Besides Asides

Furnaceface were a weirdo punk band from Ottawa, Ontario that existed from 1990 to 1999. They released four LPs and a slew of singles. From what I gather they were kind of a big deal in their scene but for some reason all of their records are out of print.Their first two albums were pretty experimental with melodic punk in the vein of other Canadian punk bands of the time acting as a base with bits of alterna-pop, hardcore, folk, spoken word, funk and even hip-hop thrown in. They were very 90s and very Canadian. Instead of starting off with one of those I thought I'd ease you into them with their third LP, 1996's unsafe@anyspeed. This album is much more of a conventional pop-punk record but they have really unique 60s influenced melodies that make it just as memorable as their more adventurous material. I'd say it falls somewhere between Hüsker Dü and Bad Religion. Anyways, you can find another digital copy online but not a high quality rip straight from the CD like this version. I hope you enjoy it!
















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It seems like my favourite power pop/punk bands of the 2000s didn't release all that much or last all that long. New Town Animals were no different but their sole LP, Is Your Radio Active?, remains one of the best of the genre to this day. With a little help from a friend I was able to collect all their singles and comp tracks into a neat little collection. Not much to say but dig it!


















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Tracklist:

1. Baby You're The Reason [7" Version]
2. Little Rich Boy
3. Lose That Girl [7" Version]
4. Now That He's Free
5. Fashion Fallout
6. Falling Outta Space
7. Forgotten Generation
8. Cori St.
9. Spin So Fast
10. Three Steps Backward [CBC Session]

• 1 & 2 are from the split 7" with Délateurs. 2000. Zaxxon Records.
• 3 & 4 are from the New Town Animals 7". 2000. Mint Records.
• 5 & 6 are from the Fashion Fallout 7". 2002. Dirtnap Records.
• 7 is from Dirtnap Across The Northwest. 2003. Dirtnap Records.
• 8 & 9 are from the Cori St. 7". 2004. Longshot Music.
• 10 is from Mint Records Presents: The CBC Radio 3 Sessions. 2006. Mint Records. Recorded live in-studio for CBC Radio 3.

It is a rare treat that I am able to post a live bootleg that was actually manufactured and sold, and that is exactly what Bob's Full House is. Sugar never seemed to get their due when compared to Bob Mould's first act, Hüsker Dü. I'm not saying Sugar was as good as the Dü, but they were a great band and I think they don't get enough credit in helping shape the sounds of melodic pun rock for the next 20 years. Bob's Full House is comprised  mainly of a live set recorded in July of 1992 at the Cabaret Metro in Chicago featuring mostly stuff from their first LP, Copper Blue. The real special things about this set are the cover of  Iggy Pop's "Dum Dum Boys" and the unreleased tune "Beer Commercials" with abassist David Barbe on vocals. There are also a few recordings from radio sessions tacked on the end, including an unreleased song done by Bob by himself called "Lonely Blue Dreams". The sound quality is excellent and this is a high quality 320 rip from the CD source. Enjoy!

• 1 - 16 recorded July 22, 1992 at the Cabaret Metro, Chicago
• 17 - 18 recorded August 1st, 199? at University of London, UK
• 19 recorded August 24, 1992 for Marc Goodier Radio 1 Sessions
• 20 recorded July 7, 1991 at unknown radio station, US

Keep It Up were a Youth Crew influenced hardcore punk band from St. Catharines, Ontario that operated from somewhere around 2004-2006 (don't quote me on those dates). In that time they released one self-titled CD, one self-titled 7" and a split 7" with Proven (who I believe went onto form Vicious Cycle). They played this style better than almost any other band at the time and are still missed by a lot of Southern Ontario punks today. Anyways I got my hands on an EPs worth of otherwise unreleased songs so I thought I'd share them even though no one probably has any idea who they were. I think these were recorded around the same time as their split with Proven. Enjoy!

Peace Be Still are a midwestern style emo band from Mississauga, Ontario. Early next year they will be releasing their debut LP , 64, on Sometimes I Get Drunk Records. For now they've put it up on their bandcamp for A Pay What You Can price. Rather than some of the more noodly or twinkly bands that are associated with the the "twinkle daddy" movement they sound kind of like a more aggressive early Promise Ring, with shouted vocals and some great songwriting chops. So head on over to their bandcamp and give the album a listen (particularly "Give Me All Your Karma") and if you like it download it and pre-order the record!

http://peacebestill.bandcamp.com/

Joyride was the brainchild of bassist/vocalist Steve Soto who has spent time in respected punk acts like Agent Orange, Adolescents and 22 Jacks. Joyride were a pop-punk band, that in terms of his previous work, had more in common with 22 Jacks. Joyride play classic guitar pop with a punk edge rather than punk with melodic overtones. I hear a lot of Moving Targets and The Nils in their sound if that means anything to anyone. They only released two LPs as far as I know, 1992's Johnny Bravo and 1994's Another Month of Mondays, I'm posting the first one as it is my favourite of the two. "24 Hours" and "Sleep A Little Longer" are perfect 3 minute pop-punk gems and "Asking For More" channels the dark melody and guitar flare of the Adolescents, these are songs that you can't go any longer without hearing. Enjoy!

Warren G is a really underrated producer and in part I think it hasa lot  to do with  some bad luck. Starting out with the original Death Row Records crew with his childhood friends Snoop Doggy Dogg and Nate Dogg, Warren was one of the many producers that helped pick samples and program beats for Dr. Dre to go to work when constructing instrumentals for his classic album The Chronic and Snoop Doggy Dogg's Doggystyle. However, like many of those younger producers, didn't get any credit since it was felt that Dre is the one who really made "the magic" and the one with the rep and the name. Furthermore, while Snoop and Nate were given contracts by Death Row Records, Warren was not. He was the one that got Snoop and Nate there in the first place! According to Warren Suge didn't really like him. This was probably one of the reasons that Warren's raps were taken off of Tha Dogg Pound's classic single "Let's Play House". Being featured on "Let's Play House" would have worked wonders for keeping him in the public eye during the long wait between Regulate and Take A Look Over Your Shoulder. Label politics continued to get in the way as certain songs he did were left off albums during the 90s as Def Jam didn't want the negativity to surround their artists. His earliest recorded hit was "Indo Smoke" with Mista Grimm which generated considerably buzz but unfortunately Mr. Grimm's album was shelved and Warren couldn't capitalize on another potentially helpful association. Another problem for Warren is he tended to not produce for other artists. Aside from notable songs for 2Pac's Thug life and MC Breed, Warren mostly kept his beats to himself or his unsuccessful proteges. The final nail in Warren G's career as a top name in hip-hop came when he was sued by Garth Brooks in 1998 which likely lead to him being dropped from Def Jam records and him having to release I Want It All to little promotion in 1999, the album had a freaking amazing Dr. Dre produced single and it still did nothing. So these are probably some factors as to why even though Warren G is an extremely talented producer and has released 6 very solid and consistent albums most people only know his music from the song "Regulate". So as a tribute to Warren I've gone and collected all the remixes, freestyles, compilation and unreleased tracks that exist from 1993 to 1999. Enjoy!

• 1 is from the Poetic Justice OST. 1993. Epic Records.
• 2 & 5 are from This DJ 12". 1994. Rush Associated Labels.
• 3 is from Do You See UK 12". 1995. Rush Associated Labels.
• 4 is from the Bad Boys OST. 1995. Work Records.
• 6 is from St. Ides '94. 1994.
• 7, 9 & 12 are not commercially available.
• 8 is from The Show OST. 1995. Def Jam Recordings.
• 10 is from The Nutty Professor OST. 1996. Def Jam Recordings.
• 11 is from Vinyl Kombat. 1996.
• 13 is from I Shot The Sheriff (EPMD Remixes). 1997. Def Jam Recordings.
• 14 is from the Supercop OST. 1996. Interscope Records.
• 15 is from The Rapsody 12". 1997. Def Jam Recordings.
• 16 is from the Good Burger OST. 1997. Capitol Records.
• 17 is from the Game Don't Wait 12". Restless Records.