Dead Kennedys “Iguana Studios Rehearsal Tape – San Francisco 1978”

sfilzen — Tue, 11 Dec 2018 17:59:12 +0000

Dead Kennedys “Iguana Studios Rehearsal Tape – San Francisco 1978” Record Store Day Black Friday limited release, 2018. Manifesto Records. Demos of DK’s first songs with the original lineup of Jello Biafra (vocals), East Bay Ray (guitar), Klaus Flouride (bass), Ted (drums) and 6025 (“other guitar”) that “have never been released in any form anywhere and this is the first new Dead Kennedys anything in about 13 years.” It’s understandably relatively rough and lo-fi, being a collection of demos and rehearsals, but the raw and furious energy of Dead Kennedys roars through and the collection includes several of my favorite DK songs, plus some really excellent surprises, like the bouncing reggae tune “Dreadlocks of the Suburbs” though the generally mellow vibe of the reggae beat is offset by Biafra’s signature sneer and the tension of the punk guitar that constantly bubbles below the surface. It’s great to hear the early versions of the tracks from their first album Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables like “Kill the Poor” (always one of my favorite), “Forward to Death,” “Your Emotions” (so snotty!), “I Kill Children,” “Holiday in Cambodia” (another fave, this version almost borderline psychedelic and unrecognizable – save for the chorus and the “Pol Pot” chant – from the one on Fresh Fruit) and “California Uber Alles” (the demo as dark and menacing as the final cut). Also included is their cover of the TV theme “Rawhide” (originally recorded by Frankie Lane) which appeared on their ‘81 EP In God We Trust, Inc as well as the track “Kepone Kids” which is a reworking of the song “Kepone Factory” from In God We Trust, Inc. Also appearing on Iguana Studios are a couple of tracks that I don’t think exist on any other official DK releases: the aforementioned “Dreadlocks of the Suburbs” plus “Cold Fish,” “Kidnap” (breakneck and Ramones-esque) and “Mutations of Today” (atonal and totally weird).

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Germs “What We Do Is Secret”

sfilzen — Tue, 27 Nov 2018 19:51:23 +0000

Germs “What We Do Is Secret” 1981/2018. Slash Records. I have the original from ‘81 but because I will literally buy anything Germs-related, I just picked up this Record Store Day Black Friday reissue on blue vinyl. As I wrote about a few years ago, What We Do Is Secret was my vinyl holy grail in the 80′s. Pre-internet ease, I would scour every record store I came across for this out-of-print EP until one day in ‘93 while visiting San Diego, there it was on the wall of Off the Record (cue the halo of light and chorus of angels).

Slash Records released What We Do Is Secret soon after Darby Crash’s suicide in 1980. All the songs were available on other releases but the EP had a couple of different versions and live tracks. The version of “Round and Round” was recorded in ‘77 for What Records. The “Lexicon Devil” version on What We Do Is Secret is the slow version and my absolute favorite. That track, along with “Circle One” and “No God” were recorded in ‘78 for Slash Records and were produced by Geza X. “Caught in My Eye” comes from the GI sessions on Slash with Joan Jett producing. “The Other Newest One” and “My Tunnel” are live, recorded in late ‘80, just days before Crash’s death, at the Starwood in Hollywood and Crash is rude, obnoxious, a complete mess and completely awesome.

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record store day black friday Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

Dead Kennedys “Iguana Studios Rehearsal Tape – San Francisco 1978”

Germs “What We Do Is Secret”