PSYCHEDELIC/SPACE ROCK

The lengthy tracks simply titled as 'Beteigeuze Pt. I,' 'Beteigeuze Pt. II,' and 'Beteigeuze Pt. III' bring floating ominous keyboards and ethereal guitar work which dominate all around the record. 'Part 2" has a majestic soundtrack feel with some lazy distorted Manuel G'ttsching-like guitars accompanying the tripped-out keyboards. "Part 3,' clocking at around 23 minutes has it all, it is mellow, but complex and deep, very reminiscent of vintage King Crimson meets Yes. There is a mesmerizing keyboard madness that could have been lifted from any of the 1970's prog records.

Now that I've got you intrigued enough to check out an incredible obscure album, head over to the Tonzonen Records website and make sure to get it in a LP format, because this kind of record deserves to be heard in all its glory in an old-fashioned way.

Tittle song opens the album with a short piano overture, but soon you are into very rough, psychedelic Hawkwind- boogie. Brock sings through some effect and sounds very much Nik Turner. Psychedelic atmosphere continues in next "Cottage in the Woods", but more peaceful way. "Have You Seen Them" is very melodic piece and has hit potential. Cosmic "Ascent" is one of my favourites in this album. "Space Ship Blues" is updated "Silver Machine" with more country atmosphere. Big Bill Barry is playing fiddle in the very same way as Simon House. "Vegan Lunch" is again boogie with melodic parts. "Dark Land" is also one of my favourites reminding "Hall Of Mountain Grill´s" "Wind of Change". There are also few sound collages with spoken words that make album just even more interesting. The ending instrumental jam "Magic Mushroom" is good finish into this great album, it reminds a little bit "Levitation"- song.

I am not a space rock fan at all except Hawkwind. I am glad my needs of spacerock seem to fullfill complitely, if Hawkwind continues to make as qualified albums as often. One of my great moments were, when Hawkwind and Motörhead played in the same festival. In Hawkwind´s encore there were two basses and Lemmy singing "Silver Machine". It was over 10 years ago, there are no Lemmy anymore, but I will be glad if I will see this old classic band on the stage once more.

Alexander Britz is new to the crew, appearing with some unconventional or even strange vocals, featuring references to ... eh, I would say Damo Suzuki and Jim Morrison maybe. Thus, surprise, a regular bass guitar is missing here. Not a big problem though. And then suddenly the band even sees former member Ulrich Steffens returning back, but this happened after the recordings were already made. Now according to the cover art as well - the eye of the wolf (nope, not the tiger!) - with reason they themselves are calling this style 'darkkraut' which is related to a touch with nature. And building upon a tribal-flavoured In But Not Of This World it's processing like a crawl somehow. The drum playing comes motoric, partially minimalistic, this undoubtedly provided with intent.

The tracks are gradually taking shape, it's certainly hypnotic, maybe you can call it dreamy too, and they basically are variating with care. Hiding Nature is more focussed on the synthesizer hereby, due to exotic bird calls and some soloing activity. The extended Word As Shape evolves to the album highlight then, while featuring a special melancholic atmosphere, more dynamics and a gripping flow overall. Uwe Kartes sensitive guitar delivers a sophisticated mix of space and post, turns out to be an important trademark again. While counting in those special vocals 'Forest Mirror' is quite an unique affair, though a grower too, which definitely needs to invest some time - 3.5 stars.

The era consisted of myriad bands like Moby Grape, It's A Beautiful Day, Electric Flag, Dream Merchants, The Great Society and the list goes on into the hundreds, however one band was far and away THEEEE most bizarre and experimental of all. That honor goes to the ahead-of-their-time FIFTY FOOT HOSE which was the brainchild of the eccentric whims of founder Cork Marcheschi whose dual interests in the avant-garde and R&B came to head on the one and only album CAULDRON. Marcheschi started his career playing in less adventurous bands beginning with the Hide-A-Ways and ending with The Ethix which found him unleashing his first taste of the wild and unstructured when he released one twisted single called "Bad Trip." As a session musician he was introduced to guitarist David Blossom and his singing wife Nancy and then joined drummer Kim Kimsey and guitarist Larry Evans. The true psychedelic treat of 1967 was about to be released.

Marcheschi claims that his interests were more attuned to the avant-garde experimental worlds of Edgard Varèse, John Cage or Terry Riley rather than with Jefferson Airplane, but nonetheless, Blossom managed to tame his wild inhibitions with fairly catchy beatnik folk rock songs that Marcheschi would embellish with swirling swooshes of his homemade electronic instruments as well as pairing them up with theremins, fuzzboxes, a cardboard tube and even a speaker from a World War II bomber. Dave Blossom brought a psychedelic jazz guitar approach that incorporated a little of the Miles Davis cool jazz sound while Nancy played her role much like the more familiar contemporary Grace Slick. CAULDRON is aptly named as it is a boiling pot of eclectic influences all cooked together in one of the earliest musical bowls of gumbo in all the U. S. of A. In fact, i do believe that CAULDRON could very well be the first progressive rock album to emerge on the North American continent. If there are any comparisons to be made it would have be with the other California based band The United States Of America who similarly took the psychedelic folk rock sound of the day that embellished healthy doses of experimental electronica in completely revolutionary ways, however FIFTY FOOT HOSE didn't just stop there and totally went for it with one of the strangest albums to emerge in the entire 60s scene.

The head scratcher begins with the opener "And After" which is a creeping ratcheting up of woofer abuse and was how they would start their live shows which would get everyone's attention as the low bass tones would vibrate the entire building. It is a contemplative piece like drifting through space aimlessly, tension building as if the vessel had lost control and free falling into oblivion. An unlikely precursor to the more time period "If Not This Time" which despite the early avant-prog riffing that begins it, turns into a more normal folk rendition of psychedelic rock that finds the electronic sounds bending and sputtering around like a rabid animal let loose in a shopping mall.

The short electronic "Opus 777" cedes into the other psychedelic pop track "The Things That Concern You" which finds Larry Evans on the vocals while Marcheschi taking extreme liberties with the electronic accoutrements. The second short electronic track "Opus 11" ushers in the most hippie sounding rock song on the track, "Red The Sign Post" which is the closest thing to be heard on CAULDRON that resembles a true 60s psychedelic rock band with bluesy guitar licks, groovy bass and Nancy Blossom's wild and woolly vocal freak outs. The third electronic intro "For Paula" whizzes by and yields to the jazzy guitar lounge lizard exotica sounding "Rose" which gives the listener a final taste of musical sanity before the true freak out is unleashed with the mind blowing "Fantasy." This track literally is the definition of progressive psychedelic rock as a single bass line begins a multi-part journey into the unknown. As the bass reverbs in an ostinato stroll, the electronica grow more restless as do the frenetic drum rolls as your mind melts and cedes to the hypnotic groove with electronic chaos chirping around it like maddened birds. After two minutes it abruptly changes into a bluesy psychedelic rock guitar segment which lulls the listener into a comfort zone for a while before mellowing out and Nancy finally joining in after six minutes to sing about her sanity before the acid finally hits and the track literally goes nuts!

After the unhinged ending of "Fantasy," a short tribute to Billie Holliday with a cover of her "God Bless The Child" which is fairly faithful to the original minus the electronic whizzing effects. The wildest sonic experience by far is the final title track which finds total musical breakdown and the avant-garde is allowed off its leash as chimes keep an angular rhythm while Nancy erratically sings about who knows what. Her vocal style in this track reminds me a lot of the avant-prog styles ranging from Henry Cow to Thinking Plague. A jazzy bass line often punctuates the back masking of the electronics and someone having a very bad trip can be heard in the background. This must have been far too freaky for anyone really tripping during the day. My remastered CD is fluffed out with two versions of "Bad Trip" by the Ethix and several demo tracks and alternate versions. Some of these appear on other compilation albums such as "Ingredients."

Needless to say, these guys were faaaaaar out, man! Somehow they had their pulse on the psychedelic scene and prognosticated it by several years beating the German band Amon Duul II to the punch with some of the trippiest music of the decade. The electronic rock hybridization of FIFTY FOOT HOSE has been cited by many a band including Perl Abu, Chrome and Throbbing Gristle as having been the primary influence in their respective musical sounds. As with any music so bizarre and unstructured, FIFTY FOOT HOSE saw very little success during the day but they did have a small cult following. The deal knell came to the band when all the members except Marcheschi were lured away by the promise of a lucrative paycheck and joined the cast of the musical production "Hair." Marscheschi on the other hand forfeited his musical career but went on to become a world renowned sculptor. Interest in the band resurfaced during the 90s and the band has released a few compilations and live albums but CAULDRON is their swan song that went way beyond anyone dared at the time. Not quite the masterpiece some make it out to be since it has far too much of a mishmash feel to it but although it may require a few listens to sink in, this is certainly one of the most unique albums of the era that deserves more recognition than it's gotten. I've grown to really dig it!

I found Julia Dream randomly on YouTube and gave it a listen. Upon learning it was a single - not being featured on any album, how sad - I decided to give a look to the "entirety" of this excerpt from early PINK FLOYD. Assuming this has only seven minutes, I'll spare the needless contextual details.

It Would Be So Nice is a lighthearted track distinctively sounding like THE BEATLES' plainness, with at best some mildly psychedelic twist to it. The chorus does feature some subversion on the simplicity of the entire song, though. It's enjoyable, but not much memorable at all.

Julia Dream, however, is pretty different, featuring a lush, distorted Mellotron background - IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING with an, even more, psychedelic touch - and reverbed & delayed calm vocals. The small midsection features some random experimental effects as the saddened acoustics and Mellotron play alongside, and the outro, some brutally disorienting screeching effects. It's a sweet, mellow, but heart-wrenching song. Like watching a young child passing away peacefully - for as much we're glad they have no pain, we're grieving over their death. I found it a spectacular demonstration of psychedelia at its state-of-art form.

The first track is rather uninteresting, whereas the second is highly recommendable. "It Would Be So Nice" lowered the overall score... should "Julia Dream" be released as single, perhaps I would have given it five stars. Well, it's a matter of taste, really - I loved it. But I think PINK FLOYD fans - and psychedelic rock fans in general - will highly enjoy it as well.

Album starts in it´s longest song "Rakkautta Al Dente" (= Love with Al Dente). It´s starts with very slow, heavy riff, but gladly albums soundworld is much more from the seventies than these days, so it´s not too heavy. Although album is made mostly with electric instruments, it soundworld reminds a lot their predecessor acoustic album "Pharaoh Overload". Janne starts to sing something really high but not sounds Rob Halford at all. When Mika starts to sing, song also calm down a little. In the middle of the song there is very great musical trip that reminds long improvisations of the end of the sixties. Album tittle song is really great although it´s quite simple. The main riff reminds Stooges "I Wanna Be your dog" but there also a great other part that reminds Sonic Youth´s melodic songs. "Saxo" reminds "Kävelen Luitten Päällä" from the "Pharaoh Overload"-album with it´s shamanistic atmosphere. "Imperiumi" (=imperium) is the most Judas Priest influenced song and also the most different from the other material. "Kill City" opened me in a great way after second listening. It has Stooges-influences, but also very great melodies and very suprising end, so it´s the most prog songs in this album together the album starter. "Sick Child" ends album very great way, it reminds Janne´s bluesy solo works, but is totally made by electric instruments. Janne´s vocals goes very deep into your soul.

Circle has had also internationally attention to it´s great work. I really hope this deserved attention continues, because Circle is these days one of the greatest bands in this whole world. I really hope that I am just old hippie, who doesn´t understand the music of today, but to me most of these days music sounds very cold and too clean. Circle continues to make music that lives!

Sula acts like a magician, while weaving a wonderful cosmic piano, melancholic mellotron, indo/raga flavoured sitar ... and finally those multiple wah-wah drenched and soaring guitar decorations, the latter partially reminiscent of the Hypnotizer release. The looping flow will be consolidated due to nice repetitive bass lines contributed by Komet Lulu and Marcus Schnitzler's accentuated drum playing, careful, subtle. The real award anyhow goes the shortest offer, the lovely Astral Hitch Hike, not an accidental product, I'm quite sure.

The result of varying experiences over decades, more likely conceived with a clear preference on song writing, rather than jamming with intuition solely. I did not follow every band album, hence don't know exactly, if this is their first attempt to test some vocals. Bassist Lulu provides this in a mysterious, mournful, ethereal manner. Mastered by Eroc as usual 'Stardust Rituals' is a spellbinding journey crossing the band's inner cosmos, overall a very good statement featuring a proper amount of oriental flair.

If this was released instead of the box, it would have sold a lot better than it did. It isn't a Fans Only purchase. It's an exhilarating story of how a band began, changed and developed into the killing machine Pink Floyd became. As a compilation it's their most honest. No altered tracklisting to disguise highs and lows of the band. Cre/ation is an essential a purchase to the curious and new fans as it is buying Dark Side Of The Moon.

5

The music on the album is psychadelic/space rock with the occasional nod towards krautrock. Repetitive organic beats, swirling psychadelic tinged synths/keyboards, and bass, organ and guitars that rock along. The music is mostly instrumental but there are sporadic vocals on the album courtesy of some guest singers.

While the album opens with the jam packed, cool and groove laden psychadelic track "Psycho", it already changes sound on the second track "Dream" which is pure krautrock with electronic tinged nods towards Kraftwerk. The 12 track, 43:58 minutes long album goes through a couple of those surprising changes ("Much Too Old" even features a disco beat), but as there are many similarities between the genres that the band embrace, and nothing sticks out on the album because it doesn't fit, the album features a good flow. The whole thing is very retro 70s sounding, and the album also features a suiting organic sound production.

The band are well playing and while the quality of the material drops a slight bit a couple of times during the playing time, "Kosmos" is overall a quality release, that celebrates the classic virtues of psychadelic/space rock (and occasionally krautrock). It's not necessarily the most original or unique sounding release, but that's of less importance, when the music is delivered with conviction and passion as it is here. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.