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A Record Collector's Guide


The Joy Formidable - Albums

A Balloon Called Moaning

Pure Groove PUREGROOVECD001 CD and Box Set, released 2009 (UK)

Ralleye RYECD 055 (Japan)

Black Bell BB001-1 LP / BB001-2 CD (U.S./UK)

Hassle HOFF325LP LP / HOFF235CDA CD, released 2019 (U.S./Europe)

Somehow, no one considers A Balloon Called Moaning a full album. Fine. Semantics. Whatever you call it, it's excellent. Really, really good stuff. It gave me hope for music at a time when I had little.

This one came out in several different formats. First and foremost, we have the box set. The band initially put this out under the Pure Groove moniker. The limited box set contained the CD, a booklet, several postcard-size pieces of Rhydian's artwork, and an actual balloon with "Moaning" printed on it. It all came in a carefully assembled box, hand numbered out of 500. This became a beast to procure. For a good while, it regularly sold in the $150 range. It has dropped way down since. It is still scarce, but generally sells in the $40-60 range now.

There was another Pure Groove edition of the CD. The CD itself looked exactly the same as the previous box set version, but this one came attached to a folded up poster sleeve (the green image above). Logically, this one should be valuable as well, but it isn't.

Then, we have the big time re-release of the album - the Black Bell and Ralleye versions. Black Bell gave us the only original vinyl version of the album - it was on black vinyl and is easy to find. The Japanese CD (Ralleye) contained modified artwork with a black base color, and had a slightly different track listing. The first five tracks were the same, but it then went with the remix b-sides from the Cradle single.

2019 brought about the 10th anniversary of A Balloon Called Moaning. With it came an anniversary version, a double LP set with different artwork. The first record was the original album, on an opaque turquoise vinyl. The second was Welsh versions of the whole album (that one was on yellow vinyl). I didn't think this would be overly interesting, but it's really good. Solid, unique takes on all of the tracks. In theory, this one was limited to 1,000 copies worldwide. It is easy to find for now.

Version Value ($) Scarcity Price Trending
PUREGROOVECD001 CD Box Set 40-60 6 Down
PUREGROOVECD001 CD 6-10 2 Down
RYECD 055 CD 8-12 2 Down
BB001-1 LP Black 10-15 1 Stable
HOFF325LP LP 1xTurquoise/1xYellow 25-30 2 Stable
Original
Reissue Side A
Reissue Side C

This page was last updated on November 26, 2019.

 

First You Have to Get Mad CD

TJF000 CD, released 2009 (UK)

This disc was trouble for late-adopting collectors. It was a self-released CD, limited to 500 copies. It was a complete, early live set from the Garage in London. I saw exactly one of them sell over the period of about a year when I first started paying attention. It went for a lot. Then, another was sold in early 2013, and it also went for a large sum. People must have noticed at that point, as several others appeared in short order after that point. I thought the price might go down after the most enthusiastic collectors overspent, but it did not. It held steady in the $150 range for several years, but then dropped quite a bit. It settled into the $65-75 range. There does not seem to be a real catalogue number for this disc, but on the underside of the CD, it says TJF000, so that's what we're going with.

Version Value ($) Scarcity Price Trending
TJF000 CD 65-75 6 Down

This page was last updated on November 26, 2019.

     

The Big Roar

Atlantic/Canvasback 075678833274 CD/DVD Box Set, released 2011 (Europe)

Atlantic/Canvasback 7567-88335-3 CD (UK)

Atlantic/Canvasback 1-526623 2xLP / 2-526623 CD (U.S.)

Atlantic/Canvasback WPCR-14125 CD (Japan)

Atlantic/Canvasback 7567-88258-0 2xLP (Europe)

The Big Roar was the first official full-length album from the Joy Formidable. It is an excellent record. A chunk of the tracks are recycled from A Balloon Called Moaning, so only about half of it was new when it was released. That said, it is really solid and came with a spike in popularity for the band. There was a limited edition version of this one - the box set - which was loaded with exclusive items and rarities. It contains two CDs and two DVDs. Naturally, the first disc is the actual album. Next up, we have a CD EP called It's Just a World Apart. This was the key piece in the box set for me, as it contained several tracks that were either exclusive to the disc or on other releases that were difficult to obtain. This was the track list:

  • "Greyhounds in the Slips," one of my favorites of theirs (only available elsewhere as a free mp3 from the band and on a promo CD)
  • "My Beerdrunk Soul Is Sadder than a Hundred Dead Christmas Trees" (from a very limited Christmas compilation)
  • "Popinjay" (from the 7" of the same name)
  • "Chwyrlio," (Whirring b-side)
  • "The Butterfly's Last Spell" (exclusive)
  • "wide eyed" (exclusive)

The DVDs in the box set are called One Shape Under the Magnifying Glass (Live at the Mercury Lounge) and A Bridge Splits November's Sky, which is a compliation of the band's music videos. The box also contained a pin and a card signed by the band. This set was limited to 1,000 copies overall (though the market hasn't supported this number, so I bumped up the scarcity rating). A select few (300) came with a piece of one of Ritzy's smashed guitars. The set is extremely difficult to find these days. Rarely sold, and expensive when it is. It is definitely worth tracking down for those rarities, though.

Whew. Of course, there were normal versions of the album as well. It was released on vinyl as a double LP on black vinyl. The two vinyl versions were pretty much identical, aside from the matrix codes and catalogue numbers. These sold for retail prices for many years, but got much more expensive a few years ago, and has now settled back into a more reasonable range.

Version Value ($) Scarcity Price Trending
075678833274 CD/DVD Box Set 70-110 6 Volatile
1-526623 2xLP (U.S.) 30-40 3 Stable
7567-88258-0 2xLP (Europe) 40-50 5 Stable
1-526623 (U.S.) Side A
7567-88258-0 (EUR) Side A
It's Just a World Apart CD (Box Set)
One Shape Under the Magnifying Glass DVD (Box Set)
A Bridge Splits November's Sky DVD (Box Set)

This page was last updated on November 26, 2019.

   

Wolf's Law

Atlantic/Canvasback 533001-1 LP / 534374-2 CD, released 2013 (U.S.)

Atlantic/Canvasback 7567-87617-9 LP / 7567-87325-1 CD (UK)

Atlantic/Canvasback 533001-1 / 075678761614 LP + 12" Deluxe Box Set (U.S.)

I will readily admit that I was concerned about Wolf's Law leading up to it's release. The Big Roar was a great album, but it was partially living off of previously released tracks. I was worried further when they released the first single from the album, "This Ladder Is Ours", before the album itself was released. That one just never did it for me. Well, crisis averted. Wolf's Law is spectacular. I basically loved every other song on the record. A truly impressive sophomore effort for the Joy Formidable.

Wolf's Law was released on black vinyl in the U.S. and Europe. As with the previous album, there was a deluxe edition box set released for Wolf's Law, but this one focused on the vinyl. The box contains a bonus 12" with the title track on it (which is not listed on the album, but does appear as a hidden bonus track). The b-side is etched with silhouettes of wolves. The box also contains a few lithographs by the artist who did the cover art, as well as a hummingbird pin. The box set is still readily available, and is less expensive now than it was when it was released. A "super deluxe" version was also made available in the U.S. It was limited to 15 copies and came with a signed drum head used in the recording of the album. The retail price tag on that one was kind of insane (I think it was $150), but they sold out very quickly anyway. I don't think I've ever seen one of those on the secondary market.

Version Value ($) Scarcity Price Trending
533001-1 LP Black 5-8 1 Down
7567-87617-9 LP Black 8-12 1 Stable
533001-1 LP + 12" Deluxe Box Set 20-25 2 Down
Wolf's Law LP
Wolf's Law - Box Set Bonus 12"
Wolf's Law - Box Set Bonus 12"

This page was last updated on November 26, 2019.

All Joy Formidable Singles and EPs
The Joy Formidable Index
Home

Scarcity Score Definition
10 Near impossible: Fewer than 50 copies or publicly sold every few years
8-9 Very rare: 50-199 copies or publicly sold 1-2 times per year
6-7 Rare: 200-499 copies or publicly sold a few times a year
4-5 Medium: 500-999 copies or publicly sold ~10 times a year
1-3 Common: 1000+ copies, readily available, or publicly sold 20+ times a year

Estimated values are based on recent auction results or online sales. Commercial use of images on this site is not permitted. Non-commercial use of images permitted, with attribution to Pette Discographies. All images copyright their respective owners.