M.H wrote: Always a pity that outside of a few bands (Don Cab and Dazzling Killmen) that these bands had so little influence - I think these bands were making really advanced music. I guess the psychological issues w/ delivering pure, blood boiling fury ('Shoot Me a Deer' = napalm) must get draining - somebody get that young man a shot of free-folk kraut-jazz, stat!

weird. i feel like everything i listen to is influenced by Bastro. i remember on the old forum someone (i think Nick from Post Honeymoon) pointed out in the C/NC for Drive Like Jehu thread that he always felt that they had a big Bastro influence. about a year later someone posted a long interview w/ Reis where he said that they were obsessed w/ Diablo Guapo.

in Chicago, i'd say that all of the post hardcore/mathy noise bands were 100% an extension of Bastro. some of them even eventually all fizzled out and turned into acoustic guitars with odd noises not unlike Bastro itself.

akosinski wrote: i remember on the old forum someone (i think Nick from Post Honeymoon) pointed out in the C/NC for Drive Like Jehu thread that he always felt that they had a big Bastro influence. about a year later someone posted a long interview w/ Reis where he said that they were obsessed w/ Diablo Guapo.

That's surprising and unsurprising at the same time. I definitely hear the similarities but Bastro seems a little too 'nerdy' for Reis. Though I guess he likes Breadwinner too and that might be even nerdier..

But yeah.. Table, Dazzling Killmen/Colossamite (which eventually made up 1/2 of Deerhoof), a ton of later Louisville bands, etc. are totally indebted to Bastro.

Yeah Bastro was a big deal with a number of folks down here as well. I have been involved in bands that did our best to ape as much as we could from them. “Sing the Troubled Beast” is spectacular.

Jon

I feel that discovering Squirrel Bait in 1985 opened up a continuously branching path of music to explore, all of it of incredible quality. Having memorized the names on the back of the first SB LP made me take a closer look at Tweez when I stumbled across it. Knowing who David Grubbs was ensured that I bought and cherished every Bastro, and subsequently, Gastr del Sol record. But Grubbs’ talent at conjuring hooks from the atonal was certainly on par with other bands mentioned in this thread, and it’s his music that I revisit the most frequently.

Big Diablo Guapo Fan here. Sing the troubled beast may be the 'better" album, but Diablo sounds nastier, grungier or whatever .

I love the guitar sound on those two records. David Grubbs was obviously influenced by Steve, but he turned his guitar sound into something completely his own and original.

boilermaker wrote: Sat Jul 17, 2021 5:55 pm I love the guitar sound on those two records. David Grubbs was obviously influenced by Steve, but he turned his guitar sound into something completely his own and original.

Same here — the "loud" guitar track also has some great moments (like in "Tallow Waters" and "Guapo") where it just comes screaming in and cuts diagonally against the rhythm. It's so precise yet so gloriously ugly.

Many thanks to Dave N. for hipping me to Bastro way WAY back in '93. I still listen to them at deafening volume when I can. The 7" of Shoot Me A Deer (with the incredible non-LP Goiter Blazes on the B-side) was one of the first things I bought on eBay.

John McEntire is so fucking great on these records, wish he had played in more bands like this. Anyone know if his drums are double tracked?

Somebody PLEASE reissue!

tonyballz wrote: Wed Jul 28, 2021 12:33 am
Somebody PLEASE reissue!

that's gonna be a problem.

they actually attempted to reissue all of the Bastro stuff about ten years ago. Supreme Forum Headmaster russ worked on it (i think it was Drag City that was doing it) but they had to pull the release due to issues with Homestead. some copies did leak out and can be found in some spots as a dumb collector item. not sure if they are worth tracking down.

Not to be a nit-picker, but that's Britt Walford and not John McEntire drumming on the "Shoot Me a Deer" b/w "Goiter Blazes" single. He also drums on about half (I think?) of the almost-released original version of Diablo Guapo, which comes from the same sessions as the single. This was ultimately scrapped and all but two songs were rerecorded. There's a test pressing of that, and it made the rounds via home taping in the early '90s. Although the final version of the album is indeed even stronger and played a good deal faster.

That said, I agree that McEntire is basically unbeatable on the proper Diablo Guapo and Sing the Troubled Beast.

I managed to get one of those Drag City reissues of the Bastro stuff, right before it got pulled. Dynamite. The second and third albums but minus the Phil Ochs cover. Don't remember anything jumping out in terms of remastering or whatever, but it was definitely quality product. Too bad Homestead's parent company put the kibosh on it.

Not crap, especially after losing the drum machine, although even that first record has its moments.