Sunday, January 28, 2007

Thanks to everyone who left a comment last week!

Ejwuusl Wessahaqqan - Ejwuusl Wessahaqqan (1975)
No, I didn't pass out and hit my head on the keyboard, that's the name of the band. A three piece keyboard/bass/drums outfit from the same Munich scene as Amon Düül II, Embryo, and others. This group plays some very odd, experimental stuff, a real trippy fusion of styles. Hardly any vocals, guitar parts taken by self-made seven string "filouphone". Two of the four bonus tracks are from a later version of the group named Koala-Bär. My rip @320 w/scanned booklet.

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Crazy Mabel - Crazy Mabel (1971)
Crazy Mabel was a British band whose sole album was released in Germany and the Netherlands only. This is superb, bluesy, jazzy, progressive rock that sounds a bit like Colosseum at times. Great guitar work, good songs, heavy saxophone and brass, brilliant vocals. Unusual cover of Sonny & Cher's "The Beat Goes On". Only complaint - this seems to be a faked 'live' album. Highly recommended, this is real good! I got this from ChrisGoesRock back when he was doing torrents, so thanks Chris!

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Muck Groh - Grotesk (1980)
Muck Groh was a founding member of Ihre Kinder, and Aera. At least one of the other players on this was in Aera, so it's not surprising that the sound is similar to that group. Great Teutonic jazz-rock in the same vein as some Embryo and Missus Beastly.

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Ernst Schultz - Paranoia Picknick (1971)
Ernst Schultze was also a member of Ihre Kinder, but his first solo album was much more in the electric folkrock vein. Well mostly - one track is performed on two typewriters! Another track features some real nice sitar, and the title track is a bizarre sound collage. The rest of the tracks are more 'normal', and are very tasty, the musicianship is excellent! Wish I understood German, as the album art features characters from the lyrics. All in all a brilliant low-key piece of German psychedelia.

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The Famous Jug Band - Sunshine Possibilities (1969)
"A highly original recording by a very short-lived esoteric folk outfit from the turn of the 1970's. While it should be noted that the ever-enigmatic Clive Palmer, founder member of the Incredible Sring Band, is featured here, complete with two original out-there, but wonderfully crafted tunes, it's the vocalist Jill Johnson that stand out the most. Although only 18 at the time of this recording, her voice conveys a passion and wisdom of someone who has lived and died and come back as a spirit, boundless in energy and enthusiasm. The lush acoustic arrangements defy classification, an eclectic blend of so-called early music, ragtime, folk, bluegrass, folk-rock, blues and, yes, jug music. The songs, as a whole, are obscure, moody, somewhat chaotic at times, oddly serene at others, which is great if you're into the mystic, neo-acid folk in the String Band tradition, but off-putting, perhaps, to those seeking a more traditional sound. This is an experimental record in the truest sense." (Andrew Shaffer, amazon.com review) My rip @ 320

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Albatros - Garden Of Eden (1978)
This seven-piece band from Hagen, Germany, named after that Fleetwood Mac song, only had this one release, and that's a real shame. Powerful, intense, rhythmic progressive rock with driving guitars and vocals and great use of keyboards. All you get is three long tunes, which were even longer and had to be shortened to fit on the LP.

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Sleepy John - Sleepy John (1970)
"Contrary to popular belief Idaho is not strictly a vast wasteland of libertarian crankiness or to be more precise it may be that on the whole but it has also had its share of hippie nonconformists some of them wielding electric musical instruments. With this archival find Gear Fab has unearthed the work of one of the more worthwhile shaggy-haired Idaho bands of the rock era. The CD pulls together two separate 1970 sessions recorded by Sleepy John and here given their first public airing. The music is quite strong often propelled by David Lee 's overdriven Hammond organ work a sound that might be thought of as the missing link between the aggressiveness of the garage and the gloomy complexity of prog rock -- think Procol Harum crossed with the Crazy World of Arthur Brown . There are a few other hints of progressive influences throughout Sleepy John particularly in the minor-key chord changes the epic episodic song structures of pieces like "Nothing " "Seasons " and "Trying to Fly " and a single lyrical nod to literary fantasy ( "Dragons" ). That said this isn't really artsy stuff doesn't take itself too seriously and even intersperses the heady instrumental passages at which the band excelled with occasional satirical nods to country ( "Losing My Plow " "Cowboy" ) and the blues ( "I Just Happen to Be (In Love With You)" ). Sleepy John isn't really psychedelic either in the generally accepted sense of the term though it's easy to see how dealers could mislabel elements of the band's music in that way especially some of those instrumental explorations. Frank Trowbridge 's intriguing guitar work sometimes approaches the sustained tone of Spirit 's Randy California and Tom Williams ' drumming is effectively elemental (listen to the raw relentless almost tribal stretches of "Al Capa Strong" ). But this is by and large blues-based hard rock albeit considerably more sophisticated, ( "Prelude to a Dream" is adept jazz-rock) inquisitive, and penetrating than the norm. These guys were perhaps only a few hooks and a decent singer -- and a state line or two -- removed from genuine success." (Stanton Swihart - All Music Guide)

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OK that's it this week - did you like something? Take a second and say thanks, won't you?

Monday, January 22, 2007

Hi - I read on the net last week that a German group called GEMA, which I think is the equivalent of the US's ASCAP or BMI, has sued both rapidshares over copyright violations and was granted a preliminary injunction by a German court. Could one of the German visitors here let us know exactly what is going on?

Anyway, some real good stuff down below!


Please - Seeing Stars (1969)
Recorded in 1969 and unreleased for over 30 years, this is a real lost gem of British underground rock. The players on this had been in or would be in such bands as T2, Bulldog Breed, The Flies, and Gun. Well-crafted songs, first-rate vocals, big Mellotron, fantastic guitar playing and all around excellent musicianship make this an album that gets better with each listen.

Download

Last Straw - Alone On A Stone (1973-1976)
Last Straw is a long forgotten band from the Isle Of Wight, and this release contains demos, singles, and live tracks. The music is inconsistent, as the band probably has some personnel changes, as is the sound quality. Alternately psychy and proggy, there is some real good stuff here. The later tracks center on some great twin-lead guitar work that might make Wishbone Ash a little jealous.

Download
Oops!! track 8 bad. Replace with this one Here

Kin Ping Meh - Kin Ping Meh 3 (1973)
German band Kin Ping Meh's third album marks the arrival of vocalist Geff Harrison (ex 2066 & Then), and also a shift in musical styles. Their first two albums were a kind of experimental pop, and I agree with those who say the first two are their best work. From the third album on, the music was a more conventional, though a little odd, form of hard rock. Good stuff though, and interesting at the very least.

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Ihre Kinder - Leere Hände-Empty Hands (1970)
This release is a reissue of German group Ihre Kinder's second album, 'Leere Hände', which includes English language versions of the songs, for 21 tracks altogether. They were a political band, and this is a true folk-rock album, with some progressive touches. Great use of flute and keyboards, and of course guitar.

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Oops! track 8 missing, here it is - Track 8

Drum Circus - Magic Theatre (1971)
Only release from an obscure band from Switzerland, they apparently had some dealings with Timothy Leary, who wrote the lyrics for two of the tracks. Joel Vandroogenbroeck of Brainticket can be heard on keyboards, flute, and sitar. Jazzy, groovy, spacy and psychedelic - this is a real nice listen, highly recommended!

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High Tide - Sea Shanties (1969)
"This is truly monster psych. You'll hear 'monster psych' thrown around to describe this or that super obscure late 60's/early 70's band and after throwing down twenty bucks on some import CD you go, 'Gee, well...'. Sea Shanties deserves the title 'Monster Psych' absolutely. Heavy the way heavy metal is heavy but most definitely psychedelic. Tony Hill plays like a deranged garage-band Hendrix. Excellent bombastic production throws the guitar right into your face. Turn up the volume and put on 'Death Warmed Up' for your friends at an unexpected moment. Someone's liable to spit out their beer. At first I couldn't tell I was listening to a violin behind the guitar. It sound more like an organ or primative synth! Top-notch stuff." (amazon.com review)

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Hey how about some comments? Did you like something, hate something, or whatever? See ya!

Sunday, January 14, 2007


Brainticket - Voyage (1983)
"Voyage" continues where "Adventure" left off with more strange sonic cosmos and amazing percussive tones and moods. Essentially "Voyage" was a live in studio jam which got carried away one evening and was captured on tape for the world to enjoy. Once again we are surrounded by the electronic genius of Joel Vandroogenbroeck and his gang of merry men. "Voyage" seems to be more devoted to exploring the percussive side of their music in sharp contrast to "Adventure" and "Celestial Ocean". Voyage Part 1 would certainly rank as one of my all time electronic Krautrock favs. 3 more bonus tracks have been included as well in the same vein as those found on "Adventure". (loserboy- www.groove.nl)

Hans Deyssenroth: e-piano, computer, synthesizer
Barney Palm: percussion
Wilhelm Seefeldt: synthesizer, computer
Joel Vandroogenbroeck: clavinet, synthesizer, flute

Part 1 Part 2

Blackbirds - Touch Of Music (1971)
Amongst the earliest of Krautrock bands, The Blackbirds (like Xhol) started elsewhere before venturing on to experimental realms. In fact, they were originally a 60's pop band typical of the soul-beat era, but with a touch of the Mothers Of Invention type satire and some progressive touches. Although their debut "No Destination" had its moments, it is generally very dated and only of marginal interest. Curiously it only ever gained a UK release.

By the time of their second album "Touch Of Music", the three year gap had made a lot of difference. In fact, only one member (Werner Breinig) remained from the original line-up, and they had moved on to a classical spiced rock music of great invention, blending heavy and spacey styles with great finesse. Strong songs form the basis of most tracks, all of which are sufficiently long enough to give plenty of room for solos from flute, violin, guitar and keyboards. Stylistically The Blackbirds here come pretty close to Italian bands of the era like New Trolls, Panna Fredda, Hero, at al, (a hint of Xhol Caravan and Vanilla Fudge even more so) and they also had much in common with British bands like Skin Alley or Jody Grind. It's a shame they never made a third album!

Werner Breinig (guitar, vocals), Heinz Koop (bass), Hubert Koop (organ), Helmut Vigneron (drums) (The Crack In The Cosmic Egg)

Dada - Dada (1971)
Only release from this British jazz/rock outfit, which will probably be of interest to fans of Elkie Brooks. She and two other members, Pete Gage and Robert Palmer, went on to form the great 70's band Vinegar Joe.

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Tritonus - Tritonus/Between The Universes (1975/1976)
Peter K. Seiler had a musical background from his university days (he studied classical music) which prompted him to form a "classical rock" trio, in the tradition of Emerson, Lake and Palmer. Their first album (1975) was quite conventional for the symphonic rock genre. However, Between the Universes (1976) was a definite improvement, benefitting from Geff Harrison's vocals (ex-2066 & Then and Kin Ping Meh), catchy tunes and great keyboard arrangements (mainly synthesizers). After this, Seiler seemed to lose the interest in Tritonus, and worked increasingly with other musicians, like Michael Bundt. Check out Bundt's solo albums if you enjoy the Tritonus-style. (Cosmic Dreams At Play)

Part 1 Part 2

Friday, January 05, 2007

Swara Samrat - The Truth About Suzanne
Man I wish there was more information on line about Captain Ilor and Swara Samrat! As near as I can make out, this is a 1993 re-issue of an earlier limited edition release. Who these guys are and exactly when this stuff was recorded, I'm curious, but overall it doesn't really matter, the music speaks for itself I guess. All instruments on this "progedelic" and "psychosive" album are played by Ilor and Samrat. Spacy and freaky! Calling all hippies! (My rip @320 w/scans)

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Sergius Golowin - Lord Krishna Von Goloka (1973)
Sergius Golowin was (is) a Swiss painter (responsible for the original cover painting of Ash Ra Tempel's 'Seven Up' as well as his own sleeve) and a friend of Walter Wegmuller. The sessions for this concept album in late 1972 were arguably the start of all the Cosmic Jokers-related sessions between 1973 and 1974. It brought Wallenstein together with Klaus Schulze and Witthuser & Westrupp. The 'Lord Krishna von Goloka' album really sounds like a cross between the styles of the participating musicians (the cue word here is "space"!!!): Floyd-like space rock (Wallenstein), electronic spacious effects (Klaus Schulze) and traces of cosmic folk (Witthüser & Westrupp). Add that to the talents of a certain Jörg Mierke and the mostly spoken, mysterious lyrics of Golowin, you've got the album in a nutshell. Not as trippy as Seven Up, but certainly out on a limb, featuring three continuously running tracks likely to shuttle you into far distant realms of space...! Of course this record is a necessity for Ash Ra Tempel, Cosmic Jokers, Schulze and Wallenstein fans (and I figure there ain't a few!). Fans are also in need of his album's logical successor: Walter Wegmuller's large scale opus 'Tarot', featuring most of the musicians above and more [posted 1 October 2006]. The next logical step was to be the Cosmic Joker sessions. (Cosmic Dreams At Play) (My rip @ 320 w/scans)

Track listing

1. Der Reigen (16:34)
2. Die Weisse Alm (5:49)
3. Die Hoch Zeit (19:25)

Line-up

- Sergius Golowin / voice
- Jerry Berkers / electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, bongo's
- Jürgen Dollase / piano, melotron, vibrafon, triangel and guitar
- Jörg Mierke / electric guitar, organ, percussion, voice choir, flute, electronics, conga's
- Klaus Schulze / drum, organ, mellotron & electronics
- Walter Westrupp / acoustic guitar, flute, mouthharp, windspel, psalter, tablas and percussion
- Bernd Witthüser / guitar

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Jane - Cologne 1-8-77Great sounding boot of an FM broadcast by Germany's favorite melodic hard rock group.

The Band:
Peter Panka, drums, vocals
Klaus Hess, guitare, vocals
Martin Hesse, bass
Manfred Wieczorke, beyboard, vocals

The Songs:
01 Lady - 3:37
02 Radio Talk 1 - 2:44
03 Fire, Water, Earth & Air - 3:44
04 Another Way - 5:16
05 River - 4:17
06 Out In The Rain - 6:08
07 Hangman - 14:34
08 Radio Talk 2 - :49
09 Windows - 20:22

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Brinsley Schwarz - Brinsley Schwarz
This issue from 1995 contains all the tracks from Brinsley Schwarz's first two albums, "Brinsley Schwarz" and "Despite It All" (both 1970). I think critics of the time called this "Pub Rock" - it's kind of like a 70's version of alt country. If you're looking for psych or prog, it's not here!

Part 1 Part 2

Eulenspygel - Ausschuss (1972)
Eulenspygel's 2nd album (or 3rd, if their first release as the Royal Servants is counted) is a very Teutonic sounding piece of Krautrock. Vocals are in German, and are supposed to be political, or maybe socially conscious. There is a wide range of instruments, and the music is very textured, showing influences from all over the place, from bands as diverse as Out Of Focus and Genesis, maybe even Deep Purple. The sound is expansive, the music is very well-played. The bonus tracks are from a later incarnation of the band and seem a little more 'bluesy', but they are pretty cool too. Not for everyone I suspect, but hey, neither is a lot of the stuff we listen to!!

Part 1 Part 2