On March 1st, Craft Recordings is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the eponymous debut record from folk/punk pioneers Violent Femmes with a new box set, Violent Femmes: 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition. Craft is offering expanded reissues of the band's groundbreaking first album with multi-disc box sets available in a variety of formats. My supplied review copy arrived as the 4-disc vinyl edition, which features three 180 gram LPs and a very cool 45 rpm, 7-inch replica single. A two compact disc set with an expanded selection of bonus tracks will also be available, along with CD-quality digital download files (which duplicate the track listing from the LP box set) available for purchase or streaming on most major services. All formats feature newly remastered audio that offers a significant uptick in sound quality over previous reissues.
The original album and supplemental LPs were remastered from the original analog tapes, with lacquers cut by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio. The three 180 gram LPs and the 45 rpm, 7-inch single were pressed at Memphis Record Pressing (MRP); the LPs arrived inserted into rice paper-lined inner sleeves, which provide superb protection from paper dust and scratching. The box set is encased in a really cool die-cut outer box, which replicates the artwork from Violent Femmes with some nicely done cut-out embellishments. Inside the case are three single jacket, heavy outer sleeves that house each of the LPs; the 45 rpm single is encased in a replica of the original Rough Trade sleeve. The package also includes an elaborate booklet with tons of cool band photos and an excellent essay from Rolling Stone senior editor David Fricke that features interview segments with Gordon Gano, Brian Ritchie, and Victor DeLorenzo. The vinyl box set is a gorgeous package, and to enhance its collectability, it's strictly limited to 5,000 copies worldwide. All versions of Violent Femmes: 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition can be pre-ordered from Craft's web store HERE, and the LPs and CDs will also be available at online retailers and at your local independent record store.
Violent Femmes, Violent Femmes: 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition. 4 Disc Vinyl Box Set, $125.00 MSRP
Violent Femmes were founded in 1981 by bassist Brian Ritchie and percussionist Victor DeLorenzo in their hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The duo busked on downtown street corners evenings and weekends; at some point early on, Ritchie was challenged by friends to prove that he was actually in a band. When pressed for the band's name, he blurted out "Violent Femmes," and he and DeLorenzo decided that they liked the name and continued to use it. They were soon joined by an acquaintance of Ritchie's, vocalist, guitarist, and principal lyricist Gordon Gano—who was still a high school student at the time! Gano was significantly younger than Ritchie and DeLorenzo, but the three gelled seamlessly into a working unit. Violent Femmes had now become an actual band, but according to Gordon Gano, were considered to mostly be a joke by the Milwaukee music community. He recounts in the booklet from the box set that if a local Milwaukee musician was walking down a street the Femmes were busking on, he'd intentionally cross the street to avoid having to make eye contact with them!
That same year, the group was again busking outside of Milwaukee's Oriental Theater, where Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders were scheduled to play later that evening. The trio was spotted by Pretenders' guitarist James Honeyman-Scott, who invited them backstage and arranged for them to play several songs for the very receptive audience. That exposure allowed the Femmes to get bookings at higher profile venues, and in less than a year, they were opening at New York's Bottom Line for Richard Hell and the Voidoids. David Fricke was present at that first show, and he compared Gordon Gano's lyrics and vocal delivery to those of Lou Reed, Bob Dylan, and Jonathan Richman. And Gano had written most of the material that appeared on Violent Femmes while he was still in high school! The record was recorded very quickly and released in April, 1983; it took a while for the band's music to initially catch on, but Violent Femmes eventually went platinum. The band's growing popularity was undeniable.
Violent Femmes: 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition features three full-length 180 gram LPs. Those include the remastered 1983 original Violent Femmes, a second LP that includes demos from the original album sessions, along with a third LP that features a selection of tracks taken from live recordings that date from the period just prior to and following the release of their debut. Also included is a 7-inch, 45 rpm replica of the Femmes' UK Rough Trade indie label single that features the songs "Ugly" backed with "Gimme The Car." The single has a great back story; "Gimme The Car" was an offbeat, sexually charged song that Gordon Gano and Brian Ritchie performed at Gano's induction ceremony into the National Honor Society during his senior year in high school. Gano's attempt at blunt humor was lost on the school's administrators, who were not amused, and the stunt quickly led to his getting expelled from school.
Listening and Final Impressions
Clicking on my name in the header will reveal the equipment in my dual audio systems; my evaluation of Violent Femmes: 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition was done on my mostly-tube, all-analog setup. The 180 gram LPs and the 45 rpm single were presented with outstanding fidelity, and the pressings from MRP were perfectly flat and centered, with beautifully glossy surfaces that were exceptionally quiet. That level of quiet totally suited these raucous recordings, allowing me to hear into them like never before. While Violent Femmes has never sounded so good as it does in this current remastering; the sound of the demos and live tracks are expectedly variable. But even though there's nothing here that hasn't been previously released elsewhere, those tracks enjoy an enhanced level of sound quality in this new set.
The Violent Femmes have become something of a national institution over the years, and Brian Ritchie shared his thoughts on the album's 40th anniversary in the advance press release: "I am frequently stopped on the street by people who tell me, 'Your album changed my life,' or some variant. I don't have to ask, 'Which album?' because it is implied that they're talking about the first one. The uncanny thing is that these people range from early teens to septuagenarians, and they all have the same testimony." Ritchie adds, "Sometimes music is more than just a pleasing sound that entertains. It takes on greater meaning. Multiple generations have found the songs to be relevant in their life situations. Some people say they had sex for the first time listening to it (which I find appalling but whatever) and someone even said, 'I was conceived to your music.' Wow."
Craft Recordings has given us a true gift with this superb new LP box set. The graphically stylish packaging, along with David Fricke's excellent essay and the plethora of cool band photos will make this set indispensable to fans and newbies alike. That said, if the CDs or digital files are more in tune with your current direction, I don't see how you could go wrong there, either. I give this set my highest recommendation!
Craft Recordings
All images courtesy of Craft Recordings.
