For sale for Carey Lander's chosen charity: Original 1997 Camera Obscura demo (all funds to Sarcoma UK)

Thanks to everyone who bid on a shared the link to this blog and to the auction itself.  Bidding closed at a fabulous 470.00 GBP.  Thanks, also, to the winning bidder for their tremendous generosity for a great cause.

A little over a week ago Carey Lander from Camera Obscura tragically succumbed to bone cancer at 33.  I didn't know her well - we only shared a laugh or two on a couple of occasions - but I loved her keyboard work with Camera Obscura and those I know who knew her always spoke of her with great affection.  She was a lovely presence round town and will be missed.  In the last few months Carey raised an amazing amount of money for the cancer charity Sarcoma UK.  In her honour, I'd like to make some sort of contribution so I'm selling an extremely rare 1997 homemade Camera Obscura demo tape via ebay.  This predates the group's beautiful first single, 'Park and Ride'.  100% of all funds raised will go to Sarcoma UK and postage is free to anywhere in the world.  Please take a look at the listing and it would be much appreciated if you would pass it on to anyone who might be interested.

Thanks for your help,

brogues

>> The 7 day listing is here <<

David Pollock's touching obituary for The Scotsman is here. 

Update @ 11:12pm:

Some interesting details about the tape/artwork from the official Camera Obscura Facebook page:

"An extremely rare item is being auctioned for Carey's Sarcoma UK campaign. An original 1997 demo tape from us. Not sure how many of these we made back in the day, realistically it was probably 10-20, I doubt any of us still have one lying about (I certainly don't). The sleeve was taken from an old photograph taken in Spain, and given a bit of a Peter Saville design-style tracing paper cover like New Order's Low Life album. Worth bidding on to help a great cause, and certainly an interesting and fairly unique piece of Obscura history."

Blank Realm @ The Hug & Pint (28/09/2015)

One of the reasons why Not Unloved went on an unplanned summer long hiatus was that a cavalcade of great bands stampeded through Glasgow.  Staying up late more often than is sensible makes it a little tricky to remember the half of what went on but one thing is for sure, no group played harder (the guitarist broke a string on the first song!) or more thrillingly than Brisbane's, Blank Realm did at The Hug & Pint in September.  David and Heather Leigh from Volcanic Tongue cajoled me into buying Blank Realm's records a while back and, sure, I got all steamed-up over them but they just didn't suggest that, live, Blank Realm would scorch the paint from the walls whilst branding BR in a heart on my heart forever.  Guitars careened between ultra-fast garage jangle to blazing effects pedal wallop and back in thrilling instants. Perversely, maybe, the little of run of quieter songs for which vocalist and drummer Daniel Spencer emerged from behind his kit to sway centre stage is the bit I have replayed in my mind most often .  'Dream Date' from the recent 'Illegals In Heaven' (Fire Records) lp was the real scene-stealer - the best 80s Brat Pack high school prom clinch soundtrack ever.  Some Monday nights are better than others.  Some Monday nights are unforgettable.

(The) Esquires "Settle Down"

(The) Esquires seems to have been a pretty popular band name back in the 1960s. From what I've heard online, all of the groups who operated under that name were worthy of a spin or two at least but the only one whose record I actually ponied up hard cash for (ok, Paypalled Craig Moerer for) is the Springfield, Missouri incarnation:

'Settle Down' has surely set many a Chelsea boot tapping over the years.  Possibly because Glasgow has just had it's Double Sight psych weekender at the end of a week or so of playing host to a bunch of the groups who converged on Liverpool for its annual International Festival of Psychedelia, I've been spinning it loads, each time anticipating rabidly the surprisingly trippy sequence at around a minute in.  Bonus Not Unloved points for the untypically romantic lyrics, too.

You can read about The Esquires over at the always reliable Garage Hangover.

The Squares "This Is Airebeat"

"If you're bored today
 Stand up and say
 But try and do something constructive
 Instead of just being disruptive"

- The Squares "This Is Airebeat"

The Squares released "This Is Airebeat" in '79 so I'm guessing that these lyrics were a rebuke to the legions of disaffected punk kids lurking around town centres spray painting 'No Future' on every spare inch of wall space.  I'm sure, too, that those punks just shrugged dismissively and ignored them, thinking that they were well named.  Still, it's a sweet pop tune and with such clean guitars and crisp vocals it sits well with some of the acts on Slumberland Records such as Literature  or Devon Williams.

Ruby

If cartoon think bubbles had appeared above my head on today's amble through the park, they would mostly have contained randomly ordered lines from "Ruby" by Sneakers: "Talk is cheap!", "It's funny, you don't look like a character assassin", "Slander me, I'll libel you" and so on.

When I wrote previously about one of Chris Stamey's pop masterpieces I knew then that I didn't know enough about his other work.  Ominvore Recordings have filled-in some of the gaps in my knowledge with their CD release* of his 70s work (and that of Big Quiet and R.E.M. producer Mitch Easter) with Sneakers.  Coming on a like a tougher Big Star, they made the kind of melody riddled power pop that zines like Bucketful of Brains brought to suburban bedrooms the nation over in the wake of R.E.M..  Their take on The Grass Roots'"Let's Live For Today" is a real highlight.  It bursts from the speakers with such verve that it's impossible not to belt out "Sha la la live for today!" at the top of your lungs; neighbours be damned!

* - There was a US 10" for Black Friday 2014 but, if the location of the sellers on discogs is any guide, not many copies made it to Europe.

Big Quiet 7"

Big Quiet explode out of the traps with their debut 7", the Mitch Easter-produced "Maura & Dana" (Unblinking Ear).  The title track which previously graced the group's cassette, zips along at pace, casually tossing out radiant melodies and guitar lines that make yr heart beat faster and have you yearning for the days when Velocity Girl were at their peak.  It's a shame that Parasol Mailorder is no more.  They would've sold a bunch of these.  With their descriptive adroitness, I would have ordered a copy in a heartbeat.  When I finally get my hands on a physical copy, I'm going to relish turning the volume knob on my amp to dangerous and blasting the flip, "Style & Pace".  After a restrained intro, guitars, bass, drums and cymbals hurtle unstoppably as Marisa Cerio belts out a terrific vocal that should have admirers of Sleater-Kinney itching to hear more.  If this single and Ex Hex's "Rips" are any guide, it would appear that Mitch Easter is on the form of his life.

Sweet Pearl / Saun & Starr

Sometimes the word 'love' just ain't strong enough. In the case of Memphis act Sweet Pearl's 1981 soft funk miracle "You Mean Everything To Me", not even 'adore' nor any other word you care to suggest that's even stronger than that can express my feelings towards it:

"So, tonight let me hold you once again

Whisper sweet encouraging words

That would make me feel that you're my only man"

So gentle, so romantic and what an admirably restrained production. It's got a real recorded-late-at-night sound, too; the musicians delivering relaxed performances wholly devoid of the urgency of daytime. Unfortunately, as is so often the case with music of this ilk, the ritual checks of collectorsfrenzy and popsike revealed original Leopard Head label copies to be pricier than my wee wallet can handle.   Thus far I haven't spotted any legitimate or even dubious grey area reissues or, for that matter, CD compilations that would tide me over until the miracle 50p charity shop find that's destined to happen at some point (dream on, Not Unloved!).  Let's hope BGP or the venerable Kent label sees fit to restore it to print on 45 in the near future. 

Q: How did Not Unloved first encounter "You Mean Everything To Me"?

A: Levanna McLean danced to it in Northern Soul Girl Dancing 17.

On a similar tip (do people still say that - probably not, I'll wager), Saun & Starr's "Look Closer" single from a bit back now crops up as the lead track on their debut lp for Daptone.  It still sounds stunning:

Easy brilliance, huh?  It's scarcely imaginable that two voices could be more complementary.  When the sun finally sticks around long enough to justify a trip to the beach, I'll jauntily paddle in the Firth of Clyde with it on my headphones and it'll be the best.