=  JANUARY 2009  =

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Written by:

Simon Lewis

Phil McMullen

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PSYCHATRONE RHONEDAKK – AMERICAN PRIMITIVE ELECTRONICS 

(CD from www.myspace.com/psychatrone)

Released to celebrate a ten year anniversary, this CD collects together early cassette/CD-R releases,  previously unreleased  and lost music, as well as a couple of new tracks, the whole package a celebration of the haunting electronic sounds that are almost unique to the artist. Citing as influences, Dr Who soundtracks, Eno, Japanese Psych, Kraftwerk and Terry Riley, every track is a mixture of these without really sounding like any of them, in fact Delia Derbyshire is the name that comes to mind most frequently.

    Extremely trippy and psychedelic, opening track “Cult of the Violet Ray” draws the listener in immediately, the slightly sinister vocals adding a disquieting atmosphere to the lysergic ritual, whilst the use of sequencers/loops gives “Torsades du Point” a futuristic, sci-fi feel. Following the gentle lilt of “Wind Chimes”, we are invited to “just let things happen” , as “Inner Piece 1&2” re-organises our molecules, a warm drift across a forgotten planet that is a glorious ride.

    After a selection of shorter pieces, which have the feel of The Clangers jamming with Tangerine Dream, we reach the heart of the album in the shape of “SPACE”, a nineteen minute tour-de-force split into sections and sounding like an early seventies electronic classic, the sort of thing that can easily transport you as far as your imagination allows. As it progresses the track is playful, surreal, disturbing, soothing and very often beautiful, different segments becoming more dominant each time you hear the piece.

   Adding treated guitar to the mix “Maggot Braindamage” is a brief flurry of spacey sound, after which “Tangerine Nightmare” soars into space, the guitar of Brian Lanagan doing some serious neural damage as it dances with the electronics over 14 heavenly minutes. To round off the album “I’m Set Free” (recorded in 2007), is a gentle song originally written by Lou Reed, the mellow instrumentation floating the listener back to reality.

   Although the source of this album is electronic, the execution is wholly human, creating an accessible and emotional texture that keeps you engaged and smiling,  the fact that the composer is a member of the Terrascope forum is even more reason to check out this fine collection. (Simon Lewis)

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THE MOUNTAIN MOVERS - LET'S OPEN UP THE CHEST

(LP/CD on Safety Meeting Records)

I have a flyer here somewhere for a gig featuring these guys and Terrascope house-favourites The Left Outsides, which must have been a night to remember. The sharp-eyed and pointy eared amongst you will also recognise the name The Mountain Movers from their debut album, ‘We’ve Walked in Hell and There is Life after Death’, released last year on the Fortuna Pop label and Rumbled about by Simon right here last Summer. For their follow-up they’ve signed to Safety Meeting Records of New Haven, CT USA, also home of the mighty Crooked Hook (who warmed our cockles back in August last year) – in fact, the two bands share a bass player in gig promoter and all-round good guy Rick Omonte. Where Crooked Hook step heavily on the fuzz pedal and play riff-laden hard progressive rock, the Mountain Movers veer more towards Dan Greene’s beautifully crafted psychedelic pop songs about death, love, hope and dread with chiming guitars and swirling organ fills, the occasional flute and some well arranged brass offering a little diversity here and there. Production values are ramped up as well:  recorded on 16 track 2 inch tape mixed down to a ¼” two track, the warmth of the sound trickles out of the limited edition vinyl version of this album like molten chocolate. ‘Last Chance for Summer’ has rapidly become a particular favourite around here, and ‘You Know Who I Speak Of’ which closes Side 1 has one of those melodies that the early Rolling Stones were so brilliant at pinning down; so catchy, you swear you must’ve heard it somewhere before. Top marks too for the sleeve-art which Dan Greene also penned (quite literally) (Phil)

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Paul Kossoff with Black Cat Bones – Paul’s Blues

(CD from Sunbeam)

Paul Kossoff is the only musician I know of who actually died twice: while in a London rehab clinic in 1975, his heart stopped and he had to be revived; a year later doctors were not as successful and he died on a flight from Los Angeles to New York at the age of 25. A decade earlier, though, everything was looking bright and rosy for the young guitarist, whose early work with the British blues band, Black Cat Bones (formed by the Brooks brothers, Derek and Stuart) is the subject of this retrospective. Borrowing a page from the Rhino Handmade playbook, the always reliable British reissue label, Sunbeam presents 15 tracks (across two CDs, although vinyl junkies will want the limited edition triple LP version) of warts-and-all rehearsal recordings of then-15-year old Kossoff. Sourced from six hours of quarter-inch, reel-to-reel 4-track mono tapes that drummer Frank Perry’s dad recorded at the band’s rehearsal room in a basement off Tottenham Court Road between 1967 and 1968, the sound is slightly dodgy as expected (although Kossoff’s guitar is clearly to the fore, Paul Tiller’s vocals are pretty much buried in the “mix”), but Sunbeam makes no bones (sorry!) about the quality of the recordings, clearly identifying them as “raw and lo-fi, but of considerable historical importance.” And therein lies the rub. Listeners can judge for themselves whether “historical importance” justifies unleashing 40-year old “cheap recycled tapes” (according to Perry) onto the public. Personally, I commend Sunbeam’s decision, although the release will probably be best (only?) appreciated by musicologists, academics, and Kossoff completists. I believe part of the enjoyment that music imparts to its listeners stems from the historical context within which it was created. At the risk of being branded a red-bearded Marxist, I get an extra kick out of knowing how musicians developed into the people who gathered together in a recording studio at a specific place and time to create the piece of music that I am spending the next hour or so of my life listening to. If I were teaching a music course at University, I would certainly include recordings such as this (and many of the Rhino Handmade box sets alluded to earlier) in my discographical curriculum. Budding guitarists should also pick this up to learn why a 15-year old would spend so much time doing finger exercises…to develop what Fleetwood Mac guitarist, Peter Green described as “a pure and untainted feeling for the guitar.”

As for the recordings themselves, they consist mainly of numerous versions of blues standards by the likes of Freddie and B.B. King, Elmore James, Champion Jack Dupree, and Willie Dixon. The lone original is the Kossoff-penned track that gives the set its title. Jaws will drop and tongues will wag over the teenaged phenomenon ripping off blistering solos on the hard-driving ‘Rock Me Baby (Version 1),’ clearly in command of his instrument at such a tender age. With dem Bones flailing away in the background, Kossoff storms up and down his guitar neck with reckless abandon for ten unadulterated minutes. The band’s reckless enthusiasm is infectious and, while their trawl through these standards does occasionally remind me of my own aborted attempts at turning confounded racket into something approaching “music” in my mate’s basement back in the 70’s, there is no denying the amazing dexterity, timing, and feel for the music that Kossoff emits.

Listeners will also be floored by his originality – no two solos are the same, so that the three versions of Dupree’s ‘Bad Blood’ ranging from 10 to 14 minutes almost sound like three different songs – and none of them are boring. [The band’s first recording session – April 1968 – actually found them backing Dupree on his 1969 Blue Horizon release, When You Feel The Feeling you Was Feeling.] No, my friends, this is NOT a collection of self-indulgent wank-offs, but expertly played, soulful blues – from the honey-dripping teardrops of ‘The Sky is Cryin’’ and ‘Help Me’ (two versions totaling almost half an hour!) to the three blistering runs through ‘Rock Me Baby.’ Budding axemen should study the subtle changes that Kossoff brings to each solo, reinventing himself each time. He never rushes through a measure, allowing his solos to develop within the context of the structured chaos his bandmates have established for him. On more than one occasion I had to pinch myself and remember this is a fifteen year old kid delivering notes that rival his more famous contemporaries, Clapton, Hendrix, and Green – and these are just the rehearsals. Imagine what he sounded like on stage, when the Bones opened for the likes of Ten Years After, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Jethro Tull and Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac at the Marquee in late 1967.

Sunbeam also have one final treat up their sleeves in the short run through of Willie Dixon’s ‘I’m Ready,’ featuring the first pairing of Kossoff and his future partner in Free, Paul Rodgers! Finally, the title track ends the set on a laidback note, as Kossoff seems to be improvising a smooth country lick while you can hear his mates packing up their gear around him. Following the above referenced Dupree sessions, Kossoff and Bones’ drummer Simon Kirke formed Free with Rodgers, but Kossoff’s heroin addiction led to the band’s premature demise, and Rodgers and Kirke rebounded in the mega-supergroup Bad Company. Kossoff pulled himself together  long enough to form Back Street Crawler and release two well-received albums for Atlantic, but his health continued to deteriorate until his fatal heroin-induced heart attack on March 19, 1976.

[Phil adds: few of us who were unlucky enough to have witnessed it “live” will be able to erase the image of Paul Kossoff being interviewed by Bob Harris on the BBC’s Old Grey Whistle Test literally a couple of days before his death: our once proud hero reduced to a quivering, sleeping and completely incoherent wreck. I remember tuning in especially to watch it and being both shocked, saddened and a little scared – no bad thing in retrospect, I suppose. It’s perhaps also worth mentioning that Black Cat Bones went on to release an LP on Decca in 1969, after Paul Kossoff and replacement drummer Simon Kirke had left - young Frank Perry didn't stay long by all accounts, though God bless his dad for recording them while it lasted -  which is well worth seeking out. ‘Barbed Wire Sandwich’ features Savoy Brown and Foghat’s future vocalist Rod Price and  Phil Lenoir on drums in addition to the aforementioned Brooks brothers, Derek and Stuart. It remains one of my own personal favourite progressive blues-rock albums of the era - along with Bakerloo, which surely must be due for a reissue soon…]

    This is a fitting tribute, well worth the effort to overlook the sound deficiencies in order to hear the formative licks of one of Britain’s finest blues guitarists. (Jeff Penczak)

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HEAVY WATER EXPERIMENTS – S/T

FUZZ BELOVED – S/T

(CDs from www.intrepidsounds.com)

    Way back in time, I bought a six track EP by a band called Fuzz Beloved, mainly because of the freaky figure on the cover and the sticker that said “Heavy Psychedelic”, something I was definitely into at the time. Having played the disc it became a perennial favourite, gaining regular airtime on the stereo whilst I searched in vain for more information about the band.

    Move on to 2008 and whilst reading the press release for Heavy Water Experiments, I realise that main man David Melbye, was the driving force behind Fuzz beloved, and that I had already reviewed HWE when they were known as Imogene. Not only that but there was also a full length Fuzz Beloved album, recorded when they were active, but only released in the last year, bringing things full circle and proving the Gods of Fuzz move in mysterious ways!

     As to be expected with both bands having the same songwriter, there is a great similarity between these two discs, both containing great slabs of heavy psych, treading the ground between stoner rock and sixties noise merchants such as Blue Cheer.

    Operating as a duo, HWE manage to create one hell of a racket whilst demonstrating deft touches of lightness and melody on tracks such as “Clairvoyance” and “Solitude”.  Elsewhere “Neverlove” has a wonderful riff and a deep, psychedelic heart, whilst final track, “Book Coloured Blue” is a long slow dive into the vortex, the excellent sound augmented (as on the rest of the album) by the use of an eight-stringed bass, giving the album a warm rich texture. Beautifully layered, this is an album of strong songs that becomes richer each time you hear it.

    Functioning as a classic power trio,  Fuzz Beloved were fuelled by the outstanding guitar of Kevin, which added to the fine material, created a body of work that has class written all over it. Once again heavy psych is the order of the day, grungy/stoner riffs and softer passages, merging together as the distant voice of David Melbye knits it together, giving the songs a gentler tone than the guitar would suggest.

   Both these albums are varied and enticing, the songs choosing the road less travelled, keeping thing interesting and meaning that repeated plays are almost inevitable. (Simon Lewis)

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SERPENTINA  SATELITE – NOTHING TO SAY

VARIOUS – PSYCHEDELIC ADVENTURES ON PLANET EARTH  VOL 3

(CDs from www.tripintime.de)

     Formed in Lima, Peru in 2003, this is the second album from these psychedelic space rockers, whose influences certainly include early Hawkwind, Pink Floyd, Krautrock and Gong/Here and Now, if the music on this album is anything to go by.

   Opening with “Nueva Ola”, the trippy intro is slowly engulfed by a rising tide of drums, the stretched out sounds finally achieving flight as a pounding riff, wrestles the percussion for dominance. On the title track, the band just goes for the jugular, a Stooges-style guitar ripping the speakers apart, whilst the band do their best to destroy the senses, the whole thing eventually breaking down in a cloud of feedback. After the acid-guitar drenched “The Last Drop”, there is a brief burst of cosmic energy called “Madripoor”, before we arrive at the altar for 23 minutes of space rock worship in the guise of “Kommune 1”. Painting the universe with music, the band invoke their inner flames and rise for the stars, huge washes of synths lighting the way for delirious guitars to dance across galaxies, whilst a solid rhythm section organises the planets to create the music of the spheres. Around the ten minute mark, the band collapse onto giant dust clouds, partaking of refreshments as the universe drifts by in a twist of perfumed smoke. Before long however, the suitably energised band engage engines and drive for the end of time, creating enough space rock energy to start a big bang all of their own.

    More than merely retro, these is space rock in timeless form, exciting, energising and fun, so strap in and enjoy the ride.

   Operating out of Germany, Trip In times, has collected an international roster of freaks, spaceheads, and holy fools, many of whom can be sampled on the excellent “Psychedelic Adventures on Planet Earth”, part three of an ongoing collection.

   Getting us off to a grand start, Electric Mystical Soul Vibration, sound like The Dukes of Stratosphear as they twist your mind with the lysergic “Bohemian Dropout”, before The People mangle it further with the guitar soaked psych of “Real Love”. More heavy guitar shenanigans can be found on “Now I see” as Swiss combo Ginger, turn in a mean performance, the atmosphere softened by the arrival of Jenda Wright, who sounds like Frumpy/Atlantis as she blasts through some bluesy seventies rock.

    Throughout this compilation the feel is far more Ladbroke Grove than Haight Ashbury, a bunch of phreaks doing their own thing rather than a sunny search for enlightenment? Even the lighter tracks such as the psych-pop excellence of “You’re Gone – Jarvis Jay is far more Rubbles than Pebbles, despite the band hailing from Australia.

   Featuring 18 bands over seventy minutes, not a moment is wasted on this fine disc, with the music ranging from heavy, to rocky to the trippily psychedelic, to the beautiful, the garagey and the strange, each track a pleasure to listen to, with the spacey Mother and Sun, the delightful Zaphire Oktaloque, and the quintessentially freaky Aqua Nebula Oscillator being particular favourites. (Simon Lewis)

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STATIC CLING – SO THIS IS WHAT’S BECOME OF THE

REVOLUTION

(CD on www.jargonrecords.com)

THE ASTEROID No4 – THESE FLOWERS OF OURS

(CD www.committeetokeepmusicevil.com)

     As Jack Frost tightens his grip on the world outside, a reminder of balmy summer’s days is provided by this brace of paisley sprinkled discs, each one guaranteed to brighten your day.

    Opening with a sprightly dose of melodic garage surf, Static Cling get the mix of noise and melody spot-on as they rip through “Bed of Nails”, shaking the dust from your eyes. Boasting a sweet vocal performance, “His Sceptre & His Crown” is a gentle ripple of sadness with beautiful guitar work, paving the way for a funky take on “If 6 Was 9”, managing to retain the stoned groove of the original whilst being sufficiently different to make you dance around the kitchen, or wherever. Once again, some fine fretwork lifts the song, played in the style of the band rather than attempting the impossible task of copying Hendrix. This same funky garage groove is extended to “Noah’s Dove”, the Paisley Meter reaching ten, as the whole band get their mojo working for an album highlight.

    From here on in, the band just let the good times roll, the extended guitar work of “The Mirror In My Soul” crisp and decisive, whilst a psych-pop version of “Ring Of Fire” shows the band to have a sense of fun, this is music to be enjoyed and experienced, not taken too seriously. Mind you, this is not to say the music is throwaway, as one listen to the long psych epic, “Torpedo of Miracles” will tell you, being an imaginative and well constructed song with sympathetic playing all round, the elongated middle section working particularly well. Finally the sunny 60’s pop smile of “Waiting” is the perfect way to end, a dose of sweetness to make you smile.

     On this, their fifth album, The Asteroid No4 have honed their sound ,creating a self-assured and richly textured album that transcends its influences, although echoes of The Rain Parade, Jefferson Airplane, and Spacemen 3, can still be heard. Opening with the dreamy psych of “My Love”, the band pull no punches, the excellent production allowing the song to shine, the gentle ending giving way to the paisley jangle of “Let It Go”, sounding like it could have come from an early album by The House of Love, something of a compliment in my book.

    On “I Look Around”, the psychedelic sixties are invoked beautifully, with phased guitar and a sense of wonder propelling the song into sugarcube heaven, whilst a rippling organ dissolves what is left of your mind. Placed in the middle of the album, “War” is a slow, majestic song, awash with atmosphere, the soft dynamics slowly washing you out to sea, the sense of desolation softened by the perfumed guitar.

    Finally, after 10 wonderful slices of psychedelic pop noise, “Empty Like A Little Child” leads you home, relaxed and refreshed, the music on this album having the bright twinkle of stars on a clear night, the magic of ancient days. (Simon Lewis)

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FANTASYY FACTORYY – PAINTINGS FROM INNER SPACE

FANTASYY FACTORYY – THIS IS THE FUTURE OF TOMORROW

 (LPs on Ohrwaschl Records, or www.fantasyy-factoryy.com  )

Not too sure what kind of distribution Orwaschl Records have outside their native München (let alone across Germany as a whole) since these two albums from our old friends Fantasyy Factoryy, last featured in Ptolemaic Terrascope issue 32 back in 2002, have both been around for a while now – and yet it was left to the artist, the multi-instrumentalist and multi-talented Alan Tepper, to send us copies himself. I'll therefore include the band website rather than the label's, as they should have a better idea where to get hold of copies.

  Let’s deal with the ‘Paintings from Inner Space’ first, as it dates back to 2004/5 now. A double LP based around the work of fantasy artist Helmut Wenske – best known perhaps for his album covers for Nektar’s ‘A Tab In The Ocean’ and ‘Remember The Future’ and Steel Mill’s ‘Green Eyed God’, the songs are composed around themes which relate directly to the pictures themselves – the double gatefold sleeve (it’s a single LP, but with a poster of the cover) lends itself perfectly to immersing yourself in the images and the music simultaneously. Musically, Alan Tepper (who is accompanied here by a bassist, drummer and the occasional guest flautist and cellist) wisely rarely strays from the tried and tested Fantasyy Factoryy formulaa – an opening, semi-spoken, vocal sequence followed by a pulsating rhythm which at some stage inevitably bursts into an extended fuzz-wah guitar solo, best heard perhaps on ‘Demon Lover (The Abyss of Your Mind)’.  On ‘News from the Sun’ an extended Hammond organ solo makes you wait for the moment when the guitar solo kicks in, with some teasing additional vocals adding to the tension.

  ‘This is the Future of Tomorrow’, Fantasyy Factoryy’s seventh album to date, was released just last year, although some of the recordings on their date back further. Published on 180g vinyl, the glossy cover -  thick card, but not a gatefold this time - features two more paintings by surrealist Helmut Wenske, the front one in particular being very Nektaresque in style.  Rather than follow one conceptual album with another, Alan Tepper has wisely I believe chosen to assemble what amounts to a compilation, two of the songs having come out on CD previously, and two more coming out as bonus tracks on a CD reissue of ‘Tales to Tell’, which I confess I can’t wait to hear. Three new songs were also recorded especially for this release, and it’s a tribute to Alan that the album hangs together so well as a “work”. As he himself says though, “Ignoring trends and remaining faithful to oneself is the most important aspect of being a musician who wants to find fulfilment in what he’s doing”.

  ‘Indra’ is possibly my favourite cut on here, with a lengthy slide-guitar break reminiscent of the Man band in their pomp. ‘Childhood Manor’, an aching love song for a girl named Julie, is a folk-based melody, with some pretty cello/acoustic guitar interplay, whilst arguably the standout number is fittingly the closing song, ‘A Chinese Fairytale’, on which the band really stretch out those guitar breaks.

  It’s a well-worn formula beloved of progressive bands everywhere, but it’s none the worse for all that and rarely heard these days: fans of lost classics such as Little Free Rock (Lancashire band from 1969), John Du Cann’s post-Attack progressive trio Andromeda, and particularly early German space-rock such as Spermüll on Brain Records (whose epic ‘Land of the Rocking Sun’ from 1973 could almost be a Fantasyy Factoryy out-take) ought to be lapping this stuff up instead of trading on past glories and bemoaning the state of modern music. (Phil McMullen)

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THE KITCHEN CYNICS – CORNKISTERS

THE KITCHEN CYNICS  -    A’ THE BONNY BUMPS AND BRUISES

THE KITCHEN CYNICS    THE ABERDEEN TYPHOID OUTBREAK (CDs from www.myspace.com/kitchencynics )

    After the epic achievement of the “Tune-a-day” box set of 2007, and given that no reviews appeared from the Terrascope, you might be forgiven for thinking that Alan Davidson took some time off in 2008 and no albums were released. The truth however is that three albums came out in 2008, it has just taken this long for them to arrive at the top of the reviews pile.

     Opening with an echoed, eerie, drone, it is apparent that” Cornkisters” I something of a departure for The Kitchen Cynics, sure the folksong feel and intimate touches are still present, but there is a far more psychedelic, otherworldly presence to the songs, the dream like quality of the arrangements, surreal in its construction. Take “I Am An Orra Loon” for example, layers of electronics and whispered notes are the perfect foil for Alan’s ever maturing vocal delivery, the tune pulling the listener into the album. A more traditional feel is invoked on “Lovin’ in the Winter Time”, but even here the background noises are layered with precision, the recording of this and the rest of the album clear and stately.

     After the atmospheric, fairy tale of “Lizzie and the Fairy Folk”, the piano improvisation of “The Banes of the Auld Horse” features Susan Matthews playing the right-hand part, the whole having a strangely old-fashioned ambience. Within “The Carousel Hare” a simple tale of riding a carousel, there is a deeper more pagan meaning, the stuttering clarinet (?) adding some delightful fills, the song giving way to a splendid version of “Blackwaterside”, this version having a droned, almost eastern sound. This drone feel is utilised fully on the experimental, hallucinogenic journey that is “The Elphin Stane”, whilst “Sphagnum Hummocks”, stretches echoed vocal sounds into a six minute piece that is unlike any other Kitchen Cynics song, yet fits like a glove into his output.

    One of the first things I heard from Alan was “Burning Toast” which appeared on a Ptolemaic Terrascope CD, issue 25 , and it was a great pleasure to hear an updated version here, clearer, even more beautiful and with a whole extra minute. As we head for the finish, a strange moment is encountered in the shape of “Wee Fly Boys and Spider Girls”, the song of the siren updated for your kitchen and weirdly brilliant, whilst, the dissonant drunkenness of “The Best That I Could Be”, veers off down yet another musical alley. Soothing us home, “Sunday Lullaby” is a delightful piano duet with vocals gently balanced on top, ending an album that is very possibly the finest Kitchen Cynics album to date.

     Following similar musical paths, but with some very peculiar lyrical excursions, “A’ The Bonny Bumps and Bruises”, can be seen as a companion to “Cornkisters”, although it is a fine album in its own right, the lyrics seemingly dealing with death as much as anything else, with opening track “Maggie the Black Cat”, being a perfect  example. Elsewhere, “scapegoat” is a sad and troubled tale, “Sally in the Shadows” tells of better times, whilst “Here Comes the Bumps” (two versions) is a cautionary song, suggesting that death can arrive in an instance. Possibly the finest song on the album is “Our Trip to Blunderland”, a macabre story of murder, and perversion, which will make you smile during its three minute duration.

    Purely instrumental, “The Aberdeen Typhoid Outbreak of 1964” is an atmospheric and haunting collection, based on one of the largest food-borne outbreaks of typhoid recorded in the UK In fact, only a royal visit finally cleansed Aberdeen of its beleaguered reputation.

      Opening with the quiet electronic pulse of “Establishment 25”, the album unfolds slowly, from piano duets to discordant drones to soft beauty, until it reaches its heartbeat with the 13 minute “The Beleaguered City”, a long, time-stretching rolling fog of sound, which coils around you, cold and desolate. Breaking the mood, the happy bassline of “17^th June/The All-Clear is Declared”, eases the tension, brilliantly mimicking history, you can almost feel the relief all around. To finish, the gentle folk feel of “Farewell to William Low”, has a majestic, defiant heart, making you realise how important Aberdeen is to the song writing of Alan Davidson, offering him inspiration, his art becoming better and better every year. Yet more essential music from a truly underrated talent. (Simon Lewis)

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MOOCH – 1966

(CD from www.ambientlive.com)

     Following from last year's excellent “1967 1/2” , this album sees Mooch remain in song writing mode, getting all relaxed and West-Coast, with another fine collection of mellow psychedelia.

    After the drifting ambience of “Love”, which opens the album with gentle washes of sound, a flurry of organ heralds the arrival of   “San Francisco”, a wonderful song with instantly lovable melodies and an infectious feel that is enhanced by the glorious sitar/flute interlude, 1966 indeed.  Advocating gentle revolution ”Out On The Streets”, is a sixties pastiche par excellence, with some groovy lyrics and solid playing from all, the gentle revolution is continued on “Everybody Knows” , another affectionate tribute to a period that is obviously dear to the heart.

     Mixing UK and US influences is the Californian sunshine drenched version of “John Barleycorn”, which rattles along with lysergic glee, some swirling organ and layers of percussion driving the song on with inner power. Following on from the gentle Psych-Folk of “Birds”, and the keyboard driven “My Anger”, which has a majestic instrumental section at the end, Mooch morph into The idle Race for the excellent “Life During Summertime”, a shimmering piece of whimsy that is worth the price of entry by itself.

    Opening up our inner eye, “Lughnasadh Theme”, is effective and haunting, the guitar walking between the stars, as keyboard provide a magic carpet on which to ride. With a rattle of teacups we are treated to a reprise of “San Francisco” before the album ends with “Rocket Ship”, which seems to speak of the abuse of technology as the sixties faded and the world became obsessed with power.

    Recorded played and written by Steve Palmer, this is a delightful album containing twelve slices of wistful psych-pop, each deserving to be heard, not one over four minutes, and a splendid way to pass the time. (Simon Lewis)

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THURSDAY/ENVY – SPLIT CD /LP

WINO – A BOTTLE OF PILLS WITH A BULLET CHASER  2Xcd

(www.temporaryresidence.com)

    Lurking somewhere between post-rock, hardcore and heavy psychedelia, this seven track split album is a lesson in controlled anger, the music brutal, powerful and intelligent, a breathless ride into the valley of noise.

     First up, Thursday ( featuring long time Envy fan Geoff Rickly, who suggested this venture), attempt to imitate a tornado with the arrival of “As He Climbed the Dark Mountain”, a glorious noise that sets the tone with precision riffing and angular charm, the mood changed moments later as the dark clouds of “In Silence” sweep in, a burst of sombre exploration, every sound filled with menacing beauty. After a fragile opening moment, “An Absurd and Unrealistic Dream of Peace” reveals its angry centre, the melodic structure harnessing the overdriven guitars to excellent effect, producing one of the finest tracks on the album. Finally from Thursday, Anthony Molina (Mercury Rev) remixes “In Silence”, turning it into a lesson in tension, the slowly creeping textures rising until bursting point, the final wave of passion sweeping all before it in a cascade of dark heavenly sound.

    With a slowly disintegrating heart, noise veterans Envy, begin their half of the album, with the quite brilliant “An Umbrella Fallen Into Fiction”, sounding not unlike fellow travellers Mono, the atmospheric build up making way for a final charge of angry noise. On “Isolation of a Light Source”, the band forgo the quiet bits, the sandpaper vocals fighting to be heard as the everyone else turns up a bit (or possibly a lot), which is the best way to hear this album, incidentally. To end it all “Pure Birth and Loneliness”, has a slightly more structured feel, with a stoner heart mixed in, the contrasting passages filling the song with depth and character, a fine way to end a fine collection, with both bands proving themselves masters of dynamic noise and fury.

    Much to my shame, Wino meant nothing to me until this double cd arrived on my doorstep. Shame indeed, for this is collection of short sharp punk/garage inspired songs that are razor edged and amphetamine fuelled, with enough style and variation to warrant a two hour collection. As the first band signed to Temporary Residence, the bands entire output is collected here, several singles, one album, six previously unreleased tracks and a live song, all taken from their five year lifespan, 1994-1999.

     Featuring 36 songs it is impossible to review them all, suffice to say that “Dutch Oven” is the perfect opener, “Yam Hand” is a sleazy guitar frenzy, heavy as fuck, whilst the seven minute “Dogs”, is a lesson in chaos made art, a song that needs to make your ears bleed, and that is just three of the first four songs. Working our way deeper in, “A Minute Fifty One” is just that, the excellently named “*****” is heavy, strange and scary, and “Fast Freddy” is speed as noise. As if that isn’t enough “Make-Out Party” rounds of disc one with a hardcore swagger, with one of the finest riffs around, pounding you into submission, roll on disc two.

    Starting as we finished, “Mountain River” continues to give your ears a kicking as side two arrives, hyped up and ready to party, the fun continuing as “Heaven” walks through the valley of sludge, “Johnny Deeper” masquerades as the perfect Wino song and “Truth Cigar” sounds like spacemen three forced into a blender. By now your brain is beginning to crumble the relentless guitar riffery beginning to trance you out into some kind of garage nirvana, the noise becoming your entire universe, there is nothing to do but hold on and enjoy the revelations, count your blessing and play the whole thing again.

    Proving they are truly relentless, the penultimate “Dead Bird House” is as brutal as anything that has gone before, if not more so, whilst the final track “My House” is a suitably spiked way to close this wonderful romp across the career of another band that deserve more adoration than they got.

    Temporary Residence: Phil's favourite label of the moment, and a label that always delivers the goods - and with this duo of noise merchants, doing so with heads held high. (Simon Lewis)