You must listen to the album below you.

[Purplepash]

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The Psychedelic Sounds Of The 13th Floo... Elevators

This was great. One of the earliest bands to take current trends and subvert them to create their own unique take that ended up influencing many others both in the short term and long term. Rollercoaster is the highlight for me (probably because the Spacemen 3 cover is an old favourite of mine but I also think it's definitive of their sound, vocals and lyrics - it's the song I would choose to showcase what The 13th Floor Elevators sound like). I've now listened to all three of their studio albums and liked them all but I enjoyed this the most.

You've probably already heard this but if so gives us your fresh take anyway Rocka.

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Music To Eat by Hampton Grease Band

[Tha1ChiefRocka]

I had actually began listening to this album one other time, but I stopped because I didn't have the patience that day.

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Music To Eat by Hampton Grease Band

There are some moments on "Music To Eat" that fully realize what the musicians must've been going for when they sat down to perform the songs on this album. The last two minutes of "Evans" would be an example. (There's also a part in "Hendon" after the 4 minute mark that I enjoy as well. That's also probably my favorite track on the album as well.)

Ok, now that I've said something nice about the album, I'm going to tell you how I really feel.

Most of the duration of "Music To Eat" is a tolerable, but half-baked Zappa & Beefheart tribute with little of the former's creativity and humor, and little of the latter's fractured mania.

I know that comparison is unoriginal when reviewing this album, but instead of counting that as a point of success for the album, I can't help but notice that it's just not up to the work of either of those two. I know that they actually opened for Zappa in 1971, which means he liked them, but I can't share that notion completely. It all comes off as an attempted facsimile of that sound that's not equal in quality.

I think the most frustrating parts of the album are a track like "Lawton" which is total filler. It's not interesting or experimental enough to warrant it's 7 meandering minutes in what's already a bloated album.

That's probably the thing that takes this down too; the runtime. Some albums can justify being an hour and a half, and some can never attempt to. I would honestly cut that album opener, which was the most grating to me. It felt like it was trying too hard to be obtuse.

Keep "Hendon" though, that track was great.


Me: Mom, can we have Captain Beefheart?

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Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart...Magic Band

Mom: We have Captain Beefheart at home.

Captain Beefheart at home:

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Music To Eat by Hampton Grease Band

Damn, I just now noticed the name similarity between Colonel Bruce Hampton and Captain Beefheart.

Why not give this a shot.

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One Ten Hundred Thousand Million by The...us Project

[Purplepash]

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One Ten Hundred Thousand Million by The...us Project

Definitely an interesting listen. Like a lot of experimental instrumental indietronica with variety some things worked and somethings didn't. Unsurprisingly I preferred the more indie/post rock based moments over the glitchy bleepy bloopy influenced songs, but just the fact that I can make a sentence like that about an album deserves credit. Worth a listen for those that seek something different


Here's something you (and nearly everyone else) probably haven't heard before.

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Afterlife by NO ZU

[baystateoftheart]

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Niggaz Of Destruction by N.O.D.

I'm not typically a huge fan of the horror-infused Memphis sound, but this is definitely one of my favorite tapes in the style so far. The beats are outstanding, the flows are excellent, and this is very catchy throughout. The lyrics are hit and miss as expected, but there's enough great stuff to outweigh the more disturbing moments and make this a very enjoyable record overall. 3.5/5.

Byrds time. They were one of my favorite bands in high school, and this is one of their most psychedelic albums:

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Fifth Dimension by The Byrds
_________________
Add me on RYM

[Tha1ChiefRocka]

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Afterlife by NO ZU

Fun album, but not anything that's particularly relistenable. Enjoyable for this listen. Not much else to say on it.

Baystate, glad you could dig Iasos. Why not try another New Agey thing?

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Crystal Waves by David Casper

[Purplepash]

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Fifth Dimension by The Byrds

Even knowing Eight Miles High this album was still more psychedelic than I expected a The Byrds album to be. I think they got the balance right to experiment and have fun but not go too psychedelic and jammy (keeping all but 2 songs under 3 minutes, one of which was 3mins and 1sec and the other was Eight Miles High) and possibly put off their folk pop rock listeners of the time. A very enjoyable album with a only a couple of fillers near the end that stop this from being a great album. The surprising version of Hey Joe was interestingly different but What's Happening?!?! and Eight Miles High were my highlights.


How about trying out one of my favourites from this year so far.

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Deep Fried Grandeur by Ryley Walker &am...agaku Moyo

[guzguzgarbit]

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Slow Focus by Fuck Buttons

Fuck Buttons is a name I've come across sometimes, but I've never heard any of their works. So it's some longform, dirty, noisy, rocky electronic music very much like a louder, punkier Death In Vegas. I must say it works well from the very beginning, the opening track 'Brainfreeze' is a really cool scarry-beautiful mash of electronics, distorted guitars and broken rhythms and actually much of the same can be said of the other tracks. The production and mixing is crisp and they sure know how to set an atmosphere. Slow Focus is an apt title as it seems the entire album feels like a long zoom into nowhere (kinda like H5 x Mirwais' My Generation, anyone seen this? It's great).On the downsides, the album felt long at times. A lot of the tracks had a structure that goes like: Catchy gritty bass/guitar and some effects for a third of the track, then a bunch of uplifting pads and arpeggi come in to pick up the pace, then more guitars for the last half, and then the track deconstructs itself for the outro. Almost all tracks are like that, it gives the impression that the album goes nowhere. A nice listen anyway.

Purplepash, give a listen to:

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Me Me Me by Air Miami

[baystateoftheart]

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Crystal Waves by David Casper

This is mostly really soothing and pretty. However, there's definitely a cheese factor as well. The biggest danger zone is when Casper strays from the undulating, spaced-out sounds that make up the lion's share of the record, and incorporates other elements like cello and East Asian instruments. Due to these passages, Crystal Waves is not exactly top-tier ambient or new age, but it still does the job quite nicely. 3.5/5.

I'll pass along this rec from Skinny:

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Songs From The Beehive by Move D & Benjamin Brunn
_________________
Add me on RYM

[guzguzgarbit]

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Songs From The Beehive by Move D & Benjamin Brunn

I've stumbled upon that album first when Skinny nominated it for the BETH (around when I first joined BEA) and I heard it once at this occasion, but it was nice revisiting it a bit further. So, Move D is a talented German Techno/Ambient Techno , with close links to Fax and Pete Namlook (with whom he released a bunch of albums) and Benjamin Brunn, with whom I'm not familiar, seems to be releasing mostly Ambient stuff. I was expecting some Ambient Techno, but it's more of a clever Tech House album, mixing dutch Techno and german Microhouse with slight Ambient and Dub influences. It's close to Terrace, Estroe, MRI or Move D's debut: Kunststoff. It's well designed and has original track progressions that doesn't feel like Techno, but more like elaborate Ambient/IDM or... I don't actually know. The progressions are clearly the key element of the album, they're innovative and yet fully working, it makes you wonder what you'll hear next while still catching the very essence of a club track. Apart from that, sadly the album don't try much exploration, the sounds are basic, as are the drums and melodic patterns. In those aspects, it sounds very much like a turn of the century middle point between german Microhouse and dutch Techno. It's as if Move D & Brunn decided to make the definitive album with that aesthetic. But is it? Despite a few moments of greatness, I fail to give it as much importance as I'd like to. It a great album tho, and because you can count the albums with this kind of Ambient yet danceable techno on your fingers it's always nice to hear one more, even though I'd personally recommend Kunststoff over it.

Bay, try this:

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Clear Skin by Insides

Oh, and to the player below me, don't feel committed to rec an electronic album, I'll listen to anything.

[Mercury]

EDIT: I think I fucked the game a little by jumping in and doing the following album. I now see it says listen to the album BELOW you (not above you silly goose!).

Anyway, now I think I understand. And I will no longer be silly.

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Clear Skin by Insides

Only prior experience I have had with Insides was their album Soft Bonds from earlier this year. I really liked it. At this point being that its been several months I forget much outside of it being a minimalist electronic dreamy album. And even then I very much intended to go back and here Euphoria, but I got distracted away and never did.

But here I am now listening to their album they released a year after Euphoria is 1994, Clear Skin. It's one 38 minute track, it seems. First, oh i don't know, 10 minutes is very VERY reminiscent of Music for 18 Musicians, similar repetitive minimalist thing going on. (Not that I have many references from the genre and thus that is why I refer to the genre's most famous work). Then, ever so subtly more ping pong melodies are added or there is some change or changes that make the whole piece start to blossom. Wasn't a fan of the first bit tbh. But from about 10 to 19 minutes I started to feel the hypnotic and beautiful pulses in my soul. Then the chanted vocals start at like 19 minutes and I love that the best. The vocals added to the repetitive synths and electronic melodies... perfect.

Of course it ain't done from there. Other elements are added and it grows, as these types of pieces tend to do. Little melodic changes and a change of emphasis melodically to dramatic and dreamy synths happens about 24ish minutes in, maybe earlier. Then the low ends drops out and then the piece ramps back up slowly but not as slowly as it started and then then then then... you get the idea. Its just a fun minimalist piece of progressive electronic type, somewhat ambient stuff. There are many really gorgeous switch ups and surprises. It does get more and more enthralling and beautiful the longer you listen. And when the album ended I instantly felt a little like something special had left. Was a weird sensation.

I suppose most of the time I would prefer the dreamy pop of their recent album and (apparently) their debut, but its pretty adventurous and unexpected that this duo would release this album as their sophomore follow up. Gutsy move.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this.

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Old Chestnut by Ned Collette

Here’s a promouncedly NON electronic album. Austere folk.
_________________
-Ryan

ONLY 4% of people can understand this chart! Come try!

My Fave Metal - you won't believe #5!!!