Cian Nugent & The Cosmos :: Born With The Caul

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Just a few weeks after the release of Chris Forsyth's mind splitting Solar Motel, the world is blessed with yet another long-form guitar masterpiece -- Cian Nugent & The Cosmos' Born With The Caul. Praise the Lord.
Dublin-based Nugent has performed and recorded mainly as a Takoma School solo guitarist for the past few years (though his last album Doubles featured some more orchestrated moments), but his latest effort sees him embracing the pleasures of a full band; The Cosmos' violin, drums, keyboards and bass provide a launching pad for Nugent's joyful six-string excursions. Throwing around the adjective "perfect" is a dangerous thing, but I'll be goddamned if I can find a single thing wrong with Born With The Caul.

The album kicks off with "Grass Over My Head," a track that suggests John Fahey and The Band playing a New Orleans funeral, with mournful horns and fingerpicked acoustic guitar suddenly shifting into a beautiful double time rag. As good as that is, it's only a preview of the glories to come. First up is "Double Horse," a dreamy drone that conjures up the magnificent, oceanic swells of Fairport Convention's classic "A Sailor's Life." A powerful, transfixing ride. Then, for the length of side 2, we're treated to the massive "The Houses of Parliament," a 23-minute song suite that travels from majestic folk rock to candy-colored psychedelia to Thin Lizzy-style boogie to pulse pounding raga rave-up as though it's no big thing. It's a lengthy journey, but not one second is wasted.

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SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show (Noon EST, Channel 35)

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Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can be heard twice, every Friday — Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST.

SIRIUS 318: Jean Michel Bernard — Générique Stephane ++ Courtney Barnett - History Eraser ++ Diane Coffee - All The Young Girls ++ Jonathan Rado - Hand In Mine ++ Richard Swift - Songs of National Freedom ++ Foxygen -   No Destruction ++ Courtney Barnett - Avant Gardner ++ Lou Reed - I Can't Stand It ++ Kim Fowley - International Heroes ++ Warren Zevon - Join Me . . .

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Vetiver / Kathy Heideman :: Sleep A Million Years / Reissue

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In 2008 Vetiver released  Thing of the Past, a collection of a dozen covers mining lost 60s and 70s folk treasures. Sourcing material from the likes of Bobby Charles, Townes Van Zandt, Michael Hurley, Elyse and beyond, in addition its own charms, the record serves as a fine introduction to a wide swath of lesser known crate-digger heroes. Like Kathy Heideman's “Sleep a Million Years” — for which Vetiver, in an inspired move, recruited Vashti Bunyan to lend her voice. While its inherent message is sweet and simple, the song (penned by Dia Joyce) manages to feel mysterious and elusive. And despite this simplicity, it's in the wording of the song's conclusion that lends the track its dream-like ether: “Don’t you know, that much too soon, we’re going to sleep a million years?” Vashti’s soft, lush vocals are the perfect foil to the cover’s aesthetic; her voice practically floats through Vetiver's gauzy blend of countrified charm.

Vetiver w/ Vashti Bunyan :: Sleep A Million Years

Until recently, aside from the occasional eBay listing, there has been little to no information regarding Heideman and her 1976 lp,  Move with Love. This changed last month with the Numero Group's vinyl and digital reissue. Here, the original version of “Sleep a Million Years” is a far more ragged and warbling affair, from the opening trembles of piano to Heideman’s voice, which exudes a dusty, quavering quality, not unlike that of another source for Vetiver —  Elyse Weinberg. The sound itself is all together more countrified and electric — its atmosphere far less dreamy and transient than the Vetiver/Bunyan interpretation.

Kathy Heideman :: Sleep A Million Years

Concerning the album as a whole, Heideman’s voice is raw, the music a lovely stir of languid, rustic country-folk. There are strokes of psychedelia (“Stormy”), and moments of baroque darkness, such as “Need,” with its reedy organ notes and dreamy vibraphone, where Heideman sings, “I don’t need you to love me, ‘cause mama gave me all the love I could stand." The title track, an era-appropriate simple paean to love and peace, feels like a missed anthem with hints of Melanie.

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The Last Days of NRBQ: Some Kind Of Blues

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Any lingering delusions concerning the silly charade that is the “Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame”  can be quickly dispelled by a single ludicrous oversight: NRBQ, short for the New Rhythm And Blues Quartet, has never made it onto a single ballot. Over the course of four decades, the band's vibrant, unruly take on everything from power pop to barrel house blues to free jazz has inspired generations of younger artists to emulate their infectious spontaneity. Peerless as musicians and songwriters, and unforgettable as performers, the group's classic line up of pianist Terry Adams, bassist Joey Spampinato, guitarist Al Anderson and drummer Tommy Ardolino was a musical Mount Rushmore, regularly drawing thousands of fans throughout the 80s and 90s to see their live spectacle, usually with little or no backing from a music industry too myopic to recognize their extraordinary appeal. When Anderson departed amicably in 1994 in order to pursue a highly successful career as a Nashville songwriter, Joey’s brother Johnny Spampinato nimbly replaced him on guitar, and NRBQ rolled on gloriously for nearly another decade.

Then in 2004, Adams was diagnosed with throat cancer. The band went on hiatus. The great ride, it seemed, was over.

It remains nearly impossible to overstate the devotion that the name NRBQ inspires in their ardent fan base. Counted within this coterie of admirers is a startlingly impressive cross-section of fellow artists and musicians, whose diversity and high profile are a tribute to the band's protean agility. Paul Westerberg and Elvis Costello have borne witness to the band's genius, and Keith Richards once handpicked Joey Spampinato to man the bass for his Chuck Berry tribute concert film Hail, Hail Rock And Roll. Everyone from Bonnie Raitt to Steve Earle to  She and Him  has covered their songs. Mike Scully, producer of “The Simpsons” counts the band as one of his very favorites, and has used NRBQ songs in multiple episodes. This is unsurprising - amongst other attributes - NRBQ songs are often hilarious.

Peter Jesperson, former manager of the Replacements, founder of the legendary independent label Twin Tone, and currently a vice president at New West records reflects the following: Whenever I hear statistics about who the biggest artist in the world is at any given time — whether it’s Elton John or U2 or Katy Perry - I always scratch my head. I mean — really? Why not NRBQ?”

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AD Presents :: Lee Fields @ One Eyed Jacks, New Orleans – 11/11

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Monday night, November 11th, Aquarium Drunkard welcomes Lee Fields & The Expressions to New Orleans @ One Eyed Jacks. We’re giving away three pairs of tickets. To land a pair, leave your name and email address below with your favorite Fields record. Winners notified via email. Tickets at will-call night of show . . .

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The Stranger Song: Leonard Cohen and McCabe & Mrs. Miller

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Robert Altman’s 1971 film McCabe & Mrs. Miller is a western quite unlike any other. It has in fact been described as an anti-western. Gone are the heroic, alpha-male and defenseless female archetypes, the numerous and gratuitous gunfights and the proud American spirit. In their stead is a quiet, moody and subtle depiction of frontier life on the cusp of a changing America. The film effectively debunks the myth of America's 'old west' and presents characters and situations that are nuanced and resonant; men who are weak, women who are guarded, violence that is random and senseless, and pillars of American society that are corrupt. Altman’s style, especially in the 70’s, is unmistakably distinct - the overlapping conversations, the gorgeously hazy cinematography, and the meandering nature of the film all lend it an entirely authentic and human quality.

A fan of Leonard Cohen’s 1967 debut, Songs of Leonard Cohen, Altman brilliantly chose three songs from the LP to serve as the film’s soundtrack. The rest of the film's music is diegetic, either performed by a citizen of the film’s fictional town of Presbyterian Church (who offhandedly toys with a ukulele or fiddle, adding a humorously ironic score to the casual conversations in Sheehan’s bar), or by a player piano in the brothel.

But the three Cohen songs, “The Stranger Song,” “Sisters of Mercy,” and Winter Lady,” work in perfect harmony with the film and allow Cohen to play the part of an invisible, informal narrator, filling in the blanks left by the naturalistic, show-don’t-tell, style of the film. As nothing much is offered by the film’s dialogue in the way of back-stories, motivations and desires, it is left to Cohen and his songs. And as McCabe and Mrs. Miller swoon across with the film’s patient, meditative narrative, a larger picture emerges, like pieces of a puzzle falling into place.

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Cate Le Bon :: I Can’t Help You (Via Mug Museum)

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Dig this earworm. First track off Mug Museum, Cate Le Bon's third LP, out next week - stateside - via Wichita Recordings. Let the angular Tom Verlaine/Television comparisons ring out. The record was cut earlier this year with Noah Georgeson and Josiah Steinbrick, here in LA, where the Welsh artist now calls home.

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The Lagniappe Sessions :: Zachary Cale

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Lagniappe (la ·gniappe) noun ‘lan-ˌyap,’ — 1. An extra or unexpected gift or benefit. 2. Something given or obtained as a gratuity or bonus.

Released earlier this year, Zachary Cale’s Blue Rider marked the singer-songwriters fourth full-length release – a deft meditation of fingerpicked guitar, drifting feedback and reverb laden vocals. This week’s installment of the become a member or log in.

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Who Is Don Muro? :: The Aquarium Drunkard Interview

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In early 2013, Jared Cheek and Jason Nickey came across a weird little record while working at the Bloomington, Indiana record shop, Landlocked Music. Titled It’s Time, the 1977 LP featured a black-and-white image of the man responsible for all the sounds within, songwriter Don Muro, surrounded by various synths and audio gear.

“Looking at the front cover [Jason] thought it seemed like something that I might be into, so we put it on and I loved every song on it,” Cheek explains.

Googling Muro’s name, Cheek found the artist still active, both as a performer and music educator. He shot off an email, inquiring if Muro would be interested in Cheek’s label, Flannelgraph Records, reissuing It’s Time. Muro promptly responded, and Landlocked offered to co-release the LP.

“I'm assuming that the process of reissuing a record from 36 years ago is normally not this painless, but Don's enthusiasm and helpfulness has made it a real joy,” Cheek says.

The reissuing process isn’t the only thing atypical about the story. It’s Time is a genuine original as an album. Its songs ping-pong between oscillating synth pop, ambient soundscapes, and crunchy AOR-inspired power-pop rippers; its lyrics blend charming naivety and smirking, cocksure glances. It’s no “outsider record” by in traditional terms -- Muro clearly knows what he’s doing with a pop song -- but it still resonates as far left of the sounds dominating the burgeoning FM airwaves of the day.

Don Muro :: Lay Low Day

After the jump...we catch up with Muro to discuss the reissue of It’s Time and beyond...

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AD Presents: Scout Niblett — Berlin, Germany / November 8th

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We’re in Berlin for six months. Next up — AD presents Scout Niblett, Novembr 8th, at Privatclub. Harmony Molina supports. We're giving away a few pairs of tickets to AD readers. To enter, leave a comment below with you name and a . . .

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SIRIUS/XMU :: Aquarium Drunkard Show (Noon EST, Channel 35)

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Our weekly two hour show on SIRIUS/XMU, channel 35, can be heard twice every Friday — Noon EST with an encore broadcast at Midnight EST.

Monster Rally guests on the show  this week -- his set can be downloaded,

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Jonathan Rado :: All The Jung Girls (Diane Coffee Cover)

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Jonathan Rado :: All The Jung Girls (Diane Coffee cover . . .

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Videodrome: Ghouls, Grind, Gothic & Gore: A Halloween Helper

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(Welcome to Videodrome. A monthly column plumbing the depths of vintage underground cinema – from cult, exploitation, trash and grindhouse to sci-fi, horror, noir and beyond.)

Aside from 14-year-olds and the few dozen AD readers recently thawed from 50-year cryo-sleep, no one wants to read another list of must-see horror films for Halloween. But seeing as splatter films and spectacular exploitation are the lifeblood of this column, it makes no sense to let the last few witching hours of October pass without showing a little love for scary movies.

When the need arises this all-hallow’s eve to screen a dark and brooding tale of terror, consult this list for a full rundown of hideous, hair-raising and at times downright deplorable cinematic gems to impress or scare the living shit out of your dearest fiends and neighbors. Ordered by sub-genre for your convenience, you loathsome devils.

Ghost Story —  The Legend of Hell House (1973)

A worthy entry in the surprisingly roomy pantheon of atmospheric ‘70s British chillers, this one runs on legit talent with iconic genre actor Roddy McDowall in the lead and a screenplay penned by the legendary Richard Mathieson. An original twist on a familiar theme–witnesses offered big bucks to disprove a haunting–comes strong with the creepy theatrics, campy but ominous dialogue and a full spectrum of psychological violation. Relies on suspense over gore, but deals in themes of madness, cannibalism, rape and evil while maintaining the creep factor shared by the best horrors of the early 1970s film era.

Witches — Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970)

Valerie and Her Week of Wonders may be best described as Czechoslovakian experimental concept horror, if that means something to you. Regardless of what it is, this beautiful piece of visual imagination falls neatly into “what the hell did I just watch” territory. It’s kind of a moral fable about the loss of youth and innocence, ushered on by painted druid priests and fanged forest warlocks. Attractive adolescent Valerie is beset by vampires, perverted sprites and lesbians in a Wonderlandian waking dream, where she must navigate the fantasy landscape to “survive.” An excellent choice if you’re looking for an ambient film filled with colorful, terrifying and often perverted imagery.

Gothic —  Castle Freak (1995)

Though it is by far the newest film on this list, Castle Freak shares a natural kinship with the low budget grindhouse movement of the 70s and 80s in its exploitative concept and respectful attention to graphic gore. As every fan of horror knows, the genre has deep roots in the medieval castle story. Castle Freak succeeds by taking that time-tested premise and gruesomely marring it with the murderous antics of a hairy, deformed mutant cannibal roaming the stone hallways of an ancient Italian castle. All that being said, Castle Freak is a surprisingly effective B movie horror with a top-notch creature-villain.

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The All Night Workers :: Why Don’t You Smile Now

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A blueprint for the nascent VU.

In the early 1960s,  just prior to the formation of the Velvet Underground, Lou Reed worked as a staff writer for the rip-off, cash-in label Pickwick Records. Concerning his time spent with the label, Lou himself was quoted as saying "There were four of us locked into a room and they would say, 'write ten California songs, ten Detroit songs'. These releases would largely head straight to the bargain bins with titles intentionally designed to confuse . . .

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Diane Coffee :: My Friend Fish

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Diane Coffee is tormented, liberated, terrified and triumphant. More altered attitude than alternate persona, Coffee is Shaun Fleming’s creation, a life crafted in tight, varied snapshots. Saturated with swagger and fanciful fits, My Friend Fish  whirls both emotionally and musically, steadied only by bravado, where even sadness is boldly pleaded.

An overlooked touchstone in the parade of critically appointed influencers for Fleming and his other group, Foxygen, is that of Beck - the gangly and stretched 21st-Century-bluesman by-way-of slacker-prophet. As such, Fish  shows flashes of  Odelay, Mutations,  Midnite Vultures  and  Sea Change. "All The Young Girls," Fleming's iteration on the Princely tenderness of Midnite Vultures' closer  "Debra," is particularly demonstrative of the sleazy steeze that seeps from both records. Whereas “Hymn” and “Tale of a Dead Dog,” are the bombastic, airy, folksier singles from a record that otherwise features a heavy dose of vibed-out R&B and vibed-out Punk.

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