Another week begins, and with it comes a new theme for my An Album A Day project. Now in its fifth week (or is it fourth week? I can’t even perform simple maths anymore) we’ve just barely scratched the surface of all the treasures contained in my record collection. So far we’ve tackled such exciting subjects as “non-music,” the venerable Mort Aux Vaches label, 10-inch records and cover songs. This week being the week of my birth (it’s this Friday, April 25th, please send me money so I can drink myself into an early grave) I’m going to devote the next five albums to artists who were born during the month of April. Same as me! These luminaries and I are practically twins! And first up this week is Jeff Mueller.
There isn’t much I can say about Jeff Mueller that I haven’t said before. I respect the man and his art so much that I spent a night interviewing him in Chicago back in 2005, which you can read (in its entirety) right here. And although I’m sure Jeff has long forgotten that evening I consider it to be the highlight of that still-unpublished book. That interview and the Bubba Kadane interview are two of my fondest memories from my hardcore music journalism days. Almost everything you could ever want to know about the man is in that interview, and to summarize his life and his musical contributions here would be both redundant and less impactful. Is impactful a word? If it’s not, it should be.
In my entire record collection database there are only about 30 titles for which I don’t have purchase dates and location. Naturally, this is one of those. I’ve owned two or three copies of this in my life. I feel like I used to find them at Amoeba back in the summer of 2007 priced cheaply, and I would buy them to put together the best condition, lowest-numbered copy possible. Only one of the copies ever came with an insert. I’ve never looked at it because it has a wax seal on it and I’m afraid to break the seal. I don’t know why, maybe I feel like if I do that a sign of the apocalypse might come to pass. You know, like in that movie The Seventh Sign. As for my extras, I might have sold one on eBay or sent one to Ian, I don’t really remember where all they went. But the one I have now, #139/500, probably came from that same era. Summer 2007 at Amoeba. Nowadays you can find ’em on Discogs and eBay and they are never all that expensive. Still, if you’re a fan of Rodan, June of 44, or the Shipping News, this is an absolute MUST for your collection. Beautiful, dark, and haunting, ever since I first heard Fold And Perish I’ve been waiting for its followup. Hopefully someday we’ll be so lucky.
Jeff Mueller
Fold And Perish
(Monitor – mon001, 1999)
A1. Formed In Atoms
A2. Drake Hotel
A3. Giant Sky
B1. Reptile Hands
B2. Safe And Sound
B3. Every Eye [MP3]
B4. The Apprentice
