Vinyl Review: Various Artists — Start Your Own Fucking Show Space

News / Reviews / August 19, 2016

Brooklyn venue Death By Audio gets a deluxe send-off

Famous Class

The idea of putting out a triple LP of bands playing live at Brooklyn’s Death By Audio is a pretty great one. But the truly historic thing about Start Your Own Fucking Show Space is it’s filled with performances recorded only during November of last year, their last month of existence. 1

Thankfully, the venue packed that last month with some astonishing performances. While definitely heavy on the lo-fi, fuzzy garage end of the rock ‘n’ roll spectrum — with the likes of Parquet Courts, Ty Segall, and Metz, there’s also furious avant-punk from Downtown Boys, Shellshag and Screaming Females, along with electronic experimentation from Dan Deacon.

The Downtown Boys’ live contribution for “Wave of History,” in all its sax-fueled fury, had me regretting turning down a chance to see them play a house show late last year. I have a feeling that, based on the power and glory present, I missed out on a unique opportunity. It’s one of the collection’s highlights, and also provides a nice political counterpoint to the nihilistic humor of Natural Child’s “Crack Mountain,” on the same side.

The best part of the compilation, though, is the last side of the third LP. It’s a trio of absolute bangers, with Jeff: The Brotherhood and Lightning Bolt’s rock ‘n’ roll bookending the album’s best track, A Place to Bury Stranger’s “I Lived My Life to Stand in the Shadow of Your Love.” Simply put, it’s five minutes of feedback and distortion and loudness. And something about the opening lines, combined with the fact APTBS’ track was recorded at Death By Audio’s final show, just left me emotionally devastated:

“I’ve lived my life / To stand in the shadow of your heart / You make my dreams complete / And then crash them down”

Oof, right? Don’t be ashamed to show a little emotion here. 

Sound Quality

Start Your Own Fucking Show Space is pressed on heavy-duty black vinyl and sounds fantastic. Live compilations aren’t exactly known for having a high level of sonic quality, but every single cut fairly well rocks. A few, such as Ted Leo & the Pharmacists’ “Bottled In Cork” are a little thin, but given the fact that it’s still clear and clean, I’ll take thin over reverberant and distorted.

Packaging

The printed, heavy-duty sleeves holding the LPs come with a list of each and every show Death By Audio ever hosted, which is a spectacular cross section of performances. It’s amazing to look back to when the venue first opened in 2007, and seeing that the second-ever show featured the wizard rock of Harry & the Potters, and six months later, the venue was hosting Jay Reatard and Thurston Moore (not on the same show, alas). The inside of the double gatefold sleeve features pictures of the venue itself, and other than that, there’s not much more. There’s no eulogizing — the title and music say it all, I think. This compilation is intended to show you what you should do, and what can happen if you try.

Extras

The compilation comes with a download code, and the list of all the shows really puts this all into historical perspective, as well.

Brooklyn venue Death By Audio gets a deluxe send-off Famous Class The idea of putting out a triple LP of bands playing live at Brooklyn’s Death By Audio is a pretty great one. But the truly historic thing about Start Your Own Fucking Show Space is it's filled with performances recorded only during November of last year, their last month of existence. [1. Ironically, Vice Media — arbitrators of all that's hip —  rented the building in which it was located, while Death was forced to shut down.] Thankfully, the venue packed that last month with some astonishing performances. While definitely heavy on the lo-fi, fuzzy garage end of the rock ‘n’ roll spectrum — with the likes of Parquet Courts, Ty Segall, and Metz, there’s also furious avant-punk from Downtown Boys, Shellshag and Screaming Females, along with electronic experimentation from Dan Deacon. The Downtown Boys’ live contribution for “Wave of History,” in all its sax-fueled fury, had me regretting turning down a chance to see them play a house show late last year. I have a feeling that, based on the power and glory present, I missed out on a unique opportunity. It’s one of the collection's highlights, and also provides a nice political counterpoint to the nihilistic humor of Natural Child’s “Crack Mountain,” on the same side. The best part of the compilation, though, is the last side of the third LP. It’s a trio of absolute bangers, with Jeff: The Brotherhood and Lightning Bolt’s rock ‘n’ roll bookending the album’s best track, A Place to Bury Stranger’s “I Lived My Life to Stand in the Shadow of Your Love.” Simply put, it’s five minutes of feedback and distortion and loudness. And something about the opening lines, combined with the fact APTBS’ track was recorded at Death By Audio’s final show, just left me emotionally devastated: “I've lived my life / To stand in the shadow of your heart / You make my dreams complete / And then crash them down” Oof, right? Don't be ashamed to show a little emotion here.  Start Your Own Fucking Show Space by FAMOUS CLASS RECORDS / LAMC 7" SERIES Sound Quality Start Your Own Fucking Show Space is pressed on heavy-duty black vinyl and sounds fantastic. Live compilations aren’t exactly known for having a high level of sonic quality, but every single cut fairly well rocks. A few, such as Ted Leo & the Pharmacists’ “Bottled In Cork” are a little thin, but given the fact that it’s still clear and clean, I’ll take thin over reverberant and distorted. Packaging The printed, heavy-duty sleeves holding the LPs come with a list of each and every show Death By Audio ever hosted, which is a spectacular cross section of performances. It's amazing to look back to when the venue first opened in 2007, and seeing that the second-ever show featured the wizard rock of Harry & the Potters, and six months later, the venue was hosting Jay Reatard and Thurston Moore (not on the same show, alas).…

Grade

Music - 87%
Sound Quality - 75%
Packaging - 80%
Extras - 66%

77%

Three LPs of stellar garage/punk/rock go by far too quickly, much like this venue's NYC lifespan.

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77

“Start Your Own Fucking Show Space” is available from Famous Class.

  1. Ironically, Vice Media — arbitrators of all that’s hip —  rented the building in which it was located, while Death was forced to shut down. ↩

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Nick Spacek
Nick Spacek was once a punk, but realized you can’t be hardcore and use the word “adorable” as often as he does. Nick is a self-described “rock star journalist,” which is strange, considering he’s married with four cats and usually goes to bed by 9. This is just further proof that you can’t trust anyone online.





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