DJ Chaos X - Live Mixxx (2006)

DJ Chaos X is one of the many aliases of Yamantaka Eye, better known as one of the founders of the noise rock group Boredoms. I posted an album "Planetary Natural Love Gas 19999", by DJ Pica Pica Pica, which was very well received here, so I thought that I would share yet another Yamantaka Eye release. In my opinion the album released under his DJ Pica Pica Pica alias is overall a much better album, although those who prefer rock may favor the DJ Chaos X release. You can find the DJ Pica Pica Pica album here: http://digitalmeltd0wn.blogspot.com/2010/02/dj-pica-pica-planetary-natural-love-gas.html

The DJ Pica Pica Pica release was an extremely eclectic album, featuring every genre under the sun. While "Live Mixxx" is also a well rounded release, it primarily leans toward a more rock oriented approach, featuring rock, punk rock, and experimental music. The Beatles, Suicidal Tendencies, Dow Jones and the Industrials, and Bad Brains are a few of the artists sampled on the album. The tracks on this album are very short in length. There are 45 tracks in just over a 50 minute time span. Each track averages a little over a minute in length, although there are several that are well under a minute.

To the best of my knowledge the tracks do not have names, so I will not be providing a track listing. Although if I am mistaken I would greatly appreciate it if someone could correct me and provide a proper track listing. I do know that very few CDs were issued for this release, but I don't have any figures for the exact amount that were released. The album is now out of print, and extremely difficult to find a physical copy.

Before I close this post, I would also like to ask everyone to please take the time to leave a comment. This isn't something that I normally ask people to do. Although it is always very encouraging and appreciated whenever you readers do post a comment, it doesn't upset me when a post doesn't receive comments, as it does with many other bloggers. If I'm not receiving many comments, I take it as a sign that I need to do a better job selecting material to share here. The reason I am asking everyone to take the time to comment is to let me know if there is a particular genre that they would like to see featured more on Digital Meltd0wn in the future, and if everyone enjoys the most recent material posted here, or if you prefer the material that I posted when I first started this blog (Punk, Psych, and Garage Rock). To those who will comment, I would like to go ahead and thank you in advance. I hope you all enjoy this rare gem.

Year of Release: 2006
Genres: Experimental, Punk Rock, Sound Collage
Bitrate: 192kbps

Download: DJ Chaos X - Live Mixxx
Download Size: 71MB

Dinah Washington - September in the Rain

Dinah Washington was born Ruth Lee Jones on August 29, 1924 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Shortly thereafter her family moved to Chicago, the city she always called home. Although her first recording was “Evil Gal Blues” & although she will always be known as the”Queen of the Blues”, Dinah always objected to that sobriquet. She always felt her singing was more jazz-infused gospel.

She was never an obedient servant to the written structure of a song, always breaking through the mechanical quality of its contours, altering the melody & meter - melodically, rhythmically, & emotionally - to make it more than it began & truly her own. Quincy Jones vividly describes Washington's style, saying she "could take the melody in her hand, hold it like an egg, crack it open, fry it, let it sizzle, reconstruct it, put the egg back in the box, back in the refrigerator & you would've still understood every single syllable."

But the singer's musical gifts went hand in hand with her wild & extravagant personal life, fueled in part by her own deep-rooted insecurity. Married seven times, Washington battled with her weight for years, She heavily used numerous prescription medications, primarily for dieting & insomnia. Even though she sings “I don’t need clothes or furs," in “As Long as I’m in Your Arms", she burned through her recording profits buying shoes, furs & automobiles in an effort to lift her spirits.

On the morning of December 14, 1963, Dinah's eighth husband, Dick "Night Train" Lane, famed defensive back for the Los Angeles Rams, Chicago Cardinals & Detroit Lions found Dinah non-responsive. She was later pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy showed a lethal combination of secobarbital & amobarbital had contributed to her untimely death at the age of 39. Her death was ruled an accidental overdose.

Tracks 1, 10, 11, & 12 were recorded in late 1960 in New York City with an unidentified orchestra. Fred Norman conducted track 10 on Oct. 5-7 & was replaced on tracks 1, 11, & 12 by Nat Goodman on Nov. 12. The rest of the tracks were recorded in Hollywood, CA in January 1961 with Belford Hendricks (who arranged all the songs) conducting & featured: Dinah on vocals; Rone Hall & Barney Kessel on guitars; Red Callender & Jimmy Rowser on bass; Ernie Freeman & Joe Zawinul on piano; & Earl Palmer on drums.

Year of Release: 1961
Label: Mercury Records MG 20638
Genre: Vocals

Tracklist:
Side 1 -
September in the Rain
Without a Song
This Heart of Mine
As Long as I’m in Your Arms
With a Song in My Heart
Softly
Side 2 -
I Can’t Believe that You’re in Love with Me
I Was Telling Him about You
I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
I’ll Never Kiss You Goodbye
I’ll Come Back for More
Tell Love Hello

Download: Dinah Washington - September in the Rain
Download Size: 71.2MB (ripped from nearly 50 year old vinyl at 320Kbps)

X-Legged Sally - Slow-Up

X-Legged Sally was a Belgian avant-garde group that fused elements of funk, jazz, progressive rock and classical to create a truly remarkable and unique cacophony of sound. They played a pivotol role in helping to establish the indie scene in Belgium during the late early 90's. The first track that I had the pleasure of hearing from the group was "Hair", which I discovered on Youtube, and also happens to remain my favorite track by XLS. "Hair" was included on the album "The Land of the Giant Dwarfs". Even though you won't find it on this album, I included a youtube video for "Hair" to give you a preview of the group's sound before you download the album, although one should keep in mind that they have a very eclectic approach to their albums, and no one song can accurately represent the group's sound as a whole. Upon searching for more information about the band, I was shocked to discover that the majority of their discography is currently out of print. Only Eggs & Ashes and Killed by Charity appear to still be available from Sub Rosa.

X-Legged Sally consisted of members Peter Vermeersch, Paul Belgrado, Pierre Vervloesem, Danny Van Hoeck, Peter Vandenberghe, Bart Maris, and Michel Mast. In 1990 the band first appeared on the radar by contributing a track to the compilation "Live at the Knitting Factory Vol. 4", which helped the band members to establish a relationshiop with the New York downtown scene. The next year the group would go on to release their debut album, Slow-Up, which would solidify X-Legged Sally's reputation, and help to change the face of the independent Belgian music scene. Fortunately for us during the time the group was together they were active, releasing five studio albums and one live album within a 6 year span. In 1996 the band held a farewell concert, and officially disbanded the following year. Each of the members would eventually go on to work on their own respective projects. Peter Vermeersch founded A Group (together with Pierre Vervloesem), and later the Flat Earth Society, while Eric Sleichim started Bl!ndman, and Pierre Vervloesem featured in a lot of bands and has a productive solo career.

I have only found this album posted on one other blog, that being the legendary Mutant Sounds blog; however, it was only a low quality rip at 128kbps. It pleases me to be able to deliver a much higher quality rip at 320kbps. I was also recently greeted with a rather pleasant surprise when I stumbled across a comment that E-mile left on the Jazz Archives blog, where he posted links for the majority of their discography, so if any of you would like to see more of their albums posted here in the future, please leave a comment and let me know.

I had initially intended to post a track by track review, but it started to become increasingly obvious that I wasn't going to be able to finish before I have to go to work. Since I promised a friend that I would have this posted today, I'm just going to share a more professionally written review from Allmusic:

"It's easy to see why Bill Laswell was impressed when Peter Vermeersch sent him the demo from Belgium. This band was hot, hotter in fact than pretty much anyone the big, bad N.Y.C. producer/bassist was working with at the time. So X-Legged Sally was invited to record at Laswell's Greenpoint Studio in Brooklyn, and Slow-Up is the result. The band's debut full-length nearly overflows with energy, a sax-driven riff feast with full-tilt forward momentum from the rhythm section and no-holds-barred solos from reeds, guitar, and keys -- all packaged in 15 concise tunes (mainly instrumental and mainly penned by bandleader/clarinetist/saxophonist Vermeersch) that reveal how hooks, melodies, and straightforward harmonic and rhythmic foundations can be an asset even in the world of avant-prog music. The band's avant tendencies are balanced expertly with the plain satisfaction of nimbly executed unison and harmony lines, memorable themes, and the oft-displayed ability to accelerate from a standstill to light speed (and vice versa) in the blink of an eye. And while Vermeersch and company bring a certain Euro-style artfulness and serious avant jazz chops to the proceedings, the down and dirty influences of funk, blues, and even screamin' rock & roll (check out manic shredder guitarist Pierre Vervloesem's lung-tearing vocals on "Bacon & Eggs") crop up all over the place. Envision the members of Parliament/Funkadelic suddenly finding themselves on-stage with King Crimson running through those crazy stop-and-start unison passages in "21st Century Schizoid Man." That's what a lot of Slow-Up is like. But if the CD were merely fast, faster, and fastest music 100 percent of the time, it would ultimately be a bit of a bore -- like a Hollywood big-budget action movie with five or six too many chase scenes. Slow-Up isn't that; Vermeersch expertly modulated the program and he knew when to slow down, as in "Down at the Dinghy," a lovely little tango performed by the band's three reedmen with everyone else sitting out. And "Blackhead Blue Blues" is as moody and low in its slow groove as the blues can be, that is until Vervloesem unleashes a torrent of notes from mysterious depths right out into the stratosphere. Still, hard chargers like "34th Street," "Turkish Bath," and "Memphis" are the biggest stunners, with high-spirited energy, compact structures, and grooves that won't let go. If there's any fault whatsoever to be found, it's actually with Laswell's production, which is a bit bottom-heavy. The reeds could've been punched up when the entire band is cranked and cooking; perhaps Laswell forgot to tweak the knobs from one of his atmospheric ambient/world/dub productions. Or maybe the band frightened him and he ran out before he could tweak anything (naw, he was back producing Killed by Charity during the band's next U.S. visit). At any rate, it's a minor quibble. Slow-Up is a masterpiece of avant prog and should be in the CD collection of anyone who appreciates, say, New York's Doctor Nerve or Montréal's Les Projectionnistes. - Dave Lynch, All Music Guide"

Year of Release: 1991
Label: Sub Rosa
Genres: Avant-Garde, Avant-Prog, Jazz-Rock, Funk
Bitrate: 320kbps

Track List:
1. Ffwd
2. Zippo Raid
3. Xls
4. Down at the Dinghy
5. Bacon & Eggs
6. 34th Street
7. Blackhead Blue Blues
8. Lacto B.
9. Fuck & Coffee
10. Turkish Bath
11. Little Hearts
12. Liquid
13. Pinocchio
14. Memphis
15. Ongennaam

Download: X-Legged Sally - Slow-Up
Download Size: 151MB

Digital Meltd0wn Now On Facebook

I finally decided to break down and create a Facebook page for Digital Meltd0wn @ http://facebook.com/digitalmeltd0wn. I created a personal account a few years ago, and I just didn't feel as if Facebook had been developed enough at that point to warrant further use. I decided to give it another chance after hearing many people rave about its usefulness. After exploring it for several hours yesterday, I realized that they have made vast improvements to the service. I created an account for Digital Meltd0wn, as well as a personal account, a few days ago.

Since last.fm has been a continuous disappointment lately, and there seems to be a mass exodus from Myspace, I plan to focus the majority of my social networking activity on Facebook, and here are a few ideas you can expect to see implemented soon. Updates from both this blog, as well as the Digital Meltd0wn Music Aggregator/Blogroll, there. I also plan to publish a mirror of the Digital Meltd0wn Blogroll in it's own tab, display the most recent posts from our music blog aggregator RSS feed in a separate tab, and upload some interesting music videos and pictures. I hope you all enjoy these features, and please recommend me any ideas you may have to make the page better.

Since I'm behind on the Facebook learning curve, I was hoping that some of you who are more familiar with the service could offer me some advice and recommendations. I'll be doing my own research, but I hope that some of you can help to quicken the learning process for me. I've put together a wishlist of sorts for Facebook. If some of you could spare the time to provide me with some recommendations I would greatly appreciate your willingness to help. Here is my Facebook wishlist:

• Useful music/blogging related applications
• Applications/tutorials for customizing my page
• Interesting Facebook music groups
• Independent artist/labels on Facebook
• Music bloggers on Facebook
• Interesting people who enjoy sharing music recommendations

Again, I would be extremely greatful if any of could could help me with any of the things listed above. I look forward to seeing some of you on there, and hopefully exchanging music with you in the discussion group.

Digital Meltd0wn @ Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Digital-Meltd0wn/7777757521
My Personal Facebook Profile: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=785217519

Survive-All Fallout Shelters - Radio Ads from the 1950's

This album consists of 9 short radio advertisements from the 1950's for a brand of nuclear fallout shelters called Survive-All. I picked this up from the Dinosaur Gardens blog years ago, and thought it would be very fitting to share here. Looking back in hindsight these advertisements are morbidly hilarious, yet they also provide a bit of disturbing historical insight into the fears that hung over the heads of the average American family during the 1950's Cold War era, and corporations which hoped to capatalise on their fear. The download size is very small at only 6.4MB, with each track averaging roughly 30 to 50 seconds in length.

"Nothing lends itself better to a fear-based advertising campaign than your family’s radioactive death. So when the Mort Kridel Advertising Agency was asked to create a radio ad campaign for Survive-All Fallout Shelters, they did their best to scare the Wonder Bread crap out of nuclear families everywhere. Tense horn stabs and canned explosions bracket sales pitches like:

"Radioactive fallout, that deadly by-product of a nuclear attack, will kill literally millions of unprotected families in the event of an atomic attack. Is YOUR family protected? Do YOU have a fallout shelter?

Each Civil defense approved, basement-type, Do-It-Yourself fallout shelter includes: A complete fully-stocked first aid kit! Extra strength saran and rayon bunks! A radiation meter and individual dosimeters! Civil defense approved, FHA approved, no money down, five years to pay! Economical… but Priceless!"

These are ripped from the original LP that would have gone to radio stations from the ad agency. There are 6 long versions and 3 shortened versions, each fairly different. Since it was promotional there was no record cover, but a scan of the record’s label is included. No year is evident, but since the zip code is two digits, it’s presumably pre-1963, and I would guess late 1950’s. - ECC of Dinosaur Gardens"

Year of Release: Unknown | Most Likely Late 50's
Label: Mort Kridel Advertising Agency
Genre: Commercials, Radio Ad
Bitrate: 192VBR

Track List:
1. Maximum Protection (General)
2. Comparison
3. Value
4. Equipment
5. DYS
6. Maximum Protection (Steel and Concrete)
7. DYS (short)
8. Maximum Protection (Steel and Concrete) (Short)
9. Maximum Protection (General) (Short)

Download: Survive-All Shelters - Radio Ads
Download Size: 6.4MB

Plan 9 From Outer Space Soundtrack (Retrosonic Records)

This out of print release of the Plan 9 From Outer Space soundtrack was the sole release by the now defunct Retrosonic Records label. There are several versions of the soundtrack available from other labels, which include dialogue and sound effects, but what makes this release unique is that it contains only the library/production music from the movie itself. I will refrain from discussing the movie itself at length since their is a considerable amount of information about it available on the internet. For the uninitiated, it is a 1959 science-fiction/horror movie directed by Ed Wood, which eventually became a cult classic based on it's reputation for often being cited as "the worst film ever made".



I had intended to post this once I was able to discover the artists responsible for each track; however, my search efforts ended in vain for the most part. My quest for information about the Retrosonic label also hit a dead end. Apparently this is the only album Retrosonic Records released before going under, and I couldn't find any information about them on the internet. Unfortunately, for decades there was very little information available about the musical cues featured in the film, and the mystery behind them was only recently solved. In fact, a great deal of the information that was available beforehand was actually misinformation that was intentionally circulated. These individuals aimed to make a profit by claiming to possess this knowledge, and published fake liner notes attributed to Ed Wood. The fact that a cue sheet for the music was never filed only confounded the problem even further. Fortunately, I was able to find this rather lengthy article, which provided some valuable info about the music featured in the soundtrack It makes mention of a few of the composers behind the music, although it falls short of identifying the individuals responsible for each track.

According to the Paul Mandell, the author of the article, Ed Wood hired Gordon Zahler to compile the music for the film. The tracks featured on the soundtrack consist of production music Zahler selected from both the Impress and Video Moods music libraries. The soundtrack is a great example of one that exceeds the quality of the film it was created for. The musicianship is top-notch, and is the only eerie or suspenseful aspect of an otherwise unintentionally comical movie. The Retrosonic release contains nearly all of the cues used for the movie, although there are a few that are conspicuously absent. It also contains a few cues that were excluded from the film due to the minuscule budget Ed Wood was working with. The sound quality is excellent, especially when one takes into account the age of the recordings, and the download provided is ripped from CD at a 320kbps bitrate. I hope that you all enjoy this obscure gem as much as I do.

Year of Release: 1996
Label: Retrosonic
Genre: Soundtrack
Bitrate: 320kbps

Track List:
01. Prelude
02. Main Title
03. The Shadows of Grief
04. Gravediggers
05. Lost Roses of Her Cheeks
06. Tragic!
07. Police Squad
08. I'm a Big Boy Now, Johnny
09. Patio Talk: Jeff & Paula
10. Clay Stalked and Killed
11. Plan 9 Interlude
12. The Bell Has Rung
13. Saucers Over Hollywood
14. Col. Edward's Big Decision
15. Saucer Fire
16. Your Pillow Beside Me
17. The Old Ghoul Walks
18. Mac Calls Paula
19. Cemetery Chase / Clay Rises
20. The Old Ghoul Retreats
21. Graveyard Marionettes
22. Kelton Lights a Match
23. Drop Your Electrode Gun!
24. There's Something Out There
25. Clay Abducts Paula
26. Eros, do We have to Kill Them?
27. Someday it'll All be Gone
28. Kelton & Larry Enter Ship
29. Fight / Fire / Finale
30. God Help Us in the Future

Download: Plan 9 From Outer Space Soundtrack
Download Size: 84MB

Idiot Flesh - Tales Of Instant Knowledge And Sure Death

Idiot Flesh was a band formed in Oakland, CA in 1985 under the name Acid Rain. They made their debut with the demo album "We Were All Very Worried" which was released on tape only in 1987. They changed their name to Idiot Flesh prior to the release of their first album.

Their first album entitled "Tales of Instant Knowledge and Sure Death" came out in 1990, three years after their impressive demo cassette which didn't featured that really elfish atmosphere which was present in their 1990 release. The lyrical and musical world of Idiot Flesh is truly an absurd and playful panorama of the theatres and circuses. These jugglers really knew how to entertain the abstract senses of the abstract public. During concerts they were giving puppet and pantomime shows beside acrobatic attractions as well. They also played on various strange instruments (castanets, marimba,..) including household items like trash cans, saws, etc. The album is a catchy avant-garde rock masterpiece with morphing bass vibrancies, funky guitar rhythms and the harmony of classical instruments. The atmosphere of the album is full of musical gags and playful melodies often resulting in comical pictures.

After the group disbanded in 1998, the members of Idiot Flesh would go on to work on solo projects or join other bands, most notably Sleepytime Gorilla Museum.

Year of Release: 1990
Label: Vaccination Records
Genre: Experimental/Progressive/Avant-Garde
Bitrate: 192kbps

Download: Idiot Flesh - Tales Of Instant Knowledge And Sure Death
Download Size: 68MB

Back From Vacation

Ijust returned from my trip back home to visit family and friends in Tennessee. I had a fantastic time while I was home, and can honestly say that it's the most fun I've had in years. I was able to spend a lot of quality time with my son, family, closest friends, and even a few old friends that I thought I might never see again. The flight home was the first time in my life that I've ever ridden in an airplane, and I was every bit as fascinating as I thought it would be. I celebrated my 30th birthday on the 9th, which didn't turn out to be as depressing as I anticipated :). I also had some time to rest my mind, which I have desperately needed to do. I've been averaging at least 13 hours a day between work and school every day since October of 2009, and it was beginning to overwhelm me a little.

I look forward to getting back on track here where I left off with my plans for this blog, and updating the DM blogroll. I've made mention of an official announcment regarding a huge project that we are in the process of organizing. I had hoped to make an announcement regarding it before I went on vacation. My partners, Sab and NØ, have been focusing on taking care of some important personal responsibilities, and I wanted to wait till we are all doing well before I make such a huge announcement.

Over the next couple of weeks I will probably post no more than a couple of albums a week, as I will be busy preparing for the upcoming project and updating the DM blogroll. My posts in the near future will consist of re-ups, so if you notice a dead download link for an album you would like to have, please don't hesitate to leave a comment.

Vacation Time

I will be flying home back home to Tennessee very shortly to visit my family and friends for the next 10 days. I had planned to leave you all with a surprise, but I have to leave a day earlier than I originally anticipated so I don't have time to post the surprise now. I plan to take my portable harddrive, which has a ton of music on it, but I don't know if I will be making any posts or not. NØ has been going through some hard times lately, so I'm not sure how much he will be able to post during my absence. Sab should be back from her own vacation shortly, so perhaps she may treat you all to some music from her collection. When I return I will be making a long overdue announcement involving an upcoming project for this blog. It will be the most significant project that has ever been posted on DM, and I'm not sure if anyone has ever attempted anything like this within the music blog world. I know you all will love it, and I can't wait to share it with you. In the meantime, if my companions are not able to update this blog, I would like to remind you all that I run the Digital Meltd0wn Music Aggregator/Blogroll @ http://music-bloggers.blogspot.com where you can find thousands of great music blogs of every type. I'll see you all shortly. Take care.