Half Japanese - 1/2 Gentlemen / Not Beasts

An excerpt from the Half Japanese documentary, "The Band That Would Be King".

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Half Japanese
1/2 Gentlemen / Not Beasts
(1980)

All Music Guide:
"As with any album that is three records long, 1/2 Gentlemen/Not Beasts unwittingly shows Half Japanese's true roots. Over the three records, the band "covers" such minimalists as the Velvet Underground, the Stooges, and Jonathan Richman, as well as deconstructing such wordsmiths as Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan. Although they would have you believe that their untuned, almost unlistenable, instrumental clatter is the result of being so enthusiastic that they didn't bother to learn how to play their instruments, it's just the logical, inevitable intellectual extension of Richman's naivete and the Velvet Underground's stripped-down guitar. Half Japanese is consciously primitive and amateurish. "

Tracklist:
DISC 1
1. "No Direct Line from My Brain to My Heart" - (2:00)
2. "10th Avenue Freeze Out" - (1:50)
3. "Ta Sheri Ta Ta" - (4:55)
4. "My Girlfriend Lives Like a Beatnik" - (1:05)
5. "Her Parents Came Home" - (0:59)
6. "Shhh-Shhh-Shhh" - (2:12)
7. "Girls Like That" - (2:12)
8. "Rrrrrrrrrrr" - (1:27)
9. "No More Beatle Mania" - (1:53)
10. "Tangled Up in Blue" - (3:45)
11. "Patti Smith" - (2:23)
12. "School of Love" - (1:07)
13. "Jodie Foster" - (2:15)
14. "Shy Around Girls" - (1:37)
15. "Grrrrrrrrrr" - (2:24)
16. "Bogue Millionaires-Cool Millionaires" - (2:11)
17. "Tn Tn Tn Tn Ki" - (3:10)
18. "I Can't Stand It Anymore" - (2:24)
19. "I Love Oriental Girls" - (1:44)
20. "Dream Date" - (1:33)
21. "Du Du Du - Du Du Du" - (7:22)
22. "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" - (1:10)
23. "Ann Arbor, MI" - (0:33)
24. "I'm Going to the Zoo" - (1:13)
25. "Shi Yi Yi" - (0:58)
26. "Rave On" - (1:42)
27. "I Ta Na Si Na Mi Eee" - (1:02)
28. "Till Victory" - (2:16)
29. "Rip My Shirt to Shreds" - (0:19)
30. "I Don't Want to Have Mono No More" - (1:41)
31. "She Cracked" - (1:57)
32. "Bbbb-bbbb" - (1:36)
DISC 2
1. "Funky Broadway Melody" - (4:13)
2. "I'm Sorry" - (1:37)
3. "T-T-T-T-T-T" - (6:43)
4. "The Worst I'd Ever Do" - (0:44)
5. "Live in Baltimore MD" - (20:17)
6. "Live in Washington DC" - (18:16)
7. "Battle of the Bands" [*] - (1:59)
8. "Worst I'd Ever Do" [*] - (0:42)
9. "Ann Arbor, MI" [*] - (0:53)
10. "School of Love" [*] - (1:32)
11. "Her Parents Came Home" [*] - (0:57)
12. "Shy Around Girls" [*] - (1:11)
13. "Dream Date" [*] - (1:43)
14. "Bogue Millionaires-Cool Millionaires" [*] - (3:29)
15. "Knock on Wood" [*] - (1:44)
16. "Top Secret" [*] - (0:48)
17. "Guitar Solo" [*] - (0:41)
18. "Calling All Girls" [*] - (1:04)

VBR

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Boredoms - Super Roots 2

Boredoms
Super Roots 2
(July 25, 1994)

Discogs:
"Not sold in stores. Only available to people who had purchased the first press of the Chocolate Synthesizer CD and sent in the postcard included to take part in the lottery for the CD."

Tracklist:
1. "Sexy Boredoms" - (0:56)
2. "Go Come Uparks" - (1:19)
3. "Magic Milk" - (1:44)
4. "White Plastic See-Thru Finger" - (2:03)
5. "Boxodus (Noise Ramones Mix)" - (0:32)

256 kbps

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Acid Mothers Temple - Electric Heavyland

Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O.
Electric Heavyland
(October 6, 2002)

All Music Guide:
"This particular studio release came described as one of the band's heaviest efforts yet, recorded by the compact five-person lineup of 2002 in May of that year. Lead guitar maniacs Makoto Kawabata and Hiroshi Higashi, bassist Atsushi Tsuyama, drummer Hajime Koizumi, and singer/keyboardist Cotton Casino incarnate Acid Mothers Temple on this one, and the result is, unsurprisingly, mayhem. Given all of the various releases and spin-off efforts in existence, to be sure, selecting this one as a particular winner may be a bit bold, but from when the opening track (of three total), "Atomic Rotary Grinding God/Quicksilver Machine Head," fully launches, it's hard to hold back the love. Kawabata and Higashi, in particular, come up with the monster riffs of God (or rather, more of the same not used previously), more often than not overpowering even the frenetic rhythm section, while Casino's brand of weird chaos, especially toward the end, can barely be described. "Loved and Confused," besides continuing the wink toward the birth of classic rock via song titles, completely cuts loose into moments of Kawabata/Higashi solo madness, with the band almost audibly trying to find a rhythm as it goes. There are even more random vocal squeals from Casino on this song as well, making the final result sound like a scared ghost wandering through a collapsing factory. "Phantom of Galactic Magnum" concludes things on the same note, but the slow-build start makes the inevitable explosive chaos all that much more of a trip. About the only thing that sounds like it's missing by the end is Mephistopheles' kitchen sink, with Casino in particular creating some head-melting keyboard lines. The side credits for each member are a kick: Among them, Casino is credited with beer and cigarettes, while Higashi is the "dancin' king" and Kawabata the "speed guru.""

Tracklist:
1. "Atomic Rotary Grinding God / Quicksilver Machine Head" - (15:43)
2. "Loved and Confused" - (17:02)
3. "Phantom of Galactic Magnum" - (18:58)

192 kbps

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Acid Mothers Temple - Univers Zen ou de zéro à zéro

Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O.
Univers Zen ou de zéro à zéro
(2002)

All Music Guide:
"Puzzled by this album's title? It belongs to Acid Mothers Temple's list of "tribute titles," although this time it doesn't reference Jimi Hendrix or Frank Zappa. Univers Zero was a key developer of avant-garde chamber rock and took part in Chris Cutler's Rock in Opposition movement in the late '70s (check out the group's AMG biography for more). Is there any link between UZ and the music on Univers Zen Ou de Zéro à Zéro? No, not the least bit. This album stands as one of AMT's strongest realizations, simply because it covers a lot of musical ground in exciting ways and with good enough studio sound to satisfy a selective listener without killing the trashy feel of the music. The album begins with a frantic space rock jam, "Electric Love Machine." It propels a heavy guitar riff into interstellar space Hawkwind style -- i.e., without making a single pit stop and with plenty of synth sweeps. "Soleil de Cristal et Lune d'Argent" (Crystal Sun and Silver Moon) is more nuanced, starting from almost nothing, building into a jam frenzy (listen to it on headphones; there are a lot of instruments buried under the guitar drone), coming apart and starting over for an orgiastic finale. "Ange Mécanique de Saturne" (Saturn's Mechanical Angel) is a trippy guitar-and-voice number, anticlimactic and haunting. "Blues Pour Bible Noire" will enrage any blues purist: For 20 minutes it kicks around a simple 12-bar motif drenched in echo and avant rock guitar solos. The album ends on an unannounced piece of strange vocalizing, adding that Dada touch fans of the group love. In an already crowded discography, Univers Zen manages to crawl its way to the top as one of AMT's most representative albums. If you were looking for a place to start, you found it."

Tracklist:
1. "Electric Love Machine" - (10:34)
2. "Ange Mécanique de Saturne" - (10:31)
3. "Blues pour la Bible Noire" - (21:40)
4. "Trinité Orphique" - (2:31)
5. "Soleil de Cristal et Lune d'Argent" - (22:26)
6. "God Bless AMT" - (3:43)
7. "A Bamboo Is as Close as Miss Marsh to Marshmallow" - (7:38)
8. "Sir Satanic Magic Bamboo Jerks Off" - (10:34)
9. "Magic Head Cheese" - (13:34)
10. "Man on the Holy Mountain" - (3:55)
11. "Sweet Lucille, or Lick My Milk Off Baby" - (11:03)
12. "Cosmic Magic of Love, Pt. 2" - (2:02)

192 kbps

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Acid Mothers Temple - Absolutely Freak Out (Zap Your Mind!!)

Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O.
Absolutely Freak Out (Zap Your Mind!!)
(February 2001)

allmusic.com:
"Led by the original "speed guru" himself, Kawabata Makoto, Acid Mothers Temple are a 12-piece band this time around, and these 12 people have come up with a bounty of music so magical and infuriating that a single disc would not have been enough. Absolutely Freak Out: Zap Your Mind! is Acid Mothers Temple's highest peak, over two hours of their trademark freakout goodness. "Supernal Infinite Space/Waikiki Easy Meat" is the highlight, starting with a long, spaced-out guitar drone, which finally coalesces when the back-masked drums arrive to save the day. This piece is reminiscent of Acid Mothers Temple's other peak, "In E," their adapted take on Terry Riley's "In C." The track is a complete Krautrock drone freakout that relaxes into a jazzy, spacy-lounge trip. Were there to be a best of AMT, "Supernal Infinite Space" should be the lead track. "Children of the Drab" is notable for its similarity in structure to Faust's "Tapes." The song starts out a slow Pink Floyd-ian blues, then moves into an acid-washed middle section of Floyd's "Echoes," with vocalist Cotton Casino's strange Yoko-esque vocalizing and a menacing guitar. After building up and melting down several times, the band name-drops Stone Cold Steve Austin and then launches into one of its most aggressive pieces, "Surfin' Paris-Texas," which only runs about two minutes before again morphing into another section. The piece is staggering in construction and disorienting in execution. Absolutely Freak Out: Zap Your Mind! is a perfect introduction to this most prolific and intimidating of bands. It showcases the level of diversity and the instrumental acumen of the group. Recommended."

Tracklist:
1. "Supernal Infinite Space / Waikiki Easy Meat" - (19:20)
2. "Grapefluit March / Virgin U.F.O. / Let's Have a Ball / Pagan Nova" - (18:37)
3. "The Incipient Light of the Echoes / Magic Aum Rock / Mercurical Megatronic Meninx" - (19:45)
4. "The Kiss That Took a Trip / Magic Aum Rock Again / Love Is Overborne / Fly High" - (18:35)

192 kbps

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Acid Mothers Temple - New Geocentric World of Acid Mothers Temple

Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O.
New Geocentric World of Acid Mothers Temple
(2001)

allmusic.com:
"There is only one way to listen to the Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso UFO: with a sense of adventure and a very open mind. This Japanese band doesn't exactly cater to mainstream sensibilities, but if you're daring enough to go along for the ride, New Geocentric World of Acid Mothers Temple offers considerable rewards. This unpredictable CD is hard to categorize; much of the material could be described as either neo-psychedelic rock or avant-garde rock, and one can hear the direct or indirect influence of classic rockers who range from the Jefferson Airplane to Hawkwind to King Crimson. But liking a lot of trip-out music from the 1960s and 1970s doesn't guarantee that you will find this band's neo-psychedelic/avant-garde experiments to be accessible. Hardly a carbon copy of the psychedelic or progressive acts from the hippie era, the Acid Mothers Temple incorporates Japanese and Indian elements in its own bizarre, eccentric, left-of-center way. Many of the tunes are moody and spacy (especially "Mellow Hollow Love," "Space Age Ballad," and "Universe of Romance"), but on "Occie Lady," the Acid Mothers Temple favors a metallic approach that hints at Blue Cheer and Jimi Hendrix. And "Psycho Buddha" is a 21-minute jam that could be described as a cross between acid rock and electric free jazz -- abrasive, noisy, heavy, and dissonant, this tune isn't for the squeamish. But then, nothing on this CD caters to the unadventurous. New Geocentric World of Acid Mothers Temple is strictly for more daring listeners."

Tracklist:
1. "Psycho Buddha" - (21:27)
2. "Space Age Ballad" - (4:00)
3. "You're Still Now Near Me Everytime" - (10:44)
4. "Universe of Romance" - (5:21)
5. "Occie Lady" - (8:31)
6. "Mellow Hollow Love" - (4:39)
6. "What Do I Want to Know (Like Heavenly Kisses Part 2)" - (15:06)

128 - 192 kbps

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