Begnagrad s/t

I’ve had the Konzert for a Broken Dance CD for a long time and always remember liking it quite a bit, but it really pales in the face of the new version done by MIO, which sounds so much better it’s like a different album. This band, roughly, reminds me of some of the more melodic, RIO-inspired groups from the continent like Nimal (who shares a member with Begnagrad) or Debile Menthol, a sense of experimentation mixed in with a very tuneful nature and a sense of playfulness. Above all, they were too short-lived. Given that MIO is now defunct, this is probably worth picking up sooner than later… and now I’ve really got to set some time for the video that comes with it. Fans of anything remotely avant-prog should consider this an essential.

Dukes of Stratosfear - Chips from the Chocolate Fireball

I remember buying the EP of 25 O’Clock when I was in high school, lured by the cool psychedelic cover and the whole retro 60s pop thing and I did like it, probably more so then than now. I think it might have been the LP that soured it a bit for me, as I don’t remember it being quite so good. Well maybe that and the fact I’m not an XTC fan, which iirc was the band behind the Dukes. This CD collects both and was actually more fun to revisit than I had expected. I think I’m having the same issue I had with revisiting XTC’s Skylarking from roughly the same period - the songs just didn’t sound as memorable as I remembered. Compare the Dukes to a more modern retro-60s group like, say, the Olivia Tremor Control and they pale significantly.