Needle Time

Kürsk ‎- 11° 33' 00' N 92° 14' 00' E [HMPTY 039 BEL 2019 24-Bit FLAC] Kursk (K-141) was an Oscar II-class nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine of the Russian Navy. On 12 August 2000, K-141 Kursk was lost when it sank in the Barents Sea, killing all 118 personnel on board. Kürsk are a three piece heavy psyche band from Tournai in Wallonia who also dabble in a bit of krautrock and other really heavy shit. This is their debut long player and if you like to seek out the kind of music that an older generation either dare not listen or had their minds blown to, then it may just be the best thing you've heard in a while. Just position yourself between two speakers ...and play loud. Do not confuse with any other band of a similar name, this is the first and only release by Kürsk. You know what to do now. A1 Walk Among A2 Every Cliff A3 Rëhtaf B1 Shrill Wind B2 Icarus / Nagüal / Crimson Joy

Killing Joke - What's This For...! [EGMD 5.50 UK 1981 24-Bit FLAC] The second Killing Joke long player in high resolution 24-bit FLAC ripped from an original vinyl pressing. Killing Joke were much less experimental with the second album, relying on their heavy rhythm section of Youth's bass and Paul Ferguson's tribal drumming, topped off with Geordie's stabbing guitars. The debut album was always going to be a tough act to follow and they struggled, however I am not saying What's This For...! is a poor album ...it is just not as good as the first. A1  The Fall Of Because A2  Tension A3  Unspeakable A4  Butcher B1  Follow The Leaders B2  Madness B3  Who Told You How? B4  Exit

Bill Drummond - The Man [CRELP 014 UK 1986 24-Bit FLAC] I have only ever ripped the compact disc before, so after an extensive deep clean, I am happy to share my rip of this original Creation Records pressing on vinyl. There can be no doubt as to Mr. Drummond's contribution to British music. This South African born Scotsman and honorary Scouser has been a band manager, a label owner, a producer, a singer-songwriter, a rapper (and hip-hop guru), an acid house disco king, and more recently a book writer. Forget ye all not that he also famously burnt a million quid in the Scottish Highlands, all for the sake of irony and 'publicity'. The Man was released in the early days of Creation in 1986 and was championed by John Peel regularly on his late night radio show, most famously for the amusing Julian Cope Is Dead . If you haven't heard the album before, expect a witty mix of jingly Scottish guitar pop, tongue in cheek murder ballads, obtuse acoustic folk, go...

Vazz - Submerged Vessels And Other Stories [STRLP 008 BEL 2019 24-Bit FLAC] Remaining with all things Scottish for now, here is one of the nation's best kept musical secrets. Not the usual cheery & jangly guitar pop we know so well ....Vazz were talented multi-instrumentalist Hugh Small and Glasgow lass, Anna Howson on voice. The duo released three hard-to-find singles and one album on Robert King's Cathexis Recordings blending their own mix of ethereal textures, experimental leanings and post-punk attitude.   This compilation of their work is one of two recently released on Belgian label Stroom and includes some of those early works, filled out by more recent pieces from around 2015. This vinyl edition also included a compact disc of Hugh Small's classical compositions for a solo piano. A1 Only Child A2 Sleep Pattern A3 Pearls (Dub) A4 Solitary Sun A5 Neverlasting A6 Mezquita B1 You Haunt Me B2 Violent Silence B3 Cascais B4 Sequence O...

Big Country - The Crossing [MERS 27 UK 1983 24-Bit FLAC] The combination of a flimsy Phonogram pressing and a studio production by Steve "Muddy" Lillywhite is not a good thing. It did not stop Big Country having one of the biggest selling albums in 1983.  I am a little confused as to the veracity of my copy. The sleeve is the green textured version with the original MERH 27 catelogue number, however the label carries MERS 27 and has the revised track running order with Fields Of Fire and 1000 Stars swapping sides. The matrix number does not match anything listed on Discogs, however I would assume that the label pressed the album on repeated runs using different plants. For now, I am assuming it is just a record store masterbag cock-up.  The Crossing features all of Big Country's biggest hits, all driven by the stunning twin guitars of Bruce Watson and the late Stuart Adamson. Chance has always been a huge favourite of mine, Fields Of Fire and In A Big ...

The Jesus And Mary Chain - Darklands [BYN 11 UK 1987 24-Bit FLAC] White Light White Heat met Pets Sounds on Darklands and its associated singles, as those Mary Chain brothers get all melodic. This more of a sonic flower groove than their former drummer could ever produce (I think that's my first pop at Bobby on this blog?). Looking back I still prefer this album to Psychocandy, however I do appreciate how important the debut was in comparison. Play loud and sing along folks to some of the most tuneful, catchy noise from one of the best Scottish bands during the mid-eighties. You'll be relieved to know that I own no records by The Proclaimers. A1  Darklands A2  Deep One Perfect Morning A3  Happy When It Rains A4  Down On Me A5  Nine Million Rainy Days B1  April Skies B2  Fall B3  Cherry Came Too B4  On The Wall B5  About You

The Jesus And Mary Chain ‎– Psychocandy [BYN 7 UK 1985 24-Bit FLAC] As some may recall I have been regularly critical of WEA Records (aka Warners) and their way of dealing with music in the mid eighties. It's time to briefly to cut them some slack and offer praise for the quality of their vinyl album pressings during the era. My first pressing of  Psychocandy  is still in superb condition and this rip was a joy to produce. With all the hype flying around about The Jesus & Mary Chain in 1984/85, Warners were set-up to fail as many a major had struggled to build on the credibility of the indie acts they snapped up. Under the careful guidance of Geoff Travis, Mike Alway and Alan McGee, the Blanco y Negro subsidiary nurtured and protected its acts until the American conglomerate pulled the plug. A1  Just Like Honey A2  The Living End A3  Taste The Floor A4  The Hardest Walk A5  Cut Dead A6  In A Hole A7  Taste Of Cind...

Scars - Author! Author! [PREX 5 UK 1981 24-Bit FLAC] Finally, a new 24-bit rip of the only album by Scars. I first ripped this about ten years ago for ESWA but it was the subject of my first ever DMCA takedown notice. About the same time there was a CD reissue, however it was awful as they had compressed it so badly it was almost unlistenable. Shame on those responsible for ruining what is a great album. I am very pleased to be able to reproduce this album now as it should be heard from an original 1981 vinyl copy. A1 Leave Me In Autumn A2 Fear Of The Dark A3 Aquarama A4 David A5 Obsessions B1 Everywhere I Go B2 The Lady In The Car With Glasses On And A Gun! B3 Je T'aime C'est La Mort B4 Your Attention Please B5 All About You

Skids - Into The Valley [7" VS 241 UK 1979 24-Bit FLAC] Long before he developed a taste for pretentious poetry and became a TV presenter, Richard Jobson fronted Skids, one of the best new wave bands ever to come out of Fife (that's the other side of the Forth Road Bridge from Edinburgh in case your geography isn't up to scratch). The late Stuart Adamson's guitar is one of the most recognisable sounds from Skids, as Adamson went on to lead the very successful Big Country. Here are a couple of singles from my collection, topped off with penguinflight's Masquerade double pack. A1 Into The Valley B1 T.V. Stars (Live At The Marquee) Skids - Masquerade [2x7" VS 262 UK 1979 24-Bit FLAC] A1 Masquerade B1 Out Of Town C1 Another Emotion D1 Aftermath Dub Skids - Charade [7" VS 288 UK 1979 24-Bit FLAC] A1 Charade B1 Grey Parade

Orange Juice - Rip It Up [2x7" POSPD 547 UK 1983 24-Bit FLAC] Continuing this brief journey around Scotland......You just can't beat the phenomena of the seven inch double pack, especially when it comes in a poster bag! A1  Rip It Up B1  Snake Charmer C1  Love Sick (Live) D1  A Sad Lament

Win - Unamerican Broadcasting [SWX 5 UK 1985 24-Bit FLAC] Another new rip, it sounds magnificent when compared to my previous attempts on ESWA. The debut single from Win was only released as a 12 inch on Alan Horne's post-Postcard label, Swamplands. The label was funded by London Records, however Horne had full control up until the major label pulled the plug. The track was re-recorded for the debut London album ... Uh! Tears Baby . The album is a fine piece of 80's pop but the re-recording lacked the power and guile of this version.Also of note was the unusual peel-off sticker sleeve featuring the stars and stripes. Also check out the great use of a speak'n'spell which was missing on the commercial album release. A1 Unamerican Broadcasting B1 Unamerican Broadcasting

Fire Engines - Big Gold Dream [POP 013 UK 1981 24-Bit FLAC] I could go on for ages about all the bands who followed The Fire Engines and were clearly influenced by their jerky funk-punk sound, but I won't. Fire Engines rejected the approaches of key Scottish label, Postcard Records and went with Pop Aural instead, a move which likely reduced their exposure, but even with minimal national exposure when compared to the Postcard acts, their influence remains huge. Lead fireman Davey Henderson was to later find and polish his pop chops with the superb Win (and still managed to evade fame and fortune). A1 Big Gold Dream B1 New Thing In Cartons B2 Sympathetic Anaesthetic

Fire Engines - Candyskin [POP 010 UK 1981 24-Bit FLAC] A new rip of an old favourite. With just three singles and one album, Fire Engines were not in it for the long run. In actual fact, their career as a band only lasted 18 months although their mark on Scottish (& British) guitar pop music remains indelible to this day. Back in 1981/2, no 7" vinyl collection was deemed credible without this little gem in it's unique fold-out poster sleeve. A thousand jingly jangly pop bands would have never formed if it was not for Candyskin . Like many others, I actually preferred the flipside, Meat Whiplash . A1 Candyskin B1 Meat Whiplash

Paul Haig - The Only Truth (Promo Version) [12 IS 198 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] I've posted this before on the old ESWA blog with gratitude to blog follower penguinflight , whose boxes of delights contained this. I've taken a little time to clean up the files, remove a few clicks and ensure a better balancing of the channels. Whilst it may not be Haig's best work, this is the best version of The Only Truth , a track which I've always felt sounds like three musicians thrown into a studio and given a little time to come up with something. For those not in the loop, Bernard Sumner from New Order and Donald Johnson from A Certain Ration were the collaborators. A1 The Only Truth B1 The Only Truth

Josef K - Young And Stupid / Endless Soul [EDITION 87-6 UK 1987 24-Bit FLAC] Courtesy of short lived Edinburgh label, Supreme International Editions comes this fabulous compilation of Josef K singles, sessions and rarities. You get the Postcard Records and Crepescule singles, the original 1979 recording of Chance Meeting for the debut Absolute Records single, two tracks from the BBC Peel Session and a couple of compilation tracks and the rare(ish) Castle Sound recordings from Autumn 1980 for the then unreleased Sorry For Laughing album .  The pressing quality is really rather good and a good clean rip was quite easy. Every jangly guitar indie band since owes a debt of gratitude to Edinburgh's finest. Enjoy! A1 Heart Of A Song A2 Endless Soul A3 Citizens A4 Variation Of A Scene A5 It's Kinda Funny A6 Sorry For Laughing B1 Chance Meeting B2 Heaven Sent B3 Drone B4 Sense Of Guilt B5 Revelation B6 Romance

The Associates - Sulk [BEG K 58461 DEU 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Here is my 24-bit rip from the German pressing of Alan Rankine and Billy Mackenzie's Sulk album. This sold worldwide in huge volumes thanks to the Club Country and Party Fears Two singles which broke the band's unique avant-cabaret sound to the mass market. I have always been intrigued by Mike Hedges' unusual production style on Sulk , for me he is attempting to add a John Barry feel to the whole affair ...I guess that just adds to the drama, therefore deducing that Billy Mackenzie was actually the thinking man's Shirley Bassey! A1 Arrogance Gave Him Up A2 No A3 Bap De La Bap A4 Gloomy Sunday A5 Nude Spoons B1 Skipping B2 It's Better This Way B3 Party Fears Two B4 Club Country B5 Nothing In Something Particular

The Bible - The Bible [CHEN D 12 UK 1989 24-Bit FLAC] The story of The Bible came to an abrupt end in 1990, following what can be only deemed as corporate negligence. Their label, Chrysalis, were determined to get a return on their investment after the disappointing sales of their first album for the label, Eureka . The album itself was excellent and a great reflection on the songwriting skills of Boo Hewerdine and the boys. A key factor was the failure of any of the chosen singles to chart, so the desperate label chose to reissue the band's most popular tune Graceland as a single for a third time and use it to drive sales of a "new" album The Bible . The Bible features a few tracks off Eureka , the new recording of Graceland , the singles Crystal Palace and Honey Be Good , mixed in with a few non-album tracks. Essentially therefore a compilation, the album was passed off to the trade (and the public) as a new album. My copy comes with an extra 12" EP o...

Pop Will Eat Itself - The Covers EP [12 CHAP 13 UK 1987 24-Bit FLAC] Although marketed as Love Missile F1-11 , I have always considered this 12" single as the The Covers EP. The Poppies cover a diverse range of bands (From Hawkwind to The Mighty Lemon Drops) in a grebo-style, and any record featuring a skiffle cover of Shriekback's Everything That Rises (Must Converge) cannot be a bad thing! A1  Love Missile F1-11 B1  Orgone Accumulator B2  Everything That Rises B3  Like An Angel

Various - Factory Benelux Greatest Hits [FBN 27 BEL 1982 24-Bit FLAC] A new rip for 2020 from an old blog favourite. This was actually an experiment in extracting the best audio from a nastily pressed record. I've been trying to master iZotope RX Audio and it's function for spectral noise reduction. Noise reduction is a nasty phrase in any audio mastering, especially from vinyl...it is very evident when applied, however my goal here was to remove audible vinyl rumble from what is a quietly mastered platter pressed onto very cheap vinyl. The Quando Quango track still sounds as if it is recorded through a wall, I cannot fix that, however I am quite pleased at how everything else sounds. Judge for yourselves.... A1   A Certain Ratio - Guess Who? (Jean Marie Salun Remix) A2   52nd Street - Cool As Ice (John Jellybean Benitez Re-Edit) A3   Quando Quango - Love Tempo (Re-Structured by Mark Kamins) B1   Cabaret Voltaire - Yashar (Re-Make R...

Simon Says - Epoca Blu [DIAL 027 FRA 2020 24-Bit FLAC] I never post brand new stuff, however I think this deserves to heard by blog followers, especially as it will never see (or is that hear) the light of day in most markets. Simon Says is actually French bedroom composer and remixer, Simon Le Roy and Epoca Blu is his debut solo long player. Whilst I dislike the term Balearic when applied to music, this multi-functional genre is purely a hook on which to hang relaxing electronica ...and then just about anything else vaguely danceable or chilled. Anyway it is a late eighties genre and Simon Says is very much up to this date, with the added bonus of occasional reflective twinges from an era long ago. Djinn & Tonic is just fantastic however the excellent  Anamorphose is just a little too short, but these are just observations on what is a very well made record. File under modern discerning electronic beat music. A1 Fondation A2 Une Nuit A3 Holbox A4 Tax...

Cosmic Hoffman - Space-Disco [ERC 003 UK 2003 24-Bit FLAC] Originally released as an obscure b-side to a schlager seven inch single, Weltraumboogie on EMI in Germany during 1982. Klaus Hoffmann-Hoock was a German session musician who released just one solo single in Germany. Those clever chaps at Emotional Rescue Records have unearthed Space-Disco for the modern day dance floor and tagged an unreleased 1978 recording onto the flipside. This could have been huge at the time, why on earth not? A1 Space-Disco B1 Space-Disco (1978 Original)

Ultramarine - Saratoga [45 REV 7 UK 1992 FLAC] During 2019, I got more and more into the European nu-disco and disco edit scene, I may eventually get around to sharing with you more of the delights from the genre, however in the meantime here is a cracker of a seven inch single from Ultramarine who hail from Essex and were once known as A Primary Industry. Two white British boys from Leigh-On-Sea and Maldon unleash one of the funkiest ever singles from the nineties on the limited edition Rough Trade Single Club imprint. A1 Saratoga B1 Nova Scotia

The Misz - The Lonely Crowd [MW 069 USA 2019 24-Bit FLAC] To the uninitiated (ie me!) The Misz sit vaguely in a musical world somewhere between The Minny Pops and Young Marble Giants with their simple programmed rhythms, monochrome synths and plucky guitars. Well done to Minimal Wave for convincing Dries Decocker and Jan Van Den Broeke for digging out the original reel-to-reels for this release -this is a high resolution rip from the white vinyl pressing. I'm now trying to track down their  Eddy Merckz which was re-released a few years back in limited quantities. The Misz formed in Gent (or is that Ghent or perhaps Gand), Belgium in 1983 by Jan Van den Broeke and Dries Dekocker at a time when they had both just relocated from the Belgian countryside. They lived on the same street and collaborated freely with the limited equipment they had, which always centered around the Fostex 250 4-track tape recorder. They used an unknown monophonic synthesizer, casio synths, rolan...

Win - ...Uh! Tears Baby (A Trash Icon) [LONLP 31 UK 1987 24-Bit FLAC] I was never happy with my 2012 rip of ... .Uh! Tears Baby (A Trash Icon) , so to round off my current short run of three classic eighties pop album re-rips, here is a new 2020 rip of this great album. You may recall what I wrote back in 2012 over on ESWA... I have never understood how both London Records then Virgin failed to get mainstream recognition and success out of Win. Davey Henderson is a genius at writing catchy pop tunes and despite the efforts of two major labels (and a well known Scottish lager TV advert), consistently failed to get a much deserved hit.  Their debut album is a truly superb collection of eleven sing-a-long candyfloss pop tunes. Win take indie-synthpop music to it's catchiest limits and blend in vocal harmonies, to produce one of the most important albums of the decade. But there were flaws.... London flogged it to death with multiple singles in multiple formats all o...

Prefab Sprout - Swoon [KWLP 1 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] Another new 24-bit rip of an old favourite for 2020 from an original CBS 1984 flimsy pressing which I believe sounds really rather good. It is certainly a major upgrade on my rip of the very same album on ESWA from January 2014. I bought Swoon on the back of a couple early indie singles and have loved it ever since. Prefab Sprout's debut LP has been much overlooked since the fame which followed the hit album's Steve McQueen and From Langley Park To Memphis , but I still believe it's their finest work.  Swoon is a charming collection of clever semi-acoustic pop songs underpinned by two McAloon classics Cruel and Couldn't Bear To Be Special , the opening single Don't Sing is pretty fine but doesn't come close to the Sprouts' early incarnation of twee pop.  Great record ....enjoy! A1 Don't Sing A2 Cue Fanfare A3 Green Isaac I A4 Here On The Eerie A5 Cruel B1 Couldn'...

James - Stutter [JIMLP 1 UK 1986 24-Bit FLAC] A new 2020 rip of an old favourite. Save for a tiny bit of light crackle (hardly noticeable), this new rip sounds rich and detailed thanks to an excellent pressing. I've seen the original James many times live, mostly supporting The Smiths and this rip brings all those heady days back to me. Here's what I wrote a few years back about this record. Perhaps if James had stuck with Factory Records, the world would have been saved from the Happy Mondays? There are many theories as to why The Smiths never signed to the Manchester label. It is known that Morrissey and Tony Wilson had a dislike for each other. It is believed that Rob Gretton wanted to sign them but, between themselves, Stephen Patrick and Anthony H. were ensuring that would never happen. So what has this to do with James? Pure suggestion, no evidence (even 30+ years on), consider also that the two main players are no longer with us, but may I specula...

The Lightning Seeds - Cloudcuckooland [GHETT 3 UK 1989 24-Bit FLAC] If there was ever a flawless pop record from the late eighties then perhaps it was Cloudcuckooland . This was Ian Broudie as a solo artist (he played all instruments except the sax) following on from his career as a producer and member of Care and Big In Japan. Vinyl pressings from this era were not great and this rip was coaxed from a much loved original vinyl - I also have the CD but most of you will have that too, whereas the vinyl was only pressed in a limited run - so here it is in 24bits of gorgeous pop loveliness. I am sure we all the recall the borrowed Love Vigilantes 'hook' on Pure with great fondness. Enjoy! A1 All I Want A2 Bound In A Nutshell A3 Pure A4 Sweet Dreams A5 The Nearly Man B1 Joy B2 Love Explosion B3 Don't Let Go B4 Control The Flame B5 The Price

The Happy Family - The Man On Your Street [CAD 214 UK 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Subtly subtitled  Songs From The Career Of Dictator Hall Aah ...the jangle pop sound of a post-Josef K Edinburgh, here is the only album from witty indie-popsters The Happy Family. It was clear years before Nick Currie became Momus he had his heart set on abstract pop stardom, though maybe his self-indulgent prose wasn't quite suited to the stripped back rhythms of some of the city's finest post-punk talent.  I really love this record because it leads on from where Josef K dropped us off, but only when I first disenfranchise it from the cult of personality that was his sexually frustrated guise of Momus. Consequently, I have always thought March In Turin was completely out of kilter with the rest of the album ...maybe that's why it is my favourite track. A1 The Salesman A2 Letter From Hall A3 The Luckiest Citizen A4 Revenge! A5 The Courier B1 The Man On Your Street B2 A N...

Modern English - Ricochet Days [CAD 402 UK 1984 24-Bit FLAC] We lost Vaughan Oliver last week and as a small tribute to the most creative sleeve designer of our generation, here is a new rip from the album contained within what I think is his greatest work. Modern English were rubbish when they left 4AD in search of riches across the Atlantic. Ricochet Days was a glimpse of their new gleaming commercial sound, thankfully reigned in by Hugh Jones' tight production and wrapped in one of the best album sleeves ever. I could go on forever about the superb 23 Envelope cover - which can only really be appreciated on the vinyl album itself. I mislaid my own set of 23 Envelope postcards years ago. Focusing on the music, this is really a very good pop rock album which was largely panned by critics back in 1984 and suffered as a result in the credibility stakes. Chapter 12 was not a great choice of single in the UK, though Hands Across The Sea did better on the Continent a...

Clock DVA - Passions Still Aflame [POSPX 437 UK 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Recorded in a post- Thirst world with a new band in London in late 1981, Sons Of Sons is dedicated to original Clock DVA guitarist Steven James Turner who passed away in September 1981. Lovingly coaxed from a 30+ year old 12" vinyl single, all four tracks sound amazingly crisp yet dark, brooding and ever so slightly funky. A1 Sons Of Sons A2 Theme From (I.M.D.) B1 Don't (It's Taboo) B2 Noises In Limbo Clock DVA - High Holy Disco Mass [POSPX 499 UK 1982 24-Bit FLAC] Newton unleashed this slap bass and horn driven (with Beggar & Co.) 12" single as just DVA. The term disco in the title is quite misleading because I just can't imagine this going down well in any nightclub - it is virtually impossible to dance to. Don't let that put you off because it is a great track, featured on the twelve inch single in two full length versions combined with the abstract film noir ...