Then the Other

 Yeah, continuing.

 

Fontana (2003)

The follow up by the National Splits.

More of the same and more.

First One

 Yeah, continuing from where we left off

It's the National Splits.

The National Splits (2002)

So this is the first of the umpteen bands in this orbit that I heard.
They have a lovely little tune on the "Crayola Catastrophy" 7" compilation on Kitteridge that I posted a while back.

A bit more guitar oriented than Mathlete. Still the lo-fi indiepop you know and love. Still running all the vocals through some kind of effect for virtually every song.
It's still difficult for me to grasp that this is over twenty years old now.

Welcome to the underground at the turn of the 21st Century.

This One Goes Deep

 But you're going to have to do the grunt work yourself.

I'm going to pour myself a drink.

Telstar Parthenon (2000)

So yeah, Mathlete.

It's a lo-fi project spearheaded by Mike Downey who had previously been in Wolfie along with the couple who would go on to make records as the Like Young until their divorce and who also had recorded under the moniker Busytoby whose two singles I've previously posted.

Mathlete then turned into the National Splits. (which may or may not follow up this post. I don't know yet.) and the rest is all ashes.

Mike Downey maintains an Audio Graveyard on Bandcamp for all his projects. Go and literally pay some respects.

Another Night, Another Abandoned Website

 

Yeah, I'm still binging on the Everly Brothers.
I mean, check this shit out. They're backed by an uncredited Hollies on this Lp and just fucking kill it with stuff like this. (and also make me realize that I've lost a few more notes on my singing range. It didn't used to be such a strain to sing along....)

 

But that's neither here nor there as far as this particular exercise is concerned. You're not here to listen to me hype up the Everlys. You either already know or don't. I'll just say that it's worth your time.

Here's what you, and I mean you, actually came for.


 

Flex Time (2005)

The Dials were from Chicago. They made a sweet farfisa garage rock and pop sound and looked good doing it. Not that I ever saw them or even knew that they existed. I got this as an add-on to a large online order based on Youtube and it being really cheap.

It's unfortunate. I would like to have dug them live. Garagey stuff is always better sweating with a beer in your hand...

But on the plus side, their Discogs entry has been updated with the existence of a second album since I last looked over there. So there's more to hunt down.

As it is, they have a website, but it hasn't been updated since 2009 so it's probably a pretty safe bet that they've been defunct for a long while...

Sure. Why the Fuck Not?

 

I didn't really feel ambitious about posting anything. I have no particular thing I want to say or put out there.

This caught my eye.

So here we are.

Jam Tarts in the Jakehouse (2008)

the Bitter Tears.

I had absolutely no preconceived ideas about this band when I purchased this disc on the internet as a two dollar add on to a larger order I was placing. I saw it. I listened to a couple of Youtube videos and decided I would add it to the order and the collection because I kind of liked what I heard.

It certainly didn't hurt its case that it was released on Carrot Top Records. The label that gave the world the Coctails among others.

A contemporary review gave it a 7/10 with comparisons to Neutral Milk Hotel and the Shins.
While I may quibble with the reviewer's perceptions, I'm not going to necessarily argue with their ultimate score there. But then this does have some of the earmarks of an album that could grow on the ears with each subsequent listen. So who knows where we'll be a few more years down the road.

For whatever reason this seems to be their swansong. They existed until they didn't.
Enjoy it as such.

One For the Road

 

It's after midnight.
I got tacos to eat and a nice warm whisky glow from the glass I poured like three queued posts ago.

Let's keep this brief again

2000 - Tokidoki

Mostly acoustic duo consisting of Peter Schaefer & Nora O'Conner recording painfully sweet little pop ditties that you could play for your grandmother if she wasn't more into Motorhead or something. (Well, you could probably still play it for her, but she'd just give you the finger behind your back for being such a wuss)

This was released unto the world by Sunday Records.

Google also tells me that Tokidoki is Japanese for "sometimes", so there, we both learned something today.

Busting Out All Over

 

It's June.

 

 

 

 

Stop-Me-Search-Me (1996)

 

the Velmas.

from Chicago Il

 

This is another one that if I were ever to get the chance to curate a compilation of indiepop singles from the 90s would feature on the first volume.

That's if I could ever decide which side to use because both sides are fucking awesome.

There's a full length somewhere that I still need to locate.

 

 

Diary & Herself (1999)

 

Starlet

From Sweden

 

Yeah, I might throw "Diary and Herself" from this single on Parasol on that same compilation since it makes the cut at 1999. 

I Don't Know What to Do With Splits Pt 3.

More Splits

This is a pair of Flexis.

Adjust sonic expectations accordingly.

Choo Choo Train/ Eye Pilgrims (1989)




Choo Choo Train. Ric Menck & Paul Chastain pre-Velvet Crush.


Eye Pilgrims were from Hartlepool, UK and only existed on various compilations which is a bit of shame. I like their contribution here.

Spinning Jennys/the Fat Tulips (1990)


I have no idea where precisely Spinning Jennys were from. (I went with Bristol since that's where the label that put out their sole single was based.) It's unfortunate because their song here is fucking great. A masterwork of the genre. Kudos to them.

The Fat Tulips hailed from Peterborough. They put out a bunch of seven inches but only managed a singular full length in their career. Several of those releases were on Sunday Records. You know what you're getting into with that.

That said. Probably not my favorite song of theirs that I've heard so far.

Play the other one.

Two Unrelated Things

Doing up some Lps so I have time to kill while they record.

Here's a quickie.

I Want the Blood of a Civil Servant (1986)

The Monkey Run hail from the Rochdale area of the riot torn streets of Manchester and that's about all there is to say. They featured Morrissey on the cover of their second single as one of what was intended to be a series of "Manchester Greats", unfortunately they didn't get further than that.

Perhaps if they had started with Mark E Smith...

Car Crash (1994)

Milo were from Champaign, IL.
This was their first release of two on the Bus Stop Label.

Shut Up.

Ok.

Love's Going Out of Fashion (1986)

Biff Bang Pow.

Combo Audio (1982)

Combo Audio.

Unrelated Seven Inches

I swear I'd posted this first one before...

Log-a-Rhythms (1981)

I think I had intended to post this along with the Painterband single that I haven't quite gotten to or maybe I already did post it. I remember stuff that I had written or wanted to write. But it doesn't appear in my site search. So, maybe I dreamed it.

Log-a-Rhythms is the work of Katherine Hughes, violinist. But strangely enough the bio on her page does not mention this single. An obvious omission on her part. Perhaps you could book her for your corporate event and request it.

I like it, myself. The world needs more songs about coffee.

You Did It (1983)

Liliput were from Zurich in Switzerland. This trio was originally named Kleenex until the Kimberly-Clark people asked them politely to call themselves something else. And such is how the legal world of names evolve in a corporate space.

It's on Rough Trade and occupies the same musical space as the Slits, Raincoats and the like of the post-punk sphere.

There was a double disc reissue of their complete recordings that Kill Rock Stars released in 2001 that I briefly considered for posting. You can consider this a sample. If there's interest perhaps I'll put it up. (Which is really just my thinly veiled plea for comments and attention. It gets lonely here when the cat's ignoring me.)

Back to Business..

You won't have noticed, but I haven't typed out a post in a long while now.
It's also ten months ago.

So there is that.

 1987 - the Big Maybe

One of the nice things for you is that following a nearly a month of Peter Jefferies this and Peter Jefferies that I'm switching gears with a whole new batch of shit that I've been obsessing over.

I've got boatloads of new stuff I want to post. I think I'll start with this.

I've been a fan of Velvet Crush since the first time I heard the "One Thing Two Believe" single on Bus Stop. I played "In the Presence of Greatness" over and over. I sought out other records on the label which introduced me to the Elephant 6 Recording co and those bands and all sorts of stuff that defined my musical life in the 90's.

The main dudes in Velvet Crush, Rick Menck & Paul Chastain have been collaborators for eons and through multiple projects. All of which I quite enjoy.

Here is an early one with Nick Rudd who had been in a band called Weird Summer.

I also discovered another previously unreleased song on Youtube called "A Lesson Learned"

1987 - This Perfect Day

That same year, Mr. Menck put out the first record as the Choo Choo Train without Mr. Chastain, who would join on subsequent releases.

This wonderful fucking pop record was also inexplicably left off of the alleged "Complete Recordings" (as well as a song that appeared on a UK flexi) I guess, the makers of that now rare and expensive compact disc have a very different concept of what constitutes "complete"

Doesn't matter. I have it. You can listen to it. All is good.

Anyway, if you scroll back to August one of the other Choo Choo Train records is there.

You need some more pop in your diet.

(Meanwhile, I still need to find a copy of the Drats! "Fashion Con" double 7" in my bid to secure a complete discography. Life is always a series of challenges....)

1992

1992 was a year in the final decade of the 20th Century.

It was an Ok year, I suppose, as years go.

I mean, I had my issues with it, 

but I think most people who lived through it 

aren't harboring a deep seated calendar based resentment towards it as a whole.

It was simply a year that was.

And the year that produced these two records.

Fruit (1992)

Hey guys, you, uh, named your band "Fruit". That's kind of a terrible name if you want people to be able to look you up on the internet. It's at least on Sunday Records so I knew it was the sweet indiepop. But seriously. Fruit? That was the best you could come up with?

Bulldozer Crash (1992)

Your labelmates Bulldozer Crash had a better idea. Plop Bulldozer Crash into Google and you get plenty of links. Plus as a name it works ironically if you make quiet pop music.

Good job there, Bulldozer Crash.

I Want to Finish Up on an Even Number

I've queued up a bunch of crap tonight.

This will by post number 640 which has no significance in itself, but seems like a better number to end on than 639. There's really nothing particularly wrong with 639, but 640 seems like a more solid number to close out on and a good place to start August.

And start it we will.

with this:

High (1988)

Choo Choo Train is the band that the musical partnership of  Rick Menck and Paul Chastain concocted before forming Velvet Crush. It's a lot lighter fare than would be provided by the Velvet Crush debut a couple of years later, but is still some fine late 80's pop. I'm getting to be somewhat of a completist for this duo's work...

Four lovely nuggets including "My Best Friend" written by Matthew Sweet who they've recorded and toured with for eons.

Just stop reading my blather and enjoy it while there's still a summer to enjoy here in the Northern Hemisphere...

This is just about as good as this stuff gets.

The Good and Bad and Things Reconsidered

It's another day. The next day from the previous post and I've still got a head cold.
Bear that in mind.

Matt Allison (1989)

I hadn't actually listened to this in quite a long time until now. I must have been having a bad time when I first played it because I'm totally reassessing my my original opinion. First off the a-side has the core of the Velvet Crush (Rick Menck & Paul Chastain) backing Matt Allison up to pretty sweet pop effect. The flip is all Matt Allison in his home studio.

Oh, and it's on the Bus Stop Label so if you've enjoyed anything else I've posted on that label, this is going to be right up your alley.

As for Matt Allison himself, it looks like he's been making his living on the other side of the recording booth with his own Atlas Studios in Chicago if you're in need of some recording done.

Neo Bar & Grill (1979)

I'd thought that I'd posted the second single by the D'gadband a long ass time ago, so this was supposed to be a simple follow up of a less interesting single for the sake of completeness, but alas, I hadn't posted the original. (or I just can't find the post. Holy shit I've done a lot of this crap...)

So anyway, we'll start with the first single from Minneapolis unknowns the D'gadband. And I'll preface it with a simple that it's not particularly good. It's the exact kind of Midwest 70's bar band noodling you might expect of the leather vest, mustache and bad hair on the band members on the back of the sleeve. It's competently done, but really really not my scene.

No Money, No Future (1980)

But what a difference a year makes.

It seems like the gents had ditched the 70's soft country rock sounds and found a bit more of an edge. Perhaps they just put the bong down for a little bit. It's not like the holy grail of lost punk rock records, but "No Money, No Future" is a start lyrically and in intent which hopefully scored them more gigs in the big city and maybe some coke.

The next year before the waters of obscurity swallowed them again they were on the "12x8" compilation that' on here somewhere if you search for it. It' compilation so check the 13th. That has some good trcks on it, but the boy in this band had obviously picked the bong back up for  tune they called "Mini Spliff". Don't let that deter you...

Storytime continues more or less.

Where did we leave off....

Aden (1997)

Those guys in the previous post who had formed a band and called it Dingle and then changed the name to Aden recorded and entire compact disc of material and set it loose on the world with a cover painting of two cows.

Who doesn't love cows? Or at least a good hamburger. Or cold glass of milk.

And really it was only an almost complete compact disc of material. There are a handful of songs that were on the previous two releases. Only this time in glorious digital fidelity.

Mid-90s vinyl can be pretty noisy and cheap sometimes.

But I digress...

This full length release brought them to the attention of Teen-Beat records which would go on to release a further three full length compact discs of Aden that I don't have, so this story doesn't really have much of an ending. Only a soundtrack. And a nice melancholy indiepop one at that. So....

the end?

Storytime

It's an old story.

Well, relatively so.

I mean, holy shit. 1995 was close to a quarter of a century ago....

Time flies even when you're not even having any fun.

Remember that and think of it sometime when you're about to fall asleep.

Dingle (1995)


So once upon a time there were three college kids in Chicago, Illinois who formed a band. They called this band Dingle.

Dingle was a good band. They played live and after a little while they went and recorded a little seven inch ep and named it after themselves. It had three little songs simply recorded and released it into the world for everyone to see. And nobody paid that much attention.

Aden (1996)

So our three stalwart and steady heroes made a bold decision. They changed the name of their band to Aden. That they decided was a much better name and one that was bound to grab them more attention and put them at the very front of the alphabet where people might see them. And then they waited.

And while they sat behind the hedge waiting they recorded another seven inch with three more songs on it this time. One of the songs on it was named "Aden" which they liked enough to name themselves after. It was a good bit of vinyl and they knew it.

And then they waited some more for people to notice.

(to be continued...?)

Lo-fi-fo fum

It's hard to come up with words to describe music while listening to other music.
I'm not so good at that kind of multitasking shit.

It gets even harder when you have to get up every five or so minutes to flip over the single that you're digitizing on the other laptop and you're listening to the record and typing.

As young Sarah Lynn was wont to say:

That's too much, man!

Me, My Drums and You (1998)


According to something else I read, Busytoby is an side band featuring members of Champaign, IL's own Wolfie which may or may not make it more enticing a listen to some.

 I'm not swung either way. I listen to this entirely on its own merits.

Lo-fi recording, cheap keyboards and strummy guitars on Parasol Records.

I'm in.

The Unlonely Songwriter (1999)


The other one on 100 Guitar Mania Records has a cover of Donovan's "The Sun is a Very Magic Fellow" on the b-side.

All in.

They had me at a Donovan cover.