Vinyl Find: The Birthday Party and Lydia Lunch Split EP

Kim's Video in the East Village has really beefed up their vinyl inventory as of late and I've found three or four good finds in the past several weeks. The latest score was this fantastic split EP from the Birthday Party and Lydia Lunch, circa 1982. Side A, featuring The Birthday Party, is absolutely amazing. You couldn't ask for a better title -- "Drunk on the Pope's Blood." And it lives up to its subtitle "16 minutes of sheer hell!" You can literally feel the sweat from the walls of The Venue in London where Side A was originally recorded. The Birthday Party are on fire during the four songs, with Nick Cave in his younger, more visceral style that alternated between gut-wrenching screams and poetic shouting. After hearing the great renditions of "Zoo Music Girl" and "King Ink," as well as the over-the-top cover of The Stooges "Loose," it makes me really regret never being able to see The Birthday Party live.

Vinyl Find: I Had A Dream Joe 12" Single by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

One of the joys of picking up a USB turntable is being able to instantly plug-in and listen to vinyl recordings. Which has got me back on the kick of picking up old singles and albums again. I found this gem -- a 12" maxi-single for Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds' "I Had A Dream Joe" -- at Kim's Video down in the East Village. I almost opted for the 7" version, which only had two tracks with a live version of "The Good Son" on the B-side. But I'm glad I picked this one up instead which includes live versions of "The Mercy Seat," "The Ship Song," and a fantastic rendition of "The Carny."