Dark Entries US Vinyl & CDs

Review: Blues Lawyer returns to Dark Entries with a fresh new 7" that revives some late summer sun with lovely alt-pop grooves. This new one comes hot on the heels of their debut on this label and expands the Blues Lawyer universe across four tunes that were recorded in the final days before Elyse Schrock - the band's singer, songwriter, drummer, and music video creator - left her Bay Area home of ten years to head for somewhere cheaper to live. There are new songwriting styles evident here on tunes like 'True Love's Only Name' which guitarist Ellen Matthews developed with lyrics by Miller and singing from Schrock. It is one of a great mix of tracks that show real musical development from Blues Lawyer.

Review: Dark Entries have locked in Oakland band Blues Lawyer for a third full-length that offers plenty of big pop-roc moments. Like so much music out there right now, this record was put together during the pandemic and moves away from the handle pop of their earlier work towards a more 90s-infused alt-rock sound. It's an album built on breezy melodies and easy-going grooves that range from upbeat to laidback but are always smooth and enticing. The song craft is well-honed and the detail is tight as can be.

Review: The cult favourite Dark Entries hits 15 in style here and celebrates in the only way it knows how - with more great music. This time it is the legendary synth-punk yahoos Crash Course in Science aka Dale Feliciello, Mallory Yago, and Michael Zodorozny who are in the spotlight. The group formed back in 1979 and set out to make music using toy instruments and kitchen appliances. Their punk-y, aggressive, angular sound soon found a hardcore fan base and gave rise to big tunes like 'Cardboard Lamb' and 'Flying Turns.' In 1981 they recorded Near Marineland, a full-length that never actually saw the light of day but does now and shows the band moving into more diverse and polished territory.

Review: Baby Buddha is the experimental new wave duo of Charles Hornaday (vocals, guitar, electronics, drums) and David Javelosa (vocals, electronics, clarinet). Born from late night improvisations of San Francisco synth-punks Los Microwaves with a rotating cast of musicians. Live shows would include music, projections, dance and performance art in both clubs and gallery spaces. In 1980, Howie Klein's 415 Records released their first single of Tammy Wynette's "Stand By Your Man". In 1981, 'Music For Teenage Sex' was their first full length album released via Poshboy Records. It featured Los Microwaves' Meg Brazill, Poshboy boss Robbie Fields, and Kathy Peck as "Tammy Why-not", who later went on to found H.E.A.R (Hearing Education and Awareness for Rockers). In January 1983 Kathy, Charles and David went into the studio with a couple of Kathy's original "country" songs and began working on a sophomore album. They also incorporated songs from a live multi-track recording of a concert at the Graffiti Club on June 6th 1984. The album titled 'Everyone Is My Age' sat unreleased until 1987 due to relocation to Los Angeles and eventually found a home on David's Hyperspace Communications, the original label for the first Los Microwaves singles. For this first time reissue we've added a previously unreleased bonus song "What's Going On," a Kathy Peck original. All songs have been remastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The vinyl comes housed in the original jacket featuring a collage by David Javelosa and includes an insert with lyrics, photos and liner notes.

Review: Polaroid were an Italian post-punk/new wave band, formed in Turin in 1981. The original lineup of the band consisted of Marcello Zavatto (voice, guitar), Massimo Vagnarelli (bass, drum-machine), Evandro Fornasier (guitar), Claudio Vagnarelli (synthersizer) and Marco Farano (Drums). Polaroid made their debut with the cassette 6-track EP 'Senza Respiro', self-released in 1984. Influenced by Bauhaus, Joy Division, The Cure, Pere Ubu as well as Chic and Talking Heads. The music was dark and cold, but also melodic especially with regards to guitars and voices. At the end of 1984 the band added vocalist Michele Cantoblundo while drummer Marco left and was replaced by a Roland TR-909. With Michele began a period of very dark and poetic music, influenced also by bands like Red Lorry Yellow Lorry and The Sisters of Mercy. The band peacefully broke-up in 1987. This vinyl re-issue of 'Senza Respiro' contains all 6 original songs with 4 bonus tracks from the band's later period. All songs have been remastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The record is housed in custom jacket designed by Eloise Leigh and includes 4 polaroid sized postcards with photos notes and lyrics.

Review: Dark Entries joins forces with Papi Juice Records for No Jack Swing, a new and fantastic solo electronic debut from Oakland-based Brontez Purnell. The Southern-raised musician centres his queerness and Blackness in his work, most notably his Gravy Train and Younger Lovers projects as well as with award-winning books 100 Boyfriends and Since I Laid My Burden Down. Here he focuses on the amen-break of the 808 and on that foundation uses a collage of found sound materials to build a vibe. Bedroom instrumentals, poems from boys in France and childhood gospel tapes are all drawn upon to make for a lived-up, autobiographical sound produced by Nightfeelings.

Review: Sad Lovers & Giants are a post-punk band from Watford, England who formed in 1980. The original lineup included vocalist Garce (Simon) Allard, guitarist Tristan Garel-Funk, bassist Cliff Silver, drummer Nigel Pollard and keyboardist/saxophonist David Wood. They released their first 3-song 7" EP "Cle" followed by the "Colourless Dream" single both in 1981 and "Lost In A Moment" 7" single in 1982. They released two studio albums, Epic Garden Music (1982) and Feeding the Flame (1983), before temporarily disbanding. In 2016, Dark Entries released Lost In A Sea Full of Sighs, a collection of the band's early work, but the record incorrectly included 1988 versions of the two songs from the "Lost In A Moment". For this repress, the tracklist has been corrected to include the original 1982 recordings of "Lost In A Moment" and "The Tightrope Touch".

Review: Dark Entries are back with more of that sweet, sweet goth sauce in the shape of Topographies. The San Francisco band have been building up a following for their faithful tribute to sad-eyed synth-pop and new wave from the early 80s, releasing an album in 2020 on Funeral Party as well as a single for Sonic Cathedral. It's not hard to pick out the influences, and it all makes sense when you learn Gray Tolhurst is the son of The Cure's Laurence Tolhurst. They're not simply aping another band's sound though and if you can't get enough of that quintessential goth rock sound, you're going to love this record.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Creasing to corner of outer sleeve but otherwise in excellent condition***


Dark Entries are back with more of that sweet, sweet goth sauce in the shape of Topographies. The San Francisco band have been building up a following for their faithful tribute to sad-eyed synth-pop and new wave from the early 80s, releasing an album in 2020 on Funeral Party as well as a single for Sonic Cathedral. It's not hard to pick out the influences, and it all makes sense when you learn Gray Tolhurst is the son of The Cure's Laurence Tolhurst. They're not simply aping another band's sound though and if you can't get enough of that quintessential goth rock sound, you're going to love this record.