Coffin Break-Lies b/w Pray (1990)

 

Artist: Coffin Break

Title: Lies b/w Pray

Label: Sub Pop

Format: 7"

Cat #: SP 85

Year of Release: 1990

Country and Year of Edition Issue: US 1990 Pink/Red Marbled Vinyl

Sold Price: $3.99

Listed Condition: VG+/VG+

Sell Date: 10/13/20

Discogs Last Sold: 9/2/20 $5.26 NM/NM

Low: $2.40

Median: $4.00

High: $5.99

Current low price: $3.49 NM/VG+

Current Number on Sale at Discogs: 21

Have/Want: 207/25

Where Sold: Brooklyn, NY

Time it took to sell: 5 years

Where and When Bought: Newbury Comics Boston new $3.99

Gwiz-gau Letter Grade: A

Sad To See It Go?: No

Excellent single from Coffin Break I forgot about until I heard it last month for the first time since the early 90's.  

My friend Kenny is always extolling the virtues of Coffin Break.  I came onto them pretty early, seeing them on an early Saturday night gig at the Middle East in Cambridge upstairs (there was no downstairs then).  I think they played a quick set then the belly dancers took over Saturday night.  This was around 1989, and I dutifully bought their 12" on C/Z from them, Psychosis, which I liked a lot at the time, particularly the song "The Chosen."

So these two cuts came out with a year or so after I initially saw the band, and I dutifully bought it upon release.  I seem to remember WERS having it when I was doing air there, then buying my copy at Newbury Comics shortly after they got it, as I did in 1990 with any Sub Pop release.

Funny how I fell off the Sub Pop train.  They went from the best of the "grunge" scene to a unreliable indie seeking the next Nirvana.  Compilations and singles were always Sub Pop's strong suite.  Coffin Break were still a C/Z band, and licensed to Sub Pop for this one off single.    Sub Pop 100 & 200 were amazing, and the label  had a sweet spot from Mudhoney until about 1991 or 2 (expansion in Portland) where the quality started to taper off and they began to reach out beyond the Pacific Northwest.  Although Sub Pop got some prime New England action (Green Magnet School, Six Finger Satellite, Codeine, Sebadoh), they seemed to lose something in terms of consistent quality by the mid-90's, then succumbed to wretched backpack rock like Modest Mouse, and synth turds like the Postal Service.  

It doesn't seem like Coffin Break have played live since 2007 for a one off at something called Geezerfest.  Their main run ended around 1996.  That's fine.

Not everyone has to survive decades.