Dead C

Dead C

Operation Of The Sonne

Ba Da Bing!

The Dead C’s trio of albums in the middle of their harsh 90s reality served for many as entry points to the band. Operation Of The Sonne, The White House and Tusk received wider distribution than the band had ever seen before, and this was the first rays of them being considered amongst the most important rock bands of the 20th century. This trio of vinyl reissues capture their intensity and presence in a way that may even blow out the candle of the original pressings. Newly remastered by Lasse Marhaug, and with bonus tracks, these 2023 reissues have been cut carefully and loud, with the sonic wars heard on these now-classic tracks more blaring than ever. Coming after the monster that was Harsh 70s Reality, and its evil twin, Clyma Est Mort, this album has always confounded even soi-disant Dead C fans. Side one documents the discovery of the analogue synthesizer coupled with field recordings from the basement of Willowbank, Koputai’s “most stately” home. Side two emerged spontaneously to cassette on stage at the “fabled” Empire Tavern—and it still sounds like stripping the breathable atmosphere from an already-depleted biosphere.

Dead C

The White House

Ba Da Bing!

The Dead C’s trio of albums in the middle of their harsh 90s reality served for many as entry points to the band. Operation Of The Sonne, The White House and Tusk received wider distribution than the band had ever seen before, and this was the first rays of them being considered amongst the most important rock bands of the 20th century. This trio of vinyl reissues capture their intensity and presence in a way that may even blow out the candle of the original pressings. Newly remastered by Lasse Marhaug, and with bonus tracks, these 2023 reissues have been cut carefully and loud, with the sonic wars heard on these now-classic tracks more blaring than ever. The Dead C on The White House, now including bonus track “Breakdown/World”: “Recorded in the winter of 1994, sessions were accompanied by snow, an infrequent but always super-exciting event in downtown Dunedin. Mainly if not entirely recorded direct to REVOX B77, just like The Clean’s Oddities. Our version of Led Zepp IV with no ‘Stairway’, as recorded by the Meat Puppets in a K-hole. Originally M&D by Matador, this is as major label as we got. Mere pseud post-grunge sell-out moves-ah.”

Dead C

Tusk

Ba Da Bing!

The Dead C’s trio of albums in the middle of their harsh 90s reality served for many as entry points to the band. Operation Of The Sonne, The White House and Tusk received wider distribution than the band had ever seen before, and this was the first rays of them being considered amongst the most important rock bands of the 20th century. This trio of vinyl reissues capture their intensity and presence in a way that may even blow out the candle of the original pressings. Newly remastered by Lasse Marhaug, and with bonus tracks, these 2023 reissues have been cut carefully and loud, with the sonic wars heard on these now-classic tracks more blaring than ever. How does one follow up one of the most immediately-revered noise rock releases of all time? Definitely not by spending ten times the money and time recording their next release and doing a bloated double album. Tusk (now including bonus track “There Is Something To Be Gained”), The Dead C record, is uncompromising and unrelenting. Here’s a band enjoying more attention than they ever got before, and they launch their new album with a long, ominous percussive rattle. Tusk digs into the thought bubble that formed via Operation Of The Sonne and The White House, sharpens the edges and reveals some of their greatest broken progressions and vicious feedback. The band is at their performative peak, staking their ground with an amp covered in dirt.

Dead C

Unknowns

Ba Da Bing!

Some bands struggle to transcend their initial mythos, those stories that introduce them to the public eye. But The Dead C is a notable exception. They appeared in 1986 under a cloud of mystery, their unconventional location (South Island, New Zealand) helping to fuel their erratic sound. Name-dropped through the nineties by groups like Sonic Youth and Yo La Tengo, they gained influence and acclaim but never strayed from their original mainlined performing technique, which can sound like chaos to the casual listener.What kind of a world greets them and their new album Unknowns in 2020? New Zealand culture is better known throughout the world, not to mention a low-virus paradise. Yes, isolated as in the past, but this time for being a nation of efficacy in tackling a public health crisis. But what about the rest of the world? The music of Mssrs. Robbie Yates, Bruce Russell and Michael Morley endures, partially because their errant sounds, once so alienating, now feel like they’ve been made flesh in a large part of the modern day world.Continuing to delve inwards for inspiration with tin ears towards trends, styles and technique, The Dead C forge onward. Unpolished, dusty and gritty, these three have again taken two guitars and drums, a combo which has less to say than ever, and leave the listener stunned. Unknowns has Morley slurring over spiraling dissemblance, with tracks ricocheting from intense to assaultive to drained, yet consistently magnificent. As reliable as ever, The Dead C are firmly grounded...

Dead C

Rare Ravers

Ba Da Bing!

Disguised as the meandering outpourings of vacant thought and activity dialed simultaneously from zero and ten. Formed in the cauldron of a fevered mistake resolute. Surrounded by ignorance, dis-interest, and the attention of the carefully self-selected. Recorded and burned through a thousand galaxies of dust and doubt and endless infinite wonder, transforming both time and space. Forever exiled to the very bottom of the world to reflect on the struggling desperate pile above. Recognizing any contribution as miniscule and insignificant when placed within the greatness of the other, the dominant insolent preening satisfied, continually shouting the pre-eminence of the first world order. The latest by The Dead C—Rare Ravers: it’s a long player.

Dead C

Trouble

Ba Da Bing!

“There’s a reason why our relationship with The Dead C is Ba Da Bing’s longest running. It’s not because they are the hardest working band we’ve ever met. It’s not because they are the largest selling band we’ve ever released. It’s not because we’re inspired to support our local music scene. “Yes, there’s definitely a reason... please give me a minute... oh, ok, I got it (just put on this record). Like every time I hear their recordings, I’m reminded that they are one of the greatest rock bands to ever pick up a guitar and attempt to play it wrong. Listening to The Dead C causes me to think differently. It brings up emotions with which I’m otherwise un- familiar. It strikes to the essence of my being and reveals what otherwise remains hidden. I take solace in knowing that one out of every thirty of you reading this know exactly what I’m talking about. “On the spectrum of The Dead C’s sound output, Trouble could very well be seen as springing from the same realm as the massive “Driver UFO,” one of the band’s greatest tracks ever, off Harsh 70s Reality. There’s a youthful aggression here, a churning anger, deadened by pounding drone. Much like H70s, this record serves as a gateway drug— if you were ever looking for an album to play to a newbie curious about experimental rock, this would be it. The visceral strength of their per- formance trembles out of the speakers. The magnificence...

Dead C

Armed Courage

Ba Da Bing!

With nary a praising documentary, coffee table photo book or tribute band to their name, The Dead C are nonetheless one of the most respected, longest surviving groups in the history of rock. Still sporting the original band members (Michael Morley on guitar / vocals, Bruce Russell on guitar, Robbie Yeats on drums) from their first assemblage in 1987, The Dead C’s renown has a lot to do with their stubborn unwillingness to compromise in any form. With a varied and challenging discography, the band has never released an album requiring later apology. No The Elder. No Diabolus in Musica. No Trans. Each release demands appraisal on its own merits and exists separate from any temporal trends in underground music, save for whatever influence they’ve had on others.  Armed Courage reaffirms their epochal career. With two side-long tracks, the record epitomizes the elements which elevate The Dead C to a level of worship. Compositions assemble and pivot, colliding new landscapes while undermining their very foundations. The Dead C exists on an intuitive sphere, with music never over-thought, yet rewarding when contemplated. 2013 marks the first time The Dead C has ever appeared on the cover of a magazine, and how appropriate that it was in The Wire, the only international music rag to celebrate anti-traditionalism. It is easy to view this as a highpoint of recognition, but the real achievement happens whenever that cognitive switch flips in the listener’s head, and they suddenly think, “I get it”—because from that...

Dead C

Harsh 70s Reality

Siltbreeze

***REISSUED ON VINYL!!! Originally seeing the light of day in April of 1992, Harsh 70s Reality was not just a high water mark for that year, but for the ages. Technically this was the band’s fourth long-play outing, and as a double-album, it followed (and was ever so slightly informed by) two formidable juggernauts that preceeded it: Twin Infinitives and Lake. But it was Harsh 70s Reality that left the decade stronger and more resonant than it came in. A 2012 anniversary edition-replete with gatefold jacket-came and went fairly quickly, so in 2023 it was agreed that it should stalk the earth yet again, this time akin to original packaging and viola; this time with a flat matte jacket finish, insert + updated audio shepherding courtesy of Josh Stevenson (Cindy Lee, Famous Mammals, Puppet Wipes, Alastair Galbraith, etc). To hear it is to understand why one scribe back in the day referred to their sound as “a garbage truck backing over the abyss.”

Dead C

Patience

Ba Da Bing!

LP VERSION INCLUDES FREE DOWNLOAD COUPON!!!   Patience is both appropriate and inappropriate as a title for the latest release by The Dead C--inappropriate because it's been only two years since the last album, which in Dead C Time is but the flicker of a candle; appropriate since the key to enjoying their sounds is willingness to sit down, listen and let the music take over your mind. These four unforgiving and intense tracks will not be confused with the work of any other band. Recorded in Dunedin over the Southern summer of 2009/10, Patience captures a restless band that never settles into any form. The trio of Michael Morley, Bruce Russell and Robbie Yeats makes their improvised music sound like the most substantial ever recorded, no matter in what direction they go. Here, vocal-less, thick and thundering electric drones compound and retreat like a Pacific Ocean of noise. Morley once again provides the artwork and continues in his color palatte of late. Its circular, flowery texture provides the perfect mandala for contemplation while lost within the deep meditations that Patience inspires.

Dead C

Clyma Est Mort / Tentative Power

Ba Da Bing!

Following the 2008 release of a pair of double-LPs, Ba Da Bing and Jagjaguwar continue their Dead C reissue project with two new records. Relegated to expensive fodder for eBay bidders until now, Clyma Est Mort can be considered The Dead C's "Ed Sullivan moment," except it wasn't performed live on network TV--it was recorded in a practice room in Port Chalmers, NZ, in 1992 with the inestimable Tom Lax of Siltbreeze as the sole member of the audience. Since the goal was to make a "fake bootleg" album for release on the mythical Proletariat Idiots Productions label--and in honor of the 13th Floor Elevators (often overlooked as an influence)--the band dubbed in fake audience noise from a gig by the Renderers. Despite the deliberate incompetence with which this was accomplished, Clyma is often touted as a "live album." This is only true in the sense that the band members were alive when they made it. This double-LP reissue includes Tentative Power, a collection of non-album tracks many consider among the band's best moments.

Dead C

Max Harris

Ba Da Bing!

Following the 2008 release of a pair of double-LPs, Ba Da Bing and Jagjaguwar continue their Dead C reissue project with two new records. Max Harris captures the first recordings The Dead C ever made, back in January 1987. Each side displays a different and uniquely raw version of "Max Harris"--reinterpreted both times by a group who can truly say they have never played the same song in any form the same way twice. Anyone who doesn't own one of the original 21 cassette tapes made of these recordings will be hearing them together for the first time. Yes, they've never been on vinyl before, so maybe one can even say this is the tracks' first "real" release. You will be able to feel the slicing tension and drive right through your bones.

Dead C

Dr503 + Sun Stabbed Ep

Ba Da Bing / Jagjaguwar

The first in a series of Dead C reissue collaborations between Jagjaguwar and Ba Da Bing, DR503 has been pressed on vinyl for the first time in years, along with the Sun Stabbed EP as a bonus record.  Originally released in 1987 (and not to be confused with the releases DR503b or DR503c, which are completely different recordings), DR503 sounded like nothing that came before--a furious pastiche of unrelenting drones, noise and menace. It didn't fit in with the other bands New Zealand's venerable Flying Nun was releasing, and it immediately staked a fork in the road, dividing the "New Zealand Pop Sound" from its black sheep brother, "New Zealand Noise." Today, the record still sounds as vicious and vital as when it first went to vinyl, except now perhaps there will be more people ready to appreciate the innovative approach the band took some 21 years ago.  This reissue also contains a bonus record of the rare Sun Stabbed EP from the same recording period. With bonus tracks not on the original 7-inch, the recordings from the Sun Stabbed sessions are being released for the first time in their entirety.

Dead C

Eusa Kills + Helen Said This 12”

Ba Da Bing / Jagjaguwar

The second in a series of Dead C reissue collaborations between Jagjaguwar and Ba Da Bing, Eusa Kills has been pressed on vinyl for the first time in years, along with the Helen Said This 12-inch as a bonus record.  Eusa Kills is The Dead C's second album from 1989, released by Flying Nun, the arbiter of the time for all that mattered in New Zealand rock. Considered by many to be their "songs" record, Eusa Kills adds ominous aggression to the abstract sounds of their time--those being created by such luminaries as Dustdevils, This Kind of Punishment, and Dadamah. Sneering vocals drift over improvised melodies and unstructured rock songs. One can hear the direct influence The Dead C had on Sonic Youth at the time--mining deep into the underbelly of music to yield a truly intense and unparalleled sound.  This reissue also contains as a bonus record the rare Helen Said This 12-inch from the same recording period. Originally released by Siltbreeze at 33 rpm, this is the first vinyl reprint, and will display improved sound quality at 45 rpm.

Dead C

Secret Earth

Ba Da Bing!

The elegance of howling guitar noise was fully realized when The Dead C appeared. For over twenty years now, the trio has continually redefined what rock music is and can sound like, and have inspired Sonic Youth, Yo La Tengo, Wolf Eyes, and Comets On Fire, not to mention the current fertile underground noise scene.  The Dead C is the ultimate blues band. But rather than departing from the heartfelt singing of the African-American South, they express the tenets of alienation in society with unrelenting force--a focused soundtrack to accompany Knut Hamsun novels, Samuel Beckett plays, and Ingmar Bergman films. Michael Morley's monotonic vocal moan anchors the inherent isolation of our modern world--nothing is more earnest, nothing sounds so lost.  In its career, The Dead C has oscillated between two poles. Recent albums explore drones, electronic loops, and musique concrete. However, their new album, Secret Earth, proselytizes oceanic feedback, catastrophic drumming, and a return to the cripple rock blasts of their early material.  Along the axis of The Dead C's recordings, Secret Earth sounds like it was created between Eusa Kills and Harsh '70s Reality. It contains a straightforward (for them) expression of sound, while continually pushing their vast improvisational techniques into a realm of subconscious genius.  To coincide with this release, the band will be playing rare, select shows around the US in mid-October. They have not been to the east coast in over a decade, and will be visiting some places they've never been (cheers, Seattle). In addition, Ba Da Bing is...

Dead C

Future Artists

Ba Da Bing!

Now available on vinyl! In their first new album since 2003’s The Damned and last year’s double-CD greatest hits behemoth, Vain, Erudite and Stupid, New Zealand’s The Dead C return with another uncompromising realization of the finest rock improvisation you’ll ever hear. Future Artists contains five tracks of genius drone and barbarous clashing sounds. From the first track, “The AMM of Punk Rock” through to the last, “Garage,” their intensity is unyielding, their inventiveness jaw-dropping. It’s been twenty years, and The Dead C show no sign of losing their ability to express the surreal and undefined. Long may they prosper.  “The Dead C are legends of the avant rock scene ... one of the world’s most revered noise merchants.” —Boomkat  “Amazing improvisers, upchucking Twin Infinitives-sized messes at will. It’s garage rock, maybe, but the garage is burning down and you're in no rush to escape....” —Pitchfork

Dead C

Vain, Erudite And Stupid: Selected Works 1987-2005

Ba Da Bing!

There’s no “correct” way to respond to The Dead C’s music. With a catalogue that oscillates between subverting traditional song structures and stomping out and obliterating the very notion, New Zealand’s Michael Morley, Bruce Russell and Robbie Yeats have continually made the most crushing, expansive and intelligent rock noise ever to be heard. The number of their peers who are also fans — Yo La Tengo, Sonic Youth, Comets On Fire, Black Dice — shows the league in which they play. The Dead C have been creating the greatest of squalls for twenty years now, and to mark the anniversary, Ba Da Bing is proud to present this double CD retrospective, with tracks hand-picked by the band members themselves, collecting old and new faves and out-of-print rarities. All this at a price so nice, you’d think you were picking up a ten-song Supertramp greatest hits package. This release serves long-time fans and the curious alike, as chances are few people have heard everything on these discs. The band chose critical highlights as well as material they felt deserved wider exposure. While classics like “Constellation,” “Power,” and “Bitcher” are present, so are obscurities like “Mighty” from their Forced Exposure 7-inch, “All Channels Open” from the limited, double-disc DC record and “3 Years” from the Xpressway Pile-Up compilation. The real thrill is listening to the band’s development over time, from the deconstructed skeletal rock of their early output to the eventual, cosmic marriage of reason and squalor that is as crushing as...

Dead C

Damned

Starlight Furniture Company

***Over the last 17 years, The Dead C have produced some of the most strident, uncompromising and downright nasty rock screech to exit from their homeland of New Zealand, without sacrificing an ounce of the grace and finesse required of tamers of gigantic, wild sandworms. Their eighteen full-length albums and numerous seven-inch singles have garnered worldwide respect from vertebrates and invertebrates alike. The Dead C's improvised noise rock verges on disintegration with a trademark hazy disorientation, invariably evoking hypnotic and heavy moods. But The Dead C are no bummer. They have always sought liberation from shallow and easy rock conventions; amid the murk of cardboard box guitars, underwater vocals, and ramshackle drumming, a new consciousness emerges. The recognizable, sullen strumming, mumbling and lyrical ennui of painter and educator Michael Morley (also known for his solo work as Gate), anchored by percussionist Robbie Yeats and punctuated by the atonal bursts of writer and Corpus Hermeticum label boss Bruce Russell (also known for his solo work as A Handful of Dust), coalesce in a solid front that mocks the efforts of schmaltz-peddling hacks.  The Damned was recorded during sustained and intensive sessions from 2001 through 2003, at the Driving Range studio in Port Chalmers. Final mixing and production took place in 2003 at My Pit in Port Chalmers.  "The Dead C's The Damned is a rank, rank fairytale gone wrong" -Dylan Nyoukis, Decaer Pinga 

Dead C

Tusk

Siltbreeze

After years of flirting with profound torpor, the finger is removed from the carb and New Zealand’s favorite sluggish trio gets a lung full of bigtime entropy. Slow, quiet, and barely played, this masterpiece sounds like it was recorded by several death row inmates on morphine. The future of rock right here, right now.