SADIES, THE Favourite Colours (Yep Roc) cd 14.98
After four solid albums (plus some great collaborations with Andre Williams and Jon Langford), we've grown accustomed to counting on The Sadies for their sorta chaotic blend of spaghetti western, surf guitar, country twang, psychobilly and murder balladry with equal nods to Ennio Morricone, Link Wray and Nick Cave. However, on their fifth album Favourite Colours (that spelling reveals their true Canadian-ness), the latter film score maestro's influence is much less pronounced, seemingly in favor of some new untrodden territory for the band. The fellows are lookin' a bit ragged around the edges. Well, at least half of them are... take a gander at the cover photo... who are those two mountain men?! Oh! But we must quickly emphasize that it in a good way! If anything the band is sounding more refreshed and composed than ever. Definitely not tired nor worn out... not at all! Their playing is as tight as ever, and it doesn't take long for them to make that clear. Just check out the hot guitar work on the lead-off track "Northumberland West". They're a band totally capable of playing it as loose and lanky as they please. The most noticeable change in the band's sound is the increased presence and range of the vocals -- from a Pink Floyd-ish contemplativeness on the second song "Translucent Sparrow" to the droll storyteller tone on "1000 Cities Falling" (akin to their Canadian forefather Gordon Lightfoot... "Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald", anyone?) to the retro 60s Yardbirds / Animals-ness of the excellent finale "Why Would Anybody Live Here?". Another welcome detour is the seventh song "The Iceberg" which is as the title suggests a somber, galacial instrumental. Gorgeous! As usual, this Sadies album is comprised of a veritable grabbag of styles and moods, however there's a newfound fluidity and focus to the proceedings. Recommended!
Oh and by the way, keep your eyes peeled in the coming year for The Sadies. They are tireless! The fellows have been busy working on new material with Neko Case. You might recall they were her backing band ('Her Boyfriends') for a spell and looks like they'll be rekindling their touring magic this fall.
MPEG Stream: "Translucent Sparrow"
MPEG Stream: "The Curdled Journey"

SADIES, THE In Concert Volume One (Yep Roc) 2cd 17.98
Not only are two of the band members brothers of a musical family (Dallas and Travis of the Good Family), but The Sadies as a whole are a formidable branch of a bigger musical family which includes the likes of Neko Case (whom they back up on her own live album The Tigers Have Spoken), Kelly Hogan, Blue Rodeo, Jon Langford, members of Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet and Rick White (of Eric's Trip, Elevator, etc.) not to mention many Bloodshot Records brethren. All of them along with Jon Spencer, Gary Louris (of Golden Smog and the Jayhawks), Steve Albini and a whole slew more got down to business on this live recording which took place over two nights at Lee's Palace in Toronto back in February. Whew! Whoa! As you might already be aware, the core Sadies all by their lonesome kick some serious wall to wall ass live each and every time. So entertaining. So lanky'n'loose and razor-sharp at the same time, effortlessly roaming from Morricone western soundtrack to frenetic surf guitar to murder balladry and back. Now with all the other folks in tow, hot damn, they very well cause a meltdown. 2 discs, 41 tracks, 110 minutes!
MPEG Stream: "Cheat"
MPEG Stream: "Dying Is Easy"

SADIES, THE New Season (Yep Roc) cd 15.98
Known to veer wildly from style to style, tempo to tempo, mood to mood, those lanky Canadian troubadours The Sadies keep things at a relatively dour faced, slow creep this time around.
Less sprawling too, notably absent on New Season are their trademark excursions into Hawaiian guitar, garage rawk and Morricone spaghetti western territories. Still they're as great as ever because these boys know just how to hit that perfect so-lonesome-you-could-cry pace'n'vibe time and time again. Awesome effortless musicianship, slightly tweaked and twisted takes on age old musical traditions injected with an ever affecting spookiness.
MPEG Stream: "What's Left Behind"
MPEG Stream: "A Simple Apparition"

SADIES, THE Precious Moments (Bloodshot) cd 14.98

SADIES, THE Pure Diamond Gold (Bloodshot) cd 14.98
No, this isn't a new release, it's the fine album which preceded this Toronto quartet's most recent Tremendous Effort which we reviewed recently. Rooted in rollicking twang that gives a hearty, respectful nod to surf guitar king Link Wray, their music can swell to Morricone spaghetti western proportions then swagger along the glinting edge of a murder balladry. Along the way they also tackle some traditional country and gospel songs ("Higher Power" and "Walking Ground"). The four fellows - brothers Dallas and Travis Good, Sean Dean and Mike Belitsky (who's also played with Jale and Pernice Brothers) - kick out their tunes mainly on guitars, upright bass, keyboards, fiddle and drums. Their live show, fueled by Marlboros and whisky, is absolutely electric, leaving band and audience fully spent. On record however, their sounds expands to include dobro, banjo and harmonica and an array of additional vocalists. Keep an ear out for guest turns by Kelly Hogan, Catherine Irwin (of Freakwater on "Eastwinds"), and Don Pyle (Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet). Capturing their fiery energy, this album was engineered and mixed by Steve Albini.
RealAudio clip: "Medicine Ball"
RealAudio clip: "Higher Power"
RealAudio clip: "Eastwinds"

SADIES, THE Stories Often Told (Yep Roc) cd 16.98
Another full length from those tireless, sharply suited gents, and who's complaining?! Whether they're in one of their loping or galloping moods, it just doesn't matter 'cause they smoke either way. The Sadies will hit you one way or another like a stampede of cattle or a stiletto knife in the back. Often labelled simply as a country or garage or surf band, this Canadian quartet is all of this and more. While they can definitely deliver the goods solidly in any of these departments alone, unlike many bands these days they don't just regurgitate a style. They incorporate aspects of one into another, making music that echoes of a different time, but sounds distinctly of the Sadies. Visions of the ol' west with its trusty steeds, dusty desert sunsets and ten gallon hats may come to mind but are swept away by images of scorned lovers, shifty speakeasy figures with smoking guns.
RealAudio clip: "Such A Little Word"
RealAudio clip: "Monkey & Cork"

SADIES, THE Tales Of The Rat Fink - Original Soundtrack (YepRoc) cd 13.98
Screeeeeeeech! That's the sound of this hot rod peelin' out of the lot. What a perfect match -- Torontonian psychobilly hepcats The Sadies doin' the soundtrack for the film documentary about Ed "Big Daddy" Roth (perhaps better known as the man behind the bloodshot'n'buggy eyed rebel comic character Rat Fink)! Unlike their usual studio albums which careen across a vast and varied musical landscape, The Sadies for the most part takes a direct route to the surf, veerin' and huggin' a few curves in the process. Like lil' critters that dart out into headlights, their instrumental rabble-rousin' is flashed with a few dialogue snippits from the film. Super cool! What's that smell?! Burnt rubber, baby! They're smokin'!
MPEG Stream: "The Pyramid"
MPEG Stream: "The Double Wide"

SADIES, THE Tales Of The Rat Fink - Original Soundtrack (YepRoc) lp 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Screeeeeeeech! That's the sound of this hot rod peelin' out of the lot. What a perfect match -- Torontonian psychobilly hepcats The Sadies doin' the soundtrack for the film documentary about Ed "Big Daddy" Roth (perhaps better known as the man behind the bloodshot'n'buggy eyed rebel comic character Rat Fink)! Unlike their usual studio albums which careen across a vast and varied musical landscape, The Sadies for the most part takes a direct route to the surf, veerin' and huggin' a few curves in the process. Like lil' critters that dart out into headlights, their instrumental rabble-rousin' is flashed with a few dialogue snippits from the film. Super cool! What's that smell?! Burnt rubber, baby! They're smokin'!
MPEG Stream: "The Pyramid"
MPEG Stream: "The Double Wide"

SADIES, THE Tremendous Effort (Bloodshot) cd 14.98
These lanky Canadians have been known to assume the form of Neko Case's backing band The Boyfriends, and actually Dallas Good's tingly reverb-laden guitar stylings can also be heard on her new album Blacklisted. However, The Sadies are so much more than that! Kicking up the dust with this their third full length (the follow-up to 1999's excellent Pure Diamond Gold), they continue to unfurl their particular sonic blend: the sinewy twang of spaghetti western soundtracks, the more epic Morricone grandeur, the rawness of garage surf rock, the whisky-soaked, careening, hillbilly barn burners, and the smouldering, intense murder balladry (Dallas alone cuts a very striking, lean 'n' suave Nick Cave-esque silhouette). They do each of these styles so well that they could just stick with one and be quite impressive, but no, that's not what The Sadies have in mind. That said, they definitely don't shift gears as radically from one song to the next as much as they used to, this album is much more cohesive. And yet even still, their musical pendulum's swing shears a distinct and refreshing path through the predominantly 'alt-country' Bloodshot Records roster. Very cool!

RealAudio clip: "Empty The Chamber"
RealAudio clip: "The Last of the Good"
RealAudio clip: "Flash"

SADISTIC GRIMNESS Asteni (Daemon Worship Productions) cd 13.98

SADNESS SATURN She (Frozen Veins) cassette 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We first came across the mysterious black metal entity Sadness Saturn a while back with their awesome split cassette with Utarm. Picking up where they (or maybe he?) left off, Sadness Saturn returns with She, a three song tape that manages to be both raging and strangely meditative. Soundwise, it's a bit like a slightly less bizarre Velvet Cacoon, and it will also make sense to reference experimental black metallers Servile Sect, with whom the Sadness Saturn mainman is also involved. On side 1, "Childhood And The Journey To Satan" plods with a steady drum pound framing some queasy sounding melodies as tortured vocals scream out under a thick blanket of fuzz. The melancholy sounds of guitars and keyboards creep out like a mist of beautiful negativity, accompanied by plain spoken female vocals that actually make this sound a bit like a black metal Cold Cave! The song "Like Ghosts In The Freezing Night" is particularly effective as the calm female voice speaks out above the super intense (yet drumless) black metal atmosphere lurking below the surface. The appropriately named "Dreamer" brings She to its beautiful conclusion, a loping and majestic piece of black metal ambience that is almost uplifting, sort of like if Klaus Schultz had been digging some Ulver. Sound good? You bet.
This handsomely packaged cassette is professionally presented to us by the awesome Japanese label Frozen Veins, and with only 100 copies out there, you are gonna want to act fast!

SAFETY SCISSORS Parts Water (Plug Research) cd 16.98
While currently spending his days surrounded by Berlin's techno digerati, Matthew Curry (aka Safety Scissors) pines for his hometown of San Francisco... or at least that's where his musical heart still is. "Parts Water" is Safety Scissors' debut album and finds comfort next to the sarcastic electronica of other San Franciscans like Matmos, Blectum From Blechdom, Lesser, and Kid 606. Curry's humor speaks up with the playful exchange between the notions of the computer nerd (pocked with bad acne and the unhealthy complexion which halos those who stare at a monitor all day) and the art school drop out (filled with the knowledge that posturing in art school rarely equates with making good work). Fortunately, Curry's presentation of a goofy, somewhat anti-social persona doesn't stop with the concept, since this persona does in fact manufacture an equally goofy, if purposefully understated form of techno. As Safety Scissors, Curry quietly situates whimsical sound fragments and half spoken vocals around quirky (and at times clumsy) machine-like techno pulses. Imagine Blectum From Blechdom trying to restrain themselves into making one of those sterile filter house records for Force Inc, but can't deny the smirking urge to issue forth a fart sound from time to time.
RealAudio clip: "Stormy Weather"
RealAudio clip: "7 Glasses A Day / 7 Days A Week"

SAFETY SCISSORS Parts Water (Plug Research) lp 15.98
While currently spending his days surrounded by Berlin's techno digerati, Matthew Curry (aka Safety Scissors) pines for his hometown of San Francisco... or at least that's where his musical heart still is. "Parts Water" is Safety Scissors' debut album and finds comfort next to the sarcastic electronica of other San Franciscans like Matmos, Blectum From Blechdom, Lesser, and Kid 606. Curry's humor speaks up with the playful exchange between the notions of the computer nerd (pocked with bad acne and the unhealthy complexion which halos those who stare at a monitor all day) and the art school drop out (filled with the knowledge that posturing in art school rarely equates with making good work). Fortunately, Curry's presentation of a goofy, somewhat anti-social persona doesn't stop with the concept, since this persona does in fact manufacture an equally goofy, if purposefully understated form of techno. As Safety Scissors, Curry quietly situates whimsical sound fragments and half spoken vocals around quirky (and at times clumsy) machine-like techno pulses. Imagine Blectum From Blechdom trying to restrain themselves into making one of those sterile filter house records for Force Inc, but can't deny the smirking urge to issue forth a fart sound from time to time.

SAFETY SCISSORS Tainted Lunch (Scape) cd 16.98

SAFT, JAMIE Black Shabbis (Tzadik) cd 16.98
It's tough enough keeping up with just John Zorn's output (which, we haven't been, even) let alone keeping up with every last thing he puts out on his label Tzadik. We'd like to, but we can't. Fortunately, though, we did (eventually) take notice of this release, which actually came out at the beginning of last year (see what we mean?. We gave it a listen maybe 'cause of the high concept: JEWISH METAL. Well why not? There's been Satanic metal, and Christian metal, and Saft's project surely isn't the first instance of Jewish metal, there's bands from Israel of course, and heck KISS was probably the first Jewish metal band, though of course they didn't make it the whole concept like it is here! Eclectic and intense, Black Shabbis is a dark, devastating disc of shreddtastic songs, or sometimes sheer doomy drone-dirgery, with overt Judeocentric themes. Furthermore, this is metal done by downtown NYC avant garde types, which makes it all the more interesting and improv-y in parts.
Longtime Zorn associate Saft, whose past recordings for Tzadik include a piano trio tribute to Bob Dylan, is not only a virtuoso multi-instrumentalist (here playing guitar, bass, organ, Mellotron, Optigan, and synth), but was also apparently something of a metalhead growing up, or so we must assume (as this is billed as a "back to his roots" recording). He, and the lineup he's pulled together to play this stuff (which includes Trevor Dunn from Mr. Bungle/Fantomas/Secret Chiefs 3), certainly display hella metallic chops, this is HEAVY. The 13+ minute "Kielce" sounds like Khanate, plus machine guns! Other tracks are thrashier, or more melodic, or stoner/bluesy, or neo-classical... this disc part Krallice, part Hammers Of Misfortune, part SUNNO))) or Aun, with Slayer and of course Sabbath lurking in the shadows. Quite a mix, but it works, and is nothing if not unique amongst today's avant-metal acts. Being on Tzadik probably limited its metal cred/exposure, but this isn't just for Tzadik/Zorn fans, or those interested in "Jewish" music. While it makes sense Zorn would put this out, it's almost too bad it wasn't on Profound Lore or Southern Lord, instead! And then we could have had multiple limited edition colored vinyl die hard editions by now...
MPEG Stream: "Blood"
MPEG Stream: "Der Judenstein (The Jewry Stone)"

SAFT, JAMIE / MERZBOW Merzdub (Caminante) cd 16.98

SAGAN Resting Pleasures (333) 7" 6.98
Heads up! Here comes another wave of limited edition 7"s from 333 Records! Each release in this series is pressed in an ultra small quantity of 333! The latest additions are this one by Sagan and one by Girl Talk. Plus: The first 100 of this Sagan single came with a little extra something -- a bonus 3"cdr! Don't fret too much if you do miss the first 100 though 'cause we've been assured that the track will be available online for download too. The ever mischievous and crafty trio of Jay Lesser, Blevin Blectum, Wobbly pour out the prickly tickles, thick bass thuddery, and druggy effected vocals for these two short heavily processed and distorted tracks. Always entertaining! We've only got a handful of these. Snoooze'n'loooze, kiddie!

SAGAN Unseen Forces (Vague Terrain) cd + DVD 13.98
We've been getting more and more tired of electronic music recently. How could you not? It seems that every week there's a hundred more glitchy wannabe Autechres or Aphex Twins. But thankfully, there are always groups of folks, quietly doing their own thing, thinking weird thoughts and making weird sounds, turning unlikely concepts into reality, and offering us amazing alternatives to the usual crap we are forced to sift through day after day. Thus we have Sagan. With a pedigree that would have us expecting no less. Jay Lesser, Bevin Blectum, Wobbly, film maker Ryan Junell, and the label run by Drew And Martin of Matmos. You'd almost find yourself shouting 'supergroup' if you didn't know that such behavior would get you a punch in the nose.
A massive concept album based on Carl Sagan and just good 'ol science in general, Unseen Forces is a heaping sensory overload of sonic irregularites and visual fuckery. The audio disc is a lot more listenable that you might expect from audio terrorists like Lesser and Blectum. It's a far spacier affair, channelling classic Tangerine Dream, Pink Floyd swoosh, Hawkwind spaciness, as well as modern glitch into a slowly swirling galaxy of shimmery synths, and stuttering starbursts, throbbing techno broadcast from a distant galaxy, and garbled through the light years into a smeary ambient blur, demarcated by chirps and clicks, thumps and throbs. A space opera for the IDM set.
We were a bit wary of the accompanying film, fearing at best, some sort of cool music videos, and at worst, home movies of band members mugging and acting silly. Well, somehow it's actually both, but the sum of those parts is infinitely more watchable than you might think and so completely compliments Sagan's techno space glitch swirl. So much so that after watching the film, every time we listen to the record now, all we can picture is the scenes from the film! Various historical scientific discoveries and encounters are fictionalized and re-enacted by the band members as well as the guys from Matmos and AQ pal Dave Cerf. Gorgeously filmed and masterfully edited, the grainy Viewmaster menus and segues perfectly balance the silent movie feel of the vignettes, with the action skipping and hiccupping to the music. Funny and fascinating, silly but emminently watchable. Also the opening sequence and the closing credits are AMAZING looking. This record and film have been in the works for a LONG time, but we are happy to report that the wait was worth it!
Also, the hybrid DVD contains 9 shows with over 6 hours of music!
MPEG Stream: "18,000 BC - Figurines Of Vulva And Waterbird"
MPEG Stream: "Fuguestate: Cosmic, Brah..."

SAGAS Between Worlds (Greenup Industries) lp 10.98
This was another one of those records that just showed up one day, and knocked us on our asses. And while all the descriptors pointed to something that would be right up our alley, spacey and psychedelic, krautrocky and kosmische, heavy and hazy, which all do definitely apply, the music manages to embody all those adjectives, while tangling them up into something all its own.
This one man band opens up the proceedings with some droned out psychedelic synths, sounding like Amps For Christ or Daniel Higgs, the sounds undulating and spiraling into little tangled melodic squalls, there are bells, and a deep crooned almost chantlike vocal, very hypnotic and almost new agey, those droning synths (or are they effected guitars?), get more and more wild as the song proceeds, a wild woolly freakout over that deep sonorous drone. Great stuff, and we would have been perfectly happy had the whole record sounded like that, but instead, the second song starts off all low slung slither and wah guitar, it's got 'boogie' in the title, and it shows, sort of. Loose and ramshackle, the guitars again blossom into soaring streaks of high end skree, the drums pound and stumble, the vocals wreathed in reverb, the sound insanely dubbed out, everything swallowed up in echo and send swirling into the ether before landing again and reengaging with the in-progress kraut-dub space rock freakout. This is the sort of shit Burnt Hills would conjure up if they wrote songs instead of endless jams, infusing sort-of-proper song structures with all the elements of an unhinged drug addled jam, and the results are pretty wild.
The rest of the record though is all over the place, feet firmly planted in psychedelia, and Appalachia, but exploring pretty much every disparate strain, from clattery, foresty free folk, sounding almost like No Neck Blues Band or Avarus, to back porch bluegrass Fahey-y style American primitivism, from strummy, synthy, noise drenched darkdrone balladry (maybe our favorite track, sounding like a muted Merzbow / Portishead slowburn mashup woven into some Appalachian psychedelic creep), to blown out, in-the-red, Japanese psych style White Heaven / Les Rallizes / Fushitsusha grinding guitar freakout, finally finishing off with another bout of melancholic minor key Appalachia.
Killer stuff, most definitely recommended for fans of modern psych, neo-Appalachia, psychedelic dronemusic and the weirder side of space/psych/drone rock.
LIMITED TO 300 COPIES! Includes multiple inserts.
MPEG Stream: "The Hidden Variable"
MPEG Stream: "Bad Karma Boogie"

SAGE FRANCIS A Healthy Distrust (Epitaph) cd 13.98
Sage Francis has always been the best lyricist of the bunch, the bunch in question being the Anticon collective (Dose One, Sole, Alias, etc...), but until now it was ALL about the lyrics, the music being just background for Francis's nimble flow. A Healthy Distrust finds Francis on fire, spitting some of the most biting, brutal and brutally funny lyrics EVER, sometimes in a purposefully unfunky drawl, sometimes sung in a goofy sing song, and sometimes sprayed in an impossible series of tongue twisting turns of phrase. And unlike Atmosphere and some other hyped white rappers, Francis manages to flow effortlessly, incorporating his white boy idosycracies into his lyrics and delivery instead of letting them define him as an artist.
And finally, for once, the music is just as impressive, dense and emotional, hard and heavy, but not heavy in that incongruous-metal-riff / metal-meets-hip-hop nu-metal way that most rap groups try at least once (and regret it), but in the way only perfectly crafted beats and thick evocative atmospheres can be. Intense and aggressive, melodic and strangely haunting and melancholy with minor key melodies and creepy sad loops. Thanks to a seriously impressive line up of beatmakers and producers: Danger Mouse, Alias, Sixtoo, Controller 7, Daddy Kev and more, A healthy Distrust would be just as good a record even if it was instrumental, with its dark deep Shadow-scapes, weird lumbering funk, skittering electronica, organic instrumentation and lots of wicked beats. So when you mix in Francis's Eminem-meets-MC Serch flow, you've got a contender for hip hop record of the year.
A lot of the attention has focused on the track "Sea Lion", a collaboration between Francis and Will Oldham. And rightfully so. A subtle shuffling drum and bass rhythm, over plaintive mournful guitar and Oldham's cracked moan of a vocal line. Definitely an unlikely match up that works perfectly. Another standout is the anti gangsta diatribe "Gunz Yo!" that had us laughing out loud:
"Straight to the grill like a homophobic rapper unaware of the graphic nature of phallic symbols, tragically ironic, sucking off each other's gats and pistols, I've got more back issues than Guns n' Ammo, cuz my uzi weighs a ton and i never let go of the handle. Hanging onto mommy's pant leg...double fisted. Knee deep in shells, kicking ballistics. This dick is a detatchable penis. An extension of my manhood, positioned like a fetus. An introvenous hook up feeds bullets to my magazine. Nevermind the Bullocks, my pistol is a sex machine!"
and:
"I've got another gun, I keep it in my briefcase. It keeps me safe at my workplace. Cubicle gangster who's in need of his personal space. Angster of love who's unable to look girls in their face."
In fact, this is one of the few hip hop records that actually had us dropping everything we were doing to actually listen closely to the rhymes, even reading along in the cd booklet. And again, the lyrics had us cracking up, and occasionally even getting all choked up. They're that right on. Here's a few favorites:
"Now it's whistle blower versus the pistol holder. Case Dismissed. They'll lock you up and throw away the key witness. Justice is the whim of a judge. Check his chest density. It leaves much room for error, and the rest is left to density. The West Memphis 3 lost paradise. Now it's death penalty vs. Suicidal Tendencies. All I wanted was a fucking Pepsi. 'Making you think you're ugly is a million dollar industry.' Corrina Bain. If they could sell sanity in a bottle, they'd be charging for compressed air. They're marketing health care. They demonized welfare. Middle class eliminated. The rich get richer til the poor get educated."
"Let em freestyle, Winner takes all. When the music's dead I'll have Ted Nugent's head hanging on my wall. Kill one of ours...and we'll kill one of yours with some 'friendly fire.' That's a funny term...like 'civil war'."
"In a world where girl's got retro tattoos, and all I've got is a gut and velcro black shoes."
It's all in the the delivery though, and the above lines are so deftly woven in to the music, that it's hard to imagine them on their own as they are above, but just listen to the sound samples! For hip hop, 2004 may have been the year of MF Doom and Madvillain, but this year (so far) it's all about Sage Francis!
MPEG Stream: "The Buzz Kill"
MPEG Stream: "Sea Lion"
MPEG Stream: "Gunz Yo!"

SAGE FRANCIS Human The Death Dance (Epitaph) cd 14.98

MPEG Stream: "Civil Disobedience"
MPEG Stream: "Got Up This Morning"

SAGE FRANCIS Personal Journal (Anticon) cd 13.98
Another solo disc from the Anticon posse, Personal Journal is MC Sage Francis' long-in-the-works earnestly-autobiographical album. With producers odd nosdam, Sixtoo, mayonnaise, Controller 7, and more, all of whom keep his voice right out front.
RealAudio clip: "Specialist"
RealAudio clip: "Inherited Scars"

SAGE FRANCIS W/ WILL OLDHAM Sea Lion (Epitaph) 12" 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Sounds like an odd pairing, but it works surprsingly well. Sage Francis, assembles a dark and dreamy Anticon-ish hiphop-scape, with Oldham supplying the main vocals in his trademark laconic drawl. You can almost imagine what a great palace song this would make if you sucked out all the groove. But that's precisely what makes it such a great hip hop track. It's just a great song. On the extended version Oldham And Francis are joined by Saul Williams which is super cool. The B side, is the track "Stuck" and features fellow whiney rapper, Atmosphere.

SAGITTARIUS Present Tense (Sundazed) cd 12.98

SAGITTARIUS The Blue Marble (Sundazed) lp 21.00

SAGOR & SWING Allt Hanger Samman (Hapna) cd 16.98
Sweden's Sagor & Swing are an instrumental drums and Hammond organ duo. HAMMOND ORGAN! We know some of you are crazy for the Hammond organ. We are too. And Hammond-freaks or not, this is a lovely, lovely record. Super melodic and dreamy, calm and mesmerizing. Eric Malmberg (organ) and Ulf Moeller (drums) take much inspiration from dark and sleepy Swedish forests, we're told, but we're sure the music of legendary Swedish '60s Hammond/drums duo Hansson & Karlsson is also a big influence! Malmberg actually plays a Hammond that Bo Hansson used on his beloved 1970 Sagan Om Ringen (Lord Of The Rings) album! Not only that, but he writes a comic strip published in a Swedish newspaper called -- get this -- Hansson & Karlsson In Outer Space. The duo's H&K obsession serves them well, without them becoming mere copyists at all. Some tracks are lively and spirited, with stick-in-your-head folk-derived hooks a la fellow Swede Bjorn Olsson (himself a sort of Bo Hansson protege), while others are more like slightly sinister Dario Argento/Goblinesque lullabies, that combine music box melodies with one-note ambient minimalism a bit like that one Aphex Twin-esque track on Burzum's Filosofem. Just a bit. Some Kraftwerk rhythms are hinted at as well, and Magyar Posse's cinematic epics too. This is definitely a universal AQ-staff fave, and we think you'll love it too. Apparently it's S&S fourth album, so we'll have to track down their other two asap!
MPEG Stream: "Grottmusik"
MPEG Stream: "Lovverk"
MPEG Stream: "Det Sista Aventyret"

SAGOR & SWING Melodier och Faglar (Hapna) cd 16.98
Second album from the fab Swedish drums and Hammond organ duo, preceeding Allt Hanger Samman which was such a hit around here. And this is just as nice!

SAGOR & SWING Orgelfarger (Hapna) cd 16.98
The first, totally wonderful album from this Swedish organ/drums duo. Along with their other releases, solid AQ fave material.

SAGOR & SWING Orgelplaneten (Hapna) cd 16.98
The AQ-fave instrumental electric organ and drums duo Sagor & Swing return! These Swedes' previous disc Allt Hanger Samman was a big hit here, especially among those of us (like Byram and Allan) for whom the dulcet tones of the Hammond organ are a siren song. This new disc, Orgelplaneten (not to be confused with their 2nd album Orgelfarger), is actually a bit different from Sagor & Swing's earlier recordings. The line up of course is still the same -- Eric Malmberg on organ and Ulf Moeller on drums -- but the mesmeric mellow folky aspect of their sound is played down (though not gone entirely), and their more uptempo rockin' side is played up. This album is jazzier, punchier, louder. It seems that they've left the dreamy Swedish forests and headed for the bright lights of the big city. It's a playful, brassy, swinging affair that reminds us a bit of Finnish Casio-hipsters Aavikko. And it still reminds us, even more than before in fact, of '60s Hammond n' drums combo Hansson & Karlsson, whom we already knew were Sagor & Swing's biggest inspiration. This is very Hansson & Karlsson indeed! Total retro-cool. So, while other Sagor & Swing cds might be a good soundtrack for an intimate dinner, this one's meant for a real party. Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Idiom"
MPEG Stream: "Aventyr I Alperna"

SAHARA HOT NIGHTS C'mon Let's Pretend (Jetset) cd 13.98

SAHARA HOT NIGHTS Jennie Bomb (Jetset) cd 13.98
These girls kick so much ass. Four 20 year old Swedish girls kicking out the motherfucking jams like a more metal Runaways. They've been playing together since before they were teens, touring like crazy in Sweden and releasing two full length records. This is their first available in the U.S. and the timing is perfect what with the Hives/Vines/garage rock mania. Sahara Hot Nights spit out punky garage-y rock and roll, equal parts Kiss, the Helicopters and the Runaways. They sound a little like the harder, meaner sister of the Donnas. Heck, with the boyish garage rockin' good times boiling over on both sides of the Atlantic, it's high time we finally heard from the gals!
RealAudio clip: "Alright Alright"
RealAudio clip: "Keep Up The Speed"

SAHG I (Candlelight ) cd 13.98
Who would have though that guys from Gorgoroth were capable of coming up with something like this? Sure it's dark and heavy. But it's not really that evil. It's more sort of spacey and groovy. Two words you never thought you'd hear in the same sentence as Gorgoroth. But here you go. This is the stoner doom side project of Gorgoroth's King Ov Hell, and it's pretty awesome actually. You just have to sort of pretend this has nothing to do with Gorgoroth, otherwise it just doesn't compute. Think Sabbath (the vocals get really Ozzy at some points) for sure, but the sound is more modern groovy stoner doom, huge riffs, lurching loping rhythms, killer leads and wailing vocals, definitely brought to mind late era, post-Messiah Candlemass (think From The 13th Sun) but the interesting thing is how much a lot of this sounds like dark grungy moperock a la Alice In Chains, or like a more metalized Agents Of Oblivion (but not so metal as to be Acid Bath). It's actually what makes this record so cool. It's definitely metal, but it's so dark and haunting and moody. Like some mad scientist took the genes of Deadboy And The Elephantmen, Black Sabbath, Alice In Chains and old Monster Magnet and created these four guys in some underground laboratory. Sounds good huh? Well, that's cuz it is. Heavy and groovy, dark and moody, sludgey and stonery. We like this more and more every time we listen to it.
MPEG Stream: "Repent"
MPEG Stream: "The Executioner Undead"

SAHG II (Regain) cd 15.98

SAI, SATYA & MAITREYA KALI Apache Inca (Shadoks Music) 2cd 19.98

SAICOS, LOS ÁDemolicion! The Complete Recordings (Munster) cd 17.98
We can't deny we've been quite smitten with so many bands in the last couple years who have blasted onto the scene playing inspired, raw, wild and blown out garage rock. But it may take going back to Peru to the years 1964-1966 to find the most riveting and TRUE origins of garage proto-punk, done to perfection. The first time we ever heard Los Saicos we couldn't believe our ears, this was the kind of garage sound we had always imagined in our mind. Gritty, spirited, and filled with charm and soul. And some pretty gnarly vocals for the time. It's not overstating the case to say they make other '60s dirty garage peddlers like The Sonics or The Monks seem kind of tame. This is the kind of blood, guts and charisma that helped create bands latter on like The Cramps, The Mono Men, The Coachwhips, and Davilla 666. With a primitive surf undertone, and an undeniable tough and cool sensibility they really do have a sound so many bands in the decades to follow tried (and continue to try) to emulate. Los Saicos are like the Peruvian version of a gang of bad kids from a Luis Bunuel film, forming a band and creating electric energy together amongst the harsh realities of the streets they roam.
We're so so so thankful Munster has given Los Saicos the proper reissue and long overdue respect they so deserve. If you like rock n roll in any form, you NEED THIS!
MPEG Stream: "Demolici—n"
MPEG Stream: "Te amo"
MPEG Stream: "Come On (Ven aqu’)"

SAILORS WITH WAX WINGS s/t (Angel Oven) cd 13.98
Not one, but TWO brand new records, brand new BANDS in fact, from the man behind avant black metal weirdos Pyramids, Sailors With Wax Wings and White Moth, both heavy and weird in their own way, and both featuring incredible ensemble casts, not so much guests and collaborators. In some ways it does both of these records/groups a bit of a disservice to lump them together, as most reviewers (including this one) do, but it's sort of unavoidable, for as different as these two records may sound, there are quite a few similarities conceptually and even sonically.
For those unfamiliar with Pyramids, we've been pretty smitten with these guys ever since we first heard their double disc debut on Hydra Head, a dizzying sonic concoction that infused black metal blasts with washed out shoegaze glimmer, swirling dreamy ambience, blurred slowcore drift, actually it might be more accurate to describe Pyramids as some sort of blissed out shoegaze slowcore outfit that flecked their dreamy sound with bits of black metal buzz, but either way, the sound these guys cooked up was heady and psychedelic and pushed our buttons BIG TIME. Everything we could want in a weird heavy band seemed to be all smeared into this gorgeously indistinct entity called Pyramids. And the interesting thing about that debut, is that it already sort of foreshadowed the genesis of these two new projects, by including a discs of remixes/reworkings featuring Swans drummer Ted Parsons, Toby Driver of Kay Dot, Colin Marston of Behold the Arctopus, James Plotkin of OLD and Khanate, Justin Broadrick of Jesu / Godflesh and French industrial black metal crushers Blut Aus Nord. And the recent 5 cassette box seemed to be another sign pointing at Pyramids' mainman R Loren's restlessness, and need to keep creating and collaborating, featuring hours and hours of interpretations and reimaginings. Which brings us to Loren's latest projects, a simultaneous release of two different record, by two different groups, each sonically disparate, yet inexorably linked, Sailors With Wax Wings, whose sound is like a more abstracted shoegazey Pyramids, and White Moth, whose sound has been described by Loren as "digital hardcore", but also infuses its drill and bass and industrial crunch with plenty of Pyramidal blissed out black metalisms (including vocals from John Gossard of Weakling and Asunder!).
Sailors With Wax Wings, is the one that will most immediately appeal to fans of Pyramids, or fans of blissy avant black metal and experimental heaviness, and as mentioned above, White Moth is Loren with a pretty incredible collection of collaborators, which we might as well just list: Ted Parsons (Swans, Prong), Colin Marston (Krallice, BeholdÉThe Arctopus), Aidan Baker (Nadja), Simon Scott (Slowdive), Dominick Fernow (Ash Pool, Vegas Martyrs, Prurient, Cold Cave), cellist Hildur Gudnadottir Vern Rumsey of Unwound (!), Aaron Stainthorpe (My Dying Bride), Jonas Renkse (Katatonia) Marissa Nadler, James Blackshaw, and the cover art should look familiar too, courtesy of David Tibet (Current 93). Phew! If there was ever the potential for too-many-cooks, but somehow, Loren and crew pull it off, crafting a slow burning world of soaring dreamlike buzz, thick black shimmer, epic explosive energy and brooding mystery, right away, with "Soft Gardens Near The Sun, Keep Your Distant Beauty", we're transported to some otherworld, where sound is light, and gorgeous chords come cascading from on high like some sonic waterfall, thick swaths of sound whirling and swirling, peppered with delicate piano melodies and powerful drumming, shoegazey for sure, but also intense and urgent and emotional, which is spotlighted even more on the second track "There Came A Drooping Maid With Violets", with the introduction of sorrowful crooned clean male / female vocals, buried in the mix, nestled amidst warm glimmering guitars and lumbering drum plod, like a more crystalline and dreamily doomy Nadja or a softer more spare My Bloody Valentine. Which is the sound that seeps into all the other tracks, like a continuous song suite, a single multi part epic, slipping smoothly from barely there hushed drift, to blackened sheets of soaring high end, to minimal whispery creep, to bleary pop ambient shimmer, to hazy, utterly lush sweet fuzz flecked dream pop, a song like "There Was One Who Sought A New Road" should have fans of groups like Beach House in a tizzy, with its delicate gauzy atmosphere and warm languid melodies. In fact, the more we listen, the more the black metal elements seem to recede, sure there's buzzing and fast picking, and maybe even some blasting beats, but here. those elements are reimagined as parts of some otherworldly abstract blurscape, wreathed in whir and crackle and buried under billows of layered drones, soft swaths of angelic drift, everything rendered in slow motion, slightly out of focus, a lush atmospheric expanse of blackened slowcore dreampop bliss. So gorgeous!
MPEG Stream: "Soft Gardens Near The Sun, Keep Your Distant Beauty"
MPEG Stream: "There Came A Drooping Maid With Violets"
MPEG Stream: "There Was One Who Sought A New Road"
MPEG Stream: "Strange That I Should Have Grown So Suddenly Blind"

SAINT ANDRE s/t cd 9.98
Man, does this record remind me of Scrawl.
And I feel like no one in the band is probably that into Scrawl, but it's definitely a good reference point for St. Andre's sound. Kind of a weird mix of that classic 80's Homestead Records sound, meandering Polvo-ish detuned guitars, noisy walls of guitar (ala Sonic Youth) and soaring female vocals that start as a smooth croon and occasionally leap out in a fit of Sleater Kinney yelps. Melodies and scraggly guitar lines battle pounding drums and bursts of noise, and occasionally dissipate into dreamy droning post rock. This may be their last recording, as they are all going their seperate ways (one to watch making school!).

SAINT ETIENNE Finisterre (Mantra Recordings) cd 16.98
Whoa! Is this the new Saint Etienne? Sounds like they've become even more deeply ensconced in slick clubland than I remember. Granted they've always been sleek, polished, danceable pop, but on Finisterre they often seem aligned with the much more accessible glossy likes of Kylie Minogue or Garbage (the band) than ever before. The ultra prettiness simply seems to be less present and less distinctly their own. The focus continues to be shifted away from Saint Etienne's trademark - Sarah Cracknell's dreamy satin voice - in favor of bigger thumpin' beats, dialogue samples and *gasp* a rapper bustin' out rhymes. Is it just me or does anyone else find this somewhat strange?! Mind you, their seventh full length is not without its blossoming, lush flutes'n'strings moments. They just surface more sporadically, making for a less smooth'n'swooning experience than their past efforts, and more of a fun, groovy affair.
RealAudio clip: "Amateur"
RealAudio clip: "Soft Like Me"

SAINT ETIENNE Places To Visit (Sub Pop) 7" 3.99
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SAINT ETIENNE Places To Visit (Sub Pop) cdep 7.98

SAINT ETIENNE Tales From Turnpike House (Savoy Jazz) cd 17.98
When we saw this new album from those beloved Brits Saint Etienne we were puzzled by the fact that it was released on the Savoy Jazz label. We thought maybe they were aiming for a more adult contemporary audience or something... and/or maybe the label was in turn aiming for a hipper audience. When we heard this new album from those beloved Brits, the first track, while bearing the unmistakable stamp of Saint Etienne, conjured thoughts of an imaginary collaboration between Astrid Gilberto and Brian Wilson -- lush, sparkling and super pretty -- but a lot of the other tracks might just as easily appeal to fans of Gilberto's daughter Bebel. There are stretches of smooth, sophisticated lounge-iness and just as many of curvy house beat dance-iness. Positively swoonsome!
MPEG Stream: "Side Streets"
MPEG Stream: "I'm Falling"

SAINT VITUS Born Too Late (SST) cd 14.98

SAINT VITUS Die Healing (Buried By Time And Dust) lp 23.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Doom. Vinyl. Die Healing. Need we go on?? Doom metal fans, probably all you need to know is that this album by LA godfathers of doom Saint Vitus, never before on vinyl, and long out of print on cd, is now here. However, we will go on...
Nobody could have guessed it back in 1995, when this album was first released, but 2010 is shaping up to be a pretty good year for ol' Saint Vitus. Not just one reunion show, but an extensive, well-attended tour! Vinyl reissues of their SST era records (we've got some in stock, getting more soon)! And this, a lovingly crafted vinyl version (first time on wax!!) for what was their 7th and final full-length studio album before calling it quits! We also hear rumors of a NEW album being made. However, as much as we'll be excited to hear it, there's no way they can top THIS.
While it might have been their final record, a last hurrah, hardly noticed by an uncaring world, it was also one of their best ever. For one thing, it marked the brief return of their original and best vocalist, the amazing Scott Reagers. Apologies to Wino, who's fronting the band for their current reunion... Some will differ, Wino certainly has his fans, we like him a lot too, Born Too Late and Mournful Cries are great albums, but let's just say there's no other singer quite like Scotty Reagers. Vitus was lucky to have had him in the first place, and lucky to have had him back for this. His dramatic and dynamic delivery, gloomy and ghoulish, yet classic castle-metal through and through, keeps us spellbound. Guitarist Dave Chandler steps up with some great sludgy slo-mo Sabbathy riffs (of course) and wah wah'd out, psychedelic punk soloing (of course). The atmosphere is sooooo despairing. Opener "Dark World", later covered by Reverend Bizarre, is a classic, what a riff! But that's just the beginning... "One Mind", "Let The End Begin", "The Sloth", "Return Of The Zombie", heck all the tracks are awesome, any Vitus fan should agree. The entire album harks back to the feeling of their first few records in the mid '80s, really as if Reagers had never left the band. And again his singing is crucial here, over the top wailing with a wretched, grotesque edge to it. Emotive and eccentric. Perfect for the plodding, fuzz-filled creepy-crawls that fill this pestilent platter. He might be singing about sloths and zombies (he IS singing about sloths and zombies) but damn does it sound sincere and MEANINGFUL - ignore him at your peril. Drop the needle on this and learn what it is to be doomed!!
While we should also list the abovementioned SST reissues, many of them must-haves too, this seemed even more exciting 'cause so few folks ever got the chance to get it, the cds were imports and it was one of the last releases on the label (Hellhound) before it folded. And like we said, there never ever was vinyl. Now there is, and fairly deluxe vinyl at that, complete with embossing on the cover for the Vitus logo. And yeah, of course it's limited... even if it wasn't, though, you gotta get it, we'd just be telling you to buy two of 'em!!
MPEG Stream: "Dark World"
MPEG Stream: "Return Of The Zombie"

SAINT VITUS Live (Southern Lord) cd 12.98
Doing a service to the doom community at large, Southern Lord follows up their reissue last year of the long out of print Saint Vitus album V (originally released on the German label Hellhound) with another reissue of an equally long-gone Hellhound release, the Saint Vitus live album, aptly titled Live. Recorded on their second European tour in the fall of '89, this includes live renditions of such classics as "Born Too Late", "Dying Inside", "Look Behind You", and "Clear Windowpane", as performed by the Vitus MK II lineup that featured Scott "Wino" Weinrich (of The Obsessed, later of Spirit Caravan, The Hidden Hand and Place Of Skulls) on vocals. Southern Lord's deluxe re-packaging preserves the original's awesome cover photo (one that makes Wino look like one scary dude, and guitarist Dave Chandler like a really insane hippy freak) and adds a swank 32 page booklet of previously unseen photos (note Chandler's sweat-drenced Dinosaur T-shirt in several of the pics). There's also a short paragraph of new liner notes by Chandler as well, who, always the wise-ass punk, observes that "the print on CD sleeves is always too fucking small to read, so what's the point?"
Basically if you're a Saint Vitus or Wino fan it's hard to see how you wouldn't want this! If you're not already into these guys, it'll certainly provide you with a handy collection of some of Vitus' best tunes, but we're not expecting to sell many of these to the Vitus-ignorant. This is for the fans, old and new. People who'll dig the between song stage banter, and truly appreciate the extended guitar jamming portions sometimes added to their tunes in the live setting. Yessir, this is a hour+ of ponderous riffage and wah-crazed soloing, warts and all, as only Vitus could muster. All hail.
MPEG Stream: "Born Too Late"
MPEG Stream: "Look Behind You"

SAINT VITUS Live (Southern Lord) 2lp 16.98
Now on limited double vinyl like it should be. Here's some of what we had to say about the cd version of this reissue: Doing a service to the doom community at large, Southern Lord follows up their reissue last year of the long out of print Saint Vitus album V (originally released on the German label Hellhound) with another reissue of an equally long-gone Hellhound release, the Saint Vitus live album, aptly titled Live. Recorded on their second European tour in the fall of '89, this includes live renditions of such classics as "Born Too Late", "Dying Inside", "Look Behind You", and "Clear Windowpane", as performed by the Vitus MK II lineup that featured Scott "Wino" Weinrich (of The Obsessed, later of Spirit Caravan, The Hidden Hand and Place Of Skulls) on vocals.
Basically if you're a Saint Vitus or Wino fan it's hard to see how you wouldn't want this! If you're not already into these guys, it'll certainly provide you with a handy collection of some of Vitus' best tunes, but we're not expecting to sell many of these to the Vitus-ignorant. This is for the fans, old and new. People who'll dig the between song stage banter, and truly appreciate the extended guitar jamming portions sometimes added to their tunes in the live setting. Yessir, this is a hour+ of ponderous riffage and wah-crazed soloing, warts and all, as only Vitus could muster. All hail.
MPEG Stream: "Born Too Late"
MPEG Stream: "Look Behind You"

SAINT VITUS Mournful Cries (SST) cd 14.98

SAINT VITUS Reunion 2003 (Claude & Elmo Music) dvd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Saint Vitus! In the doom metal pantheon, this '80s SoCal band is waaay up there, in the select group of second-gen Sabbath disciples that also includes Pentagram, Trouble, Witchfinder General, and Candlemass. Originally recording for SST, they were the throwback doom punk hippies of the hardcore scene. Hence such tunes as "Born Too Late". All of this, you should already know, and if not, there's little point in reading further about this release. 'Cause basically this item is something for true Vitus fans, those among you who know (and care) what we're talking about when we say that Andee and Allan here have a ongoing dispute about who was the best Vitus vocalist, Scott Reagers or his replacement, Scott "Wino" Weinrich. Extra points if you chime in, "what about Christian Lindersson?" If you yourself have formed an opinion on that subject (and particularly if you're a Wino fancier) then there's a good chance you'll want this DVD document of the legendary St. Vitus reunited (Dave Chandler, Armando Acosta, and Mark Adams, with Wino at the mic), live for one show only at the Double Door in Chicago, 2003. Billed as "the heaviest show ever" and well it's freaking Saint Vitus, they can say that if they want!
Ok, what else do you need to know? It's limited and numbered, it's an official release, it's a real DVD not DVD-R, it's a pro production (done by the Doomednation folks) shot on four cameras (which allow for some crazy close-ups and a diversity of "film stock"). The sound is decent, though it's also almost -too much- like you're actually at the show 'cause of all the crowd chatter you can hear. And here's the set list: "Clear Windowpane", "Dying Inside", "White Magic/Black Magic", "Living Backwards", "I Bleed Black", "Zombie Hunger", "White Stallions", "Born Too Late", "Mystic Lady", and "Saint Vitus"!
Right from the get-go it's obvious how Dave Chandler's frazzled, fuzzed wah-wah soloing makes Vitus sound so unique. Yeah they're hugely influenced by Black Sabbath. Wino gets as Ozzy as he can be. But there's something even more burnt out and deviant and, well, punk about the Vitus approach... and Dave Chandler's psychotic, psychedelic guitar playing (and personality) is a big part of that. Hell we're AMAZED that the dude still looks exactly the same -- imagine having that fabulous furry freak brothers frizzy long hair for all those years!! Right on.

SAINT VITUS Saint Vitus b/w Born Too Late (Volcom) 7" 6.50
Skate clothing company Volcom is also a cool weird record label. Especially lately. Wildildlife, Best Coast, and now... legendary SST doomlords Saint Vitus??? Yep, they've got the reunited Vitus (with new drummer Henry Vasquez, RIP Armando Acosta), fronted by Wino, on 45rpm 7" colored wax doing two moldy oldies live, "Saint Vitus" and "Born Too Late", both classics of Sabbath styled doom metal. Recorded at the Palladium in Worcester Mass on October 17th, 2009, apparently the first time they'd played on the East Coast since 1993, when the band's original run was petering out. The A-side features some added vocals by their punk pal Dez Cadena (Black Flag, DC3, the Misfits)!

SAINT VITUS The Walking Dead / Hallow's Victim (SST) cd 16.98
"Welcome to darkness!!" It's a red letter DOOM day here at Aquarius, with the arrival of this long awaited reissue! For some reason, SST had never before released these essential Saint Vitus records on compact disc. Now they're here, officially together on one cd, the LA doom legends' 2nd full length album Hallow's Victim and subsequent 12" ep The Walking Dead, both first unleashed back in 1985! Plus, a bonus track!!
There were other great underground metal bands in the '80s who practiced what doom messiahs Black Sabbath preached: Trouble, Candlemass, Witchfinder General, Pentagram... But it was LA's Saint Vitus who took the Sabbath sound to even further extremes. They were heavier, slower, doomier than anyone else. Psychedelic, wasted, DOOM. Both of these essential doom documents boast the unique vocal presence of Vitus' original singer, Scott Reagers. As we've no doubt mentioned in other reviews, it's been a subject of some debate 'round here about who was the best Vitus vocalist, Reagers or his replacement, Scott "Wino" Weinrich. Whatever your preference, we'd hope you agree that Reagers was pretty AMAZING, his dynamic, dramatic banshee wailings somehow like an unholy hybrid of both Ozzy and Dio! But way more twisted, wretched, and over the top than even that would sound. And although the recent Vitus reunion lineup is with Wino, when we saw 'em, Wino made a point of paying tribute to Reagers, talking about how awed he was to have to try and fill his shoes back in the day. (Man, we wished we'd been at the show in LA, where Reagers did show up on stage to sing a few songs!).
Containing classic tracks like "White Stallions", "War Is Our Destiny", and "Mystic Lady", we can't recommend disc this highly enough to any traditional doom fan who doesn't have this stuff! Druggy frizzy fuzzy punk rock burn out Black Sabbath worship doesn't get much better (maybe Vitus's self-titled debut from '84 edges this out). While guitarist Dave Chandler is technically a mess, he sure had a knack for writing a riff, and his demented wah-happy soloing makes up in sheer psychedelic chutzpah what it lacks in chops. Drummer Armando Acosta and bassist Scott Adams revel in the slow and low, respectively (though Vitus do crank up the speed at plenty of spots on this disc, actually). And then there's the mournful cries of Reagers on the mic, delivering the goods, proving that a scuzzy band of stoners from LA playing the '80s hardcore punk rock circuit might just have had the best metal vocalist of all time EVER... well that's what some of us here think, anyway. Hear for yourself.
The bonus track happens to one of our favorite songs in the Vitus catalog, "Look Behind You". This is the original recording of that tune, as sung by Reagers, taken from SST's 1986 Blasting Concept Vol.II compilation (it was later redone with Wino on the Thirsty And Miserable ep in '87).
MPEG Stream: "War Is Our Destiny"
MPEG Stream: "The Walking Dead"
MPEG Stream: "Look Behind You"

SAINT VITUS V (Southern Lord) cd 15.98
Of all the classic "doom metal" pioneers who kept the spirit of Black Sabbath alive in the '80s -- Trouble, Witchfinder General, Candlemass, Pentagram -- the most significant to me (Allan) by far is LA's Saint Vitus. Perhaps 'cause they recorded for seminal punk label SST, their influence was broad. In some way, you can thank Saint Vitus for side two of Black Flag's My War, for the Melvins, for SUNNO)))... "Stoner rock" owes them too. These guys were proudly retro '70s longhairs when it definitely wasn't cool, and for that they will forever be badasses. I pretty much like *all* of their albums, many of which aren't in print anymore. But this one, 1989's V (their 5th LP, natch) has just been reissued by the powers-that-be-doomed at Southern Lord. It's certainly classic Vitus, their final release with vocalist Scott "Wino" Weinrich before he split to reform The Obsessed for a brief and unsurprisingly ill-fated major label stint. And it was the first Vitus LP not to come out on SST. Instead it was released by the now long-defunct German doom specialists Hellhound. So, in the States, it was a hard to find import, and little publicized. For these reasons, V acquired quite a mystique -- some fans going so far as to consider it their best. I can't exactly agree with that -- for one thing, V is marred by perhaps the worst 2 minutes in Vitus' career ("When Emotion Dies", a sensitive acoustic number featuring Wino dueting with a female vocalist -- that ain't what Saint Vitus is all about!) -- but elsewhere on this slab you'll find some essential heaviness, from the psychedelic powerhouse opener "Living Backwards" to the wrenching, rocking "I Bleed Black" to the massive melancholy dirge of "Patra (Petra)" and the epic, shivering "Jack Frost". As well, tracks like "Angry Man" and "Ice Monkey" provide uptempo inklings of stoner rock to come... So, a prime Vitus platter that anyone with records by Electric Wizard/High On Fire/Spirit Caravan etc. ought to also own. And, there's more: Southern Lord have unearthed a video of Wino's first-ever performance fronting Vitus, shot by Larry Lally at the Palm Springs Community Center on May 16th 1986. It's included it on the cd as a bonus Quicktime file! It looks kind of like black and white '50s TV footage, but it's great to see and hear this vintage Vitus show, the band tearing through five classics including "Clear Windowpane" and "Saint Vitus".
MPEG Stream: "I Bleed Black"
MPEG Stream: "Patra (Petra)"