HR100 - U.S.A. Volume 1 - C90 — 1989
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Side A:
Cephalic Index - Monkey Feed Blues The Velvet Swines - Pig on the Runway Eel O. - Flexi Cutup Mix Version #1 Animation Festival - Curious Meaningless David Prescott - Not So Real Viktimized Karcass - I Shall Return |
Side B:
Floating Concrete Orchestra - Dissemination Legoland - Deadworld Hands To - Whag Alien Planetscapes - Ode to Soft Machine/Endless (S)miles Mental Anguish - Scorptixaka Mortuary Attendant - Anguish of Burying Cecille |
REVIEW by Jerry Kranitz
The U.S.A. 2-tape compilation is the first in the 12-part Harsh Reality ‘Country’ series and features a stunning array of late 1980s homemade artists, both prolific veterans and artists who are new to me.
Volume 1 opens with Cephalic Index, a solo project from Michael Thomas Jackson who had several releases on Harsh Reality and collaborated with label honcho Chris Phinney as the duo Cancerous Growth (included on Volume 2). His 'Monkey Feed Blues' sounds like a cracked broken instruments ensemble, strumming, bashing, and dragged up, down, and sideways tape manipulating. Bluegrass for the abstract experimental crowd.
The Velvet Swines’ (Pennsylvania) A Trip To Ollywood cassette album was released by Harsh Reality earlier as HR088. Their 'Pig on the Runway' contribution is a fun glom of grungy guitar, simple plodding melody, sundry clatter and noise, and intermittent spoken word. It feels like the soundtrack to a lo-fi/budget sci-fi flick.
Eel O.’s (Oklahoma City) 'Flexi Cutup Mix Version #1' is definitely one the cut-up crowd will enjoy, with its choppily stilted pattern that adds bits of voice and gets increasingly and jarringly choppy as the piece progresses. I had not heard EELO before but learned that they include members of Teen Lesbians & Animals (see Volume 2). Also note that per Butch Canfield of both Eel O. and Teen Lesbians & Animals, though the tape shows the band name as EELO, it is actually Eel O. (with the period as part of the name)
Animation Festival’s (Louisiana) Exalted was released by Harsh Reality earlier as HR077. Their ‘Curious Meaningless’ is driven by cool grooving ‘Chicky-Chicky-Chicky-Bom’ scat vocals, quietly insidious guitar licks that sound like acidic Frippertronics, and sharp, glacial effects. Excellent track. I love the vocal/guitar combination.
David Prescott (Boston) is a prolific underground veteran with numerous releases on multiple labels. ‘Not So Real’ features 15+ minutes of hypnotically minimal drones that ever so slightly pulsate, oscillate, gurgle, and weave. Barely perceptible background conversation injects a cool and strange radio interference feel.
Viktimized Karcass is one of the Harsh Reality ‘house’ bands, consisting of label commander Chris Phinney and other Memphis cohorts. 'I Shall Return' is a slowly chugging goth/space rocker with eerily cosmic effects and anguished vocals.
Floating Concrete Orchestra (Wisconsin) contribute 'Dissemination', a skittishly grooving and galloping lo-fi video game rocker with lots of goofily fun melodies and effects.
Right out of the chute I liked Legoland (West Virginia). ‘Deadworld’ is a cool rocker with guitar that is both melodic and ripping, steady electro percussion, and goth/punk vocals.
Hands To is a solo project of ubiquitous artist Jeph Jerman (Colorado Springs). See also City Of Worms on Volume 2. ‘Whag’ is a textural collage of sandpaper patterns and ground up bird chirps/squawks.
Alien Planetscapes were one of my favorite space rock bands of all time, headed up by the late great Doug ‘Dr Synth’ Walker. 'Ode to Soft Machine/Endless (S)miles' is over 15 minutes of hauntingly dreamy yet rhythmically propulsive cosmic rock. I love how it builds up to a near frenzy in the last minutes. Fantastic drumming!
Mental Anguish is the long lived and STILL thriving solo project of Harsh Reality label captain Chris Phinney. 'Scorptixaka' is a delirious swirl of puttering engine beats and electronic insect and bird life effects. I like the sparse yet busy vibe throughout. Kind of like being the only visitor to an alien zoo’s aviary.
Mortuary Attendant’s (Oklahoma City) 'Anguish of Burying Cecille' creates a gothic church bells and windswept storm theme, punctuated by pulsating tones and other spacey effects. A narrator pops in from time to time reading the same line, which brings to mind something Edgar Allan Poe would have written. This is yet another band I had not heard before who also include members of Teen Lesbians & Animals (see Volume 2).
The U.S.A. 2-tape compilation is the first in the 12-part Harsh Reality ‘Country’ series and features a stunning array of late 1980s homemade artists, both prolific veterans and artists who are new to me.
Volume 1 opens with Cephalic Index, a solo project from Michael Thomas Jackson who had several releases on Harsh Reality and collaborated with label honcho Chris Phinney as the duo Cancerous Growth (included on Volume 2). His 'Monkey Feed Blues' sounds like a cracked broken instruments ensemble, strumming, bashing, and dragged up, down, and sideways tape manipulating. Bluegrass for the abstract experimental crowd.
The Velvet Swines’ (Pennsylvania) A Trip To Ollywood cassette album was released by Harsh Reality earlier as HR088. Their 'Pig on the Runway' contribution is a fun glom of grungy guitar, simple plodding melody, sundry clatter and noise, and intermittent spoken word. It feels like the soundtrack to a lo-fi/budget sci-fi flick.
Eel O.’s (Oklahoma City) 'Flexi Cutup Mix Version #1' is definitely one the cut-up crowd will enjoy, with its choppily stilted pattern that adds bits of voice and gets increasingly and jarringly choppy as the piece progresses. I had not heard EELO before but learned that they include members of Teen Lesbians & Animals (see Volume 2). Also note that per Butch Canfield of both Eel O. and Teen Lesbians & Animals, though the tape shows the band name as EELO, it is actually Eel O. (with the period as part of the name)
Animation Festival’s (Louisiana) Exalted was released by Harsh Reality earlier as HR077. Their ‘Curious Meaningless’ is driven by cool grooving ‘Chicky-Chicky-Chicky-Bom’ scat vocals, quietly insidious guitar licks that sound like acidic Frippertronics, and sharp, glacial effects. Excellent track. I love the vocal/guitar combination.
David Prescott (Boston) is a prolific underground veteran with numerous releases on multiple labels. ‘Not So Real’ features 15+ minutes of hypnotically minimal drones that ever so slightly pulsate, oscillate, gurgle, and weave. Barely perceptible background conversation injects a cool and strange radio interference feel.
Viktimized Karcass is one of the Harsh Reality ‘house’ bands, consisting of label commander Chris Phinney and other Memphis cohorts. 'I Shall Return' is a slowly chugging goth/space rocker with eerily cosmic effects and anguished vocals.
Floating Concrete Orchestra (Wisconsin) contribute 'Dissemination', a skittishly grooving and galloping lo-fi video game rocker with lots of goofily fun melodies and effects.
Right out of the chute I liked Legoland (West Virginia). ‘Deadworld’ is a cool rocker with guitar that is both melodic and ripping, steady electro percussion, and goth/punk vocals.
Hands To is a solo project of ubiquitous artist Jeph Jerman (Colorado Springs). See also City Of Worms on Volume 2. ‘Whag’ is a textural collage of sandpaper patterns and ground up bird chirps/squawks.
Alien Planetscapes were one of my favorite space rock bands of all time, headed up by the late great Doug ‘Dr Synth’ Walker. 'Ode to Soft Machine/Endless (S)miles' is over 15 minutes of hauntingly dreamy yet rhythmically propulsive cosmic rock. I love how it builds up to a near frenzy in the last minutes. Fantastic drumming!
Mental Anguish is the long lived and STILL thriving solo project of Harsh Reality label captain Chris Phinney. 'Scorptixaka' is a delirious swirl of puttering engine beats and electronic insect and bird life effects. I like the sparse yet busy vibe throughout. Kind of like being the only visitor to an alien zoo’s aviary.
Mortuary Attendant’s (Oklahoma City) 'Anguish of Burying Cecille' creates a gothic church bells and windswept storm theme, punctuated by pulsating tones and other spacey effects. A narrator pops in from time to time reading the same line, which brings to mind something Edgar Allan Poe would have written. This is yet another band I had not heard before who also include members of Teen Lesbians & Animals (see Volume 2).