Totally NC. How come this thread doesn't have 4 pages or more?

My favorite is Crookt, Crackt or Fly. It's really a rare opportunity when you get to hear a style of music that is truly unique and trailblazing.

I'm not sure whether that acoustic guitar style was more O'Rourke's idea or Grubbs's idea, but whoever devised it really has my thanks. I know they took some cues from John Fahey, but the only link I can draw to Fahey's (also amazing) technique is the sole fact that they both involve acoustic guitars. It zips up and down, weaving its way through your consciousness in little zigs and zags, until it all finally makes sense. It's almost a sort of "visual" guitar style, if that makes any sense at all. As though the guitars were drawing little spirals and cubes in the ether, w/ them all dancing around one another. The most jaw-dropping track is the one where the last four minutes are comprised of Conradesque viola drones, slide guitar wisps, and what sounds like the sort of metallic scraping you tend to hear on Xenakis' electroacoustic stuff.

Additional props go to these two gentlemen for name-dropping other artists whom I eventually checked out and allowed to explode my dome-piece: Van Dyke Parks, Tony Conrad, the Mayo Thompson solo album, etc.

Also, I've never heard Bastro, but if Bastro sounds anything like that hard-rocking electric number on CCorF, then I need to check them out.

I don't remember much about their later stuff, but I remember it also being fantastic.

NerblyBear wrote:The most jaw-dropping track is the one where the last four minutes are comprised of Conradesque viola drones, slide guitar wisps, and what sounds like the sort of metallic scraping you tend to hear on Xenakis' electroacoustic stuff.

Work For Smoke is my favorite Gastr Del Sol track.

NerblyBear wrote:Also, I've never heard Bastro, but if Bastro sounds anything like that hard-rocking electric number on CCorF, then I need to check them out.

They do not. I don't know what to compare them to, but they played noise rock with enormous chugging drums, guitar distorted to a decipherability point of about Shellac x2, and a big low end. It does not sound like the same band as any incarnation of Gastr, and the instrumental interplay is very different as well (except on Antlers, which features the same line-up as Gastr playing many of the same songs).

Dr. O' Nothing wrote:

Christopher wrote:Crookt, Crackt, or Fly gave me a whole new outlook on the possibilities with acoustic guitar.

No crap here.

You should listen to Derek Bailey's "AIDA" record. Believe it or not, there are straight lifts from this on CCorF, esp. the second track.

Hey, thanks for mentioning this. You're right. In case anyone else is interested, I found a link here.

It is good!

Dr. O' Nothing wrote:

Christopher wrote:Crookt, Crackt, or Fly gave me a whole new outlook on the possibilities with acoustic guitar.

No crap here.

You should listen to Derek Bailey's "AIDA" record. Believe it or not, there are straight lifts from this on CCorF, esp. the second track.

Haven't listened to Aida in forever, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least. Jim O'Rourke has been notorious in my mind for wearing his influences on his sleeve a bit too readily throughout his career - from Keith Rowe to John Fahey to Tony Conrad to Derek Bailey. I'm sure there are others I'm forgetting or are simply not aware of. He's fort of like a musical version of Quentin Tarantino in a way - a talented man who's great at "synthesizing" other peoples' music and aesthetics but probably isn't as groundbreaking in his own right as his reputation might suggest.

That said, Gastr just might be my favorite band from the 90's. Live, the Jesus Lizard takes that mantle, but I preferred Gastr's records. If I had to rank them I'd say:

Upgrade and Afterlife
Mirror Repair
The Serpentine Similar
Crookt, Crackt, or Fly
The Harp Factory on Lake Street
Camofleur

There are some single tracks here and there that are phenomenal too, like "The Japanese Room at La Pagode" from their split 7" with Tony Conrad or "Quietly Approaching" from the Red, Hot, and Bothered comp.

Great, great music. Not Crap, no waffles.

emmanuelle cunt wrote:Totally NC. How come this thread doesn't have 4 pages or more?

Because there really isn't that much to say. Upgrade and Afterlife is amazing. Thread over.

Upgrade and Afterlife is also in the top 5 albums of ALL TIME.

NC. I haven't heard a Gastr del Sol album I didn't liked.