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So you wanna know what Vaporwave is all about?  Of course you do.  I've got two prime examples for you below.  Hear

More request fulfillment.  I didn't have much of a relationship with the Swimming Pool Q's music during their '80s heyday.  In fact, you might argue that they didn't have much of a heyday at all at least not commercially, but on their two albums for A&M (1984's self-titled effort and Blue Tomorrow a couple years later) they made a noble run for the big time.  A coed quintet from Atlanta, the Q's favored forward-thinking rock with rootsy undercurrents and themes that often reflected the dichotomies of operating as such in the deep south.   In 2013, A&M reissued the band's output for the label in a limited edition CD collection.  The deluxe variant of this set included alongside the aforementioned records, an hour-long compendium of b-sides, outtakes and such all funneled under the title of Pow Wow Hour .  Only problem was, the packaging fell a bit short and shoddy, and nowhere in the liner notes is the rarities portion mentioned or acknowledged....

Recently had a request for this one.  The McGuires were a pop-centric San Francisco treat with something of an acoustic bent.  Think a more pedestrian Camper Van Beethoven with a few glints of Crowded House, and to an even lesser extent Aztec Camera and R.E.M.  On Start Breathing (apparently their one and only record) the McGuires launch a decidedly digestible and plaintive attack, but incorporate an ample amount of cheeky observations and heart, not to mention heightened tuneful sensibilities, acutely illustrated on "Russian Hill," "Talk About Love," and "Problem With Decision."  And in case you're wondering "TV Party" isn't the same tune as the Black Flag classic, but is pretty appealing in it's own right. 01. Talk About Love 02. TV Party 03. Looking Glass Neighbor 04. She's a Lawyer 05. Start Breathing 06. Just Pretend 07. Russian Hill 08. Problem With Decision 09. Let You Down 10. Eliahu 11. The Barbecue Song (Time to Go) 1...

Not to be confused with the American '80s band The Reds, the band we're dealing with today, The Red were obscuro Brit exports whose self titled EP was bifurcated into "fast" and slow" sides.  The "fast" tunes arrive on side A, and only rapid by sheer comparison to the other half of the coin.  Sounds like these guys were putting an Anglo spin on Stateside contemporaries Wire Train.  Not quite straightforward new wave, "Promises" and "Hell and Morning" are inviting, forward-thinking slices of modern rock rife with melody and ringing guitars.  Sorta predates what bands like the Ocean Blue and Then Jerico would soon have in mind.  "Sail Away," one of the slower pieces, is indeed more subdued, not to mention polished.  Overall this record is a solid thumbs up. 01. Promises 02. Hell and Morning 03. Sail Away 04. Conclusion Festival https://www97.zippyshare.com/v/XLaytzIg/file.html

Two late '80s albums from a Washington state quartet who have been defunct for a good two decades now. Hear

What would possess someone to gather up every single take and remix of U2's "Two Hearts Beat As One" and have it pressed to CD risking the repercussions a bootleg such as this might entail?  Not sure, but despite it's inherent redundancy I'm happy Two Hearts and Other Strange Things exists.  It's certainly not the most iconic song off of War, and for that matter it strikes me as a tad underwritten on certain listens.  Nonetheless, it's a perfect snapshot of Bono & Co's development since Boy and October , if not lyrically, sonically.  "Two Hearts..." delights with an alluring, bittersweet chorus hook and the chiming, jagged fretwork is quintessential Edge .  There's a semblance of restraint here that would expand exponentially on future U2 records, yet it doesn't cut the line completely with the band's earlier aesthetic.  In short, a downright respectable balance. The thirteen variations of "Two Hearts" is follow...

I've been meaning to post this for awhile as a follow-up to the X-Teens LP I shared a good four years ago.  This co-ed NC five piece come armed with a Wurlitzer (or some stripe of organ) and boy, did they know how to wield that sucker!  The preceding Big Boy's Dreams ep is cut from even brighter cloth than the full length, kicking off with "Johnny's Having Fun," sounding like the love child of early Go Go's and Pointed Sticks.  "Fragile Beings" is another inviting slice of DIY wave, but by far and away the real prize here is "Venus," a primo power-poppy nugget with nods to X-Teens overseas contemporaries Elvis Costello and the Freshies.  What I wouldn't do to have a band of this caliber around today.  01. Johnny's Having Fun 02. Fragile beings 03. In a Grey Circus 04. Venus 05. Big Boy's Dreams https://www3.zippyshare.com/v/CrmV56za/file.html

I'm down with the band, the frontman, not so much.  Tomy Brennan passes himself off as a goofy caricature of David Byrne, drooling all over everything with sardonic, amusingly unhinged vocals, that were so in vogue circa the era this record found it's way into the marketplace.  At the very least, the L.A.-based Newsbreak manged to redeem themselves with competent players like Richard Lo Guercio who peels off a bevy of dandy guitar leads alongside bassist brother Randy .  More 'modern rock' than 'wave,' exuding the faintest modicum of reggae, so slight it may not make it onto your radar.  This four songer closes out on a relative high note with "Hidden Eyes." 01. In Your Eyes 02. Why You Do Me 03. Victim 04. Hidden Eyes https://www95.zippyshare.com/v/xmQoRjGl/file.html

From 1994.  Their first (or third) album, depending on how you're counting. **Please do not reveal artist in comments!** Hear

Realistically, I'm probably not going to be able to post anything else for the remainder of the week.  Maybe on the weekend, but that's a slim chance.  In short, please stop back Monday.  Cheers.

Here's a rundown of some new releases recently sent my way. Throw a dart an any given project or musical entity Jason Falkner is associated with and if you’re don’t land precisely on the bulls-eye, anywhere in the near-vicinity is at the very least satisfactory.  John Brauder , an as-yet-to-be heralded singer/songwriter from New York was conscious of this as anyone.  Upon reaching out to Falkner (former mastermind of such vaunted outfits as Jellyfish and The Grays, not to mention Beck’s current road guitarist) with a fresh batch of songs in mind, the two settled on a new collaboration, ergo Bird Streets .  Neither party set out to reinvent the wheel here, and luckily they didn’t necessitate such an endeavor given Falkner’s penchant for rich, contrarian pop smarts and Brauder’s contemplative, albeit narrative prose.  At its most intoxicating, Bird Streets peels off resonant pearls in the guise of “Direction” and “Same Dream,” not only recalling channeling its two ar...

Debut from 1981.  Falls a few notches short of landmark status, but still a hell of a way to kick off a career that's still in progress.  Two bonus tracks on this one, the latter of which is an extremely scarce b-side. **Please do not reveal artist in comments!** Hear

Thanks for your requests! Miracle Legion - Simple Thing tape MP3 or FLAC further - grimes golden ep Jellyfish - Fan Club box - Disks 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 Cavedogs - Joyrides for Shut-ins Windbreakers - At Home With Bobby and Tim/Terminal , Electric Landlady , I'll Be Back 12" Pink Lincolns - Headache Sorry - The Way it Is Hagfish - Buick Men Gnome - Six-Hi Surprise Tower , Fiberglass , 13 Family 7" Sister Psychic - Catch and Release Olivelawn - Sophomore Jinx   Ten Bright Spikes - three eps Treebound Story - I Remember ep V/A - Cash Cow: The Best of Giorno Poetry Systems Deviators - singles Barely Pink - Starduster ep Grip Weeds - See You Through ep Wondermints - Proto-pretty 7" Bobbies - Supersongs Defenestration - Dali Does Windows & s/t ep Pollen - Peach Tree Manifesto - Burn 7" Skiploader - Name Dropping 7" Neighborly - By the Way 7"

When doing what research I could on this one, I discovered that Minneapolis' long defunct Swing Set ironically had something of recent posthumous profile boost, courtesy of the inclusion of this album's "Blackout" on an episode of Stranger Things .  The TV show in question, of course, is based in the '80s.  Otherwise, Swing Set hasn't exactly been on many lips.  Life Speeds Up is above average modern rock that's not particularly exotic, accented with keys that thankfully don't dominate in the way the band's era was  renown for.  I could certainly imagine these guys digging on the likes of SVT or some of the more pedestrian acts who roosted on 415 Records.  Pretty straightforward stuff but a solid listen. 01. Blackout 02. Laying Low 03. Runaway 04. Victim 05. Walking in the Night 06. Lost Track 07. The Dance 08. I'm On Fire 09. Rain on Our Parade 10. So Long https://www27.zippyshare.com/v/InGwb46p/file.html

I was in for a bit of a shock when I first heard this one, expecting the same Absolute Grey who dazzled me (albeit posthumously) with their '84 debut, Green House .  The Rochester, NY co-eds' initial proposition was that of a neo-psych band, with ample nods to their west coast contemporaries the Dream Syndicate.  For the predominantly acoustic Painted Post , the quartet was paired down to Mitch Rasor on guitar and bass, and Beth Brown on the mic.  It's such a departure that I'm inclined to regard PP as less of an Absolute Grey record, and more of a solo vehicle for Brown.  Those observations aside, the record by and large succeeds on it's own premise of contemplative, unencumbered ballads that are virtually impossible not to appreciate...just don't expect much in the way of mystique or guitar feedback.  01. Closer Apart 02. Painted Post 03. Gardens (remix) 04. Sylvia 05. Abandon Waltz 06. Fences https://www60.zippyshare.com/v/SCC3u2qE/file.html

The 1997 follow-up that bested his debut. **Please do not reveal artist in comments!** Hear

I can't believe I've neglected Zipgun this whole time, considering I've been listening to them waaaaay longer than I've been doing this site.  Anyway, even if they've evaded you're proverbial radar altogether you can be forgiven.  Every sweepstakes garners only a handful of winners, and this Seattle foursome finished well behind in the Emerald City's grunge/punk contest.  Not that they were deliberately pursuing the grunge angle (so far as I could tell) but they were plenty vigorous for the punk circuit.  And damn competent at it too, falling squarely in league with such contemporaries as Swallow, the Supersuckers, The Derelicts (of which Zip guitarist Neil Rogers was a member of) and even beloved Denver cousins the Fluid.  Zipgun's lifespan was accordingly brief as their catalog, which consisted of two full lengths and a clutch of singles. 8 Track Player hit the racks in 1992.  It's subterranean scumfuck quality was evident, but not overpowering....