Brent’s 1994 Better Late Than Never

Apologies for the tardy post! Busy time of year for me. Let’s keep this going!

Albums

1)  Boredoms – Super Roots 3

– Crystal clear, concise, to the point. Yes, it’s ½ hour of hardcore riffing. Again…crystal clear, concise, to the point.

2)  Kyuss – Welcome To Sky Valley

– Like taking a hit off an exhaust pipe. Opens with this “suite” for god’s sake…Gardenia, Asteroid, Supa Scoopa And Mighty Scoop.

3)  Melvins – Stoner Witch

– The first 3 minutes of Magic Pig Detective changed how I listen to music. No Kidding. No Hyperbole. No B.S. A transformative moment. I remember the location, room, chair I was sitting in, who I was with, the time of day, the volume, and my jaw dropping. Also Revolve, Sweet Willy Rollbar.

4)  Frank Black – Teenager of the Year

– I recall hearing Kim Deal disparage this at the time. She was/is wrong. Speedy Marie, Freedom Rock.

5)  Die Like A Dog Quartet – Fragments Of Music, Life and Death of Albert Ayler

– I may have “heard” Brotzmann prior to this…but I’m pretty sure I never “HEARD” him till this.

6)  Altered States (Feat Otomo Yoshihide) – Lithuania & Estonia Live

– Improvised Rock is no light task. Otomo Yoshihide and company knock it down here. They were doing this in 1994. Visionary. Chain Reaction.

7) Bill Dixon with Barry Guy, Tony Oxley, William Parker – Vade Mecum

– Astounding. Spaces.

8)  Paul Haines – Darn It!

– Poet Haines assembled some of my favorite artists to create this beautiful tapestry.  Check out the credits – HERE

9)  Jeff Buckley – Grace

– Pretty sure one those things we all can agree is pretty fantastic.

10)  Ween – Chocolate & Cheese

– I don’t think things get any catchier than this.  Stylistically all over the map, coherent at the same time. Freedom of ’76, What Deaner Was Talking About, Mister Would You Please Help My Pony.

Songs

1)  Kew.Rhone – John Greaves – Songs

– Robert Wyatt does great justice lending vocals this remake of the ‘77 Greaves/Blegvad/Herman tune.

2)  Over the River Club/Grief – Henry Threadgill – Song Of My Trees

– Myra Melford plays some beautiful piano here. Threadgill compositions can be somewhat “cold”. Not so here.

3)  A Hundred Years – Mule – If I Don’t Six

– Something sets PW Long and company apart from contemporaries like Shellac, JSBE, or Jesus Lizard. Soul.

4)  Shit Soup – Sebahoh – Bakesale

– Bakesale is one of those Lp’s in my collection I feel I should appreciate more than I do, could become a favorite with the right listen. This track always lays me out though.

5)  Work from Smoke – Gastr Del Sol – Crookt, Crackt, or Fly

– O’Rourke & Grubbs were working alongside Red Krayola at this time and it shows here.  Who knew what these two would accomplish over the next decades?

6)  Hot Freaks – Guided By Voices – Bee Thousand

– Like most of my favorite GBV tracks this comes off as more of an idea for a song, a whisper of something greater. More perfect kept in its adolescent form.

7)  Vroom/Thrak – King Crimson – Vroom

– Only Crimson return from a ten year hiatus this fit, muscular, retooled.

8)  Become One/The Born One – Keiji Haino – A Challenge To Fate

– Soft/Loud….no not the “pixies” sense.

9)  Blasters (feat Eddie Hazel) – Booty’s New Rubber Band – Blasters of the Universe

– Built up around an old Eddie Hazel guitar track. This is the sort of thing that never works. Except here.

10)  Superbird – Fu Manchu – No One Rides For Free

– SOLID! Love a good shitkicker!

Guitar solos/work in a song

Although this is not a theme I could pull a list out of my back pocket, I was able to pinpoint a representation of the style of guitar that I find most appealing in songs. I know that this is a topic I will continuously think about in the future; “shit! this song should have been on my guitar list!” A majority of my list is narrowed to studio records, however, I feel the live setting is where the magic comes through. A long time ago I read a cool article/interview with Keith Richards referring to a particular show, pondering on a specific guitar solo he did in the Sympathy Of The Devil in the 60’s, stating he never had been so “on” or sounded so perfect since – a magical statement.
A lot of my favs didn’t even make the list; Thurston Moore, Terrie Hessels, Sonny Sharrock, Keith Richards, Michael Schenker (could delicately hold a song together with his guitar playing), Steve Albini, Jack White, Fred Cole, Bob Mothersbaugh, Tony Iommi, Peter Hook, East Bay Ray, the list goes on…

Below is my ever changing list, touching on different guitarists for different
reasons, but it feels incomplete. I start with a big one, which really only begins at the 7 minute range, and peeks somewhere around 15 minutes, but is a jawdropper.

“Sister Ray” – Velvet Underground (Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison)

“Rock and Roll Suicide” – David Bowie and The Spiders From Mars (Mick Ronson) Mick Ronson added a significant contribution to the Ziggy Years of Bowie, and then later played a key role with Bob Dylan. This particular guitar solo was a no-brainer for my pick, the finishing melody still brings tears to my eyes on the right occasion. listen

“Free Your Mind And Your Ass Will Follow” – Funkadelic (Eddie Hazel) Eddie’s work with Funkadelic molded all the craziness and loose ends together. His guitar would was never anything less than inspiring. listen

“Sin In My Heart” – Siouxsie and The Banshees (John McGeoch) What John McGeoch was able to accomplish in the studio had the ability to melt a person’s soul. Listen to the entire album Juju. listen

“Shield for your eyes, a Beast in the well on your hand” Melt-Banana (Ichirou
Agata). I have seen Ichirou Agata play live on numerous occasions, and he could have easily been the catalyst for my love and interest with guitar pedals, multiple guitar pedals. listen

“Buick Mackane” T-Rex (Marc Bolan) Being life long fan, Marc Bolan was an obvious names that came to mind when this theme was said. What stood out was his minimalism. listen

“Amazona” – Roxy Music (Phil Manzanera) The more I discover, the more I love. listen

“Revolve” – Melvins (King Buzzo) King Buzzo is one of my favorite guitarists, composers, writers. I could have picked a number of tracks here, but this is one of the first I fell in love with. listen

“Marquee Moon” – Television (Tom Verlaine & Richard Lloyd) Simply brilliant! listen

“The Little House I Use To Live In (Live)” off Burnt Weeny Sandwich – Frank Zappa and The Mothers Of Invention. (Frank Zappa) It was very hard pinpointing which track to post, but for the chosen topic, this is one of the best. listen part 1

next up 2013