DESCRIPTION:
ARTIST: Tar
Title: 1988-1995 2x12"
Label: Chunklet Industries
Year: 2013

CONDITION: Mint.

DESCRIPTION: 
What can you say about Tar? They were a band that existed in a very fruitful time for rock music to spin out of punk. When Tar started out in 1988, out of post HC/skate rock outfit Blatant Dissent, there were no eyes on anything remotely underground. You had to know people, or at least listen in on the right conversations, to figure out your ass from your elbow. It was a time when, if you were playing non-mainstream music, you would have to start riots and destroy venues, or smear yourself with shit and eat used tampons to get recognized in the media. When Tar called it a day in 1995, at least two bands they toured with, and five bands with whom they shared rosters on both the Amphetamine Reptile and Touch & Go labels, had signed to majors. What happened in between is history. And history is what we are here to celebrate.
Even in their heyday, there weren’t a lot of bands like Tar, either in their hometown of Chicago or anywhere else. There were bands that had the choreographed stage moves, the short hair, the loud amps, the promotional matchbooks, but few if any could manage what Tar did, which was to create a new, strict, limited vocabulary for rock-based music. Since you can’t spell “guitar” without “tar,” their use in the band went uncontested. They had two really cool ones at that, belonging to deadpan frontman John Mohr and bassist Tom Zaluckyj, forged out of aircraft aluminum, which built one of the foundations of their sound: prolonged sustain, chords that rang out as long as they could hold out. So that was a thing. 
The rest of the Tar rulebook worked as such: capture the sound of three guitars playing different notes at the same time, discover harmonious sound in the discord that could erupt from the potential incompatibilities, and no leads, no solos, no posturing. What resulted was an architected noise, completed by Mark Zablocki’s second guitar and Mike Greenlees’ clean, solid drumming (and until 1991, bass guitarist, Tim Mescher) that sat firmly in the midst of the ugly American overkill of Midwestern noise rock, but with eyes on the shimmering expanses of shoegaze from afar. Studio engineers worked with the band to exploit the capacities of this approach; Steve Albini fused the guitar tones together on their 1991 album Jackson, while Brad Wood found synergies in the spaces between them for the subsequent release 1993’s Clincher EP. 

Their approach seems deceptively simple, but mindbreaking thought went into how that sound came to be. They had peers in both Savage Republic’s desert psychedlia and Glenn Branca’s and Rhys Chatham’s guitar orchestras, but none of those artists were able to apply those ideas to catchy, driving three-minute rock songs the way that Tar could. When Tar broke up, other bands weren’t citing them as a primary influence in what they were trying to do with their own music. In essence, rock gave up on Tar; bands no longer got beaten up for having someone playing a synthesizer, and the group’s legacy was buried by history.

PAYMENT: Paypal only. Or so sez eBay.

SHIPPING: The record will be housed between two pieces of cardboard and then put inside a 12" mailer. If you live inside the US, tracking is provided free of charge. Outside of the US, airmail rates apply.

All items shipped via Media Mail within the U.S. unless agreed upon before payment. 

Complimentary tracking numbers (delivery confirmation) for all domestic orders. 

INTERNATIONAL ORDERS: All items shipped via First Class Mail outside of the U.S. unless agreed upon before payment. No registered mail offered. 

** International shipment note: USPS First Class Mail International provides a 'tracking' number but it is only accurate when the package is in the United States. The only shipping method through USPS with a tracking number from door-to-door is Global Express Mail Guaranteed and it is very expensive. First Class Mail International usually takes 2-4 weeks. However, USPS does not quote or guarantee a shipping time frame. Sometimes the shipments can take up to 8 weeks depending on speed and efficiency of the Postal Service in the US and your country. 

Buyer pays all shipping and package costs. 

- 2x12" is considered as two LPs. 

SHIPPING PRICES 

(All vinyl records are shipped in specially constructed cardboard mailers with additional cardboard padding to further protect the records.) 

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DOMESTIC (USA) 

LP & 10" $5.00 ($9.00 for Priority) 

7" $4.00 

CD $3.00 

+ $1 per additional item 

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CANADA ONLY 

LP & 10" $15.00 for 1 LP ($35.00 for Priority) 

7" $11.00 

CD $11.00 

+ $3 per additional item 

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International (REST OF WORLD) 

LP & 10" $22.00 for 1 LP ($41.00 for Priority) 

7" $14.00 

CD $11.00 

+ $4 per additional item
  IF YOU LIVE OUTSIDE THE US, DO NOT PAY UNTIL I SEND YOU AN INVOICE!

And yes, I'll be happy to combine shipping. It saves your money and my time!