![]() It’s a remarkable listen, capturing the Belgian jazz outfit in blistering form. Innumerable records have entered Just Played’s collection thanks to Gilles Peterson’s radio shows and one from the vast selection is Black Flower’s 2016 release ‘Artifacts’. Those fancying the extra bits on larger discs need only wait until RSD. ![]() It’s largely free of surface noise and sounds good to these ears. There’s a comprehensive CD set available from Demon which pulls together both incarnations plus a selection of bonus material, but this vinyl release is the 2021 reboot across four sides of GZ-pressed white vinyl. Butler also comments in the sleevenotes that you might find the odd new solo here and there too.Īlternative, monochrome artwork employs Jill Furmanovsky images from the studio recordings, putting front and centre Butler’s preferred choice for the cover. Everything else makes use of vocal-less versions designed for licensing opportunities and several of those miss final tweaks made for the eventual 1998 release. The closing trio of ‘Stay’, ‘In Vain’ and ‘I’m Tired’ sound especially wonderful, the latter a more substantial re-recording as there was no instrumental mix from the original sessions to deploy. While they can occasionally veer into Elvis’ peanut butter and banana years, it does make for an interesting alternative take on an overlooked delight from the latter stages of the Nineties. Having given the original recordings of ‘People Move On’ a dust off for last year’s RSD endeavours, Bernard Butler has gone back to the master tapes of his solo debut and re-recorded all of the vocal parts. With an accompanying sleevenote from broadcaster Paul ‘Smiler’ Anderson, the package is a fabulous burst of a key era which mixes beloved delights with less obvious but no less special trinkets from Piller’s collection. Arnold are amongst many delights on the second disc. The Kinks, The Creation and the sensational P.P. Geno Washington’s ‘Michael (The Lover)’ and Georgie Fame and The Blue Flames’ ‘Sweet Thing’ make sure the first side gets off to a flier, while Dusty’s ‘Little By Little’ launches side 2. Mastered at Alchemy, this diverse array of Sixties corkers is well served by a largely quiet GZ pressing. ![]() It’s this abbreviated take that Just Played has sampled, with disc one on red and the second, of course, on blue. The full one hundred tracks are spread across six black discs in a box set, while thirty-four highlights have been cherry-picked for a double vinyl variation. The latter has this month launched his British Mod Sounds Of The 60s project via Demon and it is available in two different configurations. There are a select number of names in the world of compilations who are so trustworthy you can buy their efforts in full confidence without hearing a note: Bob Stanley, Jon Savage and Eddie Piller sit at the top of that list. Near silent throughout and sonically on the money, it’s well worth picking up. It’s an open and vibrant master, with a strong grasp of the mids which can sometimes get a little cluttered on the band’s records. There are some variants pressed at Pallas knocking around, but I can’t imagine you’d be any the worse for encountering one of those instead. The vinyl is a Chris Bellman cut and the standard black edition is done through Optimal. ![]() Britt Daniel’s vocals remain compellingly raw, as insistent as the rhythms they sit atop. Opener ‘Held’ has a claustrophobic, mid-paced intensity before yielding to the more conventionally frenetic ‘The Hardest Cut’. The artwork isn’t amongst their finest, gaining little from the larger format, but the music is what it’s all about. Their distinctive drum sound and strident guitar lines are never less than infectious and this remains the case for ‘Lucifer On The Sofa’. It’s always a cause for joy when a new Spoon album lands. ![]()
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