get slap happy, humphrey.

Slap Happy Humphrey were an interesting little idea of a band from japan. they played covers of songs by japanese folk singer Morita Doji, but they didn't do just straight up covers. they took the songs, and played them as straight as they could except for the inclusion of hyper-distorted ultra-destruction guitar that comes in and makes noise more than solos every once in a while. it's incredible how it comes off, the juxtaposition of harsh guitar noise and the crystalline voice of Mineko Itakura (also singer for Angel In Heavy Syrup). it works quite well, though the entire album is a tough one to sit through at once. there is, however, a standout track entitled Chiheisen (which also was the single released for this album) that is staggering.

this cd is a tough one to find. the band forgot to get permission to do these songs from Morita Doji, so she threatened to sue them unless they stopped selling the cds. so they did. sucks.


Slap Happy Humphrey - S/T
http://www.mediafire.com/?mbhzgxzwt0e

BORIS (no natasha here)

ah Boris. drone/psych/metalers that are all virtuosos at their instruments and who love to collaborate with people (and sometimes those collaborations are even good!). fucking crushingly heavy at times, others full of radiant beauty. but, they are absolutely at their best when dealing out loads of shimmering feedback, which is why i am posting this album (my favorite of their's), "Feedbacker." technically one long ass song, it is captivating and brilliant, showing that they can not only deal out the punishment, but also the beauty and still remain very japanese in sound. Wata shreds whenever she is not doling out walls of noise (a combination of an e-bow and boss feedbacker pedal does wonders!), Takeshi shreds that double necked geetar better than sting ever could dream of, and Atsuo is one of the most solid drummers i've ever seen/heard.

this is a document of the core trio at their very best. if you like this album, you can handle all their albums and collaborations (though some of the dronier stuff, like the sunn 0)) collabs will bore you).

oh, and don't bother watching the live dvd of this album/song. it's a great performance but it is shot terribly and cut together worse. it never stays on a single shot longer than 10 seconds and you never get to see any of the members really shred. it almost made me seasick when i watched it.

Boris - Feedbacker
http://www.mediafire.com/?dkzwwqymdyn

more from the mountain (AMT!)

so you are sitting in your room staring at a wall and seeing purlple indecipherable words jump out at you. you open your eyes a little wider and see the lines between the real and non-real, fractal images of reality. quickly you wonder if your brain is melting or if you are just on drugs... then you pick up your guitar and make a wonderful splatter of progressive acid-fried goodness.

i figure that must be pretty much the daily routine for anyone in acid mothers temple. here's some more sounds of their's to fry your brain, a tour cd from the 2003 tour. this cd features no actual acid mothers temple songs! on it is a different solo version of "pink lady lemonade" done by kawabata, a track from tsurubami (kawabata on guitar, higashi on bass, and emi nobuko as drummer), and a track from a project called "pardons" which is hiroshi higashi and cotton casino both on synthesizers. this cd is pretty out there, but the pink lady lemonade version is worth the download alone. ultra limited, you won't find this many other places!

acid mothers temple: soul collective tour 2003

http://www.mediafire.com/?mtgkyzwjoiu

the japs do it better...

it's true. japanese people do everything right (except porno, that's usually just weird. who wants to see a live eel coming out of a girl? ewww.). don't beleive me? listen to their music. the best noise comes from japan (keiji haino, hanatarash, hijokoidan, massona, etc.), uh... BOREDOMS, the almighty BORIS, classic bands like flied egg and flower travelling band (satori is one of the best albums ever. ever.), japanese hardcore (there is an awesome band called DEFIANCE OF SHITBASTARDS! COME ON!), j-pop of all sorts, and of course the current batch of psych bands pouring out of japan, centered around one of the truly greatest and most prolific bands of that genre, the all powerful acid mothers temple. mysterious and elusive, it seems like their sole purpose is to do drugs and record ridiculous amounts of music followed by short spurts of touring. if you get the chance to see them, do it. doesn't matter if you like the style, they are bombastic, spontaneous, and incredible live. you never know if your gonna get a set of scorchers (like "blue velvet blues" or "mammary intercourse") or if kawabata makoto (the shamanistic guitar playing guru centerpiece of the band) is going to serenade you with his shimmering walls of beauty as in these videos shot live at terrastock 7 a few years ago. check em out.



(ok, apparently youtube no longer has the second part of this video. so here's a different amt vid. stick past the throat singing (which is sweet by the way) and wait till the song. watch hiroshi higashi (the guy in the hat) go nuts. the other guitar player is kawabata, he freaks out near the end.)