"Raped Ass" test pressing (take 3)

Submitted by Stuart on Tue, 08/30/2011 - 09:46

Records

Here is another post about a test pressing of "Raped Ass." The previous ones are here and here. Obviously, this archive could easily degenerate into a collectorsfrenzy style log of highly priced auctions on eBay (Cimex-frenzy?). I've been tempted, but that's not quite the point. Rather, the idea is to collect together previously unknown or undercirculated information and ephemera related to Anti-Cimex and Shitlickers. Not sure this post fits that bill entirely, but here goes.

This recent auction ended for the eyepopping price of $685, more but not a lot more than either of the previous ones. It seems to include only the back of the sleeve auctioned earlier, now considered an insert.

Notable is the discussion in the buyers' and sellers' Q-and-A section. After the post on the "Raped Ass" test pressing with the Grammoplast label, someone contacted me and provided this info: "This testpress is a testpressing made for the Clear vinyl version (England tour version) of raped ass 7", and its made after the firstpressing of the Raped ass 7". I got one myself with the same cover as the one sold on the auction. The testpressing on Toolex alpha is the oldest one." A very similar comment/question seems to have been sent to the seller of this test pressing, probably by the same dude. But then someone else seems to have contacted the seller and corrected that information. The comment here includes no mention of "Really Fast." Overall, the comments seem strangely self-serving, but I can't figure out why other than that the commenter wants the world to know he has this test pressing, which he claims is SO RARE. Congrats, dude.

Anyway, I'd say that all we now know for certain is that there are two test pressings of "Raped Ass," with two different center labels and the same matrix (which we already knew). One was presumably made for the first pressing and one was made later, probably with the clear-vinyl pressing. The Really Fast pressing likely did not have a test pressing, as it was made soon after the very first pressing. It makes sense that there was a test for a later pressing, as the plant had ostensibly changed, and it was probably necessary to make sure the plates were still viable after the earlier pressing(s).

Here's the auction, formatting intact.

COMMENT: Test press of ANTI CIMEX legendary second 7’’, the “Raped Ass” EP. This was pressed in Sweden by Grammoplast in 1983. I can’t imagine more than a handful of these were pressed. I have compared the matrix numbers with my original/regular copy of this record, and they match. (A-side Matrix: A-RECORDS-001-1983-A & VÄGRA GÖRA VÄRNPLIKT there is also an A with a circle round it & TA / B-side Matrix: A-RECORDS-001-1983AA & ANARKI, FRIHET OCH KÄRLEK there is also an A with a circle round it on this side). In other words this is the super rare first ever pressing. Also comes with an insert with titles and picture. This is probably your only chance to get hold of this hyper rare test press. This rare test press is in MINT condition!!! Swedish hardcore punk at its best!!! Please check my other auctions of original pressings of EXISTENZ / ABSURD / ARROGANTA AGITATORER etc.

ARTIST: ANTI CIMEX

TITLE: RAPED ASS

SIDE A: When The Innocent Die / War Machine

SIDE B: Total Silence / Cries Of Pain / Raped Ass

YEAR: 1983

LABEL: A-Records (001)

PRESSED IN: SWEDEN

FORMAT: 7’’ vinyl

CONDITION (SLEEVE/RECORD/INSERT): -/M/M

On Aug-29-11 at 02:07:36 PDT, seller added the following information:

Ok, many questions about this of course. Here is a update: This record is a test press of the "Really Fast Records" release that was made to promote a UK tour. There were 5 test press copies made on black vinyl. One copy is in Norway, one in the USA, one somewhere in Sweden (belongs to the guy who contacted me and gave me all this info about this pressing, thanx Nicklas), this copy and one more copy that still haven't turned up for sale. The regular "Really Fast" press was all on clear vinyl and made in 300 copies. This would make it even harder to find than the first pressing. Hope this helps you collectors out there, and if you have any questions feel free to mail me. /Daniel

On Aug-29-11 at 02:49:12 PDT, seller added the following information:

Oh my... Wrong info! This is the correct info: This is the Hardcore Horror Records test press nothing else (not the Really Fast test, that does not exist), sorry for that. (thanx again N)

Ultimately, I remain unconvinced that collecting test pressings is anything other than a raped ass.

Anti-Cimex Archive

Know your shit

Submitted by Nicklas (not verified) on Tue, 09/06/2011 - 01:19.

know your shit before you post wrong info, not the first time you make up your own stories.
Im NOT the guy that gave you that info about the last testpressing.
But I am the guy that mailed Daniel and asked him where he got his Test from, when I saw it on Ebay.
And then gave him the info I know about it, cause he DIDNT know what it was , he thought it was the Test for A-records and then mixed it up with the Really Fast release.
Thats why he posted it is a TEST for Really Fast, I corrected him for that , thats why he posted a change.
Anyone would be able to understand that "N" and "Nicklas" are same person, but apparently not you.
I would like to think its a nice thing to tell people if they have something valuable.

I seen around 10 different presses (covers) for Raped Ass. (including testpresses) and I heard about a 11th.
All the raped ass where pressed with SAME matrix cause they ALL where pressed with same plates.
Really Fast press doesn´t have a testpress cause its pressed on LjudPress, LjudPress didnt have their own labels, only white labels.
AlphaToolex and Grammoplast had their own labels so thats why there where "testpresses".

So:
A-record was pressed on Alpha Toolex (5 - test + 1000)
Really Fast on Ljud Press (300)
Clearvinyl on Grammoplast ( 5 test + 300)

Same plates on all presses.

And yes I do own a test of this, does that make me famous in the world ?
Or is it just in your world perhaps.

From Stuart: I don't see what is wrong in my post, other than my mistake about who posted a comment on this site and there being two different questioners on the eBay auction. What I didn't note in the original post is that the comment was sent to me in an e-mail by a guy from Norway, not named Nicklas. I posted it then as a comment because I thought it was useful information. I had forgotten about this e-mail exchange and didn't check before I wrote this post. I should've checked, but ultimately it doesn't change what I assumed—incorrectly—which is that the guy from Norway contacted the seller and then Nicklas contacted the seller to correct the info. Apologies to my correspondent from Norway.

Still, I said exactly the same thing as you, Nicklas, wrote in this comment: "All the raped ass where pressed with SAME matrix cause they ALL where pressed with same plates." Then you said: "Really Fast press doesn´t have a testpress cause its pressed on LjudPress, LjudPress didnt have their own labels, only white labels." Again, not contradicted by what I wrote. But thank you for the additional information about the pressing plant.

You point out that the Q-and-A is confusing and is the source of incorrect info about the Really Fast pressing that was not in the original auction listing. I agree. Now it is clear that this stemmed from the seller misunderstanding you, and you corrected the misunderstanding. Am I right? Substantively, nothing changes in what we know about the test pressings. To summarize: you and the commenter on the previous post here are different people, and you sent questions to the seller, which I took to be from two different people. No big deal.

I have never claimed to have all the information, and I am quite ready to update/correct what I write. It should be clear that the purpose here is to gather information and present available evidence. In this funny little world of collectors/buyers/sellers, there is a lot of incorrect info out there, and there are people who have questionable motives for presenting information as true when it is not verifiable. Furthermore, there are people who use aliases and comment anonymously. For example, check out the fake Shitlickers sleeve I wrote about earlier. After that post, some folks seem to have misunderstood my point that it was a fabrication but that calling it "fake" means that one could call other SL or Anti-Cimex sleeve variations "fake" because not all sleeves were made with the band members' knowledge or permission. It's possible that sellers are cobbling together new rarities today from old materials or mismatched materials—indeed a possibility with the sleeve included with the first auction of this test pressing, which may not date to the time it was pressed, as I previously wrote (though we will never know for sure). I think we can all take it in stride. I try to be honest and self-deprecating and tongue-in-cheek. I also try to acknowledge that there are both good and bad reasons for the prices of these records. As someone who has paid a lot of money for records that may not be as rare as we think, I can say with certainty that prices and desirability and rarity are not always correlated. So buyers should be careful. That's the overall message. I'm the first to admit that I—irrationally—wish I could afford to own this record, but not because it's supposedly more or less rare than the other test pressing. When we're talking about five-copy test pressings, they're all extremely rare! But when Mats B. sells one out of his stash, it's not the same as someone finding one in the wild!

In the end, there are more important things in the world than Anti-Cimex test pressings. I hope we can agree on that. And, by the way, my record collection is better than yours.

"Raped Ass" test pressing (take 3)

Know your shit

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