#829: Freestylin’ 6 – A Wasted Candy Script for Chaos

GETTING MORE TALE #829: Freestylin’ 6 – A Wasted Candy Script for Chaos

Buy local! That’s the mantra these days. The last time we went “Freestylin’“, I explained that I was going to try and buy as much of my music from Encore Records.  Having consumed the four albums I ordered last time, I decided to order four more!  Like before, I tried to (mostly) focus on albums I’ve never heard before.   At the same time I also wanted to pick up some music that people have been recommending to me.

First into the shopping cart:  Love/Hate – Wasted in America.  Your Heavy Metal Overlord was pleased that I enjoyed their debut album, Blackout in the Red Room, and so commanded me to acquire their second, Wasted in America.  Encore had in stock the Rock Candy reissue with two bonus tracks:  “Castles From Sand” and “Soul House Tales”.  I trust HMO with my dollars — he has rarely, if ever, steered me wrong.

My second purchase was Nita Strauss’ debut CD Controlled Chaos.  If you didn’t know, Nita plays lead guitar with Alice Cooper.  This one came highly praised by John over at 2loud2oldmusic.  “Nothing short of spectacular,” he said.  Funny enough, the last time he inspired me to purchase an album, it was another guitar instrumental:  Joe Satriani’s Shapeshifting.  I am looking forward to hearing a guitarist that, aside from live performances playing someone else’s songs, I’ve never really had a chance to listen to.  If Nita is as much of a beast in the studio as she is live, this oughta be a good album.

Uncle Meat has been telling me to buy some Cars studio albums for ages.  All I owned to this point was a Cars anthology called Just What I Needed.  Meat specifically recommended Panorama, but Encore had the expanded edition of Candy-O for just $16.99.  Maybe I’ll get Panorama next.  There is no point in getting the versions without the bonus tracks.  This one has a number of alternate versions, one B-side, and one previously unreleased song called “They Won’t See You”.

Because I ordered four CDs the first time I ordered from Encore, I randomly decided that I had to get four again this time.  My fourth was a re-buy, but a pretty mega re-buy.  The nice thing about this one is that it doesn’t replace the version I already own.  Rather, it complements the earlier version.  EMI already did a pretty excellent job when they reissued the Marillion catalogue in the 1990s.  Each of the first eight albums was stuffed with bonus discs packed with rarities and unreleased material.  My new copy of their debut, Script for a Jester’s Tear (4 CDs + 1 Blu-ray) duplicates only one track from the EMI original!

For the 2020 box set version of Script, the entire album is remixed, meaning I will need to hang onto my original.  The Market Square Heroes EP is also remixed.  The only song duplicated over both versions is “Charting the Single”, but here it is in a fresh 2020 remastering.  Discs three and four are an unreleased concert, Live at the Marquee Club.  “But I have that already!” you protest.  Do you?  No.  The concert on the Early Stages box set was recorded December 30, 1982.  This one was recorded the day before, December 29th!  While the setlist is identical, the concert is a completely unreleased one.

Finally the Blu-ray disc has the usual music videos and hi-def audio tracks, but most importantly it also has Script remixed in 5.1 surround.  It even includes the entire Recital of the Script live video (81 minutes)!   In other words, this version of Script is packed to the gills, yet amazingly without rendering your old copy obsolete.

Guitarist Steph Honde told me that the official Marillion website is sold out and he hasn’t been able to find a copy anywhere.  Fortunately the Marillion store says they will have more this week.

Thanks to Mark at Encore Records for keeping the rock rollin’.  This has been so important to my mental health.  I have always ordered new music to give myself something to look forward to in the mail.  The only difference in this new reality is that I sanitize the parcels thoroughly.  After too many weeks of no new music, ordering from Encore has been awesome.

Wonder what I’ll order next time?  Recommend four CDs to me.  If Encore carries them, there’s a possibility I might end up buying your favourite album next.

 

 

 

 

27 comments

  1. Robot drummer, but Nita is really talented. The double bass sounds really computerized, but the lady on the axe is pretty kickass. Instrumental guitar albums really aren’t my thing though, so I haven’t picked it up. I’ve liked a few of Satriani’s, and Vai’s Passion and Warfare is pretty good, but still tests my patience. It’s not that there aren’t any vocals, I’m a big fan of jazz, it’s just that the endless shredding just gets to be repetitive and boring to me. Needs to be shaken up, more instruments would probably be better too. Those records are almost always just guitar/bass/drums, with the two latter instruments way in the back. The arcade machine shredding is cool for about a song, that’s probably why my favorites are the melodic numbers they did like “For the Love of God”, and “Flying in a Blue Dream”. Maybe I will check Nita’s album out. It could be really neato!

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    1. Jesus that drummer IS a robot. Why even have a drummer? I have to say this video turned me off… I hope I like the album better.

      My favourite instrumental albums are ones with actual songs on them. One I keep going back to is the third Ritchie Kotzen, Electric Joy. It’s laid back and though he does play a lot of fast notes, I think he wrote a couple good songs there too. The slower, relaxed stuff is quite catchy. Shit I think I’m going to play one now! Instead of “Take on the World”, which was playing previously. Thanks to Harrison.

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  3. No local support in a few weeks as they have had nothing to grab hold of for me. I did find Kiss Sonic Boom on vinyl…it is on its way (but wasn’t local). I need to buy something soon though so I get it in time for my May Purchases post.

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        4. I am on a hunt to finish the collection. I think there are only about 5 or 6 more standard issued albums I don’t have. One is super rare and I haven’t seen for under $150. Kiss Symphony.

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  4. Music is so good for our mental health, agreed – I ordered a Frank Turner picture LP recently & it was fun to look forward to, when checking the mail, it would be checking to see if Frank had arrived!

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    1. I can’t believe Meat recommended Panorama. I thought that was considered the weakest by far of their classic era from The Cars to Heartbeat City. Those are my two favorites, their debut (perfection) and Heartbeat City.

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    2. Didn’t one of them even say that their first album should have just been called The Cars Greatest Hits? The only mediocre tune is “I’m in Touch With Your World”, the rest is just knock out kickass.

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