Jay Reatard/Deerhunter - Split 7"

Jay Reatard/Deerhunter – “Flourescent Grey”/”Oh, It’s Such a Shame” Split 7”

Matador, 2008

Acquired: Love Garden, New, 2008

Price: $6

As the scarcity of the 7”s rose, so did the price, which correlated with a severe dip in my interest. $6 for a seven-inch is fucking insane from a numbers point (That’s $3 a song, where a long player runs about $1.50 a song assuming an average of 12 tracks and ballooned $18 list price). Still, I was committed, having already purchased the first three sevens in Jay Reatard’s 2008 Matador seven-inch series, and even though I don’t consider myself a Collector collector, that was the mindset I was in when I bought this. The $6 for a seven-inch racket exists to woo hardcore collectors. It’s something exclusive. It’s like finding all the gaps in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater or collecting all the hidden flags in Assassin’s Creed: totally superfluous. At least from a music stand point, since when am I ever going to just put on a seven-inch? That’s just me personally, though. It’s more a piece of art than a delivery system for jams. Still, this is a beautiful little piece of art. The vinyl is split pink and black to fit the overall packaging scheme and looks absolutely delicious. Oh yeah, and there’s music too, I guess. Reatard covers Deerhunter’s “Flourescent Grey” and makes it creepier than the already pretty creepy original. Deerhunter covers Reatard’s “Oh, It’s Such a Shame” and they do a really fantastic job with it. Deerhunter has always been one of those bands I’ve failed to connect with, despite enjoying their albums. They bring a surprising amount of gravitas to Reatard’s garage rock banger. I’m not usually one for big, instrumental pieces to close out a track, but the blanket of processed guitars Deerhunter lay down over the last minute or so of this cover is exceedingly pleasant. They steal the show, on Reatard’s own seven-inch, and maybe that was the point. You’ve also gotta love the trollingly homoerotic cover, too.

Jay Reatard - "Flourescent Grey"

Deerhunter - "Oh, It's Such a Shame"

Jay Reatard - "Always Wanting More" 7"

Jay Reatard – “Always Wanting More” 7”

Matador, 2008

Acquired: Love Garden, New, 2008

Price: $5

Pulling this one from its sleeve, I forgot this one was one was on clear vinyl with neon primary colors painted in streaks on the B-side. It got my heart racing! And then the track kicked in and my heart kept racing because “Always Wanting More” is the best. Sure, it was the first track from Reatard’s 2008 singles series that I heard (on a Matador compilation on the way back from SXSW that year) so there’s some sentimental attachment. It was the first song of Reatards that stopped me in my tracks. It’s the purest distillation of what Reatard does so well: big, chiming riffs; barreling garage rock with a pop singer’s mentality; earwormy hooks. It’s super satisfying and relistenable. B-side “You Mean Nothing to Me” borrows the warbly synthesizer from “An Ugly Death” but neglects to channel that song’s spunk. Maybe it’s just the scales balancing and we just have to deal with the series’ catchiest song being paired with its most forgettable.

"Always Wanting More"

Jay Reatard - "Painted Shut" 7"

Jay Reatard – “Painted Shut” 7”

Matador, 2008

Acquired: Love Garden, New, 2008

Price: $5

How Reatard and Matador decided the A and B-sides seems to have been an arbitrary process, because the rather rote garage rocker “Painted Shut” absolutely pales in comparison to b-side “An Ugly Death.” A spooky synthesizer sets a creepy, Halloween-y vibe that carries through the verses and reappears in the chorus to lend the bouncy hook a hand. I just listened to “Painted Shut” a minute ago and I’ve already forgotten what it sounds like, but “An Ugly Death” is one of my favorite tracks from Jay Reatard’s 2008 singles series. Sure, it’s garage-y like the rest of ‘em but it’s the most fun track of the lot.

"An Ugly Death"

Jay Reatard - "See/Saw" 7"

Jay Reatard – “See/Saw” 7”

Matador, 2008

Acquired: Love Garden, New, 2008

Price: $4

“See/Saw” was my introduction to the late Jay Reatard and his immediately satisfying ramshackle garage-rock. Actually, that’s not true. I heard “Always Wanting More” first on a Matador compilation highlighting all the cool shit they were releasing in 2008. “See/Saw” was the first of six seven-inches released in 2008 (“Always Wanting More” was third) and, despite not really buying seven-inches at the time, I was buying scads of records and liked “Always Wanting More” enough to take a flyer on Memphis’s latest musical genius. “See/Saw” is fantastic, and so is the B-side “Screaming Hand,” and really, so are most of the tracks from his 2008 seven-inch series (I have changed my tune since I wrote up the compilation collecting all of the seven-inch songs five years ago, and of course I don’t have it anymore, drag). I don’t know if Reatard heralded the grungy garage rock revival that exploded in the late 00s and still haunts us today, but he was one of its brightest stars and the only one I could listen to without having my eyes glass over. The hooks are just phenomenal, and somehow the production sounds professional and gritty at the same time. It’s a ridiculous shame that Matador released fewer and fewer copies of each successive seven-inch because I bought the first four and it was absolutely impossible to get my hands on the other two without having to do commit some sort of debauchery, which I’d do for GBV or the Hold Steady but not for Jay Reatard. Still, these two tracks are absolute killers.

"See/Saw"

"Screaming Hand"