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1972 012LP
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"Adrian Borland and Graham Bailey might be better known as members of legendary post-punk group The Sound, but the two were childhood friends and had been playing together even earlier in The Outsiders, and continued their deep musical rapport as a duo, creating these intense and engaging songs as Second Layer at the same time as their higher profile band output. Following the release of Courts Or Wars, combining their early material, 1972 is proud to reissue their only full length album, World Of Rubber. Fueled by experimentation in both song construction and recording techniques, the duo leave you enveloped in what The Quietus described as 'a monochrome worldview morbidly obsessed with the dehumanizing effect of war, nuclear weapon annihilation, and the fracturing and negation of the self within an increasingly distorted and technologically mediated society.' Indeed, the goal had been to make each album a concept album, with this to be titled: Second Layer's World Of Rubber. Alas, this was to be the first and last of those efforts. New detailed liner notes from Graham Bailey shed considerable light on the creation of this cold classic and its immediate aftermath. Bailey's inventive construction and deconstruction of various electronics, effects boxes and tape loops form the propulsive base for these songs. Borland's guitar playing is jagged and unleashed. Above it all is an undeniable sense of melody and Borland's distinctive vocals. Soon, they would wonder where Second Layer ended and The Sound began, but World Of Rubber would stand as a document of this fertile period. It would also be a lasting testament to their desire to push the boundaries of their creativity. Dark and brooding the result is what Bandcamp described as 'brutally bleak, blank-eyed post-punk that remains chillingly compelling.'"
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1972 002LP
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2024 repress. "Following a run with Cherry Red Records that featured a potential major label jump, guitarist Maurice Deebank quitting and rejoining multiple times, several pop stardom carrots just out of reach, mixing battles with Robin Guthrie, and a shocking entry into the record charts, Lawrence (just 'Lawrence', like 'Cher' or 'Madonna' thank you very much) knew he would be making a change with his band Felt. He would be seeing out his plan of ten albums and ten singles in ten years alongside a new partner in Creation Records. This compilation beautifully captures those years. Creation was beginning a rapid ascent at the time, with Alan McGee serving as its hyperactive mouthpiece and focal point. McGee was all in on the band. 'Lawrence achieved pop perfection, a breathless rush of sensitivity and intelligence. It was too understated to be commercial, too art to go pop, too pop to go art -- in other words it was a perfect combination of all the music I loved at the time.' McGee was thrilled to have what he considered a real star on the label, and Lawrence was equally thrilled to have such an enthusiastic cheerleader. He funneled that enthusiasm into some of the most focused songwriting of his career, as well as some of his wildest experiments, all of which are on display here."
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1972 001LP
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2024 repress. "Lawrence Hayward knew that he wanted to be a pop star as a teen, and he devised a plan to release ten albums and ten singles over ten years to make that dream come true. A particular and determined individual, he would only be known as Lawrence from that day forward. His hopes for stardom would be pinned on his newly formed band, the succinctly named Felt. Soon signed to Cherry Red Records, Lawrence's achingly cool vocals and the group's way with walking melodies were evident on their debut for the label, Something Sends Me To Sleep. This compilation collects material from Felt's Cherry Red period of 1981 to 1985, kicking off with that confident start, assembling numerous high points, and closing with their biggest hit, 'Primitive Painters.' This phase of the band is defined by the songwriting partnership and unique interplay of Lawrence and guitarist Maurice Deebank, with Deebank's stylish and confident playing the envy of many of their counterparts. He delivers a constant string of shimmering hooks that wrap themselves around and over top of Lawrence's more traditional beat combo song structures, as if trying to fit four songs worth of ideas into a pre-set radio friendly cutoff time. It works wonderfully as Lawrence always counters with a solid bedrock. In one of many brushes with the brass ring, in 1984 Felt recorded versions of 'Dismantled King Is Off The Throne' and 'Sunlight Bathed The Golden Glow,' for the newly formed and Warners-backed label Blanco y Negro, in hopes that the band would follow their A+R man Mike Alway to the executive suite. Despite putting forward two of their finest songs, it was not to be. While major label dreams had to remain on the shelf, fans were delighted to be able to hear these beautifully stripped down and more direct versions when this compilation was released a few years later. By 1985 the Felt roller coaster was something Maurice Deebank was constantly getting on and off of. As Gary Ainge always kept the beat, and Lawrence never lost focus, they were joined by local teen prodigy Martin Duffy on keyboards, filling out the arrangements, and following Deebank's racing six-string cascades in 'The Day The Rain Came Down' you can even hear a tiny hint of the next phase of the band in Duffy's organ before Maurice swoops to the finish. The newly expanded Felt would then put everything they had into making one of the defining releases of the '80s: 'Primitive Painters.'"
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1972 011LP
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"Adrian Borland and Graham Bailey might be better known as members of legendary post-punk group The Sound, but the two were childhood friends and had been playing together even earlier in The Outsiders, and continued their deep musical rapport as a duo, creating these intense and engaging songs as Second Layer at the same time as their higher profile band output. Combining their early recordings, including the 1979 Flesh As Property EP and 1980 State Of Emergency EP, Courts Or Wars takes its title from the first song that served as the pair's introduction to listeners. Right from the beginning you are enveloped in what The Quietus described as, 'a monochrome worldview morbidly obsessed with the dehumanizing effect of war, nuclear weapon annihilation, and the fracturing and negation of the self within an increasingly distorted and technologically mediated society.' Where The Sound fit snugly next to Echo And The Bunnymen, Second Layer had far more in common with the pulsing menace of Suicide. Borland's familiar vocals and sense of melody hold a connection to his other songwriting, but within these songs he takes far more risks in his guitar work to suit the subject matter. What really drives everything is Bailey's propulsive bedrock, formed by his homemade pre-drum machine rhythm generators, creating an innovative mechanical approach that somehow inserts a jittery neurotic touch that merges perfectly with his electronic layers driven by the wasp synth, various unique effects boxes or tape loops. Adding in Bailey's own distinctive bass playing, the results feel personal and experimental, pointed and harsh, while also bracingly accessible and covered in dark manic energy. Over forty years later, these recordings feel shockingly appropriate. In painting a bleak reality and frightening future, there is real desperate beauty here."
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1972 010LP
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2023 restock. "Cutting their teeth as teens in a West Bromwich bedroom, The Sea Urchins were nothing like the heavy metal that seemed to fill every bar in the UK Black Country. Fringe haircuts, perfect trousers, suede jackets and infectious tambourines gave plenty of hints as to their youthful ambition, but nothing could fully prepare you for just how utterly spellbinding these songs would be. Compiling their fanzine-only flexi material with the full complement of singles for Sarah Records, Stardust runs chronologically from late 1986 to the middle of 1989, beginning with the singles split for Clare Wadd's Kvatch and Matt Haynes' Sha La La, before hitting the first of what would be an even hundred releases from the new label Wadd and Haynes would form -- Sarah. The song that launched a legendary label and defined a sound, a scene, a place and time; 'Pristine Christine' still rings out as immediate and magical today as it did on first listen. What a glorious jangly rush racing around the corners of pop's history! The band would reach such heights time and again over the course of this three-year burst. The melancholy swinging folk of 'Everglade' and it's wonderfully yearning vocal; the organ-fueled British invasion garage rock sing-a-long of 'Solace'; the playful psych pop of 'A Morning Odyssey'; the acoustic sweep of 'Wild Grass Pictures'; the perfectly named 'Summershine' leaving you with a ramshackle smile out on the dancefloor. All of it is just so filled with delicate humanity, yet somehow absolutely perfect. As Bob Stanley said about the shimmering ballad 'Please Rain Fall' while bestowing it with NME Single Of The Week (an honor also bestowed upon 'Pristine Christine'), 'think of some variations on the word marvelous and you're most of the way there.' In their time, they might have seemed wildly out of step, but it's not crazy to say that things could have been very different for the likes of Radiohead, The La's, and Oasis without The Sea Urchins."
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12"
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1972 009EP
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2022 restock. "Forty years ago, on July 8th and 9th in 1981, a group formed by the splintering of some of Bristol's essential post punk bands, entered the hallowed studio at Berry Street in London to record their debut single. What would emerge was not only an exuberant post funk classic on the A-side, but also a wildly influential dub workout on the flipside, whose reverberations can still be heard today. Both songs have proven essential in very different ways. A focal point for the unique punk-funk that was coming together in Bristol as the bridge from the '70s to the '80s arrived, Maximum Joy was formed by Glaxo Babies multi-instrumentalist Tony Wrafter and 18-year old vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Janine Rainforth. Soon they drafted in additional Glaxo Babies in the form of drummer Charlie Llewellin and bassist Dan Catsis, along with guitarist John Waddington, fresh from The Pop Group. The group set about making a one-of-a-kind mix of funk, punk, pop, jazz, dub, soul, afrobeat and reggae; creating a brilliant charge of danceable tunes wrapped around elastic basslines and complex percussion, punctuated by melodic horns and stabs of guitar, all of it highlighting Rainforth's naturally enthusiastic vocal style. Bursting at the seams, 'Stretch' feels like it can barely be contained within the studio walls. Rainforth delivers a vocal performance that can only be found within the freedom of someone recording their first ever single. The group's love of funk is evident on 'Stretch', but the heavy influence of dub and reggae from their surroundings shapes the moody skitter of 'Silent Street'. Here, the sing-song vocals seem to drift across the heavy late-night air. The two songs are wildly different, yet both could only have come from this key collection of players. Paired with the likes of The Pop Group, The Slits, The Raincoats and the On-U-Sound collective, Maximum Joy still stands out as a unique voice in the movement. Y Records head Dick O'Dell would join the sessions and give the release a warm home in the UK while legendary 99 Records in New York took on the US release since Maximum Joy made perfect sense being equal parts ESG and Liquid Liquid. This 12-inch has been a staple for DJ's in the know since day one."
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LP/7"
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1972 008LP
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2022 repress. "The Gordons crashed upon the do-it-yourself scene of early 1980s Christchurch with torrential force, self-releasing two foundational planks of the vibrant New Zealand underground. Future Shock, a three-song 7-inch released in 1980, is a wild-eyed rampage, as staggering as any feedback-addled punk then being recorded at Southern Studios. The Gordons LP, which followed in 1981, matches the abandon with motorik churn and livewire dissonance, evoking New Zealand antecedents as divergent as This Kind Of Punishment and the Dead C. Brought together on this release, they're a noise-rock landmark anticipating fans such as Sonic Youth. Flying Nun Records, the storied Christchurch label and symbol of the island nation's rich independent music scene, re-released The Gordons and Future Shock together in 1988 following the formation of Gordons outgrowth Bailter Space, which frontman Alister Parker founded with Clean drummer Hamish Kilgour. Bailter Space, which would also come to include founding Gordons members Brent McLachlan and John Halvorsen, settled on a droning shoegaze sound, drawing comparisons to Dinosaur Jr. and the Pixies. The Gordons and Future Shock, however, represent the trio's unreformed id, as startling today as upon release."
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1972 007LP
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"Before fronting classic post-punk group The Sound, Adrian Borland was a Wimbledon teenager enamored of Iggy Pop and the Velvet Underground. With friends, he formed The Outsiders. In 1976, they home-recorded Calling On Youth, a searching full-length that straddles nihilo-punk argot ('Terminal Case' and 'I'm Screwed Up') as well as smudged glam balladry ('Start Over' and 'Weird'). Its release in 1977, on the group's own Raw Edge label, with Borland's cityscape abstraction on the cover, marked the first independent punk full-length in the United Kingdom. The Outsiders, featuring bassist Bob Lawrence and drummer Adrian 'Jan' James, were punk in the moment before punk cut ties with solos and five-minute songs. (Close Up, released in 1978, is more streamlined.) Like the Saints or Crime, they still trafficked in rock 'n' roll. Calling On Youth, though, announces Borland as more than a precious teenage bandleader. The nervous introspection, wiry leads and negative space that he would refine solo and in The Sound, Second Layer and Witch Trials glistens throughout Calling On Youth, beckoning rediscovery."
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2LP
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1972 006LP
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2022 repress. "Philophobia, Arab Strap's sophomore slam dunk released in the spring of 1998, begins with one of the most memorable opening lines in all of indie rock: 'It was the biggest cock you'd ever seen, but you've no idea where that cock has been.' So begins an album that, while picking up thematically where the duo's debut album The Week Never Starts Round Here left off, promises from its very first seconds a renewed sense of purpose: the narratives are more streamlined, the music more confident and mature. Gone are the sketches and doodles that unquestionably distinguished 1996's The Week Never Starts Round Here as the work of first timers, replaced with a consistent, almost conceptual, musical framework. On Philophobia, singer and lyricist Aidan Moffat's realism is more profane, gritty and poignant, while multi-instrumentalist Malcolm Middleton's honeyed orchestrations increasingly provide clinics in subtlety and restraint. Part of the appeal of Arab Strap's post-everything music is the way the group's songs make every listener feel like either a voyeur or a trusted confidante. The ever-present humanity in future sex advice columnist Moffat's first person tales of debauchery and regret is a through-line running through each of these frank and vivid songs: the same narrator who confesses to sniffing his fingers after a sexual encounter and boasts about the size of his penis also yearns to 'hug' a lover to death, finds himself crying on the bus, and wonders idly -- but hopefully -- whether or not he's truly in love with the woman he's just slept with. It is this duality, complemented by Middleton's imaginative and deeply sensitive accompaniment, that makes Philophobia one of the most original and most enduring front-to-back albums in the canon of modern indie rock; over two decades later, it still sounds warm to the touch."
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LP
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1972 005LP
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2020 repress. "A focal point for the unique punk-funk that was coming together in Bristol as the bridge from the '70s to the '80s arrived, Maximum Joy was formed by Glaxo Babies multi-instrumentalist Tony Wrafter and 18 year-old vocalist Janine Rainforth. Soon they drafted in additional Glaxo Babies in the form of drummer Charlie Llewellin and bassist Dan Catsis, along with guitarist John Waddington, fresh from The Pop Group. The group set about making a one-of-a-kind mix of funk, punk, pop, jazz, dub, soul, afrobeat and reggae; creating a brilliant burst of danceable tunes wrapped around elastic basslines and complex percussion, punctuated by melodic horns and stabs of guitar, all of it highlighting Rainforth's naturally enthusiastic vocal style. They immediately took their place on the rosters of influential labels like Y and 99 with iconic debut single 'Stretch', as the band had clearly captured something special. Entering 1982, Kevin Evans had replaced Catsis as Maximum Joy set out to make what would be their only full length LP. Recording at Berry Street and The Lodge with producers Adrian Sherwood (On-U-Sound legend), Dave Hunt (the Flying Lizards and This Heat) and Pete Wooliscroft (Kate Bush, Talk Talk, Peter Gabriel and OMD,) the band would mix practiced grooves with imaginative improvisation. The results were absolutely jaw-dropping."
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1972 003LP
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"Appropriately naming themselves after the French New Wave classic from Jean-Luc Godard, Breathless are effortlessly cool, fashionably dark, hopelessly melancholic and frustratingly off-center romantics. Often lumped together with bands like The Sound and Comsat Angels, Breathless have more in common with the mid to late '80s wandering output of The Cure, The Cocteau Twins and other artists stretching the post punk dream pop template, thanks to the strength of their arrangements and shifting time signatures, along with one of the greatest vocalists to ever step foot in the genre. Ari Neufeld knew a unique talent when she saw it and quickly drafted Dominic Appleton in to her current band due to his inventive keyboard skills. The two immediately found that they had a strong songwriting bond that far outstripped the rest of the group. Folding in guitarist Gary Mundy, with whom Appleton had been in previous projects, including their marvelous work backing Anne Clark on her debut album, the trio set out on a new path, with Appleton crucially taking command of the vocal duties. Linked to labels like 4AD, but with a strong sense of independence and a reluctance to tour endlessly, Breathless would self release their entire catalogue on their Tenor Vossa label. Certainly, the band had the charisma needed for stardom, along with the songwriting skills, but their output would remain on the margins, beloved by those in the know."
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1972 004LP
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"The year 1996 saw the release of Arab Strap's first single, 'The First Big Weekend,' and debut album The Week Never Starts Round Here. Into an underground rock milieu preoccupied at the time with slo-core, math rock, and all things Pet Sounds, the duo of Malcolm Middleton and Aidan Moffat couldn't have sounded more alien. In many ways, The Week Never Starts Round Here bears all the marks of a debut: it's raw, unguarded, and crammed with ideas. It also firmly establishes the particular set-up that would define Arab Strap's sound over the course of eleven years, with Middleton handling the music while Moffat provides the vocals and lyrics. Even this division of labor -- more common to rap music than to the shoegazers and increasingly ubiquitous 'collectives' of indie rock -- seemed to defy expectations. The sound of Arab Strap is a distinct brand of existential miserablism. Middleton's cleverly arranged foundation of nocturnal guitars and rudimentary drum machines provides a canvas for Moffat to relay, in a thick Scottish dialect, his many sloshed, candid confessions. Long before artists like Mike Skinner chronicled the picaresque days of lads getting pissed and getting laid, Arab Strap's vivid tales of lovers, lager and shame were being broadcast on college stations everywhere. The Week Never Starts Round Here is an album full of drugged-up kisses and dried up egos; it chronicles the conquests and knockbacks of weekends that last forever, and it does so unapologetically, poetically, and profanely. Indie rock would never be the same."
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2LP
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IF 028LP
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"When Spacemen 3 -- the seminal, drone-indulgent English psych duo comprised of Peter Kember and Jason Pierce -- split in 1991, Pierce shuffled off to acclaim in Spiritualized. Meanwhile, Kember charted a less predictable course. As Sonic Boom, he released Spectrum in 1990, then, after taking a liking to that handle, released Soul Kill (Glide Divide) as Spectrum in 1992. Kemper alternated between those monikers and Experimental Audio Research (E.A.R.) throughout the 1990s, building a rich, probing catalog of synth and electronic explorations of which 1997's Forever Alien is an undeniable high point. With theremin, vocoder, and an array of modular analog synthesizers (depicted lovingly in the cover art) Kemper, along with Alf Hardy and Pete Bassman, fused kosmische abstraction and the pulsation of minimalist composition to more traditional psych elements epitomized by early Pink Floyd. Landing between the unfettered experiments of E.A.R. and Spacemen 3's songcraft ('How Does it Feel?' is scarily reimagined), Kemper crafts unnerving atmosphere on the title track and an enduring catalog high point on the consummate opener, 'Feels Like I'm Slipping Away.' Forever Alien leaves no doubts about the reasons for Kemper's sought-after production today (he played a vital role for Animal Collective and sculpted Panda Bear's most recent album) -- nor the essential status of his post- Spacemen 3 output."
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LP
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IF 029LP
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"Sparks's eponymous 1971 debut presents the singular compositional, lyrical and singing voices of Ron and Russell Mael fully formed. Originally released under the moniker Halfnelson, Sparks's prescient debut prefigures Queen, power pop, and especially Southern California's late '70s skinny-tie explosion. It's a landmark of Todd Rungren's early production career, and clearly the backing band of brothers Earle and Jim Mankey brought Sparks's pop idiosyncrasies to their later work with The Dickies, The Quick and 20/20. Infectious, daring, and delightfully flaunting camp theatricality throughout, Sparks is the first installment in an unparalleled series of some of the decade's most classic albums. Careening melodies soar through space-detritus electronics on the strikingly original 'Roger,' which evokes the early solo work of Brian Eno, but the deranged art-rock closing track '(No More) Mr. Nice Guys' is the unequivocal classic of Sparks's early career and a staple of the band's live set ever since. Rundgren's restrained production wisely sets the Mael brothers at the fore of Sparks. With just subtly treated cymbal flourishes keeping the pace, album opener 'Wonder Girl' is pared down and mixed to showcase two things: Ron's twinkling piano trill and Russell's fluttering high-register. As Rundgren perceived, and a multi-decade career confirms since, their fraternal chemistry is a consummate force."
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2LP
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IF 033LP
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"The ever-mercurial Bobby Gillespie wasn't content to bridge techno and indie with the wildly popular acid-house foray Screamadelica. No, he carried on as if it didn't happen. As suggested by the album cover, which features a photo (titled Troubled Waters) by seminal Southern photographer William Eggleston depicting a confederate flag, 1994's Give Out But Don't Give Up finds Primal Scream drawing upon rock forms baked in the American South, the nationalistic Britpop climate be damned. A debt to The Rolling Stones held over from Primal Scream inflects the tender balladry on '(I'm Gonna) Cry Myself Blind,' while 'Funky Jam' is self-explanatory and the hit single 'Rocks' trades, not surprisingly, in roadhouse rock 'n' roll bravado. On the title track, George Clinton himself arrives to trade verses with the unflappable soul vocalist Denise Johnson atop a dour and hard funk groove. Like Primal Scream's broader discography, Give Out But Don't Give Up is an assortment of freewheeling exercises -- all of which deftly connect."
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LP
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IF 032LP
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"Following the Byrds-indebted bliss of Primal Scream's debut, Sonic Flower Groove, bandleader Bobby Gillespie reassembled a lineup and literally grew his hair long to prepare for the uninhibited riffs and leather-laden swagger of the group's eponymous sophomore album in 1989. Fans were surprised -- just like when Gillespie's old group The Jesus & Mary Chain swapped noisy gauze for high-production sheen -- but time has shown thrilling reinvention to be Gillespie's greatest asset. The shift is told by the cover art: instead of Sonic Flower Groove's nod to 1960s collegiate artist chic, Primal Scream's cover depicts little more than wild manes in motion -- the visual analog to both the blues-spew thump of 'Ivy Ivy Ivy' and the incredible, Beggars Banquet-era Rolling Stones homage, 'I'm Losing More Than I'll Ever Have' (which made history again as the basis for Primal Scream's crossover hit, 'Loaded'). But Primal Scream also slays with softness: 'You're Just Dead Skin to Me' features emotive keys from Felt's Martin Duffy, and 'You're Just Too Dark to Care' movingly evokes Alex Chilton's hushed despair on Big Star's 3rd. Soon after, Screamadelica christened the band with a new identity, but Primal Scream established a mode to which Gillespie would return on 1994's excellent Give Out But Don't Give Up."
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LP
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IF 031LP
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"Bobby Gillespie's departure from The Jesus & Mary Chain enabled the pioneering Scots bandleader to focus on Primal Scream full-time. The rewards arrived quickly: the early B-side 'Velocity Girl' ended up on NME's legendary C86 compilation (and later inspired the American indie-pop band of the same name), and Primal Scream connected with the crucial English indie label Creation. For the band's debut, Primal Scream opted for producer Mayo Thompson -- leader of left-field psych outfit Red Krayola and producer for Pere Ubu, Felt, and The Chills, among others -- and completed Sonic Flower Groove for release on the newly set up Warner Bros. subsidiary Elevation Records in 1987. It's the only album featuring Gillespie's wistful, almost fey vocal style, which makes impeccably balanced pop compositions like 'Aftermath' especially infectious. The influence of The Byrds is glaring. Glistening guitar melodies entwine and, yes, jangle, though the way they mingle with and complement Gillespie's voice distinguishes the tribute. It's also a prescient album, predicting the refined rock sensibility that would in a few years come to characterize Britpop, but by then Gillespie and Primal Scream would already be blazing new trails."
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LP
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IF 017LP
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2013 release. "Maurice Deebank recorded his instrumental solo debut for the seminal Cherry Red imprint in 1984 while still the guitarist in Felt, the pastoral English pop group led by the notorious eccentric Lawrence Hayward (best known simply as Lawrence). Felt's early albums Crumbling the Antiseptic Beauty, The Splendour of Fear and Ignite the Seven Cannons and Set Sail for the Sun were marked by melancholy guitar interplay and a lofty pop sensibility, but Inner Thought Zone illustrates how significant Deebank's role was in crafting Felt's signature sound. Seven-minute album centerpiece 'Silver Fountain of Paradise Square' and 'Study No. 1' make beautiful use of supple arpeggios whimsically bent into cyclical structures in and around which Deebank weaves solos. His performance is nuanced and dynamic, undermining his own technical skill for the sake of expression, and it's easy to hear Inner Thought Zone as an exposition of the increasing introspection that led to his departure from Felt."
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IF 070LP
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"David Ackles's eponymous 1968 debut is a rich emotional experience rife with poignant balladry and evocative lyricism. The era's market was unprepared for such a singular songwriter, but the cult of Ackles is a potent force and this reissue obliges its demands. Elton John, Bernie Taupin and Elvis Costello are Ackles acolytes--the latter even championed him as 'perhaps the greatest unheralded songwriter of the late '60s.' As a staff songwriter for Elektra and avid composer for theatre and film, Ackles developed a maverick style. Indeed, David Ackles materialized when Elektra couldn't imagine a singer more suitable for the material than its composer. David Ackles boasts wonderfully restrained arrangements that only enhance its power. The widely covered opening track 'The Road to Cairo' features Ackles at the pinnacle of his emotive ability. With marvelous dramatic grace, he evokes the weary traveler's wisdom and turmoil as it devolves to a devastating breaking point. It's a gut-wrenching moment, though one quickly tempered by the melancholy 'When Love Is Gone' and beatific 'What a Happy Day.' Perhaps akin to Randy Newman, Scott Walker or the darkest Van Dyke Parks (at least for their inimitability), Ackles's debut sounds peerless today."
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IF 074LP
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"Riding the crest of successive hit-making for Duane Eddy, Sanford Clark, Dean Martin and Nancy Sinatra, the ever-industrious Lee Hazlewood still found time to release his excellent third solo album in 1965. His second solo recording for the Reprise label, Friday's Child indulges his signature country-pop flare and pioneering use of vocal reverb. With electric guitar leads, harp and female backup vocals, the album finds Hazlewood embellishing his arrangements, though some of its strongest moments draw their impact only from his rich timbre. Some artists develop their voice for years; Hazlewood's third album proves it was an innate and irrevocable gift. Weepy guitar leads kick off the title track and Hazlewood takes up the story of twinkling sorrow and bad luck. He often speckles pain with humor, but 'Friday's Child' is one of his most purely somber ballads. Elsewhere, with finger snaps, sparse backup vocals and Hazlewood's emotive intonation, the intro of 'Houston' alone could carry on entirely a cappella and still endure as a classic. The composition made a hit for Dean Martin, but the Friday's Child version shows Hazlewood's inimitable skill as a vocal stylist. Mostly lacking the dada-esque humor of his first two albums, Friday's Child places Hazlewood in league with the era's greatest traditional songwriters, though one for whom pop conventions were to be bucked and cast aside."
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IF 073LP
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"Lee Hazlewood's partnership with Reprise Records in the 1960s resulted in timeless hits for Dean Martin and Nancy Sinatra. Throughout the decade, though, the label also released three of the artist's most highly regarded solo works: The N.S.V.I.P.'s, Friday's Child and Love and Other Crimes. Hazlewood's 1964 sophomore album The N.S.V.I.P.'s (Not So Very Important People) is the perfect companion to his classic debut, Trouble Is a Lonesome Town, released the year prior. Setting his signature spoken intros to a new cast of small town eccentrics (perhaps modeled on his childhood locale in Mannford, Oklahoma), this early career high-point presents Hazlewood with all of his singular assets already intact: playful lyrics veering toward the bizarre, wry delivery and wonderfully understated pop-country song craft."
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2LP
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IF 025LP
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2013 release. "Released in late 2001, Sound-Dust found Stereolab firmly in the midst of their second phase. After taking a two-year break, the band returned with a strong melodic focus and a highly evolved, sophisticated style of writing that further displayed their growing talents. Many fans and critics consider the album to be among the group's finest. Producers Jim O'Rourke (Sonic Youth, Gastr del Sol) and John McEntire (Tortoise, Sea and the Cake) returned to further Stereolab's continuing evolution. The group brings a lighter, almost orchestral touch to the set of songs with unpredictable shifts in tempo and melody; this new approach is especially apparent on the lead single 'Captain Easychord' and its warped, country-tinged feel. The avant-garde and lounge textures still remain, but are balanced by sun-kissed harmonies and breezy Tropicalia. Sound-Dust is another example of a pioneering band moving forward creatively. It's a full-color collage of sound bursting with catchy refrains and exuberant rhythms. Always a band to add new twists to their sound, this album returns Stereolab to its most playful and otherwordly."
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LP
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IF 023LP
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2013 release. "Though lesser-known than Young Marble Giants' output, the sole LP from Stuart Moxham's The Gist is an essential entry in the great canon of English post-punk. As the principle composer in Young Marble Giants, Moxham honed minimal songwriting to maximal effect with the help of early electronic experimentation. He formed The Gist shortly before Young Marble Giants' dissolution to realize experiments in sound outside his primary group's mold and feature friends from such bands as Essential Logic and Swell Maps. The Gist yielded several singles and Embrace the Herd, originally released in 1982 on Rough Trade and featuring fellow Giants Alison Statton and Phillip Moxham along with Epic Soundtracks. Recorded at home by Moxham, Embrace the Herd is a venerable instance of post-punk liberation to indulge every stylistic whim. With a four-track reel-to-reel, tape echo machine and menagerie of instruments, he veers from the beautifully understated and evocative 'Love at First Sight' (with a timeless, quasi-R&B chorus) and the gleaming pop progression on 'This Is Love' to instrumentals like 'Far Concern' and 'Fretting Away,' the latter evoking Young Marble Giants' sparse but evocative work on Colossal Youth. Moxham sometimes dons a prominently mixed baritone, coos soulfully elsewhere and defers to Statton's inimitable voice on 'Clean Bridges.'"
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CD
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IF 055CD
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2013 release. "Deniz Tek moved from Ann Arbor, MI, to Australia and founded Radio Birdman in 1974 with Rob Younger and the rest of The Rats' rhythm section. By the time Radios Appear was recorded in 1977, the group was already legendary with a cult-like following and an ascetic devotion to the fierce 1960s rock 'n' roll Tek assimilated as a Michigan resident. Homage to these influences is one aspect of Radios Appear. It boasts a fiery cover of 13th Floor Elevators' 'You're Gonna Miss Me,' the lyrics to 'Do the Pop' wax nostalgic for The Stooges and MC5, and 'Radio Birdman' was, of course, taken from a misheard lyric in The Stooges' '1970.' However, Radio Birdman's maverick performances and songwriting on this debut elevate them far beyond pure pastiche. Opener 'What Gives?' kicks the record off at an alarmingly fast pace inspired by punk's new up-tempo glee, but the trotting bass lines and savage guitar solos that follow reveal a staunch rejection of punk's then-hip ineptitude. Hyperactive riffs underpin vocalist Younger's assertive, clear delivery, and Pip Hoyle takes a brilliant keyboard solo. Each instrument is separate in the mix--the production highlights Birdman's technical proficiency honed for years in Sydney's few rock clubs with open doors to the uniformed sect of elitist rockers."
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CD
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IF 051CD
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2013 release. "After debut album The Return of the Durutti Column was released, Vini Reilly decided to record its follow-up himself on a four-track cassette deck at home. Teaming up with drummer and fellow Manchester native Bruce Mitchell, the second Durutti Column album LC (named after Lotta Continua, a far-left radical Italian group) was another inspired musical collaboration. Though self-produced, the album retained traces of Reilly's earlier work with Martin Hannett. This second set of evocative electric guitar compositions features a melding of Reilly's urbane, contemplative style with Mitchell's crisp, deliberate drumming. LC opens with 'Sketch for Dawn (1)', incorporating Reilly's unadorned spoken / sung vocals. The duo syncs up perfectly on album highlights such as the up-tempo 'Jacqueline,' the intimate 'Messidor,' and 'The Missing Boy,' a tribute to Reilly's friend Ian Curtis of Joy Division."
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