Futurismo are proud to present a first time reissue of the killer 1985 album: Just A Million Dreams by the uncompromising Alan Vega.

The remastered version of this LP comes with two unreleased bonus tracks produced by Liz Lamere and Jared Artaud of The Vacant Lots. It is packaged in a gloss laminated sleeve with a huge fold-out poster and contains new liner notes by Henry Rollins.

Presented in a remastered deluxe vinyl package, Just A Million Dreams, produced by Ric Ocasek and Chris Lord-Alge, takes Vega on an expedition into new territory. As an artist Vega had a crucial drive, but having a hit record was never a motive, neither was pandering to expectations, which is why Just aMillion Dreams is perhaps a perfect statement for that moment, bettering the then bastions of MTV rock without even trying, an exercise in subversion that still has Vega’s unique artistry at its core. Would you expect anything less from one half of NYC legends Suicide? Perhaps not, but the hows and whys to Vega landing himself in such a mainstream position are perhaps just as fascinating as the record itself.

Here Alan Vega’s vocals sound better than ever, full of emotion and brooding honesty. Lyrics painting images of dystopian love might be a sideways move away from the intense nihilism of his past, but it’s still the real deal. Alan Vega could not be anything else. Listen to tracks like ‘Creation’ and you still get that raw emotion he spent his career honing. Set against the grandeur of mid 80’s production: big processed drums, runaway guitar solos, we get a rare peak into what Vega would sound like if he was allowed to be a rock star drenched in the sonic excesses of the era. It was a brave and unfairly misunderstood move, but the components come together to form an incredible anti-commercial, commercial album. Just A Million Dreams is the sound of Alan Vega taking on the 1980’s and winning.

With help of the official Vega Vault, two never before heard tracks have been unearthed from the 1985 JAMD recording sessions and brought to life by long time collaborator Liz Lamere and Jared Artaud of The Vacant Lots, adding a new insight to the recordings. Henry Rollins also lends a new written perspective, making this release a vital addition to the collections of Alan Vega and Suicide fans. It has been said that Alan Vega is forever, his unwavering artistic approach can be witnessed throughout his career, whether as part of Suicide or as a solo songwriter, poet or sculptor. Just a Million Dreams is just another example.

TRACK LISTING

1. On The Run
2. Shooting For You
3. Hot Fox
4. Too Late
5. Wild Heart
6. Creation
7. Cry Fire
8. Ra Ra Baby
9. Hey Gorgeous (Unreleased)
10. Did We Say Goodbye? (Unreleased)

One of Alan Vega’s greatest talents was his ability to bring the past and the future together into a suspended place of timelessness. His groundbreaking duo Suicide was often seen as future primitivism and most of his musical output has exemplified this blending of the primordial human condition and visionary thinking. With Invasion b/w Murder One, the next release from the now infamous Vega Vault following 2021’s Mutator, we see this innate power in full effect.

The two tracks “Invasion” and “Murder One” were recorded two decades apart from one another in New York City. “Invasion” was recorded toward the end of the 2012-2015 studio sessions for the posthumous album IT and was one of his last recordings, while “Murder One” was recorded in 1997-1998, (after the Mutator sessions) and is part of a cluster of material that was recorded but never mixed prior to the sessions for his album 2007, released in 1999. Pairing these two songs together as a release illustrates the timelessness of the 30 plus years of unreleased material that he deemed the Vega Vault.

This release continues the collaboration of Mutator’s mixing and producing team, Liz Lamere and Jared Artaud. Liz provides a bridge to the past, having performed throughout the recording process of “Murder One” and “Invasion” while Jared opens a bridge to the future having been chosen by Alan himself to carry the torch and ensure the vision stays intact. Alan trusted no one more than Liz and Jared, and gave his blessing and encouragement to continue releasing material from the Vault. As Alan stated in the song “Vision” from IT, “If you destroy the vision, you will suffer the whirlwind.”

Listening to the various tracks during these mixing sessions brought up vivid recollections of how the sounds (such as the haunting voices in “Murder One”) were created and the constant experimentation that was involved, memories that informed Liz’s approach in the mixing process. Together with Jared’s technical skills, intuition, and deep understanding of the feeling these sounds were intended to evoke, the two were able to preserve the authenticity of the recordings while enhancing the quality of sound so the listener can fully experience the nuances of these unique auditory creations.

TRACK LISTING

1. Invasion
2. Murder One 

2021 is shaping up to be the year of Alan Vega. Every year should be but, this year is definitely it. The announcement of the opening of the Alan Vega archives which will be unleashing an untold amount of unreleased material dating back to 1971 via Sacred Bones, the release of Mutator (a lost album from the mid ’90s), which has gained rave reviews, a massive feature in the NY Times…Vega has been celebrated everywhere of late.

In The Red is over the moon to participate in this celebration with the release of After Dark—an album that captures a late night rock ’n’ roll session with Vega backed by Ben Vaughn, Palmyra Delran and Barb Dwyer (all members of the incredible Pink Slip Daddy as well as countless other cool projects). This album serves as a reminder that Alan Vega was an incredible rock ’n’ roll / blue / rockabilly vocalist. He was one of the best.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: 'After Dark' sees the Suicide frontman's unreleased session with members of Pink Slip Daddy, and veers between droning guitars and driving percussion and the near-legendary vocal vitriol of Vega. It's a wonderful release filled with exactly what we'd expect from this much beloved and sorely missed musical icon.

TRACK LISTING

1. Nothing Left
2. Hi Speed Roller
3. Out Of Town
4. River Of No Shame
5. Wings Of Glory
6. The Record Speed