How about a big helping of odds and ends by the DC band Unrest? Originally, I made a CD for personal use called "BPM Volume 2" that collected tracks not included on that excellent official release. The band has so many stray tracks that I ended up including a bonus disc with more material, cuz ya gotta have the 33-minute version of "Hydro".

BPM Volume 2

BPM Volume 2 (bonus tracks)

Michael Hurley - 40 Years (live/unreleased/covers)

I've been working on this for a while - a comprehensive set of unreleased tracks from this American treasure, culled from 40+ bootleg recordings and spanning the years 1976-2016. Here you go!

NOTES: The first disc has my favorite tracks out of all the shows/years, then the other four have the rest of the tracks I've tracked down and are in chronological order. Songwriting credits are in the folders. No sound adjustments other than level boosting. Yes I have committed the heresy of making MP3 files, I could do FLAC but it would take a while, let me know if that's a priority.

links:

#1 (best of)


#2 (1976-1986)


#3 (1987-1998)


#4 (1999-2003)


#5 (2004-2016)

By request, I'm presenting the best X show I've ever heard - a soundboard recording from Detroit club Cat's Cradle, recorded July 1982. The band is totally on fire. I know at least one big X fan who considers this to be their peak. Highly recommended... (note: that picture is of John Doe, Exene, Rand McNally and Black Randy, copyright Ruby Ray. also, these are FLAC files cuz that's how we roll).

X Part 1

X Part 2

X Part 3

A diversion into the world of the Jody Grind,  an indescribably great Atlanta band who incorporated a wide range of out-of-vouge pop styles for their debut album and synthesized them into a true American original blend on their 2nd, then were struck by tragedy as half the band died in a car crash.  Kelly Hogan has gone on to do work with various Bloodshot label artists and has released some solo records.  An old friend of mine did a great retrospective series of Facebook posts on them, so here's a gift right back atcha, Tony.

October 3, 1990
Tramps, New York City

Part 1
Part 2

October 4, 1990
Tramps, New York City

Part 1
Part 2

This blog is almost ten years old!!!

I can't believe it.  This seems like an appropriate time to resurrect some old school "sharity blog" technology, hell this is like the 2010's equivalent of making a 1980's tape trade...

My wife and I recently had the privilege of catching Neil Young on a particularly great night of his West Coast tour (with superb backing band The Promise Of The Real including two of Willie Nelson's kids).  Here's a fantastic audience recording of the 3-hour gig (not made by me, this is much better than I would have managed).  Yes these are FLAC files, all credit goes to the original uploader in the text file.  Please do not convert to MP3.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

I was digging around in my hard drive and found this Popol Vuh bootleg from 1973!

Also includes a detailed pdf discography

This is a soundboard recording of a live performance in 1973, probably late summer or early fall, in the church in Baumberg in Germany (which accounts for the beautiful natural reverb).

My guess is that this is just Daniel Fichelscher on guitar and Florian Fricke on keyboards and vocal (and may be the first recording of Fichelscher as a member of Popol Vuh - he would become co-partner with Fricke for all subsequent Popol Vuh albums.   Vocalist Djong Yun did not sing here, because she was away in America at the time.  Fricke's dissatisfaction with his vocals - heard here and on the studio album from 1973, "Seligpreisung" - would prompt him to later add another vocalist, Renate Knaup, whom he met through Fichelscher (both Fichelscher and Knaup had been members of Amon Duul II).

Song list (all are extended versions of the following pieces from their 1973 album "Seligpreisung"):

1)Weinen und Lachen
2)Hungern und Dursten
3)Hungern und Dursten (2nd take)
4)Willig Arm
5)Leid Klagen
6) Interview (German)
33 minutes of music followed by a 12 minute interview, which sounds like it was recorded in a park - because they sometimes have to pause to let a truck go by.

(link deleted, too large for Mediafire)

SPECIAL REQUEST

Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 and Sun City Girls
live at the Reptile House, Grand Rapids MI, 1992-10-30

the only known recording of this tour, both sets

PART 1

PART 2

PART 3

PART 4

peace out, it's been a little over two years - maybe I'll post something sooner next time!

Wingtip Sloat & Empty Box - early tapes



I've had this rip sitting in my projects folder for a few years now. I was afraid to really get into it because I knew it would be a discography/tracking nightmare, and I was right. But this history must be heard!

Fans of early 90's lo-fi may have fond memories of the Wingtip Sloat crew, who were one of the first (if not the first) bands on the VHF label. Shredding in a manner quite similar to the Pavement and GBV records of the time, but with a bit more instrumental meandering, screamy walls of static, and other experimental moves.

Empty Box were the pre-Sloat incarnation, and we also have here their only release that I know of aside from a Bananafish comp track. Not on Discogs. "A Blow To The Head 1986-89" is the cassette title, but the tracks don't match up - I've made my best estimate and left off the last two titles ("Mouthcramp" and "Cranes", for the curious). Much more sedate & normal than the Sloat boys, with added tape warble.

The tracking on the debut Wingtip Sloat release "User Friendly Bowl Wrapper" is even worse, as was noted on the dubbed copy I received back in '91 - there are a LOT more songs than titles. Using their cover of The Clean as a benchmark, I have titled the last eight tracks according to the Discogs entry, your guess is as good as mine for the earlier ones.

I think it would be really cool if VHF could release these and the other two Sloat tapes someday. Any casual fan of that brash, hissy early 90's aesthetic should give 'em a listen.

A Blow To The Head

User Friendly Bowl Wrapper (part 1)
User Friendly Bowl Wrapper (part 2)

The Staple Singers - MRC-059

A little thank you to places like Rootblog for putting up so many of these lovely Mississippi Records cassette mixes. Some seriously rockin' gospel heaven for ya. This one is unusual in that it focuses on a single artist.

SSMRC059

Modern Lovers - Songs Of Remembrance



great overview of the early 70's.

in FLAC

ML-SOR

liner notes:

1-4 jonathan richman's first demos 1970
according to http://www.modernlovers.com/ the following songs
were also recorded at this session (in boston, sometimes referred
to as the harvard square demos) but have yet to surface.
* cosmic plane of the arcane
* she's taking the pill for me
* sunshine your eyes
* someone i care about

5-7 modern lovers first session, boston ma 1971 (not 1972 as listed on the sleeve).
sessions held at intermedia sound in boston.
"ride the highway" was evidently recorded as well.

6-8 demos with john cale, spring 1972
march or april 1972, demos for warner bros at whitney studios in la.
evidently a further version of roadrunner was recorded.

10-12 aborted album sessions with john cale, autumn 1973
september (?) 1973 sessions for warner bros at elektra studios, la.
according again to http://www.modernlovers.com/ these tracks
were not the cale album session versions but earlier versions
from a kim fowley session (10 & 11) at dinky dawsons studios
in june 1972 and an august 1973 session also with kim fowley
at gold star studios in la.

13 live 1972
live in radcliffe, october 1972. unknown venue.

14-17 mercer arts centre, nyc, new year's eve 1972-12-31.
evidently wayne county and the new york dolls were also on the bill.

18 cambridge boat house, ma, 1972

Eno & Schwalm - Lanzarote 2001

Another great soundboard recording that hasn't been released.

It was fantastic! The whole thing took place in a volcano (extinct, at least during the concert). You had to leave your car on the nearby road, and climb into a bus which carried you a few hundred meters through deeply fissured lava fields. Through a wide gap in the crater wall you reached a plain ground covered with black gravel. In the center they had installed their gear, only separated from the audience (1700 people) by a knee-high fence. The audience space was surrounded by a number of speakers. Everybody was sitting on the ground (you were given a cushion plus a paper bag for your rubbish plus a small cardboard ashtray when entering the crater).


LANZAROTE

Eno, Schwalm, Czukay

Cool collaboration that hasn't seen the official light of day yet. From the notes:

an audience recording of the ENO/Schwalm/Czukey concert 'Sushi! Roti! Reibekuchen!' (which took place at the same venue on 27th August 1998 and was Eno's first live concert after 15 years).

Sushi Roti Reibekuchen

Muslimgauze - Best Of

while I'm here...

About ten years ago I was really obsessed with this music, so I have most of the releases up to 2005 or so. I made this comp for a friend of mine and I think it provides a pretty good overview of the man's styles. You can go to Discogs if you want to find out what record a track is from originally, maybe it'll even be in print!

MG BEST OF

Eno & The Winkies - Live 1974

A co-presentation with the Doom And Gloom From The Tomb blog, this is the FLAC version. You may think it's silly to have a show of such low quality in lossless, but wait until you hear the two unreleased songs! You'll be glad for those extra lo-fi muances.

in two parts

1
2

Enjoy! More Eno coming later this month.

John Cale - live in the (late) 70's



Got my memory jogged by a discussion of the sad non-availability of Cale's Even Cowgirls Get The Blues CD. That currently overpriced record features some pretty iffy sound quality, and there's a couple of other ROIO shows from the same era that have the same songs with better sound. So here you go! A great soundboard from Dallas and a very good audience tape from Philly, a year after Cowgirls was first released in some weird kind of mail-order-only LP version (it was reissued once in 1990 or so and has been out of print ever since). If you only listen to one thing here, please check out the Dallas version of "Even Cowgirls..." (the song). Just amazing... I think that's Judy Nylon from Snatch on vocals. The Philly show is a raw audience recording, but everything comes through loud and clear. Plus, it has a number of superior takes including a furious "Casey At The Bat".

As a bonus I've included the full CBGB's set that most of Cowgirls is drawn from. Reissue the damn CD, John! Preferably in a box set with these other shows.

FLAC files can be converted with the freeware programs Trader's Little Helper (for PC) and xACT (for Macs), if anyone is wondering. They will also play using the VLC program.

Dallas 1979 (flac)
Philadelphia 1979 (flac)
CBGB's 1978 (mp3)

RIP CAPTAIN BEEFHEART

This man was a true American hero. Here it is my great pleasure to present you with the complete remastered "Spotlight Kid Outtakes", a staggering 5-disc set of unreleased heaven. In FLAC because it deserves it.

SPOTLIGHT KID OUTTAKES

(late edit: also, be sure to head over to Doom And Gloom From The Tomb for a link to the mono version of Safe As Milk, essential!)

Lots of deaths in the extended musical family lately.

First we pay tribute to the staggering genius of Peter Christoperson, with a long radio interview including some musical interludes.

PC INTERVIEW

William S. Burroughs - On The Nova Lark flexi

Great little record from the superb Kansas label Fresh Sounds... for what it's worth they also released the SPK and Embarrassment cassettes found elsewhere on this blog. Here we have WSB in a more soundscape oriented mood with his distinct crackling tone intoning what is most likely an excerpt from one of his books.

In FLAC because it's short...

WSB flexi

Climax Golden Twins - live series

Released as a series of faux-78 style 10" records around ten years ago by Anomalous. Limited even when they came out (I think there were 250 copies of each one?) and even rarer these days. Happy Halloween - these aren't super scary but they sure do get noisy sometimes.

PARTS 1+2
PARTS 3+4

Sandy Denny - BBC video 1971

A special post here for the Doom & Gloom blog... please note that this is in archaic VCD format, but it should work in something like VLC.

One In Ten show