Cake Like - Goodbye, So What (GBG Deluxe Edition: LP + Bonus Track)

CAKE LIKE

Goodbye, So What

(GrrlBandGeek Deluxe Edition)
Original LP release - Vapor Records (1999)

File: 33.23 MB RAR
12 album tracks + 1 bonus track = 13 tracks total + image gallery
Comes in a RAR archive file, so you must have the necessary software (i.e. WinRAR, WinZIP, etc) to open and extract files from them already on your computer. All tracks are encoded in the MP3 format (bitrate varies), so you must have each necessary codec installed before being able to play.

DOWNLOAD

http://www.mediafire.com/?llyw1ucmoqd

Tracklisting:

01 Lucky One
02 My Guy
03 Don't Tell
04 Ashley
05 Dead To Me
06 Getaway
07 Superstore
08 Swell
09 Blacked Out And Blue
10 God's Alright
11 Frequent Flyer
12 Miss You
13 Love Charm (Non-LP Bonus Track)*

*Originally appeared on the 1998 compilation Great Jewish Music: Marc Bolan (a tribute to the T. Rex singer)

Ah, Cake Like. I love 'em. For those who don't know, Cake Like was the all-girl rock band fronted by writer/actress/comedienne extraordinare Kerri Kenney-Silver from MTV's The State sketch program, Comedy Central's Viva Variety and probably most notably Reno 911, which I believe she stars in to this day. The group got it's start when Kenny-Silver met Nina Hellman while both were attending NYU's Experimental Theater department in the early 1990's. The two decided to work together on a creative music project and soon enlisted Hellman's roommate fashion designer Jody Seifert to play drums with them. Despite none of them having ever played their instruments before (or perhaps because of it), they developed their own unique style, fueled by Kenney-Silver's natural comedic style of storytelling combined with the trio's minimalistic, improvisational style of playing. Initial gigs with friends like Soul Coughing and Shudder To Think got the buzz started; at one of these early shows jazz saxophonist John Zorn saw the group and was so impressed asked the band to record an album (1995's Delicious) for his Avant Records. A Ric Ocasek-produced single "Mr. Fireman" followed, after which the band became the subject of a major-label bidding war eventually won by Neil Young's Vapor Records. Their second LP Bruiser Queen was issued in 1997, with Goodbye, So What (their third and final album to date) appearing in the summer of 1999. While all of the Cake Like albums have some standout tracks, this release is probably the most song-based record they have - with more focus on traditional song structure and melody, albeit with their own unique spin.

Sadly, Cake Like is now pretty much defunct, as the band members high profile dayjobs have proven to be much more successful than the band ever was. Still, I hear word there may be a re-issue of this record along with Bruiser Queen on one CD in the not too distant future, and that the band may be preparing some new material for it. Fingers crossed.

Key Tracks:
LUCKY ONE
MY GUY
ASHLEY
DON'T TELL

Non-LP Bonus Track:
LOVE CHARM
(cover of a T. Rex song from a Marc Bolan Tribute album.)

Check out Cake Like "Lucky One" below:

The Murmurs - Pristine Smut (+ Extras)

THE MURMURS

Pristine Smut

(GrrlBandGeek Deluxe Edition)

Original LP release on MCA Records (1997)

File: 162.21 MB

11 album tracks + 12 bonus tracks = 23 tracks total + 3 videos + image gallery

Comes in a RAR archive file, so you must have the necessary software (i.e. WinRAR, WinZIP, etc) to open and extract files from them already on your computer. All tracks are encoded in the MP3 format (bitrate varies), and videos are in the MP4 format, so you must have each necessary codec installed before being able to play the respective file type.

DOWNLOAD
http://www.mediafire.com/?zgotmodgo4q

Tracklisting:

01 Big Talker
02 I'm A Mess
03 Toy
04 Underdog
05 About Nothin'
06 Genius

07 Squeeze Box Days

08 Don't Lie

09 Sucker Upper

10 Country Song
11 Sleepless Commotion

BONUS TRACKS
12 La Di Da (Bonus Blender Track)
13 Misfit (Bonus Blender Track)
14 Smash (Bonus Blender Track)
15 I'm A Mess (Blender Version - Bonus Track)
16 Underdog (Live in Chicago 1998)
17 Sucker Upper (Live in Chicago 1998)
18 Don't Lie (Live in Chicago 1998)
19 Big Talker (Live in Chicago 1998)
20 Genius (Live In Chicago 1998)
21 Misfit (Live In Chicago 1998)
22 What's Wrong With Me (X cover) (Live In Chicago 1998)
23 One And Only (Live in Chicago 1998)

BONUS VIDEOS
01 I'm A Mess/La Di Da (Live at Disneyland 1998)
02 Smash (Live at Disneyland 1998)
03 Smash (Live on The Roseanne Show 1998)

What we have here is the long out-of print third album by The Murmurs, Pristine Smut, given the special 'GrrlBandGeek Deluxe Edition' treatment with 12 bonus tracks, 4 of which are from the Blender re-packaging that this album was given a year later, as well as 8 live tracks recorded in Chicago in 1998. Plus, a few bonus clips for good measure.

L7 - Slap-Happy (LP release - 1999)

L7

Slap-happy

(Wax Tadpole/Bong Load Records, 1999)

File size: 85.02 MB (RAR file). Full album = 12 tracks.
Album comes in a RAR archive file, so you must have the necessary software (i.e. WinRAR, WinZIP, etc) to open and extract files from them. All tracks = 320kbps MP3

DOWNLOAD: http://www.mediafire.com/?mmo3eeyydmi

Tracklisting:
01 Crackpot Baby
02 On My Rockin' Machine
03 Lackey
04 Human
05 Livin' Large
06 Freeway
07 Stick To The Plan
08 War With You
09 Long Green
10 Little One
11 Freezer Burn
12 Mantra Down

Sixth (and final) studio album from the chicks "who got so much clit they don't need balls...". Key tracks: Crackpot Baby, Freeway, Human, Freezer Burn.

 

The Gits - Seafish Louisville (2000)

THE GITS

Seafish Louisville

(Broken Rekids, 2000)

File size: 61.41 MB (RAR file).  16 tracks.

Album comes in a RAR archive file, so you must have the necessary software (i.e. WinRAR, WinZIP, etc) to open and extract files from them. All tracks are encoded in the MP3 format with a bit rate of 192kbps (must have necessary codec to play files.).

DOWNLOAD:  http://www.mediafire.com/?zihjwzmtedm

Tracklisting:

01 Whirlwind (Never Released)                    
02 Seaweed (Unreleased Version)                  
03 Absynthe (Live)                               
04 Another Shot Of Whiskey (Live)                
05 Insecurities (Live)                           
06 Slaughter Of Bruce (Live)                     
07 Precious Blood (Unreleased Version)           
08 While You're Twisting, I'm Still Breathing    
09 A (Unreleased Version)                        
10 Social Love (Live)                            
11 It Doesn't Matter (Never Released)            
12 Kings And Queens (Unreleased Version)         
13 Wingo Lamo (Live)                             
14 Here's To Your Fuck (Live)                    
15 Second Skin (Live)                            
16 Daily Bread (Never Released Instrumental)     

Frightwig - Wild Women Never Die (compilation)

FRIGHTWIG

Wild Women Never Die

(Southern Records compilation, 1993)

File Size: 74.94 MB (RAR file) 21 tracks total
Album comes in a RAR archive file, so you must have the necessary software (i.e. WinRAR, WinZIP, etc) to open and extract files from them already on your computer. All tracks are in the MP3 format with a bit rate of 128kbps (with the exception of track 7, which is encoded at 320kbps).

DOWNLOAD: http://www.mediafire.com/?z5tzninzmlu

Tracklisting:
01 Wanque Off Song
02 My Crotch Does Not Say 'Go'
03 Jeri's Song
04 I Got Lost
05 Hot Papa
06 A Man's Got To Do What A Man's Got To Do
07 Vagabondage
08 Only You
09 Take This And Fuck Yer Head
10 I'll Talk To You And Smile
11 Tomorrow Never Comes
12 Something's Gotta Change
13 Beverly Hills
14 Crazy World
15 Big Bang
16 Punk Rock Jail Bait
17 Manifest Destiny
18 Booby Prize
19 American Express
20 I Don't Want To Be Alone
21 Freedom

tracks 1-12 from the 1984 album Cat Farm Faboo
tracks 13-21 from the 1986 album Faster Frightwig: Kill! Kill!!

While not a household name, raunchy and rockin' San Francisco-based all-girl band Frightwig, were highly influential on the likes of Courtney Love, Kat Bjelland and Jennifer Finch who individually would go on to be a part of some of the most notable girl rock bands of the 90's. Bands with dudes in 'em liked 'em too: Sonic Youth, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith No More and Nirvana were all fans of the troupe (A Frightwig shirt can even be seen on Kurt Cobain in their MTV Unplugged performance), and Jeffrey and Steven McDonald from Redd Kross were so enamored with the 'Wig that they not only produced 1989's Phone Sexy EP, but also covered the bands song "Crazy World" on their 1993 Phaseshifter album.

This album is a compilation of their first two LP's, 1984's Cat Farm Faboo and 1986's Faster, Frightwig: Kill!! Kill!! and is definitive listening for anyone interested in the evolution of Grrl Rock. Key tracks: "My Crotch Does Not Say 'Go'", "A Man's Got To Do What A Man's Got To Do", "Crazy World", "Punk Rock Jail Bait", "Booby Prize"

The Graces - Perfect View (LP + Bonus Tracks)

The Graces

Perfect View

(A&M Records, 1989)

Full Album Release + Extras

File: 117.23 MB

10 album tracks + 3 bonus tracks = 13 tracks total + 2 videos + image gallery

Comes in a RAR archive file, so you must have the necessary software (i.e. WinRAR, WinZIP, etc) to open and extract files from them already on your computer. All tracks are encoded in the MP3 format (bitrate varies), and both videos are in the MP4 format, so you must have each necessary codec installed before being able to play the respective file type.

DOWNLOAD via MEDIAFIRE 

(updated 9/21/10)

http://www.mediafire.com/?lafc3xs11ltw8m8

or

DOWNLOAD via HOTFILE 

(added 9/21/10)

http://hotfile.com/dl/70875029/6e02d54/TG_-_PV_(Deluxe).rar.html

TRACKS

01 Lay Down Your Arms

02 When The Sun Goes Down

03 Perfect View

04 Fear No Love

05 Time Waits For No One

06 50,000 Candles Burning

07 Should I Let You In

08 We Never Met

09 Tomorrow

10 Out In The Fields

RELATED NON-LP BONUS TRACKS

Lay Down Your Arms [Belinda Carlisle's version]

Should I Let You In [Belinda Carlisle's version]

Guardian Angel [1976 Charlotte Caffey Demo]

BONUS VIDEOS

Lay Down Your Arms

Perfect View

Rizzo - Phoning It In (LP + Bonus Tracks)

RIZZO

Phoning It In

(Sympathy For The Record Industry, 2000)

Full LP Release + Non-LP Bonus Tracks

File: 179.52 MB RAR

13 album tracks + 7 non-LP bonus tracks = 20 tracks total + 2 bonus videos

All tracks are encoded in the MP3 format, bit rate of 320 kbps (with the exception of track 20 which is encoded at 128kbps). Videos have been included in the archive in both the flash (.FLV) and MPEG (.MPG) formats for your convenience .

DOWNLOAD: http://www.mediafire.com/?yzokgwiwoft

tracks

01 The Joke's On You

02 Long Gone Bon

03 Apple Pancakes

04 Cathy

05 Lifetime Guarantee

06 Spin This

07 Peter's Sick

08 Noise Boy

09 I Know It's Late

10 Right Side Of The Tracks

11 Let It Ride

12 Baby, You Fucked Up

13 Raspberry Beret

NON-LP BONUS TRACKS

14 Allie

15 Rental Raccoon

16 Shymaster

17 Road Song

18 Cathy's Song

19 Made Of Wood

20 Allie (Live)

"Batman, Superman....can't freak your shit out like Rizzo can!"

-Rizzo

from the song "Long Gone Bon" from the album Phoning It In

Someone once described Rizzo as the indie rock cheerleaders of the Los Angeles music scene in the mid-to-late 90's, and I thought that was the best description if any. Even before they formed the band, Jen Abercrombie (vocals, guitars) and Sarah Dale De Angelis (drums, vocals) were always making the scene at indie rock shows in town, known for their exuberant personalities and cheering on their friends in bands (both local and from afar). They knew EVERYBODY and everybody loved them. And before you even go there...NO, not like THAT. Unlike many annoying scenester girls who just wanted to bag a future rock star, the Rizzo girls were genuine music fans who always brought with them a joyful, positive energy that was infectious and extremely hard to find in a musical landscape that was known for it's cynical, hipper-than-thou attitude. Whereas most indie rockers were known for their music snobbery and looking down their nose at those they deemed unhip or uncool, Sarah and Jen defied that sterotype by being extremely exclusionary of all - in grade school they would have given valentines to everyone equally and genuinely, even to the "pee girl" in the back who got picked on at recess. Sleater-Kinney, the Bartlebees, Madigan, Tullycraft, Team Dresch, The Need, Mocket and more all spent downtime with the pair playing badminton or shopping for vintage clothes when their tours rolled through town. The song "Radio Agony" by L.A. compatriat buddies Longstocking, even features the line "If I could dance like Sarah Dale, and play the drums..." a shout out to the Rizzo drummer. Musically speaking, Rizzo bears a passing resemblance to some of the mid-1990's twee pop girl sounds coming out of the Pacific Northwest such as Tiger Trap, Go Sailor, Cub and Lois Maffeo, whose minimalistic, stripped down sound of only guitar and drums may have been the ultimate inspiration behind the group. Some have categorized Rizzo as a "riot grrl" band which is not accurate - while certainly tough in their own way and all about female-empowerment, Rizzo's songs are much more personal and romantic in nature than the more serious hard-edged sounds of that movement. If asked where Rizzo should be placed stylistically in one's record collection, my answer would be to file under 'pure fun'.

'Pure fun' or not, the group had never been conceived of as a possible career type vehicle by the duo, and by 2002 the group had amicably split to pursue other interests in life. However, before they officially called it a day, they were approached by Long Gone John of Long Beach based indie Sympathy For The Record Industry about doing something for the label. Figuring it would be a great way to cap off their music career, the girls agreed to a full-length release made especially "for the fans", a compendium of all their best-loved songs, a "Rizzo's Greatest Hits" if you will. (The title Phoning It In is an inside joke that pokes fun at their self-perceived 'just for fun' attitude and laissez faire approach to making the record.)

So this then is that record, which along with several bonus tracks, comprises the bulk of the band's recorded output. A non-stop dance party from the first notes of album opener "The Joke's On You" to the final number, "Raspberry Beret", a joyful cover pf the Prince hit,

Phoning It In does a good job at capturing

the heart and soul of what the band embodied. And, if you've made it that far, you'll undoubtedly like the additional non-LP bonus tracks that follow: "Allie" from the 1997 Cher Doll Records compilation Something Cool; "Rental Raccoon" (inspired by Weezer bassist Matt Sharp's side project The Rentals), from the split 7" single with Tullycraft on Harriet Records (1997); "Shymaster", "Road Song" and "Cathy's Song" all from the Rizzo 7" single Shymaster on Cher Doll in 1998 (Of these three, "Road Song" and "Cathy's Song" would later be re-recorded by the band for Phoning It In under the titles "I Know It's Late" and "Cathy", respectively. "Road Song" is also notable for being recorded by Jimmy Tamborello of The Postal Service.); "Made of Wood", originally released on the compilation Inbred: Sounds Of The San Joaquin Valley; and finally an unreleased live performance of "Allie" that closes out this collection. As a double bonus, check out the two video clips of Rizzo also included here: "Shymaster" and "Lifetime Guarantee".

sample some of the Rizzo Rawk:

VIDEO: The Go-Go's: Beauty Talk 2001

The Go-Go's: Beauty Talk 2001

DOWNLOAD VIDEO
http://www.mediafire.com/?tezdgkomt12
SPECS
Format : MPEG-4 (MP4)
Format profile : Base Media / Version 2
Codec ID : mp42
File size : 51.5 MiB
Duration : 10mn 49s
Overall bit rate : 665 Kbps

VIDEO
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : Baseline@L3.0
Format settings, CABAC : No
Format settings, ReFrames : 1 frame
Codec ID : avc1
Codec ID/Info : Advanced Video Coding
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 540 Kbps
Maximum bit rate : 992 Kbps
Width : 480 pixels
Height : 360 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 4:3
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 29.917 fps
Resolution : 8 bits
Colorimetry : 4:2:0
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.104

AUDIO
Format : AAC
Format/Info : Advanced Audio Codec
Format version : Version 4
Format profile : LC
Bit rate mode : Variable
Bit rate : 123 Kbps
Maximum bit rate : 218 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Channel positions : Front: L R

Video rip and edit by MaxPericles for SpinCycleMedia, 2010.

Original version from the 2001 DVD The Go-Go's Live From Central Park.

As the Go-Go's prepare for what they claim to be their final tour, a brief two week jaunt in July in between promotional duties for Belinda Carlisle's new tell-all memoir Lips Unsealed (NOTE 7/5/10: Due to Jane Wiedlin's recent injury, the band has had to cancel their farewell tour. It is up in the air at this point if they will make these dates up next year, or if we've already seen the last of the Go-Go's as a performing band. Time will tell...), i've decided to roll out some fun extras from the Go's 2001 DVD Live in Central Park to remind us all of a time when the band was full of excitement and promise, just off the release of their first album in 15 years God Bless The Go-Go's.

In this first segment, which i've dubbed "Beauty Talk 2001", the band is interviewed while getting their hair and make-up done prior to the show. Jane hams it up as usual, playing to the camera and sharing some amusing anecdotes about the girls first few times in New York while Charlotte proudly talks about her daughter Astrid's love of art and the sounds of classic rock. Surprisingly though, Gina is the star here, who comes off as extremely likable, humble and above all else funny, talking about the early days of the band and clowning around with her stylist. In contrast, Kathy Valentine and Belinda Carlisle - who both obviously declined to be interviewed directly on camera during the filming of these extras - suffer from their lack of camera time and come off as cold and aloof compared with their bandmates warmth and charm here. (A lesson to be learned, ladies?)

The HOLE Truth: A Comprehensive Collection Of B-sides, Outtakes & Other Rarities v1 (1985-1991)

THE HOLE TRUTH:
A Comprehensive Collection Of B-sides, Outtakes & Other Rarities (v1) 1985-1991

Size: 165.61 MB (RAR File)
36 tracks, all encoded in the MP3 format (bitrate varies), then bundled into a RAR archive for download.

DOWNLOAD: http://www.mediafire.com/?wyezzzjtmne

Tracklisting:

01 My Dream* (1:54)
02 Best Sunday Dress Sugar Baby Doll/Pagan Babies Demo (2:22)
03 Girls Can Play Football Too* (1:15)
04 Cold Shoulders Sugar Baby Doll/Pagan Babies Demo (2:32)

05  Kat Bjelland (:57)

06  Quiet Room Sugar Baby Doll/Pagan Babies Demo (1:52)

07 Bernadine Sugar Baby Doll/Pagan Babies Demo (2:54)

08 I Was Desperate* (:48)
09 Hole In Your Head Live at Nightmoves, Huntington Beach 11/11/89 (2:53)

10 El Diablo Live at Nightmoves, Huntington Beach 11/11/89 (4:01)
11 In The Endless Night Of The Alaskan Winter* (:40)
12 Johnnie's In The Bathroom (2:18)
13 Filling A Hole* (:38)
14 Turpentine (4:00)
15 Phonebill Song (1:48)

16 Long Gone John* (:50)
17 Retard Girl (4:46)
18 Every Man Live at Club Lingerie, Hollywood 10/10/90 (4:32)

19 The Void In All Of Us* (1:03)
20 Burn Black (Jack Endino Mix) (4:57)
21 Dicknail (Jack Endino Mix) (3:38)
22 Teenage Whore (2:57)
23 Drown Soda (4:50)

24 On Hole in 1991* (:18)
25 Garbadge Man (Unreleased Alternate Mix) (3:04)
26 The Only Rape I Know Live at La Cigale, Paris 11/26/91 (1:47)
27 Want It So Bad  Live at Bierkeller, Bristol, England 8/19/91 (1:11)

28 Where Did You Sleep Last Night? Live at the Rose Club, Koln GER on 12/4/91 (1:53)

29 Chad Live at Doornroosje, Nijmegan HOL 11/24/91 (1:53)

30 I Am (early version of 'Doll Parts') Live at Tower Records, Cambridge, MA 11/6/91 (1:32)

31 Doll Parts (Peel Sessions) (2:21)
32 Violet (Peel Sessions) (3:36)
33 Forming/Hot Chocolate Boy (Peel Sessions) (1:32)

BONUS TRACKS

34 Do You Fake It? Live at The Rivoli's, Toronto 11/1/91 (1:39)

35 Drown Soda (Peel Sessions) (3:51)

36 The Complete Kat Bjelland* (2:07)

*Non-musical segment/interlude.

Hate her or LOVE her, one can't deny the astronomic will power and determination of the former Courtney Michelle Harrison, especially in regards to her music career. Determined to be a "rock star" no matter what, her first attempt at fronting a band came at the tender age of 16 when she briefly fronted an early version of Faith No More. Although she had star potential (apparently getting the job by being willing to light her hair on fire on stage), Courtney's strong persona soon was at odds with the band's "democratic" nature and she was ousted after only a few months. While this was a disappointment for Love, it also freed her up to focus on what she had dreamed about ever since she saw the first Runaways single at The Crystal Ship record store in Portland, OR - to have a female band that was as big as the Beatles. (Love subsequently shoplifted that record.)

Back in Portland, Courtney heard about a cool, new girl in town that played guitar and had similar ambition - Kat Bjelland. Bjelland and Love hit it off immediately and together began to plot their ascension to the top. On a hunch that the next big music explosion would happen in San Francisco, Courtney and Kat headed south in search of fame and fortune, eventually settling into a large house on the corner of Fillmore & Oak. There, inspired by a recent performance of Frightwig, San Francisco's outrageous all-girl rock troupe, the two invited Courtney's friend from L.A., Jennifer Finch, up with the prospect of starting a similar project, initially dubbed Sugar Baby Doll. This phase of the band was extremely short-lived with Jennifer sticking around only long enough to record a four-track demo with Love & Bjelland, before returning to L.A. to join L7, a band she would be a part of for a decade to come. Love & Bjelland then found bassist Janis Tanaka and drummer Deirdre Schlatter to complete their musical line-up, and christened themselves the Pagan Babies. Seeing as the tracks were all Bjelland/Love compositions, the band frugally recycled the Sugar Baby Doll tracks for their own demo, creating some confusion for years to come as to who to attribute the songs to. While they had been recorded by the Love/Bjelland/Finch incarnation of Sugar Baby Doll, the only actual demo tapes produced from this time bore the name Pagan Babies, so I suppose it is up to each individual as to where they would like to alphabetically file them in their collection.

And the tracks themselves: "Best Sunday Dress", "Cold Shoulders", "Quiet Room" and "Bernadine". Apologies for the horrendous quality of these, I've tried some minor remastering on a few to make them sound slightly less god-awful. Less aggressive sounding than what would later come from both Bjelland and Love, these tracks borrow heavily from Love inspirations Echo & The Bunnymen as well as ethereal 4AD band the Cocteau Twins. "Best Sunday Dress" would be re-written and re-worked by Love and recorded as a Hole b-side in 1998, while Bjelland would eventually turn "Quiet Room" into an instrumental for her band Babes In Toyland. "Bernadine" apparently was the first song ever written entirely by Love herself and was about Bernadine Mann, a great mentor to Love and the mother of Jeffrey Brent Mann, a boyfriend of Love's from the mid-1980's. A recent Twitter post by Love herself about these tracks:

"Jeffrey Brent Mann! The only ex boyfriend who is living and who doesn't talk to me, he's the guy who blows shit up; if you ever see "Tropic Thunder" he's the demo guy on that (that's the guy "Malibu" is about mixed with Kurt).

He never believed i would make it, his mother Bernadene Mann (trainspotters, look for the sugar babylon/baby doll song named for her) is one of my great mentors and loves along with Hal Wilner, Bono, Stipe, Panos, Billy and a few others. Look for the song me, Kat Bjelland and band did called "Bernadene", it was the first song i ever wrote. "Cold Shoulders" was a sophomoric attempt at a Cocteau Twins vibe with lyrics you could hear, funny we deconstructed.

Me, Kat and Jennifer Finch, it's really scratchy, there's no master but we turned into rock monsters from trying to do a sophisticated version of an all girl band that could take on Cocteau Twins, Echo and the Bunnymen and Bauhaus to desontructing entirely. Kat and i entered into primal scream therapy as a living, but i could write a hell of a good R.E.M. song during "Pretty on the Inside". Why the hell did we do that? Do any of you know what i'm talking about? In Liverpool, Julian Cope called his band with Ian Mculloch "Crucial 3"; i always felt me, Finch and Kat were the "Crucial Three", we were sooo good man we could've taken over the world seriously. Listen to "Best Sunday Dress", it's lost, it's so decayed you can't even hear the song so i finished it twenty years later."

While the Love/Bjelland combo had promise, there was little discipline and after only two gigs, the band disintegrated in early 1986. Love focused on a new lifetime goal - that of becoming a movie star - and aggressively pursued the role of Nancy Spungen in Alex Cox's film Sid & Nancy. While she did not win that role, her charm and talent impressed the filmmaker enough that he cast her as Spungen's best friend in the film. While all of that was going on, Bjelland, who had grown weary of playing with drama queen Courtney, quickly got out of town, moving to Minneapolis to further her musical passions, eventually forming the hard rockin' femme group Babes In Toyland. Love didn't quite get the hint however and soon joined Bjelland in her new town, rehearsing with Babes on bass a few times before Bjelland again gave her the heave ho. Cut adrift again, Love returned to stripping, an occupation made more frustrating by the fact that she would often have to dance to her old band Faith No More, who had scored a top ten hit with their song "Epic". Still bitter about her dismissal from the increasingly popular Babes In Toyland and with her 25th birthday looming ahead, devoid of all the success she craved, Love had an epiphany: she would start her own band, her own way...and nothing would stop her from becoming a star.

While Bjelland may have been guilty of copying Love's smeared lipstick and babydoll dress look (a style Love had picked up from Australian pop star and Divinyls singer Christina Amphlett in the early 80's), it is apparent that Love's brief time in Babes In Toyland would be the primary inspiration for the raw primal sound of early Hole. With a blueprint in mind for her own version of Bjelland's brainchild, Courtney found guitarist Eric Erlandson through an ad in local punk 'zine Flipside. Along with Lisa Roberts on bass, drummer Caroline Rue and former G.G. Allin guitarist Mike Geisbrecht this first incarnation of Hole started gigging in the fall of 1989. The two tracks here, "Hole In Your Head" and "El Diablo" (titles actually unknown) are from the third show ever performed by the band. The addition of Lisa Roberts vocals and Geisbrecht's extra guitar certainly lend a unique flavor to these songs, never officially recorded by the band. Freewheeling, chaotic and sludgy as all hell, they certainly capture the exuberance of a band being born.

However, that initial incarnation of Hole didn't last long: soon Roberts was out (apparently the band only had room for one loudmouth) and a personality clash with Love forced Geisbrecht to flee the combo early on as well. Finding bassist Jill Emery really was the spark that made the early Hole sound gel, and due to problems with finding a suitable additional guitar player, Courtney focused more on her guitar playing and the band line-up finalized at four. Ever the promoter, Courtney stalked L.A. tastemaking DJ Rodney Bingenheimer and secured play on his Sunday night show "Rodney On The ROQ" and convinced Long Gone John, owner of hip indie label Sympathy For The Record Industry to release the first Hole single, "Retard Girl" b/w "Phonebill Song" and "Johnnie's In The Bathroom" in the spring of 1990. An outtake from this session, "Turpentine", is an excellent example of the early Hole sound, Erlandson's heavy guitar licks slowly grinding forward amid Love's stream of conscious lyrical wailing. Also included here is a live rendition of "Every Man" another early Hole song never recorded.

Initially, the band seemed like a joke to most, often referred to as the band with the 'Retard Girl' singer, but anyone who saw them live couldn't deny Love's dynamic and charismatic stage presence which was performance art at it's highest. Word of mouth grew and Love's own personal guerilla style promotion of the band paid off with Love securing a Sub Pop Singles Club deal with the hip Seattle label in early 1991. "Dicknail" b/w "Burn Black" (both included here in their original Jack Endino mixed form) was an enormous indie success positioning the band at the front of the 'no wave' college rock movement. Simultaneously, Love befriended British music journalist Everett True who raved about Hole's performance in an NME article in late 1990, sparking a huge amount of interest in the band overseas which culminated with the release of the Kim Gordon produced debut album Pretty On The Inside. Soon after, the first single, "Teenage Whore" (with it's simmering b-side "Drown Soda") went to number one on the U.K. Indie Singles Chart. In the U.K. at least, Hole's star had risen.

A successful tour of the U.K. and Europe followed, dominating most of the latter part of 1991 for the band. The shows were the stuff of legend - one never knew what Love might say or do, and oftentimes she would do free-form poetry on the spot to the band's tunings/jam sessions that flowed from her as if she was speaking in tongues. Two of these improvs are included here: "Want It So Bad" (sometimes also referred to as "Shinner") recorded live in Bristol, England in August of 1991 and "Do You Fake It?" taken from a show in Toronto later that year. These improvisational bits are important in understanding how the creative process of songwriting in the band worked, as sometimes they would yield a finished original song by tours end, other times Love would refine lyrical ideas used in them for later use. Other highlights of the 1991 tour included the unrecorded original "The Only Rape I Know" (here recorded in Paris 1991), as well as a haunting cover of Leadbelly's "In The Pines" here called "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", later more famously covered by future husband Kurt Cobain and band Nirvana for their MTV Unplugged in late 1993. Strangely enough, Courtney vocals eerily mirror Cobain own unique howl on parts of this recording, enough so that I had to double check the source information just to make sure Cobain wasn't in attendance that night. The rarely performed "Chad" (also included here) was an early songwriting collaboration between Love and Smashing Pumpkins singer Billy Corgan, who she was dating around the time of the recording.

Capping off this overview of the early years of the band, we have the sessions recorded for the John Peel Show in November 1991: "Doll Parts", "Violet", "Drown Soda" and "Forming/Hot Chocolate Boy". The Peel Session version of "Doll Parts" is preceded by a skeletal version of the track simply called "I Am", which contains incomplete lyrics from Love for the song and offers another view into her creative process.

Kat Bjelland on the early years with Courtney:

NEXT: New bassist, new drummer and the road to "Live Through This"....

OtherStarPeople "Diamonds In The Belly Of The Dog"

OtherStarPeople
"Diamonds In The Belly Of The Dog"

Released: August 1999

Label: A&M/Interscope

Tracklisting:

01 Drip 2:43

02 I Could Never Be Wrong 1:52

03 The Half Of You I Love 3:27

04 Go To 2:50

05 Then There's None 3:25

06 Locked Out 2:23

07 Oceanway Sunday 3:21

08 California Shine 3:46

09 Shut Up And Show Me 2:22

10 Blown Away 3:02

11 Sun & Sky 4:21

12 Goodbye To You 3:05

Produced by Roy Thomas Baker

Recorded by Todd Burke

Mixed by Nick Didia
Mastered by Dave Collins

OtherStarPeople:
Jennifer "Precious" Finch - vocals, guitar
Xander Smith - vocals, guitar
Todd Phillips - drums
Junko Ito - bass, additional vocals

DOWNLOAD: http://www.mediafire.com/?tjmdymqwwje

OtherStarPeople was a short-lived L.A. based guitar pop band active from the years 1997-2003.

Founded by Jennifer Finch, the former bass player for all-female metal-grunge band L7 in 1997, the band was a far cry from what many anticipated to come next from the L.A. punk rock scene veteran. Embracing the nickname “Precious”, switching to guitar and sharing lead vocals with suave, charismatic (and male!) guitarist Xander Smith, Finch confounded expectations by leading a band that mixed elements of punk, alt-rock, pop and new wave. A milion miles away from the femme-grunge sound of Finch’s former band, OSP spotlighted more of Finch’s nuanced songwriting/crafting talents that had been hidden within the belly of the wail of L7, while still featuring her heavy rock chops front and center. To round out the band, Finch and Smith recruited Todd Phillips on drums (formerly of The Juliana Hatfield Three) and later, neophyte Japanese bass-player Junko Ito.

Keeping a low-profile initially in order to avoid being snapped up by Slash Records (L7’s label, which legally had first right of picking up the band under a leaving member clause in Finch’s contract), the band held out and after successfully evading that contractual mess, the band signed a high-profile deal with A&M Records in 1998. The band quickly went into the studio with 70’s superstar producer Roy Thomas Baker (Queen, Journey, Foreigner) to record “Diamonds In The Belly Of The Dog”, just prior to the music industry imploding with the gigantic Universal/Polygram merger that basically closed down A&M Records (for all intents and puposes) for good. Surprisingly, their debut album was one of the few that survived the transition and earned an August 1999 release date during a time when most well-known Universal/Polygram artists were still trying to figure out whether they had a deal or not.

Sadly, probably due to Universal/Polygram still figuring out their internal marketing division, the record didn’t find the audience it deserved and after only one record, the band and A&M/Universal parted ways, with the group disbanding not much later in 2002. “Precious” went on to perform with Betty Blowtorch and formed the band The Shocker in 2003. She has also concentrated on her photography and in 1996 had a L.A. Weekly sponsored art show of her work called “14 and Shooting” on display at the Aidan Ryley Taylor Gallery in Hollywood.