Album Archives: Floodlands 1989

The end of the 1980s turned out to be uneventful.  The reunion with the high school sweetheart turned out to be a bust and broke my heart and I got pink eye in the process.  My best friend Russ got released from the Marines in a accident and we talked about getting something going again.  One of many times we tried to do that.

Music wise not much was done, till my parents went to visit Relatives in Missouri on Thanksgiving weekend, so that gave me time to have the house to myself and come up with a new recording.  The end result would be called Floodlands.

The whole thing was done in three days.  Although Dave Crossant was listed, only Geoff Redding participated.  Bob Kastabella miked and recorded the drums but this time adding an extra mike in front of the cymbals, not a good idea.  Some of the songs the pang cymbal just about drowned everything out.

The songs themselves, Darkness was a drum solo with guitar feedback in the background.  Miss Baloney Brain is a hilarious speed metal song, with silly lyrics.  The title track was a protest song about land development in a floodplain, that came true with the flood of 93 and later the flood of 2008. Too Close To The Moon was supposed to have more guitar to add later but I said the hell with that and tacked it on as is.  It came from the 1985 sessions but we could never get the guitar riff right. Even on this version I'm changing up the chords hoping something would stick.

The album was under the working title of Too Far Gone and then later Playground before settling on the name Floodlands.  In the scant session notes, Rick Profit was slated to be the bass player, I have no idea who he was, I don't remember him at all, unless we met at DeSodas over jack and cokes and talked about working together.

The Cassette version had leftover tracks from Moonlight Chronicles and the CD reissue kept them up.  However the newer 2014 remaster focuses only on the November sessions.  Like the previous album, we found a way to equalize the sound a lot better.  On Miss Baloney Brain the guitar is more out front rather than buried in the mix.   When I hear the end result I think Floodlands was a better album than Moonlight Chronicles, the songs weren't as long and more to the point.  It was a nice album to end the 80s.  Where the road leads the next year would be filled with bumps and potholes along the way.  Which led to the next disaster, something called Perseyors Of The Truth.  More about that the next time we meet.

Songs:

Nothing But Time (Smith/Redding)  3:15
Darkness (Smith)  2:00
She's Coming Home (Smith) 3:05
Remember Me (Smith)  3:40
Miss Baloney Brain (Smith) 3:09
The Bride Wore Black (Smith/Orbit/Redding)  4:15
Battleaxe (Smith)  5:11

Floodlands  (Smith/Redding)  3:10
Don't Throw Your Love On So Strong (Smith/Redding)  2:50
On Your Way Down (Redding)  2:55
Too Close To The Moon (Smith/Orbit)  4:10
No Turning Back (Smith/Young)  3:35
Eyes Of God (Smith)  3:30

C 1989 Townedgers Music Emporium

Rodney Smith-Guitar, drums and vocals
Geoff Redding-Lead and bass guitars, vocals
Dave Crossant-Bass player in spirit

Recorded Thanksgiving Weekend 1989 Maier Studios, Marion IA
Recorded by Bob Kastaballa, with Ned Jackson assissting
Produced by Rodney Smith

Originally released as Maier Records MRK-24550   Dec. 1989