Richard Band - H.P. Lovecraft's From Beyond (Limited Edition Soundtrack) (1990 - 320kbps)

Only recently have I come to realize the extent to which La-La Land Records has dedicated itself to releasing the soundtracks and scores to numerous cult classic science-fiction and horror films. I recently posted their compilation of scores for films produced by George Pal, which was released on La-La Land. This afternoon I spent nearly an hour writing a review for the Dominic Frontiere's Limited Edition score for The Outer Limits, only to find out that it was still available to purchase on their website. I was almost certain that it would be out of print, especially considering that only 3,000 copies were pressed and it was released two years ago. You can imagine my surprise whenever I realized that my next selection in line was also released by La-La Land. I chose to share Richard Band's score to H.P. Lovecraft's From Beyond both because I already knew it was out of print, and because there is steady stream of devoted Lovecraft fans regularly visiting this blog.

Since I already wasted my entire afternoon writing a review that I can't use, and I need to start studying for my final college achievement tests, I'm forced to keep this post even more brief than some of my more recent posts. As with my other posts I'll briefly discuss the most important details regarding this release, and copy & paste the information about the film from the Wikipedia article.

The score is composed by Richard Band, a prolific composer of b-movie science-fiction and horror films, having composed scores for over 70 different films. However, this soundtrack stands above all the rest as the crowning achievement of his career, and would bring him numerous awards. Most notably, he took home the Best Music Award at the 1986 Barcelona Film Festival, beating out the scores for Aliens, Star Trek IV and Blue Velvet. It also won the award for Best Original Soundtrack at the Catalonian International Film Festival in Sitges Spain. Band is also known for frequently working with Director Stuart Gordon, a huge Lovecraft fan who has directed several film adaptions of his stories, including Re-Animator, From Beyond, Castle Freak (from The Outsider), Dagon, and most recently, a television series adaption of "The Dreams In The Witch-House for HBO's Masters of Horror series.

This score was released as a Limited Edition soundtrack by La-La Land Records in 1990, marking the first time that the soundtrack was officially released on CD. As with most of their Limited Edition releases, only 3,000 copies of this album were pressed, and this release has long been out of print. La-La Land has a reputation for producing some beautifully remastered material, and this release is no exception. Not only has it been fully restored and digitally remastered from the original master tapes from Richard Band's persona archive, but it has also been expanded to include previously unreleased material. I'm out of time for now, so I'm going to go ahead and post the Wikipedia article for "From Beyond". I hope you all enjoy this rare science-fiction/horror soundtrack.

"From Beyond is a 1986 American science fiction/ body horror film directed by Stuart Gordon, loosely based on the short story of the same title by H. P. Lovecraft, and was written by Dennis Paoli, Gordon and Brian Yuzna. The film stars Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton and Ken Foree and Ted Sorel.

From Beyond centers around a pair of scientists attempting to stimulate the pineal gland with a device called The Resonator. An unforeseen result of their experiments is the ability to perceive creatures from another dimension that proceed to drag the head scientist into their world, who returns as a grotesque shape-changing monster and preys upon the others at the laboratory.

MGM has released a restored unrated cut of the film with extras. From Beyond has previously only been released in its edited R-rated form. The MPAA had required cuts to S&M footage and gore to allow it to be R-rated. This missing footage was reinserted into the film and the restored, longer version was aired on the Monsters HD Channel (copies of this release have been distributed on the Internet). The DVD was released on September 11, 2007 - Wikipedia"


Year of Release: 1986 (Original) | 1990 (Re-Release)
Label: La-La Land Records
Genres: Soundtrack/Score, Science-Fiction, Horror
Bitrate: 320kbps

Track List:
1. From Beyond - Original Main Title
2. The Resonator and Main Title
2. We Saw Creatures
4. Back to the Pretorious House
5. Crawford's Anxiety
6. Pretorius' Madness
7. She's So Pretty
8. The Lampre From Beyond
9. The Mutations
10. Escape From The Mental Hospital & Beyond The Pretorius House
11. The Final Battle In The Beyond
12. Catherine Survives...But
13. End Title

Download: Richard Band - H.P. Lovecraft's From Beyond
Download Size: 105MB

Richard Band - H.P. Lovecraft's Re-Animator: The Definitive Edition (2003 - FLAC)

While doing research for my last post, I discovered that La-La Land also released this limited edition version of Re-Animator. Needless to say it quickly sold out, and remains out of print and no longer available for purchase from La-La. As usual, I have very little time on my hands, so I'm going to include a few excerpts from Wikipedia to provide everyone with more info.

This soundtrack is a Limited Edition CD re-release of the soundtrack to H.P. Lovecraft's Re-Animator, originally released on vinyl in 1985 by the Varèse Sarabande label. Only 3,000 hand-numbered CDs were released, which seems to be the standard number for Limited Edition releases by La-La. In addition to Band's original score, this version also contains a previously unreleased "reprise" of the Re-Animator theme, along with a bonus audio interview with Richard Band himself. All the tracks have been digitally remastered from the original master tapes, and released in stereo for the first time.

"Re-Animator is a 1985 science fiction horror film based on the H. P. Lovecraft story "Herbert West–Reanimator." Directed by Stuart Gordon, it was the first film in the Re-Animator series. The movie has become a cult film, driven by fans of Jeffrey Combs (who stars as Herbert West), extreme gore, and the successful combination of horror and comedy. The idea to make Re-Animator came from a discussion Stuart Gordon had with friends one night about vampire movies. He felt that there were too many Dracula movies and expressed a desire to see a Frankenstein movie. Someone asked if he had read Herbert West: Re-Animator by H.P. Lovecraft. Gordon had read most of the author's works but that story had been out of print. He went to the Chicago Public Library and read their copy.

Originally, Gordon was going to adapt Lovecraft's story for the stage but then writers Dennis Paoli and William Norris and Gordon decided to do it as a half-hour television pilot. The story was set around the turn of the century and they realized that it would be too expensive to recreate. They updated it to the present day in Chicago with the intention of using actors from the Organic Theater company. They were told that the half hour format was not salable and so they made it an hour, writing 13 episodes. Special effects technician Bob Greenberg, who had worked on John Carpenter's Dark Star, repeatedly told Gordon that the only market for horror was in feature films and introduced him to producer Brian Yuzna. Gordon showed Yuzna the script for the pilot and the 12 additional episodes. The producer liked what he read and convinced Gordon to shoot the film in Hollywood because of all the special effects involved. Yuzna made a distribution deal with Charles Band's Empire Pictures in return for post-production services

Re-Animator was released on October 18, 1985, in 129 theaters and grossed USD $543,728 on its opening weekend. It went on to make $2 million in North America, well above its $900,000 budget. It was well-received by critics, earning mostly positive reviews, and today has a 92% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Roger Ebert gave the film three out of four stars and wrote, "I walked out somewhat surprised and reinvigorated (if not re-animated) by a movie that had the audience emitting taxi whistles and wild goat cries". Entertainment Weekly ranked the film #32 on their list of "The Top 50 Cult Films", and also ranked it #14 on their "The Cult 25: The Essential Left-Field Movie Hits Since '83" list. - Wikipedia"

I am relunctant to post albums that aren't at least 192kbps in quality, and unfortunately this album falls well below that at 128. I picked this up on a torrent site years ago and have yet to find a suitable quality replacement. My search only yielded a long trail of broken download links. I decided to go ahead and post it due to the fact that it is a very rare album, and with only 3,000 physical copies of this in existence, this may be the only way many people will be able to listen to it. I'm also hoping that someone will come forward and share a download link for a higher quality version of this. If any of you have this in 320 or higher, and are willing to share, please post the download link in the comments section of this post.

P.S. If any of you have a waffles.fm or What.cd invite, could you please shoot me an e-mail (address is in my profile). It would prevent the problem above from occurring again. I had accounts on both, but I was without internet access for several months, so they deleted my accounts due to inactivity.

Year of Release: 1985 (Original) | 2003 (Re-Release)
Label: La-La Land Records
Genres: Soundtrack/Score, Science-Fiction, Horror
Bitrate: FLAC | Lossless

Track List:
1. Prologue/Main Title
2. Meg Looks For The Cat
3. Dan Falls Into Cellar
4. The Turning Point/First Reanimation/First Reanimator
5. Halsey Back To Life
6. Halsey Grabs The Boys
7. Welcome Back To Life
8. Meg and Hill In Office
9. West Tries Parts
10. Searching Hill's Office
11. Body and Soul
12. Love Theme
13. Corpses Just Want To Have Fun
14. Meg Is Gone...Well, Maybe Not/End Credits
15. Interview With Richard Band
16. Re-Animator Theme Reprise

Download: Richard Band - H.P. Lovecraft's Re-Animator: The Definitive Edition
Password: banzai
Download Size: 241MB

Note: My download link for this mysteriously disappeared. Fortunately "Strange Ranger" was kind enough to provide a download link for the soundtrack in FLAC, so I have replaced my link with his for the time being. I'll try to remember to reupload this when I get home for those who prefer to have it in mp3 format.

Richard Band's Lovecraft: Limited Edition Soundtrack Compilation (2007 - 320kbps)

In 2007, Richard Band was given the Howie Award for lifetime achievement in music composition at the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Portland, Oregon. He brought with him a compilation of his compositions for Lovecraft inspired films, limited to 60 copies. I had the good fortune of befriending someone who attended that festival and scored a copy. At first, I wasn't going to post this because of the repetition here, since most of these pieces appear on albums that have been posted on this blog in the recent past. I changed my mind for a few reasons. First of all, it is a great compilation despite the fact that it is missing cues from From Beyond which is arguably Band's best horror score. Secondly, it features the music from the "Dreams in the Witch House" episode of Masters of Horror, directed by Stuart Gordon in 2005. To my knowledge this music isn't available anywhere else. This was a return to horror and Lovecraft for Band, after a seven year break during which he worked mostly on TV and family oriented stuff. The results are excellent with Band utilizing a small group of chanters, to classic bone-chilling effect. Finally, there are two excellent tracks from Bride of Re-Animator. Enjoy!

Year of Release: 2007
Composer promo limited to 60 copies.
Genres: Soundtrack/Score, Compilation, Horror, H.P. Lovecraft
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 320kbps
FLAC upgrade available upon request.

Tracklist:
1. ReAnimator: Prologue & Main Title (4:12)
2. ReAnimator: Meg Looks For The Cat (2:09)
3. ReAnimator: Body And Soul (1:28)
4. Dreams In The Witch House: Main Title (2:19)
5. Dreams In The Witch House: Dreams Come True? (1:17)
6. Dreams In The Witch House: Witch Action (5:17)
7. Dreams In The Witch House: Final Confrontation (2:57)
8. Castle Freak: Main Title (2:25)
9. Castle Freak: The Toy Room (1:31)
10. Castle Freak: Giorgio Unleashed (8:16)
11. The Resurrected: Main Title (4:00)
12. The Resurrected: Claire's Story (1:51)
13. The Resurrected: The Abomination-Finale (7:40)
14. Bride Of ReAnimator: Bride Prologue & Main Title (3:44)
15. Bride Of ReAnimator: Building The Bride (4:46)
16. Dreams In The Witch House: Did He Really Kill The Child? (1:51)

Download: Richard Band's Lovecraft (Soundtrack Compilation)
Download Size: 125MB

There is a link for an unrelated BONUS album in the comments for this post.

Richard Band - Castle Freak Original Soundtrack (1995 - 192kbps)

While the duo of composer Richard Band and director Stuart Gordon have already appeared several times on the Countdown, I couldn't resist sharing one of their lesser known collaborations. As with the previous soundtracks I shared, this film also seeks to pay homage to the work of H.P. Lovecraft. Unfortunately I haven't had the chance to watch this film yet, and while I prefer not to share soundtracks to films that I haven't watched, I chose to put this up regardless because I know there are several fans of Band, Gordon and Lovecraft who frequent this blog. Castle Freak was released in 1995, and is roughly based on H.P. Lovecraft's short-story "The Outsider", which was written in 1921 and first published in "Weird Tales" magazine in 1927. If you're interested in downloading the e-book or listening to the audiobook of "The Outsider" you can find both here on this blog by doing a quick search (top right).

Band's score for Castle Freak features some of his most powerful pieces, as well as some of the most delicate he has ever produced. The first half of the soundtrack is a showcase of power, and helps to further characterize the 12th century castle and the freak that lives within. Since I haven't watched the film, I can't even begin to speculate about the nature of the scenes which feature the more delicate cues, which is one reason I prefer not to review soundtracks to films that I haven't had a chance to watch. While this may not be Band's best effort, it is certainly worthy of the Halloween Countdown, and one does not need to be a fan of his work to enjoy this. This soundtrack was released by Intrada in 1995, and is currently out of print and unavailable for purchase on the Intrada website.

Year of Release: 1995
Label: Intrada
Genres: Soundtrack/Score, Horror
Bitrate: 192kbps

Tracklist:
1. Prologue
2. The Toy Room
3. The Castle
4. Giorgio Unleashed
5. The Family Tomb
6. John's Despair
7. Giorgio Snaps
8. Il Castello Di Giove
9. Giorgio Abducts Becky
10. The Final Battle

Download: Richard Band - Castle Freak Original Soundtrack
Download Size: 60MB

Richard Band - The Pit & the Pendulum: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1991 - 320kbps)

The Pit & the Pendulum (1991) is another Stuart Gordon / Richard Band team-up, only this time with the source material being by H.P. Lovecraft's predecessor, Edgar Allan Poe. This film I have not seen yet, but they got Lance Henriksen as the star, and that has my attention. After giving the score a few listens, I will surely be seeking out this film that many fans have called Full Moon Pictures' finest. Maybe I can find it to download somewhere. From what I have read about it, it has great atmosphere, sets, costumes and performances. Supposedly, there is far less gore than the usual Gordon fare, but that won't stop me from watching it.

From listening to the score, I have gleaned that this film, in typical Gordon fashion, must have traces of humor in it. There are parts where Band's music really brings a smile to my face, but don't let that convince you that this is all about laughs. No, sirs and madams, there is plenty of dread and horror to be found in this Gothic and dramatic music. Band also makes excellent use of a choir on a few tracks. Enjoy!

Year of Release: 1991
Label: Moonstone Records
Catalog #: MD 9903
Genres: Soundtrack/Score, Horror
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 320kbps
If anyone has a true lossless rip of this long out of print CD, please feel free share it here.

Track list:
1. The Crypt and Main Titles (4:00)
2. The Chase and Onslaught (2:21)
3. The Arrest of Maria (1:18)
4. The Purging of Torquemada (1:06)
5. Antonio Sneaks into the Castle (2:38)
6. Esmeralda's Meadow of Peace (1:34)
7. Antonio Battles the Guards (4:05)
8. The Pope's Envoy (2:13)
9. The Rape of Maria (6:02)
10. Esmeralda Comforts Maria (1:43)
11. The Night Auto da Fe / Esmeralda's Revenge (2:37)
12. Maria's Burial (0:41)
13. The Pit and the Pendulum (8:48)
14. Justice for the Grand Inquisitor... Death (3:36)
15. Maria's Resurrection and Finale (5:51)

Download: Richard Band - The Pit & the Pendulum: Original Soundtrack
Download Size: 114MB

There is a link for an unrelated BONUS album in the comments of this post.

Richard Band - The Resurrected: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1992 - 320kbps)

Lovecraft fans rejoice, for today you get awesome music from The Resurrected by director Dan 'O Bannon (RIP), which was based on The Case of Charles Dexter Ward. If you have not seen it, and I am sure most H.P. Lovecraft fans have, it is highly recommended that you do. The whole production is top-notch, and Richard Band delivers once again. If you missed the previous Lovecraft/Band albums on this blog, take a minute to do a search because his work is excellent and criminally underrated.

Here is some info in the liner notes from the composer:
Upon receiving this assignment, one of the elements I found most intriguing was how I could use a combination of orchestral instruments and electronics to create and ever-widening effect as they descended into the bowels beneath Charles Ward's house.
I loved the fact that as they descended to one level, there was still another lower level and another, and so on.
This allowed me to use such devices as having the clarinets, bassoons and celli echoing pizzacato effects, then turning into bass clarinets, contrabassoons and basses when reaching yet another level.
With each level reaching deeper and deeper, I attempted to have the music follow suit, getting lower, slower and more menacing but always trying to maintain a sense of impending discovery.
The orchestral devices mixed with the thematic structure climax upon reaching the lowest level, where the mutations resided, thus allowing me to once again reverse direction musically as they hurriedly ascend... escaping the inevitable fate of the ancient tomb.

Year of Release: 1992
Label: Intrada
Catalog Number: MAF 7036D
Genres: Soundtrack, Horror
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 320kbps
FLAC upgrade available upon request.

Tracklist:
1. Main Title (03:57)
2. Claire's Story (01:48)
3. Dog's Blood (02:21)
4. Charles Explores (02:45)
5. Fenner's Shock (00:59)
6. Nobody There (01:50)
7. Sheriff at the House (02:47)
8. Abomination (04:01)
9. In The Tunnels (05:53)
10. The Chamber (05:31)
11. Mutants (05:01)
12. Final Battle (08:07)

Download: Richard Band - The Resurrected (Original Soundtrack)
Download Size: 107MB

Three for Thursday

Just three short ones today. I’ve been busy as hell as of late, but I know Brother Z is in transition, as they say, so I’ll try my best to carry on with some tasty musick. A change of pace from the last post. Will come up with something a bit beefier this weekend. Here are: a 12“ single; a so-called 12“ ep; & a real 12“ ep.

Cabaret Voltaire - James Brown b/w Bad Self(Part One) 12“ single

Cabaret Voltaire began in 1973 in Sheffield, England. They worked mostly with noise manipulation & processing. They were included with bands such as Throbbing Gristle at the time. Originally a three-piece with Richard H. Kirk (guitar & synthesizer), Stephen Mallinder (vocals & bass), & Christopher Watkins (keyboards & sampler). By 1984 when this single was released, Christopher Watkins had left the band to form The Hafler Trio with Andrew M. McKenzie & Cabaret Voltaire was moving toward a more commercial, rhythm-conscious dance oriented sound. The remixes of tracks from CV’s Micro-Phonies on this single are highly recommended.

On this recording, Cabaret Voltaire was: Richard H. Kirk & Stephen Mallinder along with Roger Quail (drums); Mark Tattersall (percussion); & Eric Random (tablas).

Year of Release: 1984
Label: Some Bizarre/Virgin CVS 4 12
Genre: Electro-dance

Tracklist:

Side 1 - James Brown [ We Toil to the Boil in run-out ]
Side 2 - Bad Self (Part One)[ What’s on Your Minds? in run-out ]

Download: Cabaret Voltaire - James Brown 12“ single
Download Size:33.159MB (ripped from vinyl at 320Kbps)

Machinations - Pressure Sway 12“ ep???

Next up is Sydney, Australia band Machinations. Although this is listed as a 12“ ep with three songs, I’ll be damned if this record has three songs. Side Two is listed as containing “Pressure Sway (Instrumental Version)” & “Push Bike”, but there is no bike, push or otherwise. So I guess this is really a 12“ single as well. Oh, well. Machinations was very popular in Australia in the indie-rock scene of the mid-80s. They also began as a three-piece with Fred Loneragan (vocals), Tim Doyle (guitar), & Tony Starr (keyboards & drum machine). They were then joined by Nick ‘Nero’ Swan on bass. After a charting single & a self-titled ep, the band signed with prestigious Mushroom Record's White Label. In 1983 the band again charted both in Australia (#21) & the U.S. (#40) with the song “Pressure Sway”. Fame was not due to follow, however, & they never really became a household name.

Year of Release: 1983
Label: A&M Records SP-12077
Genre: Electro-pop

Tracklist:

Side One: Pressure Sway (Extended Club Version)
Side Two: Pressure Sway (Instrumental Version)

Download: Machinations - Pressure Sway 12inch ep
Download Size:25.5MB (ripped from vinyl at 320Kbps)

Wreck - self-titled 12“ ep

Last is Chicago noise-rock band Wreck. A truly under-appreciated & overlooked band. Started by Dean Schlabowske (guitar & vocals), Keith Brammer (bass), & Bart Flores (drums). Dean later was in the Waco brothers, while Keith left after the first ep (for Die Kreuzen & Boy Dirt Car) & was replaced by Kurt Moore. The band recorded for WaxTrax! on their Play it Again Sam label, releasing two eps, a single, & one full length lp. Wreck was an oddity on Waxtrax!, who featured mostly industrial dance musick. Wreck seemed to have more in common with AmRep bands. Their sound was in a similar vein as Big Black. In fact legendary madman Steve Albini was at the production helm of all their releases.

Year of Release: 1989
Label: Play it Again Sam BIUS 3033
Genre: Noise-rock

Tracklist:

Side A
Song X
Cut Ups
Side B
Lac du Flambeau
We Know Everything

Download: Wreck - Self-titled 12“ ep
Download: 23.27MB (ripped from vinyl at 320Kbps)

Bram Tchaikovsky - Funland

All this bullshit about the Tea Party is making me thirsty. I guess it's T Time.

Bram Tchaikovsky is the stage name of one Peter Bramall from Lincolnshire, England as well as the name of the group he fronted in the late 70s & early 80s. Peter had joined the Motors in 1977, a group headed up by songwriters Andy McMaster & Nick Garvey. Bram wanted a larger role in the overall musickal creation, so while waiting on pre-production work for the second Motors album, Tchaikovsky took the opportunity to do some recording of his own. The resulting single, "Sarah Smiles" gave him the confidence to leave the Motors & form his own band.

Bram Tchaikovsky, the band, consisted of: Bram, the man, on guitar & vocals; along with Mike Broadbent on bass & keyboards; & Keith Boyce on drums. They signed to the new Radar label in 1978 along with Stiff expatriates Nick Lowe & Elvis Costello. The band showed a great deal of promise with their first album, Strange Man Changed Man, fitting in nicely with the growing power pop movement. The unforgettable "Girl of My Dreams," a true high point of the time, became a minor hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Tchaikovsky continued on through rapid personnel changes for two more albums. Following the release of The Russians Are Coming (released in the U.S. as Pressure) in 1980, Broadbent left the band due to personal conflict with Bram. The band moved from Radar to sign with Arista. They recorded Funland in 1981.

Funland was produced by Nick Garvey & recorded at Rockfield studios in 1981 with a brand new line-up: Tchaikovsky; Denis Forbes; Lord Richard Itchingham; & Derek Ballard. These personnel changes had left the band without a suitable writing partner for Bramall or the vocal harmony that he desired. Although Funland may not be considered the bands best album, it is a very important piece in the journey of Bram Tchaikovsky. If you don't dig the vocals & guitar work on a song like "Egyptian Mummies", then you're deader than one. After Funland, the thrill was gone, & Tchaikovsky decided to dissolve the band & retire from the music business.

Funland:
Bram Tchaikovsky sings lead vocals, plays lead guitar on tracks 6 & 7; all guitars on tracks 3 & 8; bass & rhythm guitar on track 2, 6, & 8; & sings backing vocals on all tracks but track 5;
Denis Forbes plays lead guitar on tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 11 & 12; acoustic guitar on tracks 7 & 9; & slide guitar on track 9; & sings backing vocals on tracks 4 & 5;
Lord Richard Itchington plays bass on all but tracks 2, 6, & 8;
Derek Ballard plays drums on all tracks;
Bernie Clarke plays keyboard on tracks 1, 2, 7, 9, & 12;
Lew Soloff plays trumpet solo on track 6;
Nick Garvey plays piano & acoustic guitar on track 8 & adds additional backing vocals on tracks 4, 5, & 8;
additional backing vocals by Andy McMaster on track 4:
& additional percussion by Jimmy Maelen

Year of Release: 1981
Label: Arista Records AB 4292
Genre: Power pop

Tracklist:
Side One -
Stand & Deliver
Shall We Dance
Heart of Stone
Breaking Down the Walls of Heartache
Model Girl
Side Two -
Why Does My Mother ‘phone Me
Used to Be My Used to Be
Soul Surrender
Together My Love
Miracle Cure
Egyptian Mummies

Download: Bram Tchaikovsky - Funland
Download Size: 84.6MB (ripped from vinyl at 320Kbps)

VA - Main Titles From Unreleased Horror Scores Vol. I

You can find the download links to "Main Titles From Unreleased Horror Scores Volumes II, III and IV below:

VA - Main Titles From Unreleased Horror Scores Vol. II
VA - Main Titles From Unreleased Horror Scores Vol. III
VA - Main Titles From Unreleased Horror Scores Vol. IV

Back in March of 2008 the Unreleased Horror Scores blog posted several volumes of "Main Titles From Unreleased Horror Scores" compilations. Unfortunately the download links posted on his blog have been dead for some time now. I will be posting the first five volumes from this collection tonight and tomorrow. While the title of the compilation states that these are from unreleased horror scores, several of these scores actually have been released. These are actually audio rips from VHS tapes of each of the films. While I'm sure this brings up dreadful visions of horrible sound quality, the quality isn't as bad as you would imagine. These actually sound fairly decent considering they are VHS audio rips, aside from a couple of tracks which have some distortion and background noise. The low quality recordings actually compliment the creepy atmosphere created by the music in some cases, as with Carl Zittrer's organ themes for Deranged.

As I mentioned before, the download links on the Unreleased Horror Scores blog have been dead for some time now. Fortunately the Egg City Radio blog re-uploaded the first five volumes and added tags to the tracks. I went a step further and retagged it once again. I added the proper artists to each track, corrected the titles and made a few other slight alterations. These compilations have generated a fair amount of interest, and I'm glad that I am able to help keep them alive for those interested.

Each of these compilations features a remarkable array of music from various horror films, the majority of which are main and end titles from the films. While the majority of the music contained within these collections is fantastic, there are also a few selections that leave much to be desired. There is a wide range of films from all over the world represented in each compilation, from popular horror films familiar to all, to those that have been long forgotten by all but a few. These compilations are essential listening for any horror fan.

Year of Release: 2008
Label: N/A (Bootleg Release)
Genres: Soundtrack/Score, Horror
Bitrate: 320VBR

Tracklist:
01. Mark Nicholasa - Death Warmed Up (1984)
02. George Roberttson - Intruder (1988)
03. Marcello Giombini - Panic (1976)
04. Murielle Hodler-Hamilton & Joel Hamilton - Bloody Pom Poms (1987)
05. Murielle Hodler-Hamtilton & Joel Hamilton - Bloody Pop Poms - End Credits (1987)
06. Jack Hues - The Guardian (1990)
07. Jim Manzie - H.P. Lovecraft's The Lurking Fear (1994)
08. Richard Band & Fuzzbee Morse - Dolls (1986)
09. Dana Kaproff - Chiller (With Narration) (1985)
10. Arthur Kempel - Graduation Day (1981)
11. Allan Zovod - Howling III - The Marsupials (1988)
12. Ubaldo Continiello - Frozen Terror (1980)
13. Daniele Patucchi - Man From Deep River (1972)
14. Franco Micalizzi - The Last Hunter (1980)
15. Andrew Barrymore - Blastfighter (1984)
16. Franco Campanino - Cannibal Holocaust 2: The Catherine Miles Story (1985)
17. Nuclear Assault - Something Wicked (Warlock 2 The Armeggedon) (1993)
18. Don Preston - Blood Diner (1987)
19. Stuart Rabinowitsh, Leonard Marcel & Kevin McMahon - The Video Dead (1987)
20. Stuart Rabinowitsh, Leonard Marcel & Kevin McMahon - The Video Dead (End Titles) (1987)
21. Ray Calcord - The Devonsville Terror (1983)
22. James Calabrese & Kenneth Higgins - Spookies (1987)
23. Richard Band & Shirley Walker - Ghoulies (1985)
24. Renato Serio - Alone In The Dark (1982)
25. Joe Renzetti - Dead & Buried (1981)
26. Joe Renzetti - Dead & Buried (End Titles) (1981)
27. George Blondheim - Gate II (1989)
28. George Blondheim - Gate II (End Titles) (1989)
29. Roger Bellon - The Unholy (1987)
30. Fuzzbee Morse - Ghoulies 2 (1987)

Download: VA - Main Titles From Unreleased Horror Scores Vol. I
Download Size: 68MB

Phallus Dei - Cyberflesh

Over at Nothin' Sez Somethin' I've been cramming Legendary Pink Dots down my visitors earholes, so I'll spare you all that pleasure, you can go get'em if you want'em. Another band that is also up in the Nothin' aether with LPD is Phallus Dei (the schlong of God). Phallus Dei is a German/Dutch industrial band dealing dark Gothick romanticism on the one hand with a trashy fascination for sex & violence on the other. Gotta love it.

Phallus Dei began as a musickal projeckt of Oliver St. Lingam (another holy prick) in 1988. Taking his projeckt name from the historic 1969 album by krautrock Amon Düül II , St. Lingam released the tapes Pigfuck & Per Crucem Ad Lucem on the Unclean label. PD then signed with Dark Vinyl & released the ground-breaking industrial release Pontifex Maximus in 1991.

Following a successful European tour with Italian industrial musick giants Sigillum S, PhallusDei expanded to a three piece unit with the addition of multi-instrumentalist Mk. E & drummer, multi-instrumentalist Richard van Kruysdijk. With the additional help of Joris Huijbregts (who had previously played with Richard v. K. in the band Lament), the band recorded their follow-up album Cyberflesh. The sound of the group had progressed greatly on Cyberflesh, forming a more matured, guitar-laden sound. Phallus Dei had found a great balance between electronics & guitar, never allowing the abrasive riffs to overshadow their strong beats or experimental vocal styles.

On Cyberflesh, Phallus Dei are: Oliver St. Lingam - vocals & sequencing; Mk. E - guitar, acoustic guitar, flute, bass, & keyboards; Joris Huijbregts - bass, keyboards, accordion, & sequencing; & Richard van Kruysdijk - drums, percussion, synthesizer, keyboards, guitar, & sequencing. Written, arranged, produced & performed by Phallus Dei.

Year of Release: 1993
Label: Paragoric PA 02
Genre: Electronic Industrial, Electro, Gothick Ambient

Track List:
1. Egg (Prologue)
2. She Suffers (& Makes Suffer)
3. Dieu (voice - Salvador Dalí)
4. Live on Joy (voice - Klaus Kinski)
5. Tortured Heroine (additional lyrics by Adi Newton)
6. Existence
7. Confessio (additional lyrics by Charles Manson)
8. Man's Son
9. Cyberflesh (voice - Salvador Dalí)
10. La Mort (voice - Henry Lee Lucas & Kenneth Bianchi)
11. Clothed in Flesh
12. Live to Tell
13. Taphtatharath (Epilogue)

Download: Phallus Dei - Cyberflesh
Download Size: 103MB (ripped in glorious 320Kbps)

Ween featuring The Shit Creek Boys - Live in Toronto Canada (2001)

I received an email today informing me that Ween is coming to St. Petersburg, FL in October, two hours from where I live, so I knew it was a sign that I had to post this. It will be the second time I see them live and I am so psyched about it.

This disc was a limited run and of course goes for prices that are more absurd than the music contained here. The recording was made during the now legendary tour with The Shit Creek Boys. This may not be the best place to start for those that are new to the irreverent genius that is Ween, but I can't listen to this album and stay in a bad mood. My absolute favorite track is the album closer "Fluffy". Ween reveal their sentimental side here and turn this silly song into a sprawling dirge of an anthem. It really must be heard, my friends.

I decided to reproduce an excerpt of the liner notes written by Dean Ween:

In November of 1995, we went to Nashville to record our 5th album “12 Golden Country Greats” with an all-star lineup of veteran Nashville session players. With the help of our producer and longtime friend Ben Vaughn, we put together a backing band of the best players from the golden age of country music to record 10 country flavored tunes we had written that year.

This posed a problem upon the release of the record in the summer of the next year. Most of that band had long since retired from touring and we ruled out the possibility of playing shows to support the release of the album. Instead, we planned on playing two shows in one night at Tramp’s on July 17, 1996 in New York City and tried to see if the musicians would make the trip for a long weekend.

The person who seemed the most interested in the project from the beginning was Bobby Ogdin, who played piano on most of the record, and he assured us that he could put together an incredible Nashville band for the shows, so he became our “musical director” so to speak. I sent him CDs of all of our records and he wrote charts for the band. We had only two days to rehearse tor the gig and I was completely terrified... I don’t think I slept a minute the night before.

As it turns out, the shows were a great success, the music was completely over the top and the crowd basically freaked out. Everyone in the band wanted to do more so we decided on a 3 week American tour starting in October that same year. It turned out to be the most rewarding experience of our musical career. I don’t think we played a bad show the whole tour—the 8 piece band sounded like a 747 landing on your house.

Year of Release: 2001
Year of Recording: 1996
Label: Chocodog Records
Catalog #: CDR-1001
Genre: Experimental Rock
Media: CD
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 320 kbps

Track List:
1. Pretty Girl 2:55
2. What Deaner Was Talkin' About 2:13
3. Japanese Cowboy 4:26
4. Pumpin' 4 the Man 2:17
5. Mister Richard Smoker 3:15
6. Spinal Meningitis (Got Me Down) 3:34
7. Help Me Scrape the Mucus off My Brain 2:56
8. Waving My Dick in the Wind 3:06
9. Push th' Little Daisies 2:48
10. Buenas Tardes Amigo 10:37
11. Poop Ship Destroyer 5:58
12. I'm Holding You 6:55
13. Doctor Rock 5:15
14. The HIV Song 3:14
15. Piano Man 2:05
16. Fluffy 14:20

Download: Ween - Live In Toronto Canada (2001)
Download Size: 177 MB

Flamin' Groovies - Flamingo

This is a reissue by Buddha Records of the original Flamingo album from 1970, along with six bonus tracks from a live-in-the-studio session that appeared in part on the 1976 compilation Still Shakin'. While the Flamin' Groovies' first album, Supersnazz, loaded their high-octane retro rock down with a loving but overly intrusive production, their next long-player, Flamingo, went in exactly the opposite direction; for their second time at bat (and their second major label), the Groovies cranked up their amps and kicked up the tempos, while producer Richard Robinson stripped the band's sound to the bone. If Flamingo has a flaw, it's that the album is just a bit too basic; the recording sounds a bit flat and muddy, and it isn't very flattering to either Tim Lynch's guitar or Danny Mihm's drums (and who fell in love with the panning control while they were mixing?). But if Flamingo sometimes sounds more like a demo than a finished album, it's a demo of a great band firing on all cylinders; with "Gonna Rock Tonite," the album starts out in fifth gear and never stops, with even the less manic tunes (such as the bluesy "Childhood's End") sounding sharp and full of fire, and the many rave-ups raving mighty fine indeed (notable exception: the trippy "She's Falling Apart," which proves these guys didn't understand psychedelia and had no business playing it, which was a considerable virtue in the Bay Area during the late '60s and early '70s). If the engineering sometimes lets them down, Flamingo does a far, far better job of capturing what made the Groovies a great band than their debut and ranks alongside their very finest work.
(Year of Release: 1970)

Track List:
1. Gonna Rock Tonite
2. Comin' After Me
3. Headin' for the Texas Border
4. Sweet Roll Me on Down
5. Keep a Knockin'
6. Second Cousin
7. Childhood's End
8. Jailbait
9. She's Falling Apart
10. Road House
11. My Girl Josephine (*)
12. Around and Around (*)
13. Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu (*)
14. Somethin' Else (*)
15. Rumble (*)
16. Going Out Theme (Version 1)(*)

Download: Flamin' Groovies - Flamingo (98MB)

VA - Born Bad Volumes 1-6

In 1986 the first of a series of compilations entitled "Born Bad" introduced listeners to a number of bands that greatly influenced the rockabilly and psychobilly bands in the decades that followed. Perhaps the most important band to emerge was The Cramps, a band that I have featured here on DM many times in the past. The Cramps helped to usher in a new wave of rockabilly acts across the world, and inadvertently created a new genre in the process. They combined the sound and style of the early country, rockabilly and garage rock acts of the '50s and '60s with the newly emerging punk rock attitude and style of the late '70s. Their unique approach was labeled as "Psychobilly", and thus a genre was born.

The Born Bad series collects together the original music that inspired bands such as The Cramps. The six original volumes contain 84 tracks, with each volume in the series containing 14 tracks. The first volume is often listed as "Volume One: Songs The Cramps Taught Us", not to be confused with the bootleg release of the same name, which can be found here: http://digitalmeltd0wn.blogspot.com/2007/12/various-artists-songs-cramps-taught-us.html A sticker was included on the vinyl release of the first volume that read "Songs The Cramps Taught Us", although it would not be included on any of the volumes that followed. For those of you who are interested in listening to the early rockabilly, country, rock 'n' roll and garage rock acts of the '50s and '60s that inspired The Cramps, it gets no better than this compilation. Those of you who are familiar with The Cramps will recognize these songs, as the band sought to pay tribute to the artists that inspired them by performing their own cover versions to many of the songs contained in the Born Bad series.

The Born Bad series has proven to be one of the most popular posts on the blog. This is actually the third incarnation of the series that I have posted. Each time I have re-posted it I have attempted to improve the download being presented in terms of quality and features. Once again I have replaced the previous version with one consisting of MP3 files of a higher quality bitrate. Perhaps one day I'll get lucky enough to obtain a version of this in either FLAC or 320kbps MP3. I have exhausted all possibilities while searching for higher quality versions, but I have yet to find anything better than 192kbps. I have also included the liner notes for each individual volume, and managed to track down a number of images other than the front album covers.

Decades after the first volume was released someone decided to create two bootleg volumes to expand on the original six, and I will be posting those two volumes (Volumes 7 & 8) next. Due to the fact that they are bootleg releases, and not officially affiliated with the original six volumes, I decided to dedicate a separate post to those volumes. You can find Born Bad Volumes 7 & 8 posted here: http://digitalmeltd0wn.blogspot.com/2010/11/born-bad-volumes-7-8.html

Born Bad Volume 1

Label: Born Bad
Genres: Garage Rock, Rockabilly, Proto-Punk
Bitrate: 192kbps
Format: MP3

Tracklist:
1. The Bostweeds - Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!
2. Ronnie Cook - Goo Goo Muck
3. Link Wray - Fat Back
4. Dwight Pullen - Sunglasses After Dark
5. Glenn Glenn - Everybody's Movin'
6. Roy Orbison - Domino
7. The Sonics - Strychnine
8. The Groupies - Primitive
9. Ronnie Dawson - Rockin' Bones
10. The Third Bardo - I'm Five Years Ahead of My TIme
11. Warren Smith - Uranium Rock
12. Mel Robbins - Save It
13. The Novas - The Crusher
14. Wanda Jackson - Funnel of Love

Download: Born Bad Vol. 1
Download Size: 49MB

Born Bad Volume 2

Label: Born Bad
Genres: Garage Rock, Rockabilly, Proto-Punk
Bitrate: 192kbps
Format: MP3

Tracklist:
1. The Phantom - Love Me
2. Jimmy Loyd - Rocket In My Pocket
3. Tommy James & The Shondells - Hanky Panky
4. Paul Revere & the Raiders - Hungry
5. Kasenetz-Katz Super Circus - Quick Joey Small
6. Charlie Feathers - I Can't Hardly Stand It
7. Jimmy Stewart - Rock On The Moon
8. Hasil Adkins - She Said
9. Dale Hawkins - Tornado
10. Little Willie John - Fever
11. Jackie Lee Cochran - Sweet Georgia Lee Brown
12. Dave 'diddle' Day - Blue Moon Baby
13. Jody Reynolds - Fire of Love
14. Ricky Nelson - Lonesome Town

Download: Born Bad Vol. 2
Download Size: 50MB

Born Bad Volume 3

Label: Born Bad
Genres: Garage Rock, Rockabilly, Proto-Punk
Bitrate: 192kbps
Format: MP3

Tracklist:
1. Kip Tyler & His Flips - Jungle Hop
2. The Busters - Bust Out
3. Jett Powers - Go, Girl, Go
4. The Riptides - Machine Gun
5. The Rivingtons - Mama-Oom-Mow-Mow
6. The Rivingtons - The Bird's The Word
7. The Trashmen - Surfin' Bird
8. Andre Williams & His New Group - Bacon Fat
9. Andre Williams - Jail Bait
10. The Frantics - Werewolf
11. Del Raney's Umbrella's - Can Your Hossie Do The Dog
12. Jack Scott - The Way I Walk
13. Andy Starr - Give Me A Woman
14. Herbie Duncan - Hot Lips Baby

Download: Born Bad Vol. 3
Download Size: 49MB

Born Bad Volume 4

Label: Born Bad
Genres: Garage Rock, Rockabilly, Proto-Punk
Bitrate: 192kbps

Tracklist:
1. Buddy Love - Heartbreak Hotel
2. The Shades - Strollin' After Dark
3. Spark Plugs - Chicken
4. Nat Couty and the Braves - Woodpecker Rock
5. Ward Darby & the Raves - Safari
6. Shortly Long - Devil With The Blue Dress On
7. The Red Crayola - Hurricane Fighter Blues
8. The Standells - Barracuda
9. Richard Berry and the Pharoahs - Louie Louie
10. The Tune Rockers - Green Mosquito
11. Duane Eddy & the Rebels - Girl on Death Row
12. The Rumblers - Boss
13. Bill Allen & the Backbeats - Please Give Me Something
14. Alfred E. Neuman - It's A Gas

Download: Born Bad Vol. 4
Download Size: 51MB

Born Bad Volume 5

Label: Born Bad
Genres: Garage Rock, Rockabilly, Proto-Punk
Bitrate: 192kbps
Format: MP3

Tracklist:
1. Kai Ray - I Want Some of That
2. The Instrumentals - Chop Suey Rock
3. The Raindrops - Hanky Panky
4. Jerry Warren & the Tremblers - Rompin'
5. Carl Perkins - Her Love Rubbed Off
6. The Readymen - Shortnin' Bread
7. The Joker - What Is A Fisterris
8. The Fendermen - Mule Skinner Blues
9. Three Aces & A Joker - Booze Party
10. Lonnie Allen - You'll Never Change Me
11. Macy Skipper - Bop Pills
12. Mac Rebennack - Storm Warning
13. Freddy & the Hitchhikers - Sinners
14. Charlie Feathers - It's Just That Song

Download: Born Bad Vol. 5
Download Size: 50MB

Born Bad Volume 6

Label: Born Bad
Genres: Garage Rock, Rockabilly, Proto-Punk
Bitrate: 192kbps
Format: MP3

Tracklist:
1. Dean Carter - Jailhouse Rock
2. Lee Dresser & The Krazy Kats - Beat Out My Love
3. The Ventures - The Fourth Dimension
4. J.J. Jackson & the Jackaels - Oo-Ma-Liddi
5. The Sonics - He's Waitin'
6. The Wailers - Dirty Robber
7. Carol Connors & The Cycles - Yum Yum Yamaha
8. The Flower Children - Mini-Skirt Blues
9. The Sparkles - Hipsville 29 B.C. (I Need Your Help)
10. Jim Lowe - Green Door
11. Mel Smith & The Night Riders - Pretty Plaid Skirt (and Long Black Sox)
12. The Runabouts - When I Get The Blues (The Strangeness In Me)
13. Tommy Jim Beam & the Four Fifths - Golden Boy
14. Ric Cartey - Oo Eee

Download: Born Bad Vol. 6
Download Size: 50MB

VA - Anthology of American Folk Music

There isn't much that I can say about this legendary collection that hasn't already been said. If you have an interest in early American folk or blues, then this compilation is absolutely essential. I have seen this collection posted on other blogs, so I thought that I would make mine stand out from the crowd by including a couple of relevant additions. The first is a pdf file of the liner notes included with the Smithsonian Folkways reissue. These include both the revised liner notes, as well as Harry Smith's original liner notes. I should point out that revised modern liner notes precede Harry Smith's original liner notes. The second is a scanned copy of a book entitled Anthology of American Folk Music, which was published by Oak Publishers in 1973. This book is rare and long out of print. I have included more info concerning both of these additions below. The following information concerning the anthology is taken from Wikipedia.

Compilation and Release:
The Anthology of American Folk Music is a 1952 six-album compilation of eighty-four American folk recordings from 1927 to 1932. Experimental filmmaker and notable eccentric Harry Smith compiled the collection from his personal collection of 78 rpm records. The collection is famous due to its role as a touchstone for the US folk music revival in the 1950s and 1960s. Harry Smith, the project's complier, was a West Coast filmmaker, bohemian, and eccentric, who, around 1940, had begun to develop a hobby of collecting old blues, jazz, country, hillbilly, and gospel 78s. At a time when many people considered these records to be ephemeral, he took them seriously and accumulated a collection of several thousand recordings, and began to develop an interest in seeing them preserved and curated.

In 1947, he met with Moses Asch, with an interest in selling or licensing the collection to Asch's label, Folkways Records. Smith, in his own words, chose for this compiliation records from the period between "1927, when electronic recording made possible accurate music reproduction, and 1932, when the Depression halted folk music sales." Interestingly, upon the time of its initial release in 1952, neither Folkways nor Smith possessed the licensing rights to these recordings, many of which had initially been issued by record companies that were still in existence (including Columbia and Paramount), which technically qualifies the project as a high-profile bootleg. (Folkways would later obtain some licensing rights, although the Anthology would not be completely licensed until the 1997 Smithsonian reissue.)

The compilation was divided (by Smith) into three two-album volumes: Ballads, Social Music, and Songs. As the title indicates, the "Ballads" volume consists of ballads, including many American versions of Child ballads originating from the English folk tradition. Each song tells a story about a specific event or time, and Smith may have made some effort to organize to suggest a historical narrative, a theory suggested by the fact that many of the first songs in this volume are old English folk ballads, while the closing songs of the volume deal with the hardships of being a farmer in the 1920s. The first album in the "social music" volume largely consists of music likely performed at social gatherings or dances. Many of the songs are instrumentals. The second album in the "social music" volume consists of religious and spiritual songs. The final volume consists of regular songs, dealing with everyday life: critic Greil Marcus describes its thematic interests as being "marriage, labor, dissipation, prison, and death."

Smith's booklet in the original release makes reference to three additional planned volumes in the series, which would anthologize music up until 1950. In 1972, Asch, interviewed by Sing Out! magazine, claimed that tapes for two additional volumes of the project had survived, although the documentation necessary to make a meaningful release of the volumes had been lost. Revenant Records, in 2000, worked in conjunction with the Harry Smith Archive to recreate and release the fourth volume, associated by Smith with the element of Earth. This volume, apparently organized around a theme of "work" includes (for the first time in the Anthology) a selection of union songs, and anthologizes material released as late as 1940.

Design:
Smith also edited and directed the design of the Anthology. He created the liner notes himself, and these notes are almost as famous as the music, using a unusual fragmented, collage method that presaged some postmodern artwork. Smith also penned short synopses of the songs in the collection, which read like newspaper headlines-- for the song King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O by Chubby Parker, a song about a mouse marrying a frog, Smith notes: "Zoologic Miscegeny Achieved Mouse Frog Nuptuals, Relatives Approve."

Each of the three two-record sets carried the same cover art (a Theodore de Bry etching of an instrument Smith referred to as the "Celestial Monochord," taken from a mystical treatise by scientist/alchemist Robert Fludd). This etching was printed over against a different color background (green, red, and blue) for each volume of the set. Smith had incorporated both the music and the art into his own unusual cosmology, and each of these colors was considered by Smith to correspond to an alchemical element (Water, Fire, and Air, respectively).

In the 1960s, Irwin Silber replaced Smith's covers with a Ben Shahn photograph of a poor Depression-era farmer, a choice Harry Smith was said to have objected to, although others have considered this a wise commercial choice. In 1997, Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, having acquired Folkways Records in 1986, reissued the collection on six CDs, including replicas of Smith's original artwork and liner booklet.

Influence:
The Anthology has had enormous historical influence. Smith's methodology of sequencing tracks, along with his inventive liner notes, called attention to the set, imbuing it with a talismanic aura. This reintroduction of near-forgotten popular styles of rural American music from the selected years to new listeners had impact on American ethnomusicology, and was both directly and indirectly responsible for the aforementioned folk music revival.

The music on the compilation provided direct inspiration to much of the emergent folk music revival movement. The Anthology made widely available music which previously had been largely the preserve of marginal social economic groups. Many people who first heard this music through the Anthology came from very different cultural and economic backgrounds from its original creators and listeners. Many previously obscure songs became standards at hootenannies and folk clubs due to their inclusion on the Anthology. Some of the musicians represented on the Anthology saw their musical careers revived, and made additional recordings and live appearances.

This document is generally thought to have been enormously influential on the folk & blues revival of the '50s and '60s, and brought the works of Blind Lemon Jefferson, Mississippi John Hurt, Dick Justice and many others to the attention of musicians such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez. The "Harry Smith Anthology," as some call it, was the bible of folk music during the late 1950s and early 1960s Greenwich Village folk scene. As stated in the liner notes to the 1997 reissue, the late musician Dave van Ronk had earlier commented that "we all knew every word of every song on it, including the ones we hated."

Track List:

Disc 1:
1. Dick Justice - Henry Lee
2. Nelstone's Hawaiians - Fatal Flower Garden
3. Clarence Ashley - The House Carpenter
4. Coley Jones - Drunkard's Special
5. Bill & Belle Reed - Old Lady and the Devil
6. Buell Kazee - The Butcher's Boy (The Railroad Boy)
7. Buell Kazee - The Wagoner's Lad (Loving Nancy)
8. Chubby Parker - King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O
9. Uncle Eck Dunford - Old Shoes and Leggins
10. Leonard Rutherford & Richard Burnett - Willie Moore
11. Buster Carter & Preston Young - A Lazy Farmer Boy
12. The Carolina Tar Heels - Peg and Awl
13. G.B. Grayson - Omie Wise
14. Kelly Harrell - My Name is John Johanna

Disc 2:
1. Edward L. Crain - Bandit Cole Younger
2. Kelly Harrell - Charles Giteaux
3. The Carter Family - John Hardy Was A Desperate Little Man
4. Curry & The Williamson Brothers - Gonna Die With My Ham
5. Frank Hutchinson - Stackalee
6. Charlie Poole & North Carolina Ramblers - White House B
7. Mississippi John Hurt - Frankie
8. Versey & William Smith - When That Great Ship Went Down
9. The Carter Family - Engine 143
10. Furry Lewis - Kassie Jones
11. The Bently Boys - Down on Penny's Farm
12. Masked Marvels - Mississippi Boweavil Blues
13. The Carolina Tar Heels - Got The Farm Land Blues

Disc 3:
1. Uncle Bunt Stephens - Sail Away Ladies
2. Jilson Setters - The Wild Wagone
3. Prince Albert Hunt's Texas Ramblers - Wake Up Jacob
4. Blind Uncle Gaspard Delma Lachney - La Danseuse
5. Andrew & Jim Baxter - Georgia Stomb
6. Eck Robertson - Brilliancy Medley
7. Hoyt Ming and His Pep Steppers - Indian War Whoop
8. Henry Thomas - Old Country Stomp
9. Jim Jackson - Old Dog Blue
10. Columbus Fruge - Sat' Crapaud
11. Joseph Falcon - Arcadian One-Step
12. The Breaux Freres - Home Sweet Home
13. Cincinnati Jug Band - Newport Blues
14. Frank Cloutier Victoria Cafe Orchestra - Moonshiner's Dance (Pt. 1)

Disc 4:
1. Reverend J.M. Gates - You Must Be Born Again
2. Reverend J.M. Gates - Oh Death, Where Is Thy Sting
3. Alabama Sacred Harp Singers - Rocky Road
4. Alabama Sacred Harp Singers - Present Joys
5. Middle George Singing Convention - This Song of Love
6. Rev. Sister Mary M. Nelson - Judgement
7. Memphis Sanctified Singers - He Got Better Things For You
8. Elders McIntorsh and Edwards' Sanctified Singers - Since I Laid My Burden Down
9. Moses Mason - John The Baptist
10. Bascom Lamar Lunsford - Dry Bones
11. Blind Willie Johnson - John The Revelator (Song)
12. The Carter Family - Little Moses
13. Ernest Phipps and His Holiness Singers - Shine On Me
14. Rev. F.W. McGee - Fifty Miles of Elbow Room
15. Rev. D.C. Rice and his Sanctified Congregation - I'm in the Battle Field for My Lord

Disc 5:
1. Clarence Ashley - The Coo Coo Bird
2. Buell Kazee - East Virginia
3. Cannon's Jug Stompers - Minglewood Blues
4. Didier Hebert - I Woke Up One Morning In May
5. Richard Rabbit Brown - James Alley Blues
6. Dock Boggs - Sugar Baby
7. Bascom Lamar Lunsford - I Wish I Was a Mole in the Ground
8. Ernest Stoneman & Hattie Stonemen - The Mountaineer's Courtship
9. The Stoneman Family - The Spanish Merchant's Daughter
10. Memphis Jug Band - Bob Lee Junior Blues
11. The Carter Family - Single Girl, Married Girl
12. Cleoma Breaux & Joseph Falcoln - Le Vieux Soulard et Sa Femme
13. Blind Lemon Jefferson - Rabbit Foot Blues
14. Sleepy John Estes - Expressman Blues

Disc 6:
1. Ramblin' Thomas - Poor Boy Blues
2. Cannon's Jug Stompers - Feather Bed
3. Dock Boggs - Country Blues
4. Julius Daniels - 99 Years Blues
5. Blind Lemon Jefferson - Prison Cell Blues
6. Blind Lemon Jefferson - See That My Grave Is Kept Clean
7. Cleoma Breaux/Joseph Falcoln/Orphy Breaux - C'est Si Triste Sans Lui
8. Uncle Dave Macon - Buddy Won't You Roll Down the Line
9. Mississippi John Hurt - Spike Driver Blues
10. The Memphis Jug Band - K.C. Moan
11. J.P. Nestor - Train on the Island
12. Ken Maynard - The Lone Star Trail
13. Henry Thomas - Fishing Blues

Download: Anthology of American Folk Music (Disc 1) (56MB)
Download: Anthology of American Folk Music (Disc 2) (56MB)
Download: Anthology of American Folk Music (Disc 3) (53MB)
Download: Anthology of American Folk Music (Disc 4) (53MB)
Download: Anthology of American Folk Music (Disc 5) (53MB)
Download: Anthology of American Folk Music (Disc 6) (53MB)

Liner Notes:

These liner notes were included in the boxed set reissued by Smithsonian Folkways. Included is an award-winning 100-page "Booklet of Essays, Appreciations, and Annotations Pertaining to the Anthology of American Folk Music." The booklet follows Harry Smith's original vision and features his "scientific/aesthetic handbook" of songs, an essay by noted critic and author Greil Marcus, additional essays, song notes, photos, graphics, a reproduction of the originally liner notes, and recollections by well known artists about the impact of this anthology on their own lives. Compiled and edited by Smithsonian Archivist Jeff Place, the booklet received the 1997 Grammy Award for "Best Album Notes."

Download: Anthology of American Folk Music Liner Notes
Download Size: 62MB

Anthology of American Folk Music - E-Book

Anthology of American Folk Music is a rare and currently out of print book published by Oak Publications in 1973. It was edited by Josh Dunson and Ethel Raim. It collects the musical tablature of the majority of the songs included in Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music, as in addition to a number of photographs of the artists themselves. It also contains an interview with Frank Walker, in which he describes how the tracks for the anthology were chosen, as well as an interview with Moses Asch, who describes the birth and growth of early American folk music.

This book was scanned by Malcolm Lawrence. The downloadable file was nested within many folders, so I have taken the time to re-organize the contents and re-upload the file. An online version of the entire book which can be found on his website.

Download: Anthology of American Folk Music
Download Size: 15MB

Church Of Misery- Master of Brutality/ Early Works Compilation

Southern Lord Records is undoubtedly a household name to any fan of doom, drone, or sludge metal. Bands like Sunn O))), Earth, Boris, and Wolves in the Throne Room have all called the label home at some point in their existence. It was through my fascination with many bands on this label that I came across this intriguing Japanese doom metal band called Church of Misery.

Church of Misery takes a fusion of psychedelic rock with traditional Saint Vitus/Black Sabbath doom. The trademark of the band, however, is that most of their tracks use infamous serial killer as their central theme. Critics have often neglected their talent and insisted on focusing in on the serial killer theme; often labeling the tactics as a gimmick. At least there is one thing that their lyrical themes and their music have in common; they are both "killer."


After releasing a series of splits and EPs, Church of Misery released their first full length album, Master Of Brutality. The album kicks off with the Sabbath-esque, "Killfornia," a track about hitchhiker slayer, Edmund Kemper, and continues to steamroll you with a wall of sound for the duration of the album. The album highlights include a magnificent cover of Blue Öyster Cult's "Cities on Flame With Rock & Roll" and the 11-minute self-titled track album culmination, "Master of Brutality."

Year of Release: 2001
Label: Southern Lord Recordings
Genre: Doom, Stoner

Track List:
1. Killfornia (Ed Kemper)
2. Ripping Into Pieces (Peter Sutcliffe)
3. Megalomania (Herbert Mullin)
4. Green River
5. Cities On Flame
6. Master Of Brutality (John Wayne Gacy)

Next up is a compilation featuring some of Church of Misery's early output. This was released on Leafhound Records in 2004. The compilation contains tracks from the aforementioned splits and EPs which were compiled into a 2-disc set called the Early Works Compilation. This should widen your bloodshot eyes and keep you occupied until the next munchies run.

Year of Release: 2004
Label: Leafhound Records
Genre: Doom, Stoner

Track List:

Disc 1:
1. Spahn Ranch (Charles Manson)
2. Road to Ruin (Charles Whitman)
3. Reverend (Jim Jones)
4. War is Our Destiny
5. Room 213 (Jeffrey Dahmer)
6. Taste the Pain (Graham Young)
7. Plainfield
8. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vidda

Disc 2:
9. Murder Company (Henry Lee Lucas)
10. Son of a Gun (David Berkowitz)
11. Where Evil Dwells (Richard Ramirez)
12. Sick of Living (Zodiac)
13. Come Touch the Sky
14. Accident
15. Chains of Death
16. Retal (Howard Unruh)

Download: Church Of Misery - Master of Brutality
Download Size: 54.47 MB

Download: Church Of Misery - Early Works Compilation Disc 1
Download Size: 74.90 MB

Download: Church Of Misery - Early Works Compilation Disc 2
Download Size: 60.95 MB

Viper Mad Blues - 25 songs of dope and depravity

Year of Release: 1991
Label: Mojo Records
Genre: Jazz, Blues

Track Listing:
1. Kickin' The Gong Around - Cab Calloway & His Cotton Club Orchestra
2. Dope Head Blues - Victoria Spivey
3. Cocaine Habit Blues - The Memphis Jug Band
4. Pipe Dream Blues - Hazel Meyers
5. Smoking Reefers - Larry Adler
6. Take A Whiff On Me - Leadbelly
7. Killin' Jive - The Cats & The Fiddle
8. You'se A Viper - Stuff Smith & His Onyx Club Boys
9. The Stuff Is Here And It's Mellow - Cleo Brown
10. Reefer Man - Baron Lee & The Blue Rhythm Band
11. The Onyx Hop - Frankie Newton & His Uptown Serenaders
12. Knockin' Myself Out - Lil Green
13. Junker's Blues - Champion Jack Dupree
14. Reefer Hound Blues - Curtis Jones
15. The Reefer Song - Fats Waller
16. I'm Feeling High And Happy - Gene Krupa & His Orchestra
17. When I Get Low, I Get High - Chick Webb & His Orchestra
18. Ol' Man River (Smoke A Little Tea) - Cootie Williams & His Rug Cutter
19. Blue Reefer Blues - Richard M. Jones & His Jazz Wizards
20. Cocaine - Dick Justice
21. Reefer Head Woman - Jazz Gillum & His Jazz Boys
22. Willie The Weeper - Frankie 'Halfpint' Jaxon
23. Cocaine Blues - Luke Jordan
24. Blue Drag - Freddy Taylor & His Swing Men From Harlem
25. A Viper's Moan - Willie Bryant & His Orchestra

Viper: One who smokes gage AKA tea or marijuana. Usually also a member of the Jazz sub-culture.

This is an exceptional collection of jazz era songs about drug use from some of the biggest names in the business. Cab Calloway, Gene Krupa, Fats Waller and a host of other great musical acts from the 20s, 30 and 40s. Though there are a few songs about cocaine, mostly this is an assortment of "reefer songs".

Reefer songs were primarily a black phenomenon, played by black musicians to black crowds and at the time, marijuana, or "tea" was referred to as "that drug that white people are scared of". Hundreds of "tea pads" flourished in the Harlem area in the 20s and 30s. Tea pads were similar to speakeasies, only they were usually set up in apartments and had really low prices. In these tea pads, they say you could get high for a mere quarter! I can just imagine all the cool cats lounging around talking, smoking and listening to these songs.


Download: Viper Mad Blues Pt. one
Download size: 56.43 MB

Download: Viper Mad Blues Pt. two
Download size: 53.03 MB

Screamin' Jay Hawkins - At Home With Jay In The Wee Wee Hours

Screamin' Jay Hawkins (1929-2000) was a true original. A former opera singer and boxing champ, he was also one of the innovators of rock and roll who often gets overlooked today. I like to say he was the Little Richard who could kick your ass. "At Home With Jay" is an incredible and intimate live album, obviously recorded in a very small venue, and reveals him as the entertainer that he was. No band, just Jay and a piano with a little singalong help from the crowd. I hadn't heard this in years until the other day and I can't stop listening to it. This is a record that just really makes you feel good and appreciate that kind of talent. To just be able to fucking entertain like that. I mean I would put this in the same category of live album as Sam Cooke's "Live at the Harlem Square Club". Difference is that Sam had a rockin' band to go with his voice on that record. Here Jay has only his piano and his sense of humor. There's actually another great Screamin' Jay live record that I almost posted. It's Jay with The Fuzztones backing him up. I'd recommend that one next to this one.

Anyway, here's another great feel good rock and roll record that strips it on down and gives you only the best of what it's about. Impossible to not tap your little wingtips to! Now "get yourself a fur burger" and download this classic!

Year of Release: 1988
Label: Midnight Records
Bitrate: 320kbps

Track List:
1. Lawd, Lawd, Lawd
2. Hong Kong
3. Downstairs
4. Cherry Pie
5. In Her Room
6. Constipation Blues
7. I Need Your Love
8. Feast Of The Mau Mau
9. Let It Roll
10. Make The Blues Rock/Bite It
11. I Put A Spell On You

Download: Screamin' Jay Hawkins - At Home With Jay In The Wee Wee Hours
Download Size: 84MB

The Swingin' Neckbreakers - Shake Break!

I apologize for the recent delay in updates. I've been doing a lot of working and hiking lately and I had to get some much needed rest. I've decided to kick things back off with a high energy band by the name of the Swingin' Neckbreakers. This was originally posted by Toxxy on the skafunkrastapunk forum (link is in the sidebar).

Shake Break!, the Swingin' Neckbreakers' second lp, was unleashed on an eager public in September of 1995. The album features powerful originals like "Wait" and "The Answer Is No"; "Action Kid" offers a poppier approach to the Neckbreakers' sound. The band continues to choose cover material from diverse sources: garage rock is represented by "That's The Way My Love Is" (The Trolls), among others, while one of the Neckbreakers' most popular live numbers, Glen Barber's "Ice Water," began life as a western swing tune. The trio also pays tribute to Rock 'n' Roll icons Chuck Berry, Little Richard, and Bobby Fuller.
(Year of Release: 1995)

Track List:
01. Wait
02. Mighty Mack
03. Ice Water
04. That's The Way My Love Is
05. Help Wanted
06. Shakedown
07. The Answer Is No
08. I Wanna Be Your Driver
09. Action Kid
10. I'm In Love With Me
11. You're Gonna Make Me
12. A Thousand Times A Day
13. Get Down On Your Knees
14. The Girl Can't Help It
15. Brown-Eyed Girl

Download: Swingin' Neckbreakers - Shake Break! (67.5MB)

The Dictators - New York, New York

I can't say enough about this album. It has quickly become one of the favorites in my collection. It's hard to define exactly the type of music the Dictators played. At times they sound punk, at others metal, and sometimes they just churn out good old classic rock. One thing you can be certain of is the Dictators definitely rocked, and rocked hard.

Liner Notes by Richard Meltzer (1981) and Andy Shernoff (1998). All songs recorded live to a two track Dokorder on February 11, 1981 at a night club performance, except bonus tracks, which are from a board tape from a live concert at the Ritz in early '80's. Bonus tracks mastered by Andy Shernoff at Sterling Sound 1998.

On February 11, 1981, John Hanti and I (we were booking the Club 80's on the Upper East Side) traveled with a two track Dokorder to a live Dictators reunion to record the band. Neither of us really knew what we were doing - but the results were fabulous, the band cooked and ROIR cassette A102, The Dictators Live - Fuck 'Em If They Can't Take a Joke was born - and quickly released. It was a big success and helped launch the young ROIR cassette label in the small (then) indie community and, according to Cashbox Magazine (June 1990), helped "elevate the Dictators to mythical status."

So, now we have the original cassette remastered for CD, plus three live bonus tracks selected and mastered by Andy Shernoff from an early '80's performance at the Ritz in NYC.

Track List:
1. Next Big Thing
2. Science Gone Too Far
3. Weekend
4. Rock And Roll Made A Man Out Of Me
5. Two-Tub Man
6. Moon Upstairs
7. Loyola
8. What Goes On
9. New York New York
10. Search And Destroy
11. Borneo Jimmy
12. Minnesota Strip
13. Master Race Rock
14. Baby Let's Twist
15. Faster And Louder

Download: Dictators - New York, New York (81.5MB)

Red Dons - Death to Idealism (2007, Brazilian Press LP 2009)

UPDATE: This post was re-uploaded 04/15/2014. Enjoy, NØ 

Once upon a time there was a band called The Observers. They were short-lived and I didn’t come to appreciate them until they were no more. Fortunately, right around that time former members were teaming up with some other fine folks to bring us Red Dons. They take their moniker from a mysterious group of Cambridge University professors who were Soviet spies during WWII.

It did not take long for Portland, Oregon’s Red Dons to become one of my favorite bands. When I first heard them, I don’t think I had even finished listening to the first side of the LP before I fell in love. This comes from the out of print 2009 LP for the Brazilian tour. It sounds quite different compared to the original pressing that featured a very lo-fi mastering of the album. That lo-fi mastering is part of what endeared it to me. It went hand in hand with the lyrical topics of the album, like feelings of alienation, dying hopes, consumerism, and tyrannical fascist dictators. When I heard the Brazilian LP master though, it was like a rediscovery. It is so cool to have these two different versions of this album, one of the catchiest, most intelligent and inspiring punk records I’ve ever had the pleasure of listening to, and I’ve heard plenty. There have been comparisons of Red Dons to many great punk and post-punk bands of the 1980s, but there is something about the Red Dons that makes them even more indispensable for me. The totality of their art goes right for my heart and does not let go. The urgency and passion with which singer Douglas Burns delivers his lines is infectious. The music makes me wish I was at the show jumping around in the crowd. The album clocks in at just over thirty minutes, and if you are like me you will be playing it over again immediately.

Honestly, everyone should give this a listen. If this album does it for you, I implore you to buy their latest album Fake Meets Failure, which could not be a more perfect sequel for Death to Idealism. Red Dons are gearing up for a European tour in April and May. If you live near any of the places they are set to play, I recommend you mark your calendar and GO TO THE SHOW!

Red Dons on this recording is:
Douglas Burns – Lead Vocals, Guitar, Piano
Richard Joachim – Drums, Vocals
Hajji Husayn – Bass, Vocals
Justin Mauer – Guitar, Vocals

Year of Original Release: 2007
Label: Deranged
Catalog #: DY-111
Genre: Punk Rock
Media: Vinyl
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 320 kbps

Track List:
A1. Intro
A2. Walk Alone
A3. Independent
A4. Everyday Distraction
A5. Terminal
A6. Just Write, Romeo
B1. Happiness
B2. This City
B3. Incomplete Action
B4. Haji Takes a Ride
B5. No Pain
B6. Death to Idealism

Download: Red Dons - Death to Idealism (Brazilian Press LP)
Download Size: 71 MB
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