A Few Integrity LPs

After yesterday's post showcasing a few Integrity 7"s I just picked up, I thought it only natural to follow with a few Integrity LPs that I just added too.

The 'Den Of Iniquity' double LP was released just before RSD this year. This title was originally given to a CD which compiled the band's first 7" with a few odds and sods back in the mid 90s. The same title has now been given to a double LP which compiles a much larger collections of odds and sods. In fact, this now includes 23 songs, which the sticker on the front tells us span 1988-89. Not quite true though, as it includes songs from the split 7"s with Psywarfare and Lockweld that came out in the late 90s. Anyway, I got this 2 x white vinyl version, which is the most limited version direct from the label. The paper dust sleeves are stamped and numbered.

It also comes with a huge poster. I took a photo with the LP cover in shot to show the size of this thing. It's big.

The RSD version that the stores got was the most common colour made. Not sure how many there are, but 'a few' would be my guess. Regardless of it being the most common colour, however, it is the best looking colour in my opinion, as it matches the artwork nicely.

And because I pre-ordered from the label, I also received the limited envelope full of copies of old flyers. This is flyer set #4 in a series. I think I have sets 1,2 and 4 so am missing set 3. Just like it is with records, I never seem to be able to collect a complete set.

I also picked up the previous year's Integrity RSD release, which was the 'Systems Overload A2 Orr Mix' on the 'regular' black vinyl. There were only 365 made of these in total, so it was quite limited for a RSD release... although the label then repressed it on three more colours afterwards to satisfy the demand.

I think I now have 6 versions of this A2 Orr mix version of this record. Like every Integrity record, it's crazy how the number of variants adds up. I've lost touch of exactly how many Integrity records I now own, but it's over 130 now, which seems crazy for one band. And still there are loads of versions that I am missing...

A Few Integrity 7"s

It's been four months since I last posted about an Integrity record. Anyone who has been reading this blog for a while will know that's almost unprecedented in the history of this blog. I don't think there has ever been that long between Integrity posts. Although, to be honest, I can't be arsed to go back and check for certain, as there are fifty Integrity posts on here. Or rather, there were fifty. There are now fifty one...

The first new addition is this baby blue vinyl second pressing of the Organized Crime repress of the 'In Contrast Of Sin' 7". It's funny because I initially intended to ignore the second press because, at the time I figured it was too far to make two second press colours of a repress. But when the third press hit and I decided to bite, I realised that I couldn't accept a gap in the collection. So I then had to go back and find the second pressings, which have taken me probably like three years to track down. Maybe longer.

Next up is a recent flexi 7" called 'Piss Off You Bloody Wankers'. There were only 250 of these made, and they were given to anyone who pre-ordered the 'Den Of Iniquity' LP that came out recently. This features a single one and a half minute song that is closer to 'punk' than Integrity's usual sound. It was recorded live in 1992 and was previously unreleased. The cover features a young-looking Dwid. I would say that this is for the Integrity completist only. It's sloppy yet strangely charming.

Next is the split 7" with Vegas. This one is a weird looking thing. It is a tribute to the music of Dudley Moore and Peter Cook. Sounds odd but somehow works really well. This one was released on red vinyl for RSD 2014. There was also a yellow with green spots colour that the band sold in the Holy Terror store. I'm not sure if there are other colours. I hope not.

This one also contains a seriously huge fold out poster. I put both the 7"s next to it for scale. Did I mention that it's huge?

And finally, three colours of the '7th Revelation: Beyond The Realm Of The VVitch' 7". The most limited version was the clear vinyl version that came with the pre-orders for the 'Systems Overload' 2xLP delux edition that went on sale at xmas. But then there were other 'regular' colours made. I picked up three of them. I believe that the pink is the more limited 'band version' although, as ever, cannot be sure.

So there we go, seven new Integrity 7"s added to the collection. I need to make a want list as there are too many versions of too many 7"s that I'm missing. I can't carry on keeping track of these things in my head.

Tied To A Star

I picked up the latest J. Mascis album 'Tied To A Star' this week from an actual record shop. I'd seen the limited pink vinyl 'loser edition' copies on ebay and discogs for about $50 (due to it being sold out at pre-order stage), which annoyed me greatly, as I didn't even know it was coming out. So imagine how stoked I was when I walked into a local record shop to see the loser edition sitting on the shelf for a regular price. I grabbed one immediately and headed to the counter to buy it quick smart.

As usual, the artwork for this record features lots of interesting characters, giving it a very 'cute' look and feel, which goes very nicely with the pink vinyl.

I was surprised to see that this came with a large poster of the cover art... mainly because the copies I had seen on the internet came with a lithograph of the cover art rather than a poster. So this got me to wondering whether there were two different versions. Well, no, I mean obviously there ARE two versions, but I started to wonder whether there was a different loser edition for the UK than for the US? That said, I could find no evidence on the packaging that this was made in the UK, so I then wondered whether the lithograph version is mroe limited, or was just for preorders. At this stage I have no idea though. Anyone know?

I was so stoked to see this for sale at a good price that I decided to grab two copies.

Then as soon as I got home, I started trying to find more info on the internet, and then realised that this version is not hard to get at all. I guess at the point I was seeing them for $50 it was only the people who received orders from Sub Pop that were selling their copies early. But I assume that in the couple of weeks since, all the stores received their copies, and now these things are literally everywhere.

If anyone has a copy with the lithograph that they'd like to trade for a copy with the poster, get in touch.

Second Chances

I placed an order with Triple B Records a while ago. It was one of those times when I only really wanted one record, but then started to look around the store and couldn't help but add a few more bits and pieces. You know how it goes sometimes.

The record I wanted was the Stick Together 'No More Second Chances' 12". This record compiles both of the bands 7"s on to one handy 12" platter. Given that I have the two 7"s, I'm not exactly sure why I felt that I needed this 12", but that's just how this game works I guess. This is the 'Green/Red/White Spearmint Swirl' (out of 300) vinyl.

I also added the second press yellow vinyl version of the Clear 7".

... which made me realise that I also needed a blue copy, so I ventured to discogs to pick one up.

I also grabbed a blue vinyl copy of the Demolition 'World Gone Mad' 7". I picked this up because everyone seemed to be saying good things about it. I can see why. The band is from Canada, but if you had to guess you'd probably think New York.

Finally, the Power Trip 'The Armageddon Blues Sessions' 12". This is basically their 'Armageddon Blues' 7" from 2009 repressed as a 12" with two extra songs added that were recorded at the same time as the four songs that originally featured on the 7".

This is a single sided 12". The flipside is laser etched with the band's logo, which looks pretty cool if you ask me.

Triple B is probably the most consistent and reliable label there is right now. Their back catalogue is pretty solid, as is the current line up of future releases. Anyone think differently?

Disconnecting

Since the early 90s I have bought every Revelation release direct. Back when they used to press one colour version of each new release (which seems hard to believe now) it was easy to keep up. But back in the mid 00s they cranked out disproportionate numbers of Sinking Ships and Shook Ones records (7"s and LPs of each), to the point where it was almost impossible to get them all, especially when you add in all of the limited sleeve versions which aren't even documented on the label's discography. Even now, years later, I'm still trying to pick up versions that I missed when they first came out. Here's my latest - a 1st press green vinyl copy of the Sinking Ships LP 'Disconnecting':

In celebration of now owning six copies of this LP, I took my other five out for a photo:

They made so many versions of this one that I'm not even sure what else exists. I am pretty sure that there is a record release version, which was pressed on the same horrible 50/50 splatter vinyl as my European tour copy (bottom row, middle), and which comes in a white sleeve with gold lettering. Not sure if there are others though. If anyone knows for sure, please let me know.

Dischord Catch Up

So Mike said recently that "there is something less offensive about a Dischord reissue, compared to a Revelation reissue", and I agree. I'm not exactly sure why. Anyway, like Rev, Dischord continue to hammer out some remastered reissues from the many classics in their catalogue.

I was late to getting into Jawbox. I didn't really like this band in the 90s, although I'm not sure why. I think I just didn't give them enough of a chance to be honest. But I finally got around to rectifying that in the early 2000s and really kicked myself for missing out when they were an active band. Dischord recently repressed their second album, 'Novelty', on clear vinyl. The cover has also been re-coloured to make it look completely different to the original. It looks great in my opinion.

Next up, it's the Dag Nasty 'Dag With Shaun' LP. Technically this is not a reissue, but the first time that these songs have been officially issued on vinyl. Again, it looks great, and comes on clear blue vinyl to make things even more interesting.

The 'who is the best Dag Nasty singer?' is an often asked question, and I find it a tough one to answer. I was expecting to like these versions more than the Dave Smalley versions of the same songs, but in honesty I don't, because at this point I am just used to the songs with Smalley's voice, to the point where anything else just feels like a cover. So whilst it's cool to have these songs as an alternative interpretation, I do't think I could ever decide to play this version over the original 'Can I Say'.

Finally, I picked up the vinyl pressing of the S.O.A. '1st Demo' 7". Unsurprisingly, I felt obliged to get both the red vinyl first pressing and the blue vinyl second pressing.

As you can see, this record looks great. The sleeve is a fold out affair with photos and flyers, and was obviously a labour of love for the fine people at Dischord. Based on this, I'm already looking forward to the Fugazi demo when they issue that in a couple of months, even though I'm not the biggest fan of the band.