The Squid's Ear Magazine


Surplus 1980 + G.W. Sok: Kremlin Gremlin [VINYL 7''] (Surplus Industries)

Reminiscent of the packaging of early releases from The Ex, the vocalist from that band--G.W. Sok--provides the words for the first tracks on this 7" from Sleepytime Gorilla Museum drummer/composer Moe! Staiano's long-running band, a brutal wordplay stab at Russian president Putin for his invasion of Ukraine; plus a dub remix of a song on the upcoming full-length Surplus 1980 album.
 

Price: $9.31



Quantity:

In Stock

Quantity in Basket: None

Log In to use our Wish List
Shipping Weight: 8.00 units


EU & UK Customers:
Discogs.com can handle your VAT payments
So please order through Discogs

Sample The Album:



product information:

Personnel:



Moe! Staiano-drums, guitar, vocals, backing vocals

Oli Heffernan-bass

Melne Murphy-bass, guitar, backing vocals, vocals

Bill Wolter-guitar

G.W. Sok-vocals

Ajay Saggar-backing vocals

Amy X Neuburg-backing vocals

Carla Kihlstedt-backing vocals

Fliss Kitson-backing vocals

GW Sok-backing vocals

James Smith (38)-backing vocals

Jesse Quattro-backing vocals

Matthias Bossi-backing vocals

Melne Murphy-backing vocals


Click an artist name above to see in-stock items for that artist.




Label: Surplus Industries
Catalog ID: 1980-1
Squidco Product Code: 33038

Format: 7" Record
Condition: New
Released: 2023
Country: USA
Packaging: 7" Record
Recorded in Oakland, Alameda, and San Francisco, California; Wood Hole, Massachusetts; Mountaindale, New York; Middlesbrough and Kings Heath, Birmingham, UK; Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in 2021 and 2022.

Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

"7" on Ukraine-inspired Yellow and Blue split vinyl. Each sleeve handmade and unique with rubber stamped titles with a vellum OBI and sealed with a genuine Ukraine postage stamp. All sales of this single will be donated to The Vet Crew, a Ukraine-based animal rescue whose mission is to aid the animals left behind due to the war."-Surplus Industries



"Surplus 1980 are releasing our first record since 2019 on Friday, December 2! This 7" single features two songs. The first, "Kremlin Gremlin (A Dull Fiddler)" is a collaboration with our good pal, G.W. Sok, who provides vocals and a brutal wordplay stab at the Russian president for his unforgiving invasion of Ukraine. The second song is a dub remix of a tune that will be on our forthcoming full-length album (due Spring 2023)."-Surplus 1980


Artist Biographies

"Moe! is conductor and composer for the Moe! Staiano Ensemble, (formerly Moe!kestra!), a large-ensemble avant garde orchestra, which can feature over 30 musicians playing everything from violins, clarinets and cellos to drum kits, oscillators and electric guitars. Moe! Staiano Ensemble performances are high-energy, electrifying experiences that create unique and memorable soundscapes that intrigue and beguile.

Moe!'s innovative solo percussion shows feature prepared drum kit, found objects, audio looping and the inventive use of a "percussion guitar" woven in with performance art, which always gets the audience involved and eagerly expectant of what might happen next.

Moe! also fronts Surplus 1980, a post-punk band that continually evolves its journey of no-wave progressive and percussive musical exploration. Surplus 1980 features Moe!'s bracing guitar and wry wordplay and a wide palette of timbres from the multi-instrumentalist members of the group.

Over the years, Moe! has worked with a veritable who's-who of the Bay Area creative music scene, including Ron Anderson (the Molecules, RonRuins, PAK), Tom Nunn, Vacuum Tree Head, Z'ev, Amy X Neuburg, Ava Mendoza, Nurse With Wound, David Slusser, Karen Stackpole, Ches Smith, Michael Evans (God Is My Co-Pilot), Caroline Kraabel & John Edwards (Shock Exchange), Gino Robair, William Hooker, Tom Dimuzio and has performed with all these plus Henry Kaiser, Mark Growden's Electric Pinata, Amy Denio, Cheer-Accident and sfSoundGroup among others.

Solo Percussion

Moe! performs solo percussion shows, some are based around a modified drum set and looping, while others include "playing" a variety of found objects. His performances are always interesting and engaging, and often include the audience as a participant, as well as observer.

Moe! Staiano Ensemble (formerly Moe!kestra) is a large-ensemble avant garde orchestra, which can include over 30 musicians that play everything from traditional classical instruments and percussion to contemporary mainstays like electric guitars and drum kits.

Moe!'s ferocious conducting leads the ensembles through his own compositions--epic forays into sonic landscapes from pastoral and evocative to jagged and frenetic.

Moe! has created over ten works for his ensemble, including the dramatic and safety-glasses-encouraged "Piece No.1: Death of a Piano"--which climaxes with a frenzied crescendo and Moe! destroying a piano with a sledgehammer.

Collaborations

Moe! has collaborated in small ensembles with notable musicians such as Amy X Neuburg, Aram Shelton, Jordan Glenn, Thollem McDonas and more."

-Moe! Staiano Website (http://www.moestaiano.com/about.html)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

Oli Heffernan, aka Ivan The Tolerable, is a UK bassist born November 19, 1981. He lives and works in Middlesbrough, UK and has been recording and releasing since 1996. He is predominantly a guitar/bass/vocalist but also drums and keyboard. He is known for the groups British Lichen Society, Detective Instinct, Houseplants, Ivan The Tolerable & The Elastic Band, King Champion Sounds, Shrug, and Year Of Birds.

-Discogs (https://www.discogs.com/artist/1581209-Oli-Heffernan)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Melne Murphy is a West Coast guitarist known for the bands Surplus 1980, Surplus 1980 Collectiv Ensembl With G.W. Sok, Têtes Noires."

-Discogs (https://www.discogs.com/artist/3308186-Melne-Murphy)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Bill Wolter is a composer, guitarist, audio engineer, and sound educator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He composes music for film, games, and modern dance. His music is inspired by the sounds of jazz, classical new music, film music, progressive rock, and experimental music.

His main musical project is Inner Ear Brigade (IEB), an ensemble that plays a mix of progressive rock, avant-garde jazz, and classical new music. A restless collaborator who seeks the most diverse and challenging musical experiences, Bill performs and collaborates frequently with a wide range of musicians, bands, improvisers, and choreographers.

As a sound designer, Bill has worked on musical games such as Guitar Hero, Tap Tap Revenge, as well as several films from shorts to feature lengths.

Bill is also a passionate educator teaching music and audio at Diablo Valley College, Ex'pression College for Digital Arts, and The Art Institute of California, San Francisco."

-Bill Wolter Website (http://billwolter.com/splash-page/about/)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"G.W. Sok (born 1957, real name Jos Kleij) is a Dutch singer, best known for his 30-year career as the frontman of the Ex. G.W. Sok left The Ex in 2008 to focus on a solo career and collaboration projects with other musicians, participation in theatre performances and spoken word performances. Apart from his musical career he's also active as a writer and a graphic designer.

After leaving The Ex, Sok started to collaborate with several acts among which the French experimental free jazz band Cannibales & Vahinés and the Italian band Zu. In 2010 the single "2-2-3 Fridges/Rid" appeared on Sickroom Records. He joined the Dutch collective Beukorkest on their 2011 tour.

In 2011 Sok released the book A Mix of Bricks & Valentines, a 400-page collection of The Ex lyrics and other lyrics he wrote. Also in 2011 De Eeuwige Optie (The Everlasting Option) was published, an experimental film by SpOp featuring Sok as an actor. He also wrote the words for the film's ending track "Illusies". This track was also released as the 7 inch "Illusies 1 & 2" under the bandname Zoikle, consisting of Sok, guitarist Lukas Simonis, cellist Nina Hitz, drummer Cor Hoogerdijk and Maarten van Gent on metal percussion.

A new band King Champion Sounds was also formed, from the ashes of The Bent Moustache, the musical act of Krommenie-based, Kenya-born, UK-raised Ajay Saggar. This incarnation sees Saggar teaming up with Sok and, amongst others, Oli Heffernan (Year of Birds, Shrug) and has released four albums since 2013. In 2014 Sok published a double 10" with the UK noise act Action Beat.

Since 2015 Sok is member of the free-rock group Oiseaux-Tempête and is regularly joining live the collective founded by Frédéric D. Oberland & Stéphane Pigneul. Sok has contributed to the last four albums of the band."

-Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G.W._Sok)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Ajay Saggar has been active in music in some shape or form his whole life. He bought his first record in 1977 at the age of 12 (The Stranglers - 'o More Heroes' 7' single), attended his first show in 1978 (sneaked into The Stranglers at Bridlington Royal Spa on the "Black + White" tour) and got hooked by the John Peel show from 1976 onwards when he moved from Kenya to the United Kingdom (first lived in Glasgow, and then ended up finally in Manchester).

Whilst at university, he started to promote shows independently (putting on acts like Bogshed, bIG fLAME, The Membranes, The Nightingales, Walking Seeds, The Wedding Present et cetera). He played with Dandelion Adventure from 1987 (a cult northwest band who had fans ranging from My Bloody Valentine to The Pastels) who released some excellent records and did a John Peel session. He moved to The Netherlands on 30 December 1991, and since living there has been constantly active in music. His first band there was Donkey (who released several singles and albums, did a John Peel session, and toured extensively through Europe and America). The Bent Moustache followed which evolved into the current juggernaut that is King Champion Sounds. In the last 5 years, other wider based projects have arisen from Saggar's imagination including Deutsche Ashram, The Common Cold, Bhajan Bhoy (his first solo venture), and University Challenged. Saggar has worked as a sound engineer for several international acts including My Bloody Valentine, Dinosaur Jr., Mogwai, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Sleater-Kinney, et cetera amongst others, but is now a production manager at Paradiso (internationally renowned venue in Amsterdam) working there for the last 10 years."

-Pyschedelic Baby (https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2021/03/ajay-saggar-interview.html)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"AMY X NEUBURG (Oakland, California) has been developing her own brand of irreverently genre-crossing works for voice, live electronics and chamber ensembles for over 25 years, known for her innovative use of live looping technology with electronic percussion, her 4-octave vocal range and her colorful - often humorous - lyrics. One of the earliest performers to work with live digital looping, Amy has presented her solo "avant-cabaret" songs at such diverse venues as the Other Minds and Bang on a Can new music festivals, the Berlin International Poetry Festival, the Wellington and Christchurch Jazz Festivals (New Zealand), the Warsaw Philharmonic Hall, electronic music festivals, colleges, rock clubs and concert halls throughout the U.S. and abroad.

As composer, commissions for voices and chamber ensembles - often with electronics - include Paul Dresher ensemble, San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, Robin Cox Ensemble, Present Music, Solstice vocal ensemble, Pacific Mozart Ensemble chorus, Sqwonk, and Del Sol String Quartet. Her acclaimed song cycle The Secret Language of Subways for voice, cello trio and electronics has played at Yerba Buena Center, the San Francisco Symphony After Hours, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Left Coast Festival. She has also composed extensively for theater, visual media and modern dance.

A classically trained vocalist, Amy has been featured in contemporary operas and recordings including works by Robert Ashley, Culture Clash and Guillermo Galindo.

Amy received degrees in linguistics and voice from Oberlin College and Conservatory and an MFA in electronic music from Mills College. Her many grants and honors include Arts International, the Gerbode Foundation, Meet the Composer, The U.S. Embassy New Zealand, SF Friends of Chamber Music, and the Alpert/Ucross prize."

-Amy X Neuburg Website (https://www.amyxneuburg.com/about/)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Carla Kihlstedt (born 1971) is an American composer, violinist, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist, originally from Lancaster, Pennsylvania and currently working from a home studio on Cape Cod.

She is a founding member of Tin Hat Trio (1997, renamed Tin Hat), Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, The Book of Knots, Causing a Tiger and Rabbit Rabbit. Other musical projects include 2 Foot Yard, Charming Hostess and Minamo (Carla Kihlstedt & Satoko Fujii). She is a recognized classical composer who has performed with the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), has worked occasionally on projects with Tom Waits and Fred Frith, and recorded numerous albums as a guest or session musician. Kihlstedt has studied at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Oberlin Conservatory of Music.

In February 2012 she founded Rabbit Rabbit with her husband (and former Sleepytime Gorilla Museum drummer) Matthias Bossi. Rabbit Rabbit released their debut album, Rabbit Rabbit Radio - Vol. 1 in 2013. The band revolves around a song-a-month subscription website called Rabbit Rabbit Radio."

-Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carla_Kihlstedt)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

Fliss Kitson: Drummer / Vocals / Collaborator / Illustrator / MarketingWest Midlands, England, United Kingdom. Member of The Nightingales.

-Linked In (https://uk.linkedin.com/in/fliss-kitson-55316381)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Jesse Quattro's musical playground has ranged from singing with EyeHateGod, Carniceria, Secret Chiefs 3, to Bulgarian Voice Ensembles, Terry Riley, Freak-Out Jazz Improv and Old time Bluegrass Duets. She studied Music and Electronic Arts at Mills College in Oakland CA, and currently lives in Brooklyn, NY."

-Bay Improviser (https://www.bayimproviser.com/artist.aspx?a=164)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Matthias Bossi, voice, percussion, and keyboards (Dennis, MA), has played drums in Skeleton Key, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Fred Frith's Cosa Brava, and The Book of Knots, and made records with John Vanderslice, St. Vincent, Pretty Lights and The Tiger Lillies. His video game production company with bassist/engineer Jon Evans, Ridiculon, has written soundtracks for the video game "The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth" and soon to be released "The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth" "Super Meat Boy: 5th Anniversary" and "Super Meat Boy: Forever."

As an actor, Matthias has worked with the Shotgun Players, Pickle Family Circus, and action theatre pioneers Erika Shuch and Joe Goode. His current voiceover work can be heard on the sensational "Little Baby's Ice Cream" commercials, and also on a guided tour of Golden Gate Park produced by the SF-based audio walk company, Detour.

In February 2012, Matthias founded Rabbit Rabbit with his wife Carla Khilstedt. Rabbit Rabbit released their debut album, Rabbit Rabbit Radio - Vol. 1 in 2013. The band revolves around a song-a-month subscription website called Rabbit Rabbit Radio."

-YellowBarn (http://www.yellowbarn.org/artist/matthias-bossi)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Melne Murphy is a West Coast guitarist known for the bands Surplus 1980, Surplus 1980 Collectiv Ensembl With G.W. Sok, Têtes Noires."

-Discogs (https://www.discogs.com/artist/3308186-Melne-Murphy)
11/5/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.


Track Listing:



SIDE A



1. Kremlin Gremlin (A Dull Fiddler) 3:37

SIDE AA



1. Some Few Facts (And One False One) About Birds (Birds ARE Real Dub Mix) 4:40

Related Categories of Interest:



Vinyl Recordings
7" New
Rock and Related
Song Based Music
West Coast/Pacific US Jazz
European Improvisation, Composition and Experimental Forms
New in Rock Forms

Search for other titles on the label:
Surplus Industries.


Recommended & Related Releases:
Surplus 1980
Illusion of Consistency [CD]
(Surplus Industries)
Composed using an "exquisite corpse" method during the pandemic, where each player provided a partially complete track with instructions to expand their concept, enlisting an incredible set of musicians across the US & Europe, directed by Moe! Staiano, including Jesse Quattro, Fred Frith, Carla Kihlstedt, GW Sok, Amy X Neuburg, Darren Johnston, &c &c.
Dunn's, Trevor Trio (w/ Halvorson / Smith) Convulsant avec Folie a Quatre
Seances
(Pyroclastic Records)
A series of powerful "séances" from the Trio-Convulsant of Trevor Dunn on bass, Mary Halvorson on guitar, and Ches Smith on drums & percussion, imagining through improv the 18th century French sect of Convulsionnaires of Saint-Médard, assisted by the Folie à Quatre of Carla Kihlstedt (volin), Oscar Noriega (clarinet), Mariel Roberts (cell) and Anna Webber (flute).
Staiano's, Moe! - MOE!KESTRA!
2 Rooms Of Uranium Within 83 Markers: Conducted Improvisations, Vol.II
(Edgetone Records)
Two live conducted improvisations percussion for large group recorded at the Oakland Box Theater, presenting the 6 part Piece No.11: Two Orchestras in Separate Rooms.
Other Recommended Releases:
Moore, Thurston
Flow Critical Lucidity [VINYL CREAM COLOR LP + 7'']
(Daydream Library Series)
A diverse and interesting set of songs in Thurston Moore's ninth solo record, recorded in Europe & The UK with contributors including Laetitia Sadier of Stereolab and Deb Googe of My Bloody Valentine, many of the songs reminiscent of Sonic Youth but uniquely Moore through unpretentious communication that references topics including lucid dreaming, nature and the changing planet.
Staiano, Moe
Away Towards the Light [VINYL + DOWNLOAD]
(Edgetone)
An exploration of tonal interplay and contrasting rhythms from nine electric guitars, bass, and drums by West Coast percussionist and composer Moe! Staiano (formerly of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum), a work in three movements that features assertive rhythmic structures and intertwining string structures, balanced by beautifully ringing moments of introspection.
Walter, Martin / Matthias Boss / Marcello Magliocchi
Leocantor Trio
(FMR)
Recorded at the neo-gothic Church of St. James of Escholzmatt in Luzern, Switzerland, the Leocantor Trio of Marcello Magliocchi on drums & percussion, Martin Walter on pipe organ and Matthias Boss on violin provide moments of subtle reverence through Walter's resonant environment while providing Magliocchi & Boss space for impressive technique and sometimes tumultuous expression.
Surplus 1980
Illusion of Consistency [VINYL + CD + DOWNLOAD]
(Surplus Industries)
Composed using an "exquisite corpse" method during the pandemic, where each player provided a partially complete track with instructions to expand their concept, enlisting an incredible set of musicians across the US & Europe, directed by Moe! Staiano, including Jesse Quattro, Fred Frith, Carla Kihlstedt, GW Sok, Amy X Neuburg, Darren Johnston, &c &c.
Roue Libre (Lanau / Comte / Biardeau)
Titanomakhia [CD EP]
(nunc.)
This assertive French rock trio's first EP takes on provocative subjects with urgency and an acerbic humor through dark and driving grooves and tight interaction, from the trio of Theo Lanau on drums, Richard Comte on guitar, bass, & voice and Quentin Biardeau on saxophone & keyboards, from studio treated live recordings at Astrolab, in Orleans, France.
Huvudbry
Det ar ingen ordning pa allting [CASSETTE w/ DOWNLOAD]
(Huvudbry Recordings)
Drummer Hampus Ohman-Frolund (Apuh!) leads the Huvudbry septet of structured rock forms, with an intriguing orchestration of trumpet, lap steel, double bass, guitars, keyboard and voice, using intervals of unusual sonic experimentation and field recordings to create a unique album that bassist Mats Dimming refers to as "A mix of Captain Beefheart, Yann Tiersen & Swedish House Mafia".
J. & F. Band, The
Cajun Blue
(Long Song Records)
Following their first record with this powerful blues rock & jazz album, the Italian/US J & F Band of Tiziano Tononi (drums), Joe Fonda (bass), drummer/percussionist Jaimoe and Pach, Peewee Durante (keys), Alberto Mandarini (trumpet), Beppe Caruso (trombone) and Gianluigi Paganelli (tuba), with guest guitarist David Grissom and vocalist Lamar Williams Jr.
J. & F. Band, The (Fonda / Tononi / Durante / Grissom / Irabagon / Parrini / Rodgers / Sharrard)N
Me and the Devil
(Long Song Records)
A powerful and effusive jazz rocking and danceable album of instrumentals and songs from the Italian/International J & F Band of drummer Tiziano Tononi, bassist Joe Fonda, plus guitarists David Grissom, Bobby Lee Rodgers & Scott Sharrard, keyboardist Pee Wee Durante, violinist Emanuele Parrini and saxophonist Jon Irabagon, recording in New Haven, CT; get it on!
Konrad Strumpfel & The Set
refrescoscopio [CASSETTE]
(Music a la Coque)
An unissued album from Bavarian experimenter & songwriter Konrad Strumpfel and "The Set", the Czech duo of Herbert Lukundra & Josif Afkak, who added their contributions to Strumpfel's work which had been sent to them by post, the strengthening of the "Iron Curtain" between the USSR & Europe in the late 80s then prohibiting the release of their collaboration.
Roman Radkovic Collective
Televize [VINYL]
(Mappa)
A Slovokian experimental group with rock roots and a somewhat DaDa approach to unusual song forms using perplexing repetitions and interventions, led by guitarist and vocalist Roman Radkovič with Josef Novák on keyboard, Jiří Šíla on accordion, Zdeněk Řihošek on harmonica & double bass Zdeněk Caha on drums & voice, and Miloš Šandera on percussion.
Roberts, Dean
Not Fire
(erstwhile)
Berlin-based songwriter Dean Roberts' first album in 12 years is a collection of dark and melancholic songs, set in unusual formats based around guitar, electronics, strings, with subtle rhythmic elements, performed by Dean's Dark Moth Ensemble, with additional musicians that include Boris Hauf on piano and The Neck's keyboardist Chris Abrahams on harp.
Surplus 1980
Pigeon Obstacle Course
(Surplus Industries)
Created out of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum and drummer/percussionist Moe Staiano's Mute Socialite, this 7-piece improvising rock band turns rock on it's side in mostly instrumental, energetically complex and twisted rock pieces with acerbic social narrative, the band employing three drummers, bass & two guitars, piano and trumpet from Darren Johnston.
Surplus 1980 Collectiv Ensembl With G.W. Sok
Forget All This
(Music a la Coque)
Surplus 1980 Collectiv Ensembl takes the current members of drummer Moe! Staiano's Surplus 1980 along with associated musicians, including Kyle Bruckmann, John Shiurba, Vicky Grossi, Paul Costuros, &c, with vocals from Dutch vocalist G.W. Sok (The Ex), in an album of avant post-punk rock, sophisticated but determined and pointed music, an unusual hybrid of impressive styles.
Hifiklub
E Lisboa
(Shhpuma)
A collaborative French instrumental rock band led by and with compositions from the core quartet of Anthony Belguise (drums), Jean-Loup Faurat (guitar), Regis Laugier (bass) and Nico Morcillo (guitar), with a list of 22 international guests across 8 songs and instrumentals, including Rafael Toral, Maria Radich, Paulo Furtado, Carlos Zingaro, Rui Carvalho, &c.
Mute Socialite
More Popular Than Presidents and Generals
(Dephine Knormal Musik)
Dynamic and hyperkinetic songs from this West Coast band with Moe! Staiano (Sleepytime Gorilla Museum), rugged and impressive instrumental rock including a cover of Massacre's "Killing Time".
Staiano, Moe!
The Absolute Tradition of No Traditions
(PsychForm Records)
3rd solo album from Sleepytime Gorilla Museum's drummer Staiano, 11 tracks recorded on guitar, loops, drums, and percussion without overdubs.



The Squid's Ear Magazine

The Squid's Ear Magazine

© 2002-, Squidco LLC