VARIATIONS, LES Nador / Take It Or Leave It (Magic) 2cd 18.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Last list we featured Docdail and Triangle, now here's more rare Francais Metal de Proto for y'all, this time from Les Variations! That's right, another French band from the late '60s/early '70s playing an unexpected blend of hard rockin' proto-metal, psychedelic freakiness, Moorish exotica, and groovy pop. This double disc set includes Variations' first two albums -- Nador (1970) and Take It Or Leave It (1973) -- plus 13 bonus tracks.
Nador is the primary reason to get this, as Take It Or Leave It more-or-less lives up to its title. But Nador is a seriously smokin' album, with the exception perhaps of one cheesy commercial pop tune and a detour into oldies rock n' roll territory (the Jerry Lee Lewis piano-pounding of "Mississippi Woman"). At its best though, which is most of the time, Nador is the high-energy, heavy-duty French answer to the likes of Led Zep, the Rolling Stones, and the MC5! Zut alors! Pounding stormers like "Generations" and "What A Mess Again" are gonna please anyone into long-haired, bell-bottomed riff-rock. Meanwhile, Variations mix it up with segues into mysterious Moroccan hippie-raga, as on the acoustic instrumental title track. Basically imagine Leaf Hound with some North African ancestry. We've read that Nador was the heaviest album from a French band ever when it was originally released, and we believe it.
The bonus tracks following Nador are also equally badass, with lots of wild psych guitar and headbangin' rhythm action goin' on. "Come Along" sounds pretty much *exactly* like something by local San Francisco retro-stoner power trio Genghis Khan, actually. There's also the excellent psych-pop ballad "Down The Road" as well.
Disc two's Take It Or Leave It certainly rocks and rolls too, but starts to suffer from some of the fashion faux pas the '70s were known for, shall we say. Way too much honky tonk piano this time around, and overproduced arrangements. The psych side of things is long gone. But it has got its moments though. And several of the bonus tracks found on this disc most definitely live up to the killer standards of disc one ("I Was Down" and "The Jam Factory" ferinstance). So while Nador's great by itself, we're happy to have these two discs worth of Variations! Vive la Francais Metal de Proto!!
MPEG Stream: "What A Mess Again"
MPEG Stream: "Waiting For The Pope"
MPEG Stream: "Love Me"
MPEG Stream: "The Jam Factory"

VELOSO, CAETANO s/t (Tropicalia) (Lilith) lp 29.00
Now on vinyl! Here's what we said about the cd when we listed it before:
Summer's here and what better way to celebrate than to put on this gorgeous reissue of the very first Tropicalia record, the stunning 1968 debut of Caetano Veloso. As big in Brazil as Sgt. Peppers was in England and America, its fusion of Brazilian popular music with pop, psychedelia and politically pointed lyrics gave birth to the Tropicalia movement and earned Veloso a brief stint in jail for "anti-government activities". Today, even without understanding its political subtext, the celebratory freedom that is conveyed in these vivacious and effervescent songs couldn't resonate more. Leave it to the Brazilians to make the radically political a party as well. Fuck Yeah!
MPEG Stream: "Tropicalia"
MPEG Stream: "Ave Maria"

VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO s/t (4 Men With Beards) lp 17.98

VENUS GANG (JEAN-PIERRE MASSIERA) Galactic Soul (Mucho Gusto) lp 21.00
Wow, when we reviewed those two J.P. Massiera Psychoses compilations, a couple of years back, we somehow assumed that this eccentric French producer recorded so prolifically under so many monikers that many of the groups (especially the space disco ones) were probably just single releases and not complete full length albums. Well, the Mucho Gusto label has proven us wrong once again, by reissuing the full length albums of both Venus Gang and Herman's Rocket, two of the zaniest freakout space disco-funk outfits that Massiera ever created. Commissioned in 1977 and 1978 by an Italian producer to jump on the European Space Disco craze, Massiera teamed up with his half-brother, Bernard Torelli and the singers Mickey and Joyce to create these two amazing groups. Amazing also in the sense that while he used what is basically a cookie-cutter disco template (he blatantly borrows lots from American funk and disco - but really who didn't? And at least he borrows well!), he managed to create such a crazy, unique sound with lots of Moogs, strange vocal effects and lots of spacey noises and sounds. Considered too crazy at the time for marketable appeal (check out the great covers!), both records have gained a cult following over the years and sound so good right now especially with all the modern throwbacks of Italo-disco trying to sound like this, these two groups are by far way freakier and so worth your time. We're curious if all of Massiera's disco incarnations released full length albums, and if we'll be soon gifted with reissues of The Human Egg, Sex Convention and The Starlights too. Here's hoping!
Both albums were only reissued on vinyl, not on cd, but do come with mp3 download cards!
MPEG Stream: "Space Inferno"

VIKINGS INVASION Vol. 1 (Garden Of Delight) cd 21.00
Heavy bluesy kraut '70s stuff... very underground, but don't let anyone tell you they sound like Black Sabbath.

VIOLA CRAYOLA, THE Music: Breathing of Statues (Radioactive) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

VIRGIL CAINE The Great Lunar Oil Strike, 1976 (Time-Lag) lp 34.00
Meh. Didn't like so much. Lo-fi hillbilly rock, sort of a softer version of Henry Flynt and the Insurrections.

VULCAN'S HAMMER True Hearts and Sound Bottoms (Radioactive) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
"The hottest Psych - Prog - Garage - Punk reissues are on Radioactive", or so say the stickers that adorn the cover of each and every release on the Radioactive label out of England. Well, it's true they have uncovered some good ones, like The Nova Local and Francisco, but really out of what seems like the hundreds of "rare collector's items" they dig up out of the vintage vinyl graveyard every month, only a small handful seem all that worth bothering to reissue at all... some things are rare and obscure for a reason!
Vulcan's Hammer, though, we feel is should get a mention, as this British band's 1973 private press LP is actually nice to have on cd, if you're into acoustic hippy trad UK folk of the era a la Pentacle, Steeleye Span and Mellow Candle... Very rustic stuff, with both male and female vocalists singing in harmony, doing traditional tunes as well as their own material in a similar vein, as for instance on track 11, which has lyrics about hobbits and Gandalf! We love that sort of thing. Sadly, Radioactive didn't bother to include the track listing anywhere on this package (we don't know, but we'd assume the original LP must have had a track listing) so we don't know what that song is called. Or any of others here either. But they're all pretty nice, putting us in the mood of some of the material on the Wicker Man soundtrack, without the sinister undertones...
MPEG Stream: "track 10"
MPEG Stream: "track 3"

WALKER, SCOTT Scott (4 Men With Beards) lp 17.98
Whether you are enamored of them or perplexed by them, there is nothing quite like Scott Walker's suite of solo records from the late sixties. Exquisitely produced with dizzyingly lush orchestrations to emphasize full pop dramatic effect, they are also literally dripping with visual and visceral lyricism, filled with vile and wondrous characters and sung in Walker's deeply mellifluent and over-the-top croon. Tortured torch songs, incendiary victory songs, pop fantasias, ghostly ballads, and folk pop are eccentrically intermixed through dynamic interpretations of popular songs, and as the records progress, uniquely original compositions. Each one a perfect piece on its own, yet as a whole suite offers a dazzling entry into an incomparably visual sound world like a rich confection that begs to be slowly consumed. Finally reissued on vinyl, the way they were meant to be heard, we have fallen in love all over again. While we wholeheartedly recommend all four, for those looking for a good starting point, our favorites as whole records are Scott 2 and Scott 4. For those not blessed with record players, the cd versions are also available.
Recorded after the breakup of the Walker Brothers in 1967, the American born British resident Scott Walker (nee: Noel Scott Engel), embarked on these solo efforts to explore his fascination with European musical, literary, and theatrical forms: The creepy wonderment of classical composer Saint-Saens, The French Symbolist literature of Baudelaire and Huysmans, the political theater of Brecht and Weill, the stark existentialism of Bergman, the theatrical whimsy of Anthony Newley, and most of all, the celebrated street urchin poetry of Flemish singer-songwriter, Jacques Brel, of whom Walker covers nine English versions of his songs throughout.
Seemingly out of step with his time, these records must have been too serious for the youthful psychedelic era, yet too odd for the older pop-vocal market. The first three enjoyed minimal success, enough to get a short-lived TV show, but the fourth (and one of the best) was a commercial flop (probably due to his attempt to release it under his given name; it was later changed to Scott 4). Yet, over the years, these records have developed an increasingly avid cult following, enough of one for Walker to come out of his reclusiveness and occasionally record a new album. Though what he's on about now makes these first solo albums seem like a ride at Disneyland, you have to respect an artist who explores his vision relentlessly and never looks back. Yet, as fans, we will always come back to these first four records, which amazingly have withstood the test of time and should be canonized amongst the most highly influential records ever! High Art or High Camp? Generous heapings of both, please.
Although comprised mostly of covers, Walker already began to show strong songwriting skills on his first solo record, Scott, especially with "Montague Terrace (In Blue)" where he describes unsavory neighbors in his tenement flat, one as a "bloated belching figure", and another "whose thighs are full of tales to tell of nights she's known". But it's "My Death", one of three Brel covers that is the album's centerpiece. Later covered by David Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust phase, Walker's version features such hypnotic orchestration, serpentine guitar passages and swelling stabbing strings that it almost feels like we're being brought to the threshold of death on a cloud of poisonous perfume.
Overall, a fine selection of songs that show his range of performance and promise for the records to come.
MPEG Stream: "Montague Terrace (In Blue)"
MPEG Stream: "My Death"
MPEG Stream: "Such A Small Love"

WALKER, SCOTT Scott 2 (4 Men With Beards) lp 16.98
Whether you are enamored of them or perplexed by them, there is nothing quite like Scott Walker's suite of solo records from the late sixties. Exquisitely produced with dizzyingly lush orchestrations to emphasize full pop dramatic effect, they are also literally dripping with visual and visceral lyricism, filled with vile and wonderous characters and sung in Walker's deeply mellifluent and over-the-top croon. Tortured torch songs, incendiary victory songs, pop fantasias, ghostly ballads, and folk pop are eccentrically intermixed through dynamic interpretations of popular songs, and as the records progress, uniquely original compositions. Each one a perfect piece on its own, yet as a whole suite offers a dazzling entry into an incomparably visual sound world like a rich confection that begs to be slowly consumed. Finally reissued on vinyl, the way they were meant to be heard, we have fallen in love all over again. While we wholeheartedly recommend all four, for those looking for a good starting point, our favorites as whole records are Scott 2 and Scott 4. For those not blessed with record players, the cd versions are also available.
Recorded after the breakup of the Walker Brothers in 1967, the American born British resident Scott Walker (ne: Noel Scott Engel), embarked on these solo efforts to explore his fascination with European musical, literary, and theatrical forms: The creepy wonderment of classical composer Saint-Saens, The French Symbolist literature of Baudelaire and Huysmans, the political theatre of Brecht and Weill, the stark existentialism of Bergman, the theatrical whimsy of Anthony Newley, and most of all, the celebrated street urchin poetry of Flemish singer-songwriter, Jacques Brel, of whom Walker covers nine English versions of his songs throughout.
Seemingly out of step with his time, these records must have been too serious for the youthful psychedelic era, yet too odd for the older pop-vocal market. The first three enjoyed minimal success, enough to get a short-lived TV show, but the fourth (and one of the best) was a commercial flop (probably due to his attempt to release it under his given name; it was later changed to Scott 4). Yet, over the years, these records have developed an increasingly avid cult following, enough of one for Walker to come out of his reclusiveness and occasionally record a new album. Though what he's on about now makes these first solo albums seem like a ride at Disneyland, you have to respect an artist who explores his vision relentlessly and never looks back. Yet, as fans, we will always come back to these first four records, which amazingly have withstood the test of time and should be canonized amongst the most highly influential records ever! High Art or High Camp? Generous heapings of both, please.
Scott 2 is one of our favorites, not that it's necessarily different from the others but the choice of songs flows perfectly together. In fact the first side of Scott 2 is pure pop vocal perfection, beginning with the Brel cover "Jackie", whose enthusiastically fast delivery is mind-boggling (Youtube this!). Then the bitter torch of "Best of Both Worlds", the Tim Hardin cover, "Black Sheep Boy", the original "The Amorous Humphrey Plugg" about a man escaping from the claustrophobia of domestic life into a tragic fantasy. "Next" is next, one of Brel's most visceral and theatrical tunes about the dehumanizing experience of a military coming of age, which is then followed by Walker's companion sequel "Girls From The Streets" told by the same character as a man resigned to a life of bitterness and depravity. Yet the centerpiece is the fantasia "Plastic Palace People", which begins side 2. A dizzying dualistic fairy tale about a boy's embrace of his youthful innocence and a girl mourning the loss of hers. This kills!
MPEG Stream: "The Amorous Humphrey Plugg"
MPEG Stream: "Next"
MPEG Stream: "Plastic Palace People"

WALKER, SCOTT Scott 3 (4 Men With Beards) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Whether you are enamored of them or perplexed by them, there is nothing quite like Scott Walker's suite of solo records from the late sixties. Exquisitely produced with dizzyingly lush orchestrations to emphasize full pop dramatic effect, they are also literally dripping with visual and visceral lyricism, filled with vile and wonderous characters and sung in Walker's deeply mellifluent and over-the-top croon. Tortured torch songs, incendiary victory songs, pop fantasias, ghostly ballads, and folk pop are eccentrically intermixed through dynamic interpretations of popular songs, and as the records progress, uniquely original compositions. Each one a perfect piece on its own, yet as a whole suite offers a dazzling entry into an incomparably visual sound world like a rich confection that begs to be slowly consumed. Finally reissued on vinyl, the way they were meant to be heard, we have fallen in love all over again. While we wholeheartedly recommend all four, for those looking for a good starting point, our favorites as whole records are Scott 2 and Scott 4. For those not blessed with record players, the cd versions are also available.
Recorded after the breakup of the Walker Brothers in 1967, the American born British resident Scott Walker (ne: Noel Scott Engel), embarked on these solo efforts to explore his fascination with European musical, literary, and theatrical forms: The creepy wonderment of classical composer Saint-Saens, The French Symbolist literature of Baudelaire and Huysmans, the political theatre of Brecht and Weill, the stark existentialism of Bergman, the theatrical whimsy of Anthony Newley, and most of all, the celebrated street urchin poetry of Flemish singer-songwriter, Jacques Brel, of whom Walker covers nine English versions of his songs throughout.
Seemingly out of step with his time, these records must have been too serious for the youthful psychedelic era, yet too odd for the older pop-vocal market. The first three enjoyed minimal success, enough to get a short-lived TV show, but the fourth (and one of the best) was a commercial flop (probably due to his attempt to release it under his given name; it was later changed to Scott 4). Yet, over the years, these records have developed an increasingly avid cult following, enough of one for Walker to come out of his reclusiveness and occasionally record a new album. Though what he's on about now makes these first solo albums seem like a ride at Disneyland, you have to respect an artist who explores his vision relentlessly and never looks back. Yet, as fans, we will always come back to these first four records, which amazingly have withstood the test of time and should be canonized amongst the most highly influential records ever! High Art or High Camp? Generous heapings of both, please.
Scott 3 has the best cover art of the bunch. The others are pretty straight ahead portraits, but 3 is a close up of an eye with vibrantly purple eyelashes. Inside the pupil we see a melancholy Walker, which is apt, as Scott 3 is the most melancholy of the four records. The tempo is slower and apart from the Brel inspired original, "We Came Through" and the quirky acoustic tribute to Cryogenics of "30th Century Man" (featured on the soundtrack to Wes Anderson's "The Life Aquatic"), most of the tracks on Scott 3 are ballads to the ghosts of romance. Definitely a rainy day record, and probably not the best place to start for newbies.
MPEG Stream: "It's Raining Today"
MPEG Stream: "We Came Through"
MPEG Stream: "30th Century Man"

WALKER, SCOTT Scott 4 (4 Men With Beards) lp 17.98
Whether you are enamored of them or perplexed by them, there is nothing quite like Scott Walker's suite of solo records from the late sixties. Exquisitely produced with dizzyingly lush orchestrations to emphasize full pop dramatic effect, they are also literally dripping with visual and visceral lyricism, filled with vile and wonderous characters and sung in Walker's deeply mellifluent and over-the-top croon. Tortured torch songs, incendiary victory songs, pop fantasias, ghostly ballads, and folk pop are eccentrically intermixed through dynamic interpretations of popular songs, and as the records progress, uniquely original compositions. Each one a perfect piece on its own, yet as a whole suite offers a dazzling entry into an incomparably visual sound world like a rich confection that begs to be slowly consumed. Finally reissued on vinyl, the way they were meant to be heard, we have fallen in love all over again. While we wholeheartedly recommend all four, for those looking for a good starting point, our favorites as whole records are Scott 2 and Scott 4. For those not blessed with record players, the cd versions are also available.
Recorded after the breakup of the Walker Brothers in 1967, the American born British resident Scott Walker (ne: Noel Scott Engel), embarked on these solo efforts to explore his fascination with European musical, literary, and theatrical forms: The creepy wonderment of classical composer Saint-Saens, The French Symbolist literature of Baudelaire and Huysmans, the political theatre of Brecht and Weill, the stark existentialism of Bergman, the theatrical whimsy of Anthony Newley, and most of all, the celebrated street urchin poetry of Flemish singer-songwriter, Jacques Brel, of whom Walker covers nine English versions of his songs throughout.
Seemingly out of step with his time, these records must have been too serious for the youthful psychedelic era, yet too odd for the older pop-vocal market. The first three enjoyed minimal success, enough to get a short-lived TV show, but the fourth (and one of the best) was a commercial flop (probably due to his attempt to release it under his given name; it was later changed to Scott 4). Yet, over the years, these records have developed an increasingly avid cult following, enough of one for Walker to come out of his reclusiveness and occasionally record a new album. Though what he's on about now makes these first solo albums seem like a ride at Disneyland, you have to respect an artist who explores his vision relentlessly and never looks back. Yet, as fans, we will always come back to these first four records, which amazingly have withstood the test of time and should be canonized amongst the most highly influential records ever! High Art or High Camp? Generous heapings of both, please.
Scott 4 is definitely the most unique of the four. It's all original compositions for one thing, but also the arrangements are more upbeat, and while the orchestral elements are there, folk, rock and country elements of guitar and drums appear more than ever before. Still eccentric songwriting abounds. The opener, "The Seventh Seal", a flamenco pop tribute to the Bergman film of the same name about a medieval knight's chess game with Death is full of the pomp we love in Scott Walkers music. And while there are no Brel covers on 4, his influence can be heard on centerpiece "The Old Man's Back Again (Dedicated to the Neo-Stalinist Regime)", as well as "Hero of the War". A sequel of sorts to "Plastic Palace People" on Scott 2 can be seen in "Boy Child", one of the most beautifully arranged ballads, while the strings in "The World's Strongest Man" brings tears every time. Yet, weirder still, the final three songs take a strange turn into lush country pop with slide guitar, and back-up vocals (for the first time!) that allude to the direction Walker persued unsuccessfully through the seventies. Still very Stellar!
MPEG Stream: "The Seventh Seal"
MPEG Stream: "World's Strongest Man"
MPEG Stream: "The Old Man's Back Again"

WALKER, SCOTT The Drift (4AD) cd 14.98
Whoa! Scott Walker has certainly never been about meeting audience expectations, but we never expected hime to go in a direction this extreme, a lyrical and musical excursion so far out it's a little disconcerting. The Drift, his first release in 11 years has got to be some of the darkest and intensely uneasy soul-baring music we have heard lately, which is saying a lot for us. Visceral and highly visual, Walker seems to be channeling the decadent symbolist literature of Rimbaud, Verlaine or J.K. Huysmans as well as the surrealist existentialism of T. S. Eliot or Georges Bataille, as he takes us on a poisoned delirious absinthe-induced journey through the seasons of hell. Walker's voice recalls a strange mutation of Antony's (from Antony and the Johnsons) operatic theatrics and Jandek's sorrowful moans as it plays against orchestral arrangements that sound like Arvo Part, Morricone and Penderecki caught in a purgatorial bar-room brawl. Punctuated by deep resonant strings, concrete blocks pounding on wood, sounds of donkeys braying, and snippets of shortwave radio, Walker's arrangements vary from oppressive ambience to brutal stabs of orchestrated noise, as they cover a wide gamut of themes, characters and moods, from the reproachful condemnation of power to the painful humanity of love. The saving moment comes at the end with A Lover Loves, a spare but melodic ballad of voice and acoustic guitar that is the albums only peek back to the Scott Walker of old (in particular, Scott 4), and it kills!
Good, great, amazing, none of those are really useful superlatives in the case of The Drift, although it is all of those things and then some, as it definitely will not appeal to everyone, especially fans of Walker's first four solo records from the late sixties. But viewed as a work of art, with all the genuine brilliance and pretension that that may entail, this is extraordinary and astonishing uneasy listening!
MPEG Stream: "Cossacks Are"
MPEG Stream: "Hand Me Ups"
MPEG Stream: "A Lover Loves"

WALKER, SCOTT The Drift (4AD) 2lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Whoa! Scott Walker has certainly never been about meeting audience expectations, but we never expected hime to go in a direction this extreme, a lyrical and musical excursion so far out it's a little disconcerting. The Drift, his first release in 11 years has got to be some of the darkest and intensely uneasy soul-baring music we have heard lately, which is saying a lot for us. Visceral and highly visual, Walker seems to be channeling the decadent symbolist literature of Rimbaud, Verlaine or J.K. Huysmans as well as the surrealist existentialism of T. S. Eliot or Georges Bataille, as he takes us on a poisoned delirious absinthe-induced journey through the seasons of hell. Walker's voice recalls a strange mutation of Antony's (from Antony and the Johnsons) operatic theatrics and Jandek's sorrowful moans as it plays against orchestral arrangements that sound like Arvo Part, Morricone and Penderecki caught in a purgatorial bar-room brawl. Punctuated by deep resonant strings, concrete blocks pounding on wood, sounds of donkeys braying, and snippets of shortwave radio, Walker's arrangements vary from oppressive ambience to brutal stabs of orchestrated noise, as they cover a wide gamut of themes, characters and moods, from the reproachful condemnation of power to the painful humanity of love. The saving moment comes at the end with A Lover Loves, a spare but melodic ballad of voice and acoustic guitar that is the albums only peek back to the Scott Walker of old (in particular, Scott 4), and it kills!
Good, great, amazing, none of those are really useful superlatives in the case of The Drift, although it is all of those things and then some, as it definitely will not appeal to everyone, especially fans of Walker's first four solo records from the late sixties. But viewed as a work of art, with all the genuine brilliance and pretension that that may entail, this is extraordinary and astonishing uneasy listening!
MPEG Stream: "Cossacks Are"
MPEG Stream: "Hand Me Ups"
MPEG Stream: "A Lover Loves"

WALKER, SCOTT & THE WALKER BROTHERS The Best Of: The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore (Universal) cd 37.00
Damn expensive import! But, really, these songs are maybe worth it!

WARA El Inca (Revista) cd 17.98
Wow! Progressive Rock from Bolivia? Who knew?
Wara's first album from 1972 (the liner notes say they have recorded 16 albums as of 2004, but this is the first we have heard of them) is a strange hybrid of South American psych with classical symphonic elements, Andean native musical structures, soaring harmonies and boogie rhythms.
Incorporating a classical string section with flute and oboe alongside the shredding fuzz guitar, simmering organ and drum breaks, this is unlike any South American psych we've heard in awhile. While Wara is more of a psych band than a prog outfit, they lean towards '70s proto-metal vocal theatrics and Beethoven rather than the Beatles, using long songs with varied passages of loud and soft dynamics. Killer!
MPEG Stream: "Realidad"
MPEG Stream: "Wara"

WARA El Inca (Mandrax) lp 35.00
Now reissued also on vinyl... here's what we said about the cd edition:
Wow! Progressive Rock from Bolivia? Who knew?
Wara's first album from 1972 (the liner notes say they have recorded 16 albums as of 2004, but this is the first we have heard of them) is a strange hybrid of South American psych with classical symphonic elements, Andean native musical structures, soaring harmonies and boogie rhythms.
Incorporating a classical string section with flute and oboe alongside the shredding fuzz guitar, simmering organ and drum breaks, this is unlike any South American psych we've heard in awhile. While Wara is more of a psych band than a prog outfit, they lean towards '70s proto-metal vocal theatrics and Beethoven rather than the Beatles, using long songs with varied passages of loud and soft dynamics. Killer!
MPEG Stream: "Realidad"
MPEG Stream: "Wara"

WARLUS Songs (Guerssen) cd 17.98
Oh yeah! The Guerssen label strikes gold again with another rad reissue of totally obscure psych-pop, this time out of France, circa 1975. Unless you're one of the two hundred people who actually got a copy of this private press record the first time around there is no way you (like us) have ever heard Warlus before. The timing couldn't be better on this reissue, as its stoned and breezy sounds would be so at home in today's underground. Imagine if Ariel Pink or Kurt Vile were coming of age in the '70s, this might be the home recording they would have made. We also hear hints of the more stoned and drifty side of Thee Oh Sees, even.
While this duo were French they sang in English and this, combined with the group's lo-fi and D.I.Y aesthetic, makes Walrus sound almost like some kind of amazing proto-Shrimper release. We're reminded of the psych-pop of Roger Rodier and, at times this makes us imagine a more melodic Jandek joining forces with fellow outsider Bob Trimble, covering Kinks songs! Or something equally awesome. The songs are intimate and woozy, with nice sound experiments sprinkled throughout. We've been hooked on this the second we heard it. Highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "You"
MPEG Stream: "Listen To The Warlus"
MPEG Stream: "Good Night The Day"

WATERLOO First Battle (Guerssen) cd 17.98
Ye olde '70s prog rock treat time here, folks, particularly for those (like us) who like lots of flute in their prog! Coming to us via the excellent Guerssen label, who last list brought us William Nowik's Pan Symphony In E, this reissue of Belgian proggers Waterloo's one and only album First Battle from 1970 reveals another one-off gem from the dusty prog past that we had never heard of before but now are digging big time. This group's music is infused with the paisley psych poppiness of the likes of The Beatles and The Kinks, but also provides lots of pounding organ and flute rippage, making for a bombastic prog bounty indeed, a catchy one as well. Presumably influenced by certain of the British progressive rock outfits of the day, such as the The Nice, Jethro Tull, and Mk1 Deep Purple, this gets heavier too, sounding at times not unlike Uriah Heep, but with flute! It's got it all, really: sunny pop balladry, groovy brass rock arrangements (a la Blood Sweat & Tears), jazzy moves too (including some scat singing in the midst of 11 minute epic album closer "Diary Of An Old Man"). And plenty of flat out flashy instrumental action, guitars organ drums and FLUTE all in full force, charging forth on the battlefield of rock like triumphant prog troopers.
Fits in well with some other prog obscurities we've recommended previously... Blast Furnace comes to mind, also Supersister, Tetragon, Bachdenkel, Culpeper's Orchard, etc. Once again, we're wowed by the wonders of the reissue realm. How many more bands like this can there be??
To be sure, 'cause of how poppy this is, it might not be for those ONLY looking for the super dark or weird - though some of the lyrics ARE rather strange, like ferinstance the line "Can't you tell me where black children come from, daddy?" from the song "Black Born Children". What's that about? Also, don't expect any conceptual side-long song suites here, no this ain't Yes, in fact by prog standards only one song (the aforementioned "Diary Of An Old Man") is a double digit epic, the rest stay within the normal temporal parameters of pop single radio play, 2-3 minutes or so. But if you like the lighter (though no less tighter) side of prog, then check this out. It can only be regretted that Waterloo's First Battle was their last. Although, this reissue buffs up the original record's ten tracks with six extra bonus cuts from post-album singles and such. And, the cd booklet provides an in-depth history of the band in the liner notes, including mention of 'em jamming with members of Magma at one point!
MPEG Stream: "Meet Again"
MPEG Stream: "Why May I Not Know"
MPEG Stream: "Why Don't You Follow Me"

WATERLOO First Battle (Guerssen) lp 26.00
Now available on vinyl.
Ye olde '70s prog rock treat time here, folks, particularly for those (like us) who like lots of flute in their prog! Coming to us via the excellent Guerssen label, who last list brought us William Nowik's Pan Symphony In E, this reissue of Belgian proggers Waterloo's one and only album First Battle from 1970 reveals another one-off gem from the dusty prog past that we had never heard of before but now are digging big time. This group's music is infused with the paisley psych poppiness of the likes of The Beatles and The Kinks, but also provides lots of pounding organ and flute rippage, making for a bombastic prog bounty indeed, a catchy one as well. Presumably influenced by certain of the British progressive rock outfits of the day, such as the The Nice, Jethro Tull, and Mk1 Deep Purple, this gets heavier too, sounding at times not unlike Uriah Heep, but with flute! It's got it all, really: sunny pop balladry, groovy brass rock arrangements (a la Blood Sweat & Tears), jazzy moves too (including some scat singing in the midst of 11 minute epic album closer "Diary Of An Old Man"). And plenty of flat out flashy instrumental action, guitars organ drums and FLUTE all in full force, charging forth on the battlefield of rock like triumphant prog troopers.
Fits in well with some other prog obscurities we've recommended previously... Blast Furnace comes to mind, also Supersister, Tetragon, Bachdenkel, Culpeper's Orchard, etc. Once again, we're wowed by the wonders of the reissue realm. How many more bands like this can there be??
To be sure, 'cause of how poppy this is, it might not be for those ONLY looking for the super dark or weird - though some of the lyrics ARE rather strange, like ferinstance the line "Can't you tell me where black children come from, daddy?" from the song "Black Born Children". What's that about? Also, don't expect any conceptual side-long song suites here, no this ain't Yes, in fact by prog standards only one song (the aforementioned "Diary Of An Old Man") is a double digit epic, the rest stay within the normal temporal parameters of pop single radio play, 2-3 minutes or so. But if you like the lighter (though no less tighter) side of prog, then check this out. It can only be regretted that Waterloo's First Battle was their last.

WATTS, ALAN This Is It (Locust) cd 14.98
Babbling bongos, Batman! This reissue of a 1962 album by famed counterculture Zen master Alan Watts and friends demonstrates a somewhat less-than-calm side to his Zen practice. Rather than meditative bliss, this record is all about joyous cacophony. A "spontaneous musical happening" amongst like-minded friends, done for its own sake (not for the sake of art and/or an audience). An experience of improvised and in-the-moment insanity. They treated their unsuspecting neighbors in Sausalito, California to a session of out-of-their-heads noise-making glee, full of yelping, nonsensical vocalisms, growling mayhem, primal groans, manaical laughter...congas, piano, French horn, marimba! And some electronic fx in the mix as well. But it's not noisy like Merzbow or anything like that -- indeed the faux-Eastern wailing gets downright lovely at times. There's seven tracks, each different but sharing the same free-form approach. Pretty freakin' far out for 1962, that's for sure. Cromagnon's and Amon Duul's and Yoko Ono's LPs all came later, and even the Nihilist Spasm Band wasn't around in '62. Today's freeform noiseniks like Reynols, NNCK, AMT, Black Dice, etc. probably owe something to the mindset loosened up and let loose by Watts and co. on this here disc... And of course it's true that you could do this yrself. But when has that ever stopped you from buying a record? Plus the original LP seemed intended as an inspiration for listeners' own experiments in sound-making spontaneity. Dunno if it's really a classic ("a psychedelic holy grail" says the cover sticker) or just a curio but it's pretty cool nonetheless...you're probably not gonna find one at a garage sale so it's nice Locust did this reissue.
MPEG Stream: "Love You"
MPEG Stream: "Fingernail Poem"

WAZOO s/t (World In Sound) cd 21.00
Zappa-y hippie pop psych from Detroit, circa 1970.

WE ALL TOGETHER 2 (Lazarus) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

WE ALL TOGETHER Singles (Repsychled / Lion Productions) cd 15.98
Hard to beat this disc if you like Beatlesy psych pop from back in the day! Very recommended to all Lennon/McCartney fans. A few years ago we used to stock cd reissues of the two albums released by this early '70s Peruvian outfit, a band who evolved from '60s psych act Laghonia and who obviously worshipped the Fab Four (and their solo efforts, especially, seeing as how they cover both "Band On The Run" and "Bluebird" by McCartney's Wings). It's a bummer that those two discs have been out of print for a while, but we're happy that the Repsychled label (Tarkus, Traffic Sound, etc.) has teamed up with another fave reissue label of ours, Lion, and put out this singles collection, basically a "best of" We All Together! Of the 13 cuts here, eight seem to be included on the band's two albums, leaving five we hadn't heard before. So even if you DO already have those cds you might want this, and if you don't, it's currently the best way to get acquainted with the magic of We All Together's sweet and sad pop psych music. Pepperisms abound, with studio experimentation and backwards guitar ("Soy Timido"), and as well there's some rousing rockers ("Sally"). The use of piercing ARP synth brings to mind that equally Beatlesy Malaysian band Truck whose reissue we reviewed recently... if you liked Surprise, Surprise you'll dig this for sure! Likewise if you like the Aerovons or Badfinger (also covered here). Not that the Beatles are their only influence...both Roy Orbison and Tchaikovsky are cited in the liner notes as songwriting inspirations! The liner notes by the way, are extensive, in English and Spanish, and the cd booklet also includes lots of vintage photos.
MPEG Stream: "Soy Timido"
MPEG Stream: "Symbol Queen"
MPEG Stream: "Everyday"

WE THE PEOPLE Mirror of our Minds (Sundazed) 2cd 19.98
We quote from the right-on back cover blurb: "Rising from the crowded garage band underbelly of 1966 American suburbia, Florida's We The People prove to be an unbelievably dynamic aggregation; versatile in the true sense of the word. From punkish R&B screamers and eastern-toned proto-psych mini-masterpieces to soul and pure pop, this fivesome covered all of the bases with consistently amazing results."

WE THE PEOPLE Too Much Noise (Sundazed) cd 14.98
Lodged somewhere between The Seeds garage aggression and The Kinks pop lyricism is Florida's greatest sixties "never-was" band, We The People. Supported by two strong in-house songwriters, We The People were almost too pop-savvy and musically accomplished to be called a garage band, but they could tear it up with the wildest proto-punk groups out there but also deliver smart and clever lyrics, killer pop hooks and dreamy psych vibes. The opening Morricone-ish guitar hook of "In the Past" (covered by The Chocolate Watch Band) is the clincher, along with the feedback rave-ups of "You Burn Me Up and Down" and "Too Much Noise" and the moody tremolo pensiveness of "(You Are) The Color Of Love" and "Alfred, What Kind of man Are You?". Unfortunately, they never received any wide national attention, despite being signed to RCA Victor, and after one key songwriter jumped ship, it pretty much sealed the band's fate. This anthology collects their best and most essential singles, a much needed pairing down from the completist 2cd set Sundazed issued a decade ago. While it has almost the same tracks as the early Collectables reissue, the tracklisting is greatly improved for better flow, making this feel like the album that was never made. Seriously, there's not a bum cut on here, and they're all original songs. Essential!
MPEG Stream: "Mirror Of Your Mind"
MPEG Stream: "In The Past"
MPEG Stream: "Alfred, What Kind of Man Are You?"

WEAVER, JANE The Fallen By Watch Bird (B-Music / Finders Keepers) cd 15.98
With guests including Wendy from Wendy & Bonnie!

WEED s/t (Revisited / Phillips) cd 17.98
Obscure, awesome 1971 krautrock proto-metal reissued! And they're called Weed. Need we say more? As always, we will say more, 'cause we've got to mention that the heavy electric organ bombast on this album is cranked out by none other than Ken Hensley of Uriah Heep fame, over in Germany on vacation or something. He appears here under the fairly transparent pseudonym of "Ken Lesley"! Having mentioned that, we realize we should probably review some actual Uriah Heep albums on our site one of these days, but this did just get reissued so we're writing about it now. (Sooner or later we will write up some Heep, but suffice to say that their first five albums RULE, circa '70-'73, though they go downhill pretty steeply after that. If you dig Deep Purple and haven't checked out the early Heep, you should.)
Anyway, back to Weed. Thanks to Hensley/Lesley, they DO sound a bit like Uriah Heep, especially on the killer opener "Sweet Morning Light". Despite (sarcastic?) lyrics about "sun shining bright, on everything in sight" and other seemingly positive things, the singer's depressed delivery and the downer dirginess of the heavy, groovy music creates a much darker, doomier mood! It's kinda brilliant, that contrast. Elsewhere, this album features the more mellow, melancholic acoustic balladry of "Loney Ship", one blues rocker, "Slowin' Down", and several other sorts of organ-ornate melodic kraut prog jams. It ends with another heavy highlight, the song "Weed" itself, the album's longest track at 7:14. And it's an instrumental. With a crunching, exceedingly Sabbathy main riff, or is it Led Zep? Kicks ass anyways. For the first and last tracks alone, this disc is something anyone interested in proto-doom should hear.
Also, Weed should get some sort of award as one of the earliest overt "stoner rock" bands ever, just based on their name, right? Them and Leaf Hound.
MPEG Stream: "Sweet Morning Light"
MPEG Stream: "My Dream"

WENDY & BONNIE Genesis (Sundazed) cd 15.98
Really mellow soft-pop from 1969, the sole album by teenage San Francisco sisters Wendy and Bonnie Flower (ages 17 and 13 respectively, at the time this album was cut). Very pretty and summery, but NOT super happy, it's got a melancholy sadness (and sweetness) to it, evoking late afternoon, end of summer feelings. Maybe they're a bit like a more folky, psychedelic 5th Dimension? Very sixties, as evidenced by song titles like "The Paisley Window Pane", "You Keep Hanging Up On My Mind", and "It's What's Really Happening". Includes five demo bonus tracks. Brought to you/us by the same fine folks at Sundazed who were responsible for the Millennium reissue reviewed last list, although this is not nearly as weird and wondorous as that collection. Nice though.
RealAudio clip: "Five O'Clock In The Morning"
RealAudio clip: "Endless Pathway"
RealAudio clip: "The Winter Is Cold"

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND Part 1 & Vol. 2 (Headlight) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND Volume One (Sundazed) cd 12.98
A few months ago we obtained those long-awaited cd issues of the WCPAEB's four albums, remember? Well when it rains it pours: this is the official reissue of the legendary pop outfit's FIRST, SELFRELEASED album, which places it chronologically *prior* to the four albums fans have known and loved (and traded for large sums of money) for 20 years. Features radically different (more lush and sunny, less VU-ish) versions of songs that appeared, reworked on the latter four albums, plus *eight* previously unissued pieces.

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND Where's My Daddy? (Aurora) cd 17.98

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND, THE Part One (Sundazed) cd 16.98
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band is one of those groups whose status in the collectorskum underground means that I once spent $75 on one of their LPs. Ouch. Thankfully most of their recorded output has finally been put out on cd by the excellent reissue label Sundazed. This band never quite made it big, never had a hit record, but god were they good. They were stalwarts on the LA pop scene in the late '60s and released six albums (I think). The music is arty and psychedelic but also totally appealing and approachable, like a weird mix of Capt Beefheart with the Association or the Byrds. Very fun and very "of its time" -- with several anti-Vietnam War songs, the requisite sitars, Fifth Dimension-style vocals, lyrics invoking fairies and dwarves, etc. Their sound was alternately sweet and silly, epic and serious... and you must hear it!
The voluminous liner notes (different in each of the three discs) are super interesting. I had no idea that what looks like the main guy in the band (he's in the middle in all the pictures) was this eccentric trust fund millionaire who kind of took over the band by buying them a big ole psychedelic light show system (their live shows were famous for this) and who was so annoying and odd that the other guys in the band tried to not let him do anything else on stage but play tambourine. The other band members, interviewed in the notes, say they hated him and feel like they would've been a better more popular band without him etc. Sour grapes! But perhaps that's what made the band so amazing, the push and pull of varying aesthetics resulting in a beautiful music.
RealAudio clip: "Shifting Sands"
RealAudio clip: "I Won't Hurt You"
RealAudio clip: "Scuse Me, Miss Rose"

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND, THE Part One (Reprise / Rhino) lp 14.98
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band is one of those groups whose status in the collectorskum underground means that plenty of folks found themselves forking over HUGE sums for copies of the original releases. Thankfully most of their recorded output was reissued on cd by the excellent reissue label Sundazed. And now released on vinyl by Reprise / Rhino. This band never quite made it big, never had a hit record, but god were they good. They were stalwarts on the LA pop scene in the late '60s and released six albums (we think). The music is arty and psychedelic but also totally appealing and approachable, like a weird mix of Capt Beefheart and the Association or the Byrds. Very fun and very "of its time" - with several anti-Vietnam War songs, the requisite sitars, Fifth Dimension-style vocals, lyrics invoking fairies and dwarves, etc. Their sound was alternately sweet and silly, epic and serious... and you must hear it!
We recently discovered that what looks like the main guy in the band (he's in the middle in all the pictures) was this eccentric trust fund millionaire who kind of took over the band by buying them a big ole psychedelic light show system (their live performances were famous for this) and who was so annoying and odd that the other guys in the band tried to not let him do anything else on stage but play tambourine. The other band members, say they hated him and feel like they would've been a better more popular band without him etc. Sour grapes! But perhaps that's what made the band so amazing, the push and pull of varying aesthetics resulting in a beautiful music. Needless to say, all three of these albums are essential listening, and these reissues are super swank, done up right, and not all that expensive. Definitely Recommended.

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND, THE Vol. 2 (Sundazed) cd 14.98
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band is one of those groups whose status in the collectorskum underground means that I once spent $75 on one of their LPs. Ouch. Thankfully most of their recorded output has finally been put out on cd by the excellent reissue label Sundazed. This band never quite made it big, never had a hit record, but god were they good. They were stalwarts on the LA pop scene in the late '60s and released six albums (I think). The music is arty and psychedelic but also totally appealing and approachable, like a weird mix of Capt Beefheart with the Association or the Byrds. Very fun and very "of its time" -- with several anti-Vietnam War songs, the requisite sitars, Fifth Dimension-style vocals, lyrics invoking fairies and dwarves, etc. Their sound was alternately sweet and silly, epic and serious... and you must hear it!
The voluminous liner notes (different in each of the three discs) are super interesting. I had no idea that what looks like the main guy in the band (he's in the middle in all the pictures) was this eccentric trust fund millionaire who kind of took over the band by buying them a big ole psychedelic light show system (their live shows were famous for this) and who was so annoying and odd that the other guys in the band tried to not let him do anything else on stage but play tambourine. The other band members, interviewed in the notes, say they hated him and feel like they would've been a better more popular band without him etc. Sour grapes! But perhaps that's what made the band so amazing, the push and pull of varying aesthetics resulting in a beautiful music.
RealAudio clip: "In the Arena"
RealAudio clip: "Delicate Fawn"

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND, THE Vol. 2 (Reprise / Rhino) lp 14.98
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band is one of those groups whose status in the collectorskum underground means that plenty of folks found themselves forking over HUGE sums for copies of the original releases. Thankfully most of their recorded output was reissued on cd by the excellent reissue label Sundazed. And now released on vinyl by Reprise / Rhino. This band never quite made it big, never had a hit record, but god were they good. They were stalwarts on the LA pop scene in the late '60s and released six albums (we think). The music is arty and psychedelic but also totally appealing and approachable, like a weird mix of Capt Beefheart and the Association or the Byrds. Very fun and very "of its time" - with several anti-Vietnam War songs, the requisite sitars, Fifth Dimension-style vocals, lyrics invoking fairies and dwarves, etc. Their sound was alternately sweet and silly, epic and serious... and you must hear it!
We recently discovered that what looks like the main guy in the band (he's in the middle in all the pictures) was this eccentric trust fund millionaire who kind of took over the band by buying them a big ole psychedelic light show system (their live performances were famous for this) and who was so annoying and odd that the other guys in the band tried to not let him do anything else on stage but play tambourine. The other band members, say they hated him and feel like they would've been a better more popular band without him etc. Sour grapes! But perhaps that's what made the band so amazing, the push and pull of varying aesthetics resulting in a beautiful music. Needless to say, all three of these albums are essential listening, and these reissues are super swank, done up right, and not all that expensive. Definitely Recommended.

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND, THE Vol. 3 : A Child's Guide to Good and Evil (Sundazed) cd 14.98
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band is one of those groups whose status in the collectorskum underground means that I once spent $75 on one of their LPs. Ouch. Thankfully most of their recorded output has finally been put out on cd by the excellent reissue label Sundazed. This band never quite made it big, never had a hit record, but god were they good. They were stalwarts on the LA pop scene in the late '60s and released six albums (I think). The music is arty and psychedelic but also totally appealing and approachable, like a weird mix of Capt Beefheart and the Association or the Byrds. Very fun and very "of its time" -- with several anti-Vietnam War songs, the requisite sitars, Fifth Dimension-style vocals, lyrics invoking fairies and dwarves, etc. Their sound was alternately sweet and silly, epic and serious... and you must hear it!
The voluminous liner notes (different in each of the three discs) are super interesting. I had no idea that what looks like the main guy in the band (he's in the middle in all the pictures) was this eccentric trust fund millionaire who kind of took over the band by buying them a big ole psychedelic light show system (their live shows were famous for this) and who was so annoying and odd that the other guys in the band tried to not let him do anything else on stage but play tambourine. The other band members, interviewed in the notes, say they hated him and feel like they would've been a better more popular band without him etc. Sour grapes! But perhaps that's what made the band so amazing, the push and pull of varying aesthetics resulting in a beautiful music.
RealAudio clip: "As the World Rises and Falls"
RealAudio clip: "Eighteen is Over the Hill"
RealAudio clip: "In the Country"

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND, THE Vol. 3: A Child's Guide to Good and Evil (Reprise / Rhino) lp 14.98
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band is one of those groups whose status in the collectorskum underground means that plenty of folks found themselves forking over HUGE sums for copies of the original releases. Thankfully most of their recorded output was reissued on cd by the excellent reissue label Sundazed. And now released on vinyl by Reprise / Rhino. This band never quite made it big, never had a hit record, but god were they good. They were stalwarts on the LA pop scene in the late '60s and released six albums (we think). The music is arty and psychedelic but also totally appealing and approachable, like a weird mix of Capt Beefheart and the Association or the Byrds. Very fun and very "of its time" - with several anti-Vietnam War songs, the requisite sitars, Fifth Dimension-style vocals, lyrics invoking fairies and dwarves, etc. Their sound was alternately sweet and silly, epic and serious... and you must hear it!
We recently discovered that what looks like the main guy in the band (he's in the middle in all the pictures) was this eccentric trust fund millionaire who kind of took over the band by buying them a big ole psychedelic light show system (their live performances were famous for this) and who was so annoying and odd that the other guys in the band tried to not let him do anything else on stage but play tambourine. The other band members, say they hated him and feel like they would've been a better more popular band without him etc. Sour grapes! But perhaps that's what made the band so amazing, the push and pull of varying aesthetics resulting in a beautiful music. Needless to say, all three of these albums are essential listening, and these reissues are super swank, done up right, and not all that expensive. Definitely Recommended.

WHITE NOISE An Electric Storm (Island UK ) cd 17.98
White Noise's first album has long been one of the holy grails for kosmische / space rock collectors. Kinda strange, actually, because it's actually more on the "exotica" Moog side of things, as opposed to a Klaus Schulze or Conrad Schnitzler production... Released in 1968 on Island in a total vacuum, An Electric Storm could be a Perrey & Kingsley soundtrack to a Radley Metzger soft-core porn film with twee psych-pop vocal melodies (a la Beach Boys, Free Design, Monkees) topped off with lots of bizarre electronic squiggles that originated in the BBC's Radiophonic Workshop (home of the Dr. Who title track). White Noise's mastermind David Vorhaus keeps things pretty surreal with a track based around the recordings made at a orgy and with a precursor to the John Balance vocal mumbles about how "darkness was enshrouded by darkness and the darkness was deadeningly dark."
MPEG Stream: "Love Without Sound"
MPEG Stream: "Firebird"
MPEG Stream: "Your Hidden Dreams"

WHITE, ROLAND I Wasn't Born To Rock'n Roll (Tompkins Square) cd 14.98

MPEG Stream: "Kansas City Railroad Blues"
MPEG Stream: "The Storms Are On The Ocean"
MPEG Stream: "Head Over Heels In Love With You"
MPEG Stream: "Doorstep of Trouble"

WHO, THE BBC Sessions (MCA) cd 17.98
Thank gosh for the good ol' British Broadcasting Corporation and shows like "Top Gear", "Saturday Club," and of course "The Old Grey Whistle Test." Rather than simply play their records, the BBC put bands in their studios to cut live versions of their hits for airplay (due to Musicans Union rules that kept pre-recorded music almost entirely off the air). Because of this, today we can enjoy incredible archival releases of live Beeb sessions by the likes of The Beatles, Hendrix, Queen, Led Zeppelin, and now, The Who! From the years '65 (when the band actually had to audition for a spot on the radio) through '70, we get 25 "historic, unreleased" cuts including their goes at the Radio One jingle. Needless to say, highly recommended!

WILSON, DENNIS Pacific Ocean Blue (Epic / Legacy) 2cd 19.98
This album has been slaying us! Finally available, this long-awaited expanded 2 disc deluxe reissue of Pacific Ocean Blue validates its worthy cult following. Released in 1977 by the first Beach Boy to go solo, many were surprised at how the seemingly least-talented Wilson brother created such a maturely produced and beautifully arranged statement, one on a completely separate musical wavelength than brother Brian. Yet by then he already had a solid track record going with the band. On almost every album The Beach Boys put out from 1968-1974 (their best years, in our opinion), Dennis had writing credit on at least two tracks, some of which like "Steamboat" from Holland and "Little Bird" on Friends were among the best songs on either.
Getting production and arrangement help from Glenn Jakobson and Daryl Dragon (Farm, The Dragons, Captain and Tenille), the overall feel of Pacific Ocean Blue marks the end of that vibrant sun-dappled seventies west-coast sound; a coke and whisky sunset to the sunrise wake-and-bake of David Crosby's If I Can Only Remember My Name. The production doesn't recall Brian Wilson's lost childhood fantasias from Pet Sounds or Smile, but rather the resigned weariness of someone who lived fast and came up empty. With one exception (skip track 2!), the mostly piano-led songs gravitate from mellow groovers to heavy but plaintively restrained ballads with epic swells that would sound right at home on a Wilco, Vetiver or Plush record. While it still feels of the time, like a rare classic FM radio moment where a song comes up that sounds familiar and really good but you can't place it, it's mostly free of those late seventies MOR moments (no wonky sax or guitar solos). It's not so much yacht rock as it is a warm slow sailboat ride into oblivion.
Included on this disc are bonus tracks from the POB sessions including the gorgeous cinematic instrumental, "Mexico". A second disc contains sessions from Wilson's never released follow-up, Bambu, which demonstrate that POB was not a mere one-off. It features strong songs with more Caribbean rhythms and soulfulness than POB, (like if Gary Higgins recorded a late seventies follow-up to Red Hash) but it's less a definitive statement. One of the tracks from these sessions, "Holy Man" (also included as an instrumental) has vocals added by Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, who remarkably sounds just like Wilson (if we weren't told, we'd never have noticed it was a different singer). Dubious as it sounds it's not a bad thing, as both versions highlight what an amazing instrumentalist and songwriter we have lost. Essential!!!!!
MPEG Stream: "You and I"
MPEG Stream: "Farewell My Friend"
MPEG Stream: "Rainbows"
MPEG Stream: "Mexico"
MPEG Stream: "Cocktails"
MPEG Stream: "Holy Man (Taylor Hawkins version)"

WIMPLE WINCH Tales From The Sinking Ship (RPM) cd 16.98

WITCH Introduction (QDK / Normal) cd 16.98
Been waiting for this one. Shadoks (or Normal, or Q.D.K. Media, or whatever they're called) reissued Witch's awesome Lazy Bones!! album a while back, then did this one on (crazy expensive limited) vinyl, now here at last is the much more reasonably priced cd, yay! Along with a reissue of Tirogo's Float, also reviewed this list, both of which should make all fans of '70s African garage psych action super extra ultra happy...
Witch's Introduction was, as the title suggests, this Zambian band's debut, originally released in 1973, and it's such a damn delight, living up to the high hopes we had for it. "Zam Rock" at its best - not that we've ever heard any Zam Rock we didn't like, so far the reissues have been uniformly rad! As with Witch's later Lazy Bones!!, the fuzzed out wah wah'd guitars run rampant, the rhythms are infectious, the organ playing unrestrained, the English language lyrics charming (song titles include "Feeling High", "Like A Chicken" and "See Your Mama"... how could this record NOT be good?). Need we go on? If Lazy Bones!! rocked your world, this should be enough of an introduction to Introduction! While '75's Lazy Bones!! is a bit heavier, any fan will dig this too.
The cd booklet includes vintage photos, plus liner notes by Now-Again / Stones Throw's Egon, who was instrumental in making these legit Witch reissues happen. From those liner notes, we learn that the name Witch was actually an acronym, standing for We Intend To Cause Havoc! How cool is that?
MPEG Stream: "Introduction"
MPEG Stream: "You Better Know"

WITCH Lazy Bones!! (Q.D.K. / Normal) cd 16.98
All right, more '70s "ZamRock"! Last list, in our highlight review of 45,000 Volts by the awesome Ngozi Family, we mentioned that there was another crucial reissue from Zambia on the way that we were looking forward to - that's this, Witch! (Not to be confused with the present-day Witch that's got J. Mascis on drums, they're cool too, but couldn't ever be as cool as this.) The Witch's 1975 album Lazy Bones!! (the two exclamation marks are part of the title) is BADASS. It's got tons of rhythmic umph, and makin'-more-with-less third world charm. Again it's the western garage psych template with African extras.
Some tracks are heavy duty crunchers, such as the curiously named "Tooth Factory" (which sounds like Japan's Speed, Glue, and Shinki, we think), some more spaced and mellow, like "Strange Dream", and still others are loose limbed groovy jams, like the title track. And, you'd better believe there's plenty of fuzz throughout, you'll get your daily dose and then some. Wah wah guitars roam wild, The Witch managing to be wonderfully melodic, funky, and downright distorted across these ten tracks, providing everything we desire from the electric ZamRock phenomenon (similar too, to bands from Nigeria like Blo and Ofege). With English being the official language of Zambia, that's what the vocals are in, sorta nasal and accented and lovely in a gritty way. Kinda hard to know what else to say except, recommended!
There was a Shadoks vinyl reissue of this a while back, but it was prohibitively expensive (close to fifty bucks retail!) so we're really glad they got around to doing this much more affordable compact disc version, licensed from the sole surviving band member and featuring a booklet full of interesting liner notes (by Egon from Now-Again / Stones Throw) and vintage photos.
MPEG Stream: "Motherless Child"
MPEG Stream: "Tooth Factory"
MPEG Stream: "Look Out"

WOODEN O, THE A Handful Of Pleasant Delites (Arkama) cd 22.00

MPEG Stream: "Toye Tune"
MPEG Stream: "Pipe Tune"
MPEG Stream: "Sad Tune"
MPEG Stream: "Overture"

WOODEN O, THE A Handful Of Pleasant Delites (Arkama) lp 16.98

MPEG Stream: "Toye Tune"
MPEG Stream: "Pipe Tune"
MPEG Stream: "Sad Tune"
MPEG Stream: "Overture"

WOOL s/t (Delay 68) cd 15.98
This latest reissue from the B-Music collective (Andy Votel, Cherrystones etc.) comes from blue-eyed funk-rock outfit Wool. Fronted by Ed Wool and his sister Claudia, Wool's sole 1969 album produced by Margo Guryan (who had just released her own folk-funk record on Bell) is full of the stuff beatheads crave: awesome drum breaks and groovy interludes, which is basically what we have come to expect from this label. Comprised mostly of covers including songs by The Troggs, Neil Diamond, and Big Brother and The Holding Company, Wool reminds us of other 60's female fronted rock acts such as Genya Ravin and Ten Wheel Drive, Cold Blood and Coven. But while those acts often had a couple of good songs and a lot of filler, the songs on Wool are consistently good throughout this record (well, they are mostly covers) culminating in the 10 minute James Brown-inspired "Funky Walk".
MPEG Stream: "Love, Love, Love, Love, Love"
MPEG Stream: "Funky Walk"

WORLD OF OZ, THE s/t (Repertoire) cd 24.00

MPEG Stream: "The Muffin Man"
MPEG Stream: "The Hum-Gum Tree"
MPEG Stream: "We've All Seen The Queen"

WRAY, LINK Law Of The Jungle! The Swan Demos '64 (Sundazed) cd 10.98
Link Wray, the mortal being, may have passed away late last year at the age of 76, but Link Wray, the legend, lives on in his body of groundbreaking music and its incredible influence on the music world as a whole. Seriously, anyone and everyone who straps on an electric guitar owes this man EVERYTHING. We're talkin' The Beatles, Elvis, The Rolling Stones, The Cramps, Jimmy Page, The Who... they all bow down in deep reverence. Please see our reviews of his other releases that we've carried for more glowing words. This cd compiles fifteen demo tracks from a very very early recording session for Swan Records and includes raw renditions of some of his most renowned songs ("Rumble", "Deuces Wild", "Ace Of Spades"). This is rock at its most blistering and wild.
MPEG Stream: "Law Of The Jungle"
MPEG Stream: "Rumble"