Philly icon/multi-instrumentalistTODD RUNDGREN produced the 1977 debut album of kooky brothersSPARKS. And now, after 44 years, the stars of the past teamed up once again for a new song called YOUR FANDANGO.
“They sent me this song that sounded substantially like a finished product, except for the fact that I think there was some placeholder stuff that was meant to be developed a little further and they just never got around to it. I started just dressing it up and adding some vocal parts, writing some lyrics for it. And, in the end, you know — they sent me the track, I sent back what I did to them. We were both happy with it, and the label’s happy with it because they’re going to put it out.” says Rundgren about the collaboration.
Your Fandago is pretty special and also Sparks-esque,
actually a mini pop opera…
Track from forthcoming Andy Gill (GOF’s late mastermind) double tribute
LP The Problem Of Leisure with great names such as Tom Morello (RAGTM), Serj Tankian’s (System Of A Down), Massive Attack‘s Robert “3D” Del Naja, Warpaint and more. Out next month. Order info: here.
Page Hamilton (Frontman Helmet) about their choice: “I chose ‘In the Ditch’ for
this tribute ’cause it’s a great song even though it was challenging. It feels improvised
and random at times but holds together as a composition… My old pal Henry Rollins
reissued the Gang Of Four albums ‘Entertainment!’ and ‘Solid Gold’ back in the ’90s
and asked me to do liner notes for ‘Solid Gold’. I don’t remember what I wrote, but
I know it was glowing, corny and fanboy. “
Here comes Helmet…
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The original – hard to beat…
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An introduction to the tribute album by Andy Gill‘s widow Catherine Mayer…
Album: BLOOD (double LP – 21 tracks) Released: 22 April 1991 – 30 years ago
Artists: An extended cast including guests such as Deirdre Rutkowski, Kim Deal, Caroline Crawley, Tanya Donnelly, Dominic Appleton interpreting songs by Syd Barrett, Gene Clark, Mary Margaret O’Hara, Pieter Nooten, David Roback (Mazzy Star) and many more.
Full listhere.
Pitchfork wrote: “In some ways this felt like the most American record they’d done yet, given cover choices like Spirit, the Byrds, and Emmylou Harris… Listening to it again in a time when styles are so easily appropriated, it’s actually shocking to hear a band approach those sources so intent on reinterpreting them in their own image. From the opening original “The Lacemaker”, all strings, echoes, and tones, to the slow stomp and grind of “Ruddy and Wretched” and a delicate version of Mary Margaret O’Hara’s “Help Me Lift You Up”– and even the almost light breakbeats of “Loose Joints”, it’s another catch-all that holds together.” Score: 9/10.
Band: EVANESCENCE Who: Mega popular Goth/darkwave rockers from Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S. Active: 1995–present (hiatus: 2007–2009, 2012–2015) / 5 albums so far
About “It’s a song that came from bottled-up emotions about a breakup. The
more I let these emotions get to me, the angrier and more upset I got, which probably
resulted in such a hard and heavy tune, something we hadn’t really delved into properly.
It’s definitely one of our favourite songs to play live.” says guitarist Calvin Smith.
Score: Liverpool’s small label Disobedient Records keeps on signing young wolves
who want to break out, leave boredom behind them, try to make their dreams and
desires come true, and rock your and their own socks off. Enter: Weekend Dept. On the stereo: Nobody Everyone. Highly energetic and sharp-riffing indie rock at its youthful best. Smells like teen spirit. Big guitars, big drums/bass, big tune, and big post-breakup vocals. What do you need more to boost your bloodstream? Right.
Artist: ALAN VEGA
Born Alan Bermowitz on June 23, 1938.
Passed away on July 16, 2016 (78 years old) Active: 1970–2016 (with Suicide,
solo and multiple collaborations )
Album: MUTATOR Info: In 1995/1996 Vega and his wife Liz Lamere, recorded
an album called Mutator. But it never saw the day of light. Then,
back in 2019 Lamere and close Vega friend Jared Artaud discovered
the original tapes and decided to mix the songs into a proper LP. Release: 23th April 2021 by Sacred Bones Records.
NME says: “The late Suicide pioneer’s wife and collaborator Liz Lamere has unlocked
the Vega Vault, spewing forth more NYC gutter rock and apocalyptic proclamations. Vega’s visions have come of age again in the post-indie deconstructions of 2021, and ‘Mutator’ might well find favour with fans of his distant descendants like Squid, Perfume Genius, Sleaford Mods and Black Midi. A quarter of a century on, this lost rumble from post-punk vaults finds new context, as a lesson in uncompromising art from an old master.”
Full review here. Score: 3/5.
Liz Lamere (Vega’s widow) remembers: “Our primary purpose for going into the studio
was to experiment with sound, not to ‘make records. I was playing the machines with Alan manipulating sounds. I played riffs while Alan morphed the sounds being channeled through the machines.’
Sacred Bones (label) says: “Vega was constantly creating. That process naturally led to a wealth of material that didn’t see the light of day immediately when it was recorded, which came to be known as the Vega Vault. ‘Mutator’ is the first in a series of archival releases from the Vault that will come out on Sacred Bones Records.”
Turn Up The Volume: Most of the lost albums that eventually came/come to the
surface one day should have stayed lost forever. If they were good enough to be
released the moment they were recorded they would have never ended up in a
smelly cellar or, worst case, in a trash can.
So what about Alan Vega’s lost one? One: it feels special to have the legend back. Two:
the album seems to come from a very dark place, from the deepest corners of Vega‘s soul, creating a nightmarish and Kafkaesque chill-out atmosphere for a 30-minute David Lynch film-noir. Yes, it’s not a lost album, it’s a lost soundtrack, a thrill-ing one where reality is disguised as surreality. A most welcome find.
Artist: ANGEL OLSEN New album: SONGS OF THE LARK AND OTHER MEMORIES
A Box Set featuring her 2019 album All Mirrors and the 2020
full-length Whole New Mess, but also a bonus LP with remixes,
alternate tracks, and a cover of Roxy Music’s ‘More Than This.’
“It’s very me. I will always nosedive into love, and suffering can definitely
come with that. When I hear this version the strings really bring the song
to its necessary bittersweet boiling point,” says Olsen.
