What Album Are You Listening To Right Now?

[bickster]

3 minutes ago, Xann said:

No Faust?

Well, I have Faust on downloaded from the high seas CDrs and if I ever won the lottery I'd buy the recent box set but...

I will get around to getting some Faust at somepoint, they are somewhere in the middle of the list

(Alternate Answer: Don't be silly, their name isn't three letters)

[Xann]

 The Lords Of Hyperspace... 'in the middle of the list'?

 

 

[mjmooney]

Definite improvement on his last few. 

[bickster]

First pressing from 1985, actually still in its shrinkwrap 35 years later, the Lyric insert is still intact. I paid 6.99 at the time, in this condition (NM/VG+) its in the £30-£35 region

As much as I like Sonic Youth, this isn't one of the classic albums so I rarely play it but it is actually much better than my memory of it so it may be getting a few more spins

Sonic Youth - Bad Moon Rising.

[bickster]

Continuing on a theme of obscure music from the USA... The UK first pressing of Murmur by REM from 1983. I actually have 2 copies of this, one I think came from a mate who moved to Thailand but this one is my original copy as his is the gold embossed not for resale one

This one definitely takes me back to a particular girlfriend in VIth form.

[Seat68]

1 hour ago, bickster said:

First pressing from 1985, actually still in its shrinkwrap 35 years later, the Lyric insert is still intact. I paid 6.99 at the time, in this condition (NM/VG+) its in the £30-£35 region

As much as I like Sonic Youth, this isn't one of the classic albums so I rarely play it but it is actually much better than my memory of it so it may be getting a few more spins

Sonic Youth - Bad Moon Rising.

You at least get Death Valley 69 on this. Not hugely strong an album but it's Sonic Youth so it has that going for it. 

 

 

[bickster]

5 minutes ago, Seat68 said:

You at least get Death Valley 69 on this. Not hugely strong an album but it's Sonic Youth so it has that going for it. 

It's also the most valuable SY record in the collection. Sister woud be but the condition of the cover is a bit rough

I have the 12" of DV69 which has four other SY tracks on it, I might dig that out whilst I wait for my bath to run

[bickster]

17 minutes ago, bickster said:

I have the 12" of DV69 which has four other SY tracks on it, I might dig that out whilst I wait for my bath to run

There's interesting bits in them but it's definitely them experimenting and honing their craft as the first three are off earlier releases. It's definitely them experimenting and honing their craft. The fourth is Satan is Boring an  outtake from the Bad Moon Rising sessions

It's actually an interesting sequence as you can sort of track the progression of their sound to this point through the four tracks. I can see why Satan is Boring was left off the album proper though

[Seat68]

Prompted on the soundtrack to Bicksters bathbomb and Prosecco soak, Murmur. Document by American niche obscurists REM is playing. The start, or at least the foothills of their ascendancy. 

[blandy]

[blandy]

22 hours ago, bickster said:

Continuing on a theme of obscure music from the USA... The UK first pressing of Murmur by REM from 1983. I actually have 2 copies of this, one I think came from a mate who moved to Thailand but this one is my original copy as his is the gold embossed not for resale one

This one definitely takes me back to a particular girlfriend in VIth form.

How can I tell if mine is a first pressing? I scanned the bar code on discogs and it gave 3 results. All seem the same. My only clue is I paid £4.49 for it from Our Price.

[bickster]

1 hour ago, blandy said:

How can I tell if mine is a first pressing? I scanned the bar code on discogs and it gave 3 results. All seem the same. My only clue is I paid £4.49 for it from Our Price.

Off the top of my head, the first pressing won't have a barcode, fairly sure mine doesn't. If its thrown up a number of options, you then have to dig around in the entry for each version to spot the differences

I'll have a better look when I get home

[bickster]

@blandy Yep as I suspected, first pressings of Murmur and Reckoning do not have barcodes, Fables first pressings do, so IRS introduced barcodes sometime between 1984 and 1985

I seem to have two copies of Fables too both are first pressings but I have them recorded as different versions and I'm trying work out how I even distinguished between the two copies

What is the barcode and I'll see what clues I can come up with?

[blandy]

23 minutes ago, bickster said:

What is the barcode and I'll see what clues I can come up with?

No worries, it's not a problem. I was just mildly curious, but here it is if you fancy a go. I'm wondering now if I bought it to replace one when I lost a whole bunch of vinyl after I moved up here, because when I got into REM there was no Our Price anywhere near Newquay - Plymouth was the nearest, and I'm pretty sure I only bought the Sugar Cubes first album in there. Mostly I bought stuff in Penzance, Truro or Newquay local record stores. Still, we'll maybe see.

[bickster]

@blandyIt's all about the runout matrices which determine where the copy was mastered and cut. In my experience you often need good light to read them especially the hand scratched ones

Variant 1 (Only two people on Discogs have a copy of this and it has never been sold)

This release is pressed by PRS Ltd. with a Trident Studios lacquer cut (420 V in runout).

• Matrix / Runout (Side A runout, stamped): SP 70604 A//2▽420 V 11
• Matrix / Runout (Side B runout, stamped): SP 70604 B//3▽420 V 11

 

Variant 2 (This seems to be by far the most common variant in terms of numbers claiming ownership so in this perverse world of record collecting, it's also the most valuable, median price £25.99)

This release is pressed by EMI and cut at Tape One

• Matrix / Runout (Side A runout): SP 70604 A - 2J - 1 - 2 ͡ ͡ TAPE1
• Matrix / Runout (Side B runout): SP 70604 B - 1J - 1 - 2

 

Variant 3 (Discogs Median price £17.75)

This release is pressed by EMI but has no mention of Tape One in runouts

• Matrix / Runout (Side A runout): SP 70604 A-1U-1-1
• Matrix / Runout (Side B runout): SP 70604 B-1U-1-1

The median price on both variants that have sold is also higher than the first pressings I own (Go figure!) which is around £16:50

All three copies are listed as being released in 1983 which quite frankly is nonsense as the barcode wouldn't have been there, so it means they really don't know exactly when they were released but it is early on, somewhere vetween 1984 and 1995 when Murmur recieved a vinyl re-release

[blandy]

9 minutes ago, bickster said:

@blandyIt's all about the runout matrices which determine where the copy was mastered and cut. In my experience you often need good light to read them especially the hand scratched ones

Variant 1 (Only two people on Discogs have a copy of this and it has never been sold)

This release is pressed by PRS Ltd. with a Trident Studios lacquer cut (420 V in runout).

• Matrix / Runout (Side A runout, stamped): SP 70604 A//2▽420 V 11
• Matrix / Runout (Side B runout, stamped): SP 70604 B//3▽420 V 11

 

Variant 2 (This seems to be by far the most common variant in terms of numbers claiming ownership so in this perverse world of record collecting, it's also the most valuable, median price £25.99)

This release is pressed by EMI and cut at Tape One

• Matrix / Runout (Side A runout): SP 70604 A - 2J - 1 - 2 ͡ ͡ TAPE1
• Matrix / Runout (Side B runout): SP 70604 B - 1J - 1 - 2

Variant 3 (Discogs Median price £17.75)

This release is pressed by EMI but has no mention of Tape One in runouts

• Matrix / Runout (Side A runout): SP 70604 A-1U-1-1
• Matrix / Runout (Side B runout): SP 70604 B-1U-1-1

The median price on both variants that have sold is also higher than the first pressings I own (Go figure!) which is around £16:50

All three copies are listed as being released in 1983 which quite frankly is nonsense as the barcode wouldn't have been there, so it means they really don't know exactly when they were released but it is early on, somewhere vetween 1984 and 1995 when Murmur recieved a vinyl re-release

Mine is None of them. These are the run out markings

• Side A: SP 70604 A - 1J - 1 - 1
• Side B: SP 70604 B - 1J - 1 - 2

and no other markings!

[bickster]

16 minutes ago, blandy said:

Mine is None of them. These are the run out markings

• Side A: SP 70604 A - 1J - 1 - 1
• Side B: SP 70604 B - 1J - 1 - 2

and no other markings!

Haha, that would cause all manner of volcano eruptions in the minds of the ardent discoggers, a forum post would be required, and a discussion would take place, then someone would make the neccessary changes or add a new version and a bunch of people who didn't read the forum discussion would come along and undo the changes, which will start an editing war and votes would be cast and before you know it, you've lost an entire week battling with numpties

Alternatively, call it variant 2 and be done with it

[bickster]

This mornings breakfast accompaniment. I loved the first album but it took me a good while to really get into this, the second, like a few years. I do think I play this more than the first now

 

[chrisp65]

Early on, whilst still living with my parents and brother, I had a few things by The Psychedelic Furs.

Then I didn’t. Gone.

Nobody ever admitted taking them, or hiding them, or getting fed up and binning them. Just gone. I do suspect that eventually one day they will turn up in someone else’s attic box of Kiss, Scorpion, or Queen.

[Seat68]

I think that's the Psychedelic Furs album I have. It's not played much. Going to have a day of playing rarely played stuff soon. Just need to encourage the other three house occupants to go out for the day.