Fantastic looking/sounding LP that upgrades what was originally a self-released Heroine CD-R: live from-the-pit ringside action from Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder with highlights from their winter 2006 UK tour. This one features the full set from their 31/1/07 in Sheffield, in the UK . The line-up here is stripped to just MV and EE and it’s a particularly luminous set, with a track listing that runs “Cold Rain”, “Tea Devil”, “Boo Woe”, “Anthem Of The Cocola Y&T”, “Suspended In The Sky”, “Mine All Troubled Blues” and “Freight Train”. Edition of 500 copies with full colour sleeves, insert and liners from MV and EE. Highly recommended.

Hand-numbered edition of 299 copies with colour paste-on sleeves from this communal Maine-based free folk unit that features Nemo Bidstrup of Time-Lag/Drona Parva, Sparrow Wildchild of MV’s The Bummer Road and three members of Visitations. Long acoustic jams that share headspace with Tower Recordings or even a more folk/less Fall reverent Shadow Ring, with minimal, repeating acoustic jags that fall just the right side of lonesome to re-kindle memories of My Company Is Misery-era US Saucer.

2007-era duo jams from Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder, with a run of early EP-era tracks taken apart at length: “Boo Woe”, “Satisfied”, “Drone Trailer”, “I Got Caves In There” and “East Mountain Joint”. Recorded at Dublab, LA on Valentine’s day 2007. So raise a fucking glass.

Hand-numbered edition of 150 copies digipak CD-R documenting a May 2008 show from Matthew Valentine, Erika Elder and The Golden Road, here consisting of Doc Dunn on guitar and vocals and Samara Lubelski on bass and violin. Excellent fidelity, stoned/laidback feel, track listing: “Easy Livin’”, “Get Right Church”, “Cold Rain”, “The Burden”, “East Mountain Joint” and “Powderfinger”. Recommended.

Rarity: “A-side is a dusty gem of a solo track, unearthed on a mysterious Space Shanties-era tape reel last new years day, and now presented to the masses after quite a time lapse. A prime slice seeped in the lo-fi analog glow of Tower Recordings, with MV spilling some lucid lyrics & smokey vibes. B-side is a more recent counterpoint, a bit more bent on the rural/spectra solo wandering of his most zoned & serene acoustic/electric back porch pickings. Sweet vibrations, folks... packaged in a two tone heavy textured art paper cover, with silver/blue/black offset printing & silver/blue labels. Edition of 550 copies.” – TL.

Love the cover shot on this one, the muzzy out-of-focus shot of Matthew Valentine, Erika Elder and Willie Lane perfectly captures the Xeroxed in nowhere USA feel of the sonics, with a set from Hudson, NY in July 2008 that trades euphoric candyfloss highs with tough, beautifully free-floating takes on material from all over the canon. Erika’s vocal sounds particularly dislocated, like a voice through a cloud. Weird fidelity that perfectly matches the artwork. What a trip. 

Raging full-on big band studio side from Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder, with the duo joined by Doc Dunn, J Mascis, Mike Smith, Jeremy Earl of Woods, Justin Pizzoferrato and Mango Zanahoria. The duo nail the live favourite “Get Right Church” with a great fuzz/wah groove that is totally addictive, while “Summer Magic” gets a doomier/heavier re-think with EE and MV’s voices suspended in space while the fuzz crackles and twin leads collide. “Wandering Nomad” may be their most euphoric twin guitar blaster to date, exploding out of the gate with wailing lead strings over heavenly distorto chords. Something about the studio process feels more inventive than on previous EP albums, with the result that this feels more like Anthem Of The Sun than Working Man’s Dead and it’s a real guitar album, with the vocals perched on high plateaus above some of the best, up-front six string jams of their studio existence. Dig the sleeve too. Recommended. 

Edition of 400 copies live album from Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder, joined by Ron Schneidermann (Sunburned et al), Doc Dunn and Chris Corsano. Live Road focuses on the more extended Environments style of MV & EE and makes for one of their most psychedelic and otherworldly sides, pitched somewhere between ’72 Dead, Alan Silva’s Skillfulness LP, the early lunar COM style and some of the wilder of the recent Heroine sets. The version of “Mine All Troubled Blues” that opens the set features some of Valentine’s most wayward guitar picking, a beautiful demonstration of how far-reaching his re-think of the possibilities of country-blues guitar has become. Takayanagi couldn’t have phrased it better. Then there are two versions of “Environments” spliced together to generate a hallucinatory headspace that combines plumes of outside strings with peacock drones and visions of melting steel. The B side sees Corsano piloting the group into a tear-it-up power stomp through “Tea Devil” before they dissolve back into another “Environments”. One of the MV and EE’s furthest orbits of form, beautifully realized by Blackest Rainbow with wraparound jackets featuring cover art by Jeremy Earl of Woods. Highly recommended.

Duo set from Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder recorded at the Henry Miller Memorial Library in Big Sur 25/9/09. Lucid renderings of “Twitchin’” and “Huna Cosm” and a jam that runs from “Cold Rain” into “Tea Devil” and “Environments.”

Killer new 7” from Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder with one of their wildest post-Kousokuya heavy metal masses on the A featuring some wailing lead guitar from MV, Erika on electric firebird mandolin and silicon fuzz, two drummers, bass and harmonica. The flip is a classic slow-burning duo performance. Comes on gold coloured vinyl. 

”I love this particular incarnation of the MV&EE family with the trio of Matthew Valentine, Erika Elder and Willie Lane. Set from the same series of shows that gave us the previously released "Ready for another house" from May 2009. A very similar set which runs "Hungry Stones", "I Got Caves in there" into "Cold Rain" and closing with "Weatherhead Hollow" into “Environments”. Overall, this demonstrates the beautiful art of guitar weaving between all three players, with guitar runs and melodies getting interlocked into one taking the listener on a totally unique magical experience. I particularly like the version of "I Got Caves In There" with the more song based version replaced by a version where guitar weaving around the song's melody takes centre stage. The sets opus is the 20 minute spectrasound workout of "Weatherhead Hollow" and "Environments". Great sonic transmissions on this one. Highly recommended.” – Andrew Ross.

”Simply stunning set from the quartet performance of Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder augmented by Ron Mongoose and John Moloney. This is the 2nd set recorded at the Issue Project Room in Brooklyn, NY on 16 Oct 2009 following on from the 1st set which was captured on previous Heroine release "Free Folk Paintball".  This excellently captures the ability of the artists to alter from a stripped back duo performance to a full on Golden Road augmented freakout. This is a heavily psychedelic set with a feel and guitar sound straight from the West Coast dance halls of the late 60s alla Quicksilver Messenger Service. The sets starts with the rarely played "Anyway", opening track from the excellent Drone Trailer album. The Neil Young-esque guitar chops staying true to the album version for the first minute or so. That's where the comparisons end. The whole set then descends into elongated jams with guitars heavily laden with echo, delay and tremolo. Single guitar notes and chords being drawn out and held for an age, to the point where it sounds like the whole thing is going to stop and implode on itself, only just being held together and moved forward by a single hit of John Moloney's hi-hat. The overall result being an utterly captivating and submerging experience with the listener almost being peeled off from one chord to the next carried on a flutter of notes akin to John Cippolina's earlier work. The type of jams you could lose yourself in and not return for a week. The whole set continues like this. Next up is "Hammer" with previous heavy versions being replaced by an almost funeral march approach where chords are slowly plucked out adding to this song's feeling of unrequited affection. The final descent is into the slow, heavy blues lament of "Tea Devil" laden in psychedelics with only the closing "Get Right Church" offering some lighter relief. A phenomenal set which leaves the listener exhausted and somewhere else. This is why every Heroine release must be heard, with a different incarnation of the songs every time, always chasing that elusive trip. Set the sonics to stun.  Hilarious cover shot. Highest possible recommendation.” – Andrew Ross. 

Beautifully assembled eight cassette box set in the mode of the earlier Road Trips box with live recordings from the April 2010 No Floor Tour featuring Matthew Valentine, Erika Elder, Mick Flower, John Moloney and Zuma with guest spots from J.Mascis and Doc Dunn. In moulded plastic case with a full-colour booklet featuring liners and pics. Jams from Grey Matter Book, Hadley MA 4/9/09, Silent Barn, Ridgewood NY 4/10/10, Fairfield Chapel, Oberlin OH 4/11/10, PJ’s Lager House, Detroit MI 4/12/10, The Boat, Toronto ON 4/13/10, La Sala Rossa, Montreal QC 4/14/10, Spring Street Gallery, Saratoga Springs NY 4/15/2010, Nom D’Artiste Loft, Boston MA 4/16/10. Here’s Andrew’s review of the Montreal set to get you salivating: “Another stunning set, this time from the quintet of Matthew Valentine and Erika Elders with Golden Road cohorts in tow of Mick Flower, Doc Dunn and John Moloney recorded in Montreal, Canada as part of the 'No floor tour' in April 2010. This is simply blues rock jams at their finest and less psychedelic in places than some previous Golden Road shows. The playing is completely capable of rivaling the marathon blues infused rock workouts of the Allman Brothers Band or Led Zeppelin at their peak with a big dose of Sonny Boy Williamson's 'Nobody's Fault But Mine' thrown in. Throughout the set John Moloney lays down a simple 4/4 rock beat but with the same type of swing, feel and control afforded by Buddy Miles to Hendrix's Band of Gyspys. The result being a set which charges along but with a real sense of groove layered over the top with blues wailing guitar and mouth harp. The set starts with a slow psychedelic workout around "Satisfied" but keeping the blues theme before charging into a set which runs "Get Right Church", "Canned Happiness” and a closing jam of "Environments" into "Feelin' Fine".  There are many highlights to choose but clocking in at over 14 minutes this is the finest version of "Get Right Church" I have heard, a relentless blues jam which obliterates the recent studio version on Barn Nova. As a grown adult I find myself listening to this with the same giant grin I first encountered at the age of 13 when I was handed a copy of AC/DC's High Voltage or Canned Heat's Fried Hockey Boogie and thinking - can rock music be this much fun? So if your musical tastes allow you enjoy the rock of AC/DC at the same time as the musicianship of Jandek then you have got to hear this! Highest possible recommendation.” – Andrew Ross. Edition of only 150 copies.

“Fantastic set by Matthew Valentine and Erika Elder from the recent UK tour in February 2010 recorded at the Brudenell Social Club, Leeds.  On this one the duo are joined by local resident Mick Flower on bass for the whole set and the Doozer provides blues harp on a couple of tracks.  Whilst this is the same line-up and a similar set as those played in Manchester and Coventry a few days later (captured on recent Heroine releases "(Bad) Blood on the Doozer's Guitar" and "Electric Wharf (Conventrian)") this is well worth checking out as it has quite a different sound: more agressive, bit faster and really good mix on the sonics.  Firstly, this 'bootleg' comes from two composite mixes to get it right and it shows with a much clearer recording than some of the other Heroine releases.  The set opens with "Cold Rain" which sounds sublime this time around; Mick's bass is less distorted, you can hear those melodic bass runs properly this time, and this is clearest I have heard Erika's firebird mandolin and lap steel outside of a spectrasound recording.  About four minutes in MV drops a beautiful solo with single melting notes ringing out, great version.  Next up is "Get Right Church" which is the only performance from the set which does not have such a hard edge.  Instead it is a much more authentic blues rendition which reminds me of the electric blues recordings from Chess Studios circa 1950s.  The Doozer's blues harp is simple 3-note riffs but with effective note bending in the style of Junior Wells or Little Watler, and MV's clean, single note solos sound like Hubert Sumlin.  Midway through MV produces some delicate clean wah-wah reminiscent of Hendrix's "Up from the Skies" before bursting into a fuller onslaught for the song's close.  If the versions of this song from the No Floor Tour were blues rock at their finest, then this version is simply electric blues at its finest.  Dedicated to Jo Ann Kelly who I'm sure would have approved.  "Summer Magic" returns to the more frazzled playing on this set with the opening chords being laden in wah-wah and hammered out relentlessly throughout.  Really like the version of "Environments" on this set of shows with the sitar-sounding meanderings going into waves of raga induced chord-like crescendos which whip up a frenzy.  Sounds a bit like a live take on "Jook Enthusiast", the opening track from the latest COM release "Bollywoe". Finally, a few seconds of fuzz signals the descent from "Environments" into one of the heavier versions of "Canned Happiness" I have heard, even without drums.  Not much canned boogie, only a full-on feedback onslaught just to prove they can melt guitars better than Courtis / Moore, yeah right! Only question remains, did Mick Flower's house feature in the top ten middens? Great sonics.  Highly recommended.” – Andrew Ross

Limited vinyl pressing of what was originally a 99 copies CD-R on Child Of Microtones, courtesy of Pete Nolan’s Arbitrary Signs imprint. A collection of massively dosed studio recordings, Liberty Rose opens with beams of elegiac solo guitar before dropping into a classic slow-burning jag with puffs of echo/delay damaged vocals melting into hallucinatory afterimages while Erika slides quicksilver runs all the way down your spine. “Crow Jane Environs” has a deep desert feel that could almost be Mu if it wasn’t for Erika’s oracular vocals and MV’s post-Takayanagi soloing. The stark, stripped down version of “Death Is My Friend” features a stunning/chilling vocal performance from Erika and Doc Dunn joins the duo for the last two tracks, with “Out In Space” as dazed and lonely as anything on Skip Spence’s Oar and “Streams” featuring clouds of lucid unison vocals that you could disappear inside. I guess at this stage Child Of Microtones has the same relationship to the Ecstatic Peace releases that Richard Youngs’ No Fans imprint has to his releases on Jagjaguwar, functioning as a repository for some of the most psychedelic, experimental and personal music to escape from the personal stash. And this is a major instalment. Dedicated to Dr Ragtime. Highly recommended.