Archive for the ‘CLASSIC ALBUMS’ Category

KING GIZZARD and the LIZARD WIZARD – ” Polygondwanaland ” Best Albums Of 2017

Posted: November 18, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Near the end of last year, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard promised they’d release five albums by the end of 2017. As we creep closer to the end of this year, the Aussie psych outfit have thus far shared three: Flying Microtonal Banana, Murder of the Universe, and Sketches of Brunswick East (with Mild High Club). They’ll bring the tally up to four this week with the release of their latest full-length effort, Polygondwanaland.

Lead single ‘Crumbling Castle‘ opens the immersively brilliant POLYGONDWANALAND. It’s a mystical, slow-building psych-blues epic. The song sets a fine precedent for an album that listens like a cleverly constructed amalgamation other King Gizzard releases. The 60’s pop relaxation of 2015’s Paper Mache Dream Balloon, the jazzy time signatures of 2017’s Sketches of Brunswick East, the trackless rhythmic relentlessness of 2016’s Nonagon Infinity, the microtonal, ancient conjurings of (also) 2017’s Flying Microtonal Banana, and the lyrical stories and themes so strongly present in (also, also) 2017’s Murder of the Universe. These guys have so richly explored and stretched the boundaries of their own musical and thematic universe that it’s nearly impossible for all their new stuff not to be entirely self-referential. King Gizzard can only sound like King Gizzard, and that’s a really, really awesome thing.

The album’s eponymous second track cruises upliftingly along on the burbling surface that is Gizz’s ever-deepening rivers of intertwining concept-driven song themes and stories. It opens in to the mouth of a swirling ocean, pulsing synth and clever guitar picking that spreads itself across the expansive and catchy ‘The Castle in The Air‘ and ‘Deserted Dunes Welcome Weary Feet‘. These back-to-back tracks will swallow you up in them. Gizzard front man Stu Mackenzie delivers slightly tense, staccato vocals over a somber bass and synth combination.

A hugely 80’s synth warble that’d be at home in the middle of the Stranger Things intro opens ‘Loyalty‘ and ‘Horology‘; a back-to-back psych trip that skips along with whimsical aplomb. Mackenzie unleashes the exceptionally capable flautist within him, making sure Gizz’s trademark of deft musical ability.

Lucas Skinner’s trademark bass wanderings really come to the jazzy surface, then guitarist Joey does some more Mongolian throat singing, then there’s what I believe is a sitar for a bit, and then ‘Tetrachromacy‘ seamlessly begins, Eric and Michael begin to really warm up on the drums, and we change gears once more… goodness gracious. Always on the hunt for new horizons both thematically and musically, Gizz employ that desire and curiosity here more so than any other track on POLYGONDWANALAND. We get our first – and very minimal – taste of Ambrose Smith’s mouth organ skills, dashes of cross-album hook repetition and recycling, more glass/ tubular bells, a lyrical querying of undiscovered colours near blue, flute throughout, and some seriously swift rolls and fills from the beguilingly synchronized actions of dual-percussionists Michael Cavanagh and Eric Moore (who also runs Flightless Records while seamlessly doing tandem drumming across some seriously complicated musical structures .

The album expansively closes with the hypnotic and polysyllabic wanderings of ‘Searching‘; heavily 60’s stoner psych journey in to introspection, and finally ‘The Fourth Colour‘; a staggeringly large and complicated song that both drifts and turns corners.  It’s a rollicking album closer.  Just put POLYGONDWANALAND on repeat and keep discovering.

If King Gizzard and the Lizard didn’t release another LP for a decade, their musical output within this year alone would still eclipse most (if not all) multi-millionaire, studio-backed, advertising-funded, marketing-think-tanked pop-star’s album releases by a wide margin. And they did it in their own houses, with their own equipment, under their own record label, while touring the world to sold out shows, running their own music festival, making half a dozen film clips, and personally sending you the merch and records from each release to save on overheads.

Tracklist:

0:00 – Crumbling Castle 10:44 – Polygondwanaland 14:16 – The Castle In The Air 17:04 – Deserted Dunes Welcome Weary Feet 20:38 – Inner Cell 24:35 – Loyalty 28:13 – Horology 31:06 – Tetrachromacy 34:36 – Searching… 37:40 – The Fourth Colour

The DOORS – ” Alive She Cried ” Classic Live Albums

Posted: November 18, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Released in 1983 on Elektra/Asylum Records Produced by Paul Rothchild
Recorded 1968-1969-1970, Los Angeles, New York, Detroit, Boston and Copenhagen.

Now one of the first things that impressed me about this record was how clean and modern it sounded, because music recorded in 1960’s/early ‘70s had never sounded so good. Initially I put this down to mastering. It wasn’t until many years later I learnt that the band had re-recorded their instruments on several songs, in order to give them a clearer and crisper edge. Mind you, the LP was released in 1983, a time when sanitised production was the norm, and where every instrument was practically dripping with disinfectant. Not so this album, despite the overdubs.

Opening with a cover of Van Morrison’s “Gloria”, a song the band had been performing since their days at the Whiskey A Go Go, before they were famous. This recording was captured at a rehearsal made in July 1969 at the Aquarius Theatre in Los Angeles, Its an absolute revelation. Here we have Jim Morrison at some of his sensual best, hamming it up mid-stream with a sleazy intensity. “Light My Fire” is a composite of different performances preserved over several nights, not that anyone would notice, thanks to the masterful editing of Paul A. Rothchild, who was obviously wanting to create an ‘ultimate’ experience for the listener, even inserting Morrison’s “Graveyard Poem”, a performance which had nothing to do with the tune at all.

Side one ends with an exciting as well as vigorous “You Make Me Real”, again from the Aquarius Theatre, only with new guitar overdubs by Robby Krieger.

Turn the record over and we have a rare rendition of “Texas Radio and the Big Beat”, along with “Love Me Two Times”, both of which originate from a T.V. show the band performed for in Copenhagen Denmark in late 1968. Apparently it was the discovery of these tapes in a Los Angeles warehouse that prompted the group to initiate a search to see if there might be other live tapes in existence which had gone missing during the Seventies, hence the release of this LP, on which can also be heard a particularly convincing rendition of Willie Dixon’s “Little Red Rooster”, replete with John Sebastian (who had to re-record his harmonica due to a faulty microphone) and some great slide guitar by Krieger. “Moonlight Drive” is another notable highlight (even if the band did record a new instrumental track), where Morrison’s recitation of “Horse Latitudes” is especially haunting.

Alive She Cried was no doubt a quality release, even if the title was in itself a tad misleading and not quite genuine. Krieger himself admitted at the time that they had made a few “improvements”, as he put them, to the original, tapes and corrected the odd minor mistake as required. Yet if the listener is prepared to overlook such musical misdemeanours, Alive… was in its day an important and vital reminder of The Doors potency as a living entity in a world that was becoming increasingly synthetic. The Doors who were kicking into the establishment, challenging the status quo, and who would prove to make a far more profound and everlasting impact. Not to mention the romantic allure of the band’s mysterious front man, Jim Morrison, who seems just as much alive in death as he was when he walked the earth.

“Alive She Cried” was the first official live release since 1970’s “Absolutely Live”. With the 1980 release of the Morrison bio “No One Here Get’s Out Alive” along with a new “Greatest Hits”, the fans were hungry for new material. This was it. Although this is all live material, each song was heavily edited by Paul Rothchild, with new overdubs added to some of the songs. The source material comes from the Aquarius Theater, Felt Forum, Detroit and Boston shows. Fans would later get to hear the original source material when Bright Midnight Records (and later Bright Midnight Archives) released all of the original concerts unedited. They would also discover that although the version of “Little Red Rooster” on ‘Alive She Cried’ was credited to being from the Detroit show, it was actually from one of the New York Felt Forum shows.

VARIOUS ARTISTS – ” Sonic Blooms “

Posted: November 18, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Sonic Blooms Album Launch Party

‘Sonic Blooms’ is a double album compilation of the UK’s finest emerging alt-folk and new roots music produced by the UK’s biggest folk gig listing website, Folk & Honey.

‘Sonic Blooms’ has been curated by leading alt-folk promoters New Roots and features the scene’s most exciting talent, including Brooke Sharkey, Leonie Evans, The Nightjar, Low Chimes, Jinwoo, Ned Roberts and many more.

The album will be launched with a special gig at London’s iconic 100 Club on November 27th featuring many of the artists on the compilation.
ALL PROFITS FROM THIS ALBUM WILL BE SPENT ON FURTHER PUBLICITY FOR THE RELEASE AND THE ACTS INVOLVED.

‘Sonic Blooms’ shines a light on a wonderfully diverse, vibrant scene that is happening right now, on its own terms, mostly without the backing of the media, the music industry, or the folk music establishment. Call it alternative folk, call it new roots, it pulses under the surface with word of mouth gigs in perfectly intimate venues, put together by dedicated owners and promoters – everyone there for the music, everyone there to listen intently to what these young, innovative artists are creating.

Though built from the ashes of a folk awareness, the flame for most of the work on this album was lit in a city setting. For many of these musicians their sound is the result of soaking up everything the metropolis throws at them. You can hear it in the easy cultural mix of English and French in Brooke Sharkey’s ‘Faces’, Robert Chaney’s noir city tales, the urban electronics that underpin Sisika’s ‘Routes’, Adam Beattie’s story of what it is to be an immigrant in the city.

This music is fearless and fiercely intelligent, led neither by fast changing fashion nor the rules of tradition; these are independent artists with independent voices. It’s curious and open-minded – you can hear the hunger for pushing boundaries.

These artists are deeply linked, many play on each others songs, share a producer, a studio, a stage, shared experience. Each has their own strength of vision, a DIY ethic that links back to traditional folk music.

This musical movement is not just limited to the twenty artists on this album, there are many more British musicians performing and recording boundary-pushing alt-folk. Rather, ‘Sonic Blooms’ is a snapshot of an emerging scene that merits a little time in the spotlight.

CD1
1. Firefly Burning ‘Beloved’
2. Ma Polaine’s Great Decline ‘Been Loved Too Much’
3. Brooke Sharkey ‘Faces’
4. The Nightjar ‘Cockleshell’
5. Mishaped Pearls ‘Six Dukes’
6. Low Chimes ‘Blood Orange’
7. Jinnwoo ‘Waiting For P To Have A Vision’
8. Leonie Evans ‘Freya’
9. Sisika ‘Routes’
10. Robert Chaney & Laura Tenschert ‘Corozones Amarillos’ (exclusive recording for this release)

CD2
1. Whiskey Moonface ‘Dictionaries’
2. Josienne Clarke & Ben Walker ‘I Never Learned French’
3. Adam Beattie & The Consultants ‘The Same Sea’
4. Ned Roberts ‘Drifting Down’
5. Samantha Whates ‘Icicle’
6. Benedict Benjamin ‘My Feet Have No Need For The Ground’
7. MG Boulter ‘Clifftown’ (exclusive recording for this release)
8. Ferris & Sylvester ‘Save Yourself’
9. Sailing Stones ‘Blazing Sun’
10. Tobias Ben Jacob ‘Parallel’ (currently unreleased)

Funding for this project is being provided by Folk and Honey.
F&H are being assisted by Big Life Management and distribution is by The Republic of Music.
Paul and Toby at Folk & Honey and Rory from New Roots are giving their time to this project for free.

CCFX – ” Venetian Screens “

Posted: November 17, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Throw some guidelines for artistic conduct and appropriation into a small collective of musicians based in the same sleepy town (Olympia, Washington, in this case) and you can begin to see how inspiration takes root and how a scene is born. Chris McDonnell’s Trans FX project, over the course of three albums released in the past two years, has deftly moved from the recesses of goth to the kind of blasted grandeur found in David Bowie’s Berlin trilogy. The output of the duo CC Dust, fronted by vocalist Mary Jane Dunphe, covers similarly gilded terrain within the realms of ethereal pop and dashed electronic rhythms.

McDonnell and Dunphe could have shared a practice space wall for how close their sources of inspiration overlap.

CCFX slots in these ideas in a formal merger of the two projects, one which nestles Dunphe’s alluring vocals against the expanse of McDonnell’s deep dive into an adolescence dressed in shades of black. With bassist David Jaques anchoring, the pair’s debut self-titled EP speaks directly to the carefree swirl of dream-pop and soulful melody that informed parts of their separate endeavors (Dunphe was also the vocalist of raucous punk band Vexx, and currently shares a second project with McDonald, the country-rock band The County Liners).

“Venetian Screens” lunges forth with a boisterous drum loop, rolling bass against steady organ notes, and spindly guitar around Dunphe’s soothing alto, with the sort of retro-minded genre mash perfected by Saint Etienne. But in the trio’s hands, the track achieves a depth that reaches below the layers of nostalgia in their approach, no matter how sparsely applied its elements may seem.

Theirs is the sound of a late ’80s and early ’90s reckoning with technology, when samples and programmed beats were given a new, emotive context, from the Cocteau Twins to “Tom’s Diner,” amplifying their creators’ introspections under the banner of alternative rock. Songs like theirs are akin to opening an old yearbook and seeing all the faces replaced by newer, younger versions of yourself and all your classmates, a beguiling alternate reality where everyone looks as cool as they feel they are.

CCFX EP comes out October 20th via DFA Records.

The COUNTRY LINERS – ” Mary Jane Dunphe & Chris McDonnell in the The County Liners “

Posted: November 17, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Country rock comes in many flavors. While the public thirst for minty, freshly showered hornyman doubletonk and cliches waxy as supermarket apple skin may never be slaked, plenty of grimier flavors remain popular. As ingredients are usually either unlabeled or illegible, country rock connoisseurs often determine the qualities of these flavors by tongue alone. Of course, not all palates are sophisticated enough to discern the provenance of every bluesy lick or languor in the crisp confidence of a genre convention executed with guiltless panache, and in this instance a stout gulp and short recap is preferred — The County Liners’ five songs are slightly nutty, clearly organic and pretty healthy. While many flavors of country rock become stale and unappetizing very quickly out of the bag, The County Liners stay fresh by keeping it raw and sourcing directly from local bodies.

Olympia, WA musician Mary Jane Dunphe is a vocal chameleon. With her punk band Vexx, she broadcast raw, unhinged yelps, while her electropop group CC Dust let her experiment with tuneful, club-ready vocals over techno backbeats. Now, with the County Liners, her country rock project with Chris McDonnell, she explores another side to her musical personality: a wayward troubadour on the open road.

The County Liners stay flexible and move around when they can. Mary Jane was forced to settle down and do some life assessment while laid up with a broken ankle. Chris came over to keep her company. They just went for it. Mirce and Riley decided to join in and what we have here is the full statement. It’s pretty easy to get into right off.
The riffs and lyrics bear discussion, but the comparison game is in this case seen as an unnecessary preservative and is done without. The bona fides are there, but as a classy aftertaste. This is what it sounds like when two fearless people meet on a sick bed and wait it out. Spokane College Station — nowhere near the whole story but crazy enough in itself. It’s music, you have to listen to it to tell. – Dylan Sharpe

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VAN WILLIAM – ” Countries “

Posted: November 17, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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While the name Van William may be new to some of you his first band more than likely won’t be – well at least not if you were a regular listener to Folk Radio UK back in 2008 when Port O’Brien, his first band, was receiving plenty of airplay . He then went on to form a second band called Waters. Whatever musical shifts these two bands explored there was, and still is, there is no mistaking Van’s vocals which first drew me to the Indie-folk sound of Port O’Brien . It turns out that during this time he managed to cultivate a tight-knit community of fellow musicians, embarked on a serious, years-long romantic relationship, even found time to spend summers in the Kodiak Islands of Alaska working on his father’s commercial fishing boat.

Although my time on Kodiak Island, Alaska has always been a huge part of who I am, I’ve never been able to share much of it with anyone other than my immediate family. this video highlights how life feels up there and how heartbreaking it is to say goodbye to my years as a commercial fisherman. the songs on my EP and forthcoming album are deeply tied to my experiences on Kodiak. the fact that my life up there is ending while this project is starting feels right in every sense.” but with it came a “renewed sense of purpose” and a new musical direction, heralded by the arrival of ‘Countries’, Van’s vivid and open-hearted solo debut full length album, set for release on 19th January 2018 via Fantasy Records / Concord Music.

The songs on his new album are very much tied to his experiences on Kodiak Island, Alaska, something he clearly wanted those listening to his music to be aware of. This recent introductory video is very revealing about “how life feels up there and how heartbreaking it is to say goodbye to my years as a commercial fisherman. The songs on my EP and forthcoming album are deeply tied to my experiences on Kodiak. The fact that my life up there is ending while this project is starting feels right in every sense.”

The album includes Van’s recent single ‘Revolution’ (featuring guest vocals from First Aid Kit) and marking the album’s announcement a fresh new single: The Country.

DUDS – ” Of a Nature or Degree “

Posted: November 17, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Manchester quartet Duds‘ wiry, clattering sound draws comparisons to original postpunk upstarts The Fire Engines and Joseph K, and likewise they bring a real urgency to their music. The band’s debut album, Of A Nature or Degree, will be out September 22nd via Castle Face Records, and it’s the first UK group to have a record out on John Dwyer’s label. While they don’t sound like anything else on Castle Face, they do share an electricity with groups like Oh Sees, POW!, and Running, and definitely fit in with the label’s asthetic. We’ve got the premiere of “Elastic Feel” which is a great example of the band’s nervous creative energy

Tracklist:

01. No Remark 02. Signal, Sign 03. A Different Stage 04. The Nose 05. Irregular Patterns 06. Split on Both Sides 07. Keine 08. Of Nature 09. Elastic Seal 10.Pro Tem 11. Elastic Feel 12. Reward Indifference

ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE – The 500 Greatest Albums

Posted: November 17, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Imagine owning the 500 greatest record albums of all time – as determined by Rolling Stone Magazine. Well, it is now possible thanks to the efforts of Cool Vinyl Records – a Louisiana-based record store with multiple locations and an online presence. They will be auctioning off this one-of-a-kind collection on EBay beginning November 9th, 2017 at 9AM (CST) – November 15th, 2017, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Rolling Stone Magazine. www.ebay.com/usr/coolvinylrecords.

In 2003, Rolling Stone Magazine asked a panel of 271 artists, producers, industry executives and journalists to pick the greatest albums of all time. In 2009, a similar panel was asked to pick the best albums from the 2000’s. From those results, Rolling Stone created the current list of the greatest albums of all time.

38% of the record albums are 1st pressings, 20% of the albums are sealed (never opened), 20 of the records are audiophile quality (MFSL, Nautilus, CBS) and there are 15 bonus records! The collection is almost entirely vinyl record albums, unless the collection required compact discs. Also included is a collector magazine and poster featuring many of the stores where the records were sourced.

Cool Vinyl Records sourced the collection from both North America and a slew of other countries as far away as Asia and Europe. “Building this collection was truly a labor of love that took four years to complete,” notes Jackie Logan, Chief Vinyl Officer. “In the process, I’ve met some truly passionate, wonderful people from many countries with a zeal for music, and particularly vinyl records. My biggest takeaway was that music brings Joy to people of all walks of life.”

The collection is the only one of its kind known to exist and is compendium of who’s who: from #1 ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ (Beatles – 1967) to #144 ‘Straight Outta Compton (N.W.A. – 1998) to #346 ‘At Newport 1960’ (Muddy Waters – 1960) to #500 ‘Aquemini’ (OutKast – 1998). Leading the pack is, of course, the Beatles with 14 albums combined from the four members of the group. Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, U2, Bob Marley, Talking Heads, Elvis Presley and Nirvana are just a small fraction of the artists included (this group accounts for 48 albums). Listening to the entire collection would take nearly 14 days – nonstop.

With more than 10,000 records in stock, Cool Vinyl Records distributes its albums online and through its four locations in Hammond, Covington, Denham Springs and Metairie, Louisiana. For more information, visit www.coolvinylrecords.net or contact Jackie Logan at (985) 778-9112; Email – jlogan@coolvinylrecords.net.

The FACES – ” A Nod Is As Good As A Wink…To A Blind Horse ” Released 17th November 1971 Classic Albums

Posted: November 17, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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There are very few albums which are indispensable. The Beatles Revolver, Stones Exile on Maine Street and the like. For me, truly great records capture a moment.

The Faces‘ third album from 1971, came in the middle of a whirlwind year for singer Rod Stewart.  In the mere months that separated the album “Long Player” and “A Nod Is As Good As A Wink” Stewart had a huge hit with “Maggie May” and his first No. 1 solo album (‘Every Picture Tells a Story’) his third solo album was something that would soon irreparably damage the band, but at the time it was mere good fortune, helping bring them some collateral success that they deserved. Certainly, it didn’t change the character of the album itself, which is the tightest record the band ever made. Granted that may be a relative term, since sloppiness is at the heart of this band, but this doesn’t feel cobbled together, (which the otherwise excellent Long Player did).

‘A Nod Is as Good as a Wink .finally gave the group their long-awaited hit single in “Stay with Me,” . Loose, bluesy and boozy, rock ‘n’ roll doesn’t get more natural than this. The Faces and solo Rod Stewart were never as good as this before or since. From the opening ‘Miss Judy’s Farm’ which is awesome, the songs just get better and better. Their interpretation of Chuck Berry’s Memphis Tenessee followed by ‘Too Bad’ will make you feel grateful that you’re alive. Ending with the rampaging good times of “That’s All You Need.” In between, Ronnie Lane serves up dirty jokes the exquisitely funny “You’re So Rude”  and heartbreaking ballads (the absolutely beautiful “Debris” , and generally serves up a nonstop party. There are few records that feel like a never-ending party like this seventies album , the slow moments are for slow dancing, and as soon as it’s over, it’s hard not to want to do it all over again. It’s another classic –

They were helped in that respect by new co-producer Glyn Johns, who came in as an impartial outside set of ears while helping to wrangle the unruly band members into recording shape. It couldn’t have been the easiest gig, but it’s easy to understand why Johns was attracted to it — aside from Stewart’s formidable vocals, the group boasted the prodigious talents of keyboardist Ian McLagan , drummer Kenney Jones and perpetually underrated bassist and great songwriter Ronnie Lane .

With Johns helping the Faces were brought more attentively to bear on some of their finest material. While public perception was increasingly focused on Stewart, the new album titled A Nod Is As Good As a Wink … to a Blind Horse — presented the band at their creatively democratic best. Of the eight originals they lined up for the LP, the majority were co-written, with Lane, McLagan, Stewart and Wood all having a hand in the record’s compositional makeup. As Lane recalled in the years after its release, Nod captured a group firing on all cylinders.

Side One
1. “Miss Judy’s Farm” (Rod Stewart, Ronnie Wood) – 3:42
2. “You’re So Rude” (Ronnie Lane, Ian McLagan) – 3:46
3. “Love Lives Here” (Lane, Stewart, Wood) – 3:09
4. “Last Orders Please” (Lane) – 2:38
5. “Stay with Me” (Stewart, Wood) – 4:42

Side Two

1. “Debris” (Lane) 4:39
2. “Memphis, Tennessee” Incorrectly titled on original US pressings of the album as simply “Memphis” (Chuck Berry) – 5:31
3. “Too Bad” (Stewart, Wood) – 3:16
4. “That’s All You Need” (Stewart, Wood) – 5:05

PERSONNEL –
ROD STEWART – vocals
RONNIE LANE – bass, acoustic guitar, percussion, vocals
RONNIE WOOD – lead, slide, acoustic and pedal steel guitars, backing vocals on “Too Bad”, harmonica
IAN McLAGAN – piano, organ, backing vocals “Too Bad”
KENNEY JONES – drums, percussion
HARRY FOWLER – steel drums on “That’s All You Need”
GLYN JOHNS – co-producer, engineer
PRODUCED BY FACES AND GLYN JOHNS

ACETONE – ” 1992-2001 “

Posted: November 17, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Acetone was an American rock band formed in 1992 in Los Angeles, California, The three core members first came together in 1987 as Spinout when Lee on bass and Mark Lightcap (guitar) were attending the Cal Arts Institute in Valencia, Calif. Lee and Lightcap, a compositional music student and tuba player, recruited local high school student Steve Hadley to play drums. The group disbanded after Lee committed suicide on July 23rd, 2001.

The band played together behind a succession of singers under the name Spinout before finally settling as a trio. Acetone released several well-received albums beginning with their debut record Cindy, the album generated comparisons to the Velvet Underground. While Acetone toured in support of label mates the Verve, the band’s debut was lost amidst a glut of alternative rock releases. In addition to pursuing music, Lee earned a degree in Fine Arts from Cal Arts. Both a painter and a photographer, Lee frequently contributed artwork and photography on the band’s releases.

In 1994 Acetone released I Guess I Would, an EP of country covers that included an eleven minute version of Kris Kristofferson’s “Border Lord,” as well as covers of Jerry Cole and John Prine tunes. If You Only Knew, their next full-length release and a critical favorite followed in 1996, but failed to make any waves in the already waning alternative music scene, and the band was dropped from Vernon Yard in 1997. They signed to Neil Young’s label Vapor Records and released their self-titled third album that year and last October released York Blvd..

Between 1993 and 2001 the trio released two LPs and an EP on Vernon Yard Label-a Virgin subsidiary-and two LPs on Vapour, the L.A.-based label . In that span, they were selected to tour with Oasis, Mazy Star, The Verve, and Spiritualized. Against a rising tide of post-Nirvana grunge and slipshod indie rock, Acetone tapped into a timeless Southern California groove by fusing elements of psychedelia, surf, and country. They rehearsed endlessly in an empty bedroom in northeast Los Angeles, recording hours of music onto cassettes that were subsequently stuffed into shoeboxes and left in a shed behind the drummer’s house. Those tapes are being released for the first time in this anthology, which also includes highlights from Acetone’s official releases. Taken together, the songs form a companion soundtrack to Sam Sweet’s book, which maps the character of Los Angeles as a place through the lens of these three unique characters bonded by music.

This fall, the independent literary press All Night Menu will publish Sam Sweet’s Hadley Lee Lightcap, a nonfiction novel that traces the backstories of the three members in Acetone, a band that played in Los Angeles for nine years. Though few heard them, their recordings are time capsules of who they were, how they lived, and where they came from. Light In the Attic has partnered with All Night Menu to present Acetone 1992-2001, the first anthology of the trio’s music. The book and the album will be released concurrently on September 22nd.

Counting their early years in the scuzz-rock band Spinout, whose sole self-titled release came out in 1991 on Delicious Vinyl, guitarist Mark Lightcap, bassist Richie Lee, and drummer Steve Hadley played together for a total of 15 years. They disbanded in July 2001, when Lee committed suicide in the garage next to the house where the trio practiced. Afterwards, Rolling Stone ran a short obituary saying Acetone’s albums were “well received” but “failed to make any waves.” It was the first and only time they were featured in the national music press.

They rehearsed endlessly in an empty bedroom in northeast Los Angeles, recording hours of music onto cassettes that were subsequently stuffed into shoeboxes and left in a shed behind the drummer’s house. Those tapes are being released for the first time in this anthology, which also includes highlights from Acetone’s official releases. Taken together, the songs form a companion soundtrack to Sam Sweet’s book, which maps the character of Los Angeles as a place through the lens of these three unique characters bonded by music.

“I think our music is all about moods and feeling but hopefully it will get as weird as it possibly can,” said Richie Lee in 1997. “We want things to get weird in the way that you could hear an Acetone song and know that no one else in the world could make that kind of music but us.”

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