Newman, Chris
Moving To And Fro
"ABOUT THE ALBUM In May 1986, Chris Newman stepped into a Portland warehouse with drummer Sam Henry to record something that felt different. While their band Napalm Beach were already local legends, Moving To And Fro was a departure, a raw, singular vision that Newman initially released only on dubbed cassette with hand-drawn covers. It was, in a sense, a concept album where Newman recalled how he felt, first as a boy in love with comic books and rock n roll (Monster), then growing into a man, becoming increasingly serious about music, coping with ostracization and deceit (Put Down, Strangers), excited to form a band and make records (Frenzy, Friends, Gold Fever), to see the world (Anywhere USA), and to find his electric girl (Red Blooded, Wait For Me), while coping with indignities like soul-sucking low-wage jobs (Graveyard). For forty years, the definitive version of this LP remained a dream. While a modified version appeared briefly in Germany in the late 80s, the original 8-track masters remained with recording engineer Tom Robinson. Following the passing of Chris (2021) and Sam (2022), Chris estate launched a successful Kickstarter campaign, enabling the purchase of the master tapes, which were then placed into the expert hands of Jack Endino, someone with whom Chris had a working history, and whom Chris deeply respected as an artist, engineer, and human being. The result is a sonic revelation. Moving To And Fro captures Newman and Henry at the height of their powers, performing a set of original songs that would influence generations."