7in - Bad Axe - Coachman b/w Poor Man, Run (Black Wax, Ltd 300)
PERMANENT RECORDS' 44TH LABEL RELEASE!
These are nearly gone! Check out these rave reviews from Styrofoam Drone and 7 Inches Blog:
Styrogoam Drone:
"Permanent Records got their grimy mitts on the original BAD AXE tapes,
resulting in this brand new archival 7″. Both of these tracks date back
to 1973, but the label has proudly pressed them to vinyl for the very
first time in 2014.
You’re likely to think that somewhere between 1973 and 2014 somebody
failed (or maybe just didn’t care anymore) to share these songs with the
world. Now 41 years later, that awful mistake has been rectified thanks
to the folks at Permanent. Coming in a modest edition of just 300
pieces on black wax, Coachman showcases the two known songs that were
laid to tape by the Chicago-based band in the early 70s. They formed
from the ashes of the Burlington Express, another Chicago band who
released a lone single in the mid-60s on Roach Records.
Both of these tracks radiate an authentic 70s psych rock vibe, not to
mention the smell of the dirty musk of the basements they were born in.
“Coachman” is woven together with some truly righteous psychedelic
elements – a deep, twitchy bass line supplies the A-side with a
nefarious groove, answering to the dual, high-voltage twangery of
monumental guitar work. Soulful yet frantic vocals bellow out from an
unnamed frontman (John Turner?), spearheading a dazzling psychedelic
onslaught that progressively grows louder and heavier. B-side “Poor Man,
Run” breaks open with a riveting crunch, boasting a hard, bluesy edge
that’s just slightly evil. The track closes out with a glinting beam of
guitar, built with an acoustic skeleton that provides the foundation for
an exceptionally effective breakdown. Bass plunges and dips with
low-end frequencies, creating a rock-steady beat for an explosive bout
of sinister guitar soloing.
It’s remarkable that something of this caliber was just recently
unearthed, but we’re thanking Permanent Records and straight-up telling
you you’re going to need this 7″."
7 Inches Blog:
"Two brothers Dennis and Danny Gray named their band Bad Axe, which is a
city in Michigan, close to Chicago where they were from. It also sounds
a lot like 'Bad Ass' which is completely appropriate for this sludgey
'70s heavy rock recorded in 1973 to be exact. Five long hair bad asses
(see sleeve) went into the studio to get these two songs on reel to reel
tape. They must have pressed up a few hundred copies, one of which
managed to end up at Permanent Records and is a truly incredible time
capsule.
A-Side's "Coachman" opens with a trio of beefy low end guitars washed
out in fuzz and chopped into blunt bricks. Everything screams '70s, the
kind of muddy tube production that you can't even fake these days.
Bouncy, no make that insane groovy bass from Stan Marcheska that flies
all over this thing like he's been let out of a cage. Thin vocals from
the Gray's and songwriter J. Turner are pushed to that early metal
background that corrals the harmonies coming off like Hawkwind meeting
Crazy horse. They can technically compete with those guys and still
manage that loose Easy Rider, bar in the woods vibe. Solo perfection
over bass punches makes you ask why there isn't this much lower end
boosted in rock these days? We are in treble heavy garage my friends.
Wackka strumming shows up towards the end and their guitars line up in a
Sabbath way stopping immediately and giving the drums a chance to step
into the spotlight. Timeless perfection from a couple of buddies with a
big dream. Before your time, Bad Axe.
B-Side's "Poor Man, Run" also sets the tempo with compact fuzz and the
drums take that skeleton riff into snare wailing head banging. An
acoustic blows with melodic high register vocals from J. adding an air
of psych to the otherwise beefy proceedings. Lofty vocals about this
'poor man' and 'no tomorrow' give this a serious medieval Yes sound with
NO ORGAN. It all breaks down to drums and a Stairway to Heaven acoustic
and bass moment that grows into solo after solo and more freakout
double tempos from Stan, someone look that guy up. This one turns into a
real Hotel California epic with ride cymbals into the sunset, more than
enough to leave you sad that it's over and sadder that they may not
have ended up recording anything else."
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