Scavenger Quartet - Whistling For Leftovers

Label : Phonetic Records - PR 0901 SQ / Snowdonia

Year : 2001

Country : US / EU

Format : CD

 

Some soundtracks for imaginary films. This rotating cast of a quartet is headed by the great Frank Pahl who uses his typical exploits (toys and whistling, mostly) to create wild if not incongruent compositions, though the latter could be attributed to this being something of a collection of commissions than a proper album.

An instrumental Only A Mother in some ways, their following album is much more focused. Maybe it will hit these almost dead hallways sometime soon? Breathe a little life into it.

(click the CD)

Harpy - Hot Drive

Label : Self-Released - HP-006

Country : Japan

Year : 1998

Format : CD

Before I start, let me recommend this live performance being offered on Bandcamp by the great itoken. With that giving me a good conscious to share this to you for free, here is a set of tracks recorded in the late 90s by one of my favorite toy/avant/prog groups, a mix of live and studio tracks. 

A zip of this has been floating about the internet for a long while, but only in measly 192 kbps mp3. Today I give to you, in fresh 4K quality, a 96 kbps opus rip!!!!

(FLAC version can be found on slsk if need be)

Here

Reportaż - Reportaż / Muzika

Label : Tonpress - SX-T 129

Year : 1988

Country : Poland

Format : LP

Back from the dead, to give you some stuff to listen to. 

Maybe, if you want.

Two to make up for my absence with excellent, excellent RIO from Poland. An avant-bordello soundtrack, even. You might have heard these releases somewhere else on the internet but you might just like my rips better.

Here

Label : ADN - 25

Country : Italy

Year : 1987

Format : C60

Here

Circadian Rhythm - 新鮮なかおり

Label : Air Records - AIR-3008

Country : Japan

Year : 1986

Format : 7 inch

Some Eastern hospitality in the form of a cute little 7 inche package. The music is quite comfortable, too. A languid Lacrymosa side project, with pop sensibilities between the avant bursts. It's odd, I quite enjoy the B side and do like the chintzy little melodies of the A-side, but this doesn't grab me as much as I would have anticipated... It has all the niceties of the Japanese new wave in all its [musical description/cliche] and weirdo sensibilities (or zolo, whatever that is). Sort of like a lot of technopop I hear, I would prefer to hear kraftverk or O. My. Dee.

Of course, I could just let it settle. Let it grow on me, yes, grow on me like a, er, mushroom. Yes, yes, yes, yes,  Psilocybin hallucination or insomnia? I'll go with the latter, my circadian clock's only right a couple times per day.

I neglected to scan the back side of this one, wouldn't you believe it? Lucky enough, someone was gracious enough to facilitate the missing spaces to Discogs, making my job halfway obsolete. Oh, if you would like to hear more from this rather obscure outfit I recommend checking out Tony Coulter's show on WFMU. If you bug him enough he might just queue em up.

Here

Somesax - Flapper

Label : Pingo Records - PINGOLP 001

Country : Denmark

Year : 1990

Format : LP

Ripped by Scramoutcha

Danish RIO, who know? My biggest connection to the country is LEGO. Though I'm not sure if the abbreviated form of Rockin' Position is pronounced as one would say river in one or few of the romance languages. Carrying on, this was an old wish of mine. That is, to hear. No big deal, but it's nice to finally be able to hear through the obscurity. And yew, toe.

Here

Legacy Of Sorrow - Discovery

Label : Endemic Music

Country : US

Year : 1988

Format : C70

Back from the grave, just in time for Halloween. Also back from the grave is this, which I thought was lost in the purgatory of shipping and handling. But now it's here and I need to deal with that, and you have a chance to get some listening in.

 If you look in the liner notes, you'll find some familiar names in Bob Drake, Mark Fuller, and Eric Jacabsen. Yes, all three of these men were in Thinking Plague, plus trumpeteur Ron Miles. Musically, it is rather similar to the Plague's signature sound, but without the apathetic beauty of Susanne Lewis' pipes it reminds me a lot of Het. Lots of air in these instruments, and lots of little twists and turns too being a live recording; some familiar and unfamiliar melodies may catch your ears.

Here

Guy Clerbois - La Dernière Tentation Du Disque

Label : Ayaa - PSOCDA 1

Country : France

Year : 1993

Format : CD

Ripped by Scramoutcha

Oh, hello. Here is another rip from my fine friend from across that big old body of water--an old rip at that. A sideproject of the frontman (as if there was much of a backing) of the monumental synth-spazz project Vitor Hublot. Somewhat a departure here, maybe more. Here is essentially, at the time, the previous 20 or so years in recorded music history given the John Oswald treatment. Er, if Oswald hadn't already done that at the same time frame. Maybe a bit more obscure in choice here, though I do recognize many a phrase here, and I have a terrible memory! Particularly the first the track-from the getgo I can recognize that song, see if you can. I can't even remember which song it was.

A familiar cast of characters. I wonder if this was an artistic choice or one borne out of the need to credit the musicians themselves. I'll go with both.

Here

X-Ray Eyes - X-Ray Eyes

Label : Megaphone Limited - 007

Country : US

Year : 1994

Format : CD

Ripped by Scramoutcha

Another bountiful feast from my friend over the information superhighway. This has been on my radar for a little while and I've finally got a blip. Those familiar with Megaphone Limited will have a good bit to like here, and some recognizables as well. Improvisational folk and pop melodies crash discordantly with its jazz and atonal origins. Jason Willett and Caroline Kraabel ring a bell? This album certainly is rrrringing hoooo!

"utterly individual (albeit gently so)" says the website

Only A Mother - Dusty Nuggets

Label : Apparèmment Des Notes

Year : 2014

Country : Italy

Format : CDr

I think that if I had the connections and the savoir faire required of musicmaking Only A Mother would be a sound I would aspire to. Herkyjerky jazz spasms interspersed with country folkisms led to a lot of great music from Pahl and co. Along with his solo career, Frank makes some darned good musics.

Now what we have here is a collection of unreleased recordings. As musicians are wont to do after awhile, releasing archival tidbits from here or there into a neat little package. How it got all the way to Italy is anyone's guess. As the man hisself described in the modicum of a liner sheet, it could have been a box set or something of that nature due to the surprising amount of outtakes. I wouldn't hesitate to throw my dollars down on that.

Here

Various Artists - Hіstory Of K-НIN Bros. Co. 1982-1994

Label : Super Fuji Discs - FJSP222/231

Country : Japan

Year : 2015

Format : CD

Since I am away on a brief vacation without the comfort of my tape player and turntable, I give you something truly sublime. I've held onto this for a little while, first downloaded from a friend on a familiar private tracker. This is a mammoth 11-hour box set chronicling what I consider the epitome of Japanese eccentric pop scene from the silent 80s throughout the roaring 90s.

I believe this came with a book or something of that nature. If you're interested in that, well you're gonna have to pull out the proverbial wallet for that because the download did not come with scans sadly. Though I don't think most reading can decipher runes, I could be wrong as I often am.

Discs 1-6

Discs 7-11

Various Artists - Cruel Beasts

Label : Maboroshi no Sekai - B...018

Country : Japan

Year : 1994

Format : C45

Something special for your Sunday. I'd like to think this is rare, but for all I know this could be shelf fodder in its homeland. This is an early release on the very cool Maboroshi no Sekai label which produced similar albums of this sonic ilk throughout its continued existence. The sounds presented here are of a diverse type all deriving from that all encompassing "experimental" umbrella. Some tracks branch off from the textures sprouted forth from bands such as the Boredoms and the Ruins, the spectrum of noisy mayhem and technically proficient chaos.

One may recognize some of the names here, with Japanese underground luminaries like Otomo Yoshihide, Koichi Makigami, and Seiichi Yamamoto making an appearance and also one of my favorite groups from that very subterranean artspace, Harpy. In fact, Harpy's percussionist itoken is the one who chose these artists for this tape. You may recognize him from my Zuppa di Pesce posts awhile back, I really respect his work. Some bands included are avant-proggers Soh Band and psych-noisters Children Coup D'Etat, who turn in some impressive performances. A band I don't recognize is Piranezi, jazzy noise rock for busted eardrums. Lots of unheard tracks here, don't miss it.

Here

Lossless, so don't lose out!

Zuppa Di Pesce - Colazione

Label : Compare Notes - CN-0010

Country : Japan

Year : 2006

Format: CD

Strange tidings from a different sea. Changes of eye/ear level abound in this circus cavalcade of fine dining (Italian) errors. Itoken is a guy who has been involved in a lot of music of which I quite enjoy, whether in the phenomenal Harpy or the beautiful musings of Win A Sheep Free (Both of these bands along with Itoken's solo works appear in the soundtrack of Mecha game Phantom Crash, oddly enough) and with Toshokan, which may come soon on this very blog.

Listening to Itoken's music, one can place his sound down pretty well. Using toy instruments, especially percussive ones, to create unique avantpop pieces, not unlike fellow toypopper Klimperei. Zuppa di Pesce is slightly different, however, as shown by the previous post showcasing this wondrous group. The sound here goes for more of a synthetic brass-band sonic injection, as opposed to the sparse arrangements found on his other projects. Still great, though. Those illustrations alone are worth the price of admission.

Here

Can't believe I forgot to mkrasna for sending me this exquisite amalgamation, but that he did.

The Flying Luttenbachers / No Safety - Modulation Decay Split

Label : Coat-Tail Records - CT-001

Country : US

Year : 1994

Format : 7 inch

Here

Proof Of Utah - A Dog, A Dodo & A Fool

Label : Smiley Turtle Records

Country : US

Year : 1984

Format : LP

Here

(Reupped 10/11/17)

Various Artists - Bad Alchemy Nr 5

Label : Bad Alchemy - Nr 5

Country : Germany

Year : 1986

Format : C45

Here

Weber & Schuster spielen Frank Weghardt ‎- Kompositionen Für Einen, Zwei Oder Mehrere Töne

Label : Multi Pop Prod. - MuPop 001

Country : Germany

Year : 1990

Format : 7 inch

Here

Motor Totemist Guild - Sub-Mission / The Ballad Of The Thin Man

Label : Rotary Totem Records - RTSS002

Country : US

 Year : 1984

Format : 7 inch

Here
[Reupped, I just realized this was meant to be played on 45rpm]