savaging spires - bending the rules of time - the great pop supplement - 7" - 7$
a debut on wax from the mysterious Savaging Spires. arriving with next to nothing in the way of names, history or biog notes, this 7" has an almost deliberate dedication to anonymity about it. a stunning 45 featuring 3 tunes of pastoral psych/acid-folk, call it what you will.
an utterly addictive EP, broadly split between standard song structured odes to "the Wicker Man" soundtrack or a passing nod to Espers' druggy edginess- and sound collaged passages with a multitude of instrumentation, veering back through harmonious yet freewheeling boy / girl shared vocals. a mysterious, intriguing EP, beautifully packaged on printed inside and out hammer press card, hand numbered with stickers and on white vinyl. edition of 400 only.
still corners / the new lines - split - the great pop supplement - 7" - 7$
it's debatable if a finer 45 has been released this year so far than this little beauty! utterly stunning new 45 on the GPS from the best new band in the UK - still corners (according to The Guardian) and the best new band in America (according to the GPS!) the new lines.
the last still corners GPS 7" "don't fall in love" came and went in the blink of an eye and has become something of an eBay staple for the unscrupulous wax dealer since, despite repressing. partially leading to the band signing to Sub Pop, where a debut LP and 45 follow shortly. this tune has long been a live favourite and opens their formidable pre 7" CDEP from 2 or 3 years back. "history of love" appears on wax for a first time - following repeated requests to both band and label. beguiling, stylish film noir pop that although maybe tips it's hat in places to the likes of broadcast or the united states of america, equally stands alone just now with a sound uniquely of it's own.
the new lines debut here in the UK, with the mighty "off axis". a taster to the incredible debut LP on the great pop supplement up soon. a magical track, born from the same filmic, 60s themed roots as the still corners. think lothar and the hand people, the US of A, even the zombies, perhaps. subtle electronics, hammonds, killer mystique filled vocals - speaking bluntly, this one is just ridiculously good - and brace yourselves, the album's even better...
7" vinyl only, limited one off pressing of 750 only.
spectrum / cheval sombre - split - the great pop supplement - 7" - 7$
the second of this month's new 45s on the GPS sees a stunning split 45, pairing sonic boom's spectrum with new york's cheval sombre.
the spectrum side sees a debut airing for the full length version of live favourite "mary", previously released as a nagging teaser intro / outro to the great "indian giver" cd collaboration with jim dickinson a couple of years back. a beautiful 7 minute ode to kraftwerk and suicide via a passing nod to stereolab and neu! that debuts on wax and as a full length take here, exclusively. put simply, this is just ridiculously awesome...
the reverse side features an exclusive sonic boom remix of the wonderful "red moon" from the imminent, glorious cheval full length. nyc based christopher porpora has previously released some wonderful singles on static caravan and trensmat, leading in turn to a full length release on dean wareham's "double feature" label.
whether one scribe's term "delicate, druggy, slow core folk" sits true, remains a matter for debate, but either way this has an air of a nick drake tune around it, with added sonic boom elektronik impetus...
damon & naomi - walking backwards - the great pop supplement - 7" - 7$
a beautiful 45 from damon & naomi. i'm sure most of us by now are familiar with the story that as galaxie 500 disbanded in 1991, the duo embarked upon a career that included a slew of wonderful releases that began with the "pierre etoile" EP, before several critically acclaimed full lengths on sub pop and their own 20|20|20 label.
"walking backwards" acts as a taster for the new album "false beats and true hearts" (released in may) and once again features the incredible guitar work of michio kurihara (ghost / white heaven).
the exclusive B side features a cover of scott Walker's "the world's strongest man" from 1969's "scott 4" album. released just in time for record store day 2011, the single is released as a numbered edition of 400 copies, and like most other GPS releases isn't expected to hang around long...
tom baxendale - her ghost - the great pop supplement - 7 " - 7$
beautiful debut 45 from london singer songwriter tom baxendale. ace blend of alt. country, folk and americana, with an ‘a’ side rush of acoustic guitar and mandolin recalling atmospheric odes to love and loss.
the ‘b’ side lowers the tempo and is way more gentle, recalling perhaps, ‘gosdin brothers’ era gene clark.
regular gigging partner to previous gps debutant pete greenwood.
a pressing of 300 copies in gorgeously cool orange and green tracing paper booklets, again, not expected to sit around for long…
-gps
crayon - a house is not a horse - the great pop supplement - 7 " - 7$
leeds based three piece crayon offer up what some longterm gps devotees may see as a departure to it’s usual output.
sombre synth tones and military like drum rolls give way to an infectious, startling pop rush of a chorus. perfect pop in a nutshell. ‘b’ side “milk” is a slow building, initially, glitchy electronic piece again with a cool pop sensibility as it’s underbelly that soon explodes…
-gps
anemones - s/t - the great pop supplement - 7" - 7$
a debut by canadian band anemones. a slight departure perhaps from recent stuff, think 70s new york jonathan richman / television with a hint of velvets done lo-fi style... limited to 300 in ace A3 full colour double sided ferris wheel posters, with stickers, numbered inserts etc etc...
karen novotny x - 45rpm. play twice before listening - the great pop supplement - 7 "- 8$
Brand new single from the lovely folk at Great Pop Supplement... Here's what they have to say about their latest release:
These tunes turned up on cassette recently at GPS HQ from an associate of KN X founder Cy Levine. Recorded back in the winter of 1978 in various London locations, on original analogue equipment often borrowed from friends such as Throbbing Gristle's Chris Carter and other sonic DIY/minimal synth luminaries. They remain unreleased until now due to fractures within the band in late 1978.
Credited to Cy Levene: voice, synths. Anna Bloom: voice, electronics. Niko: tapes and rhythm machines.
Taking their cue from Tonto's Expanding Head Band, Throbbing Gristle, Silver Apples, Suicide, Fifty Foot Hose, Kraftwerk and the burgeoning Industrial Sheffield sound, this EP is an absolute must for fans of The Normal, Thomas Leer, TG and early Human League.
Dressed in original collage artwork by Ruth Levene, depicting a host of 70s underground icons. More recordings are being released from the KN X vault, appearing as a GPS LP in 2011. Total killer EP, the tracks on which have been remastered from original cassette tape. Released as a limited numbered pressing of 300 7" singles.
-gps
woodcraft folk - quiet birds have ears/ at home with howls - the great pop supplement - 7 "- 8$
woodcraft folk re-emerge from the hills of Lancashire with 2 new tunes for the GPS. "quiet, birds..." is a hazy electronic, vaguely psych work out with vocals by Ivan Ink and Pen. the flip is a wholly different sonic experience. "at home with howls" starts off all strange and hallucinatory but soon the drums, swirling organ and moogs take over - reminiscent of some kraut themed, motorik 60s horror soundtrack.
dressed up in trademark, lovingly created packaging consisting of hand drawn spirograph inserts, hammer card sleeves and half white, half clear wax, numbered to 400 copies, with none of that download or cd nonsense...
-great pop supplement
the trimdon grange - explosion raider/the trimdon grange explosion- the great pop supplement - 7 "- 8$
trimdon grange are a london based group formed at the end of 2008, though the members of the group have been playing together in numerous incarnations over the past few years. all four were members of psych-folk-rockers the eighteenth day of may.
in addition to that, alison cotton and mark nicholas's ongoing project the left outsides continues to go from strength to strength, while TG members have appeared on stages and records with - amongst others - saloon, of arrowe hill, matthew sawyer, comet gain, sean jackson, TVPs, soft city, et al...
their debut 45 here, a double A side; 'raider' was written by judy henske and jerry yester (a latter day member of the lovin' spoonful), whilst the reverse from which the band got their name was a tune written in 1882 by the 'pitman poet' of the durham coalfield, tommy armstrong. he sold the song as a broadsheet to raise money for the wives and children of the miners who lost their lives in this disaster.
300 numbered copies in 2 part sleeves with sticker. again, hastiness is advised...
-gps
yair yona - remember - the great pop supplement - 7 " - 8$
Lovely little single this... Don't know much about Yair Yona and don't really have time to do the research but it's definitely some kind of one-man, acoustic guitar folk thing. It brings to mind Jack Rose or James Blackshaw and it's obvious that whoever this guy is, he's got da' cheeky picking skills and he's using them to maximum effect here. You get three compositions, one long jobby on side B and two digestible chunks on side A. What I do like about this single is the use of ambient synth and noise which is used as a sort of blank canvas for the guitar strummage. Nice.
-gps
various - it happened one day - the great pop supplement - 10 " - 9$
fabulous, long promised 5 trk 10' single featuring exclusives from the combined might of tunng, the woodcraft folk, the laughing windows, shady bard and adam leonard w/ p.g six.
the pistil cosmos - wandering in the dark- the great pop supplement - cd - 11$
this one’s a beauty, a total killer 5 track cd from frenchman vincent caylet, aka “the pistil cosmos”. having previously recorded a number of wonderful cassette and small run cdr’s as “v”, notably the recent awesome “the chanting path” on blackest rainbow, this new set is an absolute must for all ya space, drone folk, vuh heads out there.just 200 copies of this one, and each is dressed in beautiful duo-colour screened wallet sleeves.
-gps