Ig in Oz

Y brawd especially likes the manner in which the Iggy keeps up the Oz accent until the end. Class.

A New Soldier Follows the Path of a New King: The Moon Lay Hidden Beneath a Cloud

Dark, dark industrial folk. Medievalism. Occult. Ritual. Clerical chants. Martial rhythms. Middle English, Latin. Modern electronics, tape loops, samplers cheek by jowl with shawm, hurdy gurdy, and Hexenscheit.

This Swiss (Austrian?) duo parted ways in 1998. ANSFTPOANK dates from 1995.

The obsessive picking over of Shakespeare’s Henry V is particularly rewarding:

God, and his angels, guard your sacred throne

All tracks untitled. Point of fact, no songs were ever given official titles.

You think Dead Can Dance were gloomy? You need to hear this.

Oddi wrth y brawd
durm

2nd - Floating Flower

Just 2nd. Kawabata Makoto takes time out from monster acid speed riffing to foster this more organically trippy ensemble: exploring  acoustic-sacred harmonies of Indian raga and  traditional facets of Nepal ethno-folk. Acoustic, and dominated by epiphanic sitar vibes, ritual percussions, spiritual chants and entrancing guitar tones. Bit samey but that's the trip. Deal with it.

Oddi wrth y brawd
kansai no ho ga...

Chants of India - Ravi Shankar, Produced by George Harrison

Turn off your mind and relax, calm in the knowledge that here be no Bhaktivedanta Manor mitherings, no dilettante Krishna capers. Instead you will find genuine depth and spirit, sensitively unfolded by a sympathetic and decidely ungrumpy George. Gorgeous drones handled with exquisite deftness.

Still wondering whether this is worth your while? Yes is the answer. For sure.

(Overactive imagination or do the first 50 seconds of the opening track show the famous scally wit at work? Y Brawd hears first an eastward-ho! Beatles cello 0:15, then at around 0:44 a Mr Blue Sky moment reclaimed from arch Fab Four plunderer and George oppo Jeff Lynne. Or it could just be too much chilli for supper tonight?)   

Oddi wrth y brawd
dark horse 

Sombrero Fallout - Pump

Adapted from www.boomkat.com:

From the annals of '80s tape culture Plague Records have uncovered raw gold in the form of Pump's semi-mythical Sombrero Fallout. Pump were Andrew Cox and David Elliott, a pair of like-minded electronic music fiends who met at Brighton uni in '79. After spilling five cassette albums of underground industrial strains inspired by Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire, Faust and Heldon, they spent the middle of the '80s largely estranged, with David writing for Sounds magazine alongside David Tibet, and Andrew working in Cornwall. In '87 they finally recorded new material, heard on The Decoration of The Duma Continues, before colluding for this, their final album which inexplicably didn't see the light of day - until now.

The untimely death of Andrew in 2009 prompted a resurgence of interest, and with the utmost respect, we're fucking blessed that it did as it's just the find of the year.

Quite interestingly the album was mixed by Colin Potter of Nurse With Wound, which goes some way to describing the close, dark ambient nature of their sound, but there are many more factors at play which make Sombrero Fallout so riveting: chugging slow drum machines and a guitar drone industrially dubbed for arcing, widescreen effects; spiraling marimbas diffused into stereo patterns with mournful, ghostly synths; claustrophobic and sickly doomscapes with over-saturated bass hum and the distant sound of groaning guitars tortured in some sadistic dungeon ritual. No shit, this is intensely dark stuff. Elsewhere we have reverb laden motorik backbeat somewhere between Stephen Morris and Klaus Dinger.

This album has really touched a nerve in our office, reminding us of our favourite Industrial, darkwave and New Beat, or all those other '80s genres whose unholy allure we've always been susceptible to, and best of all, it does it without the slightest hint of fromage or pastiche. Honestly, this is beyond essential for anyone with a darker soul.

Y brawd was, until recently, privileged to jockey a workstation alongside David E. before he decamped en famille to Beijing where he now rules China as arts supremo and cultural ambassador at large. A quiet dude and one of life's natural gents - not at all the depraved fiend he would appear to have been at the time of SF. Thus, insider knowledge draws attention to the more prosaic yet pervasive Eno influence hovering over some tracks...though never slavishly or derivatively so.

Also, it was all laid down on a 4 track machine in a bedroom apparently. Or is that recorded in bedroom and mixed on 4 track in potting shed? No doubt David will enlighten us in the comment section, Chinese firewall permitting.

Afore he went, Mr E. laid on y brawd a cracking double comp of late 70s kosmische teutonic grooves which might just end up on WB one of these days....

Oddi wrth y brawd
deebido, yoroshiku ne

Cloak & Dagger - Lee "Scratch" Perry and the Upsetters

Greetings music lover. All hear the music power.

And thusly, raise a glass of bacardi to the departing summer with this breezy set of  instrumentals from the arch arkologist. No dread here, just plenty of jaunty skank and bubbling bass and organ a la Long Shot Kick De Bucket. Don't be misled by apparent concept of cover and title as it has no bearing on content. Clearly, having done kung fu, b-movie horror and er...super apes, men in cloaks with daggers were the only way to go.

Oddi wrth y brawd

pipe2pipe bushman

A Saucerful of Pink - A Tribute to Pink Floyd

As if any were needed.....An array of unusual suspects makes this worth investigating....

In brief:

Nice 
Set Controls for the Heart of the Sun  - Psychic TV...Hit
Another Brick in the Wall Part 1&2  - Controlled Bleeding ...Hit
One of These Days  - Spahn Ranch ...Near the mark
Wots...Uh the Deal  - Sky Cries Mary ...Hit
Interstellar Overdrive  - Spiral Realms ...Miss
Learning to Fly  - Leæther Strip ...Near the Mark
To Roger Waters, Wherever You Are  - Ron Geesin ...Miss
Jugband Blues  - Eden ...Hit
On the Run  - DIN ...Hit

Pair 
Echoes  - Alien Sex Fiend ...Miss
Hey You  - The Furnace ...Near the Mark
Careful with that Axe, Eugene!  - Nik Turner ...Hit
Lucifer Sam  - The Electric Hellfire Club ...Miss
Pigs on the Wing  - Helios Creed ...Hit
Let There Be More Light  - Pressurehed ...Hit and miss the point
Young Lust  - Penal Colony ...Near the Mark
A Saucerful of Secrets  - E.X.P. ...Near the Mark
Point Me at the Sky  - Melting Euphoria ...Hit
The Nilesong  - Farflung ...Hit

Oddi wrth y brawd
nice
pair

Pop Quiz:
Which one is Pink?

EPs & Rarities - Julian Cope

Celebrating the recent Kilimanjaro Deluxe Edition box set [go geddit], here freshly decanted from y brawd's cellar -  jus for yous - a selection of vintage Julian. To quote the late John Peel, there certainly are some rum thoughts going on in that lad's head.

Sleeping Gas  - 7" EP A Side 1979
Camera Camera  - 7" EP B Side 1979
Kirby Workers Dream Fades  -  7" EP B Side 1979
Books  -  7" EP B Side 1980
Hey High Class Butcher  -  John Peel BBC Session 1983
Hobby  - John Peel BBC Session 1984
Crazy Farm Animal  - Janice Long BBC Session 1984
Christmas Mourning  - Janice Long BBC Session 1984
Death Mask (Quiz Master)  - Demo for World Shut Your Mouth 1984
I Went On A Chourney  - Sunspots EP 1985
Non Alignment Pact  - World Shut Your Mouth EP 1986
Disaster  - Trampolene EP 1987
Mock Turtle  - Trampolene EP 1987
Warwick The Kingmaker  - Trampolene EP 1987
Unisex Cathedral  - Droolian LP 1990
Jellypop Perky Jean  - Droolian LP 1990
Gentleman Dude  - Droolian LP 1990
Butterfly E  - East Easy Rider EP 1991
You Think It's Love  - John Peel BBC Session 1991
I Have Always Been Here Before  - Fear Loves This Place EP 1992

Oddi wrth y brawd

gentleman drude

La Revolución de Emiliano Zapata - La Revolución de Emiliano Zapata

Guest post courtesy of Earl...

Influenced by American psychedelic rock broadcast over the airwaves from the other side of the Mexican border La Revolucion de Emiliano Zapata were formed in Guadalajara in the late 60s. The group won a radio competition and earned themselves a record contract. After signing a deal with Polydor in 1969 the band  re-located to Mexico City. In 1970 the group recorded this, their debut album. The opening track Nasty Sex was released as a single and became a worldwide hit, not massive but big enough to get them on the road, touring US and Europe. The follow up single Shit City didn't do too well, I wonder why. They should have gone with At the Foot of the Mountain which is a beatiful tune. Mainly though  LRDEZ play a trippy brand of rock and roll, mixed in with pop hooks and fuzzed up guitars...another overlooked gem...

For more thrilling obscurities visit http://www.earlspsychedelicgarden.blogspot.com/

Oddi wrth y brawd

if you want it

EVE - Speed, Glue & Shinki

This shares top billing with the Flower Travellin' Band's mighty Satori in the Julian H. Cope Japrocksampler Top 50 (drawn up to provide "an easier way into the trip" - cheers):

"Blues-based funereal dirges about scoring amphetamines, paranoid sludge trudge proto-metal anthems about taking drugs to avoid straight people, cuckolded dead marches to cheating women with invitations to them to commit suicide: welcome to the world of Speed, Glue & Shinki."

And while the gurning praise of our favourite laughing boy can sometimes career enthusiastically towards the over-fulsome, if you get the Stooges or early Sabbath, then you need to get this.

Oddi wrth y brawd
stoned out of my mind

Smiling Men With bad Reputations - Mike Heron

With a title taken from Timothy Leary's book of Psychedelic Prayers listing "good people to hang out with", Mike Heron spreads his wings with a lot of help from an impressive cast of friends: Townshend, Moon, Lane, Cale, Winwood, Page, Thompson and er...Dr Strangely Strange. Mike duly rocks out, blowing away the cobwebs, sitars and ISB patchouli clouds. Intriguingly, his voice feels more suited to belting out these numbers than the slower acoustic fare essayed with the ISB - pitch and tone are less apt to wander. There's more than a touch of Caledonian Soul or Wavelength era Van Morrison about arrangements and delivery. All the material is strong with three very, very good standouts: Flowers of the Forest, Feast of Stephen and Beautiful Stranger. A good bunch of songs to hang out with for a while.

Oddi wrth y brawd

make no mistake

The Old Fangled Tone - Robin Williamson

Wise, witty Robin Williamson with a set of traditional songs arranged for brass band recorded live at the Square Chapel, Halifax, West Yorkshire. Warm burnished tones and a garrulous performance. Who'd have thought  euphonium, tuba and cornets could sound this good?

He's still rushing around the country with guitar and harp. Check out his site for when and where http://www.pigswhiskermusic.co.uk/

Oddi wrth y brawd

sugar boy

Spirit of Love - C.O.B.

C.O.B. [Clive's Original Band - a sly dig?] released two albums in the early 70s and this, their first, out charms the follow up: Moyshe Mcstiff and the Tartan Lancers of the Sacred Heart. Like Clive Palmer himself, it's a subdued affair and a spirit of quiet adventure reigns. Home made dulcitar [Clive was once a wood-work teacher after all] adds a psych tinge to the low-key, old-timey folk stylings. Inescapably evocative of the Incredible String Band, the lack of the ISB's ability to grate on some ears makes this a smart point of entry for the uninitiated. A modest triumph.  

Oddi wrth y brawd

wade in the water

Before Today - Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti

Recently overground if not quite yet  over exposed, Ariel Pink and crew transcend pastiche to serve up something fresh and inventive. Though more than just another band from LA, it is the City of Angels that most define their sound and mind-set. The lineage offers a magpie patchwork of styles and influences: most noticeably schizophrenic tempo changes a la Love through to 70s & 80s laid back west coast funk-lite, happily daring to slap the bass along the way. The occasional 80s arrangements are not as irritating as the prospect might sound.

Ariel Pink is clearly the mind in charge. Like a less parochial and more original (and talented) Bobby Gillespie, he press gangs his record collection to the service of his imagination and to channel the creation of something new and exciting.  Let's hope Ariel and his singular talent stay the course.

Oddi wrth y brawd
clog dance

        

Justin Heathcliff - Justin Heathcliff

Now here's a thing. Errant Japanese fellow fetches up in London at the fag end of the 60s; takes on alter ego  - Justin Heathcliff  - and the uncannily accurate vocal stylings of Kevin Ayers / Syd Barrett; against all odds creates a pleasing confection of sunshine psych gems. In parts like Julian Cope when he wrote melodies and XTC when they went all Sgt Pepper. 

Justin H. aka Osamu Kitajima, never revisitied this territory again, and was last heard of running a new age label....remember him, if at all, like this.

Oddi wrth y brawd
let's all sing along