Electro Group
Lifter 7''
Omnibus
1999
Rating: 6.5 mighty beds out of 10
Like most people, when I think of shoegaze I think of Sacramento, from where Electro Group hail. Jokes aside, they do a pleasant enough job running through a couple of tracks in this well worn style. This single might be 16 years old, but given the recent resurgence in this genre you could easily think this is a modern release. Apparently these kids are still out there playing gigs and writing new music based on their Facebook page, and good on them...I saw them once or twice in the early oughts and they were a good time.
The Spinanes
All Sold Out 7''
Sub Pop
1999
Rating: 6 adjusted templates out of 10
"Manos," the debut album by the Spinanes holds a prominent place on my top records of all time list. Whether their later output was actually a step down, or my placing that first record on such a high pedestal made for unfair judging of later material, who knows...either way, this seven inch is just okay. It appears to be the last material the band released before breaking up, oddly enough both songs Rolling Stones covers - the title track and "(S)he Smiled Sweetly." Sort of a strange note to go out on, but bands rarely plan their demise.
Superchunk
The Majestic 7''
Merge
1999
Rating: 7 monster trucks out of 10
Both songs on this Superchunk record are also the two opening tracks on the "Cup of Sand" comp, but shit I like having the tiny record of them as well. Both the title track and the flip "Reg" are strong efforts that might get forgotten since they weren't on a proper album, but I haven't forgotten you!
The Capitol City Dusters / Aina
Split 7''
Superbad / Dischord
1999
Rating: 7 reported casts out of 10
I'm not sure where I have heard the Capitol City Dusters track at other than this release, but it sounds very familiar to me. Maybe it just comes from the same place as their other Washington DC indie punk songs, but wither way it's pretty decent. I'd never even heard of the band on the b side before, Aina, but their track "Lutton Can Wait" sounds like a mash-up of Jawbox and the Archers of Loaf, so I'm backing it.
Golden Millennium
Golden Millennium 7''
Peek-A-Boo
1999
Rating: 6 black castles out of 10
This Golden Millennium record was the results of a one-off supergroup formed around the fact that a couple of dudes bought gold fleck Les Pauls at the same time and felt they should play some glam rock. Everyone in the band has some sort of pedigree, but the biggest name is Britt Daniel of Spoon. I'm sure everyone involved had a lot of fun doing this, and it was probably fun to see live, but the recording is no more than a hair above average. They play two originals and two covers of glam classics - T-Rex's "20th Century Boy" and Bowie's "Suffragette City."
Crooked Fingers
Broken Man 7''
Red Pig
1999
Rating: 9.5 Italian greyhounds out of 10
This was the first release by Eric Bachmann under the name Crooked Fingers that was released after the break-up of Archers of Loaf. That was an incredibly sad time for me, but I soon came to love Crooked Fingers almost as much as the Archers. It was sorta tough at the time to see Bachmann take this rootsier route after the indie punk fervor of his past, but now these tunes feel like second nature to me. "Broken Man," also found on the first Crooked Fingers record, is still one of the best songs Bachmann has ever recorded. The other side, "Red Devil Dawn," is only found here despite him also putting out a full-length record by the same name. Kind of odd, good song though.
The Kent 3 / Leatherboy
Split 7''
Extra Ball
1999
Rating: 6.5 sweet cider out of 10
I think the Kent 3 had already ceased existing when I got turned onto their twitchy surf punk sound by a dude named Virgil. Their track "Cave Ball" is a pretty good representation of the band. Seems like you can always find them in the bargain bin, and they are definitely worth checking out.
The b-side is "What Sisters Do" by Leatherboy, a band I know nothing about and have only seen listed on this seven inch. Their track is in the same vein as the Kent 3, but a little grungier and dirtier. Can't find shit for them online and I looked for at least a couple of minutes!
Various Artists
Trojan Ska Box Set
Trojan
1999
Rating: 7.5 silver clippers out of 10
Wait a sec - just because you see the word ska, don’t automatically
assume it is crap. This is the real-deal-Holyfield here; 1st generation ska, straight from the island of Jamaica
during the 1960's. For those who don’t know, Trojan was the powerhouse label for all of reggae music back in
the day, and they’ve released a series of box sets covering all kinds of sub-genres that fall under the reggae
moniker - ska, rocksteady, roots, dancehall, calypso, and plenty more. Each box set contains three CDs, 50
songs, covering the original sounds of the Caribbean. The ska discs include such legendary artists as
Desmond Dekker, Lee Perry, Jimmy Cliff, The Ethiopians, Lord Brynner, The Paragons, Tommy McCook & the
Skatalites, and many, many more. If you’ve ever had any interest in reggae music, but wasn’t sure where to start,
grab one of these Trojan Box Sets.
