Things are pretty busy for The Lines so I figured it was time for another update, and while I’m at it, why not share some music?

First, The Lines appeared on Ambrosia Rasputin’s show on Resonance FM a few months ago, as mentioned here. Mr. Rasputin played some selections including some releases Rico Conning worked on both now, like a beautiful track from Torch Song’s Laurie Mayer, and then, like a classic song from the Swan’s Children of God, which Rico engineered. And of course they played some Lines.

Around 5 minutes and 30 seconds in, Rico announces a selection from their forthcoming album. That’s right, another Lines release! For everybody who thinks they’ve heard it all, Memory Span and Flood Bank simply comprise the complete RELEASED output of the Lines. After the release of their final album, they continued recording, moving further into electronic, dance and experimental territories. Acute is planning on releasing this as a limited vinyl and digital download, and other then the few times this has been played amongst friends, this is probably the first time anybody has heard this. The song Single Engine Duster is an instant Lines classic…the songwriting and melodies are as good as anything they had released, but the production is more aggressive and electronic then anything they’d done till then.The rest of what will make up this album is varied in style and as good, ranging from atmospheric instrumental grooves that sound like Savage Republic jamming with Cabaret Voltaire to (almost) straight up vocoder and drum machine electro-funk. Really amazing stuff and a few of the super-fans who’ve heard it have ended up liking some of it better then the stuff that actually was released!

Later in the set, the Lines played live, mixing old unfinished tapes with new live improvisations. Very krautrock, very cool.

And that wasn’t the last time they’d get some radio attention in the past few months. At the end of March, Henry Rollins played a track from Flood Bank on his KCRW radio show. We’re proud to say that Henry seems to be a fan of Acute and has played most of our releases on his radio show. You can check the tracklisting and info for the show here, unfortunately it seems it’s no longer archived, sorry I didn’t post about this sooner. I know Henry has played Metal Urbain and Ike Yard among other Acute releases, and he always makes a point of saying how he makes sure to check out our releases because he seems to trust our judgement. You should too!

Meanwhile, beyond their appearance on Resonance, The Lines continue to meet up and play together. With hope, this will result in some shows and maybe even some new recordings! Make sure you befriend them on Myspace to keep up to date on all the details, though obviously I’ll keep posting here.

Before I go, I figured I’d share some more Lines rarities. First we have the version of On the Air recorded at Alaska Studios. After the release of the On the Air single but before the recording and release of the Cool Snap EP, the band went into Alaska to record a possible album. This included new recordings of On the Air and Not Through Windows from the single, early versions of the Cool Snap songs, a very early version of Nerve Pylon, and 3 otherwise unheard songs, Time To Go, Uneasy Affair and Blisstability–the latter two making their first appearance on Acute’s Memory Span compilation. (or Hyped2Death’s Messthetics 102, if you’re really keeping track). Time to Go and the other early versions will remain in the vaults for now, but here’s On The Air…

On the Air (Alaska version)
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/TheLines_OnTheAir_Alaska.mp3]
control-click to download

Another awesome–and even more essential–rarity, is the original version of the song Transit. Recorded for their second Peel Session, Rico would rewrite the lyrics before the final version that appears on the single and on Memory Span. This version is more direct, aggressive and has the classic Peel Session raw intimacy lacking in the more subtle and produced final version.

Transit (2nd Peel Session)
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/TheLines_Transit_Peel2.mp3]
control-click to download

So enjoy these tracks and check out the Ambrosia Rasputin jam session and the special sneak-preview of our next Lines release, which you will be hearing plenty about soon enough.

A year or so ago some friends of mine asked me if I wanted to help out on this movie they were working on, a documentary focusing on the no wave cinema scene that emerged in NYC in the late 70s. I talked my way into becoming the “music supervisor” of their movie, Blank City, and began suggesting music to use. I didn’t realize how serious the project was until I finally saw the rough cut, which was about 8 hours long. The film was beautifully shot, excitingly edited, masterfully directed…and covered so much more than just no wave cinema. While the no wave film of the late 70s and the cinema of transgression of the 80s are the focal point, the movie goes further back to discuss influences in NYC and underground film, from Warhol and Jack Smith through the punk films of Amos Poe. And in discussing the scenes, they paint a more expansive picture of the times, the artists, the musicians, the lifestyle. So while the focus is certainly on the movies that were made, the movie should interest anybody with an interest in that time period.

I haven’t seen the final final cut yet, so I don’t know if all my favorite parts and all my favorite music made the cut, but movie goers will likely hear selections like imPLOG!, Glenn Branca, Ut, Patti Smith and tons of other great stuff.

The movie was accepted into the Tribeca Film Festival as part of it’s Encounters programming and has gotten great advance buzz. The festival site for the film is here, and you can purchase tickets here. The premiere, this saturday, is already sold out, but you may be able to get tickets to showings on Monday April 27th or Friday May 1st.

I know it seems like every time there’s an Arthur Russell related event in town I somehow get myself involved. Maybe it’s because I can’t even put into words how much I love his music? It’s really that simple. This time is going to be special. A bunch of Arthur’s old friends and collaborators have formed a band called Arthur’s Landing to play his music. Peter Gordon described it: “It’s a large, lively band, playing his disco music, songs and instrumental compositions seamlessly.” They will be joined by Nomi of Hercules & Love Affair, Nick Hallett, Alex Waterman and Rafael Sanchez. On the DJ front, I will be playing a mixed set of Arthur related disco not disco and downtown art musics before and between the live bands, while neo-disco superstars Lee Douglas and Just Vandervolgen will be DJing well into the evening.

This takes place Saturday, April 4th at Le Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker St, NYC. Doors at 10, 12$ adv., 15$ day of. More information can be found on the Facebook event page.

Coming soon…another Lines update. Maybe this blog should be called “the Arthur Russell DJ event and Lines update blog.com?” While I have your attention, I did my first Viva radio show in a thousand years, now that they’ve finally fixed things. I actually did it weeks ago when I had a free minute, but didn’t get to upload it till now. It’s called “Chain or Reaction” and features some classic New Zealand stuff, a bit of the Chills but mostly of the Peter Jefferies/Xpressway axis. It’s all good.

Coming later…another Acute CD, some Acute vinyl, some more DJ gigs and other ways to be cool.

Exciting things going on in Ike Yard land. Stuart has been very busy with a ton of projects. First, Ike Yard has been signed by Denmark’s Phisteria Records to release some of their new material. Since the release of our critically acclaimed Ike Yard compilation 1980-82 Collected, the band has begun playing and recording again, samples of which have shown up on their myspace page. Fans of the old stuff will definitely dig the new stuff, it is very similar while showing certain progressions, vocals are a little clearer, the sounds and mood, while still dark, are a bit more modern/futuristic then raw, while the aesthetic remains.

Before that however, we get to hear the results of Stuart’s new record label REC,  home for many cool projects. First up, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the seminal “The Dominatrix Sleeps Tonight” single, they’ve produced 2 new Dominatrix tracks and grabbed one alternative mix from the vaults for a new digital only release. This was just released a few days ago on REC via our good friends at Virtual Label and is available for download, for more info, see below.

Also coming up on REC, releases by Stuart’s latest project, Outpost, which is a collaboration with Mark C, guitarist and vocalist for seminal NYC noise rockers Live Skull and Alice Cohen from vintage New Wavers the Vels and an old friend from the Brooklyn scene of the early 2000s. I’ve been a fan of all three for sometime and Outpost sounds like an interest mix of guitar noise and melody, synthesizer mood and a nice psyche-shoegazer atmosphere. Looking forward to that. In addition to the Dominatrix and Outpost releases, we can look forward to some Live Skull reissues. To me, Live Skull were part of the holy trinity of 90s nyc noise gtr that really had a big impact on me in high school, the other two bands being the more acclaimed Sonic Youth and the Swans. Live Skull were really underrated and it’ll be great to give them another chance at exposure.

Official cover and press release:

(cover removed because it was driving too much questionable traffic to the site)

After releasing albums over the years with Gigolo Records, Troubleman, Gomma and Acute / Car Park Records, Ike Yard founder, and downtown NYC post punk legend, Stuart Argabright, forms his own label, REC, in order to release new music as well as choice reissues.

The debut release on REC is a 3-track EP by Dominatrix in honor of the 25th anniversary of the original  “The Dominatrix Sleeps Tonight“ 12”. REC has produced two new songs and taken one alternative mix from the vaults from 1984 for the occasion. The Dominatrix EP (Dominatrix Party / You Never Forget Your First Dominatrix / City That Never Sleeps V2 ) comes with special cover art by NYC artist David Levinthal and will serve as reintroduction to the global network of playful vibes, soft vocals, techno pop and ‘Drums !’ that is Dominatrix.

Track listing:
01. Dominatrix Party
02. You Never Forget Your First Dominatrix
03. City That Never Sleeps 2

This first EP will be followed by a second EP later this year with plans for the all new album in 2010.

Sample and purchase via iTunes here.

I wanted to post the original Dominatrix video but couldn’t find it on youtube. Instead, here’s 5D by Live Skull, one of my top 5 favorite videos of all time, and one of my top 5 favorite songs of all time.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avyUH2-LNsA[/youtube]

The Lines are back! I’m excited to report that The Lines have been rehearsing again for the first time in many years. They hope to play some shows and record some music. I’ll do my best to keep you informed here on this blog, but the best way to follow them would be to check out their myspace page here. We’ll be adding more press and information and the guys will be be posting to the blog with announcements, such as this one…

Resonance Radio appearance

Dear best friends,

we have been cordially invited to join Mr Ambrosia Rasputin on his wednesday evening, wireless show. Show starts at 9.pm so make sure your generators are fully wound and batteries loaded. We will play some of our recorded music, which has not been heard since the mid – 1980s and then, only by a minute portion of the conescenti. We will also play music by other artistes, and although there will only be three of us: Rico; Michael and Nick, we aim to perform live, making it up on the spur as it were. Resonance Radio 104.4 Fm

So definitely tune in tonight, 9pm UK time, to Resonance Radio 104.4 Fm in London, or online here.

Meanwhile, accolades for Flood Bank continue to pour in. Check out Andy Kellman’s 8/10 review at allmusicguide, an extensive 8/10 review by Timothy Gabriele for PopMatters, and Kris Need’s 4 star review for Record Collector in which he states The Lines are “Monstrously ahead of their time”. Extra thanks to Kris for letting us use his 1981 interview with the band from Zig Zag magazine in the liner-notes for Flood Bank. Both Lines releases got a mention in Simon Reynold’s ‘Year in Reissues’ feature for The Wire’s 2008 Rewind issue, where Flood Bank was also listed in the Office Ambience chart.

Also make sure you check out the January 2009 issue of Dazed and Confused magazine for a great 4 page feature on the band with some more of Martin Mossop’s photography. Great article, but features the glaring mistake of calling Acute a “Brooklyn” label. I know Brooklyn is the hippest place on earth, but technically we are based in DC and the slightly less hip borough of Queens. Gotta represent!

What can we expect in the future? Hopefully some live shows and new music and in the meantime, they’ve been going through the archives and digging out more old stuff, unreleased stuff better than most bands released stuff, I assure you! More info about that soon!

Next wednesday, cult-classic punk movie Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains, featuring performances by young Diane Lane and Laura Dern, as well as members of the Clash and Pistols, will be screening at the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Afterwords, movie-goers are invited to join us for an after-party where I will be joined by Aileen Brophy of the band Corita as we’ll play a selection of punk, post-punk and other awesome sounds. 

The Lincoln Center info page for the film is here.

Tickets are available here.

The Facebook event page is here.

And check out the trailer…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06kCwPpyjCk&eurl[/youtube]

I know, this blog is not what it’s supposed to be. You come here for all kinds of vintage post-punk type music discussions and are confronted with nothing but disco dj’ing self-promotion. I’m sorry, I’ll try to be better, I’ve got all kinds of subjects to discuss, music to share, posts to post, but for now, all I’ve got is this…

If you’re in the Brooklyn area, I’m DJing in Williamsburg at the Kiss and Tell party. Kiss and Tell has been going on for 3 or so years, hosted by Seze and Deanna, and has been a sort of mid-week after-work gathering where techno DJs play their new wave records and each week there’s a new theme of sorts. Past DJs have included John Selway, Derek Plaslaiko, Mike Servito, Veronica Vasicka, Peter Gunn, Small Change, Sam Valenti, Jeffery Ssfire, joining resident DJs Bethany Benzur and Carrie Whitenoise.

This week’s theme is SPACE IS THE PLACE. As much as I’d like to do nothing more than play The Night by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons over and over again, I’m going to stick to a more cosmic aesthetic, as in deep space. We’re talking classic euro-disco, italo-disco, electro, new wave, techno etc. If you check out the Facebook page I’ve posted some videos to set the mood, and will post some more of the next few days, so check it out. I’ll also be DJing with none-other-than Ulysses, a fellow-traveller from back when, those glorious pre-electroclash days of the late 90s into the early 00s. Those were the days.

The party is Wednesday February 11, from around 8pm till 2am or later, if you’re feeling it. It’s at Rose Bar, 345 Grand Street in Williamsburg. Here’s more info:

Kiss & Tell Presents:

…:::SPACE:::… is the place

Wednesday February 11, 2009
Guest DJs: Dan Selzer + Ulysses
Hosted by: Seze & Deanna

K&T Resident DJ: Bethany Benzur
Burlesque by: Amber Ray
Photos by: Seze Devres & Zach Dilgard
Midnight Birthday Blast Off for Eddie O

On February 11, blast off on an orbital space flight with the Kiss & Tell in flight attendants Seze, Deanna, and Bethany Benzur. Cosmonauts Dan Selzer and Ulysses, our talented guest DJs, will guide you as you voyage through some of the catchiest and rarest bleeps and bloops in the universe. Our gorgeous resident burlesque star Amber Ray will be our Big Bang. There will be a special Midnight Birthday Blast Off for Captain EO [Eddie O] who is our Space Camp expert, avid astronaut autograph collector, shuttle launch enthusiast [nerd] and close friend of everyone’s favorite astro-babe Lisa M. Nowak.

Your lovely cabin crew at Rose Bar will make sure you are comfortable and properly hydrated throughout your journey. You will be surrounded by handsome celestial bodies and breathtaking views. If you are in the mood, you are welcome to come dressed as your favorite astronaut, martian, stormtrooper, cosmonaut, alien, or Star Trek-inspired space babe. Costumes are not mandatory, because space is a state of mind. In the great words of Sun Ra, Space is the Place.

Starting promptly at 8pm, our lovely blonde encyclopedia of disco, Bethany Benzur, will be indulging the dance floor with fabulous italo disco space hits.

Join us for a night that is sure to make NASA blush! Darth Vaders & Luke Skywalkers get special K&T love…

Dazzle Ships, the record listening party hosted by Tropical Jeremy and myself is celebrating it’s 3 year anniversary this Wednesday, February 4th. It will also be our last Dazzle Ships for a while. It’s been a fun run but we’re going to take a break, possibly bringing it back on special occasions or when special guests are in town. For three years, Jeremy and I have played some of the least-likely bar music, some of the hippest and weirdest stuff, some of the deepest and most shockingly obvious, and obviously wonderful, music, anywhere on this earth. We’ve hosted an incredible line-up of guest DJs, and they are all invited to join us on this somewhat final voyage by bringing down a few pieces of select vinyl and elbowing their way behind the turntables. Some of our past DJ guests have included Bumrocks, Lovefingers, Beppe Loda, Jason Convict, Morgan Geist, Sharegroove, Robots in Heat, Lee Douglas, Ike Yard, Tim Sweeney, Duane Harriott, Professor Genius, Speculator, Dead Heat, Relaxer, The Galkin Brothers, Excepter, Ron Morelli, Ray Velasquez, Voodoo Funk, Hatchback, Joshua Gabrial, Armando, Tako, Loud-E, Matthew Urbain, A Certain Ryan and so many others. Will they all show up this wednesday? No, probably not. But one or two will and we hope you can stop by as we give this ship a much needed rest.

Dazzle Ships will take place Wed February 4th at Heathers, 513 e. 13th st at Ave A in Manhattan, from around 9pm till 1 or 2 or so. Hope to see you there.

1. Dazzle Ships monthly “listening” “party” takes place this Wednesday, December 17th. Guest DJ is Bumrocks who will be celebrating the release of the first Bumrocks album, El Bum. It is described thusly:

Bumrocks presents a full length album of bootlegs, re-edits, slow-downs, and bonus beats. Features holy-grail cosmic rarities, late night extended disco breakdowns, brand old balearic, minimal electronic and…a Yello medley.

We will not have any for sale, but you can purchase from Phonica in the UK. This will also be a “holiday” “party”, says Jeremy, so expect that Paul Mccartney xmas jam, Christmas Rapping by the Waitresses and the Tuxedomoon song from the Crepuscule christmas record.

9 pm at Heathers, 506 e 13th St at ave A, alphabet city. Same info here.

2. My guest appearance on WNYU for the (Make the) Product show, as discussed, has been archived and is available for streaming or download for your listening pleasure, or displeasure here. (Make the) Product presents the best in underground DIY releases every week and for WNYU’s 35th anniversary, host Jacqueline thought it’d be fun to look back at some aspects of DIY from the past. I brought a box filled with DIY and self-released stuff from the punk/post-punk days. Let me tell you, DJing just 7″s comprised mostly of 2 minutes or less songs is a bit more harrowing then putting on E2-E4 followed by Trans-Europe Express and taking a nap, which is how I used to dj in college. There were some technical problems in the beginning (which by the way is my new DJ name…DJ Technical Problems), but I got the hang of it after a bit.

Unfortunately I didn’t get to play everything I brought and had to cut out two little mini-sections, one was all electronic/industrial type stuff…Throbbing Gristle, The Normal, Robert Rental, Thomas Leer etc, the other was 3 of the releases from the rather absurd label called Absurd Records. Still, I played some good stuff, some old faves and some new old faves, some standards I always play and some stuff I’ve never really played. Here’s the playlist:

1. The Styrenes “Drano in Your Veins” (Mustard) 7″
2. Pere Ubu “Heart of Darkness” (Hearthen) 7″
3. The Twinkeyz “Aliens in Our Midst” (Grok) 7″
4. Buzzcocks “Breakdown” Spiral Scratch (New Hormones) 7″
5. Desperate Bicycles “Smokescreen” (Refill) 7″
6. Desperate Bicycles “Medium Was Tedium” (Refill) 7″
7. Evening Outs “Channel” (Refill) 7″
8. Scritti Politti “Is and Ought the Western World” (St. Pancras) 7″
9. One Gang Logic “Alienate” (Stark) 7″
10. Funboy Five “Life After Death” (Cool Cat Daddy-O) 7″
11. Metropak “OK Let’s Go” 7″
12. The Homosexuals “Prestel” (Black Noise) 7″
13. Sir Alick & the Phraser “In Search of the Perfect Baby” (Black Noise) 7″
14. L Voag “Beauty Spreads” (Black Noise) 7″
15. Happy Refugees “Warehouse Sound” (Gymnasium) 7″
16. Garage Class “Terminal Tokyo” (Gymnasium) 7″
17. The Lines “On the Air” (Linear) 7″
18. Metabolist “Identify” (Dromm) 7″
19. Spherical Objects “Seventies Romance” (Object Music) 7″
20. Grow Up “River” (Object Music) 7″
21. IQ Zero “Quirky Pop Music” (Object Music) 7″
22. Contact “Someone Like You” (Object Music) 7″
23. Art Yard “The Law” (Propeller) Cassette
24. Dangerous Birds “Smile on Your Face” (Propeller) 7″
25. Neats “Six” (Propeller) 7″
26. Lori Green “She Won’t Hear You” (Propeller) Cassette

To help celebrate the 35th anniversary of NYU’s radio station, WNYU, 89.1, I’ve been invited to DJ Wed night on (Make The) Product, Jacqueline Castel’s awesome radio show dedicated to DIY music. For a year or two, (Make The) Product has been an amazing outlet of self-released underground music. Because WNYU is looking back, I’ve been invited to play some DIY music from the days of old. I’ll be playing a lot of my favorite music from that fertile late 70s/early 80s period when DIY really came into it’s own, focusing on self-produced and self-released music, as well as some of the crucial—or just cool—small labels/collectives. Expect to hear the Desperate Bicycles, Scritti Politti, The Homosexuals, Throbbing Gristle, Metabolist, Thomas Leer, Robert Rental, Funboy Five, One Gang Logic and selections from cool labels like Object Music, Propeller Records, Waldos and Absurd Records.

There may also be give-aways to WNYU’s 35th anniversary concert, featuring Pylon, Christmas Decorations and others. Here’s WNYU’s blurb…

*Wednesday December 10, 7:30-9 p.m.: *DAN SELZER Guest DJ Set on (Make The) Product!

In honor of WNYU’s 35th Anniversary, (Make The) Product! will be doing a special broadcast to survey the d.i.y. and small press underground music scene from the past 35 years, with an emphasis on the late 70s/early 80s d.i.y. scene. The show will be joined by Dan Selzer, founder of local label Acute Records (with reissues from The Lines, Fire Engines, The Prefects, &
Theoretical Girls to name a small few), for a guest DJ set on the show. Don’t miss this show during a very special anniversary week at WNYU Radio!

(Make The) Product is a weekly 90 minute radio program on WNYU devoted exclusively to demos and otherwise self-released, small press, and live recordings with limited to no distribution. Check the website (www.myspace.com/maketheradio) for playlist archives, show listings, and postings on guests, live sets, and interviews! Tune in each Wednesday with
your host Jacqueline from 7:30-9 p.m. on WNYU Radio.

and the official show information/description…

(Make The) Product!
Wednesdays 7:30-9pm
WNYU 89.1 FM NewYork
www.wnyu.org

Producer/Host: Jacqueline Castel (maketheproduct@wnyu.org)

(Make The) Product! is a weekly one-hour radio program dedicated to demos and otherwise self-released, private press, live, or found recordings with limited distribution. Be it freak folk, experimental, noise, punk, or free form psych drones, (Make The) Product! seeks out the rarest in vinyl, tape cassette, and CD-R releases from the local and international underground.

Tune to 89.1 FM in New York or listen online at www.wnyu.org through Windows Media or Real Audio. You can also listen through iTunes. Click on radio, and find WNYU in the public file.

Listen to the (MT)P! archives at www.wnyu.org/archive

View (MT)P! playlists live or archived at www.wnyu.org