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Monorchid – Babies

I was listening to a bunch of 7″s this past weekend and when I put this on the turntable I was reminded how great Monorchid were. This record came out on Simple Machines who were better known for putting out Tsunami, Ida and Grenadine records than hardcore, but they had released a Circus Lupus song on one of the first “Simple Machines” 7″ set so that may have been the connection. I have a couple of really great pictures that I took when I saw them live that I’ll have to post some day, but in the meantime, enjoy this track.

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Download: Monorchid – Babies

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Blonde Redhead – Oh James (Live Video)

Blonde Redhead – Oh James
Enfant Terrible
Ragusa, Italy
March 15, 1996

I was talking with a couple of friends yesterday about Enon, and I mentioned that they were ex-Brainiac and ex-Blonde Redhead. They didn’t realize that Blonde Redhead was once a four-piece. I never saw them with that line-up but I did get this show in a trade. It’s pretty dark, but it’s the only footage that I’ve ever come across of them as a four-piece.

Download: Blonde Redhead – Oh James (Live Video)

The Cure – Bird Mad Girl (Demo)

Four new Cure reissues are being released today and I’ve been looking forward to them for months. Each of the disks are remastered and have a second disk that includes studio and home demos as well as live recordings. Quite a few of the demos have been released on bootlegs over the years, but these recordings come directly from Robert Smith’s personal collection. This demo from “The Top” sessions was released on the “The Top Studio Demos” bootleg which has good, but not great sound so I’m really looking forward to the “official” release.

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Download: The Cure – Bird Mad Girl (Demo)

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Moose – Last Night I Fell Again

This track comes from the American collection of the first three Moose EPs. A quick web search shows that they actually were still releasing stuff up until 2000. Part of the UK shoegaze scene of the early 90′s, Moose released this EP on Virgin Records in 1992. Due to the poor sales of their album, the band was dropped and later picked up by Play It Again Sam which is also home to some other great bands like The Legendary Pink Dots, Young Gods and more recently, Sigur Ros and Mogwai. One small bit of information that I didn’t know until researching this band tonight was that Russell Yates from Moose was in an early incarnation of Stereolab.

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Download: Moose – Last Night I Fell Again

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Heavenly – Escort Crash On Marston Street (Peel Session)

I guess this is going to be girl singer week…

This Heavenly track is from their first Peel Session in 1991 and was later released by K Records on the “She Says” 7″ the following year. These Sarah Records darlings formed in Oxford, England and put out four full length LPs, a slew of 7″s, and a couple of compilation tracks before their primary songwriter, Mathew Fletcher, took his own life. Even though they released their last record over ten years ago, I see bands constantly referring to them as a major influence.

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Download: Heavenly – Escort Crash On Marston Street (Peel Session)

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Kitty Craft – Unknown Track (Live Video)

Kitty Craft – Unknown Track
Coffman Memorial Union Terrace, University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN
July 29, 1997

Ooops. I messed up. Usually I alternate between video and mp3 files, but when I was loading files up to the server I put two videos back to back. Anyway, it will have to do. First off, I want to apologize for the audio on this clip. The video camera that I used to record it had a faulty mic, so I recorded about 5 shows before figuring out that I should just use an external mic. It’s still certainly worth watching.

If you have ever heard Kitty Craft, this clip will probably come as a surprise since it sounds nothing like the records. Kitty Craft (a.k.a. Pam Valfer) is known for combining hip-hop drum loops and eccentric samples, but this clip has none of that. With Danny on drums, Pam would add simple guitar parts and vocals and come up with terrific songs. It’s a shame this stuff was never released as an album.

Download: Kitty Craft – Unknown Track (Live Video)

The Creatures – You! (Live Video)

The Creatures – You! (Live Video)
Megamix (France)

This past weekend I was at a party and was chatting with a fellow who got to see The Creatures on the “Boomerang” tour. We both agreed out of all the Siouxise/Creatures stuff that has ever been released, “Boomerang” is the best of the best. Just when I thought the record couldn’t get any better, I finally bought it on vinyl a couple of years ago and the mastering on the vinyl is so much better than the CD. This track was recorded live on French television for the Megamix program.

Download: The Creatures – You! (Live Video)

The Hot Toddies – Jaguar Love

I happened to show up early for a show at Mr. T’s Bowl this past Saturday and was lucky enough to catch Oakland’s The Hot Toddies. They are a terrific female four piece and whiskey swilling machines. Their new five track EP was just released which I would liken to Tiger Trap or All Girl Summer Fun Band. They have a few dates left on their short west coast tour so you should do your best to try and catch them.

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Download: The Hot Toddies – Jaguar Love

Unwound – Valentine Card (Live Video)

Unwound – Valentine Card (Live Video)
Unknown Date/Location

I just got this Unwound show in a huge trade of great hard to find DVDs. From what I can tell from the song selection, this was probably filmed during the “New Plastic Ideas” tour. I have no idea of the location, so if anyone recognizes the venue, let me know. Also, Justin rocks the mic and gives over guitar playing duties to what looks to be Dustin the roadie (he never actually turns around, so I can’t be totally sure).

Download: Unwound – Valentine Card (Live Video)

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Strip Squad – Down And Out And Away (Original Version)

Strip Squad has been in constant rotation on my palm pilot, in my car, and on iTunes at work. I’ve posted about them before, but I felt the need to sing their praise again. I went to their website a couple of weeks ago and they had posted a couple of tracks from their first, and now out of print, EP “Just Obey!” which I don’t own. I keep checking eBay hoping that one will find its way up there, but no luck so far. This is one of the tracks from that illusive EP. So go buy the other EP so they can afford to fly over here and play.

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Download: Strip Squad – Down And Out And Away (Original Version)