Vinyl From The Vault

Jack White “Hypnotize (demo)”

sfilzen — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 20:10:49 +0000

Jack White “Hypnotize (demo)” 2003/2023. Third Man Records, part of the Vault Package no. 55 on red glitter vinyl. Today, July 9th, is Jack White’s birthday (b. 1975). This 7″ single was included as a bonus in the Third Man Vault release that also had the White Stripe’s Elephant XX album for its 20th anniversary: a direct-from-the-original multitrack tapes MONO remix of the LP that left in gems like studio banter before and after takes of the tracks. The 7″ is “Jack White’s original solo demo of “Hypnotize” in two markedly different mixes here. Recorded on 4-track reel-to-reel sometime in 1998 and “gifted” to the local Detroit garage band the Hentchmen as a song White felt was more in their style than his at the time. Come a few years later, with the Hentches having done nothing with the tune, Jack reclaimed it for he and Meg, and their frenetic take quickly became a long-standing fan favorite.” (from the Vault website) The first version of “Hypnotize” is a rough n’ ready very lo-fi, garage-guitar forward version of the song and the second is a piano-heavy version that would have felt at home in an 1800’s saloon (the piano is definitely out of tune). The b-side is the original, first take version of “You’ve Got Her In Your Pocket.” None of the three songs are available on the web but both tracks appear in their finalized version on Elephant.

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Milli Vanilli “Girl You Know It’s True”

sfilzen — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 17:25:44 +0000

Milli Vanilli “Girl You Know It’s True” 1988. Hansa Records. German 12″ single, another Berlin acquisition from the same truly bizarre record shop as a lot of our other Germany finds – I think the weird owner was mildly impressed that I knew Milli Vanilli was a German “group” put together by producer Frank Farian (also responsible for the most excellent Boney M). This is also a sort-of Fab Morvan appreciation post (he’s the surviving member of the Malli Vanilli duo) for NOT performing at this week’s national performance farce: he backed out about a month ago along with most of the other booked artists; we have very few records of the other artists who were invited and who backed out, but if I find more I’ll get to those too in the next week or so.

“Girl You Know It’s True” was first written and performed by the US group Numarx in 1987. I’m fairly certain it didn’t chart but the track gained some popularity in the European dance club scene and came to the attention of Frank Farian. Milli Vanilli “recorded” their version and it went to #1 in Germany and to #2 in the US, #3 in the UK. I bet you are singing it now, it was that popular and infectious…and infamous. The track appeared on their 1988 debut German LP All or Nothing and then again on the US 1989 release Girl You Know It’s True. Farian was notorious for putting together bands that didn’t actually perform the material – they would lip synch and dance (which is HARD and I give the performers props for doing it) – but this was not admitted either on the record credits or in “live” performances. According to Wiki “The duo [Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus] served as the public faces for singers Charles Shaw, John Davis, and Brad Howell [all American musicians], who Farian thought were talented musicians but lacked a marketable image.” In July 1989 the backing track for “Girl You Know It’s True” skipped and looped at a live MTV performance and Milli Vanilli fled the stage. Then in early 1990 their LP won a Grammy for Best New Artist in 1990 but the award was revoked later that year when Farian finally admitted that Morvan and Pilatus didn’t sing a single note on the LP. To this date it is the only time a Grammy award has been taken away; their label Artista dropped them from its roster and deleted their album and its masters from their catalogue, also making Girl You Know It’s True the largest-selling album to ever be deleted plus a court ruling allowed any American who bought the album to get a partial refund. (wiki). I admit to disparaging the band back then but I have much much greater sympathy for them now, after understanding the individuals’ background, their situation and the industry as a whole (in a nutshell: it’s pretty slimy, underhanded, greedy and dishonest). Along with the single version of “Girl You Know It’s True,” there is also a “Super Club Mix” and the track “Magic Touch.”

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Jon Spencer “Songs of Personal Loss and Protest”

sfilzen — Mon, 29 Jun 2026 16:51:48 +0000

Jon Spencer “Songs of Personal Loss and Protest” 2026. Shove Records. The latest from the blues explosion man along with his backing band: Kendall Wind and Macky Spider Bowman (The Bobby Lees). The LP insert is hilarious – it’s a long list of possible band name considerations (funniest include “Jon Spencer & the Smartphone Addictions,” “Emerson, Spencer, Lake & Palmer,” most accurate include “Jon Spencer & the Devastators” and “Jon Spencer & His Badass Band) with the final “Jon Kendall Spider” for the win plus an album subtitle “Stink & Fuss.” It’s been a bit over six months since we last saw Spencer perform (December 2025 at Turner Hall in Milwaukee) so I’m not entirely certain if any of the tracks from Songs of Personal Loss and Protest were played but I feel like maybe my top pick “Knock ‘Em Out” may have been – it’s an absolute ripper and ass-shaker with a vibe that both harkens back to vintage Blues Explosion songs (“Blues Explosion Man”) and looks forward/is contemporary with his young bandmates providing propulsive, high energy rhythm. Besides having the trademark Spencer sound, many also have his sense of humor, too, like on “Orange Slice Blues” (on which he brings levity to his anxiety) and another fave “Wet & Wild.” Though the album is rocking, fun and funny, he says about the record: “These past few years, there has been a lot of emotional conflict and personal loss — the passing of time takes its toll. Losing friends, losing family, and all of this set against a world gone topsy turvy, where it feels like we are losing basic freedoms… I’m trying to balance a lot of things, but the answer is always rock ‘n’ roll.”

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Kim Gordon “Play Me”

sfilzen — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 18:31:02 +0000

Kim Gordon “Play Me” 2026, Matador Records. We caught Kim Gordon’s set last night at Summerfest – my first time seeing her solo; I did see Sonic Youth back in 1991 opening for Neil Young and Social Distortion (the “Smell the Horse” tour: great lineup, terrible sound as the noise rock/grunge/hard rock/punk mashup tour was done no favors with the now-demolished Bradley’s Center concrete echo chamber). She’s an icon for sure; still cool AF with close to zero crowd banter – mostly just “thank you’s” – and an air of disinterest. The bulk of her set were tracks from her third solo release Play Me and since this is my first time sitting down for a listen, I wasn’t familiar with any of the songs. Honestly, if this wasn’t Kim Gordon I wouldn’t own the LP or gone to see the show. I absolutely appreciate her artistry and creativity but experimental trip-hop with trap vocals is not really my jam. My top track is “Busy Bee,” co-written by Dave Grohl (he plays drums on the album but sadly did not play this song at the show last night) – it’s way beatier than most the album and also features sped-up dialogue between Gordon and Julia Cafritz (who was in Pussy Galore with Jon Spencer) from an episode of MTV Beach House that Gordon and Cafritz guest-hosted in the 1990s. The title track “Play Me” is also pretty good, as is the lead single “Not Today.” I’m not a fan of autotune at all and while I understand its inclusion both on the LP and at the show last night, it still gives me pain (“Black Out” in particular). Finally of note is the last track “ByeBye25” which is “a reworking of the single “Bye Bye” from her 2024 album The Collective, with updated lyrics based on words flagged [censored] by the second Trump administration. It was accompanied with a black-and-white music video showing Gordon walking through a construction site. Proceeds from the single and associated T-shirt went to Noise for Now, a non-profit organization based on reproductive rights.” (Wiki)

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The Notwist “News From Planet Zombie”

sfilzen — Wed, 24 Jun 2026 18:01:05 +0000

The Notwist “News From Planet Zombie” 2026. Marr Music. Limited edition indie record store orange vinyl variant. Even though it’s been two months since we were in Berlin, I’m still slogging through our vinyl haul from that trip. We picked up The Notwist’s latest LP upon the recommendation of the very odd record store owner (33rpm Records); I have never heard of this Munich-based band but they’ve been around for a LONG time. From their Bandcamp page: “The Notwist, formed in 1989, then consisting of Martin Messerschmidt, and brothers Micha and Markus Acher — released their self-titled debut album on Subway Records a good thirty years ago [in 1991], a unique tightrope walk between melodic independent, metallic rock and explosive hardcore parts…” Their most recent release News From Planet Zombie certainly doesn’t have any hardcore but it is really really lovely, leaning heavily into the melodic indie pop vibe (“The Turning” feels super early aughts alt/college radio: lo-fi angular jangle with some retro xylophone-esque bleep-bloops that eventually descend into a bit of a rager), though some tracks do rock out, like “X-Ray” plus there’s some indie grit on “Who We Used to Be” as well. The Notwist cover Neil Young’s “Red Sun” and it’s a shimmering atmospheric delight. They also cover the Lovers 2009 “How the Story Ends” – a band and song I do not know but Bandcamp tells me they are indie folk-pop group hailing from Portland, Oregon by way of Athens, Georgia and Notwist’s version is great: the lyrics on News From Planet Zombie are all sung in English and I could really only hear any obvious German accent on that cover and musically it is exceptionally layered; landing both sweet pop and experimental art rock. For all of 33rpm Record dude’s weirdness, he certainly steered us in a good direction with this album.

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Oddfellows “Oddfellows”

sfilzen — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 16:44:56 +0000

Oddfellows “Oddfellows” 2026. Dirtnap Records, Green Noise exclusive clear vinyl variant. Texas OG punks reunited! The band first got together in ’94, played a bit, sort of split into a zillion (famous) pieces and have now reformed for their first LP (they did put out a 7″ in ’95). Oddfellows features Chris Pulliam (The Reds, High Tension Wires) on guitar, bass and vocals; Mark Ryan (The Reds, The Marked Men, High Tension Wires, O-D-EX, Radioactivity, Mind Spiders) also on guitar, bass, and vocals; and Mike Throneberry (The Reds, The Marked Men, Mind Spiders, Mazinga Phaser, Stumptone) on drums and vocals. Meaning we’ve seen Ryan and Throneberry play at least a couple of times at Dirtnap Fests since a few of those bands are also on the Dirtnap label. Oddfellows is punchy poppy garage punk, exactly the Dirtnap vibe, and it’s great! SO many bangers! The snotty “I Hate Rules,” the messy lo-fi “Late on Love,” the ass-shaking “Eraser,” the jangly and incongruously mod happy/snappy “I Burned Your Lawn,” the odd (but awesome) jangle-grunge of “You’ll Never Get to Mars” (think The Kinks meets Screaming Trees – it’s weird but totally works) – what a fun record!

I cannot find a single live performance of this Oddfellows band (there are other ones out there, a rabbit hole I’m not willing to fall into) so here’s The Marked Men’s full set from Dirtnap Fest 2025 at X-Ray Arcade and yes we were there.

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Avengers “We Are the One”

sfilzen — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 18:28:59 +0000

Avengers “We Are the One” 1977. Originally released on Dangerhouse Records, this version limited edition repress, blue vinyl on Superior Viaduct. We got to see the first wave SanFran punks last week at their first and most likely last show in Milwaukee on the 49th(!!!) anniversary of their very first show on June 11th 1977. “We Are the One” was the Avengers first single (this 3 song 7″ is considered an EP for whatever reason); all three tracks would appear on their 1983 album Avengers. Besides being an excellent straightforward punk anthem, it also is notable as the first time a West Coast punk band issued music on an independent label (Dangerhouse). They of course played “We Are the One” (video of Thursday’s performance below, recorded by Joe), one of their best-known tracks, plus a slew of other old favorites like “The American in Me” and “White N****r” which they obviously have changed the title and lyrics to (“Gold Digger is it’s new name/lyrics). Also on the 7” is “I Believe in Me” and “Car Crash” which I think they played but honestly I can’t remember at this point.

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The Sleeveens “National Anthem”

sfilzen — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 15:50:02 +0000

The Sleeveens “National Anthem” 2026. Goner Records, limited edition white vinyl variant. The latest from Dublin/Nashville punks – love these guys! We’ve been fans since even before their debut LP (on Dirtnap Records) was released having gotten the inside scoop from Dirtnap Ken back in late 2023 or early 2024. National Anthem is a raucous garage soaked good time, reminiscent of the 70s punk sound (The Clash, Ramones, Buzzcocks and Stiff Little Fingers — I think two of the Nashville-based band members still do tech for SLF tours – here’s a photo of Sleeven bassist, who also recorded and mixed National Anthem – doing guitar tech before the Stiff Little Fingers set at Punk Rock Bowling in 2024 ): fun, melodic and a bit snotty. There’s even a bit 60s-style girl group energy (which is of course also like the Ramones) meets jangly power pop (think early Elvis Costello) on “My Pretend Girlfriend” and some country twang on the title track “National Anthem” (though it is sarcastic AF). As usual, my top tracks are the bangers like the opener “If I Was a Casual,” “Six Counties Punk” and the snappy “Cowboy Queen.” Despite the album’s name, there’s just one song that I’d describe having an anthemic sound: the hypnotic, driving “Town of Horseheads” that definitely leans into heavy garage psych territory. There’s just one cover on National Anthem – “The Rat” originally by The Walkmen (2004) and since I’m not familiar with that indie rock band I’ll just go ahead and say The Sleeveens version is great.

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Duran Duran “Violence of Summer”

sfilzen — Mon, 08 Jun 2026 17:42:11 +0000

Duran Duran “Violence of Summer (Love’s Taking Over)” 1990, 12″single. Today, June 8th, is Nick Rhodes’ birthday (b. 1962). Funky “Violence of Summer” was the lead single off of their 1990 LP Liberty: it went to #20 in the UK and to #64 in the US. Honestly (and regretfully) I wasn’t paying much attention to D2 in ’90 so I’m woefully unaware of this single and that LP. This was the time period where both Andy Taylor and Roger Taylor had left the band and Warren Cuccurullo was on guitar and Sterling Campbell was filling in on drums. There were several variants of the single released: this one is the US 12″ with four versions of “Violence” plus “Throb,” a previously unreleased track which is an instrumental remix of “My Antarctica” (also on Liberty). The four remixes are pretty similar: lots of throbbing dance beats, Simon vocal samples, sci-fi(ish) voiceovers, etc. which make it difficult to pinpoint a favorite. The Story Mix is kinda cool as it starts out with Simon doing a beat-poet-like thing which is kinda awesome and hilarious. The Power Mix is super ass-shaking and segues seamlessly into the Dub Mix. I’d say my least favorite (though it’s still good!) is the Rock Mix with the train horns but the beat is crazy infectious and hypnotic which almost balances out the horn blast. The radio single/album track isn’t on the 12″ but it is here:

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The Bags “All Bagged Up”

sfilzen — Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:49:56 +0000

The Bags “All Bagged Up” the collected works 1977-1980. Artifix Records. Last night we had the immense pleasure of seeing the Alice Bag Band at Anodyne Coffee here in Milwaukee – omg she is still so fantastic: vibrant, intelligent, a great storyteller, lovely but still a pissed off punk at heart. A US punk pioneer, Alice Bag led The Bags, a first-wave L.A. punk band that didn’t really receive the national (underground) attention as they’re LA contemporaries like the Germs and Black Flag. All Bagged Up is a compilation of original Bags that Artifix says is “After years (Literally) of hunting, researching, tracking down and finageling, Artifix is proud to present ALL BAGGED UP…the collected works 1977-1980. This 12″ LP represents everything we could dig up by L.A.’s infamous BAGS.” (from Artifix’s website). On it are The Bags first single “Survive” and “Babylonian Gorgon” which, along with “We Don’t Need the English” and “We Will Bury You” were recorded in 1978 at the Dangerhouse recording studio. Last night “Survive” was the encore (video Joe recorded below) and Alice told a delightful story to introduce “We Don’t Need the English” – former Bags bassist Patricia Rainone (Pat Bag) had married The Damned’s Dave Vanian and while the song was not written about him, the band decided it would be funnier to introduce the song saying it was definitely about him. Four tracks were recorded live at The Masque on February 24th, 1978 – this show just 2 weeks after their debut performance at the Masque (at which The Germs Darby Crash – then going by Bobby Pyn – was there and rushed the stage yanking off the bags from The Bags’ heads). Recorded live in 1979 in Oregon are the songs “7 and 7 is” – a Love cover, “1, 2, 3,” “Gluttony” (which Alice played last night, introducing it as a song written by an original Bags member who suffered from an eating disorder – can’t remember if she said which one but it was one of the guys; this song also appears in The Bags appearance in the 1981 Penelope Spheeris directed concert/documentary film Decline of Western Civilization) plus “In Love with Romance” and “Survive.” There’s also a few studio rehearsal recordings and their first demo “Bag Bondage.” Finding any Bags on vinyl has always been a challenge so having some of their classic tracks compiled in one place has been a long time in coming.

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