Q&A Remix With Chad of Perennial

Have you ever bought a record just for the artwork?

Just recently we were record shopping and the cover for a compilation called Wig Out! Freak Out!: Freakbeat & Mod Psychedelia caught Chelsey’s eye. That mid-60s mod/garage rock sound is our favorite, but neither of us had any idea about this particular comp until we saw the very, very groovy cover design.

What is your most memorable vinyl buying/receiving experience? 

I had a very extensive record shopping list for our UK tour, and right at the top of that list was the Decca Originals Northern Soul compilation on orange vinyl. I found it in literally the last record store we visited, Piccadilly Records in Manchester. I was on cloud nine!

What’s the most treasured album in your collection and why? 

This is perhaps cheating slightly since it’s a boxset, but The Beatles Revolver Super Deluxe Edition 4LP boxset. That album means so much to me and is so foundational to the Perennial Sound, and the boxset features these amazing outtakes that really do illustrate how the record was put together and imagined/reimagined piece-by-piece. It also includes a 7” of “Paperback Writer”/”Rain” that is more or less a single of religious importance to me: angular pop that’s catchy and experimental in equal measure.

What one record in your collection would you be most eager to share with new friends?

David Ruffin – David (The Unreleased Album) and Dolly Mixture – Demonstration Tapes

Do you have a definitive album of choice for spring, summer, autumn and winter?

Spring – Marvin Gaye – What’s Going On

Summer – The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

Autumn – Miles Davis – Round About Midnight

Winter – The Clash – London Calling

What is/are your white whale records, something you have your eye on but haven’t been able to get?

It’s nothing too extravagant, but I’d love to find a copy of the 2LP reissue of The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. The second LP is all alternate takes and studio stuff. That album has meant the world to me for decades now and I just love the idea of sitting down with that version on the turntable, hearing it get put together in real time.

Who/what got you hooked on records?

Honestly, I’ve been enamored with records, books, and movies for as long as I can remember. There’s just something about holding the real, honest-to-goodness artifact in your hand and knowing that right there is a world to explore, an imagined aesthetic space to spend the afternoon in. It’s honestly magical. I’ll never ever get sick of that feeling of grabbing a favorite record off the shelf and putting it on the turntable. That little ritual is so lovely.

What’s your favorite record to listen to on headphones?

Anything by Stereolab, Bobby Hutcherson, Broadcast, Portishead. Stuff that’s heavy on texture.

Tell us a little about your favorite record store

I have so many! Sister Ray in London is a big one. Incredible selection and the source of one of my all-time favorite in-store finds: the deluxe CD boxset of Setting Sons by The Jam. Turn It Up! In Northampton, MA is another huge one. Growing up that was the place to find those word-of-mouth classics that were so foundational for me. It was (and is) more of a CD-focused selection, but knowing you can count on finding a like-new CD copy of Head Hunters by Herbie Hancock or The Who Live At Leeds for $8 is pretty special.

What’s the weirdest record you own? 

The soundtrack to the Walt Disney World attraction The Enchanted Tiki Room. It’s excellent, delightful, and wonderfully strange in that almost-psychedelic mid-century Disney way.

How has your record collection and appreciation for vinyl evolved over the years, and what has influenced your tastes?

It really does reflect whatever I’m obsessed with at any moment. My vinyl shopping tends to center around either making sure I have a great sounding analog copy of my favorite albums, or buying stuff that I think lends itself to sitting down with a book and a Diet Dr Pepper and having a nice sonic afternoon.

Name the top three records you own that could describe you or your vibe

Otis Redding – Live In Europe

The Jam – Snap!

Stereolab – Sound-Dust

What’s the last record you played?

I’m currently listening to Face In The Crowd by The Merton Parkas (a cool late-70s mod revival band; a great Discogs find!)

Perennial is an art punk three-piece from New England. The band’s sound – built from the sharp minimalism of guitar, electric organ, and drums – is a kinetic collage of mod pop, 90s post-hardcore, post-bop jazz and 60s soul. The band’s ferocious live show – quick and electrifying – has already become the stuff of DIY legend, short bursts of manic energy with barely a moment to catch your breath: not to be missed. Perennial’s new album, Art History is available everywhere that chic modernist punk is sold.