Photo by Vava Vol © 2023 |
It was with great glee that I opened my mailbox over the holidays and found the key to my drop box to discover a copy of Trésor National's 'NOME NOMA 2' album laying peacefully inside!
What a surprise I had upon unwrapping Volume 2 of this very special Québec Post Punk New Wave record! There are lots of fond memories nestled in this compilation! I quickly flipped through the bilingual zine to The Essentials page and found my expectations were pleasantly met! Everything on our page was perfect! Mick would have been so proud. The best was yet to come!
The Essentials are featured on the back cover of the album along with Men Without Hats and Nudimension. Tucked away on the zine's back insert is a shot of band founder Mick Lynes happily playing guitar in our 1979 second floor rehearsal studio above the old Eva Braun building, before it was a consignment vintage store on St-Laurent. Very cool!
Our back cover album photo was taken in the early 80s at a Club Tatou on Parc Avenue gig. I never in my dreams thought it would end up on a post-punk/new wave compilation album 45 years later!
As I rummaged around in the album jacket, I pulled out the wondrous 16 page lime green zine and guess who was on the cover??? Térapi's Franklyne!! Seeing her on the cover brought back so many crazy hilarious times at Les Foufounes and at live shows! What a nice touch guys!
And now for the best part... l'écoute! Carefully placing that pristine vinyl on my turntable and cranking up the sound was ritualistic! As I sat back on my couch and listened to the entire LP from the intro track Life is a Blast by C.C. Orchestra to the final track Amour Programmé by Nudimension, I was impressed by the production and sound quality of these wonderful 80s tracks! NOME NOMA 2 brought me right back to the frenzied underground night clubbing lifestyle of Montreal's gritty, nocturnal late 70s & early 80s.
Welcome to my Babe Cave NOME NOMA 2! You are now perpetually filed under the 'N' section of my ever growing eclectic vinyl collection!
On a final note, I would like to thank Sébastien and Victor for including Zilon along with the other dearly departed Mick Lynes, Giuseppe "Joe" DiMauro, and Robert Ditchburn. RIP gentlemen!
The cassette that made it happen! 'You're Too Rude' b/w 'Can't Afford' |
The Essentials - The Legacy Lives On