{"title":"Live Skull","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFormed in 1982 by guitarists Mark C and Tom Paine with Marnie Greenholz on bass and James Lo on drums, \u003ci\u003eLive Skull\u003c\/i\u003e is considered by many aficionados to be the quintessential New York noise band. Together with Sonic Youth and Swans, \u003ci\u003eLive Skull\u003c\/i\u003e defined the term \"noise rock\" in the 1980s, spearheading the post-No Wave underground music scene in NYC with a series of legendary live performances and eight groundbreaking records released over the course of that decade.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOften brutal and yet strangely seductive, each of these classic records creates hooks out of the most unlikely, seemingly disruptive elements, subverting traditional rock forms in previously unheard ways that became an undeniable influence on many of their contemporaries. \u003ci\u003eLive Skull\u003c\/i\u003e broke up in 1989 but their recorded output reminds us that they got there first.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn his much-quoted review for The New York Times, Robert Palmer declared, \"With each new record, New York's \u003ci\u003eLive Skull\u003c\/i\u003e delivers a more concentrated brand of emotional intensity... It's one of the essential sounds of our time.\" And writing for New Look magazine, Robert Palmer famously declared: “The most startlingly original array of guitar sounds and approaches since Jimi Hendrix. They make guitars do things you’ve never imagined.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n","products":[{"product_id":"party-zero","title":"Party Zero","description":"\u003cp\u003eThese are some serious times. Insurrections. Global pandemics. The return of fascism. Climate crises. Welcome to the bummer-zone. But if you’ve got angst in your pants and you need to dance, or scream, or play guitar too loud too close to your amplifier, it’s time to let your freak flag fly. That’s what Live Skull are doing, anyway. Veteran New York noisers who went on indefinite hiatus just before their kind of smart, gnarly, inventive din became lucrative, they rose again in 2016, not with the intention of inaugurating a second act to their story but doing so anyway, and have since created some of the most exciting music of their career. Their new album Party Zero – their third since rising from the grave – is one of their finest, redefining what Live Skull means, after a couple of albums that saw them transitioning from being a group with a past to one with a future. Party Zero is, undeniably, big in sound, brash in dynamics. But the sophistication that was always the group’s calling card remains an essential element, dealing in the kind of pulverising pell-mell that characterised the 80s New York sound, but also radiant with melody, the fusion of noise and unexpected tunefulness delivering a heady, psychedelic effect.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bronson Recordings","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":50413813301579,"sku":"2018801","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50413813563723,"sku":"2018810","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Live_Skull_-_Party_Zero_7da73c02_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726677593"},{"product_id":"sings-mahalia-jackson","title":"Sings Mahalia Jackson","description":"\u003cp\u003eSarah Brown with her debut album \u003ci\u003eSings Mahalia Jackson. \u003c\/i\u003eThe record sees Sarah offer her interpretations of some of the classic tracks of arguably the most famous gospel singer of the last century who gave Brown hope and sanctuary through hard times faced over the years. Sarah explains: “For as long as I can remember, Mahalia Jackson with her fever pitched performances have been a soothing note to my tapestry. At 10 years old, I remember hopelessly trying to sing along to her bellowing thunder of a voice. In my bedroom I would become her. I chose these songs because they tell of my story. Growing up in a Caribbean home to parents who were a long way from their home. Anger and fear were the two prominent emotions that I lived with. The style I was trying to achieve was influenced by early jazz, blues and the spirituals. I am happy with the sound\/style of the album. It was always going to be an experiment but I had no idea that it was going to sound as good and as authentic as it does. ‘Didn’t It Rain’ as a jazz feel. ‘Nobody Knows’ as a spiritual feel then it goes into swing jazz. ‘Walk over God’s Heaven’ as a hint of rock \u0026amp; roll with a bit of early swing.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Live Records","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50467122970955,"sku":"1149655","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50467122938187,"sku":"1149654","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/ba3f48c7-60de-4b96-8a22-fb19bfed6b04_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727335462"},{"product_id":"dangerous-visions","title":"Dangerous Visions","description":"\u003cp\u003eEmerging in the early 80s at the end of New York’s legendary No Wave scene alongside Manhattan comrades Sonic Youth and Swans, Live Skull reshaped the aggression of burned-out post-punk into heavy, guitar- driven rock. This new release showcases their evolution, with Side 1 featuring recently recorded tracks, whilst Side 2 digs into the archives and includes four tracks from their 1989 Peel Session, released here for the first time. In A Perfect World, the first single to be taken from the album, is fraught with the tension of our times. Sirens wail, then a bass crashes through. Cooped up in his apartmentduring “the darkest moment of the [COVID-19] shutdown in NYC,“ singer and guitarist Mark C wrote lyrics and recorded vocals whileambulances sped past outside. “I sat in the dark...and dreamed of a more perfect world to replace the damaged one we lived in,” he recalls. “But, as gritty guitar sounds and the incessant beat of the drum and bass line charged forward, I knew we belonged to this worldof struggle and chaos.” Struggle and chaos is nothing new for Live Skull. Mark C and his fellow founder, guitarist Tom Paine, were inspired by the nihilistic sounds of No New York and the dissonant walls of Glenn Branca and Rhys Chatham. Live Skull funneled those influences into hard-edged music that valued melody as much as anarchy. Side one nods to that history via a fiery update on “Debbie’s Headache” (originally found on the 1987 album Dusted). It also includes three new studio tracks from the current quartet, along with alive recording of “Day One Of The Experiment” from a 2019 European tour. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bronson Recordings","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50502937575755,"sku":"1116469","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/2337775f-2926-4626-86fb-164db3a3ccba_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727792506"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_bd363f2f_thumbnail_4096_f8d1fe40-cc8c-4fbd-9507-3e43b0392493.jpg?v=1726677567","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/live-skull.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}