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the lost tapes

by kokoku

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  • Digital Album
    Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

    With the purchase of the album comes: Bonus track "Chant/Polyester Mama," liner notes by producer Steve Addabbo, and more photographs from 1980s.
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      $10 USD  or more

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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    Old School Classic CD (without the plastic case). Fold out Eco-friendly paper. Entire album with all credits, liner notes and photographs.

    Includes unlimited streaming of the lost tapes via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 7 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $15 USD or more 

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1.
Gimme Some Light by Emily Shane Gimme some light Gimme some clear blue sunlight Shinin’ on through the cool, Cool white sheets and you Gimme a time, yeah Make it a good hard-rock time Dancin’ on down the road, Huggin’ on you I wanna feel like someone needs to be with me Gimme the sense to know It depends on how my soul Surrenders in me Gimme a love, yeah Make it the real-deal big time for me I wanna care enough To lose my heart to you
2.
Darkness 04:04
Darkness by Ash McDaniel One day, I looked out through my window and everything that was there yesterday was gone There was nobody standing out there in the snow but there were shadows on the surface like angels I saw darkness hugging darkness and shadows coming from the sky And laying there with my face on the ground I realized there was nobody all around And laying there, I stared up through the grayness and I prayed to some god I'd never seen Please let me wake up from this nightmare Please give me something to keep living for I want to live…
3.
Skin Tite 03:52
Skin Tite by Giovanna Sgarlata What’s the matter your skin too Tite? Sticky situation makes Skin Tite The last bash The mad dash The last clash You’ll have with me Seems like your troubles are many Though you feel you're telling Some truth Blown-up out of proportion The things that started so smooth You said you like things to go easy Though you feel you're selling Some truth You're the solemn pretender Strength with each shot of Vermouth (Chorus) The love you cherish is empty Though you think you're selling Some truth Fragile piece of deception The trick is playin’ the fool (and babe I’m a fool) (Chorus) What’s the matter your skin too Tite? Sticky situation makes Skin Tite Come a little closer Just come a little closer
4.
Dervish 04:27
Dervish by Giovanna Sgarlata Seems like these days Spending a lot of time With myself Retrospective I don’t know who I am Who I think I am? Who do I think I am? There are questions Things that I cannot Foresee My heart's in danger I’m open to vulnerability Who you think you are Who do you think you are? Sooner or later You must face the truth Concentration Lost my thoughts Can’t keep my mind On anything It’s a Whirling Dervish My feelings are all in a spin The air is getting thin The spinners never win Sooner or later I must face the truth Just like missiles Chasing after you Hot pursuit No betrayal Baby when you tell the truth When will you tell the truth? Sooner or later You must tell the truth…
5.
Simple Answers by Ash McDaniel Simple answers theoretically speaking should turn up easily but I am so confused I turn this over and over in my mind All the implications all the time But I can't seem to put it all together The picture I see could just be fantasy Am I fooling myself? Simple answers used to turn up easy Used to be I knew what I was looking for I turn you over and over in my hands Look from every angle, where do I stand? But I can't seem to put it all together The picture I see could just be fantasy Am I fooling myself? Simple answers maybe one will never come Always to be hidden, or nothing to be found But still I'll look you over with every word Try beneath the surface of what I heard But I can't seem to put it all together The picture I see it must be fantasy I'm fooling myself
6.
Chinatown 03:15
Chinatown by Giovanna Sgarlata Sailing on the sea There’s the Statue of Liberty What a day, what a day, what a day, what a day… Seascapes make for dreams Manhattan’s not what it seems From afar, from afar, from afar, from afar… Chinatown Is a secret paradise Sitting in my eyes Ancient gods Cradled in the arms Of ancient Future lives… Sitting in a cafe The setting, quite blase’ In a room Sweet perfume Why am I Always early? Looking for a job Who’s happy with what they’ve got? Makes no sense, to pay the rent Money’s spent, and it makes no sense! Moving electric sea Something occurs to me There’s a place Where this stays Just a secret memory
7.
Another Chance by Ash McDaniel Another chance lost again Oh, sometimes, I think I was wrong But one more time, how could it be? After all, it's been so long Another time, another place Oh, what do you think of me now? Another hour, another day It's hard not to think of you sometimes Would I be happier if you were here? I don't know, I'm so afraid All I know is my decisions seem to draw me nearer to you Will we find each other again? No, I don't think we will 'Cause could we trust it if we did? We can't know that we won't fail again Would I be happier if you were here? I don't know, I'm so afraid All I know is my decisions seem to draw me nearer to you
8.
In Your Way 03:05
In Your Way by Giovanna Sgarlata Every time I look at you baby I can see you Looking at me And every time I look up from my book I can catch you Catching a glimpse, of me I know you're thinking about me baby I can feel you floating Floating, baby… I can feel you floating through me…. Anytime I think of you baby I can hear you talking to me The vibes are good And I wished that I could Send a message To end this mystery I can feel you floating through me baby… Same old story Different year Same old mask Just a different fear I can feel you floating through me baby In your way In your way
9.
Love's Irony 04:24
Love's Irony by Giovanna Sgarlata Wave bye-bye to the things that we’ve known A long drawn sigh From the end of a phone Hey that’s my line To insist no one's home Sometimes my feelings materialize Oh I, don't want to push things If I plan to gain now In time, I go from radical to smooth Like some vintage wine I use logic Think of all the good things A little theory can sometimes prove In time, these three words betray me Next time, I’ll use only two… Oh I, have a reputation For my heart of glass How soon one heart could shatter, How much longer Till illusions pass? One-sided, she came here uninvited How was I to know Things where never squared? One question Where went all the justice? You were mine As I am standing here Still I remember You were standing there Waving both your wings No one seemed to care I turned to you And in love's irony I could only think of one thing to say…
10.
What I Think I See (I Saw) by Giovanna Sgarlata What I think I see I saw Turning on the time Did I really see at all? I know What do I know? So deep All my feelings Lined up in a row Passion Is it passion? Somehow My reaction Baffling to all (Chorus) Forget I don’t think so Defuse I don’t think I Can do that at all So light Is it night time? Reach out And with blind eyes No one there at all… (Chorus) My first Inclination This odd Deviation Fills in all the gaps So lost Is it that far? So far It’s a high price Seeing What I saw… (Chorus)
11.
Polyester Mama by Emily Shane Polyester mama in a chartreuse suit Gettin’ her kicks at the laundry chute Throwin’ her clothes on down that hole Other folks end up with ugly clothes Polyester mama, hey hey mama! She got a turtleneck sweater with a hot pink horse It’ll look real good with Bermuda shorts Hey hey fool here’s a pair of plaid slacks And a wild wild shirt with birds on the back Polyester mama, hey hey mama! She got bellbottom pants with the paisley trim And a purple leather bag to put ‘em in Struttin’ down to Kmart she looks so fine Everybody stares when you stand in line Polyester mama, hey hey mama!

about

Singer-songwriters Emily Shane, Ash McDaniel, and Gio Sgarlata formed kokoku in 1984 during the heyday of an evolving NYC folk scene that was trying to find its footing amid the swirling competition of punk, new wave, power pop, disco, hair bands, women’s music, and a new little genre people were calling hip-hop. And there they were, lesbian songwriters with plenty to say. Predecessors of the Indigo Girls and Tracy Chapman, kokoku created a uniquely special blend of harmonies that respond to the call of Crosby, Stills, and Nash with percussive rhythms that take their cue from Laurie Anderson's own song kokoku. After 36 years, this album is a homecoming, plucked from the history of an analog archive and digitally remastered for a new generation. www.kokokutheband.com

credits

released December 21, 2020

Remastered from live recordings at NYC's The Bitter End and Folk City, 1984-85

Many Thanks:
Nathan Moody, Valerie Naranjo, Aline Ridings, Susan Pinkwater, Lisa Arzt, Ronald K. Fierstein, Steve Addabbo, Janice Goodman, Carol Z. Shane, Eric Franklin Amarante, Olivier Pinkwater, Andy Montoya, Maggie and Gil, Jarius, Matt, Kate, Macy, F.U.U.F., Mom and Daddy, and Cathy Lee Crane.

Manager: Cathy Lee Crane
Restored and mastered by Nathan Moody at Obsidian Sound
Design: Lucija Kordić

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kokokutheband New York, New York

At the height of NYC's mid-80s "fast-folk" club scene alongside artists like Suzanne Vega, acoustic trio kokoku arrived with sparkling harmonies and tight rhythms .

Along with Tracy Chapman and Indigo Girls, kokoku emerged just as "women's music" became more mainstream. Some called kokoku the female Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Discover the origins of queer acoustic in these lost tapes from 1984.
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