Garuda, Indonesia

Garuda - s/t. 1976 EMI (England)

So here's out third submission from He Who Must Not Be Named. Now, he alleges he got this LP directly from his "best bud" Suharto (you know you're an important dude when you only have one name. And you're even more important when you can't name that name...). When did HWMNBN get this album? When he supposedly was supporting the ambassador representing France in the late 1970s. You know, I'm calling bullsh*t right there. But... maybe?

So my first thought here is: Selamat datang di disko  

Oh go on, look it up. You know you want to know what it means.

Done?

Right?

He Who Must Not says this: "There's a great story behind my travels to Indonesia... Composer Tony Campo is from there, Bali in fact.  His bio is featured briefly on the back of the record.  I take it he became a session bassist in the UK and did quite a few library records, often in collaboration with others.  His style is jazz-funk, as befitting the music of Bali which is very dance-oriented.  It's obvious that this album, which is named after the semi-mythical eagle-winged deity that is Indonesia's national symbol, is his masterpiece, the second side is called Suite No. 2 and is his attempt at creating a kind of jazz-funk symphony, you'll see what I mean when you hear it.  Note that the famed Frank Ricotti plays vibes and percussion on this record." 

In fact, had their been no second side, then I would wonder why it was sent to me in the first place. I mean, I actually like disco instrumentals, but it's not exactly the purpose of the list. But Side 2, while never quite losing those fat beats, takes on a whole new dimension. There's truly a depth found here that is uncommon in both funk and even in pure jazz. If you want to begin your dig for this album, you better like tight horn charts. With long fuzz guitar solos. And echoed Fender and vibes. I just happen to embrace said concept, hence I rate this:

Priority: 3

Amuthon, Germany

Amuthon - Wirklichkeit. 1982 private.

So here's the second entry from He Who Must Not Be Named. I had personal interest in this, as this showed up on ebay from a dealer with a bunch of rare Krautrock rarities last year. I won a couple of the auctions (on items I already knew), but there were quite a few I never heard of. Some clearly were out of my interest area. This one's description was somewhat appealing, but who knows right? And then HWMNBN shows up with this one in virtual hand. Cool. On this title, he also provides some insights:

"What a cover!!  some kind of unusually creepy everyman has a key that will unlock the mind... In terms of music, it's a very hard rock style with almost the polished british heavy metal sound from the late seventies (like granmax or americans legend from the fjords), not like the old rough krautrock sound from the early seventies. In fact at the start of track 1 I thought I heard influences from Led Zep's Song Remains the Same (the song that is, not the live album), although the minute the singer opens his voice the track does lose a lot of its allure. With titles like god, reality, you'd think this was a philosophical treatise exploring Kant, and maybe it is, I can't make out any of the lyrics. Oddly they switch between german and english.  A very impressive, albeit rough, outing totally uncharacteristic of German bands."

Well he certainly has a point about the vocalist, as he comes across as a Teutonic Arthur Brown. You can almost here the translation "Feuer!".... "Hölle Feuer!". Of course we must correct our presumably European friend (he mentioned something about watching over the Holy Grail in Provence. I mean, I'm calling bullsh*t right there. But you know... maybe?). Obviously Granmax is from the great Midwest (Missouri), rather than England. But let's not be pedantic, but get down to the meaning of what he's saying. Yes, good old fashioned American hard rock is a very astute observation.

Not only is the album half German and half English, but some of it is recorded live and some in the studio. Talk about "cobbling something together" for a release. There was quite a few of these private semi-progressive "Deutschrock" albums from the early 80s, and Amuthon fit squarely in the middle. A little Anyone's Daughter, 1980s era Grobschnitt and Novalis, Wintauge, Profil, Grim Reaper, and, oh, about 100 more obscurities few have heard and even fewer care about. It's certainly good, and non offensive German rock musik. Worth a spin, but no need for a CD reissue as far as I'm concerned.

Priority: none

Musikalische Gruppenimprovisation, Germany

Musikalische Gruppenimprovisation - s/t. 1974 private.

Names like Musikalische Gruppenimprovisation tend to be a magnet for the CDRWL. Especially bands with that name and coming from the Year 1974. And with a personnel pedigree that includes Broselmaschine, Kollektiv, and Annexus Quam. All favorites of the CDRWL. Oh the mind wanders... What kind of psychedelic treat is in store for me?

This album comes courtesy of the Lolly Pope, who was a regular contributor to the Roots and Traces Blog.  He is the same gentleman that turned the CDRWL onto the wonderful Cosmic Circus album awhile back (now reissued by Garden of Delights) and a few other choice items. Just a mere few days after making his personal recommendation to me, he left this mortal coil. I had no idea until recently. Like so many in the blogosphere, I did not know Werner personally, He was one of the many friendly, yet anonymous, faces that would offer their expertise to my blog, for which I'm eternally grateful. So I dedicate this post to Werner 'Allen' Voran. Here is the Lolly Pope's writeup:

"Another Kraut, not a Krautrock rarity. An experimental LP recorded in Germany 1971 to 1973, released 1974. Some say MUSICAL GROUP IMPROVISATION is the great lost third ANNEXUS QUAM album, but we also have members of KOLLEKTIV and BRÖSELMASCHINE here... ..among other very seriously improvising musicians from very different backgrounds. Together they demonstrate how it should be done. Jamming without illicit drugs! (In the daylight anyway...). Produced for the use at secondary schools and universities by The Study Group Musik North-Rhine Westphalia, on authority of The Ministry Of Work, Health And Social Affairs, Düsseldorf. A CD-reissue of this rare artefact is long overdue, but the mastertapes seem to be lost, and it took us half a lifetime to find a mint vinyl copy. 

01-Improvisation Nr.1
instrumente: synthesizer, sopransaxophon und querflöte mit elektronik, e-piano, e-gitarre, schlagzeug
freie improvisation
02-Improvisation Nr.2
instrumente: e-gitarre, synthesizer, orgel, sitar, sruitbox, stimme, piano, superstring, kongas
improvisation nach einer grafik
03-Improvisation Nr. 3
instrumente: stimmen und hände
improvisation nach einem projizierten dia eines surrealistischen bildes. das bild diente als stimmungsrahmen für die improvisation
04-Improvisation Nr. 4
instrumente: kunstoffschlauch,stimme, flasche, konzertgitarre, chimtas, tabla, marokkanische trommeln, pfeifen mit dem mund
improvisation nach einem projizierten landschaftsdia
05-Improvisation Nr.5
instrumente: bratsche, querflöte, konzertgitarre, aufblasbare tabla
freie improvisation
06-Improvisation Nr. 6
instrumente: posaune, konzertgitarre, bratsche, schlagzeug
freie improvisation
07-Improvisation Nr.7
instrumente: stimmen, cello, tabla, dickmilchbechergeige, spiralfedergong, schlitztrommel, flexaton, flöte
improvisation im freien mit hunde-hecheln und vogel-gezwitscher
08-Improvisation Nr.8
instrumente: konga, shanai, tabla, posaune, maultrommel, konzertgitarre, schellen, bratsche, präpariertes piano
freie improvisation
09-Improvisation Nr.9
instrumente: richak, sitar, bratsche, tabla, ektara
improvisation nach einem projizierten landschaftsdia
10-Improvisation Nr.10
instrumente: piano, stimmen
freie improvisation

(TITLE: MUSIKALISCHE GRUPPENIMPROVISATION - Katalog-Nr.: TST 78426, RESCO HT 30152 - No label name. Manufactured by Telefunken)

Musicians:

PETER and MARITA BURSCH (BRÖSELMASCHINE)
KLAUS DAPPER (KOLLEKTIV, BRÖSELMASCHINE,GLATTER WAHNSINN)
JÜRGEN HAVIX (KOLLEKTIV)
HARALD KLEMM, HANS KÄMPER, GABRIELE and PETER WERNER (ANNEXUS QUAM)
Plus:
KARL GODEJOHANN -WERNER SCHERMEIER - JOHANNES HOBBING - EDWIN STILLER - ANKE and GERHARD LISKEN - MARGRET BREUKELGEN - MARGRET CONZELMANN - BRIGITTE GÖBEL - MICHAEL GOEDECKE - ROLAND GRÄBE -JOHANNES HOBBING - EGON HUNEKE - GERLINDE PAULUS - WILHELM SCHULZ - UWE NIEPEL 

The sessions, or weekend workshops, were led and co-ordinated by Harald Klemm between 1971 and 1973. The improvisations were either totally free, or inspired by shown paintings and projected colour slides of landscapes. Nr.7 is an outdoor recording wiih panting dogs and chirping birds. An all instrumental album, except for some ethereal, non-verbal femal voices. A certain affinity to the second album of Annexus Quam is obvious, but there also are moments that remind of a less aggressive, more disciplined Limbus, a less classically trained Between, Popol Vuh without the religious ambitions and a lot more."

I think his reference to Limbus 3/4 is spot on. Though there is at least one direct reference to Soft Machine's "Third". Very much a product of its age. This is for those who truly love the avant garde. Nothing fake about this - the real deal in both atmosphere and sense of exploration. A bit "outside" for me, but an absolute must for fans of radical frei musik.

Priority: none

Rantz ~ USA

Rantz. 1982 private

UMR review

Priority: 2

9/19/13 (new entry)

Frank Pisani, USA

Frank Pisani - Sky. 1977 Dellwood.

Time to get The AC into the mix. And here's his first entry for the 2013 CDRWL Rarity Series. It was born out of a conversation based on my initial release of the Midwest progressive rock list I published this summer.

Dellwood is one of a handful of "tax scam" labels that proliferated in the USA during the late 1970s, which as we discussed before, was basically an IRS loophole that was exploited (of course it was) for a few years before being finally sealed up (which created new loopholes - akin to trying to trap water in your hand). I have other insights on this topic, via the legit CD reissue of Zoldar and Clark on my UMR site. Zoldar and Clark, incidentally, was also on the dubious Dellwood label.

So who the heck is Frank Pisani? No idea. Just some schmuck from Chicago we are lead to believe. It's presumed to be the same Frank Pisani that has (had) a music and comedy act. But in 1977 he wasn't clowning about, but rather getting down to the serious business of releasing commercially accessible music for FM radio. BUT, in what seems to be a unique 1970s Midwest American trait, he was throwing in plenty of complicated progressive ideas and measures. As if to ensure to himself that, at the very least - YES - I am a serious musician. For that alone, Frank, the record companies will ignore you. Duh. As Dave Stewart of National Health (and other groups of course) once famously said about music executives: "We don't want music to get in the way of a Top 10 hit!" And so a desolate Frank sent in his tapes through some esteemed and academic music magazine like Creem or Circus, had his demos pressed up for a tax dodge label, and received absolutely nothing in return. And he probably never even knew the album came out. In fact, it's entirely possible he will learn right here on the CDRWL - some 35+ years later. It's actually happened before...

If you blindfolded me, and then asked me to name the time and place - I'd say Midwest 1977. Seriously. Such a bulls-eye for the entire insane genre. As I state in the premise for the list: "In the 1970s, within the American Midwest and Ontario, there existed a fascinating subculture that was distinctly their own - and this phenomena was sharply expressed in the music of the region. It was here in the early 1970s that unmitigated FM radio ruled supreme, and countless Baby Boomers checked in each night to hear some of the wild music coming from Europe during this time (especially in England). Yes and ELP were an enormous influence in the region, as was the relatively obscure Gentle Giant. Certainly Genesis and Van Der Graaf Generator had their disciples as well."

Jamming Hammond, loud electric guitar, high energy rhythms, rough and bluesy but-oh-so-sincere vocals, and.... cowbell. Yea, there's a little too much crooning at times, and there's that always present party-time Grand Funk Railroad sound, but that only adds to the vibe. Man, this is just a heck of a lot of fun. Probably ties closest to the Canadian band Dillinger, though I hear serious references to classic Kansas as well. And how about that cover? The marketing department worked overtime on that obviously. "Here's a sheet of Engineering Graphics paper. Make it work." Ya know, minimum wage didn't get you much in 1977 either.

Obviously, I'm a fanboy for this stuff, so take my fanaticism with a grain of salt. But I want to see this on CD anyway (uh, I mean legit there pirate boy - don't want a bootleg of a bootleg - dig?). Probably would move 10 copies, including free promos. And people wonder why I don't get into this business...

Priority: 2

Trilogy, England

Trilogy - Arctic Life (EP). 1982 private cassette.

This entry comes courtesy of our friend Head Duster who has an encyclopedic knowledge of the UK Festival scene of the 1980s (and was obviously a regular patron of the events). His website is a goldmine for those of us looking for rare cassettes from that scene. Most of the music falls outside of what we focus on here at the CDRWL (primarily dance/techno/reggae/punk/experimental), but it's a fascinating read all the same. And I make sure to visit the blog monthly. We'll have a full Oroonies feature eventually (I have only a couple of albums up now), and I owe him for most of the material I'll be presenting.

So it's odd that I'm introducing his site via a music group that has nothing to do with the Festival scene. Rather, Trilogy were part of a slightly earlier movement known as the New Wave of British Progressive Rock. As you all know, the CDRWL is a big fan of that genre - perhaps because it was the first one I personally grew up with in regards to progressive music. I was already a veteran of the NWOBHM scene, and that was where I cut my teeth on collecting rare imports as a young high school lad. As I was beginning to learn about 70's progressive music, it was refreshing to know that new bands were emerging in that style. Not only that,  but I did manage to get to London for a week in 1984, which helped solidify my position. So I do tend to be nostalgic about it all.

Trilogy were, as you might suspect, a trio that also happened to feature quite a bit of keyboards. When the keyboards are active, I am reminded indeed of many of the bands from the early 80s period such as Twelfth Night and Pallas. But the guitarist plays a double neck guitar - and you have to know exactly where I'm going here. Correct... Rush. As in "Moving Pictures" Rush. Tightly wound, non-sprawling Rush. And I love it. Rush meets Pendragon? OK  - works for me! Obviously the production quality is lacking, but it's a homemade cassette - what can you possibly expect?

The cassette is a 4 track EP, so of course that alone doesn't warrant a CD. But if they have other studio material, or soundboard live stuff - then it surely would be of interest to many I think. Heck, if Tamarisk can do it, then any other obscurity from that time and place can! Perhaps they could reform for a full effort as well? Why not - they probably haven't been asked to do so in nearly 30 years.

Priority: 3

Red Summer, England

Red Summer - Release. 1982 Rimshot

So let's start our 2013 rarities session here - a nice modest release to get things going. This one came as a recommendation from our friend Tristan Stefan over at ProgNotFrog, where he also posted the album for awhile (not sure if it's still up). Tristan has also provided an insightful review, so it's worth clicking the link above for that alone.

I think Tristan's reference to Mike Oldfield is very much spot on, especially considering he still had one masterwork left in him, with the brilliant "Amarok" still 8 years away from Red Summer's album. And there are some parallels to that future work here. There's also some twee Anthony Phillips styled moments interspersed throughout on the shorter numbers.

Though Red Summer are a duo, they manage to pack in quite a few ideas per track. And it's just this setup that also reminded me of Jade Warrior's "Horizen" album, also from the 1980s. Jade Warrior always managed to feature a big sound from a small lineup. And there is that distinct world music edge that pops up now and again, further solidifying the comparison.

Perhaps most startling is the opening title track, that had me at first thinking I may have the wrong disc in the changer. Why? Well, it sounded so very French, that's why. Like a long lost Richard Pinhas tape circa "L'Ethique". There's also some of that good ole fashioned handmade, basement styled NDW electronik German sound prevalent as well. Unusually loud and psychedelic guitars pop out of nowhere on "Release", and are completely incongruous with most anything else going on in England during this era.

Fascinating album that seemingly came out of nowhere.

Priority: 3

Many rarities on the way!

We start TOMORROW. I've managed to publish a solid backlog of daily entries taking us into early October (it helped that I took a couple of days off of work to do this) with a few more to hear. Tentatively scheduling mid October for our BIG announcement (see below). Not all of the albums were great (or even good), in my opinion of course, but that's to be expected. But I do think they are all interesting at least - and many are heavily sought after. We will either enhance or demystify their reputation. Some of the albums have been posted to the blogosphere already, while others were passed to me in secret by hooded figures via hidden cathedrals. And one of the albums you will be able to hear IN FULL (or rather 7 of 8 tracks), as we will be able to point to you where it is on the internet. The album itself has been shared by a band member. It's buried because no one knows what the album is! And we will bring it to light soon. You won't want to miss it.  Thanks again to all the contributors that made the 2013 CDRWL Rarities Exposition possible. I hope you enjoy reading about them as well!

-----

Just a quick note to let you all know that I do have some rarities that have come through the door within the last year. I have yet to hear them myself, but advanced word says they are worthy of our attention. I got off to a bit of a false start with the Humus album in early June, but then redirected my attention onto another music project for the summer - mainly listening to CDs that are in my collection that I haven't heard in forever (examples: Drama - s/t (France) 17 years since last heard; debut album by the Polish band Lizard - 16 years since I last pulled it from the shelf. And dozens more). I think that's going to be my summer routine going forward.

We've been the fortunate recipient of many great looking rare items as sent in by the now legendary The AC, as well as wonderful contributions from Tristan Stefan and SF. And we have a new contributor - someone who is cloaked in mystery. A dark shrouded figure who we don't even know actually. Someone we will refer to as He Who Must Not Be Named.

And we're sitting on one major gem in this pile. One that we first heard last year via The AC, but we sat on it as we worked behind the scenes for a CD reissue. Perhaps the rarest US progressive album ever made. And it's a killer. This is not hype I assure you. A jaw dropper. Better than even the Ginga Rale Band, Rob Thomsett, and Phase that we discovered last year. It's almost too good to be true. But it IS real. And no one knows about it. That's going to be the cherry on the top of this year's discoveries.

I'm targeting a start date around September 14th or sometime after. So check back then. Of course, I will continue to share news as it comes in.

In the meantime, I'm also sitting on a huge backlog of ready-to-go entries for Unencumbered Music Reviews and Under the Radar. I plan on getting those out this weekend - so there should be daily postings on both those sites for days to come.

News: Exciting announcements coming from the Lion label camp!

December 8, 2013 update: The Vanay albums have been released!

We've recently heard from Vincent, who runs the CDRWL's favorite US based reissue label: Lion Productions. While not all of Lion's releases intersect with the CDRWL's personal interests, this latest set of news either touches the circle, or is a complete bullseye.

I think the most exciting news is that the Laurence Vanay albums are imminent! As in the October / November time frame. The LPs may come a month or two later depending on pressing plant priorities. Vincent states: "Loads of bonus tracks on both CD versions, almost doubling the original length of the albums. The LP versions will be exact replicas (without bonus tracks)." And the big surprise here is that we can also expect reissues of her mythical, and previously unreleased, "Les Soleils de la Vie" and "La Petite Fenetre" albums! What will not be reissued is her "Magic Slows" album, since Ms Thibault isn't very fond of it herself. And fellow Gnosis explorer Lev from Russia has already demystified the contents of the album, thus categorizing the omission as "no loss".

We've also been told that we may see Probe 10 as early as December of this year, or early 2014. So that's also very exciting news for the CDRWL.

With that, let's move onto Lion's three new releases that I think many of you will be interested in. I haven't personally heard any of them to date. The T2 is what amounts to the second post-"It'll All Work Out in Boomland" archival set of releases. Lion was involved with the first set as well which were called "T2" or "Fantasy". Those recordings were from 1970, and this latest batch constitute their 1971 to 1972 output (obviously). And, yes, this has already been issued on LP. This will be its debut on CD.

Tin House is a 1971 hard rock album from Florida that is highly rated in some circles. Based on the reviews I've read, it sounds like something I need to hear. Might as well just start with the Lion CD!

The Guy Skornik is another album that looks intriguing.  Not too many albums will reference Wahkevitch, Berger, Gainesbourg, and Manset in the same paragraph. I've also read comparisons to Popera Cosmic! The promo sheet says: "Digipack CD + 28 page booklet. Between 1970 and 1973, EMI/Path released several ambitious and progressive pop albums, including 'La Mort Dorion' (Grard Manset), 'Puzzle' (Michel Berger), 'Hathor' (Igor Wakvitch), and 'Pour Pauwels' by Guy Skornik. Skornik was a mystic explorer, psychonaut, and gifted musician, who was immersed in the metaphysical revolutions of his time. He presented television reports, laced with elements of Eastern mysticism, on LSD experiences. And then there was Skornik's album, 'Pour Pauwells', inspired by the revolutionary writings of Louis Pauwells, one-time counterculture hero and disciple of esoteric spiritualist G. I. Gurdjieff. Guy was brought to the public's attention for the first time in the beginning of 1970 with the release of a magnificent LP on the Path-label. Skornik tried, and succeeded perfectly, to do with his music what Louis Pauwels did with his huge best-seller 'The Morning Of The Magicians'. This is one of a handful of classic French progressive pop concept albums released in the early 1970's, together with Serge Gainsbourgs 'Melody Nelson' and the titles mentioned above. Features arrangements by Ivan Jullien (Franoise Hardy, Johnny Hallyday, Quincy Jones and Elton John). Licensed from Parlophone. Limited to 500 copies."

Lots to look forward to here!

News: Gringo to be reissued in September

I sense summer is starting to close, as the announcements are starting to roll in again. I myself have a couple of weeks of summer vacation still to take, but it's obvious the Fall season is upon us.

Gonzo, a sub label of the same folks behind Voiceprint, will be reissuing Gringo for the first time. I never featured the album prior, as there was a fuzzy/gray reissue from Audio Archives long ago with little backup as to the source. I'm no legal expert, so I just stayed out of the discussion. Well now we have a bonafide legit reissue that you can buy with confidence!

Label says: "You may not have heard the name, but I am sure that if you are reading this you have heard his music. John G Perry is best known for his session work, most notably for Caravan on "For Girls Who Go Plump in the Night" and "Caravan and the New Symphonia," but he has performed with many other Prog and non-Prog artists. Although he was born in America, his parents were British and soon moved back to the UK, and as PERRY grew up, he became more interested in music. One of his first projects as a musician was called Gringo. Evolving from student beat groups, Utopia and Toast, in 60s Bath; Gringo also featured Henry Marsh who later sampled chart success with Sailor, and Simon Byrne worked with – of all people - Brotherhood of Man among others. Perry describes the early days of the band: It started out as Utopia, a five-piece copy band doing all the hits from the Beatles and the Searchers and lots of stuff playing at college and parties. Everybody in the band had been at private school and sung in the choir, so it was a terrific vocal band. We used to do wonderful renditions of Beach Boys songs, we were really rather good at that. It was basically the same band all the way through, the three of us : Henry Marsh on guitar and keyboards, Simon Byrne on drums and myself... That first band unfortunately split when everybody went their way. I went off to become a farming student, working on different dairy farms in the West country of England. But I kept in contact with Henry and Simon, and they approached me one day, saying they'd have a year off in their studies, and would I join them to form a new band, you know, rather than go grape-picking in France, which I thought would be wonderful... I actually had also decided to have a year off before I was going to go up to the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester. So we elected to get this band together, which was called Toast. We hired one of the farmers' cottages, locked ourselves away and worked very hard, rehearsing or whatever, built up a repertoire and then we came up to London, and three months later we're on television! The show was 'Colour Me Pop' and we did three songs on that... So none of us went back to college, and we all carried on in a musical career. Gringo toured in Europe and even made a living with a club residency on the south coast of France. They were opening act on a UK tour featuring Barclay James Harvest and Caravan. Perry takes up the story: We were there a sort of opening act, and got to know both bands and kept in touch with them. It was a good tour actually, very successful, cause Caravan were very well-known in the South of England and BJH were very well-known in the North of England, so all the way round the country we had the crowds and stuff, so for us that was taking us out of the small clubs into concert halls and theaters and stuff like that, so that was a good experience for us. Their recorded legacy is a quality album of pop-tinged progressive rock that still sounds fresh, with a lightness of touch and many distinctive twists. The song-within-a-song piece, Emma And Harry, is worthy of note, but all nine tracks are good. It is tempting to wonder if “Land of Who Knows Where” may have been inspired by a certain Caravan album released the same year.

Tracks: 1. Cry The Beloved Country , 2. I'm Another Man , 3. More And More , 4. Our Time Is Our Time , 5. Gently Step Through The Stream , 6. Emma And Harry , 7. Moonstone , 8. Land Of Who Knows Where , 9. Patriotic Song , 10. * I'm Another Man (single version) , 11. * Soft Mud (* Bonus tracks) ."

News: King Records of Japan to reissue many progressive titles

Today we received news that the venerable label King Records plans on reissuing a couple dozen obscure Japanese progressive titles from the 1980s in the mini-LP format. I think most of these have been on CD prior (though long OOP), but the one that caught my eye is the debut album by Kennedy. It may have come out on CD before, but I've never been able to validate that. The second album, of course, is widely available. The Kennedy will be available in October. Many of the other titles from this batch will receive a September release.

On the same topic, and worth noting, is that Belle Antique of Japan plans on issuing the Klockwerk Orange on CD in the mini-LP format (release late September). This will be the full double LP version as presented by Digatone earlier this summer. So for those of you who were bemoaning having to buy the LP just to get the CD (which, BTW, doesn't include all the bonus tracks as the LP reissue), your patience will be rewarded. Of course the price point probably will be similar since it's a double CD in the mini-LP format...

Blim ~ England ***REISSUED***

Zero. 1992 private (MC)
No Frills. 1993 private (MC)

***Reissued by the band Aug 2013

UMR review

Priority: 2

8/23/10 (new entry); 8/17/13 (complete)

Major Surgery ~ England ***REISSUED***

First Cut. 1977 Next

***Reissued  by Proper Music Jul 2013

UMR review

Priority: 2

3/5/12 (new entry); 7/29/13 (complete)

News: Major Surgery's "The First Cut" has just been reissued on CD!

Here's one that came out of nowhere. Thanks to a note from reader Jon, we learned this morning that Proper Music has reissued the sole album by the UK jazz rock group Major Surgery. I was not familiar with Proper Music prior, but it seems they have quite a few reissues to date, mostly out of the scope of the CDRWL. In fact Major Surgery would seem like an odd choice for a label such as this. Good - better for us!

The label described the album as thus: "A fully remastered re-issue of the 1976 original vinyl release, which includes a previously unreleased track from the original recording session. The sound of the South London Jazz and hipster scene of the early 1970s transcending a time and place which can be found no more and is simultaneously timeless. True and raw music genius fronted by the "Tenor Titan" Don Weller, backed by Bruce Collcutt on bass guitar, Jimmy Roche on guitar and the late Tony Marsh on the drums. The CD release contains an 8 page booklet including liner notes and rare band photographs."

Our blog feature of the album is here. This was an AC discovery from last year.

News: BLIM's two cassettes to be reissued soon!

Thanks to a note from Gnosis Mike, we learned today that the two brilliant UK festival space rock cassettes will be reissued as a 2 CD set. More info about the reissues here.

Our feature of both albums can be found here. This is great news. Perhaps Crow won't be far behind?

News: Rocket Records to reissue Nimbus, TT Oksala, and 3rd Haikara album

Thanks to a tip from our friend Progvarius, we learned this morning that Rocket Records will be reissuing the excellent Nimbus "Obus" album. I've been waiting for this announcement for some time, hoping that Rocket would eventually reissue it. Here's our original entry. Another Priority 2 (borderline 1) reissued! And Rocket always does a first class job.

In addition to the Nimbus album, Rocket will be reissuing T.T. Oksala's "Radio Storm", an album I haven't personally heard but one that Provarius says is quite good. And, finally, look for the reissue of Haikara's 3rd album "Iso Lintu". It's a far cry from their classic first 2 albums "Haikara" and "Geafar", but I'm sure there are many who will be glad to complete the collection. This will be its first ever reissue.

Nimbus ~ Finland ***REISSUED***

Obus. 1974 Satsunga

***Reissued by Rocket Records Jul 2013

UMR review

Priority: 2

8/2/10 (new entry); 7/10/13 (complete)

News: Sway to be reissued soon (kind of)

Thanks to an insider tip, we have learned that the magnificent Sway album is being reissued with permission from the band. Not sure of the label name yet, but it is coming out from Italy in a mini-LP format. This is fantastic news and one of our Priority 2's!

You should be seeing it from your favorite dealer soon :-)

August 5, 2013 update: OK, I have it in my hands now. Well... first thing is the "obi" strip uses my description for the album. And they didn't ask for permission. Not that I care all that much really, but it is protocol to do such - so that's a major red flag right there. The sound is absolutely fine considering it's not from the masters. And we do have it on good authority that Palumbo himself is aware of this reissue. This is the classic "gray area" reissue. Sometimes I see that term when they outright mean to say it's a pirate edition. This is not the case here. All the same - I'm not considering this reissued legit, and will keep in the main list. Unless I hear convincing data otherwise. But I don't regret buying this version, and if a legit CD comes along, I'll buy it again willingly. But it's my understanding the masters are gone, and demand is light, so this is probably it. Unfortunately.

News: Sireena to reissue Mythos "Grand Prix" album from 1981

Certainly not the most exciting news out there, but I felt I should mention it anyway. I really enjoy the predecessor "Quasar"album, but Kaske lost me on "Grand Prix". All the same, I'm sure the album has plenty of fans, and since it's already in the CDRWL, I can go ahead and mark Mythos' catalog as having been fully reissued now.

My notes on the album here

Mythos ~ Germany ***REISSUED***

Grand Prix. 1981 Sky

***Grand Prix reissued by Sireena 2013

***Quasar reissued by Sireena 2012  

UMR review

Grand Prix picks up where Quasar left off and dives completely into the man machine early 80s synth pop New Wave racket. 'Robot Secret Agents' is downright hysterical, with Kaske's poor attempt at a British accent. What saves the album from a total disaster, is that Kaske flat out refuses to put away the flute, and its presence here is completely at odds with the rest of the material. Fortunately, that is.

Priority: none

11/4/09 (new entry); 6/16/13 (complete)

News: Digatone to reissue Isaiah!

Perhaps the best news about this announcement is that the Klockwerk Orange was not a one-off reissue. Digatone seem to be on the warpath in regards to reissuing Austria's past progressive rock history. For years, I've wondered if there was more from Austria than we ever realized, especially after hearing (and acquiring) the magnificent Ginga Rale Band for the first time last year. Thanks to a tip from a friend, I discovered this website that officially announces the Isaiah LP coming out in the Fall of this year. I have Isaiah in the main list, and it's an album I feel I might grow into with the proper recording. I've only heard the bootleg CD that Poor House put out over 15 years ago.

Here's to more reissues from Digatone! My Klockwerk Orange is in the mail to me now - so I anxiously await that one.

News: Strawberry Rain to reissue Kelompok Kampungan album from Indonesia

For the second month in a row, Strawberry Rain have come up with a reissue for an album I've never even heard of. This is a super rare artifact from Indonesia, a country that continues to unearth albums that few knew existed. As soon as I saw the magic word "Paebiru", I wanted to hear it. You can check out some samples from the Strawberry Rain main page. After hearing them, it's certainly on the folk side of the Cortes and Remalho masterpiece, but I can definitely understand the comparison. And I'm always up for hearing albums that make their own instruments! I think this title will be well received by many.

Label says: "One of the true gems of the Indonesian scene, this album stands to be one of the best, and also one of the most unique albums to come from the region.  Banned by the Shuko government soon after release, it remains somewhat obscure to most collectors up until now. An album created by Bram Makahekum (who had no musical experience or training at all) Kelompok Kumpangan had multiple members by trying to recreate the sounds of nature, even using original handmade instruments invented by the band themselves.  The end result is nothing short of brilliant, one of our personal favourites from the region.  There isn’t much to compare this to, maybe the Indonesian equivalent of a Paebiru or Genesis from Columbia at times, but it’s very unique and stands on its own.  Wonderful progressive folk of the highest caliber interweaving flutes, violins, acoustic guitars, Indonesian percussion and other instrumentation.  We can’t stand behind this one enough, it’s truly brilliant.  700 copies housed in paste on covers, includes insert with photos and history written by Indonesian music journalist Denny Sakrie.  One time limited edition, CD limited to 1000 copies and has 4 songs not on the LP version that were never released on vinyl before.  We will be releasing a 10″ of these songs in the near future."

News: Klockwerk Orange album reissued!

Well.... this news did not come from any of my usual sources. Just an anonymous comment on my CDRWL album entry. No links, no nuthin. Just a label I hadn't heard of before (Digatone). Many times I get notices for pirate issues that I just ignore and delete - but not this time! A little research shows we have the real deal here folks! This is exciting stuff... Dealers, start stocking up!

Here's the Facebook page where you can validate the story. Here's the official blurb: "

Klockwerk Orange
Abrakadabra
1975/2013 Reissue als 2xLP Album + CD
Digatone Records – DIG 001
Vertrieb: Trost
Veröffentlichung: 17. Mai 2013
Kontakt und weitere Infos dazu:
Albi Dornauer: fb: https://www.facebook.com/albi.albi.albi?fref=ts
mail: digatone@gmail.com

Eine der außergewöhnlichsten österreichischen LPs der 1970er Jahre mit dem wundersamen Titel “Abrakadabra” stammt von einer obskuren Teenagerband aus dem Tiroler Alpenland: Klockwerk Orange. Als das Album 1975 erscheint, sind die medialen Reaktionen verhalten, 38 Jahre später hat sich die Platte zu einer weltweit gesuchten und ultra-kostspieligen Monster-Rarität des Psychedelic Rock gemausert. Internetforen von Südkorea bis Chile, von Kanada bis Thailand diskutieren über das irgendwo zwischen Symphonic Progressive Rock à la Pink Floyd und Emerson, Lake & Palmer und epischen Klassikelementen à la Bruckner angesiedelte Werk der Band Klockwerk Orange. Der Sammlerwert kratzt an der Tausend Euro Marke, nun wird das längst vergriffene Album vom Innsbrucker Label Digatone wiederveröffentlicht. Als besonderer Bonus enthält das Reissue auch noch drei unveröffentlichte Nummern plus zwei Live Versionen, aufgenommen bei einem Konzert im Innsbrucker Stadtsaal 1975. Die Neuauflage in Doppel-Vinyl-Form plus enthaltener CD ergänzt damit das ursprüngliche Werk um verschollene Aufnahmen der Band und gibt gleichzeitig den Startschuss für das in Wien und Innsbruck beheimatete Re-Release-Label DIGATONE.
Für alle Tiroler Fans wird der „neue“ Klockwerk-Tonträger im Rahmen der beiden Konzerte: iMstrumental im Glenthof Imst am 19.5. und Maikonzert im Stadtsaal Landeck am 25.5. weiters noch am Vinyl-Day 19.5. von Tonmöbel Kafka, erhältlich sein."

This translates to (according to Google of course): "One of the most outstanding Austrian LPs of the 1970s with the wondrous title "abracadabra" comes from an obscure band of teenagers from the Tyrolean Alps Country: Klockwerk orange. When the album appears in 1975, the media are behavioral reactions, 38 years later, the board has blossomed into an internationally sought and ultra-expensive Monster rarity of psychedelic rock. Internet forums from South Korea to Chile, from Canada to Thailand discuss this somewhere between Symphonic Progressive Rock a la Pink Floyd and Emerson, Lake & Palmer and epic classical elements à la Bruckner resettled work of the band Klockwerk orange. The collector value scratches at the thousand euro mark, now long out of the album will be released by the label Digatone Innsbruck. As a special bonus, the reissue also contains three numbers plus two unreleased live tracks, recorded at a concert in Innsbruck city hall in 1975. The double vinyl edition in shape plus included CD complements the original work order-lost recordings of the band, while giving the go-ahead for the company headquartered in Vienna and Innsbruck re-release label DIGATONE.
IMstrumental Glenthof in Imst on 19.5: For all fans of the Tyrolean "new" Klockwerk-recorded music under the two concerts will. and Maikonzert city hall Landeck at 25.5. still further on vinyl Day 19.5. be available from Tonmöbel Kafka."

That's right vinyl hounds - a double LP too! Includes a full live concert from 1975 as noted above. 

Here's more data from Discogs:

A1		DuonyunohedeprincesR Music By – Hermann Delago	11:39
A2		The Key Lyrics By – Heinrich Prokopetz Music By – Hermann Delago	10:54
		Abrakadrabra (21:21)
B1.1		Abrakadrabra Music By – Hermann Delago
B1.2		Temple Sh. Thirty Five Music By – Hermann Delago
B1.3		Mercedes Benz T 146.028 Music By – Hermann Delago
		-
		Live @ Stadtsaal Innsbruck 1975
C1		Schlüsselbein Overture Music By – Hermann Delago	5:13
C2		Willoughby Music By – Hermann Delago	7:50
C3		Vlad Zeppesch Music By – Hermann Delago, Markus Weiler (2)	10:20
D1		DuonyunohedeprincesR Music By – Hermann Delago	10:13
D2		The Key Lyrics By – Heinrich Prokopetz Music By – Hermann Delago	11:04
1		DuonyunohedeprincesR Music By – Hermann Delago	11:39
2		The Key Lyrics By – Heinrich Prokopetz Music By – Hermann Delago	10:54
3		Abrakadabra - A) Abrakadraba - B) Temple Sh. Thirty Five C) Mercedes Benz T 146.028 Music By – Hermann Delago	21:21
4		Schlüsselbein Overture Music By – Hermann Delago	5:13
5		Willoughby Music By – Hermann Delago	7:50
6		Vlad Zeppesch Music By – Hermann Delago, Markus Weiler (2)	10:20

Companies etc

• Recorded At – Tonstudio Koch
• Recorded At – Stadtsaal, Innsbruck
• Remastered At – weyrerTon

Credits

• Bass, Vocals – Guntram Burtscher
• Cover, Design – Roland Böck, Wolfgang Böck
• Drums, Bells [Tubular], Timpani – Wolfgang Böck
• Engineer – Franz Koch
• Guitar, Trumpet, Organ, Synthesizer, Vocals – Hermann Delago
• Layout – David Schuller
• Liner Notes [Translated By] – Christopher Ladstätter, Justin Barwick
• Organ, Electric Piano [E-piano], Harpsichord , Synthesizer – Markus "WAK" Weiler*
• Photography By – R. Mathies
• Reissue Producer – Albrecht Dornauer*, Hermann Delago
• Research, Liner Notes – Albrecht Dornauer*
• Transferred By, Remastered By – Kenneth Winkler

Notes

Gatefold Sleeve
Liner notes in English and German
Sides A & B aufgenommen im Tonstudio Koch, Elbigenalp, März 1975
Sides C & D aufgenommen live im Stadtsaal Innsbruck 1975

----

Here's my puny entry for the title.  I'll be buying the LP (and the CD that comes with it) as soon as possible!

Klockwerk Orange ~ Austria ***REISSUED***

Abakadabra. 1975 CBS

***Reissued by Digatone May 2013

UMR review

Priority: 3

2/21/10 (new entry); 5/26/13 (complete)

News: BTF/AMS releases archival Kundalini Shakti Devi from 1974

Thanks to a observation by our good friend Spacefreak, it appears AMS/BTF have uncovered a new rarity. I know nothing about the music, sound quality, etc..., but it certainly warrants mentioning! Here's the label scoop:

"As sometimes happens, the eponymous “Kundalinî Shakti Devî” release is a mysterious album, hidden for decades - was recorded back in 1974! - on a tape stored in some drawer, that has been reopened and rediscovered only today. History repeats: the mastermind of the project, Roberto “Paramhansa” Puddu, managed to put together an ensemble of seven musicians with whom he recorded three long tracks, lasting an average of over 15 minutes each, but the genre in 1974 was already struggling to attract the interest of some music manager who could produce and distribute the LP.

The music is inspired by the classic Italian progressive rock, with lyrics about science fiction ("Sensitivity", "Galactic Museum") and criticism of the consumer society ("Flash"), while the ‘external’ influences 'external' carry the name of Van Der Graaf Generator and some German cosmic music – just listen to the long instrumental song sections to realize that yourself!

An exceptional discovery, to stay besides the minor – but not less important, of course! – classics of Italian prog."

News: Strawberry Rain to reissue super rare French album Mar-Vista "Visions of Sodal Ye"

Here's an album I've never even heard of until today. It was pressed on the do it yourself Kiosque D'Orphee, and is about as obscure as it gets. In researching, I found one previous auction, and that's the photo above. The seller described it as "cosmic prog", which sounds good to me - but who knows what it's really like. Could be one man and his synthesizer for all I know. Anyway, we'll find out soon enough as Strawberry Rain plans on reissuing this in the next couple of months!

While on the topic of Strawberry Rain, they also plan on reissuing a very rare 1973 band from Canada called Blind Owl (not to be confused with the 80s Massachusetts band). I could find nothing but an acetate cover on RYM (see below) and an Acid Archives stub calling it "obscure folk". Yet again, we'll be finding out more about this title soon.

And the previously announced Leong Lau's "Dragon Man' is on pace to be reissued between July and September this year.