Stockholm Monsters - Alma Mater (1984)

The fickle and cynical British press unfairly slagged this band as New Order-wannabes (even though almost all their stuff was produced by New Order bassist Peter Hook); but that's a really shitty and reductive way to describe Stockholm Monsters. Along with some of the other Factory Records bands of that era, they helped bridge the gap between the early label's artier post-punk groups (A Certain Ratio and Joy Division) and the late-decade dance club vibe of the Happy Mondays and Electronic. A band that never got their due because their ever-changing façade meandered around so many genres: an eclectic blend of sunny synth pop experimentation mingled with jangly guitars and electro beats.

I read an interview a few years ago with John Darnielle (of The Mountain Goats, a man I highly respect and cherish as one of the greatest American songwriters of this generation) where he said this was his favorite album ever. It must be awesome if he likes it, right? Listen for yourself and decide.

This is the 2002 re-master from LTM Recordings, with a slew of bonus tracks...

Stockholm Monsters - Alma Mater (1984; Factory Records)

The Durutti Column - LC (1981)

Another criminally overlooked musician, Vini Reilly was the sole member of The Durutti Column. A Tony Wilson (of Factory Records) find, Reilly tried to make the band a collaborative effort but all the other members parted ways (two would go on to start '80s easy listening act Simply Red), so Vini opted to play all the instruments on his records (save drums, here on LC the duties went to Bruce Mitchell).

LC could arguably be labeled as one of the first post-rock records, Reilly uses piano/keys, guitars and basses more for timbre than for rhythm, rather than chunking chords out one after the other he relies on echo, delay and other processed effects to convey emotion and movement. Some of the songs feature vocals, but they stay half-buried under sheets of reverb and layers of ambient synth washes. There are also jazzy elements as well as the post-punk ideas left over from working with Martin Hannett (who produced Joy Division's records). Reilly has gone on to find more notoriety later in his career by writing a lot of the music (and playing guitar and keyboards) on Morrissey's debut solo outing, Viva Hate.

Here's another wonderful album that's been under-rated and overlooked (it contains some out-takes and bonus tracks, from the 1996 re-issued remaster)...

The Durutti Column - LC (1981; Factory Records)