Assassin of Silence - Phaze Shifter. 1980 Neurological (LP). With that moniker, title, and label name, I was certain this was going to be a new favorite for the collection. A Los Angeles based quartet, Assassin of Silence defy categorization and all manner of commercialization. It's song based, with one foot in the 70s and another in the upcoming 80s. As the album progressed, I hear a distinct love for David Bowie, and all his eras up to that point. Art rock, folk rock, punk, synth music, Devo, Dark Side era Pink Floyd, you name it. I appreciate the psychedelic sound of the guitar, something I wish was more utilized throughout. Assassin of Silence are to be commended for being independent. Not sure who the target audience for this album is, but if you like any of the above artists and styles, there will be certainly something here you will enjoy. (9/25)
various artists - Dark Horse Dreams. 1988 Big Ball (LP). A well done compilation of bands from here in Colorado Springs, complete with a lyric insert. The music is mostly late era New Wave, with a smattering of alt rock. The Bo'l Weevils are here, a band I thought I wrote about before, but I guess I didn't. They usually add some hard rock guitar, and they do that here too. The most interesting track is from Rich Mouser, who provides a most interesting proggy closer (the seven minute 'Last Day at the Carnival'). He provides a more straightforward cut to open the second side as well. Overall not something I need to hold onto, but if you're into local bands, this is worth seeking out. (7/17)
*Public Image Ltd. - Second Edition. 1979 Island (2xLP). I've known about PiL ever since I started collecting underground music in the middle 80s, but they were part of a different strain than I was looking for at the time. This is John Lydon's second group, his other was the Sex Pistols (there known as Johnny Rotten), a band who existed to be anti-everything including music. The latter were infamous in my day, as they spent some time in the national news for all the wrong reasons (and probably the right reasons in their minds). In any case, Second Edition is one of those albums that looks and sounds important. A double LP (originally released in the UK as a metal tin with 3 LPs) in an era when everyone was scaling back and focusing on hit records. Sure, Fleetwood Mac and Pink Floyd might get away with it, but no one else. As for the music, it's about as groundbreaking as it gets. Technically known as Post-Punk, a difficult to describe aesthetic, though it crosses over to areas I've long been fond of, such as motorik Krautrock. It's an easy album to listen to actually, yet it's not highly melodic nor particularly engaging from an instrumentation perspective. It's the nadir sound of London at the end of the 70s. Signs that street life there wasn't all Beatles-esque hedgerows and butterflies. (5/22)
Mi-Sex - Space Race. 1980 Epic promo (LP). I picked up three of this band's albums before we started selling at the Colorado Springs Record Show. I once had a 45 of this new wave band from New Zealand and it seemed pretty good. I checked out the latter of the three albums on a quick scan (Where Do They Go?). It's about four years later, but I heard enough to take a full listen to the other two. Space Race is Mi-Sex's second album. They are a somewhat typical synth pop band from the era, but given its early date (1980), the synthesizers are more toned down and the 70s rock element becomes more prominent. Particularly this is true with the rhythm section. This isn't a title I need to keep, but I have high hopes now for their 1979 debut which I will get to soon enough. (I heard it too, but naaa). (3/18).
Dead or Alive - Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know. 1986 Epic (MC). Last year I bought Youthquake on vinyl and decided to keep it on a nostalgia fit. Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know (haha) is very similar in sound. High energy, good melodies, and danceable. B1 is a highlight. But Dead or Alive aren't the type of group I'm building a band page for. Instinctively I kind of know I'm only going to keep the one album, but I'll not turn down hearing any of them. (3/7)
Love and Rockets - Express. 1986 Big Time (MC). Another one of those I picked up on vinyl during the pandemic, but took my profit quickly. I wanted to hear it again before letting it loose. Very British sounding. A mix of New Wave, psych, and alt rock. Like a mix Modern English and the Beatles (a coupling I'm making often now it seems) as played by The Smiths or some such group. (2/20)
Other albums heard but not reviewed: Mi-Sex - Computer Games (3/25); OMD - Organisation (3/26);
*-Keeping for the collection
No comments:
Post a Comment