Remember that this will be the last week with our 3CDs for the price of two offer. After that I’m going to be out for the rest of the year. So take advantage of this opportunity if you want!
As expected, at the end of the year it is usually quiet, but I’ve done my best to look for new finds over the weekend.
Marthas & Arthurs: never heard this band but it does sound really lovely. The albums are not from today. They date from 2012 and 2016. Maybe it is time to catch up with them! The albums are available on CD. But that’s not all, there are singles, EPs, and more. I urge everyone to check them out and discover their discography as I am doing now.
Say Sue Me: our favourite South Korean band have released a Christmas EP on 12″ vinyl! There are four songs on it that deserve our attention, “Christmas, It’s Not a Biggie”, “Too Expensive Christmas Tree”, “Out of Bed” and “After this Winter”. As usual it is brilliant stuff!
Spesh: this Seattle band released their first album last September on Killroom Records. Titled “Famous World” the album comes with 10 fine slices of guitar pop. The album is available on CD and also on vinyl.
Swimming Tapes: this is kind of an oldie, dating from September. But I don’t think it has been mentioned on the blog. I am talking about the digital single “Easy Strand” which has some very pretty jangly moments.
Lia Pamina & Dario Persi: their 7″ came out back in June too. I know, I’m a bit behind with some recommendations. But I’m catching up now at the end of the year. There are four superb songs here, “So Far Tonight”, “Midnight Walk”, “Time’s Passing By” and “Il Mio Mondo”. I believe there are copies still available. I should try to get myself one.
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Checking out another band that was on Flying Nun Records that not many talk about these days. Of course, their discography is limited to a 12″ and a few compilation appearances, it is hard to compare to any of the “bigger” bands on the label. But I’m of course curious why they didn’t get to that spot, why they didn’t become a bigger band.
Andrew Brough on guitar and vocals, Jonathan Moore on bass and Peter Bragan on drums formed The Orange. As I mentioned before, their sole release was a 12″ EP titled “Fruit Salad Lives” that was released on Flying Nun Records (FN047) in 1986. It included 5 songs, three on the A side and 2 on the B side. So, “Fruit Salad Lives”, “Walk Out On Your Own” were on the A, and on its flipside we find “What’s in a Name” and “Fly”.
The photography on the record is credited to Jeremy Freeman. And the engineer was Mike Pearce. The songs were recorded at Strawberry Fields in Dunedin, in September 1985.
The same year they released their EP, 1986, they appeared on a compilation called “Whistle Up a Wind”. Released on tape by Every Secret Thing (EST 25) and Art Raith Productions (RAITH 117), the band contributes the song “Number One”. I see a few familiar names among the comp, but most of them are bands I’ve never heard before.
Later on, much later on, in 2006, on the “Flying Nun 25th Anniversary Box Set” (FNCD500), the band contributes the song “What’s in a Name”.
I check out if the members had been involved in any other bands. I see that Andrew Brough had been in Bike, Blue Meanies and the Straitjacket Fits too, and even released some songs solo. Jonathan Moore had been in Newbergs, Bored Games who released early on, in 1982, on Flying Nun, and has also contributed solo songs to compilations.
The AudioCulture website, which is always very helpful when it comes to New Zealand bands, tells us a bunch of interesting details. It tells us that the band formed in 1984 and debuted live at the Captain Cook’s Battle of the band in March of that year. In mid-October of 85 they were headlining the Oriental Tavern. It also talks a bit about the sound of the previous band Brough had been, The Blue Meanies. I should try to find some recordings, I’m curious about it.
Then we get to know that “Number One”, the song that had been on the compilation tape, was actually taped live at the Oriental Tavern on June 18, 1985. The title of the EP, “Fruit Salad Lives” seems to have no meaning. There was an unreleased single called “Bye Bye Mr. Flower” which actually even had a Flying Nun catalog number but it was never released. I wonder if it was recorded. I would love to hear it.
The band’s final gig was in early October 1986 at the Oriental Tavern.
I keep looking for more information. I find a tweet with some cool press clipping, but I mostly find stories and information about the Straitjacket Fits with a small mention of The Orange. It figures.
There is very little about the band online. But I’m hoping once again for my New Zealand friends to help me fill in the blanks, to get to know a bit better their story, perhaps get in touch and interview them. I would definitely love to hear that unreleased second single if it was ever released!
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