Daddy-O - You Can Be A Daddy But Never Daddy-O LP

Island (1993)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

Daddy-O is likely best known for being part of the hugely influential hip hop group Stetasonic.  They split up after their 1991 album Blood, Sweat & No Tears and the next time we would hear from Daddy-O was on this album, his 1993 debut You Can Be A Daddy But Never Daddy-O.  I don't think it made much of a splash when it was released, I certainly don't remember hearing about it at the time.  1993 was a pivotal year in hip hop as the genre was moving at an alarmingly fast bace, changing weekly.  A new album released by someone whose group's heyday was in the 80s probably wasn't as exciting to the tastemakers at the time.

It wasn't until many, many years later that I stumbled across this record and decided to check it out.  I would not go so far as to proclaim it a 'lost classic' or anything that grandiose, but it's a very strong record that I think would have made a bit more noise had it not come out during such a crowded time in hip hop.  

More than anything, I really enjoy the production on the album.  It's a hard hitting, east coast flavor that fits in nicely with the sound of the era.  There's a ton of head nodders in here and while not necessarily treading any new ground, it's a fun listen.  Lyrically, Daddy-O knows what he's doing.  He's got a steady flow that works with his scratchy vocal delivery.  I think perhaps he could have spent a bit less time talking about how much he likes other rappers, as it's a topic that certainly comes up more than once, but it's not that I'm in any way opposed to a good old fashion shout out.  

Again, there's nothing earth shattering here, but the steady vocals mixed with better than average production makes it an album worth checking out.  Unfortunately, the only vinyl version that exists is this 'clean' promo version.  Daddy-O isn't swearing all over the place, so it being clean doesn't bother me that much.  But the bigger issue is that the LP only has 12 of the 16 songs that the CD does.  It's even missing the single that it advertises on the hype sticker, "Brooklyn Bounce."  I'm not sure how much demand there is for a nice reissue of this album, but I'd certainly buy one.

Daddy-O - You Can Be A Daddy But Never Daddy-O:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mYGZawQKOZxaUL48KJjycB6z7Aitr5dPo

Sweet Harm - Certain Sun LP - Yellow Vinyl

Salinas (2025)

Sweet Harm are proving to be a difficult band to write about in the short time I've been listening to their debut album Certain Sun.  I find it equally intriguing and frustrating, at times wanting to like it more than I do, while also wondering if I'm trying to hard to like it when I don't.  It's a good album, but there's something holding it back for me.

We've got your standard rock music line up.  Two guitars, a bass and some drums.  The music they are creating is warm and easy to listen to.  There's a good base of guitar fuzz, complimented by a little jangle in all of the right places.  We're talking predominantly mid tempo indie that's fast enough to not get boring, while also being mellow enough to not step all over itself or get too punk for its own good.

I think what keeps this album from growing on me is the vocals.  The bulk of the singing is handled by Dominic Armao.  He has a conversational singing style that sometimes reminds me of a less whimsical Stephen Malkmus.  His vocal melodies often verge away from where you think they should be considering the music he's singing over.  There are times where that's interesting, but there are also times where it sounds like he's singing a different song than the rest of the band is playing.  

Kate Larson is the group's other vocalist.  She takes the lead on two tracks, and provides backing vocals on the others.  Again, I struggle as to what to say about them as they're difficult to hear on most of the album.  She seems so buried in the mix that you can mostly only pick up on faint echoes of backing vocals here and there.  This mixing decision is also noticeable on the two songs that she takes the lead on, they're just so different from when Dominic is singing, as he's way louder.

And that's where I struggle.  It's a pretty good record, but the vocals don't really do it for me.  I'm not sure if it's the way everything was put together after the fact, or if these are intentional decisions that the group is making.  At the end of the day, this one's just not for me.

Sweet Harm - Certain Sun:

https://sweetharm.bandcamp.com/album/certain-sun

Kaotic Style - Infinity LP - Yellow Vinyl (/50)

Dope Folks (2021)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

As I continue to try to clear out records that have been sitting around for too long without being written about, we come to Infinity by Kaotic Style.  Back in 2022 I had written about the first of the Kaotic Style releases that Dope Folks had put out.  I had this record when I wrote about that one.  I've had it long enough to have gotten one of the limited to 50 copies versions on yellow vinyl.  I just never wrote about it.  Again, trying to clean that up as best as I can.

Kaotic Style is really strong early 90s, East Coast hip hop.  About half of these songs were pulled from singles released between 1991 and 1992.  The remaining half are unreleased songs that the group recorded between 1994 and 1996.  If you look at the time frame and the geography, it's a pretty safe bet that this is going to be the exact sort of hip hop that I want to listen to.  The songs from the early 90s singles are really strong for that era.  I would have absolutely been into these guys if I had access to their music in 1992.  The flows are really strong, with lyrical structures that go beyond simple rhyme schemes into more complex microphone magic.  Everything is upbeat and the words per minute keep up with and often exceed the beats per minute.

The production can more than hold up to the lyrics as it's that boom bap style that I love so much.  Even the songs that were recorded past my usual 1994 cut off don't fall into the slow, often boring production that I think tends to dominate 1995 and 1996.  Now, is the singing break of "Get Down" my favorite thing on the album?  No, but even that isn't very offensive and the lyrics more than make up for it.

I'm not really sure why these guys didn't get a chance to put out a full album back in the 90s.  They just never broke out of the underground.  While it's a bummer that because of that I never got to hear Kaotic Style when they were active, those underground styles are why these tracks still sound so fresh and exciting in 2026.

Kaotic Style - Infinity:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58028yuMRgE

Mrs. Magician - High Resolution 7"

 
Swami (2026)

It seems both inconceivable and ridiculous that it's been ten years since the last Mrs. Magician record came out.  This is a band responsible for two incredible albums, the first of which is easily in my top 10 records that have come out in the 2000s (probably top five, honestly - but I don't have time to check and do the math right now).  This two song 7" marks their return in 2026, leading up to a new album next month.  Which coincidently includes both of the songs on this 7".

Now, I must remind people that I have an aversion to listening to songs from un upcoming album outside of the context of the full album.  I find that it makes me hear those songs differently than the rest.  In the past I have overplayed advance singles and I've learned that it does the album no favors, so I avoid that now.  I bring this up because I'm writing about this 7" only having listened to it once, with no plans to listen again until I can hear these songs with the rest of the full record.

I did write down some notes while I listened, knowing that I wouldn't be back for a little bit.  A side "High Resolution" is a driving pop song with a big guitar riff doing the heavy lifting in the verse.  There's some nice surfy secondary guitar sprinkled in and a great hook for the chorus.  The song is very good and as I listened to it I was getting pretty excited to hear the new album when suddenly at about the minute forty-five mark or so, the song veers into an incredibly catchy bridge or breakdown or whatever you want to call it.  It's just bonkers and makes the song even better than I already thought it was.  What a ride.

On the B side, "Dead Alive" starts off with that scrappy, early, reverb heavy Mrs. Magician sound before cleaning itself up when the main thrust of the song kicks in. I hope we get a little more of that fuzzy aesthetic on the rest of the record as I really dig that.  But again, this is another cracking good song with crunchy guitars and some really nice vocal interplay between Jacob and Tiffany Turnbloom where there's a back and forth before coming together into a harmony.  

Like I said, I only listened to this once, but I definitely liked what I heard.  What it really does (and I do believe this is the point of singles, I'm sure it's in a book somewhere) is make me excited to finally hear the full length.  I am counting down the days and doing finger exercises to ensure I can preorder the vinyl as quickly as possible once it shows up in the Swami shop.

Mrs. Magician - "High Resolution":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C55h4t9BF-I

Mrs. Magician - "Dead Alive":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPapZ7Y4laU

C.P.O. - To Hell and Black LP

 
Capitol (1990)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

C.P.O. is mildly confusing to me.  It's a group, but it also ended up being a person (Lil Nation is in the group, who later became Boss Hogg who also was CPO?).  But what I do know about C.P.O. is that they are affiliated with MC Ren of N.W.A.  How do I know this?  He guests on two tracks, he co-wrote almost every song on here, he's the producer and on the back of the record there's a larger font, bolded thank you paragraph to him that is borderline embarrassing to read.  Don't get me wrong, I like MC Ren, I don't think he ever gets his due for how important he was in the history of N.W.A, but his name is on this LP more than anyone actually in the group.

I wasn't aware of C.P.O. when this album came out in 1990.  I discovered them when Paramount+ uploaded about 75 old episodes of Yo! MTV Raps a couple of years ago and I proceeded to watch every single episode (they are sadly gone again, but what a glorious ride that was).  I saw the C.P.O. video a few times and decided to check out the record.  1990 was when I started watching Yo!, though I don't remember seeing C.P.O. back then.  But still, better late than ever.

The record itself is a strong album as far as what the production of 1990 sounded like.  It's a little dated sounding listening to it today, but in the context of when it was actually released, it holds up.  Lil Nation is totally solid on the mic.  You can certainly hear the MC Ren influence and co-writing, but it's not like he doesn't do a good job when he's spinning his yarns.  Though MC Ren completely dominates the spotlight every time he comes up.  Again, I don't think that guy gets the credit he deserves for how good he was during this time period.

Is this album great?  No, it's not great, but it's pretty good and is a cool snapshot of the villain in black at a period between Straight Outta Compton and Efil4zaggin.  Oh, and there's a group called C.P.O. here too.  When I picked up this copy I didn't realize that someone had written on the cover, but I'm not really bothered to go buy another copy to upgrade this copy for my collection.  I think you can use that information to judge where I rank this album.  Good enough to keep, but not important enough to upgrade.

C.P.O. - To Hell and Black:

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mMp4BJ_IbbEw2F1y1I_psMX7kEmUnBxgs

The Pretty Flowers - Never Felt Bitter LP - Purple Vinyl (/500)

 
Forge Again (2026)

I know you've been waiting.  We're almost through March.  When is it going to happen?  When am I going to proclaim something as the first great record of 2026?  I am aware no one is actually waiting for me to do this, but...it's time and probably not a surprise of the band that takes the crown.

Never Felt Bitter is the third full length from one of my absolute favorite active bands, The Pretty Flowers.  They initially popped up on my radar in 2018 when Dirt Cult put out their debut full length, Why Trains Crash.  Since the moment I first heard that record, I have been a vocal advocate insisting that everyone on the planet earth that can hear my voice or read my words must check this band out.  And they are a band that never lets me down.  Each time they put out a new album, I find myself enamored with the new songs the same way their debut captured my imagination eight years ago.

For the uninitiated, The Pretty Flowers are a top notch indie rock band, with major power pop leanings.  When I'm doing the lazy compare-to-other-bands thing, they always make me think of a cross between Built To Spill and The Weakerthans.  This is at least the third time I'm writing that I'm sure, but when I listen to their albums, that's where my brain goes.  Lyrically and vocally, the song wringing reminds me of The Weakerthans in the way they tell stories of regular people, but where Pretty Flowers up the ante is the absolute onslaught of harmonies and backing vocals.  They make these songs soar and fully differentiate themselves from the more intentionally sparse Weakerthans sound.

And that separation is more prominent in the music which accomplishes the herculean task of looking at a Built To Spill record and saying 'I can make poppy songs with insane guitar work too' and then just do it.  You have these supremely catchy songs, with hooks just falling out of them, and suddenly...boom.  Massive guitar solo/pyrotechnics.  And not in that annoying, self indulgent way that a lot of bands do (even Built To Spill is guilty of that self indulgence from time to time).  These guitar passages serve the song, rather than having the song be a set up to show off.  It's a tricky balance that I don't think many bands are able to pull off, but yet The Pretty Flowers do it time and time again over three albums.  It's so good it almost makes me angry.

I'm not the sort of person that's going to write a lengthy technical deconstruction of an album.  I'm not a good enough writer to pull off examining a record and providing a dissertation of its poetic merits.  I can only tell you how a record makes me feel.  Never Felt Bitter makes me feel great.  In a time where there are so many things to look around and be depressed about, a new record by The Pretty Flowers is one of those things that I find tremendously uplifting.  More than anything, I feel like it's important to hunt for joy these days, and man do I find a lot of it in this album.  Stop reading this and go buy it.

The Pretty Flowers - Never Felt Bitter:

https://forgeagainrecords.bandcamp.com/album/never-felt-bitter

Obits - L.E.G.I.T. LP - Clear Vinyl (/300)

 
Outer Battery (2025)

The legacy of Rick Froberg is immense and wide ranging.  His legacy in music is also very often tied to the legacy of John Reis, due to their collaborations in Pitchfork, Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes.  However, when Hot Snakes stopped playing a few years after Audit In Progress came out I personally wondered if we'd see a fourth collaboration or if Rick would step back from music a bit like when Drive Like Jehu stopped playing.  The answer was neither as he started playing in a new band, Obits.

I vividly remember the fervor of the band's formation coming to light on ye olde Swami message board.  A bootleg of their first show was bandied about and everyone seemed pretty stoked on the prospect of getting some records.  The first time I saw Obits was at a place called Santos Party House in December of 2008.  They played with The Night Marchers and at the time their debut full length hadn't been released yet.  Discogs is telling me that their first 7" was out at that point, but truthfully I don't remember it that way.  I'm probably wrong though, who am I to argue with Discogs.  What I can tell you is that Obits ripped through a set of killer songs and you know a band is hot when they blow you away with a bunch of stuff that you don't already know.

Three full lengths were released in the following years, all of which I loved.  Interspersed were a bunch of singles and L.E.G.I.T. compiles them all for easy listening (finally getting to the point in the third paragraph).  This comp was originally released on CD in 2014, but I'm excited to have it on vinyl.  I love these songs and as much as I adore collecting 7"s, it can be something of a fussy experience to sit around trying to listen to a bunch of them all at once.  One flip of a record vs. putting on and flipping five different 7"s is a more relaxing experience.

And these songs are not just leftovers.  They are killer, killer songs.  To this day my absolute favorite Obits song is "Put It In Writing," the B side to their first 7" "One Cross Apiece."  And they lead off this LP with that one-two punch that sets the stage for the excellence that follows.  This is an essential pickup if you like Obits.  Sure, the last four live tracks aren't as exciting as to me as the studio recordings, but I've never really been a live album sort of guy (with very few exceptions).  It bums me out thinking about how we don't have years of future Froberg masterpieces in front of us, but I am comforted by all of the ones he provided us in the past.

Obits - L.E.G.I.T.:

https://obits.bandcamp.com/album/l-e-g-i-t

Casual - Demo Sessions 12"

Dope Folks (2019)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

This weekend I'm going to go see Hieroglyphics play live for the first time.  Though I have seen Del The Funky Homosapien and Souls Of Mischief, I've never seen the whole crew together.  One of the main reasons I want to see this show so badly is to finally be able to see Casual live.  Casual's debut album, Fear Itself, is in my upper echelon of hip hops albums.  I'm always in search of anything that sounds like the early 90s Hieroglyphics sound, often to no avail.  But what better way to find sounds like that than from the people that made them originally.  

Dope Folks put out this EP a few years ago that has six Casual songs that predate Fear Itself.  While EPs are not my favorite way to consume songs (which I know is blasphemy in hip hop, but I just love listening to all length albums), there was no way that I wasn't going to pick this up.  Though like a lot of things I'm writing about lately, it's taken me years to get around to saying something on this site about it.  

Of the six songs, one of them is a remix of the Fear Itself standout, "Me-O-Mi-O."  I do love me an early 90s remix.  To this day I'll contend that the remixed version of Del The Funky Homosapien's "Wrongplace" is superior to the original and it's not the only song I feel that way about.  I don't really think this remix is better than the album version, but that one is an all timer and has been lodged in my head for over 30 years.  The remix is an interesting take on it, but is more of a novelty for me on this release.

The main events are the five previously unreleased tracks.  They vary in quality both from a sound quality standpoint (these are demos after all) and song quality.  Some of the slower tracks like "Fear No Evil" and "Gotta Lotta" don't hit as hard for me.  The production and beats are OK, but they don't really service Casual's flow in the way that much of his classic material does. 

That isn't the case at all with side two of this EP.  "Where They At," Can You Feel It?" and "Rippers" all hit it out of the park.  The beats are more uptempo than what you'll find on the first side and this lets Casual uncork his rapid fire lyrical madness.  He's got an effortless flow that veers from freestyles to battle raps to punchlines, sometimes all in the same bar.  He's one of the most overlooked MCs out there and the fact that he was cranking out songs like this when he was still in high school (which is also when I was in high school) flabbergasts me.

Casual - Demo Sessions 12":

https://soundcloud.com/dope-folks-records/casual-fear-no-evil-demo-sessions-ep-coming-soon?in=dope-folks-records/sets/df0094-casual-demo-sessions-ep#t=0:00

Short Dogs Grow - Quit While You're Young 12"

 
Lil' Hunka Gold (2025)

Short Dogs Grow sent me this 12" of theirs which is the first release that the band has done since the late 1980s.  They were/are based out of San Francisco and put out a couple of LPs on Rough Trade once upon a time.  This new EP has two of the four original members, Tom Pitts and Carmela Thompson, joined by a new drummer.  

I wasn't super familiar with the band's original work, so I checked out a few songs and they were pretty fast, kind of fuzzy guitar rock that isn't really out of place in the mid to late 80s Bay Area scene.  This new EP leans on a lot more of an rootsy rock and roll sound, with songs that don't have the same sort of mph as the older ones I listened to.  These are decidedly mid tempo and while they lean towards that alt country sound a bit, have a little more aggression and punk influence.

Main singer Tom Pitts' vocals are definitely an acquired taste, and thus far, I have not acquired that taste.  They've got a warble to them that really jumps out from the music in a way that I personally find distracting, though others may find to be the highlight of the group.  I know a fair amount of people who can't get into Leatherface because they don't like Frankie Stubbs' vocals, yet for me, they are one of the main reasons I love that band so much.

This isn't bad, it's a solid EP with well written songs.  If you like some root in your music, might be up your alley more than mine.

Short Dogs Grow - Quit While You're Young:
https://shortdogsgrow.bandcamp.com/album/quit-while-youre-young

Gentlemen Rogues - Half Empty, Half Fool 7" - Pink Vinyl (59/100)

 
Self Released (2025)

It's becoming a recurring thing lately where I say that I'm writing about a record I've had for too long and that I should have probably written about it already.  This becomes a self fulfilling prophecy as it means that anything I get now runs the risk of getting old as I try to prioritize the records that already are old.  It's a vicious cycle and no one cares, but I do feel bad that I'm only getting to this Gentlemen Rogues record as it's not only great, but Danny is a sweetheart.

A sweetheart that always seems to be in bands that can crank out tunes like nobody's business.  The A side is "Half Empty, Half Fool" which is a song from their excellent 2024 full length Surface Noise.  This version has been updated since the full length version, having been remixed and remastered and (so the Bandcamp page says) "partially re-recorded."  Now, if I'm being truly honest, my ears can't hear a whole lot of difference between the new version and the one on the album, though I've also never claimed to be an audiophile with a keen ear for nuance.  But this doesn't really matter to me as the song sounded great before and it sounds great now. 

The B side is a cover of the T.Rex song "Children of the Revolution."  The Rogues do a great job taking ownership of this tune and really making it sound like one of their own, while at the same time retaining enough of the original that it stands out.  With its mid-tempo, chunky guitar hooks and vocal melodies, it's right at home with their other songs.

I love me a good 7".  We don't see as many of them these days as they are so cost prohibitive to make and sell and buy (and process?).  But the old school album-track-on-side-one-and-cover-song-on-side-two gimmick is one that I will always get behind.  Even though Gentleman Rouges have the band name that I am most likely to misspell while writing about them, it's always a pleasure to add a new record of theirs to the collection and to let the world know how great they are.  And I didn't even mention Jill this time.

Gentlemen Rogues - Half Empty, Half Fool 7":

https://gentlemenrogues.bandcamp.com/album/half-empty-half-fool-2025-single

Brothers Of The Same Mind – Gotta Have Style 2xLP

 
Dust & Dope / Hip-Hop Enterprise (2021)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

Brothers of the Same Mind were active in the late 80s and early 90s.  Hailing from Sir Mix-A-Lot's backyard in Seattle, they had a few indie singles and EPs during that time, but the full length album that they were working had never been released until Dust & Dope and Hip Hop Enterprise stepped up to finally unleash their shelved album into the world in 2021 - 30 years after it should have originally come out.  This is another one of those records that I've had in my to-write-about piles for way, way too long.  But better late than never.

The first thing that jumps out at me is the production.  For material recorded between 1989 and 1991, it has that early hip hop sound.  I always feel like Low End Theory is the key marking point in hip hop production in that year.  Before its release there was a sound and after its release the sound moved forward very quickly.  Low End Theory isn't the only album in 1991 that ushered in that next stage of golden era production, but it's always the one that stands out to me as I noticed it in real time as it happened when I was 14.

So there are times where the production on this album sounds a little dated, with one foot still in that late 1980s sound.  Which, don't get me wrong, I like that sound, but it's one that I need to be in the right mood to listen to.  When I am in the mood, Brothers of the Same Mind do that sound as good as anyone else of that era.  The beats are upbeat, the samples are not subtle and there's lots of hooks built on scratching key vocal parts of contemporaries.  If you think for a second KRS-One's "Gotta Have Style" lyric isn't the foundation of the title track, you've been asleep at the wheel.  And it's not the only time we hear KRS on a sample.

Lyrically, the MCs all do a great job.  There's at least four of them, assuming DJ Swift doesn't end up on the microphone, but this is another example of me not really knowing who is rapping when as they don't identify themselves all that frequently.  But again, for late 80s, super early 90s, they hold their own with any of that pre-Low End Theory crew.  Not that everything is perfect.  I do not like the R&B sung hook of "Cool Drink (In The Springtime)" at all.  I never liked that crossover appeal sort of thing and when ever you get someone singing the hook like that it's an immediate turn off for me.  But a song like that is the exception, not the rule on this album.

I love finding these unreleased gems getting another chance 30 years later.  It makes me wonder what could have been had they been released as planned.  It makes me bummed that I had to wait so long to hear them.  But it mostly makes me feel relieved that albums like this are not just out there in someone's closet rotting away.  Stuff like this deserves to be heard.

Brothers Of The Same Mind – Gotta Have Style:

https://soundcloud.com/dustdope/brothers-of-the-same-mind-gotta-have-style-snippets

Red Devil Ryders - Is It Love? LP

Feral Kid (2025)

I don't have a lot of records sent to me for free to write about, but I do get them on occasion.  It's always a guessing game on whether or not I'll be interested or even if I'll be able to get through it without weeping in the corner halfway through.  Unfortunately it tends to sit in the middle a lot with lots of records that are fine, but aren't really blowing me away.  Case in point: Red Devil Ryders.

This is a record that's the very definition of good.  It's got solid songs, decent enough hooks and a jangly guitar sound that is nothing if not pleasant.  It leans on the indie rock side of the fence, with a healthy amount of power pop thrown in to keep things lively.  I would even go so far as to say it reminds me of a band I really love, Title Tracks.  But they only remind me of Title Tracks, they never quite cross that line into being a great band on their own.

I can't even say for sure what's holding it back.  As I listen to it again as I write this, they seem to have everything I'm looking for, at least on paper.  But when the final results are in, I just keep coming back to "this is good."  And it is good.  If you're looking for a good, catchy record with Title Tracks vibes, by all means check this out.  Unlike some of the records that get sent to me, I'm going to keep this one.  I don't know how often I'll listen to it, but I'm sure the next time that I do, I'll be reminded that it's good.

Red Devil Ryders - Is It Love?:

https://feral-kid-records.bandcamp.com/album/is-it-love

Gravediggaz - 6 Feet Deep 2xLP - Black & Silver Splatter Vinyl

Vinyl Me Please (2022, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

The idea of horrorcore rap isn't anything I've ever been interested in.  Violence for the sake of violence in the lyrics, murder fantasy, Geto Boys style storytelling - none of that has ever been anything I've been that interested in listening to.  I wasn't aware of Gravedigger as a thing back in 1994, or if I was I ignored and forgot them because of the whole horrorcore thing.  When I decided to give Wu Tang another chance a few years back, I came across Gravediggaz. I was a little intrigued because of RZA being in the group, but I was way more interested in the fact that Prince Paul was part of it.

6 Feet Deep is the Gravediggaz debut and it definitely has that Wu Tang style of production, which again, is interesting because Prince Paul is the producer on the bulk of it.  He puts his spin on the lo fi aesthetic with deep cut samples and a dark vibe over all.  Lyrically, there's nothing mind blowing here.  Nothing jumps out at me as being so deep into the horrorcore gimmick that the lyrics are offensive or over the top in anything more than a mostly cartoony sort of way.  It's more braggadocios than anything else, I think.

It's the production that keeps engaged, even though I did buy this record knew when it came out and it has taken me nearly four years to get around to writing about it.  It's one of those record that has good beats and I always enjoy it when it's on.  It's just not something I find myself going to super frequently.

Gravediggaz - 6 Feet Deep:

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lIrV3RtOOxnKT13XsZjYCAorwyQHf2hZ0

Jejune - Junk LP - Black w/ Gray Swirl Vinyl

 
Number (2026, Reissue)

Jejune is one of those bands that I was on board with from the get go, but also one that never really reached past a certain level for me.  I never was into Garden Variety, so that's not why I bought Jejune's split 7" with them the moment it came into the record store.  There was already scuttlebutt that they were going to be doing a split 7" with Jimmy Eat World and such was the power of Static Prevails that the thought was any band on the other side of a split with them must be worthwhile.  

So the Garden Variety split 7" was purchased and Jejune's "Drive By Negly" proceeded to melt my brain.  What a song.  Just an incredibly perfect song and one that will always be my favorite Jejune song.  Why it isn't on this album as a bonus track or as part of a lavish Numero box set or at least on a lousy singles comp, I'll never know.  But to say that song set expectations high for the impending release of Junk is the understatement of the 90s.  My expectations were so high that in hindsight, they couldn't have possibly been met.

Junk is a very good album.  It contains great songs.  It contains no songs that I like as much as "Drive By Negly" and I think because of that, I always viewed this album and its follow up as disappointments.  Which really isn't fair.  "Meteorite" is a fuzzed out blast of hooky guitar riffs, perfectly timed melodic breakdowns and syrupy sweet harmonies.  It's the kind of song you might be inclined to call perfect if not for "Drive By Negly" taunting you from the distance.  

Throughout the albums eight songs, we have slower tracks that lean into the emo tag a bit more, we have other chunky guitar punk songs and catchy pop ones that sit right in the middle of those.  It's a wonderfully diverse album for its criminally short eight song length.  Which may be another issue I've had over the years, it felt too short.  Add on two more songs (one of them could even be from a certain aforementioned split 7") and you've got a stew going.

But all warped perspectives aside, this is a strong record and one that has aged much better than releases by many of their contemporaries.  As usual, the Numero reissue is the tops of the top notch, but again this probably should have been a box set with all of Jejune's bits and bobs compiled and documented the way they deserve to be.  Also, "Drive By Negly" is a really great song.

Jejune - Junk:

https://numerojejune.bandcamp.com/album/junk

Ugly Duckling – Down The Road 2xLP

Back 2 Da Source (2025, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

Other than the Hieroglyphics crew, there wasn't a lot of hip hop that I was paying attention to after 1994.  I had mostly moved on to punk and indie rock and when I would occasionally dip my toe back in to see what was happening, inevitably I would be disappointed.  But in the year 2000, two albums came out that made me reevaluate my relationship with rap.  The first of these records was Jurassic 5's Quality Control.  And the second was Journey to Anywhere by Ugly Duckling.  Both of these albums alerted me that there were still people doing interesting things in hip hop. 

Ugly Duckling seemed the more unabashed of the two when it came to harkening back to the style of hip hop I liked best.  Their production could have slid right in to 1993 and you'd hardly notice.  The rapping also connected with me, mixing the Das EFX pop culture references (but no diggitys) with the non sequitur these-words-just-sound-nice-together feeling of early Beck.  Name drop The Great Space Coaster and I'm paying attention.  What I didn't know at the time was that Ugly Duckling had been around for a while and had even self released an album on cassette back in 1995.  30 years later, Back 2 Da Source stepped up to the plate and reissued that long lost album on vinyl for the first time.

It's every bit as good as Journey to Anywhere.  Quite literally in some cases as six of the songs from that album also appear on Down The Road in some capacity.  For some, like "Pick Up Lines" and "Journey to Anywhere," are quite similar; demos of what was to come.  But for others, "If You Want To Know" and "Down The Road" being big examples, the production is wildly different making them feel like completely unique songs.  And sure, six songs repeating sounds like a lot, but there are ten other songs on here that aren't on Journey to Anywhere, and that's not even including the skits.

It's an incredible collection of songs and is just the sort of thing I really needed to hear in 1995, but never did.  This is the sort of hip hop I love, particularly in the way the beats are structured.  I feel like this kind of production is a completely lost art.  I'll never understand why no one can make records that sound like this anymore, but at least there is a seemingly unneeded number of 30+ year old records that I can go back to and cherish.

Ugly Duckling – Down The Road:

https://uglyduckling.bandcamp.com/album/down-the-road

Unwound - New Energy 7"

Numero (2025)

This is one of those records that definitely falls into the category of being a collectible.  This was made to be a tour only 7" for Unwound in 2025.  Once said tour was over, Numero sold some on there website.  Both songs are originally from their 1995 album The Future Of What.  Not sure why it was decided they needed to also be on a 7", but I do like 7"s and Unwound and I have all of their other 7"s, so I bought it anyway.

I didn't go crazy though, they made three different screened covers for this and they randomly sent them out to the folks that ordered.  They didn't promise that if you ordered three copies you'd get all three versions, though they did say they'd try.  While I wanted one, I don't need three different versions.  

Based on my usual luck, I assumed I'd get the cover that I was least interested in, but lo and behold I actually got the Godzilla cover.  This really is the one I wanted and needed, so I thank the record collecting fates for actually letting me get the version I coveted the most.  And now that the picture of it has been taken, it's off to the 7" storage box to sit next to my other Unwound 7". Rarely played as I have all of those songs on albums.

Unwond - "New Energy":

https://unwound.bandcamp.com/track/new-energy

Unwound - "Petals Like Bricks":

https://unwound.bandcamp.com/track/petals-like-bricks

Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. – New Funky Nation LP

4th & Broadway (1990) 

 Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

I can't write about Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. without first discussing how much I love the Judgment Night soundtrack.  A lot.  That's how much I love the Judgment Night soundtrack.  Once of the highlights being the Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. collaboration with Faith No More, "Another Body Murdered."  It's such a tough sounding song with dark, driving music and really hard rapping courtesy of Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E.  Such a great song and back they I was desperate to find more Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. but I never did.

Many, many years later I found out that they had a record that came out in 1994 called Doomsday and this record, New Funky Nation, that was released in 1990.  Right in the middle of that was a 1992 album called Good Times, Bad Times that was never released.  I think that's probably the Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. record that would be most up my alley, even though I've never heard it.  It's closest in proximity to the Judgment Night soundtrack, Doomsday is way too overrun with G Funk nonsense and New Funky Nation is just a bit too late 80s to be what I'm looking for.

That's not to say it's a bad record.  It's not, it's actually pretty good, but it suffers from sounded a little bit dated the same way that a lot of late 80s hip hop can often sound.  It's the sort of thing that I need to be in the right mood to listen to, though when I am in that meed New Funky Nation fits the bill nicely.  What sets it apart from a lot of hip hop of the time is that Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. played instruments on the bulk of this album, laying down funk influenced bass lines, pounding the kick drum and hitting some nicely sung hooks.  

The lyrics and delivery is not quite as tough as "Another Body Murdered," but it's pretty close.  The Boo-Yaa boys are not messing around and it's the best part of the album.  I feel like if it had slightly more advanced sound and had come out in say, 1992 like their second album was supposed to, I think they could have dropped a classic.  New Funky Nation is very good, but I can't help but wonder what Good Times, Bad Times sounded like.  Best I can tell it's never been leaked online anywhere, though if I'm wrong and it has, someone please point me in that direction.

Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. – New Funky Nation:

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=wtj3sgm8M_I

Wavers - Look What I Found LP

Salinas / Reach Around (2025)

I shall begin by giving Wavers perhaps the most backhanded compliment I've written in a while.  If this record came out in 1996, I wouldn't have noticed it.  It would have been 'oh, there's another indie sounding band from K / Kill Rock Stars land.'  I don't know that they would have stood out to me at the time as being anything other than 'good.'  But hearing this record in 2026, it kind of floors me because I don't really feel like bands are making this sort of music anymore.  It stands out in a way that I don't know if it could have 30 years ago, even though it's cultivating those familiar sounds.  

Which makes me think, how many bands did I not give a fair shake to back then because of the insane glut of incredible releases dropping what seemed like weekly.  How many gems did I miss?  Many, I'm sure.  Backtracking to bands I overlooked in the 90s in recent years has brought many a band to the forefront that I didn't have the time or money for back then.  I think Wavers would have been the same - appreciated more later.

I hope that doesn't happen to them, as their combination of textured indie pop guitar rock mixed with Rosie's strong, but infinitely hooky vocals are the sort of combination that bands would kill for.  Yes, you can draw a line to other Pacific Northwest luminaries like the Spinanes, Crabs and Go Sailors of the world, but what sets Wavers apart is the music.  This isn't sparse, twinkling indie rock.  This full sounding, bass heavy Indie Rock with a capital I, with those perfect K records style vocals on top.

Again, I don't feel like I hear a lot of bands like this anymore.  Maybe I'm just not looking in the right places anymore, which I won't discount as a possibility (probability?).  But coming across this album is a welcome surprise.

Wavers - Look What I Found:

https://waversoly.bandcamp.com/album/look-what-i-found-2

Dillinger Four - This Shit Is Geniuser LP - Green Vinyl (and Bonus Flexi)

 
Anxious & Angry (2025)

Anxious & Angry has reissued the Dillinger Four singles compilation, dubbing this new version This Shit Is Geniuser.  It takes the existing This Shit Is Genius comp that THD and No Idea put out a few decades ago and spruces it up with a few new tracks.  It is nice to have a new version of this, though I wish they had taken it a step further.  More on that later.  Also included was a flexi of one of the new songs that was added to the album.

As weird as it sounds, this is my favorite Dillinger Four record, even though it's not a proper full length.  The main backbone of it has always been The Kids Are All Dead 7", Higher Aspirations: Tempered and Dismantled 7" and the split 7" with The Strike.  These are the songs that first made me fall in love with Dillinger Four.  I vividly remember when my buddy Alan played me The Kids Are All Dead at Flipside records and in that second, I became a D4 fan for life.  

Particularly because of my favorite song of theirs, "Two Cents."  I can't even describe that song in anyway to do it justice.  An incredible song with a driving, attacking verse that somehow transitions into a the catchiest, bounciest, angriest chorus you've ever heard.  It's ridiculous.  And it's one of many unbelievable songs.  All of those 7" tracks are borderline perfect.  The compilation song "Holy Shit" often gets my vote for the song I wish was three times as long as it actually is.  I love these songs.

This new version has all of those songs and adds in the four from the Mutant Pop 7" and "Like Spreewells On Wheelchairs" from the Rock Against Bush compilation (which is also the song on the bonus flexi).  All welcome additions, but by my count there's at least nine more D4 tracks floating around out there from various compilations and what not.  The two tracks from the Pinhead Gunpowder split 7" being the ones that seem the most obvious.  If it's me, maybe this needs to be a double LP?  Or you do a straight reissue of the original version and then do a volume 2?  Lots of options, but the point I'm making is that my main complaint is that I want more and more and more Dillinger Four in my life.  Give me more of these old song.  And give me new songs, we sure could use them in 2026.

Dillinger Four - This Shit Is Geniuser:

https://dillingerfour.bandcamp.com/album/this-shit-is-geniuser

Sons Of Sam - You Oughta Know 2xLP

90s Tapes (2023)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

You Oughta Know is another one of those albums that has been sitting in my to-write-about piles for way too long.  This came out in September of 2023.  That's almost two and a half years ago and it seems crazy that I still haven't gotten to it.  Better late than never I suppose, but this write up is not what I would call prompt.

Sons of Sam existed in the early 90s and were recording tracks during the peak of the golden era of 1993 to 1994.  They released one 12" single and that was pretty much all that was heard of them until some reissues later on.  You Oughta Know is the ultimate of this reissues as it puts out what should have been the groups debut album.  Recorded during the timeframe mentioned earlier (aside from bonus track recorded in 1996) this feels like the sort of record that would have slid nicely into a late 1994 release.

The beats are good and many of the tracks lean towards the more laid back side of the equation.  We're not yet at a full on 1995 and later snoozefest, there's enough ruggedness that propels the tracks forward with hard hitting drums.  If anything these songs are more like the jazzy mellower moments of Tribe with lots of upright bass, but with very different vocalists.  And it's not every song, you get to something like "Get It On" and the BPMs ratchet up while hitting the soul section of the crate digging and we're in the midst of a song that would have definitely been a favorite of mine if it had been released back then.

Lyrically PA-Kid and Xav both bring their A game and the result is two MCs that have that deep voiced gravitas that make their rhymes seem even more important.  Admittedly, I don't always know which one is which as they are not the type of MCs that say their own names all the time, but they are equally skilled and whoever is rapping gets the job done.  

The album recieves the usual lavish 90s Tapes treatment saving this album from the dustbins of history.  When they pull something like this out of obscurity and make it available, that's when they often do their best work.  And Sons of Sam is right up there with their best releases.

Sons Of Sam - You Oughta Know:

https://90stapes.bandcamp.com/album/ya-oughta-know

Uniflora - More Gums Than Teeth LP - Blue Vinyl

Shuga / Charm Co-op (2025)

Until I was sent this album to check out, I hadn't heard of Uniflora.  Didn't know a thing about them or what I was in for until I started this up for the first time.  My first thought being, 'well that's a very Pixies sounding bass line they're starting off with.'  Which, if you are going to try to get me interested in an album, making me think about the Pixies isn't the worst way to keep me listening.  Uniform doesn't really sound anything like the Pixies aside from those opening moments, but the bass playing stands out on pretty much every song.

I don't feel like I write about a lot of albums and focus on how much I like what the bass guitar is doing, but this is a unique album in that regard.  The songs on here are wildly different as the album progresses.  Slower, math-y ones lead into faster noisy ones lead into sort of poppy ones and every single time the bass is doing something unique and exactly what it should be doing to make the song sound interesting and stand out.  The fact that the drumming is locked in creating a super tight rhythm section only helps to accentuate that.

They lay the foundation which allows the guitar to play a different role in each of the different styled songs.  This is a band that can take chances and succeed when they try something different, which even today I think is something not many can do.  The vocals that tie everything together lean towards the monotone.  Think So Cow or Eddy Current Suppression ring.  Sometimes they work perfect for the song, other times it might be nice if there was a bit more emoting.  But musically, this is a really interesting album to listen to and I'm glad it was sent along.  If you like some post punk math Midwest type stuff, they're worth checking out.

Uniflora - More Gums Than Teeth:

https://uniflora1.bandcamp.com/album/more-gums-than-teeth

 

Beck - Golden Feelings LP

Arquivo Perdido (2025, Bootleg)

In 1994 nothing had the impact in my life as discovering Back for the first time.  Truly one of those life-changing discoveries that forever altered my path.  I'm not sure I'd be doing this dumb website had I not found his records.  Or if I was, it would certainly be a lot different than it is today.  As I delved into the Beck rabbit hole back then, I discovered that he had all sorts of weirdo indie releases to try to find.  Multiple other albums, 7"s, a 10", compilation songs out the wazoo and the Golden Feelings tape.

To this day, I've never been able to track down an original copy of this grail of a tape.  I've tried and tried and it's aways been one of those things either just out of reach, either because of availability or cost.  The original label that released the tape, Sonic Enemy, did a small run of CDs in the late 90s and I was able to get one of those, but it quickly went out of print again.  I assume these aren't Beck's favorite songs, especially considering the direction his music has taken the past couple of decades, so odds seem slim that it'll get an official release.  Thank goodness for whoever in Brazil decided that they should bootleg this.

I assume it's just the CD pressed on vinyl and you know, I'm totally fine with that if it gets the record into my collection.  It sounds great.  This was a 4-track recorded bedroom tape, there isn't any sort of fidelity that could be lost transferring this to vinyl.  Couldn't be happier that it just exists.

Musically, this thing is all over the place, and I love it for that.  There's straightforward acoustic songs, taped infomercial soundbites, confrontational noise and general weirdness.  You have one of my very favorite Beck songs, the epic storytelling "Heartland Feeling," and you also have whatever craziness "Special People" is.  "Special People" was one of the first songs from Golden Feelings that I had heard as it and 2 other songs from this album ended up as b sides on the Pay No Mind CD single in 1994.  They certainly didn't pick the 3 best songs to put on there, but it sure made me want to hunt the album down even more.  

Ever want to hear the actual recording of "No Money, No Honey" that beck did before his man-on-the-street version on Stereopathetic Soulmanure? It's on Golden Feelings.  And early version of Mellow Gold's "Mutherfukka?" That's here too.  There's so much to unpack and while I can't say it's an easy listen for the uninitiated, it's a very rewarding one as it lays the groundwork for Beck's unreal 1994 deluge.

I am hopeful that I'll be able to find a legit cassette copy of the original release of Golden Feelings.  It's one of those things that really should be in my collection.  But for now, this LP and my old CD copy will have to do.

Beck - Golden Feelings:
https://youtu.be/MieZ50rYRuQ?si=GiijL-7rRvvXPhoK

Ed O.G & Da Bulldogs – Life Of A Kid In The Ghetto LP

Get On Down / PWL America (2019, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

While I haven't had this reissue since it came out in 2019, I have been sitting on it for quite a while.  I grabbed it when it was on sale, so it was a pretty inexpensive addition to the collection and it's one of those early 90s hip hop albums that is often lauded as a classic.  I don't know that I can throw around that particular c word when talking about Life of a Kid in the Ghetto, but it does have elements of the classic sound of the early golden era.

I'll start with the positives.  On the mic, Ed (or Edo G as he tends to be known as these days) is great.  He can tell stories, he can self aggrandize, he ticks all the boxes of what you want an MC to do during this time frame.  I can't call him top, top tier, but I might also have a different opinion if this was a record I'd been listening to since it was released.  I only heard it for the first time in the past ten years, so it lacks a little in the nostalgia area for me.  But that's a me problem, not a problem with the rapping.  Ed can hold his own with most MCs that put out albums in 1991.

The reason that I can't really call this album a classic for me is because I think the production is a little uneven.  Hip Hop in 1991 was going through a pretty seismic change in regard to beats and production.  While other albums that year were pushing the envelope and exploring new sampling techniques and soundscapes, Life of a Kid in the Ghetto feels like it's still clinging to late 1980s sounds.  That's not to say it doesn't move the production forward a little, but when you realize Low End Theory came out the same year, the beats on Ed O.G.'s debut feel somewhat dated on certain tracks.

But the sum of all parts is still quite good.  I wouldn't have bought the record if I didn't like it, but it's one of those albums that has a sound that I really need to be in the right mood for.  If I'm feeling a little old school, Life of a Kid in the Ghetto fits the bill nicely.

Ed O.G & Da Bulldogs - Life of a Kid in the Ghetto:

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_m3D4AVE2F5O8EzNjQ_LEuLSbeIaaOfJu4

Various Artists - DGC Rarities Vol.1 - Coke Bottle Clear Vinyl

DGC (2025, Reissue)

Ever since Record Store Day became a thing, and particularly since it became the dumping ground for major label reissues, I've been shouting from the hills that DGC Rarities Vol. 1 was the album that needed an RSD reissue.  Years came and went and it never happened.  They added a second Black Friday Record Store Day, still nothing. 2024 came and with this compilation having originally come out in 1994, I figured it was a slam dunk for a 30th anniversary reissue.  Nope.

What did happen was on some random Wednesday in August in 2025, Interscope just put up a preorder for it.  No pomp, no circumstance.  My buddy Scott let me know about it because he got an email.  Very odd, though I am certainly not going to complain that I didn't have to play the Record Store Day game of finding a copy and paying for a nonsensical 42% markup just because it's Record Store Day.  Still, I do sort of feel that it was a missed opportunity to make this a bigger deal, but maybe it isn't as important record to most people like it is for me.

In 1994 I was going through a musical crisis.  Hip hop, which had been my bread and butter for the prior five years was moving in a direction that I didn't really like.  Trying to find something that I could connect with, my friend Scott (a different Scott from the one in the last paragraph) played me Mellow Gold by Beck.  That was a turning point in my life.  And Beck led me to DGC Rarities Vol. 1.  He had an unreleased song called "Bogusflow" on the compilation.  It was exactly the sort of Beck song I loved at the time.  Solo acoustic, off the cuff and packed full of odd lyrics that really hit home for me.  So I bought the album.

I wasn't really familiar with most of the other bands.  Sure I had heard Nirvana and I knew about Hole.  I knew that Sonic Youth had been on the Judgment Night Soundtrack and I figure I must have at least heard of Weezer.  But it was mostly uncharted territory.  The album ended up being one of those gateway drugs that led me to other rock music that I'm not entirely positive I would have heard otherwise.

First off, "Pay To Play" is probably the only Nirvana song that I truly like.  They have other songs that are fine, but they've never really been a band that I connected with on any level.  Not since my friend Pat made me borrow Nevermind way before they blew up and I gave it back to him the next day and told him the I didn't understand how anyone could like that.  But "Pay To Play" is a beast. Loud, fast, great drumming and still something of a singalong.  I know that it's essentially the same song as "Stay Away," but for whatever reason, I don't like that nearly as much as this compilation version.

This is the first time I had ever heard Weezer and "Jaime" was a song that instantly grabbed my ear and turned me into a fan.  I didn't rush out and buy the Blue album immediately, but this was the song that laid the foundation for me.  This comp was my introduction to that dog, and I did immediately go out and by their album Totally Crushed Out after hearing their song.  It was the first time I heard The Posies who I ended up loving and the first time I heard Sloan, who are fine.  

Not that there aren't some stinkers on here.  The Sonic Youth song "Compilation Blues" isn't for me, but neither is 99% of their catalog.  While not a surprise now, back then I didn't know anything about them.  But even with the up and down quality of the album (for every Weezer there's a Murray Attaway), it's a great compilation album.  It's also among the first that I bought when I was trying to find may way through a world of punk, indie, rock and yes, alternative that was so new to me.  A real touchstone record that I am so excited to finally have on vinyl.

Various Artists - DGC Rarities Vol.1:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_n54v6CRldlt9oEr4KQGCkgXN0XH1-rUdw

Harleckinz – 90two90six: The Demo Tapes 4xLP

90s Tapes (2024)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

I've been sitting on this Harleckinz record since early 2024.  I really should have written about it way before now, but I've always felt it to be a daunting proposition.  Harleckinz are from Germany, so I have no real familiarity with them.  They certainly didn't make their way to the mountainous regions of northern New Jersey when I was younger.  This album is also a quadruple LP, so there's just a ton to get through,  Because of these things I've just delayed writing about it over and over, but that's not to say I haven't listened to it quite a bit.

What brings me in for this album, and with pretty much all hip hop is the production.  Beats are the most important thing for me when it comes to what I like about hip hop.  I don't think a spectacular MC works over bad beats, but great beats can elevate the most mediocre rapper.  That's not to say that anyone in Harleckinz is mediocre, but it's the beats that make be keep going back and listening to this.  These songs were gathered from various recordings from 1992 to 1996, and the ones that resonate most with me are the ones from the earlier part of that time period.

It's hard to generalize the sound of 25 tracks from a 5 year period, but as a rule the production is steeped in ;ow end, bass heavy samples over loud drums.  Most of the time, the tempo doesn't get dragged into that later 90s thing where all of the beats have to be slow enough to set your pacemaker to.  We've got decent BPMs most of the time and it gives the MCs in the group a great foundation for their lyrics.

And the lyrics are pretty good.  I can't really detect a thick accent or anything.  It's not like listening to this album is comparable to throwing on a Wizo record.  If you didn't tell me the group was from Germany, I don't know that I'd catch on that they weren't just part of the US based groups from the golden era.  I wouldn't call any of the rappers top tier, mind blowing MCs, but they get you from the start of the song to the finish with clever wordplay, solid rhymes and chant along hooks.  Paired with the excellent production and you've got the sort of record that I'm going to be into.  

I understand the completist mentality of loading this release up with all of the songs, but it's a large amount of music to take in during a single sitting.  There aren't that many groups in any genre that I want to listen to for over two hours straight, but throughout that time I can't point to many songs on here that aren't worth your time (other than the fact that I tend to skip the instrumentals, but that's a me thing, not really an issue with said instrumentals).  Harleckinz are a group that I'm glad I took the chance on, I love adding new golden era records to my collection and this is a great one.

Harleckinz – 90two90six: The Demo Tapes 4xLP:

https://90stapes.bandcamp.com/album/90two90six

The Absolute Best Records and Reissues of 2025

2025 was definitely a year.  I checked.  It had the right amount of days, but it didn't always feel like it had the right amount of records.  I definitely bought less new music this year than any previous year I've been alive since high school, I think.  I'm not sure if that's something that is just going to keep happening as I get older, or if I wasn't as aware of what was going on this year.  Or maybe this year simply had fewer records for me.  I'm not really sure, though putting together a really strong top ten was still pretty easy.  

Despite only having had it for a month, it is very obvious to me that Plosivs put out my favorite record of the year.  As I mentioned on Monday, it's one of those records that grows on you and every time I listen to it I like it more and more.  If I had more time with it, I think it would have been a runaway number one, but I debated quite a bit between Plosivs, Melvic Centre and the Swami John Reis album.

Melvic Centre was certainly the best new band I've heard this year, or at least a new to me band as this album is their second.  What a record.  The Swami John Reis album is the best of his solo records I think and was quite close to taking the number one spot for me.  All three of these records are excellent and if I had put any of them at the top, it still would have been correct.

As far as the rest, they're all great too.  Radioactivity is not going to put out a bad record and disappoint the legions of Marked Men fans out there.  If you are looking for some stellar melodic UK punk, Diaz Brothers and Roach Squad have you covered.  Bob Mould and Superchunk are as consistent as ever, each turning in a very good album this year.  And if there are bands that I think might have been overlooked in 2025, it's Lutheran Heat and Model Martel.  I haven't seen much chatter about those records (though admittedly, I don't even know where chatter happens anymore), but both are worth going out of your way to check out.

The Absolute Best New Records of 2025

01 - Plosivs - Yell At Cloud - Swami
02 - Melvic Centre - Trawler - Brassneck / Evil Tone
03 - Swami John Reis - Time To Let You Down - Swami
04 - Diaz Brothers - The World Is Yours - Dead Broke / Serial Bowl / Waterslide / Break The Silence
05 - Radioactivity - Time Won't Bring Me Down - Dirtnap / Wild Honey
06 - Lutheran Heat - Hi Again - Pinata

07 - Roach Squad - Roach Squad - Little Rocket / Sounds of Subterrania / Waterslide / Rad Girlfriend
08 - Bob Mould - Here We Go Crazy - Granary / BMG
09 - Model Martel - A Thousand Couple Times - Snappy Little Numbers
10 - Superchunk – Songs In The Key Of Yikes - Merge

On the reissue side of things, rock and roll releases were quite excellent this year. LONG time wants like Sultans, Beezewax and Fig Dish got first time vinyl releases of some of my favorite albums.  After me screaming about it forever, DGC Rarities Vol. 1 finally got reissued and I couldn't be happier.  It's awesome that the Leatherface Peel Sessions got an LP release, and I couldn't be happier to see some singles comp action from Bum and Gentleman Jesse.

On the hip hop side of things 90s Tapes continues to be the gold standard of record labels,  While there aren't as many of their records in my top 15 this year as there were last year, had I done a top 30, they would have had most of the bottom 15.  They also had the number one spot with their glorious release of the one and only album from The Future Sound.  It's one that had been on my wishlist forever and it's great to finally have a nicely done, full artwork copy of this record on vinyl.  Their take on the Rough House Survivers album is also incredible.

Casual's sophomore album was released as a double LP with full artwork for the first time.  All of the Cenobites songs were compiled onto a double LP and you know how I love me some early 90s Kool Keith and Godfather Don.  I was also really excited to get the chance to pick up the first Ugly Duckling on vinyl, thanks to the excellent reissue that Back2dasource put out in 2025.

The Absolute Best Reissues of 2025

01 - The Future Sound - The Whole Shabang Volume 1 - 90s Tapes
02 - Sultans - Shipwrecked - Swami
03 - V/A - DGC Rarities Vol. 1
04 - Beezewax - A Dozen Summits - Boss Tuneage / Sellout
05 - Leatherface - The Peel Sessions - Little Rocket
06 - The Cenobites - The Cenobites - Downtown Music / Fat Beats
07 - Fig Dish – That’s What Love Songs Often Do - Forge Again
08 - Casual - Meanwhile... - Trumindz
09 - Gentleman Jesse – I Wonder If You Would Even Notice - Beach Impediment
10 - Bum - Kidd Bitz (& Glazed Rookies) - Hey Suburbia / Radiation
11 - Rough House Survivers - Straight From The Soul - 90s Tapes
12 - Ugly Duckling - Down The Road - Back2dasource
13 - Clikatat Ikatowi – The Trials And Tribulations Of... Box Set - Numero Group
14 - Pudgee Tha Phat Bastard - Give 'Em The Finger - Rarebreed
15 - Smif-N-Wessun - Dah Shinin' - Fat Beats

And that's going to be a wrap on 2025 for me.  As I say every year, I'll be taking a couple of weeks off to recharge those batteries and then I'll be back at it.  In particular, I have a bunch of reissues I didn't get a chance to write about before the end of the year (several are on the list above), so I'll be hitting those pretty hard when I start back up again.  Merry New Year!

Plosivs - Yell At Cloud LP - Black Vinyl (/500) & Clear w/ Splatter Vinyl (/2000)

Swami (2025)

Back in 2022, Plosivs released their debut album and it is still the best record I've heard since then.  To say that I have been eagerly anticipating this release is perhaps the understatement of the year, especially because it's been looming on the horizon since 2022.  The bulk of these recordings were started very soon after the first album was recorded, but for a litany of tawdry reasons that you can read about on far more reputable websites than this one, it is just now being released.

And unsurprisingly, it is great.  Now, I didn't find it as immediate as the first Plosivs record.  That one was a whirlwind of in-your-face hooks and I was completely floored the very first time I listened to it. Yell At Cloud has definitely been more of a grower for me.  I'm not one to throw around music writer terms all willy nilly, but if there's one that comes to mind when I listen to this record, it's tension.  There's a lot of pent up tension in this record and it builds in each of the songs, sometimes getting a satisfying, catchy release in the chorus, but other times not so much.

It's a record that rewards multiple listens and each time it plays, I find myself picking up on something new.  A hidden melody here, and overlooked riff there.  It's darker than the first, without sacrificing any of the inherent optimism in Rob Crow's vocals.  In general the songs are longer this time out (the shortest clocking in at just under three and a half minutes) instead of the many under three minute pop smashes of the last one.

I'm definitely doing that annoying thing where I'm focusing too much on comparing this album to the last one, and while it's different, it is every bit as wonderful.  Few people wield a guitar as iconically as John Reis does.  While his myriad of bands all have different sounds, there's always that thread that ties each of them together.  You're unlikely to mistake his guitar playing for someone else's as it has an instantly identifiable style, not matter what sort of song he's playing on.  When you add Rob Crow to the mix, it's a guitar combination that's unique, but familiar.  And those vocals. Sheesh, you'd be hard pressed to find someone better suited to turn songs like this into something so inherently hummable in the back recesses of your head.

Plain and simple, I love this record.  I think it's every bit as good as the last, while being different enough from it to not just be the same thing again (which for the record, I also would have been totally fine with).  As usual with Swami affiliated releases, I picked up both versions.  The main retail version is on splatter vinyl and there were 2000 of those pressed.  As usual for Swami releases, the black vinyl is the scarcer of the two versions and there were 500 of those, available from the Swami web store.

Plosivs - Yell At Cloud:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kcnCrNO6-HYWs5OOva6iJ863pwmRbMwdU

The Cenobites - The Cenobites 2xLP - Green & Yellow Vinyl (/300)

 

Downtown Music / Fat Beats (2025, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo! MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for thirty plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

There are few things in this world that I like more than prime, golden era Ultramagnetic MCs.  Their first three albums are one of my favorite runs in all of hip hop.  I always wanted more, but I tended to be disappointed with anything that came out after The Four Horseman.  While Kool Keith has some other interesting projects, the production never rises to level of those first three albums, so I usually end up being disappointed.

But what I didn't know was that Kool Keith had hooked up with Godfather Don and recorded a bunch of songs under the name The Cenobites.  They release an EP on Fondle 'Em in 1996 and that was pretty much it aside from some other tracks trickled out on 12"s over the following decades.  I became aware of this project a few years ago and while I found the tracks online and downloaded them, the vinyl was a bit pricey to me.  Plus I really wanted a bit more than the seven songs on the EP.

Luckily for me, my patience paid off as a double LP Cenobites collection of what I assume is every song that they could scrape together.  Clocking in at 21 songs, there are so many gems on this album.  In some ways it feels like an extension of what was happening on The Four Horsemen.  Dark jazz loops drive the production with Keith and Don trading the sort of off kilter lyrics that are everything you really want out of these two.  

As much as I love 95% of this album, I do have to call out "Kick A Dope Verse" (both versions, as there's also a remix on here).  Don't get me wrong, it's a great song and Keith and Don tear it up.  But Bobbito from The Stretch Armstrong and Bobboito radio show (and who also ran the label the EP originally came out on) shows up and delivers one of of the worst verses I have ever heard on a good track.  Sandwiched in-between Keith and Don both rocking at a high level, Bobbito sounds like a failing open mic MC that just wandered into the studio.  I have absolutely nothing but respect for everything that Stretch and Bobbito did for hip hop, but woof, this verse is epically terrible.  And you have to hear it twice because of the remix.

Anyway, I just had to get that one off my chest.  But don't let that dissuade you from grabbing this otherwise incredible album.  I could not be more thrilled that all of these songs have finally been compiled and given a quality release with full artwork and all that.  Completely essential.

Various Artists - Rock Stars Kill LP + 7"

Kill Rock Stars (1994)

Recently, my buddy Alan and I were talking about the albums that were most influential to us. In fact we did a whole YouTube live stream about it if it's something you'd be interested in (YouTube: Perfectly Excellent).  The topic wasn't necessarily our favorite records of all time, but those really important ones that were life changing and sent us down different paths.  One of the five records I selected was this compilation album that I heard for the first time in 1994 early on during my senior year of high school.  It then dawned on me that I still only had the CD that I bought back then and never picked up a copy on vinyl.  Due to its importance, I felt that I really needed to correct this.

In 1994 I started to go through something of a musical crisis.  The hip hop landscape was drastically and rapidly changing into something that I didn't really like the sound of anymore.  I knew absolutely nothing about anything that was going on outside of the hop hop world until a friend of mine, Scott, played me the Beck album Mellow Gold because there were a few songs on there that he thought sounded enough like the Beastie Boys for me to be interested in them.  Not only was he right about those songs, I ended up loving that album.  Especially the weirder stuff and that sent me digging around to find more things like that.  

That's where my other friend Dave came into the picture.  He wasn't even a particularly close friend at the time.  Just a guy I had a few classes with, but he was more knowledgable about punk and indie rock than I was.  He let me borrow his CD copy of this album.  When I played it for the first time, it was kind of that second awakening where I just couldn't comprehend what I was hearing.  This stuff didn't sound like anything I had ever hear before.  I had no idea that music like this was being made and even less of an idea of where to get more of it.  That led to my friend Pat taking me to Flipside records for the first time and I was finally able to really start exploring rabbit holes.

I'm pretty sure it was the diversity of sounds that really intrigued me when I first started listening to this album.  There's loud songs, quiet songs, fast songs, slow songs, weird songs, serious songs and everything in between.  There were a handful that jumped out at me immediately.  I can't tell you how much I loved (and still love) the Peechees song "Patty Coahuila."  At least the actual song after the intro thing (which is way too long).  I bought three different Smog albums trying to find a song anywhere near as good as "37 Pushups."  I was not successful.  

This compilation is where I discovered The Spinanes (who I ended up being a huge fan of, especially their first album Manos), Rancid (this is pretty much the only Rancid song I ended up liking, though enjoying this song let to Pat recommending I try out Operation Ivy) and Team Dresch (whose record I bought on an early trip to Flipside, but I didn't end up enjoying the record as much as the song on here).

This album also marked the beginning of my Compilation Era.  I bought so, so many comps during this time period as it was pretty much the most economical way to discover a whole pile of new bands all at once.  I did discover a ton of bands this way.  But all of that sort of stems from listening to this album at a very important, transitional time in my life.  I'm grateful that I heard it when I did (especially as a good amount of it doesn't really hold up to me 30+ years later) and I'm really appreciative that Dave let me borrow this.  I haven't spoken to him in over 25 years, but him lending me this album had a far more profound impact on me that I'm sure he realizes.

Various Artists - Rock Stars Kill:

https://killrockstars.bandcamp.com/album/rock-stars-kill