[ aquarius records — Rock Pop 60s Psych Garage ]

Showing results 651 through 700 of 1515.

LEOPOLD, PERRYExperiments In Metaphysics(Guerssen)lp$ 28.00

1970 obscure Xian acid psych folk classic, reissued!!

LES BLOUSONS NOIRSLes Blousons Noirs 1961 - 1962(Born Bad)cd$ 16.98

A totally twisted blast of primitive outsider garage rock from this mysterious sixties French combo, whose sound exists in some what-the-fuck nether region between the Shaggs and Hasil Adkins, a woozy, stumbling, low fidelity workout that begins with a warped cover of Gene Vincent's "Be Bop A-Lula", which pretty much lays it all out, detuned angular guitar strum, shuffling drum stumble, slightly off key vocal croon WAY up in the mix, the whole thing loose and off kilter, weaving drunkenly from verse to chorus and back again, total bad ass swagger wrapped in a utter earnestness, the sort of band who can only pull off stuff this weird and fucking nuts, cuz they're convinced they rule, and rule they do. Every time we play this in the store someone asks what it is an invariably ends up buying it. We were smitten from the very first listen. Two long lost eps combined into one mind blowing sixteen minute 'long player', a record that our pals at WFMU are nuts for, as we are now too, and like them, we were suspicious that this was not in fact some modern band taking the piss, crafting some fucked up fractured 'lost gem' but by all accounts this is the real deal, which makes sense cuz this sort of warped genius is tough to fake, and genius it is, catchy has heck, even in its damaged sonic stumble, we find ourselves humming along to every misstep, sour note and warbly vocal, and also find ourselves listening this pretty much more than almost anything else, which really says it all.

LES FLEURS DE PAVOTs/t(Underground Masters)cd$ 21.00

LES GOTHSReve De Silence(Shadoks Music)cd$ 17.98

We have to say, that lots of the time, when a band is touted as being some lost heavy psych or proto-metal classic, it often eventually turns out to sound sonically more like blues rock or bar rock, with merely HINTS of that psychedelic heaviness that lured us in, in the first place. Such is most definitely NOT the case with obscure French psychedelic rockers Les Goths, who within one track, establish themselves as a serious sonic juggernaut, obviously beholden to Hendrix and Cream and Blue Cheer, and yeah, with hints of sixties blues rock, but with a tendency for wild super distorted guitar playing and wicked bombastic drumming and dramatic vox, not to mention a raw, in-the-red production which only enhances the band's fierce sound. Some of us were definitely reminded of sixties Swedish psych trio Baby Grandmothers, and anyone who bought their now out of print reissue on Subliminal Sounds (and that was a whole lot of you!) is for sure gonna want this. Check out the first song and see if you're not totally sold, a four minute non-stop blast of buzz drenched riffage and effects soaked garage psych pound, the guitars thick and distorted, the drums WAY up in the mix, the vox too, everything reverbed and echoey and a little blown out, some wild psychedelic leads, a total lost classic garage psych classic for sure. We've probably listened to this track a hundred times since we first got this in, it's the sort of track that would steal the show on any vintage psych comp, in fact it's the sort of track that would inspire someone to CREATE an obscure psych comp. The song gets more and more distorted and druggy as it goes, we dare say worth the price of admission alone. But once you get over being obsessed with that track (if you ever do), there's lots more here to dig into. Tracks like "I Remember" are bluesy groovers, displaying the band's love of groups like the Animals, but even here, the sound is a little twisted, the arrangements a bit off kilter, with a little bit of that girl group vibe, cool soaring harmony vocals, with some super intense about-to-crack lead vox, all hazy and dreamy, and then the band slip right back into something a bit heavier and more propulsive like "Out Of The Sun" with its low slung bass groove, wild tangled guitars and chaotic super busy drumming, the whole thing sort of sun baked and druggy, with some cool churning chuggy riffage surfacing throughout. The rest of the record offers up more of the same, long stretches of brooding bluesiness, groovy psychedelic shuffles, and pounding garage-y stomps, in equal measure, always with some killer guitar work and easily some of the best drumming we've heard, which had us wishing there was a way to nominate Les Goths drummer Bruno Frascone as should have/could have been drum legend. Consider him so nominated! One of our favorite new garage / psych reissues for sure! Like with all Shadoks releases, plenty of rare photos, lyrics and liner notes.

LES MALEDICTUS SOUNDs/t(Mucho Gusto)cd$ 14.98

Previously a vinyl-only reissue, now also available on cd -- the crazy French-Canadian sound of 1968! Collectors (like Jello Biafra) have apparently been salivating over this bizarre record for years. A wild psychedelic big-band instrumental soundtrack

LES RALLIZES DENUDESBlind Baby Has It's Mothers Eyes(Phoenix)cd$ 17.98

All right, time to crank the stereo! There's no way to listen to these, but loud. Two rather crucial entries in the distorto-delic discography of seminal '70s Japanese underground rock band Les Rallizes Denudes are now reissued, on proper compact disc for what we think is the very first time, these having being previously only "available", if you can call it that, as cd-rs. Blind Baby Has It's Mothers Eyes, and Heavier Than A Death In The Family, woah, you know with titles like that they've gotta be good. And before you go running to your Japrocksamplers to look 'em up, we'll save you the trouble: Julian Cope rated these two albums at #11 and #3, respectively, on his top 50 of Japanese psych artifacts. Deservedly so. Heavily mythologized and mysterious, this lo-fi, in-the-red, sunglasses-wearing, Motown-loving, airplane-hijacking (??!), studio-recording-avoiding, raw outsider rock and roll unit provided the inspiration for every latter day underground Japanese psych band who have ever slipped on shades, cranked up their amps, and had a Tokyo Flashback. (Like Fushitsusha!) And these two discs, both equally recommended, are essential documents as to how and why. Heavier Than A Death In The Family features six songs, all but one of 'em in the double digits, with some great titles, no less than three of 'em referencing the night in some form or other: "Strung Out Deeper Than The Night", "The Night Collectors", "Night Of The Assassins", "Enter The Mirror", "People Can Choose", and "Ice Fire". All were apparently recorded live in '77 (except one from '73). Blistering is the word. Super echoey, reverbed out, almost like Ariel Pink producing Wooden Shjips or Comets On Fire gone dub... Sounds also like some Siltbreeze shitgazers, or current psychsters like Heavy Winged, plodding and throbbing. And "Ice Fire" is 16 minutes of proto-Merzbow meets Hawkwind howl. Wow. Frayed and fried, ULTRA fuzzed and feedback-y, of course, and yet for a Rallizes release, the sound isn't all that "bad", compared to some of their stuff we've heard wherein the tape hiss competes with the guitar for domination. Not that that's a bad thing, either, but this will take less getting used to. Meanwhile, Blind Baby Has It's [sic] Mothers [sic] Eyes consists of three tracks, but clocks in at 54 minutes total: the title track, "An Awful Eternity" (aka "An Aweful Eternitie"), and "The Last One". Presumably also recorded live, we don't know when, sometime in the '70s, the sound here is similar sickness. More of their charismatically clangorous chaos, getting quite hypnotically repetitious across the lengths of these three wandering, wah-wah wailing epics. We'd recommend this as a good gift for your friend who likes the Velvet Underground's "Sister Ray", Circle, and primitive black metal such as Striborg... if they haven't heard Les Rallizes yet they'll be thanking you! Although due to the confusing nature of the Rallizes catalog, we imagine that some of these tracks might appear on other Rallizes discs that you may or may not have, but in any case these two albums are essentials in their entirety. Get 'em while they last. Typical Phoenix no-frills cardboard "wallet" packaging, each cd numbered and limited to 1000 copies.

LES RALLIZES DENUDESHeavier Than A Death In The Family(Phoenix)cd$ 17.98

All right, time to crank the stereo! There's no way to listen to these, but loud. Two rather crucial entries in the distorto-delic discography of seminal '70s Japanese underground rock band Les Rallizes Denudes are now reissued, on proper compact disc for what we think is the very first time, these having being previously only "available", if you can call it that, as cd-rs. Blind Baby Has It's Mothers Eyes, and Heavier Than A Death In The Family, woah, you know with titles like that they've gotta be good. And before you go running to your Japrocksamplers to look 'em up, we'll save you the trouble: Julian Cope rated these two albums at #11 and #3, respectively, on his top 50 of Japanese psych artifacts. Deservedly so. Heavily mythologized and mysterious, this lo-fi, in-the-red, sunglasses-wearing, Motown-loving, airplane-hijacking (??!), studio-recording-avoiding, raw outsider rock and roll unit provided the inspiration for every latter day underground Japanese psych band who have ever slipped on shades, cranked up their amps, and had a Tokyo Flashback. (Like Fushitsusha!) And these two discs, both equally recommended, are essential documents as to how and why. Heavier Than A Death In The Family features six songs, all but one of 'em in the double digits, with some great titles, no less than three of 'em referencing the night in some form or other: "Strung Out Deeper Than The Night", "The Night Collectors", "Night Of The Assassins", "Enter The Mirror", "People Can Choose", and "Ice Fire". All were apparently recorded live in '77 (except one from '73). Blistering is the word. Super echoey, reverbed out, almost like Ariel Pink producing Wooden Shjips or Comets On Fire gone dub... Sounds also like some Siltbreeze shitgazers, or current psychsters like Heavy Winged, plodding and throbbing. And "Ice Fire" is 16 minutes of proto-Merzbow meets Hawkwind howl. Wow. Frayed and fried, ULTRA fuzzed and feedback-y, of course, and yet for a Rallizes release, the sound isn't all that "bad", compared to some of their stuff we've heard wherein the tape hiss competes with the guitar for domination. Not that that's a bad thing, either, but this will take less getting used to. Meanwhile, Blind Baby Has It's [sic] Mothers [sic] Eyes consists of three tracks, but clocks in at 54 minutes total: the title track, "An Awful Eternity" (aka "An Aweful Eternitie"), and "The Last One". Presumably also recorded live, we don't know when, sometime in the '70s, the sound here is similar sickness. More of their charismatically clangorous chaos, getting quite hypnotically repetitious across the lengths of these three wandering, wah-wah wailing epics. We'd recommend this as a good gift for your friend who likes the Velvet Underground's "Sister Ray", Circle, and primitive black metal such as Striborg... if they haven't heard Les Rallizes yet they'll be thanking you! Although due to the confusing nature of the Rallizes catalog, we imagine that some of these tracks might appear on other Rallizes discs that you may or may not have, but in any case these two albums are essentials in their entirety. Get 'em while they last. Typical Phoenix no-frills cardboard "wallet" packaging, each cd numbered and limited to 1000 copies.

LES RALLIZES DENUDES (AKA HADAKA NO RALLIZES)Yodo-Go-A-Go-Go (aka Flightless Bird Needs Water Wings)(10th Avenue Freeze Out)cd$ 17.98

With the publication of Julian Cope's long awaited Japrocksampler tome, interest in Japan's underground psychedelic rock scene in the '70s has gotta be running at an all time high. A big portion of Cope's book dealt with the legendary Les Rallizes Denudes aka Hadaka No Rallizes, a long running (since the late sixties, still "active" today) and influential act led by guitarist Takashi Mizutani. Without Les Rallizes, more modern day bands like Up-Tight and LSD-march wouldn't exist. Rallizes were also a big inspiration for Keiji Haino's equally significant Fushitsusha group. Their style (musical and sartorial), their distortion, their sunglasses... blown-out minimalist rock throb, carving delicate and/or devastating beauty out of guitar feedback and reverby pop simplicity. Unfortunately for readers of Cope's book, pretty much the entire catalog of Rallizes LPs, cd, cd-rs, cassettes etc. falls into the category of near-myth, hard to find at the very least. It used to be, you could go into a record shop in Japan and spend hundreds of dollars for a handful of live Rallizes cd-rs. We've stocked what we could, but Rallizes cds are few and far between. In other words, good timing that this disc just materialized (and maybe no coincidence that it was written up as a Record Of The Month on Cope's Head Heritage website a few months back). Titled either Yodo-Go-A-Go-Go or Flightless Bird Needs Water Wings, this cd offers up eight tracks of prime Rallizes, a "best of" of sorts drawn from rare recorded relics circa the early/mid '70s, though it goes back to '67 for track one. The disc opens with that garagey raver, "Otherwise My Conviction", then ventures into a gentler but no less distorted drone pop territory with "Valle d l'eau". The mood stays mellow until Mizutani busts out his searing Neil Young eat your heart out style guitar scorch for the end of the 13 minute third track, "Enter The Mirror". Has Wooden Shjips heard this? We're pretty sure they have. "Smokin' Cigarette Blues" is next, supremely lo-fi (with this band, that's a virtue), about as murky a 19 minutes of "blues" as you'll ever hear...it's all ambient low rumble and clatter, so abstract it's hard to tell if there's a band involved or not... this could be the Dead C for goshsakes! Wow. Following that, the fiery "Flames Of Ice" is propulsively distinct in comparison, and these 17 minutes should weigh heavily as a reason to pick this up. Then they plow into "Field Of Artificial Flowers", another heavy one, something like Link Wray's "Rumble" ultra-distorted into white hot sizzle and stretched out for ten minutes. What can they do to follow that? Being Les Rallizes Denudes, they go "Deeper Than Night" of course, which perfectly condenses everything that's wonderful about Les Rallizes into a mere two minutes and 24 seconds -- the mantric plod, the screeching sheets of sound wrenched from still bleeding guitars and amps. And then we're back to "Otherwise My Conviction", another version ending this disc much like it began. Whew. While any Rallizes cd is almost by definition essential, this really covers all the bases. Definitely one to get -- and it's also one of the only ones you CAN get.

LEWIS, JERRY LEEs/t(Rumble Records)lp$ 24.00

LIBAEK, SVENSolar Flares(Roundtable / Votary)lp$ 35.00

LIFEs/t(Mellotronen)cd$ 23.00

All right. Now this is what I'm talkin' about. 1971, yeah! Andee's always kidding me that I (Allan) think 1971 is the best year for rock music ever. That's not true of course ('69 and '70 and '72 were no slouches either!), but I do rate it pretty highly. There were SO MANY great records that year, among them Tago Mago, First Utterance, Nursery Cryme, Music To Eat, Satori, Master Of Reality, Funkadelic, Neu! 1, Culpeper's Orchard, Demon And Eleven Children, Love It To Death, In Search Of Space, Stormcock...ohmigod...there's so many. I don't know how I would have survived if I was of a music-buying age in 1971. But I was only two years old. It's sure would have been tough to make a top ten list if I was working at Aquarius back then!! But I'm pretty sure that this Life album (if I even woulda known about it, I wonder if Aquarius ever stocked the original import LP?) would have made that list. Seriously. Of course, even if folks back then probably didn't appreciate it (foolishly thinking that rock was in some sorta prog-clogged doldrums) they were living in some special times. Especially special if you like the hard/heavy/acid rock like I do. Ok, more about Life then: they were a skilled Swedish psych-prog trio that spun songs that incorporate (sometimes in the same composition) two quite different but equally excellent extremes -- they do some light n' lush, very pretty pop with piano and full orchestration. But then there's also a lotta rib-rattling dirge-rock with glacial, gargantuan guitars! The combination is epic and elegant, and puts 'em (in my book) almost in the same league as Queen and Deep Purple and Uriah Heep! A quick n' dirty description might be Cream-meets-Queen. And this was before Queen ever released an album. For '71, the heaviness is right up there. Killer songs, stellar vocals, a definite stoner spirit. I can't imagine any of AQ's customers who are real '70s proto-metal freaks not digging this album, even if you don't normally get into the poppier stuff...just 'cause its SO GOOD. And the lighter fare is integral even to the slabs of heaviosity for which you're really gonna worship this album. Yeah, it's heavy, and even when not, it's damn bombastic. In a way that makes even the tracks that are the most doomy and downer definitely also have a lively, uplifting vibe. I'm telling you, if Life were British and had made more than one album (instead of breaking up 'cause of joining the cast of the Swedish touring production of Hair!), you'd know about 'em already. I mean, they'd be '70s classic rock royalty for sure, at least as famous as, I dunno, Nazareth. Getting back to the whole 1971 thing: in actuality, this album was originally released in 1970 with Swedish lyrics, then released with English language vocals in '71, and that version is the only one to be reissued on cd. Normally I prefer bands to sing in their native tongue, but this guy is a such a good singer, and avoids any embarrasing accent-issues, and the lyrics are pretty cool ("Once I saw a castle / made by rocks and sand / I used to touch that castle / with my magic hand"). A couple of the bonus tracks are in Swedish, too (where they suddenly sound like Dungen gone arena!). Now I don't want to freak out and make like this is the best record EVER or anything, but it's really really good and is something that should be much better known that's for sure. So we've ordered a few to try and spread the word...

LIFE ON EARTHLook!! There Is Life On Earth!(Subliminal Sounds)cd$ 16.98

From the first few notes, we were totally sold. A wild freaked out psychedelic flute solo, why don't all bands start their records like that? Cuz we probably couldn't handle it! But it makes sense here, when you realize that Life On Earth just so happens to be dudes from Swedish psych rockers Dungen! Obviously Dungen fans are gonna want this, the sound is similar, maybe not quite as rocking, a little more laid back and hippified, groovy and space-y and definitely psychedelic, but still so so good.� Fronted by Dungen-eer�Mattias Gustavsson, but with musical back up from other Dungen folks, and such unlikely musical bedfellows as Town & Country and Mia Doi Todd, Life On Earth is Gustavsson's musical tribute to, well, life on earth. The sheer exuberant joy of it, happiness and sunshine and love and brotherhood and wildlife and blue skies and nature and dreams and beauty and most importantly some super kick ass folky proggy psych rock bliss... Flute is everywhere, and obviously for that we are truly thankful, but it drift and flutters amidst gorgeous and tranquil swirly folky forests of sound. Silky threads of acoustic guitar, swoonsome strings, harmony vocals, lyrics both in Swedish AND English, bongos and simple percussion, some slithery rhythmic grooves, some killer squalls of psych guitar growl, long stretches of hushed dreaminess, with cooing vocals and muted melodies and super tripped out heart-of-the-sun druggy jams, complete with slow motion riffing and reverbed outer space vocals, the whole disc is actually very Beatles-esque (albeit at their most experimental and HIGH) giving Dungen's sound even more of a sixties pop makeover. Surprisingly (or maybe not so) the record finishes off with nearly 30 minutes of barely there lower case ambience, bits of percussion, keening high end glimmer, all drifting in wide open expanses of mumbled drones and hushed shimmer, a super longform abstract raga, that sounds like something you'd be more likely to find on Celebrate Psi Phenomenon or Pseudo Arcana than on a Dungen related record... Awesome.�

LIGHT, THETurn On... The Light(UT Records)cd$ 13.98

LIGHTNINGs/t(Arf! Arf!)cd$ 14.98

LITTER, THEAction Woman / A Legal Matter(Sundazed)7"$ 12.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY.

LITTLE BOY BLUESIn The Woodland of Weir(Acid Symposium)cd$ 15.98

Another reissue of late '60s psych / fuzz / garage stuff, this time from Chicago's Little Boy Blues. This album compiles all of their early singles and their "psych" album "In The Woodland of The Weir" (an album about such AQ-endorsed themes as ghouls and

LITTLE RICHARDHere's Little Richard(Doxy)lp$ 24.00

LIVERPOOLPor Favor Sucesso(Shadoks / Normal)cd$ 17.98

We pretty much thought the well had run dry as far as great lost tropicalia gems goes. A few years back there was an explosion of amazing finds from this fertile era in Brazilian music history, with records by folks like Som Imaginario, Ronnie Von, Paulo Bagunca and Alceu Valenca & Gerardo Azevedo. While there has been totally essential reissues of many of the biggest names of tropicalia (Jorge Ben, Gal Costa, Caetano Veloso, etc.) it was looking like we were going to have to concede that there might not be anymore totally obscure gems left. Of course time after time we're always blown away by unearthed discoveries that just sound way too damn good to have remained obscure and unheard for so long. Such is the case for Liverpool, who released this record in 1969 and of course by their name you know they were influenced by some of the paisley sounds coming out of the UK, and they incorporated that influence into their own take on breezy and driving tropicalia. With a vocal delivery and arrangements that would sound right at home on some of Caetano Veloso's best outings, Liverpool were just as potent mellow and sun baked as they were rocking and psychedelic. We're so happy this has been unearthed for us to finally appreciate, an absolute classic!

LIVING MUSICTo Allen Ginsberg(Roundtable)lp$ 22.00

LMO, VONFuture Language(Flemish Masters)cd$ 14.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. As the cover art proclaims: "The group from the future is here now! Advance yourself!" And well, Von Lmo has actually been bringing the future to us for quite some time now. This CD reissue of his classic early 80s LP includes the awesome track "Leave Your Body" that certain list-recipients might be familar with from the re-recorded version on one of Lmo's 90s underappreciated (but great) "comeback" efforts. Von Lmo exists in a futureworld not of synths, robotics and electronic blips'n'bleeps. No, it is instead one of skronky saxophone, raw garage-y guitar mayhem, balsa wood spacecrafts, and raging positivity. After all, "this album is dedicated to the advancement of the United States space program". And who can resist music that comes vacuum-packed in silver suits with giant red snowboots?

LOMBARD, CLAUDEs/t(Mpls Ltd)lp$ 17.98

A beautiful reissue of spacey melancholic chanson from this Belgian chanteuse who notably won the Eurovision song contest in 1968 a year before this debut release. But what sets this apart from standard '60s Euro-pop are the electronic, almost avant-garde arrangements made mostly with an Ondes Martenot, a theremin-like electronic keyboard famously used in the Star Trek theme and championed at the time by French avant-classical composer Olivier Messaien. Fans of Stereolab and Broadcast as well as Linda Perhacs and Brigitte Fontaine will surely find lots to love here, and we would love this even more if the reissue retained the original cover which is more haunting and ethereal than the nineties /sixties space-age bachelor pad design featured here, but that's a very small complaint. Limited stock!

LOOPWorld In Your Eyes(Reactor)3cd$ 22.00

Finally!! Ever since the first two Loop records got the deluxe multidisc reissue treatment, we've been anxiously awaiting the last two, their final record A Gilded Eternity, and this one right here, many folks around here's favorite, a compilation of 12"s called World In Your Eyes. Originally released in 1987, the updated World In Your Eyes, is even better, a TRIPLE disc collection of 12"s, 7"s, bonus tracks, unreleased tracks, demos, and covers. Seemingly always (unfairly) overshadowed by their sonic brethren the Spacemen 3, Loop managed to give the drugged out drone rock thing their own distinct spin, infusing some serious krautrock mesmer and some metallic muscle into their slow burning drones and effects drenched psychrock workouts. Slipping easily from super dreamy one riff blown out hypno rock, to in-the-red space garage pound, to hushed soft focus inner space drift, Loop were masters of modern psychedelia. Take the 10 minute drug drift of "Burning World", with its processed guitar chug, the swirling clouds of effects, the blooping bass, the motorik drums, like the perfect mix of Can and Hawkwind. Or "Brittle Head Girl", which sounded like a spacier more tripped out Galaxie 500, its lazy drawled vocals, and woozy guitar hook, and that irresistible bassline. Or "I'll Take You There", a super fuzzed out bit of garage-y space groove, the band easily out spacing the Spacemen themselves. We could probably go track by track, every one here is a gem, and the extras! Holy shit. Where to start? Besides a plethora of demos, live tracks and the like, this collection also includes some incredible covers, A spaced out version of a Pop Group track, Neil Young's "Cinammon Girl", Nick Drake's "Pink Moon" and Can's "Mother Sky (which Andee sez is better than the original, yeah we know, we know). Then there's the Arc-Lite 12" that takes up the first half of the third disc, one of our favorite Loop eps, and the track "Arc-Lite (Sonar)" is one of the best Loop jams ever, with its relentless riffing, it's strange flurries of tribal drumming, the echo drenched vox and the swooping streaks of effects, a 4 minute song that could easily have been ten times that. The song is reimagined as the "(Radar)" version, getting sort of supercharged, heavier and fleshier, less spare and skeletal and jangly than the original. There's a third version still, that gets all remixed into something less space rocky and more tripped out and dizzying. Let's not forget the ten minute "Sunburst", a sprawling bit of lysergic minimal krautdrone, woozy and druggy and slow burning. There's also the legendary live Prisma Europa Live 12", and finally, to top it all off, Loop's Godflesh cover, from their Loopflesh split 7", where each band covered the other, one of our Holy Grail 7"s, if anyone out there has one they can part with, we will be forever in your debt, and of course it's a killer, Godflesh's "Like Rats" transformed into something much spacier but no less menacing, in fact, it's most definitely the heaviest meanest slab of Loop-age ever, while still retaining plenty of that Loop-ed FX drenched shimmer. So goddamn GREAT. These reissues have been shuffling tracks around enough to cause a little confusion, as some of the tracks on the original issue of WIYE are left off here, but are tacked on elsewhere on the other reissues, and disc 3 here seems like it could have been included on the Gilded Eternity disc as this disc highlights one of our favorite Loop tracks, the above mentioned Arc-Light, originally a 1989 single, which was lumped onto the cd edition of A Gilded Eternity which came out a year later in 1990. But who really cares, as long as it's all here, and it's ALL here, and then some. Space rock and drone rock and psychedelic rock fanatics should buy all four, one of the most supremely transcendent and kick ass bodies of work in rock. Hyperbole? We think NOT. Killer packaging, three paper sleeves with various reproductions of the included 12"s, all housed in a slipcover, with a booklet that includes track listings credits, but sadly, not much in the way of liner notes.

LOS DESTELLOSConstelacion(Secret Stash Records)lp$ 17.98

LOS HOLY'SSueno Sicodelico(Plustapes)cassette$ 5.50

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. All right! Two of our favorite things, weird limited cassette tapes, and amazing psychedelic and garage music from all over the world. Plustapes is a new cassette only label, specializing, in... well, limited tapes and obscure international psych and garage music!!! Their first release is a doozy, and it's darn near criminal that it's limited to only 100 copies. The debut from Peru's Los Holy's, who just happen to count as a member a fella who would go on to play in another aQ fave Peruvian psych act, Tarkus. But unlike the heaviness of Tarkus, Los Holy's trafficked more in a fuzzy surfy garage music, thick with effects, a mix of the Ventures and Joe Meek. A few tracks are dead ringers for Meek jams, and still others sound like Ventures outtakes, but Los Holy's definitely add their own spin. There's plenty of fuzz, these all instrumental jams slip from groovy kitchy garage rock, to super psyched out and fuzzed out under water sounding surf music, often a mix of the two, all slathered in Farfisa organs, moaning Theremins, swirling bloops and bleeps, primitive delays and echo effects, tons of reverb, all packed into kick ass super catchy psychedelic sixties surf garage jams, surprisingly heavy and tripped out for the time (mid '60s), really awesome. Essential for anyone into super obscure, super far out sixties psych, especially, from South America, a la groups like Tarkus, Traffic Sound, and Los Nuevos Shain's. LIMITED TO 100 COPIES, Each one hand numbered, clear red cassettes in full color sleeves. ONE PER CUSTOMER!!!

LOS MOCKERSComplete Recordings(Munster Records)cd$ 14.98

LOS NUEVOS SHAIN'SSingles 1969-1970(Repsychled)cd$ 15.98

Along with the Tarkus album highlighted on this week's list, we've got more vintage Peruvian psych rock for you here -- a disc featuring rare and unreleased singles tracks circa 1969-1970 from Los Nuevos Shain's, the band formed by Enrique "Pico" Ego Aguirre, who had been the guitarist from garage rock legends Los Shain's (natch). Getting into the heavier sounds comin' out contemporaneously from England and California, Los Nuevos Shain's put their own stamp on covers of songs by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Cream, the Jefferson Airplane, Spirit, Strawberry Alarm Clock, and even Black Sabbath -- for us, it's their version of Sabbath's "Wicked World" that makes this a must have! Had to buy it just for that, to add to our collection of early daze Sabbath covers. (This puts 'em in the company of South Africa's Suck and Japan's Flower Travellin' Band to achieve the distinction of having recorded a Sabbath song way back when.) Not to give you the idea that this is all that hard rockin' or heavy (for that, look to Pico's subsequent band Pax, reviewed elsewhere on our site). Sure, he does give the ol' fuzz and wah-wah pedals a bit of a stomp, though. Heck they do "Purple Haze". But this also has lots of dreamy poppiness on it too, and we're also quite taken by the boppy loopiness of the track "Guau Guau A Go Go", which features barking dogs in the mix! Basically, a trip to a paisley-painted Peruvian garage, some 37 years ago, to hear an enthusiastic band do a fun run-through of some familiar and not-so-familiar sixties tunes plus a few originals. And by the way, the music on this cd was taken from the master tapes (you know it, 'cause the booklet in this digipack features color photos of the original reels and tape boxes with handwritten labels!). Cool.

LOTHAR AND THE HAND PEOPLEPresenting...(Microwerks)cd$ 12.98

Another oft-reissued, minor classic from the sixties, flower power pop-psych with a good gimmick: Lothar wasn't the singer, instead Lothar was the name of the group's Theremin, with the Hand People referring to the actual humans in the band, the Theremin as you probably know being an unusual electronic instrument invented in the 1920's by Russian scientist Leon Theremin, that you don't actually touch to play (the instrument, not the scientist). Its weird, wavery sound should be familiar from old horror soundtracks, and the intro to the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations". Also we sold a ton of the album by classical Theremin virtuoso Clara Rockmore that was recently reissued on vinyl by Mississippi. Lothar wasn't The Hand People's only electronic gadget, either, they also utilized Moog synths, tape decks, and more. So you'd expect something along the lines of Silver Apples, maybe, or the United States Of America, but this isn't quite that avant garde, though some tracks, like "It Comes On Anyhow" with its loops and edits, or the spacey-synthy instrumental soundscape "Paul, In Love", are certainly all about the electronic experimentation. Yet, others like "This May Be Goodbye", are vocal-oriented, laidback, sunshiney songs with the electronic elements almost an afterthought, but nice nonetheless. Really it seems like The Hand People would try just about anything (not sure if Lothar got a vote), musically they're all over the place, the 13 tracks (+3 bonus cuts) on this, their 1968 debut, running the gamut from groovy garage to Byrdsy countryish pop to the abovementioned styles, happily veering into novelty tune territory too, ferinstance their "switched on" version of the Woody Woodpecker cartoon theme (!?), and the freak scene that is "Sex And Violence", a far out goof that sounds a lot like something Kim Fowley could have produced. Pick of the litter is probably the lead-off track "Machines", a bonafide classic consisting of rhythmic clink and clank, disjointed groove and poppy psych, almost proto-Devo if not proto-industrial, and reminding us of some of Bruce Haack's compositions. Neat-o.

LOUDERMILK, JOHN D.The Open Mind(The Omni Recording Corporation)cd$ 17.98

LOUDEST WHISPERThe Children Of Lir(Sunbeam Records)cd$ 16.98

A 1974 folk rock concept album outta County Cork... a real rare record, reissued for the ye olde hippie folk interested among you. 'Tis all about the old Irish myth of King Lir and his cursed swan-children, in a dramatic presentation of lilting Celtic folk melodies with proggish majesty, full of sweet male/female vocal harmonies and electric psych guitar leads. At many moments mellow and dainty, at others darker and fairly rockin', this is nice enough, though they're no Comus (who is?). Often pretty but also a bit precious, perhaps. Includes full liner notes, photos, and 6 bonus tracks including a 10+ minute television broadcast soundtrack complete with narration, which should help out those of us not up on our Irish mythology. Also there's disparate demos and singles tracks (one of 'em, "False Prophets" is quite the stormer, sounding almost proto-metal with Neil Youngish vocals).

LOVEDa Capo(Sundazed)lp$ 15.98

Love's second lp from 1967, originally issued by Elektra, now available again on 180 gram audiophile vinyl. Seven tracks, including the essential "Seven And Seven Is" as well as the sidelong epic, "Revelation".

LOVEFalse Start(Universal)cd$ 16.98

LOVEForever Changes(Elektra)cd$ 16.98

This remastered deluxe edition of Love's 1967 masterpiece features seven bonus tracks! If you've never heard this classic record before then you must buy one now. Period. You will love it, promise. For those who're already fans of Love, know that the bonus tracks are a mixed bag. There are some wonderful outtakes and new songs, some versions of songs that are seemingly indistinguishable from the originals, and one hilarious track where Arthur Lee exhorts his bandmates to relax... and then says "Okay, Take 25"!

LOVEForever Changes (Collector's Edition)(Elektra)2cd$ 15.98

Yet another reissue of this all time classic. This time its a two disc set with an entire disc of demo's, out-takes, etc. If you don't own this record, you should!

LOVELove Lost(Sundazed)cd$ 19.98

Most people know Love from their initial run in the mid to late '60s, culminating in the classic Forever Changes album. But there's much more to the story than what you will generally read about, and bandleader Arthur Lee soldiered on under the Love name with various lineups until the mid '70s. The results from Love's less popular phase are mixed, but these scrapped 1971 sessions for Columbia Records make it plain and clear: Arthur Lee still had it, at least in 1971. Well, it must be said that most aQ staffers - ok, ALL of them except for one - were less than blown away by Love Lost, content to file it in the much maligned "blues rock" bin. Personally, I think these songs stand strongly on their own, but it does help to take things into perspective: if you saw your pioneering band torn apart by drug addiction, mental turmoil, and public indifference (among other things), you might have a case of the blues as well. With that said, calling this "blues rock" is off the mark, if you actually take the time to listen, and truthfully, it's hard to imagine a fan of Love not digging this. Sure, like most bands from the era, a heavy blues influence is there, but there's also a super charged folk vibe that had been with the band since the beginning, and many of the songs walk an interesting line between tough early '70s rock and more the introspective, melancholy numbers that had always been part of Love's agenda. Lee's voice sounds as amazing and self-aware as it always had, and his colorful lyrics are clearly the outcome of a powerful vision. It actually sounds like these sessions were fun, not agonizing, and it's refreshing hearing the band sound this lively. Not really sure why these songs have gone unreleased for almost 40 years, because Love Lost really does sound like a fully realized album, not just a collection of throw away demos. This work stands as a powerful reminder of Arthur Lee's talents and finds itself right at home within Love's untouchable legacy, but definitely don't expect another Forever Changes....

LOVEOut There(Universal)cd$ 16.98

There is almost a curse in creating something that so many people praise as "genius" and as your "defining moment". Such is the case with the legacy of one of the best west coast psych bands of the '60s, Love. For most people the story of Love begins and ends with Forever Changes, their undeniably classic album from 1967, a record that's been included on all sorts of best album of all time lists and has been the subject of entire books and magazines articles. Rightfully so, as it really is one of those classic timeless records that we turn to time and time again. But sadly the attention Forever Changes now attracts has obscured the fact that Arthur Lee (essentially the driving force of Love) created a whole lot of other amazing music that's not on Forever Changes. Lately we've been spending lots of time with Love's 1969 outing Out There which was originally released as a double lp and was pretty much a commercial flop (as was Forever Changes when it first came out!) After disbanding and changing lineups almost every year in the late '60s and into the early '70s Love was pretty much the vehicle for the enigmatic world of Arthur Lee (who for some funny reason calls himself Arthurly in the credits of this record). Out There contains some of Lee's most devastating material, songs like "I'm Down" paint such a moving and sad portrait of the internal anguish that haunted Lee throughout a lot of his life. This disc really is all over the place, containing more playful and breezy tracks like "Run To The Top" and quite possibly one of our favorite Love song of all time, the ultra dreamy "Willow Willow", as well as the smart ass and anti-military "Discharged", the twelve minute percussive freakout of "Doggone" and the Hendrix like rocker "Stand Up". While it's not without a few misses this still is one of the best records in the Love back catalog and strong proof that there is more to the story and Arthur Lee's genius than just Forever Changes.

LOVEs/t(Warner Europe)cd$ 16.98

The classic 1966 debut from Arthur Lee and co. remastered in both stereo and mono! Includes their intense take on Bacharach / David's "My Little Red Book", the fast paced, fuzzed out cover of "Hey Joe" and the heart-wrenching tearjerker "Signed D.C.". As

LOVE LIVE LIFE + 1Love Will Make A Better You()cd$ 11.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. Finally, a cd reissue of this extrememly rare, sought-after early '70's document of Japanese psychedelia. Includes a live bonus track. Essentially, freaked-out "krautrock" a la Faust, but from Japan. (There even seems to be a little Sly Stone to them too.)

LOYDE, LOBBYBeyond Morgia(Aztec Music)cd$ 21.00

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY.

LOYDE, LOBBYObsecration(Aztec Music)cd$ 21.00

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY.

LSD POND (LSD MARCH + BARDO POND)s/t(aRCHIVE)2cd$ 16.98

This one hardly needs a review. Space rockers Bardo Pond, jamming with Japanese psych-rockers LSD-March! Two discs, looooooooong songs, plenty of sprawling druggy psychedelia, throbbing serpentine basslines, busy groovy drumming, and lots and lots and lots of guitars, buzzing and whirring, grinding and roaring, wailing and howling. Culled from two stoned, late-night recording sessions on days off from the 2006 Bardo Pond / LSD-March / Masami Kawaguchi's New Rock Syndicate East Coast tour, these tracks were edited together by Bardo Pond-er Michael Gibbons with no overdubs, just a document of epic, swirling, lurching, grooving spaced out psych rock. Incredible recording, super clear, almost studio quality, multiple drummers, multiple guitar players, the sound is loud, and intense, sometimes blissing out into laid back stretches of near ambient tranquility, but always building back up into howling squalls of freaked out psychrock nirvana. The first disc is the more jammy of the two, more loose and improvised sounding, even the opening track fades in with the track already in full swing, like they had already been jamming for a while before we even got to the part. The second disc introduces flute, and some electronics, and begins with a looped lick, over some skittery drumming, and some serious grinding growling low end, it goes on for ages, and we never really wanted it to stop. It does eventually, which is okay as the band has already moved on, locking into some new looped rhythm, the guitars fiery arcs of sound, that low end continuing to grind and buzz, the multiple guitars and guitar parts careening wildly over a roiling backdrop of howling moaning distorted buzz. The second track on disc two is almost entirely ambient, sounding more like Toho Sara or something, the guitars smeared and blurred, everything buzzy and rumbling, clouds of tinkling shimmer and random percussive clatter, hand drums, glitchy electronics, streaks of feedback, thick swaths of distorted abstract riffing, culminating in a soaring blown out multiple guitar-ed Ur-drone. The disc finishes off with a 20 minute scorcher that goes from furious psych skree meltdown, to stumbling abstract freeform flutter and back, the players locked in a battle to the death, full freakout, ultra-noise mode, vocals scrambling over a dogpile of grinding electronics, a sea of shrieking feedback, an avalanche of drum chaos, and about a ton of blown out guitar damage. Phew. Every time we play this in the store, someone buys one, or someone comes out from the back to see what the heck is playing. This might just be one of the most played discs in the store recently. And rightfully so. As always, aRCHIVE spares no expense on the packaging, but they may have outdone themselves this time. A thick textured black ink on cream cardstock gatefold sleeve, the words LSD and POND embossed and printed in reflective silver ink, inside an 8 page black and white booklet affixed to the sleeve, with live photos and liner notes, each disc in it's own black sleeve, printed in silver ink, Japanese characters, the two discs held together by a Japanese style obi, in the same style as the cover. WOW. LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES. A one time pressing, so don't miss out�

LUCAS, TEDs/t(Riverman)cd$ 19.98

There was this awesome time around four or five years ago when we were being blown away by one obscure psych folk reissue after another. Records by the likes Mark Fry, Roger Rodier, Mark Fosson, Eduardo Mateo, and Bridget St. John all came into our lives back then and would become total treasures near and dear to our hearts and ears. Since then there have been lots of awesome reissues of full on psych, international burners and early '80s gems but it seemed the well dried up a bit on great lost folk from the early '70s, as just not that much of it had been coming our way, and the one's we were hearing weren't all that spectacular and probably remained obscure and unheard for good reason: they just weren't that good. But this 1975 album by Ted Lucas is totally hitting that special soft spot we have for hazy and drifty psych-folk and immediately transports us and lulls us into a gloriously stoned and zoned state of mind. So yes, these are totally stoned and lovely folk songs that bring to mind a more rustic Nick Drake, that amazing first solo record from David Crosby or a totally unpolished and stripped down Eric Clapton. We also think fans of Linda Perhacs, Charles Manson (the singer/songwriter, not the cult leader!), Vashti Bunyan, The Search Party, Gary Higgins, and Bert Jansch will totally dig what was going on in the music of Ted Lucas.

LUCIFER RISING (BOBBY BEAUSOLIEL)(OST)(Arcanum Entertainment)cd$ 16.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. The previously available deluxe double cd with extras version of this fantastic, far-out album is gone, but Arcanum has put out a single disc version featuring just the soundtrack... why they don't keep the 2cd version in print, we don't know, but anyway at least you can still get this. It's the rare soundtrack to cult underground director and Crowley-ite Kenneth Anger's film Lucifer Rising (begun in the mid-'60s, completed in 1980). At one point, Jimmy Page was supposed to do the score, but he bowed out and the music was instead handled by another cult figure, the musical visionary and imprisoned killer Bobby Beausoliel, who composed and performed this spacey psychedelic opus with his Freedom Orchestra (who were all fellow prisoners with Bobby). Beausoliel and co. play electric guitars, Fender Rhodes electric pianos, some synths and bass...there's two drummers, and a trumpet player. The result is a sometimes sinister, sometimes blissful, always beautiful and "cosmic" drifting soundscape. Gurgling old-school electronics blend with propulsive rock drumming, while psychedelic guitar soloing tears across the sunset horizon created by the synths...The combination results in what you might imagine an early '70s Tangerine Dream/Ennio Morricone collaboration might have sounded like! It's indeed a lost classic. And the composer's life story is at least as weird and interesting as the music... In the late Sixties, Bobby was a rising star in the LA rock-pop scene, hanging with Zappa, the Beach Boys, and Love. But then a drug deal went bad and he was sent to death row for murder, arrested 3 days before the Manson killing spree. Fortunately for him, his sentence was eventually commuted, but he's spent the last 30 years in jail. He's been a model prisoner, pursuing his talents in music and art despite his incarceration, and you'd think that the parole board would have let him out by now (he's been paying his debt to society longer than anybody else has for a similar crime, we're told) but sadly for Bobby, he's got to deal with his association with the notorious Charles Manson. While never a member of Manson's Family (a common misconception), he did play in a band with Manson, and the media hype surrounding anything to do with Manson hasn't helped Bobby's case, as you might imagine! Or at least...that's the way Bobby Beausoleil tells it. But the more one delves into the story of Lucifer Rising, the weirder things get -- for instance, apparently Bobby was supposed to PLAY the role of Lucifer in the original 1966 version of Anger's film, but the two had a falling out and Bobby allegedly stole the footage and buried it in Death Valley! How this jibes with him later writing this soundtrack, we don't know (though this new edition's liner notes shed some more light on these mysteries). Yet, not being one to simply sit in his cell and rot, Bobby has, as we said, kept quite busy within the clutches of the California Penal system, with the help of his wife starting a label that originally released this (and some other, newer, more New Agey fare) on cd-r. Now in conjunction with Arcanum Entertainment, Beausoliel's Lucifer Rising soundtrack gets a proper (and like we said, at one time, deluxe) compact disc release. Although for obvious reasons Bobby wouldn't probably approve of the use of the word to describe himself and this soundtrack, in the Aquarius Records' musical context it's quite appropriate: Cult!

LUNDBORG, PATRICKThe Acid Archives(Lysergia)book$ 29.00

Two fine record reference works on the list this week, there's the Encyclopedia of Swedish Progressive Music (reviewed below), and this one, a tome devoted American private press musical weirdness from the psychedelic era; its subtitle is "Guide To Underground Sounds 1965-1982". And yes, it's an A-to-Z of bands, each release getting an opinionated write-up, sometimes from more than one reviewer, who don't always agree! Not just psych bands, but also folk-rock, hard rock, "incredibly strange music", sunshine pop, all sorts of stuff. As long as it's rare and obscure and has collectors salivating... Here's a few of the bands included: Anonymous, BF Trike, Cromagnon, David Allen Coe, Euphoria, Francisco, Josephus, New Hobbits, Charles Mason, Peace Pipe, Ya Ho Wha 13... that's a very small fraction (hey I bet Fraction is in here... let's see, yep) of what you'll find. There's literally hundreds and of entries. Hours of browsing to be had. In addition to this "Acid Archive" of reviews, which include discographical info on both the original releases -and- (where applicable) reissues, there's some other special features to this volume. You'll find top tens and "fave raves" from the book's various contributors, also a buying guide for collectors on a budget, and a forward by Mike Stax of Ugly Things magazine -- and if you're a dedicated Ugly Things reader, you definitely want this book!! 15 years in the making, this is as authoritative and indispensable as it gets, when it comes to weird music from way back. It's not quite as deluxe as that Swedish Encyclopedia (and not as expensive, either), but still really nicely put together. Paperback, 11 3/4" x 8 1/4", 298 pages, three columns per page of text, lots of cool b&w graphics (album covers, record labels, promo photos). Trippy!!

LUV MACHINETurns You On(Rise Above Relics)cd$ 16.98

The Rise Above Relics label's first two releases -- Possessed and Luv Machine -- are bound to intrigue all fans of obscure, early '70s psych/prog heaviness...we know there's a few of you reading this! And both of these albums were recorded in the magical, mystical year of 1971 that we (well, Allan) is always going on about. The band at hand, Luv Machine, were originally from Barbados, but took their groovy psych-pop hard rock to the UK to try to make it big, revamping the lineup in the process with the addition of a few British musicians replacing members who got homesick for the West Indies. Definitely influenced by Cream and the Jimi Hendrix Experience, and sounding to us a bit like another obscure band of the era, The Next Morning (who also hailed from the Caribbean, by way of NYC instead of the UK), they're certainly a fun listen. Not terribly heavy at all, really, but still pretty cool -- cool enough that they became pals with The Sweet, who took 'em on tour to Italy! Yes indeed, a quite funky lil' band with plenty of fuzz guitar crunch and a sunny disposition. There's a few weak cuts, some stuff that just seems a bit "off", but then again that might be intentional weirdness (like the crazy sped-up tape manipulation that occurs at the end of "Maybe Tomorrow", for instance, and the more Jimi than Jimi styled vocals at times). Mostly though this is soulful and psychedelically quirky, a foot-tapping good time, dated but delightful. Imagine if you can a blend of Shocking Blue and the Band Of Gypsies... This slipcased reissue includes all the tracks from their collector-coveted 1971 album (which boasted some "tasteless", "pornographic" cover art, not used by Rise Above Relics but fortunately at least reproduced inside the thick, heavily text and illustration laden cd booklet), plus six previously unreleased cuts. NB. the track "Reminiscing" was written by Vernon Pereira of Possessed, and was recorded by that band on their album Exploration.

MACLISE, ANGUSNew York Electronic, 1965(Sub Rosa)lp$ 16.98

The first pressing of this classic slab of modern minimalism sold out in a heartbeat, so we're guessing pressing number two will follow suit, and not surprising really, these archival recordings are fantastic. Rescued from obscurity by Gerard Malanga, this lp documents a handful of purely electronic recordings, a sound few knew MacLise had ever explored before, but listening to these now, has us wishing he had continued. The A side especially is a stunning sprawl of glimmering ambience, lo-fi, and full of ambient sounds, voices, room sound, chair scrapes and the like, but all of that is subsumed into the glorious field of shimmer MacLise conjures up. "Electronic Mix For 'Expanded Cinema'" does in fact live up to its title, the sound expansive and psychedelic, and yeah, very cinematic at points, sometimes devolving into wild little tangles are furious electronic squiggles, but just as often blossoming into something much more majestic and moving, long stretches of near silence too, at which point the ambient sounds seem to drift to the fore, as well as the sonic artifacts of the original medium, tape hiss and hum, but that hiss and hum only adds to the lush textures and constantly shifting sonic landscape. We'll admit that a lot of academic music and modern electronic minimalism can sometimes leave us cold, bleeps and scrapes and clicks, but the sounds here manage to feel lush and organic, the arrangements alive, the recordings raw and intimate, and definitely worth it for the A side alone. But the B side is chock full of equally compelling stuff, murky expanses of drum driven (?) psychedelia, blurred, hazy ambience, looped and layered sounds, "Trance 1" especially is some sort of spaced out psychedelic jam, with Maclise joined by Tony Conrad and John Cale, with some of the other tracks moving back into purely electronic tonalism, the sounds gristly and in-the-red, flitting from pure tone phase to weird psych jam and back again. Killer stuff. Here's hoping there's more lost gems like these still to be discovered...

MAD DOG617(Mr. Nobody)cd$ 17.98

Cow bell knockin', kick-ass hard rockin' seventies proto-metal here folks! Michigan power trio Mad Dog's lone album, cryptically entitled 617, was a private press LP originally released in 1977, though recording began back in '74. It features a raw production, heavy guitars, rough and ready vocal wailin', and songs that blend urgent, punkish energy with more languid psych stylings. Sounds like these guys didn't live too far from Detroit. And it's got a whiff of Blue Cheer and even the Pink Fairies, at least enough that we expect this tuff lil' low-budget obscurity might well charm those of you into that sort of thing.

MAD RIVERTwo Classic Albums From(Collectors' Choice )cd$ 15.98

In the same Collector's choice series that has brought us classics by Faust and H.P. Lovecraft, comes a single-disc reissue of the two albums ("Mad River" and "Paradise Bar & Grill") by this lesser-known '60s San Francisco psychrock outfit. Their guitars are employed in both the "acid" and "country/folk" modes common to other Bay Area bands. Mad River is comparable to a somewhat spookier sounding Quicksilver Messenger Service, I guess. Not really classic stuff, but cult material nonetheless for fans of the era/genre, certainly possessing some weird, dissonant charm.

MAD RIVERs/t(Capitol)lp$ 14.98

MADLIBMadlib Medicine Show No. 6 : The Brain Wreck Show(Madlib)cd$ 15.98

We're up to number 6 in Madlib's 12 part Medicine Show series, all of them great, but THIS is the one we've been waiting for, a dizzying megamix of "global psychedelic, progressive and hard rock & funk circa 1968-1976", hell yeah, we were already way into Madlib, but the thought of him spinning a crazy selection of mysterious and amazing heavy funky jams, well shit, we were pretty much sold before we heard it. And it's pretty much just how you'd imagine, crazy fuzzy psych rock covers, buzzy guitars, fluttering flutes, exotic ballads, skittery rhythms, wild progged out organs, frenzied drumming, woozy grooves, lysergic jams, all chopped up and looped and woven together, laced with really funny spoken word bits, girls talking about all the drugs they've taken, Pee Wee Herman, comedy records, commercials, plenty of thrift store weirdness and tripped out effects peppering the otherwise heavy rocking proceedings. Separated into smaller mini mixes, each track is jammed with buzz and fuzz, howl and shimmy, tracks skipping and slowing down, voices sped up, garage rock colliding with surf rock, hard rock giving way to dreamy soul giving way to wah wah drenched acid rock, flutes and organs and jawharps and animal calls, wild crowd sounds, drum solos, totally drugged out musical meltdowns, this is definitely not a straight mix, or a selection of classic jams, instead it's a classic hip hop style mix, just sourced from prog and psych and hard rock records, and it's fucking awesome.

MAGIC CARPETs/t(Magic Carpet)cd$ 15.98

For the listener who craves the deep, warm, dark green and forest brown, fog-drenched Indian influenced psychedelia that chartered its way out of San Francisco in the late sixties / early seventies, this reissue of the Magic Carpet�s debut record will ring a true chord. True, the band hailed from the UK” nowhere near the flower children of the Haight, but their brand of "Eastern Psych Folk" is close kin to After Bathing At Baxter�s era Jefferson Airplane (a seriously underrated record) and calls to mind the Bay Area folk revival scene going on today. In a time of Devendra Banhart�s elfin freakiness, Joanna Newsom�s evil-angel resurrections, and the resurgence of interest in Vashti Bunyan, the Magic Carpet�s 1972 lost classic could not sound fresher. Alisha Sufit is a resurrecting chanteuse whose dark voice is crystal clear and mesmerizing; Clem Alford�s sitar playing is top notch and truly psychedelic. The songs come as old friends (our favorite: "Father Time") and hang in the air as mysteries, leading to the sweet 20+ minute instrumental raga not found on the original release. Top notch rainy day music, and for those so inclined, a perfect bong stuffer for the holidays. (Review courtesy of AQ pal and Birdman label boss David Katznelson.)