Stream Brown Acid – The Sixth Trip
The forthcoming latest edition of the popular compilation series of long-lost vintage 60s-70s proto-metal and stoner rock singles, Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip, is set for release on April 20th, 2018. The series is curated by L.A. label RidingEasy Records and retailer/label Permanent Records.
About Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip:
If youโd told us when we started this epic journey that weโd have six volumes worth of licensed tracks released in just three years, we wouldโve laughed in your face! Doing the Dark Lordโs work isnโt an easy job, but somebodyโs gotta do it, so here we are with six Trips under our belt and more lined up. You heads just canโt get enough obscure hard rock, heavy psych, and proto-metal from the late-60s & 70s! And for that, weโre grateful for the opportunity to keep laying these slabs in your lap.
This isnโt just a random mixtape we threw together off the Internet. We find the records, track the bands and transfer the tapes, so you donโt have to. The bands did their job back in the day by writing, recording and releasing this material, most times against all odds, and youโve squandered your hard earned scratch on this record, so I guess the least we can do is continue to compile quality RockโnโRoll cuts from the golden age of heaviness.
This time around we have 10 deep cuts from across the continental US of A and one from our neighbors up North. This Trip kicks off with an outrageous number from Gold out of San Francisco circa 1970. The band used to open their sets with this over-the-top frantic jammer which is absolutely mind-blowing and also leads one to believe that the only band that couldโve held a candle to Gold back in the day wouldโve been the mighty Blue Cheer.
As we delve deeper into the depths, Canadians continue to prove that they could bang heads with the best of โem! Heat Exchange from Toronto released the rollicking ripper โInfernoโ on the Yorkville label way back in 1968 and itโs still thumping almost 50 years later!
Missouri isnโt a state that brought us a lot of heavy 45s, but there are a handful of outstanding tracks from the Show Me State, one of which is the funk-laced anthem โGive Me Timeโ by Backwood Memory from Kansas City. Speaking of Show Me, many thanks to our KC pal Jeffrey Harvey for turning us on to this one and helping put us in touch with the band.
The longer we do this, the more we begin to believe that Youngstown, Ohio was the Hard Rock Mecca back in the day. Travis is yet another Youngstown group that aimed to get asses out of seats and out in the streets. โLovinโ Youโ is a groovy banger with a sultry riff originally released on the prolific Starshine Productions imprint.
Six years prior to his Arcadian synth-funk novelty hit โSpace Invadersโ from 1980, Victor โUncle Vicโ Blecman took Flight into the studio with a list of relationship requirements. Amongst which are his need for โLuvinโ, Hugginโ, & Moreโ, with emphasis on the โMoreโ part if weโre to believe the urgency with which he delivers this fist-pumper.
If you donโt immediately recognize the Truth & Janey moniker, you need to get with it and familiarize yourself with their incredible 1976 LP โNo Rest For The Wickedโ. Itโs a proto- metal masterpiece thatโs been reissued on Rockadrome. Released four years earlier than their debut LP, โMidnight Horsemanโ is a 45-only track backed with a cover of โUnder My Thumbโ. Dennis Bergeron from Rockadrome was crucial in helping us obtain the rights to this Iowa burner.
Another Iowan group, West Ministโr, self-released three 45s between 1969 and 1975. Theyโre all great in their own way, but โMy Lifeโ hit the crunchy sweet spot in โ71 with vocals sounding like a fresh from primal scream therapy John Lennon over a zonked-out Hendrix groove. You can count on hearing more from West Ministโr on future Trips.
Itโs nearly impossible that Dayton, Ohioโs Purgatory didnโt seize the โStrange Daysโ and join โThe Soft Paradeโ while โWaiting for the Sunโ. And although โPolar Expeditionโ wears its influences on its sleeve, 1969 would have been at least a little worse off if the band hadnโt self released this single.
Johnny Barnes was definitely โsmokinโ that reeferโ and โdrinkinโ that wineโ when he released โSteel Rail Bluesโ in 1976. The label states that you could order a copy of this 45 for by sending $1 to a PO Box in Boston and itโs the only record on the Brown Acid series that seems to be obtainable currently for about the same amount it was sold for over three decades ago. That said, itโs doubtful that it will remain so cheap for much longer.
With a track as heavy as โIs There No Peaceโ itโs easy to let the name of the label on this 45 slide. In Chicago in 1970 PSLHRTZ seemed like as good a label name as any for the guys in Zendik to release this insane recording on. Halfway through the track you might be wondering to yourself, โHow was this not a hit?โ, and then you hear the lyrics to the last bit of the song and understand. Thank Christ for Zendik, even if he is dead.
Well, there ya have it. Months worth of record digging and detective work for about 40 minutes worth of music. Some people might think this is a waste of time, but we donโt and we hope you donโt either. This is the stuff that makes life worth living, at least until the next Trip…
About the Brown Acid series:
Some of the best thrills of the Internet music revolution is the ability to find extremely rare music with great ease. But even with such vast archives to draw from, quite a lot of great songs have gone undiscovered for nearly half a century — particularly in genres that lacked hifalutin arty pretense. Previously, only the most extremely dedicated and passionate record collectors had the stamina and prowess to hunt down long forgotten wonders in dusty record bins — often hoarding them in private collections, or selling at ridiculous collector’s prices. Legendary compilations like Nuggets, Pebbles, ad nauseum, have exhausted the mines of early garage rock and proto-punk, keeping alive a large cross-section of underground ephemera. However, few have delved into and expertly archived the wealth of proto-metal, pre-stoner rock tracks collected on Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip.
Lance Barresi, owner of L.A./Chicago retailer Permanent Records has shown incredible persistence in tracking down a stellar collection of rare singles from the 60s and 70s for the growing compilation series. Partnered with Daniel Hall of RidingEasy Records, the two have assembled a selection of songs that’s hard to believe have remained unheard for so long.
“I essentially go through hell and high water just to find these records,” Barresi says. “Once I find a record worthy of tracking, I begin the (sometimes) extremely arduous process of contacting the band members and encouraging them to take part. Daniel and I agree that licensing all the tracks we’re using for Brown Acid is best for everyone involved,” rather than simply bootlegging the tracks. When all of the bands and labels haven’t existed for 30-40 years or more, tracking down the creators gives all of these tunes a real second chance at success.
“There’s a long list of songs that we’d love to include,” Barresi says. “But we just can’t track the bands down. I like the idea that Brown Acid is getting so much attention, so people might reach out to us.”
Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip will be available everywhere on LP, CD and download on April 20th, 2018 via RidingEasy Records.