Author: Paul Sinclair

BOB / “Leave The Straight Life Behind” / expanded edition review

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

cover

Rob Puricelli reviews Leave The Straight Life Behind for SDE.

THERE IS A DYING TREND NOWADAYS. Before the internet, before information could be accessed by anyone, at anytime and in any place, music had to be searched for physically, or you had to be introduced to it physically. There was no other way. I couldn’t send you a Spotify link, or share a track via iTunes or YouTube. The upside of this was that finding new bands or new artists was rewarding in so many ways. You socialised around it, you got drunk doing it, you (potentially) got laid as a consequence of it. But there was also a downside to it. Great music often got lost. Continue reading “BOB / “Leave The Straight Life Behind” / expanded edition review”

LOOK BACK: “Unravelling the Mysteries of Audio Cassettes”

Posted on by Paul Sinclair
tapes2
How to buy cassette tapes (click to enlarge)

The art of buying cassette tapes explained in detail in a book called “The Sony Tape Rock Review” from 1984. Unsurprisingly, in this Sony-branded periodical, Sony tapes are recommended! Click on the image and you should be able to read the text from this 30-year old advertorial…

 

Tim Bowness / Abandoned Dancehall Dreams

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

ADDSticker

Tim Bowness of art-pop duo No-Man will issue Abandoned Dancehall Dreams, a new solo record, later next month.

Produced with No-Man partner (and celebrated 5.1 remixer) Steven Wilson, the album features contributions from an impressive array of talent including Pat Mastelotto (King Crimson), Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree), Anna Phoebe (Trans-Siberian Orchestra) and members of the No-Man live band. Abandoned Dancehall Dreams was also mastered by Pink Floyd engineer Andy Jackson.
Continue reading “Tim Bowness / Abandoned Dancehall Dreams”

Deal Alert / Blur 21: The Box

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5

blur2

Blur’s excellent Blur 21 box is under £100 on Amazon UK at the time of writing.

The 21-disc set (issued in July 2012) contains remastered and expanded two-CD editions of all the albums, four further rarities discs and three DVDs of live performances and rarities. A seven-inch single and a hard-bound book complete this set.
Continue reading “Deal Alert / Blur 21: The Box”

Out This Week / 12 May 2014

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5

Emerson Lake and Palmer / "Brain Salad Surgery" super deluxe box coming

Emerson Lake & Palmer / Brain Salad Surgery (6-disc super deluxe box)

Three CDs, a DVD, a DVD-A and a vinyl record in this boxed celebration of the 1973 album from ELP. Rather good value to at around the £60 mark. Read more

buy5new_image

Blondie: Greatest Hits Redux / Ghosts Of Download 

This three-disc Blondie deluxe set ticks most of the boxes with vibrant new music, spot-the-difference re-recorded hits and a 1977 live performance on DVD. Superb looking double coloured vinyl edition is on the way soon. Read more

buy5cover

Tori Amos / Unrepentant Geraldines (new album)

Currently on tour in the UK, Tori Amos‘ new album is rumoured to be a return to form with piano driven collection including Trouble’s Lament. In addition to the standard CD it’s available as CD+DVD deluxe edition and 2LP vinyl. Read more
Continue reading “Out This Week / 12 May 2014”

Monty Python / Total Rubbish: The Complete Collection box set

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5lp_box2
Monty Python’s Total Rubbish is a new nine-LP box set due to be released on the eve of the comic group’s apparently career-ending London live dates in July 2014.

The box set will feature all nine of Monty Python’s UK albums: Monty Python’s Flying Circus, Another Monty Python Record, Monty Python’s Previous Record, Matching Tie and Handkerchief, Live at Drury Lane, Holy Grail, Life of Brian, Monty Python’s Contractual Obligation Album and The Meaning Of Life and will come with a bonus seven-inch single of their 1974 flexi-disc Monty Python’s Tiny Black Round Thing.
Continue reading “Monty Python / Total Rubbish: The Complete Collection box set”

Duran Duran / “A Diamond In The Mind” limited double vinyl

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

Duran Duran / A Diamond in the Mind / deluxe vinyl

Duran Duran’s special vinyl edition (featuring real diamond dust!) of their A Diamond in the Mind concert performance is now available to order via Amazon.

The double-vinyl set, which is limited to 2000 copies, was originally announced as a Vinyl Factory exclusive (where it is still available for £30) but Continue reading “Duran Duran / “A Diamond In The Mind” limited double vinyl”

Deal Alert / Neil Young: A Letter Home deluxe vinyl box

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5deal

Neil Young‘s forthcoming 11-disc vinyl box set edition of A Letter Home has had £40 slashed off the price on Amazon UK. The set contains two LPs, seven six-inch vinyl records a DVD and a CD and the price at the time of writing is £84.43

All My Friends / Songs & Voice of Greg Allman deluxe package

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5allmyfriends

In January this year a concert was arranged to salute the talents of Gregg Allman.

This one-night-only event featured Don Was in the role of musical director and a myriad of performers took to the stage including The Allman Brothers Band, Trace Adkins, Jackson Browne, Eric Church, Natalie Cole,  Taj Mahal, Vince Gill, Dr. John and Chuck Leavell.
Continue reading “All My Friends / Songs & Voice of Greg Allman deluxe package”

Blondie re-record classic hits in exacting detail

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5deluxe

Blondie’s new Ghost Of Download album forms part of a three-disc package that includes a greatest hits disc. The band have re-recorded eleven of their best-loved singles and you can hear them all below.

The good news is that the band have avoided any aural car crashes, although anyone hoping for some quirky rearrangements will be disappointed because these are phenomenally faithful recreations. Have a listen to all the tracks on Greatest Hits Redux below and leave a comment and let us know what you think! Continue reading “Blondie re-record classic hits in exacting detail”

FIRST PICTURES / Rush vinyl box

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5FRONT

Universal’s ‘ReDISCovered’ vinyl box set of Rush‘s self-titled 1974 debut was released last week and we’ve taken some photos for you.

The set comes in a sturdy ‘lift-off lid’ twelve-inch box and there is some excellent artwork reproduction, with the inside of the box lid and base showing off the labels from the original two tape boxes (sides A and B of the album).
Continue reading “FIRST PICTURES / Rush vinyl box”

so80s presents ZTT / review

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

Exclusive: Blank & Jones "SoEighties presents ZTT" cover art revealed

Rob Puricelli reviews Blank & Jones’ ZTT remix album, for SDE.

THE VERY SECOND I SAW THE ARTICLE that announced that Blank & Jones were to attempt a complete album of ZTT remixes, my heart sank. Not because it was Blank & Jones, but because the ZTT canon is, to me (and likely a great many other people), sacrosanct. The songs and the artists are very dear to my heart as many of them formed the soundtrack of my formative years. And when – under different stewardship than the person currently at the helm of ZTT’s wonderful reissues of the past few years – the label put out a set of Frankie remixes in 1993 and again in 2000, I recall my horror at the way these precious stars in my musical firmament had been subjected to the “Boom-Tish” treatment, being dragged, kicking and screaming into a decade of bland and banal dance music, showing no respect for these jewels and the fact that they formed part of the very roots on which their dull, uninspired and unoriginal musical genre was formed.

So I think I can be forgiven for fearing the worst.
Continue reading “so80s presents ZTT / review”

Out This Week / 6 May 2014

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5Philadelphia International box set

Various Artists / Philadelphia International box set

20CD collection featuring albums from artists such as The O’Jays, Billy Paul, Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, Teddy Pendergrass and Patti LaBelle. Read more

buy5ABBA / The Singles 7-inch vinyl box

ABBA  / The Singles 7″ vinyl box set 

A massive 40 seven-inch singles in this box to celebrate 40 years since ABBA‘s Eurovision Song Contest victory in 1974. Read more

buy5today_tomorrow

Elvis Presley / Today, Tomorrow and Forever  (4CD)

This Elvis outtakes and rarities collection (originally issued in 2002) featured largely alternate studio takes or previously unreleased live performances from across The King’s career. It’s now newly reformatted in a smaller package. 100 tracks for around £15!

Continue reading “Out This Week / 6 May 2014”

Second Hand News / May 2014

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

Second Hand News is back! After a few months off, please welcome the return of the feature that highlights interesting purchases SDE has found almost exclusively in charity or thrift shops. Everything below was picked recently for less than £3…

TFF

TFFgatefold

Tears For Fears /Everybody Wants To Rule The World (7″ doublepack – 1985)

The darker Mothers Talk and Shout had preceded Everybody Wants To Rule The World as 45s from Tears For Fears‘ 1985 album Songs From The Big Chair, but it seemed inevitable that the most radio-friendly track on the album would be a single at some point.

This “special limited edition” seven-inch double pack was one of a multitude of formats which included two twelve-inches and a ten-inch single. The first record in this pack is the standard single (IDEA 9) with Pharaohs as the B-side. The second disc contains the ‘Urban Mix’ of EWTRTW, which was also on the remix twelve-inch (IDER 912). It’s an interesting reworking, including some (rather cheesy) brass elements (left off the standard version) and it all goes a bit frantic and ‘drum and bass’ for a few seconds mid song.
Continue reading “Second Hand News / May 2014”

“Frozen” soundtrack on triple vinyl LP

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5frozen

If you have young children, particularly daughters (guilty as charged m’laud) then chances are you’ve been hearing a lot of Do You Want To Build A Snowman? or Let It Go from the soundtrack to Disney’s most-successful-animated-film-of-all-time Frozen.

Well here’s an opportunity to show the youngsters that music didn’t always come out of a mobile phone or get played through tinny laptop speakers, because the Frozen soundtrack is being issued as a limited triple LP set, with coloured and etched vinyl presented in a six-panel gatefold sleeve (embossed and foil blocked). It comes complete with booklet featuring lyrics to the songs and images from the movie.
Continue reading ““Frozen” soundtrack on triple vinyl LP”

Kiss / Kissteria: Vinyl Road Case / One music box set to rule them all

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

kissteria3

Mercury Records and UMe have gone beyond the call of duty and created a MASSIVE Kiss vinyl box set to celebrate the band’s 40th Anniversary. Kissteria – The Ultimate Vinyl Road Case will contain 34 vinyl LPs alongside a plethora of memorabilia items.

kissgreatest
First time on LP

The vinyl LPs include 19 studio albums, five Alive releases and six exclusive pressings for this box: Double Platinum, Greatest KISS, KILLERS, You Wanted The Best, You Got The Best, Smashes, Thrashes & Hits and KISS Symphony: Alive IV. 
Continue reading “Kiss / Kissteria: Vinyl Road Case / One music box set to rule them all”

DEAL ALERT / Soundgarden: “Superunknown” super deluxe box

Posted on by Paul Sinclair

buy5deal2_super_spread

Out in exactly a month, this five-disc super deluxe edition box set of Soundgarden‘s 1994 album Superunknown is available at the time of writing for an amazing price – nearly 40% cheaper than its previous listing.
Continue reading “DEAL ALERT / Soundgarden: “Superunknown” super deluxe box”