Make room in your record collection for one of the best (and most sought after) psychedelic garage records of all time, and one of the best records to come from the 1960s, period. The Bachs' 1968 private pressing of Out of the Bachs was limited to just 150 copies, so it's seen many reissues through the years, but this is the best of them. Of course, you could go after one of the originals if you're willing to drop, say... $8000. So unless you're a One Percenter, you're gonna have to settle for the newest reissue from Time Lag. But that's not a bad thing. Actually, this is the first reissue to cut the record from the original pressing at the CORRECT SPEED. You see, the previous versions were just a teensy bit slow (and poorly mastered to boot), making this pressing the definitive issue.

So, what sets this apart from other psychedelic garage greats like Index or the Savages? The Bachs stand out as the only ones of their breed to spill out their insides in such an utterly human and spiritual way. While other fundamental records of the time are plagued by an omnipresent "trippiness," as though the musicians are constantly trying to convince the listener that they're stretching the boundaries, Out of the Bachs is a remarkably free-flowing capture of teenage enlightenment, punctuated by the group's effortlessly overlapping textures, tempo shifts, and spookily poetic lyrics.

We just got word that Out of the Bachs has already sold out through Time Lag, but there are still a few copies going over at Volcanic Tongue. If that doesn't dice out for you, there's always Discogs.

LISTEN:

The Bachs - "Tables of Grass Fields"

Whenever a new reissue comes out on eclectic local label Mississippi Records, you automatically know it's an essential buy. But the quality of their most recent releases bumps these up from essential into the MUST-HAVE category. And with so many of them to purchase, you may find yourself selling your plasma and Oregon Trail Card to make ends meet, because Mississippi vinyl is surely more important than blood and food. Good thing their records are always so well-priced.

DEAD MOON - IN THE GRAVEYARD / UNKNOWN PASSAGE / DEFIANCE
The first three Dead Moon releases reissued on vinyl. "Dead Moon were a band that existed outside of the constraints that time & style usually impose on artists. An authentic mix of psychedelic rock, punk, blues, country, & every other American music worth a damn. Lo-fi as hell. Remastered from the original tapes."

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Japanese garage-psych masters Les Rallizes Dénudés have just reissued their classic record Cable Hogue (yes, like the badass cowboy) on Phoenix Records.

What's so cool about a Japanese band with a French name that references cheeky Sam Peckinpah movies? Well, they just happen to be one of the greatest of all time, and they never even recorded a single studio record, although bootlegs of their live performances reveal a band miles ahead of international peers Hawkwind and Blue Cheer. Heavily influenced by the noisiest moments of the Velvet Underground's records and performance art, frontman Mizutani Takashi centered the band's live performances around heavily reverbed white noise, deafening feedback screams, and visual stimulus like mirror orbs and strobe lights. However, the band was anything but a one-trick pony, as evidenced by their stubborn refusal to play anything the same way twice, the frequent incorporation of lilting doo-wop/dub basslines, and the sublime heartbreak of Takashi's vocal melodies. Without this band, you wouldn't even have an Acid Mothers Temple, whatever that is.

FACT: Dénudés bassist Moriaki Wakabayashi was instrumental in the Japanese Red Army's hijacking of Japan Airlines Flight 351. Takashi is rumored to have been offered a part in the operation as well, but he denied to participate.

Omnibus, the record/vintage store that lives in the hallows of East End, just unloaded a massive stack of LPs and 45s of all shades and stripes, and today at 4pm they're having a huge sale. I got a sneak peak of the goods last night, and left with a handful of hot cuts that not only were in good shape, but were priced ridiculously cheap (most of them were a buck!). Here is a sampling of the 45s I managed to get out of the door with before dropping any more coin on their cache of excellent impulse purchases:

The Troggs "With A Girl Like You" b/w "I Want You"

Sam The Sham and the Pharoahs "Lil' Red Riding Hood" b/w "Love Me Like Before"

Curtis Mayfield "Underground", the clean b-side to a beat-up "Superfly" single. Seemed fitting to pick it up in a record store that was truly underground.

Other scores from my nine buck spending spree included Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra "Did You Ever?", a UK pressing of Donovan "Hurdy Gurdy Man" b/w "Teen Angel," The Intruders "Cowboys To Girls," and an original 1961 Riverside press of Cannonball Adderly's "Kelly Blue."