10 Records Worth To Die For: #202 mit Nathan Von Cruz (The Hip Priests)

I can’t choose between these two LP’s so I’ll have to include both. To me Bowie owned the 70’s. He was pretty untouchable in terms of pushing himself and music forward. Both these LP’s are from round about the half way point of the decade. Station to Station straddles the end of the plastic soul era and hints at his next phase and chapter. Station To Station has one of the best opening songs on it (the title track). Inspired by Kraftwerk, its starts as atmospheric Kraut Rock (Carlos Alomar’s guitar work sounds amazing) and finishes off as a roadhouse honky-tonk sing a long. Its out of step with the rest of the LP, the rest of the record feels like Bowie is an alien Frank Sinatra. Songs like Word On a Wing show a side to him not seen before – crooning, emotional, vunerable, doubtful – not the same confident Bowie as Ziggy or the Jean Genie. Low is the start of his Berlin Trilogy and this LP and Heroes are probably Bowie at his most experimental – while still having singles that hit the Top 20. It’s the start of his work with Eno, but with many of the band and players from his last LP. I like Low as it’s such a headfuck of an LP and he lost a lot of old fans with this LP. But then gained new fans who felt inspired to go and form new bands or create new scenes. I think this LP still sounds ahead of its time today and would argue that without this LP there would be no post punk, no new romantics, no futurists. I find Side One a pure euphoric joy to listen to. However, Side Two, is a whole different story and I have to be in the right mood and frame of mind to listen to it. Its not gonna help your PMA and apparently it’s the last music Ian Curtis listened to before he………..

My favourite Stooges LP. When I brought this and got it home, I put it on and bam!! After hearing the first 30 seconds of Down On The Street – I thought at last , I’ve found it!!! It’s the rock n roll sound that I had always been searching for. Again it sounds fresh – 50 years after it was released!!!! I cant say anything that hasn’t already been said about this LP. Just go out and get this…then go get Raw Power and the first LP.

This is one of the most experimental, dark and bleak post punk records. I worked in a factory around the time I brought this and would listen to it everyday as I walked to and from work in the winter. It was the perfect soundtrack to dark, raining UK mornings. I can’t listen to Albatross without being cast back in time to that period.

I first heard the sex pistols on a mixtape given to be at School. It had about 5 of the songs that are on the LP and I then borrowed the LP from a school friend. My Mum wasn’t happy about seeing a record with BOLLOCKS written across the cover and told me that my Grandma might not like this. It may be obvious including this, but it has to be one of the best PUNK records of all time. It sounds huge. This record signposted me to so much more music too. Bands like the New York Dolls, Modern Lovers etc.

The Cure were the first band that I ever saw live. Disintergration Tour 1989. This LP is for the American market and compiles the First LP (Three Imaginary Boys) but replaces a few songs from that record with other tracks (such as the single Jumping Someone else’s Train). I could have picked any Cure LP from the 80’s but this one is them at their most “punk” and probably at their most minimal and simplistic. The first four Cure LP’s are great and each record sounds like a different band.

I love early American Hardcore Punk. Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Adolescents, the Germs – they all had great songs. Short, sharp, loaded with energy and attitude and they all made great records. But out of all of hat “scene” the one record that I always come back to though is this one. I never tire of listening to it. The songs are fantastic. Its straight to the point. No fluff, No faff, No flapping, noodling or anything of excess – its straight and direct and to the point. Each song blasts into the room and exits just as quick as it comes in. Danzig’s vocals and delivery are amazing. Hints of Jim Morrison (without the shit hippie poetry) and Elvis (without the jump suit and burgers).

This was my soundtrack for the Summer of 1989. Everyone always talks about the Stone Roses, but for me the Mondays were the kings. They looked like proper street urchins. They seemed more druggy, more surreal, more streetwise, more of a gang than a band. They looked and sounded like they didn’t give a fuck. Again this LP signposted me to so much other stuff. Musically it turned me on to psychedelic period and early 70’s Stones, Funkadelic and soul music. It also has a lot of twisted northern humour and best of all….you can dance to it. It also made me seek and discover a few films. There are samples from the Rolling Stones film Gimme Shelter and also the film Performance. I would say that Performance has made just as big an impression on me as any of the LP’s on this list and contains so many ideas and other cultural references.

I like pop music. I grew up surrounded by pop music. The early 80s was a particularly vibrant period for really great pop music. In the UK, the Charts and Top of the Pops was full of great tunes. The definitive boy band of that era was probably these dudes – and the first LP is a blinder, second LP is as well. I suppose you could label this LP as my guilty pleasure. Apart from the fact that I don’t feel guilty that its gives me so much pleasure. It contains some fantastic pop singles – and then songs that could have been pop singles. There is great sense of melody and Le Bon’s vocal’s sound great. Don’t read too much into his lyrics though…..as they are horsepiss!

I used to have a ritual where if I was staying in on a Friday nightnthe evening would get to a certain hour and it would become Electric Wizard time. Me and my girlfriend would turn off all the lights apart from a red lamp and just listen to this record from beginning to end. It’s the perfect soundtrack for a black mass or a satanic ceremony. If ever find yourself staying in on a Friday night – take my advice, turn the lights out, put the red light on, grab your sacrificial dagger and kneel at the altar.

Everyone talks about Suicides first LP which is a stone cold classic. But there is something that I really love about the second LP. This one often gets overlooked. Diamond, Fur coats and Champagne and Harlem are probably two of my favourite Suicide songs. Suicide were so far ahead of their time. I still think we are playing catch up. There are hints of early electro and techno in this LP. Hypnotic bass grooves. 808 hand claps and hi hats.

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