NEW RELEASE: "SOKO - Assemblage" on CD
The Only Label With A Brain
We are a multinational agency focused on issuing the best in punk and alternative music from Milwaukee, WI
SOKO - ASSEMBLAGE CD
Limted Edition CD
Splunge Communications, Inc is happy to announce the release of the SOKO album “Assemblage”.
In Milwaukee in the early 1980’s, out of the ashes of earlier glam and punk bands Savior and The Flesh Propellers, came the band Soko. Led by singer/songwriter Keith Soko’s clever lyrics and songwriting, Soko added heavy synthesizers to their already heavy guitar sound, reminiscent of early Ultravox and Gary Numan. With Brian Kell on drums and Jim Czarnecki on guitar, the band formed a formidable sound on the Milwaukee punk, new wave and techno scene.
While the band recorded high quality and ear pounding material, the only song to be released at the time was “My Life is Metal” on the WQFM Hometown Album Project No. 2 (1982). That song was one of the few odes to Milwaukee’s new wave scene on an otherwise mainstream album project. In 2001, another fan favorite, “At the Cinema”, was released on the History in 3 Chords compilation (Splunge Communications, Inc CD014-015). Although the band received widespread airplay on Milwaukee’s WMSE radio in the ‘80’s, the rest of that material has been unavailable to the public, until now!
Now, for the first time, Soko’s studio recordings are available on one amazing retro album CD. The album, Assemblage, features 20 high quality studio recordings from 1981-1991, with 11 from Milwaukee featuring such WMSE favorites as “Waiting for the Saucermen” and “More Than the Whole Wide World.” Two songs, “Mannequin Lovers” and “Chemicals,” pay homage to the songwriting of those two previous bands. And, an additional 9 songs were recorded after the band moved to Los Angeles, and includes later songs such as “Breaks Like China” and “Raising the Dead.”
The CD packaging features band photos and extensive musician session notes. If you are a fan of Milwaukee’s early alternative scene, or just of ‘80’s new wave and techno music in general, this is a must have for your collection.
About Us
Clancy Carroll, King and CEO
Clancy Carroll is a musician, Splunge Communications Inc record label owner and music writer based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His past bands including Ozone, the Ones, the Dominoes, the Clancy Carroll Band, 3 On Fire, c2, and AlNiCo have released numerous 45s, EPs, CDs, and compilation tracks. As King and CEO of Splunge Communications, Inc., he has released records by the likes of the Prosecutors, Triple Forbidden Taboo, Wanda Chrome and the Leather Pharaohs and Fuckface, as well as the double-CD compilation History in 3 Chords: Milwaukee Alternative Bands 1973-1982. Carroll has written record reviews, reviewed live shows and conducted interviews for Autonomy, Milwaukee’s first punk fanzine; Express; and Milk magazine, in which “Clancy’s Kookie Corner” was a reader’s favorite. He also was the co-producer (along with co-producer Judy Simonds and director Doug LaValliere) for "Taking the City By Storm: The Birth of Milwaukee's Punk Scene," a documentary film that traces the birth and development of Milwaukee's protopunk, Punk, New Wave and Alternative Music scene from 1975 to 1985.
Jeff Menz, Marketing and Design
Jeff Menz is a musician / designer based in Milwaukee, WI. His past bands include Remnants, C.I.A. (Cast in Action), The Tambours, Kafka, Among Thorns, Fourth Live Mission, and Morgana's Charm. He has worked on marketing, design and managing music projects with Clancy Carroll for over 20 years, beginning in 1999 with History in 3 Chords (SPL-014/015), and numerous Splunge Communications, Inc projects since then. Outside of his work with Clancy Carroll, he has completed other marketing, design and audio mastering projects with a focus on Milwaukee music for a number of local area musicians and for Rockhaus Records, Mood Vertigo Music and Blackbird Records labels.