Narthex

Music

Twin Cities

Our October 1982 studio album has been released by Skyeways Records. The disc is available now at CD Baby. Also available in ephemeral digital format from iTunes.

Project Gemini: 1980-1982

A collection of basement practice room recordings, geared toward our harder and punkier songs. Free web album.

The Flipped Side: 1981-1983

More basement recordings, filling in our more flipped out tunes, in roughly chronological order. Free web album.

Related works...

Mike's Web Album Dumpster

Almost all of the music he's ever recorded. More Narthex, more not Narthex, more everything. A tall stack of free web albums.
Including:

M.Ace - Frowning In Happyland

New music from Mike, with Dean and others helping out -- a dozen songs of dread. Free web album.

M.Ace - Steel-String Flat Top Sedition

A 2005 set of acoustic guitar vexations by Mike. Free web album.

Elsewhere...

deadmilkmen.com

What Dean did next. The Dead Milkmen website offers loads of info, archives and ephemera. Over on his own site, Jack Talcum shares a variety of DM audio rarities.

News

November 28, 2007
Kind words for Steel-String Flat Top Sedition from the folks at the Free Albums Galore blog. Thanks, Marvin!

June 11, 2007
Mike finally completes Frowning In Happyland, an all-new album -- a dozen songs of dread, with Dean on drums throughout. These are acoustic guitar-based tunes, with immaculate backing by Karen Schmidt on accordion, Chris Unrath on electric guitar and a cameo by Hugh Hamilton on the kitchen crockery. The full album is available as a free web download, hi-res sleeve art included.

May 25, 2007
Vanity press or public humiliation? Mike posts nearly all of the music he's ever recorded in the Web Album Dumpster. From pre-Narthex to unknown Narthex to things you never imagined. It's a big, big stack of free web albums.

April 19, 2007
One more airplay report: WPRB and WFMU. And barring something amazing, I'm going to drop the airplay reports with this one. Dean thinks it's too silly, and I agree. But I started doing it, and then it kept going... who dreamed it would keep going this long? Thanks, Matt and Scott, and all you other DJs past and future.

April 10, 2007
Double airplay on WFMU. Thanks, Brian and Dan.

April 9, 2007
Double play airplay on WFMU and WPRB. Thanks, Woody and Cody.

March 26, 2007
Press department: a nifty review by MTS at Paper Thin Walls.

March 21, 2007
Another shot of airplay on WPRB. Thanks, Maria.

March 15, 2007
Good press in this week's Philadelphia City Paper. With the exception of a piece in a high school newspaper back in 1982, I believe this is our first press ever. No, wait -- the kid interviewed us and everything, but his faculty advisor killed the story because we were evil punk rockers. So this really is our first press ever.

March 11, 2007
Zowie. Airplay -- WPRB -- of course. Thanks, Matt & Theo.

March 9, 2007
Imagine that, more airplay on WPRB. Thanks, Zoe & Whit.

March 8, 2007
WPRB plays us again, Sam. Thanks, Dave & Mark.

March 3, 2007
Airplay, again, on WPRB. Thanks, Martina.

February 21, 2007
Even more airplay on WPRB. Have I mentioned that we love those kids? Thanks, Julia.

February 10, 2007
Airplay on WPRB's Idiot Control. There's some pretty heavy company on that playlist. Thanks, Brian.

January 24, 2007
Twin Cities twin airplay on WQHS and WPRB. Thanks, Maria and Jon.

January 4, 2007
Airplay on the City Paper's Local Support podcast, Episode 022. Thanks, Jon.

December 26, 2006
Twin Cities is now also available in ghostly digital form at iTunes.

December 2, 2006
Airplay on WQHS, Philadelphia. In there right next to Can -- pretty cool. Thanks, Maria.

November 28, 2006
Twin Cities, our October 1982 studio album, has finally found its way to commercial release on Skip Heller's Skyeways Records. We were at our tightest when we cut these tunes live-to-tape at DAK Audio, and with a loving digital transfer and remix by Chris Unrath of Eardrumland, it's some mighty fine listening. The disc is available from CD Baby right now. Soon also available in iTunes form -- stay tuned for that link.

October 23, 2006
We've got a dumbass myspace page -- apparently it's the law now. Go to
http://www.myspace.com/originalnarthex
for a cheap laugh at our expense.
You can also hear a few songs from the upcoming Twin Cities album.

August 1, 2006
narthex.ookworld.com is officially launched, to serve as a central index for our midlife noistalgia archiving.

May 31, 2006
More play via Jon Solomon -- on Episode 007 of the City Paper's Local Support podcast.

May 10, 2006
Delayed reaction airplay on WPRB, Princeton, courtesy of Jon Solomon.

February 10, 2006
The Combo Years goes online -- a gallery of photos and artifacts documenting our early years in music.

February 24, 2004
A web page documenting the Narthex experience goes online, accompanied by a compilation album of basement recordings, Duo-Phonic Sound System: 1980-1983.

June 5, 1983
Last Narthex show -- picnic at Dave's house.

February 19, 1983
Last show at the Eastside Club.

October 5, 1982
'Lost' studio album, Twin Cities, recorded at DAK Audio.

July 27, 1982
Two song performance shoot at Temple University tv studio for student 'magazine' show. Never seen.

January 29, 1982
First show at Philadelphia's Eastside Club.

January 8, 1982
Philly debut at the Landmark Tavern.

August 28, 1981
First public show and first long-drive gig -- Egads in Allentown, PA.

May 19, 1981
First airplay -- Wally Rock -- WRFT, Ambler.

April 2, 1981
Name-change from Zero to Narthex.

December 13, 1980
First show (as Zero) -- house party at Ben's trailer.

March 24, 1979
First home recording session.

July 18, 1978
Mike and Dean jam on guitar and drums for the first time.

July 13, 1978
Mike gets his first guitar