The Acid Casualties - Panic Station [1982]

posted by all-musicrecords

I suppose the main draw here (besides the surreal, Dali-esque album sleeve) was the Acid Casualties reworking of the obscure-ish Pink Floyd chestnut, "Point Me at the Sky." 

The tune in question (which fascinated me to no end) was released in 1968 as a stand-alone single, shortly after Syd Barrett's ouster from the group, and sounds deceptively written by him, but in fact was penned by Gilmour and Waters.  

And the Casualties do it justice, despite mouthpiece Mark Avnet striking me as a tad too throaty when he manhandles the chorus.  

Elsewhere on Panic Station, it's a bit of a challenge determining where this apparently one-off combo was truly angling. 

Certainly not new wave or punk (though Trouser Press went to the trouble of critiquing it). The band did partake of Robbie Krieger's guest guitar finagling on no less than three songs here. 

And this album is home to yet another cover, a T. Rex deep cut circa 1972, "Fist Heart Might Dawn Dart."  

Yet all in all, the Casualties don't sound obviously prodigious of the Doors or Bolan, though there is an unmistakable classic-rock, prog-lite tincture to many of side one's numbers with some discernable BÖC-isms wafting about, not to mention a few well placed Roger Waters style guitar fills.  

Additionally, the finale, "Floating" sports swell Utopian-harmonies that would do Rundgren proud.  Writ large, Panic Station is a pleasure to listen to with nary any major hiccups, even if it is a bit of an anomaly for what I tend to share. 

Track listing

1.  Point Me at the Sky - 4:08

2.  Shadow Street - 5:05

3.  Canyons of Your Mind - 5:07

4.  Solid Sound - 4:03

5.  Armies of the Sun/The Battle - 5:33

6.  Fist Heart Might Dawn Dart (Funny How The Day Comes) - 3:44

7.  She's a Lost Soul - 3:41

8.  Floating - 5:59

Label - Rhino Records

Meat Puppets - Up On The Sun [1985]

posted by all-musicrecords

Up on the Sun is the third album by the Meat Puppets, released in 1985 by SST Records. The album features a cleaner and more technical sound with a more psychedelic rock feel, in contrast to the sloppy punk approach of their first album (1982), while continuing with the mystical, poetic lyrics and country-inflected songwriting of Meat Puppets II (1984).

Musically, Up on the Sun departed slightly from the country-influenced sound of its immediate predecessor, being more based in what Mark Deming described as "sunburned psychedelia". Jon Dolan called the record an "insanely idyllic" work of "post-punk pastoralism".

On their second album, the Meat Puppets staggered away from the attempts at punk formalism that hobbled their debut, and with their third LP, 1985's Up on the Sun, they well and truly came out of the musical closet -- not only weren't they punks, they could easily pass for hippies and didn't feel the least bit self-conscious about it. 

The country influences that played such a big part on Meat Puppets II had faded a bit on Up on the Sun, as a sunburned psychedelia took center stage and the band allowed themselves to get good and trippy. However, Up on the Sun revealed the Puppets had learned one very valuable lesson from punk, and that was to get to the point. 

The album has an air of carefree drift, but it doesn't meander, and the performances are remarkably tight, full of energy and purpose even when the songs are redolent of goofing off. The title cut churns as Curt Kirkwood's precise but languid guitar figures dance with his brother Cris' insistent basslines and the percussive color of Derrick Bostrom's drumming. "Maiden's Milk" is playful as the abstract jangle of the opening section gives way to a tie-dyed jig, complete with whistling. 

The swirly phase-shifting and circular melody on "Swimming Ground" sounds as comfortable as a cool dip on a hot day. 

And the speedy attack of "Buckethead" and "Enchanted Forest" testifies to how strikingly well this band had learned to work as a unit. Up on the Sun isn't as revelatory as Meat Puppets II, and it lacks a song as memorable as "Lake of Fire," but the band rarely sounded as joyous or played with the same fire and accuracy as they demonstrated here, and it's arguably their most purely pleasurable work.

Tracklist

1.  Up On The Sun (4:04)

2.  Maiden's Milk (3:19)

3.  Away (3:27)

4.  Animal Kingdom (1:25)

5.  Hot Pink (3:27)

6.  Swimming Ground (3:06)

7.  Buckethead (2:21)

8.  Too Real (2:12)

9.  Enchanted Porkfist (2:29)

10.  Seal Whales (2:19)

11.  Two Rivers (3:20)

12.  Creator (2:10)

Password: tuiam

Label - SST Records

Plum Nelly - Deceptive lines (1971) (Hard Progressive Rock {US})

posted by all-musicrecords

Plum Nelly was a hard rock band from New York. This five man band began playing under the name Creedmore State until Nicky and Arnie Ungano of the famed defunct New York City rock club of the same name took them under their wings and signed the band to Capitol Records under the name Plum Nelly. The band either played with or opened for many famous acts such Bo Diddley, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Jimi Hendrix, The Kinks, Savoy Brown, John Mayall, Fleetwood Mac, Rod Stewart and The Faces, Joe Cocker, Dr. John, Muddy Waters, Terry Reid and notibly at Carnegie Hall with The James Gang.

The band recorded the album "Deceptive lines" at Capitol East, November through December 1970 along with producer Kenneth Cooper. The album was released on June 3, 1971. Band personnel on the record included John Earl Walker (lead guitar), Ric Prince (lead vocalist), Peter Harris (bass), Steve Ress (rhythm guitar, vocal), and Christopher Lloyd (drums).

The guests on the album included Jeremy Steig (flute) and The Sweet Inspirations (background vocal of "Lonely man's cry"). The Sweet Inspirations was led by Cissy Houston who is Whitney Houston's mom. They also was Elvis Presley's and Aretha Franklin's backup singers during this period. Dave Bash Johnson played conga's on the song "Carry on". The album liner notes were written by Patrick Salvo.

The group toured the US during the early '70's and relocated in Los Angeles in 1974. It was at this time that John Murphy replaced Bob Feit, who went on to become Tina Turner's bass player, and superseded original Plum Nelly member Peter Harris on bass.

Plum Nelly disbanded in 1976. It was during this time that Walker formed the first incarnation of The John Earl Walker Band, circa late 70's to early 80's. A good album for those who enjoy the style. Ric Prince's vocals, sometimes remind us of another excellent vocalist, from another excellent band of the time: Pete French, from Leaf Hound.

Tracklist

1.  Deception - 9:00

2.  Carry On - 7:04

3.  The Demon - 6:57

4.  Lonely Man's Cry - 7:02

5.  Sail Away - 10:00

6.  Never Done - 3:00

Label - Capitol Records