Saturday, July 13, 2013

Baby Grandmothers - Baby Grandmothers (1967-68 sweden, raw fuzzed psych jam)



 The standout band from this long-sunk ship of fools is Baby Grandmothers, who are graced with an appearance on side one abut are given their own eponymous release. Compared to much of the cultural mishmash on this compilation, baby Grandmothers come off as rather straight until you let this unearthed masterpiece roll undeterred by expectation. "Somebody Keeps Calling My Name" is a powerhouse slow-burn.

The shit is all groove and solo, and perfect for it. "Being More than Life" is the single and frankly the root of the record. It's a Sabbath doom lament that will leave amp residue on your brain after you are done with it. If you have managed to get over you tired indie-rock aversion to guitar solos, each record on Baby Grandmothers will be balm to your ears. "Bergakungen" is a 16-minute stretch-out of much of themes unearthed in "Being More than life" almost like watching the track on slow motion. My guess is you have time to kill in the Finnish winters, since this is flowed by a 19-minute "Being More than Life 2" taken form a live performance.

I'd say the band was set on eclipsing the sun with this monster, but they don't exactly get much sun up there, do they? This is followed up by a power gird breakdown number "St. George's Dragon" sounding like the wave motion gun from the Space Battleship Yamato leaving you, the listener, sapped for energy after its effect has passed. All you have left is the Ragnarok death-boogie of "Raw Diamond" offering the coldest of comfort.
Outsideleft
Tracks
1. Somebody Keeps Calling My Name - 9:14
2. Being Is More Than Life I - 5:40
3. Bergakungen - 16:19
4. Being Is More Than Life II (Hakansson) - 19:44
5. St. George's Dragon I - 7:03
6. St. George's Dragon II - 0:57
7. Raw Diamond - 1:30
All tracks by Hakansson, Linnarsson, Ekman except where noted

Baby Grandmothers
*Pelle Ekman - Drums
*Bengt Linnarsson - Bass
*Kenny Hakansson - Guitar, Vocals

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