Liner Notes: The Bruce Lee Band- "Community Support Group" 7"

Welcome to Liner Notes, a new feature in which I will talk about the production design, packaging, and process of buying a particular record. I am building a collection of vinyl. The look and feel of the record is important to me, otherwise I would be satisfied to have all my music solely in a digital format. People do not buy records because it is convenient. They take up a lot of space, they are fragile and they get dusty. Record collectors do not mind these drawbacks so much because of what we get in return: big artwork, full liner notes and the tangibility of vinyl.

First up is The Bruce Lee Band's "Community Support Group" 7-inch released on Jeff Rosenstock's Really Records in January. Rosenstock, of Bomb the Music Industry!, appears in this iteration of The Bruce Lee Band on bass, organ, saxophone and vocals. Mike Park, founder of Asian Man Records, is on vocals as always. This time out the band also includes Mike Huguenor on guitar and vocals and Kevin Higuchi on drums. The band has included different members on each of its three releases. Mike Park has been on vocals for each release, backed by Less Than Jake and RX Bandits, respectively, on the first two releases. "Community Support Group" contains the first new songs from the group since 2005. I bought this one online directly from Really Records, which is now sold out of the limited pressing. The label says there is a full-length on the way this summer.

This 45 rpm 7-inch was pressed on translucent orange vinyl. This may be my only record in this color. Blue, red and even pink are a lot more common. Orange is much more rare, but it has an appealing look. The liner notes on the back cover spell out the roles of the impressive selection of musicians involved in the record's five songs. Chris #2 of Anti-flag contributed vocals for "Tanning Depression," one of my favorite tracks on "Community Support Group." Dan Potthast of Mu330 shouts the "aghs" on the opener "Agh!!!." Sean Bonnette of Andrew Jackson Jihad did vocals on "We've Got the Money, We've Got the Power." Sean McCabe and Dave Renz were on trombone throughout the 7-inch. Jeff Rosenstock also had producing, mixing and recording duties. It is great to see him so heavily involved in such a gleeful ska punk project after the dissolution of his well-respected band Bomb the Music Industry!

The cover art is a compelling image, although I cannot tell exactly what is going on. It is an old black and white photograph of two men in uniform, walking across a mountain of what appear to be scrap parts. Parts of what? What kind of uniforms? Tell me if you have any more information. The back cover does not offer many clues. It is another old black and white photograph, apparently taken nearby. A broken down old car is parked, or likely abandoned, in the dirt near an actual mountain. The liner notes are printed in visually pleasing symmetry on the back cover photo: black text on the light part of the image on the left and white text on the dark part of the image on the right.