Captain Beefheart is safe as milk, flowing saws in a can and bananas are melting in the SUN!!

Heat Wave!!!

set the controls for the heart of the sun
avoid being blistered by the sun
don't forget
sea, sex and sun!!!
***

Captain Beefheart: Safe as Milk (1967) ***1/2
For years, I've had a lousy re-issue bastard called Captain Beefheart at His Best (1989), which deservedly received a slam from The Captain Beefheart Radar Station.
Lousy sound!!
Lousy mix and they dropped..."Dropout Boogie"!!!
The bastards!!!!

Praise the good Captain, the situation has been rectified and I am now in possession of a proper release of Safe as Milk...with bonus tracks!!!

Listening to early Cap is different...
unique...
straight r & b
NOT straight r & b...
brilliance
still o d d
more...traditional?

a young Captain?????????
with overt influences????????????????

Fav songs:
Electricity - breaks away from tradition and creates it's own
Yellow Brick Road - always found this really catchy...I've always wanted to go to OZ.
Call On Me - moves me...
Plastic Factory - hard rockin' precursor to "Hard Workin' Man"

Is this the place for a neophyte Beefheartian to start?
I started with Unconditionally Guaranteed (1974) in high school...liked it...didn't think it was that weird...
next got Trout Mask Replica (1969) and umm...
You could say that I thought it was weird...
I knew it was fucked!
I knew, I knew...it was worth working through...
not all classics are EASY.

So my answer would be ---- start with Clear Spot (1972) --- a little bit of everything, then go fishing for trouts!!!
***

Can: Flow Motion (1976) **1/2 Saw Delight (1977) ***
What to make of latter Can?
No Damo...No Malcolm...
I haven't listened to these that much...but from what I have, it's --- enjoyable.
Doesn't hit the peaks of days past.
Lower expectations, and let it silently
...wash over you.

Conclusion - inconclusion = pleasant if you're a fan...but start with Damo or Malcolm!!
[aside: I should add Soon Over Babaluma (1974) and Landed (1975) are pretty great, and are the first ones without Damo.]
***

Melt Banana: Cell-Scape (2003)
crazy crazy crazy
I LOVE IT!
Closer to The Boredoms than Acid Mothers Temple
(And that can mean whatever you want it to mean!!!!).

This is my first Melt Banana and this is a group definitely to be explored.

after a ridiculous amount of sweat, they end the album with a 10 minute journey to the stratosphere.

chaos
then...peacestorm
***

Random Ramblings

What was the music you heard growing up? For me, my Dad was into jazz - mainly big band - lots of lps
[aside: including the classic Herb Alpert: "Whipped Cream" lp with that delicious cover!].
I love a LOT of jazz (Miles and Coltrane would be top 10 artists of all-time for me), but still can't get into big band shit...

With all the shit going on in the world today...where the fuck are today's punks???

Pere Ubu...
The first album I had of Ubu was Worlds in Collision (1991) which, you know...is good, catchy and a few songs are even great, BUT...it's not early Ubu.
Fortunately, Randy supplied a couple of early Pere Ubu albums, (as well as Rocket from the Tombs)
I have no idea why the fuck I never got into these guys in the late 70s...
Why does that happen?
You miss a band you really shouldn't have. [aside: I blame the booze!]
Hey, who cares? Just enjoy it today...I'm currently grooving to The Modern Dance (1978).

Betty Davis is funky as shit...check her out...

Do you know who wrote / performed the 3rd song referenced in my opening salvo?
I know the first 2 were easy...but didja get the last one?
Answers: Pink Floyd, Violent Femmes...Serge Gainsbourg.
***

John Cage meets Sun Ra!!

John Cage Meets Sun Ra (1987)
So...I'm done downloading from Live Music Archives for the weekend and decide to get all intellectual and go visit UBU Web.

A great site full of poets...readings....poets reading...and....
John Cage Meets Sun Ra!!!!

A complete album from 1987 and recorded June 8th, 1986 at the "Sideshows by the Seashore: Coney Island, NY".

What to expect with these 2
f
a
r
o u t
musicians?

let's see...sounds like a flute...bells...a synth?...chimes!?
some nice conversation between the 2...

hello sun...hello john
nice day...yes it is
wanna freak people out?...sure.

oh oh..john's in a trance!!!!
hey...where did everybody go?? hello? hello? um...hello?
all i hear is a crackle...
WAIT
this is john fucking cage...
this IS the song!!!

oh...he came back!!!
hi john! where's sun?
this sounds like a sad sound poem about aging...* sigh *
i hear ya john
...damn he's gone again.
what?!
there's a crowd??
the most polite crowd...EVER!!
now it's....beautiful.

and the first side ends
and the second begins

ominous
then...silence...
getting their shit together?

oh, hi john

as i listen...
i understand...

the value of silence...

they applaud the silence
...a great crowd!!

now they're rockin'!
intensity
interactions
entwined genius

what???
it's done!!!!
way too fast!!

This is a great listen, and can be downloaded from UBU Web...
great wild shit...

Verdict: worth the download
***

Boredoms bore through brains, Kevin Coyne sings for Syd Barrett, Walter Wegmuller reads tarot cards and Parliament IS Osmium!!

The Boredoms: Super AE (1998) *****
the mind...
expanded
manipulated
fucked
...ever since my friend Randy hooked me onto the incredible Japanese noise bands, Acid Mothers Temple & The Boredoms.

This album takes you on a wild trip...
a roller coaster ride through the cranium.

The best advice I have for a "noise-experimental-avant garde-krautrock" music newbie is to....
ACCEPT!
Forget your preconceived notions of music...music is whatever you want it to be! It can be found anywhere and everywhere. Appreciate the beauty (AND ugliness) of sound.

I actually found a translation of whatever the hell they're singing about on the net...click on the Boredoms link above. Now that's dada (or is it mama
mama
it's S U P E R !everything!

[aside: doing a bit of searching on Japanese Noise Bands, has brought up a couple more bands to explore: Melt Banana and Merzbow. Musical discoveries never stop...yeh!!!]
***

Random Thoughts

I put on The New Faggot Cunts right after The Boredoms, and it felt like a very linear progression. Very impressive stuff. Free download at Puzzling Music Archive. Nice name, huh?
hahahahaha....certainly stands out like a motherfucker!!

Silver Apples: Silver Apples (1968) / Contact (1969) *****
I'm listening to this right now, and it's freaking me out...once again!
These guys were so far ahead of their time...
mind blowing
intense, wild, experimental
playful, thought-provoking
highly enjoyable...highly recommended.
thoughts from a silver apple ("You and I")
we don't have time for little things
there is no room for little things
because life is full of important things.

My friend Mole has a blog where he puts up the playlists for his radio show on...
ta..da!!
CFMU
McMaster University
my hometown of Hamilton Ontario...."a long long long time ago!!!"
There are links to his radio show on it...check it out, lots of good old fantastic weirdness. Mole's blog.
***

Kevin Coyne with Achim Goettert: Opera for Syd (1999) **** bootleg
This was a stage presentation put on by Kevin and Achim, and the Syd in question is none other than...Syd Barrett.

"Ain't this weird?" category
I pick out around 10 cds to take to work each day [aside: I don't listen to them all...I just like choice!], so I picked out this cd.
While driving to work I heard on the radio that Syd Barrett had died at the age of 60! Of course, I put this on immediately.

This record is fucking great!
I'm not sure why, but I had low expectations for this album.
No idea why...a feeling.

I was W R O N G!
It's blowing me away.
depraved and disturbed
energy and intensity
Another thing about Kevin Coyne -
when it comes to writing
singing about the mentally ill /
no one does it better / more attuned / sensitive
true or honest
than Kevin Coyne
(Born: January 27, 1944 Derby, England
Died: December 2, 2004 Nurnberg, Germany)

[aside: "House on the Hill" is probably my fav song about the mentally ill. Find it on Marjory Razorblade (1974).
Case History (1972) is my fav album about mental illness.]

This should be released immediately!!!
***

Cool web site alert

NPR Music Mavericks.
Play Harry Partchs' instruments and more fun!
I thought I sounded good on the "Metal, glass and bells"!! almost

You can even listen to the whole series (13 parts) on RealPlayer if you want and various interviews with oddball composers.
I'm listening to some interviewer trying to get Lamonte Young a chair. It seems to be taking them a bit of time to get their shit together! Hilarious!!
***

Walter Wegmuller: Tarot (1973) ****
This 2 cd set involves favs of mine: Ash Ra Tempel / Cosmic Jokers!

Walter introduces the 36 or so (actually 8!) people that co-wrote each song on the album to kick it off.

rockin' elements
jazzy elements
folk elements
space elements...sometimes o v e r t h e t o p ....
throw together in a vat of acid
(or other mind-altering substances)
and...record baby record!

cd2 starts off on another
planetary dimension and I feel like I'm in a gypsy tent...
I can't find the door
the walls are invisible.

unknown corridors
more dark
more ominous
the end is nearing
the tarot
reveals
t r u t h...
whatever you want it to be!

Great stuff as is everything I've heard Ash Ra involved in. Walter on AMG.
***

Parliament: Osmium (1970) ****
Different from the more familiar and famous Parliament albums. More Funkadelic-like in tone and feel.
Lots of Eddie Hazel...lots of gospel singing...lots of acid...lots of EVERYTHING!!
Let the party begin!! The greatest funkers of all-time are here!!

I Call My Baby Pussycat - awesome start...a classic!
Put Love in Your Life - psychedelic gospel baby and we all need a little love in all our lives...great singing, great guitar.
Little Old Country Boy - this is awesome...what a hook! who put the acid in my cornflakes?
Moonshine Heather (Takin' Care of Business) - not bto...mercy...just funky bizness
Oh Lord, Why Lord / Prayer - back to church for healings after moonshine heather
My Automobile - very cool song...i wouldn't think that driving with Mr. Clinton would be the brightest of ideas...
"George, look out!! Flying spaceships!!!!"
"Shaadap and have more of this...fucking white boys!"
There is Nothing Before Me But Thang - fucking right!!! great rawkin' song.
Funky Woman - reminds me of the old days...
Livin' the Life - gospel psychedelic jesus acid guitar
[aside: hey...great name for a band: "Jesus Acid Guitar"...feel free to steal]
The Silent Boatman - Bagpipes. There are fucking bagpipes in this song!?!

This album moves between genres fast and quick, which some may cite as a weakness...
not necessarily me...
This is the most underrated, ignored CLASSIC album by the funkers. If you love the psychedelicized acid guitar work of the early years (as I do)...what are you waiting for?? Get this album NOW!!
***

A Big One! Impressions Part 2, Faust, old recollections and free music download sites! And More! Whew!!

Free Music Downloads.
And legal too!!!

#1 - Live Music Archive.

They have some live concerts available for free download. How many? Oh, only about 37,000.

It only includes artists who are trade-friendly. So...no worries about artistic infringement and all that legal stuff.

I've downloaded some great shows by Dream Syndicate (yes!!!), Cracker, Hammell On Trial, Josh Ritter (mainly for the Guru, but it sounds good), Acid Mothers Temple (double YES!!!), Soul Coughing (cool!) and there's tons more to check out and explore...awesome site!!!!

#2 - Puzzling Music Archives

Another great free, legal music download site. Nowhere near as big, but sure as hell more
w e i r d...
For those of you into the weird fucked-up shit (like me), check out Fat Worm of Error, New Faggot Cunts and especially Deerhoof!
***

Impressions (Part 2)

Can: The Peel Sessions 1973-1975 (1995)
Finally! Some live Can! It's great. The 1st track with Damo is the best...he's wild! The rest is without Damo, but I still love their later stuff.

Dream Syndicate: Medicine Show (1984)
I remember buying this when it came out in 84, and I was into them. Then I sold my lps [aside: * sigh cry sob *...I hate youth, alcohol and lack of money!] and the only cds I had of theirs was the first (great) and a scratched copy of their greatest hits.
forward 20 years later * BAM!!! *
I've got back into these guys once again! It's cool re-discovering great music. These guys also have a couple of shows on "Live Music Archive" that I've already downloaded.
I've listened to the 1987 set from Greece and thought to myself: "Self. These guys were awesome live! I've got to check out the 20 or so live shows that Steve Wynn has on Live Music Archive"...real raw guitar-based rock'n'roll..."John Coltrane Stereo Blues" absolutely blows me away every time!
Steve Wynn Official Web Site.

Captain Beefheart: Captain Hook 1974 (1993) bootleg
This is a boot from a concert with the so-called "Tragic Band".
Well...I think this concert is the tops!!!
The Captain's in great voice, the band's tight and rockin'.
I always liked Unconditionally Guaranteed (1974). First purchased on 8 track when I was around 15 0r 16.
I love how the Cap throws out poetry every so often to an unsuspecting crowd...great show!Here's a link to a note from Michael Smotherman (keyboardist for the Tragic Band) which I think sheds some light on this period of the Cap. Interesting.
P.S. I agree that Bluejeans and Moonbeams (1974) indicated that the Cap needed a break to rejuvenate...which he did!!

Alex Harvey: Rock Workshop (1970)
Early pre-Sensational Alex Harvey is relatively straightforward, but his charisma and personality still shines through (check out "Born in the City"..."You To Lose" is interesting even though it sounds like Alex isn't totally comfortable in this style). A number of instrumentals surprisingly. I find him intriguing...whom knows? Maybe I'm even related to him!
***

Faust: Faust (1971) **** / So Far (1972) *****

free your mind...
experience
different places...
crevices...
holes in the soul...
a murder mystery
for fortune seekers...
a junkie's paradise
where Miss Fortune
is the heroin
surging
through your veins

sunshine girl
sits crosslegged
knitting rainbows
reading Henry Miller
and sipping wine

it's a rainy day
sunshine girl
it's a rainy day.

"It's a Rainy Day, Sunshine Girl" & "No Harm" are my 2 favorite Faust songs! ...
why do they want Daddy to take the banana?
what does it matter that tomorrow is Sunday??

These are definitely questions worth pondering!!!
What twisted perversions are they talking about???
I mean...bananas and daddy? and on Sunday!!!!

Brilliant...great Faust web site
***

Recollection Time

Out of the blue...old thoughts...
The Violent Femmes playing their first Canadian show...
ever...
a minister's son
from Milwaukee Wisconsin
in my hometown of Hamilton, Ontario.

Now get this...
In the basement of my old
Roman Catholic Church...
Canadian Martyrs'...
2 blocks from where
Harvey Dog
was raised
as a young pup...

My buddy JK and I got shitfaced [aside: as usual] and the band played great and we stood at the side...pounding 'em back like thirsty motherfuckers...and I pissed next to the bass player, Brian Ritchie, and he verified it was their first time in Canada...he was friendly.
The band got high outside...
my old Church, my old Grade School...
how times had changed
how times had changed.

We got drunker...bought a cool red Violent Femmes t-shirt...had a few more drinks...
broken glass,
a hand in the broken glass...a little blood...more drinks
Mickey DeSadist of The Forgotten Rebels was there...he sang with the opening act...good, but the ol' noggin's a little dull on the details...

a good time was had by one and all...

then I went back to JK's
...and we had, if I recall

...a few more drinks.
***

Depression Status: Well, I've worked really hard on controlling this depression bastard and the hard work is paying off. One thing I've learned through this ordeal (which has been going on intensely for over 3 years now) is that controlling depression requires work...forever!
some of the hardest work I've ever had to do.

So if you're struggling...keep working hard
you can get over it.

positive vibes
positive vibes...
***

Vaspers has added more Camouflage Danse mp3s for free download! Here's the link for details and lyrics and all kinds of good stuff.
***

Guru T-Lu on the New York Dolls: One Day It Will Please Us To Remember Even This (2006)
"David Johansen sounds like Randy Newman fronting a rock band."
[aside: the album sounded good on first listen. Can't compare to the original 2. How could it?]
***

Great conversation between Thelonius Monk and some reporter.
"What kinds of music do you like?"
MONK: "I like all types of music."
"Do you like Country and Western?"
MONK: "I like all types of music."
***

Back from Jasper, Bunch of new music: Impressions (part 1)

Greetings blog readers of the universe!!!

After a great visit to Jasper, Alberta and soaking in the beauty of mother nature I am back to the blog.

In the past couple of weeks I have accumulated more music and will do the old sharing of first impressions

re-impressions

pre-impressions.

***

The Heads: Under the Streets of a Headlong Drive (2006)

I'm not sure if putting this on first thing in the morning at work was the most brilliant idea I've ever had (especially when trying to learn sql server 2005!), but hey...

I would call it heavy space rock with a bit of an edge. The singer sounds like some lost ghost of Ian Curtis or Virgin Prunes [aside: I haven't heard these guys for 24 years so have no idea what I'm talking about...I should get some Joy Division!]

First Impressions: Interesting...Heavy [aside: as it's playing I'm starting to wish I was on the right kind of drugs, but I'm at work! Damn!]

Last 2 songs definitely fit into the Boredoms, Acid Mothers camp...best stuff on the cd.

John Cale: Ocean Club 1976 (1976) bootleg

This is great! Cale is in awesome voice and the contrast of Cale and Patti Smith singing "Abilene" cracks me up. The Guru chuckled as well.

You could tell Patti was trying so hard to be significant in front of her heroes (Lou was there too). I don't blame her...fuck, who wouldn't be! Link to info on great Cale site.

(while listening to) Sun Ra: The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra Vol. 1 (1965)

From the very first notes of this album I knew I was going to absolutely love it...man...

it's mind blowing stuff for blown minds.

It's going crazy man.

"Other Worlds" is definitely an appropriates title! Awesome!

Why do I love the sound of bells in w a y o u t h e r e jazz? Coltrane does the same thing and I love it.

Flying Island: Flying Island (1975)

Never heard of this one until someone passed it along...cool jazz-rock fusion...lots of violin work so if you're a fusion fan...go for it! Pretty obscure shit.

Pink Floyd: A Saucerful of Secrets (1968)

I've always been a fan of Floyd yet never had this one.

Early Floyd is more where my head is at these days than later Floyd. Very spacey...

"Let There Be More Light"
starts off the album on a space journey

floating into stratospheres

melting the atmosphere...great beginning

"Remember a Day"

I have this one on Relics and always liked it.

dreaming

soaking up energy

in a field of poppies

sleepy and languid

i dream i dream

"Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun"

is absolutely awesome...

"Corporal Clegg"

had a wooden leg

drugs rhyme with bugs

rhymes rhyme with times

line by line

i drink wine

feeling fine...

yes, obvious rhymes here

that's neither here nor there

...um...ok...

"A Saucerful of Secrets"

i am scared that

the secret is here

the secret is nowhere

no it's now here

what the hell is in that saucer anyway?

"See-Saw"

ok...i guess it's a rest from the intensity of the rest of the album...so so

"Jugband Blues"

syd is not here

syd is not there...boy, syd sure has personality in his singing...great stuff.

Great album.

Gong: Time is the Key (1979)

This is really Pierre Morlen's Gong and it's certainly not as

o u t t h e r e

as Gong is with that crazy guy Daevid Allen.

It's nice, but I would go back to the wilder Gong or Acid Motherhood with the Acid Mothers first. Visit Planet Gong.

***

Jasper was beautiful by the way...the weather was great, the hiking was great.

felt at peace

at ease

saw elks (dozens)

bears - 2 (1 dead, 1 alive crossing the highway)

coyotes (also crossing the highway)

...and the vicious Poobah!!

In our car!!!!!

Jasper Photos.

***

Link for free Camouflage Danse downloads!!

I want to give out a link to Vaspers the Grate for free downloads of his Camouflage Danse: "Inside Sessions" (1987). Incredibly, it's all improvised...lyrics and all! I'd say if you like experimental music with "Hawaiian wah-wah guitar feedback, acoustic guitars, and Leonard Cohen-esque lyrics" which Vaspers describes as an "electronic psychedelic industrial space rock jam band" then this is the ticket for you. It certainly is for me. I've been getting into classic krautrock, space rock, weird shit, avante garde and this fits right in there.

The image is a Camouflage Danse poster from Vaspers' site. Very nice...

Give it a listen!!
***

Tiger Lillies play with animals, first time listens and poetry inspired by Buckley...Tim that is!!

OFFENSIVE BAND
OFFENSIVE SECTION
OFFENSIVE MATERIAL
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!

The Tiger Lillies: Farmyard Filth (1997)
I first heard The Tiger Lillies on The Gorey End, a collaboration with The Kronos Quartet. It was a blast...
completely different
from anything else. The Guru is a big fan as well. However, The Gorey End CANNOT prepare you for this musical platter.
Nothing could!

As they describe it on their web site: "the most extensive collection of songs dealing with zoophilia in recorded history. Flies, Sheep, Hamsters, German Shepherds, Giraffes, Pigs and Calves, a veritable Noah's ark of beasts are paraded before the listener. Other subjects include amputees, pensioners and transsexuals. You have been warned."

This is completely accurate...I should mention that the instrumentation consists of an accordion, musical saws, Eminance removable neck bass, recycled drums and toys. It's like you stumbled into some offensive,
hilarious
dark underground cabaret.
I have no knowledge of cabaret music, but it's very listenable and catchy, occasionally beautiful
with words enticing and
shocking
...and the way they say: "c-ock" cracks me up.

So, dudes and dudettes...if you're not....I repeat...NOT easily offended, check them out for a very surreal
bizarre
twisted time. These guys are fucked! A site with lots of photos of the band playing live and a site with some info.
***

FIRST TIME IMPRESSIONS

Sun Ra: Strange Celestial Road (1980) Awesome!! Do yourself a favor and listen to SUN RA!

Thee Hypnotics: Soul, Glitter and Sin (1991) Ok...didn't really hit me.

Iggy Pop w/ David Bowie: The Mantra Sessions (1977) [Confession Time: When I was 20 or so, I really identified with Iggy. I mean...I fucking understood what Iggy was about!! I knew why he cut himself...I knew why he attacked the audience...I knew why every show HAD to be extreme...had to be on the edge...nothing less than TOTAL commitment would suffice. If you didn't go to the edge then...a safe, boring, predictable life awaited you...and that had to be avoided at all costs.
I guess it had something to do with low self-esteem, never feeling good enough, fear...as for Iggy...musta had something to do with that whole trailer park upbringing.]
As for this pretty famous bootleg? It's fantastic. This is primo Iggy and it is Iggy's show. Bowie sticks to the background. Good for him.

Pink Floyd: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967) I'm not sure why it took so long to finally get this album, but I'm glad the time finally came. It's pretty o u t t h e r e. I need to listen closer to the words (I was at work programming away). Maybe I'm starting to understand the reason for the cult of Syd.

Art Ensemble of Chicago: Bap-Tizm (1972) These guys are awesome, and so is this great live album. Intro by John Sinclair.

Kevin Coyne: Wild Tiger Love (1991) I've never been disappointed by any of his albums, and this album continues that streak. Kevin Coyne official web site.

Strata Institute: Cipher Syntax (1988) This is a free download at Steve Coleman's M-Base web site. This is a great album. Jazz. Pretty rocking jazz, actually. There must be 15 cds worth of downloads at his site. He wants people to download his music, and he writes about his philosophy on this. Very interesting...
***

Poem written while listening to
Tim Buckley's "Starsailor"

float to the beat
of the whispered raven

let the flight
teach
the wisdom of
elusive truth

babies starve in the street
children die in the street
we turn our heads
we turn our heads
and still search for

truth...

it's swimming in the river
it's walking on mountains
it's riding through
the desert

it's living in the
pulse of every
movement
every moment

sweep aside
passive
indifference

it's alright to be scared
it's alright to be scared
***

Prog Archives, Random thoughts, Ponty meets King Zappa and Ambrose Slade slide in at the end

I want to start off by providing a link to a great site. The Prog Archives. This is a great site to find info on obscure krautrock, space rock, or any kind of music that encroaches upon that dreaded term: p r o g r e s s i v e.

An excellent reference site that includes many bands not included in the All-Music Guide, which is also a fantastic reference. Isn't the internet wonderful?
***

Random Thoughts

When I was little Harvey Puppy, I bought John Cale: Music for a New Society (1982) **1/2 when it came out. I didn't understand or get into the mother at all. I tried...
it was dark
depressing...all the things I usually like! No dice. Couldn't get into it.
Well, years later and the lp is long gone, so I got a copy on cd and put it on thinking I missed something in my younger years.
Nope. I still can't get into it. I love Cale, and I've read some pretty great reviews for this album...well, it's just one of those things.

Ash Ra Tempel: Ash Ra Tempel (1971) ***** I love this album.

I've been starting to collect old Captain Beefheart shows. I'll never get a chance to see the Captain live, and the closest I can get is listening to these mediocre tapes and feeding off the energy contained within. I have one from Portland 1971, and one from Vancouver 1973. Thank God for crappy audience tapes!

OK. After talking about the Flaming Lips in my last post, I got a hold of a copy of the new one. At War with the Mystics (2006). How many times do you hear "rock" stars in interviews always say that the new album is "harder" than the last one, and "we're back to rockin' man". I can understand they're viewpoint and the attitude. BUT. If you have to talk about "rockin'" you ain't "rockin'".
[aside: I'm referring to interviews in MOJO and Uncut where the Lips talk about how they're rocking again...blah blah blah]
Anyway...what about this album? I think it sounds great! I don't see that they rock like the early albums (that attitude is gone, man...sorry), but it's catchy, upbeat and a fun listen. The electric guitar is more prominent than on "Yoshimi", and it sounds a little more open. Good stuff.

The Sunburned Hand of the Man: No Magic Man (2004) is pretty fucked up. I really like it! Interview with the head Hand of Man, John Moloney.

I'm listening to Soul Jazz's "Universal Sounds of America", which is great as are most Soul Jazz compilations, and it includes the full length "Space is the Place" by Sun Ra. This was my second listen to this incredible 20+ minutes within the past 3 days. It really is amazing...the 20 minutes just fly by.

Big Star: #1 Record - I've heard and read tons of positive things about Big Star, and listening to this I can see that it's certainly catchy. These guys and The Raspberries do give "pop" music more depth than the usual 70s AM "pop" fare.
***

Jean-Luc Ponty: King Kong (1969) Finally I have this interesting slab of Zappa instrumental compositions done by Ponty under Frank's dictatorship. Zappa has at times in my life been my MOST favorite artist. This is also a really good album to listen to if you're programming. I love the sound of the violin in a rock context. Good shit!
[aside: One of my favs is Sugar Cane Harris' amazing violin and vocals on Little Richard's "Directly from My Heart to You" on Zappa's: Weasels Ripped My Flesh.]
***

Let's stay positive! Ambrose Slade: Ballzy (1969) Ambrose Slade were the precursors to Slade and this early album from 1969 is extremely charming and enjoyable. "Roach Daddy" is a buzz, covering Zappa's "I Ain't Got No Heart" is fun and well-done,...nothing revelatory or totally mind blowing,...just a cool little obscure artifact from a cool period in music.
***

Flaming Punks on Acid, Red Krayola Rule, Embryos and Sun Ras are cool!

The Flaming Lips: Finally the Punk Rockers are Taking Acid 1983-1988 (2002) ****1/2
I got a great fucking deal on this 3 cd set. $30 at a used cd store place in Mississauga, Ontario. This was my first "real" introduction (I had heard "She Don't Use Jelly" when it was a college hit) to the band, and remains to this day, my fav Lips album.

The early music has more raw energy, compared to the great, but VERY precise later albums. I really really really like Yoshimi and maybe the new one ("At War with the Mystics") will make me a believer ...BUT....

I cannot lie. I like the early
punky fun
crazy
d r u g
induced lyrics
one million billion
brain cells
swirling in a
vat of acid
spewed out like only you can when you're young, dumb, and full of acid fried goodness.

I love shit like "Jesus Shooting Heroin", "One Million Billionth of a Millisecond on a Sunday Morning" and the Alice Cooper "Levity Ball" influenced "The Ceiling is Bending". You just can't hear those riffs often enough!

I really should get the "Fearless Freaks" documentary on the Lips. They are definitely worthy of more investigation. Flaming Lips official web site.
***

I am thoroughly enjoying Red Krayola's "Introduction", and the deconstruction of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" called (appropriately) "Breakout" is fantastic. Ya gotta love the older guys who are still interested in "creativity". There is so much to enjoy in this album, that different bits leap out on every listen. Highly recommended.
***

EmbryoNNCK: No-Neck Blues Band and Embryo (2006) Don't expect the blues, but expect an album of primitive beauty with music floating in and out of the ear
voices come
voices go
peace approaches
and this is an excellent new album by early krautrock pioneers Embryo and The No-Neck Blues Band (the NNCK part of the name) who sound incredible. I will be looking into NNCK in the future.
***

Sun Ra: Space is the Place (1972) ***** This album is one hell of a motherfucker. This was the first Sun Ra that I completely fell in love with.

Space
is the
Place
Space is the Place
and we all need to find our space
and we all need to find our place
and we all need to listen
to the master of the sun...
the RA man!!!!

Cool Sun Ra web site.
***

Roger Chapman finally arrives, Neil Young deals with WAR and some depression crap

Finally...after 6 months!!...the Roger Chapman: Family and Friends (2003) 5 cd box set finally arrived. Having listened to the first 3 cds so far, I have come to the conclusion...it was worth the wait!

I've always been a huge Family fan and have all their albums, and have touched upon The Streetwalkers phase and his solo career marginally....so, there's lots of great stuff I've never heard on this, and some great unreleased live Family cuts as well. From what I've heard, it's worth getting live Chapman in any of his phases.

I went online and googled the box set, and so little came up it was ridiculous! I'm not a big fan of comparisons, but if you like Kevin Coyne and/or Ian Hunter I would recommend you check Roger out. Start with classic Family and then go from there. There are 2 good sites out there...thankfully! One for Family and one for Chappo.

[aside: "I Keep Forgettin'" is playing right now...and...oh my...music can be soooo powerful]

[2nd aside: I'm listening to this as I'm working on another part of the blog, and cd 2 is blowing me away. Awesome!]
***

Random Thoughts

I've never heard or seen the P-Funk All Stars: Urban Dance Floor Guerillas (1983), but it sounds like it could be a hidden gem. The search will continue!

Check out Cosmic Slop's blog for a link to an awesome live "Maggot Brain" by Banyan. Incredible.
***

Neil Young: "Living with War" (2006) for the politics ***** for the music ****

I've always been a big Neil fan, and am always interested in how people react to him. The Guru herself has said that she finds Neil somewhat irritating. Yet...she likes "Harvest Moon". Even if you generally don't like Neil, you can usually find one album you don't mind.

I like them all...even the ones I don't like. Do you know what I mean?

Example - I don't really listen to his 80s albums. Landing on Water, Life, Old Ways etc...Let's be harsh. They are pretty far from being saddled with the "classic" tag. Yet I like the fact that they exist. The experimentation, the balls, the sheer ridiculousness of some of them...and just the fact that his record company sued him for making non-commercial albums. Gee...that opened my eyes...I thought record companies were in it for the music. Hahahahahahaha.

[aside: Life actually has a classic 3 song punch on side 2 (I used to have it on record) of "Too Lonely", "Prisoners of Rock'n'Roll" and especially "Cryin' Eyes". ]

One other thing about Neil. His lyrics. The man can write classic songs with insightful concise lyrics...brilliant...perceptive. BUT. He also writes some of the most clunky cliched lyrics out there. For some reason, I find this charming. Only Neil can get away with this.

[another god-damn aside: I just read a comment (not by Eyeball) on The Eyeball Kid's blog that stated that Tom Waits has attacked Neil Young for his often mundane lyrics. That doesn't sound like Tom so take it with a grain of salt, but as the Guru said...he wouldn't be wrong.]

Oh yeh!! The album? It sounds like the best Neil in years, even though I'm the only person on earth who actually loved, let alone "like", "Greendale".

[interjection: I saw Greendale live with the Guru in Toronto and actually liked the Greendale part of the show better than the greatest hits set....it was a great show all around, and I'm glad I finally saw Neil.]

The message of the lyrics is certainly more important than the poetry on this album. It was a rush job, since he wanted to get it out before George W. and his cronies totally screw the US up. Even if you disagree with the message, this is the most passionate and straightforward and simply rockin' Neil since Ragged Glory.
***

Warning: Depression Crap

This is for those of you out there who struggle with depression and stuff...ha..maybe most of us. Remember, that even when everything seems hopeless

STOP!!!!!!!!!!!

THINK...

I mean REALLY think hard and try to be as rational as possible. It's never as bad we think. It's distorted thinking. I know. My thinking has been distorted for a long time (my whole fucking life!!!), and it's been really hard, but I know it's time to change that way of thinking for myself and my loved ones.

I'm taking it day by day and studying "The Feeling Good Handbook" by David Burns (as well as all the other fun shit that goes with it...counsellors, group work, meds) and it's really helping me a LOT!

Don't be put off by the cover. I know he looks like the most conservative boring guy ever, but man, it's making total sense to me. Even though I didn't show it last Monday night or Tuesday morning, and was sprinting to the funny farm, I started applying some of the shit and it's helped me bounce back fast...and hopefully better and wiser and more understanding. So, if anyone reads this and they're feeling like shit...hang in there and here's some positive vibes. PEACE
***

Depression and Life....

Just when you think it couldn't get any worse....
***

It does.
***

[aside: added at 4:45pm PT - But life MUST continue on]

Next blog...back to the music!
***

Acid Mothers on the tip of my tongue, HEAVY Funkadelic and I'm Lost in the Grooves!!

I already rated Acid Mothers Temple: "Mantra of Love" (2004) *****

It deserves it!!

Two long pieces that
ebb and flow
ebb and flow
and morph into
beautiful liquid electricity
as the mind
yearns to attain
that elusive
mantra of love.

My friend Randy (Hi Charlie!) is getting tons of Acid Mothers Temple, and my ears can hardly wait to devour them. The Acid Mothers, Can, Ash Ra Tempel, Albert Ayler and Gong are 5 musical artists who have moved way up my "fav scale". Red Krayola, Alex Harvey and Pharoah Sanders are on the rise too!

Acid Mothers Official Web Site.
***

Random Thoughts

Nothing gets as deep down funky as Funkadelic did.
Bar none.
Ponder this.
The first song on the first record is
"Mommy, What's a Funkadelic?".
It doesn't get any heavier than that!!!
The heaviness of early Funkadelic blows me away.
A bluesy, funky, grimy yet HEAVY sound that is quite
unlike anything I've ever heard in my life.
The drugs back then MUST have been fucking
dynamite...

The Funkadelic Album List.
###


Van Der Graaf Generator: Pawn Hearts (1971) **** This is the only VDGG I have, and I'm rather sick about it. It's like Roky Erickson on downers fronting early Genesis with King Crimson peeking in holding a vat of Soft Machine, while Pink Floyd are walking down the hall.

If one has to make a comparison.
###

I just picked up Lost in the Grooves: Scram's Capricious Guide to the Music You Missed edited by Kim Cooper and David Smay. The book lists those classic albums that slipped under the radar and have attained obscurity status.

Hey, the book comes with recommendations from Irwin Chusid (an expert on outsider music), Barney Hoskins (a well known critic guy), Marianne Faithfull!! and Blag Dahlia from The Dwarves!!!! With those people recommending this book, it should be good.

Glancing through it I saw Beefheart, John Cale, Exuma!!, James Gang, Judee Sill, Flo & Eddie!! and David Cassidy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What!!! And The Partridge Family!!!!!!!!!!!

OK.

This book looks like it's going to be F U N! You know, I'll be making notes and then eventually rant and rave here in the carnival.

I started looking through their web site (click on the link above!) and it looks pretty awesome. Check it out.
***

Uncut's Playlist gets analyzed, Arctic Monkeys heat up humans, and an old lyric's cobwebs are blown away!!

I'm listening to the new Uncut Playlist May 2006, and while good as usual, it is lacking in truly revelatory material.

Hey! That was almost critic-like. Stop that Harvey Dog!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm already very familiar with the following:
Lynyrd Skynyrd!? (didn't expect Skynyrd on an uncut cd!)
Fairport Convention (love em...saw Richard Thompson live a couple of years ago, and he was fantastic)
Ronnie Spector (covering The Ramones' "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" and sounding incredibly natural...great!)
Japan (blah...never got into them...poor man's Roxy. Re-evaluation time?)
Tom Verlaine (always loved Television...this sounds ok)
Bob Marley (i wonder why I've never really got reggae...I mean I love the ganja, but it just doesn't hit me - the music, not the ganja...I always find my mind wandering. Sorta like what it's doing now...any suggestions? anyone I should explore? actually this "Soul Shakedown Party" sounds great. I think I need to check out early Wailers stuff and forget the later commercial stuff)

Faust (they have Faust on the playlist! Awesome! I already have the first 4 Faust albums, but anyone who doesn't needs to do some exploring!! Fucking Faust...great stuff)

Familiar to a lesser extent with:
Lambchop (interesting)
Calexico (haven't hit me)
Editors (this caught my ear...)
Graham Coxon (not bad, rabbit, not bad)
The Charlatans (sounds ok...not that familiar)
Candi Staton (why haven't I checked her out yet? this is great!)

[aside: goddam it!! I just had my flow interrupted by a phone solicitation...that sucks!]

New stuff for me:
Band of Horses (sounded blah, then great, then so-so, then pretty great...all in one song. Could be worth a little interrogation)
Jose Gonzalez (wow! loved it!)
Denim (sounds like cool NYC rawk'n'roll...the guy from Felt. gotta check em both out)

I love these Uncut cds. If Paul McCartney has nothing to do with them, then they're bound to be good. Uncut, MOJO and Record Collector blow away any North American music mags. Except for maybe Black To Comm or Mole's old fanzine! Black To Comm's Blog called, cleverly, Blog To Comm. Check it out!

[aside: Allan Jones where's my commission??]
***

Arctic Monkeys "Whatever You Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" (2006) I am rocking out to "I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor" and now it's changed to the funky rocker, "Tales of San Francisco". What a great 1-2 punch
to the fucking jaw
of modern rock'n'roll!!!

I keep turning the volume up while listening to this cd...now that's fucking ROCK'N'ROLL!!!
this ain't pristine
this is
grit
dirt
sex
anger
a release for the soul
saving my soul
fucking my soul....that's what we all need. A good soul fuck!

Arctic Monkeys Home Page
***

ANGER

I shiver with rage at the lack of sensitivity
when I walk around your smelly downtown,
There was this asshole
who pushed me aside, he thought he was tough,
I'm not taking it, I've had enough.

Don't push me round
don't put me down
Anger!!!

Sex in the city, isolation's free
if you want to live miserably,
why don't you talk to me
I'll remind you of your history,
we can't keep making the same mistakes
if we wanna die naturally

We gotta fight
we gotta fight
Anger!!!

This anger cannot be constrained
this anger cannot be restrained,
it's time to spit it out
and let everybody know
that it's too late to be sedate
we've got to let the anger flow

We gotta fight
don't push us round
Anger!!!!

By: John Harvey 1986? recorded and performed by The Hated Uncles back in the day.

***

Country Joe's integrity, 10 million cds and does that translate to happiness? Doesn't hurt baby, doesn't hurt!

Country Joe McDonald is certainly a man of integrity. Check out his site. I'm gonna check out his Paris Sessions (1973) - this month's MOJO's Buried Treasure. A feminist album done with an all-gender band that cost him $100,000 cause there was no support from anywhere. [source: MOJO March 2006, p. 122]

I don't know...I just kind of found this story uplifting for some reason. Human integrity and all that.
***

The parental units have departed...maybe for the last time....

to offset the unhappiness and depression and all that crap
I went INSANE
and downloaded
and bought WAY too many albums

this gave me an incredible surface happiness
which I hope will be translated
into a DEEPER
more TRUE happiness.

Hey man, that's all our goals. Right?

time to discuss some of this
incredible cache of music
and maybe, just maybe,
you'll discover some
musical interests that tickle your
E A R D R U M S
***

[aside: I am only listing the albums I've listened to...only a few tonight. I want to get a post out there. More ravings to follow!]

Red Krayola: Introduction (2006) Yes!!! Thanks to Cosmic Slop for writing about this release. On first listen...what can I say? It fucking BLEW me away!!

Kevin Coyne: Legless in Manila (1983) I love Kevin Coyne. He's dead. He left behind dozens of albums to enjoy and dissect, wrote poetry and stories, was an artist...man, he was a fucking genius and I highly recommend him. Kevin Coyne's official web site. This album sounds like he wrote it at a bar all bitter and that.

Eric Burdon: Soul of a Man (2006) This was a shocker. It sounded great. Eric's voice is in great form, the band is tight and the songs are high quality. [aside: Guru T-Lu was listening to this album and said that it sounds like Eric Burdon ate Van Morrison. I couldn't agree more!]

Acid Mothers Temple: Starless and Bible Black Sabbath (2006) Great title and strangely apt! Sabbath crossed with Crimson isn't a bad description. Absolutely awesome stuff.

John Cage: Bird Calls (1972) I listened to this at work and felt very strange afterwards.

Diamanda Galas: The Litanies of Satan (1982) Wow! Um...you could say she's a little intense.

Pharoah Sanders: Karma (1969) This is my first Pharoah solo album and it floored me. It's very uplifting, and upon first listen it had the same power as Coltrane's Love Supreme (1964). I LOVE THIS ALBUM!!!Pharoah Sanders web site.

Mum: Yesterday Was Dramatic, But Today is OK (2000) I heard about this one from Ricardo Wang's What's This Called? on KPSU radio Saturday at noon. Wild eclectic show worth checking out. This is beautiful experimental music.
***

Oh man, there's so many more
too many more...
no no no
blasphemy
there can never be too much
joy
happiness
elation
thought provoking
and endlessly
fascinating music
for our
listening pleasures.
***

Harvey Dog gets Gonged, Red Krayola teach parables and Poobah falls asleep

I got some Gong recently and did I ever get fucking high I was floating through angel eggs and motherhoods full of acid and...

Finally, I am starting to get into the world of Gong, and from what I've heard it's a world I think I'll enjoy very much. I bought Gong: The Very Best of Gong 1971-1977 (1997) and it merely whet my appetite. Now I have Angel's Egg (1973) and a wicked collaboration with the Acid Mothers on Acid Motherhood (2004).

Travel to Planet Gong the official home of all things Gong. Here's a great article on Acid Motherhood and a great description of a 2004 Gong show. Daevid Allen is soooo fucking nuts. He's awesome!!!
***

Red Krayola: Parable of Arable Land (1967) ***** In anticipation of eventually getting the N E W (yes...NEW!!!) Red Krayola album, it was time to put on their 1st album.

What can I say? This is amazing shit!! I think this album is still ahead of its time! It's chaotic, angry, beautiful, melodic, outrageous, poetic, dark, light, somber, noisy, quiet...

all these things
none of these things
as we are all one
yet we are no one
and all we know
is ignorance
and all we want
is bliss
bliss and ignorance
and this is not that
nor is it not...

it is merely...

everything.

Here's a Red Krayola web site that has a couple of live performances from 2004 - the extremely relevant "War Sucks" and "Wives in Orbit". Awesome! Thanks!
***

Random Thoughts

The Dream Syndicate were a pretty awesome band. Days of Wine and Roses (1982) **** still sounds fresh and exciting.

I mentioned in a blog a long long long time ago, that I found Little Feat a rather disappointing band. I'd heard how great they were blah blah, and the pedigree is amazing. Lowell George and Roy Estrada came from Zappa's Mothers of Invention, and "Willin" is a great song. BUT...I thought
ONE MORE TIME!!!
so I put on Sailin' Shoes (1972) *** and I found even my fav album of theirs wasn't doing it for me anymore. A 4 to a 3. Not awful or anything.

Whenever I think of Red Krayola, I also think of The Silver Apples. They're both worth checking out.

Poobah has fallen asleep...how the hell can she fall asleep when Red Krayola are on the stereo!?!? Oh right. She's a dog. I forget sometimes.

After Red Krayola, how can you do anything else but put on Ash Ra Tempel? Rave On Timothy Leary Rave On.

I may not get a blog done this weekend, because my parents are visiting from Ontario. Oh Lord....

The first Argent (1969) album surprised me. Sounded really good.
***

Thanks to Cosmic Slop for some encouraging words! Check out his flickr site for photos from some amazing concerts (including Red Krayola...motherfucker!!) he's attended, and check out Cosmic Slop's blog.

Here in Northern BC we get Motley Crue...NOT Red Krayola.
***

That's fun to say. Cosmic Slop's blog.
slop blog.
blog slop.
actually...say "Cosmic Slop's blog" 3 times fast. I break out into tongues!
***