Hendrix Mix

If you're a music nerd like I am, you of course are familiar with our national holiday in Record Store Day. Launched a few years back to get people back in record stores by offering up collectors items and limited releases of records, it's been rather successful. I've made it a point to go these past few years, both in April and on Black Friday, as there have been some good releases. Plus its kinda fun to see what record stores get what. Waiting in line for a few hours, well lets just say beer helps. So I decided to close out this year with some Jimi Hendrix record store day releases. Few 7's and a bootleg of sorts. All good stuff.

Jimi Hendrix released a mere four records during his career. Since then a boatload of post humorous albums have been released. Some poorly put together trying to cash in and the majority released by the Hendrix family. Which in recent years seems to be uncovering new material every year. So with that in mind, lets dive into some of the releases.

First up is 'Live At Clark University'. This came out in 2010 for Record Store Day. This at best is a cleaned up partial bootleg. Record at Clark University in Worcester MA on March 15, 1968 during the second show. Recorded under the Jimi Hendrix Experience moniker, the LP is 5 songs. Side A is "Fire", "Red House" and "Foxey Lady". Side B is "Purple Haze" and "Wild Thing". The album like I said is pretty much a partial bootleg with some hiccups along the way. Some are more noticeable then others. This is pieced out into Side A and Side B on the rip. Released under Dagger Records (88697-64873-1) in 2010, this is the first time the LP was played.

Next up is the 7' of 'Fire'. This 7' was released in 2011 to go along with the release of the box set 'West Coast Seattle Boy'. Side A is "Fire" record at Olympic Studios in London on February 8, 1967. This mix is a previously unreleased alternate take from the 'West Coast Seattle Boy' boxset. Side B is a previously unreleased track called "Touch You". Recorded in the same studio on December 20, 1967. Released under the Hendrix Legacy Label (88697-858551-7). This is the second time this 7' was played.

Third in the list is a release from 2013. This is the 7' for 'Hey Joe'. These are the original Mono mixes. Side A is "Hey Joe" and the B side is "Stone Free". Both of these songs are in the Mono format have been unavailable since their first release in 1966. This was a limited numbered release. Released in 2013 under the Hendrix Legacy Label (887654-84807-9). This is No. 4872 (Gold Stamped). This is the second time this 7' was played.

Lastly is a release from this year's Black Friday Record Store Day. This is the 'Fire' 7' released to go along with the 'Miami Pop Festival' LP. Side A is "Fire" and B Side is "Foxey Lady" both taken from Hendrix's performance at the Miami Pop Festival on May 18, 1968. This as well is a limited release. Released in 2013 on the Hendrix Legacy Label (888837-91727-8). This is No. 4809 (Gold Stamped). This is the second time this 7' was played.

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Saw You Drown

I was flipping through the collection to see if I could find something that perhaps fit the doom and gloom of December. I did stumble upon some Katatonia and thought it's somewhat fitting. This is a bit of a treat too. Something a little rare that I'm not sure I've played before. So enjoy a little 10' slice of Katatonia with the '05 release of 'Saw You Drown'.

Katatonia is and for a lot of people, a tale of two bands. Starting out as teenagers in the Swedish Doom/Death scene before undergoing some changes and emerging as a Depressive Metal giant later. The band released their first demos in 91/92 as a bunch of teenagers. And by 93 had released their first LP. Starting out as a Doom/Death metal band the band released a few more records in that genre, including releasing 'Sounds Of Decay' which featured a vocalist change to Opeth frontman Mikael Akerfeldt. 1998 marked a change to the bands sound. Gone were the growls of frontman Jonas Renske, replaced by what would some would argue a more progressive depressive sound and clean vocals. 'Saw You Drown' marks a dawn of a new band and the beginning of an evolution. The EP is 4 songs and clocks in just under twenty-five minutes, but provides a window into what the sound of a new band was going to be. Depressing and moody the album is what Katatonia has been known for in the recent years, making depressing music sound really good.

I got into the late period Katatonia before the really Doom/Death stuff. Not to say I don't like the earlier material, but I'm partial to the latter releases. Albums like 'Tonight's Decision' and 'Last Fair Deal Gone Down' are masterpieces in their own rights. Beautifully haunted pieces of music. The band continues to release outstanding work. Take in this years release, 'Dethroned & Uncrowned' a stripped down remixed and reworked effort of their last record 'Dead End Kings'. I was lucky enough to catch Katatonia earlier this year as thr direct and only support for Opeth. Two Swedish Metal giants with ties to each other over the years. I got to see them after only flying in a few hours earlier from California and still dealing with the loss of my Grandfather who had passed earlier in the week. Exhausted and still emotionally frail, maybe depressing metal wasn't what I needed, but it was exactly what I needed to pick me up. Amazing live show. While there is always sorrow, there is always hope.

I mentioned this was a rare one for me. The album was originally released in 98 to 1,500 copies. Long out of print it was sought after as a collectors item. In 2005 the band decided to release it on a limited edition 10' Blue Vinyl. So this is it, the rip of the LP. Here's the specks; 2005 Release by Infinite Vinyl (Imprint Of The End Records) on Blue Colored Vinyl. Limited to 1,000 copies. This is #65 of 1,000. Record IVS010. There is a bit of skip at the end of the LP and some crackle as is normal with some of these colored pressings. This I believe is the first time I've played this LP, at worst it's the second time.

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