What can I say? The Shangri-Las have left paths on all our lives even if we don't realize it. Listen to the songs which have been covered by the rock icons of past and present. Funny thing is, THESE versions sound less dated than the covers we all know. Bottom line is, pick a song and go - you can't lose! Incredible...
---Carl, Oct.19 1999
An interesting pair up between Tarwater (who along with Kreidler and To Rococo Rot lead the new pack of German art music), and a reggae styled guest vocalist, whose dub style vocals insinuate themselves around the spaces left in Tarwaters sparse sounds. The unlikely mix works, and Soul Static Sound has given us four pieces of it on the label that made To Rococo Rot roar on the 12" mixed by the labels boss who goes by the name "D" which they released last spring. Sadly THAT CD5/12" is no longer available, and WZBC never got a copy when it was. However, this CD5/12" is a strong follow-up to the To Rococo Rot one, and should please anyone who is intrigued by the description I gave.
---Carl, Oct.19 1999
This English glossy magazine would be a fun read even if it didn't come with such a great CD each quarterly issue. As it is though, it is a super value for a tenner, with it's 16 song compilation that covers many styles. Mad Doctor X, Bobby Conn, & Dalek play rap; Acceleradeck have a New Order-ish instrumental; 10 5 Neuton have a somewhat 'post-rock' song; Future 3 play downbeat style w/tricky beats; Justice League Of Zion have beats with dub-styled vocals; Peanut Butter Wolf does his turntablist scratching; Half Film play quiet-rock like Low; Tony Allen does funk, and pretty decently at that!; Blonde Redhead play their song 'Luv Machine'; Jimpster have a jazzy downtempo short instrumental; Ray Kieth is computer beat blip trickery; Mice Parade remind me of Amon Tobin on 'Organic Reproduction Attempt'; Dymaxion have a neat piece with counting in it. It is a pleasant experimental piece; and finally Chamber also have an experimental piece with tuned percussives. Many good songs, and an intro to some artists you have never heard mixed in with some you may already know.
---Carl, Oct.19 1999
Lucky Pierre is Aidan Moffat of Arab Strap. Instead of his usual reflections on his unruly life as vocalist of Arab Strap, he lets his feelings talk to us in this instrumental outlet for his strong muse. This is the second release under the Lucky Pierre name. The first Lucky Pierre release was a 7" which we also have in our collection at WZBC. There are three untitled songs on this 12". They mine the same territory as isan, Ellis Island Sound, State River Widening, and parts of The Wisdom Of Harry. Aidan lets the brush strokes of the sound tell his story, and it is delightful and entrancing, with a touch of magical, particualrly on the second song on the A-side, with it's cellos, french horn, and plucked harp on top of a rhythm machine beat which swirls it all up into fairy dust.
---Carl, Oct.19 1999
Peter Thomas is one of Germanys greastest living treasures. He tracked for films and shows for more than 30 years, and left many awe-inspiring compositions which have been championed by the likes of Berlin's Bungalow Records in his native Germany. Opium was the first song on the great "Moonflowers & Mini-Skirts" CD Hamburg's Marina Records put out last year. Here that great song is revisited, then strengthened by a "punjab poppy juice" production by The Maxwell Implosion and Dauerfisch, who love and honor their master on this exclusive version of the song. The 12" closes out with a third piece called "Bonus Beats", which is basically a drum/percussion passage for any DJ to embellish or mix.
---Carl, Oct.19 1999
Ladytron is an English band with a great moniker nipped from the Roxy Music song of the same name. This is their debut 12". The A-side has 2 songs. The first is the title song which will undoubtably become their calling card with it's great sound and structure (simply great!: decadant female vocal over Kraftwerk beat), which gets altered in the version which takes up the second side. The B-side has Kraftwerkian electronics put over an almost skankin' beat festooned with sharp female vocals and submerged sax. The song is stretched out and loosened up. "Olivetti Jerk" is an instrumental which sounds like a hyper OMD (Orchestral Manouvers in the Dark) "Electricity" brought into the club Manumission on Ibiza.
---Carl, Oct.19 1999
Cat Skills is Nicholaus and Josephine of Girlfrendo doing a less polished indierock than Girlfrendo, with less of the Northern Soul sound than their main gig. There are 3 songs on offer. On the first side there are two dualing theme songs; "Heaven" is a celebration of impish joy sung principally by Josephine with a killer kazoo solo at it's climax; "Hell" is it's counterpart joyously presented by Nicholaus in a high energy bopping way that made me dance as I typed this sentence. Josephine swoons at it's peak. On the B-side, "Fictive Youth" is an almost Dylan-ish epic soft song on a picked steel string acoustic, with the two of them trading off vocals bounced around a harmonica phrase.
---Carl, Oct.19 1999
I don't know anything about this band except that the songs are written by Elke B. and Vredeber Albrecht, and that Elke is also a vocalist in the German band Tarwater. This single is well produced modern continental pop travelling down the road set by Saint Etienne. Rhythm machines gloss out bossa rhythms on the B-side while Fender Rhodes organ counters the french vocals. The A-side is similiar to the Saint Etienne song "Like A Motorway" with it's driving Tuetonic synth beat.
---Carl, Oct.19 1999