Primal Scream - Loaded

No way baby lets go
We're gonna have a good time
We're gonna have a party

In a time when bands were very introverted Primal Scream came out at everyone with an ‘Oooohhh Yeeeaah’, and gold lame.

Primal Scream started life as a C86 band, under the direction of Alan McGee they experimented with synthesisers, started listening to house music and went to raves. They recruited Andrew Weatherall and Terry Farley to produce their work, add a female soul vocalist, a few drum loops and remix the lot. Result Screamadelica .

I'm Losing More than I'll Ever Have, from their previous self-titled album was remixed by Andrew Weatherall. The remix sounded nothing like the original at all and was given the title Loaded. The percussion sample came from an Italian bootleg mix of Edie Brickell's ‘What I Am’ and a sample of Gillespie singing a line from Robert Johnson's ‘Terraplane Blues’.

Primal Scream : Loaded
http://rapidshare.com/files/309813175/Loaded.rar

Boo Radleys - Boo Up! EP

Another fine early EP by the Boo Radleys. From the halcyon era of all things shoegazing.

'Working again with Moulder at the production helm, the Boos stretch a touch more on Up; while all the proceedings fairly scream shoegazer, there's enough variety to catch the ear. Opening cut "Everybird" starts with an attractive acoustic arrangement before the pedals kick in, an attractive bit of gentle jangle offsetting speaker-shred. "Sometime Soon She Said" does a great job of combining a strong chorus with an all-out band rip, Sice's singing really taking off here instead of holding back as he does on many other songs from this time. "Foster's Van" benefits from both a fine understated opening and attractive main section both, the latter letting Carr continue his Kevin Shields fascination while Brown and Cjeka bust out more New Order and Cure moves. "Song for Up!" concludes things with an initially downbeat then fairly sprightly little romp, with lyrics to match.' ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide

Boo Radleys : Boo Up! EP
http://rapidshare.com/files/306138607/Boo_Up__EP.rar

The Stairs – Mexican R‘n’B

Parody or pastiche? The Stairs Mexican R’n’B takes the sixties pop imitation to extreme limits. It is recorded in mono, the band said that, ‘if mono is good enough for Phil Spector it is good enough for us.’ They were completely obsessive about the early beat bands and they emulated everything about them. Edgar Summertyme the charismatic and colourful lead singer had big ideas about the band and their music. His voice was a gutsy growl that came out of a mouth the size of their home town of Liverpool.

The album has Mersey beat tendencies. The Stairs would not look out of place on the set of Ready Steady Go, with their sound or look.

In 2008, some songs from The Stairs unreleased 2nd album was released, entitled "Who Is This Is".

The Stairs : Mexican R'n'B
http://rapidshare.com/files/303333164/Mexican_R_nB.rar

Lush - Gala

Gala was an introduction to Lush for the American market. It contains the band's first three EPs which were only available in the UK. They needed to get a foothold in the American market with their debut album about to be released and a place secured on the Lollapalooza tour.

It showcases the catchy melodies, distortion, effervescence and everything that made Lush what it is, to the US public. This unfortunately included bad production, unintelligible vocals buried in guitar noise.

This is their first US release and it's a compilation of EP's that were previously released in the UK. There are a selection of outtakes and a Abba cover on the album too.

Lush : Gala
http://rapidshare.com/files/300097697/Lush_-_Gala.rar

Flowered Up (repost)

Last week, former Flowered Up frontman, tragically died. Liam Maher was only 41 years old. With a selection of singles and only one album Flowered Up were a main player in the baggy movement. Weekender was their greatest moment it also signified the end of the baggy movement.

There have been many tributes from my blogging contemporaries. I thought a fitting tribute would be to repost my Flowered Up article.

I was routing around in the shoe box of tickets and found one for Flowered Up. I reckon I might of been grounded for this gig as I can't remember anything. I would of remembered Barry Mooncult (as far as I'm aware, only The Blue Aeroplanes and the Happy Mondays had dancers). Flowered Up had a short burst of fame, and their partying antics were legendary. They were the London Happy Mondays.

'Weekender, go out have a good time'. A song that changed the way me and my friends communicated to each other. 'Remember, whatever you're doing, just make sure what you're doing makes you happy'. The video the Weekender was a concept video which showed a weekend of going out, getting off your face, and then feeling rough as. Mixmag et al said that there had never been a video depicting rave culture as truly as this.



Flowered Up : Best of Flowered Up
http://rapidshare.com/files/296083161/flowered_up_-_the_best_of.rar
Upload appears courtesy of Madchester Rave On

Levitation - Need for Not

"You can be progressive without being pompous. It sounds like a cliché but I don't care - we are a progressive band and we're in the here and now."
Terry Bickers interviewed by Steve Sutherland Melody Maker April 27 1991.

"If people are tenacious enough they can dance to anything."
Christian Hayes interviewed by Steve Sutherland Melody Maker April 27 1991.

"I'd like to come back as an otter."
Terry Bickers

"Levitation are all the bands you ever wished for.."
Andy O'Reilly in Lime Lizard March 1992

There is nothing wrong with prog rock, with the exception of Muse. When guitarist and space cadet Terry Bickers was unceremoniously ejected from the House of Love tour bus to a train station. He formed the prog rock outfit Levitation. Their first album Need for Not, appeared on 4 May 1992 (the adverts for the album proclaiming “May the Fourth be with you”). It is a ambitious album, finding the guitars pushing beyond the melodic pop of the House of Love and into menacing metal rock. The churning guitars and pounding rhythm of Against Nature shows a darker and heavier side that is throughout the album. Levitation are more akin to Loop in their sonic exploration , than Bickers former outfit the House of Love.

Then all of a sudden it ended. After playing a bad-tempered fifty-minute set at Tufnell Park Dome in north London on May 14 1993, where the band were co-headlining with Eat, Terry surprised the audience and the rest of the band by announcing his intentions to leave.

“Levitation are a lost cause as far as I can tell. We’ve completely lost it haven’t we? Haven’t we?”
“This is the last time you’ll see me for a bit”.

Levitation : Need for Not
http://rapidshare.com/files/296261382/Need_for_Not.rar

Spiritualized - Fucked Up Inside

No God Just Religion

This week I went to see Spiritualized at the Royal Festival Hall. They preformed Ladies and Gentlemen in its entirety. To say that this was momentous would be an understatement. There was never less than thirty people onstage at any time. A brass and string section that had 8 people in each group, and at least 10 white robed gospel singers. Then there was the main body of Spiritualized to the front of the stage with Jason Pierce seated at the stage right throughout.

The fairy lights in the the background twinkled the disco ball started to turn, and the sonic extravaganza started. The choir broke into the Elvis's Can't Help Falling at the end of the title song. Then the wall of sound appeared, Come Together was my personal favourite. Songs such as All Of My Thoughts are not usually on the live set list, and these were the stand out moments of the evening.

It all ended with a standing ovation, but if there was going to be an encore the set would no longer be Ladies and Gentlemen, there would be an extra song that was not on the album added on. We deliberated, was it going to be a b-side? Was it going to be Stop Your Crying as this was the single that followed Ladies and Gentlemen and it would keep everything in chronological order. When Spaceman and Co (all 30 of them) reappeared they performed Out of Sight. This was classic and exhilarating.

I didn't bootleg the concert, but I do have a copy of Fucked Up Inside. This was recorded back in 1992 and only available by mail order It was taken from concerts on 21st November at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles and at the previous show at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco.

Spiritualized : Fucked Up Inside
http://rapidshare.com/files/293694802/Fucked_Up_Inside.rar