Tangerine Dream - Rubycon (1975)

If there ever was an album that has polarised the music-listening community, this is most certainly one of them! Tangerine Dream were caught up in the heady days of early electronica experimentation and the krautrock scene. This record is a sprawling collection of anti-rock dark psychedelic meditation, or, if you hate it, a load of un-artistic and tasteless, soulless codswallop.

I personally sit on the "like it" side of the fence, this is a great record to play late at night and early in the morning - depending on your state of mind. It is at once exploritory and demanding as well as brooding and driving. Whatever your particular bent, it is definitely a damn interesting pre-Eno era "ambient" sort of record. A winner in my books.

This copy is an original 1975 German pressing (West Germany to be precise). It was imported into South Africa by a company called Universitas - hence the "Universitas Import" sticker on the front cover. Virgin released it only once on vinyl, with the remaining releases in subsequent years being on CD. I managed to get one of my family members to part with it on the condition that I take care of it... What did he expect?!

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Thom Yorke - The Eraser (2006)

XL have released some pretty seminal British music. Take for example The Prodigy's "The Fat of The Land", which was one of electronic music's all-time greatest records. However, it was with some trepidation that I approached a solo Thom Yorke record, even if it was on this prestigious label. Would it be the sort of wishy-washy blathering nonsense that came out of the likes of Scott Weiland (from Stone Temple Pilots) on his solo stuff? Or would it be more straightforward, like Phil Collins post Genesis?

Thankfully the answer is that it is surprisingly somewhere close to Radiohead, with more of a focus on creating a rich, moving, ambient environment with synths and drum machines for Yorke to deliver his vocals that we all know and love. Make no mistake, this is no Radiohead light, but it does bear some of the hallmarks, without seeming like Yorke has plagarised his main band.

This is another one of those albums that I have only ever listened to on vinyl and I think I could count the number of listens on one or maybe one-and-a-half hands; yet it has remained in my mental music banks for ages. I picked this record up off the trusty vaults of Amazon.co.uk on preorder and was truly smitten from the first listen.

For vinyl junkies, this record has less-than-common packaging; the cover is open at the top, instead of the right-hand side as is commonplace for records. I have very few records with this type of packaging setup in my collection.

All-in-all, this is truly a lovely record from a super-talented artist; a solo-record that, for once, allowed the artist to indulge himself without lowering our opinion of him. That is the most awesome part of the record for me

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Comets on Fire - Avatar (2006)

What an incredible album this is! My favourite Sub Pop album of all time, "Avatar" is a pure trip across the astral plains and straight into 1970s psych-rock played over 21st century sound systems. It was the follow-up to the utterly lysergic "Blue Cathedral" where Comets on Fire really pushed the boundaries of psych-rock, free-jazz and pure noise. Luckily, they did not disappoint and really refined their craft on this record, making a greater effort to reach back to their roots and let them shine through the chaos.

I found this record on a website recommended to me by a friend and immediately bought it. Such is my love for this record that I have never heard it on any other format other than wax! It really is an album that you need to experience on vinyl, at exceedingly high volumes.

My appreciation for the intricacies of this release can spur me to write page upon page about how rich and deep the sound is, how delicate and yet simultaneously crushing the playing is and how truly blessed you will be once you hear it for the first time. But, I reckon its best if you grab yourself a copy and see what all the fuss is about.

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Joe Satriani - Surfing with the Alien (1987)

Joe Satriani's "Surfing with the Alien" is possibly one of the first "guitar" albums that I ever heard. It represents a pinnacle of 1980's guitar music and has inspired a wealth of melody-concious shredders since. The title track is probably one of my favourite instrumentals of all time and has seriously influenced the way in which I appreciate electric guitar music.

I was lucky enough to pick up a VG+ condition, original Food For Thought pressing from 1987 at an obscure fleamarket in Johannesburg, South Africa (see the cool Food For Thought logo below) . A seriously great find! There have been two official vinyl re-releases of the record by Relativity in 1990 and again in 2008 on Legacy/RSM.

This record put me on to Satriani and I have enjoyed most of his work since, especially his work on the G3 DVDs where some super shred ability is on display.

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Opeth - Orchid (1995) (Double Picture Disc - 2006 release)

I thought we'd start with the first album from my all-time favourite band, Opeth.

This is a 2006 double picture disc release of Opeth's first album "Orchid", on Candlelight Records. It is limited to 2000 copies worldwide and is currently a rather sought-after piece of wax. "Orchid" is a great foray into progressive death metal with an epic twist.

Opeth have gained in stature since signing to Roadrunner Records for their 2006 release "Ghost Reveries", thus their earlier material has become fairly scarce of late! Lucky I got in early! Many thanks are due to my lovely partner in crime, Dom, for her gift of this record!

Back on Black re-issued this on a limited edition 180g vinyl run in 2008. I am still hunting one down.

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This is not a porn site....

Hey all,

I have recently felt a deep-seated need to share my addiction to "the black crack" with the world... yes, THAT black crack, that wonderful substance that fills you with a giddy, dizzy feeling everytime you get some. The awesome rush of opening the plastic packaging and letting the full weight of it fill your senses. Yes, people, I am talking about vinyl! The wax!!!

This blog is dedicated to all you fellow addicts and interested users. Please enjoy and feel free to contribute your comments and sympathy. The string is burning at both ends... so much vinyl, so little time and money!

Steve.