Latimer...

Latimer was a Philadelphia based rock/alternative band during the mid-nineties that to say was overlooked and underappreciated would be a bit of an understatement. Obviously coming out with their debut record LP Title in 1995 they were pitted against a plethora of other alternative acts during the same time looking to make their mark through the airwaves and probably more so on MTV. Regardless, Latimer never really made much of a mark with the EP and two albums they released on Gang of Four member Dave Allen’s label World Domination, which is too bad because they had an absolutely fantastic trashy indie-rock sound.

Their first album LP Title is the only album that would feature a complete two guitar attack, which makes it a lot of fun to listen to. The way the two of them worked around each other to create such a whirlwind of sound is fairly impressive. Unfortunately, guitarist Rich Fravel would exit the band after that album leaving the rest of the members Dylan Cotton (bass/vocals), Geoff Doring (guitar/vocals), and Rob Sherman (drums) as pretty much a trio for their second and final album Live from Sour City released in 1997. I say pretty much, since Mac Merritt contributed additional guitars on four tracks for the second album. However, throughout it’s apparent that the second guitar is greatly missed and Live from Sour City doesn’t necessarily hold up as well to their debut. It sort of reverts back to a more straight ahead modern rock approach with a few twists and turns still worked in here and there. Just overall not as strong as I imagine they could have been if they’d still had a full-time second guitarist. Despite all of that though, their second album is still worth listening to.

LP Title:
Latimer – Kiss 120 [MP3]
Latimer – Hold Down [MP3]

Live From Sour City:
Latimer – Competition No. 4 [MP3]

As usual with these sorts of things, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. You can currently find both of Latimer’s albums on Amazon for no more than a penny. A penny folks, and of course some shipping. I’d say that’s definitely worth it for at least LP Title…and even Sour City too but I won’t push you. Pick these up if you dig the tunes.

Svelt...

Svelt was one of many projects for the brothers Chris and Nate Slusarenko, who have made a name for themselves among the Portland, OR music scene and more for the past couple decades or so. Svelt might even look like a blip on the radar these days, during their brief period together the band released a full-length album titled Souvenir through Schizophonic Records in 1996 along with an EP that same year called The Shetland Sessions also through Schizophonic. The band also contributed a track to the It’s Finally Christmas compilation, which I sadly don’t have.

Svelt was formed after the brothers previous band Sprinkler disbanded, who are also worth checking out as well. Their one and only album Souvenir is a fine slab of rock that sort of had a carry over sound from their days on Sub Pop while with Sprinkler. The music on Souvenir in particular contained a larger sound that was partly due to the constant wallop of N. Slusarenko’s drumming. The band also didn’t shy away from poppy melodies, in fact both Souvenir and their EP Shetland Sessions are full of them, but the band worked in a few interesting twists and turns that often times couldn’t be found in the more mainstream alt-rock bands of the time.

Souvenir:
Svelt – Very Real [MP3]
Svelt – Shrunken Head [MP3]

Shetland Sessions:
Svelt – Ditty [MP3]

Nate Slusarenko played in a number of bands with his brother Chris along the way and has done artwork and design for various things over the years. Chris Slusarenko formed his own record label called Off Records. Chris played bass with Guided by Voices from 2003-2004 and is one half of the duo The Takeovers with Robert Pollard. Chris was recently named as part of Pollard’s newly announced band Boston Spaceships as well, which plan on having an album out sometime later this year.

For those interested in picking up material by Svelt, both the album and the EP are still available through CD Baby, so head on over there to pick those up. Highly recommended.