“The record is UN-BELIEVABLE. It’s just one of the best things I have ever heard. I’m so proud to be involved.” – Henry Rollins
In 1995, The Mark Of Cain released their breakthrough album Ill At Ease. 28 years later and 20 years since its last physical release, Cooking Vinyl Australia are proud to announce the first-ever vinyl release for this seminal album.
Produced by Henry Rollins, a fan since his own band played with TMOC in 1992, and featuring the singles First Time. LMA & Tell Me plus crowd favourites Interloper, The Contender and Pointman Ill At Ease took the bands trademark brutal bass-heavy sound and lyrical themes of isolation to new terrain as they made the leap from relative obscurity in hometown Adelaide to the main stages of legendary festivals including the Big Day Out, Brisbane’s Livid Festival and Homebake.
“Ill At Ease was the qualitative statement for The Mark of Cain, describing the exigencies of life based on personal and also vicarious experience. Some called it a great “break-up” album, others “A low budget Gone with the Wind” (Rollins). There’s a little truth in both those statements, but mainly it was also a way to wrap my own interests in outsider and anti-hero literature into an aural landscape.” – John Scott
“What’s good about them is their precision, the real stripped-down ferocity. It’s a pared down, stripped back, gleaming EVIL MACHINE!” – Henry Rollins
And where previously the band had found their musical output at odds with prevailing trends Ill At Ease suddenly found them in sync, finding parallel and sympathy with bands like Fugazi, The Jesus Lizard and Helmet leading to radio support from national broadcaster Triple J and TV appearances via Recovery, Channel V and Rage.
The follow-up release, an inspired album of remixes entitled Rock ’n Roll captured another element of The Mark Of Cain, their endless groove, which led to reworkings of album tracks from dance-pioneer Paul Mac, dub warriors Biftek, industrial champions Franz Treichler (The Young Gods) & Justin Broadrick (Godflesh) and more. Paul Mac’s reworked The Contender was even issued as 12” white label and featured regularly on the Big Brother TV show as the exit music
A cover of the track Degenerate Boy from Australian band X produced by Nick Launay (Nick Cave, PiL) for the Australian film Idiot Box rounded out two years of intense recording and touring activity for the band which by the time of the digital take-over saw Ill At Ease racking up sales just shy of 30,000
All these and more are included in the remastered 2023 vinyl edition Ill At Ease. Available on gun-metal vinyl in a limited-edition gatefold sleeve complete with lyric insert and five bonus tracks.
And to celebrate the release The Mark Of Cain will tour, playing the album in its entirety for the first time, across all states this November-January.
But wait! That’s not all; a companion piece Livid Live ’96, the complete thirty-minute set from Brisbane’s 1996 Livid Festival, has been remixed by ABC engineer Phil McKellar and will be made available as a stand-alone album on blood red vinyl.
Ill At Ease and Livid Live ‘96 are to be released October 27th through Cooking Vinyl Australia and available for pre-order now from tmoc.com.au
ILL AT EASE – Deluxe Edition
Limited Edition – Full Remastered – Deluxe 2LP
Embossed Gatefold Sleeve, Gun Metal Grey Vinyl.
Cat# CVLP138
Side 1.
1. Interloper
2. Hindsight
3. First Time
4. Remember Me
Side 2.
1. Pointman
2. Details *
3. Walk Away
Side 3.
1. You Let Me Down
2. Tell Me
3. The Contender
4. LMA
Side 4.
1. Degenerate Boy *
2. Hindsight (alt. version) *
3. The Contender (Mac mix) *
4. Interloper (Who Made Who mix) *
* Bonus tracks.
LIVID LIVE ‘96
Limited Edition – Blood Red Vinyl
Cat# CVLP142
Side 1.
1. Interloper
2. You Are Alone
3. Tell Me
Side 2.
1. LMA
2. The Contender
3. First Time