Two Blood-Soaked Space-Horror Hits!! was a split 7" EP released in 2000. It was put out by Loch Ness Records (TMA 008). The split featured Man or Astro-man? and Jonny and the Shamen. MOAM? did "A Synthesis of Previously Unknown Substances" and Johnny and the Shamen did "Stratosphere Mortuary Theme".
This was the only Astro-Man single to feature the four man line up with both Trace Reading and Blazar the Probe Handler on guitar. Blazar (Richie Edelson) had also been in the Clone Project: Alpha band, performing as Cocoid. He was not the only member from the Clone Tour to play on this single--there were also two versions of Chromo Crunch. The first was Erich Hubner (Trace Reading). Much like Edelson, Hubner was drafted into the band proper after a stint in the clone band. Replacing Hubner as the second Chromo Crunch was Jonny Stratosphere (Jonny Browning). Browning appeared on this record as the leader of the Shamen. He later played with Birdstuff in a band called the Humans. Recently he rejoined Man or Astro-Man? under the name Victor Vector.
The full-color picture sleeve for this single was machine folded and glued, and printed with high-gloss ink. It featured the artwork of Ronnie Land who had previously done the artwork for the MOAM? lunchbox and thermos set, and for the clock and light switch plates that were for sale on the astroman.com website in the mid-1990s.
There were 1000 copies of this one pressed, all on translucent blue vinyl. Here is a scan:
More confusion:
ReplyDeleteJonny and Blazar weren't the only clones on this record - Jonny wasn't even the only clone called Chromo Crunch on this record: Erich Hubner/Trace Reading was the first Chromo Crunch in "Clone Project Alpha: Phase One" where he performed with Blazar/Cocoid. When Star Crunch and Dexter X were jettisoned from MOAM?, Erich/Trace and Richie/Blazar were pulled into MOAM? proper while Jonny/Victor Vector became the second Chromo Crunch and Cocoid was also replaced (I have no idea with who) in what became "Clone Project Alpha: Phase Two."
Here's a long video with the first set of Alpha clones, including Trace and Blazar:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4-6CLlo1G0
And a short one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Aksqb2ygaI
Here's the only video I've ever seen with the second set of Alpha Clones, and they're not even performing. Note Jonny/Victor/Chromo's Beatle wig:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgRAbiO12iM
Sorry for the long post - I'm just doing what I can to help demystify the tangled MOAM? membership web. I saw the Alpha Clones at Stubbs in Austin, TX, and it was with the men who later became Trace and Blazar. (Later that night they told some friends of mine "We are the new Man or Astro-Man?" which led us to believe that the clones were some kind of permanent thing - we didn't know about the Star Crunch thing... yet.) Good show, and probably dangerous - they set the cymbals on fire during "Nitrous Burn Out," and the six foot flames were whipping across the sheet they were using for a projection screen. I thought, for a second, that we were all going to die.
Bonus credit: Dexter Why? from the Alpha Clones later became Causey, from the Causey Way.
AL III, thanks for the info. This was exactly what I wanted this blog to become: a dumping ground for all Astro-related information.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that's always confused me? How was Brian Causey not in the Causey Way?
The Causey Way thing, which probably predates the clones a little bit, has always perplexed me. I remember seeing an interview with Birdstuff years ago where he said the name Causey Way was purely coincidental, but Star Crunch was a little freaked out about it anyway. It's also been said that Scott "Causey" Stanton's middle name really is Causey, and that's where it comes from. I'm sure only Astro-Insiders know the truth, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out the whole thing was designed to fuck with Brian Causey a little bit. (I did catch the Causey Way in Austin once, and they killed it - a great cover of the B-52's "Dance This Mess Around" was a definite set highlight).
ReplyDeleteSort of a side note for extra-super bonus credit:
There was one more clone who performed both live with the real Man or Astro-Man? and in the studio, and that clone was Carol/Shannon Wright, whose official MOAM? name was "SW6," and she only performed on a South American/Brazilian tour after Blazar left in 2001. Carol/Shannon/SW6 also played guitar on "After All the Prosaic Waiting... the Sun Finally Crashes into the Earth"
on A Spectrum of Finite Scale.
Here's the only photographic evidence of this event that I'm aware of:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/withlasers/3267230070/#/
Note that she's wearing Blazar's jumpsuit.
Here's a review from that brief tour (with the author's original grammar and spelling intact):
"Hi.
wow... wow... WOW!!!!
What a show last night!!! I can say that I was afraid. I saw 2 of the rockiest shows of my life this year, and them MOAM? was coming, with a new
member, and after seeing 2 shows of them I was wondering if it was not going to sound very rockandrollish!! BUT, it was so UC&&@#&�$)@!&ING COOL!!!
I can't believe that, for those who didn't like SW6 (the new astroma, oops, astrowoman) joining the band, you all are wrong, I believe that this was the best of their shows here.
Some stuff like the flaming theremin, the slow motion end was never saw in Brazil, so we were all very surprised and amazed. They realy now how to do a great show!
I even got the chance to interview coco to teh web zine I write for and it is not on line yet, but as soon as we put it on line you all will know
about. Coco even hang out with some of the brazilian astro listees after the shannon wright show and he is a real cool guy. He said that was great to play with Autoramas in their previous tour (aeh Simone, teve a manha) and other stuff that I still have to write fown to remember, coz I only slept 4 ours, woke up and now I'm going to work....
And you all will know when the pics are up on the net.
[]s
M"
Taken from the old Astro-List, circa 2001.
Now I just want to see a picture of the band with Grand Master Useless (circa 1992),
ALIII
You're my new hero Abe. The post has been up dated.
ReplyDeleteCheck out this Clone footage:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.staticage.org/2005/12/static-age-volume-3.html
Blazar and Trace in embryo, Causey and a drummer I still can't place. Looking again at the phase two video, I think Browning is wearing the wig to look more like Erich Hubner . . .
James,
ReplyDeleteThe Clone Project's drummer, Dorkstuff, was Colin English. Colin English was a member of Toenut, and later played in The Plastic Plan with erstwhile Servotron member Ashley Moody after the 1998 Astro-HQ restructuring.
Toenut, from the Atlanta area, were frequent touring companions of MOAM? during the Star Crucnh era, and also contained Cocoid/Blazar/Richie Edelson on guitar, and Trace Reading/Chromo Crunch/Erich Hubner later toured as their bassist, after Toenut's bassist died in a tragic auto accident. Clone Project Alpha was mainly put together from Toenut's ashes, and Birdstuff and Blazar were later involved in the two Toenut leaders' later project, Tyro.
I still don't know who the second,"Phase Two," Cocoid was, but I've often heard rumors that Jonny & the Shamen made up one of the clone bands, and as you can see from the Static Age videos, a Clone Project Beta was also planned (this was also mentioned in interviews from the time), and this cancelled project may have been made up of other Shamen. Of course, Jonny/Victor Vector joined the clones, and the new Cocoid could have been from the Shamen as well.
Maybe Jonny will poke his head in here and clear this up. Oh, and I always thought the Beatles wig was meant to simulate Star Crunch's moptop, but it does look a little like Trace Reading's.
ALIII
I've been having a great time reading through this blog about one of my all time favorite bands MOAM.
ReplyDeleteI filmed the show that is the second youtube link in Abraham's post above. Lot's of fun and a crazy idea for a show I thought at the time. This was I believe the debut of the Clone Alpha Batch.
Speaking of shows anyone here have an idea just who were Van Or Astrovan? I saw them as an opening act sometime during the Trace Reading era, and they were very neat. Like Kraftwerk and P-Funk slapped together. You could only see their silhouettes onstage and they wore goggles with red LED lights.
Cheers,
David