COLDREAMS - Morning Rain 7'' 1986

This is one more interesting slab by this five piece from Clermont-Ferrand and not much is known about Coldreams only they has released one cassette in 1985 ('A Crazy Night') and this damn rare single, their only record, via Rock Hardi. This sound is called coldwave and I don't know what this means. Both songs are pretty minimalistic with no Beethoven bums and are for my taste somehow magical. I like these monotonous rhythms and the guitar dances over it, reminds me of the gloomy albums Faith or Seventeen Seconds by the Cure. Both songs do a decent job and with the female vocals they get delicate spells and relax me fully. 

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AGRIMENSOR K - Principio Y Fin 7'' 1982 + ¿Juegas Al Escondite 7'' 1983

Pressed on the small Spanish label DRO this cold Wave and dark synth band released two rare singles from the other side. Pretty melancholic stuff and the perfect soundtrack for my current mood and I love to listen at the enchanting voice of Ignacio. Agrimensor K (named after Kafka's unfinished novel, the Castle) were Ignacio Valencia & Nacho F. Goberna and came together in San Sebastián and had a short career, they never became satisfied with their attempts to record an album. They also featured on the X-Mas compilation Navidades Radioactivas with one song. The songs are very impulsive and remind me of early Cure in their best days, a unique sound unprecedented in its time. Too bad that the band never got the attention they deserved. Brilliant early Lo-Fi goth from Spain.

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B.TRUG - Lieber Schwierig Als Schmierig 1982

And one more German punk slab from the fucking Rock-O-Rama (RRR14) label and this record comes from a time when the streets create the honest, pure & rough punk sound, far from the self-righteous politicay correct political incorrectness of later productions. Not only the uncompromising sound, but also the lyrics are absolutely authentic. B.Trug were Joe O. (vocals & bass), Jolly (guitars & vocals), Pit (guitars), Susi (drums) and came from the deepest heart of Bavaria, a region called Allgäu, they recorded fourteen solid mangy wild songs in the typical ror sound but the hardness can't cure properly because the sound is peculiarly leaky. According to punk-quality standards, the reason for the disappearance of the group could be mistreated. Too bad, since they have at least laid one of the last legitimate garbage punk classics (Frank Apunkt Schneider, Ventil Verlag 2007). In 2006, Teenage Rebel Records reissued the album. Enjoy this classic, I turn to the next knockout round, Belgium-Japan.

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V/A - Live & Alive [Special] 2017

It's time again to torture you with one of my superfluous self-made compilations and since I'm a Live person, this Machwerk is full with sixteen Alive goodies from bands which I have seen live multiple times, whose records I love and being a constant companion in the past and present. Simply strong songs that impress and touch me or which I just only like. The artwork came on its own and I hope it appeals to you. Take this as a small gift and listen to it while cooking, in the train/plane, while cycling or body sport... made to play loud! 

1.Not Another Hit - DISCO ZOMBIES

2.The Traveller - A FLOCK OF SEAGULLS

3.Remember Tomorrow - IRON MAIDEN

4.Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment - RAMONES

5.Ruperts Grün - TURBOSTAAT

6.A Forest - THE CURE

7.Shot Down In Flames - AC/DC

8.In Shreds - THE CHAMELEONS

9.Chelsea Monday - MARILLION

10.Shadowplay - JOY DIVISION

11.Such A Shame - TALK TALK

12.Halleluja - RAMMSTEIN

13.Staub - MESSER

14.Walking On Both Sides - PINK TURNS BLUE

15.Very Ape - NIRVANA

16.Weiter - EA80

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V/A - Nur So 2016

Nineteen goodies to describe my current feelings...no more, no less - thus it looks. Thx to Sonja for inspiration.

1.Der Kaffee Ist Fertig (Live) - PETER CONELIUS & WERNER SCHMIDBAUER

2.Astradyne - ULTRAVOX

3.Killing An Arab - THE CURE

4.Blister In The Sun - VIOLENT FEMMES

5.Kein Stück - LOVE A

6.The Rain - MORE SONGS ABOUT SEX

7.Zweifel - EA80

8.An Der Bordsteinkante - MUFF POTTER

9.Schwarzer Planet I - KLOTZS

10.Drug Me - DEAD KENNEDYS

11.Spring - RAMMSTEIN

12.Bella Ciao - ANITA LANE

13.Traum Von D. - KARIES

14.Can't Stop Feeling - FRANZ FERDINAND

15.Good Times - PINK TURNS BLUE

16.Ausspucken - BEN RACKEN

17.Eisenmann - TURBOSTAAT

18.Das Sind Geschichten - FEHLFARBEN

19.Nur So - ELEMENT OF CRIME

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TAPPI TÍKARRAASS - Miranda 1983

Tappi Tíkarrass was a famous Icelandic punk/pop band and the name Tappi Tíkarrass, which in Icelandic means “Cork The Bitch’s Ass” was given after Jakob’s father claimed that the band’s music “fitted like a cork in a bitch’s ass”. Tappi Tíkarrass combined elements of punk and pop music to create an exotic post punk with references to Siouxsie and the Banshees and the first stage of The Cure. Miranda was released in December 1983 and with this album the band switched their music style to more pop melodies and mellow songs counteracting their previous punkish Bítið Fast í Vítið EP in 1982. Also in this album, vocalist Eyþór Árnalds was replaced in most of the songs, performing only two tracks: the title song and another version called “Mýrin Andar”. The inner sleeve featured handwritten lyrics of “Mýrin Andar” and a black and white child illustration by Björk. All in all a nice album with fourteen poppy songs, not bad.

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HALF LIFE - Under The Knife EP 1986

Four piece from Pittsburgh who were active in the Eighties and Half Life consisted of Jeff (vocals), Vince (guitar), Mike (bass), Damon (drums) and this is their debut 7Inch on Mind Cure Records with four perfect smasher. A review: "One of the better sounding domestic HC releases in a while. Good power and production on all four tracks, and although it’s mainly generic metal-influenced hardcore, there’s a gripping urgency that carries it off. Lyrics are pretty bleak, although “Consider The Alternative” offers some hopeful thought." (Tim Yohannan, MRR #45 • February 1987) In addition to their first demo from 1985, they have each released two 7Inches and albums, featured on some good Compilations as well, and in 2002 the last testament was brought via Stab Wound in form of a CD with the nostalgic name All Our Yesterdays which definitely sounds interesting. Fazit: cool record in every way and I hope, I can spend more time with the blog this fucking weekend.

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DIE GOLDENEN ZITRONEN - Doris Ist In Der Gang EP 1986

Punkrock with humorous, sometimes nasty, schlager-like lyrics are the trademarks of Die Goldenen Zitronen from Hamburg, and their motivation and ideals come in the heavily politicized Hamburg of the 1980s. Founded in 1984, the Zitronen are delighted to immerse themselves in the counterculture of the squatter scene in Hafenstrasse. At the same time, they plunge headlong into the no longer entirely new, but also by no means dead world of punk rock. And they prove this very well with their first records. Doris is, I think, their first single, that was pressed on their own Zitronenterror label, with four fantastic, sometimes funny numbers, which usher in the long Whitsun weekend with an atmospheric way. Don't miss their debut album Porsche, Genscher, Hallo HSV to come into the right holiday mood. I still have some housework to do before I go to a cure for a week, but don't worry, I continue with more stuff that is worth listening to.

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THE ESTRANGED - Static Thoughts 2008

Yesterday I was at a gig from The Outcasts and it was a damn cool evening. Superb action and I want to post a record from them but I have nothing, haha....what a disgrace! Well, instead this great one: The Estranged are a post-punk band from Portland, Oregon. They started out in 2006. They play dark and foreboding guitar driven music with a relentless sense of urgency in a similar vein to The Wipers, Wire, Joy Division and The Cure. With their 1st album Static Thoughts, The Estranged attempt to combine the volatile combination of post-punk and punk with positive results on the whole. The album could have been a disaster on the scale of the Hindenburg, but instead is a balanced combination of contemporary post-punk songs that rely on traditional punk rock’s finer cornerstones - two to three minute numbers that are fast, simple, catchy, and - in this case - bleak. Indeed, Static Thoughts is more than a throwback to a deceased genre; The Estranged cultivate their bleak post-punk sound with a heavy lean on punk rock giving the often angsty music a much needed rainy day. Crossing musical genre’s is a risky but this album is clever, quick and done with so much gusto so that the crossover is not even felt. (Justin) Great record!

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BAICAL - Euphoria 12'' 2017

Today I introduce you to an interesting German band whose music is suitable for every conceivable moment and first of all I would like to thank iNgo for this tip and I would like to quote a few lines from their Bandcamp home: Baical are a three piece band based in Leipzig, Germany, dedicated to translating their emotional experiences into expressive and ethereal music of the goth, new wave and pop persuasion. Influenced by some of the most prominent alternative bands of the 1980s, they have been inspired by the finest aspects of these groups yet their fresh approach offers a new chapter for fans of this style. When they formed in 2017, they quickly got to work creating their debut EP, Euphoria, (300 copies) which was written in a basement over the course of two days during a cold winter. The forbidding seasonal state left an impression on their music that seems to have carried throughout their sound, blending sadness with beauty. Playing shows with Belgrado, Soviet Soviet and Bleib Modern cemented the strength of their songs and gained them further recognition. The following year, members Richard, Chris and Willi, recorded the album Funeral Party with producer Magnus Wichmann at Lala Studios in Leipzig. The result is a modern high quality sound that does justice to the strength of their songwriting. Featuring chorus saturated guitar tones reminiscent of the Cure and an authentically 80s drum sound, these finer details all come together to form a unified and harmonious debut release. The album is full of catchy hooks, luscious melodies, and even contains some dance friendly grooves.

Well I enjoy this band and while their music may seem very dark it is uplifting and full of positive vibes and I'm sure they will find many friends with their sound. TOP!

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LES LORDS - 1979-1980

 

The working year 2020 is over and four days off are comin'. Let's see, how I will end it musically and the opener is a treat, and this slab was released by Vidi Vici Records 2013 in edition of 300 copies. The Les Lords were Britz (vocals), Richard & Fifi (guitars), Laurent (bass), Lelett' (drums) and founded 1979 in Caen. And since nobody knows these guys until now, it is time for detailed information from the great creators of 45vinylvidivici which I would like to quote at this point:

1979: The musicians of the Caen punk group R.A.S. are orphans of a decaying movement. Britz, the singer-songwriter, mourns Sid Vicious. The others are starting to clearly prefer the power-pop energy of Jam, Skids, XTC or 999 to the neo-baba wanderings of the Cure or other Simple Minds.

The 60’s aesthetic and winks of the Who are already very present in punk, from black suits and string ties to the T-shirt with cockade of Billy Idol (Your Generation). Not to mention the Jam, of course. But when some members of R.S. land in Britain, it’s the shock. This one lives at the hour of "Mod Maydays", powerful revival which creates its own underground scene (Merton Parkas, Chords, Mo-Dettes, Squire...) in reaction to a punk now in the process of integration. "We hate the punk elite" sings Ian Page of Secret Affair. The musicians of R.A.S. are conquered, shop at Carnaby Street and return to Caen to tell friends about London news. The group is prompt renamed Les Lords.

As a result of this radical turn on the aesthetic level (because the songs remain the same) it appears fairly quickly that everyone gets into the idea of breaking their mouths, starting with the hard core of punks, more and more more influenced by the skinhead renewal and the “OI” wave. During the Lords' second concert in Lisieux, the skins came in force and have every intention of pissing off as much as possible. The chairs fly and the fans fall back on stage, somehow trying to send them away while the group continues to play. Arrival of the constabulary and relighting of the lights. We resume all the same and the Lords end in apotheosis by a resumption of "My Generation" of Who respecting to the letter the spirit of the original, that is to say accompanied by a methodical destruction of the material and the overturning of the columns sound system. Lying on the ground, arms outstretched to hold the

sound system lying on him and not to perish crushed, its owner, an old baba, manages to whisper "it's great, it's great...".

Great it is. The Lords continue the momentum of the most fit but harmonically rich punk, say Generation X to locate, incorporating 60’s influences, pre-psychedelic reminiscences (Creation, Move) and especially by tracing a new road, theirs. The group does quite a few covers: the instrumental The Persuaders ("Amically Your") as a concert intro, "For Your Love" by the Yardbirds mid-set and "My Generation" as a reminder. For the rest, it's a slaughter: slamming drums, metallic and melodic Rickenbacker bass, rhythmic Gibson "sound wall", dazzling escapades from the soloist on Telecaster. And there is the front man, with limited vocal capacities but remarkable texts and unparalleled charisma. It was obvious to who had once seen these kids in concert that they had fantastic potential. Because these are kids we are talking about, 17 years old at the time of history and just over 18 when it ended. Not really a "sex, drugs and rock n’roll" story, shot by the punk generation. No, just another story of tormented and rebellious teenagers. A story of music lovers who convert Gérald, the full barter shop of Throbbing Gristle to boots and frilled shirts. In return, he introduces them to Kinks and Small Faces, but also Real Kids, Charlie Mingus, Faust or Mother’s Finest. It is a story of rain (Normandy...), at night, of endless walking. Mopeds were rare, so scooters... It’s a story of cavalcades and frantic leaks, in the sad France of the end of the seventies whose "peripheral rascals" were so well sung by Renaud at the time.

On this front the Lords take radical measures by weaving an alliance with the gypsies, which allows to calm quickly done well the skins and to bring them back to feelings of healthy camaraderie. As for the neo-Mod movement, it is developing like wildfire. In two strokes of a pot spoon, there are more than 200 Mods in Caen. Punks converted after concerts, fans of the Specials or Joe Jackson, high school students who wanted to piss off their parents. Barely 16 years old, Laurence gives up everything to join Fifi, the rhythm guitarist of the Lords and returns on a scooter at the end of the hutch to give the teachers honor by shouting "We Are Mods", as in Quadrophenia. Britz, Laurent and I are going to see the film dozens of times at the cinema of the Carrefour shopping center, in Hérouville, one of the working-class suburbs of Caen. So we pass and we pass again in front of a band of thugs, "Arabs" as they said at the time, who stagnate on the benches of the shopping center and do not take long to look for the fight. It degenerates for good and ends with a punch outside. "We are the Mods"! Impressed, the most devious of the so-called "Arabs" quickly bought a costume and asked to join the mods.

In Caen, these are a mass movement from the proletariat, the working masses. With guys who in case of confusion are more quick to fight than to parley... There is José who fights after the group has won the French flags in a party on July 14, Franck says "Barjot" the former rocker and fisherman, "Clash" who crushes my parents' flowers in a Vespa and shoots the rockies on Saturday afternoon in the middle of traffic jams, with a WWII Luger. And then other groups that are formed: Dandys, Holly Boys and Neckties. These are 13-14 year olds who have had little time to learn English. Suddenly they proudly adapt the Who in French, "I Can’t Explain" becoming "the Caennais complain."

The Lords play in Paris at Golf Drouot. They finish well last of the "springboard rock" but fuck a happy mess and meet that evening the fabulous Stunners. A core of Parisian fans of the Lords is formed around Laurent ("Stax"), Denis, Thierry and soon Patrice Bertrand, former Hells Angel turned Mod who sells US garage rock records in the Scooter shop in Les Halles. The Lords don't pretend. They provide the first part of the Olivensteins whose equipment they demolish ("My Generation"), the Dogs from which they steal the show and a whole bunch of others. They make all the fire, open for Valérie Lagrange and even go on tour for a few dates opening for Caravan, an old British progressive rock band.

Soon the mod-revival spreads in Paris then in the provinces. Lords are heroes and kings, but there is a misunderstanding. Basically they have little to do with twinks disguising themselves as twist dancers, petty bourgeois in polka dot dresses and groups making desperate efforts to sound "garage". In fact, while the Parisian skins led by Farid - a ringworm - are having fun persecuting this bunch of little wankers from fine neighborhoods, they carefully avoid attacking anyone who wears a "Caen" patch on their jacket. Britz and the hard wing of the Caennais accentuate the demarcation with the installers by calling themselves "Glory Boys" and adopting black shirts and white ties. But hey, it's all starting to go around in circles. Especially since despite their multiple trips back and forth in the capital, where I settle as a manager, the Lords are still out of recording contract. There are indeed some contacts with Antoine De Caunes, Marc Zermati or Patrick Eudeline, the tour of record companies, a photo in the monthly Best, but nothing comes out. Meanwhile, the sken-mod conglomerate of Caen feels winged. After two years of intensive fights against rockers (very bad in those distant times) and all that hung around as thugs in the Normandy countryside, these became real terrors. Wounds that set everything on fire and blood during the Jam concert in Rouen. The Lords are victims of Sham 69 syndrome: overwhelmed by the movement they have instigated and the excesses of their audience.

The tension rises with the rhythm, Fifi, a simple heart. Then with the bass player who stands in solidarity with him. Finally with Britz Notre Dame, icon of mods, always so frosty and uncontrollable who does not want to understand that such a radical trip cuts the group from a wider audience. In a few weeks everything crumbles. Fifi and Laurent will try their luck with another group. Britz moved to Paris where he succeeded in a few months in transforming a gang of Daddy's sons into a respected gang. Richard and Denis recruit a bass player and pursue the Lords in the form of a blazing power trio.

In the end, there will be nothing but wonderful memories and rehearsal recordings from this brief epic, in mini-cassette. Despite their obvious limitations, they will no doubt give a better idea of what the Lords were than the album they would have done at the time on a major, under the guidance of a survivor of the yéyé who was converted into a producer. And the fact that more than thirty years later RAS or Les Lords are arousing interest shows that at least the flame has been transmitted. So all is well that ends well. Raymond Debord (Summer 2013)

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ABWÄRTS - Der Westen Ist Einsam 1982

An album that I haven't heard for a long time and thanks to iNgo, I dug up this nugget and realize how great this stuff is, the second Abwärts album. It sounds somber and darker than anything that previously appeared from the four, and can certainly be viewed in the context of the emerging Gothic culture. Critics put it in line with releases by British post-punk bands such as Theatre Of Hate and Killing Joke. Band boss Frank Ziegert confessed in an interview with Diedrich Diederichsen in 1988 that Abwärts had to a certain extent been forced by the punk audience at the beginning of the 1980s not to present any sophisticated compositions: “[…] we were literally afraid to make music. Everything always had to be hard, that was the word: hard. We increased ourselves into a senseless aggressiveness that had nothing to do with us at all, I wasn't really tough all the time and neither were the others." Unsatisfied with the care of their previous independent label ZickZack Platten, the group wanted to work more professionally and offer their next album to a major label. Work on it began in the autumn of 1981 at Hafenklang Studio Hamburg. A whole month of self-financed and self-produced studio recordings was followed by a week of mixing at The Town House in London by producer Nick Launay. At the end of 1981 the album was finished, which was then offered to various record companies for publication. For an advance payment of allegedly 50.000 DM, the band finally signed with the German major label Phonogram which released first the Beirut, Holiday Inn 12" with four tracks. "Der Westen Ist Einsam" is the first band release without Margita Haberland, who left the group in 1981.

The album was released in April 1982. For publication, they went from May 11th to June 13th 1982 on an extensive tour with side trips to Switzerland and Amsterdam. The group made a spectacular appearance at the Münchner-Rocktage-Festival, at which FM Einheit destroyed parts of the stage structure. At some concerts, the newly founded Toten Hosen played the supporting act. Down, in turn, was hired as the opening act for The Cure tour. On the title "Beim Ersten Mal Tut's Immer Weh", Muscha and Trini Trimpop produced a video clip and the group even published a homestory in the youth magazine Bravo. Despite all of this, the album did not achieve the sales figures we had hoped for. As a result, FM Einheit and Marc Chung left the band for good to concentrate on the Einstürzende Neubauten, of which they had already joined as full members in 1981. In addition, drug problems also led the band to bury themselves for the first time. - And now: Bundesliga ⚽

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CRANES - Adoration 7'' 1991

Now we take the tempo a bit down and come to a band that I really adore. Formed in 1986 in Portsmouth/England by siblings Alison and Jim Shaw, and named after the many mechanical cranes around the city's docks, Cranes are best known for the childlike, high-pitched vocals of lead singer Alison. Cranes are a UK band often remembered for touring the USA with The Cure in 1992. Since then they have acquired a loyal fan base around the world, who seem to find perfection in everything they do - whether it be fierce, sometimes stark guitar sounds of early albums like Wings Of Joy, Forever or folk-inspired Future Songs release. Cranes first album Self Non Self had a peculiar intensity which seemed all the more unusual at the time. John Peel picked up on the album right away, with the group recording a session for him in the album's first week of release. Some intense media interest followed and shortly afterwards the group signed to Dedicated-BMG and went on to record a lot of beautiful albums.

The band's music has been described as "gothic minimalism", although the band themselves disputed the 'gothic' tag. They have also been described as dream pop. In the early 1990s they were briefly lumped in with the "shoegazing" bands of the era. Much has been made of Alison Shaw's vocals, with descriptions ranging from "the helium tones of a small child", "baby-doll-voiced", and "a mewling, childish wisp of a voice". One reviewer described the band: "Imagine a small child singing lullabies at the bottom of the well with a background of grinding guitars".

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DIE BLUMEN DES BÖSEN - Übermut Werde Spaten 1995

80s punk combined with wave influences, that's the sound of Die Blumen Des Bösen, founded in 1992 in the southwest German province and named after the poetry book of the same name by Charles Baudelaire. They could never describe their music and the influences are varied: punk, new wave, C-86 guitar pop and much more. Striking in the early years was the tender voice of Marty. Over time it came to frequent cast changes, including Marty left the band and was replaced by a male successor. Despite all the changes, they were productive over the years, released a total of three albums and gave concerts in Germany and France. After a last tour in Germany fall 1999 as opening act of the Fliehende Stürme, it became quiet around the flowers. In 2000 they finally withered and 3/4 of the members founded the new band Dot-Commando. Übermut Werde Spaten is their debut album on Kaktus Records and we enjoy fifteen melancholy beats, including a nice cover of a Cure song in Spanish, plus an awesome one from Loonatik which is written by the Blumen and presented in their version, grandiose! Altogether a very nice album what the four recorded in my opinion.

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