Electronic Press Kit: Moving To and Fro – Sept 4, 2026 release

High resolution, print quality documents and media

Print

Download all print materials as a zip file:
https://www.skullmanrecords.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Chris-Newman-Moving-To-and-Fro-Press-Kit.zip

or view and download individual items:
Moving To And Fro album one-sheet (PDF)
300 DPI jpg black and white photo of Chris and Sam circa 1986 (credit to photographer David Wilds)
300 DPI png image of album cover

Media

REVIEWERS: Contact me through the contact form for a private link to the album on Soundcloud
Embeddable video: https://studio.youtube.com/video/V7UDRydgrbc/edit

Seminal Pacific Northwest Album Now Available for the First Time on Vinyl

In May 1986, Chris Newman stepped into a Portland warehouse with drummer Sam Henry to record something different. While their band Napalm Beach were already local legends, Moving To And Fro was a departure from the darker New Wave styles they’d been playing for the past five years.

Initially released on cassette, Moving To And Fro was a type of concept album where Newman recalled how he felt, first as a boy in love with comic books and rock n’ roll (Monster), then growing into a man and becoming increasingly serious about music while coping with ostracization and deceit (Put Down, Strangers), excited to form a band and make records (Frenzy, Friends, Gold Fever), eager to see the world (Anywhere USA), and searching for his “electric girl” (Red Blooded, Wait For Me), while coping with indignities like soul-sucking low-wage jobs (Graveyard).

In 1988 a tiny German label (L.S.D.) offered to put out the record, but they insisted on adding other songs, essentially bastardizing it. In fact, Chris’ original vision was perfect for an audiophile vinyl LP. He had always intended to release Moving To And Fro on vinyl, as it was originally conceived, but due to a lack of money and support, he was never able to do so. Newman performed the songs live for decades, as the album circulated through the underground.

Meanwhile, the original 8-track masters remained with recording engineer Tom Robinson. Chris died in 2021 and Sam in 2022. In 2023 Chris’ estate launched a successful Kickstarter campaign, enabling the purchase of the master tapes, which were then placed into the expert hands of legendary recording engineer Jack Endino, someone with whom Chris had a working history, and whom Chris deeply respected as an artist, musician, engineer, and human being. 

Moving To And Fro captures Newman and Henry at the height of their powers. The album was recorded like many punk albums of the era – on 8 track, over about 3 days, in a warehouse – and is essentially a garage rock album – yet with a virtuosity and attention to the craft of songwriting few punk or garage bands achieve.

File Under: Rock / PNW Legends
RIYL: Napalm Beach, Nirvana, The Wipers, Iggy Pop, The Beatles
A Lost NW Classic: The first-ever U.S. vinyl pressing of the 1986 solo masterpiece from Napalm Beach frontman and Northwest icon Chris Newman.
Sonic Restoration: Sourced from the original 8-track masters, digitized and remixed/remastered by the legendary musician and engineer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden, Nando Reis).
The Original Vision: Unlike the 1988 German “L.S.D.” release, this edition restores Chris’s original tracklist and solo billing as intended in 1986.
Historical Pedigree: Features the powerhouse drumming of Sam Henry (The Wipers, Napalm Beach). 
Oregon Music Hall of Fame Inductees: Chris was among the first OMHF inductees in 2007; Sam was inducted in 2011.
Built by Fans: Successfully funded by a dedicated community via Kickstarter