Band: THE BIRTHDAY PARTY (1978-1983) Who: Maniacal Australian gang fronted by
a young Nick Cave.
Artwork: Cover of their third and final LP JUNKYARD
released 10 May 1982. 40 years ago.
Drawing by American cartoonists Ed Roth and Dave Christensen.
The image looks like how NME described the BP back then: “The Birthday Party are awful. Subversively awful. Awesomely great.
Awesomely brilliant.”
Metallic hardcore loudmouthsCANDY from Richmond, Virginia just spread the news of
a new, their second, album, titled HEAVEN IS HERE coming next June. Pre-order info here.
I couldn’t find out (yet) what the LPs cover is about, but it doesn’t look
like heaven to me. On the opposite, I see a sort of hellish Holocaust scene.
50 years ago this month late genius LOU REED released his self-titled commercially
and critically disappointing debut LP. In retrospect, it’s not a bad album whatsoever.
It’s a characteristic pop/rock Reed album with several tracks greatly reworked on later
LPs, but the production here sucks.
AllMusic said: “On its own terms, Lou Reed isn’t a bad album, but it isn’t a terribly interesting one either, and since superior performances of most of these songs are available elsewhere, it stands today more as a historical curiosity than anything else.”
Anecdote 1: Keyboardist Rick Wakeman and guitarist Steve Howe from the celebrated progressive rock band YES played on all tracks. Yes, a truly bizarre combination.
Anecdote 2: Wakeman said about the recording sessions, “the lights had to be out so nobody could see.”
Artwork: Designed by Tom Adams. The US-born Anglo-Scots illustrator and painter who
is best known for his book cover art for the paperback editions of Agatha Christie.
The original FLEETWOOD MAC line-up (1967-1974) fronted by singer/songwriter Peter Green (1946-2020) was all about raw-riff blues-rock. They scored their greatest hits with magic ballad Albatross, the bewitching mid-tempo Black Magic Woman and the jaw-dropping classic Oh Well.
Back in 1969, the band released a compilation called English Rose
with founder and drummer Mick Fleetwood in drag on the cover.
Last Friday Nashville‘s sweaty rock Amazon released
her first live album calledATTENTION: MILEY LIVE.
Pitchfork isn’t impressed: “Attention gives a lot of fragments,
but Cyrus can’t pull them together convincingly. All we have are
snapshots of an artist who still can’t tell us what any of them mean.”
Artwork: I guess Cyrus was tired of having her face on
her album covers all the time so she decided to get our
attention this way…
Active: 1970-1980 Albums: 11 ones in 10 years – great work, guys
Artwork: Cover of their 3rd LP Three Friends, released 50 years ago, on 14 April 1972 reflects the albums’ concept stories of three childhood friends whose lives take them
to very different places.
However, each of the three friends are unsatisfied with their new lives. The closing song ends the story on a cliffhanger; whether or not the three friends ever reunite is never revealed.
50 years ago this month, German Krautrock mavericks FAUST released their second LP called SO FAR.
Trouser Press said: “Bizarre little experiments pop up between songs:
overlays of effects-treated guitars and the like, sort of a German analogue
to the Mothers of Invention’s early sound adventures.”
Artwork: A black cover sleeve with band name/LP title on in small letters,
with a black inner sleeve, black labels and a set of inserts with one print for
each song on the album.
So what about the front cover? Cool or not? Amazing or not? Bold or not?
Whatever, Faust‘s music is cool, amazing, and bold.
