311 – Mardi Gras 2020

311 has released several live albums over the years. Only three of them have been released on vinyl, with this being the most recent one. Somehow the band was able to perform their annual 311 day show in 2020 despite the pandemic quickly circling its noose and shutting everything down.

Mardi Gras 2020 is the title of the album. Since Mardi Gras can be an entire week long celebration the title can be a bit misleading. Mardi Gras is never the same week or dates every year either, so that aspect adds bit more discrepancy. I have still yet to see information regarding when this show was played/recorded. Only information on the physical release is that is was recorded at The Fillmore New Orleans.

Cleopatra Records released the album, which is a label the band has not worked with prior to this release. They pressed it on two variants, which I was not aware of when I finally bought a copy. Not that it’s a big deal, because pressing info has not been released for either variant. And the info was out there, I just didn’t do my due diligence. Which is something I 99% of the time not only do, but go the extra mile on.

All copies were pressed as a double LP, which comes housed in a gatefold jacket. The two variants are orange and red. Each variant comes with a hype sticker that not only says what the color is, it also has a picture mock up of what the color “looks” like. I say “looks” like because the picture for the orange variant looks nothing like what the records turned out to be. That picture mock up would lead you to believe the variant is a haze, but in reality it’s a translucent orange. And even then, apparently each LP in the set is a different shade/hue or orange. My guess is either there was some bleed in from the red copies on some, if not all, the orange copies.

There is no download card/code included, which is par for the course these days. We went from downloads being a plus or draw, maybe even a slight incentive to buy a record, to labels going back to being extra greedy and refusing to spend a small amount extra to include downloads with their vinyl releases that they are continuing to charge ever higher for. To further illustrate this point regarding this specific release; my copy came with two different types of paper dust sleeves. Implying the label told the plant to use whatever crap they had lying around to further cut costs. I’m including pics of these sleeves in the gallery below. They are not only different sizes and cuts/shapes, but are printed on different quality/types of paper too. First time I’ve ever seen this with any record.

Retail price on this is around $35, before shipping and taxes should they apply. Thankfully I bought this during Target’s latest (and hopefully not last – most of our fears were they’d never do another one after 2020’s feast) buy two get one free sale. Mind you the triple disc blu ray/DVD/CD set cost only $27.

V/A – 50 First Dates Soundtrack

This is one of the many reasons why some soundtracks should not be pressed on vinyl. Granted, the song I bought this for, which is the only reason I bought it, is included. But the entire soundtrack is not featured on this record. Which may actually be a blessing and a curse, because if the entire soundtrack were pressed on vinyl, it would likely stretch this record into a double LP. Did I need this soundtrack? No. Did anyone need this soundtrack in vinyl? No. But for the price, and considering I have a pretty much complete 311 collection, this soundtrack had to be bought.

Adam Sandler has churned out lots of films. This one, 50 First Dates, is one of the many that gets overlooked. Is it an award winning entry? Absolutely not. But is the premise not entirely cheesy or feature over the top ludicrous characters like many of the films he stars in and produces? No. The later is a good thing. While 50 First Dates has instances of wacky professions and outlandish circumstances that you’d expect from a Sandler film, it touches on comedy and drama in a reasonable fashion, which is something you don’t expect. The soundtrack is equally quirky, with the debut of some songs by unexpected bands, while calling on the tried and true.

As aforementioned I bought this for the 311 song, which debuted on this soundtrack. Yes, it was included on 311’ Greatest Hits album, which I already have in my collection, but I still felt compelled to buy this soundtrack. In the grand scheme of things is this a waste of money? Somewhat. But like I said earlier, my 311 collection is close to complete, and if I had to resort to shelling out $30, 40 or even more to get this soundtrack because it’s the only outstanding record in said collection, I’d regret that a whole lot more.

Thankfully this record was only pressed on one color. There were no variants. Not that I was overly concerned about that. But these days variants either tend to either drive up prices as a whole exorbitantly, or they keep them reasonable. Given the current climate of vinyl prices, I was not hedging any bets. So when the opportunity to snag this soundtrack for $16 shipped arose, I snatched it.

With that said, retail price on this record is around $20. It’s not unreasonable, but it’s still more than it should be in my mind. Am I stuck in the old days? Maybe. But I’ll gladly save $5 when I can. Because that $5 off the top of every record can quickly turn into another record (I’m no wizard at math but..).

All copies come pressed on orange vinyl, despite what the hype sticker says, which falsely indicates it’s pressed on “translucent” orange. It’s opaque. My other gripe with this color choice is you had literally three painfully obvious color choices based on the artwork and movie posters; red, green or yellow. Yet you choose orange, and get it even more wrong by advertising the color as being translucent when it’s not. No download card/code is included, but you’d have to expect as much these days. But there is an insert included! Which for my money is unnecessary and completely pointless. The insert has stills from the movie with the credits for each song. Only thing including this insert did was drive up the price of the product.

Los Stellarians – Rucaz N’ Rollaz

Another of SA Martinez’ side projects, Los Stellarians is probably the farthest thing from 311. So their music most likely won’t be the cup of tea for fans gravitating over from 311, or Ghostwolf. Los Stellarians is reflecting of SA’s Hispanic heritage; from the music right down to the artwork and imagery used. To date all three of their albums have been released on vinyl, with their latest, Rucaz N’ Rollaz, released in 2019.

All copies were pressed on black vinyl, limited to 500 copies. Each copy is individually numbered, which is done on the back of the single pocket jacket in gold stamping. The record itself comes in a printed dust sleeve. The dust is rather pointless in my opinion, as it doesn’t have lyrics printed on it; only the credits on one side with a promo photo of SA and band mate Ryan Siegel on the reverse side.

Retail price on this was $30, which is apparently what the label, Holy Grailien, charges for all their vinyl releases. Not sure if this is OOP because since I already bought this record through Bandcamp, it won’t let me see if copies are left in stock. The label was selling copies on Discogs as well, which they are sold out of via that marketplace.

Los Stellarians – The Mas Chignon

Another of SA Martinez’ side projects, Los Stellarians is probably the farthest thing from 311. So their music most likely won’t be the cup of tea for fans gravitating over from 311, or even Ghostwolf. Los Stellarians is reflecting of SA’s Hispanic heritage; from the music right down to the artwork and imagery used. To date all three of their albums have been released on vinyl, but their sophomore album, The Mas Chignon, has better finishing touches.

It’s nothing over the top, but the text on the cover of the jacket is embossed. Every copy comes individually numbered, which isn’t unique to this Los Stellarians record, but it’s still a nice touch. There is also a printed dust sleeve on thin glossy paper. No download card/code is included with this record, but if you bought this from the label, Holy Grailien, on their Bandcamp page, you received an immediate download.

I just mentioned it, but there were only two places you could have bought this, both of which are direct from the label. They’re just using two different marketplaces; the aforementioned Bandcamp along with Discogs. Retail price on this is $30, which seems to be the going rate Holy Grailien charges for all their vinyl release regardless of any details regarding them. Double LP? $30. Single LP? $30. Single LP with an embossed cover? $30. Individually numbered single LP? $30. Just a single LP with no other frills? $30.

All copies were pressed on black vinyl, limited to 500 copies. The numbering is done on the back of the jacket in gold stamping. One thing of note about this album is that it’s the band’s first release featuring mostly original material. Their debut album, Cholo Soul, was a covering of 70s soul songs.

Ghostwolf – Warning Star

Ghostwolf’s second album, Warning Star, was released in 2017. It’s a harder hitting album than their debut Lunar Halos, but it’s not a huge departure from the band’s sound. If you enjoyed Lunar Halos and/or 311, you will enjoy Warning Star.

Once again the only physical release for this album was vinyl, and again, the label pressed 500 copies. This time though opting for colored vinyl in the form of clear, or as the label calls it; “translucent.” Due to the album’s length it had to be pressed as a double LP. It doesn’t come in a gatefold jacket, one of those lame (and mainly cheaper) oversized single pocket jackets, but the discs themselves come housed in printed dust sleeves. They’re printed on cheap, thin paper instead of the thicker glossy paper used on Lunar Halos. To further demonstrate the cost cutting measures, the dust sleeves have the same thing printed on one side of each of them; a geometric design. The reverse side of each dust sleeve has the lyrics printed for each respective disc on it. A download card/code is included though, which is odd considering the cost saving measures taken with this record and the fact that Lunar Halos did not have one.

Holy Grailien released Warning Star, which isn’t a surprise considering it’s SA Martinez’ label. They were selling copies of it on their Bandcamp page and Discogs a couple years ago. Something refreshing is that they are not charging more for this album than Lunar Halos, or any of their other vinyl releases; $30. But on the other hand, you could make the case that charging that much for a single LP release is a rip off. Trade off I guess.

Ghostwolf – Lunar Halos

SA Martinez may not be the first name to come to mind when you start to think about vocalists. But the guy who is mostly known as “that guy who raps in 311” has branched out on his own in a couple of side projects, one of them being Ghostwolf.

Ghostwolf  is more like 311 than his other side project, Los Stellarians, but the band is still different sounding enough to stand alone on their own. Martinez is joined by Evan Anderson and Ryan Siegel on the Ghostwolf’s debut album; Lunar Halos.

Released in 2012, Lunar Halos has only been released on vinyl, at least physically speaking. The album was put out by Martinez’ own label, Holy Grailien, which also home to his other side project along with Anderson’s and Siegel’s other band, Exes Of Evil.

All copies were pressed as a single LP on black vinyl, limited to 500 copies. The record itself comes in a printed dust sleeve, inside a single pocket jacket. A download card/code is not included.

For quite a while this record was hard to find. I don’t know why, but it completely disappeared for sale online, which led to somewhat inflated prices on the secondary market. Those prices, a high point of $75, could also be attributed to the fact that copies rarely came up for sale on ebay in the over eight years since the record’s release.

At some point in 2020 the label started selling copies again, utilizing a couple outlets. The label was selling copies on their Bandcamp page along with Discogs, for $30 on both marketplaces.

Nick Hexum & George Clanton – s/t

Nick Hexum is no stranger to branching out from 311. He had his first solo release years ago with Nick Hexum And The String Quartet. In 2019, he joined forces with George Clanton, who is most likely an unknown figure in the music world to the majority of readers here. Clanton is a vaporwave artist. I myself had to look up what vaporwave is, and it fits perfectly in the EDM realm.  

The duo’s debut, self-titled album was released in 2020, and has already underwent a second pressing despite the first pressing not selling out (as of posting this). What is featured here in the first pressing, which has several variants. Pressing info has not been released for any of the first pressing variants, however the second pressing (2021) has only one variant as of posting this; blue/tangerine limited to a mere 200 copies. It was a Newbury Comics exclusive that for whatever reason is not astronomically priced, coming in at $20 before shipping.

The variants for this first pressing are gold, “blue eye”, translucent orange, pink and yellow splatter, and yellow and blue splatter. The gold is a George Clanton fan club exclusive and the translucent orange is a VNYL exclusive. The “blue eye” variant, which is featured in the photo gallery below, actually has an apt description. It looks like a blue eyeball. As far as I can tell none of the variants come with a hype sticker or any other discernable feature to help people tell apart the variants. So you have blind faith if you’re buying a copy looking for a particular variant, because they all come shrink-wrapped.

All copies come housed in a die-cut jacket, something I was not aware of prior to purchasing a copy. It’s a nice touch on an otherwise overpriced record. Retail price on the first pressing is around $25. No download card/code is included with physical copies. One final thing I want to add is that the artwork for all of this duo’s releases to date have been awesome.

Nick Hexum & George Clanton – Under Your Window & Out Of The Blue 7″

Nick Hexum is no stranger to branching out from 311. He had his first solo release years ago with Nick Hexum And The String Quartet. In 2019, he joined forces with George Clanton, who is most likely an unknown figure in the music world to the majority of readers here. Clanton is a vaporwave artist. I myself had to look up what vaporwave is, and it fits perfectly in the EDM realm.  

The duo’s second release was also 7” single featuring two songs that would later be released on their debut album. It has “Under Your Window” on the a-side and “Out Of The Blue” on the b-side. This 7” was only pressing on baby blue vinyl. The jacket for this release is flimsy, but it’s not surprising for a 7”. It’s thicker than paper sleeves used for tons of singles of the decades, but any slightly so. If it it cardstock it’s the thinnest/cheapest cardstock I’ve come across in my years of buying records.

Retail price on this 7” when it first came out was around $12, but since its release the label has slashed the price down to $7. Which is when I bought a copy. Not many record stores carry this 7”, probably because it’s not in their clientele’s listening scope, and pretty much no distros do. So it’s tough to find aside from the label. One final thing I want to add is that the artwork for all of this duo’s releases to date have been awesome.

Nick Hexum & George Clanton – Crash Pad & King For A Day 7″

Nick Hexum is no stranger to branching out from 311. He had his first solo release years ago with Nick Hexum And The String Quartet. In 2019, he joined forces with George Clanton, who is most likely an unknown figure in the music world to the majority of readers here. Clanton is a vaporwave artist. I myself had to look up what vaporwave is, and it fits perfectly in the EDM realm.  

The duo’s first release was a 7” single featuring two songs that would later be released on their debut album. It has “Crash Pad” on the a-side and “King For A Day” on the b-side. This 7” apparently has undergone a second pressing according to the label’s Bandcamp, which is the only place mentioning a second pressing. I’m waiting for clarification from the label, but haven’t received a response back as of posting this (and I can only wait for so long).

All I know is there are two variants; pink and sea blue. Pressing info has not been officially announced for either of them. The jacket for this release is flimsy, but it’s not surprising for a 7”. It’s thicker than paper sleeves used for tons of singles of the decades, but any slightly so. If it it cardstock it’s the thinnest/cheapest cardstock I’ve come across in my years of buying records.

Retail price on this 7” when it first came out was around $12, but since its release the label has slashed the price down to $7. Which is when I bought a copy. Not many record stores carry this 7”, probably because it’s not in their clientele’s listening scope, and pretty much no distros do. So it’s tough to find aside from the label. One final thing I want to add is that the artwork for all of this duo’s releases to date have been awesome.

Weezer – Van Weezer

When Weezer announced their “new” album Van Weezer, it was pre pandemic. And pre pandemic by a long shot. Pre-orders launched in September 2019 with a scheduled release date of May 2020. Well we all know what happened in that huge timeframe; COVID. The release date for Van Weezer was pushed for literally over a year, to May 2021. The reason for the delay was not directly due to the pandemic. Yes it forced the album to be pushed, but not due to quarantine or medical issues or even production or recording issues. Van Weezer was timed to come out ahead of the band’s gigantic Hella Mega Tour, a co-headlining run with Green Day and Fall Out Boy.

Rivers Cuomo said the album was meant to be played in arenas, and to release it with their arena tour now indefinitely postponed, meant the music would not have the same impact. So the band and the label opted to reschedule the album’s release date. Though they did not stop taking pre-orders for the album via the band’s official web store. They also did not automatically cancel any pre-orders placed before the push of the original release date, which was a nice move. Especially considering some of the variants sold out.

Ironically the band released a different, new album in the time frame between the announcement of Van Weezer and the release of it; OK Human. In the grand scheme of things I wound up buying a copy of Van Weezer before OK Human, and within my price range of $15 for a single LP.

As expected there are variants for Van Weezer; five in total (I’m not counting the box set because it’s technically not the entire album on vinyl). Pressing info has not been released for all of them, but that is not surprising. There are 3,000 copies on glow in the dark, 2,000 on yellow, an apparent 1,000 on violet, an unknown amount on pink and an unknown amount on black. All the colors (aside from glow in the dark) are advertised as what they are; so yellow, violet etc., but in actuality they are all neon. The neon pink is an indie record store exclusive while neon violet, neon yellow and glow in the dark were all band exclusives. Black copies can be bought from every other retailer that is selling copies; even some indie stores are selling copies on black as well. Apparently some indie record stores were shafted on getting the indie exclusive variant and were only allotted black copies.

This is a single LP, with the record coming housed in a printed dust sleeve. There is no download card/code included with physical copies, and I’m not even sure a download was supplied if you bought a copy from Weezer’s web store. All variants have a hype sticker denoting the color of the record, so for variants collectors it will be easy to ensure you’re getting what you want should you be buying this on the secondary market or in a brick & mortar store. The vinyl version also includes two exclusive bonus tracks; “I’ve Thrown It All Away” and “I Need Some Of That (Reprise),” which are found at the end of side B. “I Need Some Of That (Reprise)” features a verse sung by Ric Ocasek, of The Cars fame, who passed away in 2019. So you have to wonder for how long ago Rivers Cuomo not only wrote this song, but when was it recorded?

Well I have the answers. The song was originally released in 2017 on an album by Scott & Rivers, a side project Rivers had with Allister front man Scott Murphy, which is a Japanese language band. The song went by the title “風吹けば” or “When The Wind Blows” in English. The album’s title is ニマイメ which translates to Nimaime in the latin alphabet and means “the second one.” The song was written some time prior to the release of Hurley, which was released in 2010, and was demoed during the Everything Will Be Alright In The End sessions, an album which Ocasek produced. The song was re-worked for Van Weezer, with the vinyl exclusive bonus track featuring an additional 30 seconds at the end, which is comprised of a conversation between Karl Koch, Ocasek and Rivers.

Retail price on this is around $25; the band is selling copies for $24 (before shipping), and I’ve seen some indie stores selling it for closer to $20 while others are selling it for more than the band. For whatever reason this album did not sell as well as OK Human, so you may be able to snag this for around $15 if you’re patient and don’t care about the variant. About the shipping mentioned above from the band’s store; the only option available cost close to $13; so this record immediately catapulted in price to near $37. And it gets worse, because that price is before taxes, should they apply.