Boston // Orlando

I never realised how much people dug this record until recently, with a heartbreaking £80+ eBay price tag (from a recent auction), it seems this item is in some quite hefty demand. Funny really, as it's a lathe cut, so the sound quality isn't up there with it's wax brother, and more importantly, it's two songs. Two great songs to be fair, but still only two songs, about 7 minutes of music. Private deals are rumoured to consistently hit the £35-50 mark too. Mental. Saying that, the band in question are brilliant, and this thing was quite limited and a fun little release too. 

Here it is. Boston // Orlando by Moose Blood. It's an 8'' square lathe cut, single sided with two tracks (Boston and Orlando). Fist in the Air (FITA) put this out as a limited one time press. FITA are a cool UK label who have released three Moose Blood records, and a bunch of other great stuff. 

It's impossible to take a good photo of this thing. But it does look really nice as a package, and I've always enjoyed the occasional shaped record in my collection. 

The front cover is fantastic, the imagery suits the songs perfectly. A small run of shirts with this art were made up as a package deal with the release of this, but knowing (roughly) the availability of the release at the time, I just wanted to grab the record and check out as quick as possible. 

Here is the back cover. The lathe comes in a poly sleeve with a double sided single sheet insert that acts as the cover art too. Also here you get the numbering scheme. I ended up with 47/50. I'm not sure if this means I got in early and they counted down or whether I nearly missed out. The numbers could be completely random I guess? I'm also pretty sure that 52 was the official number when all was said and done, and they got numbered 51/50 and 52/50 accordingly. But that's anyone's guess as to where they ended up. I was told they were already spoken for when pre-orders went up! If you have sharp eyes you'll also see the tag line EMO IS A GANG. Erm. 

Obligatory stickers and stuff. I like the sticker with the art on, of course it's still in the sleeve, never to be used. I also still have the download card (it hasn't been used either). If I feel the need to hear the songs, stick 'em on right? The last sticker on the bottom right also contains some info on the back about the lathe cut... 

There you go! 

A quick word about this release. This package looks like it took an awful lot of time and effort. A few people moaned about the limited availability of the record; but appreciate these things were individually made, the art individually cut to size etc. a lot of hard work went into this release, and it's really appreciated (speaking personally). This went up for pre-order on a Sunday if I remember correctly, at somewhere between 6-8pm (can't remember the specific time). It went super fast, definitely under a minute, it was one of those definite scrapes of luck (and being armed with a laptop and two iPhone's helped). Before anyone asks, I was only using all of those to guarantee ONE copy, I only have ONE copy. The only time I remember a pre-order that tense was the Valentines day edition of Is Survived By by Touche Amore, but that's a story for another day. I believe this was £7.99 on release day, and it was definitely worth that, maybe even a little more. But £80, I envy a guy that can have that throw that down on what is effectively a single. Saying that, I feel your pain, we've probably all paid through the teeth for a record that was originally worth about £3. The struggle is real folks. 

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.