The Nightowl Sings - 2010-2021

 

Self Made compilation 2021.

Disc 1:

01 Ghost

02 Sunset at Smurf's Castle

03 Deliverance

04 Mary George

05 Tall Dark Pines

06 Shady Grove

07 1913/Dancer

08 10 Minutes From Olympia

09 Lone Transmission #1

10 The Day She Walked Into My Mind

11 On Fire

12 Old Yellow Moon

13 Angels of the Rain

Disc 2:

01 High-Rise

02 Take Flight

03 How Do You Get High

04 Down Terrace

05 Grow My Dears

06 Suicide #2 (Electric Boogaloo)

07 Dreams of Civic Pride

08 Close to Me

09 A Tree With Roots

10 Angry Bees

11 Steig & Eva

12 Driven to Dust

I've known Marc Gillen for over 24 years and we've been making music together, in one way or another, since we met.

Initially I joined his Carlisle based space-rock band 'The Dream Stealers', although at the second rehearsal I attended, the band decided to split. Marc and I decided to form a new band alongside Kevin Pearson and Alan Graham, both from Aspatria. Garage psych band 'Edsel' recorded one single ('Don't Want To Go Now') and played one gig (The Twisted Wheel in 1999) before calling it a day after a little over 18 months.

The recording experience for the single soured us to the idea of commercial studios; recording against the clock, no input into the mixing process and ultimately a disappointing result. We decided to invest in home recording equipment (a four track Fostex cassette recorder) and the two of us started the band 'Harbourcoat'. 

The initial years of Harbourcoat, 2001 to 2004, were essentially myself and Marc recording every and any idea we had. Alastair Popple enters the scene at this point; helping with production, sound and CD reproduction. As much as Marc and I were learning how to play and how to write and record songs, Al was learning how to produce.

The years 2005 saw an expanded Harbourcoat perform live and record material of a higher quality. Shane McGee and Jeremy Bye joined as long term members on guitar and drums respectively.

In 2007, the situation became undesirable for Marc as he found the constraints of a recording a frustration. Now writing way more songs than the slow paced Harbourcoat could manage, he decided to quit, invest in further home recording equipment and came up with the concept of Treehouse Orchestra Recordings.

The idea was to have an 'umbrella' name, a home in which everyone could record their ideas and release to the new ethically pleasing music platform Bandcamp under whatever moniker they choose. Ideas and songs could be released as solo artists, in pairs or in bands.

The first band to record within this concept was Treehouse; a four piece consisting of Marc, Rachel Gillen, David Thompson and Alex Thompson. I guested on a few tracks and was immediately enamored with this new way of working. Once the Treehouse project was complete, Marc recorded and produced my first release as a solo artist; 'Dag Lief' under the name 'We Are The Wooden Houses'. 

Further releases followed (and right up until this day, we're on our eighty-second release) and in 2010, myself, Marc and David Thompson formed 'The Dead West'. Our first release was a double album. The majority of the material was ensemble based, but we also included solo recordings. As usual, Marc had written and recorded way more than was necessary and the session that bore the solo tracks for 'The Dead West Volumes I & II'  became the basis of the first release by new artist name 'The Nightowl Sings'.

Disc 1:

Ghost

Released on 'Ghosts' E.P. June 1st 2010

Recorded Spring 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Radio.

Sunset at Smurf's Castle

Released on 'Dream Logic Truckstop Jams' L.P. December 1st 2010.

Recorded Autumn 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen and Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Synth.

Stephen Benson - Guitar & Drums.

David Thompson - Bass.

I have fond memories of recording the first Nightowl Sings album; performing and mixing in the music room. As I remember, our expanding range of instruments had recently included a floor tom to join our snare. A dream sequence set in my hometown, always been a favourite.

Deliverance

Released on 'Ghosts' E.P. June 1st 2010

Recorded Spring 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Piano.

A lot of Marc's early Treehouse compositions were solo piano pieces, several appearing on the first Treehouse album and the intial NOS releases.

Mary George

Released on 'Dream Logic Truckstop Jams' L.P. December 1st 2010.

Recorded Autumn 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen.

Marc Gillen - Vocals.

Stephen Benson - Banjo & Drum.

Recorded live (save for the tom overdub), this recording and it's lyrics have always been in my top five.

Tall Dark Pines

Released on 'By The Light Of The Fallen Moon' L.P. November 11th 2011.

Recorded Autumn 2011. Produced by Marc Gillen, Alastair Popple and Stephen Benson.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitar.

Stephen Benson - Guitars & Percussion.

An early example of a vocal and guitar version (or another sparse variation) of a song that Marc hands over to me to do what I please. The dark vibe of this song is all over the album 'By The Light Of The Fallen Moon', which is why I'm so fond of it.

Shady Grove

Released on the various artists album '8 Folk Songs' September 2012.

Recorded Summer 2012. Produced by Marc Gillen and Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Electric Guitar, Piano, Bass & Drums.

I've always liked this various artists album; after two years of us recording in different configurations, it's interesting to see where we are as solo artists. This track sounds like the outlier of disc one of this compilation, but sounds more like what was to come than anything else here.

1913/Dancer

Released on 'Lone Transmissions' E.P. February 23rd 2013.

Recorded January 2013. Produced by Marc Gillen and Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Piano.

Connor Gillen - Vocals.

Alastair Popple - Programming.

'Lone Transmissions' was one of a series of cassettes released on TOR at this time. Al takes more of a compositional role on this track and Marc's son Conner provides a vocal at the age of 12. This release still remains one of my favourite NOS releases.

10 Minutes From Olympia

Released on 'Tip The Maps' L.P. September 1st 2012.

Recorded Summer 2012. Produced by Marc Gillen, Alastair Popple and Stephen Benson.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Radio.

Stephen Benson - Bass, Drums & Saxophone.

Endless summers belting out this kind of Beefheart/Pavement/Can style jam on a Saturday afternoon.

Lone Transmission #1

Released on 'Lone Transmissions' E.P. February 23rd 2013.

Recorded January 2013. Produced by Stephen Benson.

Marc Gillen - Piano.

Stephen Benson - Effects, Looping & Construction.

'Lone Transmissions' was a cassette release and Marc asked myself and Al to come with a new track apiece, using sequences of other songs as well as discarded parts. These songs were meant to end the consecutive sides. This is my effort.

The Day She Walked Into My Mind

Released on 'The Day She Walked Into My Mind' L.P. August 3rd 2013.

Recorded Winter/Spring 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitars.

Stephen Benson - Guitars, Bass & Drums.

On Fire

Released on 'The Day She Walked Into My Mind' L.P. August 3rd 2013.

Recorded Winter/Spring 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Bass.

Stephen Benson - Guitar & Drums.

David Thompson - Vocals.

Fond memories of recording this album. Lots of collaboration and the extensive Dead West sessions were habit forming and carrying on into 2013.

Old Yellow Moon

Released on 'All Hail the Town to Town Troubadour' L.P. April 12th 2014.

Recorded Autumn/Winter 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Piano.

Angels of the Rain

Released on 'All Hail the Town to Town Troubadour' L.P. April 12th 2014.

Recorded Autumn/Winter 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Bass.

Stephen Benson - Guitars, Drums & Violin.

Recorded after a summer spent recording 'Hills! Werewolves! Run! 4', 'All Hail the Town to Town Troubadour' was the next project started. Always felt like a trilogy along with 'All Is Quiet Now' and 'After The Flowers'.

Disc 2:

The songs on disc 2 represent material from the latter half of the NOS recorded output. It is presented less chronologically than disc 1, has more guests and with that more diverse material.

High-Rise

Released on 'After the Flowers' September 19th 2015.

Recorded January 2015. Produced by Marc Gillen & Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Keyboards & Drum Machine.

Alastair Popple - Programming.

David Thompson - Vocals & Keyboards.

Originally destined for an 'Old Weird' release (Marc Gillen and David Thompson), that project was shelved and this track found it's way onto the second NOS release of 2015.

Take Flight

Released on 'All Is Quiet Now' January 23rd 2015.

Recorded Summer 2014. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Electric Guitar.

Stephen Benson - Electric Guitars.

Sarah Ruddy - Vocals & Acoustic Guitar.

Another song in my personal top five. The initial live performance was solid and Al finishes it of with some post production that elevates it. Featuring Sarah Ruddy who made several vocal and instrumental contributions at this time, most noticeably with The Dead West.

How Do You Get High

Released on 'After the Flowers' September 19th 2015.

Recorded January 2015. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitar.

Stephen Benson - Guitars, Drums & Percussion.

Alastair Popple - Programming.

The final song on 'After the Flowers' using a cut up and loop technique, mainly thanks to Al, making it a slightly Krautrock affair.

Down Terrace

Released on '1955' July 22nd 2016.

Recorded July 2016. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Acoustic Guitar.

Stephen Benson - Guitars & Effects.

David Thompson - Vocals.

Jill Wallace - Vocals.

One of two tracks from my favourite stand alone NOS release '1955'. Myself, Marc and Jill Wallace found ourselves with some downtime because of the band Brocken Spectre breaking up, although this proved to be temporary. This one really has the spook.

Grow My Dears

Released on 'Slow Daze' August 1st 2021.

Recorded Autumn 2020. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Keyboards.

Alastair Popple - Effects.

Taken from the latest Nightowl release 'Slow Daze'. That album had the distinction of being the first Treehouse Orchestra Recordings release on vinyl. During the 'test listen' I remember this sounding fantastic on record.

Suicide #2 (Electric Boogaloo)

Released on 'After the Flowers' September 19th 2015.

Recorded January 2015. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitar.

Stephen Benson - Guitars, Drums & Percussion.

Alastair Popple - Programming.

More cut up mixing of performance and post production. 

Dreams of Civic Pride

Released on the 'Sliders' E.P. March 7th 2019.

Recorded 2017. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar & Bass.

Stephen Benson - Electric Guitar & Percussion.

Jessica Lowes - Vocals.

A series of sessions were recorded upstairs at Warwick Bazaar in 2017 and set aside for release. For one reason or another this didn't happen until 2019. The only song on this compilation not recorded at home, this was originally scheduled to be recorded by Brocken Spectre.

Close to Me

Released on 'Slow Daze' August 1st 2021.

Recorded Autumn 2020. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Keyboards.

Alastair Popple - Effects.

Released ahead of 'Slow Daze' as a promotional video.

A Tree With Roots

Released as the b-side to 'Erupt' October 28th 2014.

Recorded October 2014. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Bass.

Stephen Benson - Banjo & Drums.

David Thompson - Vocals & Guitar.

A song written a long time ago, this is the last released song recorded by The Dead West line up.

Angry Bees

Released on 'Slow Cancellation' June 1st 2020.

Recorded April 2020. Produced by Stephen Benson.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitars & Keyboards.

Steig & Eva

Released on 'Slow Cancellation' June 1st 2020.

Recorded April 2020. Produced by Stephen Benson.

Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitars & Keyboards.

Stephen Benson - Guitars & Bass.

The first lockdown of 2020 prevented any in person collaboration. Marc recorded ideas and sent them along to me. I added some instrumentation, mixed and finally produced the material. It seems all music recorded in the early days of the pandemic have a similar spook.

Driven to Dust

Released on '1955' July 22nd 2016.

Recorded July 2016. Produced by Alastair Popple.

Marc Gillen - Vocals & Acoustic Guitar.

Stephen Benson - Guitars, Sound Collage & Echo Machine.

Another absolute favourite. The final track on '1955' and a fitting end to this compilation.

Goatherder - The Hayton Tapes

 

TOR082. Released December 2021.

01 Goatherder & Asha Nicholson - Solo Wanderings #1

02 Goatherder - The Hayton Tapes Part 1

03 Goatherder & Asha Nicholson - Turn

04 Goatherder - The Hayton Tapes Part 2

05 Goatherder & Asha Nicholson - Solo Wanderings #2

Some more of my own music now...

'Solo Wandering' and 'Turn' performed by:

Stephen Benson - Effects & Piano.

Asha Nicholson - Piano, Voice & Effects.

Recorded live August 1st 2021. Mixed November 2021.

'The Hayton Tapes' live improvisation performed by:

Stephen Benson, Felicity Cromack, Emily Ford, Stephanie Gardner,

Gareth Hodgson, Ricardo Marzo, Camille Matton, Asha Nicholson,

Nick Taylor & Samantha Staniforth.

Recorded July 31st 2021. Mixed October 2021.

Cover illustration by Emily Ford, Photography by Stephen Benson.

Inbetween the lockdowns of 2020, I became a frequent visitor to Hayton Castle. The castle is a 14th or 15th century tower house; this was extended in the 16th and 17th centuries. It's occupants were artists, professionals and hippy types. 

The following year, an idea was formed about an evening of music performance, to be recorded, in one of the many rooms of the castle.

On the evening of July 31st 2021, several hours of jams and improvisations were recorded. Some were structured; to create a collage, contributors were given instruments (radio with effects, electric guitar with effects and trumpet and saxophone) and asked to make what sounds they could. These would be played alongside each other, but parts performed in isolation.

The majority of the evening was a series of live improvisations. I played electric guitar and effects with the rest of the performers used various drums, percussion and horns.

These recordings have been cut up and mixed together as 'The Hayton Tapes'.

The next morning was set aside for the second purpose of this weekend; to record myself and musical pal Asha Nicholson. In the same room, improvised piano and vocals were processed and effected live, with editing and mixing taking place in November.

Front cover llustration of Slag Bank by Emily Ford, from unused book cover.

Download, streaming and cassette version available from Bandcamp.

Various Artists - Esoterica Britannica XII 'Songs Awakened with the Spheres Alive'

 

01 Hannah Peel - Wind Shadow

02 Nick Drake - Time of No Reply

03 The Bonzo Dog Band - Sport (The Odd Boy)

04 The Raincoats - Odyshape

05 Genesis - Carpet Crawlers

06 Goldfrapp - Clowns

07 Spiro - Sky is a Blue Bowl

08 The Incredible String Band - Koeeoaddi There

09 Donovan - Get Thy Bearings

10 T. Rex - Diamond Meadows

11 Mike Oldfield - Mike Oldfield's Single (Theme from Tubular Bells)

12 Pulp - The Trees

13 Cate Le Bon - Fold the Cloth

14 Cocteau Twins - Beatrix

15 Pentangle - Travelling Song

16 Syd Barrett - Long Gone

17 Philip Jeck - Wipe

18 Anne Briggs & Will Gregory - Lowlands

19 XTC - Chalkhills and Children

20 Lal & Mike Waterston - Bright Phoebus

The Esoterica Britannica series comes to an end with this eleventh volume. Thank you to David Thompson for sending me these compilations. I'll leave you with his words, provided for the first volume, way back in December 2015:

"I have, for a long time, been fascinated with the idea of a common thread that might run through British art, and specifically music, connecting different artists and styles but somehow constituting a national consciousness that flows like an underground stream through the art and culture of this country. After all, the term ‘Americana’ exists and is a vibrant, if perhaps sometimes contentious, category under which certain types of American music are filed, marketed and reviewed. This can be traced back to old folk tunes and cowboy songs and include the artists and songs collected in Harry Smith’s Anthology of American Folk Music; country music from Jimmy Rodgers, the Carter Family and Hank Williams onwards; folk artists like Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly; blues, Cajun and Creole; Dylan, The Band, the Grateful Dead and onwards to contemporary artists like Daniel Johnston, Ryan Adams and Joanna Newsom and more cosmic variations like the music of Sun Ra, Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev and Animal Collective. The links between these artists might be stylistic or thematic or even an attitude, a way of looking at things – the connections might not always be obvious but they are nevertheless there. They might concern the existential concerns of a race, notions of identity, everyday challenges or historical changes or events or they may even try to identify or personify some kind of mystical quality or tradition(s).

Folk music would, then, seem to be the obvious place to start and I found a great deal of inspiration in Rob Young’s book “Electric Eden: Unearthing Britain’s Visionary Music”, which is an excellent study of British art and culture, looking at the themes, ideas and obsessions that run through the artistic history of these isles, but specifically folk music - from Cecil Sharp and classical artists such as Vaughan Williams, Warlock and Delius through the left-wing folk of Ewan McColl and A.L. Lloyd and British folk-rock and psychedelia of the 60s and 70s. What particularly fascinated me, though, was the latter part of the book, which identified other artists, working from the early 80s up to the present, who seemed less obviously connected to the folk tradition but who Young argues are still exploring the same themes – British history, the idea of Arcadia, the power and pull of the landscape, political and religious dissent and repression, paganism and Celtic mysticism, the occult, folklore and the ghosts and legends of the past. These artists included Kate Bush, Julian Cope, Brian Eno, Talk Talk, Aphex Twin and Boards of Canada and, once this connection had been established in my mind, other artists seemed to me to fit into this tradition of British ‘visionary music’, such as the Jam (and Paul Weller’s solo work), XTC, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Wire, Robyn Hitchcock, the Cocteau Twins, Damon Albarn, PJ Harvey, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and the spectral artists of the Ghost Box label.

Taking some of these artists, I set out to make a compilation that might hopefully capture what could be termed ‘Brittinicarna’. My process of considering, selecting and, in some cases, de-selecting artists and songs was highly individual and pretty instinctive – I soon developed a sense of what belonged and what didn’t. I suppose the only rough criteria that I can articulate is that the artist had to be British, that there was a distinctive voice or spirit to the track (and that this was also somehow intrinsically British), that it embodied the national psyche – its concerns and obsessions, its longings, wounds and idiosyncrasies – and that, despite whatever style of music it might normally be said to belong to, it could still be considered, at least in my mind, as ‘folk music’.

The usual definition of ‘folk music’ would be music that originates in traditional popular culture or that is written in such a style and that this would be typically music of simple character, often of unknown authorship, and would be transmitted orally by the common people from generation to generation. In my looser definition, I saw the kind of visionary strain in British music and culture I was looking for as being an expression of the national psyche which is passed on in many ways, manifesting itself in different styles but still recognisable as the common – though sometimes downright eccentric – people communicating to their fellows in a language which they will recognise, a code which they will be able to decipher. It is the sound of a nation talking to itself, the ghosts of our past haunting us still – communing with us, imparting ancient and mysterious wisdom, warning and inspiring us in equal measure. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, one CD was not enough – there were so many artists to include as well as others I discovered on the way - and so it grew to four volumes, while another collection of Ghost Box recordings was later added as a fifth instalment. These were meant initially for friends and were also intended to be the start of a conversation rather than the last word on the subject. Everyone will have their own ideas as to what music might be included – indeed these friends have already compiled their own volumes of “Esoterica Britannica” and I hope that there will be many of you out there, reading these words and listening to these collections, that will do the same. These islands are still full of voices which speak to each and every one of us in different and often esoteric ways. Listen,  enjoy, absorb and, most importantly, pass it on."

- David Thompson

Chocolate Watchband - No Way Out

 

Tower 1967

01 Let's Talk About Girls

02 In The Midnight Hour

03 Come On

04 Dark Side Of The Mushroom

05 Hot Dusty Road

06 Are You Gonna Be There (At The Love Inn)

07 Gone And Passed By

08 No Way Out

09 Expo 2000

10 Gossamer Wings

Debut album from California's answer to The Rolling Stones. Unfortunately for the Chocolate Watchband, they fell foul of those awful 1960's deals. The contract gave full power to the producers who insisted on more covers than original material, removed Dave Aguilar's vocals and replaced them with a singer of their choosing on some songs and even having entire 'ghost bands' on some tracks.

Despite this, the album is still awesome and a psych must have. Material the band recorded went on to fill another two albums (along with more session player material), I'll be posting those in the future.

Father Pat Berkery - Prayers For A Noonday Church

 

Glasgow 1969

01 Baptism/Silent Night

02 Confession/Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silent

03 An Altar/O Lord, I Am Not Worthy

04 Chalice/Panis Angelicus

05 Priesthood/Sing, My Tongue, The Saviors Glory

06 Seminary/Onward Christian Soldiers

07 Celibacy/Holy, Holy, Holy

08 Blessings/O God, From Whom All Blessings Flow

09 Preaching/To Jesus Christ Our Sovereign King

10 Sick Call/Dies Irae

Ridiculously rare curio from 1969. Father Pat Berkery was a hip priest from St. Louis who coupled his sermons with fuzz guitar west coast psychedelic rock. Never re-issued and hard to find.

Gila - S/T

 

BASF 1971

01 Aggression

02 Kommunikation

03 Kollaps

04 Kontakt

05 Kollektivität

06 Individualität

Haven't had any Krautrock in a while. Gila Füchs came from a Stuttgart political commune and this, their debut album (sometimes referred to as 'Free Electric Sound', was released in 1971.

Psychedelic German space rock, with jamming and sound effects. For fans of Agitation Free.

"HERE IT COMES THE BIG WAVE OF AGGRESSION!"

Dave & Toni Arthur - Hearken To The Witches Rune

 

Trailer 1971

01 Alison Gross

02 Tam Lin

03 A Fairy Tale

04 The Fairy Child

05 Broomfield Hill

06 The Standing Stones

07 The Cruel Mother

08 Alice Brand

Rare cult folk with a bizarre back story. Dave and Toni Arthur could be found presenting and writing songs for Play School and Play Away; two staples of BBC childrens television programming.

They had spent the last few years as a recording duo, with this album being a witchcraft folk oddity.

There are connections to Alex and Maxine Sanders (the imagery of whom can be found in certain parts of this blog) and the wiccan movement in the U.K.

The story is told far better and in depth here.

Repressed only once, in 1975.

Nightjrrs / Heartwood / Goatherder - De​-​Cadere

 

Treehouse Orchestra Recordings TOR081. 2021.

01 De-Cadere Part One

02 De-Cadere Part Two

03 De-Cadere Part Three

04 De-Cadere Part Four

More music with my own involvement. Recorded and released this month.

Nightjrrs:

John Chambers - Guitars and vocals.

Andy Hopkins - Guitars and vocals.

Nicci Reed - Keyboards and vocals.

Heartwood:

Jonathan Sharp - Buchla Music Easel Command, Soma Labs Lyra 8 and Eowave Quadrantid Swarm.

Goatherder:

Stephen Benson - Guitars and drones.

Recorded live at Cakes and Ale, Carlisle, October 4th 2021.

Mastered by Jonathan Sharp.

Cover art by Stephen Benson.

The Proseed art group in Carlisle ran an Autumn exhibition entitled 'De-Cadere'. The exhibition opened at the Intro gallery and the after party was held at Cakes and Ale cafe. The cafe displayed selected art works and live music.

Heartwood is the slight pseudonym of The Heartwood Institute when improvising more experimental modular sets.

Nightjrrs performed music from their new album 'Interregnum'.

Heartwood joined Nightjrrs, along with Goatherder for a 45 minute improvisation to end the evening and the recording of that improvisation is presented here.

Various Artists - Halloween 2021 - Cam's Halloween Psychedelic Murder Cult Scare/Chill Vibe Mixtape

 

01 Joshua Warren - The Ritual Chamber (Inside the Church of Satan)

02 Donovan - Season of the Witch

03 Robert Hermel - Industrie Spatiale

04 Pete Fine - Revelations/Prelude/For Sam

05 Alessandro Alessandroni - Suor Omicidi (Killer Nun) Sequence 4

06 The Shaggs - It's Halloween

07 Strawberry Alarm Clock - Curse of the Witches

08 Paul Giovanni & Magnet - Willow's Song

09 Bobby Beausoleil - Movement The Second

10 The Manson Family - Is There No One In Your World But You?

11 Macarbre - Be Forwarned

12 Barbera, The Grey Witch - Witch's Love Song

13 Mark Fry - The Witch

14 C.A. Quintet - Trip Thru Hell (Part 2)

15 Barbera, The Grey Witch - Excerpt from 'Gray Responsibilities'

A new mixtape for Halloween, although this time it was a request. 

Good pal Camille wanted a mixtape for a Halloween party that has the commission in the title.

Ultimate Spinach - Behold And See

 

MGM Records 1968

01 Behold & See (Gilded Lamp Of The Cosmos)

02 Mind Flowers

03 Where You're At

04 What You're Thinking Of (Jazz Thing)

05 Fragmentary March Of Green

06 Genesis Of Beauty (In Four Parts)

07 Fifth Horseman Of The Apocalypse

This is the second L.P. by Boston's Ultimate Spinach. West coast sounding, downbeat psych.

Grouper - Wide

 

Free Porcupine Society 2006

01 Make Me Over

02 Little Boat/Bone Dance (Audrey)

03 Imposter In The Sky

04 Giving It To You

05 Agate Beach

06 They Moved Everything

07 Black Blood

08 Shadow Rise, Drowned

09 Wide

With the imminent release of a new Grouper album, I thought I'd share another harder to get release from a few years ago.

Originally a CD release on Free Porcupine Society in 2006, this album has been re-issued (in very limited runs) several times:

Weird Forest Records L.P. Test Pressing (2006)

Grouper self released L.P. (2010)

Gene Clark - The Lighthouse

 

Bootleg

A1 The American Dreamer

A2 She's the Kind of Girl

A3 One in a Hundred

A4 Here Tonight

A5 She Darked the Sun

A6 Outlaw Song

B1 Back to Earth Again

B2 The Lighthouse

B3 The Awakening Within

B4 Sweet Adrienne

B5 Walking Through this Lifetime

B6 The Sparrow

B7 Only Yesterday's Gone

Another Gene re-imagining; this time I'm trying to make sense of the 1970 recordings. 

During this period, Gene embarked on a series of one off sessions, I've made these the basis of Side 1. 'The American Dreamer' and 'Outlaw Song' are both short solo pieces Gene wrote and recorded for 'American Dreamer', starring Dennis Hopper. 

'She's the Kind of Girl' and 'One in a Hundred' were intended to be released as a 'reunion' Byrds single in 1970 and features all five original members. Far superior to anything on the 1973 reunion album, it's a mystery as to why this single was cancelled.

'Here Tonight' and 'She Darked the Sun' were recorded by Gene and The Flying Burrito Brothers. It's tantalising to think about a Gene Clark led Burritos after the departure of Gram Parsons, all we have is this (again aborted) single.

The two unissued singles eventually ended up the European only release 'Roadmaster'. However, they sat uneasy with new recordings from 1973, which made for an unbalanced listen.

The second side features half an albums worth of songs that finally saw the light on Sierra Records 'The Lost Studio Sessions 1964–1982'. Again recorded in 1970, it's unclear what these were being recorded for. They are solo performances and a little too professional to be demos. 

This would of made a great Gene Clark album of contrasting styles and makes sense of this period before Gene once again set about making an album proper the following year.

Other Gene Clark re-imagined albums on this blog:

Back Street Mirror b/w Don't Let it Fall Through (1967)

The Gene Clark Group E.P. (1968)

Dillard & Clark (1969)

The Lighthouse (1970)

Mendocino (1971)

Whithueser & Westrupp - Trips Und Traume

 

Ohr 1971

01 Labt Uns Auf Die Reise Gehn

02 Trippo Nova

03 Orienta

04 Illusion

05 Karichen

06 Englisher Walzer

07 Nimm Doch Cinen Jint Mein Freund

Spaced out psych folk jams. One of Julian Cope's Krautrocksampler Top 100.

The Nightowl Sings - Slow Daze

 

Treehouse Orchestra Recordings 2021.

01 Percy

02 Weather Systems

03 I'll Take You to the Meadow, It's Nice There

04 Grow My Dears

05 Lighthouse

06 Lakes Ahoy

07 Close To Me

All tracks written by Marc Gillen, performed and arranged by Marc Gillen & Alastair Popple. 

Stephen Benson - Guitar on 'Weather Systems' and bass on 'Weather Systems', 'Lighthouse' and 'Close To Me'. Jacqueline Kumar - additional voice on 'I'll Take You to the Meadow, It's Nice There'.

Recorded at home by Marc Gillen October 2020 - April 2021.

Mixed and mastered by Alastair Popple at The Kitchen Sync October 2020 - April 2021.

Photography by Marc and design by Al.

Download also includes the promotional video for 'Close to Me' by Stephen Benson.

"Right about now, we’re gonna get to the old school beat of things. In an unexpected change of direction, Nightowl Sings has gone a bit techno trousers on us – at least for some of Slow Daze. Yes, he’s broken out the synth and drum machine on previous releases, but never to extent that he does on opening track “Percy”. With its undulating synth lines and pounding kick drum, this is Nightowl revealing the influence of Underworld on his work for probably the first time (if he’s doffed the cap before, he’s been a lot more subtle about it). If you’re going for a shift in direction, you may as well leap in with both feet and that’s exactly what happens with “Percy”. Expectations swept away, new scene set, all is well.

Although the direction is new, the approach to recording is as old school as you get. The Nightowl plays synths in the old analogue tradition of one finger at a time. No fancy sequencers were utilised here, just a bit of technical expertise from regular Nightowl collaborator Alastair Popple. For example, he takes the main bulk of “Percy”, whips out the digital razor blade and sticky tape and gives it an extra couple of minutes. Like the original recording techniques, you won’t notice, but it is worth acknowledging. There’s a counterpart to the opener in the shape of the gently lush ambient excursion, “Lakes Ahoy”, on the second side. That’s right, Slow Daze is the first TOR music to get a vinyl release, although it is an incredibly limited pressing. Hopefully, it will double as a pension fund when people realise what a musical treasure trove is buried in north Cumbria.

It’s not all epic electronic vistas, though. “Weather Systems” layers the jittery drum patterns into a ghost of a song. ‘Loving you is sweet,’ the Nightowl softly sings, and the trap is sprung. You’re hooked. The next two tracks have similarly haunting qualities: on “I’ll Take You To The Meadow, It’s Nice There”, it’s the overlaying of multiple voices flying across the stereo spectrum. The music that underpins it is frantic, busy, almost anxious. It’s curtailed before things get too out of hand: you won’t be sure if the invitation to the meadow is friendly or if there’s a shallow grave in the field with your name on it. Closing side one is the even more spectral “Grow My Dears”, which sounds as if it could float away on the breeze at any second.

The sequence of spookily, supernatural songs is completed by “Lighthouse”, a compelling instrumental that has more heft than initially apparent. Acting as a prelude to “Lakes Ahoy”, it’s the track that ties everything together, easing us from the vocal tracks back to the Nightowl not singing. That’s not the end of the story though, for “Close To Me” – ‘Don’t sell at any price,’ he croons, perhaps a warning to the handful that own the vinyl. It’s a positive way to end, listing the joys of discovering new things and casting out the old. This is a message that sums up the album as a whole: a new sound, a new life, and a new love to chase out the ghosts that have gone before. As the saying goes – there’s no school like the old school. Sometimes a moment to look back provides a fresh impetus to go forward. With Slow Daze, the Nightowl succeeds." - Jeremy Bye

The Neighb'rhood Childr'n - Long Years In Space 1967-1968

 

Sundazed 1997

01 Feeling Zero

02 Long Years In Space

03 Up Down Turn Around World

04 Changes Brought To Me

05 Please Leave Me Alone

06 Hobbit's Dream

07 Chocolate Angel

08 Patterns

09 Happy Child

10 Happy World Of Captain K

11 She's Got No Identification

12 Can't Buy Me Love

13 That's What's Happening

14 Sunday Afternoon

15 Feeling Zero

16 Little Black Egg

17 Tomorrow's Gone

18 Over The Rainbow

19 Louie, Louie

20 I Need Love

21 Yesterday's Thoughts

22 Woman Think

23 Long Years In Space [Alternate Version]

24 Behold The Lillies

The Neighb'rhood Childr'n were a San Francisco psychedelic band. They were compared to the Jefferson Airplane and were popular in and around town. Acid guitar with female lead vocals.

The band released their only album on Atca Records in 1968. Recorded between March 1967 and August 1968, this collection gathers together all the recordings from these sessions. 

Charlie & Esdor

 

Mellotronen 2005

01 Dagen Är Över

02 Då Klagar Mine Grannar

03 It's All Over Now

04 Fuck the Cops

05 Grönt Är Skönt

06 Två Mans Bridge Blues

07 Kan Du Hitta En Väg

08 Idag Sticker Jag Bort

09 How Does It Feel To Be Without Friends

10 Dagen Är Över

This compilation brings together all the available recordings by Swedish psych/commune rock players Charlie & Esdor. Starting as a duo of Charlie Franzén and Esdor Jensen, they recorded the seminal single 'Dagen Är Över' b/w 'Då Klagar Mine Grannar' for MNW Records in September 1970.

Another session was held in November 1970, adding guitarist Lasse Summanen. 'It's All Over Now' and 'Fuck the Cops' (retitled ' Wolf's Mouth Song') were released on a coloured 7" on MNW under the name Scorpion.

Work began on an album in late November 1970 and then on in to January and February of 1971 before the band split. Tracks 5 to 8 appeared as the 'Grönt Är Skönt' E.P. in 1972.

'How Does It Feel To Be Without Friend' was recorded live 18th of August 1970 at Moderna Museeet, Stockholm. 

Live version of 'Dagen Är Över' was recorded 28th of June 1970 in Katrineholm.

Då Klagar Mina Grannar / Dagen Är Över (Paper sleeve and coloured vinyl versions.

It's All Over Now (as 'Scorpion' 1970 coloured vinyl)

Grönt Är Skönt (1972 EP)

Various Artists - Esoterica Britannica XI: 'The Ghosts of Futures Lost' (for Mark Fisher)

 

01 The Focus Group - Starry Wisdom

02 Robert Fripp & Brian Eno - The Heavenly Music Corporation V

03 Cabaret Voltaire - Ooraseal

04 Sabres Of Paradise - Bubble and Slide

05 worriedaboutsatan - Blank Tape

06 Boards Of Canada - The Devil is In the Details

07 Coil - At the Heart of it All

08 Glynis Jones - Schlum Rooli

09 Pye Corner Audio - A Non-Place

10 The Pop Group - Savage Sea

11 Cosey Fanni Tutti - Tutti

12 Aphex Twin - Kladfygbung Mischk

13 Tristram Cary - The Mutants

14 John Foxx - X-Ray Vision

15 Roj - Meditation on Nothingness

16 Burial - Nightmarket

17 Philip Jeck - NOW YOU CAN LET GO

The penultimate edition of 'Esoterica Britannica' is dedicated to writer, music critic, cultural theorist, philosopher and teacher, Mark Fisher.

13th Floor Elevators - Headstone: The Contact Sessions

 

Charly Records 2009

01 You're Gonna Miss Me

02 Tried to Hide

03 Everybody Needs Somebody to Love

04 Take that Girl

05 You Can't Hurt Me Anymore

06 I'm Gonna Love You too

07 Monkey Island

08 Roller Coaster

09 Now I'm Home

10 Where Am I?

11 Fire Engine

12 You Can't Hurt Me Anymore [Take 1]

13 Fire Engine [Take 8]

14 You're Gonna Miss Me [Take 6]

15 Tried to Hide [Take 7]

16 I'm Gonna Love You too [45 rpm Single Version]

17 All Night Long [ as The Bad Seeds]

18 You're Gonna Miss Me [Vocal Track]

Early 13th Floor Elevators now. Originally released as part of the VERY limited box set 'Sign Of The 3 Eyed Men' and then as a stand alone release on the same label the following year, this is a collection of pre 'The Psychedelic Sounds of...' recordings.

The band secured a recording session with Gordon Byden to record a single in January 1966 and released debut single 'You're Gonna Miss Me' b/w 'Tried to Hide' on the hastily arranged Contact records. That single is included on this album, as well as other tracks recorded at an additional session in February 1966.

Taking advantage of the time at Andrus Studio, Houston, Texas, the band recorded an albums worth of songs.

After the release of the single, the band went on tour and were promptly signed by International Artists. These recordings were dropped as the band started to record their debut proper.

A lot of the tracks from that debut album appear here. I imagine this collection was the bands live repertoire at the time. 

A cool lo-fi alternate debut album from Texas' finest, Roky is already great.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Midnight

 

Self Made Compilation 2018

01 New Rising Sun

02 Look Over Yonder

03 Midnight

04 Red House

05 Stone Free

06 Calling All the Devil's Children

07 Hear My Train a Comin'

08 Peace in Mississippi

A fictional Hendrix album now. All material presented here was performed by The Jimi Hendrix Experience and recorded after the completion of 'Electric Ladyland' but before sessions for the final (but never completed) album.

Hendrix continued recording after the session for 'Electric Ladyland', but with no real focus in mind.

Shortly after, he would dissolve the Experience and start the funk trio Band Of Gypsys. The material from this interim period wasn't carried over for inclusion on the 'First Rays of the new Rising Sun' / 'Straight Ahead' project.

A lot of the stuff here is strong; loud, fuzzed out jams, with three instrumental tracks included. The 'Band Of Gypsys' album was handed over to the record label as a contractual obligation, this album of completed Experience tracks could of done that. 

Not that I'm complaining about 'Band Of Gypsys', it's wonderful.

Alain Goraguer - La Planète Sauvage (Bande Sonore Originale Du Film)

 

Pathé 1973

01 Déshominisation (II)

02 Déshominisation (I)

03 Générique

04 Le Bracelet

05 Ten Et Tiwa

06 Maquillage De Tiwa

07 Course De Ten

08 Ten Et Medor

09 Ten Et Tiwa Dorment

10 Ten Est Assomé

11 Abite

12 Conseil Des Draags

13 Les Hommes-La Grande Co-Existence

14 La Femme

15 Mira Et Ten

16 Mort De Draag

17 L'oiseau

18 La Cité Des Hommes Libres

19 Attaque Des Robots

20 La Longue Marche-Valse Des Statues

21 Les Fusées

22 Générique

23 Strip Tease

24 Méditation Des Enfants

25 La Vieille Meurt

Thought I would post this classic. The much sampled jazz, funk, experimental soundtrack to the animated french film.

Grouper - He Knows He Knows He Knows

 

Collective Jyrk 2006

01 He Knows

02 He Knows

03 He Knows

Haven't posted any Grouper in a long time. An earlier release here. Guitar pedal drone experiments.

The original release was a mini CDr sold at shows on a Canadian tour. The same year also saw an even more limited version on Something on the Road records for Israel.

Finally, Grouper self released a 7" version in 2009.