MY LIFE WITH THE THRILL KILL KULT
SEXPLOSION!
1991-WAX TRAX!
Produced By BUZZ MCCOY
1. The International Sin Set
2. Leathersex
3. A Martini Built For Two
4. Dream Baby
5. Mood No. 6
6. Sexplosion!
7. Princess Of The Queens (The Lost Generation)
8. Sex On Wheelz
9. A Continental Touch
10. Mystery Babylon
11. Dream baby (Nocturnal Mix)
12. Sex On Wheelz (Radio Mix)
Wait…is this porn? The answer is almost. My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult was formed as a band making a movie back in 1987 (the band name was going to be the name of the film). That never happened, but the band began making strange industrial dance albums that were, at their best, out of this world. Sexplosion! Is a concept album about…you guessed it…sex. The album is much less metal than its predecessor, Confessions Of A Knife, with a much more danceable groove and more coherent songs. As a result, this is where the band hit its peak…they’ve been struggling ever since in comparison.
Where to start? How about the awesome single “Sex On Wheelz”? This is everything good about the album wrapped in one tight little song. Heavy, danceable, fun, and sleazy. The track features more guitar than anything else here, but the point is still the same. This is fun music you can shake it to that isn’t mind numbingly stupid. Sure, it may remind you of porn at times, but My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult is a band that, when they are good, can make it all worthwhile. And on this album at least, they’re pretty damn good.
Link _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
MY LIFE WITH THE THRILL KILL KULT
SEXPLOSION!
1991-WAX TRAX!
Produced By BUZZ MCCOY
1. The International Sin Set
2. Leathersex
3. A Martini Built For Two
4. Dream Baby
5. Mood No. 6
6. Sexplosion!
7. Princess Of The Queens (The Lost Generation)
8. Sex On Wheelz
9. A Continental Touch
10. Mystery Babylon
11. Dream baby (Nocturnal Mix)
12. Sex On Wheelz (Radio Mix)
Wait…is this porn? The answer is almost. My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult was formed as a band making a movie back in 1987 (the band name was going to be the name of the film). That never happened, but the band began making strange industrial dance albums that were, at their best, out of this world. Sexplosion! Is a concept album about…you guessed it…sex. The album is much less metal than its predecessor, Confessions Of A Knife, with a much more danceable groove and more coherent songs. As a result, this is where the band hit its peak…they’ve been struggling ever since in comparison.
Where to start? How about the awesome single “Sex On Wheelz”? This is everything good about the album wrapped in one tight little song. Heavy, danceable, fun, and sleazy. The track features more guitar than anything else here, but the point is still the same. This is fun music you can shake it to that isn’t mind numbingly stupid. Sure, it may remind you of porn at times, but My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult is a band that, when they are good, can make it all worthwhile. And on this album at least, they’re pretty damn good.
I'm like a semi-fan of Thrill Kill Kult. They put out stuff for years and years but only a certain amount really hits the mark. My favorite one is A Crime For All Seasons. That one probably has the best music they've ever come up with and the most songs that stick in your head . Some of their albums they come up with some good music, and other ones they just come up with shitty music.But when it's good it's really good. But I still think their best songs are a couple that came before this album like Daisy Chain 4 Satan or Days of Swine and Roses or one of those ones. But Sexplosion has Martini Built for Two on it and Sex on Wheelz. I love those two..
GRATEFUL DEAD
DEAD SET
1981-ARISTA
Produced By DAN HEALY, BETTY CANTOR-JACKSON & JERRY GARCIA
1. Samson And Delilah
2. Friend Of The Devil
3. New Minglewood Blues
4. Deal
5. Candyman
6. Little Red Rooster
7. Loser
8. Passenger
9. Feel Like A Stranger
10. Franklin’s Tower
11. Rhythm Devils
12. Fire On The Mountain
13. Greatest Story Ever Told
14. Brokedown Palace
Recorded live at various shows in San Francisco and New York City in 1980, Dead Set is the companion album to Reckoning, an acoustic (and slightly better) live album released the same year from the same shows. The intent was to release both as a double live album, but the idea was scrapped because of the length of some of the electric tracks. The two separate albums did not fare well, and particularly Dead Set sounds mostly uninspired and lacks coherency.
The song list is fine, but the problem is that the band sounds tired and nothing ever really takes off. “Friend Of The Devil”, for example, runs seven plus minutes…not because of jamming, but because they play the song excruciatingly slow. Tracks like “Franklin’s Tower” are good performances, but the sound is just not right. There are so many good live packages from this band: Dead Set is just a waste of time. Look for better live sets: it won’t take long for you to be rewarded.
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JOHN LENNON
IMAGINE
1971-APPLE
Produced By JOHN LENNON, YOKO ONO & PHIL SPECTOR
1. Imagine
2. Crippled Inside
3. Jealous Guy
4. It’s So Hard
5. I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama
6. Gimme Some Truth
7. Oh My Love
8. How Do You Sleep?
9. How?
10. Oh Yoko!
John Lennon’s solo career peaked on his first solo album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. After that album, he began to slowly lose his writing prowess…maybe it was because he wasn’t writing only half the songs anymore. His next effort, Imagine, still has some great material, but also contains the first real filler of his career. The title track is his greatest song as a solo artist. It’s a beautiful, soft anthem that includes everything good about Lennon, and the human race in general. This track alone makes Imagine worth having. And there’s “Jealous Guy”, a beautiful song even layered in Phil Spector’s overuse of strings.
The militant John is here, too. “I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier, Mama” and the pre-punk anthem “Gimme Some Truth” suit his anger well. “How Do You Sleep?” is pure bile directed squarely at Paul McCartney (with help on guitar from George Harrison), and it’s nastiness is satisfying. But, there’s also lesser material here for the first time. “Crippled Inside” is a mess. “Oh My Love” and “How?” are almost invisible. And the album closes with the campy and overly joyful “Oh Yoko”, an unfortunate sign of things to come. Still, this may be John’s most interesting album, and it’s his last real stab at greatness.
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BOZ SCAGGS
1969-ATLANTIC
Produced By BOZ SCAGGS, JANN WENNER & MARLIN GREENE
1. I’m Easy
2. I’ll Be Long Gone
3. Another Day (Another Letter)
4. Now You’re Gone
5. Finding Her
6. Look What I Got
7. Waiting For A Train
8. Loan Me A Dime
9. Sweet Release
Boz Scaggs is best known for the sleek, tuxedo style brand of yacht rock he released on his most famous album, Silk Degrees. But before he was pumping out the soft adult contemporary disco of “Lowdown” and “Lido Shuffle”, Boz was palling around in high school with Steve Miller. After appearing prominently on Miller’s first two albums, Boz went solo and released this promising debut that’s as far from the glitter of Silk Degrees as you can get. Helped out by the Muscle Shoals house band, Scaggs is, more than at any other time in his career, more blues than white soul. The result is his grittiest album, even though he remains smooth for most of it.
The highlight here is, of course, the thirteen minute slow burning blues of “Loan Me A Dime”. The song includes one of the greatest guitar solos ever recorded by Duane Allman, who was working with the Muscle Shoals band as a sideman at the time. The song is a highlight in the careers of both Scaggs and Allman, and it alone makes the album a keeper. The rest of the material is not as strong, but still very likable. Boz went on to slowly develop the sound of Silk Degrees, never again returning to anything as bluesy as this. This album is a nice way to hear Boz, and “Loan Me A Dime” remains an absolute classic.
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AVERAGE WHITE BAND
CUT THE CAKE
1975-ATLANTIC
Produced By ARIF MARDIN
1. Cut The Cake
2. School Boy Crush
3. It’s A Mystery
4. Groovin’ The Night Away
5. If I Ever Lose This Heaven
6. Why
7. High Flyin’ Woman
8. Cloudy
9. How Sweet Can You Get
10. When They Bring Down The Curtain
Average White Band is a group of Scottish white guys who somehow managed to become one of the most influencial funk bands of their time. After an unnoticed debut album, they released AWB, which featured their biggest song, the instrumental “Pick Up The Pieces”. The following year, it looked as if they were here to stay with Cut The Cake and it’s even funkier title track. Between the two albums, AWB helped set the tone for the future of soul and funk, and to this day they are one of the most sampled bands in history. The album also features the nice slow burner “Schoolboy Crush”, and is mostly excellent throughout. It looked like this band was going to be at the top for years to come.
However, there were several problems by the time of Cut The Cake. Drummer Robbie McIntosh, who had co-written some of the tracks, had died of a heroin overdose the year before, and the remaining members were squabbling over the direction of the band…so much that the album almost didn’t get made. They soldiered on, but the hits dried up, and as disco began to die, the band alienated their fans by embracing it. They split in 1981, reunited, and still play today. They never matched the greatness of AWB and Cut The Cake, though. Two mid seventies classics that are well worth picking up. Scottish funk…it really did happen.
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THE FAMILY STAND
MOON IN SCORPIO
1991-EASTWEST
Produced By THE FAMILY STAND
1. New World Order
2. Shades Of Blue
3. You’ll Never Be
4. Plantation Radio
5. Sky Is Falling
6. Shelter
7. Winter In My Heart
8. Free Spirit
9. Moon In Scorpio
10. Quiet Desperation
11. Chakra Love
12. In The Midst Of Revolution
13. The Education Of Jamie
14. Where Does Mommy Live?
15. Say Love
16. Boom Shock
If the name The Family Stand makes you think of Sly & The Family Stone, that’s okay. Their music will, too. In fact, you could close your eyes and imagine that this is an actual reunion of that band. They started out as Evon Geffries & The Stand, but changed it to The Family Stand because the original name caused a lot of confusion. The had a hit with “Ghetto Heaven” from their second album Chain, then they composed the songs for Paula Abdul’s album Spellbound. They released Moon In Scorpio in 1991 to critical praise, and pretty much zero album sales. So bad that they broke up for years afterward. Which is all too bad, because Moon In Scorpio is pretty close to being a masterpiece. The downside? It’s too long (16 tracks gets pretty tiresome after awhile: about half the length with well slected songs would have been perfect).
The best material here does invoke images of Sly Stone. The band was always very political, and wasn’t afraid to sing about social and sexual tensions. The best tracks tend to be the ones that rock the most: “In The Midst Of Revolution” will make you want to take to the streets: “Shades Of Blue” is sleek and funky. On the slower side, “The Education Of Jamie” is powerful, and the title track is lovely. The band reunited in 1997 and has been together ever since, with pretty much zero commercial success. Moon In Scorpio has been out of print for years…it’s a bargain bin gem if you can find it. Solid, soulful stuff, and one of the more overlooked albums of the 90’s.
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EAGLES
HELL FREEZES OVER
1994-GEFFEN
Produced By EAGLES with ELLIOT SCHEINER & ROB JACOBS
1. Get Over It
2. Love Will Keep You Alive
3. The Girl From Yesterday
4. Learn To Be Still
5. Tequila Sunrise
6. Hotel California
7. Wasted Time
8. Pretty Maids All In A Row
9. I Can’t Tell You Why
10. New York Minute
11. The Last Resort
12. Take It Easy
13. In The City
14. Life In The Fast Lane
15. Desperado
I have three words of advice to ANY band…I don’t care who you are…that wants to have a reunion. DON’T. DO. IT. Eagles broke up in 1981 amid huge differences of opinions, over inflated egos, and being bigger and more famous than any of them could handle…even Joe Walsh. They had always been critically hammered but loved by their fans. They oh so famously announced when they split that they would play together again “when hell freezes over”. So, really…who didn’t see this coming? Don Henley and Glenn Frey spent 13 years hating each other from afar, but apparently that hate wasn’t paying the bills, so they decided to MAKE hell freeze over. Granted, there is no JD Souther here, no Randy Meisner…and barely a trace of rock to be found.
The first four tracks are new studio recordings, one of which (“Get Over It”) was a minor hit, and another, “Love Will Keep Us Alive”, wasn’t written by any of the band members, but did establish them as top players in the always boring genre of adult contemporary. Beginning with “Tequila Sunrise”, the tracks are recorded live at Burbank Sound Studios. All are Eagles oldies (with the exception of Henley’s sappy “New York Minute” from his solo album End Of The Innocence), and all, except for “Life In The Fast Lane”, are dreary remakes of their hit ballads. The high note, “Hotel California”, never rocks, but features impeccable harmonies and perfect sound, bringing back to mind that the 1981 album Eagles Live was likely the most overdubbed live album in history. This album announces that the band is back, and that they are most certainly NOT here to rock you, ever again. Watch the DVD (it features a cleverly separated version of the always oversung “Seven Bridges Road”) as it’s very nice looking and sounds great on your surround system. Stick with the older albums, if you need to.
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TOMMY BOLIN
PRIVATE EYES
1976-COLUMBIA
Produced By TOMMY BOLIN & DENNIS MCKAY
1. Bustin’ Out For Rosey
2. Sweet Burgundy
3. Post Toastee
4. Shake The Devil
5. Gypsy Soul
6. Someday Will Bring Our Love Home
7. Hello, Again
8. You Told Me That You Loved Me
Tommy Bolin moved to Colorado from Sioux City, Iowa and formed the band Zephyr in 1968. They recorded several unremarkable albums, but Bolin’s playing was exceptional enough to prompt Joe Walsh to recruit him as his replacement in The James Gang. He later replaced Ritchie Blackmore in Deep Purple, while also working on his solo debut and playing on jazz albums by Billy Cobham. In 1975 he released Teaser, and he began to be seen as a formidable artist in his own right instead of just a flashy replacement guy. In 1976 he released Private Eyes, and should have become a huge star behind it. After the first show on the tour for the album in Miami, Bolin died of a drug overdose, leaving his extreme talent and Private Eyes as question marks at the abrupt end of what should have been a brilliant career.
Private Eyes is an almost perfect album. It contains Bolin’s best two tracks in “Bustin’ Out For Rosey” and the masterful “Post Toastee”. On both tracks, Bolin shows why he was so highly regarded as a guitarist, and why players like Eddie Van Halen and Stevie Ray Vaughan saw him as an inspiration. Bolin is able to utilize soft horns and female backup vocals to his advantage, creating innovative and burning guitar solos and songs that sound well beyond his mere 25 years. The only weakness is Bolin’s voice, but that’s not why you come here…it’s all about that sweet guitar playing. Tommy Bolin was a master in the making, and it’s clear listening to Private Eyes that he was well on his way to becoming one of the greatest of all time. Private Eyes is Bolin’s best work, and should most definitely be heard.
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NEW ORDER
(THE BEST OF) NEW ORDER
1995-QWEST
Produced By NEW ORDER, ARTHUR BAKER, MARTIN HANNETT & STEPHEN HAGUE
1. Let’s Go (Nothing For Me)
2. Dreams Never End
3. Age Of Consent
4. Love Vigilantes
5. True Faith 94
6. Bizarre Love Triangle
7. 1963-95
8. Fine Time
9. Vanishing Point
10. Run
11. Round & Round 94
12. Regret
13. World
14. Ruined In A Day
15. Touched By The Hand Of God
16. Blue Monday 88
17. World In Motion
When Joy Division singer Ian Curtis committed suicide in 1980, the surviving members formed New Order. Who would have thought that the transition from dark and brooding to one of the best synth based singles bands of the 80’s would be so easy? New Order was one of a small handful of 80’s bands that were actually cool, and they stayed that way throughout the decade and well into the 90’s. They didn’t do it all through albums, though. Between 1981 and 1993, they released only six albums…the bulk of their great material was by way of singles and B sides. This is why, in the case of New Order, that their two most essential albums are actually compilations.
To get a great view of New Order’s career, two compilations are needed. The first is Substance 1987, which is all singles and B sides, and is the stronger of the two. (The Best Of) should be viewed as the companion to that album, collecting later singles as well as the best of the album tracks. You may not recognize some of the titles…but when you hear the songs, you remember the tracks instantly. New Order was, during their heyday from 1981-93, a top shelf band, and this collection is great when taken in alongside Substance 1987. Get them both…the best way to experience New Order.
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