You have to be somewhat of a forensic investigator to find signs of life emanating from First Communion Afterparty, possibly the greatest band in the Universe. Yes, the “Field of Flowers” video was released last March, and there was that Skyline, Starlight EP, too — the first new music since their brilliant debut studio album came out in 2008. Tantalizingly, we find references to gigs this coming April. But where’s the album, gang? We’re waiting. Where are the gigs outside of the Twin Cities? The nation needs you. There are damned few neo-psychedlic bands peddling your special brand of cosmic spice. We feel you slipping away from us, and we remember when the beat was so strong, the life-force throbbing back in 2008, which just slipped another notch back in the ol’ timeometer. Give us a clue of when the new music’s coming, and if it’s being thwarted by business setbacks, let’s figure this out through crowd-sourced stilletos winging their way through Gordian knots. We feel 2011 could be the year. Say yes.
Archive for January, 2011
Will 2011 Be The Year First Communion Afterparty Break Through?
Posted in Uncategorized with tags First Communion Afterparty on January 4, 2011 by johnbuckley100Back To Winter In DC
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Leica M9, Noctilux 0.95, Viveza on January 3, 2011 by johnbuckley100Leica M9, Noctilux (processed in Lightroom, and then Viveza). From a toy train show scene in a mall while on Christmas travel…
What Was Missing From The Tulip Frenzy 2011 Top Ten List: BRMC and The Vaselines
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Vaselines, Tulip Frenzy Top Ten List on January 3, 2011 by johnbuckley100Usually by January 1, we’ve been turned on to several bands we missed that should have been on our Top Ten List. This year there wasn’t a lot on the Uncut list that we would have put on ours — c’mon, Joanna Newsom #1? Not quite as bad as Portishead the other year, but yick — and as it turns out, our only regrets were not having been able to have put in Black Rebel Motorcycle Club or the Vaselines.
BRMC released both an excellent studio album (Beat The Devil’s Tattoo) and an exceptionally vivid live album. Why didn’t they make it? Why don’t we take ’em seriously enough? Hard to say. Maybe it was the way their entry point seemed too derivative of the Jesus and Mary Chain. For some reason, we don’t take ’em seriously enough, yet we listen to their music, a lot. A friend once referred to Oasis as a guilty pleasure, and I understand, though I’ve never doubted Oasis’ essential greatness. I don’t think of BRMC as a guilty pleasure; I think of them as a superb band, and if you doubt just how great they really are, go to their website and for a pittance download their live album.
The Vaselines are another story altogether. Tagged by no less than Kurt Cobain as his favorite band, it took a generation for them to get back into the studio, and after listening to Sex With An Ex, we’re sure glad they did. Funny, wry, tuneful, smart, the Glaswegian duo reentered the scene without leaving a greasy contrail. Too bad there wasn’t room for ’em on the TF Top Ten List.
Tulip Frenzy 