get down on it!

Following receipt of the RSAG album, Organic Sampler, and having listened to it a number of times, I can now tell you what I initially suspected about it. It’s brilliant. It has the same edginess to it that the live shows do. It’s the bee’s knees and the dog’s bollocks all mixed in together and appearing as one giant mutated organic form. It reminds me of Talking Heads in places, Was Not Was in other places and like stuff I’ve never heard at all, in other places.

In terms of new vinyl coming my way it’s been a slow few days. I picked up a couple of things in the last while but never got round to writing about them.

There have been very rich pickings on the second hand vinyl front. There was a deluge of second-hand stuff into Oxfam on Georges Street today. At one point myself and about five others were acting like some humanitarian packages had been dropped in to the shop. There was a bit of pushing and shoving between us in order to get what we need to survive. As it turns out the crush between people need not have happened. We were all after very different stuff. It truly is the case that one man’s meat is another man’s poison. Or one man’s Prefab Sprout is another man’s James Last. I was looking at the shit records other people were picking and sniggering to myself. I imagine that they were doing the same when they saw I had the following:

Fables of the Reconstruction – REM
This is the third studio album from REM and was released in 1985 on IRS Records. Along with Murmur and Reckoning this charts the earlier sound of REM. It certainly bears little resemblance to the most of the albums that followed. I like it exactly because of that. I’m a big fan of the first three albums but that said I also like most of the stuff that followed. Actually that’s a bit of a fib, the only ones after this that I like are Document and Green.

Love and Dancing – The Human League
This is the famed collection of 12” remix instrumental versions of the Dare album. I already have it a couple of times so I gave this copy to a mate. It turns out he already has it so he’s giving it to someone else. It’s a gift that just keeps giving. Super.

Steve Mc Queen – Prefab Sprout
I had this on vinyl and then it disappeared. Thankfully I now have it again. This is without doubt the best Prefab Sprout album ever, which in real terms isn’t actually saying much because all their other ones are pretty bad (except maybe ‘Swoon’). It includes some of their best ever tunes such as ‘When love breaks down’ and ‘Faron Young’.

Duel – Propaganda
This is taken from their album ‘A Secret Wish’ released on Trevor Horn’s ZTT label in 1985. The band themselves hailed from Dusseldorf in Germany and included amongst them an ex-member of Die Krupps. This was their only tune worth talking about and I bought it today in a fit of nostalgia. As it turns out, it’s not as good as I remembered it. Oh well.

Sidewalking – The Jesus & Mary Chain
This little seven inch was hidden amongst a load of albums. I always took JAMC with a pinch of salt and never bought into the wall of sound shit that they peddled. This same marketing technique is currently being used by Glasvegas. Put simply, some Phil Spector style production and some whining Scottish vocals does not equal great music. It usually equals something bad. This wasn’t always the case with JAMC. They did release some good tunes in the course of their early years but these truly were few and far between. ‘Sidewalking’ which featured on the ‘Barbed Wire Kisses’ album is one of the few that’s good.

The Story of Tron – Readalong adventure
This seven-inch was released by Walt Disney Productions in conjunction with Buena Vista Records back in 1982. It is a seven-inch piece of vinyl with an accompanying 24-page illustrated booklet. It’s a reminder of the type of merchandise that would be released in conjunction with movies back in those days. The wonderful innocence of a record and story that you would read along to is probably not something that today’s kids would be interested in. I have a passion for this kind of tat so I’m delighted with it.

I also bought a new seven inch release from an Icelandic songstress, Emiliana Torrini, which happens to be very nice. The b-side has a remix by Manasseh.

I hit the bargain basements in some record stores and unearthed the following seven inch gems for minimal cash. 'Out come the Freaks' by Was Not Was was the first up. It's an old eighties tune by a bunch of mad dudes led by the Was brothers. Next out was Quadrophonia by Quadrophonia. This brought back memories of a dance off between myself and a bloke called Stef years ago. It's fair to say that Stef won the dance off but he also introduced me to a lots of rave and breakbeat music. Another find was 'America: What Time is Love' by The KLF. The last two were for the wedding collection of seven inches that I'm building. Two dancefloor classics in 'Tainted Love' by Soft Cell and 'Get Down On It' by Kool & The Gang.

the squat pen rests, snug as a gun

I picked up a Gilles Peterson compilation in All City Records the other day. Digs America II is made up of a load of tracks from Peterson's Brownswood Basement and includes lots of tunes that he bought in the US. The pictures of him on the front and back cover were taken in Village Music, a California record store that closed in September 2007. As someone who loves to dig in the crates, I firstly envy Gilles his numerous opportunities to fly around the world record shopping and secondly feel a pang when I hear a record store such as Village Music closes it doors. I'm sure that there were many reasons for its closure but I can only suppose that amongst them was the modern way of sourcing music, the internet. Why spend a day rooting around a dusty record store when you can download it or order it online.? On a personal level I find it's a more satisfying experience when you discover a piece of vinyl in a record store, charity shop, jumble sale or wherever else. But I would say that.

Speaking of turning up some old gems, I picked up a second-hand copy of the 2002 album, Point, by Cornelius. It was released on Matador Records and it truly is the business. I've mentioned Cornelius here before but for those who forget, he hails from Japan and has a great knack for composing electronic gems. The album cover itself is fairly humdrum but when I went to put the record back into it I noticed that the inside of the sleeve has pictures on it. It looks like a Japanese streetscape but its a a bit hard to be sure. Check out Point of View Point and Drop on his myspace as both tunes feature on the album.

I picked up another Lee Fields tune on seven inch from 2007 called 'My World' which features another killer tune, Love Comes and Goes, on the flip. The stuff that he's putting out sounds like Gilles Peterson dug it out of a record store like Village Music. After doing a little research (i.e. googling) I found that Lee released his first seven inch in 1973 but for some reason dropped off the radar around 1984 and then resurfaced with a release on the DapTone label in 2000. I for one am glad he's back. If you think you'd like to sample some of Mr Fields magic then you should get his soon to be released album 'The Many Moods Of Lee Fields' on Truth & Soul Records.

Finally, I bought a seven inch from 2007 on the Morr Music label by a band called Seavault. A quick visit to their MySpace showed that Seavault are no other than Antony Ryan from ISAN and Simon Scott from Slowdive. Slowdive were a bunch of shoegazers who were on the Creation label from 1989 to the mid-nineties. This might explain why Seavault have chosen to cover a tune from 1988 by Ultra Vivid Scene called Mercy Seat. I was in a band at the same time and we would all have been listening to UVS and digging them. UVS are really a bloke called Kurt Ralske. After I bought the seven inch I got to thinking about what happened to Kurt Ralske? A quick google brought me up to speed on his whereabouts and his current occupation. It turns out that he was a bit interested in audio-visual installations and related programming matters. So much so that he developed a piece of video software called Auvi , that's used by lots of people who move in those kind of circles. He's created installations and exhibited his work in places like the Guggenheim in Bilbao, the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art the Montreal Museum of Contemporary Art and has a permanent display in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. What a guy! Here's the original Mercy Seat interspersed with an interview with the man himself.

UPDATE: I was over on MP3hugger's site and knew that he'd have been digging Ultra Vivid Scene back in the day. I found this post about what happened to all the members of Slowdive. Check it.

strictly vibes

There's nothing quite like some silence in order to ponder the grander aspects of life. I've been pretty busy front-loading the rearing of my latest offspring. Like any project it's easier to do the graft at the start in order to allow for an easy run in later on. That's been the case with the latest little fella. After eight weeks of intensive parenting the results are beginning to show. He's already managed to sleep through the night for the last few evenings. Apparently some parents have not experienced this event until their kids are one and sometimes two years old. I've several theories on this but this is a music blog and I don't want to elicit the wrath of any parents who can only begrudge my skilful rearing of children. All four so far were sleeping through the night by about eight weeks old. Anyway this paragraph so far has merely served to act as an excuse for not posting as regularly as I usually would. Then again I'm not sure why I'm even excusing myself, you're getting all this for free in any case.

I have managed to pick up a few things over the last week or so. The first I should mention is the new album by M83 which is a throwback to a mix of several sounds of my youth. There's loads of reviews of it already so go and read them instead.

I'll go through some of the more recent releases on the seven inch format that I've picked up. The first comes from a band who seem fond of some choice language given that they're called 'Holy Fuck'. They hail from Toronto, I believe, and they're the latest craze if the music press are to be believed. You can read an interview with them in the online edition of new Irish music magazine, State. The a-side is called 'Lovely Allen' and its a nice job but I'm more fond of the b-side which has a tune called 'Super Inuit' on it. It reminds me of seventies kraut-rock a la Neu. It's a great tune.

Next up is a tune that was released a couple of weeks ago. Its reminiscent of some dreamy pop from another age. There's a great synth hook that runs most of the way through it. It's unnoticeable at first but have a closer listen and you'll see what I mean. It's called 'Happiness' and is the latest release from Goldfrapp. The flip side has a great remix by Metronomy.

Another band that I've seen a lot written about is Neon Neon, a collaboration between Super Furry Animals frontman Gruff Rhys and freaky beatmeister Boom Bip. It's another one that is like a throwback to the early eighties synth laden pop of Vince Clark. It's a very simple affair and therin lies its beauty. I've yet to listen to the rest of the album so I'm not sure if the beauty would extend to a full album of similar material. The b-side is a remix of the tune that adds a bit of Afrika Bambataa and Jan Hammer into the mix. Heavier beats and and a meatier synth riff are the order of the day.

I also picked up a few older tunes, the first being the timeless classic, 'Everybody Dance' by Chic. It's a bit crackly but it still rocks the joint. They knew how to write a bassline back in those days. I also bought 'Sixteen' by Musical Youth. This tune features Jody Watley on guest vocals, is from around 1983 and was penned by Motown legend Lamont Dozier. It's a nice slice of lovers rock but the b-side is much better. It's called Strictly Vibes and was written and produced by the band themselves and iot doesn't feature on any of their other records. It's a fair reflection of what the band were about.

The last two records of any note are a re-pressing of 'You showed me' by The Turtles and a reggae reworking of 'What's going on'. The first tune might be known to a lot of my generation as it was covered by The Lightning Seeds. Broudie did a grand version, but to be honest, when you compare it to the original its pretty lame. The second tune is a kind of soul reggae mashup but it somehow works. The b-side is another mashup featuring Edwin Starr's War and Sean Paul's Gimme the Light. Its fucked up but I like it too.

The 80's Pop Pickers Podcast

This podcast was inspired by a post over at www.nialler9.com From nowhere people started to admit to certain a guilty pleasure they got from listening to particular tunes from the 1980's. Always a keen member of the nostalgia brigade I decided to dig through some boxes of seven inches from the eighties. This isn't a favourite top ten by any means but is instead intended as a representation of the stuff that really defined the charts during the period in question. Enjoy the trip down memory lane. If you enjoy it then go and buy one of those cheap compilations available in all good supermarkets. Better still you could offer to buy all mine from me.

The 80's Pop Pickers Podcast


1. Pop Musik – M

This one just manages to sum up the eighties for me. Perfect pop.

2. Living it Up – Level 42

I used to hate this band when this was released. Some pasty faced blokes trying to reinvent white soul music in the UK. That said I’ve revised my thinking considerably. It’s great.

3. Owner of a Lonely Heart – Yes

A great rock-pop crossover at the time. The production is great. The sound is set in a distinct time and place, a place that Yes never really managed to revisit. Pity.

4. Teardrops – Womack & Womack

The girls always loved this one. That’s enough reason to merit its inclusion.

5. Dancehall Days – Wang Chung

This reminds me of MT USA. I’m sorry that I didn’t include the Safety Dance by Men without Hats. I always associate the two songs together for some reason. Don’t know why.

6. All Night Long – Lionel Richie

The original soul-glo star of the eighties, Lionel really had it going on for a while. He had a succession of huge hits like that ‘Hello’ tune. In the video the chick made a hilarious bust of Lionel out of clay. It was a toss-up to include this tune or Dancing on the Ceiling but this one won out on account of it being just cheesey and great. But so is the other one you say!

7. I can’t go for that – Hall & Oates

I’m not sure how this one snuck onto the podcast but I decided to leave it in. I was never a huge fan of these chaps. The blonde one always reminded me of a mulleted mate and the little one always reminded me of one of the guys from Cannon & Ball. That doesn’t quite paint a delightful picture in the mind but the tune is good in a typical eighties kind of way. We were satisfied with less in those days.

8. State of Independence – Donna Summer

This tune really owes everything to the Quincy Jones production on it. The guy was on fire back in the eighties producing stuff like this as well as the Thriller album by Michael Jackson. It’s not really fast enough to get a dancefloor rocking but it still deserves its place in pop history.

9. Joe Le Taxi – Vanessa Paradis

Vanessa appeared on Top of the Pops singing this and I was smitten. I harboured thoughts of marrying her for several years but when you’re vying against Lenny Kravitz and Johnny Depp you realise you’ve got to give the game up. I learnt all the lyrics to this and its only recently I translated them. As it turns out its brilliantly nonsensical.

10. Sledgehammer – Peter Gabriel

Although Peter Gabriel put out an unholy amount of shite back in the eighties he did manage to release this piece of genuine brilliance. It was accompanied by a groundbreaking video that was the toast of MTV for a long time. I’ve never really wondered what the lyrics are about so I must give them a proper listen one of these days. Or else someone else might want to listen and leave a quick synopsis in the comment box.

whiskey on a sunday

Sunday Best Records have been knocking out the seven inches by the dozen over the last few months. One of their latest releases is 'Animal Sounds' by Grand National. For this one they've raided Human Leagues studio and robbed what sounds like an old eighties Fairlight synthesiser. It's an altogether low-key affair that I didn't like on the first listen but since then its really grown on me. It's such a slow builder and the build of the song is somewhat reminiscent of the low-key build up on Sweet Harmony by The Beloved. Of course it sounds nothing like that tune but there are similarities in the undercurrents of both tunes. The B-side features a remix by Fear of Theydon and it takes the low-keyness, takes a beat, layers it with some dinky keyboard sounds and turns it into quite a groover.

Another seven that I picked up is the second part of a two-part release by The Little Ones. It's two remixes of their latest single 'Ordinary Song' on Heavenly Records. The first remix is by X-Press 2 and it's a full on, four to the floor tune. The flip-side is a remix by Electrelane, a band that I enjoyed at last years Electric Picnic. It couldn't be more different than the X-Press version. This one is a simple guitar riff overlayed with an ethereal sound that is reminiscent of listening to the Cocteau Twins play in the next room. It's all a bit spacey. I like it though.

I've been breaking my nuts trying to get a seven inch copy of 'It must be love' by Labi Siffre. I've ordered it online twice only to be told that they didn't have it. I've a funny feeling that I actually have a copy already but I haven't found that yet. Instead I picked up 'Too Late' by Labi and its the business. Its like an old bluebeat tune. Simple off-beat guitar riff and Mr Siffre's dulcet tones. I love it. J'adore.

In the same secondhand shop I chanced upon the second seven inch release on the Trensmat label. I've mentioned these quite recently and I'm also awaiting delivery of their two latest releases. The seven i picked up is by a band called 'Mugstar' and to be honest this is pretty full on prog. I'm not sure which tune is on which side, but the one that I like is fucking rocking and I'm not pushed on the other one.

The latest from Tiny Masters of Today is released on Mute Records and is called 'Hologram World'. Its an infectious little garage punk-pop ditty. I can't really say much more about it.

Brass in Africa was released on seven inch in 2007 but I only heard it today for the first time. Its by Hypnotic Brass Ensemble and released on Handcuts Records, a Tokyo based label and shop. It's a reworking of Shaft in Africa (from the movie soundtrack of the same name) and it's funky to bits. It has all the urgency of the original tune and a lot more.

Last but not least is a 2007 release from Cucumber on Cosmic Groove, the French shop and record label. It's a complete sixties groove on the a-side 'It's Hippopotime' with a little bit of scratching and what sounds like a kazoo in the background. You feel like you're in a sonic advertisement. There's a bell chiming in the background that reminds me of a song used in a recent advert for somethin I don't remember. The b-side is a bit more brassy sounding with a wah-wah guitar running through it. It's all starting to sound like a psychedelic extravaganza.

I was watching Other Voices during the week and Interference were on it. I was only wondering what happened to them and indeed posed the question on this blog very recently. They never went away you know, or if they did, it wasn't too far. I remember seeing them play a lunchtime gig in Merrion Square and the same series of gigs also saw The Frames play the same venue. Coincidentally, Glen Hansard from The Frames was also on the Other Voices show. Glen is starting to look too much like Avid Merrion for my comfort. Someone should tell him.

oxfam shops are great (apparently)

I popped into Oxfam on my rounds of the record stores today. It was unusual to go into the shop and see a Roma gypsy woman test driving an accordian but that was what i saw. I'm not sure if she bought it but she banged out a few tunes on it before she left.

In the meantime I was sorting through someones 1980's reggae related cast-offs. There was loads of old UB40 stuff but I have it all so I left it for others. I did manage to pick up the 12" of Can't get used to losing you by The Beat. It features Mirror in the Bathroom on the b-side and was a veritable steal at only €2.

The next in the bag was the 12" of Dub be good to me by Beats International. I'm pretty sure that I have it already but i had to get it again for the instrumental on the b-side. Classic stuff.

My final purchase is another record that I have several versions of but I was hooked by the unfamiliar 'America Remix' on the b-side. The piece of vinyl in question is the 12" version of Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant and the unfamiliar version on the flipside is 'Walking on Sunshine'. As it turns out it sounds very much like most of the other versions of it. It's still brilliant though.


On a different topic, I was looking down at the referrer thing down the page and saw a link from Daily Music Blogspot. If you're into seventies prog rock then it could be the site to satisfy you.

Matt's Vinyl Choices

I've noticed that I've tended to stray off topic in this blog. It seems to have turned from musical matters to national politics judging by the last post. What's that all about? Today I've decided to let you in to the private record collection of Matt Vinyl to give an insight into those tunes that Matt considers to be choice cuts. Where do I start though? At the beginning I suppose:

Funnily enough I'd bought a few records as a young kid. One of the first I remember was a tune called 'Ten Little Indians'when I was about 7 years old. When I googled it I found out that The Beach Boys recorded a song of the same name. I wonder if that's the one I had? I doubt it. The first 7" that I remember buying in my very early teens was 'Hangin on a String' by a British band called Loose Ends in 1985. I still have and I still play it. Apparently Loose Ends are still playing.

Those early days were steeped in pop music and I have still retain a penchant for such. Only recently I bought another 7" from 1985 by The Jets called 'Crush on You'. It's cheesy as hell but I still think it rocks. Check out The Jets doing their thing back in the old days of bad haircuts, leggings and lurid coloured clothing. Hold on, that sounds like now! Maybe The Jets will make a comeback.



On an unrelated matter it appears that bloggers like myself are undermining or challenging many of our most cherished political, cultural and economic principles. The man with this idea is Andrew Keen and he's published a book called 'The Cult of the Amateur'. A book! How 1980's! He probably likes The Jets too. Mind you, he's probably right about me undermining cultural principles. Usually my own.