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Chico, CA has never been much of a musical epicenter, but for the lucky few that made their acquaintance with a local mid-80s trio dubbed Sunbirds , that northern Cali locale must have been all the more sacred.  During their initial run, circa '86, (The) Sunbirds had made little in the way of music for public consumption and wouldn't reconvene until eleven years later.  Six songs apiece from each of these eras were compiled onto the archival, No Sun No Shadow in 2003.  With connections to other area left-of-the-dial outfits like Barbara Manning's 28th Day, The Downsiders , and even local yokels Vomit Launch , the Sunbirds naturally exuded an indie rock disposition.  On the nascent recordings that comprise the second half of No Sun... the band's penchant for clangy, jangle-laced guitar maneuvers and achingly endowed vocals, courtesy of one Cole Marquis , could have easily begged comparisons to early REM.  I can also draw parallels to Sunbirds contemporaries the...

For a band whose lone marketplace offering was just one measly punk 45 in 1977, Scotland's Johnny and the Self Abusers nevertheless contained members that would spin off into the eventual world renown Simple Minds ( Jim Kerr to be specific)...and this band.  The Cuban Heels , which entailed the involvement of ex-Abusers Michael McNeil, John Milarky and Tony Donald , had something a bit less lofty and pious in mind than Kerr and his long running offshoots, and all the better for it as evidenced by Work Our Way to Heaven .  The near-spotless first half of the album in question often rocks out like a sturdier XTC - tuneful, smart and dare I say a good couple of years before it's time.  "Liberty Park" and "A Matter of Time" are but a couple of inspired standouts. Side two finds the Heels milling about in a couple of different orbits.  The hepped up dance rock of "Walk on Water" and "Hard Times" sound downright frivolous by comparison, and...

A lot of you have gotten a charge out of my Reivers postings over the years, specifically their debut Translate Slowly , and demos for subsequent albums Saturday and End of the Day , so I thought I'd share this companion piece of sorts.  Tracked in late 1985 at Austin's publicly funded left-of-the-dial outlet KUT FM, this in-studio session isn't some mere four or five song pittance, rather a bona fide full length concert.  It followed on the heels of Translate Slowly, when the band was still going by their original moniker of Zeitgeist (which is how they're referred to by the DJ during this taping.  Part of Austin's so-called "new sincerity" movement, the co-ed Reivers hinted at the-then burgeoning indie-rock aplomb of combos like REM and Let's Active while incorporating a rootsy tenor that never went unnoticed.  Given the era of the performance, the better part of the aforementioned debut makes the setlist, including many a crucial selection like...

From 1981.  Hear

Never evil but only inconsistently good, I took a chance on this Twilight Idols platter based largely on the intriguing album jacket.  Ostensibly hailing from the L.A. area circa the mid-80s I reckoned I might have something paisley in store, but once again, my expectations were nowhere near the dartboard.  No, Beyond Good... was more akin to surly indie rock accented with traces of post-punk.  Leading 'light' Gary Robert who loosely bears a timbre to David Byrne, strikes a compromise between speaking/singing, but this record's deficit of bona fide hooks presents a problem with such a vocal model.  To their credit, the Idols actually come quite close to nailing it on "Time is Fashion," and if anything else, I appreciate the sprite, aggro pulse of "I Live For Today" and "Gonna Tell on You."  I don't believe this trio's lifespan extended past the record in question, which is unfortunate, as I'm curious to what their progression mig...

Actually, everything in this join is on the house...so who am I kidding?  I'll try to get a full length of some sort up for you tomorrow, but today there's this.  A Guided By Voices single that was an exclusive bonus with issue #37 of Fear and Loathing zine...that just so happens to be worth quite a bit more than I would've guessed.  The Brighton Rocks single supplies us with a mere two songs, tracked live from a September 1995 GBV performance in Brighton, UK.  Both "Hot Freaks" and "Game of Pricks appear on one side of the record with about a minutes worth of typical Bob Pollard banter preceding the tunes.  Pretty much a no brainer that they went with the most popular tunes from their catalog, though "Freaks" kinda wore out it's welcome with me by the time this 45 hit the racks.  Enjoy in either MP3 or FLAC. A1. Hot Freaks A2. Game of Pricks MP3   or  FLAC

From 1982.  Hear

I was a profound Johnny come lately when it came to this bunch of Philly wunderkinds, whose 1988 Nauseous and Cranky ep I posted a couple years ago.  And voila, here's The Wishniak's follow-up Catch 33 , a continuation of this quartet's melange of Stonesy grit and the more progressive elements of their era of powerpop (think, Mitch Easter, Don Dixon productions).  Honing memorable, deftly crafted tunes were at the apex of their priorities, and even though the Wishniaks weren't ones to delve into any particular extreme, their earnestness, just-right hooks and an innate mastery of succinct and forward thinking songs like "Marcy's Gone," "New Zealand" and "Day to End All Days" exuded a warmth and charisma most current acts would trade a collective left nut for.  And believe it or not, their rendition of the Scientists "Frantic Romantic" here is one of the comparative low-lights in this gratifying baker's dozen. 01. Day to E...

Ok, decided to fulfill a couple of requests...for records I don't actually own.  Was able to track down digital files of them however, and pretty clean and discernible ones at that.  While I can't offer much in the way of a history of either the Senses Bureau or Edge of the Wedge , I'll be happy to reveal a few precious shreds of personal insight. The Senses Bureau seemed intent on bifurcating their Love and Industry ep, ostensibly as a means to illustrate their conflicting sonic motifs.  The first two songs, "Dress for Success" and the title track are firmly cut from pedestrian post-punk cloth (think, The Fixx, maybe C.S. Angels).  Fairly convincing at that I might add, but the remainder of this record mines a less encumbered, singer/songwriter bent, one that's rote and sometimes too nondescript for the Bureau's own good.   Quite frankly, Love and Industry often resembles the work of two distinct artists - but I can think of far worse ways to kill twe...

So...these folks down under never had much of a Stateside following.  My intro to the Eurogliders ?  None other than a cameo appearance in an Aussie b-movie called Fast Talking .  Sort of an Oz variation on the classic Matt Dillon flick, Over the Edge, albeit with a significantly lower budget.  As Fast Talking grew on me, so did the tune the Eurogliders were performing, specifically "Another Big Day in the Big World."  However when I got around to hearing the album version of that song (on the band's 1984 This Island LP) I was dismayed by it's far glossier and brighter arrangement.  Still, I was game to investigate any of the band's earlier offerings, which perhaps promised to be a bit less slick.  I was in luck upon learning of the existence of a previous album, Pink Suit Blue Day, which I'm offering up for public consumption.  Helmed by Grace Knight , the 'gliders vibe was on the new wave tip for certain, but as far as this platter goes dec...

One of the finest career summations ever. Hear

Maybe you can't judge a book by it's cover...but records are an entirely different matter.  I'm not sure if the fellow on the album sleeve is Cripples mouthpiece Shawn O'Brien , but whomever is striking that rather pointed pose would probably suggest to the potential listener they might be in for a cheeky listen, to say the least. O'Brien, as they say, is a character, more specifically one that possesses a timbre that sounds like a sardonic amalgam of Buster Poindexter and Huey Lewis.  His bandmates however aren't quite on the same page, conjuring up the feel of the Plimsouls and to a lesser degree the Flamin' Groovies on the winsome and melodic title piece.  Elsewhere, these players are patently '80s.  Without a doubt, O'Brien is the heart, soul and crutches of the Cripples, so if you ain't down with his none-too-serious m.o. What's in a Name might grate on your nerves a tad.  I'd still give this a whirl, if only because I appreciate w...

Here's another dose of "lost" '80s pop, this time hailing from Tampa, FL.  Train Wreck was the co-ed Woodies second record and if anything else, it's pretty much impossible not to tout the album's duo of driving, propulsive rockers that bookend this six song affair, "Part of My Act" and "Penelope Says."  Two primo numbers that would've sounded perfectly at home on any left-of-the-dial outlet of the era, not to mention the kind of splendid tuneage Wilfully Obscure has staked it's reputation on.  The four remaining songs plucked from the Woodie's Wreckage vary, with pleasing flourishes like some well-placed mandolin in "My Muslim Wife," while the bouncy, simpleton tact of "Pretty Brown Eyes" flirts with, you guessed it, power pop. 01. Part of My Act 02. My Muslim Wife 03. The Doctor 04. Stuck in Purgatory 05. Pretty Brown Eyes 06. Penelope Says 07. untitled instrumental https://www56.zippyshare.com/v/JNiX2...

Dice - s/t ep   Tictoc - Where the Picnic Was Buzzcocks - live 1993-2001   Neon Rock Garden - Perfect Sounds tape , Never Listen 7" , Suicide Song 7" Squirrel Bait - 1984 demo Salem 66 - 1983-1987, Your Soul is Mine... Facecrime - Sex and Revolution ep TPOH - Live San Jose 1989 Soup Dragons - Sun is in the Sky ep Yazoo Beach - The Solace and the Blaze Rain Parade - Crashing Dream & li v e Chicago 1986 Mod Lang - Where Your Heart ep Nocturnal Projections - Nerve Ends in Powerlines Chemistry Set - s/t ep and Fabulous..." J Church - Arbor Vitae & Whorehouse: Songs and Stories Grays - live at CBGBs 1994 Fuzzy - Flashlight 7" Wrens - Overnight Sensation tape Prudes - Designer Karma Tryad - On Call Jamboree - Melt Down Frontier Theory - Atlantic & No Waltz in the Meadow Deserters - s/t LP Corduroy - Lisp ep & Dead End Memory Lane Spiffy - singles Icons - Art in the Dark Living Dolls - tape & Emotional Parade ep Do...

This week it's 24 blasts of Weezer-esque punk pop goodness. Hear

It ain't exactly all river deep, mountain high on the latest from Detroit-area denizens, Chris Richard and the Subtractions on Peaks and Valleys .  As you might expect, their latest pitches a few variables, including a serene ballad or two, but writ large Peaks finds the quartet elevating themselves to a different plateau than where they were stationed on 2012's Get Yer La La's Out . Specializing in power pop with a refined and classicist touch, Richard's and Co. don't exactly exude an aptitude in the manner of Shoes and Smithereens, so much as the more nuanced mannerisms of the Gin Blossoms, Dillon Fence and Velvet Crush.  In fact, Peaks and Valleys showcases the band at a similar vantage point to where Teenage Fanclub were situated around the era of Songs From Northern Britain .  With this kind of maturity and seasoning comes attendant savvy and sophistication, which you'll find in spades on "Just Another Season" and "The Coast is Clear....