velvetone. vlt 002 / 22 tracks / 1995

Essential collection with the first two EPs, the tracks from Tooth and Nail compilation and live tracks recorded in 1979 at various LA clubs. The EPs have been ripped from vinyl, and not very professionally… their copy of Out Of Vogue must have been kind of scratchy, and they didn’t even remove the noise before and between the songs. Oh well, that’s authenticity I guess. Sound quality of the live tracks is bootleggish but OK - enjoyable for fans, and it’s interesting how these tracks sound way more like conventional rough LA punk than any of their records. „Archetype“ is a studio track I didn’t know before - might be a demo track; the style is somewhere in between the two EPs. Good CD. [8]

Compilation mit den ersten beiden EPs, den MC-Tracks vom Tooth & Nail-Sampler, einem Demosong und 1979er-Liveaufnahmen aus diversen Clubs in LA. Die Studiosachen sind Kult, aber leider von Vinyl gemastert, man hörts zum Teil recht stark knistern… naja, das geht noch als „authentisch“ durch. Die Livesachen klingen zum Teil arg nach Bootleg, interessant ist aber, dass die Band live viel stärker nach normalem, kraftvollen LA-Punk klingt als auf allen ihren Platten. Trotz aller Nörgelei eine tolle CD.

Tracks: out of vogue / you belong / situations / insurgence / love is just a tool / above suspicion / archetype / home is where / blueprint for joy / last touch / introductory rites / be contemporary (cuckoos nest 1979) / language of paradise (cuckoos nest 1979) / love is just a tool (cuckoos nest 1979) / no time (cuckoos nest 1979) / blue movie (cuckoos nest 1979) / red light sexless (cuckoos nest 1979) / concession to the enemy (cuckoos nest 1979) / taken by force (whiskey a go go 1979) / failure of all pop (whiskey a go go 1979) / misery loves company (starwood 1979) / tv photo life (hong kong cafe 1979)