Following The Smashing Pumpkins relaunch in 2006 after a half-decade hiatus, the band’s ever-prolific mainman Billy Corgan went into overdrive. The ‘Zeitgeist’ album of the same year was well received, but subsequent projects were both broader in appeal and stylistic content. With the launch of the ‘Teargarden By Kaleidyscope’ song cycle in 2009, Corgan embarked on his most ambitious project since ‘Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness’ in 1995. ‘Teargarden’ – an ongoing series of releases covering a concept of sorts – began with two deluxe EPs of unreleased material, but really came alive with its third chapter, 2012’s full-length ‘Oceania’, which at the time of release stood as the reformed Pumpkins masterpiece…
Author Archives: Real Gone
Yngwie Malmsteen box set imminent
February 2015 sees the release of ‘Now Your Ships Are Burned’, a four CD anthology of work recorded by Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen. The set covers his years with Polydor Records from 1984-1990.
The set will be a domestic budget priced reissue of the previously Japanese only collection which included the first six albums. Like similar sets from Saxon (‘The Carrere Years’) and Tangerine Dream (‘The Virgin Years’), the length of the albums is such that six releases can easily be condensed into a 4CD package.
DELUXE EDITION DREAMLAND: UB40 – UB40 (1988)
In September 2010, UB40’s debut album ‘Signing Off’ was afforded a lavish (but reasonably priced) deluxe reissue for its 30th anniversary. In addition to the original album, a three disc set included all the non-album singles in their 12” incarnations and a DVD featuring the promo video clips and each of the band’s UK TV appearances. A thorough job, indeed; the only thing absent was the live clip of ‘Madam Medusa’ from Frejas, 1980 as seen in Miles Copeland’s ‘Urgh! A Music War!’ concert film.
KNUCKLE – This Week’s Been Hell EP
When done right, the two man garage-rock/garage blues set up can be absolutely thrilling. It represents the minimum band configuration to make a noise most effectively. Less distorted than the US’s ¡Vamanos! but more ferocious than the UK’s most excellent Brockley Forest, Huddersfield’s own Knuckle blend garage rock and blues with a touch of stoner groove – as per 2014 breakthrough act Royal Blood, but with an element of DIY sincerity those guys lost by jumping straight in with a major label release. The results on Knuckle’s debut EP, although fairly typical of the genre, are enthralling with a broad range of sounds and styles throughout the six tracks.
Rush ‘Fly By Night’ blu-ray audio disc coming soon
2014 began a comprehensive Rush reissue programme with a deluxe replica repressing of the band’s 1974 debut LP.
Rush fans will be pleased to note that 2015 is set to bring a whole host of Rush reissues, when their works between 1975-1988 get the heavyweight vinyl treatment, each with a download code. ‘Fly By Night’, ‘A Farewell To Kings’ and ‘Signals’ will also be released on blu ray audio disc.