White Fence first in Castle Face's new Live in San Francisco series
Photo: Brian Pritchard Castle Face Records label head and SF luminary John Dwyer, fed up with live recordings that lacked a certain je ne sais quoi, had the idea to record some friends on his Tascam 388, and he eventually brought on fellow "low budget luminaries" Eric Bauer, Chris Woodhouse, and Bob Marshall for what promises to be quite the unique project. The result was the label's "Live in San Francisco" record series, and the first band in line for a release is White Fence. Each LP in the series will come with a thick gloss album jacket [...]
Castle Face Records to release The Herms' 'Drop Out Vol. 1'
In the early days of The Bay Bridged, few bands captured our affection like the now-departed local indie rock darlings The Herms. The group was led by the clever and charming Matt Lutz, who sure knew his way around a winning pop song. To hear that the band's lost recordings are now being released on LP -- by the can't-fail Castle Face Records, no less -- is both exciting, and, admittedly, more than a little unexpected. In any event, the band's demos collection, Drop Out Vol. 1, out September 24th, will hopefully prompt some well-deserved reconsideration of these weird-pop greats. [...]
Castle Face Records hosts Christmas benefit show at The Chapel, 12/20/12
Don’t you wish all benefits were this awesome? Castle Face Records, an LA label that's home to some of the Bay’s best bands in recent memory, will host A Very Castle Face Christmas at The Chapel, a benefit show that boasts and expertly-curated lineup and a more than worthy cause. A Very Castle Face Christmas will feature performances by a cast of stellar Bay Area bands: The Mallard, Blasted Canyons, Warm Soda and a featured appearance by Thee Oh Sees. Britt Govea will be at the helm of the DJ booth. Proceeds will benefit the Coalition on Homelessness, one of [...]
Grab Thee Oh Sees' cover of "European Son" and two more from the Castle Face Velvet Underground tribute LP
Remember how, a week ago, we rounded up a whole bunch of those The Velvet Underground and Nico covers that appear on Castle Face Records' sold-out new tribute LP? Well, over the past few days, the remainder of the collection has surfaced at the AV Club, LA Times, and Spin. Below, check out Thee Oh Sees' "European Son," as well as takes on "I'll Be Your Mirror" and "The Black Angel's Death Song" for your downloading pleasure.
Download seven Velvet Underground covers from The Fresh & Onlys, Blasted Canyons, Burnt Ones, and more
As we previously reported, Castle Face Records is releasing a tribute album to The Velvet Underground & Nico in conjunction with the 45th anniversary reissue of that classic VU record. The bad news is that the label's already sold out of copies -- just another reason to see any of these bands at shows, I think -- but tracks from the covers record have been steadily leaking around the web in recent weeks. Here's the bulk of the record, most of which can be downloaded for your future listening pleasure. (Download here.)