A Head Full of Wishes

My record collection: [352] Luna - ROUNDUP (signed CD)

Andy — Thu, 14 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

As promised back when I first wrote about ROUNDUP a couple of years ago here’s a second copy.

Luna - Roundup (signed CD)

As I mentioened before, Dean actually sent me a few of these but I gave away all but two. The first because it was pristeen… the second because it wasn’t. Signed in black pen on the black and blue sleeve if you squint in that photo you can probably just make out “For Andy! Dean Wareham”… and, on the disc “Dean Wareham”

The postcard was a promo for Luna’s 1998 New Year’s Eve shows.

I’m not entirely sure why I decided that this release was called ROUNDUP and not Roundup. It is in capitals on the sleeve, but that doesn’t mean anything, it’s not like I write Galaxie 500’s three albums as TODAY, ON FIRE, and THIS IS OUR MUSIC.

Catalogue Number: 10/020
Artist: Luna
Title: ROUNDUP
Packaging: Card sleeve
Format: CD

Previously in my record collection:

[187] Luna - ROUNDUP (CD)

My record collection: [351] Galaxie 500 - Copenhagen (CD)

Andy — Mon, 11 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is the CD of Galaxie 500’s Copenhagen that I bought on first release in 1997. It was released by Rykodisc but is no longer in one of their trademark green jewel cases since they fall apart.

Galaxie 500 - Copenhagen (CD)

I remember we discussed the release of Copenhagen at length on the Galaxie 500 Mailing List but sadly none of that discussion is in my archive. although I did find a post from later where a list member wasn’t happy with Dean’s vocal performance. I think this was just Dean’s Galaxie voice - although this was recorded at the end of what was probably a pretty exhausting European tour so I can understand the strain. But I love it and to be honest that’s what a live album ought to be (and many aren’t) - an authentic record of a live performance, with all the quirks that entails.

I suspect the issue was more likely that Dean’s Luna voice was different from his Galaxie voice and, almost certainly less of a vocal strain. I wouldn’t be surprised if Dean wasn’t a little bit relieved to be able to adjust his voice after Galaxie 500. So the list member just wasn’t used to Dean sounding like he does on Copenhagen.

Before the release of Copenhagen we’d had to make do with bootlegs of live performances, some admittedly quite good, but normally on much-duped media, so when Copenhagen arrived it was such a treat. It is however funny to think that the album was released just six years after the band broke up - at the time it seemed an age but 30 years on it feels like a heartbeat.

The disc came with a booklet with Byron Coley’s sleeve notes and a picture of each member on stage from three different shows. It also came with one of thise wraparound promo things across the top of the disc (like an obi but not an obi) that I folded up and kept in the jewel case. On the outside it had a quote from the Melody Maker…

Galaxie 500 are anything BUT boring live. The critic who says this or thinks differently should be taken outside and shot... Galaxie 500 transcend transcendence.

Inside the wrapper plugged the box set and the three individual albums.

Copenhagen promo

I never get tired of listening to Copenhagen - it is an outstanding record.

Catalogue Number: 10/025
Artist: Galaxie 500
Title: Copenhagen
Format: CD
Buy ‘Copenhagen’ on Bandcamp

Previously in my record collection:

My record collection: Progress report #7 (301 - 350)

Andy — Fri, 08 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This will most likely be the last progress report since the current estimates for the series are:

Total posts: 387
Current predicted end date: 14th September 2026

… although I still expect that to change!

Entries 301 to 350

Total number of posts: 330
Total word count: 134,515 this is up 21,467 since post 300 - I have changed the way I count words so this is more accurate which is why it’s only 11,857 higher than the count in progress report #6. This does however mean that it’s overtaken
- Tales from Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin
- Atonement - Ian McEwan
- The Silmarillion - J. R. R. Tolkien
… and is still heading for
- The Return of the King - J. R. R. Tolkien
- A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
- 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea - Jules Verne

It seems that Damon & Naomi have been punching above their weight during the last 50 posts, being the primary artist in 15 of them - so 30% of the posts, whereas over the whole 350 they are closer to 17% of total posts.

Primary act	% of 301 to 350	% of 1 to 350
Damon & Naomi	30	17.7
Dean & Britta	10	12.6
Dean Wareham	20	23.1
Galaxie 500	14	18.6
Luna	24	26.6
n/a	2	1.4

Primary artists 301 to 350

The “n/a” are the posts that technically shouldn’t be in the series if I followed my rules. But… my rules!

Those five are:

Since I started the series there at the beginning of 2023 there have been 543 posts to AHFoW. 360 have been related to the My record collection series which means there have only been 183 regular posts which I guess brings up the question… what will I do with all the time I have after September!?

My record collection: [350] Damon & Naomi - Song to the Siren (CD/DVD)

Andy — Thu, 07 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is the first release of Damon & Naomi’s fraudulent live album and I think I have moaned about that enough over the last few months so it’s time to talk some more about the other disc in this double disc set.

Damon & Naomi - Song of the Siren (DVD)

I must admit that when I talked about 1001 Nights back in February while I dipped into the videos included I never sat through them all… I had other things on my mind.

To be honest I’m not sure when the last time I sat down and watched Song to the Siren all the way through and I decided to do it this time with Damon & Naomi’s commentary which I guess I probably did when the release first arrived in 2002 but certainly haven’t done since.

A few random notes based on this viewing:

This was Naomi’s first time making a film, she points out a couple of times her inexperience. Since then film/video making has become quite an important part of her cv.
This tour was the first time that Damon and Naomi had encountered The Clientele, a band that would loom large in the coming years.
They turn the camera on to journalist Carsten. Carsten as well as being a journalist was a keen and active member of the Galaxie 500 Mailing List - after the shows he was at Carsten sent me his review in English to publish on AHFoW (I think it had only been published in German before).

Another special treat - very much in the same way that “Blue Moon” had almost moved me to tears at the show in 1998 - was “Song To The Siren” by Tim Buckley. A great tune that sounded quite perfect in this sparse arrangement. Even better though was the discussion that followed. Damon pointed out that he used the early lyrics of the song (“I was puzzled like the oyster I’m as troubled as the tide”, and not “troubled as the newborn child”) and then was trying to make the connection to the Odyssey, which got him in big trouble, as Naomi couldn’t see the connection and told him that he didn’t get it right. Not knowing that my major is sociology and not literature she even asked me to back up her theory (I couldn’t) but I suppose it would be fun to find out who’s right.

Carsten Wohlfeld - Review: Something for your musical education (AHFoW, 29th May 2001)

Here’s Carsten being interviewed and Damon & Naomi playing Song to the Siren:

Damon & Naomi - Song to the Siren (play on YouTube)

The camera had been handed to photographer Stefan Claudius, whose gorgeous photos taken in Utrecht were used in the CD/DVD packaging and had also been sent to me to post on AHFoW by Carsten:

Damon & Naomi in Utrecht - photos by Stefan Claudius

The tour then reaches spain and the DVD includes a clip from the Spansih TV show that likely caused all the problems that led to the (not-) live album. Damon & Naomi with Kurihara play four songs and the presenter’s intro is hilariously sweet. You can see the whole show on YouTube:

DAMON & NAOMI feat. MICHIO KURIHARA - Live Radio3 (play on YouTube)

The film ends in Barcelona with frolicking on the beach and sunset in Parc Guell.

There’s no footage from the show in San Sebastian!

Catalogue Number: 10/028
Artist: Damon & Naomi
Title: Song to the Siren
Notes: Contains a CD and a DVD of tour diary.
Format: 1xCD / 1xDVD
Bought from wherever I bought records when it was released.
Buy ‘Song to the Siren’ on Bandcamp

My record collection: [349] Luna - In The Flesh (radio promo)

Andy — Mon, 04 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is a radio promo copy of Luna’s In The Flesh single that I guess I picked up on Discogs or eBay at some point although I can’t see the evidence of that in my email.

Luna - In The Flesh (radio promo)

The single has no label, just the bare vinyl and a small square sticker with the letter A to tell the radio stations which side to play… I can’t imagine that (m)any played it though. The single is in a card sleeve with Luna “In The Flesh” written on it in felt tip pen and a sticker that reads…

ERIC, PAM, POLLY
RADIO PROMOTIONS
0181 910 3333
RELEASE DATE
21.4.97

The release date is written in (a different coloured) felt tip pen, and below is the Island logo (Trade 2 who released the single was part of Island Records). A Google of “Eric, Pam, Polly” brings up only one result which is a casette promo of second album by Salad from RELEASE DATE 19 MAY 1997, although a Google of their phone number reveals that it seems to be the London office of Island.

I must admit that I haven’t thought about Salad for years but did have their first couple of albums (although I can’t find them) and a few CD singles/EPs (the one of which I can find that I apparently paid 30p for). A surprisingly annoying amount of my records and CDs seemed to go AWOL on our move from London to Whitley Bay… I don’t think it was anything sinister, I suspect some of the wrong boxes went to a charity shop, and I’m still convinced that there must be a box (or more) that my sister stored for us still in a garage somewhere!

Anyway… since most of what I know of this single was covered when I wrote about my proper copy, and what I know of the original in my ‘originals’ post about In The Flesh, here’s Salad’s Motorbike to Heaven:

Salad - Motorbike to Heaven (play on YouTube)

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 11/002
Artist: Luna
Title: In The Flesh / Early Morning
Notes: Radio promo
Packaging: Card sleeve
Format: 7”

Previously in my record collection:

[161] Luna - In The Flesh

My record collection: [348] Luna - Bewitched (LP)

Andy — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is my second copy of the 2012 LP release of Luna’s Bewitched, the previous copy was sent to me, and signed by, Dean, so I guess I bought this one, although can’t find any email evidence of that.

Luna - Bewitched LP (and Trudy)

It’s funny, I never voted for Bewitched as my favourite album in the annual survey but invariably the songs I’d pick for favourite song would be tracks off Bewitched. It is chock full of absolute Luna classics! Four of Luna’s top ten songs they’ve played live are from this album.

Since the album never had an LP release until this release most people wouldn’t have heard the album with an A and a B side (although it had been released on cassette so some had) and as such wouldn’t have noticed that the A-side was probably one of the strongest sides of vinyl Luna would ever release (and had all four of those top ten live staples).

California (All The Way) - 10th most played live
Tiger Lily - 6th
Friendly Advice - 2nd
Bewitched - 8th
This Time Around - 23rd

Not that the B-side is that shabby! Here are a coupld of clips of the other side of Bewitched

Luna - Into The Fold (Alexandria, 2021) (play on YouTube)

Luna - Sleeping Pill (Seattle, 2020) (play on YouTube)

And of course Great Jones Street featured a guitar solo from the late, great Sterling Morrison and you can hear him and Dean playing it for a radio show over here:

Audio: Dean Wareham and Sterling Morrison play Great Jones Street

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 12/053
Artist: Luna
Title: Bewitched
Notes: 2012 release
Format: LP

Previously in my record collection:

My record collection: [347] Dean & Britta - L'avventura (CD)

Andy — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is the fifth copy of Dean & Britta’s first album L’avventura in this series and there’s still one more to come! This is the copy bought the week of release in 2003.

Britta Phillips and Dean Wareham - L'avventura

News of the album’s release was announced in January of that year:

Britta and Dean have completed work on an album that will be released on Jetset in May, under the name Britta Phillips and Dean Wareham. The album, titled LAvventura, was produced by Tony Visconti, who also contributed a number of string arrangements. Britta and Dean trade vocals on a handful of original songs, plus covers of songs by Madonna, the Silver Jews, the Doors, Buffy St. Marie, Opal and Angel Corpus Christi.

Post on Fuzzywuzzy (January 2003)

This next bit is a re-hash/repeat of some of the things I wrote for the AHFoW Substack a couple of months back - I apologise!

I’ve recently started trying to get the Galaxie 500 Mailing List archive into some sort of order so that I can start doing some more in depth looking at how releases were received and discussed on the list. Since 2003 is fairly well represented, and in moderately good order, my first test was with L’avventura. So, here are a few insights I’ve managed to pull from the data.

The album was released in early June of 2003 although it seems that Jetset had distribution problems so there was quite a lot of on-list discussion of members struggling to get a copy. This was somewhat exacerbated by the uncertainty of just where to look in the racks. Since the album was by Britta Phillips and Dean Wareham would it be in the Ps, or the Ws or, since we all called them Dean & Britta (even their own website) would it be in the Ds?

Now of course there is the issue that this is discussion on a fan forum, and as such opinion was likely to be skewed to the positive, and it’s no surprise with L’avventura:

“G500 was great, Luna is even better and L’Avventura works beautifully” - Darren
“I know I’m unlikely to be the most objective reviewer on this list - but really L’Avventura is well worth the very little “hype” that it has received - it will certainly make my top 10 - Andy
“I am hooked on the 1st 2 tracks. I can’t seem to hear Night Nurse and Ginger Snaps enough - I think Ive listened past that point only twice - I am sure will get to “get into” the rest of L’Avventura soon enough” - Elisa
“Some of the songs on the album do sound a lot like Luna… I do enjoy hearing Britta sing, and I wish she was showcased on more of the songs. I thought that was the point of the album. Some songs she hardly shows up at all.” - Richard

It also turned up in quite a few users end of year lists… obviously! Here’s mine (posted in no particular order) which shows just what a good year 2003 had been!

Clientele - The Violet Hour
Nina Nastasia - Road to Ruin
Movietone - The Sand and The Stars
Dean & Britta - L’Avventura/Sonic Souvenirs
The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow
British Sea Power - The Decline of…
Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci - Sleep/Holiday
Tacoma Radar - No One Waved Goodbye
The Zephyrs - A Year to the Day
Saloon - If We Meet in the Future

I haven’t listened to The Shins for a while (listening now) but the rest still get regular needle time (and of course the Tacoma Radar album got a lovely vinyl release last year).

Dean & Britta did some radio and played some live shows around the time of release - here they are playing Ginger Snaps at The Village Underground in NYC in June 2003:

Dean & Britta - Ginger Snaps (The Village Underground, 24th June 2003)

Source: Dean & Britta - 24th June 2003 - Village Underground, New York, NY, USA

Full disclosure: AI was involved in trying to clean up the data, and in the probing of the content - I wouldn’t have had the time, skills, or patience without it - but it’s still far from perfect, and I don’t have everything! If anyone has any Galaxie 500 Mailing List posts, particularly from the very early days - 1995 to 1998 - please do get in touch.

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 10/034
Artist: Dean & Britta
Title: L’avventura
Format: CD
Buy ‘L’avventura’ on Bandcamp

Previously in my record collection:

My record collection: [346] Damon & Naomi - The Navigator / Awake in a Muddle

Andy — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is a lovely seven inch single released by Earworm Records in April 1997 and contains two Damon & Naomi tracks that would later appear on Playback Singers, their own The Navigator and their cover of Ghost’s Awake in a Muddle.

Damon & Naomi - The Navigator (Earworm, 1997)

The sleeve is a gorgeous green concoction designed by Naomi and another of my favourites.

I’m not too sure where I bought this… but I do know exactly when since I posted to the Galaxie 500 Mailing List that “I picked up the new Damon & Naomi single yesterday” on the 12th April 1997. I also mention that the single can be bought mail order from Earworm for £2.50 and that their next release would be by Yo La Tengo - it was their Blue Green Arrow single and I own that as well.

I saw Damon & Naomi twice in 1997 - the first time shortly before the single was released at the tiny 12 Bar in Denmark Street. When I wrote about the show on the mailing list I described the a-side as “a new song that’ll be coming out as a 7” on Earworm soon”. The second time in October, also at the 12 Bar, and they opened the set with The Navigator.

I just read back my review of that first show and I was very rude about the support act, I hope they never saw it.

Here’s my abridged(!) review:

From: Andy Aldridge
Date: 20th March 1997
Subject: A night in with Damon & Naomi

I sometimes hate how much of a fan I sound at times - I decided this as I stood "chatting" to Naomi afterwards "you're wonderful...you're great...I love everything...etc." I cant help it - that's the way I am, and they WERE wonderful AND great, and I do love everything...

The 12 Bar is a tiny venue - the stage takes up a quarter of downstairs - and the table Jonathan had reserved for us was right at the front of the stage - I fumbled my way in as Damon & Naomi where half way through their opening number and rather embarrassed sunk down into the tiny wooden chair.

Damon & Naomi sat on stage, Damon playing acoustic guitar and Naomi alternating between bass (what beautiful noise she got from that bass - it's so nice to hear a bass as a melodic instrument!) and a fascinating Indian squeeze box which made an incredible controlled drone (a sort of Stereolab box - all that lovely drone without having to plug it in).

The first set - I didn't make notes so this is of the top of my head - included (in no particular order):

This Car Climbed Mt. Washington
How Long
New York City
Information Age
Forgot To Get High
...and a couple of others

...and off they went - in the bar between sets I ineptly introduced myself "Oh we're afraid of you" said Damon - which I found amusing because I was scared stiff of them (it's traditional for me to be scared of my heroes) - after some fumbling words from me off went our heroes to be entertained elsewhere while I slunk back to my seat red-faced and settled down to [the support act].

Damon and Naomi returned and announced that they were unprepared for two sets and proceeded to repeat a lot of the first set - they did a new song that'll be coming out as a 7" on Earworm soon - they did a cover of Colin Palmer's (ex-Incredible String Band) "Spirit Of Love" - they smiled and joked (and had a moan at the people on the balcony who insisted on talking through the set!) - and on the whole made my night - it was all too beautiful - exactly what I hoped it would be - only more so.

At the end this inarticulate fan chatted with Naomi for a short while "you're wonderful...you're great...I love everything...etc. etc." - it was nice for my ego to know they knew of me - we talked of upcoming events - a long interview in the Ptolemaic Terrascope ("probably the longest ever") a track on a Pearls Before Swine tribute album and a single on Blue Rose Records, the Earworm single featuring a cover of a Ghost (Japanese Krautrockers) track on the flip side (I didn't catch the name of the a-side). More Sad Hits will be re-released by Sub Pop at the beginning of May. Damon was very pleased about the live Galaxie 500 album getting released ("I always liked that tape").

I shook their hands (again) told them they were great (again) and told them to come back soon (god did I really say that) - and lamely walked away. I'm so pleased that these two of my heroes were really nice people - I just wish they'd play here more often.

- Andy

The release on Blue Rose that Naomi mentioned was supposed to be a split single with Neutral Milk Hotel containing Kinetoscope but it never materialised. Kinetoscope arrived on Playback Singers.

The “live Galaxie 500 album” was, of course, Copenhagen.

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 11/031
Artist: Damon & Naomi
Title: The Navigator / Awake in a Muddle
Format: 7”
Both tracks are on Playback Singers which can be bought on Bandcamp.

My record collection: [345] Various artists - Rutles Highway Revisited (LP)

Andy — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

My previous post for the CD version of the fabulous Rutles Highway Revisited was mostly a love-letter to the late and still much missed Neil Innes so I’ll try and keep on topic this time.

Rutles Highway Revisited (LP)

I do love most of the tracks on this album but, like The Beatles, The Rutles were better when they were being sweet, so it’s the sweet songs that work better for me. So… here are what are probably my favourite three tracks on the album (that aren’t Galaxie 500), although that does involve leaving a lot of ones I also love off the list.

The Pussywillows - Hold My Hand (play on YouTube)

pic lifted from April March’s Instagram

Syd Straw and Marc Ribot - I Must Be in Love (play on YouTube)

pic lifted from this page with a 1990 session the duo played for KCRW which opens with a lovely version of I Must Be in Love.

Shonen Knife - Goose Step Mama (play on YouTube)

OK, maybe that’s not conventionally sweet but it’s effing Shonen Knife so… it is unconventionally sweet! Here’s a fantastic video of them playing Goose Step Mama in London in 2013.

Shonen Knife - Goose Step Mama + Burning Farm (Live @ Dingwalls, London, 29/09/13) (play on YouTube)

I bought the LP in 2018 as a collection filler having had the CD since release.

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 12/080
Artist: Various artists
Title: Rutles Highway Revisited
Format: LP
Bought from a Discogs seller for £6 in 2018.
Galaxie 500’s track can be found on ‘Uncollected’ on Bandcamp.

Listening party for Damon & Naomi's live album of Galaxie 500 covers

Andy — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 21:06:00 +0000

Damon will be hosting a Bandcamp listening party for What’s Past is Prologue, Damon & Naomi’s live album of Galaxie 500 covers. The party will be on Friday 17th (tomorrow) at 12:30pm Pacific, 3:30pm Eastern or 8:30pm BST.

What's Past is Prologue

The album was recorded over three wonderful nights at Cafe Oto in London and featured a number of guest appearances.

Here’s Damon’s invite:

I'm going to host a Listening Party of our Bandcamp-exclusive release What's Past is Prologue on Friday April 17 at 12:30pm Pacific / 3:30pm Eastern / 8:30pm UK time. Come listen to the album with me and chat about it - this is a live recording of Galaxie 500 songs Naomi and I played as encores during our recent residency at Café Oto in London, with friends Laetitia Sadier, Mark Webber, Richard Youngs, Jess Hickie-Kallenbach, Alabaster DePlume, Gina Birch, Marie Merlet and Stewart Lee. There's lots to discuss!

Damon Krukowski on Bandcamp

Head over to Bandcamp to RSVP.

Night three at Cafe Oto

I wrote about the shows back in January.

Fingers crossed that there’ll be a physical release at some point!

My record collection: [344] Decomposing the songs of Galaxie 500 and Luna

Andy — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Back in 2004 some discussion on the Galaxie 500 Mailing List turned to the idea of making a fan-tribute album and I volunteered to co-ordinate the efforts. It took a couple of years since the volunteer co-ordinator was a bit rubbish, but this finally saw the light of day some time in 2006!

Decomposing fan tribute CDR

The project started with grand ambitions but eventually ended up with me burning a bunch of CDRs and laser-printing sleeves and selling them to whoever wanted a copy for $5 including postage. It deserved better. There are a bunch of lovely contributions, some faithful, some interprative, but all made by people who loved what they were doing enough to give it a go.

One of the reasons for the delay was that I wanted to be a part of it and was hoping that some talent would be bestowed upon be by some higher being. Thankfully lost are my efforts at covers of Blue Thunder and I Want Everything!

The album is available to download here and is worth it - it’s lovely to have an album made by friends (even if the internet becoming less social means I’ve lost touch with most of them).

For the later AHFoW tribute albums I had invaluable help from Hannah and John and Miguel that meant they took only months instead of years to see the light of day. A couple of the tracks on Decomposing made it onto other releases:

Watoo Watoo’s lovely loungey Chinatown was released on their second (I think) album La fuite which can be bought on Bandcamp.
Ron Harrity’s cover of Cold Night was included as a bonus-track on a better organised tribute album On Fire | 30.

The Apollo Generation, whose cover of This Time Around was included on the release, put out an album a few years ago that I’ve only just come across and is being played right now and is sounding good!

I just noticed that the sleeve in my copy was on second-hand paper… that’s how cheap/rubbish I was!

Second-hand paper!

This of course is another entry that doesn’t pass the criteria for inclusion but since it was a child of the Galaxie 500 Mailing List it seemed a shame not to include it. I wrote about the mailing list in a Substack post last year - you can read it for free (as all my Substack posts are).

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 10/091
Artist: Various artists
Title: Decomposing the songs of Galaxie 500 and Luna
Format: CDR
Download for free

My record collection: [343] Galaxie 500 - On Fire (orange vinyl LP)

Andy — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Back in February 2019 Newbury Comics started releasing limited edition coloured variants of Galaxie 500’s LPs - the first of these was On Fire that was released on orange/gold vinyl.

Galaxie 500 - On Fire (orange LP)

Of course I already had many copies of On Fire but… I couldn’t help myself and bought a copy for $25 plus $15 postage (which is twice the postage I had been charged for an LP from the US just two years previously. They then released a maroon (with a black smudge) Today and a Blue (with a grey smudge) This Is Our Music… I bought both of them.

Later came a pink On Fire and a purple This Is Our Music but I had decided to draw the line!

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 12/042
Artist: Galaxie 500
Title: On Fire
Notes: Orange vinyl
Format: LP
Bought from Newbury Comics for $24.99 plus postage.
Buy ‘On Fire’ on Bandcamp

Previously in my record collection:

My record collection: [342] The 6ths - Wasps' Nest (LP)

Andy — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

On first release in 1995 the only vinyl release of Wasps’ Nest was a box set containing four seven inch EPs with all the tracks (and one bonus one) across them. Mean-ness and my full embrace of CD media meant that I didn’t buy that but bought the CD that I’ve already posted about, In 2017 Captured Tracks released the album on an LP - this is that.

The 6ths - Wasps' Nest

The LP came in white vinyl and sadly didn’t include the extra track it did howver have a larger booklet than the CD which meant that it could include the artist self-portraits that had been included in the box set but were missing from the CD package. Some were lovely and detailed, some were realistic, some were cartoon-y, some minimalist, some impressionist… and then there was Dean’s:

Dean Wareham self-portrait

I think I said before how much I love this album and it really is a very beautiful thing, and doesn’t have a dud on it!

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 12/073
Artist: The 6ths
Title: Wasps’ Nest
Notes: White vinyl. Includes an 8” square booklet
Format: LP
Bought direct from Captured Tracks in 2017 for $25.00 (plus postage which was tolerable back then!)

Previously in my record collection:

[268] The 6ths - Wasps’ Nest (CD)

My record collection: [341] Galaxie 500 - CBGB 13th December 1988 (black vinyl LP)

Andy — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Back at the beginning of the year Damon & Naomi played three genuinely sensational shows at Cafe OTO in London (I wrote about them here but it deserves a re-write), this copy of Galaxie 500’s recently released live LP was acquired at the second of those shows.

Galaxie 500 - CBGB 13th December 1988 (black LP)

After the show was finished I was loitering by the merch desk, chatting with Naomi and lending my pen out for signings. I mentioned to Naomi that the “ultra clear and black cloudy” vinyl copy I had bought on release was horrid and looked like a five year old had scribbled on it† and said I wanted to buy one of the black vinyl copies they were selling at the show.

records should never be this ugly

Naomi insisted on giving me a copy.

OK, it doesn’t come with a poster, and a single, and doesn’t come in a fancy fat, card sleeve (that’s too big) but it looks so much better sitting on my record player.

I love the photo by Macioce used on the cover - a couple of years ago Macioce was kind enough to send me an 11x14” print of the photo which is hanging in “the museum”.

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 12/112
Artist: Galaxie 500
Title: CBGB 13th December 1988
Notes: Black vinyl copy
Format: LP
Buy ‘CBGB 13th December 1988’ on Bandcamp

Previously in my record collection:

[276] Galaxie 500 - CBGB - 13th December 1988

† - to be honest too many of these mixed colour, splatter, splash, burst, swirl, vinyl releases are horrible… it’s time to stop and stick to single colour vinyl… and maybe more in black… I mean. when did black stop being the coolest colour?

My record collection: [340] Luna - Penthouse (MC)

Andy — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is the fourth and final appearance of Luna’s Penthouse and is a cassette copy that I bought (online) from Sound it Out Records back in 2013 at the same time that I bought the cassette copy of Lunapark.

Luna - Penthouse (MC)

Since this is the last appearance it’s probably time to look at the tracklisting, not it any way in-depth just with some little snippets that pop into my head… I can’t guarantee that these are actually all correct or true.

Chinatown was written “at least partially” about Terry Tolkin the A&R man who signed the band to Elektra and released Dean and Luna tracks on his own No.6 Records.

He enjoyed his new life. He drank and partied and showed up late to work most days, or worked from home. His new life inspired the lyrics I wrote for "Chinatown".

Dean Wareham - Black Postcards (2008)

Sideshow by the Seashore was a venue in Coney Island - the song contains Justin playing a theremin.
Moon Palace is named after a Paul Auster book and also references “Christopher Boyce” who was The Falcon in the film The Falcon and the Snowman.
Double Feature gave it’s name to Dean and Britta’s record label.
23 Minutes in Brussels is probably Luna’s most popular song - it consistently topped the annual survey, and a lyric was used as the title of their farewell tour rockumentary, and was played over the end credits. They first played it live in late 1994 although it changed quite a lot before it reached Penthouse. There’s an mp3 on the post about the 23 Minutes single.
Lost in Space opens side two of the LP although Dean admitted in the Life of the Record podcast that they “didn’t plan this as side one and side two because this is the CD era, the compact disc era. We just thought of it as sequencing the ten songs.”
I’m not sure I have a smippet of trivia about Rhythm King so here are Luna soundchecking it in 2016:

Luna (play on YouTube)

Kalamazoo’s origins are in a short film made by Dean’s then wife Claudia that I’ve not managed to track down but has Wally Shawn and (the late) Adrienne Shelley in it.
Hedgehog was picked to be a (radio) single and a one-track CD single was made as a radio promo… I don’t have a copy… but it was also coupled with 23 Minutes in Brussels for the proper single on Beggars Banquet.
Freakin’ and Peakin’ is a great finish to the album… but most people probably didn’t hear it as a finish since the CD has a bonus track… but since I’m listening to the cassette this is where I’ll finish!

Here’s Luna playing Freakin’ and Peakin’ in Atlanta in 2015:

Luna - Freakin' and Peakin' 2015 10 02 Atlanta GA (play on YouTube)

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 16/004
Artist: Luna
Title: Penthouse
Format: MC
Bought from Sound it Out Records in 2013 for £5.99.

Previously in my record collection:

My record collection: [339] Dean Wareham - Dean Wareham (test/promo LP)

Andy — Mon, 30 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is a test pressing of Dean’s eponymous album released in 2014 and was sent to me by Nat at Sonic Cathedral, slipped in with the copy of the Lorelle Meets The Obsolete LP “Chambers” that I had ordered.

Dean Wareham - Dean Wareham (test pressing)

The LP came in a plain white inner sleeve stamped with the manufacturer details and with the catalogue number written on it in biro. It had plain white labels with the words “Only for Promotion” stamped onto it… which suggests it’s a promo rather than a test pressing?

There are a lot of nice performance clips of Dean and his band from this time doing the promo rounds.

Dean Wareham - The Dancer Disappears (KCRW) (play on YouTube)

Dean Wareham - Happy and Free (KEXP) (play on YouTube)

Dean Wareham - Heartless People (WFUV) (play on YouTube)

Dean Wareham - Holding Pattern (Amoeba) (play on YouTube)

As much as I love Dean’s more recent albums this is the one that I go back to most.

Catalogue Number: AHFOW 12/022
Artist: Dean Wareham
Title: Dean Wareham
Notes: Promo/test
Packaging: Plain white sleeve
Format: LP
Buy ‘Dean Wareham’ on Bandcamp

Previously in my record collection: