Although the band had several releases since 1985, Isn't Anything is often considerd as the real debut studio album by My Bloody Valentine. It was released on 21 November 1988 by Creation Records. Its innovative instrumental and production techniques consolidated the experimentation of the band's preceding EPs and would make it a pioneering work of the subgenre known as shoegazing.
Upon its release, the album received rave critical reviews and reached number one in the UK Independent Album Chart. A 1988 year-end roundup of the year's top albums in Melody Maker ranked Isn't Anything third of the year and called it “a raving nymphomania and out-of-body experience establishes them as absent-minded rulers of this daydream nation."

Isn't Anything has subsequently become regarded as one of the greatest albums of the 1980s. The album has been included in The Guardian's list of "1000 Albums to Hear Before You Die" and ranked as number 16 in their "Alternative Top 100 Albums" list.

The NME ranked the album at 187 in its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time while Pitchfork selected the album as the 4th best shoegaze album of all time.

Isn't Anything (tracklist)

Soft As Snow (But Warm Inside)
Lose My Breath
Cupid Come
(When You Wake) You're Still In A Dream
No More Sorry
All I Need
Feed Me With Your Kiss
Sueisfine
Several Girls Galore
You Never Should
Nothing Much To Lose
I Can See It (But I Can't Feel It)

Bonus tracks (Originally included as bonus 7" with the album)
Instrumental A
Instrumental B

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Released in November 1980, 45 years ago, “The Damage Done” stands as the very first single by The Sisters of Mercy, marking the humble yet already distinctive beginnings of a band that would go on to shape the landscape of gothic rock. Issued on the small independent label CNT, the single was pressed in highly limited quantities—reportedly around 1,000 copies—making original versions prized collectors’ items today. Yet beyond its rarity, the release is fascinating for the early blueprint it offers of the band’s future sound and aesthetic.

At this early stage, The Sisters of Mercy consisted only of Andrew Eldritch and Gary Marx, with Eldritch on drums and vocals and Marx on guitar. Contrary to the later, iconic Sisters setup, there was no Doktor Avalanche yet. The tracks were recorded with minimal equipment, reflecting the DIY ethos of the UK post-punk scene. The production is raw, sparse, and somewhat brittle, but that starkness adds to the single’s charm: it captures a band still experimenting, not yet weighed down by expectations or a defined identity.

The title track, “The Damage Done,” is a concise burst of angular guitars and haunting vocals. Eldritch’s voice is markedly higher than the baritone that would become his trademark, but the emotional delivery and lyrical ambiguity already hint at his evolving persona. Themes of loss, emotional turmoil, and detachment—core elements of later Sisters material—appear here in embryonic form.

The B-side, “Watch,” complements the A-side with its driving rhythm and edgy melodicism. Even at this early stage, the band’s ability to craft memorable hooks amid a minimalist framework is evident. Both tracks reveal a young band eager to carve out its own sonic territory, blending post-punk urgency with a sense of dark romanticism.

Although “The Damage Done” made little commercial impact at the time, it remains a crucial artifact in The Sisters of Mercy’s evolution. It captures the moment when two young musicians began forging what would become one of the most distinctive, influential sounds in alternative music.

Want to add this 7" to your collection? Well, you are in luck because there are a couple for sale for merely € 1600 on DISCOGS! :-)

The Damage Done (7" - Merciful Release – MR7

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On November 1974, 51 years agao, German electronic pioneers Kraftwerk released their landmark fourth studio album, Autobahn. Though the exact day isn't precisely documented, this month remains forever tied to a record that would redefine not just the band’s sound, but the future of popular music.

Autobahn marked a turning point in Kraftwerk’s evolution. Previously rooted in experimental krautrock, the band—then a quartet including Ralf Hütter, Florian Schneider, Klaus Röder, and Wolfgang Flür—fully embraced a sleek, electronic-pop aesthetic. Produced jointly by the band and legendary engineer Conny Plank, the album was recorded at Kling Klang Studio in Düsseldorf and at Plank’s own studio in Cologne.

The title track, a hypnotic, 22-minute ode to the sensation of driving on Germany’s highways, became Kraftwerk’s first song with sung lyrics. Its repeated refrain, “Wir fahren, fahren, fahren auf der Autobahn…” (“We drive, drive, drive on the autobahn…”), evokes the hypnotic flow of a motorway journey. Edited down to around three-and-a-half minutes, the single version became a surprise international hit in 1975, charting in the U.S. (#25 on the Billboard Hot 100), Germany, Canada, and beyond.

At its core, Autobahn was more than just a song or album—it was a vision. Kraftwerk sought to capture the mechanical beauty of modern life: the hum of engines, the whirring of tires, the rhythmic pulse of motion. It was electronic music as transportation, in both metaphor and reality.

Over time, Autobahn earned its place as a foundational work in electronic music. Its influence rippled across genres—from synth-pop and new wave to techno and hip-hop. The album’s blend of minimalist synthesisers, repetitive drive, and futuristic aesthetics laid the groundwork for countless artists to come.

Fifty years later, in 2025, Kraftwerk celebrated the album’s anniversary with three new editions—featuring a Dolby Atmos mix, a 12″ picture-disc vinyl, and a Blu-ray release—revisiting the original 16-track master tapes to bring Autobahn into the modern era.

In short: around this day, approximately 50 years ago, Autobahn first hit the world—and changed our sonic landscape forever.

Autobahn Lyrics

Wir fahren, fahren, fahren auf der Autobahn
Wir fahren, fahren, fahren auf der Autobahn

Vor uns liegt ein weites Tal
Die Sonne scheint mit Glitzerstrahl

Wir fahren, fahren, fahren auf der Autobahn
Wir fahren, fahren, fahren auf der Autobahn

Fahrbahn ist ein graues Band
Weiße Streifen, grüner Rand

Autobahn - Tracklist

DISCOGS

On this day, 45 years ago, British Post-punk band The Fall released their third studio album Grotesque (After The Gramme) - 17 November 1980. It was their first studio album released by the Rough Trade Records label.

The album was preceded by two acclaimed singles, "How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'" and "Totally Wired", which did not appear on the original pressing but were subsequently included on CD reissues of the album.

The Fall's music at the time was described as "Mancabilly", and by singer Smith himself as "Country 'n' Northern".

The album was generally well received and highly acclaimed by the music press, rating it with four to five out of the five star ratings.

The album reached number one on the UK Independent Album Chart for 3 sequential weeks, spending 29 weeks on the chart in total.


Grotesque (After The Gramme) (ROUGH 18 - LP)

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The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste – Ministry (1989)

Released on November 14, 1989, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste stands as a defining statement in industrial metal, cementing Ministry as one of the genre’s most influential bands. It was the group’s fourth studio album, following 1988’s The Land of Rape and Honey, and marked a further step away from the synth-heavy new wave sound of their early work toward a harsher, more aggressive fusion of metal, punk, and electronic noise.

Led by Al Jourgensen, Ministry dove deep into themes of social decay, political corruption, drug addiction, and inner turmoil. The album’s title, a dark parody of the United Negro College Fund slogan “A mind is a terrible thing to waste,” reflects its confrontational tone. Musically, it combined machine-like drum programming, grinding guitars, and distorted vocals, creating a sound both chaotic and precise — a soundtrack for a collapsing world.

The opening track, “Thieves,” bursts out with furious energy, its shouted refrain and metallic percussion setting the tone for the record. “Burning Inside” follows with relentless intensity, driven by Paul Barker’s bass and a riff that became one of Ministry’s most recognizable. Other highlights include “Breathe,” which mixes danceable rhythms with apocalyptic lyrics, and “So What,” a sprawling, menacing track that captures the band’s nihilistic ethos. The album closes with “Faith Collapsing” and “Dream Song,” which veer into haunting, atmospheric territory.

Recorded amid chaos, substance abuse, and creative tension, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste nonetheless achieved remarkable coherence. Its raw energy and mechanical precision influenced countless acts across industrial, metal, and electronic music — from Nine Inch Nails and Fear Factory to Rammstein. The accompanying 1990 “Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste” tour (documented on the live album and video In Case You Didn’t Feel Like Showing Up) showcased Ministry at their most ferocious, with a full stage assault of lights, noise, and aggression.

Today, 36 years later, the album still remains a cornerstone of industrial metal, a brutal yet intelligent work that captures the anxiety and rage of the late 20th century — and still sounds disturbingly relevant decades later.

Ministry - Burning Inside (CD/LP - Sire)

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