A friend recently turned me on to the awesome sounds of Ahmad Zahir—the ‘Afghan Elvis.’ He’s certainly got the (mutton) chops to live up to the name. This is great psych-rock, with swirling organs, wah-wah pedals and the like. And his voice is unforgettable. The NY Times writes:
The singer set great Persian poets like Rumi, Hafiz, Maulana Jami; the Afghan poet Khalilullah Khalili; and traditional folkloric songs, to music. He sang of love, pain and God. Never formally trained as a musician, he played the accordion, the piano, the organ, and the guitar and he absorbed the Western music spilling from radios in the 1960’s and 70’s. Some songs sound, instrumentally at least, vaguely like the Beatles or surf music. …girls [would] rush the stage to grab his half-drunk soda, and women named a popular dress fabric ”Hair of Ahmad Zahir.”
Zahir was killed in a car crash—or assassinated at the orders of a communist general, as his family claims—in 1979. He remains a folk hero in Afghanistan today.
Thành Mái — Tóc Mai Sợi Vắn Sợi Dài (Long, Uneven Hair)
from Saigon Rock & Soul: Vietnamese Classic Tracks 1968-1974
I’ve been doing a little hunting around for Vietnamese music from the 60s and 70s and came across this Sublime Frequencies compilation, which is, as the label would suggest, sublime. It’s packed with psychedelic rock…and keep in mind these songs were recorded during the Vietnam war. From Sublime Frequencies:
By the mid-1960s, Vietnam had been ravaged by war for years. American G.I.s had become a standard fixture in Saigon, as did many of the cultural artifacts they brought with them. This certainly included the music. The sounds of rock and roll dominated the radio waves, and Saigon nightclubs were teeming with new sounds. Musically, the Shadows and the Ventures soon gave way to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones as an enthusiastic set of young Vietnamese rockers signed on to the lifestyle, always eager to hear the latest musical trends the G.I.s would bring in on LP or tape. This era saw the birth of a vibrant rock scene yet rock music and anything that came close was commonly referred to as ‘soul’ in the Vietnamese genre-listings. All of [these tracks] were recorded in makeshift studios and even US army facilities while the Vietnam War raged – and were issued by a handful of Saigon record companies on vinyl 45s and reel or cassette tapes.
Just came across this group of crazy psychedelic rockers from Odense, Denmark—Causa Sui. This lovely tune sounds like a dusty outtake from some moonlit jam session, circa 1968, with the silvery organ conjuring up Cinecittà and the sounds of Nino Rota.
The one that follows on this LP, though, ‘Tropic of Capricorn,’ is an adrenaline IV. Twenty-three minutes of psychedelic insanity. Like you-just-got-out-of-the-show-and-your-ears-are-ringing-and-you’re-buzzing-about-that-fuckin-amazing-stuff-the-guitarist-did-with-his-whammy-bar-during-the-encore intense. Horns come in halfway through…verging into Stooges territory, before disintegrating into bleeps and cymbal taps.
For other stuff in the Iron Butterfly vein, check out their newest LPs, both released this year on El Paraiso Records: Pewt’r Sessions 1 and 2. Some tracks from Session 1 on myspace.
What could be more psychedelic than a kaleidoscope? Right. Not even a rainbow. That’s why every band in the 60s wanted to name themselves after a children’s toy—like LA’s psychedelic string band Kaleidoscope, or the London Kaleidoscope.
But here we have a lesser-known exemplar of that multicolored genre, and the one with the hardest-hitting rock’n’roll: the Mexican Kaleidoscope. To my ears, they’re the most timeless of the three, almost proto-punk at times, with a swagger in the vocals that sounds more Joey Ramone than flower child. It’s only the fuzzbox guitars and garage organs that key you in to the fact that these guys were hanging around Mexico City’s El Salvation Club, not CBGBs.
There’s a reason the vocals have that American-sounding jeer—because even though Kaleidoscope gigged a lot in Mexico City (and later Cuernavaca), none of them were actually from Mexico. That’s Frank Tirado, of Puerto Rico, on vocals. His countrymate Orly Vázquez covered bass, while Spanish transplant Pedrín García commanded electric guitar, and Rafael Cruz and Julio Arturo Fernández of the Dominican Republic handled drums and organ. They recorded the album in 1967 at Fabiola Studios in the Dominican Republic, before moving to Mexico together. The album wasn’t released until two years later by the Mexican label Orfeón, in a pressing of just 200 records. Thank god Germany’s Shadoks has reissued it—because you really need to give this Kaleidoscope a twist.
Wah-wah pedals meet Istanbuli strings in this psychedelic track sung by the enchanting Ajda Pekkan, the superstar of Turkish pop music. This is from the good old days, before she got all that work done and posed with Chippendales. (Turkish google image search)
This track features on the compilation Turkish Freakout: Psych-Folk Singles 1969-1980. Well worth picking up, over at Holy Warbles.
Ringing in this Country Sunday with the psychedelic twang of Spur, a group from Belleville, Illinois, just over the river from St. Louis. It’s a goofy track, warning you not to misplace your dope/hash/speed, and wouldn’t sound all that out of place on a Flying Burrito Brothers record. Other tracks are nice jangly garage, more in the vein of the Dovers or the Byrds.
Style points 101
The band started out as The Unknowns, changed the name to Spur in the late 60s, and, despite sharing bills with Cream, the Grateful Dead and the Byrds, was ultimately destined to remain Unknown. Drag City did dig up some stuff from bassist Rick Willard for a release last year, Spur of the Moments. This track comes not from that release, but by a great band-sanctioned compilation put together by Record Fiend, Spur Points. Go give it a spin, drop by the band’s myspace and facebook, and check out some comments from Rick Willard.
Sharing the bill with the Byrds for “A Halloween Trippers Treat” at the National Guard Armory in St. Louis
I fell in love with the trippy Italian group Dumbo Gets Mad back when the surfalicious slo-mo video for Plumy Tale made the blogrounds…maybe you did too. Now, with just enough time gone by to forget about ‘em, they’re back with a staggering masterpiece of an album, straight out of who-knows-what-provincia in Italy.
Rich, ethereal psych-rock landscapes littered with chunky synths, falsetto, electronic marimbas, jangly out-of-tune guitars, cheesy organs, basement drums and flying saucer fumes, each tune essentially a musical Where’s Waldo, with so many tracks it’d take Phil Spector or Brian Wilson to get to the bottom of it all.
You can get all this madness for free from the label, Bad Panda Records. Highly recommended for those who enjoy sippin’ on the Ariel Pink/MGMT koolaid. Definitely of the cult, and the caliber.
The fact that this freakish nonsense was beaming into the living rooms of millions of British homes over a Thursday night TV dinner is just fabulous to imagine. And to Alice Cooper and Kiss I say — this explains a LOT, boys.
You absolutely CANNOT miss the dance routine about three quarters of the way through.
Great little psych-rocker from this mysterious Portland-based outfit. Kind of reminds me of the messy rawk jams Beck used to turn out in the flannel-shirted fuck-shit-up Mellow Gold days. Love it.
They also have a sweet little British-psych-sounding number called Thought Ballune up for free download at their bandcamp. (you can buy the 4-song EP there too!)
There’s not too much out there about Unknown Mortal Orchestra (hence the Unknown part, I guess?). He’s making some really funky lo-fi psych jams though that I’ve been a little crazy about the past couple of days. “Nerve Damage!” is one of his weirder tracks, featuring some groggy, barking vocals over some fuzzy, crunchy guitar work.
Awesome song from the Dutch group Shocking Blue, and this promo video is amazing. (aside from the fact that they’re just faking it…there’s no keyboard player!) Other than that, it’s everything rock’n’roll should be — you got yer cages of monkeys in the background (!?), yer too-cool-for-school guitar player, and Mariska Veres, looking spookily like a mannequin here. I think it’s the haircut.
‘Venus’ went number one in 1970 so I’m guessing that’s when this video was filmed. Enjoy… can’t stop watching it myself. Kind of hypnotizing.
I’m just gonna say it. This album has been blowing my mind. In my top of 2010, along with Sweet Lights. Usually it’s pretty easy to pick the winning tune or two from an album — in this case I’ve been tossing and turning at night trying to figure it out.
Let the Sirens Go is one of the faster songs on the album, featuring the Owls’ signature harmonies (is Brian Wilson in this band?), some psychedelic 60s flute, weird zippy sounds and a nice plump distorted bassline.
But there’s a lot more to hear on this album so I’ll probably be posting more from these guys soon. In the meantime, check out the post on Head Underwater that led me to Conspiracy of Owls. The track there, The New Me, is another favorite.
Tommy James & the Shondells — Crystal Blue Persuasion
from Crimson & Clover (1969)
From the crooners behind the well-loved hit Crimson & Clover, another soulful tune, which may be the very best use of a two-chord progression I’ve heard in a while — AND there’s a key change. Yow.
You could persuade me to do pretty much anything, if you ask while this song is playing. Very persuasive stuff…
Nilsson was born in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn, New York, in 1941. His paternal grandparents were Swedish circus performers and dancers, especially known for their “aerial ballet” — where this album got its name.
When Nilsson visited the Beatles in London during 1968, John Lennon played Nilsson “Revolution” and selections from the (then-upcoming) ‘White Album’, and Nilsson in turn played to Lennon (who had spent thirty-six hours listening to Nilsson’s first album) a demo cut of this record.
Mulholland Driving, driving music inspired by a dark night navigating the Hollywood Hills.
Music for promotional purposes only. If you are the copyright holder of a particular song and wish to see it removed, I'm happy to do so. Just let me know.
