2/29 Phillippe Coullette reviews Swedish super-pop group Club 8.

2/22 Dark Entries. Reviews from some of our most twisted writers. Stereophonic Sunshine and Death Scenes reviewed.

2/18 Rockin' It! With Steve Ricks: musical advice with a totally xtreme perspective

2/15 Ray Hammett's on the case with his main man, Curtis Mayfield

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As the usounds staff returns from its first vacation in over three months, we thought it was time for a brand new "email reviews from around the world." In addition to publishing reviews from our friends around the world, we also occasionally print letters that we receive from former associates -- from people who once worked at usounds. It's always good to hear from some of our old colleagues and see what music they're listening to, and we know the readers enjoy it too.

Ebsken Palmer ("Ebs") was once a close friend of Lance Rockaway's, but a minor dispute over a cartoon that ran in our September issue (1994)
escalated into a brawl that saw Ebsken storm out of our offices and never return. Various acquaintances confirmed that Ebsken was tending bar in a New York pool hall for a few months, while playing in a small jazz-pop quartet called "Shiny Shoes", but his trail evaporated after that. Ebsken took with him a unique creative punch and a microwave when he left our offices almost five years ago. Imagine our surprise when we heard from him a couple of days ago.

from: ebz@nyulibrary.org
subject: re: hey
hi guys -- been a while. times gone fast, hey? anyway, hope everything's cool. happened to check out the mag a few days ago after i saw a few kids
readin it a Denny's [ed: the last print issue we did was in 1991, 2 years before Ebs left usounds]. Noticed you ran a review from Jorde Mikula. if my memory serves, you usually printed Jorde's pieces under mine. anyway,
thought id give you my two cents on this Thai chick Laila France: She's the bomb. Happened to see at her Leadass Larry's joint in NY (Shiny Shoes actually opened for her once. Well actually we played the same place but it had a different name then)

Anyway what I mean to say is that she's a vision. A smokey, exotic, pixie vision. Okay, so the music's trance cocktail but its more like lunar lounge with a minimalist bent. but who cares about the music, she's hot. even if the lyrics and her voice get annoying, i wouldn't mind takin her up for a little loft action, if you know what i mean. i think she'd be pretty in to me, cuz we have a lot of the same influences, beach boys, Marilyn Monroe, whatever. so the album is actually pretty bad, it's almost a complete  sham to be honest. 

Anyway, shes 100% fox, but i cant complain as far as the ladies go these days. i guess its something about being in a band that the ladies love. Speaking of Shiny Shoes, i've enclosed a single off our new vinyl release, "Smooth and Steady." It's on Twobit Records and has some pretty sultry saxophone solos by yours truly. If you want mood then the double S is your band. Actually I don't know if you guys can handle the sensuality but anyway.... peace out and keep up the (mostly) good work...

Maurice Mighles used to do a lot of the art for us in the early days, including the early "KEWL NADZ" cartoons, but after Avery Svensen accidentally burned one of his oil paintings, he was never quite the same.   Determined to follow in the footsteps of his artistic idol, Gauguin, Maurice traveled to Tahiti where we gradually lost touch with him, until yesterday.

from: 12578LL@palms.org
subject: re: email review
hey its Maurice. hi Shelly, Ric, and all you guys. sorry i haven't been in touch, im working on some murals down here in a small Jamaican town. id rather not give you the exact location, im sure you'll all understand and sympathize. life has been different since my days at usounds, more linear and peaceful and altogether less impressionistic, both in my paintings and my spiritual endeavors. anyway, my trust my musical recommendations are still welcomed:

Talvin Singh Presents: SOUNDZ OF THE ASIAN UNDERGROUND:

one of my fellows here in Jamaica, Akony, brought out a stereo while I was working on a painting one hot afternoon just outside of my studio/grow shed. Akony encouraged me to keep painting as he played a song by a young Indian girl named Amar.

He smoked and I continued to paint. Let me tell you in all honesty it was the first time I had really allowed music to dictate my brush strokes. the result was something entirely different and new.  (she sung r&b tunes in Hindi as a 14 year old (can you believe it - 14!?) and now does the vocal overlay for the British-Asian underground's fast and captivating beats. The exotic tunes were leading me into a world of mysticism, danger, and alluring enchantment.

I cant describe to you the feeling of standing naked on a sweltering Jamaican day, paint brush in hand
and the beautiful sight of a Jamaican weed field spread out before me with her voice sweetly whispering in the background.

Vas: "OFFERINGS":
Vas is the farci name for vessel, and I'll admit this isn't probably the music our usounds readers are accustomed to. but oh what an angelic voice she has. this will take you by surprise. Akony and I often skin bathe in a small waterfall to these songs on our trips south. If you can only hear one song, listen to "Promise" to get the full effect of this otherworldly crooning.

life moves perfectly here, slow and easy. I could stay forever and then longer. but anyway what's the staff of usounds up to these days? if you need any art i feel like i could do it again. i could probably grab a flight as early as next week if you have any openings.
yours, M. Mighles

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