Kurt Baker - 2011 - For Spanish Ears Only In FLAC - Scans are included
1Up To You (Leftovers Outtake 2005)
Drums – Adam Woronoff
Guitar – Oldport Joe Brien
Guitar, Vocals – Andrew Rice
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
2Blame It On Cain (Live June 2011)
Bass – Jeff Beam
Drums – Craig Sala
Guitar – Mike Rodrigue
Guitar, Vocals – Geoff Useless, Kris "Fingers" Rodgers
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
3Can't Have Her Back (Live February 2011)
Bass – Jeff Beam
Drums – Craig Sala
Guitar – Mike Rodrigue
Guitar, Vocals – Geoff Useless, Kris "Fingers" Rodgers
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
4Lousy Imitations (Leftovers Outtake 2005)
Drums – Adam Woronoff
Guitar – Oldport Joe Brien
Guitar, Vocals – Andrew Rice
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
5Telephone Operator (Live February 2011)
Bass – Jeff Beam
Drums – Craig Sala
Guitar – Mike Rodrigue
Guitar, Vocals – Geoff Useless, Kris "Fingers" Rodgers
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
6Every Moment (Demo 2009)
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
7You Can't Do That (Live With Jett Beam November 2011)
Drums – Ryan Dolan
Guitar – Scott Griouard
Guitar, Vocals – Jeff Beam
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
8Make You Mine (Pet Sounds Mix 2009)
Drums – Adam Woronoff
Lead Vocals – Kurt Baker (2)
Producer – Adam Woronoff
9Fool For Loving You (Demo 2010)
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
10Peppermint Island (Demo 2007)
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
11Anytime At All (Live With Jeff Beam November 2010)
Drums – Ryan Dolan
Guitar – Scott Griouard
Guitar, Vocals – Jeff Beam
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
12Please Believe Me (Demo 2010)
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Kurt Baker (2) 13I'm Not Angry (Live June 2011)
Bass – Jeff Beam
Drums – Craig Sala
Guitar – Mike Rodrigue
Guitar, Vocals – Geoff Useless, Kris "Fingers" Rodgers
Lead Vocals, Electric Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
14Don't Call Me Tonight (Demo 2010)
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
15Summertime Girls (Demo 2007)
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
16Gave My Heart (Demo 2010)
Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Kurt Baker (2)
Reigning Sound - Break Up Break Down In FLAC - Scans are included Since When I Don't Care You Don't Hear The Music Goodbye As Long Want You So Goes Love Take A Ride Waiting For The Day So Sad I'm So Thankful
Former Oblivians and Compulsive Gamblers frontman Greg Cartwright cools his boiling garage leanings to a simmer on the Memphis musician's debut with the Reigning Sound. It's all about the material on Break Up Break Down, and there are only scattered references to the primal blues-rock of Cartwright's notable '90s projects. Heart-tugging vocals and songwriting are the central components that this country-folk collection revolves around. Highlights like the waltz-time lament "Goodbye" have just what it takes to grip the inner Hank Williams in every garage rocker, without tripping any irony-minded alerts that equate anything emotional with overt sentimentality.
The Prehistorics are a Australian rock'n'roll band hailing from Sidney and including main man Brendan Sequeira Vocals/guitar, Stu Greenwood Lead guitar/vocals, Jonathan Sequeira Bass guitar/vocals and Alcides StoweDrums/vocals. The band recently released its 4th full length, "Storm The Gates", on the independant Australian Record label SONIC ARTILLERY RECORDS. The Album is brilliantly co-produced by Brendan and Michael Carpenter of the FINKERS fame. As far as I'm concerned, this is without any doubt their best record so far, filled with fat and heavy 70s guitars riffs supported by a tight and groovy rhythm section. And -most important- Brendan Sequeira knows how to pen great songs with plenty of hooks and sing-a-long choruses that stick in your head for days.
Yours truly had a little chat with the main man behind this amazing band.
1) What can you tell about The Prehistorics? How long are you guys together as a band? Were you in other bands previously? Way back in the day, your debut full length "Petrified" made quite an impression but I confess that after that I kinda lost track of The Prehistorics and I was not even aware of the following 2 records "Subterranean Nightmare" and "Playing with Fire". Shame on me! What happened for the band between the first album and the latest one?
THE PREHISTORICS were formed in 2002, with me on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, and my brother Jonathan on Bass. We worked with many different musicians filling various roles in the band, mostly because it was hard to find reliable people who were committed to the music. I think for many musicians these days, they have a short attention span and are too busy chasing ‘the next big thing’, rather than focussing on one or two projects and putting all their efforts into making that work. The Prehistorics for me, is my life and my oxygen so I have always given it the highest priority. I think, for many other musicians, music is just a hobby to be honest, whilst I have very clear objectives and want to do my maximum to realise my dreams.
Jonathan and I started our first band together around 1986, called The Guttersnipes, in Sydney Australia, and at that time we played a mix of punk and power-pop covers as well as about 50 per cent originals. Then we played in a more hardcore pop band called Deep Dish Action, before forming The Prehistorics nearly 15 years ago. With The Prehistorics, we put out our first album in 2009 and released the video ‘Zombie Generation’, which kind of launched the band and got us a lot of attention. After that album, The Prehistorics released ‘Subterranean Nightmare’ with a number of videos such as ‘Rock ‘n Roller Coaster’ and ‘Attack of The Klingons’, through MGM Distribution. This record really saw us maturing and finding our sound. We toured Europe soon after that, in 2013 and did really well in France so we came back again in 2014 with the release of the 3rd album “Playing With Fire” and suddenly got a solid reputation as a scorching live act I guess.
2) About the new record "Storm The Gates", is this the record of the big break through? can you explain the choice of the title and the very "revolution française" artwork?
Storm The Gates is the album I am probably most proud of because I wrote it very quickly and wrote all the songs on it, under a lot of personal pressure. The whole concept of the record is to try to wake people up and get them to be true individuals and challenge the injustices of this world. I don’t have a master plan for that, LOL, but I do think society has become very conservative and brainwashed, many people are like sheep and they need to wake up to what is real and important in the world. I liked the whole French revolution concept and the artwork of some of the great painters so I wanted to incorporate that into the front cover, but also adding a sense of humour to make the point that life can also be fun and silly whilst also standing up for what is right. As for whether or not this record is ‘the big break through’, I guess that’s for others to decide. For me, it is the most complete and satisfying piece of art I have ever made and I feel like I made no compromises on this record. I did exactly what I wanted to do so it feels right to me. Critics have praised the album so I suppose I am hitting the mark there too, which is important, but the most important thing is that I feel that I have made a great record and my fans agree too.
3) To what kind of music did you listen to as a teenager and does it still influence your today work? What was your favorite band as a teenager? Name 3 bands that you consider still have a influence on your own work today.
The Prehistorics sound is really a combination of all of my favourite bands and musical influences. There’s elements of The Clash and The Damned in there as well as The MC5, Redd Kross and Radio Birdman, plus all the underground Australian bands from the late 70’s to the 80’s. This was the ‘golden era’ in Australian music and there were literally hundreds of amazing, creative bands out there, playing every night of the week. I was lucky to see many of them!
4) Is there a main composer in the band or is everybody involved in one way or another?
I pretty write everything these days, the music and the lyrics and even on the previous records, I wrote or co-wrote just about every song. For me, the band has always been my ‘ baby’ and my strengths are as a songwriter, so I have taken on that role mostly because I was the best qualified to do it. On the other hand, so many people have helped along the way so that I could achieve the goals of the band, after all, I’m not a one-man band, but it has to be said that the main direction and sound of the band has been driven by my catalogue of song ideas. As a musician generally, I am the first to admit there are better guitarists out there than me, but I seem to have had a better concept of the ‘black arts’ of song-writing, so I have tried to use my abilities as the main force behind the music.
5) The Prehistorics could be compared to Hoodoo Gurus, The Screaming Tribesmen or The Huxton Creepers. Do you agree with this comparaison or do you consider there is way more than that?
I love those bands! Such high praise too, to be compared with those legends! They are truly amazing and part of the legendary Australian music scene of that era, so yes, they all totally influenced me. The Hoodoo Gurus are one of the greatest bands to have ever walked the earth and Dave Faulkner is a legend. I mean, who can write songs like that? He never misses. The Screaming Tribesman were another favourite of mine along with The Hitmen and Radio Birdman. Just listen to the killer guitar work on their records, Chris Mazuak is a genius really and has an amazing body of work to prove it. Just listen to his latest record, it’s on the money.
6) Is the album closer from the new LP, "La Fleur De La Liberte", about the events that took place in Paris last year in November??
Yes, you are exactly right. I was very moved by the tragedy in France in Paris, in November last year so I wrote that song the week after the event. I have many close connections in France and I actually lived there for about a year which was just fantastic. The country is going through so much turmoil at the moment and in fact, when I was living in the south of France earlier this year, the tragedy in the city of Nice also happened, which was devastating. My heart goes out to all the people there, I just wish everyone on this planet could get along and stop all the killing and murdering. Nothing was ever solved by that.
7) What can concert goers expect at a The Prehistorics gig? Are you playing any famous cover songs?
We always think about giving our fans the very best material from our catalogue of 40 plus songs so we will be playing all the old favourites, all the video songs, plus a number of tracks from the new album. I am really excited about playing La Fleur De La Liberte in France to pay my respects to my French friends. The set will be pretty rock’n though as always, because we play with a lot of energy and with our hearts, so I reckon it will be a high-energy concert. We often throw in a few covers too from bands like The Lime Spiders, Radio Birdman (we do a cover of the classic song ‘What Gives’) and maybe a few more surprises!
8) Does Sydney, Australia have a long history of rock bands, that goes way back to the 70/80's?
Back in the 70’s and right through to the early 90’s, the whole of Australia was such an awesome place for rock ‘n roll. ACDC pretty much started in Sydney and then there were the other great bands like The Angels, Rose Tattoo and The Sunnyboys, all pretty much based in Sydney. When the alternative music scene started we had Radio Birdman, The Gurus and about a million other great bands in Sydney and Australia. Of course there were The Saints too in Brisbane and they really put Australian punk on the world stage. I just wish there were more bands like this these days. It seems that much of the audience has moved on and is too ready to consume all of the corporate crap that they are fed rather than seek out underground music that has meaning and purpose. I mean, there are still great bands to be found, you just gotta dig deep to find them. LOL, that’s what my song “Tales From The Underground” on the 3rd album, was really all about!
In wav (A) and FLAC (B and C) - scans are included
A) Time Bomb High School
1. Stormy Weather 2. Staight Shooter 3. You're Not As Pretty 4. Brown Paper Sack 5. Wait And See 6. I Walk By Your House 7. Time Bomb High School 8. I Don't Believe 9. She's Bored With You 10. Reptile Style 11. I'm Holding Out 12. I Don't Know How To Tell You 13. Dressy 14. I'd Much Rather Be With The Boys 15. You're So Strange
B) HOME FOR ORPHANS
1. Find Me Now 2. If You Can't Give Me Everything 3. Funny Thing 4. Medication Blues #1 5. Carol 6. What Could I Do? 7. If Christmas Can't Bring You Home 8. Pretty Girl 9. Without You 10. Don't Send Me No Flowers, I Ain't Dead Yet [Live]
C) MARY WEISS AND THE REIGNING SOUND - Dangerous Game
1. My Heart Is Beating 2. Nobody Knows (But I Do) 3. Break It One More Time 4. Stop And Think It Over 5. Cry About the Radio 6. You're Never Gonna See Me Cry 7. Dangerous Game 8. Don't Come Back 9. I Just Missed You 10. Stitch In Time 11. Tell Me What You Want Me To Do 12. Heaven Only Knows 13. I Don't Care 14. You Can Stay With Me While Mary Weiss's name isn't familiar to the masses, her records with the Shangri-Las in the 1960s left an indelible mark on the cultural map. "Leader of the Pack," "Remember (Walking in the Sand)," and a string of other hits had her unmistakable voice blasting from radios and record players across the land. Just 18 when their last hit fell off the charts, Weiss, disillusioned from bad business deals, virtually disappeared. Now, 40 years later, comes her first solo album. Backed by Greg Cartwright and his band Reigning Sound, the songs (most of them penned by Cartwright) have their roots in the '60s, but eschew Spectorish sheen and density for a harder-edged sound. If the early-era Rolling Stones had been fronted by Debbie Harry, they'd have landed quite near this relentless 40-minute party. The few covers include an Ellie Greenwich/Jeff Barry chestnut, "Heaven Only Knows." Smartly paced, a few ballads offer some breathing room before the rhythm pumps up again. --David Greenberger https://mega.nz/#!VcsSCAoQ!HAND5w--jfN2U9d3IpCJ-5SLM1zx7p6CiXngDJnauO0
Special Thanx to Limburg for this great contribution
The Shoes - Double Exposure In Flac - Scans are included
Disc 1 01. Hangin' Around With You - 02. Every Girl - 03. Too Late - 04. Your Very Eyes - 05. Tomorrow Night - 06. Take You Away - 07. Jet Set (Ver. 1) - 08. Cruel You - 09. Three Times - 10. I Don't Wanna Hear It - 11. In My Arms Again - 12. Somebody Has What I Had - 13. I Don't Miss You - 14. Ever Again - 15. Now and Then -
Disc 2 01. When It Hits - 02. Only In My Sleep - 03. Yes Or No - 04. In Her Shadow - 05. Found A Girl - 06. She Satisfies - 07. The Things You Do - 08. A Voice Inside Me - 09. Jet Set (Ver. 2) - 10. Karen - 11. Hopin' She's The One - 12. Hate To Run - 13. Burned Out Love - 14. Girls Of Today - 15. Time To Make It
The Shoes were one of the great Power Pop acts in the late 70s/early 80s. They had every right to be as popular as Cheap Trick, the Cars, et al, but somehow they never scored any hits. These 30 tracks are demos of the songs that would appear on the Shoes two masterpiece albums, Present Tense and Tongue Twister.
The melodies are sweet but with just enough of an edge to them - same with the music. It's like Cheap Trick but more introspective, the Cars but not as slick - four shy and nondescript guys from the Midwest who had a love of melodic music and a knack for creating great pop songs.
The songs make you feel like you're at the roller ring on a Friday night, slow dancing with your new girl, both of you with feathered hair and you with a comb in your back pocket. But this is not novelty music; it is some of the best power pop you'll ever hear, and these demos are a little rawer (and thus maybe more interesting) than the officially-released versions of the songs.
Special thanx to JPaul for this brilliant contribution!
Kurt Baker - Two Classic Albums on one CD In WAV - Scans are included 1. Just Forget About It 2. Don't Steal My Heart Away 3. Can't Have Her Back 4. Kiss Me 5. Why You Gotta Lie? 6. The Problem 7. Why You Gotta Lie? (Acoustic Demo) 8. Let Me Out 9. Hanging On The Telephone 10. Pump It Up 11. I've Done Everything For You 12. Is She Really Going Out With Him? 13. Cruel To Be Kind 14. Turning Japanese 15. Trouble Boys (Bonus Track)
The title says it all : This CD contains both albums "Got It Covered" and "Rockin For A Living" plus two rare bonus tracks "Why You Gotta Lie? (Acoustic Demo)" and "Trouble Boys".
TWELVE STRING HIGH was very recently released on YOU ARE THE COSMOS. This blog takes the opportunity of the release of this ever so brilliant compilation on 2LP Gatefold or cd to have a chat with PEDRO, the man behind the label. 1° Some introduction first : Do you run YOU ARE THE COSMOS on your own or in partnership with other people? Just Myself, no one else... Is this your full time time job or do you also have another job on the side? I have another job, well, several jobs... To what kind of music did you listen to as a teenager and does it still influence your today work? 60s music What was your favorite band as a teenager? The Kinks Name 3 bands that you consider still have a influence on your own work as a label manager today. The Byrds, Big Star... 2° Some history : Can you tell me when you started it all and why? I started in the summer of 2014. Previously, I ran another label 23 years ago, but mostly with spanish artists... but I wanted to work with foreign artists, if you can choose around the world...can you imagine the difference... Did this idea came to you one day out of the blue or is this something you have given much thought for a very long time? Probably one day out of the blue... What is whole idea behind the label? The main idea behind the label is to have the opportunity to release great songs. This was my first idea. The most important thing for me is a great song. 3° Are you personally involved in the design of the records sleeves? I try to be involved, usually, the first idea about the artwork is mine. But sometimes it's not possible... 4° What Was the first band signed on the label? How did you get in touch with them? Or did they get in touch with you? Well, I have released eight 7" at the same time... At first, of course, I contacted to the bands. But later as things evolved, some bands got in touch with me. But mostly the first contact is mine. You Are the Cosmos is still a young, small & unknown label... I look on Internet to find the contacts...sometimes is like a real Sherlock Holmes job... but it's funny. 5° Considering the love of the Spanish people for everything that's powerpop, would you say that YOU ARE THE COSMOS is a typical spanish label or could you have started your label anywhere in the world? What I mean is : Would things have been the same in you lived, for instance, in Germany or in Greece or in Russia? I think the things would have been the same if I lived in Greenland. But truth is, spanish people... they love the good music. 6° At first, YOU ARE THE COSMOS only released vinyl records but it seems you now also keep an open mind for cds, digital stuff etc...? Is this correct? Are there gonna be more cds in the future? Yes, the vinyl is my loved format but i don't hate the CD... 7° About TWELVE STRING HIGH in particular: this is really a brilliant compilation. I am specially impressed by the unity of sound and how good all the songs blend together. Some compilations are a really Hodge Podge with some goods songs and some not so goods songs.TWELVE STRING HIGH displays ONLY great songs, can you tell more about this compilation, all the idea behind it and how everything worked out. Thanks, totally true, I think Twelve String High contains great songs, and--- again, the song it's the most important thing. I worked one year on this compilation...looking all over the world for great songs played on 12 strings guitars. I love the 12strings sound. It's easy to find bands playing 12strings guitars, but it's not so easy to find great songs with 12 strings. 8° What are the plans for the future/next releases in 2017 as far as YOU ARE THE COSMOS records is concerned? Too many things in the future... 2017 year, more PowerPop, Folk-Rock & psychedelic sounds too. Current bands, reissues, a special psych-folk compilation...uff, too many things! 9° And now a tough question: For viewers of this blog who don't have much money and could only to afford to buy ONE item from YOU ARE THE COSMOS, which album/cd would you advice? I love all my catalogue... but maybe Blue Ash is a special band for the YATCosmos history...But Daniel Wylie and The Parson Red Heads also are important people for the label. I can't choose... 10° Any other information you want to share with the viewers on the blog? We are a record label but also we are also distributor of other releases/labels. The best way to follow the label is www.facebook.com/yatcosmos and of course www.youarethecosmos.com The Higher State - One Is Not And One Is Real
Kontiki Suite - Here For You Now The Parson Red Heads - It's Hard For Me To Say The Junipers - And In My Dream The Young Sinclairs - Birthday Card Dropkick - Even When You're Gone Erik Voeks - She Loved Her Jangle Pop The Jangle Band - Love You Too The Carousels - Call Allong The Coast Arvidson&Butterflies - Tired Of Running The Hanging Stars - Ruby Red Luther Russell - The Look In Your Eye The Reverberations - The Way I Want You Elvyn - Lotta Lies Deadbeat Poets - I'll Be Standing By The BellTowers - She Reappears The Beginner's Mynd - Shadows Wade Jackson - Coming Back The Dreaming Spires - If I Didn't Know You Coke Belda - Hold Me Tight The Outryders - Thanks For Nothing Stephen's Shore - Please Say
