Information implosion

I stumbled onto this CD reissue in used CD section in one of my favorite NYC record stores. After reading the liner notes I garbed it.

I was expecting this band to be influenced by other French prog bands of that time, but they are nothing like their contemporaries. Bluesy, folky and jazzy prog with clear British psych influences. Not a trace of Zeuhl influence, in my opinion, anywhere on this album. Vocals I guess are an acquired taste, but if you don’t mind them there is a lot to like here.

P.S. Great art cover on this one.

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Daevid Allen is a very cool guy.  Recently I got in the Gong, Soft Machine and Allen mood, and  listen to a lot 0f Gong and Allen’s solo stuff.  His music is funny, intelligent and he has a great sense of humor. It’s not without a bit of Hippie-dippy flavor, but I don’t mid that. All of his albums as well as Gong albums with his are well worth a try and highly recommended.

Even in the 90’s when this type of music was not in fashionable he was putting out hight quality psychedelic stuff. I remember going to this concert and being totally flabbergasted.

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And getting his pot headed pixie autograph on the other side. Far out dude.

Pixie

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Hans Reichel and Eroc – Kino (1986)

This review is for the original KINO album from 1987 on 180 grams pressing (DMM Mastering). My copy is also signed by Eroc. The Eroc remastered CD is also very good, but if you can find an original LP get it, there is something special about the sound on it.

KINO is an amazing album. It combines krautrock and experimental jazz into unusual yet very accessible album. The mood of the albums is at times spooky, playful, tranquil and exiting, and often within the same song.

When I spoke with Eroc, several times, this is what he said about this album and about Hans:

“KINO is absolutely unique, not to be comparable with my own solo works. I worked with my friend Hans Reichel four (!) consecutive years for it, spending hundreds of hours in the studio. Each single tone was composed, written and played with natural instruments and devices step by step and track by track, reaching from normal guitars and keybords up to tuned tobacco-cans and dish brushes.”

“HANS Reichel from Wuppertal originated 1970 in the free-jazz-scene and did a lot of work with big names in this field. He has a name as inventor of strange guitars and other instruments (e.g. the daxophone which we both first used during the production of our “Kino” in the 80s). I recorded and mastered a lot of his albums. He’s also a good friend of mine.”

“HANS Reichel never got this big acceptance in Germany. He mainly toured the U.S. and Japan. He even did projects together with the famous Chronos Quartet. But less than nothing was to be read or heard about it over here. In Germany he’s known only to a minor Audience and mostly played in small clubs. Nevertheless he’s a genius and absolutely unique worldwide.”

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The Residents – Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats? / The Census Taker (1991)

Finally found this on original ESD CD for a nice price.

This is CD contains  soundtracks to two films, “Whatever Happened to Vileness Fats?” that never came into being and “The Census Taker” is an obscure low-budget horror flick about family murdering a census taker.

I like this album a lot, it’s up there with better Residents albums.

Solid Gold Cadillac – Solid Gold Cadillac/Brain Damage (1999)

I love Minton and discovered he was in this band in the 70’s. So I bought this. Apparently I am a sucker for this kind of stuff. Rock, Jazz, Soul and experimental music living, coexisting and feeding of each other. Westbrooks piano/organ works is stupendously good and Minton vocals are awesome, as always. Totally original approach to fusion. Compositions range from fun to scary to tranquil and are beautifully arranged.

Second album seems more energetic with jazzier overall feel to it, but both are good and in my opinion criminally underrated.

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Finally got this album. I had it as LP rip for a long time and as CD-R for even an longer time. A few days back I found it used, 1992 CD edition with bonus track, for a good price and bought it.

Art Bears - Hopes and Fears (1978)

I figured I do not want the new remasted version because I am used, at this point, to how it sounds on 1992 ReR CD.

“Hopes and Fears” is basically a Henry Cow album that was different enough from old Henry Cow albums to require a new band name. Very adventurous RIO music with Dagmar Krause taking a front seat here. Jazzy angular feel of Henry Cow albums is mostly gone and is replaced by short avant-garde song like compositions. Not for the faint at heart.

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Apparently Boris Vian’s son Patrick Vian released this experiential electronic music album in the 70’s. I managed to find it a few weeks ago, great stuff.

Bruits et temps analogues – 1976

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Komintern – Le bal du rat mort (1971)

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I like this type of stuff usually, but I find lack of focus and direction here very annoying.

This particular mix of folk, circus cabaret rock, typically french chanson lounge stuff  and Zappa like rock should be entertaining and at time this album is very interesting.

However, in the end only some ideas are very good, but for the most part this collection of sounds fails as an album, just a bunch of random goofy “Will this work?”, “How is this?” and “Look what we just did!” stuff that might have worked if it was more cohesive.

Etron fou Leloublan’s first album’s is in a way composed around the same idea but is way better than this and actually works.

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Känguru – Känguru (1981)

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Very nice and at times strange jazz, rock and folky  fusion. A few completely unexpected moments that might take you by surprise. This might require a few listens to appreciate. Not for the casual krautrock fans, more for completist types.

Below is a quote out of excellent krautrock book by Freeman brothers:

Out of the remnants of several late-1970’s/early-1980’s groups: Supersession, To Be, Messengers, and others, Känguru could be classed as a supergroup of sorts, and thus they attempted to blend all their influences into a modern rock fusion, “Deutsch Rock ohne text” to quote some of the cover notes. They showed their post new-wave edge greatest on their debut, which was much more guitar fronted funky rock, with a touch of angst and many surprises.

(c) THE CRACK IN THE COSMIC EGG by Steven Freeman and Alan Freeman

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I was digging into more obscure krautrock bands catalogs recently and discovered “Brot & Spiele” album by Munjun. I got the mp3s from band’s web page and was so impressed that I hunted down the LP. LP issue on Schneeball is very cool. My LP came in a nice gate fold package still with game board on the inside, game cards and instructions. The game is based on bands tour locations, too bad it’s in German and I can’t follow it. Below is short review of the album.

Munju – Brot & Spiele (1980)

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Something really clicked when I listened to this album, it was love from first listen. It is excellent in every way.

In my opinion this albums is a perfect combination of Krautrock, NDW, RIO elements and Jazz-Fusion stylistic moves. It is never boring and always adventurous with a lot of surprises without being too difficult. Christian Burchard of Embryo’s fame is helping out on few tracks.

Great stuff from a seemingly forgotten and underrated band. A minor masterpiece that unfortunately was never released on LP or CD. LP comes with a cool board game and cards, I guess this goes well with album’s name that I figure is a variation of a famous “panem et circenses” metaphor.

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Code III – Planet of Man (1974)

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Code III recorded their only album in Delta-Acustic Recording studio using Kunstkopf” (aka “artificial head”) it is a wonderful 3D sounding recording with tripped-out, kosmische and freak-out music.

Code III – PLANET OF MAN as well as Sand – GOLEM are one of the best albums for enjoying in headphones. Code III is very hard to find since it was only re-released on CD by a Korean bootleg label.

Here is a bit form info about Code III – PLANET OF MAN album from THE CRACK IN THE COSMIC EGG book:

Code III were never a proper band, but were an impromptu group created for an album dedicated to showcasing the amazing sound characteristics of the Kunstkopf Artificial Head Recording System. Principally, Code III were Berlin studio engineer Manfred Schunke and American multi-instrumentalist Ed Key.

The music on PLANET OF MAN is a sonic depiction of the history of the Earth, from the void of empty space, via the formation of the planets, the evolution of life, through to man’s domination of the planet, and ultimately back to the void. The opening and closing excursions, involving atmospheric electronics, injections of a dreamy folk song, and disembodied resonant female voice, hint a little at Brainticket’s CELESTIAL OCEAN, although the mood is much spookier. Confusingly “Dawn Of An Era” (the lyrics are sung in the previous track) involves what sounds like demented Neanderthals involved in some weird drum ritual. “Countdown” adds up to a blend of atmospheric electronics with abstract use of voice collage and effects (and Indian music), onto a remarkably clever accelerating space-rock burn-out featuring Klaus Schulze at the drum stool! Returning to weird space music at the end, it all adds up to a remarkable and unique album.

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