Needle Time

Company Of State - Company Of State EP [TWM7INCH 03 BEL 2018 24-Bit FLAC] Originally released as a seven inch single in 1983 on State Records, this is the 2018 RSD repress released on Tidal Waves Music of the debut EP by Belgian post-punk band Company Of State. The duo of Paul Taes & Rudolf Hecke recorded stripped back, very minimal coldwaves between 1983 and 1984 before 'upgrading' to a more accessible sound for their debut long player Drowning In Fire  released on Antler Records in 1987. The crackles and pops do little to hide the lineage of these tracks. A1 Dark A2 Discipline B1 Dance Remotion B2 Here As I Am

Eleven Pond - Bas Relief [DE-001 USA 2013 24-Bit FLAC] Originally released on a very rare vinyl album on Game Hen Records (500-92686) in 1986.  Eleven Pond were a post-punk synthwave band from Rochester, NY State who managed just one album in 1986. This rare record was repressed on Dark Entries a few years ago, and this repress has become quite a rarity itself. Taking their influence from British bands like New Order and The Chameleons, these chaps had something - regular readers should recall what west coast favourites Abecedarians were doing around the same time. Key tracks are the catchy  Watching Trees and the splendid Portugal which eventually found their way on to a 12" single in 2012. Frontman Jeff Gallea has kept Eleven Pond going after all these years and you can enjoy their work here . A1 Tear And Cinnamon A2 Watching Trees A3 Days Hence A4 Tightrope A5 Portugal B1 Asterisk B2 Moving Nowhere B3 Changing Face B4 Temporal ...

Wire - The Ideal Copy [STUMM 42 UK 1987 24-Bit FLAC] I can be very guilty for the overuse of superlatives regularly through these pages, please forgive me I shall try to restrain myself during the next few sentences in my description of one of the best comeback albums ever! This mint original pressing comes courtesy of penguinflight 's boxes of vinyl. I ripped this using my old set-up and didn't think I could improve it with my new deck. If you are on ESWA 2.0, this is a re-working from the original January 2018 wav files were I have the re-balanced the RMS levels between the channels rather than use any form of normalisation (a mastering technique I've been experimenting with for a while now) and taken the oportunity to remove the occasional click.  Any album which features Ahead , Feed Me , Ambitious and Over Theirs  just has to be up among the very finest. Enjoy! A1 The Point Of Collapse A2 Ahead A3 Madman's Honey A4 Feed Me B1 Ambitious B...

Wire - In Vivo [12 MUTE 98 UK 1989 24-Bit FLAC] Just in case some of you feel damaged after the last Kon Kan post, here is a much over looked 12" from Wire in full electro-pop mode for your enjoyment. A1 In Vivo B1 Illuminated B2 Finest Drops (Live)

Kon Kan - Move To Move [WX 276 UK 1989 24-Bit FLAC] Canadian hopefuls Kon Kan gained more notoriety than fame with their New Order parody I Beg Your Pardon , there was an album which was much in the same vein which became nothing more than bargain bin fodder. It is not all that bad, however there are the occasional cringe worthy moments. Judge for yourselves.... A1 Art's In D Minor / Harry Houdini A2 Bite The Bullet A3 Move To Move A4 I Can't Answer That B1 I Beg Your Pardon (I Never Promised You A Rose Garden) B2 Am I In Love B3 Glue & Fire B4 It Doesn't Matter B5 Puss N' Boots / These Boots (Are Made For Walking)

The The - Soul Mining [LP+12" LTD EPC 25525/XPR 1250 UK 1983 24-Bit FLAC] Soul Mining by The The was, in my opinion, one of the finest pop albums of the early-mid 80's. Matt Johnson was very much a solo artist and occasionally played live in pubs and small clubs with just backing tapes. His debut LP, Burning Blue Soul on 4AD was very experimental and had a very limited audience at the time. He then sat down to write proper pop songs and roped in other musicians to add their elements to the The The sound. Johnson was still effectively (just) a solo artist at the time of Soul Mining and my vague recollection of the history of its inception involves abandoned drug fueled recordings in 1982. However, with the help of other he managed to pull together one of the finest records of the generation. The list of collaborators was impressive - Jools Holland, Jim Thirwell, Thomas Leer, Zeke Manyika... and David Johansen!  Despite their help, this remains a highly perso...

Azymuth - Outubro [FARO 190LP Reissue UK 2016 24-Bit FLAC] I have featured Azymuth before on the ESWA blog with their fabulous Jazz Carnival single. A few years back, a small UK reissue label obtained permission to repress the long deleted Outubro album on 180gm vinyl. If you don't know the work of Azymuth, you may have heard of a certain band from Manchester who have worn their Azymuth influences well since their 1981 recordings. In fact there are a few snippets from this record which may have been borrowed by said band over the years. Also, fans of classy funk may also want to investigate my suggestion that Maracana is clearly the best track ever to be named after a football stadium. A1 Papasong A2 500 Miles High A3 Pantanal (Swamp) A4 Dear Limmertz A5 Carta Pro Airto (Letter To Airto) B1 Outubro (October) B2 Maracana B3 Un Amigo (A Friend) B4 Dear Limmertz Prelude This is an improved re-work of my ESWA 2.0 post from May 2017 from the original files.

Anna Domino - Summer [TWI 641 BEL 1986 24-Bit FLAC] Summer does seem to be breaking out here in Europe, so now would be a good time to dust off this pop classic. Produced by Alan Rankine and remixed by Arthur Baker. I have both this pressing and the identical Factory release for some reason, so have gone for the Belgian release ....as it is a little less worn. Only Factory Records could be capable of failing to make this a hit single. I have virtually every other single by Anna ripped and loaded, so if there's enough demand, I could be persuaded to post them here. Enjoy. A1 Summer B1 Summer (Instrumental)

Porcupine Tree - Moonloop [DELEC LP 999 UK 2006 24-Bit FLAC] Originally released as the b-side to the Stars Die single in 1994, here is the full forty minutes of unadulterated and improvised psychedelic space rock from three quarters of the original Porcupine Tree. Stick this in your pipe and smoke it! A1 Moonloop B1 Moonloop

A. R. Kane - Up Home! [RTT 201 UK 1988 24-Bit FLAC] Some say (well Discogs do) that A.R. Kane were the band who invented dream-pop. I'm sure many of their contemporaries may want to argue the fact, possibly including their mentor Robin Guthrie. Regardless, Alex Ayuli and Rudi Tambala deliver up four slabs of superb dubbed out psychedelic noise on this EP which saw the light of day on Rough Trade after the duo's fall-out with 4AD.  I could listen to Up all night long..... A1 Baby Milk Snatcher A2 W.O.G.S. B1 One Way Mirror B2 Up

Winston Tong ‎– Theoretically Chinese [TWI 549 BEL 1985 24-Bit FLAC] Here is the debut solo album from former Tuxedomoon puppeteer Winston Tong., like his Tuxedo'chums, Tong relocated to Belgium from San Francisco in the early eighties and for this album he made the transformation from performance art to synthpop with a big hand from former Associate Alan Rankine. This record features an impressive line-up of cohorts and contributors, with Rankine adding guitars and synths, Dave Formula (former Magazine) on keyboards, Steve Morris (New Order) on drums, Simon Topping (ex-A Certain Ratio) on percussion and Jah Wobble (ex-PIL) on bass.  I have never been a huge fan of Tong's voice and there are elements here where he get's a little too arty for me, however he does let rip on the mighty emotive No Regrets in true Scot Walker or is that Billy Mackenzie style (the song is a Rankine/Tong original). The single Theoretical China (with Wobble adding his funky bass) will...

Various Artists - Heavy Duty Breaks [JAMS 49 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] Here is a new 2019 rip of the Illuminated Records cut-up, mixed-up album, Heavy Duty Breaks , in 24-bit FLAC. A Side 400 Blows - Pressure 23 Skidoo - F.U.G.I Out - Tough Enough Dormannu - The Dread Zazou - M'pasi Ya Pamba 400 Blows - Grove Jumping 23 Skidoo - Coup 400 Blows - Declaration of Intent B Side Executive Slacks - Our Lady Data - Blow Portion Control - Raise The Pulse Portion Control - Go Talk Power to Dream - Faith Healer Tara Butler - Up Against the Wall Power to Dream - Faith Healer Sex Gang Children - Dieche

Grauzone ‎- Eisbær [WRWTFWW 041 CHE 2019 24-Bit FLAC] I ripped my original seven inch of this single many moons ago for the ESWA blog. Here's is the recent twelve inch reissue from this year on the excellent We Release Whatever The F*ck We Want Records label. The extra track is Film 2 which the hype sticker recommends is playable at 45rpm and 33rpm. As a bonus, I've also ripped it at 33rpm!! A1 Eisbär B1 Film 2 B2 Ich Lieb Sie B3 Film 2 (at 33rpm)

Luc Van Acker - Untitled [12" ZAS 002 BEL 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Most will recall Van Acker as a Revolting Cock and a member of Arbeid Adelt!, this untitled EP is pre-Cocks and was only released in Belgium. Expect noise ....and then more noise over manic percussion whilst Luc grunts away in his own manic style. Play loud! A1 Untitled A2 Untitled B1 Untitled B2 Untitled

Foreign Press - Climbing [12MI 0016 UK 1982 24-Bit FLAC] I have been a little unkind to Foreign Pressin the past, especially with regards to their BeMusic/Dojo produced single The Great Divide . I first ripped Climbing to mp3 many years ago on the old blog and it has sat untouched until recently. It is now time to revisit their best single in high resolution 24-bit flac. These Wythenshawe post-punkers second single had more in common musically with The Sound than any of their Mancunian cohorts, in fact fans of The Sound will notice a remarkable similarity between Foreign Press frontman Ralph Bowe's voice and that of the late Adrian Borland. Enjoy. A1 Climbing B1 Remember You B2 Open Secret

Divine - Love Reaction [DEST 4 UK 1983 24-Bit FLAC] A huge tick in the diversity box with a very blatant rip-off of a big selling New Order in glorious high resolution NRG. For penguinflight ! A1 Love Reaction B1 Love Reaction (Instrumental)

The Dave Howard Singers - Goodnight Karl Malden [HAL 02T UK 1986 24-Bit FLAC] This song is called Pleasure Of Pain, it's about sadomasochism, so if you are into bondage this song is for you....! A little something to liven up your afternoon. Dave Howard and Smash (his percussionist) entertain an enthusiastic audience in Holland on the 14th February 1986. A1 Pleasure Of Pain A2 Shakin' All Over B1 How Was I To Know B2 Road Warrior

A Flock Of Seagulls - Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) [JIVE T25 UK 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Hairspray at the ready chaps, it's A Flock of Bloody Seagulls. A1 Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) (Long Version) B1 Committed B2 Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) (Short Version)

Sophie And Peter Johnston ‎- Happy Together [2x7" YZ 78F UK 1986 24-Bit FLAC] A gem from the penguinflight archives is this limited double pack from Peelie faves Soph & Pete. The duo have featured heavily in the ESWA past ...no other super sweet synth-poppy duo has ever been so credible. Enjoy! A1 Happy Together B1 Sold On You C1 S.O.Y. Dance D1 Losing You Sophie And Peter Johnston ‎- Torn Open [YZ 128 UK 1987 24-Bit FLAC] Okay pop-pickers ....time for one more, courtsey of course from those penguinflight boxes. A1 Torn Open B1 Getting On

Snowy Red - Snowy Red [12 001 BEL 1981 24-Bit FLAC] Firstly, please do not confuse Snowy Red with drizzly eighties soft-rock artist Snowy White. Snowy Red was the Belgian electronic post-punk pioneer Marcel Thiel who released a barrage of minimal electronic albums & singles between 1981 and 1984 before moving into more collaborative work. This is his debut ripped from a very rare original pressing so please excuse the occasional light crackle in places.   There will be obvious comparisons with early Cabaret Voltaire, however under the pseudonym of Mikey Mike, this album was only recorded on a two-track reel-to-reel, check out the eight minute centre piece,  The Wild Boys . Tracks such as  How Funny Are Those Explosions and  Still Human are way ahead of their time with pumping electro beats, others are more stripped back, with the occasional nod to Suicide, especially Baby Tonight which is dedicated to the US electronic duo. I dare anybody...

Hard Corps - Dirty [SUR 12 026 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] I only ever ripped my well worn 7" version for the old ESWA blog, so how's about a high resolution rip of penguinflight 's 12"? I think I've featured just about everything Hard Corps ever released across both of the ESWA sites. This particular rip debuted on ESWA 2.0 during April 2018. Hard Corps were not French, they were actually from Brixton, South London. Hugh Ashton, Robert Doran and Clive Pierce, were introduced to  Regine Fetet (a part-time sex worker), who although having never sung before, had an enigmatic, fragile, human voice which brought alive the cold, pounding machined music the three British sound engineers were creating. With influences as far and wide as Mozart and Kraftwerk working in unison with a heavily accentuated French vocal, the result was magnificent and unique. A 12" white label containing the hammering rhythmic attack of Dirty and the softer, melodic, Kraftwerkian p...

Frozen Ducks - Frozen Ducks [OS 23 BEL 2014 24-Bit FLAC] There is a burgeoning synthwave reissue market across Europe at the moment which I am certainly plugging into. You can't get anything more desirable than an album of catchy waves by a band who never actually released anything, that band is Frozen Ducks. These ducks were a spin off from Dutch synthy wavers Tranquil Eyes who have already featured on these pages. In case you overlooked that post, you really need to check out their album here . Lex and Hans Grauwen recorded about fifty tracks in the early eighties as Frozen Ducks but never actually released any of them, some have now been tracked down and feature on this splendid album. Avid post-punk synthwave fans will be hooked by listening to the first few opening bars of Beginnings and Lost Freedom. The latter track has the feel of the early version of New Order's 5-8-6 and its ital- disco roots.  Plug this in, you will probably love these ducks. A1 ...

Shazam - Let's Get Together [MNQ 072 DEU 2016 24-Bit FLAC] Originally released as a 7" vinyl single on ADSR Records (ADSR 001) in the UK during 1983. Ripped here from a 12" reissue which sounds scratchy enough to itself have been ripped directly (it claims to be remastered) from that same single. I am sure somebody will know the true source.  Now we know where The Cure got that synth hook for The Walk . I'd recommend that you head for the better Memories on the b-side which sounds vaguely close to early Depeche Mode. More classic minimal synthpop..... A1  Let's Get Together B1  Memories

Karen Marks - Cold Café [ES 012 AUS 2019 24-Bit FLAC] Originally released as a very rare seven-inch single in Australia in 1981. Staying with the Australian connection, from the cultural hub of Melbourne comes Karen Marks ably assisted by skilled multi-instrumentalist Ash Wednesday who released  Cold Café as a single in 1981. The original vinyl copies were few and far between so now fetch reasonably high hundreds on reseller sites. Thankfully the Efficient Space label picked up the single along with a compilation track and a few cassette sourced demos for this 12" EP earlier in 2019. The title track has been championed by the Minimal Wave label over the years as a lost classic, hence pushing up the collector's price of the original. Cold Café is a sombre yet somehow catchy little synthpop ditty, carefully crafted by Wednesday with lyrics by Marks. Enjoy. A1 Cold Café A2 Won’t Wear It For Long A3 You Bring These Things B1 Cold Café (Demo) B2 Problem...

SPK - Machine Age Voodoo [WX 10 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] What follows is a re-balanced and re-sampled work of my original 2015 ESWA blog post... Antipodean drillers, noise terrorists and metal-bashers SPK had many pseudonyms: Socialistisches Patienten Kollektiv; System Planning Korporation; SePpuKu and errr ... Surgical Penis Klinik, It was suggested to me years back that SPK really stood for Synthetic Pop Krap during their short career with WEA. I will try not too take sides during this post, but let's just say that I am amazed how long this album has survived in my collection, and it has been very rarely played.  Ignore the fact that it's a SPK record, and that may help you get on with it - musically as a synthpop album, it isn't that bad. But as a SPK record, perhaps the suggested abbreviation was true. A1 Junk Funk A2 With Love From China A3 High Tension A4 One World B1 Flesh & Steel B2 Metropolis B3 Metal Dance B4 Thin Ice B5...

Porcupine Tree - Waiting [DELEC EP 049 UK 1996 24-Bit FLAC] Beautiful songs filled with anguish and pain, that's what you can get with most Porcupine Tree. Now a full four piece band was their first single as such, blending melancholy lyrics over space-rock using the simplest of melodies. It's what is going on in the mix that matters, this record fills your speakers with layers of effects and percussion. This is some of the best psychedelic space-rock ever to come out of Hemel Hempstead. A1 Waiting (Phase 1) A2 Waiting (Phase 2) B1 Colourflow In Mind B2 Fuse The Sky

No-Man - Days In The Trees [57 TP 12 UK 1991 24-Bit FLAC] One of most requested ESWA blogposts gets a very limited re-up for all those who missed it first time around. The Tim Bowness voice is just pure bliss on this dreamy trip-hop classic. No-Man did eventually steer toward art-rock after this release but managed to take most of their audience with them, and also onto Steven Wilson's subsequent projects, of which there were quite a few.. A1 Mahler A2 Ives B1 Bartok B2 Reich

No-Man - Colours [PP 27T UK 1990 24-Bit FLAC] Welcome to the phenomenon of Donovan... History will cause many to reflect differently on No-Man, especially given any misplaced idea that they are/were Steven Wilson's art-rock alternative to his more progressive & experimental rock work. Love him or hate him, if you take a more open mind and listen to No-Man as they were originally conceived back in the late eighties/early nineties, an arty trip-hop pop trio with equal shares, you may likely appreciate these early singles more. Tim Bowness has an amazing voice, Wilson is a very skilled multi-instrumentalist and Ben Coleman's violin is sublime. In the early No-Man live shows, the band was expanded to include messrs Jansen, Barbieri and Karn, former members of glam-pop band Japan. There is a huge back catelogue of No-Man to uncover but I will keep clear of them here as it may well attract undue attentions. The excellent Flowermouth cd is a worthwhile place to start f...

Porcupine Tree - Voyage 34 [KSCOPE 961 UK 2017 24-Bit FLAC] Originally released as a 12" single in 1992. After a few obscure experimental tape releases, Voyage 34 was the debut single by Hertfordshire's Porcupine Tree (then just a solo act/home studio project). This epic 65 minute journey is by all accounts a dance track verging on the fuzzy edge of chillout, with deep ghostly voice samples, lush atmospherics and dreamy space-rock sequences which drift in and out of a guitar driven hook - which is just enough to keep the listener interested over its entirety. The basis of the track is the experience of one man's journey during a bad acid trip, imagine The Orb covering Pink Floyd's Echoes and you would be in about the right place musically, though the message and the choice of samples used were enough to ensure no airplay. I hope you don't mind but I've taken the liberty or removing the six minutes of silence at the end of Part IV. A1 Voyage 34 (Ph...

Playgroup - Epic Sound Battles Chapter One [BRED 28 UK 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Are we all sitting comfortably? Then I shall begin. Imagine members of The Pop Group, Rip Rig and Panic, Dub Syndicate, African Head Charge, London Underground, Crucial and New Age Steppers all collaborating on a highly charged album of heavily dubbed reggae beats, hard funk, and dark jazz. Sounds intriguing doesn't it? Most will likely have overlooked this 1982 gem as a planned On-U Sound release was aborted, and the end product licensed to Cherry Red Records instead. Adrian Sherwood produces of course. Another long lost classic from the On-U Sound team which sits comfortably alongside better known classics of the same era like Sextet and Seven Songs . A1 Bombs Scare A2 Epic Sound Battle A3 Crunch A4 The Slither A5 Burn Up B1 Deep & Mintyful (?) B2 Silent Mover B3 Epic One Drop B4 Shock Absorber B5 No Speed Limit B6 Hoggs Might Fly This is my 2018 24-bit re-rip which has a...

John Cale - Caribbean Sunset [ILPS 7024 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] Caribbean Sunset was the tenth solo album from Velvet Welshman John Cale and it suffered from a wrath of indifferent reviews around the time of release. With a degree of hindsight, these seem quite harsh, as this is Cale most accessible work, leaning towards adult-orientated rock which is a shift in direction from his original experimental art-rock. The record has the feeling of a live recording in the studio (especially on Experiment Number One ), which to these ears is a blessing given the volleys of over-produced mainstream rock music recorded to vinyl in the years between 1982 and 1986 by many of Cale's contemporaries. It was the mix of styles without direction which dissuaded those learned scribes during 1984, perhaps they were right, however this album needs another listen. Hungry For Love and Where There's A Way  tick all the right boxes for rock/pop fans with all the hooks needed for a hit single...

Stan Ridgway - The Big Heat [STAN 1 UK 1985 24-Bit FLAC] I haven't ripped a 7" single for a while, so perhaps this will go down rather nicely with some of you blog followers.  Another vinyl rip from peguinflight 's archive of donated vinyl delights which I've been working my way through for the past few years. There is still quite a bit come.... A1 The Big Heat B1 Drive, She Said

Blaine L. Reininger - El Paso [NORMAL 72 GER 1988 24-Bit FLAC] The Tuxedomoom moustache tackles the Marty Robbins' country & western standard El Paso in his own inimitable style. Those of a more nervous disposition should take refuge in the atmospheric instrumental Bay Bridge and the gentle oriental Japanese Dream . Enjoy folks! A1 El Paso B1 Bay Bridge B2 Japanese Dream

Various Artists - One World One Voice [V 2632 UK 1990 24-Bit FLAC] Right, let's get the cynical bit out of the way first.... The great and the good (and a few others) rack up their frequent flyer miles touring the world, taking residence in plush hotels in Rio, New York, London, Leningrad, Los Angeles, Paris and Helsinki recording an album with indigenous musicians to highlight environmental destruction and rising global poverty. Each side of the album is one continuous track carefully worked together from different studio studios, some works, some of the other sections do not. It is a good listen and full credit to Kevin Godley for pulling the whole thing together. You get a whole array of stars doing their bit for the planet, Lou Reed's section is a particular highlight, and I for one am quite impressed by the work of The Gypsy Kings in their section. So who got involved.... Adam Woods Afrika Bambaataa Bagamoya Players Bob Geldof Chrissie Hynde Christoph...

C Cat Trance - Play Maseko Combo [INK 33 UK 1987 -24-Bit FLAC] It is interesting to see that Austrian label Klanggalerie has reissued the first C Cat Trance album as a compact disc. Whilst the label should be applauded for it's sterling reissue work (especially the 'lost' Chakk demos), its pricing seems a little over the top given the state of the compact disc market. It's also disappointing that the label decided to master the reissue very loudly. I first ripped the C Cat Trance back catelogue with a lot of help from Dutch blog follower Rob back in 2016 and the final vinyl album is laden with top notch tribal funk, the track She Ever Does is a huge household favourite here at ESWA Towers.  Save for the filler Cold , this is a record which deserves to be played over and over again, as each time you will hear something new among the grooves. Nice record ....I may be tempted to revisit those singles soon. A1 Dalbouka A2 They Made Them Up A3 She Ever ...

Jeremy Kidd - Petals And Ashes [SCAR 15T UK 1985 24-Bit FLAC] Subtitled A Song For Emma Goldman . Jerry Kidd has one of the most recognisable vocals from mid-eighties indie music and imho Red Guitars could not survive his departure (and I think history agrees with me). Disappointingly Petals And Ashes was to be his only post-Red Guitars single ...and as this is the man who sung of good technology and take the profit out of war, we don't need it anymore , you should expect the very same. If fact, this well be a Red Guitars single - all that is missing is the Hallam Lewis guitar. To remind of those heady days, we get a seven minute lounge-cabaret version of Red Guitars' Crocodile Tears on the flipside!! A1 Petals And Ashes (Long Mix) B1 Crocodile Tears (Plus Ca Change, Plus C'est La Méme Chose Mix)

Red Guitars - Steeltown [SCAR 010T UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] For a brief moment in time, Red Guitars were the best band on the planet ....until they went pop! I ripped my copy of the 7" back in the old blogspot days, here from the penguinflight archives is my rip of his superb 12" to high resolution 24-bits of FLAC.  A1 Steeltown B1 Within 4 Walls

Martin Stephenson & The Daintees - Boat To Bolivia [KWLP 5 UK 1986 24-Bit FLAC] I thought there is no time like the present to share my 24-bit rip of the wonderful debut from Martin Stephenson and his Daintees. I have two copies of this album on vinyl (and one on CD), and this rip is from the original pressing which does not feature the title track. Kitchenware pressings on CBS or London Records were never the greatest and expect to hear evidence of that. Squeezing an extra track onto the second pressing was never going to be a great idea. Geordie label Kitchenware Records had just four local acts on their roster. Prefab Sprout and The Kane Gang found chart success following dual licencing with CBS and Polygram respectively. This enabled the work of the Stephenson to find a much greater audience. Hurrah! had a more limited audience. I dare you to dislike Stephenson's charming, blues-tinged (sometimes booze tinged) lyrical ditties, bathed in plenty of twangy guitars, ...

Spear Of Destiny - One Eyed Jacks [EPC 25836 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] One Eyed Jacks was an album of rousing protest songs, led by the classic singles Prisoner Of Love and Liberator. It is a polished set by former Thin Lizzy producer Nick Tauber, aided and abetted by Gary Langan and Pete Wilson in the final mix. The album as a whole is much more radio friendly, backing up the theory that CBS saw Spear Of Destiny as potentially filling the shoes of The Clash (something which they never even came close). I recall it was critically panned in some quarters, however it has remained a personal favourite of mine since release. Even if you do find Brandon objectionable, there can be no denying his immense vocal range and One Eyed Jacks is a fine vehicle for his talents.  CBS never saw fit to release the album as a compact disc, even considering the chart successes during the band's Virgin years and subsequent CD reissues (especially the awful Anagram release) have been brick-wa...

Spear Of Destiny - Grapes Of Wrath [EPC 25318 UK 1983 24-Bit FLAC] Following the Theatre Of Hate split, Kirk Brandon and Stan Stammers founded the more user friendly Spear Of Destiny celebrated with a deal with major label CBS. Two rousing singles, The Wheel and Flying Scotsman failed to break, however they found a following with former TOH fans joined by new listeners found by a BBC John Peel session, plus the label's better distribution and plugging network. The two tracks stand out on this album as some of the band's very best... foot stomper  The Wheel was an alternative disco favourite up until the mid-eighties. Aria also stands out, finding Brandon in anthemic rock mode, a style which he was to develop further on the follow up album.  A1 The Wheel A2 Flying Scotsman A3 Roof Of The World A4 Aria A5 Solution B1 The Murder Of Love B2 The Preacher B3 Omen Of The Times B4 The Man Who Tunes The Drums B5 Grapes Of Wrath

Theatre Of Hate - Do You Believe In The Westworld [BRR T2 UK 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Back from my holidays with a short burst of Kirk Brandon. Love him or hate him, Kirk's musical career has been a mix of superbly powerful alternative rock over a couple of strong singles and albums, some genuinely awful pappy pop-rock and the odd badly advised legal action. He has made a come back recently ...and has chosen thankfully to focus on what he does best.  Let's kick things off with one of his finest.... A1 Do You Believe In The Westworld A2 The Version B1 Propaganda B2 Ministry Of Broadcast B3 Original Sin