Simple Machines Catatlog

new releases

SMR 55
IDA Poor Dumb Bird 7" $3.50
A gorgeous three song 7" with a song by bass player Karla on the A side plus two non-album tracks, including a cover of Richard Thompson's "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight" and Prince's...oops! I mean The Artist's "When U Were Mine". Packaged in metallic blue cover, with sporty basketball photos of Ida.

SMR 54
IDA, Ten Small Paces CD $11
Ida's third record shows a departure from the norm. Here Ida pieces together a scrapbook of an album, a total of 15 tracks recorded in almost as many places, nestling five covers from songwriters as diverse as Bill Monroe and Brian Eno between the ten original tracks. Some four-track, some studio, some bedroom tracks and, as always, Ida's singing and songwriting itself is to be cherished and admired for making hearts swell.

SMR 53
TSUNAMI A Brilliant Mistake CD $11
You thought we brike up? You rumor-monger...we fooled you. We merely spent the past two years honing our skills, recruiting new converts, watching the zodiac and avoiding two of the most digusting years of rock commercialism. Fourteen new songs we recorded in April with the fellas at Kingsize Soundlabs in Chicago and really the best sounding stuff yet. Gorgeous vellum packaging and lots of lyrics to read.

SMR 52
TSUNAMI Poodle/Old City 7" $3.50
"Poodle" is a catchy number playing homage to a brave team of Poodles that competed in the Iditerod sled race (among other things) and "Old City" is a pop gem about stolen cars so insidious you'll be humming it all day long. Not only good songs, but hand packaged in letterpressed sleeves, a limited edition of 1800.

SMR 51
IDA/BEEKEEPER split tour 7" $3.50
New single from NYC's Ida and Beekeeper, who are touring together in March and April. Ida's song glows from within, with Liz and new bass player Carla trading melancholy vocal lines, and are joined by Dan at the end for a gorgeou three part harmony. Beekeeper give us the perfect compliment, with a catchy upbeat song that jumps with dual harmonies. Packaged in a pearly silver jacket.

IN RE-PRESS RIGHT NOW

latest releases

SMR 49/Dis 115.5/ Lov 06
MONORCHID Let them eat...The Monorchid CD $11 LP $8 Yes, the waiting is over - the debut Monorchid CD is here. And what an album. Recorded with J. Robbins (Jawbox) at Inner Ear in September, Monorchid punches out song after hyperactive song like a prizefighter going after Bozo the Clown. We kid you not, this is a great record that'll leave you reeling at the end of the 12 songs. Split release with Dischord, vinyl released by Lovitt.

SMR HAT
The Simple Machines Winter Hat - $10. Hats are acrylic blend, typical ski hat shape, in brown, burgundy, forest green, black, white or navy, and each have the hardworking mule logo in a gorgeous three-color emboidered area on the front.

SMR 48
MONORCHID - "Distortion/Babies" - 7" $3.50. Would you believe we've already SOLD OUT of 1000 Monorchid 7"s! We've ordered 300 more and we still have some in stock in mailorder, so don't worry. You can still order yours today.

SMR 36
DANIELLE HOWLE About to Burst CD $11 LP $8 Danielle hails from the sleepy town of Columbia, SC, but for this gal, sleep is the last thing on her mind. After a 7" debut way back in 1994 and last year's 12-song Live at McKissick Museum CD, Danielle brings forth this fourteen song CD that'll knock your socks off. The songs swing from full band sound to Danielle and her acoustic guitar, but no matter how they're played, Danielle's incredible voice, her wit and her gift for writing great songs shines through.

SMR 47
IDA I Know About You. CD $11 On their second full-length, Ida absolutely shines. Ida have an original, nakedly sincere voice and they resignedly show it. No small task for a band that lives in the middle of New York City where flash, attitude and publicists make up the bulk of rocker content. But Ida's trump card is an honest recognisable voice - the core of what makes any artist historically great. Ida are one of the only bands we know that can take the numbingly complicated emotional content of daily life and somehow distill it to its most simple lyric essence, while at the same time not diminishing its complexity of meaning. This is ten times the record we hoped they would one day make. Every line resonates, is quotable, generous, bittersweet and hopeful. We hope you enjoy it.

IN RE-PRESS RIGHT NOW

SMR 46
RETSIN Egg Fusion CD $11 LP $8 Retsin: "America's favorite good-times band" is the most prolific in Simple Machines history. In less than two months Retsin wrote, recorded and produced artwork for their next full length CD. And, in keeping with their track record, it's another phenomenal offering. Seriously. Tara and Cynthia eat, sleep and breathe music. Whether it's divine inspiration or moody introspection that motivates these women to write so many songs, there is nothing tossed off or lightweight about the songwriting on their first full-length CD Egg Fusion. From the simple truths and lazy Neil Young-isms of "Kangaroo" to the driving and ominous "Hottie Titmouse" Retsin paint a broad range of pictures in a variety of musical styles. They march, they rock, they weave, they spoon, but mostly they tell stories in voices you recognize and appreciate.

SMR 44
SEA SAW Magnetophone CD $11 Sea Saw is the work of one obsessed songwriter, Trevor Kampmann. Although the record is insidiously catchy with seemingly effortless hooks these 11 songs were recorded and re-recorded and mixed and re-mixed under his unflinching, ever-critical eye. Covering the erase heads with tape, bouncing up to 17 tracks at a time, and using visual scoring techniques, Trevor stands as the antithesis of the all-pervasive misinformed theory that... 4-track equals lo-fi. Hel-LO! Most of the Beatles hits were recorded on a 4-track...Anyway, Magnetophone is a true gem. Includes three songs from the "Stereo" 7" and a cool re-mix by Warren DeFever.

SMR 42
RETSIN Salt Lick 10" $8 CD EP $10 Retsin is the songwriting/recording collaboration of Cynthia from Ruby Falls and Tara Jane from Rodan, and a few of their talented friends, and this record is sure to set the world on fire. Although Tara and Cynthia had met in indie circles and their bands had played together as far back as three years ago, it wasn't until last March when they were working on the soon-to-be-cult movie Half Cocked that they realized they wanted to write songs together. Both Tara and Cynthia picked up guitars, writing loping, "good times" songs, and recorded the entire thing themselves on various 4-tracks between NYC and Louisville. Eight long songs on this stunning debut CD EP.

SMR 41
THE RAYMOND BRAKE Piles of Dirty Winters CD $11 After 2 fabulous 7"s, The Raymond Brake pull out all the stops and record a 13-song debut album that captures their command of a huge variety of styles. To them, touring is fun, recording is fun, playing is fun and it shows all over this record. It's not cuddle-core, mind you....there's nothing twee or naive about them. But just the same, they're not just punching the rock-n-roll clock. These boys write great music and they enjoy playing it. Trust us.
* Check out their latest release on Hep Cat.

CAD 5008
LIQUORICE Listening Cap CD $11 LP $8 If you didn't already know, Liquorice is Jenny from Tsunami, Dan from Ida and Trey from His Name is Alive. This is their first full-length, and it's out on 4AD / Simple Machines. Order your's today.

SMR 28
FRANKLIN BRUNO A Bedroom Community CD $11 LP $8 Presenting the first solo album from Nothing Painted Blue's Franklin Bruno. Everything from ersatz samba to Gibson-fueled pop to feedback-drenched folk laments, held together by the crafty songwriting NPB followers and detractors alike have come to expect, but with a darker wit that some may find surprising. Recurring lyrical motifs include infidelity, winter, mortality, self-doubt, and postage. "This is the record," he claims, "the uncomprehending reviews of which will make me finally quit music."

SMR 45
SCRAWL "Good Under Pressure"/"Chaos" 7" $3.50 While you're waiting for their upcoming full-length on Elektra (out in September), check out this amazing 7". Two articulate, gut wrenching, ass-moving, "stop and do a double take" great songs...everything you've ever liked about Scrawl and more. On the b-side song "Chaos" Marcy Mays kicks out a bad house-guest with such a fire in her voice that when she growls "get out of my house" you'll be tempted to reach for the door yourself, and "Good Under Pressure" is quite possibly the best song they have ever written. * Check it out! Scrawl's newest full-length on Elektra is awesome and "Good Under Pressure" is hot single. WE're releasing the vinyl version of Travel On, Rider in January 1997.

SMR 39
IDA "It's Not Alright"/"Thank-You" 7" $3.50 On the heels of their acclaimed debut CD Tales of Brave Ida New York City's Ida released a single that takes the next step. The Tales of Brave Ida CD was mostly acoustic atmospheric folk, but then something changed when Daniel's brother Michael began playing drums. His presence over the past year and the bands tours have resulted in Ida's newer "road-ready" style. But not everything's changed. They still make heatedly tender music, they still use simple words to speak volumes, they still give everyday occurrences time under the microscope and, most importantly, they still harmonize beautifully. It's just that now they do it with an even stronger, "live-sounding" music structure. Check out their second full-length - I Know About You - out now!

SMR 33
TSUNAMI World Tour and Other Destinations CD $11 Like almost everything else Tsunami has done in the past four years, they had big ideas to live up to. Their first show was planned in advance of any practice or serious songwriting, and this sort of ambition has become the standard. Now, over 19 releases, 6 American and 3 European tours, 1 Lollapalooza tour, 3 videos, and 9 t-shirt designs later, Tsunami brings you a 70-minute, 22-song compilation CD of their hard-to-find singles, b-sides and compilation tracks. Pretty prolific for a band that squeezes tours and practices between the full-time fun of Simple Machines, day jobs, various side projects and bands, and a drummer finishing his college degree 460 miles away from the hometown of DC. * Yes, Tsunami is still a band, and yes, we have been practicing. Ten new songs in the hopper, and, geez! these are feisty!

SMR 34
SEE SAW "Stereo" + 3 7" $3.50 From the pseudo-hick croon emitting from Trevor's upper-echelon East Coast lips, to the rhythmic strums of mental telepathy at its most desperate, drums like pregnant bellies, it's all there. This four song 7" is See Saw's first reemergence since the release of the CD EP And Its Head Popped Off , and the pre-cursor to his next full-length, Magnetophone, which was released in February 1996.

SMR 37
THE RAYMOND BRAKE "New Wave Dream"/ "Secret" 7" $3.50 It was at a Tsunami show in Carrboro, NC at the fabulous Cat's Cradle where we first met The Raymond Brake. They were incredible, and seeing as how they are all 19 and 20 years old, these rockers learned to play guitar listening to the Polvos, Pitchblendes and Grifters of the music canon - strange tunings/strange timings - yet at the same time they aren't afraid of their Top 40 radio roots and they know melody reigns supreme. They look great, they sound great and they write great songs. This is their second 7", a taste of what you can also find on their debut full-length, Piles of Dirty Winters.

SMR 38
LIQUORICE "Stalls" + 2 7" $3.50 Liquorice is Jenny Toomey (Tsunami/Grenadine), Dan Littleton (Ida/ The Hated) and Trey Many (His Name is Alive) - The Artists Formally Known as Slack. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Slack's ouevre..it's seriously hooky pop that believes the impulse to move originates in the head...not the ass. Packaged in a handsome brown matte paper sleeve with full-color postage stamp adornment.

SMR 40
THE SECRET STARS "Wait" 7" $3.50 Updated: In 1993 The Secret Stars developed out of the endeavoring spirits of Jodi and Geoff (Karate/No Duh). It was summer and the cellar was the coolest place in Geoff's house in Boston, so they spent several afternoons playing surf songs (Geoff on guitar, Jodi on drums) and ventured into songwriting while Jodi was house-sitting for her two best friends. Two months later, Geoff came back from the first Karate tour with some noise tracks and a few pages of lyrics. Jodi had spent afternoons off in the Boston Public Library and wrote a few of her first songs--and they were off. They are a media project in tribute to their friends. Simple Machines were lucky enough to get two songs off this tape for a 7", one bittersweet love song by Geoff and a B-side by Jodi. They also released a cassette through Shrimper this spring, they have a full-length out on Shrimper now and a single on Atlas Records.

OUT OF PRINT.

SMR 26
WORKING HOLIDAY comp CD $11 In 1993 we released 3000 split 7"s every month as part of the Working Holiday Series. Since many of them went out of print almost immediately, we've compiled all twelve months of split 7"s onto one 80-minute CD. Bands include Scrawl, Versus, Jawbox, Codeine, Coctails, Tsunami, Small Factory, Pitchblende, Superchunk, Caterpillar, Grifters, and many more! Comes with a chunky 20-pg booklet with tidbits about the Year of 36,000 7"s and many photos by Pat Graham.
smr 26 live
WORKING HOLIDAY party CD $5.00 CD of live tracks from the year-end Working Holiday Party. Seventeen bands including Superchunk, Crain, Archers of Loaf, Bricks, Rodan, Versus, Eggs and Tsunami, plus a lot of banter from MC Jason Noble, all recorded live by Geoff Turner and Bob Weston. CDs are packaged in a nifty little sleeve. We've got about 50 left, available THROUGH MAILORDER ONLY.

SMR 23
GRENADINE Nopalitos CD $11 LP $8 Fuck the Cocktail nation, it's Grenadine! Grenadine turns musical corners on this second full-length. Reaching back into the 20's for inspiration, they present a pleasing show of tap dancing, barbershop harmonizing, joke-telling, coconut-welding pop. Recorded by Warren DeFever (His Name is Alive). Full color cover looks strangely familiar...

SMR 35
IDA Tales of Brave Ida CD $11 We proudly present the 14-song debut CD of Ida. At the time of recording, Ida was a guitar duo from Brooklyn, our friends Dan Littleton and Liz Mitchell. Dan grew up in Annapolis, MD and was in the much-loved punk band the Hated. Since the Hated's breakup in the late 80s, Dan worked on side projects like Slack /Liquorice (with Jenny Toomey). Before meeting Dan, Liz was in an acoustic duo with Lisa Loeb. In fact, both Dan and Liz played and sang on the super-hit "Stay."

IN RE-PRESS RIGHT NOW.

SMR 31
GRENADINE "Christiansen" 7" $3.50 3-song 7" brings Grenadine from the 1920s into the 1980s. On the a-side, drummer Rob wends a woeful tale, while crooners Jenny and Mark spice up the b-side with album remixes - a touch of industrial noise, courtesy of mixmaster Warren DeFever (His Name is Alive).

SMR 27
DANIELLE HOWLE "Wrestling Song" 7" $3.50 We met Danielle when we were playing a show in Columbia, SC. Not only did she knock us out with her clever songs and witty banter, but took us out for grits the next morning! Danielle and guest bassist Tara Jane (Rodan/Retsin) recorded 2 songs for the 7" at WGNS. Also included is a live track from the Working Holiday party. Clear vinyl.

SMR 25
TSUNAMI The Heart's Tremolo LP $8 CD $11 CS $7 No sophomore slump here! Recorded by Brian Paulson during a Chicago pit stop on a 1994 US tour. Beautifully packaged in metallic silver, and this time lyrics are included free!

SMR 24
TSUNAMI "Be Like That" 7" $3.50 The songs everyone asks about (and the one everyone listened to on their American Airlines headsets one summer - plus an unreleased track that's not on the album) packaged in a full-color flags of the world sleeve, recently featured in the 1995 American Institute of Graphic Arts' Design Annual - A16A.

SMR 19
The Machines Compilation 1990-93 CD $11 CS $7 No more desperate searches for Wedge! This 80 minute CD not only recaptures the glorious sounds of our first release, but all six of the machine 4-band compilation 7"s that are now out of print - Wedge, Wheel, Pulley, Screw, Lever and Inclined Plane. All-star lineup includes Holy Rollers, Edsel, Lungfish, Velocity Girl, Circus Lupus, Autoclave, Jawbox, Superchunk, Unrest, Geek, Tsunami, Candy Machine, Rodan, Scrawl, Severin, The Hated, Nation of Ulysses, Bricks, Mommyheads. Twelve page info-packed booklet explains the making of the series.

SMR 17
SCRAWL Bloodsucker LP$8 CD $11 CS $7 Scrawl's fourth release, which originally came out in 1991 on CD only on Feel Good All Over. With rave reviews and tons of college radio airplay, the CDs were snatched up immediately, and the EP went out of print. As true Scrawl fans, we were really sad when this happened, so you can't imagine how happy were are to be reissuing this EP!

SMR 13
TSUNAMI Deep End LP $8 CD $11 CS $7 The Simple Machines koffeeklatch brings you ten feisty songs on their full length debut. The muscle behind the myth.

SMR 12
MOMMYHEADS Coming into Beauty CD $11 After their album Acorn had us shaking our heads in envy at their cleverness, we thought it was a crime not to release this stuff. 16 incredibly crafted pop songs on this CD.

SMR 11
TEAR JERKS "Chances Are" 7" $3.50 On the first 7" from this beloved Baltimore band, Charles from the Tinklers and Asa from Lungfish sing four songs so sad that they'll make your heart stop.

SMR 9
SUGARTIME Awestruck 7" $3.50 Two-song 7" from NYC power-pop magnates with a sound as big as Jason's bass amp. Red vinyl.

SMR 7
FORTUNE COOKIE PRIZE - a tribute to Beat Happening LP $8 Cannanes, Geek, Superchunk, Seaweed, Scrawl, Love Child, Fish & Roses, Leaky Chipmunk (Volcano Suns/Sebadoh), Kim, Thurston & Epic, Unrest, Whorl and Velocity Girl doing their favorite Beat Happening songs. 100% of the proceeds from the vinyl sales and 80% of the CD proceeds are being donated to Sasha Bruce House in Washington, DC - over $15,000 to date! CD will be back in print in early 1996.

SIMPLE MACHINES GUIDE TO PUTTING OUT RECORDS, CASSETTES & CDs $4 Ever wonder how we get all this done? Way back in 1990 we put together a 24 page booklet about how to put out records. Now it's into its FOURTH edition. Current issue includes ne sections on art layout, publishing, copyrights, and small business stuff. Just send us $4.00 and we'll toss one in with your records.

SIMPLE MACHINES COFFEE MUG $8 Coffee is rocket fuel, especially at our house. Stylish 8 oz. black mug with two-color rocket design will surely get your day off to a great start.

Working Holiday

SMWH 13
A VERY SPECIAL BOX $12 Here's the companion piece to the Working Holiday 7" boxes. These decorated hard cardboard boxes with a flip top hold up to 20 of your absolute favorite 7"s. Not the same as Working Holiday boxes, but for all of you who missed out on subscribing, here's your chance!

We also have some of the original Working Holiday 7"s left.....

SMWH 11 November 7" Pitchblende and Crain $3.50
SMWH 07 July 7" Nothing Painted Blue (w/ Barbara Manning) and Lois $3.50
SMWH 06 June 7" My Dad is Dead and Rastro! $3.50
SMWH 04 April 7" Eggs and Jonny Cohen $3.50
SMWH 02 February 7" Lungfish and The Tinklers $3.50

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