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You've got mail...
Oct. 25th, 2021 06:45 pmOr rather, I've got mail, or rather, Mael, because the copy of the Annette soundtrack on vinyl that I ordered for my dad's birthday just came in today! I'm so happy. Now all I can hope is that he hasn't already ordered it for himself... Oh well, I can give him a copy of my own album for his birthday if so, he'd probably enjoy that just as much.
I'm satisfied with the overseas shipping. Took 13 days, which is about how long I expected it would take. Less satisfied with the price, though (although honestly, 40 bucks is NOT a problem compared to some of the ridiculously high prices for other Sparks albums that I've seen on Discogs), but that won't prevent me from ordering more from their shop because I'm getting desperate, man. So desperate that I was watching some of the extra clips from The Sparks Brothers that a kind soul sent to me (seeing as I'm slightly on the fence about buying the Blu-Ray and also want to save money before I spend it on more frivolity like movies and records), and there was a scene where Ron & Russell were in a record store in Japan, and they found THREE of their own albums on vinyl and I had to remind myself that this was filmed several years ago so all the records are probably sold now and, more importantly, I'm not booking a flight to fucking Japan just so I can go buy Sparks records. But yeah, THAT'S how desperate I've gotten. (And yet I won't order anything from Amazon for... some goddamn reason... Seriously, Amazon is the solution to most of my problems but I'm generally pissed off at Amazon anyway and also I want to support independent record stores as much as I can. Or support the band directly by buying from their site.)
As far as selection goes on Sparks' official site... there's still not much. The only albums available on vinyl from their store are their two most recent- A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip and Hippopotamus- plus Gratuitous Sax and Senseless Violins, plus, of course, the Annette soundtrack, and the greatest hits compilation that I already have, Past Tense. Fortunately I would love to have Hippopotamus and Gratuitous Sax on vinyl, so it could be worse. I just wish they also offered the ones I want the most- Kimono My House, Angst In My Pants, In Outer Space, Introducing Sparks, and No. 1 In Heaven. I won't even mention Lil' Beethoven, which is the one I want more than anything else, because I know it's like impossible to find copies from its original release and I have no idea if they'd ever re-release it. Though I honestly think they should re-release ALL their albums because demand is super high right now. And that might be the only way for people to buy them, considering (as I like to put a positive spin on it) whoever owns Sparks albums probably doesn't want to give away their copies... I did hear a rumor that some of their albums are going to be re-released this fall, but it's already fall and the full Annette soundtrack is coming out next month and that's already been announced so I can't imagine they'd want any other releases to overshadow that. (Speaking of which, I am VERY excited for that release, if only so I can hear the original demos...)
If the re-releases end up happening, I already have my Christmas list made. I want Lil' Beethoven, plus a calendar, plus a scrapbook, plus a lantern with spinning lights that's sort of similar to the one in Annette, because I used to have one and then it broke and I really miss lighting up my room like that. And that is all that I want. I'm more excited about the gift-giving this year than the gift-receiving, for once. Not only the record for my dad (his birthday is close to Christmas anyway), but I'm also planning on making saint candles based on my best friends' respective celebrity crushes (they're in the same fandom so I think they'd both get a kick out of it), which also gives me the excuse to make ones for Hari Seldon, David St. Hubbins, and Ron Mael like I've been wanting to lol. I don't know what to give my siblings or my mother yet. I'm thinking it would be fun to do a Secret Santa exchange with my bandmates so I've got that covered. Other than that... that's everyone I need to shop/create for, I think. (Can't believe I'm thinking about Christmas this early. It's not even Halloween yet, and that's my favorite holiday. Oh well, two more days and then the costume-wearing begins for me...)
My costumes this year (yes, I'm going to five different Halloween events so I'm wearing five different costumes):
1. Spacegirl
2. Skeleton
3. Roseanne Roseannadanna from SNL
4. Laura Palmer from Twin Peaks
5. R2-D2 from Star Wars
I'm satisfied with the overseas shipping. Took 13 days, which is about how long I expected it would take. Less satisfied with the price, though (although honestly, 40 bucks is NOT a problem compared to some of the ridiculously high prices for other Sparks albums that I've seen on Discogs), but that won't prevent me from ordering more from their shop because I'm getting desperate, man. So desperate that I was watching some of the extra clips from The Sparks Brothers that a kind soul sent to me (seeing as I'm slightly on the fence about buying the Blu-Ray and also want to save money before I spend it on more frivolity like movies and records), and there was a scene where Ron & Russell were in a record store in Japan, and they found THREE of their own albums on vinyl and I had to remind myself that this was filmed several years ago so all the records are probably sold now and, more importantly, I'm not booking a flight to fucking Japan just so I can go buy Sparks records. But yeah, THAT'S how desperate I've gotten. (And yet I won't order anything from Amazon for... some goddamn reason... Seriously, Amazon is the solution to most of my problems but I'm generally pissed off at Amazon anyway and also I want to support independent record stores as much as I can. Or support the band directly by buying from their site.)
As far as selection goes on Sparks' official site... there's still not much. The only albums available on vinyl from their store are their two most recent- A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip and Hippopotamus- plus Gratuitous Sax and Senseless Violins, plus, of course, the Annette soundtrack, and the greatest hits compilation that I already have, Past Tense. Fortunately I would love to have Hippopotamus and Gratuitous Sax on vinyl, so it could be worse. I just wish they also offered the ones I want the most- Kimono My House, Angst In My Pants, In Outer Space, Introducing Sparks, and No. 1 In Heaven. I won't even mention Lil' Beethoven, which is the one I want more than anything else, because I know it's like impossible to find copies from its original release and I have no idea if they'd ever re-release it. Though I honestly think they should re-release ALL their albums because demand is super high right now. And that might be the only way for people to buy them, considering (as I like to put a positive spin on it) whoever owns Sparks albums probably doesn't want to give away their copies... I did hear a rumor that some of their albums are going to be re-released this fall, but it's already fall and the full Annette soundtrack is coming out next month and that's already been announced so I can't imagine they'd want any other releases to overshadow that. (Speaking of which, I am VERY excited for that release, if only so I can hear the original demos...)
If the re-releases end up happening, I already have my Christmas list made. I want Lil' Beethoven, plus a calendar, plus a scrapbook, plus a lantern with spinning lights that's sort of similar to the one in Annette, because I used to have one and then it broke and I really miss lighting up my room like that. And that is all that I want. I'm more excited about the gift-giving this year than the gift-receiving, for once. Not only the record for my dad (his birthday is close to Christmas anyway), but I'm also planning on making saint candles based on my best friends' respective celebrity crushes (they're in the same fandom so I think they'd both get a kick out of it), which also gives me the excuse to make ones for Hari Seldon, David St. Hubbins, and Ron Mael like I've been wanting to lol. I don't know what to give my siblings or my mother yet. I'm thinking it would be fun to do a Secret Santa exchange with my bandmates so I've got that covered. Other than that... that's everyone I need to shop/create for, I think. (Can't believe I'm thinking about Christmas this early. It's not even Halloween yet, and that's my favorite holiday. Oh well, two more days and then the costume-wearing begins for me...)
My costumes this year (yes, I'm going to five different Halloween events so I'm wearing five different costumes):
1. Spacegirl
2. Skeleton
3. Roseanne Roseannadanna from SNL
4. Laura Palmer from Twin Peaks
5. R2-D2 from Star Wars
