Here's a track from The Stooges 1970 album "Funhouse". An incredible album...slightly understated. Not quite as in your face as their 1969 debut or their 1973 follow-up "Raw Power". Impressive, nonetheless. You have to let "Funhouse" grow on you a bit. Here's "Dirt" for your enjoyment. Everyone should have a copy of this album in their collection.
I've always loved The Stooges. They came out with three incredibly solid albums plus a plethora of odds and ends in their times. Their best album in my opinion though is their debut, simply titled "The Stooges", released in 1969. The band is at their most primitive, sleazy, psychedelic, and viscous here. There are no holds barred. This is the perfect 1960's psychedelic garage punk album start to finish. Sure there are a few slow spots such as "We Will Fall", where the band may have imbibed a bit too much, but all in all a classic album. Ron Asheton's guitar playing will rip your brain apart. Of course, Iggy's vocals are as snide as ever. The production work of John Cale is brilliantly raw and organic. You can hear every instrument and all it's subtleties even at it's most deafening. This is the perfect American punk album filled with libido and alchohol/drug-fueled goodness, long before The Ramones would come onto the scene. Highly recommended.
I'm really not a huge fan of Alice Cooper but there is something about his 1971 release "Killer" that I undeniably enjoy. Alice Cooper stirs together a strange brew of the gloom of early Black Sabbath, the glam of early David Bowie, the wild energy of The Stooges, and plenty of shock tactics and obnoxious rock and roll to make a truly enjoyable listen. There is nothing too deep or profound here...from the opening notes of "Under My Wheels" you know what you're getting into. There are no pretenses. Just a great listen through and through. Yes, the music sounds very dated today, but so what? I just enjoy this album and it's hard to put my finger on why.
A few of my favorite songs are "Dead Babies" and "You Drive Me Nervous". You should pick this album up if you've ever had your doubts about Alice Cooper or if you just want a solid, somewhat strange yet rewarding retro 1970's listen.
Some great news. Fu Manchu's new album "Signs of Infinite Power" is set to be released October 20th. These guys are the kings of stoner metal...nothing better since Kyuss, in my opinion. They also have a very Black Flag-esque punk edge and a love for the euphoria of The Stooges embedded deep into their sound. The release of this album marks the bands 20th anniversary. I have heard very little music from this album, but it has gotten great advance reviews. Can't wait to pick it up. To read more, click here.
Here's a thirty second preview track. That's all that's available for now. A full review will come after I hear the whole thing. What I hear sounds great.
"Lust for Life" (1977) is Iggy Pop's strongest solo album, in my opinion. It is his best work since The Stooges. It combines the adrenaline fueled madness and energy with an incredible sense of songwriting, a strong sense of melody, and a healthy underlying sense of musical experimentation. Part of this may be may be due to the musical direction and assistance of David Bowie, but "Lust for Life" sounds like a pure Iggy Pop album. He is really coming into his own sound here.
There are so many stand out tracks here. All are different and unique, and all convey a different mood. The album starts with the driving, somewhat cynical title track "Lust For Life". Then things get darker, heavier, and stranger with "Sweet Sixteen", "Some Weird Sin" and "The Passenger". The mood continues in it's downward spiral through the rest of the album. There is the seriously addictive dark pop of "Tonight" and "Success, and two truly twisted slower tracks "Turn Blue" and "Fall in Love With Me". The lyrics are strong, poetic, darkly off kilter and personal. Iggy's vocals are at their most soulful and intense. The musicianship is perfect here. Sometimes it brings to mind the work of David Bowie on "Lodger", "Low", and "Heroes", but most of the time it is pure, libido and drug driven, brilliantly sick and twisted Iggy Pop at his finest. Bowie is on backing voclas and Carlos Alamar is on guitar here. His playing adds a dark, glossy 1970's feel to the mix.
I cannot recommend this album enough. It is strong on every track...listen to it as a whole. If you like The Stooges but have been skeptical about Iggy's solo work you will be pleasantly surprised with this one. Pick this one up now. If you already have it, give it another listen.
Sir Lord Baltimore is a band I just recently discovered. Their legendary debut album "Kingdom Come"(1971) is hopelessly out of print with high prices being asked for it...so all I have to go from is songs I can find on the Internet. Hailing from New York, these guys are one of the harbingers of heavy metal. Forget the sludge of Black Sabbath...Sir Lord Baltimore offers up pure molten, euphoric fury, like The Stooges, Led Zeppelin, and Blue Cheer rolled into one and launched into a high octane overdrive. This is some of the purest and most face removing metal you will ever hear. Sometimes they remind of the "New Wave of British Heavy Metal" that would soon be brewing overseas. Nevertheless, Sir lord Baltimore's intensity is tough to match. Here's "Master Heartache", the best track of theirs that I have heard so far, for your enjoyment.
Nebula's "Dos EP's" features Nebula's first two EP's under one album. This is Nebula's early material. It isn't quite the finely honed space rock you may be used to, but it is still very impressive indeed. Their music from this period reminds me of a sun-drenched, stoned out Stooges, with some bluesy and incredible and guitar playing by Eddie Glass, whose vocals are also impressive here. The psychedelia is still in full force, but it is in more of a laid back 1970's stoner rock vein. This is one of my personal favorite Nebula albums...brain melting psychedelic blues. If you've never heard Nebula before, this is a good place to start. By the same token, if you've only heard their later work pick this one up. It will not disappoint. here's "Smokin' Woman" and "Bardo Arways" for your enjoyment.
The Atomic Bitchwax are a formidable psychedelic/space rock band fronted by Monster Magnet guitarist Ed Mundell as a side project. Their strongest release is their self-titled effort from 1999. The tracks are predominantly instrumental. Their sound is a mixture of Sabbath riffery, the euphoria of The Stooges, the world-eating psychedelia of Monster Magnet, the blistering space rock of Hawkwind, the dementia of Helios Creed, and just plain earthy trippy blues improvisation. There are some evil, spaced-out sound effects on this album, many of them coming from the bass guitar. Not quite as commanding as Monster Magnet, but still a good listen. Some stand out tracks are the scorching blues of "Birth to the Earth", the jump to hyperdrive space rock number "Hey Alright", and the Black Sabbath-esque "Kiss the Sun". Highly recommended.
Fu Manchu's "The Action Is Go''(1997). A heavy, fuzzed out desert/stoner metal masterpiece. This is easily Fu Manchu's heaviest and one of their strongest recorded efforts to date. With ex-Kyuss member Brant Bjork on drums, there are some similarities to the sun-drenched desert metal of Kyuss, but they take that sound much further and make into something completely their own. Blending the gargantuan riffery of Black Sabbath with the euphoria and energy of The Stooges and a touch of space rock, Fu Manchu hits you hard with a barrage of stoned-out head banging riffs that only let up to let you catch a glimpse of the void of space before pummeling you again. The production of White Zombie guitarist Jay Yuenger is is very guitar heavy, clear yet fuzzed out at the same time. The dry vocal delivery of Scott Hill takes a few listens to get used to, but it s hard to imagine anyone else in his place. The drug induced lyrics are great and don't make much sense at times, but they aren't really supposed to. The songs range from full on metal assault ("Evil Eye"), to heavy trippiness("Grendel, Snowman"), to sprawling spaciness("Saturn III" and "Strolling Astronomer"). All in all, "The Action Is Go" is my personal favorite Fu Manchu album, and my favorite stoner rock album of all time next to Kyuss's "Sky Valley".
Nebula are a heavy, psychedelic space/stoner rock band that have been around since the mid 1990's. Their music is a mixture of the euphoria of The Stooges, the riffery of Black Sabbath, and the space rock of Hawkwind, all wrapped up into a sound that is completely their own. Every album they put out is consistently good, and they are always growing and expanding their sound.
Their latest E.P. 'Heavy Psych"(2008) is a follow-up to their face-melting punk/space rock masterpiece 'Apollo"(2006). It is a drastically different, much more laid back affair. On "Heavy Psych", Nebula concentrates much more on textures, layers of sounds, pure psychedelia, and slower tempos rather than sheer volume and speed. The guitar playing grows stranger with each album, with several nods to Helios Creed and Jimi Hendrix on this release. The mood is quiet and turned inward throughout. Nebula still can come on strong on this album, especially with the monster riffs on the track "Aphrodite", but they never really blast off. Still, it is a good listen.
All in all "Heavy Psych" is a quiet, contemplative release designed to hold you over til their next full length album. Whichever direction Nebula tends to take in the future no one knows, but I'm sure it will be good. "Heavy Psych" is just good enough to hold you over until then.
Here's "Aphrodite", my favorite track from the E.P.
