A quick and dirty post today – the lone 7” from UK post-punk/new wave flavored band Eye Do It, who seem to have had a penchant for hieroglyphics judging from the record sleeve. This 7” was released in 1984 via N.R.O. Records, who also released a compilation titled A Night at the Flicks which features the third and final Eye Do It track (which I do not own and have not heard, but would love to if anyone has a copy of this compilation, which also features indie pop band Mighty Mighty). Touchstones for this single include bands like Ex Post Facto, Repetition, Last Man In Europe, Pink Militar ..read more

Been seeing a lot of love for this one on the net since I ripped this, so figured it was due time to post it properly. Here we have 2/3rds of the discography by US-based jangle/new wave/indie rock band Primitive Pleasure. We’re missing the first 7” from 1984 here, but plenty of great tracks to pore over in the meantime. “The Vision” remains a standout, appearing on both the LP and the 7” in identical form, minus the synth blurbs at the beginning of the LP version. These segues feature throughout the entire LP, cementing the album as a pure hybrid of both new wave and jangle pop that’s a perfec ..read more

Happy to share this one-off 7” from 1983 by Dream 286 – fresh off the needle and into your eardrums.  This four-piece band hails from Cincinnati, Ohio and has an excellent dark new wave/post-punk sound that I can never get enough of. On paper, the band reminds me quite a bit of UK-based punk band Action Pact!, but with more synthesizers in tow. Otherwise, from what I can tell, the band was fairly active throughout the midwest, playing a slew of shows throughout the area, including a prominent gig opening for Factual, whose track “Psychotic Romance” is worth hearing for those unfamiliar ..read more

It’s been a minute since we’ve had a post here – sorry about that, folks. Been a rough few months here. It’s ALSO been a minute since we’ve had a true dark synth/wave classic featured on these pages, so with that in mind, let’s highlight this lone 12” by Front and Fantasy, a Danish duo featuring a pair of Martins: Martin Krogh and the ever-prolific Martin Hall. This 12” is the only release by the duo, dropping in 1985, the same year Hall himself released his first non-cassette solo recording, the equally excellent Relief. Martin Krogh was in a handful of goth/post-punk bands, many of whic ..read more

Here’s a very rare new wave-infused 7” from the US, one that’s been under-the-radar for me for some time now. I finally decided to spring for a copy just to quell my curiosity. The Myst were a trio from Ohio, and this is the only recording that I’m aware of. A single, lone 7” from 1987, when hair metal ruled the world. Now, the original Discogs listing (since changed) is a bit misleading, as I wouldn’t really call this post-punk OR coldwave (especially by the American definition), though it’s not a completely unrelated genre trying to pass off as dark synth, which is a thing I’v ..read more

I’m going to attempt a DOUBLE post today, so bear with me, folks. Here we have two obscure 7”s from New Jersey-based post-punk band Again & Again & Again. Just you try and Google that name, I triple dog dare you… This four piece released these two singles in 1982 and 1983 respectively. The first single has a bit of a power pop vibe for the first track, which may be appealing to some of y’all. I vastly prefer the b-side of this one overall, though your mileage may vary. The second single is my preferred offering from this band, as both tracks have that early, rickety post-punk sound I t ..read more

Here’s a French single from 1984 by Beatrain, who previously went under the name The Grave. Both tracks are sung in English, presumably to catch the ears and eyes of the UK scene. This is their only release, though the single caused enough of a splash to secure the band a spot on French 3 program “Avenue Du Rock.” As for the sounds, both tracks are stellar bouncy post-punk tracks with a slightly rickety post-punk or early indie rock edge, a sweet spot for me that I think you will all enjoy as well. The A-side is strictly female vox, but there is some vocal interplay on the equally excellent B ..read more

Here’s a more romantic/synth pop flavored single from the UK, released in 1988. Thanks to Goutroy for the rip on this one! Really couldn’t tell you too much about Nikola Eugene or the label America First Records, but here’s two tracks that should be welcome for fans of things like Anna Domino, Toyah, ‘Til Tuesday and things in that vein with plenty of dreamy new wave hooks but a fair amount of cold guitar mixed in for good measure. All in all an excellent little slice of obscure wave. Hope y’all enjoy! Nikola Eugene- Longest Revolution 7” 1. Longest Revolution 2. More Than a Prayer *download ..read more

Hi friends. Hope everyone had a lovely holiday season. This will likely be my last post of the year at this rate, a final sweet synth sayonara to 2020 in hopes we all find better tidings in the new year. Here’s a single that I’ve both loved and forgotten in recent months. I can’t remember where I first heard this one a few years back, but a friend reminded me of it a few weeks ago, and I fell in love with it all over again, as if I were hearing it for the first time, but knew deep down this was a deeper obsession. The band, a French new wave act named Jinx (erroneously spelled Jynx on the inne ..read more

First things first I’d like to thank Bret Helm of the excellent post-punk band Audra and from the Life on This Planet blog for clueing me into this one, as well as for providing the rip to share with you all. This particular 7” is one of those rare nuggets that only pops up once in a blue moon, and goes for an extraordinary amount, but in my opinion, is totally worth the asking price. The Psalms were a new wave/post-punk band from Tempe, Arizona. The biggest touchstone here is guitarist/synth player Doug Hopkins and bassist Bill Leen, both who would form the Gin Blossoms a few years later ..read more