SITAR OUTREACH MINISTRY Spring Of 1970 EP (Auris Apothecary) leaf and twine wrapped cassette + magical seeds 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
First we've heard from this Indiana crew, but the name definitely had us intrigued, and the fact that it was released on Auris Apothecary, one of our favorite labels going right now, whose packaging is consistently mind blowing, this one's no different. Each one comes wrapped in a sunflower leaf, and tied with twine, inside is a packet of "magical sunflower seeds" and a sunshine yellow tape housed in an eco-friendly brown paper sleeve, all housed in a stickered NON eco-friendly ziplock plastic bag. Sonically, this might be one of our favorites in the AA catalog, sitar and acoustic guitar, which means plenty of mesmerizing steel string buzz. The A side is an awesome psychedelic version of Greig's "Hall Of The Mountain King", that immediately recognizable melody stretched out into a gorgeous and languorous sprawl of hypnotic buzz (though the sticker instead says it's "Rites Of Spring" for some reason!). The flipside is a much darker proposition, whipping that guitar and sitar buzz into a brooding psychedelic squall, thick pulsing swells, ominous and haunting, distorted and darkly threatening. Both sides are amazing, and WAY too short. definitely excited to hear more from these guys.
LIMITED TO 90 COPIES!!
MPEG Stream: "Excerpt 1"
MPEG Stream: "Excerpt 2"

SIX EYE COLUMBIA A Million Six cd 9.98
Strong songwriting dominates this debut release from the local rock group Six Eye Columbia. In addition to guitar and vocals, bandleader / all-around nice guy Josh Pollock also wields the banjo, xylophone, piano, and assorted toys. An array of guests offer pedal steel, cello, sax, trumpet etc. The effects-laden vocal delivery is similar to Guided By Voices' Robert Pollard -- tinny, staticky as if thru a bullhorn. Doleful male harmonies bring to mind Mark Eitzel's solo work, as does the simmering tension and midtempo pace throughout. Forlorn and depressing in a good way.
RealAudio clip: "Traitor Hygiene"
RealAudio clip: "Uranium Doll I"
RealAudio clip: "Joni Mitchell Songs"

SIX EYE COLUMBIA Judy At Carnegie Hall (Roosevelt Franklin) cd 9.98
AQ pal Josh Pollock, musical man about town and accomplished stage actor (having performed in a play based on the life of Rodd Keith, where the audience turned in poems at the beginning of the performance, and Pollack then wrote songs to go with the poems live on stage, a la Keith's legendary song poems) returns with his second release from Six Eye Columbia, his rock outfit, mostly Pollock's doing but with some occasional helping hands. Very Guided By Voices-ish pop, melodic and melancholy with some lengthy prog flourishes (he does after all play with David Aellen in the new Gong) and even the occasional Coldplay-esque lilting vocals. A bit more mainstream and polished than the last 6EC, with a lot more production polish and studio as instrument tinkering.
MPEG Stream: "15, Like Diamonds"
MPEG Stream: "She's Crying Diamonds"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE A Good Year For Hardness (Anchor Brain) lp 14.98
2009 has been quite a year for noise rock legends Six Finger Satellite. First, long lost recordings from 2001 surfaced as the album Half Control. Now, a few months later, the recently reformed band has returned with its first new studio record, and goddamn it's good to have them back. Sad to say though, but the general response (EXCLUDING this one, of course) seems to be overwhelmingly lukewarm, and even all out negative in some cases. Even around here, the first thing people mention is how this doesn't sound like the Six Finger Satellite of old. Perhaps there is some truth to that claim (though why should it necessarily matter?), but repeated listens really dispel it. It's just that current 6FS is a little less focused on experimental noisiness and more into full on rocking, something they've always done well. It's funny how A Good Year For Hardness is pretty damn bluesy. Maybe some folks just don't dig it, but the big 6FS fans around these parts are definitely pleased. After all, it's not like this shit sounds like typical white boy blues rock that you hear at the county fair. Far from it. This is coked out mutant blues being beamed in from outer space. Mean, depraved blues made by guys who are old enough to step into this territory without embarrassment or any desire to be seen as cool in the eyes of today's indie rockers, who they probably don't even acknowledge. This band has always been ridiculously tight, and the new lineup is no exception. The songs exude a grooving, almost classic rock vibe with warm bass, cool backbeats, and muscular riffage. But then there is singer J. Ryan's trademark vocals, all pissed off and pretty scary, every once in a while punctuated by crazy distorted James Brown-styled screams. And yes, the synths are there, they are just used a bit more sparingly, but to awesome effect. Rarely is the band "quirky" here, but every once in a while, the synths just make everything really weird and almost funny if they weren't within such disturbing songs. A lot of the songs venture into dark, brooding psychedelic territory, almost like some jagged post-punk Doors (some may disagree with this, but whatever). This is probably best demonstrated on closing number "Rise," driven by a warm bass throb and a steady beat with occasional bursts of heavily vibratoed guitar chords. Throughout it, the creepy synths pop up here and there as the barely controlled intensity of non-sceaming J. Ryan scares you just a little more. Awesome.
So far this sonuvabitch is available as an lp only, but the turntable deprived can rejoice over the inclusion of a free download card.

SIX FINGER SATELLITE A Good Year For Hardness (Anchor Brain) cd-r 12.98
NOW RELEASED AS A CD-R!! (Why not an actual cd, we don't know, weird.) This came out on vinyl last year, when we said...
2009 has been quite a year for noise rock legends Six Finger Satellite. First, long lost recordings from 2001 surfaced as the album Half Control. Now, a few months later, the recently reformed band has returned with its first new studio record, and goddamn it's good to have them back. Sad to say though, but the general response (EXCLUDING this one, of course) seems to be overwhelmingly lukewarm, and even all out negative in some cases. Even around here, the first thing people mention is how this doesn't sound like the Six Finger Satellite of old. Perhaps there is some truth to that claim (though why should it necessarily matter?), but repeated listens really dispel it. It's just that current 6FS is a little less focused on experimental noisiness and more into full on rocking, something they've always done well. It's funny how A Good Year For Hardness is pretty damn bluesy. Maybe some folks just don't dig it, but the big 6FS fans around these parts are definitely pleased. After all, it's not like this shit sounds like typical white boy blues rock that you hear at the county fair. Far from it. This is coked out mutant blues being beamed in from outer space. Mean, depraved blues made by guys who are old enough to step into this territory without embarrassment or any desire to be seen as cool in the eyes of today's indie rockers, who they probably don't even acknowledge. This band has always been ridiculously tight, and the new lineup is no exception. The songs exude a grooving, almost classic rock vibe with warm bass, cool backbeats, and muscular riffage. But then there is singer J. Ryan's trademark vocals, all pissed off and pretty scary, every once in a while punctuated by crazy distorted James Brown-styled screams. And yes, the synths are there, they are just used a bit more sparingly, but to awesome effect. Rarely is the band "quirky" here, but every once in a while, the synths just make everything really weird and almost funny if they weren't within such disturbing songs. A lot of the songs venture into dark, brooding psychedelic territory, almost like some jagged post-punk Doors (some may disagree with this, but whatever). This is probably best demonstrated on closing number "Rise," driven by a warm bass throb and a steady beat with occasional bursts of heavily vibratoed guitar chords. Throughout it, the creepy synths pop up here and there as the barely controlled intensity of non-sceaming J. Ryan scares you just a little more. Awesome.
MPEG Stream: "Hot Food"
MPEG Stream: "Rome From Home"
MPEG Stream: "Rise"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Half Control (Load) cd 15.98
In the '90s, there were two bands on the Sub Pop roster that, to anyone looking for their grunge or indie fix, made absolutely zero sense. One of those bands was the mighty Earth, who in the past few years have thankfully been reevaluated and recognized as the pioneers they were and are. Then there was Six Finger Satellite, spoken of with godlike reverence by their small but rabid fanbase, but still unjustly neglected by the majority of the human population. The big question here: WHY?!?! Six Finger Satellite was one of the great nihilistic rock bands of the '90s, the strange and unholy union of the Stooges, the Birthday Party, and Kraftwerk that turned into something else entirely. Their sound was hateful, tense, and disturbingly druggy, but most of all, they fucking ROCKED. While the synthesizer at this point in indie history seemed relegated to making cute little bleeping noises, 6FS wielded their Moogs like weapons of mass chaos, releasing 4 ESSENTIAL full lengths and a slew of equally awesome eps and singles before vanishing. Their provocative themes included a sinister but smartass referencing of, shall we say, "recent" German history, primates, and a Kraftwerkian synthesis of man and machine tailored to better suit a bunch of guys from Rhode Island. Their history is long, confusing, and even tragic (original bassist Kurt Niemand died of a drug overdose), eventually culminating in the departure of guitarist John Maclean - along with the band's synth arsenal - and his transformation into electro-dance act the Juan Maclean. Though they apparently soldiered on after their final full length, Law Of Ruins, that was pretty much it for Six Finger Satellite...
UNTIL NOW!!!
While the band has reconvened on a few occasions and are currently active, Half Control actually dates back to 2001. Surprisingly, the band's unstoppable drummer Rick Pelletier switched to bass for the reformed 6FS (and now he's playing guitar!), while the rhythm section was reconstituted from members of fellow Rhode Island noise rockers Landed. The resultant sound emphasizes the group's more pissed off, punkish edge - try to imagine the four-headed bastard offspring of Black Flag and the Jesus Lizard beating the shit out of itself - while downplaying their more meditative (relatively speaking for this band, of course) electro-kraut influences. For this reason, the initial reaction of many aQ staffers was that Half Control doesn't really sound like the Six Finger Satellite we all knew - remember that part about John Maclean and the band's collection of vintage synthesizers? Closer inspection, however, reveals otherwise, at least to the nerds in possession of the band's entire discography. While synths were and continue to remain integral to the 6FS sound, many people tend to overlook how guitar-centric they always were. Slashing and densely hypnotic riffing, throbbing basslines, and ridiculously tight drumming were just as important as their quirky but ominous synthlines. Singer/Moogist J. Ryan's feral vocals are as mean-spirited and distorted as they always were and the band still throbs and pulsates like a merciless machine that refuses to shut down. 6FS's sound was frantic but controlled, often verging on complete chaos, yet they managed to keep things together in a way only they could. With that in mind, it's clear to see that things are really just as great as they always were. The reality is that little has changed, it's just pretty mindblowing to think that we are hearing new sounds from a band that sadly *seemed* to drop off the map.
It should go without saying for anyone familiar with this fantastic band, that Load Records (who released their obscure but awe inspiring Clone Theory ep waaaaay back), is a much better home for them. It's not coincidental that much of that label's lineup and a great deal of the current noise rock scene is heavily indebted to 6FS, and while some of today's indie rockers may have unknowingly tapped into what these guys were about in the form of other bands, Six Finger Satellite has yet to be surpassed in ferocity, dark humor, and overall rockingness. Longtime fans should find plenty of reasons to rejoice, while newbies will freak out and have to accept mp3 versions of their out of print Sub Pop albums. To the rest of the world: WAKE THE FUCK UP. Six Finger Satellite is immortal, and even if this is their final statement (we sure hope not), it's more than we could have ever hoped for.
MPEG Stream: "Thrown Out"
MPEG Stream: "Artificial Light"
MPEG Stream: "Bored Oracle"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Half Control (Load) lp 15.98
Now available on vinyl!
In the '90s, there were two bands on the Sub Pop roster that, to anyone looking for their grunge or indie fix, made absolutely zero sense. One of those bands was the mighty Earth, who in the past few years have thankfully been reevaluated and recognized as the pioneers they were and are. Then there was Six Finger Satellite, spoken of with godlike reverence by their small but rabid fanbase, but still unjustly neglected by the majority of the human population. The big question here: WHY?!?! Six Finger Satellite was one of the great nihilistic rock bands of the '90s, the strange and unholy union of the Stooges, the Birthday Party, and Kraftwerk that turned into something else entirely. Their sound was hateful, tense, and disturbingly druggy, but most of all, they fucking ROCKED. While the synthesizer at this point in indie history seemed relegated to making cute little bleeping noises, 6FS wielded their Moogs like weapons of mass chaos, releasing 4 ESSENTIAL full lengths and a slew of equally awesome eps and singles before vanishing. Their provocative themes included a sinister but smartass referencing of, shall we say, "recent" German history, primates, and a Kraftwerkian synthesis of man and machine tailored to better suit a bunch of guys from Rhode Island. Their history is long, confusing, and even tragic (original bassist Kurt Niemand died of a drug overdose), eventually culminating in the departure of guitarist John Maclean - along with the band's synth arsenal - and his transformation into electro-dance act the Juan Maclean. Though they apparently soldiered on after their final full length, Law Of Ruins, that was pretty much it for Six Finger Satellite...
UNTIL NOW!!!
While the band has reconvened on a few occasions and are currently active, Half Control actually dates back to 2001. Surprisingly, the band's unstoppable drummer Rick Pelletier switched to bass for the reformed 6FS (and now he's playing guitar!), while the rhythm section was reconstituted from members of fellow Rhode Island noise rockers Landed. The resultant sound emphasizes the group's more pissed off, punkish edge - try to imagine the four-headed bastard offspring of Black Flag and the Jesus Lizard beating the shit out of itself - while downplaying their more meditative (relatively speaking for this band, of course) electro-kraut influences. For this reason, the initial reaction of many aQ staffers was that Half Control doesn't really sound like the Six Finger Satellite we all knew - remember that part about John Maclean and the band's collection of vintage synthesizers? Closer inspection, however, reveals otherwise, at least to the nerds in possession of the band's entire discography. While synths were and continue to remain integral to the 6FS sound, many people tend to overlook how guitar-centric they always were. Slashing and densely hypnotic riffing, throbbing basslines, and ridiculously tight drumming were just as important as their quirky but ominous synthlines. Singer/Moogist J. Ryan's feral vocals are as mean-spirited and distorted as they always were and the band still throbs and pulsates like a merciless machine that refuses to shut down. 6FS's sound was frantic but controlled, often verging on complete chaos, yet they managed to keep things together in a way only they could. With that in mind, it's clear to see that things are really just as great as they always were. The reality is that little has changed, it's just pretty mindblowing to think that we are hearing new sounds from a band that sadly *seemed* to drop off the map.
It should go without saying for anyone familiar with this fantastic band, that Load Records (who released their obscure but awe inspiring Clone Theory ep waaaaay back), is a much better home for them. It's not coincidental that much of that label's lineup and a great deal of the current noise rock scene is heavily indebted to 6FS, and while some of today's indie rockers may have unknowingly tapped into what these guys were about in the form of other bands, Six Finger Satellite has yet to be surpassed in ferocity, dark humor, and overall rockingness. Longtime fans should find plenty of reasons to rejoice, while newbies will freak out and have to accept mp3 versions of their out of print Sub Pop albums. To the rest of the world: WAKE THE FUCK UP. Six Finger Satellite is immortal, and even if this is their final statement (we sure hope not), it's more than we could have ever hoped for.
MPEG Stream: "Thrown Out"
MPEG Stream: "Artificial Light"
MPEG Stream: "Bored Oracle"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Law of Ruins (Sub Pop) cd 12.98
Rhode Island's not so favorite sons perfect their blend of Stooges sludge rock and Moog powered space-out-kraut grooves. Internal debates have drawn blood over whether this is the best Six Finger Satellite record... regardless of the outcome, this is a great record and shouldn't be missed! Also comes in very attractive packaging (the vinyl is clear in a clear cover).

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Law of Ruins (Sub Pop) lp 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Rhode Island's not so favorite sons perfect their blend of Stooges sludge rock and Moog powered space-out-kraut grooves. Internal debates have drawn blood over whether this is the best Six Finger Satellite record... regardless of the outcome, this is a great record and shouldn't be missed! Also comes in very attractive packaging (the vinyl is clear in a clear cover).

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Machine Cuisine Companion Cassette (ABRN) cassette 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Did not see this one coming... but GODDAMN are we happy about it. Originally released by the band themselves in 1994 as, you guessed it, a companion cassette to the band's mighty Machine Cuisine 10", this little bastard has been out of print for years, attaining somewhat of a mythic status and fetching some pretty hefty prices the one or two times it ever ended up on eBay. Now, with 6FS operating once again, they saw it fit to reissue this cassette for the hungry masses in 2010, complete with a digital download card tucked inside.
A polarizing band if there ever was one, Six Finger Satellite was one of the few groups in the '90s to utilize synthesizers to their full potential, which they integrated into a traditional rock band setup for some heavy, hateful, and totally rocking results. While the Machine Cuisine ep itself found 6FS sans guitars, sounding a bit like a smart ass Kraftwerk meeting up with Chrome, the cassette rocks furiously, with the band's trademark demented vocals, machine like drumming and some razor sharp riffage. It's unfortunate that these guys never gained more than a cult following, but not really that surprising either. Listening to this stuff now, it's clear that they were not only completely out of step with much of the "indie rock" scene of the '90s, but also WAY ahead of their time. This may be a bold statement, but we imagine time will vindicate Six Finger Satellite and eventually find them mentioned along with all the other great, nihilistic drug bands like the Stooges and the Birthday Party. Highest recommendation imaginable, and we would imagine quite limited.

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Massive Cocaine Seizure (Sub Pop) 7" 3.99
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
For fans of Chrome and Kraftwerk.

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Ascent (Drag City) cd 14.98
If you still think of Ben Chasny's Six Organs Of Admittance as being primarily a folky, Fahey/Basho/Takoma style acoustic enterprise, then please note the blurb on the sticker on this new album's cover, where it says in time-honored rock n' roll tradition: "Play This Record Loudly". And you should, 'cause while it's not like Six Organs haven't rocked before (they have) but Chasny sure is getting his ya-yas out here, big time. As we said when we recently reviewed the non-album single, Parsons' Blues, that immediately preceded this full-length, this stuff sounds like "Six Organs Of Comets On Fire", and the lineup here backs up that assertion. That lineup features Ethan Miller, Ben Flashman, Utrillo Kushner, and Noel Von Harmonson, all from Comets, of whom Chasny himself has also been a member. Plus producer Tim Green contributes some guitar, too. Thus (?) it's the loud psychedelic freakout side of things (a la Comets) that dominates, on a majority of the cuts here, at least.
The album opens with an energetic, kickass quasi-instrumental (there's some voices but no words) called "Waswasa", and then on track two, "Close To The Sky", it really sounds like Chasny & Co. have slapped on their sunglasses-at-night and are channelling total Tokyo Flashback action, a la LSD-March, Up-Tight, High Rise, and goddamn godfathers Les Rallizes. Headnodding psych-noodling, all right! That's followed by the ritual ceremony of "They Called You Near", and for a while we're back to acid folk, not acid rock, territory. Track four, "Solar Ascent", is even mellower and lovelier, but the next one, "One Thousand Birds" rocks out quite a bit more, bringing back that psych skronk guitar over a steady rhythmic pulsebeat. And so it goes, this album both dreamy and driving, providing songs that focus on Ben's gentle hushed voice and melodies, along with distortodelic romps full of amped-up, Rallizes-esque throb that also ought to appeal to fans of Wooden Shjips and Crazy Horse.
If you liked what Chasny has conjured on other recent sets like Asleep On The Floodplain and Luminous Night, this is equally expansive and ambitious - but with a bit more Comets-y sonic violence n' volume overall.
The compact disc version comes packaged in a nice cardboard miniature lp jacket, and we like how the "cd booklet" in fact consists of a folded up dot matrix printout (or rather, what looks like one).
MPEG Stream: "Close To The Sky"
MPEG Stream: "Your Ghost"
MPEG Stream: "Even If You Knew"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Ascent (Drag City) lp 17.98
If you still think of Ben Chasny's Six Organs Of Admittance as being primarily a folky, Fahey/Basho/Takoma style acoustic enterprise, then please note the blurb on the sticker on this new album's cover, where it says in time-honored rock n' roll tradition: "Play This Record Loudly". And you should, 'cause while it's not like Six Organs haven't rocked before (they have) but Chasny sure is getting his ya-yas out here, big time. As we said when we recently reviewed the non-album single, Parsons' Blues, that immediately preceded this full-length, this stuff sounds like "Six Organs Of Comets On Fire", and the lineup here backs up that assertion. That lineup features Ethan Miller, Ben Flashman, Utrillo Kushner, and Noel Von Harmonson, all from Comets, of whom Chasny himself has also been a member. Plus producer Tim Green contributes some guitar, too. Thus (?) it's the loud psychedelic freakout side of things (a la Comets) that dominates, on a majority of the cuts here, at least.
The album opens with an energetic, kickass quasi-instrumental (there's some voices but no words) called "Waswasa", and then on track two, "Close To The Sky", it really sounds like Chasny & Co. have slapped on their sunglasses-at-night and are channelling total Tokyo Flashback action, a la LSD-March, Up-Tight, High Rise, and goddamn godfathers Les Rallizes. Headnodding psych-noodling, all right! That's followed by the ritual ceremony of "They Called You Near", and for a while we're back to acid folk, not acid rock, territory. Track four, "Solar Ascent", is even mellower and lovelier, but the next one, "One Thousand Birds" rocks out quite a bit more, bringing back that psych skronk guitar over a steady rhythmic pulsebeat. And so it goes, this album both dreamy and driving, providing songs that focus on Ben's gentle hushed voice and melodies, along with distortodelic romps full of amped-up, Rallizes-esque throb that also ought to appeal to fans of Wooden Shjips and Crazy Horse.
If you liked what Chasny has conjured on other recent sets like Asleep On The Floodplain and Luminous Night, this is equally expansive and ambitious - but with a bit more Comets-y sonic violence n' volume overall.
The compact disc version comes packaged in a nice cardboard miniature lp jacket, and we like how the "cd booklet" in fact consists of a folded up dot matrix printout (or rather, what looks like one).
MPEG Stream: "Close To The Sky"
MPEG Stream: "Your Ghost"
MPEG Stream: "Even If You Knew"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Asleep On The Floodplain (Drag City ) cd 14.98
And lo, after several changes of the seasons, once again the musical mystic comes down from the mountain to play for the people his olden instrument of wood and wires. Meandering through meadows, pausing to serenade both man and beast, rock and flower with hushed blessings and blissful hummings. It's record number, what, 12 or 13 from Ben Chasny aka Six Organs Of Admittance. And the dust still chimes. This is the even brighter dawn after the luminous night.
Chasny is one of our very favorite practitioners of psych folk descended from the fringes of the Takoma tradition, American primitive meets Eastern acid, a la Basho and Bishop - Sir Richard being one of Chasny's compadres in Rangda, the fierce improv yang to this album's (mostly) gentle folky yin.
As befits its title, Asleep On The Floodplain is indeed a dreamy one, tickling with sweet tangles of strings (such as the acoustic guitar solo "Poppies"), shimmering with lovely drones (the harmonium laden "Brilliant Blue Sea Between Us"). With some tracks, like the album's intense side two epic "S/word And Leviathan" (over twelve minutes long) bringing all that together and more. It's esoteric, poetic in both inspiration and realization (there's post-graduate work to be done delving into the lyrical/conceptual side of these songs, instrumentals excluded, or not). Without such analysis, we know it's at least interesting, and more importantly emotive and evocative, whether Chasny is gently singing, or just caressing the strings. As always with Six Organs, we can surely say by now, recommended!!
MPEG Stream: "Above A Desert I've Never Seen"
MPEG Stream: "Light Of The Light"
MPEG Stream: "S/word And Leviathan"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Asleep On The Floodplain (Drag City) lp 17.98
And lo, after several changes of the seasons, once again the musical mystic comes down from the mountain to play for the people his olden instrument of wood and wires. Meandering through meadows, pausing to serenade both man and beast, rock and flower with hushed blessings and blissful hummings. It's record number, what, 12 or 13 from Ben Chasny aka Six Organs Of Admittance. And the dust still chimes. This is the even brighter dawn after the luminous night.
Chasny is one of our very favorite practitioners of psych folk descended from the fringes of the Takoma tradition, American primitive meets Eastern acid, a la Basho and Bishop - Sir Richard being one of Chasny's compadres in Rangda, the fierce improv yang to this album's (mostly) gentle folky yin.
As befits its title, Asleep On The Floodplain is indeed a dreamy one, tickling with sweet tangles of strings (such as the acoustic guitar solo "Poppies"), shimmering with lovely drones (the harmonium laden "Brilliant Blue Sea Between Us"). With some tracks, like the album's intense side two epic "S/word And Leviathan" (over twelve minutes long) bringing all that together and more. It's esoteric, poetic in both inspiration and realization (there's post-graduate work to be done delving into the lyrical/conceptual side of these songs, instrumentals excluded, or not). Without such analysis, we know it's at least interesting, and more importantly emotive and evocative, whether Chasny is gently singing, or just caressing the strings. As always with Six Organs, we can surely say by now, recommended!!
MPEG Stream: "Above A Desert I've Never Seen"
MPEG Stream: "Light Of The Light"
MPEG Stream: "S/word And Leviathan"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Compathia (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
Ben Chasny: hot guy. Bedroom eyes and a bottle of beer. What's up with the cover?? Well, apparently Ben's sick of people thinking he's some sort of sexless mystical elf, so he chose to pose for pictures on a rumpled bed complete with prone girlfriend (or groupie?). But even without the usual murky, evocative artwork of ghostly treelines this new, fourth album from Ben's Six Organs of Admittance is again a lovely piece of psych-folk-pop. Hippie jams updated for the kids today, taking cues from both Bolan and Basho. Gently drifting or discretely chugging, the majority of this record is devoted to mellow song-craft of exqusite beauty. So when the heavy psych guitar blow-out of the last track "Only The Sun Knows" (featuring Ethan Miller of Comets On Fire, who also plays the sitar elsewhere on the album) kicks in, your only warning will be this review! Recommended, from start to finish a really nice record.
MPEG Stream: "Close To The Sky"
MPEG Stream: "Wind In My Palm"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Dark Noontide (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The excellent split LP that Six Organs Of Admittance recently did with Charlambides really whet our appetite for this disc, the third full-length album from Ben Chasny (Six Organs, on record at least, is pretty much just him). Actually, we've been eager for another Six Organs disc since Ben's last cd, "Dust & Chimes", brightened our world (in its melancholy way) back in 2000. Hunched over his 4-track up in the wilds of McKinleyville, California, Ben has outdone himself with the eight tracks on offer here. The album begins with a beautifully sung psych-folk song, soon delves into dark, sad drone pieces, early '70s krautrock-inspired tabla-and-feedback jams (you wouldn't think it's just one guy and a 4-track, but rather a stoned group of freaks really feeling the kosmiche vibe together), some gorgeous solo acoustic guitar in a Fahey mode, and more of his dreamy late-night acid-folk songwriting. Six Organs is definitely among the best of the currently-burgeoning "Terrastock Nation", and we'd certainly rank Mr. Chasny with similarily-inspired and inspiring contemporaries like Greg Weeks, Richard Youngs, P.G. Six, Masaki Batoh, Amps For Christ, Joshua Burkett, and Kawabata Makoto. So very recommended!
MPEG Stream: "This Hand"
MPEG Stream: "On Returning Home"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Dark Noontide (Holy Mountain) lp 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now on VINYL. Whoo-hoo! Here's what we said when we reviewed the cd version of this fine Six Orgs alb:
The excellent split LP that Six Organs Of Admittance recently did with Charlambides really whet our appetite for this disc, the third full-length album from Ben Chasny (Six Organs, on record at least, is pretty much just him). Actually, we've been eager for another Six Organs disc since Ben's last cd, "Dust & Chimes", brightened our world (in its melancholy way) back in 2000. Hunched over his 4-track up in the wilds of McKinleyville, California, Ben has outdone himself with the eight tracks on offer here. The album begins with a beautifully sung psych-folk song, soon delves into dark, sad drone pieces, early '70s krautrock-inspired tabla-and-feedback jams (you wouldn't think it's just one guy and a 4-track, but rather a stoned group of freaks really feeling the kosmiche vibe together), some gorgeous solo acoustic guitar in a Fahey mode, and more of his dreamy late-night acid-folk songwriting. Six Organs is definitely among the best of the currently-burgeoning "Terrastock Nation", and we'd certainly rank Mr. Chasny with similarily-inspired and inspiring contemporaries like Greg Weeks, Richard Youngs, P.G. Six, Masaki Batoh, Amps For Christ, Joshua Burkett, and Kawabata Makoto. So very recommended!
MPEG Stream: "This Hand"
MPEG Stream: "On Returning Home"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Dust & Chimes (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
Eureka, California based young'un Ben Chasny was the hands down big hit at this year's Terrastock IV festival of peace, love and psychedelic drugs, held in Seattle (where, by the way, we were excited to visit the Experience Music Project museum -- $20, and worth every penny!). At the festival, Ben's airy yet dark psychedelia was augmented with the talents of other bandmates specially put together for the occasion, but on "Dust & Chimes", his first album just now reissued on cd for the first time, he's working mostly alone. Concocting lush laments from acoustic guitar, chimes, and subtle distortion effects, Six Organs of Admittance bespeak a love for psych-folk not of the fey British variety, but more akin to the ethereal otherworldliness of Japan's Ghost. Fahey fans will also find much to appreciate. Every sound is carefully placed and joyfully played -- and this attention to detail came across live in spades, where the youthful energy of this band reminded me of the Olivia Tremor Control, giving it their all. On record, this energy is rather more dark and mysterious than any Olivias comparison would suggest. Very nice.
RealAudio clip: "Black Needle Rhymes"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE For Octavio Paz (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
This came out as a fancy limited vinyl edition some months back, but those are long gone and now all Six Organs lovers who missed 'em can thank their lucky stars (and Holy Mtn) that the same splendidifidous folk-psych guitar gems found on that elpee are now available on ceedee. What we said before still applies, except it's just one, longer side now:
Two sides of instrumental transcendence from AQ fave, Ben Chasny's Six Organs Of Admittance. Recorded late at night, on a four track, these songs exude late nights, twinkling stars, crackling fires, rustling woods, broken hearts and burnished spirit. Side one is a series of soft and sweetly finger picked nylon string guitar pieces with the occasional haunting ethereal vocal and shimmering, tinkling bells. Side two is a side long steel string rumination, mellow and melancholy, minor key and meditative. Psychedelic folk stripped to its essence. So gorgeous.
Quite recommended to all under the spell of Mr. Chasny, or who would like to be. Lookin' forward to his new album due later this year on Drag City...
MPEG Stream: "They Fixed The Broken Windmill Today"
MPEG Stream: "The Acceptance Of Absolute Negation"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE For Octavio Paz (Time-Lag) lp 19.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Two sides of instrumental transcendence from AQ faves Six Organs Of Admittance. Recorded late at night, on a four track, these songs exude late nights, twinkling stars, crackling fires, rustling woods, broken hearts and burnished spirit. Side one is a series of soft and sweetly finger picked nylon string guitar pieces with the occasional haunting ethereal vocal and shimmering, tinkling bells. Side two is a side long steel string rumination, mellow and melancholy, minor key and meditative. Psychedelic folk stripped to it's essence. So gorgeous. THICK 180 gram vinyl, in a gorgeous letter pressed sleeve, with a letter pressed insert and numbered (limited to 500).

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Luminous Night (Drag City) cd 14.98
An abundance of Six Organs this week! Ben Chasny not only has this great new album out, but there's also a vinyl-only split 12" with Azul (aka his old pal L) on the Japanese psych label PSF we're reviewing too. The full-length record at hand, Luminous Night, is indeed a stunner, and more or less what we've come to expect from the reliable Mr. Chasny.
It opens with the orchestrated, slightly precious folk-prog of "Actaeon's Fall (Against The Hounds)", an all-instrumental intro to this delicate and dusty album, a track that's sad yet hopeful, with a Morricone-esque arrangement. The next song "Anesthesia" brings in Ben's hushed but strong singing, and that's how it goes here, folkish balladry (like ferinstance on "The Ballad Of Charley Harper", though there's plenty of drone n' distortion layered o'er that one, and elsewhere) interwoven with moody instrumentals, all of it with a Western Gothic meets Eastern Psych vibe. Next up, "Bar-Nasha" leans towards the Eastern side of the equation, a tapestry of fingerpicking, flute, and hand percussion, but Ben's vocals have all the melancholic solemnity of apocalyptic alt-country act Woven Hand, in fact, his deeper voiced singing here, as on this track, reminds us weirdly enough of someone from another Xtian band, vocalist Eric Wagner from classic doom metallers Trouble. (Who can be psychedelic sometimes, but not like this!).
Regarding the instrumentals, the longest track here, "The River Of Heaven", is a ritualistic ceremony like Japan's Ghost getting mopey, and "Cover Your Wounds With The Sky" is a lovely dense drone piece, sounding a lot like something from Steven R. Smith's latest record, Cities (yet to be reviewed by us, but really good, by the way).
We've mentioned almost all the tracks here, and rest assured that the others are quite nice too, making for a haunting Six Organs Of Admittance album that should satisfy his fans old and new. We figure most of you fall into the former camp, but anyone yet to experience this artist should give Luminous Night a listen and likely you'll become one of the latter.
MPEG Stream: "Bar-Nasha"
MPEG Stream: "The River Of Heaven"
MPEG Stream: "The Ballad Of Charley Harper"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Luminous Night (Drag City) lp 15.98
An abundance of Six Organs this week! Ben Chasny not only has this great new album out, but there's also a vinyl-only split 12" with Azul (aka his old pal L) on the Japanese psych label PSF we're reviewing too. The full-length record at hand, Luminous Night, is indeed a stunner, and more or less what we've come to expect from the reliable Mr. Chasny.
It opens with the orchestrated, slightly precious folk-prog of "Actaeon's Fall (Against The Hounds)", an all-instrumental intro to this delicate and dusty album, a track that's sad yet hopeful, with a Morricone-esque arrangement. The next song "Anesthesia" brings in Ben's hushed but strong singing, and that's how it goes here, folkish balladry (like ferinstance on "The Ballad Of Charley Harper", though there's plenty of drone n' distortion layered o'er that one, and elsewhere) interwoven with moody instrumentals, all of it with a Western Gothic meets Eastern Psych vibe. Next up, "Bar-Nasha" leans towards the Eastern side of the equation, a tapestry of fingerpicking, flute, and hand percussion, but Ben's vocals have all the melancholic solemnity of apocalyptic alt-country act Woven Hand, in fact, his deeper voiced singing here, as on this track, reminds us weirdly enough of someone from another Xtian band, vocalist Eric Wagner from classic doom metallers Trouble. (Who can be psychedelic sometimes, but not like this!).
Regarding the instrumentals, the longest track here, "The River Of Heaven", is a ritualistic ceremony like Japan's Ghost getting mopey, and "Cover Your Wounds With The Sky" is a lovely dense drone piece, sounding a lot like something from Steven R. Smith's latest record, Cities (yet to be reviewed by us, but really good, by the way).
We've mentioned almost all the tracks here, and rest assured that the others are quite nice too, making for a haunting Six Organs Of Admittance album that should satisfy his fans old and new. We figure most of you fall into the former camp, but anyone yet to experience this artist should give Luminous Night a listen and likely you'll become one of the latter.
MPEG Stream: "Bar-Nasha"
MPEG Stream: "The River Of Heaven"
MPEG Stream: "The Ballad Of Charley Harper"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Mariakapel (Pavilion / Whipping Post Music) lp 28.00
Heck yeah, a 2nd pressing! Got a bunch, but sold a bunch too before this list so right now we only have a mere handful, so act quick if you missed it before 'cause we're pretty sure we won't be able to get it again. (Although, also fyi, Ben tells us that there probably will be a compact disc edition someday too.)
Mariakapel was a special tour only lp from Six Organs Of Admittance, aka Ben Chasny, originally released to coincide with a 2011 European tour. We got a couple dozen of the first pressing on Pavilion (ltd. to 500 copies) direct from Ben back then, but those went pretty quick as you may recall. And no surprise, cuz this is really really great. Compiled from two live performances in 2010 and 2011, the opening and closing tracks were recorded earlier in 2011 in Massachusetts, the opener is all wheezing harmonium, a gorgeous stretch of psychedelic mesmer, swirling and shimmery, laced with bits of acoustic guitar, very hypnotic and raga-like, gradually growing more lush and textured as the track progresses, extra layers, tangled melodies, all just beneath that glorious harmonium hum. The closer sort of bookends the record with a similarly droney sound, but this time with what sounds like organ, still very raga like, all long layered tones, and constantly shifting overtones. Gorgeous and intense.
But between those two drones, are a handful of recordings from 2010, recorded live in Tilburg, Holland, a fantastic collection of spare, sparse minimal Appalachia, in the background you can hear feet shuffling, people moving about, but nothing can distract from Chasny's darkly meditative guitarscapes, which include some of Chansy's most intense playing, super percussive and buzzy, downtuned and intense, sounds like he's getting a little Orcutt on some of these jams, but it definitely suites him, and even at his most aggressive, he manages to make the tracks lush and lovely and still impossibly melodic. Fantastic stuff as always.
LIMITED THIS TIME TO 250 COPIES, via Dutch label Whipping Post.

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Nightly Trembling (Time-Lag) lp 19.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Another gorgeous and limited 12" from Six Organs Of Admittance. The material on this 12" was originally released in 1999 as a limited lathe cut 12", only thirty copies were made and each was personally sent to it's owner. Finally reissued, Nightly Trembling is possibly the best seventies psych folk record not actually made in the seventies. Big praise, but wait until you hear this! The Wicker Man, Comus, Incredible String Band, all filtered through Ben Chasny's Six Organs. Acoustic guitar, Chasney's creepy growl, throbbing shimmering pagan ambience, angelic and haunting choir-like vocals all set in extended raga-like song structures. So good. On HEAVY 180 gram vinyl. In a letter pressed sleeve with insert and numbered (limited to 500).

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Parsons' Blues (Drag City) 7" 5.98
A two song teaser for the upcoming Six Organs album features a strangely familiar lineup, a quick glance at the names on the back of the sleeve has us convinced this is in fact a Six Organs Of Comets On Fire 7", and it sounds like it too, this five man band kick out two instrumental psych jams, the A side is distorted and dirgey and blown out, seriously psychedelic, but weirdly minimal too, with a haunting apocalyptic folk undercurrent, the vibe tranced out and cyclical, a sort of churning hypnorock workout that is a gloriously mesmerizing chunk of psychedelic heaviness.
As is the B side, a bit more spaced out, abstract and drifty, but the guitars are still gnarled and buzzy, the drums loose and free, the sound a freeform psych drift blowout that explodes in the second half with some seriously killer guitar shred. Wowee. Can't wait for the full length!

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE RTZ (Drag City) cd 16.98
Here at aQ we get the pleasure of watching bands grow and change over the years. Sure, some bands head off the deep end never to be heard from again, but others mature and grow into something even beyond what we could've ever imagined. Ben Chasny is the perfect example of the latter. After releasing well over a dozen albums, we've watched Chasny evolve into one of the most prominent music makers of our time. Don't get us wrong, there are plenty of other super talented and super awesome downer psych folk yogis, BUT none even come close to matching the mind bending artistry that Chasny has perfected.
We cant even tell you how many people have come into the shop only to proclaim, "What?! A new Six Organs record!?! I'll take it!" And this isn't even exactly a new record, although this material is new to most of us, as Drag City has reissued a bunch of older, more obscure and hard to find Six Organs tracks.
While "Punish the Chasm with Wings" is the only completely unheard track on RTZ, the rest of these songs are taken from various cd splits, limited pressed cdrs, compilations and a 12" split with Charlambidies, highly anticipated early work straight from the dusty vaults of Mr. Chasny. Named after a button on his beloved four-track recorder, RTZ is an acronym for Return to Zero, a highly appropriate title for an album that revisits the early beginnings of his prolific career.
In some ways, RTZ is more of the same gorgeous woodsy, somber guitar work from Chasny, but what makes RTZ one of our favorite Six Organs records is the sheer epicness of every track. Beautifully composed with close attention to detail, the majority of the songs span well over the ten minute mark, most almost reaching 20 minutes! Every track carries the weight of an entire album, each taking the listener on a different path through the overgrown reaches of some forested wonderland. Hypnotic guitar pluckings hovering over vocal mantras that shapeshift into quiet soundscapes, rhythmic tambourine and flute passages sway with the hanging branches as plumes of smoke rise magnificently into the air. Chasny's guitar playing is completely spot on, sincere and dimly lit, we can just picture him with eyes closed, hunched over in the corner of some candlelit run-down cabin, channeling the words and songs of spirits lost in the woods. Complete with a cool lookin' black metal-esque Six Organs logo on the cover, RTZ is a must have, especially for fans of anything Six Organs (or anything remotely similar for that matter)!!
MPEG Stream: "Warm Earth, Which I've Been Told"
MPEG Stream: "Punish The Chasms With Wings"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE RTZ (Drag City) 3lp 22.00
Here at aQ we get the pleasure of watching bands grow and change over the years. Sure, some bands head off the deep end never to be heard from again, but others mature and grow into something even beyond what we could've ever imagined. Ben Chasny is the perfect example of the latter. After releasing well over a dozen albums, we've watched Chasny evolve into one of the most prominent music makers of our time. Don't get us wrong, there are plenty of other super talented and super awesome downer psych folk yogis, BUT none even come close to matching the mind bending artistry that Chasny has perfected.
We cant even tell you how many people have come into the shop only to proclaim, "What?! A new Six Organs record!?! I'll take it!" And this isn't even exactly a new record, although this material is new to most of us, as Drag City has reissued a bunch of older, more obscure and hard to find Six Organs tracks.
While "Punish the Chasm with Wings" is the only completely unheard track on RTZ, the rest of these songs are taken from various cd splits, limited pressed cdrs, compilations and a 12" split with Charlambidies, highly anticipated early work straight from the dusty vaults of Mr. Chasny. Named after a button on his beloved four-track recorder, RTZ is an acronym for Return to Zero, a highly appropriate title for an album that revisits the early beginnings of his prolific career.
In some ways, RTZ is more of the same gorgeous woodsy, somber guitar work from Chasny, but what makes RTZ one of our favorite Six Organs records is the sheer epicness of every track. Beautifully composed with close attention to detail, the majority of the songs span well over the ten minute mark, most almost reaching 20 minutes! Every track carries the weight of an entire album, each taking the listener on a different path through the overgrown reaches of some forested wonderland. Hypnotic guitar pluckings hovering over vocal mantras that shapeshift into quiet soundscapes, rhythmic tambourine and flute passages sway with the hanging branches as plumes of smoke rise magnificently into the air. Chasny's guitar playing is completely spot on, sincere and dimly lit, we can just picture him with eyes closed, hunched over in the corner of some candlelit run-down cabin, channeling the words and songs of spirits lost in the woods. Complete with a cool lookin' black metal-esque Six Organs logo on the cover, RTZ is a must have, especially for fans of anything Six Organs (or anything remotely similar for that matter)!!
MPEG Stream: "Warm Earth, Which I've Been Told"
MPEG Stream: "Punish The Chasms With Wings"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE s/t (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
Several years ago, while listening to excellent Bay Area college radio station KFJC, a particular track of hypnotic, droning psych caught my ear -- buzzing, repetitive acoustic guitar and organ and a mysterious voice intoning "prayer for the su-unnnn..." over and over, all building into a loose, dirgey trance. Gorgeous. Further listening revealed the mysterious voice as belonging to Ben Chasny, aka Six Organs of Admittance. Soon thereafter, my ever thoughtful roommates returned from a John Fahey show, at which Six Organs had been the opener, bearing an LP on which I was excited to find the track I loved. A bit of time passed, and lamentably, so did John Fahey; Six Organs has gone on to make two great albums as well as lending a considerable hand to Comets On Fire on their awesome "Field Recordings from the Sun." This here is a long-awaited cd reissue of that first Six Organs LP, with the addition of 2 tracks from a limited 8" lathe-cut disc. While Chasny seems to be getting better and better, as evidenced by his best and most recent record "Dark Noontide," the darkly psychedelic 4-track ramblings on this disc find his signature sound fully in place-- an immediately recognizable way of attacking an acoustic guitar into a state of humming, reverbrating submission, that resonant baritone, and detours into percussive experimentation, all ritualistic and, I'll say it again, thoroughly hypnotic. So Nice.
MPEG Stream: "Sum of All Heaven"
MPEG Stream: "Invitation to the SR for Supper"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE School Of The Flower (Drag City) cd 14.98
AQ-fave underground psych-folk troubadour Ben Chasny hits the "big time" with this Drag City debut. Ok, Drag City's not a major label but it's a popular indie. If this was the '70s, he'd have been flown out to a rented mansion in LA by the label, where he'd have spent months recording in drug-fuelled debauchery. It being just boring old now, we're sure that didn't happen. Despite that, Ben still steps up and delivers with this new Six Organs opus of his. Not that he's ever disappointed, but this could be one of his best. And it is in fact his first ever actual studio-recorded release. The Basho/Fahey guitar pickin', the pagan folk, the cosmic mystic vibes... all shining through. And with School Of The Flower he reveals his obsession with the music of one Gary Higgins, an obscure '70s singer-songwriter who did a now much-talked-of-in-certain-circles LP entitled Red Hash. Until someone tracks him down (according to the liner notes, Drag City is trying), the closest you'll probably get to hearing it is the cover of his "Thicker Than A Smokey" that appears here!
FYI: the music on track five ("Home") is basically the bass line for Rod Stewart's "Ooh La La" played on acoustic guitar!
MPEG Stream: "Eighth Cognition/All You've Left"
MPEG Stream: "Procession Of Cherry Blossom Spirits"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE School Of The Flower (Drag City) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
AQ-fave underground psych-folk troubadour Ben Chasny hits the "big time" with this Drag City debut. Ok, Drag City's not a major label but it's a popular indie. If this was the '70s, he'd have been flown out to a rented mansion in LA by the label, where he'd have spent months recording in drug-fuelled debauchery. It being just boring old now, we're sure that didn't happen. Despite that, Ben still steps up and delivers with this new Six Organs opus of his. Not that he's ever disappointed, but this could be one of his best. And it is in fact his first ever actual studio-recorded release. The Basho/Fahey guitar pickin', the pagan folk, the cosmic mystic vibes... all shining through. And with School Of The Flower he reveals his obsession with the music of one Gary Higgins, an obscure '70s singer-songwriter who did a now much-talked-of-in-certain-circles LP entitled Red Hash. Until someone tracks him down (according to the liner notes, Drag City is trying), the closest you'll probably get to hearing it is the cover of his "Thicker Than A Smokey" that appears here!
FYI: the music on track five ("Home") is basically the bass line for Rod Stewart's "Ooh La La" played on acoustic guitar!
MPEG Stream: "Eighth Cognition/All You've Left"
MPEG Stream: "Procession Of Cherry Blossom Spirits"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Shelter From The Ash (Drag City) cd 14.98
The first two tracks on Shelter From The Ash pretty much illustrate the two complementary sides to Mr. Six Organs Ben Chasny's usual modus operandi. The first cut, "Alone With The Alone", is droning and dense, building into tripped out, fairly fierce electric guitar solo, while the second, "Strangled Road", is a much mellower, subdued folk-ish number, with hushed vocals and lonely guitar strum... Together, you've got a recipe for the morose, bleak beauty that this album cooks up, with songs sung about war, loss and survival amidst yearning instrumentals, including one dedicated to the Sun City Girls.
Shelter From The Ash is record number ten (at least!) from Six Organs of Admittance and it's another winner, much like its predecessors in having a basis in Chasny's facility with Faheyesque steel-string fingerpicking while heading off into the wilder reaches of heavy psych, and almost country-rockish moodiness. He's helped out here by members of Comets On Fire and Magick Markers, though it's the rough hewn, intimate hum and buzz of just Ben and his guitar that works the most magic for us.
MPEG Stream: "Coming To Get You"
MPEG Stream: "Alone With The Alone"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Shelter From The Ash (Drag City) lp 15.98
The first two tracks on Shelter From The Ash pretty much illustrate the two complementary sides to Mr. Six Organs Ben Chasny's usual modus operandi. The first cut, "Alone With The Alone", is droning and dense, building into tripped out, fairly fierce electric guitar solo, while the second, "Strangled Road", is a much mellower, subdued folk-ish number, with hushed vocals and lonely guitar strum... Together, you've got a recipe for the morose, bleak beauty that this album cooks up, with songs sung about war, loss and survival amidst yearning instrumentals, including one dedicated to the Sun City Girls.
Shelter From The Ash is record number ten (at least!) from Six Organs of Admittance and it's another winner, much like its predecessors in having a basis in Chasny's facility with Faheyesque steel-string fingerpicking while heading off into the wilder reaches of heavy psych, and almost country-rockish moodiness. He's helped out here by members of Comets On Fire and Magick Markers, though it's the rough hewn, intimate hum and buzz of just Ben and his guitar that works the most magic for us.
MPEG Stream: "Coming To Get You"
MPEG Stream: "Alone With The Alone"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE The Manifestation (Strange Attractors Audio House) cd 13.98
What once was an one-sided, etched vinyl 12" ep (released in 1999 on BaDaBing) has been transformated into a one-sided (as they all are) cd reissued by Strange Attractors Audio House. And although Six Organs fans who missed the original vinyl would be greatful enough to get The Manifestation on cd with no extras, the Six Organs' Ben Chasny has been kind enough to provide TWICE as much music on this cd reissue, via a track entitled "The Six Stations" which features none other than Current 93's David Tibet intoning lyrics on a good portion of the piece. And whatever you think of the mystical mumjo jumbo this music is couched in, it's more of that excellent Six Organs acid-folk acoustic guitar for which Mr. Chasny is rightly lauded. Some record crackle is added to the mix, and while it doesn't really succeed in making this sound like an authentic scratchy old 78 it's still nice. Kinda like Jeck meets Fahey...meets C93. Meanwhile the original Manifestation could be a twilit pagan hippy jam from ages past.
MPEG Stream: "The Manifestation"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE The Sun Awakens (Drag City) cd 14.98
It's such a nice day out and we'd really rather just sit in the sun and listen to this disc than review it, so why don't we just say: another great Six Organs album! and leave it at that, ok? Not ok? You want more from us than that? Well it IS another great album from this Ben Chasny fellow, whom for us is definitely tops among all the current crop of psychedelic guitar-pickin' folkies. Whether he's lending his weary voice to some lovely acoustic pop balladry, or blissing out on the fretboard in Fahey/Basho rustic raga mode, or harking to the spaghetti western soundtrack sound of Bjorn Olsson, or channeling krautrock spirits for a heavy duty distorted electric guitar jam, Chasny -- with a little help from his friends -- shines on this album. Maybe his best yet! Gorgeous, moody, yes indeed.
Of course, sitting in the sun listening to this might not be the idea. The Sun Awakens this is called, but it's more likely that the music on here will generate grey clouds to blot out the sun, casting shadows from some other time and place of pagan worship. Particularly when you get to the droning darkness of the mysterious, moaning, album-closing "River Of Transfiguration", an extended 24 minute ceremony of a song featuring the bass playing of Al Cisneros of Om and Sleep fame. Oh yeah. Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Black Wall"
MPEG Stream: "The Desert Is A Circle"
MPEG Stream: "River Of Transfiguration"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE The Sun Awakens (Drag City) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
It's such a nice day out and we'd really rather just sit in the sun and listen to this disc than review it, so why don't we just say: another great Six Organs album! and leave it at that, ok? Not ok? You want more from us than that? Well it IS another great album from this Ben Chasny fellow, whom for us is definitely tops among all the current crop of psychedelic guitar-pickin' folkies. Whether he's lending his weary voice to some lovely acoustic pop balladry, or blissing out on the fretboard in Fahey/Basho rustic raga mode, or harking to the spaghetti western soundtrack sound of Bjorn Olsson, or channeling krautrock spirits for a heavy duty distorted electric guitar jam, Chasny -- with a little help from his friends -- shines on this album. Maybe his best yet! Gorgeous, moody, yes indeed.
Of course, sitting in the sun listening to this might not be the idea. The Sun Awakens this is called, but it's more likely that the music on here will generate grey clouds to blot out the sun, casting shadows from some other time and place of pagan worship. Particularly when you get to the droning darkness of the mysterious, moaning, album-closing "River Of Transfiguration", an extended 24 minute ceremony of a song featuring the bass playing of Al Cisneros of Om and Sleep fame. Oh yeah. Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Black Wall"
MPEG Stream: "The Desert Is A Circle"
MPEG Stream: "River Of Transfiguration"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE / AZUL split (PSF) lp 23.00
One of two new records this list from long time aQ fave Ben Chasny, aka Six Organs Of Admittance. This one is super limited, maybe the first vinyl release we've gotten on godhead Japanese label PSF, and features one super dense abstract sidelong jam from Six Organs on one side, and a whole batch of groovy shimmery soft psych folk grooves on the B-side from a Japanese group called Azul. For those of you, who like us, had never hear of Azul, it's the new project of Hiroyuki Usui, who long time aQ list readers might remember as one half of the August Born, an earlier collaboration with Chasny, as well as being the man behind legendary folk psych outfit L, whose Holy Letters album was a past aQ Record Of The Week!
So here they are, Chasny and Usui, together again, each doing their own thing on their own side of this lp. Chasny's jam is a weird one. A sprawling slow burning drone, all crunchy and warm and gristly, over which muted guitar scrabble scrapes and skitters, melodies surface here and there, but they're minimal and murky, the whole sound is distant and abstract, a droney almost-raga, shot through with little tangles of fragmented Appalachia, eventually growing into something much more epic and cinematic, with what sounds like strings, Eastern sounding melodies, before a heavy psych coda, chunky super distorted riffs, weary, haunting double tracked vocals, all over a sea of swirls and squiggles, finally giving way to a weird warped riffy outro. Really cool.
The Azul side is WAY more laid back. Groovy, woozy, super sixties sounding, psychedelic, but soft and hazy and a little stoned sounding, hits of that classic Summer Of Love sound, a little Santana, lots of hand drums, warm tinkling vibes, soulful vocals, lazy late afternoon vocals, breezy and a little blissy, a few of the tracks inject a little jazziness, some skronky horns, fluttery flutes, shimmering gongs, but for the most part, it's all steel string guitars, draped over sun dappled arrangements and wreathed in fuzzy clouds of soft focus psych.
Gorgeous packaging. Blue and yellow psychedelic drawings on the sleeve, bizarre characters and warped shapes, lots of texture and detail, wrapped in a printed vellum Japanese style obi. And as you might have guessed. EXTREMELY LIMITED.

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE / CHARALAMBIDES Songs From the Entopic Garden Volume Two (Time-Lag) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The second in this limited edition vinyl series dedicated to the works of cosmic krautrockers Popul Vuh offers the hypno-drone psychedelia both of Northern California's wonderful Six Organs Of Admittance and the stalwart Texan ensemble Charlamabides. Again, Time-Lag has beautifully wrapped the heavy vinyl in an IPR-styled package, letterpressed and silkscreened on heavy brown cardstock. Six Organs of Admittance find themselves sonically in the company of the No Neck Blues Band, Matthew Bower's many Rural Electrification Progams (Sunroof!, Skullflower, Vibracathedral Orchestra, Total, etc.), the Jewelled Antler boys (Thuja, Blithe Sons, Sky Green Leopards), and Jackie-O Motherfucker. Perhaps closer to Thuja than the rest, Six Organs of Admittance work elements of cacophony (wooden block percussion, bells, flutes, and lots of Amon Duul acoustic guitar strum) into beautifully hazy acoustic drones rather than painterly free-jazz clusters which sometimes fracture No Neck Blues Band albums.
Charalambides -- now whittled down to the duo of Tom and Christina Carter -- create a similarly swirling sound, but from the mournful chords of intertwining guitar and bass reverberations. Both pieces are some of the best work from either of these two artists. As we say, limited, and we only have a few. We also still have just a few of the equally excellent first volume in the "Songs From The Entopic Garden" series, the Drona Parva / Ultrasound split LP (reviewed on list #128).

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE / JOSEPH MATTSON Empty The Sun (Drag City) cd + book 15.00
Music for airports, music for sleeping, music for film...it's about time someone made music for reading! For his brand new novel Empty The Sun, writer Joseph Mattson called upon the talents of Ben Chasney (Six Organs Of Admittance) to create a musical accompaniment to his novel. What a fantastic idea, especially consideringChasney has shown over the years an ability to create mood and atmosphere with a subtlety and undeniable authenticity that rings with such undeniable truth.
Centered around Chasney's mesmerizing guitar playing as well as wonderful accompaniment by Steve Ruecker on pedal steel, rattlers and bowls, Empty The Sun really is the sound we would want playing as we lose ourselves in a good book. Similar in mood and disposition to the great soundtrack to Mister Lonely that J. Spaceman & Sun City Girls created last year, this is one of those records that flows with a pastoral bliss that could, and we find ourselves wishing WOULD, go on forever and ever. Mostly instrumental, there are a few tracks with really nice subdued vocals including some of the most warm and intoxicating vocals we've heard from Elisa Ambrogio (Magik Markers).
The music of Six Organs Of Admittance really does speak to the soul, so evocative and creative and original, yet still warm and familiar, a rare beast that is as much a fan favorite as an artist's artist, so it's no surprise that Mattson was compelled to bring Six Organs into his world of words, just as film makers like Cam Archer have turned to Six Organs for music in his films, and just about every painter or visual artist we know has copies of Six Organs records in their studio. The sounds Chasney creates seem to be the perfect accompaniment for creation and exploration. And what also makes Chasney's music so amazing is the way it evokes a feeling of comfort, and a gloriously soporific dazem even while you're just sitting on a bus watching your surroundings blur by...
We haven't had a chance to dive into the actual book yet but with a quick skim we're anxious to ring in the new year laying on the couch with Six Organs playing as we dive into what looks to be a compelling novel.
Gorgeously packaged as well, both the cd and lp, each with a slightly different sized novel, to fit the format...
MPEG Stream: "Two Blades"
MPEG Stream: "Goodnight Hal"
MPEG Stream: "Lord, I have Returned"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE / JOSEPH MATTSON Empty The Sun (Drag City) lp + book 17.98
Music for airports, music for sleeping, music for film...it's about time someone made music for reading! For his brand new novel Empty The Sun, writer Joseph Mattson called upon the talents of Ben Chasney (Six Organs Of Admittance) to create a musical accompaniment to his novel. What a fantastic idea, especially consideringChasney has shown over the years an ability to create mood and atmosphere with a subtlety and undeniable authenticity that rings with such undeniable truth.
Centered around Chasney's mesmerizing guitar playing as well as wonderful accompaniment by Steve Ruecker on pedal steel, rattlers and bowls, Empty The Sun really is the sound we would want playing as we lose ourselves in a good book. Similar in mood and disposition to the great soundtrack to Mister Lonely that J. Spaceman & Sun City Girls created last year, this is one of those records that flows with a pastoral bliss that could, and we find ourselves wishing WOULD, go on forever and ever. Mostly instrumental, there are a few tracks with really nice subdued vocals including some of the most warm and intoxicating vocals we've heard from Elisa Ambrogio (Magik Markers).
The music of Six Organs Of Admittance really does speak to the soul, so evocative and creative and original, yet still warm and familiar, a rare beast that is as much a fan favorite as an artist's artist, so it's no surprise that Mattson was compelled to bring Six Organs into his world of words, just as film makers like Cam Archer have turned to Six Organs for music in his films, and just about every painter or visual artist we know has copies of Six Organs records in their studio. The sounds Chasney creates seem to be the perfect accompaniment for creation and exploration. And what also makes Chasney's music so amazing is the way it evokes a feeling of comfort, and a gloriously soporific dazem even while you're just sitting on a bus watching your surroundings blur by...
We haven't had a chance to dive into the actual book yet but with a quick skim we're anxious to ring in the new year laying on the couch with Six Organs playing as we dive into what looks to be a compelling novel.
Gorgeously packaged as well, both the cd and lp, each with a slightly different sized novel, to fit the format...
MPEG Stream: "Two Blades"
MPEG Stream: "Goodnight Hal"
MPEG Stream: "Lord, I have Returned"

SIX PARTS SEVEN ...In Lines and Patterns (Donut Friends) cd 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Bellingham via Ohio twangy post rock slowcore. Beautiful and hypnotic. Recommended.

SIX WAYS TO AVOID THE EVIL EYE s/t (Onetree) lp 14.98
Awesome slab of instrumental outer space ur-drone raga folk from a sometime collaborator of The Sun City Girls, Dredd Foole and others. Slide guitar, tabla, sitar, violin, organ, frame drums, metal bowls and a whole mess of other instrument we've never heard of deftly smoothed into a some sort of sprawling tribal drone ritual, think Sunburned Hand meets Muslimgauze meets Angus Maclise meets Jack Rose, but with more Hawkwindy swirl, and druggy din. Simple hypnotic rhythms beneath abstract Eastern percussion, lots of buzz and drift and shimmer, wrapped in thick sheets of reverb and fuzzy FX. Gorgeous stuff. Fans of any of the above mentioned bands, as well as any of the new weird America or modern freak folk will flip for this.
Super limited vinyl reissue of a way out of print cd-r. Green and black hand screened sleeves and printed insert.

SIXES Submissions (Jyrk) 3" cd-r 4.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This mysterious East Bay noisemaker known simple as Sixes made his Jyrk debut with this dense little 3" disc. For being so small, it definitely packs a serious wallop. Ultra massive low end drones, huge reverberating continent shifting tectonic rumbles, crushing, pulsing black fuzz. An incredibly dense black hole of sound. Impossible to say what the sound source is, it sounds like someone took a bunch of analog synths, about a hundred guitars, the same number of wildly malfunctioning amps, and dropped them in a tar pit. Churning gut rumbling brutality laced with jagged streaks of clipped and stuttering high end, everything burnt to a crumbling black, like watching some massive black tower, slowly crumble to pieces, the sound absolutely deafening, a physical presence that threatens to not only blow out your ear drums, but blow a gaping hole clean through your chest, take your head off, incinerate you and leave a tiny pile of smoldering cinders. The sound eventually settles down to a low level rumble, still crumbling and super distorted, before beginning a slow build, thickening, getting more distorted, the high end streaks spreading and brightening, eclipsing the low end pummel, until the two sounds, the earthquake low and shooting star high, are all tangled up, an ancient battle in sound, the two eventually becoming indistinguishable, all that's left, a huge snarling grey cloud of fuzz and grit and grind that threatens to blot out all other sound before quickly fading to black. Phew.
Packaged in swanky silver metallic on black sleeve, housed in a mini 3" jewel case.
LIMITED TO 200 COPIES!!!
MPEG Stream: "excerpt 1"

SIXTEEN (16) HORSEPOWER 16HP (Smooch) dvd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Sixteen Horsepower are the masters of apocalyptic swamp folk, a dark and dolorous bluegrass infused with fire and brimstone, tales of Biblical damnation, and spiritual salvation, set to fiddle and accordion, banjo and mandolin, lit by a cresent moon and the dying embers of a campfire, delivered with the vitriol fury of a rivivalist preacher trying desperately to save our souls. Sixteen Horsepower (along with 16HP frontman David Eugene Edwards' side project Woven Hand) have been responsible for some of our favorite records of the last few years. The above description should tell you enough to know that these guys push all our buttons. So we were pretty excited to get this double DVD. The first, is a series of interviews, one a super arty, black and white, with the band by the railroad, among creepy mannequins, beautifully edited and gorgeously shot. The second is a standard sit down interview. The third is interviews with the various band members tracing the timeline of the band. All very interesting, especially to hear Edwards speak so unabashedly about his faith and growing up in the church. All evident in the music of 16HP but still sort of cool to hear explained in greater detail. Disc two is all the videos and some live footage. The videos, if you haven't already seen them, are perfect visual representations of the band's take on the dusty road to damnation, lots of grainy shots of desert, and leafless trees, plenty of high contrast black and white. The highlight being the 16HP video directed by the none other than the Brothers Quay, with animated white and black chalk in some alien battle between light and dark, good and evil, as a backdrop to the band performing!! Never having seen the band, the live footage was amazing. And they are just as intense live as you might imagine. And finally on disc 2 is a European behind the scenes documentary following the band around on tour, lots of backstage footage, travelling, soundchecks, and all that kind of stuff. Intimate and really interesting. This whole collection is a welcome glimpse into the minds and music of one of our favorite bands, which is especially exciting since in the past 16HP have been less than gregarious and hardly forthcoming in terms of interviews and such.

SIXTEEN (16) HORSEPOWER Folklore (Jetset) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Imagine the desolate and dreary stretches of highway leading from wherever you are to nowhere. Imagine the perilous climb from the bowels of hell, in search of redemption. Imagine the violence and hardship of life in the bayou or the unsettled West at the turn of the century. Imagine that mysterious drifter, lurking around town, exuding a magnetic pull, dangerous but irrestistible. Imagine tragedy, forgiveness, the world as a wasteland, the world as hell, the world as nowhere. The music of Sixteen Horsepower is all that and more. Dark and mysterious, heartbreaking and ominous, hopeful and tragic, timeless and unforgiving. Southern gothic dirges, shivering dark waltzes, and creeping midnight melodies. Vocalist David Eugene Edwards has a startling voice, trembling and plaintive, but at the same time ferocious and strong. Backed by a shuffling funereal ensemble of banjo, mandolin, acoustic guitar and brushed, minimal drumming, the effect is claustrophobic, suffocating, but with just the faintest glimmer of hope and happiness on the horizon. Some may be troubled (as I am) by Sixteen Horsepower's overt Christianity, but thankfully the lyrics are more subtle and spiritual than preachy, focusing on the human condition, hope, despair, love, hate, misery and joy. Four originals, four traditionals and two covers, 'Alone And Forsaken' by Hank Williams and 'Single Girl' by the Carter Family. This is record number six from these Colorado transplants (via L.A.) and I'm not entirely sure why we haven't listed them, since they're all stunning. If you're interested, inquire cause we should be able to get any of them. The closest comparison I can come up with is Nick Cave, but 16HP are an entirely different beast, jettisoning the drama, bombast and pagaentry that has plagued Cave in his later years, and instead stripping everything down and adding extra layers of murk and must, fog and frost. A gorgeous and cautionary Biblical tale told by wandering minstrels, as they slowly make their way toward salvation. So totally essential.
RealAudio clip: "Hutterite Mile"
RealAudio clip: "Outlaw Song"
RealAudio clip: "Blessed Persistence"
RealAudio clip: "Alone And Forsaken"

SIXTEEN (16) HORSEPOWER Hoarse (Alternative Tentacles) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
After being out of print for WAY too long, this amazing live document finally sees the light of day once more. Or more appropriately maybe, the dark of night. Even more appropriately, the star flecked deep dark night, viewed through the dense canopy above the deep dark swamps of the South. This is 16 Horsepower after all, southern fried, revivalist, back woods countrified gothic stomp. Bleak tales of salvation and damnation. And what better way to experience the fire and fury of 16HP than live, beneath the ol' patched up tent, set up on the side of a road in the middle of nowhere, pouring rain, with mudcaked boots and huddled townsfolk jostling for a chance to be saved, a night of testifyin' for sure, live and sweaty and fearsomely intense, fierce as fuck, but still moody and dark and really, really creepy. Sort of like Deliverance:The Musical or something. Squeezebox, acoustic guitar and drums never sounded so good. Or so menacing. Those of you who know 16HP know exactly what this disc has in store for you. For those of you who have yet to discover the dark joy of 16 Horsepower (now sadly defunct) you just might just find your musical souls saved. Or damned. Either way, a treacherously brilliant musical path lies ahead, numerous 16HP releases all amazing, two Lilium records (2/3 of 16HP), as well as several Woven Hand records (the even MORE Biblically brutal and emotionally menacing post-16HP efforts by mainman David Eugene Edwards).
A handful of covers get the 16HP makeover. John Fogerty, Gun Club, and Joy Division all have their tunes somehow made even darker and more bleak.
Fans of Nick Cave, who were disappointed with his new shinier direction of late, and who still yearn for that misanthropic gloom, might find just what they're looking for with 16 Horsepower. And of course essential for fans of all things dark and swampy, who want their music steeped in fire and brimstone, confusion and misery, death and misery and the long hard road to salvation and the inevitable fall into damnation!
MPEG Stream: "South Pennsylvania Waltz"
MPEG Stream: "Day Of The Lords (Joy Division)"

SIXTEEN (16) HORSEPOWER Live (Alternative Tentacles) dvd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Lots of bands can 'rock' live, performing their record, their set, a little bit louder, a little bit wilder, a little more shambolic, feeding off the energy of the crowd, but rare is the band who can create a mood, evoke emotions, make standing in a smoky club feel like standing knee deep in the mud, in a swamp, watching the black night sky, thinking back over your life and just waiting' around to die. The music of 16 Horsepower is like that, a swampy backwoods bluegrass, hellfire and brimstone, Biblical damnation and spiritual salvation. A creepy campfire blues steeped in haunting late night misery and rainy day malaise. Banjos, and double basses, accordions and brushed drums, and the haunting soulful vocals of David Eugene Edwards. On record, closed eyes and open ears reveal a world long gone, preachers in tents set up in muddy fields, beat up old pick ups, the open road, the wrath of God and the loneliness of existence, all revealed through the slow slinky crawl of 16HP's funeral folk dirge, a murky gloomy beauty that is hard to describe. Live it's like watching a band possessed. Edwards grimaces and grits, strains and clenches, the accordion, banjo or bowed guitar like a serpent in his hands as he testifies, and tries to save our souls. This dvd conveys all the power and mystery of 16HP live. Disc one features a live show from 2002 in its entirety, recorded at Le Cirque Royal in Belgium, the sound is dark and dolorous, the stage set up is the same, dark and muted, Edwards up front bathed in a halo of muted yellow light, with soft blue light on the rest of the players, each in their own little corner, all summoning personal demons and exorcising them right there on stage. SO totally amazing.
Disc two features a handful of odds and ends. A live performance on German television show Rockpalast, complete with cheesy intro music and eighties neon logo, but a fiery and super intense set, the band possessed and inspired. Also a cool six minute montage of footage from their last tour, live performances, radio interviews, backstage, in the van, etc. as well as some footage of the band in their practice space rehearsing for their final tour. And maybe the most moving, live footage from a show in Antwerp, Belgium, intended for a documentary, but never used as that ended up being the band's last show ever. A handful of songs played in a cool dome-like outdoor amphitheater, with a strange fountain, right in front of the stage that sends up a tiny jets of water. A handful of songs, including a cover of "Heart And Soul" by Joy Division, which is the last song 16 Horsepower ever perform.
Comes with a big booklet of liner notes/photos. This disc is NTSC and region free.

SIXTEEN (16) HORSEPOWER Low Estate (A&M) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SIXTEEN (16) HORSEPOWER Olden (Jetset) cd 15.98
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So this is where it all started. Those Woven Hand records we've raved about, the Sixteen Horsepower records that totally blew us away. All started right here. Olden collects Sixteen Horsepower's first two demos, as well as an early live show and some brief interview snippets with 16HP/Woven Hand front man David Eugene Edwards. Much more raw and immediate, and a little more lo-fi and less sonically adventurous, but lacking NONE of the biblical fury or musical brimstone that made later 16HP records so powerful. The two demo sessions on Olden are stripped down, loping waltzes, drunken slide guitars and wheezing bandeneons, shuffling drums and palpitating double bass, with banjos, jaw harps, and Edwards' Screamin' Jay Hawkins-meets-Michael Gira caffeinated preacher wail. Minor key and melodically tragic, dirgy and hypnotic, wild and calamatous, and occsionally slow, sad and creepy. This is gorgeous, timeless, American music. Equal parts country, folk, and rock, but delivered with such fervor, so intimate and personal, and with such brutal musical intensity, that the songs take on the gravity and urgency of sonic directives from some higher power.
MPEG Stream: "American Wheeze"
MPEG Stream: "Coal Black Horses"
MPEG Stream: "Scrawled In Sap"

SIXTEEN (16) HORSEPOWER s/t (A&M ) cd 6.98
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