More music reviews from issue #5.

Philip Johnston "Sundaram", The Slow Poisoners "Melodrama", Fit & Limo "Terra Incognita", The MV & EE Medicine Show "Moon Jook", Råd Kjetil and The Loving Eye Of God "Råd Kjetil and The Loving Eye Of God", Jandek "The Door Behind", Jandek "The End of It All", Testbild! "The Inexplicable Feeling of September", The Golden Dawn "Legend of the Dawn Live 2004", Bob Moss "Folknik" / "Folknik II".

Philip Johnston "Sundaram" (demos) (philipjamesjohnston@ hotmail.com) Big thanks to our pal Alan Davidson of the Kitchen Cynics for sending this brilliant self produced CDR of seven demo tracks by Alan's friend and neighbor Philip Johnston. Philip has often accompanied the Kitchen Cynics, and recently worked with Alasdair Roberts and Will Oldham. This is really something special; though bare bones, Johnston's songwriting gifts really shine though brightly. Favoring a jazz-folk sound, with sitar-laced elements (an Indian prayer ends this EP) and roots in Witchseason, Bert Jansch, Pentangle, Saint Nick, and more; but making it all fresh through his own energy and invention. I eagerly look forward to seeing what a real production will sound like coming from this more than promising young artist.

The Slow Poisoners "Melodrama" (Rocktopus, www.rocktopusrecords.com) Andrew Poisoner sings, writes the songs and plays guitar, Foxx Trott drums, plays keyboards, bass, guitar and sings some too. The songs are heavily drenched in British psychedelic 60s to mid 70s pop, with a (sometimes) campy theatricality, that recalls equal parts of the Kinks and Scarlet's Well. There are some short linking radio plays that are pretty silly, but of course that's part of the point. Though the Slow Poisoners not an easy band to pigeonhole here; there are songs that echo the Beatles, Bevis Frond, Hunky Dory Bowie, Badfinger, Spirit, the Green Pajamas, and much more. He Who Gets Slapped has a punky Buzzcocks styled sound, elsewhere he recalls ballads from the turn of last century, or outtakes from Lola vs. the Powerman. An under-appreciated pop wonder that lives on my old block in San Francisco.

Fit & Limo "Terra Incognita" (September Gurls, Sigmundstr. 92, 90431 Nürnberg, Germany) This latest transmission from the land of Fit & Limo is a real stunner. Richly bejewelled, with acoustic, and electric instrumentation, along with vintage keyboards. This includes shining contributions from Miriam Goldberg and Jeffrey Alexander of Black Forest/Black Sea, and Timothy Renner of Stone Breath, among others. The sounds within are very evocative; conjuring up feelings of mystery and possibility. Finding places where the magic is still hiding. Deep forest stories, mystical auras, and ancient folk musical pathways, augmented by a healthy dose of improvisational mycological infusion from along the trail. Inspired by the psychedelic likes of Pearls Before Swine, and Incredible String Band; this Bavarian male/female team successfully keep things levitating four decades later.

The MV & EE Medicine Show "Moon Jook" (Child of Microtones) Stirring confluences of moonlight. Acoustic guitars, and other stringed things. Thick slices of time spread across 50+ minutes and five tracks that glow in the dark. High in the mountainside. Lofty peaks and valleys that disappear into fog. Looking backwards in time from the future. Old folk bones. East/West, sunset sunrise. Twilight, moonlight Moon Jook.

Råd Kjetil and The Loving Eye Of God "Råd Kjetil and The Loving Eye Of God" (Thank God I'm a Countryman, www.countrymanrecords.com) A cool collaboration between female Swedish musician and the male musical duo The Loving Eye Of God. An earthly organic sort of psychedelic drone-based space rock, with lots of folk variant acoustics to mellow the buzz. Delicate traces in the dust, like calligraphy in some unknown language that is instantly and universally understood. Shimmering mirror liquid that pools and becomes a quicksilver river running in luxuriant slow motion down the walls of a canyon. The languages of plants is investigated in microscopic detail. A dubwise chilly space voyage takes about seven minutes. An boiling teapot overhears voices from another dimension until all of the stars start to explode like galactic fireworks. You are given the task of carving a pathway up a sheer wall of granite, using only a toothbrush; but you find it's really easy work, and by the first day you are half done.

Jandek "The Door Behind" (Corwood Industries) Lonely man howls and moans with his angular clustering electric guitar poking holes in the walls, and ceiling. This scary skeletal caucasian blues like spiderwebs spinning confessional details in the dark. Stream of consciousness, thinking out loud of interpersonal entanglements and longing. Filling in the finite moments, missed connections, and the sheer will to exist, with this verbally expository narrative that reels off endless questions. My favorite track here is the 6:16 minute psychodrama called The Slow Burn which blurs love, hate, murder, and metaphorical squirrels, with passages like "You eat electricity. You burn down the house, so I've got to kill you. Go away and fall down dead; and when you're all gone, I'll live in peace in our house that's not burned down." Rock on Mr. J! An rather scruffily hirsute Jandek appears in a fuzzy photo on the cover.

Jandek "The End of It All" (Corwood) Opening with the 20:20 minute One of Those Moments, which feels like a memory letter. A misunderstanding of some sort, or a sexual encounter perhaps. Nerves on end, and things seem to be sliding out of control. A confessional confrontation between these two people trapped in this room at the end of the world. The second song I Hadn’t Been There Before, is almost 6 minutes long; another song to a lost loved one. Some distance between the narrator and the object of his affection. Sharp angular notes from the guitar. The third feels like more of the same; this one feels like it was addressed to the same person as the other songs. Sounds like a major relationship or at least the expectation of one. “I know you see things a different way than I do, on a lot of levels, but I’m trying to get to the real core of things. See if that soul you got, wants to be with mine. Then all the other differences don’t matter at all...” The fourth confirms my notion, and concludes with a long plinking instrumental section after he’s done singing.

Testbild! "The Inexplicable Feeling of September" (Friendly Noise) This brilliant Swedish band deliver a treasure trove of pop invention on this superb and varied album. Recalling early and later XTC, The Sea and Cake, Brian Eno, Witch Hazel Sound, Smile-era Beach Boys, and much more. Ancient folk roots, and ambient droning ectoplasm. Minimalist pop, angelic choirs, and sunny melodic hooks. Infectious optimistic energy, concise songcraft contrasting with more experimental material. The "hidden" track is a quarter of an hour of sheer improvisational mystery. One of the finest musical moments of 2004, don't miss it.

The Golden Dawn "Legend of the Dawn Live 2004" (The Golden Dawn, P.O. Box 405, Cedar Creek, TX 78612 www.georgekinney.com) At the encouragement of some friends George Kinney reformed his fabled psychedelic 60s band The Golden Dawn, who produced the legendary Power Plant album in 1968 and then disappeared. Growing up next door to Roky Erickson is some sort of cosmic justification for Kinney sounding like a lost brother of the 13th Floor Elevators singer. This is a collection of 18 tracks culled from two different gigs in Arizona during the spring of '04. Featuring songs from Power Plant, as well as some excellent new stuff, and a couple 13th Floor covers, and one each by Bob Dylan and Townes Van Zandt. The band sounds like a Stones/Dylan influenced bar band, the recording is clear, (but boosting the bass and volume won't hurt a bit), while George's voice sounds good and strong. This is not going to rival their debut from 36 years ago in history; but it is ample evidence of the vitality and passion of all involved. New songs like Step Down Satan are on a par with the best stuff George has ever written. In places this is a bit like ZZ Top meets CCR. The CD can be purchased by email: kinney777@aol.com for $14 including S&H within USA; $18 for orders outside USA, including S&H.

Bob Moss "Folknik" / "Folknik II" (www.soundcorecords.com) I want to thank Tom Rapp for turning me on to the work of Bob Moss. On Folknik (with it’s Dan Clowes cover art) Bob delivers his distinctive reinterpretations of 14 songs well known and obscure; he also does one self-penned instrumental. Taking on songs by the Beatles, Tom Rapp, Leonard Cohen, Peggy Seeger, and Daniel Johnston, as well as traditional numbers like Greensleeves; Bob brings something fresh and heartfelt to each. Bob’s rendition of Rapp’s There Was a Man, rivals Tom’s original. His cover of Daniel Johnston’s beautiful True Love Will Find You in the End, is reverent and lovely. The rousing live rendition of Holy Ghost Party! features Dame Darcy on vocals and tambourine while it raises the roof. Bob pays homage to vocalist Cliff Edwards aka Ukelele Ike with a gorgeous reading of his When You Wish Upon a Star. Bare bones; often armed only with voice and guitar, (though there are a few guests) Moss is more concerned with the emotional truth of the songs than making pleasant background music. To hear the first track on Bob’s Folknik II, put on the CD that comes in this issue. Folknik II is lovingly wrapped in the artwork of ace cartoonist Rick Altergott, who is unmistakable if uncredited. This album also features Bob augmented by a more full band sound. Kicking things off with the superb previously unrecorded Tom Rapp song Every Change Is a Release. This album features a couple more instrumental originals, as well as a couple really funny and raunchy Oscar Brand tunes. A chilling and remarkable modern murder ballad by Rick Soderberg, a soaring reinterpretation of Bob Dylan’s A Hard Rain. Bob Moss is the real deal.

Dungen "Ta det Lugnt", Various "Thai Beat A Go-Go Volume 1", Tanakh "Tanakh", Whysp "Whysp", Various "Invisible Sound #1 a collection of honest music", Things in Herds "Everything Has to End Somewhere", Bobby Beausoleil "Lucifer Rising", Dredd Foole "Daze on the Mounts", Scarlet’s Well "The Dream Spider of the Laughing Horse".

Dungen "Ta det Lugnt" (Subliminal Sounds, www.subliminalsounds.se) Twenty four year old Swedish singer/ songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Gustav Ejstes is the prime mover behind Dungen. Gustav plays a multitude of instruments, and is joined by eight different friends to add to the sound of various tracks; though one is left with the impression that this is mostly the vision of one person. Ejstes and his cohorts produce a well crafted and varied modern take on classic psychedelic 60s and 70s sounds, with enough invention and pop sense to have created something pretty spectacular with this; their third album (though to be fair I’ve heard that their two previous albums were pretty fine as well). This is refreshing NOT sung in English, but rather his mother tongue; which leaves this lyrically abstract to my ears, but the hooks and harmonies rise and fall with an emotional universality. From folky acoustic simplicity, to soaring roaring fuzzed out heaviness, with a jazzy suppleness and muscularity throughout, as well as a warm organic sound. Not content with mere genre shifting; these songs will often start out in one place and by mid song be in an entirely different terrain, without losing their cohesion in the process. Brings to mind: Lucky Bishops, Motorpsycho, and Soundtracks of Our Lives, among others.

Various "Thai Beat A Go-Go Volume 1" (Subliminal Sounds, Box 9025, 102 71 Stockholm, Sweden) This GREAT twenty track compilation features lush color graphics and album cover art along with extensive informative liner notes. This collection of 60's bands from Thailand is a happy rocking mind-blower, and an excellent energetic party album. There’s a cover of Ray Charles’ What I’d Say lyrically retooled into something that translates as “Why do you walk like a drunkard?”. This is stylistically all over the map; from rockabilly, to near Motown soul pop, with 007 guitar riffs, though all of the vocals are in English. Joe Meek guitars wail over insane roller rink organ themes. There’s a great version of Little Richard’s Lucille called Loomsiah, a trippy female vocalized rendition of Hank William’s Kaw-Liga and a tasty cover of the Beatles Day Tripper as well. There are some just out-there oddities like the flute, bass, bongo and recitation of The Viking Band’s incredible Phom Rak Khoom Tching Tching, but more often it’s Thai bands’ reinventing western influences in many kaleidoscopically different varieties.

Tanakh "Tanakh" (Alien8 Recordings) This two disc set by atmospheric improvisational outfit Tanakh, showcases ringleader Jesse Poe and six coconspirators making hallucinatory late night shadow plays. Dank noir interiors that look to be the recording space adorn the graphics; no song titles are given for the two sidelong pieces presented here. The first disc is fifty nine minutes of music to listen to in the dark. Like an elongated soundtrack to some eerily suspenseful Italian giallo thriller. A slow droning interaction that includes spidery tangents and rats in the woodwork, ghostly clatter and tabla, with stark Morricone guitar and poisonous Halloween keyboards projecting into the darkness. After awhile this procession come to a halt; a small factory is set up. A vast wide tent begins to cover the ground. Briefly shrieking tortured metal is thrown into molten forges. We drift in an opium haze as machinery is moved somewhere far in the distance; perhaps we are overhearing a distant war. Muffled bombs falling, gunfire, and wailing of sirens heard through the wall; but only in passing. Has me thinking of Taj Mahal Travellers, the Lost Domain, Pelt, J.O.M.F., Rapoon, Coil, and others, but only as points of reference. The second disc is twenty eight and a half minutes of icy distance and breath like smoke in the air. A slow migration of ghosts across a desolate arctic landscape, big shifting sheets of ice. Massive gravity and space in the background while there is a sort of folk song dancing by itself in the twilit foreground. Spectral shapes and shadows in the distance; the temperature starts to rise and the ice is melting fast. The air is full of mist and things that go bump in the night. Soon we are swimming in the ever rising waters; the predawn horizon bright red as fever.

Whysp "Whysp" (Yik Yak/Love Tape Love) This lovely 11 song transparent green vinyl LP features some of the songs from the debut CDR rerecorded at Phil Elvrum’s cabin studio in Anacortes, WA, and some taken right off of the CDR and some brand new songs as well. Elfin organic forest folk songs weaving the tall grasses into woodland garlands. Sun dappled celebrations of an earthly existence. Addled snapshots of consciousness taken from that ancient eternal place that sees the beginning and ending as connected and endless. The oldest thing the most modern. Old folk song spirits in the roots gnarled bark of the trees overhanging the fresh water springs. A truly lovable album, with a great sense of humor; highly recommended to anyone fond of the Little Wings end of the meadow, or the any number of C.O.B./I.S.B. inspired practitioners.

Various "Invisible Sound #1 a collection of honest music" (Invisible Movement, www.invisiblemovement.org) This awesome 25 track CDR features a bunch of soft spoken sweet spirited local bands. A dozen musical entities sending out their gentle folk-based indie compassionate warmth and fragility. Abandoned Hive sound a little wistful with their group strum and tender acoustic friendliness. Black Bear’s The Door is a low key mystic gem. Everything Is True employ acoustic guitars, vibes, and a hazy lo-fi vocal mumble. The nimble banjo and oldtime folk feel of Frienemies is low key and gospel on one track, nervous and lurching on the other which ends up a bit like GBV. Bill Kiley makes snow castles out of synthesizer on one track and attempts some sort of new wave reggae on another. Trade Secrets remind me a bit of Devendra Banhart. Wordless Sound sound like a simple folkish hypnotic instrumental puzzle. Steve Wheat mixes beats with a country vibe and some funk on one track and get’s all woozy and stoned folky on the other. Hunting Memories make a dense sloppy sort of primitive indie pop on one track and a sorta soundtrack collage on the other. Anthrophobe do one poignant instrumental, and another downcast and lovely ballad. Casual Fog make a friendly melodic strumming sort of folk pop and an urgent sort mushy sounding new wave or something. Howie Found Sound is distorted and weird sluggish sad pop at 16 RPM, and a strange bells and alley cat, Halloween narration by dead sailors.

Things in Herds "Everything Has to End Somewhere" (www.thingsinherds.co.uk) Pete Lush spins his deeply melancholic introspective meditations with acoustic/low volume amplification, and low key Joe Meek electronics. Ten songs for the broken hearted, sung in a warm young man’s voice entreating and confessing some universal human sorrow. That; in truth this will all pass away, and if one is lucky they have some memories, if little else to act as bookends to a lifetime. Since each moment is irreplaceable, it should be treasured. So here are some poignant moments that feel almost as sweet and tragic as life itself. Nick Drake might be a signpost to the neighborhood; but the honest gravity and sway of these heartfelt songs will carry you home no matter where you live.

Bobby Beausoleil "Lucifer Rising" (Arcanum) Without going into the long and storied tale of these recordings; suffice it to say that this “lost” soundtrack to Kenneth Anger’s film Lucifer Rising is worthy of it’s legendary status. The first of this two disc set features the entire six piece soundtrack, the second disc features earlier 60s era and later recordings of different Bobby Beausoleil projects The Orkustra, and The Magick Powerhouse of Oz. Eerie Halloween colors, ominous keyboards, a vibe that blurs mid period Pink Floyd with dark gothic overtones in places. A vamping return to a theme that sounds like In the Pines crossed with While My Guitar Gently Weeps, passages that are pure krautrock with Cipollina-like guitar, airy atmospheric droning and spooky sepulchral organ tones. Incredible gatefold graphics and an extensive historical exhumation of information in the lushly image-rich booklet.

Dredd Foole "Daze on the Mounts" (The Child of Microtones) Dan Ireton aka Dredd Foole backed by Matt Valentine and Erika Elder on most of the half dozen tracks presented here. Dredd intones like Tim Buckley buried under an ice shelf while around him MV & EE spin gossamer ghostly shapes and shades. Four originals, a spooky interpretation of Arthur Lee’s Signed D.C., and a drastic reworking of Dinosaur Jr’s Freedom, all delivered like tranced folk transmissions from deep inner space. Moonlight and the blackberry bushes gone wild. Mysterious shadows shift and take on new shapes. Headily stunned and slightly lacking in equilibrium, this sways and swoops like a long rope swing strung over a river.

Scarlet's Well "The Dream Spider of the Laughing Horse" (Siesta) The fourth album by Bid and his cast of female singers is easily on a par with the best of the first three. Beginning and ending with sitars sounds; perhaps this descendent of a long line of Indian kings is getting in touch with his roots. Again one has the feeling of listening to the musical part of some sort of sprawling stage production. Bid gets to indulge in some of his flowing Carlos Santana guitar dreams here, he also like that old Allman Brothers guitar sound as well. The lyrical feeling of some antiquated texts, delivered with a knowing familiarity, and fresh wit. Bid sings a lot more here than on the previous SW outings. There are also some new sonic experiments; How the Cypress Made Apollo might be a wayward Smile era Brian Wilson track. I Walk in Endless Silence is an amazing psychedelic pop exercise with some strangely effective falsetto vocals. The closing De Natura Deorum with wordless female vocals, and a bubbling bed of Indian percussion and instrumentation feels like running headlong off of a high cliff with the certainty that you can fly.

Comets on Fire "Blue Cathedral", Mushroom "Glazed Popems", Elyse "Elyse", Six Organs of Admittance "The Manifestation", Adrian Crowley "A Northern Country", Zukanican "E 5number", Devendra Banhart "Niño Rojo", Dave Burrell Full-Blown Trio "Expansion".

Comets on Fire "Blue Cathedral" (SubPop) This is so great and enjoyable. Their third and best and most wide ranging. Huge and heavy; heavier than Led Zeppelin, but more supple with a far more enjoyable energy flow and no Robert Plant (the vocals are so distorted that they almost become some sort of rasping percussion instrument). But that’s not fair, these folks betray some fascinatingly grand prog rock aspects, as well as some truly off the wall fluid bluesy changes. There is some Southern Rock gone to hell, metallic frenzy and unbridled enthusiasm, with brief pastoral lulls and valleys. Scorching shrieks and bludgeoning dueling lead guitars, slamming splattering drums, organ, some piano and often a whole LOT of noise. A rather irrational, splendidly indulgent, and extremely fun creation. Splattering paint all over the cave walls.

Mushroom "Glazed Popems" (Black Beauty) This double CD set is split into two sections of stylistic influence, it's also a new milestone for this Bay Area collective built around the sounds and visions of Pat Thomas and an elite set of players. Disc one is entitled London, and disc two is called Oakland. The all instrumental London disc features eight original compositions, and one brief cover of traditional British folk song Blackwaterside. Though inspired by British folk, prog, and psychedelic pioneers, the sound of disc one is still decidedly Mushroom-like (if far less funky or jazz infused than their recent output). There is room for atmospheric and experimental passages, as well as plenty of traces of 60s Brit-folk, and subdued melodicism. (Hats off to) Bert Jansch is over ten minutes of hauntingly mysterious folk rock magic, that brings to mind some of Traffic’s best work, with it’s mix of flute, guitars, keyboards, and organic drumming. A Stone’s Throw from Coe Fen recalls the more pastoral aspects of King Crimson’s vastly underrated Islands. The ten minute Isle of Wight begins as a simple familiar progression, and holds the center of the groove while slowly more instruments fall into the mix: flutes, bass, guitars, organ, piano, and understated drumming, all weaving an almost hypnotic spell over the listener. Half Sicilian/Half Welsh seems to be designed to entice earwigs to square dance, but more often the tone is cooly elevated and dreamily transportational. The Oakland disc is where the warm funk grooves and jazzy fluidity were hiding. Three quarters of an hour, eight tracks, an abundance of simmering sonic provocation, and an ever shifting approach unified by it’s mellowness and internal gravity. The only non-instrumental track is the tropically exotic titular one which feature guest vocals by Alison Levy (of the Loud Family). Throughout, it is groovy, and often jazzy enough to be some lost Miles Davis backing track. The opening ten and a half minute The Beards are Back in Town starts as a funky strut and meanders through space and time to become a gentle science fiction lullaby. Blues for Bobby Seale is a hauntingly mournful lament. While Tonight Let’s All Make Love in Oakland feels like some sort of nocturnal sensual trance that slowly heats to a boil.

Elyse "Elyse" (Orange Twin) This album by Elyse Weinberg of Toronto was originally released on the Tetragrammaton (who also had US distribution rights to the John & Yoko’s Two Virgins album about the same time) label in 1968. It’s the only thing she ever released (though two other albums worth of material were recorded). Elyse started out sharing stages with fellow Toronto musicians Neil Young (Young supplies guitar for one of the bonus tracks here) and Joni Mitchell, and though her sole album was critically well received, and even led to an appearance on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show, her career never took off like it did for her fellows. This is a prime artifact of the times; ranging from delicate folk rock to country flavored whimsy, psychedelically baroque arrangements, and more. The extra tracks are good and strong. Neil is quite recognizable, on the Fairport Convention-like Houses. While What You Call It, rivals the best of Linda Perhacs. All sung in a singularly distinctive voice wavering somewhere between Melanie and Judy Henske (Henske’s Farewell Aldebaran feels similar to some of this). I’m genuinely surprised this album isn’t better known.

Six Organs of Admittance "The Manifestation" (Strange Attractors) This wonderful CD reissues the entire original recording, which was released as a one-sided vinyl LP in 2000 (on the flipside of the vinyl was an etching by Mike Mills). The original 22 minute piece is augmented by a 23 minute suite in six parts called The Six Stations. The Manifestation begins in darkness, a labyrinth of caves with distant monks chanting droning intonations as rattles, bells, chimes, and drums scatter tribal raga underpinnings for the geothermal pulsings of the electric guitar (supplied by Jennifer Juniper Stratford), though at around 18 minutes Ben Chasny’s acoustic guitar starts to weave hypnotic tendrils and after awhile he is singing some haunting folk song from another world. In the background a young woman recites as the guitar details a green meadow clearing emerging from a dark gnarled forest and gradually a melting into mist as droning intonations obscure everything in a spectral haze, until tender dawn light starts to glint and we awake. The Six Stations begins as free Robbie Basho ripples in the acoustic waters over the scratchy surface noise of an old 78. At around the 15 minute point the distinctive voice of Current 93’s David Tibet recites his own visions against the scratchy loops of surface noise. Ben’s guitar emerges like intricate lace-work spider web designs against the nighttime sky, autoharp later shimmers while a hurricane roars outside.

Adrian Crowley "A Northern Country" (Ba Da Bing) Frozen into a snowbank of deep sorrow. Slow ages of exquisitely rendered details and craft supporting these gentle soft-spoken insular folk songs. This young Irish singer songwriter supplies the guitars, piano, harmonium, sax, melodica, and his richly distinctive vocals. He’s joined by five others who supply: drums, cello, accordion, bass, and more. But the sound never feels busy, it’s always an atmospheric dream state with plenty of room to roam in. At various points this brings to mind; Phil Ochs around the time of Pleasures of the Harbor, a miniature U2, Nick Drake with a woozy love hangover, Red House Painters in general, or Yo La Tengo shanghaied by a Celtic ghost. All in the same country, where the sun never rises or sets, but remains in some eternal twilight.

Zukanican "E 5number" (Pickled Egg) This 6-song 10” mini LP features only a bit over 26 minutes worth of music, but these Liverpool lads make the most of their time. The first track; Somb is a progressive collision between Allen Ravenstein keyboards and rubbery space funk that becomes quite insistent as it burns up in the atmosphere. The second one Medallion is a slinky dub-jazz with a rhythmic core that would have please Van Vliet himself. Lack of Signage is a jazz combo scattered on shifting tonal tidal effects, as time signatures slide and then coalesce around a nearly Sun Ra groove. Side two kicks off with the multifaceted time signature skitter and bump of Pay Never. Soon we are floating out of out seats and a slow intensification shifts the light as free jazz fragments flutter by like psychedelic moths attracted by the fire on Moonstew, before it’s time to go. Dust from a Goose ends things with bongo fury and beatnik mayhem as saxophones are strangled and bass fingerprints are left on the cooling corpse.

Devendra Banhart "Niño Rojo" (Young God) This latest set of (sixteen) songs from Devendra Banhart has been harvested from the same sessions that produced the excellent Rejoicing in the Hands album from earlier this year (reviewed later in this section). Far from outtakes, this set is easily as strong as 'Rejoicing', and just esoteric and delightful. Devendra connects the dots in a fashion all his own; but the pieces he uses to make his crazy quilts from consist of a partial history of much of the last century’s musical output; from Robert Johnson, to Incredible String Band, Marc Bolan, and Will Oldham. And this sure feels good. Like a sunny afternoon being taken advantage of by an extended family of friends and lovers; fully engaged in some sort of celebratory hedonistic hallucinatory musical picnic. Psychedelic by attitude and expansiveness, but at the same time many of these tracks would not sound out of place on a crackly old 78 RPM vinyl artifact from another lost world. Charming and translucent. This comes with a fun pastorally woodsy QuickTime movie of Devendra and many friends doing an extended version of At the Hop (which he wrote with Andy Cabic of Vetiver).

Dave Burrell Full-Blown Trio "Expansion" (High Two, www.hightwo.com) Pianist Dave Burrell, Bassist (and kora player) William Parker, and drummer Andrew Cyrille are the ingredients. Burrell wrote it all except for a precision and charming cover of Irving Berlin’s They Say It’s Wonderful, and his playing is clearly the centerpiece to all of this; though Cyrille and Parker are certainly no slouches. On Double Heartbeat Burrell hits notes in angular clusters until a sort of negative spaced boogie-woogie emerges, as Parker’s bass crab-walks sideways across the floor and Cyrille mirrors his movements in bass drum and tom toms. Crying Out Loud is a lament for the current political climate, and feels like seasick sorrowfulness as Parker’s bowed bass waltzes with Burrell’s spare dancing notes. About Face with it’s playful tone and martial beats is another poke at our current warlike governmental posturing. In the Balance features Parker’s exquisite kora playing, while Cyrillie utilized brushes, cymbals and gongs, and Burrell utilizes the delicacy of Japanese calligraphy in his understated playing. The closing Coup d'Etat is a jaunty and joyous exercise in jazz exultation.

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