Pleasure

Speaking in her first NME cover story earlier this year, Rebecca Lucy Taylor set out the blueprint for Self Esteem’s playful, larger-than-life approach to music: “I want to use the palatable nature of pop to Trojan horse in my agenda.”

Fucking Bliss is the second album to be released under the name American Pleasure Club, following 2018's A Whole Fucking Lifetime of This, but it was actually recorded by bandleader Sam Ray in 2015, when his group was still known as Teen Suicide. Ray made the album in nine days following a nearly suicidal mental breakdown – not the only one he's gone through – and it's easy to see why he would've been hesitant to release it at the time, particularly coming after Teen Suicide's It's the Big Joyous Celebration, Let's Stir the Honeypot.

"Reflections" is a cycle of songs with english lyrics, written by Manos Hadjidakis in 1969, for the New York Rock & Roll Ensemble. At 1993, Hadjidakis revised the songs and released them again with greek lyrics. In 2005, Raining Pleasure, released this recording with the original english lyrics, but in new arrangements with more indie/rock elements. Enjoy one of the top Hadjidakis' works from a fresh cut of 2011. You will find included a nice color booklet with all the lyrics and many photos.

"Pleasure" is the 3rd studio album by American funk band Ohio Players and the second released through the Westbound label in December 1972. Pleasure continues with vocal harmonies more reminiscent of earlier work than what they would do when they moved to Mercury two years later, and would often show jazz tendencies with some of their musical arrangements. The songs are a mixture of radio-friendly material with songs that come off as late night studio jam sessions, such as "Walt's First Trip". The song "Funky Worm" was released as a single and went to #1 on the Billboard R&B charts, their biggest hit during their time with Westbound.