In the days before the relative ease of getting a CD duplicated (or, today, just posting tracks online), it was a much more serious endeavor for a band or singer/songwriter to release music DIY-style. Still, there’s a surprising amount of independently released music from the first vinyl era out there, and I often pick up anything that appears to be rock-oriented when scanning the bins. Here’s a batch unearthed in one shot recently, a surprising haul for just one afternoon’s digging.
M&R Rush, Reach for the Stars
A unique private release in that this one is a 10-inch EP, the record’s insert reveals that M&R Rush was a five-piece from Chicago. Musically this is solid Midwestern AOR with quite a bit of Styx influence, but thankfully tilted to the hard rock guitars rather than squiggly keyboards — which are present but not overwhelming. And, of course, being from Chicago they sing some good harmonies as well. Turns out the band actually was managed by the same people as Styx; their bio reveals that the group is made up of high school friends from the Roseland neighborhood who started playing in the early 1970s. They initially disbanded in 1987 but reunited to play shows once again in 2003, which they continue to do to this day. (DSA Records, DSA 101, 1980)
Whitty Whitesell, Frame of Mind
Synth drums instantly peg this one to its release year of 1987, but I guess that’s less irritating than gated drums. Frame of Mind bears a Champaign, Ill., address, and the entire project is “written, arranged, performed and produced by Whitty Whitesell,” though the synth programming is credited to sound engineer Jim Dobbs. This 12-inch EP contains five tracks of perfectly pleasant ’80s pop-rock, ranging from synth-pop to acoustic guitar/harmonica ballads. The title track in particular strikes a nice balance between guitar and new-agey synth washes, but Whitesell displays good pop instincts throughout the EP. Whitesell is also active in recent times, posting a new album for free on his website in 2012. (Willis John Records, WW63491, 1987)
The Richard Holly Band, I’m Lost Between Love and the Open Road
Now we’re talking...a record that there is virtually no information online about. About the only thing that comes up is an old scanned-in music calendar from a 1986 Milwaukee Journal, advertising an “album party” at the Kenosha Eagles Club. The album lists a Waukesha address for the band...and being a clean-cut ’80s Wisconsin band displaying guitars in their cover shot, one would expect pop-tilted rock or blues. Richard Holly Band falls into the blues-rock bag, and they keep it straight up, no frills. It’s actually too straight up for my tastes, though it’s well-performed and recorded. (Viable Records, no number, 1985)
Gabriel Bondage, Another Trip to Earth
This one is nearly the opposite situation from Richard Holly; there’s lots of information about Gabriel Bondage online. They were a prog-rock band from the Chicago area; their current Facebook page describes their sound as “progressive and space rock with religious overtones,” an apt appellation. Apparently, by independent standards a ton of copies were pressed of Another Trip to Earth, their second LP; there were two where I found this blue vinyl copy, and the other one was red vinyl. Discogs reveals there is also a white vinyl version, and a surprising amount of LPs posted for sale for a nearly 40-year-old indie release. A shrink-wrap sticker the original owner saved states that there were 8,000 copies of the blue vinyl version! The pressing variations show that the Dharma label definitely ponied up on releasing Another Trip to Earth, which makes one wonder if that’s why Dharma didn’t put out too many more records after this. For those looking for a comparison, musically this reminds me of a more interesting (and ambitious) version of, say, Kansas, with less boogie-rockin’...or maybe the Moody Blues in cosmic rocker mode. Side one is filled with complex, layered late-period psych rock that will bear repeated listens; things go a bit off the rails on the flip with some blues rock and sound collages weighing things down. (Dharma D-808, 1977)
