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LP
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FTR 310LP
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"Second boss LP by this bossest of Western Mass trios. Comprised of Jenifer Gelineau on violin & electronics, Omeed Goodarzi on guitar, and Edward 'Ted' Lee on bowed cymbal, Donkey No No create the sort of instrumental hallucinations you'd expect to hear in the background of a film by Jodorowsky or Arrabal. It's very cool, because they use the very instruments you'd hear in some shitty Ken Burns documentary, in order to play music that would make Ken's sallow head explode if he tried to wrap his noggin around it. With sometimes scratchy violin as the ostensible lead instrument, theoretical comparisons to old timey music are inevitable. But Donkey No No's sound is old timey only in as much as its tendrils are as timeless as smoke. Every note they generate heads in such weirdly trippy directions you can immediately suss why these guys are such a favorite of Gary Panter (king of the hippies). Much of their flow is an unstoppable lateral gush, reminiscent of mid-points in long sets by classic-if-lost Bay Area bands like Patrick Kilroy's New Age trio or Serpent Power. They create an aura that is filled with breath and light in a way that few other bands have ever mustered. It's crazy to think that because they're a new band, on a label not known for its psych releases, that it's gonna take heavy duty psych heads YEARS to find the damn thing. Only when it is no longer in print, and Feeding Tube is an empty brush warehouse once again that the big boys will figure this one out. Which gives you a chance to get a jump on these turds. So do it. If you appreciate the sound of sliding through golden portals, this record was made for you. Whether you like curry or not." --Byron Coley, 2017. Edition of 300; Silk screen fold over covers by Neil Burke.
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LP+CD
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TR 310LP
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LP version. Includes CD. A prose poem, which Stephen Duffy composed especially for the release of the ninth album by his band The Lilac Time, contains the lines, "I was a flower child, now I'm a flower man." It took a long time before one became the other. When viewed from space, Duffy's path may well appear labyrinthine, filled with loopholes and trapdoors. Yet a sober perspective reveals the path of a musician and poet who is independent in the very best sense of the word. Nevertheless, a lot has happened since the young boy kept his Praktica camera trained on street scenes in the Birmingham of the Cold War. Back in 1979, an 18-year-old Duffy was a founding member of Duran Duran. Yet he did not board the train to superstardom. The visionary instinct of the young artist had other intentions. He might have had Bob Dylan, Nick Drake, and The Incredible String Band in mind, but he himself was not allergic to success. He quickly understood that a songwriter with an acoustic guitar had little access to the merry-go-round of the charts in the early '80s. Instead, he formed the band Tin Tin, trading his guitar for a synthesizer and making chic, clever, and sparkling pop music. The young man with the melancholy expression even landed two international hits with "Kiss Me" and "Icing On the Cake." But before the record company was able to put their plan into action and turn Duffy into the next Rick Astley, he took flight. He mothballed his pop persona and founded a band with his brother: The Lilac Time. On their debut in 1987, they made what Duffy had long dreamed of: flower music. The 1988 single Return to Yesterday conjured visions of Simon & Garfunkel. In an era of slapping basses and smacking snares, the instrumentation was exceptional: mainly acoustic, with guitars, banjos, fiddles, and accordions, all beautifully arranged by Nick Duffy, who was also responsible for composing the instrumental pieces on the record. Keep in mind that the new acoustic movement, which brought forth bands like Belle and Sebastian and Kings of Convenience, was still more than ten years away. Often in diametrical contrast with this melancholy folk pop were Stephen Duffy's lyrics, with descriptions of suburban tristesse placed seamlessly alongside biting commentary on the issues of the times and courageous reports of the singer's moments of excess and aventures amoureuses.
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