Single Series

A few days ago, I received a trio of 7''s that I've been looking forward to get for months now. The cool thing is they're perfect. The downside is I feel robbed of time as I should've had them about 6 weeks ago. This story takes a little bit of backlog and explaining, so let's dive in: 

On the 2nd of September, me and a mate trekked down to Birmingham to see Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World play an acoustic solo show. Small venue, all seated and since it had been about 5 years since I last saw Jimmy Eat World play, I was more than excited for this one. 

After the set (which was incredible, I had a little moment at For Me This is Heaven, no shame), I lurked the stage and nabbed this setlist.

I also did a little more lurking and met him after, getting the aforementioned setlist signed. The only downside of the night was the lack of records available on the night; the records came in late and were only available on the last UK date. The tour was announced around the same time as a single series went up for pre-order. 3 singles, 3 new songs on the A-Sides and a cover on each B-Side. Neat right? So I had to buy online, but they arrived and this post can now all come together, despite it being a little late. 

Jim Adkins - Hell - RCA Records - 1st Press - Red /1500 

All of the records follow the same layout, which is neat. The colour of the 7'' also correlates to the trim of colour on the cover art. 

Back Cover // B-Side 

None of the records have an insert, and the back cover tells you all you need to know. Normally I would moan about no lyrics, but Jim Adkins stripped down kind of allows you to pick up whatever is being sung without any difficulty. This is my favourite of the B-Sides, a cover of Girls Just Want to Have Fun by Cyndi Lauper. He explained at the show that songs he chooses to cover sometimes come without any real depth or reason, and I assume this is quite apparent here. 

Jim Adkins - Love Don't Wait - RCA Records - 1st Press - Silver /1500 

I think this was the first song I heard streamed from the bunch, and I dug it straight away. The colour here is cool, the other two are definitely more flat and I was assuming this to be a flat grey; but the neat swirls in the mix definitely stick out. 

Back Cover // B-Side 

I think all the songs were self produced, which is cool. There's nothing I don't like about this little solo project. It seems more fun than most, and doesn't appear like it will take up any time from Jimmy Eat World too which is calming for me! 

Jim Adkins - I Will Go - RCA Records - 1st Press - Gold /1500 

My favourite of the 3 originals, and it sounded great live. I get that practically this could've gone on to a 12'' or something, but the look of a single series is really cool and doesn't happen too often nowadays. I'm into it, but there wasn't much of a chance of me not liking it either! 

Back Cover // B-Side 

Finally, here is a little group shot

Cheers!!

Capitol Repress or Bust?

So I've come to the conclusion that I can't fucking help myself. Even a little bit. I'm a dude with a terrible habit that shows no sign of slowing down. 

Just shy of a year ago I wrote a post on one of my favourite records of all time: Clarity by Jimmy Eat World that you can read if you didn't catch the first time round here: 

http://23rotations.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/big-wheel-or-bust.html

This is useful for two reasons. First off, it details how a BWR press of this was the only way to go and how this coming post makes me a total liar. It'll also prove to be a good comparison article. If you haven't guessed by now... 

Jimmy Eat World - Clarity - Capitol Records - 1st Press - Black - /? (2XLP) 

Again, pressing info here is super hard to find, but as far as I know, black was the only colour of this pressing. I still also count this as a first pressing, as the bonus tracks and new label make it to be a completely new press. The obvious giveaway mark between the two pressings is the vertical lettering on display here with the mirrored 'Clarity' and the omission of the band name this time around. Oh, the bonus tracks kind of make it easy too! 

Back Cover // B-Side 

The back cover art is different from the BWR press, and the enhanced CD art from the '07 enhanced CD version uses this art with a slightly re-jiggled track-listing. This pressing of the album surfaced in 2009, and if memory serves, the band were doing a Clarity 10th Anniversary tour at the time so it all fit together nicely. 

Track-listing 

The only difference between this and the CD order is that Christmas Card and Sweetness (Demo) are past Goodbye Sky Harbor. This means the CD plays the album as intended with bonus tracks at the end. This was not an option with the vinyl version though as Goodbye Sky Harbor takes up the whole D-Side, much the same way as it did previously. 

Inside the Gatefold 

This press includes a gatefold sleeve which is something new! This is the left panel, showing off the original back cover art and some lyrics. This layout is quite stark and easy to follow, and it feels good to open this out and follow it with the LP playing. 

Inside the Gatefold 

More lyrics and credits - both concerning the record and the new art and tracks included in this press. However, my favourite thing here is this photograph. I love seeing stuff like this, and I'll often grab photo books from bands I like a lot as it really gauges the time and place of a certain record or moment in a genre. They look so damn young here! 

Group Shot 

Maybe it's just me, but the BWR press art seems a little more clear and crisp. Maybe the smaller text helps, or maybe the art for the repress was just upscaled from the CD version and it lost some of the fine detail? Maybe I'm completely wrong! 

So a year ago, I said I only needed one copy of this; but when a classic pops up on the 'Bay so cheap, you really have to take a chance on it right? My feelings on this album are already very clear, and my love for this record has only grown since I last wrote about it. I have no intentions of fucking with a Shop Radio Cast repress, but apparently I can no longer be trusted on these matters. I would love to hunt down a coloured copy now too. I have a problem. 

Thank you for reading!

Big Wheel or bust

This was one of the single greatest examples of having to have a particular record. One of those albums that is of such importance, that a repress simply won't do. Thankfully, with a bit of eBay hunting and a considerable amount of money just about anything is possible.

With that in mind, here is the Big Wheel Recreation press of Clarity by Jimmy Eat World. Another one of those top 5 records that you constantly obsess over. One of those records you couldn't even count the plays of over the years. It's such an important piece of music, one that I cannot listen to one single track from, one that cannot have a track skipped. It's enjoyed in full every time. For the amount of love I have for this record, the Capitol repress (or Shop Radio Cast press now I guess) just wouldn't do. So I set out to find this LP, and after a couple of eBay misses, here it is. 

Plain black double LP. There were 4 variants total for the 1st press, and I assume black was the most common (pressing numbers are just about impossible to find). But I am just so happy to have a copy. Buy it Now, free shipping, speedy delivery and one play through with bated breath. It was fantastic, Goodbye Sky Harbor has never sounded so perfect. 

This is the Big Wheel Recreation cover, the repress has the text running vertically as opposed to horizontally here. The images are just so crisp and cool. The CD has slightly altered artwork (the CD artwork is comprised of the four top right images), but nobody cares about that.

Back cover. Nothing too fancy, band photo, tracklisting and that ever important BWR logo in the bottom centre. I always love checking the back of a sleeve for the lack of a barcode. Look at those curtains.

The insert is just a one-sided single sheet with lyrics, credits and notes. This whole package is in incredibly good condition, if you take into consideration it's a 15 year old record (I have seen a few rumours of this not surfacing on vinyl until the early 2000's, but I've seen more evidence suggesting a 1999 vinyl release than otherwise) . Again, nothing fancy, just everything that is needed. 

The last thing to note really, is that this double LP is housed in a single LP sleeve, not a gatefold sleeve. Another example of this is Sunbather by Deafheaven; some people like it and some people don't. Personally I don't care too much either way. I guess the upside to this method, is that in a gatefold, some stuff like inserts have a tendency to get creased over time by slipping into the fold. But back to the point, I love how this record looks and I love how it sounds. I feel incredibly fortunate to own a copy in such great condition. This is a truly cherished piece of my collection. No regrets ever, this album is perfect.

 I still can't believe I paid a considerable amount more for an LP, just so it didn't have two extra tracks at the end, and so that the text ran a different way. I'm sure you understand though, the heart wants what the heart wants.

Thank you for reading.