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2CD
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BKH 027CD
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Broken Horse present an expanded reissue of Charles Douglas's Statecraft, originally released in 2004. Charles Douglas wandered out of a Manhattan recording studio where he was putting the finishing touches on what was to become his final album, Statecraft. Featuring Joey Santiago of the Pixies on lead guitars, and recorded by Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. producer Wharton Tiers, the album was intended as a huge step forward for this iconoclastic indie rocker, who had started out as a teenager in Dayton, Ohio. His previous studio album, The Lives of Charles Douglas (1999), had been a raw Ramones-meets-VU-meets-Jonathan Richman blast of energy, featuring Maureen Tucker on drums and production. Statecraft was meant as a much more fleshed-out affair, featuring offbeat horns and strings alongside the guitar assault of Douglas and Santiago's unmistakable signature sound. Statecraft went on to gather praise from the likes of David Bowie (who sent a fan letter) and John Waters. From the sleeve notes: "David Bowie's letter arrived in a large white envelope that looked like some sort of bizarre wedding invitation. My girlfriend got it from the mailbox. To my surprise, when we opened it, there was a letter from Bowie inside saying that he loved Statecraft, and that I must keep up the good work, and make more music for him to enjoy." Statecraft brims with skewed, gritty pop tunes, and it suggests that Charles Douglas was at the culmination of his demented artistic powers. But unfortunately Douglas, unhappy with the protracted recording process and concerned about relapsing into the substance abuse, left New York City, abandoned the sessions, and moved to North Carolina, turning down a major label record deal in the process. Wharton Tiers ended up mixing and sequencing sixteen of the songs, and overseeing the initial release of Statecraft. Despite the initial acclaim, the album quickly drifted into obscurity. After Broken Horse reissued The Lives of Charles Douglas (2010), as well as a retrospective called Not Your Kind of Music (2012), the label learned that Douglas had recorded over thirty-five songs in the studio for Statecraft, and initially planned to make a double album. Many of the songs that were recorded and discarded are hidden gems: Pavement-esque pop, stripped-down rock, and giddy weirdness. This reissue collects all of the studio tracks from the sessions, adding nineteen rare and unreleased songs. Includes a 28-page booklet of liner notes written by Charles Douglas.
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CD
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BKH 025CD
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2013 release. In 2012, Kevin Tihista re-emerged after a seven-year hiatus with the widely acclaimed On This Dark Street. At the time Kevin had put aside some of his more upbeat songs that he had written for a later date. An album called Modern Standard was originally planned (and much delayed) to be the official follow-up to the hugely acclaimed Wake Up Captain (2004) and the equally well received Home Demons Vol 1 that swiftly followed in 2005. Broken Horse present Modern Standard which sees Kevin returning with his most optimistic and accessible set of songs since his 2001 debut Don't Breathe A Word. Not that Kevin himself necessarily agrees with this assessment: "I don't think I'd ever be accused of being too optimistic. Maybe less dire? There are a few songs on the new record that do have a glimpse of hope in them though. 'The City', 'Happy People Shut Your Mouths', and 'On My Way' would be those few. For the most part, I don't let my songs get too sunny. I have Slayer and Morrissey to thank for that. I would agree that compared to On This Dark Street, Modern Standard has more pop elements to it. I'd say 'The City' pretty much makes up for every doom and gloom song I've ever written. It gave me a cavity when I wrote it." With On This Dark Street under his belt, Kevin and his label Broken Horse planned a much more positive record that played to his strengths and reinforced his reputation as one of America's finest songwriters. Modern Standard is a stunning showcase of Tihista's songwriting talents. It's an embarrassment of riches, with one great song after another, and it's not hard to imagine that each one could be a listener's favorite.
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