James profile picture

James

even damnation is poisoned with rainbows

About Me

Hello. My name is James. I grew up in Arizona and am currently living in Salt Lake. I recently finished a Master's degree in French and comparative literature. I work in retail, and have been doing a little writing lately for SLUG Magazine here in SLC. I also teach summer classes at SLCC. I've been married for over six years to the most wonderful woman I have ever met. She saves my life every single day. I really mean that.
Here's some more James trivia:
I like irreverent music, stand-up comedy and baking. Yes, baking (my pâte-à-choux is especially strong).
I play the drums, though not very seriously at the moment.
I don't smile much, but that doesn't mean I'm not happy to see you.
I have a hard time telling the difference between Weezer and Cake, though I know that at least one of them routinely features a trumpet.
I see both irony and beauty almost everywhere I look.
When I wait too long between haircuts, I start looking like a fat, myopic Art Garfunkel.
I really like cheese--the higher fat content the better. Extra points if it comes from a goat.
I really don't want to have to run for public office.
Until I turned 25, I was convinced that Prince was actually a mexican. A black man would never wear that much purple, but a mexican. . .
I've been collecting vinyl records for most of my life now. Some days it really becomes obsessive. I want to use this space to get help finishing up a certain 7" record collection that I've been working on for over a decade. I call it:One man's quest for the complete Man... or Astro-man?
One of the greatest bands in surf music history is Alabama's Man . . . or Astro-man?. They are also one of the genre's most prolific bands--putting out dozens of singles on several different labels in a relatively short amount of time. Lots of these singles were available on multiple colors of vinyl, and sometimes with variations on the inner labels or sleeves. I'm tracking them all down. This includes solo singles, splits and magazine inserts as well as single 7" compilations and 7" box sets. I am also collecting 10" records and memorabilia. To a lesser extent, I'm collecting 12" vinyl too. Please help me. I'm always looking for those few missing pieces. See the list below of what I have and what I am still trying to track down. The list is more or less chronological.
For a complete listing of Astroman recordings, including label information, song listings and cover art, visit the official Man... or Astroman? discography page, located here .


Here's what I still need 7" VinylSupersonic Toothbrush Helmet--black vinyl, no printing inside cover (2nd pressing)
Inside the Head of Mr. Atom-- gray vinyl (this one, and the next one, may not actually exist)
World out of Mind--black vinyl
anything else not listed above or below, especially alternate pressings or anything on odd C O L O R E D Vinyl

Here is a list of what I have:5" VinylPostphonic Star Exploration--black vinyl
Postphonic Star Exploration-- clear green vinyl7" Vinyl, SoloPossession by Remote control-- clear blue vinyl
Amazing thrills in 3-Dimension--promo only, black vinyl
Supersonic Toothbrush Helmet-- clear orangey-red vinyl
Supersonic Toothbrush Helmet--black vinyl, printing inside cover (1st pressing)
Captain Holojoy's Space Diner-- opaque pink vinyl
Captain Holojoy's Space Diner-- black vinyl
Mission into Chaos--black vinyl
Man... or Astroman v.s. Europa--black vinyl
Astrolaunch--transluscent black vinyl (sometimes catagorized as "clear rootbeer vinyl")
Astrolaunch-- clear orange vinyl
Astrolaunch-- marble gray vinyl
The Brains of the Cosmos--black vinyl
Inside the Head of Mr. Atom-- clear green vinyl
Inside the Head of Mr. Atom-- purple vinyl
Inside the Head of Mr. Atom--black vinyl (1st pressing)
* * * * autographed * * * * Coco, Birdstuff, Captain Zeno, Starcrunch
Inside the Head of Mr. Atom--black vinyl, black label (2nd pressing)
Inside the Head of Mr. Atom--black vinyl with white streaks , black label (2nd pressing)
Return to Chaos--black vinyl (UK)
Return to Chaos-- clear vinyl (US)
Man... or Astroman? In Orbit--black vinyl
Man...or Astroman? In Orbit-- clear vinyl
Haystack (test press)--black vinyl
Haystack--black vinyl
Needles in the Cosmic Haystack--black vinyl
World out of Mind-- clear yellow-orange vinyl
Welcome to the Sonic Spaceage--black vinyl
Deluxe Men in Space--black vinyl (US--Touch & Go records)
Deluxe Men in Space--black vinyl (UK--One Louder Records)
The Sounds of Tomorrow--black vinyl
The Sounds of Tomorrow-- marble gray vinyl
UFO's and the men who fly them-- antifreeze green vinyl
UFO's and the men who fly them-- gray vinyl
UFO's and the men who fly them-- clear red vinyl
UFO's and the men who fly them--black vinyl
Inside the Head of John Peel--black vinyl x2
Ex Machina--black vinyl7" Splits, non-magazineKill Geeksville (split w/Teenage Cavemen)--black vinyl
The Various Boss Sounds from Beyond the Far Reaches...and then some (split w/Huevos Rancheros)-- clear (greenish) vinyl
The Various Boss Sounds from Beyond the Far Reaches...and then some (split w/Huevos Rancheros)--black vinyl
Cheap Sweaty Fun & TJ's Xmas 1994 (split w/Girls Vs Boys)--one-sided black vinyl
Disjointed Parallels (split w/Anachonauts)--black vinyl
School House Rock! Rocks (split w/Pavement)-- clear yellow-orange vinyl
promo only * * * * autographed * * * * Birdstuff, Coco, Starcrunch
Two Blood-Soaked Space-Horror Classics (split w/Johnny and the Shamen)-- clear blue vinyl7" Compilations, Box sets and Magazine insertsMonster magazine compilation flexi-disk--black viynl
Call of the Wild magazine compilation flexi-disk--black vinyl
Espanto del Futuro (insert in Fear and Loathing magazine #31)--one-sided, black vinyl
Espanto del Futuro (insert in Fear and Loathing magazine #31)--one-sided, clear red vinyl
Saturday Night Special no. 2 compilation--black vinyl
Gearhead split w/Chrome--black vinyl
Estrus "Cocktail Companion" 3 x 7" box set--black vinyl
Jabberjaw "Pure Sweet Hell" 4 x 7" box set--black vinyl10" vinylYour Weight on the Moon-- silvery-gray vinyl
Your Weight on the Moon-- pink vinyl
Your Weight on the Moon-- glow-in-the-dark pale yellow vinyl
Your Weight on the Moon--black vinyl test pressing (1 of 10)
1000x--black vinyl
1000x-- clear vinyl
A Spectrum of Infinite Scale (full length 2 x 10" gatefold)
clear yellow vinyl and clear red vinyl A Spectrum of Infinite Scale (full length 2 x 10" gatefold), UK version
clear vinyl with rainbow splatter 12" VinylIs it . . . -- clear blue vinyl
Live Transmissions from Uranus--UK Picture Disk
Eeviac--black vinyl with die-cut sleeve
Intravenous Television Continuum-- purple vinyl
Intravenous Television Continuum-- clear vinyl
Goode Tyme Jhambhoree--vinyl Planet Pimp Records comp w/ MoAM?
Made From Technetium-- orange vinyl
Experiment Zero-- yellow vinyl with poster (UK One Louder)
Astro-crap, odds and endsAstroman yo-yo
"Planet Particles" (lava rocks)
"Space Dust" (dryer lint)
Astro-Clone Genome-Pack (DNA vials for Dexter X era astroman)
Cryogenic waste vials for all 4 original Astromen, given out at Touch and Go 25
Astro-clock by R.Land, number 30 (of about 50 total).
Chunklet Magazine #12, with exclusive MOAM? track on insert CD
Astro light switch plate design no. 1 by R.Land, number 95
Live Transmissions from Uranus--CD on Homo Habilis (pre Touch & Go)
A Spectrum of Finite Scale--Tour only CD
Experiment Zero CD
* * * * autographed * * * * Coco, Birdstuff, Dexter X, Starcrunch
Hand written letter & 7" discography (circa June '95) on MOAM? letterhead.
"Certificate of Assurance"--cardstock note assuring burial costs for those who die of fright at Astroman shows


My Interests

Upcoming SLC Events



Hell yes folks, it's on!

I'd like to meet:



Music:



Rocket from the Crypt , the Beatles, the MC5, The Jesus Lizard, Van Halen, Devo, the Sultans, Les Savy Fav, REM, Neil Young, Charley Patton, Lou Reed , Johnny Cash, Blondie, the Vile Blue Shades , Drive Like Jehu, Neko Case, the Tri-City Thundercats, Delta 72, the Velvet Underground , Joy Division, Bauhaus, Born Against, Big Boys, James Brown, the Stooges, the Carter Family, The Who, the No-talents, Son House, Prince, Bad Brains, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Negative Approach, Billy Childish , Marvin Gaye, Big Black, Jerry Lee Lewis, AC/DC, Cheap Trick, Mono Men, Steve and the Jerks, Herb Alpert & the TJB, the Supremes, Fugazi , the Mummies, Bob Dylan, Henry Rollins , Stevie Wonder, Iron Maiden, C C R, Band of Annuals , Brian Wilson, the Minutemen, Merle Haggard, the White Stripes, Link Wray, the Splash Four, Hendrix, The Germs, Led Zepplin, Hank Williams, Didjits, Elvis, the Black Heart Procession, Propagandhi , the Misfits, the Weakerthans , Leonard Cohen, Sonic Youth , Elvis Costello, the Pixies, the Ventures, Deke Dickerson, Martin Denny, Vanilla Fudge, Man... or Astroman? . . .
Favorite comedians:
Mitch Hedberg, Patton Oswalt, Moliere, Dave Letterman, Jon Stewart, Bob Schriner , Andy Kaufman

Heroes:



my Sweetie

my Mother and Father

Mitch Hedberg

Wild Billy Childish

Marcel Duchamp

the Minutemen

Carmine Appice

My Blog

James VS. Speedo

After a bit of a hiatus from doing features for the print version of SLUG Magazine (my last few stories were online exclusives), I found out that Speedo from RFTC was debuting a new band called the ...
Posted by James on Thu, 13 Mar 2008 05:16:00 PST

James VS. Glenn Danzig

Interview with Glenn Danzig, Great Salt Air Pavillion, November 6, 2007.  On a brief tour promoting the new Lost Tracks CD, Danzig made a stop in Salt Lake City.  They played at the Great ...
Posted by James on Fri, 28 Dec 2007 10:27:00 PST

Mormon Psychedelic Music

Several months ago, I was eating ice cream with my buddy Brenta hot shot local attorney and the son of Utah senator Orrin Hatch.  During our conversation, Brent told me that his father had ...
Posted by James on Sat, 13 Oct 2007 08:22:00 PST

The Wisdom of Billy Childish

It's been a busy few months for Billy Childish.  Since November of last year, his new band, The Musicians of the British Empire, have released two singles and a full-length LP.  He's also re...
Posted by James on Wed, 16 May 2007 08:18:00 PST

Ted Leo interview transcription

I interviewed Ted Leo for a story I did in SLUG Magazine.  As the piece was meant as an introduction to Leo's music and an extended review of the latest Pharmacists album, the questions were...
Posted by James on Sun, 22 Apr 2007 03:05:00 PST

A conversation with a Pharmacist

My interview with Ted Leo is in the April issue of SLUG Magazine.  To read it online, click the photo below. ...
Posted by James on Thu, 12 Apr 2007 04:14:00 PST

James VS. Mike Watt

The March issue of SLUG Magazine features a story I did about legendary San Pedro-based bass player Mike Watt.  Watt is of course the axe-man behind the Minutemen, fIREHOSE, and the new...
Posted by James on Wed, 07 Mar 2007 02:26:00 PST

James VS. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.--the full transcription

On December 3rd, I had the good fortune of meeting with environmental attorney and all-around good guy Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.  The interview was for a story I am doing for the January ...
Posted by James on Wed, 06 Dec 2006 04:28:00 PST

Grilling on the Graves of Prophets (w/ photos ! )

(The following article was originally published on the SLUG website in December, without pictures.  I think the photos add a lot to it.  Enjoy.) I was given several products to review for SL...
Posted by James on Sat, 16 Dec 2006 03:32:00 PST

Photos from Touch and Go 25

Heidi and I spent the weekend after Labor Day in Chicago for the Touch and Go 25th Anniversary show.  The music was so good that I forgot that I had a camera with me.  Here are a ...
Posted by James on Wed, 27 Sep 2006 07:50:00 PST