This time around we feature the collection of Cory McCallum, bass player for the Toronto based doom band Olde.
The first record I ever bought with my own money was…
The first Chicago S/T, not Chicago Transit Authority but the one commonly referred to as II. I actually had little or no idea what I was buying; it was at the local K-Mart, it was cheap and I recognized the logo (probably from Chicago 18, which was current at that time).
I got it home and was floored. I had no reference point for funk, soul, jazz or classical (beyond Looney Tunes), so Chicago’s ability to take all those sounds and incorporate them into a rock sound really twisted my melon, man.
I still stand by that album and I argue with Chicago-haters all the time; Chicago II is arguably the best big-rock-band record of its time.
The record that made me want to make music was…
The record that made me think I could ACTUALLY make music was The Dead Milkmen’s Bucky Fellini. They sounded like they could barely keep it together (I’ve since come to learn how wrong I was), like they could hardly play…and they were cracking the same kinds of jokes I would make with my friends. The sound quality was just OK, the cover was pretty messy. Basically, the whole package basically screamed “YOU can do this”.
Again, still love that record.
The record I’ve played more than any other is…
No doubt, Pyromania by Def Leppard. The numbers are most-certainly skewed by the first year we had it in our house. I listened to it so much it had no grooves left on the second side at all. You’d try to start “Foolin'” and the needle would slide right to the sticker.
The record that always make me feel good is…
For a few reasons, Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life. One, it is pretty damn beautiful and bouncy. It sounds like a sunny day to me. It’s so crisp and perfect. Secondly, after years of loving my CD copy and digital versions, my wife (who doesn’t risk buying me much vinyl since I’m kind of snobby), got me a real nice version on wax, which adds to the positive vibes.
The record I turn to when I’m feeling down is…
If I want to revel in the misery, I’d probably go with Live 81-82 by the Birthday Party. Relentless, ugly, dark, sinister. Just a totally-visceral snarler. If you don’t own it, get it.
If I want to turn that frown around, I’d probably go with They Might Be Giants Flood. It is basically impossible for me to listen to that record without bopping about, singing along to all of that happy and ridiculous madness/genius. 100% killer nerd-rock.
The record with my favorite cover art is…
Wow. So many records for so many reasons. If I had to say one, right now, I’d probably think up another tomorrow and then again the next day….however….
Peter Gabriel S/T 1978 (commonly referred to as Scratch). A not-so-tricky cover piece by design-masters Hipgnosis. There’s nothing here that makes one scream from the rooftops, yet I’ve always thought it is simple, bold and brilliant. I adore it, and I don’t really know exactly why (which has always made me love it even more).
The strangest LP I own is…
It’s gotta be a three-way tie between Moondog, Friendly Rich and Rappin’ Rodney Dangerfield. All of which are amazing.
The rarest LP I own is…
I don’t really know, I’m a listener not a collector, so I’m not big on “rare” because it generally costs too much. Maybe Harry Belafonte’s The Midnight Special, first pressing….and specifically because I know that it is Bob Dylan’s first ever professionally-recorded performance. Plus, you can’t swing a cat without hitting a used Belafonte record, with the exception of The Midnight Special, as far as I can tell in my years of crate-digging.
The last LP I bought was…
Harmony of Difference by Kamasi Washington. By far my fave of the new jazzmen. He deserves every bit of hype. Outstanding little record (all things being relative; his debut, “The Epic” is monolithic).
Before that it was the new Kadavar (Rough Times) which I dig a lot. Plus….I felt I needed to get SOME metal into this piece!!
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Olde’s latest album, Temple, was released on August 10, 2017. You can download it here, pick up a cassette copy here or buy it on one of three different vinyl variations here.
https://www.facebook.com/oldedoom/
https://oldedoom.bandcamp.com/
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