Format change . . . yes again . . . shut-up.

 I know, I made this threat before. A big change, and a bunch of new posts. Well, this time I mean it. There will be most posts coming in the future, and it is basically going to happen because of my change in formats. 

One of the biggest issues I always had was how to attack a review exactly. Does one talk about the songs? Talk about the influences and who the band sounds like? Should I take the time to address every single song? How about the musicianship? Do I pay the most attention to the playing, the writing, the A&R department and if their creation and/or suggestions are really working for the band?

I finally decided the answer is both "yes" and "no." But not for every record.  

From now on, all I am going to do is write about whatever I feel like writing about. Some records will make me want to write about them, and what I write about is basically going to be stream of consciousness type of stuff. Somedays I will be technical, other times I am just going to sit and reminisce about the days of yore. Other times I will analyze every single song, other times I might not mention a single song title. I might also spend the whole time going on and on about the individual musicians.

Who knows? I sure don't.

Dead Kennedys - Frankenchrist (1985)

 Dead Kennedys - Frankenchrist (1985)

So many things to say about this album. We can talk about the band and what they meant (mean) to the U.S. hardcore and punk scene. We can talk about the figure known as Jello Biafra. We can talk about how wrong people are when they talk about punk being a talentless form of music, and completey missing the intricacy that does exist in music such as what DK did. We can also talk about petty bickering and how money can ruin great things too. 

We can obviously also talk about censorship and banned albums and images. 

Yes, this is the album that took Dead Kennedys from being one of the most important underground bands, to actually being a household name that even grandparents knew about (and were horrified by the name). All thanks to a poster of a bunch of willies painted by a man best known for creating an alien that gave people the willies. 

I remember the controversy quite well. Of course, I was one of those punks who was already a fan of the band. I can't remember if I bought the cassette before or after the controversy, but I know my thought process was at some point "yeah, I don't need that poster," completely oblivious to the future collectability of the album. Seriously, nobody ever thought about the "future value" of this stuff. Most of us were made fun of for liking this "garbage." Who would have think that this stuff would some day be the most sought after form of music on the planet?

At the time, I liked the album. But, my cassette was good enough. I grabbed cassettes mainly due to the ease of transport and car use. Plus, they were much easier to get out of the record stores with nobody noticing. 

This copy here is a re-homed copy. It belonged to an old friend from high school who is clearing out parts of her collection. So, it only made sense to keep it in a part of the friend group. If she ever needs to visit, she knows where to find it for visitations. I

This copy is lacking the liner notes and aforementioned poster. The record looks like a punk album that came out in the 80s. I question any punk releases from the era that are in mint condition. We were punks, it wasn't about being anal with our records. I took care of them, but all my records and cassettes definitely looked like they were used. 

Listening to it again, after many years without listening, I am actually very much enjoying this one. It isn't as blazing as Fresh Fruit, but the songs are definitely infective little creatures, with some killer hooks and grooves.

"Jock-O-Rama" is making me realize I think I stole the concept for a song I wrote way back in the day. I guess I forgot about that little bit. Good thing I never made it. Pretty sure Mr. Biafra would have been knocking at my door.

As I sit here listening to this, I am also struck by the old thought I always had when people spoke about "great sound quality" with CDs and whatnot. I was one who always said "Pfft, I am listening to music recorded in basements for budgets of pennies." Basically stating that what I was listening to really didn't require the finest sound systems and high-end equipment, or the best of the recorded formats. The bands didn't rely on expensive production budgets or the highest of quality instruments. Hell, some bands recorded using borrowed instruments. 

I now to have a pretty good quality system. But, I can also say that the static and slight issues of the age of the records is adding to the listening experience. This isn't meant as a knock of the music. In fact, to the contrary, this is a case of the music is "salt of the earth," it is real, it is raw. High sheen and polish just won't work for this. 

Good stuff here. A classic album that I am actually enjoying a whole lot more now than I did in 1985 when I first bought the dang thing. 

Thanks to Colleen for the tunes.

Upgrades to the System

The blog has been on a bit of a vacation for a while now. There have been a few reasons for this. Part of the reason was my own procrastination and time. Then there was my working on a masters program for my job, family issues, and the the realities of the amount of time eaten up by my job in the new world of remote learning for my students. 

The other issue that started to get in my way of the growing desire and addiction that comes with building a new system. 

 I've always been known to be a bit of an opinionated person, and at times possibly snobbish about certain things in life. The opinionated is obvious, as I have been reviewing movies and music for 20+ years now, and even started my own fanzine because I thought my opinion mattered and people actually gave a toss about it. 

As for the snobbish side, that has always come down to music and movie preference, BBQ and popcorn. Now, I disagree about my snobbishness about music. People accuse me of this, but the only people I give a hard time about with their musical choices are those people who would understand the fun ribbing, and I welcome people giving me crap about mine. But, I rarely am serious when I give people a hard time about music. But, if you ask my opinion about something, I will tell you what I think and I will not sugarcoat it. 

Oddly enough, one area I have never been snobbish about is the sound quality of my music system. Now, this is not to say I have always accepted a terribly sound, but I have never gone for the audiophile mindset. I have also always questioned the veracity of the audiophile. Could there REALLY be such a huge difference between the nice sounding system (garbage according to audiophiles) I was using, and the insanely expensive systems these other people were using? How on earth could there really be such a large difference in sound?

So, as I have been moving on with my life I have decided to go ahead and start building a better system and find out for myself. I started with just a turntable I was given for free, a pre-amp, an old 90s Pioneer component receiver, and the Pioneer speakers from that same system. All of this garbage, according to the audiophiles. I read comments such as "I wouldn't take that stuff from a rummage sale if they paid ME to take it." I was also turned down from the few places I tried trading my equipment in to. There must be something to all of this! 

The first step was getting hold of a better receiver. So, my wife's aunt was getting rid of her old Pioneer SX-535. Maybe not top of the line, but from an era where the focus was on turntables and not 5.1 surround sound for your movies (as was pointed out to be recently). While the sound wasn't as loud, it did have a better sound. There was more clarity and it had a warmer sound.

Next was the turntable. I grabbed the Audio Technica LP120, the black version. Maybe not the top of the line, but one that gets a ton of respect and is an obvious "HEY! I'm going to start caring about what I am playing my records on!!!" statement. Even with this table, however, there are improvements to be made. I will get to those later.

I eventually upgraded the speakers to a set of ADS L780 speakers. I did my research on those, and had decided I was going to go the ADS route. I liked everything I read about them, and those had good word of mouth and would work well with my system. Plus, the guy I bought them from gave me a deal that I was super happy with, and ADS are his favorite speakers. Plus, he topped it off with the deal that once I am ready to upgrade again, he will buy them back at the price he sold them to me for. This fact would eventually become a moot point.

With those speakers I started to believe there was a difference. The sound was better. How? I think the separation was better, and the clarity was ridiculous. I ran the speakers A-B with the old Pioneer speakers. Flipping back and firth between the two. Acoustic guitars jumped out in the mix that were buried by the electrics on certain recordings, vocals were more forward, snare drums had more "crack" to them.

While enjoying my new speakers, I was suddenly facing the next step in the process, as the tone arm/stylus went flying across a brand new record as the needle blew out. Yes, suddenly I was faced with the fact that now I would have to buy a new needle/stylus/cartridge. It was time to do a bunch of research. 

Ortofon is the name you you hear and read the most. It seems that is where everybody goes right away. But, I decided to do a little more research and find the cartridge that would benefit my system the best. The more I read, the more I learned that high quality cartridges are NOT recommended for every system, and in some cases it could go against the system you have running. So, pairing up the proper cartridge is a crucial move. 

I eventually decided to go with the Audio-Technica VM540ML. It got amazing reviews and in many cases was considered superior to the Ortofon of equal price, and often times compared to be more in competition with the higher priced Ortofon. As I researched, I found many cases where there are many choices for the consumer. As with many things, there is no clear cut "best" product. There is a sea of worthy options. Research what people are saying each one excels in, and pair it with what type of music you like to listen to. The one I got has a reputation for string middle levels, which paired well with the ADS speakers I am running. This became the focus on the system. 

Before I knew it, I was suddenly leaving the shop with a Cary tube amp. How that was happening, I had no idea. My wife wasn't too crazy to see me suddenly walking through the front door with a bunch of glass objects exposed to everything, and then a $3000 price tag also exposed. 

This one, luckily, had issues and had to go back. But, the seed was planted to start trying out new receivers. 

I started where I think most everybody starts, Marantz. You read about them enough, hear about them enough, and they look cool as hell. But, they also cost a ton. 

The owner of one of my main record shops, who also sells equipment and which is where I got my speakers from, is a huge Sansui fan. With a little coaxing from him, I suddenly found myself bringing home a Sansui AU-717. I started to research what I had, and saw that it excels in bringing out a tube-like warmth with amazing mids. Well, this seemed like everything I could want! My system was more or less based around the mids, so let's keep this train rolling!

The 717 did have a few issues. There was a constant crackle, and Sansui's are known for a glue that breaks down and corrodes the inner electronics. Plus, any older piece usually needs new capacitors. Work was needed, but I could tell that I liked the unit. I had a vacation coming up, so I brought the unit back to the shop for a complete reworking of the insides, and when I got back into town I would give it another run through and see if it was going to be a keeper. But, before I dropped it off, I did do a quick "back to back" with my Pioneer receiver to see how much better it was. The Sansui was obviously louder, but it also carried a better soundstage and gave a better separation to the instruments. Everything was clearer and better spaced out(?). I knew there that I was definitely interested in the piece.

As I left out of town I decided it was also time to take care of another issue. The Audio-Technica LP-120 turntable has a pre-amp in the unit. While this is a nice feature for the person who just wants to hear the music on an affordable budget, it has never been used in my system. Quick research in the beginning told me to turn off the pre-amp and use a separate pre-amp (which I did at first) or buy a proper receiver or amp. Further research also told me that the pre-amp, even turned off on the turntable, gets in the way of sound quality. Many people have taken the time to by-pass the pre-amp, or even remove it from the unit. I asked my daughter's boyfriend (an electrical engineer), if he could by-pass the pre-amp while I was gone. He agreed to the task.

By the time I got back I had the turntable bypass done, the Sansui re-capped and cleaned up, and I had also taken my ADS speakers in for a work over as there was an oddity happening. Now the system was ready to rock!!!

I brought everything home and got ready to go. Threw it all together, and I can honestly say, some of the music I played sounded amazing. The whole "audiophile" mentality started to make sense. Some of what I played had never sounded better. Eloy's "Dawn" album had a clarity that was just amazing. Some albums were brilliant. I decided I wanted the Sansui. So, I went back to pay. When there a deal was struck. Not only did I leave with the Sansui AU-717, but for the cost of one of my guitars, the shop owner also threw in the matching tuner, the TU-717.

So, I was done! Right? 

Well . . . not quite. 

As I said, some of the music I played sounded mind-blowing. But, there was a slight problem. Some of what I played lacked a decent bottom end. Remember, the system was built all around perfect mids. Also, as I bought the amp, I also picked up a couple used Eloy albums that had been dropped off, one of which was their "Power and the Passion" album, and the bass on that thing almost killed the speakers.

I knew I wasn't finished. I had one more step for the time being. I needed a speaker to handle the bass. But, I didn't want to lose the clarity of the mids and highs that I had going on here. There was only one possibly solution. 

The ADS L-780 speakers I am running have a couple of "brother" ("sister"?) speakers. The L-710 and the L-810 speakers. The 710s are considered pretty much a perfect speaker, totally well rounded. The 810 is extremely similar, but many people complain that the speaker has too much low end. Too much bass. 

Considering my issue was coming down to a lack of bass, I became fairly interested in the 810. Plus, my shop-owner (Bill, his name is Bill, by the way) considered the 810 his favorite speaker. From everything I was reading and hearing about them, they became the ones I was after. 

After a short hunt, I found them for a pretty good price, and then proceeded to make an offer $100 less than they were on sale for. The seller took the money, and I got the speakers a week later. 

I hooked them up, and I prepared to be blown away by the amazing sound that was going to come through my speakers and change my music listening life forever!

What came out of my speakers was . . . well . . . fairly underwhelming. It sounded . . . O.K.? But, yeah, it was ALL bass. I had very weak mids, and almost no highs. High-hats were absent, acoustic guitars vanished. nothing was there if it was mid to higher range. 

I started researching. Everything I read spoke about how clear the highs and mids were. How beautiful everything sounded with the 810s. Even people who complained about the low bass even commented on how great the mids and highs were, just the bass was bothersome. 

I kept researching. I started to fear that the tweeters were blown out. Ugh, having to spend the money now on new tweeters!?! My wife would kill me!!!

Then, as I kept researching, I found an article that mentioned the fuses in the back of the speaker. The fuses I had seen when trying to figure this stuff out. The fuses that control the tweeters. The fuses that ADS was kind enough to give you spares of in the speakers. Yes, I had four fuses in my speakers, and they required two. Two of what I saw were spares. 

When I got home I ran to my system. I spun the speakers around, pulled the old fuses, threw in the spares, pulled out Back in Black put it on at an extremely quiet volume. I lined up "Shoot to Thrill," (a song that I was severely bummed out by with the 810 speakers, and one of my all-time favorite recordings for every reason under the sun) and lowered the needle. 

Very quietly I could almost hear it was all there! I then spun the volume up loud. Yes, it was ALL there!!! The mids were right there, in your face. The highs were crisp and bright, but not painful, and the bass was full and thudding, brining everything back down to Earth. 

The clarity was astonishing. The separation was amazing, the soundstage made you feel like you were sitting right there in the room. Vocals are right there in the room with you. I could almost stand up and shake hands with Brian Johnson. 

I went from album to album after that. No doubt, some albums sounded better than others (Leftovertures by Kansas is amazing), while others are just sort of "ho-hum." Basically, if a band really put the effort into a recording, you can tell. It is there. There care and money come pouring through your speakers. If a band just recorded and didn't put a lot of effort into the listening experience, other than writing a cool song, then it shows. Sometimes it shows more than others, with some recordings being almost painful to listen to. Case in point, the Dead Boys release "Younger, Louder and Snottyer." This is the "raw" mix of their debut album. The debut has always been accused of being too polished and not a good representation of the band. I had always loved both albums, but also agreed the more raw release was the better. 

With the current system, however, the sound is almost painful. To my ears it sounds like a poorly duped cassette version of the original recording (which, in a way, is what this is). By the time I got to the end of the album, I was extremely thankful to be through it all. I shelved the album with the thought of revisiting it once I get the EQ that matches the system, hoping that will tame the beast a bit. But, having very little desire to re-visit it any time soon. I started to understand those people who tear an album apart because of the poor recording and mastering (with the exception of the guy on Prog Archives who keeps tearing into Deluge Grander and their albums, as they actually sound fantastic on this system).

So, is my system finished? For the foreseeable future, yes. I do know that my turntable is not the best, and that can be improved. But, I am in no rush. As mentioned, there is an EQ that goes with this system, and a matching cassette deck. I do want those, just for completing, but I am not in a rush. In the next few years I will have this thing exactly where I want it to be. I did keep the ADS L-780 speakers, and I have no intention on trading them in, as they are perfect for some things and REALLY are amazing when running alongside the L-810s.

I should also stress, aside from my turntable and cartridge, the newest piece of equipment I am running is from 1978. My goal when building this system was to remain vintage. I like vintage. It was also mentioned to me that (as said above) when all of these pieces were being manufactured, they were being made with the intent of powering music. Not movies, not your phone, just music, and specifically, music coming from a turntable. This was also a time when things were built to last. The AU and Tu-717 units I am running look brand new. Every 717 I have seen has cleaned up to looking brand new. The speakers also look fantastic. It all also weights just under a ton. The Sansui is solid metal, while the speakers are not particle board or anything of the sort. They seem to be oak, or some other solid wood.

Do you need vintage? I believe this is a personal preference. There are a lot people who believe modern speakers are worlds better than the vintage. From everything I have read, if you spend $300 on vintage, and $300 on modern, the modern will be the better deal. If you start spending higher than that, the vintage speakers you will be getting will be of a higher quality and more of the audiophile realm. I do firmly believe that my ADS L-810 speakers will outlive a modern speaker, just due to the quality of the pieces inside. As I said, my ADS are solid wood and high quality parts. Most modern speakers are maid out of plastic casings. If you have ever tried to move a 20-30 year old TV, you know what happens to old plastic that has been exposed to the sun at all. It will usually shatter like glass.

In the end, I do understand the audiophile mentality. There is a definite, undeniable difference in a low-priced "just threw it together" system and one that has taken time and thought. The pieces I have in my system I paid a decent amount of money for, but that is also due to my not wanting to wait to stumble onto the pieces at a garage sale, but it does happen. I recently hit a sale and found an old Sansui receiver and paid $5 for it. It is much less the piece than the AU-717, but it is a great piece and proves that you can find them out there. I am still a little confused how a speaker can actually be worth $150,000 (they are out there), but I am not foolish enough to say "you can't hear the difference," as I am now sure that you can. But, is it worth that much to you? If your budget allows it, then who knows?

If you are considering building a new system, but are hesitant and wondering if it will make that much of a difference, I say "yes, go for it, you will be happy you did it!" What the correct order is in replacing pieces, I have no idea. Mine was dictated by chance and situation. I think you will notice the biggest difference with the speakers and the receiver/amp. I feel the cartridge will only really "shine" once the other aspects have been found. It is the final "tweak." I say that because I did not have the same "Holy shit!" moment with that as I did with the others. 

So, now, let's get back to checking out some tunes!!!

Record Store Reviews: Mile Long Records and Scratched Vinyl

I haven't done one of these for a good long while. Part of the reason is due to Covid. In case you all didn't know, travel and shopping kind of ceased to exist for about a year. But, over the past two months I have started to venture out into the world again. I am now fully vaccinated, so I am safe to wander through the forest of Pandemia . . . or so we think. Who really knows?

This past weekend I had a few hours to kill. So, with that time I do what I usually try to do when trying to kill some time, I go record shopping. On this day, I was lucky enough to be able to hit two stores I had never been to before. 

These will be short little reviews. I didn't spend a whole lot of time in either store, so I am just pretty much going by quick impressions. 

First up was Mile Long Records in Wheaton, Illinois. 

Right off the bat the thing my buddy and I noticed is that they had a few things on the shelf that people had looked past, or they had back-up stock that people have just passed by. With this stock they also have not re-priced the items due to demand. 

Case in point: My buddy found Tesla's The Great Radio Controversy, one of the "hot items" from a Record Store Day of last year. That thing is now fetching some pretty high prices on eBay and other sites. But, here they had it priced still at the RSD price. We noticed this with a few items. The prices do seem to remain. 

That being said, the prices are retail priced. Deals only really come around with the new items that remain priced as they were upon initial release. They don't have cheaper prices than anybody else, and Amazon seems to be cheaper. Plus, their used prices were pretty dang high. I actually stopped looking for used after being frustrated by seeing too many ridiculously priced items that you find everywhere. 

The store is super clean, and the counter help was friendly enough upon check-out.

Purchased: The Damned - Grave Disorder, The Damned - The Rockfield Files

Reason to buy from here: Instant gratification. 

Next up on my run was Scratched Vinyl in Barrington, Illinois. 

This store was once known as Rainbow Records, and they were fairly legendary once upon a time. 

Now, they are a tiny little store located in downtown Barrington. Upon walking in I was hit in the face by Ozric Tentacles playing. This is always a good sign. A shop owner playing fairly obscure bands is always a welcome sign, as it shows they person dives into music and is also not content to just spin the same old stuff. 

Glancing through the fronts, one also sees right away that you are in a shop with some unique stuff. This isn't garage sale fair, nor estate sale fare. This shop seems to be a carefully pieced together collection of merchandise. One that is trying to be a step outside of the norm. 

The prices were a little high, but the merchandise also begged for that, as it wasn't run of the mill. I don't know why, but the prices didn't seem to bother me as much as the prices at Mile Long. I think partially because there was more variety in the prices. One of the things that irks me is when a shop prices things exclusively by Discogs prices. I get the impression that here at Scratched the Discogs prices are checked, but then the question of "but what price will more this?" comes into play. I saw a few items with pretty good prices on them, as well as a few prices on the higher side. 

The owner was friendly enough, especially when checking out. As I was leaving he showed me the Ozric album and the printing error on it. It was a quick little conversation that brought back memories of the hours I would spend hanging out in record shops just talking about music. 

Purchased: Budgie - Impeckable, Let's Active - Every Dog Has His
Day, KTel Hot Tracks, The War of the Worlds radio play

Reason to buy from here: Just a cool little shop with great merchandise and some fair prices. 

Of the two stores, I will become a regular at Scratched Vinyl for sure. I am looking forward to my next trip there and trying to decide when that could be.

 Mile Long I will visit again, but it won't be a destination shop. It will also be a shop to buy new from, not used.

Chromatic Aberration - The Trial of the King (2021)

 I will agree that it is a little odd that the first "return" post I am making right now is actually for a digital download. But, in my defense, I have always said that the most important thing is not the media that I am collecting, it is all about the music. I am not a person who will buy up a massive lot of albums being sold just because they are a good price. I would rather spend a large sum on that one piece of music I have been hunting, than on a bunch of albums I will never listen to, no matter how long they are in my collection. Music is what I love, the media I love it on the most is vinyl, but if there is no other option, I go for the music. 

Which brings us to the new release, possibly technically the true debut, from Chromatic Aberration. 43 minutes of progressive rock indulgence, created by two guys living across the country from each other, who somehow managed to finish off a project during this pandemic we are existing in right now.

I say "possibly" a debut because there is one other release on Bandcamp from the duo called The Nomad. However, in their short Bandcamp bio, they refer to an earlier demo, which is what The Nomad could possibly be. Song one on The Nomad is "Fortune Hunter," which is what kicks off The Trial of the King. The version on The Nomad does indeed sound more "demo" like than the version we find here.

Whatever the case might be, what we do have here is a very strong offering, especially when we consider this is two guys creating this thing from across the country. The duo (with help from a few friends on vocal duties) play a form of symphonic prog (lush instrumentations, heavy on composition, almost orchestral, often times featuring longer song lengths, for those unfamiliar with the term). In their own admission they call out an obvious love for Rush (yeah, they get really close to lifting straight from the catalog, or brains, of Lifeson and Lee, I can't figure out which), but one also hears Yes and Genesis in their music. For Yes it is in instrumental composition choices at times, whereas Genesis comes into play with the guitar tones at times, and some of the solos. 

Vocally, however, they are totally different from those bands, and it works quite well, especially on track 2, "Lord of the City." I have always felt that the vocals are either the final winning touch to a Prog outfit, or the death knell. In this case, the vocals work in their uniqueness, and in their ability. 

The band, Joe Rubio (guitars, bass and keyboards) and Steve Chait (drums, percussion, and something vocals), definitely seem more interested in catchy songs with meaningful parts, than they do with extreme flash. In these ways they carry their love of Rush. Strong musicianship, but nothing that ever feels like showing off, or being flashy for the sake of being flashy. Everything fits in its place. 

The album does end with the 21 minute epic "The Trial of the King," and I give them credit for having the guts to go down this path. However, normally these epics are the highlights of the albums. In this case I am not walking away thinking that it is the highpoint. It definitely has some serious highpoints, such as the beginning, which is a complete collision of Rush and Genesis in every single way. But, I think "Lord of the City" is my favorite track at this point. But, as I type this I am listening to "The Trial of the King," and am still finding all these parts that I do love (the section around the 12-minute mark is just wonderful). A great song, but I expect that if these two keep going, they still have their best work ahead of them, and I don't want to build too much hype up yet. 

So, this is the third brand new, released in 2021, album that I have listened to so far this year. At this point this is my favorite release of 2021. Do I expect it to remain number one? No. Do I anticipate it moving out of the top 10? Well, it is kind of a win-win for me here. If it does fall out, then that means there have been 10 amazing releases this year. If it remains, that means it has endured the year, which means it is as good as I feel like it is right now. 

One more thing, this is available on Bandcamp. If you don't have an account on Bandcamp, get your head out of your butt and sign up. It is the best place to buy music from bands, especially on the artist Friday thing they do. The first Friday of every month Bandcamp waves their fees so that the artist makes 94% (or so) of the money. That was the day that I bought this one. This album, by the way, will set you back an entire dollar. You can stream it on Apple Music, but don't be a shmuck. At the very least go and pay the buck for this thing. I threw in a few extra dollars, as every album on Bandcamp is a "this is how much we are charging, but you can pay more if you want" thing. But even if you do just send a buck, that is cool. But, seriously, this is worth more than that. Plus, the more of us that buy it, the more there is a chance that maybe, just maybe, these guys will do a vinyl release for this. If they do, I will gladly throw more money their way. Hell, I will even do a pledge fund for that. 

A great release here! 

New blog name, an explanation

If you are reading this page, and have found your way here from the old name, you might be wondering what is up with the new name. Well, here is the explanation.

Recently, while bouncing around the internet, I found that the name "The Vinyl Score" is the name of a You Tube show. A "Vlog," I guess. This channel had a pretty good number of shows, and the name "Vinyl Score" actually works better for them. Not only are they discussing the vinyl that they "scored" (purchased), but the show is also all about soundtracks! In other words, movie "scores"! So, their use of the name was much better than my use of the name. 

So, it only made sense that I changed the name. 

I bounced around numerous ideas, and finally settled on "The Vinyl Ruins," which is using my old magazine title (Sonic Ruin) and the obvious vinyl use. Whereas one of the other names I wanted to use I do prefer, but it too was being used somewhere (I couldn't change the address of the site to it), so, this is what I am using. 

So, I have probably lost some people in the switch (much to my amazement I do seem to have some people that stop by and read! 86 or so last month . . . with no updates in a year or so!!!).

This site will start being updated again. I let it slide while I finished my masters program, and while I have other family issues at play. The masters is done, the family issues are not. But, I am deciding I do need this outlet. My reviews will not be as crazily in-depth, but they will be more frequent. 

Oh, I had also started to write for a website. But, I am guessing they did not like how long I take to write at times, and have decided to go a different direction. I have not heard from them for a few months now, so I can only guess I was "let go." 

Eloy - A retrospective, part 1

It seems that every year I find myself going into a progressive rock mindset. It almost never ceases to fail. The winter comes and I find myself listening to more and more progressive rock than at other times during the year. I'm not sure what it is, whether the music just fits with the cold and snow, or if I am just more willing to take the artistic side of the music and nestle on in with a good tale spun to a lengthy piece of music.
More times than not, the band I usually spend the most time with is German legends Eloy. The Mighty Eloy, as a lot of us fans refer to them.
For this year the launch of my progressive infatuation came when my daughter bought me the second part of their The Vision, The Sword and the Pyre concept albums. 7 sides of the history of Joan of Arc told through music. While this might not sound like the most enjoyable listening experience for some people, for fans of progressive rock and Eloy, there is a chance that this is a form of Heaven on Earth.
For me, it re-launched my Eloy love.
I first got hooked on Eloy way back around 1988 or 1989. Maybe even 1987. The exact year is now fuzzy. I believe that the most current album from them was Ra, which many consider a particularly rough time for the band. But we will get to that later.
I can't say it was instant love. One of the issues many people have with Eloy is Frank Bornemann's voice. Frank is the main man, the driving force, behind Eloy. He sings in English, but his German accent is extremely thick, and Frank doesn't really have the most beautiful voice one will ever hear.
But, in all honesty, through the year I have found that weak, or annoyingly overly dramatic vocals are a standard within progressive rock. If there is going to be something to turn people away from prog, more than the lengthy composition times, it is usually the voice.
But, I digress.
In the early days of my spending time with Eloy I was also guilty of struggling with Frank's voice. But over the years, I have found, that each subsequent time I return to Eloy I grow more and more find of Frank's voice. It gets to a point where it is an endearing quality to the band. One of the aspects of the band that one needs to hear. Indeed, when the recent album, The Vision Part 2, reached its final song and a voice other than Frank's started singing, I was heartbroken. The years are getting on, Eloy is not a massively successful band, there is obviously a chance that this is the final album from the band. The idea that the very last bit of new Eloy music I am going to be hearing for the last time is a voice other than Frank kind of brought me down a little bit.
My plan here is to do a little retrospective on all of the Eloy releases. Starting from the beginning and wandering on up to the most current release. One of the unique things about Eloy is that they have been a perpetual revolving door of members. The line-up has rarely been the same, with only two members being the actual key to the sound: Frank Bornemann (vocals and guitar) and Klaus-Peter Matziol (bass). Yet, even with the constant changing of members and constant changing of styles, the Eloy sound has remained incredibly consistent. Digging through some interviews with the Frank Bornemann I think I understand how it is that the band has remained consistent, and exactly how they operate.
In an interview with Bornemann he states the importance of the band, and everybody in the band contributing and being an actual band. The comment made me realize that for Bornemann it truly is about being a band. I get the impression that he hires people to being in the music, with somebody contributing an idea, and then everybody building on the idea. Then, considering this is Eloy, and Bornemann's project, he then "tweaks" everything into taking on what we all know as the "Eloy sound." He adds the touches to make sure it all starts to take on the sound that we come to expect.
Due to the many changes the band goes through, the idea here will be to tackle this retrospective in chunks. The first one will just look at the first album. This needs to be addressed on its own due to it being completely unlike the rest of the albums.
The next group will be the second and third album, mainly for stylistic reasons.
I am going to lump album four, The Power and the Passion, in with the classic trilogy (Dawn, Ocean, Silent Cries and Mighty Echoes). While The Power and the Passion is the same line-up as albums two and three, and Dawn through Silent is a different line-up (though the same for those three albums), the musical style is the same. So I am going by style over the members. I believe that The Power and the Passion was the true birth of their direction, even if I do prefer Inside (album two) and Floating (album three) possibly the better albums. Frank's vision was finally realized.
When possible I will be using vinyl as my choice of listening medium. Sadly, for the first album I will more than likely be using a streaming site of some sort. I do not have the debut album, and an original copy is might expensive. I will eventually be buying the re-release. For now, however, I am using my money to replace CDs I parted with a few years ago (the 90s albums are only available on CD, except for insanely priced promos) and vinyl I never had before.
I will try to add a little bit of factual information to these articles, but this will prove difficult. Eloy never achieved much success over here, nor in many English speaking countries. They never even made it to the US on a tour, and I believe their live shows have always been fairly sporadic. But due to this there amount of information out there on Eloy is pretty light. So, I will do my best and I will revise any articles with new information, if I find or stumble on to anything.
So, until I get the next piece written, ALL HAIL THE MIGHTY ELOY!!!

The Stray Cats - 40 (2019)

The Stray Cats, what more can be said about them? Many people consider them the band that brought Rockabilly back to the charts. While they may have been the band with the most success, they were far from the only band doing the Rockabilly thing at the time. But one can’t deny that they definitely were the band that brought it into the charts, and eventually into millions of homes around the world.


A decade later lead vocalist, guitarist, and main songwriter Brian Setzer would once again do the same trick with the big band and Swing formula. Once again, while he was far from the only one in town doing the style, he was the one getting the credit for it all. But let’s not totally forget Squirrel Nut Zippers and Cherry Poppin’ Daddies.

I first grew interested in the Cats when they first arrived, but my love for them became really deep when Setzer went solo. He became an all-time favorite for me with his Live Nude Guitars (EMI, 1988).

So I followed Setzer and the Cats from that release on. The Cats have stopped and started up numerous times over the years. Each time with varying degrees of success. Blast Off! (EMI, 1989) was their closest to gaining what they had been, but it still lacked some of the magic. Choo Choo Hot Fish (JRS, 1992) completely missed the mark, with some interesting songs, but nothing that came close to what one would expect from The Stray Cats. The band seemed more interested in experimentation than they were in just giving the world great Rockabilly.

So when the Cats announced recently that they had entered the studio again for the first time since the Choo Choo album, I was a little hesitant. I was holding out hope on the strength of Setzer’s releases over the years between the two releases, but was still not as excited as I was when Blast Off! Was released.

So what follows are my initial reactions to the album once I finally got ahold of the dang thing. I wanted to purchase it from a store, not through online, for some reason. I finally found the album at my trusty Toad Hall Records in Rockford, Illinois. I ran (drove) home with it and instantly threw it on and sat back for a listen.

"Cat Fight Over A Dog Like Me": I guess this is the “single.” This one carries a pretty classic Cats sound. Fitting in well with the early material, even prior to Blast Off. In fact, it carries more of a true Rockabilly sound than most of Rant N Rave. A nice way to start the album.

"Rock It Off": Setzer is channeling Eddie Cochran for the verses on this one. The chorus is more straight-forward. The selling point for this song is the verse. Two straight-up Rockabilly tunes. A nice basic solo with this one. Playing to fit, not to show off. I like this one the most so far.

"I’ve Got Love If You Want It": This one is making me think of something that would be a b-side from the Knife Feels Like Justice sessions. A Rockabilly tune written by that version of Setzer. His voice is reminding me of that era. This is also the least Rockabilly so far. Great song, but stepping slightly away. The album keeps getting stronger.

"Cry Danger": “Day Tripper”? Further away from Rockabilly we get. Co-written with Mike Campbell probably has something to do with that. I find it interesting that it takes a secondary co-writer to help him borrow the “Day Tripper” riff.

So far this is better than Rock Therapy, Blast Off!, or Choo Choo Hot Fish.

"I Attract Trouble": A slower, plodding, gang fight sounding slab of a tune. One of those tunes that would have worked great as a duet with Lux Interior if he were still with us. It brings up images of dark alleys, cigarette smoke, hot dames, and switchblades.

"Three Time’s A Charm": Good ol’ early Gonna Ball era Cats. Not much else needs to be said. A tip of the hat to all the Rockabilly greats, but still with that Cats style.

"That’s Messed Up": Slower to mid-tempo suffling number. Total classic style, a nice mover that shines with the guitar tone, where that becomes the star.

"When Nothings Going Right": A fairly non-Rockabilly tune. If there was a country accent this tune would walk very close to a more modern Country number. I’m not too sure what to think about this one. I will either be skipping this one down the road, or it will sink into my head and become a favorite (although I doubt it). Probably the most disposable number on here so far.

Oh, just saw it is a Lee Rocker number. Sorry Lee.

"Desperado": Spaghettibilly! Yes, Spaghetti Western with a dash of Rockabilly. This one is an instrumental. We will see how wild Setzer decides to get with this one. Will there be flash or a nice easy going lead? So far nice and fitting. Nice! He never gets out of control and lets the mood and tone win out.

"Mean Pickin’ Mama": (writing two songs early to say there had better be some killer guitar flash here) Nice shuffle and swing Rockabilly, more ‘billy than the Rock, but still a great tune.

"I’ll Be Looking Out For You": Cool riff using the Setzer punk mindset with a nicely over-driven guitar and a “chorus” that is closer to something from early 80s Punk than most anything else. Cool number that is a unique tune on this album.

"Devil Train": A galloping number that fits the name. A little Western in that gallop. I would have hoped for a little more energy on the ending number, but we will see where it goes. But I expect it will not go anywhere else. Cool tune, but not what I would choose to close with.

On that first listen the album is worlds better than Choo Choo Hot Fish. Is it better than Blast Off!? That’s a tough one to say. That album definitely has some great tracks that have almost gotten better with time. Blast Off! is closer to Live Nude Guitars in feel and attitude for me, so that also wins out. Time will obviously be the true test, but for a band that has had a tumultuous career, this is a fine album to return on. It pays attention to each member and sounds fairly fresh, aside from one blatant Beatles riff rip-off too many.

Quick Takes 1 - Speed Queen

One of the goals I always had for my writing, whether it be my old print 'zine Sonic Ruin or here, was to create a scholarly type of publication. The idea was to always have articles that not only broke the songs and albums apart, but also maybe gave a little history of the bands. Treating the bands and the music with the proper respect, that has always been the dream.

Unfortunately the problem with that is the amount of time those articles take. The research can be fairly time consuming due to how obscure the bands are. Many times the information found was so light that nothing could be done with it, and nothing else could be found.

From time to time the information I would find were the bands themselves. It is always a weird thing contacting these people. A few of them seemed to not want to be associated with the bands I was calling about, even though they were still involved with music. Others seemed interested in talking, but then vanished and stopped correspondence. But whatever the cases, there was time involved.

This shouldn't be news to anybody. Any writing usually takes research and time, obviously. Problem for me was that I found the time fleeting. The problem I have is that once I get behind, I usually turn away from things. This is one of my great faults that I am working to correct. One way to correct this problem is to find a reasonable way of catching up.

This brings us to this article.

This article is basically going to be made up of a bunch of "quick takes" on items I have bought over the past half year or so of buying records. I will be giving a quick run down on certain records, but I will not be doing any deep research. Yes, if there is an interesting fact I have learned I will mention it. But for the most part these will just be discussing the albums and their positive sides and if they are worth your tracking them down, and what I decent price to spend would be on each item.This will not be how every new article is going to be, but these types will show up from time to time, and might be the standard for a little while. Just until I get caught up.

So, without further delay . . .

Speed Queen - Speed Queen (1980)

I was at a record convention recently and as I was walking out I stopped by one final booth. In the last crate I dug into I found this album. I looked it over. The band looked cool, the name was pretty good, and they thanked Lemmy and Motorhead.

Think about that for a second. This album came out in 1980 and they are thanking Motorhead. Motorhead was just starting to really lay their name down and become the band that would someday become en vogue to mention. This little band was tipping their hat to them in the early days. That should give you a little indication about what we have here.

So what do we have? Seed Queen were a five piece band out of France. They played a straight ahead Rock and Roll with possibly an extra kick to the gut. A little AC/DC meets Alice Cooper group in riffing, with a rough throat female vocalist named Stewy (real name is Stevie) who spews attitude in every single word.

The album consists of 8 songs, but each song is a powerhouse. They seemed to realize they were only putting down 8 songs so there was no time to get mellow. They had just enough time to rock the living hell out of the listener, and that is exactly what they were going to do. Don't expect anything fast as the name might imply to some folk, that name is obviously a tip of the hat to the other kind of speed. But every single song is that mid-tempo stomper that just gets to your heart and makes you want to live.

In all honesty this might be a band everybody knows about and I am just a complete sheltered idiot. The guy I bought this from was talking about it like it was a well known classic of hard rock. "Would you believe I just found out today that they actually released a second album!" He said to me as I was looking over the cover. "I could not believe I didn't know that!" I looked at him and was honest and said "Yeah, I have no idea who they are even." I almost felt like an idiot, but my quick research very much was pointing to a band that had slipped through the cracks. Every time I get a hit for them on the 'net it leads me to a French site. So my guess is that they are possibly known in France, and we can stop there.

I paid $15 for this. Might be a bit high for a band I was totally unfamiliar with, but I decided to risk it. After hearing it, I would have been happy paying $25 for it. They are really that good. They rock the hell out of the place and should have been much bigger than they are. If you like RnR ala AC/DC, Alice Cooper, or any other band that you want blaring through the speakers while drinking and raising Hell, then this should be an album in your collection. If you see it while out shopping, do be sure to exit with this one under your arm.

Someday I do hope to do a more detailed write-up on Speed Queen. They do deserve more coverage.

Quiet Riot - Quiet Riot 1 & 2!!!

On May 20 of this year I attended the Chicago Record Convention being held in Hillside, Illinois. I went down there with two albums as my intended score. My birthday was on the 19th and I was going in armed with a little extra cash and the intent to actually not caring too much about the cost of things (yet still not being an idiot).

My main goals were the 1974 release by the band Left End called Spoiled Rotten. A wonderful slab of all out ROCK by a band that gave it all they had and who have sadly become more or less forgotten by time.

The other, and main, purchase was going to be Quiet Riot II. I had seen it there previously but didn't have the money at the time that I was comfortable to spend on the one album. Granted, QRII isn't anywhere near the price of QRI, but it is still more than I have spent. But with a little extra birthday cash on hand, that puppy was going to be mine!

Getting to the convention I went straight to the spot where the dealer was the previous time who had QRII. Much to my horror he was not there! I scoured the room he was in previously, checking through crates, looking for his merchandise, as I could easily forget a face but not stock.

Sadly I could not find the gentleman. So then turned tale and went off to buy the Left End album. That dealer was in the main room and had a huge set-up, so I knew he would be back in the same place, and he was. Watch these pages for coverage of the mighty Left End at a later date.

I spent the next few hours searching for good stuff. Suddenly my buddy Todd ran up to me and pointed me in the direction of a dealer. He had found my QRII guy! Instantly the money came out and I walked away with the purchase I had been looking for, and the guy even took $20 off the sticker he had on the album!

So there I was, the two main items in my grasp. Little did I know that a few minutes later I would be finding another Holy Grail item (to be discussed in a future article). Then, just a few minutes after that Todd would again come and get me and bring me to another dealer. This one had QRI. This copy of the debut album from Quiet Riot was the strange black and white bootleg that I can't find any information on. All I have been able to find out is that it came out in the early 90s and that a bootleg of QRII was also released by the same mysterious company, Ravers. A real copy of QRI will set a person back around $300. The bootleg will set you back around $30 or so, but even  these are tough to come by.

For my money Quiet Riot is one of the sadder stories in Rock and Roll. If you don't know much about music history, but do know of Quiet Riot, you know them due to the two Slade covers, "Cum On Feel The Noize" and "Mama Were All Krazee." You also possibly know that the vocalist, Kevin DuBrow, became one of the most hated men in music, and that he was responsible for destroying the great career that they had forged out for themselves.

Those that do know of music history know that this is the launching pad for the mighty Randy Rhoads. A guitarist who, along with Eddie Van Halen, propelled guitar playing into a different realm. However, as most people know, Randy made his mark playing alongside Ozzy Osbourne. Randy has always been one of my guys. One of the guitarists I have always idolized. In fact, even though Queen was my first musical obsession, Randy was the first person I singled out and fell for. Queen was the whole band, whereas for me when Randy died my love of Ozzy also died.

Truthfully the Quiet Riot of Randy Rhoads and the Quiet Riot of the hits are two fairly different creatures. The Rhoads QR was a band based in British rock, with huge dashes of Glam. Whereas the hit machine QR, even though there biggest hits were covers of British rock, were more of a Metal band with a much harder edge.

The one constant between the two bands is Kevin DuBrow's fantastic voice. This is probably the saddest aspect about what happened to the band. Due to Kevin's actions later in the band Quiet Riot have kind of become a joke. Yes, there were a few things that just would not age well for them. Kevin had a receding hairline that was destined to be a joke, some of their clothing choices were going to be hurt eventually, the videos are of an early 80s MTV nature, so more than a little cheesy. But make no mistake, DuBrow could sing. His voice is actually somewhere in the style of a Noddy Holder from Slade, which explains the two covers.

So, are these two albums worth the price? That would depend on how much money you have. Both albums should be in the collection of any self-respecting fan of Rock. No matter what, you should have them. If you have the money to burn they are without a doubt worth the price.

Quiet Riot I is a little rougher than Quiet Riot II. This only makes sense due to it being the first time these guys got into a studio. Plus, I am guessing they were not given a massive budget, partially explaining the "Japanese only" nature of the release. The songs are also a little more juvenile with lyrics and delivery.

Quiet Riot II is really the gem. This is actually a massive plus for the collectors, as it can be had for a much cheaper price tag. But this is the album where Randy Rhoads becomes Randy Rhoads. One can hear the soloing that would be associated with him, including certain runs that would later show up with Ozzy. But his playing is much more refined here, and much more confident. Through out this whole album there are moments where one hears the beginnings of an Ozzy solo, or a bend here or there, or a slide, that we are all familiar with due to hearing similar things happening in the Osbourne material. It is pretty fascinating to hear these bits in such a different style song. They work in both the Glammy QR style and the evil Ozzy style, it just shows how versatile Rhoads could be, even with the same material. It all comes down to his style and technique.

In fact, that can be said for the whole band. They are comfortable here and have matured a thousandfold from the first album. From the classic "Slick Black Cadillac" to "You Drive Me Crazy," and "We've Got The Magic" then to the cover of Small Faces "Afterglow (Of Your Love)" the band proves how good they were. Trust me, "You Drive Me Crazy" is a high point for DuBrow. Plus, the fact that he pulls off a Small Faces tune and does it justice is another testament to how great he really was.

Heads up: The Ravers release of Quiet Riot I isn't without a few flaws. It seems to have been recorded, or transferred, a tad too hot. Towards the end the levels are going crazy and the sound kind of bounces in and out a little on the levels. This comes with a bit of added distortion. This is obviously a guess that this is a side effect of the bootleg nature. I kind of doubt I will ever be holding an actual copy of QRI to be able to do a side by side comparison with, so I will just stand by my gut instinct. If anybody has an actual copy I would love to know how "Demolition Derby" sounds and if things start to fall apart on your copy towards the end.

Do yourself (and the memories of DuBrow and Rhoads) a favor, one way or another add these two albums to your collection. Whether being able to afford the real things, the Ravers boots, or even a digital download. Any self-respecting Rock and Roll fan should have these and will more than likely enjoy the heck out of these two albums. Quiet Riot II is one of the best things to be released in the 70s.

So on May 20th, 2018 I had a record buying day that might never be matched. The amount of great stuff bought that day was ridiculous. I ended up with five albums that I had been chasing for a good long while, and I bought one that instantly landed in my "all-time favorite album" list.

The Plan Was . . .

I had a plan: summer hits and I nail down a ton of reviews. I'm a teacher by day, so summers will always provide me the time to write that I long for. This is how many teachers do things. The fantastic author Dan Simmons was an author before going full-time author. It seems many authors out there are teachers, and many of them do their writing during the summer. This was a fantastic plan.

Problem is I have had this plan before.

This plan has collapsed before. It sounds good, but then the summer hits and one thing leads to another and I don't write. I like to think I am still trying to accept my role in life (I am going on my fifth year of teaching), You see, when the summer hits and I think "I am going to write!" I am also consumed by guilt that I am thinking of being a little selfish and wasting time doing something frivolous.

So, with my final three weeks I am going to take a shot at writing a bunch. Over the next few days I am going to start writing up short little reports about what I have bought. I will add little bits of information and reviews to these. But I am going to race through a bunch just to try and get us caught up. Trust me, I have not stopped the quest for great vinyl, I have just fallen off the writing.

So keep your eyes peeled! Something will show up by later tonight or early tomorrow for sure.

Rock on!!!