Einsturzende Neubauten - 1/2 Mensch DVD

Einsturzende Neubauten - 1/2 Mensch DVD
Music Video Distributors

There has never been a band like Einsturzende Neubauten before, and there will never be one like them in the future. They are perhaps the most unique band ever to exist and they were one of the main pioneers in the genre of music that became known as Industrial Music. Neubauten aren't just a band, they are artists who can find beauty and sound out of items others discarded in a junkyard. In fact, it is an old junkyard, or warehouse that most of this DVD was recorded.

The band seldom ever used traditional instruments, instead they would craft their own out of shopping carts, sheet metal, plastic jugs, jackhammers, sanders, etc. The lengths they would go to just to create specific sounds for their songs could almost be diagnosed as obsessive compulsive disorder. Its an amazing process that they go through to make these songs and it is quite a site to witness.

This DVD was originally recorded and released in Japan in 1985. Nearly every song on here is from their now-classic "Halber Mensch" album, which was definitely a high point in their lengthy career. That album was the middle ground between the early chaos and cacophony of their early works, and the more traditional musical structure that would follow (while never letting go of what made them so special in the first place).

More than half of this DVD is a live performance, the other is like performance art set to studio tracks. The sound is phenomenal throughout and visually it is top-notch. It really does their live show justice with the camera work and editing, you get to see every gimmick they made to create their songs up close, so close you can almost feel the sparks hit your clothes. This type of video is exactly the sort of thing you'd see up on the TV screen while visiting Wax Trax Records back in the day.

While the band continues on even today, sadly they sound nothing like they did on this DVD, nor are many of the members still part of the band. This disc features the original lineup, the combination of which made something magical that is never going to be duplicated, and the current remains of the band will never top. If you are a fan and own their albums, this is a perfect companion piece. If you are curious about the band and wanted to check them out for the first time, I couldn't recommend a better introduction to their early works than this.

Buy this DVD
Einsturzende Neubauten official website

Goodbye Chris Candido

Pro wrestling has lost another talent this week. Chris Candido passed away this week due to a blood clot that was a result of leg surgery he underwent on Monday. I first saw Chris wrestle as part of the tag-team, The Body Donnas in the (then) WWF. I also remember watching him wrestle in ECW. Chris was a talented wrestler in his prime back then. After battling his share of "personal demons" he seemed to be on the right track landing a job in TNA Wrestling where he worked right up until his untimely passing. It appeared they were just in the beginning stages of giving him a good push. Its always sad when someone I enjoyed watching on wrestling passes away, especially long before their time (which sadly is the case with most wrestler's deaths) and my condolences go out to his family and friends.

Selections from The Punk Vault [Painted Willie]

Painted Willie - 7" (1984 Spinhead Records)

Painted Willie was a band whose records I would see around all the time at places like Wax Trax, but always put off buying. I always vowed to get around to picking them up and checking them out someday but something always happened that prevented me from doing so. After doing the feature on Sin 34 and realizing that Dave Markey was also a member of Painted Willie, I finally ended my procrastination and sought out the first two Painted Willie Records (a 7" and a 12", both on Spinhead). Well, I am glad I did because I was missing out on a pretty good band.

I once again asked Dave Markey if he'd be so kind as to share some history of his other band, since he was receptive to doing the Sin 34 history when I asked (and produced a wonderful history, much more than I could have hoped). I'm happy to say that Dave once again was willing to participate so without further adieu, I present to you The Painted Willie Story.

The Painted Willie Experience

I will keep the focus of this on the first year and a half of the band. I do not care to talk about the SST era, or the subsequent tour w/ Black Flag, and the film that I made Reality 86'd that Greg Ginn does not want anyone to see. Believe me when I say I do not like to talk about it.You can all write Ginn at SSTSuperstore.com and let him know what you think.

In early 1984 I was living in the back of a storefront on Burbank Blvd. in North Hollywood, that I had helped construct an 8 track recording studio in. The place was dubbed Spinhead, by, I believe yours truly. It was owned by Phil Newman, the bassist of Sin 34. He also was living there and attempting to run the studio as a business, but having a difficult time. Sin 34 would also rehearse there, in addition to a few other bands like Americas Hardcore and Bad Religion. I recall Phil had a side band going for a while with Greg Graffin of Bad Religion, called Glacier. I think much of that
material ended up being BR material later on.

We had no shower or hot water. Bathing was done in the industrial backyard with a garden hose. The only kitchen facility was a hot plate. I was working as a punk rock extra in movies while I was making my own movie Desperate Teenage Lovedolls during this time. From all my extra work, I can be seen most clearly in the frame with Helen Hunt in the 1980s instantly forgettable comedy Girls Just Want to Have Fun

Sin 34 was having a difficult time during this period. We were on the verge of breaking up, and the tensions between the band members was high. Julie had gotten into speed, and then heroin during this time. She would be trying to find a vein in the bathroom during half the time of our rehearsal set. Mike was also getting into hard drugs too. Phil and I were just into psychedelics at the time, so we related through that experience.

We had grown tired of the restrictions of the hardcore scene, which was crashing and burning all around us anyhow. We thought we could do more with music. I remember we were listening a lot to The Fall at this time. And Syd Barrett era Pink Floyd. Rolling Stones "Satanic Majesties Request". Jimi Hendrix Experience "Axis Bold As Love". Blue Cheer "Vincebus Erruptus". This was the shit that was moving us at the time.

Phil and I wanted to do a side project somewhere along the lines of this kind of music, fused with the hardcore we had previously covered with Sin 34. We had been playing for a few years now, and had grown leaps and bounds musically. Part of it was having the studio to play in 24/7. It was great, I really miss that, even although the times were real lean and very dark.

We were friends with Vic Makauskas of the band SVDB, and he had been over a few times to jam with us. His band was also on the verge of disintegration, as were a lot of the hardcore bands of Southern California that year. SVDB were a lot more poppy/catchy/crunchy type
so-cal punk, than hardcore. I remember they were a pretty tight live band, with a definite Damned bent.

We had also met this kooky Canadian named Nick Delaney, who had just come to LA in search of the Punk Rock N Roll (yikes) dream. He was an eccentric, and very awkward socially, but his guitar playing and song
writing was extremely unique. He was in a few bands from his native Vancouver, Canada, namely No Exit and East Van Halen.

Nick was out of his mind, and never touched a drug in his life. He took to calling himself Will at this time (after the name of the band, of course). I remember he shaved his head, except for a small circle on the top, which he died blue, with, a black center. He would
later explain, this was the island on his head. He would affix a cocktail umbrella to the center of it, and claim to take naps there in the late afternoon.

Somewhere around this time, Sin 34 breaks up. We would regroup a few months later with the offer of a "big gig" at the Olympic Auditorium opening for Fear and the Circle Jerks. I think we played once more at the Cathay De Grande before the band finally rested, once and for all. NOFX would open that show for us, I believe it was one of their first gigs.

So Phil and I start Painted Willie as 4 piece. 2 guitars (Vic and Nick), and Phil and I on bass and drums respectively. Phil had dubbed the band Painted Willie from a 1950's thesaurus he had found in a thrift store. Apparently it was an old English acronym for homosexual, or more approximately transvestite.

Right before our first show, at the Cathay De Grande dollar punk night, Vic dropped out of the band. Apparently his straight forward rock guitar playing didn't jibe with the wild/avant garde stylings of Willie (Nick). Willie was getting more and more out there, with so much energy and ideas constantly exuding from him. It grew hard to tell if he was a genius or a complete freak. I guess we found our own Syd.

So we debuted as a three piece, and quickly recorded a three song (one song each from each member) 7" EP simply titled "Painted Willie" (Spinhead 03), at our own home/rehearsal/recording studio Spinhead. "Ragged Army" (Will, er Nick's) best song by far, "Paper Tiger" (my tune, with a definitive Meat Puppet II influenced mid-section), and Phil's stunning "Kill It" as the B side. It's a gritty and unique record, with odd time signatures and quirky arrangements. Still sounds great today, if I don't say so myself.

The band had a hard time getting gigs, and it seems the Sin 34 fans were mixed on this decidedly different musical outing. There was a fair amount of airplay on KROQ's Rodney On The Roq show of the single. But the music scene in LA in 1984 was just a little whack. All of the clubs had closed, and punk rock, post-punk, post-hardcore, whatever you wanted to call it- had no venues after the Cathay shut it's doors. It was in that time I first heard the word "alternative", and it was used in a review in Option magazine, to describe our debut single. I mean, it may have been used previously somewhere. But I had never seen it.

It only took a month or two of "Will" Nick's living with us in that crammed back room of Spinhead, for tensions to come to a boiling point. It was kinda like the Jim Jarmusch movie Down By Law.

In July of '84 my Lovedolls movie was screened for the first time ever (before the premier proper) in Spinhead Studios. It was around this time that Phil and I had given Nick his notice. As much as I liked the guy, and his songs, he was just too much to live with. I think Phil was adamant about booting him, and I was more or less in agreement.

So Nick was out, and it was just back to basics. We recorded a 12" EP at this point, as a two piece. Phil played the guitar parts, and quite amazingly at that. I took the photograph that graces the simple black & white cover. It was a homeless man in downtown LA's skid row, covered in an American flag. We titled the EP My Fellow Americans. The Los Angeles 1984 Olympics were underway. Ronald Reagan was reigning supreme in the White House. This would be Painted
Willie's decidedly most political record in the band's brief 3 year history.

"My Fellow Americans" opens the EP with a dirgey but catchy instrumental with a political discourse layered over the top of it. The left wing discussion is mixed to the left channel, and is spoken by the Dutch band BGK. The right wing claptrap is on the right channel, and is spoken by various girlfriends of the band, one notably Jennifer Finch, future of L7. They were not speaking seriously of their political leanings, Phil and I had told them to be as conservative as they could imagine being. It's an interesting track, and it was the one that got the most airplay on this disc.

That is followed by "Part Two", a Phil composition originally performed by Sin 34, but never recorded. The song was inspired by the gloomy nuclear nightmare movie "On The Beach" and tells the story of an atomic bomb survivor in his last moments of life.

"Crossed Fingers" opens side 2 of disc, which yours truly warbling my lyrics of genuine hope vs. direct action. It's one of my favorite songs I have ever recorded. Phil wrote the music, and it was created
during the early years of Sin 34. I remember Julie's version of that song, it was called; "It's The Great Punk In, Charlie Brown". Too bad that was never recorded.

It's followed by a punk/funky anti-Ronny Reagan song I wrote and sang called "Republican Suntan (Sunburn)". It's decidedly light hearted and comic relief on this collection. The side closes with a psychedelic instrumental of the title track "My Fellow Americans".

Vic Makauskas would then rejoin the band and at this point the music transforms pretty much into a neo-metal band, a little less interesting but not without it's moments. The band would go on another year and a half before permanently disbanding in late
1987.

Those first two EPs and other demo recordings of that era also comprise the last release ever from the band titled "Relics". I believe this to be the bands strongest material.

-Dave Markey

Thanks once more Dave for the great history. The Painted Willie records on Spinhead are long out of print, however due to the fact they went largely overlooked, they aren't terribly difficult to find for a fair price and are well worth grabbing if you come across them.

Listen to "Kill It" from the record (right click and "save target as...")

Well this just blows

I lost my job today. I was laid off. Well, not just me, all of us were really. I'm fucked because I don't know what I am going to do. My options for what I did for a living (assistant video game designer) are pretty limited in Chicago. I'm still in shock and it is just starting to set in that I'm pretty much screwed. I don't think this week could get off to any worse of a start. Come to think of it, this year so far hasn't been so hot. Everyone please wish me luck because I am sure as hell going to need it.

The many flavors of: Articles of Faith - What We Want is Free 7"

Chicago has been known to produce some fine punk rock bands, even if they may have not received as much attention as bands from California or New York. One of the best bands Chicago ever gave birth to was Articles of Faith. In their career they left us a pair of 7"s and a pair of albums, along with a few compilation tracks.

In 1982 the band released this, their first 7". It came out on the Version Sound label, which also put out a couple cassette compilations, and 7"s by Negative Element, Die Kreuzen and Rebel Truth. After the first pressing of this sold out, I believe the label had ceased operations so the band reissued it on their own label, Wasteland Records. The same stampers were used for both pressings, the only thing that differed was the label on one side, and the back sleeve was changed to have the Wasteland Records info in place of the Version Sound info.

The first pressing had a black and white sleeve, and Version Sound labels. I would guess there was 500-1000 of them pressed.

It was later reissued on Wasteland Records with 3 different sleeve possibilities. Since the sleeve for all pressings consisted of two printed sheets, some front and back sleeves for this pressing didn't necessarily match. The variations are as follows.

Blue front and back sleeve,

all the Wasteland variations had this label in place of the Version Sound label...

red front and back sleeve,

and blue front sleeve with red back sleeve.

I imagine the mixed sleeves were a result of leftover parts used to put records in. I have never seen a red front w/blue back though that's not to say one doesn't exist.

In 1991 Bitzcore Records released the Core album which compiled all the 7" and compilation tracks on both LP and CD (the LP had a limited pressing on white vinyl which I am in need of), however all the songs were remixed so they sound different than they did on the original releases. Unlike a lot of remix efforts, they did this one right and the sound is excellent and the songs sound a lot more full.

A couple years ago, the material was released yet again on Alternative Tentacles as part of a two-part reissue series titled AOF Complete.

More reading:
Get yourself some AOF on CD: Volume One and Volume Two.
AOF Complete site
Vic Bondi's website

Government Issue - Live 1985 DVD

Government Issue - Live 1985 DVD
Music Video Distributors

I think anyone who knows even only a little about me knows what a huge Government Issue fan I am. I put out one of their records even! I am also a huge fan of Flipside fanzine, and all things associated with it, including their videos, which this was once a part of. So in one fell swoop, I hold in my hands a document of not one, but two things of my punk rock past, GI and Flipside Video.

In 1985 Government Issue flew out to California on Mystic Records' tab and played a handful of shows out there while recording some studio tracks at Mystic Studios for what became the Give Us Stabb or Give Us Death EP. Flipside filmed a couple of the shows they played out there and compiled it together which has now been preserved on DVD.

The first show was from June 3, 1985 at Fender's. While the quality certainly isn't up to today's standards, back in 1985 Flipside put out some nice amateurish videos that were certainly well above the quality of a guy taking his mom's video camera to a show. There is a couple of glitches in the video likely due to the age of the source tape but it is pretty minor. The sound is rather vocal heavy, but it still sounds pretty good and is certainly enjoyable. The show itself was your standard GI fare, which if you never got a chance to see them, was always top notch. Stabb is a charismatic front man and also one of the nicest guys in punk rock and would keep the crowd entertained with his between song banter. There is 10 songs in the set they played, mostly from Joyride and The Fun Just Never Ends.

The second show was recorded a couple months later at the Olympic Auditorium on August 9, 1985. For those who may not know, the Olympic was/is a 10,000 seat venue that used to do large concerts and wrestling shows for years. The place is still there, though I'm not sure they are still doing concerts anymore, or wrestling for that matter. Back in the mid 80's, Goldenvoice Productions, then led by Gary Tovar, used to book these huge hardcore shows with a ton of bands and they'd pack the place. This show was one of those affairs and was the biggest size show GI ever played. Stabb mentions in the liner notes feeling a bit out of place on such a huge stage but you'd be hard pressed to notice watching this video. It didn't stop them from delivering the goods. The video and sound quality are a bit better for this show, especially in the sound department where it is a much more even mix. They also played a longer set at this show as well.

Sadly there are no extras on the disc, but I chalk that up to the lack of material available as there must not have been many videos and video interviews shot back in those days, or if there was it wasn't made available. A modern-day interview would have been cool with the ex-members. It is no deterrent from owning this however as this is really all about a document of a great band whose time is long over and I for one am ecstatic to see this not only being preserved on a format that won't rot or fall apart, but made available to people like me who want another souvenir of those days, or for someone who wasn't there at the time and wants to see what he/she missed.

Want one for yourself? Get it here.

When will it end?!

I just saw a commercial for the movie House of Wax. They remade yet another movie from the past. Is Hollywood really that hard up that they can't come up with new movies and instead have to remake films from the past that not only in most cases were very good, but had nothing wrong with them to warrant a remake. I will very rarely even watch these remakes even for free because I'm against it. If they are that set on resurrecting the past, then spend that money restoring these old films for proper DVD special editions instead of tarnishing them with some shitty remake.

Mr. Potato Head goes to the big easy Part 3

A couple days after the envelope with the previous entry's pictures arrived, another one showed up in the mailbox and would be the last document of the little spud's travels to the city that probably has more drunks per square foot than any other. Well at least at Mardi gras it does.

Selections from The Punk Vault [Husker Du]

Husker Du - Eight Miles High 7" (1984 SST Records)

It is probably a pretty safe bet that if you are a fan of punk rock from the 1980s, then you probably have at least heard of Husker Du. My first exposure to the band came via a radio show a couple of not-yet-friends of mine had at our High School radio station. Their names were Kathy and Robert (aka: Shrub). The song they played was a cover of The Birds' "Eight Miles High" and I was an instant fan. I used to tape their shows when I was a freshman in school because my access to money and records was limited by where I could walk and what I could buy on my allowance until I got a part time job when I was a little older. I used to rewind the tape and play that song over and over and every trip to a record store I'd look for any of their records.

Husker Du formed in 1979 in Minneapolis, MN. Grant Hart and Greg Norton were working at a local record store and met a man by the name of Bob Mould who was a frequent visitor to the store. They became friends and decided to form a band. Their name was taken from an old children' board game which translates as "Do You Remember". In 1981 they released their first 7", Amusement/Statues on their own Reflex Records label.

The band hit the road and pretty much toured non-stop for years, pausing only to record more records. Their next release was the live Land Speed Record on New Alliance Records. The band recorded it at the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis. The title was pretty accurate as they blazed thru their set without ever stopping for air. Even though that material was speedy fast hardcore, they still showed hints of the melody that would become their trademark throughout their career. Shortly after that, they put out another 7", In a Free Land also on New Alliance Records. At the time this was the best thing they did and now stands as one of the rarest pieces of Husker Du vinyl there is, especially if it has an insert with it as not all of them did.

The band returned to putting out their own records again for their first full-length studio album, Everything Falls Apart. This is where they really got a chance to show off their now famous buzz saw guitar sound along with their brand of melodic hardcore. At the time they really were a unique band and all their stuff certainly stands the test of time.

The band found a new home in SST Records for their next record, a 12" EP called Metal Circus. It really was sort of a co-release of sorts between SST and Reflex Records in theory, but SST was the ones who actually manufactured, sold, and distributed it. More touring followed and when the band made it out to CA, they recorded what in my opinion is one of the best punk rock records of all time.

In 1984 the band released Zen Arcade, a double concept album about a boy who leaves home to go out in the world on his own. At the time, no other band had done something like that and really no one has since. The sound was a bit more refined than the stuff on Metal Circus and the sound a bit more melodic, but it still packed one hell of a punch while at the same time showing a new side to the band. It was embraced by such things as college radio and Rolling Stone magazine at the time and really got the band noticed.

A year later, another great album followed up, New Day Rising, along with more touring of course. All that touring and sadly I never got to see the band play due to either lack of funds, and more importantly lack of transportation! The next release, and their last for SST was Flip Your Wig which showed the band going more into the "post punk" or "college rock" direction. The songs were more accessible and didn't have as much bite to them, but still remained quite good.

Following the release of that album, the band did something that was a really big deal at the time. They signed to a major label. They were being courted by a couple different ones but ended up signing to Warner Bros. I remember what a huge deal that was to the punk rock community at the time and it was talked and written about everywhere. Candy Apple Gray was their first major label release, and while a pretty good record, it wasn't nearly as good as the previous ones.

After a couple singles the band released what turned out to be their final album, Warehouse: Songs and Stories which was another double album. At this point the band were splintering apart and not getting along. Their long time manager had passed away and after one last tour, which no one knew would be their last, the band gave up. The biggest rift was between Grant Hart and Bob Mould, who were likely wrestling for control of the band as both men were the songwriters. They had a unique setup, as whoever wrote the song would also be the one to sing it, they didn't have a "lead singer", they all would sing depending on what song it was and who wrote it, though as time went on, it was pretty much just Grant and Bob writing all the songs and singing them.

Upon their split, Bob Mould started did some solo records and formed the band Sugar. Grant Hart put out a couple of solo records and formed the band Nova Mob. Greg Norton ended up becoming a chef I believe. The band never reunited upon their split and I think there still is bad blood between Grant and Bob to this day.

Picking just one Husker Du record to feature, and one song was a tough one because I love everything they have done. Sure not every record is a masterpiece, but even the weaker stuff was better than most bands and they never put out something that flat out sucked. I decided to go with the song that got me into them in the first place.

As always, if you have any additional information, or were in Husker Du and want to share some stories, please get in touch.

Listen to "Eight Miles High" from the record (right click and "save target as...")

Game On

Close to two weeks ago, I took the day off and Lady Combustion and I went to the Museum of Science and Industry here in Chicago to see the Game On Exhibit. It is a limited exhibit that documents the history of video games. I, having been a fan of video games literally since their invention, had to check this out to see some stuff from my youth, and to see what they'd omit. Oh yeah, and to play some games!

I snapped a couple pix on my crappy cameraphone and Lady Combustion took a few on her digital camera. For some reason, I was a dumbass and didn't think to pack my digital camera.

The exhibit is broken up into different sections that they called "levels" that shows a point in time in the history of the video game. It started with the arcade, and they had about a dozen old coin-op games on display set to free play. Space Invaders, Donkey Kong, Pac Man, Space Invaders Deluxe, Galaga, and others were there and most of them worked pretty good.

MXV playing Missle Command for the first time in many years

For some reason they had a Vectrex on display with the coin-op games. It was near some info about vector graphics. I actually have one of those. They also had the 3D imager for it on display in a separate case full of controllers and various gimmicks.

More after the jump

They then go onto the various home systems and computers throughout the years starting with the Odyssey and Atari 2600. I didn't notice any Bally Astrocade, Intellivision, Colecovision, Fairchild Channel F or Atari 5200 on display but they did have some cool stuff like various Commodore and Texas Instruments computers.

They had a special wall devoted to laser disc games, or more specifically, Dragon's Lair! Sadly they didn't have a Dragon's Lair machine on display. I guess either they couldn't locate one, or didn't think it would stay running for the duration of the exhibit (they were prone to break down a lot due to the crappy nature of those old laser disc players). On the wall was various stages of the animation cels and sketches along with production notes, etc. It was one of the highlights for me as I am a huge Dragon's Lair mark.

They then go on to show the second boom of video games such as the Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Master System, and Atari 7800. They even showed some not as common (at least here in the US) stuff such as the Famicom (the Japanese version of the NES)

Mixed in with the console stuff was two more arcade games, and a couple of real gems at that; Star Wars and Discs of Tron!

As you progress further you get to the new stuff like the Playstation, Dreamcast, PS2, Xbox, etc. They also have a wall dedicated to the various Golden Tee Golf arcade games and another one with such gimmick controlled games like Dance Dance Revolution, Steel Battallions, and that Donkey Kong bongo game. Around the same area is a couple tables and displays with various handheld systems such as the old Nintendo Game and Watch games, Microvision (which I had when I was a kid and wish I still had one), and the little tabletop arcade games.

Caveman, one of the tabletop games I never owned

I had the pac man tabletop like this when I was a kid

Microvision! Does anyone happen to have one of these they want to get rid of?

That pretty much sums it up. It was a neat, though nowhere near complete history of video games. I was shocked by some of the glaring omissions and also surprised by some of the things they did include. Overall they did a nice job and you could easily spend a couple hours or more in there playing various games all day long. I'd suggest bringing yr hand sanitizer though as there is plenty of kids running around in there touching everything and we all know kids are the biggest carriers of sickness.

I actually hope to go back one more time before it ends in September and see it again and take a lot more pictures.

New York Dolls???

I'm sitting here looking at upcoming shows here in Chicago in the Reader and I came across this:

4/22 at Metro: New York Dolls

Aren't most of them dead?! Aside from David Johansen, who else is left?

Selections from The Punk Vault [That was Then, This is Now]

Various Artists - That was Then, This is Now 7" (1986 Plus Records)

This one flew under my radar when it was first released and I didn't acquire one for about 2 years or so after it was released, when my friend Vince traded me his copy. While he liked Ruin, he hated the FOD song with a passion. That worked to my favor I guess because he ended up giving up this thing to me. I on the other hand, loved the FOD track. While to him it was just "noise", to me it was hardcore gold!

This record was the first release on Plus Records, who also brought us records from The Serial Killers, Legitimate Reason, and a couple others. Pretty much everything on the label was good and they certainly got off on the right foot with this compilation. This comp features Ruin, Scram, Electric Love Muffin, and FOD, all of them were from Philadelphia, PA, as was the label.

This particular FOD song was recorded live. The studio version can be found on their Love Songs 7". It is raw, fast and loud, and far more "hardcore" than the version on the aforementioned 7". There was two pressings of this record. The first had a thin, glued sleeve and came with an insert and stickers. The second had a hard, folded sleeve, different back cover, and did not come with stickers. The labels were different colors as well and the second press adds "vol.2" on the label to indicate it is the second pressing.

As always, if you have any additional information, or were the person responsible for Plus Records, please get in touch.

Listen to "Meat Factory" by FOD from the record (right click and "save target as...")

Smackdown Chicago taping 4/12/05

Last nite I went with a few friends to see WWE Smackdown at Allstate Arena. It was the taping for what will be tomorrow's show. It was a really fun show and I think one of the best Smackdown's they've had in awhile. We were sitting on the main floor in the 10th row, behind Michael Cole and Tazz. The seats were real good except for when people were standing, standing on their chairs, holding up signs, or any combination of the above which sadly was a lot of the time. I didn't let it spoil my fun and since I could see the Titantron easily, I didn't miss much of the action. The show clocked in at around 3 hours and the food costs clocked in at around $15! At least we didn't have to pay to park since Matt C lives so close, we just park at his place and walk for 10 minutes to the arena, saving $13 plus an hour of sitting in the lot waiting to exit after the show.

For those that don't want spoilers, I suggest not reading the rest...

Some highlights were:

After the not really worth mentioning Velocity tapings, they started off with Booker T vs. Orlando Jordan with JBL at the commentary table overseeing the match. Not 5 mins into it the Bashams interfere and the ref calls for a DQ. They continue to attack Booker until Big Show's music hits and he comes to the ring to make the save, and he got a really big pop from the crowd. I'll say this, since he's come back from his knee surgery he has been a lot more entertaining and looks like he is working harder in the ring. They may have finally found his niche. Theodore Long comes out and declares the match is not over, and it is now a 3 on 2 handicap match. Booker and Show quickly get the win.

Torrie and Dawn Marie had a little match. For what it was, it was mindless fun and kept short. Torrie got the win with a Swinging Neck Breaker.

Carlito Carribean Cool debuted his new talk show (ala Piper's Pit) called "Carlito's Cabana". His guest was Rey Mysterio. After getting a ton of heel heat by ripping on Chicago in a most amusing manner, Carlito tried to stir up the shit between Rey and Eddie. Rey wasn't buying into his bullshit and was downplaying the recent problems between Eddie and himself. After a couple minutes of this, some unfamiliar music starts and 3 new people came down to the ring with a pretty flashy entrance. It was the new tag team of MNM. It was Melina, Johnny Nitro, and Joey Matthews. All 3 of them are developmental talent from OVW. After Melina does her patented splits thru the bottom rope entrance (which I will admit I'm a mark for), she introduced her new team and demanded to Rey that they give them a tag title shot. After a couple minutes of back and forth banter, MNM beat the crap out of Rey and did a double team move similar to the 3D and left him laying. While all this was going one, Carlito just sat in one of the lounge chairs and watched it all happen with a smile on his face. It was really entertaining, the crowd were into it and I'm glad to see not only some more OVW people get a shot, but a new tag team hit the scene and hopefully breathe some life into that most-neglected division.

John Cena came out and debuted his new blinged up title belt. JBL tried to put a stop to it but ended up getting a box of "guts" from a Chicago slaughterhouse dumped all over him. The crowd popped huge for Cena. I couldn't believe how many people bought into that whole "chain gang" bullshit. The belt is even more ridiculous than what he did to the US title, but it was kinda funny at least and the crowd ate it up.

In what had to be the biggest show of stupidity on the writing/booking staff, the next feature was Heidenrape vs. unknown jobber. It was a total squash and the crowd just went DEAD. You'd think the show was over with the silence there was in the arena. The crowd was way hot throughout the entire show up until this point and this segment just killed it instantly. After squashing the jobber, Heidenrape read his new poem, which was all about farting. I will admit that the inner 10 year old inside of me chuckled for a minute and found that the best thing Heidenrape has done in his WWE tenure, but it was still pointless, had no place on the show (and I'll bet it doesn't make it to TV), and as I said, killed all the crowd heat.

Paul London came to the ring and challenged Chavo to a match. London was all bandaged up in the head from his battle with Kidman last week. He was all pissed off and did a convincing job on the mic. Chavo came out and in true heel fashion, told London he will wait until he is 100 percent before taking back "his" title. Chavo is consistently entertaining, especially when working as a heel. The only thing was the crowd were still dead from the Heidenrape fiasco and were dead silent through this whole segment. I felt bad for London and Chavo because they were doing a really good job and I look forward to seeing them have some matches in the near future, but what preceded them totally harmed them.

The final TV match followed and it was Kurt Angle vs. Eddie Guerrero. As expected, it was a stellar match and pretty long. Both men got huge pops from the crowd and the match kept everyone on their feet for most of the battle. As one might have guessed, Rey ended up interfering and thus costing Eddie the match.

After the TV taping was done, we got a bonus title match of JBL vs. John Cena. The crowd went nuts again for Cena, who of course got the win in about 15 minutes. This match was far more entertaining than their WM21 match and I imagine it was all practice for a rematch at the next Smackdown PPV. After the match, Cena got a mic and thanked the crowd and pandered to them for a full 5 minutes and the crowd ate it up. Personally the more he does that forced pandering to the crowd and his stupid "chain gang" crap, the less I like him. He was far more entertaining when he was a smart ass who rapped insults about his opponents instead of sucking up to the crowd in a near-pathetic fashion. The sheep ate it up though.

As I said, it was a very fun show that, except for that one low point, held my interest for the entire thing and had me leaving the arena with a smile on my face.

Some bad record luck

Last week was a bad luck week for records in my life. The first one was I ordered a record from this place in Spain. It was supposed to be the Black Flag Jealous Again 10" on red vinyl. I even emailed the place selling it to make sure it was red and was told it was. When I got it, I opened it up to find it was the pink vinyl one. Now it isn't a case of my eyes not being good, the pink ones are opaque and red vinyl ones are translucent. I emailed my displeasure to the place selling it and to their credit they told me to return it and they'd give me a full refund including the return shipping, which is the right thing to do of course. The sad thing is I was so excited to finally getting that last color I was missing and the quest continues.

The second one was even more frustrating. I ordered a copy of the first Soundgarden 7" on blue vinyl ("Hunted Down"), a record I wanted for so many years, and was stoked because it was such a fair price. I was a little skeptical about it being a bootleg but google searches turned up nothing in the way of any info about there being a fake. When I received it and looked it over, I felt even more uneasy about it. The first giveaway to me was the etchings in the runoff groove. All that was contained there was 19©87 which seemed quite fishy to me as there should have been some sort of catalog number, or at least the order # from the pressing plant. Also the blue vinyl seemed a far different, lighter shade than the one copy I remember seeing more than 10 years ago (and am still kicking myself for not picking up due to cheapness). After posting a message to the kbd mailing list and receiving info from the fine folks who are members of it, my fears were confirmed, the record was indeed a fake.

I emailed the place selling it and stated that I wanted to return it as it was a fake. They agreed, but not before giving me some bullshit story about how it is real and they were an authorized Sub Pop dealer in the early 90s and bought those from Southern. They also claim to state they sold it too cheap and was offered more than 3 times what they sold it to me for by another dealer so they'd be happy to have it back. I wrote back pointing out the info I was given about how to spot a fake, and advised them they ought to make this alleged dealer who wanted to buy it aware that it is a repro and not authentic. I also saw that the same seller now has 4 others available for sale too. I don't know who he thinks he is fooling. So now I have to ship that back, and the hunt goes on even longer for that damn record. If anyone has either of the above that they want to sell or trade, please let me know, I'd like to end the hunt for said items.

On a more positive note, tonite I am going to Smackdown over at the Allstate Arena with some friends. We got really good seats too so it is going to be a fun time I'm sure. My next pinball league is this Saturday and hopefully I'll play even better than last time, despite my not having played but once since then. Speaking of pinball, I'm in the process of putting my Funhouse back together and it is finally starting to come along. I can't wait to get that thing done and start playing it again, I've been without it for 2 years and I really miss it.

Selections from The Punk Vault [Cyanamid]

Cyanamid - Stop the World, I Want to Get Off 7" (1984 Mutha Records)

This band is somewhat of a mystery to me. I first heard them on the New Jersey's Got It? Compilation on the long-defunct Buy Our Records. It was a lot of years before I ever ran into a copy of their one and only 7" which was released on Mutha Records. They also released a demo tape prior to this (which I'd appreciate a copy of if anyone has it)

Aside from knowing the band hailed from New Jersey, I know nothing else about them or what became of them.

The band consisted of:
Dan Mulleavey - vocals
Sparky - bass
Chris - drums
Jim - guitar

As always if you have any additional information, or were a member of Cyanamid, please get in touch.

Listen to "I Love PBJ's" from the record (right click and "save target as...")

The many flavors of: Husker Du - Land Speed Record

While I love all their records, especially Zen Arcade, I'm particularly fond of this album for the fact it was the first Husker Du album I bought when I was in high school. The first thing I ever heard from them was their cover of "Eight Miles High" on Kathy and Shrub's radio show on WDGC when we were in high school, and I vowed to check out more by the band, and this was the first record of their's I found at the time.

Throughout the years, there's been a few different variations of this fine piece of wax, and it was on three different labels as well. The rundown is as follows.

It originally came out on New Alliance Records. The first pressing had a cardboard sleeve, the second had a regular type sleeve. Only the first pressing came with an insert containing the lyrics on one side and tour dates on the other.

It was licensed at the same time to Alternative Tentacles Records for a UK release. This came with an insert that was just single sided containing the lyrics.

At some point, New Alliance Records stopped operations and was absorbed by SST (who was manufacturing and distributing the records for New Alliance anyway). SST records did it on black vinyl, and around 1990, SST pressed a good chunk of their catalog on colored vinyl. The story I was told from Chuck Dukowski, who worked for SST for a lot of years, was that they would press 1000 on colored vinyl, and then if they needed more, they would switch to a new color and do another 1000. He said depending on the release there was 1000-5000 on colored vinyl. Sadly no one over there kept any kind of accurate records so no one remembers what records were done on what color of vinyl. I've only seen two different colors for this record.

There was 1000 on green vinyl,

and 1000 on gray vinyl.

When SST took over this record, they put their logo on the back and a barcode.

None of the SST versions come with an insert. An interesting note is the same pressing tools were used for the SST version, they just scratched out the New Alliance matrix number and put in their own right next to it. I believe the record is still being made on vinyl as SST has kept a great deal of the classic punk records in print on the format, or at least the big sellers anyway.

So there you have the many flavors of Land Speed Record, a record I still play regularly.

Anyone out there know a lot about good cartridges for turntables?

I'm due for either a new stylus for my turntable, or even perhaps a new cartridge. Currently I have a Technics 1200 turntable and I'm using a Ortofon Super OM20 cartridge/stylus. I would like to upgrade the stylus and/or cartridge for an even better sound. Should I just get the Super OM 30 or 40 stylus or is there something that nets a better sound out there for around the same price (300 or less is preferred, I'm low on funds and don't want to break the bank).

I'm not a DJ obviously, I want something that sounds great for listening, and for recording my records to cd/mp3 files (for you Vault fans).

How about some Gmail?

I still have like 11 million Gmail invites left to give away. So if anyone wants one, let me know. They have now upped it to 2GB of storage, and it keeps growing.

Selections from The Punk Vault [F]

F- Mess You Up 7" (1988 Mystic/Superseven Records)

I first heard about the band F on the Flipside Vinyl Fanzine Volume 1 compilation and was interested enough to check them out. Problem was finding any of their records, which at the time was limited to the You are an EP 12". They appeared on a couple other comps and then a couple years later, this 7" was released as well as a split LP with their friends, White Flag.

It would be many years before I finally tracked down a copy of the first 12", and it was only after finding David Camp, the man responsible for recording that record, that I acquired one from him. A funny story about that was when I called him up and talked to him about wanting to buy one from him, his response was "well, I have a bunch of copies that the band peed on and I have to check but I think I have one mint copy left as well". I obviously had no interest in the urine-damaged copies and worked out a deal for the mint one and finally had my F completion.

F were from Florida and much like AOD, were like a bunch of punk comedians. To F, nearly everything was a joke. I remember all kinds of hate mail in Maximumrocknroll about F, most of which were likely written by the band themselves! Some members of F also had another band called Gay Cowboys in Bondage, who released a 7" back then at the same time.

When Sound Idea Records reissued the You are an EP record as a 7", there was a bit of band history contained inside written by Phil Blumel. It is as follows.

The band F - no one seems to have a credible justification for the name - was formed in 1982 and released their first 12-inch record You Are An E.P. a year later. Prior to its release, the band broke up into two bands - one punk rock and the other '70s-style heavy metal - with the same name and performing the same songs in their respective styles.

This minuscule controversy - as well as a number of childish and unfriendly pranks - brought the band to the attention of the South Florida scene. For an effect probably not half as comical as they thought at the time, the band adopted the newly minted straight edge pose, complete with Xs etc., while drinking heavily and behaving like spoiled, self-destructive, carnivorous swine.

Upon the pressing of 1,500 copies of this record in 1983, no less than 200 of the records were smashed with hammers and against walls by the band and attendees at the practice/show. Such was their idea of a punk rock record release party. Calling the police on their own shows was another party favorite, and they delighted in their last show in Fort Lauderdale where the police actually made arrests instead of the usual simple harassment.

The band toured twice outside of Florida, both times with White Flag - although their t-shirts and interviews indicated they had toured with the Ramones. The band consisted of U.S. Ken "The Duke" Decter, John "John Galt" Golf Jr., Eddie Nothing and alternating drummers Ravenous "Mike Hasson" Gangrene and Pete Moss. Tim Swingle also played bass early on. The Duke moved to California and played solo under that moniker and as guitar-man for the Ex-Idols. John is a financial planner in South Florida and Eddie (who also played for the Gay Cowboys in Bondage) is now a bill collector in Tampa. Rav has not been heard of in some time, and Pete won't ever be again, as he died in mid-1997 while abusing some straight-edge heroin. (Rest in peace, Pete.) [Note: It appears that this is incorrect; Pete Moss committed suicide in 1997]

In the early 1990s, the F-Boys appeared in South Florida, having no other connection with the band than their name. And then, following their example, F, The Band Formerly Known as the John Birch Society were born in Gainesville in 1994 and released a fine e.p. "Die You Stupid Hippies."

So the band split in half, and there was two F's. One of them, presumably the heavy metal version, is still playing around Florida and has a website. I contacted them and asked if they had any affiliation to the punk band of the same name and they responded with a yes. When I wrote back to ask for some more history about F, I received no response.

Sadly, I lost David Camp's phone number a few years ago, else I would have tried to get back in touch for some more info and stories. When I talked to him on the phone, he had a lot of great old punk stories and still was in contact with a few people from the old days. David, if you happen to read this, please get back in touch.

This particular record was pressed on both black vinyl and later colored vinyl and had two different colored sleeves (yellow and white). It has been out of print for a hell of a long time. I'm sure someday it'll eventually get reissued on a Superseven singles collection.

As always if you have any additional information or were a member of the band F, please get in touch.

Listen to "Shoot it Down" from the record (right click and "save target as...")

Mr. Potato Head goes to the Big Easy part 2

A few days or so after the first mysterious envelope arrived, a second one came, postmarked from the same place. This one contained 3 more pictures documenting the spud's exploits in the city where you can barter beads for boobs.

It appears the little guy and I have a lot in common as we are both a fan of Cafe Du Monde and their famous benets! I thought this would be the last of his New Orleans adventures, but the little oblong fellow must have had too much fun to leave because a third envelope followed this one.

Selections from The Punk Vault [The Misfits]

The Misfits - Cough/Cool 7" (1977 Blank Records)

If there is one band that probably doesn't need an introduction it is The Misfits. Over the years they garnered quite a following, in no small part thanks to Metallica always wearing their shirts and talking about them in interviews as well as covering one of their songs. In their wake, The Misfits became more and more popular reaching legendary status in the eyes of both punks and metalheads around the world. One has to wonder had Metallica not been shilling for them in the late 80s, if they'd be as popular as they are now.

The band formed in 1977 in Lodi, New Jersey by Glenn Danzig and Jerry Caiafa. They quickly added a drummer by the name of Manny and recorded and released this, their first two song single. The band had bass, drums, and piano, there was no guitars. The music was rather unique and had a bit of a spooky dark aura about it, even before they took on their horror image. They pressed a mere 500 copies and released it on their own label, Blank Records. This single sounded nothing like what would follow it.

In 1978, they added Frank "Franché Coma" LiCata on guitar and Manny left the band and was replace by "Mr. Jim" Catania. Some major label wanted to use the name Blank Records but Glenn owned the name so he traded it to the label in exchange for a bunch of studio time. They recorded a bunch of tracks that they planned to release as a LP titled Static Age however finding a label at the time to release it proved fruitless so some of the tracks were used and put out on a 7" titled Bullet that Glenn released on his new label, Plan 9 Records. This was the start of what became the trademark "Misfits sound" that they'd carry on for the rest of their existence.

Soon after, Franche Coma was out, and replaced by Bobby Steele. They put out a few more 7"s and played a bunch of shows. The releases that followed were the Horror Business and Night of the Living Dead 7"s. There was also a 12" released on Cherry Red Records titled Beware that compiled the Bullet and Horror Business 7"s with "Children in Heat" being replace by "Last Caress", the song made famous years later by Metallica doing a cover of it.

The band played in the UK and Glenn and Bobby ended up in jail which was the catalyst behind "London Dungeon" being written. When they got back to the states, they kicked out Bobby Steele in favor of Jerry's younger brother Doyle (Paul Caiafa). Doyle couldn't play guitar nearly as good as his predecessor, but had "the look" that the band wanted. Bobby Steele immediately started The Undead and The Misfits continued on.

Three Hits From Hell and Halloween 7"s followed. Sometime during this, Arthur Googy became their new drummer. Following the singles, the band found themselves with a record deal and released their first LP, the now-classic Walk Among Us on Ruby/Slash Records. They made like 10 or 20 thousand of the things and it sold pretty well. It ranks high on my list of all time great punk albums.

While the band's recorded output maintained their high quality, their live shows were become more sloppy and violent. The band would play faster and faster and reports of violence at their shows had increased. It seemed to come to a head out in CA when Doyle hit someone in the crowd over the head with his guitar which sent the guy to the hospital. I don't think the band played in CA ever again after that.

Googy was out and replaced by Robo (formerly of Black Flag) and they released their last two records while still an active band. They were the Die Die My Darling EP and the Earth AD LP, both released on Plan 9 Records. There also was a live 7" EP released titled Evilive that was initially given to members of their fan club (the Fiend Club) then later released to the public, and even later still reissued as a 12" EP in Germany.

The band called it quits in late 1983. Glenn decided he didn't want to do The Misfits anymore and wanted to go off in a different musical direction. This direction was Samhain. This left Jerry and Doyle out in the cold, and they went back to work for their family business.

Throughout the band's career, Glenn was an astute businessman. He owned his own record label, and silkscreened all the bands t-shirts and sold them through the mail, as well as having the Fiend Club. He copyrighted everything and kept a tight grip on everything, in short he was a control freak. He also had an interest in record collecting as there were many Misfits records pressed on various limited colors of vinyl.

After the big Misfits explosion, Jerry and Doyle started a metal band called Kryst the Conqueror, that was pretty lousy and they had hoped to cash in on The Misfits newfound success. When that failed they eventually went to court to sue for The Misfits rights and won to some degree and bought the logo from Glenn and reformed "The Misfits" with a new singer and yet another drummer. They released a record and duped tons of kids to come see them do covers of Misfits songs. In my opinion it was pretty terrible and has only gotten worse over the years. These days the name Jerry Only is pretty fitting, as he is the only original member left in the band and he tours every year under "The Misfits" name, playing lousy shows in every sitting yet still drawing a big crowd of clueless kids or people like me who were stuck seeing them because I went to see The Damned open for them.

The songs from this single were collected on The Misfits Box Set">The Misfits box set, however they don't sound quite the same to me as they do on this original vinyl. There was also a remixed version of "Cough/Cool" on the Collection 2 LP.

Listen to "Cough/Cool" from the record (right click and "save target as...")

The many flavors of: Jawbreaker - Unfun LP

This is easily one of my favorite records in the later days of punk, not to mention one of my most favorite "newer" bands. Yeah, they broke up like a decade ago, but compared to most of the stuff I'm into, Jawbreaker is a lot newer than most of the scope of my punk collecting/upbringing.

The record came out in 1990 on the somewhat unknown Shredder Records, which was run by Mel C, one hell of a nice guy. Before this album, Mel had released a couple of singles, two of which being compilations called The World's in Shreds. He used to send me records to review in Spontaneous Combustion and that was how I got into this band.

The album sold very well, and the band became quite popular and eventually signed to a major label and then fell apart. During the course of this record's existence, there were 4 distinct variations of it.

The first pressing was of 1000 on colored vinyl There was 800 on blue vinyl...

and 200 on clear vinyl, which nearly all were given to the band to sell on a tour (which is how I got mine).

It was then pressed on black vinyl, which must have been run at the same time as the colored ones because the black ones were also the ones sent out as promos.

Later it was reissued, again on black vinyl, this time with the colors reversed on the cover.

The test pressing had no cover and plain white labels.

All the copies came with an insert. Every version except the clear one had this white insert inside.

The clear vinyl copies had a blue insert inside.

After all that, Shredder stopped doing the vinyl (and eventually the label for that matter) and released the album on a CD which came in both a jewel case (early pressings) and a digipak (current ones).

I'm not sure how many total there were of the black ones, but I'm guessing it is a few thousand.

I'm cashing out!

The Punk Vault is now for sale. Look for the shilling on ebay to begin shortly. I'm tired of assholes with trust funds cheating me out of my punk rock time after time. I don't make enough money to keep up with such humps as scott666 on ebay so fuck it, they can have it all. I'm gonna take the money I get and buy a bigger TV and a bigger house to hold all my other shit.

You'll soon be able to overpay for a vast array of vintage punk records, Negative Approach and Minor Threat test pressings, and all that other stuff that is quite the hot collectible these days. 20+ years of acquiring these things should bring in some good coin.

Want to know some of the things I'm selling...

Check your calender suckers!

Yeah, like I'd ever sell the vault!