Filed under: Caroline Peyton, Methodology, Uncategorized | Tags: Asterisk, Caroline Peyton, Lounge Ax, Numero Group, Wax Trax
This week’s blog post is dedicated to the many reviewers of our releases….
Growing up in a dreary southern suburb of Chicago [which shall remain nameless] and cultivating a record collecting habit which remains with me to this day, I found myself blowing into the Windy City as soon as I could drive ['87], as often as possible, 4-5 times a week to either fulfill my record collecting obsession at Wax Trax [RIP] & Reckless, to cut my teeth at the Lounge Ax [also RIP][thank you Mark Greenberg, Sue Miller, Sarah Staskauskas, et. al.] or visit friends at DePaul University.
Any avid record collector will recount the many albums that were ‘everywhere’ and ‘common’ but have now ‘dried up’ like grandfathers remembering how many blocks they had to walk to school. Caroline Peyton’s Intuition and Mock Up LPs fit into these ‘used to be common’ LPs I used to encounter on a weekly basis. Released on Bloomington IN’s BRBQ Records, these LPs were like the Missa Luba to a record collector in neighboring Chicago, they were ubiquitous [!] and I ignored these albums countless times possibly until some fellow beat digger told me I should check out the track “Party Line” or some such business. In fact, I think I’d probably bought Intuition more than once and ended up selling it back, not having musically matured enough to appreciate the complexity of the record [let's not even mention Mock Up!]. To my ears, the albums were just too all over the place, what with it’s vocal histrionics, smooth jazziness and didn’t fit at ALL into the indie music world I was enthralled with at the time; too smooth, dated and something my pops would probably enjoy [hey! We had Steely Dan albums up the wazoo at the house OK?].
I was re-introduced to Caroline Peyton by tastemaker Gilles Peterson on his Brownswood USA compilation which features the beautiful “Just As We” track [nope, didn't even make it that far bouncing around looking for 'banded' breaks...] and things start to make a bit more sense. But of course, by this time, the album is nowhere to be found and is selling for close to $50 on eBay [thanks Gilles!]
Well fast forward to the end of 2008 and here we are set to release those two releases by her at the same time as Asterisk titles. So, I am forced to listen to these two albums again [sigh]. Making myself familiar with material inside and out is something that is integral in my line of work; for fact checking purposes, the drafting of press releases, etc… I respect our line of releases and I’m sure if you’re reading this that you do too. So I had to give these releases some quality time and listen to them anew and with open mind and ears.
I’m sure that many of you will agree that while each Numero release contains fantastic music, that there is also a unique story that accompanies it. Having grown older, I rarely find time to get acquainted with an album like I used to [e.g. reading liner notes and lyrics while listening to the album], what with teensy weensy CD booklets or downloads with no nothin’. Upon first listen, I fell back into the same old patterns and feelings as encountered the during the first forays with her music. However, while reading these liner notes and becoming familiar with the Bloomington music scene at the time, Caroline and Mark Bingham’s time at the Needmore Commune and their musical backgrounds, I cultivated a much appreciated reverence for the music that was created at a unique time and in a unique place.
Yeah, the music IS all over the place but that only speaks to the creativity and willingness of the musicians to branch out and fully express themselves with no barriers that a major label would have no doubt confined them to. Upon closer listen, Mark Gray’s piano playing on Mock Up rivals Mike Garson’s work on Bowie’s Aladdin Sane, Caroline Peyton shows her vocal range and adaptability across both records and Mark Bingham’s arrangements are stark, lush and expansive.
The point of this long post is this: Reviewers should spend more time with our Asterisk titles. You are not going to ‘get’ these releases upon one or two listens. I know that each and every reviewer we deal with has a crap load of promos that they have to wade through and I respect this. However, if you DO decide to review one of these titles, remember this: Asterisk titles are quite different than the already established Numero titles. They require the listener to spend some time with them. Liken the liner notes to the information you procure while getting to know a brand new girlfriend or boyfriend. It’s all there and they will reward you later on if you have the guts and take the time to stick with them.
I know when I heard the WEE album, I was like ewww….. there is a bloody synth running through every bleedin’ track! How awful! But, after repeated listens, the album has grown to be one of my favorite releases thus far and this is one of our best selling and well received albums in our catalog. [Imagine our surprise!]
I’m sure some of the reviewers who listened to the WEE album once or twice and then reviewed it without giving it its proper due are now kicking themselves…. that is if they haven’t already sold it to some second-hand record shop….
Lastly, on a side note, the pimple on the ass of the record business has now grown into a RASH as the Intuition album is already being pimped and bootlegged by none other than James Plummer of Radioactive, Fallout [how clever], Sonicus and Blue Orchid infamy. We are currently in the process of working with eBay and their VeRO program to cleanse the market place of these bootleged issues of the album. I would discourage anyone from buying these copies as they are inferior, illegal and have nothing special to offer, not even any liner notes, just plain cheap. Our releases are properly licensed and the Mock Up album is expanded to include four bonus tracks culled from the Screaming Gyspy Bandits’ In The Eye album along with an enhanced live performance at the Hummingbird Café in 1972. The Intuition release includes seven bonus tracks, including two studio outtakes and five demos recorded for Arista.
Oh yeah, this is a “Juan Tamad.”
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