JAWBREAKER - 'UNFUN'

Formats

• BB007 - LP & DL

  759718089714

• BB007CD - CD

  759718089721

Details

Blackball Records presents the 20th anniversary edition of Jawbreaker's beloved 1990 debut album Unfun--twelve groundbreaking tracks (sixteen on the CD) that captured the very inception of emo's big band and launched a galaxy of young, earnest bands and the scenes that love them. Unfun has been remastered by John Golden from the original analog tapes; the increased sampling rate boosts some of the bottom end and mid-range. It sounds fucking awesome. The vinyl version is available for the first time since 1992, and the CD and download versions of the record include the three-song Whack & Blite EP, as well as the 7-inch mix of "Busy" as an unlisted bonus track. This reissue features restored original artwork, and all formats include additional band photos from the time of recording. The CD comes with a 24-page booklet with the Whack & Blite insert reproduced in its entirety. "Want" and "Fine Day" were in heavy rotation on college radio back in the day, and remained set list staples throughout Jawbreaker's run. Unfun wound up on a lot of fanzine top ten lists, and even the mainstream press took notice. Rolling Stone called it "a feast of heavy melody and righteous braying that roars along with all the spit and spirit of Husker Du's New Day Rising."

Tracks

1. Want 2. Seethruskin
3. Fine Day 4. Incomplete
5. Imaginary War 6. Busy
7. Softcore 8. Driven
9. Wound 10. Down
11. Gutless 12. Drone
(CD / Download Only):
13. Lawn 14. Crane 15. Eye-5
16. Busy (7? Mix)

Press

N/A

Audio & Video

VARIOUS - 'SCRAP METAL'

Formats

• EZRDR132 - LP

  603111748214

• EZRDR132CD - CD

  603111748221

• EZRDR132R - LP (COLOURED)

  603111748214

Details

**RED COLOURED VINYL** By now you’re probably familiar with our wildly popular Brown Acid series of rare, lost and unreleased proto-metal and stoner rock singles from the 60s-70s. In the endless pursuit of those glorious gems, we often uncover equally brilliant rarities from the late-70s to late-80s Golden Age of Heavy Metal that also just must be heard, but they don’t fit the series’ aesthetic. Scrap Metal, Volume 1 collects some of the greatest unknown and lost Heavy Metal tracks, long buried beneath the avalanche of the era’s classic output. We all know the old adage that history is told by the winners. But sometimes the losers tell the best stories. And while none of these bands found fame and fortune, this artifact and the volumes to come are testament to the enduring power of heavy music. You can hear the blood, sweat and beers that went into each of these singles. The recordings may be low budget, but the inspiration and talent is immutable. Not only are the amps turned up to 11, the boyish sexual innuendo is cranked to 69. You can hear the convergence of influences — NWOBHM, thrash, glam metal, doom, etc — colliding at once as the era birthed a wellspring of subgenres. Many of these singles are self-released and were thus limited to a small run of copies. Those that remain are hoarded by collectors and sold for exorbitant amounts. We’ve collected the best of the best for you here. As with Brown Acid, all of these tracks are licensed legitimately and the artists all get paid. Because it’s the right thing to do. LINER NOTES: Rapid Tears launch this series with the perfect christening. The Toronto, ON quintet’s 1981 single “Headbang” is such the pinnacle of heavy metal madness that it almost sounds like a spoof. There’s also enough of the rapid-fire sputum that inspired Metallica to bang the head that doesn’t, as such, engage in said practice, to be found on the band’s sole full length Honestly. But “Headbang” is a straightforward glammy anthem for the ages. Air Raid’s “69 In A 55” may be lyrically so sophomoric that it’s actually pretty clever, but this 1983 Bay Area power metal single is loaded with sleek Judas Priest riffs and interwoven melodies that are downright sublime. The band’s sole release, the 2-song Rock Force 7” features a curious band photo in which 3 band members — dolled up in Crüe makeup and leather — are sexually menacing the lead singer/guitarist tied to a bed. Another low budget highlight is when singer/guitarist Tommy “Thrasher” Merry imitates a delay effect on his vocals as he sings, “tonight!...tonight...night.” Hades’ “Girls Will Be Girls” has a real demo cassette feel to its vastly uneven mix, but the energy to the performance makes this an undeniable keeper. The long running Paramus, NJ quintet’s 1982 2- song debut 7” titled Deliver Us From Evil features this blistering thrasher dominated by shimmering leads and confident vocals that show why the band went on to near-fame on Metal Blade Records. Resless don’t need no T to prove that they’ve got “The Power” with this 1984 driving mid-tempo rocker in the vein of Mötley Crüe and Ratt. The River Vale, NJ quartet’s tight crunch wails all over Bon Jovi posers but it’s the band’s unique and subtle deployment of background vocals that gives this rager its staying power. Pittsburgh, the Steel City, is home to Don Cappa, a band that pays tribute to the burgh, the metal, and the awesomeness of both with “Steel City Metal.” Their lone single, issued in 1987 with only 300 copies released, sounds like the work of some serious steel driving men, with a drummer who might’ve forgotten to wear a hard hat one too many times on the construction site. The Beast has more of a punk feel to their aggressive “Enemy Ace” track from the 4-song Power Metal EP from 1983 — something like Dr. Know meets D.O.A. But their look, artwork and lyrics all prove that Heavy Metal is where their hearts lie. And this hook filled monster delivers repeated lines like, “I command them all in my lofty realm,” with commendable conviction. Dead Silence from Denver, Colorado, debuting in 1984 is not to be confused with Dead Silence from Denver, Colorado, who also debuted in 1984. The former a workman’s hard rock bar band, the latter a political peace punk band and neither knowing of the other’s existence throughout their tenure. The pre-internet days were a marvel, indeed.This Dead Silence spits out a slick, Nugent tinged rocker called “Can’t Stop” about life on the road. The Danger Zone is, by all accounts, not the place to be. And, Hazardous Waste of Boston, MA saw fit to add their two cents on the matter with this 1986 single that combines Van Halen’s flashy musicianship with NWOBHM aggression that sounds so awesome it teeters on itself entering the “Danger Zone.” Czar’s heavy, doomy “Iron Curtain” single from 1982 hearkens to the sleazy sounds of Saint Vitus and Pentagram with its cranked up DOD Distortion pedal in a Peavey combo amp guitar tone and meaty, barking vocals. The upstate NY quintet only issued this 2-song single, but its driving rhythm, nosedive whammy-bar guitar solos and comparatively mature Cold War subject matter show they had real potential. Not much is known about Real Steel’s majestic “Viking Queen” from 1987, other than it rocks hard and the 7” 45 sells for upwards of a grand on the collectors market. The Flint, Michigan band recorded at the home studio of local radio personality Bill Lamb, who primarily released Christian Gospel recordings. So, perhaps the band was struck down by a bolt of lightning shortly after this rare single’s release. Whatever the case may be, it’s a must have for fans of classic metal mayhem. 

Tracks

01. Rapid Tears ?Headbang?
02. Air Raid ?69 in a 55?
03. Hades ?Girls Will Be Girls?
04. Resless ?The Power?
05. Don Cappa ?Steel City Metal?
06. The Beast ?Enemy Ace?
07. Dead Silence ?Can?t Stop?
08. Hazardous Waste ?Danger Zone?
09. Czar ?Iron Curtain?
10. Real Steel ?Viking Queen?

Press

Audio & Video

BRONZE - 'ABSOLUTE COMPLIANCE'

Formats

• CF142 - LP

  733102722111

• CF142CD - CD

  733102722128

Details

We here at Castle Face dig a good trance. Hypnosis, mesmerization, and brain trickery are some of our favorite results of deep listening and it is a suggestive, ritualistic and dreamlike vibe that Bronze ooze like pheromones all over their excellent new record. Absolute Compliance is a truly hypnogogic group of tunes from Bronze on their best and weirdest behavior and it hits all my favorite things about them immediately and repeatedly: Insistently strange synth voicings emanating from Miles Friction's mad scientists lab worth of equipment controlled by a homemade-looking oversized knob; Brian Hock’s throbbing, woolly, hall of mirror grooves; and above it all Rob Spector’s thousand yard croon the vaguely familiar touchstone amongst the Lynchian, mutated surroundings…these are songs of dreams and nightmares, hidden rituals observed, futuristic coliseum entertainments displaced in time, sci fi jams of an uncertain future. Bronze are one-of-a kind great and if you’re unfamiliar you should go find their other records (including their great live record for us) and get caught up. They are real-deal weirdo kings of San Francisco and their spell is not easily dissipated once cast. It’s out on Castle Face April 2nd

Tracks

1. New Mexico
2. Crack In The Surface
3. Bad Brad
4. People Watching People
5. Power
6. 2 Is A Letter
7. Sweating Man
8. Swell

Press

Audio & Video

VARIOUS - 'MAGGOT BRAIN ISSUE #8'

Formats

• MG009 - MAGAZINE

Details

Maggot Brain is a full-color, quarterly magazine edited by noted Detroit scribe Mike McGonigal: 100+ pages packed with phenomenal content – art, music, literature, unpublished archival material, and more – with a simple promise to only exist on the printed page. The cover feature is an epic, really long timeline of images and interview with the modern king of arts portrait photography, Michael Lavine. + Amazing archival images by Gail Butensky and reflections on Pavement + what we think is the band’s first new interview in a decade in anticipation of their reusion shows and events later this year + Tom Scharpling talks about prog rock with Matt Berry + a lengthy interview with the SF-based dreamy pop band Cindy by editor Mike McGonigal + Reuben Radding’s killer photos and review of a recent show in Brooklyn by Chicago’s Irreversible Entanglements + Ana Gavrilovska on why sax player and drone composer Lea Bertucci matters +Sara Jaffe on how essayist Aisha Sabatini Sloan is a genius

Tracks

Press

Audio & Video

SURFER BLOOD - 'HARD BOILED'

Formats

• PNG-6 - 10"

  767870661853

Details

One of two super limited edition 10” vinyl EPs recorded at the same time as Surfer Blood’s latest album Carefree Theatre, but sold only at tour dates (most of which have now been canceled, thanks Pandemic...) Hardboiled has four non-album tracks plus a very different version of “Summer Trope” from Carefree Theatre, with horns and guest lead vocals by Dutch singer Pip Blom. Additional guest lead vocals are handled by Surfer Blood bassist Lindsey Mills (on “Dori Deer”) and Samira Winter of the band Winter (on “Playing Dumb”).

Tracks

#1 Dori Deer (feat. Lindsey Mills)
#2 Devil Loch
#3 Playing Dumb (feat. Samira Winter)
#4 Hardboiled
#5 Summer Trope (feat. Pip Blom)

Press

Audio & Video

PRIMA MATERIA - 'LA CODA DELLA TIGRE'

Formats

• SV191 - LP

  857661008919

Details

Prima Materia was a vocal improvisation ensemble, founded by Roberto Laneri in 1973. Composed entirely of vocalists with no academic training, the group developed various techniques—revolving mostly around the use of overtones—that would embody their unique sound. No instruments nor electronic manipulations were ever employed within the group’s physiognomy, which was realized purely through the human voice. La Coda Della Tigre, the group’s sole album, was recorded in 1977 by Alvin Curran and released on Ananda, an artist-run label founded by Laneri, Curran and Giacinto Scelsi. As the original liner notes state, “The music of Prima Materia may sound radically new, yet at the same time it is likely to ring some distant bell and evoke ancient emotions. This is not due to chance: indeed, the very name of the group points to a specific path, namely, the unfolding of the potential implicit in the alchemical symbol as embodying a process of transmutation of consciousness.” Prima Materia’s four members (Laneri, Claudio Ricciardi, Gianni Nebbiosi and Susanne Hendricks) combine voices to create a singular, beautiful drone that is (as the group’s name suggests) both impossible to define and fundamentally simple. This first-time standalone reissue is recommended for fans of La Monte Young, Terry Riley and Disques Ocora

Tracks

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Audio & Video

PAINTERS & DOCKERS - 'KILL KILL KILL'

Formats

• PUBLIC0038 - LP (COLOURED)

  9346948020382

• PUBLIC0039 - CD

  9346948020399

Details

Never available in this format before, Kill Kill Kill was originally released by PAINTERS AND DOCKERS as a 4-track 12” ep in 1985. This new full lengthy album version presents those covers of The Groovy Guru, Supernaut, The Ramones, and The Saints, alongside a couple of more covers (The American Breed, and The Velvet Underground), plus a handful of rare b-sides from the band’s 80’s singles. The CD features an extra rare b-side – the studio recording of “After The Blast”. The 12” LP version comes on limited coloured vinyl

Tracks

1. Kill Kill Kill
2. I Like It Both Ways
3. Do You Remember Rock ?n? Roll Radio
4. Know Your Product
5. Bend Me Shape Me
6. Sunday Morning
7. Dung Di (Don?t Go)
8. That?s It
9. Virgin Child
10. Willoughby

Bonus Track on CD
11. After The Blast

Press

Audio & Video

PAINTERS & DOCKERS - 'BUCKET'

Formats

• PUBLIC0036 - LP (COLOURED)

  9346948020368

• PUBLIC0034 - CD

  9346948020344

Details

PAINTERS AND DOCKERS are a Melbourne institution – one of those extraordinary live acts that never lets up. Following their debut album, the band unleashed this legendary live album which fans are still clamouring to get hold of today. Bucket presents the band in all of intense over-the-top live glory. This reissue of the CD contains a bonus live recording of “Bad”. On vinyl, Bucket has not been available since the original 80’s pressing, and this new edition comes on ultra-rare coloured vinyl.

Tracks

1. Kill Kill Kill
2. Pull Me Off
3. In My Mind
4. Jealousy
5. Gun for Fun
6. Organised Slime
7. After The Blast
8. Love On Your Breath
9. Soul Child

Bonus track on CD
10. Bad (extra live recording

Press

Audio & Video