Archive for July, 2014

Landscape of Sound- Live Forever 7”

Posted in 1980s, 1983, abecedarians, drowning pool, LA, landscape of sound, los angeles, new wave, post-punk on July 23, 2014 by Frankie Teardrop

Here’s a rather obscure new wave/post-punk tinged single from the West Coast.  Los Angeles to be exact.  While this is the only known release by Landscape of Sound (released in 1983), the band has direct ties to like-minded post-punk band Drowning Pool, who formed soon after this 7” was released.  Before the band would become Drowning Pool (who put out some rather excellent and delightfully easy to find LPs in the mid-80s), this single served as a respectable point of entry for Brett Smith and Adam Elesh.  The project evolved from a basic partnership to include other Los Angeles area musicians.  According to the Drowning Pool biography, the band came together while hanging out at Pier Records (managed by Chris Maneke of Abecedarians, covered here in the past).  Maneke would also produce several Drowning Pool recordings.

The real gem on this 7” is the b-side, a rickety, but excellent post-punk track with jangly chorus-heavy guitar and those synth strings we all know and love. Definitely a winner if I’ve ever heard one…  The a-side is a little more new wave, reminiscent of the UK synth scene, but with a more organic touch.  There’s still a similar vibe running through it, so it’s not a night and day sort of affair.  Either way, it’s an excellent single that deserves a listen or twenty, so without any further ado…

Landscape of Sound- Live Forever 7”
1. Live Forever
2. On the Edge

*download it here*

Indifferent Dance Centre- Flight & Pursuit 7”

Posted in 1980s, 1981, indifferent dance centre, uk on July 11, 2014 by Frankie Teardrop

This is another 7” that I’ve seen posted in the past, but I’ve cleaned up a donated rip here for maximum listening pleasure.  Very lo-fi female-fronted post-punk here, two tracks that are as interesting as they are classic.   Very minimal arrangements, steady drum machine rhythms, mellotron, and well-anchored bass make up the center of both tracks.  Fans of the indie side of Factory (The Wake, Durutti Column) as well as bands like Marine Girls and Dolly Mixture should love this otherwise obscure single from 1981.

We know that the band hailed from the small cathedral town of Chichester, UK, but otherwise there isn’t much of a back story to this one.  The sleeve itself is as minimal and DIY as the band’s sound, complete with what appears to be a hand-printed cover.  There is reportedly an insert which reads “We’ve no Scotland, Martin Hannett, Paul Morley, Postcard or Factory to lend credibility to this record,” but you can tell their heart was in the right place with this one.  Here’s the rundown:

Indifferent Dance Centre- Flight & Pursuit 7”
1. Flight & Pursuit
2. Release

*download it here*