Rocky Votolato - s/t

The first solo record from Seattle's Rocky Votolato. He's a man who, in this day and age, will come to your living room and play to your closest friends and strangest strangers, all whilst you quaff a glass of wine and hum along to "White Daisy Passing". I've seen him/booked him about a half dozen times over the years, and never been disappointed.

It's worth noting (to me, at least) that this was initially co-released by Henry's Finest Recordings. I live about 10 minutes from Henry's Finest's mailing address. The universe is immense, yet tiny.

If you come across him, ask Rocky about acting in "The Edge of Quarrel".

Discogs

Click here to download.

The Geraldine Fibbers - Live At The Bottom Of The Hill

I'm not sure how some 90s A&R at Virgin heard the Geraldine Fibbers and imagined a future where they'd top the charts, or even appeal to a larger audience. But I dig it...the same way I dig the Gun Club and Flesh Eaters. And maybe (almost definitely) that "cowpunk" tag is technically incorrect, but fiddle songs for us art-damaged weirdos should fit under that nebulous subgenre.

This here was an American promo-only release, coming on the heels of the G.F.'s 1996 album, Lost Somewhere Between The Earth And My Home. Recorded live at San Francisco's The Bottom Of The Hill, this never got a retail version, which is a shame, because while the recording feels flat at times, it was the recording that finally broke through to me on behalf of Ms. Bozulich and co.

It didn't help me avoid run-on sentences, though.

Discogs

Click here to download.

New music from Lydia Loveless

Lydia Loveless (photo by Megan Toenyes)

It never ceases to amaze me how solutions to life's little issues just present themselves. For example: I had no clue what to write about today, and was futzing around on Bandcamp, just killing time listening to Mikey Erg. I notice that Lydia Loveless did backing vocals on a song on his new EP. "Hey, I wonder what she's been up to?", I ask. Sure enough, Lydia has a record called "Daughter" coming out in September. Nice country!

This is Lydia's fifth full-length, and first since 2016's "Real" on Bloodshot Records. She's gone fully independent on "Daughter", and judging by the two preview cuts available on her Bandcamp, it might be her finest work yet. Her lyrics are cutting, her vocals melancholy. There's a world-weariness present here that reflects her recent divorce, the state of the nation, and the chaos of modern life. "Love Is Not Enough" is a mid-tempo jam that wouldn't be out of place on Top 40 radio in the early aughts. It leads off with a great set of lines: "Talk to me/Tell me how it feels to always see everything in a major key/When I’m drowning in ennui". "Wringer" sounds like post punk played by a bluegrass band. I'll be playing these a lot over the next month. The record also promises guest spots from Laura Jane Grace and Nora Barton. I can really relate to this theme of using failure or endings to reassess and reassert one's identity.

"Daughter" comes out September 25, and preorders are live on Loveless's Bandcamp page. "Daughter" is available as a download, CD, or two colors of vinyl. Folks who preorder the vinyl will also get a lyric sheet hand-typed by Lydia herself. Pretty cool!

Listen to the first two preview tracks below:

Lucero - The Coldwater Sessions

Lucero, circa 2017 (photo from Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

I had thought about waxing poetic over how in love with Lucero I was from 2003 to 2011. The first time I heard them, I thought it was a perfect mix of the Replacements, Jawbreaker, and Waylon Jennings...the perfect answer to the question, "What happens when punks want to make country music?" I booked them on their "That Much Further West" tour into a warehouse called the Broasis; it was probably the largest gate I'd ever done, but I only made money off of beer. The final time I saw them was in 2011, and involved breaking up a fight between my girlfriend's best friend and a bouncer three times her size. I haven't really listened to anything of theirs since "1372 Overton Park"; I suppose I just got fixed on diving into old RCA records from the 50s, Gram Parsons and "Outlaw Country", Sturgill Simpson and Kitty Wells.

I think I downloaded this from the wonderful, greatly missed blog Captain's Dead back when they posted it in 2007. While the title makes reference to the now-legendary "Coldwater Recordings" tape, this is actually a combination of early demos and different mixes of songs from their early history; I'd guess it was recorded in 1998 and 1999, based on when the songs would appear on a general release. I thought it'd make sense to annotate what you're downloading today. I can't claim this is perfect information, so if you have better or different information, feel free to share it in the comments. Cuz knowledge is power!

1. "Heart So True" - originally appeared on the "A Heart So True" demo. Also known as "Poor Heartache".
2. "All the Same To Me" - originally appeared on the 1998 "Cowboy" demo and 2001 comp "Listen To What I'm Made Of: Songs By and For Shannon Yarborough" on File 13. Later re-recorded for "Nobody's Darlings"
3. "Dangerous Thing" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
4. "Dodging Bullets" - otherwise unreleased or re-recorded.
5. "Drink Till We’re Gone" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
6. "No Title" - also known as "Was That You I've Been Kissing?" Appeared on "The Coldwater Recordings" demo.
7. "It Gets Worst at Night" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
8. "All Sewn Up" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
9. "Raising Hell" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
10. "Banks of the Arkansas" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
11. "It Doesn't Get Any Better Than This" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
12. "All These Love Songs" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
13. "Hold Fast" - an alternate mix of the track that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release.
14. "Ain't No Roses No More" - an alternate mix of "No Roses No More" that'd appear on Lucero's self-titled release. 
15. Instrumental - otherwise unreleased or re-recorded.
16. "Blue and Grey" - an alternate mix of "The Blue and the Gray" that'd appear on "The Attic Tapes".

As an added bonus, please enjoy the flier for the Lucero show I booked 17 YEARS AGO! Goddamn I'm getting old. I think the Spark was the fourth band on the bill, making it a real punk rock show. Nolen from Double Dagger was my photo model; I snapped this tightly cropped shot of him the night DD opened for the Buzzcocks. Crack a cheap pilsner and listen to this one on the porch.

Click here to download.

Iron & Wine - demo

Photo by Stephen Dowling

I'm too depressed to really write anything. Here's the CD-R that Sam Beam gave me after he opened for Ugly Casanova about 7 years ago at the Ottobar. Is there any difference between this demo and the tracks that have appeared just about everywhere? Hell, I don't know. I think "Red Dust" & "Dead Man's Will" only appeared on the Calexico split. Maybe some better informed soul can hip me to the origins and whatnot.

Postscript: I apologize for the pixelly-azz image below. I still have no scanner, and the only shot of the demo/tour EP I could find was small as hell. C'est la vie.










Iron & Wine - demo
(click record cover for DL)

RIYL: Pitchfork's Best of 2004, banjos, yr sister

Lucero - That Much Further West (bonus disc)

Happy Franksgiving, everybody! As soon as I shit, shower & shave, I'm packing up the fam and driving north to my folks' house, for a bounty of bourbon, pork and potatoes. Hooray!

If you like toys, and you want the dope on what's new, I'd recommend stopping by Plastic Jungle, which I'll be writing for. It's pretty cool; in theory I'll be getting paid to talk about designer toys. Who says there's a recession on?!?

As part of my Lucero bounty, here is the relatively-limited bonus disc from Lucero's That Much Further West. If you preordered the CD from Insound/Tigerstyle, you got this second disc of rarities & live product. Set in the same order as Lucero's 4th record, you get 12 alternate versions that add up to pretty good times. Worth downloading for the piano-driven version of "Mine Tonight" alone. This is one that I'll throw on my iPod if I'm driving late at night.










Lucero - That Much Further West (bonus disc)

RIYL: turkey, stuffing, wine, football

Lucero - The Coldwater Sessions

There's a short list of things I never expected to do. Most of the activities I never expected to participate in involve home ownership. Today, I did two of them:

1) Pay a shitload of money for heating oil.
2) Restart a furnace that had been out of heating oil.

Party people, please buy solar, or use gas heat. Getting covered in 24 oz. of heating oil is no fun, no matter what the Hollywood stars tell you from the red carpet...

What you have here is Memphis, TN's Lucero, and the demos from their self-titled record, otherwise known as The Coldwater Sessions. Better men than I can clarify a couple of the song titles; I know a few might be off. And cheers to Gregor at Captain's Dead for the original post. This is in honor of the cold house I've had for the past week. Pour yrself a glass of Booker's and strap those headphones on REEEAAAALLL tight. Cuz, baby, it's cooooold outside...

Lucero - The Coldwater Sessions

RIYL: mid-September, porch swings, rusty chain link