One of the best thrills to come from 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 historically 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 Fifth Trip, which comes out appropriately on October 31st via RidingEasy Records. The newest Brown Acid compilation continues in the same vein of the series with an emphasis on all things heavy and psychedelic, highlighting music that may not be on the radar for most music nerds but upon listening is notable for playing a role as precursor to heavy metal and stoner rock.
Lance Barresi, co-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.
Today Glide is excited to premiere one of the standout tracks on the compilation with Mammoth’s track named after themselves, “Mammoth”. The tune is a fittingly beefy eponymous riff-monger continuing the long line of heavies from the Lone Star State. The band recorded this song in 1970 in San Antonio, originally releasing it on United World Records. Besides the fact that the band boldly named a song after itself, which sheds light on the kind of bravado they possessed, there is little other information about this crushing Texas band. What is especially cool about this tune is the way it melds together the unflinching heaviness of acts like Black Sabbath with the jangly psychedelic rock of fellow Texas acts like the 13th Floor Elevators. In retrospective, the song sounds ahead of its time considering the huge role metal and psych rock have played in Texas music for decades now.
LISTEN:
Brown Acid: The Fifth Trip will be available everywhere on LP, CD and download on October 31st, 2017 via RidingEasy Records. Pre-orders are available for digital (with immediate download of the first single) at Bandcamp, physical pre-orders at RidingEasy Records.
Track list:
01. Captain Foam “No Reason”
02. George Brigman “Blowin’ Smoke”
03. Finch “Nothing In The Sun”
04. Cybernaut “Clockwork”
05. Fargo “Abaddon”
06. Mammoth “Mammoth”
07. Flasher “Icky Bicky”
08. Lance “Fireball”
09. Zebra “Helter Skelter”
10. Thor “Lick It”
