Comedy Minus One is back for 2016!
Debut SAVAK Lp announced! SXSW shows! Mint Mile still in stock! A fancy new web site! Plus PRF Distro’s Top 10 of 2015!
Comedy Minus One is thrilled to announce the release of “Best of Luck in Future Endeavors,” the debut album by Brooklyn sextet SAVAK.
Due out in late May, the record is available for pre-order now with a limited edition t-shirt also available to celebrate the occasion. Bundle with the LP here and save a couple bucks in the process.
Listen to the song “Reaction”:
Stream the group’s WFMU session here.
SAVAK (pronounced “sah-vawk”) was formed in 2015 by members of The Obits, Holy Fuck, Nation of Ulysses, and The Cops. Their influences range from ’60s Texas psychedelia to British pub rock to early-’80s American hardcore, with some Zamrock and Chicha thrown in for good measure. SAVAK connect the dots from The Adverts to Bubble Puppy to The 101ers to MDC, making stops at Chrissy Zebby Tembo and Los Mirlos along the route.
SAVAK introduces themselves:
Dr. Action calls. He’s coming over in a heartbeat and wants to know if you have the sounds to wiggle his stethoscope.
You didn’t, but now you do.
Let’s call them SAVAK. That’s what they call themselves, and it would be rude to make up a different name for them. A six-piece rock unit elegant enough for entertaining, but sturdy enough for everyday use. From the hooky self-loathing of the Buzzcocks to early Funkadelic brain lint to the lithe guitar interplay of the Ventures and/or Television, these men stir up songs you can dance to. And think about. Or just think about dancing to.
And don’t worry, SAVAK brings years of experience to the job. Collectively about 150 years, to be somewhat more specific. Michael “Jaws” Jaworski and Sohrab Habibion sing and play guitar – at the same time! Sohrab learned that particular parlor trick in The Obits and Edsel. Jaws cut his teeth in Seattle with The Cops and Virgin Islands. Holding the bass guitar, but never slapping or popping it, is fellow Obit Greg Simpson. Keyboardist James Canty’s secret? He knows which keys control which notes. When it’s his turn to play, he simply presses them and – boop! He’s done this before with Ted Leo & The Pharmacists and The Make -Up. Okay, pop quiz: name another band with two drummers. The Doobie Brothers?! Ugh. Fine, we’ll give you Boredoms and the NEU! ’75 LP. Anyway, SAVAK toggles between a pair of ace rhythm men. Benjamin Van Dyke, known to many in South Brooklyn for his elementary school teaching skills and to ex-Long Island hardcore kids for keeping time in Silent Majority. And Matt Schulz, an enthusiastic snacker and the self-winding clock behind Canadian electronic maniacs Holy Fuck. But while one performs onstage with SAVAK, is the other at home, helplessly flailing his arms and legs to the unheard music? We’re not sure.
At this juncture, you may be wondering: Where can I get some? My local Ford dealer? The produce aisle of the Park Slope Food Coop? SAVAK’s debut LP, Best of Luck in Future Endeavors, is being released in unwholesome stereo by Comedy Minus One. Whether you’re making angry love to America or sticking up an Edible Arrangements with a banana, this is your new soundtrack.
Ça va? SAVAK!
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SAVAK are Sohrab Habibion, Michael Jaworski, Greg Simpson, James Canty, Matt Schulz and Benjamin Van Dyke with Johnny Sangster (percussion), Geoff Sanoff (guitar & keyboards), Josh Sinton (saxophone) and Greg Vegas (saxophone).
Their record was produced by Geoff Sanoff and SAVAK with album artwork and photography by Rick Froberg.
The gentlemen in SAVAK will be heading to Texas next week to play shows in/around SXSW. A full list of events can be found directly above this sentence.
Mint Mile’s debut “In Season & Ripe” 12″ is available now.
For those of you who download records from the internet:
iTunes : eMusic : Bandcamp : Amazon : Google Play
Photo by Liz Bustamante
“In Season & Ripe” is the first record by Mint Mile.
There are four songs on the 12”.
Jeff Panall (Songs: Ohia) played the drums.
Andrew Cohen (Silkworm, Bottomless Pit) played acoustic guitar.
Howard Draper (Tre Orsi) played slide guitar and organ.
Matthew Barnhart (Tre Orsi) recorded the drums and did much of the mixing and mastering.
Tim Midyett (Silkworm, Bottomless Pit) played acoustic and electric baritone guitars, bass guitar, Moog, ARP, piano, and trumpet.
He also sang and recorded stuff besides the drums.
“In Season & Ripe” was made here and there with love to preserve and transmit: thought, feeling, impression, memory.
There are 537 copies of this record.
Comes with a download code. Do not worry.
Listen to the song “Modern Day” here. Order a copy here.
“At once intimate and grand, Mint Mile’s songs bristle with activity and radiate a soft, unassuming warmth. It’s the sound of a full instrumental repertoire, one fitted with organ and slide guitar (Draper), piano and Moog (Midyett), but it’s also that of a remarkable comfort—an interplay between band members that’s conversational, confessional in nature…
…Whether you’re a Silkworm diehard or someone wholly unfamiliar with the group, in all its offshoots and incarnations, In Season & Ripe will hook you, warm you, and leave you buzzing like only the fever of friendship and fond remembrance can. Go now—Comedy Minus One will have you taken care of.” – The Operative
“Terrific.” – Chicago Reader
You can see Mint Mile on Friday, March 11th at the The Hideout in Chicago with Whelms & Andrew Cohen + Light Coma.
Silkworm’s “It’ll Be Cool” on LP for the first time!
It’ll Be Cool was the ninth Silkworm album.
Originally released in 2004 on CD only, it is now available on white vinyl thanks to Touch & Go Records.
Includes a digital download coupon.
Order a copy here. Only five LPs left in stock!
“Silkworm’s songs are full of holes, but… wide-open spaces can inspire some crazy-ass dreams. Welcome to the new weird America.” – SPIN
“(O)ne of the underground’s strongest songwriting forces… Devoid of status-quo gimmickry and fanfare, Silkworm deserve to have their greatness acknowledged now.” – Alternative Press
“…Silkworm have moved above and below the cultural radar… The band’s signature sound, laced with an experimental approach to the formal elements of rock, has made them equally loved and ignored, depending on various fashions. Thankfully, however, Silkworm has never bothered to respond to fashion…” – Dusted
Eleventh Dream Day “New Moodio” repress!
Due to popular demand, we’ve run off 300 additional copies of “New Moodio,” Eleventh Dream Day’s “lost record,” a parallel world version of 1993’s “El Moodio.” It is a snapshot of a band at its peak. Recorded and mixed in just a few days, there is an urgency and excitement that courses through these songs played by a band empowered by freedom and possibility.
Learn the complete history of “New Moodio” here and pick up a copy here.
As an aside, if you have not heard Eleventh Dream Day’s most recent album “Works For Tomorrow,” do yourself a favor. Our 2015 Record of the Year!
Shirts! Shirts! Shirts!
Do you love New Jersey?
Do you love punk rock?
This garment combines both of those interests!
Black ink on a Heather Red unisex shirt from Bell + Canvas.
52% cotton / 48% polyester with shoulder taping and side seam.
Available in all sizes from YS to XXL.
Printed by Commonwealth Press.
Order here.
Thank you for your ongoing support of PRF Distro.
Here are our year-end top ten sellers from the 100+ titles we offer, with links to stream and purchase accordingly. Click on each album’s title for more on each record.
(All Comedy Minus One releases and the Bottomless Pit vinyl we stock have been removed from consideration for this exercise.)
1. Silkworm : “It’ll Be Cool” Lp (Touch & Go)
2. Dama/Libra : “Claw” Lp/Cd (Northern Spy)
3. Joel RL Phelps & The Downer Trio : “Gala” Lp (12XU)
4. The Rutabega : “Shiny Destination” 45 (Triple Eye)
5. The Rutabega : “Brother The Lights Don’t Work” Lp (S/R)
6. The Gary : “Farewell Foolish Objects” Lp (Sick Room)
7. The Karl Hendricks Trio : “A Gesture of Kindness” Lp (Peas Kor)
8. Minutes : “Roland” Lp (MIN)
9. Dis- : “The Historically Troubled Third Album” Lp (My Pal God)
10. These Estates : “The Dignity of Man” Lp (S/R)
Comedy Minus One has launched a new, improved version of our web site at comedyminusone.com!
Please look it over and let us know any issues you might have navigating our particular corner of the internet.
This long-overdue re-design could never have occurred without the tireless, detail-oriented work of Jake McKelvie, whom we would strongly recommend and endorse for your own design projects.
Comedy Minus One has a Facebook page and a Twitter handle for those of you who dig such things. More frequent bursts of news can be found there or on the Comedy Minus One blog.
Stores and distributors are welcome to contact us about stocking these titles. Comedy Minus One is distributed directly in North America through Carrot Top, Matador Direct and Revolver.
Canadian, European and Australian distribution sought.
Thank you.
Jon Solomon
Comedy Minus One
comedyminusone.com