VARIOUS - Ugly Things: The CD

Ever wonder where the Mike Stax-edited, way outta the stratosphere with the trainspottin' details mag got its handle? Here's yer answer, mate-- one o' them there "legendary" compilations devoted to the dirt kicked up by some none too polite Aussie teenagers in the mid-60's. The track itself is a damn fine snooty little ditty by a rowdy bunch who called themselves the Creatures-- and it's here in all that digital magnificence you kids seem to love.

I've got shelves saggin' like a Viagra-free yuppie's dick with these garage comps. I can't believe I've neglected to post even ONE in all this time-- so why not remedy that situation with one of the best, I figger. Actually, it was yesterday's SICK THINGS post that provided the ultimate segue for this beast. Once again, I've been far too kind by providing a slick widget for y'all to sample the goods. My personal pick-to-click is the Blue Stars' "Social End Product"-- I'm not the first (nor will be last) to call it the direct predecessor to the Pistols' "Pretty Vacant"... I mean, wasn't Glen Matlock (yunno, the bass player they had that actually had some talent?) a garage aficionado? Take a listen, kid-- you'll see I'm right as always. Another stone killer is the Modes' version of "Baby Please Don't Go". The details are vague as to this band's origin but I'm gonna take a kuh-razee guess and say they HAD to be from Sydney. Why? Well, a certain little band from that city that came along a few years later used the exact same arrangement when they released it on an EP that had a title I'm forgetting... something about... um, Jail.



Thee Songs:
1. The Missing Links - You're Driving Me Insane
2. The Atlantics - Come On
3. Machine Gun Kelly's Rejects - I'm Going Back
4. The Creatures - Ugly Thing
5. Steve & The Board - Now I'm Older
6. The Elois - By My Side
7. The Others - Look Through My Window
8. Chants R&B - I'm Your Witchdoctor
9. The Pink Finks - Louie Louie
10. The Purple Hearts - Just A Little Bit
11. The Movement - I Wanna Be Free
12. The Modes - Baby Please Don't Go
13. The Masters Apprentices - Poor Boy
14. The Pleazers - Hurtin' All Over
15. The Henchmen - That's All I Want
16. The Four Strangers - Sad & Lonely
17. The La De Da's - How Is The Air Up There?
18. The Sunsets - I Want Love
19. The Bluestars - Social End Product
20. The D-Coys - Bad Times
21. Derek's Accent - Ain't Got No Feelin'
22. The Blue Beats - She's Coming Home
23. The Vince Maloney Sect - No Good Without You
24. Ray Columbus & The Art Collection - Kick Me
25. The Lost Souls - This Life Of Mine
26. The Black Diamonds - I Want, Need, Love You

Look in the comments. While yer doin' that leave one your own damn self!

Suishou No Fune - Where the Spirits Are

New-Noise-Terrorists-on-the-Block. Suishou no Fune was formed by Pirako Kurenai (whom I guess I should mention is a vagina-bearer? Nah...) and Kageo (both guitar/vocals) in Tokyo, 1999. They are interesting in that they seem to be influenced almost exclusively by their Nippon forebears. Thus, instead of the mutations of Western musics we've become accustomed to from Japanese combos, this is 100 % Haino/Denudes worship (yeah-- those bands were obviously inspired by US/UK psych, but I'm not in the mood to split hairs, fuckers. FYI: Ex-Denuder Yokai Takahashi has been a Fune member).

Apparently, all of their music is improvised, including lyrics-- which are supposedly based on ancient Japanese poetry. This is beatifically hypnotic music that seems to emerge from the abyss and disappear into it as well. There are no obvious intros/outros or conventional song structures of any kind. There's an intangible melancholy that permeates their sound-- perfectly suited to a lazy morning watching dust trickle through the sunbeams while in bed-- preferably with someone you love.

Here.

pw = sln2007

SICK THINGS - My Life's a Mess

You think yer a punk, punk? Want some of the real junk? Here's the gen-yew-wine article, Junior. More'n two chords? What are ya, a Proggy? This is the shit Mommy was scared ya might hear some day. Forget all about clinical "separation" of the guitar & bass-- crank 'em both up... and yes, their amps really did go to 11. The Sick Things, straight outta Melbourne, Australia were the kinda guys that woulda gladly drilled those holes fer Chuck Berry to indulge in his love for pee-pee.

Formed in 1979, it's amazing that four guys with the last name Sick (Dugald, Gary, Mick & Geoff) managed to find each other-- I mean what are the odds? I've never even met one. Come to think of it, I've never met anyone named Dugald, either. They called their battery of noise "Puke Wave", which is honest enough, though I think "Shitcore" would be every bit, if not more appropriate. And I mean that as the highest praise-- for example: check out what they managed to do with the Exploited's pointless piece of garbage, "Blown to Bits"-- didn't think you'd ever find that 'un listenable, didja?

For illustrative purposes, and becuz I'm sure an overwhelming majority of y'all have never heard a note by these monsters, I've got some samples for ya-- first, make sure those shitty little computer speakers of yours are at a "check the warranty" volume. Then, be dazzled by Thug-Punk classics like "I Like Pills", "Prime Minister" and the aforementioned Exploited cover:



Now look in the comments and get the other 12 Smokin' Slabs, Slim-- and while yer at it, leave some gawddamn feedback!

ROTTERS - Pull It & Yell

In all honesty, there was a time not all that long ago when I wouldn't have given a second-tier (or third or maybe even tenth) band like the Rotters the time of day. I remembered the "Sit on My Face Stevie Nicks" single being entertaining in a lowest common denominator-kinda way... NEXT! But as anyone over 35 knows, time is an evil motherfucker, and many an agonizing reappraisal will be made as muscle turns to flab.

Thus, when I read guitarist Phester Swollen's hilarious liner notes, and he states, "It was 1978, and rock & roll was the most putrefying heap of overblown bovine excrement imaginable," and I can easily equate that feeling with rockroll Circa 2007-- well, you might be able to see why I'd slap my noggin wonderin' what the hell my problem could be with the likes of the Rotters.

Mr. Swollen and bandmates Nigel Nitro (vox), Johnny Condom (drums) & bassist Rip Chord (all good X-ian names) like millions of others of the era, found salvation in the Sex Pistols. They met in a film class at Moonpark College, a few miles northwest of Los Angeles, and instead of boring us with shitty art-films featuring half-naked hippies holding crystals while reciting horrendous poetry, they picked up instruments they couldn't tune, let alone master.

I'm not gonna split hairs-- these guys were utterly influenced by the Pistols, right down to Nitro's faux-anglais accent, but fuck it--- at least they got punk right. No PC-isms ("Bomb the Whales, Buy Japanese Goods" anyone?), no "arty" aspirations, no bullshit. The fact that they managed to piss off dinosaurs (even then) like Fleetwood Mac is a mere bonus.

Link in comments.

ANDRE WILLIAMS - The Black Godfather

Here's the Original Gangsta himself, Andre Williams. After putting Detroit's Fortune label on the map in the 50's, working for Berry Gordy/Motown in the 60's and working as Edwin Starr's road manager in the 70's, the King Pimp found himself hooked on the pipe, down-n-out on the streets of New York City in the 80's/90's (not an unusual story for under-appreciated geniuses by any means). Luckily for Andre, not to mention US, huge fan George Paulus pulled him outta the gutter to cut the "Greasy" LP with equally under-lauded Pretty Things guitarist, Dick Taylor. Earning tons of praise from the underground, In The Red records approached him to record what turned out to be "Silky" with the help of ex-Gories, Mick Collins & Dan Kroha.

On this, his second release for the label, Williams is joined by a veritable Who's Who of Garage Punk Royalty: The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Countdowns, Cheater Slicks (on an incredible romp through the the Cramps' "Can't Find My Mind"), Compulsive Gamblers and Mick Collins once again, this time with his Dirtbombs. Best of all, former Stooges saxman Steve Mackay steps outta mothballs to add some of his unmistakable skronk to "Freak Blues".

Link in comments-- which if you have the time to click 'n' read, you've probably got the time to leave a comment, right?

VARIOUS - CLE Magazine Comp: Big Wave

This one comes courtesy of Mars (again), a specialist in prime hootch and good pal of SLN. I haven't had a lotta time to digest it yet myself, but I can tell ya these are all bands from Cleveland, and any compilation that includes the Electric Eels is worth your attention.


(Sorry, all I could find was this GG Allin's penis-sized image)

Tracks:

1 Mad Daddy Intro
2 Pere Ubu - Heart Of Darkness
3 Mad Daddy Sings!
4 Mirrors - Another Nail In The Coffin
5 Cruel Cruel Moon - I Don't Believe
6 Andrew Klimeyk - European Economic Community
7 Andrew Klimeyk - Ariel Says
8 Cruel Cruel Moon - 1,000,000 Years
9 Gem - Figments
10 Vivians - One Eye
11 Mad Daddy Speaks
12 My Dad Is Dead - Second Thoughts
13 My Dad Is Dead - Nothing Special
14 Brainrot Radio Theater - Clockwerke Orangutan
15 Swank Motel - World Up My Ass
16 Mad Daddy - Zoomeratin'
17 Electric Eels - Flapping Jets
18 Gem - Blow Daddy-O
19 Vivians - Codex
20 Mad Daddy - The Joker

Link in comments.

Is Black Metal Confuse(d)?

PART I: Tangenting Myself Into a Coma

I remember very clearly arguing with all kindsa metal and punk folk about how black metal was gonna be the new punk rock. This wuz when the first wave of Norwegian church burnin', murderin', suicide committin' bands first rose to prominence in the early 90's. At the time, I wasn't comparin' 'em musically at all-- more along the lines of a similar DIY aesthetic and the inversion of the popular cultural values of the times. Punk preached anarchy in a conservative era; black metal, fascism, at a time when lefty PC-isms were at their height. In Europe, Mr. Vikernes was creating the same kind of mass hysteria that the Pistols did in their heyday (get a copy of "Lords of Chaos" if you don't know what I'm on about; it's a flawed but engrossing tome about BM).

Then, something funny happened: black metal started to sound like punk rock. Darkthrone in particular have fully embraced the kinda riffs/arrangements you'd associate more with Amebix than Burzum; skinheads are going to BM gigs... man, I guess I was right, but not in the way I was hoping I was. Shit, black metal got sucked into the mainstream even faster than punk, what, with Dummy Burger and Cradle of Shit paving the way for all kindsa careerists and opportunists. Again, like punk, BM got too open-minded for its own good. I'm not one of those "keep it tr00!!" fuckheads/purists, but when you start adding too many elements of other genres into the mix, you end up with something so far removed from the original intent, that the genre itself becomes redundant. I mean, what the fuck do flutes and Russian folk chants hafta do with metal??! It's much like when Gang of Four came along with their boring "angular", (pretentious rockcrit term alert! Danger! Danger!) funk-derived riffs that has provided us with yawn-inducing "art-punk" bands by the truckload.

Anyfuckingway, back to my statement in the last paragraph-- the BM-sounding-like-punk part. Listening to Ildjarn the other day, I was struck by the uncanny resemblance his early demos had with Japcore greats like Confuse. And, since I was looking for an excuse to once and for all hep those of you (probably 2 at most) why this blog is called "Spending Loud Night", I thought I might as well try to cram some chocolate in with the peanut butter. Now, do I honestly believe Ildjarn was a Confuse fan? Nah, probably not. After his departure from Thou Shalt Suffer (who would become Emperor), I think he simply wanted to make the most primitive, raw and "grim" music he possibly could down in his basement.

PART II: Using a Widget to (Poorly) Prove a Point

Luckily (or not) for y'all, I've got a soft spot for all these new-fangled gadgets any idiot (like me) can easily embed on his insignificant corner of cyberspace. I've been meaning to do this for a while, but since this is a resurrection of sorts, this is the first time the internet stage has felt right. Keep in mind this is an experimental kinda thing; not the type of post I'll be making on a regular basis. This way, you can tell me how wrong I am right away without having to wait until you've d/l'd both albums. I've chosen Ildjarn's "Mørklagt Sti" and Confuse's "Disaster" as I found 'em the most strikingly similar (the controls on this thing should be easy enough to master, I would think. You can also download each track if that be yer wont).




Let's get the album covers & specs outta the way:


ILDJARN - Det Frysende Nordariket
-Tracks 1 to 4 are taken from "Norse" 7" EP, recorded in March 1993.
-Tracks 5 to 11 are taken from "Ildjarn" demo, recorded in January 1993.
-Tracks 12 to 25 are taken from "Minnesjord" demo, recorded in February 1994.



CONFUSE - Discography (aka Confuse)

-Tracks 1 to 7 from "Nuclear Addicts" (1984).
-Tracks 8 to 11 from "Contempt Of The Authority, And Take Off The Lie" (1985)
-Tracks 12 to 15 from "Spending Loud Night" (1987)
-Tracks 16 to 19 from "Stupid Life" (1989)
-Tracks 20 to 23 from "Atrocious Madness" (Unreleased/Unofficial)

Notes: Tracks 8 to 11 recorded at Fuckigami Recording Studio, August 20th, 1985.
Previously released on Confuse Records.

Tracks 12 to 15 recorded at Mad Studio, August 20th, 1983. Produced and distributed by Kings World Records.
Previously released on Confuse Records.

Links in comments.

I Love the Sound of a Guitar Playin'

It seems I'm always trying to make like a Jehovah's Witness (or sumpin' else equally useless); Perpetually trying to convert y'all to underrated artists whose collective discogs are rarer than hen's teeth. Well... this post ain't gonna be any different.


EARLY WORKS: 1964-66 Feat. Fender IV & Sons of Adam

Born in 1945, Pennsylvanian Randy Holden had a vision for taking the guitar into unexplored vistas at an early age. After a brief stint playing covers locally, he formed the Fender IV, a surf-cum-British Invasion-inspired combo that became mainly a showcase for Holden's six-string pyrotechnics. After having his head turned Over, Under, Sideways Down by the then-godly Yardbirds, or more specifically, their Riff Master General, Jeff Beck, the IV/Holden made their way to the West Coast reborn as the Sons of Adam.

This collection compiles tracks from both of 'em in reverse chronological order (Whatcha expect? It's a Japanese import). The Sons were a band that, if you'd heard one of their ditties on a "Nuggets" or "Back From the Grave" comp, would have ya jacking off like an ape in a zoo cage to hear more. Look no further. Although essentially Yardbirds-lite, there's some fine snot-caked garage punk like the Holden-penned "I Told You Once Before" as well as more melodic moments like a killer run through the Zombies' "You Make Me Feel Good". The Fender IV, although steeped in stock surf arrangements, had a certain intangible darkness about their sound that puts 'em ahead of the many bands mining the same territory in the era. Especially delish is the lone vocal number, "You Better Tell Me Now", that throbs with an ultra-macho, barely concealed violence.

Link in comments.


THE OTHER HALF

Feeling restricted by the lack of ambition and over-reliance on cover material of Sons of Adam, Holden joined San Francisco's Other Half in late '66. Essentially a garage band that managed to dangle precariously close to the psuckedelic precipice, their sole LP is a charmer. They possessed in Jeff Nowlen a gifted vocalist whose Eric Burdon-as-filtered-through-Keith Relf bark added a sense of urgency to the underwritten, almost skeletal rave-ups. Although dismissed by critics & Holden himself as an inexperienced band not having a clue what they were doing, that's exactly what I love about it. It's the cliched runaway train that never quite derails, and I've added their 45-only classic, "Mr. Pharmacist" as a bonus.

Disillusioned by the aforementioned Nowlen taking liberties with the songwriting credits, Holden packed up his axe once again. He was briefly considered as a replacement for Jeff Beck in his beloved Yardbirds (ah... the possibilities!), but as we all know, a certain Mr. Page was waiting in the wings.

Link in comments.


POPULATION II

After a brief stint in Blue Cheer (he appeared on side two of "New! Improved!") which left him once again with little more than a pot to piss in, with that band's managerial and drug problems (he claims they rehearsed all of once during his tenure), he decided to strike out on his own to make the album he'd always wanted to make. Choosing acquaintance Chris Lockheed as his drummer, mainly because he insisted he could play drums and keyboards at the same time.

On his never-ending quest for infinite sustain, "Population II" was recorded in an opera house on 20 Sunn amps wired in parallel! If the word monolithic didn't exist, we'd hafta invent it to describe the Himalayan riffage to be found here. Put it this way: If Hendrix was "choppin' down mountains with the edge of hand", Randy's guitar was snickerin' at such a feat as it glowered down menacingly at the cowering peasants amongst the rubble it was soon about to permanently deafen. Holden once remarked that whilst flailing away during the sessions for this album, he was knocked to the ground when he'd hit a certain harmonic overtone. That's exactly what'll happen to you if it's your first experience with "Population II".

Link in comments.