Coral - Altamont in Dub

By popular demand - i.e. one person requested it - here is Coral's second and final LP.  All the remarks I made in my previous post about their first LP basically apply here, too.  The title is more than just a clever turn of phrase, though.  There are reggae-affected bass lines throughout.  You won't confuse this record with The Upsetters, let alone Fugazi, but the intent seems obvious to my ears.

  

Ever since I posted Pillow Talk, I've been listening to these two Coral LPs more in the last few weeks than I have in the last ten years.   As the saying goes, these records have aged very well.  Very well.  With all the chamber pop that passes for "indie rock" these days, it's refreshing to hear some authentically atonal vocals backed by a real Power Trio and put to tape (tape!) with bare boned clarity.

My old friend Doug, currently writing for Dusted and otherwise living the dream in NYC, probably said it best in a Halloween-themed column: 

Schick’s later outing in Coral marks its territory as the most depressive, backbiting, hopeless rock music ever committed to tape, with drops of your own blood. Altamont in Dub was the last release for the stalled Fistpuppet imprint; its title alone should clue you in to what’s in store: a dark, disturbing, intensive reinterpretation of a tragedy. Musically, Altamont is top notch, determinedly metallic, mostly uptempo, and pregnant with deep rhythms, but this is a cursed album that feeds into your insecurities and misgivings, fueling their cold fire but inevitably leaving you assed out once it’s all over. Do you dare find out for yourself?

word.

Coral - Pillow Talk

I subscribe to several other like-minded blogs - far more prolific than my own, for the most part.  There was a minor Honor Role sensation over the last few weeks when at least two of you posted the Rictus album (see here and here).  One or two follow up comments mentioned singer Bob Schick's next band Coral.  That reminded me that I've never been able to find a digital copy of Coral's first LP Pillow Talk.  

Apparently, I could not find find mp3s of that album because no one ever bought it.  There is a seemingly endless supply of  "sealed, mint condition" Pillow Talk CDs in virtual cut-out bins all across the interwebs.  I am still gainfully employed, thankfully.  Doing my part to end the recession, I sprung for a frivolous luxury and ordered myself a copy ($5 postpaid!).  

So here you have it.  If you like Bob Schick's vocals (not everyone does), read on.  If you liked the indie-blues arrangements of Come, and if you dig Crazy Horse devotees like J. Mascis, Silkworm and Karl Hendricks, this is very much in the same vein.  If you slept on this record 15 years ago, here is your shot at redemption.

i remember it all so clear