Yet Another Fanzine: When Cows Ruled The Earth compilation

On occasion, in addition to the band releases, I'm going to post on rare/hard to track down compilations. Here is one such release: the cassette compilation When Cows Ruled The Earth from a 1985 edition of the Yet Another Fanzine zine.

Luckily, the Vinyl Mine blog posted extensively about the release, which includes tracks by Scrawl, Gibson Bros., Great Plains, RC Mob and more. Here's an excerpt:

Yet Another Fanzine were aptly titled since Columbus was a fountain of many, many zines including one of the grand-daddies - The Offense Newsletter. The music and scene echoed the proximity to Cleveland and the first punk wave (Peter Laughner and his gang of merry men) and later no-wave (Pere Ubu, etc.) as well as the Akron weirdness but with a friendly, bent elbows around the bar feel. One of those scenes where everyone knew everyone and pretty much liked each other. There's something about Ohio that drives a man person a bit crazy but in that nice mid-western way. Of course, having a huge University nearby also contributed to the pool of musicians,aspiring songwriters and most importantly bars and people with Daddy's cover charge money.  

I visited Columbus during this time, at the invitation of the great local college radio DJ (and psychologist), s. b. tobias who I met over the early Internet (the wild time between ARPA-net and Internet when several networks were duct-taped together). The weekend I visisted was also "Hands Across America" (no, we didn't participate) and we spent it drinking, hanging out with Ron House (then Great Plains now Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments), drinking, meeting Don Howland (then rock critic now 1/2 half of Gibson Bros.), listening to the Beastie Boys album, drinking and of course hanging with s. b.'s good friends Craig Koon and Keith Baker, who published Yet Another Fanzine and this tape. 

Video: Kurt Kellison - Jurisdiction

Unfortunately, with there being hardly any info about IDF online, finding a video is impossible. I was able to dig up this track that IDF member and Atavistic label founder Kurt Kellison contributed to the Pure And Painless Pleasures comp from 1988.

Electrical Audio Message Board on IDF

There is next to nothing on IDF on the web. In fact, the only mention I could find of the band was on the message board for the Electrical Audio studio run by Steve Albini. Part of a "Crap / Not Crap" poll, a few folks chimed in on the band, including Casey Rice, who provided some additional history:

The lineup was as stated, but later Elliot and I left, and Josh Thomas (who is general manager of Rupert Neve now) and Mike Clark were in the band for a while too. Yes, we were highly derivative. It was fun even if we don't make rock history as the greatest quasi-industrial band from Columbus, OH in the 80s.

New Additions: Convulsion by IDF

The industrial noise band IDF is a perfect example of finding an interesting diamond in the rough while working on the book project. In the vein of Einstürzende Neubauten or Swans, the band definitely shows its influences while making something compelling. I was lucky to grab copies of both albums from the same seller on Discogs, completing the discography (minus the VHS release) in one quick purchase, which rarely happens.

Know Yer Band: IDF

Band: IDF

Members
Vocals/Guitar/Piano - Paula Froehle
Vocals/Guitar/Electronics - Casey Rice
Percussions - Elliot Dicks
Bass/Electronics/Tapes - Kurt Kellison
Sampler/Additional - M. Clark

Releases
1986 - Convulsion album (Atavistic)
1987 - Carcass Party (Atavistic)

Rolling Stone: Lo-Fi Loss - Jim Shepard Dead

The death of Jim Shepard reverberated not only through the Columbus music and art community, but the nationwide music scene, particularly the lo-fi and experimental scene. Rolling Stone wrote about this death in 1998, here is some of that article:

Shepard, who was forty-four, began his primordial assault on the collective consciousness back in the late Seventies, presaging the lo-fi revolution to come on a slew of self-released cassettes and micro-pressed albums. After an enforced break — one caused by a work injury that left him with a severely mangled hand — Shepard turned the Vertical Slit “project” into a full-time band, with an attendant name change to V-3.

Video: Vertical Slit - Slowly The Music Plays

Shit-Fi.com: Vertical Slit

Over at Shit-Fi.com, the reissue of Jim Shepard's Slit and Pre-Slit release is reviewed. Here is some of that:

By now many have surely noticed the increasing interest in the peculiar formation that was the Columbus underground rock scene of the 1970s and 1980s. If Mike Rep and the Quotas’s “Rocket to Nowhere”—the most aptly titled record of all time—is the lodestone to which fascination with the roots of this scene was initially drawn,* Vertical Slit’s “Slit and Pre-Slit” has long been the talisman, the mysterious record that one knew existed and suspected was the explanatory key that would reveal how to fix not just Columbus but perhaps Ohio and even the United States into a historical accounting of punk’s emergence in what I call “the long 1970s.”** Upon finally hearing this record, I am not sure that it reveals the keys to mysteries; instead, we can be grateful that it actually creates more mysteries for us. This record is unlike any other. Its original pressing size of 100 copies had mundane causes, but where the obscurity (and hence fetishism) of it seemed to turn on its unobtainable material character, in listening to it, the obscurity strikes me as embedded in the music too. It wasn’t just that one couldn’t find the record, it’s that once one found it and heard it, what one heard was nearly void of referents. In time, of course, punk and industrial and noise and UK DIY, and even bedroom psych and folk that preceded or coincided with it, would all echo it, giving it a strong premonitory and otherworldly quality, even as none of these forms in general took any influence from it. Is it a Rosetta Stone of underground music of the post-1960s, pre-punk moment?

New Additions: Under The Blood Red Lava Lamp album by Vertical Slit

Digging into the various releases and projects of Jim Shepard has been an interesting experience. The music is far more experimental and avant-garde than anything I'm used to as a music listener. While a number of discoveries have tipped me to new favorites, I'm still getting used to Shepard's work, such as the 1986 album Under The Blood Red Lava Lamp by Vertical Slit, which was originally released as a cassette on Old Age, but re-released on Siltbreeze in 1999 on CD with additional tracks.

Know Yer Band: Vertical Slit

Band: Vertical Slit

Members
Jim Shepard - vocals/guitar/piano/tape/other
Dan Juranko - bass/vocals/tape/effects
David Mikula - drums/percussion

Releases
1979 - Urban Imprint 7" single (Not On Label)
1980 - New Thrill / New Pill 7" single (New Age)
1986 - Under The Blood Red Lava Lamp album (Old Age)
1988 - Basement 2215 album (Iron Press)
1990 - Vertical Slit And Beyond compilation album (Ropeburn)
1991 - Your Wife Is Licking My Strobe Light And Grinning album (Iron Press)
1997 - Twisted Steel And The Tits Of Angels album (Spirit Of Orr)

Everyone Loves Guitar Podcast: Mark Chatfield of The Godz and Rosie Audio Interview

In 2018, Mark Chatfield of The Godz and Rosie chatted with the Everyone Loves Guitar podcast about The Godz, Rosie, Bob Seger and more. Check it out:

Video: Pacific Dead End by Kopaz

Columbus Underground: Kopaz Releases Final Album, Rocks Rumba Tonight (2010)

After a hiatus, Kopaz returned in 2010 to release the long-gestating Teeth Like Cities, which included a release show at Rumba Cafe. Here is an interview the Columbus Underground did with the band back in 2010:

Luckily for us, Kopaz had been writing new songs following Future Radiant Shine prior to their break in ’06. They decided to start recording them at home on their own and on their own terms. Although their interest in the music never faded, time and obligations and other projects intervened, and the emerging record remained unfinished. However, in late 2008, the band hired Jon Chinn to mix one of the recordings, and the project once again picked up steam. Fast forward to the summer of 2010. Teeth Like Cities is complete, and the band is ready to share their songs with the world. The album is a departure from the “pop urgency” of their previous efforts. Instead, Teeth is a beautiful album that “revels in the darkness and mystery of a band on the verge of collapse.”

New Additions: Future Radiant Shine by Kopaz

Kopaz are not new to me. I had the pleasure of playing on bills with them around town, and seeing them as well, and they never disappointed. I bought their 2001 debut Starboard Rail when it came out, but failed to grab their follow-up Future Radiant Shine released on We Want Action in 2004. Luckily I recently rectified that, and I'm glad I did, as the band is in at their peak with their take on math rock riffing.

Know Yer Band: Kopaz

Band: Kopaz

Members
Vocals/Guitar - Brian Hake
Guitar/Vocals - Sean Gardner
Bass/Synth - Kevin Davison
Drums - Nathan Keister

Releases
2001 - Starboard Rail album (Not On Label)
2004 - Future Radiant Shine (We Want Action)
2010 - Teeth Like Cities (We Want Action)

Wicked Productions - Ronald Koal Live Recordings

You never know what you're going to find when you start Googling, take this bootleg live recording of the Ronald Koal Band at Chelsie's from September 2nd, 1989. There are interesting comments below, including from the drummer at the time, Jeff Wentz. The entire show is currently available for download. This is one of three different shows available to check out, including a show at Ruby Tuesday's in 1987 and the Newport in 1988.

Video: Razor Penguins - Paris

Systems Of Romance Blog on Razor Penguins

There are not a lot posts about Razor Penguins on the web, but luckily a few blogs over the years have discovered the music and written about it. At the Systems Of Romance blog, they get into the discography, here is a snip of that:

These two releases appeared with a five year gap in between, quite a long time to wait for a follow up… The first 7” is incredible, both tracks gloomy and incisive as ever. “Paris” sounds right at home with Lung Overcoat, another US band with a similarly UK-inspired sound. The flip is far gloomier, with a nasty churning guitar working its way throughout much of the backing track. The second 7” is a bit more of an instrumental affair, though their style hadn’t changed much in five years. The title track has a bit of spoken word vibe throughout, while the second song is a straight instrumental, akin to the likes of the recent Savage Republic reissues which stripped their otherwise classic material of vocals.

New Additions: Paris / Indifference single by Razor Penguins

There are plenty of bands that managed to put out one or only a few releases. Most end up being nice artifacts of various period throughout the scene, and a few make indelible impressions that keep listeners interested for decades. Razor Penguins is more the latter. They managed a pair of seven inch singles, five years a part, yet if you Google their name, you'll find blog posts and comments about them into the 2000s. Perhaps the particular genre - the nebulous post-punk sound that's equal parts intimate and distancing. I was able to track down a copy of their first release, the 1981 two-song single Paris / Indifference, and I understand the continued interest.

Know Yer Band: Razor Penguins

Band: Razor Penguins

Members
Dave Troutner: Guitar
Bob Nerone: Drums and vocals
Jeffrey White: Bass and vocals
Also: Michael Perry, Rob Frame

Releases
1981 - Paris / Indifference ‎7" single (Moment)
1986 - The Math Professor / August ‎7" single (Moment)

NBC4: Bernies closing after 40 years on High Street

When Bernie's closed in 2015, it marked the closing a chapter of in Columbus music. The last bar that catered to original music and helped foster the indie/underground music scene directly across from campus closed, and NBC4 covered it. Here's the a bit, and clicking this link takes you to video.

Bars come and go all the time, but this one is different. 

It is a definitive local bar in the basement of a building on North High Street--it was this block's local bar, and had been for years. 

Bernies started as a bagel shop and deli and transformed into a night spot gradually over the last four decades. 

It is one of the last of the non-corporate pubs on campus. 

"We've been here 21 years. Bernies has been here 40 total," said Roma Painter, owner of Bernies. "And it's going to be changing completely not just here but on campus in general." 

Bernie's is closing on this New Year's Eve. 

It is making room for more upscale development on High Street.

Video: Gaunt Live @ Stache's 1994

Wilfully Obscure Blog: Gaunt but not forgotten

Back in 2011, the Wilfully Obscure blog (which has been going strong since 2007) reminisced about the passing of Jerry Wick around the ten year anniversary of his death in 2001. Here's a snippet:

I saw Gaunt twice, and though I had ample opportunity to introduce myself to the band, I passed.  Never had a conversation with Jerry, or so much as submitted a fan letter.  No drooling fanboy adoration here, just a sincere respect for the group's music and down to earth ethos.  Nevertheless, when I learned on January 11, 2001 that he was the victim of a hit and run accident while bicycling home in the small hours of the night before, I was instantly dumbstruck and gutted.  I was the one that broke the news to a number of my friends, mostly via email.  I recall getting home from work that night and scouring the web for any more info on the circumstances of his death, looking for a 'chatroom' or a 'thread' where I could share my thoughts.  I did find a site where I was able to leave condolences for his family, and I left it at that.