It's still kinda amazing to me that two of the great punk/indie catalogs of the 80s, in Touch & Go and SST, have no gotten the comprehensive remastering and reissuing that we saw out of Dischord 10-15 years ago. Not only that, there are rarities from T&G, especially their early hardcore days, that haven't been revisited. I'm thrilled that the early Necros stuff is available digitally on Bandcamp from the band, and that "Tied Down" got new vinyl pressings last year and this year. But it sucks that bands like Hüsker Dü and Minutemen and Naked Raygun haven't gotten even a portion of the scholarly, loving treatment they deserve.
I'll step off the soapbox to, instead, share a record that (probably) rightfully has never been released. In 1983, Void was coming off the previous year's release of their split with the Faith, possibly the greatest split 12" of all time (prove me wrong!). They were the perfect melding of hardcore and metal; like Bad Brains and Motörhead making beautiful monkey love. How could you top such a ripper?
Turns out, you can't. Like their contemporaries in SSD, Void recorded a glam metal record, highlighting not just the fracturing interests of the band members, but also state of the hardcore scene in 1983. The leading lights were growing up, and many were ready to go pro and start making real money off their craft.
"Potion for Bad Dreams" was originally recorded for Touch & Go, a reflection of their alliance with T&G owner/Necros drummer Corey Rusk. But between the band falling apart, the lack of enthusiasm in the recording, and the need to focus on upcoming releases from Tesco Vee, the Butthole Surfers, and Die Kruezen, Rusk shelved this sucker. I say, for good reason.
This rip comes from my copy of the tape that Das Boots put out in 2014/15. I have no clue what generation recording they used for their release; I do know this has been booted almost since the day it was recorded, and my copy is one of the better I've heard. Some of y'all may enjoy this. If I remember correctly, I remember both Sean from White Zombie and Buzz from the Melvins saying in interviews what a shame it was this had never been put out. I'm not one of them, but it doesn't mean it shouldn't be shared.
2 comments:
SST Records (or what's left of it) is about 25 miles from my house and before things fell apart when we used to take visitors or just ourselves over there for some of the best barbecue in Texas I'd wander over the warehouse and peer through the windows and marvel at the goods in the always (as far as I could tell) closed place. I still love those 45s & LPs I bought and still listen to some. Ginn and his Taylor Texas Corrugators are a thing...
I keep thinking about ordering some of the Minutemen vinyl I'm missing direct thru the Superstore. As far as I can tell, their mailorder operation is still pretty robust. As for recent Ginn projects...well, the less said, the better.
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