REISSUE: Shudder To Think – Pony Express Record

 

This review first appeared on Icon Fetch here: https://iconfetch.com/reviews/record-store-day-preview-shudder-to-think-pony-express-record-review 

Record Store Day is on Saturday, April 12 this year and Epic/Legacy Recordings is offering up a 30^th anniversary edition of Pony Express Record, the major label debut from D.C. alt-punk band Shudder To Think.   Originally released in 1994, this new edition is sourced from the original tapes and pressed onto vinyl for the very first time in the United States.  The expanded 2-LP set is presented on crystal clear vinyl and features 5 bonus rare live 2-track recordings from 1994 that revisit their independent catalog. 

Shudder To Think emerged from the D.C. based Minor Threat and Dischord Records-led hardcore scene of the 80’s with an experimental post-punk sound all their own.  The unorthodox yet highly-influential band - led by dynamic vocalist/guitarist Craig Wedren’s vivid vibrato and glam-inspired falsetto – blended unpredictable rhythms that stop and start on a dime and touches of jazz and metal with angular art-rock and sometimes dramatic, off-kilter power-pop melodies. 

Pony Express Record was produced by Ted Nicely (Fugazi, Jawbox) and mixed by Andy Wallace (Rage Against The Machine, Nirvana) and features the album-opening single, “Hit Liquor” with its slinky staccato groove and noisy freak-outs; alongside standout tracks such as “Kissi Penny” with its soaring vocals and guitars that alternate between a serene shimmer and a crooked crunch as well as their defining, critically-acclaimed single, “X-French Tee Shirt” and the romantic, jazz-inspired vibes of “Own Me”.

Alongside the original album, side D features the bonus tracks, “Heaven Here”, “Baby Drop”, “Lies About The Sky, “Day Ditty” and is highlighted by fan-favorite, “Red House”; all which were recorded live to 2-track tape in January of 1994 and are songs previously released via Dischord Records prior to their signing to Epic Records.      

On the heels of Pony Express Record, Shudder To Think also released the amazing album 50,000 B.C. in 1997, and the First Love, Last Rites Motion Picture Soundtrack in 1998 – the latter of which is also available on vinyl from Legacy for Record Store Day this year.

For more info: https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/18514

Watch the video for “X-French Tee Shirt” here: