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October 2018 = |
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Dead Rider
Trio |
Luluc |
The Cyrillic
Typewriter |
The Purrs |
Paul
Roland |
Picturebox |
Joel Cahen |
The
Total Rejection |
Michael
Nesmith |
Black
Tempest |
Jim
Mitchells |
Goatman
Recordings |
Movion |
Randy Burns |
Thalia
Zedek Band |
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Home
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DEAD RIDER
TRIO - DEAD RIDER TRIO FEATURING MR PAUL
WILLIAMS
(LP/CD/DL from Drag
City Records)
Welcome to this month’s oddest coupling, a real
wild card which on paper should probably never
have been brought into play but I for one am sooo
glad it has.
Dead Rider Trio (formerly D Rider) are an
experimental rock outfit from Chicago, of whom
guitarist Todd Rittmann appears to be the constant
member. “Mr” Paul Williams is an idiosyncratic and
intriguing figure from this side of the pond who
regales, sometimes poetically in the manner of a
thespian coupling of a bilious Malcolm McLaren and
corrosive Viv Stanshall. He’s something of a
mystery, too, with biographical details thin on
the ground. He’s the real deal though, this is
hardly thrown together and makes you wonder if he
is what – indeed who - he seems.
Anyway our man gives vent to stream of
consciousness, theatrically grunting, yelping,
cajoling and baiting while Dead Rider
Trio jam in a muscular but controlled
manner, incorporating nimble and discordant
elements of Beefheart. University of Errors and
Shellac. The Magic Band analogy is perhaps
strongest on opening gambit ‘Candles On Crabs’
(getting the picture?) where a dislocated and
jack-knife delivery tries to make sense of the
asthmatic invective – or is it the other way
around? The cavernous, bass-heavy ‘Not A Point On
A Scale’ is the sound of early PiL with a somewhat
more erudite and engaging frontman than old man
Steptoe with his balls in a clamp. Deconstructed
lysergic jazz soundtracks ‘Glistening Sap On
Leaves’ while our narrator is heard to intone
‘bring on the folk singers, make sure they’re
fucking beardless’ during the claustrophobically
intense ‘On The Listener, Mr Williams He Farts’.
Charming, we’re sure you’ll agree. The attractive
funk-light ‘An Inching Thief’ finds Williams
veering between yelping, falsetto style crooning
and conspiratorial rumbling before the insinuating
and sinister ‘For Men Who Stay In Their Rooms’
returns us to the fractured rhythms of the Magic
Band for the echoing and worryingly exhilarating
closing number in which you the listener are in
for a pummelling. Nasty and nauseous in a quite
outstanding way.
Even imaginative and entertaining spoken wordplay
has a tendency to become a little wearing once the
initial novelty has paled. This is the exception,
please mark my words, a singular and multi-faceted
listening experience that’s often accentuated by
means of the old trick of stopping the music
dead…leaving the last line of monologue to hang in
the air for maximum effect (such as the only track
we haven’t made mention of yet, the penultimate
‘For All The Daughters Of Rope Makers’). It all
makes for unusual, unconventional and at times
uneasy listening, each party complementing the
other perfectly, whether it is sound tracking the
creative and clourful narrative or giving a
weaponised lyrical expression to the ever evolving
backing track. As it is you’d do well to dust off
those “Best Of Year” lists and add this right now
(and pretty near the top if I may suggest).
(Ian Fraser) |
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LULUC
– SCULPTOR
(LP/CD/DL
on
Sub
Pop Records)
Luluc,
the
Australian folk duo Zoe Randell and Steve
Hassett, now stationed in Brooklyn, exist to put
you into a better place.
That’s not to say their third album
Sculptor is made up of easy listening music and
exudes nothing but sunshine.
Their songs can contain biting commentary
and wit. And
while the term “folk duo” conjures up images of
an acoustic guitar and a microphone, Randell and
Hassett go much further, filling out the
instrumentation with tasteful sonic touches and
a little help from some well-known friends.
Luluc has a great ear for melody.
Randell’s voice has a soothing quality
and she combines her subjects between literate
descriptions from everyday life and the long
game of what makes us human, and how we go about
choosing our paths.
Lead-off
track
“Spring” is flat-out gorgeous.
With careful, delicately layered
harmonies, the listener is instantly carried
away into another space, one of relaxing ease
and warmth. The
lyrics are from the Japanese poem “Spring Days
and Blossom” by Ise, and its themes of natural
beauty, rebirth and spring’s impermanence
resonate long after the song ends.
It’s the only track on the album with
such rich harmonies, and one wishes Luluc would
do it again.
“Heist”
is
a lyrical cousin to Bob Dylan’s “Positively
Fourth Street” with a “some friend you are”
theme, and a production which starts small and
builds and swells.
“Kids,” with Aaron Dessner of The
National guesting, follows two recurring themes
on Sculptor, the first of Randell singing to an
adolescent. Could
be a parent singing to a rebellious child, or
Randell singing to her teenage self.
The other sub-theme is of both the
invisible barriers we erect and the escape
mechanisms we create to handle those whom we
feel are out to harm us.
It features an exchange I love, “The
teacher who cries ‘why don’t you come talk to
me? You’ve
got such a big chip on your shoulder.’ ‘No
that’s my armor till I’m older.’”
“Cambridge”
uses
another Luluc-ism, that of jumping unexpectedly
between settings, as it again explores the topic
of the paths we choose to follow, sometimes the
same between friends, sometimes diverging.
“Me and Jasper” is a “screw ‘em, we’ve
got each other” sentiment, with a mellow guitar
solo by J. Mascis (yes, he does those, too).
“Genius”
has
a similar lyrical theme to Simon &
Garfunkel’s “I Am a Rock,” only in second person
instead of first, of the artist cloistered away,
with a superiority complex about his art.
I like drummer Jim White’s scattershot
intro to signify the title character’s
deliberate choice to stay out-of-step with the
world. It
also features the only lyrics I’ve ever heard
where the subject fires a staple gun.
“Moon
Girl”
is about as beautiful a song as you’ll find, in
both words and melody.
It features Hassett’s lovely guitar
picking, with lush, distant soundscapes, and
Randell’s soothing vocals.
She returns to singing to a young girl,
perhaps someone she knows, perhaps to herself
back in time. She
encourages her to get out and explore and live,
and then return home safely, imparting the
wisdom: “In your waking hours you’ll find/some
will be good, some won’t be kind/In their way,
they both hold gifts for you.”
In
the
closing title track “Sculptor,” Randell starts
the story, her mind wandering on a plane flight,
wondering if the plane went down whether the
flight attendants’ would still retain their
perfect hair and makeup.
This transitions to her love of her
musical art - “…the most beautiful serene
sculpture my hands could make, could trace,
could make…” When
she reaches this point, her voice, for most of
the album up to this point a low alto or
contralto, unexpectedly reaches several octaves
higher. It’s
a heart-stopping moment of vulnerability and
beauty. Just
as the gorgeous opening track stuns with its
not-repeated harmonies, this one leaves the
listener in awe of its vocal beauty.
Sculptor
is
marked by its gentle serenity, tender melodies,
and touchingly thoughtful lyrics.
Luluc has brought us a gift which will
endure for many years to come, an album not to
be missed.
(Mark
Feingold)
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THE
CYRILLIC TYPEWRITER -
WATER OVER GLASS
(LP from https://jazrecords.com/)
The
Cyrillic Typewriter is the work of Jason
Zumpano, who with the help of like-minded
friends/musicians, creates beautiful, ambient,
experimental music that is always interesting
and packed with emotion. These quality are
overflowing on this, his latest creation, a 8
track collection that shimmers and floats from
the speakers oozing with class.
Taking that shimmer and amplifying it,
“Dreamed Maze” is a wonderful piece of
electronic sound that, well, shimmers
wonderfully, a double bass adding warmth to the
tune, simple melodies that uplift and satisfy
the soul. On,
“Blue Thread” an aching chord adds emotion
whilst a drifting sax creates colour and
movement to the music, all you have to do is
listen.
Like a watercolour drone, “Melt” is the
wave of long grass in a summers breeze, sea salt
in the air, a hint of autumn, the sound barely
raised from a softly spoken whisper the
saxophone, courtesy of John Spiby, again adding
gentle movement as the drone swells and recedes
creating a track that is timeless and hypnotic.
Rounding of the first side, “Night In Grey”
maintains the drone, the chords having a
seventies Tangerine Dream feel to them whilst
the saxophone dances a strange dance amongst the
waves of sound, the whole thing ending far too
soon.
Over on side two, the sax and slow
waves of sound continue to dominate with “The
Reveller” sounding like Fripp and Eno, whilst
“The Double O” allows soft guitar notes to drift
through the soundscape, a blissed out sax
sounding like Didiere Malherbe in very mellow
mode. As the track advances time begins to
decay, its hypnotic power dissolving thought
until it suddenly ceases. No worries though as
“Stop the River” follows the same path, a
twinkling sequence of notes leading on again
until the sweet piano of “Nothing Changed”
allows re-entry into a world more relaxed and
positive.
If you are a fan of ambient drones that
are gently textural and definitely psychedelic
in a soothing, mellow way then this album is
highly recommended to your ears. (Simon Lewis)
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THE
PURRS - DESTROY THE SUN
(CD/LP/DL from http://www.thepurrs.com/
)
I have been
listening to and enjoying the music of The Purrs
for many moons now, ever since they sent me
their debut EP way back in 2004. Over those
years I have seen the band grow and progress,
develop their own sound and write some damn fine
Rock 'n' Roll tunes.
On their latest album “Destroy the Sun”
the band seem to have distilled and crystallised
their sound to create their finest work to date,
filled with good things and proving that
sometimes you don't get what you deserve, The
Purrs never having had that slice of luck you
need to get to the next level, something The
Green Pajamas and The Church know only too well,
but hey, their passion and dedication still
shines on and I will happily drink a glass to
that.
With a beeping noise that briefly
sounds like my alarm clock, the title track
suddenly explodes into view with a grungy riff,
the mix punchy and powerful enough tog et the
whole street rocking as musicians bring it on
with the trademark cynical, and sometimes
melancholy, lyrics also well represented. After
that breathless beginning the chaotic beginning
of “American as Apple Pie” is a quick red
herring as the tune turns out to be equally
powerful and dynamic. With the kind of guitar
tone that is found in Tarantino movies, “Late
Night Disturbance” has an expansive ambience and
sounds particularly good at ear-splitting
volume.
Over 11 songs the music remains focused
with a signature sound and vision, the
slow-burning “”Here For So Long” catching the
ear for all the right reasons, a catchy chorus,
sweet sparkles of piano and great lyrics, whilst
a droning Farfisa gives “Now You Know” a
great psychedelic sheen.
Highlighting their gentler side, “Out
of Sight, Out of Mind” is a trippy tune that
slowly builds the tension and volume, the album
closed with “Walking Out The Door” a fast paced
Garage style track that rocks hard, followed by
“What Ever Happened to Billy Boy” another fine
tune, Power Pop Americana but mainly The Purrs
in top form and that is a good thing indeed. (Simon Lewis)
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PAUL
ROLAND
– THE DEVIL’S JUKEBOX
(book www.darkcompanion.com
)
Paul Roland is a long time Terrascope favourite,
releasing over twenty albums since his debut in
1985, most of which we’ve reviewed. There is a
new biography about him which has recently been
published, and it is accompanied by a disc of
unreleased songs and demos, which tie it in
nicely. The book is entitled Paul Roland
‘The Devil’s Jukebox’ and its
available from Dark Companion The book is
written by Italian super fan Roberto Curti, and
runs to almost 200 pages and is most
informative, but it’s the music that I’m going
to delve into here.
Paul has a way with words and is a very literary
style of writer; his songs are almost mini
novels. We
have
songs of misfits ‘Candy’s Mother Cries’, and
‘Jenny Doesn’t Mind’, songs of addiction ‘Sally
can’t cry’. Done
me wrong songs ‘When I See That Girl’, ‘Can’t
Forgive, Can’t Forget’. Songs
about the attitudes prevalent in the trailer
trash of Deep South of America ‘Preaching the
Devil’s Gospel’, replete with banjo and slide
guitar, and some great lines like “I was raised
in a one whore town, that didn’t wake up until
the sun went down, I saw no sense in going to
school, just to plough a crooked furrow, behind
a cross eyed mule”, and ‘Charlie Manson’s
Wedding’ more frailing banjo and redneck
hollers, a Dixie fried delight.
Songs about thugs and bullies are also explored with
‘Black Shirt Tango’; this one is a disturbing
song about white racists, complete with jack
boot marching rhythms. ‘Little Scarface’, a song
about razor boys.
Songs of Gods and religion ‘Icarus’ with
its wonky mellotron melodies is particularly
pleasing, ’The Lord Made Me A Woman’, all slinky
sax and Wurlitzer, ‘Moses’ an Egyptian flavoured
song of freedom and ‘Cradle Of Abraham’, again
has some great lines, as I said, he has a way
with words, lines like “All that praying, it
don’t bring rain” and “the lord he loves a
righteous man”. ‘The Wolfman’s on the Prowl’,
with its wicked lead guitar fills ends this
record in fine style, a record which combined
with the book, make it a highly desirable
package.
(Andrew
Young)
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PICTUREBOX
-
ESCAPES
(www.garedunord.co.uk)
This is the second instalment of songs from Robert
Halcrow’s Picturebox, following on from 2016’s
Songs Of Joy. Recorded
in Canterbury with a couple of guests, Jack
Hayter plays violin on “The Vicar’s Dog” and
Mathew Dutra plays harmonica, guitar and piano
on the co-written “GNER”.
Things get off to a noisy start with
“Stumble” a glammy, pop-rocker which is swiftly
followed by “Divvy Cabs” a song I wish I hadn’t
heard as it’s a real earworm of a tune; it was
stuck in my head all day after first hearing it!
It also contains a healthy dollop of fuzz
bass. “Sirens” sees things slowing down a little
with Robert lounging on the sofa, the sounds of
sirens and ice cream vans for company, some nice
synth and piano. “GNER” a train song moves us on
down the line, with plenty of lead guitar fills.
“I Got The Pox” is very catchy, another glammy rocker
with a hint of Hawkwind and wouldn’t be out of
place on a Go Kart Mozart album, it also sounds
a bit like the Squeeze song “Up The Junction”.
“Secret Escapes” again reminds me of Lawrence,
this time covering Cockney Rebel. “Nice Boys
Mobile Disco” provides a nice interlude,
something squeaking, that badly needs oiling,
appears halfway through it, to a tune of God
Gave Rock and Roll To You.“Uniform” is a fun
song about getting a job, “The Vicar’s Dog” is
again full of great pop nous, I swear I know
this tune but just can’t place it. The album
ends with “Troyte” a short sombre organ
interlude.
This is a great fun album that I will certainly been
revisiting, its available on limited edition
CDs, each in a one off, hand finished, die cut
cover from picturebox.bandcamp.com
(Andrew
Young)
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JOEL CAHEN –
AQUADELIC
( www.adaadat.co.uk
)
Limited to 300 vinyl and 100 CDs.
Aquadelic is an album of abstract
electronics, designed to be listened to in a
semi-immersed state, where sounds are typically
felt through the body, rather than through the
ears. It
was created as a by-product from Joel’s Wet
Sounds series of underwater concerts.
Now, these strange electronic pieces have
been released for the first time for listening
to in the dry, the album consists of seven
tracks, that are stereo mix downs of these
original, multi channel works.
Joel has been playing his mutating strand of abstract
electronica through a multi channel system at
Wet Sounds, usually consisting of three stereo
systems above the water level and one that is
under the water surface. The release of the
album will coincide with a Wet Sounds event at
St. George’s pool in Shadwell, London on October
7th.
What of the sounds I hear you ask; well we have
slowly unfurling tone pieces, like album opener
“Sinbad Revival”, which develops into a complex
synthesiser showcase, strangely reminiscent of
the sound achieved on Steve Burchall’s mid-
seventies album ‘Reality Gates’. “Orange
Sky”, has some quite scary passages, basically
another mad synth tone poem, it twinkles and
echoes, all the time there is a deep sub-aquatic
throb. “Black
Rainbows”,
sounds like listening to Tangerine Dream in a
deep cave, I can just see the oozing, dripping
stalactites. In
“Centre
Of The Cyclone”, the music finally lets up and
shows us a lighter side.
As this piece progresses we hear a
drowsy, buzzing fly, a distant crow, woodpigeon,
and a synthesised woodpecker, during the mix of
these nature sounds, the track also features a
disembodied human voice and some odd squelching
noises.
My word, this is a very strange listening experience
indeed. “Blurs
Of My Eyes”, is frankly a ten minute fright
fest, with added voicing by Rebecca Horrox, as
it develops it becomes quite tripped out, sound
travelling down coils of frayed wire, this one
is an ambient synth nightmare, odd snippets of
sounds appear and fade as quickly as they
arrived, strings are slackened and tightened, a
bell is finally tolled, its sound stretched out
into infinity. “Canolin
Tap” starts off very brightly, however, it’s not
very long until the piece fragments and goes
somewhere else entirely, tones are transposed
and octaves played with, somewhere a piano is
sampled, an old guitar strummed, a ghostly
orchestra tunes up, a goose briefly appears but
is quickly disposed of, all the while a mad
synth is being flayed to within an inch of its
life, I’m feeling mighty strange now.
The record ends with “Fume Noir”, this
one has some strange guttural utterances by
Fredy Thuon. It’s
another quite disconcerting piece, a ghostly
nightmare which really shouldn’t be listened to
prior to going to bed. It’s been a while since
I’ve experienced anything quite like this.
(Andrew
Young)
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THE
TOTAL REJECTION – WRAPPING YOURSELF IN SILVER
FOIL WON’T SAVE YOU FROM THE BLAST
(www.raving-pop-blast.bandcamp.com)
Available in 300 limited edition heavyweight green
vinyl copies, with a hand screen printed &
painted sleeve, with A2 poster,includes download
code, postcard and insert, order from.
This record came out in February of this year and I
believe it is the band’s debut, recorded in
Bristol at various rehearsal rooms and garages.
This great record starts with ‘The Legendary
Orgasm’, they come on like a lot like early Who,
with shades of The Creation, especially the ‘I
Can’t Explain’ guitar chord patterns. This track
is swiftly followed by the terrific Hawkwind
grooves of ‘Licking Furniture’ a trippy,
unrelenting, space rocker with plenty of chug. Lots
of pop-art moves fill the grooves of this fine,
highly desirable record; sure its retro and the
band definitely have no intentions of appearing
on ‘Later with Jules Holland’ anytime soon,
being far to lo-fi for that. A
narcotic Spacemen 3, spring to mind with side
one closer ‘Save The World’.
‘Party Seven’ kicks off side two, with a farfisa
infested druggy number, a lot like The Jesus And
Mary Chain , ‘The Sweetest Dreams’ add slashings
of spewed out lead guitar. ‘Vampire Cats
(Itches)’ is another farfisa lead psychedelic
rocker with more of that wonderful coruscating
lead guitar poured all over it. The record ends
with ‘Bending Spoons’ which has more organ led,
guitar infested, psychedelia. There are barely a
handful of vinyl copies remaining on their
Bandcamp page as I write this review, get one
before they sell out; you will not be
disappointed. I’ll bet that Alan McGee has one.
(Andrew
Young)
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MICHAEL
NESMITH – AT THE BBC PARIS THEATRE
MICHAEL
NESMITH & THE FIRST NATIONAL BAND REDUX –
LIVE AT THE TROUBADOUR
(Both
LP/CD
on 7a
Records)
A
pair of live albums for Papa Nez fans.
The first, 2017’s “At the BBC Paris
Theatre,” was recorded at the London venue
November 27, 1975 for broadcast.
While the recording has occasionally made
the rounds in bootleg form, it is heard here in
its original state for the first time since the
original broadcast.
The audio quality is superb.
Nez appears solo, with just himself and
his trusty acoustic guitar.
The
performance
seems brief, with just six songs.
The first three, “Silver Moon,” “Some of
Shelly’s Blues,” and “Joanne” sound wonderful.
In the intimate setting, Nez’s vocals and
his 12-string guitar fill out the sound nicely
on these chestnuts.
In
the
second half, Nesmith performs three songs from
his then-current album, the underrated “The
Prison,” billed as a “book with a soundtrack.”
As Nesmith has rarely performed songs
from The Prison live, the recording has
historical significance.
The three, “Dance Between the Raindrops,”
“Marie’s Theme,” and “Closing Theme (Lampost),”
sound terrific, and are punctuated by Nesmith’s
explanations of what’s going on in the concept
album. You
might need an explanation for the explanations.
During “Marie’s Theme,” Nez cuts himself
off after singing the line “hidden behind all
the logic one finds without truth” and comments
“And that refrain repeats on the record about
637,000 times...” which is almost not an
exaggeration if you’re familiar with The Prison.
Still, it doesn’t make the song or the
performances here any less endearing.
“At
the
BBC Paris Theatre” is definitely worth owning,
but it seems a warm-up for 7a’s spectacular 2018
release “Live at the Troubadour.”
After leaving The Monkees in 1970,
Nesmith formed The First National Band with
pedal steel maestro Red Rhodes, bassist John
London, and drummer John Ware.
They released three albums on RCA in the
space of about a year during 1970-1971,
“Magnetic South,” “Loose Salute” and “Nevada
Fighter.” The
songs, many written while Nez was still in The
Monkees, were country-rock bedrock that garnered
rave reviews, but due to RCA’s lack of
promotion, the albums languished and quickly
disappeared. The
First National Band broke up, and Nesmith
continued his solo career, the quality of the
releases always high, if not big sellers.
But the original First National Band
releases slowly continued to gather a following
which grew and grew over the years.
Cut
to
2018. As
a result of fan feedback and confidence within
Nesmith’s inner circle that there was an
audience out there who wanted to hear the
original music, the band was reformed and
redubbed The First National Band Redux for a new
set of shows. Their
first gig was the iconic Troubadour, where both
Nesmith MC’d before The Monkees and original
First National Band performed.
Tickets sold out in minutes for the
January 25th 2018 show.
Gone
are
Red Rhodes and John London, both sadly passed,
and John Ware was unwilling to join the project,
citing age as the factor.
Nesmith’s son Christian put together the
band you hear on the album.
If you want to put together a band for a
live show or tour, you want Christian Nesmith.
The band features himself and another
Nesmith son Jonathan Nesmith on guitars and
vocals, Christopher Allis (drums), Jason Chesney
(bass), Jim Cox (keyboards), Circe Link and Amy
Spear (vocals and percussion), and last but not
certainly not least Pete Finney on pedal steel,
who plays Rhodes’ parts with astonishing breadth
and precision.
This
outfit
pulls off the rarified feat of the live album
which sounds better
than the studio originals.
Nesmith admits he was somewhat
dissatisfied with the original trio of albums as
lacking some oomph.
Christian Nesmith sees to it that the
songs get the full treatment they deserve.
A lot of the magic is down to Christian’s
arrangements, especially the vocal harmonies by
Circe Link and Amy Spear.
If you want fantastic band and vocal
arrangements for a live performance, you want
Christian Nesmith.
Nez
is
in great spirits and great voice throughout.
Kicking off with the rousing “Nevada
Fighter” and “Calico Girlfriend,” Nez and the
band are immediately cooking on all cylinders.
Tender songs such as “Nine Times Blue,”
“The Crippled Lion” and “Joanne” are resonant
and touching. The
crackling “Grand Ennui” features some blazing
performances by the band.
The beautiful, moody “Lady of the
Valley,” which astonishingly almost didn’t make
the set list, is a real highlight, with Nez’s
falsetto and the harmonies by Circe Link and Amy
Spear sending chills up the spine.
The
most
poignant moment is during a small acoustic
interlude, during which Nez sings among others
“Papa Gene’s Blues,” the only original Monkees
song in the set.
The chorus “I have no more than I did
before, but now I’ve got all that I need/For I
love you and I know you love me” becomes a
singalong with the audience.
It becomes apparent that in that moment
Nez really means those words to his audience,
and they mean it just as much back to him.
After the scare which resulted in
Nesmith’s quadruple-bypass surgery earlier this
year, this moment on the album resonates even
further. As
we continue to perhaps say goodbye to more of
our heroes from our musical past, the chance to
do it with artist and audience serenading each
other is a rare and special thing indeed.
On
the
last six songs, “Keys to the Car,” “Mama
Nantucket,” “Bye Bye Bye,” “Some of Shelly’s
Blues,” “Silver Moon” and “Thanx for the Ride,”
Nez and the band reach for another gear and find
some sort of supersonic zone and never come
down.
The
audio
quality on the record sounds sensational.
If you want to produce and mix a live
album, you want Christian Nesmith.
Packaging is first-rate, courtesy of 7a,
with fascinating liner notes by Papa Nez
himself.
All
in
all, a great release, and as Nez wraps it up,
I’ll just mosey on, thanx for the ride.
(Mark
Feingold)
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BLACK
TEMPEST – PSYBERSPACE
(LP from Weird
Beard )
The name Black Tempest, indeed that of Stephen
Bradbury, for it is mostly he, will be no stranger
to the regular and long term reader (hello, you),
having graced Woolf Music and our more recent
Paper Leaves LP. In fact Terrascope has been
pleased as Punchinello to give plenty of air to BT
releases over the course of many years and how
gratifying it is to see him get a proper vinyl
release courtesy of the Weird Beard collective.
Psyberspace will be as welcomingly
familiar as an old pair of genie’s slippers to the
initiated and as intriguing as a bottle marked
“drink me” to the curious, a heady mix of gentle
beats, washes and conventional instrumentation
bolstered by a strong cast of willing conscripts
not least (but not only) members of White Hills,
Dead Sea Apes and long-time Cope lieutenant Donald
Ross Skinner.
Solo opener ‘Traveller’ builds a solid
bridgehead, heralding BT’s trademark rhythm, a
grinding pulse that recurs throughout and which
will strive to avoid any suggestion of over
familiarity and which chugs along nicely, at times
evoking Planet’s Gong’s ‘Ali Baba’, intertwined
with Jarre-ing blasts of ice cold synths. It’s the
first bold step on what will amount to a cathartic
listening experience. However it’s the gentle
ambience of ‘Forest Of Stars’, three tracks in,
where it really clicks into place, a gorgeous,
throbbing blissfulness marking something of a
purple patch and one to which your reviewer keeps
returning (plus it contains bird song for added
value. That’s me sold to the highest Buddha then).
Steve’s trebly, crystal water guitar on ‘Ritual Of
The Moon’ sounds so sharp it could almost cut
itself and reminds your aged reviewer of the
Ovation sound that was the hallmark of Roy
Harper’s sound back in the mid-80s. I daresay that
is probably not what the artist was striving for
but you know what it’s like with these unintended
consequences. Add to this Jo Thirlwind’s witchy
incantations and at this point you are almost
sinking into the warm embrace of a relaxation tape
and a pretty special one at that, but from which
point things grow deliciously darker and more
ominous.
If ‘Ritual’ is the album highlight – and it
certainly receives my vote - then the remaining
cuts ‘Psyberhead’, a rhythmic shuffle peppered
with power chords courtesy of Dave from White
Hills, and ‘Mukti Advesha’ aren’t at all shabby
either. The latter one is a fitting finale as it
is given human warmth by Brett Savage and Chris
Hardman (who also mastered the album as he did for
Paper Leaves, bless him) of Dead Sea Apes and who
some years back along with Steve released that
rarest of beasts, a non-dance “electronic” album
which still receives regular spins here in the
Veal Crate. Well they may just have played a part
in pulling off the same trick this time, too. Psyberspace
is a truly gratifying creative effort so full
marks to everyone involved. No need to see me in
my office, then (you wouldn’t all fit anyway).
(Ian Fraser)
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THE JIM
MITCHELLS – LOVE HYPNOTIC
(LP from Cardinal
Fuzz)
First released in September 2016, The Jim
Mitchells’ debut EP, Planet Absorbed
receives a welcome UK release thanks to the
redoubtable Cardinal Fuzz and what a tonic it is.
This is the sound of hard edged garage psychosis
which suggests that the Sydney based five-piece,
led by the eponymous Jim, have time travelled to a
lock-up in LA or Texas or someplace US at some
point in ‘65 going on ‘66. Chock full of classic
hooks and killer riffs and with a vitality and
infectiousness that probably ought to carry a
health warning it has production values to match,
high on the treble, lo on the fi, and sounding
like jumping beans in a tin box. Yes so they are
refried beans but when your template is this good
then why bother sourcing too much fresh produce?
For those seeking consolation in modernity then
think of Ty Segal hooking up with a spikier
prime-time Dandy Warhols and you’d have a sticky
note with “warm” written on it planted on your
forehead. This then is “psych” before it became
packaged in over-production, beads and hype.
Personal favourites and honourable mention to
timeless title track, the euphoric ‘Alone, Stone’,
what sounds to all the world like a Nuggets
outtake – “Mind Reader”, You Unfollow Me’ (my
Twitter life story, possibly) which sounds like
The Monkees moonlighting in a dark basement
stripped of all the corny-camera sunshine veneer.
If these first four tracks are either mad, bad or
dangerous to know then the soporific ‘(…I’s a
Sign) is the last, stoned, carousel ride you’re
ever likely to take, a little like ‘The Sunshine
Underground’ (Chemical Brothers) with the beats
mixed out, which just leaves “Wanted”, a nicely
dopey, slow-paced, aimless six or so minutes that
hints more in the direction of Love Hypnotic…
…Wherein our boys shed much of the thrashy,
trashy garage “punk” like some old skin, to mixed
results. Jim Mitchell’s now evidently reedy, nasal
vocal suggest he’s spent some time studying at the
Tim Presley School of Latter Day Lennon and indeed
there are a few nods towards both White Fence and
the Fabs, consciously or otherwise, such as on the
impressive ‘Ankle Deep’ and ‘Got To Believe’
(possibly the pick of this bunch and on which you
can just imagine the late, great, Marty Balin
singing along). Meanwhile the guitar runs on the
engaging and sprightly ‘We’re Up High’, the lushly
harmonic single ‘Easy Love’ and the disarming
‘Magnetic’ could easily have slipped out the side
door of Tepid Peppermint Wonderland. All this is
good to varying degrees. A pity, then, that it’s
slightly let down by ‘Where Is’ which starts
promisingly but tends to lose its way, while the
closing ‘(…She’s Why)’ seems as unnecessary as the
title brackets.
Taking these two releases together what we have
here would constitute one remarkably good LP and
some work in progress. Recalibrating their
undoubted strengths in order to better align the
stronger melodies Love Hypnotic with the
energy of their debut would see The Jim Mitchells
becoming serious contenders indeed. Here’s to the
next one.
(Ian Fraser)
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GOATMAN
– RHYTHMS
(LP/DL from Rocket
Recordings)
Sweden’s Goat (not to be confused with the
Japanese band of the same name) are the equivalent
of what used to pass as “professional wrestling”
on ITV’s World Of Sport. Basically a load of
theatrical old phooey whose masked men/women of
mystery persona is great entertainment even if
nobody really buys the fact that these are strange
tribal communards but are in fact mostly members
of the jaw-droppingly good Hills with a couple of
women out front. Just like a good many of those
Saturday afternoon grunt ‘n groaners it doesn’t
mean that they don’t know or indeed excel at their
craft, it’s just that one has to be in the mood
and as often as not I’m in search of the fast
forward or eject button as often as I’m prepared
to indulge what I’m meant to be engaging with.
Whatever, one of this mysterious band of
brothers, “Goatman” (coincidentally the name of
Goat’s debut single) has gone it alone on this
debut release, one on which he’s in thrall to an
Africana and fascination with World Music that has
always been so evident in the parent band. Here he
gives full vent to his Fela fetish, particularly
on ‘Jaam Ak Salaam’ with its full on Africa Brass
and infectious rhythms, both guaranteed to get you
up on your feet – otherwise it would work just as
well as a driving song, too. ‘Hum Bebass Nahin’ is
described in the blurb as the “Bristol sound
track” although to these old ears it also evokes Apostrophe
era Zappa, a throttled back loping jazzy blues
with even a spiky lead break that has Zappa’s
trademark frenetic fretwork smeared over it.
Adding a bronchial saxophone for the second break
was also a shrewd move, lending a glass paper edge
to an already murky and dangerous sound.
The happy and infectious ‘Limelight’ straddles
Africa and the Caribbean and could be in danger of
becoming an incidental soundtrack for TV’s Murder
in Paradise. Beware though, unsuspecting listener,
if, like me, you’d hoped that synth drums had
expired with Rose Royce and ‘Love Don’t Live Here
Anymore’ courtesy of a great big silver stake
through its circuitry. Here the nightmare has
returned in spades, marring what would otherwise
be a pleasant enough interlude and one which
proceeds a genuine high water mark. ‘Carry The
Load’ is a quite fabulous and intricate piece of
gospel-jazz featuring Amanda Werne on vocals and
building to a shamanistic intensity courtesy of
more rasping reeds and counterweight flute solo.
No fast forward here no siree, although the repeat
play button has had a bit of a tough time of it.
Senegal’s Seydi Mandoza reprises his vocal stint
from the opening number on ‘Aduna’ a curiously
effective and highly enjoyable blend of Afro
rhythm and primitive sounding synth soloing. Here
the reeds give way to cosmic squalls of trumpet
(apparently Goatman plays all instruments, the
clever…thing). It’s left to the haunting
drone-chill out of ‘Baaneexu’ with its faint,
disembodied voice and gentle loops to guide us to
a soft landing, something of an odd one out but
strangely one of the highlights. It also gives the
old bones a rest after so much dancing around my
man bag.
Instruction: Play/repeat/play some more.
(Ian Fraser)
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MOVION –
BLANK
(LP from Drone
Rock Records )
An instrumental post-rock trio from Turin and
sounding uncannily like Cardiff’s Left Hand Right
Hand at times, Movion’s follow up to their highly
regarded debut album has been two years in the
making and mixes post rock with minimalist techno,
a mixing point of synthwave and more organic,
electro-acoustic soundscapes.
The introductory drone of ‘Ylem’ gives way to the
icily euphoric ‘Stereo Individuals’ which
introduces the first of many spoken word samples
(John Cage and David Cronenberg among those
borrowed) and is underpinned by an instrumental
heft which paradoxically elevates the track to new
heights instead of dragging it down with
gravitational weight. The strikingly named ‘Any
App For Soul Catharsis’ also skips, dances soars
and floats in pretty much equal measure, so much
so it’s like trying to swat the swiftest, most
evasive of flies. ‘Window Water Eyes Moving’
continues not just the theme for fanciful and
eye-catching titles but the subtly intricate yet
sparkling arrangements that makes it delightfully
hard to pigeon-hole, or for that matter to keep
still while listening (I can only apologise for
any typos that have escaped unnoticed). Following
a more traditional post-rock quiet-loud template
as befits the stealthy stalk and pounce hinted in
the title is ‘Hunt and Peck’ while the unsettling
interlude ‘Wysiwyg’ marks time before ‘A Whale Is
Going To Mountains’ brings matters to close in
typically angular, shapeshifting fashion keeping
you guessing as to their intentions.
‘Blank’ is one of those releases where the
listener, as opposed to the album, benefits from
repeated plays. You need a few shots at this to
fully appreciate the tight arrangements and busy
inventiveness, how this interacts with a lightness
of touch, and without them having to resort to the
volume switch. Unlike some post-rockers who have
grown rather plodding and predictable with age
Movion appear to be better served by being a lean,
compact and hungry unit. Let’s hope they continue
to quest and to surprise us when it comes to their
“difficult third”.
(Ian Fraser)
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RANDY
BURNS – EVENING OF THE MAGICIAN
(LP/DL)
Randy Burns was a Greenwich Village folkie by
way of New Haven, Connecticut. His 1968 album
Evening of the Magician is considered his apex,
and a hopefully not forgotten treasure of acid
folk. After landing at Bleecker and MacDougal
Street in 1966, Burns paid his dues sleeping on
park benches in Washington Square Park and
busking. After impressing during open mic nights
around Village clubs, eventually he landed a great
gig as permanent opening act at the legendary
Gaslight Café. He would be recruited by ESP-Disk
founder Bernard Stollman for his label. After the
mostly covers 1967 debut album for ESP-Disk, “Of
Love and War,” Burns formed the Sky Dog Band to do
his backing for the “difficult second album,”
Evening of the Magician.
Featuring ten songs, all Burns originals,
Evening’s songs feature evocative melodies,
messages of love and friendship, nature, and
reaching out to friends in need, and most of all
Burns’ warm voice. His voice reminds me slightly
of John Denver (the voice only!) with its soothing
qualities. The album should find admirers in fans
of Burns’ ESP-Disk label mates Pearls Before
Swine, if not quite as adventurous lyrically or
production-wise as PBS. Latter-day keepers of the
flame such as Iron & Wine (aka Sam Beam) and
Sufjan Stevens can trace their arc to the
unheralded Randy Burnses of the world.
Considering he’d advanced in instrumentation from
his first album of just an acoustic guitar and
vocals to the full band treatment on this,
ironically, it’s the guitar only tracks which
shine the most. “Evening of the Magician” is a
delicate acoustic track, while “Echoes of Mary’s
Song” adds tasteful flute. “You’ve Got All of Love
Standing at Your Door” features an acoustic and
electric guitar; Burns’ use of guitar harmonics
brings a warm, gorgeous feel to the song. The
lovely “Girl from England” is a tale of loss and
sorrow.
The full band tracks are also strong, but can
bring occasional winces from clunkers by various
Sky Dog Band members (in fairness, there may not
have been much time for alternate takes during
recording). However, Burns’ songwriting, singing
and guitar playing are masterful throughout.
Standouts include “Rainy Day Children,” featuring
guitars, piano and harmonica, and a partial
anti-war theme. The song sounds much like “Goodbye
and Hello” period Tim Buckley. “Springtime Song”
is a rare, happy song for the album, exuding
flower power. Eerie closer “When Daylight Comes in
Everything” was called by Tom Rapp “the most
intelligent take on psychedelia I’ve ever heard.”
You’ll have to judge for yourself.
Depending on the source of your copy, the album’s
audio quality may vary. Older versions suffer
greatly from various shortcomings, but a more
recent restoration by original ESP-Disk chief
engineer Joe Phillips brings the album to the high
standard it deserves.
(Mark Feingold)
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THALIA
ZEDEK BAND – FIGHTING SEASON
(LP/CD from Thrill
Jockey )
With a voice containing strong trace elements of
Patti Smith and Marianne Faithful, Thalia Zedek
inhabits a sometimes belligerent musical landscape
incorporating fragments of emotionally raw
Americana, New Wave and Post Rock. Fighting Season
parks pretty much mid-point between Zedek’s gnarly
past with the likes of Come, and her recent, more
vulnerable sounding stripped back solo releases. If
that guitar on ‘Bend Again’ is familiar then yes, it
is J Mascis, proving that Zedek has some heavy and
influential friends out there. The countrified ‘What
I Wanted’ is pretty decent, the title track just
about delivers on its early promise though sounds a
trifle forced, while ‘Of The Unknown’ treads a bit
of mid-set, mid-tempo water, Zedek’s voice straining
but ultimately through by a weighty final third.
‘Ladder’ pulls it all back, raw and atmospheric with
long-term foil Dave Curry on viola - his
complementary and sympathetic playing is a recurring
highlight - and Zedek’s wavering, plaintive strains
offset by the punchy defiance of the coda. Gentle
and acoustic, ‘War Not One’ is as charming as it is
desolate sounding and dear old Folk Rawk gets a look
in courtesy of ‘The Lines’, on which Zedek’s Neil
Young softening to Al Stewart (or Chris De Burgh if
you wish to be uncharitable) works surprisingly well
and is another highlight but none really come close
to ‘We Will Roll’, a short and simple dark lullaby
with beautiful interplay between Curry and Jonah
Sacks’ cello, a combination that is the aural
equivalent of peaches and cream. ‘Tower’ brings up
the rear, a potent weft of weightlessness and heft
and a fine way to end what, overall, is a box of
hard and soft centres well worth picking at.
(Ian Fraser) |
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