Ova!/Happy Mother's Day, I Can't Read - The Number on My Forehead is Gone (2004)

I once had a cat. Her name was Sugarfoot. She was the best cat I ever had; my current cats pale in comparison. She was always following me around and rubbing up on me and actually drank her milk, and really loved me. The feeling was mutual. But then she ran away or was eaten or was blown up by a firework. That made me very sad, and angry, and frustrated, and confused, and full of pent up rage. It made me want to play sloppy, guitar-driven noise rock with a slight prog lean, maybe sorta. It also made me want to create coagulating harsh noise that isn't quite tough enough to induce vomiting, but sweet enough to leave one longing for the embrace of an incinerator. Finally, it made me want to mix the two with a group of good friends, and to name our subsequent collaboration "Awesome." That's how this split on Freedom Form makes me feel. It makes me miss my cat. I love you, Sugarfoot.

(Apologies for the pauses in between tracks. It was pressed that way.)

Ova!/Happy Mother's Day, I Can't Read - The Number on My Forehead is Gone MediaFire
(The previous link was erroneous, as it was missing the first track. Sorry.)

Toss - Titles of the Greatness of Been (2002)

Teetering on the edge of drone-drenched electroacoustic jams and full-on noise, Toss was a Belgium trio who put out two impressive albums on Kraak (or (K-RAA-K)³, if you really want to), the same fellas who brought you a Dolphins Into the Future LP this year, among other notables. Their last one, this one, Titles of the Greatness of Been, is a nervous, wandering guitar-based improvisation jammer that's just malleable enough to be deemed amorphous. Some tracks linger in heavy electronic contemplation, while others oscillate wildly with bursts of various instrumental buzzing, dubbed field recording and foamy mumbling and/or gurgling. There. Is that mailing list enough for you? Also, if I attach the word "lo-fi" to this, will you download it?

Toss - Titles of the Greatness of Been MediaFire

The Get Up Kids - Loveteller 7" (1996)

Once upon a time, I stupidly threw a copy of this record across the Pacific Ocean and never saw it again. Now, thanks to a special someone, I got another copy of what is probably one of my favorite singles. There's no doubt in my mind that the Get Up Kids are a household name by now, so I'll spare you the introduction. It's criminal that this song, "A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts," often goes unnoticed when new listeners peruse this band's discography. If you've never heard it or you're looking for a place to start, jump on this opportunity. This band has been and will always, unabashedly, be one of my favorites.

This record saw a lofty series of reissues - six total - and was put out by Contrast Records in 1996. This was the band's first single and, as far as I know, their first recorded output.

I don't know if anyone was alert to it, but my latest entry, Pavement's "Summer Babe" single, was deleted per a DMCA takedown notice from Blogger. I guess Matador doesn't like sharing as much as I do! But anyway, like I said in my last entry, expect a slight lapse in updates for the remainder of the month and into December, as I need to concentrate on end-of-the-semester business.

The Get Up Kids - Loveteller 7" MediaFire

Surgery - Little Debbie 7" (1992)

Here's a loud one from the Nirvana-era wave of sloppy, noisy punk. Surgery was a New York band that, before jumping to Atlantic Records, put out a series of records on Amphetamine Reptile Records, this single being one of them. They were a band from the late 80's until 1995, when their frontman passed away. The single draws likeness to bands like Tar and Cows, although with a more alt. rock/grunge lean, with loud, repugnant guitar, scummy vocals, and maybe a little hint of humor thrown in. Pretty good underground alternative rock that never quite made it commercially, but is nonetheless dirty, catchy, heavy goodness fit for the ears. Shame about the cover though, huh? But I'm not complaining, this was a freebie. Apologies for the bit of surface noise.

Surgery - Little Debbie 7" MediaFire

EDIT 11/20: And I just now realized that I had a YouTube link up there the whole time. Hoo boy.

Nerdy Girl - Dime Store Hussy 7" (1996)

Okay. I have a solid hour before work, it's a gloomy, rainy day outside, and I'm currently burying myself and my sorrows in records before I spend my Sunday standing around for a few hours. What better time could there be to share another twee pop EP? Nerdy Girl was, maybe is, a pop quartet from Montreal that was, maybe is, fronted by Cecil Seaskull. Such a sweet voice on this girl, definitely a perfect fit for the music she's playing. This record was a split release with No Life and Janken Pon records, the former from Los Angeles and the latter from Montreal. Three down-tempo, sweetheart pop tunes for the long, incoming winter. Enjoy your Sunday.

For the obsessive compulsive (read: me), I accidentally put the release date on the folder and the tags at 1995, when in fact it's 1996. Who cares, but sorry!

Nerdy Girl - Dime Store Hussy 7" MediaFire

The Candyland Carcrash - S/T 7" (1996)

This has been passed around for years now, you're right. But the reasoning behind this entry is twofold: for one, I don't much feel like talking about my next share right now, and for another, I'm excited to finally get my hands on a copy of this. This is one of my favorite records from the genre and era, and if you're looking at this, you probably know what it is. It's also my chance to rip this for myself and simultaneously rid myself of the rip that's been tossed around the Internet all this time. There are three songs on this record, not two, and the B-side is "The Pain Will Double If You Leave Me Now," which has been incorrectly titled as the first track on the A-side, "Baffled on the Seventh Floor." The second track on the A-side is titled "Mine" I think; the insert's font is so hard to decipher. Some people say the track is titled "Science," but I don't think so. I guess you could say that the B-side also has two tracks, as there's groove split near the end with only the sound of feedback recorded to it, but I don't think that counts... Enjoy.

This is was released on Clay Garden, the same label that released a Channel 7" . On a side note, the copy I got of this record came with an insert from the late Very Distro, advertising the "new" Starkweather record. Thought that was cool...

The Candyland Carcrash - S/T 7" MediaFire

And here are the raw, unedited .WAV files if you prefer. I tried to do the recording justice, but I realize that I could have done a bit better.