Two Blood-Soaked Space-Horror Hits!!

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:

Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks

Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks (PR 6632-7) was a promotional 7” EP released in 1996. It was put out by Lava Records, a subsidiary of Atlantic. It was a split single between Man or Astro-Man? and Pavement. The single was never for sale, but was sent out to promote an album’s worth of late-1970s children’s songs re-imagined by artists that grew up with the animated television show.

Schoolhouse Rock ran from 1973-85. The short, music-heavy clips ran between episodes of Saturday morning cartoons. The aim was to use cartoons to teach kids about history, science and language. The Astro-Man track came from an episode written to help children remember facts about the solar system.

The picture sleeve was made from very stiff cardstock that was printed in full-color. It was machine folded and glued together. It is unique as an Astro-Man release in that it only features the three core members of the band—there was no rhythm guitarist credited. This copy, like many others floating around, was autographed by Coco, Starcruch and Birdstuff. For a long time every copy that came up for sale had been autographed. This makes me wonder if there was some sort of signing event in this single’s history.

It was pressed on yellow-orange vinyl. Here is a scan:

Gearhead Magazine Insert #5

Gearhead #5 was a split 7” single that was released in April of 1997 (RPM 005). It was a free insert with the fifth issue of Gearhead Magazine. The two bands on the record, Man or Astro-Man? and Chrome, each did one song. There was also a second track on the Astro-Man side, a sample of someone talking at a race track about needing a meatball. The picture sleeve was made from heavy paper that was folded in half. There was no printing on the inside of the sleeve. There were 7000 copies of this issue printed. It is still available through the Gearhead website.

Here is a scan of the picture sleeve. My scanner has trouble capturing glossy, monochromatic pictures, so sorry if this on looks a bit muddled. I wasn't able to get a clear shot:



Here is the “available in this issue” page:



The record was pressed onto thick, opaque black vinyl:



Thanks to Brandonio Granger for several of these scans!

Disjointed Parallels

Disjointed Parallels was a split 7" EP by Man or Astro-man? and the Anachronauts. It was released by Eerie Materials records in 1995. It was part three in a series of records that the label called "Eerie Themes." As a result its catalog number was simply Eerie Themes 3. The picture sleeve was made from thick, folded cardstock that was blank on the inside. The artwork was done by Shag. There were two different sets of inserts, depending on when the copy was purchased. The first set of inserts (available before the Summer of '96) included a two-sided band information sheet and a two-sided advertisement for the label. The band sheet featured an early Astro-Man website address and an Eerie Materials address in Ohio. The separate label insert listed many items as "coming soon." With the later set of inserts, updated in 1996, the MOAM? side of the band insert is completely redesigned and indicates the later astroman.com website. There is also a different address listed for the record label. The second insert has much of the same information as the earlier version, but many of the "coming soon" items were now available.

The single was distributed by K Records out of Olympia, WA. An oval K sticker was affixed to the back side of the plastic over sleeve.

Here is a scan of both sides of the two early inserts:


And here are some scans of the later set of inserts:



Here is a look at the distribution sticker:



And here is the record itself, only available on translucent black:



This is one of the few Astroman singles that remain readily available. Though the label has changed its address several times over the years, they are currently operating out of Hawaii. To order a copy, CLICK HERE.

Cheap Sweaty Fun & T.J.'s Xmas 1994

Cheap Sweaty Fun & T.J.'s Xmas 1994 was a one-sided 7" split single featuring music by Girls Against Boys and Man... or Astro-man?. It was put out by Cheap Sweaty Fun (CSF 003). It was given away at a Christmas party in 1994. The party was thrown by a non-profit promotion company in South Wales, UK called Cheap Sweaty Fun. The party took place in a legendary club in the city of Newport called T.J.'s. As a result, the single is sometimes referred to as the "Welsh Tour Single." Several of these were sold in a slate of online auctions that Birdstuff used to finance the band's West Coast tour in February of 2011. Birdstuff indicated at that time that only 300 of these were pressed.

The single was only available on black vinyl, and it came in a black sleeve with gold letter-press writing that indicated the band names and the track listing.

The single included a small, folded paper insert stamped on the inside with the following text: "Cheap Sweaty Fun says Bollix to yis! Ho! Ho! Ho!" The cover of the insert features a picture of cowboys being bucked off horses and the text: "Everybody Looks Forward to Rodeos." The back of the insert indicates that the GvsB song is taken from the Touch and Go Records LP Cruise Yourself. The MoAM? tracks were recorded live at The Cumberland Arms in Newcastle, during their "Triumphant 1994 Tour."

Here are both sides of the single-sided single. Note that there is no center label, and side B is completely smooth:



Here is a scan of the inside and outside of the insert (the cowboy is the front and the blue ink message is the inside):

The Various Boss Sounds from beyond the Far Reaches... and Then Some!

The Various Boss Sounds from beyond the Far Reaches... and Then Some! was a split 7" EP between Huevos Rancheros and Man or Astro-man?. Each band contributed two songs. It was released in 1994 on Get Hip Records (GH-167). The picture sleeve was printed on thick cardstock that was folded in the middle. The inside sleeve featured an advertisement for other releases put out by the same record label. Here is the inside of the picture sleeve:



It was released on two colors of vinyl: opaque black and clear. The clear vinyl version was not purely clear and can sometimes appear to be bluish or greenish in color. That being said, it's really just clear.

Here are both variations of the vinyl:



With the clear version, there was a pink sticker on the outer plastic sleeve indicating that the record was on color vinyl. It looked like this:

Kill Geeksville

Man... or Astro-Man? Meet Teenage Caveman, commonly referred to as the Kill Geeksville record, was a split 7" EP by Man or Astro-man? and Teenage Cavemen (billed as both Teenage Caveman and Teenage Cavemen on the release). It was put out by Worry Bird Records (WOE-22) in 1994. MOAM? contributed two songs: "Bombora" (an original Surfaris cover) and "Surf Terror." The two songs were recorded at Zero Return studios by James Marrer (credited on the sleeve as Jim Morer). Teenage Cavemen also did two songs: "Phantom Stranger of your Heart" and "Sidekick." The cover was printed on glossy cardstock that was folded in half. There was no printing on the inside cover. The record was only pressed on opaque black vinyl.

Here is a scan of the record:


This was the first split single that MOAM? did. Many more would follow. This one featured a lesser known southern band that, because of some shared membership, is often referred to as an Astroman side-project. I'm not sure if we can really call the Teenage Cavemen a side-project, since they seem to have risen from the same Auburn, Alabama music scene at around the same time. There was some band member crossover, though. It is a little tough to pin down who was who since the members of both bands used assumed names. I know for certain that original Astroman Birdstuff (Brian Teasley) was also the drummer for the Teenage Cavemen. Bill Bradley, who played briefly in MOAM? as Mr. Neutron (most notably at Garageshock '94) was also a member, as was his eventual Astroman replacement Captain Zeno (Jason Russell). Russell was also the founder of the Homo Habilis record label, and would later play with the Quadrajets. Rounding out the Cavemen were fellow Quadrajet Rob Hauck, and a guy named Hardy Gilbert (the only one not in either MOAM? or the Quadrajets).

Here is a photo of Mr. Neutron (Bill Bradley) performing with MOAM? at 1994's Garageshock:

Of course, this rundown of Teenage Cavemen members only accounts for five of the six players listed on the back of the split single. I'm not sure who the other member was, though I've long heard that Dr. Deleto (Jeff Goodwin) was also involved. As contributor Abraham Lincoln III points out, it is interesting to think of Teenage Caveman as a training ground for several generations of Man or Astro-Man? members and as a sort of precursor to the Quadrajets. Teenage Cavemen released at least one other record, a single on Homo Habilis records called Spirit of Wildwood. Interestingly enough, there are only five band members shown on that single's front cover illustration. Here is a scan of that single: