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  Above: Elisa, Huddie, Rhys: The Shadracks A morbid lot, these Shadracks. Whereas most young British combos prefer to lose themselves in London, this unearthly trio extend a yardarm to a far northern Yorkshire city for inspiration. There they find ample bleak, cobbled streets and drab supermarkets to encourage their milk-fueled Go-Go racket. The Shadracks formed within the colorful punk gang garage scene of Chatham, Kent. Pummeling their instruments under the gray skies of The North allow them to see everything in black & white. Rock'n'roll is a prism through which they filter their death rattle of a motorbike beat,...

  If you have seen the recent Beat Happening 45rpm "Crashing Through (Meyering Mix)" [IPU147] in your local phonograph record emporium, you may have noticed the assertive looking rabbit charging toward you on the front cover. This image is derived from a painting by Beat Happening's Heather Lewis, one of a set of mural sized paintings created in April 2020. It was Easter Sunday. There was a global pandemic. Not too many folks were out and about. A Washington State Department of Transportation (WADOT) bicycle underpass near Heather's Seattle residence had ample freshly white walls. Heather had ample paint, and...

  Above: Lynne Hughes and Barefoot John play The Null Set, Olympia, WA, Sept. 1964 The Null Set! "I remember hanging there, going there just to go. It was so cool. There was nothing like it here in town." Thus is The Null Set remembered by long-time Olympia resident Wanda Hedrick. Wanda and her husband Worth were friends with the owners of Olympia's first coffee house, and also participated in the regular art shows hosted there. Worth is one of many local artists featured at Sunday afternoon art exhibitions. Bringing art to Olympia was one focus of The Null Set;...

  Above: a poster for The Halo Benders, Love as Laughter and Mocket at the Capitol Theater, downtown Olympia, 1996. The time had come to re-evaluate The Halo Benders and their entire catalogue. All three albums have been remastered and are available now in that form from all the usual digital plats, including Bandcamp. Meanwhile we have been pressing them up on long-playing phonograph records. Last month one could obtain The Rebels not in [KLP081] as such a long-playing phonograph record. Now we have Don't Tell Me Now [KLP046] available, too (also as a cassette tape). The above photog, taken...