SOUNDTRACK: ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE & THE MELTING PARAISO U.F.O.-The Ripper at the Heaven’s Gates of Dark (2011).
I’m not sure why this era of AMT seems so readily available on CD, but this is another collection of songs from the lineup of Tsuyama Atsushi – monster bass, voice, soprano sax, cimpo flute, soprano recorder, acoustic guitar, cosmic joker Higashi Hiroshi – synthesizer, dancin’king Shimura Koji – drums, latino cool Kawabata Makoto – electric guitar, electric bouzouki, sitar, organ, percussion, electronics, speed guru.
It has 5 songs and comes in at just around 75 minutes.
The album titles tend to be amusing twists on classic rock albums (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn), but usually the music doesn’t sound all that classic rock. But on this album, they changed that.
“Chinese Flying Saucer” is 12 minutes long and opens with a kind of siren sound going high then low and then a big old guitar riff launches. It feels like a classic rock riff, but it is original. When Tsuyama starts singing, the whole thing comes together like a Led Zeppelin tribute. The riff is classic Zep the vocals (indecipherable as they are) are tally Robert Plant–echoed and high pitched with lots of moaning. There’s even a “Kashmir”-like riff in the middle. It’s remarkably fun and really accessible. The big non-Zeppelin moment comes with Kawabata’s solo which is just insanity.
After about four minutes the song shifts gears and takes off for outer space with rumbling bass and soaring keys. They jam for about five minutes and then return to the initial riff to end the song.
“Chakra 24” is only four minutes long and is a slower sitar based song with raspy vocals. It’s quite pretty.
But the brevity is soon gone with the fifteen minute “Back Door Man Of Ghost Rails Inn.” It’s a slow droney song with sitar and lots of keys. This time when Tsuyama starts singing it’s in a very Jim Morrison style–ponderous and over the top. There’s even a spoken word part. Imagine in Morrison’s voice “some people coming here… some people coming here and…” There’s some wild organ trippiness in this song that stretched in ways The Doors never did.
The cleverly titled “Shine on You Crazy Dynamite” is almost 22 minutes long and sounds like old school pink Floyd. Not “Crazy Diamond” era, but earlier, more like “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun.” Kawabata’s solos really shine on this one, with squeaky echoes and a metal bars slide up the neck. The keyboards also sound like Richard Wright. After 17 minute or so off wild guitar freak out, the guitar fades back a bit to let the pulsing bass take over with the echoing voices continuing to the end.
“Electric Death Mantra” is a twenty minute chill out. It’s a slower piece with lots of high pitched spacey notes floating around, which Kawabata plays bouzouki and Tsuyama sigs (in his normal style). With about eight minutes left things get really quiet with a quiet rumbling drums and echoed sounds and notes from the guitar while overdubbed vocals chant and chant. Then it slowly starts to build up again, with faster and faster bouzouki and Kawabata’s wailing solo.
[READ: May 25, 2021] Rogue Planet
Oni Press was one of my favorite young imprints when I first started reading graphic novels. Then I lost track of it. So I was pleased to see this book from them.
I was a little turned off by it because it happened to be one of several books I brought home that just seemed to revel in blood and guts (was there a run on red ink recently?)
The book turned out to be (totally gross) interesting. And I was pleased with the way it handled a somewhat complicated story in one volume.
The book opens on the rogue planet. Life on the planet consists of a bunch of ET- looking creatures. The older one speaks to its son, complimenting him on his intelligence before sacrificing him to the giant crystal that is growing out of the ground. The giant crystal, which is covered in and surrounded by flesh and eyes and teeth and all kinds of gross stuff. It’s really horrible-looking. (more…)
I Just Read About That... 