The College Crowd Digs Me

"Technical Ecstasy" - Black Sabbath (1976) My expectations when dropping the needle on "Technical Ecstasy" were tapered at best.  Maybe that's why I came away from the spin enjoying my experience more than expected.  But then again, maybe I just enjoyed it…period.  True, there was little of the doomy craftwork I've come to expect from Black Sabbath  on this square.  But the drumming and bassing is still hauling ass.  Tony Iommi is still delightfully riffing and running.  Ozzy's vocals are better than I was led to believe.  The album doesn't ring with as much of the ominous vibes from previous efforts, but there's more to like than not.  The band makes up for the lesser darkness with some ambitious moxie.  The album rocks, for sure, but has an unusually melodic spin with surprising keyboards peeking its head out in different places.  For a Sabbath offering that surely sounded out of step in 1976… "Technical Ecstasy" has aged very ...

"Hawkwind" - Hawkwind (1970)      This is early space-rock.  An album to drop the needle on and temporarily relocate your mind.  And although Hawkwind's self-titled debut doesn't quite lock down that space-rock sound we all have come to love, they're getting close.  You can feel it.  The album starts off with a cool folkish-rocker atypical of their trademark sound, but it's actually pretty good.  But after that one, you'll want to keep all your arms and legs inside the capsule.   And by the time you flip the record over to side two, oh boy, you're in it deep.  Headphones engaged and cranked.  Admittedly, this early Hawkwind spin doesn't reach the level of the next four studio albums to follow, and yet it's still a mind-please. "Hawkwind" - Hawkwind (back) Favorites include: "Seeing It As You Are" "Be Yourself" "Paranoia (Part 2)" This copy is not a first pressing, but an early '71 US press.  And you...

"Baby Blue" / "Flying" - Badfinger  7" (1972) I'm not a serious collector of 45s.  I'll pick one up every once in a while, but it's a baby blue moon when I do.  I might grab a picture-sleeve Beatles if it's cheap.  Or maybe a cool picture-sleeve rarity.  If the seller has an interesting 45 on display, I might be sparked to look at it, otherwise, I'll just skip it.  I don't dig.  That's just me.  Good for all you guys that do. This particular 45 single is a Los Angeles pressing (denoted by the ✲ in deadwax) held in a company Apple picture sleeve.  My poor photography does not do the sleeve justice.  The sleeve looks like it has some discoloring near the bottom, but it's actually very nice.  The playing time of the A-side mix is 6 seconds shorter than what's on the album.  The B-side is 20 seconds shorter.  I found it for a good price from a regular seller at an earlier record swap. When Badfinger's "Baby Blue" ...

"Zerfas" - Zerfas (1973 - Rei 2022)      Zerfas , from Indianapolis, can be found in The Acid Archives and hits the mind-melding sweet spot.  Their self-titled, one-and-done album is another biscuit to add to the growing list of lost gems.  The square has everything I'm looking for to satisfy my psychedelic palette.  The music is a mix of psych rock and pop-psych that occasionally makes peace with the prog brush.  Each song feels carefully crafted.  The organ and guitars play nice and the excellent vocals and lyrics are pleasing to the ear.  You almost forget the band was mostly teenagers.  There are more than just hints of late Beatles influences but Zerfas doesn't try to copy so much as take it further.  I mean that in the most complimentary way.   The studio trickery on this album is clever and unexpected.  Looping, panning, weird modulations, backward shenanigans, and other tricks are used, but the effects are ...

"Loaded" - The Velvet Underground (1970 ) "Loaded" was a risky pony-up, but I fortunately got a squeal of a deal.  I made a bid on eBay back in February for an original 1970 copy for $53 shipped...and won.  Originals can go for twice that amount.  It was one of those postings where nobody was bidding.  Possibly because the seller was new with very little history.  Plus the album had a pretty vague description.   The seller was upfront about not knowing anything about records.  The description stated that the vinyl looked unplayed, but the front cover had a light stain on it.  Look at the pictures.  And I did!  Over and over and over again.  I finally tossed out a number on the last day and crossed my fingers. When I found out I had the winning bid, I was elated...and trepidatious at the same time. And when it arrived at my doorstep, oh man, I was freaking!   But the album looked terrific. There was a discolored...

"Powerglide" - New Riders Of The Purple Sage (1972) New Riders of the Purple Sage was part of the West Coast scene and shared a sound that falls somewhere between The Flying Burrito Brothers and the Grateful Dead .  If you like that kind of country rock sound, you'll dig New Riders.  The hints of the Dead are easy to explain as Jerry Garcia was responsible for encouraging a couple of his Dead fans/friends to form their own band.  Garcia also went on to contribute to many of the band's songs.  NRotPS are not as jammy as the Grateful Dead but their counter-culture laidback vibes can be mind-pleasant under the right moon.   Their albums can be found in record bins for a fivespot all day long.  They're fun, chill, and cheap.  As for "Powerglide" … the square sounds like you might expect.  There are a couple of wankers, mostly the cover songs, with "I Don’t Need No Doctor" being the exception.  But the rest of the songs hit that swee...