Chrome: C or D?

"I don't get the big Chrome canonization at all." - depends on how you look at 'em. It's all about the sheer hallucinogenic NOISE for me. I agree they don't really rate as pop songsmiths, but at 3AM when the carpet is boiling over, that's really beside the point.

I see them somewhere between the Butthole Surfers, Hawkwind and (early) Cabs, rather than as a low-fi psych-pop outfit - though they could be that too, at times.

It's all about the sheer hallucinogenic NOISE for me.

I get this, but I think disc one of the Clark anthology has everything a record like Half Machine Lip Moves has but just literally IN SPADES.

By the way, Marco, have you heard Trizo 50? If you like that Creme Soda record, I'd really recommend this! It's kind of comparable, but I think they had a greater scope. More ambitious. They were from Missouri.

http://www.forcedexposure.com/artists/trizo.50.html

There's supposed to be a second volume coming out on the same label.

haha, Tim doesn't like the Buttholes either!

Double xpost (or more)

By the way, Marco, have you heard Trizo 50? If you like that Creme Soda record, I'd really recommend this! It's kind of comparable, but I think they had a greater scope. More ambitious. They were from Missouri

There's one of their songs on the "Love Peace & Poetry" comp and I like it a lot. I'll search their album, your description sounds really promising!
What I like about Creme Soda is the way they were all over the 60's musical map (folk, pop, garage) but with a sort of personal take: also the song "Numero Uno" is made out of that Stooges/VU cloth that Spacemen 3 would have used later.

And if anyone can provide any info on this recent pressing of 'Alien Soundtracks', I'd appreciate it. The cover says limited to 300 copies, no label info. The guy at the record store says that Damon Edge's family released this after taking the rights back from Touch and Go last year. It's one of those chintzy record-in-a-bag-with-color-xerox-artwork type deals, comes with a badge and a patch, sounds fine for white vinyl... but I can't for the life of me figure out why it wouldn't come with a back cover (I'm unconvinced by the clerk's opinion that it shouldn't).

haven't seen the vinyl, but they're back in print on CD as well (though HMLM & AS each get their own disc, it looks like they also get full original packaging)

I doubt I'll replace my Touch and Go CD but if they put out The Visitation I'll spring for it, that's become my favorite other Chrome album (especially if they throw on this for bonus tracks

and a re-release of Red Exposure would go down really well right now, that's the pop one

The plot thickens.
we are very proud to be the label that got these
classic albums back out into the world. they
should never have gone out of print.
but due to situations beyond our control, we will
only be selling these cd's for a very limited time.
once our current stock is gone, that will be the
end of them. so get in your order while you can.

we've been getting lots of questions from you
folks. here are some answers. people have
emailed us asking questions to the situation with
chrome. sorry, we're not talking. we've also
gotten lots of emails asking if we are doing the
other chrome albums. answer is no. and lastly,
"are we doing them on vinyl"... sadly, no. but we
will say this, people have emailed us saying that
these cd's sound better than any other issue on
cd. that is cool.

god i love chrome

yeah they are just amazing

so uh is 'meet you in the subway' the only chrome tune with a video? how comes it says 1984 when the only release of it i can find is on the comp in 79

Great, great band.

Chrome and Savage Republic are the two most unsung leviathans of American rock. Both members of that most rare category of bands that gernuinely merit the term "visionary".

admrl, which Bart station do you think those videos were shot at?

my money's on Rockridge station

Seeing BART makes me sad. =(

It looks like either Rockridge or Macarthur and then Embarcadero? I love the feeling it gives of BART being so new and strange (even though it looks pretty much the same).

the Residents used the Embarcadero / Civic Center BART walls for album packaging once in much the same alien way: http://www.residents.com/bh/forselsie.htm

WOW @ that Ultra link, Milton.

This sounds like some sucky legal bullshit to me. Glad I have that Touch & Go CD already, seems like these will go fast now.

Thanks for the tip on these, I await confirmation from Noiseville that they actually have stock.

OK, these finally tunred up yesterday. I've only listened to HMLM so far.

You know, I was of the opinion that these didn't need remastering, or that you couldn't get any more out of the existing masters, but WOW. This pressing kind of makes the T&G masters sound like they were remastered off a decent pressing of the LP or something - there are points, obviously, where they're getting as much as possible out of recordings that are WAYYY into the red anyway (You've Been Duplicated and Zero Time probably the worst offenders, I think) but Zombie Warfare, March of the Chrome Police and Abstract Nympho (to pick just three) sound INCREDIBLE.

Third From The Sun: arguably should have needed less more tinkering than the other two. Despite this, there has been some. To their detriment, perhaps, Firebomb and Future Ghost end up sounding like mid-80s Iggy. Lucky, then, that the next 4 tracks RENDER MOST OF KILLING JOKE'S CAREER UTTERLY REDUNDANT.

Really looking forward to Alien Soundtracks now.

Could you describe your impression of said tinkering in more detail, aldo? If they messed up "Firebomb" I will cry. I'd like to get the 3rd From The Sun CD but I have an original vinyl already... Got the other two new reissues on vinyl and they sure do sound nice. I'll have to do an A/B with my T&G CD.

It's not messed up as such, but it brings out the Iggy-ness more than other versions. Vocals too loud (for me), and the added separation on the drums brings out the 80s gated original production far more. It sounds better than anything on Instict, but has that same feel.

The drums, in particular, are where I think the most tinkering has taken place. They're clearer (again, in my opinion) than in previous issues, and in doing so they've played with the balance of them a lot. More cowbell/rim/sticks, less bass drum and toms. It makes it sound more dynamic, but also panders to the worst elements of the production. And as I said, the first two tracks (and maybe Shadows Of A Thousand Years) seem to have the vocals pushed slightly too high in the mix or possibly too little guitar, which is in this context arguably the same thing.

But these are minor criticisms of awesome records. Maybe I need to listen to them alongside the T&G issues as well.

re Mike Dixn: bought that Alien Soundtracks LP (w crappy 1-sided cover & badge & patch). While it's nice to have a new copy, it's a weird, half-ass package job. Retarded 2-tone vinyl is another drag, but my old Dossier press is beat to shit, So hooray.

Been listening to the Anopheles reissue of George Brigman's Jungle Rot LP. Guitar and even vocals often remind me of HCreed. Wonder if he'd heard it at the time. Unlikely, I suppose.

OTM about George Brigman! I thought the exact same when I first heard Jungle Rot. The first rrack sounds just like TV as Eyes.

And yeah, the packaging is pretty weak. (Nice badge though)

i can feel my brain dripping thnose rouhg my and my tearsa re taste like rainbows

CHROME

bst bnd nam vr

YOU'VE BEEN REPLICATED

It's You've Been Duplicated Doh!

http://www.cduniverse.com/sresult.asp?HT_SEARCH=AS&HT_SEARCH_INFO=Chrome&song=You've+Been+Duplicated

Will never get the proper luv

IIRC Damon actually rings the changes on "you've been replicated . . duplicated" and Cthulhu knows what else, then finishes off with ". . REPLACED!" Levels of distortion make it hard to tell. It's great, anyway.

Favorite Chrome lyrical moment was in an improvised jam on a live boot where he broke off in the middle of a more than usually incomprehensible rant with the aside 'I don't know why I'm telling you this'. Never failed to crack me up.

does ellison still post here? did he change his name and i missed it? cause i just wanted to say thanks for accidentally goading me into liking todd tamanend clark and the twinkeyz. and now creme soda.

thanks, dude!

yeah, same here with TTC. Found that dude through this thread. Secret Sinema, good song.

There was a nice feature on Gary Spain talking about his days in Chrome (played bass on Vistations through Half Machine) up at Foxy Digitalis but I can't find the text now, just some kind of place holder.
http://www.digitalisindustries.com/foxyd/features.php?which=63

"and now creme soda"

spread the love!

I just got myself Half Machine Lip Moves based on this thread. So thank you.

it is a whole world of awesome!

Amen! Who else is fucking with our heads like this now?

Everybody's favorite label, Cleopatra Records, is supposedly releasing a deluxe edition of the Chrome box on August 5th. Let's hope they don't screw it up.

It's Cleopatra. Ergo, not a question of hoping they don't screw it up but of hoping that the damage is minimal.

amen to that

I have the old Chrome CD box ... the annoying thing with it is that Red Exposure, Blood on the Moon, etc., are totally truncated.

I can see them fecking it up by putting all Non Creed material on disc 3...

god, i hope hope hope this is the full box set. like the lps. that used to be affordable once upon a time.

hi, I'm Hugo, CHROME fan from the first hour. I have every record from chrome (Damon and Helios),chrome by damon edge and every chrome by Helios creed , also the cd's and albums under his name, but, also all the damon edge stuff under his name. My amphetaminesh feeling was(around 1979) that this was the first band that did something you can't describe, even now, still , there are no words for it. from super psychedelic industrial till rock buzz over backwards forward deep
emotional experimental junk Never done before, still not done. We were so impressed that, afer they split up, we still found, HERE iN BELGIUM all,the Chrome" stuff (by damon). Why nobody listens to 'the Lyon Concert' By damon and his (french, swiss?) band. Absolutely top.
If you were there, you would know that damon was going down with the next records: clean sound, but only sometimes nice. No Chrome. Then he died, Helios took over and was closer to the chrome sound. Also during the last 10 years of damons life. I have all the cd's from HC (except the ambient , they are terrible) So, In total I have 15 albums and 20 cd's or something, looking for more. there is no Chrome. HC still goes great, but Damon is gone , and together the magic was wonderfull. Also, most albums weren't Fantastic, but if you make compilations, you can fill 10 cd's. What I don't like is that the re-releases of some albums (alien soundtracks; the best) are manipulated so ,... I have tapes of the originals , or records, they have more tracks than the cd's. The chroncles 1 and 2 Are same than raining milk or alien soundtracks, Forgive me if I mix up a few things. and,... the cd's are again different. And I have the Maxi singles too. I am still in love with the most excitng junk , started end 70ties without HC (visitation) hippie kind of evolution, And till 83 With him HC, I, can be wrong about dates, but who cares when you live from 78 tll 2008 with that deep emotion, love , space , junk, angryness, sadness, and , of course excitement. and the chaos. yeah!!
I want to bring Helios to Belgium, I organise gigs and festivals. All Psy: from goa trance to industrial.I also like JJ cale, Zappa or Throbbing Hawkwistle, tribal , or anything that makes me feel good . James brown. thanx Hugo Peeters +32 15 211 523 BELGIUM BORN '62 and full on, dancer and music desperado. And listen to Juno Reactor different same same. less chaos, more bpm. Good night c u in the subway

Throbbing Hawkwistle!

Gristlewind?

tantric testicles are great too!

I am still in love with the most excitng junk.

hi Hugo

C U In The Subway!