Anne / Whirr Split - 2x 7"

After about 5 or 6 months it is finally here; my copy of the Whirr/Anne split! I think it was September that preorders for this officially went live, and it was expected to be shipped not far after that. But after several delays and manufacturing errors it has finally seen the light of day, and it was worth the wait.

This split is a double 7", with both Whirr and Anne playing two new songs. Anne provide "Pet Names" and "Occasional Lovers", which are both excellent tracks. I got a digital download of the tracks soon after I pre-ordered, so have had a chance to listen and appreciate them for a while. They are in similar vain to the previously released Power Exchange EP, which took the band in a slightly different direction to their first LP.

Whirr also play two great tracks, "Twist" and "Between Asleep and Awake". These two songs were really my first introduction to the band, and have since inspired me to pick up their Distressor LP which I posted about here. The entire split is streaming via Run for Cover's bandcamp page, check it out below.

The 2 7"s are housed inside a 7" gatefold sleeve, which features some tree artwork. The records themselves are really quite visually impressive, they are both black/white. I think it may have been intended for the sides to be monochromatic, but it seems the colours have merged a bit on either side. On one side is the predominantly white side, which is the same for both the Anne and Whirr records. The Whirr record then has a reverse side that is mostly black.

The Anne record has a wonderful extra feature on the reverse, the lyrics to the tracks etched in! This was actually the reason for the delay, apparently the pressing plant used an incorrect copy of the lyrics and produced a low-resolution copy on the record. Of course this wouldn't do, so they had to be pressed again. It looks really cool, and was definitely worth the long wait.

While purchasing this I also picked up a copy of Anne's mixtape vol. II. That should see a post of it's own soon.

Whirr - Distressor 12"

I've been hitting the shoegaze a bit lately, but it's a genre that has really come to grow on me over the last little while. After hearing the Whirr/Anne split (which I hope will arrive eventually!) I became interested in Whirr. Their bandcamp page provided me with enough cool songs to convince me to buy their latest record, Distressor.

Mine copy belongs to the second press which has somehow picked up new artwork. The first was a shot of a naked lady standing away from the camera, whereas now we have a picture of a dog in front of some audio equipment. I'm not sure which is best really.

This is probably the most visually impressive record that I own, and is definitely the only tri-colour. I don't think the photo quite does it justice, but it is flourescent pink, orange and yellow that looks awesome when it is spinning. The record also came with a nice black inner sleeve with a plastic sleeve inside that. Perhaps the label is a fan of sleeve-ception?

A lyrics sheet insert was also added inside the cover, but on the front are eyes, so many eyes!

This is also probably the record with the most extras I've ever received. Inside the package were some things not out of the ordinary; an advertisement for the label, a concert and a whirr poster. The other things however were a bit more obscure. First was a ripped out page from a book, which I am yet to find out where it belongs. Next was a Wonka's Pixie Stix thing, which I've never come across before. Below that are two small puzzle pieces from an unknown puzzle. Lastly is what appears to be a page pulled from a magazine, advertising Tiki mugs. I think this one may have been a rather clever reference to my worldly location.

The record is really quite good, but I'm not sure what to make of all the stuff that came along with it. It's a bit obscure, but it's also kinda cool. I wonder if I'll ever eat that Wonka thing, perhaps the curiosity will get the better of me one day.