Mix CD #11 - Inclusive: The Best of Stavesacre

Back in the late nineties I bought a cheap compilation album that turned out to be a sampler for Tooth & Nail records. I knew nothing about the label, I just wanted to listen to some new Punk bands, It turns out that T&N is a Christian music label and only releases albums by bands of a Christian persuasion. Had I known that at the time I probably wouldn't have bought it, dismissing it as preachy nonsense. If I hadn't I very likely would never have discovered one of my favourite bands. 
The first track on that compilation was Shiv by Stavesacre and was easily the best on the CD. A month or so later, I stumbled on a copy of Absolutes in a bargain bin and snapped it up. I absolutely (haha) loved it. I tracked down everything they did and over the years I've listened to them more and more until they've become of my all time top 10 favourite bands.

The band themselves are a Post-Hardcore band that formed from the ashes of Christian Thrash Metal/Crossover band, The Crucified. Vocalist Mark Salomon and Bassist Jeff Bellew (who switched to guitars) formed the band along with Dirk Lemmenes (Bass) and Jeremy Moffat (Drums). They still retained some of their earlier heaviness but are much more melodic which better suited mark's strong, soulful voice. 
After the release of their first album Friction in 1996, Jeremy Moffatt was replaced by Sam West and following the release of their second album Speakeasy, Jeff Bellew left the band to concentrate on family and Ryan Dennee joined as guitarist. Jeff later rejoined the band for the release of their final EP Against The Silence in 2009 and they now play as a five-piece. At least until they did that hiatus thing that bands do when they don't want to say they've broken up anyway.

There are several reasons I love this band, Mark is a hell of a singer. his voice is strong,  soulful and soars when he needs it to. As a band they're great songwriters too, intelligent lyrics, loads of catchy choruses, memorable lines and huge, pounding riffs held in check with a ton of melody. As for the Christian aspect, admittedly a few of their songs are a little bit "I Love Jesus me" but on the whole they're thoughtful, intelligent and introspective. More often than not Mark actively questions Christianity and his belief which  I can identify with. Nobody should blindly take anything as truth, especially not religion, make up your own mind about it. 

Stavesacre in 2009:
Mark Salomon, Sam West, Ryan Dennee, Dirk Lemmenes and Jeff Bellew

Anyway, there were a couple of reason for this post. Firstly, I wanted to do something themed as I haven't for a while now, secondly, I'm currently reading Mark Salomon's autobiography whcih I'm really enjoying and thirdly, I've just discovered there's to be a new album to be released this year of which I am VERY excited about. I'm less excited about the fact it was crowdfunded and I completely missed the campaign so I'll have to wait an extra 3 months for it to be officially released.

Making this playlist was hard as there was far too many songs I wanted that would fit onto one CD. I also wanted to put something on by The Crucified and also Outer Circle, which was a Punk side-Project Mark was involved in. There just wasn't the room, maybe I'll put them on a future mix, I dunno. There's also nothing from Collective, a Greatest Hits of sorts and also Live At Deep Ellum, I'll let you work out what that is for yourself. 
Give them a listen, try not to let the Christian thing put you off if it normally would. I love this band and would like everyone else to as well. If you do like them try and track down their albums cos they're great.

The Future History Of The Broken Hearted
Sundown Motel
Inclusive
At The Moment
Alice Wishlist
Teeth Like Knives
Freefall (From Hand To Hand)
Bull Takes Fighter
Witch Trial
Sand Dollar
Fear And Love
Why Good People Suffer
It's Beautiful (Once You're Out Here)
Shiv
Yes
Threshold
Minuteman
Side-Stage Syndrome
Zzyzx Scarecrow

You can download the mix, if you so wish, HERE

If you like what you hear then please try and support the band
THIS is the bands Merch store.
The albums can be (expensively) bought on Amazon HERE 
Dunno how it works but you can get them cheaper on Discogs HERE
If you're young and modern then you can listen to everything on Spotify HERE

Blurb below the cut, don't forget!

Mix CD #10 - We've Got A Situation Here

So the tenth mix is here, I feel like that ought to be some sort of milestone? Yay congratulations me! I'll buy myself a drink later.

I was planning on doing another Covers Mix this time but I wasn't really feeling it, plus I had a lot of songs that I've listened to lately that I wanted to share so I just went ahead with another no themed mix.  Also I really liked the Gargamel! song as an opener and I'd made that artwork (took hours of painstaking craftsmanship that did) for it too. The alligator thing is sufficiently in the past now surely?

As always, have a read of my comments below the cut if you like and you can download the mix HERE if you so choose.

 Cheers! 

Gargamel! - We've Got A Situation Here

The Men That Will Not Be Blamed For Nothing - Brunel

Sleater-Kinney - Step Aside

Left Side Brain - We All Got It Coming, Kid

Gama Bomb - Tuck Your T-Shirt In

Agnès Milewski - Signs And Messages

Circulus - Song Of Our Despair

Periphery - The Parade Of Ashes

Dirt Box Disco - Top Shelf

Dog Fashion Disco - Scarlet Fever

Sonic Boom Six - The Road To Hell Is Paved With Good Inventions

Professor Kliq - The Dirtiest

Go Home Productions - Paranoid Rock

Diemonds - Overboard

Elvis Presley - A Big Hunk O' Love (Live)

Kingdom Come - Highway 6

Prong - Ice Runs Through My Veins

Consumed - Odd Man Out

Screaming Trees - Winter Song

Kilgore - Double-Edged Sword

Rachel Sermanni - Bones

Rollins Band - Wreck-Age

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Mix CD #9 - Everybody Wants To Be Cool

Mix time again! My original plan was to get a few posts done at first so the blog wasn't too sparse at first glimpse but then to strip it bck down to something like one mix a month, so as not to bombard people with mixes. It's not really worked out that way though but I'm having fun with it and I dunno if anyone else is even listening/reading so bollocks to it, you'll just have to be bombarded for now.

As per usual, there's photo's, info and blurb from me for each band under the cut so you can read that if you like. Go on, be a devil.

You can download the mix HERE

Ruby Cruiser - Everybody Wants To Be Cool
Sense Field - On Your Own
Marmozets- Move, Shake, Hide
The Darkness - Open Fire
Half Man Half Biscuit - Look Dad No Tunes
Ballsdeep - A Life Less Overrated
Toadies - Tyler (Acoustic Version)
King's X - Won't Turn Back
Betty Blowtorch - Dresses
Robochrist - Ghosttrainnosebleed
Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine - Bring On The Girls!
Reuben - Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
Katie Lee - Repressed Hostility Blues
The Mr. T Experience - Tapin' Up My Heart
Earthtone9 - Sea Of Blades
Send No Flowers - Sepia
Zombina & The Skeletones - Puke It Up
Random Hand - "In"
The Birthday Massacre - Diaries
Metallica - Lords Of Summer
Aurelio Voltaire - God Thinks

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Mix CD #8 - An Otherwise Disappointing Life

Another week, another mix. Yet again there's no theme other than songs that have cropped up whilst driving, on shuffle or have just been part of an album I was listening to that stood out as songs I'd like to put in a mix. 

As always, there's my usual blurb under the cut if you fancy losing 10 minutes of your life. If you do download and listen to it, let me know what you think cos it's a lonely old world if you have a desperate need for approval...

You can download the mix HERE

Frightened Rabbit - An Otherwise Disappointing Life

Care Bears On Fire - Barbie Eat A Sandwich

Thought Industry - Dante Dangling From A Noose

Wolfsbane - Smoke And Red Light

Oh Wonder - Landslide

Danny Frye & The Devil Dolls - Long Gone

Randy - Rockin' Pneumonia And The Punk Rock Flu

Floodgate - Through My Days Into My Nights

The Wannadies - Things That I Would Love To Have Undone

Crooked Saws - Three Minute Long Song

Rancid - A Power Inside

Black Veil Brides - Stolen Omen

P!nk - Blow Me (One Last Kiss)

Dan Webster - One To Remember

Clutch - Your Love Is Incarceration

The Idol Dead - Six Feet Under

Weezer - Autopilot

Drown - The Day I Walked Away

Frankie & The Heartstrings - That Postcard

Cinderella - If You Don't Like It

The Presidents Of The United States Of America - Electric Spider

Trouble - Hello Strawberry Skies

Warrior Soul - My Sky

Mix CD #7 - City Of Lost Souls

There's no theme to the mix this time, just songs I've enjoyed lately. My car is in the awkward position of being too old to have a USB port and too new to have a cassette deck (that I have a cassette/iPod adaptor for) so, to listen to music, I have to play CDs. Instead of having one long, convenient playlist like I used to, I now have to burn a load of CD mixes and listen to music that way. All of these songs have come from recent driving CDs and are songs I thought would go well on here, hopefully you'll like them. Some of them maybe. Just that one over there then. Oh piss off. 

If you do download and listen to this mix then let me know what you think cos Feedback is

nice. Same goes for any of the previous mixes.

Click on the link to download it and click on the fake link to read all my blurb about each track.

Ta,
Luke

The End - City Of Lost Souls
Muscle Tribe Of Danger & Excellence - Old-School Blood Trial
Fugazi - Public Witness Program
Kabuto The Python - Skill Set
Von Hertzen Brothers - Trouble
United Magnetics - Act One Scene One
Thundermother - Roadkill
Psychostick - My Clingy Girlfriend
John Parr - St Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)
You're Pretty - Day
The Main Grains - We're Happy Round Here
Slipknot - Get This
Faunts - M4 Part 2
Danny Kaye & The Andrews Sisters - Civilisation
Neko Case - Night Still Comes
Frank Turner - Demons
Krux - Omfalos
Super Furry Animals - Golden Retriever
8stops7 - The Mark
Bowling For Soup - I'm Gay
Seasick Steve - Heart Full Of Scars

You Can Download The Mix HERE

Mix CD #6 Guest Post: Radiohead Not Included

The first guest post of the blog is brought to you by my friend Eddie, He's the head honchperson over at another Blog I post in called All The Time I Was Listening To My Own Wall Of Sound where you can read reviews of many varied albums and singles. You may view it at the following link

All The Time I Was Listening To My Own Wall Of Sound

Eddie's blurb and song choices can be found beneath the cut, click on Read More.. 

Mix CD #5 - Covers Vol 1. Such Great Heights.

Everyone loves a good cover version. Whether it's a band you like doing something unusual or someone unusual doing a song by a band you like or maybe even if it's just to scoff with derision because "Don't they have any of their own songs?". For a lot of bands a covers album is a contractual throwaway; much like a Best Of or a Live album, it's a way to take up one of the slots in their 4 album deal etc. I love it when bands do them though, it gives an insight into the band, the stuff they like, they stuff they used to like and whatnot. It also gives me a chance to see what songs they picked and either be excited or disappointed by their choices. Hey, I take my thrills where I can.

I have many petty rules and regulations for music that I listen to, cover versions escape unscathéd not. I don't like lazy or safe covers. I don't want to hear something that sounds exactly like the original only with a worse singer, where's the point in that? Another aspect of laziness I dislike is to pick from a selection of songs I have on a list (not an actual physical one. I'm not THAT sad.). It's a list of songs that get covered all the time, ALL THE TIME. Songs like Enjoy The Silence. Songs like Tainted fucking Love. We don't need another version of those songs now thank you please, stop it.

Anyway.

I decided I wanted to do a Covers theme this time. When I compiled the songs I ended up with hundreds , even more then I did with the B-Sides mix I did last time. I'll almost certainly be doing more of these. Hence the Vol. 1 bit.

HERE is the link to download the Mix and a brief overview of the tracklisting. Click on the Page Break thing to find out more info, like original artists and an uninteresting anecdote from myself about every song.

Ben Folds - Such Great Heights
Danny Frye & The Devil Dolls - Back Of My Hand
Within Temptation - Paradise
Peace Brothers - Frozen
Devin Townsend - New York, New York
Jenny Owen Youngs - Call Me Maybe
Machine Head - Negative Creep
Eels - Get Ur Freak On
Tarja - Still Of The Night
Snuff - Wanna Be
Hot Buttered Elvis - Candle In The Wind
Gigantor - 29 x The Pain
Wolfsbane - Born To Run
Hellsongs - Seasons In The Abyss
The Baseballs - Chasing Cars
Million Dead - Pretty Good Year
Chvrches - Stay Another Day
Eureka Machines - We Didn't Start The Fire
Tim Timebomb - Summer Of '69
Pearl Jam - Daytime Dilemma (Dangers Of Love)
Malukah - The Dragonborn Comes
The Gourds - Gin n' Juice

Mix CD #4 - Rarities Vol 1: The Never-Played Symphonies

This is a collection of Non-album tracks: B-Sides, compilation tracks, stand alone singles, rarities and a couple of unreleased songs. I've got a big stack of these songs so I would imagine there'll be more mixes like this in the future. In the meantime though, I hope you find something you like on this one. 

I've put the tracklisting above the cut so don't have to read my twaddle if you don't want to. Click Read More if you fancy a twaddling.

Tracklisting
Silver Sun - Angel Eyes
The Gaslight Anthem - Look On The Bright Side
Rancid - Blast 'Em
Psychostick - Hokey Fuckin' Pokey
Frightened Rabbit - Fuck This Place
KoЯn - Not Meant For Me
The Divine Comedy - Song For Ten
The Pretty Reckless - Where Did Jesus Go?
Manowar - Die For Metal
Bowling For Soup - Award Show Taylor Swift
Pearl Jam - Betterman (Molo Session version)
Sen Dog - Hoo Ride
NOFX - Your Hubcaps Cost More Than My Car
Therapy? - Misery (Acoustic)
Baby Chaos - Follow The Swallow
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Nocturama
Ben Folds Five - Sleazy
Tori Amos - Take Me With You
Eureka Machines  - Down The Front (With The Best Band In The World)
Shihad - Extreme Suicide
The Boomtown Rats - Fanzine Hero
Morrissey - The Never-Played Symphonies

The mix can be downloaded HERE

Mix CD #3 - The Devil's Right Hand

This is the first mix I've done with no theme, it's just a collection of songs I like that I wanted other people to listen to and like too. I've been planning this blog for a while and whenever a song cropped up that I thought fitted the bill I'd stick it on the end of a playlist. That list is now pushing 300 songs so I've enough to keep me going for a while yet.

I'm pleased with the way it's turned out. Let me know what you think (but only if it's nice things, I'm not emotionally stable enough for constructive criticism...)

You can download the mix HERE 

Tracklisting:

Miracle Of Sound – The Ballad Of Clay Carmine

Hagfish – Disappointed

The Dowling Poole – Adam & Eve (A Secular Hymn)

Wolf Alice – Moaning Lisa Smile

The Vandals – S.W.M.

The Phenomenauts – She’ll Launch

Kyuss – Supa Scoopa And Mighty Scoop

April Smith And The Great Picture Show – Bright White Jackets

The Cog Is Dead – Burn It Down

Andrew Jackson Jihad – We Didn’t Come Here To Rock

Foxy Shazam – Holy Touch

Porcupine Tree – Remember Me Lover

Inglorious - Inglorious

Möngöl Hörde – Casual Threats From Weekend Hardmen

Septicflesh - Prometheus

The Spookshow – I Can But I Won’t

Ignite – Where I’m From

Katatonia – Don’t Tell A Soul

Twin Atlantic – Make A Beast Of Myself

Eden Brent – Everybody Already Knows

Johnny Cash - Devil's Right Hand

Mix CD #2 - Thank You And Sweet Dreams - The Best Of Jeff Buckley

 I've been a fan of Jeff Buckley ever since I saw him perform Mojo Pin live on TV footage of Glastonbury festival back in the early 90's and thought his voice was incredible. He's often regarding as one of the greatest ever male vocalists and the progenitor of the wailing falsetto style of singing that Muse have been so successful with. Jeff sadly only released one album, Grace, before his death in 1997, however there have been several albums of mostly unfinished material released in the years since his death and there's a wealth of genius to be found among it. I've collated here a selection of some of my favourites. A lot of his songs tend to be fairly long so I haven't been able to fit in as many as I'd like.
If you want more information about Jeff Buckley then HERE is a link to his Wikipedia page.

Download the Mix: HERE

Tracklisting:
Lover, You Should've Come Over
Witches' Rave
Morning Theft
Song To No One
Lost Highway
The Sky Is A Landfill
The Boy With The Thorn In His Side
Ulalume
Grace
Poor Boy Long Way From Home
Nightmares by The Sea
Eternal Life (Road Version)
Hallelujah
Night Flight (Live)
Opened Once
Last Goodbye