EPs etc. (1996-1998) - Sandpit

***2018 UPDATE***
You can now buy the Sandpit EPs at a very reasonable price from their bandcamp page. A number of rare demo recordings have also been uploaded, so have a good listen!
***

This post has been a long time coming. Sandpit are, without doubt, my favourite band of the period and possibly my favourite Australian band of all time (tied with TISM). Indeed, their lone LP, 1998's On Second Thought, gives this blog its very name (and the EPs Lessons In Posture and Tyranny Of Distance its URL).

Perhaps famous for being the band that featured bassist Stephanie Ashworth before she joined Something For Kate (Dik of S:Bahn, not long ago: "Sandpit? Is that Steph's band?"), the creative linchpin of Sandpit was ostensibly guitarist and vocalist Brendan Webb, formerly of Benalla.

Sandpit started in 199x, springing from another band that both Webb and Ashworth were playing in at the time. Paul Sciacca joined on drums and filled out the trio, who were signed to Fellaheen in May of 199x. They released a couple of outstanding EPs with producer Greg Wales at the helm, who then assumed drumming duties with Sciacca's departure prior to the recording of On Second Thought in 1998. The band split soon after, catalysed by Ashworth's new role in Something For Kate.

Sandpit were sufficiently popular that they sprouted not one but two rather comprehensive fan websites, No Rock and Pessimism Strikes You Cold. Both contain a wealth of info on the band, and are useful for obsessive anarchivists like myself. Another fansite, Diplomatic Type-O Guy, brands itself as a 'sequel' to that latter site. A forerunner to No Rock can also be found in the Archive here.

In addition, they also had an incomplete, posthumous, official website, with mp3 links to demos and such (unfortunately all of the link in the archived version are broken). That said, four of these are actually included in the attached zip. If anyone can find the unavailable tracks ('The Way To You', a BL Stryker song; 'So Easy', another Webb solo) then please let me know.

There are also an abundance of interviews still lurking in the Archive:

• Brendan interview with Warm Cola Fanzine, where he mentions that he likes Lou Barlow! Good. Warm Cola is another zine of the period that will probably get a write-up on here at some point as an Archive Treasure post. Also in non-archival format here.
• Brendan interview where he goes into detail about the band's origins.
• Brief Brendan interview from around the time of their second EP.
• An interview with Steph probably around LP release time
• Also a gig review of Sandpit and Screamfeeder on the same bill! Gosh!

Superficially, they received constant comparison to Sonic Youth. Whilst Webb's use of alternate tunings tended attract this description from lax music journalists, Sandpit were very much an Australian product, far more intimate and introspective than their cooler-than-thou contemporaries.

They released a few videos over their brief existence. The video for 'Along The Moors', which featured Super-8 footage of Webb doing the vacuuming and mowing the lawn, has unfortunately been deleted from YouTube at time of writing. The video for 'Drawing Straws', the first track from Tyranny of Creeps is still up, however.

Later on, they even garnered a spot on Recovery, of which on YouTube there is footage of them doing a version of 'Greater Expectations'. It's a somewhat strained performance, which might be understandable given the state of the band at the time. Wales does speed up markedly on the kit as the middle of the first verse hits, much to the song's detriment (and possibly Webb's concentration). Listen to the end for the S:Bahn plug.

I first encountered Sandpit through a random CD purchase at, I believe, the Salvos in Elsternwick. Spying the attractive cover and 'Made In Marrickville' on the back, I made the purchase and, all of a sudden, my belief in desirable Australian 90s indie was verified. The hunt had begun. I slowly acquired (almost) all of Sandpit's catalogue and most of it is archived here.

For this upload, I've compiled their EPs, the two singles (including B-sides) released from On Second Thought and two non-Sandpit tracks. You'll note that I haven't included the LP itself - this is because it's still available from Microphone and Loudspeaker, who reissued it in 2013. Buy it now in digital or on vinyl, it's worth every penny.

There's also a cover of The Pixies' 'Where Is My Mind', which Webb appears to have uploaded to YouTube. This track was originally slated for a compilation that was never released, according to the alongthemoors.com page.

Whilst this is almost every Sandpit track (aside from demos, etc.) that I could track down, it's not complete. I don't have a copy of The Hunting Picture, a compilation of their first two EPs on one CD for the American market, thus the added closing track 'The End' is not included here. Instead, I have included two tracks from By Ferry Or Steamer (BFOS), a post-rock band that Webb formed after the demise of Sandpit. These were featured on the Musikal Identikit compilation I uploaded some time back. You can listen to these as well as two other BFOS tracks at this bandcamp page.

BL Stryker was Webb's solo outfit. Ostensibly there are a few releases here, none of which I've managed to track down. If you have some, please let me know!

• Warm Cola Zine #1 Tape - contains 'PVC'
• 7" on Spunk Records - contains 'Uno'
• 7" EP on Handpressed Records, featuring Matthew Dufty  - no idea if this was actually released
• They Say The Owl - 15 songs, probably a private demo

In addition, the 'secret track' at the end of Lessons In Posture is listed as a separate track under the name 'Three Of Wands' on The Hunting Picture. In this compilation, I've used the original EP sequencing (i.e. as the second half of 'Blinders').

Well, here's Sandpit. Enjoy. My favourite.

1. Die 501        2:06    Sandpit    Lessons In Posture
2. Tractor Beam        3:38    Sandpit    Lessons In Posture
3. Wonder Twins        4:03    Sandpit    Lessons In Posture
4. Keflex        2:37    Sandpit    Lessons In Posture
5. Blinders/Three of Wands        7:15    Sandpit    Lessons In Posture
6. Drawing Straws        2:45    Sandpit    The Tyranny Of Creeps
7. Bear This Cross        2:59    Sandpit    The Tyranny Of Creeps
8. X-10        3:32    Sandpit    The Tyranny Of Creeps
9. The Horns Sing        3:58    Sandpit    The Tyranny Of Creeps
10. Mock Arizona        2:56    Sandpit    The Tyranny Of Creeps
11. Along The Moors (Single Version)        3:26    Sandpit    Along The Moors
12. No Rock        3:48    Sandpit    Along The Moors
13. The Horns Sing (Demo)        3:59    Sandpit    Along The Moors
14. Mr Diamond        1:12    Sandpit    Along The Moors
15. Greater Expectations (Single Version)        2:58    Sandpit    Greater Expectations
16. Brunch In Chicago        2:21    Sandpit    Greater Expectations
17. D.I./Eclipse Remix        3:53    Sandpit    Greater Expectations
18. Spanish Summers        5:01    By Ferry Or Steamer    Musikal Identikit
19. Theme From By Ferry Or Steamer        3:32    By Ferry Or Steamer    Musikal Identikit

EPs etc. (1996-1998) - Sandpit

Lot's The CD (1994) - Various Artists

Now for one of my personal favourites, though not necessarily for the music. Lot's Wife is the student publication of Monash University in Clayton and has been going in one form or another for the past 50 years (or shortly after the uni's inception). Nowadays it's a somewhat insipid and vacuous glossy that occasionally shows up in the union building's ever-declining array of brochure holders, but at various times it exhibited the best of student involvement. Without getting into the abolition of voluntary student unionism in the 1990s and its subsequent slow dismemberment of student culture, let's just say that the undergrads were a little more creative back then.

Highlights of this compilation, released in 1994, include a live cut from Painters and Dockers ('The Boy Who Lost His Jocks At Flinders St Station'), recorded in the basement of the union building (hah! try setting a gig up down there these days...), a Muffcake track (see Decimus Gnu once again) and the odd inclusion of two Raspberry Cordial tracks. For those not in the know, Raspberry Cordial was a delightfully cringey hip hop duo featuring future local media star John Safran. This explains why the scan above (of my own copy) has his signature on it (done at a book signing for Murder in Missisippi). This particular copy was picked up at the Salvos in Brandon Park Drive.

Some of the skits on the CD are also great. Sadly, the Menzies Building's legacy as 'The Ming Wing' has derailed over time, with only the senior staff calling it that to the perplexment of students.

See Safran's bit on Raspberry Cordial in this episode of Music Jamboree (skip to 8:54 if impatient):

1. Turn The Page And The Salt Joke        0:15    Lot's Wife
2. The Boy Who Lost His Jocks At Flinders Street Station (Live)        5:43    Painters And Dockers
3. Wet Patch        3:26    Quite and Very
4. The Badger        5:03    Treehouse
5. The Interview        15:24    Leanne Paton with Prof. Chubb and Gai Baldwin
6. Rocky & Bullwinkle Skit        0:12    Lot's Wife
7. Candleabra        6:10    Clock Work
8. Burgo        3:29    Nude Rain
9. Legalise        6:06    Muffcake
10. The Count        0:44    Lot's Wife
11. Moment Of Rising        5:39    Aubergine
12. Melbourne Tram        4:25    Raspberry Cordial
13. Snake Like A Tongue        6:48    The Clowns Of Decadence
14. NDS        1:55    Lot's Wife
15. Demons Dwell        2:58    Stronger Than Dirt
16. Vampires Kiss        4:43    Clint Goad
17. One Sunny Day Inside Your CD Player        0:56    Lot's Wife
18. No Compromise        1:26    Raspberry Cordial

Lot's The CD (1994) - Various Artists

Christmas (2002) - Sandro

Now we're talking! In stark contrast to their debut, the Christmas EP, their final (?) studio recording, is a far more rollicking affair recorded eight years on. Gone are the gossamer atmospherics, replaced with more power pop intensity. Enjoy.

1. Christmas        2:37
2. I Will Not Go Into the Light With You        4:18
3. False Homes        3:16
4. The Island        3:43

Christmas (2002) - Sandro

Live By Rivers (1996) - Sandro

Another band that came up during my excavations of the Sandpit, Sandro's debut (?) is quiet, almost fitting the sadcore pigeonhole. In fact, the whole album was recorded live in a hall somewhere within a commission housing block in Collingwood, as frontman Gareth Edwards explained in an interview some while ago. This Cowboy Junkies-esque approach makes for very subtle listening, an experience that didn't quite endear me to the recording in my current search for period-era musical red cordial analogues.

Cameron Potts, drummer, also played drums with Laura Macfarlane (herself the original Sleater Kinney drummer, a fact I enjoy mentioning to neophytes at Ninetynine gigs) in Ninetynine, who are still going. He also played alongside Evelyn 'Pikelet' Morris in Baseball, who I'm going to get on this blog at somepoint, I'm sure. On a tangent, Ev recently did an excellent and at times confronting interview with Steve Albini recently on the back of Shellac's last tour down here.

Anyway, the first Sandro album. How good is that cover?

1. Racing Car Driver        3:30
2. Watching Dogs        4:21
3. Tanja's Soldier        3:20
4. St Charles Song        4:07
5. Tonight        7:12
6. There's Nowhere To Go Without You        4:35
7. Skinny        4:28
8. Werribee        2:38
9. This House Has Fallen        1:21
10. The Villa's Cursed        5:21

Live By Rivers (1996) - Sandro