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
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
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
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
MEGA decryption code in comments
Download Size: 71 MB
MEGA decryption code in comments
It's good to see you back my friend. I hope that your school workload isn't as overwhelming now. I haven't had a chance to listen to this, but I'm sure it will be great, as the albums you post always are. Ironically enough I was considering posting some punk rock albums also in an attempt to "return to my roots" so to speak, which is the genre I primarily focused on when I first started DM.
ReplyDelete@Zer0_II: Yeah, I haven't been able to post in weeks. Spring break now, I hope to get in a few good ones despite having no shortage of school work. The fact that I don't have to go to campus everyday, that will give me some extra time. I'll be busy all week until Friday night when I get a reprieve to see Murder By Death play. Gosh, I am looking forward to that.
ReplyDeletePunk is sort of like my "native language". I knew it first, but then branched out and learned others. I have a couple other punk titles I plan to post this week, and some eighties electronic LPs.
Hi !
ReplyDeleteThe link seems dead..!
Could you reup this one please ?
Greg
MEGA decryption code
ReplyDeleteWzHMJR4ICGei4TnxZFJExwnWZ9Fki3EUv5OzRi2ZErE