Miss Kittin & The Hacker - Intimités EP

Early release from this pair, released in 1999 on Gigolos.

Hmmm. The bubble burst on this 'scene' fairly quickly, but this 12" caught Miss Kittin & The Hacker before it went stale. Ignore the pointless Kittin Intro and cut straight to the three big tracks contained within.

A2 has a really simple 3-note keyboard riff and some great distorted kick-drum before some detuned synths creep in over the top Great stuff indeed. A3 is billed as a 'bonus track' (aye right - in the middle of an EP?) and is a cover of the Eurythmics track of the same name. I was never a fan of Eurythmics but this does the job nicely. After about two minutes of a breakbeat and not a lot else, the Sweet Dreams riff comes in and it actually works, the bass hook in particular.

For me though, the big tune is B1 - I've had a google to see who J.M. Wicker is/was and the best I can get is this scientific document, published in 1999 on the subject of Acoustic Waves, so there you go. It's just a really simple hook that they fanny about with over the course of 11mins or so, with a few words thrown on top for good measure. It's got a sample of the drum fill from Promised Land as well (or it sounds like that to me). The detuned synth sound is present here as well, it all fits together perfectly.

Sssshh, nobody mention 'electroclash'...



Miss Kittin & The Hacker - Intimités EP
A1 - Kittin Intro
A2 - Uno
A3 - Sweet Dreams
B1 - Flexibility (A Tribute To J.M. Wicker)
B2 - The Hacker Outro

Buy it here

Julian Cope - Live Japan '91

Superb live set from 1991, released 'to undermine the current slew of mediocre Cope bootleg recordings available, with handsomely packaged alternative releases', according to the Head Heritage website.

Well fuck me, this is classic Cope from his Peggy Suicide tour. I couldn't believe it when this popped up to buy (briefly) on his site. Check the set out - a nice wee mix of Peggy stuff with a few oldies thrown in as well. I like the fact that the CD lists Out Of My Mind On Dope And Speed as 'Of Rope And Speed' -> lost in translation perhaps...

I'm sitting here nursing a great rock'n'roll scar as my eyebrow got burst by the neck of a guitar last night during a Monotonix gig - didn't realise it was bleeding until my girlfriend put a hanky on my face and showed me it - totally red. Magic! Felt a bit dizzy for a wee while but it's OK today. Another sedate set from the most insane band I've ever seen.

Anyway - this Cope set is magnificent. It's nice to hear "Out Of My Mind..." with a bass on it for once, as he 'forgot' to put one on it on the original Skellington version. A great extended workout of Sleeping Gas as well, as he was prone to playing back then.

Right - head starting to hurt now. Only one solution...



Julian Cope - Live Japan '91
1 - Hanging Out And Hung Up On The Line
2 - You Think It's Love
3 - East Easy Rider
4 - Pristeen / Double Vegetation
5 - Promised Land
6 - Leperskin
7 - Yeah Yeah Yeah
8 - Bill Drummond Said
9 - Beautiful Love
10 - Sleeping Gas
11 - Sunspots
12 - Out Of My Mind Of Rope And Speed
13 - World Shut Your Mouth

Buy Cope stuff here

Fujiya & Miyagi - Remixes

Collection of remixes from the Electro Karaoke In The Negative Style album, from 2003 on Massive Advance.

I was gutted to miss this lot earlier in the year - I was all set to go and see them at Stereo then they cancelled at the last minute. When the show was rescheduled I couldn't make it. Maybe next year, eh guys?

Remix-wise, Weatherall and Tenniswood stay in tune with the Neu-style teutonic rhythms of the original, whilst adding loads of trademark noises over the top. Excellent stuff in my unbiased opinion.

Despite using possibly the worst moniker this side of Limp Bizkit, Wevie Stonder actually turns in a pretty good mix of a track which came in at under two minutes in its original form - some stuttery drums and plinky plonky noises adding to the synth/vocal combo of the original.

Pilote puts a nice shuffley drum over New Accounts Analysis and adds a beautiful synth riff over it - a great remix. The final track? Aye - check it out, dunno quite how to describe it but this whole thing is a great wee remix package, and worth exploring beyond the carrot of the TLS mix at the start.

Here's a Spotify playlist of the original versions of these four if you want to see just what's been done to the originals. Don't say I'm not good to you...



Fujiya & Miyagi - Remixes
A1 - Electro Karaoke (Two Lone Swordsmen Remix)
A2 - King Holer (Wevie Stonder Remix)
B1 - New Accounts Analysis (Pilote Remix)
B2 - Rot (Chungking's Making A Fool Of Me Mix)

Buy it here

Hardkiss - Delusions Of Grandeur

Compilation from 1995 licensed to L'Attitude Records.

Howzabout some Californian sunshine to brighten up the gloom of a pissing wet November...? A beautiful set of Hardkiss tracks from the early 90s, I can't big this up enough. I was slightly miffed to learn that the US version of this has different tracks, and that the CD has extra tracks. Mind you, you can't fault the ones they've chosen for this version. Somehow this album has managed to get to 2009 in perfect condition as well, so it's one of the best rips I've done.

It's great to hear this again - takes me back to a psychedelic summer in a flat up Broomhill way, all sorts of nonsense going down. I'd forgotten how amazing the production is. Every tune's a winner - something for everyone guaranteed.

I've re-ripped Raincry as it's a better copy than from the first time I posted it. Also, the buggers did a lock-groove at the end of track C2 so I've done a wee fade on that.

If you're not familiar with Hardkiss then there are some excellent reviews of this album on Discogs which you should check out.

I wish I could find my 'California Dreaming' album which would complement this nicely. Anyone...?



Hardkiss - Delusions Of Grandeur
A1 - Rabbit In The Moon - Out Of Body Experience (Original)
A2 - Hawke - 3 Nudes In A Purple Garden
B1 - God Within - Raincry (Spiritual Thirst)
B2 - Hawke - Pacific Coast Highway #1
C1 - God Within - Daylight (Dreamerdreamsalone)
C2 - Rabbit In The Moon - Out Of Body Experience (Burning Spear)
D1 - God Within - The Phoenix (Someday My Plane Will Crash)
D2 - Hawke - 3 Nudes (Having Sax On Acid)

Buy it here

Various - Stranger Than Fiction

What would you do with £80??

Let me see... some vinyl, tickets, booze & 'miscellaneous' perhaps? A new jacket? A ticket for a decent European festival?

Nope. All wrong. My girlfriend in a semi-pissed state in the pub, having just finished yet another book about The Cure, announced that she wanted to buy this album but it wasn't on eBay. 5 minutes later I'd got it off Discogs for her on my iPhone. £80! That would be the unreleased Cure track then? No - she's got it on the Join The Dots compilation. How about the unreleased Tim Pope track that features The Cure as the backing band? Nope, she bought the 12" of that at the same time (a mere £25 - it was payday Friday). I got her the Cult Hero 7" as a pressie a few years back. The Associates tune is easily available as well. She must be a closet Eat or Die Warzau fan then? Nope - just daft about all things Cure/Fiction and had to have this limited edition (1000) promo CD.

It's great to have someone who is as hardcore about collecting music as I am, but CDs - no emotional attachment in my book. Whatever floats her boat I guess...



Various - Stranger Than Fiction
1 - Cult Hero - I Dig You
2 - The Associates - Janice
3 - Tim Pope - I Want To Be A Tree
4 - The Cure - To The Sky
5 - Eat - Fat Man
6 - Die Warzau - Shakedown

No buy it now due to the above story...

Pete Shelley - Homosapien II (Techno Mix)

Bit of an oddity here, from 1989 on Immaculate Records.

After hearing the original of this on the radio the other day, I'd forgotten how much it sounded like North American Scum by LCD Soundsystem (well it did to me anyway). I remembered I had this white label 12" remix thing and out it popped today as I flicked through a shelf.

I never had a clue who this was by, but thanks to the magic of Discogs it appears the mixes were done by Power, Wonder & Love - they of Afro Acid fame. Fuck me - that's a bit of a weird connection is it not?

So to the mixes. I don't know whether I've tagged them properly but I think the mix names are correct - the way I've done it the Techno mix is the vocal one, seeing as how it's on the side that's got the stamp on it. The flip has an instrumental version that's not quite the same track - maybe someone could fire an acapella of the LCD tune over it to see if it works. I always liked the song, and this mix really works, can't believe it's 20 years old, the gang did a great remix now that you look at it. Aye, I'll definitely be playing this one a bit more now.

I saw the Buzzcocks earlier this year and they raced through the first two albums in full before coming back on for a Singles Going Steady encore. Magnificent stuff, and I can't wait to see them at ATP in a couple of weeks. Fuck me - that's in a week and a bit. It always seemed like ages away in the future...



Pete Shelley - Homosapien II (Techno Mix)
A - Homosapien II (Techno Mix)
B - Homosapien II (Icon Mix)

Buy it here

Manuel And Clive - Warp EP

A clear, black & red 10" that plays inside out, from 1994.

A FUCKING INTENSE couple of tracks from Manuel and Clive, aka The Advent, this was limited to 1,000 and was never repressed. That'll be the pension fund sorted then. Oh - you can pick it up for a tenner on Discogs. Cheers, internet!

Excellent stuff on both sides, particularly the B-side, most rewarding when I initially bought it for aesthetics alone (I'm a sucker for a good vinyl gimmick). Should appeal to anyone who's into Labworks / hard acid techno. I've definitely heard both sides played out, most likely at Pure or Club 69.

Ideal for clearing out any post-weekend cobwebs that may be lurking around...



Manuel And Clive - Warp EP
A - Warp # 1
B - Warp # 2

Buy it here

Fur Bible - Fur Bible

A 12" single on New Rose records, released in 1985.

Check out the lineup for this short-lived act: Kid Congo Powers (Bad Seeds, Cramps & Gun Club), Patricia Morrison (Gun Club, Sisterhood, Sisters Of Mercy) and Murray Mitchell (not a lot else but he did go on to produce a Primal Scream track). To top it all, the EP is produced by Jim (Foetus) Thirwell.

Usually projects like this (I don't wanna use the term 'supergroup' as it conjures up mental images of the Travelling Wilburys and suchlike) have a habit of being a bit of a let down, but this one works. It should appeal to anyone who digs any of the above acts (apart from the Travelling Wilburys).

I just found out that Kid Congo is playing a mega-rare Glasgow gig this Thursday at the Soundhaus (flyer here). Fuck me! He's had a recent album out but will hopefully be delving into the past for a few treats along the way. Tickets are a mere £8 as well. See you down the front...



Fur Bible - Fur Bible
A1 - Plunder the Tombs
B1 - Headbolt
B2 - Fumble Fist

Buy it here

Conemelt - You Fuckers Fuck

A personal classic, from 1995 on New Ground Dance Division.

Phew - dunno what to say about this lot except they've shaped my musical horizons quite unlike any other dance act. This is one of the best electronic albums that I have ever heard.

I'm really struggling after too much goth juice last night and am suffering from a bit of writer's block. If you have even a bawhair of interest in all the Conemelt/Corridor/New Ground stuff I've put up then you need to download this.

Nuff said...



Conemelt - You Fuckers Fuck
A1 - Step Two
A2 - Flymo
A3 - Agnostic Stomp (Punx Not Dead!)
B1 - Wallop's Girlfriend
B2 - Trap Set and Sock
C1 - Dronemelt
C2 - Driving Miss Hairy
C3 - The Preachers
D1 - Shiny Woman
D2 - Step Three

Buy it here

Bowery Electric - Lushlife

Promo 12" on Beggars Banquet from 1999.

Two tracks of hazy downbeat guitar and breakbeat with whispery female vocals. What do you mean it's Friday afternoon? Aye well, just fancied it that's all. As previously heard on this Spacemen 3 tribute album, this features two tracks with heavy-as-hell bass that makes me wanna go and smoke something that I currently don't have. Weekend before payday as well. Grrr.

Just a quickie post tonight as I'm off out early doors, to an ill-advised reunion of an old Glasgow goth club I used to go to 20 years ago. Gonna get drunk on snakebite and blackcurrant before we go in, see how badly everyone has aged (us excluded of course), then fuck off. Probably.

Stay tuned tomorrow though, as I should have something a few folk have asked for if I get the right email response back before then...



Bowery Electric - Lushlife
A - Lushlife
B - Floating World

Buy it here