Bango

VAMOS ALTA!!! Bango were an obscure Brazilian hard psych band that dropped one blotter soaked tab of an album in 1970, and what a record. Cool fuzzy guitars, kooky spooky organs, some mellower moments ("But I Felt"), a jokey song ("The Priest, The Doctor, The Mayor, and Me") and some primal fucking hard rocking freakout ("Rock Dream".) There is a lot going on here, Bango had no shortage of ideas, and the result was a stellar album, sadly their only recorded output. Get high, motherfuckers.

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Pyramid

Duuuude. Here's some home-grown Swedish progressive hard rock from a band called Pyramid. Most notably, Pyramid was the first working band of future Silver Mountain frontman Christer Mentzer. First Stone is a solid (if not a bit goofy) album that kind of reminds me of Uriah Heep with a horn section, Mentzer is a ringer for David Byron. This is by no means Demons and Wizards, and Pyramid venture into some really cornball territory at times, but that doesn't ruin it for me. This is an excellent summertime wizard bong album, or even a snowed in wizard bong album if you desire.

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Fly

Fly

Selda

Selda Bagcan is one of the bigger names in Anatolian psych, but outside her native Turkey, the genius of this woman is barely known. Selda is regarded for her scathing indictments of the Turkish government and work with various political causes. Selda isn't just singing about it. In the 1980s Selda was jailed three times and her passport seized. Her best known album (mainly due to the great 2006 reissue by Finder's Keepers) was her 1976 joint simply titled Selda. The album is crammed full of absolutely infectious melodies, masterful arrangements, twists at every turn, and Selda's powerful wailing voice and guitar. I promise that by the opening riff of "Ince Ince" you will be under the spell of Selda, if not then you are fucking dead inside.

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Electric Day

Latter day Kraut Rock/Electrofucked band YOU bleeped and blooped their way onto the scene in 1978 and issued this analog synth delight in 1979. Electric Day features a masterful drum performance by Harald Grosskopf (Ash Ra Tempel) and a wealth of repetitive compositions that twist and morph and build. Sometimes dancey, sometimes menacing, and sometimes just relaxing, Electric Day is an excellent album for driving, sitting with your electric bong, or just moving through a post apocalyptic landscape wondering how the fuck the human race will survive.

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Bridge of Sighs

You know if I had the means to upload a joint of killer '70s brown weed, I would.

But instead...

Salisbury

Uriah Heep's sophomore album Salisbury, is a very special bit of legendary crush. From the first track, David Byron's dominance as a forceful frontman is cemented. Monstro-riffs and kooked out Hammond organs, this may be Heep's most 'eavy work, even if it is their most unrefined. Maybe you always thought of these dudes as a junior varsity Deep Purple, and never really bothered to look into their catalog. Well, you're wrong and you are a horribly misshapen freak, but it isn't too late to right one of these wrongs. Dig into Salisbury then work up to the next three albums after it. The rest of you should just go to the store and get a Swanson's Hungry Man Dinner, the one with the Salisbury Steak. Do they even still make those? If they don't then just get some beer.

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Assault

Assault on Precinct 13 may not be my first pick for best John Carpenter film, but it does have his most compelling soundtrack work. Carpenter's minimalist compositions, dated synths, and general creepiness would sit quite comfortably alongside these new-fangled electro-hipster bands. Get this now before it is repackaged as the cool new Gatekeeper release.

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Ash Rah Tempel

Here's the first album by the kvlt Kraut Rock band Ash Rah Tempel. Klaus Schulze played the drums, Manuel Gottsching played guitar, and Hartmut Enke played bass. The album contains two lengthy, seemingly improvised tracks. "Amboss" starts as a low hum, cymbals swell, toms rumble in. The song builds with chaotic drums and effected druggy guitars. Things break down into a lopey drum solo by Schulze which gives way to some chicken scratchy guitar that rings in the chaos of the first half. I swear there are blastbeats around the 19 minute mark. "Traummaschine" is a bit more tranquil at first and then turns somewhat menacing before returning to it's original shape. When I listen to this album (which isn't often) I am always reminded of the trajectory of Godspeed You Black Emperor's songs. I would not be the least bit surprised if the members of Godspeed cited Ash Ra Tempel as a major influence. Now you can list them as one of your influences as well.

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Elektronik Türküler

Erkin Koray is perhaps the most respected musician to come out of the whole Anatolian psych scene of the '60s and '70s, and his best known album Elektronik Türküler is a masterpiece that should not be missed simply because you are young and unturkish. With it's contagious grooves, and one billion gorgeous flourishes and hooks, I wonder why this album hasn't been sampled to death by every upstart DJ and hip hop producer on earth. Swirling druggy sitars and other exotic instuments intermesh with Korays plucky guitaring and mournful voice. I reach for this one often and it always reveals new mysteries. Absolutely essential.

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Orion Awakes

Some right trippy Kraut Rock instrumenace from Golem. Hammond organs throb, guitars swirl, drums shuffle and pulsate. At times the album is funky and at others it is ominous. The whole affair is swathed in a witchy murk. Open your skull to some Teutonic tabs of pure uncut sonic acid. A veritable lysergermanic feast of psilocybin mind fuck. HIGHly recommended.

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Chinese Restaurant

Chrisma were and Italian duo made up of Christina and her husband Maurizio (hence the name "Chrisma.") Their demo work caught the attention of a guy named Vangelis and his brother Nico who signed on to produce Chinese Restaurant, the group's stunning debut from 1977. You may have heard "Black Silk Stocking" or "Lola" from this album, they were the closest Chrisma ever came to any kind of hits. While that particular cut may be a memorably spicy dish, the whole deal is a delicious poo poo platter of darkaic proto synth pop. Essential if you go for that sort of thing.

Eat

Demian

This one was nicked from my bro Mike over at Blog The Jerk, it is too great of a 70's dirthead party record to not be passed around like a big smoldering jay of ratweed. Todd and Rod, a couple of bong buddies from San Antonio, might be remembered for their weird work in Bubble Puppy, but after the band's demise they became Demian. Some seeds and stems may fill out an otherwise solid bag, but there's enough buds in this record to get you through. Even the songs that don't necessarily "rock" are still excellently crafted and well played. A great summertime in the park album, take off your shoes.

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Sugar Time

Never mind that Brian Eno claims it is one of his favorite albums, that it had a huge influence on modern electronic music, that it is wideley regarded as one of the most important albums to come out of the fertile Krautrock scene. Cluster's 1974 album Zuckerzeit is just a great record to put on when you are loafing at home, playing chess, or pretending you are the protagonist of a future dystopian action film made in the '70s.

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Black Magician

Okay, here's an oddity from 1971 and a band called Rumplestiltskin. The album Black Magician sounds kind of like the soundtrack to a particularly hackneyed Satanic hippie exploitation film. Lots of crazy fuzzy funk riffs, kooky hammond organs, and overblown vocals about witchy things, evil women and such. Not mind blowing but a fun listen nonetheless.

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Rose Tattoo

Rose Tattoo, you should know them. If you don't, they were kind of like a working man's AC/DC. Yeah, I know what you are thinking, "Isn't AC/DC a working man's AC/DC?" Look, while Angus and crew seemed content writing great song after song with double entendres about poontang, Rose Tattoo peppered their balls-out pub rock with gritty tales of city life and damnation. These "tough guy with a broken heart" allegories bring to mind Phil Lynott and Phil Mogg, but come straight from the tortured heart of a dimunitive, charismatic skinhead named Angry Anderson. Sure these guys couldn't play as well as their more famous countrymen, but the sheer sincerity of their delivery is worthy of merit. So here I present their first album from 1978. In the album's onset, Anderson let's it be known that he is a "Rock n Roll Outlaw." However, shit gets hectic on the second track, "Nice Boys," which is best known for being covered by some band called Guns n Roses. In "Nice Boys" Anderson spins the tale of a young woman corrupted by the fast life of Rock n Roll. I don't remember AC/DC ever having the words "garbage," or "smack" in any of their songs. On the following cut "Butcher and Fast Eddie" we learn the tale of the meeting of two gang leaders, I won't spoil the ending for you, but it doesn't go well. For the duration of the album, Rose Tattoo continue to stomp through rudimentary blues rock while Angry reaffirms that he is an outlaw, a rebel, a rapscallion, an outcast, a fighter, and a lover, who divides his time between smoky bars and local jails. Pull up a stool, order a pint and let the wrong-side-of-the-tracks charm, and billiard hall wisdom of Angry Anderson and Rose Tattoo soothe what ails ya', mate.

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Kanguru

Guru Guru were one of the many young, talented bands that emerged from the Krautrock scene. Though not as known as CAN, Tangerine Dream, or Kraftwerk, Guru Guru's third album, Kanguru, is among one of the best releases of the genre. It's broken up into four lengthy sich-edelic mushroom jams that toggle between whimsical and menacing. Mani Neumeier's superior drumming drives the album, and that's also him doing that crazy singing. Guru Guru would invite Amon Duul over to their commune in the mountains of Bavaria and the two groups would ingest drugs, jam, and totally freak the fuck out together. Motherfuckers would run naked and free, tasting purple, shitting sunshine. It was a good time.

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Daydreamin'

Northern Calloway is best remembered as David, the affable denizen of Sesame Street, who blew off law school and took over the store when Mr. Hooper died. What many people did not know was Northern had a very tumultuous real life battle with mental illness, where daydreams became nightmares, and periods of make believe often began with assaulting hookers with rebar, and ended naked and bloody in a very tangible state hospital. Enjoy your day.

Dare to Dream

Warriors Come Out and Plaaaaay

The Warriors is a Xenophonic epic set against rough and ruinous late 1970s New York, a nocturnal necropolis inhabited by stylized thematic gangs. The soundtrack evokes all the tension, angst, and afros of the film. As Cleon, Swan, Ajax, Vermin, Cochise, Fox, Rembrandt, Snow, and Cowboy encounter one peril after the next in their quest to return to their home in Coney Island, you are treated to some pulsating, funky city songs from the likes of Mandrill, Joe Walsh, and Desmond Child, among others. Put this on your iPod for a late night stroll through the city of your choice, and feel the Turnbull A.C.'s hot on your heels, or relive the moment when the Baseball Furies dropped the ball, but remember what you get when you fuck with The Orphans.

Come Out and Play

Yamasuki

Are you ready for some sickeningly infectious multi-culti baroque pop? Oh good. Yamasuki (sometimes called The Yamasuki Singers) were the brainchild of a pair of French producers named Kluger and Vangarde who scored a minor hit in their native land with a single called "Yamasuki," the duo decided to capitalize on that success with a full length LP of Japanese/French pop love called Le Monde Fabuleux des Yamasuki. In order to do this, they hired a Judo master to announce the songs and a Japanese children's choir to sing. The album evokes everything there is to love about Serge Gainsbourg, children's shows of the '70s and antiquated ideas about Japan. Not sure how anyone could not like this record, perhaps if you had no ears, no soul and were a total dick, as for the rest of you, this will bring a smile to your dour mug.

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