If you haven’t been out to one of the many record shows here in town, it’s time to get off your butt and come check this out. In case you aren’t familiar with this stuff, just think of it as the best record shop you can imagine, but on wheels and with really weird hours. Every couple months (but more frequently in the summer months), a group of record dealers gather in one place (they move all over the cities) and sell records at great prices. It’s super fun and you will meet some great people when you go. We’ll be down there for sure digging for more items to add to our personal stashes. This time around there will be some local DJs spinning for your entertainment. See details below. Be there or be square.
Location: (same as last time)
2285 University Avenue, St. Paul
It is being held in the ‘party room’ of the Carlton Lofts buildings, which is located between the two loft buildings. There is plenty of free parking on University.
Cover charge: FREE!
Date and time: Friday March 12th 4 PM – 10 PM
Saturday March 13th 10 AM – 10 PM
Sunday March 14th Noon – 4 PM
Friday
4 PM – 6 PM
Phil Borreson (host of Radio K’s Last Year’s Model)
Playing mostly an assortment of New Wave, Power, Synth and Jangle Pop.
6 PM – 8 PM
Mick & Tom Novak
Playing mainly a mixture of girl groups/garage/soul
8 PM – 10 PM
Ryan Cameron
Playing funk & soul (45s only to keep it real!)
Artist: pomogite
Track: ubijcy v belyx xalatax
From the album: soviet funk volume 2
Street date: 3/16/10
Like all of the Soviet Funk material, this track was recorded by Pavel Sysoyev during an unauthorized late night session in a studio intended only to make content for the USSR State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcast (state controlled media). It is the second track on the second volume of the series. In this number you will hear a higher level of musicianship and raw technical ability than the recordings featured in the first installment.
We hope you dig it,
SSR
-right click the download link below and select “save link as” to download-
Last night Cory and Eric from Secret Stash Records did an interview and guest DJ set with DJ Phizzy on Radio K’s On The Corner. They brought in some SSR wax, but also busted out a few of their favorites from their personal stashes as well. Check out a free stream of the entire event below.
Here is the Music Player. You need to installl flash player to show this cool thing!
This contest has expired. Congrats to Gerald K. from New York for winning.
“Why do you like vinyl?” How many times have you been asked this question by friends and family? Invariably, the answers are almost the same every time: it sounds better, you can’t get some of this stuff on CD, I like to hold a physical product, the liner notes, and of course the artwork. Most of us vinyl junkies dig on the artwork almost as much as the music. But, did you know that records didn’t always have artwork on the cover? For years they just came in plain brown jackets.
Be the first to correctly answer the following trivia question and we will send you a FREE Secret Stash T-shirt. Email your answers in here.
Who invented the album cover as we know it today? In what year did he or she do this, and who was his or her employer?
Soviet Funk Volume Two is near (due out 3/16/10)! This collection of tracks from Pavel Sysoyev’s catalog was recorded in the same time period (’71-’76) as volume one with many of the same players. However, it showcases a more jazz influenced, aggressive, and complex style than the first volume. Each LP includes a download card that can be redeemed at www.secretstashrecords.com/digital. Also of note is the extremely unique nature of the actual pressing its self. Soviet Funk Volume Two is being pressed on red and black split color vinyl. This means for instance that if you are looking at the record on your turntable, the left side would be black and right side would be red. Learn more about Soviet Funk Volume Two below. Also be sure to check out the releases page for more into.
Pavel Sysoyev’s SOVIET FUNK
The Soviet Funk series was all recorded by Pavel Sysoyev in Abakan, the capital city of Khakassia between 1971 and 1976. Sysoyev was an employee of the USSR State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcast (state controlled media). He ran a recording studio intended to create content solely for the government media entity. However, Sysoyev frequently brought in his friends and ran late night recording sessions when no one else was around. Today Pavel Sysoyev resides in Saint Paul, MN, just minutes from the Secret Stash headquarters. The label was introduced to him through a network of local producers. Within a matter of weeks we were in business together.
Soviet Funk Volume Two
After Secret Stash Records struck a deal with Pavel Sysoyev to mine his catalog of recorded music we quickly realized that the most difficult part was going to be narrowing down his massive collection into a few user friendly volumes of LP releases. With so much incredible music to work with, this would be no easy task. Volume 1 ultimately served as a nice introduction to Mr. Sysoyev’s catalog. For the most part it was extremely “user-friendly” and accessible (the only exception possibly being the Chizhova/Baykov tunes, which took a pretty big step “outside the box”). While it was what we considered to be a truly great record, it only scratched the surface of the musicality and creativity found in his collection. However, Volume II takes a closer look at the more jazz infused side of Pavel’s signature Soviet Funk sound. It includes more complex compositions and a much more aggressive playing style. However, it still maintains that groovy fun spirit captured so well in Volume 1.
On Wednesday, March 3rd at 8:30pm the owners of Secret Stash records, Eric Foss and Cory Wong will be guest DJs on Minneapolis based Radio K’s “On The Corner.” They will spin some Secret Stash cuts, take part in an interview with the show’s host, DJ Phizzy, and even share some of their favorite grooves from their personal collections. Twin cities residents can tune in the old fashioned way, while people everywhere can stream it live here.
Our friends at iStandrad Producers recently challenged their members to create a beat by sampling the song “Sweet Juices” (from the film Honeydew) off of our LP release, Porno Groove: The Sound of 70s Adult Films. We reviewed all the submissions and picked our three favorite, then Rsonist (of the Heatmakerz) chose the winner from those three. Hear what he had to say and listen to samples of the three finalists in the video below.
After weeks of digging through your sofa and looking behind the fridge for loose change to save up for your very own Secret Stash stuff, it’s finally here! Our web store is open. We are so excited about this that we’d like to make you a special offer. For the month of February we are offering free shipping on all items in our store….so get your Secret Stash LPs, tees, and slip mats now.
*Free shipping applies to all U.S. orders and overseas orders of $50 or more. If you place an overseas order for less than $50, you will receive an email with a link to pay postage via credit card or Pay Pal.
SOVIET FUNK VOLUME 1
Back in October we posted an update on our website called Funk Knows No Boundaries. In it we shared as much as we could about some great unreleased funk from around the globe that we were trying to get our hands on. 10 weeks later, we are very excited to announce our first release of content born abroad. SOVIET FUNK VOLUME 1 will be available 02/02/10. This will also be our first release to include a free downloadable version of the album with each LP purchase. That way if you don’t have a turntable you can still enjoy this record. For more information and to hear audio samples, please view the youtube video. You will also find more background info below.
This collection of SOVIET FUNK was all recorded by Pavel Sysoyev in Abakan, the capital city of Khakassia between 1971 and 1976. Sysoyev was an employee of the USSR State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcast (state controlled media). He ran a recording studio intended to create content solely for the government media entity. However, Sysoyev frequently brought in his friends and run late night recording sessions when no one else was around.
In spite of the loosened restrictions on art and music during the 70s, most Soviet citizens had very limited access to essential American funk records. Sysoyev acquired a small collection of U.S. R&B and Jazz albums in ‘68 from a friend, but that was about it for him and his friends. Yet somehow, this small group of classically trained musicians was able to forge a funky sound of their own. Rooted much deeper in the jazz quartet tradition than the R&B styling of James Brown and The Meters, they tapped into a way of playing jazz with a relentless groove that we endearingly refer to as funk.
Secret Stash Records was contacted by Sysoyev himself in mid 2009. In a matter of weeks a deal was reached granting the label rights to release these funky rarities. Hundreds of hours have been spent digging through stacks of dusty old master tapes to find the best of the best. Soviet Funk Vol I is just a small sampling of the vast catalog of recordings produced by Pavel Sysoyev and his friends, and is just a little glimpse of things to come (more volumes). Listen closely and from time to time you will find elements of Russian classical music in the precision execution of oddly metered unison parts, complex poly-rhythms, and the use of time signatures other than 4/4 (so commonly found in most American funk).
TRACK LIST
SIDE A
01. pavel sysoyev: gostiny dvor
02. pavel sysoyev: zapovednik
03. pomogite: avantyurist
04. pomogite: snokhachestvo
05. pomogite: izvinite
SIDE B
01. victor chizhova & boris baykov: agentura
02. victor chizhova & boris baykov: chernosotenec
03. da/n’et: vyrodok
04. da/n’et: demagogiya
05. pavel sysoyev & victor chizhova: kak vas zovut
We are very excited to announce that we are currently building a store for our website. All of our LP titles will be available as well as Secret Stash t-shirts and slip mats. Everything should be up and running by mid-January. Let’s hope it doesn’t suck.
