The Reverberation Appreciation Society / Fuzz Club dynamic duo strikes again with the second installment of their killer "Reverb Conspiracy" series, documenting the best of underground psych bands kicking around Europe. Fuck yeah! This is one conspiracy we can believe in !
"The Reverb Conspiracy Volume II brings together 16 of Europe’s most interesting emerging psych bands, key bands in a scene that is quickly gathering momentum around the world.
The Reverb Conspiracy Volume II is a deluxe limited edition vinyl release, featuring 180 gram coloured vinyl and a gatefold cover. Brett Orrison, sound engineer for The Black Angels, has mastered the album especially for vinyl. The cover artwork has again been created by iconic Icelandic artist and member of Dead Skeletons, Jon Saemundur aka Nonni Dead, making this the second in his Reverb Conspiracy series.." - Reverberation Appreciation Society
We've been ranting and raving about albums from Fuzz Club, Reverberation Appreciation Society and Cardinal Fuzz all year long, and "Reverb Conspiracy Vol 2" is like a "best of" from our favorite bands on these labels and a few others this year. Starting off with the droned psych of the Janitors and finishing off two lps later with the druggy haze of Big Naturals, this comp is all killer no filler mind expanding psych rock!!!! Seriously just take a quick look at the list of bands involved: Sonic Jesus, Acid Baby Jesus, Cult of Dom Keller, Cosmic Dead, to name just a few. Sign us up! If you're new to these bands, or a diehard psych fan like we are, this comp won't leave yer turntable. SUPER RECOMMENDED!!!!!
The latest dose of lysergic rock n roll from Reverberation Appreciation Society is "Evil Hits" from Austin's Holy Wave!!!! Combining 5 tracks from the band’s 2011 sold-out debut LP “Knife Hits” and all 5 tracks off their now OOP 2012 EP “The Evil Has Landed” into a 180g vinyl release, this is the perfect introduction to the hazy psych of Holy Wave. "Evil Hits" starts off in the same droned out psych camp as recent albums by the Night Beats and Black Angels but adds layers of sun fried shoegaze and a touch of garage pop tremolo to the mix, making it equal parts druggy, poppy and super addicting. Fans of everyone from Underground Youth to Thee Oh Sees, as well as Brian Jonestown Massacre and White Fence, PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT'S HAPPENING IN AUSTIN and grab "Evil Hits" now!!! This is just a teaser for a new full length coming soon via Reverberation Appreciation Society and you need to be in the know NOW. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!
Oh this is on Tee Pee? You bet yer ass its gonna be a ripper! Read on as the Tee Pee'ers tell the tale of Harsh Toke:
"Psychedelic rockers HARSH TOKE explore sound and space through music. On the San Diego Acid Rock band’s debut album Light Up and Live, loud, heavy guitars, swimming bass lines and smashing drums warp to full throttle, working together to launch the group’s “Haze Maze” of unapologetic psychedelic-blues into interstellar overdrive. Recorded by Brian Ellis (also of the prog-rock band ASTRA) and mastered by Carl Saff (Earthless, OFF!, Unsane), HARSHTOKE‘s Light Up and Live will be released on November 19 via Tee Pee.
Led by ripping pro skater and rip-roaring guitarist Justin “Figgy” Figueroa, HARSH TOKEare equal parts atmospheric and anarchic, merging raging, blind fury musicianship with unprecedented white-knuckle volume abuse. Tense and surreal, HARSH TOKES‘ songs slowly build from hallucinatory haze into grand overtures of noise and feedback; a cosmic buffet of pounding, pummeling and punishing planes of sound. Heavy. Cosmic. Kinetic.
HARSH TOKE lay down sizzling grooves with every needle on the soundboard pinned to the red. If Blue Cheer could be called “Louder than God” in 1968, forty five years later, HARSH TOKEcan easily be pegged as “Louder than Satan.” Run for your lives – into the din."
"Light Up and Live" is four loooooong jams of interstellar hesher rock played with unbridled fury and with some serious musical chops. You know we'd never steer ya wrong, if you love all things groovy, heavy and THC-ey as we do then don some shades and drop into the stunning sonic stylings of Harsh Toke. For fans of Earthless, White Hills, Hawkwind, Blue Cheer, Pink Floyd, Iron Butterfly and loud no nonsense psychedelic groove rock lunacy! Drop the needle and let Harsh Toke fry yer brain into the cosmos. Ludicrously Recommended.
Nihilistic & buzzing punk rock from this gaggle of Melbourne maniacs, released on the recently minted Million Dollar Records - read their manifesto here:
"Straight from the 18th hole of Bushwood Country Club, ruining the party, watch common decency fly out the window, it’s THE ZINGERS. Taking an anti punk stance to another level, The Zingers assume something like the position of martini swilling, sauna dwelling, sand wedging, debonair types who are big wheels in the pork belly market. The truth is, the band was formed in 2010 above a falafel kitchen and next to a meat slinging bawdy house. When the band finally found stability, made up of ex members of Pathetic Human, Flesh World, Insurgents and Chrome Dome, the next three years were littered with colourful public appearances. Most notable for a sharp but cheap dress sense, The Zingers set out to confuse the masses with a series of awkward but intimidating confrontations, contorting visual and audio aspects into a jagged world of disproportion and a wry sense of wit nobody is really meant to relate to. Lets make one thing clear, The Zingers are not a joke band. The point was to reverse every punk stereotype and counter the pissweak idea of writing “dumb music” and lack of progression that seemed to dominate punk at the time. Influenced initially by the savage satire and suave of Geza X And The Mommymen, Black Randy And The Metrosquad and Fear to name a few, The Zingers looked far outside the square to take their music elsewhere. Crazed syncopated drumming, annoying guitar turned up to 11, hard driving bass and crude throat peeling vocals create an artificial world only they may populate. Combined with some extra instrumental licks (skinny slapping vibraphone a clear highlight) create a perturbing yet sophisticated concoction. The LP was recorded in 2011 and mixed over long arduous sessions. Sadly, they fell victim to their own concept, creating inner friction over creative control and ceasing the morph into a jazz fusion act that would bring hot fun back to the music industry. Twisted, aloof, unashamedly offensive, cocky, grandiloquent and downright zany, let Randy Richard, Swastika Sweatman, Wild Western and Chingford take you moonlighting through the cactus fields. The long awaited LP by The Zingers comes at you with a clang."
Zingers come clattering outta the gate, spasmodically wailing like the demon-spawn of the Crucifucks, Rudimentary Peni, Die Kreuzen & Black Randy! These dudes don't give a fuck & rage hard, shattering riffs over hotwired, mutant drums & cocksure, snotty punk vox! The whole vibe reeks hard of Los Angeles circa late Seventies, with a palpable whiff of sunbaked mutant stench. These guys don't fit in & they're gonna tell you about it. Another sure-fire Aussie success story - this one's limited to 500 copies, so don't snooze! RECOMMENDED... open up the pit
LIMITED TO 333 COPIES - INCLUDES CD & DOWNLOAD CODE
Just scored a stack of this awesome new Zacht Automaat double LP out now on U.S. Girls affiliated Calico Corp label. We'll let the Calico Corp folks fill you in on the details:
"This record is an introduction to the band Zacht Automaat.
Zacht Automaat are a duo. Carl Didur lives in Toronto and Michael McLean lives in Oxford though both are from Hamilton, Ontario.
In the span of 3 years they have recorded 11 albums (and counting), this record compiles moments from the following albums: Electrische Duo, We're Glad You Agree, Smart Candle, I Can Feel The Mold In Me, As It Is Spoken It Shall Be Done, The Smiling Wilderness, Get Baack, We Can't Help You If We Can't Find You, Bags Inside Bags, There's Nobody Home, and Disturbed Ground."
This overview of Zacht Automaat's storied and massive back catalog is a sonic journey that twists and bends with adventure and amazing sounds with each new track. We're talkin' 27 cuts of instrumental krautrock and tape squiggle experimentation that worms their way deep into your brain like some undiscovered video game soundtrack. One thing is for sure, this duo keeps things good and weird while making some seriously infectious sounds. This comes with a CD version and a download in an edition of 333. Oh, they are hand numbered as well so, you know… collector's item! And if you cop this and still can't get enough you can head over to their bandcamp page where all of their records are available for free. Boom! Anywho, this self titled collection is really freaking great and unique and mind blowingly Recommended.
BLOOD RED WAX EDITION LIMITED TO 100!!!
YES! More high quality kosmische music from Kosmonaut. The These Are Not Records label has offered up this winner so we'll let them fill you in on the details here:
"Brain-melting spaciness from Texas, Kösmonaut is Patrick R. Pärk, who delivers propulsive retro-ish psych-prog electronics. Imagine a missing link between the sci-fi rockin explorations of Heldon and the cosmic sounding grooves of Tangerine Dream and Conrad Schnitzler."
Those Heldon, Tangerine Dream and Conrad Schnitzler nods are spot on for sure. Kosmonaut's glimmering synths and motorik clatter make for a fine outing on "Future Machines" and we got the limited red vinyl version so hop to it space explorers cuz these will not be around long. Supremely Recommended.
FUUUUUUUUUUCK YES. Our bros over at 540 Records have issued Peter Gutteridge's lone solo album "Pure" on vinyl ~ GLORY BE! 540's got the 411, so mind yer P's & Q's & pay attention:
Peter Gutteridge is the man who launched a thousand Flying Nun bands. Founding member of The Clean, the Chills, the Great Unwashed, Snapper and the Puddle, Gutteridge released one solo album, Pure, on Xpressway Records in 1989 which was recorded between 1986-1987.
"1989 - Xpressway, one of the finest labels ever to exist release Pure. A collection of fragments and completed songs recorded on a Fostex 4 track. They were all written to tape, ideas going down as I made them up. I've always loved a dirty drone. Notes corrupted and split apart by the miracle of the sympathetic note - i.e. bagpipe, chanters, organs, pianos, ad infinitum. Throw a few clear notes in and you achieve creation on yr own terms. The stars were in the right position to deliver a dose of cosmic junk to the hungry ears of N.Z. (The guys two doors along View St, Morley, Merritt and visiting co-conspirators thought the same, getting onto and forming their own opinions and units of corruption - i.e. Dead C and other miscellaneous units. Pure = you betta B! Good Luck and Enjoy."
If you've never heard "Pure" get ready to lose yourself in 4 sides of ragged, Kiwi pop-awesomeness! Gutteridge's credentials should be what's catching your eye initially, but upon listening to "Pure" you'll find yourself awash in avant-pop experimentalism, minimal synth excursions, Suicide-esque sinister synth cacophony & gurgling guitar mantras! The freewheeling enthusiasm is infectious over the course of these 21 tunes, & it's seemingly disparate confections sit well paired restlessly next to each other, reminding us a bit of the puzzle piece mental travelogues of The Swell Maps. Xpressway only ever issued this on cassette in 1989, so this marks it's vinyl debut - and remastered for maximum fidelity to boot! HOT DAMN! We're fans of every single band this guy's been in, so that alone was enough for us to pick this up, but aside from that it's a stunning set of tracks deserving & worthy of your attention! RECOMMENDED x 1,000,000!!! GET THIS.
SWEET! Just in time for Christmas, M'Lady's Records unleashes two - count 'em TWO Tronics reissues for our eager earholes; "What's The Hubub Bub" (their second full length - this one right here) & "Say! What Is This?" - a collection of outtakes & unreleased tracks from 78-83. BOTH on vinyl for the first time ever - STAGGERING! M'Lady's got the goods for alla youse Shark Fucks, so listen close:
"NOW AVAILABLE ON VINYL!!! What’s The Hubub Bub originally appeared in 1980/1981, and was so far ahead in its approach to songwriting, performance, recording, and presentation that we’re just now catching up. Issued at the height of the British post-punk renaissance, on cassette only, it presaged the DIY underground movement in this country by several years, and until now, has been more rumored than heard. Recorded mostly live to cassette, the album has an astonishing breadth, taking in and transmuting savage rock’n’ roll, tender ballads, tape experiments, and in the case of “The Shark Fucks,” bona fide anthems. ZIRO BABY (now known to comrades as ZARJAZ BABY and fronting the incredible group FREAKAPUSS) and his songs have held sway with hundreds of the underground cognoscenti for decades now, cassettes of TRONICS albums being passed around like secret handshakes. It remains a singular example of true self-expression, whilst at the same time rocking harder than (fill in almost any band‘s name here). M’lady’s Records is very proud to be issuing What’s The Hubub Bub for the very first time on LP, remastered and packaged with the original sleeve."
Recorded live to tape in '80/81, 'What's he Hubub Bub' picks up right where "Love Backed By Force" left off, with Ziro Baby's minimal & succinct pop songs sidling up to you like an old friend. Taking the melodic smarts of pop greats like Buddy Holly or Modern Lovers & the giddy exuberance of then-modern-day DIY compadres-in-arms like TVP, Young Marble Giants & Swell Maps, Ziro manages to stitch them together into his own melodic alien language. A true original who has yet to be pinned down, "What's The Hubub Bub" get a bit more avant-garde with spoken word passages, sampled bits from tv/movies/classical records & tape collage experiments. Totally amazing & (like "Love Backed By Force") a record that has a vibe that has yet to be matched. Reissued & remastered with love by the folks o'er at M'Lady's, we are STOKED to have these available again! Contains the smash hit "Shark Fucks". Yes indeedy. What's the Hubub? THIS record right here. RECOMMENDED.
SWEET! Just in time for Christmas, M'Lady's Records unleashes two - count 'em TWO Tronics reissues for our eager earholes; "What's The Hubub Bub" (their second full length) & "Say! What Is This?" - a collection of outtakes & unreleased tracks from 78-83 (this one right here). BOTH on vinyl for the first time ever - STAGGERING! M'Lady's got the goods for alla youse Shark Fucks, so listen close:
"NOW AVAILABLE ON VINYL!!! TRONICS, led by ZIRO BABY, who issued records between 1979 and 1983 are a musical rarity as things go. The releases brought Tronics and Ziro Baby, then and since, great acclaim being noted in the music press as “a swamp God”(1), “the essence of Rock n Roll”(2), “arguably, a pre-cursor for English Post Punk and Indie music”(3) and being credited for issuing the first independent cassette album in 1980 that started the cassette music boom that continues today(4). Despite the successes of the Tronics releases, being continually highly sought after and loved by so many, Tronics and ZARJAZ BABY—the name that Ziro works under today with his group FREAKAPUS—remain rare, mysterious and enigmatic underground phenomena. Perhaps it was with this in mind that brought Brett Lyman, co-owner of M’lady’s Records, to remark that the recordings on this album were like finding a hidden room in the back of Tutankhamen’s tomb. M’lady’s Records is very proud to announce that we’ll be issuing Say! What Is This? on September 24th, 2013, in the eternally popular LP and CD formats. Over 90% of this album has never been heard by the public."
Odds & sods be damned! If anything, "Say! What's This?" helps to paint a broader picture of Zarjaz Baby's musical legacy. Many tracks on the first side are all live cuts with a full-on band raging like punks possessed (and are absolutely thrilling!) Also contained therein are a few demos of tunes that ended up on "Love Backed By Force" and some never before heard tunes too! In fact, a majority of the unheard "studio" cuts feature a live band, emphasizing even more how Tronics were the UK equivalent to The Modern Lovers or VU, playing simplistic pop songs rooted in classic R'n'R, but not afraid to jam outside the box now & again. A killer addition to the ever-illuminating world of Zarjaz Baby. Strap yerselves in, folks, 'cuz this one's RECOMMENDED.
ORIGINALS SELL ON AVERAGE FOR $65!
Another week is upon us and like clockwork another mind melting reissue shows from the unbelievably prolific Superior Viaduct. We'll let them set the stage behind their latest:
"Founded by Steven Brown and Blaine Reininger in San Francisco, Tuxedomoon are a futuristic alternate reality of delirium and existential dread. Aligned with fellow Bay Area experimentalists The Residents (to whose Ralph Records the group eventually signed) and Robin Crutchfield’s post-DNA project Dark Day, Tuxedomoon developed a unique combination of synthesizer and guitar that placed them at the forefront of the US post-punk movement in the late ’70s and early ’80s. Their 1978 debut EP, No Tears, was recorded with vocalist Winston Tong and sound engineer Tommy Tadlock. Replete with tense synth swells, devastating live drums and a psychotic ode to the “creatures of the night,” the title track is a crucial entry in the synth-punk canon that stacks up next to the best work by Units and The Screamers. Reininger’s electric violin congeals with electronic atmospherics to unnerving ends on the instrumental “Litebulb Overkill.” Few records do justice to the mania and paranoia of a forsaken city; none do it for San Francisco like Tuxedomoon’s No Tears."
For all the wonderful weirdness going on in the late 70's/early 80's SF underground there really was no other act quite like Tuxedomoon. They could be manic and refined at the same time, they could casually slither out waves of ominous dread while simultaneously draw you in with an effortless charm and charismatic grooves. "No Tears", their first EP, is body contorting array of synth punk genius that is equal parts herky jerk dance party and downright terrifying. Just the kind of combo we live for round here. Add one of these high quality reissues to your collection pronto cuz finding originals is nigh impossible and they regularly sell for $60 to $70 if you are lucky enough to spot one. Super Recommended.
ORIGINALS SELL ON AVERAGE FOR $30!
Another week is upon us and like clockwork another mind melting reissue shows from the unbelievably prolific Superior Viaduct. We'll let them set the stage behind their latest:
"Founded by Steven Brown and Blaine Reininger in San Francisco, Tuxedomoon are a futuristic alternate reality of delirium and existential dread. Aligned with fellow Bay Area experimentalists The Residents (to whose Ralph Records the group eventually signed) and Robin Crutchfield’s post-DNA project Dark Day, Tuxedomoon developed a unique combination of synthesizer and guitar that placed them at the forefront of the US post-punk movement in the late ’70s and early ’80s. Scream With a View, recorded surreptitiously in The Residents’ private studio in 1979, advances brilliant melodic concepts through analog technology for a sound barely comprehensible today. On “Where Interests Lie,” punchy drum machine underlies barbed and eerie leads from guitarist Michael Belfer (The Sleepers). “(Special Treatment for the) Family Man”—a reference to Dan White’s trial for the assassination of San Francisco’s mayor George Moscone and supervisor Harvey Milk in 1978—is an indignant vigil cut with a rare brand of macabre humor. Saxophone, Polymoog, violin, e-bowed guitar, and CB radio interference make Scream With a View the insidious foil to the urgent No Tears EP."
For all the wonderful weirdness going on in the late 70's/early 80's SF underground there really was no other act quite like Tuxedomoon. They could be manic and refined at the same time, they could casually slither out waves of ominous dread while simultaneously draw you in with an effortless charm and charismatic grooves. This, their second EP offers up more what Tuxedomoon excelled at, unique song structures, interesting instrumentation and a sound that is as infectious as it is paranoid. Totally Recommended.
Cleveland, OH's Murderedman dropped by the Chicago shop recently and blew our collective doors off. Murderedman's sonic assault is abrasive, acidic and unstoppable that is both intelligent and primitive. It seems Cleveland bands love to fuck with time signatures and Murderedman is indeed one of those bands, changing up time signatures on the drop of dime while never relenting in brutality and force. We're hearing hints of Craw, Twin Stumps and Brainbombs with dashes of feedback and whitenoise further distorting unhinged moans and yelps from a vocalist that is providing pure paranoid terror. Noise attack guitar nihilism, distorted bass grooves and bone shaking drum pummel all combine with frantic howls to make one of 2013's most menacing full lengths. "Love In Danger" is 8 tracks of urban annihilation and misanthropic pig fuck dirge, it comes in a screen printed jacket with a screen printed insert brought you by the A Soundesign Recording label and it most assuredly comes with our highest of Recommendations. This one is supremely brutal gang so don't sleep cuz we're not sure if and when we can get these back.
Chicago's own Bionic Cavemen just released into the wild their hard hittin' debut lp "Predator" after slaying the shop for their record release in-store in late November 2013. Equal parts fuzzed up / whiskey drenched stoner rock and bluesy psych rock, this album is sure to get you fired up just right for yer next all night troublemaking session. Fans of Graveyard, Witchcraft, Reverberation Appreciation Society releases, and all things DUDE-ROCK come and get some. Recorded and mixed at Electrical Audio for extra mean fidelity, "Predator" is a mind melting, muscular spin that most likely won't travel too far from yer turntable. SO YEAH YOU NEED ONE NOW!!! RECOMMENDED!
Brisbane garage punk mutants, Sulphur Lights are back with a brand new self-released 7 inch to kickstart your holiday mayhem, " Cowboy b/w Nothing / Beat You Up." All three tracks are short, nasty, no frills budget rockin' just the kind we can't get enough of! YES!!! Manic, blown-out, on the edge of falling apart garage punk that falls somewhere in the realm of the classics like the Mummies, Headcoats, Black Lips and Makers. Fans of fellow Aussie RnR cohorts, Eastlink, Ausmuteants, Straight Arrows, Ex-con and Living Eyes as well as the aforementioned bands need to grab this single ASAP! Cuz it's WWWAAAAAYYYYYYY RECOMMENDED.
