Birthday albums

SPIRITUALIZED – Debut Album ‘LAZER GUIDED MELODIES’ Is 25 – Spiritual Dream Pop Odyssey…

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Memorable moments in sonic history!…

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‘Lazer Guided Melodies’ by SPIRITUALIZED
Released 30 March 1992 – 25 years ago

What the press said…

MELODY MAKER
“The sound of heaven at times, Spiritualized are making 21st Century gospel.”

ALL MUSIC
“The melodies shimmer and drone and hum like otherworldly pop tunes. One of
the premier dream pop albums, this album is both beautiful and innovative.”

SELECT
“This arsenal of music technology, old and new, lets Spiritualized work a magic on us
that’s part nostalgia, part sci-fi thrill”

SPUTNIK MUSIC
“Lazer Guided Melodies is a mesmerizing journey into another dimension, an experience
not easily matched. The best way to understand this album is to suspend reason and to momentarily leave the left side of your brain at the door.”

Here are three of my favorite tracks…

– YOU KNOW IT’S TRUE –

– RUN –

– SHINE A LIGHT –

The cosmic odyssey in full…

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SPIRITUALIZED: Facebook – Twitter –  Discography


Amsterdam 2015 – a spiritual experience… (photo: Turn Up The Volume!)

THE DAMNED Released DAMNED DAMNED DAMNED 40 Years Ago…

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Looking back in time. Memorable moments in sonic history!

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‘Damned Damned Damned’ by THE DAMNED
Red-hot debut LP released 18 February 1977

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Here’s a public announcement from the veteran punk band’s record label BMG:

“The Damned blazed a trail when they became the very first British punk band to release a single, the mighty New Rose on October 22nd 1976, which was swiftly followed by the release
of the very first British punk album, their classic debut long-player Damned Damned Damned originally released by a nascent Stiff Records on February 18th 1977. Now, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the band’s dramatic breakthrough, BMG will release a very special Deluxe 40th Anniversary Edition of that incredible debut album on February 17th, almost exactly 40 years to the day since its original issue.”

All details about the Deluxe Edition here.

Eccentric bassist Captain Sensible reflecting on that smashing first LP: “ ’Damned
Damned Damned’ was almost ‘un-produced’ by our Stiff stablemate Nick Lowe, who managed to capture the energy of our live set spectacularly. Nick was known as ‘Basher’ as there was no messing about. It’s fairly manic, but also tuneful and, listened to now, still sounds pretty fresh to my ears. The guitars don’t sound nice – they’re a raw, fuzzed-out thrash – that’s punk rock. Pathway was a rough and ready studio round the back of an Islington garage. It was so dark and dingy in there – you had to be careful or you’d knock your beer over. The sessions took two days, after which the tape was recycled for an Elvis Costello album so there’s no chance of a remix… Not that you’d want one – it’s perfect!”

About time to hear that thunderous beast
in full and going MAD MAD MAD…

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The band (with original members Captain Sensible & Dave Vanian) start a massive tour in North America on April 6th. Tour dates here. And if that’s not enough the band revealed
to be working on a brand new album too. For more info visit Pledgemusic.

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MANIC STREET PREACHERS – Debut LP ‘GENERATION TERRORISTS’ Released 25 Years Ago Today –

Posted on by JL

Looking back in time. Memorable moments in sonic history!

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‘GENERATION TERRORISTS’ by MANIC STREET PREACHERS – Released 10 February 1992

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Welsh legends MANIC STREET PREACHERS released their debut album, a double one, twenty-five years ago – on 10 February 1992. I fell in love with the Manics for the reasons most of us of fell in love with them at the very start: they looked bloody ‘cool’, they ranted like newborn punks and, most important of all, they sounded anthemic & really big. But in my opinion (all opinions are subjective of course) GENERATION TERRORISTS would have been a 24 Karat Gold debut album as a single not a double one with the following tracklist:

Slash ‘n’ Burn / Motorcycle Emptiness / You Love Us / Little Baby Nothing / Stay Beautiful /
So Dead / Repeat UK / Spectators Of Suicide / Crucifix Kiss and Methadone Pretty.

Anyway Generation Terrorists overall was a hellish rock ‘n roll manifesto in sound
and content and the start of a brilliant career. Here we go back in history…

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Fun to read: on the occasion of the album’s 20th birthday British music weekly NME claimed to have 20 reasons why you should love Generation Terrorists. Check them here

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Young preachers – rest in peace, Richey…

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MANIC STREET PREACHERS: Website – Facebook – Discography

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7 Significant Debut Albums Turning 15 in… 2017

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Looking back in time… memorable moments in sonic history!

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The year 2002 was quite significant for debut albums. Here are seven that stood out,
7 thrilling longplayers turning 15 in 2017 and still sounding impressive. Here we go…

1/ ‘Behind The Music’ by THE SOUNDTRACK OF OUR LIVES
Released (UK): 16 January
Top track: The Flood
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2/ ‘Original Pirate Material’ by THE STREETS
Released: 25 March
Top track: Let’s Push Things Forward
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3/’Highly Evolved’ by THE VINES
Released: 14 July
Top track: Outtathaway
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4/ ‘The Coral’ by THE CORAL
Released: 29 July
Top track: Dreaming Of You
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5/ ‘Turn On The Bright Lights’ by INTERPOL
Released: 19 August
Top track: NYC
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6/ ‘Up The Bracket’ by THE LIBERTINES
Released: 14 October
Top track: I Get Along
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7/ ‘They Threw Us All In A Trench And Stuck A Monument On Top’ by LIARS
Released: 30 October
Top track: The Garden Was Crowded And Outside
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LOU REED – Grieving And Gripping ‘MAGIC AND LOSS’ Album Released Twenty-Five Years Ago…

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When it’s timeless in sound & and vision, it’s a…

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MAGIC AND LOSS – Released 14 January 1992

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LOU REED (50 years old back then), started to work on his 16th solo album MAGIC AND LOSS with themes of magic in his head, after hearing stories about magicians in Mexico. But when tragedy occurred during the writing, the late New York City legend incorporated cutting thoughts and songs on mortality, loss and death as well. The illnesses and eventual deaths of two of his close friends caused by cancer – Doc Pomus, Reed‘s mentor when he started his career and a ‘Rita‘, assumed to be Rotten Rita, who also was a familiar figure
at Andy Warhol‘s studio ‘The Factory‘ in the early days – was obviously extremely hard to bear. In the end the album was more about loss than magic and not an easy one to listen to when you have experienced the same kind of feelings, which I did last year when I saw my father being tortured mercilessly by that awful disease. Listening to the record again now wasn’t actually a truly joyful happening, on the other hand it made me associate my father with Lou Reed for the first time ever and that felt weirdly good. Also, I remember very well when the LP came out 25 years ago, that British music weekly NME rewarded
it with a very rare 10/10 and that me and my mate praised Reed‘s guts to make such a difficult album while we were having a long night out – solving all world problems for the umpteenth time – in our beloved café. Mixed emotions, indeed. A sort of ‘the beauty and the beast’ feel. That’s what life is all about, I guess…

American journalist David Fricke wrote a compelling album review
for Rolling Stone Magazine back then. You can read it here .

The masterpiece in full (the only way to listen to it)…

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LOU REED: Website – Facebook – Discography

10 Splendid Albums Turning 10 in… 2017

Posted on by JL

Looking back in time… memorable moments in sonic history!

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Here’s my selection (chronological order) of 10 splendid albums released in 2007,
turning 10 in 2017 and still sounding smashing today. Champagne! Let’s rollllllll…

1/ ‘Hats Off To The Busker’ by THE VIEW
Released: 22 January – debut album
Top track: Superstar Tradesman
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2/ ‘Neon Bible’ by ARCADE FIRE
Released: 2 March – the Canadians’ second LP
Top track: Intervention
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3/ ‘Strange House’ by THE HORRORS
Released: 5 March – mental debut album
Top track: She Is The New Thing 
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4/ ‘Grinderman’ by GRINDERMAN
Released: 5 March – debut album by Nick Cave’s side project
Top track: Honey Bee (Let’s Fly To Mars)
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5/ ‘Sound Of Silver’ by LCD SOUNDSYSTEM
Released: 12 March – second longplayer
Top track: North American Scum
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6/ ‘Because Of The Times’ by KINGS OF LEON
Released: 30 March – 3rd album
Top track: Black Thumbnail
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7/’Baby 81′ by BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB
Released: 27 April – their 4th longplayer
Top track: Not What You Wanted
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8/ ‘Mirrored’ by BATTLES
Released: 14 May – debut LP
Top track: Atlas
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9/ ‘Icky Thump’ by THE WHITE STRIPES
Released: 15 June – 6th album
Top track: Rag and Bone
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10/ ‘In Rainbows’ by RADIOHEAD
Released: 10 October – 7th longplayer
Top track: House Of Cards
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10 Historic Debut Albums Turning 40 in… 2017

Posted on by JL

Looking back in time… monumental moments in sonic history!

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Here are 10 memorable debut albums from 1977. A 24 Karat Gold year for alternative music. The undisputed heydays of Punk and New Wave it was, with remarkably inventive and new sounding music coming, mostly, out of the UK and America. No more mega stars, no more special effects to hide the ‘safety and money first’ attitude, no more old-fashioned and unworldly rock and oll pricks acting like doped gods. It was the blessed year when a new generation of young, unexperienced but open-minded and highly talented musicians came out of their smelly basements with impressive longplayers. Unknown adolescents who had the guts and the immense creativity to explore different sonic fields and/or vitalize older vibes with a totally fresh, modern & most exciting approach. Check these
ten masterpieces – turning 40 next year – they still shine LOUD and CLEAR…

1/ ‘Marquee Moon’ by  TELEVISION
Guitar rock never sounded so revolutionary and innovatory. Electrifying garage poetry…
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2/ ‘Never Mind The Bollocks Here’s The Sex Pistols’ by THE SEX PISTOLS
The grinning filth and the working class fury. Best punk rock album ever to my ears…
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3/ ‘The Clash’ by THE CLASH
Machine-gun riffs, radical sloganeering and kick ass anthems for the desperate ones…
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4/  ‘1977’ by TALKING HEADS
A landmark LP in sound and rhythm with a psycho killer like voice on top of it. 1977 indeed!
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5/ ‘New Boots And Panties!!’ by IAN DURY
Dury’s razor sharp observations on British life wrapped in stellar pub-rock-disco tunes…
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6/ ‘My Aim Is True’ by ELVIS COSTELLO
Before turning in a more classic singer-songwriter Costello showed his Zeitgeist teeth too…
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7/ ‘In The City’ by THE JAM
Angry young man Paul Weller and his sidekicks talked fiercely about their generation…
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8/ ‘Suicide’ by SUICIDE
Martin Rev‘s deranged electro machines and Alan Vega‘s chilling vocals. S-C-A-R-Y!…
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9/ ‘Pink Flag’ by WIRE
Probably the most adventurous and unconventional album of all this 1977 madness. ACE!
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10/ ‘Damned Damned Damned’ by THE DAMNED 
First punks to release a single (the brill New Rose), first to release an LP. Underrated havoc!
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U2 – Masterpiece Album ACHTUNG BABY Released 25 Years Ago…

Posted on by JL

Looking and listening back – Memorable moments in sonic history…

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ACHTUNG BABY by U2

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The Joshua Three album turned Irish rockers U2 into a worldwide stadium band in 1987. After 2 years of non-stop touring Bono & his gang went to Berlin, as so many other artists did before and after, to reinvent themselves musically and mentally. New impulses from
a legendary – for wrong and good reasons as we know – city. Artistically an extraordinary place that inspired outstanding albums by David Bowie, Iggy Pop & Nick Cave among others. And it worked for U2 too! ACHTUNG BABY was/is without a shadow of a doubt their best record ever. New sound, new drive, new look. Big vibes, big tunes, big grooves! Magnum opus! An adventurous, inventive, electr-o-fying and no fillers/all killers album. The LP was released on 18 November 1991. Twenty-five years ago. Champagne! Here are three ace firecrackers to celebrate…

ZOO STATION

MYSTERIOUS WAYS

THE FLY

Album review by Rolling Stone Magazine
‘Achtung Baby’ in full on Spotify
U2: Website – Facebook