Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #20: The Psychedelic Furs eponymous debut

 



Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #19: The Smiths' eponymous debut

 



Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #18: The Associates 'Fourth Drawer Down'

 



Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #16: The Icicle Works' eponymous debut

Today featuring The Icicle Works’ maiden LP, another veritable classic from Liverpool’s musical conveyor belt of the times, standing up there along with ‘Ocean Rain’, ‘Kilimanjaro’ & others, having weathered the test of time to sound as wonderful & affecting now as it did back in 1984, age having not tarnished its young man's dreams & passions, all the way through from the mighty ‘Chop the Tree’ (what an introduction to an album) to ‘Nirvana’, with many highlights during its course, including the perennial particular favourite ‘Out of Season’.  Obviously another essential addition to the collection...

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #15: The Teardrop Explodes 'Kilimanjaro.'

Today we present the fruit of a most welcome investment, not for the first time, in The Teardrop Explodes’ mighty & magnificent ‘Kilimanjaro’, as majestic as the mountain whose name it takes, an enduring masterpiece from the cusp of the 70s-80s, of its time yet transcending, whose charms never fail to work their magic, an LP chock-full of fabulous surreal psychedelic pop that on numerous occasions does indeed ‘go crazy’ (that bonkers, battering reading of ‘Books’, for instance), transporting the listener (or this one, anyway) to a better place & more semi-detached headspace, as comforting as it can be mildly unhinging, which can never be a bad thing.

As it has proved to be once again for yours truly, this should be an essential addition to any record collection.

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #14: Belle & Sebastian 'Push Barman to Open Old Wounds'

As with the recent acquisition blogged but yesterday, the decision to invest in the triple(!) vinyl pressing of Belle & Sebastian’s ‘Push Barman to Open Old Wounds’ was motivated in the main by a desire to hear songs so familiar from their digital form on CD in the analogue context that, romantically, somehow seems to be the most appropriate for the fullest appreciation of their charms, manifest as they already are in other formats. The widescreen artwork might have been a contributory factor too, as can be appreciated.

It’s disappointing to report, however, that the sound issuing forth from the vinyl doesn’t quite cut the mustard in the manner one had anticipated, especially as the stylus follows its course over a side of the platter, towards the centre, where the quality seems to deteriorate quite noticeably and badly, rendering the subtleties of the music almost unlistenable – an unsatisfactory transfer to vinyl &, all in all, product, which is a shame indeed (not least considering the £30-plus price tag). I would consider this a fault of my playing system, but it seems common to at least some of the few current pressings in which I’ve invested, & the old, original records (not these ‘heavyweight’ 180gram examples, although I can’t tell/feel the difference anyway) from the Seventies & Eighties don’t suffer the same problem for all that they might be a bit scratchy in places (as to be expected).

Perhaps, indeed, my hardware is of a vintage that won’t do new LPs justice, but it’s a shame all  the same, & in this particular instance we’ll be returning to our double CD housed within its ‘bound book’ packaging (a lovely object in itself) for a proper appreciation of what remains fabulous music, a good deal of the cream of B&S.

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #13: Tricky 'Maxinquaye'

As something of a departure from (re-)investing in original LPs from the late Seventies – mid Eighties, that personal golden period of vinyl-buying, this purchase was made with a desire to hear what an album so familiar from CD – for the better part of 20 years now, too, blimey – would sound like on vinyl, and also to sample the artwork on a larger scale, of course.

Happy to report that no loss of quality or enjoyment has been experienced across the change in formats, & that the vinyl pressing of ‘Maxinquaye’ is even mightier than before, an album of rare, dark wonders indeed.

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #12: Siouxsie and the Banshees 'A Kiss in the Dreamhouse'

The third in the sequence of favourite Banshees’ LPs, again it’s an aural pleasure to be reunited with the warmth of the vinyl format of the more psychedelic charms of ‘A Kiss in the Dreamhouse’, and the proper full-sized scope of its Klimt-inflected sleeve design, Side One offering a veritable carnival ride indeed, and Side Two opening with the sensual pleasures of ‘Melt’ before trailing off a little after ‘Painted Bird’ but remaining an album of many, varied wonders &, of course, another essential (re)addition to the collection. 

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #11: Siouxsie and the Banshees 'Juju'

Another of the Banshees' classic LPs, best experienced of course via the medium of vinyl, as it originally was, & again a delight to be re-acquainted with in such 'widescreen' form, featuring as it does such wonders as 'Into the Light', 'Arabian Nights', & the mighty monoliths 'Monitor' (which wouldn't necessarily have sounded out of place on either of the first two Siouxsie albums) & 'Nightshift', the latter worth the purchase price alone, & somehow the very epitome of gothic, exhilaratingly so, yet the band never were 'Goth' in the manner they were often lazily labelled, being so much more varied in the scope of their aesthetic, not least as can be heard & appreciated over the course of this album.
"Sit back and enjoy the real McCoy" indeed.

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #10: Siouxsie and the Banshees 'Kaleidoscope'

It’s been good to be reunited with a vinyl copy of ‘Kaleidoscope’, always seeming as it does the preferred medium to experience, as originally & best, albums of its era (even if they were often transferred to cassette, and as often listened-to via that format, for the purposes of portability).

Always enjoyed, time has come to prove that it was the first of the sequence of three favourite Siouxsie albums, quite different in sound from the Banshees’ two previous LPs (due to a radical change in group personnel), as had been previewed with the ‘Happy House’ & ‘Christine’ singles that preceded the release of ‘Kaleidoscope’, including even songs that didn’t feature the guitars that had so defined, along with Siouxsie’s voice, the band’s sound up to that point.

With those singles, & particularly the quietly menacing ‘Tenant’, ‘Trophy’, ‘Hybrid’, the synthesized ‘Red Light’, the swooning ‘Desert Kisses’ & searing ‘Skin’, it’s an enduringly wonderful collection, of course an absolutely essential purchase & addition to the still relatively small but increasingly perfectly-formed collection.

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #9: Pavement 'Brighten the Corners'

Another recent LP purchase has been Pavement’s ‘Brighten the Corners’, an album previously owned originally on cassette & later in digital form, but now finding it’s most powerful & appropriate-to-its-aesthetic form on vinyl – excellent stuff, & another essential addition to the collection.

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #7: Public Image Ltd 'Second Edition'

Today the opposite of tomato is (not for the first time) 'the jagged metal bad life'

Making it another double (& why not?), Public Image Ltd’s ‘Second Edition’ was both their second album & the second-format release of the original & iconic ‘Metal Box’ 3 x 12” single collection, which was an artefact I owned back in its day, thus not requiring the investment in ‘Second Edition’ until now, when it seems it should be another essential component of the vinyl LP collection, & thus it recently came to pass when opportunity presented itself.

I blogged some years ago about ‘Metal Box’ in relation to Simon Reynolds' opinion regarding the format in which music is released playing a part in its reception, with which I concurred & still do, very much so concerning this particular suite of tracks: ‘Metal Box’ was & remains the prime physical object-form via which to experience such remarkable music (even if it's many a long year since I was able to do so), with ‘Second Edition’ somehow diminishing its effect, if only slightly, but crikey the latter is still a damn sight better than subsequent CDs or mp3s – these sounds were made to be heard on vinyl.

Recently-Acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #6: The Smiths 'Louder Than Bombs'

Today the opposite of tomato is, of course, "Louder Than Bombs"

Another compilation double LP set today, this time one that we had previously owned back in the day in the form of all its vinyl & gatefold-sleeved glory but which proved irresistible not to invest in again for the collection when it presented itself as available. It’s the mighty Smiths’ "Louder Than Bombs" US-released collection of single & radio session tracks, absolutely essential & what’s not to love?

Recently-acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #3 (The Pastels 'Up For a Bit With The Pastels')

Today presenting, in our occasional series, the very wonderful ‘Up For a Bit With The Pastels', one of the holy trinity of Scottish bands’ debut albums – the others being the Jesus and Mary Chain’s ‘Psychocandy’ & Belle and Sebastian’s ‘Tigermilk’ – that remain so dear to TOoT’s heart & sonic aesthetic ideals (& now all present & correct in vinyl form, it gives us great pleasure to announce, contemplate & enjoy).

This proved to be one of those LPs once & originally owned on vinyl that just had to be reclaimed for the collection as an essential component, the vitality of vinyl being the only way to properly experience the music contained within, from the opening thrill of “Ride” (hold on tight, there), the various guitar-twanging tunes on side one, the chiming bells of the glorious pop of “Automatically Yours”, the fuggy fuzz of “Baby Honey”, to the closing strings of the gorgeous “If I Could Tell You”, classic stuff indeed.

Recently-acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #2 (Wire 'Chairs Missing')

Celebrating another recent addition to the vinyl collection in the form of what has proved to be one of the enduring post-punk classics, Wire’s second album ‘Chairs Missing’.

In keeping with the philosophy intended to generate the current hunt for items to collect, this LP, as such, is one never personally owned previously, although I did have a selection of its contents as included within the band’s ‘On Returning’ compilation LP.

To describe the experience of hearing the vinyl LP as nothing short of a revelation feels like something of an understatement, such is the difference, positively, compared to the familiar CD & mp3 versions (some of the tracks, indeed, are virtually unrecognizable from their compressed formats) – electric music with such a buzz & edge of palpable energy requires the physicality of vinyl to properly communicate itself & the range of its subtleties, & no substitutes should be accepted in future, unless very reluctantly under circumstances of no alternative.

And of course, there’s also the consideration of the artwork, at the correct 12” square scale to do it proper justice as, again, physical entity.

Recently-acquired Vinyl LP of the Day #1 (John Cooper Clarke 'Snap, Crackle (&) Bop')

Given that this blog is all about the art, & design, & has oft featured our enduring love of music as essential accompaniment &, indeed, in its own right, & is also undeniably prone to nostalgia, today marks the introduction of another little featurette within, intended to celebrate the occasional acquisition of good old vinyl LPs to supplement the collection (once considerable, then greatly reduced, now again expanding gently), beginning with a recent purchase, for a mere £10 winning bid on ebay, in the perfect form of  the 1980 limited edition release of John Cooper Clarke’s ‘Snap, Crackle (&) Bop’, including as it did & does a book of the man’s poetry - appropriating the interior design of the old ‘Yellow Pages’ telephone directory  for its own, & lavishly illustrated with fine photographs of our hero in various poses & locations - which was slipped inside & contained within the fully-functioning cardboard breast pocket of the jacket represented upon the record sleeve’s ingenious design (a bona fide classic of the art form).

I desired this object, or these objects-as-set, profoundly, at the time, but was too slow off the mark & thus missed out, having to make do, alas, with the ordinary release of the album which had neither book or even pocket (& why would it need the latter without the former, indeed?).

As a schoolfriend, the legendary Mario Magri, did actually own a copy of the limited edition, I was able to enjoy it vicariously, but obviously this really wasn’t the same thing or experience at all: only now, some 34 years later (indeed: blimey), has a copy finally come in to my possession, to be a treasured feature of the record collection. It remains a wonderful album, & the whole package serves as suitable portal to a particular period of the past, personally & culturally.

Note too, the details of the artist & title represented in the form of badges pinned to the jacket pocket, a nice coincidence considering the recent promotion of the football club badge collection.

World Cup '74 #10 (Vicente Pernia)

graphite & putty eraser/30x20cm

Continuing with the current World Cup ’74 ‘hauntological’ project, this drawing is another to take as its original source (then undergoing various digital procedures of scanning & size manipulation before emerging as an A4 print that serves as the immediate physical reference) a ‘stamp’ taken from the FKS-published collectors’ album ‘Wonderful World of Soccer Stars World Cup 1974’.

Via the drawing process (that itself is the subject), the portrait subject that coalesces within the matrix of toned graphite squares, in a representation of the pixelated print, is on this occasion Vicente Pernia, another of those players selected for inclusion in the FKS album but, subsequently, not actually the final Argentina squad for the tournament, thus establishing a particularly ‘ghostly’ & peripheral relationship with the 1974 World Cup, hazier even than my own memories.

Soundtrack:

Moon Wiring Club ‘Today Bread, Tomorrow Secrets’ & ‘A Spare Tabby at the Cat’s Wedding’ LPs

A first listen to the new Moon Wiring Club LP release of ‘Today Bread, Tomorrow Secrets’, having already sampled the related CD issue, most atmospherically ‘soundtracky’ in its nature, jolly good accompaniment to both the contemplative drawing process & the snow scene outside, & a rare & long-overdue outing for the vinyl version of ‘A Spare Tabby at the Cat’s Wedding’, stonkingly good & a worthy companion to the CD of the album, both played on our rather lovely old 1960s’ vintage Ferguson record player which itself seems to be enjoying its relocation to our new Sixties-built bungalow.