2012.06.27 The Mercury Program/Maserati Split

Color: Black

Release Date: 2003, October 7 (2005, Dec - Vinyl)

Label: Kindercore/Hello Sir

This is a pretty important record for me. It satisfied a craving for more from a (then) newly discovered Mercury Program and was my first audible introduction to the band Maserati. It was released at the height of my fever for instrumental bands. I originally grabbed this on CD while still living in Chicago - just before moving to Nashville. I bought it on vinyl just before moving to Atlanta from Nashville, thanks to the good folks at Hello Sir reissuing this split EP which originally came out on Kindercore Records. The Mercury Program turn in their most mellow batch of songs but that doesn’t detract from the quality of these jams at all. Quite the opposite - there is an understated beauty to all three of their offerings. The Maserati tunes on this release are pre-Jerry Fuchs days and are probably some of that band’s mellower output as well. Still, what can be heard here was enough to intrigue me and keep me listening enough to look out for future releases from them. The design of this record is equally mellow as the music. It’s simple but tasteful and, although not executed this way, lends itself nicely to a screen-printed look. There’s also something simply tasteful about the way the type is set on the inner sleeve. Nothing flashy at first glance, but there was definitely come careful thought put into it. One of my faves.