Pittfall, Women of the Dunes, The Face of Another...all fucking classic films. Teshigahara is someone I expect to come up more often in discussions on film, yet he never seems to. Too bad because those three are absolutely essential viewings. And his choice of having Takemitsu soundtrack them was equally brilliant. The music fits so perfectly that I suggest watching the movies first just to experience the interplay of sound & image, then if you like it download this.
So, a while back I posted the Young Ones related album by proto-Spinal Tap metal comedy group Bad News. Apparently people don't seem to love the Young Ones as much as me. That being the case, this will probably not interest you either as it is basically Neil doing his hippie shit on an album. While there's some weird spoken word stuff and little sketches, there's some pretty interesting covers too (Donovan, Traffic, Pink Floyd, etc). Oh hippies, your dirt burgling/filth hoarding asses still provide so many laughs.
This shit will haunt you like that cyclist you once ran off the road one late night whilst coming home. Or that time you went out stalking your ex and saw her having it off with that dude who wears bracelets. But while this gets creepy crawly, there's a muted beauty as well. Lots of droney drones and clanky clanks. I think I even heard a scritchey scritch in their too. So if that's your thing that get on top of this. Also, this might be of interest of a few due to Heather Leigh Murray's involvement (Charalmbides, Scorces, lots of other good shit).
I think I read somewhere that natives of Sacramento sometimes, or maybe it's just Californians, refer to that city as Sac-town. I really hope this was a joke. It's such an unfortunate moniker. Anyways, that's were these loons come from. Okay, time to make a big claim here, but I'll dare. I think that this was one of the best American bands to come out of the late 70s. It's the perfect combination of New Wave, power pop, punk, and rock. Then throw in layers of weirdness. This sounds much more like some contemporary weird punk band currently ripping off the classics. Listen to the title track and I think you'll feel like Guided By Voices were looting this corpse from time to time.
Hooray for more cyborg related things. It might be possible to consider this classic as the Canadian doppelganger of Chrome. It's weird and spacey and certainly doesn't sound like much coming out of Hamilton Ontario at the time. Shit, it doesn't sound like much coming out from anywhere at that time. Or this time for that matter. The early tracks are really where the meat of this disc lies. The later recording are of interest, but they lost something along the way. Nevertheless, those early tracks are true rock classics. Maybe the best Canadian band of all time. Well, at least top five or so.
Pretty fucking great cover for a pretty fucking great album. This is another to file in the obscuro heavy rock/hard prog section. Well, maybe not full on cod-piece prog, more hard British 70s rock I suppose, but it has a proggy element to it. As far as I know, this was the only release by these cretins. I guess really it's more proto-metal than anything. But sometimes when I listen to it, it seems proto-everything. Cyborgs are cool. Assassins even cooler. Is it possible to go wrong when the two combine?
I never thought I'd come to say this, but as much as I love the early Factory records' sound, this could stand as my favorite album from that deep catalog. It's got that super great Martin Hannett production that made Joy Division such a classic group. And yes, it does sound like J.D. at most times, but there's something that almost seems a little more chaotic here. For example, the static buzz guitars on "Friendly Fires," sound almost Jesus & Mary Chainish. I will say this band took a severe turn toward shitmaking, but this stands as one of the definitive post punk documents. Kinda weird few people talk about it much.
Seems like people have been digging the prog posts lately, and why not? It's yet to be co-opted by all the cool kids. Maybe their irony knows some limitations. Well, fuck 'em anyways. While most of the prog I've posted has been pretty popular, I thought I'd dig a little deeper for this post. I know that prog heads will already be familiar with this one, but oh well, I can't please everyone. For those not in the know, this is some pretty heavy stuff that has a bluesy influence at times. And while this shit can get pretty loud there's also pretty flute interludes and more plaintive moments as well. Prog haters fuck off. Just wait. In a year or so I'm sure Wakemanesque wizard capes and skin tight tight trousers will be de rigueur with all those kids who are currently wearing those silly scarves. Really, this is my prediction.
Everyone knows that Sir Lord Baltimore's proto-metal classic "Kingdom Come" is an absolute face crusher. However, few discuss Louis Dambra's more psych leaning, yet nonetheless awesome band, The Koala. Not the sun worshipping West Coast hippie psych; instead this has a strong New York proto punk sneer. Of course, since Dambra is involved, the guitar is fucking great. I won't claim to like this more that SLB, but that's not really a fair equation. It's not trying to be the same thing, so why should I have to compare them? I can attest that this is some great psych that's worth a listen, so let's just leave it at that.
Shadow Ring...dare I try to describe this band? Dare I eat a peach? I guess this is going to be something that no matter how I describe it, it will definitely sound worse than how it does, if that makes any sense. There's lots of clanking pot-like percussion, detuned string buzz, broken toy pianos, spoken word vocals delivered with a thick British accent, odd ephemera, etc. I guess that's a few of the sounds often associated with Shadow Ring. Yeah, I can see why that wouldn't sound like it would appeal to many, but really this sounds much better than it should. I guess it just proves how smart these fuckers are.
It seems that lately rock has taken a turn for the wimpy. Sure, I love plenty of fey shit (past posts should make this fairly obvious), and I'm certainly no muscle bound DudeBro, but I still feel that there's a vacant throne previously sat upon by these miscreants. Sure, there's still some bands out there that provide us with some bitter self-loathing rock, but this hate faced masterpiece (collecting all of their 7"s and some comp tracks) distill the misanthropy to its crystalline essence. And "Tired and Cold" has to be one of my all time favorite songs. Get pissed again.
For a certain someone who may or may not see this. But happy birthday. See, I didn't forget.
Has anyone else noticed this frightening trend, or am I alone in finding this horrific? When did this idea of bands (I'm not talking about radio bands, I mean small indie bands) come to believe that selling their songs as ringtones was a acceptable idea. I assume the average age of members in said bands is probably around 17, so maybe an old curmudgeon like myself can provide some sage advice. So listen up kiddies. If you are selling your songs as ringtones, you are not a musician. You are a salesman. Pack in your shit now and get a job at Payless or something. If no one was buying it in the first place, why the fuck would they want your swill exuding from their phone every time some dimwit calls them? Secondly, if you feel like your music is best heard on a phone speaker, then you must already realize your music is shit. I know, you kids didn't grow up with zines and real record stores, so the idea of a cohesive album might seem foreign (7" acceptable format too, natch). So here's an example of how albums work. See, these songs aren't constructed with myspace in mind. These songs function as a unified work, though they may be enjoyed individually as well. Now, mind you, don't take this advice in the wrong direction. If you want to get all arty and shit out some half baked concept, then you're going down the wrong road. You're not that smart. Nearly every time someone wants to get all grandiose it typically (almost always) sucks. If your music is that boring so as to warrant some silly theatrics or harebrained gimmick, then you should construct a funeral pyre out of your instruments then jump atop the flames. The only concept you should have in mind is how to rock. That's it. Oh, and if you have some marketing scheme or business plan, you're not a band but a corporation. You still there children? Sorry, I don't mean hurt your feelings but we old folk are getting a little tired of the same sounding shit that you keep making (hmm...this year it seems to be reverb heavy static pop). What happened to innovation? Okay, that's the end of the rant/lesson. Not much you need to know about this album. It's heavy and spacey and drugged out. It's good.
Look at that remarkable hair. No really, look at it for a while. Spend some time savoring its greasy gloriousness and then prepare yourself for the amazing elctro-rap offered to you by this finely quaffed gent. This isn't anything remotely like that bullshit that passes for rap now days. Much more like Kraftwerk than what shit is on the radio right now. My House (On the Nile) is just so great. It is just a song about how awesome his house is. Oh, why aren't there more songs on this subject (please don't mention "Our House" (either version))? I'm still trying to figure out how he first came up with this stage name, and second, how he thought it was a good idea. Hilarious.
I first heard about Leon Thomas when I was blown away by his crazy vocalese on a Pharaoh Sanders record. I later read that he was a prime influence on Starsailor-era Tim Buckley. That makes sense. Thomas does some pretty odd things with his voice. Sometimes it sounds like he's doing a weird kind of throat warbling. I dunno...I can't figure out how it's done. And I've tried. I guess you can call this a vocal jazz album if you wish. That seems like a pretty apt label, if you need a label, Mr. Label Lover.
Robert Wyatt is surely a deity of some sort. With a voice like a angel and a beard like a wizard, he continues to still make challengingly beautiful music. His work with Soft Machine and solo seem to be where most people go when they're in a Wyatt mood, I'll take Matching Mole. But I'm a fan of Caravan and Hatfield & the North (members included in this band). This album is so great. There's beautiful mellotron heavy tunes like "O Caroline," and then there's also songs like weirdo space jazz of "Instant Pussy" (nice title). This is one of those albums that sounds better every time I listen to it.
Let's take a break from the old timey things for a moment, M'kay? There's a duo out of Baltimore that's been making pretty brilliant fuzzed out droney bliss for the past couple of years, and I'm not talking about Beach House. There is a certain similarity between the two bands but this is more distorted and less dreamy. Yet it should get all the hype that B.H. as been getting from all the hipsters (oh, you silly kids). This post collects all there output, barring their latest 7" (available here). And it looks like they have a few tapes coming out somewhat soon. You should be excited about that too.
Let's see who's involved with this prog rock (of the Canterbury persuasion) delight. Well, Brian Eno is involved. There's Phil Manzanara of Roxy Music fame. Charles Hayward of This Heat is there too. There's also people connected with Robert Wyatt and Matching Mole. And yes, this is a real album. I know it sounds like some dream band, but you can hear it for yourself. And you should. While I'll admit that I like probably like all the other bands and musicians more than this one off, but still, that's only because I love those other bands so much, not that I dislike this or anything. If you've heard the 801 album then I guess you can use that as a point of reference. Maybe a more aggressive Soft Machine or something. 
Why not a little more Japanese psych? And this has got to be one of the better ones. I've previously mentioned Kosugi in my Astroboy soundtrack post and his awesome fluxus work. He's another group he was affiliated with. And it sounds much more like some contemporary hippie collective than some 70s Japanese rock. It's experimental and weird, for sure, but if that isn't necessarily your thing, there's no need to avoid this. The fantastic website Ubuweb has the entire documentary made on their 1973 tour. You should check it out here. And while you're there, you might as well check out all the other amazing treats to be found there as well.
Umm...can this be the most influential band that no one has heard? It's taken me years to find albums by these guys (all of dubious legality), and while I've got a ton of their shit, I know there's still some super limited cdrs and cassettes that I'll never see. To me, they've always have been this mythical band everyone likes talking about but, pre-internet mind you, were nearly impossible to find. It seems like if you know this band (and have actually heard them) you probably already have this one, seeing as it's the one with probably the widest distribution (thanks Julian Cope). If you haven't given them a listen then imagining a Japanese version of V.U. wouldn't be that far off. The history of this band is pretty sketchy, but one thing everyone mentions is their affiliation with the Japanese Red Army and their hi jacking of a plane. So there I mentioned it. If you want some awesome psych/noise/distorto mess, then prick up your ears.
People seem to have interest of late in getting more albums up by dudes who can play some serious guitar. And this here delicious morsel is for those with such an appetite. Title & cover alone will clue you into the sounds. Like Sandy Bull, John Fahey, & Robbie Basho (the acoustic holy trinity), Walker traverses similar regions of acoustic explorations. This guy should be much more popular. I might be off on this too, but I thought I read somewhere that he was like the personal guitarist to Tim Leary or something like that. I think he still owns Karen Dalton's guitar. I also seem to remember a pretty psychedelic looking cover to some Fahey LP I have that was credited to a Peter Walker. But I can only guess that it's the same person. So there's plenty of speculation there with little hard facts. But I'm not a fucking journalist. Today is warm and sunny. This is the proper sound track.
Who doesn't love Lemmy? Idiots maybe. And that's about it I guess. While ever swinging dick knows that prior to Motorhead Lemmy was in Hawkwind, but some people forget about this other classic that he played on (and, of course, you can't forget the Rockin' Vicars). It's not some biker scuzz or some outer space levitation, but a much more psychedelic affair than you'd expect from the massive moled wonder. Part of that comes from Gopal's awesome tabla work. The rest is just because this is a rad psych disc. It's still primitive and a little thugged out at times. Long live Lemmy. He's still one of the coolest.
This is often described as ambient radio comedy, and I guess that's what I'll go with too. If you have any interest in British comedy (and if you don't than go watch the Hangover or some other frat boy bullshit), than this will probably be for you. This is from the guy who had a sketch called "Christ's Cock and Balls" so you know it can't be all that bad. Brian Eno, Labradford, Aphex Twin, are just some of the artists these surreal sketches are laid over. Why the hell are we content to have such stupid comedies when things like this are successful elsewhere. Instead we have Judd Apatow and other half tards that churn out the same formulaic garbage. People, wise up. We can actually have humor again. So take off that stupid white baseball cap. Swap out those cargo shorts. Tuck in that button down shirt. And just hide that tribal tattoo (ooh, so tough). It's time to stand up and demand comedies that don't treat us like the idiots that we are.
Don't like Spirit? Well then sir, you may go fuck yourself. How can you not love that fucking band? The drummer was super old and bald. They were ripped off heavy by Zep (check Taurus and then listen to Stairway to Heaven). And I've seen band photos that featured Randy California in a speedo. I mean, what's not to like? And while there's serious guitar mastery here (as with Spirit) this seems much more stoned to my ears. I'm not super convinced by the covers, but originals like Downer make this worth the minute or two of download time alone. And jeez, just look at how cool musicians used to look. Now, most look like models or accountants. Or have that horrible little fin hair cut (I think you know what bullshit I'm talking about). Or that shitty weak beard that looks like they glued a few pubes on their faces. Where did we go wrong?
Astral rap? Perhaps. I've read that this is the work of Madlib, produced after a psychedelic binge. Not sure if that's a myth or if there's some truth to it. I want to believe it to be the case since this is some pretty out there rapping. All the vocals are sped up so it sounds like a weird kid or some alien (not Alf though, thank god). And the beats..well..it's Madlib, so you probably know what you're going to get. It's a weird one for sure, but not just an oddity. It's actually a good listen. Oh rap, why do you suck so bad now? Why can't shit like this get some radio play? The kids seem to like silly voices (see auto tune), so this should play in the sticks, it just doesn't. Too bad.
