Computer Age

The Smashing Pumpkins
Siamese Dream
Virgin 1993

The 160 GB of my new iPod to give much, to put almost my entire collection of records collected over the years, and I'm spending in recent weeks to rip a CD to every one that there is every corner of my house.
In one such corner, silent and dusty that it was "Siamese Dream" of the Smashing Pumpkins, a record that in his days listening to an almost religious fervor, and the time in my memory was cornering.
Were those times (early 90s) where the music was looking for strength, rebellion, rather than dark and depressing emotions that unfortunately are now feeding my music.
I remember that what most impressed me at the time of this album was just that, the demolition of some guitars simply, terrifying, adorning a collection of songs really bright, and I was surprised to find, to return today to hear these old songs, those feelings that remain intact.
"Siamese Dream" was the second disc of the band formed at the time by Billy Corgan, James Iha and D'Arcy, a radical leap in quality to its debut, "Gish" (1991), an album that only targeted some ways and a devotion nothing hidden by the sound of the Pixies.
"Siamese Dream" was the album that defined the sound of the band and the record that they finally turned in a band for the masses, a truly brutal record that opens with three issues a relentless ferocity: "Cherub Rock", "Quiet "and" Today "themes built around pop melodies and delicious dressed with a guitar to the limit of the distortion.
Listen to these songs again today is not good because I agreed Mogwai, and the bathrooms of noise to which we were accustomed, and that is that the guitars on this album have a sound close enough.
3 In addition to the issues mentioned here are also other outstanding issues as "Soma", the beautiful "Disarm" or the enigmatic "Mayonaise."
After this album, the Pumpkins released what would be his greatest work, this double inordinate called "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" (1995) which I, frankly, I liked significantly less than this disc.

Mason Profitt
Wanted! Mason Profitt
Happy Tiger 1969

Mason Profitt is the name of a group emerged in the late 60 in Chicago and trained by the brothers Terry and John Michael Talbot. Very influenced by the Country Rock of the time, with the Byrds to the head, recorded five albums between 1968 and 1973, achieving a remarkable success thanks to its direct incendiary offered across the United States and gave them a deserved reputation.
The "Wanted" is the first album the band released a stamp in local, but that does not give too much visibility allowed to start turning a fairly comprehensive tour of the local east coast.
In those early songs, the influences of the Byrds, Gram Parsons and Buffalo Springfield are more evident that, although Mason Profitt show here and have a unique personality, with a rough sound and dynamic, very forward-Country Western roots, but adorning his compositions with delicious pop melodies
The disc opens with "Voice Of Change", a wonderful song with shades of political letter that shows the potential of compositional and interpretive Talbot brothers, with a powerful sound of guitars and some beautiful vocal harmonies. The rest of the album continues along similar paths, combining sounds and instruments of the Country Classic (banjos, violins) Folk Rock with echoes of a very natural and effective. Highlights issues such as "Sweet Lady Love," "Walk On Down The Road", "A Picture Rectangle" or the magnificent "Two Hangman" tells a strange FABULA Country on an executioner who is sentenced to be hanged for not wanting to continue running prisoners. This issue became one of its first limited commercial success.
Highlights also intelligent and committed texts articulate songs, letters highly critical of the society of the time and that, as hippie, suggest a different way of doing things.
The "Wanted", but eventually failed to be remembered was a truly ambitious debut album that showed the qualities of a band certainly unique.
After posting a record three albums on independent in 1972 the band signed a contract with Warner, which allowed them to perform more extensive touring alongside bands like Grateful Dead, although little commercial impact of his music finally break the band in 1973.
Mason Profitt is one of those big bands that for some reason fails to success and that are lost in oblivion, a delightful discovery for the listener of the twenty-first century.

Listen: Mason Profitt - Two Hangman

Links:

- "Wanted" in The Lake Band
- Article in The Rising Storm
- Another review of this record in Gooder'n Bad Vinyl

The Dreadful Yawns
Rest
(Exit Stencil Recordings 2007)

This is a record that was stored on the computer, which in its day had scored some data because I thought it very interesting, but that time had almost completely forgotten. After further listening I must say that still seems a wonderful album, floating in the sound off aromas Donovan, CSN & Y, Gram Parsons, Spiritualized, Mojave 3, Wilco, The Innocence Mission, Belle and Sebastian or Beachwood Sparks. So I think it is time to complete these notes. The quintet was formed in 1998 in Cleveland, Ohio, although his first album ( "Early" Undertow Music) did not appear until 2003, turning the entire project around the singer / songwriter Ben Gmetro. Following the success of the critical first contract signed with the label Bomp! Records (the last band was signed by Greg Shaw, founder of the legendary label that began in 1970 as a wholly homemade fanzine, died in 2004 at only 55 years), where he published an album of the same name, title in 2005, increasing influence in psychedelic his compositions, again garnering excellent reviews and becoming more familiar to audiences. "Rest" is the CD released in 2007, produced by Ben Gmetro, once problems of money, recording studios and a new record label. This is the first of 2 discs that were recorded for Exit Stencil Recordings. If at first was conceived as an experimental rock album, eventually would be transformed into an artistic statement full of arrangements, pedal steel, finder-picked guitars and beautiful vocal melodies, making a beautiful album folk-rock-country - pop-psychedelia. They took about 2 years to complete and was recorded in different studies 3, 4 away during this time of the five components of the band, leaving only Ben Gmetro (next to 4-new members): Ben Gmetro: vocals and guitar; Elizabeth Kelly: vocals, keyboards, bells, and tambourine; Chris Russo: drums and vocals; Clayton Heuer keyboards and violin, and Eric Schulte: guitar and vocals. In 2008 have produced the second album for the label Exit Stencil ( "Take Shape") with the same training as in the previous tightening and occasionally the sound. "Rest" is the album the group that most times I have heard and know best at the moment. Ten songs in just over half an hour. My favorite pick "Candels, although higher than 7 minutes and it goes against my taste (almost always in favor of short items), in this case the capacity of transmission to hum pushes you to forget the time (you know that the good times go flying, and Bo Diddley as well read a book can not be judged by the cover), but I'm sure if it should be a sound and continually hit has all the ingredients to reach odiarla. The songs revolve mainly in two directions, one towards a more country-folk (the wonderful "When I Lost My Voice", the trotona and denim, with banjo included, "Being used to you", or the successful version of Gram Parsons "November Nights"), others more inclined to pop with varying doses of country, folk and psychedelia (the most pop "You've Been Recorded", "Changing States" or the catchy and with all the necessary ingredients for radiofórmulas sound in "Due South" among the most evocative psychedelic space or the brilliant mind "We Go Up, seductive melodies accompanied by strings and atmospheric keyboards, and" End Of Summer ", which closes the disc with a typical musical accompaniment adds that saw the end of the summer air, mosquitoes, heaviness, loneliness and reluctance on the environment). A record of exciting vocal harmonies mecidas by acoustic guitars, steel guitar and inspired environments sound made using multiple instruments with just the notes on time.

MySpace, The Dreadful Yawns