Howlin Wuelf Media :: Human Switchboard ::

LEGENDARY AMERICAN INDIE-ROCK BAND HUMAN SWITCHBOARD RELEASE WHO’S LANDING IN MY HANGAR? ANTHOLOGY 1977-1984 ON BAR/NONE RECORDS IN LATE FALL

Three decades since the original release of Who’s Landing In My Hangar?, Bar/None Records is pleased to announce that Human Switchboard’s classic 1981 album will be available for the first time on CD with an extensive collection of bonus tracks on October 25th. Who’s Landing In My Hangar? Anthology 1977-1984, includes the re-mastered original album, plus singles, EP tracks and previously unreleased studio recordings, demos and live tracks from CBGBs. One track features Funkadelic/Talking Heads keyboard legend Bernie Worrell. The CD packaging includes lengthy original liner notes by Tom Carson and rarely seen photos. As a bonus, additional material will be available on a download card (CD only) that features more than 20 songs, including early recordings mixed by David Thomas of Pere Ubu.

Complete track listing at www.bar-none.com/humanswitchboard

As one of the early crusaders of American indie-rock, Human Switchboard (Bob Pfeifer - guitars/vocals; Myrna Marcarian - keyboards and vocals; Ron Metz – drums and percussion), were known for their hook-riddled pop tunes, danceable rhythms and enigmatic yet expressive lyrics. Transplants from Ohio, they found their way into the NYC club scene of the early 1980s and their impact on music outlived the band’s short career. The Beastie Boys proclaimed their love of the band on TV, The Screaming Trees’ Mark Lanegan and Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell are well known fans of the band and Kurt Cobain said that the band’s song “Refrigerator Door” “was the ‘Stairway to Heaven’ of punk.” Jason Gross from Perfect Sound Forever called Human Switchboard an “extraordinary musical comet”, described their sound as “…expressive, poppy, quirky, gutsy, novel, and unafraid of clichés that work,” and said that their songs were “…often more compelling than anything else at this time in America.”

Who’s Landing In My Hangar was produced by Human Switchboard and Paul Hamann and recorded mostly in 1981 at Suma Studios in Painesville, Ohio. This anthology also includes 1979’s “The Prime of My Life Sessions”, 1978’s “I Gotta Know” sessions, the “The Fly-In” sessions (mixed by David Thomas in 1977, the year the group formed), the previously unreleased “Polydor demos” (which were recorded at CBGBs in 1983), as well as previously unreleased live tracks recorded at CBGBs during 1984.

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Here's the link to download the track "(Say No To) Saturday's Girl" from "Who's Landing In My Hangar"

http://www.bar-none.com/saturdaygirl.zip

Here's the link to download the track "Prime of My Life" from "The Prime of My Life" sessions:

http://www.bar-none.com/primeofmylife.zip

Upon the disc’s release in 1981, the Village Voice’s Robert Christgau gave Who's Landing in My Hangar? an “A-“ in his “Consumer Guide” and wrote, “…they get lyrical, quite light and playful in fact, which adds charm to their organ-based garage style” and the record came in at #11 on the 1981 “Village Voice Pazz & Jop Poll.”

In 1979, with the release of the single “Prime of My Life/In My Room”, the band began to move beyond their Ohio base. They were invited to play at Hurrah, NYC’s premier new wave night club and they performed there regularly. At the same time, the band also started playing other legendary clubs such as Maxwell's in Hoboken, NJ, the grand opening of Danceteria in NYC, The Rat in Boston and the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC and they continued to perform at these iconic venues until the group disbanded in 1985.

In 1980, IRS label subsidiary, Faulty Products, signed Human Switchboard to what was to become their only studio LP, Who’s Landing In My Hangar? The record included, “Who's Landing in My Hangar?” and “I Can Walk Alone”, the two tracks that they had originally recorded for a possible deal with the UK’s Rough Trade Records, along with eight newer tunes.

In 1983, over a two week period, Human Switchboard recorded a bunch of demos for Polydor Records at the legendary CBGBs onto the club's 16 track machine. Unfortunately, the A&R executive who paid for these demos was let go from the company and these tracks, which were the last studio recordings the band ever made, were unreleased until now.

After the band broke up in 1985, founding member/principal songwriter Pfeifer recorded a solo record for Passport Records in 1987 before becoming an A&R man who moved up the ranks to Senior Vice President A&R/Epic/Sony Records and President of Hollywood Records. He has worked with Alice Cooper, Joe Satriani, Ornette Coleman, and The Screaming Trees, among others. Myrna Marcarian currently has released two solo albums under the moniker Ruby On The Vine and Ron Metz is a much in demand drummer as well as member of the Schramms, featuring Hoboken guitarist extraordinaire Dave Schramm, who was one of the many bass players in the history of Human Switchboard. Perhaps their most well known bass player was Jared Michael Nickerson, who went on to play with everyone from Freedy Johnston, The The, Vernon Reid and his own group Burnt Sugar.

Pfeifer recently released his first novel, University of Strangers, which has been well received by the media and he was part of the “Cleveland Confidential Book Tour” along with two other respected musician-authors hailing from Cleveland; Cheetah Chrome (Rocket From The Tombs, Dead Boys, Batusis) and Mike Hudson (The Pagans). In addition, Pfeifer is gearing up for the release of the full length debut of his new band Tabby Chinos. The group also includes the Bush Tetras’ Cynthia Sley, Don Fleming, Pat Place (Contortions, Bush Tetras) and Jim Sclavunos (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Grinderman, Teenage Jesus).

As part of the first generation of indie-rockers, Human Switchboard worked up a great batch of edgy post punk rockers with battling boy/girl vocals. Who’s Landing In My Hangar? Anthology 1977-1984 is a must for anyone interested in the history of indie rock.

https://www.facebook.com/bobpfeifer

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tabby-Chinos/137212953004130