Michael Yonkers with the Blind Shake's "So Be"

Here's a video of "So Be," song from the album Period by Michael Yonkers with the Blind Shake. The footage is from a forth-coming documentary on their collaboration called Hey Hey What, by Colin Frangos.

Los Llamarada's Gone Gone Cold now available on vinyl!

“Things are ok here but this year there wasn’t a Christmas truce. In fact the city woke up on Dec 31 with the news of a dead topless woman hanging from a bridge in one of the main avenues...”

Thus begins one of the dozens of emails from Monterrey, Mexico’s Los Llamarada to S.S. Records during the recording of their third and final album, Gone Gone Cold. Since their first album on S.S., The Exploding Now!, Llamarada has made some of the most striking psychedelic punk of the last decade. In the spirit of Red Crayola and 13th Floor Elevators, Llamarada approach to psych is devoid of rules, trends, or convention. Like Mars, they feel their way through sound, finding songs in the playing. However, while The Exploding Now! and their second album, Take the Sky, reflect the band’s (then) excitement with their future and possibility, Gone Gone Cold looks at present day Mexico and its never-end Drug War.

On Gone Gone Cold, fans of Los Llamarada will hear their oft-noted claustrophobic no-fi sound, but the songs a less settled than before. Confusion trumps structure, until a riff or pulse builds in intensity and the song enters into panic. Or a song starts at a panicked pace and unravels into a single phrase. There still is the subverted surf-guitar and male/female chant/vocals, but the drums are stronger and keyboards more insistent – sounds desperate for a way out.

“They hanged some rival gang members from pedestrian bridges, some dead, some alive (those were shot). Other was hanged and burned. Those kind of things happened on broad daylight, and were seen by friends on their way home from work. The police usually keep a respectful distance and do nothing…The chief of security of one of the last remaining rock bars was also killed, a guy who we all knew and who had helped us in one way or another. He was shot along with two other guys, and the bodies were stolen. The bar closed after that and it has stayed that way. The owner fled to the USA, as some other people has done. So now there are almost no places to play.”

Some song titles: “He Was Killed,” “There is No Ending,” “All Gods Collapse,” “Inside the Fire.” The lyrics are just as much poetry as they are song lyrics – frustrated, enraged, and depressed, but also defiant. As much as Gone Gone Cold is Los Llamarada’s mirror of Mexico and their besieged hometown of Monterrey, it is also an assertion of noise over death and of art over war. Packaged in Stoughton “old style” tip-on sleeves, Los Llamarada’s Gone Gone Cold is the best psychedelic reaction to war since Red Crayola’s “War Sucks.”

“The latest news! The army is now searching houses at random. They ask for permission first; I don’t think anybody has said no. They don’t break or steal things... they just look around and ask questions. They haven’t been here yet, but I’ve already cleaned the house!”


Los Llamarada - Heaven of Glass by S. S./ Sol Re Sol Records

Order yours now!

Announcing Sol Re Sol Records

This week sees the first release from Sol Re Sol Records, the newest label in the S.S. family. Dedicated to international music, the first release is a reissue of the 1972 recordings of the Master Musicians of Jajouka by Joel Rubiner. For more on this legendary Moroccan group and the record check out the Sol Re Sol site.

KDVS Record Swap 10/30

SS will be selling records at the KDVS Record Swap Sunday, October 30th, 9am to ??? @ John Natsoulas Gallery, 521 First Street in Davis. Admission is free. Great used stuff, discounted SS titles & mailorder.

AWOTT Live on The Rebel Kind 10/25/11 11 pm

Russian experimental rock band Asian Women on the Telephone will be playing live on the radio Tuesday 10/25 11 pm - midnight courtesy of The Rebel Kind KDVS 90.3 FM  

New Arrivals - Upcoming Releases - Budget Rock

Got some new stuff in....Got some sounds to pass by you...Gotta tell you about a show or two!

So the Michael Yonkers/Blind Shake album and Los Llamarada's third album are now in the test press process. I should get them tomorrow and then when approved, hopefully I will have something for you by the end of the month. I am really excited with these two records. To me the represent the ying & yang of modern psych punk. Yonkers & the Blind Shake mix a Blue Cheer style blast with a Von Lmo spin. Llamarada comes from the school of Red Crayolla/13th Floor Elevators "there are no rules"/"find our way as we play" school of psychedelia. And unlike a lot of bands flogging the psych horse, both groupings have their own unique sounds. Here is a cut from Michael Yonkers/Blind Shake's "Period" LP and one from Los Llamarada's "Gone Gone Cold".

S.S. comrades Hank IV and LENZ are playing this year's Budget Rock, the last one ever, and not only are they playing the same show but my Siamese twin and I are dj-ing. Date on that fucker is Thursday Oct 20 at thee Parkside in San Francisco! Also at thee Parkside is the Budget Rock Record Swap, and, yup, I'll have boxes of records there. That one is Sunday Oct 23 at 1 pm.

Recent New Stuff 

Black Humor Love God-Love One Another LP  Malcolm Mooney & The Tenth Planet InCANtations LP
Rick Johnson Tin Cans, Squeems & Thudpies paperback book 
Television Personalities Wonder What It Was 7" 
Red Asphalt R/A 7"
Eat Skull Wild & Inside LP
Sound of Ruby From Under the Sands of the Desert 7"
Luk Haas Discography of Eastern European Punk Music 77-99 paperback book
Art Yard Allston 1981 7"

S.S. Bands of Note Live

WOUNDED LION W/ PRE TEEN AND LENZ
The Knockout, San Francisco
Sunday, August 14th 5:00PM

HANK IV W/ MIDNIGHT SNAXX
Benders, San Francisco
Friday, August 18th 10:00PM
(Hank IV will have their new 7" on S.S.)

Mailing list addess change

So someone or something hijacked the ss@s-srecords.com email address and people have been flooded with spam with that address on it. The emails aren't viruses or trojans, just annoying. The address harvested from other email accounts. Anyway, it sent a lot of my emails straight to spam filters so it is time to change things up. These mailings will now be sent out from the address of s.srecords @ yahoo . com If you want to keep getting these emails, please make sure that that address is not filtered out by whatever spam program you use.

I still will be using the old address for correspondence and will always have something in the subject line even if it is only "Hey".

Also the new catalog site is up and running at http://s-srecords.com/catalog If you have used it or tried to use it and have had any problems, please contact me. For those overseas ordering: I am still fine tuning the post for international orders. If the post seems high when you go to check out, don't give up! After I process the order, if the post charged exceeds what it cost me to ship, I will be refunding you $$$.

That is about it. Except: New album by John Wesley Coleman III is in!
---SS

Some used stuff

Plenty of great used stuff added Robert Charlebois, Earle Mankey, Modern Lovers, Mingus Cale/Riley, Scorps, Skids, Getz, more! Records added daily! http://bit.ly/qBXFb9

Nothing People Australian Tour August 2011

Fri August 12th / Format, Adelaide
Fabulous Diamonds (MELB) + Mondo Phase Band + Burnt Skulls

Tues August 16th / Step-Inn, Brisbane
Slug Guts + Blank Realm + Mondo Phase Band (ADL)

Fri August 19th / Dirty Shirlows, Sydney
+ Naked On The Vague + Mondo Phase Band (ADL) + Woolen Kits (MELB) 

Sat August 20th / Workers Club, Melbourne
+ Naked On The Vague (SYD) + Mondo Phase Band (ADL) + Free Choice Duo

FM-BX returns! The Dreams are great! Lots of stuff!

We got some more jackets in for a box of FM-BX Society Tape 001 LPs we had unsleeved so now there are more for sale! Probably our best received title of the year, great DIY from 1981!

Also got in the new Dreams LP on Killshaman and it is freaking great! So is the newest archival release by Doxa Sinistra on Enfant Terrible. Also on the electronic tip is Mudboy's "This is Folk Music" LP. Minimalism at its best. 

The newest Sublime Freqencies release is a great DVD/BOOK/CD by Olivia Wyatt called "Staring at the Sun," it is a film and document of a journey through Ethiopia and visits with 13 tribal groups. Stunning stuff the trailer is below. 

Any of this (and more) you can order at the S.S. catalog. Visit here!


Staring into the Sun from olivia wyatt on Vimeo.

New Stuff: New System

Hey there! S.S. has a new cart system & catalog up and running. There is much more stuff in it and it should be pretty easy to use. For international customers, post totals will now be given to you! Because this is a new systems, there might be some bugs. If there are, please contact me immediately!

We've got the new Weird Forest release: Mudboy's This is Folk Music LP. It is great stuff. Minimal, avant organ sounds. Also picked up restock of Love Cry Want, Starving Weirdos and others.

We've got copies of Cheater Slicks new release on Almost Ready on the way, as well as new Sublime Frequencies titles plus stuff on Honest Jon's.

LENZ and Hank IV recs should be reading in a couple weeks!

LENZ in SF

Catch LENZ with Apache at the Amnesia on Valencia in San Francisco, Friday June 4 @ 6:30 pm. LENZ debut single on S.S. in a few weeks.

SS10 Photos on MRR blog

Check them out!

Special Order Synth Titles!

Doing a special order for titles from the labels Enfant Terrible and Kernkrach. Stuff by Doxa Sinistra, Milligram Retreat, Sololust, and others. Go here for info and prices. Order date closes 6.1.

SS10 Video

feedtime, 5/21/11, Bottom of the Hill



Nothing People 5/21/11, Bottom of the Hill



3 Toed Sloth, 5/22/11, Hemlock



feedtime, 5/21/11, Bottom of the Hill






A Frames, 5/20/11, Bottom of the Hill



Lamps, 5/21/11, Bottom of the Hill

SS10 Day 3 Report

So Day 3 report: Another good evening. LENZ tread that line between punk, rock, and glam and remind me a bit of a lot of obscuro 70s glam acts like David Werner and Dorian, but brought into the now. Loved their set....3 Toed Sloth were are great treat. I really didn't know what to expect, even though I've heard them on record. Shambling one part punk rock in the vein of Wire, Flipper, Fall, without sounding like any of them...I've seen Nar at least a hundred times and count that as a top five Nar set, which is pretty amazing considering that they started 20 or so years ago and hadn't played in quite a while. Great....I've only seen the Mantles a few times but that was definite the best. Perfect way to end this weekend.........

All in all this thing went remarkably well. Great group of people at the shows, every band played a stellar set and that is no hype, great sound, good vibe, and even the weather cooperated. feedtime were better than expected and as good as they were that was topped by how great they and their kin are! The nicest, most genuine people you'd wanna meet and that includes Bruce Aberrant. All the other Aussie who came over were also great and even had a friendly Norwegian in our midst, not to mention folks for New York and Rhode Island. Oh and some schmucks from Utah. The two other real surprises were 3 Toed Sloth (as noted) and Conan & the City Boys (raved about elsewhere).

Anyway, thanks to all of you who came out for this. Thanks to the bands who played. Thanks to Vinnie, Brace & the City Boys for making the Mission the Heart of the City. Thanks to Mitch, Dulcinea, and Ryan for advice, help, and making it easier. And thanks to Tony at the Hemlock and Ramona at BOTH. When in San Francisco visit Explorist International on 24th Street in the Mission.

SS10 Day 2 Report & Plug for Day 3

SS10 Day 2 report aka Of course I am biased but....Wounded Lion started things off with a great great set. Seriously one of the best bands going. Add Raffi to the list of dancing men I would pay to see...Best Nothing People set I've seen yet, hands down. Feedback drenched midnight pop perfect to bring an end to the rapture....Lamps are like one of those playful punches that someone gives you from about a foot away. A short, sweet shock and last night, that is exactly what happened. Again another top gig...feedtime, damn! These guys are the nicests dudes you will ever meet, but sound so gnarly and brutal. They pretty much bulldozered the club. Absolutely met expectations. Great band, then and now!

Today at the Hemlock: 3 pm record swap. 6 pm show w/ The Mantles, Nar, 3 Toed Sloth, & LENZ!

Report: SS10 Day 1

First night of SS10 was pretty damn good! Charles Albright's trio pounded out a great set of overdriven punk rock. Imagine some teenager holed up in his room studying Blue Cheer records and then placed in front of a garage punk band.  Hank IV was fantastic! They really set the Aussies' in a frenzy. Really, one of the best SF bands going and, besides, Mike Lucas, Bob is the only man I would pay to dance for me. The rapture came and it was Liquorball. Holy fuck! The amount of sound generated by Grady, Doug, and Marlon is mind-boggling, but not quite as insane as the drumming of Ttttch. Part monster, part machine, the dude is The Best. And the A Frames once again killed it. They played every song, you want to hear and then some. The feedtimers were in shits & giggles over them. One of the best bands ever.  A very fitting end to a very great band! Thanks to those of you who came out.

Tonight, feedtime, Lamps, Nothing People, and Wounded Lion. These Bottom of the Hill shows start on time, so don't be like the folks who blew in at ten last night, and missed Charles Albright and most of Hank IV. 9 o'clock if you want to see Wounded Lion, and you do want to see Wounded Lion. Advanced tickets at http://ssten.com but get there at 9 and  you should have no problem buying them at the door. 

 

A FRAMES, Liquorball, Hank IV, Charles Albright TONIGHT!

 

A Frames are S.S. Records signature band. They are the first band we ever worked with, the one band we have been most intimately involved in, and the band who helped shape the sound of the label. Over the last ten years, I have been both very proud and very grateful to have worked with them. Tonight they will be playing with their original drummer, Lars; but it is bittersweet, as this will be the last A Frames performance. While I are happy that they are choosing SS10 to end it, I are sad they are coming to an end. Always great live, I expect tonight to be something special. 

Playing with the A Frames are the great Liquorball, featuring Grady Runyon of Monshock & the Bad Trips (and perhaps a special guest), Hank IV, one of the best bands going in the Bay Area or anywhere, really, and Charles Albright in his first Bay Area appearance.  It happens at 8:30 pm at the Bottom of the Hill. Tickets at SS10 website or at the door.

Report: City Rock Night SS10

You really do not know the power of Walter Egan until it is shaking the building at 110 dbs. The Knockout was a frenzy of City Rock rockingness last night with Mitch Cardwell, Ryan Wells and me on the Wheels of Steel. A great crowd and much fun. And then there is Conan. Dude is City Rocker #1. I first spotted him in a corner booth, red jacket and derby atop his head. He was surrounded by an entourage of folks he used to play with and friends. Everyone who met him said he was the nicest guy. I walked over and introduced myself and he couldn't have been kinder and more humble. Not only did is he a nice guy he played a great show. Really a legitimately great show. The City Boys were a solid band, loud and with an edge. I don't know if it was the best band Conan every played with but it had to be the hardest rockin band. Work in Conan's old cohort & producer Paul Branin on lead guitar and sax and these guys fucking ruled the City. And of course there is Conan. He was great. Engaging, on the mark, and so fucking into it. I'd guess he's 60 or so years old, but the spirit there was younger than that. Really, you can have your garage bands full of 20 year olds trying to make the scene and be the newest hippest thing. Last night a 60 yr old guy, his old friend musician and a rag tag band of City Rockers just trying to get by blew everyone of the bands you all endlessly hype off the fucking stage. Really, that is absolutely no hyperbole. Four songs, 20-25 minutes, bam, bam, bam, bam and Conan & the City Boys ruled the world. I am sure Conan was psyched, especially since the crowd (and it was a crowd) were rocking as hard as the city could handle. City Rock is alive and well, and last night it ruled this town. Thanks Conan for coming out and playing, and Paul, Vinnie, Mitch, and the City Boys for getting Conan over here and making it happen!

Front Page News!

Actually buried a bit, but no matter!

Today's SF Chronicle has a nice write up of SS10.

Nar Goes Public!

Check it out! Nar on public access (live footage after a minute or so). Nar at SS10 5/22.

WFMU FMA SS10 MP3 MIX

That's a lot of capped letters up there! WFMU made a SS10 mix. Check it out!

Also some nice press on Mission Mission.

Tickets for SS10 still available

There is a rumor going around that SS10 is sold out. That is NOT true. Tickets are available for ALL shows. http://ssten.com

Rettman on feedtime

Tony Rettman's feedtime interview appears today on Viceland. Check it out.

Art for Spastics!

Thank you, Rick, for having me on KDVS. Played a lot of stuff from the S.S. archives: unreleased stuff, forgotten gems, crazy talk. Check it out here!

Hank IV HANK IV Hank IV

Hank IV has a new 7"s coming out on S.S. Records called "Bellyful of Slugs". Hopefully it will be ready by SS10, which they will be playing, with A Frames, Charles Albright, and Liquorball. that is 5/20 at the Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco. More info at the SS10 site.

Radio! Radio!

Monday 5/9 from 10 pm - midnight PST, I will be a guest on Rick Ele's Art for Spastics radio show on KDVS. The focus of the show will be 10 years of S.S. Records. So  you will hear plenty of music from the S.S. records vault! Much unreleased stuff, outtakes, demos, abandoned projects, and up-coming releases. Tune in at 90.3 fm or http://kdvs.org/

SS10 Update!

We've got ourselves a couple line-up changes for SS10. 

The fine folks in Cheveu have been unable to get into the country. As a result their whole US tour has been canceled, which means no SS10. We have a fine, fine band replacing them on the bill: the legendary LIQUORBALL, featuring Grady Runyon of Monoshock and the Bad Trips. We are very excited to have another S.S. Records alum on the bill, especially a band as great at Liquorball. They will be playing night one of SS10 with the A Frames, Hank IV and Charles Albright, May 20 at the Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco.

Unfortunately, Duchess of Saigon had to ditch their slot on day three of SS10. So we lined up another special treat for you. This one is another blast from Sydney's past: 3 Toed Sloth! I am pretty sure that this will be the one and only time you will see 3TS on American soil. They will be playing with The Mantles, Nar, and LENZ on Sunday, May 22 at the Hemlock Tavern.

More info on both shows can be had at SS10.

Shep & Me! Subject!

A couple new things in the catalog:

Shep & Me Nasturtium Inertia LP
A wonderful album of odd moody understated folk-psych out of Pittsburgh. A great companion to fellow Pittsburgian Tusk Lord, Shep & Me reminds me a bit of Jack Rose, Sun City Girls, Dead Western, the Cherry Blossoms, and maybe even Current 93  rolled into one. Great for 3 AM insomniac listening! Previously released on cassette; finally on vinyl where it belongs. (Dear Skull)

Subject #1 zine
Debut of a cool, small punk zine with a really nice two-color screened sleeve. Contents: Brain F, The Shitty Limits, Brown Sugar, reviews.

Available now!

Bay Area Retrograde V1 Now Available

Bay Area Retrograde (BART) V1 LP is a GREAT comp of 80s synth groups from the San Francisco Bay Area and is now available from S.S. Records.

Check out SF drag-punk synth heads WASP WOMEN!

BART! BART! BART!

S.S. mail order will be carrying BART: Bay Area Retrograde Vol 1 LP, a fantastic compilation from the Dark Entries label, of early 80s synth tracks from the San Francisco Bay Area. There are a few "well know" groups here, but also some real obscurities. Some released and unreleased. Top quality, a much needed look at the Bay Area's synth/experimental scene of that era. Groups are Nominal State, Batang Frisco, Quiet Room, Necropolis of Love, Wasp Women, Distant Thunder, Danny Boy & the Serious Party Gods, Voice Farm, Los Microwaves, Standard of Living, and the Units. BART will be available in the S.S. mail order catalog on April 25.