It's the Story How I'm S'posed to Feel Because You Told Me So

A true American tale of its era. Us in the United States should be able to recall Spring 2002. A time not long after the 9/11 disaster where any incident that could be called terrorism was, understandably, assumed the comlicated, calculated work of Islamic extremists.

One of the many times the media (yes, for any foreigners, it's more often the media than the government... even the Bush administration) was wrong was in the case of the Midwestern Pipe Bomber. The guilty party turned out to be a Kurt Cobain-worshiping Minnesota college kid named Luke Helder. Rather than hurt anybody, Helder wanted to just fight conformity by setting off minor explosions across middle America inthe shape of a smiley face.

9/11 aside, the media, especially in regards to teens/young adults was still reeling from Columbine and eager to point the finger at music. This is where I was first lucky enough to hear Apathy on a rare event of my dad driving my brother and I to school listening to Howard Stern. Copies of the bomber's band's album Sacks of People went for as much as $200 and Stern was lucky enough to get one on the air. As expected, it's a bunch of mindless teen angst played over an honestly well-done imitation of Nirvana that lives up to the perp's attire when busted.

A few years after the incident I managed to find the album's supposed masterpiece "Conformity," but lost it in computer transitions. After years of casual search, I finally got it again along with this site that seems to feature the whole thing. I'll get it later and probably put it up. If anyone has the full album with allthe proper titles and track order, please let me know. This is the Billy Beer of the aughts. Have a blast.

Apathy - "Conformity" and more...

Indeed That Heavy, But This Futen Has No Right to Say...

Well, I've been inactive for a long time now. Just wasn't feeling too inspired, but that's changed. Just dicked around in this hopeless post-graduate LA job-market clearing my palate with some old favorites and Rhino's Super Hits of the 70s: Have a Nice Day series thanks to my roommate Tommy. That and getting deeper into Julian Cope's Japrocksampler...

...which of course has been the return of my inspiration, and here is Les Raillezes Denudés. Formed in the late 60s this Japanese band formed out of the folk scene emerging with the radical (mostly communist) left, but eventually took their music in an even more radical direction. After the politics took an equally radical turn for the band's bassist hijacking a plane en route to South Korea with quite a few American passengers and escaping to North Korea, the band faded somewhat into obscurity. At this point the cult legend and the sound only sound worthy of it grew. At this point leaderand sole consistent member Mizutani Takashiheaded off into the mountains to live in isolation and set the standard for generations of futen artists like Ghost and perhaps his most dedicated followers Acid Mothers Temple and the Meltin Paraiso U.F.O. Here the sound was honed, taking the Velvet Underground's "Sister Ray" as the blueprint and turning into a precise art of noise as only the Japanese could. Not to mention it's a whole lot more interesting musically, and I must hope with less-embarrassing lyrics. Likewise, Andy and the Velvets' Exploding Plastic Inevitable Show was the top influence on Mizutani's "total sensory assault," which unfortunately was put to rest in 1997.

This set - a bootleg like all their releases, is ranked as the third greatest of the Japrock movement by Cope is some of the most exciting music I've heard. Starting off with the hypnotic "Strong Out Deeper Than The Night," the band's mastery of noise and atmosphere as well as Mizutani's perfectly executed vocals prove that this unique music demands one's full attention. Luckily, it is well-held for the whole 15:33 with an exploratory experience of jazz with the unity of a classic rock song. "The Night Collectors" rocks out the hardest and catchiest, but not without the Tarkovskyesque approach of "sculpting in time." Moments, or long stretches of them of softness come through as well most notably in "Enter The Mirror," making this psychedelic experience particularly dreamlike. For those looking for the most hardcore psychedelia, here it is, one that evokes the full-body brain-piercing experience of an Acid Mothers show even though these busted laptop speakers - full-blast, full-attention, life-changing.


Les Rallizes Denudés - Heavier Than A Death In The Family (1995?)

*I have a few more suspicions than usual this file may not have uploaded properly, so please let me know if there's an issue!

Here's a great video - the true title of this gorgeous song is "Romance of the Black Grief"

The Hidden Door: Found

Forming in Riverside, CA, in the mid 60s, the Misunderstood made one big mistake. Instead of remaining in their home and probably being a big hit on the Sunset Strip they followed the current British Invasion and relocated to England where they became one of the great lost bands of the sixties.

This album, recorded in 1966 was not even released until 1982, when even with the rise of neo-psychedelia this could never have hoped for an audience. The group's move is also significant in how it tells their sound. The Misunderstood is to the Yardbirds what the Olivia Tremor Control was to the Beatles. That is to say that their sound is what the blues rockers could have become had they gone further and further into their psychedelic territory. That London blues sound never leaves their sound even though the band goes as far into the psychedelic whirlwind as the 13th Floor Elevators - the band with whom they warrant the most significant comparison, particularly the first album. Lead vocalist Rick Brown's soulful voice on par with Eric Burdon's adds an element not often heard in American psych-rock, even outdoing Arthur Lee. The steel guitar provided by Glenn Ross Campbell wail in a way that set the standard of masterful use of alternative instrumentation is both the psychedelic and progressive rock that would follow in the footsteps. That is not to say the regular guitars don't kick ass as well. The songwriting is as strong, perfectly creating some of the heaviest rock of the sixties on par with the Creation. Some of the best tracks are opener "Children of the Sun," I Unseen," "I Can Take You To The Sun," and should-have-been hit "I Cried My Eyes Out." The Misunderstood's splicing of bluesy British Invasion, far-out acid rock, and proto-punk/metal heaviness makes it perhaps the quintessential underground rock album of the era.


The Misunderstood - Before The Dream Faded (1966/1982)

I'm Gonna Leave This Party Now

The KLF really really knew their shit. If the sample of Arthur Russell (Dinosaur L)'s "Go Bang!" at the end of "Go To Sleep" doesn't prove that I don't know what will.

This group is what happened when two underground rock veterans out of the already unique scene in Liverpool decide to reinvent pop culture for the 90s and succeeded - this album's opener "Kylie Said to Jason" and Drummond's white rapping prove this. While few, at least in this country (where they were in fact pretty successful at the time) remember them, 90s mainstream culture (playing what was often called "stadium house") was in many ways created by this band whose political commentary and postmodern sound basically came from 20 years in the future. ...If only 20 years later could have music this good. If you don't believe that check out their successful mash-up from 1988 below. They made the music Kanye West would wish he could have if he had taste. There is so much to say about the KLF, I could go on forever, so I''ll just stop now and get to this album...

It is hard to imagine just what the film The White Room would have been like had it been made. Certainly like nothing else in history, judging not only by the KLF's bizarre videos but just how epic its unreleased soundtrack is. The power of songs like "No More Tears" and "Build A Fire" is undeniable and the imagine a film that could carry them will simply blow one's mind. Like in much of the KLF's work every style is sampled replicated and perfectly accompanied by standard electronic instruments of the time to create a truly postmodern sound. This could definitely be called the A Wizard, A True Star of the 1990s. This is an engaging trip through a psychedelic 90s disco from beginning to end and will surely change the way you think about music and, really all performing arts. It can stand cheesy at times, but consciously, knowing that in the short term it would be embarassing. The KLF guarenteed a legacy that would come, go, and then stay stronger than ever. One of the top artistic achievements of our time. I'll stop now.

Dedicated to

The KLF - The White Room: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1991)


The Timelords - "Doctorin' the Tardis" (1988)

Dedicated to the people of the Caucasian nations, where it is almost 3 A.M. (Eternal).

You Better Shut Up and Listen!!

If you talk to anyone who was actually on the Sunset Strip during the brief days of L.A. punk the names that will appear the most are always the Germs, X, the Weirdos, and the Screamers. Unfortunately, one of those bands didn't leave us behind with any classic records.

...And it's a shame, because the Screamers, known for their tall hair styles, may have been the best. They did have one of the most innovative sounds and performance styles of any punk band, regardless of location. Relying on synthesizer and Fender Rhodes rather than guitar and bass the band did not even broach on New Wave/Postpunk/Synth Pop and really had much more in common with the Germs than any artist of those styles. That coupled with Tomata du Plenty and Tommy Gear's drag past in SF and Seattle (where the roots of the band began as the Tupperwears) which heavily shows in the du Plenty's emphasis on performance and costume. The Screamers reflect just how all-inclusive the Los Angeles Punk scene was and, as a result, how it was one of the most important music scenes of the 1970s. To appreciate the Screamers, one must see them:


As you can see, it's pretty incredible - especially those dance moves! The big problem with the L.A. punk scene, was the despite it's proximity to the labels, it was completely ignored by the labels. The Screamers sound, in particular, was believed to not be able to translate well to recording. The music of the proceeding ten years, I believe, proved that entirely wrong. All that is left in that was are these very rough demos which are really not particularly listenable, but are the best we can do. I would just recommend watching them over and over again.

I believe both Gear and du Plenty died of AIDS, but the other two members went on to pretty significant careers. Paul Roessler played keys for the death-rock pseudo-supergroup 45 Grave (with the Germs Don Bolles and future Dream Syndicate guitarist Paul B. Cutler), while drummer K.K. Barrett works as a Production designer and has worked on all of Spike Jonze's films.


The Screamers - Demos 1977-78