Rafi Bookstaber - Greener Pastures (HUM 1001)

And I'm going where those chilly winds don't blow. Peace and love to my friends at Humboldt Relief :)

The other day I was listening to "Rain and Snow" from the Dead's 02-13-70 Fillmore East show. It felt right given the blustery weather of late. As Jerry belts out, "And I'm going where those chilly winds don't blow" I almost concurrently look to my record crate, in which Rafi Bookstaber's Greener Pastures glows next to the candlelight. "That's where I want to go next" I say to myself. Greener Pastures, on Humito, finds Rafi crafting bucolic, serene guitar meditations infused with yearning and observation. I often take refuge and find a path back to awareness through Rafi's solo music. Among it's many illustrious qualities, the music is comforting, reflective, and mellifluous. It's an intimate recording, the type that embraces the space in which it is played. The listener saddles up next to Rafi in the cozy "Remember Silver Spring...". Warm, reflective strums form the backdrop for soulful fretwork. The languorous "Ain't Nothin Blues" adds vocals, harmonica and various percussion to the mix. Rafi's vocals hover and echo next to gentle guitar. Later, he parts the clouds with an electric section that leaves a vapor trail. Moments of reflection placidly pour forth via tender finger picking on "High Moon". "Sligo Watershed Blues" may be one of the best tracks on the album. Rafi's musical ideas and playing are sublime in this track.      

 Rafi continues to release music through various outlets. Some of the solo stuff is released small-run style through his label, Azriel. Also, he disseminates heady lofi basement burners as a member of Mendocino. Those were some of my favorite tapes of 2013. The next page in that trichome-covered story is currently available through Tomentosa - a review will be on these pages next week. Aswara is the duo of Rafi and Paul, from Death Chants. They recently contributed to a track on MV & EE's, Shade Grown. Greener Pastures comes in a heavyweight sleeve with a paste-on wraparound cover that also accompanies the celestial Space Communion reissue, HUM 1002. For the person willing to do their due diligence, Humito and other Rafi Bookstaber releases may be located online through various distros and shops. However, after much searching there is likely only one copy of Greener Pastures left; and it's available directly from label. No samples are available, but by now you know I don't bring the crumbly commercial stuff to the party. Lets get lifted together with this otherworldly nug.  

peace and love, friends :)  

MV & EE - Shade Grown (Blackest Rainbow Records)

lunar jams and some sweet leaf relief. peace and love to my friends at Humboldt Relief :)

It's something which was grown in the shade with properties unique to that setting and time. This collection of jams is unlike any other in the MV & EE discography - C.O.M. vibrations abound. Shade Grown, the most recent release from MV & EE on Blackest Rainbow, is a blissful and beautiful album containing various members of the Golden Road: Rongoose, Smokehound, Herbcraft, Jeremy Earl, Doc Dunn, Muskox, Mick Flower, Rafi Bookstaber, and Paulie G. There are many memorable sonic experiences, one of which is crystal-covered, "Crazy Snow (Meltdown)". Enlightened vibrations beget ethereal waves that permeate one with ease, diffusing golden rays and faithful vibrations throughout the soul. Breathy vocals float next to ritual rhythms. Shortly, MV's guitar erupts, traversing the peaks and valleys with a wonderful solo. The overall sound of the record, musicianship, and the quality of the vocals and harmonies are paramount when ruminating on Shade Grown. In the opener, "Cocola Parabola (Sugar on Snow Version)", MV & EE's vocals hover dreamily. EE's voice flutters over Rongoose's heady bass, Smokehound's awesome drumming, and MV's guitar like a cool breeze on a hot day - lovely stuff and a track to which I continually return. The flipside is as strong as anything I have encountered. The progression from "Lead Me to Vibration" to "Eagles-->Needmore" to "Patriot Act" resides in venerable sonic territory. The bleary lunar blues of "Lead Me to Vibration" lead to the serene guitars and ascendant vocal harmonies of "Eagles". The drumming of Mick Flower and Doc Dunn fuses perfectly with MV's guitar, giving rise to the slow burn of, 'Needmore'. Jeremy Earl joins in on vocals for the last track, "Patriot Act". A lovey and wistful track, harmonies hover over contemplative guitar and MV's visceral harmonica.
        

Records of this quality are rare. The vinyl of Shade Grown is pure grip it and rip action - no mp3's/previews or streaming available. There's nothing like that first drop of the needle on MV & EE vinyl - it transforms the space. The track below is a bonus cut from the C.O.M. cd, which is not available on the Blackest Rainbow vinyl. I purchased my copy from Eclipse. The last few copies are available directly from the label. 

peace and love, friends :)

Desmadrados Soldados De Ventura - Striiide (dd08)

Morning Wood gets one into their stride. peace and love to my friends at Humboldt Relief :)

This is one the heads will not want to miss. Deep Distance, the cosmic offshoot of Great Pop Supplement, put out some great records last year. Stellar releases from Köhn, J.D. Emmanuel, and Expo 70 culminated in a fine year for the label. Generally concentrated on electronic and kosmische releases, Deep Distance scored one of the finest goals of 2013 with some psych heaviness from Manchester collective, Desmadrados Soldados De Ventura. Literally a majestic strike from distance, Striide, doesn't waste any time in unleashing a deluge of top notch improvised free-form psych - with a garage feel - mayhem. Striiide's pervasive sonic assault is the product of three guitars, two basses, drums and vocals. Of particular delight is the manner in which Kate Armitage's vocals - consumed by the guitar/bass/drums vortex - emit a ubiquitous, dreamy quality. Andrew Cheetham's adept and intense drumming maintains stride, proceeding at a furious pace. At full speed, the barrage of psych goodness envelops one. The second release from this unit, which includes some new players surges unrelentingly upward, a brilliant object ascending into the ether, serenading the stars with unremitting dissonance and omnipotent guitar fury.

Accompanied by some of the best artwork of 2013, Striiide possesses that top-shelf, head warrior high that I seek with alacrity. Lately when I'm in need of a psych fix, I reach for Nick Mitchell-related projects. In only a few days the next batch of heaviness will be harvested, a 2lp on Mitchell's Golden Lab Records. Highly recommended and released in a pressing of 300 copies, the remaining copies of Striiide may be purchased through the band or from Volcanic Tongue.

peace and love, friends :)

Tasty Trichomes 2013

Oh yeaaaah - fire in the hole! Tasty Trichomes has returned to get you lifted 2013 style. Every release reviewed on this site is thoroughly enjoyed. Yet, there are some which affected me prodigiously. This list, along with the one from Tabs Out, contains some of those high watermark moments.

Regarding the list, it is ordered randomly. More so, there are several releases here that were not reviewed on this site. Some will be reviewed in the forthcoming weeks.

 Nothing approached the heady beauty of Herbcraft's The Astral Body Electric - it's the gift which keeps giving and easily my number one release. Thank you to the folks that have visited the site over the past two years! Well, the hash oil is bubbling and the kief is shimmering in the light. Let's burn one together, friends. I'll see you in 2014 with reviews from Cosmic Winnetou, Already Dead, Cave, No Kings, Eiderdown and many more! Happy new year to you and your families. I hope 2014 brings health and happiness to all! Peace and love to my friends at Humboldt Relief :) 

C. Joynes et Son Ensemble - Portland Arse (Sloow Tapes)

Jake Blanchard - Archaic Practices (FCR13)

Fluorescent Heights - Tidal Motions (PURR021)

Kyle Landstra - Sage (CW09)

Stinging Nettle - Untitled (Tabernacle Tapes)

Grant Evans - Dragging Alabaster (House of Sun)

Von Himmel - Rock N Roll Animal/Traum Esel (Donkey Disk)

Alan Gesso - Obliscence (Field Studies 12)

Glass House - Savage Times (Sicsic046)

Courtly Illusion Limited - Untitled (Space Slave 14)

Herbcraft - The Astral Body Electric (Woodsist 066)

Aqua Nebula Oscillator - Excavation (Assommer 003)

Pierrot Lunaire - This Love of Mine (Sicsic042)

Thoughts on Air - January Man (Worn Habit no. 07)

Pandelindio - Fuego Y Soma (FCR019)

Günter Schlienz - Catalanian Tapes (SR-02)

Golden Gunn - S/T (TLR 095)

Ecstatic Cosmic Union - XCU (EID 007)

VA/ Pop Yeh Yeh - Psychedelic Rock from Singapore and Malaysia 1964-1970: Vol. 1 (SF 079 CD)

Former Selves - Calico Sunset (Sicsic053)

Golden Pawn - This Lake is A Misty Mirror (Space Slave 17)

Paul Hares - Blurred (RC70)

Chalaque - Sounds From the Other Ideology (FCR23)

White Poppy - Drifter's Gold (PURR0034)

Rainbow Body - Free Sentient Beings (GJ-044)

Mendocino - Ray's Chapel (Old Man Tapes #1)

Black Thread - Fragrant Hoof Carvings (Turmeric Magnitudes)

Thoughts on Air/NoShoesandOneSock (TT-03)

 I am Just a Pupil - I Don't Know Yet (dbt.XXIV)

Lace Bows - Bows of Summer (ExoTape016)

Hellvete - Sint-Denijs (BRR245)

Xiphiidae - Quaking Myth (Zorn33)

Kevin Greenspon/Former Selves - Betrayed By The Angels/Apropos of Golden Dreams (Bridgetown #100)

Robbie Basho - Visions of the Country (GNM026)

Portopia '81 - Electronic Communication (GJ-041)

Gerda Taro - The First Hundred Years (NL001)

Christopher Merritt - Imaginary Colors (Orange Milk 2013)

VA - Duets II (TQ51)

DSR Lines - Venndiagram (SK009)

Sleeper - From Beyond (SNT007)

Rafi Bookstaber - Still Way (Azriel 10)

Monte - Index (Dept04)

Vales - Boreal Head Trip (Skell015)

Desmadrados Soldados De Ventura - Striiide (DD08)

Bird People - Water Buffalo (Sloow Tapes)

Raising Holy Sparks - Bright Angel Trail (CW16)

MV&EE - Shade Grown (BRR270)

Von Himmel -Weltraumrückführungsübereinkommen  (Sloow Wax 002)

Mike Gangloff - Poplar Hollow (BRR257)

Flamen Dialis - Symptome-Dei (Papaaver 003)

Steve Gunn - Time Off (POB-08)

Suzuki Junzo - Sings II (MVD5921LP)

peace and love, friends :)