8 DAYS IN APRIL

2011-06-24T18:33:00.003-07:00

Well it's been 8 months now that the blog is dead. RapidShare says I still have 50 gigabytes of files still active, so I'm not exactly sure what is left but there's a lot. I have deleted all the lossless posts that I know for sure had dead links but there's still a ton of stuff left. Well anyway - happy hunting!

2010-02-08T13:23:00.002-07:00

Demon Thor - Written In The Sky (1974)

"The project of one Tommy Fortman (Englishified version of his real name), Demon Thor were more a borderline pop-rock band on the whole, with a very Anglo-American style. Their finest moment was the conceptual opus WRITTEN IN THE SKY, of which the side-long title track was full of invention, mainly due to being aided by a number of notorious Krautrock musicians, for an apocalyptic rock-opera suite drawing-in elements of the Twenty Sixty Six And Then and Emergency styles. It would be really good if it weren't for the dreadful "gospel" singers towards the end!" (Crack In The Cosmic Egg)

"Essentially the project of British singer/composer/mutli-instrumentalist Tommy Fortman, this second Demon Thor album assembles some sizable Anglo/German/Swiss talent. Guest vocals are handled by Geff Harrison (formerly of I Drive and the legendary Twenty Sixty Six and Then, later with Kin Ping Meh), Peter Bischof (ex-Orange Peel, later with Emergency and Munich) and Gita Walter (don’t know anything about her, but she’s a fine and authoritative rock vocalist). In such illustrious company, Fortman’s own vocals can’t help but seem paltry by comparison, but he’s far from bad, just not in the same league.

This is another album like the Gash album, with one side an absolutely mindblowing, orchestrated suite, and the other side full of junky songs that are an utter waste of time. Especially “Pink Mary,” which is one of the dumbest songs ever written. Though I have a soft spot for “For One Little Moment”, as it’s a spotlight piece for Peter Bischof, and I’ve always been fond of his voice. And “Sweet Caroline” (a Geff Harrison spotlight tune) gets in some of that sumptuous phase-shifting that was Dieter Dierks’ production trademark." (Progbear, last.fm)

1. Written In The Sky
2. Pink Mary
3. For One Little Moment
4. Good Morning
5. Sweet Caroline

Tommy Fortman - Vocals, Instruments
Stephen Nuesch - Organ
Claude Thoman - Drums
Geff Harrison - Vocals
Peter Bischof - Vocals
Gita Walter - Narrator
Veit Marvos - Electric Piano, Synthesizer
Oliver Freytag - Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 249MB

Part 1__Part 2

OK bye!

2010-02-01T15:02:00.002-07:00

Toad - Yearnin' Learnin' Live 1978

"This previously unreleased live performance by Toad was recorded near Geneva in 1978. As Vic Vergeat is finely accompained by Werner Froehlich and Cosimo Lampis, the gig soars at very high levels of energy. The difference here is that at the time Vergeat was heavily influenced by black music (funky) and all that results in covers like Yearnin’ Learnin’ by Earth Wind & Fire and other funkyish stunts. You also get Tomorrow Blue, the heavy boogie rock in Down to the Bone, and of course Hendrix.The virtuosity and versatility of Vergeat’s guitar come out in full, and this is a must-have for all the fans of Toad as well as of good blues-rock."

"Swiss hard rock and blues-rock outfit Toad leaped (sorry) onto their country's charts with their debut single, "Stay," in 1972 -- paving the way for the massive Swiss metal movement of the early '80s and such notable bands as Krokus and Celtic Frost. Mainly a three-piece, consisting of Vittorio "Vic" Vergeat (guitar/vocals), Werner Frohlich (bass), and Cosimo Lampis (drums), Toad often enlisted the help of an additional lead vocalist in much of their studio work (Bens Jaeger sang lead on their debut, but departed the group as soon as recording was completed). That same year, the live album Open Fire: Live in Basel 1972 hit stores, taking advantage of the band's constant and successful touring. Tomorrow Blue followed shortly after, appearing in 1973, and the band released Dreams early in 1974. A few live albums, compilations, and studio works continued to trickle out during the rest of the '70s and early '80s, with the core Toad lineup still firmly in place. By the early 2000s, interest in the early European hard rock scene in general (and Toad in particular) led to a slew of deluxe CD reissues and collections -- the best of which were to be found on the Italian imprint Akarma.". (J. Scott McClintock, All Music Guide)

1. 'Cause You're Not
2. Yearnin' Learnin'
3. Makin' You Feel Alright
4. I'm Going
5. Behind the Wheels
6. Tomorrow Blue
7. Mama Come Back
8. Down to the Bone
9. Bring It Up
10. I Wish You Were Here
11. Usin' My Life
12. Purple Haze
13. Red House
14. Drums Solo

Vic Vergeat - Guitar, Vocals
Werner Froehlich - Bass
Cosimo Lampis - Drums

Not my rip, thanks to original uploader "thewall"
EAC-Separate Flacs-Log-Cue-Scans 386MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

See ya

2009-12-21T17:03:00.002-07:00

Jefferson Airplane - Bark (1971)

"It is hard to believe that upon its release in 1971, Bark was poorly reviewed. In retrospect, its musical closeness to Jefferson Airplane's earlier work, especially 1969's Volunteers, is striking. "When the Earth Moves Again" is a collective, anthemic song in the same mould and of the same quality as "We Can Be Together," and "Crazy Miranda" is clearly by the author of "rejoyce." What makes Bark special is the move of Slick and the astonishingly under-valued Jorma Kaukonen to the foreground and the new casual, almost frayed approach to performing and recording. Also new is a shift away from the already-qualified counter-culture sentiments of Volunteers towards a more resigned, knowing worldview: "Third Week in the Chelsea" is painful in its directness, but gorgeous in its craftsmanship and execution; Slick's "Law Man" projects a tired, slightly annoyed, spirit that Slick could tap into so well. New to the band was the funky and sensual punch of tunes like "Feel So Good" and "Pretty As You Feel," which project a randy-to-sultry adult sexuality absent from their more whimsical "love" songs of the '60s. Confirms that the early '70s were the high water mark for the extended Airplane family." (toolshed amazon.com)

1. When The Earth Moves Again
2. Feel So Good
3. Crazy Miranda
4. Pretty As You Feel
5. Wild Turkey
6. Law Man
7. Rock and Roll Island
8. Third Week In The Chelsea
9. Never Argue with a German If You're Tired or European Song
10. Thunk
11. War Movie

Paul Kantner - Vocals, Guitar
Jorma Kaukonen - Vocals, Guitar
Grace Slick - Vocals Piano
Joey Covington - Vocals, Drums
Papa John Creach - Violin
Jack Casady - Bass

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 311MB

Part 1__Part 2

Bye and Merry Christmas to all!

2009-12-14T16:47:00.004-07:00

Peter Frohmader - Kanaan Live 1975

Ok first off this is not for everybody only for the musically adventurous. Don't put this on at a party - unless you want most of the people to leave. This performance by Kanaan (only one of a few outlets for Frohmader's music) is experimental and avant-garde. Very atmospheric, with doom and gloom holding sway, there are touches of jazz fusion, free jazz and maybe even a little rock.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Peter Frohmader is an innovator of the second generation of German electronic music. Different from most electronic music artists, he is only marginally influenced by the cosmic sound of Tangerine Dream or Klaus Schulze. His music leads to the underworld and creates a sinister and nightmarish atmosphere. Frohmader has released numerous albums, but most of them came out on little labels, so they did not gain the attention they deserved.

Already a pupil, Peter Frohmader started to record tapes with alienated sounds in the early ’70s and later formed amateur bands like Kanaan and Alpha Centauri. In 1981, he released his first LP, Musik Aus dem Schattenreich. Frohmader got his inspiration from movies like Nosferatu, books of H.P. Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe, and the paintings of Hieronymus Bosch. So it is not surprising that especially the early works are very dark and disturbing. The excessive use of bass guitars beside the electronics is striking.

Peter Frohmader is also a talented painter and studied art and graphic design. His mystic airbrush paintings often were used for record covers. The famous Swiss artist H.R. Giger, creator of the alien monster in the movie of the same name, became attentive to him and they co-operated on his film Second Celebration of the Four. Music for TV movies and documentaries followed.

Besides his solo albums, Peter Frohmader has worked with musicians of Amon Düül, Embryo, and Emtidi. In the early ’90s, two albums were released in the United States and focused the attention of a wider public to his music. Later works withdrew from the ghostly music of the early days and integrate elements of ambient, neo-classical, and new age music. Peter Frohmader collaborated with guitarist Richard Pinhas of French band Heldon and Russian composer Artemiy Artemiev and had various exhibitions of his graphic art and releases several albums of his own music." (Klaus Kehrle, All Music Guide)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Peter Frohmader is one of most interesting and not ordinary persons of our time. Composer, multi-instrumentalist musician, an artist, Peter is one of key figures in modern musical culture. He is considered to be the experimenter-workaholic, the author of ten solo projects and numerous collaboration works with Richard Pinhas, Michael Fuchs-Gambock, Andreas Merz, Iva Bittova, Chris Karrer, Kanaan and Russian composer Artemiy Artemiev. His musical career started in the beginning of 70-s when he began playing with such collectives as “Apha Centauri” (avant-garde music), “Electronic Delusion” (electronic experimental music), “Kanaan” (jazz-rock/electronic music). The certain communications with German “underground” movement (which representatives scooping their inspiration in Christensen’s and Murneau’s cult films) are traced in Peter Frohmader’s activity. Peter’s music is mystically gloomy, chaotic and avalanche. His stylistics, a manner of presentation of sound material, wielding of the instrument, performing techniques bewitched the listener. You can like or dislike his music but it will never leave you indifferent and all that was created by Frohmader for to-day or will be created in future always will be interesting for the fans of serious art. Music of this very talented German composer will take a worthy place in history tables of modern musical culture." (discogs.com)

1. Bizarro
2. Rupscake
3. Spaced Out
4. Muzak Für Beknacte
5. Starnberger Prinzenschießen
6. Flash Gelee
7. Bulla-Bulla
8. Paranoia Frame

Peter Frohmader - Fretless Bass, Electronics, Gong, Voice
Uwe Rüdiger - Drums, Trumpet, Voice
Michael Schobert - Fender Rhodes Piano, Keyboards, Voice

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 498MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

(^-^)

2009-12-11T15:53:00.003-07:00

Out Of Focus - Wake Up (1970)

"Amazing kraut-jazz alien that is completely devoted to ferocious rocking jams. In an explosive combination of sounds, the band conciliates heavily bluesy guitars, free folk and propulsive organs. "See how a white negro flies" is a great introduction track for tripped out psychedelic guitars, including nice keyboard arrangements and stoned pop voice, a very efficient, energetic composition. "God save the Queen, cried Jesus" follows the same musical schema, for a super dynamic hybrid. "Hey John" is a calmer improvisation with some enchanting flute lines and a good rhythmical section. "No name" goes back to a heavy acid rocking trip but it is not so surprising. "World's end" is an other explosive kraut-jazz standard, featuring a nice groove. A lot of varieties and gorgeously psychedelic, sonic infiltrations! Simply brilliant!" (Philippe, progarchives.com)

1. See How A White Negro Flies (5:48)
2. God Saved The Queen, Cried Jesus (7:28)
3. Hey John (9:35)
4. No Name (3:06)
5. World's End (9:55)
6. Dark, Darker (11:37)

Remigius Drechsler - Guitar
Hennes Hering - Keyboards
Moran Neumüller - Vocals, Saxophones
Klaus Spöri - Drums
Stefan Wisheu - Bass

Not my rip: Thanks to original releaser
EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 264MB

Part 1__Part 2

Bye

2009-12-08T17:21:00.005-07:00

Agamemnon - Part I & II (1981)

"These were one of many obscure Swiss symphonic progressives, typical of such Teutonic styled bands who originated in the mid to late-1970's. Derivative, yet also quite inventive, Agamemnon had a distinctly Pink Floyd type cosmic symphonic edge, akin to earlier albums by German bands like Eloy, Pancake, Jane, or more so, often close to Faithful Breath's similarly otherworldly debut album FADING BEAUTY.

In keeping with the title PART I & II, Agamemnon's sole album had just two lengthy tracks (one per side), with vast instrumentals, and seems to be some sort of strange and fanciful concept opus. An obscure privately issued relic, it's an album that is worth seeking out by fans of the late-1970's indie progressive style." (Crack in the Cosmic Egg)

The Gnosis 2000 website gives this album a higher rating than Pink Floyd's "The Wall"!

1. Agamemnon's Youth - Agamemnon, King of Mykene 19:45
2. Agamemnon at Troja - Agamemnon's Death 19:39

Urs Ritter - drums
Erich Kuster - vocals, guitars, organ
Walter Rothmund - bass, keyboards
Werner Kuster - piano, keyboards, guitars, flute

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 283MB

Part 1__Part 2

Bye

2009-12-06T17:36:00.002-07:00

Arthur Lee & Love - Fillmore West 11-21-70

I got these files from Lossless Bootlegs 101 a while back, they're from a torrent that has been around a long time. I was real jazzed to find out that Love was such a rockin' live band, but disappointed in the quality of the files. The left channel on some tracks had a real muffled sound, one of the tracks had a major dropout, and one track was cut in half, with the last few seconds of the first half repeated at the beginning of the second half. I broke out my copy of Adobe Audition and over a couple weeks worked these tracks over in my spare time, did some channel mixing, some cutting, a little EQ'ing, and I'm pretty damn happy with the results. This flows seamlessly from beginning to end and the sound is much improved - it sounds great on my home stereo! The music is awesome, the players are great, the drummer especially. I wish the recording had been done better but from what I think is an audience recording we get a damn good listen to a great live band. Anyway you should check this out. Made the covers myself.

Early Show
1 Product Of The Times
2 Stand Out
3 Keep On Shining
4 Andmoreagain
5 Singing Cowboy
6 Good Times - Early Show Outro
Late Show
7 Late Show intro - Stand Out
8 Product Of The Times
9 Bummer In The Summer
10 Gotta Find Somebody
11 Signed D.C.
12 Slick Dick
13 Always See Your Face
14 Singing Cowboy

Arthur Lee - Guitar, Vocals
George Suranovich - Drums
Frank Fayad - Bass
Gary Rowles - Guitar

Separate FLAC's Homemade covers 290MB

Part 1__Part 2

Later

2009-11-30T16:54:00.002-07:00

Brinsley Schwarz - Brinsley Schwarz + Despite It All (1970)

"Pub rock, the English roots rock movement of the early '70s, would never have earned a cult following if it wasn't for Brinsley Schwarz. Initially, Brinsley Schwarz was a rambling, neo-psychedelic folk-rock band that borrowed heavily from Crosby, Stills & Nash and the Grateful Dead. Following a disastrous publicity stunt to promote its debut album, the band went into seclusion outside of London and developed a laid-back, rootsy sound inspired by Eggs Over Easy, an American band that had been playing a mixture of originals and covers in English pubs. Following their conversion to pub rock, the Brinsleys ditched their pretensions of stardom and became a down to earth, self-effacing rock & roll band. Between 1971 and 1974, Brinsley Schwarz toured England innumerable times, playing pubs across the country. Along the way, they established a circuit for similar bands like Dr. Feelgood and Ducks Deluxe to follow. Though the group was nominally guitarist Brinsley Schwarz's band, bassist/lead vocalist Nick Lowe provided the bulk of the group's songs. Lowe developed a distinctive songwriting voice -- conversational, melodic, offbeat, and funny -- and the band was infused with his skewed sense of humor. Despite strong reviews and a dedicated fan base, the Brinsleys never managed to escape cult status, yet they influenced a legion of other artists, creating an underground, back-to-basics movement that laid the foundation for punk rock.

Brinsley Schwarz didn't plan to start a grassroots movement -- the bandmembers wanted to be stars. Lowe and Schwarz had already spent several years in Kippington Lodge, a Tunbridge Wells-based guitar pop group that released five singles on Parlophone during the mid-'60s to no success. By 1968, the members of Kippington Lodge were beginning to feel restless with their straight-ahead pop/rock and were eager to explore psychedelia. Keyboardist Bob Andrews joined the band later that year and drummer Billy Rankin came aboard in the fall of 1969. By that time, Kippington Lodge had completely revamped its musical style, evolving into a folk-rock band with psychedelic pretensions and appropriately changing its name to Brinsley Schwarz after the group's lead guitarist. Ironically, it was around this time that Lowe became the band's lead singer and primary songwriter.

Within a few months, Brinsley Schwarz had come to the attention of Dave Robinson, a fledging rock & roll manager who had founded the Famepushers Agency. Robinson developed a complex scheme to elevate Brinsley Schwarz to stardom. According to his plan, the Brinsleys would play an opening set for Van Morrison at the Fillmore East in New York in the spring of 1970, and he would fly all of the leading rock journalists to America to review the show. Late in 1969, Brinsley Schwarz signed a record contract with United Artists, and the band financed the publicity stunt with its advance. The group planned to leave a few days before the show in order to rehearse, but the Brinsleys were denied visas on a technicality. They were finally given visas on the morning of the show, and arrived in New York hours before the concert. Back in Britain, the journalists ran into trouble, as their plane developed a mechanical fault, delaying the flight for four hours. When the journalists arrived at the Fillmore 18 hours later, they were either drunk or hung over. When Brinsley Schwarz finally hit the stage, the band gave a competent but underwhelming performance, setting the stage for a flood of scathing reviews for both the concert and the eponymously titled debut album, which appeared weeks after the showcase.

Reeling from the Fillmore fiasco, the group rented a house outside of London and spent days and nights playing music. By the end of 1970, the Brinsleys released a second album, Despite It All, which indicated that they were evolving into a country-rock outfit; guitarist/vocalist Ian Gomm joined the band at the end of the sessions for the record. For much of 1971, Brinsley Schwarz rehearsed, developing a blend of country, folk, R&B, and rock & roll that was largely inspired by the Byrds, Van Morrison, and the Band, as well as Eggs Over Easy, which the group met at the Tally Ho pub in Kentish Town. Silver Pistol, released early in 1972, demonstrated a new versatility, but the group truly flexed its muscles in concert, particularly during regular concerts at the Tally Ho. Soon, they had built a small but loyal following, and a number of likeminded bands began playing the same circuit. Eventually, this grassroots phenomenon came to the attention of the U.K. press, which dubbed the groups' style as "pub rock" and proclaimed Brinsley Schwarz as the style's leaders." (Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide)

1. Hymn to Me
2. Shining Brightly
3. Rock and Roll Women
4. Lady Constant
5. What Do You Suggest?
6. Mayfly
7. Ballad of a Has Been Beauty Queen
8. Country Girl
9. Slow One
10. Funk Angel
11. Piece of Home
12. Love Song
13. Starship
14. Ebury Down
15. Old Jarrow

Billy Rankin - Drums
Nick Lowe - Bass, Vocals
Bob Andrews - Keyboards, Vocals
Brinsley Schwarz - Guitar, Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 486MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

2009-11-23T16:09:00.003-07:00

Various Artists - Heavy Christmas (1971)

"Just in time for Xmas! Rare early '70s Brain release in official fold out CD digi-pak form, featuring bands playing Christmas related material. Don't let this put you off. This is a collection of mind blowing acid rock and progressive mayhem. Marcel's "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" is absolutely stunning, filled with wah wah acid guitar and tripped out teutonic harmonies that will blow your tits off! Features Virus, Dies Irae, Joy Unlimited and more! Fantastic festive stoners.... WOW (an office favourite)!" (Freak Emporium)

"One of the odder relics of the Krautrock heyday of the early '70s, Heavy Christmas found itself reissued in 1997 as part of the overall revival of the said sound. Originally released in 1971, it featured both new and traditional Christmas songs interpreted by seven different acts, most of whom contribute two tracks each. None of the featured acts are among the upper tier of Krautrock acts -- and it would have been quite something to hear the likes of Can, Kraftwerk, and Guru Guru do Christmas songs! -- but the end results have their high points. If any bands would be points of inspiration, Amon Duul II and Faust would probably be them; most of the acts here have the nutty playfulness of the first, touched here and there by the sheer cut-up chaos of the second. Compared to both, though, groups like Libido and Virus are much more straightforward. Libido itself gets in two of the representative songs: "Evolution," starting with a weird, ragged chorus and getting in some heavy drum slams and crazed guitar wah-wah action; and the rockin' good times of "Come on Everybody," apparently the album's single. Virus has its own fine winner, "X-Mas Submarine," with a stuttering keyboard line and fantastic guitar soloing its high points. Joy Unlimited's contribution is a doozy, a lengthy number called "All Heaven and Earth Are Silent" which sounds like a mix of stoner folk, pomp-rock instrumentals, and a strung-out Up With People. In perhaps the most entertaining trip-out, Dies Irae rips through an instrumental version of "Silent Night" with a snarling electric guitar taking the totally unlikely lead, alternating between full propulsion and calmer moments. Solo act Marcel delivers "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" with a nicely airy vocal, while his backing musicians crank the amps and add violin to boot." (allmusic.com)

1. Libido - Evolution
2. Marcel - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
3. Joy Unlimited - All Heaven And All Earth Are Silent
4. Virus - Mary Meets Tarzan
5. Dies Irae - Silent Night
6. Libido - Come On Everybody
7. Ardo Dombec - Heavenly Rose
8. Dies Irae - Sheperd's Song
9. Ardo Dombec - Open The Door, Open Your Mind
10.Virus- X-mas Submarine
11.Flute & Voice - Ecce Navicule
12. Libido - Come On Everybody - Special Radio Version

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 311MB

Part 1__Part 2

Seeya!

2009-11-14T17:47:00.001-07:00

Creepy John Thomas - Brother Bat Bone + Creepy John Thomas (1969-1970)

"A little known and underrated talent. John Thomas had two hits with The Flies in Australia before coming to London to form his own band in 1969. Both albums are consistently good, strong material and raw vocals, which suit the guitar-driven musical format. There's some good guitar work on both albums. Ride A Rainbow is certainly the most commercial track on the first album but Trippin' Like A Dog And Rockin' Like A Bitch is really the magnum opus. The second album is excellent too. The opening cut Down In The Bottom sets the tone for more guitar driven hard rock from which the title track, Brother Bat Bone, is really the highlight, but dig the melodic guitar work on This Is My Body and Standin' In The Sunshine illustrates his mellower side. This is slightly the stronger of two but both are recommended. John Thomas later played for Edgar Broughton in 1975 and now lives in Berlin, running a band called Johnny and The Drivers." (Tapestry of Delights)

1 Down In The Bottom 5:11
2 What's The Matter With The Mill 3:16
3 Brother Bat Bone 9:06
4 This Is My Body 3:28
5 Standing In The Sunshine 8:34
6 100 Lb. Noomy 2:29
7 Gut Runs Great Stone 4:03
8 (Do I Figure) In Your Life 2:46
9 You've Got To Hide 2:34
10 One Way Track Blues 2:09
11 Trippin' Like A Dog 4:19
12 Ride A Rainbow 3:05 5.65
13 Green Eyed Lady 3:35
14 Sun And Woman 3:38
15 Lay It On Me 3:21
16 Bring Back The Love 3:23
17 Moon And Eyes Song 3:43

Andy Narx - Bass, Guitar
Helmut Pohl - Drums
Creepy John Thomas - Guitar, Vocals
Dave Hutchins - Bass
Roy Octemro - Drums

NOT MY RIP! Thanks to original uploader
EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-COVERS 445MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Bye!

2009-11-09T14:40:00.005-07:00

V.A. - A Visit To The Spaceship Factory-20 Gems From The Early Years Of Prog

"A Visit to the Spaceship Factory presents 20 ear-watering morsels that will thrill and entertain in equal measure. Wander the dimly lit corners of the Spaceship Factory, an establishment designed to produce vehicles that could take you from the geometric wallpaper of your room to the far side of your electric dreams. It wasn't in production for very long, but while it was operating, not only did it manufacture million-selling models such as Yes, Black Sabbath and Jethro Tull, but it brought you the brash rock of Treetops, the polished guitar wizardry of Israeli progsters Jericho, the fuzzed-up dirt of Jesse Hector's proto-punk outfit Helter Skelter, and countless other designs now being re-appraised or still waiting to be recognized. The conveyor belts may be still, the furnaces may be cold, but the ships still fly to the stars. Psychic Circle's intrepid vinyl hound, Jamie Romer, has scoured the land in his quest to excavate more undiscovered psycho-prog stunners. This new selection bears testament to his endeavors. Other artists include: Mousetrap, Deadwood, Fuzzyduck, Incredible Hog, Mouse, Beggars Opera, Kingdom Come, Little Bighorn, Strange Fox, Onyx, Spontaneous Combustion, UFO, Sheephouse, Pussy, Axe, Sunchariot and Kansashook. This is a collection of late '60s psych-prog, featuring never-before compiled, remastered tracks."

"A batch of lost psych prog tunes from the early 70s -- with spiraling guitars, chugging rhythms and otherworldly jams from the UK scene -- and great little compilation on Nick Saloman's Psychic Circle label! The tunes were cut in the years between the psych heyday and the complicated prog sounds of the later 70s -- many with the catchy, freewheeling groove of the former and the metallic crunch and lumbering qualities of the latter -- all in all, a really great batch of spacey rockers that you have likely never heard before! 20 tracks in all: "Why Not Tonight" by Treetops, "Greenfields" by Mousetrap, "That Don't Help Me None" by Deadwood, "So Come On" by Jericho, "Tadpole" by Incredible Hog, "Spirit Of Joy" by Kingdom Come, "Sarabande" by Beggars Opera, "Bring It On Home" by Strange Fox, "So You Wanna Know" by Sunchariot, "Nervous Shakin'" by Kansas Hook and more! (dustygroove)

1. Why Not Tonight - Treetops
2. Greenfields - Mousetrap
3. That Don't Help Me None - Deadwood
4. Just Look Around You - Fuzzy Duck
5. So Come On - Jericho
6. Tadpole - Incredible Hog
7. It's Happening to Me and You - Mouse
8. I Need You - Helter Skelter
9. Sarabande - Beggars Opera
10. Spirit of Joy - Kingdom Come
11. Just a Game - Little Big Horn
12. Bring It on Home - Strange Fox
13. Air - Onyx
14. Spaceship - Spontaneous Combustion
15. Evil - UFO
16. Ladder - Sheephouse
17. Ska Child - Pussy
18. People Come, People Go - Axe
19. Do You Wanna Know - Sunchariot
20. Nervous Shakin' - Kansas Hook

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 465MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

See ya later

2009-11-02T20:09:00.002-07:00

Junco partners - Junco Partners (1970)

Junco Partners formed in 1964, took over from the Animals at the famous "Club A'GoGo" and "Downbeat Club" in Newcastle and Sunderland's "Blue Note". The band enjoyed fanatical local success almost immediately and turned "pro" to go to Hamburg's famous "Star Club" of "The Beatles" notoriety, but were turned back at the border as being too young to get visas. They then spent six years playing the national club and college circuit alongside "The Who", "Rod Stewart", "Jethro Tull", "John Mayall Band", "Jimi Hendrix" and many others. They personally backed Blues giants "Howlin Wolf" and "Freddie King" on international tours. The band made single and album releases, but split in 1971. Individual members went on to play with "Robert Palmer", "Elkie Brooks", "Mick Ronson", "Mick Abrahams", "Bell & Arc" and "Lindisfarne". (http://www.knbarker.freeserve.co.uk/)

This is a sweet little album of early 70's British rock, R & B based with some slight proggy touches. This reissue used a terrible cover (I don't know what a slingshot has to do with anything), and had only some brief production notes. No booklet, no liner notes, no photos. Disappointing because this band is still around and I'm sure the members would have loved for the label to have done a better job. I mean I had to search the net to get the player's names! Well anyway the music speaks for itself - very nice material, well produced, with great keyboards throughout and a singer whose voice perfectly suits the music. Not the greatest album ever but certainly not deserving of being so obscure all these years.

1. Minotaur
2. Fly Me High
3. Change In Louise
4. Black Widow
5. Help Me
6. Natural Thoughts
7. Am I Blue
8. Reprieve
9. In The Morning
10. Death By Fire

Charlie Harcourt - Guitar
Bob Sargeant - Keyboards, Vocals
Dave Sproat - Bass
John Woods - Drums

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 286MB

Part 1__Part 2

Later!

2009-10-12T13:25:00.002-07:00

Crabby Appleton - Crabby Appleton (1970)

"Perhaps it was the name of this band that limited their success. It certainly wasn't because of their musical product as the 1970 debut album by Crabby Appleton is a truly remarkable collection of songs. Unfortunately, all that most people know about Crabby Appleton is their power pop hit "Go Back". "Go Back" is a quality opening cut yet it is only a small piece of the package that is so much more complex and fulfilling.

I was 14 years old when I first heard this release and it opened my eyes to a broader spectrum in the musical rainbow. It was Christmas 1973 and Crabby Appleton had already disbanded without me even knowing that they had existed. I was excited when I opened a gift from overseas relatives containing two tapes: Grand Funk "We're An American Band" and this release by Crabby Appleton. I was quite familiar with the heavy rockin' sound of Grand Funk but had no idea what to expect from Crabby Appleton. Playing these two tapes back to back was a shock to my system as the musical contrast was obvious. There was nothing heavy about Crabby Appleton and still I couldn't ignore the fact that they were smokin'. I was intrigued by the complexity of Crabby Appleton's music which on the surface appeared to be smooth and simple. The interplay between the guitar, keyboards, and percussion fascinated me. This was a band that blended so many elements into their music that I couldn't help but to be hooked.

Thank goodness Collector's Choice decided to release this gem on CD along with the band's second album "Rotten To The Core". I now have them both and am pleased with not only the music of Crabby Appleton but with the product that Collector's Choice has issued. The sound quality is very good and the liner notes are informative. Regarding the debut album, the liner notes provide really good insight into the formation of the group and into the similarities in the styles of certain songs on this release with bands like Santana, Left Banke, and The Zombies. Yet, what I hear at times in the performance of keyboardist Casey Foutz are shades of Atomic Rooster, The Doors, Iron Butterfly, Steppenwolf, and even ELP (Check out "Hunger For Love" for the Emersonesque ending.). Percussionist Flaco Falcon adds a touch of Santana and El Chicano to the mix while singer-guitarist Michael Fennelly's performance on "Go Back" reminds me a lot of the guitar work in Cream's "I Feel Free".

This is one of the few releases that I can listen to multiple times back-to-back and not get tired of hearing it. There is a lot to like on this one and I strongly recommend it. " (CU82 amazon.com)

1. Go Back
2. The Other Side
3. Catherine
4. Peace By Peace
5. To All My Friends
6. Try
7. Can't Live My Life
8. Some Madness
9. Hunger For Love
10. How Long Will It Take

Felix "Flaco" Falcon - Percussion
Michael Fennelly - Guitar, Vocals
Casey Foutz - Keyboards
Hank Harvey - Bass
Phil Jones - Drums

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 247 MB

Part 1__Part 2

See ya

2009-09-12T16:03:00.001-07:00

Paladin - Jazzattack (1970-1971)

"In Gloucestershire, England, 1970, five musicians got together to rehearse, producing one of the most innovative and under rated rock bands of the seventies. The original idea for this band was first conceived in a hotel room in New York City, by Peter Solley and Keith Webb. At the time, they were the opening act for The Rollingstones, with the Terry Reid Band. Deciding to break away from the creative restrictions imposed on them as backing musicians, they returned to England to form their own band called PALADIN. Many months were spent finding the right blend of musicians, writing and rehearsing. The band consisted of Lou Stonebridge on vocals, piano, and harmonica, Derek Foley on guitar and vocals, Peter Solley on organ, piano, violin and vocals, Keith Webb on drums and percussion, and Peter Beckett on bass and vocals. Stonebridge and Foley had been playing with the band Grisby Dyke, and Peter Beckett was formerly of the band WORLD OF OZ. When the rehearsals began, it was clear that PALADIN was going to be a dynamic live band. Instead of recording a demo, they invited people from the music industry to attend the rehearsals. Their sound was a mix of rock, blues, soul, jazz, and latin, creating a rich blend of world beat, long before it existed. PALADIN'S use of dual keyboards also created a unique sounds. By the end of 1970, they hit the road to play live gigs. Their first appearance took place at the Revolution in London. After some negogiations, PALADIN signed with the newly formed Bronze Records. They began recording their self-titled, debut album on January 8, 1971, at Olympus Studios in West London. They also recorded some of the album at Island Studios, also in London. They recorded almost everything live in the studio, with a few overdubs. This decison produced some outstanding pieces of music. A year later, it was time for their second album, which was recorded at the famous Apple Studios in London. Entitled CHARGE!, the second album was pegged by critics to be the absolute classic masterpiece of the 70's. This diverse album, which at times mixed folk with rock and roll, made it difficult to pinpoint influences. The lead vocals were shared by the band members on select songs. Famous album cover artist Roger Dean, designed THE PALADIN, a rider on a horse, for CHARGE!, claiming it to be one of his most difficult sketches. Unfortunately, PALADIN'S lack of success led to frustration, with Stonebridge and Foley deciding to leave the band in the middle of 1972. Foley was replaced by Joe Jammer on vocals and guitar. However, the revised lineup didn't last long and by the end of the year, PALADIN disbanded. The career of PALADIN produced two of the finest hard/prog albums of the 70's. They also recorded early versions of tracks leaning more toward jazz. These were later reworked and the tapes were forgotten for almost 25 years until their release in 2002 by Rock Symphony under the name of JAZZATTACK. PALADIN did record live for the BBC but the tapes are believed to be still collecting dust in the vaults of old Beeb in London. Today, Peter Solley owns Peter Solley Productions, a company that produces MIDI files." (www.peterbeckett-player.com)

"The Brazilian Rock Symphony label has released this collection from Paladin, a British band that released two hard progressive albums in 1971 and 1972. The music here consists of early versions of tracks that ended up on their debut album and were later reworked. The sound is studio quality. These are the band’s most inventive and experimental pieces, though the album title is a bit of a misnomer as it is mostly rock with some jazz influence, sometimes sounding like a more progressive version of Santana." (www.kinesiscd.com)

1. The Gong (0:13)
2. The Fakir I (5:35)
3. Third World Part I (5:39)
4. Third World Part II (3:02)
5. Carry Me Home (4:49)
6. Dance of the Cobra (7:42)
7. Bad Times (7:14)
8. Fill Up Your Heart (5:42)
9. It's Time (4:28)
10. The Fakir II (5:01)

Lou Stonebridge / vocals, electric piano, harmonica
Pete Soley / organ, violin, Grand piano
Keith Webb / drums, percussion
Derek Foley / lead guitar, slide guitar, vocals
Peter Beckett / bass guitar, vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 413 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

See ya!

2009-08-16T11:47:00.002-07:00

Quiet Sun - Mainstream (1975)

"This sole album is one one those UFDisc that make the proghead so happy in his ever-ending search for 70's gems. Phil Manzanera reformed Quiet Sun as a way of letting off steam from the Keyboard-dominated Roxy Music. Although the album has divided credits and all Quiet Sun members shine , clearly the star here is Manzanera : his searing fuzzy guitars soars above the rest of the album.

Sol Caliente is a real classy track and augurs most of the rest of the album , excellent Canterbury fusion but with a definite rock edge. Bargain Classics has typical Canterbury keyboard with spacey guitars: a must hear. The Mummy track is the highlight with a flying guitar solo followed by a superb Jarrett KB solo that is leaning towards his more famous jazz namesake. The only down remark is the last track (unfortunately also the longest) : it is the only sung track (and not really well either, IMHO) but also is rather tedious and over- long.

Too bad because this last track is the sole reason for not getting that fifth star. To some extent , this is the most accomplished album that Manzanera ever played on , and certainly the one where he shows most his abilities at guitar histrionics. His 801 venture is not quite up to par with this gem. A real must for for everyone. " (Sean Trane progarchives.com)

1. Sol Caliente (7:35)
2. Trumpet With Motherhood (1:47)
3. Bargain Classics (5:49)
4. R. F. D. (3:22)
5. Mummy Was An Asteroid..... (6:01)
6. Trot (5:14)
7. Rongwrong (9:29)

Charles Hayward / drums, percussion, keyboards & voices
Dave Jarrett / keyboards
Phil Manzanera / guitars, keyboards
Bill MacCormick / bass & voices
With:
Brian Eno / synthesizers, treatments and oblique strategies

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 283 MB

Part 1__Part 2

:)

2009-08-03T13:52:00.002-07:00

Tempest - Under The Blossom: The Anthology

"Tempest was an excellent band formed by jazz-rock drummer Jon Hiseman after the demise of his earlier band Colosseum in 1971, which happens to be one of my favorite drummers who I think is extremely underrated! Completing the group's first line-up was guitarist Allan Holdsworth, bass player/singer Mark Clarke, and Paul Williams on lead vocals. After the recording of their self-titled debut, both Williams and Holdsworth left reducing the band to a trio consisting of Ollie Halsall (guitar/keyboards/vocals), Mark Clarke (bass/vocals), and of course Jon Hiseman (drums). This is the line-up that recorded the second album "Living In Fear".

In this compilation "Under The Blossom", are included the band's two albums ("Tempest" 1973, "Living In Fear" 1974), a previously unreleased BBC live recording, and two excellent outtakes from an aborted third album the band was working on, when they decided to call it quits.

The self-titled debut from 1973 is an awesome collection of blues-rock, jazz-fusion, and prog-rock. All the eight songs have something memorable about them and what really got my attention aside from the drumming of Jon Hiseman, was Holdsworth's distinctive chord voicings and great soloing technique. Highlights include "Up And On" featuring some great riffs and melodies, the ballad "Grey And Black", and the somewhat dark sounding "Brothers" with a notable vocal performance by Williams.

The arrival of Halsall on guitar and keyboards brought a slight change of direction on the 1974 released second album "Living In Fear". The results are nothing short of excellent though! Here, the band goes for a more hard-rock and pop approach. Note how Hiseman also alters his drumming style for the new sound. His playing is less busy and leans more toward straight beats proving how underrated as a drummer he is. Stand out tracks include the unexpected Beatles cover "Paperback Writer", the awesome album opener "Funeral Empire", the poppy "Yeah Yeah Yeah", the seven-minute epic "Dance To My Tune" that features a stunning guitar solo by Halsall, and the acoustic number "Waiting For A Miracle" which is sung by bass player Clarke.

The live BBC session is an incredible listening experience that it's made even better by the fact that both guitarists Allan Holdsworth and Ollie Halsall get to play together here! As a result the band stretches out with the arrangements to include excellent jams that showcase the interplay between the two players perfectly. Drummer Hiseman gets to play a seven minute drum solo as well. Too bad the set list only includes songs from the first album though... But that's only a minor complain.

Even the two outtakes are well worth hearing. "You And Your Love" is a charged rocker with funny lyrics but "Dream Train" is truly a pop gem! This is one of the best songs on the album! An unforgettable vocal duet between Halsall and Clarke is included, very catchy melodies, plus a melodic solo at the end too!

So this band called Tempest is essential listening not only if you like hard rock, prog rock, or jazz fusion, but also because of underrated drummer Hiseman and the fact that both guitar players Holdsworth and Halsall became hugely influential for later guitarists like, for example, Van Halen! " (chappa, amazon.com)

Disc 1
1. Gorgon
2. Foyers Of Fun
3. Dark House
4. Brothers
5. Up And On
6. Grey And Black
7. Strangeher
8. Upon Tomorrow
9. Funeral Empire
10. Paperback Writer
11. Stargazer
12. Dance To My Tune
13. Living In Fear
14. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah
15. Waiting For A Miracle
16. Turn Around

Disc 2
1. You And Your Love (Unreleased)
2. Dream Train (Unreleased)
3. Foyers Of Fun (BBC session)
4. Gorgon (BBC session)
5. Up And On (BBC session)
6. Grey And Black (BBC session)
7. Brothers (BBC session)
8. Drums Away (BBC Session)
9. Strangeher (BBC session)

Ollie Halsall - Guitars
Allan Holdsworth - Guitars & Violin
Jon Hiseman - Drums
Mark Clark - Bass, Vocals
Paul Williams - Lead Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 905MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4__Part 5

Seeya!

2009-07-21T18:01:00.003-07:00

Neuschwanstein - Alice In Wonderland (1976)

"A few years before Neuschwanstein conceived their masterpiece "Battlement" (to many, including myself, one of the best symphonic prog albums ever from Germany), the band had already written an album-worthy set of tracks that, together, made the concept of a progressive opus inspired by Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland". I suspect that this was done when the band was still a 5-piece (before the arrival of Frederic Joos), but you can tell that by then the fivesome had found out their own voice within the realms of symphonic prog rock. There aren't too many lyrics in "Alice in Wonderland", and most of them are narrated. The opener is literally an intro that comprises brief atmospheres based on floating piano washes and eerie cymbals, until the instrumentation settles in for 'The Gate to Wonderland', lyrically structured across a prominent presence of bucolic ambiences provided by the playful flute lines and the elegant interventions on synth (orchestration and solo). All in all, it is mostly a second intro, and a "third intro" arrives with the slightly more mysterious 'Pond of Tears', which is where the synth layers become more relevant, and also there is a more noticeable presence of the guitar phrases alongside the ever haunting flute lines. The melodic display is definitely more ambitious than on the preceding track, but it still feels like a sequence of amalgamated snippets than a track with a power of its own. Track 4 is the first piece in this concept that benefits from a proper development - it starts very lyrical, like a symphonic journey with heavily pastoral accents, but soon the piece reveals a colorful imagery of sound that alternates density and lightheartedness in an ultimately symphonic fashion. Influences from Camel, Novalis, Eloy and Focus' introspective side are (or seem to be) very transparent here, with some touches of early 70s Jethro Tull. Regarding the sense of magic delivered through the global instrumentation, you can also tell that there are also coincidences with what Happy the Man were doing at the time on the other side of the Atlantic for their "Death's Crown" project - it is no wonder, since this album's tracklist and that HTM project were both conceived as musical bases for visuals and theatrical deliveries. 'Five O'Clock-Tea' is segued to the last notes of the preceding track's enthusiastic closing portion, bringing back a ceremonious note that works really well due to the clever architecture that ordains the various moods and motifs. This is the sort of grandeur that I wished earlier for tracks 2 and 3 - at this point, the musical ideas are becoming gradually more robust. After a brief sung section, the track shifts toward a sense of sheer, dramatic intensity without losing its melodic drive. The last section is a joyful imitation of cabaret-oriented jazz, which makes an efficient contrast against the solemn note that signals the start of the following track 'The Marching of the Queen - Palace of Wonderland'. The band's ability to create beautifully crafted melodic developments of motifs and the easily flowing transitions comes to its full fruition on this one - even though you won't find as many dramatic shifts than on previous tracks, this one never gets boring or monotonous. The portions where the band gets to Celtic and Renaissance territories, the sonic beauty becomes irresistibly sublime. 'The Court of the Animals' starts with the mandatory narration over a piano sequence (electric and grand, simultaneously): some more amazingly beautiful melodies and textures get in, and then some exciting interludes bring warm Tullian airs. The closer 'Alice's Return' wraps up the concept with a reprised motif. All in all, "Alice in Wonderland" is not as gloriously genius as "Battlement", but it is not a disposable progressive album at all; no, it is an excellent addition (albeit with a not too great sound production) to any good prog rock collection." (Cesar Inca progarchives.com)

1. Theme of Alice - The Flower Meadow - The White Rabbit (1:17)
2. The Gate to Wonderland (2:13)
3. Pond of Tears (2:45)
4. The Conference of the Princess - Old Father's Song -Duchess' Lullaby (8:31)
5. Five-O'Clock-Tea (6:49)
6. The Marching of the Queen - Palace of Wonderland (12:04)
7. The Court of the Animals (5:01)
8. Alice's Return (2:04)

Thomas Neuroth - Keyboards
Klaus Mayer - Flute, Synthesizer
Roger Weiler - Guitars
Frederic Joos - Lead Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Rainer Zimmer - Bass, Vocals
Hans-Peter Schwarz - Drums
Hermann Rarebell - Drums

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 328MB

Part 1__Part 2

Later!

2009-07-10T14:56:00.003-07:00

Mother Jane - Comes Alive (2000)

Founded in 1993 by Klaus Hess, Mother Jane sounds a whole lot like the 1970's Jane, heavy and melodic. This disc features material recorded in Switzerland in 1999. The band does old Jane classics like "Windows", "Daytime", "Hangman", "Spain" and "Redskin", plus some impressive new material. Well I guess it was new in 1999! Bassist Kai Schiering's vocals are awesome, the musicianship is spectacular, the sound is OK. The crowd noises seem a little intrusive at times, but only add to the general stoned 70's vibe that is alright by me. Almost 80 minutes of sweet Jane goodness, a must-have for all Jane fans.

1. Out Of Control
2. Spain
3. Redskin
4. Together We Are Stand
5. Emotion
6. So Solong
7. Take It
8. Hangman
9. Daytime
10. Way To Paradise
11. Silence
12. Windows
13. Nightmare
14. Windows II

Klaus Hess - Guitar, Vocals
Kai Schiering - Bass
Jaye - Drums, Vocals
Klaus Henatsch - Keyboards, Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 513 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

See ya!

2009-06-29T10:40:00.002-07:00

Brainticket - Voyage (1982)

"Voyage" continues where "Adventure" left off with more strange sonic cosmos and amazing percussive tones and moods. Essentially "Voyage" was a live in studio jam which got carried away one evening and was captured on tape for the world to enjoy. Once again we are surrounded by the electronic genius of Joel Vandroogenbroeck and his gang of merry men. "Voyage" seems to be more devoted to exploring the percussive side of their music in sharp contrast to "Adventure" and "Celestial Ocean". "Voyage Part 1" would certainly rank as one of my all time electronic Krautrock favs. 3 more bonus tracks have been included as well in the same vein as those found on "Adventure". (James Unger progarchives.com)

1. Voyage Part 1 (19:07)
2. Voyage Part 2 (18:06)
Bonus Tracks:
3. Skyline [Analog 1970] (8:10)
4. Underworld Paths (7:20)
5. Nebula (4:45)

Joel Vandroogenbroeck - Keyboards, Flute, Guitar, Vocals
Hans Deyssenroth - Keyboards, Synthesizers, Computer
Barney Palm - Drums, Percussion, Strange Sounds
Wilhelm Seefeldt - Synthesizers, Computer

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 338 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Bye!

2009-05-04T13:32:00.002-07:00

8 Days In April - The Hamburg Scene (1972)

I have been looking for a CD copy of this album for years with no luck and I was stoked when it showed up as a CD rip on a mystery forum. Thanks to the original uploader, uheep2, and thanks for permission to share it here. The CD is obviously a bootleg since there has been no official release - "Hamburg" was spelled "Hamnburg" on the back cover (Fixed with Photoshop), but the sound is great. This is basically Frumpy keyboardist Jean-Jacques Kravetz fronting the Udo Lindenberg band, with Lindenberg writing almost all the material. Frumpy singer Inga Rumpf provides vocals for the first track, from then on it's mostly an instrumental album. This is a stellar album of laid-back low-key progressive rock performed by brilliant musicians, with guitarist Thomas Kretzschmer being a real standout!

1. I'd Like To Be A Child Again (9:35)
2. Ann Toomuch (7:55)
3. Routes (7:27)
4. When The Dream Is Over (3:14)
5. Master Of Time (9:40)

Udo Lindenberg - Vocals, Drums, Percussion
Jean-Jacques Kravetz - Organ, Piano, Synthesizer, Percussion
Steffi Stephan - Bass
Thomas Kretzschmer - Guitar
Inga Rumpf - Vocals
Roger Hook - 12 String Guitar

Not my rip - Separate flacs,log, cue, covers, 238 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Cheers!

2009-02-25T17:08:00.003-07:00

Amon Düül II - BBC Radio One Live In Concert Plus (1973)

Some great tunes recorded by one of Germany's best bands on their final tour of England. Not my rip - thanks to original uploader!

Renate Knaup - Vocals
Chris Karrer - Guitars, Violin, Saxophone, Vocals
John Weinzierl - Guitars, Bass
Danny Fichelscher - Drums, Guitars, Bass, Vocals
Peter Leopold - Drums
Falk-U. Rogner - Synthesizer, Organ

1. Ladies Mimikry
2. Kanaan
3. Dem Guten, Schönen, Wahren
4. Green Bubble Raincoated Man
5. Mañana
6. Trap
From Tanz Der Lemminge Sessions:
7. Marilyn Monroe Memorial Drums
8. Chewing Gum Telegram [Alternate Mix]

Seperate flacs-Covers 298 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

Later!

2009-02-20T15:16:00.002-07:00

Procol Harum - Through The Garden Fence - BBC 1967-1971

I was rummaging through my stash and I found this bootleg that I had gotten as a torrent a few years ago. I had never listened to it! Man for the age of these recordings it sounds great - recommended for all Procol Harum fans. Thanks to the original releaser, Pink Robert.

1. A Whiter Shade Of Pale (5:14)
2. Mabel (1:38)
3. She Wandered Through The Garden Fence (3:09)
4. Homburg (4:50)
5. Monsieur Armand (2:30)
6. Wishing Well (2:34)
7. Skip Softly (My Moonbeams) (3:22)
8. Long Gone Geek (2:34)
9. Kaleidoscope (2:35)
10. Rambling On (4:20)
11. Quite Rightly So (3:44)
12. Skip Softly (My Moonbeams) (3:42)
13. Shine On Brightly (3:45)
14. Seem To Have The Blues (2:42)
15. Simple Sister (3:29)
16. Whiskey Train (5:08)
17. Juicy John Pink (2:56)
18. Nothing That I Didn't Know (2:46)
19. Your Own Choice (2:34)
20. A Whiter Shade Of Pale (5:14)

Tracks 1-2: June 14, 1967
Track 3: September 27, 1967
Track 4: Top Of The Pops 1967
Track 5: Top Of The Pops 1968
Tracks 6-8: August 19, 1968
Tracks 9-12: Top Of The Pops 1967-1968
Tracks 13-17: October 6, 1971
Tracks 18-20: September 16, 1970

Separate FLAC's-Found Covers 422 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4__Part 5

Bye!

2009-02-12T15:53:00.002-07:00

Clear Blue Sky - Clear Blue Sky (1971)

I figure everybody needs a copy of this endlessy-reissued classic of early 70's British rock. These guys were only 18 when this was recorded! Akarma release, not my rip - thanks to original uploader!

Mark Sheater - Bass
John Simmons - Guitar
Ken White - Drums

1. Journey To The Inside Of The Sun
a.Sweet Leaf
b.The Rocket Ride
c.I’m Comin’ Home
2. You Mystify
3. Tool Of My Trade
4. My Heaven
5. Birdcatcher

EAC-FLAC (separate)-LOG-SCANS 246 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Later

2009-02-09T16:39:00.005-07:00

Xhol - Motherfuckers Live (1968/1969/2001)

First off, a big thank you to Muck K. who ripped this and uploaded almost 800 MB for us, along with nice scans too! Muck has been toiling behind the krautrock scene since the late 60's and agreed to share this only because it is out of print. I have seen this in lossless once before, but without the third disc. Anyway what you get here are two complete performances by this seminal krautrock band, one from 1968 and the other from 1969, and a short third disc with a few Xhol covers by Current 93/Nurse With Wound. The second disc shows an Xhol that's different from their regular releases, basically a huge dark jam. If you like your krautrock edgy, experimental, dark, and maybe even a little violent this will be right up your alley! Thanks again to Muck for uploading this gem in it's complete state.

Disc 1 - Freedom Opera (1968) (56:50)
1. Acapulco Gold (Xhol)
2. Poems (Adapted from Vanilla Fudge)
3. Season of the Witch (Donovan Leitch)
4. Freedom Poem (Xhol/James Rhodes)
5. African Song (Xhol)
6. Talking to my Soul (Xhol)
7. Freedom Poems (Xhol/James Rhodes)
8. Planet Earth (Xhol)
Disc 2 - WDR Radio Live 1969 (56:58)
Disc 3 - Hot Buttered Xhol (15:45)
1. Current Ninety Three "Memories" (Soul Caravan)
2. Xhol/Nurse With Wound "Radio" (Xhol)
3. Christoph Heemann "Walla Mashalla" (Xhol Caravan)

Skip van Wyck - Drums
Tim Belbe - Saxophone
Hansi Fischer - Saxophone, Flute
Klaus Briest - Bass
Öcki - Keyboards
James Rhodes - Vocals

FLAC-CUE-SCANS 797 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4__Part 5__Part 6__Part 7__Part 8__Part 9

Later!!

2009-01-25T12:03:00.004-07:00

My Solid Ground - My Solid Ground (1971)

"A little known hard rock and psychedelic band, who just made the one album, My Solid Ground were amongst the most obscure of acts on Bacillus Records, but these days they are much better known amongst Krautrock aficionados.

The band originated in 1968 from the town Rüsselheim, with the line-up: Willy Waid (drums), Uli Weyrauch (bass) and Bernhard Rendel (guitars, vocals). Establishing themselves as a psychedelic hard-rock band, unbefitting their name they were never a solid or stable band, with one Werner Geilenkirchen playing bass for a year before being replaced by Karl-Heinrich Dörfler. Gelling the sound proper was Ingo Werner on keyboards, however it seems that he kept leaving the band and returning. Various early demos and sessions (a whole albums worth) can be heard now on the Second Battle CD reissue of their sole LP release MY SOLID GROUND, showing their roots and diversity of invention.

The LP itself is most notable for the tracks that feature keyboardist Ingo Werner, like the opening cosmic kind of Thirsty Moon-like opus "Dirty Yellow Mist" (a Krautrock classic) and the disturbingly sinister "Executioner" amongst them. Most of the rest of the album was more typical Teutonic hard-rock of the era, but with an inventive flair, a few surprises notably, and a nod in the direction of Guru Guru. A schizophrenic album maybe, but such variety also makes it unique.

Scarcely two months after recording the LP, the quartet went to Baden-Baden's SWF radio to record a unique and remarkable session that showed the band advancing in leaps and bounds. The session, all instrumental by the way, consisted of four pieces that totally mix-up every My Solid Ground style into what often sounds like classic early Gila, with swirly keyboards and sizzling guitar, with nods to both classical rock and Pink Floyd's "Interstellar Overdrive".

Werner, Dörfler and Würsching, it seems, had all left the band before the album was released, and thus Rendel brought in Bodo Gross (drums) and Günther Mildenberger (keyboards) and My Solid Ground continued at least until 1974, though never made a further album. Early members: Waid and Geilenkirchen later formed the hard-rock band Indianapolis. Werner formed the experimental band Baba Yaga, who made two albums, and later worked in the computer music trio A.I.R.. Bernhard Rendel is still active as a musician today, and a collection of his current "one man band" demos are used to fill-up the SWF Radio session disc." (Crack in the Cosmic Egg)

Dirty Yellow Mist
Flash Part IV
That's You
The Executioner
Melancholia
Handful Of Grass
Devonshire Street W1
"X"
"Y"
"Z"
Flash (original full length version)
The Executioner (different mix)
Handful Of Grass (different mix)
That's You (different mix)
Dirty Yellow Mist (different vocals)

Bernhard Rendel - Guitars, Vocals
Karl-Heinrich Dörfler - Bass, Vocals
Andreas Würsching - Drums, Percussion
Ingo Werner - Organ, Piano

Not my rip - EAC-SEPARATE FLACS-LOG.CUE.ARTWORK - thanks to original uploader

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4__Part 5__Part 6

2009-01-19T17:57:00.005-07:00

Arktis - On The Rocks (1976)

"It is the year 1976, and Arktis is dead!...or not? No, Arktis is still alive! First of all we had to digest the departure of Klaus Blachut and Klaus Göllner, do you remember? And then there was the question how to go on. Karin and Harry sat together making plans to continue the success story of Arktis without their guitarist and bassist. Harry recalled the time before Arktis existed and he remembered Manni with whom he had sessioned for some time and who might look for an engagement. He asked Manni, Manni was looking for an engagement and joined on guitar. Two other musicians could be found, and off we went...Apart from these necessary personnel changes we decided to use new techniques planning to record a new album which should be a direct musical follow-up to out debut album. Supported again by Conny Plank who had produced several of Arktis' songs in the past we are proud to present the song material of our third album of which all participants think it's our best. A Hammond organ for example was added to all songs on the LP. We also took much more time in the studio than before as can be valued by the songs' compact structures. Their psychedelic and underground feeling is influenced by our new guitarist Manni whose idols are Cream and Hendrix. While doing her vocal parts Karin did not think of the studio but emotions, blue spirit. All other band members submitted, fine...Last but not least we'd like to point out that once more we succeeded in performing a twenty minute song which was tough work ... We hope with this album to meet our fans' demand and hereby pronounce that we have already started working on album number four..." (Liner Notes)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Enchanting 70s' heavy metal from Germany. On the Rocks was recorded in 1976. Although featuring simple melodies and not straight progressive metal with complex arrangements, such as, say, Rush, Arktis' sound is interesting for two reasons.

The first reason is that their powerful guitar playing sounds Iron Maiden-esque for a mid 70s band and catches the attention at once. The second reason is that the voice of Karin is both very powerful and enchanting and sounds androgynous, which give the tracks a feel of fairy-tales. The highlight here is Loneliness, a beautiful powerful epic lasting 20 minutes. The tune is both heavy blues and melancholic passages in the vein of Pink Floyd. The doomy bonus track Y.T.T is reminiscent of Black Sabbath and really rocks !

Arktis's On the Rocks is an album which with you can easily imagine knights fighting on the landscape drawn on the cover while listening to the music. It's a pity they only made a few albums. Very enjoyable and accessible album. To all heavy and progressive metal lovers!" (Modrigue, progarchives.com)

1. Dangerous Love (4:31)
2. Since You've Been Gone (5:35)
3. Never Come Back (5:00)
4. Please, Call Me (5:26)
5. Loneliness (20:01)
Bonus track:
6. Y.T.T. (5:57)

Karin Toppig / vocals
Harry Kottek / drums
Manni Dick / guitar
Axel Maurer / keyboards
Bernd Kolf / bass

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 348 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

2008-12-31T18:09:00.003-07:00

Guru Guru - Essen 1970

This is an awesome live recording by the best Guru Guru lineup - Ax Genrich on guitar, Mani Neumier on drums, and Uli Trepte on bass. On the short side, only about 38 minutes, that's the only thing wrong with this. The three tunes are from their first two albums, "UFO" and "Hinten". Garden of Delights release with huge booklet. Man these guys were great, highly recommended if you like Guru Guru. Maybe even if you don't!

1. Stone In 12:00
2. Der LSD-Marsch 14:22
3. Bo Diddley 11:27

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 282 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Happy New Year!!!

2008-12-29T14:18:00.004-07:00

The Shiver - Walpurgis (1969)

"Cult underground psychedelic 60's legends from Switzerland related to Toad, Brainticket, Deaf, and Les Sauterilles . This is their one and only album from 1969, containing a wide range of psychedelic and progressive styles. With dark passions and melancholic moods "Hey Mr Holy Man" is outstanding.Contains 3 bonus tracks. Sinister artwork illustration is the first record cover work of H.R. Giger." (Freak Emporium)
========================================
"The Shiver were very much a mystery band, until recently, when all was revealed. They were Swiss, formed in May 1967 by blues singer (and guitarist) Dany Rühle, and were originally called Der Seiger. They were the roots of Island, via another band called Deaf. In January 1969 they recorded their sole self-produced album, which sported a sinister H.R. Giger cover, contained a wide range of psychedelic and progressive styles. Crudely recorded, and often shoddily played, it seemed to be an anthology recorded over a much longer period. The Shiver were nonetheless constantly surprising. A curious point is that the track "Hey Mr. Holy Man", a version of "Dies Irae", is very close to the version by Golgatha! Apparently the single was a big seller in the "Schweizer Hitparade". (The Crack In The Cosmic Egg)
========================================
"Official reissue of the one and only album (1969) by Swiss underground cult legends; a heavy album, covering a variety of crude and sloppy psychedelic styles, and one of the rarest in the world, thanks very much in part to its sinister and sexually explicit H. R Giger cover; this issue has three bonus tracks, two from a rare compilation LP, and one from an even rarer split single from 1968." (Bomp!)
========================================
"The Shiver are for sure the most renowned psychedelic band of Switzerland. Their one and only LP "Walpurgis" is legendary and hardly affordable. So, evidently, a lot of bootleg versions appeared on the market over the years, but all of them very poorly done. The CD on Garden of Delights is produced, as usual, with a detailed band story, a lot of illustrations, a detailed discography inclusive label and cover repros, and, last but not least, three bonus tracks. Two of those are taken from the very rare compilation "1. Schweizer Rhythm and Blues Festival". The early version of "Repent Walpurgis" comes from a so-called split single from 1968, where you can find The Etc on its flip side. Thus, the complete released works of The Shiver can be found on this CD. The fold-out cover artwork designed by HR Giger was taken over unchanged." (green-brain-krautrock.de)

1. Repent Walpurgis
2. Ode To The Salvation Army
3. Leave This Man Alone
4. What's Wrong About The Blues
5. Hey Mr. Holy Man
6. Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
7. No Time
8. The Peddle
9. You Don't Love Me
10. Hear My Plea
11. Repent Walpurgis

Dany Rühle - Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals
Jelly Pastorini - Organ, Piano
Mario Conza - Bass, Flute, Vocals
Roger Maurer - Drums, Vocals
Peter Robinson - Lead Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 358 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

See you in a couple weeks!!

2008-12-09T20:50:00.003-07:00

Mon Dyh - Murderer (1980)

"Murderer" is the first of three great albums that German group Mon Dyh released in the early eighties. Despite searching I have been unable to find out much about them on line. The liner notes look informative, but unfortunately (for me) they are in German. All I could get was this brief write-up in "The Crack In The Cosmic Egg":

"An obscure Berlin rock band, formed in 1979, and regulars on the local club scene for some years. Mon Dyh were very indebted to British styled blues and heavy rock, strongly song-saturated, in the early Groundhogs territory. Still unusual on occasion, and with some progressive touches, their gruff German accented Bruce Springsteen cum Tony McPhee styled vocalist takes some getting used to!"

Despite being called obscure, the photo below shows them playing in front of a huge-ass crowd! Yet they seem to have been all but forgotten! And in spite of the tepid comment from Cosmic Egg, I think that these Mon Dyh albums are nearly flawless. Everything about them is great - the songs, the musicianship, the production. The biggest improvement they could have made would have been to sing in German, which they finally did on their best and final album, "Am Galgen".

And guitarist and main songwriter Andreas Pröhl is probably the best unknown German rock guitarist of the 1980's. This is a real good album and I wish I had the skills to write a glowing review, but I don't so I just hope some of you will try it out.Tracklist:
1. Don't You Break My Heart
2. Murderer
3. Trying
4. Magic Piano
5. Just A Minute
6. A Needle Must Not Lay Down
7. One Second Man
8. Encountered The Edge
9. All Along The Watchtower
10. Have You Ever Loved A Woman

Musicians:
Andreas Pröhl - Vocals, Guitar
Harald Künemund - Acoustic Guitar
Harald Frohloff - Bass
Markus Worbs - Drums

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 304 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

Later!

2008-11-24T13:07:00.002-07:00

Ax Genrich - Highdelberg (1975)

Ax Genrich's first release after quitting Guru Guru has none of his signature acid guitar freakouts that made him famous on the first Guru Guru albums! Over all, this sounds a lot like a series of jams, played with friends dropping by to play, the whole thing is very relaxed. It reminds a lot of Mani Neumier's album "Mani und Seine Freunde" which came out the same year and had a lot of the same musicians. Since it's a collection of improvisations, there's no real focus and the songs amble from one style to another. The best track is 'Kosmische Phyrze', a gentle rock-guitar based instrumental. This album may not be on anyone's 'Top Ten' list or anything but it's still a worthwhile release, as these guys are all world-class players and the musicianship is top-notch.

Tracklist:
1. Der Platzhirsch 4.24
2. Odenwald-Polka 4.49
3. Wapitis Ruckkehr 3.50
4. Kosmische Phyrze 8.00
5. Super Normal Rider 5.01
6. A National Affair 4.14
7. No Matter, No 769 4.02
8. Saure Drops Und Susser Wein 6.24

Musicians:
Ax Genrich - Guitar, Vocals
Mani Neumeier (Guru Guru) - Drums, Percussion
Helmut Hattler (Kraan) - Bass
Jan Fride (Kraan) - Drums, Percussion
Peter Wollbrant (Kraan) - Guitar
Joachim Roedelius (Cluster) - Electronics
Dieter Moebius (Cluster) - Electronics

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 257 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part3

See ya!

2008-10-22T12:06:00.004-07:00

Noir - We Had To Let You Have It (1971)

"We Had To Let You Have It" is the only recorded output from Britain's first all-black rock band, a band which broke up before the album was released. There is virtually no information about this group - that's about all the 'liner notes' tell us, that not much is known about Noir. I did find a page about Barry Ford, the drummer/vocalist, which tells us that Noir in their short career had gigs opening up for the Rolling Stones and Cream, and for a time were Alexis Korner's backing band. This page also tells us that the record was never completed but the label decided to release it anyway, hence the album title. This I don't get because all the songs definitely sound finished, and the running time is long for those days, a little over 48 minutes.

Although these guys backed up Alexis Korner, the music on this CD isn't 'bluesy' at all. The music is understated and low-key, on a track or two the obvious comparison is the Chambers Brothers I think, maybe it's my imagination! The tracks are sometimes funky, sometimes smoky and inspirited, sometimes a tribal percussive thing pops up, all the cuts have a deep soulful feeling and the guitar playing is above reproach. Their version of "Indian Rope Man" is awesome, though the best track I think is "The System", which creeps over into jazzy territory.

All in all this is a very sweet little album which deserves better that the obscurity it has had for thirty-something years.

Track List:
1. Rain
2. Hard Labour
3. Begger Man
4. In Memory of Lady X
5. How Long
6. The System
7. Indian Rope Man
8. Ju Ju Man

Players:
Tony Cole - Keyboards
Barry Ford - Drums, Vocals
Gordon Hunte - Guitars, Vocals
Roy Williams - Bass

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 272 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Later!

2008-08-04T16:58:00.005-07:00

Toad - Toad (1971)

"First Toad album, originally issued by Swiss label Halleluja in the 1971. Ex-members of Brainticket investigating the realms of skull crushing heavy rock! Certified savage guitar from Vic Vergeat! Swiss hard rock band formed by members of the original Brainticket, Toad's history is obscure and largely undocumented. Their debut is said to be in the realms of Dies Irae, being heavy, bluesy and experimental. However, despite getting a British release, we've never managed to locate a copy. Their second album, "Tomorrow Blue" was surprisingly straight hard-rock, akin to Sperrmüll, with Hendrix, Status Quo and R&B influences. Their original lead singer Benjamin Jäger went on to Island."(Alexgitlin)

"Why does anyone bother with the current crop of "stoner rock" when there's so much better stuff made back in the original stoner age (the '70s) now being reissued?? If you're into the Man's Ruin roster, and prone to buying albums by the latest Swedish Kyuss clone, yet don't have, say, Lucifer's Friend, Flower Travellin' Band, Leafhound, Captain Beyond, or Buffalo reissues in your collection, it's time to get with the program! Not that that's easy, since much of the good old shit is definitely obscure and unheralded. For instance, we hadn't ever heard of this Swiss band Toad until a kindly customer sold back a bootleg cd with an intriguing cover a couple years ago. Now, here's a legit reissue of the same album thanks to the freaks at Second Battle.

This self-titled disc is the first and best of Toad's three LPs, serving up hard-rockin' stoner psych in the best blues-based tradition of early Blue Cheer and Led Zep. The first track "Cotton Wood Hill" will offer a clue about the lineage of this band, as Toad's rhythm section played on the classic LP of that same title by acid-fried Krautrockers Brainticket! Toad boasts an excellent vocalist put to good use on the more melodic parts of their sometimes quite long songs, but a large part of the LP is occupied by heavy (HEAVY) jamming instrumental excursions featuring the killer guitar of one Vic Vergeat. This is genuine heaviness, circa 1971." (Aquarius Records)

1 - Cotton Wood Hill - 8.36
2 - A Life That Ain't Worth Living - 3.29
3 - Tank - 3.28
4 - They Say I'm Mad - 6.47
5 - Life Goes On - 11.58
6 - Pig's Walk - 7.27
7 - The One I Mean - 2.35
8 - Stay (Bonus)

Vic Vergeat - Guitars
Cosimo Lampis - Drums
Werner Fröhlich - Bass
Benny Jäger - Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 327 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

2008-07-28T08:41:00.006-07:00

Please - Seeing Stars (1969)

"Please was a UK psych band that, well I think they had a lot going them, musically. The eleven cuts on Seeing Stars had never even seen the light of day until this CD was put out by Acme. Members of Please were apparently later in a couple of other bands, Bulldog Breed and T2. Some of these tracks remind me of early Pink Floyd, pretty much because of the keyboard arrangements, like "Words To Say", "Before", the wailing "Still Dreaming" (possibly the disc's best tune), "Secrets", "Who You Know" and "But". I thought "Time Goes By" had the characteristics of perhaps an early unreleased King Crimson B-side. Seeing Stars has nicely-done vocals, soaring mellotron, fluid guitar work and cleverly constructed songs to offer it's listeners. It's so good that on the first listen you'll fully understand as to why ' true psychedelia' has never really died, if you don't already.Truly great early British psych that gets better with each play. Should appeal to fans of early Floyd, Tomorrow, The Move, Yes, solo Syd Barrett and The Doors. A real keeper." (aural-innovations.com)

"Please were formed by Peter Dunton and Bernie Jinks in late 1967. They had just returned to Britain from Germany where they had played with Neon Pearl, which also included their third member Jurgen Ermisch. The fourth original member Adrian Gurvitz later co-founded Gun. Unfortunately this line-up left no vinyl legacy or unreleased recordings that have been located behind it. They disbanded in May 1968 when Peter Dunton joined The Flies for whom he wrote both sides of their Magic Train 45. When The Flies split up at the end of 1968, Dunton reformed the band (line-up 'B'). Rob Hunt had also been in The Flies. They recorded all the cuts compiled on this album. Please split again in April 1969 when Peter Dunton joined Gun. The remaining members recruited a new drummer and renamed themselves Bulldog Breed. They later cut the Made In England album. In the Autumn of 1969, Peter Dunton quit Gun to reform Please with Bernie Jinks and Nick Spenser (ex-Neon Pearl). This incarnation was relatively short-lived as they had difficulty recruiting a suitable keyboard player. In early 1970 Dunton, Jinks and a later Bulldog Breed member Keith Cross joined forces to form T2, who were responsible for the excellent It'll All Work Out In Boomland album. One of T2's tracks, No More White Horses also crops up in a radically different form on Please's 1968/69 retrospective." (Tapestry of Delights)

01 - Seeing Stars
02 - Words To Say
03 - Before
04 - Time Goes By
05 - The Road
06 - Rise & Shine
07 - Still Dreaming
08 - Secrets
09 - Who You Know
10 - But
11 - Steal Your Dreams

Peter Dunton - Keyboards, Lead Vocals & Drums
Bernie Jinks - Bass & Backing Vocals
Nick Spenser - Guitar, Backing Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS 278 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3

Later!

2008-07-21T19:44:00.008-07:00

Lightshine - Feeling (1976)

"Formed in 1974 by four students, Lightshine originated from the town of Emmerich in the lower Rhein area. Slightly out of their time, negotiations with Sky and Vertigo came to nothing, they didn't fit in with the new smoother progressive sounds of the mid-1970's, so eventually they decided to publish an album themselves.

Unusually, Lightshine sounded very psychedelic for a band in 1976, their personalised brand of progressive rock was heavily inspired by British bands like Family and Genesis, along with touches of early Jane, Eloy, or Satin Whale, but with a touch of Teutonic eccentricity, their twist on Peter Gabriel type theatrics is highly original, and with complex arrangements and clever (sometimes very funny) songs, it all made for an enjoyable and inventive album. But, aside from getting enough interest to repress the album a year later, Lightshine never got above the ranks of support act to the likes of Hoelderlin or Scorpions. They disbanded in late 1977." (The Crack In The Cosmic Egg)

"This group released the impressive album Feeling (1976), a classic among small label releases. Unfortunately I'm not able to give you the full names of this crew, as the sleeve only stated their forenames. The band was from the Emmerich area near the Dutch border, recording their obscure album in an unknown studio named Trepita-Film-Ton-Studio (whose label was also responsible for the release). It's hard to give you an accurate impression of this album because of its great variety. They obviously loved to incorporate crazy elements into their music, as illustrated by the primal screams at the beginning of "Sword In The Sky" and the King's laughter in "King And Queen". There were also moments of great beauty: the cosmic, Ash Ra-like guitar style on "Nightmare" with soft vocal harmonics and synthesizer textures. "Lory" borrowed the bass pattern from Grieg's composition "In The Hall Of The Mountain King" and had gutsy, distorted guitars. The aforementioned "King And Queen" was a 13 minute opus, merging melancholic melodies, lyrics and dreamy instrumental parts with the sudden appearance of the insane king! The album concluded with "Feeling", a kind of acid-folk composition culminating in a final frenzy. Overall, an extremely good album, well worth hunting for! An original copy will cost you more than 250 DEM!" (Cosmic Dreams At Play)

01 - Sword In The Sky
02 - Lory
03 - Nightmare
04 - King And Queen
05 - Feeling

Olli - Synthesizer
Wolfgang - Bass, Vocals
Egon - Drums
Ulli - Rhythm Guitar, Flute, Vocals
Joe - Lead Guitar, Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS (300-600dpi) 298 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

Wow - three whole comments last week. Gee.

2008-07-14T14:56:00.004-07:00

Krokodil - The Psychedelic Tapes (1970 - 1972)

Well I wasn't able to find out much about this on the internet, and by that I mean I couldn't find a review to copy and paste! Oh well.

1970-1972 were the psychedelic years of the mighty Krokodil from Switzerland who made the stunning psychedelic kraut rock album "An Invisible World Revealed". During this early period the band recorded a lot of magical songs both live (3 tracks) and in the studio (5 tracks) which are now after more than 30 years released on CD. Long trippy space rock with a West Coast/Kraut Rock edge, featuring fluid acid guitar work, flute and effects. The CD includes a great version of Pharoah Sanders' "The Creator Has a Master Plan", which surprisingly doesn't sound all that jazzy, a live 30 minute version of "Odyssey In Om" from their landmark album "An Invisible World Revealed" - about a third of this is a bass/percussion extravaganza. On the hard rock side is a live version of "Marzipan" from the album "Getting Up For The Morning". The three "Stehaufmädchen" tracks are very interesting, but also real short. "You're Still a Part of Me" is a live version of the song from their 1969 debut album and has a great late 60's bluesy/psych vibe. The last track, "Raga" is some cool sounding Sitar work.

Anyway this is a very good CD and if you like "An Invisible World Revealed" this is a totally worthwhile addition to your collection.

1. The Creator Has a Master Plan - 1970 (9:22)
2. Stehaufmädchen Part 1 - 1970 (1:05)
3. Marzipan (Live) - 1972 (8:02)
4. Stehaufmädchen Part 2 - 1970 (1:04)
5. You're Still a Part of Me (Live) - 1972 (5:44)
6. Stehaufmädchen Part 3 - 1970 (1:06)
7. Odyssey in Om (Live) - 1972 (30:29)
8. Raga - 1971 (3:16)

Terry Stevens - Bass, Guitar, Percussion, Vocals
Hardy Hepp - Violin, Piano, Recorder, Vocals
Düde Dürst - Drums, Congas, Vocals
Walty Anselmo - Sitar, Guitar, Bass, Vocals
Mojo Weideli - Mouthharp, Flute, Percussion, Vocals

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS (600dpi) 392 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

Next week, then! Comments appreciated.

2008-07-06T15:17:00.009-07:00

Nutz - Nutz (1974)

If you like British hard rock from the 70's this first album from Nutz is hard to beat. Released last year for the first time on CD, I was shocked at the great sound - I'd had a version on mp3 that I'd been listening to that didn't do this thing justice at all. These guys recorded four albums from 1974 to 1977, and they got it right the first time out. Despite building a loyal fan base and touring at various times with Black Sabbath, UFO, and Budgie, these guys never had any commercial success, their albums didn't sell well at all.

Their first album was an interesting and varied affair in which the band played with several different styles without losing their identity. Many of the songs use acoustic or progressive rock introductions to lead into blues-rock pieces, sometimes in very inventive ways. There are also some very successful progressive folk songs, a direction the band dropped after this album. It's a shame, as the catchy, carnival-like "Round and Round" suggested that this band could have done some fine things with the style. It's a track that bears repeated listening, the parade-ground drumming overlaid by acoustic and electric guitars and a simple but urgent vocal line. Here and throughout the album the vocal harmonies are impressive, more so than on any of their later works. For me though the highlight is the second track, "Ain't No Thanks To You", it's fecken awesome. A brilliant album of hard but not too heavy 1970's rock. The four bonus tracks are from 1977's "Nutz Live Cutz", by this time they had added a keyboard player.

Tracks:

1. Poor Man
2. Ain't No Thanks To You
3. Spoke In A Wheel
4. I Can't Unwind
5. Can't Tell Her Why
6. As Far As The Eye Can See
7. Love Will Last Forever
8. Light Of Day
9. Round And Round
10. Joke
11. Seeing Is Believing (Bonus Track)(Live)
12. Loser (Bonus Track)(Live)
13. Pushed Around (Bonus Track)(Live)
14. You Better Watch Out (Bonus Track)(Live)

Personnel:

Dave Lloyd - Lead Vocal, Guitar
Mick Devonport - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Keith Mulholland - Bass Guitar, Vocals
John Mylett - Drums, Percussion
John "Rabbit" Bundrick - Piano & Organ, tracks 5 & 8
Chris Hughes - Brass, track 10
Kenny Newton - Keyboards, tracks 11 - 14

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS (600dpi) 455 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4__Part 5

Comments have been real sparse lately, only one for that great album last week? WTF? Anyway, see ya.

2008-06-23T12:59:00.006-07:00

Fairport Convention - House Full: Live At The L.A. Troubador (1970)

"Here we find Fairpoint Convention supporting their latest release "Full House" - which solidified their move towards traditional British isles material while at the same time moving towards a harder-rocking sound. The jigs are performed at a breakneck speed, which is perphaps unnecessary, but they work well anyway with new bassist Dave Pegg laying down solid, rockin' lines. Gone are the haunting and beautiful vocals of Sandy Denny, replaced by the simpler, rustic vocals of Richard Thompson and Dave Swarbrick. The highlight may very well be "Sloth" off of the new album - this live rendition brings even more emotion and power to the tune than the studio version. Also,look to get a kick out of the final tune on the disc- "Yellow Bird" It'll make you laugh - not because it sucks - but rather because it immensely entertains. If you dig 'Liege & Lief' and 'Full House'- you must check this out." (amazon.com)

This is a remastered reissue of a 1986 release on Hannibal Records called "House Full" with the addition of two remastered bonus tracks, taken from a 1977 Island LP called "Live At The L.A. Troubador". I think most people would agree that this is the best non-Sandy Denny lineup that Fairport Convention ever had. And the most rockin'.

1. Sir Patrick Spens (3:06)
2. Banks of the Sweet Primroses (3:56)
3. Toss the Feathers (3:56)
4. Sloth (12:04)
5. Staines Morris (3:44)
6. Matty Groves (3:44)
7. Mason's Apron (4:32)
8. Battle of the Somme (5:02)
9. Bonnie Kate/Sir B. MacKenzie's (4:56)*
10. Yellow Bird (2:17)*
*Bonus tracks taken from "Live At The LA Troubadour" (1977)
Total Time: 47:17

Richard Thompson - Vocals, Lead Guitar, Dulcimer
Simon Nicol - Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Mandolin
Dave Swarbrick - Vocals, Fiddle, Mandolin
Dave Pegg - Backing Vocals, Bass Guitar, Mandolin
Dave Mattacks - Drums

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS (300dpi) 337 MB

Part 1__Part 2__Part 3__Part 4

Later!

2008-05-26T11:53:00.007-07:00

Necronomicon - Tips zum Selbstmord (1972)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

OK I know this is huge, almost 500 MB- the bonus tracks almost double the size of the album, but it's well worth it. This is an awesome slice of dark sinister krautrock.

See ya!

2008-05-19T13:20:00.004-07:00

Soho Orange - Soho Orange (1971)

Recorded in 1971 at the same Scottish studio that gave us albums by the slightly better-known groups Tentacle and Bodkin, this never had a release. The tapes were found in the late 80's, one story says they were found in a shed! Released in 1991 on the same German label that gave us the first German Oak album, this is some very good early 70's hard rock somewhat in the Budgie vein though much sludgier. Unfortunately not much seems to be known about this group - I have had no luck finding a listing of the musicians, or any info that is not on the back cover. One track is over 10 minutes, the other five clock in around 5 to 6 minutes. Anyway, not the greatest album ever made, but an obscure gem that will appeal to most lovers of early 70's rock.

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS (600dpi) 266 MB

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Later!

2008-05-12T10:27:00.005-07:00

German Oak - German Oak (1972)

Talk about "Underground"!

In 1972 five Germans from Düsseldorf took their instruments and some recording gear and actually did go underground, into an old air raid shelter, in an attempt to capture with their music what it must have been like for the ordinary German soldier in the waning days of World War II. It seems they were somewhat successful, the feelings of hopelessness and despair are almost palpable. Long jammy tracks, filled with great lashings of garagey, fuzzed-out guitar. This thing is dark, primitive, brutal - and great!

One note - for some reason Witch & Warlock put the three 'bonus' tracks at the beginning. The album actually starts with track four, "Airalert", so that might be a good place to start listening.

Another note - The last few seconds of the first track, where it sounds like a tape that's been crinkled, that's the way it is on the CD. You could always use an editing program to trim the end or fade it out before you burn or something.

Track List:
1. Swastika Rising (4:55)
2. The Third Reich (10:18)
3. Shadows Of War: a) Rain Of Destruction b) V1 To London (5:54)
4. Airalert (1:50)
5. Down In The Bunker (17:51)
6. Raid Over Duesseldorf (16:02)
7. 1945 - Out Of The Ashes (2:14)

Musicians
Wolfgang Franz Czaika - Lead- & Rhythm guitar.
Ullrich Kallweit - Drums, Percussion
Harry Kallweit - Electric bass, voice.
Manfred Uhr - Organ/fuzz-organ, voice
Norbert Luckas - Guitars & noises

EAC-FLAC-LOG-CUE-SCANS (300dpi)-339MB

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

OK see you later!

2008-05-05T17:52:00.005-07:00

Peter Bursch und die Bröselmaschine - Bröselmaschine 2 (1975)

I posted this thing twice as MP3 files - the first one had bad synch errors, so I got a different rip from a friend on SoulSeek, and that one had synch errors too! That's one thing I don't like about Mp3 files - you have no idea how they were ripped, or if somebody messed with the bitrate, or what crappy software they used. Well I bought the damn thing, it's not that easy to get, so here's a first-class rip. Most of the .flacs I'll post will be as a single .flac image with .EAC log and a .cue file - plus high quality scans. I don't have time to educate people on how to burn these files but feel free to post questions in the comments and we will see what happens. FLAC files are for burning, not for listening to on your computer or iPod.

If you want individual tracks (burn disc-at-once) use the CUE Splitter located in the links section.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

See ya

2008-03-24T16:18:00.014-07:00

OK - this week all six volumes of "Psychedelic Gems" from the Garden of Delights label. Mostly these are 7" singles from late 60's to mid 70's Germany. A lot of this stuff is great. All files @320 each volume has front and back covers.

Psychedelic Gems - Vol. 1

Hans Werner Kuntze’s Osnabrück CCA label (and sub-labels) mainly featured beat bands but included some psychedelic and progressive groups. Here are DOM, Pax Vobis, The Ooze, The Devils, Blues Ltd. and Scramp.

1. DOM - DOM 05:01 (1972)
2. DOM - Devil’s Grandma 06:29 (1972)
3. Pax Vobis - Questions, As Old As The Humanity 02:37 (1972)
4. Pax Vobis - Ali Ben Muck 05:02 (1972)
5. Pax Vobis - Muffelofen 06:11 (1972)
6. Pax Vobis - Rotkohl 03:35 (1972)
7. The Ooze - Free 05:13 (1970)
8. The Ooze - We’re Living Now 04:16 (1970)
9. The Devils - World Of Empty Wishes 05:05 (1973)
10. The Devils - Way Of Love 07:23 (1973)
11. The Devils - Darkness 07:09 (1973)
12. Blues Ltd. - St. Andrews 04:05 (1971)
13. Blues Ltd. - Butterfinger 03:06 (1971)
14. Scramp - Inside Lookin’ Out 03:22 (1972)
15. Scramp - Who Has Seen The Wind 02:50 (1972)

Part 1 Part 2

Psychedelic Gems - Vol. 2

Featuring the remaining CCA (and sub-label) bands eligible for this series: Alaska Range, The Scorpions (with two so far unreleased tracks backdating to 1971), Lazarus’ Bra, Red Fug and Fifth Dead.

1. Alaska Range - Castles In The Air 02:49 (1970)
2. Alaska Range - Daybreak 04:09 (1970)
3. Scorpions - I'm Goin' Mad 04:43 (1971)
4. Scorpions - Action 03:41 (1971)
5. Lazarus' Bra - Passivity Won't Change The World 07:03 (1972)
6. Lazarus' Bra - If 04:23 (1972)
7. Red Fug - March, 16th 04:38 (1973)
8. Red Fug - The Journey 03:09 (1973)
9. Fifth Dead - A Special Man 03:08 (1973)
10. Fifth Dead - Long Way 03:47 (1975)
11. Fifth Dead - Bumble Bee 03:40 (1975)
12. Fifth Dead - What Can We Do 07:38 (1975)
13. Fifth Dead - Angel and God 02:51 (1975)
14. Fifth Dead - Blue Sky 04:38 (1976)
15. Fifth Dead - Devilking 04:08 (1976)

Part 1 Part 2

Psychedelic Gems - Vol. 3

This third CD in the series contains exclusive tracks unreleased at the time: an almost 25 minute My Solid Ground composition of 1970, a Mr. Grabstein (ex Gäa) track and three early Werwolf demos.

1. My Solid Ground - Flash 24:41 (1970)
2. Mr. Grabstein - Smoke 08:05 (1975)
3. Werwolf - The Song 08:21(1979)
4. Werwolf - My Story 11:30 (1979)
5. Werwolf - The Dreamer 09:22 (1979)

Part 1 Part 2

Psychedelic Gems - Vol. 4

Seven bands who released just one 7" single on small labels or as a private pressing: Chicago Sect, The Empty C, The Hardships, Apple Pie, Yoice (later Analogy), Waterloo and Acid.

1. Chicago Sect - Chain Reaction 03:25 (1968)
2. Chicago Sect - She's Not There 03:05 (1968)
3. The Empty C - Porky's Blues 04:58 (1969)
4. The Empty C - The Night 02:23 (1969)
5. The Hardships - The Work 03:15 (1969)
6. The Hardships - Follow Me 03:25 (1969)
7. Apple Pie - Ballad Of The Crying Man 03:18 (1970)
8. Apple Pie - Maurice 03:02 (1970)
9. Yoice - Sold Out 04:34 (1971)
10. Yoice - God's Own Land 03:34 (1971)
11. Waterloo - The End 05:36 (1976)
12. Waterloo - The Painter 04:51 (1976)
13. Waterloo - Jamming 1 05:40 (1976)
14. Waterloo - Jamming 2 (03:30 (1976)
15. Acid - Acid 03:37 (1979)
16. Acid - She's Alone Again 03:00 (1979)

Part 1 Part 2

Psychedelic Gems - Vol. 5

Just like the fourth CD of the series, this time featuring: The Desperates, Tortilla Flat, Just We, The Giants, Chain, B.S.H. and Tibet. Their 7" singles were released between 1966 and 1976.

1. The Desperates - LSD 02:52 (1966)
2. The Desperates - Stupidity 02:26 (1966)
3. Tortilla Flat - Facts 02:24 (1970)
4. Tortilla Flat - Life 02:25 (1970)
5. Just We - Somethin' Like It 03:30 (1971)
6. Just We - Dallas Woman Blues 03:38 (1971)
7. The Giants - He-He-Ho 05:03 (1972)
8. The Giants - Broken Earth 04:45 (1972)
9. Chain - Greasy 04:34 (1973)
10. Chain - London City 03:10 (1973)
11. B.S.H. - Short Step 02:39 (1974)
12. Tibet - Only Man's Love 03:22 (1976)
13. Tibet - She Is Gone 03:32 (1976)

Part 1 Part 2

Psychedelic Gems - Vol. 6

Seven bands who released just one 7" single on small labels or as a private pressing: The JP’s (pre-Jane), Blackmann Lane, Blackbirds 2000, Caleidoscope Inc., Nyrvana Pancake, Al Capone, and Metamorphosis.

1. The JP's: Save Me 03:33 (1969)
2. The JP's: The War 03:00 (1969)
3. Blackmann Lane - Hunger 03:12 (1970)
4. Blackmann Lane - Lato-Lam 02:55 (1970)
5. Blackbirds 2000 - Let’s Do It Together 02:45 (1970)
6. Blackbirds 2000 - Preludium 02:10 (1970)
7. Caleidoscope Inc. - I’m Waiting For You 03:28 (1970)
8. Caleidoscope Inc. - Kind Of Sadness 03:20 (1970)
9. Nyrvana Pancake - Open Your Eyes 03:39 (1973)
10. Nyrvana Pancake - Lonesome Boy 03:54 (1973)
11. Al Capone - Demon’s Dance 02:37 (1975)
12. Al Capone - Classicer 01:52 (1975)
13. Metamorphosis - You Have An Aim 03:25 (1977)
14. Metamorphosis - Wanna Hear Some Blues 03:58 (1977)

Part 1 Part 2

Well that's it then!

2008-03-17T13:43:00.009-07:00

Guy walks into a bar. Er, nevermind!

Various Artists - Heavy Nuggets (2007)

Given away free with the Dec. 2007 issue of Mojo Magazine, this started showing up in used CD stores almost right away - some people have no taste! Well I got one and this thing smokes, every single track is great. You know how when you make your own comps, after a couple listens there's always a track you wish you had left off, and used a different one? Well this comp is perfect - even the track by Slade, a band I have pretty much ignored all these years, is hot. Anybody know where the selection by The Move, "Don't Make My Baby Blue" came from? I'm just asking because it is awesome!!

1. Terry Reid - Tinker Taylor
2. Pretty Things - Old man Going
3. The Open Mind - Magic Potion
4. Mighty Baby - Egyptian Tomb
5. Second Hand - Rhubarb!
6. Leaf Hound - Freelance Fiend
7. Atomic Rooster - Night Living
8. The Move - Don’t Make My Baby Blue
9. Slade - My Life Is Natural
10. Possessed - Climb The Wooden Hills
11. Procol Harum - Long Gone Geek
12. Blossom Toes - Peace Loving Man
13. Luv Machine - Witches Wand
14. Pete Brown and Piblokto - Aeroplane Head Woman
15. Warhorse - Solitude

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

These Trails - These Trails (1973)

OK it's time to mellow out a little with this awesome album of psychedelic folk from Hawaii. Great songs. beautiful harmonies, some really alien sounding stuff rubbing shoulders with more traditional material. Not really "Hawaiian" sounding, more like some Brit folk band that was really from Hawaii. Or something. This is really unique - ethereal and dreamy, with odd song structures and arrangements, awesome female vocals courtesy of one Barbara Morgan who also wrote most of the songs. This is Acid Folk with a capital "A". Then a Capital "F" I guess.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

Creative Rock - Gorilla (1972)

First album from this German band that doesn't sound all that "German". Very much in the vein of American acts like Blood Sweat and Tears or Chicago or even like the British band Colosseum. Very jazzy with a great singer, lots of brass and an awesome rhythm section. No guitar shortage though, some good stuff in that department along with some nice flute here and there. If you are into horn-rock this is right up your alley.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Sorry Links Deleted

Exmagma - Exmagma 3 (1975)

Recorded in 1975 and only released a few years ago, this is more of the experimental, avant-garde, inventive jazz rock that this German trio is known for.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Faithful Breath - Back On My Hill (1980)

"The origins of Faithful Breath are somewhat obscure. Originally they were a symphonic rock band, in fact one of the earliest of the genre in Germany. Their debut album FADING BEAUTY has indeed justly become revered as a classic, having lengthy side-long suites, composed of a melodic, oft-sedate and dramatic rock, driven on by vast washes of keyboards (lots of Mellotron and synthesizers) and lengthy involved instrumentals, merging in with mysterious songs with a science fiction fantasy concept. Several years on (and after many line-up changes, in fact they were a guitar/keyboards/drums trio at one point) they returned with the album BACK ON MY HILL, which presented a less esoteric but still interesting rock music with contrasting LP sides: one of shorter hard-rock based tracks, and the other a lengthy suite spurred on by majestic Mellotron orchestrations. [bonus track on this CD]" (The Crack In The Cosmic Egg"

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Troya - Point Of Eruption (1976)

First posted this a long time ago but have since gotten the CD so this is a fresh rip with scanned booklet. Anyway this is soft symphonic rock comparable to their German contemporaries like Epidaurus, maybe Novalis. Cosmic Dreams calls this a "minor classic"

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

OK that's it then - see ya.

2008-03-10T14:19:00.019-07:00

Hello! Thanks for all the great comments lately!

Brian Auger - Brian Auger's Oblivion Express (1970)

"After the last throes of Trinity, Brian decided to form a new band from scratch and allow for more instrumental space in his music. And what a departure this was from the Trinity days. Here the music took a more severe turn away from his previous sound while remaining accessible, but being much more energetic as well and combined jazz and rock even further. With Dean and McIntosh as a solid rhythm section, Brian had to look for a guitarist that wouldn’t be tempted to overdo his own antics on the keyboards and eventually he chose Jim Mullen. With the artwork depicting our favourite Ogre unleashing his Oblivion Express out of his chest and straight into your face and ears, it’s easy to see that Brian is the boss with the majority of the compositions to his name. Certainly one of the better hard Hammond-driven rock albums coming out of the early 70’s from England, Brian Auger's Oblivion Express is a 100 MPH album that gives no rest." (Hugues Chantraine progarchives.com)

Bitrate 320 w/covers Sorry Links Deleted

Hoelderlin - Live Traumstadt (1978)

"This is a very underrated German progressive rock band! The double-album “Hoelderlin Live - Traumstadt” is their finest work and showcases the band at their pinnacle. It’s still considered as one of the milestones in the German rock history and has some similarities with other German progrock band Grobschnitt concerning the long solos, visual effects, costumes and humor. The music was recorded in the Wuppertaler Opernhaus in October ’77, the 2-LP was released in ’78. The band was hit by multiple changes in the line- up, on "Traumstadt" the musicians were Joachim Grumbkow (keyboards and vocals on “Streaming”), Pablo Weeber (all guitars), Michael Bruchmann (drums), Cristoph ‘Nops’ Noppeney (lead vocals and violin) and Hans Baar (bass). All the nine melodic tracks have their own climate and features fluid accellarations, nice interludes, pleasant keyboards (string-ensemble, electric piano, organ and clavinet) and great interplay between electric guitar and violin. But the focus is on the solowork: fiery (“Sun Rays”), biting (“Soft Landing”) and howling (“Die Stadt”) on the electric guitar and exciting (“Streaming”) and spectacular (“Die Stadt”) on the violin. Many solos are supported by the wonderful and distinctive sound of the string-ensemble, a compelling combination! Recommended, especially to fans of the violin playing of Jean Luc Ponty and Eddie Jobson." (Erik Neuteboom progarchives.com)

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Os Mundi - Os Mundi (2004)

I haven't been able to find out much about this CD, like when the tracks were recorded - progarchives says they were recorded during the band's "late period", and since the band broke up in 1975, that's as good a guess as any - 1975. With seven players in the studio (and a female chorus on one cut), these tracks have a really full sound. The music is great - jazzy, experimental, sometimes a little 'funky'.

Track Listings

1. Deef Bass (8:56)
2. It's All there (4:22)
3. Morining Song (5:10)
4. Peter und der Wolf (12:07)
5. Waber Waber (6:46)

Total Time: 37:21

Line-up/Musicians
Ute Kannenberg - Vocals
Udo Arndt - Guitar
Harald Skorepa - Keyboards
Michael "Fame" Günther - Bass
Konstantin "Bommi" Bommarius - Drums
Ludolf Kuchenbuch - Saxophone
Klaus Henrichs - Saxophone

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Popol Vuh - Letzte Tage - Letzte Nächte (1976)

"A sumptuous, pastoral, mystical album that pursues on the way launched by the seminal "Eisnjäger & Siebenjäger" and "Seligpresung". Popol Vuh are at the summit of their career. The atmosphere is totally fascinating, perfectly controlled emotionally with very pleasant, spiritual moments. We are far from their two first challenged "ethnic" electronic, meditative works and really more into guitars / piano / female vocals combination. The vocal melodies of the soprano Djon Yun are especially beautiful and ethereal. Daniel Fichelscher's dreamy and clean guitar playing is pretty effective and well accompanied by the serenity of Florian Fricke's piano playing. Next to the massive "Hosianna Mantra", "Seligpresung" and "Eisnjäger & Siebenjäger" this one is the fourth classic album offered by the band." (Philippe Blache progarchives.com)

1. Der grosse Krieger (3:15)
2. Oh wie nah ist der Weg hinab (4:36)
3. Oh wie weit ist der Weg hinauf (4:30)
4. In deine Hände (3:00)
5. Kyrie (4:38)
6. Haram dei Raram dei Haram dei Ra (1:30)
7. Dort ist der Weg (4:30)
8. Letzte Tage ~ Letzte Nächte (4:20)

Total Time: 30:19

Line-up/Musicians

Florian Fricke - Piano
Daniel Fichelscher - Guitar, Percussion
Djong Yun - Vocals
Renate Knaup - Vocals
Al Gromer - Sitar
Ted De Jong - Tamboura

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Lorus - Deluge (2007)

This band, Lorus, sent me a Mp3 copy of what I guess is their first album. A lot of you will surely like this - I stole this review from CD Baby, where you can buy it for only 8.99 USD!

"What would happen if Tool, Melvins and Mogwai all had a gangbang in the back of a tour bus? Their bastard offspring would be called Lorus. Raised by King Crimson with a little strict discipline from Mr. Bungle, Lorus is an avant metal band formed by guitarist Dylan Burr and keyboardist Alan Lawrence. Lorus' music blends divergent genres and synthesizes them with a heavier end, finding new and groundbreaking avenues for heavy music. Playing alongside Dylan and Alan is bassist Chris Brown, Lorus most recent addition, sets an anti-circular, driving tempo. Accessible, inexplicable, experimental, lugubrious and other .75 cent words. How can one band be both? Check www.lorusband.com and here for show dates and deeper explanation." http://cdbaby.com/cd/lorus

Bitrate 320 w/small cover Sorry Links Deleted

Later!

2008-03-03T15:19:00.012-07:00

OK I'm back!

Necronomicon - Tips zum Selbstmord (1972)

I first posted this almost exactly two years ago! Well I finally broke down and bought the CD, this is a fresh rip with complete scans. Anyway this thing is great - complex, powerful and sinister - surely one of the best albums from early 70's Germany.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Popol Vuh - Aguirre, The Wrath Of God (1976)

"Aguirre is an absolute masterpiece in the electronic-space genre and in all kind of meditative, celestial music. None other records in popular music can equalize this classic in term of implication in beauty. The choir played on the Moog we can hear on the title track is incredible. It's definitely transcending music, the ascending music to heaven. With the next tracks we come back to the unique and special psych-folk compositions which represents the mark of the band. Very floating and dreamy." (Philippe Blache, progarchives)

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Stonewall - Stoner (1974)

Amazing stoner rock from this New York City band - little seems to be known about them, one source says the music was recorded in 1971 and 1972, not released until 1976. Whatever, this thing rocks from beginning to end - great songs, only one clocks in at over five minutes, and that's one of the two bonus tracks. All killer no filler as they say. This one needs to be played LOUD!!

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

Touch - Touch (1969)

"TOUCH may have possibly been the first American progressive rock band, although there are counterclaims from supporters of equally neglected/forgotten United States Of America and now the hindsighted claims for ZAPPA & The MOTHERS OF INVENTION. However, (unlike USA and ZAPPA) on hearing much of TOUCH’s small catalogue of progressive music one might be forgiven for saying it was influenced by the early British prog bands, but for the facts they were formed in the mid 60’s and released their only complete album 'Touch' in early 1969 in the USA/mid 1969 in the UK. In other words their music, their ideas and their special album, predates CRIMSON’s « In The Court » and the first RENAISSANCE album.

Lead by the former garage pop/rocker Don Gallucci, (inventor of the timeless Louie Louie keyboard riff in 1963 when 15, then with the Kingsmen), he brought together guitarist Joey Newman and vocalist Jeff Hawks into Don & The Goodtimes. With TV appearances, they had a pop hit « I Could Be So Good To You ». But exposed to more ambitious bands, such as JEFFERSON AIRPLANES and the BEATLES expanding the language of rock, and The GOODTIMES themselves increasing in their music maturity, Gallucci and Newman felt compelled to move away from the limitations of 3 minute pop songs. As a result the innovative, seminal and specifically, archetypal prog song, 75, was written in early 1967. Musically and name-wise Don & The Goodtimes metamorphosed into TOUCH, while their fans thought they looked and had gone weird. John Bordorano and Bruce Hauser were added on drums and bass respectively. By late 1967, (to quote the band) "they had freed themselves of musical suppression and had a release of pent up creativity resulted in a flood of new musical ideas, while hallucinogenic experiences and metaphysical philosophy had given those ideas shape". And also during the end of 1967/early 1968 they had recorded their eponymously titled album.

Praise for TOUCH’s music came from many well known rock artists, e.g. Hendrix (who part bank rolled studio costs of the recording), and Mick Jagger. Glowing endorsements as to the influence of TOUCH have been made subsequently by Jon Anderson and Kerry Livgren – see the liner notes of the Renaissance Records reissue on CD. And the album as an import, was played heavily by the DJs in the London underground clubs – where future British prog stars relaxed in the early hours of the morning, after a hard days night gigging." (Dick Heath progarchives)

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Ultimate Spinach - Behold And See (1968)

Terrific album of late 60's psychedelic rock - weird song structures, off the wall lyrics, use of unusual instruments. Reverb, feedback, drone. Second album by this band from Boston Mass is almost a perfect picture of east coast psychedelia. Very trippy, man!

Bitrate 320 w/ covers Part 1 Part 2

Walrus - Walrus (1970)

Only one album from this British outfit, which made progressive music with touches of jazz and blues. Lots of horns, some flute. Nice version of "Coloured Rain" by Traffic. A real solid effort.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

OK see ya!

2008-02-18T15:36:00.011-07:00

Hey - what did the hat say to the tie? "You hang around, I'll go on a head"!!

Pacific Gas & Electric - Live 'n' Kicking At Lexington (1970)

Unreleased live album from this interracial Southern California band, recorded at a Federal drug rehab center in Lexington Kentucky. These guys were right up there with The Chambers Brothers and Sly and the Family Stone, only a lot bluesier. Over an hour of great bluesy rock - maybe a little sloppy and self-indulgent at times, but hey these guys were good!

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Popol Vuh - Einsjäger & Siebenjäger (1974)

On their fifth album, Popol Vuh is now a trio, and this may be the best release from their "Golden Era". This is mostly Florian Fricke on keyboards, Daniel Fichelscher on percussion and guitar, with some occasional vocals from Djung Yun. Melodic, introspective and atmospheric.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part2

Out Of Focus - Palermo 1972

A fairly recent release, this thing has Out Of Focus performing in May 1972 at the Teatro Biondo in Palermo Italy. About 75 minutes of awesome jazzy, psychedelic, folky, bluesy music.

01. Whispering (10:15)
02. Cafe Stiletto (13:10)
03. I Want To See Your Face No More (12:32)
04. Where Is Your Home Town (8:56)
05. Fly Bird Fly / Television Program (20:35)
06. I'm Kissing Right (10:38)

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Kamæleon - Kamæleon (1978)

I've has this on my hard drive for years and I can't tell you much about it, there is no English info on the net that I can find. This is a very good vinyl rip of some exemplary jazz fusion, from Denmark. Eight tracks of some real tasty contemporary 70's jazz.

Bass - Jens Jefsen
Drums - Poul Poulsen
Engineer [Ass. Engineer] - Thomas Brecklin
Engineer, Mixed By - Flemming Rasmussen
Guitar - Uffe Steen Jensen
Keyboards - Fini Høstrup
Percussion - Steen Råhauge
Producer - Kamæleon
Producer, Mixed By - Freddy Hansson

Bitrate 256 w/smallish covers Download

Sonny Boy Williamson - Don't Send Me No Flowers

The first eight tracks of this were recorded in two and a half hours at a last minute session on the morning of Sonny Boy's departure for the States after his last ever trip to England, in 1965. He died three weeks later and these were his last recordings. Accompanying him on these unrehearsed tracks were Brian Auger and one or two of the Trinity, Jimmy Page, and a couple well-known British sax players, Alan Skidmore and Joe Harriot. Not the best album ever, I don't suppose, nonetheless a very good album of jazzy blues. Or bluesy jazz.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Later!

2008-02-11T15:25:00.004-07:00

Hello guys and gals - it's Monday again!

Chango - Chango (1975)

If you like the oldest Santana albums you should probably check this one out. A six member band, half the guys have percussion duty then there's bass keyboards and guitar. The lyrics seem a little weak but what the heck. This thing is a percussion fest with lots of screaming guitar leads and tons of great keyboards. These guys were an L.A. band I'm pretty sure, the album was recorded in Hollywood anyway.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Frumpy - Live (1972)

Well I'm pretty sure everybody know who Frumpy was, they were probably German's best 'straight' rock band in the early seventies. The original double LP had the first seven tracks and the two bonus tracks are from a 1970 compilation called "Pop and Blues Festival". Great stuff. Kinda proggy maybe just a little, but mostly soulful, R & B based rock.

1. Keep On Going (12:06)
2. Singing Songs (8:54)
3. Backwater Blues (4:56)
4. Duty (17:35)
5. To My Mother (11:34)
6. Release (22:00)
7. Take Care Of Illusion (8:54)
Bonus Tracks
8. Duty (7:33)
9. Floating (12:14)

- Inga Rumpf / vocals, guitar
- Jean-Jacques Kravetz / keyboards
- Rainer Baumann / guitar
- Karl-Heinz Schott / bass
- Carsten Bohn / drums

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Guru Guru - Känguru (1972)

"Guru Guru's third album relied much more on their skills and abilities as musicians and had much more structure to it although the music was still heavily influenced by illicit drug experiences. The tracks remained long and experimental but were more polished and no longer sounded like they were recorded in a public washroom. Produced by top German recording engineer, Conny Plank and signed to the Brain record label,Guru Guru were by this time one of the top live acts on the German rock scene. The listener can expect to encounter many different stylings and textures throughout this unusual work. Diversity abounds with "pop" sounding vocals, jazz phrasings, power chords amid free-form audio experiments relying on a multitude of studio effects from echo boxes to phase shifted drumming. Mani Nuemeir's drum talents are much more in evidence here than on the two previous albums as is his ubiquitous (yet strange) sense of humour. This is the recommended starting point for those not yet familiar with Guru Guru. The Mani Neumeir/Uli Trept/Ax Genrich line-up of the early 70's was considered by many to be the pen-ultimate edition of this classic German group and should be listened to LOUD!" (Ian Gledhill progarchives)

High VBR w/artwork Download

Paul Kantner/Jefferson Starship - Blows Against The Empire (1970)

OK this isn't really a Jefferson Starship album, though the name does appear on the cover - that band didn't form until about four years later. This is a Paul Kantner/Grace Slick project that was recorded right after "Volunteers". They are helped by most of the people who appeared on David Crosby's "If I Could Only Remember My Name", which was being recorded at the same time. Jerry Garcia, Crosby and Nash, and sundry others. The album is a sci-fi concept story about a bunch of hippies who steal a starship and "establish a brave new world in some distant galaxy". The music is the thing this is an awesome album and everyone on it is at the top of their form. Lots of great interplay between Garcia and the piano player, not sure who it is. Four great bonus tracks on this.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Tir Na Nog - Tir Na Nog (1971)

This is the first of three albums from a couple of long-haired Irish folkies (Sonny Condell & Liam O'Kelly) who were steeped in tradition yet very 'hip'. Intelligent, poetic and sometimes funny lyrics, well-crafted songs beautifully performed. Atmospheric and 'sensitive', as folky stuff goes this is incredible.

High VBR w/artwork Download

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Please - Seeing Stars (1969)

Recorded in 1969 and unreleased for over 30 years, this is a real lost gem of British underground rock. The players on this had been in or would be in such bands as T2, Bulldog Breed, The Flies, and Gun. Well-crafted songs, first-rate vocals, big Mellotron, fantastic guitar playing and all around excellent musicianship make this an album that gets better with each listen.

Download

Drum Circus - Magic Theatre (1971)

Only release from an obscure band from Switzerland, they apparently had some dealings with Timothy Leary, who wrote the lyrics for two of the tracks. Joel Vandroogenbroeck of Brainticket can be heard on keyboards, flute, and sitar. Jazzy, groovy, spacy and psychedelic - this is a real nice listen, highly recommended!

Download

Talix - Spuren (1971)

Way back in May, maybe June, I put out a call for this German rarity, and never heard a word until a little over a week ago, when I heard from "Dave K" who said he had a CDR of this and would rip it, scan the covers and upload it!! This has never been officially released on CD and the vinyl goes for big bucks - we all owe "Dave" a big thank you. The music - nothing here is going to shock anybody, but this is great vintage prog, very quirky, mostly based on guitar and saxophone with lashings of keyboard and flute. German vocals sound jarringly poppy at times - this may take a few listens to get into!! This was their only release as Talix - they renamed themselves Pinguin and released a real nice keyboard-based album called "Der Grosse Rote Vogel" (posted 7-5-06).

Download

Family - Anyway (1970)

This is the fourth release from one of Britain's best bands of the 1970's. Roger Chapman's vocals may be an acquired taste, but I think the music they made is nothing less than powerful. Charlie Whitney's guitar playing is remarkable - his solo on "Lives and Ladies" is so damn good right on the mark. The original LP release had eight tracks, four live and four studio. This reissue has three live bonus cuts, including a version of "Part of the Load" that is twice as long as the original.

Part 1 Part 2

Can - Paris 12 May 1973

Disc One: 01 - Whole People Queueing (36:38) 02 - One More Night (9:08)
Disc Two: 01 - Spoon / Stars & Lines (32:09) 02 - Vitamin C (13:44)

Holger Czukay - Bass
Michael Karoli - Guitar
Jaki Liebezeit - Drums
Irmin Schmidt - Keyboards
Damo Suzuki - Vocals

Part 1 Part 2

OK later.

2008-02-04T17:23:00.003-07:00

Here you go - hope everyone finds something to download this week!

McOil - All Our Hopes (1979)

OK let's try this one again - I posted this a couple weeks ago then found out there were some synch errors, so I deleted the post - this one is OK, and at a higher bitrate even! Anyway, this is some nice psych/prog/hard rock from southern Germany with lots of keyboards and great guitar riffs and a gruff-voiced singer. Very solid.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

Missus Beastly - Missus Beastly (1974)

The second self-titled album from Missus Beastly, though drummer Lutz Oldemeier is the only remaining member from their eponymous 1970 release. The keyboardist, Dieter Miekautsch, was in Missing Link, and I don't know who the other guys are. Anyway this is some solid jazzy rock, cool and funky. GoD release, with four bonus tracks.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

My Solid Ground - SWF Session (1971) + New Album (2001)

Four tracks broadcast on SWF radio in 1971, a couple months after their album was finished. Same line-up as on the album, led by 17 year old guitarist Bernhard Rendel. The music is very similar to what's on the album. The "New Album" was recorded by Bernhard Rendel in his home studio in 2001, and the music is very good, but different from the old material. I guess it would have to be, he's not a kid anymore! Great spacy/psychedelic stuff with Rendel taking all the parts - he did an awesome job.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Popol Vuh - Seligpreisung (1973)

The fourth album from Popol Vuh begins the era that most people consider their best. This is due in no small part to the addition of ex Amon Düüll II member Daniel Fichelscher who does most of the percussion and plays guitar too. This is some very atmospheric stuff, mellow and beautiful.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Shawn Phillips - Contribution + Second Contribution (1970 - 1971)

"Shawn Phillips' first major album, recorded in 1968 with help from the members of Traffic, among others, is a condensation of a far more ambitious studio original that was intended to fill three LPs. The range of sounds on this record is shockingly diverse, from breezy folk-rock ("Man Hole Covered Wagon") to pieces incorporating classical guitar and phantasmagoric lyrics ("L Ballade" finds Phillips' at his most Donovan-like, but with a better voice), and, in between, bouncy throwaways ("Not Quite Nonsense"), bejeweled sitar-ornamented pieces ("Withered Roses"), and topical songs ("For RFK, JFK and MLK"). If Contribution had come out in 1968 when it was recorded, it probably would have been lost in the shuffle of ambient psychedelia; as it was, it was so quiet and different from the noise of most of what was released in 1970 that critics took notice. Not all of it works, though, and Phillips' later music had a weightier sound, but Contribution is a superb debut, mixing progressive rock and folk sounds in a manner unique to its time. This LP is finally available on CD as part of the two-fer Contribution/Second Contribution, released in 2005." ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Still Life - Still Life (1970)

Still Life were an obscure English foursome who toured a lot with the Edgar Broughton Band, and were kinda their protégés. The music is early 70's proto-prog, completely organ-drenched with great bass lines and weird lyrics. A very enjoyable album.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

OK see ya!

2008-01-28T15:35:00.004-07:00

Wow I'm sick of winter already!

Popol Vuh - Affenstunde (1970)

OK first off I admit I haven't been able to listen to this all the way through - life is too short! The first album from one of the stalwarts of krautrock hasn't aged well, in my humble opinion. What may have seemed experimental and groundbreaking at one time now sounds like some guy (Florian Fricke of course) fiddling around with an old Moog synth. Even the bits that have percussion aren't helped by it. The story goes that Mr. Fricke sold the Moog to Klaus Schultze, who made better use of it. This is just my opinion of course and I offer it because some of you will probably enjoy this. Go for it.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Sharks - First Water (1973)

First album from this early 70's minor supergroup featured Chris Spedding on guitar, ex-Free bassist Andy Fraser, "Snips" on vocals, and an American, Marty Simon, on drums. Good early 70's blues-based rock, with a Bad Company/Free/Mott The Hoople vibe. Unfortunately there was no hit on this, and the cover art was pretty lame, so it probably didn't sell too well - Fraser left the band shortly after it was released. Spedding's guitar parts are brilliant, what a great player.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Salem Mass - Witch Burning (1971)

In 1971 four guys from southwest Idaho (!) made an album that will appeal to almost any fan of early 70's hard rock. These guys were terrific musicians and the keyboard player really knew what to do with that Moog! The guitar bits are great. Not as 'dark' as the title might suggest though the material is fairly dark and brooding. Great vocals, except maybe on the title track, but they seem to fit the music. Even the slower more melodic material is very appealing. Great garagey 70's hard rock.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Ten Wheel Drive - Construction No. 1 (1969)

Ten Wheel Drive were a great jazzy rock band fronted by a female singer, Genya Ravan, who sounded something like Janis Joplin. The band was tight, the arrangements were great, and they made some real gutsy rock and roll. They rocked way harder that better known similar groups like Chicago or Blood Sweat and Tears, it's a shame their music seems to have been forgotten.

Vinyl Rip @320 w/covers Download

Tyburn Tall - Tyburn Tall (1972)

Tyburn Tall was a fieve piece band from Speyer, Germany, who played varied styles of progressive rock - sometimes jazzy/bluesy, classical-sounding, sometimes heavy and complex, sometimes atmospheric. Keyboard based material with a guitarist who is no slouch. Mostly long tracks over ten minutes, with some interplay between the keyboards and the guitar that is very cool. Two bonus tracks are Colosseum covers.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

See ya!

2008-01-21T13:54:00.004-07:00

HI!

Popol Vuh- Hosianna Mantra (1972)

Hosianna Mantra was Popol Vuh's third album and marked a change in musical direction - the synthesizers are gone. Mostly piano-based, the tracks on this album are spiritual and meditative, with shimmering guitars, angelic female vocals and complex arrangements creating dream-like soundscapes. Not really New Age, but may be too New Age-y for some. Very beautiful.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Spooky Tooth - It's All About (1968)

Spooky Tooth's first album is a satisfying combination of cover tunes, R & B, and late-sixties British psychedelia. You can get a sense of the greatness that is to come on their next album, Spooky Two. Sorry no bonus tracks.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

The Move - Message From The Country (1971)

This was The Move's swansong album, the first ELO release came just a couple months after this came out. The whole thing has a very relaxed kind of feel to it, and the tunes run a gamut including crunchy hard rock, Beatle-ish pop, a country western parody, elegant harmonies, whatever. Their best album in my humble opinion. This is the remastered version with some great bonus tracks.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Samuel Prody - Samuel Prody (1971)

Samuel Prody was a band, not a guy, and they left behind only one album. This is one sweet album of bluesy British psychedelia. The first track is a tune (Who Will Buy) from the 1968 musical Oliver! that in their hands is definitely not corny. Well maybe a little. Very enjoyable listen with some heavy duty riffing, nice harmonies and good songs. Even drum solos!

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

Murphy Blend - First Loss (1970)

Hailing from Berlin, Murphy Blend was a heavy duty jazzy prog band led by a classically trained keyboard player. Lots of chunky organ riffs and some fine guitar playing. Vocals in English. After this album, some members showed up in Hanuman and Blackwater Park. Very nice.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

Bye!

2008-01-14T16:03:00.005-07:00

Howdy!

Can - Box Music (Live 1971-1977)

This awesome 2 Cd set has 9 tracks culled from archival material by Michael Karoli. I think some of these might be audience tapes, but the sound quality is excellent. Includes some familiar material, and a few tracks (Jynx, Fizz, Colchester Finale & Kata Kong) that were played spontaneously on stage with no rehearsal!

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Assagai - Assagai (1971)

Assagai was a group of South African and Nigerian exiles living in Britain, the only black group ever signed to the Vertigo label - possibly in an attempt to capitalize on the success of Osibisa. Very good "Afro-Rock" that needs to be played loud! Maybe you'll start dancing around the house. Interesting cover of "Hey Jude" which is sung in some African language. Upbeat, ethnic, jazzy rock.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Download

Nosferatu - Nosferatu (1970)

Nosferatu had a short career, only this one album. Afterwards a couple members went on to Epsilon. This is raw, heavy, dark, jazzy progressive rock with maybe some psychedelic touches. The singer is brilliant, and there are great lashings of guitar, keyboards, sax and flute.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

See ya!

2008-01-07T17:54:00.005-07:00

As leno says, ain't it fun!! Hoo boy what a pain in the ass. Well I'm right in the middle of reinstalling all my programs and setting windows up just the way I like it, so I don't have all that much time this week. I'll just post the albums and you can get the info on them from the net. Not that my little blurbs are very helpful anyway hehe.

Camel - Under Age (1969)

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Embryo - Rocksession (1973)

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Locomotive - We Are Everything You See (1970)

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Jerry Berkers - Unterwegs (1972)

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

OK see ya!

2007-12-24T13:31:00.006-07:00

Whatever Holiday you celebrate, or don't celebrate, at this time of year, I wish you and yours the very best!

Paris - Paris (1975)

After making 5 albums with Fleetwood Mac, where he was known for writing such schmaltzy songs as "Sentimental Lady", Bob Welch hooked up with bassist/keyboardist Glenn Cornick (ex Jethro Tull, Wild Turkey) and drummer Thom Mooney (ex The Nazz) to make an album that showed that Welch knew how to rock also. This is very much in the vein of Led Zeppelin, there were even rumors at the time that the album had been produced by Jimmy Page. The second and last Paris album, Big Towne, 2061, was made with different sidemen and lost the Led Zeppelin worship angle. Anyway this is some great 70's sleaze-rock, play loud!

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Ax Genrich - The Best Of Ax Genrich 1971-1996

As I'm sure everybody knows, Ax Genrich was the ex-Agitation Free guitarist who was a founding member of Guru Guru, and played on that group's first four albums. This really isn't a "Best Of" album - it has all eight tracks from Genrich's hard-to-find 1971 solo album "Highdelberg". The remaining four tracks consist of two unreleased Guru Guru recordings and two Ax Genrich recordings from the 90's. Great stuff.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Spooky Tooth - Spooky Two (1969)

Spooky Two is far and away the best album Spooky Tooth ever made, a masterpiece of late 60's early 70's rock. This is the reissue with four bonus tracks, taken from singles. Awesome.

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Join In - Kentalope Island (1974)

Join In was a German band that enjoyed a long career, but left behind only this album, the CD has a bunch of bonus tracks from the mid 70's. During this phase (they started out as a hard rock outfit) they are playing primarily instrumental jazz-rock. The album was produced by EROC of Grobschnitt. Very nice.

Bitrate 256 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Stoneground - The Last Dance (1973)

Stoneground's last show ever, recorded at Sacramento's Memorial Auditorium in January 1973. Awesome sounding mono soundboard recording, what a party that must have been!

1. Alligator Man
2. Love's Made A Fool Of You
3. You Better Come Through
4. Ajax
5. Passion Flower
6. Medley: Black Sheep Boy/Highway 61 Revisited/Don't Make Promises
7. Bad News
8. Super Clown
9. Dancin'
10. Feel So Bad
11. Butterfly
12. Total Destruction To Your Mind
13. Queen Sweet Dreams

Bitrate 256 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

The Monks - Black Monk Time (1966)

This may be the greatest rock album ever made! Or maybe the best punk album ever, 10 years before punk. The Monks weren't so much "ahead of their time" as they were "outside time" like they were from another universe or something. Recorded in the waning months of 1965, while the rest of the world was singing about love, the Monks were singing about how much they hated their girlfriends! Instead of growing their hair long and wearing beads and colorful clothes, they shaved tonsures on the tops of their heads and dressed all in dark colors, like medieval monks. This music was created in a vacuum - when this album was made there was absolutely nothing to compare it to. I mean you really have to hear it to get an understanding of how insane these guys were. What is it? Punk? Noise Rock? I remember reading somewhere that the Monks possibly influenced the pioneers of Krautrock (the Monks were American ex-G.I.'s in Germany)! This is the version with 19 tracks. It's Black Monk Time!

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Ram - Where? (In Conclusion) (1972)

"Ram is yet another band in those long line of nameless bands that made one awesome album and then vanished into smoke. Almost nothing is known about these guys. Presumably (from their name and album design) there is some preoccupation with the zodiac and astrology. The songs themselves are a blend of spacey psychedelia and hard-rock: with these guys it is not uncommon to blend saxophone or flute solos with power chords. The opening track, "The Want In You" is an excellent rock song moved along by a catchy sax riff. "Stoned Silence" has an almost siren-like vocal moved along by some funk riffs and a pretty decent guitar solo. "Odyssey" is a softer, more esoteric instrumental that features a nice flute workout. "The Mother's Day Song" is my favorite track. It's a wicked, down and dirty rock song: hard rock, blues and Hendrix (!) are all influences on this track. The last song, "Aza" is what pushes these guys over into progressive rock territory. It is a side-long suite about a spiritual journey for enlightenment. It begins with `Spiral Paths', very seductively with soft sax and flute solos intertwined around an almost whispery vocal beckoning the listener to venture out into the stars; then with `Bound' it practically leaps into a loud crashing bass and guitar duet; "Peril and Fearer" is the hard-rock section of the suite that features chaotic, almost Robert Fripp-like soloing while the same vocal-sax motif is repeated in the background; the final part, `Where? (In Conclusion)'-the title track-tries to evoke an out there feeling with some phased vocals, a disjointed sax solo, and another loud bass workout, and builds to a conclusion that wouldn't have sounded out of place had there been a Funkadelic/Sun-Ra collaboration album. In all, Where? is an album that is worth every bit the while to listen to. They just don't make good rock like this anymore." (devil doll, Amazon.com review)

Download

Second Coming - The Second Coming (1970)

Doinada from Norway sent this to me a while back, and he did a nice job of ripping the LP and photographing the cover. I never heard of this band, and the guy from "Fuzz, Acid & Flowers" really slagged it, calling it "below-par horn-rock". Whatever. It sounds pretty good to me, though there's not anything psych/prog about it. Horn rock in the vein of "The Ides of March" - both bands share Chicago as a home town. The Second Coming apparently migrated to San Francisco, where they were active in the 'Second Generation' scene. All in all, not the greatest album ever, but worth a download if you like horn rock. As far as I can tell this has never made it to CD, so thanks again to Doinada for this rarity.

Download

Country Lane - Substratum (1973)

Country Lane's only album was initially released in 1973. This Swiss band led by the keyboardist/guitarist/singer Raymond Amey, helped by keyboardist O.Maire, guitarist F.Von Kaenel, bass player G.Duella and drummer J.F. Donze, created an original rock music, mixing heavy influences like Deep Purple and progressive ones (like Nice and the others english progressive bands). Straight rock moments, dreamy atmospheres, nice vocals (in English) are the base of an excellent seventies album, full of freshness and sincerity. (Martin Pruckner)

Download

Mythos - Mythos (1971)

The debut album by Germany’s Mythos is a pure unadulterated classic space-prog album draped over 5 lush tracks. There are truly many cosmic charms to this space bracelet with some wild nubulas, space vibes and jams. Vocals are slightly distorted when used and somewhat modulated giving the listen a real outer worldly space feel. Mythos are clearly lost somewhere in the Cosmic Jokers / Ash Ra Temple camp with dreamy psych/folk/prog landscapes. Mythos manages to create some pretty heavenly space atmospheres with some fantastic synthesizer, flute, spacey guitar and mellotron work throughout. For me this album ranks as a complete album and one of my personal faves from the space-prog category. (Wonderful World Of Progressive Rock)

Download

OK then - Happy Holidays!!

2007-12-17T14:47:00.004-07:00

Lots of downloads for last weeks folkie extravaganza, maybe I'll see if I have enough albums for another one sometime! Thanks to all who left a comment!

Amon Düül II - Vive La Trance (1974)

Amon Düül II's sixth album features songs that are much shorter in general than on previous albums, and more conventional in structure. This is a great album and I'm sure you all know all about the band so I won't go on about them. This is the remaster with bonus tracks.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Atlantis - Live (1975)Atlantis was the band that rose from the ashes of Frumpy, and of course featured the distinct vocals of Inga Rumpf. Besides Jean-Jacques Kravetz and Karl-Heinz Schott from Frumpy, other members came from Emergency and Curly Curve. More mainstream than krautrock, more soulful and funky than edgy, they were nonetheless a terrific outfit. This was released as a double LP and features tracks recorded live at Hamburg's Fabrik from 1973 to 1975.

High VBR w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Peter Bursch Und Die Bröselmaschine - Bröselmaschine 2 (1975)

This release features a completely different band than the one that made the first Bröselmaschine album, though obviously acoustic guitar master Peter Bursch is still on board! The album is still in a folky style, despite the band containing members of Guru Guru and Kraan. This is very nice stuff.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Efendi's Garden - Efendi's Garden (1979)

I got this from one of the other blogs a long time ago, I think it was krautrockteam. It is a vinyl rip that I spent some time cleaning up, and it is a lot more listenable than it was, though not perfect. Anyway, this short-lived group featured singer Curtis Efendi, a couple members of Jane (Klaus Hess on guitar and Wolfgang Krantz on guitar and keyboards) and a bassist, drummer and saxophonist. One reviewer slags this as "musically bland" but I beg to differ. Not a great album to be sure this is still a very fun album, with clever songs and lyrics that are sometimes poignant and sometimes funny. Favorites are "Oh Boy" and "The King". Efendi has an odd voice but if you pay attention you see that he is a terrific singer.

VBR w/small covers Download

V.A. - Fast 'n' Bulbous - A Tribute To Captain Beefheart (1988)

This is one of those tribute albums where you only have heard a couple of the bands, half-remember a couple more and never even heard of the others. Nevertheless, every single track on this tribute smokes. Another vinyl rip, there's not a crackle or pop to be heard. Whether the band is trying to emulate the Captain, or trying to make the tune their own, all do a fantastic job. Seriously - every single track is great!! This is the best tribute album I have ever heard I think. Well one of the best anyway! Thanks to original uploader, 'tubert'.

01 The Dog Faced Hermans - Zig Zag Wanderer
02 XTC - Ella Guru
03 The Scientists - Clear Spot
04 The Membranes - Ice Cream For Crow
05 The King Of Luxembourg - Long Necked Bottles
06 The Beat Poets - Sun Zoom Spark
07 That Petrol Emotion - Hot Head
08 The Primevals - China Pig
09 Sonic Youth - Electricity
10 Good And Gone - Harry Irene
11 The Screaming Dizbusters - Frying Pan
12 The Mock Turtles - Big Eyed Beans From Venus
13 The Beat Poets - Gimme Dat Harp Boy
14 The Primevals - Crazy Little Thing

High VBR w/small covers Download

OK that's the new stuff for this week - link for comments is at the bottom of the post.

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Embryo - Steig Aus (1972)

In 1972, before there were terms like 'fusion', 'world music' or 'krautrock', Embryo were blending these new sounds in extended free-form improvisations and inventing new types of music. Closer to 'Bitches Brew' than to the mind melting being done by fellow countrymen Amon Düül II or Guru Guru, Embryo brought together many different cultural influences in titles like 'Radio Marrakesh/Orient Express', 'Dreaming Girls' and the stunning 17 minute 'Call'. This is a great example of the jazzier side of krautrock, three long tracks with plenty of room for experimentation and improvisation. An essential album for krautrock fans.

Download

Love Sculpture - BBC 1968 - 1969

Supposedly these thirteen performances from the BBC Top Gear program are the only known live tracks that exist by Dave Edmonds' Love Sculpture. The material is some electric blues, and some pop flower-child stuff, with versions of Bizet's "Farandole" and a six minute long "Sabre Dance" from Khatchaturian. The hippy stuff doesn't hold up too well, IMHO, but it was the late 60's, after all. The versions of "Sweet Little Rock and Roller" and "Great Balls of Fire" seem like throwaway tunes, but the handful of blues pieces, like "Wang Dang Doodle", "Don't Answer the Door" and a few others definetely make this a worthwhile download.

Download

Emtidi - Saat (1972)

One of the great records from the Pilz catalogue, 'Saat' is a refreshing blend of cosmic acid-folk. Featuring the orgasmic English vocals of Canadian Dolly Holmes, the album contains six tracks which are destined to be a treat for sore ears. The album begins with 'Walking In The Park' which starts softly with angelic vocals and cosmicly-treated acoustic guitar, the song ends with a cosmic acid-laden guitar solo. Dierks' expertise for sound engineering shines through on this track as well as the entire album. 'Traume' is a celestial instrumental which utilizes Holmes voice as an instrument to create a serene feeling as her voice floats above the music, a technique similar to 'Great Gig In The Sky' from Dark Side. 'Touch The Sun', a cosmic favorite for many I'm sure, begins with five-minutes of cosmic flanger heavy synthesizer similar to that of vintage Klaus Schulze before maturing into an incredible folk ballad dominated by Holmes voice. The short tracks 'Love Time Rain' and 'Saat' owe more to the guitar based British folk sound; they are good songs but they lack the cosmic nature which makes the rest of the album so appealing. Finally, the energetic closing track 'Die Reise' introduces German vocals sung by Maik Hirschfeldt and a freeform rock sound which appears out of place on this album. However, the song does include a brilliant multi-layered synth section followed by a cosmic freak out containing organ, flute and electric piano. (krautrockgroup.com)

Download

Bakerloo - Bakerloo (1969)

I've seen reviews of this that slag it off as 'average' and 'typical', but I don't get that at all. They played a brand of power blues with a jazzy touch that is very appealing, and comparisons with Cream wouldn't be out of line, definitely the skills of the individual players were comparable. They were probably a 'musician's band' in that while they didn't light fires with the general public, they were well regarded by other musicians. They were, in fact, the band that opened for Led Zeppelin when Zep made their debut at the Marquee club in October of 1968. When guitarist Dave Clemson accepted an offer to replace James Litherland in Colosseum, they carried on with guitarist Adrian Ingram for a while, becoming even more jazzy, then morphed into a fine proto-prog band called Hannibal (see next post)

Part 1 Part 2

Hannibal - Hannibal (1970)

Rising from the ashes of Bakerloo, this band was formed to fulfill a tour obligation, touring as Bakerloo Blues Line. After the tour was finished, it was decided to continue on, and the band's name was changed to Hannibal, after which they toured the UK with Black Sabbath and Free. They put out only this one album, which is an unheralded near-masterpiece of jazzy progressive rock, chock full of amazing guitar playing, and great lashes of saxophone and flute. A real tasty album not to be missed by fans of progressive rock from this era.

Download

Allright see you later.

2007-12-10T15:41:00.003-07:00

OK like I threatened last week, er, I mean promised, this weeks new posts are on the folky side. Some are difficult if not impossible to find, so let's get going! Great stuff again resurrected from the depths of the archives.

David Lewis - Songs Of David Lewis (1970)

If the name doesn't ring a bell, David Lewis was the frontman for Andwella's Dream and Andwella. This album is some great mellow, subdued, early 70's singer-songwriter stuff. On about half the tracks Mr. Lewis accompanies himself with piano and/or guitar, on the rest he has a drummer and a bass player. This is really outstanding, and as one of the other bloggers would say, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Fairport Convention - House Full Live At The L.A. Troubador (1970)

This is a fine performance by what some would say was Fairport's best non-Sandy line-up, touring to support, you guessed it, Full House. The band is enthusiastic and energetic, and the sound quality is very good. Awesome version of Sloth. This is a remaster of the 1986 Hannibal release and includes two bonus tracks.

1. Sir Patrick Spens
2. Banks Of The Sweet Primroses
3. Lark In The Morning Medley
4. Sloth
5. Staines Morris
6. Matty Groves
7. Medley: Jenny's Chickens/Mason's Apron
8. Battle Of The Somme
9. Medley: Bonnie Kate/Sir B. Mckenzies
10. Yellow Bird

Richard Thompson - Lead Guitar, Dulcimer, Vocals
Simon Nicol - Rhythm Guitar, Mandolin
Dave Swarbrick - Violin, Vocals
Dave Pegg - Bass, Mandolin
Dave Mattacks - Drums

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Flute & Voice - Flute & Voice

Many thanks to the original uploader, Barmaleyy! Flute & Voice were two Germans, Hans Brandeis and Hans Reffert, who besides singing and playing the flute also played electric and acoustic guitar and sitar. This CD has the material from both their 70's albums; Imaginations of Light (1970) and Hallo Rabbit (1973). Very 'stoned' sounding, the music is a progressive mixture of jazz, folk, and Indian music. These guys were very good, this is real tasty.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Shelagh McDonald - Stargazer (1971)

Shelagh McDonald was a Scottish singer/songwriter whose story is kinda interesting. After making two albums in the early 70's she supposedly had a bad acid trip, and went into 'hiding', only being found just a couple years ago. Anyway, this is her second album with bonus tracks and it's very sweet. All original material, and she had a great voice, something like Sandy Denny meets Judy Collins. Guest players on her albums included many of the greats from the English Folk scene, Richard Thompson and other members of Fairport, members of Fotheringay, and others.

Bitrate 320w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Steeleye Span - Peel's Sunday Concert 9-15-71

Good sounding FM broadcast featuring the best Steeleye Span lineup. If you're a Steeleye Span fan you need this, it's great!

1. False Knight On The Road
2. The Lark In The Morning
3. Reels:Dowd's Favourite/10 Pound Float/Musical Priest
4. Captain Coulston
5. Handsome Polly-O
6. Bring 'em Down
7. Four Nights Drunk
8. When I Was On Horseback
9. I Live Not Where I Love
10. The Wind That Shakes The Barley/Pigeon On The Gate/Jenny's chickens
11. Female Drummer
12. General Taylor
13. Reels: College Grove/Silver Spear/Bally Murphy's Raike/Maid Behind The Bar
14. The Blacksmith (from US TV)

Steeleye Span Mk 2 (April 1970 - November 1971)
Tim Hart, Peter Knight, Maddy Prior, Martin Carthy, Ashley Hutchings

Bitrate 320 w/homemade covers Part 1 Part 2

OK that's the new stuff for this week - comments can be left at the end of the post, under the archival material. "Archival material" hehe.

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Various Artists - Heavy Christmas (1971)

A Krautrock Christmas album! Some of the bands we've met before, "Virus" and "Dies Irae", we just met Flute and Voice, we've met "Ardo Dombec" too, and Joy Unlimited. My favorites are Virus's "X-Mas Submarine" and Dies Irae's "Silent Night".

1. Libido - Evolution
2. Marcel - God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman
3. Joy Unlimited - All Heaven And All Earth Are Silent
4. Virus - Mary Meets Tarzan
5. Dies Irae - Silent Night
6. Libido - Come On Everybody
7. Ardo Dombec - Heavenly Rose
8. Dies Irae - Shepard's Song
9. Ardo Dombec - Open The Door, Open Your Mind
10. Virus - X-Mas Submarine
11. Flute & Voice - Ecce Navicule
12. Libido - Come On Everybody - Special Radio Version

Download

Ibliss - Supernova (1972)

The German band Ibliss released only one album, which is probably more fusion/jazzrock than it is progressive rock. There are four long tracks, the last one, "Athir", being the best in my opinion. This thing is a percussion extravaganza, with most of the first track sounding like a hippie drum circle, only with really good drummers. Lotta flute, sax, and early 70's cosmic-ness.

Download

Sameti - Sameti (1972)

Sameti had some members who were late of Amon Düül II and the German band Embryo, and the highlight on this is a 22 minute long improvisation, "anotherwaytosee", which definitely sounds very Amon Düül II-ish, and wouldn't sound out of place on one of the classic Düül albums like "Tanz Der Lemminge". Another semi-structured song is called "Big Fat Brother Joint", and likely provides a glimpse into these guys' personal habits!

Download

Mogul Thrash - Mogul Thrash (1971)

Formed by ex-Colosseum guitarist James Litherland in 1971, Mogul Thrash's only album was produced by Brian Auger, who also played on one track. Also included was John Wetton, who provides some meaty bass, and Roger Ball and Malcolm Duncan, who went on to form Average White Band. This is a brass-driven, jazzy slice of progressive rock with some strong guitar and saxophone jamming. If you like Colosseum, you'll like this.

Download

Klaus Schulze - Black Dance (1974)

Blackdance is one of Klaus Schulze's early albums. The tempo changes are smooth and sure and the sequences are varied — some are deep and strong, others are long on atmosphere. Schulze mixes these elements seamlessly with experimental timbres and spatial textures. He adds an organ drone to give the disc a Baroque attitude and sinister overtones. This is more atmospheric than most of his albums. (Unknown reviewer)

Download

2007-12-03T16:46:00.003-07:00

OK here we go! Got some cool stuff this week. Next week how about some acousticy folky stuff. We haven't had a folk music week in a long time!

Can - Cannibalism No. 3

Ok I know it says "Can" on the cover, but this isn't a Can CD. It's a compilation of tracks from solo albums released by Can members Holger Czukay, Michael Karoli, Jaki Liebezeit, and Irmin Schmidt. Nothing here sounds particularly Can-like, but every track is strong, eccentric maybe, but not a weak track on this.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Deep Purple - The Early Years

Fourteen tracks from Deep Purple Mk I, that is the first three albums, either remastered or previously unreleased versions. Not just another compilation, this thing is actually awesome, especially for a Deep Purple fan!

1. And The Address (2003 Remix)
2. Hush (1968 Monitor Mix)
3. Mandrake Root
4. I'm So Glad (2003 Remix)
5. Hey Joe (2003 Remix)
6. Kentucky Woman (Alternate Take)
7. Listen Learn Read On
8. Shield
9. Wring That Neck (BBC)
10. Anthem
11. Bird Has Flown
12. Blind (2003 Remix)
13. Why Didn't Rosemary
14. Lalena (Instrumental)

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Hampton Grease Band - Music To Eat (1971)

Hampton Grease Band was a group from Atlanta Georgia USA that somehow got signed to Columbia Records and made one of the worst-selling records in the label's history. This will appeal to lovers of weird rock, with it's strange songs, bizarre lyrics that are screamed, whispered and spoken - and outstanding musicianship. These guys were probably way ahead of their time, but had little commercial potential. Will be too strange for most listeners I think, but worth checking out, as this is a seldom seen album.

Bitrate 256 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Mott The Hoople - Live Fillmore West, San Francisco (1970)

Sounding like a bootleg, this is a legitimate release using mono soundboard tapes provided by Overend Watts. Mostly from their first US tour, with four tracks from their second US tour, and an unreleased studio track recorded during the sessions for "Mad Shadows". The sound quality of these live tracks may be a little lacking but every Mott The Hoople fan will appreciate the performances, including some on-stage patter. What it must have been like to hear these guys then - they were an awesome live act. The booklet has got some great stories in it.

1. Angel Of Eighth Avenue
2. It'll Be Me
3. Walkin' With A Mountain
4. Whiskey Women
5. Darkness Darkness
6. No Wheels To Ride
7. Rock 'n' Roll Queen
8. At The Crossroads
9. Keep-A-Knockin
10. Thunderbuck Ram
11. Laugh At Me
12. You Really Got Me
13. The Wreck Of The Liberty Belle

VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Release Music Orchestra - Bremen 1978

Great jazz/rock fusion from this German band, who had a couple tracks on the "Brain Festival Essen" albums that I posted a few months back. The music is very sophisticated, similar maybe to Passport or contemporary Weather Report.

Bitrate 192 w/covers Download

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Peter Frohmader - Musik Aus Dem Schattenreich (1981)

Michael from France sent this to me, and it is just as the title says "Music From Shadow Realm". A couple of the early tracks feature crashing guitar chords, pounding drums, and weird, pulsing, cyclic electronic sounds. The last track features some tasty bass. The balance of the material is strictly electronic, evoking the coldness of deep space, or the moon rising over the pyramids. Or just a bad, bad feeling, a feeling of ominous dread. Hard to describe, I don't think anything I've heard is comparable to this. I have a feeling that if classic Amon Düül II and Magma got together and they all had the same bad trip, this music sounds like something they might come up with. Dark and eerie, I think this probably needs more than one listen to really get it.

Download

Stoneground - Stoneground (1971)

How about something a little more upbeat? My god that last one was spooky! This great hippie band featured the voice, guitar, and songwriting skills of former Beau Brummel Sal Valentino. But he was only one voice. This band of Bay Area hipsters had four female singers, and no less that six different lead vocalists on the ten tracks on this album. The photo on the back cover shows about a dozen people on stage! Every song is great, whether it is gospel rock, funk, R & B, power ballad, whatever. My favorite track is a Sal Valentino tune, "Colonel Chicken Fry". No wait, it's the cover of Rev. Gary Davis' "Great Change Since I've been Born". Maybe "Looking For You"! Well like I said they're all great. If you like 70's West Coast hippie music, this is a forgotten gem.

Download

Anyone's Daughter - Adonis (1979)

"I have been a big fan of this act for some time now and still rank them as one of my all time favorite prog acts. Anyone's Daughter mix gentle vocal harmonies with some superb progressive rock elements. Uwe Karpa adds some beautiful and tasty guitar leads which seem to blend to perfection with Harald Bareth's bass and lead vocal. Anyone's Daughter offer both English and German lp's and Adonis happens to be one they elected to sing in English . Although Adonis does certainly contain a rather awesome amount of great progressive moments, the major highlight still remains the title epic track "ADONIS" (27 mins). Musicianship is very high here and Anyone's Daughter are very easy to listen to and get into....the music is sophisticated but remains very much in control and many different moods swings. At times I get a very strong underground German feel to the music which I love. To this day Harald's voice still remains one of my all time favorites and the music of Anyone's Daughter is essential in your collection....Highly required and is very intelligent music..." (Wonderful World Of Progressive Rock)

Part 1 Part 2

Spektakel - Spektakel (1974)

Precursor band to the German group "Schicke, Fuhrs, Frohling", this awesome symphonic rock was recorded in 1974 and wasn't released until just a few years ago. The music is similar to that done by SFF, if you haven't heard them, think maybe a combination of King Crimson/Van Der Graaf Generator. Four l-o-n-g tracks coming in at just over an hour, loads of Mellotron, Hammond organ & Moog, and brilliant guitar solos from Heinz Fröhling. No overly long solos, all the instruments combine to give great jam-oriented, atmospheric soundscapes.

Part 1 Part 2

OK see you later!

2007-11-26T15:34:00.003-07:00

OK I'm back, I know you were all worried about me (hehe). Since my brush with death (not really) I have decided to reform and be a better person. I hereby apologize to everyone who has e-mailed me in the last month or two and gotten no answer. In the next week or two I will definitely clean up my inbox.

Popol Vuh - In den Gärten Pharaos (1971)

In den Gärten Pharaos was the second release from Popol Vuh, and the last of their electronic albums, being a sterling example of German underground spacey electronica. Atmospheric, sometimes ethnic, experimental, minimalist, trance-y and ambient. Julian Cope calls this "One of thee great Meditational Holy works".

High VBR w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Indian Summer - Indian Summer (1971)

Indian Summer's self-titled album was the only release by this progressive rock band from Coventry England. Mainly keyboard driven but with lots of great guitar and vocals which suit the music perfectly. Good songs, with a darkly atmospheric bent. Lots to listen to here, these guys were great!

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Eiliff - Bremen 1972

Eiliff released only two albums in their lifetime, this is a previously unreleased excellent quality radio broadcast. Brilliant instrumental jazzy rock, krautrock in it's way with maybe a nod to the Mothers Of Invention. All the musicians (Rainer Bruninghaus on keyboards!) are terrific, and guitarist Houschng Nejadpour stands out - he later played briefly with Guru Guru then sunk from sight. Great stuff!

High VBR w/artwork Download

Jefferson Airplane - Sweeping Up The Spotlight (1969)

Recorded at the Fillmore East on November 28 & 29, 1969, this is an awesome sounding recording of Jefferson Airplane blowing the roof off the joint. They were really on top of it for these shows, this is some smokin' stuff. All Jefferson Airplane fans need this. Great liner notes by Jorma.

1. Volunteers
2. Good Shepherd
3. Plastic Fantastic Lover
4. Uncle Sam Blues
5. 3/5 Of a Mile In 10 Seconds
6. You Wear Your Dresses Too Short
7. Come Back Baby
8. Medley: Won't You Try/Saturday Afternoon
9. The Ballad Of You & Me & Pooneil
10. White Rabbit
11. Crown Of Creation
12. The Other Side Of This Life

VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Island - Pictures (1977)

As you might surmise from the H.R. Geiger artwork, Island was a Swiss band, led by Benjamin Jäger formerly of TOAD. The music is very un TOAD-like however, there aren't even any guitars, not even a bass player. The sounds on this disc are over-the-top complex progressive rock with great keyboards and sax/flute. Darkly sinister sounding, matching the cover artwork exactly, you might get scared if you listen to this alone late at night.

Bitrate 320 w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Irish Coffee - Irish Coffee (1971)

Irish Coffee was a terrific 'underground' group from Belgium that left behind only this one album of hard progressive rock. The music brings to mind at various time the stalwarts of early 70's hard rock, like Deep Purple, Uriah Heep etc. Powerful vocals, great keyboards and an obviously Hendrix-inspired guitarist make this something that will appeal to fans of vintage 'hard' progressive rock.

Download

Gila - Free Electric Sound (1971)

The first album by Gila is top of the line Krautrock, an absolute progressive rock masterpiece. The "Freak Emporium" catalog says "Regarded by many as one of the finest Krautrock albums of all time"! The "Ultima Thule" catalog calls it "The best LP Pink Floyd never made"! This album will appeal to every Krautrock fan . Long, spacey jams, exotic rhythms, electronic effects, some mixing-board hoodoo from Dieter Dierks all anchored by a crisp rhythm section.

Download

Werwolf - Creation (1982)

Outside of the fact that the lyrics today sound a little, er, trite, though well-meaning, this is a beautiful symphonic/progressive rock album, the only release from this German band. Gorgeous female vocals, with a sometimes spacey, cosmic sound kind of like early 'Eloy' and at other times an intense, melodic Pink-Floyd-ey guitar remind us that this is a rock album. Includes bonus tracks.

Download

Lightshine - Feeling (1976)

Yet another fine German band that has only a self-released album as a legacy, Lightshine was a terrific psychedelic outfit composed of great musicians. They toured with some of the best bands of the day, but were unable to secure a recording contract. What a shame, because there is such promise here, given more time they would have been brilliant.

Download

OK see you next week!

2007-11-12T16:57:00.009-07:00

HAPPY MONDAY!

Saffran - Blue In Ashes (1975)

Saffran were five musicians from Munich, whose sole album was recorded in 1975, but never released until 2004. Included is a single from 1974. These guys played a sophisticated brand of jazzy progressive rock, using sax, guitar, vocals, keyboards, bass, flute and drums. Very nice.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Quicksilver Messenger Service - Lost Gold And Silver (1999)

Real nice two disc set of unreleased material from Quicksilver Messenger Service. Well unreleased in 1999 anyway! The star of the show is disc one, featuring live performances from 1968, including a couple blues classics, material from their first album, and live versions of Who Do You Love/Mona/Maiden Of The Cancer Moon that rival the versions on Happy Trails. The second disc has a dozen studio tracks recorded in 1967/1968, including a couple early versions of tunes that later made it to an album. These guys were undeniably awesome.

Bitrate 256 w/front & back covers Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Ash Ra Tempel - Schwingungen/Seven Up (1972)

This out of print two-fer has Ash Ra Tempel's second and third albums, both from 1972, on one disc. I've posted Schwingungen before, a long time ago, but not Seven Up. These are both great albums, and Seven Up is especially interesting for the involvement of Dr. Timothy Leary.

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Frozen Ghost - Nature Of Magic (1979)

I haven't been able to find out much about this thing - all I know is that Frozen Ghost is actually a Swiss dude named Helmut Müller, who played all the instruments and did all the voices. Probably recorded in some remote Swiss village, this is a garagey heavy-duty guitar orgy - psychedelic and spacey! I don't have the back cover, I'm not really convinced this is the proper front cover, but this was released on Black Rills Records, who have put out some awesome vintage Swiss psych/prog.

High VBR w/front cover Download

Orange Peel - Orange Peel (1970)

Little is known about the origins of Orange Peel, though on their debut single the band featured Michael Winzkowski (also of Nosferatu and Epsilon), and they proved quite seminal, with Heinrich Mohn later following Winzkowski to Epsilon, Peter Bischof moving on to Emergency, and Curt Cress becoming amongst the most prolific of drummers. Orange Peel's LP was amongst the most psychedelic of heavy progressive albums, not least side one's opus "You Can't Change Them All", a veritable masterwork of heavy riffing organ rock, kind of Egg and Pink Floyd jamming Krautrock style, featuring vast guitar excursions, and Peter Bischof's gutsy blues vocals. And then there's "We Still Try To Change" encompassing half of the second side, which trips out beyond the realms of side one's opus, like a crazed Arzachel, close to Os Mundi at their freakiest. The odd track out is an unusual arrangement of "Tobacco Road". (The Crack In The Cosmic Egg).

Bitrate 32-w/covers Download

OK see ya! Comments in any language are appreciated!!

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Pyramid - Pyramid (1976)

From the same label as that Nazgûl album I posted a few months ago. Same deal - very little information, virtually no liner notes, about all the back cover says is "personnel unknown". This consists of only one track, basically a long jam, coming in at 33 minutes. Two guitars, bass, drums, and keyboards. This is very trippy, stoned-sounding stuff, recommended for anyone that loves 1970's German space music.

Download

Alex Oriental Experience - Tales Of Purple Sally

Unfortunately there is very little in English about this band on the net, but as far as I can gather, this German dude named Alex Wiska is really taken with the "Turkish" sound. This is a compilation of tracks from the early 70's, and this is some very tasty Turkish-sounding stuff! Appearing on most if not all of the tracks are Holger Czukay, Jaki Liebezeit, and Michael Karoli of the band Can. The other musicians seem to be well-known in their fields too. This really needs to be checked out - wish I knew more about it.

Line-Up
- Holger Czukay
- Jaki Liebezeit
- Michael Karoli
- Gerd Dudek
- Alex Wiska
- Cem Karaca
- Huseyn Sultan Oglu
- Seyhan Karabey
- Ünol Buyükgönenc

Part 1 Part 2

Charge - Charge (1973)

Charge was a studio band that only did a few gigs to support this album, which did not sell well. Two of the better known musicians on this are Neil Hubbard and Ric Grech. My only complaint is that it is so short - half the album is a 17 minute piece called 'Child of Nations'. The second track, 'To My Friends' is maybe one of the coolest thing I've heard lately. One reviewer says this is a "loud, blistering sonic attack that rarely relents" - OK it's probably not all that 'blistering' but it's pretty damn good. My rip 320 w/covers.

Download

P2O5 - Vivat Progression Pereat Mundus (1978)

Great album of German hard rock, a little on the mystical side. I actually first posted this way back in December 2005! Well, blog visitor Franz from Deutschland thought the rip was a little lacking sonically, possibly due to a worn stylus, so he purchased the 180 gram vinyl reissue and ripped it himself @ 320. I have to say his version does sound better. OK way better! He also photographed the covers for us. Thanks Franz for this first-class share! Edit: forget all that, this is Franz's rip of the remastered CD with bonus tracks.

Part 1 Part 2

Moolah - Woe Ye Demons Possessed (1974)

This is a very strange album, the work of two guys - Walter Burns and Maurice Roberson. A variety of keyboards, percussion instruments, found sounds, studio funny business, tape loops, weird voices - truly a subversive underground classic. From an out-of-print Japanese 'gray-market' CD reissue. The reissue LP can still be purchased. One reviewer describes this as "America's Krautrock album"! The performers say this is a "a cosmic rock relaxation creation to elevate sensory awareness to include the aura of intuitive perception of higher realm of human/divine consciousness using the astral body projection experience vehicle to pierce time/space/logic dimension barriers on the return voyage to the ultimate concept."

Download

2007-11-12T16:57:00.008-07:00

Saffran - Blue In Ashes (1975)

Quicksilver Messenger Service - Lost Gold And Silver (1999)

Ash Ra Tempel - Schwingungen/Seven Up (1972)

Frozen Ghost - Nature Of Magic (1979)

2007-11-05T16:43:00.006-07:00

Hey - anybody out there! Who's doing all this downloading? Is it you? How about leaving a comment?

Colosseum - Live (1971)

As live albums go, this is probably one of the best - originally released as two LP's, this CD version has a bonus track. These guys were virtuoso musicians and you can tell they really enjoyed performing. Energetic and classy, this thing sounds great 36 years later. This is an awesome album of progressive jazzy rock and everybody really should buy the CD and add it to their collection.

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Elfenbein - Made In Rock (1977)

Obscure three-piece German band Elfenbein put out one album of straight-ahead, Anglo-American sounding hard rock. Nothing spectacular probably, still an enjoyable slab of bluesy rock a little boogified at times.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Samurai - Samurai (1971)

Samurai, with the addition of one member, was essentially the same bunch that made the third album by Web, the great "I Spider". Since Dave Lawson, later of Greenslade, wrote most of the material on both albums, this is the logical follow-up to "I Spider", there's even a live track of "Concerto For Bedsprings" as one of the bonus tracks. Anyway, this is heavy duty progressive rock with a lot of classical and jazz influences. A real nice piece of prog history.

Bitrate 256 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Quiet Sun - Mainstream (1975)

While all the players on this are excellent, the stars of the show are guitarist Phil Manzanera and keyboardist Dave Jarrett. Sometimes mellow and sometimes dramatic, this seems to be a blend of the "Canterbury" sound and Space-Rock, and will appeal to fans of jazzy prog and to lovers of space rock.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

La Düsseldorf - Viva (1978)

La Düsseldorf was formed by Klaus Dinger and Hans Lampe after the breakup of NEU!. Their second album is a real gem of late 70's krautrock, the music is brilliant and powerful, clearly having NEU! influences, but also maybe some of the attitude of 70's punk! The last track, the 20 minute long "Cha Cha 2000" is a krautrock classic.

High VBR w/artwork Download

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Might Of Coincidence - The Birth Of Might Of Coincidence (1971)

Only album from this Swiss psych/folk group, who recorded and released this in England in 1971. Very ethereal and drugged-out sounding, lots of flute and hand drums. This was a very crappy vinyl rip that I worked over with my trusty copy of Adobe Audition. Didn't do a perfect job; I'm no expert and I didn't want to spend my life on it, but this is very listenable, not that bad of a job I must say! Anyway, I really like this.

Download

Moira - Moira (1984)

Also known as "Reise Nach Ixtlan", the second release from hopelessly obscure band Moira is a monster of Krautrock fusion. Neither of their albums has had a legitimate CD reissue, and I was lucky enough to locate a rip of a bootleg CD, there is at least one real bad vinyl rip floating around. Mostly straightforward instrumental jazz-rock dominated by a Hammond organ, Moog, and some great guitar playing, some incredible drumming and brilliant bass playing. The second track is a short piece with only flute and percussion. Favorite track is "Einsame Schatten", the only track with vocals. Man these guys were good.

Download

Sergius Golowin - Lord Krishna Von Goloka (1973)

Sergius Golowin was (is) a Swiss painter (responsible for the original cover painting of Ash Ra Tempel's 'Seven Up' as well as his own sleeve) and a friend of Walter Wegmuller. The sessions for this concept album in late 1972 were arguably the start of all the Cosmic Jokers-related sessions between 1973 and 1974. It brought Wallenstein together with Klaus Schulze and Witthuser & Westrupp. The 'Lord Krishna von Goloka' album really sounds like a cross between the styles of the participating musicians (the cue word here is "space"!!!): Floyd-like space rock (Wallenstein), electronic spacious effects (Klaus Schulze) and traces of cosmic folk (Witthüser & Westrupp). Add that to the talents of a certain Jörg Mierke and the mostly spoken, mysterious lyrics of Golowin, you've got the album in a nutshell. Not as trippy as Seven Up, but certainly out on a limb, featuring three continuously running tracks likely to shuttle you into far distant realms of space...! Of course this record is a necessity for Ash Ra Tempel, Cosmic Jokers, Schulze and Wallenstein fans (and I figure there ain't a few!). Fans are also in need of his album's logical successor: Walter Wegmuller's large scale opus 'Tarot', featuring most of the musicians above and more [posted 1 October 2006]. The next logical step was to be the Cosmic Joker sessions. (Cosmic Dreams At Play) (My rip @ 320 w/scans)

Track listing

1. Der Reigen (16:34)
2. Die Weisse Alm (5:49)
3. Die Hoch Zeit (19:25)

Line-up

- Sergius Golowin / voice
- Jerry Berkers / electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, bongo's
- Jürgen Dollase / piano, melotron, vibrafon, triangel and guitar
- Jörg Mierke / electric guitar, organ, percussion, voice choir, flute, electronics, conga's
- Klaus Schulze / drum, organ, mellotron & electronics
- Walter Westrupp / acoustic guitar, flute, mouthharp, windspel, psalter, tablas and percussion
- Bernd Witthüser / guitar

Part 1 Part 2

Jane - Cologne 1-8-77Great sounding boot of an FM broadcast by Germany's favorite melodic hard rock group.

The Band:
Peter Panka, drums, vocals
Klaus Hess, guitare, vocals
Martin Hesse, bass
Manfred Wieczorke, beyboard, vocals

The Songs:
01 Lady - 3:37
02 Radio Talk 1 - 2:44
03 Fire, Water, Earth & Air - 3:44
04 Another Way - 5:16
05 River - 4:17
06 Out In The Rain - 6:08
07 Hangman - 14:34
08 Radio Talk 2 - :49
09 Windows - 20:22

Part 1 Part 2

2007-10-29T14:32:00.005-07:00

What - Monday already?

Can - Sacrilege: The Remixes (1997)

You might say this is a different kind of tribute album - 16 tracks on 2 discs by Germany's Can, remixed by some big remixers of the day. Honestly I don't know who most of them are, save for Sonic Youth and Brian Eno. The others were big techno dudes I imagine, maybe they still are! Anyway, opinions on this are all over the map, from "major success" to "strictly for completists". Judge for yourself I say!

Mid VBR w/artwork Part 1 Part 2

Frob - Frob (1976)

Frob was a band from Westphalia Germany that released only one album of unpretentious, almost soothing, jazz-rock. Guitarist Philippe Caillat is a top notch player, and the rest of the band (keyboards, bass, drums) help maintain a high standard of musicianship. Very nice.

Bitrate 256 w/covers Download

Mountain - Greatest Hits Live (1974)

Recorded on 11-3-74 at the Capitol Theater in Passaic New Jersey, USA, and broadcast on the King Biscuit Flower Hour. Not the greatest recording or performance by this group, but what the heck.

1. You Better Believe It
2. Theme For An Imaginary Western
3. Never In My Life
4. Jingle Bells
5. Get Out Of My Life Woman
6. Mississippi Queen
7. It's For You
8. Nantucket Sleighride
9. Roll Over Beethoven
10. Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On
11. Bonus Interview

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Patto - Monkey's Bum (1973)

Unreleased fourth album from Patto - maybe not their best work, but worth listening to just for Ollie Halsall, whose guitar work is outstanding!

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Sinto - Right On Brother (1972)

Only album from German band Sinto - Caution: Not Krautrock! This bunch was very Anglo-sounding, playing a song-oriented brand of progressive rock. Instrumentally rich with a lot of Latin flavoring and a lot of great violin playing. Very cool and real funky. Recommended!

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Felt - Felt (1971)

Superb turn of the decade rock from Alabama USA. Melodic Floyd-like progressive flourishes but with blistering acid guitar, soulful vocals and shimmering keyboards. Crashing riffs and peaceful waves abound. I was hooked from the opening bars of the beautiful "Look At The Sun" and this thing held my attention until the very end. How can somebody make an album this good and just disappear? Were they chewed up by a heartless music industry, was there a personal tragedy, or, artistic vision realized, did they just move on?

Edit: After I posted this way back in 2005, I got an e-mail from the bass player who told me that shortly after the album was recorded the guitarist and main songwriter, who was only 17 (!), was busted for pot. In early 1970's Alabama this was probably a pretty serious thing. End of the band.

Download

German Oak - German Oak (1972)

Recorded in a WWII Air-Raid Shelter in order to get a better feeling of what it must have been like to have been a German soldier during the European Invasion of 1944, this brilliant instrumental psychedelic recording by a five man group from Dusseldorf tries to capture in sound what it must have been like. From the liner notes: "As we played down there in the old bunker, suddenly a strange atmosphere began to work. The ghosts of the past whispered. There has been fear, desperation - but also hope. Maybe you will feel such impressions too, by listening carefully". This is truly a great album!

Bitrate 320 w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Dom - Edge Of Time (1970)

Supposedly recorded after a two-day acid trip, Dom's only album is a real voyage into space. This is one of those great albums that is difficult to describe. It is a hypnotic and ecstatic blend of space rock, eccentric hippie folk and Eastern mantra, constructed of intricate suites dripping with lysergic inspiration and sublime revelation. If you are going to burn this, consider leaving off track 9. This "bonus track" is from 1998 and doesn't fit in at all with the rest of the material.

Download

Bang - Bang (1971)

OK here's some good old-fashioned hard rock. Bang was from Pennsylvania USA and obviously loved their Black Sabbath albums. Also their Cream, Hendrix and Zeppelin records. I don't know too much about these guys but I know one thing for sure - this album kicks ass!! If you like vintage rock you need this.

Download

Xhol - Hau-Ruk (1970)

A live album from this obscure German progressive rock group, consisting of three long instrumental pieces, the music is at different times cosmic, bluesy and psychedelic, and will appeal to fans of experimental spacey rock. A lack of studio effects, found on their other releases, doesn't hurt this a bit.

Download

Alright - comments appreciated!

2007-10-22T16:40:00.003-07:00

Happy Monday!!

Chris Bell - I Am The Cosmos (1992)

Chris Bell was a founding member of Big Star who unfortunately died in 1978 while recording his first solo album. This album then is basically a collection of a couple single sides, demos, and whatnot. Awesome sensitive, depressed, melodic 1970's singer-songwriter stuff with a few rockers thrown in the mix.

High VBR w/scans Download

Klaus Schulze - Moondawn (1976)

Klaus Schulze with an array of synthesizers and a drummer, Harold Grosskopf, lay out two long tracks of spacey, cosmic, sonic soundscapes. One of Schulze's best, according to some reviewers.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Made In Germany - Made In Germany (1971)

Made In Germany was a band with a split personality! A lot of the tracks here are very good three-minute pop songs, while there are a few longer tracks, like the nine-and-a half minutes long "Man In History" that are great early 70's progressive rock. Singer Rita Peuker had a great strong Teutonic voice. They shoulda stuck with the prog material I think!

Bitrate 320 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

Moebius, Neumeier, Engler - Other Places (1996)

I just picked this up in a used CD store yesterday and haven't really checked it out, but what I've heard seems to be pretty cool. Anyway, this is Dieter Moebius (Cluster), Mani Neumeier (Guru Guru) and Jürgen Engler (Die Krupps), nine tracks improvised in the studio with no overdubbing.

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Paul Kossoff - Live At Croydon Fairfield Halls (1975)

This turned out to be the last concert for Mr. Kossoff and his band Back Street Crawler. He died the following spring of a drug overdose. Great playing from a rock legend.

Bitrate 256 w/covers Part 1 Part 2

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

The Sons Of Champlin - The Sons (1969)

One of the more obscure groups of the late 60's San Francisco ballroom scene, their sound is based on the Hammond B-3 organ and a prominent horn section, making their sound distinctly different from their Bay Area cohorts. They were a "Musician's Band", meaning that their releases were well received by other musicians, but really didn't connect with too many music buyers. The shorter songs are sometimes introspective and low-key, and the longer songs have the complex structures and time signature changes that one associates with progressive rock. This is their second album and probably does suffer a bit from 'sophomore slump', as all the songs were written for the album, as opposed to their first release, where they had been playing the material for a long time live. Regardless, they knew where the groove was and had no trouble getting there.

Download

Electric Sandwich - Electric Sandwich (1972)

No historical information is known about Electric Sandwich, though they are reputedly ex-Vinegar. Typical of many Krautrock bands of the era, they drew on a wide range of influences: jazz, blues, psychedelia, etc., and moulded their own fusion with that typically cosmic yet powerful edge. Their sole album is oddly balanced, opening with the lengthy Xhol/Kollektiv-like instrumental "China" with excellent electric sax, and thereafter establishing a more unique brand of song fronted by a gruff vocalist, in a blues and jazz accented progressive blend. Really, every track on the album is different, though a recognisable Electric Sandwich style does ride throughout.

Download

Epidermis - Genius Of Original Force (1977)

The songs on this release from German band Epidermis have multipart vocals, and occasional instrumental counterpoint, so they’re often compared to Gentle Giant. But their music is a lot darker and less refined than typical Gentle Giant, and I can imagine lots of people who like Gentle Giant not liking Epidermis at all, and some people who don’t like Gentle Giant liking Epidermis.

The lyrics are about the creation of the universe by God. Though the band is German and the lyrics are all in English, they’re actually only rarely bad, and accents are barely noticeable. I really like them since they’re so unique, both in topic and style. Instrumentally, the band has a lot of interplay, but not a lot of variation in their sounds or style. The keyboardist sticks almost exclusively to clavinet, the guitarist and bassist both have their own sounds they stick to as well. There are several passages with vibes or acoustic guitar though, all of which are played pretty well. Typically the compositions are centered around riffs played on the guitars and/or keyboards, few of which are very complex, but each bandmember frequently plays their own lines, and it all seems carefully thought-out in advance even if it’s not always professionally–executed.

This was obviously a low-budget album, but it’s also an extremely distinctive one - the kind of thing that is easy to find fault with but also very endearing in a lot of ways. I really like it. (dnieper111, rateyourmusic.com)

Download

Haboob - Haboob (1971)

This German release is a mixture of jazz-rock, soul, blues, psychedelia, really difficult to pin down. Plus it's not really a German band, the players are Americans or maybe Brits living in Munich. Star of the show is American keyboardist Jimmy Jackson, better known for his appearances on the classic early Amon Düül II albums, and albums by Embryo and Klaus Doldinger's Passport. Jackson plays something called a "Choir Organ", which seems to have been a one of a kind instrument that only he played. Best cut, for me, is the first track "Israfil" a nine minute long affair which probably wouldn't have seemed too out of place one one of the first three Amon Düül II albums. Weirdness prevails throughout the rest of the album, there's bluesy psychedelia, keyboard freak-outs, percussion extravaganzas and an unusual version of "Soldier Boy" by the Shirelles! (Vinyl Rip)

Download

Minotaurus - Fly Away (1978)

Minotaurus were an obscure 70’s band from Germany, who recorded 2 albums with only one ever being released "Fly Away". Inspired by the story of the Mintaurus living in King Minos' Labyrinth on Crete this 6 piece band deliver an album full of organ roaring progressive rock. This album although essentially a symphonic mindmelt does also blend in psych and space dimensions into their sound. Their overall sound is quite rich with a good chunk of mellotron and deep bass lines. Vocals (Peter Scheu) are sung in English and fit the music quite well. Instrumentally this band were amazing with inspiring and pompous keyboard leads, mellotron atmospheres , great guitar , bass and drum interplay. Overall sound carries allusions to Novalis, Marillion and Eloy. (James Unger progarchives.com)

Download

OK see you later!!

2007-10-17T13:48:00.003-07:00

Howdy!

Neil Young - Dead Man (1996)

Neil Young's soundtrack to Jim Jarmusch's classic western may be too 'avant-garde' for most, particularly if they haven't seen the film. One reviewer says that this sounds like Mr. Young was "repeatedly dropping his guitar." Great stuff but you have to be in the right mood!

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Alto Pappert - Alto (1977)

Johannes "Alto" Pappert was the sax player on the first four KRAAN albums, until he quit the band in 1976. This is his first solo album, and it's some pretty cool 1970's jazzy rock. Heavy on the saxophone of course.

Bitrate 192 w/artwork Download

Barclay James Harvest - Barclay James Harvest + Once Again (1970-1971)

This 2-on-1 CD has Barclay James Harvest's first two albums. Great stuff, "Once Again" has always been one of my favorites.

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Cluster - 71 (1971)

Great electronica from Moebius and Roedelius. Made in 1971 (duh) this doesn't sound dated at all.

High VBR w/scans Download

Curly Curve - Forgotten Tapes (1974)

Man if only this unreleased material had been recorded a little better - great 1970's hard rock from this German band.

Bitrate 256 w/artwork Download

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Creepy John Thomas - Brother Bat Bone & Creepy John Thomas (1968-1972)

Creepy John Thomas was a British band that played a kind of progressive blues-rock that still sounds great! Their records were released only in Germany, ensuring that their music remains largely unknown everywhere else! Band leader John Thomas went on to play guitar in the Edgar Broughton Band.

Part 1 Part 2

Bobby Beausoleil & The Freedom Orchestra - Lucifer Rising

Bobby Beausoleil's name will be familiar to anybody who has read about the Manson Family and the murders committed in Southern California in the late 1960's. His story and the story of this album is fascinating, and I recommend using Google to find out more. I was expecting some agressive, 'satanic' music, but instead I found this album to be one of the most beautiful psychedelic recordings ever. It's hard to believe this was made by men who were in prison. The first disc is a soundtrack to a 1970's underground film by Kenneth Anger, the second disc contains some of Mr. Beausoleil's recordings from the 1960's, the highlight being a 24 minute piece by "The Magick Powerhouse Of Oz".

Part 1 Part 2

Jerusalem - Jerusalem (1972)

OK this isn't progressive rock, not even close. Oilton from Brazil asked me if I had this so I put it up. This was produced by Ian Gillan and is some great heavy, hard rock that fits in with "In Rock" or "Fireball" era Deep Purple.

Download

Can - Tago Mago (1971)

Krautrock!! Jason from Scotland requested this masterpiece. One thing is for sure - Jaki Leibezeit on drums and Holger Czukay on bass were the best rhythm section ever to come from Germany. Add Michael Karoli's brilliant guitar and Irmin Schmidt's amazing keyboards and "Damo" Suzuki's impassioned vocals and Can may be Germany's best band ever. Driving, funky, and experimental, Tago Mago is an enormous work, one of Can's best.

Part 1 Part 2

Deuter - D (1971)

George Deuter's first album is one of the finest of the early 70's German rock scene. At times reminiscent of Amon Düül II, Tangerine Dream or Popol Vuh, this was all done by George himself with no outside help whatsoever. Spacey, atmospheric, dramatic, pastoral, percussive, this is an overlooked gem of Krautrock.

Download

Kalacakra - Crawling To Lhasa (1974)

The general weirdness, the trippy, stoned psychedelia of this slab of German acid-folk will appeal to a lot of people. Eastern-tinged and dreamy, eclectic and strange, this meditative and reflective combination of mantras, blues and folk music definitely is worth a listen.

Download

OK! I hope everyone finds something to like this week. See ya!

2007-10-08T11:16:00.004-07:00

OK Nice to be back - I got home from a trip last week to find that I have real problems with my cable connection. My transfer rates are at times less than half of what I've had for years. Uploading is impossible except in the morning! The cable guy said my modem was alright, but I replaced it anyway, (actually I didn't realize I was renting it) and reinstalled windows, to no avail. I hope this can be sorted out, it's a pain in the patoot not knowing at any given time if I can upload or not. Well I'm sure you all really care about this. While I was at it I got the latest versions of EAC and LAME - these are my rips, except for the Os Mundi. Here we go!

Os Mundi - 43 Minuten (1972)

Os Mundi was a band from Berlin, the brainchild of one Udo Arndt, that released only two albums. I posted their first, "Latin Mass", a long time ago, it's reposted, just a couple posts down. This album, 43 Minuten, is very different from their earlier release though, being not nearly so dark and heavy. Some of the tracks sound like a kind of Teutonic melding of early King Crimson and Chicago - well maybe that's not a very good description. Overall this is great early 70's progressive rock with some jazzy touches - and some great guitar from Mr. Arndt.

Bitrate 256 w/covers Download

Paul Kantner, Grace Slick, & David Freiberg - Baron Von Tollbooth & The Chrome Nun (1973)

An unjustly overlooked gem, this is basically the Jefferson Airplane without Marty Balin, with help from Jerry Garcia, Micky Hart, David Crosby and others. Some great songs, and Grace Slick has hardly ever sounded better. This is an awesome album with a great lineup of musicians and great songs, what more do you want? Essential for any Jefferson Airplane fan.

High VBR w/scans Download

Rev. Louis Overstreet - With His Sons And The Congregation Of St. Luke's Powerhouse Church Of God In Christ

This is a good old fashioned gospel rave-up, with 16 tracks recorded during services in the early 1960's. This is intense, raw, energetic worship music that probably would terrify most fans of today's white-bread "Christian Music". Well good! The Reverend sings in a deep dark voice, playing some sparse early R & B style riffs on his guitar, accompanied by a bass drum, all in front of a wall of sound coming from the congregation - hoo boy.

High VBR w/scans Part 1 Part 2

Vinegar - Vinegar (1971)

Only one album from German band Vinegar, and it's a classic of garage-y underground progressive rock. Very German-sounding, the songs sometimes bring to mind other bands like Gomorrha and Amon Düül II, even Pink Floyd! A gem of unknown innovative rock from an obscure band! That's what it's all about!

High VBR w/scans Download

Panzerballet - Panzerballet (2005)

I think this is the most contemporary thing I have ever posted! This is modern music with it's roots in 1970's jazz fusion. Panzerballet is a German quartet (guitar, sax, bass, drums) that plays a hard and hot fusion that mixes in a little heavy funk and some metal riffing. This will hit you right between the eyes!

High VBR w/scans Download

FROM THE ARCHIVES

Junco Partners - Junco Partners (1970)

This is the kind of 'find' that keeps me going. No matter how long you mine rock music from this era, there are always more great albums to be discovered. I got this rarity off the net a while ago, and it's a vinyl rip, and the LP wasn't in that great a shape. I managed to get rid of almost all the pops and clicks, but slight surface noise can still be heard on some of the quieter passages. It is very listenable though, so don't let this stop you from downloading this, as it is a thoroughly enjoyable album by an obscure four-piece band from England, soulful and bluesy. The songs are great and the band had it's own sound with a vocalist perfectly suited for the music.

Download

I Drive - I Drive (1972)

I Drive was one of many British groups that played the club circuit in Germany to make a living, and recorded their only album there. Though they were picked up by a former Beatles manager, the album failed due to a lack of promotion and lousy distribution, and the band broke up. Which was too bad because the music is top notch, on a par with the music of the big acts of the day like Atomic Rooster, Budgie, Deep Purple just to name a few. The album contains some brutal rock, some softer material, great production, great vocals and brilliant musicianship. Disc one is the album from 1972, disc 2 contains demos and whatnot from 1969-1972.

Part 1 Part 2

Embryo - Bremen 1971

The German band Embryo performed on 9/23/1971 at the Leibnizplatz High School in Bremen and the gig was recorded by Radio Bremen and broadcast in the series “Jazz Live“. This was just after the release of their second album, "Embryo's Rache" (Embryo's Revenge). The material is experimental psych/prog rock/jazz, but not nearly as jazzy as some of their later material, which is OK by me. The album consists of four tracks, and for me the highlight is the 26 minute long "SpainYes, Franco Finished", which got the group banned from Spain! This is some real tasty stuff, which you will like a lot.

Download

Audience - Lunch (1972)

I love this album, but it must have been a shock to listeners back in '72, because it is completely different from it's predecessor, "The House On The Hill" that I posted a couple months ago. This is nothing but an exercise in upbeat, quirky, fun rock. Instrumentally there are no electric guitars or synthesizers, only bass, acoustic guitars, vibes, marimbas, horns and reeds...and whistling. Every time I listen to this my spirits lift and I have the whistling break from "Hula Girl" in my head for days.

Bitrate 320 w/scans Download

Arktis - On The Rocks (1976)

The third album from a great German band, Arktis. A pounding rhythm section, swirling keyboards, powerful, understated female vocals (in English) and some truly great electric guitar make this an album that I listen to on a regular basis. The 20 minute long "Loneliness" is a highlight. Well, maybe "Dangerous Love". Actually, the whole album is terrific.

Download

String Driven Thing - The Machine That Cried (1973)

OK this is an uneven album. There are some slow ballad-y numbers that seem to hamper the proceedings, but I have gotten to like them over time. Actually, maybe it's just that I don't mind them so much! This is their third album, and their first foray into progressive rock territory, thanks to the addition of Grahame Smith (later of Van Der Graaf Generator) on electric violin. The manic psychedelic tracks like "Sold Down The River", "Heartfeeder" and a few others make this worth getting.

Download

Alright - See ya!

2007-09-24T17:14:00.003-07:00

Sorry - nothing uploaded for this week!

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Czar - Czar (1970)

The four members of Czar began as "Tuesday's Children" in 1967. They played the well-known clubs like the Marquee, toured with The Moody Blues, Pink Floyd, The Nice, The Animals, Jimi Hendrix, The Who, King Crimson and many others. In 1970 they changed their name to "Czar", recorded an album and promptly disappeared. The album they left behind is a pretty good proto-progressive/psychedelic effort, dominated by Mellotron and Hammond organ battling against some blues-based guitar riffs and thudding drums. Britain in the late sixties and early seventies wasn't exactly undergoing a shortage of bands like Czar, bands that today are described as 'proto-prog', and Czar probably isn't the best of them, but their album is well worth having and is a real good addition to the collection of anyone interested in rock music from this era. Ripped @ 320. Artwork included.

Download

Marianne Faithfull - Greatest Hits (1987)

This is my Thrift Store find this week. This CD was released on the Abkco label in 1987, Executive Producer Andrew Loog Oldham. I wonder whatever happened to him. Wasn't he the "Sixth Rolling Stone" or something? Anyway this has 16 tracks purporting to be her greatest hits. I don't know her music at all, but I picked this up for one dollar thinking that some, at least, of the horde of readers bound to be attracted to my blog would appreciate it. LOL! Ripped @ 320. Artwork included.

Download

Gomorrha - I Turned To See Whose Voice It Was (1972)

Doomy and aggressive yet brimming with a cosmic folkiness, this near-masterpiece of psychedelic German rock was released in 1972, marking the high point and the climax of Gomorrha's short career. Dominated by a churchy Hammond organ played by Eberhard Krietsch and the spaced out acid guitars of Ali Claudi and Ad Ochel, the lyrics are suitably bizarre, concerning life, death, religion and visionary dreams with a lot of quoting from the Book of Revelation by English singer Peter Otten. Bassist Mike Eulner and drummer Helmut Pohl anchor some tasty psychedelic jams that are played in the fashion that only the best Krautrockers can pull off. This is a brilliant mix of psychedelic and progressive rock that never gets raunchy or heavy. Head-melting electric guitars, Hammond organ freakouts mingling with quiet acoustic passages and weird lyrics make this an album that should be in any Krautrock fan's collection. Artwork included.

Download

Taste - Taste (1969)

Taste - On The Boards (1970)

In the late sixties Rory Gallagher fronted a power trio with Richard 'Charlie' McCracken on bass and John Wilson on drums. This band recorded two studio albums before imploding, and these albums are as different as they could be. The first one, "Taste" is raw. Really raw. I'm no expert, but it sounds like it was recorded live to four-track in a small studio, with little if any overdubbing or post production. Rory's guitar playing could be heavy-handed, some of the leads seem to wander, there might have been some slight issues with tuning, but Taste had soul, there's no denying that, and there are moments of greatness on this first record. The second record "On The Boards" has Rory showing a little restraint, the production is slick, the songwriting is markedly improved, with a sometimes jazzy, experimental thing going on. Personally I think "On The Boards" is the best thing Rory Gallagher ever did. As different as these two albums are, if you like guitar playing you need them both.

Taste:
Download

On The Boards:
Download

Golem - Orion Awakes (1973)

Alright. Now for some Krautrock (possibly fake!). All indications are that Golem's "Orion Awakes" is considered an obscure classic of psychedelia from the German underground scene of the early seventies. Well I don't really know what to make of that. If I even had one microgram of a mind-altering substance in my body, I would be afraid to listen to this thing!. There are no long drawn-out spacy instrumental jams, no songs about love and peace, the emphasis is on trance-inducing, hammering, pulsing, pounding grooves. This is some real wild stuff and deserves a listen. Interestingly, this was produced by one Genesis P Orridge, later of Throbbing Gristle.

Download

Gäa - Alraunes Alptraum (1973)

Gäa (In English Gaia) was a suitably cosmic band of German deep-space voyagers who released one brilliant album (Auf Der Bahn Zum Uranus - On The Road To Uranus) to absolutely no acclaim, then broke up. "Alraunes Alptraum" (something about a nightmare) is a collection of unreleased material that is just as good I think as the stuff on their regular release. Gäa was the real deal, the real Krautrock deal. Enigmatic lyrics sung in German, spacy jams, quiet passages, crescendoes, climaxes, amazing instrumental interplay. If you are remotely interested in Krautrock, you should check this one out.

Download

OK see ya.

2007-09-18T16:14:00.004-07:00

Hi gang - hey look things are going to be kind of touch-and-go for a month or so, but I'll try to post what I can when I can!!

Dennis - Hyperthalamus (1975)

I originally posted this pretty obscure classic back in January of 2006. This is a brand new rip, not seen in the sharity world before as far as I can tell, it is well worth replacing the copy you have if you already have this. Anyway, Dennis was a collection of Hamburg musicians, never a working band - everyone was already in another band, bands like Frumpy, Xhol, Thirsty Moon, Tomorrow's Gift, and others. A great collection of jams from some very good musicians, the music ranging from progressive to cosmic, very diverse.

Bitrate 320 w/covers Download

Kedama - Live At Sunrise Studios (1976)

Only release from this strictly-instrumental Swiss prog group. The original album was kinda short, but there is a bunch of bonus material, from their unreleased second album and other sources. The music bears some comparison to King Crimson I guess. The songs are complex and surprisingly powerful at times. This also (the original release, the first four tracks) has the distinction of being recorded with the Artificial Head microphone - there are notes in the file about this odd 70's invention. It would be cool to know how many albums were recorded with this. Anyway a pretty cool album.

Bitrate 192 w/artwork Download

Plainsong - In Search Of Amelia Earhart (1972)

Plainsong was a short-lived band mostly notable for it's two singers/guitarists, Ian Matthews (ex-Fairport Convention, Matthews Southern Comfort) and Andy Roberts (ex-Liverpool Scene). There's a couple tunes relating to Ms. Earhart, but I don't think this is a concept album although I could be wrong. A collection of eleven great tunes (well mostly), sometimes rollicking and fun, sometimes haunting, with a high degree of songwriting, musicianship and vocals.

High VBR w/covers Download

Kreuzweg - Kreuzweg (1982)

I got this a long time ago from one of my fellow bloggers (thanks hmemnon)who could probably post more often! Anyway I've never been able to find out anything about this appealing release. The vocals are in German, which I like, and the music is a very accessible style of progressive rock using a wide variety of instruments - almost a hybrid kind of symphonic pop/prog. Very nice.

Bitrate 192 w/artwork Download

Embryo - Embryo's Rache (1971)

Embryo's second album is a worthy follow-up to their first groundbreaking album. A brilliant fusion of prog/jazz/folk with some Eastern touches. A great album. I though about buying this because the back cover is real shaky, then I found that this thing goes for big bucks! Who needs a back cover anyway, right?

Bitrate 256 w/covers Download

FROM THE ARCHIVES:

Annexus Quam - Osmose (1970)

A hippy band called "Ambition Of Music" hooked up with members of a religious brass band to become one of the most innovative of underground Krautrock bands, Annexus Quam. These seven guys then proceeded to help lay the foundation for a new kind of music, a spacy fusion of psychedelia, avante-garde, jazz and rock. A very trippy album, the use of effects and the loose jazz drumming create a sound somewhere between 'Phallus Dei' - era Amon Düül II, Faust, and Kollectiv. The last side long piece on the album ("IV") is the standout track. With its interplay between guitar and sax, the droning vocals (Amon Duul II style!), jazz bass and piano, Annexus Quam create an unheard of music from another world. You recognize all the parts, but when they are put together they create something entirely different.

Download

Dschinn - Dschinn (1972)

The German band Dschinn put out this one album of conventional - well maybe you could call it psychedelic hard prog - hard rock and then disappeared from sight. The originality and innovation found in a lot of Krautrock from this era is lacking here, but this is nonetheless a great album, originality and innovation being casually replaced by impudent power. With a gravelly-voiced singer and a hyperactive and talented lead guitarist this is a fine example of German rock. The original album had nine tracks, this release has 12 bonus tracks which appear to be outtakes and versions, and possibly some pre-Dschinn material.

Part 1 Part 2

If - If2 (1970)

"If's second album appeared only months after the debut, and confirmed further that the band had found their musical formula. There were no songs here that could be suitable as singles, with the possible exception of "Tarmac T. Pirate and the Lonesome Nymphomaniac". The rest of the material followed the typical If-style with catchy songs built around extended and complex instrumental excursions. The opener "Your City is Falling" has one of the best melodies on the album, and is followed by another winner in "Sad Sunday". It starts with a beautiful flute that introduces the main melody of the track before Hodgkinson's vocals takes over. Terry Smiths stretches out with a long solo that leads up to the obligatory flute/sax/organ riffs and solos. "I Couldn't Write and Tell You" has a fairly similar structure, but with a happier melody. The ballad "Echoes and Shadows" features fast, jazzy solos in the middle that very efficiently breaks up the laid-back mood of the song. "Song for Elsa, Three Days Before Her 25th Birthday" closes the album with yet another intense and complex dose of jazzy progressive rock. If were at their creative peak from 1970 to 1972, and "If 2" was the second proof of that". (From the internet, and thanks to original uploader, Hasse!)

Download

Out Of Focus - Four Letter Monday Afternoon (1972)

"One of the most incredible and perhaps the most complex album of the Krautrock genre, 'Four Letter Monday Afternoon' is quite possibly the strongest of all the Krautrock double-albums.For this album, the band expanded to an 11-piece group, adding an extra guitarist as well as a brass section. This expansion in members caused the group to create some of the most incredibly complex arrangements which must have made King Crimson turn crimson with envy! For instance, during the 48-minute epic 'Huchen', there are a few parts when a trained-ear can pick out 9 or 10 of the musicians doing his own thing! The music is probably not for everybody, but adventurous listeners and thrill seekers alike are seriously encouraged to give this album a try. Trying to choose a standout track on this monster proves to be a daunting task. 'Where Have You Been' stands out as a soft guitar and flute based folk ballad, but is too simple when compared to the rest of the music on this album. 'Black Cards' on the other hand is a jazzy number which contains a plethora of multi-tracked flute and sax solos and a steady guitar, bass, and drum backbone. However, for my money, I would have to go with the 48-minute epic, Huchen. Nowhere else within the genre can you find arrangements and performances of this caliber. From the opening multi-tracked flute solo to the dueling sax jam and everything else in between, 'Huchen' is truly an awe-inspiring track and a perfect ending to a great album." (krautrockgroup.com)

Part 1 Part 2

Eela Craig - Eela Craig (1971)

"Eela Craig is probably the best known progressive rock band from Austria, and the self-titled debut is generally regarded as their best record. The style is a bit more symphonic than most of their early 70s German contemporaries, coming closest to the work of bands like Sahara, Zarathustra or Satin Whale. The band are at their best during their extended jams, with Hammond organ and blistering guitar backed by heaps of mellotron and the occasional flute motif. The vocalist sounds like a Teutonic Jimi Hendrix, which can either be really cheesy or pretty cool, depending on how you look at it. Likewise, the guitarist seems to draw ample influence from old Jimi at his fuzzed-out best." (progweed.net)

Download

Bodkin - Bodkin (1972)

"Here's another early 1970's progressive/hard rock gem from the U.K., finally seeing the light of day after almost thirty years. Bodkin were a five piece ensemble led by the formidable talents of Hammond Organ player Doug Rome, who at the age of 21 at the time of this recording, proved that he could keep up with the heavyweights of the time. Some of those names are Jon Lord, Keith Emerson, Ken Hensley, and Vincent Crane. In fact, this CD is so oozing distorted organ sounds, one might think that some long lost Uriah Heep or Atomic Rooster album was playing. Set inside a bizarre and ominous digipack sleeve design containing hellish pictures of wolves and goats is one rocking set of vintage sounding tunes. The opener is a two part suite called "Three Days After Death" that contains plenty of raging Hammond and complex and heavy guitar work. At just under seventeen minutes long, the band really gets to cook on this one. Another strong song is "Aunt Mary's Trashcan" featuring a snarling guitar riff to go along with some evil Hammond chords. While I would not call this metal, it's not quite prog either. Plenty of time changes and rampaging solos abound, and the band plays with such conviction that it's hard not to shake your head and take notice. The lead vocals of Jeke Huim are quite strong, especially on the mind numbing closer "Plastic Man." Fans of Deep Purple, Iron Butterfly, Uriah Heep, Atomic Rooster, and Collosseum would be well advised to check into this scorching set of Hammond drenched craziness!" (Pete Pardo)

Download

Morpheus - Rabenteur (1976)

The band started out in 1971 as OPOSSUM, a six-member jazz-rock outfit. With time, dissention set in as two of the members wanted to tie the band down to free jazz while the other four wanted to rock. So in 1975, the foursome walked out, regrouped as MORPHEUS* and released a self-produced album titled “Rabenteuer” – a name which combines the German words for “raven” and “adventure”, as in “Raventure”. An inventive progressive fusion band, with a notable debt to Kraan, Aera and nods to Munju, Missus Beastly and Secret Oyster. Morpheus' sole self-produced LP is an unknown gem. The music is full of warmth, strong melodies and some great riffing, with a wealth of Alto Pappert style sax soloing and Peter Wolbrandt Kraan styled guitar. Being partly improvised, the music has an almost ‘live’ feel to it. The CD version includes a bonus track, a terrific 20-minute jam session salvaged from the master tapes.

Download

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Strictly Personal (1968)

"Considered by many to be a substandard effort due to the circumstances of its release (producer Bob Krasnow, the owner of Blue Thumb, the label which debuted with this album, remixed the album while Don Van Vliet and crew were off on a European tour, adding extraneous sound effects like heartbeats and excessive use of psychedelic-era clichés like out-of-phase stereo panning and flanging), 1968's Strictly Personal is actually a terrific album, every bit the equal of Safe As Milk and Trout Mask Replica. Opening with "Ah Feel Like Ahcid," an a cappella blues workout with its roots in Son House's "Death Letter," the brief (barely 35 minutes) album is at the same time simpler and weirder than Safe As Milk had been. Working without another songwriter or arranger for the first time, Captain Beefheart strips his idiosyncratic blues down to the bone, with several of the songs (especially "Son of Mirror Man/Mere Man") having little in the way of lyrics or chords beyond the most primeval stomp. Krasnow's unfortunate sound effects and phasing do detract from the album at points, but the strength of the performances, especially those of drummer John French, make his efforts little more than superfluous window dressing. Strictly Personal is a fascinating, underrated release." (Stewart Mason, All Music Guide)

Download

Os Mundi - Latin Mass (1971)

Like a few brave others (Electric Prunes, Spooky Tooth and Eela Craig), German underground band Os Mundi altered and recorded a lively rock version of a classical Latin mass. “Latin Mass” is a very psychedelic Krautrock album combined with Latin lyrics giving the listener something very original and progressive. The end result is a hybrid of lets say Amon Düül II, Tangerine Dream's (aka 'Electronic Meditation') and Spooky Tooth. This album was a tour de force of heavy, powerful guitars and huge vibrating garage organ grinds with an overall dark sinister atmosphere.

Part 1 Part 2

OK see you!!!