Swirly Survive

A couple weeks ago I did a post on a great Circa Survive record called 'On Letting Go'; and today I am going to talk about another one. I got this one from the same seller, at the same (incredibly reasonable) price. 

Circa Survive - Juturna - Equal Vision Records - 2nd Press - Green W/White Swirl /1000

This was definitely the gem of the pair for me, as more often that not I pin this one as my favourite Circa record. It's so strange to think this record has been around for a decade. Well, not this copy as the original press was a picture disc split released through Equal Vision and Religion Records. The art was different on that copy, with the above art used as the picture disc. This copy was pressed around 2010 if memory serves. All things told though, I prefer this version. This is the first of Esao Andrews' art I remember seeing, and this variant is stunning. 

Back Cover // B-Side

Although the art is a little sparse this side, the B-Side of the LP more than makes up for it. With a few swirl variants, it ends up looking more like a two colour mix, but here you definitely get that swirl effect. It just kind of makes hunting down the right variant so much sweeter when it turns out this nice. It's nice to finally have a copy of this on vinyl and re-live some of these amazing tracks. Act Appalled is so damn good. 

Production / Mastering / Art credits up the top. Some more art from Andrews' in the middle; and the bottom is where things get a little weird. This is the 'Circa Survive Is...' list including Esao Andrew's, Brian Mcternan and Cats. This band have always striked me as a little on the strange side of life, and I kind of like things that way. 

And finally we move on to the insert, and this side contains all the lyrics. A nice cut and dry way to end this little ramble. Yes, this post has been about how cool this variant is and how much I love the cover art. There is no funky packaging to get enthusiastic about, but this was a great record to add to my collection and so I wanted to share that. 

Getting Letting

It still surprises me how much certain records sell for on Discogs or eBay, and so I get very enthusiastic when I manage to snag a cool and kind of rare record at a good price. I have bought a lot of cool stuff recently, and this is definitely a great place to start. The packaging itself isn't much to look at; but with a record this great it doesn't matter all that much. 

Circa Survive - On Letting Go - Equal Vision Records - 1st Press - Picture Disc /1000 

As you kind of come to expect from a picture disc, it is housed in a thick poly-sleeve to show off the artwork. This album art (along with most, if not all Circa stuff) is the work of Esao Andrews. The only downside of the art being focused in on this side is that you don't get an image of the full album art. This is definitely cool though! 

B-Side 

At first, I thought this was a 'work in progress' shot of the finished album art; but it seems that the body is hanging at a completely different angle to the final art. I do like the way that this side is left incomplete too, with the balloon left to fill with colour. 

At a first glance, it seems that the corners on the sleeve are bent; but it turns out the sleeve has these strange intentional folds in the cover. I'm not sure if this is to help with safe storage or to properly align the record in the sleeve? Either way, it's something a little different I guess? 

Close Up 

Track-listing, label and recording credits. Aside from the lettering around the outer circumference of the A-Side, this is about the only real lettering on show. This is fine by me though. I don't like the idea of the record being used as an insert! 

Finally 

The stickering on the sleeve is pretty nice. It kind of tells you what you need to know and not much else. The pattern behind the lettering is quite neat also. All in all a great record at an unbeatable price. I feel very lucky to own this LP, and as far as my little Circa haul went, the best is definitely yet to come. 

This variant once sold at $300. Madness. 

Getting Over RSD

This year was probably the year that I finally gave up on the idea of Record Store Day. It kind of got big for me in 2010/2011 ish? and by 2013 I thought I was done. Then 2014 did nothing but make these feelings more apparent. I'm still buying RSD stuff now from my local store, at a better price than on release day and without all the queuing up to do which is a bonus. 5AM, 5AM I was up this year to attend this overpriced farse, and the stuff I really wanted can still be grabbed in my local store today for the most part. As an added insult, the only thing I got up early to secure a copy of (I knew there was only one copy of it in-store) was the 'Woman' EP by Dads and that turned out to be a real average record anyway. But today we're not talking about that. 

Sunny Day Real Estate // Circa Survive - Split - Self Released - Burgundy /2400 

There was also a clear copy /100 of this available, and all copies came sealed. The whole 'luck of the draw' deal really appealed to me, and is definitely a fair way of doing things. The only time stuff like that is not fair is when you're a nerd who collects variants. Then it seems like the greatest injustice on the planet. 

Back Cover // B-Side

This is probably a more accurate photo of the actual colour of the record. Matching labels on this record are pretty cool. When I first saw people posting these records on blogs and stuff; I got the idea that people were largely concerned about the Sunny Day side, and were either slating the Circa side or outright admitting they have no intention of playing it. These are some truly dumb fuckers. Unless you know outright that you are going to hate that song, then there is no reason to skip it. Your week is never that busy that you can't spend three minutes on a song that you have already paid good money for. Plus, the cost of a typical RSD 7'' these days means that you really best be getting everything you can from the record. Whilst the SDRE side is what intrigued me, as soon as I was done with that I was flipping over and checking the B-Side out. I still haven't played one side more than the other. 

Finally, the sticker attached to the shrink wrap. I talked about the stickers on a sleeve getting torn and stuff on the newest Pianos Become the Teeth post. This is a classic example of what happens when you try and remove a sticker that doesn't want to be removed. I really wish I wasn't so particular about stuff that really doesn't matter.

Nothing too crazy going on with the packaging here. I do like that the artwork is massively removed from the normal cover art that both bands come out with; it helps the record to stand as it's own a little more. Out of all this years Record Store Day purchases, it is probably the one I have returned to most frequently. The last time I checked too, there is still a copy or two of this in my local store, which is funny as this is still fetching a consistent $25 minimum on eBay.