Latest A389 Pre-order

A couple of weeks ago my latest order from A389 Records turned up. It had been a good couple of months, so I had completely forgotten what I had even ordered. Even though I hate pre-orders generally, I think its a good thing when you receive a parcel and have absolutely not idea what may be inside.

First up, the main point of ordering this stuff in the first place - the Integrity / Creepout 7". This has been repressed recently by A389. The original release was done for some Japanese tour and put out by a Japanese label. I managed to get one of the three Jap versions (see HERE), although what makes the repress interesting is that it is now on colour vinyl, whereas the three Jap versions were all black.

Also, another new addition to this version not present previously is two sets of boobs. In my book this is a good thing. You can never see enough boobs.

I also noticed something interesting on the inside of the sleeve, which is that something from the original version has been crudely modified for this repress, as you can see here:

The words are still legible through the marker pen ink, but if you want to know what it says then buy a copy yourself :o)

Next item out of the box is the one that I was most excited about. This is a test press of the Pale Creation 7" that A389 released last year. The Pale Creation 7" was the 7" of the year for me last year, so I was stoked to get this test press. Interestingly, when I placed the order for these records, A389 had a '24 hour test press sale' going on. There were a few tests up for sale in the webstore, but all of them were $99.99. Well, all of them except the Pale Creation test that is, which was priced at $36.66. This seemed like it must be an error to me. I mean, how could the best record in the sale also be the cheapest? I quickly added it to my cart before someone else grabbed it. Stoked.

Next up is the special bonus 7" given to those who preorder this pile of releases. This is a tribute to some band called Mighty Sphincter who I have never heard before. The tribute features Pulling Teeth featuring Dwid, and also Mighty Sphincter themselves. Pretty smart move getting a band to perform a tribute to themselves.

Now we're on to the LPs. Like the 7"s there are three. First up is a record that I had wanted for some time but not got around to ordering - the Niu 12" by Rot In Hell. This is a one sided live 12" which is limited to only 300 copies total. I like the overall blackness & minimalism of this record.

The songs were recorded in some weirdy place at an event which I am told was by invitation only. I can only assume my invitation went missing in the mail.

What I don't like, however, is that the record is covered in weird surface scratches. It's almost as if the plant pressed them up and them put them all into a a huge box without first putting them in paper sleeves, and they all rubbed against each other. There can be no other explanation as to how a brand new record can be this scuffed. Very strange. Here's an example:

Next is the Seven Sisters Of Sleep self titled LP. I know absolutely nothing about this band. I don't even know why I ordered this. It must have been part of the pre-order package deal I guess. I tried to seek out some info online, and all I really found was some dude on a blog who said "Killer new band featuring members of TAFKATA, SPRING BREAK, and THE ARM AND SWORD OF A BASTARD GOD". Might as well have been written in Chinese for all that means to me. But in the comments of this blog, some other dude had mentioned "shit it sounds like fucking Ironside". I guess that's not an unfair comparison. Well, assuming he's talking about the band Ironside, as opposed to actually having intercourse with a wheelchair based police detective.

Last up is the record which has subsequently turned out to be my favourite of the bunch. This is the self-titled album from Roses Never Fade, which is essentially one of Dwid's side projects. However, this sounds nothing at all like Integrity. This is acoustic, sad and creepy music. I don't know how to describe it, suffice to say I don't think I have any other records that sound like it in my entire collection. But I really wish I did. This is really great stuff, and definitely one of the most unique records I have heard in a long while. I cannot recommend it highly enough. Oh, it also LOOKS great. I love the artwork and the crystal clear vinyl:

I think Roses Never Fade released a 7" a couple of years ago. I remember because I ordered it, waited a few weeks, and then randomly one day got a refund and my order was cancelled by the label. I was not offered an explanation. But now I can see that I am going to have to track that 7" down. Damn.