THE BARTLEBEES Urban Folk Legends 1997

by request

 

 

	Hollywood Holiday	2:06
	Comin' Out, Stayin' In	2:32
	Nightlife Diplomacy	2:48
	She Loves Monsters	3:22
	Never Found A Woman Worth To Die For	4:45
	And Then Suddenly	3:05
	Deceitful You	1:39
	What You See	1:55
	Safety Pin Stuck In My Heart	2:45
	Nobody's Lonesome For Me	3:44

 

Artist Biography by Erik Hage

Taking a page from the Television Personalities, the German lo-fi trio Bartlebees began plying its trade of ragged, sweet indie pop in the early '90s. Nevertheless, despite the undeniable influence of the Television Personalities (in fact, TP's Dan Treacy plays organ on the first Bartlebees album), the German outfit has none of the lyrical aspirations of its predecessors, trading in cultural commentary and sharp anguish for bittersweet romantic platitudes. 1995's From Paths of Pain to Jewels of Glory was the group's first U.S. release, consisting of 26 tracks that combined the Bartlebees' first two German albums and some bonus cuts.

 

 

THE RAILWAY CHILDREN Recurrence 1988

by request

Discogs

 

Tracklist

	Somewhere South	3:34
	A Pleasure	4:19
	Swallowed	3:40
	Merciless	3:03
	My Word	3:25
	In The Meantime	3:48
	Over And Over	4:03
	Monica's Light	3:45
	Chrysalis	4:28
	No Great Objections	4:33

TOBIN SPROUT

Carnival Boy

1996

Moonflower Plastic (Welcome to My Wigwam)

1997

Discogs

Artist Biography by Nathan Bush

Despite his own solo successes, Tobin Sprout will probably always be known as the one-time four-track wizard and songwriting side kick to Robert Pollard in Ohio's lo-fi pop kings Guided By Voices. Though less prolific than his boss, fans of the group were quick to take note of Sprout's irresistible song craft. Relegated to a handful of appearances on each release, the singer/guitarist penned GBV favorites like "Awful Bliss," "Atom Eyes," and "It's Like Soul Man." Sprout left the GBV camp in 1997, pursuing the solo career he launched a year earlier with Carnival Boy. Born in 1955, Tobin Sprout began playing guitar at age eight, teaching himself on the Silvertone his parents purchased for 25 dollars. In his late twenties, Sprout began making his first appearances on a Dayton, OH, scene dominated by metal acts, cover bands, and the occasional coalition of fiery punk youth, with his band Fig.4. Formed in 1983 with bassist Dan Toohey and drummer Jon Peterson, the group only released one 7" during its existence, breaking up before completing their full-length debut. After the split, Sprout enlisted the help of Dayton resident Robert Pollard to finish the album. A frequent attendee at Fig.4 shows, Pollard's early offer to join the group was (rather ironically) rejected. Needing an outlet for his own growing backlog of compositions, Pollard formed Guided By Voices shortly after. The band's Forever Since Breakfast EP was released in 1986, followed by the full-length Devil Between My Toes a year later. Sprout continued to stay in touch, adding his guitar to a couple of tracks on Devil, but eventually moved to Florida, taking a job as a designer and illustrator for See magazine. 

 

Carnival Boy

Tracklist

1. Natural Alarm
2. Cooler Jocks
3. E's Navy Blue
4. The Bone Yard
5. Carnival Boy
6. Martin's Mounted Head
7. Gas Daddy Gas
8. To My Beloved Martha
9. White Flyer
10. I Didn't Know
11. Gallant Men
12. It's Like Soul Man
13. Hermit Stew
14. The Last Man Well Known To Kingpin


Moonflower Plastic (Welcome To My Wigwam)


Tracklist

1. Get Out of My Throat
2. Moonflower Plastic (You're Here)
3. Paper Cut
4. Beast of Souls
5. A Little Odd
6. Angels Hang Their Socks On The Moon
7. All Used Up
8. Since I....
9. Back Chorus
10. Curious Things
11. Exit Planes
12. Little Bit of Dread
13. Hit Junky Dives
14. Water On The Boater's Back

ZOINKS Bad Move Space Cadet 1995

Discogs

Tracklist  

1		Astronaut
2		Joe Vs. The Machine
3		Uma 14 Times
4		Soap Factory
5		Greatest American Hero
6		Thermalosis
7		Classic Rock Turned Me Into A Psychopathic Killer
8		Sapsucker Sluggo
9		Stumpy
10		Uninspired
11		Susie Bright
12		Garbage
13		All My Grade School Friends Grew Up To Be Jocks

THE DEAD MILKMEN Soul Rotation 1992

Artist Biography by Steve Huey 

During their heyday in the late '80s, the Dead Milkmen led a crop of college-radio jokesters that also included Mojo Nixon, King Missile, and Too Much Joy, among others. Playing a basic, happily amateurish brand of punk-pop, the Milkmen skewered popular culture, indie trend-followers, and the intellectually challenged, while frequently indulging their taste for tastelessness. Critics alternately praised and dismissed the band as geeky, juvenile wiseasses -- virtually every review seemed to contain the word "sophomoric," and either you found them funny or you didn't. But despite the mixed reviews, the Milkmen earned a devoted cult following (which famously included Detroit Tigers utility infielder Jim Walewander), a few novelty hits on college radio, and even an MTV hit with "Punk Rock Girl." As polarizing as their sense of humor was among critics, it was what fans wanted and came to expect, and attempts to move into more genuine, serious territory during the '90s effectively spelled the end of the band. Oddly enough, by that time, they were exerting at least a small measure of influence -- perhaps more than any of their peers, they paved the way for the legion of smart-assed geek-rockers who ruled alternative radio for a brief period in the mid-'90s.

ARCHERS OF LOAF The Speed of Cattle 1996

by request

 

Tracklist 

1		Wrong	3:50
2		South Carolina	3:33
3		Web In Front	2:08
4		Bathroom	1:45
5		Tatyana	4:43
6		What Did You Expect?	3:12
7		Ethel Merman	2:42
8		Funnelhead	2:51
9		Quinnbeast	3:42
10		Telepathic Traffic	3:04
11		Don't Believe The Good News	4:49
12		Smokin Pot In The Hot City	3:17
13		Mutes In The Steeple	2:06
14		Revenge	2:47
15		Bacteria	6:30
16		Freezing Point	2:47
17		Powerwalker	3:37
18		Backwash	2:56

 

CRASH VEGAS Red Earth 1989

Discogs

 

Artist Biography by Rudyard Kennedy

Crash Vegas was launched in 1987 as a side project by guitarist Greg Keelor of Blue Rodeo, a fan of rootsy Toronto singer/songwriter Michelle McAdorey who wanted to give McAdorey a chance to front her own band. McAdorey and Keelor went about recruiting ex-Martha & the Muffins bassist Jocelyne Lanois and drummer Ambrose Pottie into the CV lineup, and started gigging regularly in and around Toronto during lulls in Blue Rodeo's schedule. Within a matter of months, however, Crash Vegas was too popular an attraction for Keelor to maintain his commitment to both bands; he bowed out on amicable terms, and was replaced by Colin Cripps, formerly of the Spoons. Quickly signed to Blue Rodeo's Risque Disque label, Crash Vegas recorded their first album, Red Earth, in 1989 with some help from Keelor on guitar. The album spawned the single "Inside Out," a Top 20 hit in Canada, and received positive notices in the U.S. and Canada for its winning combination of folk-rock influences, as well as for McAdorey's powerful, youthful vocals.

 

Tracklist

1

Red Earth

4:06
2		Down To The Wire

2:59
3		Sky

3:39
4		Smoke

4:20
5		I Gave You My Heart

3:15
6		The One That Keeps Me Running

4:58
7		Moving Too Fast

3:31
8		Inside Out

3:50
9		Julia Rain

3:17
10		It's Not Funny Anymore

3:45
11		Bury Her

4:06

ALL NATURAL LEMON AND LIME FLAVORS Turning Into Small 1998

by request

Discogs

 

Tracklist

1		You Can Never Tell	3:31
2		Your Imagination	7:46
3		Puzzled Into Pieces	3:51
4		Lattershed	4:48
5		When Things Come Falling	3:42
6		In Between & After	3:18
7		False From Above	2:54
8		Snowflake Eye	3:26
9		Emergency Turn Off	4:40
10		Paradigm Somehow	4:46