1.) The Sisters Of Mercy – Floodland Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo - 1st Pressing - EU - 1987 - Merciful Release – MR441L Media: EX / Sleeve, Insert Poster, OIS: EX to NM A1 Dominion/Mother Russia 7:01 A2 Flood I 6:22 A3 Lucretia My Reflection 4:57 A4 1959 4:08 B1 This Corrosion 9:16 B2 Flood II 6:19 B3 Driven Like The Snow 4:39 B4 Never Land (A Fragment) 2:46 While the goth scene in England was picking up commercial steam in the mid-'80s, the Sisters of Mercy may have seemed quiet, but they roared back with 1987's Floodland. Opening with the driving two-part hymn "Dominion/Mother Russia," Sisters leader Andrew Eldritch (along with bassist Patricia Morrison) creates a black soundscape that is majestic and vast. While the earlier Sisters releases were noisy, sometimes harsh affairs, Floodland is filled with lush production (thanks to Meat Loaf writer/producer Jim Steinman and the New York Choral Society) and lyric imagery that is both scary and glorious. The slower tracks, like "Flood" and "1959," are some of the best ethereal sounds goth has to offer, and the downright regal "This Corrosion" is one of the best songs of the genre. A definite milestone. 2.) The Sisters Of Mercy – First And Last And Always Vinyl, LP, Album, Barcode - 1st Pressing - EU - 1985 - Merciful Release – MR 337L Media: NM / Sleeve: EX to NM A1 Black Planet 4:27 A2 Walk Away 3:20 A3 No Time To Cry 4:03 A4 A Rock And A Hard Place 3:36 A5 Marian (Version) 5:37 B1 First And Last And Always 3:58 B2 Possession 4:36 B3 Nine While Nine 4:07 B4 Logic 4:46 B5 Some Kind Of Stranger 7:16 With the band itself falling to bits shortly after the March 1985 debut of First and Last and Always, the album's place in the skewed history of the rise of goth rock would, on one hand, be permanently linked with that discord but, on the other, not impacted in the slightest, leaving the fractious set's success and structure to become a blueprint for an entire generation of up-and-comers. With static drumbeats and jangle-angled guitars backing Andrew Eldritch's atonic, graveyard vocals, the songs on First and Last and Always paid to play alongside the ghosts of myriad forgotten post-punkers as well as the band's own goth forebears. From the opening air-fire claustrophobia of "Black Planet" to the melancholy "No Time to Cry," Eldritch continually assured listeners that "everything's gonna be alright" -- but, really, coming out of that mouth, did anyone actually believe him? Even on the occasional wobbly patches imbedded in the now classic "Marian" and the title track, where the song threatens to dissolve into irrelevance despite Eldritch's chirky vocal, they pull up wonderfully on the bass-driven, bee-stung guitar gem "Possession" and the closing "Some Kind of Stranger," an untouchable epic that, clocking in at over seven minutes, is the best of its kind from any time -- period. "Some Kind of Stranger" not only became a love song for the doom and gloom crowd, but was also an anthemic, anemic declaration of intent laid bare in a haze of sonic smoke and mirrors. Copied to death, its brilliance has never been replicated. Indeed, the entire album remains unequaled in the genre, permanently granted top place on a pedestal from which it cannot be toppled. 3.) The Sisters Of Mercy – Vision Thing Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo - 1st Pressing - EU - 1990 - Merciful Release – MR 449 L Media: EX / Sleeve: EX A1 Vision Thing 4:36 A2 Ribbons 5:25 A3 Detonation Boulevard 3:49 A4 Something Fast 4:36 B1 When You Don't See Me 4:51 B2 Doctor Jeep 4:39 B3 More 8:22 B4 I Was Wrong 6:03 After scoring big time with Floodland, Sisters of Mercy frontman Andrew Eldritch changed direction once again, heading this time for a guitar-based techno-rock feel. The title track became a club hit, where the driving tempo and distorted guitars provided a perfect dancefloor atmosphere. The Jim Steinman-produced "More" and the clever "I Was Wrong" are the album's highlights. ____________________________________________________________________ These records have been cleaned with a professional ultrasonic machine. New inner and outer sleeves included. Fast & careful shipping.