Monday, January 28, 2013

Small "Cakes" cd (Rockville/1993)

Seeing that my old band Dude Japan just did a reunion show this past Saturday in support of our posthumous release "Will You Meet Me There" on Rok Lok Records and that on the cd their is a cover the band Small's "Vega and Boston", I saw it only fitting to share some music by Small, or as they are sometimes referred to as Small 23 as per a feud with another band named Small, in this space. And while Small was never really a "big time" indie rock band like some of there contemporaries of the day from Chapel Hill, NC like Superchunk, Archers of Loaf and Polvo, they did have a following of sorts but I would wager to say that this early ep release is a bit more obscure as far as their discography is concerned. If you never heard Small before I highly recommend that you seek out their three full lengths on Alias Records, specifically their swan song, Silver Gleaming Death Machine, which in my opinion is them at their absolute best and catchiest. To give a context of what they sound like, Small (or Small 23) were cut from the same cloth as bands like Superchunk and Archers of Loaf, in that they played super hook filled, melodic indie rock. And probably not a coincidence both Chuck Garrison, original drummer for Superchunk and Erich Bachmann, who went on to front Archers of Loaf and Crooked Fingers, were both involved in Small. And on this six song EP the lineup featured includes Garrison (drums) and Bachmann (guitar and vocals) as well as Mike Kenlan on guitars and vocals and Matt Walter on bass. Shortly after the release of Cakes, Bachmann left Small to concentrate on Archers of Loaf full time and was replaced by Dave Hollinghurst. While I am partial to Small's last to full length efforts, Chin Music and the aforementioned Silver Gleaming Death Machine, I can't deny how damn awesome Cakes is, a short powerful punch of perfect buzzing guitar indie rock with punctuated backing vocals that sum up what I love about music from that region in the 90s. The tracks that Bachmann offer lead vocals on, "Cakes" and the Dinosaur Jr sounding "Chuck's Buzz" are the highlights for me though the Kenlan lead track "Empty Room" isn't too far behind with its wonky guitar lines in front and Bachmann's energetic backing vocal in the chorus. Well enough of me yapping...if you like Superchunk and Archers of Loaf there is absolutely no reason why you shouldn't like Small.


Small Cakes tracklisting

1. Empty Room
2. Cakes
3. Chuck's Buzz
4. The Big U Without Me
5. He Who Cannot Be Bathed
6. Every

Download Here

And if you are interested in checking out Dude Japan and our cover of Small's "Vega and Boston". Check us out on Bandcamp.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

DiskothiQ "Rob" 7 inch (Wabana/1997)

DiskothiQ is certainly no stranger to this blog as I have already shared a few of their releases so why not share another? This trio led by Peter Hughes released a bunch of cassettes, singles and comp appearances throughout the 90s including two wonderful full lengths, 1995's The Wandering Jew and 1997's Waterworld (the band's finest work in my opinon), both on Shrimper. Perhaps, people are know Hughes for his work with the Mountain Goats, which is certainly not a shame because of the fantastic output he has been apart with The Mountain Goats, however it is a shame that DiskothiQ are band that seldom gets the fair share of respect in regards to discussion about the 90s indie rock movement. They were quite prolific and their album Waterworld is an unheralded classic so it is a shame that their work has largely been ignored. And this 7 inch no different, left in $1 bins but don't let the price tag fool you-this is "grade A indie rock".

You can download some of DiskothiQ's music for direct from their Bandcamp page, including their unreleased/unfinished last album. Go get it here.

Download "Rob" 7 inch

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Hovercraft "Zero Zero Zero One" 7 inch (Repellent/1995)

It has been quite awhile since I posted something in this space and quite honestly seeing what is happening in blog land as far as the war, if you will, on file sharing sites is making me want to get back up speed with sharing some of the music in my collection before this type of sharing becomes impossible. Even though I have been following independent music since the early 90s when I was a teenager truth be told I have found out about even more music than I could have ever imagined through the means of blog sharing. Whether it was a newer artist, an artist that I missed out on and didn't know about or in some cases flat out ignored as a result of youthful ignorance. Bottom line blog culture has introduced me to a lot of great music. And I don't only appreciate the free music, I appreciate the blogger's insight and personal relationship with the music he or she is sharing as well as biographical and historical context. So with that being said I feel like there is a lot of music in my collection that I would like to share because I haven't seen them elsewhere in blogland so before these file sharing sites go the way of the Dodo  here goes nothing...

The release I am sharing today is a 7 inch from the instrumental and experimental noise rock band Hovercraft. Zero Zero Zero One features two songs of dark, dirges of noise anchored by pulsating bass and drums which move along the wall of sound emitted from the guitars. And that is more or less the sonic theme that is present through the Hovercraft's sound. The guitars seldom resemble anything resembling standard guitar sounds or even structure, as they are merely shards of jagged sound, wavering static and noise. In lieu of melody in the classical sense Hovercraft's songs are more ominous in nature. Hovercraft initially gained notoriety as it became known that Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam was playing drums for the band, which he did for a short period. However, the band sans Vedder went on to make two albums that garnered critical acclaim for their own merit, most notably 1998's Experiment Below on Blast First/Mute.

As far as this single is concerned which includes a wonderful fold out poster, I shall post the rather informative write up about Zero Zero Zero One from Wikipedia:


"On January 8, 1995, recordings by Hovercraft and Magnog were played back to back on Pearl Jam's Self-Pollution satellite radio broadcast, a four-and-a-half-hour-long pirate broadcast out ofSeattleWashington which was available to any radio stations that wanted to carry it.[4] The tracks which followed immediately after Pearl Jam's final set are described by Eddie Vedder as a "cleansing of the palette."[5] The recording would appear on Hovercraft's first release, a seven-inch single on the band's own Repellent Records. Recorded in August 1994, "Zero Zero Zero One" featured Bobby Tamkin aka "Paul 4" on drums and on "box of nails." No track titles were given, but "0001-A" and "0001-B" are etched into either band of the vinyl sides. It was also released as a VHS tape "video single" in a simple black slipcase.
The single was initially handed out at gigs; stickers affixed to the plastic slip of ones sold in stores boasted, "Featuring Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam." However, the single featured Bobby Tamkin on drums, not Vedder as rumored. "Paul 4" is the pseudonym of early member Bobby Tamkin, currently with his own band, Xu Xu Fang, and former drummer of The Warlocks. In 1995, Hovercraft accepted a slot opening for Mike Watt on his U.S. tour.[3] Hovercraft, and Dave Grohl's new band Foo Fighters, played short sets before both Grohl and Vedder would join headliner Watt as members of his band. This was Hovercraft's first tour, as well as the first major tour for Grohl since the suicide of Kurt Cobain. Hovercraft toured later that year with Sky Cries Mary."