a Boy

http://netkups.com/?d=53684ec106a9d

Donnie Iris and the Cruisers - No Muss...No Fuss (1984, HME)

Thought this would be an ideal follow-up to yesterdays Mystery Monday selection (if you missed it, sorry).  Probably the least well known of Donnie Iris' '80s albums, No Fuss... tacks in the direction of his rollicking debut LP which placed him on the trajectory of a mainstream breakthrough, Back on the Streets.  Unfortunately that trajectory would gradually decelerate, really through no fault of his own, and by 1984 he found himself on the indie HME imprint.  Without a doubt, there's a gratuitous pedestrian slant was baked into No Fuss's Rundgren-esque pop/rock recipe.  Mind you this played quite well in an era when there was still plenty of tolerance for enterprises such as Donnie and the Cruisers.  Sure to cost me a few punk points, there are nonetheless several delectable salvos of dumb fun, with "Injured in the Game of Fun," "Follow That Car," and "10th Street" ranking among my favorites.  No Fuss... was briefly reissued on CD and sold through Donnie's website.  It has since become a pricy collectors item, at least on Amazon.  The two albums that preceded it, The High and the Mighty and Fortune 410 are available here and here, respectively.

01. Injured in the Game of Love
02. 10th Street
03. Ridin' Thunder
04. You're My Serenity
05. L.O.V.E.
06. Follow That Car
07. Don't Cry Baby
08. State of the Heart
09. Headed for a Breakdown
10. I Want You Back

http://netkups.com/?d=154f6c1df25b8

Are you really gonna tell me that there's nothing wrong?

If it's Monday, it's mysterious.  Having difficulty accessing the file?  Please try again a little later.  Too many people hammering the link simultaneously is apparently giving Netkup's servers a headache.  With this in mind, I'll leave this up for a few hours past the usual twenty-four, k?  You're welcome to comment, just don't give away anything obvious.  Enjoy.

http://netkups.com/?d=bb67e57340612