The New Avenues

The New Avenues were a pop band out of Everett, led by the falsetto-voiced and charismatic Keegan Douglas. After the demise of Luner Lander, Keeg continued to explore his Beach Boys obsession, writing guitar pop, accompanied by a bassist and as I recall, a cassette of the drum parts, as one half of Jeff and Keeg (more on that later). Eventually, they recruited Jim Paschall (Display, The Past) and a second guitarist, John, and went by Jeff and Keeg and John and Jim, before settling on The New Avenues. I believe this 5-song EP came out in 2002, and after listening to it innumerable times, it still always puts a smile on my face. If anyone has copies of later New Avenues material, or the subsequent band Talladega (in which Danny replaced Jim on drums), please let me know.

The New Avenues EP - 192kbps mp3s with scans here

Welcome, Zardoz!

Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming a new contributor to the blog, Zardoz (pictured above). I, for one, am very glad to have another person participating in this endeavor and I'm sure that every one of our readers out there look forward to experiencing everything he brings to the table.

Evora - Los Jive En Conduct

Evora were a band from Bothell, WA that arose from the ashes of Take One For the Team. As TOFTT were winding down, the members split off into two very different projects. Gavin Phillips moved on to form the band Sunday Best (who eventually became This Providence) while the rest of the band started listening to At the Drive-In, added a Brantley Duke on guitar/vocals and morphed into the vaguely experimental (but mostly emo) rock band Evora. During their short time together the band recorded a 3-song self-titled, self released EP and an (unreleased?) album entitled Los Jive En Conduct. Brantley currently plays with the band Ravenna Woods.

Los Jive En Conduct (contains scans of the Ep sleeve , as there was no artwork for this release and all three tracks from the EP are featured on the album. All other tracks are untitled)

I like this picture because it looks like Brantley is crying

Thrones / Behead The Prophet N.L.S.L. - Split 7"

How better to celebrate the midway point through the month of July than with a gloriously noisy split 7" by two amazing bands? First up we have the mighty Joe Preston solo project Thrones plowing through a cover of Blue Oyster Cult's "Blackblade." The b-side consists of three solid screamy rockers from Behead The Prophet N.L.S.L., who were lead by former Mukilteo Fairies vocalist Joshua Plague.

Thrones/Behead The Prophet N.L.S.L. - Split 7" (with sleeve and insert scans)

Portal - Zantopoulos

Portal were an experimental instrumental band formed in the late 90's by members of the first incarnation of the band Vermilion. Portal's instrumentation, from what I can remember, consisted of guitar, bass, casio keyboards and a Boss drum machine - all used in conjunction with various effects pedals. Zantopoulos is an EP that was self-released on CDR by the group in '99 and was named after a former childhood classmate whose last name sounded like that of a futuristic city.

Zantopoulos (with artwork scans)

Take One For The Team - Pounder Payed In Quarters

Take One For The Team were a pop punk band from Bothell, WA that existed in the early 2000's. Their sound can best be described as a less polished amalgam of some of the better known pop punk bands of the time (New Found Glory, Blink-182, etc.) with vocals very reminiscent of Saves The Day. Members of the group went on the play in bands such as Evora, Sunday Best and This Providence.

Pounder Payed In Quarters (with album artwork scans)

The Cripples / New Luck Toy - Split 7"

Today's download features 4 slabs of down home style Northwest punk rock. The Cripples return with two more tracks of their trademarked style of abrasive synth punk. The first track "Deep Throat" is slightly faster paced than the version that made it onto their album Culture. The 2nd track is called "Hospital" and was recorded in 1996 by an earlier incarnation of the band. Rounding things off are New Luck Toy with the songs "Wedding Dress" and "Timothy of Today"

Enjoy! (contains sleeve and insert scans)