Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983-1987 is the first volume of Captured Tracks‘ new venture into compilations – Excavations.
Inspired by Pebbles, Killed By Death, Soul Jazz and Numero Group compilations, Excavations is a series dedicated to compiling forgotten music from the 1970s – 1990s that has a connection to Captured Tracks’ sound and aesthetic. Much like the Cleaners from Venus, the Wake, and Saäda Bonaire reissues we’ve put out, Excavations releases will bridge the past to our current roster and showcase the kinds of sounds that inspire us.
Record label Captured Tracks has announced a new compilation called Strum & Thrum: The American Jangle Underground 1983 – 1987. An orange vinyl edition of the new 28-track collection arrives on Record Store Day’s “Day Drop” on October 24th; standard black vinyl, as well as digital and CD editions will be out November 13th.
Strum & Thrum is the inaugural volume of Captured Tracks’ new Excavations compilation series. It chronicles the roots of melodic indie rock in the early-to-mid 1980s. Listen to the Reverbs’ “Trusted Woods” from the compilation below, and scroll down to watch a trailer for the release.
Strum & Thrum includes music from the Strand, Salem 66, Vandykes, the Ferrets, and others. The release also features a booklet with an oral history of the ’80s indie scene, an introduction by Captured Tracks label head Mike Sniper, archival images, and more. Strum & Thrum will be available on vinyl, CD, and digitally
“Strum & Thrum seems like the right fit for the first reissue compilation for Captured Tracks,” Mike Sniper said in a press release. He continued:
I’m happy that the first compilation I’ve ever produced features overlooked records that are still affordable—anyone who enjoys this comp can dive deeper into this scene without having to take out a loan. People nowadays sometimes say that guitar music is dead. Strum & Thrum is certainly against that notion. Listening to it and reading the oral history sheds a light on a largely forgotten scene full of great bands with some really great songs. I’m glad to be able to help share this story and get the bands some of the recognition they’ve deserved all along.
Record Store Day founder Michael Kurtz added:
It’s ironic that Strum & Thrum is coming out on Record Store Day’s October Drop Date, as the reason Sheila and I started Three Hits is directly related to discovering R.E.M.’s Hib-Tone single “Radio Free Europe” in a Boone, NC record store in 1981. The look was handmade, the sound was raw and honest, and the 7″ record was limited and special—you could only find it in a record store.
Owning a copy of that single allowed us fans to have a connection to the band, and that personal experience directly influenced the creation of Record Store Day itself. At the time, hearing “Radio Free Europe” and it’s “Sitting Still” B-side changed a lot of people’s lives. Dozens of other southeastern US bands, including One Plus Two, set out to write and perform songs because of it. It was an incredibly exciting time and it’s fantastic to hear bands from around the US who all had similar epiphanies and made a lot of noise together on this compilation.
Formed in the aftermath of punk’s descent on Kansas in the late 70s, Start’s jangly melodies felt distinct from the local scene, with contemporaries only to be found across the Atlantic. Despite this sense of isolation, they went on to play alongside seminal midwest groups including Get Smart and the Embarrassment, recorded the protest song “Little Fish Big Fish” with Allen Ginsberg, and released a full-length album that included “Where I Want To Be”.
The Fat Angel Sings 