Exclusivos - Out of a Promising Start

Well, the response the first time around was pretty enthusiastic, so I'm happy to say that the third official MPAE blog release is this double-disc collection of outtakes, rarities and live recordings by one of the most original bands you've never heard of, The Exclusivos.

Nef says, "It took me nearly six months to culminate but here you go. It's all of our music aside from what's already posted. It's 31 songs, all in chronological order. You pretty much get to hear us evolve from start to finish. The compilation ends with stuff we demoed last year. There are also some surprises at the beginning and end of some of the material. There are Instrumentals on there as well."

Admittedly, most of these recordings are pretty damn rough, but, chances are, if you're coming to this blog you're not an audiophile anyway. If you haven't heard The Exclusivos yet, I highly recommend that you begin with the first release I posted, and then come back here after you're completely hooked.

Now bask in the strangeness.

Exclusivos
Out of a Promising Start MP3
(MPAE)
2010

Disc 1:
(note: songs that are linked can be downloaded as samples)
01. Madness (Intro)
02. Year 3000
03. Charlie
04. Oh No
05. Summer of Fantasy
06. Fargunstein (Original)
07. Sad Ending (Original)
08. Alcoholism
09. Losing (Original)
10. Make Believe
11. Rocket (Original)
12. Losing (Revisited)
13. Micheal 5 (instrumental)
14. Micheal 6 (instrumental)
15. The Machinist (Original)
16. Forces Unknown (Original)

Download Disc 1 as a .zip file!

Disc 2:
(note: songs that are linked can be downloaded as samples)
01. Oh No! (live '05)
02. Rocket (live '05)
03. Fargunstein (live '05)
04. Break Free
05. Ballad of Fred (Original)
06. Hello
07. Faster
08. She Never Liked Me Anyway
09. Rocket (Revisited)
10. Losing (Let The Child Cry Version)
11. Tradition (Demo)
12. Acoustic Demo #1 '08
13. Acoustic Demo #2 '08
14. Demo #1 09
15. Demo #2 09

Download Disc 2 as a .zip file!

More Exclusivos!

Meet the Exclusivos

Eric - Vocals

Nef - Lead guitar, keyboard

Emmanuel - Rhythm guitar, keyboards

Ralph - Bass

John - Drums

(All photos courtesy Nef.)

Exclusivos - Demos

(Exclusivos live - Photo courtesy Nef)

Back about three years ago, my band, ULTRABASTARD!, was playing at Trash Bar in Brooklyn when we noticed these guys up front who were dancing and going nuts to our songs. I remember looking at them funny, because I wasn't sure if they were mocking us or what, as we'd never had a reaction quite like that from total strangers. Turns out, they genuinely loved us and they were all in a band from the Bronx called The Exclusivos.

I checked them out on MySpace and was completely astounded at the completely original, unique songs I heard. They gave me a CD at a later ULTRABASTARD! show and I couldn't stop listening to it. It was just so DIFFERENT. Here's what I wrote for Under the Volcano #93:

From the sinister concrete jungle of the Bronx comes what is quite possibly the oddest band I've heard since Arab on Radar - The Exclusivos. Combining Captain Beefheart insanity with arrangements reminiscent of early Fall, these five outsiders contort their way through eight songs that syncopate like the Birthday Party and trip out like some of the funkiest West African Psychedelia to actually make it to the States. Top it all off with a singer that delivers his lyrics with the mind-altered, yet controlled, monotone of Can's Malcolm Mooney and you're left wondering whether your're listening to a band or a music therapy session at Bellevue. I sincerely hope (believe) that this rough, raw recording is just an inkling of what will come in the future. To quote their song 'The Ballad of Fred': 'The lightning's always frightening when it comes before the thunder.' This recording is the lightening.

Unfortunately, some inner turmoil tore the band apart shortly before ULTRABASTARD! was set to play our first show with them. There have been some attempts at getting the band back together, but nothing's been solid as of yet.

And so, I'm proud to announce the second "official" MPAE blog release. These songs were recorded on a Fostex multi-tracker between late '05 and early '06, according to guitarist/keyboardist Nef. Download it and leave comments to let the band know you want them back in action!

Exclusivos
Demos MP3
(MPAE)
2009

Tracklist:
(note: songs that are linked can be downloaded as samples)
01. Forces Unknown
02. Drip
03. The Machinist
04. Just a Thought
05. Ballad of Fred
06. Have You
07. Fargunstein
08. Tradition
09. Rage, Hate
10. Sad Ending
11. Changing (My Ways)
12. Untitled (Version 1)
13. Untitled (Version 2)
14. Dead Man's Curve
15. Breaking News
16. The Devils Dogs

Download Demos as a .zip file!