#psf records

[dialoogid]

静香 [Shizuka] - 伝承美学 [Traditional Aesthetics] (2008)

[schneeparts-musicblog]

Kaoru Abe – Winter 1972 [2004]

Free Improvisation; Free Jazz

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

Go Hirano - Corridor of Daylights

The P.S.F. catalogue might be better known for its more extreme psych material, but it’s also got delicate gems such as this one lurking in the archives. Freshly reissued by Black Editions, Go Hirano’s Corridor of Daylights is a meditative collection of pastoral piano, gentle chimes, pianica (a breath-powered keyboard instrument) and the occasional wordless Robert Wyatt-esque vocal. Minimally beautiful and quietly deep, it’s the kind of record that sparks the imagination, letting the listener fill in the frame. A necessary respite in these trying times.  

[dustedmagazine]

Psychedelic Speed Freaks — S-T (Black Editions)

Psychedelic Speed Freaks by Psychedelic Speed Freaks

When you were the one responsible for the guitar pyrotechnics in a legendary group, and demand leads to the formation, decades later, of a follow-up band, you've got some difficult decisions to make. That was the situation faced recently by Munehiro Narita, the "motor-psycho" guitarist from infamous Tokyo rockers High Rise. LA's Black Editions label reissued that band's second album (simply titled II, reviewed here), introducing it to today's audiences, which led to thoughts of Narita producing some new High Rise music, of a sort.  

It wouldn't work to try to restart High Rise itself: too much of the band's core was bassist/vocalist Nanjo Asahito, who retreated from the limelight years ago. But it also wouldn't be proper to try to clone the band's sound and give it a new name. High Rise stands alone. Not to mention that similar thinking in the 1990s led to the band Mainliner, which was Nanjo's own neo-High Rise creation that enlisted Kawabata Makoto (of Acid Mothers Temple) on guitar.  

All this complication led Narita to start from ground zero, naming the band Psychedelic Speed Freaks. That's the name that High Rise started with, before their label advised that it was too obvious — and then adopted the P.S.F. acronym itself (though they playfully claimed it stood for Poor Strong Factory). As a nod to the original band, and its initial inspirations — high-speed motorcycles and a disdain for drug abuse — selecting this name allowed Narita to essentially start over from the beginning.  

Intriguingly, while keeping the power trio formation of High Rise, with this band Narita hooked up with two obsessive American fans of the original band, LA denizens Jasso (bass/vocals) and TJ (drums). The Americans' love and knowledge of High Rise is colored by the different influences of their home country and the fact that they're from a younger generation. In addition, they were charged with trying not to mimic the earlier band too closely. All of this means Psychedelic Speed Freaks sounds familiar to fans of High Rise, but sufficiently different to be considered its own thing.  

"Redline" opens the album with a riff that's very reminiscent of High Rise but then dive-bombs into hyper-kinetic guitar leads over a primitive, steady beat. The vocals push the band into territory halfway between the Stooges and Motorhead, rather than Nanjo's Rallizes-inspired reverb-chant, but in both cases the words are essentially lost amidst the churn, so the voice is like a drowning man sinking into the depths. Jasso's vocals here owe a stronger debt to garage-rock than psychedelia, and push the music harder as a result.  

"Lawless" almost borrows a descending riff from the Stooges, while "Bedlam" starts more slowly and heavily before blasting off into a chaotic zone appropriate to its title. "End Your Worries" is a classic Narita riff with a high-speed rhythm section bashing it out in a vain attempt to keep up with his guitar freak out. "Night Seer" is a somewhat formless explosion of more overtly psychedelic moves which ends abruptly, making way for the seven and a half minute closer. "Immaterialized" splatters plenty of satisfying fuzz around the room, but doesn't quite achieve the riff cohesion of some of the earlier attention-getters. These songs are most successful when centered around a strong core, so tunes like "Redline and "Lawless" stick with you while some of the others, while great fun, don't have the same staying power.  

The album's 34 minutes speed by appropriately quickly, inviting a quick replay, though the energy does take its toll. Fans of High Rise will particularly take note of the production differences here: Psychedelic Speed Freaks has the same breakneck pace, but much more clarity — there's space between the players, and the music's not cranked into the red across the spectrum as was Nanjo's production style. The album pays the price in sheer heft, but gains in detail. It's more like being sprayed with fuzz than being buried alive in riffage. Both approaches have their appeal, and of course both benefit from the original motor-psycho guitarist. 

Mason Jones

[nobigstory]

UP-TIGHT / FRANCE 2017年11月ツアー

16 Nov - Londres (UT) - Café Oto 17 Nov - Paris (FR/UT) - Instants Chavirés 18 Nov - Metz (FR/UT) - Les Trinitaires 19 Nov - Gent (FR/UT) - In The Ruimte 20 Nov - Bruxelles (FR/UT) - Ateliers Claus 21 Nov - Strasbourg (UT) - Diamant d'Or 22 Nov - Genève (UT) - La Cave12

www.desastrerecords.com

artwork by druidhighvisuals

[anamon-book]

アシッド・マザーズ・テンプル & ザ・メルティング・パライソ・U.F.O. PSF RECORDS

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

High Rise - Truth Serum ‘87

Music lovers, I wrote a bit about the recent P.S.F. Records reissues that Black Editions has been putting out this year. If you’re looking for a quick overview of this vital Japanese rock scene, check out this mix. 

I’ve been especially enjoying High Rise II, which is a total blast of psychedelic speed freakouts. These guys could definitely kick out every jam imaginable. For added jams, don’t miss this blown out VHS of the band live in the mid-80s. Zounds!

Asahito Nanjo says: “I think everyone was totally shocked by what we were doing, and no one really got it. But we got a reaction, and we counted that as a success. We wanted to shock everyone with a wall of sound. I believe that when you hear an electric guitar you need to get that sense of shock from it.”

[noiseotaku]