Eleventh Dream Day - Eleventh Dream Day EP

The Eleventh Dream Day EP is a self-titled debut release from the Chicago-based band, Eleventh Dream Day. It was released in 1987 and is known for showcasing the band's early, energetic guitar-rock sound. The EP features compact, well-written songs that hint at the intensity of their live performances. 

The career of the noisy guitar unit Eleventh Dream Day -- one of the most resilient and criminally underappreciated bands to rise from the Midwestern underground community -- was a textbook study in alt rock endurance; despite a nightmarish major-label tenure, ill-timed roster changes, and commercial indifference, the group persevered, ultimately emerging as elder statesmen of the flourishing Chicago independent scene of the mid-'90s. 1991's Lived to Tell was a guitar-fueled highlight of their major-label period; 1997's Eighth found them still powerful and compelling despite a return to the independent community and being stripped down to a trio; 2006's muscular Zeroes and Ones, and 2021's more contemplative Since Grazed demonstrated that even though they were only a part-time band, they were still making music every bit as strong as they did in their salad days.

Eleventh Dream Day's origins dated to 1981, when singer/guitarist Rick Rizzo met vocalist/drummer Janet Beveridge Bean at the University of Kentucky. Inspired by punk, Rizzo taught himself to play guitar with the aid of Neil Young's Zuma songbook; Young remained the group's major inspiration throughout its career, his incendiary aesthetic informing much of Rizzo's own raw, rootsy style. The couple soon relocated to Chicago, where they teamed with bassist Douglas McCombs and guitarist Baird Figi; after several years of honing their explosive live set, Eleventh Dream Day finally recorded their eponymous debut EP for the Amoeba label in 1987.

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01. Walking Through The Barrel Of A Gun

02. Vein Of Gold

03. Not The Ballad Of A Girl

04. Liz Beth

05. The Arsonist

06. Cascade