Exploring unheralded rock songs from many genres including classic rock, hard rock, psych, garage, metal, proto-punk, punk, post-punk, and the occasional blues tune...
Now here is some awesome garage punk that I never knew about in the 90's. I only discovered their music much later. These guys are still around and tour occasionally. Here they are from their early days.
Here is some Krautrock at its finest. A.R. & Machines, the name of Achim Reichel's early 70's musical vehicle, laid down their masterpiece LP, Die Grüne Reise, in 1971. Today's featured song is the penultimate track on that album.
Man, 1969 must have been a great time to be a music fan. The biggest band in the world, The Beatles, release music like you've never heard and then all of their material gets covered by other artists ranging from old fashioned crooners to heavy psychedelia. Somewhere between those extremes is Lowell Fulsom's funky cover of Paul McCartney's 1:41 white album filler song.
Now here's a French blues rock band whose name sounds like an English band. In fact, the music sounds like in could have come out of England, as well. Of course, that is a complement. Here they are from their second single.
I was never much into Spandau Ballet, but I know this much is true: Their earlier work was better than the sappy songs that would follow later in the 80's. With that in mind, here is the band with their first single.
Last month, at a yard sale, I picked up a box of albums with some standard selections, including Elvis Costello, Steely Dan, and Bruce Springsteen. There were also three records by an artist, Nick Drake, who I hadn't heard of. So, when I get home to research the records, I am floored to see that these Nick Drake LPs are worth much more than any of the others. That led me to put the record on the turntable and I'm glad I did. This is some quality music.
Now, I don't usually feature slower music or folk in this space, but today is an exception. Here is the title track to Nick's third and final LP. Just two years after it's release, he would tragically take his own life in England.
I couldn't think of any good Thanksgiving music for this year, so I'm not going to try to force it. So, here is some heavy French psych instead. Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!
While San Francisco area band, Terry Malts, claim to be inspired by The Troggs, I don't really hear it that much in their music. That said, I still like what I hear. It is more like how I imagine power pop or modern day post-punk would sound when done right. Here they are from a 2012 split EP with Dead Angle.
No, I did not intend to feature two Japanese rock bands on consecutive days. Today's track just came up on my iPod. I don't have the vinyl or CD. I just downloaded this somewhere earlier this year. It was only when I sat down to write today's entry did I realize that the band was from Japan. No matter, though, this is some high quality blues rock.
The Mops were one of Japan's biggest psych rock bands. They had a big regional LP hit called Psychedelic Sounds of Japan in 1968. A few years later and their sound turned decidedly more hard rock. This period interests me much more. Here they are with the title track off of their 1971 release.
You know that feeling you had when you listened to Television's Marquee Moon for the first time? You just couldn't believe that this was a band's debut album. It was just too good. This is how I felt listening to Wire's debut, Pink Flag. And, it seem's way ahead of its time. See if you agree.
Today's selection is a real scorcher from a band named Charmer and it was released around 1977. However, it is unclear if a band named Charmer ever actually existed and the sounds you're hearing on the Youtube link were actually recorded around 1971. Apparently, the recordings on this 1977 album were recorded over a number of years much earlier with a variety of musicians in Southern Florida. This seems to be a side project of Duane Hitchings from Cactus and Mike Pinera from Blues Image, among others. Despite all the confusion surrounding when and who recorded this, it is definitely worth a listen.
Alright, today's selection wins the trifecta. It's a song called Weed, by a band named Weed, off of an album called Weed...! I guess they love to garden...
In all seriousness, though, this side project featuring Ken Hensley of Uriah Heep is quite good. Check it out!
Flied Egg, despite the terrible name, made some terrific hard rock/prog music in early 1970's. This Japanese band would only make a couple of albums. Here they are off of their debut release, Dr. Siegal's Fried Egg Shooting Machine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pn28MVsyKB0
Modey Lemon was one of a great number of neo-garage rock bands to form in the late 90's/early 2000's that never achieved much fame, but provided a nice counterbalance to the highly produced rock music of the era. That was of course, if you knew where to find the music. It wasn't as easy as today's broadband rich internet environment. In any case, here is this Steel City band from their self-titled second album.
Having a longevity similar to Metallica and Megadeth, Testament hasn't had nearly as much success in the thrash metal world. Still, they have a strong following due to the quality of their music. Check out this track from their 1987 debut, The Legacy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbE_0NsNiuw&feature=youtu.be
I'm finding it hard to categorize today's selection. This track from the one full length release by this early 70's Missouri band sounds equal parts psych, garage, and something else. Maybe you have a thought.
Before Matt Johnson formed The The, he released an album of post-punk/psych music that is really a a masterpiece. I only stumbled on this LP, Burning Blue Soul, recently. I could have selected any number of tracks to showcase here, so I just picked one. Enjoy.
Alright, I've completely lost my mind posting a fifteen minute plus song. Well, skip around the Youtube clip then to see if you might like it. Phoenix was a heavy psych Romanian band who would later morph into prog. I like their earlier stuff better.
Not to be confused with the Outsiders from Cleveland and their big hit "Time Won't Let Me", this group of Outsiders hail from Amsterdam and are a bit cooler IMHO. Here they are from the their second and final studio LP, CQ. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vLJ1imHO7g
Those prog/krautrockers really knew how to make an album cover. Art or tasteless, it is hard not to look at it. In this case, though, the music is also worth a listen. Here is a track off of their second and final LP, Blue Apple. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k2zq7mYvsI
This space has featured neo-psych, neo-garage, neo-punk, and neo-hard rock, but I'm not sure if I've ever featured neo-post punk. Well, in case I haven't, I am rectifying that today. Here is a new band playing music that sounds like it could have come right out of 1981. Here is a track from their 2013 debut album, Silence Yourself. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzIpMRzeMcM
These Swedes were definitely schooled in early Black Sabbath. Although their music sounds like it was recorded in the early 70's, it is only a few years old. Check out their web page here. Here is the first track on Side 2 of their debut album, 1st. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-BM39rSSnY&feature=youtu.be
Name the best speed/thrash metal band to come out of San Francisco in the early 80's whose band name starts with "Metal...". That may be very easy for some to answer, but it shouldn't be. Metal Church should also be in that conversation. Now, they didn't end up having the long term success as Metallica, but some of their early stuff is great. Check out track #3 off of their self-titled debut.
Not bad for a college band. Wildfire formed and were together while the band members attended the University of Texas in the late 60's/early 70's. During summer break, they would go to Southern California to play live and record tracks. Here they are with one of those recordings.
