Japanese, Psych, Psychedelic, Japan, Guitar, Rock, Heavy, Rare, Import; 2xCD set - Ex Used condition
While the Sundays & Cybele of today is a very contemporary creature, integrating influences from both the then, and the now, "Gypsy House" reveals a band revelling in the trappings of the late sixties to the extent that it could quite convincingly be passed off as an artifact from that time. Group leader Kazuo Tsubouchi has stated in interviews that one of the main goals that he hopes to achieve through Sundays & Cybele's music is an increased awareness of classic Japanese psychedelia, and "Gypsy House" should certainly pique the curiosity of younger listeners, who haev yet to discover the delights of Blues Creation, Speed, Glue & Shinki and the likes. And likewise, listeners who are already fans of those artists will freak out when they hear this. A six track release, trimmed down from a longer digital release, this more streamlined version of the album is a heavy psych-lovers dream, with an exremely pronounced Jimi Hendrix influence, which I've rarely heard done better, aside from the maestro himself of course. Led by Kazuo Tsubouch's inspired guitar work, these six tracks have an average running time of around seven minutes, but never show signs of floundering. It's rare to hear a record where the jamming is this focussed. Tsubouchi's guitar takes the lead here, more often than the vocals even, with "Saint Song"s electric slide playing providing one of the album's most memorable riffs - think David Gilmour's playing on "One of these Days" given a kick in the pants. Psychedelic guitar lovers will be in absolute Heaven with this album.
Prog, Progressive, Robert Fripp, Art rock, Live, Box Set, Essential, Rare; 4CD + 72 page book Box Set - Ex Used condition
"The Great Deceiver" is an edited collection of tour material 1973-1974. Almost five hours of 47 selections are included in a handsome box, with a 72-page booklet full of relevant information. Many of the cuts are 9-12 min. long, with 4 around a minute. This means long, extended plays giving David Cross, Robert Fripp, John Wetton, and Bill Bruford plenty of space to stretch out in. There is a fifteen-minute song "A Voyage To The Center of the Cosmos," which will be sure to please. King Crimson's strongest line-up, they were even better on stage and this box set is perhaps the best representation of that, making it an essential purchase for King Crimson fans.
Jim O'Rourke, Documentary, Experimental, Special Edition; 3 Disc set + Booklet + Extras - Ex Used condition
"The Creeping Garden" is a feature length documentary exploring the work of fringe scientists, mycologists and artists, and their relationship with the extraordinary plasmodial slime mold. This is not a documentary for everyone. Granted, documentaries themselves are an acquired taste, but this is not the sort that has a lot of action, preaches social justice, or focuses on a forgotten piece of history. Even if we classify it as a nature documentary, it may not appeal to the same people who enjoy lions hunting giraffes. That disclaimer aside, hopefully you are not scared off, because this is a one of a kind film about a topic you probably never considered before. This is where nature meets science, which meets art, and even psychology and a little bit of history. Who knew that one of the most beautiful things on earth is mold? Special mention has to be made of the soundtrack / film score from Jim O'Rourke, which Arrow Video has so kindly included with their release. I actually listened to the score before watching the movie, and it really sets the tone. You feel like you are slowly entering an alien landscape that is both friendly, but somehow terrifying... foreign, and still welcoming. It is a score like no other. I wish more films were released with their soundtracks. Grindhouse Releasing is very good about this (thank you, Bob Murawski) so maybe Arrow is following their lead? If the soundtrack alone was not reason enough to pick up the Arrow release, the copious amount of bonus features should be. We have audio commentary by directors Tim Grabham and Jasper Sharp, essentially doubling the information. There is "Biocomputer Music", a short film by Grabham on the first biocomputer music system, allowing a two-way musical dialogue between man and slime mold. "Return to the Fungarium", a featurette revealing further treasures of the fungarium at Kew Gardens. "Feeding Habits of Physarum", a featurette on the feeding preferences and dislikes of slime molds. If that is still not enough, there are still three cinema iloobia short films: "Milk" (2009), "Rotten" (2012) and "Paramusical Ensemble"
Australian, Dark Ambient, Experimental, Drone, Various Artists, Noise; CD, Booklet + Sticker - New
Australian Dark Ambient/Experimental/Drone V/A release from 2012 featuring: Rohkontrol, Voidhanger, Rotteur, Grist, Abre Ojos, Rohkontrol Released in printed cardboard zine, with postcard, sticker and printed matter. RARE!
Mad Max, Cult, Australian, Soundtrack, Score, Rare; CD - Ex Used condition
This is the original first 1993 CD release of the Original Sound Track to the original 1979 Mad Max film, soundtrack created by Brian May. Released on US label Varese Sarabande. Very rare CD release in Ex Used condition.
Kawabata Makoto, Acid Mothers Temple, Japanese, Japanoise, Psych, Noise, Experimental, Drone, Electronic, Rock; CD - Ex Used condition
Cosmogonic rockin' project from Kawabata Makoto (Acid Mothers Temple), featuring endless suspended drone electronic textures. This one represents the contemplative eerie side of Kawabata Makoto musical universe
Japanese, Japanoise, Noise, Experimental, Avant-garde, Electronic, Rock; CD - Ex Used condition
1st album in 1997 under the solo name of Seiichi Yamamoto, the leading expert in experimental music. Includes a total of 10 songs with an avant-garde sound world centered on noise guitar sound, which is more experimental than the band.
Japanese, Japanoise, Psych, Noise, Krautrock, Progressive, Rock; CD - Ex Used condition
The album includes liner notes by Damo Suzuki (ex. Can). ‘Dream of Liquid’ was created for Mandog’s first UK tour held in June 2011 and mastered by Souichiro Nakamura, who mastered recordings by a number of artists such as Yura Yura Teikoku and Guitar Wolf. The line-up of the band for this album is Keiichi Miyashita (the founder of Mandog, Godman, Wabo-Chao), Akira Kikuchi (Kawaguchi Masami’s New Rock Syndicate) and Masataka Fujikake (Shibusashirazu, ex. Zeni Geva).
"the ensemble playing here veers from frenetic ecstasy, like a super-charged soft machine, to mournful synth-dressed marches which recall mid 70s giants of progressive searching like hatfield of the north and that other wyatt project matching mole. the guitar/synth/bass/drum set up nails each piece to the floor with retro stylings that also point to a future which can only be imagined whilst at the heights of humanist thinking." Rough Trade
Electronic, Experimental, Drone, Folk, Japanese, Japan, Psych, Masaki Batoh, Ghost; CD - Ex Used condition
Brain pulse music is made using a stereotypically goofy-looking contraption, one that features a wired headset and a readout monitor on a cart. If someone told me it was an object retrieved from Nikola Tesla's laboratory, I might believe them. Brain pulse music was initially conceived to treat patients with "congenital abnormality of the cerebral nervous system." It is generated via a device that consists of a headpiece, goggles, and a "motherboard." Brain waves are sent via radio to the computer, which translates them into wave pulses and then into sound. Batoh had a Brain pulse machine machine created for this project, which transformed from an experimental endeavor to a therapeutic one in the wake of the earthquake. The seven tracks on Brain pulse music were prayers and requiems, according to Batoh. Those words suggest a projected empathy to the victims; listening to Brain pulse music, though, it seems just as likely that the album was a vehicle through which Batoh and his collaborators coped with the devastation around them. Certainly it's difficult to imagine the discordant reeds of "Kumano Codex 1" or the morphing digital crevasses of "Aiki No Okami" being of much use to the injured or grieving, but I can absolutely imagine that long, meditative pieces here were salves for their creators.
Acid Mothers Temple, Psychedelic, Japanese, Japanoise, Noise, Experimental; CD - Ex Used condition
This newest solo outing from Kawabata Makoto is very different from most Acid Mothers Temple records, however. Eschewing guitars almost completely, this album features three long pieces of subtly shifting electronic drones and vocal loops. "I'm In Your Inner Most" is a psychedelic drone journey to the center of your mind. Makoto pushes the distortion on his electric organ, and fills out the texture with synthesizers, violins and a female vocal sample that randomly fades in and out of the mix. Not very easily digestible at first, upon repeated listenings you begin to sense the true cosmic transendence of his music. LaMonte Young's influence can be heard in the first track - a long, shape-shifting high-pitched squeal that cleanses the listener's mind of all thought, leaving only the rapturous sensation of sound. The second track begins with the same drone, but adds delightfully cosmic keyboard arpeggios and cyclical melodies. Even throughout the beautiful melodic sections, Makoto continues to push the noise and percussive distortion so that the listener remains in a completely trancelike state while investigating the astral worlds that the keyboards usher you through. Shades of Tangerine Dream and Terry Riley become apparent towards the end of this track, as the synthesizer loops take prominence. The third track "Oculation (remix version)" contains the same organ tones and repetitive synthesizers as the first two tracks, but adds some atonal guitar feedback into the mix. "I'm In Your Inner Most" is definitely an album that requires active listening to enjoy......
Electronic, Experimental, Jazz, Bill Laswell, Toshinori Kondo, Drum 'n bass; CD - Ex Used condition
This has to be one of the best future jazz releases. A fantastic fusion of drum'n'bass, trip hop and Toshinori Kondo's inimitable trumpet playing.
Japanese, Japanoise, Noise, Psych, Experimental, Rock; CD - Ex Used condition
In its original form this album dates back to the early days of Melt Banana, seeing an initial release in 1994 on British cassette label Chocolate Monk. This reissue is of the 1999 A-Zap edition and In typical Melt Banana fashion it crams 32 tracks into a brisk 28 minutes, exhibiting a sense of efficiency only previously found in Napalm Death's catalogue. The first side of the original cassette was occupied by a live recording made at an improvisation festival in 1992, while the second side was recorded to a multitrack cassette recorder in 1994. This is about as raw as the band have ever sounded: you can hear their raucous beginnings and their characteristically playful approach to blowing your ears off first finding its feet on this album. Punk rock has never sounded like so much fun - this is an absolute blast.
