''Dance of Death''



THE TRUMPET SHALL SOUND AND THE DEAD SHALL BE RAISED INCORRUPTIBLE AND WE SHALL BE CHANGED
(Message on reverse of sleeve)

Sleeve - Front

Vinyl - Side A: Repress on Left, Original Press on right - Repress has larger text

Vinyl - Side B: Repress on Left, Original Press on right - Repress has larger text




Sleeve Folded Out - Front

Sleeve Folded Out - Back
Flyer: 
Some copies have a small flyer advertising Deranged Records Releases, the above picture shows 3 examples.


Stats:

General:
Tracks: Dance of Death B/W Zezose
Released: 2004
Label: Deranged Records DER-52 (1st Press) DER-52 RE (Represses)
1st Press Matrix A: DERANGED YOUTH-52-A
1st Press Matrix B: DERANGED YOUTH-52-B
Repress Matrix A: DY#52-A    GOLDEN
Repress Matrix B: DY#52-A    GOLDEN

Pressing Info:
First Press of 1000 Nov 2003
Second Press of 500 Jan 2005
Third Press of 1000 Nov 2005 (same plates as above)
*8 Test Pressings for first press in manilla sleeve/numbered (1)
10 Test Pressings for repress
*Probably actually 7 - see pics at end.

Inserts:
Some (usually 1st press) also have Deranged Records flyer advertising contemporary releases (various designs)
    Variants:
    First Press
    Repress (Slightly different labels and matrix, see above)



    Notes:

    From promotional info:
    The title track features guest vocals by Ben Cook from NO WARNING, and VIOLENT MINDS (2)


    From Epics in Minutes CD notes:
    We wrote this at the same tome as ''Police'' but let it just incubate for a year and a half until Iron Maiden released an album of the same name. We went back to Audiolab and got Ben Cook From No Warning to come in and do back ups at 2am.


    Extract From MRR Interview with David Eliade (2004):
    OK switching gears, what is Dance of Death about?
    Well that song sort of deals with the same shit – its about like the imperialist lifestyle and how its been perfect and reproduced to such a dazzling extent, that people within it are convinced that it is the best way, and that they love it. Its like Stockholm Syndrome, when a captive begins to love and revered the captor. The Harbinger’s spiders laid their eggs inside all of our heads, and convinced us to keep dancing in the muck, because we love it. We love smoking and eating non-food, so we love cancer. We love making money and cheating, so we love crime. We love TV and novels, so we love being stupid. We love war and punishment so we love pain. We love life, so we love death. (3)


    Extract From Scene Point Blank interview (2006):
    It seems like a lot of your lyrics use a classic rhetorical strategy where you talk over an audience's head in hopes that they'll educate themselves. This is fairly uncommon in the broad world of punk, which is usually much more didactic; what's the rationale behind this and what kind of responses have you seen?
    10,000 Marbles: I just write how I'd like lyrics to appear. We don't want to tell anyone what to think, really, I just like my lyrics to rhyme, use interesting imagery and words, and be about interesting topics. I'm not in this to spread any particular worldview. And yeah, when we do have particularly objective topics, they're usually tucked inside a metaphor, so the song is more interesting and you aren't hit upside the head with rhetoric. I had militarism in mind when I wrote "Triumph of Life," and smoking when I did "Dance of Death," but I like being discreet, you know? (4)

    Sleeve Notes:

    Sleeve - Front: 
    From Essay by Evan Blanco: The cover is the Alfred Kubin sketch “Sterbendes Mädchen” [“Dying Girl”] from his Dance of Death series of sketches.14 The sketch shows a girl sitting in a chair with a downward glance as the spectre of death looms over her right shoulder. As death reaches out to clutch the left wrist of the girl, she offers no recourse nor wanting. She is totally complicit with the end of her own life. This relates to the message conveyed by “Dance of Death” in the sense that the individual is complicit with the death of their individuality or ability to self-determine. (5)

    Sleeve - Reverse: 'The Calavera of Don Quixote' by  Jose Posada 

    Jose Posada (1852-1913)

    Posada, Jose Guadalupe - Mexican engraver and illustrator. Born into a peasant family in Aguascalientes, he was an apprentice lithographer at the print shop of Trinidad Pedrozo. His first illustrations were for Pedrozo's radical weekly El Jicote (The Wasp, 1871), but after 11 issues the magazine was closed down by the authorities and Posada was forced to flee with his employer to Leon in Guanajato. Here he taught and published lithographs, and in 1888 was able to set up his own print shop in Mexico City. He began to illustrate Antonio Vanegas Arroyo's broadsheets of sensational news stories (accidents, executions and natural disasters) and urban myths (women giving birth to animals or turning into fireballs). In 1895 he began to etch on zinc, which became his preferred rnediurn. Despite a vast popularity; he died in poverty in Mexico City.

    Posada was a model for the Mexican muralists as a popular artist producing vivid and simple images in a distinctively non-European mode with strong elements of political satire. He is best known for his calaveras, witty images of skeletons performing the rituals and pleasures of everyday life. Often dressed in bourgeois finery, they mock the pretensions and vanity of the living. (6)



    Commodity Fetishism:

    Test Press 5/7 (First Press)
    Note 'Pickering Dot' below spindle hole, indicating these were probably pressed at the Pickering Plant in Canada
    Test Press 7/7 (First Press)

    Test Press (Re-press) 6/10
    Pressed by United, probably following closure of Canadian pressing plant



    (1) Looking For Gold Blog
    (2) Deranged 
    (3) MRR Interview - on Looking For Gold Blog
    (4) Scene point Blank Interview - on Looking For Gold Blog
    (5) 'The Hidden World: The Visual Culture of Fucked Up' Essay by Evan Blaco
    (6) The Bullfinch Guide to Art History

    Sugar Daddy Live Split Series # 8

    (Split With Melvins)

    Front:
    Package comprises the  above silk-screen print, with the record behind, both housed in a clear polyvinyl sleeve.
    Back:
    The print has the 'series number' (8) stamped on the reverse. The polyvinyl sleeve allows the record to be seen.



    Stats:


    Tracks:
    Side 1: 21st Century Cling-Ons  - Performed by FU
    Side A: Rat Faced Granny (Live) - Performed by Melvins
    Released: 2013
    Label: Amphetamine Reptile Records  Scale 133
    Matrix A: 12-0604 A K SST NOISELAND MPO
    Matrix B: 12-0604 B K SST NOISELAND MPO
    Pressing Info: 700 copies
    Inserts: No regular insert
    Variants: No variants



    Notes:
    21st Century Cling-Ons - Announcement on LFG (Feb 26 2013):
    So we did that split with The Melvins and we did a new song for it, recorded maybe 2 years ago? Probably not that long ago, but long enough that I can't remember how long ago exactly. A long time. We didn't sound like this last time you heard us, and we don't sound like this anymore either, so kind of while we were on hiatus we developed a new style for a few days, wrote this song and then ditched it. Anyways, stream "21st Century Cling-Ons" on Pitchfork HERE.

    Sugar Daddy Live (From Wikipedia):
    Sugar Daddy Live is a live album by the American band Melvins. It was released on May 31, 2011. The songs are taken from their 2008 tour, with the majority of the tracks coming from their two most recent studio albums at the time. All thirteen songs were released as split 12" singles with bands selected by the Melvins for a split series. Though some of the bands are submitting new material, others like The U-Men and the Cows are submitting previously released material due to being defunct bands. Off! was the first band in the series to have new material submitted with Butthole Surfers (Although their tracks are unreleased live songs) being the second. Die Kreuzen, Negative Approach and The Necros are all on one split under the title "Midwest Hardcore". 

    Sugar Daddy Splits vol. 8 w/Fucked Up  (From Am Rep Shop):
    The eighth release in this 13 volume series has Melvins "Rat Faced Granny" (live from Sugar Daddy LP) on the A-Side and Side One with Fucked Up's "21st Century Cling-Ons".
    Mackie designed silk screened sleeve by Obsolete Industries. Hand stamped Vol. # on back side. This comes in a heavy duty 8mil polyvinyl sleeve (made for picture discs so you get to view your purdy splat color vinyl).

    Screen shot - Am Rep shop


    ''Here Lies Are''

    (Split with Serena Maneesh)


    Once you saw the ripe fruit / Now all you see are the flies... 

    Sleeve - FU Side:
    Photograph taken by Sandy Miranda
    Sleeve - Serena Maneesh Side
    Vinyl - FU Side
    Vinyl - Serena Maneesh Side





    Stats:
    General:
    Tracks: Here Lies Are / Opium Priest (Performed by Serena Maneesh)
    Released: 2010
    Label: Best of Both Records: BOBR1003
    Pressing Info: 1000 *See insert note

    'Norwegian / Euro Version':
    Matrix A: 108922 A1 KM
    Matrix B: 108922 KM B1

    'Canadian / North America Version'
    Matrix A: AR-16928-A
    Matrix B: AR-16928-B

    Inserts:
    Norwegian version: 2 inserts - a hand-numbered picture-card and an A4 photocopied lyric sheet
    Canadian version:  1 large insert on glossy paper, combining the info / text of the above.

    *The insert in the Norwegian version is numbered out of 1000; it's unclear if there were 1000 of each version or if there were 500 of each and the Norwegian inserts were intended to be numbered only as far 500/1000.



    Variants:
    Norwegian Version
    Canadian Version

    Sleeve Variants:
    Left: Norwegian sleeve is slightly smaller and the print is less sharp
    Right: Canadian sleeve
    Inserts  - Norwegian Version:
    Top: Photocopied A4 sheet with lyrics and credits (single sided)
    Bottom: Small card with toddler image
    Inserts  - Norwegian Version:
    Top: As above (reverse of sheet is blank)
    Bottom: The picture cards are numbered on the reverse out of 1000

    Insert - Canadian Version (front):
    Glossy paper with same image as Norwegian card
    Insert - Canadian Version (back):
    Lyrics / credits - the original version is not much easier to read...



    Notes:

    Best of Both Records:
    This label appears to be no longer operational; the following is taken from their FB Page:
    About:
    Best Of Both Records releases limited runs of split singles on quality vinyl 
    Mission: To create a crossover between Toronto and Oslo music scenes, establishing a trans-continental link between the two communities providing larger exposure, creating a larger market, and developing diversity of alternative music in both cities. Essentially, to create links between artists and fans in both cities through any effective means available (booking, distributing records, podcasting, sharing of resources, guest bedrooms etc.). 
    Company Overview: We are an independent record company based in Toronto (Canada)/ Oslo (Norway) that releases split 7" records showcasing some of the best artists from both cities. We print small to medium run limited edition vinyl with regional distribution to independent records stores offering artists locally based promotion and a more focused and personal type of international promotion.


    Mixtape 4 Inlay Notes:
    1) “Here Lies Are” From the split 12” with Sareena Maneesh
    Here's another tasty little nugget. This was recorded forever-ago, but it still feels like a new song. Looking back at liner notes is a real time warp. This was done in November 2009, about a year after ChemCom came out, during the sessions that produced “Year of the Ox” and the Davids Plan 7”, amongst other things. A real check-off session, where after leaving songs and ideas simmer for a bit too long, you rush in and record everything at once before you have to leave again. In this case, we were cramming to get the 7” out before Christmas, since it was a holiday benefit record, and this 12” released in time to meet us for a tour in Europe. We're perpetually late on the Zodiac 12”s, so there was no real time-crime happening there, because we dust-binned the cycle a long time ago. This song was written in about 5 minutes. Every once in a while the practising and writing is at such a fever pitch that it overtakes you completely, and the only relief from writing is to also write, but of something of lesser value. Our respite from the gruelling work of doing Year of the Ox was to just bust out a really fast song and throw it on a single with a band we'd never met (but who are cool). I actually did end up meeting one of the dudes in this band, at a Carl Craig show in NY for some reason, at 4am. He was wearing a sailor hat.


    Lyrics:
    From the first moment I met you / I feared this day would come / When I went from your only / To the person that you shunned / Familiarity breeds contempt, and over time / No one is heaven sent / I was never heaven sent / We sit across the table / Exchanging silent stares / Now that the affair is over / There's no need to put on airs / Familiarity breeds contempt, and over time / No one is heaven sent / I never claimed to be heaven sent  / You're the one that was heaven sent / I'm not heaven sent / Once you saw the ripe fruit / Now all you see are the flies / Where once you heard the truth / Now all you hear are lies / The pendulum has swung / And we watched it as we went / As we brace for the backlash / I'm not the one who changed.





    Sleeve Notes:
    'Inside of fig': In ancient times the fig was a euphemism for female genitalia. Does the fig have any bearing on the lyrical themes, other than simply being 'ripe fruit'? At this stage in the discography, it's fair to wonder if the lyrics are a straight-forward 'end of relationship' type song, or is it some biblical / Jesus / original sin / loss of faith metaphor? Probably the former...

    But what has the toddler on a lead / bomb-fin bollard thing got to do with anything?









    Commodity Fetishism

    Test Pressing - Canadian Version
    Originally bought in the now defunct 'Hits & Misses' Store RIP