Tuesday 21 November 2023

The Last Hurrah?

Actually, I probably shouldn’t have used the question mark, because this particular ride is over. No ifs, no buts, done and dusted. I’m closing all comments to stop late comers asking for re-ups and such like. Sorry if you are late to the feast, it was delicious and debauched, erotic and ever so slightly salty.



Should you be thinking about getting in touch, (remember don’t ask for a re-up, you’ll just get blocked) there’s an email in the right column that will pop in my inbox, but don’t be thinking about sending spam now, because again, you’ll just get blocked or I’ll close the account. I’m not making any plans to come back with a new blog page at the moment, once bitten, twice shy. However should there be a stirring in my loins next year, I’ll quietly announce it here…or here about. And therefore, finally…

As AndieJames once said: Fourscore and...[looks at his pocket watch] seven minutes ago... I, your blogs Godfather, was brought forth too this place to finally bring an end a most excellent adventure conceived with two old friends, Mega... and Mediafire. These two great file sharing sites were once dedicated to a proposition which became a lie in past times, just as it is still a lie today.

So in answer to all this negativity, let’s just be excellent to each other.

And... PARTY ON, DUDES!

Monday 13 November 2023

The Nuns – Rumania

Similar to the more commercial new wave sound, pioneering San Franciscan punk band the Nuns were back after a six year absence and as we know, a lot can change over that period of time. The old hardcore and punk groups were either disbanded or changed styles radically, and the Nuns fell into the latter camp. Sure, they've always had this poppy edge to them, with piano and keyboard a part of their repertoire, as well as male / female vocals, but this bad boy really screams 1986. Founding member Alejandro Escovedo (Sheila E.'s brother!) is long-gone, and the band has rounded their punky edges into a full-fledged synth rock act.

Sunday 12 November 2023

Danielle Dax - Dark Adapted Eye

On the evidence of Dark Adapted Eye, Danielle had really hit her stride and achieved a versatile, bubbly kind of fusion pop with Inky Bloaters; the third solo work which comprises most of this US compilation and has become her de facto hallmark collection. As a performer and recording artist Dax came from the punk-infused, experimental UK underground of the late '70s, and her previous band, Lemon Kittens, threads into that web of groups sprouting in this period; Throbbing Gristle, Nurse With Wound, Coil and their various cross-pollinating sub-units. The track-listing of Dark Adapted Eye nods to these roots with only a handful of earlier solo tracks bookending the scrambled Inky Bloaters running order, with some single mixes. Not the most comprehensive overview of a unique musical trajectory then, but rather an exportable capsule that focuses on a near-perfected sound, perhaps emphasising superficial parallels to Siouxsie and Kate Bush (although Dax is as much a kindred spirit of Lizzy Mercier Descloux in her playful use of abnormal instrumentation).


Saturday 11 November 2023

45 Grave – Autopsy

Good afternoon from Glasgow where I’m in preparation for tonight’s Death Cult gig at the Barra’s (Barrowlands). Shusssh now, I’m not actually in Glasgow as I type, but I am now as you’re reading this. I was going to post this album for Halloween but I wasn’t happy with the 192 bit rate, so before anyone wants to bitch and highlight this…yes I’ve fucked about with the file and it’s now in 320. Bite me, if you don’t want the file, delete it. Anyway…as Wiki says Autopsy is a compilation album by 45 Grave, released in 1987 by Enigma Records. Recorded in the band's early days, it contains previously unreleased songs (many originally written and recorded by guitarist Paul B. Cutler's first band, the Consumers) and alternate versions of tracks that were later re-recorded on the band's 1984 debut album, Sleep in Safety. Also included were the previously released 1981 single "Black Cross" and its B-side "Wax." "Black Cross" is 45 Grave's debut single, released in 1981 on Goldar Records. It and B-side "Wax" were not featured on their 1984 debut album, Sleep in Safety, but were both later included on the Autopsy collection, and remained staples of their live performances. Former Germs guitarist Pat Smear plays additional guitar on the B-side of the single.

If you were left wanting more of the rougher songs from 45 Grave's lone studio LP Sleep in Safety - like "Evil" and "Violent World" - "Autopsy" should come as a treat as it focuses on the early, hardcore days of the band. Paul B. Cutler fresh from his band The Consumers hooks up with Dinah Cancer (still going by the alias Mary Bat Thing) sometime in late '70s L.A. to form a new band. Cancer had been kickin' around with foundational death-rockers Castration Squad with the lovely Alice Bag, and when you're in tight with ex-members from Bags, Germs AND The Screamers - mainstays of '70s LA punk - well, you've got the makings of one of the scene's freshest, most unique groups to ring in the new decade: 45 Grave.


Friday 10 November 2023

Various Artists – Dangerhouse [Vol.1]

Dangerhouse was one of the first independent labels to document the burgeoning West Coast punk rock scene. Started in 1977 and collapsing by the end of 1980, it was a short-lived enterprise, which nonetheless left an indelible mark on the punk rock history. Established by David Brown and Pat "Rand" Garrett, who were both members of the punk rock band Black Randy and the Metrosquad, the company operated on a limited budget, supported by the more conventional typesetting and aerospace jobs of the founders. Black Randy himself got a day job in telemarketing and joined the effort as a business partner. Despite its scarce resources, Dangerhouse was notable for its production quality. They released records on many of California's finest first-wave punk bands, including X, The Eyes, The Bags, The Alley Cats, Avengers, the Weirdos, and the Dils. In its brief existence, Dangerhouse Records put out only 14 7-inch vinyl records, one LP, and one compilation 12-inch EP.


Thursday 9 November 2023

Play Dead - The First Flower

In response to a request on my previous Play Dead post, I suggested that I would post The First Flower…this was back in 2019. Lady and Gentleman, I apologise for the four year wait and finally, posted here in all its glory, I give you both, The First Flower.

The band's longest original release in its earliest days, The First Flower on the whole is a step below the dark, surging power of bands like the early TSOM and Siouxsie and the Banshees. Still, it has enough aggressive post-punk edge for hardcore fans of the era and sounds to warrant further investigation, and certainly sounds far sharper all around than the earliest, scattershot singles. Part of the band's appeal (and consequently its lack of true stature) is the semi-cloning of other popular groups. Thus, there's more than a little Cure in both Green's guitars and Waddleston's bass, while Smith's pounding, rolling drums call to mind many other groups working in a similar "tribal" vein like UK Decay. Generally, though, The First Flower captures both a mysterious, epic edge and brusquer slams with equal appeal, with Green in particular having a nervous, screeching style that establishes its own extreme identity far more than original guitarist Re Vox did. Hickson's singing at points almost sounds like what would happen if Jello Biafra had a slightly calmer English cousin who liked Peter Murphy, a comparison not as off as it might sound. The six songs skip from style to style, more than once stumbling across a neat new fusion -- the snarling funk of "Propaganda" sounds like it was a clear role model for the Cult's later hit "Resurrection Joe."


Wednesday 8 November 2023

DiVinyls – Desperate

Ask most people around the world (except Australians) how they know DiVinyls and they’ll likely answer, “I Touch Myself.” That’s a shame. The Australian rock band had a long and successful career filled with a handful of good-to-great albums. In fact, their 1983 debut, Desperate, is one of the most assured and energetic rock debuts you’re likely to hear. DiVinyls, especially their late singer and force of nature Chrissy Amphlett, seemed to arrive fully formed, ready to rock and roll you right into submission. By the time DiVinyls had released their debut, they had already been regularly gigging for a few years. Many of its songs had been around the block, with some included on the soundtrack to Monkey Grip, a film that featured Amphlett as a young thespian. With Desperate, DiVinyls became the first Aussie band to sign a debut record contract with an American label, Chrysalis Records. Shaking off the immense pressure that entailed, the band recorded a confident and electrifying debut that still stands as not only one of the finest Australian rock albums, but also one of the more criminally underrated records in rock.

Tuesday 7 November 2023

Ghost Dance - A Word To The Wise

A Word To The Wise, don’t think that this is just a 12”EP…it’s way more than that. What you have here is a limited MP3 @ 320 download that was made available in 2013 by the Rdeg Record label. The download is a 14 track compilation of every track available on the final 3 Ghost Dance singles A and B sides. Is it a bootleg?? I dunno, but who cares, it has the four track 12” EP “A Word To The Wise”, the single “Celebrate” with its four B sides and their final single “Down To The Wire” with its four B sides where “Gathering Dust” is a live performance from 26th November 1988 at Bradford University, and includes “The Grip Of Love”, “Last Train” and “Celebrate”. Dissolution came just over a year later after the final gig was performed in Amsterdam on December 4th 1989.


Monday 6 November 2023

Various Artists - New Wave Club Class-X Vol 1 - 8, 1991-1997

As spoken about many times here, the eight disc compilation that completes New Wave – Club Class have been ripped from FLAC sources. Now, just for those who wish to have these albums I have from today (Monday 6th November 2023) uploaded at 14.00 GMT (I’ll let you all work out what time that is in each of your respective time zones) for 7 (SEVEN) days to allow all three of you to have access via WeTransfer. I’ve split the eight discs into two folders containing albums 1-4 and 5-8 respectively. I understand that some folks have bandwidth issues and that downloading such large files can cause problems…there are 8 MP3 files available if you search through the alphabetically stacked labels for Club Class or click on the link at the end of the post. If you feel that it’s all too much for you, you shouldn’t be reading this particular blog…I’d suggest you search for Blippy where you can be spoken to like you’re a child by some C-unit with an annoying voice.


Sunday 5 November 2023

Die Unbekannten - Don't Tell Me Stories

Hey, How The Devil Are You?!

Welcome to Sunday 5th of November…Guy Fawkes Night here in the old country, where we rather innocently celebrate the failed attempt to blow up the British Parliament. Its history begins with the events of 5th November 1605, when Guy Fawkes, a member of the Gunpowder Plot, was arrested while guarding explosives the plotters had placed beneath the House of Lords. The plot had intended to assassinate Protestant King James I of England and VI of Scotland, and his parliament. Celebrating that the King had survived, people lit bonfires around London. Months later, the Observance of 5th November Act mandated an annual public day of thanksgiving for the plot's failure.

A few months following an unconventional performance as the impromptu formation Le Sang Froid, together with Kristof Hahn (The Swans) Mark Reeder was asked if he would like to perform at the upcoming Konzert zur Einheit der Nation on the 17 June 1981 in SO36. In a stupor, he said he would. The next day, he realised he had no band, no songs and no idea why he had actually agreed. He called his friend Alistair Gray, another Brit washed up on the shores of the island of West-Berlin and asked him if he could sing. Al gave Mark a bathroom rendition of Strangers in the Night and Mark said, that's great, come round to my flat and I will show you how to play bass, we have a gig next Wednesday! At this point, the twosome had no band name and no intention of taking this folly any further than the one-off appearance.


Saturday 4 November 2023

Animotion - Obsession 12” & Alphaville - Big In Japan 12”

It’s been a while since I posted a couple of 12” singles together, and I’ve been thinking that as 2024 approaches I should be working out some ideas for celebrating one of the most versatile ways of releasing music…yes dear reader, the 12” single. So, testing the water we have two absolute club dance bangers. I can’t really keep them apart, where there is one, the other is also.

Obsession was written by Holly Knight and Michael Des Barres, who recorded the song as a duet in 1983. This original version features spoken-word verses by Des Barres, giving the song a far more sinister feel. Released as a standalone single, it went nowhere, but it became a big hit the following year when it was recorded by Animotion. The song is about a stalker who seems to get more obsessed as the song progresses. At first, it appears he has a serious crush on the girl, but he later becomes more dangerous and intent on "capturing" her. Animotion recorded this song in 1984 and released it as their debut single. It was a good hit for the San Francisco band, which was a six-piece, synth-heavy group with both male and female vocals. 

Big in Japan is the debut single of the German synth-pop band Alphaville from their 1984 album Forever Young. "Big in Japan" and the single's B-side "Seeds" were two of the first three tracks recorded for Forever Young and was released as a single before Alphaville had finished recording the remainder of the album. The timing of the song was influenced by "The Safety Dance", changing the speed to double-time halfway through the song. The theme was based on two friends who were involved in the sordid drug scene of Berlin's Zoo station.



Friday 3 November 2023

The Darling Buds - Pop Said

The Darling Buds were part of a strange indie phenomenon in the late 1980’s – guitar bands with blonde female lead singers (along with The Primitives & Transvision Vamp). Originally from South Wales, the band released one self-financed single and was picked up by indie label Native. After two further singles they were signed by Sony imprint Epic and in the January 1989 released their debut long-player “Pop Said” which reached No 23 in the National album charts. The album contains the four hit singles ‘Let’s Go Round There’, ‘Burst’, ‘Hit The Ground’ and ‘You’ve Got To Choose’.

Better late than never, this album has managed to win me over lately, and give me a sugar high not unlike ingesting cotton candy and candy apples at the summer fair. The Darling Buds' first studio LP is a potent mix of Blondie and Velocity Girl. Not as streetwise as the former but rougher than the latter, it's a solid collection of 12 straight-ahead pop-punk songs, some of which were re-worked and glossed up from earlier EPs released on the Native label. I definitely hear the influence of shambolic, C86 indie pop bands like Talulah Gosh and The Flatmates. It's not earth shattering, and the relentlessly upbeat nature throughout could be better taken in moderation, but the excellent performance from this Welsh group makes for a fine debut. But this stands apart due to the slick production, and general three chord simplicity of the songs. Singer Andrea Lewis' coy yet assertive phrasing on songs such as "Big Head" and "You've Got To Choose" send the overall mood into the pop bliss stratosphere. Rarely does a band sound this confident and focused on their first full-length.


Thursday 2 November 2023

Various Artists - Gary Crowley's Lost 80s [Vol.1]

Over the years there have been innumerable 80s compilations, usually treading the same path. The usual suspects are dragged out time and time again. Same tracks, different order. But now for something completely different; a view of the 80s from a different perspective. One which will have the listener taking a journey across genres, finding bands that on the face of it would never be on the same playlist, but this album works like a dream. 

When I say the usual suspects are dragged out time and time again, you may be forgiven for having a glance at the track listing here and thinking that has happened here as well. A quick review of the track listing reveals Wham, Culture Club, Spandau Ballet, Haircut 100 and Bananarama. However, don’t expect Freedom, Karma Chameleon, True, Love Plus One or Venus here. No, these are the early tunes that started them on their journeys. Take Spandau Ballet with Confused, where Hadley sounds like a cross between his later self and Alison Moyet and Bananarama with their debut single, Aie a Mwana, also featuring original Pistol Paul Cook. The compilation serves a timely reminder of the plethora of talent which was emerging from Scotland. Much of the Jingly Jangly disc features Glasgow bands, but Scotland is well represented across the whole collection. Some bands included went on to become household names like Aztec Camera and Altered Images.  The Bluebells & Strawberry Switchblade appear with their less well-known songs. Where you’d normally find Young at Heart and Since Yesterday, we get Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool & Trees and Flowers. These nestle alongside less well-known acts like Suede Crocodiles who ultimately spawned the Kevin McDermott Orchestra & Friends Again, contributing the supreme bliss that is Honey at the Core, before they split resulting in The Bathers and Love and Money. The sorely missed unique and sublime voice of Billy McKenzie is here too with The Associates 18 Carat Love Affair. With Josef K’s Paul Haig appearing on the same disc with Running Away I am reminded of an unforgettable appearance on a Hogmanay Show around the mid-80s when Paul Haig and Bill McKenzie performed an unforgettable Amazing Grace.

There are plenty of ground-breaking acts here too, blazing a trail and influencing many who came in their wake. The incomparable Grandmaster Flash share The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash and Whoodini with Magic’s Wand being at the start of when rap started to really take off and break around the world. Funkapolitan, Chic and Was (Not Was) bring their tunes to the party too. I could dance all night.

Wednesday 1 November 2023

Avengers – Avengers (The Pink Album)

I was asked a while ago if I had the 2012 2CD edition of the Avengers album. Well it looks like the goddess of torrents had indeed upped a copy in MP3 and as you can obviously work out for yourself; yes, I’m posting it here for all three of you to sample in your own time. The original post has been updated and is presented below…

No, wait…not THE Avengers but the Avengers from San Francisco…yeah? Ok, got it!

During the late 70’s, in San Francisco, the punk scene was a smouldering powder keg that was set to explode. Out of it would come such seminal bands as Flipper, The Units, Negative Trend and of course the Dead Kennedys. But the band that truly leads the way was fronted by the unlikeliest of people. A gifted and talented artist, Penelope Houston, who came from Seattle to the San Francisco scene and became the voice of The Avengers, a band that was directly inspirational to the bands that came after.
The Avengers, James Wilsey bass, D. Furious drums and Greg Ingraham guitar, were a San Francisco based punk band in the first wave of American punk. Penelope Houston, who later turned to folk music, was the singer and main song writer for the band, and was part of what made the band unique and memorable.
Their first EP release (and only while the band was originally together) was “We Are The One”, was released on Dangerhouse Records in 1977. After opening for the Sex Pistols final show at Winterland in San Francisco, Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones sat in the producers chair for a recording session for their second EP “Avengers”. This recording, released in 1979 a few months after the band had already split up, on White Noise Records features the memorable songs, "The American in Me," " Uh Oh!," "Corpus Christi," and "White N!gg3r." Brad Kent played guitar on "Corpus Christi."

The album called “Avengers” (sometimes referred to as the Pink Album) was released in 1983. It featured tracks recorded through the band's whole time together, and was compiled by drummer Danny Furious.

Tuesday 31 October 2023

The Damned - Grave Disorder

Few bands in the punk scene (or in any scene for that matter) have lasted quite as long or stayed quite as potent as The Damned. From the speedy, catchy punk of "Damned Damned Damned" to the amazing masterpiece "Machine Gun Ettequette" and on to more gothic albums like "The Black Album", The Damned has always stayed fresh, original and always a blast to listen to and see live. So, after a prolonged hiatus from actually recording (1985 till 2001), The Damned released "Grave Disorder" in 2001, needless to say, the band has still got it. It's just as energetic and fresh as they were 47 years ago (yes pop pickers, nearly half a century ago) when they helped form the UK punk scene along with the Sex Pistols and The Clash, among others. Unlike most "new" albums from older bands who had been on a long hiatus, this album really feels as passionate (if not more so) than their earlier efforts, a real album and one of their best in fact. My initial impression is that this album has two very distinct sounds and personalities. Songs such as “Democracy”, “Song.com” and “Lookin’ for Action” contain a punk/pop sensibility with wry political overtones. “Democracy” itself has a gleeful “happy punk” sound, similar to “Noise Noise Noise” from Machine Gun Etiquette whilst the lyrics deliver a biting invective against politics of any sort; the bottom line being that nothing ever changes on that level.

Sunday 29 October 2023

21st Century Vampire - 21st Century Vampire

It’s Sunday of the weekend before Halloween…what more should you expect while celebrating the dark nights, Jack O’Lanterns, candy bags, fake blood, horror masks and kids screaming and laughing?? Well, yeah, of course there’s gonna be vampyres and 21st Century ones are just a valid as any other century…I mean let’s face it, they’re immortal, ever living, creepy and (except Selene) as fug-ugly ever. Yet these fresh faced young punks seem to have missed the ugly boat. Trying to find out any information about them proved fruitless (they’re vampyres right!) so what you have is a couple of sentences of blah blah blah, where we realise that glam punk guitar and synths rule the story of the album. It’s not that this is a bad album; it’s just not very original in its context or execution. All the usual glam rock gubbins are here to be heard, the guitar is shredded while the vocals are clear and calculated. If I was to guess, as this is a very European sounding opus, that the band hail from Scandinavia or very close by. Don’t get me wrong…I’ve loved Scandi glam rock from The 69 Eyes and H.I.M, to Hanoi Rocks and ABBA and everything in-between. The 21st C V scratches that itch nicely with a great sounding album aimed at today’s European vampire culture, wearing all black at Wave-Gotik-Treffen who don’t fit in with the uber-goths and other scene whores.


Saturday 28 October 2023

Shadowhouse - Forsaken Forgotten

Portland post-punk act Shadowhouse unleashes a hauntingly introspective and deeply reflective musical soundtrack: their second LP, Forsaken Forgotten.

Shadowhouse blends dark alternative music and elements of goth and darkwave with spellbinding percussion, brooding bass, atmospheric guitar, and chilling synths. This album is a testament to perseverance: Shadowhouse saw multiple personnel overturns over the four years it took to create the album, which was created in five different studios: Felix Fung (Mode Moderne, Spectres) at Portland’s Hallowed Halls; Little Red Sounds in New Westminster BC, Psychedelic Inner Temple in Portland, then two songs (“A Year Today” and “Tonight”) with Mike Lastra (The Wipers, Neo Boys, Poison Idea) at Smegma Studios in Portland. The album was finalized and mixed by Alex Arrowsmith at The Basement of Solitude in Portland.

At the core lie Shane McCauley’s poetic lyrics, which conjure up images of loss, longing, and childhood. McCauley’s distinctive vocals, reminiscent of Crispy Ambulance’s Alan Hampsall, and the band’s overall sound hearkens back to the Factory label sound of yore; we hear some whispers of The Damned, but overall Shadowhouse is decidedly modern. Forsaken Forgotten displays some new dark wave twists, expansive vocals, and icy guitars that swell with forlorn emotion. The album opens with the eerie “Already Know” with its ominous synth and echoing vocals setting the scene. “Bleed” is pure goth heaven, channelling Sisters of Mercy, The Mission, and All About Eve. “Black & White” is more introspective, with a glowing chorus and pulsing iridescent synths that give way to brilliant guitars and sonorous vocals. The rollicking “Tonight” is a standout track on the album, with a passionate vocal maelstrom and fierce guitar work. “Childhood” is a powerful memory, followed by the drifting melancholia of “The Wait”. “Peace” picks up the pace a bit with a passionate backbeat, the six-minute “Nowhere To Run” is a brilliant gothic ballad. “A Year Today”, which made its debut last year, is another standout track on the album. And lastly, “The Wind”, is a closing track that could easily fit comfortably in an arthouse horror film.


Friday 27 October 2023

Various Artists - New Wave Club Class-X8

Damn! This has been a long time in coming, but here it is. There are quite a few artists featured on this CD that I haven’t encountered or posted anything by before, so I guess a brief introduction to them is in order.

First into the cauldron are Die Krupps with their 1981 debut single ‘Wahre Arbeit, wahrer Lohn’. ("The Krupps") are a German industrial metal/EBM band, formed in 1980 by Jürgen Engler and Bernward Malaka in Düsseldorf. The band's name comes from the Krupp dynasty, one of Germany's main industrial families before and during World War II. The initial sound on the band's first album ‘Stahlwerksynfonie’, showed a mix of industry factory noises with metallic percussion and real instruments. Later on the ‘Wahre Arbeit, wahrer Lohn’ EP and the ‘Volle Kraft voraus!’ album in 1982 the band's sound moved toward a less experimental sound but rather a more synthesizer based sound while still keeping the metallic percussion which all you EBM fans love.

TC Matic was a Belgian rock band founded in 1980 in Brussels. In 1983 ‘Putain Putain’ (literally "Whore Whore" in French, though also a common curse word) was a minor club hit in Belgium and France. And yes it remains one of the band's biggest hits. The band played a kind of music sometimes referred to as "Eurorock".

Tuxedomoon is an experimental, post-punk, new wave band from San Francisco, California, United States. The band formed in the late 1970s out of The Angels of Light, an artist collective and commune, at the beginning of the punk rock movement. ‘Dark Companion’ was originally released as a bonus 7” single free with some copies of the French release of their debut album ‘Half-Mute’ in 1980 and was later released in the UK in a slightly edited format  which is the version on this compilation.

Snowy Red is mainly a one-man minimal synth outfit from Belgium, active throughout the 1980s. Though occasionally a band here and there Snowy Red was primarily an outlet for Micky Mike who released four records before seemingly disappearing from the music scene in the early nineties. ‘Nowhere’ is taken from his second album ‘The Right To Die’

The Bollock Brothers were a side project of the John Lydon associated band 4”Be2” formed by Jimmy Lydon. The Bollock Brothers were originally conceived as an outlet for band member Jock McDonald and as 4”Be2” broke up in 1982, T’Brothers became the main band. ‘The Bunker’ is an uncredited cover version of the 1979 single No G.D.M. by Gina X Performance with new lyrics.



Thursday 26 October 2023

The Communards – Communards

Despite the inability of the music to live up to the high standards of Jimmy Somerville's ridiculously skilled falsetto voice, the Communards' first album achieved platinum status in several countries. Somerville's spirited duet with Sarah Jane Morris on a cover of Thelma Houston's "Don't Leave Me This Way" helped push the record into the Top Ten on the U.K. charts, and a decent blend of other dancefloor fillers with Richard Coles-centric piano ballads lends variety for the ears that can't take a full album's worth of dance music. Both "Breadline Britain" and "Reprise" continue Somerville's activist ideals; the latter has to be one of the sharpest dissections of Margaret Thatcher. Compared to the following Red, much of the duo's self-titled debut sounds flat, lacking punch; all the more surprising from a Mike Thorne (Wire, Marc Almond) production.


Wednesday 25 October 2023

And Also The Trees – A Room Lives In Lucy & The Secret Sea 12”Singles

Annnnd welcome back all one or two of you who stop by and read this trivial nonsense. I've taken a couple of weeks away from the keyboard, which probably explains why I haven’t replied to any of your messages. During that time you’ve had a terrific amount of top draw music delivered to you for sampling, before you decide to purchase (or not) from the original authors. I’m back in the driving seat again and making snap decisions on the fly as I type this crap. My original thought was to post a retrospective of ‘And Also The Trees’ covering their early years and first two albums. That idea didn’t pan out as I realised that I have already posted the first two albums by ‘And Also The Trees’. So in a flash I decided to post two 12”EP’s instead.
The two singles, The Secret Sea (1984) and A Room Lives In Lucy (1985) are effectively stand-alone releases which any real fan of the band should have for their collection. If you’re not so familiar with ‘And Also The Trees’ I will be dropping a link below to their previous albums where you can read some notes and try to figure out why you haven’t heard of them before now. It’s also OK if you kinda know of the band but haven’t really heard much by them as the two singles are like an open window with a cooling apple pie just waiting for you to steal. So, com’on and get some lovin’ tonight.