Black Hula

Is anyone who checks this sorry blog old enough to have watched a little non-music throwaway show on MTV called Liquid Television? If you did then you'd better be well acquainted with the interminably cute and devastating "Mauna Kea" track used in the smartly apocalyptic "Black Hula" animated short. Starting off with a duo of crudely-drawn Ichthyostegas quietly spawning the human race, the film sarcastically documents and anticipates the future of the human race (and equally idiotic) civilization beyond in barely 3 minutes. After binge watching Liquid TV marathons through my college years, learning ukelele (primitively... but still) and actually traveling to Hawaii since, I really wanted to find some retro Hawaiian sounds that weren't just Iz singing "Somewhere Over The Rainbow". Shit, found them I did. "King" Bennie Nawahi was a young guitar/ukelele/steel guitar player who inexplicably went blind in his 30's but continued playing with a multitude of musicians until the 1970's. This compilation spans his most influential bands; although to me his music with the King Nawahi's Hawaiians is easily the best - almost like listening to the Hawaiian version of Robert Johnson's tunes. Wonderful bluesy shit, probably recorded on a fucking gramaphone. My ex-wife and I went to Kauai for our honeymoon and even though I hate that bitch I still love this stuff. That's saying something. Enjoy.

Wizard Of The Strings

Bald Headed Beats

I've had this one sitting on my hard drive for a while and simply haven't had time to upload it... unfortunately it's not quite as complete as some of the other "sample compilations" I've done in the past and I was hoping time would help fill some of the gaps in the break beat list. Oh well. Willie Dee's epic debut, 1989's Controversy is a work of absolute DIY raunchy genius and oozes a strange aura of cut-and-paste charm to help overcome the sheer amateurishness of it all (and the fact I'm writing about it over 25 years after its release proves it). Peering once more into DJ Ready Red's late-90's record collection there are a few new nuggets for those who downloaded the Geto Boys and Mr. Scarface Is Back comps - including a rather rare track from forgotten British funk obscurity Olympic Runners. I couldn't find or figure samples from a few of Controversy's tracks (primarily "Kinky") but did the best I could. Notable omissions include the strange-but-cool organ overdub on "Put The F'in Gun Away" and the back beat ("wooo!" included) from "Trip Across From Mexico". I know these are somewhere hidden in some 8-minute Meters or James Brown jam but simply cannot find them!

Still, here is the CD track-by-track breakdown:

1. Do It Like It G.O.

        • "Apache" by Incredible Bongo Band

        • "Superfly" by Curtis Mayfield

2. Fuck The KKK

        • "Smiling Faces Sometimes" by The Undisputed Truth

        • "Impeach The President" by The Honey Drippers

        • "Bring The Noise" by Public Enemy

        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown

3. Kick That Shit

        • "The Boss" by James Brown

        • "If You've Got It, You'll Get It" by The Headhunters

4. Willie Dee

        • "Willie Dee" by Martha Reeves & The Sweet Things

        • "The Champ" by The Mohawks

        • "'The Twilight Zone' Opening Theme" by Marius Constant

5. Put The F'in Gun Away

        • "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss

6. Trip Across From Mexico

        • "Movin'" by Brass Construction

7. 5th Ward

        • "Think (About It)" by Lyn Collins
        • "Kool Is Back" by Funk, Inc.

        • "N.T." by Kool And The Gang

        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown

8. Bald Headed Hoes

        • "Kool Is Back" by Funk, Inc.

        • "'Dragnet' Opening Theme" by Walter Schumann

9. Welfare Bitches

        • "Don't Let Up" by Olympic Runners

10. Kinky

11. I Need Some Pussy

        • "Yes We Can Can" by The Pointer Sisters

12. Fuck Me Now

        • "Different Strokes" by Syl Johnson

        • "Think (About It)" by Lyn Collins

        • "The Big Beat" by Billy Squier

Additionally, I was really hoping to find the full sample of whatever comedian (?) does the kinda gross "greasy split" monologue at the bookends of "I Need Some Pussy". Some old grumpy Redd Foxx-esque motherfucker sitting at some dank nightclub to scattered drunk applause. Amazing that there is still some shit out there today that the Internet can't figure out for you!!! Any advice or submissions will be promptly added to the catalog - until then thanks and enjoy.

5th Ward Funk

Mozcore

Yep - my first reaction when this 1996 compilation was recommended to me was a nonplused "are you fucking kidding?" Interestingly, after I looked at the bands on the roster I belched out another "are you fucking kidding?" Having never knowingly heard a Smiths or Morrissey song in my life I wasn't sure what to expect from a punk/hardcore homage to the Manchester woe-is-me rock kings. In short though, I dug it. Probably the absolute antithesis to the original vibe of the songs, each cover are if a fast rocker, some a little more poppy then I'd like (a bunch of songs really sound like the Bouncing Souls) but I can't help but crack a smile at the idea of each vocalist taking a bit of a piss out of Morrissey's whiny style. Christ, even Anal Cunt (circa the 40 More Reasons To Hate Us-era) make an appearance - and their song is damn straight! Dare To Defy's "Shoplifters Of The World Unite" is a fantastic opener - if I didn't know better I would think I was listening to some old Snapcase song. Sub Zero has their Sick Of It All groove going, even the Meatmen rock their anthem with tongue planted firmly in cheek. I think the only song I could skip is Lament's restrained closer, "Back To The Old House" which is a little too close to the irritating original. Smiths fans prepare to be disappointed, all others, enjoy.

Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before

South Central Samples

Well, with the upcoming Straight Outta Compton hitting theaters in a fortnight or two I thought I'd wrap up my sample compilations with the record that started it all. Pulling the material for this one was a real beast; the first thing I learned is that Dr. Dre had a lot of records in his archives and secondly, he produced in a significantly different way then DJ Ready Red of the Geto Boys did. While Ready Red tended to use pretty big chunks of his sample songs, Dre (and I guess Yella to an extent) used only the tiniest snippets from records. Of course there are a few exceptions ("Parental Discretion Iz Advised", "Express Yourself" and "I Ain't Tha 1") but for the most part only a quick drum loop, sound effect or guitar lick was lifted from source songs. And Dre also wasn't against modifying some of the material, case in point the classic drum beat to "Straight Outta Compton" is a significantly slowed down bridge riff from the Winstons' "Amen, Brother." With that being said I don't know if I would have been able to figure a lot of these out (or track them down) without a plethora of assistance from various sample libraries on internet.

Still, it was a little iffy adding some of the songs to the compilation. Including Beastie Boys' "The New Style" simply because Adrock's solitary one-second "Puttin' it on wax!" lyric is used in "8-Ball" was a bit of a game-time decision. Unlike the Geto Boys who culled most of their spoken word from Scarface, Dre used a ton of different records for quick vocal clips. Hell, I probably could have included the entire Eazy-Duz-It and N.W.A. And The Posse LPs as source material as well. Interestingly, a choice few of the sample tunes I included I am not actually sure when they are used in the respective song but I figure someone out there does. There are also a couple that I question their legitimacy - Fishbone's "Lyin' Ass Bitch' for one. Yeah, there's a loud "Biiiitch" yelled in both "A Bitch Iz A Bitch" and at the close of Fishbone's track but is it the same one....?

Once again, here's the song-by-song breakdown, and yes I added "A Bitch Iz A Bitch" simply because it is such a classic fucking song:

1. Straight Outta Compton
        • "Amen, Brother" by The Winstons
        • "You'll Like It Too" by Funkadelic
        • "Engine Number 9" by Wilson Pickett
        • "West Coast Poplock" by Ronnie Hudson And The Street People
        • "Burn Rubber On Me (Why You Wanna Hurt Me)" by The Gap Band
        • "Take Me To The Mardi Gras" by Bob James
2. Fuck Tha Police
        • "It's My Thing" by Marva Whitney
        • "The Boogie Back" by Roy Ayers Ubiquity
        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown
        • "Funky President (People It's Bad)" by James Brown
        • "Feel Good" by Fancy
        • "Engine Number 9" by Wilson Pickett
3. Gangsta Gangsta
        • "Weak At The Knees" by Steve Arrington’s Hall Of Fame
        • "Be Thankful For What You Got" by William DeVaughn
        • "N.T." by Kool And The Gang
        • "Funky Worm" by Ohio Players
        • "Troglodyte (Cave Man)" by The Jimmy Castor Bunch
        • "Impeach The President" by The Honey Drippers
4. If It Ain't Ruff
        • "A Star In The Ghetto" by Average White Band & Ben E. King
        • "Don't Believe The Hype" by Public Enemy
        • "Ain't We Funkin' Now" by The Brothers Johnson
5. Parental Discretion Iz Advised
        • "I Turned You On" by The Isley Brothers
6. 8-Ball (Remix)
        • "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye
        • "Paul Revere" by Beastie Boys
        • "Fight For Your Right" by Beastie Boys
        • "Girls" by Beastie Boys
        • "Be Thankful For What You Got" by William DeVaughn
        • "Yes, We Can Can" by The Pointer Sisters
        • "It's My Beat" by Sweet Tee And Jazzy Joyce
        • "My Melody" by Eric B. & Rakim
        • "West Coast Poplock" by Ronnie Hudson And The Street People
        • "Too Much Posse" by Public Enemy
7. Something Like That
        • "Take The Money And Run" by Steve Miller Band
        • "I Think I'd Do It" by Z.Z. Hill
        • "Down On The Avenue" by Fat Larry's Band
8. Express Yourself
        • "Express Yourself" by Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band
9. Compton's N The House (Remix)
        • "Take Me To The Mardi Gras" by Bob James
        • "Funky Beat" by Whodini
        • "It's My Turn" by Dezo Daz (featuring D.J. Slip)
        • "Cinderfella Dana Dane" by Dana Dane
10. I Ain't Tha 1
        • "The Message (Inspiration)" by Brass Construction
11. Dopeman (Remix)
        • "Funky Worm" by Ohio Players
        • "Dance To The Drummer's Beat" by Herman Kelly & Life
        • "My Posse" by C.I.A.
        • "Freestyle Live (Edit Version)" by Roxanne (Fly) Shanté (featuring Biz Markie)
        • "I'm Bad" by L.L. Cool J
12. Quiet On Tha Set
        • "Rock Creek Park" by The Blackbyrds
        • "I Get Lifted" by KC And The Sunshine Band
        • "The Unsafe Bridge" by Laura Olsher
        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown
        • "Take The Money And Run" by Steve Miller Band
13. Something 2 Dance 2
        • "You're The One For Me" by "D" Train
        • "Dance To The Music" by Sly & the Family Stone
        • "'Mighty Mouse' Theme" by The Sandpipers
        • "Change the Beat (French Rap)" by Beside
        • "ORCH5" by David Vorhaus
14. A Bitch Iz A Bitch (bonus)
        • "Papa Was Too" by Joe Tex
        • "Lyin' Ass Bitch" by Fishbone

Phew, what a list. Almost 4 hours of stuff. Y'know when I started writing this blog I was sure it was my swansong compilation but I gotta tell ya, after typing this all out I'm now sort of itching to do Eazy-Duz-It. But until then, sit back, crack a 40 or two of Old E and enjoy.

Part I                                        Part II                                        Part III

Who The Fuck Is Fred?

Nothing like a one-trick pony, right? No sooner did I finish my Geto Boys sample post then I got some info on the background material for Akshen/Scarface's incredible 1991 solo debut Mr. Scarface Is Back. Nursing a sore throat and with a little time on my hands, I culled the sample tracks for this record and here ya go, another amazing 2+ hour collection of 70's funk and soul. Not as much James Brown this time (and there are a few hold overs from the Geto Boys comp as well, sorry) but finally hearing "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss and "Thinking" by the Meters is enough to deserve a listen. Half of these tracks are a who's who of legendary sample beats - wonderful to hear the full songs behind the scenes.

Here is the LP track breakdown:

A1. Mr. Scarface

        • "Gimme What You Got" by Le Pamplemousse

        • "Different Strokes" by Syl Johnson

        • "Sexy Coffee Pot" by Tony Alvon & The Belairs

A2. The Pimp

        • "Sportin' Life" by James Brown

        • "Impeach The President" by The Honey Drippers

A3. Born Killer

        • "Theme From 'Buck & The Preacher'" by The Nite-Liters

        • "Amen, Brother" by The Winstons

        • "The Assembly Line" by Commodores

        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown

A4. Murder By Reason Of Insanity

        • "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss

        • "UFO" by ESG

        • "Untitled Instrumental" by James Brown

A5. Your Ass Got Took

        • "Sing A Simple Song" by Please

        • "Down On The Avenue" by Fat Larry's Band 

        • "The Traffic Cop (Dance)" by Bloodstone

        • "Four Cornered Room" by War

A6. Diary Of A Madman

        • "The Payback" by James Brown

        • "Atomic Dog" by George Clinton

B1. Body Snatchers

        • "Soul Power Pt. 1" by James Brown

B2. Money And The Power

        • "Love Serenade (Part II)" by Barry White

        • "UFO" by ESG

B3. P D Roll 'Em

        • "I've Been Watching You" by Southside Movement 

        • "Blind Alley" by The Emotions

B4. Good Girl Gone Bad

        • "Do Like I Do" by Smokey Robinson

        • "Good Old Music" by The Parliaments

B5. A Minute To Pray And A Second To Die

        • "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" by Marvin Gaye

        • "What's Going On" by Marvin Gaye

        • "Kissing My Love" by Bill Withers

B6. I'm Dead

        • "Thinking" by The Meters

        • "Down On The Avenue" by Fat Larry's Band

        • "Mango Meat" by Mandrill

On a final note, I never really liked the cover I did for The Geto Boys sample comp so I updated that one and used what I had before for this one. Makes a lot more sense - and I sourced the photo from the original Mr. Scarface negative before they "browned" out DJ Ready Red. Enjoy.

Part I                                                                     Part II

F#@* 'Em

With the 25th anniversary of the Geto Boys' eponymous Def American debut looming, I decided to take a cue from a fellow blogger and add another entry into the "Songs Someone Taught Us" series. The year was 1990 and Def American released quite possibly the finest rap record in history. The Geto Boys. Sure, "Ghetto" Boy purists consider it more of a remix album then a legit new LP (although other than possibly "Size Ain't Shit" all of the Grip It! On That Other Level tracks were revamped and re-edited into vastly superior versions) - it still stands as the group's best work and a standard for pretty much any other hip-hop album to aspire. I was surprised to learn how much material was sampled to create The Geto Boys, while mostly funk tracks featuring James Brown as vocalist (or in some other major role) there are some real surprises once you deconstruct the songs. Billy Squier? "My Girl"? After listening to the album over and over while culling the below tracks I now can't hear a sample without thinking of its origin. So while this is not quite a collection of originals that a band covered (à la my previous Metallica and GG Allin posts) it's a window into what D.J. Ready Red's record collection must have looked like and got that Houston studio bumping way back in 1989.

Here's the song-by-song breakdown:

A1. Fuck 'Em
        • "Breakthrough” by Isaac Hayes
        • "Rocket In The Pocket (Live)" by Cerrone
        • "Kool Is Back" by Funk, Inc.
A2. Size Ain't Shit
        • "Blow Your Head" by Fred Wesley And The J.B.'s
        • "Mt. Airy Groove" by Pieces Of A Dream
A3. Mind Of A Lunatic
        • "Givin' Up Food For Funk" by The J.B.
        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown
        • "Batman: Stacked Cards" by Joey Lapidos
A4. Gangster Of Love
        • "The Joker" by Steve Miller Band
        • "I Walk On Gilded Splinters" by Johnny Jenkins
A5. Trigga Happy Nigga
        • "Memphis Soul Stew" by King Curtis
        • "Love The Life You Live" by Kool And The Gang
A6. Life In The Fast Lane
        • "The Big Bang Theory" by Parliament
        • "Girl In The Hot Pants" by The Soul Brothers Inc.
        • "The Big Beat" by Billy Squier
A7. Assassins
        • "Apache" by Michael Viner's Incredible Bongo Band
B1. Do It Like A G.O.
        • "Superfly" by Curtis Mayfield
        • "Apache" by Michael Viner's Incredible Bongo Band
        • "Scorpio" by Dennis Coffey And The Detroit Guitar Band
        • "Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved" by James Brown
B2. Read These Nikes
        • "It Takes Two" by Rob Base & D.J. E-Z Rock
        • "You Can Have Watergate Just Gimme Some Bucks And I'll Be Straight" by Fred Wesley And The J.B.'s
        • "Funky Drummer" by James Brown
        • "Funky President (People It's Bad)" by James Brown
        • "My Girl" by The Temptations
        • "Batman: Stacked Cards" by Joey Lapidos
B3. Talkin' Loud Ain't Saying Nothin'
        • "Talkin' Loud & Sayin' Nothing" by James Brown
        • "Skin Tight" by Ohio Players
        • "Theme From The Planets" by Dexter Wansel
        • "South Bronx" by Boogie Down Productions
B4. Scarface
        • "Blues & Pants" by James Brown
        • "Ashley's Roachclip" by The Soul Searchers
        • "Gimmie What You Got" by Le Pamplemousse
        • "Different Strokes" by Syl Johnson
B5. Let a Ho Be A Ho
        • "Money" by Pink Floyd
        • "Impeach The President" by The Honey Drippers
B6. City Under Siege
        • "The Message From The Soul Sisters" by Myra Barnes
        • "Think (About It)" by Lyn Collins
        • "I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing (In Perfect Harmony)" by The Hillside Singers

For those with sharp eyes, yep there's a children's Batman 7" record on the list. Packaged with a comic book, it was a 70's vinyl version of the "Read-And-Listen" shit kids have loaded on their iPads today. It supplies all of the "he's a paranoic who's a menace to our society" samples  - which up to this day I assumed were from some obscure B-movie. Who in the Geto Boys owned that record? I debated including it since it runs a little long but was so surprised at the discovery I felt I had to. And upon listening to this catalog you'll find that it could have sufficed as sample material for a whole multitude of famous rap songs from back in the day (Public Enemy being one of the more consistent repeat clients). While some of the tunes are far from something I'd listen to on a daily basis, all have their moments, and most of the funk stuff is truly amazing. Interestingly, I just read a somewhat recent interview with Scarface in which he pledges a Geto Boys reunion LP if Rick Rubin would produce. Rick, are you reading?

7/11/15 update: Since my latest post was actually for Mr. Scarface Is Back I went ahead and updated the "album" cover for this one. Looks a ton better in my opinion. Enjoy.

Part I                                        Part II                                        Part III

K-Tel Days...

While my 10-year old cracker ass may not have had this exact record, I know it was some variation of this 1983 German K-tel compilation - complete with a "how-to" poster of breakdance moves and a tiny piece of fold-out cardboard to practice on. Needless to say, I absolutely fucking sucked at breakdancing and was relegated to doing such special needs fodder as "The Worm" behind everyone else during our ridiculous cul-de-sac performances. 30 years later my dancing skills have not improved in even the slightest but it's still great to listen to the proto-rap of the era, back when everyone rapped about having a good time and before anyone outside of L.A. knew what the fuck Compton was. My favorite track (thanks in no party to a pathetically unhealthy appreciation of Breakin' 2: Electric Booglaloo) is George Kranz's "Din Daa Daa" - an epic of cheesy Kraut rock that is as addictive as it is annoying. And that's not all the German hip-hop you get on this one, a here-today-gone-tomorrow trio named Reflexx offers the silly "Let's Kratz (A-Ja-I-Jo)" - a great snapshot of the strange Teutonic new wave (championed by Falco) coming out at the time. But they're not the only Europeans on this international release, Italy's Righeira offer the strange "Dinero Scratch" which sounds somewhat out of place here, and there's a forgettable French band (Bandolero) as well. A couple of Grandmaster Flash songs (including his classic "Whitelines") legitimize the whole thing and Whodini makes an appearance with "Rap Machine" and "Nasty Lady". You'll probably recognize "Let The Music Play" by Shannon as well. As with any K-Tel release though, there is a ton of unknown placeholder fluff. Some are underdog hits (the weirdly cute "(Hey You) The Rock Steady Crew" and cheerful "Breakdancing" - a token "keep trying, you'll get it" anthem to close the LP) while some are rather unlistenable (especially the aforementioned Bandolero) - their inclusion on a record you were supposed to "pop" and "lock" to is a little odd.

Rock The Nation

Songs For Clay

Yet another movie soundtrack that far exceeds the quality of the movie it represents, Less Than Zero was curiously released by Def Jam Records (soon to be Def American) and helmed by none other than producer extraordinaire Rick Rubin. While the film suffered from a healthy blanket of late-80's cheese that simply does not age well with time, the accompanying music has some nice surprises, at the time unavailable anywhere else. Def Jam veterans Public Enemy debuted "Bring The Noise" (later released on the seminal It Takes A Nation Of Millions) and L.L. Cool J contributes his smooth talking "Going Back To Cali" - showing a much more mature side of the rapper after his sophomoric BAD album earlier that year. Slayer covers Iron Butterfly in a solid, blissfully 3-minute version of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" played at their typical breakneck speed. For the top-40 crowd, the Bangles offer their version of Simon & Garfunkel's "Hazy Shade Of Winter" (of which I'm sure everyone remembers the video), Aerosmith covers an old Huey Smith tune, Poison invokes Kiss, and Roy Orbison croons through the dark "Life Fades Away" (penned by Glenn Danzig no less!) Speaking of Glen (sic) Danzig, he does his best Elvis impression on the amazing "You & Me" - performed with the oddly-monikered "Power And Fury Orchestra" (evidently the original lineup of Danzig with George Drakoulias playing bass for Eerie Von who was clashing with Rubin on the song's arrangement). Probably the Lodi, NJ native's most heartfelt tune and the high point of the record. There are a couple other tracks on the album (mostly R&B) but I'd be lying if I said they ever graced my stereo speakers. It would be interesting to see Less Than Zero remade in today's graphic, dark Requiem For A Dream-esque style - some rumors claim Quentin Tarantino is trying to do just that.

Rip

I Gotta Escape!

Man, when this video came out in '89 I was fucking stoked. The sequel to Greg Stump's groundbreaking Blizzard Of Aahhh's, License To Thrill blew his previous effort away with more amazing quasi-psychotic footage of my then-personal heroes Glen Plake, Scot Schmidt and Mike Hattrup. Jesus, I must have watched the flick daily for nearly two years and still have the weathered clamshell VHS to this day. In addition to the skiing, the movie had a killer soundtrack - mostly electronic hip-hop proto-house stuff that I made many a fuzzy VHS-to-cassette copies of. Nasty Rox Inc. is the most prominent band on the soundtrack, a British dance/club/rock quintet featuring the profilic CJ Mackintosh (of M|A|R|R|S fame); their music is like fucking crack, you'll find yourself humming it for days on end. Also on the soundtrack is Hoodlum Priest, a one-man multi-instrumentalist and composer, and electronic music legends 808 State (with then-lead rapper MC Tunes). The soundtrack was never officially released (the only existing copies are promo-only UK cassettes) and the label ZTT shelved the tracks for years. Recently the Nasty Rox Inc. stuff has been officially released and most of the other songs can be found on the internet in one form or another (though the plethora of mixes and remixes makes a legitimate track listing somewhat tough). As a bonus, I included Nasty Rox's "Escape From New York 2" as a bonus track since I had it anyway (I did not include "Nobby's One" even though it is in the movie since it's not that great a tune and sounds pretty much like everything else they do). Unfortunately, I could not track down Kissing The Pink's "State Of Love," the trance-like background tune to the bungee-jump segment. I actually emailed the lead singer so if he hooks me up with it - I'll re-up the link...

11/13/14 update: Song has been acquired. Link re-uppage is done mangs. Enjoy.

Wooba Wubbaa

Ram It Up

Unable to accept the painfully obvious trends of the music industry, MegaForce Records released a poorly-timed comp album in 1991 showcasing a few tired thrash metallers from the recently departed decade. I grabbed this CD for the M.O.D. rarity "If The Shoe Fits" - I've read (and hoped) it's from the U.S.A. For M.O.D. days but not so sure after hearing it - seems a little Gross Misconduct-y to me. Oh well, can't have everything, no? S.O.D. (yay!) and Venom contribute solid songs and I actually found myself digging the track by the idiotically-named T.T. Quick. Obscure NJ metallers The Beast show up with two songs it's always nice to hear Blitzkrieg's eponymous anthem. Rounding the LP out are some throwaway tracks by Anthrax, Overkill (ugh... I always fucking hated them), Testament and Mercyful Fate. Be forewarned - there is an absolutely awful awful rap-metal track (a la an even shittier "I'm The Man") by some fuckwad calling himself the "Lone Rager" (probably Johnny Z) which is why the [skip] button was invented. Truly terrible.

Thrash Memories

For Everybody

Oh man, I was such a fucking dork back in '85! I can vividly remember my retarded anticipation for the "Slammies" on MTV. For the unenlightened, it was a cheesy self-aggrandizing awards show in which the WWF's finest bestowed trophies upon themselves in between painfully choreographed segments of hilarity and mayhem. MTV and WWF? How did that dubious relationship come about you ask? We can all thank Cyndi Lauper featuring Captain Lou Albano in her über-popular "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" and "Goonies" videos (among others) for bringing the existence of the WWF to MTV execs and... man, this book just writes itself! Coinciding with the one-shot primetime special was the release of The Wrestling Album, featuring mostly cover tunes sung by the then-stars of the wrestling world, helmed by ex-McCoy Rick Derringer who must have just been slumming for coke money. But who am I to judge, I instantly bought the cassette (in true 80's style packaged in a LP-sized cardboard sleeve) and y'know what? 25+ years later it's still laughably listenable. "Mean" Gene Okerlund, Vince McMahon and Jesse "The Body" Ventura provide some pretty humorous commentary to open the record and segue from song to song - it's the typical antagonistic banter that became standard play-by-play on Saturday afternoon's wrestling shows. The music begins with the ensemble "Land Of 1,000 Dances?!!?" - a lot funnier to listen to if you've seen the video - Roddy Piper ends up trashing the set at the end amidst other chaos. Junk Yard Dog's "Grab Them Cakes" (showcasing aged disco queen Vicki Sue Robinson on back up vocals) reeks so strongly of 80's cheese it's hard to get out of your head. Derringer solos on "Real American" which according to the commentary is an homage to the forgettable tag-team duo U.S. Express. It is just as tacky as any number of the zillion pro-USA country music anthems out there today but I'll give Derringer historical credit and just assume he wrote it while watching the montage scene Rocky IV. Jimmy "The Mouth Of The South" Hart contributes a pretty funny track regarding his girlfriend's affinity for Rick Springfield - one of the few artists on the album who actually seems like he may have some inkling of musical talent. Captain Lou's "History Of Music" is a low point on the album, a typical ranting effort by the bloated manager which is as silly as it is stupid. Flipping over to side B, the "WWF All Star" studio musicians present us with the instrumental "Hulk Hogan's Theme" (dorks younger then me will recognize this as the theme to the surely-agonizing Saturday morning Hulk Hogan's Rock 'N' Wrestling cartoon) followed by the LP's best track, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper's "For Everybody." A relatively rowdy (ha!) G-rated cover of Mike Angelo & The Idols' explicit 1984 single "The World May Not Like Me", Piper stutters and spits his way through the lyrics with the same aplomb that made him one of the smarter stars in wrestling (and fucking awesome in They Live but I digress). Gene Okerlund grooves through "Tutti Frutti" with a panache that brings to mind Val Kilmer in Top Secret! and token hick wrestler Hillbilly Jim drawls through (surprise!) "Don't Go Messin' With A Country Boy." For what it's worth his version is somewhat listenable aside from the fact that I absolutely detest country music. Wrapping it all up is perrennial 80's bad guy Nikolai Volkoff caterwauling "Cara Mia" which degrades into a shoddy version of the Soviet National Anthem. Ventura, McMahon and Okerlund throw him out and declare the entire recording a failure at which point Ventura begs the others two to duet with him. As they flee we are left with the eventual governor of Minnesota whining "It's my turn to sing!!!" You couldn't make this shit up folks. Enjoy.

Grab 'Em

And Another...

Sheesh, not a day passes and here we are again. Searching the internet for anything by evasive Finnish sludgelords Frogskin, I discover yet another Nordic compilation rife with some of the sicker bands the genre has to offer. Starting this one off is the semi-stupidly named Demonic Death Judge, but what they lack in a cool moniker they make up for with some great Coffins-inspired death sludge. Each of their 7-minute anthems are pounding slabs of tortured riffs and bloodcurling vocals. Next up is Semtex playing a faster quasi-hardcore style much like some of the older Soilent Green material. Lastly is the twisted Nurmijärvi trio Frogskin who deserve to be lumped into the category championed by Loinen and other such lo-fi feedback sludgemongers. Amazingly dismal doom with a slight tinge of Southern States stoner grooves amidst the chaos - well worth the effort this CD took to track down. So grab a euro and head over here to buy it.

Lataamaan

Low Slow Ragnarök-core

Yep, another heartwarming compilation CDr of abominable lo-fi sludgecore straight from the icy republic of Finland. Opening the aural assault is GranG, a brutal three-piece playing wretchedly distorted sludge with so much overdrive it almost degrades into an inaudible wall of noise. Awesome stuff for purveyors of Loinen, Stumm and their miserable ilk. Phenylketonuria follows with an epic half hour of trippy sludgy funeral doom which has its moments and is much better then most offerings in a genre that I don't really like anyway. The warm hum of blazing amp tubes adds a unique layer on this surreal melodic ode to destroying the world - it's surprisingly hypnotic and almost sounds like something Ween could have done had they gone into darker places with The Pod. Wrapping up F.F.13.1970 (named for the release date of Black Sabbath's debut record) is the aforementioned Loinen and their abject composition "Lapamato" ("Tapeworm"). Imagine summoning the worst memories of your life and condensing them into a agonizingly bleak 16-minute opus and you get an idea of what to expect. Truly one of their best recordings (in the feedback-laden cassette-deck lo-fi style of Muta Core) from a band who constantly amazes me with their unrepentant self-loathing. Speaking of whom, I just discovered a webpage apparently written by one of the band members which showcases their entire discography, lyrics and song history - cool stuff. Enjoy.

Hail The Klaan Of The Anal Witch!

Bllleeeeaaauuurrrrgghhh!

WARNING!

While listening to this record, do not

attempt to operate heavy machinery,

use firearms, eat glass, drink Mop N

Glo, tell Ian MacKaye that you think

Poison Idea is "hella funny", consume

brandied fruitcake, taunt a yak, become

obsessed with Buddy Ebsen, get any

sort of tattoo depicting livestock, or get

some idiotic idea about putting together

a 7-inch compilation with 41 bands!

If you are tempted to pursue any of the

aforementioned activities, please

consider an alternative, such as

sending money to this cute guy so he

can put on some clothes (or take them

off if the price is right).

41 Bands! 64 Songs!

The Oxygen Destroyer must not be used!

An amazing compilation fittingly released on the 35th anniversary of Godzilla: King Of The Monsters, Destroysall is a colossal tribute album showcasing a slew of sludge genre legends as well as some hardcore bands to keep it somewhat upbeat. Mammoth opens the CD with an almost ambient track followed by a nearly prog-metal entry by Cleveland's Terminal Lovers. Ohio noise purveyors Sloth offer a sample-heavy slab of noise metal, next up is Hangnail's "Invasion of the Neptune Men" - a tight 90 seconds of japcore followed by the suitably named Gigantasaurus! and their 8-minute marathon entry of sludge. Leon Grizzard plays a cool stoner style jam, Fistula churns out an epic track of screaming doom sludge, dot(.) follows with a similarly plodding, thunderous style while Negative Reaction's entry (easily the coolest song on the album) blurs the line between sludge and stoner for another 8 minutes. Awesome stuff. Rounding out the album are Rwake, Patheticism and Leviathan A.D. with more miserable sludge, Third Degree Burnout spits out some sludgecore which borders on grunge while the Crunky Kids (yeah - another Ohio band!) offer one more spastic slab of hardcore before the cool closer by Solace - an instrumental noise rock jam that flows in and out of psychedelia until the trickling finale. A fitting album to get you to revisit that dusty DVD box set in your collection. Enjoy.

Hedorah

 
Currently watching: Rampage

Currently listening to: Sloth Herder Sluggard

Re-Re-Revisted

Don't ask why but I've been listening to a bit of old-school Metallica lately. And by old-school I mean pre-1991 Black Album Metallica. I've never really heard anything they've released since that era, I'm one of the many who found their gigantic crossover album really dry and dull; I was getting more into death metal at the time and just tapped out of being a Metallica fan. I remember the excitement leading up to the "Enter Sandman" video premiere on MTV and it was... just kinda... OK. As was the album. "Sad But True" wasn't too bad (but upon revisiting it - phew - that is one boring song) and I kinda liked "Don't Tread On Me" but all in all a real letdown. So why am I whining about it 20 years later? Well, it brings me to the Metallica album I liked the most - 1987's Garage Days Re-Revisited. In case you've been living in a cave on Mars with your fingers in your ears for the past two decades, Re-Revisited is a tight 5-song EP of the band covering some of their favorite New Wave Of British Heavy Metal tunes (along with a couple Misfits tracks to boot); but for all intents and purposes I've pretty much considered the obscure songs Metallica originals (in the same way "Hey Joe" is an original Jimi Hendrix tune - any Leaves fans out there can kiss my ass). I know such a statement will raise the ire of the two or three Budgie enthusiasts lurking throughout the Welsh countryside but there's not much I can say to appease other than that Metallica is the sole reason anyone still acknowledges them or most of the other bands named below (much thanks to the internet as well). With that being said, I thought I'd throw together a compilation of all those original songs for nothing else but to have something a little different to listen to. Included are "Helpless" by Diamond Head, "The Small Hours" by Holocaust (my favorite track), "The Wait" by Killing Joke, "Crash Course In Brain Surgery" by Budgie, "Last Caress" and "Green Hell" by the good ol' Misfits and "Run To The Hills" by Iron Maiden. Along with that I compiled the originals of a bunch of other popular Metallica covers - all before the godawful Garage, Inc. abomination in the mid-90's. "Turn The Page"? Excuse me while I fucking vomit. Here's Diamond Head doing "Am I Evil?" and Blitzkrieg with "Blitzkrieg" (both bonus tracks on the Kill 'Em All CD), Diamond Head (again) with "The Prince" (found on the B-side of my "One" cassette single), "Breadfan" by Budgie (B-side on the "Eye Of The Beholder" cassete single), Queen's "Stone Cold Crazy" (Metallica's contribution to 1990's Rubáiyát: Elektra's 40th Anniversary double CD) and Anti-Nowhere League's "So What..." from the "Sad But True" cassette single (thanks to the sadly defunct Colostomy Grab-Bag for the album cover idea). And with that purchase came the end of my Metallica fandom. I've tracked down some pretty fine quality tracks, I think completists will be pleased. Enjoy.

$5.98                         $6.66

 
Currently watching: The Night Porter

Currently listening to: Queen A Night At The Opera

Meeses

I'm probably not the only one out there who still mourns last year's passing of the incredible Sludge Swamp. A part of me still occasionally stops by their sadly dry Facebook page in hopes it will someday re-emerge as the music juggernaut it once was but with the lack of any regular posts it just seems like an ever-dwindling pipe dream. I can't tell you how many bands (100? 200?) I am now a fan of thanks to the guys (and gal) who ran that shit. Actually, if I could come up with one complaint about the site (and this is being ridiculously petty) it was the incredible amount of volume that was uploaded. Before you even had a chance to finish checking out one band another would appear. And since a lot of it was dedicated to the sludge genre, a lot of these tunes pushed into the 10-minute mark - not quick (or easy) listens to determine whether you were into a band or not. Fortunately the blog held frequent compilation contests, one of my favorite being the Heavy Like The Moose volumes. Doom, drone, prog rock, stoner, sludge, psychedelic, and just bare bones metal, these five compilations will easily cover you for your next 12-hour road trip. Quality varies somewhat but most is pretty good, enjoy and thanks for the memories 'Swamp.

I II III IV V

Currently watching: Weasels Rip My Flesh

Currently listening to: Macabre Dahmer

Catastrophe

I wrote about the Meat Shits' contribution to this incredible compilation last year and finally decided to get off my lazy ass and upload the whole shebang. A prize of my LP collection, five of my favorite bands during what I feel were the high points of their careers. Mincecore, blur, pornogrind and noisecore. Essential.

C(o)untless Songs!

 
Currently watching: Rest Stop
Currently listening to: Redman Whut? Thee Album

All Togethah Now

Solid compilation CD released in 2000 by the mighty Fudgeworthy Records out of Woburn, MA; the brainchild of Charlie Infection whom you may know as the other half of the seminal Ax/ction Records and drummer for Bay State mainstays Psycho, Bulge, Gonkulator and Cancerous Growth. Admitting to the loss of all his master tapes in the liner notes, nearly everything on the comp is ripped directly from vinyl so don't expect any hi-tech digital remastering here. Scratches, cracks and pops abound which only add to the charm - there is some rare ass shit showcased here and is without a doubt some of the best transfers you'll find of this material. Included are a few batches of Anal Cunt songs, GG Allin's "Legalize Murder" from his Freaks, Faggots days, Bulge's "Fartmaster," some obscure Meat Shits tunes, fast Boston hardcore, black metal, grindcore, noise, etc. etc. ad nauseum. A bunch of great music from a great label. Enjoy.

If It Ain't Fudgeworthy... It Ain't Shit

 
Currently watching: The Rite
Currently listening to: KoЯn The Path Of Totality

Best. Compilation. Ever.

The thing about comps is they tend to let you down. Yeah, you buy it for the one band on it and end up clicking the "next" button a lot. Occasionally you stumble upon a diamond in the rough, though. The incredible Apocalyptic Convulsions 10" (this blog's first post and a watershed album for me), Judgement Night soundtrack, and hell, even the Easy Rider soundtrack. Included on that exclusive list is the above double 7" comp released in 2001, Twin Threat To Your Sanity. Whoever decided to compile these four sludge giants on wax deserves many a free bar tab in my book. Dystopia open with a soundcheck take (maybe before their oft-bootlegged KJFC show?) of "Diary Of A Battered Child,"  Noothgrush follow with an amazing live cover of Celtic Frost's "Procreation Of The Wicked," Bongzilla adds a live version of "Gestation" to the mix, and the godly Corrupted close this slab of smear with the epic "Nieve." Unbelievable bands, fantastic songs, easily one of the best releases of the last decade. Enjoy then kill yourself.

DNBC

 
Currently watching: The Other Guys
Currently listening to: Disgorge Forensick