Ultraman Vs. Godzilla

Over the last three years or so, a German label (Thirty Something Records) has been reissuing some Orange 9mm releases on vinyl for the first time. I was never really a big fan of any of the band's later records, because they originally came out on CD on a major label, and I was kept fully occupied buying records on independent labels. Years later, when technologiy had moved on, I downloaded the CD only Orange 9mm releases to listen to them for the first time, and at that point I wasn't overly excited by any of them. In my opinion, each successive release is less interesting than the one before. But still, even though none of them really ever made it onto regular rotation with me, I was still keen to pick up the records.

The third and final CD only release given the vinyl treatment is the 5 song EP 'Ultraman Vs. Godzilla'. This was first released in 1998.

Despite this being far from the best Orange 9mm release, the packaging on this vinyl version is pretty damn cool. I got a version which comes in an additional, wraparound style cover.

Like a lot of records these days, this is one sided 12", with a screen printed design on the flipside. For some reason, it kinda looks like a CD in this photo. Also, the back cover is hand numbered out of 200, although the label's website states that this version is out of 100. So who knows which number is correct.

When you open this additional cover, inside is a copy of the record in the regular sleeve.

For me this is the weakest O9mm record. By this point, original guitarist Chris Traynor had left, and the landscape was changing. My memories of 1998 are a little hazy, but I certainly remember that hardcore scene was fragmenting and moving in different directions at that point, and older bands on major labels didn't really have much of a place. But if this vinyl version would have come out back in 1998, no doubt I would have picked it up and given this record a real chance.