08-10-06 - 15-10-06
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Deviants - 1968 - Disposable
Deviants - 1968 - Disposable
Song Title :
01 Somewhere To Go
02 Shadows And Wires
03 Jamies Song
04 You've Got To Hold On
05 Fire In The City
06 Lets Loot The Supermarket
07 Pappa-Oo-Mao-Mao
08 Slum Lord
09 Blind Joe Mcturks Last Lesson
10 Normality James
11 Guarenteed To Bleed
12 Sadney B Goode
13 Last Man
Mick Farren - Lead Vocals
Russell Hunter - Drums
Sid Bishop - Guitar
Duncan Sanderson - Bass
Biography
In the late '60s, the Deviants were something like the British equivalent to the Fugs, with touches of the Mothers of Invention and the British R&B-based rock of the Yardbirds and the Pretty Things. Their roots were not so much in the British Invasion as the psychedelic underground that began to take shape in London in 1966-1967. Not much more than amateurs when they began playing, they squeezed every last ounce of skill and imagination out of their limited instrumental and compositional resources on their debut, Ptooff!, which combined savage social commentary, overheated sexual lust, psychedelic jamming, blues riffs, and pretty acoustic ballads -- all in the space of seven songs. Their subsequent '60s albums had plenty of outrage, but not nearly as strong material as the debut. Lead singer Mick Farren recorded a solo album near the end of the decade, and went on to become a respected rock critic. He intermittently performed and recorded as a solo artist and with re-formed versions of the Deviants.
~AMG- Richie Unterberger
Song Title :
01 Somewhere To Go
02 Shadows And Wires
03 Jamies Song
04 You've Got To Hold On
05 Fire In The City
06 Lets Loot The Supermarket
07 Pappa-Oo-Mao-Mao
08 Slum Lord
09 Blind Joe Mcturks Last Lesson
10 Normality James
11 Guarenteed To Bleed
12 Sadney B Goode
13 Last Man
Mick Farren - Lead Vocals
Russell Hunter - Drums
Sid Bishop - Guitar
Duncan Sanderson - Bass
Biography
In the late '60s, the Deviants were something like the British equivalent to the Fugs, with touches of the Mothers of Invention and the British R&B-based rock of the Yardbirds and the Pretty Things. Their roots were not so much in the British Invasion as the psychedelic underground that began to take shape in London in 1966-1967. Not much more than amateurs when they began playing, they squeezed every last ounce of skill and imagination out of their limited instrumental and compositional resources on their debut, Ptooff!, which combined savage social commentary, overheated sexual lust, psychedelic jamming, blues riffs, and pretty acoustic ballads -- all in the space of seven songs. Their subsequent '60s albums had plenty of outrage, but not nearly as strong material as the debut. Lead singer Mick Farren recorded a solo album near the end of the decade, and went on to become a respected rock critic. He intermittently performed and recorded as a solo artist and with re-formed versions of the Deviants.
~AMG- Richie Unterberger
Friday, October 13, 2006
Ed Askew - 1968 - Ask The Unicorn
Ed Askew - 1968 - Ask The Unicorn
Song Title
01. Fancy That
02. Peter And David
03. Marigolds
04. Mr. Dream
05. Red Woman-Letter To England
06. Garden, The
07. May Blossoms Be Praised
08. 9-Song
09. Love Is Everyone
10. Ask The Unicorn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One of ESP-Disk's true acid folk classics, up there with their Pearls Before Swine and Fugs albums, Ed Askew's Ask the Unicorn is one of the most unique singer/songwriter albums of the '60s. Rather than the usual guitar, Askew plays the tiple, a Latin ten-stringed instrument that's sort of a cross between a lute and a ukulele. It's a loud, trebly instrument with a lot of sustain and some interesting harmonics created by the way the strings resonate together, and it adds an intriguing instrumental texture to the album. Askew has said that the tiple also affects his vocal style on this album; because the instrument is so difficult to play, there's a strained quality to his vocals. Indeed, on the opening, "Fancy That," Askew sounds like the Violent Femmes' Gordon Gano trying to sing North African rai. Lyrically, Ask the Unicorn is nowhere near as hippie-dippy as the title suggests. Askew is a gifted, confessional lyricist, and the songs are emotionally engaging in a way that many psychedelic records are not. In a particularly interesting element of the album considering its pre-Stonewall recording date, Askew's lyrics address his homosexuality in an admirably matter-of-fact way, neither ducking the point nor focusing on it exclusively. Other tracks use a number of floral metaphors in a way similar to Georgia O'Keefe's codedly erotic flower paintings. The simply produced live-with-no-overdubs feel of Ask the Unicorn gives the album a folk-like immediacy even on the most out-there songs, like the seven-minute drone "May Blossoms Be Praised." Askew never did another commercial release after Ask the Unicorn, although a 1970 follow-up on ESP-Disk made it as far as a test pressing. In the decades since, the New York-based Askew has pursued a relatively successful career as a painter and poet, and has self-released several cassettes of new material that can be found on the fringe music tape-trading underground.
~ Stewart Mason, All Music Guide
Song Title
01. Fancy That
02. Peter And David
03. Marigolds
04. Mr. Dream
05. Red Woman-Letter To England
06. Garden, The
07. May Blossoms Be Praised
08. 9-Song
09. Love Is Everyone
10. Ask The Unicorn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is a unique acid folk item, even by ESP standards. Askew plays the tiple, an acoustic instrument in the same world as mandolin, dulcimer and autoharp. The effect isn’t a whole lot different from guitar-and-voice, but it’s just exotic enough to have curiosity value. The instrument takes a lot of energy to play, and the effort gives Askew a strained vocal style that actually gives his music an appealing edge. The songs are odd enough (and good enough) to keep the listener’s interest despite the sparse arrangements. The lyrics are quirky and occasionally mystical, but quite effective and affecting. Askew has a bizarre sense of romanticism that fits his street poet mentality. Supposedly some of these lyrics address his homosexuality, making him way ahead of his time. He does so, though, in such abstractions that the words can be interpreted in other ways. Like all purely solo albums, after 43 minutes there’s a saminess to this, but this really is one of the best albums of its type, and is recommended highly to fans of loner folk and oddball singer-songwriters. there is apparently also a reissue retitled "Ask the unicorn" in an altered cover. [AM]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One of ESP-Disk's true acid folk classics, up there with their Pearls Before Swine and Fugs albums, Ed Askew's Ask the Unicorn is one of the most unique singer/songwriter albums of the '60s. Rather than the usual guitar, Askew plays the tiple, a Latin ten-stringed instrument that's sort of a cross between a lute and a ukulele. It's a loud, trebly instrument with a lot of sustain and some interesting harmonics created by the way the strings resonate together, and it adds an intriguing instrumental texture to the album. Askew has said that the tiple also affects his vocal style on this album; because the instrument is so difficult to play, there's a strained quality to his vocals. Indeed, on the opening, "Fancy That," Askew sounds like the Violent Femmes' Gordon Gano trying to sing North African rai. Lyrically, Ask the Unicorn is nowhere near as hippie-dippy as the title suggests. Askew is a gifted, confessional lyricist, and the songs are emotionally engaging in a way that many psychedelic records are not. In a particularly interesting element of the album considering its pre-Stonewall recording date, Askew's lyrics address his homosexuality in an admirably matter-of-fact way, neither ducking the point nor focusing on it exclusively. Other tracks use a number of floral metaphors in a way similar to Georgia O'Keefe's codedly erotic flower paintings. The simply produced live-with-no-overdubs feel of Ask the Unicorn gives the album a folk-like immediacy even on the most out-there songs, like the seven-minute drone "May Blossoms Be Praised." Askew never did another commercial release after Ask the Unicorn, although a 1970 follow-up on ESP-Disk made it as far as a test pressing. In the decades since, the New York-based Askew has pursued a relatively successful career as a painter and poet, and has self-released several cassettes of new material that can be found on the fringe music tape-trading underground.
~ Stewart Mason, All Music Guide
SpiroGyra - 1971 - St. Radigunds
SpiroGyra - 1971 - St. RadigundsTracks :
01. The Future Won´t Be Long (4:27)
02. Island (3:39)
03. Magical Mary (6:20)
04. Captain's Log (2:00)
05. At Home In The World (2:40)
06. Cogwheels Crutches And Cyanide (6:00)
07. Time Will Tell (5:32)
08. We Were A Happy Crew (5:29)
09. Love Is A Funny Thing (2:00)
10. The Duke Of Beaufoot (7:08)
Line-up
- Steve Borrill / bass
- Martin Cockerham / guitar, vocals
- Julian Cusack / violin, keyboards
- Barbara Gaskin / lead vocals
Guest musicians:
- Dave Mattacks / drums
- Tony Cox / VCS 3
- Bill Bruford / drums Spirogyra's first album is the closest thing that comes to Comus's First Utterances. It actually pre-dates it by a few weeks! Please note that Dave Mattacks will drum on al three albums but will never be a member! He was busy in Fairport Convention at the time and will also drum for Jethro Tull during the 80's. Barbara Gaskin is also known for her work with Hatfield And The North (as one of the Northettes along with Amanda Parsons) and her work with National Health and in the 80's with Dave Stewart and Bill Bruford!
What we have here is superb folk rock , avoiding some of the clichés (no done-to-death covers of traditional tunes) , inventive enough to be classified as folk-prog. The main writer Cockerham is also often engaging in great duos with Gaskin and this is , along with the violin of Cussack and Borril's great bass lines, the main reasons for sounding so close to Comus! But where Comus was dark and demonic, Spirogyra is more political and romantic.
Many tracks are stupendous as they work very tightly and have great interplaying. Future , Island and Magical Mary are all very enthralling tracks. Comes in two of the three shorter and more reflective tracks (Captain's Log and At Home In the World) but also slightly less interesting! Cogwheels is absolutely fascinating with Gaskin underlining Cockerham's acidic vocals (much the same way Grace Slick , Balin and Kantner did in Jefferson Airplane). Time Will Tell shows how politically conscious the band was. Happy Crew is relatively slow starting because of lenghty and not entirely successful string arrangement and when it does take off, it is too short. They saved their best track to close the album. The Duke of Beaufoot is simply riveting and really holding your attention much the same way that Traffic did with John Barleycorn Must Die.
~Review by Sean Trane/Hugues Chantraine [Progarchives]
Get It Here :
RapidShare or SendSpace
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Mythos - 1975 - Dreamlab
Track listing
01. Dedicated to Wernher von Braun (5:53)
02. Message part I (2:49)
03. Message part II (5:24)
04. Expeditions (6:02)
05. Mythalgia (2:12)
06. Dreamlab: (11:17)
-a) Echophase (3:03)
-b) Quite amazed (3:10)
-c) Going to meet my lady (5:04)
07. Eternity (7:07)
Total Time: 40:44
Line-up
- Stephan Kaske / flute, acoustic & electric guitars, synths, vocals
- Robby Luizaga / bass, acoustic guitar, Mellotron
- Hans-Jürgen Pütz / drums, Moog drum, vibes, percussion
+ Starmaiden / backing vocals (4)
Cosmically dreamy ensemble combining experimental classical space influences with that 70's underground German psychedelia. "Dreamlab" was MYTHOS' 2nd album, from 1975, and was originally released on Cosmic Couriers. "Dreamlab" is somewhere between YATHA SIDRA and ASH RA TEMPEL with some ethnic percussion carrying a earthy feel throughout. Vocals are in English but are not used all that often (and that is a good thing) as the strength of this music is clearly in the instrumentation. I treat this album as a classic and regard it highly as a tremendous piece of work. Moog and Mellotrons also help create those lush analog atmospheres which when combined with the array of hand drums and electric guitar accents will put you into a permanent "Dreamlab".
01. Dedicated to Wernher von Braun (5:53)
02. Message part I (2:49)
03. Message part II (5:24)
04. Expeditions (6:02)
05. Mythalgia (2:12)
06. Dreamlab: (11:17)
-a) Echophase (3:03)
-b) Quite amazed (3:10)
-c) Going to meet my lady (5:04)
07. Eternity (7:07)
Total Time: 40:44
Line-up
- Stephan Kaske / flute, acoustic & electric guitars, synths, vocals
- Robby Luizaga / bass, acoustic guitar, Mellotron
- Hans-Jürgen Pütz / drums, Moog drum, vibes, percussion
+ Starmaiden / backing vocals (4)
Cosmically dreamy ensemble combining experimental classical space influences with that 70's underground German psychedelia. "Dreamlab" was MYTHOS' 2nd album, from 1975, and was originally released on Cosmic Couriers. "Dreamlab" is somewhere between YATHA SIDRA and ASH RA TEMPEL with some ethnic percussion carrying a earthy feel throughout. Vocals are in English but are not used all that often (and that is a good thing) as the strength of this music is clearly in the instrumentation. I treat this album as a classic and regard it highly as a tremendous piece of work. Moog and Mellotrons also help create those lush analog atmospheres which when combined with the array of hand drums and electric guitar accents will put you into a permanent "Dreamlab".
St. Mikael
St. Mikael - 1988 - Visions of a Trespasser
01. The Serpent (8:36)
02. Dagon (4:27)
03. Heading For The Sky (3:48)
04. Microworlds (4:53)
05. Bom Bom Mahadev (3:59)
06. The Soul Searcher (3:51)
07. In The Forest (3:35)
08. Calling The Djinn (6:56)
09. Dreams Of Eternity (5:59)
10. The Voice (6:26)
11. Seed Of The Sun (5:50)
12. Universe (5:36)
13. Where Can I Go, Why Can't I Se (6:18)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
St. Mikael - 1991 - Claustromania
01 Prisoner
02 Vault
03 Claustromania
04 Spirit 1
05 Venus And Beyond
06 Before Your Eyes
07 Time Caravan
08 Spirit 2
09 Polaris
10 Soul Ritual
11 A New Era
12 Androgyno's Song
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
St. Mikael - 1996 - Soul Flower
part I ~ part II
01 Back Home
02 Godly
03 Belly Drumming Soul
04 Evening Bossa
05 Improvisation
06 Beyound The Haze
07 Soul Flower
08 Worlds Within Worlds
09 The Titans
10 Sanat Michael
11 The Turkish flower
12 Moving Together
13 I Just Wanted To Say
14 She Came With The Spring
15 You Are A Light
16 The Night Stars
17 Summer In My Life
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Discography:
Visions of a Trespasser (XMMS-1 1989)
Visions of a Trespasser box (XMMS-1 1989)
The Unknown (XMMS-2 1991)
Claustromania (MS-3-XMLP-1 1991)
Visions of a Trespasser 2nd Edition (XMMS-1 1993)
Psychocosmic Songs (XMLP-4 MS-4 1994)
Soul Flower (SUB XMLP-11 1996)Reviews:
S.T. MIKAEL: Visions of a Trespasser
Recorded in his bedroom and it´s so beautiful! Best psych album since the early 70´s! - Stefan Dimle, Mellotronen, Sweden
This basement acid tripper exists briefly in the real world of vinyl! Folk rocky melodic elements flow with waves of heavy fuzzphase leads. A weird detached haunted vocal echoes over the band and the whole thing seems to teeter on the brink of psychedelic oblivion’s. Not revival either. One of the big unearthings in resent memory. Joyride thru an altered state! – Monster time! - Paul Mayor, X-tabay/Parallel World, USA
This is so mind twisting, soul swirling, upper psychedelia that your third eye takes you on a cosmic journey through the dark ages of Serpents, glimpses of Gyrax, the land of Fauns, the mystic Orient, dark forests, angels of doom and the dreams of Eternity...this is some of the places and events the Saint brings you to on his masterpiece. I give you a 100 % money back guarantee if you don`t love this album! - Jorn Andersen, Rock Garden, Norway
Incredible mind blowing psyche! The best album of the last years...only 150 copies made and destined to the highest ranks of collectordom! -Walter Geertzen, Belgium.
ST Mikael...distorts instruments other people don’t even dream of using and displays a cunning understanding of vocal phrasing and harmony as well as playing the hell out of his guitar in a really nice, understated way... -Ptolemaia Terrascope, England
S.T. MIKAEL: The Unknown (XMMS-2 1991)
Real disturbed garagy psych with his tormented vocals, guitars and a total homemade obscure vibe to it...tremendous acid bird cover painting. -Gregg Breth, USA
Fantastic Swedish Psych...one of the best of the last year! - A Trip With Mushrooms, Netherlands
S.T. MIKAEL: Claustromania (MS-3-XMLP-1 1991)
The latest from underground-scene heavy psych one-man crew of angels & psychedelic flashes. This LP makes your brain start thinking in those pebble splash pond mind circular expanding waveforms that people on this vibe await the returning ship their roots sent out to bring back the password to tomorrow. - Paul Major, Parallel World, USA.
Soulful music clothed in flashing psychedelia! His best, the highest ranks! – Länstidningen, Sweden.
Features a bunch of atmospheric psychedelic pieces, with phased vocals, melodic mellotron pieces and guitars on a slow burning fuse! Plenty of wig lifting material here...” -Freakbeat, UK
S.T. MIKAEL: Psychocosmic Songs (XMLP-4 MS-4 1994)
”A new album by the Swedish multi-instrumentalist ST Mikael...with a hand painted cover and a colorful booklet filled with drawings, comics and a picture story about Evolution on Earth. It’s impossible to compare him and his music with any other group or artist. On this record he plays guitars, sitars, turkish saz, drums, congas, tablas, organ, moog and does all the vocals. Some of the best tracks here is in that new, truly original style he has made his own. He will probably be one of the future-legends of the Psychedelic Music...” -Old Man Willow, Norway
”His 4th LP makes new references between the electric and acoustic instruments, which contributes to the new consciousness condensing the moments of insight!” - Rockerilla, Italy
S.T. MIKAEL: Soul Flower (SUB XMLP-11 1996)
"This double LP is the best album he ever released, but it’s his most unconventional as well. The four sides of "Soul Flower" all bear a different character: Side A is more or less the S.T: Mikael we know from previous LPs: the melancholic psychedelic singer/songwriter who records all his twisted songs on his home equipment with a skill and a passion seldom demonstrated elsewhere. Highlights here are the pounding "Godly" and the moody "Beyond the Haze". Side B is the strangest but also one of the best. ST Mikael experimented with Turkish ethnical instruments and musical style elements, resulting in the magnificent title track, the intriguing "The Titans" and the exotic, fuzzy "The Turkish Flower". Side C brings songs from one session and it shows ST Mikael in a very emotional, spiritual mood; he sings and plays his songs with the intensity of a young Tim Buckley. Highlights here are the long, semi-instrumental "Moving...Together" and the elegant "She Came With The Spring". Side D only features two tracks; the dreamy, soft "The Night Stars" and "Summer In My Life", a long jam (filling almost the entire side) recorded in the In Deep-studio with backing by Adam Axelzon and other friends."/" All of this resulted in an utterly stoned, mind lifting instrumentation with layers of exotic percussion, sitars going overdrive, spacy keyboards and burning guitar lines, an absolute best on an album full of high-quality psychedelics. ST Mikael proved once again to be a gifted songwriter and an unconventional performer with a very personal ear for acoustics and an emotional honesty seldom seen these days." – Crohinga Well/Belgium
VISIONS OF THE UNKNOWN
Here at last is a chance for the world to join in, and pick up some bonus tracks along the way. His recording has a homemade charm with wah-wah fuzz guitars, keyboards, sitars and primitive psychedelic effects. You do get the feeling that Mikael actually lives the lifestyle rather than just emulating it. His soaring vocals, surreal lyrics, fragile, folky melodies and penchant for the spiritual and mystical make this altogether a fascinating voyage. – Record Collector magazine (UK)
THE STORY OF S.T. MIKAEL
Mikael Sundtsröm (aka S.T. Mikael) was born in Södertälje, Sweden March the 27th, 1963. His father was a jazz swinging plumber and his mother was an innocent forest girl. He was a lonely, introspective boy who developed a bizarre imagination and an obsession for everything odd, mysterious and supernatural in life. His head was filled with images from Sci/Fi-Fantasy and Horror movies and books, but he also built his own dream worlds with creatures, characters, phantoms and prehistoric images in his drawings, comics and short stories. At 15 he picked up his mothers old guitar and started improvising and recording music. At the age of 19 - in 1982, he tried to find members for a group, but it took him until 1985 when he joined a garage-combo called ”Dickie Dickhead and the Outcast” as a lead guitarist. Although it brought many laughs and good fun into his heart and the fact that they developed from ”the worst and unintentionally most absurd band in town” to a serious and expressive experimental rock band, he left after two struggling years to form his own group. The trio ”The Twilight Souls” , was where he could sing and play his own compositions. He tried to fuse heavy rock and soul music with psychedelic influences which can be heard on the title track of his ”Unknown”-album. During this time he searched for the psychedelic experience and took his first dose of LSD. Because of exhaustion and inability to secure any gigs the band broke up in 1988. After this he gave up the rock´n roll band dream, understanding that there wasn’t anyone in town that had the same psychedelic ambitions as he had. With no expectations for the future he continued working with his ideas and primitive home recordings.
In 1989 he moved to Stockholm where he met Stefan Kéry, a psychedelic connoisseur, and gave him a cassette with some of his many recordings. To Mikaels great surprise he found that the tape was received with great enthusiasm and an album was soon made out of that very tape. The album was titled ”Visions Of A Trespasser” and was released early 1990 in an edition of 150 copies only. The album cover featured a colorful, organic vortex with images of beings of the galaxy in it painted by Mikael. Each and every record had differently hand painted labels. The album was mainly distributed among friends. It showed his very personal style of music covering all kinds of musical directions, all laced with the psychedelic sound. Among these ”not-meant-to-be-heard-by-others”-recordings you will find unbelievable sound’s from tea-balls, spoons and boilers. Except for the 3 studio tracks which was recorded together with a friend, he played everything himself - singing through his guitar-amp and using a pitched guitar for a bass.
In March 1991 he released his follow-up, ”The Unknown” , an odd home cassette- collection with new old haunting songs. The album was distributed the same way as the first one.
After forming Xotic Mind Productions Stefan Kéry let him go into a 8-channal studio and Mikael built up a whole new album all by himself (the only way he knew to work) step-by-step, beginning with the drums and nothing else but except a good memory! The result: ”Claustromania” (meaning: manic obsession for locking oneself in, which derives from the introspective state of mind he always go into while creating!) . The music is filled with pulsating, organic expressions, always emotionally gripping with his soulful voice. The album has a circular concept: The songs about other worlds, man against infinity and the human mind, soul and spirit are linked together with small musical inventions building a story that never ends, ending the way it started, starting the way it ended. The composition also reflects his past life of loneliness and emptiness that now has been replaced by a new existence of love, happiness and possibilities. Mikael says “Claustromania” also is an homage to LSD which helped him make the transformation possible.
His creative years had only begun. In 1994 Mikael wrote a book with novellas in the horror-fantasy tradition crammed with drawings done during the last 15 years and drawn, copied and shaped 4 volumes of comic-fanzines - all still available in Swedish only! He acted in a 16mm film and in his own 3 fantasy video films as well as taking acting- and dancing- lessons! During the years he has been invited to participate on other Xotic Mind projects, like playing sitar on Adam Axelzons well-received ”Eura”album and with sitar and Tablas on the ”Gnostic Mass”-LP by The Entheogens, an improvisation-group he joined together with Adam Axelzon, Måns ”Word of Life”Månson and Stefan Kéry, among others.
In January 1994, people Xotic Mind released S.T. Mikaels new album ”Psychocosmic Songs” which was even better received than any of his previous LPs. The LP was recorded in a modern, high-tech studio. This time the tracks was a mixture of acoustic and electric singer-songs painted with sitar and tabla jams, heavy fuzz guitar sessions and airy, pulsating sounds done in the same step- by-step method like Claustromania! Although it is serious and soulful in tone, ST Mikael himself says he misses the playfulness and vitality which is more prominent in his home recordings.
In the spring of 1994 ST Mikael was living in a rented house with a beautiful garden of fruits, berries and flowers. For the first time he found an immediate presence of self confidence and also a more emotional and limitless way to express himself. In changing direction from somewhat stylish compositions to more improvised-on-the-spot creations he found that the happiness of a live-performance could be caught on a Pot-induced multi tracked solo recording.
During 1994 he made a huge collection of organic home recordings, far away from any inexperienced studio-technician, planning to release some of the material as a new album. With the addition of the extended studio track ”Summer In My Life” , which was recorded by an experienced crew and with additional musicians like Adam Axelzon. Xotic Mind released it in 1996 as a double-album - titled Soul Flower. As always - with a homemade painting on the cover. It can be seen as a rock opera without a plot, an invitation to a small living room full of impressions of many far away places.
During the years that passed since that album, St Mikael seemed to become more secretive and reclusive, but still making home-made music. Some of this music, still stretching out in many different musical directions,has been done freely and spontaneously in an extremely relaxed and happy environment, and has been compiled into the home-made double CD "Mind Evolution", which is not really an official album.In the last few years, Mikael has renewed his lifestyle, has found love in Cheska, an American woman, and has travelled around in Europe, and recently in the USA. He has also taken up studies in English and Playstation 2. Anyhow, he has not stopped doing what he has been doing since a young teenager. He plays in a halfimprovising trio called "Just Beyond" featuring guitar, drums, vocals and bambooflute. The projects of the future includes, besides a brand new album, a Best Of CD, and more comic books.
01. The Serpent (8:36)
02. Dagon (4:27)
03. Heading For The Sky (3:48)
04. Microworlds (4:53)
05. Bom Bom Mahadev (3:59)
06. The Soul Searcher (3:51)
07. In The Forest (3:35)
08. Calling The Djinn (6:56)
09. Dreams Of Eternity (5:59)
10. The Voice (6:26)
11. Seed Of The Sun (5:50)
12. Universe (5:36)
13. Where Can I Go, Why Can't I Se (6:18)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
St. Mikael - 1991 - Claustromania
01 Prisoner
02 Vault
03 Claustromania
04 Spirit 1
05 Venus And Beyond
06 Before Your Eyes
07 Time Caravan
08 Spirit 2
09 Polaris
10 Soul Ritual
11 A New Era
12 Androgyno's Song
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
St. Mikael - 1996 - Soul Flower
part I ~ part II
01 Back Home
02 Godly
03 Belly Drumming Soul
04 Evening Bossa
05 Improvisation
06 Beyound The Haze
07 Soul Flower
08 Worlds Within Worlds
09 The Titans
10 Sanat Michael
11 The Turkish flower
12 Moving Together
13 I Just Wanted To Say
14 She Came With The Spring
15 You Are A Light
16 The Night Stars
17 Summer In My Life
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
S.T. Mikael
Discography:
Visions of a Trespasser (XMMS-1 1989)
Visions of a Trespasser box (XMMS-1 1989)
The Unknown (XMMS-2 1991)
Claustromania (MS-3-XMLP-1 1991)
Visions of a Trespasser 2nd Edition (XMMS-1 1993)
Psychocosmic Songs (XMLP-4 MS-4 1994)
Soul Flower (SUB XMLP-11 1996)Reviews:
S.T. MIKAEL: Visions of a Trespasser
Recorded in his bedroom and it´s so beautiful! Best psych album since the early 70´s! - Stefan Dimle, Mellotronen, Sweden
This basement acid tripper exists briefly in the real world of vinyl! Folk rocky melodic elements flow with waves of heavy fuzzphase leads. A weird detached haunted vocal echoes over the band and the whole thing seems to teeter on the brink of psychedelic oblivion’s. Not revival either. One of the big unearthings in resent memory. Joyride thru an altered state! – Monster time! - Paul Mayor, X-tabay/Parallel World, USA
This is so mind twisting, soul swirling, upper psychedelia that your third eye takes you on a cosmic journey through the dark ages of Serpents, glimpses of Gyrax, the land of Fauns, the mystic Orient, dark forests, angels of doom and the dreams of Eternity...this is some of the places and events the Saint brings you to on his masterpiece. I give you a 100 % money back guarantee if you don`t love this album! - Jorn Andersen, Rock Garden, Norway
Incredible mind blowing psyche! The best album of the last years...only 150 copies made and destined to the highest ranks of collectordom! -Walter Geertzen, Belgium.
ST Mikael...distorts instruments other people don’t even dream of using and displays a cunning understanding of vocal phrasing and harmony as well as playing the hell out of his guitar in a really nice, understated way... -Ptolemaia Terrascope, England
S.T. MIKAEL: The Unknown (XMMS-2 1991)
Real disturbed garagy psych with his tormented vocals, guitars and a total homemade obscure vibe to it...tremendous acid bird cover painting. -Gregg Breth, USA
Fantastic Swedish Psych...one of the best of the last year! - A Trip With Mushrooms, Netherlands
S.T. MIKAEL: Claustromania (MS-3-XMLP-1 1991)
The latest from underground-scene heavy psych one-man crew of angels & psychedelic flashes. This LP makes your brain start thinking in those pebble splash pond mind circular expanding waveforms that people on this vibe await the returning ship their roots sent out to bring back the password to tomorrow. - Paul Major, Parallel World, USA.
Soulful music clothed in flashing psychedelia! His best, the highest ranks! – Länstidningen, Sweden.
Features a bunch of atmospheric psychedelic pieces, with phased vocals, melodic mellotron pieces and guitars on a slow burning fuse! Plenty of wig lifting material here...” -Freakbeat, UK
S.T. MIKAEL: Psychocosmic Songs (XMLP-4 MS-4 1994)
”A new album by the Swedish multi-instrumentalist ST Mikael...with a hand painted cover and a colorful booklet filled with drawings, comics and a picture story about Evolution on Earth. It’s impossible to compare him and his music with any other group or artist. On this record he plays guitars, sitars, turkish saz, drums, congas, tablas, organ, moog and does all the vocals. Some of the best tracks here is in that new, truly original style he has made his own. He will probably be one of the future-legends of the Psychedelic Music...” -Old Man Willow, Norway
”His 4th LP makes new references between the electric and acoustic instruments, which contributes to the new consciousness condensing the moments of insight!” - Rockerilla, Italy
S.T. MIKAEL: Soul Flower (SUB XMLP-11 1996)
"This double LP is the best album he ever released, but it’s his most unconventional as well. The four sides of "Soul Flower" all bear a different character: Side A is more or less the S.T: Mikael we know from previous LPs: the melancholic psychedelic singer/songwriter who records all his twisted songs on his home equipment with a skill and a passion seldom demonstrated elsewhere. Highlights here are the pounding "Godly" and the moody "Beyond the Haze". Side B is the strangest but also one of the best. ST Mikael experimented with Turkish ethnical instruments and musical style elements, resulting in the magnificent title track, the intriguing "The Titans" and the exotic, fuzzy "The Turkish Flower". Side C brings songs from one session and it shows ST Mikael in a very emotional, spiritual mood; he sings and plays his songs with the intensity of a young Tim Buckley. Highlights here are the long, semi-instrumental "Moving...Together" and the elegant "She Came With The Spring". Side D only features two tracks; the dreamy, soft "The Night Stars" and "Summer In My Life", a long jam (filling almost the entire side) recorded in the In Deep-studio with backing by Adam Axelzon and other friends."/" All of this resulted in an utterly stoned, mind lifting instrumentation with layers of exotic percussion, sitars going overdrive, spacy keyboards and burning guitar lines, an absolute best on an album full of high-quality psychedelics. ST Mikael proved once again to be a gifted songwriter and an unconventional performer with a very personal ear for acoustics and an emotional honesty seldom seen these days." – Crohinga Well/Belgium
VISIONS OF THE UNKNOWN
Here at last is a chance for the world to join in, and pick up some bonus tracks along the way. His recording has a homemade charm with wah-wah fuzz guitars, keyboards, sitars and primitive psychedelic effects. You do get the feeling that Mikael actually lives the lifestyle rather than just emulating it. His soaring vocals, surreal lyrics, fragile, folky melodies and penchant for the spiritual and mystical make this altogether a fascinating voyage. – Record Collector magazine (UK)
THE STORY OF S.T. MIKAEL
Mikael Sundtsröm (aka S.T. Mikael) was born in Södertälje, Sweden March the 27th, 1963. His father was a jazz swinging plumber and his mother was an innocent forest girl. He was a lonely, introspective boy who developed a bizarre imagination and an obsession for everything odd, mysterious and supernatural in life. His head was filled with images from Sci/Fi-Fantasy and Horror movies and books, but he also built his own dream worlds with creatures, characters, phantoms and prehistoric images in his drawings, comics and short stories. At 15 he picked up his mothers old guitar and started improvising and recording music. At the age of 19 - in 1982, he tried to find members for a group, but it took him until 1985 when he joined a garage-combo called ”Dickie Dickhead and the Outcast” as a lead guitarist. Although it brought many laughs and good fun into his heart and the fact that they developed from ”the worst and unintentionally most absurd band in town” to a serious and expressive experimental rock band, he left after two struggling years to form his own group. The trio ”The Twilight Souls” , was where he could sing and play his own compositions. He tried to fuse heavy rock and soul music with psychedelic influences which can be heard on the title track of his ”Unknown”-album. During this time he searched for the psychedelic experience and took his first dose of LSD. Because of exhaustion and inability to secure any gigs the band broke up in 1988. After this he gave up the rock´n roll band dream, understanding that there wasn’t anyone in town that had the same psychedelic ambitions as he had. With no expectations for the future he continued working with his ideas and primitive home recordings.
In 1989 he moved to Stockholm where he met Stefan Kéry, a psychedelic connoisseur, and gave him a cassette with some of his many recordings. To Mikaels great surprise he found that the tape was received with great enthusiasm and an album was soon made out of that very tape. The album was titled ”Visions Of A Trespasser” and was released early 1990 in an edition of 150 copies only. The album cover featured a colorful, organic vortex with images of beings of the galaxy in it painted by Mikael. Each and every record had differently hand painted labels. The album was mainly distributed among friends. It showed his very personal style of music covering all kinds of musical directions, all laced with the psychedelic sound. Among these ”not-meant-to-be-heard-by-others”-recordings you will find unbelievable sound’s from tea-balls, spoons and boilers. Except for the 3 studio tracks which was recorded together with a friend, he played everything himself - singing through his guitar-amp and using a pitched guitar for a bass.
In March 1991 he released his follow-up, ”The Unknown” , an odd home cassette- collection with new old haunting songs. The album was distributed the same way as the first one.
After forming Xotic Mind Productions Stefan Kéry let him go into a 8-channal studio and Mikael built up a whole new album all by himself (the only way he knew to work) step-by-step, beginning with the drums and nothing else but except a good memory! The result: ”Claustromania” (meaning: manic obsession for locking oneself in, which derives from the introspective state of mind he always go into while creating!) . The music is filled with pulsating, organic expressions, always emotionally gripping with his soulful voice. The album has a circular concept: The songs about other worlds, man against infinity and the human mind, soul and spirit are linked together with small musical inventions building a story that never ends, ending the way it started, starting the way it ended. The composition also reflects his past life of loneliness and emptiness that now has been replaced by a new existence of love, happiness and possibilities. Mikael says “Claustromania” also is an homage to LSD which helped him make the transformation possible.
His creative years had only begun. In 1994 Mikael wrote a book with novellas in the horror-fantasy tradition crammed with drawings done during the last 15 years and drawn, copied and shaped 4 volumes of comic-fanzines - all still available in Swedish only! He acted in a 16mm film and in his own 3 fantasy video films as well as taking acting- and dancing- lessons! During the years he has been invited to participate on other Xotic Mind projects, like playing sitar on Adam Axelzons well-received ”Eura”album and with sitar and Tablas on the ”Gnostic Mass”-LP by The Entheogens, an improvisation-group he joined together with Adam Axelzon, Måns ”Word of Life”Månson and Stefan Kéry, among others.
In January 1994, people Xotic Mind released S.T. Mikaels new album ”Psychocosmic Songs” which was even better received than any of his previous LPs. The LP was recorded in a modern, high-tech studio. This time the tracks was a mixture of acoustic and electric singer-songs painted with sitar and tabla jams, heavy fuzz guitar sessions and airy, pulsating sounds done in the same step- by-step method like Claustromania! Although it is serious and soulful in tone, ST Mikael himself says he misses the playfulness and vitality which is more prominent in his home recordings.
In the spring of 1994 ST Mikael was living in a rented house with a beautiful garden of fruits, berries and flowers. For the first time he found an immediate presence of self confidence and also a more emotional and limitless way to express himself. In changing direction from somewhat stylish compositions to more improvised-on-the-spot creations he found that the happiness of a live-performance could be caught on a Pot-induced multi tracked solo recording.
During 1994 he made a huge collection of organic home recordings, far away from any inexperienced studio-technician, planning to release some of the material as a new album. With the addition of the extended studio track ”Summer In My Life” , which was recorded by an experienced crew and with additional musicians like Adam Axelzon. Xotic Mind released it in 1996 as a double-album - titled Soul Flower. As always - with a homemade painting on the cover. It can be seen as a rock opera without a plot, an invitation to a small living room full of impressions of many far away places.
During the years that passed since that album, St Mikael seemed to become more secretive and reclusive, but still making home-made music. Some of this music, still stretching out in many different musical directions,has been done freely and spontaneously in an extremely relaxed and happy environment, and has been compiled into the home-made double CD "Mind Evolution", which is not really an official album.In the last few years, Mikael has renewed his lifestyle, has found love in Cheska, an American woman, and has travelled around in Europe, and recently in the USA. He has also taken up studies in English and Playstation 2. Anyhow, he has not stopped doing what he has been doing since a young teenager. He plays in a halfimprovising trio called "Just Beyond" featuring guitar, drums, vocals and bambooflute. The projects of the future includes, besides a brand new album, a Best Of CD, and more comic books.
Labels: Lost In Tyme, S 
Ross - 1974 - Ross
Ross - 1974 - Ross
Musicians:
Alan Ross: guitar, vocals
Bob Jackson: keyboards, vocals
Steve Emery: bass, vocals
Tony Fernandez: drums, percussion
Rueben White: percussion
01 Alright By Me (Alan Ross / Steve Emery / Bob Jackson)
02 You're Looking Down A Road (Alan Ross)
03 Wherever You Go (Alan Ross)
04 Caroline (Alan Ross)
05 Changes (Alan Ross)
06 Help Me Understand (Alan Ross)
07 Blackbird (Alan Ross)
08 I Need Your Love (Alan Ross)
09 Buxton (Alan Ross)
10 Leave It All Behind You (Alan Ross)
Musicians:
Alan Ross: guitar, vocals
Bob Jackson: keyboards, vocals
Steve Emery: bass, vocals
Tony Fernandez: drums, percussion
Rueben White: percussion
01 Alright By Me (Alan Ross / Steve Emery / Bob Jackson)
02 You're Looking Down A Road (Alan Ross)
03 Wherever You Go (Alan Ross)
04 Caroline (Alan Ross)
05 Changes (Alan Ross)
06 Help Me Understand (Alan Ross)
07 Blackbird (Alan Ross)
08 I Need Your Love (Alan Ross)
09 Buxton (Alan Ross)
10 Leave It All Behind You (Alan Ross)
Bob Jackson (born 1949, Coventry, England), is a keyboardist/guitarist whose career has been interwoven with various rock and pop bands since the early 1970s.
Jackson formed his first professional rock group in 1969, called "Indian Summer". The group released the album Indian Summer in 1971, and then disbanded the following year.
John Entwistle of the Who wanted to tour in 1972 with his own band. He therefore formed a new band "Rigor Mortis" in 1972 Bob Jackson was the keyboard player of this group and Alan Ross was the guitarist. Both played on their debut tour.
Once the "Rigor Mortis" tour had ended Bob Jackson and fellow bandmate Alan Ross decided to put together their own group in 1973, calling themselves "Ross" and recorded two albums on RSO Records; "Ross" in 1974 and "The Pit and the Pendulum" 1975. This hard rock group failed to capture an audience and disbanded after the release of its second album.
Latin Funky Heavy-riffing....in Santana style !!!Posted by Sadness [???]
Labels: by Friends and Visitors of this Blog, R
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Deviants - 1969 - No. 3
Deviants - 1969 - No. 3
track list
01 Billy the Monster
02 Broken Biscuits
03 First Line
04 The People's Suite
05 Ramblin Black Transit Blues
06 Death of a Dream Machine
07 Playtime
08 Black George Does It
09 Junior Narco Rangers
10 People of the City
11 Metamorphosis Exploration
~-~-~
Mick Farren - Lead Vocals & Production
Russell Hunter - Percusion, Vocals & Stereo Panning
Paul Rudolph - Guitar, Vocals & Mouth Music
Duncan Sanderson - Bass & Vocals
Tony Wigens - Equipment & Lead Vocals on "First Line"
David Goodman - Equipment & Back-Up Vocals
Tony Ferguson - Organ
Jenny Ashworth - Vocals
Roy Baker & Victor Gamm - Engineering
Keith Morris - Photography
~-~-~
In The Same Time Space that it took to Record this Album, A 16-year-old Girl was Imprisoned by the Rulers For Refusing To Deny that She Loved A Married Man. In The Same Time Space A Vacant Lot In Berkeley, CA, was Transformed Into a People's Park; When the Rulers Re-occupid the Park Subsequently One Died and Hundreds were Injured and Arrested. In The Same Time Space the Rulers Arrested and Imprisoned Hundreds Throughout the World For Inhaling the Smoke of the Common Herb. Also In The Same Time Space, 70,000 People Gathered in A London Park for A Rock & Roll Consert. For the Past 13 Years Rock & Roll Has Been the Secret Language of A Generation, Dispite Lapses Into Gibberish and Side-Tracks Into Academic Obscurity. Rock & Roll Is A Secret Language that the Rulers Cannot Understand. It Is Possible For One Person To Communicate with Another On More Than One Level; You Can Talk To Each Other; You Can Feed Each Other; You Can Screw Each Other. Everyone Is A Level Of Communication And the Rock Musisian Is Able to Work In Terms of All This Levels. The Rock Musician Is Not Understood By the Rulers since they Use Only Multi-Level Communication to Pervert and Titillate. They Fear Him, But since He Is Marketable Commodity (Product?) they Allow Him To Continue.
MICK FARREN, 1969
The third and, for the time being, final Deviants album is also, according to frontman Mick Farren, the record that they should never have made. Writing in his 2001 autobiography, -Give the Anarchist a Cigarette, Farren observes that even the album's title encapsulated the group's state of mind -- "so creatively tapped out we couldn't even come up with a snappy name for the damned record." He is being harsh. While The Deviants, No. 3 can in no way be compared to either of its predecessors, or to Farren's own magnificent solo album Mona, it is still a fascinating glimpse into the state of the British underground in 1969. A few of the songs are indeed as unrehearsed (and certainly undeveloped) as Farren has since complained -- "Death of a Dream Machine" is little more than a jingle, when it ought to be a masterpiece. But it's also a considerably more coherent album than the group's speed-freak monster mash reputation might allow you to expect, and it doesn't even sound that horribly dated. At its most seething, "Billy the Monster," the sinister Zappa-esque chant with which the album opens, captures the archetypal hippie-freak. Then, skip over the somewhat Airplane-y "Broken Biscuits" and "First Line," and you reach "The People's Suite" -- and what could be more brilliant than a suite that lasts just two and a half minutes? "We are the people who pervert your children, lead them astray from the lessons you taught them": Again, Zappa hangs heavy over the proceedings, but if the tabloids of the day ever needed to have their worst fears confirmed, the Deviants were pleased to oblige. Musically, The Deviants, No. 3 hangs in a void somewhere between the early Edgar Broughton Band, with whom they enjoyed the wildest rivalry, and the incipient Pink Fairies, to which all the members bar Farren soon fled. Culturally, however, it is a brutal reminder of that moment when the '60s dream teetered on the brink of the precipice, and the planet went to hell in a handcart around it.
~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anyway this is my favourite Deviants album
David Blue - David Blue - 1966
David BluePersonnel: DAVID BLUE (aka DAVID COHEN) vcls, gtr A
HARVEY BROOKS bs A
MONTE DUNN gtr A
PAUL HARRIS piano, organ, celeste A
HERBERT LOVELLE drms A
BUDDY SALZMANN drms A
ALBUM:(Selective) 1(A) DAVID BLUE (Elektra EKS-74003) 1966
Much influenced by Bob Dylan, who was his friend in Greenwich Village, David Blue (aka David Cohen) was in the wave of singers/songwriters who moved away from folk into topical songs. (Comparable with, say, Richard Farina, Tom Rush or Eric Andersen.) His first album is truly excellent and explores the ways opened by Dylan with Highway 61 and Blonde And Blonde: poetic songs with a strong electric back-up, often with strident guitar solos. Check out Justine, It Tastes Like Candy, If Your Monkay Can't Get It or Arcade Love Machine. Three of these songs can also be heard on Jim and Jean's Changes (also with Harvey Brooks and Paul Harris).
Blue then moved to California and his following albums are in the singer/songwriter style, often using excellent musicians (Cooder, Lindley, Barbata, Dave Mason, Levon Helm or Dylan).
David Blue died in 1983.
(Stephane Rebeschini)
ENJOY!!!
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Man - 1970 - Man
Man - 1970 - ManTrack List :
01. Romain 6:11
(Ace/John/Jones/Leonard/Williams)
02. Country Girl 3:08
(Ace/Leonard)
03. Would The Christians Wait Five Minutes?
04. The Lions Are Having A Draw 12:52
(Ace/Jones)
05. Daughter of the Fireplace 5:11
(Leonard)
06. Alchemist 20:41
(Ace/John/Jones/Leonard/Williams)
Line-up :
- Micky Jones / guitars, vocals
- Deke Leonard / guitars, piano, vocals
- Terry Williams / drums, percussion
- Martin Ace / bass, acoustic guitar
- Clive John / organ, piano, guitar, harpsichord, vocals
The group that has been called the Welsh answer to the Grateful Dead actually earn the nickname on this album. There are definite similarities, including both bands' evident affection for American country and roots music, sprightly rock tunes, and extended and rambling instrumental jams. The example of the last on this album is rather self-indulgent; {"Would the Christians Wait Five Minutes? The Lions Are Having a Draw"} has little going for it besides its title and a nice crescendo near the end. The other extended track, "The Alchemist," is at least interestingly weird, sounding like the band has been listening to lots of old horror movie scores before going into the studio for a long jam session. Other cuts here are essential to Man fans, such as the frantic rockabilly tune "Daughter of the Fireplace," in which the band seems to be channeling Jerry Lee Lewis and "Country Girl," which could have been cut in Nashville instead of Swansea. Man was definitely exploring musical boundaries on this album, and even if every cut isn't successful, it is still a fun listen.
~Richard Foss, All Music Guide
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biography
Man was one of the most promising rock bands to come out of Wales in the early 1970s. Along with Brinsley Schwarz, they helped establish the core of the pub-rock sound, but they played louder and also had a progressive component to their work that separated them from many of their rivals. The group originated as a Four Seasons-cum-Beach Boys vocal outfit, based in Swansea, Wales, called the Bystanders, who began experimenting with a tougher, more progressive sound on stage. They were encouraged to pursue this direction, and Man was formed -- Micky Jones (lead guitar, vocals), Deke Leonard (guitar, vocals), Clive John (guitar, keyboards, vocals), Ray Williams (bass), and Jeff Jones (drums).
Their first release, Revelation, issued in 1969 on Pye, was a concept album that yielded a successful European single, "Erotica," which contained the sound of an orgasm and thus failed to chart in England. Their second album, 2 Ozs. of Plastic With a Hole In the Middle, showed a slightly new direction for the band, with a nearly live-in-the-studio sound and more creative interplay between the guitars, that some critics compared to early Quicksilver Messenger Service and other West Coast bands. Deke Leonard, in particular, whose playing was heavily influenced by Mick Green of the Pirates, became the star of the group by popular acclaim.
Their contract with Pye Records ended in 1969, and the group signed with United Artists-Liberty, with a new rhythm section, consisting of Terry Williams on drums and vocals and Martin Ace playing bass. Their third album, Man, was a critical success, and their follow-up, 1971's Do You Like It Here, Are You Settling In, yielded several popular concert numbers.
In February 1972, the group appeared at the Greasy Truckers' Ball, a benefit concert held in London that was taped for posterity, alongside Brinsley Schwarz and Hawkwind. Their performance was so impressive that United Artists chief Andrew Lauder (who was also responsible for helping the post-Roy Loney Flamin' Groovies get their sound together) encouraged them to do a full live album. The result was Live at the Padget Rooms, Penarth, the band's breakthrough album, even though it was originally released in a limited-edition pressing of 8000 copies. The album became a much-sought collector's item in England, and suddenly the group had the attention of most of the record-buying public.
Unfortunately, it was at after the release of that album that Deke Leonard decided to exit the lineup to pursue a solo career, which he launched with the successful album Iceberg. Man was making a reputation for itself, their next album Be Good to Yourself at Least Once a Day yielding some good songs ("Bananas"). At that point, Pye released a retrosepctive of their first two albums, while the group's current lineup began shifting again -- Deke Leonard was back for Rhinos, Winos and Lunatics, and Slow Motion led to the group's first American tour. They followed this up with their first serious misstep, a hook-up with Quicksilver's John Cippolina as producer for what proved a disappointing album, Maximum Darkness. The Welsh Connection, released by MCA in 1976, marked the end of the original group's history, although they did get one more album out, entitled All's Well That Ends Well.
During the 1980s, Micky Jones reunited the group and those interested members (including Deke Leonard) and found a steady living on the pub-rock circuit. Meanwhile, Terry Williams went on to join Rockpile and Dire Straits. Interest in Man was strong enough to justify the release of a compilation, Perfect Timing -- The UA Years, in 1991. In the mid-1990s, Beat Goes On began reissuing Man's individual albums and Deke Leonard's solo work on compact disc.
~Bruce Eder, All Music Guide
Get It Here :
RapidShare or SendSpace
The Snake Corps - 1990 - More Than The Ocean
More Than The Ocean
COMPILATION
1990Midnight MusicCHIME 1.12 CD
Vocals: Marc Lewis
Guitar: Tristan Garel-Funk
Keyboards: David Wood, Ian Gibson
Bass: Liam McGuinness, Jim Blanchard
Drums: Jon Greville
Tracks :
Colder than the Kiss
Calling YouSomething Wrong
More than the Ocean
Clint
Look East for Eden
Strangers
Crimson and Clover
I'm Not Afraid
In Flux
Colder than the Kiss
Calling You
The story...
The Snake Corps came together in 1984 following the break-up of Sad Lovers & Giants (SL&G) the previous year.Aiming for a harder-edged sound, core members Tristan Garel-Funk and Nigel Pollard advertised in the Melody Maker for the necessary musicians. After many auditions they settled on Marc Lewis and Liam McGuinness on vocals and bass respectively. This original incarnation set about establishing its own sound - recording demos of songs later to appear on the band’s albums as well as a video of Look East for Eden at Kingston Poly where Marc was a student.
After some initial success building a local following and reconnecting with many of the fans of SL&G, Nigel left the band and was replaced by Jon Greville from the three-piece Rudimentary Peni. This line up went into record the first album: Flesh on Flesh, released on Midnight Music.Tours in europe helped to build and consolidate the band's following, but at home the story was one of press and radio indifference.
Feeling a need to broaden the scope of the Snake Corps sound the band decided to add keyboards. This resulted in the return of school friend and SL&G founder member David Wood. With the addition of Jim Blanchard from label-mates The S-Haters replacing Liam on bass guitar, this line-up recorded the band's second album Smother Earth.More gigs followed but UK recognition continued to elude the Snake Corps despite growing interest from around the world; the bulk of the band's record sales going overseas.
David Wood eventually quit the band and Ian Gibson (recently having left the Mk2 version of SL&G) replaced him on keyboards.
Free of their contract with Midnight Music but with their commitment to release the next album as a one-off, this line-up went in (at their own expense) to record The 3rd Cup at Midnight-owned Berry Street Studios. With Brad Grisdale at the controls, it seemed for the first time there was a creative meeting of minds between the band and their engineer. The result was what many consider to be the Snake Corps finest album.
But behind the scenes all was not well. Continuing UK indifference to their music had left spirits at an all time low and it was feared that the album would be released into a vacuum. Then, after years of financial hardship Midnight Music went into receivership and was bought up lock stock and barrel by Cherry Red Records. The band suddenly found that all their music: back catalogue, stock and copyright was now owned by someone else. This proved too much and the Snake Corps split. It seemed that the best-of compilation Spice subsequently released by Cherry Red would probably be the band's swan-song.
Thankfullly, the finished master tapes of The 3rd Cup were already in the band's possession when Midnight went under but it was to be couple of years before the album was finally released on CD by Ophidian an off-shoot of the Oxford label Rotator.
info obtained from : snakecorps.com
innocent76's comment:
Great band ! Worthy bairn of Sad Lovers & Giants . "Clint" is one of my personal highlights of this era. Reminds me a little bit of Vietnam Veterans (especially the keyboards) ,but this is a good thing ,right ?
highly recommended ! (all of their albums actually)
Labels: innocent76, S
Monday, October 09, 2006
Camel - 1973 - Camel
Camel - 1973 - Camel
Track listing :
01. Slow Yourself Down (4:45)
02. Mystic Queen (5:53)
03. Six Ate (5:57)
04. Separation (4:54)
05. Never Let Go (6:20)
06. Curiosity (5:52)
07. Arubaluda (6:26)
08. Never Let Go (single version) (3:36)
09. Homage To The God Of Light (Live At The Marquee Club 29-10-1974) (19:01)
Total Time: 40:07
Line-up :
- Andy Ward / drums, percussion
- Doug Ferguson / bass, vocal (2 & 6)
- Peter Bardens / keyboards, vocal (5)
- Andy Latimer / guitar, vocal (1 & 4)
The roots of Camel can be already found in 1969 when guitarist/flute player/vocalist Andrew Latimer (born on May 17, 1947), bassist Doug Ferguson and only 14-year-old drummer Andy Ward met in the band The Brew as a trio. In 1970, the trio teamed up with singing keyboardist and changed the name according to him to Phillip Goodhand – Tait. But at the end of the same year, Phillip quit the band. In May of 1971, Peter Bardens, a keyboard player (ex Them), came to strengthen the orphaned trio. The new quartet formed in Surrey chose the name Camel. December 4, 1971 was the day of the band first performance as a support band of more famous Wishbone Ash.
In August of 1972, Camel signed the contract with MCA Records and by the end of 1973, the band released the debut album "Camel". [more]
Their self-titled debut was a quite rough and unpolished product, but it still featured the two first classic Camel-tracks with the beautiful "Mystic Queen" and the catchy "Never Let Go". Both tracks demonstrated the group's ability to write very strong vocal-melodies combined with lengthy and tasty instrumental-passages. "Never Let Go" also featured one of the few examples recorded of a mellotron-solo. "Separation" and the opener "Slow Yourself Down" are both harder rock tracks where the latter one is the most complex and progressive, featuring some excellent solos from Latimer and Bardens. There are also two pure instrumental-numbers here with the jazzy "Six Ate" and the energetic "Arubaluba". The energy on the latter one may sounds a bit forced, but it still demonstrated well what a tight unit Camel were. Overall, a promising, exciting and interesting debut.
Paul Kantner & Grace Slick - Sunfighter - 1971
Sunfighter Produced by Paul Kantner, Grace Slick Released on December 1971
Ripped by @rcadium from cd @320kbps
TRACK LISTING :
SILVER SPOON (Grace Slick) 5:40
DIANA - PART 1 (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 0:52
SUNFIGHTER (Paul Kantner) 3:50
TITANIC (Phil Sawyer) 2:25
LOOK AT THE WOOD (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 2:08
WHEN I WAS A BOY I WATCHED THE WOLVES
(Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 4:59
MILLION (Paul Kantner) 4:02
CHINA (Grace Slick) 3:17
EARTH MOTHER (Jack Traylor) 3:16
DIANA - PART 2 (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 1:01
UNIVERSAL COPERNICAN MUMBLES (Pat Gleeson/John Vierra/Paul Kantner) 2:03
HOLDING TOGETHER (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 7:40
CREDITS :
PAUL KANTNER -- GRACE SLICK -- heavy water light libretto booklet Craig Chaquico -- guitar (9) Maurice The Miracle Man -- Tru Engine Hearing Phil Sawyer -- Pat Ieraci -- engineer Acy Lehman -- cover, booklet assistance Mary Ann Mayer, Joan Chase -- lights inside Gary Blackman -- booklet assistance.
This is something of a family album, co-credited to Paul Kantner and his wife, Grace Slick, and featuring on its cover a photograph of their infant daughter, China. It also features the family of San Francisco Bay Area musicians, including David Crosby, Graham Nash, Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead, and other current members of Jefferson Airplane and future members of Jefferson Starship. Its style of loosely arranged acid rock music and radical left political lyrics is similar to such recent albums as the Kantner/Starship Blows Against the Empire (December 1970) and the Airplane's Bark (August 1971), which were made by most of the same players. But Kantner and Slick's usual stridency is not counterbalanced by substance as much as on earlier efforts, perhaps because they were making too many albums too quickly to keep up the quality of their songwriting. Still, anyone who enjoys the sweet-and-sour unison singing of X's John Doe and Exene Cervenka should listen to Sunfighter to see where they got it from. William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
Ripped by @rcadium from cd @320kbps
TRACK LISTING :
SILVER SPOON (Grace Slick) 5:40
DIANA - PART 1 (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 0:52
SUNFIGHTER (Paul Kantner) 3:50
TITANIC (Phil Sawyer) 2:25
LOOK AT THE WOOD (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 2:08
WHEN I WAS A BOY I WATCHED THE WOLVES
(Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 4:59
MILLION (Paul Kantner) 4:02
CHINA (Grace Slick) 3:17
EARTH MOTHER (Jack Traylor) 3:16
DIANA - PART 2 (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 1:01
UNIVERSAL COPERNICAN MUMBLES (Pat Gleeson/John Vierra/Paul Kantner) 2:03
HOLDING TOGETHER (Grace Slick/Paul Kantner) 7:40
CREDITS :
PAUL KANTNER -- GRACE SLICK -- heavy water light libretto booklet Craig Chaquico -- guitar (9) Maurice The Miracle Man -- Tru Engine Hearing Phil Sawyer -- Pat Ieraci -- engineer Acy Lehman -- cover, booklet assistance Mary Ann Mayer, Joan Chase -- lights inside Gary Blackman -- booklet assistance.
This is something of a family album, co-credited to Paul Kantner and his wife, Grace Slick, and featuring on its cover a photograph of their infant daughter, China. It also features the family of San Francisco Bay Area musicians, including David Crosby, Graham Nash, Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead, and other current members of Jefferson Airplane and future members of Jefferson Starship. Its style of loosely arranged acid rock music and radical left political lyrics is similar to such recent albums as the Kantner/Starship Blows Against the Empire (December 1970) and the Airplane's Bark (August 1971), which were made by most of the same players. But Kantner and Slick's usual stridency is not counterbalanced by substance as much as on earlier efforts, perhaps because they were making too many albums too quickly to keep up the quality of their songwriting. Still, anyone who enjoys the sweet-and-sour unison singing of X's John Doe and Exene Cervenka should listen to Sunfighter to see where they got it from. William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
