v/a "Ghost of a Rollercoaster" 7 inch (Shrimper/1991)

How I miss the days of Shrimper compilations. Shrimper released so many compilations like Ghost of a Rollercoaster that were a revelation of sorts to me growing up getting exposed to all this great homemade music that was all over the map. From lo fi bedroom pop, indie rock, folk, experimental-Shrimper always showcased a wide variety of genres on their compilations, yet there was always a sense of unification in the over all presentation. Well at least to my ears and eyes. This comp crams nine artists all on one 7 inch with something for everyone. There are wonderful tracks from Franklin Bruno and Refrigerator as well probably my favorite Wckr Spgt track as well. There is a really strange Sentridoh tune as well that is nowhere near Lou Barlow's finest hour but for for die hard Barlow fans it certainly provides itself as a interesting curiosity in his discography. If you are not familiar with the legendary Shrimper label, they were/are best known for releasing tons of cassettes throughout the course of the 90s. When people talk about the lo fi home taping explosion of that era this is the label that is primarily responsible for influencing a lot of that. However, through the years they started releasing vinyl as well as cds. Ghost of a Rollercoaster gives a pretty idea of what the Shrimper "sound" was all about.

v/a Ghost of a Rollercoaster track listing
1. Halo "L Wheel"
2. Refrigerator "Map to the Stars"
3. Shoeface "I Hate the Government"
4. Franklin Bruno "Lifetime Seance"
5. Satnam Puppets "Guitar in Room P. 7"
6. Wckr Spgt "Fluffy Cat"
7. Guffey "Creepy"
8. Sentridoh "Me and My Arrow"
9. Jim Bishop "O 5"

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Nothing Painted Blue/Refrigerator "split-Nipple Hardness Factor #8" 7 inch (Misha Records/1995)

Ahhhh, the good old days of zines coming with 7 inch records how I miss you. It was so awesome to read a kick ass zine and have a nice vinyl record or flexi to throw on your turntable at the same time. Nipple Hardness Factor was a zine in the mid 90s that did record reviews, interviews and also published play lists from college radio stations around the country so you could get an idea of what people were listening to. Remember this was years before electronically shared play lists Last FM or Spotify.  Radio play lists from college radio stations, who were bar none the taste makers in underground music in the 1980s and 1990s, were shared to let people know what the pulse was like across the country. It was how you found out about new bands.

So each issue of Nipple Hardness Factor came with a 7 inch and would feature interviews with the two bands who were on the record. In issue number 8 the two bands featured were Nothing Painted Blue and Refrigerator, two bands generally associated with the Shrimper Records label and scene of bands. Nothing Painted Blue started out in the late 80s and was a indie rock/power pop band fronted by none other than Franklin Bruno- a man who most say "who?", but to those in the know recognize Bruno as one of the most prolific and brilliant song writers of the 90s indie rock movement. Aside from fronting Nothing Painted Blue, Bruno has had a storied solo career releasing several albums and singles throughout the 90s. He is also known for his guest appearances on Mountain Goats albums in recent years as well as his collaboration with John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats called The Extra Glenns.  Bruno is currently a visiting professor in philosophy at Bard College

Refrigerator is a band who I have shared here previously and once again they are generally known as the Shrimper Records flagship band as they were headed up the Callaci brothers, Dennis and Allen. Dennis is the owner and operator of Shrimper Records. Refrigerator play disjointed yet somehow catchy indie rock that is a cross between between Half Japanese, Red Krayola and WCKR SPGT. If you missed the upload of their Louder Than Goodbye 7 inch be sure to download that.

Nothing Painted Blue/Refrigerator split track listing
1. Nothing Painted Blue "Anti Nomination"
2. Refrigerator "Signal"
3. Refrigerator "Adoby and Jim"
4. Refrigerator "Spooky"

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Refrigerator "Louder Than Goodbye" 7 inch (Squealer Records/1995)

Anytime anyone mentions the word "lo fi" hands down the first thing that should come to mind is Shrimper Records, the label who might've not been a house hold name but for anyone that followed the home recording/tape label explosion of the 90s is well aware that Shrimper was the label that defined that era. And one the bands that is synonymous with Shrimper, Refrigerator- a noisy, yet tuneful lo fi indie rock band that featured Shrimper Records founder Dennis Callaci on guitar and his brother Allen on vocals with a host of other members through the years. Throughout the 90s Refrigerator released several cassettes, singles, cd/lp albums and an inordinate amount of compilation tracks. And their music could be best described as marriage of noisy, disjointed art rock 'ala Half Japanese and Red Krayola mixed with the jangly indie rock, pop goodness of  other Inland Empire bands such as Wckr Spgt, DiskothiQ, Nothing Painted Blue, etc. They were bizarre at times, with the eccentric vocals at the forefront and clanging guitars but damn at the same time you'd find yourself tappin' your toes. While not a being a touring band in many years, Refrigerator continues to write and record music, albeit the music they have done in the last several years has changed considerably. It is a bit closer to folk than lo fi indie rock. Their brand new full length cd on Shrimper, Dangerous was released this spring. The single I am sharing with you today was released on Squealer Records and the tunes I think serve as a good introduction to the band as each song captures some of the things I like best about the band.  I will be sharing more Refrigerator in the coming months and I am excited as they are a band that unfortunately I feel as if time has forgotten.

Refrigerator Louder Than Goodbye track listing
1. Meantime
2. Thinner Than Skin
3. Louder Than Goodbye
4. Housing Fires

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