GOMEZ

GOMEZ
FIVE MEN IN A HUT
(A'S, B'S & RARITIES 1998-2004) (2006)
320 KBPS

Five Men in a Hut is basically the final roundup for Gomez's Hut/Virgin years, but it's a positive boon for fans, especially in the U.S. In the U.K., each Gomez album had at least a few associated singles, but they never got the same treatment stateside. Since each album had a certain specific "sound" to it, one can see how some of these songs wouldn't have fit with the album they were recorded with, but the B-sides were hardly throwaways. In fact, the B-sides were often excellent and allowed the band to try different things and stretch out a bit. Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline gathered a few of these tracks, but more than half of Five Men in a Hut is comprised of B-sides (and two previously unreleased tunes) so ultimately all the A's and B's of many of these singles are now readily available. Each disc of this set is packed with music; it would have been difficult to include much more. Highlights include the country-ish "Tanglin'," "Best in Town," and the hilarious "Dire Tribe." There's a wonderful cover of Charley Patton's "Mississippi Boll Weevil Blues" and they put a horn section to good use on "Chicken Bones." "Air Hostess Song" borders on electronica, as does the vocodered "ZYX." Since each album was different from the others, it's really interesting to hear all the different Gomez sounds together on the same album. This would make an excellent introduction to the band, but it's at least as exciting for the longtime fan (if not more so) since more than half of this material has been difficult if not impossible to track down. Ultimately, excluding the alternate mixes of album tracks and live cuts that weren't included here, there are only seven remaining songs that exist only on singles. Songs like "Who's Gonna Go to the Bar," the epic, sprawling "Gomez in a Bucket," and the vinyl-only "Wham Bam" will apparently remain unavailable, but Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline and Five Men in a Hut together will satisfy all but the most rabid Gomez collector. Five Men in a Hut is a great summation of this fantastic band's early years.

Disc 1
1. Whippin' Piccadilly (Turbo Version)
2. Best In The Town
3. Catch Me Up (Edit)
4. Ping One Down
5. Tanglin'
6. Bring It On (Radio Edit)
7. Champagne For Monkeys
8. ZYX
9. Step Inside
10. Blind
11. Pop Juice
12. 78 Stone Wobble
13. Royalty
14. Old School Shirt
15. Air-hostess Song
16. Sweet Virginia
17. Mississippi Boweevil Blues
18. Old China

Disc 2
1. Rhythm And Blues Alibi (Pre-Mellotron Version)
2. Silhouettes
3. Silence
4. Butterfly
5. Get Myself Arrested
6. Dire Tribe
7. We Haven't Turned Around
8. So
9. Shot Shot
10. Chicken Bones
11. Flight
12. Pick Up The Pieces
13. Big Man
14. Sound Of Sounds (Single Version)
15. Pussyfootin'
16. Coltrane
17. M57
18. Diskoloadout

GHINZU

GHINZU
MIRROR MIRROR (2009)
320 KBPS

A Belgian rock band, Ghinzu (if it sounds a bit familiar, it's because they were named from a popular brand of TV infomercial knives that could cut through cans) formed in 1999. Sticking with their own label (Dragoon), Ghinzu avoided signing issues when the need came to release their debut, Electronic Jacuzzi, in 2000. (The album would get a reissue with an altered track listing in 2004.) After a pair of highly successful live shows, and a new album out (2004's Blow) in countries outside of La Belgique, Ghinzu began making waves in the central European pop world, eventually landing a gig opening for the reunited Stooges in 2005. In 2008, Ghinzu was to be found in the studio, working on full-length number three, and plotting further domination of Belgian rock.
It was a big challenge for Ghinzu to make this 3rd album; first because it took them 4-5 years to make it...and second, 'Blow' is an instant classic - how can you do something better?
But we're talking about gifted musicians who know where they want to go and what they want to do, they were audacious enough to look at themselves in a MIRROR and to produce an album that sums up everything Ghinzu are: powerful, magic, talented and funny.

1. Cold Love
2. Take It Easy
3. Mother Allegra
4. Mirror Mirror
5. The Dream Maker
6. The End of the World
7. This Light
8. This War Is Silent
9. Je T'Attendrai
10. Birds in My Head
11. Kill the Surfer
12. Interstellar Orgy

STARLIGHT MINTS

STARLIGHT MINTS
THE DREAM THAT STUFF WAS MADE OF (2000)
320 KBPS

Even had they never set foot in the Sooner State, the Starlight Mints would still face an endless stream of comparisons to fellow Oklahoma freaks of nature the Flaming Lips; when it comes to hallucinatory pop complete with sweeping string arrangements, poignantly strangled vocals, and lyrical references to giant centipede attacks, the comparisons pretty much come with the territory. Much to the credit of The Dream That Stuff Was Made Of, however, it took the Lips three or four records to get this good; embracing everything from rapturously Bowie-esque melodrama to odd Middle Eastern textures to pure noise cacophony, the Starlight Mints' debut maintains the element of surprise from track to track, as each song's journey from point A to point B proves as interesting for its ultimate destination as for the sonic detours it takes along the way.

1. Submarine #3
2. The Bandit
3. Sir Prize
4. Blinded by You
5. Valerie Flames
6. Sugar Blaster
7. Cracker Jack
8. Matador
9. The Twilight Showdown
10. Margarita
11. Pulling Out My Hair

[RE-UP] DECONCTRUCTION

DECONSTRUCTION
DECONSTRUCTION (1994)
320 KBPS

Deconstruction was a one-off project of two former members of Jane's Addiction, bassist Eric Avery and guitarist Dave Navarro. The group was originally to have also included former Jane's drummer Stephen Perkins, but Perkins opted to join up with Perry Farrell in Porno for Pyros, as newcomer Michael Murphy took his spot in the trio. Deconstruction issued a lone, self-titled album in 1994 for Warner Bros., but failed to support the release with a tour — leading to the recording sinking from sight shortly after its release. Navarro would later go on to join the Red Hot Chili Peppers, record a solo album, and participate in several Jane's Addiction reunion tours, while Avery declined to take part in the Jane's reunions, opting to concentrate a new band, Polar Bear.

1. L.A. Song
2. Single
3. Get at 'Em
4. Iris
5. Dirge
6. Fire in the Hole
7. Son
8. Big Sur
9. Hope
10. One
11. America
12. Sleepyhead
13. Wait for History
14. That Is All
15. Kilo

JAWBOX

JAWBOX
JAWBOX (1996)
320 KBPS

Aside from slicker production from John Agnello and more direct lyrics, not much separates Jawbox's only non-transitional record from For Your Own Special Sweetheart. It could be argued that the band could have gotten a little too comfortable playing together or just plain too damn skilled. At times it sounds so effortless that you wonder if they could have sleepwalked their way through the recording. Granted they never sound as if the passion isn't there, but the clean, dirt-free production might detract from that to a casual listener's ears. The band's arrangements are just as strong as ever, perhaps more so. But another issue is an apparent too-worked-over nature. Were overdubbed acoustic guitars really needed? Were all those additional layers really necessary? They sound like a kid who breezes through an anatomy exam, finishing half an hour before anyone else — the kid decides to stay at his desk and scribble the internal organs of a nurse shark, rather than risk the embarrassment of looking like such a smarty-pants to the rest of the class.
More frustrating than anything else was that the slicker-sounding record left no impact on modern rock radio. But then again, just how many Top 40 hits deal with topics like all the B.S. and fake national pride U.S. students are fed in their history classes? And how many times do you hear a song with schizo time signatures and a chorus that goes something like "Take the big man down/Forktie/Chump crown"? It's no "Semi-Charmed Life," after all. Though this sadly ended up being the band's swan song, there really was no way for the band to top themselves. No point in going back to college when you graduated magna cum laude.

1. Mirrorful
2. Livid
3. Iodine
4. His Only Trade
5. Chinese Fork Tie
6. Won't Come Off
7. Excandescent
8. Spoiler
9. Desert Sea
10. Empire of One
11. Mule/Stall
12. Nickel Nickel Millionaire
13. Capillary Life
14. Absenter
15. Cornflake Girl (Tori Amos cover)

THE KINGSBURY MANX

THE KINGSBURY MANX
THE KINGSBURY MANX (2000)
320 KBPS

A quartet hailing from Chapel Hill, NC, the Kingsbury Manx make music in the classic English pop tradition. On its self-titled debut, the band seamlessly blends its home country's indie rock trappings with overseas influences. The Kingsbury Manx is the aural equivalent of a cozy winter fire, with English flavors cloaked in warm, humming organs, acoustic guitars, and tender melodies. It's an unassuming, musically whimsical, minor triumph.
Throughout, the band spins quaint melodies that date back to the days when the concept record was the ultimate test of a group's possibilities as well as its limitations. The tunes have a ring of familiarity, although their sources cannot be directly traced. The Manx may have pilfered a book of Christmas carols for the opening "Pageant Square." "Fanfare," on the other hand, sounds like a slice of early Pink Floyd. On The Kingsbury Manx, these songs are of a piece with more modern material like the instrumental "Blue Eurasians." This song is the indie rock equivalent of an aimless "jam" and can be equally indulgent and uncommunicative; however, the Manx keep a hand on the reigns and adhere to structure, ultimately sticking to a more passive ebb and flood of dynamics. The members have the sort of pedestrian voices common amongst the '90s wave of British groups like Ride and Slowdive. This suits the material fine, and only becomes a problem on one song — beginning with an effortless interplay of cascading guitar tones which are kept as the song's backdrop, "Piss Diary" finds the vocalists singing a chorus of Simon & Garfunkle-esque harmonies almost out of their range.
The Kingsbury Manx's debut is a success largely because ambition and capability are rarely out of balance. Mining simple melodies to build textures and develop songs, the group avoids the sort of garish missteps made by more zealous, less accomplished pop acts.

1. Pageant Square
2. Regular Hands
3. Piss Dairy
4. Cross Your Eyes
5. Blue Eurasians
6. Hawaii in Ten Seconds
7. How Cruel
8. Fields
9. New Old Friend Blues
10. Whether or Not It Matters
11. Fanfare
12. Silver Trees

DODGY

DODGY
HOMEGROWN (1994)
320 KBPS

Working from the same basic formula that made their debut a winner, Dodgy perfected their approach with their second album, Homegrown. The trio's hooks and melodies are sharper, making songs like "Staying Out for the Summer," "Melodies Haunt You," "So Let Me Go Far" and "Making the Most Of" indelible slices of energetic modern rock. There are still a few stray moments where the band gets by on sound, not songs, but Homegrown is overall a tight, invigorating record.

1. Staying Out for the Summer
2. Melodies Haunt You
3. So Let Me Go Far
4. Crossroads
5. One Day
6. We Are Together
7. Whole Lot Easier
8. Making the Most Of
9. Waiting for the Day
10. What Have I Done Wrong?
11. Grassman

SHADES APART

SHADES APART
EYEWITNESS (1999)
320 KBPS

In the five years between their debut album and 1999's Eyewitness, it's obvious that Shades Apart have learned how to write consistently catchy melodies. Eyewitness is a little too polished to be a straight-up punk rock record, and it sounds a little too indie to fall into the generic post-grunge category — it falls somewhere in between. But even if they aren't exactly treading musical territory that's uncommon for the '90s, what matters most is that the band has written a strong set of songs, and that's ultimately what pushes the record over the top.

1. Edge Of The Century
2. Sputnik
3. Stranger By The Day
4. Valentine
5. 100 Days
6. Chasing Daydreams
7. Know It All
8. Time Machine
9. Second Chances
10. Starry Night
11. Gabrielle
12. Speed Of Light

MOGWAI

MOGWAI
YOUNG TEAM (1997)
320 KBPS

Young Team, Mogwai's first full-length album fulfills the promise of their early singles and EPs, offering a complex, intertwining set of crawling instrumentals, shimmering soundscapes, and shards of noise. Picking up where Ten Rapid left off, Mogwai use the sheer length of an album to their advantage, recording a series of songs that meld together -- it's easy to forget where one song begins and the other ends. The record itself takes its time to begin, as the sound of chiming processed guitars and murmured sampled vocals floats to the surface. Throughout the album, the sound of the band keeps shifting, and it's not just through explosions of noise -- Mogwai isn't merely jamming, they have a planned vision, subtly texturing their music with small, telling details. When the epic "Mogwai Fears Satan" draws the album to a close, it becomes clear that the band has expanded the horizons of post-rock, creating a record of sonic invention and emotional force that sounds unlike anything their guitar-based contemporaries have created.

1. Yes! I am a long way from home
2. Like Herod
3. Katrien
4. Radar Maker
5. Tracy
6. Summer (priority version)
7. With Portfolio
8. R U still in 2 it
9. A cheery wave from stranded youngsters
10. Mogwai Fear Satan

SWIMMER

SWIMMER
SURREAL (1999)
320 KBPS

The emotional and angst-filled voice of singer/songwriter Anday McCarron is the secret weapon that separates this debut album from other alternative rock albums of the late '90s. It is like a fifth instrument that goes from croon to yowl to roar in seconds flat. Performing songs like exorcisms, you cannot help but feel the pain and sorrow he expresses. Although largely ignored (the label failed to support the record), Surreal contains some stellar modern rock gems that combine heavy rock, glam, and post-punk dissonance. Driving guitar riffs are the mainstay of the album, although the band will occasionally hit the breaks and pull out the acoustic guitars. From start to finish, the album delivers catchy hooks without straying from the grunge/alt-rock lyrical formula. The themes and topics of the songs are predictable. Rejection, depression, and abuse are all covered here with the blessing of a Kurt Cobain or Eddie Vedder. "Surreal" provides the harrowing tale of a prelude to a suicide, while "It's So Perfect" rails out against the reality of domestic abuse. Sound familiar? McCarron delivers his doom and gloom message with lyrics like "What's the matter now? You're not so pretty today" and "it's so perfect that it probably isn't real." Songs like "Dumb" and "Dirty Word" are a rocking roller coaster ride of emotion and feeling. The band builds its momentum in "Because Today" by starting slowly and softly then suddenly pummeling the listener with a mountain of guitars. Love or hate McCarron's voice, it is a shame more people were not exposed to this album, as it definitely is one of the more original sounding albums of its genre.

1. Surreal
2. Dumb
3. Because Today
4. Dirty Word
5. It's So Perfect
6. Special Life
7. Playing Jesus
8. Kick In The Head
9. Spaced Out Hat
10. Sick Friend
11. Halo

DOVES

DOVES
LOST SOULS (1998)
320 KBPS

Hailing from the scene that brought the defining sounds of the Smiths, the Stone Roses, Oasis, James, and the Charlatans UK, Doves is another Brit-pop band playing around with depressing lyrical imagery and embryonic soundscapes that made the Mancunian circuit so popular throughout the '80s and '90s. Gloriously basking in the ethereal ones before them, their debut Lost Souls is a shoegazing twist of emotional bliss. Music hasn't sounded so heavenly since Radiohead and The Verve.
The dozen-track look into streaming psychedelia taps into melodic waves of love lorn and sadness, especially on songs like "Rise" and "Lost Souls." The mood rouses and the positive clamor of "The Cedar Room" becomes the album's brassy anthem, very Oasis-like. Frontman/bassist Jimi Goodwin drools like a swooning Damon Albarn during "Here It Comes" and whooshing guitar licks from Jez Williams recall the sounds of Noel Gallagher. NME boldly claims it as the best debut album since Definitely Maybe. They're onto something good. If only Liam and Noel could calm down a bit and find that mesmerizing nature once again.

1. Firesuite
2. Here It Comes
3. Break Me Gently
4. Sea Song
5. Rise
6. Lost Souls
7. Melody Calls
8. Catch the Sun
9. The Man Who Told Everything
10. The Cedar Room
11. Reprise
12. A House

ZWAN

ZWAN
MARY STAR OF THE SEA (2003)
320 KBPS

It was generally acknowledged that Billy Corgan wasn't just the heart of Smashing Pumpkins, he was their architect, their musical director, and dictator, responsible for every sonic detail of their records and sometimes creating it all on his own. So, when he ended the band in 2000, it seemed a little baffling because he could have carried on with the group forever, since it was his band, and he was responsible for not just their densely layered sound, but also for how the Pumpkins painted themselves into a dark, murky corner with their final album, MACHINA. Remarkably, by breaking up the band, Corgan revitalized himself with Zwan, a supergroup conglomerate that functions more like a band than Smashing Pumpkins, as their superb debut, Mary Star of the Sea, illustrates. Usually, a supergroup winds up as a lumbering, ad-hoc creation that never sounds as good as it reads on paper, but Zwan clicks, partially because Corgan lets his bandmates function as equal partners. As well they should -- by cherry-picking guitarist David Pajo from Slint, guitarist Matt Sweeney from Chavez, and bassist Paz Lenchantin from A Perfect Circle, while retaining Pumpkins drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, he's assembled a nimble, muscular, adventurous group who don't flash their virtuosity, but can take his musical ideas further than his past group. And, yes, Zwan does recall Smashing Pumpkins, primarily because Corgan's voice and his favored method of layering guitars is so distinctive, but he has never sounded this bright, colorful, or free; he has never sounded like he's having so much fun making music. This joyful spirit surges throughout Mary Star of the Sea, even during its many intricate instrumental sections, and it's hard not to get swept up in the momentum, especially since it's married to his best set of songs since Siamese Dream. More than any album since that, it suggests the expansiveness of Corgan's musical vision (Mellon Collie sometimes sagged in its messiness), but there's a generosity here never heard in the Pumpkins, something that comes both from Corgan's writing and his interaction with this new band, which makes Mary Star of the Sea a delight to hear.

1. Lyric
2. Settle Down
3. Declarations of Faith
4. Honestly
5. El Sol
6. Of a Broken Heart
7. Ride a Black Swan
8. Heartsong
9. Endless Summer
10. Baby Let's Rock!
11. Yeah!
12. Desire
13. Jesus, I/Mary Star of the Sea
14. Come With Me

YEAH YEAH YEAHS

YEAH YEAH YEAHS
SHOW HER BONES (2006)
320 KBPS

With Show Your Bones, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs follow up to the heralded Fever to Tell Karen O economizes on the screaming that so marked the trio’s debut EP. And oh how she exceeds her oft-noted influences (PJ Harvey and Chrissie Hynde, for two): Whether she’s hanging back with a staggered beat on "Phenomena," or riding on the kick-drum-pounded opening to "Honeybear," she’s always ready to disappear in a burst of Nick Zinner’s guitars and Brian Chase’s drums. The YYYs thrill precisely because of their keen mix, Karen O spiking the upper ranges (dig the caterwaul in "Mysteries") with a sharply cut vocal line or a simple, full-bodied singsong delivery while the guitars spin thick storms of sound before retreating to atmospherics (try the transition from the quick throttle of "Cheated Hearts" into the Cure-ish "Dudley," for one example). And marvel at how well radio would be served by blasting the acoustic, pleading vibe of "Warrior."

1. Gold Lion
2. Way Out
3. Fancy
4. Phenomena
5. Honeybear
6. Cheated Hearts
7. Dudley
8. Mysteries
9. Sweets
10. Warrior
11. Turn Into

THE PROMISE RING

THE PROMISE RING
WOOD/WATER (2002)
320 KBPS

In Wood/Water, the Promise Ring takes a step away from their distinctive emo-sound, resulting in the surfacing of a curious collection of unusual yet stunning music.
Wood/Water is a unique mixture of rock/pop and indie music. Doesn't sound appealing? You better check it out before you make any assumptions.
This CD is bursting with powerful songs which are full of dominating piano, acoustic guitar, and thoughtful lyrics. The mellow songs are generally calming and catchy, but occasional repetitive lyrics such as "Hey, Hey, Hey," might cause you to fall into a sleepy trance.
This was to be the Promise Ring's final album, too bad when it unveiled new ways for the band.

1. Size of Your Life
2. Stop Playing Guitar
3. Suffer Never
4. Become One Anything One Time
5. Wake Up April
6. Get on the Floor
7. Half Year Sun
8. My Life Is at Home
9. Letters to the Far Reaches
10. Bread and Coffee
11. Say Goodbye Good
12. Feed the Night

[RE-UP] SIGUR ROS

SIGUR ROS
MED SUD I EYRUM VID SPILUM ENDALAUST (2008)
320 KBPS

The fifth studio album from Iceland's supremely inventive dreamscapists is their poppiest outing to date.
A happy album from Sigur Rós sounds like an unlikely concept.
The band specialise in music that is about as sunny as an Arctic winter - vast tundras of sound, dark with melancholy and loneliness. So their fifth album comes as a surprise.
The brisk opener, "Gobbledigook", all jumped-up drums and manic vocals, sets the tone: its poppy energy crackles on through much of this collection.
But then along comes a song that changes everything. From innocuous beginnings - Jónsi Birgisson's fragile voice, a lone piano - "Ára Bátur" swells into an epic, swallowing a whole choir and the London Sinfonietta.
It is so ambitious and successful a piece of music that it threatens to overwhelm the surrounding tracks, making what came before seem frivolous and what follows, almost inconsequential.
No matter: for this one uplifting, goosebump-raising moment, it is worth checking the whole album.

1. gobbledigook
2. inní mér syngur vitleysingur
3. góðan daginn
4. við spilum endalaust
5. festival
6. með suð í eyrum
7. ára bátur
8. illgresi
9. fljótavík
10. straumnes
11. all alright

GRANDADDY

GRANDADDY
SUMDAY (2003)
320 KBPS

Sumday doesn't so much represent a stylistic change for Grandaddy as it does a change in attitude. The Sophtware Slump, its predecessor, superbly combined low-budget experimentalism and country-tinged American pop to evoke everyone from the Flaming Lips to Neil Young to ELO. Sumday finds the California band conducting business as usual, though exhibiting a noticeably brighter mood. "I got not reason to be weathered and withery / Like in the season of the old me," Jason Lytle sings on opener, "Now It's On," demonstrating a newfound optimism that rears its sunny head throughout the album. "The Group Who Couldn't Say" could have been a bitter tirade against the music industry, but it's not, saved by Lytle's fragile voice, which is sweet without being naïve. "Stray Dog and the Chocolate Shake," meanwhile, is carried along by a bouncy keyboard riff that's reminiscent of Under the Western Freeway's "A.M. 180," but with more playful lyrics. Even slower, more melancholy songs such as "Yeah Is What We Had," "The Warming Sun," and "Saddest Vacant Lot in All the World" retain the quality that Grandaddy's trademark sound: simple music played on a grand scale.

1. Now It's On
2. I'm On Standby
3. The Go In The Go-For-It
4. The Group Who Couldn't Say
5. Lost On Yer Merry Way
6. El Caminos In The West
7. "Yeah" Is What We Had
8. Saddest Vacant Lot In All The World
9. Stray Dog And The Chocolate Shake
10. The Warming Sun
11. O.K. With My Decay
12. The Final Push To The Sum

LUSCIOUS JACKSON

LUSCIOUS JACKSON
ELECTRIC HONEY (2000)
320 KBPS

On their 1996 album, Fever In Fever Out, cool New York hip-hop/funk-pop combo Luscious Jackson took a break from their dance-till-you-drop edict and addressed some serious relationship issues, recruiting producer Daniel Lanois to provide the appropriate murky, atmospheric vibe. Well, either that project purged the group of its sadness or the disc's less-than-spectacular sales prodded LJ to return to their more ebullient roots. Whatever the case, Electric Honey is a fluid, spirited release that expands upon the formula of 1994's Natural Ingredients. Jill Cunniff and Gabby Glaser's vocals have never sounded as sleek or sexy, and their playing has improved considerably. So have their songwriting chops, allowing hip-hop, funk, electronica, pop, and alternative rock sounds to coexist harmoniously within the same sonic framework. "Nervous Breakthrough" bumps and grinds to skankin' guitars, trumpets, and a throbbing electronic beat; "Alien Lover" pumps up the funk quotient and tosses in some otherworldly keyboards; and "Sexy Hypnotist" seduces the mind with a buoyant pop rhythm, engaging harmonies, and some compelling flute trills. And the Luscious girls earn extra points for recruiting the ultimate party girl, Deborah Harry, on "Fantastic Fabulous," whose title accurately sums up the entire record.

1. Nervous Breakthrough
2. Ladyfingers
3. Christine
4. Alien Lover
5. Summer Daze
6. Sexy Hypnotist
7. Friends
8. Devotion
9. Fantastic Fabulous
10. Gypsy
11. Beloved
12. Country's A Callin'
13. Space Diva
14. Fly
15. Lover's Moon
Bonus Tracks
16. Gridlock
17. To Sir With Love

SALARYMAN

SALARYMAN
SALARYMAN (1996)
320 KBPS

A visible link between indie-rock and the emergent post-rock later in the '90s, Salaryman formed around a quartet of ex-Poster Children: Rick and Jim Valentin, Rose Marschack and drummer Howie Kantoff. Based in the Midwestern college-town stronghold of Champaign, Illinois, the group began recording for an album in 1996. After its release on their own 12Inch Records, City Slang picked it up for a European release. Now unavailable, this is a good example of how a band can be more talented than many others in the same field and still fall through the cracks. More focused than its peers, Salaryman gives us an entertainingly quirky view of what post-rock should sound like but seldom does.

1. Rather
2. Inca Picnic
3. Voids+Superclusters
4. New Centurions
5. Burning At The Stake
6. I Need A Monkey
7. Hummous

CHINA DRUM

CHINA DRUM
GOOSEFAIR (1996)
320 KBPS

Seven years into their career, these melodic punks from the chicken town (as John Cooper Clarke might call it) of Ovingham-Upon-Tyne (just south of Scotland) finally release an LP after a bracing batch of great import singles (some of which were culled into their first U.S. mini-LP, Barrier). Maybe every band should spend so long honing their skills; Goosefair is as close to spotless as post-Descendents punk-pop gets. Reminiscent of Australia's late the Happy Hate Me Nots and our own Agent Orange, China Drum attack with a super-clean edge, yet with plenty of firepower, and drummer Adam Lee's singing is crystal clear. His voice is nervy, brisk, and committed, and his energetic, grasping harmonies never miss the mark. Best of all, the production just enlivens the humming effectiveness of new tracks such as the blasting "Can't Stop These Things" and the pop-sweet "Last Chance," which compete well with familiar tracks "Biscuit Barrel," "Simple," and the acoustic "Meaning" (which Leatherface covered on their final single). Goosefair is really goosebumps-intense fun, wildly catchy pop, and charged rock & roll.

1. Can't Stop These Things
2. Cloud 9
3. Fall into Place
4. Situation
5. Simple
6. Biscuit Barrel F. M. R.
7. God Bets
8. Pictures
9. Find the Time
10. (Had a Good Idea on) Monday
11. Last Chance
12. Take It Back
13. Meaning
14. Better Than Me
15. Wuthering Heights (Kate Bush cover)

BECK

BECK
MELLOW GOLD (1994)
320 KBPS

From its kaleidoscopic array of junk-culture musical styles to its assured, surrealistic wordplay, Beck's debut album, Mellow Gold, is a stunner. Throughout the record, Beck plays as if there are no divisions between musical genres, freely blending rock, rap, folk, psychedelia, and country. Although his inspired sense of humor occasionally plays like he's a smirking, irony-addled hipster, his music is never kitschy, and his wordplay is constantly inspired. Since Mellow Gold was pieced together from home-recorded tapes, it lacks a coherent production, functioning more as a stylistic sampler: there are the stoner raps of "Loser" and "Beercan," the urban folk of "Pay No Mind (Snoozer)," the mock-industrial onslaught of "Mutherfuker," the garagey "Fuckin' With My Head (Mountain Dew Rock)," the trancy acoustic "Blackhole," and the gently sardonic folk-rock of "Nitemare Hippy Girl." It's a dizzying demonstration of musical skills, yet it's all tied together by a simple yet clever sense of songcraft and a truly original lyrical viewpoint, one that's basic yet as colorful as free verse. By blending boundaries so thoroughly and intoxicatingly, Mellow Gold established a new vein of alternative rock, one that was fueled by ideas instead of attitude.

1. Loser
2. Pay No Mind (Snoozer)
3. Fuckin' With My Head (Mountain Dew Rock)
4. Whiskeyclone, Hotel City 1997
5. Soul Suckin' Jerk
6. Truckdrivin' Neighbors Downstairs (Yellow Sweat)
7. Sweet Sunshine
8. Beercan
9. Steal My Body Home
10. Nitemare Hippy Girl
11. Mutherfuker
12. Blackhole