Vietnam- Vietnam LP

Posted in 1980s, 1985, coldwave, new zealand, post-punk, vietnam on October 22, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

Vietnam1984v1

(Photo credit: Neil Monkhouse)

Sorry for the delay, it’s been a very busy time at SOR headquarters so I’ve been slacking a little bit.  Plus, it’s Fall in New York, so I’m trying to make the most of being outside before hibernating for the winter.  Anywho, here’s a post lovingly ripped and donated by xerfrank, a fellow friend and passionate collector from Spain.  You may have seen this back on Vinyl Obscurity a few years ago, but I believe the post was taken down immediately by some Mediafire bots looking for the latest Rhianna record, long before his blog disappeared into the either as well.  I also included the “best” track from this record on my last v/a compilation, so some of you may be interested in hearing the rest of it.  While ‘Victory’ reigns as my favorite track on this record, I enjoy this one as a whole.

There’s little to be found about Vietnam, yet another extremely difficult band name to Google, but I do know that they existed for a short period of time as part of New Zealand’s post-punk movement and released this record in 1985 on Jayrem Records, a catch-all label for local artists.  There’s the pre-requisite Joy Division influence present in the vocals (fans of De Press, The Opposition, Stranger to Stranger, and Dropopop should enjoy this one especially) but the music jumps from moody post-punk and flirts occasionally with jangle-pop progressions and dreamy, Cure-esque melodies.  “China Tonight” is an excellent moody instrumental track with a descending synth/piano melody.  “Behind the Paintings” is as gloomy, yet driving political anthem, a general theme in the lyrics that hints at a slight U2 influence, who were at the peak of their fire-y political leaning at that point in time.   Honestly, with a name like Vietnam and with artwork like this, it’s safe to assume that the lyrics have a little more spark to them.

EDIT 6/30/14:  I’ve since been in touch with Adrian Workman, the band’s bassist and synth player, who has shared some tales about the band’s inception and current whereabouts:

Four lads from the same High School in working-class town called Wainuiomata (pronounced Y-noo-ee-o-ma-ta , a suburb of Wellington, NZ).  We started writing/playing together in my parents garage and drove the neighborhood insane over a period of time. New Zealand in 1982 mirrored Thatchers UK; an ultra conservative government, poor economy and civil unrest. Wellington (the nations capital) was a volatile mix of public servants, politicians, university students ,and skinheads. The messages of the Punk and Post-Punk era emanating from the UK resonated strongly in the Wellington music scene and local musical acts discovered their own version of the genre. 

The legal drinking age was 20 years old, yet we performed in pubs, clubs and community halls from as young as 16 years, somehow avoiding detection from the authorities.
 
Vietnam was definitely a coming together of 4 very different people that shared a common malaise; suburban isolation in a depressed and oppressed society in the early 1990’s. We were a  weird combination of cultural/ethnic diversity, (unusual in that musical era), and ironically we all achieved well in school and sports…being working class was a badge of honour for us and  we strongly resisted being pigeon-holed into societal roles. Vietnam was a head-fuck for many people because, I believe, we delivered more than was expected of us given our collective backgrounds. We almost dethroned a significant corporate rock band in the national ‘Battle of the Bands’ comp, leaving them crapping their collective duds after we performed a kick-ass set, including  a Vietnam version of ‘Echo Beach’ and just missing the final cut. Anyways…this show got us attention from the right people.
 
It was a pretty intense music scene from memory. Vietnam was a square peg in that scene, mainly due to the stigma associated from the suburb we came from. We played a lot of shows,( including the Aerial Railway stage at ‘Sweetwaters’,  an annual 3 day Music festival, (just think Woodstock meets Lollapallooza). Supported some good acts of the era and made our EP in late 1984 (released in 1985). Radio with Pictures TVNZ picked up ‘Victory’ and the video was made at the cost of taxpayers monies. Shortly after the release I migrated to Sydney, Australia (18 yrs old) in mid 1985, Pete Dransfield followed about a year later. After several attempts to reincarnate a version of the band under different monikers we went our separate ways in 1988, and Pete returned to NZ.
 
Pete released some material in the late 1990’s under the name ‘The Thorn Field’ , became a semi-professional boxer, and continues to work in the live music scene in NZ in a technical capacity.
 
Shane went on to have a stellar career as a national spokesperson for indigenous programs relating to smoking cessation (Go Bro!). Leon has continued to perform political rap in various line-ups.
 
I joined Sydney Band ‘The Bhagavad Guitars’ in late 1988, and stayed with them until 1992. Releasing several recordings in this time on the Red Eye Label, including the belated release of an album produced by Toney Cohen (of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds fame) in 1995 (Lead vox  ‘No News’). We almost made it to the States, but the band imploded exactly at the critical moment:(
 
I was also a founding member with ‘The Verys’ in the grunge era of the 1990’s, releasing the EP ‘That’s A Moray’ in 1993. Ran my own record label briefly and ventured into twisted world music with Bonepeople in the late 1990s. Recently recorded a reformation album with The Bhagavad Guitars in 2011 called ‘Unfamiliar Places’ (Lead vox ‘Autumn’). Check out my name on ‘Discogs’ website for refs. and/or reverbnation ‘Bhagavad Guitars’.

Vietnam- Vietnam LP
1. Broken Doll
2. China Tonight
3. Behind the Paintings
4. Another Day
5. Victory

*DOWNLOAD LINK REMOVED* – please visit B.F.E. records (website/bandcamp) for a reissue of this LP with some bonus tracks!

There’s also a video for “Victory” (!).  Feels like it’s been ages since we had one of those:

Thanks again to xerfrank for ripping this one!  I have some mail arriving over the next few weeks that may interest some of you looking for something a little seedier/synthier.  In the meanwhile, I picked up some rad stuff in Canada, one record in particular that deserves a re-posting ASAP.  I also have another post lined up from xerfrank’s expansive archives, as well as more from Klumpa’s collection to come in the near future.  Also, perhaps some modern surprises as this year winds down to a close.

 

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On a completely unreleated note, might I bring your attention to THIS?  I have a new project that you all may enjoy, and we just released a limited edition cassette (!) on fellow Brooklyn-based label Function Operate.  I reckon a few of you may enjoy it, and we’ll have plenty more news soon.  If you want to check in on us, we can be found HERE.

7 Comments »

Toccata- We Are the Sub-Machines 7”

Posted in 1980s, 1987, british, new wave, synth, toccata, uk on October 8, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

I first heard this one on a cassette while sitting in a car outside the Wierd party with Martial Canterel and Nick from Crispy Nuggets, and we all couldn’t get enough of it.  I’ve been trying to track the single down since with no luck, but many thanks to Klumpa for providing a rip of this one to share. We can expect a few more treats along these lines, including a handful of loose tracks just itching to be compiled and an Italo flavored 7” to come over the next few weeks.

Very little info to be found about this band (who shares the name with classical terminology, making it difficult to google), though the sleeve indicates that this was released in 1987 and featured the duo of Jan Sinclair and Pete Ward, with various guest musicans and backup singers contributing.  There are a few Pete/r Wards out there, some active around the same period, so I can’t really pinpoint which, if any, are responsible.  Believe me, I’ve tried!

However, here we have two excellent tracks, the a-side coming across like a Kissing the Pink/Eurythmics hybrid with a stomping, torch song rave-up, while the b-side has a very neofolk-esque frailty reminiscent of the Nature & Organisation record and other Rose Mcdowall contributions over the years…

Any more information on this one is welcome!


Toccata- We Are the Sub-Machines 7”
1. We Are the Sub-Machines
2. Gypsy Eyes

*download it here* (RE-RIPPED 11.21.15)

10 Comments »

Decade- Diva Diva 7”

Posted in 1980s, 1987, coldwave, Decade, france, french, post-punk on October 1, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

Originally posted by the great Dreams and Voices and freshly ripped from my own copy, this is one of my favorite mid-tempo French singles from Montpellier, a little romanticism in the B-side to get you through the week.  As he mentions, there’s a Little Nemo vibe in “Diva Diva,” certainly a welcome addition to the cold, melancholic French catalog.  “Conquistador” isn’t too shabby either, with a sinister synth undercurrent and a percussive-heavy melody.

This single was released in 1987 and is their only known recording.  Not much more to say about this one, other than enjoy!

Decade- Diva Diva 7”
1. Diva Diva
2. Conquistador

*download it here*

7 Comments »

Lama- Love On the Rocks 7”

Posted in 1980s, 1983, electro, electronic, italian, italo, italo disco, lama, lucio battisti, new wave, synth on September 24, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

While many of you are still digesting the latest Sequins and Spandex compilation, I’ll add this as an additional supplement.  This particular 7” became a WIERD party favorite towards the end of our tenure and I still break it out from time to time when I DJ, as it never fails to get the party started.

We kicked off the latest compilation with the 12” version of the track, but here’s a fresh rip of the 1983 7”, complete with the B-side intact. Certain versions of this single have “Nineteen Ninety Three” as the a-side and “Love on the Rocks” as the flip.   My 7” clearly has “Love on the Rocks” as the title track (with the cover art below), but grooms the flip for the rightful A-side placement.  Let’s just call it a double A-side, as both tracks are killer electro/italo tracks well worth their weight in gold.  I prefer the dark apocalyptic feel of “Nineteen Ninety Three” overall (written by Arcibaldo aka Antonino Cocco), but the other track is no slouch, and is apparently a more electro-fied cover of Lucio Battisti’s original disco smash “Il Veliero.” Curiously enough, this 7” was released on Numero Uno records, which boasts many of Battisti’s own releases from the late 70s and beyond. There also exists a 12/7” remix single for “Love On the Rocks” with several versions of that track, but I don’t have those here to rip.

Lama- Love on the Rocks 7”
1. Nineteen Ninety Three
2. Love On the Rocks

*download it here*

2 Comments »

Sequins and Spandex Part VIII

Posted in 1980s, disco, hi nrg, italian, italo, italo disco, mixes, new wave, sequins and spandex, space disco, synth, wave on September 18, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

I meant to post this at the beginning of summer 2012, and put it off for some reason or another. Though the season is coming to a close here in New York, I figured the longer I waited, the more I’d keep pushing it back, so better late than never…

For those unfamiliar with this series, I have a semi-closeted love of Italo disco- a cult Italian-centric genre of music (though the influence can be heard all over Europe in the mid-1980s) with shameless hooks, catchy vocal lines, and drum machines/synths that push the gear to their robotic limits. As with any dance craze (see also: new beat & freestyle) the same law of diminishing returns holds true: for every truly great italo gem there’s a ton of terrible or overblown ones that flooded the market, so with these compilations, I attempt to separate the wheat from the chaff, so to speak. I generally steer towards the darker italo, things that sound right at home in a John Carpenter flick or alongside the more club-friendly minimal synth tracks (and file right in line with some of the things I post here), and obviously, the less overtly corny the songs are, the better, though that’s not to say I don’t like a little sprinkle of cheese here and there.

So this is my eight installment of the series, the rest which can be found HERE. Some major favorites in this installment, including another Sensitive track, the Disaster’s KILLER “Oh My God This Sound,” Ein-St-Ein’s mid-tempo romp through sleazy Italian streets, and Moskow’s epic “Come Back.”   I may say this every time, but this may be my favorite installment of the series…

Sequins and Spandex Part VIII
1. Nineteen Ninety Three- Lama
2. Pendulum- Smiles
3. Oh My God This Sound- Disasters
4. Varsavia- Ein-st-ein
5. Don’t Be Afraid- Some Bizarre
6. Give Me- Sensitive
7. Red For Love- Grant Miller
8. A Love Again- Savage
9. Rise Up (For My Love) (Club Mix)- Yvonne Kay
10. Dreamland (Extended Vocal Version)- Mark
11. She’s Gone Away- Jimy K
12. Come Back- Moskow
13. Grace- Three Of You

*download it here* (updated 6.12.18)

I have a special 7” to post next that somewhat duplicates one of the artists on this compilation, so if this is your bag, stay tuned for more sleazy, sweaty nightmusic next week…

13 Comments »

Sits. Vacant- Alone In the Dark 7”

Posted in 1980s, 1981, perfect circle, post-punk, sits. vacant, the tier garden, uk on September 9, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

I’ve been curious about this single for some time now, first hearing the title track from Stéphane’s excellent Coldwave.fr website, and now, thanks to the always excellent Bx-59cppw, here we have the full 7” from UK post-punk band Sits. Vacant. We have four excellent guitar driven post-punk tracks from 1981, with both a mix of gloom and bite to keep fans of both sides of the spectrum happy. If you enjoyed Sinking Ships, Language From Memory, Headleaders, Normil Hawaiians, etc. (basically, the DIY post-punk sound from the early 1980s), then this one is for you! As a nice bonus, the Bowie nut in me loves the Heroes-era photo as the 7” cover, a nice and welcome nod to the man who helped usher in the new dark wave.

While this is Sits. Vacant’s only release, the band changed their name soon after, becoming The Tier Garden (not to be confused with Edward Ka-Spel and cEvin Key’s Tear Garden, who formed in 1985, a year AFTER this band’s first release). The Tier Garden released three singles, all of which are available for free download via Last.fm. Some other members also collaborated on a 7” under the name Perfect Circle (this time predating the alt-rock supergroup by 15 years, my guess is they got the name from the R.E.M. classic).

Wait a second- is the name of the Perfect Circle track ‘Only When It Rains’? Very, very interesting. Anyway, you can hear both tracks on youtube (the b-side, ‘On Returning’ is an excellent melancholy dirge on first glance, while the a-side is akin to early Mighty Lemon Drops with a more new wave flavor), but leave a note here if you happen to have a copy or a nice rip of this 7”.

OK, enough babble, here’s the info for this excellent 7”. Thanks again to BX-59cppw for the donation!

Sits. Vacant- Alone In the Dark 7”
1. Alone In the Dark
2. Nowhere to Run
3. Vacancies
4. It’s Too Late

*download it here*

1 Comment »

The Beloved- Demos & Peel Sessions 1983-85

Posted in 1980s, 1983, 1984, 1985, post-punk, synth, the beloved on August 28, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

I’m pretty new to The Beloved, having been turned on to their early singles/Where It Is compilation LP late last year. I had originally heard their later material, generally more dance/club friendly affair in the vein of Cause & Effect, Anything Box, etc. While the UK band (now a duo) has enjoyed tons of success since embracing the electronic club scene, the Cure-loving post-punk kid in me was very surprised and excited to hear that the band’s earliest material had more in common with B-Movie, The Chameleons, Modern Eon, and other emotive post-punk bands from the turn of the decade. Sure, there were still synths around every corner, but the keyboards were more focused on mood and atmosphere, leaving the sparse hooks to the vocals, guitars, and bass. Songs like ‘Saints Become Us,’ ‘In Trouble and Shame,’ and ‘Slow Drowning’ (oh god, ESPECIALLY ‘Slow Drowning‘) quickly became all-time favorites, and moody Wierd barn-burners in the last few months of the party’s existence.

These tracks here predate even the earliest singles, and employ the same early post-punk vibes heard on the singles that followed two years later. The demos were recorded in 1983/1984, and the peel sessions were recorded in 1985, just before the release of their first singles.  Only two tracks from the Peel Sessions would appear on various singles, the aforementioned ‘Trouble and Shame’ and the excellent ‘A Hundred Words.’  ‘The Flame’ appears as both a Peel cut as well as a demo, while the rest of these tracks are new- two of which were recorded as The Journey Through, as the band was known until guitarist Guy Gausden joined.  My favorite of the entire lot is easily ‘Privacy (Sometimes),’ which features the same sort of arpeggiated gloom explored in ‘Slow Drowning’– perhaps the track evolved from this early demo, but either way, I love that song so much it’s great to hear something that lives in the same world… 

All of these tracks (and more spanning the band’s career) were originally made available on The Beloved’s website, where you can also hear newer material and read up on the band over the years. So with that in mind, please excuse the bitrate. I normally handle my own rips and give you guys the best quality possible these days, but in light of what’s available, I feel these tracks deserve to be heard regardless, so I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

the beloved

The Beloved- Demos 1983-1984
1. The Flame
2. A Search
3. The Last Detail
4. Privacy (Sometimes)

*tracks 1-2 recorded as The Journey Through (though I have them tagged here as The Beloved for easy organisation)

The Beloved- Peel Session Jan. 1985
1. The Flame
2. A Hundred Words
3. Idyll
4. A Beautiful Waste of Time

The Beloved- Peel Session Oct. 1985
1. So Seldom Solemn
2. In Trouble and Shame
3. Jospehine
4. Up A Tree

*download everything here*

6 Comments »

Sculpteurs D’Ombres- L’Ange Noir 7”

Posted in 1980s, 1987, coldwave, france, french, post-punk, sculpteurs d'ombres on August 22, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

Apologies for being sparse these days, but I’ve been keeping busy with a new project.  That said, here’s an amazing 7” from France, private pressing from 1987.  Great coldwave sounds on both tracks, gloomy yet driving- the perfect combination.  Both tracks are both dark and incredibly catchy, with deep French vocals.  Hooks all around, driving drums (edit-thanks for clarifying, Phil). Really, the perfect package.

There’s not much more I can tell you about this band, though I’ve been told that there may be more material out there waiting to be revealed.  I shall certainly update this post if and when there’s news or more info to be had!  Otherwise, I promise to be more active in the coming weeks…

Thanks to Phil for filling in a few gaps in the comments:
Our group became “In Extremis”. We composed some good songs in the southwest of France (Hossegor) then we separated some years later. I regret it now. Thank you for your compliments. I still have some 45 tours vinyl to me, if somebody is interested.

Sculpteurs D’Ombres- L’Ange Noir 7”
1. L’Ange Noir
2. Later in the Night

*download it here*

7 Comments »

Psi Com- Worktape 1 and Demos

Posted in 1980s, 1984, alternative, deathrock, goth, goth-rock, jane's addiction, LA, los angeles, mazzy star, perry farrell, post-punk, psi com, red temple spirits, US on August 12, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

psi com group 2

Before there was Jane’s Addiction, there was Psi Com, a post-punk/deathrock band fronted by Perry Farrell.  The band released one demo tape and one 12” (re-released on CD and 10” in the mid-90s) in 1985.  The band began in 1983, when Perry answered an ad from guitarist Vince Duran looking for a drummer, as his fledgling band was primarily using a drum machine.  Instead, Farrell took over as vocalist, adding Rich Evac on bass, Aaron Sherer on drums, and Mariska Lassius on keyboards.  This was the lineup for their demo tape that was eventually sold at shows in 1984 with elaborate packaging reminiscent of Independent Project Records releases.  The photo above depics the lineup for these recordings.  Soon after the demo was released, Lassius and Evac left the band, replaced by bassist Kelly Wheeler for their 12” sessions.

Based heavily in the psychedelic roots of Pink Floyd as well as the UK post-punk movement, Psi Com’s sound was much more in line with Savage Republic, The Ex, and Bauhaus than the horror punk sound that was developing on the West Coast.   If anything, Psi Com was a vessel for the Red Temple Spirits sound moreso than the hedonistic excesses of Jane’s Addiction, though both bands continued exploring their psychedelic influences and alternative leanings.  Even Perry Farrell’s trademark wail is downplayed on these recordings, though there’s no mistaking it during certain key passages.

Psi Com broke up suddenly in 1985, after gaining a heavy local following.  Legend has it that Eric Avery, bassist for Jane’s Addiction, was drafted as a new bassist for Psi Com, changing direction as Stephen Perkins and Dave Navarro joined.  Bassist Kelly Wheeler played briefly with Dino Paredes of Red Temple Spirits, and Aaron Sherer eventually retired from music after playing drums on several tracks from Mazzy Star’s excellent Among My Swan LP.

Here we have a fan circulated collection of demos and additional tracks, including the debut Worktape cassette as well a series of studio recordings and instrumentals that originally appeared on a Jane’s Addiction bootleg CD from 1991.  While the 12” has received a fair amount of attention as Farrell’s pre-Jane’s vessel, these demos are still rather obscure, and definitely worth hearing even if you’re not a fan of what came next. 

psi com worktape art

Psi Com- Worktape 1 and Demos
1. Hopeful
2. Them
3. Psi Com Theme
4. 14th Floor
5. Cat
6. Karuna
7. 14th Floor (Instrumental)
8. Cat (Instrumental)
9. Karuna (Instrumental)

*download it here*

5 Comments »

The Unknown- Fall LP

Posted in 1980s, 1990, 1990s, baltimore, post-punk on August 2, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

Here’s another joint post with A Viable Commercial- this time bringing you the full discography of Baltimore post-punk/indie band The Unknown.  Their first album is an excellent hybrid of Unforgettable Fire-era U2, early For Against, and Grapes of Wrath, with some slight Bolshoi vibes here and there.  They also remind me quite a bit of 86, an Atlanta band with similar influences.  Goutroy turned me on to the first record, especially the final song “Songinsee” and I was hooked instantly.  Seriously one of the best songs I’ve heard in a while, tested successfully at a night I just recently DJed at. Nothing like trying a new, obscure obsession out for the first time and receiving a positive response- the crowd kept dancing for all six minutes of the song.

The band was tough to trace at first, as their name is not only difficult to Google in general, but virtually impossible to narrow down on discogs due to the 30+ other projects with that name. After some finesse, I was able to find both albums for a fair price, and ripped them both.  You can get their debut, self-titled record (even harder to Google) from 1987 HERE via A Viable Commercial, and I’ll be posting the second record, released three years later.  While 1990 was an otherwise dark and barren period for this sort of sound (and perhaps that’s exactly why these two LPs couldn’t find a bigger audience), their sophomore record holds up as a worthy successor to the first.   The general vibe is the same, though the band plays slightly heavier on this record, perhaps a reflection on the indie/alternative scene that was just starting to break at the time.  There’s nothing on this album that’s as perfect as “Songinsee” but it’s still a good listen from front to back.

This album was released on Merkin Records, a rather…curious name for a record label, especially with bands such as Meatjack, Monkeyspank, and Buttsteak filling up the roster…  Can’t comment on any of those bands, but if they aren’t in the Jesus Lizard/Meat Puppets sort of vein, I’d be surprised.

Anyway, The Unknown split after this second record, but reunited in 2012, playing some shows in hometown Baltimore, most infamously at The Ottobar, which I’ve actually played at as well.  Not sure what the future holds for The Unknown, but hopefully these posts help the band find a new audience!

The Unknown- Fall
1. Empty House Of Night
2. Reasons
3. Route 99
4. Handwriting
5. Green Room
6. As They Sleep (Rachael)
7. Fall

*download it here*

5 Comments »

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