A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the 20th Anniversary Vinyl Me Please deluxe edition 2LP + 7” of The Score by The Fugees. Looking back on it, it’s nothing short of astounding how volitile the hip hop scene of the Mid-Nineties was. Before Eminem made dick and fart jokes as well as unveiled homophobia de rigeur, different factions of the Gangsta Rap community were battling both with each other as well as internally for seats at the head...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Record Store Day-released Goodfriend LP by Matthew Sweet. Chances are, if you grew up anywhere within the reach of a rock radio station’s signal between 1989 amd 1996, you have more than a few memories for which Matthew Sweet’s music provided the soundtrack. Between 1989 and 1996, Sweet was everywhere; a string of singles including “Sick Of Myself,†“Girlfriend,†“The Ugly Truth,†“Time Capsule†and “Evangeline†got heavy...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the “White Walker” 12” picture disc by Mastodon. When fans first hear the “White Walker†12” picture disc, the first thought which will pass through their minds (ALL of their minds) will likely be, “Wow – this doesn’t sound like Mastodon at all.†There’s no arguing that; “White Walker†has none of the metallic crunch that albums like Leviathan, Crack The Skye or The Hunter had, and it features none of the...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the blackstar LP by David Bowie It’s amazing how outside factors can affect the qualities of the music on an album and change its focus. Any number of stimuli could play an active roll in the change – the medium through which the music is presented (be it vinyl record, compact disc, cassette or mp3 – whatever), the players who contributed to the recording or even unforeseen events which occurred completely outside...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Psychedelic Sound of The 13th Floor Elevators LP by The Thirteenth Floor Elevators. It’s unlikely that anyone would disagree that The Thirteenth Floor Elevators are a really important band in the evolution of rock. Most would site the band’s debut album as all the proof anyone could need to make the point: “What is it which makes The Psychedelic Sound of The 13th Floor Elevators a classic album?†“Well, first, there’s...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Sundazed pressing of Safe As Milk by Captain Beefheart. There is a bit on Marc Maron’s standup album Thinky Pain where, after talking extensively about his vinyl midlife crisis and trying to find the perfect record player how it’s time for him to “understand Beefheart.†“I will never be smart enough or large enough of mind to assess and understand Captain Beefheart. It’s just hanging there.†In many ways, he’s not...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the vinyl reissue of Grace Under Pressure by Rush. Perhaps the most important thing that Rush proved when they released Grace Under Pressure is that (to paraphrase what George Orwell wrote in 1984) the best albums are those which reiterate those things of which people were already aware. In this case, fans already knew that Rush had been the greatest and best-kept secret in rock n’ roll for years, and had proven...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the vinyl reissue of …With His Hot Blue Guitar! by Johnny Cash. Johnny Cash with His Hot Blue Guitar! is a tough album to discuss in 2016 because, honestly, what can we say about Johnny Cash and his music which hasn’t been said countless times already? The man had an incredible impact on world culture and his music is such a big part of American culture that it’s simply embedded in its...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the vinyl reissue of Streets of San Francisco by the Swingin’ Utters. Continuing our coverage, we come to Streets of San Francisco, probably the most important release in the Swingin’ Utters catalogue. I’m going to start off by making it clear that I absolutely adore this album, that it’s one of the greatest street punk records ever released, that it’s a perfect example of a band putting all their ducks in a...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Global Chakra Rhythms LP by JEFF The Brotherhood. It may have taken an unfortunate, poor experience with Warner Brothers to get JEFF The Brotherhood to start pushing the possibilities of what they could do with their music (the label didn’t really love the music and shelved a couple of the band’s releases during their tenure together) but, now that Global Chakra Rhythms is out and has presented a new image and...