Acid Mother’s Temple –
‘Saint Captain Freak Out & the Magic Bamboo Request’ (Ektro)
More twisted psychedelia from the Japanese commune/band
known as Acid Mother’s Temple. This time out they’ve released a collection of
more rock oriented pieces. That’s not to say this is even remotely accessible
to anyone who doesn’t like insane experimental freak outs, but the songs are
shorter and on occasion more structured than much of their output. There’s also
a fair amount of vocals, although for the most part the human voice is used more
like another instrument than as a means of communication. The album starts off
with a sound collage called “I am St. Captain Freak Out” (among the sounds: the
roar of Japanese monster King Ghidorah) before jumping into the frenzied
drumming, acid rock guitar, and swirling synthesizer effects of “Planet Pussy
Virgo”. “Cosmic Magic of Love” is a short, mellow affair which seems to have
some elements of traditional Japanese music thrown into the mix. From there
the band explores noise rock (“Dead Man is Smoking”), odd vocal workouts (“Hi
Twiggy Cheesecake”, which reminds me of Zappa’s “Help, I’m a Rock”), minimalism
(“Sir Satanic Magic Bamboo Jerks Off”, “Man on the Holy Mountain”), acid rock
(“Maggot Head Cheese”), and even their own twisted take on fifties rock ‘n’ roll
(“Sweet Lucille, or Lick my Milk off Baby”). If you dig Amon Duul II, Can,
Chrome, and Zappa at his weirdest check this one out. (Bob Ignizio)
The official list of duties
spread out among the five members of D.C.’s Black Eyes includes two drummers,
three percussionists, two bass players and all five on vocals. As you can
imagine the Black Eyes let the rhythm hit ‘em and then some. Their ten song
debut is a near relentless onslaught of beats and chants that’s about as primal
as anything you can imagine. The group makes good use of its arsenal,
experimenting with the different vocal tones of the members and putting together
a sound collage that is equal parts traditional D.C. hardcore and old school
rap. Like the similarly minded Blood Brothers these guys know the power of the
human voice. The vocal dynamics remind me of the sassy boy/girl tradeoffs of
the Kiss Offs or Huggy Bear. At times on songs like “Deformative” and the aptly
titled “Speaking in Tongue” you’d swear that there was a female singer in the
mix somewhere but unless there’s some chick named Hugh in the band, that’s
simply not the case. Screams and chants come at you from all directions as the
drums and bass(es) provide the foundation for stuttering guitar lines. This
stripped down rhythmic approach is similar to the territory claimed by the Liars
on their most recent EPs. You either love it or find it completely mind
numbingly repetitive and annoying. I give it the thumb’s up for its creativity
and energy. It ain’t perfect, but I think these guys are on to something. (Dave
Ignizio)
I think Zack Wylde is the best thing to happen to Ozzy
since Randy Rhoads. That said, his side project Black Label Society doesn’t do
much for me. Although in my opinion Wylde is a hell of a guitarist, a pretty
decent songwriter, and an adequate vocalist this album just doesn’t grab me.
Maybe Ozzy gets all the best stuff, I don’t know. This isn’t bad, it’s just
nothing special. Zakk serves up a few tunes that sound like Ozzy rejects
(“Final Solution”, “Destruction Overdrive”, and “We Live no More”), so-so
stoner rock (“Stoned & Drunk”, “Funeral Bell”), southern rock (“The Blessed
Hellride”), and Beatlesesque pop (“Dead Meadow”). The Ozzman himself shows up
to contribute vocals to “Stillborn”, a tune that could have just as easily wound
up on one of his albums. It’s one of the few tracks to really stand out on this
collection. I also liked “Blackened Waters” and the aforementioned “Dead
Meadow”. Overall, however, I can’t really recommend this one. (Bob Ignizio)
Comets on Fire – ‘Field
Recordings from the Sun’ (Bada Bing)
Listening to this brings to mind Chrome or The Butthole
Surfers at their weirdest and wildest with just a touch of sixties acid rock.
The vocals are kept pretty low in the mix and distorted, so with no handy lyric
sheet included I’m at a loss to tell you what any of this is about. I’m
guessing drugs and/or the metaphysical are involved somehow, though. The
overall sound is kind of sludgy and lo fi but with lots of cool stereo
separation effects making this a good headphone album. The frenzied leads are
drenched in effects and more concerned with creating cool and freaky sounds than
any sort of traditional concepts of melody. “Beneath the Ice Age” and “Return
to Heaven” are pounding psychedelic freak outs, while “The Unicorn” is a nice
acoustic interlude before things get intense again on “ESP” and “The Black
Poodle”. By the end the album started to get a bit boring for me but overall
I’d still recommend it, especially for those who like a little background music
for their voyages through inner space. (Bob Ignizio)
More twisted psychedelia from the Japanese commune/band
known as Acid Mother’s Temple. This time out they’ve released a collection of
more rock oriented pieces. That’s not to say this is even remotely accessible
to anyone who doesn’t like insane experimental freak outs, but the songs are
shorter and on occasion more structured than much of their output. There’s also
a fair amount of vocals, although for the most part the human voice is used more
like another instrument than as a means of communication. The album starts off
with a sound collage called “I am St. Captain Freak Out” (among the sounds: the
roar of Japanese monster King Ghidorah) before jumping into the frenzied
drumming, acid rock guitar, and swirling synthesizer effects of “Planet Pussy
Virgo”. “Cosmic Magic of Love” is a short, mellow affair which seems to have
some elements of traditional Japanese music thrown into the mix. From there
the band explores noise rock (“Dead Man is Smoking”), odd vocal workouts (“Hi
Twiggy Cheesecake”, which reminds me of Zappa’s “Help, I’m a Rock”), minimalism
(“Sir Satanic Magic Bamboo Jerks Off”, “Man on the Holy Mountain”), acid rock
(“Maggot Head Cheese”), and even their own twisted take on fifties rock ‘n’ roll
(“Sweet Lucille, or Lick my Milk off Baby”). If you dig Amon Duul II, Can,
Chrome, and Zappa at his weirdest check this one out. (Bob Ignizio)
The official list of duties
spread out among the five members of D.C.’s Black Eyes includes two drummers,
three percussionists, two bass players and all five on vocals. As you can
imagine the Black Eyes let the rhythm hit ‘em and then some. Their ten song
debut is a near relentless onslaught of beats and chants that’s about as primal
as anything you can imagine. The group makes good use of its arsenal,
experimenting with the different vocal tones of the members and putting together
a sound collage that is equal parts traditional D.C. hardcore and old school
rap. Like the similarly minded Blood Brothers these guys know the power of the
human voice. The vocal dynamics remind me of the sassy boy/girl tradeoffs of
the Kiss Offs or Huggy Bear. At times on songs like “Deformative” and the aptly
titled “Speaking in Tongue” you’d swear that there was a female singer in the
mix somewhere but unless there’s some chick named Hugh in the band, that’s
simply not the case. Screams and chants come at you from all directions as the
drums and bass(es) provide the foundation for stuttering guitar lines. This
stripped down rhythmic approach is similar to the territory claimed by the Liars
on their most recent EPs. You either love it or find it completely mind
numbingly repetitive and annoying. I give it the thumb’s up for its creativity
and energy. It ain’t perfect, but I think these guys are on to something. (Dave
Ignizio)
I think Zack Wylde is the best thing to happen to Ozzy
since Randy Rhoads. That said, his side project Black Label Society doesn’t do
much for me. Although in my opinion Wylde is a hell of a guitarist, a pretty
decent songwriter, and an adequate vocalist this album just doesn’t grab me.
Maybe Ozzy gets all the best stuff, I don’t know. This isn’t bad, it’s just
nothing special. Zakk serves up a few tunes that sound like Ozzy rejects
(“Final Solution”, “Destruction Overdrive”, and “We Live no More”), so-so
stoner rock (“Stoned & Drunk”, “Funeral Bell”), southern rock (“The Blessed
Hellride”), and Beatlesesque pop (“Dead Meadow”). The Ozzman himself shows up
to contribute vocals to “Stillborn”, a tune that could have just as easily wound
up on one of his albums. It’s one of the few tracks to really stand out on this
collection. I also liked “Blackened Waters” and the aforementioned “Dead
Meadow”. Overall, however, I can’t really recommend this one. (Bob Ignizio)
Listening to this brings to mind Chrome or The Butthole
Surfers at their weirdest and wildest with just a touch of sixties acid rock.
The vocals are kept pretty low in the mix and distorted, so with no handy lyric
sheet included I’m at a loss to tell you what any of this is about. I’m
guessing drugs and/or the metaphysical are involved somehow, though. The
overall sound is kind of sludgy and lo fi but with lots of cool stereo
separation effects making this a good headphone album. The frenzied leads are
drenched in effects and more concerned with creating cool and freaky sounds than
any sort of traditional concepts of melody. “Beneath the Ice Age” and “Return
to Heaven” are pounding psychedelic freak outs, while “The Unicorn” is a nice
acoustic interlude before things get intense again on “ESP” and “The Black
Poodle”. By the end the album started to get a bit boring for me but overall
I’d still recommend it, especially for those who like a little background music
for their voyages through inner space. (Bob Ignizio)