Tag: Mercury Rev

Five Lost Albums

I thought I would mix it up this week and look at some treasured records that in my personal view, and for whatever reason, did not receive the acclaim they deserved. I have listed these in chronological order: –

Squirrel Bait – Skag Heaven 1986

Hailing from Louisville, Kentucky they were quantified in the emo/mathcore genre (1983-1988).  Influenced by peers Black Flag and more distinctly Husker Du who they supported. I discovered  them via a Bob Mould quote in the NME singles review ‘as the finest thing he’d ever heard’

This second and final album contains 10 songs but is only 25.45 in length. Standout track is ‘Kid Dynamite’ with bracing intro and alarming refrain ‘I don’t need no pig stomping on my buzz’ and has muttered unintelligible incantations. Others to note are ‘Choose Your Poison’ with Black Sabbath War Pigs intro and ‘Slake Train Coming’ which thunders along.    

The record is scuzzy and full of youthful vigour and dark lyrics. It sounded utterly vibrant as an 18-year old and still holds up to scrutiny now.

Former members played with the Breeders and Lemonheads and original member Britt Walford subsequently formed semi legendary Slint.  

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Squirrel Bait -‘Skag Heaven’ album cover. Image Credit reddit.

Dumptruck – For the Country – 1987

Formed in 1983 in Boston Massachusetts. This was their third album and they decamped to Rockfield Studio in Wales for some solitude to record it. It is country rock in the finest tradition evoking comparisons to Neil Young, Green on Red and Buffalo Tom.

It has a yearning timeless quality and it is a ‘go to’ album for me. Standout tracks are ‘Friends’ ‘Brush me Back’ ‘Hung Out on the Line’ and ‘Dead Weight’.

Through no fault of their own the band got sucked into a record label contract dispute meaning no new material could be recorded and subsequently disbanded in 1991. Half of the band reformed and recorded new material as recent as 2018, but with diminishing returns.

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Dumptruck – ‘for the country’ album cover. Image Credit you tube – Tony Fivek

Joy Zipper – American Whip – 2002

Dream pop duo from New York, Tabitha Tindale and Vincent Cafiso, who are also a married couple.

Album recorded initially in Glasgow and then co-produced and mixed by Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine. It has a wonky sugar-coated beauty with a 60’s vibe and razor-sharp lyrics. Gorgeous sultry vocals complement each other perfectly and it is lovingly recorded. I hear snippets of Mercury Rev, Raveonettes and Velvets in there.  

‘Christmas Song’ could just possibly be the most shimmering gem of a Xmas song ever written. I also like ‘Baby you should know’, ‘33x’ and the fine outro ‘Valley Stream’ book ends the record.

Their last known recorded material was a contribution to a Smith covers album in 2011.

Former Cellmates – Who’s Dead and What’s to Pay 2008

Formed in Sunderland by ex-Leatherface bassist. Leatherface received Husker Du comparisons but I never really saw that link and much prefer this album.

The record could arguably be vaguely derivative at times and I can imagine not to everyone’s tastes but for me it is imbued with a lot of soul and passion and chugs along mercilessly and has a shambolic charm. There is a bit of Buffalo Tom and Springsteen in there and it has a country rock tinge.

Stand out tracks are ‘Always’, ‘Here’s to the Pretty Girls’ and ‘Why would you Pray for Me?’. They recorded 4 albums between 2005 and 2014 and I am not sure whether they are still operational.

Sennen – Where the Light Gets In (2008)

Based in Norwich in 2002 before decamping to London. They are named after a Ride track, and they are the only one of the five listed I have seen live.

I bloody love this band, who have produced five fine albums between 2005 and 2016 and I could have picked any of them but have selected the second album. Strictly in the post-rock shoegazing genre, displaying a hypnotic lush yearning sound, coruscating guitar and whispered harmonies resembling Loop and MBV.

Standouts are ‘Your Hand in Mine’ and ‘A Lifetime Passed’ which are gentler lovely tracks, that recall Teenage Fanclub ‘Grand Prix’ era. Also ‘Just Wanted to Know’ which morphs into a long thunderous outro.

My overall favourite track of theirs is ‘Falling Down’ off third album Age of Denial which builds layer by layer to a tumultuous conclusion, resembling ‘Ithica 27/9’ by Mogwai and ‘Dirge’ by Death in Vegas.

In my humble opinion, they remain the most criminally underrated band I have encountered.

Now, I would be fascinated to know what would be contained on your lost album list, even if you can only think of one.

Manchester Venue 8 – Academy 1

Manchester Academy was built in 1990 about 100 yards from Manchester Students Union on Oxford Road and was renamed as Academy 1 in 2004 when the Academy venues merged. It is the largest of the group with a capacity of 2600, but I have always found it to be an accessible venue and tend to head down the right side to endeavour to have the best vantage of the stage. Generally, though it is a decent view from any area in the venue. The bar by the entrance however is brutally hard to get served.

Since my first visit on 24/05/91 I have attended there 30 times placing it at No 3 on the venues most attended list. That first gig was a starry double bill of Wedding Present and Buffalo Tom and was the first gig where we caught the 1.20am ghost train back. That train became a staple for many years after. I saw the Weddoes there again in 2007.

My next two visits in 1992 and 1993 involved stalking Sugar (Bob Mould’s new band after Husker Du) on their initial tours. The following year I saw Kristin Hersh (previously of Throwing Muses) and remains one of only about five gigs I have ever driven to, because quite frankly why would one want to drive to a gig?

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Sugar publicity pic. Image credit Spin

In the tail end of the 90’s Billy Bragg played twice with a Spiritualised gig in the middle of those two.  In 2000 I had high hopes for Queens of the Stone Age but despite a great first track it disappointedly petered out.

2002 saw Rocket from the Crypt imitators The Hives in town, the gig did not work for me at all. That was followed by two gigs involving legendary bands I had chased for a while, Sonic Youth and Fugazi. Both were excellent but on reflection Fugazi shaded it. The band contained Ian MacKaye (previously of Minor Threat) and they cut an intelligent and engaging presence.

Somewhat unsurprisingly I have caught every Mogwai Manchester date and they graced the stage four times between 2003 and 2011, all of consistently high quality. The only gig I have never attended due to illness was a Hundred Reason show, so I immediately rectified that by catching them on their next tour in 2004.

The Vines and Mercury Rev were splendid gigs and I also saw Go Team and Nine Black Alps there in 2006. Later that year I saw a proper high energy set from the Subways which turned out to be my 100th gig in Manchester.

We went to see Explosions in the Sky in 2008 missing an important North End relegation game against West Brom. We were keeping ourselves updated and confirmation of the final result – a 2-1 win induced whoops of delight which coincided with a very quiet passage on stage generating quizzical looks in our direction from the band!

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Explosions in the Sky on stage. Image credit asialive365.com.

Further gigs followed from Ash, Buzzcocks and Hole. The final one inducing regret that I didn’t see them earlier in their career as their performance felt somewhat staged. The Hold Steady on 10/12/08 was as ever a positively uplifting experience.

I thoroughly enjoyed Eels in 17/03/13 in attendance with super fan Gary Moore who now runs the Schooner pub in Gateshead which stages live music. I have not yet had the opportunity to visit said establishment.

www.theschooner.co.uk

My two most recent gigs there were to see Toots and the Maytals, decent but too quiet and a 25th anniversary gig with Feeder in 2018.