That’s right Morrissey…you can suck it!

I know we continue to say it, but seriously, one of the greatest joys about doing this label is the palpable excitement we get when sending our stuff over to the fine folks at Aquarius. How they find the time to write such expertly crafted abstracts about each and every item on their site I will never figure out, but it’s an absolute treasure trove of knowledge for anybody that’s into off-the-beaten path musics. Pay their site a visit and empty out your wallets. You won’t be dissapointed.

Here’s what they had to say about the last batch of PlusTapes releases.

We pretty much have a standing order for anything that PlusTapes releases. Much like Mississippi, PlusTapes has become the sort of label folks collect, which as we’ve mentioned before is pretty remarkable for a label so young. But so far, almost every release we’ve gotten from PlusTapes has flown out of here. And like Mississippi, they’ve also decided to dabble in more contemporary sounds, along with their ambitious reissue campaigns. Supporting their local scene, while paying homage to the past. Such is the case with these two latest releases, both limited to 100 copies, and we got less than 20 of each.

CHICAGO THRASH ENSEMBLE Demon Cassette (PlusTapes) cassette
PlusTapes really couldn’t get more eclectic. Indonesian pop, surf music from Singapore, dramatic cabaret folk from former industrial icons, Peruvian garage rock, and now thrash metal from Chicago. Hell yeah!

The appropriately named Chicago Thrash Ensemble are a furious thrashing four piece hell bent on wreaking utter musical havoc, blazing riffage, furious drumming, lightning speed tempos, raspy glass gargling vocals, some little bits of shred here and there. All recorded super raw and lo-fi and in-the-red like some lost eighties demo, what more do you need to know. How about it, the tape is blood splattered (okay, maybe it’s red paint, but still!), the covers feature a weird hand drawn heavy metal kid binder beast, with the band’s name in the mouth, and the evil eyes glowing red, thanks to an extra set of red eyes pasted on to the plastic case. Oh and they totally shred, it’s hard to tell if these guys are true metalheads, or indie kids getting their thrash ya ya’s out, but it hardly matters, it’s heavy, thrashy, with plenty of nods to Slayer of course, with some wannabe “Raining Blood” and “Angel Of Death” moments, what’s not to love? These guys probably destroy live, Chicago folks should definitely check them out. The rest of us will just have to make do with this little plasticky bit of old school thrash, and enjoy the vio-lence vicariously!

LIMITED TO 100 COPIES. We have less than 20. Cool hand drawn covers, lots of beasts and creatures, glowing red eyes pasted onto the tape case, the tapes themselves ‘blood’ splattered, each one hand numbered.

CONNELLY, CHRIS Lost Episodes (PlusTapes) cassette
We immediately recognized the name Chris Connelly, and you probably should too – Revolting Cocks, Ministry, remember? But we figured it couldn’t be the same Chris Connelly, it just didn’t make any sense, but the more we thought about it, PlusTapes is in Chicago, Chicago is where Connelly lives, well it did sort of make sense which is good cuz it is in fact the very same Chris Connelly, but this is a whole different sound altogether.

Connelly recently released a full length album called The Episodes, that was a mysterious and haunting solo effort, owing much to folks like Leonard Cohen and Scott Walker, and other dark bards, very intimate and personal and dramatic, a few of the tracks were even recorded live in a Wisconsin forest. So this tape acts as sort of an addendum to that release, but even if like us you were unfamiliar with The Episodes, this is till a pretty intense and satisfying listen. Three unreleased versions, also recorded in the woods, aggressively strummed acoustic guitars, Connelly’s plaintive croon, in the background you can hear birds chirping, other folks talking, very evocative, the lyrics personal and abstract, the voice weary and weathered, sometimes almost cracking, not at all what we expected from Connelly, but then all we had to go on was his industrial past.

Also included are two live tracks, with more lush instrumentation, even vibes, and the result is even more Scott Walker-y with a hint of Morrissey, the songs definitely sound more fleshed out, but beyond the songs themselves the various players get sort of trance-y and the songs get a bit abstract, droney, hypnotic, with the players sort of going off. Features some younger Chicago indie folks as back up, and the result is something that’s not hard to picture on Thrill Jockey.
We weren’t sure what to expect, but ended up digging this a lot, and will now probably have to track down a copy of The Episodes too.

LIMITED TOO 100 COPIES. We have less than 20, packaged with a black and white fold out cover, each one hand stamped and hand numbered.

Demon Cassette Release Show!
Friday, February 6th!
Ronny’s, 2101 N. California Ave.
Chicago, IL
CHICAGO THRASH ENSEMBLE, BIG KNIFE!!!!!

And don’t miss your chance at these limited edition t-shirts available at the show: