The Ramones - Subterranean Jungle (1983) [1st US Pressing / Original Sire Recording] LOAD
FLAC+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 33:32 min | 231 or 78 MB

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The early '80s found the Ramones in a quandary. Critics charged them with not expanding their horizons beyond their usual axis of songs about girls, punk rock, and mutants. A new breed of more aggressive hardcore bands raised on the Ramones' sound were challenging them for the fastest-loudest crown. Personal problems (drummer Marky was to exit rancorously shortly after the album's release) were further wrenches in the machinery. Thus, when Subterranean Jungle was released in 1983, it was judged harshly by critics who couldn't understand what the Ramones were trying to do. While Subterranean Jungle is no great leap forward, it does contain the seeds of an approach that would sustain the Ramones for the next 15 years of touring. Highlights include a Ramones-ized version of the Chambers Brothers' classic "Time Has Come Today", and, perhaps the Ramones' most romantic song to date, "Every Time I Eat Vegetables It Makes Me Think of You". The real revelation, though, is the light-speed "Psycho Therapy" which finds the band outracing their hardcore progeny to the punk rock finish line. Every band should put out a transitional record this good.

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"Tentatively returning toward punk, or at least new wave, the Ramones turned in their most enjoyable record since Rocket to Russia with Subterranean Jungle. Producers Ritchie Cordell and Glen Kolotkin were the heads of the edgy power pop and punk label Bomp!, so they steered the Ramones back toward the '60s pop infatuation that provided the foundation for their early records. It's a strategy that pays off well -- for the most part, the group's originals are so punchy and catchy that they make the pair of covers superfluous. Comprised of a set of unabashedly hook-laden songs and driven by more subtle rhythms, Subterranean Jungle may not be a punk record in the strictest sense of the word, yet the Ramones haven't sounded quite as alive in a long, long while.

The Ramones - A Collection Of The 1st Pressed Japanese CDs (8CD, 1990) EXPANDED & LOADED
EAC | FLAC-IMG+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | Complete Scanwork | 1,9 GB or 609 MB
Warner-Pioneer Corp., January 1990 / Cat. Numbers from WPCP-3141 to WPCP-3147 + WPCP-3502

Here's a collection of the Ramones', early albums for the first time pressing in Japan onto compact discs. It contains all studio albums (excepting "Subterranean Jungle") from the "Ramones" (1976) to "Too Tough To Die (1984). All these CDs have a different mastering than been presented on the original American/European CDs and the remastered CDs, -- the sound is more rawer and less polished.

Offenbach - Saint-Chrone de Neant (1973) [Reissue 2008]
EAC Rip | FLAC (image+.cue+log) - 439 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 176 MB | Covers includes
Genre: Progressive Rock | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: ProgQuebec (MPM28)

"The complete legendary show from L'Oratoire St-Joseph, recorded November 30th, 1972. This first CD edition includes 7 previously unreleased recordings performed during the show (including the composition "Fils de lumiere" which sees the light of day for the first time anywhere) as well as the complete version of "La Chaconne en Sol Majeur". With their gothic tendencies and Gregorian-styled harmonies, Offenbach's music from that era (augmented by the choir Les Chanteurs de la Gamme D'Or) fits quite well with the Mass of the Dead. From the opening organ piece to the final notes of the last encore, relive this show / this mass which clearly demonstrates Offenbach's progressive side."

Various Artists - The Psychedelic Sixties Music: EP Collection (2CD, 2004)
EAC | FLAC+CUE+LOG ' 878 MB | 141:13 mins | Covers | MP3 CBR 320 Kbps ' 329 MB
Special Collectors Edition | Featuring 24-Bit Remastering | NFS Records Ltd # NFSCD 00999

And here we go, with 13 E.P.s by ten smoking, '60s psychedelic heroes, in glorious 24-bit sound. This is one cool artifact. Here's, The Thirteenth Floor Elevators kick it off and are represented by four smoking tracks: "You're Gonna Miss Me", "Reverberation", "Fire Engine", and "Tried To Hide". They are followed by The Seeds, The Five Americans, The Electric Prunes, The Shadows Of Knight, and We The People, with two EPs each; Music Explosion, Count Five, Shakespeares, and Syn. This is one of those nifty, price-friendly sets that collectors die for, and it happens to have a boatload or great music that one might already have, but not in this way. This is a fetish project worth its price.

Grand Funk Railroad - Grand Funk (1969) (Japan TOCP-3177)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks+.cue+log) - 331 MB | Scans | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.98) - 115 MB
Genre: rock | RAR 5% Rec. | Label: Capitol, Toshiba EMI | #TOCP-3177 | 1997

Grand Funk Railroad's 1970 somewhat eponymous album, their second for Capitol, is characteristic of the classic rock radio sound that would permeate the airwaves of the late 20th century. Grand Funk Railroad was a seminal force in giving the friendlier side of the heavy rock sound its charm and making it stick. Built on fuzzed-out blues riffs, simple lyrics, and at times seemingly unnecessary jamming, Grand Funk's songs are mild in nature. Far less extreme than Black Sabbath, but slightly toothier than Foghat or Bad Company, Grand Funk's major influence is from the loose, blues-based power trio formula of bands such as Cream and the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Grand Funk combines rawness with radio-friendly melodies and vocal harmonies that would become their trademark sound. Hordes of bands to come, from Foreigner to Bon Jovi, would emulate Grand Funk's sound and style, focusing on good-time rocking material while attempting a few token social commentary pieces. This is a good album as far as early hard rock goes, and as Grand Funk Railroad would move farther and farther away from the type of roughness and loose arrangements found here, it is well worth picking up as an example of one of their early efforts.