Monthly Archives: July 2010

WTF Album Covers: Geraldine and Ricky

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WTF album covers puppets

Seriously, what is with the born-again Christians and the puppets? I can’t think of anything I’d rather do less than spend 45 minutes with my hand up a puppet’s ass talking out of the side of my mouth like a third-rate George Raft. And don’t try to tell me this crap is aimed at KIDS–track two on side two is titled “The Liquor Store”. That’s where I’d be spending the meager proceeds from this vinyl abomination if I had ANYTHING to do with it.

Geraldine And Ricky back cover

You might wonder why I vent my bile on ventriloquists on vinyl with such…passion, until you remember that very NATURE of the ventriloquist act is that you’re supposed to SEE THE DUMMY TALK apparently ON ITS OWN. Like MAGIC. Put these people on a record and the whole point of the ventriloquist act is…well yeah, you get it now.

Like so many other things associated with right wing evangelical Christianity, this makes absolutely ZERO SENSE.

OK, I feel better now.

–Joe Wallace

Chicago Record Stores: Beverly Records

Record Shops, vinyl road rage, ,

chicago record stores beverly records

Beverly Records, located at 11612 South Western Avenue in Chicago, is not for the faint of heart. Even hardcore vinyl junkies get a bit flushed when they walk into this shop. There are massive, massive bins of vinyl, no prices apparent, cramped quarters and use of the ladder in the back areas is strongly recommended.

indie record stores beverly records chicago

The apparent lack of prices will daunt the first-time shopper, but you CAN find some very nice stuff here if you don’t mind wading through some piles of mangled, beat-up covers and record store golden moldies. Personally, if I ever see another vinyl copy of any Edgar Winter album, Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors, the Hair or Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack, I will shoot myself in the face. But I digress.

Beverly Records has a ton of surprises aside from the vinyl. There is a lot of nostalgia here from ancient record players to this collection of 8-track tapes–only a small sampling of the collection pictured here.

chicago record stores beverly records vinyl

beverly records in chicago illinois

I had no idea they made Grease trading cards. But they did.

chicago record shops beverly records beverly illinois

The vinyl finds at Beverly Records on my visit were pretty sweet. I found a release by The Units I didn’t know existed, a copy of the BBC vinyl release of The Genesis of the Daleks with Tom Baker (I am a nerdy, it’s true) and a few other things including MOST of the Ohio Players original vinyl releases–all those delightfully naughty album covers including the one with the horse.

Verdict? Brace your back and your knees for punishment and be ready to wade through a lot of beat up crap to find the gems, but definitely worth a stop, especially if you’re a new vinyl junkie. No prices listed=major annoyance, so ask before you check out. Beverly Records is situated on one of THE longest single stretches of street in Chicago–Western Avenue goes and goes and goes and goes. Best to take the highway there after mapping it with Google Maps.

–Joe Wallace

Mono Stereo 45 RPM Single On and On/Matter of Confusion

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Mono Stereo 45 On and On Matter of ConfusionI hear some people of a certain age group (hint–I went to college with some of them in the 90s) moaning about how music today isn’t as good (read post-punk enough or new wavey enough or whatever) as it used to be. To which I reply in two parts. Part One: You’ve become your parents, and Part Two, that’s just complete nonsense when faced with delicious vinyl releases like this 45 from Mono Stereo.

This Swedish four piece has its feel planted firmly in the psychedelia/shoegaze mushroom garden, evoking both a retro 60s vibe (with a nice little nod to Ennio Morricone in the middle eight of A Matter of Confusion, intentional or not) AND a bit of the old Ride/MBV thrown in for good measure.

It’s tough to review a modern ‘gazer band without invoking those previous two names, but the comparison is favorable, and I actually find the B side to be the stronger of the two cuts, though I have to admire the production work of the A-side On And On…sounds to these musician/DJ ears like a quite effective sitar simulation was achieved by pairing a banjo and guitar riff togetether…or maybe that IS a sitar and I’m just going deaf. Either way, it’s an effective intro to the track.

Mono Stereo has created a nice thick wall of sound swirling in just the right way. Kudos to them for not only a great release, but also for putting it out on vinyl as the gods intended.

Get your Mono Stereo on with the Vimeo vid below and tell me you don’t want to hear more…I did. Hook up with Mono Stereo on Facebook and be sure to tell ’em Turntabling sent you.

And that reminds me…I am all too happy to review vinyl releases. Get in touch about yours via jwallace (at) turntabling (dot net).
Joe Wallace


Mono Stereo – On and On from Adam Bruneau on Vimeo.

DJ Paisley Babylon Mix: After The Punks Have Gone

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AFTER-THE-PUNKS-HAVE-GONE

Another DJ Paisley Babylon mix in a retro vein–this time it’s post-punk, new romantic, early industrial, even some Cramps thrown in for good measure. As varied and all-over-the-map the bands are, the sounds all work very well together. Who needs genres when you’ve got groove? Have a listen to AFTER THE PUNKS HAVE GONE–the DJ Paisley Babylon post-punk and beyond mix. It’s a solid hour of solid tunes by Polyrock, Fad Gadget, Blondie, PiL, Gang of Four, Adam and the Ants, plus many others.

If you like the mix and want to book DJ Paisley Babylon, by all means get in touch. Contact me by e-mail: jwallace (at) turntabling (dot) net or call (312) 504-1264.

This mix is posted here to promote my DJ work and the original artists. Please get in touch if you need to discuss licensing issues.