C SECTION 8 / ELECTRIC NIGHTS - Split - Tape - 2005(?)

   Sometimes, I put on tapes like this, thinking "I'm not sure if I'm really into this" and then find later that I just listened to it six times in a row. I mean, that's exactly what happened. It's a great tape. What do I know about it? Almost nothing. I think I saw C SECTION 8 perform once in a crumbling house on Rampart Street in a pre-Katrina New Orleans, but I could be wrong. It also could have been HARRY FROM HAWAII...or DOGERELLA DECIDED UPON...or HUMAN HAIR HAT. No one ever really talked about the names of the bands when I went to those shows, but it was always weirdly fucking mind-blowing. Like the time that a member of one of those bands was playing a table full of pedals and was dressed up in a homemade metal mask. The mask was attached to contact mics and he was hitting it with drumsticks while manipulating the sound into a cacophonous nightmare. He was also making small yelps, which I thought was part of the performance, but I found out later that he hadn't shaved down the metal inside so every time he hit the mask, it was cutting into his face and making him bleed! But was that C SECTION 8?? I don't know!! I don't think so.
   As far as ELECTRIC NIGHTS, I have even less information, meaning I have NO information. I did some searching, both online and off, and came up empty handed/headed. There's no trace of this release on the label's old paper order forms/catalogs and nothing online that I can find. Oh well. It's not important.
   The important part is that both sides of this is filled with (I'm assuming) blips and drones from busted ass analog and barely digital machines. Tape manipulations and wonky beats will lull you into a different head space. I don't know. I just like it. I've always liked this shit. Don't worry. I'll post more punk tapes soon, but you'll come back to this later and love it because all the hardcore kids will be playing noise by the end of 2016 anyway. Mark my words. 

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COUNTY Z / IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT - Split Cassingle - 2002

  Since the previous entry was so sprawling and featured 100 songs, I decided to keep this one short and sweet. These two bands are two of my absolute favorites of the late 90's and early 00's. They played beautiful and ugly music. It was produced by purely lovable dirtbags. I feel comfortable calling them that because one of the members recently told me "We were such fucking dirtbags." The shitty punk historians of the future won't write about COUNTY Z and IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT in their $100 coffee table art cubes (books won't exist). The noisers who write the history will only make a scant mention of them. That is fine. They probably don't give a fuck. All of these people are still active in art and music, creating work that is incredible and essential.

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I think this tape was created for one of their joint tours. Two songs. Less than two minutes of music.  

TRACEY TRANCE - "101" - Tape - 2013

Today's post is brought to you by Jacob Khepler 

 It's common for a band to make a "tour release"- a limited object you can only get direct from them at shows on tour. Oftentimes it is hastily put together, by bands that don't have a new-enough record to sell at the gigs. As a consequence the tour release is more prone to have goofy shit, live stuff, weird covers, noise parts, and collaborations that would never make the cut on the official release. And as a result of this, a tour release can have a behind-the-scenes feeling, that really makes you think of the band members as human beings. The full release is like a band's thesis. The tour tape shows you what the band is like at home- who they're jamming with and what they're riffing on.

   Anyway, this tape isn't a tour tape, it's like the reverse of a tour tape. It sounds recorded on the road, about being on the road, named after the road, with sounds of the actual road, for the benefit of the friends at home. "Our car broke down in the following 8 places, and each place had a nice new friend, a sunny ditch, a kooky animal, and a romantic feeling". It's very sweet!!!!

    This tape contains Tracey's high wavering falsetto singing a nice little ditty about experiences on the 101 highway (i think), and another song about friends, intercut with road sounds, alternate takes, the same songs fed through effects, and brief verses and bits of other songs that come and go in a nice natural way. It's basically an EP of filler material, but as I said before, that can be very nice. The songs have an easy fun melody and a simple rhyme scheme that really makes them seem like they were initally written while driving, maybe even freestyled, for the amusement of the passenger or passengers. Many parts feature a keyboard, Tracey's main instrument, played in a loping circular manner as fingers slip and slide across the plastic. The whole thing seems to be recorded on a handheld walkman recorder- in quieter moments the compression on the tiny built-in condenser mic swells and you hear the background rush in. Lots of nice highway sounds too- trucks, trains, bridges, bells. Very nice.

    If you are not already a Tracey Trance fan, this tape may be your "101" (qua "introductory class")- these sounds are all present to varying degrees and yes, the music is basically this high all the time (at least). If you like it definitely seek out other releases (especially "Pyber Kub"). If you don't like it, that's totally valid. Do not seek out other releases.

    I have no idea if this title is in reference to the Depeche Mode live album / documentary of the same name. It easily could be, and I don't think it's hurting anyone to pretend it is. I would love it if Tracey did a full-on Depeche Mode cover tape- Tracey if you're reading this, think about it.

 In conclusion, I like Tracey Trance, and I like this tape.

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COUNTY Z - "Live At The Seward Cafe" - Tape - 2002

    Yesterday, I was hanging out with my friend Ryan in his studio while he showed me all of the new, huge paintings and installations he was working on. He was talking a million miles an hour, so excited to be working on art and learning everything he can about art history and theory. He's getting ready to ship everything out to Minneapolis, where he has a show coming up in November. An old friend, Forrest is helping to build some structures in the gallery, since he has a background in carpentry. Their friend, Naomi bought a house that has a storefront built into the first floor and she's going to host part of his art show there. It was inspiring to see him so wide-eyed and full of life, still figuring out his dreams while flying way under the radar.
   Another thing I found inspiring is that all three of those people have stuck together since they started playing in COUNTY Z almost 15 years ago. COUNTY Z is one of my favorite bands of all time, but that's beside the point, Naomi took me on my first freight train ride. Forrest told me he didn't like the sustain of cymbals so he used brake parts instead. Sometimes I couldn't tell if Ryan was playing with or against the band, but it usually worked.
   Most of this tape was recorded live at the Seward Cafe, which has been collectively ran since 1974 and is one of the best places on this entire earth. If you aren't familiar with COUNTY Z, I would suggest starting with their tape or LP first, Both are brilliant.
   If you're in Minneapolis in November, be sure to check out Ryan's art show. He'll be there daily with tea for you to drink. I might be there too. If you show up, don't talk about this band. Let's talk about his art, the new dreams and all the crackpot visions we hope to see to fruition before this world implodes in the next few years.

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This tape is from the collection of Caroline Paquita

UKE OF PHILLIPS & ERIN TOBEY - "Live On The Phone" - Tape - 2005

     Ever since I was a kid, I've always loved the sound of AM radio, lo-fi recordings and the way that music sounds over the phone through those tinny speakers. Put me in a tour van driving through the middle of the US at 2 am and I will guarantee that the radio will be tuned in to Coast To Coast AM. If that's not available, I'll be scanning the AM radio stations anyway. I also love it when any band has a sample of music being played over an answering machine. Once, an old friend called my house when she was at an X show and held the phone by her side for most of the show. My friends and I put it on speaker-phone and danced in my bedroom. It sounded amazing. So, imagine my delight when I stumbled across the radio show, "Phoning It In", which is comprised entirely of musicians calling in to the radio show and playing their songs over the phone!  

   The radio show ran from 2005-2011 and featured artists ranging from DANIEL JOHNSTON to DANIEL HIGGS to BILLY CHILDISH to SARAH DOUGHER to JULIE DOIRON to USAISAMONSTER to everything in between. Their archive is insane and impressive (and can be found here)(and here's another link)

   This tape compiles two separate 2005 performances by ERIN TOBEY and UKE OF PHILLIPS. Erin plays her otherworldly, nimble-fingered songs over a land line from the back room of a now-defunct punk warehouse called The Ark in Gainesville, FL (Fun Fact: A fitness club has now opened up in that warehouse that once hosted so many punk shows and debaucherous parties. That club is called...wait for it...The Ark). The tinny sound of the phone gives her songs a beautiful, faraway feel that is warm and enveloping. You can find more music by Erin here and a lot of her fantastic art here. 

   UKE OF PHILLIPS phone in from tour during a stop at MARS in Missoula, MT. They alternate between their gutter country/folky songs and just being totally "out there". On this recording, the group consists of Dan Beckman, Matt Beckman and A.M.O.S. Shit gets really weird at some points. It's cool. You can find way more stuff by UKE right here and you can find newer stuff here. Keep up with their rare appearances on their blog.

    Not so fun fact: When I went to digitize this tape, I accidentally put it in the wrong deck and the stereo immediately chewed up the analog tape and mangled it beyond all repair. I just looked at it helplessly and then just nailed the damn thing to my wall. Erin Tobey was nice enough to email over the tracks of both artists for you to enjoy in the digital realm. So, thanks Erin!

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EVERYTHING WENT PINK - Compilation - Tape - 2000

   "Everything Went Pink" is a tape that was released by Dan B back in 2000 that specifically covered the DIY punk scene in Asheville, NC, which was mostly centered around a giant punk house called the Pink House (located at/near 201 Broadway...it's now either a parking lot or condos.) It was kind of a magical time in the history of that town. A whole bunch of freaks happened to converge on the town all at once, from Minneapolis, New Orleans, California, Montreal and even the suburbs of Buncombe County. Some lived in cold-ass houses in Woodfin. Other lived in makeshift shacks out by the freeway (like everyone in MARGARET MOTHER OF THIEVES). Many others, including myself, lived in the Pink House, right in the middle of all the chaos. The house itself was kind of a freak magnet since it was a giant two-story pink place, the door was almost always unlocked, it housed a teeming library and it welcomed just about anyone who walked through the door. The landlord was a member of CRASH WORSHIP and he could often be found smoking weed by the toxic creek in our back yard. I'm pretty sure that, at one point, 17 people were living in the house.
    There was a time when there was almost nowhere for DIY punk bands to play in town, so a bunch of folks from the house decided to clear out piles of the landlord's bikes and crap in the basement to make their own show space. There was a big problem though. Raw sewage and toxic creek water leaked straight into the basement, right into the area where bands would play. No problem...a group of punks (namely Joseph, Big Mike and Ed....possibly Luke too) built a retaining wall / ditch all the way through the basement and bored a hole though the back wall so that water could drain out though ANOTHER drainage ditch into the toxic creek! Thus, the punk club, Oh My! was born. Every time a band played there, the audience ran the risk of falling into the shitty toxic trough and the band ran the risk of getting a huge electrical shock! Still, it was the best place for shows and it's where I saw many life-changing events.

  Most of the songs on this tape were recorded live on a handheld tape recorder at Oh My! Others were recorded at clubs in town, other houses and shacks. Most of the sound quality could be described as "assy", but I respect that the bands worked with what they had, which was almost nothing. Lots of bands on this tape don't have any other recordings. Many do. You can try and differentiate that distinction for yourself. Bands include WAR TORN BABIES, CRAP FACTORY, ASTRID OTO, RAT ATTACK, CHRIST FILTHY DOGS (which I've been wanting to re-use as a band name for years), DEAD THINGS, TRASH NIGHT and more. There's 43 songs in all. Enjoy or don't.

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Did I upload this just to have digital copies of SLATTER HAGS and the final song on the tape? Possibly, but don't tell anybody. 

Tape hiss abounds. Terrible sound quality. Totally beautiful. 

HUMAN HAIR HAT - "3H Fair Dairy Champion" - Tape - 2002

   Sometimes, thinking about the amount of weird shit that Trd Wrd Records has put out is just mind-boggling. When I was traveling to (or living in) New Orleans in the early 00's, it seemed like they had a new tape, record or project appearing every month. Many of their early releases appeared in very limited numbers, with analog equipment and super-DIY layouts being the norm (once I discovered the members of IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT screen-printing their record covers with some house paint that was sitting around because they couldn't find a place to buy the proper ink). Some releases were almost unlistenable to my ears, but I always seemed to "get it" about a year later. No matter what I thought of it, their releases were (still are) always interesting and helped me to open my mind up to the more experimental and noise-minded side of independent music.
    HUMAN HAIR HAT really went "out there." Members of IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT, GROUP B, HARRY FROM HAWAII and (maybe) COUNTY Z all got together and put out this noisy brain-fuck of analog knob turning and fucked up beats. Every song on here is called "Weed Milk" and I'm sure there's a good reason for that. If you don't know what weed milk is, I salute you and hope that you'll keep on that path in life. If you're familiar with weed milk, download this tape and meet your new best friends.

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IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT - "Thanks" - Tape - 2006

   As I'm sure I've said before, IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT is one of my favorite bands. Years back, they were getting ready to go on a tour and their drummer, Don broke his leg. Rather than call the whole thing off, Don learned how to use a combination of percussion and electronics, which ultimately sent the band to a new plateau of weirdness. That trajectory took them into a later tour where they would play sprawling hour long sets, employing the use of hand made horns, staticky radios, tape loops, half-broken amps and miscellaneous debris. The results could be hypnotic, challenging, abrasive and cleansing.
   I got a ride down to a show of theirs in Kentucky during this time and was dropped off at the bar hours before they even arrived. At the time of the show (8 hours later), they were the only musical act scheduled to play. They took their time setting up and the clientele of the bar eyed them warily. As they hit their first notes of the night, a huge Midwestern storm started brewing in the neighborhood. The doors to the bar were wide open and sheets of rain started pouring in. I looked at the middle-aged, burly, biker-style bartenders standing there...arms crossed, not batting an eye or making a move to close the doors. About five minutes into IPCP's set, every paying customer in the bar got up and left, deciding to brave the potentially tornado-inducing storm rather than listen to this band. I looked around. I was left alone with the band, the guy who set up the show, my friend Christina (who lived there and actually came to see the band), Stella (IPCP's roadie, who was laughing at the predicament) and the still-stoic and immobile bartenders. The band did not bat an eye and played their full set. It was great and the insane storm added an extra element of dreaminess to the whole thing.
   At the conclusion of their set, there was an awkward silence after our smattering of applause died down. We were then left with these burly dudes at the bar after driving out their entire clientele. I looked over after a heavy silence and one of 'em said "So, do ya'll like SUN RA and BEEFHEART or something?" Tension broken. The guys loved it and were happy to talk to some other weirdos. Drinks were on the house. The other act was the promoter, Kris, doing a "DJ set", which meant that he would put a record on and let the entire thing play. Then, he would flip it and listen to the other side. (I just now realized that I have told this entire story before in an earlier post. Oops. I am now senile).
   On that tour, IPCP had a mailing list and they said that if you signed it, they would send you free stuff. A lot of bands used to say that, but I never got any free stuff from them. At the conclusion of their tour, the band actually did send this tape out to people who signed the list or set up shows for them. It's called "Thanks" and it compiles live sets, field recordings, jams, talks about botox and random sounds. Listening to this reminds of that night and makes me miss their challenging sounds. I think the thing I love most about the band is that they were somehow always a year ahead of me. What that means is that every time a new LP came out (and they have a lot), I would listen to it and think it was pretty good. I wouldn't quite get it and it wouldn't really hit me, but something let me know that I had to hang onto it. Within a year, that record would become indispensable to me. The same thing happened with this tape. It's pretty out there and it's also really, really good.

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There's also a 12" out there called "Thanks II" that is more stuff like this, more field recordings and  moreeeeee weeeirdddddd. 

ONE SHOE IN THE ROAD - "Struck Cyclists And Their Stories" - CD - 2005

   I ride a bike almost daily in the city of San Francisco and most of the time, it feels like I have to be on my guard as soon as I mount the bike. People zip around the streets here with (seemingly) little to no regard of anyone around them, even though they could kill someone with two tons of steel (or plastic) with one simple thrust of the gas pedal. On the other side of that coin, there are tons of bicyclists who cut off people in crosswalks, yell "I have the right of way" indignantly at cars when they don't and ride full speed down sidewalks crowded with people. Is there a way that we can just all live together and use the same streets without trying to kill each other? That is just a glimpse into what this recording is trying to shed some light on.
   In "One Shoe in the Road", the interviewers and editors (Don Godwin and Erin Yanke) talk with people who have been hit by cars while biking; people who are lucky enough to have made it through. The stories are graphic, difficult and traumatic (there is your trigger warning). They bring up questions and provide some answers about how we can all learn to share space in our growing cities and the things that we can do to minimize injuries (or death) to people who are just trying to get where they are going without supporting the capitalist oil industry. (p.s. I'm not actually trying to politicize every person who rides a bike. I just wanted to slip that in there.)

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And since we are punks, this includes interviews and work by people from IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT, CHASED AND SMASHED, SWORD OF THE ANCIENT, BEASTHEAD, ANCESTRAL DIET, LIGHT BRIGADE and more!

DAN BECKMAN - Top 10 of 2012

Dan and Olai in Maine. Photo by Amy Moon.

   I've known Dan for at least 12 years now and it seems like he's gotten more inspiring to me with each passing day. Whether it's independently releasing his own mind-bending music (with IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT, UKE OF SPACES and many more), going on tour in a box truck that runs on vegetable oil or just setting an example by keeping his life seemingly simple and gracious, I am constantly floored by the things he puts into this world. In addition to running Turned Word Records, he also married one of my favorite artists of all time and produced a child that somehow seems to hold all of the world's tranquility in his eyes. Whoa. 

DAN BECKMAN'S TOP TEN OF 2012

....in no particular order.

1. BR GARM "The 78th Morning Tide" LP

2. BIG BLOOD "Old Time Primitives" Cassette

3. JOSEPHINE FOSTER - "Blood Rushing" LP/CD/DL

4. Visiting my mother in Boise, Idaho twice!

5. D.J. RUPTURE'S MUDD UP! Podcast and Radio show on WFMU.

6. MICHAEL HURLEY - "Back Home With Drifting Woods"  LP on Mississippi Records.

7. TRACEY TRANCE - "Pyper Kub" LP on Turned Word Records.

8. Listening to my three year old child sing...

9. Attending the End Of The World's Fair in Spillcorn, North Carolina. Great photos by Faythe Levine on her Flickr.

10. Playing Western Mass dates with BIG BLOOD and the unforgettable night at The Dream Away Lodge.

SWORD OF THE ANCIENT - "Head Of The Tide" - Tape - 2007

   Many of the sounds I put on here are harsh, abrasive, fucked up, angry and defiant...because I like that kind of music. I also like sounds that are beautiful, indescribable, meditative, experimental and noisy. That is where bands like SWORD OF THE ANCIENT come in. But first I have to ask myself, "Are there other bands like SWORD OF THE ANCIENT?" Some of you may remember when I posted their first tape over a year ago. This tape finds the band stripped of one member, moved over 15 states away from their former home of New Orleans, a lot more subdued and a little more lush, but still strange, hypnotic and captivating. Some of the moments on here sound like they could have come straight out of the brains that wrote the first RESIDENTS record. In addition to changing their locale from a harsh, violent city to a beautifully calm seaside village (which sounds evident in their sound), it also sounds like the band switched from coffee to drinking loads of tea between their two tapes. It works. I think this tape sounds best driving across eastern Montana at 4am when everyone else in the car (van, truck, etc) is asleep or at home alone in the dark, but you can do whatever you want. 

Download SWORD OF THE ANCIENT
Updated 2013

COUNTY Z - "Graveyards and Grocery Carts" LP - 2002

   I was already a big fan of COUNTY Z's first tape when this LP came out, but I was not prepared for how this record would impact my life. That tape is really good, but the band seemed like they were at their peak performance when they recorded this. The moody, dark arrangements like "Betsy II" and "End Of The World" became even darker and more ominous. The more upbeat songs like "Liquor Store" and "Hysterical" became incisive, vicious and bitter. I don't know what was going on in the vast, humid, art-strewn warehouse in New Orleans where they recorded this, but they definitely did something right. It still remains one of my top five favorite albums to this day.
  I was lucky enough to see COUNTY Z play in a basement in Bloomington, IN during this period and it was one of the best shows ever. Less than a mile away, helicopters were circling and sports fans were flipping over cars and uprooting trees because their team lost (or won, I don't know or give a fuck) while 50-60 punks were dancing in a basement on the west side of town. Bloomington is usually a pretty "arms crossed" kind of town when it comes to punk shows, but that night, it seemed like the whole room couldn't stop themselves from dancing like crazy. I'll never forget it.

COUNTY Z at the Hi-Ho in New Orleans. 2002

    Naomi plays violin, guitar and sings in the band. She is now playing in MOTHER OF FIRE, which is a little similar to COUNTY Z, but more sprawling and epic. Ryan plays bass. I see him from time to time walking around SF and I always mean to hang out with him more, but I am terrible at hanging out unless it is convenient to me (this is why I am a bad friend). Forrest played the drums and now he is a father. I will always love this band.

COUNTY Z at the Hi-Ho in New Orleans. 2002

Download COUNTY Z LP from Ass Records

POOP TROOP - Compilation - Tape - 2001

   This tape was compiled by Dan B (of IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT and VILLAGE OF SPACES) to showcase some of his and friends' bands who play noise, outsider sounds, lo-fi dance music, drone, punk and more. The physical tape starts off with MARGARET MOTHER OF THIEVES, but I didn't add them on this download since it's just the same songs from their demo, which you can find by clicking on that link above. So, your download starts with COUNTY Z, who are still one of my favorite bands of all time. Their one and only song on this comp sounds like it was a rehearsal improv jam and it is a definite "work on some stuff in your room and let this drift out of the speakers" kind of song. They are followed by HARRY FROM HAWAII, who drone out some fucked up, blown out "dance music" for total fuckin freaks. The one time I saw them (I think it was them), they featured Drew on noise. He was wearing a full-body foam outfit with a huge helmet made out of sheet metal with contact mics all over him. The mics were running through an overflowing table full of pedals and Drew was banging on the helmet with drumsticks. I found out later that the  jagged edges of metal were cutting into his head the whole time and that his jumps and hops were not for effect, but were produced out of sheer pain!
   Next up is IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT (another all time favorite) who also jam it out for a bit in that improv, droney way that they do. Dan B told me that they have hours of this stuff on tape somewhere. They are followed by UKE OF PHILLIPS (who has evolved into VILLAGE OF SPACES) and their brand of gutter-country/acoustic-noise. New Orleans' THE FOREHEADS play 3 songs that are the closest you will get to a standard punk band on this tape, even though nothing about them is standard. Occasional IPCP member, Stella plays guitar and yelps some vocals here and there. Merrydeth plays drums and does a fair share of the singing. Icky rounds out the rhythm section on tuba. They did a tour or two (I would've loved to have been their roadie) and put out a split 7" with THE NAZIS FROM MARS on Raw Sugar Records before breaking up.
  HUL (not to be confused with the Danish band HUL) is just Don Godwin (of IPCP, Vector Set and much more) playing sleepy, lo-fi electronic music. Two of these songs were recorded in a Motel 6 in Lubbock, Texas. C/O NOAH CANNON closes out the tape with a mess of drone, noise, soundscapes, tape manipulation and more. I have a 90 minute tape of theirs and like the stuff on this comp, it can be meditative and wash over you.
   Most of this tape will not sit well with many of the people who like the bulk of the stuff I put up on this blog, but that's okay. This is my trip. Get into it. Plus, I'm still getting over being sick and sometimes you don't feel like excitedly writing about punks getting wasted and penning the best song ever about killing Marines.

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This is from the collection of Erick Lyle.

FLAKMASK - "Exploring the Magnetic Poles" - Tape - 2007?

   I think this group consists of weirdos from IxPxCxPx and COUNTY Z, but I'm not really sure. That part is fairly unimportant. The part you'll want to know is that this is about one full hour of droning noise, tape manipulations, screeches, skronks, knob turning, pedal manipulation and fully analog messes. They also have some more records and tapes that you can pick up from Trd Wrd. This is perfect for clearing out by brain after reviewing terrible pop-punk records at the magazine that I write for...who would never review anything by this band.

FLAK MASK DL

BEASTHEAD - Tape - 2004

    Much like 2/3's of this band's former project, SWORD OF THE ANCIENT, I'm at a loss for words when it comes to describing their sound. A more fucked up and DIY RAINCOATS? True freedom? Some of their songs, with a guitar/violin/drums approach, sound as if they are helping to lay the groundwork for bands like RED HERRING and THE NEW BLOODS, but BEASTHEAD is more open-ended and wild-sounding. Impossible to tame, perhaps. I was confused, bewildered, enthralled and entertained when I saw them play to 15 people in a coffeeshop in Pensacola FL years ago. Now, knowing these songs, I wish I could turn back time to see them again.

DOWNLOAD. UPDATED 2013

Their violinist, Jesse now plays drums in Asheville's COMMON VISIONS. Amy, on guitar, now plays in VILLAGE OF SPACES. Kristen, their drummer, is very possibly doing yoga or just hanging out somewhere totally beautiful in Hawaii right now.

SWORD OF THE ANCIENT - Tape - 2003

   When SWORD OF THE ANCIENT was a band, I could not describe their sound to anyone and the present day still finds me at a loss for words. It's more no-wave than no-wave. It's like the absence of waves. It sounds like a clanky bike with half-flat tires dragging empty tallcans  through the barren streets of mid-city New Orleans. At times, they almost sound like they're on the brink of falling apart, but still completely in charge of their trajectory. Insistent. Serious, but not taking it all too seriously. Three women serenely singing and screaming their fucking heads off to a discordant, yet alluring, cacophonous wail. One guitar. One cello. One drumset.Ten songs. For months, I used to wake up in my attic room and listen to "Lose A Few Problems" every day before I got out of bed in the morning. Maybe you will too.

          

Download..updated 2013

UKE OF PHILLIPS - "This Is Gutter Country" - Full Gallop #9 Audio Zine - Tape - 2002

       When this tape came out back in 2002, it was glued to the inside of any tape deck in my vicinity for a solid year (and is still on regular rotation). It's a collection of songs made by UKE OF PHILLIPS and friends that were recorded between the years of 1996 and 2002, showcasing everything from gutter country to folk songs to field recordings to stabs at punk songs to dirges to running around the room while singing to everything imaginable in between. These songs were recorded on a variety of analog devices in basements, bathrooms, bedrooms, warehouses, fields, hallways, walk-in closets etc, etc, etc.... The opening song "House a Home" has one of my most favorite unintentionally perfect recorded moments of all time, when a train rolls by in the background. The other performers on this recording are responsible for IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT, COUNTY Z, SHEP AND ME,  this blog and many many others. 90 minutes. 48 (or so) songs...my tape cuts off at the end of "50,000 Mile Stare" so that's what you get. This tape is beautifully ragged and addictive.

DOWNLOAD THE TAPE HERE AND DOWNLOAD THE ZINE BELOW

Updated Feb 2014

                                 

   The other cool part of this tape is that the original version came with Dan's (Uke) zine Full Gallop, where all of the lyrics were written out in india ink and he told you where the songs were recorded. It provided a glimpse into the inner workings of the people involved and made the project whole. It seems like a crime to not include it, so I am offering it as a separate PDF download. Enjoy

DOWNLOAD FULL GALLOP # 9

Updated Feb 2014

    Selections from this tape will soon be appearing on an LP, put out by German label Unwucht Records. The ever morphing entity of UKE OF PHILLIPS still survives today in the form of VILLAGE OF SPACES, who just put out a new LP and still includes one of my top favorite artists, Amy Moon!

IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT - "Get Obvious" - Tape - 2001

   I have previously sang my praises about this band, so I will spare you the excess typing this time. This tape adds a second guitarist (Stella), gets weirder, more jammy and puts up the freak flag. I saw them play a house show in New Orleans during this period and I told them they sounded "like the ocean". I still stand by that and you can take it however you want. This one contains some of my favorite songs by IPCP, including "We've Been Sent to Destroy", "Rewritten" and "Wonderful Death" (try to listen to that one at 2 am in a dark room and not get freaked out).

   Selections from this tape were released on a split LP with Gainesville's NUCLEAR FAMILY in 2003 or so. Smoke some weed or drink some weed milk (or don't) and put this on your headphones.

  "We're talking, We're shitting" 

Updated 2013

 

UKE OF PHILLIPS/ETWAN SHERLEW - Split 7" - 2003

   UKE OF PHILLIPS and ETWAN SHERLEW are brothers Dan and Matt Beckman (among many friends) and both play acoustic/electric music that seems to be inspired by everything from MICHAEL HURLEY to THE RESIDENTS to PETER GRUDZIEN to DAVEY WILLIAMS to everything inbetween. They incorporate guitars, tape manipulation, reverb tanks, air organs, horns, freight trains and chickens in their songs and final result is beautiful. These songs were recorded on a four track in Dan's (and Amy) old house at 420 Harmony in New Orleans. Matt took time off from his job as a scientist in Alabama to play on this record. Dan, Amy and friends still play under the ever-changing moniker of UKE OF...(last I checked, it was VILLAGE OF SPACES CORNERS). Download this shit and tweak the fuck out.

 UKE OF PHILLIPS on Rampart St in NOLA. 2001.
                                    Download that 7"

IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT - "Trashed Is Good" - LP - 2002

   This IPCP LP from 2002 is right up there with my favorite albums of all time. It's blown out, anxious, energetic, inspiring and as dark and moody as Mid-City New Orleans. This record catches IPCP at the peak of their angular punk years and doesn't shy away from some inventive Improvisation.  They take some songs from their 2001 tape (look a few posts back) and expand on them to make them fuller. I love everything this band put out, so expect even more in the future.
  This was the first release on their own label, Trd Wd (and here), which is still releasing great music. This album was recorded and mixed at their warehouses by them in NOLA. The covers were beautifully hand-printed. The download has a couple scrapes and skips because this record has been well-loved and has had a rough life.

                       Trashed Download is Good...Updated Nov 2013