The Soviettes – "Multiply & Divide"

The Soviettes – "Tonight"

If you were real 7" EP

I love the PB’s and this record is probably their best effort.  Not that their other stuff is bad in way, but this one is my favorite.  It is also probably my favorite THD Records release.

I do admit that I am somewhat biased, in that I’ve know the guys since the begining.  This long out of print recorded was ripped a few years back by Krucoff.com, and they did a great job on thier write up, so I’ll just shut up and pass on the link.
Get it here

Sidetrack

Threadbare – 1994

I was personally never into the heavy emo stuff, but Chad and I lived in the same house around this time and man could they shake the fucking walls when they practiced in the basement.  The THD house was a 3 bedroom house with 5 guys living in it.  A total shithole, but what can I say?  It was cheap, and we had a ton of great touring bands play there.  It was the best shithole I ever lived in.  Three of us had real bedrooms, (Jason, myself and Kyle).  Tim had the big room in the basement but also had to put up with the bands that were constantly blocking his bedroom door because of either a practice, a recording session or a basement show.  Chad…well Chad lived in a closet.  Hands down the worst room in the house.

So I really haven’t said much about the band.  Well, honestly I don’t know much about the band.  Chad , Dustin & Mike I remember well.  This was Dustin’s post-Libido Boyz band.  Chad & Mike were both in Downside.  You now know everything I know.  Wait I know one more thing….you can get this 7" along with some other Threadbare 7"’s from Zen and the art of Face Punching .

Get it here

Burn it Down

The Burn it down video!  Suicide Commandos were probably the earliest MN Punk band.    I can honestly say that I love just about everything they’ve recorded.  My most recent favorite is the Live CD from Sound 80 that aired on KQRS a million years ago.  I honestly just don’t  see ol’ KQ92 taking a chance on the Commandos, but it’s a great recording.  It was released to go along with the reunion show they did at the MN State Fair a couple years back (when Joan Jett dropped off the bill making the show FREE!).

Anyway, enjoy some classic MN Punk!

Step Out And Meet Allah! EP / Transfixation LP

Originally from Iowa, these guy relocated to the Twin Cities and put out a couple records on Susstones .  You remember them.  They played everywhere.  I was never sure why nothing more came out of them.  I really liked them, and they didn’t seem to have a problem finding places to play.   John Kass was really psyched about these guys, and once he introduced me to the Step out and meet Allah EP, I was hooked too.  Nice guys that knew how to rock.  Does it get better than that?

If you didn’t get the chance the first time around, or if like me, you own the vinyl but haven’t hooked up the old record player in a few years, here is your chance to relive the rock.  This stuff was also re-released on CD by Rotz Records, but they are long out of business, leaving this stuff way out of print as far as I can tell.

Posted on the "Feelin’ kinda froggy" blog.

Get it here .

Hiding Away

Probably my favorite band of the late 80’s, the Libido Boys were at the top of  this state’s punk scene much like Dillinger Four are today.   Every show was a big show, and everyone I knew had all their records the day they came out.

Hiding Away was a disappointing record for me.  Not because the songs suck.  They don’t.  To me this one was disappointing because the production was so cheap.  Most of their self released EP’s and compilation tracks had a much better sound to them.  That said, this record still kicks some serious ass!  On the First Strike label out of the UK, these Mankato punks put Farm Core on map.  This record is just about impossible to find these days.

Here’s another blog posting, this time from the "Feelin’ Kinda Froggy" blog.

Get it here .

Shoot your way to freedom

Nova Mob was Grant Hart’s post Husker Du band.  I don’t have a lot to say about it.   I saw them live a few times.  I have a few of those old records,  and there were a few songs that I liked (like the title track here), but much like some of Bob’s post-Husker’s stuff, at times you’re hard pressed to see the path he took from Land Speed Record to The Last Days of Pompeii .    Unlike Bob’s solo work, Grant seemed to have really bad luck with his records.  Are any of them still in print?  Do any of the labels exist anymore?  Who knows?  What I do know is that he did have a few really good songs back then.

So once again, while trolling the net I found this posting in some language I don’t read.  However I do understand the universal language of rock, and I recognize that you can get this 4 song EP here, along with some of the other long out of print albums.  Worth your while if you liked Nova Mob or were a fan of Grant’s songs with the Hüskers.

Get it here .

Love is the Law

Found another blog posting.  This one is from the "Lost bands of the new wave era" blog.  It has a decent write-up of the Suburbs. I personally never cared for the Suburbs, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t recognize their place in the Minnesota punk scene.

To me, a punk/hard core kid that was a few years younger than the original wave of Minnesota punks (like the Suicide Commandos, Hypstrz, Huskers & Mats), I always felt that Twin/Tone put out a lot of really great music….but for every Replacements – Stink, there were 3-4 complete turds.  To me the Suburbs were in the turd category.  College radio rotation friendly, and songs that I just didn’t find catchy or interesting.  Still they were in that first big wave of bands that played Goofy’s and the Longhorn, and helped to establish a thriving and diverse scene in this state.  So I respect them and give them credit where it’s due.  I still don’t like them, but I know a lot of folks from the frozen state do.

From the Lost bands of hte new wave era blog: "Since most of the Suburbs music is available on CD, this week’s post is the 12" dance version of "Love Is The Law" that was never commercially released."

Get it here .

Live at the First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN (8/28/85)

I found another blog posting, this time with a Hüsker’s live show from 1985 at First Avenue.  If you like this bootleg, check out the final Hüsker Dü album, "The Living End", which was a compilation of live tracks from the bands last tour.  Who would have ever thought that a major label like Warner Bros. would have put out a record that was originally recorded on cassette tapes.  Wow.

Head over and pick this one up !

Dirt Poor
Uptown Bar & Grill, Minneapolis, MN
Date Unknown

Rocking the U-Haul out front of the Uptown Bar & Grill, in  Minneapolis, MN.  This was a Supersuckers & New Bomb Turks show inside the building.  Outside the building it was pure chaos.  This is one of those urban legends of Minneapolis Punk Rock.  I’ve heard stories of them playing 3-4 songs, and how close the cops were to catching them.  Truethfully, it was short and they were in little danger of being caught.  This video sets the record straight.

Between sets inside, Dirt Poor rolled up in a U-Haul, and rocked Hennepin Ave for about half a song before the generator stopped working.

Watch the crowd shots…if you don’t know someone in that crowd…then you aren’t paying attention!

The video is stolen from my other website, BasementShows.com