Mar 14, 2007

Stage 31, Ireland

Stage 31, Ireland land of myths and music.

Todays batch is mainly about live music, Ireland is drenched in music, it is what keeps them together, the Virgin Prunes, risen from the same Dublin alley's that brought us U2, were famous for falling apart but the music they made together held them up. Sinead O'Connor got herself a reputation but i can only support her missions against child abuse and of course to save God from religion. An live album from her, accompanied by a cd with a tasty stew of leftovers. My Bloody Valentine's ended when after struggling for 8 years they were lauded the best, well i thought they were pretty good in 1988 when they released "Isnt Anything ". Solas Reunion is another live offering of excellent Irish folk musicians, The Frames were managed by industry and twisted themselves free to find that breathing music became much more fun, and they rolled out one successfull album after the other , as always accompanied by great live concerts, here captured on Setlist. Finally The Waterboys, not really Irish in the sense that Mike Scott is indeed a Scott, initially i planned it as crossover the irish sea album from Scotland, but i went to Wales, glad i did btw. Anyway this album is from the time that the Scott moved , lived and worked in Ireland and ended up touring as the Raggle Taggle band better known as the Waterboys.

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Irish Shamrocks

The Virgin Prunes - If I Die, I Die (82)
Sinead O'Connor - She Who Dwells In The Secret Place Of The Most High (03)
My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything (88)
Solas - Reunion (06)
The Frames - Setlist (03)
Waterboys - The Live Adventures of the Waterboys (98)

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The Virgin Prunes - If I Die, I Die (82 * 366mb)

Formed in mid-1977 in Dublin, the Virgin Prunes consisted of childhood friends of U2's Bono and The Edge. Lypton Village was a 'youthful gang' created by Bono, Guggi (Derek Rowan) and Gavin Friday (Fionan Hanvey) in the early 70s, where every member got a new identity and where they could escape from dreary and predictable Dublin life and be anything they wanted to be. It was both lead singers Friday and Guggi who first gave a teenaged Paul Hewson his alter-ego and world-famous moniker 'Bono Vox of O'Connell Street', later simply 'Bono'. Known for its outrageous and controversial stage performances, led by the bands' theatrical singer/songwriter Friday, they first began playing small shows in Dublin gaining them a cult audience and ridicule from the culturally conservative community..

By the end of the decade, they were ready to release their ideas to a wider audience. Their first single was released in 1980 and they were at their most prolific and innovative thoughout 1981-82, In November 1982, the Virgin Prunes released their debut album '...If I Die, I Die' (produced by Colin Newman of Wire) and "Heresie", a French boxset. "Heresie" was commissioned by Yann Farcy after seeing them perform at the Rex Club in Paris and was based on a loose examination of insanity.

Singers Gavin Friday and Guggi, along with third vocalist Dave-iD Busaras, guitarist Dik Evans, bassist Strongman and drummer Pod, released their first single in 1980. Pod soon left to be replaced by Haa-Lacka Binttii, who left around a year later, to be replaced in turn by Mary D'Nellon. In 1984, both Guggi and Dik left the band and the music business. Mary D'Nellon took over guitar duties and Pod returned as the band's drummer. The Virgin Prunes started to record the album Sons Find Devils, which has never been released. 1985 saw the release of a retrospective video (confusingly titled Sons Find Devils, despite having no connection with the still unreleased album) and a compilation album of rarities (Over the Rainbow).

The band toured as a four-piece and finally released a new album, The Moon Looked Down and Laughed, in the summer of 1986. Gavin Friday left the group in November 1986 to pursue a solo career, effectively ending the group. This was formally confirmed by a short comment at the bottom of the sleeve of a live album, The Hidden Lie, released in 1987. D'Nellon, Strongman and Busaras went on to record as The Prunes.



01 - Ulakanakulot (2:26)
02 - Decline and Fall (4:45)
03 - Sweethome under white clouds (4:40)
04 - Bau-dachöng (5:47)
05 - Baby Turns Blue (3:39)
06 - Ballad of the Man (3:26)
07 - Walls of Jericho (3:08)
08 - Caucasian Walk (4:40)
09 - Theme for Thought (5:37)
10 - Baby Turns Blue extended (5:05)

Virgin Prunes @ Base
Virgin Prunes @ Amazon
Theme for thought live vid

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Sinead O'Connor - She Who Dwells In The Secret Place Of The Most High Shall Abide Under The Shadow Of The Almighty (03)

Sinead was born dec 66 in Dublin, after a troublesome youth, during which she found herself subject to her parents divorce struggles.Her advocating on behalf of abused children in later life is from first hand knowledge. After a stint of 4 years at a reform school run by nuns, she went a boarding school, her musical interests brought her into contact with Columb Farrelly, they recruited a few other members and formed a band called Ton Ton Macoute, musically inspired by Farrelly's interest in witchcraft, mysticism, and world music (84). Soon after her mother died in a car accident, she left the band and moved to London . Meanwhile O'Connor's time as singer had generated interest of the music industry and she was signed by Ensign Records. The recording of her debut album didnt go well as she and designated producer Mick Glossop didnt click. Inbetween she managed to get pregnant aswell, but succeeded in getting her way and produce her first albums herself. 1987's The Lion and the Cobra and 1990's I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got gained considerable attention and mostly positive reviews, as did her shaved head appearance. The Prince cover "Nothing Compares 2 U " reached no 1 all over the western world, suddenly Sinead was 'hot'.

After spending 7 years dividing her time between London and Los Angeles, O'Connor returned to Dublin in late 1992 to live near her sister and focus on raising her son Jake, then 6 years old, and spent the following months studying Bel Canto singing. The 1992 release of Am I Not Your Girl?, an album of standards and torch songs that she had listened to while growing up was marred by incidents at both the Garden State Arts Center, for refusing being opened by the star stangled banner and during a performance of War on Saturday Night Live where she tore up a picture of John Pope the Second (thumbs up from me) which lost for her much of the commercial US momentum her career had built up until then, bann ! burn the witch ! yes those sheep do bite..1994's more conventional Universal Mother did not succeed in restoring her mass appeal, though its opener, "Fire On Babylon," remains a fan favourite. She toured with Lollapalooza in 1995, but dropped out when she became pregnant.

Faith and Courage from 2000, was a return to form, and featured contributions from Wyclef Jean of the Fugees and Dave Stewart of Eurythmics. Many songs on the album centre around the theme of healing. On the eve of its release she came out as a lesbian, and then retracted the statement. She released, Sean-Nós Nua, a collection of re-interpreted traditional Irish folk songs including several in the Irish language in 2002, followed the next year with this double album, She Who Dwells in the Secret Place of the Most High Shall Abide Under the Shadow of the Almighty. It contains one disc which contains 3 demos and previously-unreleased tracks, from covers, to originals to traditionals and it blends very well. The other disc is a live concert recording, upon the album's release, O'Connor announced her retirement from music.

After she spend 2004 in Jamaica she returned with a well recieved reggae album Throw Down Your Arms in 2005. She is currently working on a collection of her own spiritual songs entitled Theology, release next month. The album will consist of two discs with the same songs, but performed just with acoustic guitar and voice on one, and with full band and production (Ron Tom) on the other.



Sinead O'Connor - She Who Dwells ( ^ 517mb)

01. Regina Caeli
02. O Filii Et Filiae
03. My Love I Bring
04. Do Right Woman
05. Love Hurts
06. Ain't It A Shame
07. Chiquitita
08. Brigidine Diana
09. It's All Good
10. Love Is Ours (Demo)
11. A Hundred Thousand Angels
12. You Put Your Arms Around Me (Demo)
13. Emma's Song
14. No Matter How Hard I Try (Demo)
15. Dense Water, Deeper Down (3:34)
16. This Is A Rebel Song (3:49)
17. 1000 Mirrors Asian Dub Foundation (4:53)
18. Big Bunch Of Junkie Lies (4:03)
19. Song Of Jerusalem (5:52)


Sinead O'Connor - She Who Dwells ( ^ 468 mb)

01. Molly Malone
02. Oro, Se Do Bneatha 'Bnaile
03. The Singing Bird
04. My Lagan Love
05. I Am Stretched On Your Grave
06. Nothing Compares 2 U
07. John I Love You
08. The Moorlough Shore
09. You Made Me The Thief Of Your Heart
10. Paddy's Lament
11. Thank You For Hearing Me
12. Fire On Babylon
13. The Last Day Of Our Acquaintance

Sinead O'Connor @ Base
Sinead O'Connor @ MySpace
Sinead O'Connor @ YouTube
Sinead O'Connor @ Amazon

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My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything (88 ^ 251mb)

Guitarist/singer Kevin Shields and drummer Colm O'Ciosoig, formed their own band with Dave Conway around the end of 1983. The band was filled out by various members and split up and reformed on several occasions during 1984. Conway on the strength of the band's home recordings, managed to book the band a concert in Holland. The three recruited Conway's then-girlfriend Tina to play keyboards; adopted Conway's suggested name, My Bloody Valentine, for the concert; and moved to Holland. They stayed in Holland for three months before a lack of opportunities and correct documentation meant they had to leave. The band then chose Berlin as their next destination, where they recorded the mini-LP This Is Your Bloody Valentine for Dossier Records. The record failed to have the expected impact, the band left Berlin, returning to Holland briefly before settling in London around the middle of 1985. They were joined by bass player Debbie Googe got a recording deal and the EP, Geek! was released in December of 1985. The band soon began to play on the London gig circuit, but the record failed to make as much of an impact, again.
The next years 2 ep's were released did more gigs, until in 87 singer Dave Conway whose health had deteriorated decided to quit. After some time they managed to match in Bilinda Butcher, under pressure from their label Lazy rec they released 2 self financed EP's, until in 1988 Creation Rec gave them a proper contract with resulted in the EP Feed Me with Your Kiss and this " Isn't Anything" (1988), which married shimmering guitar distortions to ethereal folk-pop.

The thick, swirling, multi-layered guitar sound developed by My Bloody Valentine would later be termed shoegazer by the British press because of the band's tendency to look down while performing in order to manipulate effect pedals.
The follow-up LP Loveless (1991), the best known album of their career, is generally considered representative of their sound: a distinct blend of warped, effects ridden guitar sounds, ambience, and folk tunes. This time the main vocal duties were taken by Bilinda Butcher. However, some critics viewed the album's heavily processed sound as overly clinical. Shields wrote all the songs, except "Touched", a short instrumental by Colm O'Ciosoig. In 1999 Pitchfork Media declared Loveless to be the greatest album of the 1990s

After signing with Island Records in 1992 , the band spent half a million pounds of Island's money but did not produce another release, and their final recorded song made available for release was a cover of "Map Ref. 41N 93W" by Wire, appearing on Whore: Tribute to Wire in 1995. Debbie Googe left the band to form Snowpony. Colm O'Ciosoig eventually left and recorded an album with Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star. Shields collaborated sporadically with other artists, and is currently remastering My Bloody Valentine's catalogue.



01 - Soft As Snow (But Warm Inside) (2:21)
02 - Lose My Breath (3:37)
03 - Cupid Come (4:29)
04 - (When You Wake) You're Still In A Dream (3:18)
05 - No More Sorry (2:47)
06 - All I Need (3:07)
07 - Feed Me With Your Kiss (3:54)
08 - Sue is fine (2:12)
09 - Several Girls Galore (2:20)
10 - You Never Should (3:22)
11 - Nothing Much To Lose (3:17)
12 - I Can See It (But I Can't Feel It) (3:11)

My Bloody Valentine @ Base
My Bloody Valentine @ YouTube
My Bloody Valentine @ Amazon

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Solas - Reunion (06 * 469mb)

Solas' name comes from an Irish word meaning "comfort" or "light". At the start 1995, the band was made up of Séamus Egan, who had already recorded two solo albums as well as a soundtrack to a film; Winifred Horan, a member of Cherish the Ladies; John Doyle, previously a member of The Chanting House with Egan; Karan Casey and John Williams.

Ten years on, the members of Solas have come together to produce this concert cd, despite personnel changes over the years, the band has remained friendly enough to collaborate once again. Former members, including the band's original touchstone vocalist, Karan Casey, guitarists John Doyle and Donal Clancy, and box player Williams shimmy around and in between current box player Mick McAuley, guitarist Eamon McElholm and singer, Deirdre Scanlan, together they swim through the 7 album back catalogue that is Reunion.

Solas' ability to exploit the nuances of the Irish traditional repertoire through stellar playing and sensitive arrangements is impressive, as are the original material contributed by several band members, including Seamus Egan, Winifred Horan, Mick McAuley, and John Williams. The performances manage to be flawless, while also spirited and good natured, all the players' talents seem to be showcased, and both singers receive their share of the limelight.




01 - Pastures Of Plenty
02 - Coconut Dog,Morning Dew
03 - Silver Dagger
04 - Timmy Clifford's
05 - Newry Highwayman
06 - Reasonland
07 - Highlands of Holland
08 - Le Poules Huppées (Crested Hens)
09 - Rain And Snow
10 - Black Annis
11 - Who's in the what now
12 - On a Sea of Fleur De Lis
13 - Lowground
14 - Beauty Spot
15 - Ni na la
16 - The Flowing Bowl
17 - Lament For Frankie

Solas @ Base
Solas @ Amazon

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The Frames - Setlist (03 * 450mb)

The platinum-selling For The Birds, released on their own Plateau label in the summer of 2000, marked the end of major label bad marriages. The newfound independence set them to forging a sound based true to their instincts. The result: a collection of skewed avant-folk songs that sounded like they’d been written in a hole in the ground and recorded in some hi-tech coastal cave. Nobody could’ve predicted what happened next, things began to snowball. The album went from gold to platinum, and in its wake, renewed sales of previous Frames albums such as Fitzcarraldo and Dance The Devil. Somehow The Frames went from being Ireland’s biggest cult act to one of its top selling bands full stop. Plus, they were starting to sell out tours all across Europe, the US and Australia.

Meanwhile back home, by the summer of 2003, they were co-headlining the Lisdoonvarna extravaganza in front of 30,000 people. Funny thing was, they looked like they always belonged on that stage. The Frames were no longer noble underdogs.
While preparing their fifth studio album, the band released the live album Set List, at last capturing their incendiary stage sound on tape. The Irish public responded by sending it straight to number one in the charts, making it their third platinum album. 2004 saw The Frames sweep the Hot Press Critics’ and Readers’ Polls, and they also won their first industry gong in the shape of the Meteor Award for Best Irish Band. Burn The Maps (2004), is at once a musical tour de force and a statement of intent, an album whose campaign begins with typical Frames-ian audacity – an outdoor headliner at Marley Park in front of some 17,000 people. Their latest "the Cost" can be tasted at their MySpace.

“With The Frames, it’s the throwing your arms around the room thing,” says singer/guitarist Glen Hansard. “When our gigs are at their best, you throw the energy out and it gets thrown back twice the size. I mean, I find myself saying things on stage that I would never say in my life, it’s almost like a whole new character or creature is born when you walk on. If you trust in the moment, if you’re willing to be the fool and make the mistake and get it wrong, then you’ve great potential to get it absolutely right. And I think that can be the scary thing about a Frames gig and the great thing about a Frames gig.”




01 - Revelate (4:34)
02 - Star Star (3:41)
03 - Lay Me Down (4:04)
04 - God Bless Mom (6:14)
05 - What Happens When The Heart Just Stops (6:50)
06 - Rent Day Blues (3:56)
07 - Pavement Tune (4:54)
08 - Stars Are Underground (4:31)
09 - Santa Maria (8:16)
10 - Perfect Opening Line (4:38)
11 - Your Face (8:35)
12 - Fitzcarraldo (8:13)
13 - The Blood (4:35)

The Frames @ Base
The Frames @ MySpace
The Frames @ YouTube
The Frames @ Amazon

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The Waterboys - The Live Adventures of the Waterboys

The Waterboys are a band formed in 1983 by Mike Scott. The band's membership, past and present, has been composed mainly of musicians from Britain and Ireland, most often their music can be described as a mix of Celtic folk music with rock and roll, or folk rock. After ten years of recording and touring, the band dissolved in 1993 and Scott pursued a solo career, they reformed in 2000, and continue to release albums.

At the invitation of new member Steve Wickham, Mike Scott moved to Dublin (85) and quickly became influenced by the traditional Irish music there as well as by country and gospel. The band's lineup changed once again with Scott, Wickham and Thistlethwaite now joined by Trevor Hutchinson on bass and Peter McKinney on drums. The new band, which the official Waterboys' website refers to as the "Raggle Taggle band" lineup, spent 1986 and 1987 recording in Dublin and touring the UK, Ireland and Europe. Some of these performances were released in 1998 on The Live Adventures of the Waterboys, including a famous Glastonbury performance in 1986. In 1988 Scott took the band to Spiddal in the west of Ireland where they set up a recording studio in Spiddal House to finish recording their new album. Fisherman's Blues was released in October of 1988 and showcased many guest musicians that had played with the band in Dublin and Spiddal. The album helped to increase the growing popularity of Irish music.

For a while The Waterboys were the best live band on the planet, so this is a welcome, if somewhat belated, addition to their ragged and glorious canon. A two-CD set recorded at various locations throughout 1986 (including selections from their mighty and memorable Glastonbury performance), it succeeds in documenting Mike Scott’s inspirational band of contrary Caledonians at their most savagely true and spiritually wild.The Waterboys’ 1986 Glastonbury performance (included here almost in full) is still the greatest bootleg I’ve ever heard; majestic, passionate, endlessly stretching - the best band on the planet in those between Bunnymen years. Everything you could want is here; vital revisions of album favourites, effortless improvisation, covers of country classics, covers of Dylan songs we didn’t know existed, Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’, Patti Smith, Van Morrison, everything. One of the greatest live albums in the history of music.



The Live Adventures of the Waterboys (98 * 342mb)
01 - Death Is Not The End
02 - The Earth Only Endures
03 - Medicine Bow
04 - Fishermans Blues
05 - This Is The Sea
06 - Meet Me At The Station
07 - We Will Not Be Lovers
08 - The Wayward Wind
09 - A Girl Called Johnny
10 - Purple Rain

 The Live Adventures of the Waterboys 2 (389mb)
01 - Be My Enemy
02 - Old England
03 - The Thrill Is Gone, The Healing Has Begun
04 - The Pan Within, Because The Night
05 - The Whole Of The Moon
06 - Spirit
07 - Savage Earth Heart
08 - Saints And Angels

The Waterboys @ Base
The Waterboys @ MySpace
The Waterboys @ YouTube
The Waterboys @ Amazon

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* All downloads are in * ogg-7 (224k) or ^ ogg-9(320k), artwork is included , if in need get the nifty ogg encoder/decoder here !

Mar 7, 2007

Stage 29, Wales

Stage 29, already and a little change of plans as i initially hadn't planned Wales, it would have been a mistake.

The Welsh cultural identity, is represented by elements such as monastic asceticism, a highly evolved secular legal system (Cyfraith Hywel), and a distinctive literary tradition which emerged after the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century. Of the principal polities within Wales, only Gwynedd retained independence until the late 13th century, in 1282 the English conquest of Wales by Edward I permanently ended the rule of the Welsh princes, with Llywelyn's death and his brother prince Dayfdd's execution. Llywelyn's head was then carried through London on a spear; his baby daughter Gwenllian was locked in the priory at Sempringham, where she remained until her death fifty four years later..

From the 19th Century much of Wales became heavily industrialised, supplying the British Empire and its colonies with vast quantities of coal and steel and establishing a large manufacturing base. In the 20th century, Wales saw a revival in its national status. Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925, seeking greater autonomy or independence from the rest of the UK. A referendum on the creation of an assembly for Wales in 1979, led to a large majority for the "no" vote. However, in 1997 a referendum on the same issue secured a "yes". The National Assembly for Wales (Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru) was set up in 1999 (as a consequence of the Government of Wales Act 1998) and possesses the power to determine how the central government budget for Wales is spent and administered.

Wales has four Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. These areas include Anglesey, Clwydian Range, Gower and Wye Valley. The Gower Peninsula was the first area in the whole of the United Kingdom to be designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, in 1956.Tor Bay and Three Cliffs Bay, Gower (Gŵyr), South Wales.The coastline of South and West Wales has more miles of Heritage Coast than anywhere else. The coastline of the Vale of Glamorgan, the Gower Peninsula, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, and Ceredigion is particularly wild and impressive. Gower, Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire and Cardigan Bay all have clean blue water, white-sand beaches and impressive marine life. Despite this scenic splendour the coast of Wales has a dark side; the South and West coasts of Wales, along with the Irish and Cornish coast, are frequently blasted by huge Atlantic westerlies/south westerlies that, over the years, have sunk and wrecked many a vessel.

Two thirds of the 3 million Welsh live in the valleys and coastal plain of the south, with a further significant population concentration in the north east. The remaining areas in mid Wales, the south west and west are predominantly rural and characterised by hilly and mountainous terrain. The Welsh call themselves Cymry, "compatriots", and named their country Cymru, which is thought to have meant "Land of the Compatriots" in Old Welsh. Wales is officially bilingual, with 21.7% of the population able to speak Welsh and a larger proportion having some knowledge of the Welsh language according to a 2004 language survey.

Well i had to make some adjustments, as i haven't been feeling very well, but i got thru this post on the planned time, if all goes well, next saturday part 2 on welsh musicians, and yes i promise ill skip Tom Jones...

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Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth (80)
Super Furry Animals - Love Kraft (05)
World Party - Goodbye Jumbo (90)
Jem - Finally Woken (04)
Cale, John - Music For A New Society (82)
Darling Buds, The - Erotica (92)
Sasha (DJ) - Airdrawndagger (02)

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Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth ( 80 flac 237mb)

Young Marble Giants was a Cardiff post-punk band, formed by a trio in 1978. Their style featured minimal, unmistakable instrumentation provided by brothers Philip and Stuart Moxham, supporting the cool, gentle voice of Alison Statton. Stuart Moxham wrote the majority of the band's songs, and his writing was often deceptively simple-seeming, giving the YMG's classic work a uniquely fragile yet powerful quality. Centered around a weird mix of Philip's steel-hawser bass, Stuart's haunting, rhythmic Galanti electric organ lines and punchy rhythm guitar (played on a rare John Lennon style blonde Rickenbacker), with Statton's vocals tentatively hanging in the space above, the sound was unlike anything anyone had heard before.

Their first vinyl release was on the compilation LP Is The War Over? on Cardiff DIY label, Z Block Records, in October 1979. While signed to UK independent record label, Rough Trade Records the YMGs released two EPs, Final Day and Testcard, and one acclaimed and very influential album, Colossal Youth (a reference to the Early Greek 'Kouroi' marble statues, from which the YMGs took the inspiration for their name.)

The band toured and played in the US and Europe, and played in San Francisco, Vancouver, New York, Berlin. Touring companions included the band Cabaret Voltaire.Musical influences included Eno, Kraftwerk, The Velvet Underground, Roxy Music, Can and others. The band were acquainted with Scritti Politti, the band of Cardiff native Green Gartside, and ended up signed to the same label, Rough Trade Records. It was revealed in the 2003 book Journals that the band were, along with Scotland's The Vaselines, Kurt Cobain's favourite band.

After the band split up in 1980, Stuart Moxham formed The Gist, whose song 'Love at First Sight' became a major hit on the continent when covered by French pop singer Étienne Daho under the title 'Café de Flore'. Following a very severe motorbike accident Stuart concentrated on home recording, which bore fruit in the album "Embrace The Herd,"(1982)

Philip Moxham went on to play bass for The Communards and Everything But The Girl, Ben Watt and Tracey Thorn's group. He features on their fourth album, Idlewild. Alison Statton, Spike, and Simon Emmerson formed Weekend (with Phil Moxham on bass) and released the acclaimed La Variete (1982) and Live at Ronnie Scott's (83) .

In early 2003, Statton and the Moxham brothers reunited for a BBC Radio Wales radio special. They performed one new song, "Alright," on this special. It was rumoured that the band might stay together to make further new recordings, but this project has not yet surfaced. There are however plans for at least one 'reunion concert' in the spring of 2007.



01 - Searching For Mr. Right (2:58)
02 - Include Me Out (2:01)
03 - The Taxi (2:06)
04 - Eating Noddemix (2:02)
05 - Constantly Changing (2:03)
06 - N.I.T.A. (3:30)
07 - Colossal Youth (1:52)
08 - Music For Evenings (3:02)
09 - The Man Amplifier (3:15)
10 - Choci Loni (2:36)
11 - Wurlitzer Jukebox (2:44)
12 - Salad Days (1:59)
13 - Credit In The Straight World (2:28)
14 - Brand - New - Life (2:52)
15 - Wind In The Riggin (2:21)
Xs Testcard EP
16 - Clicktalk (2:41)
17 - Zebra Trucks (1:32)
18 - Sporting Life (1:01)
19 - This Way (1:40)
20 - Posed By Models (1:22)
21 - The Clock (1:38)


YMG @ FanBase
YMG @ Amazon

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Super Furry Animals - Love Kraft (05 *flac 366mb)

Super Furry Animals(SFA) coalesced in Cardiff after members being in various other Welsh bands and techno outfits in the area. Rhys, Leuan and Pryce had been together since the early 1990s and had toured the north coast of France as a techno group. After Bunford and Ciaran ( Leuan's younger brother) joined, they got to work on writing some songs, and in 1995 ended up signing to Ankst, the famous Welsh indie label. The band are considered to be part of the renaissance of Welsh Culture in the 1990s: other Welsh bands of the time include Gorky's Zygotic Mynci and the Manic Street Preachers... (next post)

The Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch (In Space) EP appeared in June 1995 to general critical acclaim and has been listed in the Guinness Book of Records as having the longest-ever title for an EP, followed in the fall by the Moog Droog ep. When performing their first gig outside Wales-in London, they were picked up by Creation boss Alan Magee and signed to his label, where they released their debut album Fuzzy Logic (96), to good response. It set the trend for them of releasing many singles. A year later followed by Radiator which got even better press .

Fall 98 Out Spaced was released, a collection of songs from the 1995 Ankst releases, the band's favourite B-sides, plus "The Man Don't Give A Fuck" and "Smokin'", a round up/ drawing a line under SFA's initial phase, in preparation for more ambitious work to come. In 99 they were chosen best band in a NME poll, a good step up for the release of their next album Guerilla. As Creation closed up shop SFA released their next album on their own label, Placid Casual, a deliberate sidestep from their recent work: a largely acoustic album of Welsh language songs entitled Mwng (mane).

Their next album the orchestral Rings Around the World (2001) was their first release thru a major-Sony subsidiary Epic, it got them nominated for the Mercury price 2001. Phantom Power(2003), relied less on sound experimentation and proved to be a more stripped-down, back-to-basics recording, which wasn't particularly appreciated at the time and SFA was caught in the press doldrums. In early 2005, singer Gruff Rhys released a solo album Yr Atal Genhedlaeth, ("The Stuttering Generation", all sung in Welsh. In august SFA released this, Love Kraft recorded in Brazil.The album shows a more coherent, warm style, much more then on their previous albums. This laid-back ambience with some heavy use of strings returned them to their familiar status of critically-acclaimed cult favourites. Love Kraft was also the last album released under Epic Records, as their contact ran out in 2006. Cian Ciara side project Acid Casuals released their debut album "Omni" in January 2006 on the SFA's Placid Casual label. Meanwhile SFA signed to Rough Trade Records during 2006, as has Gruff Rhys, he released a single on 7" vinyl and download entitled "Candylion" in late 2006 which preceded an album of the same name that was released during the second week of 2007,expect the new SFA album within 6 months.



01 - Zoom! (6:53)
02 - Atomik Lust (4:53)
03 - The Horn (3:01)
04 - Ohio Heat (4:07)
05 - Walk You Home (4:00)
06 - Lazer Beam (4:55)
07 - Frequency (4:40)
08 - Oi Frango (2:23)
09 - Psyclone! (4:20)
10 - Back On A Roll (3:46)
11 - Cloudberries (5:04)
12 - Cabin Fever (6:21)

SFA @ Base
Placid Casual
SFA @ MySpace
SFA @ Amazon

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World Party - Goodbye Jumbo (90 flac 319mb)

Karl Wallinger (born 1957 in Prestatyn, Wales), he was immersed from a young age in the music of The Beatles, Beach Boys, Bob Dylan and Love. Echoes of these childhood heroes permeate the record he was to release thirty three years later (Goodbye Jumbo). His musical career began in the 1970s with a couple of unsuccessful bands and a brief job in music publishing, after which he became musical director of The Rocky Horror Show. He joined The Waterboys as a keyboardist from 1983-86. Whilst working on his World Party material, he also worked on Sinéad O'Connor's 1987 debut album The Lion and the Cobra - O'Connor. Wallinger's first release under the World Party banner, Private Revolution (1987), was a studied, if somewhat over-polished, combination of folk, funk and soul. Its title was a nod to its creation by Wallinger working alone in a home recording studio. It spawned a minor hit single in "Ship of Fools". It was on Goodbye Jumbo that Wallinger attained what – despite another decade in the music industry – is regarded as his creative peak.

The third album, Bang! (1993), was a bigger success in chart placing terms, reaching number 2 in the UK. Even so, the fourth album, Egyptology (1996), written following the death of Wallinger's mother, was commercially disastrous, although "She's The One" won an Ivor Novello award and was subsequently recorded by Robbie Williams. The album Dumbing Up was released in 2000 on the band's own label, and was a real return to form, arguably Wallinger's best work since Goodbye Jumbo. Shortly afterwards, however, Wallinger was struck down by an aneurysm that left him unable to speak. After a long rehabilitation, Wallinger returned onto the scene in 2006. as he played his first live show in a decade at the Austin South by Southwest festival.



01 - Is It Too Late? (4:24)
02 - Way Down Now (3:49)
03 - When The Rainbow Comes (4:58)
04 - Put The Message In The Box (4:16)
05 - Ain't Gonna Come Till I'm Ready (5:05)
06 - And I Fell Back Alone (3:57)
07 - Take It Up (4:37)
08 - God On My Side (4:14)
09 - Show Me To The Top (5:15)
10 - Love Street (4:21)
11 - Sweet Soul Dream Voc.Sinéad O'Connor (4:39)
12 - Thank You World (3:47)


World Party @ Base
World Party @ Amazon

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Jem - Finally Woken (04 flac 287mb)

Born June 18, 1975 in Penarth, Wales, Jemma Griffiths, better known as Jem, is a singer-songwriter known for her eclectic musical stylings. Although she began singing and writing songs at age thirteen, she decided to head into law and attended Sussex University. However, she spent less time and energy on studies and focused on being a DJ agent (although she did eventually receive a degree in law). There in Brighton, she spent a lot of time promoting club nights, and helped set-up and run the specialist breaks label Marine Parade. Jem left everything behind in November of 1999 and assembled a mobile studio where she further developed her songwriting and music production skills. During this period, she completed four demos that would eventually setup her career in the music industry.

Her debut album has defied the categorization of some music critics with a fusion of genres. While some of her songs are straight up rock ballads, some of her tracks verge on electronica and trip-hop. Her throaty, mellow voice draws immediate comparisons to Imogen Heap, Beth Orton and to a lesser extent Dido. However, Jem herself prefers to let her musical work stand on its own, rather than be compared to other artists. Along with electronic producer Guy Sigsworth (Bjork, Frou Frou), she wrote the song "Nothing Fails", which was later reworked by Madonna and appeared on her 2003 American Life album



01 - They (3:16)
02 - Come on Closer (3:47)
03 - Finally Woken (3:58)
04 - Save Me (3:34)
05 - 24 (3:55)
06 - Missing You (4:01)
07 - Wish I (3:56)
08 - Just a Ride (3:21)
09 - Falling for You (4:18)
10 - Stay Now (3:44)
11 - Flying High (4:08)

Jem @ Base
Jem @ Amazon

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John Cale - Music For A New Society (82* flac 297mb)

John Cale was born in Garnant in the heavily industrial Amman Valley, and Welsh is his first language. Having discovered a talent for piano, he studied music at Goldsmiths College, the University of London, then he traveled to the USA to continue his musical training.There he met a number of influential composers, John Cage among others. Cale played in La Monte Young's ensemble the Theater of Eternal Music, the heavily drone-laden music he played there proved to be a big influence in his work with his next group, the Velvet Underground. He joined up with Lou Reed in the newly-formed Velvet Underground in 1965, but left in 1968, due in part to creative disagreements with Reed. When Cale left, the experimentalist tendencies largely went with him, noticeable comparing the noise-rock experimental White Light/White Heat that Cale co-created with the calmer The Velvet Underground, recorded after his departure.

After leaving the Velvet Underground, Cale produced a number of albums, including Nico's The Marble Index and The Stooges' debut, and began to make solo records. His first, Vintage Violence came in 1970 . His solo record of 1973, Paris 1919, is regarded by many as a classic. It is made up of elegantly crafted and tastefully arranged songs with arcane and complex lyrics. Cale also continued to work as a record producer. In 1974, he joined Island Records, and worked in that capacity with Squeeze, Patti Smith, and Sham 69, among others. He produced a number of important protopunk records, by Patti Smith, The Stooges and The Modern Lovers.

Moving back to the UK he produces a trilogy of albums - Fear, Slow Dazzle, and Helen of Troy which were recorded with other Island artists including Phil Manzanera and Brian Eno of Roxy Music, and Chris Spedding . His often loud and confrontational live performances fitted well with the upcoming punk rock developing on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Cale took to wearing a hockey goalie's mask onstage; see the cover of the Guts compilation (1977). It was a very odd and menacing look, utilized several years before the fictional Jason Voorhees first appeared on screen and made the goalie's mask all but synonymous with evil. During one gig he chopped the head off a dead chicken with a meat cleaver, and his band walked offstage in protest.

In 1982, Cale released this Music For A New Society. Seeming to blend the refined music of his early solo work with the threatening music that came later, it is by any standard a bleak, harrowing record. It's been called "understated, and perhaps a masterpiece.", and in ways his answer to Lou Reeds Berlin. Afterwards Cale took a long break to spend time with his wife Rise Irushalmi and daughter Eden.

He returned in 1990 with Brian Eno on Wrong Way Up, this wasn't the best of moves as Eno meanwhile had gained much status since their previous collaboration, two captains caused the album to become a split (certainly on the album). The following years Cale contributed to diverse projects notably two Zazou albums. In 96 in honour of Andy Warhol he recorded an album with Lou Reed again, Songs For Drella. Cale worked on several soundtracks and his autobiography, What's Welsh for Zen ?, was published in 1999.
With music influenced by modern electronica and alternative rock John Cale returned as a regular recording artist, 2003's E.P. Five Tracks and the well recieved HoboSapiens. That record was followed with 2005's album BlackAcetate, which consolidated John Cale's reputation as a versatile and tirelessly innovative music auteur.



01 - Taking Your Life in Your Hands (4:45)
02 - Thoughtless Kind (2:45)
03 - Sanctus (Sanities) (5:56)
04 - If You Were Still Around (3:24)
05 - Close Watch / Mama's Song (3:07
06 - Broken Bird (4:43)
07 - Chinese Envoy (3:11)
08 - Changes Made (3:12)
09 - Damn Life (5:11)
10 - Risé, Sam And Rimsky Korsakov Voc.Risé Cale (2:12)

11 - Library Of Force (Unreleased) 4:47
12 - Chinese Envoy (Outtakes) 3:39
13 - Thoughtless Kind (Outtakes) 2:34

John Cale @ Base
John Cale @ Amazon

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Darling Buds - Erotica (92 flac 302mb)

The Darling Buds was an indie band from Caerleon near Newport, Wales. The band were formed in 1986 and took their name from a British novel called The Darling Buds of May, They were considered part of the short lived "Blonde" movement (indie rock band fronted by blonde female singer) along with the like of The Primitives and Transvision Vamp. .

After releasing their debut single on their own label, the group signed to Native in 1987. They received a lot of airplay on John Peel's Radio 1 show, and were championed in the press by Chris Roberts of the Melody Maker. At the height of "Blonde" in 1988 the band were signed up by by Epic and had moderate chart success with a top thirty single and album. They even managed a few appearances on Top Of The Pops. They released Pop Said (89)

Bloss left in 1990 and was replaced by Jimmy Hughes who had previously been the drummer in Black. The band then decided to go for a more sophisticated style with their second album, Crowdaddy, but didn't really regain their previous popularity. This the third and final album "Erotica" was released in 1992 but caused hardly a ripple amongst the music press, who seemed uninsterested in the layered and stylistic, semi-techno pop, and deep toned emotive vocals of Andrea. The band then toured the States for a year but decided to call it a day after getting throughly fed up with the music business.

Blonde..Andrea has since moved into acting and has toured with a local theatre company. She has also presented a music show called "The Slate" for BBC Wales.



01 - One Thing Leads To Another
02 - Sure Thing
03 - Off My Mind
04 - Gently Fall
05 - Please Yourself
06 - Angels Fallen
07 - Isolation
08 - Long Day In The Universe
09 - Wave
10 - If

Darling Buds @ Amazon

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Sasha (DJ) - Airdrawndagger (02 flac 403mb)

Sasha, Alexander Coe,  was born in Bangor, Wales in 1969, but spent most of his youth with his mother in the Welsh town of Hawarden. Sasha's early musical taste was primarily Top 40 pop music like The The and The Police, Instead of continuing his schooling, Sasha moved to Bangor to live with his father and stepmother. Sasha's stepmother forced him to take piano lessons, which he disliked at the time; Sasha certainly found the lessons to be beneficial to his music career.
He began his career playing acid house dance music in the late 1980s in the Manchester area, and became a central figure in the development and popularisation of electronic dance music. In 93 he teamed up with John Digweed, touring internationally and producing a series of mixes and together they were instrumental in the evolution of progressive trance and house music.

In the mid-90's, turned out several productions of his own and did remixes worked with BT. In 1999, he formed a new partnership in the studio with Charlie May (aka Spooky) and released the anthemic "Xpander" EP, several mix albums later, in 2002 it was time for his own full length album "Airdrawndagger". It had taken several years to produce due to Sasha's desire for the album to be "as near to perfection as possible."When it was to much fanfare finally released, in August 2002, . there was a lot of head scratching", according to Sasha, which he attributed to its unexpected mix of genres. The album doesn't feature the "club sound" of Sasha's previous mix albums, in fact it there's a lot of ambience on it, nevertheless Airdrawndagger received favorable reviews. Sasha himself described it as "a selfish, slightly self-indulgent record", though he maintains that he is "happy with it to this day, Sasha held an amateur remix contest for the album's first single, "Wavy Gravy" , due to it's response, Sasha released all the tracks from Airdrawndagger on his website, so that fans could download and create their own versions.

In 2004, Sasha signed with Global Underground to produce another mix album. However, he found the process of creating a standard mix album unrewarding, and decided to apply his production and DJing skills to a mix compilation that resembled a "real" album—that is, one featuring original material, Involver, was "a fusion of mix album and production record", consisting mainly of Sasha's reworkings of tracks by other artists. In 2005, Sasha produced his next album, Fundacion NYC, based on his nights DJing in New York at the Fundacion club. Fundacion NYC received positive reviews for its originality, he plans to make a series of Fundacion albums. The next year, Sasha released 10,000 copies of a June 2006 DJ set for sale using Instant Live, making him the first DJ to use Instant Live's licensing and publishing services.While continuing to regularly DJ, Sasha is working on material to produce another Involver mix and the next Fundacion mix.



01 - Dremples (1:23)
02 - Mr Tiddles (4:53)
03 - Magnetic North (5:17)
04 - Cloud Cuckoo (8:26)
05 - Immortal (4:53)
06 - Fundamental (9:11)
07 - Boileroom (7:02)
08 - Bloodlock (7:57)
09 - Requiem (6:07)
10 - Golden Arm (5:46)
Sasha (DJ) - Wavy Gravy
11 - Wavy Gravy (7:30)

Sasha @ Base
Sasha @ MySpace
Sasha @ Amazon

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* All downloads are in * ogg-7 (224k) or ^ ogg-9(320k), artwork is included , if in need get the nifty ogg encoder/decoder here !

Mar 3, 2007

Stage 28, Scotland "Tartar"

Stage 28, and we're still with the "tartan" music army, as i noted the current music scene in Scotland looks rather one sided and in general rather poor compared to say the scandinavian countries. Franz Ferdinand are basicly english students who went over the border to Glasglow, and lastly teamed up with a scottish drummer, Belle and Sebastian have had plenty of succes recently with their indie guitar music but in all not much going on these days. So I compensate with some glorious works from days gone by, in all 1 gig of it !.

This stage is mostly about voices, Scottish voices, Shirley Manson proves that Garbage was really her band when you listen to Angelfish, Billy Mackenzie remains my all-time favourite singer, Jim Ure better known as Midge together with Jim Kerr were both leading their bands to success, And i certainly couldnt pass the Reid Brothers responsible for those walse of sensitive noise . The Shamen fullfilled their name with the extremely trippy limited edition double album "Axis Mundi/Arbor Bono, Arbor Mala " , and yes there are DJ's in Scotland and very succesfull at that, Slam, who promote their label Soma in the mix the did for the magazine Muzik. Finally, there has to be some Scottish folk present and Wolfstone know how to rock with it, the cover, unfortunately, is disastrous, dont let it fool you.  A reminder, fullsize covers are viewable at my mirror-site Rho-Xsss

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Angelfish - Angelfish (94)
The Shamen - Axis Mundi/Arbor Bono, Arbor Mala (95)
Billy MacKenzie - Outernational (92)
Billy MacKenzie - Beyond the Sun (97)
Jesus and Mary Chain - Darklands (87)
VA - Slam - Soma MuzikMix (01)
Midge Ure - If I Was (93)
Simple Minds - Empires & Dance (80)
Simple Minds - Sister Feelings Call (81)
Wolfstone - Pick of the Litter (97)

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Angelfish - Angelfish (94 * 241mb)

When she was 16, Shirley joined Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie where she sang backup vocals and played the keyboards. She remained in the band for a decade until they split in 1992. After the split, Manson, Wilson, Kelly and Metcalfe formed Angelfish in 1993 in order to fulfill a contractual obligation to Radioactive Records, this time Shirley was the lead singer.
Angelfish had a small hit with the single "Suffocate Me", which had caught the eye of producer Steve Marker when aired on MTV's 120 minutes in the early hours of the morning. Steve Marker was working on a project with Nirvana producer Butch Vig. Vig soon after asked Manson to join his project (the band Garbage) which led to Angelfish breaking up soon afterwards.
The rest of the Angelfish—Martin Metcalfe, Fin Wilson and Derek Kelly—are now in the band Isa & the Filthy Tongues, whose debut album was released in May of 2006.

With hindsight this album could be called Garbage 0.8 , and it makes clear how much Shirley carries the success of Garbage musically, naturally marketing/money wise Angelfish would never have been able to reach the major success of Garbage. Meanwhile not withstanding millions of men drooling, Shirley didnt like her body at all and was selfabusive for a long time. After her divorce from the sculptor Eddie Farrell in 2001, Shirley cut her hair short and dyed it blonde. At the moment she's single again and working on a solo album with the likes of Jack White (White Stripes), Billy Corgan and Paul Buchanan (the Blue Nile) to be released this year.



01 - Dogs In A Cage (2:33)
02 - Suffocate Me (3:40)
03 - You Can Love Her (3:48)
04 - King Of The World (3:01)
05 - Sleep With Me (3:21)
06 - Heartbrake To Hate (4:15)
07 - The Sun Won't Shine (3:51)
08 - Mummy Can't Drive (3:26)
09 - Tomorrow Forever (3:28)
10 - The End (4:22)

Angelfish @ Amazon

Suffocate me, the Vid that launched miss Manson

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Shamen - Axis Mutatis, Arbor Bona Arbor Mala

Founded in Scotland by Colin Angus, Derek & Keith McKenzie as Alone Again Or. Founder member Colin Angus' erudite research into the mystical world of Shamanism, gave the band their name, and his passion for psychedelic 60's music, their sound. They released their debut album, "Drop", in 1986. As the decade drew to a close, the band were joined by new member, Will Sin, his expertise with technology enabled The Shamen to experiment more, fusing the band's guitar edge with sampled sounds and Hip-Hop rhythms.

The Shamen's second album "In Gorbachev We Trust", was an amalgam of riffing guitars, samples, funky programmed beats, and lyrics inspired by the unified vibe of the acid house scene. It was around this time in 1989 the band signed to One Little Indian and got straight to work releasing three 12” EP’s leading up to the release of the bands third album, "Entact". It was to be a productive relationship that would last for the next seven years.

"Entact". burst on to the UK scene selling over a 100,000 copies in the UK. One of its singles, "Pro>Gen", (their first to feature Mr C) became an anthem of the rave generation, played by DJ's everywhere. With their eyes on the charts, they re-recorded "Pro>Gen", such was the demand for it, but after filming the video, Will Sin tragically drowned.Naturally, the band’s future was thrown into doubt, but Colin knew how much the band meant to Will and everyone else concerned and they decided to carry on.

The next stage in the Shamen's metamorphosis was the release of their fourth album “Boss Drum”. The album was preceded by two singles including their fifteenth, a parody on rave culture. "Ebeneezer Goode" hit Number 1 in the National Charts, whilst the album sold over a million copies worldwide. "Axis Mutatis" was released in 1995, the album’s title refers to the tree of life, the ancient symbol found in virtually all Shamanic cultures, which links the underworld with the earth and the heavens. The album's lyrics covered socio-political issues such as the earth's growing eco-crisis and the Criminal Justice Act, while drawing attention to the spirituality of Shamanism. Musically it linked the multi-dimensional possibilities of electronic music, from melodic pop through filmic epics to atmospheric spacey techno. As a signpost to future direction, the band simultaneously released a limited edition companion album, "Arbor Bona, Arbor Mala", which was composed entirely of radical instrumental mutations on the 'Axis' themes.

In 1996 The Shamen's spend much of the summer playing festivals throughout Europe, the fall the band released their sixth studio album, "Hempton Manor", inspired by and dedicated to hemp, the premier plant of ecology conservation. Recorded in just five days, "Hempton Manor" hybridizes tripped out techno, spacey dub and frenetic drum 'n' bass styles into a typically Shamanic futuristic fusion. Commerrcial disagreements forced a split with their label, One Little Indian. Their next and latest official record the Shamen released thusfar, " UV " in 99, it was on their new founded label Moksha recordings which btw scored heavily that year with Kosheen. "Shamens Dj Mr C (Richard West) went solo as Dj and released an album Change (02) and a string of 12"thusfar.



Shamen - Arbor Bona Arbor Mala ( 96 * 407mb)

01 - Asymptotic Eschaton (0:48)
02 - Sefirotic Axis (6:52)
03 - Entraterrestrial (9:38)
04 - Demeter (4:28)
05 - Beneath The Underworld (Bob Breeks Mix)(3:34)
06 - Xochipili's Return (Bob Breeks Mix)(8:28)
07 - Rio Negro (3:16)
08 - Above The Otherworld (Bob Breeks Mix) (1:21)
09 - A Moment In Dub (9:20)
10 - Pizarro In Paradise (6:02)
11 - West Of The Underworld (10:14)
12 - Anticipation Eschaton (Be Ready For The Storm) (4:43)
13 - Out In The Styx (3:08)

Shamen - Axis Mundi ( 96 * 426mb)

1-01 - Destination Eschaton (Beatmasters Mix) (3:55)
1-02 - Transamazonia (Beatmasters Mix) (3:50)
1-03 - Conquistador (3:58)
1-04 - Mk2a (Beatmasters Mix) (3:58)
1-05 - Neptune (4:17)
1-06 - Prince Of Popocatapetl (6:00)
1-07 - Heal (The Separation) (Steve Osborne Mix) (3:57)
1-08 - Persephone's Quest (5:03)
1-09 - Moment (4:00)
1-10 - Axis Mundi (7:05)
1-11 - Eschaton Omega (Deep Melodic Techno) (3:38)
1-12 - Agua Azul (Hillage and Giraudy Mix) (11:22)
1-13 - S2 Translation (3:30)

Shamen Nematon Space
Shamen @ MySpace
Shamen @ Amazon

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Billy MacKenzie - Outernational (92 ^ 441mb)

William MacArthur MacKenzie, known as Billy MacKenzie (27 March 1957 – January 22, 1997) was a Scottish singer, notable for his powerful voice and vast vocal range.Born in Dundee, he led a wandering lifestyle, which included decamping to New Zealand at the age of 16, and travelling across America aged 17. Here, to avoid deportation, he married Chloe Dummar.
He returned to Scotland where he met Alan Rankine and in 1976 formed the Ascorbic Ones. They changed the name to The Associates in 1979. The Associates continued in name until 1990, after which MacKenzie embarked on a official solo career.

Outernational was produced by Thomas Fehlmann (former Palais Schaumburg, the Orb) and Boris Blank(Yello) . It was the first album issued under the artist name Billy MacKenzie. Even though the album had good reviews in the press and Baby was single of the week in Melody Maker, the album stiffed - partially due to his label Circa winding down operation(busting).



01 - Outernational (7:19)
02 - Feels Like The Richtergroove (4:15)
03 - Opal Krush (4:36)
04 - Colours Will Come (5:01)
05 - Pastime Paradise (3:30)
06 - Grooveature (To Be Continued) (4:46)
07 - Sacrifice And Be Sacrificed (4:41)
08 - Baby (4:03)
09 - What Made Me Turn On The Lights (4:58)
10 - In Windows All (7:28)
Remaster Bonus
11 Colours Will Come (US 60659 Mix) 4:11
12 Look What You've Done (Marital Mix) 5:27
13 Because You Love 5:25



Beyond the Sun turned out to be Billy's Last work, it wasn't finished and it must have been hard to finish the production for Pascal Gabriel and Cocteau Twins bassist Simon Raymonde, specially Billy's voice logically it ain't as full as usual.

The death of his mother had put him in a depression from which he hadn't really recovered returning to his family's place he hit rockbottom, after walking the dogs he took an overdose of paracetamol, and was found the next day by his father, the wanderer was no more. Four days before he had signed a lucrative publishing deal with Sony. In an act of supreme remote control for a man of barely containable emotions, Billy Mackenzie took his life. Later blame was laid on the poisonous anti depressants he had been taking and which worked counterproductive on this free spirit that didn't want to be a pop-star.

The world lost one of its special "god-given" voices. Billy had many good friends and admirers in the music industry, specially other singers, the inlay of this cd has a message from Bono, Robert Smith wrote a song to express his grief, "Cut Here", included  under the Xs some work he did with Yello and his last fully finished/produced track he did with Apollo 440 the epic "Pain In Any Language".



Billy Mackenzie - Beyond The Sun (97 ^ 383mb)

01 - Give Me Time
02 - Winter Academy
03 - Blue It Is
04 - 14 Mirrors
05 - At The Edge Of The World
06 - Beyond The Sun
07 - And This She Knows
08 - Sour Jewel
09 - 3 Gypsies In A Restaurant
10 - Nocturne VII
Xs
11 - Life Is A Snowball with Yello
12 - The Rhythm Divine with Yello
13 - Pain In Any Language with Apollo 440


Billy @ FanBase
Tom Doyle's -The Glamour Chase, Biography @ Amazon.Uk
MacKenzie @ Amazon.Uk

Billy MacKenzie Interview & Obituary
Info on tribute for MacKenzie 28th march (50th birthdate)

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Jesus and Mary Chain - Darklands (87 * 461mb)

Like Velvet Underground, The, their most obvious influence, the chart success of the Jesus and Mary Chain was virtually non-existent, but their artistic impact was incalculable; quite simply, the British group made the world safe for white noise, orchestrating a sound dense in squalling feedback which served as an inspiration to everyone from My Bloody Valentine to Dinosaur Jr.. Though the supporting players drifted in and out of focus, the heart of the Mary Chain remained vocalists and guitarists William Reid and Jim Reid, Scottish-born brothers heavily influenced not only by underground legends like the Velvets and Stooges, The but also by the sonic grandeur and pop savvy of Phil Spector and Brian Wilson. In the Jesus and Mary Chain, which the Reids formed outside of Glasgow in 1984 with bassist Douglas Hart and drummer Murray Dalglish (quickly replaced by Bobby Gillespie), these two polarized aesthetics converged; equal parts bubblegum and formless guitar distortion, their sound both celebrated pop conventions and thoroughly subverted them.

The Jesus and Mary Chain's early gigs have become somewhat legendary in indie circles. Playing in front of small audiences, the Mary Chain earned their notoriety by playing very short gigs, some lasting no more than 10 minutes and consisting of a constant wall of feedback and distortion, as well as playing with their backs to the audience and refusing to speak to them. Many shows culminated with the Reids trashing their equipment, which was often followed by the audience rioting. All of this delighted manager and Creation Records boss Alan McGee, who obviously found it very easy to get attention for the band. He would simply make sure people from the music press were present while these events occurred, which ensured blanket coverage in the music papers. In late 1984, the band issued its seminal debut single, "Upside Down," a remarkable blast of live wire feedback anchored by a caveman-like drumbeat; the record made the Mary Chain an overnight sensation in the U.K . The follow-up, "You Trip Me Up," further perfected the formula, and led to their 1985 debut LP Psychocandy, which gift-wrapped sweet, simple pop songs in ribbons of droning guitar fuzz. After a two-year layoff (during which time Gillespie exited to form Primal Scream, and was replaced by John Moore), the Jesus and Mary Chain returned with Darklands, a dramatic shift in approach which stripped away the feedback to expose the skeletal guitar pop at the music's core. After a sprawling 1988 collection of singles, B-sides and demos titled Barbed Wire Kisses, they emerged with Automatic, which introduced a more tightly-coiled brand of feedback while jettisoning Moore's live drums in favor of synthesized beats.

After another long absence, the Mary Chain (minus Hart) resurfaced in 1992 with Honey's Dead, and earned greater U.S. visibility thanks to a spot on that summer's Lollapalooza lineup; the first single "Reverence" also won them renewed notoriety at home when Top of the Pops banned the song . With 1994's gentle, largely acoustic Stoned & Dethroned, they even reached the U.S. pop charts thanks to the lovely single "Sometimes Always," a duet with Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval. Another collection of scattered sides, The Jesus and Mary Chain Hate Rock 'n' Roll, followed a year later, highlighted by the single "I Hate Rock 'n' Roll," a scabrous swipe which reclaimed the pure noise attack of their earliest work. Moving to Sub Pop, they returned with Munki in 1998. William Reid left the group during the subsequent tour, and in 1999, the Jesus and Mary Chain officially disbanded.

On January 22, 2007, it was announced that The Jesus and Mary Chain were reuniting to perform at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. William, Jim and Linda and are releasing a full length under the band name Sister Vanilla entitled Little Pop Rock. It will be composed of tracks recorded over 10 years. The album is due out in April 2007 on Chemikal Underground.



01 - Darklands (5:27)
02 - Deep One Perfect Morning (2:43)
03 - Happy When It Rains (3:34)
04 - Down On Me (2:35)
05 - Nine Million Rainy Days (4:28)
06 - April Skies (4:01)
07 - Fall (2:26)
08 - Cherry Came Too (3:03)
09 - On The Wall (5:03)
10 - About You (2:31)
Remaster Bonus
11 Some Candy Talking
12 Taste Of Cindy (Acoustic Version).
13 Psychocandy
14 Hit
BBC Janice Long Session 23rd Nov 1986
15 Darklands
16 Down On Me
17 Deep One Perfect Morning
BBC John Peel Session 25th Nov 1986
18 Fall
19 In The Rain
20 Happy Place

Jesus and Mary Chain @ Base
Jesus and Mary Chain @ Amazon

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VA - Slam - Soma MuzikMix (01 * 342mb)

Slam have released numerous singles since the mid-1990s, their most known being 'Positive Education', 'Eterna' and 'Lifetimes'. Slam took their name from a club night that they ran in Glasgow venue The Arches. They didn't intend to call themselves Slam - it was a name that followed them after the Slam night at the Arches ended. The last song to be played at the very last Slam at the Arches night was 'Positive Education' by Slam.

They co-founded Soma Recordings in 1991, along with label boss Dave Clarke. More recently Slam Events was launched - a subdivision of Soma that deals mainly with the promotion of Slam and Slam nights. Slam are currently the resident DJs at Pressure, a monthly event promoted by Soma and Slam Events which occurs on the last Friday of every month at The Arches in Glasgow. They also have a residency at the Sub Club in Glasgow at another Soma and Slam Events night called Return to Mono which occurs on the second Friday of every month. They have also been resident DJs at Fabric in London.



01 - Frame - D-Vices (4:26)
02 - Silicone Soul - Chic-O-Laa (H-Foundation Remix) (5:32)
03 - Funk D'Void - Barnabeats (5:30)
04 - Master H - Magic K (7:19)
05 - Soul Interactive - Da Warrior (6:03)
06 - Counter Plan - 90 Degrees (DJ Q Mix) (1:40)
07 - Universal Principles - Flyin' High (S-Man's R-Senal Accapella) (1:51)
08 - Retroflex - Moment Resistance (3:31)
09 - Percy X - Maintain (6:47)
10 - Gene Farris - Let Yourself Go (7:20)
11 - Slam - I Karumba (6:03)
12 - Slam vs. UNKLE - Narco Tourists (Slam Mix) (6:43)

Slam @ Base
Soma Records @ Base
Slam @ Amazon

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Midge Ure - If I Was (93 * 409mb)

Midge Ure OBE (born James Ure on October 10, 1953 in Cambuslang, Lanarkshire, Scotland) is a rock and roll guitarist, singer and songwriter from Scotland, who had particular success in the 1970s and 1980s. His stage name, Midge, is a phonetic reversal of his real name, Jim.

Ure began his career with bubblegum pop band Slik. Before Slik became famous they were known as Salvation and were the house band playing mostly covers in Glasgow disco Clouds above Greens Playhouse where all major bands played when they came to the city. Midge played guitar and was known for wearing a top hat onstage. He would go on to play in The Rich Kids (with then-former Sex Pistol Glen Matlock) and temporarily for Thin Lizzy before replacing John Foxx as singer of electronic wave band Ultravox in 1979. His vocals struck a chord because soon afterwards Ultravox had a megahit all over Europe with "Vienna", and they became one of Britain's top bands for several years. This after been dumped by Island for lack of commercial success with their first 3 albums.

Also later that year, Ure also formed the band Visage with Steve Strange and fellow former Rich Kid Rusty Egan. The following year, Ure and Thin Lizzy leader Phil Lynott co-wrote Lynott's biggest solo hit, "Yellow Pearl". A re-recording of the song done in 1981 and used as the theme for Top of the Pops.

In 1984, Ure co- wrote and produced the Band Aid hit, "Do They Know It's Christmas ?".He watched Bob Geldof bask in the limelight and take the credits, ultimately Ure was one of the few featured stars who did not sing solo on the recording, being completely cast into the shadows. The following year Ure took his creative revenge and scored his one and only solo UK number one single with "If I Was", followed by an album The Gift. With Ure's mind clearly on other matters, Ultravox took second place and soon dissolved.

Ure's solo career continued into the 1990s with sporadic success, although "Breathe" was an international hit single, helped by its inclusion in a TV advertising campaign for Swatch watches. Answers To Nothing (88) , Pure (91), Breathe (96) and thusfar his latest Move Me (00) and since a number of live registrations.

He recently organized the Live 8 concerts with Bob Geldof with the aim of pressuring G8 leaders into following his recipe for ending world poverty. In 2005 he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to music and charity. He's thusfar scored 4 daughters from 2 marriages one of which is following into her fathers footsteps, Molly as the guitarist and vocalist of pop punk band The Faders



01 - If I Was (5:21)
02 - No Regrets (4:02)
03 - Love's Great Adventure (3:08)
04 - Dear God (5:02)
05 - Cold Cold Heart (4:06)
06 - Vienna (4:38)
07 - Call Of The Wild (4:21)
08 - After A Fashion (3:59)
09 - Dancing With Tears In My Eyes (4:10)
10 - All Fall Down (5:09)
11 - Yellow Pearl ( Philip Lynott )(3:20)
12 - Fade To Grey (Visage)(3:47)
13 - Reap The Wild Wind (3:43)
14 - Answers To Nothing (3:40)
16 - That Certain Smile (4:09)
15 - Do They Know It's Christmas (3:47)

Midge Ure @ Base
Midge Ure @ Amazon

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Simple Minds - Empires and Dance (80 * 413mb))

Charlie Burchill and Jim Kerr formed a punk band in 1977 that was heavily influenced by Lou Reed, and after one unsuccessful single as Johnny & The Self Abusers, they shuffled the line-up to include former Abusers Brian McGee on drums and Tony Donald on bass guitar, the latter of whom was quickly replaced by Derek Forbes. In addition, keyboard and synthesizer player Mick MacNeil was also recruited. The band's name was changed to "Simple Minds", which was taken from a line in the David Bowie song "Jean Genie": "...so simple-minded, he can't drive his module."

Simple Minds' commercial first album, Life in a Day, took a cue from fellow Post-Punk forebearers Magazine, and was somewhat self-consciously derivative of the late-70s punk boom. Life in a Day was exactly the kind of item the band's label, Arista, wanted to promote. However, expectations for follow-up "Lives in a Day" were to be disappointed. While still categorisable as 'rock', Simple Minds' second release, Real to Real Cacophony, had a darker edge, and announced some of the New Wave experimentation that would become the band’s trademark sound over the next two albums.

Empires and Dance, was a far more radical departure, and signaled the influence of Kraftwerk, Neu! and similar European artists. Indeed, during this period Simple Minds promoted themselves as a European band, not a Scottish or UK band. Many of the tracks on Empires and Dance are extremely minimal, and feature sequenced keyboards. McNeil's keyboards and Forbes' bass became the main melodic elements, and Burchill's guitar was heavily processed. With this album, Kerr began to experiment with non-narrative lyrics. While not consciously so, Empires and Dance was essentially Industrial in its aesthetic, and preceded by a couple of years the Industrial-pop crossover of Cabaret Voltaire's album The Crackdown. The band's label, however, demonstrated little enthusiasm for such experimentation, and in 1981 Simple Minds switched from Arista to Virgin.



01 - I Travel (3:56)
02 - Today I Died Again (4:39)
03 - Celebrate (5:03)
04 - This Fear Of Gods (7:00)
05 - Capital City (6:14)
06 - Constantinople Line (4:14)
07 - Twist/Run/Repulsion (4:38)
08 - Thirty Frames A Second (5:14)
09 - Kant-Kino (1:50)
10 - Room (2:30)
Remaster Bonus
11 New Warm Skin
12 I Travel (Extended)
13 Celebrate (Extended)

Simple Minds' first release on Virgin was actually comprised of two albums--the Steve Hillage-produced Sons and Fascination and Sister Feelings Call. The latter album was initially included as a bonus disc with the first 10,000 vinyl copies of Sons And Fascination, but it was later re-issued as a separate album in its own right. It could be considered a electro-dub version of Sons and Fascination and as such to me displays a longer shelflife. Commercial success was just around the corner with New Gold Dream (82) their 5th album, and since they've released 10 studio and 2 live albums.



Simple Minds - Sister Feelings Call (81* 313mb)

01 - Theme for Great Cities
02 - The American
03 - 20th Century Promised Land
04 - Wonderful in Young Life
05 - League of Nations
06 - Careful in Career
07 - Sounds in 70 Cities
Remaster Bonus
08 The American (Extended)
09 League Of Nations (Live 25-09-81 Hammersmith Odeon, London)

Simple Minds @ Base

Simple Minds @ Amazon

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Wolfstone - Pick of the Litter (97 * 468mb)

Wolfstone’s success can undoubtedly be attributed to their ability to transfer their highly acclaimed recorded material to the most fantastic and unforgettable live performances. This ability has seen the band headline major festivals throughout the world. Describing Wolfstone’s music is best described by the man who founded it all, Duncan Chisholm “At the end of the day we are a rock band from the Highlands of Scotland that happen to use pipes, whistles and fiddles in our repertoire”

This description probably underlies Wolfstone’s success in attracting a large and loyal following from fans of all genres, be it Rock, Celtic Rock, Folk Rock, World Music etc. The unique blend of guitars, fiddle, pipes and pulsating percussion; all combined with a dynamic stage presence; are all well-known hallmarks of this unique and exciting band. They believe in the strength and spirit of their music, it's a band that consistently proves their music can sell to all ages and cultures around the world and most importantly, a band that can perform ‘live’ on stage, exactly what you hear on their albums.

Pick of the Litter (97) is a best off from their first 5 albums between 90 and 96, since they've released 5 more the latest Terra Firma was released this year. On a personal note, the Pick cover is awful and doesnt reflect the music at all.



01 - Battle
02 - Tall Ships
03 - Glass & The Can
04 - Cleveland Park
05 - Heart & Soul
06 - The Howl
07 - White Gown
08 - Glenglass
09 - Brave Foot Soldiers
10 - Dinner's Set
11 - Sleepy Toon
12 - The £10 Float
13 - Holy Ground
14 - Clueless
15 - No Tie Ups

Wolfstone @ Base
Wolfstone @ MySpace

Wolfstone @ Amazon

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* All downloads are in * ogg-7 (224k) or ^ ogg-9(320k), artwork is included , if in need get the nifty ogg encoder/decoder here !

Feb 28, 2007

Stage 27, Scotland

Welcome to stage 27, Scotland, yes i've taken the ferry from Oslo to Aberdeen and landed in the lands of the bagpipes, the tough guys, the highlanders....

The Gaels of Dál Riata, an Irish tribe called the Scots, peopled Argyll. From this people came Cináed mac Ailpín, who united the Kingdom of Scotland in 843, when he became the King of the Picts and Scots.The name Scotia has been used to refer to Scotland since at least the beginning of the 10th century, when it first appeared in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as a reference to the Land of the Gaels. Scottish kings adopted the title Basileus Scottorum or Rex Scottorum (meaning High King of the Gaels), and Rex Scotiae (King of Gael-land) some time in the 11th century. In modern times the word Scot is applied equally to all inhabitants regardless of their ancestral ethnicity, as the nation has had a civic, rather than an ethnic or linguistic, orientation for most of the last millennium.

The Scots have their own lawsystem, the UK Parliament retains active power over Scotland's taxes, social security system, the military, international relations, broadcasting, and some other areas explicitly specified in the Scotland Act 1998 as reserved matters. The Scottish Parliament has legislative authority for all other areas relating to Scotland, and has limited power to vary income tax - also known as tartan tax - but has never exercised this power. The programmes of legislation enacted by the Scottish Parliament have seen a divergence in the provision of public services compared to the rest of the United Kingdom. For instance, the costs of a university education, and care services for the elderly are free at point of use in Scotland, while fees are paid in the rest of the UK.

2.2 of the 5 million Scots reside in the Greater Glasgow area, however the capitol is Edinburgh, a major european financial center. The education system in Scotland is distinct from the rest of the United Kingdom and was the first country since Sparta in classical Greece to implement a system of general public education. Schooling was made compulsory for the first time in Scotland with the Education Act of 1496 since it forced all nobles and freeholders to educate their eldest sons in Latin, followed by the Arts, and Scots law. Then, in 1561, the Kirk set out a national programme for spiritual reform, including a school in every parish. As a result the Scots had a higher percentage of its population educated at primary, secondary and tertiary levels than any other country in Europe for hundreds of years.

The Scottish music scene is a significant aspect of Scottish culture, with both traditional and modern influences. An example of a traditional Scottish instrument is the Great Highland Bagpipe, a wind instrument consisting of one or more musical pipes which are fed continuously by a reservoir of air in a bag. The Clàrsach, fiddle and accordion are also traditional Scottish instruments, the latter two heavily featured in Scottish country dance bands. Scottish emigrants took traditional Scottish music with them and it influenced early local styles such as country music in North America.

These days however, i noted something unexpected the current crop of bands is very poor, in fact considering the impact Scots had in the early eighties things have gone downhill, maybe its because most bands make a indie-guitar music, which has been done for some time, decades, but in the dance or electronic music scene they are almost totally absent, or in metal or goth, in fact i was a bit shocked when i saw listings of scottish bands. Have they all been usurped by the english music industry ? As a consequence my 2 scottish posts will contain much more old work than usual and thus some nice vinyl rips.

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Who said there can only be one...

The Fire Engines - Lubricate your living room
The Associates - The Affectionate Punch
The Associates - Perhaps
Boards of Canada - Geogaddi
Mogwai - Happy Songs
Skids - Best of
Skids - Joy
The Blue Nile - A Walk Across The Rooftops
Scars - Author ! Author !

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The Fire Engines - Lubricate your living room (80 * 49mb)

Fire Engines are a post-punk band from Edinburgh, Scotland. The band was a part of the same literary art-punk scene as the Scars and their most famous contemporaries, Josef K. They grew out of the Dirty Reds which had actor Tam Dean Burn as singer. Inspired themselves by the Voidoids and James Chance, the songs are a tangy lobster-pot of short sharp shocks, chaotic riffing, unpredictable beats and vocal epilepsy. Vocals and guitar were done by David Henderson, guitar by Murray Slade, bass by Graham Main, and on drums, Russell Burn. They were noted for Get Up And Use Me/Everything's Roses (Codex 1980), and singles and LPs in 1981.

They recently released a limited edition collaboration single with Franz Ferdinand. The single contained a Franz Ferdinand cover of the Fire Engines song "Get Up and Use Me" with Fire Engines covering Franz Ferdinand's "Jacqueline". Aswell as a kinda rerelease on cd of Lubricate with some singles titled "Codex Teenage Premonition"(05).

After the dissolution of The Fire Engines, Davey Henderson formed Win with Ian Stoddart (Bass), ex-Fire Engine Russell Burn (Drums/Keyboards), Emmanuel Shoniwa (Guitar/Bass), Simon Smeeton (Guitar/Bass) and William Perry (Keyboards) in 1983. A more determinedly pop act than The Fire Engines, Win were soon being critically praised and made 2 albums before splitting up.



01 - Plastic Gift
02 - Get Up & Use Me
03 - Sympathetic Anaesthetic
04 - Discord
05 - New Thing in Cartons
06 - Hungry Beat
07 - Lubricate Your Living Room pt.1
08 - Lubricate Your Living Room pt.2

The Fire Engines @ Base
The Fire Engines @ MySpace

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Associates - The Affectionate Punch (80 * 343mb)

Billy MacKenzie and Alan Rankine formed The Associates in Dundee, Scotland, in 1976. They released a self-funded 7" of Boys Keep Swinging mere weeks after David Bowie had released his original. This scam got them a publishing deal with Bowie's publishers and a proper record deal. By 1980 they were touring with The Cure, and signed to Fiction Records, for whom they recorded The Affectionate Punch. At the turn of the year they relocated to Situation 2 and put out a string of singles, later compiled on the album Fourth Drawer Down, recorded using money from major labels who were expecting demos to be produced with their cash... In tandem with their increasing consumption of coke and speed, the groups' music became increasingly deranged and experimental. John Murphy and Mike Dempsey (ex-The Cure) became official members.

The Associates signed with WEA in 1982. Martha Ladly joined as back-up singer. Billy and Alan immediately scored a string of UK top 20 chart hits. The album Sulk made the UK top 10, winning album of the year awards in the UK music press. The groups drug use was at a peak - Billy & Alans behaviour was becoming somewhat erratic. On the eve of their biggest ever UK tour MacKenzie pulled out. A US deal with Island was consequentially lost. Deciding that he couldn't continue, Alan Rankine left the group. From this moment on, The Associates were to be just that: Billy MacKenzie solo, with different associates for each release.




01 - The Affectionate Punch (3:31)
02 - Amused As Always (4:19)
03 - Logan Time (4:15)
04 - Paper House (4:46)
05 - Transport To Central (4:58)
06 - A Matter Of Gender (4:34)
07 - Even Dogs In The Wild (3:27)
08 - Would I… Bounce Back? (3:59)
09 - Deeply Concerned (3:44)
10 - A (3:51)
Bonus
11 - You Were Young 4:07
12 - Janice 2:34
13 - Boys Keep Swinging (Mono) 3:40
14 - Mona Property Girl 3:26

MacKenzie started recording a follow up album. 1984s Perhaps cost WEA £250,000. It took 3 years and 4 production teams to record - twice (dissatisfied with the original production Billy "lost" the first versions' master tapes, forcing a re-recording). The album had some chart success, but WEA were dissatisfied, and started pressuring MacKenzie to follow a more straightforward pop-soul direction. Frustrated by WEA's lack of support, MacKenzie focussed on collaborations, most notably with Yello (featuring on One Second, Flag, Baby and writing The Rhythm Divine).

1988's comeback single, a cover of Blondie's Heart Of Glass, failed to chart. WEA refused to release its parent album, The Glamour Chase, and with MacKenzie over a million pounds in debt to the label The Associates were dropped.

Circa quickly signed MacKenzie and in 1990 released Wild And Lonely, the last album of original music under the The Associates name. 1992's album, the Thomas Fehlmann / Boris Blank-produced Outernational was issued under the artist name Billy MacKenzie. Even though the album had good reviews in the press and Baby was single of the week in Melody Maker, the album stiffed - partially due to Circa winding down operations.

Aside from an aborted Associates reunion with Alan Rankine in the mid-90s, MacKenzie remained a solo artist, collaborating in the 90s with Peach, Barry Adamson, Paul Haig and Apollo Four Forty amongst others. At the end of 1996, after four years without a deal, he signed with Nude Records.

Tragically his first release for the label was a post-humous one. The death of his mother in 1996 was likely the trigger of an emotional breakdown that led him deeper and deeper into a depressed state. Billy MacKenzie died aged 39, on 22nd January 1997 from an overdose of prescribed and over-the-counter pills.

Affectionate Punch, Fourtdrawer Down and Sulk are all available in remastered format.



 The Associates - Perhaps (85 * 376mb)

01 - Those First Impressions (4:43)
02 - Waiting For The Loveboat (6:55)
03 - Perhaps (6:32)
04 - Shampout (6:02)
05 - Helicopter Helicopter (4:09)
06 - Breakfast (5:34)
07 - Thirteen Feelings (4:39)
08 - The Stranger In Your Voice (6:15)
09 - The Best Of You (5:37)
10 - Don't Give Me That I Told You So Look (5:12)

The Associates @ Base
The Associates @ You Tube
The Associates @ Amazon

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Boards of Canada - Geogaddi ( 02 ^ 369mb))

Growing up in a musical family, brothers Michael and Marcus Eoin began playing instruments at a young age. They experimented with recording techniques at around the age of 10, using tape machines to layer cut-up samples of found sounds over compositions of their own. In their teens they participated in a number of amateur bands, however, it wasn't until 1986 when Marcus was invited to Michael's band that Boards of Canada was born.

In 1995, the band released the first work from the Hexagon Sun studio, the EP Twoism. Like earlier Music70 releases, it was produced in a self-financed limited run and was privately distributed, primarily to friends and labels, it was considered of such high quality to be subsequently re-pressed in 2002. The precursor to Music Has the Right to Children was released in 1996. Titled Boc Maxima, it was a semi-private release that is notable for being a full-length album. Boc Maxima's work was later used for Music Has the Right to Children (98), considered to be a masterpiece by many. They followed with another EP "In a Beautiful Place Out in the Country"(2000). Boards of Canada's unique sound is a product of their strong use of analog equipment, mix of electronic and conventional instrumentation, use of distorted samples as well as live and radio or film lyrics, and their layering and blending of these elements. They avoid a purely synthetic sound which gives their music a warmer, emotive quality, often meant to inspire nostalgia.

This album Geogaddi was released in 2002. It was described by Sandison as "a record for some sort of trial-by-fire, a claustrophobic, twisting journey that takes you into some pretty dark experiences before you reach the open air again." Geogaddi's development involved the creation of 400 song fragments and 64 complete songs, of which 23 were selected (one of which is complete silence).

Though never an actively touring band, Boards of Canada did perform a handful of shows. Early shows saw them supporting Warp labelmates Seefeel and Autechre in a scattering of UK dates. They also participated in a few festivals and multi-artist bills, including two Warp parties. Until 2005 they kept the fact they were brothers and not just childhood friends hidden from the media, apparently they didnt want to be compared to the Hartnoll Brothers (Orbital). Their latest full album 2005's Campfire Headphase is much in line with their previous Warp work.



01 - Ready Lets Go (0:57)
02 - Music Is Math (5:21)
03 - Beware The Friendly Stranger (0:40)
04 - Gyroscope (3:32)
05 - Dandelion (1:14)
06 - Sunshine Recorder (6:12)
07 - In The Annexe (1:22)
08 - Julie And Candy (5:34)
09 - The Smallest Weird Number (1:13)
10 - 1969 (4:20)
11 - Energy Warning (0:35)
12 - The Beach At Redpoint (4:18)
13 - Opening The Mouth (1:11)
14 - Alpha And Omega (7:02)
15 - I Saw Drones (0:27)
16 - The Devil Is In The Details (3:56)
17 - A Is To B As B Is To C (1:37)
18 - Over The Horizon Radar (1:08)
19 - Dawn Chorus (3:56)
20 - Diving Station (1:25)
21 - You Could Feel The Sky (5:15)
22 - Corsair (2:48)
23 - Magic Window (1:52)

BOC @ Base
BOC @ MySpace
BOC @ YouTube
BOC @ Amazon

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Mogwai - Happy Songs (03 ^ 260mb)

Named themselves after those gremlins who inturn derive the name from the Cantonese word mo gwai meaning "ghost", "evil spirit", "devil" or "demon". Stuart Braithwaite and Dominic Aitchison formed Mogwai in 1995 and since then, they have become one of the most influential and best known post-rock bands. They compose lengthy instrumental guitar-based pieces in the post-rock tradition. Mogwai's style has easily identifiable connections to genres like shoegaze, math rock, art rock, and occasionally instrumental metal.
Happy Songs is a rather ironic title for their 4th album "Happy Songs" is a beautiful instrumental post-rock album with a very mellow and relaxed feel, melodies and guitar float in the air while solid percussion and string arrangments keep things grounded while exploring new heights at the same time. Last year saw the release of Mogwai's 5th album "Mr Beast", which the followed in the fall with the music score to Zidane; A 20th century portrait.



01 - Hunted By A Freak (4:18)
02 - Moses? I Amn't (2:59)
03 - Kids Will Be Skeletons (5:29)
04 - Killing All The Flies (4:35)
05 - Boring Machines Disturbs Sleep (3:05)
06 - Ratts Of The Capital (8:27)
07 - Golden Porsche (2:49)
08 - I Know You Are But What Am I? (5:17)
09 - Stop Coming To My House (4:53)

Mogwai @ MySpace
Mogwai @ Base II
Mogwai @ YouTube
Mogwai @ Amazon

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Skids - Best of (01 ^ 151mb)

The Skids, it seemed, picked their moment well. Comprising the songwriting axis of Richard Jobson (vocals) and Stuart Adamson (guitar), together with the rhythm section of William Simpson (bass) and Tom Kellichan (drums), they rode into British consciousness on the new wave backwash to the ebbing tide of punk. The release of their self-financed, attention-grabbing Charles EP came at the time Richard Branson's Virgin label were busy accruing an eclectic roster of post-punk hopefuls. Consequently, with almost indecent haste, the band were tethered to what was to prove an optimistic eight-album deal.

On the flip side of their first Virgin single, "Sweet Suburbia" (1978), the band proclaimed themselves to be "Open Sound", which was essentially a description of the soaring histrionics of Adamson's guitar style. When married to the martial rhythms of the drumming and the bellowing, chant-like vocals of Jobson, this sound conspired to lend their repertoire a rousing, anthemic quality. It was heroic music which at its best, as on the first album, Scared To Dance (1979), seemed to capture the drama and turbulence of battle. Unfortunately, the sound was an all-too-graphic reflection of the band's own stormy relationships, a turbulence which was to settle only with the departure of Adamson in the summer of 1981.

The Skids' decline was in large part due to the portentous designs of Richard Jobson, who sought to mould the band into a vehicle for his ever more convoluted lyrics. This became most evident in the recording of the second album, Days In Europa (1979). Following the departure of original drummer Tom Kellichan in the traditional rock'n'roll style (i.e. after the first album), the Skids recruited a temporary replacement in the form of ex-Rich Kids drummer and Jobson cohort, Rusty Egan, and a producer in the form of ex- Be-Bop Deluxe man Bill Nelson. Together, both Nelson and Egan contrived to free the band from the strictures of punk-pop in favour of a more polished, almost danceable sound. Ultimately it was a case of too many cooks, and the resultant album proved to be a misguided attempt at redefining the Skids' sound. This in turn alienated a great many fans, and also cost them the services of bassist Simpson during the troubled tour that ensued.

For Jobson and Adamson it was back to the drawing board, and 1980 saw a rejuvenated Skids with a new rhythm section in the form of Russell Webb (bass) and Mike Baillie (drums). The resultant album, The Absolute Game (1980), produced this time by Mick Glossop, was a commercial success, giving the band their first and only British Top 10 album. Artistically, too, it heralded a return to form, dispensing with the excess baggage of the previous outing and playing to the dual strengths of Adamson's guitar stylings and Jobson's lyrical bombast. Unfortunately, this rejuvenation coincided with Jobson's increasing commitment to a burgeoning London scene. Adamson's departure had as much to do with geographical differences as to musical and personal ones; a point evinced by Adamson's eventual return to Dunfermline, from where he formed the internationally successful Big Country.

Following Adamson's departure, the final dissolution of the band was soon to follow. Unfortunately, however, not before Jobson and Webb issued a dour and ill-conceived concept album, Joy (1981), which served only to illustrate that, when Adamson left, he took all of the best tunes with him. Not surprisingly the album failed to chart,  a sorry end to a short career which had begun with so much spark and promise. (Discogs)



01 - Charles
02 - Sweet Suburbia
03 - Into the Valley
04 - Goodbye Civilian
05 - Walk on the Wild Side
06 - the Saints Are Coming
07 - Working For The Yankee Dollar
08 - Charade
09 - All The Young Dudes
10 - Melancony Soldiers
11 - TV Stars
12 - Snakes and Ladders
13 - Circus Games
14 - Animation
15 - And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda
16 - Masquerade
17 - Fields
18 - Hymns For a Haunted Ballroom

The eleven track Joy was issued fall 81 and marks a concerted effort to update traditional Scottish music into the age of modern rock recordings. The sound is fundamentally more pastoral than previous Skids efforts. Gone are the layers of harmonically treated electric guitar. The lyrical concerns of strife, war and brotherhood are Jobson staples. Though the band recorded a BBC radio session and shot a music video for Iona, promotion problems at Virgin forestalled a tour. With patchy coverage, no live support and a difficult change in musical direction, the record sank without a trace. Critical reception was mixed at best. Well this album is unreleased on cd, maybe a release might generate critical reappraisal now that fixed ideas of what a rock band should sound like have been loosened, you can judge for yourself here.



Skids - Joy (84 * 68mb)

01 - Blood And Soil (3:58)
02 - A Challenge (The Wanderer) (6:10)
03 - Men Of Mercy (1:11)
04 - A Memory (5:05)
05 - Iona (ft Mike Oldfield) (7:15)
06 - In Fear Of Fire (0:42)
07 - Brothers (3:11)
08 - And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda (5:30)
09 - The Men Of The Fall (6:26)
10 - The Sound Of Retreat (2:54)
11 - Fields (Ft the Associates) (4:32)

Skids FanSite

Skids @ YouTube
Skids @ Amazon

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The Blue Nile - A Walk Across The Rooftops (84 * 422mb)

The Scottish folk-ambient band the Blue Nile has enjoyed a mystique contrived by its inaccessibility and the infrequency of its recordings, but it has also made a series of critically acclaimed discs. The band was formed when friends Paul Buchanan (singer/songwriter/guitarist) and Paul Joseph Moore ( keyboardist) met Robert Bell (bass) shortly after graduating from the University of Glasgow in the late 1970s. Although their individual degrees didn't reflect their future career trajectory (English Literature, Electronics and Mathematics, respectively), their mutual friendship grew out of their shared interest in music, and they began writing and recording together. They recorded their own single, "I Love This Life," which was distributed by Robert Stigwood's RSO Records just before the company closed its doors. When local Hi-Fi manufacturer Linn Electronics heard their music, the company offered the band money to record a track that would showcase the sonic range of the company's high-end audio equipment. Linn was so pleased with the result, they formed their own record label in order to release The Blue Nile's debut, A Walk Across the Rooftops, in 1984.

Without much support or touring the album took some time to find its audience, though it briefly reached the U.K. charts and led to high expectations for a second album. This came in 1989 with Hats, which reached the British Top 20, throwing off three chart singles, "The Downtown Lights," "Headlights on the Parade," and "Saturday Night." The album also made the lower reaches of the American charts as the Blue Nile embarked on its first tour, a 30-date journey taking place in the British Isles and the U.S. In the ensuing years, the band members switched record labels, signing to Warner Bros., and contributed to recordings by Robbie Robertson and Julian Lennon. In 1996, The Blue Nile finally released their long-anticipated follow-up to Hats, entitled Peace at Last. In a radical departure from the band's prior two albums, the record is primarily driven by Buchanan's acoustic guitar. Even a gospel choir makes a brief appearance on the leadoff single, "Happiness". Despite the release of Peace at Last on a major label, the album sold poorly, and the critical reaction to the album was more mixed.

After the longest gestation period between albums -- eight years -- The Blue Nile released High in 2004. Although acoustic guitar is still present on some tracks, the overall musical sound is more reminiscent of Hats, and as a result, the record has once again received almost universal critical praise.



1 - A Walk Across The Rooftops (4:54)
2 - Tinseltown In The Rain (5:53)
3 - From Rags To Riches (5:59)
4 - Stay (4:55)
5 - Easter Parade (4:29)
6 - Heatwave (6:26)
7 - Automobile Noise (5:08)
Bonus
08 - I Love This Life 4:02
09 - Heatwave (Rhythm Remix) 5:50
10 - St. Catherine's Day 4:42
11 - Tinseltown In The Rain (Mix) 6:31
12 - The Second Act 4:39
13 - Stay (Little Mix) 3:34
14 - Regret 3:37


The Blue Nile @ Base
The Blue Nile @ YouTube
The Blue Nile @ Amazon

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Scars - Author ! Author ! (81 ^ 479mb)

18-10-06 rho-xs post
Scars were cocky, provocative and brash, and how they never became pop stars remains a mystery , attention to detail was central to their art, and these kids were perfect material for the State Arts design group to produce the best range of pop T-shirts ever. The people involved with State Arts were also involved in setting up the style-mag i-D, and Scars contributed a song for a free flexi with an early edition. The song, “Your Attention Please”, seems curiously apt again, being a setting of a 60s Peter Porter poem about impending nuclear terror. .

Scars’ relationship with Pre resulted in a few singles and one LP. It also saw the teenage upstarts adopt a startling new image with a look inspired by Viviene Westwood’s World’s End pirate collection. This made Scars seem like comrades of Bow Wow Wow and Adam and the Ants, unfortunately-with hindsight.

26-02-07
In October 2006, small events (like my vinyl rip-haha) that had been put into motion began to coalesce. It was announced at that time that Author! Author! would be remastered and finally released on CD format with additional tracks added in. In December 2006, the tapes were fully restored to playable mode at Abbey Road Studios by EMI, the record company that currently has ownership of the album masters, with an anticipated release date of sometime before the end of 2006. However, the remastering and CD transfer processes were put on hold pending an ISRC issuance. After this, the tapes were remastered by Steve McLaughlin and transferred to CD format, to be offered primarily on the de facto official site and with a finalized release date of February 23, 2007 (announced in January of the same year). The CD is also being made available on Amazon UK. All versions will include extra tracks from the band's various PRE/Charisma Records singles releases. Your attention please, now 10 years later it's all here...



01 - Leave me in the autumn
02 - Fear in the dark
03 - Aquarama
04 - David
05 - Obsessions
06 - The lady in the car with the glasses on
07 - Je t'aime
08 - C'est la mort
09 - Your attention please
10 - All about you
bonus
11 - Silver Dream Machine 3:59
12 - She's Alive 3:03
13 - All About You (Single Version) 4:01
14 - Author! Author! 2:54
15 - Love Song 3:11
16 - Psychomodo 3:01
17 - They Came And Took Her 2:49
18 - Romance By Mail 2:39


Remasterd Author ! Author ! + @ amazon.uk
Scars All about you @ YouTube

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