@ Rchecka and GMM , there is some very good stuff in those posts . It reminds me that I have been slacking in my search for different music . Goodstuff guys !!!
Various artists - K-Tel's Souled Out lp . I'm not gonna lie , I literally bought this for one track , but love it all the way through . This is a nice collection of soulful joints that kinda got put on the back burner over the years . True soul music fan will find this cheap comp to be worth the cop ..
Cymande - self titled lp . This is another one of those albums that I can't figure out why it took me so long to cop . I first heard Cymande in a skate video in the 90s , and have been a fan every since . I've always loved the twist they put on funky music ...
This Is My Thing lp . This really must be his thing . This is a great compilation by Tobias Kirmayer . I kept hearing good things about his Moments series of comps , but they were sold out when I was looking , so I gave this a try . Wow !! This dude has an amazing ear for dope music , and I highly recommend this comp . A solid listen all the way through ...
^Still a rockabilly newb so I'm starting with the label comps to get a handle on things. There's just so much out there it's hard to know where to begin and that's when compilations like this one come in handy. I really love the realness factor of these old mono recordings. For me, this is the only really good country music, this old (pre-60s) rockabilly stuff.
^A classic Jazz album, now finally properly cleaned and fully enjoyable. It was graded in poor condition but it just needed a little spin clean TLC to move it up to a strong VG sounding record.
^Speaking of Byrd and classic, this is that too. More funky and fusion than the album above, this one is really kind of a no-brainer pick up for all diggers.
^"So Good, So Right…" <That's the standout track on this clubby 80s band that I'm not overly versed in nor thrilled about. But I know there's a time and a place for this dubby post disco club music.
^Man, I've always loved this clubby 80s album from the group Kleeer. (That's 3 e's BTW, often mispelled with 2) This one I can listen to all the way through and really catch the throw back vibes. File under a soulful 80s club friendly album.
Pulstar – Mc Lane Explosion LP (Tom N’ Jerry Records) 1978
^The album cover is cooler than the music but there is one cut on this that makes this worth owning and that's their cover of the cosmic disco cut "Magic Fly". Shoulda been on my last Space mix, oh well, there's always tomorrow.
Real Thing – Can You Feel The Force 12” (Epic) 1978
^Sticking with the Cosmic disco for one more this one isn't nearly as Star Warsy as I thought it'd be. In fact maybe it's not even technically cosmic disco, it might just be considered dope 80s disco, but it's dope for sure.
This is a big-ass waste of money, don't ever buy it no matter how much you like Soundgarden. I like them, always have, but this is a practice session, you can tell Chris Cornell must have been trying to save his voice from strain of some kind. I think he had a voice ailment sickness and he was just doing a thorough sound check that someone taped and A&M said fuck it we'll put it out as a RSD release and make money. It is seriously that half-assed sounding. Sure, it's got a cover of the Doors "Waiting for the Sun" but it's not like he was even remotely trying to hit the high or low notes singing that, he was hardly on key at all. Clearly he was just going thru the motions with zero style and creative involvement, there was no crowd, no cares, and no reason to try, and you could tell that listening to this. Avoid this one.
Soundgarden – King Animal Demos 10” (Republic Records) 2013 RSD
^On the opposite end of what Cornell is capable of, this is fantastic. Rarely do I hear demos that sound this sharp and crisp. This is top notch music too, with acoustics and themes reminiscent of the "Down on the Upside" album. I STILL don't have the King Animal album, this nags me to get it, so I will get it for sure!
The Breeders – Last Splash LP (Plain Recordings) 2009 RE of 1993 OG
^Some of you guys may be sick of me fluffing this album up but I just can't help it I love it so much. To me this is one of the best chick rock albums of all time. I put it on a pedestal right next to Portishead's Dummy, which is a bit lofty in the views of some but I might even rank it a notch higher since it's so good. There's just something about her voice and that style of grunge that is still so fresh sounding, I feel obligated to keep giving this album the props it deserves. I wish this band would have done a lot more like this.
Ulrich Schnauss – Far Away Trains Passing By LP (City Centre Offices) 2001
^My favorite chill out German techno producer and probably his best album. Some of the songs on this are just as smart as the Boards of Canada's eerie styled beats on their "Twoism" and "Music Has the Right to Children" releases.
Ulrich Schnauss – A Strangely Isolated Place LP (City Centre Offices) 2003
^Not horrible, but a bit of a disappointment compared to his more interesting debut. He went more into the ambient textures here but he's no Eno, and it sounded out of context for him. Smart sounds can sound pretentious and that was the overall vibe I got. The beats are more sparse and moody but less signature sounding than "Far Away Trains"
^I like a few of the songs on this but I'd definitely prefer the original Richest Man in Babylon album over these remixes any day. I was hoping for a bit more dub flare on these remixes but it is what it is.
David Holmes – Out of Sight 12" (OST) (MCA Records) 1998
^Way too much of this record is useless movie dialog. For what little music that is on this disc, maybe 4 short songs at most, it's David Holmes style of downtempo music, which is always pretty good. It says "For DJs Only" and I'm not sure what kind of DJ would ever make use of a disc comprising of 70% movie dialog, unless it was a scratch DJ who is running out of ideas.
Lamb - Gold Promo 12” and Lamb – God Bless 12” (Fontana) 1996
^Anticipating receiving the recent resissue on MOV of their seminal self-titled album I busted out a few of the remix 12" records I have of this duo. Sometimes filed under trip hop, othertimes downtempo, and yet other times Drum and Bass, it's all just good music. I'd put the first album under drum and bass frankly since that's the backbone, but these remixes go into other sub genres nicely as well. For instance the Mr. Scruff remix on Gold is a great beat, and the "my dark place" "Godless" remix by Andrea Parker are fantastic reinterpretations of the originals. I still haven't bought Lamb on Music on Vinyl yet, it's price point is kinda rough. I suppose I better jump on that though cuz there's no chance of getting the original and that price will go up quickly and steadily the longer I wait.
Oliver Lieb – Metropolis promo 12” (Duty Free) 2003 and LSG – Netherworld Promo 12” (Hooj Choons) 1997
^Cleaned off some of my favorite trance (that's right, I like some trance music too. ) music with Spin Clean, which frankly was essential for me to enjoy them at all. Trance needs to be "click" and "pop" and "hiss" free playback or it doesn't sound right at all. The whole point of it is to sound futuristic so I made sure these were spotless when I cleaned the last batch of records. I am extremely picky about what trance music I listen to, its really not my thing and hasn't been in years, but like any genre, there are some artists that should not be ignored, they are just too good. Oliver Lieb AKA LSG is that producer. Maybe not so much with these earlier promos, which are still pretty cool, but his later work like "The Dark Train of Thought Series" are undeniably cool. This guy's records get snagged by me because they are cheap AND really good and that's a great combo in anyone's book.
^Speaking of "Tech" or "Techno" Mark Pritchard is truly the man. A fantastic producer of many styles of instrumental music. This one is his part techno but mostly instrumental Hip Hop EP of pure fire. His previous incarnation entitled "Harmonic 33" was basically a fake library album, vintage electronic styled. But this is just raw hard detroit sounding Hip Hop with a touch of Speak and Spell and Speak and Math samples to round things off.
Seriously, check this beat, who wouldn't wanna spit over this?
Heliocentrics – Quatermass Sessions 1 EP (Now-Again Records) 2013
^Slowly but surely I am getting all this spacy funk crew's works. This one is a lot more dark than their more recent stuff, which to me is a very good thing.
Fair Warning: NSFW Cover coming if you keep scrolling...
^Hooray Boobies!!! The famous cover of this late 70s early 80s UK punk band, the Slits, where they apparently rolled around in the mud naked before shooting the cover. Besides this dope cover, the album is fucking great. File under dub\ska influenced chick punk. Like so much dub I could put this in my reggae section and not feel too guilty about it but since there's basically a punk band I keep em in my rock section. They are great musicians but none of these chicks sing that well, somehow, in this case and many others, it works perfectly for punk. The themes are political and society-mocking, but the songs are still pretty catchy in a way. This is a quintessential punk album IMO, it's not a ten outta ten or anything, it's just a uniquely important piece of the punk puzzle and it's easily one of the most influential female punk albums ever made.
Nice post and another Hooray for Boobies !!!! I wish I had time to listen to that many records . Work has been ridiculous lately . One day I'll find the time ..
) music with Spin Clean, which frankly was essential for me to enjoy them at all. Trance needs to be "click" and "pop" and "hiss" free playback or it doesn't sound right at all. The whole point of it is to sound futuristic so I made sure these were spotless when I cleaned the last batch of records. I am extremely picky about what trance music I listen to, its really not my thing and hasn't been in years, but like any genre, there are some artists that should not be ignored, they are just too good. Oliver Lieb AKA LSG is that producer. Maybe not so much with these earlier promos, which are still pretty cool, but his later work like "The Dark Train of Thought Series" are undeniably cool. This guy's records get snagged by me because they are cheap AND really good and that's a great combo in anyone's book.
The famous cover of this late 70s early 80s UK punk band, the Slits, where they apparently rolled around in the mud naked before shooting the cover. Besides this dope cover, the album is fucking great. File under dub\ska influenced chick punk. Like so much dub I could put this in my reggae section and not feel too guilty about it but since there's basically a punk band I keep em in my rock section. They are great musicians but none of these chicks sing that well, somehow, in this case and many others, it works perfectly for punk. The themes are political and society-mocking, but the songs are still pretty catchy in a way. This is a quintessential punk album IMO, it's not a ten outta ten or anything, it's just a uniquely important piece of the punk puzzle and it's easily one of the most influential female punk albums ever made.
