Flower "None Is (But Once Was) (Ernest Jenning Record Co.)"
From Ernest Jenning Record Co.:
1986. New York City. Trash cans ablaze in vacant lots. Wheels stolen, cars on blocks. A new noise was rising amid the rubble of abandoned buildings; this was the beginning, and Flower would take root and thrive here. Over their three years of initial outburst, Flower recorded two albums; the first, Concrete, dark and raging, pounding and brutal. The following year brought Hologram Sky; a glimpse of redemption, the promise of Spring on a bitter March wind, melodic and noisy, precise and chaotic, icy and warm. Their live shows walked the third rail, one step from catastrophe, one step from Valhalla, pushing density, rhapsody and bombast to their limits. Flower were young and foolish, naively insightful and blissfully ignorant, unaware of the power with which they toyed.
Naturally, they self-destructed.
The survivors, most notably Ed and Richard Baluyut, went on to form the indie icons Versus. Ian James managed to crawl away unscathed, only to end up in Geffen flame-out Cell, but later would reunite with drummer Andrew Bordwin to form French. This was to be the lay of the land for the next three decades until…
Flower returned.
Having always remained close, while Ian was recording the most recent Versus releases, discussion turned to seeing what would happen if all four original Flower members locked themselves in the studio until an album had been written. So it was agreed, and so it was done. None knew what to expect – would they kill each other? Worse, would the music be lame? The road took many detours, but the goal was finally realized: the first Flower album in 30 years.
Here it comes…
Andrew Bordwin / Drums
Edward Baluyut / Guitar
Ian James / Bass & Vocals
Richard Baluyut / Guitar & Vocals
Tommy & The Commies "Hurtin’ 4 Certain (Slovenly)"
From Slovenly Records:
Finally our most beloved Sudburians,
Under the extreme duress of these most turbulent times
Careen forth with a new four track 7inch EP
Knuckleheadedly entitled “Hurtin’ 4 Certain.”
Tommy and the Commies, lone purveyors of “Hooligan Pop”
Rock this one out with breakneck precision and attitude
Unheard since their 2018 masterpiece “Here Come…”
Meaty odes to their “One Arch Town” appear this time,
Perfectly executed and gritty, but never served raw.
Tilly & The Wall "Woo! (Team Love Records)"
From Team Love Records:
Many labels start because a record needs to be released. No one is stepping up to the plate, everyone’s too busy chasing trend and getting boringly drunk at SXSW. This was certainly the case when it came to Omaha’s Tilly & The Wall and the label Team Love. It was viewed by Team Love as a crime against pop-art and all that is good in the world for the album Wild Like Children not to be given a shot: three singers, a tap-dancer, three songwriters and songs meant to be thrust into the sky with joyous punches. Recorded in a basement by Conor Oberst, the album’s danceability and “f*ck it up” chants, it’s sorrow and punk, dress up brawling and bottled call to friendship and grab-it-off-the-shelf folk was like nothing that had ever come before. It took indie pop and kissed it on the forehead leaving a glitter smear. It stomped on hate and refused to be part of any scene that wouldn’t let every single kid in the door.
A decade flew by. Everyone, it seemed, moved to Brooklyn and grew beards. The band toured the world, made three more albums, had a hit, and then called it a day. People don’t talk about Tilly & The Wall now the way they should. This Best Of hopes, very simply, to help correct that error.
Woo! is the preamble to all of that. It’s the pre-album, the not-demos packaged in a zip-lock and sold after the show. These songs show a band in its infancy, and to every Tilly fan, this is the final sequence in the mapping of the Tilly genome.
Tangents "Risk Reap Reward (Temporary Residence)"
From Temporary Residence:
On the back of an Australian tour for their universally acclaimed New Bodies album, and following studio sessions for their forthcoming new album (due September 2020), Tangents dropped into Melbourne’s RRR radio station on a sunny Saturday afternoon for a live on-air session.
With the radio live room unavailable that day, the quintet jammed themselves into the studio room and sprawled their kit across the limited desk space: Peter Hollo’s cello bow poking Adrian Lim-Klumpes in the eye, who in turn bashed at a MIDI piano while pinned against Sia Ahmad and her guitar. A mono mic was loosely poised over Evan Dorrian’s cut-down tabletop kit, cymbals and a snare strewn over available desk space, as Ollie Bown lurked in the only remaining corner of the room, hunched over a laptop with lid half open, trying his best to control the headphone mix whilst triggering clips. Presenter John Bailey cued the band and ducked for cover.
Over 20-some minutes a spontaneous new concoction emerged, its unexpected clashes of timbre and rhythm tangential enough to warrant an official release into the Tangents discography, one that also marks founding member Sia Ahmad’s last recorded session with the group.