Stranger Still - Solitude / Survivor / Limited Ultra Clear Edition (12" Vinyl + Downloadcode)

$Stranger Still - Solitude / Survivor / Limited Ultra Clear Edition (12\" Vinyl + Downloadcode)$

23,45€

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This product will be released on 01. August 2025.
You can pre-order it already. It will be shipped as soon as it is available.

ANNA063UC - Weight: 260g

Sales rank: –

This product increases the shipping costs to countries outside the EU extremely, because this product must be sent as a DHL package and no longer as a cheap German Warenpost! Please take a look at the shipment price list for your country.

Limited edition of 224 copies, 140 grams ultra clear vinyl, set of 5 double-sided postcards (recycled paper), download code with digital versions and an additional 15-track bonus album.

STRANGER STILL was Julian Cator (guitar), Paul Cator (piano, organ, synthesizer), Tim Warnes (bass), Frank Warnes (vocals, drums) and Ian Johnson (vocals, drums) from King’s Lynn, Norfolk, UK. The two sets of Cator and Warnes siblings had been playing together in bands since 1974, with Ian joining in 1979, and with their musical style evolving from glam influenced rock to punk/new wave (punk came late to Norfolk) and finally post-punk, influenced by Ultravox!, Magazine, Joy Division, Bauhaus and Killing Joke. Their first gig together was in September 1979 with John Peel being in the audience. The Solitude/Survivor single was recorded in July 1981, released in November and sold well locally. John Peel played Solitude, between singles by Winston and Screen 3. When Julian left in autumn 1981 the others continued, later changing their name to Nothing Sacred. Ex-members have since played in a number of other bands, most notably Paul and Tim in Shine!, and Julian and Paul in Ivy.

Solitude opens in a perfect analogue way with a ‚primitive’ rhythm machine pattern and a dark synth sound fading in. We shall be glad for the band’s move towards electronics while knowing „given the negative reaction we got from some of the local bands when we got the synth [a Moog Satellite]“, quoting Julian. When the real drums, guitar, bass and vocals also come in, you’re in for one of the most perfect post-punk songs, yet playful but ultimately bleak. “And then I can feel nothing more. Alone again, with no sensation.“ Survivor is more uptempo and bass-driven, reminiscent of early Death In June (who came later though). Lyrics like “4 minute warning warning - the sound of today. Our new dream world - Enola Gay.“ set the mood there.

The band composed a dozen of songs, demos to get gigs, which were unfortunately never recorded properly in a studio. So these are demos or rehearsal tracks, never released to the public and presented here for the first time ever as an additional 15 tracks download-only (due to the poor sound quality). You’ll find fantastic tracks like Brave New Berlin or Cardiac Arrest, which is reminiscent of Death In June’s In The Nighttime, and then, there is a demo of Solitude too! Here's to a piece of post-punk history!

Tracklisting: 12"

No.	Track	Time
A	Solitude	07:25
B	Survivor	06:17

Tracklisting Download: "Oct. 1980 Demos"

No.	Track	Time
1	Exit In A Bad Atmosphere	03:46
2	Mercy Killers	02:45
3	Cardiac Arrest	05:15
4	Brave New Berlin	05:31
5	Fatal Oversight	04:03
6	The Tears They Cried	05:05
7	Skeletons In Her Closet	04:29
8	Good & Evil	04:19
9	Friend	05:52
10	Canvas	03:51
11	This Is What You've Done To Mind	04:10
12	Die For You	03:49
13	Last Supper	03:43
14	Invitation	04:04
15	Solitude (Demo)	07:22