lavcd.ru

Screenshot of banner from Wayback Machine

 It appears that lavcd.ru has gone offline. I even tried the online detector to see if it was just on my end or if it had server issues. The detector claimed that it was business as usual, but I couldn't put down that it wasn't. This is where Boris has been getting most of the pirate CDs for me. Because there has been little to go on from either end lately, as well as events of the past several years, we're lucky to do this once a year now. Even though some new releases have come up that I know are in there, it's just finding enough older material to maximise the cost of P&P, especially because I have to go through a third-party service via the post or FedEx, which is a bit more expensive, along with finding all of these rare CDs in person, trying to avoid getting them all online, despite even the simplest things becoming harder to find at brick and mortar stores these days since they can't all compete with the internet. I wonder if the site is blocked outside of Russia or if the authorities even took it off, which wouldn't surprise me at all. Also having to go back to the site each week and downloading each file just became too much, and I have a life and schedule now. I hate to see this come to an end, yet I would rather get more official CDs locally in person, but not even the better known artists are on every corner, let alone ones who hardly if ever touched the US or any chart for that matter. I'm just not aware of other resources there one can turn to now. I will have to look into this some more when I have the time. It could just be either technical difficulties or they are no more. More as I can find anything, but until then, it's just indefinite hiatus.

UPDATE (25/8/26): The site is up and running again. I think they were just down for a period.

Bluetooth at home and on the go: Now in its 30th year

Leto Bluetooth speaker (no relation to Jared and Shannon Leto)

MC SeonWoo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

 While Bluetooth has been around for some time now, it's not like me or other people to catch on late, often times because of the cost. Some even got telly decades after most of western civilisation to put it that way. When I switched phones, I couldn't use the classic cord that I grew up with anymore. A few years ago, I managed to find a pair of JBL headphones at the charity shop for $7. They work with my Android and I don't think I had them yet for my ageing iPhone. Only today at the chaz, did I finally find a standalone Bluetooth speaker that I could afford. I do have it in my record machine in another part of the house, but it's more inconvenient than playing good old vinyl since I just don't have that much room. On the same token, I have dozens of CDs stored in the attic, and it can be too cold in winter and hot in the summer to rummage through a large moving box in cramped quarters, especially if I need to play something at a moments notice or on a certain day. While I still want to go to shops and get real LPs and CDs when I can afford it, subscribing to Amazon and sometimes even going to YouTube or even a pirate site saves time and money, which is why streaming is mega these days. Netflix is more suited for the sister TV blog, and I don't watch much TV either way anymore. However, I wonder if it's actual stereo or just a glorified mono folddown. One brand sold at Dollar Tree with $5-10 items says to buy two speakers for true stereo, but I'm lucky to get this used one, since it takes time for newer tech to cost less and reach the second hand and even the thrift store, which doesn't happen everyday, but that can be explored at the retail blog. There's no need to spend hundreds more on hi-fi for your wi-fi. It was a right fortune as it is just to get the phone fixed after it broke more than once, mind. As for getting a good deal on Bluetooth at a place that is usually just full of junk, sometimes on a good day, you win the pools.
UPDATE (5/4/26): I brought my 5 CD carousel changer up from the basement and plugged it into the AUX jack in the back. I had the adapter for the RCA cables which I used for my old stereo that has since been recycled. Now I have a nice little system upstairs while the record machine downstairs has Bluetooth itself. At least I have both since streaming can get cut off, especially with several different apps running on a slightly older phone and on public wi-fi when I'm not at home between numerous people using it and the inherent risks unless you have VPN and antivirus software installed because you just can't be too careful these days with all the scams out there. Not to be Dale Gribble, mind, but you know how it is now. I also don't want to use up battery or data when an outlet and wi-fi are unavailable.

Arena

Arena, 2020. L-R: Kylan Amos, John Mitchell, Mick Pointer, Paul Manzi, and Clive Nolan.

Kajamera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Courtesy Verglas Music/Wikipedia.

 Arena are a band that I have been dabbling with for some time, but unlike some of the related bands, I may not be getting all of the CDs since it gets expensive to go after all these every time I bring someone new into my collection. Mick Pointer, late of Marillion, and Clive Nolan, also of Pendragon, started the band in 1994, and there have been several different lineups ever since, which have included John Jowitt, late of IQ and Jadis; John Mitchell of Frost*, It Bites, Fish, Lonely Planet, and now Asia; and former Landmarq and Threshold frontman, as well Headspace and Rick Wakeman band member Damian Wilson (his joining is what got me to buy their most recent studio album, The Theory of Molecular Inheritance). Unfortunately, other commitments will have him moving on by years end. Paul Manzi left in 2020 to join the Sweet of all people, which some may consider selling out, by going from a complex prog band to a latter day lineup of a glam band from the '70s. However, he will be back for good by next year. Now I know why I used an old photo (Manzi was originally supposed to be on the last album before the split was announced). Pointer still plays his old bands music on occasion in a side project with original bass player Cliff Orsi, proving that he's no Pete Best. Mitchell and Nolan have also worked the late John Wetton of Asia on his 2003 solo album Rock of Faith, and the former on the Wetton (Geoff) Downes Icon series.
 Arenas sometimes dark lyrics and layered sound design resonate with me and many listeners. The band have been independent from the start, managing themselves and running their own label. They have built up a cult following spanning over three decades. Like other artists with simplistic names, they get confused with obscure artists of the same name on Amazon, where I stream them, Spotify and maybe even indie specialists emusic. Look for the Verglas label, or at least what you know is the real Arena on these services, given the generic nature of the name. No word yet on the next studio album now that Manzi is poised to return in one years time. At least I can easily stream the band at home as I can on the go and at home, but that will be the next post, this being the first in 2026. I guess it comes from getting bored of the other bands and despising current mainstream rubbish. I may have even designed the next albums sleeve for them out of sigils, which current bass player and art director Kylan Amos could adapt, even though AI even knows his style. I drew them for something else while playing the band the other week..
    One more live album would be nice from the current lineup. Tracks like "Valley of the Kings" from the latest tour have not been officially recorded or filmed live with Wilson (or even original singer John Carson [no relation to Johnny Carson] for that matter from the first album and tour, if any, since there was little live activity with him, and he imitated Pointers former colleague Fish at times to where they had to play the old guard just to fill the set and seats at the same time). Bootlegs don't even seem to exist of Arena (pirates do, but we've been over that with other people), while shows of different lineups are on YouTube, including some of the oldest from early guitarist and seasoned session player Keith More, who is terminally ill and once worked with Paul and Linda McCartney, sharing an interest in animal rights and the environment. Increasing security at most venues these days make it much harder to film or record most shows, yet one survives from this past year on video (it wouldn't be worth it to try to copy the audio and spend all day trying to split up the tracks, which is why there should just be official soundboard recordings fans can buy, or even what the Grateful Dead allowed when they were still together with a taper section and trading recordings, yet Arena are indie and are more cult than the Bay Area icons by comparison, so it may not be feasible in the current climate).
    I hope to get more from Arena as I can afford. They have been upstaging everyone else, even those I know and love. I know I can build on this as I have for much of the collection I've accumulated.

AI of original album design for next album

Boris's latest list

Three Magnum CDs on the list (had to make do)

    Once again, Boris's list has been revised, and so much has been acquired, added and deleted since the last one was made three years ago, so many artists are no longer needed (even if I find them too late). I received this before I put it here, and found one by a group who will remain nameless, then found an autographed CD by a recently departed member of a band of another era. Anyway, I need to find a few more before sending out another package by the festive period due to the complicated method and high cost of P&P. The list has changed even more as a dozen or so more titles have been deleted as they were no longer needed, which is a relief since they are rare in the US. A few more were thrown in. We can't send anything to each other right now because of financial difficulties as well as changing events in both of our countries. UPDATE (12/8/25): Boris truncated the list yet again, culling many titles that I'd just never would find anyway, while tossing in a few more. Still going to be another right wild goose chase, even with artists that I know. I did find some that he could send me, but having fewer to reciprocate by the day and learning that the last package that I sent took two months' time, making a carrier pigeon look like Concorde, makes our methods more unrealistic every year between current events and economic shifts. Found sod all since. I really hope to have something in the post once more by years end.

 A.................................................................................................................

Amenophis: Amenophis (1983)

Anyones Daughter: Adonis

Alcatrazz: No Parole from Rock 'n' Roll

           Dangerous Games

Anglagard: Hybris

B..................................................................................................................

Barclay James Harvest: Ring of Changes

Blind Guardian: Imaginations of the Other Side

C..........................................................................................

Cornwell, Hugh (The Stranglers): Nosferatu (w/Robert Williams)

Camel: Rain Dances

E.......................................................................................................................

Eloy: Ra   

Electric Family: Ice Cream Phœnix

                 Royal Hunt

Escape with Romeo: Samsara

                  Emotional Ice Age

                    After the Future

                    Suspicious Bliss

                  

F..............................................................................................................

Fischer-Z: World Salad (also reissued as The Worker and Fischer-Z [budget releases]. Can't be upcoming reissue with next two albums that are no longer needed)

          Kamikaze Shirt

Freedom Call: Crystal Empire

G..................................................................................................................

Gong: Time is the Key

(Ian) Gillan (Deep Purple): Mr Universe

Gryphon: Red Queen to Gryphon Three

H.............................................................................................................................

Heavens Gate: In Control

              Living in Hysteria

Hypnos 69: Legacy

I.............................................................................................................................

IQ: Ever** (*LP)

J..............................................................................................................

Jane: Here We Are

      Lady

      Between Heaven and Hell

      Fire, Water, Air and Earth

Japan: Obscure Alternatives

K.....................................................................................................................

King Crimson: Discipline (can't remember if I bought it already, having gotten many other Adrian Belew/Tony Levin era releases)

L.....................................................................................................................

Lake of Tears: Forever Autumn

               Neonai

Lacrimosa: Testament

                               

M............................................................................................................

Mad Max: Rollin' Thunder (no relation to film franchise)

Manowar: Gods of War

         The Lord of Steel

Magnum: Chase the Dragon**

       Brand New Morning**

       Into the Valley of Moonking**

       Lost on the Road to Eternity**

       Kingdom of Madness**

Manfred Manns Earth Band: Masque

Mamas Boys: Power and Passion

Michael Schenker Group: MSG (1981)

N..................................................................................................................

New Trolls: Concerto Grosso #1

Novalis: Banished Bridge

         Novalis (1975)          

         

O..................................................................................................................

Oldfield, Mike: Man on the Rocks

R.................................................................................................................

Rockets: Galaxy

Rhapsody: Dawn of Victory

         Symphony of Enchanted Lands, Part I

Rousseau: Flower in Asphalt

Running Wild: Death or Glory

S................................................................................................................

Sweet: Off the Record

Seventh Avenue: Southgate

                Between the Worlds

Sparks: Gratuitous Sex & Senseless Violins

Saunders, Lee (The Void): A Promise of Peace

Saga: Saga (1978)

Sisters of Mercy: Floodland

Stewart, Rod: Foolish Behaviour

T...............................................................................................................

10cc: Look Hear

      Ten Out of 10

      Windows in the Jungle

TV Smith: Coming in to Land

           In the Arms of the Enemy

            Land of the Overdose

            Misinformation Overload

            The March of the Giants

Toyah: In the Court of the Crimson Queen

U..................................................................................................................

Unheilig: von Mensch zu Mensch

UFO: Obsession

V..................................................................................................................

Viva: Dealers of the Night

Virgin Steele: The House of Atreus (Act I & II)

W...................................................................................................................

Wood, Roy (Wizzard/ELO/Idle Race): Mustard

Wintersun: Wintersun (2004)

* I would like this as well.

** I have this already.

.........................................................................................................

Supersedes all previous lists.

Ralph Records

Beatles CD-Rs on Ralph Records

 Today at a car boot sale, I came across a box of pirate CD-Rs that were free to take. It had needle drops of artists such as Barbra Streisand, Graham Nash, Focus (I have to get the official one for Boris, of course), Carly Simon, the Mamas & the Papas, Hermans Hermits, and maybe the Bee Gees for that matter just to name a few. They're on a label called Ralph Records, a division of "Antarctica Group, Ltd.", which doesn't exist. There was a real indie label called Ralph Records in the Bay Area known for the cult band The Residents. Not much is known about this other Ralph Records, who make Beatles bootlegger Dr Ebbetts look like Peter Jackson (who worked on Get Back). I picked up Jolly What! with Frank Ifield, who passed away this past May, and The Savage Young Beatles, the first US release of the Tony Sheridan sessions (also not official, while the ones that were came out on two separate labels with lesser known groups mixed in). Like real reissue labels such as Friday Music and Air Mail Archive, Ralph imitate the original label almost to the point of parody. Not much can be found on them. The covers were printed on Kodak inkjet paper. Someone went to great expense to make all of these, only for these to be on the house, making Babs at the charity shop look like a ticket to her fundraisers (she or pretty much any artist would go mad if she saw one of her albums like this). If it was something out of print, maybe, but many of these weren't really that rare. The CD-R seller in Madison County I wrote about some years earlier has nothing on this. Even though I have the Beatles tracks on better sounding official and unofficial CDs and LPs, I never had the original LPs, which were considered cash-ins during Beatlemania in 1964, along with cover albums by other artists and novelty records. As for all the CDs, they have scans of the original sleeves. I am on this sellers e-mail list, so I know where he'll be next, which is likely the record fair I know now held on NY 173 in Taunton, so I could grab a handful more if anyone wants some, since this sort doesn't seem to gather that much interest. These are too good to just donate or even have binned. You can't legally sell them, of course. There were also some CD-R bootlegs, but I just took a couple ELP ones, and only one works. As for Ralph, this may just be some little operation over twenty years too late.

Jadis - More Questions Than Answers

Fair use of image for critical review. Courtesy Jadismusic/Amazon.com. Designed by Geoff Chandler (Garys brother)

 Jadis's new album, More Questions Than Answers, lives up to its name! Their first in eight years' time, the band are in classic form, since I was able to preview it on YouTube. It's just getting the album that has become elusive. I was planning on getting it on amazon.com with my usual $5 off from Bing (almost £4), but once I had the gift card, the site ran out of copies, even if that bi-weekly discount barely covered P&P or VAT. Frontman Gary Chandler told me in an e-mail that they're still under the radar four decades after he started the band and that he doesn't have a full-fledged setup for getting out product. I thought he had a deal with RSK, who distribute Jadis' former and IQs (founded by current member Martin Orford) label Giant Electric Pea. I did tell Chandler that his modus operandi is not unlike that of Fish with his label, which he'll close next year, but that's for another day. It's not like the old days of selling tapes or LPs out of the boot of your car or in the post since the internet has opened more doors in the past few decades, including Pandoras! On that note, no one has put mp3s up officially or unofficially (to Orfords relief) just yet. Not even a pirate CD, since I have none from Jadis at this time. A few third-party dealers put the CD on amazon, and a couple more have on Discogs. Even Barnes & Noble would have carried it on their site (you have to spell the first the words as one, probably to avoid confusion with other things, but that just makes it harder to look up. I had less trouble finding Robbie Williams LPs at my local B&N!). The band have had a deal with InsideOut in the past, which helped get a few of their albums in shops more easily, even when it was a true indie. The new one I wound up ordering direct or through BandCamp (a haven for artists who used to be with or could never get signed to the big boys, yet that site claim to just have a four track promo). It may have set me back a little, but it cut out the middle man. Not sure if it went out yet when I wrote this or it was sent out with no tracking number to cut costs. I don't even think Nad Sylvan gave me that when I ordered from him a few years ago. I got his autograph on two separate orders, while I got the bands on Medium Rare by surprise (the same thing happened with Sylvans boss Steve Hackett) without even trying.

Once fans get their copy, it'll be worth the wait. Now if only the bands solicitors could get others with the same name to change it (Magnum and Pallas too, but those "other bands" may not even realise the "real" ones exist just because of how generic the names are. Same with Fish, IQ and even the boys Rush (that's for another post similar to one on the sister blog).

Magnum

Magnum, 2005; Göteborg, Sweden. Courtesy David Nyrén.

 Magnum are another band that are elusive in the US that I'm adding to my collection. The recent death of lead songwriter and guitarist Tony Clarkin as well as several titles being on Boris's list for the past few years has brought them to my attention. I wrote about the Marillion bootleg using the cover for Magnums 1983 album The Eleventh Hour! earlier. Now it will take time and a fortune to get their CDs for both of us (I managed two for him so far). Amazon of all places don't have everything to buy at a doable price or to stream. One third-party seller had three CDs and I just ordered one, and my bi-weekly gift card from Bing saves me hundreds every year. Finding the band in person is extremely rare, and I've had less trouble with other artists who couldn't Payola their way into the chart here. If I ask at the shops, people might confuse them with Magnum PI (mom loved Tom Selleck!) or even Yngwie Malmsteens Magnum Force (we've done them already). The real Magnum have occasionally been available locally with recent releases, but it looks like another wild goose chase, and I may need to rent a storage unit if I ever move house again. Will also have to throw in spinoff Hard Rain and solo Bob Catley. Even Jadis took less than a year to find. Magnum may be the biggest challenge yet, even though other people we like still have albums I can't afford or find to this day. This is have to be done in bits.

Also, several albums are out of print and need to be remastered, so that will have to be sorted at a later time. I managed to get almost half the studio releases in the latest package for my own collection, but this will take months to just get the rest of those before I even begin to consider live albums, compilations, vinyl and side projects.

Retrospect Records: A Retrospective

 

Logo appears under fair use and label may no longer exist. Courtesy Discogs.

    Retrospect Records, an indie label and seller based in Las Vegas and St George, UT, seems to have gone out of business. They were once one of the biggest independent metal labels in the world. I also knew them for selling used CDs like anyone else. They offered bootlegs and Russian pirates, as well as artists not easily found in the US like Gary Moore and Magnum (which led me to write this). I've bought IQ, Pallas, Yes and solo Rick Wakeman for myself and Queensrÿche and maybe Billy Squier for Boris (I would've bought even more if money weren't an object!). Whether the pandemic or just the economy since did them in, it's an all too familiar scene these days across the board. As a label, they may not have had the resources that even other indies have. Fish and his label are one thing since there's no one else on it. Retrospect are another since they signed dozens of obscure artists like Mystery (not the French-Canadian band that I know, since generic names can mean two or more people with a conflict).

    Like a regular news outlet, I reached out to the owner for comment, something I don't typically do. I simply asked what happened as a past customer and not as a blogger. I haven't ordered from them in over ten years time and they haven't had anything new since at least April of last year. The owner told me that he stopped renewing his subscription to the host service, thinking it wasn't worth a bother anymore. Even a free service is not on. We'll just have to let this one go as there are plenty of other places to order from and there's nothing on the label even worth reselling if you ask me.

Marillion: Childhood Mysteries

 

The cover that was meant to be

    Marillion played Castle Donington in Leicestershire in August 1985 on an all-star bill that included ZZ Top (on their Afterburner tours Europe leg), Bon Jovi (not yet that big, promoting 7800° F), Metallica (between albums) and Magnum. Whether Marillions show was soundboard, radio or just the typical fan recording is likely one of the mysteries! It's when it made it onto bootleg is what leads us here. One early edition looked more like an early '70s head shop release with a cheap photocopy cover with what looks more like a drawing Peter Nicholls from IQ. Another looked like an apple of some sort. The most common is what may drawn intrigue for nearly four decades for diehards of both bands. The label probably tried to come up with something at short notice comparable to Mark Wilkinsons fantasy style, so they decided to steal another designers sleeve. Rodney Matthews drew the cover of Magnums 1983 release The Eleventh Hour! It was originally released on Jet Records, Ozzy Osbournes former solo label, and his estranged father-in-law the late Don Arden ran it and would have sorted out whoever nicked the sleeve if he knew! On one of the Facebook groups, a fan showed his copy of the LP that Fish signed. I had Bill Bruford sign a King Crimson pirate CD, but that's a bit different (we've done that).

    Magnums lead songwriter and guitarist Tony Clarkin, who passed on 7 January this year, didn't like his own band being bootlegged (most people wouldn't). The last thing he'd want is for the cover of one their studio albums being used for another artists bootleg. When I bought it a few years ago in my area at a great price, I didn't realise at first until it said so on Discogs. I had an earlier Marillion drawing combining elements of Script for a Jesters Tear, Misplaced Childhood, Brave and Marbles (the last two from the Steve Hogarth era), but the original disappeared a long time ago and I'd have to see if it's still online somewhere. I went to the charity shop and bought this bordered paper and coloured pencils, originally for a promotion next door at the coffee shop for St Valentines Day (they got one of my cats!). I also had some pastels for bits that couldn't be pencilled in. I was trying to make Robert Mead, the youngster on the Misplaced cover in the style of Loren Bouchard (Bobs Burgers/The Great North) because I don't draw people too often. He turns out similar to The Great Norths Moon since they'd be the same age and have the Will Byers (Stranger Things since it's that time period) look to boot!

    I have Magnum to get for Boris and I wouldn't have heard of them if not for the list. I may look into them myself. The Eleventh Hour! isn't on it, but he could get it for me since I may not find it on my own since little of theirs came out in North America in the old days. If part of the cover is missing when it comes, I'll just photocopy the bootleg and cover up Marillion parts with bits of scrap paper. Even band photos of the show would have worked better once it was on CD, although it'd be a matter of getting cameras past security (video ones even more so once they were more versatile for the consumer market long before mobile phones could do all this and the internet), yet several photos were taken and are available. One could hide tape machines somehow. They scan for such things and even have clear bag policies in some venues today, yet people can still get these made if they have the knowhow and connections. It was still the Wild West in the '80s, and more of a challenge by the '90s as artists and venues became more strict about this. At least I could put to bed this anomaly of a bootleg cover.

Here are the tracks anyway. No Kayleigh or Lavender.

A more original yet Ghibli AI cover

Apologies to Rodney Matthews and Studio Ghibli

AI images courtesy ChatGPT Open AI (created March-April 2025).

Musify/Myzuka

Courtesy Round Hill Records

 By the cover art can be obtained from Round Hill Music / Zuma Rock Records., Fair use, Link

    It seems like sister pirate mp3 sites Myzuka.club and Musify.club have lost the plot. After uploading dozens of albums to both simultaneously (it's a package deal) for over a decade, it seems they don't want anymore from me. I uploaded two albums they don't have yet, The Messenger from Pallas and Loaded: The Greatest Hits 1994-2023 by Bush (pictured). For the latter, I worked around it by going to an unofficial compilation by updating tracks that had a lower bit rate and adding ones not already there. I had downloaded the new official one legally from amazon since I got it free when I bought the CD from them around the time of Gavin Rossdales birthday and the bands most recent show in my area last fall. Pallas on the other hand are more limited by comparison. Had to go to another site for them. Can't afford Bandcamp too. To boot, band leader and manager Graeme Murray is also a barrister (albeit in criminal law rather than civil), so it may be karma for both bands; also considering neo-prog contemporaries' IQ and Jadis' Martin Orfords war or piracy. Since I can't access Pallas' new album on Musify or amazon at this stage, I had to put those mp3s on my Google drive to stream them from my phone. I would rather have the CD anyway, and I'll get it when it's available affordably. I may have invested heavily in Jadis and Denny Laine due to their catalogues' scarcity, but that's for another post.

    It's too easy to download or stream these days. Vinyl is back (like it never left, but again, for another day). It's like trading in something at the shop. Even if it's something they don't have and not on every corner, they still may not want it. I'm not going to waste time, money or data trying to upload them again. I tried contacting them, but have not heard back. Anyone looking for either of these albums on those site are on their own. File-sharing networks (Warez) like the old Napster, Limewire, BitTorrent, Kazaa and the Pirate Bay aren't as common anymore and can still cause damage to your devices. I actually don't upload or download as much as I used to nowadays. I don't even stream much TV. As for those sites, if I upload one more album and they don't do a thing, they'll never get another from me again. No one makes one ruble from it anyhow, which proves a point. Most of my old files have been wiped or disappeared over the years. Some are off of CDs I still have, but I can't rip them like I used to. Better to cut my losses and lossy files and just move on. (UPDATE: The Pallas one was uploaded by another person already, yet is not recognised in the bands discography.)

No more pirate CDs?

Just several I've gotten recently

 I may not be getting any more pirate CDs from Boris any time soon.  Between a lack of titles I want from the site he uses to the current situation (we don't need to get into it too much here as we're all against Mr P.), I think it's time for an indefinite pause until further notice.  Even picking a bunch of titles I could just trade in is not feasible as that would still cost money when the economy in Russia is suffering because of the elephant in the room.  Also, the post office won't allow anything to be sent there at this time due to lack of transport and continuing sanctions.

I still plan to send some CDs over to him when it is allowed again, but it likely won't happen for the foreseeable future.  It's also because of limited availability of albums in my own area and having to go on the road or online, which can add up either way and that's before I ship.  Customs on both ends may now be wary at this time as my incoming package has not had an update in a couple weeks.  The two have had their issues prior to this anyway.  It's become a waiting game and then some.  We've gone from the latter stages of the pandemic to far worse.  Also, after those CDs do come, I shouldn't get anything else from there for the time being, even if you can't tell by looking at it (clever lot, that).

Universal and Sony have closed their Moscow offices, and Warner might next, as have many international companies, so people there would rely on pirate CDs, although downloading has become more prominent in the past two decades anyway.  It's nothing compared to the petrol rises back here.

I've also done something similar with someone in Ukraine, but we haven't done that in a period because he could no longer get anything over the border and now everyone is in survival mode, so I'm just worried about him and everyone there.  He sent few pirates, and was more into providing bootlegs.

As for Boris, I may break it to him gently once I give him information about the package, knowing how delicate this will be.  He knows all too well about he who shan't be named.  I will miss doing this, but it'll be the least of our problems compared to everything else.  I will just support the artists and buy new when I can, particularly within days of release if I can't on the day (as with indie and lesser known artists).  Maybe I've spent too much all these years with this scheme, letting it go on for so long.

UPDATE: My package is here now, but because it was sent before the war, it was probably still allowed, but another might not be until further notice.  Also, the website that he orders from hasn't has an update in a few months, so nothing new from there again until things settle down.

UPDATE 2: I've tried sending him another through a third-party service, but he has been surprisingly been uncooperative lately and won't respond to my e-mails anymore to provide information needed to proceed with the order. We all have lives no matter where we are in the world, but he usually writes back in a matter of days. Also, between the decreasing availability of titles on the list and having to deal my own life and expenses, I may not be able to do this anymore, even when everything's back to normal there. This has become too much, and I'll admit I haven't gotten back to him straightaway either in fairness, so I'm no better. Still, even the vast time zone difference hasn't been that much of a barrier. My inner Ann Landers tells me I should probably stop dealing with him, but I need closure first. I've spent too much time and money for over a decade doing all this. Now, it's more personal than external if he won't keep up his end. Even here, not everyone can be looked up online, let alone there. I think I'm done with him since I don't even listen to all of the CDs I have anymore, let alone need that many more. I had his whereabouts on paper or the plastic from the last shipment, but it was binned after I took everything out thinking I'd never need them. It's a wild goose chase and holy grail at this stage now. I won't use the term "ghosting" because that's b------s. I don't know what the problem is except that he's incommunicado, even though he's said before he gets busy, but don't we all? It takes a few minutes of your day to tell me where you live and where to ring you (I won't). Dr Phil says, "It's not an essay question" (and I wrote the essay, and then he'd say, "How's that workin' for ya?!" and "Don't invest more than you can afford to lose" [I don't watch that show anymore]). Boris, please answer me.

Jadis

Gary Chandler, 2006

 Seems every now and then, I add another artist to my long collection, and this time it's another prog band with a cult following called Jadis.  I find their 2003 album, appropriately called Fanatic at the shop, and I buy it because two members at the time were also in IQ (Martin Orford, who since returned after leaving the business over piracy, and John Jowitt) and the drummer Steve Christey has worked for the late John Wetton on solo albums and with Geoffrey Downes on the first two Icon albums prior to the return of original Asia proper.  Turns out I friended frontman Gary Chandler on Facebook several years ago, but thought little of it until a couple months ago, as it was now meant to happen (and added Jowitt recently, and told him that I got an autographed CD of the band), even though he's not any more active on social media personally than I am.

Then there's trying to get more CDs.  The next two I bought I had to get online.  They weren't cheap, mind, and I've paid a pretty penny for other people.  A lot of them are a right fortune that, and I know where in person they might be available at a remotely better price, given the rise on essential items these days (they only had one, but with some determination, the follow-up could be found on amazon via a German seller I know at a doable price as other sellers there, Discogs and eBay charge an arm and leg for P&P alone).  The band have their own label and have the same indie distributor as IQs label, so they could reissue these albums, making them more affordable and available.

I also need a freely licenced photo for Wikipedia as the ones I used here can't be used there, just adding to my Holy Grail wild goose chase!  If they could play the US, I'd take my own, but it's hard enough right now to tour near home, and they don't have the same resources as some of their peers like visas and a budget, even if they started a crowdfund appeal like Marillion used to do, since Steve Rothery have helped Jadis get their foot in the door.

Boris update

Focus 3 featuring "Sylvia". Courtesy Red Bullet.

The list has been changed again.  Some of the A-listers and cult heroes I know won't be hard to find, while others remain a challenge.

A.................................................................................................................

Amenophis: Amenophis (1983)

Anyones Daughter: Adonis

                                Anyones Daughter (1980)

                                In Blau

                                Piktors Verwandlungen

Alcatrazz: No Parole from Rock 'n' Roll

                Dangerous Games

Amorphis: Elegy

                 Am Universum

Altered Images: Pinky Blue

Alphaville: Prostitute

                 Strange Attractor

Anaphema: Judgement

                   Eternity

Anglagard: Hybris

Ange: La Cimeterie

B..................................................................................................................

Graham Bonnet (Rainbow): Line Up

David Byron (Uriah Heep): Baby Faced Killer

Barclay James Harvest: Ring of Changes

                                     North

Biglietto Per L'Inferno: same (1974)

Black Sabbath: Born Again* (may have sent a pirate by mistake)

Blind Guardian: Tales from the Twilight World

               Somewhere Far Beyond

               Imaginations from the Other Side   

C..........................................................................................

Colosseum: Daughter of Time

Tony Carey (Planet P Project/Rainbow): Coldwar Kids (possible namesake of a band I know of)

                   I Won't Be Home Tonight

                   Bedtime Story

                   Boystown Tapes

City (DDR): Feuer Und Ice

Califfi: Fiore di Metallo

Celtic Frost: Vanity/Nemesis

Chameleons UK: What Does Anything Mean?

                           Script of the Bridge

                           Strange Times

                           The Fan and the Bellows

Cardiacs: A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window

               Songs for Ships and Irons

               Heaven Born and Ever Bright

               On Land and in the Sea

Hugh Cornwell (The Stranglers): Guilty (or Black Hair, Black Eyes, Black Suit)

                          Hi Fi

                          Nosferatu

Cirith Ungol: King of the Dead

                     Paradise Lost

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds: Abattoir Blues / The Lyre of Orpheus

Creatures (Siouxsie and the Banshees spinoff): Hai!

Camel: Rain Dances

D.................................................................................................................

Deaf School: English Boys Working Girls

Dresden Dolls: Dresden Dolls

Dreamside: Lunar Nature

                  Mirror Moon

                  Spin Moon Magic

Dio: Strange Highways*/** (LP)

E.......................................................................................................................

England: Garden Shed

Eloy: Ra

         Eloy (first album)

electra (DDR): Die Sixtinische Madonna

Electric Family: Ice Cream Phoenix

                         Royal Hunt

Roky Erickson: The Evil One (or "I Think Of Demons")

                        Gremlins Have Pictures

Ekseption: Beggar Julias Time Trip

                 Ekseption 3

Earth & Fire: Song of the Marching Children

                     Atlantis

                     To the World of the Future

The Enid: Resurgency

Escape with Romeo: After the Future

                                Come Here White Light

                                Love Alchemy

                                Emotional Iceage

                                Samsara

F..............................................................................................................

Fischer Z:World Salad

               Fish's Head

               Destination Paradise

               Kamikaze Shirt

Faust: Faust Tapes

Fruup: Prince of Heavens Eye

           Modern Masquerades

Focus: In and Out of Focus

           Focus 3 (pictured)

           Hamburger Concerto

Robert Fripp (King Crimson): League of Gentlemen 

Flaming Lips: Oh My Gawd!!!

                      Telepathic Surgery

Freedom Call: Stairway to Fairyland

             Crystal Empire

             Eternity

             Beyond

G..................................................................................................................

Greenslade: Spyglass Guest

Gong: Time is the Key

          Downwind

Grobschnitt: Grobschnitt

                     Ballerman

                     Jumbo

                     Rockpommels Land

                     Solar Music. Parts I, II & III

(Ian) Gillan (Deep Purple): Mr Universe

Gamma Ray:  Power Plant

                      No World Order

                      Empire of the Undead

Goblin: Roller

Gryphon: Red Queen to Gryphon Three

H.............................................................................................................................

Ken Hensley (Uriah Heep): Proud Words on the Dusty Shelf

                     Free Spirit

                     Faster

                     Running Blind

                     My Book of Answers

                     Blood on the Highway

Helloween:  Keeper of the 7 Keys-III (The Legacy)

Heavens Gate: In Control

                       Living in Hysteria

Human League: Reproduction

Peter Hammill (van der Graaf Generator): Nadirs Big Chance

                        In Camera

                        PH7

                        A Black Box

Hypnos 69: Legacy

I.............................................................................................................................

Iron Saviour: Unification

Impellitteri: Stand in Line

Idle Race: Birthday Party

                Idle Race (1969)

           or  Back to the Story (both albums on 1 CD)

IQ: Ever*

J..............................................................................................................

Jethro Tull: Thick as a Brick, Part II (solo Ian Anderson)

Jane: Here We Are

          Lady

          Between Heaven and Hell

          Age of Madness

          Sign #9

J.E.T.: Fede Speraza Carita

Japan: Adolescent Sex

            Obscure Alternatives

K.....................................................................................................................

King Diamond (Mercyful Fate): Give Me Your Soul...Please

Keats: Keats (1984)

Karat (DDR): Karat (1978)

                    Uber Sieben Brucke

                    Die Sieben Wunder Der Welt

Karussell (DDR): Entweder Oder

                          Das Einzige Lieben

L.....................................................................................................................

Lake of Tears: Ominous

                       Forever Autumn

                       The Neonai

                       Black Brick Road

                       Moons and Mushrooms

                       Crimson Cosmos

Lacrimosa: Sehnsucht

                 Elodia

                 Revolution

                 Hofnung

Le Orme:Uomo di Pezza

               Storia o Leggenda

               Florian

               Verita Nascoste

Lightshine:Feeling

Lift (DDR): Lift (1977)

                Meeresfahrt (or Lift 2)

         (or both albums on one CD)

                               

M............................................................................................................

The Move: The Move (1968)

          Shazam

          Looking On

Mad Max: Rollin' Thunder

Manowar: Gods of War

                The Lord of Steel

                Into Glory Ride

Magnum: Chase the Dragon*

               Sleepwalking*

               Brand New Morning*

               Into the Valley of the Moonking*

               On the 13th Day*

               Princess Alice & the Broken Arrow**

               Kingdom of Madness*

Manfred Manns Earth Band: Watch (feat. Trevor Rabin)

                                        Masque

Metamorfosi: E Fu Il Sesto Giorno

The Mission UK: Brightest Light

              Another Fall from Grace

Mamas Boys: Power and Passion

Peter Murphy (Bauhaus): Unshattered

                        Ninth 

Mercury Rev: The Light in You

Michael Schenker Group: MSG (1981)

Gary Moore: Dirty Fingers

N..................................................................................................................

New Trolls: Concerto Grosso #1

Novalis: Banished Bridge

             Novalis (1975)

             Brandung

             Vielleicht Bist Du Ein Clown

             Augenblicke

Gary Numan: Berserker

Nits: Alankomaat                     

Nash the Slash: Children of the Night

                           And You Thought You Were Normal

                       (any of two or both on one CD)

Nazareth: The Catch

                Cinema

                Snakes and Ladders

O..................................................................................................................

Hazel O'Connor: Breaking Glass

                          Sons and Lovers

Ric Ocasek (The Cars): Troublising

Octopus: An Ocean of Rocks

Osibisa: Woyaya

Osiris: Osiris (1981)

           Myths & Legends

The Orchestra (ELO): No Rewind

OMD: Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (1980)

Mike Oldfield: Man on the Rocks

P............................................................................................................

Planet P Project:  Go Out Dancing, Part 2: Levittown

                           Go Out Dancing, Part 3: Out in the Rain

                           Steeltown 

Prinzip (DDR): Feuer Rock

Anthony Phillips (Genesis): The Geese and the Ghost*/** (CD)

Iggy Pop and James Williamson (Stooges): Kill City  

Pell Mell: Rhapsody

               Moldau

               Marburg

Parliament: Motor Booty Affair

                   Gloryhallastoopid

                   The Clones of Dr Funkenstein

                   Funkentelechy vs The Placebo Syndrome

                   Trombipulation

P.R.W.L.: Tales from Outer Space

              God Has Failed

Procol Harum: Norum

      Gary Brooker: Lead Me to the Water (replacement)

Alan Parsons: Time Machine

                     A Valid Path

                     The Secret

R.................................................................................................................

Rockets: Galaxy

             Atomic

Rhapsody: Rain of a Thousand Flames

                 Power of the Dragonflame

                 Dawn of Victory

                 Symphony of Enchanted Lands, Part I

                 Legendary Tales 

                 From Chaos to Eternity

                 Rebirth and Evolution

                 Tales from Emerald World Sage

Rational Youth: Heredity

                         Cold War Night Life

                         Future Past Tense

Ramses: La Leyla

             Eternity Rise

Rousseau: Flower in Asphalt

Running Wild: Brotherhood

Reform (DDR) :Reform (1979)

                      Der Lowenzahn

S................................................................................................................

Scorpions: In Trance

Sweet: Off the Record

           Waters Edge

Stratovarius: Elements, Part 2

                    Episode

                    Visions

                    Infinite

Seventh Avenue: Southgate

                           Eternals

                           Between the Worlds

                           Terium

                           Rainbowland

                           Tales of Tales 

Sieges Even: Uneven

                    Steps

                    Sense of Change

Stranglers: Dreamtime (2001 edition)

Billy Squier: The Tale of the Tape

Siouxie & The Banshees: Juju

                                        Downside Up

Siouxsie Sioux (solo album): Mantaray

Space: Deliverance (latest edition)

Solar Project: Ghost Lights

                      Five

Space: Deliverance (latest edition)

Sparks: Hippopotamus

            Gratiutuous Sex & Senseless Violins

Semiramis: Dedicato a Frazz

Strawbs: From the Witchwood

               Dragon Fly

               Ghosts

Sad Lovers and Giants: Epic Garden Music

                                     Feeling the Flame

Skids: Days in Europa

          The Absolute Game

           Scared to Dance 

Spear of Destiny: Outland

                           Volunteers

Second Movement: Blindmans Mirror

                              Movements (1981)

The Sound: From the Lions Mouth

                   All Fall Down

                   Heads and Hearts

Lee Saunders: A Promise of Peace

Saga: Saga (1978)

Styx: Styx (1971) (first album)

Sisters of Mercy: Floodland

Rod Stewart: Foolish Behaviour

The Smiths: Meat is Murder

T...............................................................................................................

10cc: Look Hear

         Ten Out of 10

         Windows in the Jungle

TV Smith:  Immortal Rich

                 In the Arms of the Enemy

Toyah: Kneeling at the Shrine (or Sunday All Over the World)

           Minx

           In the Court of the Crimson Queen (reference to husband Robert Fripp)

           Dreamchild

           Ophelias Shadow

           Mayhem

Trace: Birds

Twelfth of Never:  Blowing Bubbles Through Broken Windows

                            Things That Were

Tranzit (DDR): Tranzit (1980)

                      Bernsteinhexe

U..................................................................................................................

Midge Ure (Ultravox): Fragile

                  Pure

                  Move Me

Unheilig: Puppenspiel

              Von Mensch zu Mensch

              Gipfelsturmer

              Grosse Freiheit 

Ultravox: Brilliant

UFO: Obsession

V..................................................................................................................

Viva: Dealers of the Night

Virgin Steele: Invictus

                      The House of Atreus (Act I & II)

                      Visions of Eden

                      Black Light Bacchanalia 

                      Nocturnes of Hellfire & Damnation

van der Graaf Generator: Trisector

                                         A Grounding in Numbers

                                         Do Not Disturb

W...................................................................................................................

Rick Wakeman (Yes): Living Tree (w/Jon Anderson)*

                         Out There*

Roy Wood: Mustard

Robert Wyatt: EP's (on single CD) (this is an album)

                      Rock Bottom

Wallenstein: Blitzkrieg

                    Cosmic Century

                    Stories Songs & Symphonies

                    Mother Universe

                    No More Love

John Watts: The Iceberg Model

                   Quick Quick Slow

Wire: Chairs Missing

         154

         Send

         Object 47

Wuthering Heights: To Travel for Evermore

                               Far from the Madding Crowd

                               The Shadow Cabinet 

                               Salt

                               Within

Wintersun: Wintersun (2004)

                 Time I

Roger Waters: The Therapeutic Experience of Being Suspended (bootleg)**

Y............................................................................................................

Yachts: Yachts (1979)

Yes: Keystudio**

.........................................................................................................

*I have these myself.

**I need these as well.

Plixid.com

Plixid.net

Plixid was another pirate blog that had the latest releases.  It has been offline several months, and may not come back.  Another one like it is also gone.  Over two decades after Napster, IFPI, RIAA and DMCA have been trying to stop sites like these.

UPDATE: It is now on Plixid.net

The Beatles on Stargrove

Photo taken in 1963 by Bob Freeman (RIP)

An indie budget label in the Toronto area called Stargrove Entertainment released something too good to be true: cheap budget Beatles compilations. You'd think with ironclad rights, it'd be legally impossible?  However, in Canada, copyrights for older recordings expire after fifty years or so.  A fan club in Québec have a similar release that came out last year, and more releases have been put out in Europe to boot as rights run out there as well.  The Stargrove CDs were mainly sold in Walmart, where I bought three in Niagara Falls, ONT.  Recently, I found a couple more for a dollar each from the bargain bin at FYE in the Mohawk Valley (now owned by Canadian chain Sunrise Records, which I once visited in eastern Ontario, seeing how alike they were).  The Fab Four of all people reduced to this?  Makes what little that they put on their original US label Vee-Jay look fresh (classic David and Goliath story there).  It's only material from 1962-64 which I have anyway.  More for completist and novelty value, I guess.  I had room to spare if not as much cash when I found them.

Universals solicitors however did what they could to put a stop to these poor mans releases.  The sound quality isn't quite what you'd find from the official CDs, sounding like unnecessary needle drops.  I listen to these once since I heard it all a hundred times before and prefer to play it from LPs nowadays like it used to be done.  Other classic artists from the same era also have these cash grab items.

If they put out CDs of bootlegs recorded at the time, that would be a little more imaginative, as a number of different labels have gotten away with CDs of other people in the past several years sold new at small businesses, Amazon and a few chains alike, largely of radio shows from later decades, though a Pink Floyd bootleg LP (only the second one I got so far) says those alone are public domain after a point in the UK.  More on bootlegs another day as that's a world all its own.

I suppose you could call these grey area releases, much like interview discs that are exempt from the contract.  I sent a couple to someone out of state.  If I get back to Canada, I could buy and ship more, but maybe Stargrove could try to reissue material that's been out of print instead worth a bother instead of doing what's been done with Elton John, The Moody Blues, Shirley Bassey (lesser known in North America) and other classic artists who've been recycled to the hilt.  I've talked about who doesn't have these yet, but this is the other end of the spectrum.  It's nothing new, as I have a couple similar EU collections from the '80s or '90s with the same old songs.  As for these newer CDs, neither Walmart Canada or FYE have them on their sites, although Discogs sellers do, some at high prices (not worth it when you can just get the original albums as well as those of the Beach Boys, Bob Dylan or George Jones).  I just know I got there at the right time before they were extortionately priced where I may as well get a butcher cover or early white album pressing.