The Mommyheads became a bit of an obsession for me. Their 1992 Simple Machines Tool Series cassette, Swiss Army Knife to be more specific. Everything they would later release before their break up in 98 fell flat for me. Nothing remotely touched the raw, heady, quirky, lyrically and musically complex psyche-pop brilliance of Swiss Army Knife.

I first heard it during a particularly hot Miami summer in ‘95 when Jorge from the band Midnight Virago (who’s tape I was set to release on my own briefly-lived DIY label, TimeKill) made me sit on the floor until I’d heard it all. I made a third generation copy on the spot and listened to it for months straight. I can still remember the place I’d parked during a lunch break, and the disappointment I’d felt when the tape which had been sitting in the “stereo” (read: boombox) on the front seat of my grandmother’s Geo Metro warbled, melted and snapped in the South Beach summer sun. Right in the middle of Lemon Merangue People…

This was before ebay, when my search for a replacement consisted of calling and rifling through the bins and racks of a dozen record shops. All of which had no idea who the Mommyheads were, let alone the mail-order only Simple Machines tape. I’d lost contact with Jorge. The proliferating web seemed like a hopeful resource, but even once ebay got rolling, it failed me every time. By the time I’d realized Swiss Army Knife was a SMR release, the series was discontinued and the label was closing shop. A blurb about it remained on their archival page and the Mommyheads fan site, but multiple email requests didn’t bring me any closer.

Ten years later, I found artist Mike Wolstat who listed an old Mommyheads 7″ (Flying Suit) as one of his past works. On a whim I emailed him, explaining my decade-long dilemma. He had the tape and was equally thrilled by the idea of ripping it for prosperity and sent me a copy. After a move or two I’d lost his contact info before returning the favor with a CDR full of other random rarities. Having since found him again I fully intend to.

In the meantime, here’s the ultra-rare result of all those years of searching. I hope it finds you reeling with the same impact it hit me with long ago. The Mommyheads are dead, long live Swiss Army Knife!

Mommyheads: Swiss Army Knife (mp3/zip, 41MB, mediafire)
Other older Mommyheads stuff at IPN too
via Mommyheads / Simple Machines / Mike Wolstat (thanks!)

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