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Plasticland - Mink Dress And Other Cats (1980)

Track listing:
  1. You Were Such A Bad Time 2:54
  2. In My Black And White 1:53
  3. I'm Gonna Emphasize 2:27
  4. Pushy 2:08
  5. The Prince's |playroom 2:03
  6. Too Many Fingers 1:47
  7. Standing In A Room 3:26
  8. A Change In You 2:04
  9. Mink Dress 2:50
  10. Theywore Sequined Masks 0:22
  11. The Lady Is No Lady 2:03
  12. Some Ghost Ship Lollipop 0:30
  13. Headlice Rage And Arrogrance 1:45
  14. Baby Scissors 0:26
  15. Color Appreciation 2:17
  16. Market Place Of Zesty Zeal 1:21
  17. The Mushroom Hill 2:15
  18. Office Skills 1:43
  19. Skipping Down The Nature Trail 2:02

Notes

Size: 79 MB
Bitrate: 256
mp3
Ripped by: ChrisGoesRock
Artwork Incuded

An archival release of early singles, formative demos, and unreleased songs from the first recording sessions by this seminal Milwaukee psych band, Mink Dress and Other Cats is a great way to discover (or rediscover) Plasticland. One of the great neo-psych bands of the '80s, the quartet, led by singer/songwriters Glenn Rehse and John Frankovic, was occasionally dismissed as fashion-conscious lightweights due to their sartorial obsessions, but the records themselves are glorious blends of Syd Barrett whimsy; West Coast harmonies (more Peanut Butter Conspiracy than Jefferson Airplane, wisely); and good old-fashioned plane-crash guitar drones, with both a better sense of atmosphere and, most often, more hooks than most of the Californian paisley underground bands. Highlights here include the ringing, Byrdsian "In My Black and White"; the glorious "Mink Dress" (Plasticland's 1981 debut single); and the garage-punky "Office Skills," which resembles the freakier side of the Seeds. As always with this sort of compilation, some of the unreleased tracks had been unreleased for good reason, but overall, this is a solid overview of Plasticland's first three or four years. The disc includes a lengthy band history by Dave Luhrssen and notes on all the songs by Rehse.

Plasticland's acid-drenched neo-psychedelic sound bore some resemblance to L.A.'s concurrent paisley underground scene, but instead of drawing their chief inspiration from the Velvet Underground, the Milwaukee quartet had a greater affinity for vintage garage rock and British mind-benders like Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd and the Pretty Things. Formed in 1980 out of the ashes of prog rockers Arousing Polaris, Plasticland included vocalist/guitarist/organist Glenn Rehse, guitarist Dan Mullen, bassist John Frankovic, and drummer Vic Demechei, who debuted that summer with the "Mink Dress" single on Scadillac. Several more singles and EPs followed, including 1982's Pop! Op Drops (whose material later became part of the band's first album); there were also several personnel shifts, as Demechei was replaced first by Bob DuBlon, then Rob McCuen. (Several tracks with the Violent Femmes' Brian Ritchie on guitar were also recorded during this era.)

Plasticland's first full-length, Color Appreciation, was issued on the French Lolita label in 1984; a year later, it was re-released in America by Pink Dust with two different tracks, titled simply Plasticland. The follow-up, Wonder Wonderful Wonderland, was released before the end of 1985, and featured Mellotron and bouzouki, among other vintage psychedelic accoutrements. By the time of 1987's Salon, Demechei had returned to the fold. Plasticland subsequently resurfaced on the Midnight label with a pair of live albums: 1989's You Need a Fairy Godmother featured onetime Pink Fairies/Pretty Things drummer Twink, and 1990's Confetti. In the late '80s, a German fan commissioned an album, Dapper Snappings, for his Repulsion label. The albums was eventually released in 1994. Some of the band's early recordings were collected on Mink Dress and Other Cats, while a career-spanning collection was issued in 2006.

01. You Were Such a Bad Time Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:54)
02. In My Black and White John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (1:57)
03. I'm Gonna Emphasize Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:23)
04. Pushy John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:11)
05. The Prince's Playroom John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:03)
05. Too Many Fingers Glenn Rehse Plasticland (1:48)
06. Standing in a Room Glenn Rehse Plasticland (3:25)
07. A Change in You Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:04)
08. Mink Dress John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:50)
09. They Wore Sequined Masks John Frankovic, Dan Mullen, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (:22)
10. The Lady Is No Lady John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:03)
11. Some Ghost Ship Lollipop John Frankovic, Dan Mullen, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (:31)
12. Headlice Rags and Arrogance Glenn Rehse Plasticland (1:45)
13. Baby Scissors John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (:26)
14. Color Appreciation Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:15)
15. Market Place of Zesty Zeal John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (1:22)
16. The Mushroom Hill John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:15)
17. Office Skills John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (1:44)
18. Skipping Down the Nature Trail John Frankovic, Glenn Rehse Plasticland (2:00)