Beck - Beck Select, Vol. 3: Dirty Dirty (2007)

"Beck Select, Vol. 3: Dirty Dirty" collects most of the non-album stuff from Beck's Midnite Vultures era, forays into electronica and future disco, Hollywood Freaks style. The collection also includes a few earlier tracks that best fit with the party vibe of this material. An essential, albeit unofficial album for the Beck discography.

Tracklist: 1. Live Intro 15.08.1997 (Edit), 2. Mixed Bizzness (Frequency Lab Remix), 3. Arabian Nights, 4. Boyz, 5. Diamond Dogs, 6. Dirty Dirty, 7. Flavor Remix (Feat. Mike-D), 8. Refresh Myself (Live Interlude), 9. Salt In the Wound, 10. This Is My Crew, 11. Get Real Paid (Feat. The Flaming Lips/Live), 12. Midnite Vultures, 13. Zatyricon, 14. Diamond In the Sleaze, 15. L'Anamour (Feat. Jane Birkin/Live), 16. Vagabond (Feat. Air).

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Official Site / Fan Site / Beck @ MySpace / Beck @ Wikipedia

Beck - Beck Select, Vol. 2: Strange Invitation (2002)

"Beck Select, Vol. 2: Strange Invitation" gathers together most of the very best non-album sides from Beck's "Mellow Gold" and "Odelay" era recordings, that weird, grunge rock and folk-infused slacker hip hop so characteristic of the Beck sound. An essential, albeit unofficial album for the Beck discography.
There's one more volume in this series that I don't have - if someone has it please get in touch.

Tracklist: 1. In a Cold Ass Fashion, 2. Diskobox, 3. Clock, 4. Close to God, 5. Alcohol, 6. Thunderpeel, 7. Sleeping Bag, 8. Asskizz Powergrudge (Payback! '94), 9. Erase the Sun, 10. Electric Music & The Summer People, 11. SA-5, 12. Corvette Bummer, 13. Little Drum Machine Boy, 14. Deadweight, 15. Soul Suckin' Jerk (Reject), 16. Girl of My Dreams, 17. Feather In Your Cap, 18. Halo of Gold, 19. Strange Invitation, 20. Brother, 21. Runners Dial Zero.

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Official Site / Fan Site / Beck @ MySpace / Beck @ Wikipedia

Pete Townshend - Lifehouse Chronicles (2000)

The Lifehouse Chronicles is a 6 CD box set released in 2000 by Pete Townshend, and only made available through his website.
The set collects songs and other compositions relating to Lifehouse, a musical concept developed by Townshend in 1970 as a followup to The Who's highly successful rock opera, Tommy. Rooted heavily in the teachings of Townshend's spiritual mentor Meher Baba as well as in science fiction literature, Lifehouse was meant to explore the idea that music is the fundamental basis of all life - that every human being on Earth has a unique musical melody that "describes" them, and only them, perfectly. When the unique songs of enough people are played in unison, the result would be a single harmonic note - the One Note - akin to the quintessence sought by ancient alchemists. Lifehouse was to be a true multimedia project: a double LP rock opera, a motion picture, and an interactive concert experience.
The story was to take place in 21st century Britain, in an age where pollution has become such a drastic problem that most people never set foot outdoors in their life. This populace spends most of their time in "experience suits", devices not unlike those seen in the 1999 film The Matrix. These suits provide the people with artificial lives superior to any they could eke out in the real world, yet devoid somehow of spiritual fulfillment. One discontented soul, known only as "The Hacker", rediscovers 20th century rock and roll music, and breaks into the computer network controlling the suits to invite people to leave their suits and come together for a concert. Despite the best efforts of the fascist government, thousands of people gather at the Hacker's concert, with millions more watching through their suits, as the musicians and audience perform experimental songs like those described above. Just as the police storm in and shoot the Hacker, the audience and band manage to produce the One Note, and everyone participating in and watching the concert simply vanishes, presumably having departed for a higher plane of existence. The story is seen through the eyes of a middle-aged farmer named Ray, an "air-conditioned gypsy" from a remote unpolluted corner of Scotland, who travels south looking for his daughter who has run away to the concert.
A single-disc sampler of this box set, entitled "Lifehouse Elements", is available at most record stores.
Read more HERE

CD1 - Lifehouse Demos: 1. Teenage Wasteland, 2. Going Mobile, 3. Baba O'Riley, 4. Time is Passing, 5. Love Ain't For Keepin', 6. Bargain, 7. Too Much of Anything, 8. Music Must Change, 9. Greyhound Girl, 10. Mary, 11. Behind Blue Eyes, 12. Baba O'Riley (Instrumental), 13. Sister Disco.
Download: MegaUpload

CD2 - Lifehouse Demos Cont.: 1. I Don't Even Know Myself, 2. Put the Money Down, 3. Pure and Easy, 4. Getting in Tune, 5. Let's See Action, 6. Slip Kid, 7. Relay, 8. Who Are You, 9. Join Together, 10. Won't Get Fooled Again, 11. The Song Is Over.
Download: MegaUpload

CD3 - Lifehouse Themes & Experiments: 1. Baba M1 (O'Riley 2nd Movement 1971), 2. Who Are You (Gateway Remix - From Shepherds Bush Empire 1998), 3. Behind Blue Eyes (New version 1999), 4. Baba M2 (2nd Movement Part 1 1971), 5. Pure and Easy (Original Demo Reworked 1999), 6. Vivaldi (Baba M5 on Psychoderelict) with Hame 1999), 7. Who Are You (Live and Uncut at the Shepherds Bush Empire 1998), 8. Hinterland Rag (Piano Rag for Three Hands - Yamaha Disklavier 1999), 9. Pure & Easy (New Version 1999), 10. Can You Help the One You Really Love? (Demo 1999), 11. Won't Get Fooled Again (Live and Uncut at the Shepherd's Bush Empire 1998).
Download: MegaUpload
Some PC users has been having problems with unzipping this file - check the comments for a solution to this issue. Mac users shouldn't have any problems - as usual.

CD4 - Lifehouse Arrangements & Orchestrations: 1. One Note - Prologue, 2. Fantasia Upon One Note [Quick Movement], 3. Baba O'Riley, 4. Sonata K-212, 5. Tragedy, 6. No. 4 Aria, 7. No. 2 Giga, 8. No. 6 In D Minor, 9. No. 3 Adagio and Allegro, 10. Hinterland Rag, 11. Sonata K-213, 12. Overture, 13. Allegro, 14. Air, 15. Rondeau Minnet, 16. Air, 17. Jig, 18. Chaconne, 19. Air, 20. Minuet, 21. Overture [Reprise], 22. Tragedy Explained, 23. One Note - Epilogue, 24. Fantasia Upon One Note.
Download: MegaUpload

CD5 - Lifehouse Radio Play - Part 1: Track 1-10.
Download: MegaUpload

CD6 - Lifehouse Radio Play - Part 2: Track 1-9.
Download: MegaUpload

Ween-O-Rama! - Rarities 1986-2003

In a desperate attempt to make up for the lack of fresh posts, I officially declare today Ween-day here at Bruunski Beats!
Today I'm giving you not one, but all of Ween's four independent cassette releases + the hard to find live albums "All Requests Live" and "Live At Stubb's" - enjoy!
There is actually one more independent release called "Prime 5", but it's just a best of the four others.

From Wikipedia: Ween is an alternative rock group formed in 1984 in New Hope, Pennsylvania when Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo met in an eighth grade typing class. The pair became known as Gene and Dean Ween, respectively. Thousands of home recordings later, Ween collected a large underground fanbase despite being generally unknown in pop music.

The Crucial Squeegie Lip is the first recording by Ween. It was released in 1986 on Bird O' Prey Records. Almost nothing is known about this release, and an original version of the tape is almost impossible to find, considering the record label shut down years ago. Dean and Gene were both 16 at the time of the release of this tape. "You Fucked Up" later reappears as track one on their release GodWeenSatan: The Oneness.

The Crucial Squeegie Lip (1986):
1. Introview, 2. Talk to Me About Erica Glabb, 3. Intro/Nippy Wiffle, 4. Jelly (Part I), 5. Boobtalk, 6. Boobs (Part I), 7. Boobs (Part II), 8. Go!, 9. Stresstabs, 10. Drinktalk, 11. I Drink a Lot, 12. Jessica, 13. Red As Satan, 14. Murphy Flattens His Frustrations, 15. Cowbell, 16. Ingrown Mayo, 17. Duke of Denim, 18. Blow It Out Your Ass, 19. You Fucked Up, 20. TalkthinG, 21. I Drink a Lot (Nice Version), 22. Hey Bullfrog, 23. Smash My Head, 24. (You) Piss Me Off, 25. Justalking, 26. Blue Hair, 27. Sweetness (Parts I & II), 28. The Refrigerator That Wouldn't Close (Live from WTSR/Chris Hoecke vocals), 29. Mindfuck, 30. Livetalk, 31. Boognish, 32. Boobs (Part III), 33. Yolk, 34. Shnagenhausen, 35. We Seen Ween Bean, 36. Everyone’s a Lesbian, 37. Yeah, Sure, 38. Oik, 39. Jelly (Part II), 40. Outroview.
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Axis: Bold As Boognish is a name of a recording by Ween. It was released in 1987. The title is a parody of a Jimi Hendrix album Axis: Bold as Love. Almost nothing is known about this tape and the record label it was released on shut down years ago. The song "Bumblebee" was re-recorded and released on Ween's first real album, GodWeenSatan: The Oneness.

Axis: Bold as Boognish (1987):
1. I'm Killing It (Kill Everything), 2. Tweet Tweet, 3. On the Beach, 4. I Like You, 5. Bumblebee, 6. Emily, 7. David the Negro, 8. The Iron Whore, 9. Sittin' On My Ass (Wanton Nougat), 10. Smoke In My Brain, 11. Anne, 12. Aqua-Ween, 13. She Said, She Said, 14. The Journey Into Dinh, 15. Gene's Lament (Tree Love Theme), 16. Opus 51 Fugue Trilogy In A (Take Me to the Tree): A. Yurtle Swimming/B. The Tree/C. Bertha Gets the Mooshy Mooshy/D. The Kitty and the Squirrel/E. The Departure, 17. One Love For Boognish.
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Erica Peterson's Flaming Crib Death is a tape by Ween released in 1987. It features tracks previously released on Ween's other 2 tapes, and it also features new tracks. Hardly anything else is known about this album.

Erica Peterson's Flaming Crib Death (1987):
1. 1. Go, 2. Oik, 3. Nippy Wiffle, 4. Fat Albert, 5. I Drink a Lot, 6. Boognish, 7. Refrigerator (The Refrigerator That Wouldn't Close), 8. Duke of Denim, 9. Ingrown Mayo, 10. Boob, 11. Jelly, 12. Yolk, 13. Ana, 14. Disco Inferno, 15. Stress Tabs, 16. Shnagenhausen (Dody), 17. We Seen Ween Bean.
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The Live Brain Wedgie/WAD Exerpts is a recording by Ween. It was released in 1988. The first side of this album is a live show, the second is studio tracks. This is considered by some people to be Ween's first album, but it is not. It is their first actual record though. A majority of the records pressed are in possession of Dean Ween, although some copies were sold at concerts and given away to friends. On June 29th, 2007 Deaner placed 30 of the 500 original pressings on ebay, out of spite and "to buy 100 dollar bottles of Red Burgundy and veal cutlets". This is Ween's last known album on Bird O' Pray Records, as it is not known what label Prime 5 was on. Because it is less than 20 minutes long, it could be considered an EP.

The Live Brain Wedgie/WAD Exerpts (1988):
1. You Fucked Up, 2. Jelly, 3. The Refrigerator That Wouldn't Close, 4. I Like You, 5. I Drink a Lot, 6. Nippy Wiffle, 7. In The Node of Golgothia, 8. I Gots a Weasel, 9. Hippie Smell, 10. Stacey, 11. Gladiola Heartbreaker.
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Live at Stubb's, 07/2000 is a live album by the band Ween, released in 2003. It was recorded during two dates in July, 2000. There are three discs of material, including material from all seven studio albums the band had released at that point, three songs not officially released on a previous Ween album, and a Van Halen cover song. The third disc contains only the song "L.M.L.Y.P.".

Live at Stubb's, 07/2000 (2003):
Disc 1: 1. Buckingham Green, 2. Spinal Meningitis (Got Me Down), 3. The Stallion Pt. 3, 4. Bananas and Blow, 5. Waving My Dick in the Wind, 6. Mister Richard Smoker, 7. Fat Lenny, 8. Even If You Don't, 9. Voodoo Lady, 10. The HIV Song, 11. Marble Tulip Juicy Tree, 12. Back to Basom, 13. Captain Fantasy, 14. Sketches of Winkle, 15. Mister, Would You Please Help My Pony?, 16. Ocean Man.
Disc 2: 1. Exactly Where I'm At, 2. Booze Me Up and Get Me High, 3. Stroker Ace, 4. A Tear for Eddie, 5. Big Jilm, 6. Little Birdy, 7. Squelch the Weasel, 8. Sorry Charlie, 9. Wayne's Pet Youngin', 10. Hot For Teacher, 11. Ice Castles, 12. She Wanted to Leave, 13. Put the Coke On My Dick, 14. Homo Rainbow.
Disc 3: 1. L.M.L.Y.P.
Download, Disc 1: MegaUpload
Download, Disc 2: MegaUpload
Download, Disc 3: MegaUpload

All Request Live is the 4th Ween live album and the third to be released on their home record label Chocodog Records. It was released in 2003.
All Request Live features tracks performed live, in-studio by Ween and their touring band as part of a web radio broadcast, playing songs selected by fans on the band's message board. Among the tracks performed are all three officially released parts of "The Stallion" (along with the previously unreleased parts four and five), fan-favorites "Awesome Sound" and "Demon Sweat," a slightly expanded version of the drug-addled skit "Pollo Asado," and a nearly 6 minute long take on the band's infamous rejected Pizza Hut jingle "Where'd the Cheese Go?".

All Request Live (2003):
1. Happy Colored Marbles, 2. The Stallion, Pt. 1, 3. The Stallion, Pt. 2, 4. The Stallion, Pt. 3, 5. The Stallion, Pt. 4, 6. The Stallion, Pt. 5, 7. Demon Sweat, 8. Cover It With Gas and Set It On Fire, 9. Awesome Sound, 10. Cold Blows the Wind, 11. Pollo Asado, 12. Reggaejunkiejew, 13. Tried and True, 14. Mononucleosis, 15. Stay Forever, 16. Where'd the Cheese Go?
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Beck - Beck Select, Vol. 1: One of These Days (2002)

"Beck Select, Vol. 1: One of These Days" gathers together some of the very best folk and blues recordings from Beck's prodigious catalog, capturing both Beck's unique suburban folk style, sung from the frayed edges of modernity, as well as a number of beautifully rendered covers, creating an essential, albeit unofficial album for the Beck discography.
There's also two more volumes in this bootleg compilation of Beck rarities that I'll maybe post someday soon...

Tracklist: 1. Fourteen Rivers Fourteen Floods (Live), 2. Bogusflow, 3. Stagolee, 4. Drivin' Nails In My Coffin (With Willie Nelson), 5. Untitled (KCRW Sessions), 6. Devil Got My Woman, 7. Goin' Nowhere Fast, 8. Got No Mind, 9. Sin City (With Emmylou Harris), 10. Lampshade, 11. Untitled (KXLU Sessions), 12. Totally Confused, 13. To See That Woman of Mine, 14. Supergolden Sunchild, 15. One of These Days, 16. Go Easy, 17. The World May Loose Its Motion, 18. Got No Home In This World, 19. Lonesome Whistle, 20. No Expectations (Live With Beth Orton), 21. Leave Me On the Moon, 22. Your Cheatin' Heart, 23. Whiskeyfaced, Radioactive, Blowdrying Lady.

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Official Site / Fan Site / Beck @ MySpace / Beck @ Wikipedia

Ween - B-Sides, Demos & Rarities, Vol. 1-4 (2005)

"B-Sides, Demos & Rarities, Vol. 1-4" is a great compilation of rare Ween tracks put together by the fans - for the fans.
Includes B-sides, demos and rarities such as television performances, songs from soundtracks or songs Ween did for special occasions.
"B-Sides, Demos & Rarities, Vol. 1-4" consists of 100 tracks from way back when the band started and up to the Quebec-sessions in 2005. Super collection of classics, and a must have for everyone who's into Dean & Gene. Quality: 320 kbps MP3's - converted straight from the original Flac-files.
Ween released the 5-track EP "The Friends" a couple of weeks ago, and their new album - the first with new material since "Quebec" in 2003 - "La Cucaracha" will be out this fall.

B-Sides, Demos & Rarities, Vol. 1: 1. I Smoke Some Grass And Get Really Really High (B-side), 2. Mango Woman (B-side), 3. Puerto Rican Power, Pt.1&2 (B-side), 4. Now I'm Freaking Out (C&C outtake/B-side), 5. There's A Pig (B-side), 6. Vallejo (B-side), 7. Ode To Rene' (B-side), 8. Bakersfield, 9. Skycruiser, 10. Cruise Control, 11. Sweet Texas Fire (Piss Up A Rope B-side), 12. Albino Sunburned Girl (Holland 1990-From Jug Is Quaid Tape), 13. Hippy Smell, 14. I'm Fat, 15. I'm Fat pt.2, 16. Fat Albert, 17. Little Peta, 18. Oblongs (Little Peta diff.mix), 19. Little Peta (drum mix), 20. Koko (demo?), 21. Koko, 22. Silent Night, 23. Mr.Mocha (Pure Guave outtake version), 24. Big Dick Black, 25. Spleen, 26. Motown (with vocals), 27. Main Vein, 28. S'amuse Comme Un Peut, 29. Transitions, 30. Grounded For Life (13 second T.V. version)
Download: MegaUpload

B-Sides, Demos & Rarities, Vol. 2: 31. I Got No Darkside (12 GCG outtake), 32. So Long Jerry (12 GCG outtake), 33. Booze Me Up And Get Me High (Mollusk outtake), 34. I'll Be Your Johnny On The Spot (demo version), 35. Mr Richard Smoker (90 Second TV version-never used), 36. Cornbread Red, 37. Cornbread Red (dub mix), 38. Who Dat?, 39. Shot Heard 'Round The World (Schoolhouse Rocks), 40. Boys Club, 41. I'll Miss You (Beautiful Girls Soundtrack), 42. Eye 2 The Sky (rejected song for 'Muppets In Space'), 43. Love (Orgasmo Soundtrack), 44. Fancy Pants (Crank Yankers version), 45. Greg The Bunny (written for TV show-never used), 46. Homo Rainbow (demo), 47. Homo Rainbow (Chef Aid version), 48. Loop De Loop (Spongebob Squarepants episode), 49. I Can't Put My Finger On It (Conan O'Brien), 50. Freedom Of 76' (120 Minutes Performance-1995), 51. Golden Eel (Viva Variety-1997)), 52. Buckingham Green (Nothing TV-Public Access Television show-1997), 53. She Wanted To Leave (Nothing TV-Public Access Television show-1997), 54. Mutitlated Lips (Oddville-1997), 55. Exactly Where I'm At (Letterman-2000), 56. Making Love In The Gravy (Electro Harmonix Micro Synth Demo), 57. Dual (Electro Harmonix Micro Synth Demo)
Download: MegaUpload

B-Sides, Demos & Rarities, Vol. 3: 58. Beacon Light (X-Files Soundtrack), 59. Stallion Pt.4 (C&C Outtake), 60. Did You See Me? (Mollusk Outtake), 61. I Still Love You (Done for Mickey and Aaron's Insurance Salesman), 62. Junky Boy (Pandy Fackler Tape), 63. No More Tears (Pandy Fackler Tape), 64. Numb To The Lung (Pandy Fackler Tape), 65. Nicole Pt.4 (Pandy Fackler Tape), 66. Purple Haze (Deaner Does Jimi Tape), 67. The Wind Cries Mary (Deaner Does Jimi Tape), 68. Bold As Love (Deaner Does Jimi Tape), 69. Little Wing (Deaner Does Jimi Tape), 70. Kansas City Star, 71. Love Will Conquer All, 72. Chairman Of My Destiny, 73. Unknown Title (demo), 74. Baboon Pt.2, 75. Time To Yourself, 76. Surfeited, 77. Little Miss Mandee, 78. Happy Colored Marbles (Carson Daly Show-2003)
Download: MegaUpload

B-Sides, Demos & Rarities, Vol. 4: 79. Square Wave Jam (Electro Harmonix Micro Synth Demo), 80. Touch My Tooter (KCRW Radioshow-Morning Becomes Eclectic), 81. Buenos Tardes Amigo (demo), 82. Flutes Of The Chi (Mollusk Outtake/Reject version), 83. Ocean Man (demo version), 84. Mickey (Pigface-Deaner & Andrew), 85. Cold-Mickey pt.2 (Pigface-Deaner & Andrew), 86. Hello Johnny (White Pepper Demo), 87. I'll Wait (Mollusk Outtake/Demo), 86. She'll Just Get You (White Pepper Demo), 89. Fool To Cry (Rolling Stones Cover), 90. Argus (Not Quebec version-completely diff.song), 91. Even If You Don't (demo), 92. Where'd The Cheese Go? (Pizza Hut Commercial rejected song), 93. Where'd The Motherfucking Cheese Go At? (reworked Pizza Hut jingle), 94. Champagne Jam (Run Ronnie Run Soundtrack), 95. Transdermal Celebration (Quebec rehearsals), 96. Ooh Va La (Quebec rehearsals), 97. Tried And True (Quebec rehearsals), 98. Alcan Road (Quebec rehearsals), 99. Ooh Va La (Quebec outtake/B-side), 100. Mountains And Buffalos (Quebec outtake/B-side)
Download: MegaUpload

X - Los Angeles (1980/2001)

X is a noted punk rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1977. While they achieved only limited mainstream success, they were widely considered one of the most accessible and tuneful of Los Angeles' many punk bands. Their landmark 1980 record Los Angeles resonated so loudly with the artisans of the city it is named after, that the band received an Official Certificate of Recognition from the City of Los Angeles in acknowledgment of their important contributions to Los Angeles music and culture. They were hugely influential on various genres of music, including punk, hardcore, and folk.
Original members were Exene Cervenka (born Christine Cervenka, vocals), John Doe (born John Duchac, bass and vocals), Billy Zoom (born Tyson Kindell, guitar) and DJ Bonebrake (born Donald J. Bonebrake, drums). After Zoom retired from the band, Tony Gilkyson replaced him on guitar. Zoom reunited with X in 1998. The original line-up now tours sporadically.
Their albums had a hard-driving sound that occasionally flirted with country and blues; one critic suggests that X "were not just one of the greatest punk bands, but one of the greatest live rock acts of all time."
In many ways — from songwriting to performances — X were arguably a bit more sophisticated and diverse than many of their punk peers (except Cervenka, all band members had previous musical experience before forming X.) One critic writes that X were "too self-conscious, artsy and ambitious to simply spew" in typical punk fashion.
X's first record deal was with pioneering indepedent label Dangerhouse, for which the band produced two singles, "Los Angeles" and "Adult Books." The Dangerhouse session version of "Los Angeles" was also featured in a Dangerhouse compilation called "Yes LA", a picture disc that featured other early-punk era LA bands like the Weirdos and Black Randy. As the band became the flag bearer for the local scene, a larger independent label, Slash, signed the band to issue its first LP.
The result was their first LP release, the appropriately titled Los Angeles (1980) (produced by The Doors' keyboard player, Ray Manzarek), was a minor hit and well received by the underground press and mainstream media. Much of X's early material had a rockabilly edge. Doe and Cervenka co-wrote most of the group's songs, and their slightly off-kilter harmony vocals remain perhaps the group's most distinctive element. Their lyrics tended to be straight-out poetry, and comparisons to Charles Bukowski and Raymond Chandler were made from the start.
Source: Wikipedia

This is the remastered version released in 2001 - includes some cool demos and alternative versions.

Tracks: 1. Your Phone's Off the Hook, But You're Not, 2. Johnny Hit and Run Paulene, 3. Soul Kitchen, 4. Nausea, 5. Sugarlight, 6. Los Angeles, 7. Sex and Dying In High Society, 8. The Unheard Music, 9. The World's a Mess; It's In My Kiss, 10. I'm Coming Over (Demo), 11. Adult Books (Demo), 12. Delta 88 (Demo), 13. Cyrano De Berger's Back (Rehearsal), 14. Los Angeles (Dangerhouse Version).
Download - MegaUpload / Download - Rapidshare

Smashing Pumpkins - Machina II: The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music (2000)

With the release of their new album "Zeitgeist" the newly reformed Smashing Pumpkins are back on track - and what better way to celebrate their return than to offer you a download of the "Machina II" album and the three EP's.

"Machina II: The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music" is an album by the Smashing Pumpkins that was released for free on the Internet on September 5, 2000. A sequel to "Machina: The Machines of God", it has thus far not had a commercial release. It consists of three EPs full of B-sides and alternate versions, and one double LP which is the actual album. Both "Machina" albums are concept albums. At the time the album was released it was to be the final Smashing Pumpkins studio album

Near the conclusion of the Machina sessions, it was Billy Corgan's wish to release a double album of material, but Virgin Records was unwilling to do that following the disappointing sales of Adore. After the release, and poor sales, of the single-disc Machina/The Machines of God, Corgan then wanted to release a second Machina album separately, but Virgin declined to do this as well. As a final farewell to the fans, and as a snub to the unsupportive label (as evidenced by the album's title), it was released independently as "Machina II: The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music". The album was released on Corgan's own label Constantinople Records. Only 25 total copies were made. The records were shipped via FedEx to several heavily active fans in the online community, with instructions to immediately redistribute it among the fans.

Because of the high interest in the album and its extreme rarity at 25 copies, a vinyl "Machina II" can be considered a holy grail for Pumpkins fans. On August 5, 2005 the Q101 copy (#19/25) was put up for sale on eBay. The seller decided to end the auction four days early when the bidding had reached $10,000 from a bidder in France. This bidder has since disclosed that there was a mutual agreement after the auction was ended to cancel the sale transaction. It remains to be seen if this copy (or any other) will go up for sale again publicly in the near future, but the episode suggests that an original vinyl copy could fetch a five-figure sum.

A number of a release sources exist for "Machina II". All of them are sourced from vinyl.
Virgin Promos: This source is from in-house promo CDs made at Virgin Records (sourced from the vinyls), made before Machina II was released to the public over the Internet. Two versions of the promos exist, a UK (type I) and U.S. (type II) version, both with 4 CDs corresponding to the vinyl copies. As it was done in-house at a record company it generally assumed to be a high-quality transfer, though some of the faint voices which can be heard in the background before some of the EP songs are cut off, and in general it is missing a considerable amount of audio between song transitions.
Q101 Transfer: As mentioned above, the radio station Q101 received one of the 25 vinyl copies. It was subsequently transferred to 2 CDs by the station (one CD containing the EP tracks and one containing the LP tracks). Because the transfer was done by a high profile radio station (presumably with high-end equipment and professional oversight) many assume the transfer to be of good quality. Copies were given away as prizes from the station.
SPIFC Transfer: The SPIFC transfer was produced from a vinyl copy by a member of the SPIFC. A transfer was eventually performed onto two CDs with "high-end" equipment. The SPIFC offers MP3 downloads of the transfer to members and held a contest giving away CD-R copies. When analyzed the audio from the SPIFC transfer shows a 21 kHz tone which casts some doubt on the quality of the transfer.
MP3 Web Releases: Following the vinyl release a number of MP3 versions quickly surfaced on the web. A select number of people involved in the Smashing Pumpkins online fan community received one of the 25 releases. Using audio equipment they had immediate access to these were recorded onto computer, encoded to MP3 and quickly released for the masses. Later MP3 releases may be from one of the CD sources listed above or newer lesser known transfers.
Commercial Releases: Four tracks from "Machina II" have been released commercially. These are of specific note, because these versions were sourced from the master tapes rather than amateur vinyl transfers. "Real Love" was featured on the Rotten Apples compilation. "Lucky 13" and "Slow Dawn" appeared on Judas O, which was included with early copies of Rotten Apples. The Machina II version of "Try, Try, Try" was one of the B-sides to the "Untitled" single, titled "Try, Try, Try (Alternate Version)." The studio banter that preceeds "Try, Try, Try" on "Machina II" has been removed from this version."
Source: Wikipedia

This is the 320 kbps version of the album, made available on Billy Corgan's official website - probably the best quality version you'll ever come across.

Machina II: The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music:
EP1 (CR-01): 1. Slow Dawn, 2. Vanity, 3. Saturn9, 4. Glass (Alt. Version).
Download - MegaUpload
EP2 (CR-02): 1. Soul Power, 2. Cash Car Star (Version 1), 3. Lucky 13, 4. Speed Kills (But Beauty Lives Forever).
Download - MegaUpload
EP3 (CR-03): 1. If There Is a God (Piano Version), 2. Try (Version 1), 3. Heavy Metal Machine (Version I/Alt. Mix).
Download - MegaUpload
LP (CR-04): 1. Glass, 2. Cash Car Star, 3. Dross, 4. Real Love, 5. Go, 6. Let Me Give the World to You, 7. Innosense, 8. Home, 9. Blue Skies Bring Tears (Version Electrique), 10. White Spyder, 11. In My Body, 12. If There Is a God, 13. Le Deux Machina, 14. Atom Bomb.
Download - MegaUpload

For more Smashing Pumpkins related info & goodies - including tons of live bootlegs & rarities - go to:
The Smashing Pumpkins Audio Archive
ThePumpkins.net

Do yourself a favor and check out the movie "Zeitgeist" - an independent movie about what Christianity, 9/11 and The Federal Reserve all have in common.

New York Dolls - 1st & 2nd Demo (1972)

The New York Dolls are a rock band formed in New York City in 1971. In 2004 the band reformed with three of their original members, two of whom, David Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain, continue on today and released a new album in 2006.
The band found little commercial success during their existence, but the New York Dolls prefigured much of what was to come in the punk rock era and even later; the Dolls' over-the-top crossdressing influenced the look of many new wave and glam metal groups, and their shambling, sloppy but highly energetic playing style set the tone for many later rock and roll bands.
Initially, the group was comprised of singer David Johansen, guitarists Johnny Thunders and Rick Rivets (who was replaced by Sylvain Sylvain after a few months), bass guitarist Arthur "Killer" Kane and drummer Billy Murcia. The original lineup's first performance was on Christmas Eve 1971 at a homeless shelter, the infamous Endicott Hotel.
They got their big break when Rod Stewart invited them to open for him at a London concert. Shortly thereafter, Murcia died of accidental suffocation (after he passed out from drugs and alcohol, groupies put him in a cold bath and forced coffee down his throat). He was succeeded by Jerry Nolan, a friend of the band's, though future Richard Hell and Ramones drummer Marc Bell (Marky Ramone) later claimed he auditioned to take Murcia's place: "Only two people showed up to audition, me and Jerry. They gave it to him because I was doing all the fancy fills."
The band was influenced by vintage rhythm and blues, the early Rolling Stones, classic American girl group songs, and anarchic post-psychedelic bands such as the MC5 and the Stooges, as well as then-current glam rockers such as Marc Bolan. They did it their own way, creating something which critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote "doesn't really sound like anything that came before it. It's hard rock with a self-conscious wit, a celebration of camp and kitsch that retains a menacing, malevolent edge."
Morrissey organized a reunion of the three surviving band members (Johansen, Sylvain, and Kane) for the Meltdown Festival in 2004. It was extremely well-received, producing a live LP and DVD on Morrissey's Attack label, and a film, New York Doll, showing Kane's point of view of the genesis of the reunion contrasted against the backdrop of his conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. However, future plans were affected when the news came of Arthur Kane's unexpected death on July 13, 2004 from leukemia.
In July 2005, it was announced the two surviving members would tour and produce a new album, titled One Day It Will Please Us to Remember Even This. Released on July 25, 2006 the album features guitarist Steve Conte, bassist Sami Yaffa (formerly of Hanoi Rocks), drummer Brian Delaney and keyboardist Brian Koonin.
Source: Wikipedia

These are their first two studio demos. The first one was recorded in the summer of 1972 at the Blue Rock Studio in New York City. The second demo was recorded in October of 1972 at Escape Studios in Kent, England. Both of these demos was produced by Marty Thau, and features the original drummer Billy Murcia.

1st Demo: 1. Bad Girl, 2. Looking For a Kiss, 3. Don't Start Me Talking, 4. Don't Mess With Cupid, 5. Human Being, 6. Personality Crisis, 7. Pills, 8. Jet Boy, 9. Frankenstein.
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2nd Demo: 1. Personality Crisis, 2. Looking For a Kiss, 3. Bad Girl,4. Subway Train.
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