Happy New Year!

After doing all the holiday season (oct/nov/dec), I almost slipped up & forgot New Year's Eve.

I think here is literally how this year's series got started, all leading up to this one video:



"Happy New Year" by Shockabilly, from Heaven (1985)

Love that tune! And honestly a lot of Shockabilly...

I'd posted "Pile Up All Architecture " (another classic) on Facebook while on vacation, but I don't think it made it onto the blog itself - until now.



"Congratulations - A Happy New Year Song" by Pink Martini, from Joy To The World (2010)

I dunno. How about some Chinese lounge jazzfolk? A local record store owner was suggesting Pink Martini to me not that long ago. Not sure if that's my thing.



"New Year's Eve" by Tom Waits, from Bad As Me (2011)

Was trying to make it to "Auld Lang Syne," so that works out well. Final cut on the last Waits album, just last year (or 2 years ago, if you're reading this from 2013). Heard it was good, but I've not been keeping up.

Have a good one!

An empty bliss beyond this world, & others - The Caretaker (#10, 2011)

You can probably get a pretty good idea about most of this from the recent Caretaker/Leyland Kirby overview post. Earlier on, I covered the return of The Caretaker, since this was the first year under that guise in awhile. Most all of this 2011 stuff arrived via his annual digital subscription, which I don't believe was repeated for 2012. This is still mostly early-20th ballroom edits (of Caretaker fame), with some surprise electronics (from the Kirby EP's).

Let's start again with The Caretaker...



"Libet's delay" from An empty bliss beyond this world (2011)

Full album: Bandcamp / YouTube

The first thing that jumps out at me (as on "All you are going to want to do is get back there") is the vinyl snap, crackles & pops - they do not feel organic. Not sure if accurate or intentional, but it sounds like a different sound-field. Like they are looped separately and added in, or that a different effects-set is applied to them. Depending on the magnitude of the effect, it can become a little distracting. You might also notice the jump-cut out, which occurs through the album.

Tape flutter or maybe mechanical noise likewise creeps in - for example, "Moments of sufficient lucidity." Quite a few brief clips here too, under the two-minute mark, including "I feel as if I might be vanishing" and "Bedded deep in long term memory." As always, the full-album length is the correct approach, as the dreamy, time-transporting effect works best when allowed to accumulate and envelope the listener.

And then the Leyland Kirby LP was more compositional, more piano, and with longer tracks... like so:



"My dream contained a Star" from Eager to tear apart the stars (2011)

Full album: Bandcamp

The only really bite-sized one is "To Reject the World," based on a more ominous drone. They're all a little different, like the lullaby-march of "They are all dead, there are no skip at all." Weirdly, none of the subscription-only bonus tracks are out there now.... (I guess that's the point of exclusivity), but they kinda split the difference between the drifty album and the 3 more noisy Intrigue & Stuff EP's.



"Video 2000" by Leyland Kirby, from Intrigue & Stuff, Vol. 1 (2011)

This is what kicked off the series, and surprised me and (I would assume) many others. A little bit back to V/VM's glitchy finger-in-the-eye of the dancefloor? Whew.

I still don't know exactly what prompted these noise-bump EP's, and why they're under the Leyland Kirby tag. Seems pretty separate from that previous stuff, but maybe he's consolidating identities & styles back down together. One more from Vol. 1: "Ruined Visions."



"Eventually, it eats your lungs" by Leyland Kirby, from Intrigue & Stuff, Vol. 2 (2011)

Was originally going to start with the one short track, stereo-shifter "Speeded up slow motion." But that's too cool with the video! Third track brings another epic: the 20-minute "Complex Expedition."



"The watcher and the watched" from Intrigue & Stuff, Vol. 3

Hahahahaha! I made that video almost a year ago... Enjoy!!

If you're reading this in the distant future, check around the cyber-cloud for "Lie low, pick your moment" - a true return to his V/Vm roots.



"Remember Us" by Leyland Kirby, from Intrigue & Stuff, Vol. 3 bonus tracks (2011)

But it looks like me and Leyland are the only ones making videos for Vol. 3 & bonus tracks.

Genre - Modern Classical / Ambient Hauntology / Electro
Official - brainwashed.com/vvm/
Location - Berlin (still, I think) via UK

Review - Tiny Mix Tapes
Download - LK Bandcamp, CT Bandcamp
Purchase - Forced Exposure

Benevolent Yule Tidings

I've done these for Hallowe'en and Thanksgiving, but totally forgot that I'd done one last Christmas!



"White Christmas (live)" by The Flaming Lips, from The Soft Bulletin tour (1999)

I caught this tour in Houston the following April 7th. I don't recall any special Tax Day covers, but a strong show all around (especially as a trio). O yeah, and it was in some small metal club in South Houston.

Obviously, with the Lips I could have picked any number of holiday cheer options: "Christmas at the Zoo," "Little Drummer Boy," a whole secret Christmas album (2007), "A Change at Christmas (Say It Isn't So)," "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" (w/ Sean Ono Lennon), "Silent Night," "It's Christmas Time Again" (really anything at all from the Christmas on Mars film, 2008), "What A Wonderful World," "Miracle on 42nd Street," et cetera... And that's not even touching on the many random Jesus songs.

[Edit: HA! Immediately after posting, I see on the Flaming Lips Facebook feed: "Here's the newly discovered Imagene Peise track, Christmas Kindness Song. Love." ... posted 15 mins ago.]



"Please, Daddy (Don't Get Drunk This Christmas)" by John Denver, from Rocky Mountain Christmas (1975)

Project Grimm played this song on Friday, wearing these creepy Christmas luchador masks. It was a bit more rockin' version...

The opening act covered Mariah Carey for some reason. Irony, I'm thinkin'.



"Troika/Romance" by Sergei Prokofiev, from the score for Lieutenant Kijé (1934)

Here's some 20th-century classical music from Prokofiev. You can watch the Soviet film at Archive.org.

I know that piece has been used in tons of winter movies, but I just read about Free Design's song "Kije's Ouija." Groovy! It's Love and Death (1975) I was thinking of - hilarious film.

Top 10 Releases of 1990

So, not so much has changed since 1988 (or 1987) - many of the same bands still in the mix, I'm still in college. Well... I turned 21, and I'd moved out of the dorms. A great time for music & life!

What's interesting (maybe?) is that this list would have been about the same for me about 20 years ago. Not always the case.

#10 "Hurdy Gurdy Man" single - Butthole Surfers
piouhgd (1991) - Butthole Surfers
Lights Unfold - Beme Seed

"Hurdy Gurdy Man" by Butthole Surfers, from the single (1990)
"Old New Song" by Beme Seed, from Lights Unfold (1990)

Genre - Scattershot Depravity / Spirituality
Official - buttholesurfers.com/
Myspace - myspace.com/losbuttholesurfers
Location - Austin, Tex.

Review - Mark Prindle's Record Reviews
Download - Amazon, iTunes
Purchase - Amazon

I was all done preparing this list, and then I noticed only the single was from 1990. But it's too late go reverse course (and this has happened before) - so I'm crediting piouhgd/pioughd as 1990. Whatever, man... Not the best Surfers album by a long long shot, it seemed at the time like they were dumping on Rough Trade in contractual-obligation mode. And sure enough the label folded soon afterwards, with the Buttholes moving on to the major leagues.

It's kind of a hoot, though. "Psychedelic Jam" didn't really need lyrics (as "P.S.Y."), but it's still the only studio version released. "Something" is just "Something" (1983) to the tune of The Jesus & Mary Chain (1985). Timely! The album kicks off with "Revolution, Parts 1 & 2," which honestly might be the best thing you can say about it. The "Hurdy Gurdy Man" single/video was just this side of inexplicable... still. Beme Seed was the musical project featuring late-'80s Buttholes dancer Kathleen Lynch. It was weird.


#9 Goo (plus demo 7") - Sonic Youth

"Dirty Boots" from Goo (1990)
"Kool Thing" from Goo (1990)

Genre - Alternative Rock (& nothing more)
Official - sonicyouth.com/
Myspace - myspace.com/sonicyouth
Location - New York City, N.Y.

Review - Mark's Record Reviews
Download - Amazon, iTunes
Purchase - Amazon

Looking back, I'm not sure a major was the best course for Sonic Youth fans. Seems to have worked out pretty well for the band themselves, but this major-label debut seems like the high point of that phase (as far as I can tell). Sonic Youth's official channel has tons of stuff: official videos for "Tunic," "Titanium Expose," and "My Friend Goo" (???) Maybe others too. Swell Raymond Pettibon cover, but the '80s were gone.

The bootleg 7" (and CD-singles) had various rare demo's, edits, and a Neon Boys cover.


#8 Born in Blood - Pain Teens

"Pleasures of the Flesh" from Born in Blood (1990)
"She Shook Me" from Born in blood (1990)

Genre - Industrialistic Grind-Rock
Official - blissblood.com/PThome
Myspace - myspace.com/painteens
Location - Houston, Tex.

Review - All Music Guide
Purchase - Amazon

One of the few legitimately great hometown bands for those of us stuck here in Houston. The Trance Syndicate debut & breakout album, the 2 official videos - including "The Basement" - appeared on the Love & Napalm VHS comp (see #2 below). This was just the start of the late great run for the Pain Teens. I would credit this record specifically for opening my ears to more noise, electronic, and somewhat industrial-experimental music styles.

The 1990 CD also contained Case Histories (1989), so it's worth mentioning here - similar style and a step towards Born in Blood, with "Hands in Fire," "Unthinkable," "Veil of Light," and others...


#7 Rutles Highway Revisited - V/A
The Power of Pussy - Bongwater

"Cheese and Onions" by Galaxie 500, from Rutles Highway Revisited (1990)
"The Power of Pussy" [***NSFW***, but featuring Fred Schneider] by Bongwater, from The Power of Pussy (1990)

Genre - Neo-Classic Psychedelia
Official - kramershimmy.com/
Location - NYC, New York

Review - Man Without Shame / Haunted Creek Cafe
Download - Amazon, iTunes
Purchase - Amazon: Rutles / Power

After a few great releases, The Power of Pussy isn't quite up to its lofty predecessors. You can still just pick random songs out & hit weird-art-pop paydirt: "Nick Cave Dolls," "I Need A New Tape," "White Rental Car Blues," etc., etc. And there's no denying that Bongwater was just the band to cover the Peter Cook brush-off "Bedazzled." And/or to do a cover of The Weavers' "Kisses Sweeter than Wine"... or honestly any cover ever really.

The RHR comp is all covers of the Beatles-satire mockumentary band The Rutles, featuring the likes of: Galaxie 500! Dogbowl! King Missile! and Shonen Knife!! And also the likes of: Peter Stampfel! Tuli Kupferberg! Syd Straw & Marc Ribot!! Listen to the whole thing if you like.


#6 Pod - The Breeders
Bossanova - Pixies

"Hellbound" by The Breeders, from Pod (1990)
"Dig for Fire / Allison (live)" by Pixies, from Bossanova (1990)

Genre - Indie Noise-Pop
Official - pixiesmusic.com/
Myspace - myspace.com/pixies
Location - Boston, Mass.

Reviews - Mark Prindle reviews: Pod / Bossanova
Downloads - Amazon offers: Pod / Bossanova
Purchases - Amazon sells: Pod / Bossanova

These are the ones I probably wouldn't have included among my favorites for a few years later. I successfully avoided Pixies for most of their existence, although I remember liking the concept for that "Allison" video, on the Mtv. But sometimes a bit later, someone had Pod, and I was very impressed. Haven't listened to it for a long time, but I remember especially liking "When I Was A Painter" and the Beatles cover and "Fortunately Gone." But also the whole thing really - and then I noticed that it was produced by Steve Albini, which made no sense...

Bossanova doesn't have a lot of the ultimate classic Pixies tunes, but it's solid overall. As I mentioned, good videos - such as the one for "Velouria."


#5 Fear of a Black Planet - Public Enemy
AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted - Ice Cube
Kill At Will EP - Ice Cube

"Fight the Power" by Public Enemy, from Fear of a Black Planet (1990)
"Jackin' for Beats" by Ice Cube, from Kill At Will EP (1990)

Genre - Hip-Hop / Rap
Public Enemy - publicenemy.com/
Ice Cube - icecubemusic.com/
Location - Coastal Urban America (N.Y./L.A.)

Reviews - Prindle on Black Planet / Entertainment Weekly
Download - Ice Cube, Public Enemy
Purchase - Amazon: Fear, baby / AmeriKKKa's / Kill At Will

These were the last hurrah's for me & rap, probably for good. Ice Cube guested on "Burn Hollywood Burn," the Bomb Squad produced AmeriKKKa, and Chuck D guested on "Kool Thing." O yeah, and "Endangered Species (Tales from the Darkside)" too. Flavor Flav, boyeee!!

The Ice Cube debut is a classic no doubt, but you can't sleep on the Kill At Will EP, with the awesome "Jackin' for Beats," some remixes, "Dead Homiez," and "The Product." N-W-who?!


#4 Tulip - Steel Pole Bathtub
"Arizona Garbage Truck" single - Steel Pole Bathtub
Lurch/Butterfly Love CD - Steel Pole Bathtub


"One Thick Second" from Tulip (1990)
"Arizona Garbage Truck" from 7" single (1990)
"Paranoid" from Lurch EP (1990)
"I Am Sam I Am" from Butterfly Love (1989)

Genre - Noisiest-Rock
Official - steelpolebathtub.com/
Myspace - myspace.com/steelpolebathtubmyspace
Location - San Francisco, Calif.

Review - Mark's Record Reviews
Download - Amazon, iTunes
Purchase - Amazon

The genesis of a mighty empire, and at some point the loudest club gig I've ever heard. Man, were they loud! I'm including the CD-combo and original Tulip release dates for 1990, along with the awesome SFTRI single - because this run all belongs together. Excellence!

Opening song triple-feature: "Time to Die," "Christina," "Soul Cannon." Shame I can't find the 7" b-side cover of "Voodoo Chile"...


#3 In A Priest Driven Ambulance with Silver Sunshine Stares - Flaming Lips
Unconsciously Screamin' EP - Flaming Lips

"Unconsciously Screamin'" from In A Priest Driven Ambulance (1990)
"Lucifer Rising" from Unconsciously Screamin' EP (1990)

Genre - Indie-Distorto-Guitar-Heroism
Official - flaminglips.com/
Myspace - myspace.com/flaminglips
Location - Oklahoma City, Okla.

Review - both, by Mark Prindle
Download - Amazon, iTunes
Purchase - Amazon (with extra's!)

The first of a few perfect-10's in the Flaming Lips discog-post, and the first of two albums with Mercury Rev's Jonathan Donahue. Lotsa fuzzy guitars (as usual) but the songwriting has taken a great leap. All the way from shining Jesus to Can worship to Louis Armstrong. Because of the whole YouTube-Warners debacle, some is blocked - and yet somehow the whole album is up. Really nice.

#2 Love Poke Here - Ed Hall
Love & Napalm, Vol. 1 EP - V/A


"Blue Poland" by Ed Hall, from Love Poke Here (1990)
"It Will" by Pain Teens, from Love & Napalm, Vol. 1 7" EP (1990)

Genre - A Seriously Wild Party
Official - /wiki/Ed_Hall_(band)
Myspace - myspace.com/eddhalll
Location - Austin, Tex.

Review - The History of Rock Music, by Piero Scaruffi
Download - Amazon, iTunes
Purchase - Amazon

Somehow only gave LPG a 9/10 on the Ed Hall discography post - how?? It has the original "Buddha!" (Well, not the actually original Buddha - just the original version of their song...) It has "Sam Jackson" (made a decision). "Gilbert" too! This was my life story.

The first Love & Napalm was a 7" vinyl EP. In addition to the Pain Teens linked above, it had Crust with "Hard Stool," Lithium X-Mas covering Nilsson's "Jump into the Fire," and Ed Hall on the original "Grumbler!" Wow.

Over Thanksgiving weekend (end of Nov.), we headed up to Austin and the new(-ish) Emo's location, to see the Pain Teens ("The Poured Out Blood") and Ed Hall ("Pollution") reunions. Look for a Top 10 Live Shows entry! Crust also reunited ("Mosquito Beach"), but we got there too late for that.


#1 God Ween Satan: The Oneness - Ween

"El Camino" from God Ween Satan (1990)
"Tick" from God Ween Satan (1990)

Genre - Trans-Genre Bouillabaisse
Official - .ween.com/
Myspace - myspace.com/ween
Location - New Hope, Penn.

Review - Mark Prindle
Download - iTunes
Purchase - Chocodog, Amazon

Here's where I discovered one of my long-time favorites, those two songs up there on an Arizona Mixed Tape. As much as I dug this album, it took me quite awhile to appreciate everything that Ween accomplished here - balancing punk-rock amateurism and goofy in-joke humor with sneaky-good songs, while balancing lo-fi pre-taped drums with some pretty sweet playing & singing. Sure I could pick out this or that special tune - but other than the discovery lode, I'll just roll with the entire album. Peace!

Gnod Out for Free II

The old previous free stuff from GNOD (#3, 2011) was taken down awhile back. But now there's new options for old-school rarities from these psyched-electro-drone-rock-party-noise-all-stars!

Per their INGNODWETRUST Tumblr: "Three of our early albums are now available to download for free from Bandcamp - Enjoy!"

And that includes the Science & Industry cassette (2010), not among the previous offerings:

The other two for Name-Your-Price are The Somnambulist's Tale (2008, 1-track cassette) and the Sex, Drones & Broken Bones (or Secret Pathways to Hidden Lands) CDr (2009). Go now!

I must admit, I was kind of fretting about not being able to find the most recent Collisions 03 split between Gnod and $hit & $hine. What would I do? Somehow my searches actually lead me over to iTunes... who have it up! (???) I was so excited, I just bought it straight up without checking on Amazon - which I normally prefer (for true MP3). Anyway, if you were stressed about this like me, check those links.

Those stories might contradict what I'm about to say... but I've been thinking about taking it easy in the new year, new music-wise. I feel like I might need to regroup, explore back a bit more, rather than trying to keep up, take some time to digest what I've been gathering around me. Sometimes there's just too much of everything...

Then I read something like this at the Rocket Recordings blog:

But all we can say is that 2013, our 15th Anniversary year is going to be even bigger and better, with some amazing releases coming up by:

- Anthroprophh
- Gnod
- Teeth of the Sea
- Hills
- Goat
- A special 15th Anniversary release
- The Heads DVD (unlikely , but you never know)

... and I realize that nothing's gonna change a bit.

What could reinforce this more? Something like finding a YouTube promo for yet another Gnod release on Trensmat...



GNOD - Presents... Dwellings & Druss (excerpt, 2013)

O, lord... it's an LP. Yeah, something like that!

GNOD - Presents... Dwellings & Druss (LP sampler) by trensmat

EvMaEpRoArLwDaSvE

Obviously more tracks from the recent Emeralds (#2, 2010) record have made their way out...



"Search for Me in the Wasteland" from Just to Feel Anything

That's pretty swell - and quite different than the first couple we'd heard. Thinking more about getting... but first!


Emeralds - live at Unsound 2010, Krakow by FACT magazine

Check it out: live in Poland, 2010! ... from FACT Mag ... via Dummy Mag. I just found out that Emeralds will be playing live at the 35 Denton Festival in March. Maybe they can make it down here?

Dummy Mag also had a Steve Hauschildt (Emeralds synth) Hurricane Sandy mix streaming, so check that out too.

Plus a 2-part feature on "Vaporwave" and "Distroid." (???)


"Vaporwave" mix by DummyMag

Not sure if they ever covered bunnygl!tch before... Quick! Micro-genre before they come back!!

Øyvind, Øyvind, All the way Holm

Resuming the series of single-track artist profiles from the awesome For Lee Jackson in Space benefit comp (2012)...

We're up to #8, some Beatlesque folk-pop from Øyvind Holm!

Once again the name throws me off, making me think of others from the Scandinavian periphery: Øystein Aarseth (Euronymous of Mayhem), maybe Ólafur Arnalds, and even a little bit of Eyvind Kang (#8, 2007).




Holm is indeed Norwegian, working out of Trondheimfjord, pretty consistently since the late '90s, usually with some kind of steady band. From what I have gathered, the earliest of these groups was Dipsomaniacs (1997-2003). I certainly don't associate Norway with heavy drinking... Hahaha! Yes I do.

Couldn't find anything from their first two records - Bumble-bee Eyes (1997) and Reverb No Hollowness (1998). But here are some live stuff from a 2009 reunion show.



"Nothing Is For Keeps" from Braid of Knees (1999)

Kind of a classic pyschededelic drone-pop thing there - the sort of stuff I'm generally predisposed towards... if not exactly my bread & butter. Pretty similar on "Bring Flowers to the Courthouse" from Stethoscopic Notion (2001). Then along came The Tremolo of Her Mind... The Strings of Her Soul (2002).

I'm liking these album titles!



"Read My Mind (And Tell Me)" from Praying Winter (2003)

Time enough for another quick one - and then I'm moving on to Deleted Waveform Gatherings (2004-2011).



"Emily Barratt's Dead" from Complicated View (2006)

The ship? Probably doesn't matter... What's the over/under for my using some combination of: jangle, drone, psych, pop, '60s? I'll shoot for the under, but it's difficult - what with "Tiger Rider" from Baby Warfare (2008).



"Hate Waiting in Line" from Ghost, She Said (2009)

Ever so slightly a bit more rockin', as is "Shaman’s Tambourine." An earlier solo version of "This House" appeared on Trip Inside This House's Summer Solstice 2008 free-mix.

Deleted Waveform Gatherings have released as recently as 2011's Pretty Escape, with the more elegaic "Another One of Those." Albums available (along with free .MP3's) from Rainbow Quartz Records.

Then you have Øyvind Holm solo, which seems to be only two records. Last Judgement (2001) appears lost to the mists of time.



"Salt-Mutated Summer Breeze" from The Vanishing Act (2005)

And then another one a few years later. He's still diggin' that Vox Phaser too... The only other tune I found was "Sunday Church Bells Chime."

And much more recently, Holm's been involved in a few duos. Ryanbanden (with Øyvind Ryan & others), Sugarfoot (with Hogne Galåen), and something with Ulf Risnes (from the band Three Small Chinese People).

Okay, that's all I've got for now. To be continued...

The Story So Far: Leyland "The Caretaker" Kirby #10

This will be cursory, if not brief. Going back at least to his days as V/Vm, James Leyland Kirby has been extremely prolific, in a variety of modes, continuously, for a long time (since mid-'90s at least). The Caretaker &c. have also been fairly well documented on the web, with one notable exception.

V/Vm caused quite the hullabaloo in England over his "Pig" single (1999), when feeding sounds were mistook for a slaughterhouse soundscape. Despite this auspiciously scandalous ground-zero, I cannot find any streaming evidence of this prankster art collage.

The V/Vm Test label released mostly his own stuff, and weird theme compilations (curious about that Falco Tribute 2x7"). And he also gave Kid606 an early platform (then / now).



"Lady in Red" from 7" single (2000)

But he really broke through with uglified & distorted reprocessings of pop hits, like that NME single-of-the-week, or like "Take My Beef Away" or John Lennon. With "White Christmas" (2000) kinda pointing the way more towards The Caretaker. On the other hand, I missed all of that the first go-round.

At one time, huge amounts of The Caretaker discography were available for free download - which was the inspiration for the original post with the Free Music tag. But all of those archives disappeared a long, long time ago...

For about a decade, most everything from The Caretaker took a somewhat similar approach: loop melodic portions of old ballroom 78's (with attendant clicks and scratches), add some echo or reverb or distortions, and either let roll or compose from those modular sections. The results are linked (before or after) with an ongoing theme of the nature, tricks & travails, and cruelties of memory. The Caretaker name is in reference to Jack Torrance in Kubrick's The Shining (1980), who is haunted by the memories and tragedies of the Overlook Hotel - with chilling results.

One final note before we fly through the years: album-title links go to The Caretaker Bandcamp. All digital full-album downloads seem to cost around ₤5 or so ($8) - try something out, you'll love it!



"Thanks" from Selected Memories From The Haunted Ballroom (1999)

Good place to start on the first album, but not everything is that straightforward. Wouldn't be near as interesting that way. The opening track "The Haunted Ballroom" seeps up through the floorboards, darker than shadows.



"We Cannot Escape the Past" from A Stairway To The Stars (2001)

Now that's a great unofficial video. (Remember album titles link to full-record Bandcamp pages.) Drakulady has some good taste with a few videos like "Emptiness." But here is why I do all this blogging - discovering gems like "Cloudy Since You Went Away" (live?!). Yeah, live Caretaker... maybe. (original.) The blue-filtered photography videos, like the first one above and the title track here, are from Kirby himself.



"Stardust" from We'll All Go Riding On A Rainbow (2003)

I couldn't decide between kinda-bleak ("Hoping for Some Kind of Recognition") and maybe-more-hopeful ("We'll All Go Riding On A Rainbow"). Comment on "The Weeping Dancefloor":

i was thinking about how all those people playing in the big band orchestra are probably dead but their music lives on inside the caretaker. - EvilEtiquette

"memory six" & "memory seven" from Theoretically Pure Anterograde Amnesia (#1 Drone/Ambient, 2005)

Not too many unofficial from this one. You can check out the full album + bonus tracks (Additional Amnesiac Memories) either as a YouTube playlist, or at Bandcamp:


I think maybe I should say a bit more here, seeing as this was the release that first exposed me to The Caretaker scene. Going from memory (ha!), these 72 tracks were released free via internet over the course of a year-long project. Then collected into a 6xCD box-set, which is where I come in - courtesy of Boomkat front-page hype.

Wikipedia description of titular condition:

In cases of pure anterograde amnesia, patients have recollections of events prior to the injury, but cannot recall day-to-day information or new facts presented to them after the injury occurred.

Deleted Scenes/Forgotten Dreams (I always forget I'd listed this as #15 of 2007) - one track, or at least title, over 4 parts, double-LP.

For some reason, I associate this one with another JLK identity - The Stranger, through which he's released a self-titled (1997) and Bleaklow (2008). I'd downloaded the first way back when, but never even heard about the more recent one.



"Lacunar Amnesia" from Persistent Repetition Of Phrases (2008)

Terrific album, maybe the best place to begin if just starting out. But who knows? (Click title for all...) I still regret missing the vinyl edition, which sold out too quickly. If only hear for select tunes, randomly chosen: "Rosy Retrospection" and "Long Term (Remote)." This video for "Past Life Regression" might be work-appropriate, due to POV sexytimes via Swedish/Russian film.

That's about it, except for a few web-mixes, of a similar nature. "Recollected Memories from the Museum of Garden History" (2008) with previous Caretaker material, for an event at the Museum of Garden History in London. Here's pretty much the whole thing (on YouTube). Then came Recollections from Old London Town (2009), still available for free download from The Wire. This one includes passages from The Stranger's "Kirkbymoorside" (from Bleaklow), "Von Restorff Effect" and others.

Wow. Okay, we're closing in on the end... promise.

Leyland Kirby broke out under that name in 2009 with 1 track on The Caretaker collection Recollections from Old London Town, and that year's more piano-based trilogy of 2xLP's Sadly, The Future No Longer Is What It Was (#3 Drone/Ambient, 2009).



"And Nothing Comes Between The Sadness And The Scream" from Sadly, The Future No Longer Is What It Was (2009)

Check out the HUGE double-trilogy compare & contrast series (against OPN's), probably my biggest project outside of Top 10'ing the entire popular music era. Since it was six vinyl LP's, there's too much to go through here - so here's my video for "I've Hummed This Tune To All The Girls I've Known" then. I'm also very fond of the title "Not Even Nostalgia Is As Good As It Used To Be."

That first year, Kirby apparently released 2 MP3 collections under the title Lost Moments, Errors And Accidents (#001 & #002), but I can't find them anywhere anymore. Also un-locate-able: When It Rains, The Puddles Shine Black download, and "What A World, What A Life, What A Love" downloadable. You can still stream it at The Wire link, but I can't find a D/L there.

Both of The Caretaker and Leyland Kirby aliases combined for the final Top 10 of 2011 entry - wrapping it up just in time: soon.

Oldsters Return Again

I've touched on the acclaimed ladies and rockers of 2012, based on what I saw other people listifying. Now we're going to dig deep into the musico-historical psyche of Canadia, and I guess some USA too.

Might as well get America out of the way first... and that doesn't mean NY.



"Duquesne Whistle" by Bob Dylan, from Tempest (2012)

I liked Together Through Life (2009) pretty well, but this new one by Bob Dylan (#3, 1966) is getting even more love. I never got the Christmas album... Hard to judge from one video from one song, but I'll probably pick this one up eventually. I like Bob.



"Show Me The Place" by Leonard Cohen, from Old Ideas (2012)

Never have known too much of Cohen's music, but I have respect. Apparently these recent live tours have been completely epic, but I don't remember him coming around here. (Well, Austin it would seem...) The album also received a lotta love.



"Psychedelic Pill" by Neil Young, from Psychedelic Pill (2012)

Like Cohen, ol' Neil Young in secretly Canadian - but it's kinda one of those "open secrets." Back together with Crazy Horse for this one... Did I ever tell you about the time I saw Sonic Youth open for Neil Young & Crazy Horse at the Summit? In 1991, that was! They opened with "Tom Violence" as we were finding our seats. Thurston wore a Pain Teens Born in Blood t-shirt. The Neil Young crowd was not impressed - after the set, many seemed on the verge of rioting. That was not a pleasant trip to the restroom, in my Butthole Surfers acid-sheet-artwork t-shirt! I read special emphasis in my neighbor's menacing insistence about "Cortez the Killer" ... Wait, what was I talking about? O yeah, Sonick Youth! Their stadium opening set was a lot like this (3 weeks earlier).

Nah, I just really don't have that much to say about the 2012 Neil Young. Might be great, but I haven't been drawn to his new output in a long while. Maybe I should read up on this one. There's quite a few official videos from this album on Neil Young's YouTube. I did see a Psychedelic Pill Blu-Ray at Cactus, which might explain that.

Historical Archive of Linus Pauling, Qua.

So I'm headed up to Cactus Music for an in-store record release show from the Linus Pauling Quartet (#9, 1995). Some long-time favorites & all-around fun guys:

The Linus Pauling Quartet's Assault on the Vault of the Ancient Bonglords [Official Video] from Ramon LP4 on Vimeo.

***NSFW*** screaming & cursing intro... From the all-new Assault on the Vault of the Ancient Bonglords (2012), the 3xCD archival career retrospective compilation. Actually box-set, I guess, since it comes with a new (the 1st) Druids & Demons module! You might remember their own "D&D" from the 2010 ST37 split-7" release show that I missed. Yeah, just 2½ years between the rule-set and first module - that's Linus time!

And I'm actually pretty excited - no tracklist announced yet, and then what about the setlist? For the comp, I'm hoping for pretty significant space for material not available on any LP4 CD's.



"Through Darkness and Distance" from the Untitled "Alien" LP (1997)

No-one expects a 22-minute "Improvise Now," but maybe the above album opener from this lost & limited vinyl-only release? They also played a ROTB-less "Luis Black is California" just last year (#13 Live Show, 2011). A little less likely would be their Italian split-7" (2002) cover of Pink Floyd rarity "Vegetable Man," but still welcome.

Or what about their cover of Kraftwerk's "The Hall of Mirrors?" Oh, I know what you're saying: "But that was on the C6H8O6 CD (2003)." To which I reply: "Not that version... the 18-minute live bonus track on the Euro/vinyl-edition of Ashes in the Bong of God (2000)!"

And that's before even touching on complilation-only tracks ("Dartania!") or live radio spots (KFJC bootleg from the mists of legendry!)... But y'know, whatever's cool with me.

The other obvious question is whether the release live show will feature any super surprises / blasts from the past...



"Astral Toads" from Immortal Chinese Classics Music (1995)

The obvious way to go would be "Linus Theme," but I'm really hopin' for "Astral Toads" to find a way. Seems like a couple of other debut album tunes have popped up live here & there... "Hamburger Girl" for certain.



"Cole Porter I" from The 26th Commandment: Thou Shalt Expand Thy Mind (Ptolemaic Terrescope #26, 1999)

Haha, I forgot that version is a non-album track as well. Seems like a pretty decent possibility, given the type of old-school callbacks of recent times. Although Linus actually played "The Colour Out of Space" as recently as 2006. So maybe it could be anything??

[Edit, afterwards: Great show! Setlist covered the whole history...
Alien Abduction / Drunkest Man / Hamburger Girl [studio] / Roll Out the Bong (w/ sax) / Beer, Women and Sunflower Seeds / Nowhere / Waiting for the Axe to Fall / Assault on the Vault of the Ancient Bonglords (1st performance ever!) / Stonebringer...

And the comp? The module looks great, and ⅔ of the music too... Hard to tell, because tracks listed are the same for Discs 2 & 3.

d1t01: "Linus Theme"
d1t02: "ROTB/Luis Black Is California"
d1t03: "Monkey"
d1t04: "Dance of the Bug People"
d1t05: "Beer, Women and Sunflower Seeds"
d1t06: "Possum Love (live)"
d1t07: "Drunkest Man"
d1t08: "Cole Porter II"
d1t09: "Cannonball"
d1t10: "La Tapatia"
d1t11: "Old Crow"
d1t12: "40 oz."
d1t13: "Southern Pine"
d1t14: "Hawg!!"

Disc 2 appears to be...
d2t01: "Penis Free Zone"
d2t02: "Class of '85"
d2t03: "Larry's Song"
d2t04: "Henry Floats"
d2t05: "Hendrix's Boots"
d2t06: "Sunn Beta"
d2t07: "Insomnia"
d2t08: "Interstellar Absolute Power Bootycall Explosion"
d2t09: "Brain"
d2t10: "Mastadon [The Dunlavy]"
d2t11: "Switzer"
d2t12: "Alien Abduction"
d2t13: "Waiting for the Axe to Fall"

d3t01: "Hamburger Girl"
d3t02: "Friendswood Development Co."
d3t03: "Through Darkness and Distance"
d3t04: "Dartania"
d3t05: "Turtle Song"
d3t06: "The Eye of God"
d3t07: "The Colour Out of Space"
d3t08: "Two Artifacts"
d3t09: "Rats (live improv)"
d3t10: "Jason Bill (live)"
d3t11: "Thorn"
d3t12: "Porno in the Sink (Rock mix)"

... Pretty sweet!!]