you asked for a hard candy, by marzipan

you asked for a hard candy

by marzipan

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Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Edition of 300 includes insert with band biography

Includes unlimited streaming of you asked for a hard candy via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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$15 USD or more
Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

$8 USD or more
Black vinyl LP with limited cassette of Marzipan curiosities.
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Edition of 50. Side A recorded during live radio broadcast from 1996 at KZSU in Palo Alto. Side B studio outtakes from these sessions. Vinyl comes with insert with band biography

Includes unlimited streaming of you asked for a hard candy via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Sold Out

1.	Heidi 03:10	buy track
2.	Darling Farmer 03:35	buy track
3.	Hardcore 01:28	buy track
4.	Rubbish 02:57	buy track
5.	Kiss My Monkey Goodnight 03:47	buy track
6.	*Brown Shoes 02:19	buy track
7.	Mondo Jet 03:02	buy track
8.	Serenity 02:22	buy track
9.	Slow To You 04:10	buy track
10.	**Codeine 04:40	buy track
11.	***Grass 03:34	buy track

about

This is the story of Marzipan - You Asked For A Hard Candy, and how it came to be. It’s been 30 odd years since the band formed, why an LP now? Well, before we can explain we need to go deep into the bands history a bit. Early 90’s San Francisco. Four friends working at 101 Records in North Beach decide to form a band and Marzipan was born. Fronted by Seth Bender (lead vocal/guitar) and featuring
Sam Knee guitar, Henry Polk bass, and Andrew Rush on drums, the group quickly began to write original material. North Beach resident Mike Giordano, co-founder of the Echonet singles label, catches the group live and is so impressed he releases the first and until now, only Marzipan record- Echonet Records second 45, I Believe b/w Last Train From The Sun. Recorded by Maz of the Mummies, the single is an instant smash, quickly selling out still remembered fondly amongst collectors to this day. The band seemed destined for bigger things but in true rock & roll fashion just as quickly as Marzipan came together, they began to fall apart.

Four guys working at the same record shop made finding time when all band members could rehearse difficult. A second single on Slumberland Records never materialized. The band would lose it’s rhythm section but Bender and Knee had already scoped out pals Jason Kuczenski bass, and Tom Marzella, drums. Bender & Marzella bonded over a shared love for british cult group Television Personalities and Jason had an encyclopedic knowledge of 60’s garage rock that both fit nicely into the sound the group had been perfecting.

There was about to be a cultural renaissance on the San Francisco scene. Music empresario, Tom Guido (Fuzz Club, Charmkin’ Rebellion) was resurrecting The Purple Onion, a North Beach Comedy and Jazz Club with a storied past that under Guido’s eclectic eye would become one of the greatest live music venues that ever existed. Guido would invite the band’s new line-up to rehearse at the club and offer them their first show with the new rhythm section giving the band a less twee harder edge. Unfortunately Sam Knee would soon depart for his native England and Marzipan would from that point onward be a trio. Constantly gigging the band developed material that would become Side A of this LP. Recorded with engineer Greg Freeman of Lowdown Studios in San Francisco rough mixes were dumped onto Cassette and sent to Giordano in hopes Echonet would release. Mike woudn’t respond, until now. Flash forward to 2020, there’s a global pandemic and a lunatic in the White House. Marzipan has been split up since ‘99, the same year the Purple Onion would shutter. Giordano, still residing in SF’s North beach, has a new label, 300mics, with excellent releases by artists The Hellenes (ex Rain Parade) Imajinary Friends and space rockers White Hills. In the 30 plus years since the birth and death of the Echonet label Mike also raised a family. Now with both adult children moving out the extra space meant Mike could organize his vast music archive.

Many treasures were rediscovered, among them a cassette labeled Marzipan demo’s. Mike found himeself giving the tape repeat listens called Tom and was enthusiastic, asking questions about the tape, if anything ever happened with it, eventually he mentioned wanting to put it out. The band was excited but was not quite sure what was on the tape Mike unearthed. After getting together to listen Marzipan realized they were rough mixes quickly done the day of the tracking session. With hindsight comes 20/20 and to present day ears, these mixes sounded superior to the final mixes the band eventually completed. Suddenly Marzipan was very excited over these tapes again. Very stripped down and live, these rough mixes make up the bulk of You Asked For a Hard Candy. Side B also kicks off with rough mixes from the Mr. Toad Sessions, recorded near the bands end in ‘99 plus a live recording from Bottom Of The Hill. We sincerely hope you enjoy this artifact from ‘90’s San Francisco.

Marzipan would like to thank Mike Giordano, 300mics, Sam Knee,
Paul Rena, Todd Caris, Dylan’s Pub, Beth Loudmouth, Wally Mc-
Clellan, Jess Ivry, Johnny Ray Huston, Mr. Toad’s Recording Studio,
Lowdown Recording Studio, WallySound and most of all, our friends
and fans especially Larry, Heath, Ursula, Randy, Lee, Laura and
Claire.

credits

released April 6, 2021

vox, guitar Seth Bender
bass, guitar, vox Jason Kuczenski
drums, keys Tom Marzella

All songs by Seth Bender except
*The Rings, I Wanna Be Free
**Buffy Sainte-Marie, Codine
***Ivor Cutler, Grass

1,2,3,4,5,6 & 11 recorded by Greg Freeman, SF CA '96
7,8,9 recorded by Jeff Byrd, SF CA '99
10 recorded live in SF. CA '98
Mastered at Wally Sound
Cello on Grass - Jess Ivry
Cover Photo, marzipan - Live at The Purple Onion by Alex Geidt
Back Cover Photos, marzipan - 21 Bernice by Laura Lee
Album Design and Layout by Todd Caris & marzipan

For Tom Guido

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