Lync / Pedro The Lion - Split 7" - Blue Vinyl (/300)

Suicide Squeeze (2024)

This is an odd little release.  It's a split 7" with Lync and Pedro The Lion on each side playing the Lync song "b."  This version is on blue vinyl and was limited to 300 copies.  There's also a purple vinyl version, but I haven't seen that for sale online anywhere, though admittedly, I haven't really looked all that hard as I'm not sure I need another copy of this.  Though the Lync collector in my head often disagrees.

The original Lync version of this is from 1994's These Are Not Fall Colors album.  It's probably my favorite by Lync, which is saying something considering how much I love pretty much all of their songs.  It's the one that grabbed me by the ears in 1994 and never let go, fully establishing that Lync wasn't 'a band with those guys on the Beck album.'  Which was, of course, how I stumbled across them in '94.  I can't ever say enough good things about this song, this album and this band.  Sam Jayne forever.

On the flip is a newly recorded version of this song by Pedro The Lion.  I've never really been a fan, their records have always been a little too slow and sleepy for me.  Their take on "b" doesn't really do anything to change my opinion.  It's a solo acoustic take that is so slow and has such low, deep vocals that I thought I was playing it on the wrong speed.  To call it a melancholy take would be doing a disservice to melancholy things as it's just borderline depressing.  If this means that more folks get to hear the Lync version of the song, then this 7" is a worthwhile endeavor.  But for me, I don't really need a slower, sadder version of one of the great indie rock songs of all time.

Lync / Pedro The Lion - Split 7":
https://lync1994.bandcamp.com/album/b-2

Lync - These Are Not Fall Colors 2xLP - 3 Versions

 

Suicide Squeeze (2023, Reissue)

After way too many years, Lync's flawless 1994 album, These Are Not Fall Colors has finally been reissued.  This is an album that's been out of print for far too long and I'm really happy that others have a chance to pick it up.  I've had the original pressing for a long time, but that didn't stop me from going variant hunting and picking up all of the versions available as part of the first pressing.  Even though I try really hard not to buy multiple copies of the same record these days, this is an album that's just so important to me.  I couldn't resist.

I first heard of Lync because Sam Jayne and James Bertram were both featured on the Beck album, One Foot in the Grave.  That was a monumentally influential album for me, and I used it as a jumping off point to find a lot of new music back in 1994.  Lync was one of those first bands that I got into.  From the moment I heard album opener "b," I was obsessed with this band.  The way the album channels a youthful, energetic take on Pacific Northwestern indie rock was so impactful.  It's an album that's been in constant rotation for me for nearly 30 years now and I love every second of it just as passionately now as I did back then.

Regarding the reissue, there are three main versions of the first pressing.  Blue & Yellow split color vinyl (Lync band variant), Green, Blue & Purple twist vinyl (Suicide Squeeze label variant) and Red in Orange vinyl (retail variant).  The album is split into a double LP at 45rpm, with the fourth side being a blank.  There's one bonus track, "Can't Tie Yet," though that was already available on the Remembering the Fireballs singles compilation.

While this version of the LP sounds great, the best the album has ever sounded, I'm still not really sure it needed such an expansive reissue.  I know that 45rpm is the audiophiles choice for speed and sound fidelity, but this album is something of a low-fi masterpiece.  I'm not really sure if it benefits that much from being at 45 instead of 33.  Especially since one of the album sides ends up being blank.  

My personal opinion is that this could have been a single LP at 33rpm and there would be very little difference.  It would have been a bit cheaper, taken up less vinyl and would cut out a record swap while listening.  I'm sure they had a reason for doing this way, and I won't argue with how great it sounds, I just can't help but think it could have been released a bit differently and been just as impactful.  Then again, I'm just a jerk with a website, so what do I know?

Lync - These Are Not Fall Colors:
https://lync1994.bandcamp.com/album/these-are-not-fall-colors-2

Audacity - Hyper Vessels LP - Green Vinyl (/500)

Suicide Squeeze (2016)

Audacity's last album from 2013, Butter Knife, was one of those perfect storm records for me.  I had dug the band's prior album, but was totally blown away by Butter Knife and it was easily one of my favorite records of that year.  Fast forward through an excruciating three year wait and Audacity finally delivers the follow up, Hyper Vessels.

In some ways, this record is a bit of a disappointment for me.  I was hoping for more breezy pop perfection like the band was showing on Butter Knife.  Instead, this is much more similar to Audacity's 2012 album, Mellow Cruisers.  It's heavier on the garage sneer than it is on the big hooks.  That's certainly not to say there aren't catchy songs on this album.  Opening track "Counting The Days" will immediately dispel that notion, but in general things are a little faster and the vocals are a little snottier.

If anything, this kind of sounds like it would have been the perfect follow up to Mellow Cruisers.  If Hyper Vessels had been released right after Mellow Cruisers and then Butter Knife came after, it would seem like a logical progression.  Instead, Audacity feels like they're taking a slight step backwards.  Again, not that this isn't a good record, in fact it's a really good record, I'm just a little surprised with the direction Audacity took.

Audacity - Hyper Vessels:

https://audacityca.bandcamp.com/album/hyper-vessels

Audacity - Counting The Days 7"

Suicide Squeeze (2014)

This was an extra 7" that I received when I pre-ordered the new Audactiy full length.  I've only had the full length play once in the background, so I can't really say much about that just yet, but I'll take a crack at this 7".  It's a little odd, the A-side is also the lead track of the new Audacity full length, but it looks like this 7" was released all the way back in 2014.  That raises two questions: 1. Why did it take so long for the full length to come out? And 2. How did I not know this 7" had been released?

I guess at the end of the day it doesn't matter.  "Counting The Days" is a great song, even if it is something of a departure from the band's last album Butter Knife.  This song is definitely more of a raucous endeavor with strained vocals and bags of fuzz heaped on the guitars.  It also has all of the hooks and catchiness you'd want out of an Audacity song.  Even the crazy guitar solo in the middle fits in nicely, and as you may know, I'm not usually big on solos.

The B-side "Mind Your Own Business" doesn't grab me quite the same way.  It's a cover song that was originally done by Delta 5.  I'll admit to not being particularly familiar with the Delta 5 version, but I fired it up on YouTube before writing this review.  Can't say I really I'm a big fan.  The Audacity version is definitely a fuller song with quite a bit more muscle behind it.  At the end of the day I just don't dig this song, but again, it's a cover song and a B-side, so it's really just a bonus more than anything else.  Especially since it was free.

Audacity - Counting The Days 7":

https://audacityca.bandcamp.com/album/counting-the-days