Acquired: 1989 – Bought it at our store RIP Records in Norfolk, VA
Keeper: Yes
Moss Side Story is a film score by Barry Adamson for a three act murder mystery that doesn’t exist. Most people that have this album seem to really love it. I really love most of it, but I have to tell you that the opening cut “On The Wrong Side Of Relaxation” really gets on my nerves. Which, based on the title, seems appropriate. I played Moss Side a number of times over the last week and most of the time I put the needle down on the right side of that song. He has also done music for real movies as well as performing on many albums with Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.
Zvuki Mu? Ever heard of them? They are a modern art band from Russia that started in the 1980s. This is their debut album and it was produced by Mister art rock himself, Brian Eno. This album is very eclectic with everything from strange pulsing dirges punctuated by sporadic drum and vocal outbursts to accessible but nerdy art disco. Yes, it is that good. The lyrics are in Russian. I’ve read descriptions of singer Pyotr Mamonov’s lyrics as “absurdist”, but how would I know?
My two main memories associated with Zvuki Mu are that my brother and I played it a lot at our record store. We got it as a promo from our Warner Bros rep. She also got us into a live show with Zvuki Mu at the 9:30 Club in D.C. We got to meet Mamonov and the other guys, and in hindsight they did seem somewhat absurdist. In their proper business suits they reminded me more of the Dadaists seen in old photos than the average rock band. Mary thinks we also went to dinner with them, but I think that was another band. Ah, the perks of owning a record store.
Acquired: 1989 – At a record store I owned with my brother, RIP Records
Keeper: Maybe
I have three records by The Leaving Trains and Transportational D. Vices is the newest. Somehow it got to the front of the line, but it terms of favorites it is at the back. Still, it’s a very listenable record, most of the time sounding like they have one foot in the garage, one in a combat boot, and another somewhere in space. It’s three-legged rock that manages to sound familiar and unique. One of my favorites on this one is “Store”, a high speed, rocked out number about going to “the store.” I guess singer Falling James really needed some milk or cigs or something because he sounds like he’s in a hurry to go.
The Wedding Present -- Ukrainian John Peel Sessions
Artist: The Wedding Present
Title: Ukrainian John Peel Sessions
Year: 1989
Format: Vinyl 10 in.
Rating (1-10): 8
Owner: Tracy
Acquired: 1989 – Got it at our store RIP Records in Norfolk, VA.
Keeper: Yes
The Wedding Present is a British rock band and this is not a typical record for them. This is their version of Ukrainian folk music. There are couple titles on the record sleeve and Ukrainian John Peel Sessions is not one of them. On the front is УкраїнÑ?ькі ВиÑ?тупи в Івана Піла and on the spine Ukraïnski Vistupi v Johna Peela. This is record is an oddball size, 10 inch, and it comes in a handsome package with a nice booklet. I must admit that it’s a lot better than I remember. Or, maybe my taste in music is better than it was.
Etched in the vinyl margins:
That Side — “Should I worship at the feet…
This Side — …of this God like ferret?” (Traditional)
It’s two-fer Tuesday! I don’t know why, but I love this album cover. There’s just something about it. When I first got Put@’s Fever I thought Mano Negra sounded like a more punk, more Latin (even though they’re French) version of the awesome French band Les Negresses Vertes. It still sounds like that to me. It’s French and energetic, with a lot brass. What else do you need to know?
(Note: I later edited the titles using the @ symbol because the correct spelling of “Put@s” was attracting a lot of the wrong kind of traffic.)
New music, old records, live shows, stories, memorabilia, garage band demos, anything and everything else related to music. Brothers and sisters... start clicking.
