Customer Reviews

Parable of the Arable Land (Spec)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Giving a record this important a three-star review and calling it "dated" really calls into question what exactly someone's business is listening to music. First off, the "Free-Form Freakout" sections between each song are brilliant and actually ADD to the overall feel of "The Parable of Arable Land." They're not hippie nonsense any more than were the free jazz explorations of Albert Ayer or Ornette Coleman. And what's more, the way each of these wild improvisations melts away into the actual song that follows is nothing short of breathtaking.

The SONGS on this record are all the better for having the balance redressed by pure noise; witness the way chaos subsides into the contrastingly calm, disconcertingly steady bass rhythm of "Hurricane Fighter Plane" and try not to feel like you've just heard something very important. By the time the chorus kicks in with its oceanic waves of organ, you can't help but follow the band wherever they're going next. A piece like "War Sucks" probably only sounds dated if you've been living on a glacier for the last four or five years and haven't seen a television or newspaper in that time.

In short, this album is a work of genius and is sadly unlike anything the band did afterwards (at least, from all the other records I've heard by them). This is not to say that the Red Crayola did nothing of value after their debut, simply to note that everything that followed took a completely different sonic direction and I personally missed their old sound a great deal.

Finally Remastered from the original tapes (except for the Mono "Side 1") by Sonic Boom of the British psych/space/rock group Spacemen 3. Included are both the Mono and Stereo versions, the 6 outtakes originally on the "Epitaph for a Legend" compilation, and one previously unreleased track. What the reviewer who complained about the "Free form Freak-Out" sections failed to mention is that on Disc 2 the songs themselves have been gathered together without the FFFO sections so they can be "listened to collectively". Sometimes I wonder if some of these reviewers actually buy or listen to what they write about! In a nice digi-book, as have been all of the recent CHARLY International Artists Original Albums releases, along with a great booklet with lots of history, interviews, quotes and pictures. All of the digi-book versions have been listed as Limited Editions, so I wouldn't wait too long, right now on Amazon they are all priced quite fairly......

Also Remastered: God Bless the Red Krayola, Albums Collection, Psychedelic Sounds of (Dlx), Easter Everywhere, Bull of the Woods, Power Plant, Everybody's Here, Thank You All Very Much, Gathering of Promises, Color Blind.

This it the true artifact of Psychedelic music. There is only one. "The Parable of Arable Land".

The free form freak-out is often dismissed by everyone as a big mess. To open ears it is an intense, and careful assimilation of sounds. Each are chaotic soundscapes where the role of a specific instrument is completely turned upside down. There are chainsaws, whistles, struck matches, guitar's being played like violins, spatulas sounding like broken sitars, all kinds of neat tricks to produce sounds never heard before. This was the rare occurrence of explicit the meeting of Avant-garde, Musique Concerte and rock n' roll. To The Red Crayola, this was possibly mere coincidence (see Trout Mask Replica). Regardless this is one of the most unique, creative pieces of art in the 20th century. The more "traditional" songs, still eschew all convention's whatsover. All the songs have strange, decaying structures. BPM never quite stays put, but the pieces never detract, it all seems very similar to later Coltrane and free jazz in spirit, than to rock.

History has been rather unkind to them, "Psychedelic Music" has become yet another stereotype, being mixed up with Woodstock, Jefferson Airplane, LSD and other 60's counterculture's rather than its intended deconstruction of typical structures. It seems like the public didn't want this to be the representation of the music culture and time, but maybe neither would have Mayo Thompson, who knows? Least, The Velvets got their props.

Strongly recommend any piece of work from these guys, they literally NEVER made a bad record.

Its too bad that this album was recorded in 1967 and not ten years later. Songs like "Hurricane Fighter Plane" or "Transparent Radiation" are classic proto-punk and were covered by more than a few punk bands once the initial 60's hatred faded away. The problem with this album is the "free form freakout" which preceed every song. They are obviously influenced by avant-garde classical music such as A.M.M. or maybe even the abyssimal Fugs. Before you can get to the actual songs you must repeatedly deal with this hippie clap-trap. The band reformed years later and still are heroes of avant-rock. It is interesting to hear the songs that would inspire later bands. However, besides the annoying in between song jams, some of the songs themselves are quite dated such as "War Sucks" (okay who is going to disagree about that). If you want to hear a band with a similar vision but with albums that have stood the test of time, I suggest the Thirteenth Floor Elevators.