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Freshly Stained

by S M U G

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    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    +AUTOGRAPHED+ Freshly Stained CD in a cardboard digipak case + *FREE* "Composer's Demo" CD in a clear slimline jewel case with art & info printed on the CD itself included at no extra cost.

    Includes unlimited streaming of Freshly Stained via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 5 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $15 USD or more 

     

1.
3 States 6 Days 1200 Miles 04:22
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2.
Shoulda Wrote A Ballad 03:01
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3.
Passing You By 04:23
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4.
They Never Read The Book 02:33
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5.
Change 04:30
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6.
Those That Gave Them Their Name 04:32
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7.
Doubtful 04:46
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8.
It's Me 03:01
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9.
Most of All 06:40
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about

THIS IS A NINE SONG ALBUM

“Freshly Stained" is SMUG's debut record from 2007. It's hard to believe that it was recorded so long ago because it still sounds so "Fresh" now in late 2023, 16 years later—a lifetime in the world of popular music. Regretfully, the record never received the recognition the band felt it merited back then (ahead of our time!?…), so I am giving it a second chance here with this release of it on Bandcamp.

I found our first press release/bio while browsing over the band's early promotional materials: "SMUG kicks ass! A pleasant diversion from the corporate crap played on the radio, this Los Angeles-based trio's music is somewhere between a well-aged, silky cabernet and a sledgehammer to the face. Bret Helm (bass/vocals), Rick Musallam (guitar/vocals), and Sean Daniel (drums) are touring and session veterans who form SMUG. Together, they create well-written songs with a hard-hitting, yet reflective, rock sound. They have moments when they sound like the best musicians you could ever find, and other times when they sound like a group of 14-year-olds ready to fall apart. Either way, this trio will fill you up."

The L.A. Weekly chimed in with this like-minded morsel: "This nails-to-the-chalkboard trio flexes muscles that haven't been moved in a long time."

Indeed.

In this era of the streaming of bits and pieces of songs, where many people are quick to jump to the next, and then to the next, never completing any of them, I challenge you to find the time to listen to this album in its entirety. That’s the way I grew up listening to music and the way we, the band, intended you to hear this album. Play it loud and enjoy the ride.

credits

released December 27, 2023

Produced by SMUG and Ethan Allen
Basic tracks recorded by Charles Jischke
Additional tracking by Ethan Allen
Mastered by Bruce Barielle, bbarielle@cox.net
Cover art by Robert Richman, info@artstix.net

Bums From Deep Space Music, BMI 2007

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S M U G + Los Angeles, California

Artist's clearing house for all things Helm: Bret Helm's Cosmic Brain, Doc Tahri, S M U G + more

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