TROUT MASK REPLICA

I have to admit that hilarious cover art was one of the reasons I wanted to check out this one. I wasn't very familiar with Avant-Prog back when I got it (except for stuff like Henry Cow and Can) so it surely was a strange listen first time I heard it. I didn't truly enjoy it though but after a while I started to enjoy more of the stuff here, even though some song still remains weak. The music on the album could best be described as a mix of RIO, Delta-Blues and Free-Jazz with lot's of insanity (both lyrically and musically) and nonsenseical yet complex and flowing melodies. The musicianship is completely asymmetric (but excellent)and Beefheart's voice is completely on it's own over the arrangements, yet these guys manage to groove, in the most weird way that is. It sounds surprisingly structured while it's not in the slightest sense.

This is a bizarre and hard listen for many but it is a grower, and if you can appreciate this, then you can get Beefheart's other albums as well without worrying. If you wan't a challenge, try out this one. Just be open minded and don't take it too seriously. It's a complex and inaccessible album but if you like earlier Zappa or bands like Faust and Samla Mammas Manna you should enjoy this too! I'll give this 4 stars for it's uniqueness and nostalgic impact on this particular genre.

This album is an RIO masterpiece. This is THE BEEFHEART album. Admittedly, it is really really challenging, but given enough time, you will find the amazing amount of skill and talent that was put into the making of this album that took over a year to complete. This album contains many strange features such as wierd screaming, random bits of strange and often funny conversations, bizarre lyrics, constantly shifting time signatures, and other qualities. Highly reccommended

possibly the weirdest thing my ears have ever heard. in a good way. here's a story: one night i left my cd player on and fell asleep, this cd was in there but it wasn't the one i was listening to; well about two hours after i fell asleep it got around to this album, and my sleep was disturbed by the song 'moonlight on vermont.' upon waking, my first thought was 'my god there's a war going on,' and i scrambled for the light and for the remote but after finding the remote i couldn't turn it off because i was captivated. while chaotic, it seemed to make sense. the album takes a while to digest. in the end one sees it's greatness.

This is a masterpiece, yet it can be difficult to see it as a masterpiece. Some say this is an acuired taste and i would partly agree. This was my first taste of Captain Beefheart and i wasn't very optimistic, yet when i listened to it i instantly fell in love with this record. i thought it was incredibly weird and that some of these tracks were just outrageous, very good but sometimes it was like "what the hell is this?". After more listens this album has revealed its hidden beauty to me. I believe that Captain Beefheart and his incredible Magic Band have created a piece of subtle genius here. It took me about 3 or 4 full listens to realise that behind all the weirdness and obscenity, there is an incredible fusion of jazzy blues, amazing vocals, great guitar work and plain weirdness. Captain Beefheart is a musical genius, yet his talents can be hard to find. This record however revealed to me all the things that make him so great, i have heard a few more records after this that amazed me but trout mask replica took his skills to the maximum.

28 tracks, it can be a mouthful but the album flows together really well. Frank Zappa did an excellent job on the production. Although it seems like a slap together collection of songs, you can actually start to admire how much care they have taken over making this album. The flow of the album is often interrupted by strange recording conversations, often entertaining. I dont think this takes anything away from the album. The main genius here is solely in the amazing compositions, fused with great jazz and blues, a traditional bluesy voice gets its spotlight with the incredibly weird lyrics. The prog arangements are definetly there and this helps the album to flow incredible well. These are the things that make "Trout Mask Replica" a masterpiece.

The standout tracks on this album are, in my humble opinion, "Frownland", a weird intro that follows one set path and kicks off as soon as you press play, an odd intro to such an epic album, especially one of prog rock as it has no kind of build up. This put me off a little at first but after hearing the rest of the album i found it to be quite clever. "The Dust Blows Forward and the Dust Blows Back" has no music, just a record skipping, yet i still loved it. "Ella Guru" is the first really amazing piece, showing off great fusion. "Hair Pie: Bake 1" has amazing saxaphone doodles followed by some amazing guitar, continuing into "Moonlight on Vermont". "My Human Gets Me Blues" is one of my favourites on the album, it sounds a bit more normal and better structured than the rest, i think its good to have the odd normal sounding song to keep the listener appealed. "Pena" is a classic, probably my favourite song on the album. It starts off with Captain Beefheart and The Mascara Snake talking about "Fast n Bulbous" (a common occurance throughout this album). This leads into one big rackett with a crazy voice rambling on about weirdness. It is brilliant and slightly humorous. "Well" and "When Big Joan Sits Up" keep the flow going brilliantly. Towards the close of the album, "She's Too Much for my Mirror", "The Blimp (mousetrapreplica)" and "Old Fart Play" stand as the essential tracks.

This is an album that will go down well with fans of experimental music, spacey psychadelic music, acid rock fans, RIO fans, blues fans, jazz fans and fusion fans. If you think it is good, yet challenging and completely weird at first then just give it a few more tries and hopefully you will fall in love with the guitar and jazz qualities like i did. This is definetly a masterpiece. One of the most daring pieces of music ever made as well as one of the most interestingly produced and strangely composed albums ive ever heard.

This album is definitely VERY overrated! The songs are AWFUL! Many say it is very hard to acquire, but I wonder WHAT can be acquired? And if there was nothing to acquire? Indeed, where is the music here? Where is the melody, the structure, the finesse, the elaborated rhythm, the catchy character, the addictive parts? The Captain has a very bad voice, as being very negligent and nonchalant. Apparently, the music is absolutely not improvised; well, it is hard to believe! The guitar notes are dissonant, and it is so irrelevant and incoherent that it seems young kids of 6-7 years old play with their Fisher Price guitars in the basement! The tracks contain NO keyboards! The strongest point are the EXCELLENT elaborated drums, but unfortunately, the retarded electric guitars sounds and Vliet's irritating vocals kill everything that could be good on this record. The sound of the electric guitars is very gross, unrefined and primitive! Vliet is good and very funny with Frank Zappa, like on the "Bongo fury" album, but here he is pitifully insipid. Nevertheless, I've been able to find some rare better structured rhythmic parts, like on "Pachuco Cadaver" and on "Sugar' N Spikes". The bass, despite quite present, does not seem to make a definite catchy rhythm. The album has a strong experimental dissonant blues influence. 28 redundant tracks all sounding the same? That's TOO much! There are numerous pseudo humorous narrations a la EMINEM: this is not encouraging. Some crazy free sax parts contribute to give a CACOPHONIC character to this album! Frank Zappa speaks on "The Blimp". As improvised-like dissonant albums, I strongly prefer Pat Metheny - Song X, a complex free jazz album: at least, the album is technically outstanding and there is much more structure in the music! The best I can give is 1 well deserved star for the DRUMS here!

A RIO classic before there was such a movement. An American classic, and a classic by any definition. One of the roots of later avant garde and experimental movements. And by any definition, an absolute masterpiece. Released in 1969, it was years ahead of its time, yet of its time. If you like your music smooth and pretty, this probably isn't for you. If you can't get past symphonic prog music, which 90% of prog listeners don't seem to be capable of, then this isn't for you either...go listen to your latest Genesis copy-cat band and leave this one for the big boys. At first listen, the music seems chaotic, raucous and a little insane. After you've had time to absorb it (and I don't understand why some people presume they are qualified to review a complex piece of music after they've heard it only once or twice), the realization comes that this is an intricately composed, brilliantly dissonant and extremely humorous music. Somewhere I read a funny article by one of the musicians in the Magic Band during these sessions, but I can't remember which one. He said that Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet) composed all of the music on this album on the piano in about 8 hours, and spent the next several months constantly drilling his band on the compositions, occassionally isolating them and accusing them of trying to sabotage his music. What a character. I also understand the creation of this album led to his estrangement from his childhood friend Frank Zappa (who produced the album) who he felt wanted too much credit for the result. I've heard quite a few of his albums, but I think this is the definitive Beefheart recording and one of the icons of the late sixties.

Rumbling! One of those hard but very rewarding listening experiences. Every song goes hard and rough trough and brings something new to your ears to collide with. All those melancholy melodies and raw playing first seem so irrational but soon after few listentroughs it began to make sense. After that i fell in its deeps listenin it all over again and again. Very highly recommeded but with a word of warning: dont think this is going to "open" in first listening. This should be given time because it gets more time than you think to get this one brewing in your mind.

Edited 10/02/05!

This was by far The Captain's most critically acclaimed and polarizing album. Certainly it has been a sort of milestone in RIO music due to its oddity and uniqueness. It can be called even more than an acquired taste, hardly bearable at least for my ears. Musically there is not much on here to be rated as being of high quality. Still the best performance has been showed by the drummer. The other musicians are hard to be judged since most of the times it sounds if everyone would play just what is coming to his mind at that moment. After giving it enough number of spins on your player there might be 2 or 3 songs to be fairly enjoyed like "Frownland" or "Ella Guru", keeping at least a quite nice rhythm. But I've to say as well he's done a bunch of better albums, "Safe As Milk", "Clear Spot" or "Mirror Man" being the best ones. This is a tough one but one should have listened to it, at least tried and with one eye (ear) closed I can still rate it with 3 stars. Even if it's not really justified by the music, the cool artwork alone is worth an extra star!

Damn! What an WONDERFUL album full of songs like nothing else! This is a piece of musical art and i consider it as a milestone in progressive/alternative music. Must listen to anyone who thinks him/herself as musical person. This should be played to all mankind to get them understand that theres a possibility in music to be an mindblowing art form.

What an rough album full of surprises! Its kind of painting full of details yet to be discovered. I recommend this album to anyone who wants to dig alternative sound of the seventies! A masterpiece of an artform!

Anyone who says this album is something they dont understand doesnt really dig the rough melodies played on the back. This is partly poetry to be frank and that makes this an milestone in music and something really hard to understand. This is not all a masterpiece because even i think it has its weak moments. This shouldnt even be considered to be 'music for masses' but an unbelievable effort for those who understand the humorous beauty of an album like this. Listen to those bluesy and harsh melodies all builded on top of another in order to first confuse the listener and later make him wonder where was that part where guitar goe like.... and that makes this album that should be listened as weird background music and to be listened as monolith of progressive blues-rock with all perception. This should be experience for everyone to be in touch with. Just listen. I think that, after awhile, beefheart's voice is something more genius than anything that normal people get in touch with (and what more important) or understand. Essential work of beefheart and essential work of genius of a man. You need no 'drugs' or 'crazy mid' to get into this music. You should only have somekind of a mood for this but not an twisted sense of humour to get into this music. Nothing more nothing less than an exceptionally interesting album full of progressive painting in a form of music. Rough edged masterpiece that opens or opens not for anyone. But remember that the magic word in unlocking this album is not on symphonic melodies that someone might wait in an album of this status or just in harsh voice of beefheart or lyrics but in album as a whole. Unique listening experience!

This is one of the greatest albums ever recorded. I bought a copy in June 2003, because I was really into Frank Zappa at that time and when I saw that he produced this album, I knew this was an opportunity not to be missed. I owned this album for about a year before I finally fell in love with it...and that's because I had the patience to sit through several listens until I could finally see what the hubbub was all about! In fact, you might even call this album the musical equivalent of a Magic Eye. Simple explanation: when you look at a Magic Eye puzzle, it just looks like a bunch of meaningless sh*t, but if you cross your eyes and keep staring, a beautiful image appears. Just do the same thing with your ears and that's how you will enjoy this album. I can't possibly describe all the tracks in detail (after all, there are so many of them!!!), but the sounds range several sounds, including avant-garde jazz, Delta blues, country blues, jazz-rock, blues-rock, and jam rock. The Captain manages to change his voice for many of the tracks, the best of them being his Howlin' Wolf growl and his Hoy! Hoy! call at the beginning of "When Big Joan Sets Up" (one of my favorites on this album). This music may sound improvised, but it really isn't. It took Don Van Vliet almost a year to think up the lyrics and compose the music. The players on this album are actually playing WRITTEN sheet music, and it took the Magic Band almost ANOTHER year to learn how to play the songs properly. In fact, Van Vliet was so serious about how the album sounded, he actually put wooden covers on the windows to make the sessions run the way he wanted. So, basically, what sounds like a bunch of improvised bullsh*t is actually great jazz and blues flavored rock done VERY professionally.

Wow, this album has always stirred up polarised emotions. Some people can't stand it, some think it's the greatest thing ever recorded. The fact is that regardless of what anyone thinks, few artists have ever been as progressive on record as Beefheart was on this album and as such it is absolutely essential listening. 9 months of solid rehearsing, isolated from the world, then all down in one take - has anyone ever been this close to the edge of the abyss and come back to tell us about it, I doubt it. One could wax lyrical about the influences, the extraordinary vocal range, the unbelievable musicianship etc, but one thing makes this album stand head and shoulders above anything else for me - it's as close as popular music as music has ever got to art.

It's probably the weirdest thing you will ever hear. No, it has no keyboards. It is nothing like symphonic prog, and do not expect symphonic prog. It is jagged, sharp, dirty, impenetrable, questionable, disgusting, odd, and dissonant. It may sound like a bunch of idiots bashing their instruments into the wall against a growling and howling vocal by a drunken crackpot, but it really isn't. Behind all that disgusting weirdness is actual music, trust me. I'm not saying this just to "show off my tolerance" or say CAPTAIN BEEFHEART is making some artsy point here which "mere humans cannot understand" or some crap like that. I'm talking about actual music. It just takes a little effort and an open mind. This music isn't improvised or recklessly done. It is well planned out and executed (maybe except for the horn and saxophone). The way the guitars, bass, and drums interlock, it cannot be improvised. This sounds much weirder than anything could possibly be if it were improvised.

The opening track is "Frownland," and it instantly shows what you're in for, hiding nothing. It wiggles, it bites, it pokes, and it changes constantly, becoming virtually unrecognizable as it goes. The vocals of the Captain are eccentric and bluesy, and definitely an aquired taste, more so than even Peter HAMMILL of VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR. Following this is the much quiter "The Dust Blows Forward...", which features CAPTAIN BEEFHEART (aka Don Van Vliet) crooning in creaky 40s tones an impromtu poem in which he stops every few seconds and switches off the microphone to make up the next verse. It's fairly short, and thus painless, and somewhat enjoyable once or twice.

"Dachau Blues" is a dark song, about "World War Twee" as the Captain puts it. He uses a hideously deep bass voice, set against maddening instrumentation and a crazy bass clarinet in the background. The next song, "Ella Guru," is one of the best on the record, a twisted blues/RIO/pop tune which shuffles between rhythms, all instruments conflicting in a hideous yet wonderful way. It soon shifts into an excellent chorus which plugs along with all hands on deck, creating complex conterpointed melodies which sound...awesome!

After that is "Hair Pie: Bake 1," which is actually the home run-through of the finished, polished version, "Bake 2," which in my opinion is a bit better. It starts with a honking, dancing sax and horn duo, which begins to spiral into a low note where the rest of the band comes in. You can hear a plane in the background (they recorded this at the Captain's house, with the band inside and the horn and sax outside, and the tape recorder, as you will hear...in a bush). Following the instrumental (brilliant, by the way), you'll hear the Captain talking to a couple of kids who walked by to see if they could have the drummer in the band (they didn't know they were signed!). It seems the kids had a band of their own, and had heard the Magic Band playing and liked the drummer (John FRENCH, I think, is the most solidly virtuosic drummer I have heard - I certainly love his style better than even BRUFORD, PALMER, or any other straight-rock drummer), and had come to ask if they could have him come play with them. Of course, they couldn't.

After a long, uncomfortable silence in which you can hear a dog barking and a plane buzzing overhead, the drums roll up and announce "Moonlight On Vermont," a sharp and bluesy complex song, brilliantly written and executed. Following is "Pachuco Cadaver," which begins with the Captain and "The Mascara Snake" saying a few words about "fast and boulbous," then dives into a strange section reminescent of Frank ZAPPA (who, by the way, produced this album) which features the drums and guitars playing in 4/4 time while the bass bounces along in 3/4. Soon, things get faster and the song becomes another of the Captain's greatest.

"Bills Corpse" is a fast paced, morbid, dissonant yet excellent song which is followed by the more beautiful (in it's own jagged way) "Sweet Sweet Bulbs." The weirder "Neon Meate Dream..." is next, which has someone improvising strange words over well- planned instrumenation. "China Pig," the next song, is the only one with truely improvised instrumention. It also has a garage sound, and was once covered by the WHITE STRIPES. It's fairly simple, but well-done for something so improvised (even the lyrics are improvised!). "My Human Gets Me Blues" is a truely proggy song, done in the Captain's style, which moves on thru different themes, each one excellent. It also has a sort of urgent tone to it. "Dali's Car" follows, a sharp, almost classically trained and precise instrumental with each guitar complimenting the other, and leaving a lot of space between each carefully placed note.

But "Hair Pie: Bake 2" is by far the most amazing instrumental here. It is extremely progressive, with each instrument going thru each theme in a complex and structured rythm. Don't take my word for it, though. Download the MP3 and see what you think.

After that is a short bit of dialogue about "fast n' boulbous," leading into "Pena." It's on this half of the album that BEEFHEART gets even weirder, if that's possible. "Pena" is maddening, crazy, and nauseating, and that's just from the childish and urgent vocals backed by roaring insane nonsense from Van Vliet behind the instrumentation. But somehow, it's still good in a hilarious way. "Well" is yet another acapella track in the vein of "The Dust Blows Forward..." in which the Captain uses his huge blues voice in a haunting spiritual poem.

Next is "When Big Joan Sets Up," a boogie about a fat woman, and the longest track here. It goes thru a large sax solo, then speeds back up, with the honking sax rejoining later on. It struggles and drowns for a second, the climbs back up and twitches its way to the ending. Another highlight. "Fallin' Ditch" follows, as well as "Sugar n' Spikes", "Ant Man Bee" (with the most frentic sax on the whole album), "She's too Much for My Mirror": all excellent songs, difficult to get but the most rewarding listening you can get. The only real drawback on the whole album is "Orange Claw Hammer," a pointless acapella done like "The Dust Blows Forward..." but which falls flat this time because of its unbearable length.

"The Blimp" is a more psychadelic track, with instrumentation much smoother than any of the other tracks. In fact, it is music played by Frank ZAPPA's Mothers of Invention, with one of the Magic Band's voice recorded doing strange impromtu poetry over the telephone. "Steal Softly Thru Snow" is another well-done song, featuring some catchy bass and more of the same indescribable music, followed by the brilliant "Old Fart at Play," a hilarious song from which the album's title is derived. It's about an old fart who makes his own trout mask replica which he uses the break a window and cause general mischief. "Veteran's Day Poppy" is a great closer the most "normal" song on the album, on which you may even catch a whiff of psychadelia in a closing instrumental section which leads off into the end of the album.

It's been one year since I wrote this review, and I laugh at my nievety in this review. After hearing this for a year, I have come to love it even more. I listen to it at least once a day - the greatest thing ever. It cannot be topped, except perhaps by its predecessor "Lick My Decals Off". Get it now, listen to it casually for a year. You will get it if you want to and if you give it time to grow on you - but it could take a couple years. But it is the most rewarding thing you will ever hear.

The five stars are meant only as provocation: I really don't have a clue how to rate this thing, except to note my astonishment at first hearing it.

And this is from someone, keep in mind, who has already plumbed the deepest recesses of FAUST, sampled the arcane political noise of HENRY COW, and fallen under the spell of THE SHAGGS. Speaking of which, it just occurred to me that on their LP "Philosophy of the World" the Wiggin sisters had already reached pretty much the same aesthetic end as CAPTAIN BEEFHEART, but of course (bless their little backwoods hearts) without the same massive intake of drugs.

So what was the reaction of this veteran Proghead and connoisseur of the un-commercial after his first belated exposure to the good Captain? I laughed out loud. I cringed in horror. I danced around my living room in happy spasmodic twitches, wearing nothing but my socks. I forgot my middle name. I developed a sudden craving for raw potatoes. And I finally understood the entire recorded legacy of THE RESIDENTS.

70+ minutes of uncompromising outsider music is a lot to swallow in one sitting, but it's an experience everyone should try at least once in their life. Legend says that every note on this massive double album (now a single CD, and still too much to digest) was meticulously composed, arranged, and rehearsed beforehand. But it still has the slapdash sound of an amateur garage band jam after too many beers.

I listened to it once. I can't say if I'll ever willingly listen to it again. But I'm grateful there's stuff like this out there to shake people up. And (someone call a doctor) I haven't been able to get the song "Moonlight On Vermont" out of my head for days now.

It's hard to rate Trout Mask. I mean, look at the reviews that have already been written. You either love it or you hate it. The album is a mixed bag. You can pull something out of this album that's just Beefheart improvise singing, you can pull out a song with wicked experimentation, you can pull out a song that has very intricate melodies that are strung together nicely, and you can pull off meandering songs set as a backdrop to Don's poetry. Songs like Moonlight on Vermont and Ella Guru are a typical intricately melodic cool Beefheart songs while, Hair Pie: Bake 2 is an instrumental workout that combines pattern over pattern proving to be a very interesting a great piece of music. However there are songs like Dachau Blues and Frownland that seem to go all over the place while Don sings, and then songs like Fallin' Ditch and Hair Pie: Bake which make the album seem like a collection of left-out songs from other albums. However, then you read the rehearsing and how this album was went about making, and you wonder that this entire thing is entirely interesting. The style in which the songs are played, all over the place, or tightly wrapped, reflects the songs that are included on this album and where they're at. The whole album is entirely fresh while listening to, because nothing drags on, it's a frantic and experimental album, but you have to realize that some of these melodies and compositions, the players, and Beefheart's writing (at some moments in this album) have not been matched, by Beefheart, and by most other people trying to imitate him (a lot). Approach with caution and don't expect it to be bad, and you can find some things in this behemoth that could floor you.

Whenever I feel bored with music based on any normal tonations I turn to Beefheart. How is it best to describe this music? A combination of Rock, Jazz, Blues & most interestingly modern classical. I say that because the Vienese atonal school of music (eg Schoenberg) is for me almost impossible to understand. Yet amazingly enough Beefheart incorporates a great deal of this music & I can see where he's coming from. On an album he did with Frank Zappa a line goes 'music from the other side of the fence'. If you like following the crowd avoid this album. If you like music based on different rules of composition you'll enjoy this.

A bizarre mix of blues and jazz. You'll love it or hate the s*** out of it or just think it's an interesting experience but not as mindblowing as some say it is, like I do. This album's very overrated (especially by elitists) but it grows on you. The best way to describe it is by saying that each member of the Magic Band plays a different, complex song at the same time, while Beefheart sings with his cool but overwhelming voice a bunch of weird lyrics. Beefheart somehow managed to make it sound like the guitars are playing each note at the right moment in which one would NOT expect them. The problem is that, well, it's a double album, and most songs sound the same so it can be really hard to listen to this. Also, this is way too weird sometimes and it stops being music and sounds a bit too noisy. The best stuff comes at the beginning (as usual with Beefheart's records), with things like the eomitonal 'Frownland' and the amazing 'Moonlight On Vermont'. Songs like 'Hair Pie, Bake 1' or 'The Blimp' are a bit too weird, while others like 'Ella Guru' (with great guitarwork), 'Moonlight In Vermont' and 'Pachuco Cadaver' are more accesible. The closest thing here to a "normal" song is the bluesy 'China Pig'. You must listen to this innovative album at least once in your life, but don't forget that there's more to Beefheart than this one. Some of his other records are more accesible and better, and they are a better way to get into his music.

Just as there are people who think Picasso didn't know how to draw (myself included, until I took a look at some of Picasso's early sketches years ago and realized that he did know), there will no doubt be people who think Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band can't play music. I dare those people to pick up a guitar and TRY to play any of the songs on "Trout Mask Replica" note for note. Of course, jokesters will take up the dare, making random noise and atonal squawks, but once you realize that the music on "Trout Mask" was INTENTIONALLY written in this manner, even the most doubtful will realize that Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band are superior artists who successfully created Cubist music out of the remains of free jazz, Delta blues, and Imagist poetry.

Cubism is the art movement that Picasso popularized, and it had to do with viewing multi-dimensional perspectives simultaneously. Thus, Picasso's Cubist figures have 3/4 profile eyeballs on the sides of their heads, almost the way Egyptian hieroglyphs distort the eyes when drawing profiles. The musical equivalent would be to have three or four different instrument parts (in different meters and styles) competing in the same linear space of one song-- kind of like being in a parking lot before a concert and hearing the stereos of several cars mixing together to create a new, bastardized version... which is what The Flaming Lips did on their album "Zaireeka".

The fact that The Lips get applause for this move while Beefheart remains relatively obscure underscores a uniquely American trait: giving credit for originality not to the originators but to the imitators. I like The Flaming Lips, but knowing that "Trout Mask Replica" did it three decades earlier only makes me like Beefheart's music even more. It was the most original American music made prior to the "invention" of rap music, but because rap is all about "the beat" it has a wider appeal. However, everyone from Tom Waits to The Butthole Surfers to Devo to The Minutemen owe Beefheart a huge debt.

This album is perfect in my estimation, but many will disagree.

Well i am not gona go in on song too song, becaus there is to many of em. This album surly isent for everybodys tast. Its a very stranges album and its realy amazing that it was made 69 yust think about it this groundbraking music is like 40 years old soon, thats hard too belive becaus it sounds like it culd have been recorded yesterday it have no of that deted feeling so many othere albums from that time have now days this music is absolutly timles it will never get old can not get old, its too crazy for that, so buy thes masterpiece of strangesness and be ready for a ride and get blown away. So as i said this may not be your taste i must confess my self this is far form being my nummber 1 album of all time but nomather if i like it or not anybody with anymusic taste will agree that this is a landmark album.

Still a very controversial record after all these years, so I says that's how you know it's one of the all-time classics! I think people who slag this album off as "unlistenable" have obviously never listened to free jazz. This music really isn't THAT far-out, the weird factor musically comes mainly from the way DVV slices & dices so many different genres, none of which are particularly "popular music" (delta blues, free jazz, that "20th century classical" John Cage type of music which isn't anything like "classical music" at all really.)

Zappa's personality as producer sometimes intrudes a bit (count on FZ to exploit the freakout factor and amplify it with his own sensibilities, most obviously on "The Blimp" which is actually a Mothers backing track.) But he also captured the Captain better than any other producer ever did (one song is recorded in the back yard! Such tricks lend a truly unique atmosphere.)

Maybe you'll hate it, if you're lucky perhaps it will change the way you experience music forever. Certainly anyone who is interested in 20th century music (progrock or whatever) NEEDS to hear it and decide for themselves.

Personally I wouldn't be caught dead on a desert island without it!

A very fun album to listen to. It's one of those love it/hate it albums. Personally, I love every song with instruments. The songs with just Captain Beefheart singing aren't my cyup of tea though. Some highlights include: Frownland, Ella Guru, Hair Pie: Bake 2, The Blimp, She's Too Much for MY Mirror, and Old Fart At Play. It might take a few listens to "get" this album, but if you open minded you might find some you love.

Excellent 5/5

WARNING: THIS ALBUM IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART!

Okay, I'll admit at first this album just sounded like a cat with a fork clutched in its paw scratching a chalkboard that doubled as a plate, but after giving it a few good listens I can see some things to like about this album. Captain Beefheart (AKA Don Van Vliet) and the Magic Band recorded this album in 1969 at Frank Zappa's Laurel Canyon home as well as rehearsed it (though when you listen to it, it doesn't sound one bit like it was rehearsed). The Frank Zappa/Mothers feel is certainly on this album (I mean, the man did produce the damn thing), but there are more often than not extremely original and well-rehearsed ideas. This double album, with songs that are generally around the 1-2 minute range, is mainly just free jazz-blues with some quasi-atonal sounds with a very earthbound singer on top of it all. At first, you may think it is just chaos and that the album should never have been produced, but it is after the second or third listen that you really start to understand what is going on.

From Frownland to Veteran's Day Poppy. your mind will numb and tear apart from the musical onslaught. The entire band plays their "music" to perfection, and by perfection on this album I mean they played it so well it sounds out of sync and sometimes like it doesn't fit in the mold of the song. Stand out tracks are Hair Pie Bake 1, which is more like or less a 5 minute free jazz experiment that comes of perfectly. The blues numbers on the album, such as My Human Gets Me Blues and Dachau Blues, are also wonderful tunes that feature raunchy harmonica from Beefheart himself. The lyrics on this album are a mixed bag, most of them feel improvised and some of them feel well rehearsed, but they all have this feeling of magic among them, because you don't know where the music will turn next. It's that sense that makes this album so good.

In the end, if you can get past the musical barrage, then you may find something to enjoy. Beefheart did better works in my opinion later on, with Lick My Decals Off, Baby and the Mirror Man, but it is this album that he will always get his reputation from. It's sad that this was the only Beefheart album that Zappa collaborated on (although they would later team up for Bongo Fury), because if they had continued their partnership Beefheart might have released another Avante-Garde masterpiece. You'll either love or hate this one. But for me, I liked it. 4/5.

Well, well, well!!!!!!!! How DOES one proceed to review such a crazy and stupendous album? When Van Vliet's CB&HMB did get introduced in our Archives, I thought about reviewing it while the reviews were few, so re-listened to the album twice and got majorly scared at the thought of not being able to talk of it in a fitful manner.

So now that a lot of reviews are in, I will use a major cop-out and send you towards other much-better-than-mine reviews most noticeably to Dex F's, Studebaker's or RetroVertigo's but also Greenback's (his reaction to this album is perfectly understandable, even if I prefer liking this UFO). Clearly Beefheart's career got a major lift from Zappa's production of this record as previous albums are not quite this weird, elaborate - 68's Mirror Man was almost straight blues - or crazy.

So I use this non-glorious cop-out to make a long story short and urge you to consider carefully the investigation of such an album. You might want to ponder the irreversible side effects of getting an earful of this weird/crazy non-sensical (in appearance only) musical trip that very few drugged-out hippy drippy psych rock could match. Permanent damage to your sanity on the horizon!!!

WARNING!!!! THIS CD DOES NOT CONTAIN MUSIC!

So why is it listed here? Beats me! Probably because Frank Zappa has produced it. Anyone who has heard Zappas Lost Episodes nknows that he and van Vliet together with Bobby Zappa did all sorts of idiot experiments with musical instruments. They were lutionary and anarcistic and surely blew many dudes minds up. They broke barriers as one might say.

Stop arguing whether this is music or not. This isn't. Masterpiece maby but not in musical genre. It contains sounds, even human sounds, but it is performance as an art form. In that genre people are used to consume, see, hear, taste, you name it, ugly and digusting things. This recording is a masterpiece of ugly sounds. As music it does not exist.

I give it 1 star because zero is not possible. Yet I dont recommend this even to completionists. This is completely unnecessary piece of data.

"What the hell is that!?" is certainly the first thing you'll tell yourself if you listen to this album for the first time. It sure looks like a bunch of guys with no musical competences jamming on a lazy saturday afternoon... But THEY RELEASED IT! I don't know if there is any way to listen to that but it's a classic! It even has some catchy songs! It's certainly not a good album to dance to, it's certainly not a good album to play "air-guitar" to, it's certainly not a good album to create a nice atmosphere, it's nothing and everything at the same time and that makes it the most wicked album I have ever heard in my entire life. It is pretty humoristic too. I won't tell you to go out buy it, but at least, find a copy and give it a quick listen, you won't believe it! I admire the talent that Captain Beefheart wasted in this album and the courage he had to release it! A job well done!

wether you like it or not, this album is a work of genius, and a work of art. like most abstract art it can give different meanings and moods to different people, unfortunately the majority of people would view it as ugly, noisy and unaesthetic. this is really for someone who likes something a bit more challenging. the highlights in my opinion are ella guru, moonlight on vermont, my human gets me blues, and veterans day poppy, though you really have to listen to it all the way through (if you can!)

Not the safest album you can buy if you're concerned about your mental health. Captain Beefheart AKA Don Van Vilet, musical genius to some and paranoid schizophrenic with a guitar to others, teams up with Frank Zappa (who produces the album) to create one of the most controversial masterpieces in progressive rock. Even for the most time honored prog fan this one won't be easy to digest. Don't come expecting symphonic prog, or any other genre, this here is pure avant-garde, free rolling jazz and blues at its absolute quirkiest.

Though for the first week of listening it may sound a jumbled mess of drunken teenagers banging on their instruments in a garage, further listens will reveal that anything this beautifully chaotic had to be rehearsed to death. After awhile the songs will transfer from confusion to genius with some even being downright catchy, "Frownland" and "Ella Guru."

Not aiding the accessibility of the musical cacophony is the quirky voice and surrealist poetry of Don Van Vilet. His voice resembles that of a coked up homeless man singing for pennies on a street corner, but it fits the musically perfectly and even develops its own strange charm after long enough. His poetry is something I'm still getting used to. I find it comical and genuinely fun but if there is any deeper meaning in it I'm still searching for it. The purely spoken passages are the only times this album drags, but those moments don't last long enough to detract from this album's overall quality. Quite simply this must be in every prog fans collection, if you're willing to put in the time, this will be one of the most rewarding musical journeys you'll embark upon. The album will surprise you with each passing second, and that unfortunately is a rarity.

I've listened to this multiple times, and I am a fan of much experimental, and inaccesible music. But, I just don't like this album, and all the hype around it makes it all the more frustrating. Overrated, in my opinion. Some tracks are interesting, like The Blimp, and the snippets of dialog are fun, but It doesn't add up to much.

Alright!

This was actually the first piece of Avant-garde music i ever picked up, and, nostalgia aside, this remains one of the best i've ever heard. While it is somewhat difficult to acquire (no more than Gentle Giant[for me anyways]), it is one of the most rewarding albums ive listened to. Each listen brings greater understanding and appreciation for the greatness of this album. I actually enjoy every song on this album about the same, though i would say "Ella Guru" gets the most listens. The instrumentals may initially sound trashy or childish, but on closer listening they are quite lucid and very well arranged and played, especially French's drumming. There cannot be enough praise for the heartbreaking (yes heartbreaking) vocals of the Captain!

Highly recommended!!!

Now here's an album I have to be very careful in reviewing. I don't agree at all with those that give it 1 star: it's not poor, nor is it for fans only, nor is it "good but non-essential". But I don't like it, so should my prejudice influence a review?

So many people have said that they've had to listen to this many times before they 'got' it and then it became one of their all time favourites. I was introduced to this by my elder brother many many years ago and have listened to it many times and for the most part I STILL DON'T GET IT!

But...on an intellectual level I know that it's not the mish-mash of badly played improvisation that it may seem. The band rehearsed and rehearsed this in semi-captivity. They could play it note perfect live by all accounts. And its influence goes on and on.

Personally I prefer the more accessible Beefheart stuff such as Clear Spot and even Shiny Beast (but I loathe the awful tameness of Bluejeans and Moonbeams).

Whatever you end up thinking about Trout Mask Replica you can't have an opinion unless you hear it so whether you end up buying, borrowing, downloading or copying it it has to be at least 4 stars. If one day I finally "get it" I'll upgrade it to 5

ABSTRACT....... This is one helluva 'strange trip' - I just don't get it, well, maybe only slightly. I really enjoy the RIO sub- genre of prog - especially Henry Cow and affiliated, even those free-blowing Elton Dean records make more sense to me, but there's just something I am missing here. I grant 10 points for the Captain and his bold crew for actually committing something this unruly to vinyl - and, not just 1 single album, but 2 FULL LP's worth. I get the impression that it sounds like each band member were in different studios across town recording their own tid-bits of music on their respective instruments, and Frank Zappa (bless 'im) somehow managed to dub the parts together to form a 'song'. But realistically, this is prime Avant- Garde composition, and whilst difficult to ascertain where these guys were coming from, one can just tell where they were going to......(?), but, when the band 'locks together' (scarcely), you can hear that they DO KNOW how to play, and it can be tight, too. I can't pin-point which tracks do this, but there is something here to be found. I have listened to this beast quite a few times in the 5 or so years I've had it, but I fail to see this as the masterpiece many claim it to be. Each to their own - it's still commands at least 3 stars - 1 for its uniqueness, 1 for its bravery, and 1 for its 'success'. I'm off to listen to it again - that'd be twice this week.

A few words of warning... this is an extreeeeeeeeemly frustrating album for those allergic to weird voices, squawking horns, odd beat poetry, sound-collage, and general all-around mayhem. This is not an album to relax to.

"Trout Mask Replica" on first listen can sound like a huge, unorganized mess, and I guess it is, but to my ears, it's the coolest mess I ever heard, like the audio equivalent of a Jackson Pollock painting. Every track on here is just the craziest thing I've ever heard and just gets better every listen. The Captain and crew play a kind of avant-garde jazz rock here that sounds improvised but actually is tightly arranged (I was surprised to find out!). This is also Captain Beefheart's best set of lyric's IMO, he sounds like Tom Waits on crack, especially on the handful of a capella tracks smattered throughout the album. Also someone (the Captain? Zappa?) had the genius idea to leave snippets of recording conversation in, which adds to the disjointed feel of the proceedings.

Again, those expecting Yes will find this album (and most of Captain Beefheart's catalog I'd think) rather unlistenable. But "Trout Mask Replica" is one of my personal favorites, a mess maybe, but a fantastic mess.

Well now, what have we here? Only one of the most controversial recordings ever. An album important enough to appear both in the publication '1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die' and on a The Rolling Stone's Top 100 albums list, and maligned enough to feature on many 'worst records of all time' lists. This should tell you all you need to know ...

... but you're still reading, so I'll add that a typical reaction to this record is to hate it at first, respect it after a while, and end up liking or even loving it.

What's it like? Well, it's recognisably American, a pastiche of American musical sensibilities, with clever lyrics. It's not an album of great tunes. It's as near to high-brow art as music comes. It's music to be understood, not enjoyed (at least not at first). If that's not what you want to do with music, don't buy it. Personally, I fall short of declaring it a masterpiece: I do think music ought to make its way to your head via your heart.

This record is not essential by any means. But if you want something different, you'll find it here.

Another reviewer trying to explain the sound of this music. What can I possibly say about Trout Mask Replica, one of the most original statements in high arts ever. Usually when people say ''It was completely new at the time'' you can still trace roots of the music back to some sources, but Trout Mask Replica literally had no predecessor, whether in spirit or sound. It came completely out of nowhere, and that turned a lot of people off the album itself. It's hard to imagine an old man buying a double LP in some cheap store labeled as ''Blues/Rock'' and putting the needle down only to be blasted away by such an atonal and furious opener as ''Frownland''

Indeed, this music is difficult to handle for those who've never been exposed to it. I'm not trying to say that I'm better than anyone at all because I appreciate and love this music (A lot of avant-garde musicians/listeners tend to think so) but simply that if you give this the time it needs, then it may grow on you. But I also admit to have a small personal love for this album. After all, who knows how many bands this has secretly influenced? The furious, loud vocals may have inspired a lot of punk rock bands, and the twangy yet distorted guitars may have influenced a lot of guitarists sounds. But of course, this has left a mark on the entire avant-rock scene.

The music sounds very unorganized. As TheGreatGlorph said, it sounds like an unorganized mess at first. But know this; Every single part of the backing music was written by Don Van Vliet. I find it rather amazing how the music sounds so confused yet so undeniably structured and straight-forward at the same time. Beefhearts vocals are lovely I think; he has an amazing four and a half octave range... Now you probably think ''Wow he can probably hit some high notes!''. Wrong. He can hit the REALLY low notes perfectly. I have yet to find more than a handful of people who can reach as low notes as Van Vliet can.

There is a lot going on at the same time on this album. The music is fast and unexpectable. The drumming is amazing throughout, and the Magic Band are extremely talented at what they do. And you hear Captain Beefheart sing that last idiotic yet somehow poetic line, only to then be struck in the face by the uncontrolled free-jazz saxophone that pops up in a matter of seconds later. The sense of brilliance at those moments is unexplainable, and that is what urges me to give this five solid stars. But there are a few times when the songs carry on for too long. ''When Big Joan Sets Up'' is a good example of this. The sound of almost all the songs is dirty and generally quite unpolished. The ''sound'' being the Magic Band of course, not the audio quality which is excellent throughout. There are bits of studio jokes and some word-only songs, all of which are quite humorous.

The lyrics are in a league of their own. Extremely difficult to interpret and analyze (Due to the seemingly unconnected lines) yet strangely poetic and smart. Some of the lyrics are easy to understand, as in ''Steal Softly Thru Snow''; Breaks my heart to see the highway cross the hill/Man's lived a million years and still he kills. Quite interesting lyrics, yet some of them seem to be nothing but drunken scribbled notes kept for the sake of humour. But of course, the entire album was written in a little more than 8 hours (All 28 songs of it), though it took almost a year for the Magic Band to learn it all. This tells you something about not only how brilliant of a musical writer Van Vliet is, but also how complex this album is.

Overall, this album is a difficult one for most people. But I urge you to give it a listen and if you hate it, listen to it even more. If you love it the first time through, then I can only advice you more great Avant-rock bands such as Henry Cow or Univers Zero. But 'Trout Mask Replica' has to this day maintained a very special identity, both musically, poetically and in sound. For a very different ride through progressive music, give this a try. Five stars.

Warning this album may mess with your head until you bleed out the ears. Frankly, I'm a bit surprised by all the positive reviews here. I have a taste for weirdness in progressive music, but this one has never clicked with me.

It's been in CD collection amongst the first 200 titles I added and is probably the main reason I haven't explored the Captain's albums beyond Doc At The Radar Station and his appearance on Zappa's Bongo Fury. This means it's been in my collection for about 20 years and I dread every time it comes up in rotation and I am relieved when the end of the album comes. It had a good reputation and Zappa produced it, but it's like Beefheart got a bit too much rope and hanged himself.

I did get brave enough to try out another one, Safe As Milk, and I'd recommend it or Doc as a starting place to explore the weird guy's music. This one just barely rounds up to a two.

If there was ever a more enigmatic recording in rock history than Trout Mask Replica, I certainly haven't heard it. It's the one recording that you either get from the word go, or you don't get. It has been described as an acquired taste, but I disagree. You either get it, or you don't. Period. Trout Mask Replica is to rock music what Kandinsky's post-Blue Rider abstract paintings were to fine art, and what Stravinsky's riot-inciting Rte of Spring was to ballet.

To most listeners, Trout Mask Replica sounds like pure noise. This surely can't be music. Can it? From the opening bars of "Frownland", it sounds like each musician is playing a different tune than the other musicians. Where is the beat? Where is the melody? It's there, but if your idea of good music is a hook and good beat, you certianly won't be able to hear it. The beat and melody are a little more prevalent on the more "accessible" songs like "When Big Joan Sets Up", "Ant Man Bee", and "Moonlight On Vermont".

The rest of the double album is pure avente garde blues & free jazz magic. "Hair Pie Bake 1" and "Hair Pie Bake 2" are darn fine instrumental tracks, and they feature the amazing guitar work of one or rock's truly underrated guitarists, Zoot Horn Rollo. "The Blimp" is a hilarious track with producer Frank Zappa declaring, "it's beautiful!". Other highlights include "Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish", "Dacchau Blues", "She's Too Much for My Mirror", and "Pachuco Cadaver".

Maybe it could be dissonant, noisy, too strange, too mad. But still it remains a total masterpiece, because it cuts music as we know it and then unites the pieces as he wants. Beefheart sings completely out of tone and the music remains on the same riff for all the songs, but the result is incredible. Only a genius could have written a work like this, too weird to come from this planet.

Finally, I find the cover really amusing and original.

A fantastic double LP that RIO's lovers MUST own, or have listened to at least one time.

Beefheart forever..

I'm really not sure how to rate this one. On the one hand, there is obviously some genius present (the album is composed to sound horrible), and on the other, well, it meets its intent. This album is painful. And I don't mean 90s boy band or disco painful, I mean stick your arm into a ceiling fan, crash into walls, wail incessantly, gnaw on your feet, laugh hysterically, stare cross-eyed at your surroundings, and have an existential breakdown painful. Why, then, is this album so highly regarded (not just on this site - a popular mainstream magazine ranked this baby as one of the most important records of all time)?

Its because Captain Beefheart was going for all those things. Not because DON VAN VLIET is some kind of creepy sadist, but to highlight by contrast what we value in music. For this reason alone, it deserves a listen by everyone. However, it is still so lamentably painful that I can't give this the 5 stars it probably deserves. So I'll stick with a conservative 3 stars and a high recommendation.

An interesting adventure to the edge of musical madness, it is, but a true classic, it ain't. While I don't fully grasp the entire album (not that I think you are supposed to anyway) I do enjoy much of this album, especially lyrically. I do have to say, however, that the sections in which the good Captain speak-sings without any accompanying music came across as more offputing than anything else. And while some might not care for the near lack of any recognizable musical structure instrumentally I personally don't mind it at all and find it satisfying, not mind blowing, but satisfying. In addition, having Frank Zappa as producer and getting to hear from him on several tracks is a giant plus but all being said the album is good, not excellent. Trout Mask Replica receives 3.4 lazier beans out of 5.

Delirious. Completely delirious. And soooooooooo good ! The first time I heard this album, I think for myself 'what's this ???!!!???', and it was very hard for me to listen to the entirety of these 78 minutes. But after a few listenings, the madness of it caught me, and I just cannot live without a monthly listening of Trout Mask Replica. There are other good Beefheart albums (The Spotlight Kid is great as possible, Lick My Decalls Off, Baby is weird and good, Safe As Milk is nice), but this one, produced by Zappa (you can hear Zappa speaking in the beginning of The Blimp moustrapreplica), I guess), is Beefheart's most poFast and bulbous !

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Posted Sunday, March 16, 2008 | Review Permalink

Dare you enter the world of Beefheart? This album is so hrd to fit into a genre. Maybe think of it as avant-garde blues, with a hint of free jazz. This weird album twists and turns through 28 tracks, each one with its own individual feel, but all staying with the manic styl of the album. The instruments are played with expert precision, and the poetic lyrics keep this album interesting throughout.

'Frownland' kicks things off with one of the albums more straight-forward tracks. The there's the a cappella 'The Dust Blows Forward and th Dust Blows Back'. This sung poem is very weird and haunting. 'Dachau Blues' sees the Captain's voice at his gruffest as he describes the suffering of the Jewish people in WWII and warns against a thrid world war. 'Ella Guru' brings us too a more straight forward song, structured like a pop song, but still pretty weird. It contains the first of many discussions about the words fast and bulbous. 'Hair Pie: Bake 1' is an absolutely manic instrumental, ending with a discussion about how they are recording it from a bush. 'Moonlight in Vermont' is a highlight with a strong tune under all that mayhem, and some desparate lyrics about the effects of a full moon on people. 'Pachuco Cadaver' starts with another fast and bulbous speech, before going into one of the better tunes off this album. 'Bill's Corpse' keeps this quality up, but I don't like 'Sweet Swee Bulbs' as much. It doesn't hold my attention. 'Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish' is a total freakout, with free association lyrics sung/spoken manically. 'China Pig' sounds like a garage recording, and is one of the most desperate sounding tracks on the whole album. With just voice and guitar, this tracks funny lyrics provide some welcome comic relief. 'My Human Gets Me Blues' is odd to say the least, with its strange lyrics and strange... everything else. Next are the two intstrumentals: 'Dali's Car' and 'Hair Pie: Bake 2', both similar sounding in the manic vein of the album. 'Pena' includes a further discussion about fast and bulbous, before the lyrics are screamed out at breakneck speed. 'Well' is another weird a cappella poem featuring promintly the word...well. This is possibly the best of the three a cappella tracks. 'When Big Joan Sets Up' is the longest song, giving the Magic Band time to develop the weirdness into a stopry about a woman whose hands are too small. Odd indeed. 'Fallin Ditch' and 'Sugar N Spikes' almost sound normal after it, although they are both strong tracks. 'Ant Man Bee' is an environmentally conscious tale of ants men and bees. 'Orange Claw Hammer' is the final a capella track and the longest of the three. It is sung in the style of a sea shanty, and unlike the res of the album sounds sad and reminiscent rather than desperate and manic. 'Wild Life' is less interesting and a bit too repetitive for my liking. 'She's Too Much for My Mirror' is good, but doesn't stand out much. 'Hobo Chang Ba' is weird and excellent. 'The Blimp (moustrapreplica)' is a weird song. It is apparently The Mothers of Invention practicing while a member of the Magic Band recites a poem down the phone to Frank zappa! This is a strange, unsettling, yet compelling track. 'Steal Softly Through the Snow' is a softer sounding pop- oriented track, providing relief from the weirdness. 'Old Fart at Play' brings back the weirdness, and 'Veteran's Day Poppy' has some interesting lyrics, ending in a jam.

This album is not without weaknesses by any means, but being over 75 minutes long includes an abundance of great material. Well worth buying if you're willing to explore, and a well deserved four stars, for this 'flawed masterpiece'.

Well, folks, here it is. The big one. The Blimp. The life-changing, perspective-altering, avant-garde totem/behemoth that is 'Trout Mask Replica'. You'll love it or loathe it, 'get it' or remain forever nonplussed by it - but one thing is sure; you'll certainly have an opinion about it!

First things first: I'm not about to try and tell you that You Must Like This Album. Far be it for the likes of me to take sides in the endless scrap over this most polarising of all works of art. I begrudge nobody his or her personal taste in music, and if this just isn't your cup of tea, well. that's fair enough.

But I do ask (nicely and politely!) that you give it a fair go, if you're going to give it a go at all. It is possible to love this music - genuinely, sincerely and without any hint of po-faced, self-conscious, avant-hipsterism. honestly! It might take a bit of effort, but it's well worth it. Because - and this is, for me, the true importance and worth of 'TMR' - whether or not you ever come to like or love this music, it has the power to push you through the arbitrary cultural boundaries that are drummed into us like Pavlovian responses, in such a way as to open you up to a whole new musical landscape. Get your head around this one, and never again will any music hold any horrors for you. (I know that reads back as pretentious blather, but it's true. No way could I have come to enjoy some of my favourite music without having had my musical expectations confounded and poked in the eye by 'TMR'.) After this, nothing will ever seem so unapproachable that you can't at least give it a go. (Maybe it's a bit like the musical equivalent of bungee-jumping or having a tattoo. Scary in prospect, but somehow rather satisfying in hindsight. And downright addictive for some!)

This is one of those records where you need to just expose your ears to it - without trying to listen/concentrate/decipher. Just leave it on in the background, and after a while, the 'musical signposts' - the pattern - will emerge, and you'll start to get a feel for it, enjoy it even. Music is all about patterns, and 'weird/difficult music' is usually just a matter of unfamiliar patterns. Once you get familiar with it, it won't seem unapproachable or unstable any more.

So, with that lengthy preamble taken care of, on to the music!

I don't think there's much point giving a song-by-song rundown. There's an awful lot of 'em, and you'll come to your own conclusions anyway. I'll keep it more general - except to say that the song that 'did it' for me was 'Moonlight on Vermont'. Still my favourite, too!

The sound of this music is pretty hard to describe, but I'm game if you are, so let's try. Words that spring to mind include: jagged, spiky, refreshing, nonsensical, wired, gritty, sparkling, crunching, uncompromising, hoarse, angular, bristling, raw, and - strange as it may seem - humorous. You'll see others describe it in terms such as 'avant-blues', and that's a pretty handy label for it. But 'it is what it is', as they say. Rather unique. There are other bands who manage something of the clashing-yet-precise, angular-guitar sound (how about Ahleuchatistas?), but mostly they don't quite achieve the same sense of fun, the ornery-mischief-making feel, the desert-sweat-and-desperation, of the Real Thing. For that you need a Large Personality such as Captain Beefheart - and they don't come much larger than him, do they?!

Many people react with horror at what they assume is a chaotic, unrehearsed, improvised, undisciplined free-for-all freak-out session. But in fact, nothing could be more disciplined, more precise than this. There are many and varied tales of the tyranny of Don Van Vliet - tantamount to psychological abuse, by some accounts - as he sought to drum his peculiar vision for this utterly outlandish music into the souls of his band mates. These compositions will most likely sound artlessly jumbled to you at first. Only after a few listens can the sheer profusion of pointillistic detail resolve itself into something coherent. Let me just say that almost forty years later, the original members of the Magic Band could still play these pieces, note-perfect, as seen and heard at their reunion concerts. That's pretty amazing in my book!

That brings me on to the stupendous talent that is. Drumbo. John French - percussionist at large. It's through his patient translation of Beefheart's ideas into something that human beings could understand, and reproduce, that this music exists at all. And his drumming on this album is what holds everything together. It has a rough, clattering, hyperactive feel - the sound of it is like an angry man, albeit one with an astute sense of rhythm, kicking over all the dustbins in the street! Underpinning the raucous rattle is the kind of finesse that can martial multiple, concurrent time signatures, keeping everyone in check, without ever littering the music with heavy-handed cues. I love how this music can paradoxically feel loose and strict at the same time! And yet, on the original LP, French wasn't even credited. I don't know if that was mere oversight, mischievous mystery-mongering, or an intentional slight of some kind.

The other thing that I can't fail to mention is Don Van Vliet's vocals and lyrics. His voice is as big and scary as a haunted castle. There are stories of him frightening microphones to death with the vastness of it. Reports of him having an 'eight-octave voice' are somewhat exaggerated, but you can tell how he could get away with making the claim! The combination of his fearsome yell with the frequent outbreaks of childlike wonder that punctuate his singing and recitations is an odd one, but somehow it works. The words themselves are something else! Oftentimes they appear to be nonsensical until suddenly, they slide into focus, and you realise that he is talking in constant metaphor. The imagery elides together like two magic lantern slides viewed at once. Every now and again, you'll have a little 'Aha!' moment as, out of blue, a morsel of meaning falls into place. The wordplay is endless. An atmosphere of impatient intelligence - done with one thought and on to the next before the first has been fully expressed - resonates through this peculiar poetry. Multiple meanings, rhymes that fall in together and gather pace like a lyric stampede, disappearing over the horizon before you've had time to work out what's going on. It all feels thrillingly one step ahead of your game.

After ten years of listening to this record, it still sounds to me like the words have been translated - perhaps inadequately - from some very complicated alien language, able to express ideas and sentiments that we mere earthlings can only guess at. and it's dangerously quotable. Something about such gnomic utterances as 'fast and bulbous' has made them like passwords to a secret conclave of Beefheartian initiates. Walk around with that on your t-shirt and you will find a delighted smile of recognition on the face of any fellow muso-weirdo whom you encounter.

There's a strange meeting in the personality of Captain Beefheart between an idiot savant, a nature-loving synaesthete, and a calculating salesman. I think I like him best when the fool's mask slips and he could almost be winking at you, admitting that he's pulling your leg just a little bit.

Frank Zappa (himself present here in the role of bemused accomplice) used to propound the idea that music is. whatever you decide it is. 'Music' is simply sound, or even the absence of sound, arranged or bounded to suit the purposes of an individual. And that's what I take from this album - that mind-blowing sentiment, that sudden feeling of freedom from the constraints of what convention has decided music should be. It really is possible to enjoy any kind of music, from pop to noise - you just need that old cliché, 'an open mind'; and this record could be the key to opening yours!

(On the other hand, it might just be the key to your next migraine, in which case I hope you will forgive me for having taken up your time!)

Anyway, whatever expression is plastered across your face in reaction to 'Trout Mask Replica', when it comes to me. my smile is stuck. By now I'm sure you know what I'm going to say. Five stars, people! Five stars.

If you listen to this album with only "music" perspective in your mind, you will definitely end up with something really bad about this controversial album by Captain Beefheart. Why? Because this is not just music, it's a product of art as the leader is not just a musician but a visual artist. There is barely catchy melody you might expect in any typical song-orientated music as this is more towards an expression of art instead of crafting beautiful notes into a musical composition. This is an art product where the disharmony has become a harmony. It's perfectly understood that harmony is a very subjective definition which differs from one person to another. I remember vividly when I was teenager playing Yes "Relayer", I received complaint from my friend as they said that the music has no harmony. But I disagreed with him and telling him that Yes "Relayer" has a powerful harmony. The music is harmony or not has become a tough debate from one person to another.

So why do we need to appreciate this kind of "Trout Mask Replica" album by Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet)? Two reasons: First, the album is quite original in which the influence from other band can hardly be identified except the fact that Don was a childhood friend of Frank Zappa. You can categorize some passages as jazz style while other passages are rock'n'roll or blues or in fact avant garde. You might find similar vein with some passages of King Crimson's Island or Lark's Tounge in Aspic albums. If you are open mind and have a willingness to explore, this is an album worth appreciating. Second, there are so many unexpected things happen from one passage to another without any pattern that you can predict. This is becoming a "joy" in itself because the thing that previously you say as "no harmony" it will become "harmony" when you play the album repeatedly.

Overall, I consider this as an excellent addition to any prog music collection. Please do not expect something "symphonic" here. But if you can enjoy Frank Zappa, Thinking Plague, Phish,you might be able to enjoy this album. Keep on proggin' ..!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW (i-Rock! Music Community)

Like one of Jackson Pollock's

This is an album which has intrigued me for years. Many people hold it up as one of the best albums ever made, but for one reason or another it was only recently that I decided to see what the fuss was about.

I have to confess, I find myself mystified as to what the appeal of this album (and indeed more widely the appeal of the Captain) is. I readily admit that jazz as a whole does little for me, but while the music here has a large freeform element to it, I suspect jazz is not really the appropriate term for it.

This 1969 album was the third release by Captain Beefheart. It is though arguably the first to truly represent what Beefheart and his Magic Band were all about. Encouraged by Frank Zappa (who produced the album), they threw all the previous tenets and restrictions they had worked to aside, and recorded exactly what they wanted to record, the way they wanted to do it. Such lofty ideals can seem gallant, but they also carry with them a high risk strategy. The results can either be brilliantly innovative, or hopelessly uncontrolled. If nothing else, this album demonstrates such a situation perfectly, but it is for the listener to decide which of the results was achieved.

At first, the track list can be somewhat daunting, offering no less than 28 tracks spread over a double LP. Clearly then, there are no side long epics here, or indeed anything which might be described a long by any standard. In musical terms, it seems few would deny that the listener should not expect to hear compositions as such. This has been described as "a work of art" (by DJ John Peel), and it would seem that to gain anything at all from it one must approach it on that basis. As we all know though, art comes in many diverse forms, and beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder. As someone who fails to see the attraction in abstract or modern art, my feelings towards musical works such as those presented in this album tend to parallel my views of the painted form.

In such cases, there is the offer of mitigation in being able to appreciate something without actually liking it. I regret to say that in this case I neither appreciate OR like what I hear on "Trout mask replica". For me, the songs here have all the symptoms of a hotchpotch of quickly thrown together ideas without substance or direction. I search in vain for a hint of a melody, a virtuoso performance on guitar, or even just a lyric which has a modicum of value. Not only do I fail miserably to garner any sort of pleasure from the album, I am embarrassed to say I also fail to understand what it is which leads others to appreciate the album on any level.

In the end, I can only offer a practical analysis, in the hope of assisting those wondering whether the album might be for them. This album does not contain music in its traditional form. It contains intense experimentation and improvisation devoid of apparent structure. There is no ambience to the resulting sounds, but those with a liking of jazz may find an overlap with that style. There is no doubt that this album does have something, there are so many people for whom it is a masterpiece or close to it. Regrettably, I can offer no help whatsoever in defining what that something is.

This is one of the weirdest and most influential albums I own. On top of that, it is also one of the most hilarious. The instruments are played with high proficiency, though there are no keyboards and there is tons of dissonance, which may prove to be impenetrable for a substantial amount of proggers. Beefheart's poetic lyrics are cryptic and insane, which complements the music perfectly. I love the tracks where Beefheart plays the saxophone especially; all the compositions are crafted extremely well.

This album has a very unique feel to it and may take several listens to fully enjoy, particularly with its length. The music is almost indescribable. very jagged, dissonant, yet beautiful in a twisted way. You can feel the creativity of Van Vliet and the Magic Band pouring through each song; it's wonderful.

A masterpiece. This is not for everyone though.

EDIT summer 09 - A-This is not so for song orientated album Q-Is this human orientated? A-It's hard to understand it, it takes time Q-And is it even possible? I mean, I've tried some of the hardest prog rock delicate things (like Van der Graaf Generator, Anglagard etc) and I often liked them. So it's probably not me. This album is one of the most reviewed/rated ones and has so great rating, that it seems like bad dream to me. Every cell of my brain is shouting in confusion what is wrong. With this situation, average is that mostly 4-5 ratings are given. More of 5 stars, so these 1-2-3 will counterweight it. I'm giving frickin 1 star, it's my only 1 star (except Queen's latest "effort" which I take as blasphemy). But Queen at least have melody, though not artistic/prog qualities in their latest. A-not everyone will like it Q-Indeed, some of the bands (as I said, VdGG) have similar "problem". Listeners are often relieved and enjoy it much more when they finally get into it. But I just don't think there is something as a "prize". There were tries to get together image and sound. Take for example The Wall, or Tommy. Or Help!. OK, this is different. Strange, it's same haunting as The Wall, but far less interesting.

-I'm aware that I'm broking one of the rules by partially quoting some of the previous posts, I just needed them to amplify my edit. To finally, after months of deciding, to say it.

Actually, this is the worst album I've ever met. And I tried maybe few hundred albums in rock genre, I've enjoyed lot of them, but this is (how they say it sometimes in English speaking countries, but not on this page), really pain in the a-s. I know that it's not right to mention others in my review words of others, but this album deserves it. And, by the way, lot of others, not only users, but prog reviewers done so too.

Well, you can say, that it's the masterpiece. But I, personally, see this as mystification. That those, who gave it five stars fooled themselves, covered their eyes with pink sunglasses and just raised martyrdom and suffering when listening to this album to other side. To pleasure moments. Well, or I and few others aren't intelligent/delicate enough to appreciate this piece of music. Please, don't take this as offense, it's simple. When this album has around 3.91 rating and when considering that I'm giving this one star rating, then my opinion is far from being average. But at least it's tolerated to have so low rating on this record. EDIT: I wouldn't wait to tell anyone when somebody will give 1 star rating to something like The Wall, Dark Side of the Moon and so on, thank you for being tolerant here

Oh boy, I just don't see any masterpiece, any goodness in this record. I can't find anything nice/ beautiful on this. It's not for soft-hearted ? Is it even for humans ? I've listened to this Trout thing and now I'm repairing my destroyed mind with Premiata Forneria Marconi to hear something normal. I must say (as a excuse) that I love Frank Zappa, especially his first two albums. I'm not against experimental music and absolutely not against weird lyrics. King of Prunes ? It's not normal, but it's great. But this, weird weirdishness is probably not my cup of tea. I don't want to fool myself, be blind to this ugliness and enjoy torment. Not if there is thousands of better and more pleasant things. Am I right ? I hope so.

I know that it may look strong to gave only one star, but this album can be accepted fully or you can disagree, also fully. I strongly disagree. That's my opinion.

I would say four stars directly and the fifth for so much seperate reasons that normally wouldn't relate, but all come together in this album. To name just a couple;

- It sounds terrible at first listen. I learned that quite often this leads the way to a musical gem, a gem in the way that makes you gasp at just the idea you might have missed it. - Listen to it a couple of times, lay it away for some time and then listen to it again. When that feels like coming home it grabbed you, whatever your first idea about it. - It paves the path for all other Beefheart music. No, not true, it paves the path for everything creative Beefheart ever did (and I know of); music, lyrics, poems and paintings. - It opens your mind. It blows out any narrow mindedness. The first narrow mindedness however to get over with is to not listen to it. - It befools you. One other reviewer (one star) said it sounds as if a bunch of children are playing their Fisher Price guitars. Yes, it does. Incoherently in a way, fully structured in another way. The magic is that it does both at the same time, but how you experience it depends on the way you listen to it (if you've got ears, you've got to listen), just as elusive as quantum particles. - The voice is terrible / mythified for how many octaves it can reach. Yes, indeed it sounds terrible, but also this grows into something so particular your friend that every time you hear it you know you listen to a friend. - Believe it or not, there is humour in it (What do you run on, Rockette Morton? I run on beans!). All first impressions might give you the feeling the whole thing addresses you very agressively, so it might seem they laugh you in the face, but they don't, they're just having genuine fun. - And in light of the above; it might feel aggressive at certain places, but in fact they're all just a couple of very friendly guys, having no harm in mind at all. Beefheart - although a tiran towards his fellow group members, but that's something a true artist can be forgiven - is just a person with a very warm spot inside, although perhaps hidden behind a wall or a curtain or underneath a stone.

And that's perhaps just what should conclude it all; this album and Captain Beefheart in particular is not what it seems at first. It's just a question mark, what will you be doing, turn around or follow me?

This is an album that is only interesting from the view point that people actually find something of value here. Now I don't really enjoy abstract expressionism and find the mindset of most the people that do to be pretentious. The reason for that is because in order to enjoy something like this you have to invent some reason that this is genius, and then believe that others lack the ability to perceive it on the same level that you do. Now I'm not saying that there is no way there isn't something of value to be found on this album(just extremely unlikely), but for me the value comes from the polarizing reaction to it after people have listened to it. Now I haven't met anyone in person that has admitted to liking this album but apparently there are a lot to be found on this site. What this says to me is that some people like to feel they are different from others around them, and that they, in someway are special for noticing something that others can not. But I really can't say for sure because all I experience when I listen to this album is the same thing I experience when I stare at the original abstract expressionist paintings of the 1950s... nothing. There is absolutely no form, or message to this album. There is no social commentary or deeply moving personal reflection. And above all, it just sounds bad. Buy this album for the laughs and to torture people on long car rides with, but please don't buy it for the art.

This album may be too much for your mirror.

Of all the albums on the archives that are considered (or could be considered) avant-rock Trout Mask Replica may take the cake in terms of avantness, unpredictability, abstractness, and sheer ability to stupefy. (A minor footnote to that: While some avant-garde music may best Trout Mask Replica in any or all of these qualities I don't believe any of those are on/should be on Prog Archives. ) Even with its far reaching influences and variety of styles presented (in whatever bastardized form the Capt. wanted), this album rocks. The energy, the attitude, the instrumentation (for the most part)...all of it scream out rock.

In some ways this album makes me question my definition of avant-rock. I have used Cartoon's Sortie as my "standard" for judging the avant-rock quotient of albums that are classified (at least by me) as avant-rock/avant-prog. This album has very little in common musically with the aforementioned Sortie. Yet, there is no debate if this album is avant-rock...you can add in a number of other styles (blues, free-jazz, etc) but the two genres that can not be left out are avant(-garde) and rock. The only reason I add this anecdote to my review is that truly progressive albums make you think about music differently, make you analyze music differently, and force you to forget everything (or at least some things) you thought you knew beforehand. And Trout Mask Replica does that for me.

Musically this album is very diverse. However, there is one unifying factor: The music is jagged, rough, irregular, and can come off as crude and unprofessional sounding. But, the magic here is that it all works together to create a complete sound. The music is akin to a jigsaw puzzle. The guitar is fused with the drums, which are fused with the saxophone, which are fused with the bass, which are fused with Beefhearts vocals, which are fused with whatever other sounds are introduced in that particular song. Removing any part of this puzzle would weaken the overall foundation, if not crumple it all together. Once again, this is a unique trait to Captain Beefhearts music, especially in 1969 when it was originally released. As for the music itself, others have described it very well. Blues meets free jazz meets abstract poetry meets rock meets avant-garde meets a meat grinder. Yet, everything is still perfectly crafted in a way similar to that of tying fourteen dozen knots together is.

In some ways its best to consider Trout Mask Replica as a whole, using only the track titles and separations as signals to where the lyrics switch, however, I will still point out a couple of favorites of mine. 'The Dust Blow Forward 'N The Dust Blow Back' is an excellent vocal solo that focuses on the craftsmanship of Beefhearts lyrics, perhaps juxtaposed, by Beefhearts gruff voice. I must say that I really enjoy the sound of his voice. Its not majestic, its not sweet, its not serene, its not smooth, but it is gritty, like it has lived its life on the streets and is now showing the scars of those endeavors. In a strange way it seems to justify the obvious blues influences. Additionally, it fits the music perfectly and hearing any of these songs with "clean" vocals would detract from the experience significantly. 'Dachau Blues' is another highlight with lyrics that I've always liked (for perhaps reasons unknown). 'Hair Pie' (Both bakes) are excellent musical excersions that really show off the chops of the musicians. It would be appropriate to emphasize Drumbo's excellent playing. Not only does it highlight the music perfectly, it rarely "settles down" into, so called, regular beats. I can't imagine this is easy to play, yet it sounds flawless. 'The Blimp (Mousetrapreplica)' is another top notch piece that is actually quite catchy (and also probably my favorite song on the album). Other highlights include: 'Neon Meate Dream Of An Octafish', 'Pena', 'Hobo Chang Ba', and 'Pachuco Cadaver'.

To be fair, there is one main downside to this album (other than its strangeness and repulsive air, which some may see as a downside, but this reviewer does not): its length. Seventy-Eight minutes...admittedly it is a little difficult to sit all the way through this album in one listen, but not because of its contents. (Personally anything nearing the Seventy minute mark is a bit difficult to listen to all the way through without stopping for me...even if its gentle, soothing music.) This can be even more off-putting, but at the end of the day if you can sustain interest in this for the entire time you would have grown as a person, and come out for the better on the otherside.

All in all, Trout Mask Replica is fully deservent of the full five star rating. Its progressive, influential, and unique (in a historical context mostly, but still...even now there are few works that can reside on the same pedestal as this beast). It is sound art. However, this album is certainly not for everyone. If you are a strict fan of symphonic prog, neo-prog, or crossover prog, you will probably not enjoy this. If you don't like your music with dissonances, awkward structures, the feeling that the music can fall apart at any time, rough vocals, you will probably not enjoy this. If you shy away from Henry Cow, Frank Zappa's more difficult works (Lumpy Gravy, Weasels Ripped My Flesh, etc), Univers Zero, and this ilk, you should probably stay far far away from Trout Mask Replica (and Beefheart as a whole) However, if you like your music to push boundaries, to be different, to be bold, to be unconventional, to be whatever it wants to be, to be complex, to be off-putting, to be chaos in motion, this is a record you should hear. Fans of truly progressive music need to hear Trout Mask Replica at least once in their life. Call it ugly, disgusting, vile, revolting, hideous...just call it genius as well. 5 stars.

My first contact with Captain Beefheart's work was when I first heard the Frank Zappa song "Willie The Pimp", where he does an amazing job, a really threatening and aggressive voice, with great groove, like a pimp really! However, that's not what I find here, this album is just an amount of recordings (yes, because I can't find any coherence in the album organization), where weird sounds make background noise for the Captain's voice, The fact that this is a double album, with almost 1h20, doesn't help at all for a new listener like myself, it becomes tiring, saturating, repetitive and boring. I confess that something like this in 1969 is, undoubtedly, admirably, but this cannot entertain me, it irritates me, I can't like this.

This is one of the most debated albums of the popular music history. It is hailed as the weirdest album of all time and just as often cursed as the weirdest album of all time. It is the favourite album of Simpsons creator Matt Groening and it is also one of my all time favourites. I knew the controversial reputation of this album and decided to buy it after reading about its rather chaotic recording process from Frank Zappa's autrobiography The real Frank Zappa book. I am a huge Frank Zappa fan by the way. And unlike many others I fell in love with Trout mask replica immediately. It took just one listening. This is definately along with Frank Zappa's Uncle meat the most original album in rock music history in my opinion.

While I agree about statements of this album's originality I disagree about Trout mask replica being a total cacophony and the least listenable album of all time. In my opinion modern death metal is much more cacophonic than any music on Trout mask replica. This isn't improvisational music folks. The music on Trout mask replica is tightly structured. The structures and arrangements are just radically different from traditional rock or pop. Every instrument has a rich life of its own while in the same time contributing into the whole. If you have more jazzy background you might understand this music better. Especially if you're into free jazz.

Captain Beefheart's voice is one of those 'love it or or hate it' voices of rock 'n' roll. His voice definately has either positive or negative impact on you. It doesn't leave you cold. His voice is bluesy, wacky and extremely weird, especially on this album. He is actually one of my favourite singers and one of the few singers who can make poetry reading without any music background sound good. The dust blow forward and the dust blows back and Orange claw hammer are good examples of this.

Even on this album there are some easier moments but definately not commercial ones. Moonlight on Vermont for example has a quite hard rock like riffery but in much more complicated way than any hard rock band could pull off. Captain Beefheart's voice is just powerfully soaring on this one. It is like a lightning from the sky. This song has huge intensity and I think this is probably a better headbanging song than almost any heavy metal classic. And section where Captain sings, ''Gimme an old time religion it's good enough for me'', is just mezmerizing. Another easier moment on the album is Veteran's day Poppy which has a a haunting, flowing and beautiful melody. Other highlights include Pachuco Cadaver, Steal softly thru snow, Ant man bee and Sweet sweet bulbs.

Lyrics are often image stream like and contain complex symbolics and extremely wacky imagery. They may seem very random and abstract. But I think the point of the lyrics is create surrealistic atmospheres by using striking images. I am planning to take a deeper look inside the lyrics but I get already that they seem to paint a picture about a hectic and insane world from insecure and sexually exhausted person's point of view.

Bottom line is this a perfect combination of modern poetry and experimental music. And should be owned by everyone who loves weird music.

It was fictional guitarist David St. Hubbins who once said "It's such a fine line between stupid, and clever." And this album is an illustration of how easy it can be to fall on both sides at once. Trout Mask Replica can be both inspiring and insipid, and exceed at both. Where this album works is when the band is sowing the seeds of the oddly disjointed music that became one of the trademarks of The Magic Band. Where it doesn't work is when the band attempts a rock version of "free jazz". It sounds a lot like when my teenage son and his friends are sitting around, all playing different, unassociated riffs, no one listening to each other. I just don't think these guys, at this point in their careers have the chops for it.

Don Van Vliet's poetry here is just as hit or miss. At times it seems inspired. At others, it sounds very similar to some pseudo-intellectual ramblings of some drug addled teenagers I knew in high school.

But being about 50/50 hit and miss, and also originally being a double album, there is still an albums worth of good material here.

As Frank Zappa would so elegantly put it: "If you get it, it's wonderful and it works for you. If you don't get it, don't feel too bad, because you probably weren't meant to get it in the first place." (Or something along those lines)

"Trout Mask Replica" is indeed a real piece of work. When one looks at the various grimy components that go into an album such as this (the honking guitars, the raucous wind and brass sections, the wickedly complex drums, the bizarre tempo changes, and of course, Beefheart's strained, dynamic vocals) one probably won't find anything that seems appealing at first glance. However, when taken in as a whole, the sound takes on a quality that is, if not pleasant, at least endearing to the dedicated listener. The tracks range in complexity from outlandish a capella to equally strange narrated avant-garde to noisy blues-rock pieces to lengthy jazz excursions. Though many of these songs share a similar timbre or compositional style, each track is completely unique and equal to its counterparts. Indeed, while I can safely say that nearly all good albums have at least one track that does not shine as brightly as the others, that is not the case with "Trout Mask Replica". Every song on this album (and there are quite a few) contributes equally to the whole, which is, in this reviewer's opinion, meant to be listened to all the way through.

But again I must warn you, that this album is not for everyone. The style of music offered here was not really intended for fans of progressive rock, but rather for the kind of people that good prog fans should be: those with open minds. "Trout Mask Replica" effectively demonstrates that good music should not simply be heard, but really listened to.

Honestly, I'm insulted that this album only carries a four-star rating. Sure, everyone's entitled to their opinion, and I can see how this album could be a 'turn-off' to some people, but it's influence on pop music and its artistic freedom are both irrefutable. Sure, Don's combination of blues, poetry, jazz, and, well, sound, are definitely tough to get used to, and an album with so little cohesion could be disenchanting (it certainly does take a few listens to fully grasp the record's concept), it's still a monolith record. It remains the zenith of unconventional rock music, the pinnacle of the strange, and a testament to individuality and creativity. And even with the insanity, it still remains true to its roots; it's still a rock record, even if there's no togetherness, even if it has absolutely no discernible cohesion. I give five-star ratings pretty sparingly, I will admit, and though I'm sure several of my personal favorite albums don't deserve them, this one certainly does.

Shuffling through the other reviews, I couldn't help but notice the mass of negative criticism; I reckon that I'm no master reviewer, that I'm right now saying what's been said a million times, but I know a masterpiece when I hear one. Even the most broken, unintelligible music has some artistic worth. This record isn't about a glossy polish, about complicated keyboard solos, or about impressive, complicated finesse; no, Trout Mask Replica is about singularity and avant-gardeness!

I've heard a million complaints about this type of music...honestly, I have! Beefheart's voice is absolutely unbearable, I've heard, the instruments are too broken, I've heard, but like I mentioned earlier, rock music doesn't solely need to rely on beautiful voices and instrumental complexity; if this were the case, Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry wouldn't be legends, would they? Sure, Beefheart's music isn't even remotely reminiscent of Holly's or Berry's, really, but it follows the same structural ideal...it's not about the intricacy or the talent of the band members, it's about the sound, the overall sound, and the emotion that is felt and given off.

I'd say give Trout Mask a few listens before judging it. If you hate the avant-garde and the strange, then this certainly isn't the record for you, but if you're willing to keep an open mind, then this masterwork is an absolute yes.

This isn't one of those albums one idealises as the epitome of prog rock. This is an album where people begin to question the credentials of progressive rock. Okay, I have to admit that the Captain's vocals sound like what Ian Anderson might have been thinking of when he came up with ''Aqualung'', and the compositions sound like vomit and turds.

It can get to be a bigger headache with the random a capella pieces scattered in there like ''Well'' and the studio goofing off like at the beginning of ''Pena'' (Captain and producer Frank Zappa can't narrate an over-elaborated story without giggling). In other words, from the cover to the songs to the structures, this sounds like a total mess.

However, after listening to the album a couple of times, I got this feeling that the album sounds too random to be improvised (paradox?). There's plenty of great bluesy avant-rock meat to sink your teeth into like the ''Hair Pie'' bakes, ''Moonlight in Vermont'', ''Pachuco Cadaver'', ''Hobo Chang Ba'' and ''Veteran's Day Poppy''. My only true problem is that there are simply WAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY too many tracks for this to be truly worthy.

Any newcomer to Captain Beefheart might want to get SAFE AS MILK first, as it is, well, safer than this album. However, to all of those with an open mind, TROUT MASK REPLICA is worth a try.

I've heard around 300 prog albums but nothing compares with 'Trout Mask'. Forget what sounds like an awful home recording of 'China Pig', everything else is fantastic! Real wacky, off the wall bonkers crazy stuff that sounds tight - I mean really tight!. These guys under Van Vliet were so drilled they daren't make a miniscule mistake within Van Vliet's vision of how things should sound. Suffice to say - it's clearly the best Beefheart album (followed by Lick my Decals off Baby') and is also one my favourite albums of all time. Brilliant, and definitely worth 5 stars for the sheer loopiness of the whole thing. But it's definitely one of those albums you'll either love or hate.

Part excellent, part annoying..Welcome to the world of Captain Beefheart (and who can forget that magic band of his)

This is one crazy album if i may say so, i can really see what he's doing with a good bit of it but a lot of it i doubt he really knew what he was doing himself, spoken word passages intertwine with wierd guitar melodies and discorded sounds and atmospherics, there are some moments of sporadic genus, others of just and out of touch musician trying to invent and do something new and different from the norm, either way it makes for quite a good listening experience.

Now the production as you would probably asume for its time is very good, songs like CHINA PIG has this cool 'closed in' sounding mix where it sounds like there playing in a box or something, other times like THE DUST BLOWS FORWARD 'N' THE DUST BLOWS BACK and WELL have a cool spot on the album where the Captain gets a chance to shine on his own and let his spoken word passages take over, as for the rest there are some cool instrumentals, DALI'S CAR sounds like something a lot of post-rock bands try these days and just end up sounding the same doing, and HAIR PIE: BAKE 1 has some nice saxaphone solos in the intro;

Frownland - 9/10 The Dust Blows Forward 'N The Dust Blows Back - 9/10 Dachau Blues - 7/10 Ella Guru - 8/10 Hair Pie: Bake 1 - 9/10 Moonlight On Vermont - 9/10 Pachuco Cadaver - 8/10 Bills Corpse - 9/10 Sweet Sweet Bulbs - 7/10 Neon Meate Dream Of A Octafish - 7/10 China Pig - 8/10 My Human Gets Me Blues - 8/10 Dali's Car - 8/10 Hair Pie: Bake 2 - 8/10 Pena - 7/10 Well - 8/10 When Big Joan Sets Up - 8/10 Fallin' Ditch - 7/10 Sugar 'N Spikes - 6/10 Ant Man Bee - 8/10 Orange Claw Hammer - 7/10 Wild Life - 7/10 She's Too Much For My Mirror - 6/10 Hobo Chang Ba - 7/10 The Blimp (mousetrapreplica) - 7/10 Steal Softly Thru Snow - 6/10 Old Fart At Play - 5/10 Veteran's Day Poppy - 7/10

My Conclusion? this album is defiantly a journey that takes a few listens to really get into, but once you do reach that center there really is a lot to explore and a lot of fun to be had, overall a very decent effort.

Master of the absurd presents a unique experience that becomes ultimately repellent

Captain Beefheart is renowned for one album; Trout Mask Replica. For years I had been avoiding this album simply because it's reputation precedes it. The cover has that iconic image. It is well known as being a freaky trippy album with insanity turned up to 11 and experimental RIO Avant nuances. Often the infamy of an album becomes an enigma, and in this case the enigma of the album is far stronger and compelling than the actual material on it. In a similar way to Zappa's infamous 'Freak Out' album, 'Trout Mask Replica' is a journey into the absurd. Beefheart blows the doors off all vestiges of normality and plunges ass deep into the irrational. He gets into it up to his neck in fact and drags the unsuspecting listener in there with him and we have no alternative but to sink into the dark recess of a jaded mind. It is not even slapstick comedy but is rather fuelled with a disturbing and at times entertaining bizarre cynical edge. The edge is tarnished in places with overblown anti-poetry and in a sense anti-music. Many of the songs have a time signature that does not sync with the words, a drum may seem completely out of rhythm with the jangly guitars. The singing is terrible, it is meant to be I believe, and really sounds like nothing more than the mad ramblings of a deranged lunatic. Some of the tracks have no music at all and consist of a Beefheart monologue. These are the worst on the album. China Pig, and Hobo Chang Ba, for instance, are insufferable. The lyrics are weird to say the least, though at times the high strangeness is amusing making this an endurable curio album. But you have to sit through this for a full 78 minutes.

On 'Well' Beefheart states "night blocks out da heaven like a big black shiny bug!" On 'Old fart at play' there are a number of ramblings such as "mama, pecked the ground like a rooster, swivelled like a duck... the old fart smelled this through his breather holes, his excited eyes from within the dark interior glazed watered in appreciation.... oh man that's so heavy". On 'The Blimp' we have the iconic insanity of "the mothership! the mothership! the blimp! the blimp! it blows the air the ceiling fan look up into the sky, all the people stared, oh mama who cares it's the blimp! its the blimp!" Best of all is 'Pena' with the hilarious dialogue, "Fast and bulbous, also a tin teardrop!, The mascara snake, bulbous also tapered. Stuff billowing up from between her legs made me vomit beautifully and crush a chandelier" Now if at this stage you are scratching your head thinking what the heck is that about, then perhaps this album is not for you. The whole album is full of such anecdotes and none of it makes sense.

The moment you try to pin some kind of meaning on this baloney is the moment you have completely lost the point of the album. The point is that sometimes music does not make sense and we shouldn't try to pin on it sense when there is none. The dissonance of the time sigs, and instruments competing against each other is the avant sound that Beefheart strives for. This music is all about escaping a mediocre mainstream sound to make way for the new sound; a sound that is at times innovative, highly creative and other times hilarious, at times disturbing and creepy, and then unfortunately often becomes tedious. The tedious moments overwhelm the compelling moments. Even though there are 28 tunes to revel in, I could only find a mere 5 that were worth repeated listens.

The problem with the album arises from the fact that after the initial shock reaction and admittedly amusing response that will be generated from the album, (indeed it can become a topic of conversation in the same way as The Residents), the music will soon become confronting and unpleasant. There are no virtuoso guitar solos or brilliant musicianshil, arguably that would defeat the purpose of the album, and the lyrics are not exactly Shakespeare, and the singing is rather malignant, backed by benign dialogue. It is similar to 'Freak Out' with the smatterings of dialogue, and a rawness that is edgy, psychedelic, or is that psychotic, and dissonant. The sax blasts from the captain are great, the flute and clarinet add to the fun, but the jangalang guitar dominates as well as some sporadic drumming. In a sense the music is the best thing about it but you cannot ignore those hyper weird lyrics and Beefheart's exaggerated accentuated growls.

Some tracks are painful with Beefheart blaring out a bunch of nonsense. Was he a genius or simply off his rocker? I believe a bit of both would be an apt description. For me. It is impossible to rate this as a masterpiece though I can see many may come to that conclusion for all the reasons stated thus far. The album though is too clever or too weird for its own good, and Beefheart's prose and idiocy causes him to disappear up his own tail shaft. Pretentious? Not even that! One thing for certain is that you are unlikely to hear anything this ludicrous.

The 5 tracks that jump out and bite my ears that I would recommend are 'Pachuco Cadaver', 'Sugar 'N Spikes', 'When Big Joan Sets Up', 'Ant Man Bee' and 'Old Fart At Play'. As for the rest, I am afraid it went clean over my head. At first some were funny, but the joke grows stale, so I guess this works best as a one off listen and then one can move on and say they at least have heard the most unique, bizarre music from one of the absolute masters of the absurd. The late great Captain Beefheart.

Classic controversial album, for decades it was the reason for love/hate discussions.I really love that craziness, freedom and all that Van Vliet's world ,placed in one bag without restrictions.

Crazy lyrics, cacophony (or what could sound as cacophony for unexperienced ear), bluesy roots, free jazz atmosphere and freaky sound combinations. Two LPs-long album, full of voices and noises as above - not everyone' s nerves are ready to stand such test! But for others (and me between them) this album has it's beauty, possibly more in atmosphere then in one or another musical piece.

This music is evidence of time and place (not geographical one though) when and where the grass was greener and air was more clear. You can know it,or not. And if not - possibly you will never accept such unusual,possibly even unpleasant sound. Nothing is wrong with it at all - modern world is turning with help of millions normal people. Where would we be without them? But it's so great that Cpt. Beefheart (R.I.P.) half a century ago recorded such a fantastic music, and it's great that there are still few listeners who enjoy that almost forgotten sound from the time when the life was different.

Excellent album for those who knows what the real music is.

My rating is 4,5, rounded to 5.

I uploaded my review of Safe As Milk in hopes of pushing myself to write a review of Trout Mask Replica. Still, it took me a few days to collect my thoughts and make my opinion of this composition.

Some might consider it a make it or break it experience of an album that both dismisses many of its audiences while making others return hoping to finally decipher the riddle behind it. I consider myself to be stuck between the two, with an alignment to the latter. I'll put it frank; My understanding of Trout Mask Replica is nonexistent, still I keep returning to this work in hopes of getting a new outlook on the work. There is no doubt in my mind about the album's progressive merits and that it's far from the psychedelic rock movement that was so prominent in the end of the '60s. Almost every passage of the composition sounds as if it has been rehearsed to the smallest detail and that every instrumentalist knew exactly where to come in and end their arrangements while leaving enough space for Don Van Vliet to add his artistic touch to the material.

Are the results extraordinary? I certainly think so. But do they create an excellent album experience? Questionable. As I already stated here, I find Trout Mask Replica to be an untamable beast even to this day, but this is probably the main reason why it keeps me coming back for more! The whole "thinking outside of the box"-mentality feels highly refreshing even within the boundaries of progressive rock. It also manages to complete my trilogy of the most mentally straining albums that I've had the pleasure of experiencing so far, together with Univers Zero's Heresie and Can's Tago Mago.

You might have noticed by now that I haven't written much about the music in question, but that decision is completely intentional on my part since the passages featured on the album are difficult to describe and I doubt that any two people could ever completely agree on their experiences. This is why I leave it all in your hands! Go ahead and experience this enigma of an album, but be prepared to spend quite a few hours deconstructing what you've heard upon your first experience. I also highly recommend to keep an open mind about this composition since I doubt that it has anything in common with anything that you've heard before. Even the more experienced progressive rock fans are guaranteed to scratch their heads after experiencing this album, but there is certainly a charm to that as well.

The thing that still confuses me is the fact that Rolling Stone magazine included Trout Mask Replica among the top 100 of their of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. I mean, you have your the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen Neil Young and the Who records and then you have this! The absurdity of this contrast makes me smile even to this day.

PS Is it even possible to break this album down into song-by-song ratings?

Trout Mask Confusion

This is probably the most atypical style of progressive music that has reached my ears. Atypical because there is nothing to which I can compare it and progressive because of the improvisation, experimentation and absurd structure (if any). I have a feel that this sort of attitude or approach could be better expressed in a film or a form of writing or poetry rather than in a musical format.

What I find is that I can not listen through most of the songs on this album, although there are exceptions where slightly entertaining (Ella Guru) and bluesy tunes actually exist (Moonlight on Vermont, China Pig). I do also find some sort of character in tracks where Captain Beefheart chooses to sing only (or rather narrate) without the support of any instrument (Well, Orange Claw Hammer). And finally, there is considerable enjoyment in the closing track of the album which is probably the only real highlight, containing a means of structure. I can not give an overall description of the musical style but can see the bluesy and jazzy influences here and there, components that also existed in the debut album - the only other Captain Beefheart album with which I am familiar and fairly enjoyed. When doing a quick comparison with that, structure and the principle of full songs are missing here.

Trout Mask Replica pushes the limits of musical expression to a point where I can not really follow. The album is too long to bear and there are numerous moments that I regard as pointless, even if others might argue. For an acquired taste this certainly is, but I am not entirely sure if it can ever be digested musically.

This album is a landmark plain and simple...

This album has even adopted a tag for many different albums...for example, if I were to say that an album was a Trout Mask Replica, it means either you love it and completely understand it or you don't understand it at all and can't see any artistic merit in it.

This album does seem to be a bit of a joke at times to be honest, with Beefheart (and Zappa) being slightly smug and parodying many different things...but just like me (with Hitler's Brain), we can secretly repsect all forms of music...and parodying them is a good way to start.

This album is a bit of a joke...but it's a great joke. And also it takes a few listens to get into (it took me 3 I think)

The songs take on many forms, from avante garde jazz songs, word poems (bit like Gill Scott Heron, but with more poetic stupidity), weird narrative parts and just plain oddness...and it really is experimental music at its best.

I really don't know why I like it so much, I just do (I was recomended to them by my dad actually, cause at that time I was getting into Zappa)

1. Frownland - Great offbeat jazz arrangment. Beefhearts vocals are amazing. 10/10

2. The Dust Blows Forward 'N The Dust Blows Back - I did a parody of this type of song actually, ...Some interesting images being brought foward. The hissing ambient sound, which usually would annoy me, is actually quite calming. 10/10

3. Dachau Blues - It's odd trying to make a song about a concentration camp haha...Grreat lyrics and some evil vocals from Beefheart. 10/10

4. Ella Guru - The pop song of the album. Beefheart manipulates his voice so well. 10/10

5. Hair Pie: Bake 1 - Very noisy instrumental. Very experimental noises from the clarinet are heard. Its quite unlistenable, but soo good. 9/10

6. Moonlight On Vermont - I love the guitar work on this song. Quite bluesy, but still great. 9/10

7. Pachuco Cadaver - The arrangment is so crazy but it works so well. I love the ending instrumental. 10/10

8. Bills Corpse - Another crazy ranting song. Great lyrics. 9/10

9. Sweet Sweet Bulbs - Maybe a bit too crazy at times. Interesting arrangment. 8/10

10. Neon Meate Dream Of A Octafish - He really has a way with words. Great lyrical palletes. 10/10

11. China Pig - I don't like blues...but I do like this song. 9/10

12. My Human Gets Me Blues - Very in your face. Beefhearts voice really does make you want to listen and grabs your attention. 9/10

13. Dali'sCar - Very discordant and noisy. But such a step foward for guitarists. 10/10

14. Hair Pie: Bake 2 - Very jazzy. 9/10

15. Pena - Love how the vocals where pitched. Interesting lyrical images. 10/10

16. Well - He could read the phone book. 10/10

17. When Big Joan Sets Up - I love how the song goes from crazy...to absolute nuts. 10/10

18. Fallin' Ditch - I love all the crazy nonsensical intros. The song itself sounds a bit too similar to the rest of the album. Although I do like the crazy time changes. 8/10

19. Sugar 'N Spikes - A little bit more contemporary. The ending is pretty impressive. I love the crazy scatting. 9/10

20. Ant Man Bee - A bit like dark skiffle. 9/10

21. Orange Claw Hammer - So hypnotic with some nice lyrics. 10/10

22. Wild Life - Such a crazy arrangment. Very Tom Waits. 10/10

23. She's Too Much For My Mirror - I love how rhythmically odd this song is. 10/10

24. Hobo Chang Ba - Interesting vocals. Great time changes through out. 10/10

25. The Blimp (Mousetrapreplica) - Obvious Zappa instrumentation. Great crazy arrangment though. 10/10

26. Steal Softly Thru Snow - Very crazy and interesting arrangment. 10/10

27. Old Fart At Play - Such a great way with words. 10/10

28. Veteran's Day Poppy - Amazing ending. The instrumental is very diferent to the whole album. Quite King Crimson. 9/10

CONCLUSION: Everyone who I've reccomended this album has really liked it. And I reccomend it all to you

RIP Captain Beefheart

Released back in 1969 this must have been a shock to those who heard it. Certainly with Zappa's involvment as Producer there was some attention directed towards this album for that reason alone. I remember buying a copy of this years ago and the guy who owned the record store commented that he never could get itno that one. Lots of people can't get into this one (haha). It was rated number one on Mojo's 50 Most Out There Albums of all time.That's saying something. Apparently the band practised these songs for a year before recording this album.

The negatives for me include the length at 79 minutes as well as the dissonance. Now I like dissonance but not All The Time !! And for 79 minutes ? Too much. The vocals are an acquired taste and I don't mind them but again it goes on for so long.The positives are certainly the lyrics which I think are brilliant and also the humour. I laughed right out loud at times. It's cool hearing the various sax and clarinet melodies. Or should I say non-melodies. 28 tracks over two vinyl albums back in the day, so yeah a lot of short tracks.This flows quite well though. Although "flow" might be the wrong word.This is turbulent folks. I'm not going to go through each track because I would be repeating myself over and over. There are some amazing songs here and I can't disagree with those who think this is a masterpiece. I also can appreciate those 1 and 2 star ratings.This isn't for everyone. For me I don't enjoy or appreciate it enough to offer up the fourth star, but maybe one day. 3.5 stars.

The first time I listened to this record I put it off after six disturbing songs (the first six songs!). Being dazed and confused I could not get this record out of my head. So I listened it again and again. After two days I bought this bizarre record on vinyl and went on holiday. And even when I was in Italy sitting lazy on an easy chair I often thought about this record.

Back home I kept on listening. Whell, I'm always excited when music supprises me. And having listened to more and more progressive records I am still supprised how different Captain Beefheartis comparing to other progressive and avant-garde records. On moments that I decide that the bizarre music rhythems are totally not capable of having sang, the captain starts singing. And when I think that the music is on the climax of chaos an alto-sax starts off with confusing avant-garde.

Being avant-garde, Captain Beefheart has its roots in Blues Music. He could have been inspired by Howlin' Wolf who was one of the first rhythm and blues musicians and already had an "dark" sound. Another key figure in the development of the captain might be Big Joe Williams who was a really freeform bluesmusician. Big Joe had already "sang-only" bluesnumbers on his records, which are also to be found on the Trout Mask Replica. Big Joe had a raw sound.

I am lucky to have married a wife who likes progressive music. She likes King Crimson, Emerson, Lake & Palmer and so on and on. But the captain confuses her so much she dislikes it. The first time I put this Trout Mask Replica on she broke down her phrases, saying that this music whas so intense that she could not neglect it and could not even normally think while having this music on.

So, what is so bizarre in this music, that most people want to go far away of it? Here is a summary about the things which are quiet bizarre/abstract: -The frontcover -The songtexts -The musicians interaction -The text-only numbers -The combination of blues and avant-garde -The length of an extreme record like this -The enormous inspiration these quys must have had - The use of ugly voices -And most of all: the extreme dissonance and lack of harmonious compositions

Well, I have to say that this record is absolutely essential. While not consistently being brilliant I admit four stars for this daring record. I hardly recommend to listen to Safe as Milk and Mirror Man before getting into this Beefheart stuff.

If you are willing to drive yourself insane only to find you're not insane but rather in a heightened state of mind that everyone you love and hate will find insane, this album is for you.

That intro was about as complex as this album which at first seems completely insane but as you delve deeper you find that there is more going on then what first meets the ear. Captain Beefheart is somewhat of an odd type of genius that only few can admire. This album is a dive into sounds that had never been made before and words that had never been spoken. There are times when it makes you want to shoot yourself and others when you admire how thoughtful Don really was.

It is ultimately pointless to describe this album to someone who hasn't heard it because it is pretty much hypocritical of itself. When it tries to be comedic it tends to be much more serious and vice-versa. That is what makes this a gem. Music being pushed to it's limits.

Isn't that why we love it?

4.2 stars.

Beefheart's early-era albums - Safe as Milk, Mirror Man, and Strictly Personal - twisted and warped the blues. Trout Mask Replica blew it apart. Given a sparse, raw production job by Frank Zappa, who occasionally pops in with bemused-sounding commentary and directions, the album is proof of two things: first, that Beefheart was a true avant-garde genius in terms of the songs he dreamed up for this album, and second that the relevant lineup of the Magic Band were geniuses when it came to interpreting and actually performing the material!

Although on the first approach the album sounds like an incoherent mass of sound, there are in fact subtle variations build into it; Moonlight On Vermont and Veteran's Day Poppy were recorded a while before the rest of the album, and are very slightly more approachable than the rest of the material, several songs consist entirely of spoken word poetry from Beefheart, and on "The Blimp" the Magic Band take a rest and the Mothers of Invention provide instrumental backing. On the rest of the tracks, the name of the game is strange, angular rhythms played apparently out of sync - but as you listen patterns begin to emerge, the different instruments blending in and out of each other and creating a sonic labyrinth that is, for those who enjoy it, a sheer delight to explore even decades after the fact. Not only the purest expression of Beefheart's personal vision, but a keystone album in RIO and avant-prog. Trout Mask Replica proved that music doesn't have to sound melodious to be moving; sometimes, it doesn't even need to sound like music.

'Trout Mask Replica' - Captain Beefheart (7/10)

An acclaimed, influential, and ultimately hyped album, 'Trout Mask Replica' has a way of tearing a crevice between music listeners. Some hail it as one of the most original sounding and adventurous albums ever made, while other recoil in disgust at its fairly loose and quirky approach. As with many albums that get hyped up with their controversy, I get rather excited, in eager anticipation to see whether I'll be in the 'love it' or 'hate it' school of thought. With this album though, I find myself in a very unique position. I can relate to the views of both, and understand fully why someone would either adore, or abhor it. Simultaneously, Captain Beefheart has created an album that is both ingenious, yet can be interpreted as stupidity. An album that is dissonant and ugly-sounding, yet warm and endearing. Although very imperfect, 'Trout Mask Replica' does revel in its flaws, and while I still don't quite understand the legendary hype around this album, Captain Beefheart has created an intriguing artistic statement here.

A very long album for its time, 'Trout Mask Replica' is comprised of a twenty eight track, seventy eight minute wander through Captain Beefheart's rather deranged mind. Although I was expecting to hear something unclassifiable as the hype would have me believe, I interpret 'Trout Mask Replica' as a loose and experimental style of blues rock, with jazz and spoken word elements. Of the twenty eight sections here, things can be divided up into either bluesy songs, jazzy instrumental snippets, or spoken interludes with some surreal and often very silly dialogue. The blues element to 'Trout Mask' is arguably the most conventional, and gives the most concrete impression of songwriting that the album can muster. The jazz elements are much more loose, and rely more on the keen yet intentionally rough musicianship of the Magic Band, rather than the nasal charisma of Beefheart. Lastly, the interludes offer the least musicality to the album, but rather aim to break up the action a little, giving a nicer sense of flow. Indeed, the album is not all over the place, but instead seeks to return to a handful of different styles that are weird and off-putting enough to keep sounding fresh.

Probably the biggest point of derision for 'Trout Mask Replica' is the really jammed-out instrumentation behind Beefheart's voice. Indeed- especially upon a first listen- it sounds very much like each band member is playing something completely independent of the rest of the band. This could be interpreted as brilliantly polyrhythmic, but the way that the band passes themselves off makes it sound like they cannot play their instruments at all, and that alot of the sound on 'Trout Mask Replica' is fashioned out of their incompetence or ambivalence towards the album. Of course, this is not true at all; the Magic Band are very talented musicians, and while I can admit that even I was wondering at a few points over the course of the album whether or not these musicians had a little too much to drink before recording, the best way to appreciate 'Trout Mask Replica' is to take everything as is, and interpret everything as being feverishly intentional.

The sound and originality to 'Trout Mask Replica' is brilliant, but the album's length does feel unwarranted, especially when listening to the second half of the album seems almost like a total reprise of the first. Although lyrics change and the details become different, Beefheart's freakout blues does repeat itself, and over the course of twenty eight tracks, it really does feel as if there is material here that is on the record only to emphasize a previously made point, rather than to add anything new to the album. Listening to the second half, it really did feel in parts as if the entire thing was repeating itself, and while a longer album often equates to more value, 'Trout Mask Replica' could have made an even bigger statement if it had been cut down a little. The quirky passion is here in Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band like nowhere else, but unless the point was to create a deja-vu feeling, some of the time here could have been trimmed.

Captain Beefheart's genius does shine through here, although it is a tough pill to swallow at first. This is not music that can be enjoyed all too much without paying close attention to everything that is going on, and while I do love what Beefheart sets off to do here, 'Trout Mask Replica' still feels like an album that could have been improved upon. The first ten songs or so give an intense and refreshing experience, but as the album plods on, the recycled quirk can wear thin. All the same, 'Trout Mask Replica' is intense, and while it still may not be the 'weirdest' thing out there, it will challenge even the more adventurous listeners out there.

8/10

"Trout Mask Replica" is one of the most sincere Experimental albums ever.

Avant-Garde has never been so Avant-Garde. One of Zappa's many adopted children, Captain Beefheart is certainly one of the very best of these. "Trout Mask Replica" is indeed one of the most sincere Experimental albums ever, one of those albums that has tons of character, making it a great, fun listen.

Beefheart's love for Blues Rock has always been a major factor in his music, since his first days, when albums like "Safe As Milk" were released. When "Trout Mask Replica" came out, our man started mixing it even more with Experimentation than before; the result of this collision is a huge mess, in a good way. The Captain, at this point, has reached the zenith of musical chaos. People might tend to call it nonsense, random and completely out of tune, and that is why this album still is one of the most controversial albums of our time. But listening to it pretty carefully, it is obvious that everything is very much studied and almost every song written and not improvised. Underneath the mess, there's music. Music that not many found, even though it is between Free Jazz freak outs, very odd rhythms, distorted and almost irritating guitar work, and Beat Poetry often screamed by the Captain's low guttural voice. Lyrics are another important part of the album, being just as nonsensical as the music, and again another element subject to controversy.

"Trout Mask Replica" is one of the first double albums, and it is most definitely one of the hardest listens you'll experience, no matter if you like what you're hearing or not. The album has twenty eight tracks that finish after an exhausting hour and twenty minutes. This is maybe the only complaint I have about it, even though it's certain that the artist meant the album to be this tiring and almost unbearable after a while. Like I said, Avant-Garde has never been so Avant-Garde. It is almost amazing to me that I can find highlights here; "Ella Guru" is the most fun song of the album and maybe one of my favorite songs ever. "Moonlight On Vermont" sounds like an violent but funny abruption of a romantic dinner with your girlfriend. The two instrumental parts "Hair Pie" reassume the whole album. They are so many songs in the album I cannot try to name all the goods ones, so I'll end by mentioning the a cappella tracks here, all three of them funny as hell and, in a way, fascinating.

"Trout Mask Replica" is an essential album for whoever loves Avant-Garde music, it's historical importance is huge for genres that will be generated decades later such as Post- Punk or Avant-Prog. This also is David Lynch's favorite album of all time, no surprises there.

Whilst there is absolutely no doubting the sheer sonic vision imposed upon this unique oddity of an album by it's genre-hopping creator, there is one rather large problem with this otherwise impressively singular release: it's virtually un-listenable. As an exercise in sheer, mind-boggling musical innovation 'Trout Mask Relica' surely goes down as one of rock music's most iconic 'art-house' albums, a swirling cacophony of ideas shot through with endless instrumental creativity. However, those on the lookout for entertainment, and in the end my friends that is what music is really about, are advised to steer clear of this multi-coloured bout of sonic insanity. Released in 1969, this is the album most people associate with Captain Beefheart, though better representations of his unique talents can be found on his superb debut 'Safe As Milk' and it's acid blues follow- up 'Strictly Personel'. Alongside virtually anything by The Residents, Zappa's less coherent moments and the zany psych-rock eccentricity of Tim Smith's Cardiacs, 'Trout Mas Replica' ranks as one of the most bizarre moments in the history of rock 'n' roll. Beware.

STEFAN TURNER, STOKE NEWINGTON, 2012

This is such a great album. It's as if all my demented, wierd, and insane thoughts (I have quite a few) were put to blues music. However, like most double albums, I think it's too long. You have to clear 90 minutes to get through this, which not alot of people can do, and there are definatley some songs it could do without. But it's still a great album and a great experiance.

My favorites from the album:

"Frownland" Frownland does a great job of introducing the album. The music is very odd, crazy, wierd, and exciting. The rambling vocals from Beefheart (I know that's not his real name, but I'm still going to be refering to him as Captain Beefheart) are just awesomely wild.

"The Dust Blows Forward 'n the Dust Blows Back" This is an incredibly confusing song. It's an occapella, with each line ending with a clicking noise. The lyrics are strange and somewhat cryptic.

"Dachau Blues" Insane blues song.

"Pena" Begins with out-takes from a spoken part from earlier in the record. Crazy music, odd high-pitched vocals.

"The Blimp" Starts with Frank Zappa asking if someone (I think he's asking Beefheart or the listener) if they're ready. Then an odd theme is played while a female vocalist starts screaming about the "Mothership". It sounds as if she's singing through the phone.

To conclude, this is a great, four star album.

All the things you hear about this album make you believe that this is some unlistenable stuff and an atrocity on the level of Metal Machine Music (not really knocking Metal Machine Music, I actually like that album very much) suitable only for serious critics, that will take at least a 100 listenes to crack, but really, it's nothing like that. The truth is, at its core Trout Mask Replica is just rock and roll played in an unusual way, with elements of free jazz mixed in, of course.

So what makes this an essential album and a masterpiece of all time, that I think it deserves the full five stars? Well, I try not to toss out 5 stars for every album I like, but TMR is just too amazing. How? Well, besides having one of the most original takes on the blues/rock and jazz genres, it's also one of the most entertaining albums of all time. People say the weirdness prevents it from being enjoyable, I say it helps it to be more fun. Too many times have I encountered music that, because it avoids taking risks, ends up being unoriginal and, more importantly, too boring. This, though, is really insanely enjoyable, and what with Beefheart's rough vocals that I absolutely love, the Magic Band's quirky music, and the hilarious and cool lyrics, it's such an awesome combination, you can't help but love it. Heck, some of it is even catchy.

So, anyway, that's what I think about this album, and I don't really see this album getting kicked out of my absolute favorites any time soon.

So much has already been said about this album, both on PA and elsewhere, that I'm just going to try to look past the hoopla and sensationalism in favor of weighing this album's pros and cons. Without a doubt, this is an iconic album that was pretty much unprecedented when it was released in 1969, and it therefore incites extreme opinions in either direction. I have been listening to this album for over 25 years now, so while the initial shock has long since worn off since I first heard it, that may prove to be a positive boon as I try to address the album objectively.

On the plus side, you have The Magic Band pulling off some of the most revolutionary ensemble playing ever released on record. What at first sounds like a free form jam becomes an intricate, nonlinear series of tightly wound riffs layered on top of each other, upon closer listening. And there are over 20 tracks of this kind of thing across two records -- right out of the gate with "Frownland", you are thrown into confusion until your head catches up with your ears and you realize there's actually a GROOVE going on in there. "Dachau Blues", "Ella Guru", "Wild Life", "She's Too Much for My Mirror", "When Big Joan Sets Up",.... and on and on, each track more dazzling and confounding than the last.

There are occasional moments of relative normality -- "China Pig" is a basic bare-bones blues number, "Moonlight on Vermont" has recognizable hooks and song structure, and there are a few a capella or spoken word pieces to give the band a much needed break ("The Dust Blows Forward and the Dust Blows Back", "Orange Claw Hammer", "Well"). Still, the album as a whole oozes weirdness, and has rightfully become a benchmark of sorts for avant garde rock music.

On the minus side, and I hate to say this, Captain Beefheart himself actually holds the album back just a little bit. As wild and untamed as he was, getting a good vocal take from him was a real challenge, and his singing levels and timing are wildly inconsistent. Though this was later hailed as a sign of genius by many critics (especially when punk came around), to me it's just irresponsible record making. Sorry Cap. You should have at least agreed to wear headphones in the studio. Why you refused to do that, I'll never understand. Another slight "minus" on the album is the overall presentation by producer Frank Zappa. I get a strong feeling he wanted to make a "freak show" album like he'd done with Wild Man Fischer the year before. Including false starts, spoken nonsequitors between tracks ("Fast n' Bulbous!), using a phone conversation with Mothers of Invention accompaniment as a track ("The Blimp"), this all added to the circus atmosphere. It's weird to hear myself complaining about this, because that novelty aspect was what really hooked me in the first place, but I can't help but think the album could have been a lot tighter and taken more seriously had it been presented a little better.

Add it all together and you've still got a four star album. A real wower, but certainly not without flaws. And not even his best album...

Quite a strange album, unlike just about anything that I have heard before. Individually the songs sound to me like demos, but together they create a work dissimilar to any other (not necessarily a good thing). It was tough to finish this record the first time around, but enjoyable the second time. Still, I don't like it that much. It lacks any order, and the complete insanity can become slightly less humorous after a few beginnings to songs in the same vain. Loses the shock effect. Worth a listen when confined to a train/bus/airplane/automobile for an hour or so. Tough to rate... worth a listen to anyone (5 stars) but many would say it is terrible (1 stars). On the other hand, a completionist might enjoy this type of record if completing a Beefheart collection. Split the difference, give it 3.5 stars... round it down for my own personal findings to 3 stars.

If you like blues cliches and forced vocals, this is the record for you. There are 3 types of songs on this record: complex rock songs with beat poetry, a cappella vocal tracks, and avant-garde jazz instrumentals. That's about it for variety. I like some experimental music, such as Can and Cluster, but this album doesn't offer much in the way of substance.

If this is a comedy album, than what's the joke? You could say the joke is that the band is out of sync, out of tune, and the vocalist is just saying random words into a microphone. That would be understandable, but that's one joke stretched thin for almost 80 minutes. Some moments are mildly amusing like "Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish" and "Pena", but they're few and far between. If the track list was cut down by half, it would be a more tolerable listen. As a double LP, it's too long.

For some reason, Trout Mask Replica will forever be more acclaimed than other albums in Captain Beefheart's discography. You can get the same music from Lick My Decals Off, Baby in half the time. This album has a presence on the internet, especially with the "fast n' bulbous" line. Is it just a music meme? There has to be more to it than that. If there is some hidden message, I'm not seeing it.

This is a polarizing album, to say the least; You either love it or loathe it. After reading about this album's "classic" status from music journalists and hearing it numerous times, I have come to the conclusion that this record is a load of nonsense. You might say "you just don't understand it", but what is there to get from 80 minutes of studio outtakes? The best thing about the album is the cover. I probably just pissed off a lot of music fans.

Captain Beefheart's 'Trout Mask Replica' has to this date probably been the most difficult album I've ever listened to. Considered something of an infamous album I was keen to check it out. I had the chance to listen to it for the first time a few months ago while visiting a friend. I was browsing through his rather large CD collection and I spotted it, tucked away in the corner. The moment I pulled it out and held it up for him I swear I heard a slight groan from him, followed by a wry smile and a chuckle.

At first I was optimistic. Yes, the opening of the album is pretty wacky and a bit discordant, but then so is the opening first moments of Close To The Edge. At any moment some structure would kick, there would be a hook and I'd be drawn in. I waited, and waited some more. And then it dawned on me that this was really 'it'. Very little structure, at least in the classical sense, no hooks, few melodies, bizarre lyrics and vocal style from Mr Beefheart. It honestly sounded like some very young children had been set loose in an abandoned music shop and told to 'go nuts'. At this point I realized exactly why this album was regarded as an infamous recording of the 1960's. My friend joked to me as we sat and listened that this would probably all make much more sense if we were high on drugs. As it was we were both stone cold sober drinking coffee!

I turned the album off about 2/3rds of the way through and put some Led Zeppelin on just to un-fry our brains. But I was left feeling intrigued still, and also a little bit confused. Which record label had green lighted the recording of this album? So I spent a bit of time on the Internet reading about this album, and I looked at the Prog Archive reviews for this album and was surprised, to say the least, at the overwhelming high scores that this album has achieved. I felt angry - not at the other reviewers, but at myself. What was I missing - why did this album just sound like discordant noise to my ears but for other's it is a masterpiece of music?

Since that evening a few months ago I have tried to listen to this album again. I cannot listen to all 28 tracks in one sitting, which probably tells you something about my feelings towards this album. There are some moments on the album such as in the track 'Hair Pie: Bake 2' where there is some structure and I find myself tapping my feet, but the overriding sense I feel when listening to this album is "I'd rather be listening to something else".

It would be harsh to give this album 1 star, after all a lot of people swear by it as a classic album. I've come to the conclusion myself that this album most definitely is not for me, but it deserves at least 2 stars.

He, who had forever loved and praised natural environment, reacts unnaturally and totally out of sync once he's been surrounded by nature...or I have to quit from music. Many ideas but with absolutely zero substance. It's a thousand light years away from the safe waters of " Safe as Milk " as we are sent for fishing trouts, sailing completely helpless into the troubled waters of Captain's mind instead. " Trout Mask Replica " has crossed many seas and has visited unlikely territories by the years. To give you an example, it's the favorite album of the famous director David Lynch. I am also sure Tobe Hooper had been influenced as much by it, as by Beefheart's persona and the other members in general. If you have seen his "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" splatter of 1974, you know what I mean. As for Rock let alone Prog Rock, sorry, it isn't. It's rather some kind of Blues of a new perspective. For me, this one deserves either * star for the lack of any melody or ***** stars for its innovation in the vocabulary of modern music, depending on the weather and my mood.

After revisiting Trout Mask Replica, I've gained a new appreciation for this album and the role it played in my life.

This album helped me realize I was attracted to things that were dense, abstract, off-kilter, absurd, innovative, and from left field. Beef and his buddies gave me a chance to connect with my weirdness in a way no other outlet could.

In the movie The Artist Formerly Known as Captain Beefheart, Matt Groening is interviewed and he mentions in his youth he went to a Beefheart concert and 75 of the weirdest people in the weirdest costumes were there. Before performing, Ed Marimba came on stage with a toy light up gun softly chanting "ray gun, ray gun" over and over.

I love that stuff and would have fit right in. These guys turned the blues on its head and, for all their weirdness, really created art here.

You should really check out that hour long movie if you like Beef, as the back story and interviews with Drumbo and Frank about this album are priceless.

I think Frank was resentful this album caught traction with a segment of the population. In fact, one listen gives the discerning listener the seeds of punk, new wave, experimental, industrial, and alternative rock in all its forms. Beefs reach far exceeded Franks grasp in my estimation. And according to Frank, he had very little to do with making the music. He just got out of the Captains way.

A timeless masterpiece for me, I can see how "normal" people don't quite grasp it - one star, no way in holy hell. Pachuco Cadaver is worth three stars alone.

Well I assure you sir, this thing sucks (Don Van Vliet on selling a vacuum cleaner to Aldous Huxley)

Of the many albums that sit gathering dust, undisturbed in the rack yet are routinely adored by their house proud owners, it is perhaps Trout Mask Replica that best represents the disingenuous litmus test for hipster candidates of 'high' office everywhere. What's odd about its assimilation into the pantheon of 'maverick genius' constructions is that it's not even a rock album at all but rather, a free jazz inspired stream of consciousness 'f.u.c.k the lot of you' diatribe that has more in common with a Cecil Taylor arranged 'To Have Done with the Judgement of god' by Antonin Artaud than an unrequited love letter to any Howling Wolf. That's hardly a picnic with your childhood sweetheart and s.h.i.t.s.u puppy of course but it's still unnerving how far removed from the predictable lumpen plod of rawk (psychedelic, blues or otherwise) this album deviates at its furthest outreaches.

And therein maybe lies the key: Most rock fans including your reviewer get rather uncomfortable when their steady diet of cyclic rhythms and anticipated releases from harmonic tension are not resolved in a timely fashion. Listening to such music is tantamount to a delicately balanced guessing game. If I guess correctly what's coming next too often, I'll get bored and lose interest: If I cannot discern any anticipated patterns I'll dismiss the music as too chaotic or random as too few of my guesses turn out to be correct. That's probably why I heartily loathe Cecil Taylor, John Zorn, Ornette Coleman, Albert Ayler, Pharoah Sanders, et al as such aesthetic considerations are completely irrelevant to their art. This says more about my limitations as a listener and failing to understand the stimulus to hand but all the same, I want to like this malarkey but erm....am unable. We're also habitually guilty of confusing texture with content e.g. there might be a sax on Brown Sugar but that doesn't make it any closer to Jazz than Rock. The textures at play on Trout Mask Replica have lured many an unwary critic into believing that the electric slide guitars, amped bass and drums menu is consistent with a delta blues themed psychadelicatessen and are invariably frustrated when the Captain and his troops steadfastly decline to serve up such a dish. The only place where texture and content are in accord is perhaps on Hair Pie Bake 1 where Beefheart's solitary soprano sax is redolent of the sort of uncharted musical landscapes of Anthony Braxton. It also explains why so few echoes of Beefheart are present in the music of his avowed wannabees, disciples and acolytes from within the republican realm of rawk like the Residents, Devo, Pere Ubu, Tom Waits, the Fall, PIL etc. The cynical among us would hazard that this is just egregious name-dropping which also lassos Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Sun Ra and anyone else who was considered a bit 'out there' but has crucially just died into the R'OK Corral.

The best Captain Beefheart impersonation I have ever heard is probably from Edgar Broughton circa Sing Brother Sing in 1970 but here's the rub, the unwitting approximation by a completly sh*t faced English actor Oliver Reed on Michael Aspel's chat show from 1984 comes a pretty close second. You are cordially invited to check out the 'You Tube' footage at your leisure. Tread very carefully when using 'derangement of the senses is the gateway to wisdom' as an educational paradigm kiddies. (The playgrounds of the US are littered with casualties on a daily basis)

Don Van Vliet's lyrics are at best, inscrutable surrealistic glossolalia and at worst, when they even approach bad beat poetry, crassly and glibly asinine:

Dachau blues, Dachau blues those poor Jews Still cryin' 'bout the burnin' back in World War Two's One mad man six million lose Down in Dachau blues, down in Dachau blues

We know that the good Captain enrolled as an art major in his youth but dropped out after less than 12 months. Draw your own conclusions if you will but thwarted artists with distinctive facial hair have never done the world many favours.

It seems that like Mark E. Smith of the Fall, the Captain ran his erstwhile Magic band circa 1969 similar to a dark satanic mill owner where dissent was treated with ridicule, physical violence and privation in no particular order. The published testimonies of band members appear to attest to the rather unpalatable conclusion that their Don was an uber controlling c.u.n.t of Mansonesque proportions. Revisionist apologists for this alleged behaviour start to sound like those clueless soccer pundits defending a leg breaking tackle who posit that 'without his underlying psychopathic and sadistic nature his talent would have been thwarted by mediocrities' Try telling that to the lads when they've been neither paid or fed for their unaccredited efforts and have to play a man down after their captain's red card for hacking down his own team. (Apologies for milking the footie metaphors there a tad)

I've also never understood why Zappa's mix is so heavily weighted in favour of Beefheart's vocal as most of these conspire to practically drown out the music and only serve to make prolonged listening a considerable chore. That's a shame as all told, there is much innovation and prescience buried in the bowels of this frankly appalling production to warrant a deeper appreciation of the creative input of the assembled Magic band.

There is some speculative evidence to suggest that the Captain refused to record his vocals using traditional headphones and therefore his delivery is commensurately out of sync with a backing he could only hear via the latency of speaker bleed. Being out of time deliberately would at least require some effort methinks? Anointed if you do, anointed if you don't. (He can't lose)

Long story short: This album doesn't belong on any Progressive Rock appreciation site. It is too far removed from such narrow evaluation criteria

Trout Mask Replica is one of the most divisive albums of all time, it is a love it or hate it situations, but the reasons to loving it or hating it are mostly the same.

Just by seeing the cover you can know that this is not going to be pop, jazz, or even psychedelic rock, you can only be confused but also amused by just looking to the bizarre and grotesque cover.

And yes, this record is bizarre and grotesque, and the music really is like that, mixing free form jazz, delta blues and avant-garde, along with some outsider flavor, making this odball record. It should be noted that this record is not just random playing, the Captain and Drumbo actually wrote and arranged this show, and it must be hard to consciously write like that.

The music is very raw, and every instrument sounds like it is playing its own thing, and this might be off puting and disorienting for most people, but the fun relies on identifying and trying to figure out what is going on. Polyrhythms and Polytonality are all over the place on this record.

The best part in my opinion is the whole Captain performances, they are... hilarious, his raspy voice is so entertaining, and don't start about his lyrics, most notably "Pachuco Cadaver" with the classic "fast and bulbous" skit that appears on the album and has been a meme since the 60s, and "Pena" where the Captain just screams randomly, what was he thinking? We don't know but I always want to cry of laughter when I listen to it.

When people talk about the greatest records of all time they mostly only recognize records with more serious themes like those in Pet Sounds or What's Going On, but non-seriousness and jokes are also important, as this album is like the greatest joke of all time.

Assimetrical and abstract, bizarre and grotesque are just a few words that can describe this masterpiece.

EXTRA: The negative reviews of this record are as hilarious as this record, love reading to them.