various artists - Mojo Music Guide Vol. 3: Raw Soul

Dear Mrs. Pettigrew,

Please excuse ApeMummy from class this week. His absence was due to ingesting too much raw soul. It's given him a case of shakes, and the only prescription has been to dance it out.

Sincerely,

Mummy Mommy

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Faster & Louder (Hardcore Punk, Vol. 2)

I didn't pick this one up for a while after I grabbed Volume 1, and it shows up in how my taste developed. Hüsker Dü was on Volume 1, had a reissue of their early Reflex/New Alliance records on Rhino, and an in-print SST catalog. So I was super into them by the time I copped this in 1995. Likewise with Negative Approach, whose discography on Touch & Go was as big a deal for me as "The First Four Years". I'd been turned onto Fear via a dubbed copy of their infamous 1982 Saturday Night Live appearance. And EVERYONE from D.C. covered "12XU" by Wire, leading to purchases of the first three LPs, helpfully reissued on CD by Restless Retro. 

Zero Boys and Black Market Baby, however, were mostly out of print, with some records available on Germany's Bitzcore, which didn't have great distribution in southwestern Virginia. I wouldn't get into the Germs or X or the Dils until Frontier put out their Dangerhouse surveys. Naked Raygun was relegated to rumors and 3rd generation dubs until the Quarterstick reissues came out in the late 90's. I'm STILL not sure I've ever seen a Strangehold record in the wild.

But that's the cool thing about both volumes of Faster & Louder. The songs have a way of burrowing in, so that when you saw that Posh Boy pressing of "Living In Darkness" or a cassette of "Over The Edge", you knew to snap them up, because you'd heard "Bloodstains" and "Romeo" for the first time on a comp CD. This wasn't what was coming out on Epitaph or Lookout!; this was the first wave, where it all began. And while it felt like a different era back then, it was, like, only 10 years old in a lot of cases. There's truly no way to compare it to anything today. But, shit, man, I'm glad this was there for me.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Faster & Louder (Hardcore Punk, Vol. 1)

Let's celebrate my recent birthday by stepping away from Mojo Mondays to share a pair of comps that, frankly, I'm kind of shocked I've not written about yet. This was my first exposure to the first wave of American hardcore, entering my tiny collection the same year as "Never Mind The Bollocks..." and "Steady Diet Of Nothing" did. An auspicious trio, all things considered. This is one I immediately taped onto a C-60 and played half to death throughout my teenage years.

You can get nitpicky as fuck about the track selection on Volume 1, but I think it's unimpeachable. The first half are just S-class: you could start your mixtape with any of these first eight tracks, from "Holiday in Cambodia" to "Get It Away", and the recipient would know they were in for a very good time. The second half, in 2025, could feel a bit more thematically disjointed. But Redd Kross were once Red Cross and shared members with Circle Jerks, Negative FX opened Mission of Burma's last show, D.O.A. released "Hardcore '81", and the Stains moved to San Francisco, became M.D.C., and released one of the all-time great international HC comps in 1984's "International P..E.A.C.E. Benefit".

This was a mind-melter at the tender age of 15. While missing a trio of key names of that early scene in Black Flag, Minor Threat, and Misfits, this was a key introduction for me, along with the second volume (also released in 1993). Plus: Gary Panter artwork! It'd be cool as hell for a Real Gone Music to reissue this one on vinyl, especially considering I'd love to frame this cover.

Discogs

Click here to download.

Little Richard - Rock And Roll Ressurection

We do a piss poor job of respecting our legends in this country, sadly. It's worse when they're black, and worse still when they're queer. And so it was that, 20 years after he helped blow the doors open for rock & roll, Little Richard cut a re-recording of his greatest hits for K-Tel. Fucking K-Tel. Now, work is work, and the fire is there in these performances, but Ms. Penniman's little boy shouldn't have had to slum it on the oldies circuit. But Little Richard, a legend amongst legends, in a particularly fallow period, deserved better than recutting his finest songs for a "As Seen On TV" label.

This is the 1987 UK reissue on oldies' specialist label Charly, who are still going strong 51 years after their first releases. It has that really rad picture of Richard on the cover; plain artwork, yet still better than the other releases on K-Tel and Madacy over the years. I'm fairly certain I picked them up for a buck a few years ago, but only just got around to ripping it to share.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Mojo Presents: The Songs Of Leonard Cohen Covered

Well, pals, we made it to September. And there are two things I hold to be true about September. One is that it is my month of birth. The other is that it's officially Leonard Cohen season in my house. It's the time where things get a little cooler oustide, a little slower, and the songs of this Buddhist and subject of a great boygenius cut make for a great soundtrack.

So here's a Mojo-curated tribute to the Canadian folk-rock legend, drawn from his 1967 debut (plus a quintet of later compositions). It's a good 'un. The luminaries include Father John Misty, Bill Callahan, Cass McCombs, Will Oldham, and Marc Ribot with My Brightest Diamond. While the Lumineers are not present, the Low Anthem are, if that's your sort of thing.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Chunklet Issue #12: The Money Shot!

I hold Mrs. Mummy responsible for my most recent missed deadline. She was the one who kept my attention focused on laundry and food preparation; she shook her most bodacious ta-tas, flicked her eyelashes, wiggled her bum in a most enticing way. What was I to do? Blogging was farthest from my mind! Who amongst you could be strong under such circumstances?

Today's treat: the giveaway that came with issue #12 of esteemed Athens/Atlanta zine Chunklet, published & compiled by close, personal pal Henry O. Owings. H2O was, in his early days, a proto-shitposter extraordinaire. He gave the likes of yours truly a mentor and role model to emulate; be clever and funny and talk mad shit and support great music and play the occasional round of Whirlyball. Amongst the 22 tracks contained herein are contributions from Arcwelder, Elf Power, Man or Astro-man?, Six Finger Satellite, and Harvey Milk. It's a veritable "who's who" of late 90s indie rock, with nary a superstar to be found.

It's the kind of shit I can still sop up with a biscuit.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - REV110: Revelation Records 2004 Collection

You can call me out if I sound like a dick, but by 2004, Revelation Records, a record label I had always held in very high esteem, just wasn't throwing its fastball anymore. Just five years earlier, they'd released a number of outstanding records, all branching out from Rev's hardcore roots while remaining in fidelity to the underlying ethos. Farside's "The Monroe Doctrine", the Sparkmarker anthology, the first Judas Factor full length, Kiss It Goodbye's "Choke" EP, and Himsa's "Ground Breaking Ceremony" all came out in '99, and, for me, represented the ways you could evolve hardcore.

But by 2004, that wasn't the case for me. Which is why this sat in a box for a decade plus before I broke it back out to revisit a few months back. Granted, the scene had changed a bunch in the intervening five years. But Curl Up And Die and Since By Men just didn't hit the same way as their predecessors. The idea of a Dag Nasty reunion full length was a lot cooler than the actual full length. The best contemporary bands here were Long Island's On The Might Of Princes, whose last LP had been released by Revelation in 2003, and Oakland's Pitch Black, who played a sort of West Coast punk that wouldn't be out of a place on Epitaph or even a major label in 2004.

If the dating on Discogs is to be believed, it was just a lean year for Revelation. While their distribution wing was still going strong, this sampler and a Since By Man EP were the only records they put out in 2004. The following year, they'd release the Judge discography, the Bold discography, a Shai Hulud rarities disc, and the most excellent "Generations" compilation, arguably one of the best comps from that era. In 2006 came their first releases from Shook Ones, Sinking Ships, Self Defense Family (as End Of A Year), and Down To Nothing.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Mojo Presents: Panic (15 Tracks Of Riotous '80s Indie Insurrection)

Let the record show that I am quite disgusted with myself.

I hate that I'm posting this late. Sure, it's still Monday when I post this, but I try to keep two or three posts in the queue at all times, and I've been blowing it lately. Such is summer; it's nice here, even as we edge closer and closer to the start of the wet season.

These are the songs your older cousin, the one who spent a semester abroad while you were wrapping up middle school, put on the mixtape she made for your 13th birthday. It reminds me of phrases like "Distributed by the Cartel" or "reviewed in Sounds". It''s not even a typical sampling of what was happening in the mid-80s. Hell, I love that it's a compilation including Robert Wyatt, the Mekons, Billy Bragg AND Girls At Out Best. Brilliant stuff.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Duke Reid' Treasure Chest

I meant to post this last week, but the heat caused my brain to short circuit. Which is ironic, because some Duke Reid-produced rocksteady is pretty much the perfect antidote to a hot August night.

I've racked my brain for something interesting to write about this, but, like a lot of Heartbeat comps, I find this just washes over me.like a warm breeze. So I'll mostly let the music speak for itself. There are a bunch of bona-fide all-timers here; "The Tide Is High", "Lala Means I Love You", "Ranglin On Bond St.", and "My Best Girl". All in all, a hell of a good buy at $4.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Mojo Presents: Brotherhood

I am not a particular fan of the Black Keys. I came by the opinion honestly; I've owned, at one time or another, most of their records through "El Camino". I'm pretty sure they played the Ottobar at least once while I worked there. And they play a brand of heavy blues that should fit well with my tastes. Yet for the money spent and the decibels incurred, I just don't rate them very highly. Taste being subjective and all, you know?

So it's with a bit of reluctance that I share this, Mojo's companion release to the Black Keys' 2010 album "Brothers". Not that it's bad, but it doesn't get the ol' blood pumping like I feel it should. There are parts that I can co-sign; a live recording of "Have Love Will Travel" by the Sonics from 1964, a deep cut Nathaniel Meyer track, a Captain Beefheart track. But, on the whole, it's a lot of Black Keys rarities, as well as some related bands, and that ain't my cup of tea.

But let's not let that get between us, friendo. One man's trash is another's treasure. So I hope you dig this one.

Discogs

Click here to download.

various artists - Mojo Presents: Sticky Soul Fingers (A Rolling Stones Tribute)

I came to a decision recently, and it is this: this Mojo release, cover dated January 2012, is pretty indispensible. A soulful recreation of "Sticky Fingers", it's less a simple re-reading of the classic Stones record, 40 years on, and more an expression of how inspiring it was to these artists. Some of the arrangements are far away from the Jagger/Richards compositions, and that's for the best. I've owned too many tribute records where those offering encomium stuck with a straightforward cover not too different from what you'd hear from in the original release. But Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings performing "Wild Horses" is a great example of how to put your own stank on a classic. "Sister Morphine", played here by Ren Harvieu, takes on new meaning when in the hands of someone who's not been chasing the dragon. And the Bamboos tackle my favorite "SF" track, laying some serious funk on "Can't You Hear Me Knocking".

Yeah, it's a proper tribute, this one. Plus, you get a bonus reading of "Angie". Not bad for a freebie.

Discogs

Click here to download.