Vastieu Ramen - Tongue Night (Bonbon Bruises, 2009)

Vastieu Ramen - Side B (The Guy Who Cut Himself In The Neck 3 Times In Brazil / Moron / Telepathy / Dummy / Ajinomoto Marina / Kanebou Mogu / Tongue Night / Gryptodon)


This Tetsunori Tawaraya guy is pretty active. In addition to Vastieu Ramen, his solo project, there's 2up (with Keiichi Nakano) and Dmonstrations (with Nick Barnett and Aaron Wade). Not to mention all of the graphic design and art he makes. I have no idea if his newest tape Tongue Night on Bonbon Bruises is anything like anything else he does but I do know one thing. There's only one place that can be the home of something this utterly fucked up. Yup. Japan.

Tongue Night is absolute insanity. I'm talking the kind of insanity like a mad chemist in his bubbling luh-bor-a-tory who just drank a potion that turned him into a screeching werewolf who's sole desire is to make the most ungodly blistering noise. The kind of insanity you catch a glimpse of in a dark alley of some half humanly creatures making music from shredded electrical wires and smelly dumpsters. Only Japan. Obviously.

This shit is spastic and chaotic, frantic and frenetic, and 100% nonsensical awesomeness. I don't think I've ever heard fake free jazz freak folk noise before but I'm sure this is the best of it's kind. If Tetsunori is a totally normal down to earth guy, then I feel like I don't know anything anymore. He just has to be the craziest motherfucker in the world because that's the only way Tongue Night could ever get made.

Prince Rama Of Ayodhya / The Great Valley - Divine / Journey (Spooky Town Artifacts, 2009)

Prince Rama Of Ayodhya - Aeolian Divinex


What we got here is a brand new split 12" from Spooky Town featuring the sitting-right-under-my-nose-awesomeness of The Great Valley and fellow foreign sounding locals, Prince Rama Of Ayodhya. Boston's got a lot of freaky folky weirdness (thanks in great part to the Whitehaus) but these two bands seem like a great pairing for a split. Two sides of the same coin these guys.

I've heard Prince Rama on CD before and let me just tell you that vinyl is where it's at for this bunch. Their sound is a hundred bazillion times better when it's scraped through a needle instead of zapped through a laser. Their side showcases what they've become so fucking good at: tribal, spiritual, droning earthly sounds with lead singer Taraka belting out songs in her inimitably spectacular voice. They're able to combine traditional acoustic instruments with electronics in a way that sounds anything but straightforward and normal. They take New Age and Indian influences and make something wholly unique and enjoyable out of it. I keep thinking it sounds like music that I would never listen to, yet I always find myself throwing it on and loving the shit out of it.

Somehow The Great Valley managed to slip through my radar undetected. That is, until they put out this fantastic as fuck split with Prince Rama. The Valley consists of two dudes with crazy names, Big Dipper & Diamond Mouse, who make some freaked out old timey folk. They sound like if O'Death was trying less to be like artsy Man Men and instead went to live with their certifiable uncle out on the prairie spending their days drinking moonshine and howling with the coyotes. There's foot stompin beats and disharmonious melodies, laid back ukuleles and humming organs, singing saws and scratchy voices, all of the elements for the perfect record to impress your friends with at your next ho-down.

Divine / Journey is a sweet little piece of wax that will satisfy your cravings for worldly & old fashioned crazy shit. And it's cheap. Like, $8 cheap. Only 300 were made, each packaged in a recycled record jacket. Hand made ftw! Go on and grab a copy.

Madagascar - Goodbye East Goodbye West (Gaarden, 2009)

Madagascar - Goodbye East Goodbye West


Goodbye East Goodbye West has been out since 2007. Why am I reviewing it now? 2 reasons. 1: I don't give a shit about release dates. 2: The fine folks at Gaarden Records thought Madagascar's second album was awesome enough to give it the vinyl treatment this year. So what I'm reviewing is the stunning LP and not the lame ass CD (no offense, Western Vinyl).

If you haven't heard Baltimore's Madagscar yet (like me), then you're in for a delicious treat. GEGW is a chill record with all of my favorite instruments. Accordion, singing saw, glockenspiel, bells and chimes, and the obligatory guitar/percussion/etc combined to make charming as fuck tunes for dancing with your lady in the ballroom or moping on your stoop in your raggedy ass knickers getting drunk on basement vodka. A little bit of Devotchka, some Beirut and Hauschka, throw in some subtle drone and you got yourself one hell of an album.

Now for those of you that have heard Goodbye East already and perhaps even own the digital version, it's time to wise up and get your hands on this hot robin's egg blue vinyl. Not to mention that it's got a super slick letter-pressed jacket with artwork from Justin Lucas. And, like most things Gaarden, this is limited. Only 500 copies available. Do yourself a favor and grab one before it's on Ebay for $150.

Surprise!

I'm going on the yearly trip to Elise's uncle's cabin in Maine. I'll be gone for a while so, as usual, I made a mix for myself to listen to on my trip and for you to listen to while I'm partying. The "Surprise!" isn't, "Surprise! I'm going on vacation." It's more like, "Surprise Elise! I made a mix for you." She left for the cabin before me to hang with her parents, so I made this for her. And for you. Get it?

It's got some great fucking stuff on it and is very appropriate for a few days in a secluded, forested, cabin by the lake. Some banjos, Tuvan throat singing, an accapella Who cover, outsider weirdness, chill acoustic tunes, and good old fashioned garage rock. Everything should be right up your alley.

Surprise! Mix
Beach House - D.A.R.L.I.N.G.
Nathan Bell - Devil's Breath
Moondog - Chant
Hella - Biblical Violence
The Modern Lovers - I Wanna Sleep In Your Arms
Mugison - Murr Murr
Pete Seeger - Devilish Mary
The Dodos - Acorn Factory
Ilyas Ahmed - Out Again
The Monks - Higgle-Dy-Piggle-Dy
Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkwayd - Good Old Pig, Gone To Avalon
Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Walk, Don't Run
Huun-Huur-Tu - Eki Attar
Petra Haden - Relax
Neil Young - Guitar Solo, No. 2
Marissa Nadler - Little Hells
Manu Chao - Lagrimas De Oro

Haiku Review: Pine Smoke Lodge - Kambing Utan (Existential Cloth, 2009)

Pine Smoke Lodge - Wake


Pine Smoke Lodge
Kambing Utan (download)
/floating through jungles/
/consuming vapors and mist/
/shimmer and twinkle/

OOPs: Bakersfield Boogie Boys - Bakersfield Boogie Boys EP (Rhino, 1980)

Bakersfield Boogie Boys - I Get Around


OOPs is going to be a regular (Weekly? Every Friday?) post where I'll upload copies of albums that I have that are out of print so that all you fine folks can join in on the fun.

The Bakersfield Boogie Boys were (are?) a semi-mysterious band from Bakersfield, CA. People thought they were Devo is disguise, or possibly the owner of Rhino. However all the rumors were turned out to be horseshit. They were just 3 farmer dudes who wanted to be like Devo.

Bakersfield Boogie Boys is the only record they ever put out. It's only got 4 songs on it and 3 of them are covers. There's Haggard's "Okie From Muskogee," the Stones' "Get Off My Cloud," and my personal favorite, "I Get Around" by The Beach Boys. The only original one is called "Flying Tigers." It's pretty cool, but nowhere near as awesome as the covers.

These guys must've worshipped Devo, which should be obvious for every possible reason. Just look at the album cover. That's fucking hilariously dumb. There's also some other inspiration going on too, I think, like The Residents and Talking Heads. This shit is just plain crazy though. I mean, I've heard some weird covers before, but nothing quite like their version of "I Get Around." It's bonkers. Totally nuts.

Yours thanks to Media Fire.

P.S. If you think the name OOPs is too stupid, I'm always open to suggestions.

Treetops - Eternal Sky (Monorail Trespassing, 2009)

Treetops - Side A (Hope Always / Arrogant Youth / Voice Of Man)


The opening track, “Hope Always,” sounds like the wind is breathing and “Voice Of Man” could be the sound of clouds meditating.

Full review on diskant.

Chicagojazzen - Brachiosaurus (Native Parts, 2009)

Chicagojazzen - Side A (Shaolins 140 nävar / Synthpop / Stadium IV / Burträsk / Kallt stål / Skotta isgrotta / PZ / Ulmer & Per / Benny har inga ögon / Doris Kiosk / Jag har inga pengar)


Chicagojazzen is not from Chicago. Chicagojazzen does not sound "jazzen." Just forget everything you thought you knew about this guy 'cause you have no fucking idea.

Brachiosaurus is a crazily charming record that will probably, at the very least, make you bob your head and tap your foot a bit. Even though it's just one guy, Erik Karlsson, there's still this artsy collaboration feel to it. Like a bunch of friends got together in their old preschool classroom and made bizarre pop music with whatever they could find. And by necessity, it ended up sounding completely lo-fi and blown out, as if they didn't have any real recording equipment and the instruments they used were busted to begin with.

I'm totally digging everything on this record. There's all sorts of synths, real and fake drum beats, ukuleles, records scratching, hand claps, movie sound bites, ghostly harmonies, tambourines, xylophones, and pretty much anything else you can imagine. The best part is it never sounds like a mess. It's 100% cohesive and keeps your attention for the whole hour.

Somehow Chicagojazzen made a tape that is, like, 10 times better than most of the other tapes I own. And this coming from some dude I'd previously never heard of. You guys better get on this quick, as there's only 60 copies of Brachiosaurus. As far as I know, Native Parts might be the only place you can get one for now but trust me, it's worth it even with the exchange rate.

The Monks - Black Monk Time (no label, 1997)

The Monks - Shut Up


The Monks - Higgle-Dy-Piggle-Dy


I've been listening to a decent amount of old garage rock lately, specifically The Monks and The Sonics. After searching around a bit for a copy of The Monks' Black Monk Time on vinyl, I found a copy at a record store while visiting a school in Rochester, NY, only to get home and find out what I bought was an "unofficial" release. Technically, it's a bootleg of the CD release by Repertoire. But whatever, it sounds great and has a few extra songs on it. Who cares if it's not 180 gram and doesn't have extensive liner notes.

I guess it's necessary to mention the fact that The Monks were 5 American soldiers stationed in Germany in the '60s who decided to make some music. Once they were all discharged, they just stuck around and kept at it. The songs on Black Monk Time are not your usual typical garage style and I fucking love it for that. The Monks are often called the founders of krautrock (even if they didn't know it at the time) and while the motorik beats are pretty unmistakable, I can't say I really hear it. Maybe it's just hard for me to distinguish the obvious garage sound with what I normally think of with krautrock.

Aside from the garage and kraut, there's lots of other crazy stuff going on. Strange sounds like fucked up banjos and organs, and crazy lyrics. I would put money on the fact that these guys knew exactly what they were saying and were just seeing if they could get away with it.

I think Black Monk Time is one of those records that's appealing on so many levels. There's the novelty factor (American soldiers dressed like Monks living in Germany? Really?), there's the forefathers of krautrock thing (which should be enough for anyone), and then there's the fact that this is just awesome as shit '60s garage rock. How could anyone not want to listen to this?

Show Worthy 8/17 - 8/23

Since I'm going to Weirdstock (or Chaos First, haven't decided yet) and because there's not too much going on this week, I'll make this short.



Double Awake
Monday, August 18
Double Awake at Weirdo Records (ddddonate, 8:00, all ages)
This guy rules. Power drone at it's finest. Not sure how rowdy it'll get at Weirdo. Might be more chill stuff but whatever he ends up doing, I assure you it will be awesome.



The Needy Visions via
Friday, August 21
The Needy Visions, Hilken Mancini at The Milky Way (FREEEEE, 9:00, 21+)
The Needy Visions are the new wave of Boston throwback to jangly '60s garage punk and they are tons of fun. Mancini's done a shit ton of stuff and is well placed alongside The Needy Visions on the bill at the NEW Milky Way (same cool place, different location).

Haiku Review: Terminal 11 - Kaleidoscope Eyes (Cock Rock Disco, 2009)

Terminal 11 - Unicorn Peyote Kaleidoscope


Terminal 11
Kaleidoscope Eyes (download)
/ambient breakcore/
/slam your face on the table/
/see stars, know the truth/

Video: Cassettes Won't Listen - Into The Hillside

That pixely thing is called datamoshing. I guess. And the music thing is called instrumental laptop tropical funk. Or something.

Asher & Brendan Murray at Cafe Fixe

Brendan Murray & Asher
Brendan Murray
Asher

Photos by Susanna Bolle (my camera was acting up).
Check out more on Flickr.


Last night was the second "experimental coffee house" put on by Non-Event (who totally rule). The first was Geoff Mullen & Keith Fullerton Whitman (also at Fixe), which I sadly missed out on. But I was determined to check out this seemingly jive coffee shop who hosts cool music and HOLY SHIT YOU NEED TO GO. Let me break it down for you...

It's kinda like the Weirdo shows. It's a small space (though not nearly as small as Weirdo. Fixe has tables & chairs. Though to be fair, they don't have hundreds of records, either). You go early and hang out, instead of buying records you drink coffee, and see a single amazing performance. Cheap, intimate, go home early, what's not to love?

Asher Thal-Nir is a dude I had never heard of before this event but since he was performing with Brendan Murray, I knew the guy was at least awesome by association. Turns out he's pretty cool on his own, too, but whatever. The music is what matters.

It started out pretty simple, just a dried up ocean desert of white noise. Some alternating high & low long form sonar blips, perhaps of the piano origin. Very tranquil. Very desolate. Then someone passes out on their car horn, just laying on that thing, bleeding an electronic organ tone way out in the distance. Suddenly something that sounds like flowing water comes into ear shot, like a geyser is slowly bubbling up, refilling the ocean, although everything remains mostly peaceful for a period of time. But then shit turns dark and scary. Like the water coming back is threatening to summon the deep sea monsters as well. And that sonar returns, too, but this time at a more rapid pace. You realize it's steady, though, so whatever it is is staying put. Eventually, the bubbles fade, and one by one, the dozens of layers you didn't even know where there drop out. Total silence. Show's over. Applause. Curtains. Socializing. Home.

Gianni Rossi - Gutterballs Soundtrack (Permanent Vacation, 2009)

Gianni Rossi - Theme From Gutterballs


I think this marks the first time I ever listened to a soundtrack before I saw the movie, but when I found out about this, I just had to. I mean, Gutterballs sounded like an awesome enough movie on it's own (simplified: slasher set in a bowling alley) but when I saw that the soundtrack was basically packed with synth disco horror, there was no stopping me.

Gianni Rossi has made a score that will easily be enjoyed without any context in regards to the film. The songs on this are just so fucking cool. The beats are non-stop, the bass grooves are propulsive, and the '80s guitar riffs are so rocking. I haven't heard a soundtrack that sounds this cheesily amazing in forever. Most authentic '70s and '80s horror movies don't even have soundtracks this good.

However, it is still a soundtrack, with the whole variations on a theme sorta thing. So, obviously, if you hate that, then just duck out now. But if you're a fan of anything Goblin/Italo Disco/Horror then you're gonna eat this shit up. Either way, though, just try to forget that this is supposed to be from a movie because it doesn't even matter. I must've listened to this 20 times before I saw Gutterballs. But see the movie, too, because it's fucking ridiculous.

Weirdstock & Chaos First

Hope you guys don't have anything planned for this weekend because it is EPIC PARTY TIME.




First, there's Weirdstock, paying homage to the 40th anniversary of Woodstock. It'll be at the Cambridge YMCA and runs from 6:00 on Friday the 14th to Sunday night. Over 50 bands are going to be playing. All sorts of awesome stuff. Highly experimental drone, freak folk, plus video and installation art. Here's a partial list of who'll be playing.

Ducktails, Dreamhouse, Harmonizer (Greg Davis), Julian Lynch, Kurt Weisman, Keith Fullerton Whitman + Geoff Mullen Duo, Skeletons Out, Devil Music, Eat Cloud, Truman Peypte, Sore Eros, Lord Jeff, Cursillistas, Goat of Arms, Ricardo Donoso, Mudboy, Human Hairs, Cave Bears, QFWFQ Duo, Radio Wonderland, Many Mansions, Ophibre, Concord Ballet Orchestra Players, Peace, Loving, Metal and Glass Ensemble, Palm, Quilt, Omnivore, Duck That (Steve Norton), Son of Salami, Tooth Ache, Guatemala City

And plenty more. 1 day pass is $7, 2 day pass is $13, 3 day pass is $18. Buy them here. Buy them now. Full lineup and more info on the Whitehaus site.





Then there's Chaos First put on by WMUA at Umass Amherst. So, duh, this is going down at Umass Amherst. The Library Lawn and Student Union Ballroom to be precise. This show is going to be a bit more, um, noisey. And chaotic. The big name they got is Lightning Bolt, which is totally fucking rad. And if that's not enough to make your nips hard, here's all of the other bands that are playing.

Noise Nomads, Mallory, Sylphid, Belltonesuicide, Invisible Circle, Id M Theftable, Brava Spectre, Sords, Problem With Dragons, Gastric Lavage, Cellura Peptid, White Crime, Able Archer, Untitled Original, Sisters and Brothers, Yak Snot, Relics, Behaviour

So, I know like, half of those names but the ones I do know automatically guarantees this shit is going to be so so so amazing. The best part? IT'S FREE. Yeah, just show up and get your mind blown. But show up early, because there's no specific order that the bands are playing in and they said they're going to have bigger names play both early and late. And you don't wanna show up late to find out you missed Id M Theftable and Belltonesuicide do you? Starts at "2pm sharp" on the Library Lawn (rocking on the grass, love it) until 6, 1 hour intermission, then from 7 to midnight the party continues inside in the Student Union Ballroom.