Timothy Leary & Ash Ra Tempel - Seven Up
Die Kosmischen Kuriere / Ohr, 1973 - MG.ART, 2011



I've had a complicated relationship with this album over the years. For a long time, it was my least favorite of Ash Ra Tempel's catalog. The CD in the photo, however, is the version remastered by Manuel Göttsching, and it has made me rethink that.

To be perfectly honest and up front about it, I have a strong dislike of Timothy Leary's theories of human psychology. This really isn't the right forum to discuss that, but it had a lot to do with my dismissal of this album for many years.

Supposedly recorded live in Switzerland (not really though - massive overdubbing was later done at Dieter Dierks studio in Germany) while Leary was on the run from U.S. authorities, the album is reputedly named after an acid-spiked bottle of the beverage that was passed around at the time. As was Ash Ra's custom early on in their career, the record was divided into two side-long tracks.

Side One is "Space" and contains some actual songs like a version of "Downtown", originally made famous by Petula Clark in 1964. The whole side sounds like a DJ got their hands on some quality quaaludes and just went nuts. Snippets of blues rock fade in and out of proto-punk psych and synth explorations while Leary occasionally interjects some incoherent rants.

Side Two, named "Time", follows with some of the intense weirdness more typically associated with Ash Ra Tempel. Lots of synth and treated guitar lines explore the cosmos, with Leary's voice floating around here and there sounding like broken, alien transmissions coming from somewhere out in the void.

I hadn't listened to this one in almost twenty years until I picked up this copy, and Göttsching's remaster just brings it to life in a whole new way. The mix sounds deep and nuanced in a way the original LP failed to capture. There's a nice separation of the elements that was sorely lacking before, allowing the listener to hear everything that's going on in a crisp, clear manner. This has given me a whole new appreciation of the album, and after hearing it, I would rank it right alongside the best of Ash Ra Tempel's work. If you're thinking about picking this one up, I would recommend considering this version instead of shelling out $100 or more for an original pressing.





Discogs - Ash Ra Tempel

---

Instagram

Quote
Gordon Rekcikssa
Timothy Leary & Ash Ra Tempel - Seven Up
Die Kosmischen Kuriere / Ohr, 1973 - MG.ART, 2011

Looks like a trip for sure. Tons of ART stuff has been on my wantlist for years, just never got around to it. The only ART related stuff I have is E2-E4 and New Age of the Earth. The former is a recent CD edition remastered by MG, I thought he did a good job on that. It wasn't a shitty loudness war remaster either, just well done.

---

[everydayambient.wordpress.com]

[www.instagram.com]

Peter Baumann - Romance 76
original release by Virgin, 1976 - this pressing by Bureau B, 2016



Here's a well done recent repress of the fantastic debut solo album by Tangerine Dream's Peter Baumann, and this record makes it abundantly clear that TD was not just the Edgar Froese project. This music sounds similar to the stuff they released on Stratosfear the same year.

Although original pressings of this aren't terribly rare or expensive, they are hard to find in true VG+/NM condition, and this is an album that deserves to be heard with as few flaws as possible. This new pressing is quiet, with an impressive soundstage. Mastering for this version was done at Optimal Media GmbH in Germany.

---

Instagram

Quote
Gordon Rekcikssa
Timothy Leary & Ash Ra Tempel - Seven Up
Die Kosmischen Kuriere / Ohr, 1973 - MG.ART, 2011

aDdEjBP.jpg

I've had a complicated relationship with this album over the years. For a long time, it was my least favorite of Ash Ra Tempel's catalog. The CD in the photo, however, is the version remastered by Manuel Göttsching, and it has made me rethink that.

To be perfectly honest and up front about it, I have a strong dislike of Timothy Leary's theories of human psychology. This really isn't the right forum to discuss that, but it had a lot to do with my dismissal of this album for many years.

Supposedly recorded live in Switzerland (not really though - massive overdubbing was later done at Dieter Dierks studio in Germany) while Leary was on the run from U.S. authorities, the album is reputedly named after an acid-spiked bottle of the beverage that was passed around at the time. As was Ash Ra's custom early on in their career, the record was divided into two side-long tracks.

Side One is "Space" and contains some actual songs like a version of "Downtown", originally made famous by Petula Clark in 1964. The whole side sounds like a DJ got their hands on some quality quaaludes and just went nuts. Snippets of blues rock fade in and out of proto-punk psych and synth explorations while Leary occasionally interjects some incoherent rants.

Side Two, named "Time", follows with some of the intense weirdness more typically associated with Ash Ra Tempel. Lots of synth and treated guitar lines explore the cosmos, with Leary's voice floating around here and there sounding like broken, alien transmissions coming from somewhere out in the void.

I hadn't listened to this one in almost twenty years until I picked up this copy, and Göttsching's remaster just brings it to life in a whole new way. The mix sounds deep and nuanced in a way the original LP failed to capture. There's a nice separation of the elements that was sorely lacking before, allowing the listener to hear everything that's going on in a crisp, clear manner. This has given me a whole new appreciation of the album, and after hearing it, I would rank it right alongside the best of Ash Ra Tempel's work. If you're thinking about picking this one up, I would recommend considering this version instead of shelling out $100 or more for an original pressing.





Discogs - Ash Ra Tempel

Very interesting ! May have to look for this for those days when I just need some out for a bit .

Grateful Dead - Rocking The Cradle: Egypt 1978
Rhino Records, 2008





2 CD/DVD set documenting the two nights in 1978 that the Dead played at the foot of the Great Pyramids. There have always been some who claimed these shows were a disappointment, but there's no evidence of that here. The band is loose and even downright playful at times, and seems to be fully immersed in the experience of the event.

These shows happened through a lot of effort and patience on the part of everyone involved, and were made possible through a bizarre series of geopolitical events that began in 1972 with Anwar Sadat kicking the Soviet military advisors out of Egypt, opening the way for renewed relations with the west. The Dead spent over a year and a half planning the logistics of the gigs presented here, and in the end everything came together for some fantastic performances.

This is worth searching out to hear the whole thing if you're a fan. Below are just a few highlights.

Looks Like Rain




Row Jimmy




Fire On The Mountain

---

Instagram